Elmuth started
the holy ceremony, droning on and on through the proceedings. Korvos,
still in a daze, accepted the crown and was hailed as the new King of
Korath. After a brief speech, wherein he told another parable, this one
having the theme of victory, King Korvos and friends retired to his
room to hold an impromptu meeting.
"Who was the woman in Ionus' party?" queried Korvos of Elmuth.
"I do not know, King Korvos," Elmuth responded.
"I heard that she's Morea, Ionus' daughter," chimed in Theguis. "I'm
not just a pretty face you know. I find out things."
Racius: "So what does the curse do?"
Elmuth: "If Korvos is truly one of the cursed, he will soon go mad,
oppress the peasants, unite the nobles, and declare bloody war against
neighboring kingdoms. Depending on how capable a strategist he really
is, he will bring ruin to much of the lands before he is stopped. In
any case, the people of Korath will suffer greatly."
Theguis: "How did the curse start?"
Elmuth: "It started with Karos, first of the line. Back then Korath was
but a minor kingdom, poor and inconsequential. Some say that Karos
found a sword of great, yet evil power. Other say that he made a pact
with demonic powers, to strengthen his sword arm so that he could smite
all his enemies."
Racius: "That's a load of bunk. Magic swords, demonic powers. All
superstitious gobbledygook."
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Theguis: "You
should be more open to other ideas."
Racius: "If it has no rational basis, then it can't exist."
Korvos: "So, am I cursed?"
Racius: "You did order those peasants killed. I'd say you're well on
your way to becoming a horrible despot."
Theguis: "Korvos did what?!?"
Korvos: "We should go to the library to research this curse some more."
Theguis: "Korvos!"
Korvos strode away to the library. Racius shrugged and followed the
King, leaving the Princess stunned before she also followed after the
two. A few hours of searching through the many volumes revealed a tome
with the history of Korath.
Racius: "Oh look, Karos got demonic powers. The Sword Arm of Karos,
able to cut down whole armies single-handedly. Pure balderdash."
Korvos flexed his left arm. "Doesn't seem any different to me."
Theguis: "Here's a picture of the Queen. It says that the Queens also
go mad and urge the Kings to greater acts of depravity and cruelty. My
kind of gals."
Racius: "Is it me, or do all the Queens look the same?"
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