004 Mary Sue Possesses Great Wisdom

The welfare at the Grant household was truly exceptional. Although the lowest-ranking guards received the least pay among all the guardians, they had an abundance of free time. After completing the two routine patrols each day, there was little else to do. The only real nuisance came from the biannual guard assessment exams—anyone who failed would be expelled from the Grant family. But as long as you spent a bit of time each day on your training, there was nothing to worry about.

Thus, during normal working hours, only at the Grant estate could one witness such scenes: several large pots set out on the lawn, each divided by a metal plate separating a spicy red broth from a mild white one, with a crowd of people gathered around, joyfully eating from their bowls.

Jianlu, tossing some greens into the pot, curiously asked a certain someone, “This is delicious—what’s it called again?” Though she had been fierce and cold during the exams, after just a few days together, she was utterly conquered by the endless stream of novel dishes this person produced.

The beautiful younger sister, fishing from the pot a piece of some unknown but evidently high-quality meat she herself had put in, replied without forgetting to answer, “Jianlu, are you getting old? Didn’t someone just say this is called ‘hot pot’?” Despite her less-than-pleasant personality, the beautiful sister was well regarded among the group for her keen aesthetic sense, discerning palate, and extravagant generosity when it came to hosting.

Aisha, her face still flushed and head lowered, was nonetheless utterly entranced. “These chili peppers are just too exhilarating!”

Meanwhile, that certain someone was deep in conversation with the newly joined intermediate mages at the “New Dish Tasting Club.” In just over ten days since joining the Grant household, she had, thanks to her astonishing memory and practical skills, recreated claypot rice, teppanyaki, and hot pot. With these three monumental innovations, she quickly made a name for herself among the guards and servants, and the “Tasting Club,” which had started with just her, soon grew to four, then eight, and now a thriving group.

Through the tasting club, she not only became quickly acquainted with the others who had entered the Grant family alongside her, but also gleaned many secrets of the household.

For instance, there were tales of the eldest young lady seeking to seize authority, the second young lady thwarting her, the third young lady poisoned and bedridden to this day, the captain of the Lyon family's shadow guard falling in love at first sight with one of the Grant’s own guards and waiting outside the gate for three days without seeing them (mistakenly), and, in fact, that guard being a man (egregiously mistaken).

So it is said: put three women together and you get a pot of porridge. She couldn’t help but think, weren’t all those court intrigue dramas—scheming beauties and harem struggles—just the byproducts of idle, bored women left jobless in the rear courtyards? But no matter, she consoled herself, as long as she kept her distance from the trouble-prone young ladies, she should be safe.

Novels and history tell us that the farther you are from the truth and the main characters, the longer you’ll live. Reality (and the author) remind us, however, that if you stray too far from the protagonist, what will we eat?

One morning, she rose unusually early for her daily patrol. The so-called patrol was really just a stroll around Ada’s private courtyard. The Grant family clearly didn’t expect their mages to train and patrol in squads like the warriors. For the lowest-ranked mage-guards, two patrols a day sufficed; intermediates only needed one; as for advanced mages, they were practically worshipped. In case of emergency or invasion, the lowest-ranked would be sent out first as cannon fodder.

She and her cohort were well aware of their place, so they had long since divided the two daily patrols among themselves. The layout of the Grant estate was peculiar—not one big family living together in a castle, but a network of residences. The main fortress in the center housed the head of the family; everyone else lived in a web-like arrangement radiating by rank.

The three young ladies lived in the three small castles closest to the main one. Each castle was surrounded by private land, and each lady could command her own guards and servants, like a minor lord. Ada’s castle lay to the northwest, on a sizeable plot. Every patrol felt like running a marathon.

Fifty meters further, a turn beneath the first red fruit tree, around two bushes, and you could slip into a small path. There was something special about this path: every morning at seven, the maid, Little Peach, arrived punctually with Ada’s breakfast.

The first time she discovered this path’s “breakfast delivery” function, she shamelessly threw herself on the ground, feigning death, just to earn a free meal. Since then, after much coaxing, the kind-hearted Little Peach brought her an extra breakfast every morning.

Today was no exception. After spinning in place three times, she finally caught sight of Little Peach’s lovely figure in the distance. Though the maid seemed to be running a bit late, it didn’t stop her from shamelessly angling for breakfast. “Hey, girl! What’s for breakfast today?” she called out, waving. Little Peach seemed to pause for a moment, but then continued toward her without slowing.

As the maid drew closer, she reached out to hand her the basket. Almost simultaneously, a powerful flash of light condensed in her own hand, striking straight at Little Peach’s eyes. The maid’s vision blurred, her grip loosened, and with a swift punch, she knocked the basket to the ground. Clang! A metal knife tumbled out.

She grabbed “Little Peach” by the hand. “Speak! Where is Little Peach? What have you done to her?” But “Little Peach” gave no reply, breaking free with brute force. She felt a sharp pain in her right hand, and suddenly, her whole body was restrained, a cold blade pressed to her neck.

Was this the end? She stared up at the sky in disbelief—then, all at once, a hard object sliced through the air. Clang! The dagger poised to slit her throat was knocked to the ground, drops of fresh blood following from the attacker’s hand. Before she could see who it was, the would-be assassin was struck hard in the back by an icy sphere. The impact sent him sprawling atop her. She rolled aside just in time to see the man who had moments before threatened her life collapse limply in a pool of blood.

Turning, she sensed a shadow darting away, but had no time to check. For at that moment, her direct superior—Ada—stood before her, her expression dark as thunder.

Ada was, as always, strikingly dressed: a silver tiara atop her head, a white chiffon lace dress, white stockings, and white shoes, determined to embody the very essence of a snow maiden. Pity that such saintly attire did nothing to soften her demeanor; rather, it made her expression all the more sinister—she looked like a ghost crawling out in broad daylight.

“So, you’re the one. I have a few tasks for you,” Ada intoned grimly.

Her heart sank. The eerie atmosphere, the strange command, Ada’s chilling presence—none of this boded well. “Second Lady, were you calling me? What a shame—lately my eyes, ears, nose, mouth, hands, and feet have all been acting up. I’m afraid I’m not up to any important tasks, terribly sorry…” She spoke as she edged away.

“I saw it. You’re not a water mage. That was an illumination spell you used, wasn’t it?” Ada made no move to stop her, standing perfectly still.

“How could that be? With the sun shining so bright, you must have been mistaken, Second Lady, ha ha…” Admitting to being a mage of another element in Water City was tantamount to suicide. She broke out in a cold sweat, bowing her head to make herself as inconspicuous as possible.

“Really? Tsk, tsk. The sun is indeed dazzling. It reminds me of that female trickster who used black explosive stones and water spheres at the Guardian Tournament to deceive the audience.”

“Ah… Didn’t Second Lady say that as long as you’re pretty, it’s fine?” She was sweating even more, trying to shrink herself out of existence.

“Pretty? I only need a mirror for that!” Ada continued, taunting her. “But I’ve heard there’s an electric mage in Water City who swindled the young master of the Lyon family out of his pocket money. The whole city’s looking for her. Tell me, should I recommend a suspect?”

“That wouldn’t be good!” she protested, making a last-ditch effort. “Wasn’t that trickster a man?”

“That doesn’t matter. No need to worry,” Ada said with a sudden, amused smile. “The Lyon family’s shadow guard captain has already asked around at my door several times. As soon as I hand someone over, man or woman, they’ll interrogate them all the same. Wouldn’t you say the truth will come out—one way or another?”

“Coerced confessions… That’s not really ideal…” She was at the end of her rope.

“It doesn’t matter, as long as there are results. The process is just fluff.” Ada turned on her heel, her skirt swirling so dazzlingly that it hurt to look.

“Wait!” she called after Ada, fawning. “Second Lady, if you have any orders, just say the word—I’ll walk through fire and water for you without hesitation!”

Having completed the final burial, she tossed the shovel aside and collapsed onto the ground, gasping for breath. One of the two tasks Ada had just assigned—disposing of the body—was finally done. She even had the leisure to plant two roses atop the grave of the quickly-dispatched assassin and mutter a little prayer for the poor soul: “Every grievance has its debtor. If you can’t let it go, don’t come looking for me—it wasn’t me who killed you, nothing to do with me…”

Ada, it seemed, was all too accustomed to being the target of assassins. And wasn’t it said that the Second Lady hated studying? Then who was that terrifying person who dispatched the killer so easily just now?! Springing to her feet, she silently denounced the idle gossipmongers whose rumors could get people killed!

Ada hadn’t hesitated to kill. She’d thought perhaps it was out of concern for her own safety, but then Ada had given her the next task: “Just kill them. These assassins all have their tongues cut out—getting information out of them is impossible. Besides, the number of attempts on my life has exceeded my tolerance lately. Every time, they manage to get alarmingly close. If you hadn’t intervened this time, he might have made it to my room. So, your second task is to root out the spy hiding in my territory!”

She thought, “You want me to find the spy, just like that? What if I’m the spy, then what?” Grumbling inwardly, but knowing she had no choice, she grabbed some snacks she’d swiped from the beautiful sister and hurried to Ada’s private guardroom.

Stardust Chronicle 004_004: The Great Wisdom of Mary Sue—end of update!