Nota Bene

Emerstones is ruled by a tyrant - a tyrant without mercy, love, or kindness - a tyrant that punishes even the faintest trace of dissent and the faintest hint of incompetence. There is nothing that he does not control, for his injustice is absolute. The people of Emerstones know only his iron fist and the darkness of his dungeons; they receive no share of their princedom's wealth and power.
But this is true only on the surface, for there is more to Emerstones than meets the eye... and more to the tyrant than his people see. And what remains hidden could become their hope... or their doom.

Is cruelty more powerful than kindness? Is it truly better to be feared than loved?