ZAMAN Sultan

Nobody got to see the Sultan Idris ibn Bilal Al-Saleh in such a relaxed state

Famously, he killed his father and took the title of Sultan by force. His relationship with his siblings and half-siblings had been strained ever since, not to mention all those conspirators he had arrested and jailed for trying to betray him when he forced them to pay Zakat, the obligatory redistribution of wealth in Islam, which his father had let them bypass.

He did a lot of good too, strengthening regional ties to keep from a war happening, setting up literacy campaigns in the rural parts of Zaman, and establishing Emirs to govern and report about the peoples feelings in various parts of the expansive empire. He even abolished the exploitative harem that his father indulged in, resulting in Idris having ten siblings from many mothers.

He was sitting in his chambers, on the floor, eating breakfast. He was still in his silk sleep robes and the purple curtains let it sunlight from the window. He sat across from it on a ornate cushion.