Beth smiled when she heard Alora's words "I don't help I'm you because I want you to pay me back Alora... I do it because I love you okay, but if you really feel like you owe me and want to pay me back, then look really eyecatching and pretty on the day of the ball."
She patted Alora on the shoulder and left right after with the palace guards, not waiting for Alora to speak as she did not want to hear anymore words of gratitude from her.
Time passed and Alora showed no signs of moving as she stood where she was since Beth left, staring into the distance although Beth's figure was long gone.
"What did I do to deserve such a friend" she mumbled, Beth and Alora's friendship goes way back when they were children, they met in the forest, as Beth had run away from the palace at that time and she, she was with her parents, and since then they became very close almost inseparable, and they have both become daughters of each others families.
Beth had always protected her, whether it was from women who scorn her or pestering men who chase her.
Alora sighed with a smile then stopped reminiscing the past, and finally entered the house.
"Alora someone delivered some sort of package for you this morning" Ethan Delphine told Alora who was just coming back from her work in the library.
"I think it was from the royal family" he continued.
"Royal family, Package?" Alora wore a perplexed expression on her face and continued to mumble as she stepped into the house "What could Beth possibly give me".
"Brother good evening" Alora said to her brother who was working on some reports in the living room.
She sat down next to him and hugged his arm, she said in a coquettish voice "Brother you are back, I missed you so much."
Ethan dropped the reports he was holding and put his arms around his sister, he then kissed her hair "When will you stop behaving like a child candy you are already a grown woman"
"I will always be a child to you, won't I always be a child to you brother?" Alora peered up at him with a gaze that said, if he didn't say what she wanted to hear he will be done for.
"Of course you will always be a child to me" Ethan resigned and let her have her way.
Ethan was a very good looking man but cute would be a better way to describe him, he had very curly hair and well proportioned facial features. He was 6 years older than Alora hence due to the vast age difference between them he tends to dote on her a lot.
"Brother how is your work going" Alora finally let go of her brother and picked one of the reports on the table.
"Speaking of work, things are beginning to get a little problematic and I will need to be going on trips much more frequently" Ethan sighed and leaned back on the chair.
Alora stared at him curious as to why he will need to travel more frequently, and Ethan continued speaking "There have been frequent reports of missing people and sightings of strange unrecognizable creatures"
"Is it the witches?" Alora asked to have him shake his head "That is one possibility but according to the descriptions we have been getting, I highly doubt that, although I might be wrong and this is also the work of witches".
"What do you mean by the work of witches?" Alora said with a pondering expression on her face, which Ethan caught and answered "I mean exactly what you are thinking, it is either these creatures are creations of the witches or there are witch hybrids."
Anyone could tell that Ethan was tired of all these witch matters, for centuries witches have caused a lot of problems for humans, and no matter how many witches they kill their trouble never ends.
Although it is not all witches, as witches coexist with both the humans and the vampires very well, but those are the witches who are ruled by the witch king.
The witches who cause trouble are witches who have been corrupted by black magic and have defiled the treaty that was signed between the three races, hence these witches are outcasts, the ones who have been exiled and now live as outlaws.
These outlawed witches believe that witches should not be suppressed by a treaty of peace, and shouldn't live under the overall rule of vampires, hence they began to work together causing chaos with the black magic.
"Brother now that these witches are beginning to act more brazenly without fearing what the vampires might do, it means that they are now very powerful and they have tricks up their sleeves now, you should be more careful, I don't want to lose my only brother" Alora said clearly very worried for her brother
"I know candy, I will be careful I promise that is why I have retreated from field work to handling these reports" Ethan said pointing at the reports on the table.
"Alright brother whatever you say, but you should still get some rest, you just got back home." Alora stood up and began to head to her room.
"That's right, Alora your package is on your bed" Ethan shouted just before Alora got to her room.
"Got it brother." Alora shouted back and entered her room, as expected there was a big box on her bed.
She sat on her bed and reached for the box, then opened it to find a gown inside, and then it suddenly came to her that the Reeve Empire's anniversary ball was the next day.
She pulled out the gown and placed it on her laps to find that there was also a pair of ruby red high heeled shoes, a ruby necklace that had a black netted pattern on the top with 2 pendants attached together, one longer than the other.
She rubbed the jewel of the necklace, and an indescribable feeling overwhelmed her, she knew that it was Beth who had arranged all these for her.