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To say Chrom didn’t take Robin’s death well would be the biggest understatement anyone would come to know. His noticeable change wasn’t immediate- only becoming a problem when he was finally exalted as king. No one, not even his friends and remaining family, could have predicted the change to come in Chrom’s caring nature. Robin’s death was the beginning- the trigger- of Chrom’s descent to his current state as Mad King.
The longer Robin spent dead was a direct result to Chrom’s ruthlessness. Before, friends of his thought the pain would finally fade with time- that Chrom would get better- but they couldn’t be more wrong. Chrom grew to be more aggressive with his actions and decisions, always getting what he wanted even if it resorted to death of another. Anyone who opposed him would go missing, undoubtedly dead somewhere. The citizens feared the once beloved man, scared of stepping out of line in any way and being punished silently or publicly.
Most of the king’s efforts were spent locating Robin; never forgetting the possibility of his survival Naga explained. Citizens and Shepherds were overworked with the duties of finding a dead man and rebuilding what was lost during the war with Plegia- whom grew fearful of Chrom’s ways. Ylisse’s Mad King has hinted invasion of the country more than once, accusing the people of hiding Robin away from public eye regardless if it were true or not. The man ruled with fear and cared little about the poor citizens.
They had a job to do and they were required to do it, and that’s all Chrom cared about.
When Naga decided to spare them by returning Robin, everyone thought Chrom’s cruel ways of ruling would be over; that he would go back to the man he once was.
This wasn’t true. He only got worse.
Chrom desired more power- power to protect the people he loved. Robin thought he was being ridiculous and disapproved of his lover’s ways.
“I didn’t want to come back to another war, Chrom!”
What should have been a glorious, tear-jerking reunion at home was anything but. Robin’s screams and yells of anger and general confusion could be heard almost everyday as he tried to reason with his lover. While everyone feared for Robin’s safety, they also had hope that his concerns, which Chrom valued more than anyone and anything, wouldn’t go unheard.
No one but Chrom knew how Robin, a man that once held intellect of the highest caliber, the only person who could even stand a chance of changing (or rebelling against) Chrom, was reduced to a bed warmer- a position that was deemed safe in the King’s eyes.
Robin’s once warm eyes that held wisdom with a mischievous, knowing glint was no more; having been replaced with something more dull and vacant. His signature wardrobe, the one that everyone came to know as ‘tactician’, was thrown away for something more simple and demeaning. It made everyone angry and afraid that Chrom would go as far as to change the man he loved, that everyone respected and cared about, with no apparent remorse.
Friends would take turns talking to Robin on the rare occasion he wasn’t with Chrom, but even that was near impossible. The man would stare blankly at them most of the time when asked if there was anything wrong, if Chrom was hurting him in anyway… He either spoke one or two words to them or not at all and he looked drained of life unless with Chrom. The very noticeable downgrade that had been made to Robin made his friends mourn for him.
They were sure that if the real Robin was sitting in that shell somewhere, watching everything but doing nothing, he would have prefered to be dead over this. The worse thing about it was Chrom showed no implications of turning him back if there was a way to do so.
Yet, they could do nothing. Say nothing. Chrom had a higher tolerance for the Shepherds over the people being that they were personal friends and comrades, but those even those once treasured and meaningful titles didn’t save him from his wrath. Tharja had tried to save Robin from the vessel he had become and paid for life for it. Right in front of everyone.
He gathered everyone to the throne room and called for Tharja to stand before him with Robin at his side. Then, as if she were a Risen, he cut her down. Frederick thinks he may have seen Robin’s finger twitch in reaction, Libra claims he’s seen tears well up in Robin’s passive gaze.
Chrom warns them not to betray him in any way possible. If they run, he will find them.
All the while, the children are left blissfully unaware of the inner turmoil and anguish everyone has built up. They have so many questions as most kids are attentive and curious; especially little Lucina and Morgan. With all their questions, few are able to get answered when their King’s threats hang over their heads like a cloud ready for a down pour. The two princesses are persistent in their questions; wanting to know why Robin acts the way he does, why everyone is sad all the time, why did Tharja ‘go home’, why, why, why…
Everyone adopts Frederick’s go to answer.
“You will understand when you get older.”
Then, and only then, will they see the harm Chrom has caused- the damage and pain he has inflicted upon everything he once cared about in the name of Robin.
Should they accept the reality of what Chrom has done and the monster he is, it is up to them to save what the Shepherds could not.