We were already half-way to Etron when Haydith broached the topic of her brother and the Band of Bastards. In English, she said, “So, it’s real, then? There’s going to be a succession war when the King dies, and my brother Erasmus will lead one of the factions?”

“That’s what my knowledge from Ferrum Online tells me. Upon the death of your father, King Theophrastus, the nobles will schism in their support of Princess Rosa or Prince Erasmus.”

“But why? Why would so many nobles support Erasmus’s claim?”

A cold smile passed over my face as I said, “That’s the nature of primogeniture, I’m afraid. Prince Erasmus is the King’s eldest son. There is a legitimate legal argument to be made that he is in fact the rightful heir of King Theophrastus. Everything hinges on whether Erasmus is a legitimate son?”

“Well? Is he?”

“It’s not clear. You see, there’s a writ somewhere that’s set to be released on the King’s death. That writ states that King Theophrastus ‘recognizes’ Erasmus, Haydith, and Tancred as his children.”

“So Erasmus is the rightful heir?”

“Not necessarily. A child can be ‘recognized,’ but not ‘legitimate,’ though recognition implies legitimation.”

“Why would the King do that?”

“The King left the wording intentionally vague as… how should I put this… a kind of apology to you and your two brothers. When he wrote that message, he intended to make your lives easier while also maintaining Princess Rosa as his obvious successor. He tried to tread a middle path where everyone can be happy. Without intervention, this decision will result in the worst war in Ferrum’s history.”

With fear in her eyes, Haydith turned to me and asked, “Is there anything we can do to stop the war?”

Well, the easiest strategy would be to assassinate Erasmus and Tancred, but I wasn’t willing to employ such methods. Plus, the death of the two princes would not stop the Lich Cult from taking control after the King’s death.

“Yes, I have a plan,” I said with a self-satisfied smile.

“A plan?” Haydith asked.

“Yes, I intend to prevent this war by removing its contributing factors.”

“Remove? You don’t mean…” Haydith leaned away from me by an almost imperceptible amount.

“To prevent the war, we’ll need to destroy the Lich Cult and stop your two brothers from pressing their claims to the throne. I believe Erasmus and Tancred can be reasoned with, but I’m afraid some force will be necessary to dislodge the Lich Cult.”

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

I reached into one of my many pockets and withdrew my notebook, opening it to the front page. Written on the first page of that notebook was a list of five names. Every one of the twenty notebooks I had filled out over the years contained those names.

Prince Tancred Polaris

Duke Olofir Vulpa

Duchess Beatrix Mandelbrot

Lord Orion Arcturus

Prince Erasmus Polaris

“These five need to be neutralized in order for the war to be prevented.” My tone took on an icy edge as I showed that list to Haydith. I had lived with that list in my pocket for more than a decade. Years of consideration and research confirmed with absolute certainty that these five would have to die or be convinced to join my side for war to be prevented.

“Why is Tancred at the top of the list? Is that why you’re going to Etron? Are you going to…?” Haydith asked fearfully. She looked at me like I was a monster that was going to eat her family.

“Tancred is going to be one of my stops on this trip, but I’m not going to kill him. I abhor killing. I just need to talk to him before I leave the city.” I intended for my words to be reassuring, but they just came across as menacing.

“What does the order of the list mean?” Haydith asked, refusing to drop the issue.

“It’s the order in which I intend to deal with them.”

“You need to tell me what you’re going to do to Tancred. I won’t lead you to my home if there’s a chance you’re going to attack my brother,” Haydith said, her fear slowly turning to determination. Her hand slowly moved toward the sheath on her belt that no longer held her hunting knife.

“Sorry,” I exhaled, “I’m being coy unnecessarily. I’ve misled the people around me for so long that it’s become my natural state. All I’m going to do to your brother is tell him that he’s a prince and give him a hundred gold coins while subtly convincing him that he’ll die if he presses his claim for the throne.”

“You’re going to give him money? Why?”

“That’s why Erasmus joined the Band of Bastards, right? He needed the money. I don’t want Tancred following in his footsteps.”

“And how are you going to deal with the people lower down on the list? Why can’t you talk to Erasmus and negotiate with him immediately after Tancred?”

I paused for a moment to phrase my answer as diplomatically as possible. “While I have a plan to deal with everyone non-lethally, I need physical power to deal with Beatrix, Orion, and Erasmus. Even now, those three have reached A-Tier in terms of power. I could completely destroy their political capital, take away their money, and cause all of their allies to turn on them. Even then, those three would still be serious threats. They would not listen to me unless I could bring to bear a comparable amount of power.”

“How are you going to do that?” Haydith asked.

“Simple. I need to play the game. I need to gain levels, skills, spells, and special classes. I need to raise my own power and the power of those around me. The bulk of my plan is to gain enough power to challenge the strongest individuals in Etronia and then leverage that power to make them surrender to me. If I reach a high enough level before I meet your brother, we might not have to fight at all.”

“Do you really think that will happen?” Haydith asked.

“Who knows? They always say that the best laid plans do not survive first contact with the enemy.”

Haydith and I continued to talk for the rest of the day. Most of our conversation was about unimportant, even quaint topics from Earth.

It felt like no time passed at all before the gargantuan walls of Etron crested the horizon. The sun was low in the sky by the time our carriages reached the front gate of the city. As the guards approached my carriage, I rotated my neck in preparation for the coming performance. It was time for Thale Feldrast to make an entrance.