The Truth

Kraus and some of his subordinates brought Braum to a room within the castle where a long table resides in the middle and sets of chairs can be seen on the sides. Inside the room, as if waiting for him, are people that seem important sitting on each chair. Braum was seated in one of the ends of the table and Kraus starts sitting next to him.

"Now would you tell me? Almost every question I had today seems to not be answered yet." Braum asked in an impatient tone.

Braum was putting up a tough front out of nervousness. At first, he didn't believe that he was the would-be king of a secret nation but after coming here, everything is confirmed. Now, he must deal with the harsh reality that his situation is going to be tricky and might hinder his plans to see the world. What's more, he is now the center of attention for these important-looking people.

"At once your majesty, For why you were summoned here and the whereabouts of your relatives...I must first tell you of the tragedy that happened 3 days ago." Kraus replied.

Everyone's faces start to be contaminated with sadness.

"The ruling Queen and your biological mother, Queen Lazuli Gundala, and all eight of your brothers and sisters were killed in the annual Royalty parade around the capital city-" Kraus continued.

"What!!! My mother!??" Braum replied.

Braum stood up in shock, interrupting Kraus's story. He couldn't believe that the mother he loved so much was now gone.

"Your Majesty! This humble personage is sorry for being direct but the Queen is not the mother you know all of your life!" Kraus answered.

"What…" Braum replied confused.

Hearing Kraus's words, Braum still remained standing in shock.

"The father and mother you know are…*cough* excuse me, I must first tell you why you were abandoned in that forest-" Kraus replied.

When Kraus was about to tell the story, someone entered the room.

"Let me explain that for him." A woman's voice said.

"Mother!" Braum said towards the source of the voice.

That person is none other than the mother that Braum knew all his life. The woman looks to be in her 50s but still emits a youthful energy around her. Her face is sharp and her hair color is black with tinges of white visible. Braum ran to her and hugs her.

"Mother, where have you been these past few years? Where's father?" Braum asked the woman.

"Calm down my boy...come, sit down in your chair." The woman replied.

Braum sits again on his chair but a mix of confusion and happiness can be seen on his face. His "mother" starts to tell the story.

"My name is Matria Uno, the former first great general of Yakana's royal forces. I and your late father was your assigned guardian." Matria answered.

"Father!? What happened to father?" Braum asked.

"Boy! I taught you not to interrupt when people are talking!" Matria said while raising her voice.

Matria yelled at Braum but no one seems to be reprimanding her although this was usually a treasonous act in front of a royalty. Braum shuts his mouth in shock and Matria continues talking.

"I'll get to that...where was I... right, I and your father was your assigned guardian. You see, unlike any other nations, the first born child was not the heir to the throne. The one that is a combination of the most talented in fighting, piloting, politics, and leadership is the one chosen to be the ruler.

Previously, your late brother Prince Horus was the one most suitable to be on the throne. Usually, infightings may occur between different factions that want a particular candidate to be the ruler. In case of a catastrophic event where every candidate is killed, the royal family has a contingency plan.

And that contingency plan is to have the last born child exiled to an unknown location so there would be no one going after him or her. In the event of there being no other successors, this child will be summoned into the capital and be the heir to the throne.

I and your father left you in that forest because one, I and your father was summoned by the queen to serve her and two, we had gotten rid of any major threats in that forest so we thought it would be safe enough to leave you there. " Matria replied.

What Matria just said shocks Braum to his core, but he must have his questions answered so he tries to remain calm.

"But then why was I attacked in the forest? I thought my location would be confidential?" Braum asked Matria.

"...That is related to the incident 3 days ago. Our country is now in the middle of a bloody civil war. On one side is the royal faction, who wants to maintain the balance of our eternal kingdom, continue our innovations in technology, and have no contact with the outside world.

The other faction is the Militarist, a powerful group of military force that is not directly governed by the royalties. What they want is the invasion of the continent by Yakana and world domination. They want complete rule with Yakana at the very top. And what's more...they want the abolition of the monarchy and have their leader, Gornstein, be the dictator. Even with this, they usually just stay in their territories on the far eastern part of our kingdom and not attack.

But suddenly, 3 days ago in the annual royal parade where the royalties would celebrate the founding of our nation in the streets, they attacked…

Even with the powerful security we have, they have infiltrated our group and planted spies. They attacked the parade with bombs and hundreds of mechs. Your stepfather...Ahad Uno, my husband...was killed protecting the queen.

As a result, not only did the queen died, every princes and princess were also killed in the attack. This is, without a doubt, one of the worst tragedies this nation has ever seen. The militarists have retreated back into their territories but it is only a matter of time before they try to take over the government in this absence of power...We have no other choice but to have you as our next king.

Some of the Militarist members have probably found out about your location so that was why they attacked you but they only know that you are an important asset to Yakana. They do not yet know that you are the 9th Prince. " Matria said.

Matria told the long story of the attack with great pain in her face. Braum sits there speechless. After 10 seconds of silence, Braum starts to speak.

"You people abandoned me in the forest for all my life and now you expect me to rule over your country and fight for your cause!?...*breaths in and out* Sorry...I still don't get why would you need a monarchy anyway. With your technologies, couldn't one of the great generals or anyone qualified be the ruler?" Braum replied and asked.

Braum raised his voice in anger before calming himself down and asked another question. But the one who answers is Kraus instead.

"Your majesty, let this humble personage answers your question. It's because of your blood." Kraus answered.

"My...blood?" Braum replied confused.

"Yes. Our mechs' strengths are based on the mana we carry in our blood. The royalties posses blood that would allow them to pilot the most powerful mechs known as the Rajas." Kraus answered again.

Braum was left wondering again. Braum asks another question.

"Okay, I'll do you one better: WHY do you need mechs again? I really don't see the need to possess such powerful machines if you people won't interact with the outside world anyway, Who are you fighting within the borders of our nation?" Braum asked again.

Unconsciously, Braum already referred to Yakana as his country of origin.

"To answer that question Your Majesty...would need me to tell you the whole history of Yakana. For our time constraints, I will give you a short version:

There exists a rift between worlds in the oceans. From that rift, gigantic monsters known as the Kaijus enter our world and wreaks havoc. We cannot predict when it will strike again, the last attack was over 10 years ago but that one was relatively small scale and we managed to deal with it without any other nations noticing. Now, we have reasons to believe the next one could bring catastrophic destructions for the people inside the continent!

We need the mechs to match the powers of the Kaijus because human strengths, even with the aid of magic, is not enough to deal with them." Kraus explained.

Kraus's explanations give him even more headache. First a civil war now news of giant monsters that enters through rifts between worlds. And Kraus, a boy from a forest is supposed to rule these people?

"You want me to be a king but I was not taught any knowledge of leadership, only other subjects. I was also not told of the existence of Yakana and the inner workings of it. How am I supposed to rule this way?" Braum asked while frowning.

"All of us apologize Your Majesty but we couldn't tell you anything to not risk you leaving the forest and telling the existence of our nation to the inhabitants of the continent.

Your Majesty, what we need now is hope. The Militarists' might are stronger than us. Their expertise in mech combats is superior to us. Our citizens are losing hope day by day after the news of the deaths of the entire royal family. We need you to be our King that will end the civil war and leads us in the fight against the Kaiju in the future!" Kraus answered.

Kraus's answer told him more than Braum needs to know. These people are out of options. They could either surrender and let the Militarists rule the country, or fight a losing battle, either one is the one they'll lose. But Braum is not going to just follow everything that they want him to do. If Braum is going to be a king, then he is going to do it his way.

"I have almost a full grasp of the current situation. And I am willing to be the king-" Braum said in confidence.

"-Your majesty!" Kraus interrupted him out of surprise.

"BUT! If I were to be the king then you must make sure that you follow my orders. For one, while I don't agree with the Militarist's hard on for war and world domination, I also don't agree with your faction's stance of closing the nation's off from the rest of the world. After I end the civil war, I want to create good relations with people of the continent and have them cooperate in our fight against the Kaiju. Do you still wish to make me your king despite all of these?" Braum asked everyone in the room.

For the first time in his life, Braum spoke with confidence and dignity one would find in a king. He is nervous inside yes, but he knows that he is the last hope for Yakana.

Everyone at the table starts to get off the chair and put their right hands on their chests.

"""WE PLEDGE ALLEGIANCE TO THE NEW KING BRAUM GUNDALA. WE WILL FOLLOW HIM THROUGH THE DARKEST TIMES AND WE WILL SUPPORT HIM FOR OUR ETERNAL KINGDOM OF YAKANA""" Everyone said at the same time.

The pledge of allegiance was loud and everyone's faces seem determined. Braum smiled. It is now his time.