The Root Realm Federation
A federation of seven great cave cities of The Root Realm. Decision-making is conducted through "mycelium voting" via the Memory of the Earth, approximating direct democracy.
Federation of Seven Cities
The Root Realm Federation is a union of the seven great cave cities spreading underground — Shin'en-to, Kokko-to, Kinbo-to, Sekimyaku-to, Chisen-to, Ankyo-to, and Kontei-to.
Mycelium Voting as Democracy
The form of governance differs greatly from the Canopy Council. Major decisions are made through "mycelium voting" via the Memory of the Earth. Citizens touch the mycelium and transmit their approval or opposition as emotion. This method is extremely democratic, but mycelium emotional transmission is not perfectly accurate, and "collective emotional noise" is said to sometimes distort results.
Relations with The Canopy Isles are a mixture of trade and distrust. The Root Realm depends on The Canopy Isles for Aether Crystal supply; The Canopy Isles depends on The Root Realm for food (high-nutrition foods from mycelium agriculture). This mutual dependence is what ultimately prevents armed conflict.
The Deep Council as Real Power
What actually directs the Root Realm Federation is the "Deep Council," composed of the elders of the seven cities. This body holds the authority to "interpret" mycelium voting results and, under the guise of correcting collective emotional noise, effectively holds final decision-making authority. The gap between democratic appearance and oligarchic reality is the Federation's greatest internal contradiction.
The Mycelium Symbiont Tribe's relationship with the Federation is delicate. They are not Federation members but are treated as a separate category called "the Deep Ones." Yet they hold final interpretive authority over the Mycelium Code, and even the Deep Council cannot overturn their judgments. Some city elders view this as an unjust concentration of power.
The Conflict Between Defense and Cooperation Factions
Since the Great Fall omens became manifest, conflict within the Root Realm Federation between "Defense Faction" and "Cooperation Faction" has intensified. The Defense Faction views The Canopy Isles falling as a direct threat to The Root Realm and demands military preparation for The Great Fall. The Cooperation Faction views The Great Fall as a shared problem both civilizations must solve together and advocates full support for the Great Fall Research Institute. This conflict is so evenly matched that even mycelium voting cannot produce a conclusion.
関連する要素
- The Canopy Council— The governing body of The Canopy Isles. A council of representatives from 12 islands, but in practice an oligarchy where the voice of the upper islands is overwhelmingly dominant.
- The Great Fall Research Institute— The only joint institution established by agreement between the Canopy Council and the Root Realm Federation 100 years after the First Bridge, for investigating the cause of The Great Fall and preventing its recurrence.
- The Mist Trading Company— A secret organization based in The Mist Sea that controls unofficial transactions in both The Canopy Isles and The Root Realm. The oldest organization to profit from the world's division.