Vincent of Beckett is the secondary protagonist and romantic interest of Matilda in Wild Reverence. He is the third son of his father, the lord of Wyndrift, until he is murdered by Vincent’s uncle, Grimald. Grimald believes he should be heir, based on the historical tradition of primogeniture, and when Vincent is 16, Grimald murders his father and older brothers and almost kills Vincent and his younger brother Nathaniel. This traumatic experience shapes Vincent’s future as he accepts a leadership role while simultaneously processing his grief.

Vincent has black hair and gray eyes, and Matilda describes him as “tall and lean for his age. He was made of sharp angles, hollow cheeks, and tenderhearted sorrow, as if he were hungry and anxious but had grown despite the hardship, like a weed emerging through cracked limestone” (19). Though the first time Matilda sees him, he’s almost 13 and has not lost his father and older brothers, she notes that there is pain within him. This immediate understanding of his inner emotions demonstrates both Matilda’s innate empathy for Vincent and his emotional vulnerability, which contrasts with her own reserve.

Though Vincent later tries to hide his vulnerability, afraid that Matilda will think he’s weak, Matilda understands Vincent’s greatest fear when he begs her to accompany Nathaniel in Wyndrift: “His father was dead; his mother had abandoned them. He had lost two brothers. He could not bear to lose another, to be left alone in the world, the last of his name. The last son of Beckett” (182). Vincent doesn’t want to be alone in the world, and this fear helps him understand Matilda better. He sees Matilda’s loneliness and can fully empathize with her, as they’ve both lost a parent and struggled to trust others in the wake of the tragedy. Though their losses initially harden both Matilda and Vincent, they soften as they build trust and intimacy together.

Vincent’s vulnerability with Matilda helps him move forward from the trauma of losing his father and brothers. Though he once fantasized about vengeance, his time with Matilda helps him realize that he wouldn’t benefit from answering the violence with further violence. When he faces Grimald in the aftermath of their final battle, he thinks, “I had often dreamt of taking my revenge on Grimald, carving him into ribbons, and yet now that the opportunity was upon me…I realized it was nothing like my mind or my heart had imagined it would be. My emotions were no longer aligned with my past” (447). Vincent no longer wants to inflict unnecessary pain upon Grimald; he realizes his desire for violence will not heal him from his loss. His relationship with Matilda offers him hope of a future filled with love, freeing him from the painful emotions of his past.

Bade of Underling is the god of war, and he describes himself as ugly and scarred. At the start of Wild Reverence, he is allied with Zenia, Phelyra, and Alva. Bade is Matilda’s salt-sworn ally, a vow he exchanges for temporary access to Zenia’s power, but as he was the first to hold Matilda when she was born, he also sees himself as her father. Through Bade’s example, Matilda sees both how difficult and how rewarding pursuing love is. Though he first attempts to con Adria into feeling affection for him with ulterior motives, he falls for her in earnest, even attempting to bargain away his power for Adria’s life.

As the narrative continues, Matilda’s understanding of Bade shifts; she notes that he is softer than she first thought and has his fault line in his heart: “He had once made me doubt, but now there was no question. It was his heart, and he had just revealed it to the entire clan. All because of her, a mortal woman he had once plotted to deceive” (50). Matilda’s perception of Bade’s relationship with Adria demonstrates her initially simplistic view of love; she assumes love is a weakness that has made Bade powerless and vulnerable to betrayal. Despite this, Matilda remains loyal to Bade, and when he asks for help in saving Adria, Matilda thinks, “He was my salt-sworn ally, my soul-forged father. And I knew what he needed before he could utter the words” (52). Though Bade is not Matilda’s biological father, he acts paternally toward her, protecting her from harm and treating her with the love and kindness missing from her life.

Bade’s character changes significantly in the context of his relationship with Adria. Adria is a mortal woman from a humble background who rises to political prominence due to the merit of her writing. Her romance with Bade leads to her transformation from mortal queen to the goddess of peace, as the matriarchs Orphia and Rowena of Underling and of Skyward give her stars from their constellations to grant her immortality. Adria’s transformation, however, is not shocking to Matilda, who reflects, “Upon first glance, I would have never known she was not one of us. I would have never known she had been born mortal, so gracefully did she wear her immortality and power, save for the compassion that dwelled constant in her eyes, in her heart” (103). Adria takes to godhood naturally, as her leadership abilities transfer over seamlessly.

The aspect of Adria that Matilda notes as unusual for a divine is her compassion for those around her. It is this compassion that shapes Bade and his own transformation, as during the battle at Wyndrift. Matilda sees that “[Bade] did not desire to be here. He took no joy in cutting down mortal men. Not as he once had. What had wrought this change in him?” (288). Though Matilda questions why Bade’s bloodlust has dissipated, the answer is clear: Adria. He now shares her compassion for mortals. Adria also helps Matilda with her own transition from herald to soul-bearer, as Adria guides Matilda to realize the true breadth of her power and even gives Matilda two of her own stars, keeping Matilda’s magic safe from theft by any other divine.