The Last Page
A sapphic otome isekai
Currently Mid-Season Two of Six planned seasons.
Updates every other week. Sometimes more often, though.
This serial originally began releasing on Ream in late 2023 and early 2024. Due to internal changes at Ream both in personnel and tech infrastructure, it is being taken down from there and republished here. Some edits have been made for clarity and flow, but no story changes have happened.
Lady Ein's family may no longer be royalty, but that doesn't mean she has the freedom to marry who she wants. But she would rather not marry at all and dedicate her time to writing her novels. But when she is rejected by her betrothed, the third prince, in favor of a foreign commoner, she doesn't find freedom. She finds her life is suddenly in danger, no longer protected by her proximity to power and status. That threat? Her own body. Plagued by a sickness that she has fought to keep hidden but managed with the help of Royal Healers, Ein now fears that her condition will worsen.
Prince Finn was content to be a hermit, the fourth prince that no one cares about and no one sees. But when an accident at his grandmother's funeral unlocks memories of his past life, he realizes that he's trapped in an otome game, and right now the plot is heading in one direction: his doom. He has to redirect the affections of the heroine, his older brother's newest fiancée before the villainess, Lady Ein, extracts her revenge and he gets caught in the blast radius. To make matters worse, finding out his previous life was as a woman makes a lot of things click into place. But transitioning in this world, even though it is accepted and encouraged, could further derail the plot.
But a chance off-script encounter between the two sets in motion an unlikely alliance: one that can catapult them both to the height of power or plunge them into a dark disaster.
Quick Links:
Quick Link to just the Season 1 Episodes
Quick Link to just the Season 2 Episodes
The Land of The Last Page
The Last Page takes place in Ishoraie, a minor kingdom in the south of the continent of Cionnaith. It's main source of water is the Avon River, which comes from the glacial melt of the Deoradh Mountains in the north, a territory that is often in dispute despite being largely impassable except by traversing the white rapids of the Avon in that region. Despite being close to the Muirin sea, it does not have a large population of international merchants, as the delta of the river is controlled by the kingdom of Renlaine, a former vassal state but now an independent kingdom.
It enjoys cordial relations with it's neighbors to the east and west, Alruste and Challet respectively, although tensions have risen in recent years with Challet as traechen populations on both sides of the border have increased.
The capital of Ishoraie is known as Maergin. It ha a thriving upper city full of traders and craftspeople, as well as a medium sized dock for ships heading to the Muirin Sea. The Lower City is squalid, with many of the poor making it their home. Many of the servants to the nobles also house their families in the Lower City. Just south of the main city is the Gilded District, home to many of the mansions and estates of the wealthy and nobility. At the center of the city is the Royal Academy, with it's library and academic buildings. The healers and scryers also have their headquarters on the Academy grounds. Many other official institutions make their headquarters just outside of the Academy, such as the Artisans Guild, Merchants Guild, and the Royal Theater. The main marketplace is also located near the Academy.
The History of The Last Page
- Note: A crown emoji next to their name means that the person at one point in their life sat on the throne of Ishoraie.
March 4th, 1757
Birth of King Brec Ó Siadhail 👑
Apr 28, 1772
King Brec Ó Siadhail 👑 Takes the Throne
May 5, 1780
Birth of Crown Princess Riona Ó Siadhail to King Brec Ó Siadhail 👑.
Nov 12, 1783
Birth of Prince Alill Ó Siadhail to King Brec Ó Siadhail 👑.
Sep 27, 1790
Birth of Barhan Mac Iomaire 👑, The Usurper.
Jun 8, 1805
Birth of Duke Ruisín Ó Siadhail to Prince Alill Ó Siadhail.
Aug 6, 1808
Birth of Duke Seanchen Ó Siadhail to Crown Princess Riona Ó Siadhail.
Jul 12, 1813
Birth of Padhra Mac Iomaire 👑 to Barhan Mac Iomaire 👑.
May 19, 1816
Birth of Amalgith Mac Iomaire to Barhan Mac Iomaire 👑
Oct 10, 1827
King Brec Ó Siadhail 👑 Overthrown by Barhan Mac Iomaire 👑. Padhre Mac Iomaire 👑 becomes Crown Princess.
Aug 5, 1833
Birth of Prince Uaithne Mac Iomaire 👑 to Crown Princess Padhra Mac Iomaire 👑
Dec 23, 1835
Birth of Míde O Siadhail to Seanchen Ó Siadhail
Nov 11, 1842
Execution of Seanchen Ó Siadhail
Jun 26, 1852
Birth of Prince Cynan Mac Iomaire to Prince Uaithne Mac Iomaire 👑
Jun 6, 1853
Birth of Prince Owain Mac Iomaire to Prince Uaithne Mac Iomaire 👑
Jan 17, 1854
Death of King Barhan Mac Iomaire 👑, Crown Princess Padra Mac Iomaire 👑Ascends to the throne. Uaithne Mac Iomaire 👑 becomes Crown Prince.
Sep 24, 1854
Birth of Prince Lochlann Mac Iomaire to King Uaithne Mac Iomaire 👑.
Oct 31, 1855
Birth of Princess Fiona Mac Iomaire to Uaithne Mac Iomaire 👑.
Jul 15, 1857
Birth of Eirnín Brolcháin to Míde Brolchaáin née Ó Siadhail.
Mar 30, 1881
Death of Queen Padhra Mac Iomaire 👑, Ascension of Uaithne Mac Iomaire 👑 to the throne. Cynan Mac Iomaire becomes Crown Prince.
May 21 1883
Ciara Ní Fuaráin arrives in Ishoriae and our story begins...
The Lore of The Last Page
The Trying Times:
In 1825, a series of natural disasters followed by poor harvests and a lack of sufficient livestock lead to widespread hunger and later illness and disease.
While King Brec had been widely popular, many did not believe he was doing enough to ease the suffering of his people and even more believed he was surrounded by corrupt advisors. By 1827, many were in open revolt and even the grandson of the king sided with Barhan mac Iomaire to overthrow the king and start a new dynasty.
Traechen:
All forms of magic come with costs or debts. The practice of forbidden magic involves a debt of anti-magic. This anti-magic coalesces every time that forbidden magic is used. It is possible for such a point of anti-magic to gain sentience and grow.
These sentient masses of anti-magic are called traechen. They require sustenance to continue to survive and often seek shelter in wooded or abandoned areas and feed off of wildlife. They often congregate into collectives known as “nightmares” and can grow to be larger than a home.
The Great Hunt:
The Great Hunt is a hunt for monsters and beasts. The backlash for doing forbidden magics is that it can invite monstrous creatures and arcane beasts out of the shadowed realm and into reality / can create monsters. It's not really known how it happens, but each time a forbidden spell is cast, there is a risk of a monster somewhere, somehow, existing.
Each year, there is a hunt by anyone seeking wealth and fame, to catch the largest monster, as the monsters congregate into one area and form a sort of colony and flock to a "leader".
The mages at the royal academy spend most of the year monitoring the situation and determine where the Great Hunt shall take place based on activity levels. Of course, you can always kill monsters out of season and get bounties, but the Great Hunt is something of a show.
Each household that wishes to participate has supplies, food, etc, as contributions to the general effort. There is usually a ritual witch-burning before the hunt starts, where a practitioner of forbidden magic that has been locked up is dragged out to make an example of / show off why they need the hunts and why these kinds of magic are forbidden.
The Great Hunt did not exist under the Ó Siadhail's rule as the magic was not actually forbidden. It was introduced by the Mac Iomaire's at the start of their dynasty.
Traesdel Potion:
Invented in 1529 in the Royal Sorcery Academy by High Sage Bronwen Seren. Sage Seren had been a skilled apothecary and potioner with an interest in transformative magics.
This potion allows the user to transform their body to align with their internal conception of their body to lessen or eliminate unease, anxiety, and depression associated with the conflict between the true internal and superficial external person’s self.
The Royal Academy:
Established in 762 by Queen Muirenn Ó Siadhail to educate magic users of all varieties and later expanded under Queen Eithne Ó Siadhail to encompass other fields such as science, history, mathematics, and literature in 912.
A Council of Sages oversees the Academy, each representing a different field or department in the academy.
Enrollment is not limited to the nobility or upper classes but has traditionally been closed to anyone not from Ishoraie. It does require a letter of recommendation, which can be challenging to obtain without connections.
Ciara Romantica
An otome game / visual novel video game from a parallel world that has striking similarities to the world that Ein lives in. It might scare her how similar her world and this video gamefantasy world are... if she knew about it.
Ciara Romantica is a visual novel set in a vague Victorian/Edwardian fantasy world, in which the Heroine, Ciara, must choose between several potential suitors. Each romanceable character has their own good and bad endings, and each focus on a different aspect of the world of Ishoraie.
Notable Features and Gameplay Mechanics:
- A visual novel set in the fictional Kingdom of Ishoraie
- Five romanceable options from all walks of life and all personality types.
- Plus an unlockable secret ending only achieved on new game+.
- Hit release of summer 2022, from the studio responsible for the award-winning Romance Reignited! and Dogma, Damsels, and Dragons.
- Critically acclaimed for its “inspired visuals,” “amazing music,” “fantastic script,” and “spectacular voice acting.”
- Released in all markets in mid-2022 on all major consoles plus PC.
- Nominated for “Best Soundtrack” by Game Informer and “Innovations in Design” for its unconventional UI.
The Romancable Options in the Game:
Prince Lochlann Mac Iomaire:
The light-hearted but chivalrous third prince, but he is already engaged to the haughty and stuck up Lady Eirnin (Ein) Brolchain. Lady Brolchain is the scion of the previous dynasty, and her mother's family is scheming to take back the throne they lost over 50 years ago. Romancing this gregarious prince could potentially ignite a civil war.
Prince Finnian Mac Iomaire:
The fourth prince. He's aloof, withdrawn, and has been even more so since the death of his grandmother, the former Queen Padhra, with whom he was extremely close. He had been an academically brilliant student, especially in the sciences like chemistry and biology, but had dropped out of the Royal Academy shortly before Ciara is enrolled there. Romancing this prince could lead Ciara into the shady underworld of Ishoraie of assassins and drug dealers.
Ríona Uí Dochartaigh:
A free-thinking rebel who sells tonics and medicine at the market. She's been poor all of her life and has become something of an unofficial doctor for the lower class with her miracle cures. But her medicine comes with a mission: the end of the monarchy. Romaching Ríona could take Ciara down a treasonous or revolutionary road.
Brigit Mhic Fhinghin:
The young assistant librarian who realizes there is far more to Ciara's magic than anyone else recognizes. She's got a thirst for knowledge that cannot be sated, and a perchance for falling into the holes she digs. Romancing Brigit will take Ciara into the darkest depths of the academy and unravel a terrifying, magical secret.
Séamus Mac Crabháin:
Sauve young heir to the second most successful merchant family in the Kingdom, he recently inherited the business after his father's untimely demise, suspected by many to have been murder by scorned business rivals, potentially the Brolchain family. Romancing this playboy could lead Ciara into the fraught war zone between old money and new money; nobles and the capitalists who will share their wealth... for a seat at the table.
Lady Eirnin (Ein) Brolchain:
The secret romanceable option, only available after completing all good and bad endings for all other love interests. This ice queen is the daughter of a former princess and the most successful businessman on the continent. She has everything she wants, but harbors a tragic past and a hidden magical power. Romancing Lady Ein could lead to Ciara rewriting her own past and creating either a beautiful or terrifying future. Many consider this the “true” ending.