A Kingdom of Fire And Stone: (Laranthiel Chronicles #1) by A N Dawes

Author:A N Dawes [Dawes, A N]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2023-06-02T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter Fourteen

“The King’s Sitting was first instituted by King Eldred I to gather his Lords around him and hold them accountable for their stewardship of the Rosa Lands. On that day, at the turn of every season, High and Low Rosa Elvrin alike were at liberty to enter Stone Castle and petition the King directly. He would hear every claim and render his judgement without fear or favour. It is how he earned the name, the Just King. A title from his citizens, that he treasured and honoured, until he drew his last breath.”

From “King Eldred I: Legends of the Just King” by Sir Aethelstan of the Silverwood.

The King of the Rosa Rubiginosa sat slouched on the Stone Throne that rose from the bedrock itself. He sat high above his lord councillors that were installed in ornate chairs arranged neatly before him, little thrones of their own, she noted, filling every space in the grand throne room. The throne room was slightly less spartan than the rest of the castle. Rich velvet banners of all shades of red hung from the walls, depicting great scenes - that she now recognised thanks to Sir Aethel - from Rosa history. King Eldred being crowned by Solis, the god figure depicted by a vivid sun. Another King on a majestic Valk flying high above the red armies, leading his troops into battle against an unseen enemy.

Somewhere in the crowd of advisors a lord cleared his throat loudly and Althea looked at her father again. It was impossible to tell what he was really thinking. The distance made him look more like a grey statue mounted on the stone throne than a living being. She had not seen him since that first night in Stone Castle.

“You say she is the key to undoing the detestable arrangement with the Thorn King, my King. But if we are to approve this, shouldn’t she prove herself first?” The saccharine voice of Lord Fane interjected through the commotion that had erupted just before this.

Her father had just announced that in a week, at the Autumn Equinox, she was to face the Rael Scian and bind her power to his.

“Are you calling your Sovereign a liar, Lord Fane?” the Rosa King sounded bored. A leader that had seen every political trick and scheme in his Court. “My daughter carries my blood. My power and my magic run through her veins. What more proof could you require?”

The King shifted in his seat and the ruby crown shifted along with him, sitting askew on his head, as if it were as half-hearted as its bearer. “I don’t remember asking for your approval, hmm?”

He coughed and the wet sound of a rattling chest filled the chamber.

“Sir Aethel, according to our laws, does the King of the Rosa Rubiginosa need the approval of his advisors, nay anyone, to rule?”

Sir Aethel sat next to her. The thickest tome she had ever seen sat on his lap, obscuring almost all of him. Only his bespectacled

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