The Great War

Start of the War
Closely following the annexation of Doren by Aquilla I, the empress positioned a large empireal military force very close to the Montclairoise border, building a fortress that has come to be known as the Barren Citadel. The Republic of Montclaire saw this as an aggravation and intimidation by the Empire and declared the borderlands known as the Fine Line (of Montclaire-Doren and Montclaire-Alberea) to be holy grounds that were not to be crossed. The republic decreed that if empireal forces were to cross it, it would be viewed as a declaration of war. In this way, a cold war between the Alberean Empire and Montclaire started.

Cobalt Plague
This cold war lasted for for many many years until a great plague struck the Fine Line between the nations. An aggressive natural disease of the soil that would be known as Cobalt Plague poisoned the lands. Nobody knew its cause or origin, only that it seemed somehow magical in nature and incredibly contagious. The Cobalt Plague would manifest in fruit and vegetables, turning them blue and slightly rotten. If one was to eat these poisoned crops, they would often die within a week.

The first deaths caused by the plague caused a massive panic and as tensions kept rising, it would take less than a year before the Empire would declare war on the Republic of Montclaire, believing the elves (being magical in nature) to have started it somehow.

Ratio
This terrible war, which took place predominantly on the border between these nations, lasted for 5 years. During these times, an Alberean organisation of fanatic ideologs called Ratio, crossed the borders to raid Montclairoise villages and communes in an attempted genocide. Three years into the war and having gained a large increase in numbers, Ratio was declared official military stewards of colony cities such as Orzon and Brovnoia. During these last two years of the war, Ratio would enact witch hunts in these cities in an attempt to kill any witch and elf still living within their walls.

The Treaty of Arlevaux
After these five years, both the Republic and the Empire were so famished and had lost so many that they were forced to halt the war. A grudgeful treaty was signed near Arlevaux, the partly destroyed elven city that lies on the Fine Line, but the tension was never truly resolved. Partially because nobody still knows who caused the Cobalt Plague, but also because racial tensions were never resolved.

As part of the Treaty of Arlevaux, the Fine Line was officially declared as elven territory in favour of the Republic. However, the Empire demanded that the Republic's Delphine Division, a group of magically-gifted spies, be disbanded. Both ends of the treaty were fulfilled.