Posts from ☀️ Arselia and Akonia

—Belief in hopelessness... Or maybe it's better to think the opposite, to have hope? It's not for nothing that people remember it when everything seems lost. It might create a more foolish impression, but it doesn't sound as bleak.

- Perhaps you're right. After all, even from my dark tunnel, I found a way out into the light...

damn Ple-Sen

- Yes... friendship is magic, - Ayano replies to her (she hasn't forgotten about Sonata at all, but now wasn't the time to bring her into the conversation).
- So, since we're starting over... this is Bajena, my close friend. And... a master of polearms? She works at a casino, - she explains to Sonata. - She was the first person I met in this city, and she was very friendly to me. To be honest, she deserves a better friend than I am... But still, I'm very glad we met.
- And this is Sonata, my... close friend. And a master of the sword, - she explains to Bajena and, in part, to Edge Lord-kun. - I've known her for quite a while, even if it's been somewhat one-sided, and she's only recently arrived in this city. I hope you'll both be good friends to her. She's currently living... near me.
- And this is Edge Lord-kun, a master of knives and this establishment, a close acquaintance of Bors-san, - she explains to Sonata and, in part, to Bajena. - This... - she says to Bajena. - We had some disagreements, but in the end, we came to an understanding and mutual respect. Believe it or not, he actually didn't plan to harm you. Right? - she clarifies with Edge Lord-kun. - And, um... you both heard about Lady-san. I'm supposed to help out a bit here with administrative and paperwork... - she says to Bajena and Sonata. - And he's going to help me with something, so it's all reciprocal.
She blushed, unsure how to end this explanation.
- Do you have any questions?

- Perhaps you are right. After all, even from my dark tunnel, there was an exit to the light...

"Or the dark tunnel will soon engulf all of us along with the city."
- Well, somehow, our conversations always turn philosophical... Maybe it's because I keep bringing up the same topics. We, the creators, are a bit out of touch with the real world. - the knight said apologetically. - I only met one fellow countryman in the capital in the last year, and guess where - in a philosophy club, of course! That's how we live. Life goes on around us, and we keep thinking about our own things.
After thinking about something, he adds: - I remember he had a whole bunch of stray animals living with him. By the way, what do you think about pets?

- Uh-huh, Ayano is right. I didn't actually plan to kill you; I just wanted her to think that. That's why I decided to take you somewhere far away from here at that time.
- ***, that doesn't sound much better.
- I have no questions! - Sonata cheerfully jumped off that topic. - I'm just glad that the situation worked out for the three of you! What about you, Bajena?
- Well, yes, I do. First, why are you suddenly the deputy director? Second, what's this about? And third... What's your relationship with them?

Added after 4 minutes

"Or the dark tunnel will soon swallow us all along with the city."
—Yeah, somehow you and I keep drifting into philosophical waters... I suppose it's me bringing up the same topics over and over. That's just how we Criedeans are — a bit not of this world. —said the knight guiltily. —In the past year I've met only one fellow countryman in the capital, and guess where — in a philosophy club, of course! That's how we live. Life rushes by around us, and we keep pondering our own things.
After thinking about his own things for a bit, he adds: —I also remember he had a bunch of stray little critters living with him. By the way, how do you feel about pets?

- I never got into philosophy, but I remember one passenger on the "Storm" once posed a strange riddle to the sailors. He said: imagine you are a representative of a nation that everyone in the world oppresses in every way. And after several centuries, one of them emerges who gains enough power to destroy all the other sentient races in the world to save his own people. But this man's friends don't like that plan, and they decide to kill him, even if it means their own people will continue to live oppressed, or perhaps even be wiped out entirely... Hmm, what would you do?

I didn't know that Bruno was a sailor on the "Thunder".

VII - Saikam es Diesra Arual

Saikam's contemporaries described him as a man detached from public life. He was passionate about botany and floriculture, and wrote many scientific papers on these topics. He also had a particular passion for drawing, and especially sculpture. It is known that he was a great admirer of the "female form," but at the same time, he had little interest in interacting with people, including members of the opposite sex, although throughout his life he had several models whom he used to study the structure of the female body for his subsequent works.

Shortly before Saikam was crowned, the neighboring realm of Villia turned to Margel for help against the attacking Skraem tribes and received his consent, so the new king had to involve the country in another war against his will. During this conflict, Margel was attacked by the Republic of Renn, and the kingdom was unable to protect Villia from losing some of its territory to the barbarian tribes, but despite his lack of interest in military affairs, Saikam proved to be a good warrior and commander: after the war, he managed to recapture some of their territory from the attackers and personally participated in the military campaigns.

In peacetime, Saikam ruled with a fair hand and cared for the well-being of his subjects, but he was not very popular because he rarely appeared in public. His wife was his third cousin. She was a plump, feminine, and wide-hipped woman. It is believed that he chose her as his bride because these qualities contributed to a successful pregnancy and easy childbirth.

Effect: +10% to health or +5 to luck.

"I wonder if it's just a coincidence that the most reclusive member of the ruling dynasty is depicted in his portrait as less attractive than any of his predecessors? Not that I'm accusing the artists of having any biases, I just find this coincidence curious."
Despite his quirks, Alaria was left with a rather positive impression of the seventh monarch. He ruled fairly, cared for his subjects, and didn't get involved in any adventures. Perhaps he wasn't some kind of reformer or innovator, but his reign was still a period of harmony and prosperity. At least, according to what I read. And what he did in his personal time is his own business. After all, he's just a person and has the right to do so.

Taking health.

- I wasn't particularly interested in philosophy, but I remember one passenger on the "Thunder" once presented the sailors with a rather peculiar problem. He said: imagine you are a representative of a nation that is oppressed in every way by the whole world. And then, after several centuries, one of them gains enough power to destroy all other intelligent races in the world in order to save his own people. But this person's friends don't like this plan, and they decide to kill him, even if it means that their own people will continue to live in oppression, or even be completely exterminated... Hmm, what would you do?

—Interesting, I haven't heard this interpretation before. I think I'll also remove the possible options for resolving the conflict with minimal bloodshed, other than the two described above, so as not to seem too clever. And by oppression, I will mean the worst and most truthful of the options, and not as it was with the conquest of my homeland by an empire, otherwise it will be unfair. —the blue flame in the eyes of the black knight dims for a moment.

—Let's look at it from the point of view of a representative of this very oppressed nation; for simplicity, let's consider him a patriot. Perhaps my country is harmful to the surrounding world, and the hatred towards its people is quite justified. Maybe the world would be better off if we remained only on the pages of history. But for me, all this: my homeland, family, friends, love, are far more important than any reasons and consequences, any distant powers and their inhabitants. Could I restrain myself from the heart-consuming hatred if I saw the systematic extermination of my fellow countrymen every day? Revenge is a cruel and insidious feeling, but it is often presented as a good thing, especially if it is justified by a suitable motive. For every one of our people, we will bury a hundred of yours, and so on.

—But let's move away from human matters and look at the world around us: isn't the survival of the fittest the main guarantee of evolution, on which the entire divine universe is based? How many hundreds of different species have been wiped out by battles with each other, including humans, simply because one side had an advantage at a crucial moment, capable of completely eradicating the opponent? Everything is according to the will of Anuzish, otherwise this would not become the norm in the wild.

—And there remains only one way back, the very "high-minded" one that this person's friends choose. This is the path of betrayal, loneliness, sadness, and hope. The belief that all human lives are equal, that violence will only lead to more pain and suffering, until this fatal cycle closes in its apex. But the problem is that this is also not a righteous path, but a thin thread full of vice. And its victims and their suffering will not disappear anywhere; they will simply be stretched out over a slightly longer period of time.

—And what is the result? In essence, it all comes down to a very superficial choice: "Are you willing to kill a thousand to save your love?" Or "Are you willing to kill your love to save a thousand?" And that means there is no good solution to this problem. If you think with your mind, you will choose the second option. If you think with your heart, you will choose the first. And I... —the knight fell silent for a moment, not daring to finish this unexpected monologue. —You will probably be disappointed in me, but I once faced a similar choice, although not involving genocide. And if reason had won in me, neither you nor I would be here now.

Erefir spends the last Friday hours and her last forge OD on creating a headpiece. The redhead strikes the metal and mutters in her thoughts, "Kalina, we need you, Kalina, we need you. Come already, how much longer... It's not so much your blessing we need as you yourself... Otherwise it'll turn out I've let someone slip through my fingers again for no reason, well, that's what I want )"

The goal of crafting the helmet was to make it so that it would grant the warrior the 5% protection she needs against Beznadega, and ideally account for the iron circlet's mistakes: a headpiece meant to protect the head must not block one's view... We have to try to avoid that. A special lightweight design should help with this (even though the helmet is heavy).



Wings of Erefir.

Expected effect: 5% protection and that's all; if accuracy increases rather than decreases, even better; only Erefir.

VIII - Sillion es Diestra Arual

In the past, magical abilities were available only to a very narrow circle of people:
— Certain peoples or followers of specific beliefs. 
— Those who used magical energy not directly, but for example through special items.
The eldest son of Saikam, Sillion, dreamed of learning magic from childhood and during his youth discovered that a certain portion of ordinary mortals carried a magical gift within them, and he became the first to be able to unlock it in himself. Subsequently, he would create his own method of teaching magic and open many educational institutions tied to it. Over the following centuries, other graduates of these schools would spread this knowledge first across the entire continent and then to the rest of the world. For this reason, King Sillion is considered the father of magic in Nidzikonia. 

Sillion was a very powerful wizard and possessed enough destructive power to deal with any external enemy, but he himself was not interested in conquests. Due to the combination of these two factors, Margel did not know war throughout the entire long reign of its wizard-king. He used his gift so that nature would be more favorable to his subjects, so that they could gather more bountiful harvests and be protected from natural disasters, and he helped them in construction and many other peaceful pursuits. 

Sillion lived for 186 years, and during that period he was revered in the kingdom almost like a god, although he himself refused such titles. Unlike his father, he appeared in public often. He could show up in some remote village, talk with the working folk, learn what troubled them, and solve that problem.

In narrower historical circles, there is a version according to which Sillion was in bad standing with the Church of Arcelia, but not because of his discoveries in the field of magic, but a personal matter — allegedly he created a wife for himself. Such an act in itself was considered an unacceptable playing at god, but even worse than that was the fact that he used strands of Aconia's hair he had obtained as the basis for his spell. This theory is called into question due to the fact that no conflicts between the kingdom and the Church of Arcelia are documented for this historical period, but particularly zealous proponents of this version claim that this is because Sillion was too powerful. Other researchers claim that even if this story were true, Sillion's wife was an ordinary woman, and as a result the event was simply forgotten.

Book effect: +100% to SM or HP +5.

share some books...