King Alexander Ironheart, who ruled for forty years, was once seen as full of promise. In his youth, many believed he would become a great knight. Unfortunately, those dreams vanished when he was severely injured by a magician, leaving him unable to train effectively.
Knight training depends heavily on physical fitness, and continuing is nearly impossible once the body is injured. This is different from mage training, where one can train even with a crippled body; for mages, the strength lies in the soul rather than the body.
Knights, however, must maintain healthy bodies to train and fight effectively. For the wealthy, healing injuries isn’t usually difficult, as they can hire mages skilled in restorative spells. Unfortunately for Alexander, his injury was caused by a powerful magician, leaving a mark beyond the reach of standard healing magic. His wounds, imbued with a resistant curse, were impossible to heal completely, forever altering his path from knight to king.
As a longstanding ruler, the king has many children; however, only five are considered legitimate heirs. The rest are illegitimate, born from affairs that nobles refuse to acknowledge as rightful heirs to the throne. Two of the five legitimate children are daughters—whom the nobility would never recognize as rulers—leaving only three potential candidates for the crown: the eldest son, currently the crown prince; the second son, Count Kingsly; and the third son, Count Fitzallen.
The crown prince has no political backing; he remains in position only because the nobles and the king have long disagreed on who should be next in line. Recently, however, they agreed to remove the crown prince and vote for a successor. Whoever wins the vote will be declared the next in line.
...
Alexander Ironheart gazed at his aging face in the mirror, noting his many wrinkles.
"I don’t have many years left," he sighed. His life held many regrets, too numerous to count, but he felt generally satisfied with his accomplishments. As king, he had successfully defended the kingdom against surrounding enemies, including the powerful Ice Reach kingdom. Despite the overwhelming military disparity, he had somehow managed to keep their enemies at bay.
The kingdom's weakness compared to its neighbors can be attributed to one main reason: its power is overly decentralized. The nobles wield significant influence and often act independently, making full cooperation difficult, especially when facing an invading enemy. This disunity has historically hampered the kingdom's ability to present a united front in times of crisis.
For King Alexander, maintaining the safety of the kingdom amidst such fragmentation was not just a duty; it was a source of immense pride. He defended against external threats, even when the nobles hesitated to band together. Through cunning strategy and careful diplomacy,
"Time to settle this matter once and for all!" he thought as he straightened his clothes. Though king, he always dressed himself and even cleaned his own office. After inspecting his reflection one last time, he placed his crown carefully atop his head, nodding in satisfaction.
"The good thing about this crown is that it hides my bald head!" he mused, disliking his baldness, though thankfully, no one could see it. He entertained a theory that crowns became traditional simply as a means for kings to conceal their baldness.
With slow steps, he left his quarters and walked toward the House of Lords, where they would vote today on removing the crown prince and appointing his successor.
...
The House of Lords lies close to the king's castle, reachable on horseback in about five minutes. Typically, the House isn’t particularly busy, as the noble lords spend only a few months there each year, the rest of their time devoted to their own territories.
There are two types of members in the House of Lords: Permanent Members and Temporary Members. Permanent members include nobles of count and duke rank, while temporary members consist of viscounts and barons. The House comprises a total of fifty lords—half permanent and half temporary. For a vote to pass, it must receive twenty-six votes, meaning that abstentions effectively count as "no" votes.
Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.
The House of Lords holds three regular meetings each year: one in spring, one in summer, and one in fall, with no winter session. The House is led by the Lord Speaker, elected by a two-thirds supermajority, who remains in the capital and holds the power to call special sessions, schedule votes, set the agenda, appoint a knight resident, and more.
Although a powerful position, the Lord Speaker’s role is not popular for two reasons: first, they cannot leave the capital during their term; second, they must always maintain a two-thirds majority, meaning they cannot afford to anger any faction and must navigate their role with extreme caution. Thus, in practice, the Lord Speaker often acts as a neutral figure, refraining from any personal agenda to remain in the good graces of a closely divided House.
Currently, the House is split into two factions. The majority, with twenty-six members, supports Count Kingsly as heir to the throne, while the minority, with twenty-four members, backs Count Fitzallen. The king’s formal approval is required to declare a new crown prince, but that hurdle has already been cleared; all parties have agreed to recognize the vote’s result as legitimate, and the king has promised to accept and confirm the outcome.
The competition is fierce, with both candidates engaging in bribery, promises of future favor, and other tactics to secure votes. Though the math currently favors Count Kingsly at twenty-six to twenty-four, no one can predict the final, official result. If Count Fitzallen convinces just one of Kingsly's supporters to switch sides, it would result in a 25-25 tie. In the event of a tie, the most senior member, the man who served for the longest, Duke Roland Ashenford, will cast the deciding vote, which would favor Fitzallen.
...
Victor sat in his chair in the front row of the House of Lords, where seats were arranged by length of service. As a count and permanent member, his seniority was high.
Glancing at the man beside him, he asked quietly, “Is everything in order?”
The man next to him, Duke Ironbough, was the second most senior member. Despite his age, his mind was sharp, and he was among the most well-connected nobles, serving effectively as Victor’s right-hand man.
“Don’t worry. We might even secure our twenty-seventh vote!” Leofric said with a smile.
Victor nodded, relieved but still uncertain about the mysterious mage who had appeared a week earlier. That day, everyone in the household had awakened after a few hours—everyone except his son, who had died. While the death of a child can devastate a parent, Victor felt a strange relief. His son had long been a liability, repeatedly causing him grief and harm.
Victor suspected the mage was Baron Fitzroy, Edith’s former fiancé. His son had assaulted Edith, so it wouldn’t be surprising if her former betrothed sought revenge. With his son’s death, Victor hoped Leo’s vengeance would be satisfied; still, he hired a Silver Knight to ensure nothing went wrong on this important day.
...
Count Fitzallen regarded his brother Victor with cold eyes. Though they shared both parents, they had never gotten along.
“Do we have Hawke’s vote?” he asked his right-hand man, Duke Roland Ashenford. Ashenford and Ironbough were longtime rivals, almost always finding themselves on opposing sides.
“Yes,” Ashenford replied, his voice pained. “We promised him rank-five trading rights on the Silver Leaf Road and a million gold for it.”
“Rank-five trading rights? That means no taxes at all! Isn’t that excessive?” Count Fitzallen was shocked.
“Victor promised him rank-four rights, so we had no choice,” Ashenford explained.
There are five levels of trading rights on the Silver Leaf Road. A rank-one trading group pays full taxes and receives no protection from the kingdom. Rank-two groups pay lower taxes and receive army protection, though they bear the full costs. Rank-three groups pay even less tax and receive protection, though they cover most of the expenses. A rank-four group pays minimal tax only on luxury items, gets protection, and pays only half the cost. Finally, rank-five groups pay no taxes at all and receive full protection at no cost.
The prestige of rank-five rights alone is enough to inspire widespread envy, not to mention additional benefits like easier access to markets and higher chances of securing royal contracts.
“How many votes have you counted?” asked Count Fitzallen. “With Hawke, we should be sitting at twenty-nine.”
Ashenford shook his head. “No, it won’t be twenty-nine. They’ve brought Gregor to their side. There may be other deserters, but I doubt they can secure four. Our worst-case scenario is a tie.”
Fitzallen nodded, closing his eyes in concentration. There was still half an hour left until the vote.
...
Leo looked at the two opposing sides, his face expressionless.
"Edith, which one deserves to be king?" he asked the girl standing behind him.
"Neither!" she replied, her voice laced with resentment.
"Then let the kingdom have its first female monarch!" Leo smiled.