Chapter 86

"Why are you not working? You need to get back to work." She ordered. The young girl spoke gently under her breath and made her way back to what she was doing before. The older woman watched to make sure she did just that. Once she was satisfied. The older woman turned to face Jaysa. She wore the uniform well with no wrinkles. However, her skin was a different story. She looked like she was around the age of 60 maybe 70 by the way her skin on her face was wrinkling. She wore her once black hair that now had several gray and white spots, up in a tight professional bun. She was a skinny woman that looked like she had not eaten for days. However, her eyes showed a different story. "Your Majesty." She bowed her head. "What bring you to this part of the castle?" Jaysa stayed quiet for a moment before responding.

"I was exploring the castle."

"Really?" The older woman spoke.

"Yes, since I'm still new. I want to know all the different places that the castle is hiding or interesting findings." She smiled.

"You seem excited for someone of your age."

"What do you mean by that?" Jaysa questioned.

"Well, if it's exploring you would like to do. Then let me show you the different types of vegetable's we have received today. You are interested in what goes on in here right" The older maid spoke as she turned and made her way towards the kitchen. Jaysa was unsure to go with her or not and was frozen in the same spot. "Are you coming or are you just going to stand there?" The sound of the woman's flat stern voice broke Jaysa out of the trance she was in and followed the older lady into the kitchen/storage room. She was in awe when she saw how huge it was.

"This is at least two times bigger than the kitchen we had in our home." Jaysa spoke.

"We?" The older woman questioned.

"Oh, sorry." Jaysa apologized. "I was speaking about my mother and me." Jaysa replied.

"Oh. And how is your mother? What does she think about you becoming the Queen of this Kingdom? She must be very happy." Jaysa turned her head and glanced away.

"I wish I knew." Jaysa spoke quietly.

"Did you have a fight when you became Queen?" The woman asked. Jaysa shook her head.

"No. She's dead. She died almost four years ago."

"Oh, God. I'm sorry." The maid spoke. Pain could be heard in her voice.

"It's fine. You did not know." Jaysa smiled at the woman. "So what kind of veggies do you have here?" Jaysa tried to lighten the mood.

"There are types of vegetables not found in our Kingdom. We actually import them from a Kingdom that is over than days away.

"Then how do they stay fresh?" Jaysa asked.

"The merchants that bring their food around the Kingdoms know how to take care of it. They keep them cool with blocks of ice they get from neighbor Kingdoms. That is the only thing I could think of. I really don't pay attention to tell you the truth." The older woman spoke as she picked up one of the brownish black vegetables. When the maid brought the vegetable to her face, she squinted her eyes to the horrible smell it gave off.

"That smells disgusting." Jaysa was completely grossed by the vegetable that the older woman brought up to her noise. "Who would eat that?" Jaysa questioned. The maid just smiled.

"See, that's the thing." The maid started to peel the skin of the vegetable as she spoke.

"They say that in the Kingdom, this vegetable would grow but no one would touch it because of the awful smell it gave off. However, the Kingdom ended up facing war and lost a lot of their currency which left them poor and hungry. A man was so desperate from hunger that he decided to eat this vegetable. He wanted to live and even if he had to eat this smelly food, he was willing to do just that. He bit into the first one he found and almost got sick and wanted to quit his plan of living, but soon another idea came into his head. He peeled the item and ended up finding something magical. Even though it was so disgusting on the outside, he found out it was just the skin but inside…." The maid showed Jaysa the pink flesh that was hidden from under the skin. "Try it." Jaysa was weary if she should try it or not. "Come on." The maid spoke again.

Jaysa reached out for the vegetable that felt slimy in her hand. She took a small bite and was suddenly hooked. It was a mixture of a fruit and vegetable. It was juicy and sweet like a fruit, but tough to eat like a vegetable. "The man actually became a hero. He was also the reason why the Kingdom was back to the wealth it was before. So even though this vegetable is gross and horrifying on the outside, it's delicious and sweet one the inside." Jaysa nodded and continued to eat the rest of the vegetable. "There is one thing about this fruit that many do not understand. The older this fruit gets, the smaller the smell becomes. However, the stronger the smell, the sweeter the nectar is on the inside."

"Is there more?" Jaysa questioned after wiping her mouth of the liquid that missed her mouth. The maid nodded.

"He's some other one." Jaysa walked up and smiled at the vegetable.