"Lady Camilla, it's good to see a young female again" I closed the doors as I entered the third kitchen.
The chef was a beautiful young woman who looked like she was in her mid-20s.
But in reality, she was a 10,000-year-old siren who had nearly murdered the royal family of the capital.
She was a manipulative female who uses a body of a woman to capture her targets and seduce them into becoming her slave.
She despised everyone in the mansion except me and my sister.
I never knew why she did it, but my father was able to defeat her and used a spell to put her in chains, that ties her to this mansion.
Her magic was drained away and now she is forced to live in this kitchen to serve food as a chef.
She was supposed to be executed just after her defeat but my father was a kind man who offered her to be a slave at his mansion.
I always wondered what made my father change his heart.
Did she seduce him just before her death?
It didn't matter now because she was chained to this kitchen and couldn't do any harm to anyone.
Everyone is terrified of her except for me, my sister, my father and the chef's assistant Adora.
Adora first worked here about six months ago and she became very close with the siren.
At first, the chef despised her and even tried to cook her alive but one day everything changed and she didn't mind Adora becoming her helper.
The siren had a peculiar name.
Livia.
It was a name I wasn't familiar with, but it had a nice ring to it, especially for a siren like herself.
"Livia. I wasn't expecting you to be awake at this time of hour" I walked over to the kitchen counter sitting down on a stool as Livia was cooking a new dish.
When she first came here she was sulking like a child, not cooking anything.
She would sleep all day just to make sure her beauty wasn't withering away.
"Your father was being a menace the entire time he was here. I had to bake him some tarts just so he won't tear this whole place down" She was at the sink washing her hands before she could begin making her new dish.
"What did he do now?".
"He found out the leader of the Raven guild had humiliated him in front of the other guild members so he began destroying every last bit of his workroom" She dried her hands on a towel, opening cupboards to get some ingredients.
That arrogant man.
"Did you at least stop him? Because those chains won't forbid you to" I stared down at her ankles which were chained together.
They stop her from leaving the house or escaping.
"Of course I did. His anger is getting out of control these days. Now that the eclipse is near he hasn't been himself for the past couple of weeks" She sighed heavily.
"The eclipse? What does that have to do with him?" I questioned leaning my head against my hand as my elbow was on the counter.
She giggled an elegant laugh gripping her cold hands on the counter tightly.
"Let's just say an old friend will soon come to receive what he is owed".
"Father must have dug a deep hole if he is in debt. He can't even fix his own mistakes and he thinks he should owe someone" I chuckled a raspy laugh.
Livia was indeed a gorgeous siren.
She had violet purple hair and blood-red eyes.
Her jaw and cheekbones were perfectly structured and her teeth were as white as a dove.
Her lips were coloured red and her cheeks flawlessly blushed.
Near her cheekbone was a black dot that was common that the woman of the nobility would have.
It was in fashion to have a black dot somewhere near your face usually near the lips or eyes.
She always had her purple eyeshadow and it never wore off even when she washed her face.
"Your father may be a foolish man. But he knows what he is doing especially for his family. For years I thought your father was just a ludicrous man who liked to play with his food. Yet when I saw him on the battlefield he was like a lion about to tear me to pieces. He has talent. But he has no heart".
She spoke softly laying the ingredients on the table as her work finally started.
She took a mixing bowl and poured in a type of mixture with a sticky texture.
One touch and you would be stuck with it forever.
"Livia?" I asked.
"Yes?".
"Are there any more types of creatures like you?" I laid back on the counter as my back ached.
"Yes, there is. A whole civilisation of them living in secret from the humans. If I can remember where I come from, there are faeries, sirens, wolves, demons and of course elder dragons" She dug her fingers into the mixture beating it to a fine texture.
"Elder dragons. Aren't they the most powerful creatures in the whole world? I heard that even a blow of their breath could destroy a city" A shiver went down my spine.
Elder dragons were feared by everyone, even demons.
Unlike normal dragons, elder dragons had a power given only by the gods of their success.
If they are chosen they would be deemed as the leaders of the world.
But sadly there are only a few of them left in the world and it was rare to even come across one of them.
"They may be powerful Camilla but their brains are smaller than a rock. Because of them, we have to go into hiding and lock our powers away from the world" A face of sorrow was on her face.
She was called a protector among her kind.
Livia was known to be the devil when she was on the battlefield.
She could kill thousands of men in just three seconds and her summoning powers were so powerful she could awaken monsters from deep within the shadows.
"Is that why you tried to kill the royal family? To bring back the old and get rid of the new?".
"No Camilla. It was much more complicated than you could imagine. Because of the war millions of years ago, it created an endless cycle of 'Cupiditas' " She poured the mixture into the cupcake mold and placed it into the oven.
The smell of the cupcakes was delicious and I couldn't wait until they were ready for me to taste.
Livia had nothing to do and for eternity she would be stuck here thinking of how she could pass the time.
"Do you think there will be another war..?" I stared into those deep eyes of hatred as the palms of her hands started to sweat.
She was good at controlling her breathing, especially at times like this.
Father told me about how the sirens were once magnificent and alluring creatures but the demon king was tricked by one and gave them a curse of either eternal beauty or becoming something more hideous than you could think of.
People say that having eternal beauty was a gift.
But to me, it is just another way for men to capture them and use them as their slaves for entertainment.
Because once they have beauty.
Every eye would be on them like a human in a dragon's nest.
Livia's eyes did not meet mine.
"Of course. The demon king is already increasing his numbers of soldiers and the royal family is always making dirty plans for their capture of the world. I wouldn't be surprised if the Dragon Lord banishes all humans from the magical forest" Her words were sarcastic yet her heart showed grief.
The magical forest was a place where creatures could live in harmony and wouldn't be tracked down by us humans.
But for countless years, the royal family have tried to make peace with them.
Just to take over their land.
They were all playing a dirty game of cats and mice.
Whoever has the upper lead in the game can use it to become the cat and chase the mice for power.
Until one of the mice bites back to become the cat.
So it's a never-ending game that will use force and manipulation.
Livia could tell that I understood what was on the line here.
None of them were playing fairly and even the royal family had gotten rotten at war.
Livia picked up a stool and gently moved it beside me, sitting down comfortably for the cupcakes to finish.
I always wished I was like her.
Before being locked up she had the freedom to do whatever she wanted and to go to places that she had the freedom to go to.
"I think it's time for you to go now Camilla. It's getting late and tomorrow you have the testing to go to" Livia put her hand on mine stroking it gently.
"Are you sure? Shouldn't I wait a little longer so I can taste the cupcakes?" I pleaded but it wasn't working on the siren.
She knew it better than anyone else.
"No Camilla. In the morning I will make sure I pack one of the cupcakes as compensation for your help yesterday" She smiled in a caring way as she waited for me to leave the kitchen.
I couldn't say no to her so I stood up leaving the kitchen.
Before I left their was something I had to tell her.
"Livia. If you could leave this kitchen. What would you do?" I asked knowing that she would probably say to kill the royal family.
It was her number one goal and sirens never give up on something once they want it.
Livia stood up and placed the bowl into the sink so she could wash it.
Her face kept a neutral expression and she didn't mind answering that question.
"I wouldn't leave. I'd rather stay here for eternity than go out and see the shitty world".
I was stunned to hear what she had said.
I always thought that she would have wanted to leave and travel the world like she use to tell me about but now she doesn't seem to mind staying here.
"Thanks for looking after my dad" I had no other words to say to her and her face flushed with pink from embarrassment.
"There is nothing for you to be thankful about. I'm just doing my job" her cheeks were as red as a tomato and she turned her head away from me.
I'm happy she wanted to stay here.
She was with me ever since I was little and having her leave wasn't the best thing in mind.
I left the kitchen and shut the door tightly scurrying back to my room.
The hallways were now dark and I had to grab a candle from the stand.
The windows were still open and you could see the moon from the mansion.
It was like a big star shining ever so brightly with its mysterious aura.
The night was colder than usual and I wished that I had grabbed a knitted cardigan so I wouldn't freeze to death.
The stars now appeared welcoming me home and I felt the breeze on my skin.
I loved the night.
It was a place for me to escape from reality and enter a world of nothing but stars and the dark sky.
My feet were getting cold from walking on the carpet and I couldn't walk any faster as everyone was probably asleep by now.
I had to creep my way to my room without waking anyone up and that was the worst part.
I was so used to running up and down the hallway that now I'm becoming a bother to everyone.
"Lady Camilla, what are you doing this late up?" Adora opened one of the doors to see me walking down the hallway.
Adora always roams around the hallway to make sure nothing suspicious is happening.
Especially when it comes to me.
"I'm just walking back to bed. I went to the third kitchen to check on Livia" I smiled kindly at her.
Adora nodded her head understanding my reason.
"Well you better go quickly. Duke Rowan will be coming tomorrow night for dinner" She spoke in a soft and quite voice.
"Duke Rowan..?" My throat became dry and my stomach churned.
"Oh yes! He was just on the line with me asking how you were. The system aloud me to speak through him from the screen".
I lowered my gaze to the floor trying not to seem as if I was disappointed.
I didn't want Adora to think that I was miserable about Duke Rowan meeting us at dinner.
Duke Rowan was close friends with my father especially when it came to work, so I didn't want to make him my enemy even though I despise him.
He wasn't the best person for a woman to be with especially since he can't keep his hands to himself.
"Well, tell Duke Rowan that I am doing absolutely fine and that he doesn't have to ask about me" I plaster a fake smile as my cheeks began to hurt.
God, I could imagine myself choking him to death.
Adora nodded her head again and scurried away like a mouse to make the phone call.
Yet she didn't know that I was being sarcastic about telling him I'm doing fine.
Because he knows that when I'm around him I feel like a piece of shit.
I sighed anxiously continuing my walk to the bedroom.
If I counted correctly.
I turned 2 rights and 3 lefts until I had reached my bedroom.
This time I used the longer way as my fathers room was near mine and I wanted to avoid him at any cost.
Having him open his door to have a small chat with me wasn't the best time right now.
I gently opened my bedroom door and snuck inside closing it.
I kicked my slippers off and jumped onto the bed letting out a deep breath.
Now that I was in my room I didn't have to worry about anyone staring at me like an owl.
I turned the small lamp on and tucked myself under the sheets pulling my screen out.
I skimmed through the options to see the chat room.
I clicked on it and saw a new notification from my best friend Liam.
He always chats with me at the most unexpected times.
I went to messages and started replying to his message.
Liam: Hey. Did you get accepted?
Camilla: Yep. Dad told me at dinner, what about you?
Liam: I got accepted as well. But my dad wasn't too happy about it so he beat my ass up🥶
Camilla: Shit😳. If your dad is ever free then ask him to call me😉
Liam: Shut up Camilla you got no chance.
Camilla: Awww. Well anyways when you do wanna meet up tomorrow since the exam is coming.
Liam: In the morning in front of the gate. Apparently it's going to be packed.
Camilla: Why is that?
Liam: The guilds have been needing of new members and so they boosted the number of applicants this year.
Camilla: Have you tried to get a hold of any of our friends?
Liam: Only a few of them. Only two of our friends got accepted as well and the others gave up.
Camilla: Shit!?!
Liam: I know. That's why we better stick together for the whole tests. If we both want to get accepted into the school we need to work our asses off.
Camilla: Of course. But promise me one thing!
Liam: Okay..?
Camilla: You better not betray me out their and run away like a coward!
Liam: Camilla you know I won't ever leave you.
Camilla:🥳🥳🥳
Liam: 😌😌😌
Camilla: Anyways I'm going to bed. See you in the morning!
Liam: Goodnight Camilla.
Camilla: Goodnight Liam.