[This chapter serves as a compendium of knowledge about the world of this novel. It exists to grant readers a clearer understanding of its lore, systems, and unseen laws. While it may be skipped, doing so is not advised, as it contains crucial insights, even if a few mild spoilers lie within.]
◆ The Three Crimson Moon
They first appeared in the sky long ago, longer than anyone remembers, and that was when it all began.
The Three Crimson Moons, also called the Crimson Mandate, mark young people across kingdoms, duchies, and cities. Those affected are typically between the ages of sixteen and nineteen.
The Mark is both a curse and a protection.
Those chosen are obligated to defend the world from the horrors born of human despair. They are known as Spirit Warriors.
◆ Spirits (WOE):
Spirits are the embodiment of negative human emotion.
They are collectively called Woe.
Individually, a single Spirit may be referred to as a Woe.
These entities manifest in countless forms: monstrous, humanoid, or otherwise, each shaped by the darkness within the human mind.
◆ Negative Emotions:
There are four primary negative emotions that the others fall under.
★ Fear
Panic, Terror, Paranoia, Dread, Anxiety, Horror, Apprehension
★ Agony
Suffering, Sorrow, Despair, Misery, Anguish, Torment, Hopelessness
★ Rage
Anger, Envy, Hatred, Jealousy, Wrath, Spite, Malice
★ Nightmare
Delirium, Hallucination, Illusion, Madness, Dread, Phobia, Delusion
◆ Manifestation (Blooming):
Manifestation is the process by which a Markbearer first witnesses their power, the moment the Mark placed by the Three Crimson Moons awakens and reveals itself.
This awakening is often sudden and uncontrollable, triggered by intense emotional stress such as fear, grief, rage, humiliation, or despair. During Manifestation, the bearer may lose control of their power entirely.
◆ Woeplane:
The Woeplane is a dimension formed from the collective consciousness of mankind, a world born from thought and emotion itself.
In the earliest age of humanity, the Woeplane was not hostile. It existed in a dull, formless state, calm and unfocused, reflecting a world where mankind was few and emotions were simple.
As populations grew, so did desire.
Desire bred jealousy.
Jealousy turned to hatred.
Hatred gave rise to anger.
Anger nurtured fear.
With every generation, these emotions deepened, layered upon one another, feeding the Woeplane endlessly. What was once stagnant grew vast. And darkness took form, not by natural design, but by human nature.
From this saturation of despair, pain, rage, and terror, Woes began to form, each shaped by the fears and suffering buried within human minds.
Opposite this growth of darkness, something else occurred.
Just as negative emotions accumulated, so too did hope, love, courage, faith, sacrifice, and the desperate will to survive.
From these opposing emotions, the Three Crimson Moons came into existence.
The Woeplane feeds on negative emotion, and as despair deepens in the world of men, it grows stronger.
For this reason, kingdoms enforce optimism, festivals, public order, and controlled happiness.
◆ The Acolytes:
The best novices, after Manifestation and training, ascend to Acolytes. They are therefore ready to enter and face the Woeplane.
They are granted access to the Gates of Lament, through which they enter the Woeplane.
Acolytes enter in groups, and each group is tasked with severing a Woehole anchor on the Accord. If they fail and the anchor is fully established, Woes will invade the human world through the Woehole.
◆ GATE OF LAMENT:
This is the magical entrance to the Woeplane, normally found in academies in every kingdom.
◆ The Accord:
The Accord separates the real world from the Woeplane. It is a barrier formed by the collective positive emotions of people.
If a Woehole anchor is not severed, it grows and attaches until it tears a Woehole through the Accord, allowing Woes to invade reality.
There are three known Accords:
Mind Accord. When five minds are corrupted or overrun by dark negative emotions, they are lured together, and when the five assemble, a pent is formed and a Woehole is established.
Soul Accord. The same as the Mind Accord, but only three souls are needed; however, it is far harder to corrupt a soul.
Physical Accord. A physical veil is torn when a group of Acolytes or ranked Spirit Warriors assigned to a particular anchor in the Woeplane fails to sever the anchor.
◆ Spirit Warriors (Spirit Tamed):
A Spirit Warrior possesses the ability to absorb negative emotions and use them to their benefit and must be strong-willed to do so. A Spirit Warrior is marked with either Fear, Agony, Rage, or Nightmare. No Spirit Warrior is marked with two Woes or two negative emotions; therefore, any Tamed Spirit Warrior focuses on the Woe he is marked with and defends others against it.
◆ Manifestation Categories
◆ Early Manifesters / Legacies:
Legacies are those whose Spell Mark blooms early. They are often very powerful and tend to rise through the ranks quickly. They are mainly from noble homes, though they are rare. For them, the Spirit Spell Mark appears at an early stage, eight and below, and they bloom at sixteen, exactly sixteen years from the time they left their mother's womb.
◆ Normal Bloomers / Progenies:
Progenies bloom at the normal time and make up the majority. For them, the Mark appears between the ages of ten and twelve, and once they reach seventeen, they bloom.
◆ Late Bloomers / Relapsed:
These are very rare and scarce. The Mark appears at sixteen, and they bloom at eighteen, when their age mates have already bloomed.
★ Spirit Warrior Ranks ★
● Bloom
● Acolyte
● Revenant
● Master
● Specter
● Saint
● Sentinel
◆ Woe Shard:
A magical item tied to the essence of a Woe. Woe Shards are absorbed from the soul essence of a Woe and can be channeled, converted, and manipulated to weapons depending on the system of the Spirit Warrior that absorbs it.
◆ Noxen:
A dark, negative energy spread by a Woe and evolved by a warrior when he kills a Woe. It fuels the Memory and acts as its magical quality.
◆ Echo:
Magical essences evolved by a warrior when a Woe is slain. Echoes are absorbed from the Soul Cores of Woes and determine one's evolution to higher ranks.
◆ Soul Core:
A mystical core of one's soul or spirit. It is capable of accumulating and storing vast amounts of Echoes and other soul essences.
◆ Soul Core Title:
A measure of power based on the quality of one's Soul Core and the purity of their rank. Unlike humans, who have only one soul, Woes possess more than one depending on their rank.
There are seven Soul Titles:
● Marked / Sealed
● Awakened
● Ascended
● Transcended
● Sovereign
● Celestial
● Divine
Just as Spirit Warriors have Soul Titles, Woes have Woe Titles. Their Soul Cores are seven, based on the Spirit Spell:
● Shrouded
● Manifested
● Fallen
● Corrupted
● Forsaken
● Unholy
● Profaned
◆ Group Anomaly:
A measure and classification of power based on the quality of a Woe's Soul Core. Remember, Woes have many Soul Cores depending on their anomalies. They are of seven anomalies, ranging from two to seven Soul Cores respectively:
● Beast
● Monster
● Demon
● Devil
● Tyrant
● Calamity
● Titan
For clearer understanding, a Woe with three Soul Cores and a Manifested Soul Title is called a Manifested Demon, while one with seven Soul Cores of a Forsaken Title is called a Forsaken Titan.
Similarly, a Spirit Warrior who reaches the rank of Master with an Ascended Soul Title is called an Ascended Master, while one with a Sovereign Soul Title is called a Sovereign Master. The higher the rank, the fewer the warriors.
◆ Attributes:
Passive abilities corresponding to one's actions, achievements, and unique traits.
★ Summary ★
When a Bloomer is well trained and prepared, they ascend to Acolyte, with their Soul Title unlocked and Soul Core evolved. They become able to absorb negative energies and commune with them.
An Acolyte, after the specific time given by the academy, gains an anchor to the Woeplane and can access it with a group of assigned Acolytes. They enter the Woeplane and face Woes while trying to sever the anchor assigned to them. If successful, they advance to the next rank, Revenant, and their soul gains a third Aspect ability.
Revenants possess a more balanced potency for absorbing negative energies. They are always alert in case a group fails to sever an anchor. In such cases, they rush to kill the Woe and heal the veil.
Revenants evolve into Masters, and Masters into Specters. As ranks increase, the number of warriors decreases.
★ Spirit Untamed ★
There was, however, an unknown hollow in the Crimson Mandate, resulting in the manifestation of a rare mark whose bearers were called the Untamed. The Untamed are extremely rare, numbering about a dozen across the entire world.
Their presence distorts the veil. Woes are drawn to them instinctively, mistaking them for kin or prey. Spirit Warriors fear fighting alongside them, as an Untamed losing control can be more catastrophic than a failed mission.
Their Soul Cores are unstable, constantly tearing and reforming under the strain of conflicting emotions. Prolonged use causes hallucinations, memory loss, emotional detachment, and eventually complete ego collapse.
Many Untamed forget their own names.
Some forget they were ever human.
Many Untamed are marked, but only a few survive the Acolyte stage. Those strong and fortunate enough to survive do their best to remain hidden, for reasons that will be revealed later in the story.
◆ Little insight:
Unlike the Spirit Tamed, who are divided into classifications and can absorb only one negative energy, the Untamed can absorb all four negative energies: Fear, Agony, Rage, and Nightmare. In the end, this ability consumes them.
The Untamed are viewed as Woes themselves, as many believe they are already corrupted by negative energies.
Everything in their system mirrors that of the Tamed, except for their rank hierarchy. Though they also have six ranks, they differ:
■ Bloom
■ Rebirth
■ Defiler
■ Master
■ Harbinger
■ Eidolon
■Lord
Remember, unlike the Tamed, the Untamed can absorb all four energies, but doing so gradually consumes their souls.