Chapter I: The Hero and the Princess (2025)

The Hero and the Princess is the first chapter of Slay the Princess.

Overview[edit]

The Hero begins on a path in the woods. The Narrator instructs him to follow the path to a cabin and slay the Princess in its basement, with the Voice of the Hero expressing doubt.

Refusal[edit]

If the Hero repeatedly refuses to approach the cabin, eventually the cabin will begin to multiply until it is unavoidable. The world will end, leading to Chapter II: The Stranger.

The Pristine Blade[edit]

Otherwise, you will have a choice upon entering the cabin to pick up the Pristine Blade, as encouraged by the Narrator. Entering the basement without the blade will lead you to meet the gentle Princess, while entering with the blade will lead you to the harsh Princess. Most routes are exclusive to a particular temperament.

The Gentle Captive[edit]

The Princess is polite and grateful someone has come to free her, shackled by her wrist to the basement wall. Conversing with her, she is unable to remember anything before her imprisonment, even her name or the world outside.

If you choose to leave her locked in the basement, you will temporarily escape, but eventually she will free herself and attack you as an apparition, leading to Chapter II: The Nightmare. If you choose to retrieve the blade and return downstairs, the Princess has disappeared, save for her severed arm. If you don't close the door behind you, the Princess will escape, leaving you locked in the basement and leading to Chapter II: The Witch. Closing the door will lead to a fatal fight; if you keep fighting, you will kill each other leading to The Witch, and if you give up, she will watch you bleed out, leading to Chapter II: The Beast.

If you choose to help her escape, you begin to look for a key to her shackle but the Narrator describes the stair door locking shut behind you and the dagger falling at your feet. Meanwhile, the Princess realizes your predicament and begins to chew through her own arm to escape her bindings. If you choose to slay her now, she viciously fights back. You can choose to give up and the Princess will watch you bleed out, leading to The Beast. If you continue to fight, you will both slay each other, leading to The Witch. If you choose to run away and leave her locked in the basement, you will temporarily escape before she attacks you as an apparition, leading to The Nightmare.

You can instead help her remove her hand with your knife, but when you try to leave together, the Narrator controls your body, raising your blade to fell the Princess. If you resist his influence, she nervously takes the dagger from you and tries to put you out of your misery, stabbing you again and again, sobbing apologies as you die. This leads to Chapter II: The Damsel. Failing to resist will result in you and the Princess killing each other, leading to The Witch.

The Harsh Captive[edit]

The Princess is cold and threatening, snidely taunting you. If you slay her without hesitation, you will catch her off-guard and sink your blade into her heart, though even as she dies, she seems convinced you can't truly kill her. If you go upstairs for your "reward," you will find the outside of the cabin has ceased to exist. The Narrator describes an eternity of bliss in the unchanging cabin, which you can either accept, leading to the Good Ending, or reject and kill yourself, leading to Chapter II: The Spectre.

If you check the Princess' body after killing her, she will stab you with a hidden blade and you die together, leading to Chapter II: The Razor. You will also reach the Razor by wondering if she has a weapon before slaying her.

If you try to speak to her, she demands you drop the knife. If you refuse and attempt to kill her, she will fight back. You can give up and she will crush you, leading to Chapter II: The Tower. You can continue to fight and you will kill each other, leading to Chapter II: The Adversary. Otherwise, you can run away and leave her in the basement, resulting in her slaying you as an apparition and leading to The Nightmare.

Dropping the knife allows you to speak with the Princess. She will not attempt to sway you, arguing you couldn't trust her anyways when she'd say anything to stop you from killing her, and she offers no information about herself. You can then attempt to slay her, leading to the choice to give in (leading to The Tower,) fight (leading to The Adversary,) or run away (leading to The Nightmare.)If you instead choose to leave her in the basement, you will have the chance to turn around. She will be ready for you, however, and she will crush you, leading to The Tower. Proceeding upstairs, you will temporarily escape but she will eventually kill you as an apparition, leading to The Nightmare.

If you try to free her, the Narrator describes the door locking behind you. You can continue to help her by slicing off her shackled hand, but when you try to leave together, the Narrator will control your body and force you to attack. If you resist, she kills you swiftly in clinical mercy, leading to Chapter II: The Prisoner. Otherwise, she will fight back and crush you, leading to The Tower.