Aurelius Dominus I

Aurelius' (*616 , Zamora) parents were both peasant farmers, but he managed to study at the Academia Dei and graduated into the Order of the Radiant Dawn. From there, he went on to become the Grand Inquisitor and even established his own kingdom after the Empire's fall.
He has gray hair and beard and still dresses in the robes of the Order, signalizing his spiritual guidance.

Life until the Order

The babe of the two farmers Luis and Maya in the small town of Zamora, Aurelius received no formal education during this time and had to help his parents on the field since his eighth birthday.
They had the most land in this village, and as such were the most wealthy farmers there, so when he showed an interest in reading the holy scriptures, his parents paid for a cleric to teach him. The cleric was impressed by his innate educability and even took him to the regional capital - Jadralo - to take part in the annual acceptance tests of the Academia Dei.
He managed to get into it at his second attempt at the age of twelve, being the only peasant to study in that class. He spent the next nine years of his life there, studying to the best of his ability and finally graduating into the Order of the Radiant Dawn.

Life in the Order

Like all graduates of the Academia Dei, he joined the Order where he was assigned to the role of Inquisitor. These are a mysterious group within the order who are supposedly tasked with ensuring stability between the temples.
He made a name for himself during this time as a charismatic talker to the point where he was even frequently employed in negotiations by the Ramerians themself.

The Fight for the Grand Inquisitor

When the old Grand Inquisitor, the leader of the Inquisitors of the Order, died of old age in 656, the position was empty for three months: The various contenders have fallen into bitter infighting with none of them accepting the other and even threatening to secede from the order if their rival is declared the Grand Inquisitor. Understanding the commoners better than the others, Aurelius gathered support from them with public speeches and acts of charity.
In the third month of this Interregnum, he managed to agitate the people to openly protest against the Order's inability to choose a new leader, thereby putting the leaders of the order under zugzwang. Being a neutral party within their power struggle and having gathered the support of the populace, he was the only suitable candidate and was thereby declared the new Grand Inquisitor.

The Times of the Grand Inquisitor

Aurelius shrewdly manoeuvred through the political landscape of the Empire, largely assuming a neutral stance as opposed to a pro-Ramerian one like his predecessor.
Using more funds to construct shelter and food banks instead of more bastions for the order endeared him to the people while the opposition to him within the order grew steadily.
His main opponent during this time was brutally murdered and the culprit never found, leading to many speculations that he took a more direct approach at dealing with his opposition. He spoke at his funeral and asserted what a great man he was, even if they disagreed on certain points.

The Establishment of a New Kingdom

When the Godbomb destroyed the largest part of the Ramerian forces in 663 and Grand Vailia started forcefully annexing territories, Aurelius saw his chance to lead a political coup in the spiritual capital of the realm.
Using his loyal Inquisitors to storm the royal residence there, he gave a speech from the balcony of the Emperor and spoke of a revelation by the gods: he was tasked by Eolas to unite the faithful under a crown. After an hour-long passionate speech in front of over two thousand commoners and nobles, he proclaimed the Kingdom of Casteria and gave himself the royal name of Dominus.
Since then, his support waned slightly, yet his continued support for the poor and destitute and the war-weariness of the nobles ensures a stable reign for him.