Desire and reproduction?
That was the first thought that surfaced in Hastur's mind. He observed a while longer, but did not detect the key element of desire, only pure reproduction.
Reproduction could also apply to crops, but gathering like this under a red cloth… it still felt somewhat inappropriate.
Within his own territory, it would be better to have less of this kind of thing.
Hastur began considering how to change the townspeople's mindset regarding the Grain Festival. If it were a festival held in devotion to the Earth Mother Goddess, he wouldn't interfere.
After all, faith in the Earth Mother Goddess would not lead to uncontrollable incidents.
But this town believed in reproduction, not in the Earth Mother Goddess. If this continued, with reproduction as the guiding principle, sooner or later they would fall into the embrace of the Mother Tree of Desire or the Mother Goddess of Depravity.
That was something he absolutely would not allow.
"This place should have wind, a strong wind!"
Hastur murmured softly, preparing to summon a gale to flip over the red cloth and expose the so-called Goddess of Spring to everyone.
Yet when the wind swept in from afar and lifted the edges of the red cloth, the center remained firmly pressed down by something, unmoved despite the raging gusts.
Something was wrong.
Hastur activated his spirit vision and looked toward the red cloth. Faintly, he saw an illusory figure lying atop it, watching the act of reproduction between the five couples beneath.
The figure resembled a spider, but without so many legs, nor was it covered in hair. Its abdomen was round and swollen, as if pregnant, while its upper body was slender and elongated, like a person planted into a flowerbed, then standing up and dragging the flowerbed along as it walked.
Perhaps sensing his gaze, the figure turned to look back. It appeared to be a human face, but it had no facial features.
A human-faced spider? Was this the true form of the so-called Goddess of Spring?
Hastur did not interfere and continued to observe quietly. The human-faced spider made no other movements, remaining sprawled over the red cloth, watching the "great act" unfolding beneath.
When sunlight finally broke over the horizon, the already faint figure of the spider dissipated completely in the light, leaving no trace behind.
As cheers erupted, this year's Grain Festival came to an end.
Under the instructions of the female priestess, several strong young men carried over firewood that had long been prepared nearby, piled it around the red cloth, and set it alight.
Throughout the entire process, the red cloth was never lifted, and the idol within burned to ashes along with the flames.
According to the townspeople, all living things ultimately return to the soil, becoming nourishment for the growth of all things.
The Goddess of Spring was no exception. When She turned into ashes along with the wishes of her followers and merged into the earth, She would nourish the crops and bring about a joyful harvest.
The explanation was reasonable and convincing, leaving little room for criticism.
But Hastur still did not want to allow the existence of this Goddess of Spring. He did not believe in the benevolence of gods.
Everything was equivalent exchange, what you gained, you must lose something in return.
Such protection could not possibly come without a price.
In Silver City, the "Gift of the Land," formed from the remains of the Giant Queen Omebella, allowed the people there to survive in the dangerous, forsaken land by providing them with black-faced grass as a staple food.
But the price they paid was this: they would bear a cursed fate, where only those killed by direct relatives would not turn into terrifying evil spirits.
Harvest came with a cost.
Hastur did not act immediately. Instead, he went to wash up, then went downstairs for breakfast before heading out for a stroll.
Although the ritual had ended, the festival continued. Such festivities usually lasted an entire week.
Every household would use this occasion to display the fruits and vegetables they had grown.
The quality of produce here was indeed better than that of other regions. The fruits and vegetables needed daily at Hastur's castle were all purchased from this town.
One reason was proximity; the other was their excellent quality.
After wandering around, Hastur casually inquired about the female priestess. In such a remote town, a respected priestess's words often carried more weight than a mayor's.
The priestess in Moira Town was not a fixed position but changed every year. As for why it was so frequent, the residents all gave the same answer.
Harvest required nurturing, just as women needed time to recover after giving birth.
Worshipping the Goddess of Spring was the same, after a year of harvest, a new priestess was needed to nurture the next cycle.
This explanation had some logic, but it did not convince Hastur. He specifically asked whether the priestess who presided over the ritual one year could still be seen the following year.
The answer was yes. Not only that, she would be even more sought after for marriage, as many believed that a priestess who conducted the ritual was also beneficial for reproduction.
This struck Hastur as odd. In his understanding, priestesses held a sacred status and were usually forbidden from marrying or bearing children, required to remain celibate for life.
But here, not only could priestesses marry and have children, they were highly desirable.
Moreover, Hastur noticed that the townspeople placed great importance on reproduction.
Some families had seven or eight children and continued to have more. One household even had twenty-three children!
"You must be an outsider. Everyone here knows that the more children you have, the easier it is to receive the Goddess of Spring's blessing. Your fields will be more likely to yield abundant harvests, and may even remain free of pests all year round," a slightly drunk man mocked Hastur's ignorance.
Others nearby assumed Hastur had come specifically to find a suitable girl for marriage.
This was nothing unusual. Many outsiders coveted the town's blessings of harvest and sought to marry a local woman, hoping their own lands would become fertile.
But they usually failed, having many children, yet still facing poor harvests and barren fields.
People had come to the conclusion that only the area surrounding the town could enjoy the Goddess of Spring's blessing.
Hastur did not take such claims seriously, but he took the opportunity to say that he was indeed looking for a suitable bride, and successfully obtained the home address of this year's priestess.
"Old Jeff's daughter isn't easy to marry. You'll need at least 100 gold pounds as a bride price, and enough land for ten oxen to plow before you even stand a chance," someone shouted.
"I don't think you've got any hope. Even though you look decent, Old Jeff's daughter is only fourteen this year. He wouldn't want his precious girl to marry far away."
"Young man, here's a tip, slam 500 gold pounds onto Old Jeff's table, and he won't say a word of objection. He'll happily accept you as his son-in-law."
Ignoring the chatter, Hastur left. He did not head to Old Jeff's house immediately, but returned to the inn to rest, planning to act at night.
After all, he wasn't here because he fancied someone's daughter, especially not a fourteen-year-old. He had no such inclinations.
At around ten at night, Hastur followed the information he had gathered during the day and arrived near Old Jeff's house.
Located northwest of the town square, it was a two-story row house, considered relatively well-off in the town.
Old Jeff had two sons and a daughter. The eldest son was already married and living separately, while the second son stayed at the farm to guard the crops. At home remained only Old Jeff, his wife, and their fourteen-year-old daughter.
Hastur found this quite surprising. When he observed the priestess the previous night, she didn't look fourteen at all, probably due to heavy makeup.
Only after the family turned off the lights and went to sleep did Hastur appear in the daughter's room.
Liv, a fairly easy name to remember.
To investigate the priestess issue in the town, Hastur used his Nightmare abilities to enter Liv's dream.
Whether it was because she had just experienced the ritual the previous night or for some other reason, the impression was vivid.
In the dream was a field of abundant harvest, golden rice stalks drooping with grains, glistening with droplets of dew.
Corn, pumpkins, carrots, cabbages, all grew lush and vibrant, heavy with produce. Even the sky was a brilliant blue.
But one detail aroused Hastur's suspicion: at the root of every crop, there were fine white threads entwined, extending deep underground.
These threads were very thin, some even hidden beneath the soil. Without lying down to look closely, it would be difficult to notice.
Threads… the human-faced spider… could this truly be the blessing of the Goddess of Spring?
Was She slumbering deep beneath this land?
Hastur couldn't help but form such a question. He walked deeper into the field and finally saw the central figure of the dream.
With a bamboo basket hooked over her right arm, she was picking fresh produce. Her young, delicate, and pretty face was filled with the joy of harvest as she neatly placed bright red tomatoes into the basket.
Soon the bottom of the basket was filled, and she began picking cucumbers, cabbages, and more.
If left undisturbed, she seemed capable of continuing this endlessly.
Hastur watched for a while, finding nothing unusual, and finally spoke, breaking the silence.
The young girl was startled, instinctively stepping back and hiding behind a cucumber trellis.
When she saw who it was, her eyes brightened slightly, and a faint blush spread across her cheeks.
After hesitating shyly for a moment, she slowly stepped out and asked in a soft voice, "Who are you? How did you get into our family's field?"
Hastur frowned slightly and examined her more carefully.
According to the Nightmare's abilities, she should have been dazed, with little awareness, only capable of simple question-and-answer responses.
Could it be that the blessing of the Goddess of Spring had not yet fully dissipated, allowing her to temporarily resist the Nightmare's intrusion?
Perhaps noticing his prolonged silence, the girl pouted unhappily. "You're really rude. I already asked you a question."
"I'm a traveler from afar. I happened to come here and saw how beautiful your crops are, so I was unconsciously drawn in."
"Oh, so you're here to steal vegetables from our field!" the girl said, suddenly enlightened.