The Legend of Heroes: A Tear of Vermillion

Opening

The setting for the fourth Legend of Heroes game and the first in the Gagharv Trilogy takes place in the fictional land of El Phildin, fifty-six years before the events of "Moonlight Witch." The story begins with an insight to the past. Avin and Eimelle are orphaned children, ages 10 and 8 respectively, who are living in the city of Cathedral after being taken in by Supreme Priest Esperius. Avin is seen bringing milk for the kitten Eimelle snuck into the chapel. They both watch it drink to its heart's content. Before long, Oracle Ollesia appears. The children panic at being caught with the smuggled kitten, but Ollesia doesn't seem too concerned with that, yelling at them to take cover. Cathedral is under attack.

Lord Bellias and his minions attack the chapel. He reveals the reason for his not-so-friendly visit to Cathedral: he is after Eimelle, who he calls "Durga's Daughter". Bellias is stopped by Supreme Priest Esperius, who buys time for Avin, Eimelle, the kitten, and Ollesia to escape. The two men have a conversation regarding Bellias' destiny to lead the Bardus Church and how he became a traitor of the Church. The two wizards fight each other, with Esperius easily bested by Bellias' superior magical prowess (and perhaps also due to the fact that he's positively ancient). Esperius dies after being attacked with Bellias' rising spell.

The two kids and Professor Ollesia attempt their escape before being cornered by Bellias and his minions. Gawaine, the "Sage of power," appears suddenly to fend off the attack and allow the group to escape. They make an exit to the monster cart in front of the building. Bellias, however, catches up to them and launches a spell at the cart. The kitten becomes frightened after hearing the spell and leaps out of the cart, worrying Eimelle. Avin tries to rescue it, but is ambushed by several dark spells. Gawaine comes to his rescue, but the two are unable to find an opportunity to get back into the cart. Gawaine instructs the paladin in control of the monster cart to break off into two groups. Ollesia and Eimelle escape to an unknown place, and Avin is left in Gawaine's care.

Prologue

Avin wakes up from a nightmare in the house of Lemuras, the "Sage of Mercy", feeling sick because he couldn't save Eimelle. After the two have breakfast, Lemuras requests that Avin deliver a letter to someone in Ourt Village. There, he learns about his home. After getting the letter, someone begins following him. That person turns out to be Mile, a lonely young boy. After delivering the letter and receiving another to give back to Lemuras, Avin heads back. Mile catches up with him before he leaves and tells him of/invites him to the Festival of Nepthys, the town deity. Every year, the people of Ourt go around the village in search of special charms that can be used to make a wish to Nepthys by throwing it into a pond connected to Nepthys Shrine. According to this tradition, your wish will be granted between that festival and the next festival, but only if the charm floats to the middle of the pond.

A few days later, Avin joins Mile in finding the two charms required to make their wishes. After finding them, Avin throws his into the pond to see if his wish to see Eimelle again will be granted. The town cheers him on, but the charm does not make it to the center of the pond, which crushes Avin's hope. Suddenly, Mile throws his own charm into the pond, also wishing that Avin could see Eimelle again. It reaches the center, meaning Mile's wish will be granted. Avin is shocked at his selfless act, wondering why Mile made a wish for him instead of making his own wish. Mile says that his wish already came true. That is, the one that he made during the last festival. He says he made a wish to make a friend.

Main Characters

Avin (Age 17): The main protagonist. He sets out on a journey to find his sister Eimelle who has been separated from him for years. He has a short temper and is very impetuous, but is usually kept in check by his calm best friend Mile. He later falls in love with his new traveling mate, Rutice.

Eimelle (Age 15): A kindhearted and modest girl. Avin's younger sister and his only family. Eimelle's kindness extends even to those who would hurt her, which is demonstrated when she treats the wounds of one bested enemy. She is known as "Durga's Daughter," an important figure in the plans of Octum's Apostles.

Rutice (Age 16): The main heroine, at least for the latter half of the game. A member of the heretics under Bellias, but she later renegades when their methods prove to be too cruel. Plagued with self-doubt about her path in life, she gradually falls in love with Avin as he provides his support for her.

Mile (Age 18): Avin's closest friend. He is concerned about Avin, and travels together with him. His calm demeanor allows him to defuse his friend's anger, protecting him from making mistakes. Mile becomes an antagonist about halfway through the game until much later, when he is put back into the right state of mind by Avin.

Shannon (Age 17): A pure and innocent girl. During the game, she is rescued by Avin and his party and instantly falls for Mile when she wakes up after falling unconscious and sees his face. Her outspoken love and affection for her "prince" perturbs Mile greatly.

Martie (Age 24): A young adventurer who is training to become a minister for the Royal Family. He uses the bounties he earns from the Adventurer's Guild to pay for his tuition. He is the first character to join Avin and Mile on their quest. Martie later becomes a minister for the Royal Family and helps keep Muse in line, seen during the ending blocking her escape from the castle so she can perform her duties.

Muse (Age 18): A mysterious and confident young woman who fights with a whip and helps the party fight the Syamseal Gang, who are threatening the kingdom. MUSE is an acronym of her true name.

Douglas (Age 28): One of the Adventurer's Guild's most prolific adventurers, "Lightning Sword" Douglas is a skilled swordsman who befriends Avin and Mile. He is training himself to one day be worthy of using the Thunder Sword, a keepsake he received from his deceased master.

Lucias (Age 23): Another renowned adventurer and Douglas' eternal rival, "Sapphire Eyes" Lucias is an exceptionally fast swordswoman who also trained with Douglas' master. Her relationship with Douglas is prickly at best, though she helps the party out regardless of his presence.

Archem (Age 15): A young girl from Spirit Forest who is good friends with the amiable Meefa creatures that inhabit it. She helps the party stop the Meefa hunts and develops a small crush on Avin.

Baron Conrad (Age 32): The benevolent leader of Balloa, who takes it upon himself to protect his land alongside his soldiers. This tends to worry his wife Theresa.

Rael (Age 13): An exceptionally talented sorcery student who often cuts class. His teachers worry about his mischievous attitude, especially considering his potential for spellcraft.

Professor Elenoa (Age 26): A talented sorcery instructor who takes it upon herself to reel in her errant student, Rael. She and Rael usually help the party as a pair.

Michel De Lap Heaven (Age 28): A mysterious sorcerer who helps Avin, Rutice & Gawaine on their journey. The gang originally meets him on Truth Island. He also appears in The Legend of Heroes III: Song of the Ocean and The Legend of Heroes II: Prophecy of the Moonlight Witch as an old man by the name of Grandpa Lap. He is one of the only two characters to be physically present in all three games of the Gagharv trilogy, the other being Thomas (also known as Slade, Fred, or Roule).

Thomas (Age 27): A young sailor with blue eyes and dark brown hair. He is the owner of the Planetos (originally Gawaine's) and wants nothing more than to navigate across the ocean to new lands. He is one of the only two characters to be physically present in all three games of the Gagharv trilogy, the other being Michel (also known as Mitchell or Grandpa Lap).

Rouca (Age 14): A young teenager who is actually Rutice's younger brother. He is an able young engineer who works in Guia, an industrial city. At the end of the game, he upgrades the Planetos and it eventually becomes the Planetos II.

Gawaine (Age 61): The Sage of Power who serves the Bardus Church. He's also the former owner of Planetos and is hailed as "The Hero of Sea". In battle, he wields a giant mace and possess the ability to cast White Magic.

Madram (Age 36): A powerful warrior who trained under Gawaine. He seeks revenge for the death of Dominique, the previous Daughter of Durga. He is aligned to neither God, resenting that the war between them cost him the love of his life.

Dominique (Age Unknown): She was the "Durga's Daughter" before Eimelle. Octum's Apostles murdered her before the game begins.

Secondary Characters

Karamuro Karamus: A writer who travels throughout El Phildin (partly to escape from his manager) in order to get new ideas for his books. He constantly gets ideas from Avin and his friends for his new book Quick Raven, which is based on Avin's adventure.

General Diren: The general of the Kings Army. He tends to take things very seriously and just like Avin he also has a short temper.

Fatima: She is the ringleader of the Symaseal gang. She and her gang constantly get into conflicts with Avin and his friends.

Lita: A young innocent girl who loves to play games with others, especially the game hide and seek.

Jimmy: A misunderstood young boy who constantly uses his powers of invisibility to steal from others.

King Miligan VIX: The King of El Phildin.

Reithol: A man from a village called Garden Hill, which is said to be a village on top of a mountain filled with ruins. He is a very strong man who loves to train. He is the guardian of the spirit Idun.

Major Bardus Church Officials

Supreme Priest Esperius: The former ruler of Cathedral, which was the original headquarters of the Bardus Church. Esperius is the one that brought the orphaned children Avin and Eimelle and gave them a home at Cathedral. Unfortunately later on Cathedral is attacked and taken over by Octums Apostles, as a result Esperius is killed by his former student Bellias who had defected from the Bardus Church and became an Octums Apostle.

Professor Ollesia: One of the clerics that cared for Avin and Eimelle before the Cathedral was attacked. She runs the Benequia Monastery near New Borun. She knows where Eimelle is because she was the one who brought Eimelle to safety when Cathedral was attacked.

High Priest Croir: The successor to Supreme Priest Esperius. He is plagued with problems from the Octum Apostles. Though meek, he is very kind and resourceful, helping the party get to where they need to go on several occasions.

Abbot/Oracle Avarice: The ringleader of corrupt Bardus Church officials. He cares for nothing but money and uses connections with amoral merchants like Garcia to fund his corruption. When he arrives at Benequia Monastery, he lifts the ban on Meefa hunting. He is pursued endlessly by Madram and fears him greatly.

Bardus: The God of Light and counterpart to Octum, the God of Darkness. The main goal of the latter half of the game is to infuse Avin's sword with Bardus' remains in order to break through the barrier around Cathedral, the Octum Apostles' lair.

The Three Great Sages

Sage Gawaine: See above.

Sage Lemuras: Also known as "Sage of Mercy." He was entrusted to train and take care of Avin until the day he died. His advice and wisdom continues to help Avin throughout the game. He is the guardian of the spirit Nephtys.

Sage Dinerken: Also known as "Sage of Wisdom." Dinerken lives a hermit's life in the Prayer Woods, though he is able to assist Avin's party several times.

Major Octum Apostles

Lord Bellias: The ruler of Octum Apostles. He defected from the Bardus Church after witnessing a revelation about mankind on Truth Island. He plans to revive Octum and rebuild the world.

Evil Oracle Borgeid: The right-hand man of Lord Belias. He is exceptionally powerful and delights in tormenting those he sees as weak. He is responsible for corrupting the great Spirits.

Bernard: Rutice's former partner. He and Rutice were on a mission to get Kabessa, or Bardus' Head, from Avin. He relies on brute force and lacks Rutice's subtlety.

Octum: The God of Darkness and also of Rebirth, at least in the eyes of his Apostles. He is revived through the powers of the Book of Life and Durga's Daughter. He is the final boss of the game.

Bardus Church

These are priests and nuns committed to serving the god of light. They rule over most of El Phildin. During Supreme Priest Esperius' rule, the capital was Cathedral. It was moved to Valkd, because he feared something evil would happen. The organization is based in the region of Dusis. There is a monastery in Boreas, where they rule over the Spirit Forest. It is the religion for most people.

It should be noted that the Church is not void of corruption. Oracle Avarice was in charge of a situation at Kanaphia Island, when he was Abbot of Brizahc. The Octum Apostles attacked Kanaphia, but he turned the paladin back to Valkd. Because there was no assistance, the Durga's Daughter that existed 15 years prior to the events of the game died and an assassin was created out of Madram's rage at Avarice. Also, Oracle Avarice lifted the ancient ban on the Meefa, the endangered sacred animals of the Spirit Forest so he could obtain the valuable Meefa skin. Avin, Mile, Archem, and Douglas asked him to lift the ban, to which he refused. Soon after the confrontation, the town's air became poisonous, and the poison could only be eradicated by the Meefa. Only after rescuing them did Oracle Avarice confess his crimes. Professor Ollesia regained power and restored the ban on hunting the Meefa.

Octum Apostles

The occult group originated in, ironically, Dusis. They seek to revive Octum so that he might rebuild the Earth. They have attacked the Church, but there are only a few records indicating these attacks. The Royal Family has recorded such incidents against the Church. However, those records are not available to the public.

The leader of the Octum Apostles is the traitor Lord Bellias. He is a very powerful warlock who has created an entrance to the Sealed Land. The power of the Apostles comes from the forbidden Book of Life. They seek Durga's Daughter to help in the revival process. They made a big mistake once by killing the previous Durga's Daughter.