Zahard Empire

This is just a simple outline of the overall political structure of the Zahard Empire. '''I've tried my best to clarify things but I'll avoid over-simplification as that will warp the political structure. '''


 * Rules governing the Empire and administration of the people are unknown for now.


 * Ranking is excluded for now because it's unknown how the Ranking Office fully determines a person's rank apart from abilities and influence.


 * Also, didn't include any of the helpers(including the Princesses) who aided Zahard in conquering the Floors because we know nothing about them except for 1(Luslec). However, it is possible they might enjoy some extra status because of the prestige that position brings as they were part of the Great Journey.


 * Unknown families with strong and protected bloodlines will also be left out because they've no place in the ongoing politics (for now).

The King
The Zahard Empire is led by King Zahard. It rules over the first 134 Floors of both the Inner and Outer Towers. Its' Palaces are likely located on the 134th Floor.

The only exceptions are the Second Floor, Forty-Third Floor and Seventy-Seventh Floor in the Inner Tower.

For every Floor which is owned by a Great Family, it can be said they're ruling on behalf of the Zahard Empire.

The 3 Lords ruling in the King's stead
As the King is resting or hibernating in his Inner Palace, the 3 Lords take turns to rule in his place every 1000 years. The 3 lords have highest authority in all the politics of the tower, and have the final say on all items submitted by the 'Ruler's Conference.' They have discarded their surnames and use only their first name, to avoid being bound by heredity.

They are: Molic One P. GR(extremely conservative, the most powerful of the 3 Lords and whose influence rivals that of a Family head), Joochun(advocates progression, unproven rumour says that he's a drinking buddy of Urek Mazino) and Flux(political stance unknown, an artificial construct).

Molic One P. GR used to be the absolute ruler of the Molic area until Zahard managed to appease him to become one of the Three Lords.

The Ruling Families
First, there is the Zahard Family which consists of Zahard, the Princesses who have been adopted into it and the RED. In terms of power and influence in the Tower, they are the greatest and most influential family. The Princesses actually call Zahard their "Father".

Next come the 10 Great Families who hold considerable power within the Zahard Empire and are counted as part of the Ruling Class. It's unknown if some or all of the 10 Great Warriors occupy a higher hierarchy, in terms of political influence. Quite a few of the 10 Great Families count at least 1 to 2 Princesses as their members, in addition to Rankers and High Rankers.

It's also been mentioned by Yu Han Sung during Ch 13 that the Koon Family lost its place in politics but it's unknown if they've regained their status.

It must be noted that after the Eurasia Enne Zahard incident, Eurasia Blossom forbade any of the Eurasia females from becoming Princesses. As a result, the family likely lost a lot of power due to that incident and would likely find it harder to regain political footing as a Princess likely carries a lot of political clout. And it is unlikely acquiring more High Rankers would regain its former influence and power.

There is also the Jania Family but they're largely unknown for now, except for the fact they produced Repellista Zahard.

The Princesses
Most of the Princesses belong to a sect of elite female warriors who aid the Zahard rule by defending the King's authority with the might of their swords. And at other times, they are worshipped by the citizens of the Tower.

None are descended from Zahard's blood, so most of them belong to the 10 Great Families or if not, belong to other places. It's also unknown how they individually fit into the political structure for now, outside of the Zahard Family.

Most of the Princesses are High Rankers. However, there are exceptions. Repellista Zahard has never climbed the Tower and Androssi Zahard became a Princess prior to climbing the Tower.

And some of the Princesses also assisted Zahard and the 10 Great Warriors by conquering some of the floor levels while the Empire was still expanding. These Princesses likely became the Rulers of the Floors they conquered too.

The Princesses are governed by a set of Rules:


 * 1) They must not have a relationship with a man.
 * 2) They must not marry.
 * 3) They may not have a child.

These rules are to prevent Zahard's power from being spread recklessly and being misused by others coveting the Throne by using his child as a tool to seize power. And they are definitely implemented to prevent wars of succession and even civil war.

The more powerful Princesses are actually awarded weapons from the 13 Month Series, provided they accept it. The only exception in the 13 Month Series is the Rainbow Undecimber which is an arms inventory.

However, the first rule, in addition to other rules, is automatically imposed upon them when they accept it. These are the known rules for now:


 * 1) They may kill another Princess for her weapon as long as the whereabouts of the 13 Month Series in question is still known.
 * 2) However, they may not give or even lend a 13 Month Series to another person or they will be executed by the King. This is evident from Chapter 2 where we see the conversation between Evan Edrok and Yuri Zahard about the Black March. And it is likely anyone who was accompanying the Princess would be executed too, for failing to prevent the 13 Month Series from leaving her hands.
 * 3) And it is also unknown what punishment is meted by the King, when they go missing with a 13 Month Series.

Note: The more 13 month weapons they hold, the greater their status. Some Princesses, such as Heice Zahard, have refused the series because of the first rule.

RED
The RED aka the Royal Enforcement Division is used to enforce punishment on the shame of Zahard Family and are the same time, part of the Zahard Family. They serve King Zahard and are an official division. Their duties are to punish or execute any and all Princesses who've committed grave crimes like Garam Zahard, Anak Zahard and possibly, Eurasia Enne Zahard. And if the Princess had a child with a man, that child would likely be executed too.

Since all of their enemies are formerly from the Zahard Family, there is some animosity between the the RED and their targets as they're likely viewed as traitors and betrayers of the Empire. According to SIU, "it's kinda like the feelings between the military police and an official".

The division has no loyalty towards King Zahard. But loyalty towards King Zahard among the RED members varies and most of them joined the RED to fulfill their urges and lust to commit murder or if not, to fight.

Royal Guards
There are also Royal Guards led by Adori Zahard and it's unknown if the "guards" seen in Repellista's Palace are part of them or are ceremonial guards. From Author's notes in Ch 68, it is mentioned the Royal Guards and Royal Guides have the greatest loyalty towards Zahard, out of all the factions or groups within the hierarchy of the Zahard Empire.

The Royal Guards likely enjoy some status as their Captain has quite a high ranking, even though she is rarely active and leaves her duties to others.

Royal Guides
There is also a faction of Royal Guides who serve the Princesses. It's led by Evan Edrok, the Fast Ship who occupies the position of Chief Guide of the Zahard Royalty. Apart from guiding the Princesses, they also serve as their personal bodyguards.

Apparently, Alumik Edrok also serves as Butler to Repellista Zahard.

Military Police
It has been mentioned by SIU there is a military police but nothing is known about them so far.

According to the blog post in Ch 68, the military police in the Zahard army is not the RED.

Inner Tower and the Tower's Rules
Apart from the 2nd and 77th Floors, the rest of the Floors are owned by a Great Family.

Floor is defined as: Inner Tower, Outer Tower and Middle Area.

A note which probably applies to the Middle Area: The relationship between the Regulars and the non-Regulars is similar to that of the ruling class and the subjected class.

And since the Ruler is from a Great Family, it can be said his rule reflects the will of his Great Family and in turn, the Zahard Empire. Ruler is a High Ranker, Testing Director is likely also a High Ranker, Testing Admins who are Rankers and support staff and other employees.

Excepting Ruler, it is likely the rest of the Staff can be found in the Inner Tower as they've to administrate or watch over the tests or perform other tasks on the Floor.

Floor 43 has no ruler because Enryu killed the Guardian and Rulers can't rule without a Guardian.

Despite the power and influence of the Zahard Empire, every staff(including the Ruler) on the Floor is still subjected to the Tower's Rules in the testing floors of the Inner Tower.


 * 1) They may not change the Rules of the test and as a workaround, likely have to resort to adding rules.
 * 2) They are to uphold the fairness of the Tower's Rules.
 * 3) They are likely prohibited from involving any of the test takers(Regulars and Irregulars) in political disputes. However, take note that all test takers are most often referred to as "Regulars" because Irregulars are very rare.
 * 4) They are likely prohibited from causing harm to the test-takers. Though it must be noted Yu Han Sung snapped Mauchi's bones without any repercussions but perhaps, that was because he had failed and was no longer a test-taker.
 * 5) Rankers are not allowed to interfere with Regulars during a test, according to Yuri Zahard in Ch 70.

It's unknown if breaking these rules is the same as breaking certain limitations set by the Guardian(s) which would then result in the contract being broken.

However, they still have managed to circumvent the rules by introducing the complicated testing procedures on the 2nd Floor, in order to preserve the stability of the Tower and also, the status quo. How they've managed to do this is unknown so far.

Deification and propaganda
King Zahard is apparently worshipped like a god and is essentially referred as "The Great King Zahard". The 10 Family Heads are apparently viewed as the 10 Great Warriors which seems to confer an almost mythological status upon them. Also, their process of conquering the Tower is supposedly referred to as "The Great Journey". And whenever Tu Peri Tperi reminisces about the time he became a Light Bearer, he’s known to have said “The Heavens gave me the Eyes of God”. However, it could be possible people chose to believe a “well-fabricated story” rather than a “solid truth”.

Also, everyone living in the Tower is the son or daughter of Zahard but a few are chosen to become the Sons and Daughters of the Zahard Family.

Many or all of the Princesses are also worshipped by people of the Tower and admired by the masses. And some of them were part of the Great Journey as they were Zahard's helpers. As in: they helped Zahard conquer the Floors and aided him in expanding his Empire.

It's unknown if any of the others from the hierarchal structure are included in this deification process.

Also, the Guards stationed in Repellista's palace were called "fanatics" by Koon Maschenny Zahard in Ch 80, which possibly hints at the propaganda they exhibit or undergo.

Although much or most of the Tower likely worships the above figures to a certain extent, there are exceptions. For example: Hon Akraptor and Kang Horyang don't seem to mind conflicting with the Zahard Empire as illustrated during Ch 89.

And it's also possible many of the common people living in the Outer Tower simply pay lip service as long as it benefits them. Or simply, many might only worship part of the Zahard Empire but at the same time, still believe in part or all of its' propaganda and even be fiercely loyal to the Empire. And also, it must be remembered that certain regulars likely lose faith in the Testing system and in turn, the Zahard Empire over time.

Also, a person's loyalty towards a system is usually tied to the amount and quality of benefits and treatment they receive. The worse the living conditions, the likelier the chances of revolt will increase over time(decades or centuries in the Tower). This applies particularly to the Officials, the upper classes and sometimes, even part of the Royalty or Government themselves. As for the Middle Class, economic and perhaps social mobility are important in ensuring their loyalty.

Note: Also, propaganda is instilled and often subtly via education, activities the citizens take part in, media, symbolism(via a figure or a building or statue or landmark and so on), military activities, etc., so it can't be too clearly defined either. Plus, some of propaganda is just instilled not to further belief in a country's causes/stance but simply, to motivate the masses. (Talking about real life here.)

Known external conflicts
Note: only organizations whose goals or existences conflict with the Zahard Empire, should be listed here.

The Walhaiksong aka the Wing Tree is an NGO but its' liberal movements often clash against the Empire's conservative practices. It is led by Urek Mazino and its' goal is to find "the way out of the Tower". The influence of the Walhaiksong is equivalent to that of the 10 Great Families.

The FUG is opposed to the existence of the 10 Great Families and is a leading group in the criminal underground of the Tower. It is likely seeking to wage war on the Zahard Empire although how or when this will happen, is unknown. Influence of this organization is unknown so far. It is led by Grace Mircea Luslec.

Note: Some people are affiliated with both FUG and Walhaiksong though both groups don't get along.