Chapter 1010 - A Legitimate Heir (1/2)
Chapter 1010: A Legitimate Heir
Translator: TransN Editor: TransN
“Your Majesty… Your Majesty, please think twice!” Roland heard Barov shouting anxiously outside his office.
It was only after the City Hall Director had run to his desk while panting heavily that Roland finally put down his teacup and asked, “What should I think twice about? The coronation ceremony?”
“No. I meant your wedding announcement. You are going to marry a witch and make her your queen.” Barov glanced toward the place behind Roland while wiping the sweat from his forehead. “Ah, Your Majesty, I’m afraid this isn’t a proper way to handle the case.”
Roland was not surprised by Barov’s objection at all. He had anticipated as much when he first informed the City Hall of his decision. To remove the obstacles to his marriage to Anna, the City Hall would be the first group that he had to persuade.
After the Months of Demons, Neverwinter would send troops to the Fertile Plains once again to eliminate the demons’ latest outpost in Taquila. Meanwhile, the City Hall would be busy carrying out the spring plowing plans, new construction projects, and trade programs. The coming year would be an exceptionally busy year for Graycastle, so it did not sound like a good idea to hold such a ceremony now. According to tradition, preparing a coronation alone would need at least two to three months, not to mention that there was a wedding after it. Preparing these activities would inevitably increase his administration’s workload and thus would interfere with Neverwinter’s production and military plans. However, Roland did not make this decision on a sudden impulse.
Different from the previous winters, this winter was peaceful. He wanted to seize this rare opportunity to hold both his coronation ceremony and his wedding, which would boost his subjects’ morale without costing him too much effort.
More importantly, he really hoped to redeem his promise to Anna as soon as possible.
Of course, as a feudal king, he could do whatever he wished just like the rest of the self-indulgent rulers throughout history who had imposed their personal values on others and thus had forced their foolish decisions to get implemented. However, he did not intend to become such a ruler. He created this City Hall, and he was confident that he could properly handle this case without turning against his own administration.
In Roland’s view, exercising his power while staying within the boundaries of the rules would be a much better choice than abusing his power.
“Why?” Roland knocked on the desk as he asked Barov.
“It’s… it’s because you need an heir,” Barov said urgently. “Everyone knows that a witch can never give you a child. There’s a war on the horizon. If some unexpected stroke of misfortune were to happen to you, the other nobles would covet your throne. An heir will make your people feel secure.” Barov paused for a moment before adding, “If you just want to be with lady Anna, you don’t really need to marry her.”
“Oh? What do you mean?”
“You could marry a lesser noble’s daughter,” Barov suggested. “No one would oppose such a decision. You don’t have to take her seriously. You just need her to stand beside you on official occasions, and you can still do whatever you want—”
“So you mean that Anna can’t become the queen because she’s a witch?” Nightingale suddenly interrupted.
“I don’t think Lady Anna will mind such superficial things.” Barov coughed twice to cover his embarrassment. “It’s for the benefit of the country, Your Majesty. If you find it hard to tell Lady Anna about this arrangement in person, I can pass on your words to her.”
“You aren’t her. How can you know that she won’t mind? I can bet that she would never want a third person between His Majesty and herself!” Nightingale insisted.
“It has nothing to do with personal feelings. It’s about an heir…”
“Enough.” Roland raised his hands to stop them. “I get it. I just need to find a legitimate heir to the throne to reassure my people.”