Chapter 10

Chapter 10

They couldn't afford the potion for five silver coins, but without their father's wages, in a month's time they would descend from free citizens to slaves, destitute of home and possessions, at risk of dying unattended in some forgotten corner.

The gaunt woman looked at her husband lying in bed, emanating a putrid stench, then at her four small children, and gritting her teeth, she took out five copper coins: "Lilith, go buy some flour tomorrow. Make some dark bread for your father."

Dark bread, with their current standard of living, had become a luxury akin to a nourishment.

But the woman knew all too well that her husband's wounds wouldn't heal with just a few loaves of dark bread. Yet, doing nothing and ultimately watching her children be turned into slaves was something she could not bear.

Five copper coins—a gamble. If her husband recovered, all the better; if not... she dared not contemplate the outcome.

"Merciful God of Light, I confess my sins and seek Your forgiveness, please heal my husband's leg swiftly!"

Lilith's family were devout followers of the God of Light, who is absolute in His justice. They believed their hardships were due to their unforgivable sins, and only through relentless prayer did they hold onto a sliver of hope for forgiveness.

Before and after meals, the family of six engaged in fervent prayers of penance, hoping for a miracle.

*

"Aunt Elly, I'd like five copper coins' worth of flour." The little girl stood on tiptoes to be seen clearly.

At the crack of dawn, little Lilith carefully carried the family's hard-saved copper coins to the grocery store.

"It’s little Lilith, up early to help with shopping again today?"

The city of Dayak might not be a peaceful one, but due to its sparse population, most of the faces that came and went were familiar neighbors.

This morning was no different from the last, with everyone bustling about for their livelihood. Yet, the busy but peaceful time was soon thoroughly disrupted.

What kind of intoxicating aroma was that? It seemed that merely by smelling it, one felt their soul lift—as if bathed in holy light. No, no, no, this was even more entrancing than the occasional blessings of light cast by the Church of Light.

A sweet scent that could entice one to heaven or tempt into hell wafted from the oven; the poorly sealed container could hardly contain it, as the almost tangible fragrance burst its confines, swiftly permeating the entirety of Lansville.

"How fragrant, how sweet..." Elly, as the owner of the grocery, lived a life of struggle, but it was much more comfortable than Lilith's, who existed on the brink of slavery.

In her grocery store, there were some precious and rare sugar frostings.

That was why she could discern the "sweetness" in the aroma.

"So much sugar... how much sugar must it take to be this sweet..." Although the grocery store had sugar, Ellie couldn't afford it. Only on the Harvest Goddess's birthday would she "generously" cook a pot of sweet soup for the family to share.

Even the faintest taste of sweetness brought her immense joy, but now this overwhelming fragrance had swept through the entire city, and Ellie dared not even think about how many gold coins it represented!

Lilith, who had never tasted sugar before, heard from Ellie that this was "the taste of sugar" and immediately began to breathe in deeply through her mouth and nose, hoping to catch more of the sweet scent.

It wasn't just her; many people on the street were doing the same, and even more rushed out of their homes to breathe in the richer aroma outside.

Most of them had never tasted sweetness or sugar in their lifetimes, yet the fragrance was so intoxicatingly alluring that, despite knowing that breathing it in wouldn't give them a taste, they greedily inhaled, etching the scent into their memory, to become the most delightful recollection in their otherwise barren lives.

"It's so fragrant, truly wonderful..." Ellie kept swallowing saliva, her steps faltering as she followed the scent towards its stronger source. Lilith, who had planned to buy flour for her father's health, also forgot her mission and trailed behind the plump figure of Ellie towards the busier streets.

Such precious air! To breathe in even a little bit more was to gain a fortune!

However, as they walked, the streets became impassably congested, and they could no longer advance.

"What is this..." Ellie, a tall and somewhat stout middle-aged woman, had an advantage over the gaunt crowd, and with a glance, she saw the lord's manor not far away.

Her complexion changed, and she understood why the area was so blocked.

The scent was richer and more intoxicating than that of the sugar icing, undoubtedly made from ingredients even more costly than icing, perhaps even magical ones.

Moreover, to engulf the entire city in such a fragrance was not a minor feat.

Only someone as affluent as the lord could afford to use such expensive and copious ingredients.

"It must be for a banquet, how lovely..." Ellie couldn't help but swallow the overflowing saliva in her mouth, her eyes filled with envy.

She was two streets away from the lord's manor, but no one dared to get closer.

The chasm between nobles and commoners was as wide as the heavens and the earth; if they, the lowly commoners, displeased a noble, being killed would be the end of it, with no accusations or punishment to follow.

It's the commoners who have polluted the air; it's all their fault!

Nobles can do no wrong.

The commoners drawn by the scent dared not come too close, yet they couldn't bear to leave, craning their necks greedily to sniff the domineering fragrance.

"Make way, make way!"

As Lilith and Ellie were deeply inhaling the air laden with the scent of gold, panicked shouts came from ahead.

Towering above most, Ellie easily hoisted Lilith into her arms, gaining an immediate advantage. Lilith, with a cry edging her voice, urgently called out, “Aunt Ellie, run! The lord's mansion gates are opening!”

Ellie’s mind buzzed with confusion as she instinctively turned to flee, but found herself hemmed in by the crowd on all sides. Where could she run?

Lilith’s cry was not lost on the others; they too wished to escape, but the swelling tide of bodies from behind made passage impossible.

"Make way! The lord's guards are out for blood! Run, or it's all over!"

"Let me through! I don’t want to die! I don’t want to die!"

The scene descended into utter chaos, the verge of a stampede crisis, when suddenly, a young voice, amplified by magic, pierced through the clamor.

"In celebration of our lord's arrival, every sentient being in Lansville will receive two honey buns. Please queue within the designated yellow lines, no cutting or causing trouble.”

At the sound of these words, the crowd momentarily lost control of their bodies, as if frozen.

Eyes widened in terror, they felt certain death was imminent, doubting every bit of Alice’s seemingly incredulous message.

They were convinced; this was the end. The lord, an alchemist, surely intended to use them as test subjects for his potions or, worse, as fertilizer for his magical crops afterward.

Such was the commonplace horror on this continent.

The spell that held them immobile was lifted after Alice finished speaking, but the freed commoners dared not entertain thoughts of flight.

Despair washed over their faces, leaving a trail of hopelessness.

Lilith, with tears streaming down her face, obediently joined the queue, resigned to the thought that this might be the end, yet somewhat relieved at the prospect of escaping a life of enslavement.

Young and perceived as an easy target, Lilith was shoved to the front of the line. Ellie, stronger than most men, felt powerless to intervene, as Lilith was not her child and she dared not challenge a horde of desperate men.

Without resentment, Lilith silently wept, bidding her family farewell in her heart, but before she could finish, that blissful scent, like an aromatic bomb, exploded before her.

A girl, seemingly younger than her and dressed in neat, beautiful attire, picked up two golden orbs from a table and offered them to her.

The orbs, slightly larger than the girl's hand, weren’t perfect spheres but rather seemed to be halved, with the bottom differing in shade and speckled with tiny white spots.

It was from these that the irresistible aroma wafted.

"For me? Can I really eat this?!" Lilith gasped, the question emerging before any feelings of unworthiness could take hold, her entire being captivated solely by the source of that delightful fragrance.

"Yes, you may eat it. This is called a honey bun, a gracious gift from our lord," Alice spoke, and a scent similar to the one permeating the air wafted from her lips.

As a slave of the lord, she was privileged to four of them! Her breakfast consisted of these fragrant, soft yet crispy honey buns.

"They're delicious, hurry up and eat! Or else someone might snatch them away," Alice, understanding the plight of their 'disadvantaged group' all too well, picked the two largest buns from the basket and pressed them into Lillith's hands, urging her to eat quickly.

In the face of poverty and hunger, morality seemed unnecessary; for food, the only safe haven was one's stomach.

The freshly-baked honey buns were still hot to the touch, but Lillith didn't care about the heat, nor did she ponder if eating them would turn her into an undead, a ghost, or a monster. In the face of such sweet bliss, she felt ready to die the next second—if only she could finish the honey bun!

The bun was no small treat, significantly larger than Lillith's mouth. She stuffed a whole one in and chewed with desperation, the fluffy softness instantly making her feel as if she was stepping on clouds, having never experienced such tenderness in food, not to mention the satisfaction of the milky fragrance that followed.

She paused, reluctantly, then bit into the crispy bottom, the sweetness spreading from her tongue. "So this is sweetness," she thought, as the sensation wrapped around her soul, the joy prompting tears to flow freely.

"It's so delicious..." she mumbled through sobs, taking large bites of the unfamiliar treat, with tears carving clean paths down her dirt-streaked face.