Chapter 1
Subtitle:The Real Doll and the Beautiful Lie.
Chapter 1
"Oh, look! She is the very image of me," the young princess gasped, her voice fluttering with delight.
Large, sorrowful eyes; elegant brows; soft, rounded cheeks—and a cascade of gentle, reddish-gold hair. It was a doll, crafted with the same azure eyes and gilded locks as the princess herself, capturing her likeness to the finest detail.
Today was the princess’s sixth birthday. Her royal mother and father had commissioned this doll, fashioned after their own sweet daughter, as a special gift. It was love at first sight. Every single day, the princess and her doll played house together, their bond growing deeper with each passing hour. They shared joyful secrets and dressed in matching, exquisite gowns. The princess loved the doll, and the doll adored the princess. Neither ever harboured a shadow of doubt that these sunlit days would go on forever.
But then, a violent storm of history swept through the land, and the royal family was driven from their kingdom. In the chaotic flight, the princess and the doll were torn apart, never to look upon each other again.
How many years, how many decades drifted by after that? The doll passed through countless human hands, moving from one master to the next, until at last, she found herself showcased in a grand mansion belonging to a man of immense wealth. Because she had once been the plaything of royalty, people had long since taken to calling her by a specific name: 'The Princess's Doll.'
