The doors into the small room above the carpenter’s workshop creaked as they opened. A small shadow entered a dark room filled with beds and a tiny kitchen.

A tall woman was working in this kitchen preparing some food for the whole family. She looked up from her bowl at the interruption.

“Adra, you are already here,” she proclaimed and put the bowl down.

In answer to her the shadow smiled shyly, ”I was allowed to slip away early for my free day, after I finished all of my duties for the day. What is this beautiful smell, Nara?” Adra wondered and went to embrace her sister.

“Noodless, radish and egg for the celebration of my sister's success,” Nara said and embraced Adra. In the light of the opened door a web of scars could have been seen on Nara’s hand. This web of scars spread from her hand across her body and towards Nara’s face.

“You should not have,” Adra looked at her sister clearly happy.

“I had to. You were able to land a job with the Xun family of the Silverhand clan. If that is a cause for celebration, then nothing is.”

“It was not my doing. Ellena Silverhand handpicked me to work as a maid for her daughter. It was a stroke of luck. She could have picked anyone. I got lucky.” Adra was downplaying her situation.

“Do not fret. You still made it big, but tell me how it is serving the Xun family?” Nara let Adra to the table and sat her down.

“It is nothing special. I cleanly help Mia Silverhand to dress and I am ready to serve her any whim. It is not that different from being here helping you, while parents are away,” Adra answered her big sister’s question smiling.

Nara grabbed a rag and threw it at Adra, “This is a serious matter, which you should not be kidding around,” she castigated her sister, but while she was doing so she was smiling too.

Adra threw the rag back, ”I speak truthfully, ancestors be my witness,” she said and then she stuck her tongue out at her sister.

Nara’s expression grew serious, ”Speaking of truths. We have heard strange rumors from the guards and peddlers coming to the mom’s work. What kind of mistress is Mei Silverhand?”

“She is rather kind, if distant. I have not spoken to her that much. It was just a few days, and she was engrossed in a weird book until recently. Now she is obsessing over stones she had fashioned. It is strange,” Adra shrugged, ”But she is sick and sick people make strange decisions, not to mention her past.”

Nara looked at her sister full of suspicion, “I heard they sent her away to become a proper bride for some noble, but she was too aggressive and they shipped her back to the clan. They say that she already killed someone in the city and the Silverhand clan hid it. I know most of these rumours are lies, but there must be some truth to them. They could not spread so quickly otherwise.”

This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

Adra scoffed, “ I do not know where you got your rumours, but that is ridiculous. Mei Silverhand is not someone who would just go and kill someone. She is considerate and kind. She even protected me from a drunkard.”

Nara shrugged, ”That might be true, but you have to admit she was away for a long time and showed back mysteriously. It is quite suspicious. What was she doing and why did she return so suddenly?”

“She was a member of one of the cultivator sects until recently, when she suffered a serious injury. I think she returned home after that. That is the reason she was not in the city for so long.” Adra explained.

This statement did nothing to lessen Nara’s worries, ”She is a failed cultivator then. You must be careful,” Nara went and grabbed Adra’s shoulder.”You had heard the stories. All failed cultivators are cracked in the head trying to regain their power and status. You must be very careful. Remember what the cousin Sui said,” Nara implored her sister.

“Yes, I remember the story of the village with no one in it and the giant cauldron in the middle, where the bodies of the entire village were stuffed in, but Mei is not that kind of person.” Adra looked offended on behalf of Mei.

Nara shook her head, “You cannot be this naïve. You yourself said that she is obsessed with some book and stones. I am sure that this is how these incidents begin. Soon she will discover a perfect method to regain her powers and soon. It will not work and she will turn to darker means. You must be careful and run away at first sign she is unstable.”

“I cannot just quit my job. I was lucky to land this position and we need the money.” Adra looked at her sister aghast at the suggestion.

Nara smiled sadly, ”I know we need the money, but I do not want to lose my sister to some madwoman hoping to regain her former glory. At least promise me that you will be careful.

Adra rolled her eyes, ”I will tell you the moment she begins sacrificing animals,” she said.

Nara looked uneasy at her sister, but she returned to her cooking, yet the conversation between them was not over. Nara still had a point to make, ”It is still strange that I heard nothing about her joining a sect. Everyone in the city knows about the cultivators which rose from the clans, so why keep it silent, that one of the clan members joined the world of immortals. Silverhand clan was certainly not so silent, when it came to Zhelan for example. They touted his success to everyone around them.”

Adra thought about the question for some time, ”I do not know, but very few people in the clan itself are certain that Mei joined a sect. It is rather strange, but I am sure there is a logical explanation to that mystery,” Adra nodded,” I might ask Mei about it.

“Why should your mistress answer such a personal question? You are just a maid.” Nara wondered as she pulled the noodles out of the pot.

“Mei is strange for someone from a clan. She will answer these questions without a pause, if I ask her. She also does not understand manners at all. Out of the two of us I am the one more well mannered,” Adra explained, but then looked at her sister with wide eyes.

“Please do not tell anyone I said that. It is not something, which everyone should gossip about.”

Nara smiled, ”Do not be afraid, your secret is safe with me. Now come and help me prepare the table. Parents should arrive shortly and I wish to have the table ready for them.

Adra did as she was bid and they chatted together like sisters; they were unheeding of what the future would bring.