Houma Kingdom

**The Houma Kingdom** was a prosperous overworld kingdom, founded by mages capable of learning magic that rivaled the power of the gods.

## **History**

According to King Bosse, the residents of the Houma Kingdom were a kind people who would aid others when they were struggling. When they learned of the enslavement of entire countries by the gods, they declared war in order to end their tyranny. Since the Houma Kingdom had many mages with incredible magic power, they were able to achieve multiple victories against the gods. However, they also quickly realized that one major defeat could turn the tide of victory against them, and thus began to seek outside help.

At some point either prior to the war or at the start of it, Bosse travelled to Houma to fight one of their mages in a duel of strength. Miranjo's father would agree to the duel, and proceed to nearly kill Bosse before being killed himself. Miranjo's mother, who was exceptionally kind and forgiving, would go on to heal Bosse. From that point on, Bosse would fight alongside the Houma military in their war effort, as well as watch over Miranjo and her mother.

To bolster their numbers, the Houma Kingdom sent some of their most skilled mages to the neighboring Kingdom of Gyakuza in order to form an alliance. Gyakuza, in comparison to Houma, was desolate and in no condition to raise an army due to having been occupied repeatedly by foreign powers. The representatives of Houma thereby began to assist the citizenry of Gyakuza with building up their kingdom, as well as teaching them how to use magic. While this benefitted Gyakuza greatly in developing a civilization akin to Houma's within a few years, it quickly became apparent that the Gyakuza were a selfish and deceitful people.

During the war with the gods, the Houma Kingdom's military were willing to engage in conflicts that had a high risk of defeat, so long as they could weaken the god's grips on their various enslaved populations. They also treated their opponents military with respect after they lost, being merciful to the prisoners they captured. The Gyakuzan military, however, behaved in a complete opposite manner. When they were in a losing battle, they would almost immediately rout, and any prisoners captured by the Gyakuzan military were brutally tortured and killed. Unfortunately for the Houma Kingdom, all blame would be placed at their feet for these atrocities.

The Houma Kingdom would ultimately perish when the Gyakuzan Kingdom betrayed them, siding with the gods when they realized they were fighting a losing war. They achieved this by lying to the gods themselves, claiming that Houmas had taken everything from them and trampled down upon their once-rich land. While the gods knew the Gyakuzan were lying, and were even tempted to enslave the kingdom, they ultimately decided to leave the kingdom be. The representatives from Houmas were killed, including Miranjo's mother, and the Houma military quickly found themselves fighting an enemy now reinforced by their former allies. They also proceeded to torture all those they captured, such as Miranjo.

Despite Houmas falling into ruin, some besides Miranjo had survived and were able to flee. Their resistance had also changed the relationship between gods and humans. This lead to the gods acknowledging that it was time for them to find a new way to rule over humans.

## **Notable Residents**

#### Miranjo

As a child, Miranjo would grow up relatively at peace in her home nation. When the alliance between Houmas and Gyakuza was struck, both her and her mother would depart to reside in the Gyakuzan Kingdom.

#### Miranjo's Father

According to Bosse, Miranjo's father was an exceptional mage.

#### Miranjo's Mother

According to Bosse, Miranjo's mother was an exceptionally kind and forgiving individual, being willing to heal Bosse after he killed her husband during their duel. She would go out of her way to try and see the good in people, even those who took advantage of her.

## Trivia

* The Kingdom's name (Houma) derives from the word Magic (魔法=Mahou)