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Zummeng isn't the best writer, but her comics are a breath of fresh air compared to what's usually on this board. But if I had to nitpick the most recent page on here? It felt way too on the nose and lacks any real subtly or nuance. An easy fix? Less plot simplification and show more through character traits and interactions. Example:
Shen can instead outline his skill-set being more along the lines of being a locksmith (which would be a lie), and Shani can mention her culinary skills or just eagerness to learn new things. While Shen and Shani have varying experiences (with Shen excelling at his job while Shani struggles with just about anything else), old habits die hard. Shen would manage to fall back into some old thief habits [or nearly does] while Shani would be frustrated with her inability to do simple things and attempts to use magic. Both of those situations don't go unnoticed by the mayor.
Yadda yadda yadda-- the mayor, Shen and Shani have a little chat together that turns into Shen or Shani deflecting the weird coincidences: Wares go missing, Shen has scarring that a simple "blacksmith" wouldn't have; a bit too good with a knife or sword. Perhaps Shani's magic could be seeping out into other things, or he could catch her starting a fire with her Jinn magic. The mayor calls them out on their bullshit, but instead of ousting them, he allows them to stay. At his age he's seen a lot of weird things in his life; so the nonchalance and dull surprise to it all would be pretty justified. His only request being that they be upfront with him.
I'm no professional writer so take all that tl;dr stuff with a grain of salt. And hey, maybe Zummeng has a tight schedule. So low balling it in certain areas regarding the plot might be a necessary evil. I can't say that I hate this comic in any way, I just think it could be a bit better in some areas.
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