Beyond the Continent

Debates on what lies beyond the known world have long filled academic halls.
Currently, most scientists believe the world is round, and when one sails east enough, they will find themselves on the western part of the continent. However, all those who attempt to complete this journey have never returned. Some claim this is because it takes so long to sail all around the world. Others say the world is flat, and anyone who goes far enough simply falls off the edge. Even others say that there are lands elsewhere, and what lies in these realms is so dangerous, no one who’s set foot on them has lived to recount their experiences.
There are, of course, legends. The Ferrines speak of distant lands beyond Anuaran, where immortal ice beings live. According to a document from the early 2000s,
“I met a merchant who talked with an ice woman from the barbaric north. She spoke of a land further than her own. In this strange world lie strange creatures. They are like polar bears, but mangled and distorted, the upper bodies of seals with human arms growing out of their backs. Instead of tongues, they have eels which squirm and writhe as they stick out of their mouths. What was bizarre was that these beasts were civilized, they wore dark blue armor and spoke to each other in a language made of strange clicks and growls. As to how the ice woman arrived in this wretched land, she claimed her ship crashed, and she only stayed there for half a day, as the sight of these creatures scared her to pieces. She stole a small boat from those beasts and escaped back to her village. According to the merchant, her proof of this was the boat itself, which she was rowing.”
It appears that the Anuarans have no such legends. According to Taris Dottle’s 3765 book, What Lies Beyond, “If you ask most Anuarans what lies north, they’ll most likely tell you there’s nothing but an unending ocean. Others will tell you it is in the north where the spirit world lies, but no mortal can go there until they die.”
There are similar legends in the southern part of the Continent. Old Vuunein tales speak of desert lands south of Vuunei, where giant beasts made out of black fire roam. However, the creatures crafted massive magical shields to hide their home from outsider’s eyes.
Badawanian sailors have claimed seeing islands full of jeweled castles in the far distance. Meanwhile, legends from Peyamo speak of lands crafted from black rock where thin pale creatures make their home.
As of now, those legends are seen as little more than fantasy.