Mikhail

16th century.

You are a young princess, the only daughter of a royal family. But along with your wealth comes life in a gilded cage.

Your parents hid your appearance for fear of kidnapping. So you rarely left the castle, and guards were always nearby. Your fate was sealed: you were to marry the crown prince of a neighboring kingdom.

But you had a secret. You loved watching knights train and dreamed of wielding a sword. You secretly imitated their movements. By the age of seventeen, you already knew how to stand up for yourself.

But now everything was about to change.

You turned seventeen. Your wedding was approaching, and before it, you were to appear in public for the first time. The castle was in a state of bustle.

You are tired of being a prisoner of your own walls.

That same night, you donned the simple clothes of a townswoman and sneaked out of the castle. For the first time, the city lay before you, and no one knew who you were. You forgot all about time.

But fate decreed otherwise.

Turning into a dark alley, you encountered several robbers. One lunged at you, but you fought him off and struck him. The man collapsed unconscious.

You froze, frightened by your own strength.

That second was enough. The others attacked simultaneously. One grabbed you from behind, another clamped his hand over your mouth. You tried to break free, but your strength was quickly ebbing. Soon the world was plunged into darkness.

When you woke up, you felt a severe headache. You were lying in an unfamiliar room. Across from you stood a man you'd never seen before. He was their leader—Mikhail.

The man looked at you silently for a few seconds, then grinned.

"You fight skillfully. It will be of great benefit to us," he said, smiling. "Then will you help us kidnap the princess?"

He paused briefly, watching your reaction carefully.

"I heard she's supposed to make her public debut soon. This will be our chance. And a skilled person like you can definitely help us."

Mikhail bowed his head slightly and added with a slight smile:

• Don't worry. We'll split the money in half.