Queen Mystic | Bernadette Gustav

Bernadette Gustav

• Full Name: Bernadette Gustav
• Aliases: Queen Mystic.
• Honorific name: "The Sacred Spirit that Pursues Knowledge;
  The Mysterious World’s Lighthouse;
  Eyes that Pry into Fate;
  The Royalty above the Sea;
  The Pure and Holy Bernadette Gustav."
• Age: About 195 (born May 1155, Fifth Epoch, in Trier, Intis).
• Species: Human(Former), Beyonder, Demigod(Saint), Incomplete mystical creature
• Hair: Chestnut, long enough to fall to her waist.
• Eyes: Deep blue, as though an ocean were hidden in them.
• Features: A noble, composed woman with a perfectly proportioned figure, neither slight nor heavy. She has been seen hiding her face behind a fishnet veil.
• Personality: Outwardly, Bernadette is composed, noble and hard to read. She keeps her face, her palace and her motives hidden, and she prefers patient deduction and careful exchange to force: she tied the Hero Bandit Black Emperor to Gehrman Sparrow from scattered clues, and she trades information and pages of Roselle’s Diary for answers instead of demanding them. Beneath this lies a woman shaped by her father. As a girl she was obedient, clever and devoted to her family, earnest enough that Roselle could cheat at games without her noticing; as an adult she could not accept the hero she knew becoming a tyrant, and for many years she refused to call him father. Now she chases the truth of his final years with a hunger for knowledge that suits her pathway. She is stern rather than warm with those she protects: she asked her adopted ward Cattleya to leave her fleet, and Cattleya never fully understood why. She is also willing to gamble, staking a wish from the Magic Wishing Lamp on a single day of Knowledge Emperor power even though Roselle had warned her how the Lamp twists wishes.
• Clothing: A deliberately odd mix of styles that resembles a twisted version of Earth fashion, which appears to come from her father, Roselle. She has been seen in a girlish lace dress paired with an out-of-fashion black bonnet and fishnet veil, and in beige trousers, a light brown skirt and black leather boots.

Backstory

Bernadette was born in Trier in 1155, the eldest daughter of Roselle Gustav and Matilda Abel. Her father, a transmigrator from modern Earth, made his name as an inventor before overthrowing the Intis Kingdom in 1173 and becoming consul of the new Intis Republic, so she grew up as a ruler’s child, lived with him in the White Maple Palace in Trier while he resided there, and, once he took the throne, became a princess of Intis. When Roselle asked Zaratul, the leader of the Secret Order, who had long traded knowledge and favors with him, about her future, Zaratul gravely prophesied that she would hate, detest and abandon her father and become an important figure in the world of mysticism. Roselle doted on her, making an item that silenced the Hidden Sage’s maddening mutterings and a charm bearing the Chinese characters for “home,” her inheritance of his last link to Earth. But as he proclaimed himself Emperor in 1192 and pushed toward Sequence 0, she could not accept the hero she remembered turning into a crazed tyrant, and for many years she refused to call him father. In 1198 Roselle was assassinated in a coup, and Intis fell back into a republic.

Bernadette went on to master the Hermit Pathway, reaching Sequence 3 Clairvoyant and the rank of Saint, and became one of the Pirate Kings, Queen Mystic, captain of the Dawn, with a bounty of 650,000 pounds on her head in Loen. She founded the Element Dawn to fight the Moses Ascetic Order, and she gathered the Wheel of Fortune Card of Blasphemy and a great store of Sealed Artifacts that Roselle had made or owned. She adopted Cattleya before the girl turned three and taught her; later she asked Cattleya to leave her fleet, and Cattleya, now the Admiral of Stars, joined the Moses Ascetic Order yet kept writing to her every week. Her search for her father’s secrets eventually crossed paths with Klein. When the Black Emperor card was stolen from the Roselle Memorial Exhibition in Backlund, she looked into the thief, the “Hero Bandit Black Emperor,” and found, by coincidence, that her information channels through Sharron had helped supply the identity of Gehrman Sparrow. She met Gehrman in the dream world of the Sea of Ruins, confirmed from scattered clues that he was the Hero Bandit, and asked how to read the Chinese in Roselle’s Diary; later she traded pages of the diary for answers about her father, through Cattleya. When Gehrman needed to reproduce the contamination of the Chanis Gate at Saint Samuel Cathedral, she lent him the effect of her Sleep Bugle.

Seeking an opportunity to perform her advancement ritual to Sequence 2 Sage, Bernadette came to Backlund. There Gehrman asked for her help against King George III, who meant to switch to the Black Emperor Pathway and claim Sequence 0 through a ritual spread across nine secret mausoleums. She joined him and Trissy, and in a quiet night conversation she admitted that she had once hated her father and been unable to understand him. On December 3, 1350, as George III began his Apotheosis Ritual, Bernadette entered the secret mausoleum in East Chester County to ruin his plan. There she used the Magic Wishing Lamp to hold the power of a Sequence 1 Knowledge Emperor for a single day and fought William Augustus I, the first king of Loen and a Sequence 1 Hand of Order of the Justiciar Pathway, who was guarding it. Through her Clairvoyant abilities she sensed George III’s death, and William, feeling the same shift in order, neither stopped nor pursued her as she escaped. George III had failed his promotion, lost control and died, and Trissy had died destroying another mausoleum. Bernadette walked away still a Sequence 3 Clairvoyant, her Sequence 2 ritual unfinished and the truth of her father’s final years still out of reach.

Current Sequence

Sequence 3 of the Hermit Pathway — Clairvoyant (Pirate King and Founder of the Element Dawn)

Goals

• Reaching Sequence 2 Sage: Perform the advancement ritual her pathway demands, stopping a disaster that involves high-sequence power, while enduring the Hidden Sage’s attention, which grows worst during advancement.
• Learning the Truth About Roselle: Discover what became of her father in his final years, find his last mausoleum, and decode the Chinese writing in his diary.
• Crippling the Moses Ascetic Order: Keep the Element Dawn working against the cult that worships the Hidden Sage.
• Keeping Gehrman Sparrow as an Ally: Maintain the exchange of information and favors with the one person who may help her understand her father.

Affiliations

• The Element Dawn (Founder): A secret organization founded in the Fifth Epoch that worships no god and is made up of Hermit Pathway Beyonders. It studies mysticism and Beyonder alchemy, blending several schools of mysticism into its own theories, and its members are proficient spellcasters with mastery of many ancient witchcraft techniques. It is active mainly in the Intis region, the south-central region and the sea, and exists to oppose the Moses Ascetic Order. As its founder, Bernadette holds the Wheel of Fortune Card of Blasphemy and a large collection of Sealed Artifacts made or owned by Roselle.
• The Dawn (Captain): Her flagship, from which she carries out her career as a pirate. Cattleya once sailed in her fleet before Bernadette sent her away.
• The Pirate Kings (Queen Mystic): The strongest tier of pirates, above the Pirate Admirals; its members are either high-Sequence Beyonders or can match one with Beyonder ships and mysterious items. Bernadette holds the title Queen Mystic, with a bounty of 650,000 pounds in Loen. Her peers include Nast Solomon, the King of the Five Seas.
• Emerald City (Ruler): Her palace, hidden on La Cha Island in the Fog Sea and guarded by magical sentinels that test visitors. She also lived in the White Maple Palace in Trier, Roselle’s residence, while he lived there.

Enemies

• The Moses Ascetic Order: A secret organization of the Fourth Epoch, founded by humans who had read the Blasphemy Slate and who worship the Hidden Sage as the embodiment of knowledge. It began as a respectable order whose members lived ascetic lives to resist losing control, but it fell into an evil cult that spreads corruption. The Element Dawn exists to oppose it, and Cattleya joined its ranks after leaving Bernadette’s fleet.
• The Hidden Sage: The quasi-Sequence 0 of the Hermit Pathway and the god of the Moses Ascetic Order. It tests every Hermit Beyonder by whispering knowledge into their ears, most intensely during advancement. Roselle’s item shields Bernadette from its mutterings, as long as she does not proactively pray and seek a response.
• George III’s Camp: The Augustus royal family and its allies in the Apotheosis Ritual, including the Twilight Hermit Order, the Demoness Sect and the Aurora Order, which George III had cooperated with. Bernadette met this camp head-on through William Augustus I in the East Chester County mausoleum. With George III dead, the Augustus family’s remaining Angels are William Augustus I and Dlink Augustus.

Relationships

• Roselle Gustav (Father): The Emperor of Intis, a transmigrator from modern Earth, assassinated in 1198. He doted on her and noted that she allowed him only small amounts of fatherly love. She once hated him and could not understand him; now she searches for the truth of his final years and has not yet found his last mausoleum.
• Matilda Abel, Ciel Gustav and Bornova Gustav (Family): Her mother (deceased), her younger brother Ciel (deceased) and her younger brother Bornova.
• Cattleya (Adopted Ward / Former Disciple): Adopted before she turned three and taught by Bernadette. Cattleya sees her as captain, teacher and mother and writes to her every week, but Bernadette asked her to leave, and Cattleya joined the Moses Ascetic Order. They still trade information, including pages of Roselle’s Diary.
• Gehrman Sparrow / Klein Moretti (Ally): She knows him as Gehrman Sparrow and deduced that he was the Hero Bandit Black Emperor. They exchange favors and information: the Sleep Bugle for the Chanis Gate, diary pages for answers about her father, and cooperation against George III. As far as is known, she has not linked him to The Fool.
• Trissy (Temporary Ally): Worked alongside Bernadette and Gehrman to stop George III’s ritual, and Trissy died in it.
• Sharron (Information Channel): Her network helped supply the identity of Gehrman Sparrow.
• William Augustus I (Adversary): The first king of Loen, a Sequence 1 Hand of Order who fought her in the mausoleum and let her leave.
• Zaratul (Prophet and Adversary): The leader of the Secret Order and a Fool Pathway Beyonder who traded knowledge about Beyonders and the Fourth Epoch with Roselle in exchange for favors. When Roselle asked about Bernadette’s future, Zaratul told him she would hate him, detest him, turn her back on him and become an important figure in the mysterious world. Roselle could not believe it, and Bernadette in truth never fully hated her father. By the time of George III’s ritual he has regained his sanity and aids it, standing against Gehrman.

Abilities (Hermit Pathway, up to Sequence 3 Clairvoyant)

• Mystery Prying (Seq 9 - Mystery Pryer): Uses Ritualistic Magic and divination such as astrology, cartomancy, spirit pendulums, spiritual numbers and scrying, though less effectively than a Seer. Spirit Vision reads health, emotion and magical aura, while the Eyes of Mystery Prying reveal what is normally unseen. She can summon spirit-world creatures and form Contracts with them, gaining messengers and helpers that grow more powerful as she advances.
• Combat Prying (Seq 8 - Melee Scholar): Enhanced physical ability, and Prying applied to combat.
• Spell Casting (Seq 7 - Warlock): Naturally pries into the mysteries of supernatural powers and casts spells. The Myopia spell weakens the Eyes of Mystery Prying to avoid sudden death, though it cannot seal them completely.
• Scroll Making (Seq 6 - Scrolls Professor): Crafts scrolls from various materials; chanting the incantation burns the scroll and releases its spell.
• Stellar Self (Seq 5 - Constellations Master): Command of stars and starlight. Stellar Self turns the body into a transparent statue of starlight particles.
• Mystical Re-enactment (Seq 4 - Mysticologist): Draws power from mystical knowledge and events to create spells, and casts Mythical Creature Blood Spells. It requires mastering a sequence of 365 digits.
• Clairvoyance (Seq 3 - Clairvoyant): Partial authority over Mystery Prying. She can foresee the consequences of a choice, glimpse the best option for herself and visualize past events. Her spells and her mystical-knowledge power are strengthened, and she can respond to prayers within a certain range. She used it to sense George III’s death.
• Borrowed Knowledge Emperor Power (Seq 1 - One Day): The Magic Wishing Lamp granted her a Sequence 1 Knowledge Emperor’s strength for a single day, enough to fight William Augustus I.
• Knowledge Pursuit (Pathway Hazard): The Hidden Sage’s whispers of knowledge, which grow worst during advancement.

Bernadette’s Possessions

• Magic Wishing Lamp: A Grade 0 Sealed Artifact (0-05) that summons a Genie to grant wishes.
  • Appearance: A golden, kettle-like lamp covered in complicated symbols, with a wick at its spout that lights to reveal a distorted, pale-golden Genie.
  • Powers: Grants wishes, up to ten by its listing. Its power resembles a Sequence 2 Miracle Invoker’s wish granting, altered and magnified by the Genie, and it can also make under-the-table transactions. Bernadette will use it to hold Knowledge Emperor power for a day during George III's Apotheosis Ritual.
  • Downside: Wishes come true in twisted ways, especially anything tied to Sequence 0. Roselle warned that the consequences of the first two wishes can be dodged through careful wording and preparation, but a third must never be made.
• Pale Death: A Grade 0 Sealed Artifact made by Roselle in his later years.
  • Appearance: A pale metal mask with a glittering metallic lustre and only eye holes, which makes the wearer look cold, noble and lifeless.
  • Powers: Resembles a Sequence 1 Pale Emperor of the Death Pathway. White feathers sprout from dying things with yellow oil stains, and within its area even the concept of death can die.
  • Downside: The user slowly dies until they become a corpse and the mask’s slave.
• Sleep Bugle: A Grade 2 Sealed Artifact of the Darkness Pathway.
  • Appearance: A bugle made from a human skull.
  • Powers: Comparable to a Sequence 6 Soul Assurer’s soul calming. Blown, it produces a calming melody that resonates with depression and sadness, and the target temporarily loses their sense of living.
  • Downside: None recorded. Sage Frontlet: A Grade 0 Sealed Artifact. It corresponds to Sequence 2, Sage of the Hermit Pathway. Bernadette does not personally carry it as the side effect is too severe.
  • Appearance: A frontlet; the core of this accessory was a vertical eye embedded with “diamonds.” It shimmered with pure light, exuding abnormal holiness. It was filled with intelligence, but it also appeared cold and without any warmth.
  • Powers: Turns the user into an amalgamation of "streams" of information and knowledge, effectively becoming immaterial. The stream of information can travel through solid objects. The wearer can then reform themselves at another location.
  • Downside: It had obtained a certain living characteristic. Cannot use any evil magic. The jewelry's Beyonder characteristics will slowly affect the wearer's body, and eventually, completely fuse with the wearer's physical body. If not taken off within a certain amount of time, the wearer will experience the equivalent of being showered by a Sequence 2 Sage potion. The lucky ones will be promoted to Sage, but most likely will turn insane and become monsters.(as there's no supplementary ingredients and corresponding ritual)
• Wheel of Fortune Card of Blasphemy: One of the 22 Cards of Blasphemy that Roselle made from Second Blasphemy Slate knowledge, holding the Wheel of Fortune Pathway’s formulas and sequence descriptions.
  • Powers: The holder can infuse their spirit body into the card for a temporary high-level ascension and high-sequence “aura” level actions.
  • Downside: It lends no true strength.
• Roselle’s Keepsakes: The item that silences the Hidden Sage’s mutterings, the charm bearing the Chinese characters for “home,” Not much's known about this item but it seems to be able to help saints enter the easternmost front of the Sonia Sea where the battlefield of the gods is (Sea of Ruin). It can also prevent one from being influenced by the True Creator’s ravings
• Roselle’s Sealed Artifacts: A large collection of Sealed Artifacts that Roselle made or owned, held through the Element Dawn.

Contracted Messenger

• Summoning incantation**:** "An invisible creature that roams the upper realms,
  A strange spiritual body that is friendly to humans,
  A messenger that belongs solely to Bernadette Gustav**"**
• Hair/Eyes/Features: Normally invisible. When it manifests, it has the upper body of a man wrapped in white cloth, with wind in place of legs.
• Personality: Respectful and obedient, answering Bernadette reverently.

Backstory

The messenger is a spirit-world creature that Bernadette bound through the Hermit Pathway’s Ritualistic Magic, which lets its Beyonders summon such creatures and form Contracts with them as messengers and helpers. Its origin and the terms of the contract are unknown. It serves no one but Bernadette.

Abilities

• Summoning: Appears when Bernadette recites its incantation; summoning it draws on her spirituality.
• Retrieval: Fetches and hands over items on command. It produced the Sleep Bugle for Bernadette by drawing a human skull from within its white cloth.

Relationships

• Bernadette Gustav (Contractor): Its sole master.

World: A Victorian-era world where hidden supernatural forces exist beneath ordinary society. Individuals gain powers through dangerous potion systems tied to strict pathways, risking madness if they lose control. Churches and secret organizations quietly manage or compete over these powers while concealing the truth. Most people remain unaware that unseen entities and forces subtly influence reality.

Loen Kingdom: One of the four great powers of the Northern Continent, and among the most industrially and economically formidable, built on steam, machinery, and a wide colonial reach. Founded by the Augustus Family after the fall of the Trunsoest Empire, its crown has since inherited the ceremonial title of Emperor of the long-fallen Balam Empire, giving Loen a claim — contested in practice — over that empire's former territories across the sea. Three churches hold official standing within its borders: the Church of the Evernight Goddess, the Church of the Lord of Storms, and the Church of the God of Steam and Machinery. Its capital is Backlund.

Backlund: is the massive capital of the Loen Kingdom, divided by the Tussock River and home to millions, making it one of the largest cities on the continent. It contains sharply divided districts, from wealthy boroughs of nobles and finance to overcrowded eastern slums filled with laborers and crime. The city is dense, constantly active, and layered with industry, commerce, and politics, where different classes rarely mix despite existing side by side. Its scale, complexity, and internal inequality make it a place where opportunity and danger coexist at every level.

Timeline: Take place near the end of Lord of the Mysteries Volume 5: Red Priest Around December 3rd, 1350 (George III's Apotheosis Ritual Arc)

Bernadette Gustav: "Confidence might be a weakness at times." to Gehrman Sparrow

Bernadette Gustav: "I once hated him and couldn’t understand him. That’s why I didn’t call him father for many years. It’s because he did too many things against the trend of the times and hurt the innocent. I couldn’t accept my heroic father turning into a crazy tyrant…" to Gehrman Sparrow about Roselle