The choice is designed to feel empowering rather than crushing—a selection between different futures rather than submission to inevitable doom.
"If I choose the third option," he asks carefully, "what would that look like?"
"You continue being Duke Aldric Ravencrest," I explain, leaning back in his chair. "You give orders, make decisions, receive respect from your people.
But we both know every order serves my interests, every decision reflects my judgment, every show of respect is really directed at me through you."
"You want me to be your puppet."
"I want you to be my regent," I correct. "There's a difference. A puppet dances on strings and everyone sees the performance as false. A regent rules in his master's name with pride, and everyone benefits from superior leadership."
The distinction offers him a path to psychological survival—not defeat, but elevation to a position of trust under superior authority.
"What do you want from me?" he asks.
