"No matter how brilliant and far‑sighted a Monarch is, once he hits old age, he usually finds his own youthful, dazzling heir especially unpleasant to look at.
He'll also do all sorts of baffling things to prove he's still young, still able to grip power tight.
So being an Emperor is hard; what's even harder than being Emperor is being Crown Prince.
Especially those heirs whom some Heroic Rulers set up very early—how many of them actually manage to sit safely on the throne in the end?
'Your Majesty, please call me Crown Prince!' — that's the truest inner voice of many princes and Crown Princes.
Luckily, our Empire may have many dominions, but we don't have that particular headache."
Nasser Din finished reporting official business to Byron, then, thick‑skinned, went to say goodbye to his own daughter, the "ugliest princess."
