Thaddeus Ming Backstory

Thaddeus Ming was born to a single mother in the slums of a northern barony. His mother always said his father was an Earl. His mother was a servant woman who was seduced and raped by the country lord.

The young woman took her son and escaped down south, to an Albania coastal city for safety. The young mother worked long hours selling flowers to feed her son scraps. Thaddeus ran the streets with other poor children, escaping the capture from the city guards.

The guards, nobles, officials would call him and other youth like him 'rats.' He and other children would steal food to eat, pickpocket, and spends their days playing on the beach. Thaddeus always enjoyed the danger of getting caught and the feeling of escaping.

At 10 years of age, Thaddeus' magic talent manifested. Thaddeus was a dual mage, air, and fire. On Terra, a mage born with two powers is a 1 in billion chance. When his mother learned she was excited, but also more worried. She feared, the authorities force him into servitude to the state.

Mages are also closely monitored and regulated by that state. His mother's fear came true when Thaddeus got into an altercation with a prune merchant. The merchant accused him of steal, which Thaddeus had not done, at that time.

The merchant slapped Thaddeus's face. Without thinking, his air and fire powers unleashed an inferno. The entire bazaar was caught ablaze. The merchant and over 200 people were killed, including Thaddues' friends.

Fearing the authorities, Thaddeus and his mother quickly escaped back to Fermion. To escaped, his mother was extorted to pay 50 coppers for them both. When they got to Fermion, they lived in the south 30 kilometers south of Guidon, in a small village. His mother found work in a tavern wench.

The job was tough work, his mother would come home weak and tired to their worn-down cottage behind the stables. The tavern owner let his mother live there for 10 coppers a month. The tavern owner was a nice man who took pity on the mother and son. Thaddeus spent the next three years as a farmhand until the Mage Academy sent a tester.

When it was announced he had magic and a large mana pool, the small village rallied around him and agreed to pay his enrollment fees. That village was the closest Thaddeus ever felt to a family in his life. Before he left, his dying mother, who had deteriorated over the years, told him to keep his air magic a secret until he was stronger.

Thaddeus did not have the coin to travel to Guidon. He backpacked to Guidon, working odds jobs along the way. By the time he got to Guidon, his clothes were dusty tattered rags. The guards refused to let him in the city, even after he paid the entry fees. It wasn't until Thaddeus threaten to burn, did they let him in the city.

When he made it into the city, it was late. Thaddeus slept next to the Mage Academy gates, so he did not miss the entry test. He was kicked awake in the morning by a noble. He knew from his mother's stories that nobles were cruel and vindictive.

"Move street rat," the Mage Academy test will be held soon," the young noble spat in his hair.

Thaddeus didn't respond, he simply rose and dusted his clothes. When the Mage Academy Tester saw Thaddeus, he was very surprised by his wit.

Thaddeus easily passed the Mage Academy test and enrolled. All four years at the Mage Academy Thaddeus ranked first. During the mage duels, he relished fighting nobles. He would secretly combine his fire and air magic. He also practiced his dual magic on quests, and he hoard every piece of coin he received.

It was during his third year, where he acquired the name 'Hellsflame.' Only the Mage Academy Headmaster suspected Thaddeus of being a dual elemental user. In the third year, students went to the Northern Winter Forrest to get combat training.

Thaddeus set large swaths of the forest on fire, killing everything in his way. Thaddeus liked the imagery of the red, orange, and blue flames, against the snowy environment. The fire blaze with such ferocity, that the ash fell like snow.

After graduation, the king's great grandfather bestowed a baronet title Thaddeus. When a commoner becomes a noble, they are allowed to choose a last name. Thaddeus chose his father's last name. He had learned of his father as a student and vowed to pay his father back for all the misery he caused his mother.

That rage fueled a campaign of terror. After the bestowment ceremony. Thaddeus killed his father, half-siblings, and the entire lineage. Before his father burned to death, he made him sign over his estate and name Thaddeus heir. In a week, Thaddeus became an Earl.

After revenging his mother, and putting his new estate in trust, Thaddeus joined the Adventurer Guild. The Adventurer Guild ranks adventurers from 'E' to 'S.' E-class adventurers are beginners. These tasks are relatively simple, like picking plants for alchemists or dealing with small beasts. On the other hand, S-class adventurers take on the most dangerous jobs, such as exploring new dungeons and fighting grandmaster dire beast.

Thaddeus made a great adventure protagonist. He loved fighting, drinking, and women. Every tavern and brothel across the continent knew his name. More importantly, everyone knew not to mess with him. Everyone knew Thaddeus had a short temper. If he was upset, he was liable to destroy a tavern as end a person's life.

In less than 20 years, he was promoted from E to S-class. He killed kingdoms of goblins, orcs, dragons, and terrorized Beastmen, Dwarfs, and Elves. Kings and nobles feared him. Thaddeus hated nobles. It would not take much for him to kill a noble's family even the children. In Fermion and Albania, thousands of nobles died by hand.

Due to his ambivalence to death and fighting, people all over the world called him the incarnation of the God Regehl. Regehl was the son of the primordial gods Nyx and Aether. Regehl, guarded the gates of the dammed in the underworld for his mother. He was the god of fire, often called the Despoiler, Winged Scourge, and Infernal.

Wherever, Thaddeus Ming the Demon King went, death followed behind. People said Regehl blessed him to reap souls to send to the underworld.

In his life, Thaddeus only loved two women, his mother, and Silva. Thaddeus met Silva, his first year. Back then Silva was a shy girl with light magic. Silva was noble, who never made fun of him. She always spent time with him. She even helped him buy his first outfit after he saved up his quest money.

Silva and Thaddeus were always together laughing, talking, resting. They had picnics on campus. Silva taught Thaddeus table manners and manners in general. The soft-spoken gentle girl, contrasted to Thaddeus' abrasive behavior.

The other students knew learned fast not to mess with Silva, or face a duel from Thaddeus. Thaddeus loved Silva's personality, the two were a perfect match. However, Thaddeus never confessed to her. And during Silva's second year, she was offered discipleship with the Church of Gaia.

Thaddeus congratulated her and they had dinner afterward, where he confessed his feelings. That's where he learned disciples can't marry. Silva left dinner distraught, with a difficult choice. Thaddeus felt depressed. If he knew, he would have told her earlier.

To his credit, Thaddeus did not pressure her into a decision until then of the third year. Thaddeus needs to decide on his path in life, either settle down with Silva or join the Adventurer Guild. When Silva told him her heart, which was become a disciple. Thaddeus felt depressed once again.

After that Thaddeus shut his heart from love. He lusted after women to replace the abandonment he felt in his heart. He pursued hundreds of women for pleasure, but Elven and Beastwomen were his favorite.

However, as he grew older he looked for a place to settle down. He flew to the coastal city where he grew up to look for some of his old friends. There were only a few left, most had died by one way or another.

One night, he was drinking in a tavern with his 'street rat' childhood friends, when on started a fight with another patron. The fight escalated, but Thaddeus just sat there drinking with an air shield protecting him from the flying broken bottles of liquor and chairs.

The guards came, with an air mage to break up the fight. The air mage saw Thaddeus' nonchalant behavior and burst the protective spell. Although Thaddeus wasn't happy, he did not respond...that was until the air mage made disparaging comments about his mother.

With one finger Thaddeus killed the air mage. The guards sent for reinforcement and the fight escalated until Thaddeus destroyed the entire city. From the air, Thaddeus looked at the leveled city and felt no remorse. From that point on, various kings paid Thaddeus heft ransoms not to destroy cities.

At the age of 50, Thaddeus broke through to become the youngest Grandmaster Mage in history. After, Thaddeus broke through he flew to a northern kingdom of the Shuluk Empire to spar. The Empire of Shuluk, on the far east of the continent, was a massive empire, composed of several kingdoms.

Another grandmaster magician lived in that kingdom. The grandmaster was world renown for his ice magic. The two grandmasters fought, throughout the northern kingdom. After the duel, the entire kingdom was in ruins and the other grandmaster lay dead. The news of his breakthrough and duel, caused the world to figuratively shuttered in fear.

After the duel, Thaddeus flew north to the Dwarven Kingdom and to the very depts of the mountain where he stayed for decades learning, practicing, and advancing his air and fire magic. After a hundred years, Thaddeus was able to learn space and magma magic.

After almost a hundred years Thaddeus had turned into a bedtime scary story nobles told their children. Some people thought, Thaddeus was summoned back to Hell.

In a blink, he arrived back at Yorkshire. Thaddeus would periodically check on his northern estate, and capital manor he inherited from his father. When he learned the old king, Roland Albus Fermion the II, was on his deathbed, he visited.

The king who bestowed him a noble title, and Thaddeus had always appreciated him for that. The king was dying but did not fear Thaddeus. Originally, the thought Thaddeus had come to claim his soul. But, Thaddeus had simply come home to pay his respect. The king on his deathbed gave Thaddeus his dying request, tutor his newborn grandson Remus Albus vont Whitby in magic.

Thaddeus in a moment of weakness agreed and moved into the castle. He also reconnected with Silva. For the next 13 years, Thaddeus taught the prince. However, he also grew remorseful, as he read what history had written about him over the years. In his heart, he repented. In his past, he mistook fear for respect. During that time, he watched how people interacted with Silva, and the respect she garnered.

After fulfilling his debt, Thaddeus lacked a purpose. He had accomplished all his goals. He joined the Mage Academy as a librarian. He had secretly always enjoyed reading. He wondered if he could find a purpose, hidden in the Academy's vast archives.

The years, past and he watched the instructors and students go. But, it wasn't until he met a young beast woman, who applied for librarian did he find his purpose. He hired Eleanor Li, against the wishes of nobles. Yet, when had they ever stopped him.

Eleanor was a young librarian, who looked up to him. She reminded him of a young Silva. It wasn't until she called him, master and thank him for his mentorship, that he knew his purpose. He wanted a disciple. Someone he could pass on his knowledge. However, he would only accept a disciple who wanted power for power's sake. Thaddeus thought the world did not need another like his former self.

He informed the king and academy he wanted a disciple. Thousands of children, from across the world were interviewed. And every kid wanted to become the world's greatest or strongest mage. They all wanted the power to destroy. He turned them all down.

That is when he decided to visit different villages, towns, and cities as the magic tester. He would see if he could find a disciple. As he grew on in age, his mission felt homeless. That was until he visited the vont Ballard Barony.

There he found a young man, who was not impressed with his magic powers. Nor, did the boy wish to attend one of the academies, he wanted to be a merchant. When Thaddeus referred to the boy's powers as "passable" he meant as his disciple.

Thaddeus had finally found a worthy disciple. True boy was an earth mage, and they had different powers, but Thaddeus still knew more magic than anyone else in the Kingdom.

The king had even asked Thaddeus to become the Mage Academy Headmaster, but he refused. That's when the position was offered to Headmaster Wang.

Thaddeus spied on the boy, William, for the next three years, as he managed his father's barony. William reminded him, of himself. William worked to afford the Merchant Guild fees like he worked to afford his trip to Guidon.

When the boy enrolled in the Knight Academy and aced the written exams, Thaddeus had all but excited to accept the cadet as his disciple. Thaddeus even told Headmaster Abe to monitor to boy for him. Yet to his surprise, he saw the boy in the Knight Academy library on the first day. That's when he offered William his first challenge.

The boy passed, with flying colors to Thaddeus' delight. Even better the boy agreed to be his disciple. The news of his disciple was continental news. Everyone feared a second demon, only to be surprised by the news.

Thaddeus visited each royal palace and informed them of what would come to pass if his disciple was harmed. Every king feared the recuperations and vowed to treat his disciple as family. Otherwise Thaddeus Ming the Demon King, Regehl incarnate, Despoiler, Winged Scourge, Infernal would haunt their dreams.