abcnovels
Book 14
Book 14: Epilogue
Epilogue: The Great Tiger Kingdom of Haan
— 1st day, 1st month, 1550th year, Continental Calendar —
Fuuga made his move right at the beginning of this year. Sharn Castle in what had once been the Kingdom of Sharn, the mightiest country in the Union of Eastern Nations, was now known as Haan Castle, the new home of Fuuga. In the audience hall there, with the flag of his ancestors hanging behind him, Fuuga stood before his commanders—brave, cunning, and fierce—in front of a throne that was raised several steps above them.
“I hereby rename the Union of Eastern Nations the Great Tiger Kingdom of Haan!”
It was a declaration of the end of an old state, and the birth of a new one.
“This country will continue liberating the Demon Lord’s Domain with one unified will! Lend your strength to me, Fuuga Haan! I will build a strong nation that no one, man or demon, can tread on!”
“““Yeahhh!””” Fuuga’s followers cheered with throaty voices.
On this day, Fuuga finally announced the founding of the Great Tiger Kingdom of Haan, and took the throne as the first Great Tiger King. With the extermination of his political rivals inside the Union of Eastern Nations the previous year, he had already effectively made the country his own, but this was a declaration to everyone inside and outside the country that he was king here now.
During his speech, he was flanked by his wife Mutsumi and advisor Hashim.
In his role as master of ceremonies, Hashim declared, “In celebration of our king’s ascension to the throne, a messenger has arrived from another country. Step forward, Saint Anne.”josei
A young girl in a white habit stepped forward from the line of people in attendance. She walked to stand before Fuuga, sinking to her knees, and putting her hands together in front of her chest as if in prayer. Then she spoke in a quiet but clear voice.
“The Lunarian Orthodox Papal State recognizes Lord Fuuga as the holy king chosen by Lady Lunaria. May your hands protect the faithful, and your words lead the devout. The Orthodox Papal State swears to walk by your side.”
“That so...?” Fuuga said simply.
Originally, religion was something Fuuga could do with or without. He found it better to act himself than to beg for divine intercession. The way he saw it, doing so would likely turn his fortunes, and God would probably side with him anyway. That’s why being recognized as a holy king by a theocratic state didn’t evoke any strong emotions in him, but Hashim had insisted that an alliance with the Orthodox Papal State would be indispensable to their further expansion.
“Let me be a king worthy of the honor you have given me,” he said, hiding his true feelings.
Anne bowed her head. “My life is yours to command, Lord Fuuga. I will serve you as I serve Lady Lunaria. I offer my body and soul. Use me as you see fit.”
“Oh, yeah...? Thank you for your trouble.”
Fuuga had heard from Hashim that the Orthodox Papal State sent beautiful and submissive young girls to influential figures of the time as saints. He preferred a woman like Mutsumi who had a mind of her own, and felt no attraction to one like Anne who left herself to the whims of fate. Still, he felt some pity for her, so he meant to treat her well.
I hope that by living in this country, she’ll be able to smile like Yuriga one day, Fuuga thought, compelled by his nature as an older brother.
Anne stepped back, and Hashim took a piece of paper presented to him on a tray by some bureaucrats.
“Yet another country sends us congratulations on this auspicious day. The king of our neighboring country, Sir Souma A. Elfrieden, has sent kind words through Lord Fuuga’s younger sister Lady Yuriga. I will read them now.”
Hashim read off an inoffensive statement from Souma celebrating the founding of the Great Tiger Kingdom and wishing for amity between their two countries.
As he did, Mutsumi, who was standing beside the throne whispered, “Couldn’t Yuriga make it today?”
“I told her in advance not to...” Fuuga whispered back.
Mutsumi cocked her head to the side. “Why is that? It’s your big day.”
“If she comes home, Souma’s people may get wary and refuse her reentry. Foreign royalty who haven’t sworn loyalty to you are just a source of trouble, after all. As long as we’re expanding, he won’t know what to do with her.”
“Is that right...?”
Fuuga smiled wryly at the disappointment in Mutsumi’s tone.
“Yeah. But it sounds like Yuriga had no intention of coming anyways, you know?”
“Huh? She didn’t?”
“When I told her she didn’t have to, she told me she couldn’t anyway because, ‘she has school,’ and, ‘she wouldn’t get off with just supplementary lessons if she took off for another extended leave now.’ Do you think school’s really more important than her brother’s moment of glory?”
“Hee hee. It sounds like she has a lot of friends, so she must be enjoying life in the Kingdom.”
“It wouldn’t be good for her to get too influenced though.” Fuuga shrugged. He seemed unconcerned, but sensed that Yuriga might decide to settle down in the Kingdom.
Yuriga was clever. She was also the kind of person Fuuga liked; one who could think with her own head. If, having thought things through herself, Yuriga took a different road, that could be interesting in its own way for Fuuga.
◇ ◇ ◇
Fuuga Haan’s ascension to the throne as the Great Tiger King, and the founding of the Great Tiger Kingdom of Haan would have a massive impact on the situation on the continent.
For one thing, it essentially rendered the Gran Chaos Empire’s Mankind Declaration toothless. The unification of the Union of Eastern Nations resulted in the loss of many signatories, leaving the Empire’s two vassal states and Zem as the only other remaining members. Furthermore, because of the Great Tiger Kingdom’s conquest of the Demon Lord’s Domain, its purpose had also been lost.
However, thanks to Empress Maria’s charisma, they were still the largest and most powerful country on the continent. There was also another large faction, overshadowed by the Great Tiger Kingdom, the Maritime Alliance consisting of the Kingdom of Friedonia, the Republic of Turgis, and the Nine-Headed Dragon Archipelago Union.
This alliance was founded on the “Law of the Sea,” which said they would each help the others in times of trouble on the waters, and was designed to let them immediately form a unified fleet—essentially a shared one—in the event that any of these countries was in danger. The Kingdom of Friedonia and the Nine-Headed Dragon Archipelago Union combined had the largest maritime force in the world, obviously overwhelming the Great Tiger Kingdom with its almost nonexistent fleet, but also the Empire, which was always a country with a heavy focus on land.
While the Great Tiger Kingdom and Empire competed for supremacy over the land, the Maritime Alliance was growing at sea.
The Great Tiger Kingdom of Haan. The Gran Chaos Empire. The Maritime Alliance.
In the 1550th year of this world’s Continental Calendar, these three forces would struggle for supremacy. And...it would also be the year when an event would happen that shook all three.