The Grand Epic of Merítos
Story of the Valianist faith
Merítos was a craftsman. A devout man, he prayed to God and the agents as was necessary.
One day, God took notice of his piety, and his intellect. So, it tested Merítos. God wanted a drink that would excite it, make it dizzy and weak like a human. Thus, it challenged Merítos with this task.
Merítos laboured for two years. He knew that fruits gave juice, so he tried with fruits. One day, he thought of mixing grape juice with yeast. However, he forgot about this mix, as he thought of using other foodstuffs.
Then, he saw the mix: it was wine. He tasted it, and it certainly made him dizzy and weak.
Merítos, with his new invention, presented it to God, who congratulated him with a prize: twenty bars of gold. However, Merítos neglected the prize, as he merely did as ordered by God as a pious man. God was proud of Merítos for resisting temptation and humbly serving it.
Next, it challenged Merítos. God now wanted something that would make music by blowing into it.
Merítos set out to work, and he took two years. Finally, he invented the flute. He presented this gift to God, and it was, yet again, pleased.
Now God gave him a prize: two thousand cattle that feeded themselves. Merítos, again, rejected this, bowing to the Lord instead.
God now gave another challenge. It created a woman so astonishingly beautiful, and so mad in love with Merítos, that any man would commit adultery. However, knowing that adultery was a grave sin, and he valued his family, he refused the woman's advances. The woman got furious, and went to Sartoria (less prevalent versions say that she committed suicide) in a rage.
God was pleased. It turned his daughters into the most beautiful and desirable in the land, allowing them to easily marry their crushes. As it was technically a gift for his daughters, Merítos did not object, but pleaded with his daughters to be faithful and devoted to God, and they did.
Now, it would test his loyalty. Merítos was a good craftsman, diligently serving it, and he could resist sin, but God wanted to test his piety with one last test.
God punished Merítos, making his business fail, killing his family, and giving him an insatiable appetite. He also gave him a mortal disease. However, despite knowing that God gave him this curse, he continued to be a faithful man.
God was pleased. Now, it restored everything he had, plus gave him the rule over a city. Merítos accepted what was his, as God had deemed it fine again to have what was his, but he rejected to rule, seeing himself as a humble servant.
God, although amazed at Merítos's humility and piety, grew tired. It felt that it had to give a reward. So, it ordered Merítos to accept all the rewards it tried to give him, or he would be comitting a mortal sin. Merítos, ever faithful and obedient, accepted. His family was now the richest in the land.
The city is unknown. Some suggest it was a northern city, as wine is prevalently grown in areas like Caleion. Others suggest that it was in the centre, as gold is found in the southern areas of the Miradié mountains. And some, more recently, suggest that the city did not exist, and that this "gifting of a city" was the representation of the divine right to rule for monarchs. After all, Merítos was pious, and was given the rule to a city. Doesn't it mean that our ruler is also devout, and ordained by God?