Chapter 69: Rank 2 Spark
"What do you mean, the tree is still there?" Malthor asked, staring into the empty space with clear doubt. There was nothing to see, and for a moment, it felt like the young man was mocking him.
Vesha, on the other hand, watched Adyr closely, eyes filled with curiosity. She could tell he had noticed something.
"Was the tree that stood here a fruit tree? One that bore small, orange fruits—about the size of a palm?" Adyr asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Yes... How do you know that?" Malthor replied, taken aback. Adyr was a stranger; this had to be his first time in the village.
At the priest’s response, Adyr let out a quiet chuckle, his gaze fixed on the space in front of him, where the tree should have been. Though invisible to everyone else, he could see it clearly. Its ghostlike trunk, motionless leaves untouched by the wind, and translucent fruit still clinging to its branches.
It looked as if it had slipped into another dimension.
He stroked his chin, thoughtful. Unless there was some unknown factor at play, this had to be tied to his [Sense] stat.
Instead of answering Malthor’s question, he asked one of his own. "Do children usually come to play in this forest? Especially the ones who lost their memories—did they ever interact with these trees before it happened?"
"No," Malthor answered firmly. "We don’t let the children play near the forest. Wild animals sometimes wander close when they’re hungry—it’s too dangerous."
Adyr frowned. Not the answer he was hoping for. He had been trying to establish a link between the trees and the memory loss.
"What about the fruit?" He continued. "Do you gather or eat them?"