Appendix. Countries of the Continent

  North. A land of angels

  S-hertogenbosch. Empire of Angels

  Symbol: Three pairs of winged cloud flowers.

  National Flower: Cloud Flower Frina

  This was the Holy Empire, founded by an angel who reorganized the North.

  Those who have the stigmata were given preferential treatment, and those who did not have royal blood could become a royalty if they had the stigmata. The clearer, more certain patterned stigmata had more power, and only those with the stigmata could be the king’s heir.

  The blood of angels was highly revered. The cloud flower myth was considered to be the origin of all. It was most influential as the ruler of the North. It was normal to have a land blanketed with ice, but it was not because the sacred barrier helped humans live. This country’s absolute monarchy could not be collapsed because only royalties with stigmata could maintain this barrier.

  Bureti: Kingdom of the Northern Witch

  Symbol: Deer-horn Opal

  Guardian: The Black Leopard

  A kingdom that had the highest authority in the North before the founding of S-hertogenbosch. It was said that the tradition of maternal succession and lineage was deep seethed in this place and that the blood of witches flowed through their royal family. Initially, it was a matriarchy, but it was slowly leaning into a patriarchal system as time passed. They tend to act precisely opposite of S-hertogenbosch. It was said that their eye colors changes as a way to reject a person with a stigmata. They were in direct conflict with S-hertogenbosch.

  Uprichit: The Land of Holy Tears

  Symbol: The Cross with Nine Stars

  Characteristic: A river with holy water.

  It was a newly established coalition on land formed by exiled leaders of S-hertogenbosch. Enpes, Innaf, Srit, and Reyu, they were the four leaders of Uprichit. Each country was independent of the other, and although they function as a united state, they did not act together except in times of war. Legend has it that God provided them shelter once the Angel’s advent had persecuted and expelled them. The country’s capital Aleteia was a holy place based on this legend. They were not on good terms with the Northern Empire, and their doctrines and religions were somewhat different. Although they had a symbiotic relationship with Bureti, they are not close.

  Andurs: The Kingdom of the Firstborn

  Symbol: Three Diamonds

  It was a prosperous kingdom filled with diamonds. It was founded by the first of the three children of the Angel. Traditionally, under the influence of the Empire, it was not a colony of the Nothern Empire.

  Leiden: Land where the Secondborn resides

  Symbol: Two glasses touching each other

  A kingdom considered a moderate and neutral zone; it was responsible for almost all international trials in the North. The economic level was unexpectedly high, as it was the center of diplomacy and commerce. The second daughter of an angel married a mortal, and Leiden was formed. It was one of the only kingdoms that survived after the advent of the Angel other than for Bureti.