Chapter 22: Queen Historia
"I don't know if I can do this!" Historia gasps. She's wearing some of the most dazzling clothes I've ever seen in my entire life. A light blue dress that hangs from bellow the shoulders is trimmed with gold and pulled in at the waist with a belt with multiple diamonds set into it. A long flowing cape with a black fur interior and a bright white exterior also trimmed with gold surrounds her shoulders. She's wearing a necklace made of silver with two topazes and yet another diamond set into it around her neck. On both wrists she has golden bracelets and there's a silver ring made two look like a pair of snakes with flower crowns on her right hand. Her hair has been let out fully and brushed to the point where it is literally shining as brightly as the many pieces of jewellery adorning her. Two long plats have been made with it and these are rested underneath the main part of her hair.
"Of course you can," I say encouragingly. "I know you'll be fine."
Historia bites her lip and nods. She does a slow spin with her arms held out. "How do I look?"
"Like a Queen," I reply. In truth I think she looks a little bit gaudy. Such a large amount of fancy clothes just doesn't look like it could look good on anyone, even as someone as beautiful as Historia. Though it's likely that that's just my personal tastes.
"Well, I guess that fulfils one required aspect then. Now all I need to do is act and talk like one."
"You did a pretty good job of that in Orvud District," I remind her. "And it can't be that hard to just walk calmly from A to B can it? You'll be fine, don't worry about it. I'll be right there in row three the whole time all right?"
"Okay. Maybe I can do this. But, Matthias, be honest with me now: do think this is all a bit, much?" she asks, gesturing to the long flowing clothes.
I'm not going to lie so I decide to be blunt. "Yes I think it does a bit. But, everyone else will be inclined to disagree with me I'm sure. Besides, you only have to wear it for the one day."
"I suppose so. It doesn't feel very comfortable I can say that. I'm not a big fan of wearing a corset," she adds, rapping a knuckle against the undergarment wrapped around her waist.
"I would have said it wasn't needed."
Historia blushes slightly. "I'm already going to marry you there's no need to flirt you know."
"I wasn't."
She smiles. "Your highness," says one of her ladies in waiting hurrying over. "The proceedings are about to start now. You should come over to the wings where you can make your entrance."
"Oh yes, right. Thank you. Well, I'll see you on the other side Matthias."
"Right. You can bet I'll be cheering the loudest."
The cathedral where the ceremony is being held is supposed to be almost five hundred years old. Even though many no longer understand its symbolism, a large wooden cross gilded in gold stands behind the proceedings. I only half understand its significance myself. Something about a god being sacrificed from what I can remember. I've been reading through some of the old religious documents in the palace lately. Apparently the Riess Family still practiced a ritual form of Christianity and I'll admit I'm curious about a belief system that was once able to rule the minds of much of the civilised world.
The roof towers high away above us, more than twenty metres up. This building wasn't built by someone cheating with titan powers though, like the Walls or the Undercities. This tall roof was built by sheer engineering genius. And it is very beautiful. The windows are made of coloured glass depicting religious images of people and occasionally animals. I don't understand any of them really. There are numerous candles dotted throughout the room and a large raised platform dominates one end of the hundred metre long room. The walls of the building seem to narrow in by about four metres at that point, but really they are providing a pair of off shoots, like the wings on a stage.
Rows of wooden benches with elaborate red and blue crests on their ends fill the hall nearly all the way back to the doors. The room actually rises steadily the further back you go, allowing those seated at the back to still have a reasonably clear view of the proceedings. I'm lucky enough to be sitting in the third row, along with many of those who distinguished themselves during the uprising. The second row houses numerous officials and lower ranking commanders in the Regiments. The front row is reserved for those who will have to swear oaths to the new Queen; the Premier, the Regimental Commanders, the Chancellor, the Steward, the head of the Merchant Guilds and the Overseer.
The man up on stage is Premier Thomas Zachkley. He chose to side against the Central Government when the time came and played a major role in forcing their abdication. Still, people are wondering if it's safe to leave him in his current state of power. He seems to think he'll be more or less running the country once Historia is crowned. That pisses off a lot of people, including me. Right now he's giving a speech, and a long boring one at that. Not any of the speeches have been particularly exciting thus far.
Finally he steps down and a man in a long white robe with an elaborate golden scarf around his shoulders and a strange conical white hat with golden stitching comes up. I don't really understand his position besides a ceremonial one. He's the Royal Chaplin and it's his job to crown the new ruler, but besides that a few other duties performed on special occasions he doesn't seem to be very important. "Men and women of Althand," he begins in a very deep and solemn voice. "We have come here today to witness the crowning of a new ruler and the dawn of a new era for our nation. This coronation is unique in that it returns the crown to its owner by blood. Long has the crown of three stars rested upon the head of a usurper, but no longer. Today we return the ancient crown to the head of one who is appointed to it. Today, we shall crown Queen, Historia Riess."
At that the door on the right side of the platform opens and Historia walks out onto the platform, followed by two men in ridiculously elaborate red uniforms with swords by their sides. Calmly Historia advances to the middle of the stage. A waiting attendant brings the Chaplin a sceptre with a jewelled top. Taking it he hands it to Historia who holds it in her left hand. She then holds out her right and the Chaplin bows and kisses the ring on her finger. Then, the Chaplin begins again. "Do you swear the following oath?
"To stand at the head of your people in all times."
"To stand at the head of my people in all times," repeats Historia.
"In peace or war."
"In peace or war."
"In plenty or famine."
"In plenty or famine."
"In life or in death."
"In life or in death."
"That no purpose to you shall be higher than the welfare of your people."
"That no purpose to me shall be higher than the welfare of my people."
"Do you swear to die for them?"
"I do."
"Do you swear to provide for them?"
"I do."
"Do you swear to stand as their foundation, even when all collapses around you?"
"I do."
"And do you swear, to be their defender against all of their enemies, in any way, shape, or form?"
"I do."
"Step forward then, and take on the mantle of the Kings." Obediently Historia takes a small step forwards as the Chaplin turns to a second attendant who holds out a purple velvet cushion. On it sits a beautiful circular crown of gold, with silver wrought around it like the stem of a plant. Captured in these silver strands are three white gems. They're not diamonds I think. In fact I don't really know what they are. They flash brilliantly as the Chaplin lifts the crown from the cushion and Historia kneels down.
"Are you the people?" he asks.
"I am the people."
"And who are the people?"
"The people are me."
"I crown you Queen Historia of Althand," says the Chaplin, lowering the crown onto her head. "Rise up, your majesty."
Historia stands and turns to the assembly. "Long live the Queen!" cries the Chaplin.
"Long live the Queen!" replies everyone in the room.
The Chaplin bows and steps down from the platform, as those seated in the front row rise to their feet. Silently they file forwards to stand at the foot of the steps up. Then, the Premier comes first and bows before Historia. "I swear fealty and service to Historia, Queen of Althand," he says. "To serve as the leader of her armies and the governor of her Police. I swear to her my loyalty unto death." He leans forwards and kisses the ring on her right hand.
Next is the Chancellor, then the Steward, the Overseer, the Leader of the Merchant Guilds, the Commander of the Military Police, the Commander of the Garrison and finally the Commander of the Scouts, Erwin Smith. All eight men bow their knees in servitude and say solemnly as one, "God save the Queen." Then, they rise to their feet and return to their places.
Historia turns to the gathering. "I will from this moment forth serve as your Queen, and I pledge my undying loyalty to benefit of Humanity and this nation. For as long as I live I will attempt to benefit you all as your Queen. And now," she says, taking all of those who knew the routine of the ceremony by surprise, "There is a duty I wish to perform. There are three soldiers I would like to come up here: Major-General Erwin Smith, Captain Hange Zoe and Captain Levi Ackerman."
There are a few curious glances exchanged as the three stand up. They look just as surprised as everyone else. Even I'm in the dark on this one. Historia turns to one of her escorts and speaks to him quietly for a moment. The man nods, draws his sword and hands it to her. Levi, Erwin and Hange are now all standing before her as Historia turns back to them. "Kneel please," she says.
My eyes widen as I guess what's going on. This was impromptu indeed. That or she wanted it to be a surprise. The three figures kneel down dutifully. Starting with Captain Levi, Historia rests to blade on his left shoulder. "You are Mankind's strongest warrior, and have shown more dedication and resolve than many of those who have gone before you. I recognise your strength and experience." She moves the sword onto his right shoulder, then delicately withdraws it. "Stand up, Sir Levi." Levi stands.
She then turns to Hange, resting the blade on her left shoulder. "You have shown intelligence unmatched by your peers in the line of your duties. You have also shown much courage and loyalty both to myself and to our people. I recognise your courage and intelligence." Blade onto the right shoulder, then pulled back. "Stand up, Sir Hange."
Finally she turns to Erwin. "You are one of the loyalist warriors Mankind has ever seen. Your wisdom and bravery are what have allowed us to all be standing here this day. I recognise your wisdom and your loyalty. Stand up, Sir Erwin." All three soldiers stand facing Historia.
"You are all great warriors of Humanity and I hope this goes some way to beginning to recognise the dedication and resolve that you have shown in the fight against our great enemy. I thank you for your service." Someone in the audience begins to clap, followed by another and another until the entire room is filled with the sound of applause. The three soldiers bow low and Historia dips her head in return. They file down from the stage in a line a return to their seat.
"I thank you all for your loyalty, and I know that I can rely on all of you to benefit Mankind in the difficult days to come," says Historia. "For this day does not mark the beginning of peace, but it does mark the first step on the last road to it. I am certain that we can achieve victory, and defeat our enemy. Thank you." Everyone claps now without a moment of hesitation. Historia bows and descends from the platform to let everyone know that the ceremony is over.
"So, how does it feel to be Queen?" I ask.
"To be honest, not that different," says Historia with a shrug. "Although, now that the ceremony is over I feel a bit less stressed."
We're walking through the front hall of the palace. Historia has had to spend the last five hours accepting congratulations from hundreds of different officials, many of whom have jobs that I hadn't even heard of before. The floors are polished to the point where I can literally see my face in them and the high ceiling is held up by pillars of pristine white marble. From what I can remember the front hall is actually an addition to the palace since my time. I'll have to remember to ask about it at some point.
"You took us all by surprise at the end there. No one expected a knighting ceremony."
Historia smiles. "It seemed like a good time to me. I got the idea from Armin actually. I overheard him talking to Eren and he said it was shame that the nation couldn't afford any reward of substance for Erwin, Hange and Levi, since they were the ones who helped drive the uprising. Of course he was right like usual; the kingdom doesn't have the means right now to provide a physical reward, but a title is at least a form of recognition. I didn't finish fleshing out the idea until an hour before the ceremony though, so I couldn't speak with the Chaplin about it. I figured I might as well do it spontaneously. After all, I'm the Queen; I can get away that can't I?"
"I suppose so. How are you feeling after all those heartfelt 'congratulations'?"
Historia groans and rolls her eyes. "Ugh, you mean all of those aristocrats trying to cozy up to me in an effort to save their hides after spending years in service to the old king? I feel like I'm going to throw up. All they care about it is their possessions! I swore an oath only this morning to care for my people, and I think that's going to mean having some of these guys taken down a peg or two, and replaced with people who actually deserve the posts."
"That's not going to be easy," I caution. "The system's been in place for a long time now. You start booting long term officials out of power there's going to be a lot of discontent. These people control most of the Kingdom; you try to take away that control and they'll resist you."
Historia sighs. "I know. I tried several times to raise the topic of reclaiming Wall Maria with the Steward and the Chancellor, but they always steer the conversation back to internal economics. They don't want to fight back, they want to sit here and keep control over the power they have. The old heads of the regime are gone but I'm worried new ones are going to take their place." She bites her lip nervously. "And what's worse is that the Premier is likely to try and claim as much control over the throne as he can. Many people see this as a Military coup and he's no exception. As the head of the Military he thinks he gets to run the country now rather than me. Oh Matthias what am I going to do?"
I put my hands on her shoulders. "Right now, nothing. You've had a long day and you shouldn't worry yourself with more politics until the next one. For now, just forget about it and relax a little. We won the civil war and for the first time a real way is open to reclaiming Wall Maria. That's reason to be happy right?"
Historia lets out a sigh and nods. "Yes, for now I can set all of that aside. I don't have anything else on schedule except dinner." Her face becomes a little gloomy at that, "Which I have to eat in the dining hall, alone."
"Why on earth?"
"Because that's tradition!" she says in frustration, throwing both hands into the air. "The Queen can't eat with the rest of the commoners oh no, she has to eat with the royal family only. And it just so happens that at present there isn't one. Also I checked and if I break traditions like this it's unlikely that people will take me seriously."
"Who said that?"
"Chancellor Edwin."
"One of those aristocrats who doesn't want things to change? I'm not so sure you should be listening to him. It strikes me that if you want to implement reforms the key is to break away from stuffy traditions that limited the ruler to a figure head. If you ask me this would be a good starting point."
Historia pauses and thinks to herself. Then she smiles, "maybe. We'll see."
Half an hour later I'm sitting in the public eating area, as it's called. It's pretty much just a place where all of the non-royal guests at the palace can be dumped so that they don't interrupt the royal family's meals. "So how's Historia?" asks Eren.
"She's fine I guess," I reply with a shrug. "Apparently it's a compulsory tradition that she eats either with nobles or the royal family. No nobles showed up tonight and there isn't really much of a royal family right now."
"Dam, that must be lonely," he says.
"Speaking of which," I say looking at Eren curiously, "how's Mikasa?"
"Mikasa? She's coming along well now. The doctors say she'll be out in a few days." Eren smiles to himself. "I'm looking forward to that." He then turns slightly red as he realises he said that last part out loud. "Uh, I mean um..."
"Don't worry, I know what you mean," I say.
"Still, it seems like a shame," says Armin. "That after everything the Queen would have to be slave to tradition."
"I wouldn't be so sure about that Armin," says a voice. Everyone turns in surprise to see Historia standing in the doorway. She's ditched her more formal clothes and is wearing a plain dress with her hair tied up like usual. "Hi guys," she says. Dozens of people all scramble to their feet as she enters. Several of the soldier bow and mutter things like, 'good evening your majesty.' "Please don't that," she says. "It makes me feel alienated. Sit down please." A little awkwardly the atmosphere returns to normal as people retake their seats and resume conversation. Historia sits down at our table.
"I thought you weren't allowed to eat with us," says Jean.
"Ah, traditions can go get stuffed!" says Historia flippantly. That amuses most people. "I don't want to become some sort of aloof and far off person who only communicates with people of her station. That would make me just as bad as all of the previous kings, both official and otherwise. I want to do better than that."
"Here, here!" I say.
"Oh, by the way," says Historia with a meaning glance in my direction, "Matthias and I have something to tell you guys."