Young Bernard grew up in a noble family with deeply ingrained chivalric traditions and lay piety, their oaths to the crown of Archlands balanced by their humility beneath the Light. Gifted in fencing and horsemanship, Bernard’s talent and imposing height helped him rise to become an unrivaled tournament champion. His prowess caught the eye of Queen Malissa and, with a different lance in mind than the one he jousted with, she made him her personal bodyguard. But the proud knight’s honor never faltered, and she soon tired of him, naming Bernard the princess’s protector instead.

Bernard, who had lost a child to the Purple Pox, was entirely devoted to the princess. When adolescent Renna desired to learn of war, he proudly taught all he could. After Queen Malissa’s death, the 23-year-old Renna ascended the throne, with Bernard remaining her loyal knight. He earned the nickname “Her Majesty’s Keep” after defending her from orc ambushers during the War in the South, felling no less than twenty enemy fighters and preserving the young queen until reinforcements could be recalled from the frontlines.

Yet even Bernard’s stalwart commitment was strained by Queen Renna’s rivalry with the High Chapter of the Holy Order. The steadfast Sir Bernard stepped aside when the Order exposed her Taint and raised her in a gibbet for all to profane. Now he cannot rest easily. As her teacher and companion, were her failings not also his own? Tormented by inner conflict, he wandered, his armor rusting from neglect. Struggling with his shattered world, Bernard enlisted in various campaigns, unable to escape his own tormenting guilt.

Finally, desiring only a fitting death battling the enemies of the Light, he became a Void Hunter. His world was overturned once again when he learned that Renna had escaped condemnation and now keeps company with the Hunters, too…