Horace fell silent. The plight of the Albinaurics put them in contention for the most miserable race in all the Lands Between.
The men aged rapidly, reduced to short-lived laborers; although the women had relatively normal lifespans, their severely atrophied lower limbs made it difficult for them to care for themselves.
In the future, Rykard would even subject them to inhuman torture, not for interrogation, but solely for punishment.
The Cuckoo Knights discriminated against them because "their blood was so filthy."
Even the Tarnished, hunted throughout the Lands Between, regarded them as walking runes.
In such utter despair, someone would cling desperately to any lifeline, even one they knew was poisonous.
He sympathized with them, but the Formless Mother's twisted doctrine absolutely could not be allowed to spread.
It was not merely deception, but the manipulation and amplification of the suffering of the weak to satisfy an outer god's twisted preferences. (Don't ask where those twisted preferences came from.)
Albinaurics could not reproduce. For the women, so-called "obedience to the doctrine" meant nothing more than enduring meaningless pain. Perhaps this was precisely what better suited the Formless Mother's preference for "pure suffering." No wonder She was so "generous."
"Gaius, I understand your desire to stand and walk. But what that church offers is sugar-coated poison. It cannot truly heal you. It will only trap you in a cycle of false hopes followed by even deeper helplessness, ultimately destroying your minds completely. And the doctrine it preaches twists human nature and encourages meaningless suffering. I absolutely will not allow it to spread through my territory."
Gaius's lips moved. The anger in his eyes had not faded, but he seemed to have taken some of it in.
How could he not know that the Grace was fleeting? It was just that... they