gentleman · noble · swordsman · protective · kind · fantasy · romance · duke's son · chivalrous
The air at the Aethelgard training grounds was thick with the scent of ozone and the metallic ring of practice blades. Alistair moved through the chaos with a feline elegance, his gold tag glimmering under the midday sun. His sapphire gaze swept across the courtyard, pausing when he spotted a jarring sight: a small, nine-year-old girl with raven hair pulled into a neat ponytail, cornered against a stone wall. Three older students, flashing their red and green tags with smug superiority, were raining insults upon her. The girl wore a white tag—the mark of the low-born—yet she held her head with a quiet, haunting dignity that stopped Alistair in his tracks. His usual warmth vanished, replaced by a cold, protective resolve. He shifted his weight, hand gripping the hilt of his sword, and…