Desak Street.
Nora stepped out of the alleyway, still wrapped in her ragged old cloak. After a glance around, she quietly headed east.
After savoring that delicious barbecue, she'd tossed the oily paper into the trash bin and left the cup of water by the flower shop entrance. Then, she slipped away through the back alley.
Yes—she.
In the past, Nora had received charity before.
There had once been an old grandmother living on the east side who regularly handed out bread to the nearby street kids. Back then, Nora would often go to her place.
Unfortunately, the old woman passed away last winter.
Nora had only been able to climb up the hills to pick some small white flowers and pay her respects. There wasn't much else she could do.
As for the Harvest Goddess Church to the south, they used to occasionally help orphans, but in recent years, their income had dwindled. They'd become increasingly shabby, and the charity had long since dried up.
Nora still went there to pray sometimes, but she had nothing to offer in return.
In the chaotic city, all the restaurant trash bins had long since been claimed by little gangs of vagrants. Nora used to be strong enough to fight for a share, but lately, from eating so little, her body had grown weak.
Last time, she'd brawled with a group of street punks and ended up injured and empty-handed. It had taken her days to recover.
So for someone like Ron, who voluntarily gave her food—hot, delicious food, no less—Nora felt nothing but gratitude.
She gently patted her rarely full belly. A faint smile formed on her dirty little face.
Just then, from the dim corner at the end of the street, she heard a few people whispering.
"Which flower shop was it?"
"Name's Ron's Wonderful Flower Shop. Head down that way—you'll see a newly-painted gate with two lanterns hanging out front."
Nora's expression changed slightly at the word "flower shop," but she kept walking, acting like she hadn't heard anything.
As she passed them, she quietly slipped behind a trash bin and crouched out of sight, her small body disappearing into the shadows.
"So we're stealing some kind of purple flower, yeah?"
"Yup. They only sell one type. Can't miss it."
"You said it's 10 silver per flower, right? Better not be lying. If you short us later, don't blame us for getting rough."
"Relax, I'll pay for however many you grab."
Nora pressed her back against the bin and silently listened to their conversation.
One of them wore a fancy mage robe—clearly a mage apprentice, judging by his youthful face.
The other three were in rough, simple clothing—local thugs from this part of town.
The leader had once trained as a warrior, but he failed to form a Battle Aura vortex. The people backing him gave up on him, and he eventually became a petty gang leader in this neighborhood.
Through the reflection on a nearby bakery window, Nora managed to get a clear look at their faces. Her heart sank.
Clearly, someone was targeting that flower shop owner—and planning to rob the place.
Under normal circumstances, Nora would've left right away.
First, she didn't want trouble.
Second, she wasn't strong enough to handle trouble.
Sure, she could throw hands when fighting over food. But something like this? She wouldn't get involved.
But today was different.
Nora clenched her fists. The barbecue she'd eaten gave her rare strength. Her body didn't feel as weak as usual. Even with three opponents… she could give it a try.
Call it repayment.
Back when the old granny gave her bread, Nora had never had a chance to repay her.
Now, this flower shop guy had done something kind, and she wasn't going to just walk away.
Besides… that shopkeeper didn't look very strong.
So, as the mage apprentice scurried away and the three thugs snuck off toward the flower shop, Nora rose from hiding and silently tailed them.
Now wasn't the time to act rashly.
She had to wait for the right moment.
Nora held her breath, her face tense, eyes locked on the three sneaky figures up ahead.
Meanwhile, inside the flower shop's study, Ron was lounging with a book when a system notification suddenly popped up.
System: "Temporary Quest Triggered."
[Temporary Quest] – [Drive Off the Flower Thieves]
[Objective: Personally defeat the three intruders attempting to steal your Nether Orchids.]
[Reward: None]
"Huh?" Ron raised an eyebrow, stood up, and walked to the window.
Sure enough, beyond the backyard wall, he saw three shady figures creeping toward his yard.
"Three flower thieves… yeah, this has to be them." Ron narrowed his eyes, then rolled them. "Seriously, no reward?"
System: "[Temporary quests are triggered by unpredictable events. Rewards are based on quest difficulty.]"
Ron went speechless for a moment.
So basically, the system figured these guys were no threat.
They're weak enough for me to handle easily, huh?
That made sense. While Ron hadn't yet formed his Battle Aura vortex, half a month of training in the 'Light Sword Codex' had already yielded solid results.
A few thugs without even basic warrior training? No problem.
But the next scene left Ron completely stunned.
Two of the thugs reached the wall first and climbed over into the yard. The third one was still clambering up.
Then—
From the street, a figure suddenly dashed out, grabbed the man on the wall by his shirt, and yanked him down hard!
Thud!
The man barely had time to shout before his nose met a knuckle. He was knocked out cold, bleeding from his nostrils.
"What the hell?!"
"Who's there!?"
The two thugs inside panicked and rushed to the courtyard gate. One of them flung it open—
Only to get a boot to the gut the moment the door swung wide. He flew backward with a grunt.
The attacker lunged in, following up with a clean punch to the second thug.
That one managed to raise his arms just in time to block, but still stumbled backward.
The first guy groaned and got up, clutching his stomach. The two regrouped and prepared to fight back—
But before Ron could even make it downstairs, it was already over.
By the time he arrived in the courtyard, he saw one small figure kneeling, panting heavily.
The two thugs lay sprawled out nearby—one knocked out cold, the other howling in pain.
And above him, the system window popped up again:
[Temporary Quest] – [Drive Off the Flower Thieves]
[Status: Failed]
Ron didn't know whether to laugh or cry.