Lila gazed out at the castle's tall watchtowers in the distance. They were going to reach the castle today!

"Look!" She said, pointing the sight out to Daphne.

"Oh my...we are so close..." She replied with a frightened gasp.

It had taken almost four days of traveling, but now they were finally at the palace's outer city. It was quite lively, with many well to do looking people walking about. Dark blue, the color of the royal family, colorfully decorated everything and could be seen on roof shingles, marketplace tents, water vases, store signs, and most clothing.

Lila immediately felt a pang of jealousy. No one here looked dirty, poor, or even hungry! There were no fields or farms nearby, nor were there any kind of common labor workers seen in the city besides bakers and blacksmiths. The city was more like a marketplace where people brought their goods from various place to sell. Merchants stood at their booths selling tools, furniture, exotic animal and plants, and much more. This world was indeed very different from her own back home!

None of the passersby seemed to take much note of their carriages coming through, as they were obviously used to it. With the King's reputation, they probably had to find new servants weekly. Lila wondered how one man could be so very difficult. Did he not care at all about what his subjects thought of him or how they lived in his presence? She knew he had no reason to think of anyone besides himself, but surely that was a very lonely way to live.

They reached a large brick wall protecting the castle. It had a large metal barred door and two rows of guards standing watch on each side. Each one was clad in armor and dark blue fabric uniforms adorned with the royal crest, a symbol represented by a gold eagle that had a sword in each claw and three gold roses above its head. Only after their carriage was granted entrance by the door master were the doors opened and each one led in. It was then, as they passed through the wall's arches, that Lila saw the true beauty of the palace. It stood tall, made with dark blue glazed bricks that shimmered in the torch light, with gold trimming each window and door. It was surely the most exquisite building structure she had ever seen! Nothing could even come close to its beauty in her mind. She could not imagine what it was like to see such a masterpiece every day, or even grow up in such a grand place. Being here felt nearly magical!

Eventually, their carriage came to a halt as they reached the back entrance of the castle itself. Soldiers stood there examining those who tried to enter, each armed with a sharp sword on their hip. Lila felt a pang of nervousness as a guard came and opened the door to her carriage. Everyone within froze and seemed unwilling to step out. Lila even saw Daphne tearing up.

She sighed and slowly stood up, bravely exiting first. She handed over her contract, and waited for their command. To her surprise, the guard grabbed her by the arm while her bag was taken by another man standing off to her left side.

"HEY!" She shouted with alarm.

The man who held her arm ignored her as he began patting her down. The other guard who had taken her bag quickly dumped its contents out on a table and began inspecting them, while the man who took her contract signed his own name on it before setting in a pile of approved papers. Lila held back her fears as she realized that this was just a basic procedure for newcomers. Others exited their carriage same way, and anyone who did not get out willingly was pulled out and searched.

Suddenly, Lila heard a startled scream from beside her. She looked over to see Daphne staring with horror at a guard who had obviously gotten a little too friendly when patting her down. The young man glared at her angrily for the attention she drew, as he probably got away with it often enough.

"May we both go now?" Lila asked her inspector impatiently.

The man grunted, but motioned for the two of them to move along. Daphne immediately came and clung nervously to her arm, nearly like a little sister would do.

"Do not worry, men will be men." Lila said calmly, hoping to put her at ease.

She nodded, but still looked on the verge of frightened tears. Lila let her hold on to her arm for a while. After getting back her bag, which was no longer neatly organized, both of them were put in a row along with everyone else near a large door. Only after all the carriages were emptied did a nicely dressed man finally come and address them all.

"Good evening everyone! Welcome to the castle! You will be sorted into appropriate groups and given your tasks. I ask that you listen carefully and you do exactly as I say. So first off, I need the men move to the right, and women to the left." He said loudly.

The man took a glance at the groups to make sure they had all obeyed before he continued.

"Very good! Now, young ladies and gentlemen below the age of twenty-five, please step forward." He commanded.

Daphne and Lila, as well as everyone else in that age group did as instructed.

"You ladies will be cleaning maids and you men shall be gardeners. Please follow the servants who come to your group. Now women and men between the ages of twenty-five and thirty-five, please step forward." The man instructed.

An older woman came before Lila and her group, and an older man to the boys. They motioned for those in the group to follow them. As their group walked down a hallway off to the left, the men's group went down the hallway to the right. Lila could still hear the echo of the man in charge as he assigned the next group.

"You women are to be cooks, and you men are to be butlers. Please follow the servants who come to your groups. Now women and men between the ages of forty-five and fifty-five, please step forward." He said.

Lila heard no more after that because the echo became too faded. She felt a bit disappointed by the picks though, as she would really have preferred a job such as a gardener since she was used to such work by trade already. But at least Daphne could feel a little at ease since they would indeed be working together it seemed.

The older woman leading their group eventually stopped at a large hallway full of doors. She turned back to face them with harsh eyes and a raspy voice.

"These are your sleeping quarters ladies. These will be your rooms permanently for your stay here. Tomorrow morning, I will be giving out your uniforms and assignments. Every day you will receive a breakfast, lunch, and supper. No one is permitted in the kitchens past the times allowed, so make sure to eat on time. Now, get in a single file line." She shouted.

Everyone did as they were told, and the woman began separating them by groups of twenty-four for the bedrooms. Once the woman finished grouping them all, she put them in their assigned quarters. Inside the room stood twelve small bunk beds for them to share, one glass window at the end of the room that let in a decent amount of light, and a small table for them to share for various activities. There was no fireplace to keep them warm, nor a curtain over the window, and not much room at all to move around the cramped space. It was not in the least bit cozy, but it would just have to do.