[center][img]http://u.cubeupload.com/ScorpionFlower/412b76e181bc368498bc.jpg[/img]
[h1][i]De Lacroy[/i][/h1]
[h2]Princes of Trade[/h2]
[h3]Always Faithful and Prepared[/h3][/center]

[b]Family History[/b]

The [i]De Lacroy[/i] come from outside Belvoir, from another kingdom they refuse to talk about. No one knows exactly when they arrived in Rothenburg, about a few generations ago. They arrived by sea, nothing more than petty merchants like so many others. Through decades of good planning and financial success, however, they managed to climb the social ladder and make a true name for themselves. [b]Their many partners and contracts made sure they received a cut from almost any deal within the docks or imports/exports, giving them respectable trade power. [/b]

While incredibly rich, the family does not hold a fraction of the power the real Nobles of Rothenburg have for one good reason: they are foreigners. Despite their best efforts, they always have been seen as foreigner by the people no matter how well they succeeded. They made a good name for themselves. They gained the trust of their trade partners. However, the only political weight they might have is their wealth, nothing more. No one from the people seem to forget they are outsiders. As for the Nobles and the High class, though they do trade and mingle together from time to time, they never really accepted the fact that they were not born from noble ancestry. 

The image of the De Lacroy is mostly positive and honest, but there are those that say they have a hand in the black market. Nothing has ever surfaced to prove this, but with their influence on every traders or so within the city, it would not be surprising. 

[b]Family's Influence[/b]

[b]- Many buildings on the waterfront belongs directly to the family: businesses, storage and other. Through them, they operate the majority of their operations in the docks. One of those building, flanked by the family's coat of arms and richly decorated, is their main company's building. 

- The family's residing home was built close to the northern wall's gate which is closest to the docks (S Sector). That part of the city was mostly poor before the [i]De Lacroy[/i] arrived. They invested a lot of their personal wealth in repairing the sector, building homes and employing most of the local residents. Doing so gave them good influence in the sector. 

- Melisentia's family Mining Company that is situated south of Rothenburg, close to the foot of the mountains. From them, they receive ample supplies of Ores that they can use to influence the trade of tools or weapons. 

- The family hold rights to tax anyone using the docks, meaning they make good money out of all the fishing trade or any merchants coming in and out of town. They themselves have a fishing company that is doing rather well. 

- All of their influence make sure they have ears on the majority of deals regarding trade within the city. They also have a vast portion of the black market answer to them, unknown from the public, which they use to undermine current rivals and bring low any possible rising new ones. [/b]

[hider= Head of the Family]

[h3]Louis De Lacroy[/h3]
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Louis was born in Rothenburg forty-three years ago. His grandfather had come here in his younger years and began the family's business. Louis' father brought it up to become greater than it ever was. Louis, as for him, managed to keep the business flourishing through the wars of King Gustavo. He did so by using the trade power of his family to to gain access to weapons that he redistributed through their many contacts everywhere inside and outside the Kingdom - without much regards if they were friends or foes of Rothenburg. He did, however, make sure to leave nothing that could directly incriminate him from selling to the enemy or using the war to get richer.

Though he did not do it out of pure greed. Louis was loyal to Rothenburg, but the incessant conquering had been bad for business and was bringing low his family. By using his network to sell to friends, foes and potential mercenaries he made sure his family remained alive and strong as well as filling up their coffers more than ever before. 

To Louis, the De Lacroy are in a good position and he seeks only what he always sought: the survival of his family and keeping the dominance on the trade. Nothing more. 
[/hider]

[hider= Tails of the Family]

[h3]Melisentia De Lacroy[/h3]
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Melisentia De Lacroy once belonged to a small family of successful partners of the De Lacroy. They were in control of a small territory to the south of the city, near the foot of the Durot Mountains, where they mined for ores. For their arms trades during the wars the De Lacroy needed those ores and so the alliance was secured through the hand of Melisentia. The mining company had long since been incorporated, from one way or another, in the De Lacroy possessions. 

Melisentia loves her husband as a wife ought to. She is loyal and helps him in his duty to the family, but she never understood his lack of desire for more. Louis' wife would see the De Lacroy rise among the Nobles of Rothenburg and seek ever more possessions and power within the city. She is the one that launched the family into the black market, as a tool to one day further her desire for more. There she gained her own little piece of power. Louis is well aware of the doings of his wife, but leave her at her own designs as long as it is beneficial for the family. 
[/hider]

[hider= Heir of the Family]

[h3]Raphael De Lacroy[/h3]
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Raphael was groomed to be the heir of the De Lacroy family and business. He was taught everything by his father on how to manage the many possessions of the family, on how to deal with partners, handle money and the such. He was also shown the proper Rothenburgian etiquette among nobles - and he was good at it. 

However, Raphael was also raised by his mother and he shared her interest for rising in the Nobility rank. He did not understand why his father did not wish for more and was contempt with what he had, but he respected it. He respected his father for how he managed to keep the family afloat during the war and his immensely good sense of business. 

Raphael was heir of the family. Once his father would pass the reins down to him, he would have all the power and time he needed to build more for himself and his won sons and daughters. For now, he had time to plan and prepare. 
[/hider]

[hider= Flower of the Family]

[h3]Sophia De Lacroy[/h3]
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Admiral Sophia De Lacroy, as she came to be known. Sophia was a brilliant girl that took more after her father in looks then her brother while keeping the adventurous and desire for greatness of her mother. However, being second born and a woman, she would never lead the family. Her family situation also meant that while she would not be married to lower class families, the possibility for a higher class noble family to accept her hand were very slim. 

As such, she was given more freedom than her brother and much more than women who were ordinarily groomed to become wives. Sophia took part in the family business and was also very good at it. Partly because she was a very hard headed and aggressive dealer. Her temperament brought her to the decision of learning swordplay. The wealth of the family made sure that she could afford some of the best swordmasters available around. 

The family '[i]owned[/i]' the docks and, as such, quite a few ships. Shipments headed for the coastal cities of Overresch, Silchester and Maastrich were a large enough part of their revenue as well as fishing expeditions. With the rise of monsters in the kingdom, including sea-bound ones, the waters became even more dangerous. That is without mentioning the ever come-and-go piracy that occurred in the coastal waters. Sophia's training and iron mettle eventually led her to assemble her own troop of seamen and built her own ship known as [i]Le Fleur-De-Lys[/i]. A small light ship, but very fast and well equipped and with a solid crew. With it, Sophia built herself a reputation by protecting the cargo ships of her family's business and partners from would be pirates. Thus her nickname 'Admiral'.

[/hider]