AN: Dang... Another Fav right off the bat from TheOneWhoSimulatesFantasy. Well, now that the pieces has been set for the upcoming Historia-Parpaldia War, there will be some inevitable deviations from the main Japan Summons timeline. The most obvious one being the approach that I take is similar to the Wattpad story Cities: Skyline in Another World by A210092. The other one is the fact that Japan didn't got Isekai'ed. Why? Gensokyo is tethered to Japan, simple as that. And I'm glad with the reception of this story, especially from Coment9, who keeps the bookmark.

A foreshadowing here because JoshHCA managed to guess it right: Ravernal Empire won't be the biggest threat in this story.

Historia Shoukan Chapter 17
Reunion with the Lost Continent

Flashback: Few months ago
Date: September 30th, HS 2069/CC 1639
Location: Nankaigan, Higan Territory, Chigoku Region, Historia Shoukan Dominion, Zeroth Civilization Area

Reckmeyer was worried.

When he was dispatched to Fenn on a punitive strike against them, a Dragon Division from Historia stopped his advances, and not only that, said Division even managed to capture all of the Wyvern Lords in their unit as well.

While his companions were being rescued, he and his wyvern were redirected to the Special Dragon Carrier Avicii.

He was then asked questions by a plain-looking man regarding his nationality, where he came from, and other information regarding himself.

Damned barbarian.

From the pride of the imperial citizenry to the might of the empire's technology, he made it clear to them that the empire was far more advanced than the other nations in the civilized region. He also imparted to them that they possessed a massive and advanced army, the likes of which cannot be surmounted by a nation from the uncivilized areas, which is propped up by an unbelievably powerful national power.

There are many emerging nations and those outside the civilized areas that know nothing about the world. By just telling them of their national power, they can scare them, and by doing so force these barbarians to treat them with respect.

"I see."

Even then, this man from the country known as Historia was indifferent to his statements. He then showed pity for the man, a common behavior taken by imperial citizens whenever they come across barbarian peoples.

Not long after that, the rest of the unit came. It's clear that they're still at disbelief at how easily they were captured by a seemingly insignificant barbarian country. Some of them even yelling curses, but many have wised up, seeing that Reckmeyer was the only one that hasn't been thrown into the ocean. And sure enough, a roar from Rashomon was enough to shut the dissatisfied wyvern riders. If there's one thing that the captured Wyvern Lord unit learned, they should never provoke a Dragon of Rashomon's caliber.

After all, Gaharan Wind Dragons recognizes his power by bowing to him.

Once Avicii reached the western shore of Historia mainland, Reckmeyer was shocked.

The first thing he and his unit saw was several iron dragons taking off from few ships that was patrolling the ocean. And not only that, even actual wyverns can be seen guarding the airspace alongside said iron dragons. It was surprising seeing a non-civilized country that actually know how to build dragon carrier. Regarding the iron dragons, Reckmeyer surmised that it can be used to transport many troops, and the fact that this Historia also uses wyverns to guard these vehicles made him cautious.

(AN: You guessed it. Horizon Destroyers packed with a single V-22 Osprey each.)

This actually earned Reckmeyer a nod of approval from Rashomon who was currently guarding the ship that carried his unit. Not long after, the dragon rider urged his entire unit to follow her. Left with little choice, he alongside his fellow riders then followed the huge dragon while being shocked to see many unbelievable things that Historia has from above.

Soon enough, the captured wyvern unit arrived at Nankaigan, where they will be detained.

Reckmeyer noted that there are many buildings that rises up to the sky, as if to pierce the heavens. There's also the zigzagged roadways and streets filled to the brim with iron boxes. Further above, there are other iron dragons that can reach faster speed and higher height that any of Parpaldian wyverns. This sheer technological wonder he saw here was far more impressive than Esthirant, Parpaldia's capital city.

By this point, his perception of Historia flipped 180 degree.

"This nation... This nation is dangerous..."

It was a mystery why such a nation like this appeared out of nowhere, but it was no mystery that the foreign affairs department would start a war with them on the basis of "wiping out the barbarians." Since the wyvern lord unit of the Oversight Army was captured and the East Fleet was shattered, there was no way that the proud empire would back down. Like always, the people from foreign affairs would haughtily bark on Historia diplomats as they try to take the higher ground. If the empire were to start a war with this nation and then they counterattack, it's likely that they'd take a devastating blow, enough to topple them from their status as a Superpower.

While pondering about their fate, Reckmeyer and his comrades were worried for their empire's future.

Place: Chigoku Paradox Engine

"Alright, lay out our discoveries regarding this planet."

Professor Yumemi Okazaki started the meeting to discuss about the planet the Alliance currently colonized.

(AN: Yes, Yumemi is a Professor in Touhou PC-98 canon, and yep, you didn't misread the colony part.)

Yumemi herself was selected as the leader of a research team tasked with studying all kind of aspects regarding the new world. The team was activated immediately after the transfer back at January 9th, 2069. Once all satellites were activated and launched, they began the observation of anomalies regarding the horizon and the celestial bodies. When the First Contact has been established, their task shifted to compare the magical advancements between this world and Historia Universe. Of course, Falmart was also included in said comparison. Moreover, this is a joint effort between GUF (supernatural experts) and UNM (scientific and technological development specialists).

Due to the fact that both Superpowers have experiences with many alternate timelines (with Historia Gensokyo already confirmed a case of both glimpse of future and recruiting members from the future), the team line up shouldn't be surprising. Aside from Yumemi, there's also her assistant, Chiyuri Kitashirakawa. The rest are Rikako Asakura, Sumireko Usami, Maribel Hearn, and Renko Usami. Sumireko is the sole UNM representative here.

Once all documents are laid out, Chiyuri, Rikako, and Sumireko gave their reports.

"Based from what we managed to acquire with help from Louria and Qua-Toyne volunteers, we can surmise that just like Gensokyo, this planet has magic as well, although the latter is far more coherent because of it being one of the fundamental rules of this dimension. It can be said that this is why the technological development path deviates from those we know at Earth." (Rikako)

"However, further analysis of the tools from both Louria and Qua-Toyne shows that this world's civilizations still didn't quite manage to discover the underlying principles regarding how magic operates. When we got further intel from Milishial, perhaps we can see how far the strongest native civilization fares in that regard." (Chiyuri)

"One more thing from me. We all know that Gensokyo already created their own technologies and UN Military already adopted Psionics into their ranks. Since I'm already part of the latter, I've been granted permission to share their next agenda. Epsilon Army are going to send their PsiCorps to investigate the Southern Superpower, Annonrial Empire." (Sumireko)

"I see... Anything else needed to be added?" (Yumemi)

While eating a strawberry cake, Yumemi noticed that both Maribel and Renko already submitted their own reports regarding the planet.

"Well, this might be surprising, but since we already saw the horizon distance, we can safely say that this planet qualifies as a 'Super Earth'. However, the gravity acceleration is still roughly the same. Normally, with that kind of size, the gravity force should be much stronger. Yet, this is clearly not the case. It's possible that this planet is hollow, but that remains to be seen. Regarding the atmospheric pressure, the average is 1015 hPa. The oxygen concentration is higher here compared to Earth, but it's still roughly the same regardless. Using my ability, I can confirm that the rotation period is also roughly the same, except for the orbital period, which is 365,5 days. Guess that means we'll have February 29th for every even-numbered years in this planet. And regarding the distance between this planet and the central star of this solar system, it's about the same as Earth and Sun's distance as well. Photographs from our satellites at the orbit reinforces this hypothesis. Now, we got the whole picture of the planet. Based from the myth regarding the ancient sorcerous empire, which we confirmed as Ravernal Empire, we can surmise the reason between the disproportionate composition between the land and sea areas. It's very likely that many other will be isekai'ed to this planet as well, like how the Gra Valkans found themselves here a year ago. Not to mention, STI showed interest in joining us as well." (Renko)

"If we're looking at the racial diversities, it's safe to say that it's roughly the same as the one in Falmart. Goblins are obviously a major headache for the UNM, but fortunately, we in the Union already have a plan for them. The SDM will recruit the hobgoblins to their ranks while leaving the rest for us to handle. Naturally, there are various opinions regarding it. Currently, the majority seems to be in favor of integrating the hobgoblins while eliminating the rest. As of the dwarves, we already know their signature traits. Shorter than average stature and experts in manufacture and engineering, which is boosted by their physical strength. Several Quilan dwarves once challenged some of our onis, and the result is astonishing, since it's a draw. Granted, the named oni Fighters aren't involved in this, but this shows that this world's innate magical nature helped in reinforcing the anatomy of the native races. Regardless, like what happened to Gahara, I believe this will strengthen our ties with Quila. Those two tropes seems to be in effect. And finally, the elves. If it were any other realms, many would say they're the epitome of long life. However, we in Historia beg to differ, since we got both Lunarians and Hourais, who are actually ageless. Still, the elves from Falmart and New Aincrad showed positive reaction towards their fellow brethren in this world. It's imperative that we keep this up in order to maintain our influence here." (Maribel)

(AN: The tropes Maribel mentioned are Authority Equals Asskicking and its opposite, Asskicking Equals Authority.)

"Good. I'll forward it to the Leaders." (Yumemi)

She then compiled the submitted files and put it into a folder for later use.

Date: October 1st, HS 2069/CC 1639
Location: Outer Space, near Selene and Ares
Place: Historia Space Citadel "Genjitsuka"

Space Citadel "Genjitsuka" was the structure that served as Inter-Dimensional seat of power for Historia Alliance Superpowers. Originally, it was placed on Historia Earth's outer space until admission of HMF to their ranks in 2065. Currently, there was a meeting regarding the current situation at Shoukan Dimension. Here's the list of participants:
- Yasei Sugaku, Zen Captain of Gensokyo Union Fighters
- Reimu Hakurei, First Champion of Gensokyo Union Fighters
- Yukari Yakumo, Sage Leader of Gensokyo Union Fighters
- Iseya Sugaku, Grand Marshal of United Nations Military
- Yorihime Watatsuki, High General of Lunar Capital Force
- Hiroko Amagai, Prime Minister of Martian Defense Force
- Jack Summers, Chief Commander of Humanity Military Force
- Tenchou Ohirume, Ancestress of Imperial House of Japan

(AN: Why Japan got a seat here? Simple, really. Gensokyo is located in Japan, and the Sugakus are Japanese. That's not mentioning the participation of Imperial Japan forces back during 1943 to 1945. This is also a homage to the original Japan Summons, so there's that. The only change I made here is regarding Amaterasu herself. From now on, I'll refer to her as Ohirume. Tenchou is basically a slightly corrupted alternate reading of Amaterasu, anyway.)

"It's a good thing we're already prepared for this beforehand." (Yasei)
"Agreed." (Yukari)

The reason for that one sentence? Ohirume/Amaterasu told the Alliance Leaders that the local deities have taken note of their appearance.

"Apologies for the inconvenience." (Ohirume)

The Sun Goddess then explained the reason she asked for this urgent meeting. As it turns out, her actions back in 1943 to 1945 is because one of the local deities asked for her help in dealing with the then remnants of Ravernal Empire led by Demon Lord Nosgorath. As the result, said deity has her name erased from the memories of the native elves. Ohirume herself is exempt from this because she's not a local deity, but rather a foreign deity who heard the plea of the now forgotten deity and responded promptly.

It's confirmed that this forgotten deity is the very same deity that gave Qua-Toyne massive agricultural prosperity.

"And here's her last wish." (Ohirume)
"It must be important for you to value it." (Yorihime)
"Indeed, child of Tsukuyomi." (Ohirume)

Said last wish was the world peace in Shoukan Dimension. Unfortunately, based from the recent actions by Louria (prior to the government change) and Parpaldia, it's safe to say that wish isn't granted, at least for the time being. This is the real reason why Ohirume sought the Alliance's help. By initiating Project Shoukan, aside from a permanent presence, her hope is to create something similar to United Nations in this world. Both UNM and HMF naturally supported said project for obvious reasons. Shoukan Defense Council is the first step towards realizing it.

Ohirume also noted that the Alliance's actions (primarily GUF and UNM) in Falmart back from 2041 to 2042 reminded her of her own. The only difference is the fact that Falmartian pantheons actively suppressing the development of their domain's civilizations, be it magic, science, or technology. This made her shook her head in exasperation, since she actually pushed Imperial Japan to prepare for the expedition to another world back then. In fact, the Alliance's action of suppressing Falmartian pantheon's influence is something that she approves, since it allowed Falmartian civilizations to catch up to Earth's technological level.

"Damn Hardy... Good thing we beat the entire pantheon." (Reimu)
"Their actions are the reason they're disowned and reviled by their own subjects." (Ohirume)
"I second that, Amaterasu-sama." (Iseya)

Said approval is because Falmart ended up being invaded by an alien species known as Arachnids. Had GUF and UNM didn't appear back then, it's very likely that there won't be any survivors. Hence why the defeated Saderan Empire agreed to be UNM's protectorate. Additionally, Hardy's action of opening a Gate in Tokyo caused her to gain both Yasei and Reimu's enmity since Tokyo is the former's hometown and the latter is responsible for maintaining Gensokyo's stability.

"There is another reason why I called you all here." (Ohirume)

On that prompt, everyone looked at the Sun Goddess.

"Nosgorath isn't truly defeated. Even with the help of Imperial Japan forces, the best they can do is help the locals in sealing him. But I'm afraid that someone already managed to break said seal and let him roam free. I believe you already have a plan." (Ohirume)
"Yes. It's been confirmed by the recon report from Grameus." (Yasei)
"We'll see what we can do." (Iseya)

The meeting ended with GUF and UNM swearing to finish what Imperial Japan started, namely killing Nosgorath once and for all. As of LCF, they decided to continue their space force expansion. Both Hiroko and Jack noted that they didn't actually have to attend, but recognize the importance of staying up to date with the recent events. Since Ohirume already said that Shoukan Dimension's deities are far more lenient compared to the Falmartian pantheon, the Alliance are no longer worried.

Later, on December 2069, GUF reported that Nosgorath has been slain following the relief of Topa Kingdom.

Earlier Flashback
Date: July 21st, HS 2069
Location: Mare Tranquillitatis, Near Region of the Scientific Side, Historia Moon

"100 years have passed ever since Apollo 11 landed here. 54 years have passed following the end of Lunarian Invasion. And 50 years have passed ever since the Third Genso-Lunar War."
"May we never forget our own history."

Four figures can be seen in the site that defines the intertwined history between the Alliance founders' homeworlds: Gensokyo, Earth, and Moon. It just so happened that said site is located at the latter-most's scientific side.

Said site, Mare Tranquillitatis, is famous for many historical events that the Alliance acknowledged. Namely:
- First Moon Landing by the crews of Apollo 11 from July 16th to 24th, 1969
- Operation Kanjuden that results in the end of Lunarian Invasion on August 14th, 2015
- Third Genso-Lunar War that forced the Lunarians to acknowledge Gensokyo's strength on March 31st, 2019

Since the scientific side of the Moon doesn't have atmosphere, said four figures are wearing their space suits.

"I can't believe that you actually managed to get me a space suit, Yasei..."
"Ehehe... Well, it won't do if I'm the only one that have it, Reimu."
"Please be serious, you two... We're at zero gravity here."
"I'm with you, Yorihime-san. That Gensokyo base still surprised me, though..."

Said base was built by the Lunarians in 2015 as a lookout shortly before Operation Kanjuden, and it ended up being hijacked in 2019 by a group of Outsiders that decided to avenge Gensokyo for their military loss during the Second War, hence the Third War. One could say that both Operation Kanjuden and Third Genso-Lunar War are retributions of the Lunarians' tendency to look down upon Earthlings, with Reimu being one of the key characters in Operation Kanjuden and Yasei as the one directly responsible for the Third Genso-Lunar War. Since then however, that base has been greatly expanded since it also allows the Watatsukis to maintain contact with Eientei.

(AN: In short, this base was built during the events of Touhou 15 Legacy of Lunatic Kingdom and is still present by the time Glory of Deep Skies (fangame) took place. This is why I decided to integrate Itsuhime and created the Third Genso-Lunar War.)

One might think the reason why LCF built their space fleet like crazy is because the shock received following the Martian Invasion of Moon, but the real reason is because they found out that both GUF and UNM already have a mean to build a working space fleet as early as Earth-Gensokyo Reunification in 2020! GUF obtained it from Seihou Dimension, while UNM got theirs from Red Alert and Tiberium Dimensions, which they eventually realized via the creation of UN Space Command in 2063.

(AN: Yep, folks. I've pushed the creation of Halo's UNSC one century earlier. It would be stranger if that wasn't the case.)

As of why Gensokyo is included into the Lunarians' caution list, it's because they actually managed to launch a crewed mission into the space! Not only that, said rocket even able to land on the Moon, just like NASA's Apollo 11. It turns out to be part of Sumiyoshi Project planned by Yukari for the Second Genso-Lunar War. Once the mission succeeded, the project is promptly abandoned. After the Third Genso-Lunar War and following the Reunification, said project is revived and expanded.

(AN: Yes, Sumiyoshi Project is canon in Touhou. I'm merely expanding it.)

"Don't you mean zero atmosphere, Yori? If we're really at zero gravity, then we'll float in vacuum."
"..."

That one remark from Yasei managed to shut the middle Watatsuki up. After some banters, the leaders then decided to leave the site and returned to their duties. Except for the Lunarian High General (for obvious reason), the rest leave via their respective spaceships, Nemesis Command Spaceship for GUF and Orion Space Battleship for UNM.

Date: October 10th, HS 2069/CC 1639
Location: Ainank, Mu, Second Civilization Area
Place: Ainank Airport

The skies were clear.

With only a handful of clouds floating about, the weather was good. Similar to Historia, the southern parts of Mu were slowly starting to feel the cold wind of winter blowing in, with animals starting to prepare to hibernate.

Technology officer Myrus was worried by him being suddenly summoned by the foreign affairs ministry. He was told to go to Ainank Airport, a civilian aerodrome that also had a military base.

As expected of a Superpower, Mu possesses aerodromes. While only the wealthy could afford to fly on airplanes and they could only fly in exceptionally good weather during the day, airliner companies have begun setting up to some extent. From what Myrus knows, only Mu and Holy Milishial Empire possess civilian air transport. As such, it was a status symbol of being a superpower.

After some hours spent in the shaking of an automobile, a vehicle equipped with an internal combustion engine developed solely by the mechanical civilization in Mu, Myrus had finally reached Ainank Airport.

Why the hell did they call me all the way out here?

He was led to a waiting room as he pondered why he had been summoned by foreign affairs.

If they needed something from someone from the Communications Division, then that usually means that what he's needed for falls under intelligence work. While he and those in his division are treated like outcasts by everyone else, fortunately for them, the upper echelons of the military and foreign affairs understand their worth, and so they don't shove onto them unreasonable work.

As Myrus was aimlessly pondering by the windowside, the doors to the waiting room flew open.

In came a man wearing a military uniform who Myrus recognized as his superior, the commander of the Communications Division, accompanied by two other men wearing diplomatic uniforms.

"Kept you waiting huh, Myrus? ... This person here is technology officer Myrus."

His boss introduced him to the two men.

"He's our army's finest technology officer and has the qualifications of a first class general engineer."
"Nice to meet you."

Wearing an artificial smile, he shook the hands of the two men.

"After you!"

Everyone sat on their respective, high end sofas, before the diplomats resumed talking.

"How do we explain this… We summoned you today because–I will get straight to the point–we want you to measure the level of technology of a certain nation."
"Is it the Gra Valkas Empire?"

Myrus assumed it was the "Eighth Empire", in truth the Gra Valkas Empire, a country that has been a subject of concern recently.

However, the diplomat shook his head.

"Yes and no. The Gra Valkans came with another newly emerging nation. Just today, a single grey ship appeared to the oceans to the east. When the navy went to inspect them, they claimed to have come from a country called Historia. Does that ring a bell?"
"Yes. I know them only through the tales of them defeating Louria Kingdom."
"Word spreads fast, huh. On board that ship are envoys from Historia who wish to establish relations with us. There's nothing curious about a nation wishing to establish diplomatic relations with us, but the thing is... Their ship... It has no sails."
"I am aware that their warships are not sail ships but... Are you saying that..."
"Our magic signature sensors picked up nothing, so it's obviously not a magic ship. It may very well be a ship that is propelled by something mechanical. Furthermore, according to them, it seems that such a sight is normal back in their nation. The envoys also remarked that the ship they're on is but a massive law enforcement ship, so in other words, a non-military ship."
"Really now..."

If a nation only managed to make its warships independently propelled, then there's a possibility that their civilian ships are still sail ships. If an official government ship, let alone a law-enforcement ship, has its own independent propulsion system, that would mean that there is widespread usage of independently-propelled ships, and that is telling of how mature their level of technology is.

"It doesn't stop there. There's one more curiosity. When we offered to direct them to Ainank Airport to show them our nation's superior technology, they asked us for permission to fly here."
"We initially laughed it off as their nation having a hands-on approach mentality when it comes to putting their diplomats on wyverns. However, when they asked for permission to fly here, they came in a mechanical aircraft that flew from the law enforcement ship."

(AN: Yep, definitely a Horizon Destroyer. Equipped with a V-22 Osprey.)

The other diplomat cut in.

"Wha..."
"According to the military aircraft that guided it, it traveled at around 300km/h. When we asked the pilot if he could win against it in a fight had it been a fighter, he said that "there's no chance he'll ever lose to it." Still, the fact that they have mechanical aircraft is enough to make them a country of concern."

When Myrus heard this, he felt the narrowness of the diplomats' views since there was no need to take them so seriously. It was simply a law-enforcement ship, which could carry an aircraft that could travel at 300km/h. If they could create fighters, then even those are incomparable to theirs.

"But when it comes to the principles behind how their aircraft works, it's definitely different from ours. I've never seen such an aircraft. That's where you come in."
"The principles? They're different?"
"Yes. Speaking of our mechanical aircraft... They have wings, a propeller for propulsion, yes? Their aircraft meanwhile... Its propellers are massive and for some reason its... tubular bases, also can rotate themselves. It also seems capable of carrying several people. Right now, it's parked at the east side of the airport, so go ahead and take a look at it."

While the explanation wasn't on point, if the aircraft's tubular bases (likely a currently unknown mechanism) was capable of self-rotation, then its appearance would be somewhat different from their aircraft. Furthermore, the fact that it could carry several people was of great interest.

"According to their envoys, Historia is situated to the east of the Philades continent in the Third Civilization Area. If so, that makes them a non-civilized nation, but the technology behind the mechanical aircraft that they brought makes them far more advanced than Parpaldia Empire. This might explain why they created Zeroth Civilization Area months ago. Our meeting with them and the Gra Valkans is still a week away, so for now take them on sightseeing and show them our level of technology while you try to grasp theirs."
"Understood. I'll see to it."

Since this work was mostly that of information analysis, technology officer Myrus felt his technology-loving spirit shake from excitement. He wanted to see what kind of unknown aircraft was it that Historia brought.

The four men simultaneously stood up and dispersed.

Keeping in check his excitement, Myrus ran over to the east side of the airport.

Upon arriving at the parking apron at the airport's east side, he saw that a huge crowd had already amassed there. Maintenance workers, aircraft development heads, air traffic controllers, and other base personnel have gathered to gawk at what Myrus wanted to take a look at.

Squeezing through the crowd of people, Myrus was treated to the view of a big, grey steel box that was the aircraft that Gra Valkan and Historia envoys had used to come to the airport.

Needless to say, he's shocked upon seeing such aircraft.

No way... That's the same aircraft they deployed during that war!

Recalling that one aircraft that caught his attention when comparing Muish ships with Historia and Gra Valkan ships, Myrus compares the photograph he has with the one parked at the airport. Based from what he can gather, said aircraft has tukular bases mounted on each wingclip. Said tubular bases are currently positioned vertically. Just thinking about it made Myrus feel just how different they were in their isolated development of technology. The other base personnel seem to feel the same way.

This would require a super powerful engine to get it to spin fast enough to generate lift.

Even though the airframe itself looks heavy as it is, it still seems capable of carrying ten to twenty people, on top of maintaining size so that it could be carried by a ship. If several people were to climb on board it, the aircraft's weight increases further, meaning that it would need even more power to generate the lift necessary to get it off the ground. Myrus tried to find out more about said aircraft, however its complexity made him stumped.

Just being able to construct this aircraft undoubtedly requires a high understanding of scientific principles.

"What technology...!"

Myrus stood still in shock as he gawked at Historia aircraft, a V-22 Osprey tiltrotor.

Myrus's footsteps were heavy as he walked towards the air force station.

Historia mechanical aircraft, called a tiltrotor, seems to be impossible to build with an indigenous Mu engine since it lacked the necessary horsepower. At the very least, the possibility that they are ahead in terms of engine technology in comparison to Mu is exceedingly high. However, Mu still possesses the architectural edge with their 100m tall skyscrapers, the edge in fighter technology with their fighters capable of speeds of over 380km/h, the edge in pilot training, and the edge in naval technology with their state-of-the-art battleship, La Kasami. This means they still have sufficient chances of emerging victorious.

(AN: One, try Burj Khalifa. Two, check Strangereal. Three, Gensokyo would beg to differ. Finally, wait until they heard about Ocean Maidens.)

"We have to... Somehow..."

Carrying in his heart his worries, he knocked on the door to the reception room in which Gra Valkans and Historia envoys waited.

Knock knock.

"Come in."

As the door slowly opened, he was greeted by two humans who stood up from the sofa to meet him.

(AN: One of them isn't really human, though.)

"Greetings. In the week before the talks, allow me to introduce you to Mu. My name is Myrus Leclerc."

He introduced himself as he shook hands with the envoys from Historia and Gra Valkas.

"I am Cielia Oudwin of Gra Valkas Empire's foreign affairs ministry. We apologize for our sudden action of invading Leifor last month. However, we thank you for your understanding regarding our reason of doing so."
"And I'm Nomare Shubu from Historia's foreign affairs department. Both me and Ms. Oudwin will be in your care during our time in Mu, Mr. Leclerc."

With a calm attitude unlike that of any from the non-civilized areas, the envoys were respectful in their tone and language. Myrus felt at ease with them.

The envoys were already prepared to set out.

"Well, since you may probably be exhausted from the long journey, I will set aside our real tour for tomorrow. Today will just be a tour of Ainank Airport, and then after that, I will take you to your hotel in the capital."

Myrus led the envoys to the air force's hangar.

Upon entering the hangar, they were beholden to the sight of a white aircraft with blue stripes. On its nose was a propeller and beside it were two machine guns. It was a biplane. Its gear was fixed and was equipped with covers to reduce aerodynamic drag. The technicians that had seen and were wowed by Japan's aircraft seemed to have felt that they were not gonna lose. The airframe was shined to a sparkle and from the looks of its configuration, it appears to be ready to fly.

Myrus approached the biplane and began his explanation.

"This iron dragon is a mechanical aircraft we in our nation call an "airplane." This airplane is our latest fighter model, the Marin. Its top speed is 380km/h, higher than that of a wyvern lord's, and mounted in front are machine guns–weapons that continuously spout metal fragments through gunpowder combustion. This configuration allows a single person to fly it. In terms of combat capabilities, it too is better than a wyvern lord."

Well?!

Finishing his explanation brimming with confidence in himself and in his nation's best, he looked at the reactions of the two envoys, who were looking at the Marin with fascination.

"The Bureau was right. Mu does have aircrafts. I assume that Historia is already aware of this."
"Indeed. We already confirmed it weeks after our arrival here. This is definitely a biplane, a World War I aircraft."

Myrus was confused by Nomare's labeling of the Marin, Mu's premier, state-of-the-art fighter, as "World War I" aircraft.

What does he mean by that?

He brooded over the word as he had expected the two's reactions to be something else entirely.

"I see... Looks like this is not surprising for the countries that became famous recently. Does that mean both Gra Valkas and Historia have any other aircrafts?"
"Yes. We in Historia already have jet fighters. Currently, our most advanced models are part of ADF series. As of Gra Valkas, they employed Antares fighter planes, which is at World War II aviation technology level. And of course, there's the V-22 Osprey, the tiltrotor that is currently parked here."

Nomare answered Myrus.

I knew it! They do have a high-performance engine!

There was merit in him probing them after all.

"Ohh... So this "jet engine" is also used in that tiltrotor aircraft you used to come in? I'd like to hear more about it."
"Not necessarily. The Osprey we used to come here is powered by two turboprop/turboshaft engines. Once Mu form relations with Historia, then you can buy many books regarding the principles behind it and its construction method. Naturally, you can do the same thing regarding the engines we used for our jet fighters. However, we can't give you further assistance until diplomatic ties has been established between Mu, Gra Valkas, and Historia."
"So simple plans and prints still can be acquired... That is of great interest. Personally, I hope our nations can become friends."

There's little doubt that Historia's and Gra Valkas' aviation technologies already far surpassed Mu's.

Keeping his shaking hands in check, Myrus nervously asked for more.

"By the way, when it comes to speed, what range are we talking about for Historia's and Gra Valkas' fighters?"

A fighter's speed is its asset. When it comes to deploying hit-and-run tactics, the one with the fastest fighter has an overwhelming edge over the other.

Cielia and Nomare looked at each other before nodding and giving their answers.

"Gra Valkas' current primary fighter, Antares, is capable of reaching 550 km/h."
"As of Historia, one of our jet fighters, F/A-18E/F Super Hornet, have a maximum speed of Mach 1.6. Of course, we also have faster jet fighters as well."
"Ma...ch?"
"Mach 1.6 means one and three-fifths times faster than the speed of sound. Its cruising speed is 1250km/h, which is slightly faster than Mach 1. As of our passenger planes, they cruise at 900 km/h."

While the two continued to comment on how unexpectedly fast passenger planes are, Myrus was at a loss for words.

F-F-Faster... than the speed of sound?! I-I-I-Impossible...! Historia's passenger planes are basically transonic too!

"Hahaha... Now I'd really want to see that... Alright, moving on..."

Myrus led them outside the hangar. When he glanced back on the technicians, all of them were pale from shock.

Outside the airport, an automobile awaited them. A vehicle that had forgone the use of horses, it was instead fitted with a gasoline-guzzling internal combustion engine and it was the fruit of Mu's technological prowess. He was going to show it off to the envoys as he took them back to the hotel but all he felt was dread.

The envoys boarded the vehicle without a major fuss.

Is that really it?

Even when it started to move, they didn't react in any special way.

"Say, your nations also have cars, yes?"

When Myrus asked them, Nomare responded with a nod.

"Yes. When it comes to passenger cars, from our data last year, we have roughly 290 millions of them in active use, circulating through our roads."
"In Gra Valkas, our last year data shows that we had 13 million cars."
"W-With that many cars, don't the roads get crowded with them?"
"In our homeworlds, we used something called traffic signal system. As I said beforehand, unless we establish diplomatic ties, we can't assist further."

Myrus was mentally exhausted.

Traveling through leveled roads, the luxury hotel finally came to view. After the driver had stopped in front of the entrance, the three men entered the hotel.

"Tomorrow, I will be taking you on a tour of our nation's history and to show you our naval might. I will be meeting you at around 9, so please, do take the time to rest!"

Cielia signals Myrus by raising a hand.

"If you don't mind, Mr. Leclerc, Gra Valkas would like to skip the history lesson. Pardon me for being rude, but I have orders to begin the trade negotiations at once."
"That is fine, Ms. Oudwin."

After a brief rundown of how to use the room's functions and the various etiquettes, he saw the two envoys to their rooms before leaving the hotel.

Date: October 11th, HS 2069/CC 1639
Location: Mu, Second Civilization Area
Place: Mu History Museum

After spending an hour in a bumpy ride from the hotel, Nomare and Myrus arrived at the Mu History Museum. Before going in, they stayed in the lounge at the lobby where Myrus began his brief overview.

"First, I must impart to you some context. Other countries don't believe this, but our ancestors are not native to this planet."
"Hmm?"

Nomare raised an eyebrow, intrigued. While Myrus is somewhat surprised, he continued.

"12 millenia ago, a phenomenon we call the "Great Continental Transference" occurred. This event effectively transported the majority of the Mu continent to this world. There are official records dating back to the monarchy at the time that detail this event. This right here is our previous world."

Myrus placed a globe prepared by museum staff on top of a table. Nomare's gaze is fixated on said globe.

"Fascinating... So this is the shape of Earth's past..."

A planet is fascinating indeed. So they too know about celestial bodies?

Looking at Nomare, who seems to know what he's looking at, Myrus's shoulders relaxed. It was expected anyway for a country that's scientifically ahead of Mu. He still lamented how he could find ways to surprise Historia, but Myrus set his feelings aside to continue his explanation.

"I think you already know, but this here is a celestial body known as a planet. This one, our previous world, is a tiny one. When accounting for the rate of curvature of the horizon from the surviving texts, its circumference was probably only around 40,000km..."
"This is Earth."
"Sorry?"
"Given the land distribution, this must've happened during the aftermath of Last Glacial Period. Still, a continent at Atlantic Ocean... Must be Lunarians hiding the true history."

While Myrus wasn't satisfied with Nomare being taken aback by something so trivial, he still proceeded to give an overview of the continent he was pointing at.

"This continent was called "Atlantis" and they possessed enough power to challenge Mu at the time, at which point control of the entire world was split between ourselves. With Mu gone, they've probably taken over the entire world by now. On that note..."

Myrus then pointed to four big islands clumped together just beside the Eurasian continent.

"This nation was called "Yamuto" and was our nation's best ally. They were completely cut off when we were transported here, so they may have already been swallowed up by Atlantis..."
"Excuse me, but may I?"

Nomare cut in on Myrus's explanation.

"Of course."
"The nation you called Yamuto is actually Japan."
"Oh?"
"Japan is one of the great powers of Earth, our homeworld, and the nation is also where I came from. However, Historia isn't a transferred country, since we came here by ourselves. I actually have the map of Earth for comparison with your globe there."

Nomare picks up a map from his bag and put it on the table for Myrus to see. The museum staff also snuck a peek from behind.

"If you look closely, your globe shows that your previous world was Earth."

Indeed, as Nomare said, both Mu's globe and Earth's Mercator projection was a definite match, except the fact that the latter doesn't have Mu continent and Atlantis.

He then continued the explanation about Earth in place of Myrus, who was completely speechless.

"Back on Earth, there was also a legend of a continent that suddenly sank into the ocean roughly 12 thousand years ago. It's more than likely that Atlantis sank following Mu's Great Continental Transference. That definitely explains Earth's Pacific Islands."
"Hahaha... What a discovery of historical proportions if true... Personally though, I'd like our nations, including Gra Valkas, to become friends. But really... Could it be? ... I'll report this to my superiors later."

Having regained his composure, Myrus led Nomare through the history museum while giving him an exposition of Mu's history post-transfer. First, there was the immediate chaos, then there was strife with the surrounding nations, then their inferiority to the magical civilizations, then their rise to prominence as a mechanical civilization, eventually culminating in them taking the position of second strongest. It took a lot of hardship getting them to where they currently are.

Still, it's surprising for a nation to develop things like cars and airplanes on its own. Nomare listened on the explanations in earnest, as if to appreciate the efforts of this country. When the rundown was done, they left the museum and proceeded to their next stop: the naval base. Mu must show Historia their imposing image as the world's strongest–or second strongest–superpower, which is reflected in their naval might.

By this point, Cielia had returned, and she managed to convince Mu representative to hold another meeting in the future for the mutual trade and non-agression pact. Nomare nods in appreciation.

Place: Unnamed Mu Naval Base

Myrus remembers Historia and Gra Valkas ships he saw from the magical photographs taken during the conquest of Leifor (Palanquin and Grade Atlastar). Both ships are longer than La Kasami, Mu's state-of-the-art battleship, and their armaments are beyond what Mu can create. Still, Myrus thinks that La Kasami isn't too shabby because its main battery had dual 30.5cm guns in two turrets for a total of four. Myrus already wised up this time, and he didn't hope to impress the envoys now.

There is an undeniable pride for Mu on his face, though.

Brimming with confidence, Myrus guided the two envoys to the port where La Kasami was docked.

"This is definitely a pre-dreadnought battleship. Reminds me of museum ship Mikasa back at Yokosuka."

Nomare made his comment, which is met by a nod from Cielia.

In his observation regarding Nomare these past two days, Myrus has deduced him to be a total nerd for anything military.

Could Historia and Gra Valkas know what it is? What does "pre-dreadnought battleship" mean? Does that mean they know what battleships are?

"Indeed. I still remember the naval exercises between our nations, where our battleships clash against each other."

Myrus caught wind of the discussion when he heard that La Kasami bore a striking resemblance to something.

No way... They too have battleships? If so, then why build a ship with a single cannon?

It wasn't logical in any aspect.

While La Kasami does have fewer guns than a ship of the line, the range, accuracy, and destructive power of its guns more than make up for it. In the off-chance that their ship's single cannon is similar to Mu's battleship guns, it alone would still be too weak. If Historia does have battleships, then it didn't make sense for them not to deploy it when Louria sent out its entire naval force. To be fair, Louria still wouldn't have posed much of a threat anyway, so maybe they decided that it wasn't necessary.

Consumed by his thoughts, Myrus set them aside to inquire about their possession of battleships.

"Does Historia and Gra Valkas also have battleships?"
"Yes, we did. Up until the Second World War roughly 130 years ago, Earth had many splendid battleships roaming the ocean. After that, Earth no longer used them. As of Gra Valkas, that should be obvious, since you're neighbors."

Nomare replied with a somber tone.

Ah, so they become a peaceful world after that great war. So in other words, they no longer need battleships? So then they only needed the firepower of a naval force of single-cannon ships? With that said, maybe they still have the ability leftover to build battleships?

Hearing Nomare's answer, Myrus's head exploded with questions.

"Do you plan on building more battleships anytime soon?"
"Gra Valkas actually already considering the naval reformation following our diplomatic ties with Historia, so it's very likely to happen."
"As of Historia, well, we can always import them."

Cielia answered first, followed by Nomare, who tried hard to not laugh.

Hearing this, Myrus is relieved. It seems their respective experiences already taught them well about the harsh reality of gunboat diplomacy in this world. He then changed the subject.

"You talked about our ship bearing a striking resemblance to a... museum ship. Does Historia really have similar ships?"
"Not really. That one belonged to Japan. It was called Mikasa, and around 160 years ago, back when Japan was an empire, it was the flagship of the Combined Fleet. The battleship moored over there is almost a perfect copy of it."

The battleship Mikasa. Launched in 1900, it became the Combined Fleet's flagship three years later and was the fourth ship in the Shikishima class of battleships. The following year saw the Mikasa in action during the Russo-Japanese War at the Battle of Port Arthur and at the Battle of the Yellow Sea. The year after, in 1905, at the famous Battle of Tsushima, it led the Combined Fleet against the Imperial Russian Navy's Baltic Fleet, then considered to be the world's strongest, and emerged victorious, bringing fame to Japan and becoming the beloved battleship of one of the world's most famous admirals. It had become a legend in Japan, and it was still being flocked to by current generations as a museum ship.

"Wow... A ship from 160 years ago..."

Cielia then interjects.

"Gra Valkas' first meeting with Historia was roughly three months ago, when our Western Fleet spotted their naval force nearby our maritime territory, and we can tell that their warships are more advanced than ours by at least 40 years. Much to our shock, however, Historia considers them second-rate, which means they have something even more advanced that they deemed unnecessary to be dispatched. One of our naval officer, Captain Luxtal, states that their Super Battleship, Palanquin, is far more advanced than our Super Dreadnought, Grade Atlastar."

This shocked Myrus. Historia is technologically ahead of even Gra Valkas...?

(AN: I'm just glad that Red Alert 2 and 3 timeline happened roughly during the Cold War in our timeline. Alternate timeline wankiness aside, I think this is a fair trade, since the Alliance did acquired Command and Conquer's rapid construction technology, as I stated back in Chapter 3.)

If they were to keep developing their mechanical battleships, in a period of 160 years, they'd also undergo a dramatic evolution. He doesn't want to recognize it, yet no matter how he looked at it, their technological civilization was far more advanced than theirs. The fact that Gra Valkas even admitted such thing only further cements it. All in all, he couldn't conclude whether they were a threat or not.

After Myrus concluded his tour, he submitted a report to his superiors. While the contents of the report won't be as his superiors expect, he stressed the point that while Historia had no ill intention against them, they also possessed far more advanced technology than them. Furthermore, Gra Valkas already informed Mu regarding their plan to invade Paganda and Leifor two months prior, and they even explained their reasoning to do so. Mu government confirms this.

Around two months later, the three nations would soundly formalize the non-aggression pact and trade between them.

End of flashback