“The hardest part about being at the top isn’t just the loneliness. Can you imagine being unable to get a proper, honest conversation going ever again because everyone around you is too intimidated by your position to speak to you honestly? It is hell in many ways, I tell you.” - Gregorius Aurelius Secundus, Famed general and later Second Emperor of the First Elmaiya Empire.

“Why didn’t you tell me!?” asked Kino in a near-hysteric scream when Aideen told her later that night – after they had left the wedding feast – that the man she engaged in an animated debate with for most of the time they were at the feast was none other than the Sultan himself.

“Well, I mean you two were clearly enjoying your time together,” replied Eilonwy with an amused smirk as her friend’s panicked reaction. “It just felt rude to interrupt, you know?”

Kino was somewhat mortified because she and the Sultan had gone into long diatribes about the various methods of rulership in their talk, Kino mostly giving opinions based on her learning and what she had seen in her life so far, while the Sultan countered with examples from his own experiences as a ruler and the learning mandated for a ruler to be when he was younger.

Amusingly the two came to a mutual agreement that no one system of rulership is perfect. A system of a ruler up top with nobility below like in Caracan itself had its benefits in that the delegation of duty was clear, and limited the amount of work each person on the hierarchy had to deal with, but on the other hand it also risked corruption and abuse of authority far more easily, as the delegation also made it easier to hide such cases.

On the other hand, they were also agreed that to allow every one of the people to have a voice in deciding the nation’s course was a beautiful idealistic picture, but was in actuality an even greater folly. It made no sense to consider the opinion of an ignorant beggar from the streets to be of the same weight as a skilled and renowned scholar, for example, which was what such a system idealistically preached for.

Given how few people were educated at all in the average nation, all that would do was to ensure a quick collapse of the nation itself.

Even a governmental system where one person at the very top held all the power like in Ptolodecca failed to escape the Sultan’s criticism. In his opinion such a government might indeed do well, as long as the person in charge was competent and skilled. The troubles however were bound to start sprouting up should that power got to their head.

On the assumption that the person in charge had a strong enough character and willpower to not let themselves be corrupted by the power they wield, the nation was still far from safe. There was no guarantee that the successor to such a ruler would be someone of the same caliber, and thus the risk of everything breaking apart due to one corrupted or incompetent ruler down the line remained high.

That said, the Sultan did admit that Ptolodecca had avoided those issues neatly since the Bone Lord had been the nation’s leader since prehistoric times and had no plans whatsoever to abdicate. It was not a solution that other countries could adopt, however, partly due to the lack of immortal liches to go around them all.

The Sultan and Kino debated animatedly well into the night until they finally called an end to it and went their separate ways, and Aideen brought the girls back towards their inn from the feast shortly after. It was so late in the night that the young couple whose wedding the feast was for had long retired to their bedchambers by then, though many people still enjoyed the feast even then, many drunk out of their minds.

Apparently that was a common sight in Caracanese feasts, as even the streets were still full of drunken revelers, many of which were so drunk they fell asleep right where they sat, only for some friends or family to drag them to their homes later. The three witnessed many such scenes as they walked back to their inn, and Aideen had nodded in approval when she saw the lack of any people taking advantage of the general merriment for more nefarious purposes.

“The Sultan likely enjoyed having someone with whom he could have an actual debate with, you know?” supplied Aideen with a smile to calm Kino down. It was rather amusing to see the girl flustered with the knowledge of whom her conversation partner was, but they were nearly at their inn by then. “He likely didn’t get many chances to do that after he became Sultan.”

“What do you mean, Miss Aideen?”

“It’s hard to get people to talk openly and honestly to you like they would with an equal when you’re that high in position. Whoever the Sultan talks to, would likely have to consider his position as a Sultan and their position in the hierarchy in comparison,” explained Aideen. “It’s one reason why rulers often had a habit of disguising themselves to mingle with their people. You know Grandpa also does that often.”

“Times like those are often the only times where they get to just be themselves as a person, instead of being saddled with the responsibilities and duties of their position, you know?” she continued. “Many people thought that living large as a noble or a king would be a wonderful experience, but in truth, should the noble or king in question be a responsible one, most of their life would be consumed by their duties instead.”

“When put that way, I kind of feel sorry for them,” noted Kino with a scowl on her face. “That’s not the best way to live your life.”

“It comes as part of the parcel, honestly. Great privileges but also great responsibilities. When they neglect the responsibilities and just focus on the privileges… well… you’ve already seen several examples for yourself.”