The people from Earth have consistently demonstrated the ability to either to either forego class requisites (like the Knight and the Emperor) and create new classes/skills (the clown, Minotaur punch, Immortal Moment etc.). The system seems to reward “leaning in” to one’s class, so to speak and yes Laken isn’t actually arrogant but he is self confident and full of conviction and the system seems to react to need and conviction the most.

At the point in time in which Laken became an emperor, he had basically just been transported to a fantasy world. He had no concept of any restrictions on what could or could not be done. He believed wholeheartedly that he could be an Emperor and that conviction plus his Earthling status seems to have cheated the system.

They’re people too—and while they’re more than likely bad people, they deserve a trial or imprisonment. Not death. If they fight back, by all means retaliate with force, but merciless slaughter shouldn’t be the first option. There’s some real warning signs with Laken that would be understandable if he were from this world, but as someone from Earth he has to be better.

I will give him that they probably don’t have the resources (both structural and food wise) to house prisoners, but the immediate killing is massive red flag for me.

Yeah I thought fairies too. We’ve seen it happening to Erin before and it would make a lot of sense for Laken, considering they’re part of his empire.

We know the leveling system is flawed, hell the antium were talking about how chess somehow cheats the tatican leveling system when it should theoretically only work for low levels, he is another flaw

I’d say the biggest problem, one of the main things I’ve always had an issue with in regards to Laken, and something that Eeree pointed out, is that Laken literally shouldn’t have been able to get the Emperor class with only a single cottage and subject – both of which are very dubiously under his “control”.

Typically, an empire needs one of two things: either being a ruler over multiple other rulers (usually kings or the equivalent), or control of multiple territories – i.e. an actual empire. That ‘multiple’ is the key in both circumstances. An empire is, quite literally, not a single territory. An Emperor is not an Emperor without eiyher being a “king of kings” or having an empire. Laken meets neither of these requirements for quite a long while.

Now, he supposedly bases his Emperorness off Emperor Norton’s story. The problem with that, is that Norton arguably didn’t become an Emperor simply by declaring himself so, but also by the people actually acknowledging him as one and treating him as such. The people, effectively, ‘gave’ him his class. Anyone can declare themselves anything, but that doesn’t just make them that thing.

Laken didn’t have that, either. He didn’t even really have Durene believing he could become one until after it happened – and again, one subject would probably not be nearly enough.

He should have started as something more generic – a plain Monarch or Ruler, for example – and once he actually had both Riverfarm and Windrest under his control (because Durene believed she was part of Riverfarm, so her cottage also shouldn’t be a discrete territory), he could rank up to an actual Emperor.

I would also highly dispute the “arrogance of a god” statement from Ryoka, as Laken has shown virtually zero arrogance at all. If anything, he’s been more whimsical than arrogant. Just about the only really arrogant thing he has done was when he kept people fighting during the goblin raid.

Those arent coincidences. If Erin hadn’t found the inn, she would’ve don’t something else, but she found the inn, it isn’t a coincidence that she found it, it’s just what happened. Ryoka falling in the runners guild, does lead me to believe the placement is somewhat intelligently determined. I mean what are the chances that most people seem to appear near people, or in important places. Like Erin falling into terriarchs cave, the twins falling into the king of destructions throne room, and so on.

I turn to them and see the same worry and fear in their eyes that I’m feeling. Only they’re looking to me for help. I can see lights in the houses nearby and a lot of people are standing in the streets, looking worried.

Laken can’t actually see.