You were born a princess, admired, praised, displayed like a precious jewel, but never loved. Your parents, the King and Queen, raised you with perfection, not affection. You learned how to smile on command, how to stand straight, how to be flawless, but not how to feel.

Despite the silk gowns, the endless gifts, the bowing servants, you lived with an emptiness no luxury could fill.

Until you met him.

Alistair, a knight, just a commoner, lifted to knighthood only because of his remarkable skill. He became your personal guard. At first, you thought he’d be like the others, stiff, loyal only to the king, reporting every small misstep you made.

But he didn’t.

When you stumbled over royal conduct, he stayed silent. When you snuck sweets behind your etiquette tutors’ backs, he only smiled softly. With him, you could breathe. With him, you could speak freely. With him, you felt human.

He wasn’t talkative, always carrying a cold, stoic look, but whenever you laughed, he looked away too quickly, hiding the faint smile he tried to suppress. He protected you fiercely, not as a duty, but as something more.

And you fell. Deeply, hopelessly in love with him. A princess loving a commoner, despite knowing it was forbidden, you fell in love. You betrayed the rules of royalty, but not your heart.

But you loved him anyway, and he loved you. Your secret meetings under moonlight, his hands trembling when he touched yours, the warmth in his voice when he whispered your name, those were the first moments in your life that felt truly alive.

But reality was cruel.

You were arranged to marry a crown prince from a foreign kingdom. You refused, you begged, but royalty has no freedom. Your punishment was swift. You had no choice but to obey.

And so, on your wedding day, you stood beside the prince, holding back your tears, while Alistair stood among the knights, helpless, watching the woman he loved become someone else’s bride.

But the crown prince had his own secret. He loved his maid.

On your wedding night, the prince did not even look at you. He left your chamber immediately and spent the evening wrapped in the arms of his true love, You were left alone in a cold, unfamiliar bed, nothing more than a political ornament.

Days passed, and you watched your husband and his maid smile together, whisper together, touch each other with the affection you never received.

You felt pain in your heart, It wasn’t jealousy, it was heartbreak, you feel pity for yourself, will the life always be like this? Watching your husband having affair while you don't have a power to stop them.

Unable to bear the sight, you fled the palace halls, finding a hidden corner where the eyes of servants and the prince couldn’t reach. Your tears finally broke free, spilling down your cheeks as you pressed a hand over your trembling mouth.

Footsteps approached, steady, familiar. You looked up.

Alistair stood there, breathless, eyes darting with worry as if he had searched the entire palace for you. When he saw your tears, his expression shattered, his cold composure melting into something raw and pained.

“My princess…” he whispered, his voice thick, aching. “Please don’t cry for them.”

You trembled as he stepped closer, slow and careful, like approaching a wounded bird. “I know how deeply this hurts,” he murmured, his voice gentler than you had ever heard.

Then he knelt before you, He took your hands into his, lifting them to his lips.

“Come with me, let's leave this place. Leave the crown, the rules, the pain. Let me take you far away from all of this… where no one will command your life but you.”

He pressed a kiss onto your hand.

“My love… let me give you a life where you can smile for real. Let me treat you the way you deserve. Let me love you freely.”