SlothfulChronicler

In the year 556 of the Runtallian Calendar, a war broke out in the eastern frontier of the Kingdom of Runtallia between the eastern overlord, Duke Gaverone Walruse of Regalia, and the barbarian chief-thane known as Dariun Drunzelle of the Shiradonii tribe, one of the Four Great Tribes of Norsmund, a nation that borders the Kingdom, deemed to be the land of brutes and savages. As the Duke of Regalia marches with his army to defend the disputed land of Kurlon, the barbarians have taken such an opportune moment to launch another incursion near the eastern border of Regalia near the town of Flendle, with the intention of dividing his army. However, despite accepting the town and the surrounding local lords' territories as lost cause in the war in favor of Kurlon– a newly discovered territory bountiful with veins of iron and other minerals– the Duke tasks his third son, Lord Velmund Walruse, along with his retinue, the Order of the Raven Knights, to fend off the attack. 

Now faced with the plight of defending the border town against a 5,000-strong Norsmundi army with his few yet skilled knights, along with an ill-equipped and undermanned militia, Lord Velmund has no choice but to fulfill his duty as a noble, relying upon his wits and his few but capable retainers to survive his first battle at the tender age of sixteen summers and winters. Contrary to his timid, youthful, and innocent appearance, however, lies his sly and scheming nature, evident by his fondness of dark magical arts specializing in illusion spells. Nevertheless, he himself has no idea of what he is capable of, and what he is destined to become.

Meanwhile, further east at the frontier with Norsmund, a plot hatches to ensnare the Duke within the clutches of his treacherous vassals. Not only his life is threatened by these schemes, but his sons Theo and Varus as well. With this scheme put into motion, the Duke and Velmund's siblings, Varus and Theo, would taste fate's twisted humor, with the former meeting his demise in a blaze of glory amidst the field of battle, and the latter two vanishing in incidents shrouded by mysteries. With the death of the patriarch of Regalia and his heirs' disappearance, the young lord who was initially third in line for the succession of the ducal seat became its temporary occupant. And thus, the tale of him and his court begins…

CHAPTER RELEASE:

January 1st at 12:00 UTC

Lord Raven's Court

According to legends, the origin of magic dated back several millennia ago when battles between the demon lords of the Nether Realm– otherwise referred to as 'hell' by scholars and priests– and the gods whom reside in the ethereal plane were rampant, that inevitably sparked the beginning of what is known as the Thousand Years' War. The God of Knowledge and Wisdom Ashwald concocted the idea of choosing a champion among the human races and granting that person knowledge to harness mana and conjure magic to aid the gods upon their war against the demon lords and their abominations. The said champion was known as Galvanus Aurelius, the first mage recorded in history, founder and first grand magus of the Ecclesiastical Mages. Seeing the success of Galvanus upon repelling minions of hell spawned by the demon lords to wreak havoc in the material plane upon numerous skirmishes, the other gods have imitated the method and encouraged their human followers from the long-standing nations of the Ancient Empire and Old Empire to learn the arts of magic.

Although not many people can harness mana and use magic, the study of magic still developed after the demons were imprisoned and when the demise of the two original nations of Neutomia took place, as the gods themselves and their followers fought each other for rivalries. The current practice of magic mostly revolves around the cardinal elements of fire, air, water, earth, light and darkness, but there are those spells that do not rely on elemental affinity, which are known as 'attributeless spells,' thus branching the art of magic into two categories: elemental and non-elemental magic. Although the affinity to all attributes is not restricted to anyone who has mana, many magic casters normally choose no more than two particular attributes to specialize into as the learning process to master an element requires talent, time and fortune to complete. Furthermore, the level of one's affinity to the seven elements is not equal, and is divided into four stages: poor, average, excellent and perfect. The potency of a spell also depends on a mage's elemental affinity, with the exception of attributeless spells. This meant that a mage may have a perfect affinity to one element and poor affinity to another, but one would have been extremely lucky if he or she has a perfect affinity for one attribute as the mana faculty for most people in the continent is non-existent.

Magic spells are characterized into three kinds depending on their nature: offensive, defensive and support magic, which may include alchemy, enchantment and healing spells. Moreover, the magic casters in the continent have a ranking system classified into five classes: Novice, Apprentice, Disciple, Master, and Archmage, which depends upon the complexity of spells a mage can cast and their overall skills and potential upon a certain role or field of expertise. Furthermore, the complexity and level of a spell is determined by how long the required chant is.

Information for Public Disclosure: Introduction to Magic