By Octavia Snipe
Foreign Affairs Desk – Times-Observer
MONTROVIA — Trouble is said to be brewing in the marble corridors of Montrovia’s royal court, where rumors of a coup swirl as thickly as incense. The Crown Prince, once a fixture at parades and salons, has reportedly been placed under “protective seclusion” by elements within the royal guard.
Official communiqués insist the prince is “resting after an indisposition of nerves,” but sources close to the palace whisper of deeper intrigues. Guards have been rotated unusually often, loyal ministers dismissed, and the Queen Dowager observed departing the capital with suspicious haste.
Montrovia’s political climate has long been volatile. The monarchy, though ornate, rests upon a foundation of fragile alliances between nobles, merchants, and the ever-restless officer corps. The Crown Prince, known for his fondness for poetry and mechanical toys, has never commanded the same martial respect as his forebears. “He builds clocks while his generals build armies,” quipped one parliamentarian.
Reports suggest that factions within the guard may be maneuvering to install a cousin of the royal line — the Duke of Valmont — whose reputation for austerity and stern discipline appeals to soldiers weary of palace intrigues. Whether this represents a genuine coup or merely a power struggle within the family remains unclear.
Eyehasseen’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has issued a travel advisory, urging citizens to avoid Montrovia’s capital until the situation stabilizes. Yet caravans continue to flow, curiously well-guarded, carrying both goods and gossip across the border.
Merchants in Inverness are uneasy. Montrovia is a key transit point for timber and iron, commodities vital to shipbuilding and railways. Any disruption could ripple swiftly through Eyehasseen’s economy. Already, contracts have been delayed, and one shipment of oak beams bound for Haddlesby is said to be “detained for reasons of state.”
Within Montrovia itself, the people seem divided. Some yearn for a more decisive ruler, believing the Crown Prince too gentle for turbulent times. Others cling to tradition, warning that meddling with succession invites chaos. One innkeeper, asked his opinion, shrugged: “Princes come and go. But beer is constant.”
For Eyehasseen, the stakes are high. A hostile regime in Montrovia could tilt regional alliances, threatening trade routes and diplomatic balance. For now, Inverness watches and waits, ears attuned to the whispers from behind Montrovia’s palace walls.