Chapter 107: A Different Kind Of Nation

The Varkesh delegation had been in Eldoris for two days.

Nothing had happened.

That was what disturbed Tanaka.

Karesh and his companions had acted exactly as diplomats should. They toured the craft districts, wandered through the markets, questioned the guards, observed the different races working in unison and returned back to the diplomatic quarters before nightfall.

They had asked questions. Many questions.

But they had not trespassed into any obviously insulting territory. Tanaka sat at the head of the council table, studying the map of Eldoris. "I don’t like them." Raveana grinned. "Finally, something we can agree on." Tanaka turned towards her. "I didn’t say I wanted to fight them." "I know." Raishin shot a glance towards the door. "Karesh has been careful." "Very." Tanaka tapped a tendril against the table. "He hasn’t been openly dishonest, as far as I can tell. But he is watching us." Raizen’s ears twitched.

"That is what envoys are supposed to do." "I know." Tanaka leaned back. "Which means I have been thinking about something else."

The council listened. Tanaka glanced around the table. "We know what Varkesh is."

Raishin nodded. "A monster kingdom that is ruled by an A Rank Monster King." "Right."

Tanaka studied the map. "But what exactly are we?" Raveana raised an eyebrow. "Eldoris." Tanaka fixed her with a long look.

"Very useful question." She laughed. Tanaka smiled and then went on. "I know we’re a nation. I know we’re a Dominion. I know I rule it. I’m not asking if we’re a country."

His expression became more distant. "I’m wondering what kind of monster nation we have become." Raishin’s gaze narrowed slightly. "Because we are not organized along racial lines." "Exactly." Raizen folded his arms. "That is unusual." "How unusual?"

"Of the monsters I’ve met, most of their large societies are organized along bloodlines, race, tribe or pack."

Razer nodded. "Or territory." Torga added,"Sometimes resources." Drakar studied the map. "Mining operations can generate settlements. River systems can generate fishing communities. Forests can generate hunting tribes." Tanaka nodded. "That’s what I mean." He turned towards Eldrin. "When we started, we were little more than a small settlement." Eldrin smiled. "Very small."

"Then other monsters joined us."

Tanaka said with a smile. "And the settlement became permanent," Eldrin said. "Homes were built. Roads were laid. Stores of food were accumulated. Division of labor occurred." Raishin joined in. "It was no longer a temporary settlement." Tanaka nodded. "But it wasn’t a nation either." "No." Raishin said and tapped the map. "Not until you gained territory, authority and a permanent leadership structure."

Tanaka looked at him. "You have been thinking about this." "Of course." Raveana snorted. "Raishin thinks about everything."

Tanaka’s gaze lingered on the young dragon. "He was an Ogre Prince." Raishin glanced towards him. "That is why." Sora, who was sitting beside Tanaka, smiled. "You were already involved in such matters before you met Tanaka." "Yes." Raishin’s tone was steady. "My tribe had its own hierarchy. Warriors, elders, families. Our positions were set by our roles. I was a prince because of my position in the tribe and my bloodline." Tanaka nodded. "And when you became Kijin, that did not automatically make you a leader."

"No."

Raishin replied with a nod. "I made you a leader."

Tanaka said with an understanding tone. "Correct." Tanaka turned towards Raveana. "Same with you." Raveana shrugged. "You gave me authority because you saw my strength and my abilities." "Exactly."

She replied with a grin.

Tanaka studied the others. "That is one thing I have found interesting about monster societies. Race and authority are not necessarily linked."

Raishin nodded. "They rarely are."

Zephyr, who was perched near one of the windows, said,"They do become linked when a society decides to make them linked." Tanaka turned towards him. "Go on." "In some tribes, the strongest creature leads because strength is the most easily justified qualification for leadership. In some, leadership is passed down through generations. Some elect elders. Some elect chiefs. Some follow whoever can protect them."

Zephyr tilted his head. "And some don’t have permanent leaders at all." Tanaka smiled. "Exactly." Sylva folded her hands.

"That is why one cannot judge all monster nations on the structure of one." Razer laughed. "Varkesh would probably disagree." "Varkesh believes strength should determine everything," Raishin said.

"Mostly," Tanaka said. Raizen turned towards him. "The distinction is important."

Tanaka nodded. He reached for the map.

"Say we have a group of monsters that build a few homes in the woods."

"A settlement," Eldrin said. "They stay there permanently." Tanaka continued. "Then it can become more." Eldrin replied. "Such as a hamlet." "Yes." "A village after that." Tanaka mused. Eldrin nodded. "And then a town." Raishin said. Tanaka looked towards Raishin. "Then a city." "If the population and infrastructure are large enough."

Raishin replied. Tanaka leaned back. "And a nation?" Raishin answered immediately. "When it becomes more than a place for people to live."

Tanaka waited. Raishin pointed to the middle of the map. "A nation has organized authority, defined territory, permanent inhabitants, resources, defenses and a political identity." Tanaka nodded. "In other words, the inhabitants of a nation are not simply people living together. They share the same political structure." "Exactly." Torga said,"That is why some large settlements never become nations." "Because size is not enough," Tanaka said. "Correct." Razer rubbed his chin. "Could a large tribe become a nation?"

"Yes." Raizen answered before Raishin could speak. "If the tribe gains territory, a permanent government and begins to interact with other powers as one."

Tanaka smiled. "So monster nations can be built on tribes, settlements, packs, city-states or even individuals that gather around a strong leader."

"Yes."

Tanaka turned towards the others. "And Eldoris does not fit any of these."

"No," Raishin said. Tanaka smiled. "I know that." Sora grinned. "Then why ask?" "Because knowing what we are and understanding exactly what we are are two different things." That shut Sora up. Tanaka turned towards the window. Eldoris had changed a great deal since it began. Beneath all the new additions, the old settlement still remained. But there were districts, roads, walls, gates, workshops, farms, hunting grounds, resource routes, a diplomatic center, warriors, craftsmen, healers, scouts, farmers, merchants and leaders.

Even more, the different races that had joined together had stopped thinking of themselves as isolated groups that shared the same space. They were Eldoris. Tanaka turned back towards the council. "That is what makes us strange." Raishin nodded.

"We are not a nation based on race." "We are not based on territory either."

Tanaka smiled. "So what binds us together most strongly?" The council was silent for a moment. Eldrin looked around the table. "Home." Sylva nodded. "That would be my answer." Raizen added,"Protection." Razer said,"Food." Raveana laughed. "Of course."

Razer shrugged. "It matters." Tanaka turned towards Raishin. "And you?" Raishin studied the table for a moment. "Choice." Tanaka blinked. Raishin went on. "Most of us came here because we didn’t have anywhere else to go."

He looked around the room. "But we stayed here because we chose to." Tanaka was silent. That was a deeper answer than most.

A nation could be held together by terror.

Varkesh proved that. It could be held together by blood. Tribes proved that. It could be held together by religion, gold, territory or military might. Human nations proved that every day. Eldoris had something else. People had willingly stayed together. Tanaka smiled.

"So we are not just a monster kingdom."

Raveana tilted her head. "So what are we?"

Tanaka looked at the map again. "A nation of different monsters who chose to share the same home." Raishin gave a small nod.

"That is probably the best description." Tanaka laughed. "That is not something I can put down on a diplomatic scroll."

"Probably not." The tension in the room relaxed. Then Zephyr spoke again. "There is something else." Tanaka turned towards him.

"What?"

"The Varkesh delegation." Raishin’s face tightened. "What about them?" Zephyr spread his wings slightly. "They’ve been asking about the same thing."

"The dungeon."

"Yes." Tanaka frowned.

"What else?" Zephyr turned towards Raizen.

"Territory."

Raizen nodded. "Their questions fit with their actions." Tanaka leaned back. "What does that mean?" Raizen’s gaze narrowed.

"They are testing how quickly we can mobilize if there is an incident in the northern woods." The room grew quiet. Tanaka looked at the letter from Varkesh on the table. "It could be nothing." "It could," Raishin said. "But I don’t think it is." Tanaka exhaled. "I knew there was a reason I didn’t like that envoy." Sora grinned. "You didn’t like him before." "Now I have a reason." Raveana leaned forwards. "Should we confront him?"

"No," Tanaka said. "Not yet." Raishin nodded. "Agreed." Tanaka stood. "We will watch them." He turned towards Zephyr.

"Keep the Mana Birds on the northern roads." Zephyr nodded. "I already have."

Tanaka smiled. "I know." Zephyr looked mildly wounded. "You say that as if I require orders to do my job." Sora laughed. "He’s offended." "I noticed," Tanaka said. Zephyr spread his wings. "I’ll continue to observe the area." He flew out the window.

The council watched him vanish into the distance. No one said anything for a few moments. Then Raizen suddenly lifted his head. He was listening to something. Tanaka noticed.

"What is it?"

Raizen’s expression sharpened. "I feel something." "What is it?" Raizen turned towards the north. "Corruption." Tanaka’s eyes narrowed. The room fell silent.

Beyond the walls of Eldoris, something had entered the forest.

And it was approaching.