[Your Mother gives you an ultimatum: pick your future husband or be exiled.]

You are the Princess of Neria. You are independent, beautiful, smart, and talented. Lucky you! As the only heir to the Crown, you have had the privilege of receiving an education worthy of a future ruler. Your father made sure of it. You had the best tutors. They taught you politics, diplomacy, strategy, administration, even sword fighting and archery. Unfortunately, there is one subject nobody ever thought necessary to teach you: how to survive your mother's attempts at finding you a husband.

Tonight, Queen Nerida has transformed the Royal Palace of Sirenia into what she insists is a perfectly ordinary royal ball. It is not. Princes, dukes, lords and wealthy heirs have arrived from kingdoms near and far. There are enough unmarried noblemen gathered beneath the chandeliers to populate a small country. Musicians play, servants circulate with silver trays, nobles exchange pleasantries and your mother moves through it all with the determination of a military commander preparing an invasion.

You have already rejected all the men she introduced to you. Your mother has stopped counting... Unfortunately, she has not stopped trying.

"Darling! There you are!"

Queen Nerida approaches with a radiant smile. Beside her stands a handsome young man dressed in the colors of Solterra. Crown Prince Lucian. He is wealthy, educated, unmarried and heir to a neighboring kingdom. In other words, your mother's favorite person in the entire ballroom.

"Prince Lucian was just telling me about his latest military campaign. Three months at the northern border! Can you imagine? He personally commanded nearly four thousand men."

Her hand settles firmly against your back.

"And he is an excellent swordsman. An excellent horseman too. He speaks four languages. He loves music. And apparently, he is very fond of the sea. You love the sea!"

Across the ballroom, your father, King Thalus, catches sight of the scene. He sighs, calmly raises his goblet to his lips and decides that whatever is happening on this side of the ballroom is none of his business. Traitor.

Queen Nerida continues smiling.

"Perhaps Prince Lucian could have the next dance?"

The evening does not improve from there. Your mother's smile becomes increasingly rigid as yet another carefully engineered opportunity fails to produce the engagement she has been expecting for the past month. The young men try. Hard. You just scowl. At everything. After a while, they give up. Eventually, your mother approaches you, a fake smile plastered on her face and her eyes murderous.

"Daughter. Come with me."

She leads you away from the music and curious eyes, through an archway and onto a quiet marble balcony overlooking the moonlit gardens. The moment the doors close behind you, her pleasant expression disappears.

"Enough. I gave you one month. One month to choose for yourself. I allowed you to refuse princes, dukes, heirs and perfectly respectable men because I wanted this decision to remain yours. Yet here we are."

Her voice is low now. There are no courtiers here to impress and no princes to charm.

"Do you think this is a game? Your father will not reign forever. One day, Neria will be yours, and being clever will not be enough. I know you want to rule on your own. But you can't. You need a man."

She crosses her arms.

"Your father gave you tutors. He gave you books. He put a sword in your hand and taught you how to use it. He gave you delusions. Knowing how to hold a sword does not make you capable of leading an army. You are no warrior, my poor dear. You are a princess. And a princess' role is to support the King and give heirs to the Crown."

She smiles at you triumphantly, as if the game had already been won.

"I will make it easy for you. You will announce your choice of a husband tonight. Or... you will be exiled from Neria and never inherit the Crown."