When Princess Elina turned six years old, something strange happened throughout the kingdom, something people would remember for many years afterward. That day, the king ordered the finest blacksmiths and carpenters to be brought to the palace, and by that very evening, a heavy mask-helmet made of wood and iron was carried into the little princess’s chambers. It covered the girl’s entire head. In the front, there were only narrow slits for her eyes and a small opening near her mouth so she could eat and drink.
A huge iron padlock hung from the helmet, and the king always wore the key around his neck, never showing it to anyone. Only the queen knew why he had done such a thing to his own daughter. A few months later, she fell gravely ill and passed away, taking with her to the grave the truth that only she knew.
From that moment on, the princess was never separated from the strange helmet.
Terrifying rumors began to spread through the palace. Some claimed the girl had been born with a monstrous deformity that the king was hiding from the entire world. Others were convinced that an ancient curse hung over the princess. Some even whispered that the king had once seen something horrifying in his own daughter’s face and, from that moment on, had hidden her from human eyes forever.
But no one knew the truth.
The servants were afraid even to look in the princess’s direction. When she walked through the palace corridors, everyone immediately fell silent. The girl almost never spoke, rarely went out into the garden, and always kept away from others. Only sometimes, late in the evening, the servants heard the sound of an old piano in an empty hall of the palace, where she played alone and quietly.
As the years passed, the fear surrounding her grew stronger and stronger.
SEVERAL TIMES, THE COURTIERS TRIED TO DISCOVER THE TRUTH. ONE OF THE BLACKSMITHS ATTEMPTED TO MAKE A COPY OF THE KEY WHILE THE KING WAS ASLEEP, BUT THE NEXT MORNING HE WAS BANISHED FROM THE KINGDOM. A YOUNG MAIDSERVANT TRIED TO LOOK UNDER THE HELMET AT NIGHT, WHEN THE PRINCESS HAD FALLEN ASLEEP BY THE FIREPLACE, BUT THE NEXT DAY THE GIRL VANISHED FROM THE PALACE WITHOUT A TRACE. AFTER THAT EVENT, NO ONE ELSE DARED TO TAKE THE RISK.
The king constantly repeated one sentence:
— She will remove the helmet only on the day of her wedding.
But the years went by, and no suitor appeared.
No prince wanted to marry a girl whose face no one had ever seen. Many feared that something monstrous was hidden beneath the helmet. Some openly said they had no intention of tying their life to a curse.
The king grew older and became more and more gloomy. He knew that one day he would die, and his only daughter would be left completely alone.
Until one day, a young prince named Richard arrived in the kingdom. He was the son of an impoverished ruler and understood perfectly well that marriage to the king’s daughter could change his life forever. Many considered him a madman when he announced that he was ready to marry the girl in the iron helmet.
In the city, people discussed it for whole days and nights.
— HE IS ONLY DOING IT FOR THE THRONE.
— No, he simply wants to know the truth.
— And what if there is a monster hidden beneath the helmet?
Despite everything, the wedding was set.
On the day of the ceremony, the enormous cathedral was filled to the very edges. Beneath the high stone vaults, hundreds of candles burned, and beside the red carpet stood the richest and most influential people in the entire kingdom. Everyone was waiting for only one moment.
When the doors finally opened, such a deep silence fell inside that the crackling of the burning candles could be heard.
It was the king himself who led his daughter to the altar.
He wore a heavy dark-red cloak trimmed with fur, and the princess walked beside him in a beautiful white gown embroidered with silver patterns. But her head was still covered by the same wooden-and-iron helmet with the padlock, which she had worn her entire life.
EVEN THE PRINCE LOOKED NERVOUS. WHEN THE GIRL CAME CLOSER, FOR SEVERAL SECONDS HE COULD NOT TAKE HIS EYES OFF THE STRANGE MASK.
The priest began the ceremony in a trembling voice, and then came the moment everyone had been waiting for.
The king slowly pulled the old key from beneath his robe.
A murmur immediately spread through the cathedral. Some guests even rose from their seats to see better.
The old king’s hands were visibly shaking as he inserted the key into the lock. A heavy metallic click rang out.
Then, very slowly, he removed the helmet from his daughter’s head.
And at that very moment, the entire cathedral froze. Someone held their breath. One woman dropped a goblet onto the stone floor. Even the prince himself stepped back in shock.
Because beneath the helmet there was… 😳😱
THERE WERE NO DEFORMITIES, NO SCARS, AND NOTHING TERRIFYING BENEATH THE HELMET.
Quite the opposite.
The princess was unbelievably beautiful. So beautiful that for several seconds, people simply stared at her in complete silence, as if they could not believe their own eyes. She had long golden hair, very fair skin, and strange, light-colored eyes that immediately drew attention.
But it was not her beauty that frightened the guests the most. There was no emotion on the girl’s face. She looked at the people with an empty, icy gaze, as if something inside her had died during all those years.
The prince tried to smile at her, but the girl did not even look at him.
Then one of the old advisers could no longer hold back and quietly asked the king:
— But why… why did you hide such a daughter for her entire life?
The old king remained silent for a long time, and then answered very quietly:
— BECAUSE I SAW HOW MEN LOOKED AT HER MOTHER. BECAUSE OF HER BEAUTY, WARS, BETRAYALS, AND MURDERS BROKE OUT. I DID NOT WANT THE SAME FATE FOR MY DAUGHTER.
After those words, he suddenly knelt in the middle of the cathedral and burst into tears.
And the princess, for the first time in many years, spoke of her own will. She slowly looked at her father and said quietly:
— You did not hide my face… You hid my entire life.
After those words, she turned around and left the cathedral alone, leaving behind the prince, the guests, and her own father.
It is said that a few days later, she left the palace forever. Some swore they had seen her in the far north, while others claimed she lived among ordinary people under a false name.
