The Seven laws

Aethelgard had power.

But power without rules would eventually destroy itself.

That was why the Seven Great Families had established laws that even the most powerful bloodlines were expected to obey.

The laws were not suggestions.

They were the foundation of the hierarchy.

And breaking them could mean death.

The First Law — Reverence

The higher-ranked families were to receive absolute loyalty and respect.

Disrespect toward the High Council could be considered treason.

No family stood above the Council.

The Second Law — Peasant Decree

A noble family could not simply attack, harass, or exploit a lesser house without a verified legal verdict from the High Court.

Power alone was not supposed to justify violence.

The Third Law — Purity Clause

The Great Families were forbidden from intermarrying.

Their magical bloodlines had to remain isolated.

The reason was simple.

Each family possessed unique magical traits.

Mixing those bloodlines threatened the system the Seven had built.

Violation of the clause could result in total eradication.

The Fourth Law — Sovereign Council

No citizen could kill a member of a Great Family without explicit written authorization from the High Council.

Even revenge had to be approved.

The Fifth Law — Finality Rule

When an official duel was sanctioned, its result was final.

Penalties were final.

Rank changes were final.

The defeated side could not simply reject the outcome.

The Sixth Law — Usurpation Right

A lower-ranked family could challenge only the family directly above it.

If the challenger won, the two families exchanged positions immediately.

The ladder could therefore change.

But only through sanctioned combat.

The Seventh Law — Ultimate Taboo

No family could bypass the hierarchy through secret syndicates, unlawful harassment, political sabotage, or hidden operations.

Any house caught doing so could face annihilation by the combined military force of the remaining families.

These laws created order.

But order had a price.

Every child born into the Great Families was born into the system.

Lulu.

Nie.

Dark.

Sky.

None of them had chosen it.

Yet every one of them would eventually collide with it.

And the first two were about to discover exactly how unforgiving those laws could be.