One lunar month is all it needs to turn the tide.
With every rise of the full moon, the Scepter of Fire emerges from her cave in Khuzdoh where Narzul guards her and lets no one enter except the Demon King.
The mighty Krâl can summon the Scepter.
He can send the Scepter back into hibernation.
He can destroy her. He can wield her.
He, his power and the Scepter are one.
And all else be warned to not venture here or be killed for treason.
(The Realmics)
But there was more to it that even Kalum hadn’t anticipated.
Sikam of Akronia was to become significant in more ways than that. His red crescent wasn’t just a decorative mark of courage earned in the face of a raging monster Demon. It was a source of great power and dynamic physical strength. That tiny shiny red crescent was the mark of the first of the royal race of Demon Slayers.
However, all this glory had come at a steep price. The price they all had paid by being trapped in the unknown universe of Realm where Narzul forever breathed fire and the Scepter lived. A world where strange creatures, long of limb and broad of bone, pure of heart and sharp of wit, lived and prospered eating local greens and writing stories.
Owing to the recklessness of Ric and Ducai, the portal back to Earth was destroyed while they tried to escape, absorbing the entire lands of Xome, Kirtam and Akronia into the Realm below. Much to the dismay of everyone involved, the territories lost their familiar boundaries in the process, leaving everything for the taking for he who had the guts and the power.
Sikam had the guts but Kalum had the power.
Kalum's possession and taming of the Scepter had brought the fiery guardians and Narzul back to life as it had refilled the Scepter with sacred Blue Fire. Only now Kalum ruled them all. Kalum now was a powerful fire Demon. He could control fire and wield it to his will.
Had he wanted, he could have overtaken everything by force using his Scepter and his Dragon. But Kalum's sense of justice prevented that. Some say it was actually fear of resistance from Sikam that kept Kalum’s hostile use of might at bay.
I’d say those some would be right.
Besides, with Ric and Ducai unwilling to be ignored and forever whining about their lost legacies and constantly referring to earthly alliances with the powerful Sikam, it was only reasonable that the land be justly divided among the four lords.
However, none could ever again deny the supremacy of the new Demon Kalum. He was declared the uncrowned Krâl of the Realm by means of sheer power. More so by the natives of the Realm who regarded the sacred fire a kingmaker in her own right and she had chosen Kalum by submitting to him.
Who were these natives of the odd universe of Realm?
They were Giants.
They were called the Taumatawhakatangihangakoauauotamateapokaiwhenuakitanatahu. Or Buzurgs for short. They were book lovers and exceled in the arts of archiving.
The Buzurgs wrote two kinds of chronicles. One was history of the Realm that was showcased both in the Realmics and the personable accounts of the Storytellers. The other was the Law of the Realm as dictated by the Scepter before the advent of Kalum and later on augmented by Krâl himself.
The Realmics are believed to be the only authentic source of Scepterian Law in the Realm.
According to the Realmics, the Realm had always existed. And so had the Scepter, Khuzdoh, Narzul and the Giants. They believed the owner of the Scepter owned the Realm too. While the one bearing the red crescent was the one the Fire feared.
As was proven in time…
To be continued.