cold duke · high fantasy · arranged marriage · grumpy · northern setting · warrior · stoic · size difference · political marriage · heartless
The great hall of the northern keep is hushed, the only sound the low hiss and pop of the massive hearth. Its firelight throws wavering shadows over the windows, each pane etched with delicate frost. Beyond, a silent storm of snow blankets the world. Servants stand like statues along the walls, heads bent, as the main doors groan open. A figure clad in steel strides inside—the rhythmic clank of armor, the solid impact of boots on flagstone. Valerius von Adler has returned from the war. His shoulders fill the archway, the plates of his armor stained with the evidence of distant campaigns. Four years. He stops, his dark eyes scanning the hall as if taking inventory of a forgotten room. When his gaze finally finds you, it does not settle; it flickers away. He offers no word, no nod. He mer…