[Hajime POV]
The explanation of what happened to the citizens, as well as the coronation ceremony, went by very quickly, though I was not enthused with their 'sacred spit' during the coronation. Though I'm sure everyone was happy that they got to experience a coronation that didn't involve nearly blowing up the island.
I didn't bother hiding what happened with my challenge, since it was likely to be found out eventually. Not to mention, people rarely cared who was in charge, as long as life didn't get worse.
Either way, I was now, unequivocally, the king of Kinkow, and that meant I had quite a bit of work to do.
As king, there was a lot of work that I needed to do. Honestly, Brady and Boomer were lucky to be twins, as it theoretically meant splitting the workload.
I say theoretically because when I asked Mikayla about my responsibilities, she looked like she was on the verge of tears.
That was, apparently, the first time in months that any king wanted to get work done.
Kinkow actually had a relatively uninvolved government system, but ultimately, it was a monarchy, so all decisions still required royal approval.
That wasn't a bad thing since most kings grew up here, but Boomer and Brady grew up with their aunt and uncle in Chicago. Not only was their common sense different from that of those from this isolated magical island, but they, as teenagers, focused on stereotypical things such as popularity and cool, expensive items.
Not only did they rarely understand what they would need to do for the job, but they didn't care about it.
One of my first acts as king was to remove the threats I was aware of.
My first targets were Lanny and Yamakoshi, using my Geass to prevent them from trying anything after I left.
Yamakoshi's command was that he'd always help Kinkow in as peaceful a manner as possible. If he ever did become human, he'd still help Kinkow, specially wording it so he wouldn't be able to declare war for Kinkow's benefit. With his magical knowledge, he would be a massive threat to most people outside the island.
Lanny was not too different. I gave him orders to help Kinkow and not to attempt to depose me.
My first order to Lanny as king gave him two tasks.
One order was that he'd head a new department that would innovate using Kinkow's more magical resources. For example, there might be special uses for waka waka bug venom, and this new department would test it and other magical resources.
When I eventually open this world up to DxD, I will already have several useful things to sell to other factions.
The second order was to get the village working on infrastructure and transportation. It was often shown how frequently the kings needed to walk through the jungle, and while I don't want to damage the island, there also needed to be safer ways for people to move throughout the island.
I also wanted more communication and transport between islands.
There were eight islands in the archipelago that Kinkow was a part of, but only a few were ever mentioned.
Mindu had sunk into the sea thanks to Boz.
Cornea and Sununu were only shown because of their princess and twin queens, respectively.
Kippi Kippi were the opponents in the Junga ball episode.
Lakuna was only ever mentioned in passing.
That left two kingdoms unmentioned in the show, though during my tour, Mikayla told me those were the kingdoms of Zolia and Atqui.
One thing that would benefit all the islands is a more interconnected system. Besides that, I was also curious about what kinds of stuff were on the other islands. Kinkow is by far the largest in the archipelago, but the other islands also have magic, as shown by the curse on Sununu.
Did they also have waka waka bugs? Perhaps it was similar to the Galapagos, where the animals were distinct due to the island's unique geography? Or were the islands completely different?
Either way, I was curious.
I was also curious about what Brady and Boomer were doing, as they had left a few hours ago.
-----
[Flashback Start]
I was standing in front of the hot air balloon that Brady and Boomer were going to take to Mindu. While boats were faster, from the little I had read in the Great Book so far, there were several dangers at sea, including a giant octopus, swamp monsters, and pirates.
That was part of why the twins took a hot air balloon when they came here, when a plane and a boat would have been faster. The ocean around the archipelago was just too dangerous.
The hot air balloon was packed with their things, namely clothes and some money.
If I didn't know that the island had a gold-pooping gopher, I'd have cared about how much they took.
Besides that, I did check to make sure they didn't bring any magical objects with them. My lack of knowledge about the other islands was the main reason for concern. If they brought something that cursed the island, but the cure only existed here, I'd be dooming an island because of their stupidity. There's also the fact that they would technically be stealing historical Kinkow artifacts, which I didn't want to happen.
The twins finally came out of the castle with a slightly solemn look on their faces.
Aside from them, I gave them a very important person as the pilot, Mason, and had him bring their baby picture.
I figured it would be best to send him, not only so he could confirm that Boz was, in fact, their brother, but also to explain what happened both to Boz back then and to the twins today.
While I do not doubt that Boz would be upset that his brothers were basically scammed, there was also nothing he could do. With me legally being king now, he had no more claim to the throne.
Though severing ties with our country would be an option, it wouldn't be a good idea to ruin Mindu and Kinkow's diplomatic relationship when the twin kings were idiots who bet their island.
There was also the problem of the hurricane that would strike them in a few months. If the island did sink, and they did end up on Kinkow like in canon, I would likely have to deny their entry.
I wouldn't leave them to die, and would give them the supplies needed to survive, but inviting citizens of a kingdom that severed ties? I couldn't allow their king to move here, but it was also likely that the citizens would follow his lead, even if there were no more Mindu.
As the twins reached the balloon, they said goodbye to Mikayla.
While Boomer was calmer, Brady, though trying to look like he wasn't sad he was going to be separated from his crush, was clearly about to start crying.
This was probably my first major change to any story that I would really be seeing.
Recruiting Tsubaki and Akeno, though it definitely changes DxD, won't truly reveal the depth of change for a few years.
Right now, though, I was seeing the consequences of my actions.
I could easily excuse myself, saying that I know he doesn't date Mikayla, or he's a teenager who often flirts with other girls on the island when he can, such as Mikayla's rival, Sabrina; there's also no guarantee of anything like that happening, especially thanks to my interference. Heck, even the show wasn't sure what to do with them by the end of season two.
The story had a vague plot where she had to kiss Brady to remove a curse from him, only to remove him in the season three premiere, partly because he had heard her confess her confused feelings.
That said, I was able to ignore any feelings of guilt, knowing that I had done nothing wrong.
I exploited an information gap, which they, as usual, ignored. Despite all the crazy stuff they'd seen on this island, including me, a child, toying with one of their best warriors, they didn't think there was a chance of losing.
Honestly, had they just not given in to their overinflated pride and accepted the challenge, then there would have been nothing I could do about it other than change my request.
They won't even be able to undo it since that would require a magical contract or artifact that could affect me, but the limit of this world's power was in mid-class.
That already limited the amount of things in this world that contained mid-class power, but even then, I was ultimate-class. The only object that could affect me was the do-over clock, which likely existed at the world's peak, and even then, it would only affect me since the king was the only one truly unaffected by it.
Eventually, the balloon took off.
Mikayla stayed to watch for a bit while I went inside to keep training.
-----
I'd already had a shadow clone reading the Great Book to find out whatever it could. After reading about something interesting, it would immediately dispel, so I could create another clone to take advantage of that knowledge.
For example, the island's geology has created something known as rumble rocks, which explode when they come into contact with coconut milk. This phenomenon could be extremely useful for either mining or construction.
Not everything was useful, and even for something like rumble rocks, their usefulness was questionable, but it was still good to check things for myself. After all, even if there was an equivalent in DxD, I can't imagine them having the same activation method.
While one clone read and several were out hunting for new resources, I was busy training something that I'd ignored for a while, mana suppression.
I had all the mana for an ultimate-class, and though it wasn't passively emitting any aura thanks to my control, I still gave off the feel of an ultimate-class.
To better explain, it was the difference between controlled and uncontrolled conqueror's haki. Sure, they both worked, but one was more efficient, while the other was more reckless.
Ironically, this trip was extremely beneficial for me in that regard.
The Great Book possesses knowledge of most things on the island, including the magic of the many tribes and creatures that inhabit it. One such group, the Flagi, was a tribe of green-skinned people who could turn invisible. This invisibility magic was recorded in the book, alongside a special technique to suppress the individual's aura and avoid detection.
Although learning invisibility would still take some time, aura suppression was much easier to train, and it was also recommended to train it first.
While I was training, I noticed Mikayla enter the room and start sparring against the wooden dummy, reminding me to try to train her in magic.
Creating another shadow clone, I leave it to work with her while I continue with my training.
[Flashback End]
-----
[Mason POV]
As the balloon started to descend, I could see Mindu's capital come into view.
Though I was slightly concerned that my new king, a phrase which felt strange and wrong, I also strangely felt like he wasn't lying, something which I was desperately hoping for.
I still remember how sad Kunu and Annabella were when Boz was lost at sea.
I felt guilty about my actions at the time, but they were necessary.
Back then, the plan was to send the boys to Chicago to live with Annabella's sister until they were old enough to defend themselves.
The storm came a day after we had left, so we had no choice but to keep going. Though Brady and Boomer were safe, Boz was thrown overboard.
When they wanted to send out every possible boat to search, I was the one who convinced them not to. At the time, our conflict with the Kaita was starting to intensify, and with a threat like his bat, the potential need to evacuate civilians meant we needed to keep some boats in the port.
Eventually, Boz was thought to be lost. After that, we spent the better part of the next decade and a half fighting Kaita and his forces, with Kunu and Annabella sacrificing themselves to put a temporary stop to him.
When the balloon finally landed, a small crowd had already gathered. At the front of the crowd was a tall, lanky, red-haired person wearing a crown.
Getting out of the balloon, I walked up to him and kneeled.
"Hello there, King of Mindu. I am Mason Makoola of Kinkow."
"Oh, hey!" the king said. "I heard a lot about you guys. You've been up to some crazy stuff since you've gotten those new kings of yours."
"Yes, well, things have changed recently. As of earlier today, they are no longer kings. They lost their throne due to a challenge from a strange child with untold power."
At this point, the twins stepped forward. "These are the twins, Brady and Boomer, former kings of Kinkow."
"Nice to meet you all," the king said, before going in for a hug, something Minduians were known for.
After hugging me, he went to hug the twins.
"If I may, your highness, the new king of Kinkow told me something about you that could change your life."
"What?"
"Before that, would you mind showing me your stomach first to confirm something for me?"
"Uh, sure?" he said as he raised his shirt. "Weird request, but honestly not the strangest."
As he talked, I stopped listening when I saw the birthmark on his belly button that King Hajime mentioned.
"The Kinkow Swirl," I muttered subconsciously.
"The what?" Boomer said.
"Mason, mind filling us in?"
"The Kinkow Swirl. It's a birthmark that those of Kinkow's royal blood all possess. You've already told me about how you both had one."
Turning around and reaching into the hot air balloon, I grabbed the picture of the twins and took it out of the frame.
Unfolding the picture revealed a third infant, Boz.
"Several years ago, the late King Kunu and Queen Annabella sent their triplets to Chicago to protect them from the war that ravaged Kinkow. A storm hit the ship, though, and sent one of their children overboard, long thought to be deceased.
King Boz of Mindu, your birthmark is proof that you were that missing child."
A silence overtook the crowd as my words sank in.
"You mean I have two brothers?!" Boz exclaimed.
I mentally sighed, hoping he was at least a little more responsible than his brothers.
__________
Author's Note:
I understand if not everyone likes this arc, but not every arc can be good. This is my first story, and I barely know where it's going.
Thanks for reading; I'll see you next time!