Less than twelve hours had passed since Leon had been forced to fulfill the most awkward "whim" of his life. To the squire’s surprise, the kiss hadn’t made the Princess any less businesslike. If anything, it had only intensified his sense of duty.

  Gray, pre-dawn twilight still blanketed the palace park. Leon, still slightly shell-shocked from yesterday's "test" and clearly nervous about this secret early summons, stood before the Princess. She, on the other hand, was entirely composed. Her black curls were braided into a tight plait, and determination was legible in her dark-gray eyes.

  "I have analyzed your warning from yesterday, Leon," Amelia began in a professional tone. She stood straight, hands clasped behind her back. "We have concluded that my life is a great value to the State. But this value must be self-sufficient. Guarding someone who cannot even run away is recklessness. In the hour of trouble, I will become a millstone around your neck that drags us both to the bottom. Correct?"

  Leon, who hadn’t quite recovered from the realization that his commanding officer was now this five-year-old cynic, simply nodded.

  "You swore an oath to fulfill my every command, Leon. Well, here is the first one." She leaned forward. "I demand that you immediately begin training me in the basics of self-defense, fencing, and archery. That is my whim for the time being. We need rapid progress."

  The young man instinctively began to protest. He had been raised by strict canons of honor and etiquette, and the Princess's order ran contrary to both.

  "Your Highness, that is... unthinkable! A Princess cannot brandish a sword! The Queen Mother, she..."

  "Her Majesty has already denied me official training," Amelia cut him off harshly, recalling her mother's cold refusal in the gazebo. "She has decided that my only role is that of a marriageable asset. But I disagree. Therefore, we are launching Project 'Warrior Princess' in stealth mode."

  She tapped her finger on his forearm, demanding attention.

  "You are too slow for this job. Your muscles are strong, but you wind easily." She immediately rolled out her modernized training plan. "To be ready at all times, you must increase your cardio endurance. Therefore, 6:00 AM is our new norm. Every morning—running. From the west wall to the east, a full cross-country run."

  Leon listened to her with bewilderment.

  "But, Your Highness... c-cross-country? The Guards do not train like that..."

  "And are they Princesses?" Amelia interrupted again. "They have different specs. We need unconventional methods. Besides, you are too wiry. Tomorrow we will introduce torso exercises. First, the 'plank' and three sets of 'push-ups'. This is called core strength—the key to the endurance of any working tool."

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  Leon, completely thrown off balance by this mixture of madness, authority, and strange terms like "cardio" and "core," could only gulp.

  "And now for the main point, squire. I need gear." Amelia lowered her voice. "Your status as a guard trainee is your access pass. You must secure safe, low-profile, but high-quality training swords and, most importantly, a practice bow suitable for my height. And, naturally, this is top secret. You will do this under the cover story of 'training for a younger brother' or something similar. Can you, Leon, deliver all this personally and without delay?"

  Leon's face, previously red from awkwardness, became focused. In this whirlwind of demands and his own confusion, he had finally found a simple truth. She commands, and he obeys. It was that simple.

  Leon straightened up and snapped his heels together.

  "Yes, Your Highness," his voice was firm. "I will execute this order. By dawn the day after tomorrow, the gear will be in the cache by the old greenhouse."

  Amelia smiled approvingly.

  "Excellent. And remember: not a single unnecessary word about our 'lessons.' This is our secret. From this day forth, 6:00 AM is Amelia Time."

  There. Plan 'Be a Strong Asset, Not a Sold Doll' is live, she summed up victoriously in her mind. I am back in control of the situation. Now I have not only a strategy but also an executor for my 'Secret Project'.

  Two weeks later. 6:00 AM.

  The chirping of the first birds barely pierced the morning silence. In that same secluded corner of the garden, hidden behind dense rose bushes, work was in full swing. Amelia, dressed in pageboy trousers and a tunic that Leon had secretly procured from the laundry, stood in a determined combat stance. Opposite her, already covered in sweat, was Leon.

  "...feet a bit wider, Your Highness. For balance," he explained patiently, nudging her foot with the toe of his boot.

  "Got it. Lower center of gravity," Amelia replied professionally, mirroring his movements. "Just like in yoga—Warrior Pose. Let's work on the block now."

  "Yo-ga?.." Leon asked in confusion, but didn't press for an answer. He was already getting used to his charge's oddities.

  Their new routine was ruthless but effective. Every morning began with a jog through the misty park while the guards dozed at their posts. Then came a series of bizarre exercises the Princess called a "warm-up": she would freeze with a stony face, leaning on her elbows and toes, forcing Leon to copy her. He felt with horror how, in just a minute, abdominal muscles he didn't even know existed began to burn.

  And only after that did the fencing begin. Leon, forgetting her title and age, became a strict mentor. He taught her how to hold the light wooden sword, correcting her grip time and again. He showed her how to draw the string of the child-sized bow, amazed at the tenacity with which she repeated the movements, rubbing her fingers raw.

  Today's training had come to an end. Exhausted, they sat on the dew-cooled grass, breathing heavily. Leon looked at the little Princess, and his gaze was a mixture of astonishment and admiration. She was incredibly resilient, grasped everything on the fly, and never complained.

  Amelia, noticing his look, gave him an adult, all-knowing smile, even though she was worn out.

  She is... incredible, the thought raced through his mind. Who is she? Where does she know all this from? She isn't just a Princess. She is... something else entirely.