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The mood in the town of Cellsvich was tense to say the least. Having suffered an invasion from monstrous attackers, claiming they served the Tennou, not only played at the fear of the beastial black creatures which raid the nearby towns almost every day, but at the old wounds from the Sigrogana Oniga War and the days when the Tennou was a feared enemy attempting to take over their beloved country.
And beyond that bitter terror, a deep sadness, for the Emperor of Sigrogana, Elial S. Erachial, was found dead. The true target of the attackers, they had managed to slip in during the chaos and silence the once Immortal King, ending his 300 year reign as the ruler of Sigrogana. The one who tended to its blossoming as the most prominent and powerful land, so much so that it shared a title with the very world itself. Not even a day after the events, the next morning, the citizenry was ordered to gather in the courtyard of the royal palace. It seemed obvious that they would officially announce the Emperor's demise, and what would happen now.
. . .
After some time had passed, the royal announcement began at its appointed time, trumpets blaring to announce the arrival of the one who would be its messenger. Loud footsteps rang in the courtyard as several people approached the royal balcony that sits above the courtyard through a large hallway corridor that served as an excellent echo chamber for their approach. As they stopped, a figure was obscured in front of the sun rising behind their back in the distance.
But as the light adjusted and the recently arrived individual became visible to all those gathered, they were met with silent shock. For it was, unmistakably, the Immortal King himself, Elial S. Erachial. His white, imperial robes and veiled crown which wrapped around the sides of his head, revealing his face and portions of his short, pitch black hair were certainly worse off; covered in bloodstains, burn marks, and frayed in several places, as if they had been pierced. It looked almost as if he had just jumped off of the coroner's slab... but the Emperor had nary a scratch upon his noble figure, looking as young and healthy as ever.
For a brief time, all he did was scan the audience with his milky-white eyes, perhaps scanning the mood of the crowd. But before it was noticeable that much time had passed, the Emperor smirked, almost smugly, and spoke to the gathered crowd. "... As you can see, the rumors of my demise have been greatly exaggerated."
Some silence followed, naturally, but soon the citizens broke out into a roar, cheering that their Emperor was alive and well. Long live the Emperor! Sigrogana will never die! Chants of joy heated the air. Emperor Elial simply continued to grin, soaking the celebration in, until it quieted down to a simple rumbling. He looked up into the sky, staring into it, without ever breaking his smile. "That's right. I will never die. We, Sigrogana, will never die. Did you, who can only tread the ground, think you were worthy enough to be my adversary?" Without blinking, the Emperor's gaze shifted down back to the crowd.
"Arrogant. Foolish. Look how far all that effort got you. Do you know who I am? Who we are?" Elegantly, Elial threw out his arm, holding it horizontally, which only served to reignite the crowd. Even though his confident laughter was quite loud, it was drowned out still by the citizens, which had only increased in number with the deafening celebration. The trumpets blared again, signalling the crowd to quiet down. Emperor Elial once again spoke, closing his eyes in thought.
"... I can see the look of worry on all of your faces. Your hearts are gripped by a fever. Your bodies and minds, hot at the sight that I still live, but quickly feeling the coldness of fear in return, that the conspirator of this crime is the Onigan Tennou, and thus, that we will once again be enemies." An intense, but steady stare emerged from the Emperor's eyes as he continued to smile. "However, we cannot make such reckless assumptions without proper investigation. For all the proof we have is the fact that our... ex-attackers proclaimed they were serving the Tennou."
"And as you can all see... proclamations can be quite incorrect." The Emperor crossed an arm over his chest and smiled sinisterly, a rather famous habit of his which inspired more fear in the crowd than elation and contributed to the perception that the Emperor lacked charisma. Even that cold speech, however, did not cool the flames, and soon enough several people shouted Y-yeah! and That's right! and other such things.
"But."
As if he had the air of the entire proceeding under his control, the crowd fell silent at that word. "If an investigation were to determine that it truly was the Tennou's plot, then of course... we would not let it go unexcused. But that's only natural. Making an attempt on the Emperor's life, no matter how foolish or... quite frankly, amusingly futile, it may be..." A balled fist slammed into the railing of the balcony.
"It is nonetheless arrogant! Even a God would be humbled by the mere thought! Even though it is a mere distraction for me, I won't overlook it. Not for the Tennou. Not for anyone!" After a spirited proclamation, Elial turned his eyes to the crowd, smiling again. "After all, I won't permit anyone to threaten you, my subjects." After a moment, the Emperor's smile faded, and a stern, serious look entered his face again.
"Not Oniga, not Black Beasts, not abominations! If you stand in the way of the Promised Land, you face the same fate! I have set the investigation to begin in a matter of days. That should give you plenty of time to prepare yourself, arrogant mortal! For once I find you, I will deliver you, with the Empire's justice, to Lazarus, personally!" Emperor Elial's imperial cape flipped in the wind as he turned on his heel, and with that, roars of thunderous applause filled the air as he vanished back into the royal palace. Although things were still chaotic and uncertain, and all the doubts in the people remained, they had been calmed, at least temporarily, by the Emperor's well-being, and his confident speech.
Long live the Emperor.
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