Alaric knew, perhaps more clearly than anyone else, that he had been nothing more than a silent observer to Soren's suffering.
He had seen enough to understand what was happening.
He knew about the way Sylas treated Soren when no one else was looking, the quiet hostility that sometimes turned into open cruelty. He had also been aware of Lyric's behavior like the sharp remarks and cold indifference that often followed whenever Soren happened to cross their path.
None of it had truly escaped his notice yet despite knowing all of this, Alaric had chosen to do nothing.
Instead of stepping in, instead of questioning the situation or putting a stop to it, he buried himself in his own responsibilities in the North. Reports to the palace, training exercises, inspections of the troops, and endless documents that demanded his attention.
He allowed those duties to fill every moment of his time because he thought that it was easier that way.
