The smell of freshly cooked stew filled the farmhouse by the time Adrian and Elena returned. Warm and rich, laced with the region's familiar spices, it drifted through the open windows and mixed with the cooling evening air. Lina was already setting bowls and wooden plates on the table while the pot simmered over the fire, the soft crackle of burning wood the only sound in the quiet kitchen.
"You're back," she said, glancing over her shoulder with a tired but welcoming smile. "Dinner's almost ready."
Adrian helped carry the remaining dishes to the table. Elena followed a step behind with a loaf of freshly baked bread, still warm enough to soften the butter waiting beside it. A few minutes later the front door opened and Mara came in, dust clinging to her clothes and the hem of her skirt after a long afternoon in the fields. The satisfied look on her face made the work seem worth it.
"How did it go?" Lina asked as Mara washed her hands at the basin.
"The irrigation's running again," Mara answered, drying her hands on a cloth. "Most of the work is finished."
She took her seat at the head of the table, and the four of them began eating. For a while the meal stayed quiet, just the clink of wooden spoons against bowls and the occasional crack from the fire. Steam rose from the stew, carrying the scent of root vegetables and dried herbs through the small room.
Eventually Mara looked toward Adrian. "So, how was the market?"
"It was fine," Lina answered before he could speak. "We bought what we needed and walked around the village. Nothing unusual."
"I see." Mara kept eating, but after a few moments her eyes settled on Lina, who had barely touched her food. Even reaching for a piece of bread, her movements were slower than usual, and the faint shadows under her eyes made it look like she wanted nothing more than to crawl into bed.
"What's with you?" Mara set her spoon down. "You only walked around the village for an afternoon, and you look more worn out than I do after a full day in the fields."
Lina forced a small smile. "The sun was stronger than I expected."
Mara snorted and shook her head. "Young people these days. You have no stamina."
Adrian continued eating without comment, and Elena lowered her head slightly, focusing on her own bowl as if she hadn't noticed the exchange.
Dinner ended without much more discussion. After helping clear the table, Adrian stood and stretched. "We'll finish the remaining crystals tomorrow." Mara nodded, and Adrian and Elena said their good nights before heading down the hallway to their room, the door closing softly behind them.
Once they were gone, Lina gathered the empty bowls and carried them to the sink, where water from the earlier filled crystal still sat cool and clean in the basin. Mara stayed at the table, turning an empty wooden cup between her fingers as the fire burned lower, casting long shadows across the walls.
After a few minutes of silence, Lina spoke without turning around. "Adrian bought a water crystal today."
Mara's hand stilled. She understood immediately — Adrian now knew exactly how valuable his water was, and any chance of keeping him working for the same modest payment had all but disappeared.
For a brief, shameful moment, a darker thought crossed her mind. If Lina offered herself to him — if she used her body the way desperate women sometimes did, bound him here with soft words and warmer nights — the water might keep flowing, and the fields would stay green, and they wouldn't have to worry about the money. The thought was ugly and practical and deeply wrong, and it lingered a moment longer than it should have.
Her gaze drifted toward her daughter-in-law. Lina looked up just in time to catch the expression on Mara's face — she had seen that look before, quiet calculation tangled up with quiet desperation.
"Mother."
Mara looked away without answering.
Lina set the last bowl down with deliberate care and wiped her hands on a cloth. When she turned, her voice was calm but firm. "Don't even think about using me for something like that."
The room grew heavier with silence.
Mara sighed. "I wasn't—" She stopped halfway through. There was no point pretending. The idea had been there, clear as the water now running through their fields.
"There's no point denying it, Mother. I've seen that look before." Lina let out a quiet breath. "You looked exactly the same when you tried to marry me off to the village chief."
Mara lowered her eyes. "That was different."
"Was it?" Lina asked. "You were worried about the farm then too."
The older woman had no answer.
Lina finished wiping the last bowl and set the cloth aside. "Even if I tried, someone like him wouldn't look twice at a village widow like me."
Mara frowned. "Don't sell yourself short."
Lina gave a faint, self-deprecating smile. "I'm being realistic." She walked over and rested a hand on Mara's shoulder. "Get some rest, Mother. We'll think about tomorrow's problems tomorrow."
Mara let out a weary sigh and rose from her chair. "You're right."
Without another word, the two finished tidying the kitchen and retired to their rooms.
In the room next door, Adrian sat cross-legged on his bed with the water crystal he had purchased earlier resting in his palm. Water gathered around it and was absorbed in steady pulses, the spell holding in its familiar half-finished state as the crystal slowly filled.
While he waited, he leaned back against the wall and thought over everything he had learned that day. A single filled water crystal sold for five gold. Would it be worth buying empty ones and filling them himself?
The thought lingered for a moment before he shook his head. "Later." He still knew far too little about this world's laws, its merchants, and the people who controlled the water trade. Jumping into business without understanding any of that would be asking for trouble.
About half a minute later, the crystal stopped absorbing water. The spell completed itself, forming a perfect sphere, and Adrian dismissed it with a wave of his hand. He set the filled crystal beside his backpack, lay back, and closed his eyes.
Sleep claimed him before long.
---
The next morning, the first rays of sunlight filtered through the windows. Remembering the previous day, Adrian woke almost immediately and quickly changed into his clothes before anyone could walk in unexpectedly.
Just as he opened the door, Elena was already standing outside with her hand half-raised.
"Morning," she said in a small voice.
"Good morning."
The two walked downstairs together.
Lina was already preparing breakfast while Mara sat beside the table sorting through a small pile of farming tools. Lina greeted them while setting the food out.
Once everyone had finished eating, Adrian followed Mara outside and began filling water crystals. As each one was completed, Lina carefully carried it back inside and stored it in a wooden crate alongside the others they had set aside for future use.
By the time the tenth crystal was finished, Mara looked over the remaining empty crystals and let out a quiet sigh.
"That should be enough for today."
Lina nodded. "We need to leave some money for labor, seeds, and everything else."
Mara looked at the large pile of empty crystals still waiting nearby and let out another quiet sigh.
"It's a shame," she muttered. "Looks like we'll have to rely on water spray."
Lina immediately understood where the conversation was going. "Mother…"
Mara kept her eyes on the remaining crystals. "The crops will survive, but we'll never get a good price for them."
Lina sighed. "We've already settled this."
Mara gave a helpless shrug. "I know. I'm only talking to myself."