Viviana Droste

Viviana Droste, an Elafia woman with long blonde hair and beautiful sky-blue eyes. Two antlers decorate the top of her head, alongside deer-like ears right beside them, as a trait of her Elafia race.

Gender: Female Race: Elafia (Elafians have a pair of antlers, funnel-shaped ears, and short, rounded tails. During the early stage of their growth, their antlers are covered with skin known as velvet rather than keratin as in Caprinae and Fortes, and the velvet antlers possess nerve coverings that enable them to sense touches through their antlers. Elafians highly value their antlers as the symbol of their race. Many Elafians will interact with their velvet antlers to demonstrate their emotions, be it joy or arrogance. This is best demonstrated through a famous poem "Old Leaves and New Branch" written by two Elafian poets who debated over their topics through antler-wrestling, and the result of the poem shows the same topic with drastic approaches. To other Terrans, an Elafia's antlers is a symbol of their close interaction with nature by comparing them with tree branches. Following a Gaulish literature movement decades ago, Elafians have been stereotyped as mystic people who live a secluded lifestyle and highly venerate nature. Elafians also love smalll/medium-sized musical instruments —Especially the harmonica, which they consider they favorite instrument. These are considered suitable for their lifestyles in autumnal and wintry enviroments, and it's said that just one Elafia musician can induce an entire room of joy or sorrow with their melody. As a common Terran race, Elafians can be found everywhere in countries with forested regions such as Ursus, Kazimierz, and Leithanien. Of all nations, Sami houses the predominant population of Elafians; in fact, anthropologists believe that Sami is the original homeland of the Elafians before spreading across Terra, but most of the Samifjod-decent Elafians have forgotten their roots as cities began to expand, while a few Elafia-dominant settlements in more remote regions continue their simple nomadic lifestyle. The Elafian Samfijod also have a culture of treating their antlers as a sacred body part to communicate with nature. As a result, elderly Elafian Samfijod keeps their antlers growing without trimming them.) Date of birth: July 21st, 1078 Place of birth: Fels, Kreis Sturmland, Leithanien Age: 22 Height: 171 cm Affiliation: House Hochberg (illegitimate); Nova Knightclub (former head) Occupation: Empress's Voice of Empress Lieselotte Ewiggnade (nominally); Competition knight (retired) Family and relatives: Werner von Hochberg (father; deceased); Lucinda Droste☠ (mother; deceased); Ernst von Hochberg (uncle; deceased); Ioleta Russell (guardian; alive)

Viviana Droste the Candle Knight is a Grand Knight of Kazimierz with Leithanian origin who is talented in light-and-shadow-based Arts which absorb ambient light for power along with shadow manipulation; these are often casted using the candelabrum she holds, which is the source of her title. Both her talent and her beautiful appearance make her a prominent MVP in the Kazimierz Major. Some of her most famous matches include defeating the haughty Tytus Topola by extinguishing the L-44 Gramophones in the arena and winning over the Stream Knight in the preliminaries of the current season of the Major. However, her introverted character makes her reluctant to participate in the Major; even her appearance in the current season was a result of a special invitation. Most of the time, she prefers to read novels and write poems.

On the other hand, her fame and beauty have attracted numerous paparazzi, including the Red Wine News. Rumors say that she possesses a mysterious mansion named Truffle Grove Castle, regularly bathes in wine, and owns more than a hundred male servants. These rumors lead others to question about her "corrupt" lifestyle. In reality, many of these are false; she donates most of her income to charity organizations to help build nomadic schools in rural areas of Leithanien.

Undisclosed to the public, Viviana Droste von Hochberg is the illegitimate daughter of a notable Leithanian noble, the late Kurfürst Werner von Hochberg. His brother, Ernest von Hochberg, was famous for his sacrifice in leading the Septemberaufstand against the Witch King together with the Twin Empresses. Despite Werner's genuine love for both Viviana and her mother Lucinda Droste, he was forced to hide Viviana's existence as Lucinda was born a peasant, a status that would never be accepted by the Kurfürsten. Hence, she spent much of her childhood inside his Spire, where he visited her once a week. By the time Lucinda passed away due to illness, Werner had Cora Löwenstein to bring the young girl under the care of Ioleta Russell, the Grand Knight, whom trained Viviana in the way of chivalry.

Plot: Catapult: Break Free: Midway to her destination, Viviana spots the events happening near the merchant caravan and decides to follow Catapult. She listens in to Catapult and Raz's conversation. Upon hearing that Catapult blew up the old noble's vault in revenge, Viviana remarks that she has a clear mind but is not careful enough. The search team approaches them just then, and Viviana steps out to distract them with her celebrity status, leading the team away. She winks at Catapult, urging her to take the chance to escape.

Near Light: Viviana first appeared after McKee had a talk with Spokesman Malkiewicz at the Champion's Hall during its opening season for the Major's official match. Along the way, the two discussed the rampant rumors surrounding the Candle Knight. In turn, McKee refuted them but he was concerned that the rumors could ruin Viviana's name. Viviana, however, did not pay them much attention, instead preferring to to immerse herself in poems and literature. When McKee mentioned her match with Radiant Knight, he related that the General Chamber of Commerce wanted her to win. Even though Viviana considered the advice carefully, she wondered whether she truly had a chance to defeat her.

When Margaret was surrounded by numerous reporters, Viviana aided her by dismissing them as they left the Champion's Hall together. When the two were alone, Margaret and Viviana had a private conversation in which they discussed the vanishing glory of Kazimierz's knighthood due to the overwhelming influence of capitalism. When Viviana met McKee and was about to leave with him, she told Nearl that she was excited for the match.

As Margaret kept winning the matches and the Infected issues became worse after Olmer's incident, the K.G.C.C. began to worry about losing face and tarnishing their name. As a matter of fact, they wanted Viviana to defeat the Radiant Knight at any cost. McKee even reminded her that Margaret might face danger from the Armorless Union and Viviana herself might lose her sponsorship from the K.G.C.C. if she refused. Nevertheless, she rejected the aid, intent on having a fair match with Margaret. She even praised Margaret for having truly become a real knight.

Viviana, ready to brighten the dark path in the arena The fight between the Radiant Knight and the Candle Knight could be best described as a "court dance." The fight was constantly paused by talks in which both of them admired the other's talents and spirits. As for Viviana herself, she wondered how bright she could shine when compared with the glory of the Radiant Knight. With that in mind, the two unleashed their Originium Arts and a flash covered the entire arena. To the audience's disbelief, Viviana's sword was shattered and she humbly admitted defeat, leading to another victory for the Radiant Knight.

Even though the match was over, Viviana's story did not end here. When Sona was infiltrating the headquarter of the K.G.C.C. to steal documents concerning Area 0 during the blackout, Viviana hid her from Roy and the Armorless Union using her Arts. At the same time, she helped her get to the Champion's Hall for a secret meeting with Ioleta Russell the Grand Knight. After Margaret's inevitable victory in the Major, she even came to stop McKee from sending assassins to kill Margaret and Dikaiopolis while the two had a historical march towards the Champion's Hall.

In the aftermath, it was arranged by the Nova K.C. that Viviana would leave Kawalerielki as part of her punishment for disobeying the K.G.C.C., which was reported to the public as the result of her alleged embezzlement of the Nova K.C.'s budget.Before her departure, she met Margaret to bid her farewell. Although Margaret preferred that Viviana remain, Viviana believed that only Margaret was able to restore the chivalry of Kazimierz's knights. After her arrival at Ognisko, an idea came into her mind that she should write a poem about the town and her personal experience.

Chapter 13: Later on, Viviana is mentioned to have reappeared in the public view to announce that she is retiring from the Major.

Viviana: The Unpoetic Poet During her latest stay in Ognisko, Viviana purchases food and starts noticing some changes in the city, including numerous people in suits. She returns to Obina's home, her master and friend while in Ognisko, and notices the elderly woman acting oddly. McKee, who is also visiting, reveals that the city is being rebuilt by Glorious Shield Industries. The company plans to rename the city, turning it into a "background" for the "story" given to the "divine weapons" that it plans to manufacture. She then realizes that Obina, as a blacksmith who gave her whole life to the craft, fiercely opposes the plan. Searching for her, Viviana finds the elderly woman in a quarrel with a Glorious Shield spokesman. She interferes and escorts Obina back.

Back at her home, Obina guiltily asks for Viviana's help as the Candle Knight. Viviana promises to help, and realizes that by asking Viviana to use her influence as a knight, Obina was afraid she would ruin Ognisko's image as Viviana's place of comfort. McKee questions Viviana and proposes that she write poetry to promote Ognisko, which will allow them to develop the city in a different manner. Viviana declines his offer, declares her poems to henceforth be only of herself, and reaffirms her resolve. With the help of Mckee, Viviana decides to sell all of her non-frozen assets in Kazimierz to buy a nomadic platform for those who oppose the company's plan, while she herself decides to leave as well, donning an outfit that was made for her while living in Ognisko.

Leithanien: formally known as the Leithanian Empire, is a Terran country bordering Kazimierz, Siracusa, Victoria, and Ursus. It is a feudal confederate empire formed by nine Kreise governed by its Kurfürsten who routinely elect each other to become the ruling Kaiser. The nation is predominated by the Caprinae and Elafians who are known to be talented Arts users, and a handful of Lupos could be found on its southeastern corner.

Leithanien is famous for its classicism, its classical academic studies on Originium Arts and the extensive use of Arts-based technologies. Notably, the Leithanians are able to merge both music and Arts, and musical Arts is so prevalent that many Leithanian terms are named after musical terms and techniques. However, its Arts supremacy often comes with the cost of sacrificing the basic rights of the local Infected to a point of using them as test subjects in the past. Discrimination against non-Arts users is also prevalent to the point of calling them "defects."

Throughout history, Leithanien is heavily influenced by political classicism and a strong hierarchy of aristocrats. The history of the nation could be traced back to the drafting of the magical Güldenesgesatz that unites the aristocrats of the Kreise. Entering the Crystal Age, Leithanien was saved from a devastating separatist movement of Siracusa, but the nation soon came under the tyrannical rule of Herkunftshorn the Witch King whose century-old shadow still lingers on. The current intensive political environment is born following the overthrow of the Witch King by the Twin Empresses whose unique statuses still question the ruling Kurfürsten.

History of Leithanien:

Classical era: Back in the ancient past, Leithanien began as a confederation of ten tribes of different cultures who practiced the customs of the leading Caprinae tribe via their powerful oral Arts. The Arts of the Caprinae tribe brought unanimous harmony and brought civil order to the remaining tribes, though the tribe of Siracusa remained independent due to political conflicts and geographical obstacles. As the threat of the Teekaz approached eastward, the ten tribes sought to unite themselves to fend off the invaders. They made political agreements with the famiglie of Siracusa, solemnly made an everlasting oath under the witness of an immortal mage, the great Lich King, and drafted a magical constitution that mentally bound the tribes together under one nationality — the Güldenesgesatz. For generations, The Güldenesgesatz molds Leithainans' culture, moral, and even politics. Generations of Kaisers and Casters contributed to the music by writing their influences onto its music sheet, making it the most complex Arts Terra has ever witnessed.

As Leithanien developed, it began to be embroiled in countless geopolitical affairs in the Terran heartland. In Terran year 897, it even stretched far west to Bolívar by setting up the Singas dynasty as its puppet regime through the order of the Kurfürst of Strumland, and the presence of the Singas contributed to the political interest of Leithanien in the region. Back within its border, separatism has been deeply rooted in the ten Kreise. In Terran year 967, the Kreis of Siracusa rebelled against the Imperial Court, resulting in a violent separatist movement. The movement soon embroiled into a larger-scale civil war that dragged the remaining nine Kreise to suppress other rebellions across the land. The civil war not only exhausted the Kurfürsten's resources and political ideology, but also, it almost resulted in the disintegration of the confederation as it violated the harmony provided by the Güldenesgesatz.

The Witch King era: In Terran year 969, Herkunftshorn the Witch King was appointed to be the Kaiser of Leithanien. Being the greatest Caster in history who possesses endless knowledge on Arts, his reign turned himself into Leithanien's personification. The greatest moment of his reign was the amendment of the Güldenesgesatz in the midst of the separatist war. Being long seen as an impossible mission to even the most respected Leithanian Casters, the Witch King stood up to amend the Güldenesgesatz by "rewriting" such complex Arts while keeping the constitution intact. After the amendment, Siracusa's independence was formally recognized, and stability finally returned to Leithanien.

The reign of the Witch King began as an exalted meritocracy in the beginning, but ended with utter fall due to his unstoppable tyranny. In the early years of his reign, the Witch King was praised to be a remarkable ruler who implemented various revolutionary policies. In the name of avoiding a second separatist movement, he threatened the Kurfürsten to hand in parts of their political power and the military back to the Imperial Court, which initiated political centralization that crumbled the old aristocracy. To the common folks of the middle class, he was viewed as a savior, but to the aristocrats, his centralization of power threatened their interests, resulting in various rebellions that were quickly crushed. But over the years, the Witch King began to rule with an iron fist who sealed off himself from the populace just to study his Arts and suppressed political dissidents through massacres and inhumane methods, and the fear of the Witch King became widespread among the people especially as he slowly gained a cult of personality who crazily worshiped him.

In later years of his reign, the Witch King no longer revealed his face but covered himself under a terrifying mask. Those who sought to reveal him were punished heavily by stripping off their faces' skin. Between 1029 and 1031, Leithanien faced an outright invasion from the Gaulish Empire which in turn escalated into the War of the Four Nations. Gaul sought to turn Leithanien into its vassal state through political marriages, but the Witch King angrily responded by petrifying Gaulish envoys into a horrible, twenty-meter-tall statue. Noticing the political tension between the Witch King and the Kurfürsten, the ruling Gaulish Emperor Corsica I formally declared the Gallo-Leithanian War in the name of both seeking vengeance from his the Witch King's action and liberating Leithanien from his tyranny. In the early stage of the war by December, the Gallic troupe, armed with advanced weaponry and support of mercenary-Casters of the Sarkaz Royal Court, easily captured four Leithanian Kreise, but the war soon entered into a stalemate as the Witch King personally entered the war through his artificial Catastrophes. By the winter of 1030, Victoria and Ursus quickly meddled in the war out of political interests, and the war ended with the three-nation alliance's victory against Gaul in the battle of Lingones of October 1030.

The victors of the War of the Four Nations quickly scrambled the trophies after Gaul's annihilation, but Leithanien gained the least and suffered the most. As the war occurred on Leithanian soil, the country's infrastructure was heavily destroyed. In the meantime, the Witch King's tyranny became more oppressive in the last twenty to thirty years of his reign, and he turned into a maniac who fully isolated himself from the outside world after diving into his studies of Arts. His reign of terror brought oppositions from both the commoners and the Kurfürsten, and the Kurfürsten, under the support from the war hero Großherzog Leopold, formally denounced his power after deeming that the Witch King had completely lost control of all political affairs due to his madness.

Der Septemberaufstand Main article: Septemberaufstand

The Twin Empresses, the heroines who put an end to the Witch King's reign of terror The Septemberaufstand of 1077 marked the end of the Witch King's tyranny after years of accumulating opposing voices. As the Kurfürsten denounced his sovereignty, dissident arts and culture that were once censored by the Imperial Court began to flourish again in the Kurfürsten's territories. Among those politicians and artists, a twin sister who were former concertmasters of the Reichsorchester, Lieselotte Ewigegnade and Hildegard Grimmacht, became leaders of the opposition party, and their popularity grew so much that even the Witch King and his loyalists found it hard to arrest and punish them as they were sheltered by the Kurfürsten.

With full preparation, the Kurfürsten and the twin sisters initiated a coup d'état against the Witch King in September 1077. The rebel armies crushed the Witch King's loyalists and marched towards the capital of Vedunien, and they faced tough challenges at its outskirts from the destructive Originium Arts of his Spire. The battle reduced the Kurfürsten's soldiers into ashes, and with the opposition on the verge of defeat, the loyalists managed to put the Kurfürsten's forces on a stalemate. The twin sisters, however, did not retreat but led an elite force to lay siege at the capital city at night. Together, they managed to penetrate the twenty-two Arts barriers installed by the Witch King and ascended onto his Spire for a final showdown. By daybreak, the light in the Witch King's Spire faded away after the Twin Empresses finally slew the Witch King. They returned safely to the rebels while carrying his corpse to be demonstrated publicly, a miraculous feat that the Kurfürsten had never witnessed.

The victory of the Septemberaufstand ushered in a new era to Leithanien after the overthrow of the Witch King's tyranny. As they gained popular support, the Kurfürsten broke the tradition and crowned the twin sisters as the "Twin Empresses" of Leithanien.

Era of the Kaiserinnen “The Sky is blue and fine, The Breeze lilts by in Song; The River murmurs clear, My Heart is filled with Hope. The Mist parts overnight, The Earth welcomes Dawn's Light; Praise be Leithanien, Where free Men find their Home.” —Excerpt of Lied des klaren Himmels, a Leithanian song released on 1078

Double portraits of the Kaiserinnen painted by a certain nobleman to celebrate their coronation. This gift was later be deemed suspicious and confiscated, along many others, by the Empresses' Voices. The era of the Twin Empresses marked an era of restoration. Stability was finally restored, and compensation was made to the survivors. On the other hand, some of the old policies were reverted back such as the restoration of the rigid aristocracy rather than the meritocracy the Witch King established.

In the meantime, since the Kaiserinnen era, Leithanien's politics has been heavily divided between three parties: the Kurfürsten, the surviving loyalists of the Witch King, and ardent supporters of the Twin Empresses. For a long time, the Kurfürsten have been treating the Twin Empresses as a thorn in their side and seeking to oust or at least manipulate them behind the scene, but the Empresses' popular support and their political might made them hard to be challenged. Those who oppose the Empresses seek to revive the lost legacies of the Witch King and even denounce their legitimacy. Declaring themselves as the "Echoes of Herkunftshorn" — or the "Witch King's Remnants" to the government, they continue to study the forbidden Arts of the Witch King in order to restore his order or even attempt to revive him, often done with cruel Arts experiments onto the commoners.

Stimmverlust Main article: Zwillingstürme im Herbst/Synopsis

The appearance of the Kargereich not only "silences" the Emperesses, but also the entire country. In September 1100, the Stimmverlust occurred among one of the Empresses. During the 23rd Kaiserinnenfest that celebrated the Kaiserinnen's victory against the Witch King, the surviving cultists of the "Echoes of Herkunftshorn" brought chaos to the festival by forcefully shambling the Güldenesgesatz through their infiltrating musicians that cast different Arts upon it amidst the performance of the national anthem. Following suit, the Kargereich ―a mysterious hyper-dimension― appeared above Zwillingstürme, which the cultists declared to be the site where the Witch King's soul resides. Their motivation was to open up the Kargereich and summon the Witch King back to the mortal realm, hence fulfilling their mission to resurrect him and bring back his rule again.

However, the summoning of the Kargereich brought forward a grave side-effect: the dimension is in reality where the Collapsals ―demonic entities that have been haunting Sami, Ursus, and Sargon for centuries― reside. Their appearance caused psychic phenomena that psychologically corrupted the attendants. To conceal the Kargereich, the Twin Empresses personally "ascended" there to battle against not only the haunting soul of the Witch King, but also the encroaching demons. In the end, Empress Hildegard personally stayed behind to guard against the invading Collapsals, forcing her to be separated from the human realm.

In the aftermath, stability was finally restored, and most of the cultists were either apprehended or committed suicide amidst the event, forcing their survivors to go underground. The Imperial Court, under Kaiserin Lieselotte's order, declared that Empress Hildegard had just "lost her voice" for unknown reasons to prevent news of her disappearance in the Kargereich from leaking to the public.

While the impact of the Stimmverlust remains minute, it serves as the first warning call of the impending "Apocalypse" that would soon threaten Terra. The news even reached as far as Yan to force the government to conduct secret meetings regarding the subsequent worldwide "crises" ever since the Stimmverlust of Leithanien.Meanwhile, Lieselotte continues to govern over Leithanien with a stricter rule than ever, going as far as executing dissidents even outside Leithanien to prevent any deviations to the Güldenesgesatz. A most recent case being the murder of Paola Menninger during the Red Wine Championship in 1102.

Zu den Zwillingstürme: Twenty-three years ago in September 1077, the Twin Empresses initiated the Septemberrevolution to overthrow the tyrannical rule of Kaiser Herkunftshorn the Witch King, ending an era of darkness in Leithanien. To commemorate this victory, Das Kaiserinnensfest ("The Empresses' Festival") is held every year in the capital of Zwillingstürme under its Twin Spires. Through a majestic royal orchestra, Leithanian musicians will perform the Güldenesgesatz, the magical constitution of Leithanien in the form of musical scores, to bless the country with peace and prosperity. And now, in autumn 1100, upon a new century of the Terran calendar, the 23rd festival is about to begin.

Yet the brightest lights also cast the darkest shadows. The Witch King's Remnants, also known as the Echoes of Herkunftshorn, plot to create havoc during Kaiserinnensfest, intending to revive the Witch King and return Leithanien to its "former glory." They stole a piece of the Güldenesgesatz, and in the process, murdered Kurfürst Werner von Hochberg, the father of Viviana Droste the Candle Knight. Viviana was already on her way from Kazimierz to meet him when she heard the news from Werner’s old friend, conductor Cora Löwenstein. With permission given by Lieselotte Ewigegnade the White Empress, Viviana is allowed to investigate Werner’s death as a temporary Empresses' Voice along with Gesatzswächter Brandt Reiner.

Meanwhile, Hildegard Grimmmacht, the ruthless black Empress, seeks to retrieve the dark legacies of the Witch King and seal them for good. Her plan includes summoning Ebenholz, the young Graf Urtica, back to Leithanien and retrieve his Voice of Mundane. She requests the aid of an old Sarkaz named Fremont, the Lich King, and he dispatches Lessing Maeyer to escort Ebenholz. However, Ebenholz mistakes Lessing for a Remnant, attacking him and fleeing into the underground sewage tunnels.

Federico Giallo, an Executor and Saint of Laterano, silently enters Zwillingstürme. Since the tragedy in Sanctilaminium Ambrosii, Federico has been busy tracking down the fugitive Arturia for over a year. After learning that she has been collaborating with the Echoes of Herkunftshorn, he seeks assistance from Loris Bordin, a former Lateran who is now the captain of Zwillingstürme’s Gendarmerie. Loris claims that he’s too busy dealing with the nobles' complaints, yet Federico urges him to prioritize finding and arresting Arturia. Since Federico's attitude proves to be a hassle, Loris wants Federico to stay under his surveillance at all times.

Erinnerungen an Ringelblume

Der Tod des Hexenkönig... An eerie name which evokes the haunting past of the Witch King. Yet Arturia feels such painting fits its name well. At Karl-Schmidt Street, also known as "Marigold Avenue," the Gendarmeries are investigating a mysterious death that might have connection with the Remnants. The deceased, renowned painter Frieda Seemann, suddenly dies of exhaustion inside the art gallery after presenting her final work. A canvas smudged by black Originium paint mixed with blood, triggering fear in all who see it—an artwork titled Der Tod des Hexenkönig, "The Death of the Witch King." Loris believes that Seemann's last work is some kind of declaration from the Witch King’s followers.

During Loris’ investigation, Federico momentarily leaves his side to investigate some strange music, and Loris gets exposed to Arturia’s ego manipulation Arts. Her Arts frees him from his deepest regrets and reignites his heroic bravado. Hearing the sounds of a fight underground, the Liberi officer charges into the sewers where he discovers Ebenholz being attacked by the Echoes of Herkunftshorn. Loris manages to buy Ebenholz some time to escape, but as a result the Remnants petrify him into a horrible statue. Federico arrives too late and is brought away from the scene by Michael Lupakarn, a servant of Empress Hildegard.

As Viviana dives into the avenue of marigold, she seems to have seen the romantic past of her dearest parents Loris’ sudden demise shocks Viviana, prompting her to investigate the case harder. Believing that Seemann’s last work must have a deeper meaning, she heads towards the painter's residence in Marigold Alley with Cora and Brandt. While investigating, Viviana finds herself being drawn in by strange musical Arts and begins seeing hallucinations of her past, including her dear mother. Cora and Brandt immediately come to her rescue and find themselves surrounded by Remnants who claim to be under the order of the "Concertmaster." Brandt takes the charge and fights the Remnants while Cora brings Viviana to safety.

After retreating to a secure location, Viviana suggests that they examine the first draft of Der Tod des Hexenkönig. By casting his Arts, Brandt is able to peel back the layers of black paint to reveal a scene of when the rebels broke into the Witch King's Spire twenty three years ago. In it, they pinpoint a man named Gerhard Hoffmann, a former attendant of the Witch King who now works as a university professor, and believe he might become the Remnants' next target. All signs point towards Ludwigs-Universität—where the Urtica family, the house of the Witch King, has studied for generations.

Rhodes Island: Rhodes Island Pharmaceuticals Inc., commonly known as Rhodes Island (R.I.). Made up almost exclusively of the Infected, R.I. legally operates as a pharmaceutical company that provides care and treatment to the Infected, but due to the wide variety of Operators in its employ with combat skills, they are more of a paramilitary organization who strives to fight for the betterment of the Infected. Based on the eponymous landship, Rhodes Island dedicates themselves to develop treatments and a possible cure to Oripathy which has plagued Terra since the advent of Catastrophes. R.I. is also expert in dealing in matters and problems associated with Oripathy, notably the rampant social discriminations against the Infected, which is why R.I. possesses a paramilitary force to provide security for their personnel and patients, though R.I. can (and will) offer their service as a pseudo-PMC should the need arise. Such authority and abundant resources to deal with social issues worldwide are in fact a direct inheritance from its predecessor Babel, a militant organization of Kazdel that was meant to restore the nation's peace and the Sarkaz's livelihood. As a matter of fact, it is hard to say that whether R.I. is actually a non-state actor in the guise of a humanitarian organization, and many nations have been doubting R.I.'s supposed political neutrality.

Doktor: The background of the Doctor is shrouded in mystery, However, at some point, the Doctor awakens from the Sarcophagus and discovers that they have amnesia. The Doctor used to be a lead Oripathy researcher, as well as a doctor in neurology and a commander; despite their amnesia, they can still command very skillfully.[4] They also possess extensive knowledge, to the point where they were able to create an algorithm that could precisely predict the movements of a Catastrophe. Despite the title, the Doctor appears to serve more as a field commander and a military strategist for Rhodes Island, leading battles during the conflict against Reunion throughout the Chernobog-Lugmen crisis. Outside of this, however, they often spend their time on research or paperwork. Viviana has also written poems for them during her time as their assistant ("If you and I were notes from one stanza, on which instrument are we strung? And what player has us in his hand?" Oh, I knew you would come. Have you finished reading the poems I gave you? Let me guess. I couldn't possibly share the image of your beloved, and it must lie within the most uplifting cantata.") A warm closeness can be implied due to their conversation, such as "Hmm, who is there? hehe, Whatever. I already knew it was you." "No bathtub...? Never mind. Just a little joke." "Droste is my mother's maiden name. It is a common name with no place in the spires. How long would you stay in an alley full of marigolds, Doktor? Very few would grace their proses and stanzas with these forbidden blossoms, but they're really beautiful... To be honest, I'm surprised you actually remembered my full name, Doktor." "I returned to that small, dark chamber in the spire and spoke to the little girl within. I told her that she will endure a lifetime of slander, suffer regrets that cannot be undone, and be trapped in a cycle of endless pursuit and loss... Yes, farewells feel the same as a dream. Do you find me, as I am in this moment, real enough?"

Viviana's finger gently shifts the page of her diary. A puzzled look reflected on her face as she tried to come up with something new. The tranquil silence is interrupted as her index finger gently taps the edge of the book. "`If you and I were notes from one stanza, on which instrument are we strung? And what player has us in his hand?´ Oh, I knew you would come. Have you finished reading the poems I gave you? Let me guess. I couldn't possibly share the image of your beloved, and it must lie within the most uplifting cantata."

"I see what you're hiding behind your back. Be at ease, I know very well that Leithanien needs a citizen to heighten her glory in foreign lands. Kazimierz, on the other hand, needs a scandal-plagued knight of self-professed purity. Both are as plain as day. Besides, that issue of The Red Wine is outdated. Their kinds never run short of personalities to gossip over."

"Look. What is it the candle lights here? Our faces? Lines of poetry that no one reads? Or the dark and mired path ahead of us? I guess you've always been able to see them, even without my candlelight. Right then, rest your eyes upon me. Don't let the light distract your gaze."

"Mein Tag war heiter, glücklich meine Nacht"

"Hmm, Doktor, what are you muttering there? I won't force you to recite any poems. But you have read them, have you not?"

"Doktor, if the candle goes out, I can't say for sure what might happen next."