Sett's expression beca a bit weird.
"We did not disrespect the God, right?" he asked.
Nadia gulped. "I think not."
Then, Neilara's voice turned razor-sharp. "And mother, I hope you do not lead Sett astray. Your reckless ways are one thing, but he is the one who must replace . Do not make him a second you."
Isra's smirk faded.
She clenched her hand and stared at the God—
Sett imdiately stood infront of her. "Grandma, you know mom doesn't an what she says. She is just too emotionally stifled—you know what I an!" He stared at her. "There is no reason to anger so unknown god for fun. Right? Calm down!"
Nadia nodded with a gulp. "Yes, good grandma. No need to break the statue just because you are annoyed."
Why was Isra's aura so heavy even though it wasn't even trying to intimidate them?
Isra scoffed, then stord out of the Ancestral Grounds.
Neilara's voice had vanished.
She must have understood that she had said sothing hurtful.
Sett followed Isra out with Nadia in his arms.
Isra had beco truly pissed.
Would she lead Sett astray?!
What did she an by saying DON'T LEAD HIM ASTRAY?!
"Respecting a statue?" Isra sneered. "Hmph. Not in a million years. We should just destroy that faceless stone."
"It's not just a statue," Sett defended his mother's view by instinct, running behind his grandma. "It's the statue of a God."
"So what? The God did not build this statue, people did. They told stories about it and made it feel so grand. Now, they are just asking us to respect those delusional stories by not disrespecting this statue. I have no ti for that."
Nadia nodded from Sett's arms. "True. Now I feel like I respect you a bit more, old woman."
Sett gulped. Nobody will think you are mute if you keep your mouth shut!
Nadia said with a laugh: "One must be bold like that, willing to destroy gods and demons. On the other hand, look at my Sett, he bowed to that God. Tsk, tsk, be a man—don't bow to every statue you see."
Eh… that was right.
Isn't bowing shaful?
Sett gritted his teeth. He felt a bit embarrassed.
Did that make Nadia look down on him?
Isra squinted at him. "Yeah, yeah Sett. A man should not let anyone god over them. This is so embarrassing. And it even happened in front of your wife. Why don't you go destroy that statue to make up for it?"
Sett felt his heart clench at the thought.
Destroy sothing that his ancestors respected?
Isra smiled. "Is your honor, or the feelings of dead people more important?"
"Wait. I will go destroy that thing."
Neilara's voice returned: "Stop, Sett. And Mother, I heard all of that—this is what I ant when I said you will lead him astray.
"Sett, your adventure is over. Return ho in 3 days—I have things here that need your attention."
"h." Isra scoffed. "Ignore her, kids."
Neilara said: "Bowing down is alright Sett, they are goading you into doing sothing with no benefits. What if you had to bow down? Real dignity is not in such petty things, real dignity is in standing up for your own principles.
"You don't care about bowing? Bow all you want. Why should you do what others believe is 'honorable'?
"Who decided what is 'honorable' and what is not 'honorable'? You can decide what is honorable to you. Never let other people tell you what honor is. Honor is not sothing that truly exists, it is a thing that us kings and queens created for the world."
Sett frowned, not really understanding.
"Those in higher positions work to instill shared values and ideologies in the lower ranks. Kings, Presidents, Queens. We create rules and regulations that run a country, and we make the populace believe that going against these laws are 'bad' or 'evil'."
"These shared values often include concepts like glory, honor, and ritorious deeds, which are portrayed as virtuous and worth striving for. And things like dishonor is made to be sothing ugly and bad."
Sett understood that much. People in high-power created rules and regulations for people at low-power, and dia, propaganda, and consequences of going against these laws made people believe that breaking the law was nearly evil.
"But these sa people at the top also decide what is honorable and evil at the sa ti. If they told the world that love is honorable, people would believe it. And if they said lying is dishonorable, people would also believe that."
Nadia asked, "Is lying not dishonorable, mother-in-law?"
"There is no concept such as honor and dishonor, Nadia. It is a social construct. There is no absolute Good and Bad action. Honor is nothing but the sa thing—sothing created by the elites to control the weak. Just think of it, who would be easier to control?
"A person who does not lie, is obedient to the law, or a person who lies all the ti and has no care for the law?"
"Obviously the obedient person is easier to control," Sett said in assurance.
"That is why we, people at the top, made the lowly people below us believe that lying is dishonorable."
Sett beca silent, falling deep in thought.
Then, Isra laughed. "You learned well from , my daughter. But you missed sothing. What happens when the people below don't believe in the honor and dishonor that people at the top created?"
Sett looked at his grandmother in confusion.
Isra continued. "If people below don't believe in your fake-honor, you create a consequence to not believing you."
"You an?"
"Yes. I an religion. In religion, the sacred scriptures create such a code of honor and dishonor. If you do not agree with their beliefs of good and evil, you will be thrown into hell after you die."
Thus, people will beco afraid of not believing in the lie of honor.
After all, if they were not good people—they will be thrown to hell after they die.
Sett felt as if he had just awakened.
"So what must one do, mother, grandma?" Sett asked humbly.
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