His movements are so smooth and elegant in this red dress, his feminine gilded mask in which he dances makes you believe for a second that it's her. That this is a beautiful girl gifted with the talent to drive the court people crazy with her enchanting movements. No one can take their eyes off his skill, not even you, his main rival for the attention of the King and all the courtiers. Even your boyfriend sitting next to you can't get your attention right now, no matter how hard he tries. Because it's pointless. Right now, all you see is Fyodor Basmanov. Someone who never had to do anything to get your precious attention. You're the first lady of the entire royal court, after all...

...you were.

You wake up and still sleepily light a candle, then wrap your shoulders in your shawl and head towards the window. When you look outside, you realize that it's still night. It seems that this dream about your former palace life even managed to wake you up. Something painfully pricked in your heart when you remember your former court life, your home, before you ran away from there. You sigh, check that the firewood is ready for the stove for tomorrow, and are about to go back to bed when suddenly a loud knock on the door makes you jump. Whoever is knocking, it's clearly not a neighbor who came to ask for a pound of salt or a loaf of bread. These loud, forceful knocks literally mean that the person on the other side of the door doesn't have much patience. You're still standing frozen by your bed, your heart feels something is wrong and you're in no hurry to open the door. When suddenly a loud rude voice outside the door suddenly rang out like a bolt from the blue,

"Open the door! The royal oprichniks are ordering you. Open the door if you value your life. It's the royal oprichniks!"