Art of the Veil [A progression SF-fantasy witch hunt story]

Korentis just wants to learn magic in peace. It’s not xir fault people hate mages! Yes, they broke the moon and made demons rain from the sky. But that was ages ago, right? No reason to worry. Yes, they say mages become insane and violent, but that’s definitely propaganda. Xe’ll be fine. Xe even made friends with some like-minded criminal mages! And xe’s just perfect for a job they had in mind! Cerical hunts mages for the Agency. She swore a solemn oath and got her silver sword. She won’t be content arresting the occasional rogue - she can see the big picture. She believes in her mission, and she knows she’ll make a difference. Yes, she made a general very angry, and was assigned to a remote, frozen town with no hope of career advancement. But she’s sure this is just a hiccup - she’ll prove her worth.  Any day now. As Korentis goes on a poorly planned, magically-fueled crime spree, it’s natural that their roads will cross. And when Korentis is offered a riskier job, for a great reward, it will be xir chance to learn the true secrets of magic.  And for Cerical, it’s her chance to catch a dangerous magical criminal. Except they’ll both learn they’re being used as pawns in a much greater, more dangerous game. And it’s too late to step back, because something ancient and terrible has its attention on them, and they must deal with it, before the world ends. WHAT TO EXPECT: - Science fantasy story set in a different world - Two main points of view, alternating chapters: a rogue illusionist mage and a mage-hunting cop - Unusual magical system - Slow burn story, with a lot of slice-of-life - Waaaaay too much wordbuilding - Mostly light-hearted tone, with some dark moments (and themes) -NOT a lit-rpg. In-universe, magic has levels and de facto classes, but there’s no system and no skills, talents etc. - Weak to strong MCs, but it will be slooooooooooooow - tons of LGBTQ characters, and tons of characters in general - Mild sexual content, some violence. The story deals heavily with mental illness. I’ll put content warnings on specific chapters. Updates wednesday and saturday, plus occasional sunday special. I have a very large buffer of chapters, to ensure consistent posting. Hope you'll enjoy reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it! Cover art by Tacchi