Book 1: The Crown Prince (The Kid Emperor of Occultoria)
Page 38
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Back at the banquet, Max finally gave in and promise the Matriarch some face time to discuss expanding the role of the Church. They made an appointment for the following week.
The Holy Mother finally bowed and then went away.
“Phew,” said Max. “Being Emperor is going to be a lot of work.”
“No doubt,” said Ariel, eating with gusto a piece of Evarra, a type of ray-finned fish. “Now that you’re the Emperor, everyone’s going to want a piece of you. You’ll be so busy dealing with affairs of state you’ll have no time to yourself.”
Max prayed that wouldn’t be the case.
He was about to dig into his roast dodo when the archbishop said, “Sire, there’s a delegation here to see you.”
Max looked up.
Two men and one woman were bowing deeply before him.
One man looked like a cow, the other man looked like a horse and the blonde woman had wings like an angel.
The archbishop said, “Your Imperial Majesty, the people have elected these three honorable citizens as their representatives to you as well as their mouthpiece.”
Max raised one hand casually. “You may rise.”
The lady with the wings spoke. “It is a privilege to make Your Imperial Majesty’s acquaintance.”
“And yours,” replied Max.
“I am Seraphim,” said the lady. “And these are Cowhead and Horseface.”
The two animal-like men bowed again.
Max said, “You may rise.”
They rose.
Seraphim cleared her throat. “If I may be direct, Your Imperial Majesty. Your act of charity and kindness earlier today has resulted in a stampede. The people are not used to this type of kind display, particularly because your aunt, the Empress Lilith, was not a very charitable ruler. And so, it brought out the greed in them.”
Max frowned. “So what are you saying? I shouldn’t be kind and charitable?”
Seraphim bowed her head. “No, sire, I’m not saying that. But perhaps you could do it in a...safer manner. No one has died, but three people are in Saint Michael’s Hospital with moderate injuries....”
It had been his first official act as Emperor and to Max, it had seemed to be an abysmal failure. How could he have not foreseen that sprinkling gold coins into an impoverished crowd would cause a stampede and injure people?
Max took a deep breath. “I will be sure to use a safer method next time.”
Seraphim smiled. “That’s all we ask, Your Imperial Majesty. Oh, and congratulations on your coronation.”
The three of them backed away from him while facing him.
After inhaling her meal, the cat licked milk daintily from a cat’s bowl. “Sheesh,” she said, in between licks. “You’d think they’d be more grateful. Let me warn you, Max. People are whimsical and fickle creatures. One minute they’re bowing before you, the next, they’re tearing your limbs apart. Learn from rulers in the Natural World. Louis XVI of France, Charles I of England, Pope Alexander VI. They were all terrible rulers and paid the ultimate price. But even when you love your subjects, they may not love you in return.”
Max thought about it. Being Emperor was going to be tricky. There were going to be plenty of pitfalls and land mines to avoid. On one hand, he had to show his love. On the other, he also needed to command a certain respect and even fear in his subjects, if he were to hold on to his Double Crown.
With all the talking he had been doing, Max was now thirsty.
Still lost in thought, he took a sip of his prenglas juice and swallowed.
And that was when he realized that something wasn’t right. The prenglas juice didn’t taste fresh like before. It tasted like spoiled milk.
If he had been paying attention to what he was drinking, he probably wouldn’t have swallowed it.
He felt something enter his bloodstream.
He felt faint and weak. He felt nauseous. He felt like throwing up.
Shutting his eyes, Max slumped down in his seat, still clutching his imperial scepter.
The Double Crown fell onto the floor.
Hearing the clattering noise, the archbishop rushed over to the Emperor. “Your Imperial Majesty! Your Imperial Majesty! Are you alright?”
He placed a shaky hand on Max’s pulse.
The pulse was slowing down.
He placed his head against Max’s chest.
The heartbeat was faint, barely audible.
He touched Max’s hand.
The hand was becoming cold.
The archbishop’s worst fear had been confirmed.
The newly-crowned Emperor of Occultoria was fast losing consciousness.
He examined the glass of prenglas. The liquid, normally reddish-orange, was a bluish-gray.
The archbishop recognized it at once.
Sallarella! It was a powerful and fast-acting poison.
It was exactly as he had feared.
He turned around and announced to the guests, “My friends. I have terrible news. The Emperor is dying!”
***
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***
A Message from the Author
I hope you have enjoyed reading this volume of my series The Kid Emperor of Occultoria. I hope I have been able to give you joy, excitement, hope and a sense of wonder, just like Walt Disney, my role model, did for me.
If you would like to be informed on my works, please email me at jasonwchan@hotmail.com and like my facebook page. https://www.facebook.com/pages/A-Romantic-Ghost-Story/347390105277211
A Message from the Author
I hope you have enjoyed reading this volume of my series The Kid Emperor of Occultoria. I hope I have been able to give you joy, excitement, hope and a sense of wonder, just like Walt Disney, my role model, did for me.
If you would like to be informed on my works, please email me at jasonwchan@hotmail.com and like my facebook page. https://www.facebook.com/pages/A-Romantic-Ghost-Story/347390105277211
IMPORTANT NOTE: I have now published Book 2 and I am working hard on the rest of the series.
If you want me to write faster, there are four things to do to let me know.
1.Email me with a brief message at jasonwchan@hotmail.com with Subject Heading: Book 2 and tell me what you thought about this book.
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4.Write a good review for this book on whichever site you found it on.
In the meantime, check out my other books. Just search under my name.
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Always Yours,
Jason W. Chan