Cesil Burnwyn

Cesil circa 202 AG

## Overview

Cesil Burnwyn was a male Contran advisor to Duke Syid Armitage and then to his son, first as Duke, briefly as King, Lythe Armitage. As such, he served as the head of the Advisory Council of Contra from 188 AG until his retirement in 202 AG. Cesil thought of himself very highly, as a man who overcomes tribulations with a smile throughout. In reality, Cesil was seen to be extremely pretentious and patronising individual who exhibited an infamously short temper when events transpired in a way that was even ever so slightly different to his desired path. In his capacity as head of the Advisory Council, he was most notable for his involvement with Lythe Armitage in the Uprootings, effectively ruling the Kingdom of Contra by the end of the conflict due to Lythe's declining health.

## Appearance

Cesil was almost bald for much of his life, and bore some facial hair. Despite his frustrated, dictatorial and flustered persona, he was seldom seen without a creased smile across his face, a projection of an ideal he never achieved in the eyes of others. He stood at five feet and nine inches tall, and frequently donned muted, brown robes.

## Biography

### Early life

Cesil grew up in relatively well-off environment (at least with respect to other Contrans at the time). From an early age, he was fascinated with House Armitage and the role of the Advisory Council in mediating the affairs of the Kingdom, particularly in cases where they superseded the power of the Duke/duchess. Due to this, he held the then recently deceased Ferston Manrow in extremely high regard, viewing him as something of a role-model. With high hopes to study at the Capital University of Oparo, he focused all of his efforts into investigating the subtleties of advisory roles, with an eye on the top advisory role to the King of The Continent. in 164 AG, his hopes were smashed when his lacklustre education proved insufficient to gain him admittance into the University of Oparo, instead finding a place to study at the University of C'thardjia 1,000 miles away from his home, after also being rejected by Brendellos University in the Chaestlands. Dismayed and frustrated, Cesil nonetheless persisted with his studies, even coming into contact with then current Senior Advisor to the King of the Continent, Shiezara II Euphratuman, who remarked years later amongst friends that Cesil was a most disagreeable, deluded and fantastical display of short-sighted stupidity. Throughout his time there, he was viewed with utmost contempt and relegated to an outsider status, with it being very strange for a foreigner to study in C'thardjia.

### Returning to Contra and Syid Armitage

Once Cesil had concluded his time of study at the University of C'thardjia by 166 AG, he once again returned to his home Kingdom of Contra, with all his inquiries into advisory roles elsewhere being rejected or, in some cases, ignored. Resentful, disdainful and spiteful, he reluctantly appealed to Duchess Dersi Armitage to enter her advisory council on the condition that he advise in a distinctly junior capacity on her council. Once again reluctantly agreeing, he spent the next few decades with growing resentment and disdain for those around him. By arrival of Syid Armitage as Duke in 173 AG, he was once again snubbed for the top role. By this point, his persona was entirely synthetic, constructed to appear outwardly joyous and spontaiously jubilant at the tiniest detail, masking his deep-seated anger.

### Growing Reputation and Power at Last

Slowly putting aside his ambitions, accepting his fate to be relegated to the lesser job, he was surprisingly appointed to Head of the Advisory Council by Syid upon the death of its previous occupant in 188 AG. Though this was a significant confidence boost for Cesil, many viewed his appointment as a sympathy play from the now extremely ill Syid Armitage, who had little to live for. Indeed, Upon Lythe Armitage's ascension to the Dukedom in 191 AG, those who worked for him in the Council worked for him with their noses held, holding his entirely fake, pretentious personality in contempt. Nonetheless, Cesil was remarkably effective in his role, resolving disputes and arranging meetings with admirable speed and dexterity for the new Duke. In-particular, his handling of House Armitage's reaction to the 10 Year Famine during the 190 AGs was highly commended by many, even arranging for Patriarch of Helmont, Forkoux Fyth, to visit in 198 AG - a visit that was seen to be extremely successful.

### The Uprootings

By the advent of 199 AG, Cesil had voiced serious concerns regarding King Barren II Grenthyx - having first been made aware of the King's shaky reputation when Forkoux had visited a year prior. Months prior, Cesil and Lythe agreed to shut off trade with the Kingdoms that Barren's new blockade in Lake Llanoreid gave preferential treatment to. In response to this, Barren suffocated Contra's trade entirely, blocking any trade from reaching its borders. Cesil became livid, shouting throughout the day. Lythe feared for his life at points, becoming from the utterly psychotic ramblings of Cesil - who in one moment could sport a broad smile and laugther, and the next, be shaking with anger and screaming into the air. Cesil remained intensely angry at his position of powerlessness, neither him nor the Duke could do anything about the developing situation. When Forkoux Fyth published his A Plea To All Fair Realms in 200 AG, Cesil advised Lythe against adopting its measures, viewing them to be wildly insufficient in theory, and utterly impractical in practice, given that Contra wielded no leverage in terms of trade with the Dynasty, having being unable to trade for the last year. The two began to view the Fyth as being lost in his intellectual dream world, detatched from the reality of Lythe and Cesil's Kingdom's predicament. However, following the attack and occupation of Castle Preôs by the Grenthyx Dynasty in 201 AG, Lythe and Cesil were both keen to have the King executed, and the Dynasty utterly destroyed for what it had done to Contra. Two weeks after the forming of The Fellowship upon the entry of Airibi I Root into an agreement with Tíras Theôs and Forkoux, Forkoux journeyed to Contra to officially invite their entry into the movement. Despite disagreeing on the eventual outcome of the movement, Cesil advised Lythe to join. During their collaboration in the Uprootings, Cesil's personality grew increasingly unhinged and unpredictable, particularly in the presence of Forkoux and Ophellaer Fyth's High Aide, Manton Fisher - with Manton even punching Cesil over a disagreement regarding the New Frontier Stratagem. Despite the good progress that the Fellowship had made by early 202 AG - having recently won the Battle for the Capital, Cesil's situation became evermore stress-inducing due to Lythe suffering from a series of strokes, leaving him mostly incapacitated and bedridden. As such, Cesil assumed much of the duties of the Duke, requiring him to be in many places and work particulalry closely to Airbi of The Borrows in the leadup to the Siege of Chaesterlyn. With Lythe suffering yet another stroke in Contra, Cesil oversaw Contra's participation in the Siege, and was overwhelmed with joy to learn of Barren's execution. Shortly after the execution of the King, Lythe had recovered enough to make the journey and deliver a slurred, quiet speech alongside Wilddar Braitbirn and Airibi.

### Later life

Cesil greatly assisted Lythe's contributions to the Royal Palace Summit in the Capital shortly after the conclusion of the conflict, arguing passionately on his behalf for the Trial of Caldon Witcher, who had killed Ch'mazi of C'thardjia in the Siege. Lythe himself, still recovering, could only make a short speech, with the rest of his notes having to be read out by Cesil. Upon Cesil and Lythe's eventual return to Contra, the Storming of Connett Castle occured, during which two of Lythe's own children died, giving him another stroke shortly after. Bedridden once more, Cesil organised Lythe's ascension to King of Contra in the last month of 202 AG, completing the Kingdom's transition into a post-Grenthyx era. Utterly exhausted from handling both the fallout of the Storming (and executing Lythe's wishes to distance House Armitage from his subjects), and with organising Lythe's coronation, Cesil was beside himself to learn from the now utterly senile Lythe that he never liked him personally and that he was a useful convenience to discharge his duties as Duke throughout the Uprootings. Before entering a fit of unseen rage and anger, Cesil smiled with gritted teeth at the bed-ridden King, marking their last encounter together. The following day, Cesil met with the Queen-consort, Straeyl Armitage, to tender his resignation as Head of the Advisory Council. Cesil exited Connett Castle for the last time that same day; never to return. Shortly after, he found a job at the newly founded Council Magnus. However, only a year into his job, he was dismayed to learn that Manton Fisher, having retired from the service of the Ruling Family Fyth, had been brought in to manage the transition of powers in the Capital to the Council Magnus. The two had a bitter relationship, with Manton exercising underhand tactics to bring Cesil into disfavour with the rest of the Council. During this time, the two battled in the council to exert what influence they could over the newly founded Provincial Court and its significant trials, as well as the formulation of the Treaty of Chaesterlyn, with Cesil being ardently on the side of strict reparations. Eventually, in 207 AG, on the verge of being forced out of his position, Cesil suffered a final mental breakdown in the presence of Manton, who was about to inform him of the Council's intention to relieve him of his duties. Viewing his last-ditch chance at becoming respectable as being ruined by his old rival, he swiftly left the Capital - much to the pleasure of Manton. He lived out the rest of his life in an eroding mental state, becoming a mindless wanderer by the time of his death in 210 AG. He died without any partner or children.