Chapter Summaries

Plot points and events

• A worn but compassionate nun arrives in Free City after receiving Annan’s gift. She reunites with children she once cared for and meets those from the Lower Hive.
• The nun tells Annan that Betar City has fallen to the Ratfolk and that disorder, poverty, and exploitation have spread through other eastern cities. She has spent months trying to help abandoned and abused children, but cannot reach them all.
• Annan invites her to become dean of his Orphanage. She initially plans to keep helping children elsewhere, but agrees to stay for a while after Annan and Cathy plead with her.
• Illymoyas’s three younger siblings arrive and complain that she has taken their Gold Coins. Annan mediates, settling on a compromise: they keep half their money while Illymoyas holds the other half.
• Francois interrupts to report trouble caused by the Orcs, prompting Annan to leave for another matter involving the Foreign Races.

Character developments

• Annan shows deep affection for the children and respect for the nun’s selfless work. He tries to persuade her to stay without dismissing her wish to help children elsewhere, and later displays a practical, humorous approach to settling the dragons’ dispute.
• The nun remains devoted to helping vulnerable children despite exhaustion and the limited power of her faith in a dead god. She accepts a temporary place in the Orphanage while retaining her wider mission.
• Cathy eagerly seeks the nun’s affection and helps persuade her to stay, reflecting the children’s trust and attachment to her.
• Illymoyas and her siblings quarrel over money, exposing a playful but possessive family dynamic. Illymoyas tries to win Annan’s support, while the younger dragons insist they can manage for themselves.
• Evelyn briefly films the reunion, admiring its beauty, then disappears without explanation.

Significant themes

• Compassion amid collapse: The nun’s efforts contrast with the violence and social breakdown beyond Free City.
• Children and the future: The Orphanage offers safety and joy, while the nun’s account emphasizes how badly children suffer elsewhere.
• Kindness and responsibility: Annan supports both the children under his care and the nun’s broader mission.
• Family and compromise: The dragon dispute echoes familiar sibling conflict, resolved through negotiation rather than simple punishment.

Character interactions

• Annan warmly reunites the nun with the children, then discusses the hardships she has witnessed and invites her to join the Orphanage.
• Cathy inserts herself between Annan and the nun, holding both their hands and pleading for the nun to stay.
• Evelyn watches and records the scene, while Annan notices her but does not make an issue of it.
• Annan mediates between Illymoyas and her siblings, using the threat of involving their parents to secure a compromise.
• Francois arrives with news of the Orcs, shifting Annan’s attention from family business to public trouble.

Key events

• A dockside brawl breaks out after sailors insult Orc workers. Annan rules that both the sailors and the workers violated the Free City Code: insults do not justify violence, and fighting after the Guards arrived is also unlawful. He sentences everyone involved to unpaid labor.
• When the Orcs remain defiant, Annan summons their chief, Gar. Gar fears the Orcs will be banished, but Annan says he intends to send them to school instead.
• At the school, Gar struggles with basic arithmetic while the child Cathy teases him. Annan shows a visiting nun the range of subjects taught, explaining that education gives people skills and a better chance at a secure future.
• Annan invites the nun to stay and help the city’s children. Though she worries that the followers of the God of Justice and Courage will pursue her, he takes her to Free City’s unfinished Pantheon and promises a place there for the old Gods, including hers.

Character developments and interactions

• Annan enforces the law without favoring either side, but also seeks to address the Orcs’ exclusion through education. His confidence and openness toward the old Gods help encourage the nun to reconsider leaving.
• Gar shifts from indignation to alarm when he mistakes Annan’s summons for a threat of banishment. At school, his pride in being a gifted Orc clashes comically with his difficulty answering Cathy’s questions.
• The human workers speak up in defense of the Orcs, suggesting that the groups are beginning to form bonds despite the conflict.
• The nun agrees with Annan’s belief in education and is moved by his plan for the Pantheon, though she remains concerned about the danger to her faith.
• Cathy and Gar trade teasing and boastful remarks, revealing both her boldness and his pride.

Significant themes

• Justice and accountability: Provocation is acknowledged, but the law applies to both those who insult and those who respond with violence.
• Education as empowerment: Annan sees schooling as a way to equip children—and marginalized workers—with lasting skills rather than merely provide short-term support.
• Inclusion and coexistence: The Orcs’ place in the school and the workers’ defense of them point toward greater integration in Free City.
• Religious tolerance and courage: The Pantheon makes room for both current and old Gods, while Annan openly accepts the risks of protecting the nun’s faith.

Key plot points and events

• Keating’s Interior and Finance Ministers plan to launch a Magic Newspaper, eventually agreeing that the cabinet should control it and deciding to seek instruction from Free City.
• The ministers approve a payment of 100,000 Gold Coins, but corruption and miscommunication shrink the amount sent through successive officials until Free City receives only 100 Gold Coins. Deputy City Lord Olmedo refuses the offer and declines to let the envoy meet Annan.
• Keating’s ministers mistakenly believe Annan rejected the full amount. They consider bypassing him and approaching the Alchemy Tower, while a newspaper report makes the truth—and their administrative failure—public.
• Annan learns that Ms. Deta has agreed to become dean of the Orphanage and teach at the school. He suggests she teach prayer, so residents can learn to pray safely and properly.
• Olmedo also tells Annan that Mrs. Orok continues to seek his help.

Character developments and interactions

• Brink and Fronning differ in temperament, but cooperate on the newspaper plan. Their discussion exposes Brink’s limited understanding of Keating’s officials and the corruption within the duchy’s bureaucracy.
• Olmedo firmly protects Annan’s interests: she rejects Keating’s insulting offer and handles the request herself. She and Annan also share an easy, teasing rapport.
• Annan is excited by Ms. Deta’s appointment and thinks practically about how her skills might benefit the school and community.

Significant themes

• Bureaucratic corruption and miscommunication: Keating’s intended payment is drastically reduced at every level, with officials concealing the losses.
• Money, power, and reputation: Keating’s commercial influence does not guarantee it can secure cooperation; its envoys’ past behavior has damaged goodwill.
• Responsible religious practice: Annan’s idea for a prayer class reflects concern that people might otherwise pray carelessly and attract dangerous attention from the gods.

Plot points and events

• Annan dreams of the Lava Lake and tries to find the Flame Phantom, asking what kind of Magic Film it would like to watch. The Phantom throws him toward the magma, jolting him awake.
• He resumes his daily summoning ritual. After summoning a Water Elemental, he calls forth a Fire Elemental Elder and learns that Fire Elementals need a Contract to appear safely on the Main Plane without losing their essence. Annan plans to ask the Dean about arranging one.
• Mrs. Orok leaves the City Lord’s Mansion in tears after agreeing to hand over two-thirds of the Gold Mine. Her grief reflects the loss of her young lover.
• Annan debates whether to involve Free City’s troops in the conflict connected to Mrs. Orok’s request. Olmedo emphasizes the potential gains, and Luoxi argues that the soldiers need combat experience; Annan focuses on the likely deaths and the families left behind. He postpones his decision.
• The Duchy of Keating offers 100,000 Gold Coins—described as a quarter of an Arcane Core—for the Magic Newspaper. Annan suspects Keating may be manipulating neighboring states but accepts the offer anyway.

Character developments and interactions

• Annan remains compassionate and reluctant to risk lives for political or military gain, though he recognizes the strategic and financial benefits of war. He also shows a pragmatic, shameless side when negotiating with Keating.
• Olmedo challenges Annan’s reluctance, arguing that warriors value honor, while still understanding the complexity of his choice.
• Luoxi supports combat as a soldier’s duty but falls silent when Annan asks how he would answer the families of the dead.
• The Fire Elemental Elder is friendly toward Annan but explains the conditions required for its people to help him.
• Lily provides a brief comic exchange with Annan after he wakes.

Significant themes

• Compassion versus duty and honor: Annan weighs protecting his people against the demands of leadership and the soldiers’ desire to prove themselves.
• The cost of political gain: Wealth, military readiness, and influence may come at the price of lives.
• Contracts and cooperation: The Fire Elementals’ need for a Contract underscores that alliances require clear terms.
• Power politics and opportunism: Annan suspects Keating is cultivating influence through regional tension, yet accepts its lucrative offer.

Key events

• Annan changes clothes after meeting the Fire Elemental Elder and puts away the gold ore Olmedo gave him. The Magic Mirror, Life Casket, and Crystal appear together in the drawer.
• Remembering that the mirror once named Tadel Moonchaser as the world’s most beautiful elf, Annan contacts Tadel through the World Tree Leaf. They test the mirror by asking who is the wisest elf in the Elven Royal Court. It answers Alger.
• Tadel searches the court and finds Alger, an inventive High Elf whose interest in gadgets has made him popular with some elves but scorned by others. Tadel invites him to work with the Moon Elves, and Alger accepts.
• The mirror then names Thelma Windrunner as the court’s most promising Elf Archer. Tadel agrees to check whether this prediction is correct.
• Annan tells Tadel about a debate over whether life or honor matters more. Tadel says elves value life, but may cherish art, nature, freedom, and other things even more.

Character developments and interactions

• Annan and Tadel use the mirror as a reason to speak, but their exchange reveals that both value their friendship and want to keep it going. They collaborate to test the mirror’s answers.
• Tadel turns the mirror’s answer into action, seeking out Alger and offering him a place where his unconventional talents will be appreciated.
• Alger is given a chance to contribute despite being dismissed by many of his fellow High Elves.
• The Elven court’s musical culture is highlighted when Tadel hears elves performing “My Heart Will Go On,” a song that has spread far more widely than Annan’s Magic Film.

Significant themes

• Belonging and recognition: Alger’s acceptance shows the value of finding a community that respects one’s abilities.
• The limits of prophecy: The mirror’s accurate-seeming answers suggest it may be a powerful prophetic item, though Tadel and Annan remain cautious.
• Life, honor, and personal values: The chapter presents no simple universal answer; different peoples may prize ideals beyond mere survival.
• Friendship and cultural exchange: Annan and Tadel’s bond is sustained through curiosity and shared discoveries, while music carries stories across the Elven court.

Plot points and events

• Annan asks the Elf Tadel Moonchaser how to keep summoned elementals alive on the Main Plane. Tadel explains that they need a Contract—a kind of “light source”—and says Annan must either become a Master-level Sorcerer, obtain an eternal-type spellbook, or find another method. Tadel offers to search Elven records.
• Annan decides to learn additional summoning spells. He casts Lesser Summoning several times, briefly summoning Olmedo and then sending Luoxi to fetch Femi.
• While sleeping, Annan returns to the Lava Lake in his dreams. The Flame Phantom appears and throws him into the lava as usual. Annan suspects it enjoys his attempts to stack stones.
• Annan tells Olmedo and Idelia that he will support Mrs. Orok. Tadel’s words have helped him realize that protecting the Elves by restricting them was a mistake: they value freedom and art, and belong beneath the open sky.
• Annan continues experimenting with activities to entertain the Flame Phantom. After trying Magic Films and a sand sculpture, he learns from children how to build sturdy structures and constructs an outline of Free City from stones and sand in the Lava Lake. The Phantom watches silently, then burns the model—and Annan—with its flames.

Character developments and interactions

• Annan shifts from treating the Elves’ confinement as protection to recognizing that his actions denied them the freedom they value. He also persists in trying to understand and engage the Flame Phantom, despite repeatedly being attacked.
• Tadel acts as Annan’s trusted adviser, explaining the elemental problem and prompting his reconsideration of the Elves’ situation.
• Olmedo, Idelia, Femi, and Luoxi hear Annan’s decision to support Mrs. Orok. Olmedo questions his change of mind, while Femi and Luoxi are visibly excited.
• Lily eagerly joins Annan after his nap, and Annan affectionately praises her.
• The Flame Phantom remains mysterious: it observes Annan’s stonework but communicates only through fire and violence.

Significant themes

• Freedom versus protection: Annan recognizes that keeping the Elves safe by limiting their lives is not true protection.
• Persistence and experimentation: He keeps searching for solutions to the elemental problem and ways to connect with the Phantom.
• Understanding through creation: Annan’s model of Free City becomes a small, fragile attempt to communicate across the divide between him and the Phantom.

Key events

• Annan’s attempt to use Lesser Summoning as a substitute for the Elemental Legion fails twice: he summons a startled goblin, which slaps him, and a helpless kobold pup. He realizes the spell’s random, ordinary creatures are no solution and that he must keep studying.
• Olmedo and Idelia devise a way for Free City to support Mrs. Orok without formally entering the war: sell her island weapons and send Musketeers to train its defenders. They arrange a public assassination attempt on Mrs. Orok to justify Free City’s protective role, while also hoping to expand its influence through Magic Films and Newspapers.
• Free City sells Mrs. Orok a limited supply of cannons and muskets, exposing how little it can produce. Olmedo responds by expanding the Blacksmith Shop into a factory and greatly increasing its workforce.
• Annan opens a Portal so Mrs. Orok, the White Dragon, the Hellfire Musketeers, and the weapons can travel to Sweet Home. He frames the weapons as protection against disorder, not tools of slaughter.
• Sister Deta reports that the Ratfolk have overrun the Rikaner Kingdom. Its king betrayed and imprisoned resisters before fleeing south, while Lady Deepwinter is holding back the Demon and Rat Tides. Princess Sails was reportedly imprisoned in the Old Royal Capital.
• Tadel confirms Selma Windrunner’s extraordinary archery and explains that the Demon Lord’s distant projection cannot truly affect Annan unless a passage opens between the Abyss and the Main Plane. She also says Annan’s dreams cannot contain experiences—such as pain—that he has never had before.
• Worried about Princess Sails, Annan consults the cracked Magic Mirror. It answers that she is still alive.

Character developments and interactions

• Annan is troubled by his failed summoning, the worsening war, and the possibility that Princess Sails has suffered in prison. He delegates the Free City plan to Olmedo and Idelia, but remains personally concerned about its victims and his friends.
• Olmedo and Idelia show themselves to be practical strategists, balancing aid, political cover, and commercial expansion. Their approach also highlights Free City’s severe limits in manufacturing and military equipment.
• Sister Deta challenges Annan’s moral framing with the suffering she witnessed firsthand, while also providing crucial information about the North. Annan shares her account with Evelyn for the Voice of Freedom.
• Tadel serves as both scout and advisor, reporting on Selma and reassuring Annan about the Demon Lord’s influence. Annan’s exchange with her reveals how uneasy he remains despite her explanation.

Significant themes

• Aid, power, and political legitimacy: Free City seeks to protect a threatened port while avoiding direct entry into war, using weapons sales and a staged public incident to justify intervention.
• The cost of war and failed leadership: Ordinary people suffer under Ratfolk occupation, while Rikaner’s rulers abandon those they were supposed to protect.
• Responsibility amid uncertainty: Annan cannot solve every crisis, but continues to monitor events, support his allies, and hold on to hope for Princess Sails.

Plot points and events

• Femi arrives on Sweet Home with Jack and the Hellfire soldiers to defend the island from the Black Gemstone Pirates. The island has about 3,000 residents, and fewer than 1,700 can use Magic Muskets.
• After surveying the terrain, Femi identifies the southern port as the only viable landing point. He places all 100 Magic Cannons there, assigns the town guards to patrol, and recruits 1,500 residents to learn to use muskets.
• With little time to prepare, Femi and Jack train the townspeople in basic musket use rather than complex formations. Femi appoints Andy, a capable miner’s son, to lead a hundred-man unit.
• The night before the pirates arrive, the Hellfire soldiers hold a feast and tell stories of their past victories, inspiring the militia but drawing skepticism from the town guards.
• When three pirate ships approach, Femi orders the cannons to fire. Two volleys sink all three ships, and the Hellfire soldiers and militia kill the pirates who survive in the water. Sweet Home wins its first battle.

Character developments and interactions

• Femi proves a practical, confident commander: he assesses the island’s geography, organizes the defense, and trusts the cannons’ power.
• Jack supports the preparations, rallies the soldiers with the battle flag, and adjusts the cannon fire after the first volley.
• Andy stands out as a disciplined recruit and accepts command of a hundred-man unit despite his youth and slight build. Carl doubts his suitability.
• Carl, an elite Warrior and captain of the guards, initially distrusts the ordinary-looking Hellfire soldiers and their tactics. The cannons’ overwhelming effectiveness leaves him stunned.
• Mrs. Orok trusts Femi’s forces and watches the battle, impressed by the cannons’ power and their connection to Annan’s invention.

Significant themes

• Preparation and strategy: Femi’s careful use of terrain and concentration of firepower turns a small island’s geography into a defensive advantage.
• Technology reshaping warfare: The Magic Cannons prove more powerful than expected, sinking three ships in two volleys and overcoming the pirates’ apparent numerical threat.
• Ordinary people becoming defenders: The militia’s limited training is enough to make them effective when guided by experienced soldiers and strong weapons.
• Confidence versus skepticism: The guards’ doubts about the Hellfire soldiers and Andy contrast with the successful defense that follows.

Key plot points and events

• Annan defies the Flame Phantom in the lava dream, discovering that believing it is a dream makes its attacks harmless. Even when thrown into the Lava Lake, he can breathe and is unharmed.
• The Flame Phantom eventually vanishes. Annan explores the otherwise barren dream, but finds nothing before waking.
• The next day, the Magic Mirror reports that Princess Sails is “not well at all.” Later, it reveals she is imprisoned in the Royal Capital of Reekan.
• Meanwhile, Free City thrives: its port opens, and major projects continue. With Girardi making Watchhold his capital and placing large orders, Annan plans a trade route linking the cities. Girardi agrees to fund it.
• Annan returns to the lava dream over several nights. The Flame Phantom never reappears, and exploration reveals only the lake, Annan, and the phantom as sources of life there.

Character developments and interactions

• Annan grows more confident in confronting the Demon Lord, though his victory leaves him alone and uncertain whether he was too harsh. He also takes a practical interest in Free City’s economy and employment.
• Girardi demonstrates loyalty and generosity by funding the trade route, strengthening his friendship with Annan.
• Annan and Idelia attend the port’s opening ceremony.
• Free City’s newcomers and Professionals reflect the city’s contrasting fortunes: newcomers find work and opportunity, while some unemployed Professionals turn to crime and are arrested.
• Annan’s concern for Princess Sails persists despite his success against the phantom.

Significant themes

• Fear and belief: Annan’s conviction that the lava dream is unreal changes how he experiences its dangers.
• Loneliness after victory: With the phantom gone, Annan’s triumph gives way to isolation.
• Civic growth and economic circulation: Infrastructure, trade, and employment help Free City prosper.
• Bureaucracy and satire: A Magic Film mocks Keating’s red tape, while its tedious style becomes part of the joke.

Plot points and events

• Annan announces that he intends to rescue Princess Sails, despite Idelia and Olmedo’s concern.
• The Empire Times reports that the joint Expeditionary Army has been forced to retreat after a costly defeat by the Ratfolk and Demons near the Thunderflash Rift. The campaign failed to reclaim the Northern Frontier or rescue its survivors, in part because the participating nations withheld resources.
• Annan argues that he can succeed where a huge army could not: he will travel with a small, capable group and avoid the heavily contested route through the Black Iron Mountains. Using a map, he lays out a coastal route through Siltovis, Montreal Mountain, Border Town, and the Dimon and Rikaner Kingdoms to the Royal Capital.
• Olmedo questions whether the rescue is worth the danger. Annan replies that he would have risked everything to save her, too, had she been trapped in Breeze City. She stops objecting but urges him to make the expedition visible.
• Free City prepares for the journey, producing muskets and armor and sending a small contingent along. Annan agrees when Olmedo explains that the soldiers can help conceal his purpose and promote the city.
• The Black Gemstone Pirates’ disappearance has made the waters around Sweet Home an eerie, feared zone. Most of the Hellfire Musketeer Corps withdraws, leaving a hundred soldiers to train locals.
• Annan continues checking on Princess Sails: the Magic Mirror reports that she remains in “very bad shape.” The Apocalypse Forecast shows six months until the coming crisis, on the first day of 1001.
• Before leaving, Annan promises Aunt Susan he will bring the soldiers back in time for his birthday.

Character development and interactions

• Annan is determined to rescue Princess Sails and counters others’ doubts with both practical planning and personal conviction. He also adapts to Olmedo’s advice by accepting the political and promotional value of taking soldiers along.
• Olmedo challenges Annan’s decision but ultimately accepts it after hearing how deeply he values saving those close to him. She shifts from trying to stop him to helping shape the expedition.
• Idelia witnesses the exchange between Annan and Olmedo, quietly moved by Annan’s answer.
• Aunt Susan is reluctant to see Annan depart, especially with his birthday approaching; he reassures her with a promise to return.

Significant themes

• Personal loyalty versus strategic risk: Annan’s willingness to risk his life for one person contrasts with the Expeditionary Army’s failed, politically constrained campaign.
• The cost of division: The army’s retreat underscores how nations’ reluctance to commit fully can doom a collective effort.
• Hope amid looming danger: Princess Sails remains gravely ill, and the Apocalypse Forecast sets a six-month deadline, lending urgency to Annan’s mission.
• Leadership and reputation: Olmedo frames the journey not only as a rescue but as a chance to strengthen Free City’s standing.

• Annan’s rescue plan: Annan, Idelia, and Olmedo arrange for Annan to use Portals to travel quickly between towns, bringing the Guard, Hellfire, and the Third Squad through as needed. This lets him pursue the rescue of Princess Sails without slowing down or risking the companies being surrounded.
• The companies’ resolve: Before departure, Annan tells the musketeers plainly that they may suffer heavy losses—or die—in order to save one person. They accept the mission without complaint. Olmedo recognizes that they have gained the resolve soldiers need.
• Farewells and promises: Copperbeard invites Annan to seek refuge among his Dwarf clan and gives him directions and a secret signal, in case its members survived in the Black Iron Mountains. Leila hints that she wants Annan to bring back a Magic Fishing Rod for her brother; Annan evades the request, though the rod is already finished. Martin imagines himself as head of the household while Annan is away, prompting Annan to tease him. Lily wants to come along, but Annan leaves her with Idelia and asks her and Silly Cat to look after home. After exchanging a brief, affectionate farewell with Idelia and Olmedo, Annan and Dean Breichim depart through a Portal.
• A stranger arrives in Free Port: Elsewhere, a lavishly spending young man calling himself Deville pays to teleport from the Southern Kingdoms to Free Port. He admires the city’s cleanliness, lively streets, and social order, while noticing its Orc residents and their acceptance by the locals. His observations suggest that Free Port is unusually well-run compared with other towns. He enters a tavern with a drunkard, apparently concealing his identity or intentions.
• The cats keep watch: On a tavern roof, Lily and Silly Cat joke about whether humans or cats have domesticated one another. Lily admits she is worried about Annan but trusts Silly Cat to protect himself. Silly Cat leaves, and a passerby briefly glimpses him.
  Character developments and themes: The musketeers’ willingness to risk themselves reveals their growing discipline and commitment. Annan shows both responsibility and warmth in the way he speaks honestly to his soldiers and says goodbye to his companions. The chapter emphasizes loyalty, sacrifice, and found-family bonds, while contrasting Free Port’s inclusive, orderly society with the neglect and prejudice common elsewhere. Deville’s arrival introduces a new, observant outsider whose purpose remains unclear.

Plot and events

• Annan prepares to leave Siltovis for Montreal Mountain, but first visits Waters Manor with Sienna, who has long wanted him to meet her mother, Mrs. Waters.
• Annan and Mrs. Waters speak privately. She admits she does not dislike him; she has been distant because she feared he would think she was strange. She then unexpectedly asks him to sleep with her and urges him to insult and humiliate her.
• Annan initially objects, but—thinking of the funding he needs for Free City—he gives her a series of cruel insults about her age, widowhood, family business, and daughters. He leaves her slumped in her chair, shaken by the encounter, and tells Sienna only that her mother needs time.
• Outside, Annan finds a white cat that resembles Silly Cat and takes it along, unaware it is actually Claire’s cat. At the academy, he spots the real Silly Cat with Femi, Luoxi, and Jack. Lily identifies the other cat as the Witch’s.
• Annan sends Claire’s cat through a Portal toward Free City, where Olmedo suggests it has returned to its former home. Lily and Silly Cat refuse to go through, so Annan takes them with him.
• Annan says goodbye to Sienna. She asks whether he will return to Siltovis; he says not often, but invites her to visit Free City and promises he means it.

Character developments and interactions

• Annan appears more confident and influential than when he last visited Waters Manor, but his attempt to secure support for Free City leads him into an uncomfortable, morally compromising exchange with Mrs. Waters. He feels guilty about the insults, especially because he brought Sienna and her sister into them.
• Mrs. Waters reveals vulnerability beneath her cold demeanor. Her request for humiliation hints at a private emotional need that Annan does not understand.
• Sienna remains affectionate and eager to reconnect Annan with her mother. She is puzzled by what happened but accepts the butler’s advice to trust him, and ends the chapter with a promise of future contact.
• The cats provide comic confusion: Annan mistakes Claire’s cat for Silly Cat, then struggles to get Lily and the real Silly Cat through the Portal.

Significant themes

• Public confidence versus private vulnerability: Annan’s growing status contrasts with Mrs. Waters’s concealed distress.
• Power, money, and compromise: Annan’s desire to fund Free City influences him to say things he otherwise finds degrading.
• Affection and connection across distance: Sienna seeks reassurance that Annan will return, while the cats’ movements complicate his departure.

Plot points and events

• A young visitor explores Free City, collecting information at a tavern before becoming fascinated by the city’s unusual customs, especially its succubus customers.
• He discovers the theater and spends much of the day watching several Magic Films, including The Mage Tower’s Fall, Betar’s Redemption, and Annan Potter and the Magic Stone. He leaves eager to see Dream Princess, which has not yet been released, then considers returning to the tavern to learn more.
• Annan visits the Old Ancestor with the dean and Silly Cat. He explains that he is forming an Expeditionary Army to rescue Princess Sails, whom he owes a debt.
• The Old Ancestor agrees to transport the group to the border. Olin warns Annan that many people will want to join because the previous joint expedition failed. Annan is reluctant to delay, but Olin proposes publicizing his route so Warriors can meet the force along the way. He accepts.
• The Empire Times publishes the expedition’s plans across the Empire. The announcement draws both skepticism and support, prompting nobles to wonder what the new venture might signal. Annan, his Musketeers, and Olin’s adjutant set out for the northern Tartun Empire.

Character developments and interactions

• The young visitor is increasingly captivated by Free City’s unfamiliar culture, particularly its Magic Films. His curiosity leads him to spend hours at the theater, though he remains intent on gathering information.
• Annan shows determination and personal loyalty: rescuing Princess Sails matters more to him than building a large force or gaining fame. Still, he accepts Olin’s strategy when it may help the expedition.
• Olin shifts from teasing warmth toward Annan to practical concern. She recognizes his troops’ discipline, warns him about the public response, and offers a way to recruit allies without requiring him to wait.
• The Old Ancestor greets Lily affectionately and supports Annan’s mission, trusting him and agreeing to help with travel.
• The exchanges among Annan, Olin, and the Old Ancestor reveal both political calculation and genuine family affection. Olin and Annan may benefit from one another, but their bond is sincere.

Significant themes

• Duty and gratitude: Annan’s mission is driven by a promise to someone who once helped him.
• Public doubt versus personal resolve: Many dismiss Free City’s expedition after the larger joint army’s failure, but Annan proceeds anyway.
• Politics and kinship: The expedition’s route becomes a public political signal, while personal loyalty underpins the alliance between Annan and Olin.
• Cultural change and novelty: The visitor’s experience of Free City’s nightlife and Magic Films highlights the city’s distinctive, rapidly developing culture.

Key plot points and events

• Annan’s Free Expeditionary Army advances into the Northern Province, growing gradually as Mila Dia—an Elite knight representing Montreal’s Golden Family—organizes and recruits personnel.
• Near a village, the group finds bandits who have captured and abused civilians. Mila kills the bandits and frees the captives. Annan declines to take their recovered valuables, while the Dean warns him to remember the human cost behind bandit wealth.
• At Zornthut Grand Canyon Border Town, the Tartun Empire welcomes Annan’s army. Border soldiers and mercenaries volunteer to join. Mila explains that the Empire is trying to make amends for a family branch’s mistake, since Annan’s mission may rescue its members.
• Annan crosses the canyon with Dean Breichim’s help and enters the Dimon Kingdom, whose border defenses are badly understaffed. Recruiting and trading Magic Stones along the way, the army grows to about five thousand.
• The army encounters 20,000–30,000 Stuen Ratfolk. Annan uses the battle as a training exercise, ordering the Mages and Rangers to attack, the Warriors and soldiers to protect the Musketeers, and the Musketeers to fire in coordinated ranks.
• A separate scene follows a young man who has a brief encounter with a Succubus, then explores a city where Skeleton Ratfolk work as farmers. After reconsidering their usefulness, he decides the idea could serve the Southern Kingdoms’ need for labor and asks to meet the City Lord, seeing a chance to work with Free City.

Character developments

• Annan shows restraint and practical leadership: he delegates the village crisis to Mila, refuses to profit from the freed captives, and builds up his army through recruitment and trade. He also prepares his troops with a controlled first battle.
• Mila Dia establishes herself as a capable organizer and fighter, decisively handling the bandits and advising Annan on the Empire’s political motives.
• The Dean acts as Annan’s moral guide, urging him to consider the suffering behind apparent wealth.
• The young man moves from disgust and confusion about Skeleton farmers to recognizing their economic and military value, then seeks a political connection with Free City.

Significant themes

• Leadership and responsibility: Annan’s choices balance military necessity with concern for civilians.
• The human cost of wealth and conflict: The bandits’ riches are inseparable from the harm they inflicted.
• Political compromise: The Empire’s support is driven partly by a desire to repair a family mistake and protect its interests.
• Pragmatism and changing attitudes: The young man’s view of Skeleton labor shifts once he considers its practical benefits.
• Preparing for a larger conflict: Recruitment, training, and the approaching Ratfolk threat build momentum toward the rescue mission.

Character interactions

• Mila acts on Annan’s behalf in the village and later explains the Empire’s motives to him.
• The Dean challenges Annan to look beyond stolen wealth and understand the suffering behind it.
• Annan receives support from the border town’s officials, soldiers, and mercenaries, while Mila helps bring many of them into the army.
• During the Ratfolk encounter, Annan coordinates his troops into complementary roles, with Femi giving the order to fire.
• The young man discusses Skeleton farmers with a local resident, whose defense of their work prompts him to reconsider and seek an audience with the City Lord.

Plot points and events

• Devere Steelton, who claims to be heir to Steelton Fief in the south, approaches Free City seeking Skeleton Farmers. Olmedo sees a chance to open trade with the southern market but worries that selling them could displace local human farmers.
• Ingrid proposes bundling Skeleton Farmers with Magic Muskets and Magic Cannons. Olmedo demonstrates a cannon’s force by having Faster stand in its path wearing armor and a shield. The shot knocks him down and badly dents the shield, showing that armor alone cannot protect against the weapon.
• Impressed, Devere orders ten cannons and three hundred Skeleton Farmers, along with other goods and provisions for future trade. The agreement is worth nearly five thousand Gold Coins.
• Meanwhile, Annan’s expedition advances through the Rat-Plague-ravaged borderlands. After several battles, the army grows more coordinated; its fighters come to respect the Musketeers’ effectiveness, though the mercenaries grow bored of fighting enemies that offer no profit.
• Annan spots an apparently occupied cabin in the deserted region and goes to investigate. The dean protects him with powerful defensive spells. As Annan approaches the ominous, witch-like home, its door slowly opens.

Character developments and interactions

• Olmedo balances commercial opportunity against responsibility for Free City’s workers. She is cautious about introducing technology that could cause unemployment, but accepts Ingrid’s plan to make the sale part of a broader, more profitable trade agreement.
• Ingrid recognizes the social consequences of replacing human farmers and devises a deal that could give displaced workers better-paid military roles in Steelton Fief.
• Devere Steelton is curious about Free City’s products and quickly becomes eager to buy after witnessing the cannon’s power. His willingness to pay helps establish an ongoing relationship between the city and the southern fief.
• Faster serves as the cannon’s test target, illustrating its danger firsthand; he admits he would have been killed without his shield.
• Annan acts independently during the expedition, while the dean supports him with protective magic. The army’s repeated battles also build trust between its different forces.

Significant themes

• Technological progress and social cost: Machines can increase production and military power, but may displace workers.
• Trade and strategic advantage: Free City uses a bundle of farm laborers and weapons to expand its markets and strengthen its influence.
• Changing warfare: Magic Cannons can overwhelm armor and challenge the dominance of elite fighters and spellcasters.
• Camaraderie and caution: The expedition’s fighters learn to cooperate, while Annan’s solitary investigation introduces a new, unexplained danger.

Key plot points and events

• Annan enters the eerie, crooked Witches’ Home and finds jars of strange creatures and a cauldron of dark-green sludge.
• The witch, Sophia, tries to make him drink the concoction. Their struggle breaks the bowl, triggering Annan’s defensive magic. Dean Breichim arrives and identifies the incident as a prank spell rather than a genuine attack.
• Breichim discovers a frog under a Transformation Spell. Reversing it reveals the missing Bard, who had asked Sophia to turn him into a frog so he could research and write about a witch. He has been hidden in her home for nearly three months.
• Annan explains that he is leading an expedition against the Ratfolk and invites the Bard to come along. The Bard agrees, hoping to turn the campaign into a story.
• Annan also urges Sophia to leave her isolated home for the Free City of Middle Earth, where she could find a place among people of many races.

Character developments and interactions

• Annan plays along with Sophia’s frightening act but stands up to her when she presses the sludge on him. Once he realizes she is lonely rather than malicious, he responds with concern and offers her a way out of isolation.
• Sophia initially disguises herself as a menacing crone and uses a prank spell to scare visitors away. Her conversation with Annan reveals that she mainly avoids people because she dislikes crowds; his kindness makes her feel unexpectedly accepted.
• The Bard is revealed to have engineered his own transformation and confinement for the sake of his poem. He is jealous that Sophia seems more comfortable with Annan, but joins the expedition when offered the chance to write about it.
• Dean Breichim calmly supports Annan, recognizes the spell, and frees the Bard with a tap of his staff.
• Annan and Sophia’s encounter shifts from a comic confrontation to a tentative connection, while Annan and the Bard resume their familiar banter.

Significant themes

• Loneliness and belonging: Sophia’s frightening home and disguise conceal her desire to avoid crowded places, while Annan offers her the possibility of community.
• Appearances versus reality: The grotesque house and threatening witch prove less dangerous than they seem; the frog is actually the Bard, and Sophia’s attack is a prank.
• Stories and adventure: The Bard’s search for material leads him to an unusual, self-imposed predicament, and he sees the expedition as a new subject for an epic.
• Compassion across difference: Annan treats Sophia not as a monster but as someone who might benefit from friendship and a place to belong.

Key plot points and events

• Annan and Dean Breichim lead the nearly six-thousand-strong Expeditionary Army into a deserted border town in the Dark Forest, intending to rest before advancing on the Old Royal Capital.
• The army has grown quickly, gaining three thousand recruits—many Professionals, including over a hundred Elites and two Masters. Annan’s ultimate objective remains concealed from most political leaders.
• During a meeting of the Thirteen High Kings, the monarchs debate supporting the army and agree to encourage rulers to reclaim territory in the Old Land. Annan is largely indifferent to the prospect of gaining land.
• The next morning, scouts discover an enormous Rat Tide near the border—larger even than the force that attacked Star-Moon Bay. Annan abandons the plan to advance directly.
• Instead, he orders Rangers to coordinate with eastern settlements so their forces can draw the Ratfolk south while Annan and the Dean slip into the Old Royal Capital. The Expeditionary Army will openly attract attention, but must avoid being surrounded.
• Annan recognizes that the earlier expedition failed not simply through lack of strength, but by repeatedly retreating and never holding ground long enough to inspire support. Its forces were ultimately worn down after being encircled by the Ratfolk and Demons.

Character developments and interactions

• Annan remains focused on his hidden mission and is pragmatic when circumstances change. He is willing to use the army as a diversion, but distinguishes this from sacrificing it as bait.
• Dean Breichim’s loyalty and cooperation deepen his connection to Free City; Annan sees him as essential to the planned surprise attack.
• Hamis VI is surprised to learn that Annan is the person behind a delegation he had heard about.
• Mila Dia helps manage the growing army and carries out Annan’s revised orders.
• The Bard’s joking claims about entertaining Ratfolk—even while being eaten—show his comic uselessness for the mission, so Annan assigns him to the main force.
• The Rangers’ hatred of the Ratfolk is evident, while their discovery forces Annan and his companions to confront the true scale of the threat.

Significant themes

• Heroism and morale: An army’s ability to inspire hope matters as much as its numbers; without a visible stand or “heroes,” others have little reason to join.
• Strategy over brute force: The Rat Tide’s overwhelming size makes direct confrontation reckless. Annan adapts by diverting it and avoiding encirclement.
• Collective resistance: Holding territory could rally mercenaries, civilians, neighboring states, and other races—but that support depends on the expedition proving it can endure.
• Pragmatism and sacrifice: Annan balances the need to draw enemy attention with the imperative to keep the army alive.

Plot and events

• Warden Maria meets the Ratfolk Priest beneath the Old Royal Capital. The priest warns that humans are plotting to the east and grants Maria permission to use the Fel Eye.
• While searching through the Eye, Maria spots a furtive figure near the capital but hides it from the worshipping Ratfolk.
• The Expeditionary Army draws the Rat Tide south while Annan slips away alone toward the Old Royal Capital. To avoid detection by the Fel Eye, he uses only weak magic and relies on Dean Breichim’s linked detection and invisibility spells.
• After evading Elite Ratfolk patrols, Annan encounters Maria. She recognizes him through the Fel Eye and warns him that the capital is crawling with Ratfolk.
• Annan explains that he intends to rescue former Princess Sails. Maria considers ways to disguise or smuggle him into the city, while explaining the danger of using magic.
• As they talk, Maria briefly considers capturing Annan to advance her position. His warm gesture—placing a grass wreath on her head—and his offer that she and her brother could start a new life with him interrupt those thoughts.
• Annan tells Maria that although he has spent less time with Sails, he would also risk himself to rescue Maria if she were in danger.

Character developments and interactions

• Annan shows resourcefulness and resolve by approaching the capital alone, but his reunion with Maria reveals his affection and trust in her. He treats her with tenderness rather than suspicion.
• Maria is torn between Ratfolk ambition and her lingering bond with Annan. She has grown accustomed to a harsh, treacherous world, yet his kindness unsettles her and revives the possibility of choosing another life.
• Annan and Maria reconnect through honest conversation and shared history. Maria helps him assess the danger, while Annan’s wreath and offer of refuge affirm that she matters to him beyond her usefulness.

Significant themes

• Kindness against brutality: Annan’s simple, affectionate gesture contrasts with the betrayal and violence Maria has come to expect.
• Loyalty and belonging: Annan’s willingness to rescue both Sails and Maria emphasizes chosen bonds over rank or obligation.
• Identity and temptation: Maria’s desire to rise within the Stuen Clan conflicts with the person she remembers being—and might still become.
• Caution and sacrifice: Annan’s solitary approach reflects the risks of confronting a watched, hostile power.

Section 216: “Saving Princess Sails”

Key plot points and events

• At the City Lord’s Mansion, Olmedo discovers Devere Steelton has spent the day at a tavern. Worried about his condition and the effect on relations with his lord, she arranges his return to Steelton Fief. Devere regrets not meeting Annan, and Olmedo hints that he may get the chance.
• In Deepwinter Territory, Lady Deepwinter learns that Annan’s Free Expeditionary Army is fighting Ratfolk near the Dark Forest. She sends Knights and Mages under Eileen to support him.
• Annan learns from Maria, the Ratfolk Dungeon Warden, that Princess Sails is being held in the Old Royal Capital. He asks to be imprisoned so he can reach her.
• Maria secretly helps him: she ties his hands loosely, gives him a Dungeon map and key, and arranges for the guards to be distracted at midnight.
• Annan reaches Sails’s cell and finds her physically wasted and despairing. He persuades her to leave by invoking the Montreal Family’s hopes and the possibility that her younger brother, the Second Prince, may be revived.
• Annan and Sails escape the Dungeon and slip out of the Ratfolk-controlled capital. Maria watches them leave, suggesting she has risked a great deal to make their escape possible.

Character developments

• Annan shows resolve and resourcefulness, willingly entering enemy custody to rescue Sails. He also shows concern for Maria’s safety and sacrifice.
• Maria chooses loyalty and compassion over her duties as Warden, openly helping Annan despite the risk of punishment. Her actions deepen their unlikely friendship.
• Princess Sails begins in despair, believing death is preferable to escape. Annan’s appeal to her family and brother gives her a reason to keep living.
• Lady Deepwinter responds decisively to Annan’s danger by sending reinforcements.
• Devere Steelton is eager to return home, though still curious about Annan.

Significant themes

• Friendship across enemy lines: Maria and Annan maintain a steadfast bond despite being human and Ratfolk, and supposedly natural adversaries.
• Hope amid devastation: Sails’s rescue offers a path forward even after she has lost hope, while Deepwinter Territory remains a fragile haven amid widespread destruction.
• Sacrifice and loyalty: Maria accepts personal risk to help Annan, while Annan risks capture to save Sails.
• Family and responsibility: Annan gives Sails a reason to live by reminding her of her family and younger brother.

Character interactions

• Olmedo looks after Devere’s wellbeing while managing the City’s relationship with his lord.
• Lady Deepwinter receives the report about Annan and entrusts Eileen with a relief force.
• Maria and Annan cooperate through coded precautions and a carefully planned prison escape.
• Annan gently but firmly persuades Sails to leave, grounding her hope in her family’s survival.
• Maria watches Annan and Sails escape and bids him farewell from the city wall.

Key plot points and events

• Maria stalls the dungeon guards to give Annan time to escape. When the Ratfolk Priest discovers Princess Sails is missing, he prepares to punish Maria for failing the Stuen Clan, threatening to have her turned into a breeding machine.
• Annan returns through a Portal with two powerful Mages. One of them destroys the Priest and his Fel Energy, saving Maria.
• Annan and his allies assess the Ratfolk defenses and decide to destroy the Fel Eye first. Maria leads them through the underground palace, where they defeat the cultists and shatter it, leaving the Ratfolk in the Old Royal Capital blind.
• Annan and Maria seal the dungeon entrance, then divide their efforts: Maria will build standing by defending the Stuen Clan’s property, while Annan leads the Expeditionary Army in reclaiming the capital. He promises the soldiers will not attack Ratfolk who do not attack first.
• Mr. Swaro summons the Blue Dragon Illymoyas, who flies into the coming battle. Annan opens a Portal for the Expeditionary Army, whose members split up to fight in the streets and search the dungeon for survivors.
• As Annan prepares to join the campaign, Lady Deepwinter’s subordinates arrive. They report that she is unwell and that her territory is desperately short of food, soldiers, and resources.

Character developments and interactions

• Maria moves from apparent resignation to renewed purpose. Annan recognizes her distress, returns the Grass Ring she discarded, and chooses to come back for her. She agrees to help him, and his invitation to visit Free City gives her hope of a future beyond the Stuen Clan. Before leaving to rally the Ratfolk, she embraces him.
• Annan demonstrates loyalty and sensitivity by risking his return for Maria, then balances compassion with military action by limiting attacks on non-hostile Ratfolk.
• Dean Breichim and Mr. Swaro support Annan’s plan; Breichim protects Maria with powerful Defensive Magic, while Swaro helps summon Illymoyas.
• The chapter also hints at Mr. Swaro’s personal connection to the capital, as he drifts away after the army arrives.

Significant themes

• Loyalty and belonging: Annan’s return assures Maria that she has not been abandoned, while his invitation offers her a possible home outside her clan.
• Agency and self-determination: Maria is urged to take control of her own fate rather than remain defined by the Stuen Clan’s expectations.
• Mercy amid conflict: Annan’s order to spare Ratfolk who do not attack reflects an effort to distinguish combatants from innocents.
• Hope and reclamation: The Expeditionary Army’s mission to retake the capital—even briefly—becomes a chance to accomplish what others could not.