Nihonkoku Shoukan

This was a super-short chapter, so I was able to finish it very quickly. Which is nice, to help wipe away some of that unpleasantness from the previous chapter.

"The prime minister"s press conference will begin momentarily."

All citizens of j.a.pan knew about the horrendous ma.s.sacre that took place in the Kingdom of Fenn. The Papaldia Empire"s brutality was not limited to j.a.pan, they also terrorized countries known to be friendly with j.a.pan. Normally, this behavior would result in war, but the aggressor was the Papaldia Empire. No matter how many countries outside the civilized areas they provoked, a superpower"s national power was insurmountable. If it was only around 200 citizens, these weaker countries simply had to close their eyes to it.

But, this time the victim was j.a.pan. Because the empire was so c.o.c.ksure of their power, they may have miscalculated. Diplomats from various countries were all gathered in j.a.pan with their eyes glued on a television.

Clap clap clap clap…

The prime minister appeared, dressed in a suit, to the sound of camera shutters snapping. His expression was severe with no trace of humor. When the prime minister indicated that he was about to begin his address, the restless atmosphere gave way to complete silence. He waited a moment before speaking.

"People of j.a.pan, as I am sure you have heard, the town of Nishinomiyako in the country of Fenn has been attacked and destroyed by the Papaldia Empire. Many innocent j.a.panese citizens in the town were unable to evacuate and were captured by the empire.

"Our officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs immediately appealed to the Papaldia Empire for their release, reasoning that they were just simple tourists, but they… unbelievably, chose to cruelly execute those citizens instead.

"…We cannot condone this extreme act of brutality.

"The perpetrators of this act of inhumanity will be made to pay for their sins!!!

"If the Papaldia Empire is left alone and they defeat Fenn"s army, there are about three thousand more j.a.panese citizens at risk in the capital city of Amanoki. The j.a.panese government has the responsibility of protecting both j.a.pan and its citizens. In addition, our ally, the Kingdom of Fenn, has been occupied against their will, and we cannot turn a blind eye simply because their country is not our own country. We will always believe, within our peace-loving nation, that peaceful negotiations are the ideal way to resolve problems.

"However, for invaders who are unwilling to listen to reason, we have no choice but to be firm and drive them out!!!

"Our country of j.a.pan and our ally Fenn stand together, united, and both share the desire to protect all of our j.a.panese citizens from those who have invaded Fenn.

"By my authority as prime minister, I hereby command all branches of the j.a.pan Self-Defense Forces: use any means necessary to protect the lives of our citizens and rid the Kingdom of Fenn of all invaders from Paladia!"

The prime minister"s speech was met with thunderous applause and the furious sound of shutters. After answering a number of questions from the media, the press conference ended.

Topa Kingdom, Castle Town Tormis

"News, news!!!"

An information dealer was handing out newspapers. When the people of Topa read the headline, their eyes bulged in shock.

"The Country of j.a.pan and the Superpower Papaldia Empire Finally Clash!!!"

This became the hottest topic of conversation.

"Hey, who do you think"ll win?"

"Isn"t it obviously j.a.pan? They have those iron dragons that took out Demon Lord Nosgoorah, don"t they? With those nonsensical weapons, isn"t it already a given that j.a.pan would win?"

"But they"re going up against one of the world"s top powers. When the Papaldia Empire invaded the Kingdom of Altarus, I heard they came out of it with barely any losses."

"The way I see it, if it"s an all-out war, Papaldia has the advantage.

"But based on this newspaper, aren"t they just fighting in the Kingdom of Fenn? It"s not quite a war… more of a localized conflict, right?"

"So if j.a.pan wins that local war, they still beat up the Papaldia Empire, you know. You really think those arrogant b.a.s.t.a.r.ds won"t then turn it into an all-out war?"

"Ahh, of course they would."

Even though the Topa Kingdom only saw a small piece of j.a.pan"s military power, their residents still held the firm belief that j.a.pan was superior.

Kingdom of Altarus, royal capital Le Brias, underground resistance

After being decimated by the Papaldia Empire, the Kingdom of Altarus became a va.s.sal state of Papaldia. However, the empire was unable to exert complete control over all parts of the country, so a few resistance cells popped up. One of those cells was able to receive magical communications from a third country.

"Commander, we"ve received some intriguing news."

The commander quickly skimmed the report.

"Two countries outside the civilized areas appear to be waging war with the empire. Which side do you think will win, commander?"

"Hmm… if they"re both just typical countries from outside the civilized areas, the empire would crush them, wouldn"t they? Even though our country was also outside the civilized areas, our equipment at least was on the same level as countries within them. Even still, we were completely helpless before the empire. Well, it would be nice if they could at least inflict some damage, but the reality is the empire is constantly expanding its territory, so their national power only continues to rise…"

"You haven"t heard of the country j.a.pan?"

"No, I haven"t."

"I think this battle will be quite interesting. j.a.pan helped the Princ.i.p.ality of Kua Toine defeat the invading Kingdom of Rowlia, after all."

"Indeed, beating back Rowlia is an amazing feat, but the empire is on a different level, aren"t they? I think it"s impossible for them."

Among the resistance cells in Altarus, this news did not bring much hope to anyone.

Second Civilization, superpower Mu

Because Mu had ties to both the Papaldia Empire and j.a.pan, they were currently holding a meeting to decide which country they should request to send an observer. If the side they chose ended up losing, there was a very high chance the observer would become wrapped up in the conflict and killed, so it was very important to thoroughly consider which side to choose.

If Mu were to request to dispatch an observer, they were certain either country would gladly accept.

"Considering the previous reports, it is believed that j.a.pan also has an advanced machine-based society, and that they may even have advanced past Mu"s technology in some areas. That being the case, we would like to send the observer to j.a.pan."

Someone from Mu"s military raised his hand.

"We"ve all read the reports countless times. However, I"m more interested in how true they are. Is it really possible? Has anyone actually seen proof that their technology is above ours? Furthermore, even if it is, is it enough to overcome the Papaldia Empire"s strength of force and numbers?"

"In terms of national power, there is no doubt. We have heard many things from our diplomats working in j.a.pan, as well as the members of parliament who have gone to visit their country, both the stories they told and the information they included in their reports. Didn"t the army dispatch a number of people as well?"

"There have been some amazing things included in our internal military reports. But still… it"s really hard to believe…"

The meeting concluded with the superpower Mu deciding to send an observer to j.a.pan"s side.

Holy Mirishial Empire, port town Cartalpas, a certain bar

Everyone in the Central World considered the Holy Mirishial Empire the strongest country in the entire world. All trade there revolved around the port town of Cartalpas. At a certain bar, drunken patrons were trading stories.

"I hear the Papaldia Empire is fighting against some alliance of two countries outside the civilized areas."

"Not again! Now those two countries will get smashed to pieces and Papaldia will pick up even more territory… But, recently, Papaldia has been pretty reckless. It"s just war, war, war. Are they trying to take over the entire Third Civilization or something?"

"Papaldia is a middle-ranking superpower; compared to the Holy Mirishial Empire and the mechanical country Mu, their national power certainly falls off. Maybe they"re aiming to become one of the world leaders?"

"But you know, those two countries sure are brave. They know most of their citizens will suffer if they get taken over."

"The alliance is between the land of swords, Fenn, and the emerging country j.a.pan."

"j.a.pan? That j.a.pan?? Well now, the empire might actually have their nose bloodied a bit this time."

Inside the bar, everyone was largely convinced of the empire"s total victory.

j.a.pan, Kagoshima prefecture, Tanegashima s.p.a.ce Center

There it was, on the rocket launch pad. Standing at a height of 56.6 meters and carrying an 8-ton launch payload to a geosynchronous transfer orbit, this was the crystallization of j.a.pan"s technological prowess: the H-IIB launch vehicle. It carried two types of satellites, a visible-light observation satellite and a communication satellite, to help learn more about this planet.

The countdown began.

"Twelve… eleven… ten… nine… eight… all systems green… six… five… four… three… SRB-A ignition… one… zero, main engine ignition, liftoff!!!"

"Liftoff!!! Liftoff!!!"

GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!

With a deafening roar, the two satellites flew high up into the sky in order to observe the planet.

Kingdom of Fenn, capital city Amanoki

The Sword King Shihan was in a great mood.

"Yes!!! This is good!!!"

His face was all smiles. j.a.pan had decided to oppose the superpower that had invaded his country. Fenn by itself would have likely been strangled by the difference in national power.

The j.a.pan who shot down the imperial oversight army"s wyvern lord squadron like someone swatting a fly would be sending its magic ships to fight the empire"s main army this time.

The Kingdom of Fenn would be saved.

The Sword King ordered his men to cooperate fully with j.a.pan.

 —  — Chapter 24