The Emperor was<em>clearly</em>surprised at how thorough Draiss' construct was being; he hadn't expected more than 10-15 years of history, not 100. "You wouldn't happen to know<em>more</em>of these skilled accountants, would you? The longer this takes, the more chance of, as you say, accidents occurring."<br/><br/>No one would be so bold as to actually try to launch an attack on him, at his current height of popularity. It's almost two months before the first assassination attempt strikes, and they spared no expense. Three assassins strike at once, from under a shell of Improved Invisibility, opening with a pair of scrolls of Greater Dispel, targeted on him, aiming to strip away any defenses, before the second launches three crossbow bolts, all tipped with Black Lotus Extract. One dose is usually enough to kill an ordinary human; that they used three shows that they were quite intent on making sure he died.