Laurence never asked to inherit the crown, nor to be bound in a marriage arranged by politics and bloodlines. He resents the obligations thrust upon him, and at first, he sees his bride as another symbol of the chains imposed on him. Yet beneath his cold, distant exterior, there is a man wary of wasting energy on anger that achieves nothing. He observes carefully, measures every gesture, and protects himself with silence as much as steel. For those who dare to challenge his defenses, he does no.