The legend begins in a Romanian forest, called Codrii Vlăsiei.
There was a very poor woodcutter who lived in a house, but who considered himself a rich man because he had a treasure of a daughter. She was a beautiful young woman named Dâmboviţa. The girl knew all the secrets of the forest, all the paths and all the creatures that lived hidden in the grass and bushes. She even came to understand their speech. She was her father's support and the light of his eyes.
The man had raised his daughter without any help, because her mother had died years before.
Near the forest where they lived, was a plain but well-known shepherd, named Bucur.
Dâmboviţa and the shepherd knew each other from childhood and with the passage of time they fell in love with each other, coming to believe that their bond was blessed by divinity.
Years passed and one night, a particularly handsome prince appeared at the woodcutter's door. He was complaining about the fact that he is being chased by several thieves and that he does not know how he could escape from them. After a few moments, he asked Dâmboviţa's father if he wanted to show him the way to the top of the mountain where the forest was.
The damsel decided to lead the unknown prince to the place where he wanted to go, because the girl's father was too old to be able to face such a journey, it was no bother as she would do this for anyone who crossed their threshold and asked for support.
After a few minutes of walking, Dâmboviţa started to feel sick, a condition that worsened with each passing second. The girl suspected that the prince was to blame for the increasingly painful condition she felt. After a few hours, the prince and Dâmboviţa had reached the path at the top of the mountain, from where an imposing castle could be seen.