The Heirs of Duty Advent calendar

This autumn has been gruesome, to put it mildly, and I have a hunch, it hasn't been that only for me. So, to cheer people up, I've decided to publish The Heirs of Duty as an Advent calendar.

One to three chapters a day will appear on my website (a Wordpress site) where you can read them for FREE without an obligation to sign up or subscribe for anything. The calendar opens on the 1st of December, the last chapter will become readable on Christmas Day, and the files will disappear on the 31st of December.

A pretty fair deal, eh? You get to read a book without needing to give anything in return. Merry Xmas in advance!

Meet the Characters

Arron Grethsen, a soldier of Her Majesty's Army, is the main character of Braenduir Chronicles. He was raised by an independent mother and chose the military career because it is an easy option for a youth who doesn't know what to do with his life.

Arron's kind and sociable nature has made him popular in and outside the garrison but unlike many other young men his age, he is yet to encounter his significant other. He isn't in a rush to find a relationship and when he meets a reserved warrior mage, Jan Cattilsen in his favourite tavern, he cannot guess he's found more than a new friend.

Though Arron joined the army largely because Aenerhjelm going to war is unlikely, he volunteers for the battles in the Westerner kingdoms, sharing the road to the front with Jan whose interest in the peculiar birthmark on his chest should pique his curiosity. Yet, Arron ignores the strange token implanted under his skin just as he always has, clinging to the conception that there's nothing extraordinary about him.

Meet the Characters // Hahmoesittelyt

Sir Rikhar is one of the significant minor characters of The Heirs of Duty. He is a member of Princess Irana's Chamber Guard, a young man who dreamed about knighthood already as a child. He was born in a brothel, so his dream was unlikely ever to come true. However, the Fortunes favoured him, and he was picked up as a squire by an elderly knight of the Emerald Knighthood. Through another fortunate coincidence, he became the youngest knight ever to serve in the Chamber Guard. 

Rikhar is as dutiful and honourable as a knight can be. He always tries to do the right thing and remain true to his vow. Yet, when it comes to choosing where his loyalties truly lie, he finds picking a side more difficult than he expected.

Though Rikhar's origins seem straightforward enough, he was born in a brothel and lived in the streets for a while after his mother's death, a wimple of mystery veils his past. Who is the Grey Lady who charges him with the quest of discovering the counterpart to an ancient Token? Is she really his mother as she claims to Buck, or does the Northerner pass on the Token to the wrong person?

Rikhar on yksi Riimuin kirotun merkittävimmistä sivuhenkilöistä. Hän kuuluu prinsessa Iranan Kamarikaartiin ja on haaveillut ritariudesta pikkupojasta saakka siitä huolimatta, ettei hänellä alhaisen syntyperänsä vuoksi ollut juurikaan toivoa unelman toteutumisesta. Onnettaret kuitenkin suosivat häntä ja yksi Vihreän ritarikunnan vanhimmista jäsenistä valitsi hänet aseenkantajakseen. Toisen onnekkaan sattuman kautta hänestä tuli nuorin koskaan Kamarikaartissa palvellut ritari.

Rikhar on niin kunniallinen ja velvollisuudentuntoinen kuin ritari vain voi olla. Hän yrittää aina toimia oikein ja pitäytyä valassaan. Silti puolen valitseminen osoittautuu vaikeammaksi kuin hän osasi kuvitella, kun hän joutuu päättämään, kenelle pysyä uskollisena.

Vaikka Rikharin syntyperä vaikuttaa selkeältä-hän syntyi porttolassa ja eli kaduilla jonkin aikaa äitinsä kuoleman jälkeen-hänen menneisyyttään verhoaa salaperäisyyden huntu. Kuka on Harmaa rouva, joka antaa hänelle tehtäväksi etsiä vastakappaleen ikivanhalle poletille? Onko hän todella Rikharin äiti, kuten hän väittää Pukille vai välittääkö pohjanmies poletin väärälle henkilölle?