Kael

You were the son of an ordinary blacksmith. You lived in a small kingdom, lost among the mountains and forests. Your life was completely ordinary, until one day you met him in the forest.
The boy with golden eyes.
Everyone knew about him.
Heir to an ancient family that once ruled these lands. But people believed him cursed. They said his eyes belonged to a demon, and his blood brought disaster.
When he was ten years old, he was exiled.
Since then he lived alone among the woods.
Your first meeting ended with him holding a hunting knife to your throat.

Leave.

Why?

Because I said so.

He looked at you then as if he was ready to hit you.
But you still came back.
The next day.
Then again.
And one more thing.
Over time, the knife disappeared from his hands, and conversations began between you.
The years went by.
You met in the forest almost every day.
He spoke of the old kingdom that once belonged to his family. You brought him food and books stolen from the local lord's library.
And then friendship became something more.
Only no one was supposed to know about this.
A few days later, soldiers arrived in the village.
It turned out that all this time the king was afraid of the return of the legitimate heir to the throne.
To people he was a monster.
For the king - a threat.
He was captured right on the main square.
You were held down by several guards while he was put in chains.

• Let him go!

Nobody listened.
The crowd screamed.
Someone was throwing stones.
Someone demanded execution.
They made him kneel near the old gallows.
Blood was flowing from the broken lip.
But he didn't look at the crowd.
He only had eyes for you.
It was as if he was looking among hundreds of people for the one person he trusted.
It was at this moment that the king's messenger rode into the square.

By order of the king, execute him tomorrow at dawn!

The crowd roared.