Emeric de Puyrault

Role Aristocrat, swordsman Nationality French Status alive Age 26

Elegant aristocrat, master fencer, intelligent and composed under pressure.

Overview

Émeric de Puyrault is an elegant young aristocrat of 26, master swordsman, and heir to a substantial but impoverished estate north of Lyon. He is charming, intelligent, and composed under pressure—but also isolated by the social fractures of post-Restoration France and increasingly concerned about the occult forces gathering in Lyon.

Appearance & Demeanor

• Appearance: Striking, well-groomed, dressed impeccably in fashionable dark coats and crisp cravats
• Bearing: The natural grace of French aristocracy combined with military precision from fencing training
• Voice: Warm, measured, with traces of wry humor
• Manner: Polite but never obsequious; he moves through society with quiet confidence

Role in Chapter 2

At the Ball at Château de Camberonne, Émeric introduces the investigators to Viscount Adrien de Montferrand, framing it as “a meeting of old friends and new allies.” Later, if the investigators befriend him, he may offer them:

• Access to his estate library (contains occult texts)
• An invitation to stay at Le Coteau des Ombres
• Subtle intelligence about Mathilde Savarin’s influence in Lyon

Public Reputation

• Known as a capable swordsman and elegant courtier
• His family’s estate has been damaged but not destroyed by Revolution
• Whispered suspicion that he was in England during the Terror (true)
• Considered a potential marriage prospect for ambitious families

Estate: Le Coteau des Ombres

Émeric’s family seat lies on the northern outskirts of Lyon, overlooking the Saône. The estate includes:

• A three-story manor house (partially fire-damaged, gradually restored)
• Outbuildings (wine press, stable-house)
• Walled garden (overgrown)
• Private chapel (deconsecrated, locked)
• Vineyard (half-productive)

The estate has a dark history: it served as a revolutionary barracks in 1793, and locals fear it is tainted by blood. The vines bear small, black clusters that villagers call “les raisins de la honte” (the grapes of shame).

Staff

• Jules (steward, mid-50s): Loyal, cautious, ex-soldier. Lives in the gatehouse.
• Thérèse (cook/maid, elderly): Warm-hearted, mostly deaf. Refuses to approach the chapel.
• Lucien (stablehand, groundskeeper): Ex-soldier with a limp, missing two fingers.

Campaign History

Chapter 2 — Lyon

The investigators encountered Puyrault at the Ball at the Hôtel de Brissac in Paris, where Georgiana returned his family seal ring — recovered from bandits at a roadside inn on the journey from Dover. Grateful, Puyrault invited the party to stay at Le Coteau des Ombres and provided lodgings throughout the Lyon chapter.

At the Ball at Château de Camberonne, Puyrault introduced the investigators to Adrien de Montferrand, an old friend who would become one of their most important allies.

Throughout the chapter, Puyrault formed a romantic attachment to Georgiana, which she spent the entire Lyon chapter politely deflecting. After the destruction of Savarin’s cell, the party rested at his estate for several days before departing for Vienna. Puyrault proposed to Georgiana. She refused, explaining that she had to move on. He remains at his estate, a rejected but genuine suitor with an open door.

Connections to Other Files

• Le Coteau des Ombres — His family estate
• Jules Steward — His loyal steward
• Viscount Adrien de Montferrand — His friend and ally
• Mathilde Savarin — His romantic entanglement