February 28, 429 H. E.

I am excited! I have finished the spell that will cause the sickness to fall upon anyone I choose. This plan will succeed and I will become king. I suppose I should write down my plan so that I will always remember it.

First, it will strike the lowly commoners in the Lower City. They can afford to die so I will kill off many of them. That will tire, if not kill many of the healers in the city. Then the sickness will continue to move slowly up to the palace. Many important people and even more unimportant people will die. My sickness will strike the palace servants, the pages, squires and knights, and finally the queen. I shall not kill the queen just yet. Last to fall ill will be the prince. He will be stricken badly. I'll make sure he is delirious by the end of the first day. By then, the healers will be worn down and the prince will die! I will then be next in line for the throne!

For sake of my memory, I will explain how the sickness will work. It is mostly a fever. First, the fever starts. After that, mucus will start to choke up the person's lungs. The fever will continue to climb until the person dies either from it or from drowning.

I must say, this is the best plan I have come up with yet. There is no way it can fail. As soon as the prince is dead, I will begin to work on some of the more powerful nobles. Duke Gareth of Naxen is a force to be reckoned with. I will have to do something about him. Sir Myles may be only a minor knight and the court drunk, but he is well respected. The queen is not a strong person. She will still be very weak by the time I arrive for Prince Jonathon's funeral. I know of a spell that will make her death seem natural. That will take a big toll on the king. I will have to let him live longer, but after his death, I will be king! I can't wait for that day! I must though. Rewards come with patience. Tomorrow will be the first of March and I will release my wonderful sickness on the poor people of the Lower City. Thus begins my perfect and completely foolproof plan!

- Duke Roger of Contê