Central Calendar 20/07/1639, Imperial Palace, Esthirant, Parpaldian Empire, 12:30

As the festivities of Proclamation Day were in full swing all across the imperial capital Esthirant, a tense atmosphere hung over one particular meeting room in the imperial palace situated on one of the hills to the city’s north. Here, in the midst of gilded mirrors and shining, golden fixtures were two rows of men with their own unique mindsets and interests facing off against one another in an uneasy yet controlled banter–a process of back and forth better known as a meeting. Despite their mutual interest in constructing a diplomatic relationship between their two countries, they’ve come to realize that there was more than one topic on which they’ve reached an impasse. Unyielding and determined to have their way, both parties remained rigid with many of the things they’ve talked about; ominous signs that the relationship that they were building was about to have multiple plausible points of failure all across the spectrum.

“Before we move on for lunch, I’d very much like to revisit one point we’ve touched on before.”

On one hand were the pish-posh suit and vest-wearing diplomats and officials of the Parpaldian Empire, the established regional power of the Third Civilization Region, which encompassed the majority of the Philades continent and its outlying islands. At their helm was a man named Kaios, department chair of the Parpaldian Third Foreign Affairs Department, whose flashy coat dyed with magnificent imperial red signified that he was not shy of his inclusion in the higher echelons of Esthirant society.

“Mmm. Let’s.”

On the other hand were the diplomats of the country of Japan, whose elegant black suits and matching navy blue ties exuded an impression of highly optimized simplicity. Having undeniably inscribed its name onto the annals of Asheran history in its opening act of geopolitical maneuvering, their growing regional influence meant that it was well on its way to challenge the Parpaldian behemoth on the Philadean stage. Leading their troupe of diplomats was the daring Tanaka Noboru, whose distinguished efforts in Fenn and post-war Louria convinced the bigwigs back in Kasumigaseki that he was the right man to send to Parpaldia, a top-level decision that still irks him to this very moment.

Even though the flags of the two nations stood proudly together, both off to one corner and all along the long table they used, they were by no means friends; although if anything, that was the goal that they were working towards.

“Regarding the bilateral recognition of the demarcation of our spheres of influence...”

As the words flowed out of Kaios’s composed lips, the official sitting next to him pulled out a rolled-up map made out of the finest local printed paper.

“Oh?”

An unintentional response from Tanaka, whose unimpressed expression held back the majority of what he could have said.

Demarcating spheres of influence? At this kind of meeting? First I’ve heard of it...

The Parpaldian official handed the map to an aide standing behind him, who then proceeded to walk towards a moveable board at one end of their long table. After unfurling the map, the aide then attached its corners to the board.

The map depicted the southern half of Philades, the Altaras Strait, and Rodenius, along with their outlying islands. Border demarcations were present and so were the names of nations while most geographical features were not, indicating that this was a geopolitical map. There were, however, two colors of note that dominated the colorless map. The first one was lemon yellow, which colored the Parpaldian Empire, the Altaras and Sios islands, Awan, and the rest of the Philadean continent. The other was wine red, which colored Japan, the islands of Fenn and Gahara, and the entirety of Rodenius.

As the Japanese side took their time examining the map, the Parpaldians explained their proposal.

“What you see is our comprehensive suggestion for how our spheres of influence would look like. As regional powers, we think that it is in our best interest to demarcate our spheres of influence to lessen the risk of unwanted conflicts from our interests overlapping with one another.”

The Japanese diplomats all had one common expression amongst themselves: confusion. This was the first time that they had to deal with something like this. Moreover, the idea of two nations carving up the entire region for themselves without consulting the locals exuded colonialist, if not imperialist connotations. Even if they were to find it in themselves to accept this proposal, their government will most definitely not.

Tanaka was the first to offer his not-so-subtle impressions.

“This proposal is untenable. Japan is not in the business of unilateral demarcation of who gets to be ‘under our boot’. We simply want more trade partners and friends, and in line with our belief of self-determination, we believe that if countries from ‘your’ sphere of influence want to conduct business with us, they are free to do so.”

A momentary silence engulfed the room.

The row of faces along the Parpaldian side all expressed one feeling: confusion. Terms like “self-determination” did not only sound alien, but to those who are more aware of their local political or ideological spheres, they sound somewhat like the more radical voices emanating from pro-independence movements and those fighting for workers’ rights. For such terminologies to come from the appointed representative of the other regional power sounded alarm bells in their minds.

Another Japanese diplomat followed up on Tanaka’s remarks.

“Also, if we are to believe the legend you went by in this map, then that means that you do not recognize Altaran nor Siosan sovereignty; they’re clearly demarcated as a part of Parpaldian territory. We’ve already established relations with both countries and have come to recognize their independence and sovereignty, hence why we find this proposal disagreeable.”

“I think it’s best if we come out and say that we would only agree to making an agreement regarding the demarcation of the sovereign territory of only our two nations. Our refusal to agree on the proposal regarding the carving up the Third Civilized Region between our nations is final.”

The Parpaldians looked at one another with expressions that highlighted their impatient desire to break out into a fit. Even this point had turned into an impasse, and with them putting their foot down there was little point in discussing further, at least for now. Such were diplomatic meetings, after all.

Massaging his forehead with his thumb, Kaios replied to the Japanese.

“We understand your position and we will be revisiting this topic with your statements in mind. For now, let’s go have lunch, shall we?”

Famished and with his diplomatic facade on the brink of collapse, Tanaka could not be any more elated to hear these words.

“Let’s!”

- - -

In another room separate from where they held their discussions, the imperial palace’s army of maids, servants, chefs, and helpers prepared a sizeable banquet for the Parpaldian and Japanese diplomats, the scope and extravagance of which felt like a smaller version of the one from the ball last night. This room not only sparkled from its mirror-like golden walls and exquisite glass chandeliers, but its cleanliness and spotlessness wowed even the Japanese, making them want to take off their shoes out of sheer respect. There was only a single line that led to the banquet and a single long table which the Parpaldians and the Japanese shared.

Having been reminded by his aides the night before and along the hallway before lunch to not make a repeat of his actions the previous night, Tanaka restrained himself and his hunger to uphold his manners. After procuring a plate for himself, filling it up with safe-looking mashed potato, cooked beans, and some asparagus, he then went on his way to take his seat along the table. Positioning himself at one end of his team, who had huddled together, he placed his food-laden plate in between the different sized silverware, unfurled a clean napkin to be placed on his lap, and then clapped his hands to thank the gods for the food that he’s about to receive.

“Itadakimasu...”

As soon as he uttered the last sound, the floodgates holding back his real self, weakened by hunger, collapsed entirely. He picked up what silverware he could get his hands on without even considering their intended usage and dug in. Scooping up a mixture of all the kinds of foods on his plate, he then maneuvered the spoon towards his mouth.

Mmm... Food...

However, before his mind could even drift into a state of heaven-on-earth delirium at the welcome presence of food in his mouth, his earthly senses forced his consciousness back, their receptors triggered by unwanted stimulation. At first, this came in the form of a violation of his personal space, which he unilaterally considers to be at least a meter all around his person, then it came in the form of the eye-catching red of a coat. The owner of this coat, Kaios, the head Parpaldian diplomatic representative to them as of the moment, had taken his seat directly next to him. He unfurled a clean piece of cloth on his lap without any unnecessary flair before his hands swiftly and efficiently took the relevant pieces of silverware to use for his meal.

Tanaka went on to ignore the man’s presence, wanting to mind his own business and not start something unwarranted, but as it turns out this was not what the other party had in mind.

“So far enjoying your time in Esthirant, Sir Tanaka?”

Without even turning his gaze away from the oil-dipped bread he was maneuvering into his mouth, Kaios initiated small talk with Tanaka. Unbeknownst to the latter, the former was trying to get more information regarding Japan, but as a diplomat, it was within reasonable possibility for the latter to consider. Just as he helped himself to another scoop, Tanaka decided to bite.

“It definitely has its charms, although I’d rather have a city without all the thick industrial smoke and soot.”

Kaios swallowed the bread that he had been chewing. Considering everything they knew and witnessed up to that point, it was not out of the ordinary for the Japanese to be aware of the downsides of industrialization.

“Hahaha! You’d fit right in with the environmentalists and the aristocrats here. I’m also more of a countryside person myself, but I agree that industry is vital to a nation’s success.”

As Kaios finished his appetizer, Tanaka pondered on his next words. While he personally disagreed with the capitalist intentions of their diplomatic mission, he couldn’t argue with the fact that their economy was in the gutter. He already knew that this was some sort of unofficial gauge on the Parpaldian part regarding Japan’s national power, but their priority of propping up the economy meant that they needed to be on amicable terms with industrial Parpaldia. If his remarks here could spark some demand and interest on the Parpaldian side, then he would have fulfilled a big part of his mission.

“I was born in the city and I lived in the city, yet I never had to deal with the problem of washing myself free of black soot. In all the decades that we’ve been an industrialized nation, we’ve had plenty of developments that make it possible to live within a city and enjoy some semblance of clean air.”

Hearing this, Kaios glanced his way with raised eyebrows.

“‘Industrialized city’ and ‘clean air’ in the same sentence? Blasphemy.”

Finally earning the man’s direct attention, Tanaka got his chance to nip it in the bud.

“Don’t believe me? Let me show you.”

Reaching for his trusty iPhone 12, the last smartphone he may be able to get his hands on for a very long time, he pulled it out of his pocket and moved it over to Kaios. To him, what Tanaka held looked nothing more than a very slim, metallic tablet with a reflective black surface, but he was at least intuitive enough to guess based on the clean finish of the product that it was the outcome of sophisticated manufacturing processes. Before he could even think of another sentence to describe the smartphone, Tanaka turned it on, its empty black surface instantaneously turning into a sea of bright, vivid colors.

“What is this thing?”

Assuming that it was a more advanced, sophisticated model of the tamagotchi toys they seized weeks ago, Kaios can’t help but be flabbergasted at the many implications of the technological marvel the Japanese diplomat held in his hands. Not only did it display a crisp, detailed image of a painting, but the blobs of colors were moving. He knew that there had to be some magic behind this phenomenon, but being unable to reach a conclusion, he was satisfied with “I’m seeing illusions.”

To his surprise again, when Tanaka’s thumb swiped on the black screen, the image on the display reacted, turning into another image of a dozen or so boxes with different peculiarities and scribbles. The Japanese diplomat touched one of these boxes, causing the image displayed to change once more, outpacing Kaios’s mental capacity to follow and grasp what was happening. Finally, Tanaka stopped his interactions with the metallic slab, showing to him a colorful image of grays, greens, and blues.

“This is what Tokyo, our capital, looks like. Well, on a good day, at least...”

Fitted onto a metal slab that was barely larger than the diplomat’s hand was the image of a sprawling metropolis with buildings completely blanketing every single inch of earth. Off to the distance, towering slender spikes soared above the skyline, their glass windows glistening in the yellow afternoon sun that was not present in the picture. Unsure of whether or not what he was seeing was a real photograph of the Japanese capital, Kaios could only stare in bleak uncertainty.

This is who we’re dealing with? Gods, what grievous crime has the empire committed to deserve such absurd trials?!

Returning to the topic at hand, he could only comment on the azure skies present above the Japanese capital in the picture while maintaining his diplomatic composure.

“Blue and without smoke?! I’m tempted to dismiss this as a farce, Sir Tanaka...”

“With the right decisions, this could be possible for Esthirant too...”

Tanaka and Kaios stared at one another with a mutual understanding of where their conversation was headed. Their words carried the weight of the interests of both of their nations, and with enough luck, they can come up with something which both parties find favorable. Kaios replied.

“That would indeed be nice, but there needs to be a driving force behind these decisions, no?”

“Which is why in exchange for ideas which you obviously find nice, I think that we should explore deals for raw resources–the tangible stuff one finds beneath their feet. That should set the motion for more exciting things.”

“A nation does not merely get off of resource extraction, especially not Parpaldia. Lately, we have been relying more on the import-export relations with the greater world and there exists a lot of foreign investment coming from the Central World.”

“That’s also something we can agree on.”

Kaios nodded, internally ecstatic about Japanese willingness for trade. While on the topic, he wanted to make some clarifications that may be sensitive, but they’re very much a valid concern.

“And what of the export of more sensitive technologies, like that of certain industrial products and methods, as well as components and parts of military nature...”

He was dancing around the topic, but this was something within the expectations of Tanaka and to an extent the Japanese government.

“Export control is something that has always been present, but now that we have to deal with an array of trade partners with wildly differing levels of ‘development index’, we’ve recently set up the Committee for Asheran Export Control, which has the authority to dictate what can be exported to a specific country. So far, they’ve only finished outlining the list of allowable exports to a select few nations, mostly those in Rodenius.”

While the concept of export control isn’t strange, as Parpaldia itself employs export control in its goods, Kaios was more or less disheartened upon hearing a part of the bureaucracy surrounding Japan’s export control. It was to be expected, after all, as even the Imperials and Muish closely monitor exports to them, although Parpaldia has been hard at work getting some of these loosened or lifted altogether.

“They’re currently reviewing Parpaldia in anticipation of the commencement of trade between our two countries, so maybe you’ll know by then.”

“I look forward to that. In the meantime, let’s work hard on sealing the bonds between our two countries.”

With the two men offering each other reassuring yet uncertain smiles, they were about to return to their meals when Kaios’s eyes caught sight of something that immediately reeled in his attention.

“Is that–?!”

He pointed towards Tanaka’s iPhone with eyes that appeared they were about to burst from their sockets. Displayed on the screen was the striking, crystal clear image of a Norwegian Forest breed of cat with its fluffy fur of grays and whites giving emphasis to the ogling eyes facing the screen. Ah, thought Tanaka, as he realized he may have accidentally swiped on his gallery of photos.

“Ah–Uh... My apologies, Sir Kaios. It was just my house cat–”

Kaios stared back at him with determined eyes filled with burning passion.

“Nonsense! If we are to become good friends, then you must exhaust every single detail about every single feline in your possession!”

The Parpaldian head diplomat, a man whose rugged appearance evokes impressions of wisdom and fortitude, declared out loud such things without even a hint of restraint and shame. While he was weirded out, both by the disposition Kaios displayed and by the fact that Asherah also has cats, Tanaka can’t help but chuckle at the back of his mind.

Heh. Cat person spotted.

As Tanaka pulled up more pictures of his house cat back in Japan, Kaios joined in by showing him folded photographs of his precious Yvonne.

Proclamation Square, 15:30

With the hot mid-afternoon sun that was hiding behind the low, thick clouds that hung above the imperial capital occasionally peaked out of its cover, sending divine-like rays down onto the Asheran surface. The air in Esthirant was somewhat humid, with that and the faint, lingering scent of rain serving as a reminder that it hadn’t been long since there was a downpour in the city. While the rest of the metropolis went on business as usual, thousands of Parpaldian citizens and foreign visitors and dignitaries gathered on both sides of a certain boulevard near the southwestern end of the city close to the harbor. This boulevard ran parallel to the coastline, and with buildings being prohibited from being built all along its southern side, there existed many scenic spots all along the sidewalk that offered an undisturbed, panoramic view of the Esthirant harbor.

On one particular point along this boulevard was a wide, open public square that extended for around 10,000 square meters. Erected at the center of this square was a great stone obelisk flanked by the life-sized marble statues of two Parpaldian line infantrymen. This monument, dubbed the “Spirit of Parpaldian Excellence”, served as a reminder to the rest of the world that this square was where the Parpaldian Empire was proclaimed, thus the square had been known since then as the Proclamation Square. Directly behind this monument was a great palace that served as the site of the Imperial Art Gallery, its imposing facade held up by equally spaced white columns.

“Right this way, sirs!”

A staff member of the Parpaldian Foreign Affairs ministry guided the black suits of the Japanese delegation towards their designated place.

Behind the thousands of people that were jostling close to the barriers placed all along the boulevard side of Proclamation Square was an erected wooden platform where important foreign dignitaries sat below the Parpaldian Emperor and his government, who were designated to sit on a special platform that towered above the rest. Arriving at their designated seats in the midst of the other foreign bigwigs present, the Japanese delegation and their service uniform-wearing GSDF attache proceeded to sit down.

“This view isn’t that bad.”

Tanaka remarked as he savored his unobstructed view of the paved boulevard.

“Yeah, but I really hate this humidity... I’m already sweating!”

His aide complained as he wiped off the sweat that had gathered on his collars.

“But you’ll like this, right? It’s a military parade! With late 19th century arms and equipment at that!”

Tanaka tried to cheer him up, but deep down he too was fed up with the intolerable humidity.

The full-blown military parade displaying the excellence and discipline of the Parpaldian Army served as the climax of Proclamation Day celebrations. Not only do its citizens get to get a glimpse of the might of the Parpaldian military since they almost never see them in action, given that the bulk of Parpaldia’s military expansion happens thousands of kilometers up north, but the parade also serves as a way of intimidating the rest of its neighboring countries–a taste of the premier strength at Parpaldia’s fingertips. On the other hand, meanwhile, this was also a window for other powers to gauge Parpaldian strength, allowing them to gain an idea of what they were capable of to better plan their moves. While this was indeed the intention in the Proclamation Day celebrations that came before, the Japanese delegation couldn’t help but think that them being invited to see the parade was a subtle message to them about Parpaldia’s militarist tendencies.

“This is them flexing at us.”

Tanaka concluded with confidence.

“I think the message was quite clear when they brought a military force to neutral Jin-Hark to invite us.”

His aide added, to which Tanaka agreed.

They then heard the loud sound of a voice coming from several loudspeakers, after which they saw the crowd of people beneath them turning around to face them, their fingers pointing towards something that was behind them. The Japanese delegation turned their faces towards their rear where they saw the imposing figure of Emperor Ludius standing on the elevated platform above them, speaking in front of multiple microphone-looking devices.

“Good afternoon to the foreign dignitaries present and to the dear citizens of the empire! It joys my heart to see the masses out for this all-too-important event!”

Pausing to cough behind his fist, Ludius then continued.

“In the spirit of the imperial proclamation that cemented our still burgeoning excellence on this world, I will give the spotlight of the celebrations to our formidable military, whose indomitable thirst for greatness and brilliance is second only to you, my dear citizens! Without the military and without you, the empire would not be where it currently is! Glory to the empire!”

Raising his right fist as if to punch the air above him, Ludius’s galvanizing words were backed with equally galvanizing actions. Just as expected, the rest of the crowd followed his example, raising their right fists high into the air and shouting after the emperor.

“GLORY TO THE EMPIRE!!!”

Almost immediately after, an army band off to one side began playing a march piece, setting the mood to one of an upbeat, almost festive one. With the military parade having commenced, Tanaka and the rest of the Japanese delegation got comfortable.

“You military otaku out there better shut up. I know each and every one of you, you hear?”

Tanaka left this one last remark to the rest of his delegation, but this was also directed to those amongst the GSDF attache. They stayed mum, silently acknowledging the diplomat’s order as they glued their eyes on the still empty boulevard.

After around three minutes filled with the march piece, they started hearing the loud thump-thump of dozens of leather boots stomping against the wet pavement.

“They’re here!”

Emerging behind the tall building on the boulevard corner that was blocking their view were uniformed soldiers marching in unison with one another. Led on by five drummers beating in sync with the marching piece played by the band, a total of 16 crimson-uniformed men formed one line, and their formation consisted of around 25 of these lines. Upon coming into view, every man on each line would turn their face towards the emperor before saluting.

From the perspective of one of the members of the Japanese delegation, a closet military otaku, he was already breaking down what information he could derive from the parade.

The first unit that came into view was that of light infantry, characteristic of their loose clothing, smaller packed gear carried, and less conspicuous headgear, the coloring of which matched the rest of their crimson uniform. With their right arm raised to salute the emperor, they carried their main weapon on their left side with the left hand supporting the stock and the barrel resting on their left shoulder. The weapon they carried appeared to be that of a bolt-action, breech-loading type, although its trigger appears to be of a different mechanism in that it’s connected to a curious plate engraving near the chamber. Its appearance mirrored that of a mid-to-late 19th century rifle like the Chassepot.

The succeeding formations were also light infantry units, although the flag that the flag bearer brandished was different for each formation, likely an indication of the respective units they served in.

After the light infantry formations had passed, the next ones that showed up announced their presence with the distinctive clacking of horseshoes on pavement. Arranged into lines of 12 horses, the formation of cavalrymen riding their unadorned horses had most of their decorative points allotted towards the riders themselves, which was made clear in the stylish appearance of their headgear and uniform. The first cavalry units that appeared were part of the lancers, characterized by the steel blade-tipped staves they held, which were decorated with red and gold banners. Also armed with short sabers and pistols, these men functioned as the fast, ground-based shock troops of imperial armies.

Following the distinctive posh of the lancers were the shining display of cuirassiers, which also fulfilled the role of shock troops. They’re distinct from their fellow cavalrymen in that they wore shiny steel cuirasses for their body armor, allowing them to tank more damage and get up-close and personal during melee. These knightley men are armed with long sabers and carabines which make for good effect when being employed in shock tactics.

After two more formations of heavy cuirassiers and lancers followed another unit that went by horse, but it was already clear that they were not a cavalry unit. Each of the horses in the formation that appeared was dragging a mobile field cannon that appeared to be capable of firing a round of moderate lethality, likely equivalent to a mid to late 19th century 12-pounder. Examining the cannons further, the Japanese diplomat/military otaku found no mechanisms that allowed for breech-loading, which led him to believe that it was a muzzle-loader cannon. Judging from the relative period of the weapons he had seen so far, it might also have been capable of firing a variety of ammunition, including some relatively advanced shell types. Marching alongside their horse-dragged cannons were the cannoneers, which were similarly dressed to the light infantry units in that they wore simplistic clothing with limited decorations.

Immediately after the field artillery unit came a unit of horsemen dragging something completely different. Upon further scrutiny, the Japanese were surprised to see that they were wheeled machine gun-like weapons. Equipped with a distinctive trigger at the back and ammunition fed through a belt, the bulky weapon was without a doubt a machine gun, although it has similar machinery-like plate engraving all over its firing mechanism similar to the Chassepot-like rifle from earlier, indicating that it might operate differently from a regular machine gun. Unlike the previous formations, this unit wasn’t fully equipped with this advanced automatic weapon, as some elements were pulling more rudimentary multi-barreled weapons, which appeared to be operated via a manually cranked lever. These were similar in appearance to the mid to late 19th century French mitrailleuse guns, although the Japanese were unsure of how the Parpaldians employed these and the more advanced machine guns in battle.

What came next were infantry units, but the importance and prominence of these were more pronounced in their uniforms, which were characterized by tall black caps with decorative gold cap badges and laurels, splendid leather shoulder belts, red vests, and clean white breeches. They carried a heavier pack of provisions and supplies in comparison to the earlier light infantry and their Chassepot-like rifles were armed with long bayonets. Their movements were much sharper, echoing their ironclad discipline, and most of them were around 180cm tall. These units were the crème de la crème of the Parpaldian ground force, the regular infantry. Forming the anvil or unmoving pillar of the Parpaldian Army, they’re the cornerstone of every major offensive and defensive maneuver.

Just behind the regular infantry followed the elite Imperial Guard, which functions as the emperor’s personal bodyguard at home and while on campaign. Characterized by their taller black headgear topped with red and gold tufts, longer coats, white bands on both arms, and ornamented sabers, these elite troops were also consequently given more attention when it comes to arms. Armed primarily with foreign surplus bolt-action rifles of differing origins, these infantry units of the Imperial Guard were likely used as reserve shock troops, providing even greater levels of firepower than their light infantry counterparts when committed. Upon taking a closer look at the construction and make of the rifles that they carried, most of the Japanese military otaku arrived at the conclusion that they resembled the more advanced magazine bolt-action rifles prevalent during the turn of the 20th century, which included the likes of the Arisaka Type 30, the Carcano, the Mosin-Nagant, and other weapons of their contemporary. This realization gave them more confidence that the greater powers beyond their region, such as Mirishial, Mu, Leifor, and so on, were selling arms to Parpaldia, but this also made them think about what factors and advantages the Parpaldians have to warrant economic and military attention from the other powers.

Himself an otaku (somewhat) in these sorts of things, Tanaka also couldn’t help but wonder what interests the other powers have in Parpaldia. After all, information like that could help in a likely confrontation with the empire, but it could also prove economically beneficial to Japanese interests.

“Hmm...”

Then, they heard a loud groan emanate from behind the corner of the square. It was too loud to be a human groan, but it also evoked fear and a sense of impending danger in everyone at the square. Contrary to expectations, however, were the louder screams of joy coming from the Parpaldian citizens next to the boulevard. Following the groan were several loud thumps, the sound and shock of which were similar to boulders plummeting off a cliff and hitting the earth beneath.

“Look!”

Emerging from behind the building that was blocking their view of the boulevard was a gigantic turtle beak, and then large tortoise-like limbs stomping onto the hardened pavement below. Revealing itself to the cheering crowd of Parpaldian bystanders and aghast foreign dignitaries was one of Parpaldia’s signature force multipliers, the land dragon. Mounted by a squad of pilots and infantrymen shielded by the thick, rigged scales on the back of the beast's shell, the land dragon continued its slow, menacing march through the boulevard, its intimidating eyes and sharp beak facing forward. Despite its appearance being closer to that of an armored tortoise, it has been traditionally and erroneously referred to as a dragon due to one thing that it was capable of doing: breathing out a jet of high-temperature flames capable of incinerating flesh and bone. This fact wasn’t lost on the Japanese, as continuing diplomatic and cultural exchanges with several periphery and Philadean nations have given them accounts on the horrifying efficacy of Parpaldian land dragons. While the characteristics of the land dragon’s armored skin and shell and its mobility remain to be seen, the danger of its flamethrower-like attack, whether exaggerated or not, is apparent enough.

The imposing figures of the land dragons, all of which were taller than a single-story house, continued in single file, blocking the spectators’ panoramic view of the Esthirant harbor. After ten individuals, several more units of the regular infantry followed, before more cavalry units appeared.

“I think we’ve seen what’s there to see...”

Tanaka’s aide grumbled as he witnessed the 16th infantry battalion he had seen pass by.

“Yeah. Still though, those Parpaldians down there have been as lively as when we started. Could this be the ‘spirit of Parpaldian excellence’?”

In spite of the shittiness of Tanaka’s joke, some of his companions around him who overheard it giggled under their gloves.

Continuing to remain patient for the duration of the military parade, the Japanese delegation savored the experience of getting to witness a mid to late 19th century display of military power.

The Mille, 20:00

After the military parade and the festivities that followed had ceased, the Japanese delegation returned to their designated hotel, a five-star hotel complex (by Parpaldian standards) known as The Mille, which was nestled comfortably among the hills to the west of Esthirant. In addition to the long day of meetings, the parade, and gatherings that had them meet Emperor Ludius again, the trip from the city to the hotel via carriage was an extremely long and uncomfortable one. Since their hunger trumped over their fatigue, they collectively decided to head first to the five-star restaurant embedded in the hotel.

Utilizing the diplomatic passes given to them by the imperial household, the Japanese delegation was able to order whatever meals they desired. In Tanaka’s case, he wanted to try the white wine-dashed pasta, which was mixed in with shrimp and mussels fished off the rich waters of Sios. After a tuxedo-wearing servant had served him the dish he ordered, he first went to savor the smells emanating from the freshly cooked seafood. The aroma of wine mixed with the sea-like fragrance of the shrimp and mussels tickled the olfactory nerves in Tanaka’s nose.

“To think that this is free... Maybe I should be stationed here after all.”

Reacting to this one-off remark was his aide.

“Didn’t you just say that you didn’t want to jinx that?”

Already armed with a fork and ready to dig in, he ignored his aide’s retort and went for the kill, but then...

“My... Excuse me, good gentlemen.”

Stopping his fork midair and looking up, Tanaka saw a navy blue-colored trench coat-wearing figure standing next to their round table looking at them. The thick mustache on the man’s face obscured his mouth while his fedora did the same for his eyes. Seeing this suspicious-looking individual next to their diplomats, the GSDF attache immediately ran to their table.

“Would you mind if I have a word with you?”

The man took off his fedora, revealing the face of a middle-aged man with big, jade-colored eyes and a snub nose. His hair was well-trimmed and well-groomed with a style that was reminiscent of that of a 1950s American salaryman. However, what earned Tanaka’s attention was the pin on one of the flaps on the man’s trench coat, which depicted a cerulean blue flag, topped with a golden toothed gear imposed on a white rhombus that had four golden ribbons stretching to the four corners. He remembered passing by a major embassy close to Proclamation Square that was flying that same flag.

With the GSDF attache having arrived and were now asking the man to leave, Tanaka raised his hand towards them.

“Wait.”

The attache, understanding his command, stopped trying to get the man to leave. He then turned to look at the man.

“Identify yourself first and which nation you represent.”

An impressed expression appeared on the man’s face as he gripped the flaps of his trench coat.

“Good eye, Mr. Diplomat. You can call me Mugei, and I represent the United Realms and Dominions of mighty Mu as ambassador to Parpaldia.”

Hearing this, the Japanese diplomats looked at one another with widened eyes. Another high level diplomat from one of the premier powers of Asherah had approached them. While it was certainly a bit rude that he decided to approach them during their time off, they nonetheless decided to accommodate the man that represented prestigious Mu.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Mugei. May we inquire as to what is the nature of your... unscheduled appointment?”

Tanaka asked him with a flat expression, enduring the stomach pangs he was experiencing, which was exacerbated by the stimulating smell of his dinner.

“Oh, it’s a long story... Let’s begin with your bombing of Castle Louria in Jin-Hark.”

Ah shit, collectively thought the Japanese diplomats. As the Muish ambassador took his seat at their table, the seeds of a relationship between Japan and Mu were sown.