KKC Theory Wiki

Kvothe Is Blamed for Killing a King He Did Not Actually Kill

plausible identity · popularity 60 · 1 source thread

Stories distort the truth; Kvothe may be falsely blamed for a king's death, with Maer Alveron the likeliest victim.

About: Kvothe, Maer Lerand Alveron

Also involves: Ambrose Jakis, Meluan Lackless, The Fae, Bast, Chronicler, Devi

The theory§

Stories in the Four Corners routinely magnify and distort events, a theme Kvothe states plainly when he insists a tale 'might not be true, but that doesn't mean it's nonsense.' From this the theory proposes that Kvothe never literally slays a king but is blamed for a royal death, the name 'Kingkiller' being a rumour grown out of proportion. Maer Alveron is offered as the likeliest victim: Kvothe wins the lord's ear, keeps his own history close, is sent on a secret errand against the Maer's bandits, and on his return is abruptly dismissed while earning the enmity of Meluan Lackless, a setup ripe for a widow's accusation against 'that Ruh bastard.' Lorren's warning at the Archives, 'your hand held the flame, yours is the blame,' is read as foreshadowing a pattern of Kvothe being condemned for a death he did not cause. Alternatives circulate, chiefly that the slain king is Roderic Calanthis, foreshadowed by the dead Calanthis and the sword named Caesura, a break in an Eld Vintish line, or Ambrose's father, whose death would ironically raise Kvothe's sworn enemy to the throne.

Evidence§

  • We’ve seen the power of stories in this series, blowing things completely out of proportion to what actually happened, if it happened at all.
    OP's premise: stories distort events, the engine of the theory. — u/Lamorak_44
  • “Not nonsense,” Kvothe said, seeming a little bit offended. “It might not be true, but that doesn’t mean it’s nonsense.”
    OP's textual anchor that a tale need not be literally true. — u/Lamorak_44
  • Kvothe doesn’t kill a King but rather is blamed for it. … I’m gonna go off the wall here and say that it is the Maer that Kvothe is blamed for killing.
    OP's core claim: Kvothe is blamed, not killer; Maer is victim. — u/Lamorak_44
  • Kvothe is sent on a secret mission and when he returns, he’s almost immediately kicked out. … and earned the enmity of the new wife of the lord
    OP's circumstantial setup ripe for a widow's accusation. — u/Lamorak_44
  • He dies and his widow blames that “Ruh bastard”
    Comment reinforces the Maer-widow accusation mechanism. — u/Little_hunt3r
  • NOTW when Kvothe is banned from the archives, from Lorren (paraphrasing): “Your hand held the flame, yours is the blame” Seems to me like it’s clearly establishing a pattern.
    Comment adds Lorren foreshadowing a pattern of misplaced blame. — u/Large-Influence-9196
  • My money is on Rodrik being killed (dead sipquick/calanthis foreshadows it) by someone else and Kvothe is blamed
    CounterCounter-victim: Roderic Calanthis, not the Maer, foreshadowed by Calanthis. — u/innerturnings
  • I think the king he kills is Ambrose’s father, and Kvothe elevates his sworn enemy to the throne
    CounterCounter-victim: Ambrose's father, ironic elevation of Kvothe's enemy. — u/theoceanwantsme

Book refs: WMF, WMF pg 337-340

Tier reasoning§

distinct theory; plausible fits the storytelling theme

Contributors§

Source threads§