Glass City

Seven years ago, as Elias Hawthorne was preparing to close his herb shop on a peaceful night in Riverbend Hamlet, a small village located on the outskirts of Verdantia, he had to shut early.

Rumors of missing newborns were rampant, and it had been a busy day with many customers.

As he closed the shop, the sound of moving carriages at high speed and horses screaming pierced the night.

A banner flew into his face, bearing the emblem of the notorious Cursed Artificers Guild, which was allied with the missing babies.

Chills ran down his spine as he wondered what they were doing so far east.

After the silence that followed, a blast of light struck, momentarily turning night into day. The magical energy emitted shook the entire Aetheria realm.

Despite his shock, Elias's body moved towards the Silverwater River.

There, he found a white glossy carriage painted in blood, surrounded by a lot of dead bodies and horses.

The river ran red with blood. Among the dead were members of the Cursed Artificers Guild.

Inside the carriage, a woman lay dead, protecting something beneath her stomach.

Nearby were dead mages, seemingly protecting the carriage.

As he ventured further, pondering the source of the light and what had killed the members of the dark guild, Elias heard a baby's cry coming from the carriage he had just passed.

Realizing he hadn't heard it earlier due to shock, he hurried back.

The woman had been protecting a baby boy with brown skin.

It was evident that the dead were his parents, likely of noble blood, judging by the elite mages guarding the carriage.

Alongside the baby, there was something like a magic storage box that looked locked by magic.

Such boxes were rare and not easy to get, and it was small enough to fit in a pocket.

Additionally, the baby was wearing what looked like an enchanted pendant that was radiating weak magic. Elias wrapped the baby along with the box.

His instincts urged him to leave the scene quickly. As a retired mercenary who understood the corruption in the kingdom, he took the baby and left.

The sister from the orphanage located in Mossy Hollow listened skeptically as Elias Hawthorne explained how he found the baby.

However, she had no choice but to take the baby in, especially after feeling the powerful magic a week ago.

Elias couldn't care for the baby, so he left him in her care.

Before leaving, she asked him to give the baby a name, and he named him Oasis, after the desert kingdom of Avaloria, from where his brown skin likely originated.

Two weeks after the incident, news spread of the Divine King holy magic wielder,

Sir Roland Lightbringer from the Holy Cathedral, who single-handedly destroyed the three most powerful dark guilds: the Cursed Artificers, Obsidian Shadows, and Nightshade Assassins.

Since then, Sir Roland was titled "The Divine Avenger," and no dark guilds have been seen, thanks to his example.

When questioned about his presence in the east, far from the Holy Cathedral headquarters in the kingdom of Celestia in the western side of the realm,

Sir Roland explained that he had been tracking the incidents for some time.

The newborns of Celestia were also going missing, leading him to the dark guild from the south of the realm, the Cursed Artificers, rumored to have been seen in the east.

Despite the two kingdoms not being on talking terms, he had no choice but to go there and ended up destroying all the involved guilds, including the other two.

He emphasized , "I am acting in the best interest of mine kingdom and the realm's future."

And he did conclude, declaring, "If aught resembling doth occur again to mine kingdom, the Holy Cathedral shall not tarry in its actions."