Delicacies At Her Doorstep

When midnight approached somewhere outside Scarborough town, Valda successfully made it to her inn room, and she sighed in relief, closing the door as quietly as she could.

She was completely exhausted, her whole joints felt strained as though she did some kind of strenuous exercise. Somehow, she had managed to stay one step ahead of the palace guards parading the streets, but it became obvious that it was only a matter of time before they caught up to her.

Fortunately, she had stumbled upon an inn while hiding, and she was grateful to find that it was a small, out-of-the-way place. She had given the elderly innkeeper a false name and paid him some coin, and she was relieved when he didn't seem to recognize her from one of those posters.

"Phew!"

Locking the door behind her, Valda turned around to survey her room. it was small and simple, but it would do for the night. She crossed to the bed and flopped down on it, letting out a sigh of exhaustion, and she gazed at the ash-colored ceiling.

She knew that she should try to get some rest for tomorrow, but she was too keyed up—paranoid to say the least. She sat up on the bed and looked out the window, her gaze sweeping the darkened street below. She couldn't see anything since the lanterns outside were out of kerosene, but she knew that danger was out there, probably waiting in the shadows for a victim who would fall right into its trap.

Valda sighed and turned away from her window. She couldn't sleep at all.

Thinking of what to do in order to distract her thoughts, her stomach unexpectedly growled, as if giving her the response she sought. Now that she thought about it, she hasn't eaten anything since the start of today.

"I can't fall asleep hungry." She mumbled, rubbing her stomach gently like it would stop it from making another noise. First things first, she'll take a bath and then head down to see if the elderly innkeeper can help her with some food around here.

With this thought in mind, she got out of bed and did exactly as she told herself. Knowing her kind of habit, she couldn't risk staying in bed, else she would never attend to these matters, she might even fall asleep in the process, and that won't be good for her health.

She'll need all the energy she can get for tomorrow.

Sighing again as she walked into the bathroom, Valda slipped out of her dress and took a quick cold bath. After getting cleaned up and feeling refreshed, she looked through her sack bag and brought out the night dress she neatly folded inside, putting them on.

She went downstairs afterwards to have her dress dry-cleaned, and she communicated with the elderly innkeeper on her way back.

"I'm afraid all stores are closed." He told her, sounding apologetic about it, "it's nearly impossible to find a place to eat at this hour. There's a canteen somewhere down the street, but it's a long walk from here." he let her know.

Valda managed a smile and nodded her head in understanding, "I… I see."

She honestly couldn't blame the innkeeper for her own carelessness. There was so much her mind had to worry about, she completely forgot to get some food on the way here. She couldn't stress the innkeeper, not at an hour like this.

"Thank you for trying." She bowed her head politely and returned to her room.

Closing the door and locking it, Valda flopped on the bed, her gaze fixed on the ceiling again. She'll have no choice but to go to bed hungry tonight, but by tomorrow, she'll definitely try to get some food on her way to meet with Nelson. She chose to return to her Kingdom, but what were the odds that she won't face the same fate in Ancesgon capital, maybe even worse?

The mere thought of that place brought back images of the demon fox lord– the man who made her skin crawl, but shockingly not in a negative way, regardless of how terribly she chose to view him.

Shaking his image away from her head, Valda turned to the side and closed her eyes, hoping for sleep. However, minutes turned into hours, but she couldn't bring herself to fall asleep. Her stomach was literally protesting against hunger, and her eyebrows creased disturbingly.

A knock on her door made her sit up reflexively, and her heart was already at her throat. It couldn't be the palace guards have found her location already, could it? Did the elderly man recognize her and said something about her whereabouts to them?

A second knock on the door made her jolt to her feet, and as she approached the door, her hands shook nervously when she reached for the door knob and carefully opened it. She peered out into the corridor, but there was no one at sight—not even a shadow of someone could be seen.

Confused and dazed, Valda looked at her doorstep to find a silver tray wrapped in transparent leather sitting on her threshold. Her eyes dilated at the delicacies stuffed inside, and below the package was a small note.

Crouching down and picking the little note, Valda blinked at the letters written with black ink, curiously wondering what it said.

'I really wish I could read.' her lips twisted to the side, but she couldn't express her pain on that, not when there was a heavenly meal sitting on her doorstep.

Did the innkeeper drop this by chance?

A smile broke on Valda's lips as she carefully picked up the tray, taking it inside with her. The innkeeper said something about a canteen earlier, did he really go through the trouble of bringing her this? As much as she would love to thank him, she would do it tomorrow, but now, she was going to soothe her dry mouth and her crying stomach.

Sitting on the bare floor and taking off the transparent leather, Valda's gray eyes turned a shade lighter as she gazed at the food before her. There was a juicy roasted chicken at the center, its skin golden and crispy. A bowl of steaming hot soup, filled with chunks of tender meat and vegetables stayed at the side, and a plate of freshly baked bread, still warm as though it had been recently prepared, made her lick her lips in anticipation.

Valda's stomach growled with her, and as she eagerly reached for a piece of the roasted chicken, she paused. She knew she had to be careful, but right now, she wasn't even sure if she'll be alive tomorrow to eat another meal like this, so she was going to make use of the opportunity she had tonight.

"Heavens above," she murmured, closing her eyes and bringing her palms together in a praying position, "please grant me the strength to get through tomorrow's turmoil, and if it's not too much to ask, please let me eat to my fill, for I wish to finish every drop of food on this plate, regardless of it being poisoned or not. Thank you."

Opening her eyes, Valda picked up the piece of chicken and took a bite out of it. It was as delicious as it looked, and she couldn't help but moan in pleasure. She worked her way through the rest of the food, savoring each bite, and when she was done, she finished it with a bottle containing cold water.

She laid back on her bed like a dead woman, her silver hair splayed everywhere, and her fair lashes were starting to droop, as though the sleep she longed for was finally coming.

She turned to the side on her bed, telling herself she would clear the floor tomorrow morning once she wakes up. Right now, she was going to sleep and think about nothing else, not about the demon fox, not about her present situation, not about Nelson, no one.

She would use the night to recharge, and by tomorrow, she would focus on getting her revenge.