Latifa looked at him with suspicious eyes.

“If I really called you by name, you’d scold me for being disrespectful.”

“Haha! That’s quite a funny joke. Well, others might think so! Ahaha!”

Hades burst into loud laughter, finding something extremely amusing.

‘What? Is it that funny?’

Sometimes Latifa couldn’t understand his sense of humor.

Watching Hades laugh while clutching his stomach, Latifa tilted her head and mumbled softly.

“Hades?”

“……!”

Suddenly, Hades stopped laughing and stared at Latifa. His black eyebrows twitched and one end shot up.

‘Was that too impertinent?’

Seeing his reaction, Latifa quickly added a humble title.

“Great General.”

This time, along with his brow, Hades’ opposite eyebrow twitched. His expression looked even more displeased than before.

‘Not this either?’

Then again.

“……Hades.”

“……”

“Great General?”

At the quickly added title, Hades made a strange face, then burst into laughter.

“Pfft. Puhahaha! Ahahaha! Hahaha!”

“Why are you laughing!”

Startled by Hades’ loud laughter, the desert fox that had been sleeping in Latifa’s arms woke up and scampered off somewhere.

Hades reached out to brush a strand of Latifa’s silver hair that had fallen out of place, then looked at her with a small smile.

“Just Hades is fine, Latifa. My blue jewel. We must hold your coming-of-age ceremony soon, you know.”

For some reason, Hades licked his lips, then suddenly turned towards the stadium and said.

“Now, I’ll do it with clothes on, so count again. You should be able to count properly this time.”

Hades put on the white linen top and the rest of his clothes that he had thrown aside, picked up the sword that had fallen to the ground, and began training again.

“Ah. Now that he’s dressed, it’s a bit disappointing.”

Latifa let out a sigh of disappointment, then began diligently counting his swings, careful not to take her eyes off him.

**

Amira Shadi.

She was the youngest beloved daughter of the wealthy Shadi trading company, with three elder brothers above her.

It would not be an exaggeration to say that not only her brothers but even her parents treated her like a palace princess, as she was their daughter born in their twilight years.

Moreover, she herself had an overflowing confident personality, and was also famous for her long, curly reddish-brown hair and beautiful appearance.

And to add a few more words, her personality was a bit rough, so the people of the Grand Bazaar used to say that only Hades Caleb Ignite would be able to tame her personality.

“A mad dog should be put with another mad dog.”

Although women were inherently difficult to tame and should not even be thought of as such, their idea stemmed from the belief that sheep should be herded with sheep, and dogs with dogs.

But Amira was not as vicious or ferocious as to be compared to Hades.

However.

-Clang!

“We apologize, young lady! We did our best, so please calm your anger!”

On the floor of Amira’s huge personal living room, beautifully decorated with tile artwork of colorful birds and flowers, a splendid golden incense burner had fallen over, with ashes scattering.

“Is an apology all?! Your best? The process doesn’t matter! What’s important is the result! With results like this, why should I calm my anger?!”

“Th-that is… Y-you know well about General Hades’ eccentricities, young lady.”

“That wench is just a slave from a fallen country! Just a prisoner slave with silver hair like old people!”

-Crash! Thud! Thud!

Amira, still not satisfied, threw everything in sight.

A beautiful crystal candy dish with lattice patterns, a perfume bottle with a large jewel on the lid, a gold-plated hardcover book, and even an oil-filled lamp.

The maids sadly looked at the lamp oil beginning to soak into the expensive wool tapestry hanging on the wall as they bowed their heads.

“She is also General Hades’ Frau… She’s revered as Caleb’s goddess.”

At those words, Amira turned her eyes sharply and raised her voice even more.

“The idea of holding a coming-of-age ceremony for a prisoner is truly vulgar! Truly reckless! Truly…!”

Amira was so furious she could barely continue speaking.

“There’s no way Lord Hades himself would have such thoughts! This must all be that cunning imperial wench seducing the innocent him!”

The maids’ eyes widened at Amira referring to Hades as ‘innocent him’, but they couldn’t say anything.

“Kyaaaah!”

Finally, Amira screamed, lying down on the floor and sprinkling the ashes that had fallen from the incense burner on her head as she began to cry.

On her delicate neck, there was a small stitched scar that wasn’t noticeable at first glance. It was a wound from when she had once brandished a knife at her own throat, demanding to be engaged to Hades.

Since then, she had lived considering that scar, stitched with about three stitches, as a scar of glory.

Saying it was an eternal mark her future husband had inscribed on her that could never be erased.

Her elder brothers and parents always told Amira, “We will give you anything you want in your hands,” and she never doubted that those words were false.

Because she really did live getting everything she wanted in her hands.

Except for one thing.

The mad dog of the Grand Bazaar, Hades Caleb, whom she desperately wanted to possess.

“Amira, what’s the matter!”

Her father and mother rushed in at the maids’ call and found Amira rolling on the floor, screaming and crying.

“Our daughter! What on earth is the matter! Hm?”

“Father, Mother! My coming-of-age ceremony…! My coming-of-age ceremony! It’s all ruined! That wench ruined it all!”

Amira fell into their arms, shedding clear tears that seemed sorrowful.

“Oh, darling. Your coming-of-age ceremony is prepared to be perfect and wonderful without a single flaw.”

Her mother tried to comfort her, but Amira burst out in anger and shouted.

“Lord Hades won’t attend! If Lord Hades doesn’t come, I don’t want anything else you prepare! Waaaah!”

“That’s not true! Didn’t we receive confirmation from Caleb that the General could attend as soon as he arrived at the Grand Bazaar? I checked that first thing, so it can’t be!”

Her father, Lord Shadi, asked the maids in bewilderment what had happened.

Then one maid bowed her head and said in a trembling voice.

“Just now, Caleb sent a consolation gift saying they couldn’t attend the young lady’s coming-of-age ceremony. When we inquired privately, we heard that Caleb is holding a coming-of-age ceremony for the General’s Frau on the same Hajit Day (the longest day of the year) as young lady Amira…”

“Father! That wench is just a prisoner from a fallen country! A coming-of-age ceremony?! This is something even the guardian spirits of the desert would be outraged by!”

Her parents’ faces turned ashen, and she continued to wail and cry.

“I won’t let that wench be! Absolutely not! I won’t let her have a coming-of-age ceremony!”

Amira’s enraged cries echoed loudly.

**

“May the desert god’s blessing be upon the prince.”

Hades knelt and paid his respects to Ruhan, who had stopped by the spice market’s management office.

“Hades. Your face is beaming. Is Lati doing well?”

Ruhan accepted his greeting with a smile, and Hades immediately stood up and seated him on the main sofa.

“If your father hadn’t been so capricious, I could have beamed earlier.”

Hades sat down across from Ruhan with a thud, chuckling, and soon gestured cheekily for Irgos to sit as well.

“Rumors are rampant that the pig princess is in love with you and you’ll soon enter the royal family as a son-in-law. So now, Irgos, I’m in a position where I have to flatter you too.”

“General Hades! The princess is just entering the madrasa!”

“As if I’d let anyone near my precious little sister. Not a chance.”

Ruhan laughed, leaning back on the sofa.

“I have no intention of taking Princess Asti either!”

“Why? Because she’s fat? Look at this guy. Blatantly insulting the august Basili dynasty based on appearance? Ruhan, are you just going to watch?”

“Tsk tsk. Irgos. So you were a man swayed by outward appearances too.”

Ruhan and Hades seemed well-practiced in teasing Irgos, as they were in perfect sync.

“Prince Ruhan! General Hades!”

Hades and Ruhan laughed heartily at the flustered Irgos.

It seemed like a time of camaraderie they were enjoying after a long while, since Hades’ return from the imperial expedition.

Behind them as they chatted, the loud noise of spice market merchants hawking their wares and the chaotic sounds of cargo carts moving about were in full swing.

Although Hades was a general, that is, a soldier, due to the unique nature of Grand Bazaar soldiers, his main source of income was market rent and transaction fees.

The Basili dynasty entrusted market districts to those who had rendered meritorious service to the Grand Bazaar as a form of salary, allowing them to collect rent and fees, and among these, the spice market was a large district that Caleb had occupied for a long time.

Hades was also in charge of managing the livestock market, but that was a new district he received when he was given the title of Ignite, and Caleb’s heart was closer to the spice market side.

“Come to think of it, Hades. A small problem has arisen.”

After chatting amiably for a while, Ruhan suddenly leaned forward, interlacing his fingers with a serious expression.

Hades took a sip of fruit wine from a small golden cup and spoke nonchalantly.

“Nothing could be more problematic than that mint tea. How do you drink such a strange thing every day?”

Irgos, sitting next to Ruhan, quietly agreed with Hades’ words while stroking his chin.

“Mint is a sacred herb. Lati liked mint tea too. If mint tea is strange, why does every cafe in the Grand Bazaar sell it? That means mint tea is both tasty and has good market potential.”

Ruhan grumbled a bit, then shook his head as if that wasn’t the point, and quietly conveyed his message to Hades.

“Hades. Tarek received a strange petition yesterday, and since it was submitted by the Shadi company, it can’t be ignored.”

“Lord Shadi? And that petition went to Tarek instead of you?”

If Lord Shadi, who owned a large spice company, had submitted a petition, it should have been sent to Ruhan, who was close to Hades, for the matter to be resolved smoothly. The fact that it was sent to Tarek was quite suspicious.

“It wasn’t Lord Shadi. The Shadi young masters wrote the petition and directly designated Tarek as the administrative handler.”

The Shadi young masters likely referred to Lord Shadi’s three sons who helped with the company’s affairs.

“So. Why are they barking?”

Hades asked, leaning back on the white cowhide sofa and resting his arm on it.

Ruhan cautiously glanced at Irgos, unsure of how Hades might react.

It was a warning to be careful, as Hades might draw his sword and rush at them again if things went wrong.

“They’re asking if it’s proper for a prisoner from a fallen country to have a desert coming-of-age ceremony.”