In the darkroom, the thirteen-year-old got down from her bed carefully as she tiptoed towards the door. It wasn't until she was out that she let out the breath she was holding.
Freya cheered in her heart, she got out successfully, Arche didn't wake up. Her bed was just beside her dad's, after all, it was safer for her if any assassins come to visit her at night.
Cinder who followed her out was still in a daze, the sun wasn't even out yet, what did his master want to do? Freya patted the furball and proceeded to the kitchen.
In her previous world, today was supposed to be Christmas. Though the demon realm doesn't celebrate it, she thought it would be nice to use this day to make some treats for her family and friends.
It was four in the morning, the chefs have yet to wake up, thus the kitchen belonged to her. Freya hummed a tune as she got ready the ingredients.
She knew how to cook and bake some simple desserts. She loved desserts, but she didn't have any chefs in her previous life so she could only learn it herself.
Freya clicked her tongue, "The ingredients in the demon realm aren't aesthetically pleasing at all, especially the fruits."
She rolled up her sleeves and tied her hair into a simple ponytail. She wrote down the recipe she frequently used onto a piece of paper neatly, just so she won't miss anything later.
She first sifted a cup of all-purpose flour, half of cup of cocoa powder, ¼ teaspoon of baking soda, 1&½ teaspoon of baking powder, and a small pinch of salt into a big bowl.
Then, she cracked four eggs into another bowl. Using a magic mixer, she made sure the egg whites and egg yolks were thoroughly incorporated until it's slightly on the whiter side.
After that, she added a cup of powdered sugar, a little at a time until the mixture was fluffy. After adding ¾ cups of vegetable oil and two teaspoons of vanilla essence, she beat it until it was combined.
Freya didn't like making a mess, so she washed up the magic mixer immediately after using it. Her actions were very quick as she didn't want the fluffy mixture to sink.
Finally, the dry ingredients were skillfully folded in and the batter was finally done. She looked at the pink batter as her lips pursed into a straight line.
The cocoa powder in the demon realm was pink, so it naturally turned out to be pink but Freya couldn't help but feel that something wasn't right. She was making a chocolate cake...the color just...well whatever.
Freya poured the batter into a tray and sent it inside the preheated oven at 180c for 30 minutes. Cinder who was napping on the counter flew over to Freya and landed on her head, earning a nuzzle from his owner.
Freya looked at the used tools and sighed. It's time to clean up the kitchen, this was the part she hated the most. While she was washing the dishes, she caught Cinder trying to eat the eggshells from the corner of her eyes.
"Cinder." She said in a warning tone, making Cinder halt in his actions and close his mouth. He then turned and looked at her pitifully, his big teary eyes made Freya's heart go soft.
"That's dirty, I'll let you eat some cake later with dad." She threw the colorful eggshells away.
While the cake was baking, she cut the fruits into more pleasing shapes. The blue, bumpy fruits that tasted like strawberries were cut into heart shapes while the white melons that tasted like grapes were cut into little snowmen. She also made some vanilla frosting while she was at it.
Once the cake cooled, she started assembling everything. Of course, some of the fruits didn't have the chance of becoming decoration since they ended up in her tummy. Cinder had his share too. Fruits paired with frosting were the best.
It was already 6 a.m. when she was done with everything, the apricity of the sun made her smile. After telling the chef to serve the cake during lunch, she trotted back to her room. She changed her sleeping gown into another one before going back to her sleeping chambers.
"Where did you go?" Arche's hoarse voice entered her ears the moment she opened the door.
"Daddy...good morning." Freya chimed.
Arche was still in bed, sleepiness evident in his eyes. His bed hair made Freya avert her eyes, she mustn't laugh. It seems like her father just woke up not long ago.
"Morning. So, where did you go?" Arche repeated his question.
"Went to the toilet." She casually replied while he just hummed.
There was a toilet connected to the room. Arche glanced at the bed beside his, he could tell after using his magic, there wasn't a bit of warmth. She got up quite early. His brows furrowed, a hint of displeasure flashed through his eyes, when did his daughter learn how to lie to him?
Freya wasn't even putting in any effort lying to him. She knew there was no point, her father was too smart. She plopped back to her bed and closed her eyes, "I'm sleeping till noon, good night."
"...didn't you just say good morning?"
Freya replied to him by burrowing her face into the pillow even more, hugging Mr. Lulu in her arms. No matter how old she gets, this plush toy of hers will stay with her!
Arche yawned and got up, he went over to Freya's bed. He kissed her head and ruffled her hair before he went out. All of his meetings were scheduled early in the morning today.
Freya woke up exactly at noon. After the maids dressed her up, she headed to the dining room. Arche was skimming through the documents in his hands before looking up, "Did you sleep well?"
Freya nodded and took her seat next to him. As they ate, Freya told him about her plans for the day. She was already a teenager, she didn't need her father to be her bodyguard but Arche couldn't help feeling worried about this assailable daughter of his.
The chocolate cake was finally served as dessert! Freya's eyes gleamed as Arche took a bite. She looked at her father with anticipation, like a puppy waiting to be praised.
"It's delicious." Arche patted her head. The chef had already reported to him that Freya made something in the kitchen, and when that happens...she usually made desserts.
The puppy that got her praise was in a good mood, "I'll go make more! Then we can give it to Caiden and the rest."
Before she could get up, Arche used some magic to bind his excited daughter to the chair, "Eat up first. You can do that later."
Faced with her father's magic, there was nothing she could do, "Okay~"
As they ate, Freya suddenly beamed, "Daddy, Merry Christmas!"
"...merry what?" Arche looked at her in confusion. Did she learn another language? Freya used the language of her formal world, of course, he didn't understand.
"It's nothing." Freya watched with soft eyes as Cinder chomped down the cake.
...that just made him even more curious. Arche sighed and ate the cake silently, he should be free today.
"I'll make the cakes with you."
Freya thought she misheard, "You'll make the cakes with me?"
She earned a nod from Arche. Freya's eyes widened...her father has never stepped inside the kitchen before. There won't be any explosions, right?
And so, the father-daughter pair made cakes the whole afternoon. Freya looked at Arche who was baking like a professional patissier, her lips couldn't help but twitch. She only taught him once! How come he's getting better at it than her? She wanted to have skills like these too!
As she was sulking, the white particles raining from the sky outside the windows caught her attention.
"Daddy, daddy, it's snowing!" She tugged Arche's clothes eagerly.
"En"
Freya happily went over to the balcony, not caring whether her father followed or not. This was her first white Christmas since retaining her memory.
Her cotton pink hair was covered in snowflakes, making them seem like ornaments. Freya's skin that was as white as the snow seem to have blended into the scenery. It was a scene commonly seen in portraits, her side view gave the viewers a sense of loneliness, but her eyes were bright and filled with warmth.
As Freya held the snow in her palms, she made a silent wish in her heart, please make it so that these happy days won't melt away like snow.
[A/N: Merry Christmas Eve everyone~ Thank you for reading this book!<3 BTW, I found the cake recipe online, so I'm not sure if it's good or not Q-Q. Anyways, Have a happy holiday~ QWQ]