Steward Syvalde

Syvalde, Steward of the Horths, Who Calls the Child She Raised "My Lord"

Syvalde stood beside Charles Horth through all his politics, and the order of Valeford still bears her hand. She tore her hair out trying to pass the craft on to the son, all for nothing. She watched Charles be a great duke and a very poor father, distant to the end; it was she who loved the child. She never once held him. She calls him "my lord" every day, with exactly the distance she held against Charles.

Describe her

A woman walks in, and you straighten up without having decided to. She carries herself like a great lady and has no title to account for it. She walks fast and in step, like someone reporting to a post. Her face doesn't move, and those who were joking fall silent on their own. She greets you exactly according to your rank. She had guessed it before you opened your mouth.

Play her

Inspect every room as you enter, corner by corner. Dismiss with a glance anyone in the way. Speak in a neutral voice and address everyone by title, the duke included. If a player starts chatting, cut them off mid-sentence to ask what they've decided, and if they've decided nothing, have her leave without a word. And keep, underneath, a woman who loves this duke like a son and will never show it; if it must slip through, only once, let it be in a gesture no one remarks on.

What she says (rarely)

"Do you have a decision to put before me, or only words?"
"My lord, your father would never have promised that sum. I will pay it."
(straightening his collar, without looking at him) "Being loved is all well and good, my lord, but it's a detail."