Ari Deveil was born in the gutters as his family belonged to the lowest caste. But he saw patterns where others saw dirt - the way light bent through cracked glass, the dance of colors on wet stone, the shapes hidden in smoke. He had brilliance in him, though brilliance means little when there’s no coin to buy parchment. He survived by becoming a lowly street entertainer - a jester, a trickster, a distraction. People threw him coins not for pity, but for the brief escape he gave them.

Then, one night, he saw real magic. A noble wizard conjured an illusion so vivid it made the crowd weep and that moment branded Ari’s heart. He decided he would master such power, no matter the cost.

He sold what little he owned, borrowed, even took deals from thieves to afford whatever arcane knowledge there was to gain - he learned from discarded books, old scrolls, and drunken apprentices willing to trade knowledge for silence.

Now his debts have caught up to him. Ari walks the knife’s edge between brilliance and desperation that pushes him towards taking risks only to keep himself afloat, and maybe one day reach his dream.