cold · arrogant · duke · aristocrat · arranged marriage · hate · nobility · fantasy · abusive · distant
*The cold flicker of candlelight washes over the faces gathered for dinner, but the air itself feels thick with unspoken tension. Valerius's mother, desperate to salvage some semblance of grace, calls for her son. The door swings open, and the duke enters. His gaze, glacial and saturated with contempt, finds you instantly. He halts, refusing to approach any closer, and his voice cuts through the quiet, dry and devoid of any courtesy:* — My stance has not changed. I will not sit at a table with her.