Households

Households are the magic equivalent of families. Specifically, it's a bond between members with the same marking that affects their magic and power. They mostly appear in Inanis but are occasionally used in Caelum. Typically, the Noctis of second class and above each have a household, and so does 69.

## How the Marking is Set

Let's start with how the marking is imprinted on a Nocti's body. The Nocti will first paint the branding magic circle on the area they want the symbol to show up on. This can be their arm, their forehead, their leg, their chest, or their back - although painting it on their back would be somewhat annoying. Basically, they can paint it anywhere so long as the circle fits. After this has been done, the household leader (the person who founded the household) will let some of their blood drip on the magic circle. The circle will then start to shape itself into the marking of the household, and voila! You now have a Nocti in your household.

## Major Households

Currently, there are only twelve major households - one for each Sin Lord, one for each royal, and one for 69. It isn't unheard of for a Nocti ranked fourth class or lower to have a household, but those households are generally weak - no Sin Lord would ever give a rival household their blessing, and all the third-class and lower demons combined wouldn't be able to defeat a single Sin Lord. Despite the futility of making a household without a Sin Lord's blessing, it still happens.

## What the Marking Does

The marking breaks the walls between the members' magic power - in other words, it takes the magic power all of the Noctis with the marking have and turns it into a single power source. Think of it as the Noctis having a cup of water, but each cup has a different size and amount of water. Giving the Noctis the marking would be the equivalent of taking all the cups of water and pouring them into a bucket. The more members a household has, the more power the household has. As a result, there are many households in Inanis; they give low-classed Noctis a chance to become stronger.

In addition to making Noctis stronger, it also serves as a leash - the household leader knows the location of his followers at any time, as well as their physical, magical, and mental state. The members of the household cannot disobey their leader without severe ramifications. At any time, the leader can search the memory of the members and erase, destroy, or add memories. Should the leader pass on, leadership will be transferred to the strongest individual Nocti in the household. If two of them have the same amount of power, then the next leader will be selected at random.

This leash is the reason why most Noctis aspire to become household leaders. It also happens to be the reason why the Nocti trade is doing well in the Underworld - by kidnapping fellow Noctis and selling them to household leaders, they can earn a decent amount of money. Hardly anyone cares about the trade because of the Levitating Mafia, who protect said trade. And to be clear on why they're called the "Levitating" Mafia, it's because they disembowel their victims and hang their organs from a platform of some sort. In exchange for their protection, Nocti traders give half their profit to the Levitating Mafia.

## How Households Work in Caelum

In Caelum, things work differently. The magic affecting Caelum differs from the magic affecting Inanis, which also means that the household marking has a different effect. The household leader can search the memories of their members, but they can't manipulate said memories in any way. In addition, whereas household members in Inanis are unable to disobey their leaders, household members in Caelum will simply feel the need to obey the leader's orders. Once a leader in Caelum loses their status, leadership is passed on to a deputy that the leader appointed when they were still alive. Should there not be a deputy, then the household will dissolve.

## Marking Removal

In Inanis, the marking cannot be removed in any way, but it can be changed - simply paint the imprinting magic circle on your body again, have your newfound leader drip their blood on it, and you're now in a new household. The old household's mark will disappear over a few hours. Cutting off the limb or section of skin where the marking is would only result in having the mark appear on a different section of your body. Because the marking stays permanent, Noctis that escape from the people they're sold to are often quickly identified and punished. And no - there are no Nocti abolitionists. In Caelum, the marking will disappear, but it takes about a few weeks to happen - generally, the angel who wants their marking removed just has to stay far away from their leader's magic trace. Despite being somewhat difficult, it has happened.