N A M E
Liu Wang

T I T L E / O C C U P A T I O N
King of Euhijan

N A T I O N A L I T Y
Euhijanian

A G E
30

G E N D E R
Male

S E X U A L I T Y
Homosexual

A P P E A R A N C E
With his slender frame and full lips and long eyelashes, Liu should not have been overly intimidating. His rather feminine features are, however, balanced out by his cool, impassive gaze and the arrogant up-tilt of his chin. Liu holds himself with a natural aristocratic grace, and he is extremely good at affecting the proud, arrogant, and slightly disdainful I'm-too-good-for-you aristocrat demeanor. Although his elegant fingers and fine-boned wrists seem too slender and delicate to even touch a sword, Liu's upper body is covered in lean, sinewy muscle; evidence that he is, in fact, a swordsman.

Liu dresses in a very severe manner, favoring dark fabrics and little ornamentation and/or decoration, although all of his clothing is of very high quality (and very expensive, too). He never wears any form of jewelry, nor bright colors. His long, lean figure is all sharp edges and clean lines, and the only hint of softness in his features comes in the form of his full lips, though more often than not, they are pressed together in a tight, thin line.

Liu's brown eyes are cold and stony and shrewd, and his face is, for the most part, impassively disdainful. There is always a certain rigidity, a certain tension about him, and everything about his outward appearance is perfectly controlled, from his ramrod-straight posture to his neatly styled black hair. Liu hates showing skin, even in the middle of summer, and he tends to walk in a very brusque manner, his steps sharp and clear.

I N T E R E S T S
As a child, Liu was very bookish, and he is a very prolific reader. He's fond of history, and although it's not his favorite thing to do, Liu has perfected a deadly style of sword-fighting that suits his lean frame and his strategic nature. In addition, Liu has always enjoyed the company of horses, and he's quite good at riding-he's outridden most everyone he's met, barring his brother (the times that his brother let him win don't count!).

Liu likes to stroll through gardens and courtyards and such, sometimes; he's always been fond of flowers and trees and the outdoors. He is a fast learner and is near-fluent in a number of languages.

P E R S O N A L I T Y
Sly and shrewd and cunning, Liu is-to put it quite plainly-one of the biggest snakes that you'll ever meet. Observant, perceptive, and analytical, Liu is politically astute and can actually be quite charismatic, if he wants to be. Liu is not charismatic in the sense that everybody naturally gravitates to him or even likes him, but he is able to inspire loyalty in his men through his willingness to work alongside them and his commitment and diligence.

Guarded and wary and intensely private, Liu is scathingly sarcastic and can be just plain mean. He has a veritable arsenal of elegant phrases and bitchy remarks up his sleeve at all times, no matter the language, and he is very good at not showing any emotion when he does not want to. Liu is always tense and rather reserved, and very, very manipulative. He hates being seen as weak or vulnerable, and he holds no qualms about using his ability to "read" people to his advantage.

Liu holds everyone at arms' length, even those that he trusts. He hates feeling like he's not in control, and has a very hard time just letting go. He has a mind for details, and never misses a thing. Liu is annoyingly flippant and irreverent when he wants to be, though he is always thinking, always turning every single possibility over in his head.

Cold and aloof, Liu carries himself with a cool arrogance and an infuriatingly calm demeanor. He can watch literally anything with a bored expression on his face (and a mild quip here and there), no matter how gruesome or disgusting it is. Although Liu is notoriously cunning, he never, ever goes back on his word. He's good at picking out weaknesses just from talking to or observing someone, and he really, really hates it when people invade his personal space, touch him without permission, or get too close to him for no reason. He hates relying on people or being forced to rely on others/ask for help; Liu would rather handle everything himself. He is calm and collected in even the most trying of circumstances, and he is meticulous and thorough with everything he does. Unruffled and unflappable and (seemingly) unfeeling, Liu is a complete piece of shit when he wants to be-his tongue is perhaps his most potent weapon, and outsiders are usually shocked by the bloodless violence that characterize tense exchanges with Liu.

At the core, though, Liu is rather lonely, and he forced himself to grow up very, very fast after his brother was killed. As a child, he was very sweet and considerate and rather bookish, and he has retained a semblance of the person he used to be, although his random acts of kindness and/or softness are often very subtle. However, Liu is by no means a "people person"-he draws clear lines in between him and others, and he does not intend on letting go of this habit anytime soon. Liu has been double-crossed and betrayed and taken advantage of, and after he finally ascended the throne, he promised himself that nobody would ever, ever do that to him again.

H I S T O R Y
Liu was ten when his world shattered.

He was only seven when King Vincento and the forces of three kingdoms rode into Euhijan. He was only seven when King Vincento died on Euhijanian soil.

But he was ten when everything fell apart.

In a single decisive battle, both his older brother, the golden crown prince of Euhijan, and his father, the bloodthirsty emperor, were killed. His brother on the battlefield, his father by a stray arrow to the throat.

His brother, Anzhou, had only been seventeen-such an achingly short life!-and his brother had been everything that Liu had.

In the confusion that followed, one of his father's advisers was instated as the Regent of Euhijan until Liu came of age at twenty-one. Jiang-li Zhang was calm, mild, reasonable (at least, he came off as that way)-the other kingdoms could find no fault in him. Jiang-li surrendered after the loss of two beloved leaders, and the treaty was signed, and Liu went home to an empty palace.

His mother had died the year before, of an illness. His father and Anzhou were gone too, now. Liu remembers what his ten-year-old self had said to Jiang-li, sometimes- "please don't leave me here all alone, uncle, I don't want to be alone"- and his gut starts to twist, and his vision starts to blur, and he has to force the memories away just to stay standing.

He found out how his mother died, ten years later, right before Jiang-li was executed. His mother had discovered Jiangli's preference for young boys, and then Jiangli had her poisoned in her sleep.

He found out that Jiang-li had hired an archer to kill his father. He found out that Jiangli had purposefully manipulated Anzhou into going out to the front lines, where he was sure to be overwhelmed.

But before that came eleven years of political maneuvering and threats thinly disguised as compliments. Before that came three years of being not understanding why Jiang-li's way of "comforting" him hurt so much, and eight years of hiding his humiliation. Before that came eleven years of Jiang-li isolating him from any allies; eleven years of Jiang-li pretending to be a calm, reasonable man who wanted nothing but the best for his charge.

Eleven years of not being good enough, because it was Anzhou that was supposed to be king one day, not Liu. Eleven years of being reminded of that fact, daily, because Liu didn't have Anzhou's charisma and he wasn't a fierce warrior and he just wasn't his goddamn brother.

Anzhou had been the perfect prince, in so many ways. He was brave and honorable and friendly; he could inspire loyalty in his men simply by existing. When he walked into the room, his very presence demanded your attention, and when that presence was all fixated on you-well, it was the best feeling in the world.

Anzhou was an accomplished fighter, too, and there was nobody who could beat him in a duel. And nobody-nobody-could outride him (when the two of them raced, his brother always let him win, of course. It took Liu until he was nine to figure that out).

Simply put, everybody loved Anzhou. Including Liu himself.

Liu knows what they would whisper, back then- he's nothing like his brother, or he's a spoiled palace prince who's never seen a drop of blood in his life, or Prince Anzhou would have made a better king, and Liu wants to tell them that he knows that, thank you very much, and that they can all fuck themselves and go to hell, or something along those lines.

When Liu turned twenty, it was becoming very obvious to him that Jiang-li had no intention of giving up the throne. And so they reached the final stages of the game that began when Liu was ten, and in the power struggle that ensued, Liu managed to out-maneuver Jiang-li Zhang and reveal all that his father's former adviser had done.

After the execution, Liu was crowned King of Euhijan, and the country grew accustomed to their slender king with his too-long lashes and too-full lips and deadly grace; their king who was not a warrior but a thinker, a politician, and although he wasn't a war-hero, he inspired loyalty all the same. Known for his intense hatred of Vertiron especially, Liu has garnered the support of other like-minded Euhijanians-people whose villages were burned down as the armies marched through; people whose families were torn apart by years and years of war and bloodshed. He's not the king that his brother would have been, no, but he's a good king nonetheless; perhaps a better one than his brother would have been, even.

Liu is thirty, now, and still unmarried. His advisers want him to find a bride, to get married and have children. But for reasons that Liu will never, ever admit to the public, Liu doesn't particularly want to.

Still. He knows that he must marry, if only for the sake of continuing his line, and so he will. His first choice would have been Lady Mai, the Duchess of Mei'an, if not for her father; Liu is no fool. He knows that her father wants the throne, that her father is only pressuring him to marry her so that he can make himself king.

And Liu certainly doesn't plan on giving up his throne anytime soon, thank you very much.

N A M E
Mai Mei

T I T L E / O C C U P A T I O N
Duchess of Mei'an (a wealthy region along Euhijan's eastern seaboard, near the capital)

N A T I O N A L I T Y
Euhijanian

A G E
27

G E N D E R
Female

S E X U A L I T Y
Asexual

A P P E A R A N C E
Mai is taller than average, standing at five feet and eight inches. She is about 125 pounds, giving her a rather slender figure. Mai has thick, wavy, midnight-black hair that goes down to her waist, and relatively pale skin. Her eyes are a chocolate brown color, framed with a set of eyelashes that she makes longer using cosmetics, of course. She has a heart-shaped face and long, thin fingers. Mai has rosebud lips that are usually painted a deep red color. She has a sort of delicate and dainty look to her, despite the fact that she is quite tall. Mai likes dressing up and takes great pride in her appearance.

Her preferred color scheme is red, black, and gold, although she does like to experiment every now and then. Mai absolutely adores traditional fans and parasols. In terms of cosmetics, Mai is an avid fan powders, lip tints, rogues, et cetera. You name it, and Mai has probably tried it.

Most people who see Mai describe her as elegant, alluring, and in some cases, doll-like (thanks to the layers of cosmetics she wears, most likely). She moves with a practiced and fluid grace, each step and each movement measured and precise. Her features are usually carefully arranged in an expression of polite interest, and pleasant smiles fall easily across her lips, though those who are more keen will notice that they rarely ever reach her eyes- they remain as sharp as ever, even when she laughs.

I N T E R E S T S
Mai is a dab hand at traditional Euhijanian calligraphy, and she finds it very calming. She adores accessories that are both beautiful and deadly (bladed fans and parasols, dagger-like hairpins, and the like) and doesn't go anywhere without at least one of them hidden somewhere on her person. Mai has a soft spot for poetry, though she just likes to read it in her spare time, and maybe lightly discuss it-she's never been one to spout off pretentious rhetoric about how the color white symbolizes the author's sorrow and longing because of an obscure reference to a mourning dove, or something like that.

When she has spare time, Mai likes trying out new cosmetics and hairstyles, though whether or not she would be seen in public after her experiments is a whole different matter. In addition, Mai thinks that tea is one of the best things under the sun, aside from pretty silks and lip tints, of course.

P E R S O N A L I T Y
Mai has always been a people person. There is something about her that seems to draw others to her-whether it's her carefree laugh, her twinkling eyes, or her bright smiles, no one can say. She can be a sultry, intoxicating temptress, capable of charming the secrets right out of others with a coy glance and a flutter of her long eyelashes, or an innocent, demure young lady who has absolutely nothing to hide but plenty of gossip to share. She thinks with her heart when she needs to, but uses her brain at the same time.

Behind brown eyes sparkling with mirth and delicate lips curved up in a half-flirtatious, half-demure smile is a woman made of steel who is keenly aware of her surroundings. Mai processes vast amounts of information all at once, taking in people's actions, words, and emotions at the same time and forming a conclusion based on what she sees and what she knows. She's always been especially good at reading people like an open book. Sharply observant, perceptive, and brutally analytical, Mai is able to detect even the most subtle shifts of emotion, assess entire situations with one inconspicuous sweep of her wide brown eyes, and kill a man in a dozen different ways while dancing the waltz. Mai is constantly listening, though she’ll rarely tell the world what she's thinking.

Enigmatically charismatic and exuding an air of elegant refinement, Mai puts up a playful and coquettish front all while maintaining a certain air of mystery that makes her that much more attractive. Depending on the people around her, Mai is either a charming, polite young lady of considerable wealth and status or a deadly and alluring seductress of equally considerable wealth and status. Mai is not “smart” in the traditional sense of the word-complicated mathematics and the latest developments in technological advancements all go straight over her head, though she is able to hold her own in conversations about a wide variety of “sophisticated” topics. When around others, Mai hides her true nature behind expensive gowns and lip tints, pretending that she is nothing more than another pretty face. She has mastered the right combination of sugary sweetness and sharp wit to detract attention from her real intentions as she shrewdly advances her own agenda.

Mai is scarily manipulative, and she isn’t afraid of resorting to less savory methods to achieve her goals. Mai is calm and collected in times of crisis, and she rarely allows herself to panic. She is truly afraid of very, very few people, and she holds no qualms against playing others like a violin to get what she wants, all while smiling prettily and sipping tea from a dainty porcelain tea cup. Sly, shrewd, and cunning, Mai is an ice queen dressed in silk and lace.

If one is able to see past the many, many layers and intricacies of Mai Mei, one would come face-to-face with an intensely driven yet extremely insecure woman who has been bottling up her emotions for much too long. Mai may be willing to sacrifice everything for her ambitions, but she doesn’t know what it is that she truly wants, after she finally gets there.

H I S T O R Y
Lady Mai Mei, the Rose of Euhijan-

Her father's favorite. His pride and joy.

Polite. Pristine. Perfect.

Charming and beautiful, sweet and soft-spoken. Dainty and demure, graceful and svelte.

Don't let Mai’s outward appearance fool you, though-she is the Rose, and all roses have thorns.

Mai was given the upbringing that was expected of a lady of her station, and then plus some. Pretty dresses, expensive jewelry, all the love and praise and adoration that every child seeks from their parents; Mai had it all. But somehow, Mai could see that her father only cared about her for her pretty face and the marriage she would bring.

Call it intuition, call it intelligence or perceptiveness, call it dumb luck-whatever it was, Mai knew that her father would not be so doting, so adoring, if Mai wasn’t pretty.

She obeyed her father despite it all, of course. In this day and age, daughters couldn't be seen openly disrespecting their fathers, especially not the daughter of a powerful regional lord. What would that say about their family? It would be the scandal of the century. No, Mai may not care for her father, but she will remain loyal to her home. So she does as her father says...or pretends to, anyway.

Mai embroiders, like a proper young lady, and her stitches are so neat and straight and tiny that they're almost invisible. She dances beautifully and has a voice that will break your heart. She can recite every country’s genealogy by heart, and her paintings of vapid landscapes are impeccable. Most of all, Mai excels when it comes to people; charming and charismatic and witty, Mai always seems to know just the right thing to say.

Her brother and the heir to her father's lands, Zhou, was given the most lovely steel swords as soon as he learned to fight. Why couldn't Mai do the same? Why couldn't she inherit the lands and learn how to fight with steel and fire?

No matter, though. Mai's going to be more powerful than anyone in her family someday.

Mai made sure that everything she did was absolutely perfect, because her father expected no less from her. Perfect manners. Perfect smile. Perfect gown. Perfect everything.

But for all her dreams of grandeur and for all her talent in the political arena, Mai is merely a pawn in her father's grand plan to steal the throne. Ever since she was officially considered fit to be wedded and bedded by some lord or the other, her father has been looking for a suitable husband. One suitor after another came and went, and Mai was paraded before them like a horse at an auction, albeit a very valuable horse. Her brother was the heir to the family estate, while Mai was to be sold to some stranger like the aforementioned horse, to be ridden whenever her new owner liked, beaten whenever he liked, and cast aside in time for a younger filly. Zhou's future was glory and wealth and power, while Mai's was childbirth and moonblood and obedience.

Heavens above, how she hated it all. She taught herself how to use her precious little stiletto daggers, and she is quite dangerous with her bladed fans, but that's not enough. It will never be enough.

Her father was always finding someone for Mai to marry. There were so many men, Mai can't even remember half of them. She always found some obscure fault in them, of course, and explained to her father why they would be bad husbands-this lord is as dumb as a brick. That lord can't even control the commoners living on his land, this lord has a history of legitimizing his bastards, that lord would turn on their family in a heartbeat.

There was one, though, that he insisted Mai marry, no matter what. He was more powerful than her father; you see-he was a duke, and he held vast, prosperous lands. He was also so very charming-everyone liked him, from Mai's lady mother, the chambermaids, even the Regent of Euhijan himself…

They all said that Lord Ming Mei and Mai would be a perfect match. Mai was seventeen, and Lord Ming twenty-seven, so the age gap wasn't horrible, but still-he was cruel, so cruel, and he hid it behind bright smiles and good-natured grins.

Mai can still feel his fingers pinching and twisting her skin so hard that she woke up with bruises decorating her upper arms and abdomen, his lecherous leer, his rough hands, his wide lips and sloppy kisses-

In time, Mai gave birth to her first child-a girl. And Mai loved her daughter more than anything in the world, and the daughter made her husband's hot temper and coarse hands a little more bearable.

And then, the Regent of Euhijan, in a cruel, twisted game of politics, told the duke to kill his daughter to "prove his loyalty". And so Mai's husband did just that.

Mai said nothing. She watched, and waited.

Lord Sui ended up dying in a hunting accident a couple months later. He was drunk, they said. Nobody thought to look for Mai, who had brought him half a dozen casks of the finest wine in his cellars that very morning.

Now, Mai is going to seduce King Liu so that her father can seize the throne-his version of the plan, of course. Mai was game until she heard that her father would take the throne, and then she was furious, but nevertheless, she will play along-for now. Aye, she'll marry the king and be his queen, and she'll tell him all of her father's plans, and oh, how utterly powerless her father will be to stop it all! Mai would like that. Her father should be the powerless one, for a change.

And King Liu himself? Please. Mai will have him wrapped around her little finger when she's done with him. He's only a man, after all.