BSW, I don't disagree with your reasoning, but something you should realize is that when people give critiques, it is usually best to speak in terms of what we would expect if the story was going to be published tomorrow so the author can make edits and take their writing to the next step when the time comes. At least those are the comments I personally find the most helpful. So yes, it may have been good for Cynic to write it no matter what we say, but that doesn't mean we won't give our honest opinion on whether it flows and works with the current story.
Thoughts While Reading:
What? Who? Why? When? Could just be a writing group problem, but I had a really hard time getting my bearings here and it was fusterating.
Okay, now I'm mad. You
finally give me a halfway decent character that I could care about (and that in turn makes me care more about te fate of your world, because the way I see it, if they are all rotten, why should I care who wins or what happens to them later?) and then you kill him within the same chapter. I don't know if I shall ever forgive you for that, or at least not Jarl. Maybe if it was closer to the scene where he actually spares someone, it would help... slightly.
Overall impression:
Alright, trying to be constuctive here, I enjoyed reading about this character and liked a lot of the things you were doing in worldbuilding. You could probably condese and tighten up a lot of the build up in the begining, but otherwise the scene was fine. As others had said, I would consider moving it around or at least give us more warning that you are going into flasback mode, but I think this all great information that we need to have somewhere. Oh, and in terms of being a flashback, whose flashback/memory is it? You tell it from the knights pov, but as he dies, I just see that as making it more awkward especially as it is currently placed.
Keep it coming...