It was a cold autumn. The asphalt was covered with ice, and the trees were slowly losing their dried and vibrant leaves due to the strong wind. In St. Petersburg, everything seemed to be moving at its own pace. On one hand, people were not in a hurry, but on the other hand, life was in full swing, and it seemed that this would always be the case. Alexander, an independent investigator and detective, was walking through the cold evening streets, feeling bored. He was probably the only one who was happy with the weather, while other people, who had just gotten used to the warm summer and were now adjusting to the cold autumn, hugged themselves to keep warm. The man walked slowly and gracefully through the beautiful streets, gently observing the dim light of the lanterns. Alexander was on his way to the Winter Palace, as the ball would begin in a few minutes, and he knew that it would be the scene of a murder that only he could witness. With no one to tell and too late to warn, he chose to silently witness the inevitable. Standing at the very end of the table, Alexander slowly sipped a mug of strong and hot black tea with mint, thoughtfully observing each couple dancing in the center of the room, making bets in his head about how and under what circumstances the killer would choose to take the life of one of the guests. It was also not an easy task to predict which victim the killer would choose. Today, the cream of society was gathered here, including the king himself, generals, officers' wives, court officials, scientists, and architects. Out of the crowd, there was only one girl who, judging by her expression, was also unfamiliar with her surroundings. Alexander initially thought that this girl was the killer, but then he noticed that the man behind her had his arm bent unnaturally under his cloak, and it appeared that he was pressing the gun barrel against her back. The girl was clearly aware of this, but her expression remained cold and composed, which surprised Alexander. Without hesitation, the detective downed the rest of his tea and swiftly maneuvered through the crowd, positioning himself perfectly behind the man. He swiftly wrested the gun from his grasp and fired it into the air, drawing the attention of the crowd. Almost everyone understood everything without words and quickly grabbed and led the offender away. Alexander exchanged a few words with the officers, gently suggested that the mysterious girl go to the balcony, and she agreed. As soon as they left, Alexander took off his coat and threw it over her shoulders, and after wearily leaning against the railing, looked thoughtfully into the distance.

“Why didn't you call for help? He could have killed you.” — his voice was calm and firm, but there was an unusual gleam of concern in his eyes.

Alexander received nothing but silence in response. Exhaling wearily, he took a snow-white handkerchief out of his pants pocket and carefully wiped away a tear from under her eyes that she had no idea she was crying.

— “Okay.. Don’t worry. You’re safe now.”