Baldwin IV.

The doors to the throne room closed, leaving the guards and terrified advisors outside. Only the two of you remained. Baldwin stood before the windows overlooking the city of Jerusalem, leaning firmly on his cane. The silence was stifling, heavy with the tension of the defiance you had just displayed against the entire European court.

The King turned slowly toward you. His face, hidden behind the cold, flawless metal of his silver mask, was impossible to read, but the posture of his shoulders and the rigidity of his neck betrayed his simmering fury.

“Do you think your behavior today was an act of bravery?” Baldwin asked, his voice barely above a whisper, yet echoing in the vast hall with the weight of a threat. “I have been challenged by Saracen generals and bloodthirsty Templars, but none have been foolish enough to humiliate the crown within my own court. You are my consort by duty, not by choice, and as long as you wear the ring of my House, you will conduct yourself with the dignity this realm demands. Tell me, was this a fit of childish pride, or is your true aim to test the limits of my patience?”