"Grandpa!" A boy, aged six screamed in pain, clutching his head as he was sweating bullets, rolling around on his bed.
"Hazen! What happened?" His grandpa rushed into the room upon his shouts, gazing at the child that was in pain, hurriedly inspecting his condition, unable to notice anything amiss.
"People are…hurting, grandpa!" Hazen shouted, clutching his head as he continued to tremble in response, "They are hurting!"
"Take in deep breaths," His grandpa said in a hurry, rubbing his back as he watched Hazen follow his advice.
As Hazen continued to take in deep breaths, his pain gradually subsided. But he was still full of tears, sobbing as he said, "There's hunger and war everywhere."
"It's alright, our village is peaceful." The grandpa said in a soothing voice, gradually making Hazen calm down as he put him to sleep, "Now, have a good night. We'll talk in the morning, alright?"
"Yes…" Hazen nodded, wiping his tears as he closed his eyes, falling asleep immediately after. But, it didn't seem like he was having a pleasant sleep, judging by how his eyelids continued to flutter, apparent that he was experiencing a nightmare.
His grandpa stared at the scene, feeling his heart ache as he slowly prostrated on the ground, tearing up for a moment before bolting out of the room, breaking into a cry, "Hiek!"
"So, this is the weight of peace!" He wiped his tears, gradually leaving his house, noticing a group of old men huddled in the corridor, seated around a campfire.
There wasn't a fire before them, but a small crystal, one that seemed to emit heat and light at a consistent pace. Moreover, it was the perfect material to be used indoors.
After all, their housing was situated in a large apartment, a building of pearl that Compass Carburettor had once created. There was plenty of extra space here in the corridors, with balconies attached.
The elderly group was huddled in one such area, talking about various events that had happened recently or in their youth.
When they saw the grandpa approaching them, the old man at the front, one with the most grey hairs among everyone said, "Chief, what happened? You look distressed."
"Hazen's nightmares are worsening by the day." The grandpa, Chief of the Hazen Village sighed, "He's unable to sleep properly now. The sufferings of the people from the mainland are eating away at his mind."
"That is…troubling." The old man with the most grey hairs muttered, feeling a sense of helplessness, "I just hope…he can have an enjoyable childhood."
"Yes, that's my only wish too." The village chief sighed, "Taking on the burden of shouldering the troubles of everyone is an impossible task, even if he has the power of the deities."
"Has he expressed any supernatural power as of yet?" One of the old men asked.
"Nothing as of now." The Village Chief shook his head, "He's no different from a mortal. But, whenever I wish for anything, even though he doesn't show it much, it seems like he can perceive what I'm wishing for."
"That's…" Everyone sighed at that as one of them muttered, "Until six years ago, praying to Hazen's statue seemed normal. But now that he has taken on a human form, I am disinclined from making any wishes. I just…don't wish to burden him any more than this. After all, he's just a frail child now."
"But, this is his fate." The Village Chief sighed with a forlorn gaze, "And there's nothing we can do to prevent it."
"Chief, why don't you leave Hazen in my house?" Suddenly, a wizened old man said, "There's plenty of people in my house. And my grandkids are the same age as Hazen. Maybe if he has more company, he might have an easier time. With only you in your house, he's probably feeling lonely."
"You also know the problem with that arrangement, right?" The Village Chief sighed, "Your son and daughter would probably treat Hazen many times better than their own children. And that's bound to create friction between the children."
At his words, everyone smiled wryly.
Of course, every adult in the village knew about Hazen's birth. And for the God that they had worshipped for more than twenty years to be birthed among them, it wouldn't be odd for every word from Hazen to be taken as gospel.
This was also why the Village Chief took responsibility for raising Hazen. After all, he didn't have a family, and hence, he could provide a somewhat normal life for him. But at times, even he couldn't control himself and look at Hazen with a gaze full of devotion.
But the first time he did that, Hazen looked incomparably sad for some reason. So after that, he controlled himself. The same couldn't be said about other families.
This was why the Village Chief was pensive about leaving Hazen under the care of others.
"I can only hope to live long enough until he becomes an adult." The Village Chief sighed, turning around as he began to walk towards his home.
"Chief, have some tea. My daughter-in-law made warm tea to soothe our old bones." The old man with the most grey hair said suddenly.
The Village Chief's figure halted at the words as he turned around, taking a seat among the group, "I'll take a cup please."
"Haha, the Chief loves tea." One of them chuckled in response before shifting the topic of discussion.
After an hour, the Village Chief returned home, checking upon Hazen to hear his sound breathing, heaving a sigh in relief, 'Thankfully, he's recovered now. As long as everyone around him is happy, he has a better time sleeping.'
He then gently closed the door and entered his room, laying down on the bed to sleep. For a moment he was worried about Hazen but the Village Chief immediately curbed the thoughts, thinking of other things to distract himself with, gradually falling asleep.
As for Hazen, the sleeping child woke up soon after the Village Chief left his room, muttering in a saddened tone, "Grandpa is worried about me…"
"What should I do…?"
