Right, so now that Episode 2 & 3 have aired, we’ve gotten more information about the situation between the different regions and the situation in Akiba. In light of that information, we’ve gained different perspectives on the views of all the players and politics. And I have to say now more than ever, I love Eins as a character because of it.
To give a general overview, Eins took the offer of being made the Duke of Akiba in order to gain the political power to make a grand sweeping change. Now, normally, this title wouldn’t mean much to Adventurers. The whole thing in Season 1 and the reason they rejected a title from Rayneshia’s Grandfather was because they didn’t want to deal with the political side of things.
Adventurers are “free” and value that freedom very much.
However, it’s different for the People of the Land. Remember, the existing system is largely feudalistic. As Rudy points out, people have to spend most of their lives working in the fields or in a trade, and if they can’t commit to one or the other or are useless, they have to leave their homes. That’s a very real thing that happened during the Middle Ages, with more education and leisure time only coming about after improvements in industrialization making farming and labor easier. And that was without the threat of monsters like here.
The people who came to Akiba are largely, in their minds, refugees who had nowhere to go. Even though they can change their jobs to take on a new craft (and in Rudy’s case become an Adventurer), they still see themselves as refugees because there is no place for them. They have no representation outside of Rayneisha, they have no real claim to the land, and they technically don’t have any positions of importance. A Duke is a very important figure to them because they represent someone who grants them these things, along with security.
And because the Duke has that much influence over the People of the Land, who also provide almost 90% of the resources that are used by the Merchant and Crafting Guilds, Eins effectively gained the upper hand over them. With a word, he could easily cut them off from these resources, meaning that the only way to regain them would be to comply with his request or take them by force, something that most adventurers don’t want to do.
Moreover, he sided with the Holy Empire of Westelande. Remember, most dealings the adventurers have had with that region have been hostile and in complete opposition to Eastelande, with who they are in good relations. Rayneshia was acting as their representative (who the Adventurers are fond of) and the Black Knights are basically working in a partnership with them. His actions have basically caused a major rift between all factions as a result.
Now, Eins isn’t stupid. He justifies doing this because they are already dependent on the People of the Land due to the fact that they provide the resources and at least with him in the position he can ensure someone else doesn’t get the title and can use that to hold it over their heads. And its also shown that while there is still a rift between the East and West, he believes they could serve as a bridge between them.
However, this doesn’t change the fact that he knows very well how his actions will be perceived and how he’ll look for it. He’s thrown away his honor and effectively bound himself to an outside power to gain a title. That’s the reason Marves was talking like he ran the place and Eins couldn’t tell him to shut up, because he is effectively under the thumb of Touri and no longer free, while Shiroe points out that he doesn’t have to address Touri as highly as them because he’s not under his thumb.
Eins has thrown away his freedom and even ruined his own reputation amongst his people, but he did it so that everyone could have a better livelihood. His ideal is to benefit the downtrodden and the adventurers who have lost their hearts. He needed power and he took what looked to be the best option, even if it left him covered with mud to his name.
Now does that sound familiar to you?
It should because it’s the same thing that Shiroe did. In order to make sure the Round Table was founded, he bought the Guild Hall and drafted the first laws to protect the People of the Land as well as set the foundation for Akiba. He’s the Villain-in-Glasses, whose reputation among the general public is very poorly received because to get things done he resorted to the means he needed to knowing it painted him as a schemer.
The difference is that Shiroe is talented enough to do most of these things using options that Eins couldn’t. Shiroe has accomplished many things because of his capabilities. He gets results, which is why Eins wanted him to be a part of the ruling body, even if it basically turned him into more of a figurehead because in truth Shiroe would effectively be the one handling things.
And we have a perfectly good example of how that would turn out with Indicus and Nureha.
Indicus has basically ruled the Holy Empire of Westeland by getting the Senate on her side, with Touri being little more than a figurehead. Sure, Nureha is the one who is technically controlling Plant Hwyaden, but until she grew a spine Indicus was calling the shots. Worse, Indicus is the absolute worst person to be in the position because of her mindset.
Her motive rant is simple to understand. She loves looking down on people from the top. She loves being in control. These things are like a drug to her and she’s perfectly willing to start a war to make that happen, sweeping all of the land up in the process.
Shiroe would probably be in the best position to counteract her if he went along with Eins scheme, using his initiatives as leverage to keep control. However, Shiroe has a surprisingly high amount of faith in others. That’s why he’s perfectly willing to let go of whatever leverage he gets when it’s no longer needed.
He could have controlled the Round Table similar to Indicus by holding the Guild Hall hostage (the upkeep costs had a number of solutions). It would have been the smart thing to do, as it would have taken care of the problem of what happens when the Round Table isn’t in agreement and can’t solve anything because of that. But he chose to remove the piece from the board by making a deal with the Kunie clan to return it to the land itself. He even made it so that no one could buy land to the extent of denying access to it through the system, so both the People of the Land and Adventurers alike could have access to it.
At the end of the day, Shiroe wants what is best for everyone but has faith that they can achieve it. He reinforces this by deciding to have the People of the Land and Adventurers vote on the governing system of Akiba rather than allow himself to be placed into the position where he’d be best to oversee everything. He’s banking on that being able to make it so that everyone gets what they wants.
I just hope his faith isn’t misplaced.
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