An Understated Dominance (Dustin Rhys)

“You’re wrong, Tristan,” Matthias said with a meaningful look.

He continued, “Sure, I’ve got the Moseys to back me, but I’m still far from securing the throne. Nathaniel’s got strong backing too, and this won’t be an easy win. But if you were to support me, I’d say my chances shoot up to 80%.”

In his eyes, Tristan’s support was worth more than the Ballard family.

If he could win Tristan over, his odds would jump from 60% to nearly 80%. The only question now was whether Tristan would be willing to shelve his own ambitions and place his bet on Matthias.

“You know me, Matthias. I’ve never been one for ambition or glory. This kind of power struggle just isn’t for me. I hope you can understand that,” Tristan said.

After thinking about it thoroughly, he finally turned his brother down. He knew his chances of winning were slim, yet he couldn’t let go.

Tristan was the eldest legitimate son, the rightful and undisputed heir to the throne. Aside from his poor health, he had no real shortcomings.

Every move he made had been carefully calculated. He’d spent years waiting in silence just to make it this far. There was no way he’d give up now.

Even if he only had a few years left to live, or if he only got to be the king for one day, he would still fight for it with everything he had.

“Don’t take this the wrong way, Tristan, but it pays to know your own limits,” Matthias said with an insincere smile.

with your title, and no one will bother you. But once you get caught up in this mess, walking away won’t be so

tell Tristan still had ambition, even if he didn’t have the backing to match it. A man like that wasn’t a real threat unless he got in the way. And if that happened, things would get complicated. So he laid

the smile, though his eyes held

by my place. It’s been a while since we shared a drink like old times,” Matthias

but he didn’t refuse the

take care of. I’ll be going

Matthias

long time. His expression

ancient houses, the Moseys had already pledged their support to Matthias. The Spanners-the strongest of them all-stood behind Nathaniel. The Fallons were closely aligned with the Moseys, which meant they’d likely

only the Ballards, the last neutral

backing of any ancient house, he couldn’t count on a handful of scattered gentry to secure the throne.

received another

her features were hidden. Yet,

come simply to mourn Jovian. That alone

from the royal family was cold and calculating. At

had to worry about choosing an heir. With her ability,

daughters. Even if Valon wanted to change that, he couldn’t go against the will of his