Darren sighed repeatedly as he glanced sideways at Princess Stella, who was dressed in Brynn’s clothes and following along. No matter how much he thought about it, he couldn’t understand how things had ended up this way.

“Don’t worry. I’ll go quietly and come back quietly.”

Stella, noticing Darren’s constant glances, smiled lightly and spoke in a calm voice.

“But Princess, it’s too dangerous.”

“For whom? You all?”

Darren flinched as if his true feelings had been exposed. Honestly, he was more afraid of the situation going wrong and causing trouble for himself than he was worried about the princess getting hurt.

“Darren.”

Stella spoke firmly as she walked ahead with confidence.

“There’s nothing to worry about.”

Initially, Stella had intended to stay quiet.

However, after spending some time in Verdura, she realized that no one in the imperial city paid any attention to her—not even the soldiers guarding the gates of Verdura Castle.

Darren’s lips twitched a few times, but he stopped. He suddenly realized that, as a servant, walking alongside the princess was absurd.

He had been a servant since childhood and had seen many nobles. None of them treated their servants this way.

When he was with Princess Stella, at least, he felt like a human named Darren, not just livestock or an object. Perhaps that’s why he couldn’t refuse the princess’s request.

“You absolutely must not go to any dangerous places.”

Seeing Darren seemingly give up on persuading her, Stella nodded with a bright smile.

Her dazzlingly beautiful smile somehow made Darren feel as if Princess Stella was shedding tears. His heart ached inexplicably.

Even dressed in old clothes and with a scarf wrapped around her head, Stella was exceptionally beautiful.

People who had come to buy the famously delicious carrots forgot their purpose and exclaimed in admiration when they saw Stella standing at the stall.

“The girl selling carrots is so pretty!”

“Indeed, she looks like a princess!”

“Hey, you! You’ve never even seen the princess, so how can you say she looks like one? The girl is prettier than the princess.”

The crowd was already bustling, and with people striking up conversations from all directions, Stella felt overwhelmed.

Yet, strangely, she felt excited and alive.

People thought that a well-bred princess would be frightened and hide when she came to a bustling market full of rough behavior.

But Stella, almost mocking Darren’s expectations, mingled with people effortlessly.

“Wow! You’re really pretty, sister! Will you come again?”

Even after finishing his guidance, Jack lingered beside Stella for quite some time, unwilling to leave.

Darren looked at Jack in disbelief, noting how different Jack was from when he interacted with Brynn. However, Jack seemed to pay no attention to Darren.

“Thank you. I’ll come again!”

“Awesome! Then I’ll go spread the word that delicious carrots have arrived! Everyone’s been waiting.”

Jack was so enthusiastic that one might think he was the carrot vendor. He had been quite friendly even when Brynn and Darren came together, but after seeing Stella, Jack eagerly helped with tasks he hadn’t been asked to do.

As Jack was about to run off, he returned to the stall, looking slightly shy, and asked, “By the way, what’s your name, sister? I’m Jack.”

As if asking for a name was an embarrassing question, he scratched his head and lowered it. His blushing cheeks were so cute that Stella couldn’t help but smile.

“Rudina. My name is Rudina.”

She sensed Darren looking at her in surprise, but Stella just smiled brightly at Jack.

“Rudina! It’s as pretty as you are! I’ll go gather some customers right away!”

Jack, his face even redder than before, dashed off somewhere with a big smile.

Darren wanted to ask who Rudina was, but he held back. Being with the princess often made him forget that he was just a servant.

Feeling the need to be cautious, Darren reminded himself of his status.

Suppressing his growing curiosity, Darren greeted the approaching people warmly.

“Welcome! These are the most delicious carrots in the world. Once you taste them, you’ll never forget!”

Unlike when he first stood hesitantly, Darren was showing quite a knack for sales.

He called out to passing customers and pretended to add an extra carrot while actually charging a bit more than usual. To Stella, Darren seemed like a natural salesman.

After being at the market for a few days, quite a few people recognized Darren. Most greeted him warmly, but those who had been selling vegetables in the area weren’t pleased to see him.

Darren felt a bit guilty for taking away their income, but there was nothing he could do. It wasn’t his fault that Princess Stella’s carrots were exceptionally delicious.

“Excuse me for a moment.”

While they were busy selling carrots, a man approached, parting the crowd gathered in front of the stall. He wore very expensive-looking clothes and clearly wasn’t a commoner.

The smiles faded from Stella and Darren’s faces.

In the brief moment the man appeared and started speaking, thoughts raced through their minds—was he someone from the royal city, and should they run away immediately?

“What can I do for you?” Darren asked with a broad smile once more. With many people around and the man seemingly alone, he thought they could escape if anything happened.

“I’m Ian Blake, the head of the Red Bat Trading Company.”

The man smiled politely and extended his hand to Darren. As Darren glanced over, Stella gave a slight shake of her head.

Ian, who had offered a handshake, observed their actions, and when his eyes met Darren’s, he smiled broadly, revealing his white teeth.

“What brings the head of the Red Bat Trading Company to me…?”

Darren felt relieved that the man wasn’t from the royal city, but being from the Red Bat Trading Company might be even more dangerous. Darren tried to hide his tension, but his voice kept catching.

“Are you the one who grew these carrots?”

Darren glanced at Stella, who gave a barely noticeable nod. Ian didn’t miss this either.

“Yes, that’s right.”

“I have a proposal for you.”

“Oh, I purchased a street vendor permit from the Moonlight Guild and am trading fairly. You can check if you’d like.”

“It seems there’s been a misunderstanding; it’s not about that.”

“Then what is it?”

“I want to buy all the produce you’ve grown. I’ll pay three times the price you’re selling them for now.”

“Excuse me? Why…?”

They were just carrots. Offering to pay three times the price made no sense and only aroused suspicion.

No matter how delicious they were, no one would buy carrots at such a high price in the market.

Even Darren, who hadn’t been in sales for long, found it extremely suspicious.

“Hey! How long are you going to block the way? Can’t you see that others are waiting?”

People who had relaxed upon hearing the well-dressed man was a merchant, not a noble, began to complain loudly.

Ian slightly removed his hat and smiled at the crowd. His elegant demeanor, like that of a noble, made people avert their eyes awkwardly.

“If you’re done talking, step aside. I need to buy carrots for my shop.”

“Apologies. Could you wait just a little longer, ma’am?”

“Ma’am? Oh, my!”

The woman who had been frowning moments before now smiled shyly, pursing her lips. She tucked her hair behind her ear and, when she met eyes with the person next to her, shook her hands as if something was on them.

“Thank you.”

Ian winked at the grumbling woman and continued his conversation with Darren and Stella.

“Could you come to the café at the end of this street after your business today? I assure you, it won’t be a loss.”

Ian spoke to Darren but concluded by looking at Stella. Startled by the man’s relaxed gaze, which seemed to have quickly grasped her relationship with Darren, Stella responded in a calm voice.

“I’ll think about it after we finish here. So, could you please step aside now, Mr. Ian Blake of the Red Bat Trading Company?”

This time, it was Ian who was surprised. He had thought they were no ordinary people, but now he felt they might be even more than that. Ian found himself increasingly intrigued by these two, or rather, by the woman.

He wanted to say, “Trust me, I’m not a strange person,” but he knew that would only make them more wary.

“I’ll be waiting.”

Ian now addressed only Stella. Watching their brief exchanges, Darren realized this was a situation he couldn’t involve himself in.

The man soon left, and Darren and Stella quickly sold the remaining carrots. They had brought four whole bags, yet sold them at a similar pace to the previous day.

“It seems we’ve sold much more than yesterday,” Darren murmured in disbelief, looking at the heavy pouch in his hand.

“Indeed. We finished even faster than I expected.”

Rather than being happy, Stella looked somewhat disappointed.

“Princess, if you go a bit further down this street, there’s a shop selling seeds and seedlings. Would you like to visit? The market might be open today.”

Noticing the princess’s desire to linger longer, Darren impulsively suggested.