The Shaking Empire

"Why, Madam Maria?!" I exclaimed.

"Sire!" cautioned Hakuya from beside me. But I was in no state of mind

to listen to him.

"I'm sorry... It's already been decided," Maria said apologetically.

Despite the melancholy look on her face, it wasn't going to change how

unacceptable this was.

"You're getting ahead of yourself; I thought we had an understanding

here. While it's possible our country can deal with it in our current state, the

same cannot be said for the Empire. This was something that we were only

able to do because Friedonia, the Republic, and the Archipelago Kingdom

moved on it in lockstep."

"Yes...I thought so too. But there's immense pressure on me from below

to do something because of Sir Fuuga's accomplishments."

"Even so, why does it have to be now?" I said, clutching my head.

This was giving me a serious headache.

"Why do you have to abolish slavery so suddenly?"

During our broadcast meeting here, Maria had told me she was going to

abolish slavery in the Empire.

Now, just so I'm not misunderstood, I agreed with her that the buying

and selling of people was a terrible custom. It was something that had to be

wiped out for human history to move forward. I was in the process of taking

steps towards abolishing it in my own country. But if we just did it all of a

sudden, it would cause societal upheaval.

"Slaves are the downtrodden in society. Even if you abolish slavery and

the slaves all go free tomorrow, they'll have nothing they own. They'll

struggle to maintain any sort of lifestyle. If they don't have knowledge and

skills, they won't be able to find new jobs. The men will have to sell

themselves as cheap labor, and the women...in some cases, they may also

have to sell their bodies."

"I suppose so..." Maria nodded in understanding.

"That's why—prior to formally abolishing the system—our country has

been working to make it something that exists in name only. We made the

slavers into public servants managed by the state, protecting the slaves from

having their rights ignored or being used until they could no longer work.

At the same time, we promoted academia through Ginger's Vocational

School and set up learning centers where anyone could study for free. These

will let the slaves be hired under more favorable conditions."

Maria looked at me as she intently listened to my words.

"We've had a shortage of personnel since we changed the way we

evaluate performance. Many houses wanted to acquire capable slaves even

if it meant paying them wages, and now that's becoming the norm. Thanks

to Ginger and the others' teaching and hard work, even if people find

themselves reduced to slavery for a time, we're building a system that will

help them to crawl back up with enough hard work. Although, that doesn't

apply to penal slaves."

"That's all wonderful. We've been emulating your policies here in the

Empire too," Maria said with a smile. I didn't understand.

"Abolition in everything but name... Even if they're still called slaves,

you have to work towards a society where slaves are not used cruelly. If you

suddenly declare the system abolished, there will be those who push back.

That is why you instead change society without them noticing. Ensure the

rights of slaves, make it so they can own property. And then when they're

no longer abused, you change the name for them, and suddenly there are no

slaves who aren't also criminals."

Essentially: leave the word "slave" as is, but raise their status to the

same level as a part-timer or contract employee. The priority was to protect

the slaves' lives and safety.

If only the name is changed and not the reality, it's no different from if

the system were still in place. The fact is that even after the American Civil

War ended, inequalities like black people not having the right to vote meant

that the conditions which resulted in discrimination continued for a long

time after that. Though, even in my time, I wouldn't say things had been

completely fixed...

It's like trying to stamp out discriminatory language. Even if you declare

a word offensive and ban its use, then ban the next word that takes its

place...all you're doing is piling up words people can't use.

I recall hearing that some of what Yoshitsune said at the Battle of Ichino-Tani in the Tale of the Heike is considered discriminatory, and in some

editions, it's censored. That made me think that what needed to be clamped

down on wasn't words, but the people and society that use them abusively.

I looked at Maria's reflection through the simple broadcast receiver.

"Was that not the Empire's understanding of the situation too?"

"Of course. That was our intention," Maria said, her expression

somewhat exhausted. "However, there are people who've been shaken up

by Sir Fuuga's rapid advance, and their demands of me have only escalated

as well."

"Because of Fuuga?" I asked.

"Are you aware? These days, they call him the Liberator."

"The Liberator? Because he's liberating the Demon Lord's Domain?"

"It goes beyond that. It seems he's been freeing people from slavery as

well. That's likely to increase the number of residents in the territories he

liberates. He's made freemen of the slaves who belonged to nations that

opposed him inside the Union of Eastern Nations, or those who fled there

from other countries due to harsh living situations."

"He's doing something unreasonable again..."

I got what he was aiming for, at least. They're like the tondenhei settler

colonists...no, more like Cao Cao's Qingzhou Army of Yellow Turbans, I

guess? He was taking in people who had no place in society and using them

to bolster the strength of his nation. The Great Tiger Kingdom wanted

people to rebuild the lands they'd liberated, and they were ready to take just

about anybody. If Fuuga freed them from slavery and gave them someplace

to live, they'd be loyal to him. It was an effective strategy.

"The strength of the Great Tiger Kingdom begins here," he could say.

There were drawbacks too, of course. The most obvious being a decay in

public order. There also would likely be friction between the old and new

settlers. Accepting everyone meant risking that some of the people would

be ruffians and criminals. That would be fine so long as Fuuga, with his

overwhelming military might and charisma, was still alive and well. Those

villains would be vanquished by his elite cavalry, forcing them to lay low.

But when Fuuga's time had passed, they might prove a source of turmoil

for the Great Tiger Kingdom. Not that Fuuga was one to care about that.

"The people who come after me can worry about what comes then." I

could imagine him saying that with an undaunted smile.

"Recently," Maria began as I was lost in thought, "the people have been

talking in the northern lands of the Empire. They say, 'Sir Fuuga is freeing

slaves, but what is Maria, the one they call a saint, doing?' and 'She's a

saint, so she should lead the way on liberating the slaves.'"

"That's not fair..." The people were being unreasonable. "Even if the

Great Tiger Kingdom frees the slaves and gives them abandoned houses

and fields, they don't have the wealth to support this. The newly freed

slaves will simply be impoverished."

While true, compared to the oppression they'd faced, the slaves would

still probably be grateful for that. But if you compared the situation of their

freed slaves with our slaves who had been freed in all but name, there was

no way they were more affluent. But hold up... Isn't something off with this

whole conversation?

"I've never heard Fuuga called a liberator of slaves here in our country,"

I confided.

If that kind of talk was going around, the Black Cats would have

reported it. The fact that they hadn't meant...

"Is someone spreading that rumor inside the Empire?"

After a brief pause, Maria nodded. "Yes...I believe so. People from Sir

Fuuga's camp are likely doing it intentionally."

"Huh?!" I gasped. Propaganda! That can only mean...

"It must be his advisor, Sir Hashim," Maria noted. "He wants me to rush

into abolishing slavery to breed chaos in the Empire."

"If you know that, then—"

"But I see this as an opportunity," Maria said, cutting me off.

"An opportunity? You don't mean..." As my eyes widened with surprise,

Maria pressed a finger to her lips.

I knew what this meant and fell quiet. Beside me, Hakuya had a dubious

look on his face, but I was going to ignore him for now.

I scrutinized Maria's expression as I asked, "You...really plan to do

this?"

"Hee hee, your voice has lost its composure, you know?"

"Answer me, Maria Euphoria!" I pushed the question, my tone serious.

Maria silently nodded, and said, "Yes."

"So that's how it is, huh..."

I pressed a hand against my forehead. Her resolve seemed firm.

"You've made up your mind... All right, then."

"Thank you. And I'll be counting on you, Sir Souma."

With that, Maria terminated the broadcast. Hakuya immediately

approached me.

"What was that about at the end?"

"Something personal... For now, it seems Fuuga has set his sights on the

Empire."

"That it does. The two countries are bound to collide eventually,"

Hakuya said, and I scratched my head.

"We're going to have to talk about the future. Call Excel to the capital

for me."

"As you wish."

◇ ◇ ◇

Some days later, an announcement was made inside the Empire

abolishing the institution of slavery and liberating all of their slaves.

Because progress—even if it was less than in the Kingdom—had

already been made towards abolishing the system in everything but name,

there was no great effect on people who weren't slave owners or the slaves

themselves. In fact, they were happy not to be called slaves anymore.

However, the people who used those slaves worried that their own lifestyles

might be in jeopardy.

The groundwork had already been laid for the protection of slaves'

rights to ensure they weren't worked to the point of infirmity or death.

Normally, this would only have been a change of terminology, nothing

more, but that was where Hashim's agents began spreading their

propaganda. Rumors spread that Maria was putting the lifestyles of the

slaves first, neglecting those of the propertied class. That meant that the

higher up you went in society, the more resistance you found against Maria.

That's when an incident occurred.

An independence movement began in two of the Empire's vassal states

—north of the Star Dragon Mountain Range on the continent of Landia.

The eastern one was the small Kingdom of Meltonia, bordering the

Nothung Dragon Knight Kingdom. The western one was the Frakt Federal

Republic, henceforth referred to as the Frakt Federation. These two states

had secured their continued existence by submitting to the Empire early on.

In the case of the Frakt Federation, it was a region that once housed

many small- and medium-sized states, like the former Union of Eastern

Nations. But they chose to unite into one country to confront Imperial

expansion back before the appearance of the Demon Lord's Domain. Their

bonds were stronger than those of the Union, and the constituent nations

were dismantled to be ruled as states, each of which sent a representative to

the republic's senate. However, when the senate determined they could no

longer resist the Empire, they chose to submit in order to nominally

preserve their nation.

As for the Kingdom of Meltonia, they were vassalized by the Empire

before the Frakt Federation. They were smaller and less powerful than the

Dragon Knight Kingdom or Frakt Federation. When they opposed the

massive Empire, it was clear they were going to be reduced to cinders. For

the Empire's part, they had just fought a bitter war with the Dragon Knight

Kingdom that ended in a stalemate, and they wanted a buffer state. That

was why they allowed the Kingdom of Meltonia to continue existing. Even

now, the Meltonian royal family ruled over the country.

When these two countries first became Imperial vassals, there was

friction between them. However, thanks to the high degree of autonomy

afforded to them during the time of the former emperor—Maria's weakwilled and inactive father—and under Maria's own peaceful reign, they

only rarely push back on things these days. In fact, because they were

protected by the Empire after the appearance of the Demon Lord's Domain,

relations between the three states were actually good.

However, the past few years had changed that.

The expansion of Fuuga Haan's forces had made it so that the Frakt

Federation and the Kingdom of Meltonia no longer bordered the Demon

Lord's Domain. This freed them from the worry of the demon waves, and in

turn, put them beside the newly established Great Tiger Kingdom instead.

If the monsters were at their gates because of the demon waves, they

could count on the Empire to send forces to protect them. But would that

hold true if the enemy were the Great Tiger Kingdom? Would the Empire

save them like before? The two countries began to have doubts.

It was certainly true that the Empire would not acknowledge the

acquisition of territory by force. But their decisions were inevitably slower

when it involved the other nations of mankind. This was shown by their

inability to prevent the Principality of Amidonia from attacking the

Elfrieden Kingdom. Furthermore, if the Empire and the Great Tiger

Kingdom were to collide, these countries caught between them might be

turned into a battlefield. This led to a debate among their people over which

side to support.

Recently, there had also been an active independence movement. This

was brought about by two disasters that occurred at roughly the same time.

—One night at the end of the 6th month, 1552nd year, Continental

Calendar — A bar in the north of the Empire—

Rattle, rattle, rattle.

"Hm...?"

A drunk arched an eyebrow, and the guy sitting across from him cocked

his head to the side.

"Huh? What's wrong?"

"Uh, I thought I felt something shaking..."

"Shaking? Oh, hey, you're right."

Rattle, rattle... Rumble!!!

""Whoa!""

The tremors grew larger as the shaking of the earth became audible. The

tavern shook back and forth. Tables moved around, and the tableware fell

and shattered to pieces. The quake went on for a long time and showed no

sign of ending.

The shaking of the building grew worse, and cracks formed in the

earthen walls.

"The tavern's not gonna make it! Get outside!"

"Y-Yeah!"

The drunken customers scrambled outside just in time to watch one part

of the city walls crumbling. Looking around, they saw houses with their

roofs caved in and reddish smoke rising in the distance.

In every direction, they could hear people screaming.

"This is horrible..."

"Yeah..."

The two drunks' legs were quaking as they felt themselves sober up.

—The same time — A town near the Frakt-Meltonia border—

"Hey, look! The mountain!"

"It's spitting fire..."

"The lava flow could come here! We need to hurry and run!"

The people watched as their mountain erupted. The rocky formation

served as the border between the Frakt Federation and the Kingdom of

Meltonia. Consequently, debris and volcanic ash from this eruption fell

equally on both nations. Its damage to agriculture was especially heavy,

forcing the governments in both countries to request aid from their masters

in the Empire.

It was unknown whether there was a connection between the earthquake

in the north of the Empire and the volcanic eruption that struck the Frakt

Federation and Kingdom of Meltonia. However, one thing was certain—

Maria couldn't send support to both her own people and her vassals at the

same time.

In the coming days, Maria would summon her top bureaucrat, Lumiere.

"Let's send generous aid to the Frakt Republic and Kingdom of

Meltonia first."

Lumiere furrowed her brow. "You realize our country also suffered

major damage from an earthquake, yes?"

"Our people have the strength to endure for now. Theirs, however, do

not. The situation there will only worsen."

"But there are limits to how much we have set aside for this. If we give

the vassals too much support, reconstruction in the north will be delayed,

resulting in discontent. It could roil the country."

"I know, Lumiere," Maria said, nodding. "That's why I intend to go to

the Kingdom of Friedonia for assistance."

"Wha?! To the head of the Maritime Alliance?!"

Lumiere's eyes widened. Most Imperial retainers didn't know about the

strong connections between Maria and Souma. In fact, now that the

continent was divided into three factions, some people saw him as a threat

to Maria's position, the same as Fuuga. Lumiere was one of them.

"The Kingdom of Friedonia...giving support...to us?"

"Sir Souma, the King of Friedonia, is an understanding sort. This was a

natural disaster, so he'll likely be willing to offer support without concern

for things like national boundaries. Of course, if the same happens to them

in the future, we'll be expected to return the favor."

"But if you go to the leader of the Maritime Alliance for aid now—as

Fuuga Haan sways the hearts of the people with his liberation of the Demon

Lord's Domain—it will hurt your image! Would you please reconsider?!"

"Lumiere..." Maria looked on with sadness in her eyes. "My image

doesn't matter. Our thoughts should be on how many victims we can

provide succor to. Am I wrong?"

"Yes...that's true... But still! We take pride in serving you!" Lumiere

shouted, her eyes filled with anguish. "I may not be as devoted as General

Krahe, but I still serve you! The Saint of the Empire! Yet recently, you treat

that like it means nothing. What of... What about our pride, Your Majesty?"

Maria lowered her eyes. In a soft voice, she said, "I'm sorry, Lumiere."

"Your Majesty!"

"This is an order. Do I make myself understood?"

Lumiere didn't answer immediately. After a few seconds, she muttered,

"...Yes, ma'am."

Maria watched Lumiere go with a sigh.

Thus, Maria provided support to her two vassals while requesting

Souma's assistance inside her own country. Souma gladly accepted, and

immediately sent the King Souma, loaded with relief supplies, to an

Imperial port. Word of this spread far and wide, improving the opinion of

the Kingdom of Friedonia with the people of the Empire. At the same time,

however, it bred discontent among those retainers who could not bear to see

Maria standing in Souma's shadow.

◇ ◇ ◇

Meanwhile, Fuuga Haan's advisor, Hashim Chima, smiled coldly when

he heard this report.

"I see... So that's how Maria moved, did she?"

As soon as he'd finished listening, he gave orders to the agents he had

brought with him from the House of Chima.

"Spread rumors in the Frakt Federation and Kingdom of Meltonia at

once. 'The empress accepted relief supplies from the Kingdom of

Friedonia, then kept them for the Empire instead of distributing them to her

vassals.'"

While this was technically true, it was also a distortion of the facts. The

Empire had been so generous with their aid to their two vassals that they

had needed to go to the Kingdom of Friedonia for assistance. This was

something they should have been thanked not resented for, but the half-truth

sprinkled into the rumors incensed the two countries. It didn't help that this

came at a time when they were wavering between the Empire and the Great

Tiger Kingdom. Because of this, the voices that said they should abandon

the cruel Empire and turn to the Great Tiger Kingdom for protection grew

by the day.

Of course, the higher-ups in both nations knew about the support the

Empire had given them. Alas, the senators of the Frakt Federation went

along with public sentiment in order to avoid looking weak themselves. The

royal family of the Kingdom of Meltonia tried to mollify their people, but

Hashim's agents whipped the populace into a frenzy that could not be

contained, and the royals were forced to flee to the Empire.

They say God sends natural disasters as a sign that a country is coming

to an end. However, that's not because the natural disasters destroy the

country, but because they have deteriorated to the point they are unable to

overcome them.

The sun was setting on the Gran Chaos Empire... That much was

becoming clear.