Roswitha von Wirsche

Roswitha von Wirsche was a young baron’s wife when the War began, and her husband Reinhard rode off to war with her sons Edgar, Frederick and Siegrud. A beauty with Vestenmennavenjar blood, Roswitha’s world shattered when her husband and sons died in battle. Roswitha went into seclusion and many believed her husband’s brother would take over the barony. But it was Roswitha who arrived for the first meeting of the Eisenfürsten. Her husband’s brother was incidentally never heard from again. And Roswitha emerged from seclusion a different woman. Her beauty and strength returned, after the War she took up management of her lands with vigor.
In the twenty years that followed, Countess Roswitha worked tirelessly to rebuild her territory until the land once more bloomed. Wirsche became a success story for all of Eisen to see, a land protected by a division of the Iron Guard desperately loyal to their Countess. Wirsche’s success helps the rest of Eisen ignore the rumors about servants and travelers going missing at Roswitha’s manor in Siegburg, rumors that point to Roswitha as the cause.
The few bodies that do turn up are mysteriously short on blood. Moreover, many have begun to notice the Countess has not aged a day in twenty years. And anyone who knows about the monsters of Eisen whispers only one possibility in hushed tones: blood drinker. Still, without clear evidence, pointing a finger at one of the most powerful women in Eisen would be impossible, so even her growing group of detractors remains silent. Meanwhile, Roswitha keeps Wirsche growing through a healthy application of carrot and stick, offering incentives to those who work hard and threatening those who fall behind on her standard of productivity with visits by her Iron Guard.
To the world, the Countess is a ruthless, efficient ruler, dedicated to the prosperous growth of her königreich. With her territory’s growth, she leads as a frontrunner to take control of the country, a position supported by Heinrich Dray, leader of the Iron Guard in Wirsche and her passionate lover. Dray publicly issued a challenge to Niklas Träge of Freiburg: hand over the gauntlet of the Imperator so that Roswitha might wear it and rule. Whether the message came from the Countess herself, no one knows. One thing is for sure: Roswitha has been annexing territory slowly from other königreiche around her with the help of her Iron Guard, and no one seems prepared to stop her.