I closed the book and tucked it into a secure drawer. Losing it would mean paying a steep fine.

After checking the front and seeing no customers were coming, I slipped into the back kitchen.

I needed to ask my senior about my paycheck. My funds barely covered living expenses, let alone those meditation tools.

“Ying Shiqian! Stop sneaking up on me while I’m decorating! You’re dead!” Tang Yihan’s voice boomed.

I walked in just as she shoved a piping bag of frosting into Ying Shiqian’s mouth, who was still giggling.

White frosting flooded Ying Shiqian’s mouth, spilling over the sides.

I couldn’t wrap my head around why Ying Shiqian, the queen of slacking, loved stirring up trouble here. Could someone really be a slacker and a troublemaker?

Caught off guard, Ying Shiqian stumbled and fell, frosting spraying from her mouth. It was so thick she instinctively swallowed a few gulps.

“Ugh…” she gagged.

I could barely even process what just happened.

A ripple of energy hit me, snapping me into Psi-vision mode. I could feel the energy in Tang Yihan’s body surging, like a spell was about to go off.

“Whoa, hold up! Senior, no spells!” I rushed forward, grabbing Tang Yihan’s arm. A spell in here would blow the place to bits!

She was the one who’d warned me not to use magic in the bakery, after all.

“Let go! I’ve got the cash to cover damages. If I don’t turn this slacker into a frizzy-haired mess, my name’s not Tang Yihan!” she snapped.

Despite her words, she didn’t unleash the spell. I knew my attempt to hold her back was mostly for show—if she really wanted to, I’d be sprinting for the exit.

“Senior, chill, please! It’s not worth it!” I said, softening my voice to calm her down.

“Hmph, fine. For Yuehan’s sake, I’ll let it slide,” Tang Yihan relented, lowering her hands. She’d picked up on my peacemaking and went along with it.

“Ying Shiqian, how many times has it been this week? The boss isn’t here, so you’re acting up again? Why don’t you hit Charm Alley to blow off steam instead of bugging me?” Tang Yihan shot her a glare.

“Ugh… heh, my bad. Hand slipped,” Ying Shiqian mumbled, scrambling to her feet. She swallowed the last of the frosting and wiped her mouth. “This stuff’s a bit too sweet, though.”

“Sweet? Hope it chokes you,” Tang Yihan muttered, returning to her tools, her usual calm settling back in.

I stood there, stunned. Charm Alley? Was that something I was supposed to hear about? Sounded like a place everyone knew. As a good student, I’d never go there—just, you know, look it up on my phone to see where it was.

Just in case I accidentally wandered into it. Got to know how to avoid it, right? Purely for research.

“Oh, Yuehan, what’re you doing back here? Sorry you had to see that,” Tang Yihan said, glancing over.

“No big deal,” I said, waving it off. It wasn’t the first time I’d seen them go at it.

“Anyway, I came to ask… could I get an advance on my paycheck? I need to buy some stuff.”

“Running low on cash?” Tang Yihan said casually, like it was no big thing. “I’ll talk to the boss and get it sent to your account.”

“Thanks, Senior. I’m broke. I just started with meditation, and I need some supplies to give it a shot.”

“Meditation? Jumping in early, huh?” she said, raising an eyebrow. “Just get some incense to start. Without a teacher guiding you, that meditative state is tough to crack.”

“Is it really that hard?” I asked, unable to help myself. She was probably warning me not to overspend.

“Yeah, meditation’s the first lesson for newbies. Teachers guide you one-on-one. In the first class, they even let you enter a dream state—it’s way easier to feel what meditation’s like there.”

“Dream state?”

The phrase instantly made me think of hypnosis-induced dreams.

“Yeah, your teacher will explain it all. I wouldn’t know how to break it down for you,” Tang Yihan said, busy with her work.

I watched her hustle and decided not to push further. I’d hit the library after my shift to dig deeper. At least I had a clue about this dream state thing—maybe it was the hypnosis the book mentioned.

“Uh, looks like you guys are swamped, and I think a customer’s up front. Got to go!” I blurted, making an excuse to slip away. When I got to the counter, there was no one there.

After I left, Tang Yihan’s face darkened. She carried her half-finished cake over to Ying Shiqian, who still looked a mess.

“Clean this place up. And this?” She shoved the cake toward her. “That’s your lunch.”

“No way!” Ying Shiqian wailed.

The cake wasn’t anything on the shop’s menu, and there were no custom orders lately. It was probably one of Tang Yihan’s experimental creations.

Tang Yihan’s experiments were infamous. They could make anyone gag—pure culinary chaos.

“If you don’t finish it, I’ll smear the rest on your face. And write me a report on the taste and texture. I’ll tweak it next time,” Tang Yihan said lightly, sealing Ying Shiqian’s miserable fate for lunch.

But Ying Shiqian was quick. Without hesitation, she smeared the cake all over her face.

She’d rather wear it than eat it.

“You!” Tang Yihan hadn’t expected that move.

“Tastes… actually... good?” Ying Shiqian said, licking her lips hesitantly.

“If it’s good, then write that report on the flavor and texture. I’m off to jot down the recipe,” Tang Yihan said, walking away.

“Tch…” Ying Shiqian’s face twisted once Tang Yihan was gone. The cake clearly wasn’t as “good” as she’d claimed.

“Ugh, what a bore. I’m gonna bug Yuehan instead,” she muttered, scraping the cake off her face. A quick Cleaning Charm tidied her up, but her uniform, stained with Tang Yihan’s masterpiece, felt like a curse. She wanted a fresh one—wearing this was practically psychological torture.