Paper Kingdom

The **Paper Kingdom** is a country in southern Pyrisia. Its demonym is Papern.

Its capital is the city of Kyo. Its population is primarily made up of Qilins.

## History

*See also Timeline.*

The Paper Kingdom was founded by Qilinian explorers who arrived in the Paper Islands and named them after the abundance of the paperbush.

Carrying Qilinian papermaking knowledge, they found paper as an easy and quick option for the construction of the first buildings, as a part of walls and doors, setting the tradition for Papern architecture.

## Economy

Agriculture is a big source of Papern exports. Paperbush and bamboo are common export goods.

Although minor, foundries that employ Qilin heat magic also play a role and these are used for the production of metal weaponry, armor, statues and mechanical parts.

## Culture

### Architecture

Due to the abundance of paperbush, paper became a common building material in the country in spite of its flammability.

The typical building technique for walls that aren't load bearing consists of applying paper of the paperbush to a wooden lattice frame. Sometimes the paper is decorated with patterns or fire-proofed to reduce the risk of fires.

Early on, the frames were made of bamboo reeds tied together in a square frame, but more modern frames may use more consistently shaped square wooden beams.

These frames may also be paperless to allow air to pass through, especially in walls guarded from the rain.

Floors may be made using bamboo wicker.

### Arts

Paper folding is considered an iconic Papern art form where complex sculptures are formed simply by folding sheets of paper, avoiding or minimizing cuts.

### Entertainment

The Paper Kingdom is famed for its saunas and hot baths. The ones considered more luxurious are powered with hot springs, but there are many more accesible ones employing lake water and Qilin heat magic.

### Philosophy

As Qilins possess a capability of using heat magic which gets harder to control during heightened emotional states and Papern structures employ highly flammable materials (paper, bamboo), control over your own emotions is a key element of Papern philosophy.

An important element of this philosophy is the channeling of these powers for practical uses and avoiding starting fires involuntarily. Most Papern Qilin employ heat magic for everyday uses like cooking meals and boiling tea, but specially powerful heat magic users are often sent to work at the country's foundries.

## Society

Qilin who possess particularly strong heat magic and are sent to work at the foundries constitute a social class known as Atsui. Their powerful heat magic with its usage to its full extent causes them to be perceived as being highly emotional, explosive and destructive in their demeanor.

The strong stigma they face often forces them to live in their own neighborhoods. These neighborhoods are concentrated around the foundries were they work, and salt is used to make a strip of land surrounding them completely barren so that fires can't spread out of them. Housing in these neighborhoods, unlike the usual Papern architecture, usually employs fireproof materials such as carved stone.

### Religion

Similar to Qilinia, Paperns believe in the worship of the ancestors and temples are constructed dedicated to this practice.

#### Warrior Monks

Some Papern temples, known as temple-fortresses, are strongly fortified and employ warrior monks. These warrior monks exist to keep the temple from being desecrated, even in the middle of a war, and they are loyal to the temple itself rather than the country, governor or monarch. These temple-fortresses started appearing when during wars within the country one side would destroy a temple to demoralize the other side, and the warrior monks ensure that the temple stays standing and staffed.

Warrior monks are armed with a magically charged wooden sword. Wooden swords aren't as sharp or sturdy as steel, but they can be magically charged as organic matter conducts magic well and they can deliver a devastating magic blow.