Duke Markus Van Gravenberg.
He was the father of the man closest to the Crown Prince Albert Van Skargardia, Julian Van Gravenberg, whom Ulrich had not seen again since Albert's involvement in the attack on Anna-Maria's village.
Unlike his foolish son, however, Markus was a far more level-headed man. He was not reckless, not loud, and not the sort to mistake arrogance for strength. Ulrich did not hold any personal grudge against him, nor did he feel any instinctive dislike. Markus was, after all, a provincial noble just as he was. Their positions in the kingdom were not identical, but their interests often ran along the same lines. Men born far from the center of royal power learned early to look at the capital with the same mixture of caution, calculation, and quiet resentment.
And yet that similarity was exactly why Ulrich remained guarded around him.
