They walked through the plaza for some time. Elliott—true to his sweet tooth—seemed hell-bent on trying every street snack in sight. A whim Aiden very quickly intervened in and shut down.
Well... "shut down" was maybe too generous.
Because even after that, Elliott managed to slip away to buy caramelised hazelnuts. Because they're hazelnuts, and hazelnuts were his favourite, and therefore they shouldn't count.
Apparently, they did count. Because after that, Elliott lost the right to hold the coin pouch before he could even blink. From then on, any proposal to buy something—especially something edible—had to go through Aiden first. Where, more often than not, it was denied.
But then—he saw his downfall.
Candied fruit skewers.
A snack he'd never seen before, but one that immediately captured his heart, soul, and spirit. Strawberries and mangoes—two of the most perfect fruits in the known universe—dipped in chocolate, and then coated in a glassy layer of caramelised sugar. They looked... radiant. Magnificent. The kind of thing that would be serenaded by a choir if the sun hit it just right.
They were basically begging for Elliott to eat them.
It was like Elliott was a bachelor man, and the skewers were an escort at a brothel, leaning in the doorway with a sultry smile, beckoning him over. A forbidden, fatal temptation. One he knew he shouldn't give in to—not because of the consequences, but because he was afraid of how much he'd end up liking it.
His silent monologue was very rudely interrupted by Aiden.
"Don't even think about it," the younger said flatly.
The look Elliott was giving the skewers hadn't gone over Aiden's head. In fact... Aiden almost wished the other would give him that look—
—Aiden's thoughts derailed fast enough that he gave his head a sharp shake.
Unfortunately, the shake wasn't just internal.
Elliott noticed. "...?"
"Nothing," Aiden said quickly.
Elliott shrugged and didn't press. His focus returned to his goal—the skewer. "I'm thinking... how about just one—"
Aiden's eyes narrowed. Just one? Elliott's first offer was never "just one."
"—One for me, one for you—"
Ah. There it was.
Aiden's resolve, which had wavered slightly when Elliott started with "one," hardened again. He crossed his arms. "No. You've had enough sugar already. And you very well know both of them are going in your mouth anyway, because I don't like sugary things and you'll 'finish it so it doesn't go to waste.'"
Elliott gasped, clutching his chest in mock betrayal. "Slander. Defamation. My own prince, against me."
"It's not slander if it's true," Aiden deadpanned.
Elliott sighed dramatically. It was clear this was going to be a "compromise or nothing" situation. "Fine. How about we purchase one, and we share. One skewer has four pieces—each of us gets two."
Aiden narrowed his eyes but seemed to consider it. He was tempted to lower the amount further, but doubted the seller would split a single skewer in half for them. In the end, he relented. "Very well. We'll get one."
Elliott brightened instantly. Aiden hated how much he liked that look.
They headed to one of the stalls selling the skewers.
"One strawberry and mango skewer, please!" Elliott said. The vendor nodded and began preparing the order.
As Elliott watched, Aiden's soldier instincts kicked in and his gaze started scanning their surroundings. He'd done it countless times that day. He wouldn't lie—this outing had been a stressful decision. But...
... not one he regretted.
On the surface, nothing looked unusual. The crowd was as lively as ever. No one stared at them for too long. But then—his eyes flicked toward a dark alleyway off to the side.
Normally, he wouldn't have looked twice. But something about it made every sense in him go on alert.
For a long moment, nothing moved. Maybe it was just a false alarm. There was nothing there.
And yet... he couldn't tear his gaze away.
He barely registered Elliott taking the coin pouch from his hand to pay. His eyes stayed fixed on the alley entrance.
That's when he saw it—a faint rustle of cloth, something shifting—before a figure stepped halfway out of the darkness. And as soon as Aiden's eyes locked on it, it slipped back in.
Aiden blinked hard. He wasn't even sure if he'd actually seen it... or if it had just been a trick of his mind.
"-Aiden!"
Elliott's voice cut through his haze. Aiden finally turned, finding Elliott staring at him in concern. He held the skewer and the coin pouch in one hand, the other tapping Aiden's arm.
"I've been calling you for the past minute," Elliott said. "You weren't listening. Are you okay?"
Aiden looked at him blankly for a moment before answering. "It's... nothing. I just saw something there. Like a shadow. It looked like it was stepping out..."
Elliott stepped sideways, peering into the alley. It was empty. He frowned. "I don't see anything."
Aiden exhaled slowly. "Forget it. Must've been a trick of the light. I only saw it for a moment. I don't see it now either."
Elliott nodded. "Hmm. It looks empty. Maybe you imagined it?"
"Maybe," Aiden murmured, but his eyes lingered on the darkness a moment longer.
----
They walked away from that area, Elliott clutching his skewer like a man guarding treasure. He seemed to have already forgotten the shadow incident, happily eating the candied fruit like nothing in the world could possibly be wrong.
Aiden, meanwhile, couldn't help but replay the moment in his head. It wasn't even exactly worry. Not quite. It was... an unease. A prickling at the back of his neck he couldn't shake off, like whatever he'd seen back there was still clinging to him.
As they walked, they wandered into the merchants' market. It was quiet near the plaza, so they got there in no time. This was the second-to-last stop on Elliott's itinerary— because of course he had an itinerary. Outer Procession Road, Sun Gardens, Sunder Plaza, Merchants' Market, and finally, when the evening came—the Moonlit Canals. There, people would light lotus lamps and make a wish. Tradition said that if you did this on one of the holy days surrounding the Ritual, the moon god would fulfill your wish— so long as it was earnest, deserved, and didn't harm anyone else.
It was one of those beliefs so ingrained that most people didn't even think of it as religion anymore. It had become cultural. Though, originally, it was a devotion specific to the moon god in the Altherian Empire, it had slipped into the Solar Festival here too, like a guest that never left but everyone liked having around.
"Look!" Elliott pointed.
If they thought the plaza and the procession road were a burst of color, they were not prepared for the merchants' market. It drowned in color, scent, and noise—every sense lit up at once. Yet somehow, it wasn't the unbearable kind of overload.
Everything that could be sold or bought was here. Alongside the Vellurian merchants were quite a few foreign traders. Though chaotic, it was a strangely well-organized chaos. Each merchant had a designated space, and the stalls were grouped by product— spices in one row, silks in another, metalwork in another.
"That's very organized," Elliott said, surprised. "Does this come under imperial jurisdiction?" He was genuinely puzzled. If it was this structured, surely there had to be some kind of official oversight. Yet, he couldn't remember hearing about such a thing. Sure, there was extra security during festivals to keep order—but this was different.
"No," Aiden replied. "It's not under us. Or any noble, for that matter."
Now Elliott was really surprised. If not the crown, then a noble would've been his second guess. "Then...?"
"The Myraethra Guild," Aiden said.
Elliott blinked. He'd heard the name before, but never in detail.
Aiden caught the other's puzzled look and elaborated. "In name, it's only a trade guild. In truth, it's the quiet backbone of commerce across half the known world—not just the Vellurian Empire. It started as a small cooperative of merchants decades ago. Over time, it grew so large that now it has connections in other empires too."
"Extensive," Elliott hummed, nodding.
"They are," Aiden agreed.
Elliott tilted his head. "If they operate at such a large scale, how come I've never heard much about them?"
"That's the thing. The head isn't publicly known— but people whisper. Apparently, the man has many quirks. One of them is a distrust— no, more like dislike— for nobility and royalty."
"...Ah." Elliott nodded. "That would explain it."
Aiden continued, "Word is, the old master passed away recently. His son took over."
Before Elliott could ask more, his attention was stolen by the jewelry section. His face lit up, just slightly. He had more than enough jewels already— the best of the best— but that didn't stop the little thrill of seeing something new.
"Let's check them out," he said, grabbing Aiden's arm and tugging him toward the stall.
Aiden didn't resist. Elliott led them to a shop claiming to sell "Blessed Charms."
"Blessed charms? Really?" Aiden asked, unimpressed, one brow raised.
Elliott rolled his eyes. "At the very least, it's beautiful jewelry."
Aiden shook his head but let him be. He watched as Elliott picked up the pieces, turning them over in his hands, holding them to the light to see how they caught it. He could have bought the entire collection without denting his gold reserves, but no—Elliott was choosing. Carefully. Precisely.
Aiden found himself smiling— just a little. He could watch Elliott do anything. Watch the light catch on his hair, see the way his eyes lit up when he saw something he liked. He could stand here all day and not get bored.
Elliott, meanwhile, was frowning slightly, torn between two charms. One was a sunburst with straight rays; the other, the same shape but with wavy ones. He looked... pained, but determined to choose correctly. Aiden bit back a laugh. He looked like a squirrel trying to decide which acorn was the most worthy.
Elliott seemed to be leaning toward the wavy rays—straight rays was, sadly, losing the fight.
Finally, he looked up, holding the wavy charm, intending to ask the vendor the price—
—but the vendor had already stepped away.
He didn't have to look far. A raised voice soon cut through the market noise.
A few steps over, two merchants were in a square-off. Their faces were red, fingers jabbing, accusations flying. One of them was the merchant Elliott was been looking for. They seemed to be locked in a tense standoff over some trade dispute. The other one, a silk merchant, gripped a bolt of silk like he was considering using it as a weapon. The first merchant held a fistful of coins, looking equally ready to hurl them at someone's head.
The argument was over a failed shipment — Merchant 1 was supposed to send silks to Merchant 2, and Merchant 2 had already paid but claimed he'd never received them. Merchant 1 swore he had sent them, Merchant 2 swore he hadn't gotten a single thread.
Elliott watched curiously, head slightly tilted. He glanced at Aiden, wondering if they should intervene.
Aiden glanced back. In their disguises, they were just normal people and had no real authority here. "We will, if it gets out of hand. We don't want to draw attention, remember?"
Elliott nodded, understanding.
As they watched, the argument escalated. Just when it looked like Merchant 2 might actually throw the coins at Merchant 1's face, Aiden started to step forward, his hand drifting to his dagger. But before he could take even one step, someone else entered the scene.
----
AN: A long chapter today~~~