The mountain most sacred to the gods disappeared one day. "Just as virtue has departed from the human heart, so too has this mountain left human sight." That was the divine declaration.
Humanity was distraught for months, for years, for decades, but over centuries it was decided that virtue was not so essential to living as was feared. Eventually its very existence was forgotten along with the mountain. A town grew up there in a location long considered to be forbidden, and the residents could not understand why it had not been founded earlier.
The town prospered because of its manifold reputable businesses such as gambling, usury, counterfeiting, and receiving stolen goods. One day, a vendor disposing of stolen goods called back a customer. "Sir, you forgot your change," he said, whereupon the mountain manifested and destroyed the wicked town except for the fence, who set up a guide service for hikers and hardly ever robbed the patrons.
Finis
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