25th December, Space Era Year 100.
The National Day of Centory had dawned — a day that coincided with the birthdays of Lord Aelyzabeth Thors and Lieutenant General Vito Vilozyver, the twin pillars of the nation, regarded as the very spirit of this new age.
The capital city, Berlyn, shimmered beneath the winter sky.Towering buildings were adorned with banners of white and gold, bearing the emblem of the State — the Star of Centory, upon which a black swastika entwined with a ceremonial sword rested within a white circle over a navy field.Music thundered from the loudspeakers in every district, and the crowds roared with one name upon their lips — "Aelyzabeth!" — as if she were the goddess who had delivered the realm from famine and debt.
The Festival of the Century.
With her immense personal fortune, Aelyzabeth Thors funded "The Grand Feast of the Century" — the greatest celebration since the founding of the New Hope Republic.Thousands of delicacies from across the stars were distributed freely among the people: fine wines, Centoryan ales, golden-buttered breads, and premium-grade synthetic meats.
At the central plaza, the main stage hosted a gladiatorial spectacle to the death — a symbolic representation of "the struggle for the survival of the nation."Though many foreign observers decried its brutality, the citizens roared in unison.In their eyes, it was not savagery, but the triumph of strength, loyalty, and imperial pride.
Alongside the celebration stood a grand exhibition of the Five Guilds of the Crown Diamonds —Zav Scheneinger displayed its war machines; Medinker SG–E Gen its electronic marvels; Fryre its weaponry; Virmith its monumental architecture; and Kiezseiner its refined consumer luxuries — each a testament to what Centory called "the fruits of national prosperity."
The Shadow Behind the Light.
Yet behind the radiant pageantry, a veil of silence hung over the Führer's mansion.Aelyzabeth Thors had fallen gravely ill on December 22nd from an undisclosed injury.All details were classified by the government, with only one official statement released:
"The condition remains stable."
During her incapacitation, General Aelaera von Escheinsen assumed the duties of Regent of the Supreme Leader, overseeing the nation in her stead.Together with Walter von Yigzorch, head of the Propaganda Office, she appeared before the crowd to deliver a declaration on this sacred National Day:
"By the order of our Supreme Leader, Lord Aelyzabeth Thors, Lieutenant Aerys Vilozyver, her eldest son, aged eight, is hereby named as her rightful heir and successor."
The announcement struck the nation like thunder — a storm of doubt, awe, and devotion rippled through the people.Critics whispered questions of reason and legitimacy, but Walter's response silenced all dissent:
"What Lord Aelyzabeth Thors has decided is the culmination of her greatest wisdom.To question her is to question the very destiny of our nation."
The Economic Revival
Though Centory remained in deficit, the strength of the Five Crown Diamond Guilds brought swift recovery.No competitors, no price wars — only unity and discipline.Every citizen enjoyed full welfare, every factory operated at maximum output,and wages and benefits soared higher than ever before.
By the close of the second fiscal quarter, 15th January, Space Era 101,the national deficit was projected to fall to 31.29%,a monumental victory hailed as "the greatest economic triumph in the age of dictatorship."
Yet such prosperity demanded its price—The economy was now entirely controlled by the Five Guilds.The free market was dead; the State had become divine.To oppose it was blasphemy.
The War of Tariffs.
Unable to cripple Centory through sanctions,the Earth Republic launched what was called "The War of Tariffs" —raising trade taxes on all nations that maintained relations with Centory,hoping to isolate Aelyzabeth's empire from its allies.
But fate twisted against them.The People Republic of Thailang, under President Wilhelm von Thazalus,addressed the galaxy in a televised declaration:
"Centory is our elder sister, and Aelyzabeth von Thors is the daughter of my honor."
He proclaimed a full economic and military alliance with Centory.Aelyzabeth responded by dispatching twelve commissioned officersto train Thailang's armed forces, establishing munitions and starship factories, and gifting the Wehrmacht uniform design which is a regular uniform of Centory Force as the standard attire of Thailang's new army.
The galaxy was astonished.What the Earth Republic had intended as Centory's isolation instead became the foundation of a far greater power — an alliance born of loyalty, discipline, and shared destiny.
Thus, on the hundredth year of the Space Era, beneath banners of white and gold,the Empire of Centory celebrated both its splendor and its shadow— an empire that fed its people, armed its allies, and knelt only before the will of Aelyzabeth von Thors,the woman who made nations bow and history tremble.
Thus ends Chapter C-VI.