BenevolentManacles

R

IN DEFENSE OF OUR PEOPLE 16th of Sigismund's End, 1849 King under the Mountain, You have delivered to us a final and irrevocable insult. You shall not have our man, and you shall suffer immeasurably should you set foot in Our Empire. We have no mercy for those who would presume to vassalize and corrupt Canonists into doing war against their kin, who would threaten and cajole Our priests, and who would pretend that their actions lacked aggression of any sort. You have made a limp declaration of war, where you presume to acquire moral high ground by appearing to love peace, while you threaten armies at Our border. A state of war now exists between us. God is with Us. IN NOMINE DEI Philip II, by the grace of GOD Holy Orenian Emperor, forever August, King of Renatus, Curon, Kaedrin, Salvus, and Seventis, Defender of the Faith, Pontifical Gonfalonier, Grand Duke of Ves, Helena, Novellen and Lorraine, Baron of Renzfeld, Protector of the Heartlanders, Orenian Highlanders, and Farfolk, etcetera

The Emperor prepares a response.

PROVIDENCE; A CITY OF SAINTS 16th of Horen’s Calling, 1849 Our beloved subjects, As the years have faded by the hands of fleeting time, it is Our devotion to God which has endured. And so as Horen drove four stakes into the ground, that land became the boundaries of the Holiest City. We must do everything in Our sovereign power to do the work of God. And so, we have commanded; We replace Our City of Monuments with a City of Saints. Let this be Our testament to the Lord, and let no man alter the purpose of Our city. Our devotion to God. IN NOMINE DEI Philip II, by the grace of GOD Holy Orenian Emperor, forever August, King of Renatus, Curon, Kaedrin, Salvus, and Seventis, Defender of the Faith, Pontifical Gonfalonier, Grand Duke of Ves, Helena, Novellen and Lorraine, Baron of Renzfeld, Protector of the Heartlanders, Orenian Highlanders, and Farfolk, etcetera ((City Paste 12/04/21))

The Emperor confers with his Lieutenant and Baron, Lord Arthur, "You, the destroyer of Our enemies. Have you ever been hawking?" The Emperor would proceed to elaborate in great detail to the scarred Baron the various types of hawks and their vital roles and limits with regard to hunting. The type of equipment one must use, how they must care for it. Sir Arthur would be accosted by the elderly Emperor for hours.

The Emperor prepares a special stool for the pagans, so they may look him in the eye when he accepts their apology before God and man.

The Emperor would often be seen reading and praying beneath the cherry blossom tree, gifted to him a decade ago by the Jade State.

The Emperor considers, for a moment, if he was still taller than his dwarven counterpart, despite himself being bound to a mechanical wheelchair.

Philip II would be found by his daughter, with a magnifying glass and tweezers, preening and cleaning the feathers of his now dead falcon, the taxidermized corpse an uncharacteristically macabre monument in his room of trophies. He listened with care as he continued his hobby, the story causing a gentle grin on the wrinkled sovereign’s face. “The young Princes, Our counterparts. Dignity and mockery are the same to them. We shall love them all the same, and it is Our command that so shall you.” The Emperor sets his tools down, crossing his arms at the Archchancellor’s grimace at his command. “They scratch at the base of a marble pillar. The mocked and the jester are not evil, and can be saved. The King of Haense desired to do good, and he did it rashly, and with disregard for Our true and honest love for the good work of God.” “They will learn, with age, that no country can exist by antithesis to another. It must be founded on its own principles.” The Emperor beckons her, and they retreat to the chapel, where he compels her to pray for the dignity of the Haeseni King.

“Your Imperial Majesty!” shouts a young man from the parapet as he returns from prayer at the forest shrine at Huntshill. Philip II received a missive, detailing the most recent treaty, as he enters the bastion. “Sire, they posture against you! It is a vile union which seeks to weaken your rule!” The Emperor grins from astride his white stallion, offering the parchment detailing the event back to the nervous soldier. “No, my son. It is the flavor of the week.”

"Agreed, good fellow!" Says leonardo twin brother, frederico.