Chapter 6: Chapter 6

KAMORA

Kamora’s heart hammered in her chest, fear slowly creeping up her spine like cold fingers brushing her skin.

~Who is he?~ she wondered, praying no one noticed the rising panic she tried so hard to suppress. The man glanced at her again, and her breath hitched.

He gave a single nod to Claudia, then strode out through the manor’s entrance, his footsteps echoing too loudly in the silence he left behind. The tension in the hallway didn’t lift with his departure—it thickened, as if his presence had left behind a shadow.

Kamora took faint comfort in knowing she wasn’t the only one rattled.

“Now that you have seen his lord, there are some things I must warn you about,” Claudia said, her voice firm, her expression unreadable.

“There is a spell placed over this manor,” she began, eyes sweeping across the line of maids. “If you ever go outside and talk about his lord, your memories will be wiped out.”

A few audible gasps followed.

Claudia continued, gaze locking onto Kamora like a hawk eyeing prey. “And not just your memories of this place,” she said, voice low and clipped, “but all of your memories.”

Something about the way Claudia looked at her made the hairs on Kamora’s neck stand. Her shoulders tensed, and she swallowed, throat dry.

~Is that what happened to me?~ she thought. ~Had I talked about him? Is that why I can’t remember anything?~ But if that were true, why would Claudia let her work here?

Her thoughts spiraled, each one heavier than the last, until even breathing felt like a task.

“Dismissed,” Claudia said suddenly, shattering the thick air like glass.

Kamora exhaled, sucking in a full breath. She joined the others, walking stiffly back to where she’d dropped her tools.

She came here to work—to earn money—but now it felt like she’d stumbled into the heart of something far deeper. This place held secrets, possibly even the key to unlocking her past.

She never cared about getting it back…until now.

And she could only hide for so long.

***

Kamora didn’t know how long she worked. Time slipped past while her thoughts clung to Claudia’s words and the man’s cold gaze.

She scrubbed, swept, and dusted, every chore carried out monotonously, her mind elsewhere. ~Follow the thread fate has laid for you~, she tried to tell herself.

The young master’s voice broke through her fog, and she looked up just as he walked down the hallway with his usual entourage of maids flanking him like shadows.

She had just finished cleaning her section when he approached. Instinctively, she and the others bowed low.

“Good day, my lord,” they chorused.

He hummed a response—a low, almost careless sound that made the maids shift uncomfortably. Then he pointed at Kamora.

“You, come with me.”

Kamora’s head lifted, startled. Her heart skipped.

Though she had attended to him the previous night, Claudia’s strict rule about engaging with elites rang louder now, especially after seeing the lord of the manor. Was she already breaking rules just by being here?

She looked up at the boy, her expression respectful but wary. She wanted to decline, but he was still an elite.

Refusing him outright could cost her. Just as she parted her lips, the young lord’s eyes flickered with mischief, a teasing glint that caught her off guard.

For the first time since arriving, she saw him in a playful mood. And it was because of her.

His father was rarely around…and she couldn’t bring herself to treat him the same. So, instead, she swallowed her protest and smiled gently.

“Yes, my lord.”

He smiled back—brief, barely there—but she caught it. Then he turned, heading back the way he came.

His maids followed without question. Kamora trailed behind, head bowed, though her heart fluttered with warmth.

Still, a flicker of unease lingered at the back of her mind.

He entered the kitchen. The moment he stepped in, the maids working there paused and bowed.

“Leave,” he said simply.

One by one, they obeyed. Petal passed her with a puzzled glance, and Kamora returned a subtle smile, shaking her head slightly as if to say, don’t ask.

When the last maid left, only the young lord, his two maidservants, and Kamora remained.

He turned to them, expression shifting.

“I thought I ordered you to leave?” he asked, brow furrowing.

“My lord,” they stammered.

“Do not worry about me,” he sighed, waving them off. “I will behave, and she”—he pointed at Kamora—“will be here to watch over me.”

Still hesitant, the maids glanced at each other, then bowed and exited.

Now alone, Kamora stepped forward.

“My lord,” she greeted.

“Close the door behind you,” he said.

She obeyed, and when she turned back around, he was beaming.

“My lord,” she repeated, smiling despite herself. “Why have you called me here?”

“I want you to make something for me,” he said, practically bouncing to perch on a stool near the counter.

“My lord, I am not supposed to be seen associating with you.”

“Well, I ordered you to. Are you going to disobey?” he asked, narrowing his eyes slightly. “You weren’t this fearful when you harassed me the other night.”

Kamora bit her lip, holding back a retort that would no doubt backfire. She took a deep breath and exhaled slowly.

“Okay then. What do you want me to make?”

His eyes lit up.

“This morning, I saw the maids eating something that looked like biscuits, only rougher. It smelled amazing,” he said, exasperated. “But I couldn’t ask them for it. That would ruin my image!”

He huffed dramatically.

“That’s why I asked for you. You’ll do it for me.”

Kamora’s heart softened. People forgot that he was still a child.

The air of maturity he wore like armor must weigh heavily on him. He didn’t get to experience joy like other children. That loneliness… It must be exhausting.

Even if this backfired, she didn’t care. She’d do it—just so he could have this moment.

“You’re probably talking about cookies,” she said, stepping toward the counter and gathering tools. “It’s the commoners’ version of biscuits. We don’t have all the ingredients needed to make elite ones.”

“But why does it smell so much better?” he asked, watching her pull out a sifting pan and flour.

“Because, my lord, while the elites watch their sugar intake…we do not share that opinion,” she said with a sly grin, pouring the flour through the sieve.

He frowned.

“Why do elites watch their sugar intake?”

She looked up, her smile widening.

“Because too much sugar rots the teeth.”

His face twisted in horror, then shifted to something contemplative. He looked back at her, deadly serious.

“But that would only happen to humans.”

Kamora burst out laughing, gripping the counter for support. Her laughter echoed off the walls.

“My lord,” she said between chuckles, “rotting teeth can happen to anybody.”

“Well then,” he said, nodding proudly, “I’ll eat as much sugar as I can before that happens. Besides, if it does, my father can find a healer Fae. Surely they can fix a rotten tooth.”

Kamora smiled fondly, her gaze lingering on the young lord. “Yes, my lord.”

He watched her work, occasionally asking questions—why she used certain ingredients, what each one did. She answered each with patience, and they fell into an easy silence.

When the cookies were finally baking in the brick oven, she turned to him, wiping flour off her hands.

“Now we wait,” she said.

“You haven’t told me your name,” he said suddenly.

“I go by Kamora, my lord,” she answered, grinning.

“Kamora?” he repeated softly, stunned.

“Yes,” she said with a nod.

A strange look flashed in his eyes—something distant, searching. But before she could place it, he looked away.