Clifford's handsome face peeked out from between the leaves. “Little Emily, do you know that your humans’ short lifespans, in the eyes of us demons, are no different from the mayflies that are born in the morning and die by nightfall? Many of our kind choose to form contracts with humans, not because we are powerless to resist, but simply because the endless years are too boring, so we come to the human world to play for a while.”

He stretched out his white wings and gently brushed Emily Bennett's nose. “It feels like I only took a few naps, and you’ve already grown taller. If I sleep through the winter, will you turn into an old lady with white hair, decaying into the earth?”

“Clifford, she’s still a child, don’t scare her.” Ethan Young's voice came from under the eaves.

“Hmph, she’ll have to know sooner or later, won’t she?” Clifford retracted his wings, a little disappointed.

Ethan Young walked slowly out from the shadow of the eaves. The midday sunlight was bright, casting dappled shade across his gentle face. He reached out and patted Emily Bennett's head, smiling as always. “You really have grown a lot taller.”

“Master, Clifford just said…”

“Emily, our sect values the principle of following the natural way.” Ethan Young squatted down in front of her, gazing seriously into her eyes. “The Dao gives birth to One, One gives birth to Two, Two gives birth to Three, Three gives birth to all things. And all things in this world cannot escape the word ‘nature’. The cycles of life and death, meetings and partings among humans should follow the natural order, and we shouldn’t be overly attached.”

Ethan Young had always been very casual in teaching Emily Bennett. “That’s enough, go play. It’s fine if you don’t understand,” was his most common phrase. He rarely spoke such mysterious doctrines, and Emily Bennett found herself unable to fully grasp them.

“It’s fine if you don’t understand now. I didn’t want you to get involved with the demons and spirits in the mountains, but thinking about it, even I can’t restrain myself, so how could I expect you to? I just hope that when you grow up, you’ll have your own perspective on life, different from your master’s.”

Emily Bennett was completely confused. It was the first time she had looked so closely into her master’s eyes, and she realized they were different from ordinary people’s—clear and deep, as if they held an abyss, an ocean, carrying countless worlds within the deep sea.

Maybe it was from gazing into those eyes for so long, but when Emily Bennett took her afternoon nap, she dreamed of the sea. It felt like a long dream, listening to the sound of waves for ages.

The afternoon sunlight streamed through the paper window, bathing the courtyard in silence.

Emily Bennett woke up, rubbed her eyes, and walked into the yard, feeling that something was different from usual.

Something was off—it was far too quiet.

Besides Clifford and Edgar, her master had many other large and small familiars. Even when her master was away, the eaves, under the floorboards, atop the walls, in the shade of the trees, and among the flowers, there were always little spirits chattering away.

But now, it was as if everything had suddenly vanished. It was so quiet that not even the sound of an insect could be heard.

“Clifford? Edgar?” There was no deep voice from under the floor, and the leaves in the courtyard stood motionless on the branches.

“Master? Where is everyone?” Emily Bennett cupped her hands around her mouth and shouted into the courtyard.

By the stone table under the parasol tree sat a slender figure. She wore a light, thin dress, her hair coiled high at the back of her head, and she was gazing up at the clouds on the horizon.

Hearing the shout, she turned her face. Her complexion was rosy, her beauty like jade—it was Emily Bennett's long-ailing Mistress.

“Mistress, how are you up?” Emily Bennett exclaimed in surprise and delight, grabbing Mistress's hand. “Mistress, are you better now?”

Sarah nodded and reached out to touch Emily Bennett's cheek. Her palm was soft and warm, no longer cold as it used to be.

“That’s wonderful! Does Master know? Oh, Mistress, where is my master? Why can’t I find him anywhere?”

Sarah smiled gently and didn’t answer. Instead, she took Emily Bennett's hand and led her out of the courtyard.

“Your master had to go out for something. He won’t be back for a few days.”

Because Mistress said this with a gentle smile, Emily Bennett didn’t think much of it. “A few days” could mean two or three days, or it could mean years.

The villagers at the market were all surprised to see Sarah out and about.

“Oh my, madam, you’re all better?”

“The teacher must be overjoyed.”

“What fruit would you like, madam? Don’t trouble yourself—let my boy carry it home for you.”

Sarah responded to each of them with a smile. She was just like any other housewife, wearing a headscarf, carrying a bamboo basket, taking Emily Bennett with her, bending over to pick out vegetables at the market.

“What are you doing, Mistress?” Emily Bennett asked in confusion.

“Buying some fruits and vegetables for tonight’s dinner.”

“Master isn’t home, and you’re not well, Mistress. Let me handle these chores—how can I let you do them yourself?”

When Ethan Young was home, all the chores like fetching water and cooking were always handled by him. Emily Bennett had lived these years like a real child, carefree and pampered, and she truly enjoyed being doted on as a child.