The festival was alive with colors and sound — every stall competing through laughter, music, and shouts.

  But a soft voice called Lukas from the side.

  — Hey, kid.

  It was Tinbell, the fairy queen, wearing that smile of someone who always knows more than she says.

  Before her, a small table filled with shiny trinkets.

  Among them, a tiny leather cangaceiro hat — stitched perfectly in miniature.

  Lukas raised an eyebrow. — A keychain?

  Tinbell leaned over the table, golden eyes glinting. — Not just a keychain. Ever heard of the King of the Lumpas? Lampi?o.

  The name sounded strange — but powerful.

  Lukas shook his head. — Never heard of him.

  She smiled, lowering her voice. — Not everyone believes it, but I swear it’s true. He wasn’t like the others… he spoke with a weird accent, full of slang. Most hated him for it. But a small group — the Cangaceiros — followed him until the end. He helped humans, fairies, even elves. Fought in the Ten-Year War. And on the last day of the Labyrinth... he vanished. Some say he died. Others say he ended up in another land.

  Lukas felt his heart quicken. — So he was a legendary warrior?

  This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

  Tinbell laughed softly. — A warrior? He carried a machete, sure… but his fury was in his rifle. They say if you made him angry, you could run all you wanted — you wouldn’t escape. He never missed a shot.

  The words stuck in Lukas’s mind. He stayed silent, eyes fixed on the keychain.

  — This one’s a symbol of that legend. — Tinbell lifted the small hat, letting it gleam under the light. — Want to take it?

  — How much? — Lukas asked, already suspecting he wouldn’t like the answer.

  — One golden Reis. — she replied, serious, though her mischievous smile never faded.

  César grumbled in Lukas’s mind: — One Reis for a keychain?! That fairy queen—beautiful, but shameless.

  Morgana burst out laughing, teasing: — Oh, chocolatinho, honestly… you died an adult and came back a kid! Look at your eyes, César, they’re sparkling just because he saw something shiny!

  César snapped: — Lukas, have some dignity! Don’t fall for this cheap trick!

  Tinbell just smiled patiently. — Well?

  Lukas sighed, pulled a gold coin from his pouch, and handed it over. — Here.

  The fairy placed the keychain in his palm like it was a treasure. — May it shine for you as it did for him.

  Lukas attached the little cangaceiro hat to his bag.

  As he walked through the festival, a few nobles laughed loudly.

  — Look, the failure bought a trinket to boost his aim!

  — Guess he thinks that keychain will make him a marksman!

  Lukas didn’t respond. He just kept walking.

  But deep inside, something burned — a pulse, faint but alive.

  The keychain swung at his side, catching the sunlight… almost smiling back at him.

  And for the first time in a long while, Lukas found himself smiling too.

  End of Chapter 9