Amatsu

The Land of Destiny
The city of Amatsu is the most recently conquered land within the Eastern Empire, thanks to its distant location from the continental mainland. While all the countries within the empire are very prideful of their heritage, the Amatsuans are even more so. Even still, thanks to the Empress' ruling, the country has allowed itself to be absorbed into the Empire's lands without trouble.

Amatsu is governed by the Daimyo, once-ruler of the country and now the Empress' eyes and ears within the city. The current Daimyo manages Amatsu fairly well on the surface, though it is no secret that he is a corrupt official, pocketing funds from the city for his own use and caring more for a hedonistic lifestyle than anything else. Rumors abound throughout the commonfolk that the Empress plots to "replace" the leader in due time.

Despite this setback, Amatsu is--like the rest of the Eastern Empire--a lovely city and a pleasant place to live. Annual cherry blossoms are one of the city highlights, with many of the city streets lined with the soft pink blossoms and even more growing outside the city gates. There is also an enormous cherry tree slightly off from the center of the city, and many, many legends surround it, from myths of romance under the tree's canopy to being the home of a goddess.

Amatsu is also known for its many, many festivals. Nearly every other week a celebration of some kind is held, and tourists and locals alike are invited to take part in the festivities. Amatsu has recently adopted the fireworks developed in Gonryun, and many of the colorful devices feature prominently in the nighttime festivals. There is even a festival dedicated solely to fireworks held in the late summer, heralding the oncoming autumn.

Fortunately the city often has good, mild weather for these festivals, though there is a strong rainy season from late spring to midsummer, where seldom a day goes by without torrential downpours. The city also receives a fair amount of snow from midwinter until the onset of spring, especially in the higher parts of the island.

For the most part, Amatsu is a popular place to visit, though not many outsiders immigrate to the area. The city has never been very open to new traditions and outside influences, thus many from outside the land only come to visit, not to stay.