Maquia: When the Promised Flower Blooms
Maquia belongs to the Iorph, a secluded race of long-lived beings who stay apart from human affairs. Though surrounded by her kin, she has always felt isolated as an orphan, yearning for the world beyond but never daring to leave. Then the kingdom of Mezarte, eager to claim the Iorph’s immortality for its rulers, invades her homeland. With the mighty Renato dragons already under their control, the kingdom’s forces slaughter most of the Iorph. During the chaos, a rampaging Renato carries Maquia away before collapsing in a distant forest, leaving her stranded. Alone and lost, she hears a baby’s cries from a ruined village. She takes the child, naming him Ariel, and resolves to raise him despite knowing nothing of human life-or how to care for a son who will grow old while she stays young. Though loneliness lingers within her, she vows to make their life together work, no matter what.
