Freya unpacked her bags, placing her folded clothes on the bed while her eyes scanned the room. It was so big and spacious that she wasn’t sure if she could sleep alone at night. Then again, she knew she could always go to her father’s room and stay for a little while, but the problem was the night event they were going to host. Freya didn’t want to join them. The last time she went out at night dressed as a bar maiden, it didn’t end well. But just like last time, it was unavoidable since she didn’t want the princess coming at her with too many questions. 𝒻𝑟𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝑛𝘰𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝘤𝘰𝘮

After she was done, she fell asleep on the bed. By the time Freya woke up, it was already time for the night event. She was startled by loud noises coming from the singers and their instruments outside. The girl pushed herself up from the bed, stretching her body. She washed up before leaving her room in search of her father. It was easy to find Louis since he always enjoyed cooking.

And just as she suspected, Louis stood close to one of the cooks, watching as he cooked while asking him something Freya couldn’t hear from where she stood.

"Pa!" Freya waved to her father with a smile. No matter how much they argued, she always loved to see her father do what he wanted, which was cooking, since it made him very happy.

Louis patted the cook on the shoulder, then said something in a hushed tone before going to meet his daughter.

"You’re awake. I came to knock on your door earlier when the fire night started. When you didn’t respond, I knew you were sleeping," Louis said.

Freya nodded. "I didn’t know I was tired until my body touched the bed. I was surprised to have slept for so long. It’s all dark already. Did I miss anything?" As she said this, Freya noticed an oil stain on the side of her father’s face, and using the sleeve of her dress, she wiped it off.

Louis touched the side of his face where his daughter had just wiped. "Nothing. You only missed Rowan going hunting with the prince. We’re using the boar he caught for a nice soup," he pointed at the game that was caught during hunting now being roasted.

"Hunt?" Freya raised her eyebrows. That guard was really quite energetic, she thought to herself.

Louis chuckled. "You should have seen him when he returned. His body was covered in blood, and all the women were cheering for him. The princess couldn’t hold back, she even confessed her love for him."

Freya scoffed, knowing how the princess was. It wasn’t that she couldn’t hold back, she just said so much at the same time sometimes without thinking. Freya turned her head to the side, looking around the palace that was now filled with activity and noise, unlike when she arrived in the morning.

"I’m making a good soup. When I’m done, you should go send some to Rowan. He went to have his bath before coming out for the fire night party," Louis continued. When the cook inside called his attention, he nodded and turned to Freya. "Go ahead and have fun. Meet people. When the food is ready, I’ll send for you." He then entered the kitchen.

Freya exhaled, blowing a small puff of air through her lips. She walked towards the place where a small fire was lit at the center while some of the singers entertained others. The loud cheering and whistling of men filled the air, while the women giggled, flipping their hair whenever they got a compliment from a man.

Finding an empty spot, Freya went to sit down. Somehow, she found herself enjoying the night since she wasn’t talking to anyone but just watched the entertainers perform. She clapped for them when they did anything amazing. Her night was going just fine until she saw the princess running in her direction.

Freya stood up immediately, ready to leave the arena, but the princess was already close to her.

"Freya, why are you sitting all alone? Let’s go over there and play with the other girls. And what about Rowan? I haven’t seen him..." The princess looked around, pouting her lips.

Freya snapped her fingers. "Yes, umm...Rowan, I was on my way to go call him. I’ll be right back with him."

"Really?" The girl clapped, looking very excited.

Freya swallowed hard. She never thought a day would come when she would have to use Rowan’s name as an excuse. She nodded, "I’ll go bring him now. He’ll be so excited," she muttered.

"Great! Then be quick. I’ll be waiting for you over there."

Freya turned and left. She wasn’t going to call Rowan; she was planning to go back to her room and hide, so that the next morning she could apologize to the princess, saying she fell asleep. Or maybe she would just go to the library where no one would see her. These were Freya’s plans, but they fizzled away when her father intercepted her, carrying a plate filled with hot soup.

"There you are, Freya. I was coming to you. Take this to Rowan. You can eat with him or come and have yours in the kitchen," Louis instructed. The moment his daughter held the plate, he turned back and left.

Freya looked down at the plate she was holding. She had lied to the princess that she was going to Rowan, and now it was the truth. With a tired sigh, Freya made her way to the side of the palace that was given to them.

Everywhere was now quiet because everyone was outside at the moment. The only sound Freya could hear was her footsteps on the polished floor. It was just that, until she heard something else coming from the room beside her own.

Freya paused in her steps to be sure she wasn’t hearing things. Then the sound came again. It was muffled, yet clear enough that she couldn’t pin down exactly what it was. Seeing that the door to the room wasn’t closed properly, Freya took a step closer to see what was actually going on inside the room.

Right there in front of her was a woman sitting on the floor while Rowan sat comfortably on his chair with his head pulled back. Freya noticed the woman’s head moving back and forth, and she gulped.

She didn’t know what it was, but she knew it was something that should be private, and she wasn’t supposed to be watching it. Her grip on the plate tightened, signaling her to leave, but somehow Freya found her legs pinned in place when she saw the woman spread her legs, fixing her hands between them.

"Mmm...ahhh..." was the sound the woman made.

Freya gulped, her throat becoming very dry. When Rowan raised his head, his eyes lazily moved towards the door and met with the anxious brown eyes of Freya. Both of them stared unblinkingly at each other while the sighs of the woman filled the whole room.

"Slip it deeper..." Rowan commanded. He was talking to the woman, but his eyes were on Freya.

And as if Freya was the one being controlled, she felt her toes curl, and the next scream she heard from the woman was a gasp filled with Rowan’s name. At that moment, Rowan’s gaze moved away from Freya as he gently rubbed the woman’s hair with a pleasant smile on his lips. Just as if Freya’s spell was broken, she moved her legs and dashed out of the passage, almost spilling the soup she was carrying.