The scent of sugar and caramel filled the air as Aria stepped into the candy shop, her nose twitching at the overwhelming aroma of sweets. For a brief moment, she was worried about Kaiser, her mind still lingering on the fact that he had vanished so suddenly. But the second her eyes landed on the mountains of candy piled high on shelves and in glass cases, all other thoughts melted away.

Her pupils widened, reflecting the glistening treats like a predator locking onto its prey. Without hesitation, she grabbed a large cloth bag from the entrance and immediately began filling it to the brim, ignoring the polite greeting from the shopkeeper entirely.

There were candies of all kinds, some shaped like delicate crystal shards, others were bubbling softly in their jars as if alive. She grabbed handfuls of Moondew Jellies, which glowed weakly and left a cool, tingling sensation on the tongue. She snatched a stack of Amber Bricks, caramelized sugar so dense that it could only be eaten by cracking it with a tiny hammer provided at checkout. There were Fizzbite Pebbles, tiny round candies that popped and fizzed in the mouth, sending tiny shocks of tingling pleasure through the teeth. She even took a full box of Everlasting Liqueur Drops, tiny candies that tasted like aged wine and never truly melted, instead dissolving at an excruciatingly slow pace to keep the flavor going for hours.

Minutes passed as she looted the store with the enthusiasm of a bandit raiding a royal treasury, her belly still stuffed from the earlier feast of Kralak, yet her hunger for sweets was endless. Her bag, once empty, now bulged with enough sugar to send an entire town into a coma.

Finally satisfied, she strolled to the counter, her eyes beaming with gluttony, her cheeks slightly puffed as she chewed on a Fizzbite she had stolen mid-hoard. The shopkeeper, a thin man with a neatly trimmed mustache, raised an eyebrow at her. "Did you even look at the prices before stuffing your bag?" he asked dryly.

Aria grinned, patting the massive sack with pride. "Nope! But it's fine. I'll pay whatever." As she reached into her pouch for money, the door to the shop swung open, and the familiar sound of boots against wood made her turn her head.

Kaiser stepped in, with Milo right behind him. The moment she saw Kaiser's face, with his slightly singed clothes, the tired set of his eyes, and the faint smell of smoke clinging to him, her stomach did a small flip. She tossed the bag onto the counter with an audible thump, ignoring the shopkeeper's wince as the sweets inside clattered together, and sprinted toward Kaiser.

"Kai—"

Before he could react, she threw her arms around him, burying her face against his chest.

"I knew you'd be fine," she murmured, her voice muffled against his shirt, "But I was still worried, you big idiot."

Kaiser let out a small exhale, shaking his head with a smirk as he gently ruffled her hair. "Tch. You worry too much, little spider."

Aria pulled back just enough to pout at him, her grip still firm around his waist. "Yeah, well, maybe if you stopped coming back looking like you wrestled a dragon, I wouldn't have to."

Milo, who had walked around them to approach the counter, simply chuckled as he leaned against the wood. "Let them have their moment," he muttered to the shopkeeper, who was still eyeing Aria's monstrous candy haul with thinly veiled concern.

The shopkeeper let out a long breath, shaking his head as he eyed the sheer amount of sweets Aria had piled onto his counter. "I've been in this business for thirty years," he muttered, rubbing his temples. "And I don't think I've ever seen someone loot a shop with such reckless abandon."

Milo smirked, resting his forearms on the counter as he took in the mountain of candy with mild amusement. "Aye, it's impressive," he admitted. "I've seen Liberators hoard gold with less enthusiasm." He gestured toward a glass jar filled with what looked like tiny, shimmering star-shaped candies. "What are these?"

The shopkeeper sighed, reaching for the jar and tapping the label. "Starfall Crystals. They dissolve instantly on the tongue, but they make your breath glow in the dark for about an hour."

Milo let out a small chuckle. "Sounds like something the lads would enjoy back home." He glanced over his shoulder at Aria, who was still attached to Kaiser like a barnacle, before looking back at the shopkeeper. "You might want to start stocking up. Something tells me this one's going to be a repeat customer."

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The shopkeeper sighed again, giving Aria a sidelong glance. "I don't think even the Hopes could help me."

Meanwhile, Kaiser glanced down at Aria, whose grip around his waist had loosened just enough for her to tilt her head up at him, her pout still firmly in place. "Seriously, what happened to you?" she asked, her voice softer now, though her eyes flicked over him like she was scanning for injuries. "You smell like burnt wood."

Kaiser exhaled through his nose, running a hand through his hair. "Had a little disagreement with that girl," he said vaguely, before his smirk returned. "Nothing I couldn't handle."

Aria studied him for a moment longer, like she wanted to press the issue, but then, as if remembering exactly where she was, her expression shifted like a switch had been flipped. "Right, right," she said, spinning back toward the counter. She reached into her pouch, flashing a confident grin as she pulled out a handful of coins. "How much?"

The shopkeeper shot her a deadpan look, then pointed at the absurdly large sack of sweets. "More than you're carrying, I'd wager."

Aria's grin faltered for half a second before she turned to Kaiser, shamelessly batting her lashes. "Kai, dearest, most wonderful best friend—"

"No."

"You didn't even let me fini—"

Kaiser wasn't even listening anymore. The moment his gaze landed on the obscene mountain of candy piled high on the counter, his smirk twitched, then completely vanished. His eyes widened, almost bulging out of his skull as he took in the sheer volume of sweets stacked before him as it was enough sugar to single-handedly drive a kingdom's economy into debt. His gaze snapped to Aria, who stood proudly beside it, hands on her hips, radiating the smug satisfaction of a warlord surveying newly conquered land.

Without a word, Kaiser reached out, grabbed her firmly by the arm, and began dragging her toward the door. "Alright, that's enough looting for today," he muttered under his breath. "Milo's got us covered."

Milo, who had been casually leaning against the counter, suddenly jolted upright like someone had dumped ice water down his back. "The hell I do!" His voice cracked as he spun toward Kaiser, his expression a perfect storm of betrayal and outrage. "I already paid for your ale earlier, don't treat me like a wallet!"

Kaiser, unfazed, merely clapped a hand on Milo's shoulder and leaned in, lowering his voice just enough to sound both sincere and conspiratorial. "Think of it this way, Milo. You're not just buying for Aria. You're buying for Ivan and Mia too."

Milo blinked, his anger momentarily derailed. "What?"

"They just got out of the hospital," Kaiser continued smoothly, his expression solemn. "After everything they went through during the raid, don't you think they deserve something sweet?" He gave a pointed nod toward the candy. "Wouldn't you feel terrible if they found out you had the chance to make their night better and… didn't?"

Milo hesitated, his jaw tightening. His eyes darted toward the pile of sweets, then back to Kaiser, who was watching him with a look of pure, innocent expectation. It was a masterclass in manipulation, and somewhere in the back of his mind, Milo knew he was being played.

Unfortunately, he also knew Kaiser was right.

"…Damn it," Milo muttered, dragging a hand down his face before glaring at him. "You're a real bastard, you know that?"

The shopkeeper, who had been watching the entire exchange with growing disbelief, cleared his throat. "So… this is happening, then?"

Milo sighed heavily, already pulling out his coin pouch. "Yeah, yeah. Just… ring it up before I change my mind."

"Alright then," the shopkeeper began, adjusting his spectacles. "That'll be, let's see... five stacks of Moondew Jellies, three boxes of Everlasting Liqueur Drops, two dozen Amber Bricks, a full pound of Fizzbite Pebbles, a jar of Nightglow Taffy, four rolls of Starberry Licorice, one, wait no, two bags of Dragon's Breath Chews, which, I should warn you, do actually ignite if chewed too aggressively. Oh, and an entire crate of Cloudmelt Cotton."

Milo's eye twitched as the list kept going, his hands slowly rising to clutch his head as though trying to physically contain the aneurysm forming in real time.

"Six packs of Sugar Quake Bites, three jars of Goblin Toffee, one enchanted Glacial Pop and—"

"Alright, alright, I get it!" Milo groaned, dragging a hand down his face. "What kind of unhinged, gluttonous maniac buys this much candy in one go?!" He spun around, ready to unleash his full fury on Kaiser for throwing him under the carriage, only to freeze.

Aria stood there, clutching the bulging bag of sweets with both hands, her cheeks slightly puffed from the Fizzbite she was still chewing. But it wasn't the candy-stuffed chipmunk look that stopped him. It was the eyes, her enormous, shimmering, devastating puppy-dog eyes. They stared at him, wide and pleading, filled with the kind of pure, weaponized innocence only the most shameless of manipulators could wield.

Milo twitched, his lips pressing into a thin line.

Kaiser, who had been watching with his arms crossed, barely held back a smirk as he leaned in and whispered, "You're losing this battle, old man."

Milo exhaled sharply through his nose, rubbing his temples as if fighting off a massive headache. Then, with a final, defeated groan, he dug into his pouch and slammed a handful of gold onto the counter.

"I hate you both," he muttered, glaring at Kaiser before turning to Aria. "And you... you're lucky I have a soul."

Aria immediately beamed, her expression flipping from heart-wrenching despair to pure delight in an instant. "Thanks, Milo! You're the best!"

Milo grumbled something incomprehensible as the shopkeeper happily collected the payment, humming a little tune to himself.

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