"Look at that, Sienna! I can't believe it." Melina was crouched down over one of the garden beds, watching the tiny sprouts. Sienna looked at her curiously from her spot on the large rock in the sun, not quite understanding what she was so excited about. "I'd better water them."

Melina hurried over to the well, lowering the wooden bucket down and then hauling it back up. Then she poured the water into the watering can and began her rounds in the garden. First, she watered the tiny beet, carrot, leek, and lettuce sprouts. Then she watered the chilli, hot pepper, and tomato seedlings, and finally she turned her attention towards the strawberries.

"Melina," Master Gilbert called, and judging by the tone of his voice, he wasn't happy, or rather, he was even grouchier than usual. Melina could already guess why. She had managed to evade the problem yesterday, busying herself in the shop and later with cleaning.

She even woke up early, preparing breakfast for herself and Master Gilbert in advance, to avoid meeting him eye to eye. But there was no way she could keep avoiding him.

"Yes, Master?" She turned towards him with a bright smile, hoping to soften some of his anger. Judging by how his arms were crossed over his chest, it wasn't working.

"We need to talk," the old baker grumbled, and even Sienna grew tense, looking at him and then at Melina. She could sense trouble.

"What about?" She chuckled nervously, plucking out a small weed that had taken root among the strawberries.

"You know what. Come inside." He disappeared into the house, and Melina went to pick up Sienna.

"I might be in trouble," she whispered to the wyrm. Her steps were slow as she walked to the kitchen where Gilbert sat at the table, tapping his finger impatiently. In front of him was the letter that Alistair had delivered to them yesterday.

Melina sat across from him, trying to remain calm under his piercing gaze. One would think that, having lived as the most powerful [Archmage] of her time, there wouldn't be much that scared her. But in front of Gilbert, Melina felt like a child—in this case, like one who had eaten all the freshly baked cookies by herself.

"Tell me what this is?" Gilbert grumbled, pushing Alistair's letter forward.

"I believe it's…" She wanted to say that it's Alistair's letter, but knew that playing the fool would not be doing her any favors. "I'm sorry, Master."

"I don't need apologies. I need an answer. Why would the lordling send another letter asking for the recipe of "apricot raspberry caramel haphazardly incorporated therewith elderberry cream tart"? What is this nonsense?" He poked his finger at the place in the page where it said that.

It really did sound nonsensical at first, but it didn't take much for Melina to figure out exactly what Alistair was asking for—a more concrete location of the architect. He had likely formatted his request this way in case some curious post delivery boy decided to snoop on the contents inside. Not that any postmen would ever even see the letter, but Alistair didn't know that.

Melina took a deep breath. "I altered the last letter telling Lord Sinclair that there was an architect located in this region."

I promised not to lie to Master Gilbert, so I have to own up to my actions. Honestly, I wouldn't even be surprised if he decided to throw me out after this—I've caused him nothing but trouble. But even if he does, I do not regret trying to help Alistair.

Gilbert sighed, exasperated. "What is it with you and that boy? Whenever he is involved, your reason goes straight out the window. Never with anything else, just him. Why is that? Is it related to your past as a mage?"

A few days ago, Melina had told Gilbert some of the truth about what happened—she felt he had deserved to know. She told him that she was a powerful mage once, which was why she had no issue channeling mana through Sienna. She also revealed that time has been turned back. Melina didn't reveal that she was the one to rewind it or what had happened to the world, or her connection to Alistair.

She hesitated to talk about her past with Alistair, but Master Gilbert had already picked up that her feelings towards him defied reason. She nodded. "Alistair was a close companion of mine. We traveled together, fought together, we…"

"He was your lover?" Gilbert asked, deadpan.

"No!" She shook her head in a hurry. "Alistair was already married by the time we met. I was nothing more than a friend."

Pity crossed Gilbert's features. "Girl, isn't it time for you to let go?"

"I-I'm not chasing after him, Master. I understand that no matter how many times time is rewound, some things just cannot change. But… he's saved my life. More than once. I wish to repay him in whatever way I can."

Gilbert let out a sigh. "Why can I never pick up normal things? Instead of a horse, I get a nightmare. Instead of an apprentice, I get a time-travelling mage. Fine, do what you will, but don't forget that Alistair is not your friend in this lifetime. He is a nobleman and a System user under the Church's command. You have to think of yourself first."

The old baker stood up and hobbled away. Melina took the letter, looking down at Alistair's handwriting.

Master Gilbert is right. The Alistair I knew before is not the same Alistair I know now. I know that old Alistair was trustworthy. But his younger self—I don't know. If he reveals the location of the architect to the Church, then who knows what they'll do with the creature? The consequences could be… disastrous.

But I can't have him remember the past either. <General's Echo> will likely help him remember more with each rank. Not to mention that it is wearing him down. Alistair always looks tired, and during his stay in the bakery, he was almost always up before us, and we wake up at 5 am, sometimes even earlier.

I have to approach this problem carefully. First, I need to make sure that Alistair would not disclose the location of the architect to anyone.

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

Melina spent the next few hours, trying again and again to compose a letter to Alistair. In it she was trying to convince him that he shouldn't reveal the location or rather "the recipe" to anyone as it was top secret, but no matter how she twisted the words, they never seemed to come out right.

After an hour or so, she gave up and headed to the inn for a meal. It was a perfectly sunny day, not a single cloud in the sky. It wasn't yet hot, but one could tell that spring was in full swing with daffodils blooming in every yard, butterflies flitting about in the air, and a stork watching the surroundings from his nest situated on a high pole.

Melina took a deep breath, her worries receding a bit. In moments like these, it was difficult to believe that there was anything bad in this world. Most people she met on the street greeted her with a smile, while children curiously craned their necks trying to get a closer look at Sienna, who rode on her shoulder.

Of course, not everyone greeted Melina with cheer. There were plenty of scowls as well and an occasional dissatisfied snort in the wyrm's direction. But they remained just that. Nobody confronted Melina, nobody said anything bad to her directly, so she made her way to the Fireside Inn without any issues.

There, she was greeted by Erina's warm smile. "Melina! Hello! How nice to see you. Have you come here for a meal?"

"Hello, Erina. Yes, I figured I'd eat lunch here and bring something back for Master Gilbert, if that's alright."

"Of course, of course. Many customers grab a takeaway, especially the adventurers. Do you mind if I join you for lunch? Paula is about to replace me at the counter."

"I don't mind at all," Melina confirmed, and they chatted for a moment, mostly about small things like the weather. Erina also said that she wanted to order tarts on a regular basis now—they were a big hit among her customers.

Melina wondered how much time she could spend on tarts, but decided that she could certainly make a few extra for Erina once every few days. It would get easier as her skills ranked up anyway.

About ten minutes later, Paula arrived—it was the same woman Melina had caught napping during her stay in the inn—and Melina, along with Erina, headed into the cafeteria. It was filled to the brim with people, but of course, it wasn't difficult for Erina to find a seat for them.

Before long, they were both enjoying a chicken salad with croutons—one of Melina's favorite dishes in the cafeteria.

"So tell me—how has your time in Sunglow been so far? You rarely ever come by the inn," Erina made a sad face, making Melina feel a bit guilty. She had been focused on making pastries or on her plants in the garden, so there wasn't much time to walk around the town.

"Sorry. I guess you could say that things have been a bit busy with Sienna and the door breaking…" Melina chuckled awkwardly and gave a piece of chicken to Sienna, who had situated herself on the side of the table. The wyrm accepted the offering, grabbing the piece with her front paws. She almost looked like a squirrel, chewing on a nut.

"Oh, yeah, I heard that! Some hoodlums came to threaten Sienna, but Lord Sinclair just threw them out. What a man!" Erina swooned, then gave Melina a conspiratorial look. "If only there were more men like that around, I would have gotten married a long time ago."

Melina didn't say anything about Alistair for fear that she might reveal too much. "I'm sure you'll find somebody soon enough."

Erina let out a dramatic sigh. "Oh, I wish! But I'm not so young anymore. You need to value your youth, Melina. Find a good man and don't let go. Maybe it wouldn't be a bad idea to make a move on our local nobleman. He does seem... protective of you."

Melina's face flushed at the insinuation. "No! He was watching over Sienna to make sure that she wouldn't be a threat to anyone. Besides, I couldn't possibly... flirt with a nobleman."

"It hasn't stopped Leliana. I know she's been showing up in the bakery every morning, clinging to Lord Sinclair like glue," Erina scoffed, chewing on a piece of chicken.

Melina groaned as she remembered how insistent Leliana was around Alistair. The memory brought a bad taste to her mouth.

Erina shrugged. "Her methods might be a bit aggressive, but you can't fault her guts. She knows what she wants, and she is not afraid to take it. Melina, you have to be a bit more aggressive, too."

"I am not interested in Lord Sinclair in such a way," Melina objected, but it came out sounding like a whimper.

"Sure…" Erina drawled out, snickering.

"I mean it!" Melina warned, pointing her fork at the innkeeper.

"Let's return to this topic in a month or two. I'm sure things will have changed by then."

"Nothing will change."

Sienna had finished her piece of chicken and looked at Melina with piteous eyes, begging for more. Erina chuckled and offered her a piece from her plate, and Sienna took it gratefully.

"Just a few weeks back, I wouldn't have believed that we'd have a monster living in our town. But look at things now. Sienna has become like our new mascot," Erina gently patted the wyrm's head with one finger. Sienna didn't mind at all, being thoroughly bribed with the chicken. Shortly after, several more pieces of chicken found their way to Melina's table, and she saw a few kids standing in line and waiting patiently for their turn to pet Sienna.

To think that they were eager to throw her out of this place less than a week ago. How quickly people change their minds.

"Let's return to the topic of your love life," Melina decided to steer the conversation away from herself.

"Oh, who cares about my love life? I'm single and will probably remain single for the foreseeable future," Erina shook her head and pointed at a table filled with adventurers who were shovelling food into their mouths at an astounding speed. "Look at them—nothing attractive about it! Imagine the mess they leave behind each time."

"You don't have to choose an adventurer. There are plenty of other men in Sunglow."

"Oh, yes, those who don't fight monsters sail the high seas and show up home like once a year. No, I want somebody who'd be by my side at all times and someone who'd help me around the inn, not make a bigger mess."

There was a somber expression on Erina's face, which suggested that the topic was an unpleasant one for her. Melina felt bad about prodding, so she decided to change the topic. "So are the adventurers always eating like they have a fire lit under the seats?"

Erina snorted, nearly choking on her salad. It startled Sienna for second, who was being patted by a boy no older than five. Melina had been carefully watching those who approached Sienna, but the familiar didn't mind their gentle pats.

Little glutton. Where does all that food even go?

"Haha! Nicely put. But no, usually they don't rush so much. I wonder what's got them so riled up today."

The adventurers all stood up at once, quickly giving their dirty dishes to the kitchen staff and then heading for the door. Among them, Melina spotted Barrett, so she waved him over.

The man looked tense at first, but when he noticed Erina, a goofy smile grew on his face. "Hello, Miss Melina, and Miss Erina!"

Erina didn't seem very enthusiastic about his approach, but said nothing. No doubt she was eyeing the messy table that the adventurers left behind.

"Hello, Sir Barrett! You seem in a rush today," Melina said casually.

"Oh, yes. We're on a very important mission. Everyone who can has to join," the man said sternly.

"A monster attack?" Melina asked worriedly and saw that the people around her had also grown tense.

"Oh, no, it's nothing like that. We merely have to find a passageway to the Monster Realm."

The whole cafeteria went so quiet that one could hear a pin drop.

"Opps, I don't think I was supposed to say that," Barrett chuckled awkwardly, and Erina groaned, rubbing the bridge of her nose.

"All muscle and no brain—this one," Erina sighed. Meanwhile, Melina's mind was already racing through the possibilities and the dangers of an actual passageway appearing near Sunglow.

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