Appearance

Physical Description

He has a sturdy, not bulky build made from years of managing strong-willed horses and loading heavy cargo. His shoulders are broad and his hands are thick with calluses from reins and axle grease.

Body Features

His hair is usually kept at a practical, medium length, often messy and windswept from his work as a postilion.

Facial Features

His face is often set in a calm, watchful expression, though open and generally friendly around the people in the village. With a strong jaw and a straight nose.

Identifying Characteristics

His most striking features are his grey eyes, from which he got his name from.

Apparel & Accessories

Vukan is practically dressed in durable wool and worn leather, favoring function over the vibrant, artistic aesthetic of his home village. While other Slobodians might wear brightly painted beads or have intricate carvings on their belts, Vukan's adornments are simple: a well-cared-for warm coat and gloves for the cold rides, a sturdy dagger, a long whip, and a leather pouch.

As per slobodian tradition, his mask is one of a silver cat.

Mentality

Personal history

Vukan grew up like almost any child in the village of Sloboda, although spent more time in the stables than he probably should've. He learned to ride before he could properly run and could muck out a stall easily by the age of ten.
But his childhood was not drowning in peace that Sloboda now enjoys. He came of age under the thumb of the cruel Ban Mislav.
During those years, the Stasov stable was often forced to provide transport for Mislav's foreign guests—sinister figures Vukan now knows were cultists of the Warning Star. Borislav taught his son to keep his head down, his mouth shut, and his eyes open. Vukan learned to fear the quiet way these men spoke and the coldness in their eyes. His "Sixth Sense" was honed in this tense atmosphere, a constant reminder of danger in the back of his mind. Eternally grateful for their help, he sees Leoviedans in better light than most, but still has his concerns.

He was barely a teenager when he watched the knights in shining armor ride into his village, a stark contrast to the shadowy figures he was used to.
Having spent his entire life working in the family business, Vukan recently earned the position of Postilion. It's a role of significant responsibility, requiring him to ride the lead horse of a team, setting the pace and navigating hazards. He has become a familiar and trusted face on the roads connecting Sloboda to the wider world.

Mental Trauma

Vukan is haunted by a recurring nightmare, a prophecy given to him by a traveling shaman his family once gave shelter to: "You will meet your end on a road you have not traveled, betrayed by the cargo you carry." This makes him intensely curious and suspicious about every package he is hired to transport and every new route he is asked to take.

Morality & Philosophy

While grateful to Queen Enye, Vukov still holds some opinions about Leoviedan's relations with magic and forest spirits. He dislikes things he can not understand, therefore shows great suspicion to creatures living in a world completely different than his own. Magic is an another thing, he sees it as an unpredictable force humans were never meant to wield.

Known Languages

He is fluent in Slobodian, the language of his homeland, but his work has forced him to become conversant in the tongues of the great powers around Sloboda. Under the guidance of his father, he learned, and now can understand the clipped, formal orders of a Smyklian officer, the flowing, mercantile chatter of a Liccan trader, and the rambling of Leoviedan knights on a patrol, a skill vital for navigating the wider world.

Personality

Motivation

Vukan's main goal is to keep his family safe and prosperous. He takes on dangerous jobs not for glory, but for the coin needed to maintain their stable and ensure his parents and brother have a comfortable life. He dreams of a day when the roads are safe enough that his father no longer has to worry every time he rides out.

Virtues & Personality perks

His Sixth Sense manifests as a quiet intuition. He'll often pull his coach to a halt for a moment, listening to a feeling on the wind, or suggest a different route based on a "bad feeling" about the main road. This has saved him and his passengers from trouble more than once.

Vices & Personality flaws

Despite his love for his home, the open road calls to him. He feels a bit caged if he stays within the village palisades for too long.

Personality Quirks

While he can be polite, he is slow to trust those from outside the forest. He has seen enough greed and cruelty in the cities to prefer the straightforward nature of Slobodians.

Social

Birthplace

Sloboda

Current Residence

Sloboda

Family Ties

Borislav Stasov - Vukan's father is a seasoned coachman of the old school. A stout, powerful man with a booming laugh and a deep suspicion of outsiders, Borislav has driven the forest roads his entire life. He remembers the days before Mislav's treachery, when Sloboda was truly on its own , and he carries a cautious optimism about the new alliance with Leoviedo. It was Borislav who taught Vukan the languages of their neighbors, insisting that "to know a man's tongue is to know if he plans to cheat you or kill you." He is immensely proud of his sons but worries constantly about the dangers they face on the road and in the woods.

Anica Stasova - Vukan's mother is the quiet heart of the family. Originally from a small settlement that was absorbed by the ever-expanding Smyklian empire, she fled as a young woman and found refuge in Sloboda. She brought with her the gift of literacy, a skill she passed on to Vukan, believing that knowledge is the one thing no tyrant can take from you. While Borislav manages the horses and wagons, she handles the ledgers, negotiates with merchants, and maintains the family's good standing in the village. She is the source of Vukan's quieter, more introspective nature.

Mannerisms

Vukan is a quiet professional. His Suave talent isn't born of a loud, boisterous charm, but from a calm, reassuring presence that puts people, and especially animals, at ease.
He makes a good first impression because he listens more than he speaks and carries himself with a competence beyond his years.

His deep bond with animals is his defining trait, he often seems more comfortable holding a one-sided conversation with his horse than making small talk with a passenger.