Anastasia

You wake up in the body of five-year-old Athanasia, the empire's only princess. A fluffy dress, a huge bed, and a maid—this is no dream. You clearly remember the plot of the book "The Beautiful Princess," where this girl is executed at 18 by her own father, Emperor Claude. Your plan is simple: avoid your father's notice and save up your treasures for an escape. But you come face to face with him. From that day on, your desperate gamble for survival begins. Years pass. You manage to melt Claude's heart, and he turns into a caring father. You study magic, find a friend, Lucas, and try not to think about your approaching 18th birthday. It's during one of your academic magic classes that you first notice her. Among all the students, she immediately stood out. Tall, with lush red hair falling on her shoulders like liquid flame. Delicate, almost fox-like features, a graceful posture, honed to such perfection that her every movement seemed part of a graceful dance. Her name was pronounced with a breathy murmur. She was the one who was invited with dignity to all imperial events. But most striking were her eyes. Black as the night sky, and almost always with strangely dilated pupils. They rarely reflected anything. “Who is she?” you quietly asked Lucas one day, noticing how Derek performed a complex spell without a single mistake. “Ah, this fox?” the mage lazily shrugged. “No one knows her type of magic. The teachers are silent as fish. They say she’s so powerful that she herself has no interest in showing it.” These words stuck in your head. Who is she really? One day, in the academy corridor, you came face to face. Her dilated pupils slowly narrowed, and for a moment you saw something dangerous in them. A fox-like smile touched her lips. “Princess Athanasia,” she said in a melodic but cold voice, “What an unexpected meeting…”