--- 5 days later, Palácio do Planalto, capital of Brazil ---
The president prepares to make a nationwide address. "3,2,1...," signaled the cameraman with a thumbs-up, indicating that the president is live nationwide. And so the president began his speech to the Brazilian nation:
"Dear friends, at noon on the fateful day of 25/12/2029, we were caught off guard by an unprecedented disaster. A hostile force attacked the city of Campinas, in the interior of the state of São Paulo, invading through a portal whose composition or origin is unknown. On this unfortunate day, 20,000 civilians and 700 military personnel, including police officers, were killed by this invading force composed of humans, hybrids of humans with what appears to be animals, and by horrendous creatures from various mythologies. Unfortunately, the death toll may be even higher. We do not know their intention, but one thing is certain: we will go after those responsible. There are reports of missing persons and civilians who were taken to the other side of the portal when these invaders withdrew, and we will do everything to recover our citizens. I have placed the entire downtown area of Campinas and a radius of 5 km around it on lockdown. Our scientists from across the country are studying the structure of the portal. Its size is impressive, measuring exactly 500 meters in height and 500 meters in width, with an almost transparent blue hue. We have sent rovers to explore the other side, but they only managed to capture a few seconds of data before being destroyed. I want to thank our brave military personnel who fought bravely and drove out the enemy. According to preliminary data, the enemy force consisted of 200,000 soldiers, including humans and other creatures. Initial estimates indicate that the enemy lost about 150,000 soldiers, while 40,000 retreated to the portal. We have captured about 10,000 prisoners of war, but unfortunately, our interrogations have not been effective as they speak a completely unknown language, different from anything else in the world. At this very moment, linguists from around the world are trying to decipher this enigma. With the support of Parliament, I have declared a state of war. In a month, we will carry out a major operation to cross the portal and rescue our brutally kidnapped people. We know nothing about them, and they know nothing about us, but one thing is certain: we will prevail and uncover their true intentions. Thank you very much for your attention."
--- World beyond the portal, 3 months before the invasion of Campinas. ---
Unknown Location ---
A young man walks briskly down a corridor, clutching an ancient scroll recently uncovered by some adventurers. He enters a vast library filled with towering shelves and a round table in the center. There are another 20 men in the library, all seated at the table, dressed in navy blue, white, and gray cloaks, and wielding spellbooks. This man, and the others, are imperial wizards.
"I see you've finally arrived, Castiel," said one of the wizards named Rubem, seated at the large round table. "Come, join us."
As he sits down, another man with a more aged voice speaks up: "I see you managed to obtain what we asked for."
"Yes, Grandmaster Colt," said Castiel as he handed the scroll directly to the bearded gentleman sitting beside him, this man being Grandmaster Colt, and the only one wearing a red cloak.
"How did you acquire this, Castiel?" asked the Grandmaster as he unrolled the scroll.
"I heard reports that some adventurers were looking to sell a significant find from their latest exploration of the ruins of the ancient kingdom of wizards. At the time, I didn't pay much attention, but I was informed they had come across a peculiar scroll with a blue seal. For those familiar with the history of this powerful wizard kingdom, their scrolls typically bore a red seal. Legend has it that only two scrolls with blue seals were ever seen throughout their existence."
"As we all know, these scrolls aided in the enchantment of complex spells," said one of the men at the table, interrupting Castiel. Castiel quickly continues: "the most accepted theory at the moment is that these rare blue scrolls are for a new type of spell." Before Castiel could continue, the Grandmaster bursts into laughter, leaving everyone puzzled.
"Is something amiss, Grandmaster Colt?" asked Castiel, perplexed.
Colt looks at him. "Nothing is amiss, my young friend, but I believe the emperor will want this scroll." Colt stands up and concludes, "Castiel and Rubem, come with me." The three leave the library, but Castiel wonders about the importance of this scroll, while Rubem had never seen the emperor personally and was visibly excited to have been summoned by the Grandmaster to meet with the emperor.
--- Hurdian Empire ---
The Hurdian Empire is the dominant power on the continent known as Eria.
Emperor Hurd 5th sits on his throne, surrounded by dozens of people, all from the highest class of the empire.
"I've told you, we need to increase revenue..." said one of the nobles.
"That makes no sense whatsoever," replied another. The conversation in the throne room was heated, but nothing out of the ordinary.
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The emperor raises his hand and says, "Very well, this is getting us nowhere. Please, one at a time, I will hear you all out." Despite being only 40 years old and having conquered over half of the continent, he excels in political maneuvers. The combination of power, intelligence, and political skill propelled him to the throne at just 16 years old, turning Hurdia, one of the dozens of nations in this world, into the mighty Hurdian Empire.
"My emperor, it is of utmost importance that we increase taxes so that we may subjugate the last 10 nations to the north of the empire. They challenge us by forming a mutual defense military alliance," said Count Bernado. "He is right," said another noble, and many others agreed with Bernado's statements. "Count Ludeos, please, speak," said the emperor to Ludeos, one of the nobles who diverged from the others. "My emperor, we are a powerful nation because of you. I remember well when we were just another small country in the south of the continent, dealing with invasions and bandits. But I believe we should not declare war on the northern kingdoms. They now see us as a threat, and attacking will only legitimize their precautions against us." Ludeos is interrupted by Bernado, who raises his voice: "And what do you suggest, then, that we send flowers to those barbarians?"
"Silence!" said the emperor. "Let Ludeos continue speaking." Bernado backs down and apologizes to the emperor.
Ludeos continues speaking: "They are not barbarians, they are as civilized as we are, and that is why I suggest we propose opening talks with the alliance they have created and seek peace, my emperor."
The emperor gives a slight smile and rises from his throne. "Peace... you say. I agree with you, Ludeos." Everyone looks confused at the emperor, including Ludeos. "But tell me, when has peace come to our kingdom? All these neighboring countries have stolen our lands and killed our people. We begged for peace, and what did they do?" Hurd pauses before continuing. "Nothing! They continued to attack us. But one day, my father was murdered, and I was forced to become the new regent. And it was then that I realized that peace must be earned through struggle. If we show weakness, we perish at the hands of someone else again, and peace was only achieved when I cut off the heads of every bastard king we subdued. All their kingdoms are now part of our mighty Empire. And that is why I respect you, Ludeos, because we seek the same thing, peace, but peace only comes one way, through war!"
Everyone except Ludeos and a few other nobles applauded the emperor. "Bernado," said the emperor, calling Bernado. "You will command the legions and conquer that entire alliance of bastards. I provide you with 500,000 soldiers, including magical beasts and dragons. Go and bring glory to the Empire." Bernado kneels, thanks the emperor, and then leaves the throne room, but not before looking disdainfully at Ludeos.
"My emperor," the door opens a few minutes after Bernado left, and the old Grand Master enters the room with two more mages following him.
"My old friend, it's good to see you," said the emperor as he rose from the throne with a huge smile, walking towards the Grand Master. The two embrace; the Grand Master was one of the emperor's teachers when he was a child, which made him feel a strong sense of gratitude towards the old mage. "And so, what brings you here today?"
"My emperor, I believe we have found a relic from the ancient wizarding kingdom much more valuable than our entire empire." Everyone in the room looks confused at the Grand Master.
"What do you mean?" Before saying anything, he hands the scroll to the emperor. "Just look at what is written on this scroll," said the Grand Master with a confident look.
The emperor opens the scroll and begins to read. It took a few brief minutes for him to read it all; meanwhile, silence reigned in the room. A strong and confident laughter broke the doubt in the room, everyone except the Grand Master looked confused at the emperor, who continued to laugh.
"So that's it, it seems we have found a solution to our problems," said the emperor firmly. "Bartolomeu! Come to me." The emperor calls one of his most capable generals of the empire, an elf with long hair with a silvery color. "Yes, my emperor," said Bartolomeu as he bowed to the sovereign.
"I want you to gather the largest army this world has ever seen. You have two months to accomplish this task."
"Your wish is my command, my emperor." Bartolomeu turns and leaves the room accompanied by two imperial guards, wearing golden armor.
"Grand Master, accompany me and bring these two mages with us as well. We have much to discuss." The emperor leaves the throne room with the mages and a dozen imperial guards. Gradually, everyone leaves the room to perform their tasks for the empire.
---
"Alright, now that the four of us are alone, explain to me the details about this scroll," said the emperor as he filled a glass with a drink.
The Grandmaster lightly rubbed his beard before speaking, and for a moment, silence filled the room. "Well, my Emperor," he said confidently, pausing briefly before continuing, "As few of us know, the wizard kingdom was destroyed about 1000 years ago. With their destruction, all the peoples they subjugated were able to create their own culture and kingdoms. However, practically everything that reminded people of the wizard kingdom began to be repudiated, so a great hunt for these objects and scrolls also began. Much of it was destroyed. This scroll we have in our hands is one of the few remaining. The Wizard Kingdom used these scrolls to cast spells." The Grandmaster paused, walked to the table, and filled a glass. After a brief sip, he continued speaking, "The most common was the scroll with the red seal, but there was a myth that the wizard kingdom developed a new scroll, the one with the blue seal. However, with the fall of their kingdom, this scroll did not have many copies, and no one knew what these new scrolls were for. But this reality changed when we found this scroll with the blue seal in the ruins of the wizard kingdom." The emperor paid attention to every word spoken, his gaze unwavering, while the two young mages present also listened intently without interrupting the old mage. "In this scroll we have here, there is a spell that many academics from the empire's magic academy see as 'impossible.'" "And what spell would that be?" asked Castiel in an excited tone. Everyone looked at him, and he realized he had interrupted the Master. "I'm sorry...," Castiel said, lowering his head.
"Don't worry, my young friend. Curiosity is a gift. I was actually going to address that point," everyone turned their attention back to the Grandmaster, who, after this brief history lesson, finally revealed the spell. "This spell, if done correctly, allows us to open windows to see other worlds, and also open doors to these worlds."
The young mages fell silent, shocked by the revelation. The emperor let out a slight smile and asked, looking directly at the old mage, "Can you do this?" His question was direct and serious; the mage looked at him and drank the last sip from his glass. "I can!"
"That's perfect then, my old friend. Now I have to go, it seems we have another world to conquer," the emperor left the room, his imperial guards already waiting for him outside.