The Red Hand

Interlude 24 – Choosing the Other Devil.

Sitting alone in one of the Palace's drawing rooms, Shiroe, for once, found herself completely alone with her thoughts. Events since her return to Earth had gone by quickly, giving her whiplash that was only now just starting to take effect. Combine that with what had just happened in Simeoa, and the Heroine was about as fried as one could be in such a circumstance. That she'd manged to hold on until now was a commendable feet, something likely due to her experience with stress and trauma.

{What the hell am I even doing here? Feline... She has to hate me... I stuck around a bit after the attack, but I have no idea what to even say. I killed her Father and Brother, all because of Akagi... She has to hate me for that, even if I was under that idiot's control... I just... Dammit... Why am I always so useless? It's like the only thing I'm capable of is destroying things and hurting people...} (Amakusa)

"That's always how it's been... Even back on Earth..." Amakusa sighed as a maid knocked on the door.

"Lady Amakusa, Her Majesty has arrived." The maid said before slowly opening the door and allowing a more regally dressed Queen Feline to enter. Her blue dress was far more elegant than before and the usually soft look on her face was replaced with that of firm stoicism. Shiroe knew that things would change about Feline now that she'd been thrust into the role of Monarch, but seeing her like this was still a surprise.

"Please leave the two of us alone once you've brought in the tea." Feline said to the maid, who quickly complied, bringing a pot of tea as well as a few light snacks and placing them on the table between the two before leaving as quickly as she entered. With the maid gone the drawing room grew quiet save for the ticking of the large grandfather clock. Its sound seemed to match Amakusa's heartbeat, and what were mere moments felt like hours, the situation only changing when Feline spoke and broke the palpable tension in the room..

"I hear you've finally found Alm." Feline said as she quietly poured herself a cup of tea. "I'm glad. I was almost certain that she was alive, and it's good to hear she wasn't harmed during her captivity."

"Feline... I..." Amakusa stammered, not knowing what to say to her friend. "I'm-"

"Shiroe, please." Feline stopped her, putting her hand up to get the Heroine to stop. "None of what happened was your fault." She said, her words crashing onto Amakusa like a wave and making her slump back into her seat. "I... I thought I made it clear when we talked just after the attack that I didn't blame you for what happened." She shook her head. "My Brother and Father died because of a choice they made, and you were merely the vector by which the Demon Lord imposed a punishment. If you hadn't been around, then she merely would've done it another way, so I do not blame you."

"But I still killed them, Feline!" Amakusa exclaimed before putting her hand over her mouth and apologizing for raising her voice. "It doesn't matter that Akagi controlled me... I... I still took your family away from you and forced you to become Queen."

"True, it was never my intention to take the Crown." Feline nodded, she'd always wanted to avoid entanglement with high level politics but unfortunately had a knack for getting dragged in anyway. "But my Father always said the Crown makes its way to the one most deserving it of. In that way, he said, it controls the future of the nation by directing its will through that of the Royal Family. Though I will freely admit that I'd give it back if that meant their return." She chuckled.

"You've been forced to bear the weight of our mistakes, and now your people are paying the price." Amakusa said as she looked at the teapot, which Feline grabbed and began to pour for her. "The Kingdom of Amdamell is now little more than a vassal of the Demon Lord, tied up in this nonsensical war between two... monsters. Monsters that are more than happy to kill everyone if it means getting what they want."

{Let's be real here for a moment. Akagi doesn't give a flying fuck about the people of Enoris. This entire thing is little more than a sideshow compared to the war between her and the Gods. Me, Kanato, Hitomi, Feline, Ariel... None of us actually matter to her. We were always just pawns in a greater game, disposable pawns that could and would be replaced just as easily as we were created.} (Amakusa)

"A price..." Feline said as she took a sip of her tea. "Yes, we've paid a price indeed. One that most would find unconscionable... But... But I've found some peace in it, as strange as that may sound." She continued. "With my Father and Brother out of the way, as well as the destruction of most of the reactionary members of the Nobility, I've been able to make sweeping changes to the Kingdom. Laws that existed to enrich the few have been abolished, and I'm slowly working on breaking the nobility's stranglehold on power."

{The Church has also been crushed within the Kingdom as well. Akagi's minions saw to that in record time. With them out of the way, the Nobility no longer has its most powerful ally, and they've had no choice but to look to me as their guarantor. Ironically, Royal authority has never been stronger than at this very moment, and changes that would have taken generations are happening overnight.} (Feline)

"Yeah, but change enforced at sword point isn't exactly the most stable." Amakusa retorted with a sigh. "Akagi's power enabled you to do whatever you want, but I've never been a fan of such methods. On Earth, it rarely led to any lasting progress since the next person could easily reverse whatever reforms you mandate."

{And using violence to get whatever you want isn't right... Its kind of hypocritical for me to say that at this point, isn't it?} (Amakus)

"Your viewpoint..." Feline paused as she tried to word things less harshly than she meant to. "It's not that it's wrong, more that it doesn't fully understand the whole picture. Do not take this as criticism. You've merely never been involved in politics to any meaningful degree and thus wouldn't understand how it truly works." She continued. "Shiroe, what do you think held the Royal Family up for so long? No, not just Amdamell's Royal Family but the entire system of Feudalism that dominates much of our world?"

"Same as what held it up on Earth, connections and military force." Amakusa answered curtly. "The Nobles protect the peasants who pay them taxes to enable them to keep them safe. This is exactly the same as the Monarch's relation to their vassals. The same thing was true on Earth for the longest time."

"That's correct." Feline nodded. "Military force is a key component of a Lord and vassal relationship. The Count sends soldiers to fight monsters in their territory just as the King sends the Royal Army to aid the various Noble forces during a war. Such is the nature of our relationship and the way in which our society functions."

"So, what am I misunderstanding?" Amakusa asked with a raised brow. "This whole relationship is built on power. Power than can easily be used to-"

"Shiroe, all relationships are built on power." Feline cut her off. "I held power over you when you came to this world. Perhaps not physical power, but most definitely mental. You were lost, had nothing, and were entirely reliant on me and the Kingdom for practically all your daily needs. Sure you could've left us and gone galavanting off into the hinterlands to do whatever you wanted, but that would've left you with no backing or understanding of this world. Even someone with your power wouldn't have fared well in that situation."

"Your point?" Amakusa didn't see what she was getting at.

"My point is that what Akagi's doing is not unique." Feline answered as she poured another cup of tea for herself. "Our Kingdom was established by military conquest. We rebelled against a collapsing Empire, and our founder was a turncoat, a Noble who raised arms against the 'rightful ruler' because he could

." She continued. "Akagi is doing the same thing. She's casting aside the old order with sheer force of arms and implementing her vision of the world.""Again, I understand that people with power can do such things. My point is that I see it as inherently unstable and also a terrible way to run things. Change has to come about from within, and imposing it on people via external pressure as she does will only build up resentment and lead to greater problems down the road." Amakusa shook her head, still not understanding what Feline was trying to say.

"You're not wrong. Forcing change on an unwilling population can result in backlash. We've seen that plenty of times throughout history." Feline agreed. "But you're also missing something pretty obvious. Something sitting in this very room room." She chuckled.

"???" Amakusa tilted her head, confused.

"Shiroe, I'm a direct descend of Algrive Amdamell. With my ascension to the throne, I mark the 48th ruler of the Kingdom of Amdamell in an unbroken line of Kings and Queens stretching back over five hundred years." Feline explained. "My ancestor instituted radical change when he established this Kingdom, casting aside traditions and norms that had been around for longer than this Kingdom has existed, and yet... Well, here we are."

"I still don't understand?" Amakusa sighed. "Maybe I'm just stupid..."

"You're not." Feline chuckled. "It's just that you're overthinking things like you usually do. To be as blunt as possible, that my Kingdom is still here centuries later, ruled by the same Dynasty, proves that change enforced at sword point can stick, Shiroe. This is true not just for Amdamell but the entirety of Enoris, and I'd assume Earth too."

"I mean... I guess." Amakusa replied, still not understanding what Feline was getting at.

"The point I'm getting at is that you need to let go of this whole fixation on how the change was implemented." Feline explained as she took a sip of tea. "What matters is how we go forward, Shiroe. I, for one, am not going to stand aside and allow such a perfect opportunity to slip by. Akagi's actions are causing the proverbial wheels to turn, and real change is about to occur in our world. With the Gods' power in retreat, this will mark the first time in Enoris' history that we can pursue whatever future we choose for ourselves."

{And I would be a fool not to take advantage of that opportunity.} (Feline)

"You're still going to be controlled by Akagi." Amakusa shook her head. "I know she promised to bring the Kingdom's people over to the other side, but world is fully under her thumb. It will be no different than it is here. Meet the new management, same as the old and all that..."

"Doubtful, and even if that were true, we've still been given a choice. That's more than the Gods ever gave us." Feline replied curtly. She'd never been a fan of the Pantheon, though couldn't outwardly rebuke them for obvious reasons. "Unlike the Gods Akagi has allowed us to choose our own path. Either we stay in this world and fade into history, or we can follow her and allow our people a chance at a future... And I... I'm going to take that chance.” She paused for a moment. “I have no idea what fate has in store for our people or the rest of Enoris, but I know that if I throw away this one opportunity this chance to make a meaningful choice about my people's future, I'd regret it. Perhaps living under Akagi's gaze will bring misery to our people, and perhaps it will bring harmony, who knows. I can't say which is more likely at this very moment, but I believe taking such a risk is better than remaining in this stagnant world ruled by Gods that see us only as pawns in their schemes."

"Isn't the phrase: better the Devil you know?" Amakusa laughed.

"Yes, and to that phrase, I say that I know this Devil very well, and with that knowledge in hand I'd rather take a chance with the other one." Feline said without a hint of hesitation in her voice.