The continent of Balarukh once known

as Arboria, the place that the heavens

and hells envied. A place that not only saw prosperity but had witnessed an unimaginable amount of death. There lived many different species in harmony, or at least right now. It was not known to any when this world was formed and what happened after it did. The only history everyone knew and had any idea about was since the era of prosperity. This world had gods and demons as the superior species: Life flourished throughout the world. This world saw entire civilizations rise and fall. The world was just as spectacular as it could get. The rivers and mountains, the vast dense forests and long shores along the seaside. Arboria was no excuse for such prosperity. As one of the largest continents, it was always a target for those who envy the resourcefulness of this continent. Even Gods were no excuse. There once was a great war, at the end of the era of chaos. As everyone referred to them, Mortals had been the target of the new gods for quite a long time. But in this era, the real threat was the demons lurking beneath. As this world was a planar world, the heavens were about mortal realms while demons lived beneath the surface, as for why only the God of creation could tell. He was the creator of this world. to be sure no one had seen or even heard from him in the longest time. Though, the demons were certainly unhappy with the treatment specified to them. To begin, they were given a place to live which was nothing like a habitable place. It sounds unfair, bur most probably the God of creation might have no hand in it! Their discomfort grew as time passed and finally they decided to take on the mortal realm. Thus the era of Chaos began. The war that took place shuddered the entire realm. For demons, it was just a fight for territory but for mortals, it was a fight for their lives. All mortal species came together and fought the demons wherever possible. The last and possibly largest war took place in the vicinity of Arboria. Just like other continents, Arborian forces came together to fight hack the evil. In this Great War, a king sacrificed his divine powers to wield a legendary artifact, which led to the victory. The war ended and a lot was lost but the living had the opportunity to grow up once again. Thus the era of prosperity began. In the honor of the King who sacrificed his life for the living, the Kingdom he ruled over was named Arboria while the entire continent came to be known as Balarukh. In later times, no such wars happened as the greater archdemon was slain successfully by the forces of mortals. Although some new information was missing as to what exactly happened at the time of the war. For some reason, all the people who fought never spoke of the war and as for the kings, they all went in eternal slumber. They left the mortals just after they brought peace to the world. Later after a few decades came the era of uncertainty. The times when regional wars broke out... Many little kingdoms were fighting over resources and territory as well. In the kingdom of Arboria', the wise king "Evan looked after his people along with his elder son 'Nicholas, his younger sister "Merida' and the youngest of the siblings "Theodore". Nicholas was a gifted warrior and had always been the strongest one in the whole kingdom, he even once defeated a Demonoid. While he was the strongest, Merida was the most gifted mage and recently passed the base level for being a legend. This world worked on the levelling system, that is power was defined by the levels. The higher the level, the higher the power. Although it was difficult to understand the levels wizards had no hard time figuring out with clairvoyance spells. Even though it was difficult to earn levels, levels 1 10 was known as an amateur, while 11 -15 was the domain of experts and 15 -20 was known as levels of masters. Level 20 was a legend domain and only powerhouses of the world were able to step into it as there were various rituals and trials that one had to pass to become a legend. Domain above level 25 was god domain and no one knew much about it as people stopped ascending to that domain long ago. In this era there were very few legends, thus this was the highest anyone had ever heard. Merida was really close to becoming a legend mage. Though she has still had two levels and the trials that no one came across in recent years, everyone had faith in her abilities. Meanwhile, Theodore, the youngest sibling had little to no interest in anything Be it alchemy or fighting or politics, what he truly loved was exploring. Till now he had explored more than a hundred ancient ruins belonging to various civilizations. Lucky for him, Arboria was surrounded by many labyrinths and ancient ruins, some from even the 1st era. Theo always loved to go out of the castle to explore what was outside of the castle walls. This curiosity of his didn't help him in any warrior attributes, still, he never cared, he'd always sneak out of the castle to go explore. Due to the combined efforts of people in the kingdom, they never had to worry about resources. Arboria had the most suitable geological locations for agriculture, rice being the main crop as there are many natural water springs around Arboria. With widespread rice paddies and a vast amount of livestock, Arboria even conducts business with neighbouring kingdoms. There are even many pure veins of ores in the surrounding making Arboria a very resourceful kingdom. Definitely, not everyone was happy with the situation, especially the neighbouring kingdom, Etherblade. Recently they tried to steal the part of the territory which had two pure veins of gold and a few rice paddies as well. After the unsuccessful attempt, the duke of Etherblade had to apologize to Evan. He has been holding that grudge ever since. To find an opportunity he'd been scouting the surrounding of Arboria. To stay safe from such predatory kingdoms, Arboria had formed a pact with three other kingdoms. Ephesus, the kingdom of Elves, Antioch, a strong human kingdom and Cyprus, also famously known as the city of lakes. Together they formed a stronger force that rivalled even the strongest northern nations in terms of strength, yet for some reason, Etherblade was poking a little too bravely, maybe they had something in their minds

In the mainlands, a small delicate

looking figure was running through the

dense forest. People chasing that person

seemed to lack agility and were being

left behind. His speed was impressive

enough. The darkness that was eloping

the wild seemed to be in that person's

favour. Those who were chasing him

were on the verge of losing the visuals

on him... After a while they stopped

under a giant tree to get hold of their

breaths, "How fast does that guy have to

be to run like that?" asked one soldier.

"Must be someone who's familiar with

the terrain", one of them replied to

which all nodded. After looking around

a while and not being able to find

even a clue around, they left that place

cursing the thief. Once it was clear that

the soldiers were no longer around, the

boy stepped out of the bushes he was

hiding in..... "Damn, that was a close

call. Though I managed to get my hands

on the relic. I wonder what it actually

does?" saying this he took out the relic

that seemed to glow in the darkness,

giving a bit creepy vibe. Under the

darkness, he suddenly sped up through

the trees after casually putting the

relic away in his sack again… …. …..!

Back

in Arboris, King Evan was holding a

party, in which he had invited many

nobles and royalties. After all, this was

his eldest son's, Nicholas's birthday

and he also wanted to introduce him

to the royalty.. "Sire, I apologize as we

were unable to find the prince", one

of the guards reported to the King.

"Where did he go, isn't this his brother's

birthday. I thought he would've grown

tired of his plays and yet.." before he

could continue he was interrupted by

a voice, "Can't help it father, if that's

what he wants, we should just let him

he." Merida replied while concealing a

piece of meat stuffed in her mouth. "You

both really over exaggerate things. My

King, we should know he's your son and

our brother Merida, no harm will come

to him. With that being said, I believe

he never liked such events in the first

place, right? He'll come, we should be

on our way as well My Lord" Nicholas,

who was attending guests a while back,

tried to relieve his father.. "There he

is", "whoa, the crown prince surely has

the charm". There was quite a chatter in

the hall. People seemed to be enjoying

the crown prince's birthday.... With all

the guests gathered inside the main hall.

the castle was pretty much unoccupied

and thus was left with fewer than usual

guards. Everyone was guarding the main

hall as all the important figures were

there. Using this opportunity a shadow

sneaked inside the castle and rushed

through the hallway until it reached one

of the rooms. Just as he entered the room:

he felt cold metal touching his neck,

he soon realized the cold metal surely

was a blade and gulped for a moment.

The person holding the dagger casually

took his hood off, "Took you so long,

were you lost? Don't tell me you actually

made it, The-o-dore? That..." before she

could continue, he turned and twisted

his body while jumping over her and

landing behind her flimsy figure. That

sudden twist in his motion made her

twitch and lose the grip over the dagger

which that buy elegantly caught and

put again her delicate throat. "You're

losing your grip Vivian, sometimes it

is better to stay on guard even around

the people you know!" he seemed to

grin a bit as he replied in low voice,

almost whispering in her ears. That close

encounter surely was a bit unpleasant

for her, his face was awkwardly close

to her ear. She could feel his breath at

that distance. This made her blush with

embarrassment. She made a squeak

as she grabbed him by his hands, and

throwing him off by lifting him in a way

he almost lost his hands. Thud! A huge

bang and the shivering shadow could

be seen on the ground, "W... Wh... What

the hell you think you're doing so close

Theo?" "Argh, that could have killed me,

Vivian. Be careful with your strength

Vivi, you want me dead or what? And

yeah I did get my hands on it. Seems

like your sources are a bit reliable.

He said while standing up, shaking the

dust off his clothes, and taking out the

relic he had discovered. "That's rude,

Thelped you and you give such a rude

compliment as thanks. Huh! Next time

you come to me whining about Intel.

I'm not going to tell even a single word.

And why did you go right away? Didn't I

clearly tell you about the security is tight

right now? Goodness, and moreover

you kept me waiting on your brother's

birthday too.". "Birthday!". That

sounded like news to him, "Birthday?

Who's? Nicholas's? Is it today? Of all

days! God! Dad's going to kill me. Did

it start already?" He hurriedly started

to look for suitable clothing set in one

of the closets while asking. "Yeah, they

surely would have finished up with the

cake as well. And you idiot, because of

you even I am missing from the event."

With a slight blush, Vivi replied. "Which

one's better? This one's a bit flashy

right?" Theo asked to which he received

a sharp glare from Vivi. "I think I'll put

this one on." He hurriedly changed his

clothes and came out of the closet only to

find Vivian standing with a red face. He

hadn't realised that he changed before

her, that much cozy he was around her!

'Gosh, how can he even change in front

of a girl! Idiot'. Without looking at her

flustered expression he grabbed her

hand and pulled her along with him, in

hand, he held a gift that he had prepared

long ago.

In the hall, everyone was greeting the crown prince for his 25th birthday Nicholas was now a full-fledged grown-up, Many girls were trying to eye on him, no wonder there, he'd definitely become a king one day and he was extraordinarily handsome as well. He had the charm to make any girl fall for him. The nobles were also trying to gain his attention for future relations to get stable. "Nicholas, forgive me if my taste is bad but I tried to score the best sword our blacksmith could produce. Here take this, I call 'Rata', a sword forged to alay evil, or so. Do you like it?" & Sturdy tall, equally handsome person spoke lle was Jason Ruler of The Lake City, and Evan's good old friend asked Nicholas while handing him a golden sword. The sword had no halo but the sheath was of Gold. It looked more of a showpiece than an actual weapon. But the blade spoke a different story. It was well forged only for killing, the sharp edge looked to be of mixed metal, surely to strengthen it while the rear edge wasn't too thick. It was a rather thin longsword, unusual but difficult to forge at the same time. The work was no joke and must have cost a top to even make it firsthand. - He observed it for well over a minute before snapping to reality. "It's more than what I can ask for and please don't be like that, even your presence is a gift for me, not to mention the sword of such high value. I can hardly imagine myself worthy enough to possess such a treasure worthy gift.” Nicholas replied with a bow to the King. "Ha ha ha, why don't you see it yourself, if it's to your liking or not To the request of the King, Nicholas could hardly contain his excitement. He drew the sword our of the sheath again with a calm look, it's perfect! I can hardly wait to see how It plays in the field" The crown prince showed a confident smile to which his father replied. "That'd have to wait till the morning. For now, we should get to dinner, everyone is waiting" As everyone was heading towards the dinner hall, Merida found something suspicious or rather interesting. She saw two people following who weren't there before. With a smug face, she approached them in order to see who they were and soon realized who they were. She pounced onto one of the figures from behind like apme cat: "Gor you! No more stacking little brother, Can't believe you dragged Vivi into this all Theo was rather started to death as he wasn't expecting to get exposed like that Even Vivian was no excuse. "You alright? Did you sneak out of the castle again brother? told you to always carry guarda you know you don't possess much mana, What would we have done if you'd have been attacked? Nicholas who was chill about the situation a while ago showed worry in his tone now. Theodore seemed to feel guilty about his reply: "It was my fault brother Nic, I lor him go on his own." Vivian sounded guilty about the whole thing, "Ruhl No one would dare to lay a finger on my son, not on my watch, here come to join Evan eased off the tension with a loud laugh. "You know your brother, he's just worried about you. Come, Vivint you should be hungry as well right? Handling this runaway son isn't an eaxy task. I should be thankful to you for being a good friend to him." To the King's words, Vivi seemed to become stiff "Friend?" Vivi murmured with a hint of irritation and continued to follow all to the dining hall. Now that's an interesting expression there!' Merida showed a hint of a smile from the corner of her | mouth.…….. "Whoa, this meat is really good! We don't eat such exquisite meat at our place much, I personally love fish, fresh in fact. But I must admit, this food is delicious, no matter how many times Tent it "Jason kept bragging about the food with Evan. They seemed to enjoy it In another corner, Theodore sat along with Vivian with a gloomy expression Treally wanted to be the first one to wish him, but I am not good with dates so I keep forgetting the birthdays and important stuff! Last time it was yours then Meris. Ahh I am such a sore loser, you know. I even planned a whole schedule for his birthday. And I missed it. Huld How lousy brat am." Theodore with his sad expression complained to Vivi to which she replied with a smile saying, "Well, you can still give him the gift and congratulate him, he won't even complain. He's your brother after all, right?" That seemed to have relaxed him a bit and finally gathered the courage to approach Nicholas "Brother, I believe Eam late to wish you... Thendore's voice was a bit low yet seemed to have reached his brother, oven Vivi was cheering him on. "I'ma lor clumsy, weak. irresponsible, and I also hate being around so many people, yet you always support me. Without you. I might have shut myself from the world. I can't thank you enough" Everyone seemed to be shocked by Theodore's words. Nicholas had a jaw tropping expression and Merida seemed like she could pass out any moment. No one had ever seen him expressing so openly Vivi's eyes were shining, she looked like a proud mother, "I can't possibly give you anything worthy yet, and this is all I could think of. Have a very happy birthday brother Nic. A brief moment of silence eloped everyone. Evan and Jason were looking at each other in shock, Merida) had already choked herself and others had blank expressions. "So many words at a time, and what words? Of gratitude Guards!! Did we miss an oracle or the sun rose from the west? Guards, Go, find out My son who's always running away from his brother's responsible eyes feels that much about him. God, Jason I can how leave the rest in your hands and get going." He burst into tears. "Father ics rude to talk like that about someone's confession. But for real. I'm also grateful to have you as a brother too. Believe me or not, even Merida thinks that way too Nicholas replied with a smile on his face. "That was scary, and hell I don't give a piece about you brat." Merida somehow managed to reply with a cholted voice to which everyone burst out in laughter. Theodore on the other hand was turned cherry red from embarrassment and was heads down. "There there, that wasn't difficult, right? You can do such things if you try. Brother Nicholas, why don't you unwrap the gift he gave you" Vivi asked Nicholas while parting Theodore on his head. "Such a treasure. I can't open waste it!" He replied "Just open it!" Merida shouted from across the table, she was excited as well but didn't really show such emotion. "I can hardly contain myself with excitement. Father may L... Before he could finish Evan laughed and interrupted saying "Haha let us see as well, what has gifted our. Former Crown Prince. That last word seemed to have killed the mood. The air got heavier and tense. Theodore abruptly stood up and ran out of the hall, followed by Nicholas and Vivian "Father, you know it better than anyone Then why keep taunting him?" Merida's anger was clearly visible. "Evan, it's always better to just let the past go and move on. You mare than anyone knows that etter, don't you? Why stay stuck?: And you know he is not ready yet!" Jason asked in a serious tone. Other guests were startled as most of them couldn't grasp the things happening Someday the truth will haunt him, isn't it better to be prepared One simply just cant escape his destiny. Jason, the Oracle has spoken. We must not ignore the call." Evan calmly answered while finishing his meal. "And it's a bad omen to storm off the meal too, kids these days. Saying this, Evan got up from the seat and addressed the guests, "People, if you'll excuse me for a moment. My friend here will host you in my absence for the time being, I apologize for the interruption though He then turned to Jason. "I'm counting on you, forgive me this time. Guards, get someone to deliver Theodore's meal to his room. The awkwardness could be seen clearly written on the face of jason as he abruptly put a piece of meat in his mouth which everyone in the hall saw him doing After addressing The King seemed to head towards the balcony: How long has it been Lara? Yet the kids aren't ready. I hope everything turns out fine" Evan murmured looking at the starry sky with a nigh