Flanders

**Flanders** (フランダース, *Furandāsu*), also known as the **Earth Dragon Capital, Flanders** (地竜の都、フランダース, *Chiryū no Miyako, Furandāsu*), is one of the Five Great Cities in the Dragon Kingdom of Lugunica. It is located in the southeastern part of the country.

## Information

The Earth Dragon Capital, Flanders, is a city on the Hyclara Plateau. The region is well-known for housing and raising a variety of different earth dragons. It is built on a dragon industry, which makes use of earth dragons beyond simple uses like transport. The city was built around the existence of earth dragons, and much of the power for urban functions comes from them. For example, earth dragons can be seen opening and closing canals or raising and lowering drawbridges by running on a wheel. Due to this, jobs related to earth dragons are in strong demand.

In the shadows, Flanders is commanded by three underground organizations that are colloquially known as the **Big Three** (三巨頭, *San Kyotō*). The most powerful of the Big Three is the **Black Silver Coin** (黒銀貨, *Kuro Ginka*), managed by Doltero Amule. It is the primary governing entity of the city. They can often be seen dealing in earth dragon goods or operating in bars. The **Flower Prison Garden** (華獄園, *Hana Gokuen*), the second of the Big Three, supervises both prostitution and the city's brothels. Its proprietress is Toto. Finally, **The Scales** (天秤, *Tenbin*), represented in Flanders by Manfred Madison, supervises the gambling dens and regulate games. The Scales control the gambling quarter, the Flower Prison Garden controls the red-light district, and the Black Silver Coin, headquartered at Doltero Amule's mansion, controls the rest of the city.

## History

Flanders is said to be where the Divine Dragon met with the first Sword Saint and the Sage. Around the same time, the Divine Dragon supposedly used an unknown type of blessing ability to create earth dragons, and as a result, Flanders became known as their birthplace, establishing an expansive history of industry throughout the city. It was eventually incorporated as one of Lugunica's Five Great Cities due to its dragon industry, becoming known as the Earth Dragon Capital.

## Locations

* **Doltero Amule’s Mansion** (ドルテロ・アムルの豪邸, *Dorutero Amuru no Gōtei*): A mansion located in the heart of Flanders. It lies on a hill that contains a full view of the whole city. The mansion is owned by Doltero Amule, the head of the Black Silver Coin, and it serves as his organization’s headquarters.
* **Red-Light District** (花町, *Hanamachi*): The red-light district of Flanders is a nightlife district of brothels controlled by the Flower Prison Garden. It is filled with magic crystal lamps and described to have an otherworldly ambience. The Flower Prison Garden's main building, located at the edge of the district, is the most luxurious and high-class brothel in the area.
* **Gambling Quarter** (賭け町, *Kakemachi*): The gambling quarter is an area controlled by The Scales in eastern Flanders. It is populated with a multitude of gambling dens, which tend to reach peak activity at night. The quarter is surrounded by money, violence, and insanity.
	+ **Grand Casino** (大賭場, *Dai Toba*): The Grand Casino is a large, one-story gambling den with spaces for various types of gambling games. The casino's master is Manfred Madison, the head of The Scales' Flanders branch.
* **The Golden Beetle's Office**: A sales office ran by the Golden Beetle, a moneylending and loan shark business with a branch in Flanders.
* **Abandoned Mansion**: An abandoned, run-down mansion that was confiscated by the Golden Beetle as collateral from an unnamed man who could not pay off his debt. It has two known floors.

## Residents

* Ilya (formerly)
* Kalifa (formerly)
* Doltero Amule
* Safis
* Toto
* Manfred Madison
* Helaine Gatness (formerly)
* Mimosa (formerly)
* Mozolite (formerly)

## Trivia

* The city’s name is a reference to *A Dog of Flanders*.
* In the past, a part of an unspecified mechanical system in Flanders that is still there to this day was based on Echidna's opinion.

## References

1. ↑ *Flanders was a city on the Hyclara Plateau, where a variety of earth dragons lived; the area was known for raising these creatures.* Re:Zero Ex Light Novel Volume 3, Sword Demon Love Story: The Silver Flower Dance of Picoutatte, Section 5.
2. ↑ *As a simple example, sometimes they would see an earth dragon running on a gigantic wheel. The motion would open or close a canal or raise or lower a drawbridge.* Re:Zero Ex Light Novel Volume 3, Sword Demon Love Story: The Silver Flower Dance of Picoutatte, Section 5.
3. ↑ *Its primary industries were agriculture and animal husbandry, and it relied on earth dragon-related jobs, which were in great demand in the nearby city of Flanders.* The Golden Lion and the Sword Saint, Riot in Flanders 1, Section 3.
4. ↑ *“The Black Silver Coin is the governing entity of one of the Five Great Cities.”* Re:Zero Tanpenshuu Volume 4, Royal Selection Life from Zero: The Golden Lion and the Sword Saint, Section 8.
5. ↑ *In this city, too, The Scales controlled the gambling quarter. Together with the Flower Prison Garden, which controlled the red-light district, and the Black Silver Coin, which controlled the rest, they made up the Big Three.* The Golden Lion and the Sword Saint, Riot in Flanders 2, Section 4.
6. ↑ *“According to legend, Flanders is also where the Divine Dragon Volcanica was bound in friendship to the first Sword Saint, Reid, and the Sage, Shaula.”* Re:Zero Ex Light Novel Volume 3, Sword Demon Love Story: The Silver Flower Dance of Picoutatte, Section 5.
7. ↑ *“Yeah, I think I’ve heard that the first earth dragons were born as some kind of blessing from the Divine Dragon about the same time.”* Re:Zero Ex Light Novel Volume 3, Sword Demon Love Story: The Silver Flower Dance of Picoutatte, Section 5.
8. ↑ *“Flanders is said to be the birthplace of earth dragons, with a long history of its industry flourishing within the city.”* Re:Zero Tanpenshuu Volume 4, Royal Selection Life from Zero: The Golden Lion and the Sword Saint, Section 3.
9. ↑ *“In the city of Flanders in the Kingdom of Lugunica, a part of a mechanical system was originally based on Echidna's opinion. It's still there.”* January 24, 2018 Twitter Q&A