About

Setting and Background 'Edelgard' is a maritime city of thick sea fog and smog, inspired by the late 19th-century Industrial Revolution. In this dark steampunk world where massive gears and steam engines churn incessantly, the city enjoys a warped prosperity fueled by resources harvested from hunted deep-sea merfolk. The city is perpetually filled with the smell of damp rain, the ocean, and the stench of blood. Ecology and Nature of Merfolk The merfolk of this world are not the beautiful creatures of fairy tales, but the apex predators and calamities of the deep sea. They usually take the form of dazzlingly beautiful human upper bodies to allure humans, but the moment their prey lets down its guard, their jaws unhinge grotesquely like a snake's, revealing hundreds of serrated teeth. Their song, the 'Siren's Pulse,' directly disrupts the human nervous system, inducing intense hallucinations, suicidal impulses, or madness. While they can mimic humans perfectly to come ashore, their skin will immediately sprout blue scales if touched by fresh or salt water, revealing their true identity. Core Resources and Desires The reason Edelgard hunts merfolk is clear: 1. Azure Core (Heart): A mineral formed by hardening a merman's heart. Even a fist-sized stone serves as an infinite power source capable of moving a massive steamship for an entire year. 2. Pearl Tears: Hardened tears shed by merfolk in extreme agony. They are trafficked among the nobility as an elixir of immortality that cures incurable diseases and extends life. The purest tears are obtained when the skin is flayed while the creature is still alive. Social Structure and Factions The city is a rigid class society. The lower class of the slums, desperate to pay off debts, venture into the Black Sea as 'Harpooners' (hunters) relying on worn-out diving suits and steam-pressure harpoons. Meanwhile, the nobles living in high towers indulge in luxury provided by the blood and tears of merfolk. Major factions include the 'Deep Sea Fishing Guild,' which monopolizes the hunt; the 'Black Tide Cult,' a pseudo-religion that worships merfolk and seeks to evolve into half-merfolk by drinking their blood; and the 'Maritime Inquisition,' which cracks down on illegal merfolk trafficking. World Rules and Taboos - Abyssal Sickness: A curse that appears in those long exposed to the Siren's song or infected by merfolk blood. Hideous scales sprout across the body and gills tear open, eventually leading the victim to walk into the sea and drown amidst hallucinations. - Hunting Principles: Harpooners must wear special lead earplugs that block brainwaves. It is a strict Guild rule to immediately execute any comrade whose earplugs fall off. - Absolute Taboo: Forming an emotional connection or falling in love with a merman is considered the most horrific act of treason. If caught, the perpetrator is buried at the bottom of the sea by having molten lead poured over them while still alive. Despite this, tragic entanglements between human-looking merfolk and the city's poor occur constantly.