You can plant a bush or tree in your garden that grows it, or pick it from the trees around town, and usually people give out food even if you're not in the mood to compliment them because it's a delight to see people enjoy your cooking, but I suppose if you offended everyone you might be stuck relying on what you could grow and gather personally.

It'd be hard to forage anywhere near a city and dangerous to wander into the wilderness at home, I guess there's just enough food around here that that's not a factor.

There is. What would happen in your world if someone was given to idleness and had offended everyone?

It'd depend on the circumstances quite a bit but they might starve, if enough other things about them were unfortunate.

That's what would have happened in Endorë.

Nod.

How does one become Emperor in your homeland?

The previous Emperor dies having declared one the heir. By custom that would usually be the eldest son, but it doesn't technically have to be.

Only if he dies? But what if he's just not doing a good job and everyone wants to try someone else?

That would work in a democracy but the Imperium isn't one, so they can just live with it or try to organize a rebellion. Or maybe if they're important or have the ears of important people they can try to convince the Emperor to abdicate in his heir's favor early.

No one would ask Finwë to step down, but he certainly would if we thought that he ought to.

In whose favor? Fëanáro's too young, I suppose someone could sit regent for him...

We don't even know if Fëanáro'd be a good King! I was thinking in favor of someone more qualified. He frowns. There are people who want us to adopt a system like the one you describe. It's just so different from Cuivienen that it discomfits me.

How would you decide who was qualified? There are countries in my world where they vote on leaders...

In Endorë everyone followed the person they trusted. I understand why that won't work here, if we have many children and eventually many cities, but it was nice.

How were disputes between groups handled?

The leaders talked them through.

...And that just always worked?

Disunity was deadly. We were strongly motivated to get along.

I suppose. It would probably have not worked with the sorts of people on my world anyway.

Your world seems very troubled. I can think of many people that would make poorly suited Kings, but not one who, given the power to do exactly as they pleased, would kill anyone.

It's not that he woke up one day and thought, 'The best thing to do with being Emperor is to kill people'; it's that Emperors themselves as a group are often targets of violence, or at least they would be if there were fewer deterrents. People try to kill him now and then even knowing that if they're caught he will live and they won't. I imagine more people would try if it weren't the case.

I can see why that would make someone behave cruelly. But you said he kills people sometimes not because they attempted to kill him.

The policy according to which he might kill me if I appeared in his palace is the principle that people who appear suddenly in his palace are more likely to be there for violent reasons than harmless ones.

But presumably he could ask? And you said you'd probably have been killed at least twice?