Aprenent. It seems to me that great harm has been done, and is still being done, by those nobles who serve evil in their hearts. I fear what may befall our kingdom, should such vicious men be permitted to continue to rule.

Saviesa. Fear not, young Aprenent. For this matter can be alleviated most simply. Her Majesty in her Wisdom and Righteousness has already revoked the titles of many such wicked men, and replaced them with men of noble souls. She must simply ensure that all those who would join the ranks of the nobility are good and lawful men, and all those among the present ranks of the nobility whose souls are marred by vice and wickedness ought be deprived of their land and titles, for although they may be noble in blood they are not noble in soul.

Aprenent. A wise suggestion.

Simplicio. Foolish Saviesa! How can a man be noble in blood but not in soul? There is only one kind of nobility, that which is passed down from father to son.

Saviesa. You must be a great fool indeed, if you believe such nonsense. For House Thrune was undeniably noble in blood; but no right-thinking man would say that they were of noble character. Her Majesty the Queen has elevated many courageous men of noble character to Countships; are we to say that such men are truly commoners, merely by virtue of their birth?

Aprenent. Of course not, Saviesa. But is it not better to be ruled by men noble in both blood and character?

Saviesa. That is true, Aprenent, when such men may be found. But under the reign of House Thrune, the souls of many lines of nobility became corrupted, and now those men noble in both blood and soul are in largest part those who returned from death itself, which is self-evidently wholly insufficient for the governance of an entire kingdom. If one must choose one or the other, it is clearly better to be ruled by men deficient in blood than men deficient in soul.

Simplicio. Pah! And how do you propose to carry out such a grand plan? Need I remind you that many wicked men claim to be righteous?

Saviesa. We come now to the heart of my proposal, for until now I sought only to establish its need. We need not rely on the words of such men alone, and indeed we should not. For there is a spell of the first circle, by which means a priest of even the first circle may discover the nature of a man's soul. In such a way the priests can easily confirm that such a man is lawful and righteous.

Aprenent. How clever!

Simplicio. Nay, the very suggestion betrays his ignorance. For most men, be they righteous or wicked, are of soul so thin that even the priest cannot see into their heart. Saviesa speaks of noble souls, his proposal would exclude a great many lawful and righteous men from the ranks of the nobility.

Saviesa. You speak as if you believe me to have committed some error; yet this is no error, for such an exclusion is deliberate. Chief among the duties of the nobility is that of protecting one's lands and people from monsters and bandits. If a man's soul is so thin that even the priests cannot see what lies within it, it is certain that he will not have the strength of body necessary to carry out such an endeavor.

Aprenent. A masterful response, Saviesa, but Simplicio's foolish objection has caused me to wonder of something else. I have heard it said that the souls of those priests who have been chosen by gods shine with the light of their god's will, even if the priest himself be capable of little more than the weakest of divine magic. What should happen, if such a man seem mistakenly to be a powerful soldier? He may in truth be lawful and righteous, but he would find himself incapable of protecting his lands.

Saviesa. There is no need to worry about such an occurrence, Aprenent. For if a man is righteous and lawful of character, he would not so deceive our Queen. She need only explain such matters when such an evaluation is performed, and all such priests who are yet weak in body shall depart from her sight.

Aprenent. I see now the prudence in your proposal, Saviesa. I thank you for explaining it to a humble man such as myself, and I apologize for taking up so much of your time with my trivial questions.

Simplicio. Pah! It is a trivial conclusion, which requires no great wisdom or knowledge.

Saviesa. You need not thank me, Aprenent, for I am merely a servant of our Queen and Country. And you need not apologize for your ignorance; for there is no shame in a lack of understanding, so long as one seeks good counsel in correcting it.