The Lost Country of Yofra

YOFRA

The lost Country

Written by Augustus Cadeceus

In the Library of South Aslen in the Great Balka Empire. 1162

Yofra, frequently referred to as the Lost Country, is a mysterious nation which supposedly existed in the former Hetred Empire from the year 1000 onward.

It is believed that Yofra gained independence from the Hetred Empire in the year 1035, after a bloody battle that raged on for 7 years. It is rumoured that in the heat of the war, the Hetred King rode into battle, along with a sack of gold strapped to the side of his armour, as it was Hetred tradition to do so. In the Old Eclanan religion, gold was believed to bring good luck, as the spirits of the gods live within all gold on Earth.

In a skirmish that decidedly ended the war and gained Yofran independence, a Yofran nobleman slayed the Hetred king and grabbed the sack of gold.

Upon arriving back to his hometown, he was praised and celebrated by peasants and the rich alike, for his slaying of the king and for his confiscation of the Hetred gold. It is well known that the royalty of Hetred sourced their gold from Eclana, a country renowned for the highest quality gold.

In order to win the favour of the new King of Yofra, the young nobleman gifted the Hetred gold to King Maximillian. The king was pleased with the achievement of the nobleman, though he did not accept the gold.

The King took the gold off the nobleman and tossed it into a river. As he watched the sacred gold sink, he proclaimed:

Let there be no remnants of Hetred rule in Yofra!

It is now unknown how or when the country of Yofra disappeared. Since the collapse of the Hetred empire, no records have been discovered concerning the nation of Yofra, and these tales have only been spread by word of mouth in countries such as Glasburg, Hestra, Trosia and Eclana.

In the present day, Hetred artefacts, especially Royal Gold from the mines of Eclana is priceless. Even the poorest peasant in Aslen could rise to the ranks of Balkan nobility if he were to find some of the sacred gold.

It has become commonplace for adventurers from all over Europe to venture off into the cold lands of the former Hetred empire, in search of Yofra and the rumoured gold that was tossed into the mysterious river.