n

n

n

"Damn it! Just my bad luck! Why the heck am I serving this slave instead of my Theo?!

"

n

"His highness and Jane, both have completely lost it!!! They want to adorn a good for nothing dog and put it on a pedestal! This is ridiculous.

"

nAna grumbled non-stop as she carried the few things which Sylvia had in her old room. She didn't have too many possessions so it was only a single trip for the maid.

nBut just as Ana was casually strolling along the long corridor and returning back to the guest room, she couldn't help but notice smoke coming out.

nShe hurriedly dropped Sylvia's things on the ground, not that she needed an excuse to do so, and ran over to the smoking room.

nThe room's door was already ajar and when Ana reached there, she saw Sylvia leaning back on the dressing table with a dazed look on her face.

nIn front of her, were several wisps of fire dancing in the air. There were also small swirls of air that were making the fire worse.

nThe mattress was on fire, the pillows were on fire, the curtains were on fire, the entire room was burning brightly!

nAnd Sylvia was just standing there staring at the scene as if she was enjoying fireworks in the night sky.

n

"This freak can do magic now!!!

" Ana shouted, unable to contain her shock.

nWhat other possible explanation could be there for this chaotic scene in front of her?

nFor someone who has tested negative in mana affinity to develop an affinity later on in their life was completely unheard of!

nSylvia snapped out of her trance, noticing Ana's arrival and her little comment, and turned to look at her with an awkward smile, biting her lips. She looked like a cat who had just eaten a mouse that she wasn't supposed to.

nFeeling bad for the maid who now had to clear up her mess, she was about to mumble an apology when her eyes shifted to look at the silhouette standing behind the maid.

nThe man had his usual gentle smile on his face, which made Sylvia stiffen up and stand straight.

n

"Heh. What do we have here?

" Mikel leaned on the door that hadn't caught fire yet and looked at the culprit in amusement. He was clearly not fazed by the entire room burning down.

n

"Your highness.

" Ana immediately bowed and backed away, a part of her expecting Sylvia to be scolded and reprimanded for doing something so stupid.

nAnd just like she was expecting, the devil opened his mouth.

"Hasn't anyone warned you not to train your spell casting indoors?

"

nHe ran his long tapered fingers through his golden locks and chuckled.

n

"Umm… I just got carried away a bit, your highness. I apologize for this mess.

" Sylvia muttered, while simultaneously murmuring 'Aqua' under her breath to conjure some water for putting out the fire she had caused.

nMikel let her be and didn't tease her further. He raised his hand, and the fire was entirely extinguished the next instant, making Sylvia sigh in relief.

n

"Well then, Miss Sylvia. I will take my leave now. I do hope that you can join me for dinner tonight in the dining hall.

"

n

"We have some matters to talk about.

" He grinned and left, after giving the girl another sharp amused look.

nDamn it. Sylvia cursed inwardly. She had tried her best and bargained a lot of things including her freedom, but the man in front of her still made her nervous.

n

"It's just dinner. It will be alright.

" She muttered under her breath and then looked at Ana, who had a constipated expression on her face.

nShe couldn't believe that his highness didn't even say one word to the slave about all this mess.

n

"What are you looking at? Clean up all this mess.

" Sylvia scoffed.

nShe could read the woman's thoughts like an open book and was not pleased with the way she kept constantly looking down at her.

nShe didn't particularly enjoy bossing others around but that didn't mean that she would take everything in silence and not retaliate back.

nSylvia then walked out of the charred room and entered the room next door to take a bath, as she was reeking of a smoky smell.

nThere was a big tub in the center and she conjured up some water in it by herself.

nAfter which, she hesitated a bit before conjuring a few wisps of fire to heat up the water in the tub.

nShe then stepped into it when the water was at a comfortable temperature.

nIt was a bit too daring of her to conjure fire again, especially when she had just burned down a room, but the amazing feeling the warm water left on her body as it touched her was definitely worth the risk.

nSylvia giggled to herself like a child who had just found something new to play with. She felt light and happy today as if a huge burden had been lifted off of her chest.

nShe played with the water, enjoying her bath.

nThough it was not the bath that Jane had prepared for her earlier with flower petals and herbs swirling around, Sylvia was still glad to be able to enjoy a warm relaxing soak.

nSunlight flickered through the glass panes on the window, making the water in the tub sparkle and along with it, the woman lying inside with her eyes closed.

nThough she had been feeling energetic and fresh earlier, just after practicing a few spells, Sylvia once again felt drained and tired, so she ended up staying in the tub a lot longer than she meant to.

nShe only realized that she was running late when Jane knocked on the door.

n

"My Lady, sorry for interrupting. I have brought some fresh change of clothes for you.

" Jane knocked and entered the room.

nSylvia nodded and smiled at her sheepishly.

"Ah… Mrs. Jane. Sorry about the mess that I made. I will make sure to practice spells outdoors in the future.

"

n

"No, no. My lady. Please don't worry about it. I am happy that you are able to practice spells now.

" Jane smiled and nodded.

nThere was now a distance between them and Sylvia thought about asking the woman to drop all the honorifics, but in the end, she decided to just let things be.

nAfter all, she was going to leave the castle soon and would probably never see Jane again.

n

"I can change by myself, Mrs. Jane. Please excuse me. I will meet his highness immediately afterward.

"

nJane nodded and gave Sylvia some privacy, who quickly changed into her new set of clothes, a simple lilac evening dress.

nShe then walked over to the main dining hall of the castle, where they had previously served the Lady and the devil.

nSylvia chuckled at the thought of how things had changed so suddenly and so unexpectedly. She reminded herself to be calm and steady in front of the devil and keep her cool as she opened the dining hall doors and entered.

n

"Your highness.

" Sylvia bowed and greeted him first before walking over closer to the man.

nMikel, sitting at the head of the dining hall raised his glass lightly, tipping it towards her and bringing it closer to his mouth, take a sip from it.

nHis black irises silently lingered on her, and a familiar trickster smile surfaced on his lips.

nSylvia felt her heart rate quicken even though she had repeatedly asked it to remain calm in the man's presence.

nShe smiled and walked closer to the dining table, noticing that there was no one else in the big dining hall, save for him and herself.

nThere was a trolley full of food near the table and the devil had probably asked Jane to take her leave after serving.

nSylvia gulped and walked closer to the man, taking a seat at the table after hesitating for a couple of seconds.

n

"You are not a slave anymore, damn it. Act like it.

" She muttered inwardly. She left a seat in between herself and the man and sat on the next chair near him.

nJust like she had done in front of Ana, she wanted to put on a brave face in front of the devil as well but for some reason, this was exponentially more difficult to do so.

n

"Why are you sitting so far away? I am not going to eat you, you know.

" Mikel chuckled, not letting the small thing go unnoticed.

n

"Aha ha ha. Indeed.

" Sylvia smiled awkwardly, still trying to hold her own, and got up to sit on the chair right next to him.

"I was just giving your highness some space.

"

n

"Hmmm? There is no need for such a thing between us. After all, aren't we partners, kitten?

"

n

"Your highness…

" Sylvia bit her lips.

"Please call me Sylvia.

" She didn't know how many more times she needed to remind the damned devil!

n