A long time ago in the kingdom of Pajajaran, lived a king, Prabu Siliwangi. The king was an avid hunter.

One fine day, he went out hunting in the forest. However, he was so engrossed tracking his prey that he was separated from the rest of his hunting party. He looked up only to find himself lost, deep in an unknown part of the forest. He turned left, he turned right but wherever he went, he ended back where he started. Panic surged through his veins.

Suddenly, in the distance, a shadowy figure appeared. The king squinted his eyes to get a better look at who it was. It was a woman.

What is she doing in the forest? Is she lost? Maybe she can help me. Questions and doubts filled the king’s mind but he had no other choice but to ask for help. 

He took a step forward.

“Excuse me, kind stranger. I was out hunting and now I am lost. Can you please show me how to get out of the forest?” Prabu Siliwangi asked. The woman replied as she stepped out from the shadows, “I have lived here for a long time. I know every inch and corner of this forest. I can help you but on one condition.”  

“What is the condition?” Prabu Siliwangi asked.

 “For a long time, I have lived here alone in the forest with just my servants. I would like to make a humble request that you be a guest in my home for a few days before I show you the way out.” Said the woman. The king thought it over. He would rather spend a few more days in the forest than be lost forever. And so, he agreed. The woman led him to her house.

To their surprise, the two of them became good friends. They would stay up till late at night talking and laughing, and every meal was spent together. The woman showed him around her palatial grounds and the surrounding forest, and they would spend their days hunting. Days turned into weeks, and weeks turned into months. Without realising it, their friendship turned into love, and the king and woman got married. 

However, one day, the king finally said, “My queen, I need to go back to my kingdom. My kingdom cannot be left alone without a ruler. Please come back with me.” While his wife loved him immensely, she turned him down as she did not want to leave her home. However, she made him promise that he would come back to visit her again.

While he was sad to leave her, he knew he had to do the right thing. He swore to his queen that he would come back as much as he could to visit her. With that, he departed for Pajajaran.

When he arrived at Pajajaran, Prabu Siliwangi’s people celebrated his homecoming with much fanfare. However, having left his kingdom on its own for so long, there was much work to be done.

Months passed. Prabu Siliwangi was so busy that he forgot all about his promise to his beloved wife.
One day, while sleeping, he heard the cries of a baby. Rising from his bed, he looked around to see where the cries came from. 
To his shock, he found a baby at his doorstep. Whose baby is this? Who dares to bring this child to my doorstep? He picked up the child and was about to call out to his servant but a bright light shone and a figure appeared before him. It was his wife. 

“That baby is our child. I am leaving her in your care. Treat her like you would any human being.”
“Human being? What do you mean?” the puzzled king asked.
“I am a spirit and a guardian of the forest. I want you to love and bring her up like you would a human child.”
Before he could reply, she disappeared. 
Prabu Siliwangi brought his daughter to his room. He had so many unanswered questions, but one look at his daughter’s sweet smile, all his troubles melted away. She was as beautiful, serene and calm as her mother. He named her Dewi Kadita.

Kadita grew up to be a beautiful and kind-hearted young woman – generous and well-loved by the people of Pajajaran. Kadita was the spitting image of her mother and was a reminder to the king of his wife. For years, he tried looking for her but he could never find her again. But without a wife and a male heir, he had no choice but to marry again. He then asked for Kadita’s permission to marry a princess from another kingdom, Dewi Mutiara. Because she loved her father, she agreed, “Your happiness means everything to me, father. You have my permission to marry.” And so, he married Dewi Mutiara.  At first, his second wife was loving and kind to everyone, especially to Dewi Kadita. A few months later, the queen received news that she was pregnant with her first child. This was when things took an ugly turn. She turned into a jealous, angry and selfish queen. Her demands became increasingly worse. She even insisted that the beloved princess be sent away. This upset the king that he admonished her in front of the entire court. She was ordered never to speak of it again.

Angered by her husband and determined to get Kadita out of the kingdom, Mutiara went to see a witch. She commanded the witch to put a curse on her stepdaughter. How she hated the princess! She wanted her gone and out of her life. Because of her, her husband had rebuked her in front of everyone. She wanted revenge. 
That night, as Kadita slept, a pungent smell drifted through the palace grounds and into the princess' chamber. Kadita tossed and turned throughout the night. 
The next morning, the peace and quiet of the early dawn was shattered by a shrill and piercing scream. 
“Ah!!!! My skin! What is happening to me?” the cries came from Kadita’s room! Her entire body was covered with pus-filled sores and the smell of rotten flesh filled the air. She clawed and scratched at her sores but the more she scratched, the worse it got. Nobody but her father dared to come close to her. Everyone was afraid of her. 
Seeing his daughter in agony was too much for the king to bear. For months, he ordered the best healers in all of the land to cure his beloved daughter. One by one they tried, but nothing worked.