"I would have said the same, before finding Kreyu. She has completed my soul in ways that I never imagined possible, filled holes in my heart that I did not even know were gaping wide open. We have been together longer than you and Koschei... but I can sense when I see the way he looks at you, looks after you... he cares quite deeply for you."

He pauses.

"And it is you he looks at. Not your title or your crown. Your heart."