During a brief break the next day, those three maids came to find Anna.

Abigail and Kelly looked fine, but Fiona's face was covered in red blotches, as if she'd been stung by something.

"Fiona, what happened to your face?" Anna asked curiously.

Fiona's expression darkened instantly, while Abigail and Kelly burst into laughter. They vividly recounting Fiona's misadventure to Anna.

Even though Anna had anticipated this outcome, having subtly guided them towards it, she couldn't help but laugh at the development.

Falling into a rose bush... That’s just too hilarious!

If she had been slightly concerned about Fiona trying to hurt her before, now that she knew what Fiona had been through, she didn’t mind at all.

It was so pathetic that she nearly teared up from laughing too hard.

Then, Abigail shared something that made Anna even happier.

"Anna, you won't believe it. A lot of people are imitating us!" Abigail said indignantly. "We might have failed, but we thought we'd have more chances. Now with everyone copying us, our opportunities are slipping away!"

Anna struggled to maintain a straight face and asked, "Did they all fall in front of Lord Parish? How did he react?"

"Master Parish is so deeply in love with you, he didn't even glance at us!" Fiona said with a resentful look at Anna.

From Anna's observations, although their first encounter seemed like an accident, it was clear that the demon had fixated on her afterward, showing no interest in other souls. That’s why she had the audacity to guide her new friends to "pester" the demon.

Actually, she had also delivered the demon's breakfast that morning. His face didn't look good at the time. While she had her suspicions, she didn't know the full details.

Now that she knew many people were persistently bothering the demon, she was delighted. Even though she feared him, who said she couldn't "reciprocate" the sentiment?

After all, it wasn't her who incited all those people to pester him, so it couldn't be blamed on her.

She sighed worriedly at Fiona, "I didn’t mean for this to happen..."

Since Anna mentioned having a lover and rejected Master Parish’s proposal in front of the three, their hostility significantly diminished.

Although they might still be a bit jealous, it didn’t stop them from befriending her.

Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

Their logic was simple: if Anna didn’t want to marry Master Parish, and Parish liked Anna, then by befriending her, they could get closer to him. Even though Master Parish had seen them "bullying" Anna, as long as they treated her well from now on, he might change his thought!

With similar thoughts in mind, the three girls surrounded Anna.

Abigail said, "Oh, Anna, your skin looks a bit dry. Did you forget to use moisturizer? I just got a new jar with honey, very hydrating. I’ll bring it to you later!"

The other two also quickly offered to give Anna their “unused” but “amazing” skincare products. Anna, happy to maintain their superficial friendship, accepted them all graciously.

As the four girls chatted, Kelly casually brought up a topic that piqued Anna’s interest.

Kelly mentioned that ever since a distinguished mage had moved into the small building on the west side of the garden, it had become particularly eerie, and no one dared to go there.

Anna's heart skipped a beat. She quickly asked, "A mage? The kind that goes ‘pew pew pew’ and throws out lots of magic?"

The three girls laughed at her sound effects, and Kelly replied, "Yes. I heard he's a very talented young mage, only in his twenties, but already a four-star mage!"

Anna felt her throat tighten with excitement.

The original owner of her body had known about mages and other supernatural elements, but had never seen one in person—though it wasn't entirely accurate, as Father Louis at the BlueStone Church was said to wield the power of the Light bestowed by the Goddess.

Given her humble background, the original Anna knew little about the world’s structure, and even less about magic and mages.

Who hasn’t dreamed of becoming a mage during their fantasy phase?

Now that she had been transported to a world with supernatural powers, how could she not be interested? She just hadn’t had the opportunity to learn about it until now, and she was eager to know more from her acquaintances who seemed more knowledgeable.

"Sounds impressive... You know, I’m new here and still figuring things out. Is a four-star mage really powerful?" Anna asked.

Since all three girls were eager to please Anna, they eagerly engaged in the conversation.

"Although BlueStone City doesn’t have a Mage Association, I once met an esteemed mage. He was very kind, and that’s how I learned a few things," Abigail boasted proudly. "Do you know that usually, it takes a mage apprentice until they're forty to become a four-star mage? But that gentleman became one in his twenties! It's amazing! And he’s the son of a noble duke!"

Even though the young four-star mage had nothing to do with her, Abigail spoke as if his achievements reflected on her.

Anna quickly asked, "What’s the Mage Association? Is a four-star mage a rank? How are mages ranked?"

Fiona jumped in, "The Mage Association is where elementary mages study, though we don’t have one in BlueStone. The nearest one is in GreenPine. That's why we rarely see mages around here. I heard that the Earl’s mansion recruits some mages as guest advisors, but I haven’t seen any."

"Mages like to keep to themselves. They wouldn’t usually show up at the mansion," Abigail added. "That one over there only arrived a few days ago. I heard he’s recovering from injuries inflicted by a mythical beast! Oh, that was before you came, Anna."

"Wait, I heard he was injured in an assassination attempt," Kelly interjected.

"I heard it from Canray. Who did you hear it from?"

"I don’t remember, but what I heard is definitely closer to the truth!"

"Hmph, nonsense! Canray is praised by the lord himself. How could what he says be false?"

As Abigail and Kelly began to bicker about whose rumor was more accurate, Anna became more and more confused.

They hadn’t even explained what a four-star mage was yet! Or what an elementary mage was. And what about the church's Father Louis? Was he considered a mage? Or was it a different power system altogether?

Unfortunately, before they finished their argument—yes, Fiona inexplicably joined in, turning the disagreement into a three-way spat—Anna's break ended. Seeing Rebecca waving her over from a distance, Anna had to say goodbye and dash back to work.