Introduction

 

Welcome to a world where magic, adventure and combat are daily doings. Where young kids grow up dreaming of fighting monsters and saving damsels instead of becoming celebrities or lawyers.

 

Where SHINee is a party of adventurers instead of modern-day minstrels.

 

But more on that later!

 

This world is filled with jobs of all types, from physical to magical. There are plenty of good people around, many neutral, and some evil. Unfortunately, the evil ones seem to also be the loudest.

 

There was a time of peace, though, that seemed like it would never end. The nations had finally made their agreements, and war was ended. But there was still evil about...

 

It manifested in small ways at first. Pickpockets were getting bolder and started breaking into homes, for example. Rashes of killing sprees cropped up every once in a while, sending people into a panic. Animals that were once known to leave humans alone started attacking the outlying villages as well.

 

Former soldiers started banding together to protect their villages, and Adventuring Parties were born. To make things more interesting, a Quest system and Party Registration were born. The system caught on and spread world-wide, and soon every village had an Adventuring Base (usually a room in the local tavern or inn) where new Parties could register, and old ones could pick up new Quests or see their local, national, and world-wide rankings.

 

Job training became more organized and structured as a result. Before the system came about, Masters would take on Trainees wherever they happened to be at the time, and just taught them whatever came up. Now, brick-and-mortar schools existed, and these schools took pride in their graduates who became famous Adventurers, bragging about them to the others.

 

It became tradition for children to choose what job they would study and which school they would study at the year they were to turn 10. Most children stuck near their home village - if more for their parents' sake than their own - but it was also not uncommon for children to go to a far-off school, especially if said school was known for producing great Adventurers.

 

Once they entered school, the children took on the title of “Trainee,” and studied for 10 years. Most Trainees lived at their school, but if the child's family lived in the school's village, the child was permitted to still live at home if they wanted. Once their training was complete, the graduate was decreed a full-fledged Adventurer, and could officially take part in Quests and join a Party.

 

Our tale focuses on five young friends from the village of Seong.

 

The oldest was Jinki, and the others looked up to him as their leader, even if he mostly acted like a clown. He enjoyed making the others laugh, and didn't mind if his puns just made them roll their eyes. In their times of need, he was always there to care for and comfort for his friends when they needed him. A favorite past time of his was singing. The women in the village regarded him as one of the best singers they ever heard, and he was recruited for the church's choir when he was just 7 years old.

 

The next oldest was Jonghyun, a scrappy boy who was fiercely loyal. If anyone bullied his friends, you could bet he'd be there in a heart beat, throwing punches at the perpetrators. He had a knack for singing as well, but did not follow Jinki into the choir. He preferred the rackous songs the drunken Adventurers would belt out in the tavern.

 

In the middle was Kibum, who preferred to go by “Key.” A little naïve at times, Key went with the flow. He was never afraid to speak his mind, though, and he was always honest with his friends. If Jinki was the “father” of the group, then Key was the “mother” with how he doted on his friends. He was always fussing over his friends' clothes or wiping dirt off their faces (“mommy” style!).

 

The second-youngest was Minho, and as the boys grew, he ended up being the tallest. Even from a young age, girls admired him, but he was more interested in playing games like soccer and kickball, not to mention the occasional prank on his friends. Out of the five of them, he was the most independent, but he still greatly enjoyed being a part of the group.

 

The youngest was Taemin, and because of his rather feminine looks, he was often the one the others were protecting from bullies. Over time, he learned to be agile and flexible, and became very good at dodging incoming attacks. He held his friends in the highest regard, and ended up learning to sing from Jinki, and how to pull pranks from Minho.

 

When Jinki reached the beginning of his 10^th year, his parents were curious about what job he would choose, and where he would study. To be honest, Jinki himself was curious, too! Jonghyun, with his love of fighting, had already chosen to become a Fighter, and Key's grandma had already taught him some Black Magic, so he had decided to go to Mage school. Minho was unsure if he wanted to follow Jonghyun's steps or not, but he was sure he wanted to do something physical. Taemin, who was rather unconfident in himself, was in the same boat as Jinki, and they decided to help each other figure out what to do with their lives.

 

Regardless of what they chose, they all agreed that they would go to school at the same time so they could start adventuring together at the same time. Unfortunately for Jinki, this would mean he would be in his 14^th year before he would head out. But he looked at it as an opportunity to really figure out what he wanted to do.

 

And figure it out he did, as did Taemin and Minho. They all figured out which schools they were going to as well. Jinki decided to study White Magic at a monastery that was about a day's travel, by foot, away. Jonghyun went up into the mountains to study Martial Arts. Key chose the same Black Magic school his grandmother had gone to, even though it was very far away from their home town. Minho settled on Swordsmanship, and found that the most highly-regarded Sword Master in the country wasn't too far from Seong. Taemin, given his abilities in agility, flexibility, and dodging, ended up going to a well-secluded Rouge training facility.

 

The tale of these five friends starts on the day Jinki returned to Seong after graduation...