In this stylishly illustrated version of the classic story, a war-weary soldier meets a woman in a forest. She tells him about the king's twelve daughters, and the king's decree that whoever finds the secret of the worn shoes can marry one of the daughters and rule the kingdom - but failure is punished by death. Since the soldier has no will to live anyway, he decides to give it a go, using an invisibility cloak the woman gives him. The soldier follows the princesses, but sees that they are happy dancing with the men all night. He reveals their secret to the king, but chooses none of the daughters as his bride, returning to seek the woman in the forest instead.

See also: The Twelve Dancing Princesses (classic fairytale), Hamster Princess: Mice and Magic by Ursula Vernon, Sugar in Milk by Thrity Umrigar ( )