The siblings clung to each other as Woody Larkin watched Stella Sterling warily.

Seeing this, Stella Sterling raised an eyebrow. ’This scene really makes me look like the main villain, doesn’t it?’

"Thank you!" Yana Larkin stood up and bowed respectfully to Stella Sterling.

She also pulled her brother to his feet, having him thank Stella Sterling as well.

She knew that if this woman hadn’t appeared and saved them, she couldn’t even imagine what their fate would have been.

"Don’t thank me. I didn’t save you for free," Stella Sterling said calmly, her gaze direct and unflinching.

Yana Larkin was stunned for a moment, but then she smiled, thinking it was only to be expected.

’She just didn’t understand what they could possibly have that Stella would find valuable.’

She said, "Miss, what is it that you want? To be honest, we had some food at home we could have given you as thanks, but we were just robbed, so..."

As she said this, she grew ashamed, realizing she couldn’t produce a single thing to show her gratitude.

Woody Larkin’s stubborn face was also overcome with shame. He kept his head down for a long moment before finally looking up and saying to Stella Sterling with conviction, "I will definitely repay you in the future. I’ll toil for you like a beast of burden!"

’She saved them. She saved my sister from being humiliated by those men and even gave us the chance to kill those animals with our own hands. It’s like she’s given us a new life. No matter what, I have to repay her with everything I have.’

At that moment, the boy’s resolve was unshakable.

Stella Sterling smiled, satisfied. "Good. Remember those words."

She looked at the two of them, still so young yet so stubborn, and smiled. "Then get stronger. Because right now, you aren’t even qualified to repay me."

The two nodded in a daze. They felt like they understood something, yet at the same time, they were utterly confused.

It felt like she wanted them to repay her, but she hadn’t said what she wanted *from* them.

Suddenly, Woody Larkin recalled the look of satisfaction on her face right after he had made his vow. In that instant, he seemed to understand.

He looked up, his eyes now holding something more than just determination. "Alright!"

Yana Larkin glanced at her brother, then turned to Stella Sterling. "Me too. From now on, my brother and I will do everything in our power to repay you, even if it costs me my life!"

’Without her, I would already be dead, and I would have suffered unimaginable humiliation before the end. Therefore, our lives rightfully belong to her.’

Seeing their earnest expressions, Stella Sterling knew she had achieved her goal. She didn’t want them to repay her now.

’They’re still too weak right now; they’re of no use to me. But of course, I didn’t save them for nothing.’

’My goal has been clear from the start. I want them to remember this debt, to remember that the lives they have now are a gift from me.’

Stella Sterling’s expression showed no particular sign of pleasure. "I will remember your promise."

"Remember it. My name is Stella Sterling."

Stella Sterling!

The siblings repeated the name silently in their minds, engraving it into their memories.

Deciding to see it through, Stella Sterling went back inside the building and returned a moment later with a shovel. Seeing their confused looks, she said with a smile, "What about your mother? Weren’t you going to bury her?"

Only then did the two remember. Using just their bare hands, they had only managed to dig a shallow hole in the snow before those monsters showed up. Their mother’s body was still lying there on the ground.

They rushed over. In just that short time, the shallow hole they’d dug had already been covered by fresh snow. They had no choice but to start digging with their hands again, seemingly oblivious to the pain in their already swollen fingers.

Stella Sterling pressed a hand to her forehead, feeling another wave of helplessness. ’Do they not realize what this shovel in my hand is for?’

’When I met them in my past life, they were much more mature. It’s hard to get used to how young and naive they are now.’

She sighed, walked over, and began digging with the shovel without a word.

’In for a penny, in for a pound. I’ve already made a good impression, so I might as well help them a little more.’

’It’s not like I have anything better to do at home anyway.’

The siblings glanced at her, also saying nothing, but their gratitude toward Stella Sterling only deepened.

In their eyes, Stella Sterling was now a truly great person. They didn’t say anything more, but they vowed to themselves that they would do everything they could to repay her in the future.

’Of course, that’s assuming we can survive and get stronger. Otherwise, just like our benefactor said, we won’t even be qualified to repay her.’

At that moment, something took root and began to sprout in the siblings’ hearts.

The three of them worked in silence. With Stella Sterling’s help, the work went much faster, and they soon finished.

The siblings watched as their mother was gradually buried beneath the snow. They no longer wailed in grief as before, but shed silent tears.

From now on, they were on their own.

Stella Sterling watched them from the side, her heart serene.

’Back with my adoptive parents, I never received any affection, only beatings and verbal abuse. That couple gave me just enough food to stay alive, as if even that was a form of charity. I couldn’t even dream of asking for anything more.’

’So, I have no feelings for my adoptive family.’

’As for Mr. Quinn and Mrs. Sterling, things were alright at first. While they weren’t exactly doting, they provided for all my material needs. But whenever Yara Sterling was involved, they would become completely different people.’

’After everything that happened later, all my expectations and affection for them were completely worn away.’

’Now that I’ve been reborn in this life and learned the real reason they took me back, they mean less than nothing to me. They’re worse than strangers.’

’I’ve never experienced what a deep mother-daughter bond feels like. And in my past life, I saw too many dead bodies. People died constantly, and the roads were littered with rotting, foul-smelling corpses.’

’I’ve long since grown numb to it all, finding it commonplace. I feel no particular insight or emotion at this moment.’

But just because she couldn’t feel that kind of grief herself didn’t mean she couldn’t understand it in others. So, she simply stood quietly to the side, keeping them company.

She held out her hand, catching a snowflake. The icy sensation traveled from her fingertip to her heart, and she looked up with a small smile.

Woody Larkin happened to look back just in time to see this. His heart trembled, and a flash of awe crossed his eyes as his pulse quickened.

Before he could even process this strange feeling, his sister pulled him in front of Stella Sterling. The two of them once again offered her their solemn thanks.

"Stella, thank you for everything today. We will take the promise we made to heart!"