“Who lives here?” asked Edur.
“The Earl who owned it died in the war.”
“Did he have a family?”
“Don’t worry about him.”
Edur stared at the huge skylight over the bed and wondered how it must look when the sun rose. He’d heard of skylights and had never actually seen one. Why didn’t Father ever get one back home at the Castle? The panes of glass sloped up to a sharp point in the center, and he realized that must be so the snow would slide off and not build up on top.
The bed took up the center of the room, and bookshelves lined the wall on one side. The surface of the vanity close to the fireplace was bare. On his right, the huge windows were hung with dark curtains. A door ahead of him presumably led to the privy room. Considering there wasn’t much stuff, he figured the servants had cleared it out after they learned of the lord's death.
Tivar took a lit lantern from a stone coaster on one of the bedside tables and went over to the rug by the side of the bed.With his boot, he kicked it aside, and a small, blue fuzzball skittered across the hardwood floor.
“See? You need your older brother. You had no idea that was there, did you?” Tivar pointed at the floor.
It appeared normal, so something must be hidden underneath, and Edur shook his head.”
“I know stuff that you don’t, and I have plans already. Everything I say or do is for the good of our family, especially you. Do you understand me?”
“Yes.”
Tivar crouched and placed his palm on the floor for several seconds. Nothing happened. His jaw tightened as he scooted back a little. “Put your hand flat on this board. Father used a blood spell to lock it.”
If it didn’t react to Tivar’s, Elswere hadn’t been lying.
Edur crouched and placed his hand on the floorboard. The cool wood turned warm under his palm before it shifted slightly with a faint creak. Tivar brushed his arm away and pried up the board with his fingernails. The ones next to it were easier to lift, and in the space, there sat the Crown. It was a simple but clever spot, and the locking spell that only blood family could unlock must have cost a fortune.
Edur had grown up seeing the Crown, so it was nothing new to him. It was gold and had a ruby at each of the four points. It was the only one he’d ever seen in real life, but he’d seen drawings of others. Some might appear more valuable if one didn’t know better.
No other ruler could claim their Crown had or gave life.
The Goddess Elira herself had made it and gifted it to the first King of Iceland.
When Father had worn it, it had kept him warm. He could have gone outside naked in a three-day blizzard, and he wouldn’t have frozen to death as long as the Crown was on his head. Itcould also keep someone else warm, which was its only power with no King over Iceland.
Edur had worn it a couple of times. He’d never liked it because it had been too big for his head. Father had chuckled when it had slipped over his eyes.
The life in the Crown kept the lands healthy so they could grow food in glass houses with soil dug from the frozen earth. Livestock thrived, hunting remained abundant, fires in the Kingdom lasted longer compared to elsewhere in the realm, and trees and hardy winter plants survived the constant ice and cold.
It was truly worth more than any gem-encrusted Crown in the whole realm.
Now, the gold appeared dull, and Edur knew it was because Father was dead. The Crown used to have a special sheen to it, and it was gone. His throat tightened as Tivar picked it up, and it remained dead even when placed on his head.
A muscle in his cheek twitched. Perhaps Tivar had been hoping Elswere lied, and he was the heir. The Crown remaining dead was undeniable proof.
Tivar pressed his lips together as he handed it to Edur. The second his hands touched it, the sheen returned, although it wasn’t like before. A slight thrum went through it to Edur’s hands, and he knew it wasn’t enough to keep Iceland alive. It was only to show he was a blood heir, and he would have to be coronated by a High Mage. If he wore it, it would give him warmth and keep its faint sheen. Nothing more. It wasn’t capable of doing anything else, so technically, one could say it was still dead.
If he were coronated, it would work as intended until he died, and his heir would have to repeat the process. With no heir, the Crown would remain dead forever, and Iceland would follow.
Edur turned as his eyes filled with tears. “Elswere wasn’t lying.”
“I’m still your brother, and I deserve the throne. I was raised to believe I’d be the King, so that’s fair, right?”
“Yes.” Edur didn’t want to take it. He’d always thought it was his older brother’s birthright, and he’d never hungered for the throne before. “I’m only supposed to be a backup. But what-”
“Give it to me.”
Edur handed it over and watched the sheen vanish. “The lands need a person of Cleel blood, so what are you going to do?”
