Jurgis

Jurgis plays a significant role in Champions of Vrotus. He serves as the tutorial's narrator and offers advice when joining a game. He can also be seen as an interactive character in Evergreen Grove.

He works for the Runain Soldiers as a renowned blacksmith. He briefly engaged in battle during the early phases of his enlistment, which is why he prefers to instruct and advise newbies.

Before he was a blacksmith Jurgis was a traveler. It is known that he journeyed from his native Lenora to Runain, learning a significant amount in the process. During his travels a terrible incident had occurred, but after fleeing he had joined the Runain Soldiers, where he had found a newfound hope for himself as a soldier.

## Biography

### Early Life

Jurgis was born to a wood elf mother and a human father in a town not far from Lenora's capital. Being the parents of a child with both wood elf and human blood, his parents sadly had to cope with a great deal of harassment. His father was soon after drafted into the military of his homeland not long after Jurgis was born and after joining; he would soon perish in battle. When his mother received the news, she was beyond devastated and unable to handle losing her husband, and due to the strain on her mental state Jurgis' mother was unable to care for Jurgis and ultimately sold him to Trepulus - a blacksmith who resided in the area. She entrusted Jurgis to the blacksmith and never looked back.

### Servant Life

Trepulus was now responsible for parenting Jurgis alone. Trepulus was a human blacksmith who had relocated to Lenora in an effort to become a wealthy and renowned blacksmith. 'Forging Ahead' was the name of his store. Trepulus frequently made Jurgis perform menial tasks around the shop earning him the nickname "Thorn-Ears" for the way his ears would sharpen when he was working. Trepulus' tales of his time as a wanderer piqued Jurgis' interest the most when he wasn't working. The beauty, geography, and knowledge that Trepulus had gathered on his journey through the human realms would astound Jurgis. After a while, Jurgis was so entranced by Trepulus' stories that he eventually decided that he, too would like to travel someday with the hope of discovering the most stunning oasis throughout all of Vrotus. When Trepulus became aware of this desire, he would purchase products for Jurgis such as information-packed textbooks and travel guides. Their relationship evolved significantly as a result.

As Jurgis reached his 17th birthday, Trepulus pulled him aside for a private conversation. When Jurgis becomes 17, he could leave the blacksmithing business and follow his aspiration of becoming a traveler, according to Trepulus. Jurgis promptly began packing the day after turning 17 with the aid of Trepulus. When Jurgis was prepared to leave Trepulus had one last gift to present to him before leaving. Jurgis' name was engraved on a wood elf necklace that Trepulus had made by hand. Hugging Trepulus and on the brink of tears, Jurgis thanked him for everything he had ever done. Jurgis left Trepulus with the pledge that he would return the necklace whenever he next saw him. Trepulus and Jurgis did not cross paths again after that.

### Traveler Life

Jurgis' journeys were extraordinary, since he only headed in the direction of locations that appeared to be either inhabited or untouched. Though he didn't discover anything new on his travels as he had intended, he thought he was living life to the greatest degree. Soon after turning 22, his life would tragically take a catastrophic turn after a few years of traveling across Vrotus.

Jurgis was merely taking a leisurely stroll in a forest, but even he could sense that something wasn't right about the new path he had taken through the forest. It was strangely eerie. The vegetation was grey and colourless and the woods were quiet—perhaps a bit too quiet—but Jurgis saw this as an opportunity for research. He continued through the forest when he heard a footstep out of tune with his, and he gripped his plant-collecting knife in anticipation. In the flash of an eye, a group of men pinned him down, they were all donning pitch black attire and demonic face masks. He swung wildly, having only his adrenaline to keep his legs up. After a haymaker that scratched one of the assailants he felt confident... until they shot a needle containing a fluid into his arm which seeped into his system and tired his limbs, allowing for an easier capture Jurgis awoke in a dark room, bound by metal chains, one of the men who attacked him walked in and told him the purpose of the chamber.

It was a torture chamber, meant for experimentation, it was abandoned long ago after the Apotheosis War in the second age, however, this band of psychotic cultists had been using the place as a hideout on experimenting on people who came near, they thought of Jurgis as an excellent specimen and captured him for his unique Half-Elf heritage.

The following two years would be the most gruesome and terrible of Jurgis' life. Every day the unidentified strangers would enter the small space and torment Jurgis for hours on end until he finally would go unconscious - not that the clutches of sleep helped him. Water-buckets to serums to nail tearing was used to wake him up; calling it 'research' on mixed blood biology'. After some time Jurgis became adjusted to the pain, which caused the experiments to be ramped up for a short period of time as 'Investigations on adaption'. In one test designated "Woodland-elf regeneration testing #7" Jurgis would eventually lose his eye permanently.

Jurgis had reached a point where his only outlet for the horrors he was experiencing was to laugh, maniacally so, mimicking his captors glees of joy when they felt his pain. So they used worse tools, with longer torture. He laughed harder. Jurgis eventually grew so tired of the agony that he resorted to a barbaric act of retaliation. When the enigmatic group returned, Jurgis was done with everything by this point. The men were quickly torn to pieces by Jurgis, who charged at them with blinding speed after sacrificing his teeth to bite off his contraption. Jurgis then laid on the floor next to the corpses, laughing through his broken teeth, not knowing what to do after such a horrible event. This continued for days until residents of the town overheard the loud laughter and contacted the neighborhood Runain Soldiers believing it to be some sort of wretched creature.

When the soldiers finally arrived they weren't disturbed by the murder that Jurgis had committed, but rather they acclaimed him for protecting himself in such a helpless manner. He is then given two options: 1. Be executed momentarily and confront your guilt or 2. Avoid execution and join the Runain Soldiers. Jurgis ultimately decided to give up on his goal of becoming a traveler in favor of joining the Runain Soldiers since he could not let others suffer his same fate.

### Events Afterwards

Jurgis discovered his calling in life once he enlisted in the Runain Soldiers. He worked daily to free himself from the horrifying memories he had in the past, and for the first time in his life he finally felt free. He eventually rose to prominence within the group and developed a reputation as an advocate for people of mixed origins. After many years, Jurgis ultimately became sick of fighting and retired to work as the organization's blacksmith while also guiding newcomers. Like another older man he previously knew, he is now at a stage in his life where all he wants to do is share knowledge with others and talk about the travels he once committed to long ago.

## Appearance

Jurgis is a young man with spikey black hair and fair skin. His face resembles that of a human with Wood Elf ears, making him stand out. He only has one eye. Jurgis is outfitted in overalls and a headband that were specifically designed for blacksmithing. To remind himself of his damaged but restored past, Jurgis additionally covers one hand with gloves and the other with a bandage. His left eye has long been carved out, a red scar cutting across his eyes vertically. His allies see this as a sign of his hardships and dedication to be a good person. His enemies, however claim that his left eye recovers its light when manning his merciless weaponry on the battlefield. That period has long past.

## Personality

Jurgis' personality was highly inquisitive and daring when he was a youngster. He was known to bombard others with a ton of questions on whatever they had mentioned. He was therefore constantly engaged. Trepulus speculated that it might have something to do with his Wood Elven blood, but the amount of mushroom tea he drank was more likely to be to blame.

Jurgis' demeanor had a significant change after he decided to travel. He was never guided; instead, he was always concentrated and confident. He was one of the most scholarly men they had ever seen, according to some locals. Although he loved his newfound confidence, it ultimately brought him to catastrophe.

Following his ambush he refused to sleep in windowless rooms. He developed a phobia of needles, or **Trypanophobia**. When conscripted he could withstand the most grueling training but refused to do solo patrols, even at threat of execution. Despite his therapy and new comrades his mental scars could not heal. He laughed at pain, but could not smile from happiness. The only satisfaction that was left in his cut heart letting others smile. It was the only way to maintain his once broken sanity.

Jurgis was once more lively after taking therapy and joining the Runain Soldiers; nevertheless he changed from being extremely concentrated to more of an instructor. Jurgis would go to the training fort with the single goal of making his comrades' conditions absolutely spectacular to make them smile, which was the only thing that could make the veteran smile, a smile no one could notice - not even himself.