The roads of the royal city were busy with people walking and carriages rushing around here and there.

Sylvia's sore mood lingered, but the colorful sights took her mind off of things.

The sky had already turned dark, and she only needed to lightly lean forward to see the several carriages headed in the same direction.

The gems on the carriages were glittering even in the dull light of the street lamps, which made Sylvia assume that most of the crowd was from the wealthier parts of society.

Otherwise, they wouldn't have been able to afford these mana-rich gems just to enhance the speed of their carriages.

Breaking her thoughts, Mikel's voice disinterestedly drawled on. "The castle is a huge place…"

"I won't be able to keep an eye on you at all time, but if you use that opportunity to wander around…"

"You already know the consequences."

"I understand, your highness." Sylvia nodded with a bitter smile. "I could have just stayed behind in the castle."

"Perhaps in the confines of a locked room if it would make his highness worry less." She added, the sarcasm in her voice not completely hidden.

Her sharp words made Mikel turn around to look at her, perhaps for the first time this evening.

The thoughts jumbled up in his mind instantly disappeared like sheep running out of a meadow at the sight of a wolf.

Mikel was slightly startled to see the elegant woman sitting in front of him.

If he hadn't seen or known Sylvia before, he would have assumed her to be a treasured princess of some kingdom.

He couldn't take his eyes off of her even for a second.

Sylvia felt the man's gaze on her and shifted her legs uncomfortably, knowing that she had crossed a line.

"Where are we headed to, your highness?" she asked, changing the subject.

"The King's castle," Mikel replied almost immediately, his eyes visibly filled with doubts.

Just like Sylvia pointed out, he had already started to rethink his plan of bringing her here.

He had dressed her up in a fine gown and expensive jewelry so that she would blend in with the crowd, but it turns out that he had miscalculated.

Someone like Sylvia could never blend in. She would most likely stand out even among the crowd of similarly dressed beautiful women.

Mikel sighed, the tiredness visible in his deep breath.

He knew that the day was going to be a long one, but it was crucial that things went as planned so that he didn't arouse anyone's suspicions.

"What do you want from life?" He asked abruptly, almost startling Sylvia. She couldn't understand his question, or rather the motive behind his question.

She had been thinking about what sort of a man was Kalindor's King and how would the King's castle look like when Mikel had suddenly sprung this weird question on her.

It was not that she didn't have the answer to this question. It was just that she would probably never get it.

"I want to be free, your highness." She replied, her blue eyes curiously gazing at the man, waiting for his response.

In truth, it was something else that she wanted.

Rather than simple freedom, she wanted the power and strength to be able to fight for her freedom on her own.

While the former was never guaranteed to last, she could at least count on the latter for the rest of her life.

But Sylvia didn't dare to say this out loud, lest she made things more difficult for herself. So she phrased it differently to not ruffle any unnecessary feathers.

Mikel looked at the woman, his solemn face finally breaking out into a smile for the first time this evening.

"Just that much? Don't you want bags of golds and gems? An estate perhaps?" He asked her, his lips curving upwards.

Sylvia rolled her eyes at the man, who was unmistakably mocking her now. She turned her head to look outside, unwilling to continue this conversation as it was headed nowhere.

The devil, on the other hand, was not quite finished with this conversation.

"Alright. What if I can give you what you want?" He casucally added, making Sylvia instantly freeze and stiffen up as soon as his words fell on her ears.

Huh? She turned to stare at him in confusion. Was he simply messing with her, or was he telling the truth?

Either way, she knew him too well and he was not that generous to grant something so precious without terms and conditions.

"What would you require from me in return, your highness?" She asked.

Mikel grinned. "Kitten, you are too smart for your own good." He then paused before continuing. "I want three things from you."

The devil leaned forward to place three of his long tapered fingers in front of Sylvia.

"The first one being for you to be on your best behavior tonight."

"You are my recently acquired sex slave, and I am infatuated with you. Hence, I am parading you along for the night to show you off... as a trophy of sorts."

"This is the story that we will stick to. Do you understand?" He asked her, his gaze and his voice as serious as they can be.

Sylvia gulped and nodded obediently. Her heart raced, hoping that these words from the man were not some sort of trickery.

He was honest with her for once and was talking to her openly about what he needed from her, even trading her freedom in return!

But could she truly believe him? Sylvia didn't know.

He was the most untrustworthy and shrewd man whom she had ever come across. However, his words tonight were different. She could feel it. He was serious this time.

"What are the other two conditions, your highness?" She asked nervously.

"The other two…" Mikel ran his long fingers through his neatly combed hair and leaned back to return to his former position.

"I will tell you when the time comes." He muttered, looking outside.