12

You follow Karvas through the teeming streets of the capital towards Palace Square, the grand plaza where the crowning ceremony is set to take place in less than an hour. A wide avenue of marbled stone leads towards the square, and as you hurry along it, you marvel at the aristocratic mansions and embassies that march past on either side. The sound of a fanfare echoes in the distance and you increase your pace when Karvas tells you that it signifies the arrival of Baron Sadanzo. The approach to the square itself is blocked by the crowd, but the Prince knows of another way by which you may reach it. You leave the avenue and he takes you along a narrow lane that winds through a maze of buildings in the Merchants’ Quarter. This area has been closed for the Ascendance and Harvestmas ceremonies, but you are able to climb over the barricades that have been erected to prevent entry by the crowd, and you reach the square unchallenged.

On a raised platform in the centre of Palace Square, Baron Sadanzo is preparing to kneel before Phedros, the Marshal of the Realm, the highest ranking officer in the kingdom of Siyen. He is flanked by the High Chancellor, the High Chamberlain, the Mayor of Seroa, and other Siyenese noblemen. Under the Constitution of Siyen, following the death of Oridon and the absence of Karvas, the Marshal of the Realm is empowered to bestow kingship upon the Baron.

Frantically, you and the Prince struggle through the crowd that encircles the platform. Phedros is about to place the State Crown of Siyen upon Sadanzo’s head when you leap onto the platform and bring the ceremony to an abrupt halt.

‘I am Karvas, Crown Prince of Siyen, and I demand my birthright!’ shouts the Prince to the assembled nobles. The crowd gives a gasp of astonishment which is followed by a deathly hush.

‘You are an impostor,’ screams Sadanzo. ‘The real Prince Karvas is exiled in Sheasu. I demand this man be executed for his insolence!’

Marshal Phedros approaches Karvas and takes hold of his right arm. He pulls back the sleeve of his tunic and examines the birthmark on his wrist. Phedros has known Karvas since he was a baby, and you sense that he is convinced that the mark is genuine. He raises the Prince’s arm so that the other Siyenese nobles gathered on the platform can see the crescent-shaped mark. Murmurs of dissent can be heard among the crowd, and whispers that Karvas has returned filter back to Sadanzo’s ears. The evil Baron narrows his coal-black eyes and slips a glowing green gem from the pocket of his ermine robes. Your Sixth Sense warns you that this stone is radiating strong psychic energies. Through its use, Sadanzo is able to exert a powerful control over the noblemen of Siyen who are gathered here on the platform. If you are to break the Baron’s mental hold over them, you must destroy the evil gem that is clenched in his bony fist.

If you possess Kai-alchemy and wish to use it, turn to 97.

If you possess Magi-magic and wish to use it, turn to 205.

If you possess a Bow and wish to use it, turn to 135.

If you possess neither of these Disciplines, nor a Bow, or if you choose not to use any of them, turn to 314.