Challenge #04735-L351: One Head Under the Crown
A long reigning king has reached the end. The eldest has the strongest claim, yet his rule is unlikely to last long. The middle son is inclined to autocracy, yet, deft in international politics and likely to keep the kingdom at peace. The youngest is quarrelsome with his peers, yet, sympathetic to the plight of his people. And there is the bastard, a playboy likely to leave governing to the parliament except when he wants to indulge.
Wraithvine is called to choose from these candidates. And the will, witnessed by hundreds, dictates that it must be one of these four… -- Deathshead419
It was clear why they needed an uninvolved, unimpeachable third party to this mess. Four children of the old king, each with a claim of sorts to the crown and the throne. Or at least a bunch of people backing them to take the throne. That was why Wraithvine got the last letter from King Regimimus III, begging the Eternal Wizard to select the best ruler for the realm.
The choices were: Regimimus IV - first born and already acting entitled to the crown, Andrus II - who was a firm believer in divine power, but also had a gift with diplomacy, Lekthys VI - popular with the people but incredibly unpopular with other leaders of other realms, and Bren the Bastard - who had been living off his father's stipend for all his life. He was not only a gadabout and scoundrel, but also an utter cad.
The only people who backed Bren were clearly manipulative sycophants who could put the worst Grand Vizeer to shame.
[Check the source for the rest of the story]
