Empire of the Ring

How difficult it was to form a federal partnership among countries with disparate political systems.

Nonetheless, Fatima was saying why Youngho found it so complicated.

“Let the people of Azerbaijan do so if they want our royal family. And if we just form a symbolic federal partnership, we won’t interfere with Azerbaijan’s internal affairs. It wouldn’t be too much for President Aliyev to accept the federal system.”

“I’m afraid we’ll get involved in a territorial dispute with Armenia.”

“Why would you get into a conflict when you don’t interfere? Rather, we need to reconcile the two countries.”

It was not a simple territorial dispute as the situation was at odds over persecuting other peoples in the areas that were colonized.

The big powers that had interests in it had stepped in to make the problem more complicated.

“So far, so many countries and the international community have come forward to reconcile the two countries, but no one has solved it.”

“They didn’t arrange the reconciliation. They were just trying to figure out the benefits out of the dispute.”

Fatima, an outsider in politics, was looking at the problem correctly.

One of the reasons the U.S. and Russia took turns supporting Armenia was intended to keep Turkey from swallowing Armenia. However, the arms supplied to Armenia were used against Azerbaijan, oddly enough.

“If Azerbaijan becomes our federal state, we have no choice but to be tied to our interests.”

“Try to concede one step at a time. It’s easy to make concessions on the powerful side.”

“It’s easy to say. Do you think countries that have conducted ethnic cleansing against each other can reconcile so easily?”

“So you should step up and break the chain of dispute. There’s also a precedent for resolving territorial disputes between Iran and the United Arab Emirates.”

Fatima believed that there was nothing Youngho could not solve when he stepped up.

It was flattering that she regarded him as a great being, but a solution could be only seen when there was a good balance of interests.

“If you go to Baku this time, try to set the mood. If we have full support from the citizens, I’ll consider the federal incorporation.”

“This time I go to Baku, I’m going to look everywhere I haven’t been. You can make a decision after I see with my own eyes whether the people of Baku treat our royal family just out of curiosity or really want it.”

“Don’t overdo it. You might end up in gossip for nothing.”

“I’m also a Baku citizen. I have the right to go anywhere. What’s the big flaw in living as other normal citizens? I won’t be so loud, so don’t worry too much. I’m not that tactless.”

The visit by the Kazakh queen could trigger a democratic movement.

Still, the reason for sending Fatima to Baku was to alert President Aliyev.

Only then, he would reach out to Youngho on his own.

***

The airport in Baku was crowded with people who came to see the Queen of Kazakhstan.

The scene of people chanting and waving at the queen was spectacular.

The welcoming heat was hotter than ever, although it was something that happened every time she visited Baku.

The citizens of Baku were grateful that the Kazakh royal family gave a hand for Azerbaijan’s foreign exchange crisis without turning a blind eye to it without taking advantage of it.

Although the foreign exchange crisis had not been completely resolved, the existence of the Kingdom of Kazakhstan, a strong ally for helping hands at any time, was a great force for Azerbaijan.

Those who voluntarily gathered at the airport had their reasons to come.

They were on the verge of sitting on the street if Azerbaijan did not prevent the foreign exchange crisis in advance, so they were very grateful for the queen.

The Queen was waving to the assembled citizens as her party drove out of the airport.

“Stop the car for a moment. I’ll have to pay my respects to the citizens.”

“Your Majesty, there may be confusion in security. It’s hard to control people.”

“Then slow down the vehicle as much as you can. We should show our faces to the citizens. They’ve been waiting for us since the morning. You can’t just pass by.”

The people were exacerbated as the Queen showed her face to greet them after lowering the car window.

Despite the police’s restraint, they were clamoring to see her up close.

As the car slowly progressed at a speed of about ten kilometers per hour, Fatima could see the expressions of people lined up in detail.

Some people bowed and greeted her, while others were seen stamping their feet in place and waving the flags of the two countries vigorously.

There were even women who were moved to tears just by the sight of the Queen’s face.

“Stop the car. I think I’ll have to get out of the car for a moment.”

There was a need to get out of the vehicle for a while even though it could cause a little confusion. This visit was intended to create dramatic scenes as she was determined to win the hearts of Baku citizens.

When the car with the queen stopped, Baku police and bodyguards quickly surrounded the vehicle and guarded her from all directions.

There was no one here to harm the Queen, but it was to prepare for the influx of people at once.

The welcome crowd grew louder as the Queen got off the vehicle.

Fatima held the hands of several citizens along the route.

Those who held the queen’s hand were at a loss. They never imagined that the Queen would hold their hands.

When Fatima boarded the vehicle again, the sound of “Long live the Queen” was louder than before.

The car, which stopped several times on the way, left the airport shortly after.

However, that was not the end.

Entering downtown, the queen and her party had to get out of the car at all.

This was because there were dozens of times more citizens lined up on the road.

Fatima stepped out of the car and began walking downtown.

Fatima’s face was blushed as she was moved and excited by the great welcome.

She felt that they were truly respectful of her, not just curious to see her face.

Fatima answered every citizen’s welcome.

Only the police and bodyguards, who were guarding her, were suffering from exhaustion.

***

On the road leading to Zeynep Farm, traffic jams were caused by vehicles of political figures in Azerbaijan who wanted to meet the queen.

Most of them wanted to see her to make a good impression of themselves.

They already knew that if they were close to the Queen or earned her support, they would win the support of the citizens of Baku automatically.

Until now, Fatima had never allowed any politician’s visit to the farm as she only stayed there quietly. However, she was taking a different course of action by meeting politicians on her visit, which had invited many speculations.

She was even actively responding to interviews with media outlets which was never done before.

“Your Majesty, thank you for your interview. Do you have any special reason that you are meeting citizens more often than you used to?”

“Baku is Prince Leon’s hometown and my second home. I’m meeting my hometown people, so why would I need a reason? I’d like to thank the Baku citizens for loving our royal family so much.”

“The Kazakh royal family helped Azerbaijan this time, but we are still worried about the country’s future. I was wondering if the royal family would continue to support us.”

“It’s not my business to be involved in political and economic affairs, but the royal family will never sit back and watch Azerbaijan go down.”

Without an inch of hesitation, Fatima replied that the Kazakh royal family could help if Azerbaijan was in trouble. After all, she was determined to win the hearts of the Baku people.

When the interview with the media was over, there was a meeting with social welfare organizations without even a moment to catch a breath.

As their purpose was to receive donations from the royal family, she ended it after promising to provide a certain amount of donations each year from the royal family.

This was followed by a hectic photo session with political figures.

In the evening, she attended a dinner hosted by Baku businessmen and returned to the mansion on the farm late in the evening.

As such, Fatima managed a murderous schedule from morning to evening.

“Your Majesty. Aren’t you tired?”

Fatima’s secretary, Kim In-hwa, asked with a worried look on her face.

She worried that Fatima would get sick with such a tight schedule.

“I’m fine, Secretary Kim. You are going through a lot because of me.”

“I’ll have to arrange your schedule tomorrow. I think this is too much.”

“Hohoho… Secretary Kim, you don’t know much about our family’s physical strength yet. Look at Leon. Have you ever seen him sick or tired?”

Come to think of it, Leon’s activity was unrivaled.

Even after playing hard all day, he was never seen tired the next day.

On this trip, Leon was also digesting his own schedule as a crowned prince, let alone tired.

Whenever he was out of the royal palace, he transformed himself into a well-behaved royal prince, which made everyone who knew him well enough laugh.

“Prince Leon is in his most active age, but I don’t know where you get that kind of physical strength. You don’t even exercise separately.”

“Hohoho… We have our own health secret.”

Who would believe it even if she told the secret power of the ring?

There was no other way to explain than explaining it as special health tips from the Serbian royal family.

“Your Majesty, but I think this schedule is too much.”

“No, I’m fine. Please keep the schedule.”

“Your Majesty!”

“Don’t you like Baku?”

“How could I not like such a beautiful city? It’s a place I want to stay in. I’m glad there’s a royal villa in a place like this.”

Kim In-hwa had no idea why the Queen was asking this question.

“Well, then I guess you’ll have to be busier from tomorrow.”

“…”

“Come on! Now go to bed and get some rest so you can follow tomorrow’s schedule.”

The visit certainly marked the presence of the Kazakh royal family to the people of Baku.

Fatima had a hunch that a little more work would make the royal villa a political number one spot.

At Fatima’s urging, Kim In-hwa shook her head as she went up to her bunk bed.

Because a murderous schedule was waiting for her tomorrow.