Dragon Sword and Wind Child Read Online Free PDF

fire god and went to the Land of the Dead to bring her back. But, horrified at how changed she had become, he fled back to the world above, sealing the entrance with a huge stone and severing his ties with her forever. From that time onward they have lived separately in heaven and the underworld, despising one another.”
    â€œThey divided into the forces of Light and Darkness,” Saya said sullenly. “Anyone born in Toyoashihara knows that. The Goddess cursed the land and vowed she would kill one thousand people each day. The God responded that he would build one thousand five hundred birthing huts a day. He is the Great God of Light, who bathes this world in light, nurturing life. And his sacred children are Princess Teruhi and Prince Tsukishiro.”
    â€œDoes he really nurture life?” the old woman countered in a strangely gentle voice. “Surely it is the earth that nurtures life. And it is water that revives the earth. Water falls from above, quenching all the land, and, in the end, flows into the underworld. That is the road to the Goddess, the road that all living things on the earth will one day tread. Our land of Toyoashihara is dependent upon the eternal flow of water. If this cycle is disrupted, it will stagnate, and evil and corruption will be left unchecked.”
    Touched by a sudden sadness, Saya looked up, but Lady Iwa’s eyes were lowered. Saya was surprised to find herself sympathizing with this old woman who resembled some kind of apparition. It was her vulnerability rather than her ugliness that stood out. She looked like a clumsy fledgling not yet able to fly, waiting patiently to be rescued.
    Lady Iwa continued. “In his hatred and anger, however, the God of Light sealed off the road to the underworld. And through his immortal children, Princess Teruhi and Prince Tsukishiro, he rules the earth, hunting down and destroying the gods of the mountains and rivers that he conceived with the Goddess. He intends to destroy all the gods and rule the earth alone, to claim Toyoashihara through slaughter and plunder.”
    â€œNo! You’re wrong!” Saya protested hotly. “That’s not true. There’s nothing wrong with trying to shed light over all the world and unite it under one ruler. The war is caused by stubborn people who refuse to recognize how precious his light is. It’s because some people don’t want peace—”
    She was interrupted by a voice of steel. It was the first time that she had heard Lord Shinado speak. Although he was the youngest of the three men, there was something in his bearing and in his eyes reminiscent of a keen-edged sword.
    â€œHow can you be so heartless? This God of Light that you worship murdered your own father and mother. Flames and horses’ hooves trampled your village into the ground. By the time we reached it, there was not one soul left alive. His two immortal children feel nothing, not even as much remorse as a dewdrop evaporating in the morning sun. Yet you would still worship them? Will you choose comfort and ease over revenge against the enemies of your own parents?”
    Saya shuddered. Perhaps it was this that she had most feared. But there was something within her that would not yield, that could not back down. She realized that she was stronger than she had thought.
    â€œI don’t want to hate,” she replied in a small voice. If she was afraid, it was only of Lord Shinado himself, for she was certain of what she said. “I have a new mother and father. They found me and raised me like their own child. I am not heartless. It’s just that I prefer to love rather than to hate.”
    â€œHmmm. She reminds me of Princess Sayura,” muttered the huge Lord Ibuki. Although he was talking to himself, his voice rumbled like thunder.
    Lady Iwa nodded in agreement. “Yes, she said the same thing. We’re not saying that you shouldn’t be drawn to the Light, Saya. But we must