The snake-tail tendrils on the three-year-old boy's head, combined with the rumors, made the villagers unshakeable in their conviction.
No one's heart softened. The village well could not be without water for a single day. The child had to be thrown into it, handed over to the Well Dragon King for judgment.
Even without the rumors, even if the well hadn't run dry, the child couldn't be allowed to live. He was an abomination; how could he be allowed to exist in the world of men?
Abominations must die. This was true not just in a superstitious village like this one; even people in a big city, upon seeing a boy's head covered in snake-tail tendrils, would find the thought so terrifying they would choose to kill him.
However, in modern times, under the protection of the law and science, a child is innocent no matter what.
But in ancient times, forget a case like this one. Even if a child were born with a slightly severe deformity, it would be called 'a crime against Heaven.'
