Feast of the Devils

"Hell has unveiled itself, and the demons have feasted on our leaders."

- Anonymous

The Feast of the Devils also known as The Night the Devils Feasted is a fire incident that killed Suna Emperor Marcellus and most of the Suna royal family. It was orchestrated by Russius Emperor Rey (Stevan) the XI, in order to ensure that his wife Braina would be named Empress of Suna, and therefore grant the Russius Empire control over the Suna Empire. It took place during a royal feast in 8 BC.

Prelude
Emperor Rey Stevan was not satisfied with the many gains of the Suna-Russius Expansions. He wanted to merge the two empires of Suna and Russius as one greater empire. While he realized that he would not be able to achieve this during his reign, he sought to merge the royal bloodline of Suna and Russius to further fortify relations between the two empires.

Emperor Rey Stevan had acquired much popularity from the expansion wars. He also had support from people in Suna who disliked Emperor Marcellus' leadership and were pro-Russius. He particularly had support from a group of men within the Northfall government, who had resentment for the Suna Emperor due to his relaxed post-war policies that leaving the nation weak. These men conspired against Emperor Marcellus, and agreed to have Braina as Empress instead.

The Fire
The assassination was set during the royal feast, in which the royal family of Suna gathered in castle Northfall. The Russius royal family had also been invited to the feast, but Emperor Rey Stevan intentionally held a one-time festival celebrating an apparent 'good year of harvest', thus exempting himself and his wife from the royal feast.

Conspirators hired smugglers to sneak in resins, animal fat, and oil. Some parts of the castle were mostly wood and had yet to be replaced with cobblestone. They also bribed and pitched in royal guards of their own, and made certain that the castle fire would consume only the royal family and several loyalists to the crown. The fire spread from the dining hall and consumed at least half of the castle's structure before the fire died down. Citizens of Northwall watched in desperation as the fire continued to rage throughout the night.

Aftermath
The castle was abandoned and the city's citadel was reconstructed to serve as a castle. Braina was named Empress of Suna the very next day, and although several investigations were attempted by loyalists, it would achieve nothing, and Braina's claim to the throne was unchallenged. She was loved by the majority of people for her wisdom and praised for her beauty. At the end of it all, Rey Stevan had triumphed - the fire feasted on the Suna royal family. As though Karma was in work, the rest of his reign would be unkindly; he himself would die of illness during the four-year Dreadful Years.