Great-Uncle

Grim Imperial Guard warriors stood garrison in the village, and the solemn High Priest paused in the granary. He looked at the four empty walls of the granary, a trace of surprise on his grave face, his brows slightly furrowed, wordless for the moment.

After a few breaths, Xolotl looked at the village priest Yoloki and asked in a low voice.

"The whole clan was exterminated?"

"Respected High Priest, more than two months ago, I reported the village's situation to the Priesthood of Lake Capital, hoping we could take back part of the village's grain from the hands of the local hereditary nobles. Then, then, the capital's Priesthood directly sent out several hundred—five hundred—Temple Guards and broke through the local noble's manor. Dozens of direct male descendants were all sacrificed, and the remaining two hundred-odd women, children, and servants were all exiled to the western kingdom..."

"Exiled to the western kingdom..."

Xolotl was startled, then thought of the unending stream of immigrants moving over from the Alliance, and fell silent in thought. After a long while, he spoke calmly.

"Yoloki, since the local noble clan has already been wiped out, has the extra tribute levied from the village been taken back?"

"High Priest, the Temple Guard took away the vast majority of the wealth and left only part of the grain, barely enough for the villagers to hold out until the autumn harvest."

Yoloki answered with extreme care.

"The capital's Priesthood promised to reduce or exempt the tribute from the autumn harvest. If the farmers tighten their belts and work hard for another month or so, they'll be able to harvest pumpkins and use them as their daily staple. In the harvest season, when the fragrance of grain drifts everywhere, it will draw many animals and insects. If they catch