Sae Sawanoguchi
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| Flag of Sae Sawanoguchi | |
| Motto: "Izadi aba mehinamu eto kafe nam!" | |
| Central North-West AnimeOnDVD | |
| Region | AnimeOnDVD |
|---|---|
| Capital | Kitanohashi (affectionately nicknamed 'Cherry Tree City' |
| Official Language(s) | English, Japanese |
| Leader | Empress Sae Sawanoguchi |
| Population | 5.3 billion |
| Currency | pound, duckhead |
| NS Sunset XML | |
(Narrative provided by Lord Balmung of The dot Hackers)
The Holy Empire of Sae Sawanoguchi was once a world superpower and a leading light, during the Second Millennium. Its vast empire crumbled slowly due to various factors, until few colonies and overseas territories remained under its control. Its core citizenry have always remained loyal to the crown, and patriotic. Relatively recent events have seen the Empire resurge back into being and power, with all of the former colonies and territories once again coming back under the protective umbrella of Empire, from the Commonwealth organisation (now defunct) which housed them after the collapse of the first Empire.
The Empire, and many other countries all over the world, held a secret for many hundreds of years. Communities of magic users had co-existed peacefully with non-magic users, though their power and sometimes presence too were hidden from the prying eyes of ordinary non-magic users. These magic users feared to reveal their power to non-magic users, as it would mean upsetting the delicate balance their peaceful lives existed in. A recent world-shaking event changed all that. The arrival of the gigantic Bell spaceship, and its announcement that it was here to takeover, marked the beginning of a new era for humanity. As luck would have it, the girl who defeated the Bell and turned it into a cherry tree - the same girl who would later become the Empress - was one of the most powerful magic users in the galaxy. This fact, when it became known to the wider public, both endeared the public to her, and made a small minority of it fear her too. The newly crowned Empress Sae Sawanoguchi declared a new magical age for the Earth, and made it known that people could now freely practice magic in her empire without fear of persecution or discrimination. This declaration marks the beginning of the Magical Age of Humanity.
Shortly afterwards, a southern part of the core territory of the Empire was hived off into a semi-autonomous duchy state, and given to the newly created Duke Jurika Jinno to rule over as he pleased. Unlike the Empire's structure of government, which was somewhat larger and more bureaucratic, Duke Jurika Jinno relished personal control, and showed great enthusiasm for small-government. Appointing a small cadre of friends and elite personnel to assist in the running of the duchy, Jurika Jinno set out to turn his duchy into an economic and technological powerhouse. He succeeded. Within a very short amount of time, the duchy became known as the jewel of the Empire. Its economic wealth almost rivaled that of the rest of the empire put together. Some speculate that this may have been in part due to the use of magic, which has led to accusations from world business leaders of 'cheating'. Nonetheless, what really cemented the duchy's position as a world power in its own right was the second world-shaking event: the arrival of the Bell fleet on Earth.
To deal with one Bell was an impossible situation for humanity already. Even the Abh tried and failed to stop the first one entering Earth's atmosphere, shortly before the declaration of takeover and subsequent war, which utterly failed to stop it. To suddenly deal with over 200 of them was a nightmare scenario for any rational mind. Yet this is exactly what happened one day. Silently, the Bell fleet glided into Earth's atmosphere and declared itself subservient to Duke Jurika Jinno. Overnight, there was blind panic everywhere on Earth. Many thought the end of the world had come. Countries steeled themselves for a fight which they knew they could not win. Civilians packed up their belongings and headed for the hills and caves. The United Nations issued an emergency declaration of global martial law. Even the Empress became concerned enough to demand an explanation from the Duke. One was eventually issued to the world from the duchy palace. The Bell had been subdued through the use of the Duke's magic, and had now returned enmasse to serve him personally, and protect the Empire from harm.
The Bell fleet was dispersed throughout the Empire. Floating high above the heads of humans, these alien technological-powerhouse ships guarded the Empire zealously on the orders of Duke Jurika Jinno. They took no offensive action which would lead to war, though none was needed: such was the power of the Bell, that all who beheld it were awed. Down below on the ground, the politicians and securiocrats of the world wrangled in vain on distributing the power of the Bell 'for the good and protection of humanity' (in reality they wanted it for themselves). The leading countries on the Security Council of the United Nations became so frustrated and fearful, that they voted to expel the Empire from the UN. In a stroke it lost its position on the Security Council and its leading position in the General Assembly. The Duke ignored this petty, vindictive action, and ordered that the Empire continue to go from strength to strength. It has continued to do so to this very day, though its fate is now clouded due to the treachery of Duke Jurika Jinno.
