Flora had other thoughts she couldn't say out loud.
"Master Owen is clearly a peerless powerhouse. Building a good relationship with someone like him will be very beneficial for our future."
"He can probably tell that my sister and I don't have anything valuable to offer, and that golden badge probably doesn't mean much to him."
"But even if he doesn't want our things, we can't be ungrateful! The one thing strong individuals hate most is people who don't appreciate them."
With that in mind, she softly reminded her sister, "Alice, you must keep Lord Cat's existence absolutely secret. I suspect Master Owen's power has reached the level of a Grand Sage!"
"A godlike being like him—just meeting him is a special blessing."
Alice nodded vigorously.
Though she was naturally lively and not as clever as her sister, she was very obedient.
"I understand. We'll help Master Owen by spreading the word about his pub," she said with a bright smile. "The more people who come to the pub, the happier Master Owen will be."
The two sisters exchanged glances, both feeling optimistic about the future.
They weren't in any hurry to travel and deliberately slowed their pace.
This wasn't because the scenery was particularly breathtaking, but because they both felt that fries, this god-tier food, had to be finished quickly.
They ate a few fries, walked a bit to digest, and continued this way until they had nearly finished both large bags.
"Phew, I'm so full, sis. I feel like I'm about to explode," Alice whimpered. "Master Owen's fries are incredible, but I'm struggling to digest all the mana."
"Hang in there, Alice!" Flora, also flushed and sweating, was equally full. "There are too many thieves around here. If we don't finish these fries, someone might steal them!"
"Even in big cities, we won't be safe. Many grand mages have subordinates specifically tasked with searching for mana-boosting items."
"These fries absolutely cannot fall into anyone else's hands."
Wiping away her tears, Alice obediently said, "I'll do a hundred more squats to speed up digestion. Even if it kills me, we're eating every last fry!"
"After all, these are treasures granted to us by Master Owen."
What they didn't know was that the disappearance of the mercenary group had already become a widely discussed topic.
The brutal mercenaries were members of the kingdom's Mercenary Guild. They were supposed to head to a nearby town for a mission but had never shown up.
When the Mercenary Guild investigated, they found that all the mercenaries' life badges had shattered, signifying that the entire group had been wiped out.
In this world, danger equals opportunity. Many adventurers and criminals who heard about the disappearance immediately set off for the area where the mercenaries were last seen.
With some luck, they might discover hidden treasure—or, at the very least, they could loot the mercenaries' corpses.
The sisters, walking slowly, kept running into various robbers trying to mug them.
"Little girls, don't be scared. Hand over your valuables, and we won't hurt you."
"Oh, beautiful ladies, you look like my twentieth wife. Come along now, and your sister can be my twelfth wife."
Faced with these constant threats, the sisters couldn't help but laugh.
"Perfect, sis! We can speed up our digestion by beating these guys up! I'll go first and crush these scumbags," Alice said, swinging her fists as she charged.
"Trying to ambush us? Think again! You can cool off as an ice block!" Flora unleashed her freezing magic.
The bandits, having underestimated them because they were girls, were caught completely off guard. The sisters showed no mercy, beating the bandits to a pulp.
"Ahhh, help! What kind of muscle monster is this girl? She's a violent warrior!"
"Run! Everyone's turning into ice statues!"
The ordinary bandits stood no chance. The sisters easily fought off several waves of attackers.
The next group, having learned their lesson, decided to band together and challenge the sisters in a marathon of attrition.
After all, no matter how powerful their mana and stamina were, they'd eventually run out. At that point, the bandits would swarm in and humiliate the sisters.
But what they didn't expect was that whenever the sisters seemed to tire, unable to cast even a simple water spell, they'd quickly pull out some delicious-smelling food and eat it.
Afterward, their strength would surge back, and they'd once again crush the bandits.
This continued until rumors began to spread from the bandits who managed to escape from the "demon sisters."
There were whispers of two terrifying women who looked beautiful but were merciless in battle. No matter how many men tried to fight them, they couldn't be defeated!
Whenever you thought you were about to win, they'd pull out some fragrant food that would instantly restore their strength.
It was rumored that this mysterious food was something called "potato fries," a term overheard by someone from the younger sister.
And thus, the legend of the Potato Fry War Gods began to spread.
...
"Sis, did you just level up again?" Alice, now taller and more muscular, opened her eyes in surprise.
They had been consuming fries throughout their battles, and just a moment ago, they'd shared the last fry.
Alice had broken through to Tier-2 Mid, now a much stronger warrior! Her speed and strength had improved dramatically, and she could now use special warrior skills like sprint and execute.
Flora nodded excitedly. "I've reached Tier-2 Mid as well!" She wiped away her tears. "This is amazing. We don't have to fear anyone now."
As long as they didn't provoke any major powers, the two sisters could now live peacefully without fear.
"We should head to a big city and start spreading the word about Mr. Owen's pub," Flora suggested. "The towns we've passed through were too small, and most of the warriors and mages there are broke. We need the wealthy customers from the big cities."
At that moment, Alice motioned for her sister to be quiet.
Having just leveled up, her senses were sharper than ever. She could hear the sound of a fight not far away.
Flora quickly cast an invisibility spell over them.
They snuck toward the source of the sound to investigate.
As they approached, they sensed four powerful presences.
"It's three against one!" Alice whispered in Flora's ear. "The two men and one woman in fancy armor are fighting someone, but I can't see who they're attacking."
Alice rubbed her eyes, but all she could make out was a dark shadow.
Even Flora, using a spell to enhance her vision, couldn't clearly see the figure.
The shadow was vague, but thick, oppressive smoke surrounded them, moving with their body but never leaving their side.
"Damn it, you won't escape this time!" the armored woman yelled, her body suddenly radiating a red light.
Her two companions did the same.
They had activated some kind of technique to temporarily boost their strength.
With a three-on-one advantage and a buff, the tide of battle began to shift.
Even though the shadow moved with remarkable agility and speed, it was starting to tire.
After a long exchange, the shadow suddenly accelerated, fleeing in the direction of Owen's mountain.
The three armored figures hesitated for a moment before chasing after the shadow.
Once the area was clear, the sisters emerged from hiding.
"Who were they? Their power was intense," Alice muttered, wiping the sweat from her brow as she surveyed the battered ground and shattered trees.
"They all looked like they weren't to be messed with—especially that shadow. But they seem to be heading toward Master Owen's home," Alice added.
Flora, however, was confident. "Don't worry. No matter how powerful those people are, they're no match for Master Owen."
Not to mention, all three of them together probably couldn't even beat Lord Cat.