Background Pony #0636
With due respect to the author, it’s “severity”.
Context for those unfamiliar with EAW: This story is set in Aquileia, a Griffon kingdom modeled on the culture/society of Bourbon France. 25 years prior to this story, the Kingdom fell to a Republican revolution, but the Republic soon succumbed to a monarchist counter-revolution. By the time of this story the Kingdom is on the verge of a second revolution.