212 A New Era

Fully decked out in expensive, purple silk robes and with the sign of his kingship atop his head, Corco appeared before his people. Down below, they awaited his words with equal parts anticipation, excitement and fear written across their faces. For a moment, Corco just stood there in a silent staring contest with the audience, before he slowly raised his hand and showed a shallow smile in greeting. In what he considered a ludicrous response, the crowd broke out in cheers and claps as if they had just met some kind of pop star.

*Maybe they're just starved of celebrities? Time to invent tabloids I guess.*

Once he had lowered his hands again and Fadelio had signaled for the crowd to calm down, the attendant began to introduce the main reason for Corco's appearance on stage.

"Tonight, we all celebrate, for we have defended our homes from the oppressors of the north! The great victory the southern kingdom's armies have achieved will be remembered for all times to come, as will those who fought to defend our lands." Despite the theatrical opening, the crowd responded with loud cheers.

"Thus, all citizens of Saniya and all warriors of the south were invited to join in on these festivities, which have been paid in full by the crown."

These people really liked their free food. Yet another round of cheers had to be waited out before Fadelio could continue.

"In this great war, many men have accomplished extraordinary feats worthy of recognition, yet every one of the kingdom's citizens deserves recognition. Thus, your great king wants to stress everyone's tireless contribution. Without the food from the farmers, the army would have had nothing to eat during their freezing marches in the north. Thanks to the craftsmen of Saniya, the soldiers had been granted the greatest weapons in the entire empire, to give them a crucial advantage in the battles against the northern forces."

Every time Fadelio mentioned another group of people, a different section of the plaza clapped.

"Most of all however, the great soldiers of the south fought tooth and nail against our enemies, and brought great pride to their ancestors. As a result of everyone's efforts, your great king, Corcopaca Primu Titu Pluritac, has decided to award special honors to the most outstanding representatives of each of these instrumental groups today. First to be awarded will be Asto, chief of Asto village. Out of any village within the Chawir marshes, Asto village managed to reclaim the largest piece of land from the barren wilderness over the past year. For his outstanding contribution in the betterment of the kingdom, he will receive the king's seal of honor, in a show of appreciation and respect."

To guarantee a smooth flow for the award ceremony, all award winners were already waiting at the foot of the stage, ready to receive their honors. Again, the muskets went off as the terrified farmer at the front of the queue stumbled his way up the steps. Even though his warriors gave each other troubled looks, Corco marched straight up to the chubby man to make his task a bit easier. With an open smile, he offered the farmer not only some warm words, but also the framed letter he had handwritten earlier, including his signature and seal. After his travels around Chawir's countryside, Ronnie had described the village chiefs as crafty and selfish, but Corco could feel nothing but reverence from the trembling, skinny hands that took the award.

The man was so overwhelmed that tears covered his eyes and he failed to even speak in front of the king. Although Corco felt as if the farmer would consider the glass in front of the frame more valuable than the paper it protected, the king didn't mind. So long as the farmer took good care of the honor, he would be greatly surprised by its value in the future. He wasn't in the habit of giving out empty honors to force loyalty, and he had great plans. Not now though. Now he had to focus on his more immediate duties. Already, the next people to receive their awards were being announced, while the old farmer was led off the stage by guards.

"The second men to receive their contributions will be blacksmith master Asiro, as well as clock maker Egidius, who have shown outstanding ability in the construction of the flintlock rifle. The weapon proved crucial in the victory over the north, and thus both men will also receive the king's seal of honor."

Corco's second meeting with his award winners was a lot more casual than the first. After all, both men were already well-acquainted with Corco, and with their unique temperaments they had never been very stiff around him in the first place.

"Again, well done," Corco said as he handed them their letters. Despite the more casual atmosphere, Corco tried to retain an official demeanor for the people in the crowd who couldn't hear his words.

"Thank you, my lord," the gruff blacksmith said and bowed his head to fit the occasion.

"You deserve it. Take good care of the letter, it might serve you well some day."

While the blacksmith had managed to show a minimum of etiquette during his meeting with the king, Egidius didn't even care about all the eyes on him. His face didn't change one bit as he took the plaque and received the handshake, but there was a strange urgency in his eyes as he spoke up out of turn.

"King Corco, we need to speak about the newest project you have tasked me with. I might need some support from an accountant or two, someone who is good with mathematics. You see, the problem-"

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Still all smiles, Corco increased the force in his hand, until Egidius winced from the pain and shut up.

"Not now," the king hissed, "I have an image to uphold, and out of both of us, I won't be the one in trouble if you fail to show respect. If you want to continue working in this city, you need to behave."

At last, the clock maker realized his mistake and shut up. He offered a stiff bow before both craftsmen left the stage. In truth, Corco himself would have much rather talked about some new inventions with Egidius, but the ceremony held important meaning to his people, to those who had always been under-appreciated by the nobles. Moreover, there were a lot more awards to hand out and Corco couldn't get hung up on every single person. He'd never finish that way.

In fact, the first three awards had been more of a show, to acknowledge the contributions of the farmers and craftsmen who had stayed at home during the war. It was Corco's attempt to prevent a huge mental divide between the soldiers and his other citizens. After all, he had just gotten rid of the class system in Saniya and he wasn't willing to replace it with a new one right away. Still, it was obvious that the soldiers had made the greatest contribution during the war, so they would receive the most awards as well. Rather than letters, he had created a system of badges for his army, to reflect the level and type of their contribution.

Thus, the various soldiers – both from Corco's own troops as well as those from the other lords – went up to meet their king and receive their honors one by one. Beginning from the lowest-ranked soldiers, anyone who had shown exceptional bravery and ability received an award. Some received promotions as well. Although they didn't have any need for this many officers for now and many weren't qualified for the positions yet, Corco had to increase the number of his troops anyways.

Pacha might have been defeated for now, but he wouldn't just give up like this. Once he had cleared up his differences with Amautu, he would soon make more trouble for the southern kingdom. Now that they held control over a piece of land within the southern kingdom, the Arcavians were a bigger threat than ever. Thus, the king was happy to promote as many people as he could so long as he had a decent excuse for it. They could receive some extra training in between wars and then learn on the job once his armies were forced into further battles.

The ceremony continued in a smooth fashion, until the ordinary soldiers had been dealt with and the captains received their awards. At first, Corco hadn't cared much and just kept giving out the badges his warriors presented to him on the fancy silk pillows, but the last badge he would award to a captain made him raise his brows.

Rather than the usual bronze and cloth badges, this one was a diamond of royal silver, fastened with purple cloth. While it wasn't quite the highest honor anyone could receive within Corco's new system, it wasn't far off. He had expected an award like this for a general, but certainly not for a simple captain. What sort of miracles had this soldier achieved to be rated this highly? With great interest, he listened to Fadelio's explanation.

"Captain Alcer. In early engagements against the raid teams of the central kingdom army, he has shown exceptional bravery. Further, he has proven a capable leader during his time in the camp, as attested by his fellow soldiers. During the two main engagements, he has shown special ability, with eighteen confirmed kills over the course of the war. Especially in the final engagement, Captain Alcer single-handedly organized and then led a counter-charge that pushed back the enemy warriors, at a time when the southern line was in dire straits. For his heroic service above and beyond his station, Captain Alcer will receive the silver diamond with purple band, and will be raised into the status of warrior, as well as receive a promotion to ensign."

Even Corco was surprised at the long list of accomplishments. At this point, he expected the warrior to be some kind of physical freak, but when he met him, Alcer appeared to be unassuming at best. In fact, the great hero's most outstanding feature was the ordinary aura around his person. Although he held up better than the farmer Corco had met first, he was still quite nervous, much unlike a man who had killed this many enemies in cold blood.

At this point, he remembered his previous orders, before Fadelio, Dedrick and Tama had begun to pick the recipients of today's awards. Back then, Corco had asked them to pick some lower-ranked soldier as an example of excellence, a hero for the other citizens to look up to as a symbol of self-sacrifice and patriotism. Although it reeked of propaganda, it would be quite an effective method to motivate the other soldiers.

"Outstanding work," Corco said, as he pinned the medal on the future hero's chest and shook his hand.

"No, great king. I... this... mortal only followed king's footsteps during the charge," the man stuttered. Although Corco didn't quite understand what Alcer was trying to say, he was still happy that the hero showed some humility. Whether or not he truly was the great leader Fadelio had introduced mattered little anyways. This one seemed humble and well-mannered, so he would do just fine to play the part of hero.

"Either way, you deserve the recognition," Corco insisted. Since he had pushed the man into a position he seemed uncomfortable with, the king was feeling generous and added, "If there is anything on your mind, you may tell me now."

"This mortal..." Although the soldier looked down, it was obvious he had something to say.

"Yes?" Corco asked, still with a smile. "Please speak freely."

"One of this mortal's old companions... uhm... his name is Killari. He fought in my... this mortals unit. He fought well for the kingdom too. But he was injured in the first big battle and... he lost a few fingers. The doctors say he can't wield a weapon any more. Maybe... if it wasn't too much hassle..."

"I can guarantee he is well taken care of," Corco concluded the captain's words.

"Thank you very much, great king. Killari thanks you too!"

After he had managed to squeeze out his thanks, the soldier just about managed to bow his head before all his remaining courage left him and he retreated off the stage. Fadelio had made a note of the soldier's request, before the ceremony continued. At least his army wasn't huge yet, and there weren't that many officers ranked above ensign. Thus, the final badges were soon handed out without any more interruptions, with the last one going to Corco's only general in the war, to his own employee.

Dedrick strode up the stage as if he didn't care about all the pomp, and looked as if he would rather have brought his wine up with him. However, the mercenary knight behaved for once and spared Corco of any more incidents.

In truth, it was somewhat unusual that none of the southern lords were present for the celebrations, but it was very much a deliberate move on Corco's part. After all, none of the lords had done anything worthy of recognition during the war. If they had been honored on stage, the commoners in the crowd would have grumbled nepotism; not during the celebrations, but definitely behind closed doors. Yet if they were to go without any honors at all, the vain lords would cry foul as well.

Since Corco wanted to show the commoners their value and opportunity within his new kingdom, he had organized this ceremony when all lords were busy getting drunk, Not one high noble would receive a badge in front of the people today. They could just get some sham awards later to still their egos and to show off in front of each other.

*Maybe I'll make up one for Ogulno and give it to him myself. That might be fun.*

Thus, the celebration ended on a good note and Corco could finally return back into his castle. Maybe now that he was freed from both banquets, he would be able to receive some rest of his own and resume all the work he had neglected during the war.

However, as he looked over the faces in the crowd – all of them with expectant eyes – the king realized that they were waiting for something more from him. As usual when he appeared in public, they would be hoping for another one of his speeches. Corco had to agree: This really was a good chance for him to give them some more guidance and motivation. These people would soon be the foundation of his kingdom, so he had to properly cultivate them, even if most weren't actual cultivators.

Unfortunately, he didn't have any address prepared this time, and his last failed speech in his battle with Rupilo had made him apprehensive of mob mentalities.

As his eyes scanned the crowd, he soon spotted something he had seen earlier on his way up the stage but had been forced to neglect. He had already requested something like this months ago, but in the face of war, his craftsmen had taken their sweet time with the more recreational projects. Once he rediscovered the old craftsman in the middle of the crowd, he moved up to Fadelio to give his instructions.

"Hey, you see that guy with the large block of wood rested on his knee, the one with the anxious look? Bring him up here."

Soon after, an old man with a trim, gray beard stood in front of the king, the over-sized music instrument still in his hands.

"I see you've met my request," Corco said with a grin on his face. Before him stood one of Saniya's few true master craftsmen; a woodworker, though he couldn't be considered a carpenter. All his life, Master Oko had created nothing but musical instruments and lived off the trade. Since the king himself was a music lover, he had become one of the master's best customers, and he had made several special requests a long time ago.

"Yes, King Corcopaca. While your request for the so-called 'clavichord' is a bit advanced and will require some more time... this mortal has already finished work on this newer, heavier Koto. This mortal hopes the sound will be to master's taste. This servant has done as described by King."

Eager to try, as if ignorant of the crowd before him, Corco sat down in front of the instrument and plucked a few of the long strings. Several warbled pings escaped and washed over the crowd that still waited in complete silence.

Not long after, Corco had gotten a feel for the instrument and began to play a sound no one in this world had ever heard before. Rather than a speech, this time the king would offer his people music, a culture apart from the courts of Saniya, something for the common people alone. It was a new sound, played with a new instrument, both created in Saniya, to signal all present the start of a new era.