When something is addressed as the king, they stay at the top spot, while others stay below. The king leads, while others follow.
Coming to the cryptospace, what stays at the top? Is it Bitcoin or Ethereum? Your answer should be bitcoin. What controls the crypto market, that when it increases or decreases other coins are affected? Bitcoin.
However, the mentioned facts can easily make you understand that Bitcoin earns respect as the king of crypto, and ethereum earns herself as the queen of crypto because she occupies the second spot in the crypto ranking, not the first spot as bitcoin