Chapter I: A History Lesson
THE HOUSE OF WOLFORD
Titles held: Könige/Kings (formerly), gefürsteter Grafen/Princely Counts, Markgrafen/Margraves, Waldgrafen/Waldgraves and Raugrafen/Raugraves
The noble House of Wolford is an old one, dating back to many hundreds of years prior to the founding of the First Bluesphere Empire and its breakaway successor state the Earlshide Kingdom; various oral and written histories have claimed that the first Lords of Wolford were descended from Wilhard Adolphus I, a fierce warlord-king whose mountainous forest strongholds spanned the northern and northeastern territorial borders of what is now known as Earlshide.
King Wilhard Adolphus I's origins are often the subject of much heated debate - some say that he was a love-child born of a union between a young forest hermit and a two-headed demonic she-wolf who had assumed the form of a beautiful maiden, while others allege that he was an orphan raised from infancy by a pack of wolves. In either case, the "wolf" motif appears to be very much prevalent, as evidenced by the blazonry of the Wolford family arms ("Sable, a two-headed wolf rampant regardant argent, armed and crowned or, a chief dancetty argent¹") and motto ("Ferox usque ad finem²"). Wilhard Adolphus I was also known as a fearsome battlemage who excelled at both magecraft and swordfighting - most historical depictions from this period show him wearing his trademark white wolfcloak and brandishing the legendary flaming greatsword "Altfang", which he used to behead Alberic the Stone-Faced, the infamous bandit chief of the Northern Mountain Clans.
The kingdom of Wilhard Adolphus I was short-lived, however, as his descendants who had taken the family name of "Wolford" were eventually defeated in battle by the invading First Bluesphere Empire in 16 A.E. As a result, the once-vast landholdings of the Wolfords were annexed and parceled out to the victorious noble families of the fledgling First Empire until only the eponymous Great Forest of Wolford remained, and the family's status was reduced from "royalty" to "nobility" as a mediatized princely house with the imperial comital title of "waldgrave³" and the distinct style of "Illustrious Highness". This concession was obviously not well-received.
Successive revolts against the First Bluesphere Empire led by members of this family (the most notable of which was waldgrave Otto von Wolford, "The Red Wolf") led to a series of events in 648 A.E. collectively known as the "Wolf's Purge", which ended in the overnight annihilation of the main branch of the House of Wolford and of various allied noble families, as well as the resultant public furor that culminated in the eventual dissolution of the First Empire in the following year. Dispossessed and disgraced by the start of the reformed Second Empire in 649 A.E., the surviving cadet branches of the House of Wolford and their bannermen retreated to their ancient fiefs in the Great Forest and the mountains, which were by then part of the new separatist kingdom established by their ally, the former imperial count palatine⁴ Maximilian von Earlshide. In their final act of defiance against the Empire, the Wolfords eschewed their imperial court titles and styles, even to the extent of dropping the nobiliary particle "von" from their family name, and gradually faded into obscurity thereafter.
- an excerpt from "A History of the Noble Families of the Bluesphere Empire and its Neighboring Countries", by Duchess Anneliese von Schtradius
Wolford Manor, Kingdom of Earlshide
(Shin's POV)
"I seriously can't believe that you barely know anything about your own family's history."
His Royal Highness Prince August von Earlshide, aka "Gus", the eldest son of King Diseum and crown prince of the Earlshide Kingdom - and in all material respects, my adoptive "cousin" and closest friend - sighs dramatically from his comfortable reading position on the chaise lounge in my house's sizable library, where he, Sicily and I had been spending all our time in after our last mission.
"Well, it's not like I really had a reason to care anyway... you know I'm not the bookish type, and I can't just randomly ask anyone here either, especially since my grandparents tend to avoid talking about anything from the past, like it's the plague or something. I'd rather just work on my own magic or spar with Uncle Michel." (Shin)
"So you say," Gus shakes his head and points in an exasperated manner towards the high bookshelves which extend all the way up to the library's vaulted ceiling on the second floor, "Few nobles are lucky enough to be blessed with a library as large as this one. The common folk - or at least, those who fortunately know how to read and write - can barely afford a handful of these books, and yet you claim that you haven't even bothered to read any of them ever since you came here... frankly, I just find it rather disturbing..." (Gus)
Sicily has been quietly reading the thick tome on her lap throughout this entire exchange - I take note of the title: "A History of the Noble Families of the Bluesphere Empire and its Neighboring Countries", by the duchess Anneliese von Schtradius. That name seems so familiar somehow...
"Hmm... Shin, it also says here that your ancestor was a renowned battlemage... it's usually very rare for a mage to attain mastery of both magical and martial disciplines. He's kind of like you, in a way... I guess that kind of genius runs in the family..." Sicily smiles at me warmly before adding softly, "I really hope our children will be like that as well..."
My fiancée blushes at her own words and demurely hides her face behind her book. So cute. Her shy and soft-spoken demeanor is so incogruous with her classically beautiful looks and well-developed body that it never fails to fascinate me every single time.
A year ago, I never would've thought that I'd end up with someone like Sicily von Claude. She's quite the package: drop-dead gorgeous, smart, graceful and kind, with an aura of quiet nobility. I wasn't even surprised at all when I found out (thanks to Gus) that she was the third daughter of viscount Cecil von Claude. However, Sicily just isn't your typical pampered rich himedere girl. Contrary to what most people expect from someone of her noble status, she's not the type to shy away from getting her hands dirty - she's been fighting at my side since the beginning, along with Gus and the other members of our special magus task-force "The Ultimates", due to her being adept at most types of magic, with healing and support magic being her main specialties. Her reputation's even grown to the point that people have been awarding her all kinds of epithets like "Saint" and "Holy Maiden of Earlshide and Suides"... though she keeps telling me that no name or title in the world could ever hold a candle to the pleasure of finally being called "Mrs. Wolford".
I find myself grinning like an idiot.
Gus waves a hand in front of my face to distract me from my thoughts.
"Hey. Since we're on the topic of family histories and all, do you guys want to know the real origin of how the name 'Earlshide' came to be?" (Gus)
I shoot Gus a questioning look as Sicily gets up and serves us some of her prized chimaera-feather tea, which the maids had brought in earlier. I do remember Uncle Dis regaling me with his family legend once, when I was only ten years old. In fact, it seems that everyone in Earlshide knows it by heart: the legend of Claudius von Earlshide, "The Dragonslayer".
"Eh? Wasn't it because your ancestor literally wore dragonhide armor made from that thing that he killed? That's the reason why Earlshide has a golden dragon on its coat of arms, right?" (Shin)
Gus shakes his head, and his normally relaxed expression changes to a more serious one.
"No, that's not it. I doubt that there were even any dragons to begin with; at the very least, they all probably died out even before the First Empire was established... the real story is actually quite different from the version which you've all been familiar with since childhood. Would you like to hear it?" (Gus)
I take a sip and nod slowly as he continues,
"In the early days of the First Empire, before the Earlshide Kingdom even existed, there lived an earl whose family line and title was descended from ancient Kurtish noble stock that had resettled in imperial lands. His name was Ludwig von Drachen, a champion jouster beyond compare, and he was known far and wide as 'The Golden Knight'.
"Like many imperial nobles, young Ludwig was also proud, cruel, brash and arrogant - always eager to flaunt his wealth and status in front of everyone. He was a bully, the type who thought that he could get away with anything whenever he wanted to, and he often wandered about town in the company of rich, bored young lads like himself. Women flocked to him because of his dashing good looks, and unfortunately he also had his way with many of them, willingly or no. Very few were foolish enough to reject his lecherous advances, and those who did tended to end up dead in some ditch the following day..." (Gus)
I sneak a glance at Sicily, who currently has a sad expression on her face. She's most likely thinking about her erstwhile admirer/stalker, Kurt. Though Kurt had been turned into a Demonoid, I had felt no pleasure in putting him down. Nor could I ever forget - to this day, I can still see his tormented face in my dreams, twisted in pain and hate.
Yes, Kurt was a flawed devil, but that doesn't mean that normal human beings don't have a similar capacity for evil as well... all it takes is just one little push.
"... One day, earl Ludwig and his loutish companions chanced upon a beautiful girl named Margarethe Kirsch. Margarethe was the only daughter of a prosperous cloth merchant, and she had just been engaged to the love of her life - a childhood friend of hers named Claudius Lemann. Margarethe's looks and humble charms were such that Ludwig was utterly smitten, and thus made a proposition to her which she firmly turned down. Unable to bear the humiliation, the wicked earl and his friends waylaid her outside her home, where they took turns in deflowering her in front of her helpless family before slitting her throat..." (Gus)
"That was so... brutal. And why do you sound so formal, all of a sudden?" (Shin)
"Shush. Let me finish the story, will you?" (Gus)
"... The tragic news soon reached the ears of poor Claudius, who was utterly devastated upon learning of the fate of his beloved. Rage consumed his entire being. Despite being a low-ranking imperial court mage and the son of a mere knight, he recklessly marched up to earl Ludwig's entourage and demanded for a duel to the death, in accordance with the rules of imperial blood-feuds. Ludwig, drunk on the success of his recent conquest, proudly accepted the challenge and immediately moved to dispatch the foolhardy young mage with a clean stroke of his sword.
"However, the earl's hopes for a swift victory were dashed when the grief-stricken Claudius lost control of himself and let loose a wild barrage of elemental lightning magic which caught the earl and his cohorts unawares, despite the multiple Magic Resistance enchantments on their expensive armor. The power surge was devastating enough to bypass their defenses. They could only watch helplessly in horror as Claudius stood over their immobilized bodies and quickly dispatched them one after another, with the exception of Ludwig who was slowly flayed alive by the mage before succumbing to shock and extreme blood loss. " (Gus)
And I thought earl Ludwig was the brutal one. Wow, Claudius sounds so ridiculously OP...
"With Ludwig's death, Claudius claimed the earldom and its coat of arms as his own by invoking his right as the blood-feud's victor, and then proceeded to lay waste to the remaining members of House Drachen over the next few days - sparing only Ludwig's younger sister Liesl, whom he took as his wife. The 'Lemann' family name was changed to 'Earlshide' soon afterwards, and a new House was born, with the earldom eventually evolving into a county palatine over the next few decades..." (Gus)
"Wait a sec, Gus... that still doesn't totally explain everything though... why did he even choose the name 'Earlshide' in the first place?" (Shin)
Gus snaps out of "Storyteller Mode" and breaks into a sly grin.
"Ah, yes. That's because Claudius also started the habit of wearing Ludwig's flayed skin as a mantle over his battle armor. Needless to say, it made quite an impression on everyone... and the name has kind of stuck ever since. Hence, 'Earl's Hide'. Freaky, isn't it?" (Gus)
"O-Oh my..." (Sicily)
What the hell! That's seriously screwed up!
If that's what really happened... then...
"... I can see why most people would prefer the 'Rated-G' version instead..." (Shin)
My brain is already overloading with weird and disturbing images - but apparently, Gus isn't done yet.
"I'm not quite sure what you mean by 'Rated-G', but there's really something else that you should know..." (Gus)
Gulp. Something else? What could that possibly be?
"Well... I don't know if Claude's already mentioned this to you, but both of the Houses of Earlshide and Claude have Claudius as a common ancestor..." (Gus)
Sicily's cheeks are flushed with red as she meets my gaze. "Yes, it's true. Sebastien von Claude, the first of our line, was said to be Claudius's illegitimate son with a novice nun from Ys. The viscountship as well as the permission to use the family name 'Claude' was his father's way of making amends. Though, the fact that we are distantly related to the Earlshide Royal Family isn't really a big deal at all... many noble families here in Earlshide maintain such blood ties with one another due to centuries of intermarriage." (Sicily)
"That's right! So there you have it Shin, now you know something about your bride-to-be's family history too!" Gus chuckles and gives me a friendly slap on the back.
Bastard! I let out a ragged sigh of relief. For a moment there, I thought that he was going to reveal something ominous about Sicily's family!
"Well, I'm pretty sure that I'll be learning a lot more about my wife and her family in the days to come..." I wink at Sicily and draw her closer to me.
With how our relationship has progressed so far, the fact that Sicily's been steadily getting bolder these days hasn't escaped my attention - she doesn't even flinch or freeze up anymore whenever I hold her... I swear, that saucy little smile that she's giving me right now can definitely melt through a whole vat of butter.
"And I, with you and yours as well." (Sicily)
The growing amount of sexual tension in the room is unbelievable. My heart is beating so loudly inside my chest that it seems that the entire room is resounding with its echoes. I can feel my body acting on impulse as Sicily instinctively shuts her eyes and brings her face closer.
She smells so good, and her lips are just inches away from mine...
"O-O-Oi! Just do that in your own room, you two! I'm still here, you know?!" (Gus)
And just like that, our little moment was gone.
"Gee, thanks a lot, Aug." My voice drips with sarcasm as I sigh and roll my eyes. Sicily just giggles.
"'Aug?' I thought my nickname was supposed to be 'Gus?' You really should make up your mind alre-" (Gus)
Our lighthearted banter is suddenly interrupted by someone rapidly knocking on the door. After a moment's pause, Steve - our family's majordomo - bursts into the room, his eyes resting first on Gus, and then on me and Sicily.
"I beg your pardon for the intrusion, Your Highness, but I have an urgent message for Master Shin and Her Ladyship from one of the woodsmen in the Great Forest..." (Steve)
For some odd reason, I suddenly feel a shiver running down my spine.
¹Literally; "A white two-headed wolf with golden crowns and claws, rearing up and looking backwards on a black field. At the top of the armorial escutcheon is a white horizontal bar with a jagged edge (to simulate the tops of pine trees)".
²"Fierce until the end".
³Waldgrave: an earl or count having jurisdiction over a royal forest, or vast areas of wilderness. This was a title used by the Holy Roman Empire. A raugrave is similar to a waldgrave, however the term specifically refers to one ruling a barren, mountainous terrain instead.
⁴Count Palatine: an earl or count having jurisdiction over a Palatinate, in his official capacity as a permanent representative of the emperor.
Song inspirations for this chapter: Vincenzo Ruffo - "La Gamba in Basso, e Soprano" performed by Hespèrion XXI & Jordi Savall, Nicolas Vallet - "Gaillarde du comte Essex, pour lute" performed by Paul O'Dette, Johannes Hieronymus Kapsberger - "Toccata VI Lute" performed by Paul O'Dette
A/N: Hello, Zeronin here. As you all might've noticed already, this story is based off of the LN and set right after Shin and friends storm the former imperial capital and face off with the demons. In my own personal headcanon, at least (since I'm a bit impatient and couldn't be bothered to wait several months for the next chapter to be translated into English LOL), Shin and August managed to force a stalemate, allowing the human nations and Schtrom's demons to agree to a somewhat fragile armistice. Of course, even though this was actually the best possible outcome given the circumstances (and barring the annihilation of one or both sides of the conflict), this decision obviously did not sit well with a number of people... and as our young protagonists will eventually discover, playing with politics and war isn't as easy as it seems when your foes are faceless and are merely biding their time while hiding in the shadows, waiting for the perfect opportunity to strike.
I've also taken the liberty of fleshing out and developing certain parts of the lore, which I hope you all don't mind... it seems that a lot of aspects regarding the world's design and tech somewhat mirrors the 1500s-1600s period of Renaissance-era Europe (minus the ridiculous and uncomfortable fashion choices like frilled collars, whalebone corsets, busks and farthingales), so I just "tweaked" them accordingly. Enjoy!
Comments and criticisms are most definitely welcome.