C: <span>
The nobles had again sought to make themselves as powerful as possible.
In the passage, it explains that under Stephen the nobles had experienced a ton of power (the author uses the word exorbitant which shows how extremely privileged their lives were), but that Henry the Second then took a lot of their power away. Now, they are resuming their former positions (from under Stephen) to a point where they are becoming as powerful as possible.</span>
Hello there!
Old scratch is an archetype of villain.
I hope that helps!
