In the City of Silver, at Derrick Berg's home.
The Tarot Club gathering had ended some time ago, but Derrick still sat motionless as a stone. Only a faint candle burned inside. Lightning flashed across the sky from time to time, driving back the darkness and illuminating his drawn face.
A weight of emotion pressed down on Derrick's heart.
The Lord may have fallen... He'll never descend again, and the City of Silver will never be saved... We'll fade away in the darkness, just like the city-states that left only ruins behind...
Just then, laughter rose outside.
He looked blankly through the window at the lamplit street.
Children were playing there, holding strange mushrooms. The mushrooms had been thoroughly cooked. Some were lightly charred and gave off a mouthwatering, savory aroma; others were steaming, plump, and juicy, releasing white liquid at the lightest bite.
The children ate their fill, their mouths glistening and their eyes bright.
The adults on the street watched them with gentle expressions, protecting their innocent smiles. It was as if those smiles alone could rekindle their courage to stand against the endless darkness.
These mushrooms were not native to the City of Silver. They had appeared only recently, thanks to Derrick's contribution.
Hermit Gariya's first mate was a madman who loved creating "interesting" new life: cows that grew wheat, live fish with wine for blood, and more. Through a commission from the World, Klein, he had developed mutated mushrooms capable of surviving in the Forsaken Land of the Gods.
The mushrooms could grow by devouring monsters' flesh. Once thoroughly cooked, they offered the taste and nutrition of milk and meat. Of course, anyone who swallowed one undercooked would be "eaten" by the mushroom from the inside out. After the World supplied Derrick with the mushrooms, Derrick