The muttering from the front of the shop grew louder, words tumbling over themselves with the practiced rhythm of someone used to being heard eventually. Whoever it was hadn’t left. Hadn’t stormed out. That alone told Thaenatos more than the complaints themselves. People who stayed wanted something. People who stayed expected to get it.

The husband shifted his weight, water still darkening the stone beneath his boots, attention split between the noise and his wife’s rigid calm. The baker hadn’t moved at all. Her hand still rested near the cake, fingers dusted white, as though anchoring herself to the counter before the day pulled her somewhere else.

The cake drew Thaenatos’ eye despite himself.

It was plain, undecorated, but not careless. The surface was smooth, too smooth, the sort of finish that suggested precision rather than haste. It smelled… wrong wasn’t the word. Intentional, maybe. There was effort there. Thought. Something unfinished in a way that felt deliberate. Cakes were rarely allowed to simply wait unless they were waiting for something specific.

The customer’s voice rose again, sharp enough to cut through the warmth of the ovens. A demand this time, not a complaint. The sort of tone that invited an audience.

Two problems, then.

One was loud, immediate, and facing outward. The kind that could be soothed, redirected, or shattered with the wrong sentence.

The other sat quietly between them, saying nothing at all.

Thaenatos exhaled slowly. He’d learned long ago that ignoring the loud problem often made it louder, and ignoring the quiet one tended to make it permanent.

He lifted his gaze, deciding where to place his attention first.

• Speak to the Unruly Customer
  The disturbance has begun to shape the room around it. Left unattended, such moments rarely resolve themselves cleanly.

• Examine the cake set aside on the central table
  Finished, untouched, and placed with care.

All miniatures include a basic plastic base. Custom bases are available for purchase in Ground Beneath Their Feet: Designer Bases here in the Emporium.

Resin 3D prints, shipped to your door. Let Baublebuyer’s 3D Prints bring your fantasy miniatures to life.

All miniatures are supplied unpainted and unassembled.

All resin prints are produced on an Elegoo Jupiter at 6K resolution and multiple Elegoo Saturn printers at 4K resolution. Any dice, rulers, or figures shown in images are for scale reference only and are not included.

Models by Vae Victus. Baublebuyer’s 3D Prints is a licensed seller of Vae Victus designs.