He looked into her eyes—and the light in them had changed.
Gone was the gentle traveler's gaze.
In its place: sharp glass. Calm ice.
He swallowed, throat suddenly dry. What the hell? Wasn't this woman just soft and polite a moment ago?
Why did her smile feel like a blade behind her lips now?
She's not beautiful. That's what he thought before.
But now, sitting like this…
She looked like something that owned the space around her.
That smile. That stillness. Like a lioness in no rush to kill, simply waiting for the wind to quiet.
Trying to recover, the shopkeeper smiled awkwardly, waving a hand toward the hide. "Ah—this one's… this one's really precious."
Kaya didn't blink.
"Really?" she asked, tilting her head again. "Then answer me something."
She leaned in slightly, her voice a quiet murmur meant only for him.
"How many crystals do you want for this?"
The shopkeeper smiled, thinking he had won.
