Quote Originally Posted by Reddish Mage View Post
Spoiler: The Iron fist is in a velvet glove
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It is certainly not as you are having it. While Atlas is likely a military-city-state, Ironwood is unlikely to be the dictator and I suspect the kingdom became defunct because the Grimm overran everywhere outside of Atlas rather than military aggression.

In either case, Ironwood is there because he was INVITED. Ozpin let him in on the secret (which he apparently is keeping close to his vest) and then the Vale Council invited him to watch over the games, because they were worried an untimely Grimm attack makes for bad TV.

If people are afraid, it's because they have no clue wtf could be such a huge threat to warrant a wall of little-giant sky ships, not because Atlas could probably take over Vale anytime they wanted.
Spoiler: The Iron fist is in a velvet glove
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That's why I said "In a darker setting". I know he's been invited. Still, I believe that other characters see him as vulnerable to corruption and power abuse. He wields, after all, both the might of an academy and the might of an army.