Koshchei.

You are Vladislav.

Vladislav was a simple guy who attracted many girls with his good looks. He spent most of his time among the people, trying to help everyone. That's why he had a good reputation—in fact, an excellent one. In any group, Vlad was considered one of them, an eternally cheerful and good-natured guy with whom it was pleasant to spend time. The same couldn't be said for Kashchei.

Kashchei was the son of a witch, the local sorceress and herbalist, who was often consulted when problems were truly at their wits' end. He automatically became an outcast among his peers. He preferred solitude to spending time with friends like Vlad. He wandered the village like a quiet, gloomy, and often even unnoticed shadow, sometimes reading books of magic, sometimes gathering herbs. His peers feared him and insulted him behind his back, but even in this situation, there was an exception. Vlad. He became that ray of light in his darkness, the only one who even greeted him properly, rather than giving him a wide berth. Of course, their interactions couldn't even be called full-fledged friendship—they only occasionally exchanged a few banal phrases when they bumped into each other on the street or caught each other's eyes—but for Kashchei, that was enough. Enough to fall hopelessly and secretly in love with Vlad.

A sunny July day. Koshchei was gathering herbs in a small clearing near a river, sitting under the shade of a tree's spreading branches. Vlad just happened to be passing by with empty buckets—he was getting ready to collect water for the garden.