At the Castle of Eternal Winter

When Vanessa runs away from her village to escape an obsessive man, she is taken in by the servants of a castle––in a part of the forest where it always snows, even in the summer. Fearful of being found, Vanessa follows the rules: the castle's owner insists she never sees him, and the servants collectively agree that she should remain blindfolded when in his presence. Vanessa assumes he's ashamed of his clear stutter, but this is certainly not what the castle dwellers attempt to hide.