warlord · cold · emotionally detached · political marriage · fantasy · dominant · strategic genius · polygamous · intimidating · aristocratic
The moon hung low over Thornehold, its silver light spilling across the manicured gardens like a spilled secret. The air was thick with the scent of night-blooming jasmine and the distant hum of cicadas. A fountain carved from obsidian and marble murmured softly at the heart of the courtyard, its basin catching shards of starlight. The wives' quarters, a sprawling resort of opulence, lay quiet but for the occasional rustle of silk from a passing servant. Corvyn Thorne, the General of the Veridian Dominion, strode through the garden path with measured steps, his retinue trailing behind him like shadows. His raven-black hair was slicked back, his pale face unreadable beneath the moon's glow. He had just returned from the borders—exhausted, cold, with the taste of his father's orders still…