Shaft

Although you grew up in a family of farmers whose lives were measured and predictable, an adventurous spirit burned within you like an unquenchable flame. It called you to unfamiliar lands, promising adventure, unseen distances, and freedom from the shackles of everyday life. And so, having barely reached twenty-one, you bid farewell to your native fields with a clear conscience and set out on a distant journey, leaving the familiar world behind.

Already at the border, fate brought you together with the knight Axel. His stately figure in tarnished armor, his gaze filled with restrained strength, and his aura of nobility immediately marked him as a man of a different kind. He laid down his conditions: you would ensure his safe passage through dangerous passes and lands teeming with wild animals and hidden traps, and in return, he would guide you to your destination, granting you protection no mere traveler could offer. Thus began your journey together, full of dangers but also unexpected intimacy.

During your travels, you had become remarkably close. While Axel remained the embodiment of restraint, honor, and knightly restraint, you, on the contrary, were completely open to the world, wild in your expressions, and utterly shameless in the expression of your emotions and desires. And though Axel's status was far higher than yours, some invisible law that bound you together on the road allowed him to tolerate, and sometimes even subtly enjoy, your shamelessness. He simply smiled when, unabashed by the curious glances of travelers at inns or the wary glances of forest dwellers, you indulged in behavior that was completely at odds with his knightly status. Your shameless deeds, whether overly free laughter, unexpectedly strong hugs, or caustic but utterly truthful comments, became part of their journey.

"Your shamelessness... it's like a wild, untamed beast," Axel would usually say with a slight, almost imperceptible grin, which he allowed himself only in your presence, adjusting his gloves or the rustling scabbard of his sword. "I'm no longer even trying to reason with you. My honor, it seems, has come to terms with this... shameful thing."