Chloe

Are you talking about Chloe?

She's an excellent Warden. Though she's small and delicate, making her hard to notice, her combat abilities are quite impressive.

Of course, she can't compare to Wardens like Yuri or Theodore who specialize in battle, but she has enough strength to handle most quests on her own.

But her true specialty is intelligence gathering. As you know, she's traveled all over the continent researching desserts. That's why she knows the geography and intelligence of various places better than many of Pharos' investigators. She's even visited places they haven't.

Plus, her cheerful personality and reputation as a pastry chef make her easily accepted wherever she goes. "She always uses her warm smile to break down people's defenses and easily builds rapport."

There was this one time when we were investigating monsters and the Nectar territory and planned to enter a village. However, this village had been exploited by nobles for so long that they were extremely hostile toward outsiders. Many investigators tried to enter to gather intelligence, but all failed.

Just when we were at a loss, Chloe confidently volunteered. She said we can leave this to her. She didn't take any investigative materials—only ingredients for making desserts.

A week later, she came back with detailed intelligence about the monsters and the Nectar territory.

When we asked how she managed to get the information so quickly, she said she won over the children with desserts.

From the children, she gathered information about the Nectar territory and the people affected by it. She used the victims as the focus, gradually winning over the villagers' hearts and eventually gaining the information we needed." She slowly broke down their defenses and built friendships with them.

I heard that on the day she left, the villagers even came out to see her off.

Now, she's still traveling across the continent, completing intelligence-gathering quests. If you get an intel quest, you can look for her. She'll give you the best advice.

Chloe? Chloe is a terrifying Warden. If you ask me who the scariest Warden is, I wouldn't hesitate—Chloe.

Why? Because she messes with your entire sense of reality. And she does it through pastries.

You probably know that she's a master baker. No matter how strange the ingredient, if it's edible, she can turn it into a delicious dessert. Yes, even if that ingredient comes from a monster.

Let me give you an example. Imagine a fruit—plump, juicy, bursting with sweetness the moment you bite in. Now, what if I told you that fruit grows from the head of a Jin? Still hungry? Most people would feel sick just thinking about it.

Not Chloe. She'd take one look at that Jin and think, how do I turn this into a dessert? Then she'd take down the Jin, harvest its fruit, and bake something absolutely divine.

The first person to try it would be in heaven. Until they learned what they just ate, then the panic sets in. Their stomach suddenly feels weird. Was it poisonous? Are they dying?

…A few days pass, and nothing happens. They're fine. "So that fruit is edible." And that's when it hits them. That was actually really good.

The next time they see a Jin, their eyes linger just a little too long on its fruit. Before they know it, something they once ignored—something they found disgusting—is now oddly tempting. "Since I ate it and nothing happened, it should be okay to eat it again, right? "

So, a few days later, they finally couldn't help but go to find Chloe with the Jin's fruit. Chloe would happily make desserts for them and would also make other desserts as well. When they finished eating...oh my god! They discovered that those desserts were also made with monster ingredients!

A few days later, when they encounter those monsters, they will start thinking about dessert again. After repeating this a few times... you will find that all the monsters in the world have become very delicious.

Do you understand now? That's why I say Chloe is the most terrifying Warden.

If you don't want to see yourself drooling every time you see a Jin, you'd better be careful.

Wow! I think it worked! That's amazing!
Hehe, I've heard lots of love stories before, but this is actually my first time witnessing a confession with my own eyes. I didn't expect a confession to be so intense! Even my heart started racing!

Most of the love stories I know were shared with me by customers. Sure, many come for the sweets, but quite a few are here to buy gifts for someone special. They'll sometimes share really sweet or interesting stories with me!

Do you remember Aunt Albila? The one we met at the night market? She told me the story of how she met her husband! He was from another region, and the moment he laid eyes on her, he fell in love at first sight. He confessed his feelings right away—and eventually, they started dating and got married!

Oh, and just recently, Steve from around here came by too. He was buying sweets to confess to his childhood friend, someone he's known for a long time. I helped him prepare a special box of cookies… I wonder if his confession worked? I hope it did!

Back when I only heard about it from others, I didn't think much of it. But now I realize—everyone who confesses is really putting their heart on the line.

Oh! And my good friend Jamie came to visit me a while ago! She said she's getting married to her boyfriend and wanted to order a custom wedding cake! She even told me she'd show me her wedding dress and made me promise to attend the ceremony.

Getting married is such a wonderful thing! I wonder… will something like that happen to me one day too?