Rio, who had charged confidently with a dagger, tripped over Stella’s foot and fell with a loud crash.

“Ugh!”

Clang!

The dagger he dropped bounced once on the ground before sliding across the street. Rio tried to get up and grab it, but Stella quickly ran over and stepped on it firmly.

Darren, who had just dealt with two other guys, was startled by Rio’s shout and quickly turned his head.

“Your Highn—”

“Shh!”

Before the word “princess” could escape Darren’s lips, Stella quickly signaled him to be quiet.

“You punks! Do you want to stop doing business here?”

Rio, who had been lying on the ground for a moment, suddenly stood up and yelled so loudly that his voice echoed through the fruit market.

Most merchants would usually shrink back and hang their heads when yelled at like this, but for some reason, those two just stood there, staring blankly. Even though they were merely watching, it made his blood boil.

Since he was young, he had considered himself the owner of this street. His father ran the largest trading company in the fruit market, and Rio was his only son.

Having lost his mother in an unexpected accident, Rio was raised with great care by his father, and as a result, he became the troublemaker of the street.

“Can’t you hear me?”

The number of onlookers grew, and Rio, unable to show himself being humiliated in his own territory, shouted stubbornly and glared fiercely.

“Oh dear, those young carrot sellers seem to have gotten into trouble with that Rio.”

“Earlier, it looked like Rio was trying to do something to that young lady and failed, which is why he’s acting like this.”

“He just can’t change his ways.”

“Those poor young folks. They were working so hard. Of all people, they had to run into a scoundrel like Rio.”

Listening to the murmurs around him, Rio glared at the people as if he could kill them with his eyes and shouted.

“Shut up!”

The people who had been clicking their tongues and whispering fell silent all at once. Recently, Rio had begun learning how to manage the trading company and had already kicked out shops that didn’t meet his standards.

No matter how sorry they felt for the young people, they couldn’t give up their livelihood for someone unrelated by blood.

‘This is how it should be.’

Pleased with their immediate reaction, Rio dusted off his dirty clothes and stood up straight. His knee stung where it had scraped when he fell, making him even more irritable.

Putting his hands on his hips and arrogantly lifting his chin, Rio looked at Stella and Darren with an annoyed gaze. His already upturned eyes rose even higher.

“You’re quite a handful, aren’t you? Well, with a face like that, I’ll let it slide this time. So stop fooling around and come here.”

Rio forced a smile and beckoned Stella with his finger.

“You bastard!”

Just as Darren was about to step forward, Stella moved ahead of him. Darren didn’t have time to stop her.

“That’s right. Come on, pretty one, stop hanging out with that ugly guy and join me. I’ll buy you a nice dress and necklace instead of those rags.”

Rio flaunted his wealth by moving his hand to show off a thick gold ring.

“I’ll give this to you. How about it? Do you like it?”

Now, Stella and Rio were less than a step apart. As Stella approached the ruffian, the onlookers’ faces filled with pity and resignation.

“Now’s the time.”

“What? You want it now? Alright, shall we go together?”

Rio asked, looking at Stella as she suddenly approached and made an unexpected remark. Just as he was about to put his arm around Stella’s shoulder with a satisfied expression, it happened.

“Ouch! That hurts!”

Just before Rio’s arm touched Stella’s shoulder, he suddenly jumped back with a pained expression.

“Ow! What’s this? What’s in there?”

Rio hopped around, frantically searching for something inside his clothes.

He shook his shoulders, lifted his shirt, and shook his legs. To an observer, it looked like he was dancing.

“What on earth is happening?”

“Did a mouse or a centipede get in there?”

“Well, serves him right.”

People chuckled as they watched Rio flail around in confusion. No one approached to ask what was wrong.

Stella watched Rio, who was suddenly acting like a madman, before pointing at him in mock surprise.

“Oh my! A mouse in your clothes!”

When Stella made a fuss, Rio escalated the commotion by taking off his shirt, but nothing appeared.

“What the heck, where did it go? Where’s the mouse?”

His bare upper body, revealed from under his clothes, was smooth and devoid of muscle. Perhaps due to his unusually pale skin, a few strands of chest hair stood out.

Even with people watching, Rio showed no embarrassment as he glared around, searching for the mouse. Then he started hopping again.

“Oh my! A mouse in your pants!”

This time, Stella pointed at Rio’s pants and shouted.

“Ahhhh!”

Without hesitation, Rio took off his pants, leaving himself in just his underwear, and kicked the discarded pants away with his foot.

His white legs flailed urgently in the air. When the pants he had kicked fell back to where he stood, Rio recoiled in shock.

“It’s a real mouse!”

A child’s voice suddenly rang out. At the same time, two dark gray mice scurried out from under the pants and dashed into the crowd.

They were about the size of two finger joints. Screams erupted from the women standing in the direction the mice fled.

Having confirmed the mice with his own eyes, Rio swore repeatedly at their unexpectedly small size.

“Damn it! I got scared for nothing!”

“I did well, didn’t I? Stella.”

A proud voice came from Stella’s shoulder. The owner of the boastful voice was Esta.

One of the four fairies had decided to accompany them to the market. After insisting that each wanted to go, they drew lots, and Esta had the chance to join Stella.

Esta had wanted to act sooner, but Stella told him to wait. As soon as he got the signal, Esta summoned the mice to crawl into Rio’s pants.

“Yeah, you did great.”

When Stella praised him, Esta replied with an even more confident expression.

“It’s all thanks to Stella. You broke the cursed jar, so I could follow you here.”

“Didn’t you say you could only use your powers inside the royal castle?”

“This place is part of the royal castle, so it’s fine. Of course, my power is weaker, so I could only summon two mice. But if I get a bit stronger, I could call four.”

Esta’s expression, as he spread out four fingers and widened his eyes, was incredibly cute. His small, delicate fingers were chubby at the joints.

“Still, thank you so much.”

Stella expressed her gratitude in a voice only Esta could hear. Even though he was a friend less than a foot tall, he felt like a reliable ally.

Suddenly feeling bold, Stella looked at Rio, who was left in just his underwear, and said mockingly,

“Instead of worrying about my dress, you should probably put your clothes back on first.”

“What?”

Only then did Rio realize he had stripped down in the middle of a crowd.

“Damn it!”

Just as Rio was grumbling and gathering his clothes, a loud, gruff voice rang out from somewhere.

“Rio, you rascal!”

Simultaneously, the people standing in the direction of the voice parted to the sides as if on cue.

The man who emerged from between the parted crowd was short and had graying hair. People bowed their heads in greeting when they saw him.

“Sir, you’ve come out.”

“Hello, sir.”

On a normal day, he would have smiled and exchanged pleasantries with those greeting him, but now he was glaring at his son, who was standing there in just his underwear, as if he could kill him.

“Ah, Father! How did you get here? It’s not what it looks like; there was a mouse! That girl set me up!”

Rio babbled incoherently, but suddenly, Jack popped out and pointed at him with a clear voice.

“That man tried to pull my sister’s hair and hit her! Everyone saw it!”

“You little brat! What do you know to be running your mouth like that?”

Rio yelled, but Jack didn’t flinch. Having quickly discerned who was stronger, Jack swiftly hid behind the old man with the stern gaze.

“That man is scary. Last time, he tried to hit me, but I ran away faster.”

“You brat! Come here right now!”

The man’s small stature belied his booming voice. Stella and Darren, who hadn’t done anything wrong, almost felt compelled to apologize under the man’s intimidating presence.

Rio, as if blaming Stella and Darren for everything, glared at them while slowly approaching his father.

He hadn’t noticed when he stripped, but the air was quite chilly. Goosebumps rose all over his body, but under his father’s intimidating presence, he couldn’t even put his clothes back on.

The man, after glaring disapprovingly at his son who had come closer, turned to Stella and Darren and bowed politely.

“Young people, I’m sorry. I spoiled my only son too much, and he’s become a disgrace. I apologize for the trouble.”

“Father, I’m telling you, that girl was being insolent!”

“You fool!”

The man struck Rio’s head with his fist, making a sharp sound. Rio clutched his head with both hands, whining.

Whack!

But the man’s fist struck Rio’s head once more, and Rio trembled, tears streaming down his face as he held his throbbing head.

“As an apology, I’d like to treat you young folks to a cup of tea. Do you have time?”

The man asked in a gentle voice, turning his back on his son, who was still in his underwear.