OPINION: Ragnar Is a Disgrace to the Wizarding Community, but He Was Right by Frederico the Frozen
Content Warning (click to expand)
media bias, public scandal
by Chase Anderson
Note: The views expressed in opinion columns do not necessarily reflect the views of Encontraption editorial staff.
The moment the world caught wind of the shady dealings at Futures HeXchange (FHX), Leyline3 naysayers descended upon Ragnar the Magnanimous like wyverns to a battlefield. “Remember Pot.io?” they had said. “Remember disCantrips? Clearly, every wizarding founder is a sham!”
The press has been treating each day of Ragnar’s conspiracy and fraud trial like it was the king’s fair, scribbling notes and quotes from the witness du jour and giggling all the while. They conjured coverage to bewitch the public into believing Ragnar is their ideal bumbling, bedraggled villain.
But the job of the press is to be fair and balanced. We are to report the facts and not let our feelings cloud them. As the jury is instructed to keep an open mind and give the defendant a fair chance, we must as well.
The efforts of the denizens of Rock Crystal Vale have always been enshrouded with a haze that laypeople found inscrutable. While the wide adoption of the Leylines brought never-before-seen comfort and convenience across the realms, the names and purpose of the spell stack that kept it running remained ethereal. Users could name the biggest dragons that hoarded data in addition to gold, but not articulate how it got there.
Enter Ragnar the Magnanimous. Because of his advertisements with the likes of Hogarth the Hero and Adimantinarx, Leyline3 went from a buzzword across the lips of artificers in pipe shops to a household term. Ragnar further made a name for himself with his “side hustle” of altruistic spellwork. Finally, the common creature could fully comprehend the power and splendor of the Vale, we thought.
How wrong we all were.
Look, I’ll be honest with you. The rollout of Leyline3 magitek hasn’t been without its bumps in the road. But that’s true of every disruptive magic. Remember, the original Leylines were built under government contract. Who could possibly need to reverberate a spell over long distances when you had a perfectly good village wizard? But now even the simplest creature cannot imagine modern life without it. There was — and is — no reason for Leyline3 to be any different.
As this case is being closely followed by laypeople, I shall give a refresher for the unawares. Leyline3 refers to a new school of thought in regard to magic-at-a-distance via Leylines. Spell — and, most importantly, wealth — distribution would be managed by every creature of the realm instead of a handful of wizards and dragons. Individuals can even quarry novel currencies in the form of mementos that exist upon decentralized ledgers, democratizing the financial sector and lowering economic barriers to all. Leyline3 has the power to revolutionize every sector of life and business.
The world has changed, is always changing, and magic needs to change alongside it. It takes brave, forward-thinking wizard-prophets like Ragnar to take those risks and show us what’s possible, instead of taking the easy route by exploiting the hegemony.
I gave him the benefit of the doubt during this trial. His exes threw him under the wagon, I thought, to save their own hides in exchange for immunity. His competitor “leaked” the cooking of the spellbooks to crater FHX’s value so they could acquire it for mere shillings. The press chose the most unflattering angles in their coverage to echo their preconceived notions of an underhanded warlock.
But today… woof. Ragnar took the stand, upon protest of his own lawyers, to give his side of the story, in his trademarked unkempt appearance that had won over bankers and dragons. It seems his inner mind is as chaotic as his wardrobe; his ramblings infuriating the judge. Ragnar did everything possible to avoid answering the questions, even the simplest. I feared we were a mere hare’s breath away from hearing him argue what the definition of “is” is.
I think there is no longer doubt in any person’s mind that Ragnar is guilty of fraud, save for Ragnar himself. The largest the realm has ever seen, the material of the wet dreams of every builder of ziggurat schemes. Without a doubt, Ragnar is going to spend the rest of his preternaturally long life in prison.
It’s just such a shame that this was the turn of the fates. His actions have caused immeasurable harm to the reputation of the Leyline3 sector. Draconic money has evaporated into the æther, and the charging of Hogarth and Adimantinarx as accessories to fraud simply for advertising FHX will scare off future spokesheroes.
But Leyline3 magitek is the key to fixing the inequalities across our realm. The domain of altruistic magic expands regardless, though without a wizard-prophet to guide it. Perhaps Cetra Zahir could have, but his betrayal of Ragnar will not be easily forgotten. It is more likely it will be a wizard, hailing far from Rock Crystal Vale, who made his fortunes utilizing the equalizing effects of Leyline3. It could even be someone who received manna directly from Ragnar the Magnanimous. It would be a fitting end to the story.
But without a helmsman at the ship of our movement, we shall helplessly drift into whatever storms our naysayers might conjure. I can only hope that some brave, enterprising young wizard shall pick up his orb and lead us into the shining future that Ragnar had glimpsed amongst the stars and promised us all.
More
- Ragnar Found Guilty of All Charges After 2 Hours of Jury Deliberation
- Smaragdine: Pivoting to Zoetropes the Future of ☡
- The 23 Best Gifts for Your Friend Who Flunked Out of Wizarding School
About the author and the piece (click to expand)
Chase Anderson tells us that this story was rejected 44 times before making its way to us. He is a gay animal person inside of your phone, which means he cares a lot about living things, the arts, and cybersecurity. He can be found sorting your recycling, posting cognitohazards in the group chat, and telling people about the many benefits of bollards, the best security control. If that hasn’t scared you away and you want to read more of his work, you can find it at chasej.xyz and follow him on Bluesky, which is also chasej.xyz.
©2026 by Chase Anderson. All rights reserved. May not be used for A.I. training.