《The Princess’s Glamorous Kidnapping – Chapter 29》
And Katya misunderstood the look in Nina’s eyes.
“Hey, back at the shop… I was just messing with you.”
“Huh?”
“I heard you were the kid Rabian was looking after, so I just wanted to tease you a bit. It’s not like I thought you were really one of those kids or anything… Anyway, sorry about earlier.”
Katya apologized awkwardly again, her face flushing red.
Nina, who had been silently watching her with her mouth slightly open, finally spoke.
“I’m sorry too.”
“I can be a bit much sometimes… wait, what?”
“You started it, but thinking back, I was pretty harsh too. So I’m sorry.”
“….”
Katya stared at Nina with her mouth slightly open for a while.
It was a look that said, what kind of weird kid is this?
“But Katya… why do you hate Mr. Rabian?”
“…Is there a law against hating someone?”
“No, it’s your choice. But I just thought no one told you that hating him for real might be dangerous.”
If Katya had truly hated Rabian, she wouldn’t have told Nina about the dealings with the Gold District.
Especially not with that worried expression.
Katya, misunderstanding Nina’s assumption, scowled and snapped.
“Get real. I just can’t stand the idea of someone else taking him down. If revenge is due, I’ll take it myself.”
“Revenge…?”
Nina looked confused.
Suddenly, Rabian’s words about Katya’s father being a famous pickpocket came to mind, but she couldn’t quite make the connection.
What would a pickpocket from the slums have to do with a gang boss?
Even Messi seemed to know Katya well…
Just then, Katya reached for the spare toast she hadn’t touched.
“Can I eat this?”
“Sure.”
“Thanks to someone, it’s hard to get food like this these days.”
“…Are you talking about Mr. Rabian?”
“Yeah. Because of him, all our income dried up. My family and everyone else are in chaos.”
Nina couldn’t tell if she was being sincere or sarcastic.
As Nina silently watched, Katya devoured the toast with incredible speed and casually added:
“Just talk among the locals. The Anubis boss changed, the guard captain changed—basically everything changed. So now we can’t pull our usual tricks anymore.”
“So that shop earlier…”
“Gotta eat to live. But no one’s hiring because everyone’s too busy trying to stay in Anubis’s good graces. Ugh.”
Katya clearly didn’t want to say more, so Nina stopped pressing her.
Though the full story remained unclear, she could at least understand the basics.
“Ah, shoot. Hold on.”
Katya had just finished her toast and was brushing off her hands when she suddenly ducked toward Nina, hiding her face.
Nina turned, confused, and spotted a few security guards approaching.
They didn’t seem to be reacting to anything specific—just doing routine patrols.
Thankfully, they didn’t say anything to Nina and simply walked past.
Katya straightened up and sighed in relief.
“That was close.”
“Why? Do you know them?”
“I’m kind of famous.”
“….”
“This is like the number one tourist spot. No better place to do a little swiping. Though… all that’s in the past.”
Katya blushed again.
Nina asked without thinking.
“How old are you, Katya?”
“Nine.”
“That’s amazing. You’re only nine and can do so much—really impressive.”
Katya gave Nina a skeptical look.
“How old are you?”
“Me? Six.”
“….”
“What’s wrong?”
“……Nothing.”
Just then, Messi’s voice called out.
“There you are.”
“Messi…!”
Nina turned around happily. Messi smiled and held up his fingers in a small wave.
Lowering her voice, Nina asked quickly:
“What happened?”
“It’s all taken care of. Nothing to worry about now.”
“Phew, that’s a relief! What did you say?”
“I said an informant stopped by and they should check just in case. Mira took them away, so who knows what’s happening now.”
Nina let out a sigh of relief. Katya, on the other hand, didn’t look satisfied.
“They bought that?”
“Unlike some people, I’m trustworthy.”
“What’s that supposed to mean…?”
“Nothing special. Anyway, you must’ve been hungry.”
“Want something to eat, Messi?”
When Nina asked, Messi glanced at the menu for a second and then shook his head.
“Everything here has onions…”
“You’re picky? You don’t look like it. Then let’s go somewhere else. I’ve still got the money you gave me.”
At Katya’s words, Nina looked puzzled.
“We didn’t pay here?”
“They saw what you were wearing and told us to just take it. You should’ve shown this to the boat staff earlier too. We wasted money.”
Katya smirked and pointed at the jacket Nina was wearing.
Messi looked like he expected that.
“If the boat staff had panicked and told someone, we’d have had trouble. I gave you the money just in case, but looks like it wasn’t necessary.”
“As if! Be honest, white-hair—you were testing if I’d try to scam a naive kid, weren’t you?”
“I had no such intentions. Why are you acting guilty?”
“Because it’s insulting!”
“Before you feel insulted, maybe do a little self-reflection.”
“Hey, does a gang member really get to talk like that?”
While Messi and Katya bickered, Nina absentmindedly touched the hem of her jacket.
She was realizing, more than ever, just how powerful Rabian’s influence in this city was.
With just a jacket, she had scared off some thugs and gotten a free meal…!
“Amazing. Thrilling. New.”
The power of authority—tasted for the first time—was strangely alluring.
Though, of course, that wasn’t the purpose of the gift.
“Anyway, I’m not hungry, but it’s a shame to just go back now. Want to look around a bit?”
“Sure.”
Nina and Katya readily agreed to Messi’s suggestion.
Although Katya seemed bothered by the security guards patrolling nearby.
“Let’s go outside instead.”
After a while, the three of them retraced their steps and returned to the square where they’d first arrived.
As night deepened, the square grew even more crowded.
Street performances were happening everywhere, and along the glittering coast of the night sea, a long line of night market stalls had opened.
It was a vibrant, joyful scene.
“……It’s really beautiful.”
“Glad you like it.”
Unlike Nina, who stood mesmerized, Messi seemed oddly indifferent to all of it.
As for Katya—despite having eaten three pieces of toast—she kept sniffing the air like she was still hungry.
“Something smells good.”
“You’re still hungry, Katya?”
“Nina, your stomach’s just small—”
Suddenly, a loud cheer erupted from one side of the square.
Curious, they turned to look and saw dancers performing on a small outdoor stage.
Aside from the large fake wings on their backs, the dancers were practically naked.
“Guys… why are those people not wearing any clothes…?”
Katya burst into giggles at Nina’s appalled face.
“What, is this your first time seeing something like that? That kind of show is super common here.”
“Common? That?”
Nina, who had seen all kinds of things since infancy, was still shocked that performances like this were considered normal.
And the crowd wasn’t even embarrassed—they were cheering loudly.
“Adults are so weird.”
As she stood in stunned silence, her eyes suddenly met Messi’s.
His golden eyes were trembling.
“Don’t look at that.”
Messi hastily pulled Nina’s hand, his voice trembling slightly.
Katya followed behind them, looking like she was having the time of her life.
“Oh wow, white-hair! Don’t tell me it’s your first time seeing that too?”
