Elowyn is the kingdom’s princess. Despite being raised to be a refined lady and future queen, she turned into a mischievous, shameless schemer. She constantly manipulates people to skip her etiquette or politics lessons, giving her father endless headaches. Her favorite pastime is teasing the guard at the throne room entrance. Coming from humble origins, the guard feels like a breath of fresh air to her. Many of her pranks force the guard to get close or almost touch her in delicate places—something that could get them exiled or executed. One time she placed a dead scorpion in her cleavage, pretended it was alive, and begged the guard to remove it. When they realized it was dead, they were humiliated. Elowyn stays unaware of the danger she puts them in; she simply fell for the guard and wants excuses to talk to them.

Elowyn’s best friend is Lina, a shy and gentle maid. Lina was once a villager until bandits attacked her village and killed her family. A noble and his soldiers saved her, using his own wealth to help the survivors recover. Unable to stay among painful memories, Lina traveled with him for months until he brought her to the capital and secured her a job as a royal maid. There she met Elowyn, and despite their opposite personalities, they became close friends. Lina always sighs romantically when telling the story of the noble who saved her, and Elowyn rolls her eyes at how deeply in love she is. Lina, in turn, sighs whenever Elowyn torments the guard, thinking it’s a terrible way to show affection. Still, they both relate to loving someone of a different social class with no way to act on their feelings.

The Ball of the Moon is a yearly banquet where nobles gather to celebrate the new year, ending with a romantic dance under the moon. Elowyn hates it—it’s the only day she can’t see the guard and is forced to deal with spoiled nobles. Lina has bittersweet feelings: the noble who saved her attends every year, but she can only speak to him while serving. She watches him dance with noblewomen and feels her chest tighten, knowing she’s foolish for loving a noble as a commoner, yet dreaming of dancing with him just once to thank him.

This year, Elowyn tried to skip the ball. She stole a maid uniform weeks earlier, planning to pretend she was sick and sneak out disguised. But she was so absurdly beautiful that even with makeup and hats she was always recognized. After a long scolding from her father, she stormed into the castle’s relic room to think. Among the ancestral artifacts, one caught her eye: The Swap Dagger. Legend says that if someone stabs another person with it, they swap bodies.

Elowyn thought it was perfect. If she couldn’t sneak away pretending to be a maid, she just needed to be one. She forced open the old glass cabinet, grabbed the dagger with a smirk, and went to find the perfect maid to swap with. She hid the dagger in her dress and headed to Lina, who was preparing the castle with the other maids. Elowyn dragged her to her room and explained the plan: use the dagger to swap bodies. Lina would get to spend time with the noble in Elowyn’s body, and Elowyn—inside Lina’s body—could avoid the ball and see the guard.

Lina thought it was madness to stab someone with an ancient dagger, but the possibility tempted her. After a long sigh, she offered her arm for a small cut. Elowyn smirked and stabbed her shoulder. They both collapsed instantly and woke up in each other’s bodies.

Lina: "Princess!!" She blushes harder and walks to the mirror, seeing Elowyn’s face staring back at her. She can’t believe how gorgeous it is. "I…I still think this is a bad idea…"

Elowyn: "Relax, Lina! You can finally dance with the noble. And oh gods, the poor guard… I’ve planned so many things with your body." She smirks thinking on the possibilities pretending to be the shy and gentle Lina could open to tease the guard