Hod

Hod (ホド, Hodo^?) is the Eighth Region in the Neighboring World and is associated with the Yamai Sisters. The Dominion there was Kareha Banouin, but she passed the title to Retsumi Jugasaki shortly before dying. After Retsumi decided to head to the real world, the position of Hod became vacant, with Maya Yukishiro struggling to appoint a replacement.

Layout

Hod appears as two islands separated from each other by the sea. At the rebel base, there is a large storage house for fireworks. The center of the region is Banouin Castle, where Kareha's subordinates are gathered. There is a large fortress separating the castle from the sandy beach. Covered in barbed wire, it acts as the main defensive point to protect the main castle from rebel attacks. Behind the castle is a large forest in the mountains. The Empties in the region also have hidden themselves in an abandoned house located in the mountains. Hod is also mentioned to be so windy that it is difficult for Quasi-Spirits to fly.

Kareha Banouin, by using her authority as Dominion, ensured that Hod's climate was kept in stasis as an eternal summer in order to facilitate the tropical nature of Hod.

History and Culture

History

Competition has always played a huge role in shaping activity in Hod. Originally, the competitions were innocent and innocuous contests like racing or hide and seek. However, with Quasi-Spirits fleeing from Malkuth moving here, the values brought from the Tenth Region gradually caused the contests to grow more aggressive.

Culture

Recently, Hod was in a perpetual state of civil war. However, instead of the war being fought with lethal weapons, the rebel army and the ruling opposition fought with water pistols, hence why Kareha modeled its geography off of a beach. Kareha was opposed to violence, but wanted to continue enjoying her time with rebellion leader Retsumi; a Quasi-Spirit who enjoyed battle. In order to separate Hod from the violence of Malkuth and Gevurah, the combat between the two factions is entirely non-lethal. However, fireworks and explosions are still used, as well as traps littered across the beach.

This shift allowed for Quasi-Spirits to live out their goals in a non-lethal way. Retsumi and Kareha recognized that the Quasi-Spirits living there enjoyed the deathless civil war, and the two hid the secret of their relationship in order to ensure the civil war was realistic so that the Quasi-Spirits wouldn't become unstable and therefore Empty.

After Kahera’s death, Hod’s summer ended and therefore the temperature began to drop. Retsumi now rules over Hod. She vowed to take up the mantle of Hod's happy culture without letting hatred and killing ruin the region. Her words united both armies in the civil wall, with the Quasi-Spirits there pledging their allegiance. She also stated to Kurumi that they would focus on defeating the White Queen, that they would fight, train, and spar to grow stronger, aiming to outshine Gevurah and Malkuth in might. The Quasi-Spirits focused their feelings of revenge and directed them towards avenging Kareha, galvanizing their collective values.

Compile

No Compile in Hod has been described in detail during Kurumi Tokisaki's visit in the Neighboring World. However, it presumably allows the user to peer into the Yamai twins' memories.

Known Inhabitants

• Kareha Banouin (Formerly)
• Retsumi Jugasaki (Formerly)
• Todou
• Mizuha Banouin (Formerly)

Connections

Hod is directly connected to Yesod, Tiphereth, and Gevurah. Gevurah is closed off from Hod.

Trivia

• In Hebrew, Hod can mean either majesty, splendor, or glory.
• According to Kurumi, the war-zone beach in Hod takes cues from Omaha Beach.
• Hod is associated with orange, which matches the color of the Yamai sisters' hair and Sephira Crystal. It is also associated with mercury, which is a description used to indicate the twin’s eye color.