On the other side, once the group had left for the enchanted market, another portal door shimmered to life in the portal chamber of the palace. The dragon warriors used this portal door to travel to the human world.
A young lady with long golden curly hair and red eyes walked out of the portal followed by another young lady with a bob cut and green eyes.
Barbara, the head maid of the palace, waited nearby and bowed respectfully as they emerged.
"Welcome back, Princess Tressa."
"Aunty, where is Mom?"
"The Queen is occupied at the moment, Princess," Barbara replied with a note of apology. "But Butler Allen conveyed her regrets for not meeting you upon your arrival. She has requested your company for dinner."
Tressa clenched her fists tightly, inwardly seething. "Would she be this busy if it were Alisha or Alina instead of me? Why does she pretend to care when it's clear she doesn't?"
Kira, standing behind Tressa, gently squeezed her shoulder, offering silent support. The gesture snapped Tressa out of her momentary anger, and she softened her expression, mustering a sweet smile. "Thank you, Aunt Barbara, for informing me. I will retire to my room for now."
"Of course, Princess. Please don't hesitate to let us know if you need anything," Barbara replied warmly as Tressa nodded and made her way to her chambers, with Kira trailing behind her.
----
In the enchanted market...
As Alisha and the others exited Dreamweaver's shop, they were greeted by Vickey, Jude, and Jenny, who were still munching on snacks.
"We're completely done with our shopping, and you guys are just coming back from the bakery now?" Alisha asked as the others approached.
"We finished at the bakery a while ago, but on our way here, we got distracted by other food stalls," Vickey admitted, scratching the back of his head in embarrassment.
Alisha sighed, placing her hand on her forehead, while Rayan simply shook his head, at a loss for words.
Jude cleared his throat to break the awkward silence and spoke to Sapphire, "Hey, dragon girl, do you want this hot chili potato?"
Sapphire shot him a glare, causing Jude to almost retract his outstretched hand. But before he could, Sapphire took the snack and said coldly, "Thank you... call me Sapphire."
The others were slightly taken aback, having seen how calm and well-behaved Sapphire had been until now. Her anger at being called "dragon girl" was puzzling.
Lea turned towards Sapphire and blinked her eyes convaying that she was there with her there was nothing to worry about as only Lea knew the reason behind Sapphire's reaction.