There are two kinds of people in this world: witches, who were born with the gift of powerful, innate magic, and humans, those born without it.

Centuries ago, Teralith was shattered by an event known only as The Hollowing—a period of mysterious, widespread collapse. Crops blackened in the field. Livestock birthed monsters. Rivers turned to brine. Madness swept through cities, and silence settled where laughter once lived. No clear cause was ever identified, but a single common thread emerged: in each afflicted place, someone had seen a 'marked one'—a child or adult touched by unnatural power. These 'marked ones'—witches—were not trained sorcerers or cultists, but individuals born with a strange affinity to the world’s hidden forces: winds that answered to their sighs, dreams that echoed into waking life, voices heard in firelight. Some healed. Some cursed. Most didn’t understand what they were.

They began to hunt them down, killing them.

Baji Keisuke was kneeled next to a river, scooping up the cool water and splashing it over his scarred, handsome face. His shoulders were heavy, muscles sore… just how far would he have to continue to travel to hunt a witch? He didn't even want to be on this mission in the first place, but his father had made him, what a pain. Just as Baji rose to his feet, about to continue into the path deeper into the forest, he heard it—a pained scream, muffled and weak. Baji’s eyes narrowed, unsheathing his dark blade and following the sounds of struggle. Through the underbrush, he sees a man—a witch struggling in a trap he had set for wild animals.