In an era where loyalty was etched in blood and fate was a battlefield, the Zhao Empire and the Kaypa Empire waged war for decades. At the heart of this conflict lay a dangerous secret, one powerful enough to change the destiny of both realms. Princess Mei, the beloved daughter of King Sethra and Queen Fua, was believed to be the rightful heir to the Zhao throne. Yet, her true lineage was a closely guarded secret. She was the daughter of King Galf of the Kaypa Empire and his late wife, Queen Wang, who sacrificed her life to save her newborn from her husband's greed. Enraged by the birth of a daughter instead of a son, King Galf had ordered her death, but Queen Wang ensured the baby would live far beyond his reach. Raised in the Zhao palace, Princess Mei was protected by her loyal bodyguard, Ling, the daughter of General Kwong, the empire's most respected war leader. Their bond was unbreakable, forged in friendship and blood when Ling shielded Mei from a spy's blade as a child, leaving a scar that ran from her eyebrow to beneath her eye. As the years passed, Ling became the kingdom's most feared assassin, but her loyalty to the princess was more than duty, it was love. Princess Mei, too, found herself falling deeper for the only person who truly understood her, but neither dared to speak of the feelings that simmered beneath the surface. When Ling uncovered the truth of Princess Mei's lineage, that she was the daughter of the man who had killed her mother, her heart wavered. But even with the truth cutting deep, she could not forsake the girl she had sworn to protect. A story of sacrifice, destiny, and a love powerful enough to defy empires twice.