Let them suffer instead of us.
This was the slogan the country adopted after finding a solution to the problem of predators attacking its citizens.
The nameless kingdom had always been filled with forests and rivers, making it a destination for anyone seeking relaxation from neighboring countries.
Like everything in this world, it had its advantages and disadvantages. One of the drawbacks brought by nature was its predatory animals.
The nameless kingdom owned the largest portion of the Great Forest in the world, stretching from the north to the south, effectively dividing the country into east and west.
The cities and villages were situated on the eastern and western edges, while the middle was dominated by a dense forest.
I can't even begin to describe the amount of mockery and ridicule that came from other kingdoms, making every citizen feel ashamed and angry.
As if that weren't enough, the predators started attacking people left and right, forcing the kingdom to find an immediate solution. The solution was harsh, even excessively selfish.
The king himself issued an order to establish a committee of analysts and historians tasked with drafting a detailed report on peaceful and hostile animals.
The report was then published as a blacklist distributed to all local and foreign hunters, along with rewards for capturing these animals alive.
Hunters spread across the kingdom, and in a short period, most of the animals were captured. The remaining ones would eventually die on their own, unable to survive alone.
To everyone, this seemed like a logical measure, given the kingdom's economic and psychological troubles caused by these animals.
But what wasn't understood was why the animals were captured instead of being killed.
The kingdom's budget wasn't enough to sustain animals that no one wanted to see in a sanctuary. Almost every family had a painful history with these creatures.
Either they lost a loved one, came close to losing someone, or had to abandon their home or land just to stay alive.
It was only a matter of time before everyone discovered the king's plan.
On a dark night, a stern order was issued to transfer all the predators to the borders. Which borders? The northern and southern ones, of course.
All the animals were dumped there. The predators that had lived in the forest weren't particularly attached to their habitat. All they cared about was living in groups and finding places with food they liked.
Once they found themselves in similar conditions, they resumed their behavior, turning the kingdom's problem into its neighbors' problem. This led to various diplomatic issues and wars that continue to echo to this day.
This was the preface of the article Azaria gave me after I asked her about the meaning of her name.
I was lying in a golden bathtub.
It reminded me of a meme about rich people's bathrooms I used to laugh at.
The bathroom was indeed huge but empty, with only a golden toilet at its center. The difference here was that it had a bathtub instead of a toilet. Haha, whoever lived here sure loved extravagance.
Next to the bathtub was a device resembling a computer connected to a 360-degree adjustable screen, making it convenient to watch. Even if the screen accidentally touched the water, there was no need to worry—it was waterproof.
The technological advancements in the nameless kingdom surpassed all other nations. I'd always wondered how their focus shifted from tourism to education. I was curious but lacked the motivation to study history in painstaking detail.
I could have looked up information about the kingdom's current state or the owner of this body on the internet, but I had a weakness for stories and understanding the meanings behind things. That's why I wanted to know what Azaria meant to tell me.
Besides, the article's author was talented and knew how to captivate readers.
These are the real geniuses, in my opinion, teaching you history in an enjoyable way.
If only teachers were like them, I might have been a top student. I'd even dare to claim that no bookworm could compete with me.
(Author: Yes, keep convincing yourself of that.)
The kingdom had finally dealt with a long-standing issue, only for another problem to arise—a significant drop in tourism.
Tourism alone had accounted for nearly 40% of the kingdom's revenue, but this figure plummeted to 20% after the measures were taken.
Neighboring countries began urging their citizens not to visit the kingdom, blaming it for the suffering of victims who now appeared on their borders.
As a result, those who had once praised the king's wisdom and intelligence turned into critics of his policies.
But the king remained indifferent. He held the annual royal banquet and specifically invited the kingdom's top investors and those from abroad.
How could any businessman within the kingdom refuse such an invitation? But the foreigners weren't prepared to face the wrath of their governments and citizens, so they declined.
The king, however, was persistent. He sent another invitation, this time containing a private letter. No one knew its content, but it was rumored to be an offer they couldn't refuse. And they didn't. They rushed to the banquet like dogs chasing a bone.
Not long after, the kingdom launched its largest project ever:
The world's biggest park.
This grand plan turned the entire forest into a tourist resort—a vision that had crossed the minds of many previous kings but was deemed too challenging.
The first challenge was the predators in the forest, a problem solved at a minimal cost by paying hunters a pittance—or nothing at all in the case of those who saw it as a national duty to cleanse the kingdom of the creatures that had claimed many lives.
The second challenge was the project's funding. For that, the king invited investors from around the world. They agreed on one condition: complete control of the project and half the profits—a small price considering the massive pie to be shared.
The third challenge was the neighboring governments discouraging their citizens from visiting the kingdom. The solution? Let foreign businessmen handle the problem.
They launched all sorts of advertisements to clear the kingdom's reputation, and it worked—except in countries with authoritarian regimes. Democratic governments, reliant on persuasion, failed miserably against the overwhelming influence of the ads, which blamed the deaths on their own governance failures.
This simple maneuver raised the kingdom's tourism revenue from 20% to 50%, breaking all records and cementing the king's reputation as the smartest—and slyest—monarch in the kingdom's history.
I exhaled deeply, reflecting on what I had read. I couldn't help but admire this king.
Some might find his solutions simple, wondering why his predecessors hadn't implemented them. To me, the answer was clear: his open-mindedness.
His policies were all about utilizing every available resource, whether local or foreign.
Unlike his ancestors, he didn't shy away from involving outsiders in a major project, nor was he cowardly.
Chapter Translation
Other kings would have acted cautiously, trying not to anger anyone. But he didn't care.
I can say for sure that he's the one who launched the slogan written at the beginning of the article.
Still, I kept wondering about its connection to her name. Based on the timeline of events, this all seems to have happened before my grandparents were even born. To find the answer to my question, I continued reading.
Afterward, the Nameless Kingdom witnessed stability and prosperity, and no one imagined that this project would end in a disaster no one could foresee—not even in their wildest imagination.
The end began with a family.
The family consisted of a father, a veterinarian; a mother, a psychologist; and three children: an older brother, a middle brother, and a younger sister.
A happy family, like any other, spending time together and touring the park for a week. Everything was normal until the eighth day—the day when everything began to fall apart.
That evening, the tourists gathered around the campfire, singing and sharing stories.
The father and mother sat close to each other, enjoying the atmosphere, leaving their children in the tent assigned to them. Then suddenly, the mother stood up, screaming hysterically:
"My daughter, my daughter!"
Without thinking, everyone followed her, their faces showing confusion and concern over what was happening.
The mother reached the tent, rushed inside without waiting, and the father followed her, leaving the rest of the group outside, waiting to understand what was going on.
They didn't wait long. The father came out, shouting:
"Someone call the police! My daughter is missing!"
About an hour passed before the police arrived and began their investigation.
For context, the park was a reserve home to many animals.
Throughout its history, there had never been a single complaint of animals attacking humans.
There were some complaints early on about wolves surrounding tourists when they lit fires and cooked meat. However, these complaints stopped after it became known that the wolves weren't aggressive—they were merely waiting for scraps of food.
In her statement, the mother accused the wolves of kidnapping her daughter. She claimed she had seen several wolves following her throughout the day while she was holding her baby daughter.
But the investigators didn't buy her story and asked why she suddenly stood up and started screaming. Her response was:
"I heard my daughter crying. She only cries like that when someone other than me is holding her."
When the group that had been sitting with the parents was questioned, they all clearly stated that they hadn't heard anything. They were baffled as to why the mother had suddenly started screaming.
Doubt began to grow around the mother and father, suggesting they might have been involved.
Foreign media caught wind of the investigation's direction and the authorities' intention to accuse the parents, which infuriated them.
All sorts of allegations were made against the local authorities, accusing them of following the kingdom's orders to frame and mislead people about the dangers of the forest to tourists.
Due to the weak king at the time, who was trying to avoid upsetting anyone, the police were forced to drop the allegations against the parents and focus instead on finding the child. They began searching the wolves' den and even inspected all the animal shelters.
There was one rule in the park that prohibited disturbing the dens or homes of any animal, as they could become aggressive even if they were normally peaceful.
And that's exactly what happened. The animals turned hostile, leading to the park being shut down. This only fueled the public's anger, as the child still hadn't been found.
A week after the incident, new evidence came to light just before the case was closed: the missing child's name was Azaria, which, in the culture of her parents' homeland, meant the one to be sacrificed.
As soon as I read this line, a bell rang in my mind.
Could that child be the maid? Or is it just a coincidence in names?