Rakuin no Monshou:Volume2 Chapter2
Status: Incomplete
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Chapter 2: Days at the Imperial Capital
Part 1
Before the beginning of the founding festival, the people of Mephius, especially the inhabitants within the imperial capital of Solon, were enlivened. The ten year war with Garbera had ended, the number of peddlers and travellers from other countries would increase, and the circus troupe would also come from the east. The end of the war might have led to the beginning of varied opinions on the resist-to-the-bitter-end faction, but for the citizens, just looking forward to being able to partake in the festivities was more than enough to leave them delighted.
Solon would, in the following week, be dyed the color of the festival. For those that grew up in an environment enclosed within cliffs and valleys, those of various attires, different dispositions, the uncultured, and also the so-called ‘plain’ Mephians, this was the only time they could freely dress up, drink at the stands that completely filled up the halls and streets, and relish the usually sparse seafood in Mephius, as the orchestra, minstrels, troupes and attractions pleased their eyes and ears.
Mephius’ reputed gladiator games would, of course, be held for days in succession. The distinguished gladiatorial groups from each region would all be gathered in one place, where those who bragged of their strength would duke it out, in the imperial capital of Solon’s arena, which compared to all others, made them appear to be lacking in lustre, and awfully plain. Many from distant lands had showed up just to see this grand, magnificent gladiator fest.
And, every year, the arena in the imperial capital hosting this festival would hold a different theme. Amongst the gladiators who had survived day after day of fighting, the Guild would carefully select the ones with real ability, especially those with high popularity, until the final four men were chosen and to each, a one-on-one battle would be held. And then the two victors would, in the last day, accompanied by two hundred gladiators that had yet to participate in a match, fight against several large dragons—the last and biggest event of the founding festival.
It had been modeled after one of Mephius’ most popular historical figures, the Dragon-slaying hero, Clovis, who, together with the support of Felipe, fought to the very end. Despite being gladiators, they had been bestowed the same title, and released from their status as sword-slave. Furthermore, they had been officially employed as Mephian soldiers. In this day and age, the sword-slaves trained even harder than usual in hopes they would be able to participate in the tournament.
‘’Speaking of which, Tarkas never got invited in the end.’’
At times like this, he would usually be in a sour mood. The Tarkas Gladiatorial Group was comparatively larger than most, and certainly well known, but the relation between his company and the leading nobles he had spent his entire life establishing had become superficial, and he lost the right to speak as an equal.
“If it’s Shique, I can get some money. Gilliam too, he certainly is the people of Solon’s favorite giant. And then there’s Kain; I’d like to see someone that can best him in a gunning match against two Baian tanks.”
As Orba muttered to himself, he thought back. If it were Tarkas speaking, he would say ‘Orba was a gladiator that didn’t give me my money’s worth!” His forte was the longsword. He never lost a one-on-one match. But it was a fact that his fighting style was ‘plain’.
It had been Tarkas’ dream to participate in the festival and get first place, but Orba held no interest in it. He wanted the festival in Solon to quickly start and receive it, and it was because Orba thought this way, that he didn’t understand the way the world ran. <!—unsure-->
Though, of course, he would do so not as the gladiator Orba, but as the crown prince Gil. Instead of going out into the gladiator games, he had a number of other duties to perform.
The day before the festival started, the Mephius royalty and chief vassals had, during the evening, taken the lead in the celebration of founding day, and held a ritual to pray for a good harvest in the coming year. In the centre of Solon stood the Black Tower, also known as the “Sword forged from the remains of a Space Immigrant Ship’s bow”. It was a symbol of the capital, and situated below was the Dragon God Shrine. It was a naturally formed cave, and they were, upon entering, enveloped in a freezing chill.
Everyone wore the hoods of their robes and walked in silence. Incidentally, participation of this ceremony was restricted to the men. There were no exceptions for royalty, and amongst them, the presence of Empress Melissa and her daughter Ineli were nowhere to be found.
The one acting as vanguard and holding the lamps was not the emperor, but several elderly men. They had dark brown skin and thin but treaded robustly. They were nomads of the Ryuujin Faith who usually lived in the mountains.
All preparations for the Dragon God ritual were handled by the group of elders. This was an old custom, back in the days when people all throughout Mephius worshipped the Dragon God. Before long they arrived at the inner sanctum. Their feet stopped, and they waited patiently as the group of elders offered a prayer in ancient words.
And engraved on the towering wall before them was the Mephius Dragon God bestowing wisdom and power to the founding emperor.
It was a vast, dimly lit space. The lamp kindled, and the deep, profound voices of the elders chanting could be heard as their shadows projected onto the wall. The sanctity of the ritual sent shivers down Orba’s spine.
‘’So this is also something I must get used to’’
Just how much more of this did he have to learn by heart and get used to; if they were to be drilled into his head, he might even end up respecting the nobles and royalty a little. As Orba held such baseless thoughts, his eyes met with Fedom, who flashed him a silent look of reprehension that seemed to say ‘Stop wandering your eyes all over the place’.
Once the prayer had finished from start to end, the elders moved down a passage leading to a considerably narrow room, and they alone exchanged drinks. It wasn’t a banquet, but another part of paying their respect. At night, a ball was arranged within the inner palace on the eve of the founding festival, where the remaining nobles and countries’ envoys were waiting.
As they headed towards the room, Simon Rodloom called out, “Prince.” Fedom looked at Orba during this sudden predicament, but to his relief, Orba had refrained from meeting back his gaze. Simon was one leader amidst all the others. Who knew how long he could have been lurking behind Fedom.
Simon started off with a formal greeting, just like all the others, offering a ‘good health’ salutation.
“Not bad. You knew everyone wouldn’t give it much thought, so you chose to act a little more formal than usual.”
According to Dinn’s reports, he was regarded as the prince’s attending nursemaid, much to his displeasure. Orba had acted correspondingly.
“The young prince is the man of the hour after all. Speaking of which, you performed a splendid job with your first campaign.”
“Unexpectedly splendid, is what you want to say, right?”
“Yes, pardon my discreetness.”
“Everyone is surprised after seeing my real abilities. It’s because of the way I’ve been up to now, that everyone is probably feeling uneasy. Hmph, even if they didn’t mind at all, I could care less.” Rodloom smiled at his bitter expression.
‘’Not bad at all.’’
Orba grew confident of his acting. After all, he only had to play the part of a simpleton. And then, Orba began, “I’m extremely pleased with my success with my first campaign,” as he continued to act the part of the prince.
“Did you meet Princess Vileena after that?”
The unexpected jab had, for a moment, left him short of a response.
“It has been the talk of the maids—those gossipy chattering sparrows, that Her Highness the Princess had intruded into your room, and firmly scolded you on your late return; such rumours have spread.” “Me, scolded by that princess? Madness!”
A part of what he spouted wasn’t an act, but his real feelings. Simon broke off into a smile.
“It’s fine like this. If it’s a single rumour, it might help the princess’ situation.”
“Help her?”
“She was the princess of our enemy until not too long ago, she herself must hold some misgivings, and hold conflicted feelings of her surroundings. But, with this, everyone would watch over the relationship between the charming prince and princess, and once this atmosphere develops, the people will follow suit.”
“And what will become of my situation? Am I just supposed to stay silent and laugh it off?”
“This is the time when the prince should show his talents. Show more concern. You should try to laugh with her about things, and become a lord not to be trifled with. Then she will hold a large amount of good-will towards you.”
“As if I need that sort of good-will.”
“You wouldn’t want this talk to reach his majesty’s ears, would you?”
“……”
“But even His Majesty,” Simon began. It was a private matter, but he decided to turn a blind eye and say it. “In his early years, in those times he fought with Lana-sama, it was up to me to be the mediator. Once your mother had made up her mind, she would stay firm.”
Lana was the emperor’s former wife, and Prince Gil’s own mother. She had died five years ago from an illness.
Naturally, Orba hardly knew about this. He avoided giving a response, which Simon kept quiet on, assuming it was because of his sentiments, as the two proceeded into the chamber.
And it was here where the incident that was likely to affect the future of Mephius would occur.
It was a narrow, rectangular room. In this part of the cave supported by wood and iron rods, were several laid chairs, just enough to accompany the group, centered around a crudely-built stone table.
Orba took the set position he had previously been informed of. One by one, the cups were placed before each seat. The bottom contained a small amount of honey. It was custom that the emperor then personally pour the wine. In last year’s founding festival, fruit wine had been offered. Of course, this year too, the best wine possible had been offered to show gratitude for the blessings.
“I pray for a good harvest in Mephius. Spirit of the Dragon God, please grant me your divine protection.”
As Guhl Mephius’ voice rang, everyone joined in succession. Orba—or rather, Prince Gil, was the last to go. His eyes followed the emperor, now walking with the wine-storing vase held under his arm.
‘’The Mephius emperor’’
He was Prince Gil’s father, and needless to say, the man who reigned at the top of the empire. And if Orba’s reasoning was right, he was the man who planned the secret assassination of Prince Gil and his fiancée, Vileena. If a situation were to occur that would force these two alone, should he approach him deceivingly? Orba had no interest in finding out; he might even try to kill him, though, could a father even mistake his own son for an impostor?
Then the room filled with commotion. The startled Orba watched from the side.
‘’Did I commit a blunder?”
His blood instantly froze, however, the one the vassals were looking it wasn’t Gil, but the emperor. Their faces filled with surprise and—profound fear. Orba also turned to look. The emperor was pouring wine to the first person. Orba didn’t see anything strange happening. The first was, an elder nomad of the Ryuujin Faith. The emperor then directed the vase to the next elder.
“Your majesty, please wait.”
The one who brought himself forward was Zaat Quark. Before the dignified demeanour he had when they had met on the streets was nowhere to be seen, and his vigorous face distorted in alarm.
“Please wait, your majesty. Lord Rodloom has yet to go.”
The room got gone into an uproar since the beginning of Zaat’s interjection. And it wasn’t only Zaat; many had impulsively left their seat. Orba also got up and walked two seats over to Fedom, who had changed his face to match the others, and gently tapped him on the back.
“….What are they talking about.”
“F-Fool. Don’t talk to me here.”
Fedom cursed at him in a low voice, but Orba pressed for an answer with his eyes, leaving him no choice but to speak quickly.
“…..Last year, Simon Rodloom was the first to receive the ceremonial wine. It was perfectly natural for something done by rank. The order of pouring reflects the strength of his trust. And to prevent needless strife, the order had been decided beforehand.”
That was why the crown prince went last, Fedom seemed to imply. Ranking retainers was another unfamiliar concept for him.
At this point of the explanation, Zaat drew closer before them.
“Your majesty!”
“Silence, Zaat Quark.”
Guhl Mephius interrupted hoarsely, but in a sharp, hushed voice. With just that, the emperor had quelled the commotion and he stared at the eyes of his retainers who were frozen in fear.
“What is this, interrupting in the midst of a rite. Cease your actions.”
“I will not, your majesty,” Zaat said, turning pale, but did not stop talking. “The way things are being done have not been according to our followed customs. With all due respect, how could you put more trust on those nomads and putrid believers than we lords and generals who, for your majesty’s sake, have devoted ourselves tirelessly!”
“Zaat, stop it.”
None other than Simon grabbed him by the shoulders and tried to control him.
“To say this in no other than the Dragon God’s shrine, you’ve quite the nerve, Zaat. You, who defies me like those priests I now hold in contempt, are attempting to pollute this sacred ritual. The benevolent Dragon God shall certainly not bestow his judgment of anger on you, but will instead impose it on the emperor who acts as his representative, me. Depart from here immediately! I shall hand down my sentence afterwards, so you shall return to and be confined in your own mansion. Do you understand, Zaat!”
“Your majesty.”
“Your majesty!”
Orba watched as the situation once again turned into an uproar, and the emperor face seethed a bright red, while never removing his gaze on Zaat Quark, whose face showed a ghastly blue.
‘’Internal discord amongst the nobles, huh.’’
He had no intention of mediating, and also planned to stay out of it. While he subdued the smile that form around his mouth, a casual sidelong glance at Fedom revealed that there was something odd.
His plump belly jiggled as his body quivered. It might have seemed he was in a panic, as sweat ran down his face, but it was identical to Orba’s, with a faint smile that seemed to come and go.
Part 2
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