"Are you a noble??" Emily asked.

"No, I used to be a servant for a noble family. I had the opportunity to read books there and taught myself about magic," Leylin smoothly lied.

He felt guilty for misleading her, but he couldn't explain the truth. Leylin wasn't even exactly sure what happened.

"What made you come here then?" Emily inquired.

"It wasn't entirely by choice. My family didn't exactly enjoy having me around, except my younger sister and uncle."

"Don't you miss them though?" she asked.

Leylin realized he hadn't yet had the time to process what happened until now. Too many things had occurred in such a short time that he was almost overwhelmed. Thinking about everything, he realized that he missed Laura and Uncle Falt very much.

"Yeah, but I can't see them anymore. At least, I can't for awhile," Leylin sighed.

'We're pretty similar, both alone,' thought Emily.

Seeing that Leylin finished preparing the food, Emily grabbed it from him. She chose beef as the main part of the entree, and his job was to cut it into strips. Emily lightly seasoned each strip with spices that he didn't recognize. Placing them in a skillet, she browned the outsides of each piece skillfully. A pleasant fragrance began to fill the kitchen as she cooked.

"I'm impressed with how well you prepped these. Have you cooked before?" Emily asked.

"A little bit," Leylin said.

Her question brought back memories of the Cook. Before he learned magic, she would catch him stealing food from the kitchen. As punishment, she would force him to work in the kitchen. When he tried to claim that, as a noble, he shouldn't be punished, she would say, "Being a noble doesn't excuse this kind of behavior! I don't care who you are or where you come from, that doesn't mean you can't act like a decent human being!"

Of course, Leylin never stopped his actions, but he really respected what she said. She taught him a really good life lesson. He felt wronged though. When his younger sister took food, the Cook never said anything. She would even go as far to dote on Laura and cooked her favorite foods anytime she asked. If only God had made him cuter, Leylin would have avoided a lot of suffering.

"I used to work in the kitchen when I got in trouble," he added.

"A man of many talents I see," Emily said.

"Well, I don't know about that. You're pretty talented. You've managed to run this entire place by yourself!" Leylin said, smiling.

Emily nodded while thinking, 'I'm failing though.'

After cooking the beef strips, Emily placed them to the side to cool off. She then grabbed some small, purple mushrooms out of a cupboard and began frying them in the fat leftover by the beef.

Not recognizing the mushrooms, Leylin asked, "What are those?"

Pointing to the mushrooms, Emily said, "These are found in the Purple Forest. They grow on the trunks of the trees there. Normal vegetable like onions, broccoli and carrots are rare because we can't grow them. I've only had them a couple of times when a merchant passed through."

Plating the food, Emily finished making dinner. She picked up her food and indicated for Leylin to do the same.

"Follow me," she said.

Leylin tagged along as she moved toward a door at the back of the kitchen. Opening it, Emily revealed a set of stairs that lead upwards. She climbed up to the top and pushed open a trapdoor. Dim sunlight poured through, and she continued to the top and out into the open. Leylin followed and saw that the stairs led to the roof of the inn. In the middle, there was a table with a set of chairs.

"I come up here to eat and relax. It's also the perfect place to watch the sunset," Emily said.

They sat down and looked toward the horizon. The sun was slowly sinking below it, causing the sky to be mixed with beautiful purples, yellows, and reds. But even more beautiful than the sunset was Emily. The light accentuated her beautiful face and caused her eyes to shine. Enjoying the scene, Leylin began to enjoy his food. It wasn't too spicy but had the perfect amount of flavor. The meat was tender and juicy, and the mushrooms were surprisingly good. They had a semi-sweet flavor like corn but was slightly more savory.

"So is this a date?" Leylin joked.

"Hmm, maybe," Emily said.

"Really?!"

"Maybe means maybe. Don't get your hopes up," she teased.

Looking back to the horizon, Leylin noticed a dot that was growing in the distance.

"What's that?"