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+# Character State: ch-04
+
+## Queen Seraphine
+Location: The Crimson Cathedral, Aethelgard
+Physical: Severely depleted; trembling from high-order hemomantic exertion.
+Emotional: Isolated and strategically desperate.
+Active obligations: Owes Aldric Thorne a formal response to the Bilateral Seal (ch-01) -- UNPAID.
+Open loops: [Seraphine & Malcorra] Total schism over the Sanguine Marriage (ch-04) -- UNRESOLVED.
+Known secrets: CARRIED (ch-01—unresolved): The Blight has breached the inner glass-line; the Lowen-Court is already compromised.
+Arc: 20% -- She has explicitly prioritized the survival of the crown over the sanctity of the Church's ancestral laws.
+Permanent: YES
+
+## High Priestess Malcorra
+Location: The Crimson Cathedral, Sanctuary Altar, Aethelgard
+Physical: No injuries; radiating a cold, rhythmic stillness.
+Emotional: Calculating and religiously absolute.
+Active obligations: Owes the Crimson Cathedral a "purified" sovereign (ch-02) -- UNPAID.
+Open loops: [Malcorra & Aldric] The religious price of the Thorne bloodline entry (ch-04) -- UNRESOLVED.
+Known secrets: CARRIED (ch-01—unresolved): Does she hear the voice of ancestors or weaponized hallucinations?
+Arc: 15% -- Has shifted from advisory discipline to active political obstruction of the Queen's treaty.
+Permanent: NO
+
+## King Aldric
+Location: The Crimson Cathedral, Entrance Portico, Aethelgard
+Physical: No injuries; hands steady but skin abnormally pale.
+Emotional: Guarded and pragmatically cold.
+Active obligations: Needs the Bilateral Seal ratified by Seraphine to secure his borders (ch-01) -- UNPAID.
+Open loops: [Aldric & Seraphine] The immediate physical terms of their proximity in the Cathedral (ch-04) -- UNRESOLVED.
+Known secrets: Is hiding the extent of the Lowen-Court’s structural decay from the Cathedral clergy.
+Arc: 12% -- Has transitioned from an external threat to a physical presence within the Valerius seat of power.
+Permanent: YES
+
+# World State: ch-04
+
+## NPC Memory
+- High Priestess Malcorra (Crimson Cathedral): ADVERSARIAL -- Viewed Aldric’s arrival as a "staining of the stones" -- Now treats the alliance as a theological war.
+
+## Faction Attitudes
+- The Crimson Cathedral: Militant -- The High Priestess has signaled that the Church will not recognize a Thorne-Valerius union without a "blood-tithe."
+- The Lowen-Court: Encroaching -- Thorne's presence in the Cathedral marks the first time a foreign sovereign has stood in the Sanctuary in a century.
+
+## Active World Events
+- The Sanguine Parley: The 48-hour deadline for the Thorne proposal stands at approximately 32 hours.
+- Cathedral Lockdown: The Clergy has restricted movement within the Spire, citing "spiritual impurity."
+- The Blight Advance: Resonant hums within the Cathedral stones suggest the Blight is reacting to the Thorne bloodline's proximity.
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