ALEDAN stopped in front of a dilapidated wooden door at the edge of the city, where clay houses pressed together and the smell of burning firewood lingered in the air.
He lightly pushed the door open and gestured for RONA to enter.
The space was narrow, lit only by dim light seeping through holes in the roof, yet it radiated a warmth the princess had never felt in the cold halls of her palace.
RONA held her breath, leaning against the clay wall, trying to regain her balance.
Their hearts beat in sync, echoing the rhythm of their run and fear.
ALEDAN slowly placed the necklace on an old wooden table.
This time, he didn't touch it, letting it gleam on its own—like strangers in a poor man's house.
He turned to her, eyes demanding an answer:
"I risked my life and my family's life for you… now tell me, who are you? And why is the king mobilizing his army for a piece of gold dropped by a girl wearing peasant clothes?"
RONA hesitated.
Her hands trembled as she held the edge of her veil.
Should she tell the truth and lose her freedom, or lie and continue the game?
But the honesty in ALEDAN's eyes made lying feel like betrayal.
Slowly, she lifted her hands and untied the veil.
The black fabric fell, revealing a delicate face, as if carved from marble, and eyes carrying a noble sorrow that only someone who has lived behind golden bars could know.
ALEDAN froze in place.
Words slipped from his lips as he took in her features for the first time under the dim light.
She wasn't just beautiful—she resembled the images artists painted of the late queen… she resembled the "princess RONA" spoken of in storyteller tales.
"I am the daughter of the man who… is looking for the ring in the market right now, and I'm the one who lost it… and you found it," she said, her voice trembling.
"I am RONA… and this necklace is all I have left of my mother."
A heavy silence filled the room.
ALEDAN stepped back, feeling a vast chasm open between them.
He was a son of poverty and clay; she was the daughter of the throne and crown.
"A princess?" he whispered, bitterness mixed with astonishment.
"I was protecting a princess while my father was dying of hunger because your guards seized his goods last month?"
RONA looked at him with pain, feeling for the first time the weight of the crown she wore.
"I don't choose the laws, ALEDAN. I run from them just like you. That's why I come here every Thursday—to see the world my father forbids me to see."
In that moment, ALEDAN approached the table, picked up the necklace, and extended it toward her.
"Take it… and return to your palace. The forest is no place for birds raised in golden cages."
But RONA didn't take the necklace.
She looked at his rough hand and said:
"Birds dream of flying, ALEDAN, even if it costs them their lives. Will you help me see how people truly live? Or will you hand me to the guards and end the story here?"