Kantoh

Kantoh is an advanced metropolis located in the Mizukuni Isles, an archipelago off the eastern coast of the main continent of Yeddo. It has one of the highest GDP's on Yeddo next to Port Oraulan.

Kantoh was much quicker to recover from the Blackout compared to other city-states on Yeddo. A greater proportion of Valerian ruins in the area were intact, and the locals were able to advance much further in architectural engineering and other scientific fields. However, they were in a period of self-isolation until the late 1800s AB where they restricted trade with other nations.

Kantoh is also known for its hybrid population, with over 70% of the population featuring hybrid traits.

Economy

Fishing

Kantoh has a strong fishing economy. It is considered one of their major exports all throughout the world. In certain areas, they've managed to cultivate a population of lobbers with some genetic enhancements so that they are adapted to Yeddo's environment.

Kantoh has also had conflicts with local whale tribes. Before being officially banned by the Federation, Kantoh used to hunt whales for their meat.

Culture

Traditional

Historically, Kantoh's culture has been one of politeness and courtesy. It is customary to always speak in a mild manner and to maintain control over one's emotions. This can still be seen especially in the elder populations, although it is more lax around younger generations. While Kantoh's roots are still revered, self-expression has become all the more important.

Fascination with Humans

Non-hybrid humans are considered fascinating, and many locals look at them with intrigue and curiousity. It is a reverse concept to the fascination with "catgirls" that many humans have. A bizarre fashion trend emerged where a hybrid would make use of a wig to cover the ears on top of their head and attach fake human ears as a means of trying to look cute. The local human population naturally answered this by often wearing fake ears.

Points of interest

Zakana's Sushi

An all-you-can-eat sushi restaurant that does a cross promotion with Megumi Nekomata, a well-known holofauna trainer and Games Arena competitor. Megumi herself is known for having completed a feat to eat 100 sushi in one hour at this location. Ever since then, the restaurant now has an additional mascot of a super deformed version of Megumi happily biting into a fish. This caricature version of her is featured as various doodles on the menus and as additional art decorations around the restaurant.

Nekoshoujo Cafe

A maid cafe staffed entirely by female feline hybrids. It is a bright, pastel-colored place that serves tea and light snacks such as cookies and slices of cheesecake. Other services provided include headpats, shoulder massages and a place to hang out next to free roaming cats. It is not a franchise establishment, but there have been demands to open locations elsewhere across Yeddo. There also exists a virtual reality version on the vrNet.

There have been very few instances of disruptive guests. There is a well documented story of one guest that began harassing one of the maids. Within minutes, virtually every other patron came to the maid's defense and quickly put the disruptive guest in their place as if it was some sort of instinctual, collective obligation to defend the innocent.

Kantoh Colosseum

A colosseum where Games Arena events are hosted. Most of the events tend to be holofauna battling as the sport is massively popular in Kantoh. The colosseum features giant statues and holographic projections of various holofauna overlooking a pool enclosing the arena proper.

One Hundred Challenge Tower

An old tower dating back to the 1500s AB. It was a training ground to test the resolve of the most elite samurai warriors. Every single floor featured an arena where a contender had to overcome some sort of combat challenge. If they won, they were allowed to climb to the next floor. Whoever managed to clear all one hundred floors was crowned champion and was promised a generous plot of land by the emperor.

The tower still exists today although challenges are more often conducted in a virtual reality replica. The real tower was converted to a museum and a place for historical reenactments.

Valeguni Ruins

Just off the coast and peeking out from the oceans surface are various Valerian era skyscrapers. A pod of whales makes their home in the submerged portion of the ruins. They have mixed relations with the locals as in the past, Kantoh used to hunt whales. However, they still greet tourists and other passerbyers.

It is thought that the Valerians attempted to build their megacities over the water, but due to a number of possible reasons, they never completed the project. It is likely they instead chose to develop more resources to the construction of more space habitats.