In the final two weeks of December, after five months, Landen once again received notice from the Grand Council. The Empire would determine his final title based on the territory and population under his control.
The Empire had already acknowledged Landen as the master of Gallop Plains. However, whether his domain would become a relatively independent kingdom, an autonomous territory directly under the Empire, or a vassal duchy of either the Empire or the Dragon Kingdom remained undecided.
The names of the Empire's various administrative divisions—kingdoms, duchies, autonomous territories, directly governed territories—had puzzled Landen for a long time. He had even asked Albert and Ben Kaul, yet failed to get a reasonable answer. It seemed that even the Empire's administrative departments did not care much for such titles.
Generally speaking, kingdoms and duchies were relatively independent. They paid less tax to the Empire, but received fewer subsidies as well. In wartime, the Empire would prioritize policy support rather than directly dispatching troops. They could be understood as buffer zones between the Empire's core regions and foreign races.
For instance, the Gallop Kingdom three hundred years ago had been a buffer between humans and Beastmen. Back then, the Gallop Royal Family had greater autonomy in decision-making concerning the Western Region.
Of course, whether a kingdom was established did not depend solely on geographical location. Factors such as belief systems, racial composition, and strength were also involved. Girislav and the dragons, for example, possessed beliefs quite distinct from those in the Empire's core regions and were also situated along the border, thus becoming independent kingdoms.
If one lacked the strength to defend oneself at the border, required vast resources from the Empire's core regions, possessed too little land, or depended heavily on the Empire's economy and policies, one would become an autonomous