ASAHI NO NISHISEI - Rising Sun Goes West (1)

Triumph 2

When I was preparing my chapter on the Battle of Mesto, I was searching the internet for articles on the California forest fires that occurred on August 16, 2011, to use as a reference. I was surprised at how quickly the fire spread, burning an area of 3,6 square kilometers in less than half a day. The cause of the fire was apparently arson by a single individual.

- Bokutotsu Zen'u

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February 22, one week after the occupation of the Capital City

Imperial Pavilion Office

A man is sitting on a chair at the desk in the emperor's office. The man sitting in the chair, which normally only the head of this country is allowed to sit in, is Major General Eijin Takizawa, the overall commander of the Juperia Continental Dispatch Force. Many members of the unit had visited him, who had set up his command center at the Imperial Palace, to report on the current situation.

Lithianburg, which had almost no defenders, was taken over in a short time, like twisting a baby's hand, and the city is now under the occupation and control of the Juperia Continental Dispatch Force. The main target of the attack on the capital, the current Emperor Alphon I, could not be captured because he had escaped from the city with his son Sulligan, the remaining Imperial Guards, and civil servants a few hours before the troops entered the capital, and the battle itself ended in failure. Although they wanted to give chase as soon as possible, they had to give up the idea due to various factors such as logistics constraints and sunset.

Therefore, the current situation of the Juperia Continental Dispatch Force is that they are waiting for additional supplies to be sent from the Lucinia Base. In the meantime, the soldiers are maintaining security at various points inside the city and gathering information on the western terrain from satellite photos sent from the home country. The three embassy staff members who were taken into custody, as well as the other staff member who was found dead and Ambassador Yukiji Tokita, have already left the capital and are on their way to Japan aboard the destroyer Chōkai, which participated in the Miket Tirith landing operation.

"I didn't expect this... it wasn't a Holy War anymore. If I had known that, I could have spread some leaflets or something."

Takizawa, sitting in the emperor's chair, muttered to himself as he looked at the evening paper of the World Magic Telecommunications Company. He felt a kind of pity for the soldiers who had fallen for a war in which the cause had already been lost.

"But this is outrageous... fleeing the palace with the soldiers who should be defending the capital. If we order them to loot the city of money and food, kill all the men, and rape all the women, regardless of age, they won't be able to resist anything, will they? Well, fortunately they didn't launch a scorched earth campaign..."

Takizawa felt a dislike akin to discomfort toward the emperor and the Imperial Guard, who had fled the capital before he and his men reached it.

He then continued to read the paper, dictionary in hand. When he had finished reading half of the evening paper, a soldier rushed into the office. He straightened his posture, catching his breath, and reported an important matter.

"A message has been delivered to the 'Interior Office' of the Imperial Domain, which is under the control of our unit, from the government of the Margraviate of Seannut!"

Takizawa tilted his head at the contents of the report.

"Seannut, you say...? It's the name of the northernmost region of the country, as I recall. What does they want...?"