Shadow of the First Spark

In a world where magic is bled from the veins of dying gods, Lorian lives as a 'Dross-Eater' - a low-life thief surviving on the toxic, discarded residue of the elite's spellcasting. His life changes forever when he accidentally swallows a pulsing, pristine ember of the First Spark, the primordial magic that created the cosmos. Suddenly, Lorian can replicate any spell he witnesses, but his body is rapidly burning from the inside out. To survive, he must infiltrate the High Arcanum, the very institution that hunts his kind to fuel their empire's eternal youth. As Lorian climbs the cutthroat academic ranks, he must hide his rotting veins and outmaneuver ruthless high mages. If he fails to stabilize the spark, he will detonate, wiping his city off the map. If he succeeds, he might just overthrow the divine hierarchy, but at the cost of losing the last of his humanity.