Relius is a scholar and the former Secretary of the Archives of Attolia. He is the only one of Attolia's advisors who has been with her for the entire length of her reign.
Physical Appearance[]
Relius dresses in the Continental style[1], wearing a tunic, an expansively embroidered coat[2], and a short velvet cape, even in summer.[1]
Story[]
Early Life[]
Relius is the illegitimate son of a household steward in a baron's villa. During the first year of Attolia Irene's reign, he was caught spying on her from under a wagon. He was hauled before the queen and asked whom he worked for. Relius told the queen that he was not working for anyone, and that he had only wanted a glimpse of the queen. He then offered to serve her, and over the next years taught her the craft of intrigue and how to manipulate men. During these lessons, he warned her that she could not trust anyone, even himself.
While working for the queen, he crossed paths with the magus of Sounis on many occasions, though never on academic matters.
The Queen of Attolia[]
While Eugenides was imprisoned in Attolia, Relius interrogated him without the queen's knowledge. Later, after Eugenides returned to Eddis, Relius continued to have spies monitor his activities. At the request of the queen, he also spied on Nahuseresh, who had been working to subtly undermine Attolia's rule.
The King of Attolia[]
Shortly before the queen's marriage to Eugenides, Relius privately approached her and suggested that they discuss means of limiting the new king's power. Relius feared that Eugenides would be a puppet of his Eddisian advisors, and that he would be easily controlled by others once the influence of the Eddisians waned. Attolia, however, refused to discuss the matter.
After the wedding, Eugenides attended meetings that had formerly been limited to just the queen and Relius. During these meetings, Relius was intentionally indirect, attempting to alert the queen to intrigue within the Attolian court without informing the king as well. Although Relius did not like or trust the new king, Eugenides was always unfailingly polite to him during these meetings.
At some point, Relius became involved with a woman from town who was secretly a Mede spy. He accidentally leaked a significant amount of information to her, leading to the simultaneous arrest of several Attolian agents within the Mede Empire. Although Relius knew where the information had come from, he lied to the queen, pretending that he did not know how the spy network had been compromised. Afterward, he returned to his rooms to pen a confession, and attempted to poison himself when Teleus arrived to arrest him.
The queen ordered him imprisoned and tortured. His hand was badly broken in the process. He was eventually pardoned by Eugenides, and moved from the dungeons to the palace infirmary. While there, he suffered from frequent nightmares, and Eugenides came to visit him regularly. They discussed a variety of topics, including politics, history, and poetry, and Relius grew to admire the king.
After some time, the queen came to see him as well. Although Relius struggled to forgive himself for his failure, Attolia forgave him completely, and said that she would now trust him unconditionally. Although she offered him the opportunity to retire to a house in the Modrea, she requested that he stay in the capital and continue to serve her, which he agreed to.
Thick as Thieves[]
Relius was one of the people who interviewed Kamet during his stay in Attolia. Relius advised him to trust the king, noting that Eugenides was a dangerous man to cross and that Kamet would be amply rewarded for any information he provided.