She rubbed her hands, her eyes shining:
"That lord appreciates sincere craftsmanship! You want enlightenment? It's simple! Wait until late at night and go to the oldest sugar maple forest south of town!"
"Take your best, most lovingly prepared meal and place it on the largest 'Sugar Heart Stone' in the forest. Don't think about anything else, just think about presenting this gift to that lord! And then... and then..."
The fat aunt got stuck when she said this.
There was a strange expression on his face, a mixture of happiness and confusion, as if he was trying hard to recall the details of an extremely beautiful dream, but just couldn't remember the key.
She slapped her forehead vigorously. "Hey! Look at my memory! What will happen next... I seem to... I seem to forget every time I make a donation?"
"Anyway, when I woke up the next day, I felt so refreshed and energetic. I felt so happy that everything seemed good to me. Almost everyone in our town who can cook has offered their food there! It really works!"
She nodded confidently, her face filled with the kind of happy smile that Mark had always seen as unique to the residents of Maple Leaf Town, without any gloom.
It seems that the act of "forgetting after sacrifice" itself is also part of this happiness and sweetness.
Mark and Monica looked at each other and saw seriousness in each other's eyes.
From this description, why does it seem like the price of relying on this "wild god" to change careers to become a chef seems a bit high?
Exchanging carefully prepared food for a moment of ultimate happiness and a career means forgetting?
It might not be a big deal if you were just forgetting some insignificant memories.
But who can guarantee that what you forget is unimportant?
What's more, things like memory have always been closely related to the soul.
And Lisa had also mentioned something related to the soul when she introduced this 'Wild God'.
No matter how you look at it, this 'wild god' seems to fit Ruby's definition of "questionable customs"!
Enzo was still working hard, and the boss lady's words went in one ear and out the other, muttering:
"Offer food? Can I go hunting and grill some meat? After that, can you give me a job? I want to be a chef too!"
Anna frowned slightly. Her elf intuition made her feel uneasy about the boss lady's reaction and the "forgetfulness" she described.
Mark looked at the townspeople coming and going outside the window, and the outline of the ancient maple forest in the distance that seemed to be burning in the morning sun, and made a decision in his heart.
"Boss, thank you for your advice." He stood up and left enough money for the meal. "Tonight, let's go see the sugar maple forest of that 'cooking god'."
When the afterglow of the setting sun casts a warm golden edge on Maple Leaf Town.
Smoke curled up from the roofs of every household, and the sweet fragrance that was everywhere in the air became increasingly strong.
Team Mark politely declined another enthusiastic town resident who was eager to pull them in. Their smiles were polite but carried an unshakable sense of distance.
Anna's emerald eyes still showed a hint of vigilance: "They are too enthusiastic, but... they are also very strange."
Her cold voice was particularly clear in the sweet air. She felt something was wrong, but she couldn't tell what was wrong.
"Of course something is wrong. They were inviting us warmly in front of us, but as soon as we left the yard, they immediately closed the door."
Enzo scratched his head in annoyance, his small eyes scanning the neat but tightly closed doors of the houses lining the street. "Mark, there really aren't any hotels here? This damn place looks bustling, but there's not even a place for outsiders to stay? And all these empty invitations!"
"The situation is consistent with what we inquired about. We don't need to look for a hotel."
Monica held Xiao Mu in her arms, her wine-red eyes looking deep in the twilight. "There used to be a Holy Light Church at the west end of town. But there were no priests there a long, long time ago. As for why there were no priests... the townspeople have forgotten. Let's stay there for the night."
She repeated the same blank answers she had received from different townspeople, and the uniform sense of forgetfulness made her feel quite embarrassed.
Identification skills are not omnipotent. She can't find out why the townspeople are in this state with just one identification.
Following the vague instructions of the townspeople, they arrived at a courtyard half-hidden by a tall maple tree on the edge of town.
It is out of tune with the overall warmth and cleanliness of Maple Leaf Town, and there is a sense of desolation here, as if it has been abandoned by time.
The rusty iron fence gate was half-open and tilted, making a teeth-grinding creaking sound.
The yard was overgrown with weeds, wild vines covered the mottled gray stone walls, and dead branches swayed gently in the evening breeze like ghost claws.
The weeds almost covered the path leading to the main building, reaching knee-deep, and made a continuous rustling sound like weeping in the rising evening breeze.
However, the gray stone church with a pointed roof in the center of the deserted courtyard is like a frozen time capsule, exuding a strange completeness amidst its decay.
The church spire still pointed stubbornly toward the sky where stars were beginning to appear. The dusty stained glass windows were dim, but not a single one was broken.
On the tightly closed heavy oak door, the relief cross emblem symbolizing holy light had clear lines, but was covered with dust.
The entire building stood silently, without any traces of smoke or fire, no scars from knives or axes, and not even a trace of graffiti by naughty children.
"Damn it..." Enzo cursed, instinctively tightening the handle of the square-headed hammer at his waist, and the muscles under the mithril breastplate tensed. "This place... looks more sturdy than those gnawed bones in the Rot Dragon Swamp! The weeds have grown into a forest, but this shabby house is still intact?"
The trainee judge badge on Mark's chest emitted a faint metallic cold light in the twilight.
His eyes scanned every inch of the church's exterior, trying to find any signs of heresy.
Nothing was found...
"Monica." Mark's voice was low.
Needless to say, deep within Monica's wine-red pupils, a subtle and complex identification array instantly lit up.
Like two miniature magic searchlights, they silently swept over the main body of the church, the doors and windows, and even the stone pavement covered with weeds under their feet.
Her gaze penetrated the surface, capturing subtle information flows of residual magic, aging matter, and energy disturbances.
After a few breaths, the light of the identification array slowly faded away.
Monica's voice, with a rare hint of strangeness, broke the suffocating silence of the deserted courtyard:
"The main building structure is stable. Judging by the degree of weathering, the depth of vegetation erosion, and the thickness of dust accumulation... this place has been uninhabited and unmaintained for at least 25 to 25 years."
"...There are no signs of forced entry or vandalism. No traces of activated magical protection, no dents or cracks from physical violence. Even the most basic locks...remain in a naturally rusted state, untouched by external forces."
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