Chapter 47: The Funeral Arrangements
Chapter 47: The Funeral Arrangements
Unlike other funerals in the town, Finn's funeral was not officiated by Red Moon as usual.
Instead, she handed over the entire responsibility to Linsey, who would oversee the funeral proceedings.
And so, on that afternoon, Linsey went into the woods himself and found a tall, sturdy black spruce tree. He then sought Joel's assistance and personally crafted a robust and solid black coffin for Finn.
Following the standard procedures, the deceased would be buried on the same evening.
However, to show respect for his teacher, Linsey chose the highest-grade burial ceremony.
He kept Finn's coffin in the main hall for three full days, and he himself stayed there for three days as well, guarding the body like a bloodline heir.
In the Death Sect's beliefs, a person's death does not signify an eternal end but the beginning of a new journey.
And during this time before the burial, the soul of the deceased remains in the mortal world, preparing for its final departure in death.
Following this philosophy, Linsey gathered the townspeople on the second day.
He intended to distribute Finn's household items to the other townspeople, as per his teacher's wishes, under the witness of Finn's yet-to-depart soul.
Early that morning, people started to arrive.
When Linsey greeted the townspeople, he noticed that most of them carried money bags.
Bringing bags to carry the distributed items home was understandable, but bringing money...
Linsey had no intention of accepting condolence money.
As they waited for more townspeople to arrive, Torch noticed Linsey's thoughts and quickly pulled him aside, whispering softly so only they could hear:
"Lin, you usually only officiate funerals and might not be aware of the matters that follow."
"The town does have the custom of distributing the deceased's belongings, but it's not usually free of charge."
Hearing this, Linsey was momentarily taken aback:
"This... You're not saying we should charge money, are you?"
Torch nodded earnestly:
"That's right, and it's usually done through an auction."
Linsey still couldn't believe it:
"Really charge money?"
Torch's attitude remained firm:
"Lin, why would I lie to you about this?"
"I don't understand the reasoning behind it, but that's how it's done in town."
"..."
Torch's attitude made Linsey reflect.
Soon enough, he realized that for a solitary elderly like Finn, unconditionally giving away his belongings after death could easily attract ill-intentioned individuals.
On the other hand, conducting an auction not only maintains the value of the items but also, to some extent, protects the safety of other solitary individuals.
Realizing this, Linsey hurriedly thanked Torch:
"Torch, thanks for reminding me."
Torch scratched his head awkwardly:
"It's nothing, I just wanted to give you a heads-up, it's not like I helped much."
"..."
Not long after, the surrounding townspeople had mostly arrived.
Following Torch's suggestion, Linsey auctioned off all of Finn's remaining items, from pots and pans to tables and chairs.
These items were cheaper than typical second-hand goods.
The townspeople were accustomed to this practice, and the auction was well-organized, with high enthusiasm from the buyers.
In reality, Finn didn't have many possessions.
However, as there were quite a few townspeople, and each auction took some time.
In the end, Linsey was busy from morning till afternoon, with almost no break except for lunch.
The auction of Finn's relics finally concluded as the sun was about to set.
At that moment, Torch appeared from somewhere, offering Linsey a roasted rabbit leg.
"Lin, you've been working hard."
Linsey thanked him and took a bite of the rabbit leg.
Anna, standing nearby, witnessed this and approached, thoughtfully offering Linsey a flask of water.
"You've been talking all day, have some water."
Linsey thanked her as well:
"Today has been quite a trouble for you both."
"If it were just me, many things would be much harder to accomplish."
Torch had taken the initiative to help, and Anna, as the Lord's representative, was here to oversee the smooth running of the auction.
After finishing this simple dinner, Linsey began tidying up the somewhat messy house.
Anna and Torch had their own tasks to attend to, so they helped Linsey clean up a bit before leaving.
After bidding farewell to his two friends, Linsey returned to the wooden cabin alone.
He looked around.
In the empty main hall, only the fireplace and Linsey's chair remained, a chair Finn had specially bought for him three years ago.
"..."
Linsey moved the chair over and sat with his teacher's remains for a while.
As night fell, he made his way to the greenhouse behind the cabin, which looked no different from before.
"I'll help finish Finn's work."
Linsey sighed softly and began to take inventory of the greenhouse's contents.
Every three days, Linsey would come to help with the records, so he was familiar with the plant distribution.
Following Finn's experimental journal, he first watered several specific plants in the greenhouse.
He then categorized them, identifying the three most important plants at present: winter wheat, cabbage, and potatoes.
In the distant Hidden Frontier, most crops were brought from other worlds, with temperate crops being more common. Finn had helped them develop a certain level of cold resistance, preventing severe yield reduction.
These new crops were entirely different from the previous ones.
They possessed high tolerance for cold weather, but as they were directly sourced from the wild, they were yet to be domesticated. Despite their ability to endure low temperatures, they still lacked in yield, pest resistance, and disaster resilience.
Finn's efforts aimed to supplement these aspects.
However, with the task now in Linsey's hands, the situation became quite complicated.
He wasn't a member of the School of Life.
Without the corresponding skills and with only a dozen or so plants of each kind, the cultivation difficulty was incredibly high.
The first step was to start breeding.
Simultaneously, he would continue searching for other plants in the Hidden Frontier, trying to replenish the numbers as much as possible, and then gradually cultivate more refined types.
With these thoughts, Linsey walked to a corner of the greenhouse.
Following his memory, he rummaged through cabinets and quickly found where Finn stored his seeds.
"This jar is... yes, winter wheat."
"And this one, cabbage?"
Linsey began working diligently in the greenhouse.
He roughly calculated the reproduction time, cultivation quantity, and seed harvest rate for each plant, estimating the time required and planning the cultivation process.
As night deepened, Linsey became engrossed in his work, barely noticing the passage of time.
And at that moment.
In the main hall where Finn's remains were kept, a sudden noise echoed.
【Please collect and vote!】
(End of Chapter)
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