“Were you hiding your abilities yesterday?” Arlene’s voice sounded out from the side.

Scarlett smothered the two large spheres of fire she’d been focusing on, turning to look at the nearby porch. The woman was eyeing her closely.

“I was not. Since then, however, I have had a realization of sorts.”

[Name: Scarlett Hartford][Skills:[Greater Mana Control][Greater Pyromancy][Superior Pyrokinesis][Hydromancy][Greater Hydrokinesis]][Traits:[Dignified August][Supercilious][Cavalier][Callous][Overbearing][Conceited][Third-rate Mana Veins]][Mana: 3453/4646][Points: 2]

[Skills Menu:Upgrades[Superior Pyromancy] (25 points)[Major Pyrokinesis] (50 points)[Greater Hydromancy] (10 points)[Superior Hydrokinesis] (25 points)[Superior Mana Control] (25 points)New skills [LOCKED]]

After getting back to the mansion yesterday, Scarlett had upgraded her pyrokinesis. She had to admit, the boost it gave was somewhat intoxicating. The upgraded skill felt several times more powerful than before. And while she didn’t know exactly what the growth rate between these skills was, she was at the very least certain it wasn’t linear. Previously, she’d been going around with what was essentially a level 30 skill in the game—from her admittedly rough estimation—but now it’d probably be somewhere closer to level 50.

Not that things translated that neatly into this world. For one thing, all her other ‘attributes’ were significantly lower in comparison. Actual skill was also an important factor — that is, her proficiency with the magic. Her Aqua Mines were a good example of how one could get a lot more out of these skills than one would think at first glance.

As for where the limits of [Superior Pyrokinesis] lay, she wasn’t sure yet. All she knew was that judging from what the skill was currently capable of in her hands, she certainly wouldn’t want to stand at the receiving end of its power.

“I’ve seen many go through breakthroughs in my life,” Arlene said. “But none this extreme.”

The woman studied her for several seconds. “It must have been one profound realization you had.”

Scarlett met her eyes. All of this must look incredibly odd to her. The last time they’d been here in Freymeadow was before they left for Darkshore. For Scarlett, days had passed since. But for Arlene, it must have seemed like she had left the evening before and come back several times stronger in the morning.

“This is what you should come to expect of me,” Scarlett said. “I am far from your common practitioner.”

Arlene raised both eyebrows, a disbelieving look on her face. After a moment, she returned her attention to the book in her lap without a response.

Scarlett kept her gaze on her for a while longer before returning to her own training.

[Mana: 187/4646]

Scarlett heaved the warm summer air, glancing at the mana that remained. She’d been at it for several hours now, cycling from ever-shortening training sessions to increasingly long periods of rest. For the time being, her focus was on familiarising herself with [Superior Pyrokinesis]. She had barely touched hydrokinesis except for the occasional wetting of the towel she had on her lap.

She peered up at the bright blue sky. The scorching afternoon sun blared down on her and the wide dirt square around her. The perpetual summertime in this place was nice at first when compared to the rather chilly winds that were starting to go around Freybrook, but she really could do without the extra heat when she was already experimenting with so much fire.

She had taken this into consideration, bringing along a lighter set of clothes comprised of a loose white shirt and black cotton pants, but it was sweltering even with just that. If possible she would’ve preferred wearing just enough to protect her modesty, but there was no way she could bring herself to wear something like that in a public setting. The original’s sensibilities inside her cried out at the mere idea.

Bringing up the towel to clean her face, she released a sigh as the relative coolness of the fabric touched her skin. She would need to take a good long rest before she could get back to training again. What she did during these resting sessions varied. If she had the energy, she would often read some book or other to further familiarise herself with this world. At other times, she would try to find a place with shade and relax there. When she was well and truly exhausted, she’d sometimes just stay in the chair and do nothing. It wasn’t the most comfortable of positions, but sometimes you just didn’t want to bother.

She had never realized it before, but subjecting herself to this endless cycle of training to collapse had taught her how nice it could be to sometimes just do nothing. It was amusing to think that the spoiled modern person in her would have balked at the idea a few months back.

She wasn’t quite at that level of tiredness yet, though. For now, she would be satisfied if she could find a suitably refreshing spot in the shade before she started resting.

Her gaze moved to the porch where Arlene sat.

Actually, why couldn’t she just move there? There was plenty of space, and a low wooden ceiling jutted out from the building behind the porch to afford nice protection from the sun. She had avoided the space before because she didn’t know where Arlene’s boundaries were, and she didn’t want to annoy the woman more than necessary. But was there any real point to that this early? She would have several more tries to convince the woman in the future, and it wasn’t as if Arlene would remember it after things reset in a few days.

Standing from her seat on weak legs, Scarlett picked up her chair with an inward groan. It felt heavier than she thought it would. Still, she maintained as steady a poise as she could, walking up to the porch.

This is where it would have been helpful if she had allowed Shin to join. The Shielder didn’t seem to mind dealing with minor inconveniences like this. But things would turn into a pain if that were the case, considering she would have to figure out how to explain things in a suitable manner. And calling Rosa over for something this small felt unnecessary.

Arlene glanced up at her for a second as she stepped up on the porch and placed the chair on the floorboards, but the woman said nothing against it.

Okay, Scarlett had definitely been overthinking things.

She sat down, relishing in the coolness that came with the shade here on the porch. In fact, this was a lot cooler than she had expected. It was almost unnatural how perfect the temperature was here. She’d only been up here for brief moments, so she had failed to notice it before.

She looked at Arlene. Was the woman doing something?

Whatever the cause, she had no complaints.

Leaning back in her seat, Scarlett closed her eyes, enjoying the relative peace. She might have dozed off for a while because the next time she opened her eyes, it was to several cheerful cries ringing out from the village square in front of her.

Near the platform at the center of the square was a gathering of the village kids. Rosa was among them, and the bard seemed to be in the middle of sharing some tale or other as she taught them how to tie wreaths out of a pile of grass and sticks lying on the ground. Scarlett hadn’t seen the kids earlier when she had been practicing, so they must have been out gathering all the materials for some time.

She kept her eyes on Rosa as the woman looked over a green wreath a short blonde girl had made.

It still surprised her how willing the woman was to interact with the people of Freymeadow, even after what they witnessed. Rosa hadn’t even questioned Scarlett when she said there wasn’t anything they could do to help these people. She just accepted the situation as it was, still keeping up a smile around the kids in spite of the reality before her.

Did the woman have that much trust in Scarlett? Or maybe she was thinking there was some way to save the village? One that Scarlett either hadn’t told her about or found yet?

Scarlett was hoping it wasn’t anything like the latter. She had no intention of truly ‘saving’ Freymeadow, nor any inkling of how it could be done. What happened to this place was terrible, yes, but as far as she was concerned, it was already history.

Suddenly, Rosa placed a hand on the little girl’s shoulder and turned her around, pointing over towards her.

Scarlett frowned as the girl started padding in her direction, wreath in hand. Soon, the girl reached the porch and climbed up on it, stopping a step away from her. She held out the wreath with a timid expression.

Over by the platform, Scarlett could tell Rosa was enjoying the situation. That blasted woman.

She eyed the girl for a moment, trying to relax her harsh expression. “You have made this for me?”

The girl slowly nodded her head.

“I see.” Scarlett reached out to receive the wreath, examining it in her hands. It wasn’t well-made, much of the grass hanging loosely around the branch frame underneath. But the girl looked proud as she inspected it.

What was she supposed to say here?

“…Thank you.”

Was that enough? Or should she lie and say it was beautiful?

The answer seemed to satisfy the maker at least, as a smile grew on the girl’s face. She remained standing where she was, though. Scarlett was uncertain what else to say as the girl looked at her intently. Was she expecting more?

“Your gift has made her embarrassed. That means she likes it.” Arlene’s soft voice reached them from the side. “But she’s probably tired from all her work. You shouldn’t bother her for too long. Go back and continue playing with your friends and the nice lady.”

The girl turned to look at the woman. She stared at her for a few seconds. Then she spun around and started trotting back towards Rosa and the others.

Scarlett glanced over at Arlene. “It appears as if you get along well with the residents.”

“I make do.” The woman had turned back to her book, turning a page. “I could say the same of you. The kids seem to enjoy your little performances.”

“I do not believe my relationship with them is anything of note. This was most likely a result of a ploy concocted by my retainer. Her proficiency at socializing and ingratiating herself with the young is commendable, although she also bears certain predispositions that I do not always approve of.”

Arlene looked up, gazing out at the children gathered around the bard. “I can see what you mean.” The woman’s eyes stayed on them for a while. There was a tenderness in that look, one that felt out of odds with the woman’s harsher exterior.

“…You seem fond of them,” Scarlett said. “The children, that is. This is not the first occasion I have seen you watching over them.”

Arlene responded with a light chuckle. “Who doesn’t like children? Could you say you don’t, after receiving that gift just now?”

Scarlett looked down at the wreath in her lap. “I can, yes.” She didn’t really know what to do with it. It wasn’t as if she had any use for it. And most items you brought with you outside this place would just disappear. For now, she placed the wreath on the floorboards next to her chair. “In general, I am not especially fond of children. I do not mind them; I simply have never been proficient in their handling.”

Arlene let out another short laugh, one that felt slightly more genuine. “You remind me a lot of another noblewoman I knew. She was terrible with kids, never minced words, no matter the occasion, and expected competence above all else.” The small smile on her face weakened. “There also wasn’t anything she would let stand in her way.”

Scarlett raised a brow. She couldn’t recall ever telling the woman that she was a noblewoman. Although she wasn’t exactly hiding it, either. Both with how she spoke and with the fact that she was walking around with a literal ‘retainer’.

“But these are good kids,” Arlene continued. “The more time you spend around them, the more you’ll be able to tell that. They have bright futures ahead of them.”

Scarlett stilled at those last words. Her gaze wandered over Arlene as the woman looked at the children with a wistful face.

“…You say that, yet you are the one who does not intend to allow them the possibilities within that future.”

The woman’s expression froze.

…Scarlett wasn’t sure what had prompted her to say that. But now it was too late to take it back.

“You’re right.” Arlene wore a dark smile, head turned downward as she traced her hand over the book in her lap. “If you know that much, then… I must seem like a monster to you, don’t I?”

“…Yes. I cannot deny that.”

“Then why don’t you stop me?”

“I would if it were within my ability. However, I believe we are both acutely aware of what would happen were I to try.”

“Then there’s not much to say, is there?” Arlene’s smile turned solemn.

Scarlett stared at her for several seconds. She then shifted her gaze towards the square. “Perhaps you are right.”

Neither of them exchanged any further words after that.

Scarlett continued observing Rosa’s merrymaking with the children until she felt she had recovered enough to get some more training in. At that point, she picked up her chair again and moved to step down from the porch.

“What’s the reasoning behind you wanting to learn magic?” Arlene suddenly asked.

Scarlett stopped, looking back at the woman. “I suppose necessity is the prime culprit.”

“I can see that. What is it you’re trying to run away from?”

She frowned. “I am not running away from anything. I am preparing myself in order to face it.”

“Often the two are the same.”

“What is the reason you are asking me this?”

“I want to know the reason you sought me out,” Arlene said.

“I was under the notion that you did not intend to help me.”

“I’m free to do whatever I wish.” The woman eyed her for a moment. “At the moment, I felt curious. Who knows how long that’ll last. But it’s clear you’re having a hard time grasping your new abilities.”

Hard time? Scarlett hadn’t noticed any real problems with her upgraded pyrokinesis. She was getting used to it pretty quickly, in fact. But what if there was an issue she was overlooking?

“…Are you referring to anything in particular?”

“What do you think?” Arlene asked.

The woman didn’t elaborate, even after Scarlett’s eyes stayed on her for several seconds. Eventually, Scarlett turned back to the square. “I will take your words into consideration. If that is all, I will return to my activities.”

Hopefully, she would figure out whatever this was about.