The Age of Revolution comes not with Coal and Steel but Mana and Forbidden Magic.

To raise a poor mage, one needs enough riches to make a broke man wealthy.

To raise a good mage, one needs enough riches to turn a village into a merchant city.

To raise an excellent mage, one needs enough riches to build a kingdom.

Seventeen years ago, in a cold and desolate island, the discovery of Grenold crystals upends the world. Being the first to discover it, the Northern Tower invades the Grival Island, a cold, desolate land.

But the Central Tower soon learns of this crystal which can release the equivalent of ten mages' worth of mana. Unable to obtain the crystals through diplomatic means they invade the Northern Tower, but are pushed back, ensuring the north's monopoly of the crystal.

Following the Central Tower's defeat, their other subjects gain a sense of autonomy but also fright, prompting them to form a coalition against the old and new powers. Threatened, the North begins research into forbidden magic, notably time magic which had long been abandoned in favour of dimensional counterpart, a safer alternative to resolve the issue of scarcity.

Two years ago, at the age of 14, Nathan lost both parents; his mother a native of the Grival Island and his father a mage belonging to a disgraced noble family. On his way to enter the Northern Tower, he is denied passage by a mage of common birth who sends him to work in the crystal mines.

Now, after the mines are seized by noble mages, Nathan is granted passage but at the cost of his loyalty. Entering the tower, he isn't disillusioned by its façade of prosperity and innovation. He remains wary of everything and everyone as he, unlike the newer apprentices, has already been thrust into its political machinations. He will now either learn to swim in a pond infested with greed, pride, and unreasonable wealth, or drown in its excesses.

A Grand Tale of People, Revolution, and Innovation. Imperialism, Colonialism, and Greed.