Hm should it be the library, courtyard or the training grounds?
Vivia, who had far too much time to spare, pondered her first destination in the royal palace.
"Yes, it should be the kitchen," she chirped. "I must thank the chef for the sumptuous breakfast."
Navigating the palace turned out to be a quest of its own but after surviving its maze-like corridors, she finally found the royal kitchen.
"Azarael!"
Azarael, who stood by the kitchen's entrance, beamed. "Princess!"
"Princess, why did you come all the way here? I could've brought you some snacks."
"I was just wandering around the palace and thought I should personally thank the chef."
"Hah! I don't need your gratitude!"
Startled, Vivia stared at the demon besides Azarael whose purple eyes were thoroughly brimming with displeasure.
Azarael looked horrified. "Chef Andras! She is my lord's guest!"
"I don't care! Why is she in my kitchen?"
"Didn't she just say that she came here to thank you?"
"I don't need it."
Vivia sparkled. "Ah, so you are the chef!"
He threw a deadly glare at her. "So what?"
She bowed gracefully. "Chef Andras. I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude for the delicious breakfast. I certainly felt your sincerity."
"As you should."
"Except for the vulgarly moaning donuts. They were delicious but…why were they moaning?"
"Be grateful that they were still donuts and not poison," he sneered.
"..."
Vivia's gaze fell on a tray he held, the sweet scent of fluffy muffins wafting through her nostrils. "Oh, are those muffins?"
"Not for you."
"..."
Azarael offered one muffin to Vivia anyway. "Here, Princess. These will be served to my lord, so Chef Andras asked me to taste-test."
"No way-"
Azarael threw a warning glare at Andras, and he grudgingly quietened down.
Vivia took a bite that instantly exploded on her tongue with its rich sweetness. "Oh my it's perfect! Just the right texture and sweetness. Chef Andras is so skilled!"
His expression twisted. "I don't need a human's validation!"
So stubborn!
Azarael nodded. "Indeed. Chef Andras is renowned all over the Demon Realm. He isn't the royal chef for nothing."
His previous sour expression retracted, which made Vivia notice something.
"Azarael!"
Seeing Vespera calling her out from afar, she said, "Apologies, Princess. I'll have to take my leave."
"Oh yes, please."
As soon as she left, Vivia eagerly asked, "Do you like Azarael?"
"..."
The black smoke around Andras darkened ominously. "What?"
"You like Azarael, right? You blushed when she praised you," she said cheerfully.
The plate in his hand was reaching close to its breaking point with his purple gaze glinting with a deadly chilliness.
"Are you threatening me?"
Vivia was dumbfounded. "With what eyes are you seeing that I'm threatening you? I'm genuinely curious!"
"Chef Andras likes Azarael!?"
Two heads popped up from the side, both wearing differently styled chef hats than Andras's and expressions filled with pure disbelief.
"Are you the sous chefs?"
"Ronove!"
"Vassago!"
They raised their hands in unison, exclaiming at the top of their voices.
Th-that was loud…
Andras turned, shooting daggers at them. "You two seem to be too free."
"Does Chef Andras like Azarael?" Ronove ignored the bursting volcano.
Vassago gasped. "Is this true, Chef? Is my stone-hearted superior in love?"
Vivia nearly choked.
"But Chef Andras, Azarael is too delicate for you!"
"Because Chef Andras is too tall and bulky for her!"
"You'll crush her under your weight."
"How will you sleep with her then?"
Vivia didn't have enough blood to puke at this point seeing him visibly shake in fury.
He slowly turned towards Vivia. "You planned this, did you not?"
"Chef Andras, I simply asked about your feelings. There is no elaborate trap set in any of my intentions. On the contrary, it makes me happy! Azarael is such a kind demoness."
"Naturally! She is a sensible and hard working demoness!"
She heartily chuckled. "You really like her."
"I…I don't! Stop making things up. You humans are always upto no good! And you two! Get ready for your punishment!"
Vassago exclaimed. "But the Princess is here!"
Ronove said, "We want to meet her!"
Vivia brightened.
Ohh, they are so adorable!
"Get. Back. To. Your. Positions!" Andras barked.
"No, no!" Vivia protested. "I want to talk to them too. Don't send them away yet."
"This kitchen has no place for humans so don't you defile my sous chefs!"
De-defile? Why do you talk of me as if I'm some suspicious pervert!
Suddenly, Andras sniffed the air. "Muffins…My muffins are burning!"
He bolted to save his dying muffins, and Ronove and Vassago took this chance, immediately encircling Vivia.
"It's a pleasure to meet you, Sous chef Ronove, Sous chef Vassago."
They leaned in, sniffing her from both sides.
"A human," Ronove said first followed by Vassago.
"She doesn't smell bad."
"She doesn't smell bad indeed."
Vivia blinked as they examined her like some rare animal. Vassago gently took her wrist and held it up.
"..."
It was generally considered rude to grab a lady's hand without permission. But their innocent curiosity made them more endearing than disrespectful.
"Ronove! Humans are really fragile as we've heard!"
Ronove gasped with this revelation. "So humans are weak is true!"
Vivia's brow twitched. "You concluded that just by dangling my wrist?"
They nodded seriously.
Ronove's eyes shone golden. "Since Princess is a human, you can answer our questions about the Human Realm right?"
"Oh absolutely!" Vivia proudly said.
It'll be good for them to learn more about us humans. One step in the right direction to curbing interracial hatred, hoho!
Vassago raised his hand. "Me first! Is it true that you use potatoes as your currency?"
Where did that belief come from? Vivia was dumbfounded.
"No, we don't use potatoes as our currency…Well, some merchants do exchanges based on the goods they have, like flour in exchange for potatoes. But that is still rare."
"So it's partially true!"
"Well, you could say that."
Ronove went next. "Is it true that humans melt into puddles when it rains?"
The corner of her mouth twitched. "Why would we melt into puddles?"
"Because you use umbrellas to shelter yourself!"
"..."
"Don't demons use umbrellas in the rain?"
Ronove and Vassago proudly said, "We don't melt into puddles."
"You sure would get wet, right?"
"We like the rain!" They joyfully raised their arms.
She coughed. "We do use umbrellas but only because we don't like to get wet, not because we turn into puddles."
"Then, then do humans sleep with their eyes open?"
"Do humans die if they fall down because they are so weak?"
"Can humans walk only backwards on Thursdays?"
"Do humans use brooms to fly?"
"Do humans breathe fire when they are angry?"
By the end of answering their rapid-fire questions, Vivia was breathless.
W-who even spreads such rumors about us!? More than half of them don't have any heads or tails to it!
"Ronove, humans are so mysterious. They cannot even burst a watermelon open with their bare hands."
Don't compare your demon strength to a human's!
Vivia laughed. "It was so much fun talking to you two. I didn't think Chef Andras's sous chefs would be so welcoming."
"Don't take it to heart. Chef Andras is always in a bad mood!" Ronove exclaimed. "Nowadays even more so because of his family."
"Family?"
"His parents refuse to move from their home."
"Move where?"
"To the city of Umbra," Vassago said. "You see, Chef Andras's native town of Nethermoor has been gripped by eternal winter for more than twenty years now."
Her eyes widened. "Only winter?"
"Yes. It's always cold and harsh over there. The lands are covered with snow and ice all the year round. Nobody in the realm knows what caused it."
"Some rumored that the town is cursed. So everybody stays away from it. His Majesty tried to investigate the cause but all the efforts were fruitless."
Ronove continued. "So the next best thing the royal family did was to move the town's citizens to other warmer cities. The nearest ones are Umbra and Whivil. All families have moved out except for some old souls who refuse to do so."
"The town has been their home since the beginning so they argue His Majesty should destroy the curse rather than forcing them to move. Chef Andras's parents are one of them!"
Her lips formed a small O. "Oh. So Chef Andras wants them to move, but they don't listen to him."
They nodded their heads. "They're old now and wouldn't be able to bear the harsh winter any longer. But they're still stubborn, which makes Chef Andras very angry."
She thoughtfully murmured. "It's a sad affair indeed. But if winter is the problem then…"
Vassago pouted. "Only if we could ask the human Harbinger of Seasons to help us somehow. They'd be able to end the eternal winter for sure!"