"The people are paramount, the state secondary, the sovereign least!"
The assembly mulled over these heretical words with growing horror.
Commoners exalted above the kingdom, the emperor relegated to last?
Was this not sheer absurdity?
"Your Majesty, Samuel spews seditious nonsense, desecrating our ancestral rites—this is high treason!"
"Commoners placed above the Emperor? Are we to accept this mockery?"
"Should their status rise unchecked, next they'll be—"
Edmund's face burned scarlet as he ranted like a madman, then abruptly bit his tongue mid-tirade.
"Regardless, the third prince's words are treasonous!"
Samuel rose and bowed ceremoniously. "Father, the chancellor speaks truth. August trades in baseless scaremongering day and night."
He'd expected some wisdom from August. Ins
