But what use was any of that?

The target never stopped moving; it wasn’t even 9 a.m. yet, and the labyrinthine market was just beginning. Abel felt like dying. 

But the target didn’t stop, and dying wasn’t an option, nor was killing her. Abel had to pull himself together. 

This is a department store. The floor is marble, luxury boutiques line the sides. The woman walking ahead is a high spender. I should be dressed to the nines—suit, perfume. There’s that new Hamilton fragrance, cedar-based… no, it’s winter soon; cedar won’t do. Winter… what’s winter? 

“Move it! Move!”  

The stench of fish.  

“Move it! Get out of the way!”  

“There’s nowhere to go!” 

Abel Sting turned around, his eyes murderous, as he barked at the cart-puller. Both the merchant and Seo Ah froze in place. Abel, who had whipped around furiously, also halted. 

The rotting, dilapidated cart looked to be over a hundred years old, exuding an overwhelming presence. Just a touch on his coat and not even the best dry cleaner could fix it. 

“Why don’t you let people pass first, huh?” 

But the merchant, who had clearly seen worse in his lifetime, wasn’t backing down easily. 

“Just squeeze by. There’s plenty of room if you stick to the sides.” 

“Where? Show me where.” 

“You young folks, can’t you see anything? Plenty of room everywhere if you’re not blind.” 

“Oh, so you can still see fine, huh? Where’s the space on this narrow street? Where?” 

As Abel’s patience wore thin, the merchant, equally furious, raised his voice. The mention of age was the final straw. 

“You little brat think you’re something because you’ve got money? If you’re so rich, why’d you come to this dump dressed like that!” 

As Abel, looking ready to kill, started fighting with the merchant behind them, Seo Ah’s heart raced even faster. She could see the vein throbbing in Abel’s neck. 

The problem was that, as Abel had said, there didn’t seem to be anywhere to move. As the situation escalated, someone tugged on her arm from a nearby stall. 

“Come in here, miss.” 

The shopkeeper pulled her into the only narrow path that remained, surrounded by piled goods. The shopkeeper gave her a pat on the shoulder. 

“That guy is with you, right? Get him in here too. He’s got a bad temper, and when he fights, he sometimes pulls a knife.” 

“Thank you.” 

Hurriedly, Seo Ah gestured toward Abel. 

“Mr Sting…! Mr Sting!” 

After calling out several times, Abel finally turned to look at her. The look in his eyes combined disdain and resentment into one seething glance. 

After glancing skyward, then at the merchant, Abel approached with a suddenly expressionless face. Once Abel moved, the once-furious merchant abruptly resumed his work, and the previously blocked street began to flow again. 

The street was moving, but Seo Ah felt stuck in place. 

Abel stood in front of the shop, blocking the entrance like a stone in a stream. The already dim space now felt even darker. She looked down at his dirty shoes and the edges of his trousers, smeared with filth.  

Without meaning to, she found herself shrinking under the weight of the oppressive silence. The air felt heavy, and all she could do was endure. 

Behind Abel, carts rattled by. 

Clatter, clatter, thud.  

Clatter, clatter, thud. 

Without a word, Abel turned on his heel. He walked away as if determined to leave the market as fast as humanly possible, his long strides carrying him forward without looking back. 

“Thank you so much,” Seo Ah quickly said to the shopkeeper before rushing to follow Abel. But as she left, the shopkeeper grabbed her shoulder and whispered. 

“Miss, you’re not from here, are you?” 

Startled, she turned back to see the woman smiling at her. Then, she noticed something different—the woman’s skin was a rich chocolate tone, and her eyes were a striking golden colour. She was a foreigner too. 

“That ribbon in your hair is beautiful.” 

“....” 

The hand that had grabbed her shoulder briefly stroked her arm, then gently squeezed her hand, still tightly clutching her bag. 

“Good luck.” 

“....” 

Abel, who had walked ahead, now stopped to glance back as if to say, “What’s taking so long?” Seo Ah quickly left the shop and caught up with him, but when she looked back, the woman was gone. 

The market was a maze. 

The further they walked, the wider the paths became, but with that came more people. How long had they been walking? 

A space opened up unexpectedly—not quite a square, but a small open area. From her past experiences, Seo Ah guessed there might be a church nearby, so she glanced around, only to be interrupted by a small voice.