Count

Count (or Countess) is a hereditary title in the Wyneil Empire for rulers which claim no direct familial link to the Sovereign's family line. 
Count comes from the Latizan word Counital, originally a rank in the Latizan administrative government and military that oversaw large regions and developed them. After the fall and Exodus of the Latizan from Thamrysis, the title became a way within the Wyneil kingdoms to reward loyalty and establish bonds without the risk of creating cadet families to the royal bloodline. 
Currently, the title is tenuous at best - the Sovereign or a Prince can revoke a county charter at any time, breaking it into smaller Baronies or simply deposing a Count and replacing them with a Magistrate.