The Kingdom of Lulia, or the Isles of Lulia, is a small nation consisting of a large main island and four small satellite islands. The main islands are separated into nine main states, or prefectures. The main island, Lulia, has five prefectures, Pem, Oshington, Hayes, Gusto, and Ocros, with the remaining four belonging to the four satellites. Ruled by the Crown since time immemorial, Lulia is a fundamentally mercantile nation with many colonial holdings. A highly industrious state, it is known for three things: manufacturing, navy, and education.
A staggering 75% of the country’s gross domestic profit is international trade, with the remaining 25% attributed to primarily agriculture and statistically insignificant markets. Lulia is renowned for its nearly unrivaled manufacturing and industrial capability, which is centered nearly exclusively in the smoggy Oshington Prefecture. Oshington is Lulia’s geographically smallest prefecture, consisting of Lulia’s five major cities and their governing zones. These five cities together account for the majority of the kingdom’s population, and are the reason for Lulia’s arguably unwarranted image amongst foreigners as a sooty and densely populated nation. Unlike the cities of other nations, Lulia’s major cities are not homogenous. Over the course of centuries its centers of trade have become melting pots of cultures and religions.
Contrary to the image put forth by Oshington, Lulia’s other prefectures are of a slow, peaceful agrarian nature, with rolling fields of wheat and sweet rustic towns. Life is quiet in these lands, and even in the larger coast side fishing towns there is a pleasant atmosphere that makes one want to relax outside and sip coffee during the warmer months. Farmers are the minority of Lulia’s population, and are well regarded out of patriotism, for most food is imported from other nations.
As a mercantile, maritime nation, Lulia has a sizeable and powerfully equipped navy to protect its commerce and cruise the seas. At present, it has a comparatively small army, used only to hold down colonial holdings, or settle domestic disputes. It was only in recent memory that the Lulian army was this small, however; Lulia was the very same nation that sent its armies into the Labyrinth in a series of catastrophic expeditions. Happily enough, the Crown regarded the expedition as a success, although in one incident the Labyrinth yielded part of a mountain that crushed most of the countless artifacts that were spit out in equivalent exchange.
Regardless of gain or loss, the destruction of this grand army had little effect on Lulia in the grand scheme of things as its superior navy has always protected its nation. Indeed, the main islands have never experienced a major nor successful invasion of their land in the millennia Lulia has existed as a sovereign state, and this is reflected in the proud and patriotic nature in even the most diverse citizens of the kingdom.
The academic institution is an important aspect in Lulian life. Upper and middle class citizens are socially expected to be schooled at a young age, starting from five until fifteen, when one has the option to attend university. Privileged peasants or magically competent people can potentially secure a university education by showing sufficient potential and petitioning a lord, but this is uncommon.
A typical Lulian University is usually situated in the countryside in grand and sprawling campuses, away from the hustle and bustle of the Oshington cities. Most Lulian institutes teach two core curriculums: The Common Arts, including history, art itself, mathematics, politics, and professions of the paper and land, and the simply put Magic Arts, which encompass the realms of alchemy, healing, summoning arts, elemental arts, magic theory, and the like.
The Lulian people have an odd and somewhat morbid philosophy in regards to the Labyrinth. It is common tradition to sacrifice oneself at an old age, for the common good of the people and their families. Although this practice is not ubiquitous, it is not uncommon to see the elderly make pilgrimages to the Labyrinth. Interestingly, the political and academic elite have not yet given up on attempting to unlock its secrets. While military generals and navy admirals are simply interested in the shiny weapons that come out and send in military squads, it is not uncommon that entire academic expeditions end up sacrificing themselves in vain attempts to beat the system alongside their military and elderly counterparts.
One of these academic-types is
Jean Cedric Carteneau, a 32-year old human professor of the Magic Arts at the Hayes University in Lulia. Jean hails from a small farming town named Oshuu in the Pem prefecture, the son of an alchemist and a vintner. His father, the town alchemist and healer, acted as Jean’s mentor as they lived in his mother’s family vineyard, where he ultimately decided follow his father’s trade.
At age 15, the young Jean was accepted to the Oshington Grand College, a world renowned university and one of the few academic institutions within Oshington itself. It was here at this prestigious school that he met his ultimate mentor, a certain magic theories professor named Reynolds Ballard. Ballard’s teachings left a profound impact on Jean, and this amplified tenfold when Ballard set off to lead a large expedition into the Labyrinth in his second year of university. Now his assistant, Jean was the one to send off the army into Labyrinth… And one was the one to witness entire mountains appear in exchange. It was a definite finality, but it was, simply, a fact of life. The loss of his mentor served only to fuel his desire to learn more about Labyrinth and what lied inside the maws of the dungeon, and he graduated four years later at age 20 with full honors.
After graduating, Jean found himself returning to his childhood home to take up the town title of the town physician, after his father passed away a year prior from illness. He continued his studies independently in this role and became a competent healer in his own right, to an extent that he was eventually offered a position and tenure at the university three towns over, in Hayes. Jean, now 26, was surprised and flattered at this offer, and accepted the offer of tenure at the Hayes University. The position was a comfortable one and he enjoyed long days of discourse with fellow colleagues and students, but his intrigue of the Labyrinth continued to nag him throughout his career. He made good on obligations at Hayes, but with regret, he resigned his position after six years and set off on his own pilgrimage.
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Jean has a mild personality. He is a soft spoken, gentle person, but at the same time strong in resolve and will. Perhaps suiting to his profession, he strives to be helpful and benign at the outbreak of conflict, and he was known as a judicious arbiter at Hayes when solving academic disputes amongst colleagues and students.
A hard-working, inquisitive sort of guy, he can be found staring intensely at papers at his desk, or in the field studying plants for an experimental potion or even the odd ingredient for some homebrew alcohol. He is enthusiastic by nature, but does well in hiding this, appearing as a reserved and thoughtful professor that likes to joke about idle things.
When things are serious, however, he is merciless as anybody would expect him to be, whether he is acting as a professor, a healer, or a citizen of Lulia, Jean would not hesitate to wreck an academic career for dishonesty, perform to his utmost ability as a physician, or do his civic duty in protecting the state and executing a citizen’s arrest.
