The meeting was a real struggle, requiring us to rack our brains, and I’m utterly exhausted because of it.
However, it paid off. In yesterday’s meeting alone, we decided on the country names for five nations in the Valente region and eight in the Libertà region, along with the titles for their new rulers. Emperor Reinhardt is quite pleased with this.
I had assumed we would submit a few proposals, receive more from nobles, and then His Majesty and the bureaucrats would spend several days deliberating. I never imagined our opinions alone would be enough to settle everything.
Bringing nobles into the decision-making process from the start could have led to unforeseen complications later. It seems Emperor Reinhardt intended to make these decisions solely with those related to the royal family from the outset.
Since I am married to Mana and engaged to Yuri, I’ve been classified as a member of the royal family, which has unfortunately put the Wing Crest in an awkward position.
Never mind that for now. This is what was ultimately decided.
First, the Libertà side.
Grand Duchy of Lichtenfels – Capital: Lichtenfels – Grand Duke
Denebulate Bridge Duchy – Capital: Denebulate – Bridge Duke
Vagenbach Bridge Duchy – Capital: Vagenbach – Bridge Duke
Granreve Bridge Duchy – Capital: Granreve – Bridge Duke
Parsenos Bridge Duchy – Capital: Parsenos – Bridge Duke
Pisces Bridge Duchy – Capital: Pisces – Bridge Duke
Acquario Bridge Duchy – Capital: Acquario – Bridge Duke
Gemios Bridge Duchy – Capital: Gemios – Bridge Duke
Lichtenfels will be a small nation ruled by a Grand Duke, while the other seven will be small nations ruled by Bridge Dukes.
Bridge On Duke, or Bridge Duke for short. I must say, I’m quite proud of that idea myself.
Well, it was undoubtedly a brilliant idea, but I never thought it would actually be adopted.
The characteristic of the Libertà side is that their capital city, a bridge city, is famous. Since country names appended to other countries wouldn’t be recognized, they adopted the same names as their capital cities.
While there’s a possibility of some bridge cities becoming independent in the future, it’s been decided to unify bridge city-states under this system.
Although the possibility of transitioning to a parliamentary system, similar to Libertà, is being considered, they’ve been informed that they will retain a monarchy until their system is established.
Then there’s the Valente side. This region is larger and already ruled by nobles, so the country name and capital name need to be distinct.
So, it looks like this.
Vald Beast Duchy – Capital: Ovest – Beast Duke
Steilhang Beast Duchy – Capital: Rodpiece – Beast Duke
Blume Beast Duchy – Capital: Flor – Beast Duke
Flug Beast Duchy – Capital: Plumase – Beast Duke
Hornschall Beast Duchy – Capital: Centro – Beast Duke
As you might guess from the capital names, the Vald Beast Duchy will be ruled by the royal family of Baron Neige, and the Steilhang Beast Duchy by Baron Neige’s successor, Rivière Rodpiece. The Blume Beast Duchy, formerly the Old Trial Baronial Territory, will be governed by the Basilus Family, His Majesty Gumnos’s maternal family. The Flug Beast Duchy and Hornschall Beast Duchy will be ruled by the two remaining ducal families in Valente.
My proposal for the royal title was also accepted.
It’s read as “Beast Duke,” and it will hold the same rank as Grand Duke and Bridge Duke.
In the Federation Heavenly Empire, the Celestial Emperor is at the highest level. Below him are the three Kings: the Torrencia Phantom King, the Valentia Dragon King, and the Alegria Duke-King. The Grand Dukes, Bridge Dukes, and Beast Dukes, newly established, will be their subordinates, forming the three dukedoms.
Though they are all “kings,” there’s a significant difference in the scale of their nations. Torrencia, Valentia, and Alegria could have existed without major issues even if they hadn’t joined the Federation Heavenly Empire. This is why they hold the royal positions immediately below the Celestial Emperor. Simultaneously, to prevent the Celestial Emperor’s dictatorship or rash decisions, a law is being enacted that will allow the three Kings to overturn the Celestial Emperor’s decision if they unanimously agree.
The three dukes don’t possess such authority; their power is little more than that of a lord. However, as long as they abide by the law, they will not interfere in domestic politics, except for audits. A lord must reflect national policies in their governance, but a king, unless they act outrageously, will not face intervention from the Celestial Emperor. This is the difference between a king and a lord. Nevertheless, they must enforce the laws established by the Celestial Emperor, which is why the three kings have been granted significant authority.
“I never expected we’d be able to decide this much. Thank you for your help.”
“Your knowledge as a guest is truly impressive, even in political matters.”
Emperor Reinhardt looks satisfied, but Mana seems somewhat exasperated. Many of my and Mako’s suggestions and proposals were adopted because they were deemed logical, persuasive, and beneficial.
“There are still issues to address, so I would appreciate it if we could implement these on a trial basis for a while before making them permanent.”
“I believe it will be fine, but that is the plan. Eventually, Retysentia will likely be annexed as well. By then, we should have established a track record, so we can set the annexation of Retysentia as a goal.”
While the Philia Continent will unify as one, the Retysentia Empire, the northern neighbor of Amister, will not join the Federation Heavenly Empire. In fact, Retysentia is an outright enemy. If they are to join, it will be after annexation, similar to Solemne. At the very least, the Imperial Royal Family would need to be abolished to resolve the issue. The same applies to the nobles. Therefore, they will likely be dealt with in a manner similar to Solemne.
“Speaking of which, what’s happening with Retysentia now?”
The annexation is all but decided, but currently, there are issues with unifying the Federation Heavenly Empire and governing Solemne. If Retysentia’s governance were to be added now, it would drastically deplete their human resources and potentially hinder the establishment of the Heavenly Empire. Therefore, Emperor Reinhardt is dispatching spies to gather information.
“The military is gathering. They are reportedly pooling resources from all over Retysentia, and starvation is already being reported. The annexation of Libertà into Amister is circulating among the populace, though it’s still just a rumor. This may be why nobles who were acting recklessly in the Libertà region have fled to Kobaldia in fear.”
If the military is gathering, then a military conflict is inevitable once the snow melts. The participation of Libertà in the Federation Heavenly Empire is still only a rumor, but it’s spreading with near certainty, causing the populace to stay home out of fear of occupation. The nobles who were extorting Libertà have fled to the imperial capital, Kobaldia, in a panic.
“How many troops are expected to gather?”
“Approximately 3,000, I believe. Around 40 High Class individuals, and about 10 Demon Race members as well.”
Given their food supply, this might be their limit. However, with such quality and quantity, they won’t be a match for the Order’s Guild. The Demon Race is a concern, but with only about ten of them, they can be dealt with if an Ancient Class intervenes.
“Do they think they can win?”
“I agree, but the Imperial King seems to think so. With High Class individuals and the presence of the Demon Race, they likely believe they can win even against the Order’s Guild.”
The Demon Race is not a native species to the Helios Orb; they transform through the use of Demon Crystals on humans. As they are not blessed by the gods, they lose the ability to use Inn magic, but their Mana increases significantly. Normal Class individuals become equivalent to High Class, and High Class individuals become equivalent to Ancient Class. However, despite the surge in Mana, their physical abilities do not change. Therefore, both the Order’s Guild and the Priests’ Guild point out that the loss of Inn magic is a significant disadvantage, and though Mana drastically increases, their bodies may not be able to keep up, potentially making the quality of Mana enhancement inferior to Solemne. This was proven in a battle near Polar, where even a High Class Demon, a High Demon, could be defeated by a few High Class individuals.
“What about reinforcements from Abaricia?”
“It appears none have arrived. The Orders monitoring Kobaldia report no unfamiliar or suspicious ships.”
No reinforcements or supplies from Abaricia, then. As expected, Abaricia viewed Retysentia as merely a vassal state, ready to be discarded when no longer needed. While Amister has officially announced the establishment of the Federation Heavenly Empire, it will take time for this news to reach Abaricia’s mainland. Their actions might coincide with that development.
“They originally intended to unify the Philia Continent with Solemne and then make their move. Isn’t it possible they’ll simply shift their target to Amister?”
“It’s possible. It’s unpleasant to be compared to mere Solemne, but the Divine Emperor seems to have a simple mindset of attacking unified nations, so there’s a good chance of that.”
Lydia’s opinion was seconded by Prim, and I agreed. The Abyssal Emperor is said to be an Ancient Human, but he has become a Demon Race and has reigned in Abaricia for over two hundred years. His objective is the conquest of the Helios Orb, but unlike in the past, his current methods are more subtle, focusing on internal destabilization rather than direct aggression. Abaricia is a source of Divine Metal and can likely build warships entirely made of it. Like me and Mako, he is also a guest, so it’s highly probable that he employs a propulsion system similar to the Hydro Engine I made practical, rather than steam power. While Abaricia is a Human-only nation, they also developed the Demon Crystal. Consequently, a perception is spreading across the Philia Continent that Abaricia is a nation of the Demon Race, and whispers of the Divine Emperor being a king of demons, a Demon King, are becoming more frequent.
“That is a possibility. However, it is estimated to take over two weeks to reach the Gradia Continent, even with the Hydro Engine developed by Yamato. Furthermore, there is a high risk of attack from sea monsters. Dispatching Orders to the Gradia Continent would require a unit of about twenty people. Currently, we don’t have the personnel to spare.”
Amister has not sent scouts to Abaricia. The reason, as Emperor Reinhardt stated, is a shortage of personnel. In the past, they sent scouts several times, but the ships were either sunk by sea monsters or discovered by Abaricia. Only about ten Orders returned, making them hesitant to dispatch again.
“If only there were islands along the sea routes, we could use them as starting points for Traveling.”
“They exist, but not conveniently located.”
As Mako mentioned, Traveling would allow us to reach Abaricia quickly. However, the journey itself is treacherous, and Traveling cannot be used in the open sea without landmarks. Even Eos, in her fully dragonized form, could reach it in a day, but flying non-stop would severely deplete her stamina and Mana. Moreover, monsters are a constant threat, so that option is risky, considering unforeseen circumstances.
“But there are islands, and they are marked on sea charts, aren’t they?”
“They are, technically. However, the sea charts are over fifty years old, and their accuracy is questionable.”
There are several islands along the shipping routes, and they are marked on the sea charts. However, the number of days to reach them by ship from Amister varies from five to eight days depending on the chart, and even the locations of the islands differ. In the vast expanse of the sea, with no landmarks, such vague information can be life-threatening.
“This is a consequence of years of neglect, but with such unreliable information, dispatching Orders to Abaricia is impossible. Fortunately, ships equipped with Hydro Engines are completed, and we plan to begin surveying the nearby seas.”
They plan to survey the surrounding islands using ships equipped with Hydro Engines. While there’s a possibility of encountering Abarician ships and, as a result, engaging in combat, they cannot forgo the survey. Consequently, their most skilled Orders will likely be selected. If the precise locations of the islands can be determined, Eos could also be asked to fly there, making a trip to Abaricia a viable option. Whether we’ll have the capacity for that, however, remains to be seen.
