The three of them walked in a line, Emily skipping along in front while Sera and Xia Lin followed behind. She was like a bird just released from its cage, chattering away as she introduced them to all sorts of "good places" in Orlando City—places she had heard of but never visited, or had visited once only to be thrown out.
Xia Lin followed behind, occasionally responding with a few words, while Sera was like a silent shadow. Only now and then did an unintelligible hum come from behind her veil.
"Hey, human." Sera finally couldn't hold back any longer. She lowered her voice and leaned toward Xia Lin's ear, her tone carrying her signature mockery. "You call this 'not being very close'? Your little sister seems far more enthusiastic toward you than she is toward those dust-covered parchments on her desk." The tip of the tail hidden beneath her robe seemed to sway, as if expressing her displeasure at Xia Lin's lie.
Xia Lin glanced at his overly lively sister's back and helplessly shrugged. "There's something you don't know. My sister... she's the type who can exchange a few words with even a stray dog that jumps out from the roadside. She's a little too naturally familiar with everyone. She's like this with everybody. It's normal. Don't read too much into it."
Sera gave a noncommittal "Mm," clearly reserving judgment about Xia Lin's explanation.
Emily took them through several winding turns and into a narrow, somewhat greasy alley.
At the end of the alley stood a restaurant with a pitifully small storefront and a sign whose paint was almost completely gone.
Calling it a restaurant was a bit of a stretch. It looked more like a street food stall, with several old wooden tables worn smooth from use. The air was thick with spices, the aroma of roasted meat, and the lingering smell of cooking oil.
"This place?" Xia Lin looked at the crude surroundings, practically unable to believe it.
He clearly remembered that the Emily of the past would never eat out anywhere except the city's finest restaurant, the Crystal Cup. She had even insisted on drinking water from gold-rimmed cups.
"Big brother, what's with that expression?" Emily planted her hands on her hips and glared at him. "Don't underestimate the Dwarf Stew Pot! It's widely recognized as the best value for money among the Mage Tower apprentices! Cheap and filling!"
The three of them found a table that was reasonably clean and sat down. A bearded dwarf uncle wearing a greasy apron shuffled over, tossed three blackened rags of unknown cleanliness onto the table, and used them as menus.
"What'll it be?" The dwarf's voice sounded as though it had just been fished out of a beer barrel.
Emily ordered with practiced familiarity. "Boss, one large Lard Mushroom Stew Pie, your signature dish! And one plate of Roasted Mole Meat with Pickled Radish, with extra spices! Oh, and three cups of your strongest Dwarf Cellar Black Beer!"
The dwarf nodded and shuffled away again.
"What do you think, Big Brother?" Emily raised her eyebrows proudly. "Authentic, right? I guarantee you'll remember it after one meal!"
Xia Lin gave a dry chuckle and changed the subject. "So, Emily, how have you been these past few months? From the looks of it, things haven't been going very well for you in the Mage Tower... You've even fallen so low as to work as a receptionist?"
"What can I do? Just scraping by." Emily pursed her lips and picked up the chipped pitcher on the table, pouring herself a cup of suspiciously colored water. "After the family collapsed and my source of money dried up, those 'good sisters' who used to surround me every day kicked me to the curb the moment they turned around. They ran faster than rabbits!"
Her tone was light, as if she didn't care at all about that so-called sisterly bond. Instead, there was a hint of amused cynicism, as though she had already seen through the ways of the world.
"But speaking of which, Big Brother..." Emily looked Xia Lin up and down. "You've changed quite a bit! That outfit, and this... well, indescribable air about you. Did you become an adventurer? Tsk, tsk, who would've thought? The eldest young master of House Toremo actually ended up like this!"
"It's a long story." Xia Lin shook his head with a bitter smile and briefly recounted the important parts: becoming an adventurer to make a living, fighting rats in the sewers, clashing with Kobolds in the mines, and nearly losing his life to Orcs.
Emily gnawed on a hard piece of bread she had produced from who knew where as she listened with great interest, occasionally letting out an exaggerated gasp or a gleeful, schadenfreude-filled remark.
"Oh my, Big Brother, your luck is truly something else!" After Xia Lin finished, Emily couldn't help slapping the table. "You're practically even more unlucky than I am! You know, right after the family went bankrupt, I lost my allowance and couldn't find any decent work. I also thought about becoming an adventurer to earn some extra money, hoping I'd stumble across some ruins and make a fortune. But guess what happened? On my very first job, I ran into a damn Displacement Beast in the forest outside the city! My teammates were all fed to that beast in the blink of an eye! I was scared shitless!"
"Then how did you survive?" Sera, who had remained silent until then, suddenly asked. Her dark red eyes glimmered in the dim light, making it impossible to tell what she was thinking.
At those words, the smile vanished from Emily's face. In its place was a strange expression combining lingering fear with a trace of pride.
She leaned closer mysteriously and lowered her voice. "What else could it be? That beast... was full."
The corner of Sera's mouth hidden behind her veil seemed to twitch. She looked Emily up and down again, then glanced at Xia Lin. Her voice remained flat and emotionless, yet carried the clear understanding of someone who saw through everything.
"Truly, birds of a feather flock together."
Xia Lin gave an awkward laugh and was just about to say something to ease the atmosphere when the dwarf owner came over carrying several steaming ceramic plates and set them down on the table with a series of clanging noises.
"Your food. Enjoy!"
The Lard Mushroom Stew Pie looked like a lump of burnt mud sprinkled with strangely colored mushrooms. Its crust was blackened and gave off a heavy smell of grease.
The Roasted Mole Meat with Pickled Radish was even more straightforward: several charred chunks of meat, impossible to identify by their original shape, were piled together, accompanied by a few wilted, dark-colored pickled vegetables.
As for the Dwarf Cellar Black Beer, it was served in chipped ceramic cups. Its murky color made it look as though it had just been ladled out of a muddy swamp.
The presentation was certainly nothing to write home about, and the names of the dishes carried an unmistakably rough and hearty character.
Once the food was served, Sera's dark red eyes, hidden behind her veil, swept over the "delicacies" on the table before turning to Xia Lin and Emily, who had already picked up their utensils without the slightest hesitation.
She seemed to hesitate for a moment. Then she raised a hand and slowly lifted the dark veil that had always concealed her features, setting it casually to one side.
Emily's lively brown eyes lingered on Sera's face for a moment. Her eyebrows lifted slightly, apparently somewhat surprised by the Demon-kin face.
However, it lasted only a moment.
She lowered her head and continued enthusiastically attacking the food in front of her.
Xia Lin merely glanced at Emily before turning his attention back to the food.
When he picked up the greasy fork and speared a small piece of Roasted Mole Meat to put in his mouth, his eyes suddenly lit up.
The meat was crisp on the outside and tender within, with a unique smoky flavor. The spices were just right, perfectly masking any earthy taste the mole might have had.
The Lard Mushroom Stew Pie looked frightening, but its crust was unexpectedly crisp. The mushrooms inside were fresh and delicious, and combined with the rich, charred aroma of the lard, they made it nearly impossible to stop eating.
Xia Lin and Sera exchanged a glance, and both saw a trace of relief in the other's eyes.
They truly hadn't had a proper hot meal in quite some time. On the road, they had subsisted on either hard jerky or Black Bread tough enough to chip a tooth.
Emily watched the two of them wolf down their food with a smug look. She herself grabbed a piece of mole meat without ceremony and began chewing, grease running down her mouth.
"How is it, Big Brother?" she asked indistinctly. "I didn't lie, did I? The food here doesn't look like much, but the taste... heh, it really packs a punch!"
Xia Lin drained a large mouthful of black beer. The liquor was rough and spicy, yet carried a pure malty fragrance that shot straight to his head. It was exhilarating. "Mm, it's actually pretty good! Much better than I expected!"
Sera also nodded, a rare gesture for her. Though she still ate with refined manners, her pace was noticeably faster than usual.
After three rounds of drinks and five courses of food, Emily wiped the grease from the corner of her mouth and finally brought the conversation back on track.
"So, Big Brother..." She nudged Xia Lin with her elbow. "You didn't come all the way to the Mage Tower just to treat me to a meal at the Dwarf Stew Pot, did you? Let me make this clear first: I don't take fighting jobs. My little bit of amateur magic isn't even enough to scare people. And if you want to borrow money, forget it! I'm so poor I can hear my own pockets rattling. My only goal right now is to advance to a First Circle Mage before I turn twenty-five and escape this damn paperwork!"
She said it all in one breath, then sighed pitifully, as if her dream of becoming a First Circle Mage were impossibly distant.
"Don't worry. I'm not here to ask you to fight, and I'm not borrowing money." He paused, his expression growing more serious and his tone turning earnest. "I did come here because there's something I want to ask you about. Well... it really does concern your identity as an Apprentice Mage."
"Oh?" Emily raised her eyebrows, suddenly interested. "Let's hear it. As long as you're not asking me to steal my mentor's spellbook or help you give some noble young lady a love potion, I might consider it."
Xia Lin took a deep breath and looked into Emily's eyes. Then he said, one word at a time, "I want to ask how to communicate with the Magic Net."
"Pfft—cough, cough, cough!"
The mouthful of beer Emily had just taken nearly sprayed out intact.
She choked until her face turned bright red, coughing violently as she stared at Xia Lin as though he were some kind of monster.
"B-Big Brother!" Emily finally managed to catch her breath, though even her voice had changed pitch. "D-Do you know how old you are right now?"
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