It was a beautiful night, the stars illuminated the starry sky.
In a mansion as big as a stadium, there was a little girl of five years old.
She was lying on her huge bed trying to sleep.
"(Really?)" exclaimed the princess at her knight's reply."
A maid was reading her a bedtime story.
"(Will you stand by me and protect me?)-With longing and interest she kept asking the knight who came from the ends of the earth to save her from the tyrant Duke Belmont."
The tale was about princesses in peril and knights in shining armor.
"(I promise to protect you from now on, until my last breath I will fight for you, my lady.) -said the knight who leapt from his steed to the altar where she stood."
The girl listened longingly to those stories ever since she learned to speak and write.
She dreamed every day of being a princess and being rescued by a knight.
"The knight kissed the princess and they lived happily ever after reigning with honor and kindness in the Kingdom of Altfode."
The maid had finished reading her account to her young mistress.
"I want another one." -said the little girl.
The maid made a small smile when her young mistress said that.
"I'm sorry, you can't do that." -She denied her mistress' request.
The little girl in a sad tone said.
"Why?"
While calmly the maid answered.
"It's too late. Besides, it's the seventh book I've read to you my lady."
"Tomorrow you have violin lessons, you must go to bed and sleep well to have all the energy in the world for your morning practice and in the evening you will have piano."
The girl on hearing that puffed out her cheeks like a balloon as she furrowed her little eyebrows.
The maid smiled again and said.
"If you will sleep now, tomorrow I will tell your mother's butler to get you a new book from our territory."
The little girl on hearing that was glad and closed her eyes.
The maid stood up, put the book away on a huge bookshelf where similar books and huge teddy bears were placed.
Before leaving the room the maid said goodbye to her young mistress.
"Good night, Alisa-sama."
And her mistress...
"Good night, Felicia."
...Alicelotte von Bismarck, slept longing to know what tomorrow had in store for her.
◇◇◇
That same night in another place near the border.
A child was crying.
He had been sent to sleep in the attic as punishment for dropping a shovel on someone's foot.
It was cold, dirty and he had nothing to sleep on that was soft.
The black-haired boy wiped away tears as he repeated the same thing over and over.
"It's not my fault..."
"It was an accident..."
"A shadow made the shovel fall and no one believed me..."
"Why nobody supports me, it's unfair, very unfair."
The child was still crying in that dark place where neither moonlight nor stars were shining.
A few years later, at the tender and innocent age of eight years. That child disappeared from this world.
◇◇◇
The place was a gigantic meeting room.
Men and women in ball gowns of all ages had gathered.
Today a girl was turning twelve, that meant that from now on the parties she would have would be treated like that of a young adult.
In three more years she will reach the legal age of maturity and three to five years later she will marry her fiancé.
The girl had arrived.
Servants blew trumpets to announce her arrival.
"Attention all! I am pleased to report that Miss Alicelotte von Bismarck has arrived!"
Two of them opened the door and out of a long red carpet stepped a beautiful girl.
Her dress was adorned with sequins and roses, the red of her dress matched both her heels and eyes that sparkled like those of a rabbit.
Her blonde hair was as bright as the sun, it was as golden as gold. It was pulled back in a Victorian style that showed off her slender nape.
She had little makeup, but even without it, she would look beautiful, her lips were as full as the two attributes that were on her chest.
Only that place had more fabric which caused her back to be almost uncovered.
Many people approached the lady to talk to her.
Men and women, adults and old people.
Children marveled at her beauty.
Young men seemed to be dazzled by her slender and well voluptuous body for a twelve year old girl.
Everyone sought her attention, except a group of girls.
They were the same age, but the words coming out of their mouths along with their hostile looks were not at all pleasant.
"Look at her smiling like she's the life of the party."
"Have you seen how vulgar her dress is? It shows part of her back, what a slut she looks."
"Not only that, look at her breasts, they're bigger than all of us put together, she must eat like a cow to have that."
"She sure is like the country girls, they barely get their period and they're already doing it with their vassals or servants."
"You're right, I'll probably round up several more or less good looking guys and like an animal I'll do them all hahaha."
The girls laughed amongst themselves. The girl who is supposed to be celebrating her birthday came up to them to say hello.
To make it sadder, they would belong to her entourage by family connections.
◇◇◇
The party had been going on for a while, long ago the prince should have arrived at the party, but he hadn't shown up until now.
Alisa was in a chair reading a book.
It was time for a show so the high nobility did things like this.
Suddenly someone approached Alisa to greet her, apparently she had just arrived.
When she looked at the person's face, she greeted him since he was an acquaintance.
"Good evening, Klein, why are you late?"
"Good evening, Alice, I was visiting the prince."
Klein was telling Alice that Liam was sick.
Alisa asked if he was okay and Klein said it was nothing serious.
The only thing that seemed odd was that he just happened to be sick today, and that he would be fine by tomorrow.
The laughter of the aristocrats was loud.
Alisa turned her face to see what they were laughing about and at that moment, Klein smiled mysteriously.
"By the way, Alice, did you know about this?"
"What thing?" -Alisa asked.
Klein was telling her about something that will come out in a few days. Alisa's eyes widened in surprise, but not out of happiness but for another reason.
◇◇◇
After returning home, Alisa changed into her pajamas ready for bed.
She told what happened at the party to her personal maid.
The maid was preparing the sheets for her young miss to go to bed, when something her mistress said left her dismayed.
"Eh... engagement? And, with the heir to the house of Kingsfort?"
"Yes."
Alisa was already in bed ready for sleep.
Her maid stepped aside for her mistress to lie down to sleep.
But the maid's face was very complicated to understand.
"What's the matter? Alisa said.
"Mistress, you are fine aren't you."
Alisa looked at her maid.
"What are you talking about?" -asked her mistress and the maid answered a little sadly.
"It is not uncommon for duke houses to be hostile to each other and now you will be engaged to the heir of one, that is a rare thing, normally it wouldn't happen due to everyone possessing a share of blood from the-"
"Felicia."
Alisa called to her maid to calm her down.
"It's okay, father will explain it soon, I'm sure Klein said it because he was excited about it, maybe this is a sign of something good that will happen in the future of our country."
"Miss..."
Alisa spoke maturely even though her face conveyed otherwise.
But her maid was looking at her very downcast look.
"Miss!" -The maid approached her bed and said in her face.
"You have every right to be happy and love whomever you wish. I am sure that, somewhere in this world, there is a man destined for you who will love and protect you. Your very own knight in shining armor."
Alisa smiled and said to him in a little annoyed tone.
"Felicia, I'm not a child anymore, I know that fairy tale knights don't exist, I'm a realistic woman."
The maid's face made a pitiful expression seeing how that smiling girl had grown into a woman who already understands the world.
"Still, I wish you happiness. Good night, miss."
"Good night, Felicia."
Alisa pulled the covers over herself ready for sleep as her maid turned off the light from the magic bulb and closed the door.
Before closing her eyes Alisa said.
"Knights are foolish, what kind of idiot would risk his life for a woman instead of his country?"
After saying that she slept soundly.
◇◇◇
Several years later, on a ship of an enemy fleet was Alisa as a hostage.
"Don't get carried away you brute animals!"
She was shouting at some men in black armor.
One of them was shouting at Alisa who was acting strong in a situation where her hands were shaking with fear.
"Knight you say? You really believe in that shit! There's no such thing as a knight who rescues bitches in danger like you! The reality is that no one will come to rescue you, no one knows you're here and no one knows what grotesque appearance you'll end up with when we're done with you! Do you understand? Knights on white steeds don't-?"
That was where one, no. Several shots rang out and opened a hole in the wall.
Someone was peering out from a place impossible to believe.
"Hello! I'm your friendly neighbor Baron Bradford!"
It was a boy, a country baron by the name of Rudel.
"I hear there are bad kids here?"
That boy had saved Alisa months ago and now he was doing it again.
There was no reason or benefit for him to do so.
"For that reason I'll kick all your asses, get your asses ready you fucking bitches!"
But to Alisa, that person, what he was doing was something that wasn't supposed to exist.
"Ahh... ahh.... Ru... del..."
She discovered that knights on white steeds and shining armor did not exist.
The only thing that, if it did exist and was real, was an arrogant knight in pedantic armor who would always save her from danger.
That day, Alisa discovered that heroes do exist.