The errant knight Caelif rides to Faloren Castle from the south. Through Caelif’s eyes, the reader sees the castle city, which was once grand but has fallen into decline. Caelif enters the castle and is greeted by Agnes’s cousin Galien, with whom he shares a professional and romantic partnership.
After they indulge in an intimate moment, Caelif reflects on his first acquaintance with Galien in Cretia. He tells Galien that he believes Fhiad to be the demon that Agnes was sacrificed to resurrect, and Galien reveals that he suspected as much. Galien assures Caelif that Fhiad is no danger to Agnes, and he confesses that he’s far more concerned with who may have abducted her in the first place.
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At the beginning of An Unfound Door, Agnes leads a demon through the woods. To stave off exhaustion, she’s started talking to the demon, complaining that she’s not cut out to be a princess. Agnes argues that her cousin Galien, who is a duke in his own right, would be perfect in her position. He’s a born politician, and he would make a good king.
Agnes has previously shared several conversations with Galien, but this is the first chapter in which he takes the spotlight. He does so through the viewpoint perspective of his partner Caelif, the knight who rescued Agnes immediately before the novel opens.
Caelif serves as Galien’s messenger and fixer, as he’s willing and able to travel freely. A bit later in the story, Agnes explains to Fhiad that Caelif works for her as well, as she’s been asking him to sell the heirlooms of the royal family outside the kingdom, a last-resort fundraising strategy facilitated by Galien.
In another story, Galien would be the villain, but he and Agnes get along well and care for each other a great deal. Agnes had intended to renounce her royal status so Galien would be next in line for the throne, but her plans were complicated by her father’s ill health and her own abduction.
All of the chapters so far have been focused on Agnes and Fhiad, and this is where the story introduces a broader perspective. What I’d like to achieve with Caelif’s chapters (of which this is the first) is to give the reader a sense of the story being set on the edge of a much larger world.
Also, some of the oddness at the beginning of the novel is hopefully starting to make more practical sense. What I’d like to do with the narrative progression of this story is to take the broad archetypes of the initial scenario – a princess walking through the woods with a demon boar, who turns out to be a cursed prince – and gradually add more layers until the reader finally understands exactly how and why these characters arrived in that situation. In other words, the story is something like a mystery that the reader solves along with the characters.
If you’re curious, Caelif’s name comes from Caelifera, the scientific name for the suborder of insects that includes grasshoppers. Meanwhile, the concept art I used for this chapter’s graphic is from Bloodborne. I love how the city of Yharnam feels magnificently grand yet oppressively empty, and I aim to convey the same atmosphere of ruined grandeur in An Unfound Door.
Digital Fantasy Diary 