In the kitchen—

After garnishing the last bowl of fish soup with cilantro, Aurora Sinclair wiped her hands.

Mama Young set aside a small bowl of the fish soup, then had the rest taken out.

"Drink this."

Aurora Sinclair paused, then thanked her.

"The Madam doesn’t like girls who are too thin. Eat up..." With that, Mama Young turned and walked out of the kitchen.

On the stove, besides the bowl of fish soup, were several small bowls filled with food she had set aside while cooking.

Aurora Sinclair knew there were hidden cameras, so she dutifully drank only the small bowl of fish soup.

After cleaning the kitchen, she went to the staff dining area.

After seeing this on the surveillance feed, Mama Young was finally reassured. She asked August Trent, "Can we keep this girl?"

"The Family Head said her cooking suits his palate. If her character and background check out, she can stay."

「That night...」

The girl sleeping next to Aurora Sinclair suddenly sat up, slowly crawled over to her, and whispered her name a few times. Aurora was sleeping soundly.

Seemingly reassured, the girl tiptoed out of the room.

Aurora Sinclair’s eyes snapped open.

「The next day.」

Aurora Sinclair got up as usual, got dressed, and prepared to go help in the kitchen.

As she was about to leave, she glanced at the bed next to hers and pursed her lips.

’The girl didn’t come back all night.’

After she finished making breakfast, Mama Young suddenly appeared at the kitchen entrance with a grim expression, looking furious.

"Joy, come out for a moment."

Aurora Sinclair froze, quickly turned off the stove, and followed her out.

It was a short walk from the kitchen to the living room, and as they drew closer, a faint crying sound became audible.

It sounded like the girl who shared her room.

When they entered the living room, they saw Raina Young sitting on the sofa, surrounded by servants. A half-naked girl was kneeling on the floor, her hair a mess.

"Madam, I didn’t know the master would suddenly ask me to serve him... Please don’t send me away..."

Raina Young’s face was pale, as if she had been angered to the point of sickness.

From behind the crowd, Mama Young called out, "Madam, I’ve brought Joy."

Aurora Sinclair kept her head slightly bowed as she walked forward timidly.

"Madam..."

Mama Young asked sharply, "When did she leave the room last night?"

Aurora Sinclair bit her lip and shook her head. "I was asleep. I don’t know."

"Has she behaved unusually at all in the past few days?"

Aurora Sinclair just shook her head again. "I’m not sure."

Mama Young’s expression darkened. She looked at the frail woman on the sofa. "Madam, Joy is usually in the kitchen. She’s had very little contact with the girl these past few days."

Raina Young’s face was a deathly still mask, her gaze lost somewhere in the distance. She suddenly let out a soft laugh. "Forget it. Give her some money and send her away."

The girl sat up, her voice full of disbelief. "Madam, I can’t leave! I have my mother and younger brother to support..."

Mama Young signaled to a few nearby servants, who moved forward to drag her away. "The Madam will give you a large sum of money, enough to last you for the rest of your life."

They were rough with her, not caring at all that she was exposed. They practically dragged her out of the house and shoved her into a car waiting at the entrance.

The farce was over.

Aurora Sinclair left the living room with the others.

Mama Young glanced at the woman on the sofa, then walked over and took her hand. "Madam, don’t be too upset. The Family Head is powerful. It’s only natural that sluts will try everything they can to climb their way up."

Raina Young looked at the ring representing the Young Family on her delicate, pale finger and gave a bitter laugh.

"In the end, I’m still no match for her..."

Mama Young knew she was thinking of that woman again. Frowning slightly, she said, "At least you’re alive and well, Madam, unlike her, who died a miserable death in the wilderness."

Raina Young shook her head. "You don’t understand..."

Seeing that she was about to get sad again, Mama Young quickly changed the subject. "Madam, have you chosen anyone to bring with you to Niphoria?"

"You arrange it."

***

Niphoria is an island nation, its land area minuscule compared to Veridia’s, but its people are fierce and revere the Martial Artist spirit.

Most of the men and women on the island are Martial Artists, and their overall strength ranks second in the Martial World of Arcadia.

Aurora Sinclair and Mama Young were cutting fruit in the plane’s galley. Aurora had also prepared a fruit salad.

"You know how to do quite a lot." Mama Young was very satisfied with her; she was the only one brought along for this trip to Niphoria.

The girl’s eyes were clear; one look was enough to see she had no ill intent.

Aurora Sinclair didn’t stop cutting fruit as she replied with an innocent air, "My family is poor, and my little brother is quite the glutton, so I used to go to the market to see what people were making, learn how, and then go home to cook for him..."

Mama Young nodded and tried a piece of mango. "Go on, take this to the Madam."

Carrying a small bowl, Aurora Sinclair knocked on the cabin door ahead.

Raina Young’s gentle voice came from inside. "Come in."

Aurora Sinclair kept her head down as she slowly walked in.

"So this is the new maid?" Victor Trent’s voice came from nearby.

Aurora Sinclair murmured, "Family Head..."

"Lift your head. Let me see." 𝘧𝓇ℯ𝑒𝓌𝑒𝑏𝓃𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭.𝒸ℴ𝓂

Biting her lip, Aurora Sinclair raised her head. Her current appearance was unremarkable. She had light freckles on her cheeks and looked like a simple, hardworking country girl who had only recently arrived in the city.

The interest vanished from Victor Trent’s eyes. He gave her a nod and went back to the newspaper in his hands.

On the other side of the cabin, Raina Young wore a pair of glasses and was reading a foreign-language book.

The title on the cover translated to: *Gene Editing and Modification Theory*.

Aurora Sinclair placed the fruit salad in front of her, then lowered her head and dutifully excused herself.

"Wait."

Aurora Sinclair froze, her heart instantly leaping into her throat. She turned back slowly and replied respectfully, "Family Head, do you have an order for me?"

"Get me some fruit as well." Victor Trent said, still looking at his newspaper.

Aurora Sinclair let out an inward sigh of relief.

She made another identical bowl of fruit salad, which Mama Young delivered to him personally.

The flight from Veridia to Niphoria was about six or seven hours long. When Aurora Sinclair wasn’t cooking, she studied the Niphorian language on the side.

Mama Young had told her to learn it because they would be staying in Niphoria for a long time.

Raina Young loved the scenery in Niphoria and stayed there for several months each year to paint landscapes.

She seemed very fond of painting landscapes, especially those with a pristine, natural style. Aurora Sinclair had seen a few of them in her art studio.

"Joy, after we get off the plane, we’ll first be visiting a family. They are an ancient family in Niphoria with many rules and taboos, so don’t stare and don’t speak out of turn."

Aurora Sinclair nodded.