The Royal Selection (王選, Ō-sen) is an ongoing event to decide who will become the forty-second monarch of the Dragon Kingdom of Lugunica and renew the Kingdom's covenant with the Divine Dragon. Starting two months after Natsuki Subaru arrived in the world, the selection is set to last for three years, ending one month prior to the Dragon Ceremony. The five candidates selected were Crusch Karsten, Priscilla Barielle, Anastasia Hoshin, Emilia, and Felt, all of whom were chosen by the Dragon Jewels.
Contents
Candidates & Platforms
Current
Crusch Karsten
- Main article: Crusch Camp
It was shortly after the deaths of the entire Lugunican Royal Family that the Duchess of the House Karsten was found to be a suitable royal candidate, becoming the first of the candidates, and she took Ferris as her knight. Direct in her goals, Crusch intends to disband the pact with the Dragon in order to create a nation that does not require the aid of a greater being to survive, instead able to defend itself through its own military power and national standing. Though she understands the many contributions of the Dragon to Lugunica's continued prosperity and peace, Crusch believes in a Lugunica where the citizenry is able to stand up for itself and rule on their own, as all other options are tantamount to indefinite servitude. Among the candidates, Crusch is the one most favored by the populace to win the selection.
Anastasia Hoshin
- Main article: Anastasia Camp
Hailing from the mercantile Kararagi City-States, Anastasia Hoshin, owner of the Hoshin Company, was discovered to be eligible in Lugunica's Royal Selection during a visit to House Juukulius during a possible business venture. Pledged knighthood by Julius Juukulius and backed by her wealthy company seeking to expand its markets into the Kingdom, Anastasia took to becoming the third candidate.
Also direct in her goals, Anastasia's only intention behind running was her greediness, although this may have just been a naïve play made to bluster the unfamiliar Lugunican nobility. In actuality, she believes that she has legitimate qualities to be a prosperous leader, and she points out the success of her company as an example. She promises economic prosperity for the country should she be selected to be the country's monarch. Like the Duchess before her, Anastasia is one of the favorites to win the selection.
Emilia
- Main article: Emilia Camp
Little is known about Emilia's origins. She is arguably the most disliked out of any of the candidates, not due to her policies, but her existence as a half-elf and her similar appearance to the Witch of Envy. She was discovered by Roswaal L. Mathers in the Elior Forest and found to have the qualifications to become the fourth candidate.
Emilia's only real goal is to become queen so that she has access to the Dragon's blood, which would aid her in freeing the frozen elves in Elior Forest. That said, even realizing that she might not be able to save the Elves, she is still willing to work hard to become the king. Her stated goal is to create a society in Lugunica where everybody is treated equally, with respect to identity, which comes from the discrimination she's faced as a half-elf in a world that only sees silver-haired half elves as the epitome of all evils. Emilia isn't a particularly exceptional candidate, but her real magic is in the people who surround her, who have managed to overcome any obstacle without any real casualties. In particular, her knight, Natsuki Subaru, seems to have even greater luck than Priscilla, always possessing incredible foresight and consistently leaving potentially fatal situations relatively untouched.
Felt
- Main article: Felt Camp
In the aftermath of the Loot House Incident, Felt was discovered to be the fifth and final missing candidate in the Royal Selection. Bearing red eyes, fair skin, and golden hair, Felt, who has no official origin story, uncannily resembles the members of the deceased Lugunican royal family. Her candidacy was revealed at the very last moment before the start of the opening ceremony to the shock and awe of everybody in the room.
Felt's platform is to destroy the country, or at least the current system that maintains the country. She is fundamentally anti-establishment as a result of her upbringing. Her adoptive grandfather, unknown to everybody, happens to be a former leader in the civil war against the Lugunican government, which may or may not contribute to her attitude. Felt is also the youngest and least accomplished of all the candidates. Of course, she has the least vested interest in governmental affairs. Her entire campaign opening speech was met by fear and abhor by the nobles, and if not for the fact that she was divinely chosen to participate, she'd have been executed for treason. Fortunately, her benefactor happened to be the Sword Saint, Reinhard van Astrea, the most powerful man in the world.
Former
Priscilla Barielle
- Main article: Priscilla Camp
Though a child of an emperor of Vollachia, and very much eligible and capable of becoming the ruler of the Vollachia Empire, Priscilla found herself betrayed and ousted from her position by a sympathetic general fearing for Priscilla's life in the inevitable civil war that occurs as part of Vollachia's succession process, and eventually, she ended up in Lugunica. Her final late husband, Leip Barielle, was a wealthy nobleman with a sizable estate who, after discovering her, introduced her as the second of the candidates. Following his death, she inherited all of his feudal lands, and she managed to carry her estates to prosperity, leading to immense popularity with the common folk. Priscilla preached only to make the country hers and to own everything and everyone. As she had natural fortune, she believed she was chosen by destiny to rule over all of Lugunica. She also pledged to gift her supporters and to listen to her subjects.
During her escapade to end the Great Disaster in Vollachia, she ultimately gave her life in the fight, resulting in her and her camp dropping out of the Royal Selection.
Regulations and Rules
- Anybody of any race, if chosen by the Dragon Jewels, is able to run, no matter what. No number of prejudice or racist complaints or even illegal use of authority can prevent one from participating if already chosen. In the end though, barring one (half), all of the candidates turned out to be human.
- Candidates must take care of their insignias, as this qualifies their ability to rule. Should they lose it, their candidacy could be discarded.
- If in care of a domain, i.e. if the candidate holds feudal lands, they are to remain responsible for their land and cannot simply pass it off to another's ownership. Among many other things, this determines whether a candidacy is to be discarded or not.
- No candidate is allowed to be married during the period of the Royal Selection so as to prevent marriage ties from exacerbating political conflict.
- The only way for a candidate to leave the Royal Selection is to either die or simply resign.
Background
The Lion King's Covenant
Approximately 400 years prior to Subaru's arrival, the last Lion King, Farsale Lugunica, journeyed the world with his friends in what Alec Hoshin has claimed to be a "journey to save the world". At some point before or after the Great Calamity, Farsale, who had befriended the Divine Dragon Volcanica, formed a covenant with the Dragon, entailing that it would protect that Kingdom from foreign threats so long as his bloodline exists. Likewise, Volcanica offered the country the highly restorative Dragon's Blood. As such, the Kingdom, which had attained peace after being ensured against foreign invaders, as well as holding the Dragon History Stone, which foretold of various threats before they occurred, became soft over time, gradually growing weaker in both government and, relatively, military.
Outbreak & The First Candidate
Approximately one year before Subaru's arrival, the entire Lugunica Royal Family fell ill to an unknown disease. Shortly after the successful Raid of Argyle Manor, they began to collapse, and in the mere few months that followed, the entire family died, leaving the country without its leading family and the covenant on the verge of collapse. As a result, the remaining government and their institutions were left in shock. Uncertainty about the pact with the Dragon possibly no longer existing as a result of the line of the pact signatory, Farsale, going extinct caused nationwide fears about the security of the country. Most notable were the fears that the Sacred Vollachia Empire, Lugunica's southern neighbor whom the Kingdom had historically warred against, would invade in a time of instability. Though diplomacy eventually settled the issue, uncertainty still held. In desperate need of guidance, the Council of Wise Men, Lugunica's leading governing body, rather than thinking of a way to strengthen themselves in preparation of attack, instead looking for a way to maintain the covenant, turned to the prophetic Dragon History Stone, administrated by Leip Barielle.
As relayed to Lugunica's nobility by Leip, the Dragon History Stone told of five candidates, referred to as dragon priestesses, who were to be found across the Kingdom. Their candidacy would be confirmed through the use of the Dragon Jewels, gemstones contained within insignias which would gleam red if in the hands of a potential Dragon Maiden, and despite the vast number of people that populate the Kingdom, within a single year would those candidates need to be found. Deciding to pass around one such insignia, the nobility present checked to see whether they were eligible to participate as one of the candidates, and though most failed, Crusch, who was present as the Duchess of House Karsten, was given the insignia, and the jewel glowed, marking her as an eligible candidate. Afterward, she took Ferris as her knight and formed the Crusch Camp. In the year that followed, she improved the training of the knights, circulation of weapons, and attained Wilhelm van Astrea's assistance through a promise to slay the White Whale.
The Second Candidate
A short time after that, Leip, who had been displeased about being unable to get a jump on other candidates, presented his young wife, Priscilla, as the next candidate. Intent on using her as a puppet to seize the rule of the nation for himself, he began a tournament to give her a knight that would be aligned with his needs. However, Priscilla chose Al as her knight, leading Leip and one of the knight candidates to assault her and Al, resulting in their respective untimely demises. In the wake of this, the Priscilla Camp was officially formed, and she also gripped the reins over the previous Baron Barielle's lands, improving her reputation among her citizens and giving her notoriety as one of the Royal Selection candidates.
The Third Candidate
Several months passed without much progress finding the remaining three candidates when Anastasia Hoshin, seeking to expand the Hoshin Company into Lugunica, visited the Juukulius Estate. Though she ultimately failed to obtain House Juukulius's assistance with her venture, when she picked up an insignia that Mimi Pearlbaton knocked over, Julius Juukulius, who she was speaking with her, witnessed that she was the third candidate, and he offered to not only assist her, but also to take her directly to the Royal Capital. After this, he explained the upcoming Royal Selection and brought her to visit the nobles in the Royal Capital, who were not pleased at a foreigner's eligibility. Despite this, they were forced to accept her eligibility, and they moved on to the topic of her knight. Though Julius at first believed that Reinhard van Astrea would make for a fine selection, Anastasia chose Julius himself, claiming that she would not partake in the Royal Selection otherwise, ultimately resulting in him conceding to her wishes and pledging his service to her. Following this, with the members of the Iron Fang at her side and Joshua Juukulius following his brother's decision despite House Juukulius's reluctance to assist a foreigner, the Anastasia Camp was formed. Afterward, the Hoshin Company expanded into the country, and Anastasia quickly became extremely popular.
The Fourth Candidate
Having foreseen the arrival of Subaru coming and his connection with a certain silver-haired half-elf, Roswaal L. Mathers, the current head of House Mathers, let go of a majority of his staff, with the exception of Rem and Ram, in preparation for the chaos that would ensue in the Royal Selection. After learning of her location, Roswaal set off for Elior Forest, where he found her and Puck. Due to Puck's hostility towards the suspicious man, the two battled for half a day, until finally, he was able to explain himself. Giving Emilia the knowledge of the Dragon's Blood and the chance to free the elves, he dropped the insignia in her hands, marking her as eligible for the Royal Selection, and she assented, taking Puck with her. After leaving the forest, she was taught everything she needed as a participant, and Roswaal continued his preparations for his own schemes.
Imperial Diplomacy of Bloodshed
As preparations were underway for the Royal Selection, Miklotov McMahon and Bordeaux Zergev, accompanied by Julius, Ferris, and, by the emperor's request, Reinhard, traveled to Vollachia to enter talks of a non-aggression pact with the Kingdom. However, due to a rebellion incited by a traitorous noble and the Ninth of the Nine Divine Generals, the emperor and three knights were forced to go on the run. In the end, the noble escaped while the general was felled by Julius, and because of this, the non-aggression pact, set to last for the length of the Royal Selection, was signed.
The Fifth Candidate
In preparation for Subaru's arrival, Roswaal sent Emilia, Puck, and Ram to the Royal Capital, as well as hired Elsa Granhiert to steal the insignia and attack Emilia. On the day of Subaru's arrival, he was dragged into the Loot House Incident, in which he assisted the young thief Felt who was hired by Elsa to steal the insignia for her, Old Man Rom, and Emilia in fighting back the assassin. During the incident, he sent Felt out of the Loot House, where she stumbled upon Reinhard van Astrea, who had met Subaru a short while earlier, and asked for his help. Ultimately, because of this, they were able to repel Elsa at the cost of the Loot House and heavy injury to both Subaru and Rom. During the following discussions, Felt attempted to return the insignia, but Reinhard, who saw the jewel within glow, pieced together her appearance's rough match to the royal family's. With her candidacy and his belief that she was the missing child from the Royal Abduction Incident, Reinhard decided to take her back to the Astrea Manor, while Emilia, who was curious about Subaru and his intentions, decided to return with him to Roswaal Manor. In the end, Subaru joined the Emilia Camp after gaining everyone's trust following the Wolgarm Incident, and Felt was kept secret until the day of the ceremony.
Selection
The First Year
Royal Selection Ceremony
Two months following the Loot House Incident, the five candidates were gathered in the Royal Capital. With their respective knights in tow, the candidates were all brought to the Royal Castle, where they were set to give their address to the Council of Wise Men, nobility, and knights. Despite being meant to be left at an inn in the capital, Subaru was also brought to the castle by Priscilla and Al, as shown through Roswaal's Book of Wisdom and according to his plan. With everyone gathered together, the candidates were each introduced and made their address. As they made their respective addresses, it quickly became known the Crusch and Anastasia were the favorites to win while Emilia was heavily prejudiced against, frustrating Subaru. Soon after, Felt was brought in by Reinhard, who introduced her as the final candidate, despite her reluctance and the denial of most of the nobility. However, it didn't take long for them to notice her physical similarities to the royal family’s. Though Felt was willing to leave, thanks to the arrival of Rom, who intended to escape with her, and his quick suppression, she chose to take part in the Royal Selection to save him, and she gave her address, terrifying the nobles.
After this, the ceremony continued, and all of the people present continued to give their opinions on the candidates, with most of them particularly letting their prejudice towards Emilia out. In a foolish attempt to defend her, Subaru lashed out at everyone in the room, disparaging all of the knights and nobles for their prejudice, immediately gaining nearly all of their enmity towards both him and Emilia. With things going as he expected, Roswaal also took the stage, using his magic to attack him and summoning Puck, who he'd notified of Subaru's outburst beforehand, to protect him. With Puck's appearance, the nobles realized that she had contracted with a Great Spirit who had enough power to kill them at any moment. With it being known that she completely refrained from allowing Puck to hurt everyone, they all realized the power she held and quickly shut their mouths. Despite this, thanks to Subaru's outburst, Emilia's standing among the candidates was at its lowest, and with the exception of Roswaal, she had nobody's backing. Even the other candidates looked down on Subaru.
After this, the knights and Subaru all left the room. However, the knights wanted to see Subaru beaten or killed for insulting them, and despite Reinhard trying to speak with him, Subaru turned him away. In an effort to protect his life from the numerous knights who wanted to personally kill him, Julius instead challenged him to a duel, which Subaru accepted. With the duel in place, someone informed the candidates, causing Emilia to rush to Subaru. In an arena prepared for them, the knights watched and cheered as Julius one-sidedly thrashed Subaru, and though Subaru attempted to use magic to gain an edge, ultimately, Julius easily dealt with it, and just as Emilia arrived, he defeated Subaru. After this, Subaru was treated, and Julius was put on house arrest for his actions. Ultimately, the ceremony came to a close, and the candidates returned to their various temporary residences. With Emilia and Subaru getting into an argument, she decided to leave him behind in the Royal Capital with Rem and Crusch. With Roswaal leaving Rem with the task of securing an alliance with the Crusch Camp, they returned, and Roswaal began preparing for his upcoming scheme, tampering with Emilia's contract with Puck. At short after this, Felt found herself confronting Rachins Hoffman, Gaston, and Camberley, and despite them being easily dispatched, Felt managed to convince them to join her cause, essentially having them join the Felt Camp.
The Witch Cult's Resurgence
Because of her rise as one of the Royal Selection candidates, the Witch Cult decided to make their move. Intent on making her face a set of "trials", Petelgeuse Romanée-Conti had the White Whale head toward the Lifaus Highway to prevent anyone from reaching Arlam Village and Roswaal Manor so he could act with the other cultists. At the same time, Subaru, who was receiving treatment regarding his Gate from Ferris and training with Wilhelm in an effort not to confront his own weakness and not to become stronger, found himself using his Authority, confronting the Witch Cult, a furious Puck, the White Whale, and the Royal Selection candidates who refused to help him, Subaru spoke with Rem, who managed to help him overcome his own weakness, and the two began planning on how to save everyone. In the end, after learning of the negotiating tools Roswaal left for Rem, Subaru went to speak with Crusch while Rem went to fetch Anastasia and Russell Fellow. With his negotiations with Crusch for her assistance going smoothly, Anastasia soon arrived as well. The cards were on the table: magic stone mining in Elior Forest, the location of the White Whale, and Subaru's phone, which he claimed to be a meteor. Despite nearly causing turbulence through a misunderstanding, in the end, negotiations were successful, and everyone prepared for the upcoming Subjugation of the White Whale.
The next evening, accompanied an assortment of retired knights, members of the Iron Fang, and the Crusch Camp, everyone made their way towards Flugel's Tree on the Lifaus Highway. After some time and preparations, everyone awaited the appearance of the White Whale. That night, at the sound of Subaru's ringtone, the White Whale appeared, and the battle began. Despite the losing about half of their men, thanks to Subaru's observation of the White Whale's abilities, his plan to bring it to the ground and keep it there, and Wilhelm's strength, they were able to bring down the beast. With Crusch deciding to consider this achievement as part of the Emilia's Camp's victories, she decided to leave Wilhelm, Ferris, and some of the other knights to assist Subaru in the next, more dangerous battle. Meanwhile, she would take Rem and the wounded back with the head of the White Whale to prove its defeat. After their departure, Julius and the rest of the Iron Fang arrived as reinforcements for the upcoming Subjugation of Sloth. However, unbeknownst to them, after they discussed how to defeat Petelgeuse and left to take care of it, the return convoy was attacked by Regulus Corneas and Lye Batenkaitos, resulting in many lives lost, Crusch losing her memories, and Rem losing her name and memories. Because of this, Ram began putting up flyers for a new maid, which Petra Leyte also applied for.
As for the assault force to subjugate Sloth, thanks to Subaru using his Authority, though they had to split up the residents of the village to head to the capital and the Sanctuary, in the end, they managed to successfully defeat Sloth without a single casualty. Thanks to his efforts, Subaru was able to make up with Emilia, despite almost losing his life, and they gained an ally out of Otto Suwen. However, upon returning to the capital, they bore witness to the devastation of the ambush by Greed and Gluttony. Fortunately, Crusch woke up and was successfully healed by Ferris, but Rem's existence was lost to everyone besides Subaru. In the discussion to determine how each camp would move forward, despite Ferris's insistence on breaking the alliance, Wilhelm and Crusch both denied his suggestion, and they decided to remain allied with the Emilia Camp. Afterward, Wilhelm also showed the return of a wound given to him by his deceased wife, and he concluded that the Crusch Camp would also likely come to confront the Witch Cult in the future. Soon after, Subaru attempted reset to save everyone, but he failed to go back far enough. The next day, the Emilia Camp and the Arlam Villagers returned to the village and Roswaal Manor. At some point after this, Anastasia began looking into Subaru's history, but she was unable to uncover anything beyond his very first day in the world.
Sanctuary Incident & Awarding Ceremony
With everyone returning to the village, the Emilia Camp encountered Frederica Baumann, who returned to assist Ram with the manor. After entrusting her with Rem's care, Petra's being hired as a maid for the manor, and speaking with Beatrice, the members of the camp left for the Sanctuary the next day, where they were forced to confront Roswaal, whose next scheme was already underway. Intent on forcing Subaru through the trials of the Sanctuary, meeting with the Witches, becoming like him, and becoming a Sage, he hired Elsa to attack the manor's residents, though unbeknownst to him, she was accompanied by another assassin, Meili Portroute. Likewise, in order to pressure Subaru further, he intended to summon the Great Rabbit. With Subaru facing several loops and learning of his scheme, he was ultimately able to retrieve the assistance of Otto, Ram, and Puck, get his feelings through to Emilia and help her to push through the trials, defeat Garfiel Tinzel and get his assistance, and defeat all of the enemies coming their way. Because of this, Elsa died, Meili was taken prisoner, the Great Rabbit was isolated in another space, the witchbeasts were killed, every villager from the Sanctuary and Arlam Village was protected, the old Roswaal Manor was burnt down, Subaru's Gate was broken, Puck went into hibernation, and the Emilia Camp grew, with Roswaal giving his official backing to the camp and Beatrice forming a contract with Subaru.
With Clind and Annerose Miload coming to retrieve everyone, the villagers were taken either to Arlam Village or somewhere near the new Roswaal Manor, and the members of the Emilia Camp began living in the new Roswaal Manor. After this, they returned to the capital for an awarding ceremony for the successful defeat of the White Whale and Sin Archbishop of Sloth. There, they met with members of the Crusch Camp again, with Ferris noticing Subaru's shattered Gate. During the awarding ceremony, Subaru was officially knighted, and he became Emilia's knight.
In The Year That Followed
Due to the aftereffects of the subjugations and the defeat of the Great Rabbit, the Emilia Camp was given the majority of the credit for both of the subjugations, and despite being unable to show proof of the Great Rabbit's defeat, because it hadn't appeared over time, rumors began spreading among the populace that the Emilia Camp defeated it as well. As such, though they were still the least popular, their popularity and respect increased. On the other hand, Crusch, whose lost memories and gravitas hindered her progress, slowly started to lose her influence among the Royal Selection, and as she struggled to take care of her lands, her father Meckart Karsten was brought in to help her with her duties. The Priscilla Camp's popularity also increased as she continued to repair the lands originally governed by Leip, calm the nobles unsettled by his death, and improving relations with their neighbors in Vollachia. On top of this, after confronting him in a bandit's den, she also obtained the assistance of Heinkel Astrea, though she also lost the assistance of Yae Tenzen following an undead incident in the Barielle Domain a short time prior. The Felt Camp's influence increased significantly with the common people, particularly with those whose lives center around the slums and underworld. Meanwhile, the Anastasia Camp's influence never waned, essentially putting them in the lead compared to the other candidates. Ultimately, thanks to Dragon Times and interviews with each of the candidates held by Shorty Megan and Lululala, the public was made privy to the candidates' thoughts and views on each other, giving everyone an insight to the camps.
Riot in Flanders
The Second Year
The Witch Cult Strikes Again
Approximately one year after the Royal Selection's start, Anastasia sent invitations to Felt, Emilia, and Crusch to join her in the Watergate City of Priestella, using the location of Gluttony to lure in Crusch and a glintstone to lure in Emilia. Due to her problematic behavior, she did not invite Priscilla, though she still ultimately caught wind of the gathering anyway. After gathering the group together in Priestella and sharing an inn and taking care of certain priorities for their respective camps, the group started interacting on friendly terms, as they were using this chance to learn more about each other. However, the following morning, Priscilla arrived with her camp in tow, and Heinkel stirred conflict with his family. Afterward, everyone split up to take care of their own priorities once again. However, the Witch Cult sieged the city, with Subaru, Emilia, and Beatrice confronting Regulus and Sirius Romanée-Conti, Garfiel and Mimi Pearlbaton confronting terribly powerful corpse soldiers, and numerous others facing the remaining Sin Archbishops. By the end of this initial assault, Emilia was captured, Subaru and Mimi were heavily injured, Beatrice was put out of commission by healing a plethora of injured civilians, Joshua Juukulius had his name and memories devoured, Reinhard was put in a position where he couldn't help, many knights were killed, numerous other people were transformed by the Authority of Lust, civilians began finding their way towards shelters, and everyone was placed under the effects of the Authority of Wrath.
After Subaru awoke, healed just enough not to risk his life, he gathered with the other present Royal Selection camps, where they discussed how to handle the Witch Cult. With a need for a leader, Subaru and Anastasia took charge of commanding the counterattack. Deciding to face the Witch Cult, they attacked again, only to face a stalemate in City Hall. The result ended with Subaru and Crusch being cursed by Capella Emerada Lugunica and everyone else being washed away by the water released from the partially opened floodgates. Meanwhile, Anastasia and the others prevented further casualties at the Muse Company. While the mayhem took place, Capella released her Demi-Beasts, and everyone was forced to converge again. With Subaru and Anastasia coming to the conclusion that they needed to overcome Wrath's effects first, a discussion was held to determine who would give a speech to rouse the citizens, resulting in Subaru giving it. Afterward, as the remaining camp members began converging together, including Reinhard, with the information gathered by Emilia and passed through Al, Subaru directed everyone towards their respective battlefields.
In the end, Regulus was killed, Sirius was captured, the corpse soldiers were felled, the Gluttony siblings escaped, and Lust escaped. On the other hand, Priestella was still plagued by the forgotten and the transformed, Julius's name was devoured, Anastasia locked herself in her Od, and Crusch was incapacitated. Deciding to leave the Lust victims frozen, specific members of the Emilia and Anastasia Camps were tasked with reaching the Pleiades Watchtower to gain answers from the Sage about how to fix the victims of Lust and Gluttony, while their other recovering members would remain in Priestella. The Felt Camp was responsible for escorting Sirius to the Prison Tower, and the remaining camps either returned home or remained in Priestella.
After returning home, the Priscilla Camp was faced with assassins sent by Vollachia, and after she dispatched them, they decided to return to Vollachia. Meanwhile, Felt and Reinhard, after handing off Sirius, sat to dinner with Russell Fellow, who informed them of unrest in the other three great nations. After collecting Meili and Ram for their assistance, as well as Rem, and making it to the Pleiades Watchtower, the two camps learned of Shaula and Flugel's identities and were forced to face several trials, which were only possible for Subaru and Emilia to accomplish. As unrest began to stir in the camp due to Eridna's presence within Anastasia's body, Subaru thought of a way to move past the second trial, something which only served to strike at his memories and lure the Sin Archbishops of Gluttony to the tower. Despite this, with Subaru having to go through several loops, they managed to beat the Witch Cult once again. Rui Arneb was abandoned in Od Lagna's Corridor of Memories, Lye spit up numerous names and memories and was killed by Ram, and Roy Alphard was defeated and sealed by Julius. Meanwhile, Shaula was reduced into a tiny form, and Subaru passed out. After he awoke and spoke with Ram, Rui reappeared, followed by a massive shadow that swallowed up Subaru, Rui, and Rem. After it took off, it was stricken by Volcanica's Dragon Breath, and they were left in the Vollachia Empire's Buddheim Jungle.
The Royal Selection Moves Across the Border
With Subaru's party being transported, the Emilia Camp and Anastasia Camp decided to head for Vollachia through different methods. Leaving Anastasia, who had left her Od, to take Roy to the capital, the Emilia Camp decided to smuggle themselves through the Vollachian border. With the group leaving the Pleiades Watchtower, the Anastasia Camp took Roy to the Prison Tower before deciding to go through Kararagi to reach Vollachia, where they learned of an undead incident on the southern border and successfully obtained the assistance of Halibel for their own trip south. Meanwhile, the Emilia Camp gathered at Roswaal Manor. Deciding to leave Meili to lead the next expedition to the tower, the rest of the camp, sans Clind and Annerose, made their way to Picoutatte. After settling things with Diadora Regundra and obtaining the assistance of the Suwen Company, the party left through Everlasting Darkness, led by the molepeople. Along the way, they met with some resistance by the molepeople due to concerns of a second civil war, but with Petra casting a curse on herself and promising to let Musica meet with Emilia about these concerns, they were eventually led into Vollachia.
Simultaneously, Meili, alongside the Felt Camp, made their way to the Pleiades Watchtower after informing the Council of Wise Men of their success. At the tower, despite having to take care of the birds that were acting as somebody's eyes and ears, they believed that they would have to send personnel to watch over the tower regularly, and leaving Ezzo Cadner and Flam Remendis behind to watch the tower, the rest of the camp returned to the Royal Capital. There, Meili was pardoned for her past, and the Emilia Camp was credited for her reformation and with assisting the second expedition.
In Vollachia, despite the problems associated with Rem waking up without her memories and Rui's behavior, Subaru's group allied themselves with the dethroned emperor Vincent, who was going by the name Abel. Making allies with the People of Shudrak, numerous soldiers in Guaral after causing its "fall", and heading to Chaosflame to obtain Yorna Mishigure's assistance in an effort to obtain the assistance of the newly arrived Priscilla Camp, the Imperial Civil War escalated, and Subaru ended up finding himself separated from his group and sent across the country, where he made even more allies via the Pleiades Battalion and started marching toward the Imperial Capital. Likewise, the Emilia Camp also arrived in Guaral and helped resist Madelyn Eschart's attack, while Roswaal and Ram went to meet with Serena Dracroy to get information and determine whether she would be an enemy or an ally. With Abel's return to Guaral and gaining the Emilia Camp's official help by claiming his likelihood of being in the Imperial Capital, everyone on both sides started preparing for the final showdown.
Eventually, everyone converged at Lupugana, and the Battle for the Imperial Capital began. Despite the numerous losses on both sides, both Garfiel and the Pleiades Battalion managed to punch through the walls of the bastions, and Abel was brought to the Crystal Palace by the country's official Stargazer, Ubilk. However, as the battle dragged on, another foe took to the stage, killing the false emperor through one of her undead soldiers, Balleroy Temeglyph, and triggering the Great Disaster. Ultimately, the battle came to an unofficial close, and everyone was forced to retreat, allowing the undead army to take control of Lupugana. Likewise, Priscilla was captured by the army's ringleader, and Al and a few specific others remained behind. On the way to Garkla, Vollachia and Lugunica, through Vincent, who took back his name and title, and Emilia, acting representative for Lugunica and head of her own party, made an alliance, followed shortly by the arrival of a few members of the Anastasia Camp and Halibel. They also suffered an attack by Sphinx and several zombies, but they ultimately overcame this and arrived in Garkla.
After discussions, a specialized task force was selected to attack the undead forces in Lupugana while others were left to defend Garkla. As those in Garkla faced an army of undead lead by Palladio Manesque, the task force, led by Subaru, split up where he directed them all. Ultimately, they managed to overcome most of the forces sent to stop them, including Sphinx. However, with Sphinx being struck by the Yang Sword, her undead form shifted to take the form of the Witch of Greed. Afterward, the battle escalated, and Priscilla gave her life to become an undead and escape her confines. Afterward, she, Subaru, and Rui, renamed Spica, defeated Sphinx and brought an end to the Great Disaster, causing any surviving zombies to scatter. After the group returned to Garkla, Priscilla spent the day with Subaru, talking to her brother and the people of the other camps. Atop the city's walls, she spent her final moments with Al and Subaru before fading away, essentially forcing her camp to disband and knocking her out of the Royal Selection.
Trivia
- Throughout the Royal Selection, the candidates bear standings equivalent to the royal family.
- According to Rom, due to the reason behind holding the Royal Selection, if something was to happen to the Divine Dragon before the Royal Selection was completed, then it was likely to be entirely called off.
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