γ€Ž 𝙰𝙽 π™Έπ™Όπ™Ώπ™΄πšπ™Έπ™°π™» π™³π™Έπ™°π™»π™Ύπ™Άπš„π™΄γ€‚γ€α΄„α΄˜ ΙͺɴᴛᴇʀᴠΙͺᴇᴑ.

Day 5,404, 11:28 • Published in Japan Japan • by Kokawayoshi Nowe



WITHIN THE HOUSEHOLD OF THE IMPERIAL FAMILY.

The sound of cicadas, the breeze rustling grass in the distance. Koi fish peek their heads above water when fed by younger members of the Imperial House, laughter and frantic following of maidens pulling their dresses up just a bit o run after the chaotic youth enjoying the fresh air.

Sitting on a cushion in front of a small table while Oraizan comfortably rests atop another, the duo have all but ignored the chess match they'd started, a plethora of other games stacked up off to the side that would be far more befitting of their lineage. Instead, one scrolls along their phone and the other flicks their thumbs against a Nintendo switch.

﹙ NOWE ﹚ ❝ Hey, what Pokémon do you want me to catch you? ❞

Oraizan was for clarity, the elder ("I believe it was Day 466, Feb 28th 2009. Before citizenship and wars in Japan under the glorious president Akki the cat.") - yet only by months. They had close births, which made many within the nation assume they were in some manner "twins" due to the proximity. They weren't, and their childish arguments would exist throughout much of their late teens, early twenties, and of course now. Except now both were significantly more well-rounded, jaded, and... Tired.

﹙ ORAIZAN ﹚ ❝ I don't know... Charizard or Litten, maybe? ❞

Reminiscing of the past was something the old often did,
but it was different with them...

﹙ NOWE ﹚ ❝ What was it like back then? ❞

﹙ ORAIZAN ﹚ ❝ There was less activity than there is now, I remember reading a few TLDR articles from Akki and wanting to make my own. Nobody cared what was put into the media and I had no friends until my 2nd article. There was low expectations for CPs for sure. No battles. Very little guidance on the few mechanics that existed. IRC quickly became the lifeforce of communities. ❞

A pause, capturing a Pokémon and a soft yes at the accomplishment.

﹙ NOWE ﹚ ❝ Do you remember your first friend? ❞

He's not too sure what she's getting up to, but she's about to become a busy woman. She'd dealt with his instigations only just prior, but a simple apology from the two and talking about where they'd gotten off on the wrong foot in the situation was enough for the "twins" to get along again.

﹙ ORAIZAN ﹚ ❝ Geno Garon was my first, I joined the Orange Party because his articles inspired me and they were 5th in the country... ❞

Nowe snaps a finger and points excitedly, ❝ Geno!!! Haha, definitely a figure. ❞ pauses, just a little... ❝ I have an interview scheduled with him when he's back, too. When did you become S.O.S then? ❞

﹙ ORAIZAN ﹚ ❝ I was a founding member of SOS. Tohru, Haruhi and a few others got together and left the more notable parties to create a more neutral party based around enjoying the game. Some of the bigger parties at the time changed from their original platform/foundation which was the biggest inspiration for SOS. I personally never felt at home in a party once the Orange Party died out. ❞

﹙ NOWE ﹚ ❝ I think that was around the time of ISP vs. FoH, right? ❞

﹙ ORAIZAN ﹚ ❝ FoH joined a lot of different parties, so it is hard to say that it was specifically ISP/FoH. ISP was run by different people which shaped the ISP party into what it was - which is also different from what it is today. Prominent figures like Kita Ikki and Myung Kei were a part of the change. ❞

﹙ NOWE ﹚ ❝ I miss Myung Kei. Had him on facebook, but now I don't have facebook. (QQ) But alright, that was informative. How did you find out about this eWorld, and what made you choose eJapan? ❞

﹙ ORAIZAN ﹚ ❝ I was looking for a good MMORPG and it popped up on some top lists at the time. I started in eJapan because I was studying Japanese at the time and I am not a fan of my birth place so it didn't feel right. I had no idea that eJapan had very few Japanese people actually living here, so it was a little shocking. I stayed because of the community, working with Tohru, Makoto and Akki really kept this game alive for me. ❞

﹙ NOWE ﹚ ❝ Do you have any fond memories of the old days? ❞

﹙ ORAIZAN ﹚ ❝ Nothing notable worth mentioning, just the many conversations on IRC through mIRC and mibbit. 😁 ❞

﹙ NOWE ﹚ ❝ What's the difference between the community then and now? ❞

﹙ ORAIZAN ﹚ ❝ Well there was a lot more people, which is the big difference.. Everybody was on one platform which was mIRC - not split between telegram and discord. There was more diversity in opinion and political stances, so there was always exciting elections. Originally for congress you voted for the person in a specific region not the party - so that created a whole different side to the politics than party vs party that we have now. Originally the community vibe was similar to ours - how most of us are friends and work together despite party lines. But that did change when FoH moved over and more diverse opinions and trolling started to happen. ❞

﹙ NOWE ﹚ ❝ Do you think you'll be able to grasp everyone from Telegram and pull them into Discord under your tenure? ❞

﹙ ORAIZAN ﹚ ❝ I doubt it, lots of people don't like discord for personal reasons outside eRepublik and I don't expect to change that on a large scale. Although it's a nice dream to be together all in one place. ❞

﹙ NOWE ﹚ ❝ It is. I'll continue doing my part in encouraging people to use discord to connect properly with the community, as everyone should. On that note, you've been elected President, what made you change your mind after I asked you? ❞

﹙ ORAIZAN ﹚ ❝ Some stuff IRL ironed out of my schedule which made it easier for me to have time to do. I'm very lazy, and I will openly admit that. When people ask me to do extra work I usually decline by nature, I don't like the time drain or stress. I was asked to run and had conversations about being CP that made me feel more confident that I can do the job despite recently reviving. I put a lot of effort into getting to know the community and game as it is now so that I would be more prepared and confident in the role. These last few days I spent time asking questions of our current lovely CP and my future cabinet which was the final deciding factor for me. I'm not sure at which part of the process you asked me, but I would have said no while I was not confident of my knowledge or time management. ❞

﹙ NOWE ﹚ ❝ Understandable, everyone's extremely busy these days and the current Real World situation doesn't help us have as much fun as we'd like. You've expressed some ideas in your article, and I want to expand on that: What do you think you can improve from Fyr's reign? ❞

﹙ ORAIZAN ﹚ ❝ In today's climate Fyr did an extremely great job through his long reign. The main thing I wish to achieve is more activity - to bring back some fun that we used to have as a community. SOS was founded as I said on enjoying the game, and I feel like many of us don't enjoy it anymore. This has little to do with Fyr and everything to do with eRepublik as a whole. I would also like to have more communication in-game. I don't think many people care to see weekly updates and more articles from the government but I do. Everything else is just to maintain the peace and stability that we have had. Upkeeping our TWs and relations so there are battles to fight in for those who enjoy that. ❞

﹙ NOWE ﹚ ❝ What's your favorite movie, btw? ❞

﹙ ORAIZAN ﹚ ❝ Probably RENT, it's the movie I watch the most. ❞

﹙ NOWE ﹚ ❝ I've never heard of it, what's it about? ❞

﹙ ORAIZAN ﹚ ❝ It's a musical about these friends and their struggles in the late 80s-ish for rent, drugs, sex, and aids, etc. ❞

﹙ NOWE ﹚ ❝ Ewie, musicals. Hahaha, on that topic of music - Do you listen to Måneskin? ❞

﹙ ORAIZAN ﹚ ❝ I do not 😛 or at least I have not heard of them. ❞

﹙ NOWE ﹚ ❝ Wh... okay, we'll fix that when you get home from work. What's your most favorite indie song of all time. ❞

﹙ ORAIZAN ﹚ ❝ Uhhhhmmmmm... Likely this one? She is my favorite indie artist. ❞

﹙ NOWE ﹚ ❝ I'll have to give it a listen with the rest of the viewers, it sounds like a good track already from a brief few second listen. Feel free to choose not to answer the next questions if you feel it necessary, but I figure it pertinent. Playing this game as a woman is understandably equivalent to playing on Hard Mode. Would you say you've gained a thick skin from it? ❞

﹙ ORAIZAN ﹚ ❝ I feel like its a double edged sword, some people either hate or love you based on being a woman right out of the gate. I would say I have a thick skin, but more from working in customer service IRL than eRepublik. It helps to be very laid back and altruistic by nature. In the current climate I think it's not so bad. At least in eJapan most people don't care or use it against me. ❞

﹙ NOWE ﹚ ❝ Fair enough, I remember back in the day how it was. Nowadays it's pretty relaxed. For the record, I apologize if I offended you in the past for anything regarding that. We're friends now, but I remember we typically had disagreements on a lot of things. Glad we're friendly now for the most part, though. It's getting close to the end of our chats, so now I have to ask: As a member of the Imperial House as I, would you agree that our community is entering a new era? What are you most excited about for this new era? ❞

﹙ ORAIZAN ﹚ ❝ No need for apologies. I think it's important for eJapan to have opposing sides if we are to keep the community alive and prosper. If things are one sided you have one opinion and one outcome that may not be the best for the country. In its roots the original CP and cabinets recognized this and came together for this purpose. To your question, personally I'm excited to make new friends and have fun. I love to learn from and meet people in all different steps of their journey through life. I would say there is certainly change happening, whether it brings in a new Era remains to be seen.. but I hope so. Change for the sake of change is bad. But I hope for an era of fun and prosperity for all of us citizens of the glorious and beautiful eJapan. This is good change. ❞

Nowe groans at losing a battle, mostly due to underestimating the amount of potions he'd need to take with him. Placing the switch down, he verbalizes a small, childish dig - not to her, but in general. Oraizan responds to most frustrations and whining with a laugh, carefree and unbothered.

"What should we get for lunch? You need to eat well before dealing with the country... and me, of course." Nowe sticks his tongue out just a little, obviously in jest. While Generals in the military serving the Imperial Household flaunt their status and desperately claim anything said against them is misinformation akin to a dictator, the tea within the Imperial Household tastes remarkable with the dishes served to Nowe and Oraizan.

... LATER THAT EVENING,

❝ Sir, Shiriru has arrived. ... May I ask what's planned? ❞

Resting elbow atop table, chin on palm - fingers drum while looking towards the ominous clouds looming in the distance. Drums them, ❝ 出る杭は打たれる。❞

They pause, initially confused. Nodding slowly, they seem to understand.

❝ 井の中の蛙大海を知らず。❞

A scroll from the Defense Minister's office is lit on fire by a lighter, and the small flame is tossed into a bin to the side where it will burn out entirely. Sake pulled to lips to sip and Nowe dismisses them for the night to enjoy his own schemes... as Oraizan once concluded for him. Cheeky, I know. (x3)