The festival market was a storm of color and sound. Flags waved, stalls lined the streets, and every merchant shouted louder than the next to be heard. Lukas walked slowly, adjusting the new keychain hanging from his belt — a tiny leather cangaceiro hat.

  From the balcony of a tavern, Sarya watched him. Her amber eyes half-lidded, her long braid swaying on her shoulder with the wind.

  A faint smile curved her lips.

  — He really bought it...

  She looked down, thoughtful. He must’ve liked the story... or maybe Tinbell told him about the rifle shot. That’s where he shined.

  For a second, her eyes narrowed. Wait… did that keychain just glow?

  The thought vanished when a booming laugh broke out nearby.

  — HAHAHAHA! — Luiz almost toppled a spice stand from laughing so hard. — The skinny guy spent a golden Reis… on a market trinket!

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  Valquíria came right behind, warhammer on her shoulder and a venomous grin. — And a cangaceiro one at that. You do know those keychains are fake, right, little brother? The market’s full of them.

  Lukas sighed but didn’t answer.

  — It’s not fake, — he muttered, adjusting the strap on his belt.

  Silence. Then Luiz exploded again:

  — No way—HAHAHA! The skinny guy believes in Lampi?o?! The so-called “King of the Lumpas”? That’s a myth! Even the guardians laugh at that story!

  Valquíria shook her head, pretending sympathy. — Little brother… only true bonds count. And they don’t come from a marketplace.

  She lifted her own keychain, making the rune on her club shimmer.

  A small Freya Lumpa leapt beside her, spinning her weapon like petrified thunder.

  — My guardian, — she said proudly. — I got her when I defeated the Sky Dragon.

  Luiz didn’t miss the cue. He pulled his crimson short-lance keychain. The glow burst into hysterical laughter as Arlec Lumpa spun in the air.

  — Mine appeared when I laughed in the face of death against the Bone Tyrant!

  He pointed at Lukas, smirking. — And you? Just a cheap leather trinket.

  People around them murmured — some amused, others curious, a few mocking.

  César grumbled in Lukas’s mind: — They’re right. It’s childish.

  Morgana chuckled, teasing: — Childish… but look at him. He won’t let go of it. Like a kid with a new toy.

  Lukas just adjusted his belt and kept walking. Not a single word.

  But when the sunlight hit the worn leather, the keychain shimmered for an instant — gold and violet intertwined.

  Sarya, from the balcony, narrowed her eyes.

  That wasn’t my imagination.

  End of Chapter 10