"Flower handicrafts to beautify your room, to beautify anything! Fragrant flower handicrafts!"
The sweet voice of a little girl rang out as people passed by, offering her rchandise to them. However, no one seed interested in buying, and they continued walking past her.
She stood there in plain attire, a flower in one hand, while many more filled the wicker container on her back.
Despite the lack of interest from passersby, she did not give up. She kept offering her flowers with a sweet smile. Her eyes then caught sight of soone approaching, and she thought this person might be interested in her rchandise. Hope filled her gaze—maybe this ti, she would succeed.
When the robed figure stopped in front of her, she froze. Beneath the robe was a handso young man. Even so, she didn’t falter. She offered her rchandise with her brightest smile, holding out a flower toward him.
"Sir, would you like to buy it? It’s just one silver coin," she said.
The figure looked at the flower in the girl’s hand and picked it up. The figure, of course, none other than Aldrian.
To be honest, he felt pity for the child—having to do this at her age, when she should be enjoying her childhood. Scenes like this could sotis be seen in other places as well, a reflection of the harsh realities and circumstances so people faced.
Aldrian looked at the flower for a mont. The handicraft was made from wood and crafted with beautiful detail. He looked at the child with a warm smile.
"Did you make this yourself?"
The child nodded.
"Yes, I made it myself. I like making things like this," she said.
By this ti, Sylphia and the others had also approached. They looked at the girl and the rchandise she was trying to sell.
"A flower handicraft?" Sylphia said with curiosity as she looked at the flower in Aldrian’s hand. But when she noticed its shape, her eyes widened.
"Isn’t this the shape of the Full Moon Lily? The lily that only blossoms for one night under the full moon?" Sylphia then looked at Aldrian.
"And this flower only grows in one part of the Ivory Empire, so how did—" She stopped as her gaze shifted to the child.
Aldrian understood what Sylphia was trying to say. He looked at the child with the sa curiosity. How could she know about a flower that only grows in the Ivory Empire? Judging by her age, he doubted she had ever visited the empire herself. That could only an soone else—perhaps her parents—taught her about it.
He leaned toward the idea that it was her parents who knew.
But for them to recognize a flower that grew in such a specific part of the Ivory Empire, they could not be ordinary people.
Aldrian then took out a peak-level energy stone and handed it to the little girl.
"Well, I don’t have any coins, but I think I can give you this. I think it’s enough," he said.
The child’s eyes widened as she looked at the energy stone in her palm. Her hand trembled slightly. She knew what an energy stone was—she had seen a few before—and she understood how valuable they could be. But this one was far more beautiful than any she had ever seen. She looked uncertainly at Aldrian.
"Uhm... sir, you could buy all of my flowers with this, but I don’t think they’re worth that much. What you gave is too valuable. I’d have to make many more flowers to match its value," she said.
Aldrian smiled gently at her.
"You don’t have to make more. This stone is just for the one flower in my hand. But instead, I’d like to know about your parents." he asked.
But then he noticed her eyes turn slightly sad, and he imdiately realized he had asked sothing painful. He felt a pang of guilt and wanted to apologize, but before he could, he heard her soft reply.
"Father is no more... it’s just and Mother."
Aldrian sighed inwardly.
"I’m sorry. I didn’t an to make you sad," he said.
The girl shook her head.
"It’s okay, sir. I’m already used to it," she replied.
"If I may... may I et your mother?" Sylphia suddenly asked. At the sa ti, she sent a voice transmission to Aldrian.
"I’m really curious about who her parents are. For a little girl to know about the Full Moon Lily—sothing that only grows in the eastern side of the Ivory Empire—is unusual. That lily grows inside the territory of a noble family known for being quite conservative. I don’t think many humans even travel there, let alone have business with them. So I’m really curious about her identity. I doubt any humans would know about this flower at all."
Aldrian nodded. He was curious as well, and after Sylphia’s explanation, his interest had only grown. But then they noticed the girl looking at Sylphia with an apologetic expression.
"Uhm... you can, Miss. But the problem is... Mother is really sick, and I don’t know if she can receive you right now."
Aldrian raised his eyebrows but kept a warm smile.
"How fortunate. I’m a physician myself. Maybe I can help heal your mother," he said, which made the girl’s eyes widen.
"Really?"
"Of course. So, could you take us to her? I’ll check your mother’s condition," Aldrian replied.
The girl’s face lit up with joy.
"Of course! Let’s go—I’ll take you to her now."
She carefully stored the peak-level energy stone in the pouch at her waist and began walking, with Aldrian and the others following behind.
"What is your na?" Aldrian asked the little girl as they walked.
"My na is Evin Vicanton."
Aldrian nodded.
"All right, Evin. Is your family from around here?"
"No, we’re from the Atria Empire. Because of the war, Mother and I escaped to this place."
Aldrian and the others were stunned. She was actually one of the refugees who had escaped from the Atria Empire because of the civil war.
"I see," he replied softly.
They continued walking until they reached a more secluded area of the city, where there were fewer people. The houses here seed less maintained. It resembled a slum area, though it wasn’t as chaotic as the slums in other places, where there was no order at all. Despite being a slum, the wooden houses were still neatly arranged side by side.
There was no garbage or anything to disturb the visual appearance, as if soone regularly cleaned the streets.
Evin led Aldrian and the others to one of the houses.
"Mother is inside," Evin said as she opened the door. Once Aldrian and the others stepped inside, they were greeted by a simple interior, exactly what they had expected. Evin then opened another door, which seed to lead to a bedroom. When Aldrian and the others saw the room, they saw a blonde haired woman.
"Mother!" Evin exclaid as she ran toward her mother and hugged her.
"Evin, my dear, what—?" At first, the woman smiled when she saw Evin, but then she froze when she realized there were other people in the house. Her gaze landed on Aldrian and the others, who were looking at her in astonishnt.
She sat on her bed, a blanket covering half of her body. Her complexion was slightly pale, but it did not diminish the beauty of her face. However, there was sothing else that made Aldrian and the others widen their eyes when they saw her.
That was the pointy ears she had, a feature that revealed she was not human. Aldrian and the others were truly astonished—this woman was actually an elf.
They realized they were witnessing a rare case of a human and elf union. If Evin was the daughter of an elf mother but lacked any elf traits, it was safe to assu her father was human. In other words, Evin was mixed blood.
Sylphia, who had been staring at the elf in astonishnt, suddenly felt that she recognized her face. She tried to recall where she had seen her before, but before she could rember, the elf spoke, smiling at them.
"My apologies, but it seems Evin brought you here due to her mischief. If you need to go, please feel free to do so," the woman said.
"No, mother! That sir said he is a physician, and I think he can cure you. Let him help you," Evin replied.
Her mother stared at Evin in surprise, then sighed.
"Evin, we don’t have—"
"It’s okay, miss," Aldrian interrupted. "I don’t require any paynt. I’m simply curious about Evin’s parents. There’s sothing that caught my interest—the flower handicraft she was trying to sell. My lover here noticed that Evin was selling flowers shaped like the Full Moon Lily, which only grows in the Ivory Empire. That piqued my curiosity, so I wanted to learn more about her parents and how they might know of it."
"I also heard that you are unwell. While I’m here, I can also check your condition. I’m offering my services freely, so you don’t need to worry."
The elf was stunned. She looked at Evin, her expression strange, as if she had just heard sothing for the first ti. Then, she turned to look at Aldrian.
Aldrian, confused by her reaction, paused for a mont before finally realizing the reason.
"Ah, she didn’t know that Evin was selling those flower handicrafts," he thought.
Before the elf could say anything, Sylphia’s voice suddenly rang out.
"I finally rember you."
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