A Promising Governor
A Promising Governor
| In-universe date | Era Nova, November–December, Year 7 |
| Real-world date | 2026-11-01 |
| Author | Klovis Conyratus |
| Category Type | Character News |
The tops of shingled roofs of most buildings are visible from the high storey window of Klovis’ villa. The man stands there, staring out the window at the hour of midnight. On the other side of town, Klovis watches a pillar of black smoke rising into the night sky, illuminated by the wild fire engulfing the house it rises from. But Klovis’ face shows no expression, he only thinks about the strings he pulled to get to this point.
That burning house across town belonged to Bardas, a running candidate for the governor of Ponugo. He was the straightest arrow of them all, with no dirt to expose and no loved ones to leverage, an unfortunate death was the only option. A knocked over candle, a spark from his fireplace, the lie mattered not, so long as the assassin made it look like an accident.
The others were far less tricky and had an easy grip on their strings. Isaac had done dealings with the bandits up north. An anonymous threat to expose that fact had promptly made Isaac flee the nation. Leontin had ties to illegal trades, yet he stood his ground upon receiving his threat. A fool who now rots in the cruelest Tryhaugen dungeons. Cyril has such a lovely family. I will have to set them free once the election is over, Klovis thinks to himself while still watching the smoke. But he will set them free overseas, so Cyril will follow and not make a mess of things. Valens and Petrus were two more loose strings, but Klovis found ways to tighten the knots. He simply poisoned Petrus’ meal, and left evidence of the plot in Valens’ residence, where the town guard discovered it last week.
Of course, he had to leave at least two candidates still running to avoid speculation of bribery or threats. Maurus and Fructo were good choices for that. They are spineless cowards, but they are not stupid. After tonight, they will get the hint - if they haven’t already - and throw the election without drawing suspicion towards Klovis. They have families and skeletons in the closet, not to mention their own lives.
Klovis had carefully planned all of this out. One step further toward his ambitions. There was only one uncertainty about it all, one string he could not get a hold of. And right on queue, the loose string knocks on the door of the lounge. Klovis turns from the window and tells the person to enter. The man, or whatever he is, has the mask of a trickster and the attire of a jester. Roulette. Everyone was predictable, or so Klovis thought before meeting this man.
“It is done,” Roulette says with an eerie voice of bloodlust.
Klovis dons a calculating grin. “I can see that,” and gestures behind himself toward the window.
Klovis walks to a side table next to the bright fireplace. He begins to pour the pitcher into two goblets. “Would you care for a celebration?”
“No.” The shadows cast across Roulette’s face from the fireplace are misshapen and create near demonic features when looked at out of the corner of the eye.
Klovis shrugs, still holding his grin, and sips his own goblet. Of course he had not poisoned the wine, but he did think about it. He thinks about placing poison in every goblet he pours nowadays, save for his own. It has become an instinct, and a good one to have, he believes.
“I hope you enjoy your new position.” Roulette gives an odd chuckle. “We hold the cards to defeat our enemies now, and you make the hand a royal flush.”
“You flatter me so, Roulette. I could not have gotten here without your help to cut this final string. Tell me, what news from Scurria? My sources hardly know anything, except for showing me that bold banner you have taken.”
Roulette gives another chuckle. “I must be going. I do not want word reaching the capital that I was missing from my province during this… accident. My lord.” Roulette gives an almost mocking bow and another chuckle before leaving the lounge.
Klovis thought Massimo Re a fool for giving such a person a position of power, both in governance and military. Klovis had heard of the bombings in Calavera, and had been shown the countless wanted posters from there. But after tonight, Roulette has proven himself more useful than expected. Perhaps Massimo Re saw the same thing, Klovis thinks as he turns back to the smoke in the distance. Klovis has hired enough cutthroats to know bloodlust when he sees it. So long as Klovis can keep providing targets for Roulette, it will keep his own villa from burning down in the night.
Precautions must be made, however. Klovis has a string to pull from everyone he knows. Klovis has not found any family Roulette has, no friends, no home where he came from, not even any personal goals to take advantage of. But everyone has a string, and Klovis will find it eventually. That is a concern for another day, for Roulette is a good ally, and Klovis now looks beyond the smoke. To the mountains to the north, and what strings could be pulled from the other side of it. And he looks at the sea, anticipating the day he can grab the strings from across it…