King La Halit II Boulevard, Otaheit, Mu, 3rd of January, 1640, 7:52 AM

Lerney sat in a busy tram traversing through the capital city as he adjusted his monocle. In his arms was a suitcase as he looked out the window to the streets of Otaheit. The day was busy as usual, he thought. Carriages and automobiles clogged the capital streets as he looked up to the sky. Another smoky, snowy day.

Lerney then looked ahead as he could see the familiar building of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. He quickly stood up from his bench as he apologised and squeezed through the other passengers before he hopped off the tram. Lerney looked both ways before he crossed the cobblestone streets. After he waved dismissively at the horn of an automobile, Lerney sighed as he finally entered the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

"Morning, Jain," Lerney passively said to the receptionist who simply waved before she returned to typing on her typewriter. Lerney entered through the door as he walked deeper into the building. Soon enough, he reached a set of double doors as inside his fellow colleagues of the ministry all turned to greet him. "Morning, chaps!"

"Good morning Sir Lerney," an elderly woman, Laura said as she looked to the clock. "Right on time as usual."

"Just when I'd think you're late you suddenly arrive," a middle aged elf, Berm said as he was smoking his pipe.

"Oh you know me, be too early and you lose your hop. Be too late and you make a fool of yourself," Lerney said with a little smirk as he set his bag down onto the long meeting table.

"So what's on the agenda today, Sir Lerney?" Another man, Delwin, this time a dwarf with greying hair and a moustache said.

"Ah yes. I called this meeting to discuss something very very interesting," Lerney said with a big smile. He then opened his bag and pulled out multiple files as he handed one to each person. "It concerns about a new power in the far east."

"A new power? Only that expansionist empire is the power in the east, no?" Delwin said questionably as he opened the file.

"They were, yes... Until a couple months ago," Lerney said. "Ladies and gentlemen, there's once more another country that has been transported to here."

"Oh bloody hell another one?" Laura said in worry as she looked to Lerney. "Are they as bad as the one in the west?"

"Allow me to explain, Misses Fetter," Lerney said with a chuckle. "I introduce to you, the Republic of Italy. Mugei has sent reports that a nation was transported from their to world to Elysia. And get this, they're from Gaia!"

The room then gasped and murmured amongst themselves before Berm spoke up, "From Gaia? Who are they then? The Atlanteans? The Hellenics?"

"Close. Let me explain first. According to Mugei, the Republic of Italy is a nation of about sixty million. He said they came from the Evros continent. If I remember my Gaian History correctly, we had a small trading post on those lands during ancient times. As such, this Italy is from that continent," Lerney explained.

The room again whispered amongst themselves before another employee, a younger looking man, Calin spoke, "So they're not magical like us, I assume?"

"Indeed. So basic information first. Their capital city is Rome. Main exports are luxury goods, vehicles... They're actually very industrialised like Mu and the HME, and they have advanced mechanical civilian and military technology. They have aero machines like the Marin, but Mugei said that he managed to catch a glimpse of their planes that they call jets. They went to speeds that, he said, estimated to be about nearly two thousand kilometres per hour," Lerney continued.

Laura went wide eyed as she adjusted her glasses, "Two thousand- Sir Lerney, are you certain Mugei is correct in his information?"

"Absolutely, miss. Again, he even saw those planes himself when they did a show of force on Parpaldia," Lerney said. "Anyway, as you continue to read the file, Italy is an industrialised nation. As such they have big, major cities such as, umm... M-Milan, Naples? Genoa, Venice, Turin, and a few others. Italy is a major arms manufacturer. They create guns, planes, machinery, warships, and more. So they're industrious enough to have a dedicated military industry."

"So I assume much like their planes, they may be advanced in these sectors as well?" Berm said curiously.

"I'd assume so. Mugei also said he caught a glimpse of their ships. And they're quite advanced," Lerney said. "In the file are some pictures he took during his visit. As of now we still haven't officially launched diplomatic talks with Italy which is the topic of this meeting."

"Oh my, these streets look a lot like Otaheit," Laura said as she read the writing on the black and white photograph. "City of Milan... Fascinating. They even have what look like trams, automobiles, this doesn't look too different from Mu."

"So I assume we'll be reaching out to Italy soon then? When are we doing that?" Delwin asked.

"Once I meet with the king who I've no doubt would approve of it, I'll send a message to Mugei to meet with their ambassador to Parpaldia that we'll send a delegation to them," Lerney said. "Ladies and gentlemen, this is an exciting new chapter in our foreign policy."

"What a way to start the New Year," Laura said with a light laugh.

Lardin Avenue, Esthirant, 2:39 PM

Mugei adjusted his coat to cope with the cold winter winds of Esthirant as he walked down the streets. As he held his briefcase, he looked up to see the Italian Embassy.

As the Italian tricolour flew on the roof of the manor, Mugei approached the gated lot of the embassy. He approached the guard as he showed off his Kingdom of Mu Ambassador ID to the soldier, "Good afternoon, I'm Galla Mugei. I'm the Ambassador of Mu to Parpaldia. I'm here to meet with the ambassador."

The guard took Mugei's ID and eyed it intently. He then looked back to Mugei and returned the ID to him, "Alright, just head inside."

You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.

"Thank you," Mugei said with a friendly smile. He watched as another guard opened the metal gate of the mansion before he walked inside. Mugei reached the front door, and unlike the traditional Parpaldian exterior, the inside of the building was much more modern. Working electricity, modern devices, and actual heating.

Mugei approached the receptionist as he smiled, "Good day. I wish to speak to Ambassador Catalano? I'm Sir Galla Mugei, ambassador from the Kingdom of Mu."

"Oh! Nice to meet you, Sir Mugei. Umm... Yeah, the ambassador should be free right now. Let me ring you up," Enzo said as he pressed a button on the telephone. "Hey, sir? The ambassador for Mu wants to meet with you."

"... Oh? Huh. Okay! Send him in, thanks Enzo."

Enzo smiled as he stood up. He slipped out of the receptionist desk and spoke, "Follow me, Sir Mugei."

"Thank you," Mugei said. With that, Enzo walked through the double doors that lead deeper into the manor. As Mugei looked around, the interior was changed to accommodate the modern needs of the Italians within the building. Electricity, computers, those strange black orbs in the corner of the ceiling, it was like being in Italy.

"Rimini officials have announced that clean up of the city will finish by-" Antonio looked up to the door as he heard the knock.

"Come in," He said as he then turned off the TV as he stood up and smiled. Enzo opened the door and stepped aside for Mugei.

"Ambassador of Mu, sir," Enzo said.

"Welcome! Thanks Enzo," Antonio said as he watched his receptionist walk out. He offered a hand to Mugei as he shook it. "Nice to meet you, Mugei was it? Sir Mugei?"

"Yes, indeed. Good afternoon to you, Ambassador. It's been a while since we've seen each other. Last we did was your nation's transfer, right?" Mugei said with a smile as he sat down across Antonio who say back down as well.

"Oh yes, when we met with Parpaldia for the first time. And we approved of your visa into Italy as well. But I think this is the first time we'll truly have a conversation together," Antonio said.

"Right, indeed. Well... Allow me to start us off. I'm here as an official representative from Mu's Ministry of Foreign Affairs," Mugei said with a smile. "My nation intends to send a delegation over to Italy as soon as possible. We believe we can have a mutual relationship between our two countries. Like your homeland, Mu is a magicless nation. We are more of a country of industry and science than magic. And that's for a good reason."

Antonio had a curious look as he watched Mugei then pull out some sort of map. Upon closer look however, Antonio realised what it was as Mugei placed the map on the desk, "No way, is that-!?"

"A world map of Gaia," Mugei said. Antonio looked at the map. It was undeniable. Despite the ancient design, he could see that the map followed the coastlines around the Atlantic Ocean. Mugei pointed to a particularly familiar peninsula in Europe. "And this is Italy. When I realised that you were a nation from Gaia, or Earth as you guys call it now, I was absolutely stunned."

"That's... wow. That's actually shocking," Antonio said as he rubbed his mouth in contemplation. "So, where on Earth is Mu from then?"

Mugei then circled his finger around the south Atlantic where the Mu continent was, "We were from around here back in Gaia. This continent right here is... or well, was Atlantis. You may have heard of them." He said as he pointed to Antarctica.

"I see... Fascinating. I never thought that Atlantis of all places would be real," Antonio said, dumbfounded.

"Well, I cannot blame you... I believe this is a good opportunity to discuss my country and the continent's history," Mugei said as he cleared his throat. "During ancient times on Gaia, the Kingdom of Mu and the Atlantean Society were the two superpowers back on our old planet. We innovated in all sorts of engineering, maths, and the arts. We were quite the naval power, able to traverse the whole world and establish outposts which caused the rivalry between Mu and Atlantis."

Antonio listened carefully as he looked to the map again, "No wonder this map is very accurate."

Mugei nodded before he continued, "Indeed. But sometime around 3000 BCE, our continent was suddenly transported from Gaia to Elysia. In fact, it was from our ancestors that the name Elysia was conceived. This is my hunch, but this transfer had the catastrophic climatic consequence of freezing Atlantis, which you now call Antarctica. As for us, when the continent was discovered, we were invaded very quickly. Our ancient machines were no match for the magic and creatures of this world."

Antonio looked back to Mugei who now had a more confident and bigger smile, "And now, when your nation transferred and I realised you too were from Gaia, I knew I had to convince foreign affairs to establish an official diplomatic relationship with Italy."

Antonio then had his own smile only to think for a moment as he had a more contemplative expression, "I'll let my government know. But... Say, sir Mugei... Why do you think our countries were transported to his world?"

Mugei sighed, "To this day, we're still not sure. And it's been such a long time since our transfer that many Muans think the transfer is just fiction. But whatever the reason, we can only assume," He said before he had a more grim look. "But for the other transferred nation to the west of Mu... It was either a mistake, or a punishment."

Antonio simply had a look of confusion to Mugei.

Chigi Palace, Rome, 5:29 PM

"... They expect the delegation to arrive in Rome by next week. We've already planned an itinerary for the delegation. They'll land in Leonardo da Vince-Fiumicino Airport and meet with you and the president over at Quirinal. The next day will be a train ride to Florence for a display of arts and architecture, and the day after that is a trip to Venice," Bianca said before she looked to Giovanni who nodded for her to continue.

"And then, they'll head to Milan before they travel by helicopter to La Spezia to tour them our naval vessels and the two Thaon di Revel class OPVs that were meant for Indonesia before we left Earth. And theeen... I think Moretti said he'll have the Cavour and its F-35s have a show as well around there. Back to Rome and that's the end of their trip," Bianca said before she took a deep breath. "So, what do you think?"

"Okay, two things," Giovanni said as he sat up in his seat. "One, that's a sound plan, I approve. And two, they have planes? I thought this world was just all medieval fantasy?" The prime minister said in confusion.

Bianca shrugged, "Apparently not, sir. From what Antonio told me, it's the central and western parts of Elysia that's the most developed. Here in the east is the least developed area of the planet. They got trams and cars over there, but not as advanced as ours I believe... Think early 20th century."

"I see... Well with how cocky we've been from Louria and Topa, it wouldn't hurt to be reminded and be more careful with our steps," Giovanni said as he took a sip of his water afterwards.

"Oh yes, it is. But um... speaking of 20th century," Bianca then placed down the file she held as she pulled out another and opened it up. She then handed it to Giovanni.

"What's this?" He asked as he took the file in his hands to read it.

"The ambassador from Mu, sir Mugei, warned us about a country in the far west. It's called the Gra Valkas Empire," Bianca said as Giovanni read the file. "They are a transferred nation as well, only they're from a world akin to the 1930s during World War II. They have planes, battleships, tanks... And well..."

"... They've invaded a neighbouring nation called the Paganda Kingdom which is a vassal of... Leifor. After the incident where their diplomat was executed by the orders of the king," Giovanni read.

"Mhm. And because of this they invaded Leifor after as well. And Leifor was the 4th most powerful country on Elysia until they capitulated. Apparently they only stopped their retaliation after Mu mediated the peace talks between Leifor and Gra Valkas so now they're the vassals of this transferred country," Bianca said before she had a more worried look. "But what worried Mu apparently is how powerful Gra Valkas is. We're not sure how much yet, but according to Antonio... They have the industrial capabilities of the US back in the 40s. They're described as expansionist, cocky... And seeing that they're clearly not hesitant to go to war, then..."

"Then we have a potential new problem in the west," Giovanni said with a frown.