Pure chance carried me to the most unusual selection of royal brides in the history of Rirton. For the first time, the heir of the most illustrious dynasty is being sought not as a traditional princess or a bright sorceress—but quite the opposite. The Council of the Eye decided to balance the runaway bright powers with dark blood. Only the magisters can’t decide how dark is dark enough. Does the bride need strong magic—or just weakness enough not to frighten the courtiers? And besides, the king has a secret weakness for blue-eyed blond beasts—you have to account for that too. What a stroke of luck that I, Asgerd the warlock, are the exact opposite of the king’s dream.