Prologue

The world of Ranvia wasn't always at war, although it may seem like that to its inhabitants. In fact, there was a time not too many years ago when the lands were at peace aside from the occasional skirmish between neighbouring lands.

There were many more different ruling realms back then, but the two largest and most prestigious remained the Kingdom of Linaria in the north and the Empire of Vardra in the South. Despite the distance between these two realms, a good trade relationship was forged between the two rulers, King Gabriel Fury of Linaria and Emperor Harlan Kriken of Vardra.

One summer, a series of storms struck Linaria and its surrounding lands, destroying the crops and damaging major infrastructure. In order to prevent a famine, King Fury ordered food stores to be brought in from the warmer, central continents. This, however, along with the cost of rebuilding, took a toll on the Kingdom's economy. Poverties had become an issue, and King Fury felt that he had no choice but to raise the cost of Linaria's export goods until the crisis had settled.

When news of these price increases reached the ears of Emperor Kryken, he became enraged. He already felt it was unfair that the Linarian Kingdom had the advantage of an abundance of natural resources to trade, such as highly sought metals and hard lumber. In comparison, his continent had only stones, salt, and clays to offer in trades, none of which were particularly high in demand or of great value.

As the days went by, Emperor Kryken's envy and greed consumed him. He had a desire to conquer Linaria, destroy King Fury, and take his place as ruler.

But Kryken knew that Linaria's army was great and most likely stronger than his own. The only way he would have a chance at defeating Linaria would be if he expanded his own forces, and that meant expanding his empire.

Emperor Kryken began by sending his troops to attack the smaller neighbouring countries, overthrowing their leaders and forcing their people to surrender themselves to his rulership.

Eventually, news about Kryken's intentions spread across to the northern lands and to King Fury. Kryken's expanding army was a major threat to his already struggling kingdom. He had a responsibility to protect his people. He first sent one of his envoys to Vardra to meet with Emperor Kryken to resolve the issue before war broke out, but Kryken had the envoy slain before the mediation talks could begin. With no other choice, King Fury began to take measures to bolster his own forces. He sent envoys to meet with the leaders of Linaria's closest neighbouring countries and enlightened them on the situation. From there, they struck up an alliance: Linaria would offer protection to the neighbouring lands in return for the merging of their forces.

And so it began. Both nations rushed to expand their rulership in an effort to gain the upper hand. Skirmishes between the two armies had started, and there became a noticeable divide between the north and south of Ranvia. Many years have now passed, and both the Emperor and King have perished; their titles have been handed down to their sons, the new Emperor of Vardra, Tarvis Kryken, and the new King of Linaria, Kieran Fury.

Despite the new leadership, the war still wages on and has reached across most of the world. However, there are still some lands across the central, tropical areas of Ranvia that remain untouched and blissfully independent, such as the cluster of hot and humid islands known as the Curio Isles.

The people who inhabit the islands are aware of the conflict happening across the seas, but they pay no attention to it. Their community is famous for their fishing abilities and the limitless amounts of valuable stones, ores, and minerals that they mine from their large underwater quarry, all of which they trade to the nearest mainlands for hefty prices that leave their economy booming.

So, they continue about their lives, without the pressure of having to choose a side, but the war is spreading, and the time of peace is running out.