Chapter Text
“So. To whom do I owe the pleasure?” asked the emperor.
“Tristan of Tirnanogue, sir.”
“Tirnanogue… I suppose you hail from an entire nest of seditious traitors hiding out there, then?”
“Yes, sir.”
The two of them stared at each other in the great hall, now exposed to sunlight through the massive hole in the roof. The royal twins stuck close to their father, wary of Tristan.
“So tell me-“
A distant explosion rocked the building, and dust drifted down from the ceiling. After looking around for a moment, the emperor continued.
“Tell me, how did you even reach the empress?” he asked. Emperor Arvis was speaking remarkably calmly. It was as if he’d given up.
“I wore a Loptous agent’s armor and walked in the front gate,” Tristan explained.
Arvis simply sighed. “I suppose the guards should be disciplined, if they survive this mess.”
“I expect they will. They didn’t seem the type to die for you. Plus, Lady Deirdre appears to be sparing the normal guards.”
Julius came out from behind Arvis’ cape. “Hey, you have to call her ‘Her Imperial Majesty!’”
Tristan couldn’t help but laugh.
“Prince Julius is correct. You would do well to show more deference-“
Another explosion, larger this time, reverberated through the building, accompanied by the sound of a dragon’s roar.
Arvis abandoned his train of thought. “Perhaps we should be going.”
ENDINGS
Tristan – After the battle at Belhalla, Tristan rode with the imperial family north to Tirnanogue, where he joined up with the rest of the resistance to accompany the empress in her trek around the continent clearing out the Loptous Sect. He was given high honors by the new government, and continued working as a knight for a while before getting married and retiring.
The Gate Guards – The guards that had let Tristan slip past survived the carnage that followed, and were able to lay low during the ensuing war. However, a year later they all received a summons to the imperial palace. Expecting to be punished, they were instead surprised when Empress Deirdre thanked them all, for without their mistake Grannvale could never have been freed.
Julius – After finding out that the young prince was to become the vessel of the dark god, he was placed under the strictest security measures. This was a stifling and incredibly difficult portion of his life, but after the Loptous Cult was all but expunged, his parents relaxed his security, and found him a magic tutor in the form of a red-haired bishop from Thracia. Julius later entered the priesthood himself, where he served faithfully for the rest of his life.
Julia – As the first heir to the empire, Seliph, did not inherit the major blood of Naga, a minor crisis of succession took place. It was eventually resolved by agreement between the half siblings: Baldr’s descendants would become the new imperial line, while Heim’s would be granted the duchy of Chalphy. Duchess Julia ruled with a kind heart, and lived very frugally for a noble. Later in her life, she married a minor noble of Augustria, and had two children. She was never forced to draw up the Book of Naga for war.
Seliph – The young heir to the legacy of Sigurd was very surprised to hear one morning that the rule of the Loptous Sect had been annihilated overnight. After a very tearful reunion with his mother, the two of them took up arms and began a campaign to wipe Loptous’ followers from Jugdral and end the Child Hunts once and for all. Once the war was over, he remained faithfully at his mother’s side until she abdicated the throne, and after several years of talks and negotiation as emperor, he dissolved the empire and returned Jugdral’s nations to their rightful rulers. He married Lana, his childhood friend from Tirnanogue, and had three children.
Arvis – The Emperor of Flame never wielded executive power again. He brought Seliph the holy Tyrfing, but after the campaign he was stripped of his title and position, and he lived out the rest of his days in a mansion in exile. As concerns arose as to who would inherit Valflame, Arvis conferred the holy tome to Saias in secret. Years later, the line of Fjalar was announced to have been “rediscovered” in the daughter of a minor Thracian noble.
Deirdre – Upon regaining her memories, the Empress of Grannvale went on a wild tour of liberation with her ex-husband, first son, and Tirnanogue’s liberation army. They went from city to city, shattering cult strongholds. Manfroy made his last stand at Darna. Once the threat had been destroyed, she devoted herself to healing her wounded nation. After the shows of force displayed in their cities, Dannan and Blume were quick to fall in line with the new head of state. Wave after wave of radical policies were put into place to help the common folk, governing Jugdral the way she and Sigurd had dreamed about. Hers was a rule of kindness and prosperity, lasting until she abdicated the throne at the age of fifty.