The shopkeeper said enthusiastically, personally bringing over a chair for Su Yaoyao to sit and try on the shoes.

Su Yaoyao sighed. She simply couldn’t refuse the owner’s enthusiasm, so she slowly extended her foot and carefully slipped it into the shoe. To her surprise, it was a perfect fit.

She sat there in a daze, staring at the shoes. They fit so perfectly they might as well have been custom-made. Her mind went blank.

"See? I told you they were meant for you," the owner said with a confident smile.

Noah stood to one side and narrowed his eyes, a flicker of doubt in them. He muttered to himself, ’How would Mingye know Sis’s shoe size?’

An image of the birdcage flashed through his mind—the moment Mingye had unfastened the chain on Su Yaoyao’s ankle. ’Did he secretly memorize it back then?’

Su Yaoyao slowly came back to her senses. The idea of Mingye having shoes custom-made for her was just... a complete fantasy. No matter how she looked at it, it seemed impossible.

"These can’t be for me. Just leave them here, and Mingye can come get them himself," Su Yaoyao said. She quickly took off the high heels, placed them carefully back in the box, and neatly put the lid on.

Then she turned to the owner and asked politely, "I’m actually looking for shoes that are easy to move in. Do you have anything in a smaller size?"

"Let me see," the owner said. He started bustling around the shop, turning the place upside down as he searched. After a long while, drenched in sweat, he finally produced a pair that was a closer fit.

"Miss Su, please take a look at these. They might still be a little big, but they’re the closest thing I have to your size," the owner said, wiping the sweat from his brow.

Su Yaoyao tried them on. They were still a little loose, but they were much better than what she had been wearing before.

"Owner, please have several more outfits like the one I’m wearing sent to the castle. And make the shoes a bit smaller," Su Yaoyao ordered crisply.

"Of course, of course! I’ll arrange it right away. It’ll take a few days to get the shoes, but I’ll definitely find a pair that fits you, rest assured." The owner nodded eagerly, his face plastered with an eager-to-please smile.

Su Yaoyao nodded, then turned to Noah and said, "Noah, pay up."

"Just put it on Mingye’s tab, can’t you? He’s loaded," Noah grumbled, looking thoroughly unwilling.

"You’re here, so you’re paying," Su Yaoyao repeated, her tone hardening.

Defeated, Noah raised his hand and lightly touched the little purple octopus brooch on his clothes, using his Light Computer to transfer the funds to the owner.

...

「In the castle’s backyard」

Sunlight spilled across the emerald lawn, bathing it in a golden glow.

"You want to fight me?" Noah looked completely astonished, his eyes wide and his voice rising. "Are you serious, Sis? What’s gotten into you?"

He never imagined that Su Yaoyao had gone out to buy workout clothes just so she could come back and give him a thrashing.

"You tricked me good. Beating you up is the only way I’ll feel better," Su Yaoyao said, planting her hands on her hips. Her expression was grave, her eyes filled with determination.

Noah pouted and muttered, "But you’ve known for ages that I was faking it. It’s been so long, and you’re still holding a grudge, Sis?"

Su Yaoyao ignored him, focusing on stretching her wrists and ankles. She performed her warm-up exercises with textbook precision. It was clear she was dead set on fighting him.

Noah sighed in resignation. "Fine, I’ll play along with you, Sis."

The corner of his mouth quirked up in a confident smile. "But you’d better be ready, Sis. Hitting me isn’t going to be that easy."

"Enough talk! Take this!"

The words had barely left her mouth when Su Yaoyao threw a punch. It cut through the air with a WHOOSH, aimed straight for Noah’s face.

Noah watched the fist fly toward him, a playful glint in his eyes. With a slight lean to the side, he effortlessly dodged the attack.

"Is that the footwork you learned at the military base? Good form, but not fast enough."

As he spoke, Noah quickly replicated Su Yaoyao’s move, but his fist stopped dead just inches from her face.

Su Yaoyao’s eyes widened. She hadn’t realized an S-Class Beastman could move that fast; she hadn’t been able to follow his movement at all.

"Sis, you’ve got a long way to go before you can land a punch on me," Noah said with a teasing smile, his tone dripping with provocation. "Why don’t you practice a bit more? I can wait."

Unwilling to accept defeat, Su Yaoyao’s eyes flashed with stubbornness. She gritted her teeth and attacked again.

Her assault grew fiercer, her fists flying at Noah like a downpour. But Noah was incredibly agile, weaving left and right, effortlessly evading her every strike.

Noah looked like he was just toying with her. It was completely effortless for him, and he even started showing off.

He casually sat down in a chair and used just one of his tentacles to fight her.

The tentacle moved like a nimble snake, one moment coiling swiftly around her arm, the next winding deftly around her waist to bind her tight.

What was worse, the tentacle darted out like a tongue and lightly licked her cheek before quickly releasing her. It then went back to toying with her, clearly enjoying itself immensely.

"Sis, your attacks just feel like a tickle," Noah taunted with a laugh.

After a while, Su Yaoyao was panting with exhaustion. Her forehead was beaded with sweat, and damp strands of hair clung to her cheeks.

She braced her hands on her knees, sucking in huge gulps of air. Each ragged breath sounded like a heavy sigh.

Meanwhile, Noah sat leisurely in his chair, holding a glass of fresh apple juice. He took a small sip, a look of pure contentment on his face.

"Tired, Sis? How about a sip of apple juice? I just made it," he said, the corners of his lips lifting in a taunting smile.

Hearing this, Su Yaoyao’s anger flared.

’Noah has enough energy to do other things while fighting me. He’s completely looking down on me!’

Su Yaoyao seethed, her chest rising and falling violently. She silently swore an oath. ’One of these days, I’m going to roast this octopus and eat him!’

"Again!" Su Yaoyao took a deep breath, fought back her exhaustion, and challenged Noah once more.

Mingye sat quietly by the window. Sunlight streamed in, outlining his slender figure.

His eyes were fixed on the small figure in the yard below, a barely perceptible tenderness in his gaze.

On the desk before him sat an exquisite shoe box. Inside were the very same jewel-encrusted high heels.

They were the shoes he had meticulously commissioned for the young female, but it seemed Su Yaoyao no longer needed them.