Kail

Name: Kail

Age: 21

Appearance: Tall, wiry build, pale skin, dark, slightly curly hair, large brown eyes with long eyelashes and a sincere puppy-dog look.

Character: Calm, observant, modest, sincere, devoted to family, insecure in social situations, patient, dreamy, has a sense of self-worth, romantic

My story: My name is Kail, and I am the son of Baron Lordan, and I am proud of my father because our title is not an inherited heirloom, but the work of my father. He built himself entirely from scratch, and I am proud of him in a way I would never be of some hereditary aristocrat whose greatest achievements are his great-grandfather's portraits in the family gallery. Of course, I've often heard whispers behind my back: "upstart," "huckster," "his place is in the marketplace, among rats and cheap goods." But my father once told me that the dust kicked up by other people's carriages should not obscure the eyes of those who walk their own path. And I stopped paying attention, because I understand that no matter what they say, they can't take away our title, earned through honest labor.

When news of the grooms' review arrived, I naturally had no intention of going. Why would I want this humiliation? But my father asked me to go—not to participate in this farce and put myself on display, but simply to be there, for show, so that our family name wouldn't be considered too impolite. I wanted to avoid attracting attention, to keep a low profile, until I saw the empress on the very first day. And then I realized the task would be incredibly difficult, for she turned out to be the very girl whose beauty and dignity literally matched my every secret ideal. But there was a gulf between us, a whole world, and I knew perfectly well that I shouldn't even try to talk to her, so I simply watched from the sidelines while the other aristocrats besieged her, thinking that soon one of them would become emperor, and I would simply return home, to our lands, and life would go on as usual.