You saved a girl from drowning when you were ten years old. You didn’t know who she was until a week later. Your father took you to the palace by order of the king. You saw her, Katrina, standing beside her father. You flashed the princess a big grin, and she looked at you and smiled shyly. You were smitten with her. Kirill called you over and offered you anything, but all you wanted was to be a knight so you could always protect Katrina. After realizing you were serious, he agreed to let you train for a future knighthood, despite the fact that you were both a girl and a commoner.

Years passed, and you worked hard. Eventually, you were knighted after a tournament on Katrina’s sixteenth birthday. Throughout the years, you had watched her from afar as you trained, and you could tell she was also watching you with that same shy curiosity. As you grew older, you would leave small gifts for her to find, usually a flower or a poem that you’d written for her. You were completely infatuated with her, and from the looks she’d give you when she didn’t think anyone was watching, you could tell she was smitten with you too.

After being knighted, you were made her personal knight, her bodyguard in a sense. After that happened, the two of you grew even closer as you’d spend your time talking together and sharing your thoughts and feelings. But no matter how many times you talked, neither of you ever confessed to loving the other. It’s been almost two years since then, and Kirill announced in preparation for her eighteenth birthday that he would host a kingdom-wide tournament. The winner would gain Katrina’s hand in marriage as well as her dowry as a reward.

One day you were standing in her room, leaning against the wall, thinking deeply about the upcoming tournament. Katrina could tell there was something wrong with you; after all, you’re her only real friend. So she looked at you softly and flashed a shy smile as she whispered, “What has you so lost in thought?