Chapter 165

“Wait—what is happening? Where are you taking me? Luis, what are they saying?”

“They say… they are moving us to a more spacious room,” Luis Sotelo replied, trying to maintain a calm facade.

The Bishopric of Florida had moved swiftly once the facts were established. The likelihood of Hasekura Tsunenaga and his embassy being spies or the vanguard of an invasion was near zero; no nation would be foolish enough to send such conspicuous foreign envoys to lead a clandestine infiltration. Furthermore, the battered state of their vessel corroborated their testimony, and the Navy, led by Vicente, had detected no other signs of an encroaching fleet. Since they were neither a Spanish vanguard nor coastal infiltrators, a different protocol was required.

The matter was urgently reported to the Continental Congress in Chesapeake.

“An embassy from a land called ‘Japan’?” one representative mused.

“I’ve heard it’s a land in the far west of Asia—an island nation sitting beside China,” another added.

“Well, it hardly seems vital. What significance does an embassy from a country we’ll likely never visit in our lifetimes have for us?”

However, an envoy was still an envoy. Even if their destination hadn’t originally been the Continental Covenant, the protocol remained significant. A mere castaway could be sent on their way once their ship was patched, but a formal representative required the attention of a head of state.

The authorities in Florida were instructed to verify a few key details.

“How many languages do you speak?” the examiner asked.

“What? I—Interpreter!” Hasekura stammered.

“He’s asking how many tongues you possess,” Sotelo whispered.

“Only Japanese, of course! European tongues are wretchedly difficult to master…”

“He speaks but one,” the interpreter relayed.

“Good.”

The fact that the envoy was fluent in only one language was, in this specific instance, a stroke of luck for the examiners. Though Spaniards, Frenchmen, and Englishmen had all attempted to converse with him in their respective tongues, it was thoroughly confirmed that Hasekura understood none of them.

And so, the order was given. “Take him.”

“Please, follow us.”

“Wait!” Sotelo cried out. “Where are you sending him without me? He is the envoy of a sovereign nation! You cannot send him alone!”

Bewildered and stripped of his voice, Tsunenaga was escorted away to Croatoan—entirely alone.

***

In truth, the history of interaction between Japan and the European world was not as brief as one might imagine.

The Spaniards of Nueva España had been energetically expanding their reach, even conquering the Philippines across the Pacific. With the Age of Discovery in full swing, there were few lands left untouched by European sails. They traded silver mined in Mexico for Asian goods in the Philippines, but the Pacific was a vast and treacherous expanse. During those long voyages, ships often fell victim to the Kuroshio Current, which naturally carried them toward the Japanese archipelago.

The Japanese had already opened the port of Nagasaki to Portuguese merchants, and despite the inevitable friction, the Spaniards had eventually managed to wedge themselves into the missionary work and trade of the region. In 1609, they had even secured an audience with Tokugawa Ieyasu, obtaining the rights to establish factories and for their ships to visit. Encouraged by these deep exchanges, the Japanese attempted to build Western-style vessels to establish direct contact with Europe.

This embassy was the first successful instance of such an ambition. Aboard the Japanese-built galleon San Juan Bautista, Tsunenaga had crossed the Pacific to Nueva España, then transferred to another vessel to cross the Atlantic, visiting Spain, the Papal States, and France. He had spent years in transit. Consequently, Tsunenaga possessed perhaps the deepest understanding of the European world of any Asian in his era.

Having traveled through Spain, France, and Rome and interacted with various peoples, Tsunenaga felt he understood the customs of these foreign lands. Yet, in none of those places was it customary for a monarch to grant a private audience in total isolation. Is it not too dangerous? Why would the ruler of this nation keep me waiting in this small, seemingly unguarded cottage? What could he possibly intend?

A parade of ominous and bizarre theories marched through his mind, and by the time he snapped back to reality, the door before him was opening.

“Eh?”

A European man entered the room.

—My apologies. The ‘Emperor’ has been delayed by an urgent matter and cannot receive you in person.

—I am Walter Raleigh, Baron of Roanoke.

Tsunenaga stared at the note presented to him. While it confirmed his suspicions that he wouldn’t meet the ruler, a strange sensation washed over him. The wording suggested that the Emperor had originally intended to meet him alone—and that the plan had changed only moments ago. 

What could have happened to cause such a sudden shift?

***

Raleigh allowed himself a moment of weary recollection.

—“Lord Nemo, an envoy has arrived from Japan.”

—“…Japan?”

—“Master? What is wrong—“

—“Do they have rice?”

—“Pardon?”

—“I’ve been eating this wretched, health-obsessed ‘low-aging’ frontier grain for thirty years, and finally, there’s hope! Ask them about the rice first! Rice! RICE!”

For reasons Raleigh couldn’t fathom, Lord Nemo had suffered a near-manic outburst. Raleigh had been forced to calm him down and cancel the private audience entirely. Fortunately, Nemo understood the Japanese script, allowing them to probe the envoy through written questions. Thanks to that, they were able to extract a wealth of information.

Who are you?

“I—I am a samurai. Hasekura Tsunenaga.”

For what purpose have you crossed the Pacific?

“I have come by the command of my lord, Date Masamune, the Daimyo of Sendai. As his vassal, I seek audience with His Holiness the Pope and His Majesty the King of Spain to negotiate treaties of trade.”

What is the current state of Japan, Joseon, and the Ming? How is the situation following the war with Joseon? Do you have news regarding the movements of the ‘Jurchens’?

“How do they know Joseon and Ming so well from this distance?” Tsunenaga muttered, his voice trembling. “They told me this was a land ruled by a barbarian emperor…”

Lord Nemo had left dozens of such questions. Hasekura Tsunenaga had sat in a dazed stupor after reading them, looking as though he’d been struck by lightning, before slowly penning his responses for Raleigh.

The final question, however, remained the most baffling to the envoy.

Do you possess rice?

“N-No, of course not. But tell me—you won’t demand my conversion or threaten my people, will you?”

“I haven’t a clue what he’s saying,” Raleigh muttered. “I suppose I’ll have to bring the interpreter back.”

That was the end of the encounter. Raleigh watched the man with idle interest before sending him on his way. He intended to either repair their vessel or sell them a new one to facilitate their return to Nueva España. There was no profit in killing them, after all.

It was a surprisingly anticlimactic conclusion to the first contact between two unfamiliar worlds. Each time Tsunenaga was moved, crowds gathered to whisper and stare. For a while, the strange envoy from a country whose name they had never heard became the primary subject of local gossip.

“Lord Nemo,” Raleigh asked one afternoon, “what exactly are these nations—Joseon and Ming? I delivered your questions and received the answers, yet I understand none of it.”

Nemo, looking as though he had lost the entire world upon hearing there was no rice, offered a dejected nod. “How much do you know of China, Walter?”

“Only that it is a gargantuan realm ruled by a powerful Emperor.”

“The current dynasty of that realm is the ‘Ming.’ Joseon is the peninsular nation directly adjacent to it.”

“…”

“While the Ming commands a population in the hundreds of millions, Joseon and Japan are also kingdoms ruling over ten million souls each.”

“Ten million?” Raleigh’s eyes widened. “And hundreds of millions?”

“Yes.”

Raleigh stood in silent awe, comparing those staggering numbers to the population of England. “Truly, they must be formidable kingdoms.”

“Well… not necessarily,” Nemo replied. “From our perspective, their muskets are crude and their cannons are laughable.”

“Is that so? Are they impoverished, then?”

“That’s… complicated. Japan is quite affluent in its own right, and while Joseon may appear poor, its soil is rich in gold and silver.”

“I see.”

“As for the Ming, it is truly massive. Though a great upheaval will soon be upon them.”

To the ears of Raleigh—a former professional pirate and privateer—Lord Nemo’s words carried a very specific weight. The other Englishmen who heard the reports through him reacted similarly.

“I hear there are nations in the West that seem poor but possess unfathomable potential wealth,” the rumor mill churned.

“Oh?”

“Their naval power is pathetic, yet they are brimming with resources and exotic luxuries!”

“Incredible!”

The Continental Covenant was wealthy, and that wealth was growing exponentially. They were in desperate need of new markets—civilized markets capable of both supplying and consuming high-end goods. Now, new civilizations had emerged on their horizon. The factory owners, Abbots, and Chiefs of the Covenant began to turn their gazes westward.

“In Joseon, they use fabric as currency? If we establish cotton mills and head there…!”

“I hear China is currently restricting sea trade. A pity. But surely there’s a way to break through?”

“The Nameless One predicts that China will soon fall into chaos. How could they stop trade then?”

A market of tens of millions. A market that could provide exotic luxuries far beyond those of Europe. There, they would find new goods and new people. New profits, new pleasures, and new indulgences awaited. The idea that they must eventually venture there began to permeate the consciousness of the Covenant’s citizens.

To the West.

To Asia.

***

“I—I do not understand what you are saying! I merely traveled to the lands of the Westerners as an envoy by my lord’s command…”

Months later, upon his return to Japan, Hasekura Tsunenaga was met with news that struck like a bolt from the blue. After enduring shipwreck, drifting, and countless hardships, the result was catastrophic.

“The Shogunate has issued an edict banning the Kirishitan (Christian) faith and expelling all missionaries,” he was told. “Trade with those who seek to spread that faith will only dwindle from here.”

“No! It cannot end like this!”

“Keep your head down, Tsunenaga. If you cannot abandon your faith, then stay as quiet as the grave.”

“My Lord!”

“The King of Spain refused the treaty anyway, claiming you weren’t a true envoy of the Shogunate, did he not? Nothing changes.”

The words of his lord, Date Masamune, seemed to negate every mile Tsunenaga had traveled and every hardship he had overcome. The news of the Kirishitan persecution was the final, incomprehensible blow. To have survived so much only to find his life under threat at home was unbearable.

As Date Masamune turned to leave, Tsunenaga prostrated himself, his voice desperate. “Wait! There was a nation across the sea that showed immense interest in us!”

“Hmm? What are you talking about now?”

Tsunenaga’s mind raced as he recalled the drifting journey. The words allegedly written by that nation’s monarch had been inscribed in clear Japanese characters. While there were occasional errors and a strange tone, it was undeniably his native tongue. The content had been staggering: questions about the current Shogunate, the relationship with Joseon, the status of the Ming.

They were clearly fascinated by Japan. Furthermore, unlike the warnings of the Spanish missionaries, those people had returned the ‘heretical’ embassy unharmed. This suggested that they would prioritize trade over proselytization.

“I have established a channel with them! They will be coming soon!”

As Tsunenaga poured out his story, his lord’s eyes flickered with a spark of genuine curiosity.

And so, the Japanese people learned for the first time of the massive nation known as the Continental Covenant.