
by TheWizardOfOsu
The Dominion needs soldiers. Soldiers with power, strong enough to protect it during the ever-present territorial conflicts. But its leaders want soldiers without power, unable to challenge their authority.Finn, one of the many orphans marooned by the ongoing wars, draws the short straw in such a scenario: power. Enough to be drafted, but not enough to excel, especially without the luxury of time. With only three years in an academy and enemies without and within, Finn must rise above the societal machinations, survive the wars, and establish his own dominion.Book one is complete! -------------------------------------- What to expect: - Slow burn progression - A massive, gradually revealed world and conflict - Ancient mysteries, forgotten civilizations, and sealed gods - Combination magic/power system- No Gen AI clankers -------------------------------------- Release schedule: 4 chapters per week, M/W/F and then either Saturday or Sunday. Target chapter length: 1500 - 2500 wordsBook one is complete! I will be taking a two-week hiatus after posting chapter 48 (7/24/2026) to do a few things: bulleting/planning events for book 2, a cover comission, an edit pass on existing chapters, setting up a patreon, and hopeully a bit of R & R too! You can get more detail (with slight spoilers) in the author note for ch 48. Book 2 will be starting on August 10th.
Current
8/17/2026
Peak #11
45d
#2
8/17/2026
Peak #50
0d
#1
8/17/2026
Peak #50
0d
Observed Royal Road ranks are authoritative for lists where the story is active. Other eligible lists retain their Shadow RS ranks.
Overall Rising Stars Shadow RS rank
#1161 of 12,417 · 1111 below RS #50
By genre
beats 87% of similar stories
beats 5% of similar stories
beats 76% of similar stories
Firing on all cylinders
Traffic and conversion are both strong for a story this size. Readers are finding it and sticking — if Rising Stars is the goal, this is the moment to push.
Benchmarks: 8,060 active Royal Road stories, percentiles within the 50–149 chapters band, cohort of 2026-07-02. Conversion is measured as followers gained per 1,000 views over the recent window.
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