Ursus was Ursus because the people of this land believed themselves to be Ursus.
Ursus was both the name of a country and the name of a land. It represented a brand of pride, etched deep into bone and blood. Once, that pride had brought victory, bread, and wine as rich as nectar.
But what about now?
"A burden."
The newly enthroned young emperor sighed within the heavily draped carriage. The Internal Guards were long accustomed to it. They all knew that the reigning Emperor, Nikolai II, was a wise man who saw ten steps ahead with every step he took. What occupied his mind was the future of the entire nation. He was the driver of this madly speeding train, and behind Nikolai stood an unprecedentedly united leadership.
Whether it was the leader of the Partition Party or the head of the royalists, all had performed the hand-kiss before this emperor.
"Are we there yet?"
Nikolai read in the car. After leaving the Summer Palace, his reading had expanded beyond humanities and politics to include world history. His favorite was Yan Kingdom. No particular reason—it was simply because Yan Kingdom had a longer history.
"Your Majesty, we have not yet arrived."
"Fine, then we wait. That's the one good thing about Ursus—it's huge, like an empty stage."
He returned to his books and continued reading the Twenty-Four Histories.
"Very interesting." Nikolai said with great interest, "The development of society does not move ever forward. It rises in a spiral, advancing amid contradictions. Historical figures are like little stones blocking a wheel—bang, the carriage jolts, then keeps moving forward."
"When can that kind of history be overturned, then?"
Nikolai suddenly grew bored again. He casually tossed the untranslated Yan Kingdom history book aside. The car rolled onward slowly, until six