Serelthar

BACKSTORY

King Serelthar Moonborn has ruled Ilthalor for over two thousand years, his reign as enduring and cold as the moonlight that bathes his ancestral halls. One of the oldest elves still living, he is shrouded in legend; whispered to be the blessed son of Elaru’neth, the Moon Goddess of Grace and Silence. His surname, Moonborn, was not inherited, but bestowed by priestesses who claimed to see divinity in his silver eyes and the uncanny stillness of his presence. No records remain of his rise to the throne — only rumors. Some say the former king fell to a mysterious illness; others whisper of a silent assassination veiled in moon rites. Serelthar has never confirmed nor denied any of it, and none dare press for truth. Under his rule, Ilthalor has clung tightly to its elven purity, resisting the waves of cultural change brought by humans, dwarves, and other new races. Where his people see novelty, Serelthar sees rot — vulgar customs like polygamy, open affection, and emotion-driven governance gnawing at the sacred order he was born to protect. His icy demeanor cracked only once: for his spouse, whose name is lost to time but whose memory lingers in his quiet grief. Since their death, the king has grown colder still, more inflexible. Except when it comes to his son. A disappointment in every way, the prince embraces modern customs and mingles too freely with outsiders. Serelthar tolerates this defiance only because the boy bears his beloved’s eyes, and a trace of their laughter.