Othius IV / the Fourth, more commonly known as the Blighted King, is the ruler of the Blighted Kingdom, thus making him the ruler of the human population in Rhir.
Appearance[edit | edit source]
The Blighted King has pale grey-silver eyes and hair.[1] While he is still able-bodied, he has been worn down by centuries of fighting the Demons. He exudes a presence that makes people feel like they're being crushed.[2]
Personality[edit | edit source]
Othius IV is shown to be weary from centuries of living and fighting. Though he still maintains a great hatred for Demons, he has lost hope in defeating them. As a result, he has become exceedingly ruthless, willing to do anything in order to bring an end to the Demon Kingdom.
Background[edit | edit source]
As the ruler of the last surviving human nation in Rhir, Othius the Fourth continues a thousands of years long war against monster tribes and demons. While other nations send their own armies to support him, his people have never known peace and the war is effectively at a deadlock (at least on the surface, see antinium) though it can be said that the Blighted Kingdom has a small advantage in that the Blighted Kingdom has been able to build the 5th wall whilst under semi-constant demon attacks.
The Blighted King has survived one close companion to whom he wasn't actually married. The second Blighted Queen died at some point after giving birth to his elder daughter and current Crown Princess, Isodore. Later, the Blighted King married the current Blighted Queen with whom he had Erille, his younger daughter.[2]
The Blighted King is semi-immortal due to Nereshal, the court's [Chronomancer], using Time magic "to halt his aging" according to [Lady] Zekyria. How this works and how long it has been going on, has not been mentioned but it clearly cannot be cast on many individuals, and has been used to keep the [King] himself and Nereshal alife for a significant period of time. Perhaps, this regime also includes the Blighted Queen.[3]
Chronology[edit | edit source]
To further his attempt on building the Fifth Wall and potentially end the demons once and for all, Othius had his mages conduct a ritual to summon legendary heroes from another time/place. For the sacrificial cost of about ten thousand unborn children (at a rough ratio of one hundred unborn children to one hero)[4], he summoned the sixty Americans (and forty more "Earthers" who were cast across Innworld) ,who were all just level 1 [Heroes]. They were then sent into their first confrontation with monsters and demons with the expectation that it would be a resounding victory however only twenty "heroes" survived. As a result Othius declared it a failed experiment and banned them to a underdeveloped border region.
Only when Richard, Emily reached level 30 and Tom slaughtered a full raiding party of demons, did Othius reconsider his decision. He invited them to his court again and reinstated them as Heroes,[2] although most of the others had already lost the special class, probably due to the populace no longer believing some of them were heroes. Shortly thereafter, an Elite force of Demons was set loose in the Blighted King's fortress by the Fool who had been opposing the unborn child sacrifices and wanted to depose the Blighted King, but was stopped by Tom.[4]
- “Ten thousand. He wants an army this time. An army. He’d sacrifice so many for any edge. And if ten thousand doesn’t work, he’ll sacrifice a hundred thousand.” (Fool 1.05 C)
As a result, the Blighted King's plans could unfold, and he planned to scale up the sacrifices, planning to summon more Earthers and spending a million unborn children on them; which caused another delay when seven of his [High Mages] revolted against these orders. Laisa declared he "lost his mind".[5]
After undergoing significant torture by Hayvon Operland Laisa gaze up the hiding positions of the other [High Mages] and was convinced of the necessity of the sacrifices through the use of some skill by the Blighted King.
Due to his [High Mages] returning with minimal fuss Othius was able to conduct the ritual on the Summer Solstice. In the midst of opening the portal to Earth the Court of the Fae began to cross over into Innworld to conduct a (another?) great war against the gods, due to the Fae taking an active interest in Innworld again they began to affect the portal and began healing the scar/hole it was causing in the fabric of the world. However, Aaron Vanwell's actions at the behest Emerrhain (the text message pronouncing to Earthers that "the gods are alive") lead to a resurgence in the strength of the dead gods and a stabilizing of the Earther portal leading to Othius managing to send a message to the war rooms and other places of Earth summoning them to aid him in the war against the demons in which he said:
“Send me your righteous souls, to fight the last war! The eternal war! Until the Demons are driven back and hell itself is cleansed! Bring your greatest armies to make war upon the end of the world! This is the day of reckoning and I call you to my side!”[6]
As a result of this ritual Othius receives another group of Earthers and scatters even more Earthers across the world.
Powers and Abilities[edit | edit source]
He is noted to be one of the people who could overwhelm Flos' Kingdom in its current weakened stage. Although King Othius' skills are not yet known, it is said that if used, any one of his skills can change the course of a war.
Classes/Levels:[edit | edit source]
- [King of Blight, King of Centuries] Lv. 55[7]
Skills:[edit | edit source]
- [A King’s Truth]
- [Champion of the Blighted Lands]
- [Golden Rays of Rhir]
- ? - Arbitrage of Imperiums[8]
Equipment [edit | edit source]
Trivia[edit | edit source]
Quotes[edit | edit source]
- (To Americans) “So. The heroes of prophecy return. Diminished.”
- (To Emily, Richard) “We have been told that two of your number have reached Level 30. A commendable achievement in such a short time.”
- (To Americans) “But so many have been lost. We sent over sixty of you to do battle against the Demons. Now less than a third remain.”
- (To Americans) “One has reached Level 30 in three months. A [Knight] he stands, sworn against darkness. Yet no [Lord] or [Lady] has given him a title. Another, a [Mage] of water has taught herself. Miraculous feats, as our lady says.”
- (To Americans) “You will have a place in our halls, and your companions food and my protection so long as you hold back the scourge of darkness. But we have heard of one more. A champion who defended our people. A warrior who slew a Demon raiding party single-handed.”
- (To Tom) “Perform, [Clown]. Show the court the tricks of your profession. Make us laugh.”
- (To Nereshal) “So a tenth were given to Rhir. A waste of life, or so we felt. But now—we see. They are young, but they have the potential of slumbering Dragons in them.”
- (To Nereshal) “I dream of it, Nereshal. A day when I may walk past the walls and see no Demons, no Blight. Only green grass and clear skies.”
- (To himself) “Ten thousand souls we sacrificed for a bare handful, a fraction of that last time. This time shall be different. Even spread out as they may be. I will bring the Demon Kingdom down to its knees and purge Rhir before my end.”
- (Declaration) “For so long we have held the breach! We alone, aided so little by the other petty lands of this world! A bulwark only remembered when the fate of all trembled on the balance! This time—yes, this time—let the rest of the world pay the price! Take it from all but Rhir!”
- (To Earthers?) “Send me your righteous souls, to fight the last war! The eternal war! Until the Demons are driven back and hell itself is cleansed! Bring your greatest armies to make war upon the end of the world! This is the day of reckoning and I call you to my side!”
References[edit | edit source]
- ↑ Chapter 7.34 C
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Chapter 1.03 C
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Chapter 1.04 C
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Chapter 1.05 C
- ↑ Chapter 6.68
- ↑ Solstice (Pt. 9) | The Wandering Inn
- ↑ Chapter 9.20
- ↑ 10.17
- ↑ Interlude - Foody Discussions