Curve 1. The Birth of a Girl, the Birth of Two Ideas

The War of the Fivefold Alliance, involving the Duchy of Milano, had recently concluded. The Duchy of Milano was a political entity under the Crown of Habicht-Ostaburg. This status obliged the Duchy of Milano to support the Crown of Habicht-Ostaburg in its political and military endeavors.

The Crown of Habicht-Ostaburg, often referred to as the Crown of Hab-burg or Hab-burg, engaged in a political maneuver nineteen months earlier. It was a political maneuver that was, essentially, the continuation of politics by other means: a maneuver involving military action—or in other words: a war. The Crown of Hab-burg joined a military alliance with four other nations to confront a single kingdom.

What was the outcome of the war, which had lasted for roughly a year and a half? The Fivefold Alliance won. Under a post-war agreement, the Hab-burg Crown was allowed to exchange one of its smaller islands for a larger, more strategically important one.

The war between the five nations claimed approximately 25,000 lives. These victims came from different groups within society, including the Akustikoi civilians, the Epodoi regular military and militia, and the elite of the Mathematikoi. The Crown of Hab-burg suffered the greatest number of casualties, with approximately 11,000.

There are defeats, and there are victories. There are wars, and there are peace treaties. There are deaths, and there are births.

One of the children born in the aftermath of the recently ended war was a girl born to Pietro Fortunato Caetana and Anna Maria Caetana. The girl was the first of Pietro and Anna's offspring to enter the world. She was born after the sun had set, when the light of the daystar no longer illuminated the Earth.

The girl was born in a residence in an affluent neighborhood in the city of Milano, the capital of the Duchy of Milano. The house where she was born was one of the most valuable in the neighborhood. Even among the houses of the wealthy, it stood out for its sizeable private garden. Pietro, the girl's father, was a wealthy merchant, which allowed him to purchase the house as one of his assets.

Assets a wealthy man like Pietro could afford included vast tracts of land, numerous animals, various kinds of jewelry, and, of course, a luxurious home with expensive furnishings. Furthermore, with his financial muscle, Pietro could also enjoy numerous services, such as maids, personal bodyguards with high Aecte levels, and private tutors for his children.

Pietro’s house had another advantage besides being built from the finest materials: it was located in the safest part of the city of Milano, protected behind the innermost layer of the residential defense wall. It was called the "innermost layer" because the residential district was protected by several layers of defensive walls, and Pietro’s house stood behind the final line of defense, with no further walls beyond it.

Pietro and Anna were naturally happy to have a home in the safest area, as it would provide them with a private sanctuary in case war broke out again. The house would provide security for the couple and their children. But with the birth of their daughter and first child, Pietro felt that his daughter’s birth had given him a new sense of security, perhaps even the greatest protection his daughter could ever have.

Pietro felt that possible assurance of safety came from none other than his own infant daughter. Pietro said, "My lovely wife, look at this adorable baby. Even though she's still tiny, I feel like she already possesses such a tremendous amount of Aether. It's as if Heaven is being kind and generous, willing to bless our daughter with so much Aether."

Anna, who was still bedridden at the time, did not dismiss her husband's premonition. She agreed with Pietro's prediction that their daughter likely possessed immense potential for strength and talent. She said, "I feel like what you're saying isn't merely a prediction, a guess with a chance of being wrong, but rather a certainty that has yet to come true.”

Pietro, who was cradling his baby, smiled and said, "Our daughter will grow up to be a woman of the Mathematikoi class. I am also sure that she can become one of the Five, the most powerful Magoi of the Empire of Deutschtonia someday. With her great strength she will be able to accomplish many things; with such great strength she will be able to overcome all her weaknesses—if she has any weaknesses—without any difficulty at all."

This time, Anna didn't fully agree with her husband's opinion. She said, “I'm sure our daughter will be a member of the Mathematikoi class. But what if our daughter has flaws of her own? Will she be able to..."

Anna didn't finish her last sentence. Pietro, still cradling the baby, looked at his wife as if asking her to reveal everything she was thinking. But Anna then chose to talk about something else. She said, "My love, I've thought of a suitable first name for our daughter."

In their society, a father's surname would become a child's surname. A mother's middle name would become a child's middle name, with the form adjusted according to the child’s gender. If Anna Maria Caetana had a daughter, she would have the middle name Maria. If Anna had a son, he would have the middle name Mariano, Mario, or other masculine variations of Maria. A child's first name, on the other hand, was the name agreed upon by the child's parents.

Pietro asked, "What first name do you think is suitable for our daughter?"

Anna answered, "Agnesi." Beneath the luminous glow of the grandiose candles, the name of a girl who might become a beacon and the light of the world in the future has been spoken for the first time. "Agnesi Maria Caetana."

(***)

A man sat on a chair, gazing up at the darkening sky. It wasn't pitch black, because he saw specks of light from the stars. As he gazed up at the night sky, a thought crossed his mind—something like this: "I am not different from the other humans in one particular way: I have witnessed the endless passage of time, from darkness to light to darkness, and so on."

The hen rose from his academic throne, saying, "I am one of the Five. I possess both strength and intelligence. I will create that cloud!"

(***)

A person sat on a chair, gazing up at the darkening sky. It wasn't pitch black, because the person saw specks of light from the stars. As the person gazed up at the night sky, a thought crossed the person’s mind—something like this: "Like the rest of humanity, I have seen how history has unfolded, from darkness to light to darkness to light, and so on."

The person then rose from the person’s academic throne, saying, "I am one of the Five. I have intelligence. I have strength. I will have to create an antidote if he succeeds in creating that cloud!"