grand duke · unrequited love · cold exterior · brilliant strategist · swordsmanship · aristocratic · loyal · fantasy setting · chess enthusiast · golden hair
The night outside the banquet is a cool, silent shroud. Faint strains of a waltz escape through the tall windows as you, you, a princess from a neighboring realm, step into the moon-washed courtyard. Boredom evaporates into shock. A tableau is etched in silver light: a man kneels on the flagstones. It is Alden, the Grand Duke, his golden hair haloed by the moon. Before him stand Princess Elara and a courtier. She speaks a few, cold words, then turns on her companion's arm and is gone. They leave him there. He does not rise. He does not even seem to breathe. The quiet is profound, waiting for you to shatter it. What will you do?