Servant

最下層民 — The Lowest Stratum of Society

Cheonmin (賤民) was the lowest social class in Korea's Joseon dynasty (1392-1910) caste system, collectively referring to slaves, butchers (baekjeong), entertainers, shamans, courtesans, and shoemakers — below yangban (nobles), jungin (middle class), and sangmin (commoners). The name comes from the Chinese character 'cheon' (賤, lowly), and they were essentially a caste with virtually no legal protection, forbidden from owning land, taking civil service exams, education, and certain occupations. Slaves comprised the largest proportion, sometimes 30-40% of the population, divided into public slaves (state-owned) and private slaves (privately owned). Despite their essential roles — butchers handled slaughter and leather work, entertainers performed and acrobatics, shoemakers made footwear — they faced harsh discrimination. The class system was abolished in the 1894 Gabo Reform, but social discrimination persisted long through the colonial period and after liberation. In fantasy settings, this can be adapted variously, such as classes forbidden from using magic or subject to forced conscription.

平民 — The Free People Who Form Society's Majority

The commoner is the free citizen class positioned between nobles and the lowest class (slaves) in feudal societies, the ordinary majority of each society. Including various professions — peasants, artisans, merchants, small business owners, lower-ranked soldiers — they were legally free unlike slaves but lacked the political power or wealth of nobles. In Korea's Joseon dynasty they were called 'sangmin' or 'yangin' under the four-occupations division (scholar, farmer, artisan, merchant), with peasants being the largest segment. In medieval Europe they were classified as the 'Third Estate' — commoners following clergy (First) and nobility (Second) — and the 1789 French Revolution saw this Third Estate overthrow feudalism and open modern civil society. Commoners are not merely 'the weak' but the substantive movers of society, forming the foundation of all agriculture, crafts, commerce, urban development, and cultural creation. In fantasy, they're the core class for the heroic narrative starting point — 'an ordinary rural youth becomes a hero through destiny.'

騎士 · Knight — Warrior of the Lower Nobility

The knight is the core warrior class of medieval European feudal society and fantasy's most iconic profession. Sworn to lords to defend domains, royalty, and the church, knights wear heavy plate armor and wield longswords, lances, and shields while charging on warhorses. More than mere soldiers, they belong to a moral class following the chivalric code of honor, courage, mercy, and justice — a noble status with titles (Sir) and granted lands. The Round Table knights of Arthurian legend and the Crusader military orders (Templars, Hospitallers) are the most famous historical and literary archetypes. Though their military role faded with Renaissance firearms, their ideals survive as a core motif in modern fantasy.