The World of Luna

“So, it’s been four years since I came to this world, huh. Once again, I am a former high school student, Rentarou Kawashima, who died in his old world and was reincarnated here. An Isekai, huh,” I thought to myself. “Oh, I had been longing for something like this to happen for so long. Although, I did not expect that dying for it to happen would be an actual thing. Anyway, I just hope that this world has magic that I can study and learn and be good at,” I hoped in my thoughts. And so, ever since I could talk, I would bug my mother, Becca, and father, Robert, to tell me more and more about this world that I was born into.
“Father, Father, teach me about this world. I wish to learn about it, everything you know about it,” I said enthusiastically, and my father settled down in his seat to teach me with as much enthusiasm as me. “Alright Alex, you better pay attention then,” he said as he began teaching me.
“So, this is the world of Luna, a world full of mysteries and fantasies, and magic too. This world has the entirety of its land connected to each other. But no matter how united the geographical locations are, the people inhabiting it are definitely divided.
The continent is divided in three parts: the Human Realm, the Beast Realm, and the Demon Realm. The Human Realm is located on the eastern edge of the continent with the realm being divided into five major kingdoms. The Khazdrim Dwarven Kingdom to the south, situated in the Desperada Mountain Range, is a kingdom of dwarves skilled in crafts like carpentry, smithy, and what not.
The next kingdom is the Elvendom of Sylphia, located in the western Forest of Mystique, mostly inhabited by elves who are skilled in ‘living as one’ with nature and are the highest exporters of goods like spices, medicinal herbs, and forest-based produce like fruits and meats.
The next is the human kingdom of Silva on the northern edge of the Human Realm, famous for its mining techniques and jewelry made of materials like gold, silver, and platinum. It might be the smallest of the three human kingdoms, but only to be underestimated at one’s own doom.
The slightly bigger human kingdom on the eastern edge is the Erelith Empire, most popular for naval warfare and its fishing industry. The beaches on the eastern edge serve as really good tourist attractions from all over the Human Realm.
The last, but the biggest kingdom in the Human Realm, is the kingdom we live in, the Candoria Empire, situated in the heart of the Human Realm. Although it might seem surrounded by the other kingdoms, Candoria boasts the status of being the kingdom that maintains peace and prosperity in the Human Realm.”
“Wow, but does that mean that we don’t interact with the Demon or Beast Realms at all? Are they friendly? What are they like?” I asked in childish curiosity, making Father chuckle a bit before continuing.
“Well, let’s just say that the Beast Realm is filled with beastkin people, or people with animalistic features like cat ears and such, and is divided into multiple small tribal settlements based on their animal traits. However, there are indeed two kingdoms that have grown in recent times.
First is the Kingdom of Beastalia, founded just about eighty years ago to counter invasions from the Demon Realm. It is the proof of unity that can be attained through common personal goals. The five human kingdoms established a neutral understanding and obtained considerable peace amongst themselves. They can be considered neutral but they are certainly not friendly for one reason alone, which is the slavers who kidnap beastkin kids and enslave them, selling them to the Demon and Human Realms.
Second is the Kingdom of Feralith, which is hostile to the Human Realm because of the slavers. They are extremists in nature, and hence never go near someone from Feralith unless you are capable of defending yourself.
And then there is the Demon Realm on the western edge of the continent, openly hostile and led by one king whom they call their Overlord. They seek only one thing, which is total dominance over the continent. Most of their invasions are thwarted by Beastalia though, and so we need not worry about any invasions any time soon.”
“And, and… what about our family? We live in a small town in a mansion, so are we really important people?” I asked, fascinated by the dynamics of this world which did not resemble any of the isekai I had read back in Japan. I mean, there are a few where a human gets reincarnated or transported to a world as a beastkin or monster, leading to low human interactions, but this world felt almost as if the three realms were kind of like mini-worlds in their own way inside a bigger world.”
“Well, we used to be important,” Robert said. “We used to be a Count’s House, nobility within the Candoria Empire, but my father, your grandfather, gave out most parts of our land to the townspeople to make sure they had something to earn money with after the last war between the five human kingdoms. That is why we have been living in a mansion even if the town itself is kind of small. But listen Alex, you must not feel insulted if any of your classmates, when you start school at ten, make fun of you for your grandfather revoking his title of Count for the people. Because as my father used to say, ‘A Lord is only ever a True Lord when he earns the trust and respect of his people.’ Alright?”
“I see, so grandfather let go of our lands so that the people could find a way to earn their keep in times of war? That’s admirable. I understand, Father, it doesn’t matter to me if I am not treated nicely or made fun of based on that.” [Well, I was already used to worse than that from my time in Japan,] I said, looking inspired by my grandfather’s good deeds. “Father, can you answer one last question for me? Is there magic in this world? When can I learn it?”
“Uh… ‘earn their keep,’ huh? I swear to God sometimes it feels like you are way older than you look,” Robert said with an astounded look, but continued. “Well, as for magic, every interested kid gets a textbook on magic when they turn five, after which they practice at home until they enroll in the Cardonian Magical Institute at age ten. That is the school for low-ranking nobles and commoners. If we were still Counts, you could have gone to the Royal Magical College, but it is what it is, unfortunately.”
“Oh, come on Father, surely there wouldn’t be that much of a big difference between the two schools? Plus, as long as I can learn magic, I am fine with anywhere. I just can’t wait to turn five and start practicing magic.” Just as I was getting hyped up about it, Becca came in and said, “Well, little mage, we can talk about it later. Right now, it is time for bed.”
“Alright, Mother,” I said, letting myself get tucked in by my parents. “Good night, Mother, Father,” I said as they kissed me good night. However, I could not sleep a wink that night. I mean, how could I have? The thing I looked up to in my old world—magic—was real in this world, and I was going to start training within just a few more weeks.