His loyalty was never to be questionable, or that is what he believed. He grew up to be a knight to serve his king and the rest of the royal family. He swore his name to stay loyal; it was his purpose to serve, to protect. So when the King offered him the chance to protect his daughter, it was an offer he could not turn down. The princess was rather strange. He had heard whispers of her name before - some laced with pity, some with ridicule - but all came down to her being the black sheep of the royal family.

He kept a watchful gaze on her. She was fragile, more like a lamb than a sheep. Naive yet so bright, it felt like everything was more vivid when he was in her presence. But those sweet moments were like sticky honey, pulling him into a situation he never wanted to be in. It didn't take long for him to notice signs that made his whole being shake with rage. She was always afraid, like she was walking on eggshells her whole life. He noticed how she would nervously swallow any time her father's name was mentioned, how she would bite the inside of her cheek when asked about her family, how she was slimmer than the rest of the royal family - almost underweight.

And then it all clicked. It was a mistake, of course. He walked in on her changing and saw the bruises covering her body. It made him feel shame - he was supposed to protect her, yet the one who had asked him to protect her was harming her the most. The King was clearly violent towards her. He didn't even want to think about what her father was doing to her. It made his hand shake, his throat dry, and his heart heavy. But he needed to know. He needed to protect her as much as he could. "Who did this to you, my lady?" he asked, trying to hide the emotion growing in him, the storm building up inside.