And another dude

I've always had in mind this triumvirate, so let's get them all out now.

C. is my "leading man." L. is my real protagonist, but C. is the beard, the red herring. L.'s heroism is about honesty and thinking and careful scholarship, hardly sexy. C. has all the classic hero's attributes. C. is young, handsome, dashing, skilful, physical. C. is, furthermore, generous and openhearted, pious and respectful. He's literally a good guy, very much by choice and design. He wants to be "the hero" - in fact, I think "the Hero" in the Lie is his personal totem, the model to which he aspires.

He's an upper-class gentleman, not from the City but from the country to which it belongs and quite aligned with it in his views. The Goddess and her Hero are foremost in his devotions, but he's religiously naive. Not for him abstract discussions of the Goddess' intent or the Hero's nature, let alone spirited discussion of inconsistencies in the Lie. He's a believer in a simple, trusting way that isn't really all that in the spirit of the Goddess - which really should be a big red flag to L. that something is wrong, off, when someone can have this kind of unconsidered, reflexive devotion to a deity who is supposedly all about knowledge and truth.

Like H., he's a fighter. Unlike H., he's not a soldier first, but a duelist. He loves chivalry, the idea of honor among killers, the idea of two fighters facing off. He's very good with light swords. On the battlefield he's a great fighter, but it's not really his element. He's definitely stronger and more able than H., but H would probably beat him in a fight in earnest, because C. would fight clean.

He holds L. in awe, because she's devoted to the Goddess. Probably to the point of not seeing her faults. That comes naturally to him, however; he's a kind person and he doesn't see anyone's faults, or if he does he doesn't take them seriously.