Chapter 428: Human Tragedy

So, regarding the fact that I've transmigrated to the eve of the God-King's awakening and have been appointed as the one to light the pyre for the witch-burning, what should I do?

Waiting online, it's an emergency.

Dorothy looked at the golden-haired village girl tied to the cross-shaped pyre not far away, who was desperately and frantically trying to explain to the ignorant crowd surrounding her that she was not a witch, and she was completely numb.

Although the woman on the pyre didn't look very similar to the holy, awe-inspiring, goddess-like God-King in the statues of later generations—far from the beauty depicted in those sculptures—one could vaguely discern a six or seven-point resemblance in her features.

However, the Home Witch had basically confirmed that this village girl named Dinisha was that first original witch, the future God-King.

As for the discrepancy in appearance, it certainly wasn't because the God-King was bragging or because the sculptors had intentionally beautified her to curry favor.

It was simply because the village girl at this moment was not yet the Witch King of the future; she was still just a mortal. How could a mortal's appearance be as refined as a witch's?

Besides, no one would actually believe that a village girl in a poverty-stricken medieval village could be that beautiful; that's pure nonsense.

Even for a natural beauty, maintaining one's looks requires proper care—either spending a fortune on various maintenance products or using magical, mysterious powers to prevent one's beauty from being eroded by external factors.

A common village girl naturally possessed neither of these conditions. Therefore, honestly speaking, although this Miss Dinisha on the pyre could still be considered a pretty girl, she really couldn't be called stunning.

If beauty were graded out of a hundred, she would be at most a 75; no higher.

After all, long-term malnutrition had left her figure somewhat withered—flat-chested and thin—and her complexion was sallow and dull. Furthermore, the long hours of physical labor made the muscles in her hands and feet prominent, which looked overly "sturdy" in contrast to her thin body.

The long-term exposure to the sun and wind had also left her skin in terrible condition—dry, not at all supple, with visible pores, and even some freckles on her face.

Yet, being able to score a 75 despite all these issues showed that her foundation was truly excellent. If she had been born into a wealthy family, she could have grown into a great beauty approaching 90 points.

And 90 points was the limit of mortal beauty; anyone scoring higher than that couldn't possibly be a mortal.

The statues in the God-King Sect were carved after the God-King became the Witch King. By that period, her beauty had synchronized with her strength and physical evolution, reaching a level of nearly 99 points—an appearance approaching that of a deity. Naturally, this looked quite different from the village girl Dinisha of her mortal days; the gap was obvious.

However, beauty and ugliness are expressed through comparison. Everyone lived at the same standard of living and was equally ravaged by the environment. In this context, the advantage of a good foundation became apparent. Against the backdrop of the surrounding villagers, whose maximum beauty didn't even reach 60, this Miss Dinisha was undoubtedly a top-tier beauty.

It was just that such beauty was not a good thing for a village girl without power, influence, or strength.

Dorothy had been secretly observing the chatter of the villagers gathered to watch the spectacle. She concentrated the small amount of mana in her body into her ears, forming the most basic form of hearing enhancement.

Although the effect was far inferior to a spell specifically for enhancing hearing—it couldn't even be called a zero-circle cantrip in the witch's magic system—it was enough for the moment.

By piecing together the fragments of their conversation, she managed to assemble the background of this girl who would become the supreme figure of the Western Universe, as well as the sequence of events.

Dinisha was an orphan. Years ago, her mother had been the village beauty, with many suitors, but she had fallen for an adventurer passing through the village and became pregnant out of wedlock.

In this era, pregnancy out of wedlock was no small matter, especially since the adventurer who promised to return never did. After that, the malice of human nature was laid bare.

The same suitors who had once liked her so much now loved to bully her, and coupled with other women who had always been jealous of her beauty, the mother and daughter were practically ostracized by the entire village.

As for why the grandparents, uncles, and aunts didn't help...

Erm, in this era, girls didn't have much human rights. To put it bluntly, they were raised to be sold. Her grandparents had originally hoped to marry her mother off to the village blacksmith or butcher, as they were the wealthiest men in the village.

But because of her mother's indiscretion with that passing adventurer, this deal, which had been as good as settled, fell through.

Not that it was completely ruined; there wasn't a strong concept of chastity in this era. As long as she was beautiful enough, a widow with a child wasn't impossible to marry off.

Therefore, the persecution by her former family was the most ruthless. They were truly planning every day to sell the mother and daughter for money.

In this backward and ignorant era, in this particularly backward and ignorant remote village, the social climate was just that "simple and honest"—it was truly a village of villains. After all, just staying alive was difficult; you couldn't find a few people in the whole village who could read, so don't expect the villagers to understand morality or law.

Fortunately, no matter how dark a place is, there is always a glimmer of light. Father Adam, the priest at the church outside the village, was that glimmer of light that illuminated the mother and daughter.

This priest, who had arrived at the long-abandoned church outside the village over a decade ago with a child, was a big shot in the eyes of the villagers.

He was handsome, elegant, and refined, and he knew many things. The villagers, who had never left the village in their lives, had never seen such a person and assumed he must have come from a legendary big city.

In any case, this priest had great prestige in the village.

He was also kind-hearted. Not long after arriving, seeing the pitiful state of the orphan and widow, he offered them some care.

He hired the mother to look after the baby girl he had brought with him. The mother accepted gladly and raised that baby girl alongside her own daughter, Dinisha.

It was a pity that the mother couldn't withstand the hardships of life in the end. Although she had the priest's care and her life was passable, the mental torture from the villagers' constant finger-pointing—some even saying she was helping the priest because she had seduced him—was too much to bear.

In this cannibalistic environment, she struggled for ten years, and when the two girls were ten, she died of illness, depressed and withered.

After that, the girl Dorothy, whom the priest had brought with him, became a nun at the church, while the girl Dinisha became a shepherdess in the village with the priest's help.

They lived in peace until today. This life should have continued peacefully, until a team of witch-hunters from the Church passed through this remote village again.

One of the young witch-hunters took a fancy to the beauty of this shepherdess who had just been tending sheep outside the village.

Normally, a witch-hunter with some status in the Church wanting to get his hands on an ignorant village shepherdess wouldn't be difficult.

Back then, Dinisha's mother had been tricked by her adventurer father in the same way. It was a pity that fate had cycled back, but the shepherdess made a choice completely different from her mother's.

After all, she had witnessed the tragic end of her mother. Although she was only sixteen, Dinisha had long since stopped believing in so-called love.

Therefore, no matter how the witch-hunter—who was actually quite handsome—showed off or tried to curry favor like a peacock in courtship, the shepherdess remained unmoved.

And then...

And then she was accused of being a witch by the frustrated witch-hunter.

That was roughly how it happened.

Having pieced all this together, the Home Witch felt even more numb.

"Good grief, I've actually become the childhood friend of the God-King. I don't know if my luck is good or bad."

The fact that her starting identity was so special left Dorothy at a loss.

After all, her original plan hadn't involved getting entangled with the absolute protagonist of this Witch's Night, the future God-King. She had just wanted to find a quiet corner to hide, study the magic knowledge in her cellar, and only venture out once she had some self-preservation ability.

But now, just as she didn't need to go out of her way to find mystical knowledge, she didn't need to look for the God-King either; they were childhood friends.

However, that wasn't the point. The point was that her current identity was a nun of the Church, while Dinisha was a "witch" about to be subjected to a holy trial. In a moment, she would have to personally light the pyre for her childhood friend, the girl she had grown up with.

After all, witch-hunters had to give the local church some face. The credit for judging a "witch" in their jurisdiction couldn't be taken by the witch-hunters alone, so the holy trial was usually carried out by local church personnel.

Or rather, they had to do it, or else they'd be slapped with the charge of harboring a witch, and the church staff would be in trouble too.

Damn, "I" have to personally light the fire to burn my childhood friend, the girl I grew up with, who was practically a sister to me?

I'm done for. What kind of human tragedy is this?

When Dorothy had read about this history years ago, she had been quite puzzled, feeling that the God-King's awakening seemed a bit "predestined." After all, there were many innocent girls burned as witches; why hadn't others resonated with the world's consciousness?

But now...

"Protagonists really aren't just anyone. Although there were many tragedies in this era, there probably weren't many that were this miserable."

Dorothy had originally thought that perhaps the God-King had a special destiny or truly astonishing talent, which was why she had been chosen by the world's consciousness.

But now it seemed that the world's consciousness hadn't chosen her proactively; it was Dinisha's final resentment that was truly terrifying, which had shocked the world's consciousness.

It was like how not everyone who dies becomes a vengeful spirit. The formation of a powerful vengeful spirit requires a special destiny, a violent death, and sufficient resentment—all conditions must be met.

In this magical world, a person's resentment also has levels. If the level of resentment is high enough, it can indeed attract the attention of some strange things, such as the classic demonic descent.

Of course, demons, as a Scourge race, have high standards. They don't care about the petty resentment of ordinary people before they die.

But Dinisha...

First, she was a pure maiden.

The resentment of a pure maiden's fall is rated as top-tier goods in the professional eyes of demons.

Second, she was a devout believer. After all, the church represented by Adam was the only light in her dark life. In such an environment, Dinisha was naturally a devout believer. According to the villagers, Dinisha's words and deeds were even more "nun-like" than Dorothy's.

And now, such a devout believer was accused of being a witch by the very church she trusted...

Tsk, the curse of a fallen devout believer is the most precious treasure in the eyes of demons.

And now, if Dorothy goes to light the fire, oh boy, the resentment of betrayal between loved ones—isn't that perfect? That's another top-tier item that would make demons ecstatic.

And that's not even counting other miscellaneous factors...

Erm... you witch-hunters are so good at playing games, do the angels above know? These buffs are almost stacked to the limit. Are you raising a Gu-insect?

Dorothy was startled by the calculation.

With this kind of treatment, even if the world's consciousness didn't respond, the Abyss and Hell would. This was truly the potential of a Demon God.

So the question is, should I light the fire or not?

If I don't, history will be changed. If the God-King doesn't awaken, what happens next? Without the God-King, there is no witch race. How are these trial-takers supposed to fight the angels?

But if I do...

Hmm, if I remember correctly, the God-King's awakening was the day the whole village was sacrificed. Consumed by resentment, she started a massacre.

Then the question is, how is she supposed to save her "father" from the plot-mandated death?

Does she have to rely on this 100-mana mortal magic to fight an awakening God-King?

Don't joke around. Even if you're cheating, you have to be reasonable. Although she didn't know how powerful the God-King was upon awakening, she probably had tens of thousands of mana. Dorothy probably couldn't withstand a single slap.

"Damn, I thought this was a good start, but now it looks like a scam. What kind of hellish start is this?"

... The Home Witch felt exhausted...

Don't joke, okay? Even if you cheat, you have to be reasonable. Although I don't know how powerful the God King is when she just awakened, how can she have tens of thousands of Total Mana magic power? I might not be able to withstand a slap.

"Damn, I thought this start was good before. Now it seems it's a scam. What kind of hell start is this?"

... The Home Witch is tired in her heart....