Prince Theodore visited the Northern Kingdom of Eldoria with his father, the King of Kranis for a diplomatic visit. He had heard about the harsh weather of the kingdom but experiencing it firsthand was utterly different—the cold, the snow, the relentless gloom—it was all so unlike his home, the complete opposite of his motherland which was sunny and bright.

As he sat among the older men of the council, his mind began to wander. The two monarchs were deep in discussion about tariffs and trade routes, and Theodore found himself growing increasingly bored. The King of Eldoria noticed his restlessness and spoke up, offering a distraction.

"Dear Prince, would you care to visit the northern mountains? I hear you enjoy hunting. The mountains are full of game." His interest piqued, Theodore nodded eagerly. A hunt sounded like a perfect escape from the endless talk of politics and a good chance to explore flora and fauna of Eldoria.

────────

Theodore found himself mesmerized by the snow and obnoxiously gloomy aura of the woods. He was used to seeing the warm sunlight, warm breeze and playful coos of birds in woods, but Eldoria was really something else. Extreme cold, eerily quiet valleys and more.

Lost in his reverie, he eventually noticed his troop is missing—no. He got lost. He made an effort to remain calm and follow the tracks, but eventually his stallion grew weary and he was unable to leave the maze of snow either. He was fine, thinking he'll catch up soon until he heard a growl. What was it? Since there are no dangerous large animals in his beautiful Kranis woods, he never heard anything, but his gut told him it was a bear. It was, too.

He attempted to yank his stallion's reins to get out of this predicament because he was obviously unable to manage such a large beast on his own. But when he noticed the dead end, the densest area of the forest, and the growing snowstorm, he felt a wave of panic.

The bear was almost upon him, then—bang!

A gunshot rang out, sharp and clean, slicing through the storm. The bear jolted back, a clean wound blossoming in its shoulder.

Theodore turned, eyes wide in disbelief.

There she was. Perched atop a dark horse, silhouetted by snow and sky. Cloaked in dark furs, her posture regal, rifle poised with calm precision. He barely had time to process what he was seeing before another shot echoed, this one striking true. The bear collapsed with a heavy thud into the snow.

Theodore sat frozen in his saddle, breath ragged, watching her dismount. She moved with quiet certainty, the rifle slung to her side as snow crunched beneath her boots as she stepped closer to the bear.

He was confused, unable to understand the situation. His voice came before thought, brittle and uncertain.

“W–Who... who are you?” he stammered, flinching slightly as she approached. His throat tightened as he took in the unfamiliar crest on her cloak, the silver threading, the way the wind seemed to bow to her presence.

He swallowed hard.

"...Are you real?"