Naomi aggressively rubbed her eyes, trying to erase the weird, confusing flutter her heart had just done a second ago. She quickly stood up, her face turning slightly pink.
"You are going to ruin the suit if you put sandwiches in the pockets, you idiot!" Naomi yelled, trying to sound as bossy and angry as usual to cover up her embarrassment. "Just stand still and don't get it dirty! Sayma, pay the man so we can leave. Looking at him is giving me a headache."
Sayma chuckled softly, totally aware of Naomi's flustered reaction. She walked over to the counter and handed the tailor a few more gold coins. "We will take this one. He can wear it out of the store. Please throw his old uniform in the trash where it belongs."
"Hey! I liked that uniform!" Ken protested weakly. "It had personality! It smelled like adventure! And by adventure, I mean barbecue chips!"
A few minutes later, the trio walked out of the fancy boutique and stepped back into the bustling, noisy streets of the city market.
The bright midday sun was shining down on them. Sayma walked on Ken's left side, looking perfectly elegant and composed in her clean combat uniform. Naomi walked on his right side, her bright red hair catching the sunlight, looking fierce and incredibly striking. And right in the middle walked Ken, wearing a perfectly tailored, highly expensive navy blue suit that made him look like a million bucks.
It was an absolutely impossible combination to ignore.
As they walked down the crowded street, the atmosphere around them started to change. The normal citizens, the passing merchants, and even the wealthy nobles wandering through the market began to turn their heads.
People stopped what they were doing and stared.
When people looked at the trio, they didn't see two elite warriors babysitting a lazy slacker. They saw a tall, incredibly handsome young man dressed in rich clothing, flanked on both sides by two absolutely gorgeous women.
The whispering started almost immediately. It wasn't quiet, either. The market was so crowded that Ken, Sayma, and Naomi could hear exactly what the people around them were saying.
"Oh my goodness, look at him," a young woman whispered loudly to her friend, pointing a fan in Ken's direction. "Is he a young Duke from the western provinces? He looks so dashing in that blue suit."
"He must be incredibly wealthy," a merchant muttered, leaning over his fruit cart to get a better look. "Just look at the two beauties walking with him. You don't get women like that unless you have a mountain of gold at home."
"I am so jealous," another man sighed, shaking his head. "To be walking around the city with two beautiful girlfriends at the exact same time... the guy is living the absolute dream. He must be a total player."
Ken was walking right in the middle of it all, completely and utterly oblivious. He wasn't paying any attention to the stares, and he definitely wasn't listening to the whispers. His sleepy eyes were totally locked onto a small wooden food cart down the street that was selling giant, salted soft pretzels.
"Oh, yes," Ken mumbled happily to himself, ignoring the crowd completely. "A giant pretzel. This is exactly the kind of high-quality street food I needed today. I wonder if they have extra cheese dip."
Sayma heard every single whisper, but she was a true noblewoman. She was highly trained in the art of ignoring public gossip. She just kept her chin up, offering a polite, completely neutral smile to anyone who made eye contact with her. She didn't care if people thought she was Ken's girlfriend; it was just silly street talk to her.
Naomi, however, was not handling it well at all.
Naomi heard the word "girlfriends." She heard the men calling Ken a "player." She saw the women swooning over the lazy, ridiculous farm boy who had literally cried behind a pile of garbage bags yesterday.
Her knightly pride, her strict sense of discipline, and her sheer, overwhelming irritation violently collided all at once.
Naomi’s face turned bright, tomato red. It wasn't a cute blush; it was the red of pure, explosive anger. Her hands curled into tight fists. A dangerous, crackling aura of green wind magic began to spark and swirl around her boots, picking up the dust from the cobblestone street.
"Did you hear what they just called us?" Naomi hissed through her teeth, glaring at the people in the crowd who immediately looked away in fear.
"Hmm? Did you say something?" Ken asked lazily, finally pulling his eyes away from the pretzel cart. He looked over at Naomi and blinked. "Whoa, boss lady, your face is super red. Are you getting a sunburn? I told you we should have walked in the shade. The sun is very dangerous for the skin."
"I am not getting a sunburn!" Naomi practically shrieked, her voice cracking with sheer embarrassment. "These absolute idiots think... they think we are dating you! They think you are some kind of rich playboy and we are your little trophies!"
Ken blinked again, his goofy smile totally unchanged. He looked around at the staring crowd, then looked back at Naomi.
"Well, to be fair, I do look incredibly handsome right now," Ken joked, popping his collar casually with one hand. "The suit is doing a lot of heavy lifting. But don't worry, Naomi. I will definitely let everyone know that my heart belongs entirely to a giant salted pretzel. You guys are safe from my overwhelming charm."
That was the absolute breaking point.
Naomi grabbed Ken by the back of his brand-new, highly expensive suit jacket and started physically pushing him down the street at top speed.
"Walk faster, you complete idiot!" Naomi yelled, her face burning hotter than a furnace. She shoved him forward, completely ignoring the shocked gasps of the people watching them. "Stop looking so smug! Stop looking at the pretzel cart! We are going back to the estate right this second before I actually pull my daggers out and shave your head!"
"Hey! Watch the suit!" Ken complained loudly, stumbling forward as she shoved him through the market crowd. "If you rip the fabric, you are paying for the repairs! Sayma, tell her to stop! She is causing a scene! I just wanted a pretzel!"
Sayma walked calmly behind them, shaking her head with a soft, highly amused chuckle. "You brought this upon yourself, Ken. I suggest you just keep walking."
"This is the worst shopping trip ever!" Ken whined, dragging his feet in his new boots while Naomi angrily marched him all the way back home. "I am never dressing up nicely again! Being handsome is way too much work!"
As they disappeared down the street, Ken was completely annoyed about missing his snack, and Naomi was furiously trying to calm her racing, embarrassed heart. The new clothes were a total success, but the peaceful morning had definitely ended in absolute chaos.
---
"Duck, farm boy!" Naomi shouted, her voice echoing loudly across the stone courtyard.
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