This kid was more trouble than he was worth. Trying to find a table? He’d told the kid explicitly that markets didn’t have tables, and they weren’t places to sit and eat. His clenched fist holding the produce bag closed showed just how thrilled he was. No wonder Jenet had taken off. No wonder Auron had taken off. This kid had no concept of reality, as far as he could tell. And those silly little third-person sentences were REALLY starting to irritate him.

At least the Prince listened to his words. He was behaving himself beautifully now. Dante was even able to pay for his goods without incident. The clerk of course gave him a dirty look, as did most of the other people in other lines, but finally the damn things were paid for and they were able to get out of the store. He’d been right. It was insanity to bring the Prince to this place. Maybe the city was finally getting to him. Or maybe it was a residual effect of that Green Dragon. Maybe it was just his own stupidity. Either way, he was not in a good mood as he stormed out of Matinal’s.

Now that they were outdoors, Dante had the perfect opportunity to give the Prince a piece of his mind. But he didn’t. The Prince was only quiet when he was eating, so Dante reached into his bag, found a fruit the Prince had picked out, and tossed it lightly to him. “We’ve got a long way to go, so eat up,” he said coldly, continuing away from the store.