The next few days were surprisingly peaceful.
No one came to block the door, and she didn’t even feel like she was being followed.
Alpha still got up early every day. She first went to the potion shop to check on the two little ones, then headed to the Adventurers’ Guild to take on requests.
Li Fu’s leg got better day by day. Now she could slowly walk around the shop on her own.
Mia was still that cheerful little bird. Every time she saw Alpha, she would pounce and hug her leg, then chatter about what fun things had happened that day.
Everything was normal.
The only thing that wasn’t normal was Gelinlite.
“Alpha!”
“Come here!”
That evening, just as Alpha pushed open the door to the potion shop, Gelinlite grabbed her and pulled her inside.
Gelinlite dragged her into a corner, lowered her voice, and looked tense.
“I know about Grey Finger!”
Alpha blinked.
“You know what?”
“I know it was you!” Gelinlite stared at her. “Don’t try to hide it from me! I thought your reaction that day was suspicious, so I went to ask around at the Old Goods Market—and sure enough, it was you!”
Alpha was silent for a moment.
“And then?”
“Then?!” Gelinlite’s voice rose. “Then of course I’m worried about you!”
“That was Grey Finger! Didn’t I tell you he had people behind him! Back then, didn’t you promise me you’d be careful?”
“How could you still go and kill him? Now the people behind him definitely won’t let you off!”
She grabbed Alpha’s sleeve and spoke quickly: “Listen to me. Don’t take any requests for the next few days. Lay low! Wait until the heat dies down!”
Alpha looked at her face, full of worry, and nodded.
“Mm, got it. Thanks for the warning.”
“Don’t just say it! You really need to—”
Gelinlite stopped mid-sentence.
She stared at Alpha, her gaze turning suspicious.
“Wait… your reaction… Did you do something already?”
Alpha’s expression didn’t change.
“No.”
“Really?”
“Really.”
Gelinlite stared at her for a long time, then finally sighed.
“Fine… Just be careful. The person behind Grey Finger isn’t someone to mess with.”
Alpha nodded.
“Mm, I understand.”
—
But the next day, Alpha showed up at the entrance of the Adventurers’ Guild right on time.
The third day too.
The fourth day as well.
At first, Gelinlite was worried sick every day. Every time she saw Alpha come back safely, she would let out a sigh of relief, then mutter, “Why did you go again?” and “What if something happens?”
But later, she found out—
Alpha really seemed fine.
Not only was she fine, but the treatment she received at the Guild seemed to have improved.
Gelinlite started to wonder.
Finally, she couldn’t hold it in anymore.
That afternoon, when she delivered a batch of potions to the Guild, she took the chance to ask around.
The man reading a newspaper behind the counter looked up at her and said casually, “You mean Alpha?”
“Yeah, yeah! How’s she been recently?”
“She’s doing well.”
The man turned back to his newspaper and said, “Just a few days ago, we updated her file. Her adventurer rank was raised to Bronze Level 2.”
“Really didn’t expect it… So she was hiding her strength all along. I wonder why someone so strong came to Grayrock City, a small place like this, to be an adventurer.”
Gelinlite was stunned.
“Hiding… strength?”
“Yeah, she’s a Third Order Magic Swordsman.”
The man frowned slightly and asked with curiosity, “You didn’t know? A few days ago, she took on a purge mission by herself and single-handedly took down two berserk monsters. That story has already spread through the Guild.”
“The two monsters Alpha brought back were only Second Order, but after going berserk, their explosive power was close to Third Order. Being able to take down two by herself—her strength is definitely above Second Order.”
“At least Third Order.”
Third… Third Order?!
Gelinlite stood there, her mind going blank.
In a small place like Grayrock City, Third Order was already top-tier combat power.
Alpha actually had that kind of strength?
She suddenly felt that her worry over the past few days had been… a little unnecessary?
—
In the potion shop, Gelinlite circled Alpha several times, her eyes wide open as if she were studying some kind of monster.
Finally, she took a deep breath and put her hands on her hips.
“Alpha.”
“Hmm?”
“Have you never considered me a friend at all?”
Alpha was taken aback.
“What do you mean?”
“You hid something this big from me!”
Gelinlite glared at her angrily. “I was worried sick about you, and you turned out to be a Third Order Magic Swordsman?”
“If you had that kind of strength, you should have told me! Do you know how anxious I’ve been these past few days? I kept thinking, if you got caught, I’d have to spend money to bail you out! I almost went bald!”
Alpha looked at her still-thick hair and paused for a moment.
“Your hair is still there.”
“Is that the point?!”
Just as Gelinlite was about to continue her protest, the door to the inner room opened.
“Gelinlite, what are you guys talking about?”
Mia poked her little head out and blinked at them.
Behind her, Li Fu also slowly walked out. Her leg was still a bit unsteady, but she no longer needed help.
Gelinlite looked at them, then at Alpha, took a deep breath, suppressed her urge to keep venting, and then a spark lit up in her eyes. She suddenly grinned.
“Nothing! I just thought of something happy!”
She clapped her hands and excitedly announced to everyone: “Since Li Fu’s leg is almost better, and Alpha’s adventurer rank has gone up, then—”
“Tonight, let’s go eat barbecue!”
“My treat!”
—
That night, on the busiest street in Grayrock City, a tavern with a sign that read “A Hundred-Year-Old Establishment” was filled with tempting aromas of grilled meat.
Gelinlite waved her hand generously and ordered a large platter of barbecue and several glasses of juice.
“Come on, come on, don’t be shy! No one leaves until the plates are empty!”
Mia’s eyes were already fixed on the sizzling, greasy meat. She was practically drooling.
“It smells so good…”
“Hehe, if it smells good, dig in~”
Gelinlite generously handed her a big skewer of meat.
Mia’s eyes sparkled. She swallowed her saliva, hesitated for a moment, then took it. She carefully took a small bite.
Then her eyes lit up even more.
“It’s so delicious!”
She held the skewer in her hands like a rare treasure and nibbled on it little by little, chewing each bite for a long time, unwilling to swallow.
Occasionally, she let out satisfied “mm-mm” sounds, like a little hamster enjoying a tasty treat.
Li Fu sat beside her, watching her little sister’s happy expression. The corners of her mouth unconsciously lifted into a gentle curve.
But her body was stiff. She sat up straight, her hands resting properly on her knees, unsure where to look.
She had never been to a place like this before.
Those carved tables and chairs, those clean tablecloths, those well-dressed customers…
Everything here made her feel out of place.
They had picked up bottles their whole lives and probably wouldn’t even earn enough for one skewer of barbecue.
But now, her little sister had the chance to eat such delicious food.
If she said something to stop her or showed any discomfort, it would probably ruin the warm atmosphere tonight.
So Li Fu silently engraved this debt in her heart.
How much did one skewer of barbecue cost? How much for one glass of juice? And that night Gelinlite had given them the blanket, the medicine, the care…
She would remember all of it.
And pay it back slowly.
Even if it took her whole life.
Just then, Gelinlite raised her glass and announced loudly:
“Here’s to Li Fu’s recovery! Here’s to Alpha’s promotion to Bronze Level 2! Cheers!”
Mia was the first to respond. She lifted her glass high. “Cheers——!”
Li Fu snapped back to reality and quickly raised her glass too.
Alpha silently raised hers.
“Cheers——!”
The glasses clinked with a crisp sound. The juice glowed warmly in the candlelight.
Gelinlite downed hers in one gulp, set the glass down, and picked up another skewer. While eating, she chattered to Alpha beside her:
“Alpha, listen. From now on, you’ve got to look out for us. You’re a Third Order big shot now. You could walk sideways through this city and no one would dare mess with you!”
“If anyone bullies me in the future, I’ll just drop your name! You’d better have my back!”
“Oh, and next time I go herb gathering, can I get a free ride and mooch off you?”
She rambled on and on. Alpha listened silently, nodding occasionally.
She chewed the barbecue.
But it didn’t taste like much.
It wasn’t that the barbecue at this tavern was bad.
The meat was grilled just right—crispy on the outside, tender on the inside. The seasoning was spot on too.
But Alpha still felt…
Something was missing.
She looked across at Mia. The little one was eating with grease smeared all over her mouth, and she even stuffed a piece into her sister’s mouth.
“Sister, you eat too!”
Li Fu hesitated. Instinctively, she wanted to refuse. But seeing her little sister’s sparkling eyes, she opened her mouth and let Mia shove the piece in.
Seeing the warm scene of the two sisters feeding each other, Alpha unconsciously looked away.
She looked down at the skewer in her hand.
The oil glistened in the candlelight.
Alpha took another bite.
Still tasteless.
But she already knew in her heart what was missing.
“Alpha?”
Gelinlite’s voice suddenly rang out.
Alpha looked up.
Gelinlite was staring at her with a hint of curiosity.
“What’s wrong? You’ve been eating that same skewer forever. Did they overcook it?”
Alpha shook her head. “No.”
“Liar! Let me try it!”
Gelinlite leaned in and, with lightning speed, took a bite from the already-eaten skewer in Alpha’s hand. Then she sat back and started chewing noisily, finally giving her verdict.
“Mm-hmm, same old flavor. It’s delicious!”
Alpha stared at the skewer now covered in someone else’s saliva. She paused, then handed it to Gelinlite. “…Then you can have this one.”
“Really? Awesome! Then you can have this one of mine! I’m telling you, this leg meat is great!”
Gelinlite took the skewer from Alpha’s hand and shoved her own half-eaten one into Alpha’s grasp.
Alpha: “…”
Seeing Gelinlite acting so unserious, she finally sighed and took a bite of the meat in her hand.
But this time, she did taste something.
Yeah, the taste of someone’s saliva.
Just then, Alpha heard a few drunk adventurers at the next table bragging and chatting.
“Did you hear? The Empire’s been having some weird vibes lately.”
“What’s up?”
“I heard from my cousin in the Imperial Capital that the Iron Thorn Emperor is about to strip the Great Princess of her succession right.”
“Tch, you kidding me? As far as I know, besides Emily, that monster genius who reached Legend at twenty, the Great Princess is the Empire’s youngest and strongest Fifth Tier Extraordinary. Logically, her succession right was settled long ago. How could it be taken away just like that?”
“How should I know? It’s the royal family. My cousin’s lucky to have caught even a little news. Let me tell you, my cousin is amazing. He once made the Gambling God shine his shoes in front of everyone at a tavern in the Imperial Capital…”
“Boo——”