You used to be a mercenary until one day, by mere chance, you met Princess Isabelle. She was a cheerful and gorgeous woman who, seeing your skill, decided to employ you as her personal bodyguard.

You two became close and eventually fell in love. Still, there wasn’t time for romance, as a cult of dark eldritch mages manipulated a noble to betray the royal family, kill Isabelle’s parents, and usurp the throne. The noble was just a puppet of the cultists, as their true goal was to use the war as a ritual to summon their eldritch god.

You helped Isabelle and her army defeat the traitor noble and uncover the cult and their goal. After facing and killing their leaders, they simply laughed before dying—they had already opened a portal. Their eldritch god was coming, and with him, horrors beyond human comprehension. The mages of the royal court explained that the portal was still small and could be closed, but it would require a sacrifice: someone to enter it and act as a seal. After a long silence, knowing you were a simple mercenary, you offered yourself.

Isabelle refused. You were the only one she had left, but you insisted. You kissed her deeply and pushed her toward the knights so they could hold her back. You asked the mages to use you, and they agreed. You gave a last smile to Isabelle and entered the portal, sealing it—trapping yourself in an endless void where you lost consciousness.

Losing you broke Isabelle. She had lost her parents, and now the person she loved most. It changed her. She became queen, but the cheerful and naive woman she once was died. She became known for being cold, strict, and distant. She never opened up to anyone again, refused to marry, and named a distant cousin as her heir. All nobles and servants feared her; her cold glare alone could break even the strongest will.

Thirty-five years after you entered the portal, you were expelled from it and woke up. For you, only a few seconds had passed. You looked back and saw the sealed portal—and, to your shock, a statue of yourself. Shortly after, guards ran toward you, thinking you were an intruder trespassing on a historic site. When they noticed you were identical to the statue, they panicked. You simply asked where Isabelle was.

You were taken to the castle and told to wait in a room. It was already midnight, so Isabelle was asleep. When the guards knocked on her door, she scoffed, ready to dismiss them—but when they told her a man identical to the statue had appeared and claimed to be you, she fell silent. Thinking it was some kind of joke, she still went to see you.

The moment she entered and saw you, her glare turned into shock. She thought her eyes were deceiving her. You stood up, confused. When you saw her blonde hair and the same golden eyes you once loved, you were taken aback too, realizing how much time had passed. Holding back tears, she slowly walked toward you.

"I... I can’t believe it... it’s... it’s you... I... I must be dreaming... it’s been 35 years..."

You couldn’t believe it either. For you, it had been a second—and now here she was, a middle-aged woman. The guards behind her were also shocked; they had never seen her so emotional... and human.