"Who prepared this?" he asked.
All the servants knelt before the young man, but I remained standing. I mean, the guy was quite handsome, with his blond hair and piercing blue eyes, but I couldn't understand why they were kneeling in front of him. He looked like he was in his early twenties, not much older than me.
One of the servants grabbed me by the arm and made me kneel too.
"Young master, what are you doing here?" asked one of the chefs, who looked panicked by the presence of the young men.
"Well, I was hungry, and I smelled something good from here. And who prepared this dish, it's so good," said the young man as he continued to eat. Chef Sebastian turned to the young man with great honour and cleared his throat.
"It was I who prepared it, young master," he said, and I couldn't help glaring at him. That was a lie.
I was about to open my mouth to speak, but one of the cooks stopped me by putting his hand in front of my mouth. I ended up biting him, and he let go of me with a yelp.
"Stop talking nonsense, Sebastian. I don't want to put you down, but your cooking is shit," said the young man with a smirk. I saw Sebastian's smile break, and his face turn red with anger and humiliation.
I was about to laugh, but Sebastian looked at me angrily before giving an order.
"Get that servant out of my kitchen," he said, pointing at me. "She has no business being here. She's a troublemaker ."
Two cooks grabbed me by the arms and dragged me out of the kitchen. They threw me out without mercy, and locked the door behind me.
"Your food is disgusting anyway," I shouted, before rising from the floor. I dusted off my clothes, and checked if I had any injuries. I was fine, except for a few bruises.
Those chefs were really rude. I had no more tasks for today, and what's more, I had managed to steal the pie I had made. I could now enjoy it in my room.
I made my way quickly to my room, before anyone could see me. I closed the door discreetly, and locked it. I took out the pie I had hidden in my maid's uniform.
"It looks delicious," I said, rubbing my hands together. I was already savouring the pie with my eyes. It was so beautiful, and it must surely have been delicious.
"I want some too," said a voice, and I jumped and fell. But in my fall, I still managed to save the pie. I held it close to my chest, as if it were a precious treasure.
It was the young man from earlier. He had somehow entered my room, and he didn't take his eyes off my pie.
"Who are you, and what do you want from me?" I said, as I started to back away from the young man. I confused. How did he find me? What did he want from me?
"Excuse me, I haven't introduced myself. I'm the son of the man who hired you. My name is Zain," he said, and gestured as if he was waiting for me to introduce myself too.
"Oh, my name's Leora," I said politely, now that I knew who he was. I was almost afraid he would fire me.
"Can I have a piece of pie, please?" he asked, as if he were a beggar. He looked at me with a hopeful expression.
I hesitated for a moment, but then I decided to share my pie with him. I cut a slice and handed it to him.
"Here, take it. But don't tell anyone, okay?" I said, and smiled at him.
He smiled back, and took a bite of the pie.
"Mmm, this is amazing. You're a great cook, Leora. Thank you," he said, licking his lips.
"Thank you," I said, but I was used to getting compliments on my food.
"By the way, it was you who prepared the dish earlier, wasn't it?" he said in a friendly tone, leaning closer to me.
"Yes, it was." I said and Zain smiled even wider.
"That was the first time I'd ever eaten a dish that tasted good, you know," he said, his eyes sparkling.
I frowned. "What do you mean? Don't you like the food here?"
He shook his head. "No, not at all. Ever since I was little, I'd just eaten these bland, tasteless dishes, prepared by the royal cooks. They don't care about the flavor, they only care about the appearance and the etiquette. But how other people put up with that, I clearly couldn't. I'd never eat anything like that. Food is life."
I nodded, understanding his frustration. I felt the same way. Food was more than just a necessity, it was an art, a joy, a way of expressing oneself.
"How did you get into my room, my door was locked," I say, always surprised by his presence, even though my door was locked.
"Well, I used teleportation magic, of course," he said as if it were a habit. He waved his hand and a blue glow surrounded us.
In the world I lived in before, there was no magic, so I don't really know how to define what it is. I look at him confused.
"You don't know how to use magic," he asked me and I nodded my head in agreement.
He looked at me with pity. "That's a shame. Magic is a wonderful thing, it can do so many things. If you want, I can teach you, but in exchange I want you to cook some good food for me and my little sister," said Zain, and I thought that was a pretty good idea, as it might help me beat the cooks.
I was already laughing at the idea of them being scared of me
"I accept, but who is your sister? I asked and Zain stood up.
He smiled and held out his hand. "Take my hand and I'll take you back to her room so you can see her," he said, and I didn't know whether to trust him.
"Don't worry, trust me" he said and I took his hand, I didn't really trust him but if he tried anything I'd hit him where it would hurt the most.
He snapped his fingers and we disappeared from my room. He took us to a fairly large room, decorated with pink curtains and plush toys. It seems to me that when I changed the sheets on the beds in the bedrooms, I was forbidden to go into that room.
I turned towards the bed and saw a very thin young woman lying on a bed, she was pale and had blond hair and blue eyes like her brother, she looked like she was suffering.
"What illness has she got? I asked worriedly.
He shook his head. "She's not ill, she just refuses to eat the cook's dishes because they don't taste good," he said, stifling a laugh. He walked over to the bed and gently nudged her. "Hey, Zara, wake up. I have a surprise for you."
The girl opened her eyes and looked at us. She saw me and frowned. "What are you doing here Zain and who is this young girl, she's your future wife" she said in a weak voice and I saw Zain blush a little.
"No, she's not my future wife and she's an excellent cook, you know." he said before handing her a piece of pie he'd been saving.
The girl took a bite of the pie and I saw her eyes shine with pleasure as she ended up eating the whole heap.
"Marry her, big brother," said the girl, standing up and coming towards me.
She hugged me and I felt awkward. "No thanks," I said and saw the girl being disappointed.
"Introduce yourself first, Zara," said Zain, sternly at Zara.
She let go of me and smiled. "Sorry, I'm Zara, Zain's little sister. I'm so happy to meet you. You're the best thing that ever happened to my brother. And your food is amazing. Please, stay with us and make us happy. And maybe marry my brother" she said and Zain pushed her.
" What are you saying Zara, I'm not going to marry her just because of food." said Zain before Zara pushed him back.
I couldn't help but laugh it was fun to watch. Maybe it wasn't so bad, after all. Maybe we could be friends.