According to the later historical text Brief History of the Dark Star, in the 679th year of the Ending Era, Thales Brightstar, the second son and heir of the Iron-armed King—known at the time as the "Polar Star"—extricated himself from a perilous life as a hostage through complex political maneuvering, was escorted out of the Northern territories with full honors, and returned to the Kingdom of Starfall, where he was immediately enfeoffed as the Duke of Star Lake.
(There is also an alternative account claiming that the northerners were unwilling to let the prince leave, and that the latter fought his way out in a bloody battle before escaping in disarray. However, having lost his retinue, he was forced to cross the Great Desert alone and returned home with the help of an orc tribe. Yet the sources for this version are folk ballads and tribal songs circulating around the Caligari Independent State and Razor Fang City, reading more like passionate and fantastical literary renditions by poets, devoid of both logic and evidence, and utterly untrustworthy.)
On November 2nd of the same year, Duke Thales attended the Privy Council for the first time on record, officially participating in kingdom politics.
This meeting was of monumental importance, primarily addressing two thorny issues.
First was a vicious incident that violated royal dignity: a debt-ridden, desperate Western Gentry squire barged (or, according to one account, was invited by interested parties) into Mindis Hall while the Polar Star was entertaining guests. Right in front of all the dignitaries, the former drew his sword to coerce the guests, accusing the royal family of persecuting Western ministers. Although the uninvited guest from the West was ultimately slain by the hand of Duke Thales himself ("The prince's valor is second to none in the kingdom's wrath," Earl