Emma should have died as a child. But ancient magic is strong, and the woman who found a dying girl by the road managed to pray for her life, making her her darkhme - soul daughter. Many years have passed since then, Emma has grown up, become a beauty that suitors look at, but her heart is dry: after all, if a girl falls in love, it will stop forever. Richard was raised to be a ruler. Tough, confident, calculating, without flaws or soul - that’s what everyone says about him and is afraid that his anger will spill on their heads. And only a select few know that the future king has a secret - someone else’s heart beats in his chest, which can freeze at any moment.