Kayden watched intently as Cinderella thanked the royal messenger. Ever graceful, she bowed, and the messenger returned the gesture before retreating into his carriage while the drama queen headed into the looming castle.
Watching the little scene, Kayden rolled his eyes, cringing so hard it almost hurt.
She didn't have to show how perfectly kind and proper-mannered she was. What a kind-hearted fool. Well, come to think of it, he didn't blame her for marrying that pompous prince—what a gold digger she was.
To escape her hard life and her witch of a stepmother, she'd decided to end up with the boring-looking prince. Well, it's better to cry in a Lamborghini than be happy on a tricycle.
Realizing his slip, Kayden corrected himself.
"Silly me. I meant it's better to cry in a golden carriage than be happy in a wretched horse stable." Kayden laughed at his own little joke.
Well, instead of hiding in the corner, it was time to find out what was cooking—and why the hell he kept seeing that gold digger.
So, tiptoeing, he walked to the door. Seeing it wasn't exactly locked, he pushed it open and slipped inside, pondering whether this was how they normally left doors—just wide open.
Like, weren't they afraid someone might sneak in and steal stuff? Well, he wasn't here to judge.
Finally making his way into the enormous room, he gasped.
"Oh my my, what a gorgeous room," Kayden exclaimed, his eyes darting around, taking in the details.
The golden chandelier. The flowery linen draping the enormous windows. And from what he could see, this wasn't a sitting room like in modern times. A lone side chair placed in a corner suggested maybe this was where important goods were inspected or received.
Well, enough of the interior design tour. He wasn't an architect or a fashion designer. He was here to figure out how he was involved in this whole situation—which was slowly turning into a nightmare.
While looking around, he noticed a slender figure making her way into another room. He grinned. Perfecto. Whatever that meant.
Still tiptoeing, he followed and stopped beside the door.
There wouldn't be any harm in getting the latest gossip, especially about that letter the messenger had brought. He had this nagging feeling his fate was tangled up with that letter.
Suddenly, a stern voice reverberated through the room, stunning Cinderella.
It was that elderly woman again, shouting at Cinderella for distracting the girls during their music session.
"No, you don't understand—it's from the…" Cinderella began, but the woman's spiteful voice jolted her into silence.
"What are you blabbering about, girl? Haven't I told you I don't want any interruptions, especially during the girls' music practice?" the woman snapped.
But the ever-persistent Cinderella didn't back down. She kept trying to speak, only for the woman to shut her down again with a cold glare—a glare Kayden could clearly see through the small opening in the door.
The woman was dressed in such huge layers of fabric she looked like an ice cream cone. Goodness—the way their hips moved gave him nightmares, especially those two sisters, whose faces screamed terror.
Oh, I feel like I'm watching a real-life horror movie. A person can't possibly look that ugly…can they? Kayden wondered as he kept listening.
Kayden was losing his patience. Say the damn thing, Cinderella. Or Cindy.
Yes—Cindy. "Cinderella" sounded too ambiguous and local.
As if the heavens were finally on his side, the words tumbled out of Cinderella's mouth.
"It's a letter from the castle, and—"
Immediately, the sisters snatched it away, scrambling like mad dogs to see who'd open it first.
Kayden, watching them fight over a piece of paper, facepalmed.
"Gosh, that woman has a lot of patience. I can't imagine living with two savage dogs." Kayden shuddered, picturing the headaches he'd get if he were ever entangled with them.
"Give me that, girls! And behave—you don't want royalty seeing you like this," the woman scolded.
Kayden couldn't help laughing. Delusional moron. It was the confidence for him.
Then, with a wicked gleam in her eyes, the woman scanned the card. Immediately, her eyes shone.
"There will be a ball in honor of His Majesty the Crown Prince, and every eligible maiden is called upon to attend at 8 PM sharp," the woman announced proudly.
Kayden, who knew how the original Cinderella story ended, could predict what would happen. But something felt…off. Like there was a slight—if not massive—change.
And now came the real problem. How did he fit into all this? What was his mission, exactly?
"Can I go, Aunt Mira? I believe I'm part of the family," Cinderella pleaded.
Mira and her two daughters, Lydia and Chloe, burst into loud laughter, mimicking and mocking her.
Then Lydia, the brunette one, stormed up to Cinderella and yanked her hair brutally.
"You scullery maid! What makes you think you have a chance with the prince? Answer me!" Lydia demanded, eyes burning with rage.
Chloe clapped gleefully, relishing Cindy's suffering.
Kayden thought this was totally different. In the original story, neither of the sisters ever physically attacked Cinderella like this. This only confirmed his suspicion—he was inside some kind of twisted novel, similar yet different.
How the hell did my fate come to this? He just wanted a good life. His thoughts froze when Mira's voice sliced through the chaos, silencing the girls.
"Well, Cinderella, I guess you can come with us. You're part of the family, after all. But on one condition—you have to finish all your house chores first. Then I'll see why you can't come."
Mira's sudden change of heart left the three girls confused.
Chloe and Lydia stared at Cinderella in disbelief, their eyes filled with bitterness, while Cinderella jumped up, nearly squealing.
"Oh, thank you so much! Thank you, thank you!"
Kayden, watching like a lovesick fool, saw Cinderella leave the room. Luckily, he ducked out of sight just in time. Seeing what just happened, he smiled.
Well…maybe it was time he saw what this prince looked like himself.
But just as he was about to leave, he heard their voices again.
Especially Lydia's, stomping her feet in fury.
"Mom, I don't want her to go! That girl will steal him from us. How could you allow it?" Lydia's face twisted with intense hatred.
Kayden felt the hair on his skin stand on end. That was…intense.
But what came out of the stepmother's mouth froze him mid-step.
"Don't worry, pumpkin. She won't make it to the ball alive."
She grinned—and like a group of deranged hyenas, they all let out a cackling laugh that made Kayden's stomach churn.
"Well…that explains my question. This is different from Cinderella. And apparently, the villains are way darker." He hissed under his breath.
Cindy could go to hell. He didn't give a fuck about her. But he stopped in his tracks when he saw a black cat slinking out of the room.
Without blinking, he set off after it. Just as the cat was about to cross his path, Kayden stomped on its tail, eliciting a cruel yelp and a shrill scream from the cat.
Admiring his handiwork, he sighed, feeling oddly refreshed.
"That felt so good. I've always hated that bastard of a cat. Well…being without a tail might make him think twice before he does anything annoying," Kayden sneered.
"And as for Cinderella—she can go fuck herself. I need to see this prince. Especially naked. I'm curious what size he is."
Kayden smiled mischievously as he walked out, forgetting entirely that he had no idea where the hell he was going.