Three days passed peacefully.
Too peacefully.
Ace lounged on the counter, tail flicking lazily.
No explosions.
No cursed items.
No screaming adventurers.
Just… silence.
Ravenna paced nervously on the clothing racks.
"I don't like it, Ace. When it's too quiet, that means something bad is coming."
Biscuit peeked from behind a stack of fabric.
"I had a dream last night," he whispered. "A bad omen. A giant scarf swallowing the kingdom."
Ace rolled his eyes. "Biscuit, you dream about food 90% of the time."
Before Biscuit could respond, the bell over the door chimed—
not softly, not politely, but violently.
DING-DING-DING-DING-DING!
The door BURST open.
And in ran the shy young man from Chapter 9.
His scarf—
the quiet, peaceful white scarf Ace made—
was now glowing bright red, pulsing like an overexcited fireball.
"ACE!!!" the young man screamed.
"I—I THINK SOMETHING'S WRONG WITH THE SCARF!"
Ace's pupils shrank.
Ravenna flapped in a frenzy. "RED?! RED means EXTREME PASSION. OR EXTREME DANGER. OR CHILI PEPPER LEVEL EXCITEMENT."
Biscuit squeaked, "Or spicy food cravings."
Ace ignored that.
He hopped down from the counter.
"Calm down! What were you doing when it turned red?"
The young man blushed.
Turned redder than the scarf.
Fidgeted.
"…I saw… someone…"
Ravenna gasped. "OOOH! LOVE INTEREST?!"
The young man shook his head vigorously.
"N-no!! It's not like that! Well—it might be—maybe—I don't know—"
Ace raised a paw to stop the babbling.
"Tell me exactly what happened."
The young man inhaled shakily.
"I was helping harvest herbs in the village… and then a girl from the adventurer guild came to help. She said 'thank you' and smiled… and then the scarf just—"
WHOOMPH!
The scarf flared up again, glowing red hot.
Ravenna squealed.
Biscuit dived into a pile of yarn.
Ace's eyes widened.
"Aha. The scarf reacted to your HEART BEING ACTIVATED."
The young man whimpered.
"Is that bad??"
"Well," Ace said, "normally? No."
Ravenna added, "But THIS is Ace's item, so maybe yes."
"HEY!" Ace protested.
But then—
something began to happen.
The scarf started wriggling.
Then twisting.
Then extending like a magical noodle.
"A-A-Ace?" the young man stammered. "It—it's moving a lot…"
The scarf wrapped around the boy's torso.
Around his arms.
Around his waist.
"Oh no…" Ace whispered.
Ravenna shrieked, "IT'S GOING INTO HYPER-AFFECTION MODE!"
The scarf suddenly SHOOT outwards like living rope—
WHIPPING through the shop—
TEARING through racks—
and launching Ace backwards into a pile of enchanted buttons.
"MEOW—!!"
Biscuit was hanging from a lamp like a terrified chandelier ornament.
Ravenna dodged flying mannequins midair.
The scarf, now fully alive with emotional energy, began dragging the young man around the shop violently.
He spun like a yo-yo.
"ACE!!! HOW DO I STOP IT?!"
Ace dug himself out of the button pile.
"YOU HAVE TO CALM YOUR HEART!!" Ace yelled.
"HOW?! IT'S BEATING VERY LOUD—!!"
Ravenna shouted mid-air,
"THINK OF SOMETHING BORING!"
"LIKE WHAT?!" he screamed.
Ace yelled, "TAX PAPERWORK!"
The young man concentrated hard.
The scarf slowed… slightly.
But not enough.
Biscuit squeaked from the ceiling, "Think about your least favorite vegetable!"
The scarf slowed again.
Ravenna squawked,
"Think about Ace's face when he wakes up without coffee!"
Ace glared. "EXCUSE YOU—"
But it worked.
The scarf loosened its grip, dimmed its color, and slowly slithered back into a normal scarf shape around the young man's neck.
Finally.
Silence.
The shop looked like a battleground.
Fabric everywhere.
Buttons stuck to the walls.
A mannequin missing its head.
Ace's fur standing on end.
The young man sat down, exhausted.
"Ace… I… I think I like her."
Ace sighed, brushing dust off his whiskers.
"Clearly."
Ravenna perched on a broken hanger.
"Congratulations. Your first crush literally destroyed the shop."
Biscuit nodded. "Powerful heart. Dangerous heart."
Ace leapt onto the counter, serious again.
"Listen. The scarf works properly. But it amplifies strong emotion. If you're not used to feeling passion, excitement, or… love… it overreacts."
"So… what do I do?" the young man asked.
Ace placed a paw gently on his shoulder.
"You learn. You grow. You get to know your feelings.
The scarf isn't broken.
You're just discovering your heart."
The young man exhaled shakily.
"…I'll try."
Ace nodded.
"Good. And… next time, try to fall in love outside the workshop."