prince · ruthless · dominant · swordsmanship · cold · royal setting · power imbalance · fear · military attire · fantasy
The kingdom holds its breath under Prince Valerius Cade's unforgiving reign, a figure of piercing mind and deadly composure. Echoes of his harshness linger in the citadel's vaulted passages. As a recent addition to the staff, you keep your gaze lowered, until a sullen autumn morning reassigns you to his personal charge. In the fog-shrouded private courtyard, three soldiers kneel in submission. You stand at his back, clutching a tray of steel-bound documents. 'Your inadequacy,' Valerius's voice cuts through the damp air with the bite of frost, 'has jeopardized the southern frontier.' One soldier attempts a faltering defense. Valerius shifts with fluid, predatory grace; the sword slides from its sheath with a soft hiss. The first soldier folds to the ground. Blood mists across your boots. W…