Helios Orb Chronicle – Chapter 324

Side: Mako

Even though Emperor Reinhardt had asked me to borrow the guests’ wisdom before the meeting, I never imagined it would be something so crucial to the nation. To make matters worse, Yamato, who was also a guest, panicked when politics were brought up, so he was no help at all. I never thought that the federal system I casually mentioned would be accepted so readily. There’s a country called the Libertarian Federation in Helios Orb, but it seems to be a union of bridgehead cities, so it’s a bit different. Also, Councilman Gustav was taken away as part of a charade, but it seems he was scheduled to be removed anyway, and if his crimes are exposed in front of so many people, he won’t be able to make a comeback. Well, even before a comeback, he’s already decided to be executed.

“The Divine Emperor of the Gradia Continent, and the Celestial Emperor of the Philia Continent. Not a bad match.”
“I am not pleased to be mentioned in the same breath as a tyrant like the Divine Emperor.”

Even with my knowledge, Emperor was a title for a ruler who stood above kings. However, the country of Retisencia was ruled by an Imperial King, and since the characters and atmosphere were similar to Emperor, and it even shared a character with Solemnne’s Emperor, perhaps that’s why Yamato brought up the Heavenly Tree, the symbol of Amister, and proposed the title of Celestial Emperor. Yamato seemed to use it as an abbreviation for the Emperor of a country that receives the Heavenly Tree, but in Earth, it has various meanings. Still, all I know is that it means ruler of all things or a god of religion, and that’s about it.

“Be that as it may, the general outline would be a collection of independent small states allied with Amister, where the ruling king would have more authority than a duke, and furthermore, there would be no imperial succession rights, only succession rights within their own country. Amister would then unite them. For Libertà, focusing on the bridgehead cities should suffice, but what about Valentia and Solemnne?”

I don’t have many good impressions of federal states. However, since everyone here is enthusiastic, I have to steer the conversation in a way that minimizes problems or makes them less likely to occur. This is a difficult task for medical students and high school students.

“Indeed, Libertà’s territories include not only the bridgehead cities but also the surrounding towns and villages.”
“Exactly. Therefore, they would likely be considered small countries with the bridgehead city as their capital.”

There are a total of 20 bridgehead cities in Libertà. However, 7 of them were destroyed beyond repair, and the representatives of 2 more cities have died, making it difficult to decide what to do. Furthermore, the destroyed cities include Libertà’s capital, Estrella, which makes it truly challenging.

“The cities, including Estrella, will sadly have to wait.”
“It cannot be helped. The survivors will relocate to nearby bridgehead cities, and we shall discuss whether to dismantle the destroyed cities or rebuild them elsewhere at a later time.”

That’s how it is. Some bridgehead cities have declining populations, so those will need to be adjusted as well.

“In Valentia, the baronial houses in the north and west will remain independent, while the south will be under the jurisdiction of my Duke Basilus household. We would have wished to re-establish the Duke Hydransia household, but given her disposition, that is unlikely.”

It’s understandable that the baronial houses in Valentia would be independent. The east has already been annexed by Amister, so Amister will handle that. As for the central and southern regions, King Gumnos (Beast King) has declared that he will govern the southern baronial territories. And not as the Beast King’s lineage, but as a ducal house. The reason I mentioned re-establishing the Duke Hydransia household might also be because the likely successor, Prim, has no interest in it, making it difficult.

“That is acceptable, but a ducal house? Should you not also become independent?”
“Once the new national system is established, I, a foolish king, intend to retire. I have already informed my son.”

He said “foolish king” with a hint of self-deprecation, but if King Gumnos (Beast King) hadn’t taken the throne, Valentia would likely have fallen into a far worse state. However, I’ve heard from Baron Neige that he regrets the execution of Duke Ternal, so he might wish to live a quiet life away from politics in his remaining years.

“I have nothing to say about that. However, the central part of Valentia still remains. What are your intentions for that?”
“We intend for the remaining two ducal houses to become independent.”

I see, so the ducal houses of Valentia will become independent. This means Valentia will be divided into five parts. It was originally six countries, and one of them was annexed by Amister, so this seems like a reasonable outcome. Moreover, unlike in the past, they will now be under Amister’s protection, making war between small states less likely. Although he said he would be a king of a small country, they will still have to abide by Amister’s laws, so it’s not wrong to consider them as large baronial territories.

“For now, this is a provisional decision, but I want both Valentia and Libertà to ensure that the nobles and representatives are reliably informed.”
“Of course.”
“Understood.”

Although it has been a fervent discussion, Valentia and Libertà have not yet been informed, so whatever happens will start from there.

“Now, let’s move on to the main topic: Solemnne. It’s confirmed that Queen Hildegard will have the final decision-making authority, but the issue lies with the originally planned Amister territory and Torencia territory.”
“Indeed. Her Majesty Queen Hildegard, Princess Brynhild. Is it correct to understand that Solemnne will also be annexed by Amister?”
“Yes, that is acceptable.”
“If the Torencia territory remains, it could cause problems later.”

The sisters of the Phantom King’s lineage replied to Grand Duke Liar like that, but I have a feeling they actually think they can just dump everything onto Amister. As Princess Brynhild mentioned earlier, they must be eager to include Torencia within the federation as well. For now, they are acting as equals, being neighboring kingdoms, but in reality, they want to return to a master-subordinate relationship. Emperor Reinhardt mentioned that the Dragon King and the Princely Kings should have been invited, but with such a large undertaking, it would be beneficial to involve Valentia and Alegria as well. Whether they join the federation or not is a separate issue, but if we don’t at least communicate with them, it could become a spark for war.

“Regarding the laws, will Amister’s laws suffice?”
“Yes. Torencia’s laws are largely the same as Amister’s, so neither I nor Saber will feel out of place.”

The biggest problem in governing Solemnne was the matter of laws. However, since Torencia’s laws are mostly the same as Amister’s, it’s not much of an issue. The problems are more likely to arise with Libertà and Valentia. I don’t know when the federal system will be implemented, but I think it will go smoothly for Libertà due to reconstruction, while Valentia is less predictable.

“Understood. Then, regarding the dispatched personnel, Amister will send 200 Order members led by Delfina, and 10 noble children as assistants for governance.”
So, the Ancient Order will indeed be dispatched. Rex is the next Grand Order’s Master, Rosemary and Muse are Rex’s wives, and Miranda is part of the Royal Order. So, it’s only natural that Delfina will be dispatched to Solemnne.

“From Torencia, 150 Sabers will be dispatched, led by Vize, along with 8 noble children to assist me. Also, the Sabers, excluding Vize, have been informed of their secondment to the Soldier’s Guild.”
“The same applies to the Order. Delfina has also been informed that she will serve as the first Grand Soldier’s Master.”

Ah, so the Soldier’s Guild had already been conceptualized between Emperor Reinhardt and Lady Hilde.

“Your Majesty, what exactly is this Soldier’s Guild?”
“It is a newly devised guild to serve as a receptacle for Solemnne’s soldiers. It will be a subordinate organization to the Order’s Guild and the Saber’s Guild.”

According to Emperor Reinhardt, the headquarters of the Soldier’s Guild will be located in Float. Although it’s a subordinate organization to the Order’s Guild and Saber’s Guild, the current policy is not to establish branches. Therefore, the position of Soldier’s Master will be that of a unit commander, not a branch chief. Two members each from the Order and Saber will be selected as Soldier’s Masters, and above them, Delfina will assume the position of Grand Soldier’s Master. Guild Magic will be used as soldier magic, but it will basically be the same as Knight Magic. The guild is scheduled to be established in three days, at which time Delfina and the Order and Saber members who will become Soldier’s Masters will be officially inaugurated.

“I see, a new guild. However, can Solemnne’s army use Guild Magic?”
“It’s hard to say. If they can’t, that’s fine too. If we focus on educating the children, I believe that in the next generation, they will be able to use not only Guild Magic but also Innate Magic.”

Education, indeed, is important. Solemnne until now was an absolute monarchy, so they didn’t even pray to the gods. There were probably people who prayed in secret, but there are also stories of severe punishment for carelessly revealing their use of magic, so even after the imperial family’s demise, not many people are likely to come forward.

“There are plans to establish a new guild for education as well, but that will require discussion with the Grand Master, so it will be some time before it’s realized.”
The tentatively named Scholar’s Guild is also progressing. However, since it’s an educational institution, and branches, or rather, annexes, cannot be easily established, they won’t be able to be founded until the issue of how to handle that is resolved.

“Furthermore, regarding the nobles of Solemnne, those who have committed acts that violate the law will have their peerages revoked and be punished according to the law. As a result, the number of nobles may decrease, potentially hindering the maintenance of their territories. In such cases, the nobles accompanying us from Amister and Torencia will be responsible.”
Regarding Solemnne’s nobles, it has been decided that any defiance will be met with severe punishment. Originally, Solemnne’s nobles oppressed commoners, forcibly took their land and homes, and then cast them out of the city without providing any social welfare. Those cast out were not considered citizens of Solemnne, so no matter what the nobles or soldiers did, they were not subject to punishment, and indeed, it was even encouraged as it reduced the number of troublesome outcasts. As a result, slums have grown in every city, and the public safety is poor. There are also stories of figures who function like leaders of the slums. In fact, I heard there was a formidable woman in Deseo. The Soldier’s Guild will have public safety maintenance, including the slums, as its main duty, but since resident protection is also one of its tasks, it will be quite difficult. If the number of Solemnne’s nobles decreases too much, the accompanying noble children will be enfeoffed as lords. In that case, the Order and Saber will also be stationed in those territories, and they might end up settling there permanently, making it difficult to recruit people due to its unpopularity.

“Also, regarding the guilds, five guilds, excluding the Priest’s Guild, will be established in Deseo. For the Priest’s Guild, only a few priests will be dispatched.”
Five guilds, meaning the Hunter’s Guild, Crafter’s Guild, Trader’s Guild, Butler’s Guild, and Healer’s Guild. Only in Deseo suggests they are also observing the situation. However, similar to the Soldier’s Guild, it’s uncertain if they can use Guild Magic, so in some cases, they might need to bring in personnel from Amister or Torencia. Hunters might gather because they can hunt rare monsters and gain free access to the Deseo Labyrinth near Deseo, but the other guilds are a bit uncertain. However, Solemnne’s standard of living, due to the inability to use Innate Magic, was considerably lower compared to Amister and Torencia. If crafters settle there, it could significantly change. Similarly, with healers, the situation where they could barely obtain potions will greatly improve, allowing for quicker treatment of injuries and illnesses. For butlers, since Solemnne did have butlers and maids, it’s unlikely to change much fundamentally, but the Butler’s Guild would offer a higher quality service. What needs attention is the traders. While trade and transactions in Deseo, being under Lady Hilde’s direct jurisdiction, are unlikely anything unreasonable, if they were to travel to other cities as traveling merchants, there’s no telling what might happen. Even if they hire guards, the Order and Saber will be busy with their missions, and hunters vary greatly in skill. If they happen to pick a bad one, the trader’s life could be in danger. We will be going, and the Union, which has joined the Alliance, also intends to observe, but that needs further refinement.