Every elf stood frozen. No one dared breathe, no one dared move.

Granny Elna's act had shattered thousands of years of sacred tradition in a single bite.

But then—

The moment passed.

The deed was done.

There was no undoing it.

And suddenly...the horror gave way to something far more urgent.

Curiosity.

Hunger.

They had been tortured by the aroma for so long.

Now someone had finally done it.

The question burned hotter than any flame.

What did it taste like?

All eyes locked on the frail, wrinkled figure of the oldest elf alive—the one who had just defied their gods and ancestors and eaten the forbidden flesh.

They waited.

Granny Elna, for her part, seemed completely unfazed by the attention. She chewed in a casual manner like a seasoned critic evaluating a five-star meal.

In seconds, she had stripped the chicken clean, leaving not a shred of meat behind before she tossed the bare bone aside with a flick of her wrist.

The square held its breath.

Every eye locked on her face.

Would she scream?

Vomit?

Clutch her throat?

Or would she praise the dish with all her heart?

Her daughter, Rio, knelt beside her, eyes trembling with concern.

"Mother…? How is it? Are you—?"

But before anyone could hear her reply, Granny Elna's eyes rolled back.

Her body went stiff, her head tilted backward and then to everyone horror—

—she collapsed.

"Mother!" Rio screamed, catching her before she hit the ground.

Gasps and cries erupted from the elves around them.

"She fainted!"

"Granny Elna fainted!"

"Oh gods, no!"

"Is she dead?!"

Rio held her mother's frail body close, her hands shaking.

"Mother, wake up! Please, Mother, open your eyes!"

And seeing this, Luca's stomach dropped and this was the last thing he was expecting. His confidence evaporated in an instant.

"Oh, no, no, no, no…" He muttered, running a hand through his hair. "This isn't happening...she was supposed to scream in joy! That was the plan!"

Nyx frowned. "You think she died from the taste?"

"Don't joke right now!" Luca hissed, panic spreading across his face. "If she's dead, I'm finished! We're all finished!"

"If the oldest elf, five centuries old dies eating my chicken, there's no chance in hell that any other elf is going to ever touch chicken!"

Around them, elves were already muttering in fear.

"The chicken...it killed her?"

"Is it poison?"

"No way! The Hero wouldn't poison us!"

"But maybe...maybe it's toxic to elves!"

"Her body couldn't handle it!"

"It's cursed food!"

The panic spread like wildfire. Elves backed away from the tables, their eyes filled with fear and confusion.

Luca's hands were shaking.

"This is a disaster." He whispered. "Absolute disaster…"

Rio pressed her mother's face gently.

"Mother, please...please wake up." She sobbed, tears spilling down her cheeks. "I know you've lived long enough to see everything, but I'm not ready to lose you. Not like this. Please, just open your eyes!"

Even Nyx's playfulness faded as she stepped closer.

"She's...not moving." She said quietly. "Hero, should I try to—?"

But before she could finish, a small sound interrupted her.

A low, faint groan.

Rio gasped, looking down just in time to see Granny Elna's fingers twitch.

Then, slowly, the old elf's eyes fluttered open.

"She's awake!" Shouted one of the elves.

"She's alive!" cried another.

"She didn't die!"

A sigh of relief spread through the clearing like a gust of wind. Some even dropped to their knees in gratitude.

Luca exhaled so hard he almost stumbled.

"Oh thank god." He muttered. "I thought all my plans were going to ruin…"

But it wasn't over yet.

Elna didn't speak right away but there seemed to be a change in her.

Her once-cloudy eyes, dimmed by age for centuries, now looked startlingly clear—vibrant, sharp, full of light.

The elves around her gasped as they saw the change.

Then, very slowly, she reached up with her trembling, wrinkled hand and touched her daughter's cheek.

Rio froze.

"M-Mother?" She whispered.

It had been more than a hundred years since Granny Elna had shown her the slightest sign of recognition or affection.

For over a century, her mind had been fading, her memories shattered. She treated her own family like strangers.

Never once in that time had she reached out like this.

Elna's fingers brushed Rio's face with incredible tenderness. And then, in a voice that was suddenly soft, warm, and full of emotion, she said,

"Rio?"

Rio's breath hitched. "Wh-what…?"

Elna smiled faintly.

"Rio, my dear, What's wrong? Why are you crying? Why are there tears on your face?"

She wiped them away gently with her thumb, her tone full of motherly worry.

"Did something happen? Did someone hurt you?"

For a moment, Rio didn't even breathe.

Her eyes went wide, her lips trembling as tears welled up again.

"M-Mother...you...you said my name…" She whispered. "You actually said my name."

Elna tilted her head slightly, looking confused.

"Of course I did. Why wouldn't I?"

Hearing this shocking statement, Rio stared at her, disbelief flooding her expression.

Her voice shook as she asked, "You...you recognize me? You know who I am?"

"Know you?" Elna chuckled softly. "Oh, my sweet girl...even if centuries pass, even if the stars fall from the sky, how could I ever forget you?"

She cupped her daughter's face between her palms, smiling through tears of her own.

"You're my precious Rio. My one and only daughter."

"I could never forget you...not even until the end of time."

That was it. Rio broke completely.

A sob tore through her as she threw her arms around her mother, clinging to her tightly.

"Mother! You're back! You're finally back!" She wailed. "I prayed for this day for so long—for you to remember me a-and it's finally happening!"

She buried her face against Elna's shoulder, crying openly.

"There, there, my little one. Don't cry."

Elna patted her back gently, her face confused but serene.

"It's all right. Mother's here."

And witnessing the mind-blowing scene, the elves around them were utterly stunned.

Selma's jaw dropped. "Wait—are you saying the chicken healed her memory?!"

Alia's eyes were as wide as saucers. "That...that's impossible!"

Ivy whispered, trembling. "The oldest elf in the village...regained her mind from one bite of fried chicken…"

Luna's mouth hung open, speechless. "No way…"

Nyx blinked, then let out a low whistle.

"Well, damn. That's one powerful recipe."

Luca himself, standing there slack-jawed, finally found his voice.

"I—I think I just cured dementia with fried chicken."

The entire forest was silent for a long, long moment—before absolute pandemonium broke out.

"It's a miracle!"

"The Hero's food healed her!"

"She remembers! She actually remembers!"

"The chicken isn't cursed—it's holy!"

"The Spirit of the Forest blessed it!"

Just moments ago, the elves had been terrified.

Whispers of 'poison', 'death', and 'taboo' had filled the air, each voice trembling with fear.

They had believed that Granny Elna's sudden collapse was proof that the chicken was cursed—that the Hero had brought doom upon them all.

But now...everything changed.

Right before their eyes, the same 'cursed' food had done what no spell, no potion, no divine blessing had ever achieved.

It had brought back the mind of the oldest elf in the forest.

The woman who had been lost for centuries now remembered her daughter, spoke her name, and smiled with warmth.

All around the clearing, the tension broke like glass.

The fear that once hung over them melted away and turned into something else, something much stronger.

Desire.

Curiosity.

Hunger.

Their gazes shifted as one toward the table.

Toward the mountain of golden, crispy, gleaming chicken that shimmered like treasure under the canopy light.

For a moment, no one dared to move.

They just stood there, hundreds of them, their instincts battling centuries of belief.

Then Selma snapped.

She clenched her fists, trembling from head to toe, and yelled out,

"Goddammit! Goddammit all! I don't care anymore—I need to know what that tastes like!"

Before anyone could stop her, she sprinted straight toward the table.

"Selma! What are you—!"

Alia began, but halfway through, her own restraint broke.

"Ah, screw it! Me too!"

She shouted, tossing her hair back and charging after her.

Ivy's eyes widened.

"Wait for me, you idiots! I'm not letting you hog it all!" She cried, sprinting after them with surprising speed.

That was all it took.

The sight of three elves running toward the forbidden table shattered whatever self-control the rest of them had left.

In an instant, it was chaos.

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