As a human, Morrigan had lived through some pretty cold weather. After all, the winter in the place where she had lived could be quite harsh, temperatures sometimes getting as low as -30 degrees Celsius. However, that was nothing when compared to the harshness of the cold of the furthest corner of the Underworld. Morrigan had created a small thermometer using her paint magic and it showed that the current temperature outside was -37 degrees.

  All three princesses and Azrael were huddled together in the same carriage, dressed in thick layers of clothes while several fireballs burned within the carriage, trying to keep the cold at bay.

  "Why is it so damn cold?" Morrigan complained, huddling closer to Viana who made no move to push her away. No, she even went as far as to put her arm around Morrigan's shoulder while Morrigan wrapped hers around her waist. Meanwhile, Azrael and Deziara were huddled together, any dislike they had for each other completely forgotten.

  "We have reached the coldest point in the whole Underworld, the domain of ice demons," Viana explained through chattering teeth. "Apparently, it gets so cold because this place is close to the surface, to a place called the Northern Ice Fields. Supposedly that is the coldest place in the Doppelta where ice never melts."

  "O-oh joy! And we're right below that," Deziara said, her teeth chattering all the while.

  "I can't believe there are actually demons living in this place," Morrigan said.

  "They're ice demons. They're been living here for millennia and are adapted to this cold," Azrael said and then blew his nose in a handkerchief. Apparently, the mage had caught a mild cold during the nasty weather.

  "How could you adapt to this? What do they even eat? Ice?" Morrigan grumbled.

  "They import most of their food from elsewhere. This place is rich with both regular and magic gems, so those are their main sources of income," Viana explained.

  "Poor delivery demons," Morrigan sighed, and the carriage came to a halt. They had arrived, but nobody hurried to leave the warm confines of the carriage. After all, it had been heated up from the body warmth and the fire. The outside would surely not be like that.

  "Princess Morrigan, we have arrived," Seon called from outside the carriage and then opened the door. A wave of cold air hit them like a tsunami and they huddled even closer. Seon looked no warmer than them, his nose and cheeks had turned red from the cold.

  "T-Thank you, S-Seon," Morrigan chattered, and slowly clambered to her feet, pulling Viana along with her. Two of them got out of the carriage still stuck together like glue, while Deziara and Azrael followed after them, quickly huddling next to them for warmth. It was a bit of a ridiculous sight, four of them standing very close to each other.

  "Welcome to our humble city of Alterion!" Said a noble-looking demon man with a bright smile on his lips. His skin was light blue, his hair was a white as snow while his deep blue eyes reminded Morrigan of deep ocean water. His whole being seemed to be made out of cold, yet at the same time he was no different from other pure-blooded demons. "I am Duke Jokull Snowden and this is my son Boreas Snowden."

  "It is my utmost pleasure to greet Crown Princess Morrigan, Princess Viana and Princess Deziara," said the young demon standing next to the Duke. He was very similar to his father, the main difference being that his hair was short rather than long and his eyes were deep purple. Also, Morrigan couldn't help but notice how handsome both of the ice demon men were.

  Not quite as good-looking as Father or Galandir, but it certainly is a sight for sore eyes. Makes me feel a bit warmer in this cold.

  "Thank you for receiving us on such a short notice," Morrigan said, untangling herself from Viana and curtsying before the Duke and his son. Boreas walked up to her, took her hand and then planted a kiss on her gloved hand. Morrigan was taken aback by the bold gesture, usually it was only done when a bachelor was interested in a young lady.

  Viana didn't fail to notice that, frowning a bit at the sight, but still keeping up proper etiquette and curtsying, "It is a pleasure to visit the famous Duke of Alterion. Your reputation precedes you even in the capital."

  Famous? Famous for what? I certainly knew of his name, but what exactly did he do?

  "Oh, my glory days are long past me. Soon my son will take up my mantle," the Duke said, and Boreas walked up to Viana and reached out to kiss her hand too. And when Deziara curtsied, doing her best to suppress the shivers from the cold, he did the same thing.

  Maybe this is how things are done in this part of the Underworld? Although judging by the way how Viana is glaring, probably not.

  "If only this boy would settle down and find himself a wife already. Or at least a fiancee," the Duke laughed boisterously. Morrigan would have frowned at the insinuation, but she was just too cold to care. Suddenly Haku appeared right beside her, radiating warmth as if he were a little oven. The Duke and his son both took a step back from the dragon.

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  "My apologies, Your Highness. It appears Haku wanted to come to you," Galandir said with a smile on his face while sitting on top of the dragon. He didn't appear bothered by the cold in the slightest, probably having the highest tolerance out of them all, no doubt a resistance he gained from his ice magic. Then again, Azrael knew ice magic too, but he was barely able to stand the cold. Maybe it was all thanks to Haku.

  "It's alright. Is there a place where Haku could stay?" Morrigan asked the Duke. He shifted uncomfortably in his position.

  "We'll figure something out. Does it… he like to burn things?"

  "All the time," Galandir replied with a sort of satisfied smile.

  No, why would you say that? The Duke will leave us out in the cold at this rate.

  "Do not worry, Galandir, the dragon keeper, will keep him contained. Won't you?" Morrigan said and threw a glare in the elven boy's direction. He sighed and then reluctantly nodded.

  "I'll do my best," he said unenthusiastically.

  "Wonderful. Now please follow me inside. I am sure you must be freezing by now," the Duke said and beckoned them to follow. They all picked up their pace, eager to get out of the cold. However, as they made their way from the main entrance road to the icy mansion (which looked like something straight out of Wisney movie), Morrigan noticed how beautiful the icy garden in front of the mansion was.

  There were trees with icicles dangling down from their branches like some Christmas decorations. Other trees, that had long thin branches dangling down like a willow, had icy balls of various colors set up in the branches. And there were ice sculptures – so many of them. Ice demons, ice dragons, ice flowers, ice birds, ice beasts, you name it. All of them were carved out to perfection, their semi-transparent form shimmering in the magic lights that were set up especially to illuminate the masterpieces.

  "I need to paint that," Morrigan muttered under her breath.

  "Not now. My fingers will freeze over if I stay out in this cold any longer," Viana hissed back. Morrigan nodded absentmindedly but didn't take away her eyes from the sculptures until they were finally inside the mansion. She would definitely find some time to paint that garden. That winter wonderland had to be memorialized.

  But her thoughts changed as soon as they entered the mansion. Everything looked like it was made out of ice. The floor, the staircase, the walls, even the chandeliers. It truly was like she had stepped into an icy castle from the Wisney movie. She didn't even know how quickly the temperature had shifted from icy cold to pleasantly warm or how her maids quickly peeled away the layers of clothes she was wearing.

  "This is beautiful," she said, taking in every single detail of the mansion.

  "Thank you! Everything here is made from crystals found in Alterion mines. Not only is it an abundant and beautiful material in these parts but it is also great at keeping the cold outside and warmth – inside," the Duke explained, his servants removing his outer clothing. Soon everyone was dressed down to a point where they didn't look like walking balloons anymore. "But we can discuss all of that later. My son will escort you to your room, Princess Morrigan, and after resting for a moment we may talk over dinner."

  Boreas extended his elbow towards Morrigan and she looked at it dubiously. Was it all right for her to take it? Normally only her Father or Azrael who was Morrigan's officially appointed escort were allowed to do that. Perhaps he did not know, but how could she tell them that without coming off as rude?

  "I'm sorry, but only Azrael is allowed to escort my youngest sister. She is not yet of age and thus cannot be escorted by young unwed demons," Viana pointed out.

  "My apologies. I was not aware. Shall I at least escort you to your room, Princess Viana? If my memory serves me right, you've already come of age," Boreas said with a brilliant smile, completely unperturbed by Viana's cold attitude.

  Wow, he sure is persistent. Is Duke Snowden trying to wed his son to one of the princesses? Perhaps that was the reason why his mansion wasn't initially chosen to be a part of the tour.

  "Very well," Viana said, her lips pursed together. She probably didn't want to agree, but it would be considered rude to deny the request of your host. But it wasn't such a big deal. Not like anyone could win over Viana's icy heart. Morrigan had never seen her eldest sister be swayed by men. It was usually the men who were very ready to cut off their heads for her sake. Not that she cared.

  But as the charismatic Boreas led Viana up the staircase, Morrigan noticed that the two of them actually looked kind of good together. Her purple hair seemed to match with his eyes and both of them were extremely attractive.

  I wonder if I could convince them to pose for me together. It would make for such a great painting. But there's no way Viana would agree to that. She hasn't let me make a portrait for her yet, so there's no way she'd agree to pose together with somebody, especially with somebody who is essentially a stranger. Oh well, I'll have to make do with the scenery.

  Brimming with inspiration Morrigan allowed the servants of Alteria mansion to lead her to her room where instead of resting she instantly went to draw some sketches of the view outside her window. She only stopped once her maids told her it was time for dinner.

  "I have to say, I was so pleasantly surprised to hear that His Majesty changed his mind and allowed you to come to our mansion. I understand that he initially wanted to avoid this place because of the cold, no?" Duke Snowden said over dinner. They were serving some wonderfully warm broth which instantly warmed up Morrigan's cold body.

  "That is correct. However, since our destination is the Garden of Frozen Memories, Father came to the conclusion that it would be safest to go there together with someone who knew the area well," Morrigan said the line she had rehearsed together with Alphegor last evening. After all, the fact that there was somebody out to get Morrigan, forcing her to change the whole route of the tour, should not become public knowledge. The fact that Count Etheles knew it was already risky enough. Even if the King seemed to trust the man.

  "Of course. It is a dangerous place, so I am glad that you have come to the decision of having an escort. My son will accompany you there and make sure that you and everyone in your retinue remain safe and sound," Duke Snowden said with a beaming smile.

  "I really appreciate it," Morrigan replied, suppressing the urge to groan.

  Great, now I'll have to fight off his advances to court me constantly. It should be illegal to do that to a minor. And I don't care that I am technically an adult if you add my human years on top of my demon years. They don't know that. Scheming nobles.