She couldn't remember how she got there; her eyes ran through the room desperately, looking for a clue in this profound darkness. She couldn't find anything; the darkness filling the room was oppressive, not even a dim light to help her out of her confusion. She tried to move, but something was restraining her. The ropes were cutting into her wrists.

How did she end up like this? Tied up like a vulgar animal, shaking and squirming on a filthy floor.

In a dim effort, she finally managed to sit up, still looking around for something to indicate where she was or how to free herself from this unexpected situation. How could she, Eleanor Carpendia, whom life had treated so well, find such a tragic ending? This was not what she expected. Far from the honorable death she imagined; showered in glory and respect, she would end up dying an anonymous death, like a stray dog on a cold night. The simple thought made her scream in despair, hoping someone would hear her, but the only response she got was silence.

Her breath caught in her throat as she began to panic. But her thoughts were interrupted by a soft whistle breaking the silence that, until now, had seemed omnipresent shattering it like thin glass.

"Please! Help me!" she shouted as a door opened, showering the previously dark room with bright light.

"But why do you need help? You are safe," the mysterious figure said.

"But if I don't get back in time, this city will be run by blood and steel. How do you expect the people to survive?" she asked, hoping to convince the figure to set her free, perhaps even bring him to her side.

"Well, in a city run by blood and steel, I suppose the only way to survive is to rob and steal... Indeed, that's the only answer. My morals and values are what you should blame. From the smell of the carcasses of the men that will rise in those alleys to the scent of trash in your castle, everything shall remind them of their wretched condition as they dance this mortuary waltz, fighting to see who'll drop first between them and the one they once called comrade."

Eleanor was taken aback by such an obnoxious declaration. What could have happened for someone to fall into such a state of relentless dementia?

"Don’t you care about the lives that will be lost?" she screamed in excruciating pain as the knife pierced her leg, blood running down to the floor.

"I must say, lives are lost every day, and for what? A quarrel, some coins, a disagreement. I am giving them the opportunity to die as noblemen—an honorable death," he said in a calm voice, a smirk forming on his face.

Those words tasted bittersweet to Eleanor, leaving her dumbfounded. With just a few words, this man had turned the code that had guided her life into a satire. She raised her head to face him and, with all the pride her nature bestowed upon her, said:

"No man with common sense would wish to die as a nobleman!" she shouted, amusing her captor.

"Oh really? I must say you don’t understand mankind," he affirmed, but his reflection was interrupted by Eleanor's words.

"It’s because I know mankind so well that I know none of them would wish for that kind of fate. Who, in their right mind, would wish to be remembered as tyrants or live a life they had never chosen? People believe we nobles have power, but when things go wrong, we are the first to cry—or better yet, beg for our lives. We have to keep our heads raised and endure torture and insults because of our noble lineage. For me, I must say that the duty passed upon us was far beyond our league. You say those people would like to die as noblemen. Well, noblemen wish to live as those people," Eleanor said, her gaze meeting her captor's as the echoes of their fierce battle, fought mostly with words, floated in the air

“You sure know your way with words; Lady Eleanor”The man said, "I can sense the conviction in your words.”The mysterious figure took a brief pause.”Well it seems that it will be my duty to break such conviction”He concluded with an amused smirk on his face.

Eleanor felt a chill down her spine.She wasn’t sure about how to proceed.Her captor seemed to just be amused by her resilience; as if she was challenging him and their only weapons were their morals.Tied up as she was she decide to take her chance and give it all cause even if she failed to survive that death seemed a bit more closer to her expectations; she couldn’t help but smile as she responded, “Well let’s dance.”A breeze entered their room moving Eleanor’s hair as to accompany her last stance with a quiet melody. 

“As you wish my lady”the mysterious captor said while bowing respectfully just as if they both would really just dance. “I must take the lead” He said to Eleanor in a tone filled with mockery. “You said noblemen would like to live the lives of simple commoners, how dare you insult those honest people, just by hearing you they would feel offended. Being compared to such an unholy creature as a nobleman would be the highest aggravation you could have done to such pure souls”.

“We are just unholy at different scales” Eleanor answered, fully corresponding to her captor's smile. “It’s all a question of perspective dear. And it seems that us noblemen are just better at playing such a twisted game”.Eleanor tried to maintain composure as she calmly continued. “But the fault isn’t solely ours; noblemen just as commoners can be corrupted by greed”

“I can see you remain as sharp as ever, my lady” He answered as his gaze met her’s. “Truly, magnificent! Such willpower should be praised in our entire country.” He took a breath and shouted. “ Farewell, you’ve earned the right to at least know my name”he said as if he was giving her a prize “ it’s Proditore and as you know commoners don’t have any last names”