Chapter 30
“Shut up.”
“Wow, hahaha! Acting all grown-up, but you’re still just a kid, huh?”
“You’re the kid. It’s not exactly something to be proud of, watching that kind of thing.”
“It’s not like I wanted to see it! It was there, so I saw it. Your boss probably likes that stuff though.”
Nina’s steps came to a sudden halt at that remark.
“Uncle Lavian likes that kind of thing…?”
Hearing her unusually serious tone, Katya flinched unconsciously and glanced at Messi.
Messi responded with a reproachful look and shook his head.
“No. Lavian’s not really into that kind of thing—how do I put it—something so openly flashy. Right?”
“Huh? Oh, yeah. That guy’s got refined taste—”
“How would you know?”
The two who were trying to smooth things over fell silent for a moment.
Suddenly, the image of Jenny and Serena from the first day floated into Nina’s mind.
Compared to those dancers…
‘They’re totally different.’
Still, regardless of which one Lavian preferred, it made her feel bad.
She didn’t know why.
‘What does it matter? It’s not like Lavian’s my dad or anything.’
If it had been Leopald, she wouldn’t have cared at all.
Suddenly, Nina felt foolish and childish. Her energy drained away.
“Should we check out over there?”
She pointed toward the night market. The other two, who had been gauging Nina’s mood, quickly nodded.
As they approached, all kinds of delicious smells wafted from every direction.
Grilled seafood skewers slathered in sauce, hot dogs with warm buns and sausages, sugar-coated fruits, and oddly shaped snacks tempted tourists into spending money.
“Looks so good.”
“Let’s try one of those each, yeah?”
Katya eagerly pointed at a stall selling sugar-coated fruits.
Soon, the three of them were sitting together on a pile of rocks by the shore, each holding a sugar-coated apple (this time, they paid properly).
“So pretty…”
Nina murmured in awe, gazing at the glossy red apple.
Katya, already munching noisily, tilted her head.
“You’ve never had one before?”
“Nope. First time seeing this kind of thing.”
“You’re full of surprises. Missing out on something this tasty. What about you, White-Hair?”
“I like these. I’m not a glutton like you though.”
“Hey! Why am I a glutton? I’m still growing, okay? I’m just being responsible and eating properly when I have the chance. If you two want to grow up healthy, you should take notes. Especially you, Nina.”
Katya pointed her half-eaten apple at Nina.
Still admiring her apple, Nina replied sheepishly.
“I’m not as skinny as you, Katya.”
“What’s she saying now? Honestly, I didn’t believe you were six when you said it earlier. My younger sibling is the same age and bigger than you.”
Apparently, Katya had a younger sibling too.
Nina suddenly thought of Estella.
Despite being born just a year apart, they had never once had a real sisterly moment.
Regardless of her feelings toward her parents, Nina felt nothing in particular for Estella.
Estella was just a lucky child born under different circumstances.
Once, Diana had told Nina that she looked just like her aunt.
But Estella, unlike Nina, had inherited Diana’s pink hair and Leopald’s red eyes—a sweet, lovable girl.
Sometimes Nina wondered—
If she had taken after her parents, would she have been loved like Estella?
Now, it was a pointless thought.
“You really should eat more, though. Hey, White-Hair, don’t you think so too?”
When Katya sought agreement, Messi smiled and shook his head.
“Well, you’re not wrong. But in that case, you picked a fight with someone who doesn’t even look six.”
“Hey! Why bring that up again?! We settled that already!”
“Are you sure it’s all settled?”
“What? What do you mean—?”
“That thing in your pocket.”
Messi spoke casually, gesturing toward Katya’s apron with his chin.
Katya’s face turned bright red.
“You… you saw that…”
“What’s going on?” Nina asked, confused.
Messi gave Katya a wry smile in silence.
Katya, still blushing furiously, hesitated for a moment before sighing and reaching into her apron pocket.
What she pulled out was a red gem.
Nina immediately thought of the horse-head statue from earlier.
She had no idea when Katya had snatched it.
“Sorry. I keep trying to fix the habit, but… I’ll return it.”
“How’d you even do it?” Nina asked, more impressed than upset.
Katya looked at her, dazed for a moment, then lowered her eyes.
“Back then, my dad… he raised a whole group of pickpockets. I was one of them. Stuff like this is easy for me.”
She said it not with pride, but with embarrassment.
Nina didn’t fully understand.
“But you were even younger then, right? And still…”
“He only used kids. It’s kind of like what I said earlier—like child beggars.”
“…Your dad made you do that?”
“Yeah.”
Nina didn’t know what to say.
Katya now looked completely deflated, sneaking glances at Nina and Messi.
“So, um, if you guys…”
“Give it to me. I’ll return it.”
Just then, Messi extended a hand toward Katya with a strange smile as he looked at Nina.
That was when it happened.
“Return what?”
The sudden voice froze the three kids in place.
Nina’s head whipped around—and her eyes went wide.
“Uncle…?”
Lavian stood over them, arms crossed, eyebrows twitching.
Behind him were five or six unfamiliar men. Nina didn’t recognize them, but judging by their aura, they were probably members of the Anubis gang.
“How did you…?”
Nina fumbled, unsure what to do.
Katya turned pale in an instant, while Messi, calm as ever, casually opened his mouth.
“Where’s my brother?”
The bold question caused murmurs to rise among the men.
“Boss, you said this girl’s Mercy’s little sister, right? Who’s that guy then? He looks like Mercy’s clone.”
“Y-yeah. I thought it was a younger sister too…”
“Then who’s this girl?”
While the men murmured, Lavian silently stared at Messi, the vein on his forehead twitching.
He was clearly holding back intense rage.
That brat…
He had doubted it at first.
When he got the report that three kids—one wearing his jacket, one being Katya Dozer, and one silver-haired boy—were roaming around together, Lavian had thought, no way.
But “no way” turned into “oh no.”
To think that brat really had the nerve to show up like this.
And what was he doing with Katya Dozer of all people?
What kind of lineup is this?!
Meanwhile, the men were now completely speculating freely.
“That boy’s Mercy’s little brother, and that girl’s his fiancée.”
“Ohh, like one of those arranged marriages?”
“So she’s the bride-to-be? Damn, what a lucky guy.”
“Right? On a honeymoon at their age already…”
Whack!
Unable to bear it anymore, Lavian smacked one of the giggling guys on the back of the head.
Silence fell instantly.
Messi offered an apologetic smile.
Should’ve just…
As Lavian glared at Messi’s shameless grin, his sanity teetered on the edge.
He had to hold back.
He couldn’t beat him up here. He had to restrain himself—for now.
“Hey, where do you think you’re going?”
One of the gang members quickly caught Katya trying to sneak away and plopped her back down.
“Let go of me!”
“Been a while, Dozer brat. Haven’t seen you in ages. What brings you here now?”
