Walking into a quiet alley, Talier led Sylutia to stop in front of a door and gently knocked.

“Sister, are you home? It’s Talier.”

After a short moment, footsteps came from inside, then the door creaked open, revealing a woman who bore some resemblance to Talier. She had the same chestnut-red hair, though it was braided and coiled over her shoulder. Wearing an apron, her looks were unremarkable, but she carried a gentle, virtuous air. At her side stood a boy of about five years old.

“Come in, call her auntie.” Winnie guided the boy by the hand and prompted him.

“A-auntie.” The boy was shy, and after saying the name he hid behind his mother, clutching her skirt.

“Hehe, it’s little Landy, have you been behaving lately?” Talier chased after them, patting the boy’s head, ready to play with him.

At this moment Winnie clearly noticed the figure behind Talier and couldn’t help asking,

“Talier, who is this?”

Sylutia pulled back her hood, revealing her smooth silver hair and face, causing Winnie to open her mouth slightly in surprise.

“Hello, I’m Winnie, Talier’s older sister. Hmm, come in and have a seat.” After speaking, she stepped aside to let them enter.

Talier and Sylutia walked into the house and sat on the long bench in the hall. Not long after, Winnie took down the teapot hanging above the hearth and poured warm tea for the two of them.

“It was brewed a while ago, so the taste might not be great—please excuse that.” If Talier had come alone, Winnie wouldn’t have bothered being so polite, but today they had a guest.

“That’s fine.” The girl accepted the tea, then surveyed the house with her eyes.

Its size was similar to the house she currently lived in—about 110 square meters. The room held wooden cabinets, tables, and chairs, and the counter was covered with many clay jars and pots.

After the three sat down, they quickly fell into casual conversation, and Winnie gradually learned about Sylutia’s background and current situation.

“I see. Miss Tia can’t remember her past?” Winnie considered for a moment.

“There are many causes for this. Aside from common head trauma, it could be the influence of other extraordinary forces.”

“Oh—what sorts of extraordinary forces could do this?” The girl really wanted to know.

“When it comes to the mind, most are tied to moon-aligned Aspects—namely Luminous Moon, Mist Shadow, and Nightmare.” Winnie indeed knew her stuff.

“But exactly which ability or secret method can interfere with memories, I’m not sure. You might need to ask a teacher to find out.”

“Thank you.” Sylutia wasn’t in a hurry to recover her memories; settling in was more important for now.

The three then chatted about Talier and Sylutia’s future life in the city.

“As for work, the places I know are mainly serving positions at restaurants. I don’t know if Talier could adapt.” Winnie knew her younger sister’s temperament well.

“A maid? I don’t like that.” True to form, Talier shook her head.

“You have to stand all the time, hold your posture, and speak in that sort of tone—it feels awful.”

“Other jobs aren’t exactly easy either.” Winnie continued with a smile.

“Ah, tell me, sister.”

“The laundry, the public bath, odd jobs and cleaning at inns…” Winnie listed several jobs in succession.

“Ah, those sound bad too.” Those were far from the glamorous city life Talier had imagined.

“They’re not great, I know. There are better jobs—garden maintenance, pastry shop assistant, serving in affluent households, shop clerk, and so on.”

“Some of those require specific skills, some require appearance and etiquette, some need literacy and arithmetic. Sadly, you don’t meet those requirements.” Her sister answered with a sigh.

“Ah, I know, sister, stop sighing. It’s just that I didn’t study before—you always scolded me.” Talier covered her ears.

“Oh right, I recently learned swordsmanship. Is there anywhere I could use it?”

“Swordsmanship?” Winnie tilted her head at Talier, a bit incredulous.

“Where did you learn it?”

“I learned from Lord Frien, though Tia helped guide me more.” Talier said, gesturing to the girl beside her.

“I see. Do you know the Breathing Technique?” Winnie asked on.

“No.” Talier shook her head like a rattle.

“If you don’t, it’s of limited use.” Winnie replied.

“Simply knowing swordsmanship alone isn’t very helpful. Your physique isn’t strong enough, your power is weak, and your reaction speed won’t keep up. Against warriors who use the Breathing Technique, you can’t win. Even some strong adults could easily bully you.”

“Ugh…” Talier was crushed by her sister’s words and lost the confidence to argue back.

“I understand. So what do you think I should do? Do I really have to be a restaurant maid? I feel like I wouldn’t do well.”

“That… might be true.” Winnie found herself at a loss too and could only shake her head.

“Wait until your brother-in-law gets home; I’ll ask him. Maybe the trade guild will have some opportunities.”

After finishing Talier’s matter, Winnie’s attention turned to Sylutia.

“Miss Tia, do you have any plans at the moment?”

“Not for now. I’m thinking of learning some things. I’d like to know what channels there are in the city and how much tuition costs.” Sylutia spoke up.

“I can teach basic literacy. The tricky part might be arithmetic. If you want in-depth study across subjects, you’ll have to consult the city scholars.”

“Are there any you’d recommend?”

“There are currently three scholars in the city. Scholar Hyde is the most senior and teacher to the other two.” Winnie explained.

“But Scholar Hyde isn’t taking students at the moment. As for the other two: Scholar Romanda advises Viscount Xuefeng and doesn’t have time to teach; the other, Scholar Edson, is a consultant and authenticater for the Oak Barrel guild and also seems very busy—hard to find time to instruct.” Winnie said regretfully.

“My husband Ancel and I were introduced by Scholar Edson; maybe I can ask him about it.”

Hearing this, Sylutia saw that hope was slim, so she asked about other possibilities.

“Would you like to find a job?”

Winnie looked a bit surprised at Sylutia. In her view, a girl like her wouldn’t typically need to work—if she appeared among the nobility, people would offer gifts and invitations non-stop, and her days would be filled with banquets and outings.

“I want to be independent. Besides, I don’t like handing my future over to others.” In a world with extraordinary powers, external things were unreliable.

“I understand.” Winnie roughly grasped Sylutia’s temperament and admired it.

“If it’s Miss Tia, you could find many good positions—an opera performer, a promoter for a jeweler, or a hostess at a floral salon.”

“No, please recommend jobs with minimal exposure.” The girl didn’t want to attract attention.

“Low-exposure jobs…” Winnie fell into thought again.

“A scribe copying books—no, that’s too tiring. A server at a high-end restaurant—no, that doesn’t fit Miss Tia’s status.” She dismissed several options, and Talier beside her listened with envy.

That was the advantage of being both clever and pretty.

“Earlier I heard you mention the apothecaries’ guild and the horticulturists’ guild—would they have suitable positions for me?” Sylutia grew interested.

Her Discernment Eyes could help identify herbs and their properties, which would be very useful. If she could learn how to make potions, she could earn a living without appearing in public. As for horticulture, she wanted to find cornflower seeds and related cultivation techniques.

“That, you’ll have to ask around.” Winnie nodded in agreement.

As evening approached, Winnie’s husband Ancel returned from work and met the two guests.

“I see.” After hearing Winnie and Talier’s account, he had a rough understanding of the situation.

“I’ll ask Mr. Edson at the guild tomorrow. Regarding the apothecaries’ guild, I suggest Miss Tia first buy a herb identification guide and study it before trying to get work there—would make things easier.” He offered the suggestion during their shared dinner.

“Talier knows where to buy books. If you lack money, I can lend you some.” Considering Sylutia had just arrived in Scorchstone City, she would indeed be in a difficult spot.

“How much would the book cost?”

“If it’s the herb identification guide I mentioned, about eight silver coins.”

“Wow, books are that expensive?” Talier exclaimed in surprise.

“Of course. Knowledge has never been cheap.” Ancel nodded.

“No problem. Thank you for the advice, Mr. Ancel.” Sylutia expressed her gratitude.

“It’s nothing. You’re Talier’s friend and you helped Lindenwood Village before—this is the least I could do.”

After dinner, Talier and Sylutia said their goodbyes and returned to their lodging.

After they left, Ancel and Winnie discussed the silver-haired girl over the meal.

“Miss Tia’s background is definitely not simple.” He spoke with some emotion.

“Yes. Just her accent, appearance, and demeanor set her apart from ordinary people.”

“And talking with her felt pleasant—she didn’t have that distant, arrogant air typical of nobility.” Winnie recalled her impressions from earlier.

“I’ll ask around at the guild tomorrow. Also about my sister Talier—our grandfather sent her to the city, probably so she won’t waste her time at home.”

“She’s sixteen this year and can start working.”

“Talier’s lively—those quiet jobs won’t suit her. She’d like something with plenty of running around.” Winnie described Talier’s temperament.

“There will be something.” Ancel reassured his wife.

They continued discussing these things and then drifted to planning for little Landy’s future. They talked late into the night until sleep finally took them.