Chapter 3

You followed behind Asa, wondering how far the town was. Hopefully not that much further because your legs were already starting to ache.

"How much longer?" You groaned, trudging along while Asa's posture was tall and straight.

"Tch, you're already tired? It's only a few minutes away. This forest is still in the kingdom of Laidora after all so it won't take long to get to the main city."

He replied, not bothering to slow down for you. You hummed in response and decided to admire the scenery to take your mind off the soreness in your legs.

A couple birds were seated on the branch above you and you smiled. Back in your dimension, you didn't get to admire nature that much due to living in a bustling city.

"Why do you need help getting to the city anyways? If that cottage we were just in is yours, then you should be familiar with the surroundings."

Oh no. You fiddled with your fingers and looked to the side. "Well.. I'm actually a foreigner and I just rented out that cottage for a while so I'm new to this place."

He seemed to believe your words because he said nothing after that. It seemed like forever, but you finally got to the edge of the forest. You gasped at the sight before you, barely believing your eyes.

The town looked straight out of a fantasy story. Houses and buildings littered the cobblestone paths and people filled the streets. The smell of food you've never tried before filled your nose and you could hear the

voices of the citizens.

Your eyes nearly bulged out of their sockets when you saw the humongous, shiny castle at the opposite end of the city.

"This can't be real.." You muttered under your breath.

"What did you just say?" Asa questioned, having not heard you properly. "Oh nothing! Thank you so much for bringing me, I can figure it out from here, "

Asa eyed you from the corner of his eye and he rose his brow. "If ya' say so."

And with that, he disappeared into the crowd of faces without sparing you a second glance.

You sighed, feelinga little depressed. That would be the last time you'd ever see him and although he was rude, it was so interesting to spend time with a fictional character. You'd miss him a little.

Shrugging, you decided not to dwell on it. After all, you had this whole kingdom to explore! You walked down the cobblestone

street, feeling out of place. You could

practically feel the stares on your back. "They're probably judging me for wearing men's clothes. Why does it even matter to them? Do they have nothing better to do with their lives?"

In your defense, you didn't even know

they were clothes made for men. Clothes are clothes, it doesn't matter. But still, you didn't want to feel like an outcast so it would be best to find some extra clothes.

Wandering around, you couldn't help but acknowledge the grumbling sound coming from your stomach.

"Ok, Il just find food before clothes. Im

starving!" You asked around for recommended eatery's and you decided to go with one that this kind old lady told you about. Apparently it wasa well known bakery called Reed's Bakery.

You always had quite the sweet tooth so it seemed like the best option. As you walked down the path, you asked various people for directions. Some people seemed reluctant to talk to you but it didn't really matter as long as you got to your destination.

At long last, you stood in front of the bakery. It had a sign attached to the wall witha cute, black cupcake symbol on it.

You pushed open the wooden door and the bell above the door dinged. Imaginary flowers surrounded you as you took in the amazing smell. Now you were really excited to try these pastry's.

"Il be with you in a moment!" You heard a voice call out from the kitchen. "Okay, take your time!" You yelled back. You weren't in a rush.

You walked up to the display counter to look at some of the pastries. "Wow... They look so good!"

"Haha, thank you. It takes a lot of effort and practice."

You turned around to see the most beautiful man you had ever seen in your life. He had long blonde hair, which probably went all the way down to his upper thigh, that was up in a ponytail, presumably to get out of the way while he bakes and he had eyes as blue as the sky.

A beauty mark was just under the right side of his calming smile. But one thing stood out the most to you.

He was a giant compared to you, standing at about 6'4.

"Welcome, pick out anything you'd like or have you already made an order?"

He asked with a smooth voice, walking behind the counter to flip through a notebook with orders in it.

"Ah, I haven't made an order! I'd like to look through a menu if you have one though." You replied, breaking out of your trance.

He nodded, reaching under the counter to grab a menu and hand it to you. "I hope something is to your taste." He gave a closed eyed smile.

You smiled back. "Thanks, I'l go sit at a table over there and look through it."

You sat down at one of the tables near the back. It was a pretty small shop so there wasn't many tables to begin with.

You opened the menu and began Scanning over the different options. "I'm in the mood for something chocolatey. maybe a cupcake or

doughnut." You said to yourself.

Your mind began to drift. Reed's Bakery sounded familiar... "Oh my god.' You couldn't believe it. The long blonde hair, the blue eyes,

the beauty mark. It was Silas Reed, the

calm and kind duke and also love interest of Camilla Shampell.

He was probably one of your favorite

characters so you tried your best to not start freaking out.

"Have you picked anything out Ms.?" You nearly jumped at his voice. Nodding you pointed to something on the menu. "Il take this, please!" He scribbled your order down on a small notepad. "Alright, thatll be five mora's."

Your face paled. You totally forgot about money. Thanks to your memory, you remembered that it stated Somewhere in the novel that mora's are the currency in this world.

"Shit.. I forgot to bring money with me." Your eyes dropped and he couldn't help but find your expression similar to a sad puppy.

"Hmm... Well, follow me." He said, walking into the kitchen. You followed him and suddenly became nervous. You'd be alone with your favorite character! 'Oh god does my breath smell okay?" You shook your head. 'No, don't have those thoughts Eli He's Camilla's."

Inside the kitchen, every corner was

spotless. It was surprising considering he worked with a lot of messy ingredients.

"Are you the only one who works here?" You asked, feeling curious. "Yes, I am. I enjoy the freedom of working alone." He said, leading you to the opposite end of the kitchen where a small table was.

"Woah, it must be hard working here by yourself. It's impressive!" You gushed, wondering how he did it all by himself.

He seemed surprised by your words.

"Oh.. Thank you..." Usually people Would just assume it was easy to make all these pastries, but it really does  get tiring sometimes.

"I can barely even do my job with coworkers! I admire you." You laughed. His light blue eyes widened and he looked at you. "I-"

"Wow, what's this?" You interrupted him. "Oh, this is why I brought you back here. I had a customer order this cake earlier but he complained that it was not tasty enough. I just left it back here, and I figured you could

have it since apparently it's not good

anyways."

You gasped incredulously and faced him. Gently smacking his chest, you grinned. "Have more confidence in your skills! I'm sure it tastes amazing!"

He found himself blushing and he looked down at you. "Ah.. You're right. I apologize for sounding so gloomy."

You shook your head. "Don't apologize. Anyways, thanks so much for offering me this cake!" You were practically drooling while staring at the chocolate cake, wondering how the previous customer could ever hate it.

"It's no problem at all. Take this," He handed you a fork and you graciously took it from his pale hand.

You took some of the cake onto the fork and put it in your mouth. Oh. "Oh my, are you alright?" He furrowed his brows in concern.

You looked up at him. "Huh? Why

wouldn't I be alright?" "Well you are crying, Ms."

You touched your cheek and felt wetness on your fingers. "O-Oh, I guess I am.. " He found himself frowning. "So the cake really is that bad."

You shook your head frantically. "No, it's one of the best cakes I've ever had!"

"It tastes like home."

His eyes widened and his mouth was agape. Silas' face felt hot and his blue eyes met yours. You smiled softly. There was a bakery that you would always go to that was near your apartment and you always ordered the same slice of chocolate cake everytime. It tasted just like Silas' cake.

Tasting this chocolate cake made you realize how lost and scared you were with no possible way to get home. But it also gave you a great sense of comfort, like everything was going to be okay.

You glanced at the clock on the wall and almost yelped in shock. The sun was going to set soon and you still needed to find clothes!

"Oh, I need to go!" You placed the fork down and began to jog towards the door.

Suddenly, a gentle grip on your wrist held you back. You furrowed your eyebrows and glanced behind you. "Ah, you want me to pay you back? Don't worry, I'll come back tomorrow with money."

"No. That's not it. I just.. Please come visit me again." He released his grip that was on your wrist and realized what he'd done. "I'm so

sorry for touching you, that was very

unprofessional of me."

You giggled. "Don't sweat it! And of course Il be back. Take care!" You ran out of the door after giving him a small wave.

He tilted his head. "Don't sweat it?"