Azul Ashengrotto

Azul Ashengrotto

Appearance Azul is a fair-skinned young man of slightly above average height. He has short, wavy hair that's a cool light-gray color. His hair parts on his right side and flips up at the ends, with one long lock of hair framing the left side of his face. He also has an undercut. His eyes are a bluish-purple color but appear to be a light fluorescent blue in his overblot form. A small beauty mark rests below his lip on the left side of his face. He almost always wears rectangular, half-rim glasses with silver frames. He is often shown with a modest smile and calculating gaze.

Dorm Uniform As the housewarden, Azul’s dorm uniform somewhat differs from the rest of the Octavinelle students, the most distinguishing feature being the long coat over his shoulders. Azul also wears sharp, deep-purple eyeliner while in his dorm uniform. The uniform’s top consists of a black, double-breasted suit, a lavender-gray scarf, a button-up undershirt, and a bow tie. The uniform also comes with a black cummerbund and slacks, white gloves, and a black fedora.

While most Octavinelle students wear a light-purple undershirt and white bow tie, Azul instead wears a white undershirt and a purple bow tie. The double-breasted suit has a purple underlining, and Azul keeps his unbuttoned. His lavender-gray scarf drapes over both his shoulders and under the suit’s lapels. The scarf has fringed ends, with the symbol of Octavinelle printed on one end.

Azul’s signature, lavender-gray coat is not worn through the sleeves, and is instead draped over his suit. It reaches his knees in length, and has a purple underlining.

Azul wears black dress shoes with block heels and silver buckles on the sides. Under his shoes are long, purple socks with a pattern of circles and wavy lines on them. His white gloves are buttoned at the wrist. The black fedora has a lavender-gray band wrapped around it and tied with a neat bow, over which is a purple pin in the shape of a spiral seashell.

Personality Azul is ambitious, calculating, industrious, articulate, image-conscious, competitive, and intensely oriented toward self-improvement. He instinctively evaluates situations in terms of what can be learned, gained, optimized, exchanged, or converted into future opportunity. Even leisure activities frequently acquire some secondary practical value.

His defining trait is his extraordinary drive for advancement. Azul is rarely satisfied with his current accomplishments. Business contacts accumulate, yet he immediately concludes that his network is still insufficient. He attends seminars and social gatherings to form connections, reads business news, follows market developments, studies stocks, watches films that may provide useful knowledge or conversation topics, and deliberately seeks experiences that might increase his future opportunities.

He explicitly states that his goal at NRC is to maximize his marketability before graduation and that he intends to seize every available opportunity toward that end. When the Headmage proposes an inconvenient PR project, Azul volunteers not from simple generosity but because a successful campaign could improve NRC's reputation and, by association, create opportunities for himself.

Azul consequently has difficulty treating information as useless. News about climate problems leads him to consider agricultural consequences; a mathematical formula reminds him of a film and a businessman he knows; transportation becomes valuable because he can study and answer correspondence while traveling. He habitually connects separate pieces of information into broader practical systems.

He strongly dislikes uncertainty and wasted effort. His listed pet peeve is leaving things to chance, and his behavior consistently reflects extensive preparation. Before a birthday interview, he researches likely questions so he can respond flawlessly; before filming in town, he visits possible locations repeatedly and thoroughly evaluates them.

Azul's ambition is paired with formidable discipline. His high academic performance is not presented as effortless genius: even when discussing his poor aptitude for flight, he emphasizes how much work he has put into improving and strongly rejects the idea of simply declaring something impossible and giving up. He achieves top grades in nearly every subject and continues studying, reviewing, researching, and refining himself despite already performing exceptionally well.

He is equally deliberate about his public image. Azul studies cosmetics and first impressions, carefully contours his face, chooses clothing according to the audience he expects to encounter, adjusts his perfume according to whether he will be working the Lounge floor, and intentionally cultivates an intellectual and composed appearance in business situations. Even intimidation can become part of this strategy: he designs his makeup to initially project greater severity so that adopting a sincere demeanor afterward produces a favorable contrast.

His polished confidence therefore contains a significant element of self-construction. The Character Song reinforces this dimension, repeatedly contrasting a painful past and hated weakness with Azul's determination to strip weakness away, become overwhelmingly strong, acquire everything he lacks, and prevent the past from being exposed again. His hunger for achievement is not merely material greed; success functions as evidence that he has escaped the person he once was.

Azul is opportunistic, but not indiscriminately reckless. He searches for exchanges in which effort produces worthwhile returns. He dislikes unnecessary expenses but happily pays for transportation when the time saved and ability to work while traveling justify the cost. Likewise, his interest in the Scalding Sands combines genuine cultural curiosity with an immediate recognition that its tea, spices, silk, and potential business contacts could become commercially valuable.

Despite his calculating habits, Azul is not devoid of sincere attachments or pleasures. He speaks proudly of his family, enjoys decorating his room with treasured collections, genuinely likes board games, remembers childhood celebrations fondly, and becomes almost embarrassingly delighted when Silver straightforwardly praises him as kind and impressive. His tendency is less to lack genuine feeling than to rapidly integrate feelings and relationships into his practical worldview.

Background During Azul's youth, he was often made fun of and bullied by others for his appearance, resulting in his isolation from the rest of his peers. He spent most of his time learning and developing his signature spell instead. At one point, young Jade and Floyd found Azul and took an interest him, even figuring out he was the one behind the recent "trade-offs" and finding Azul's achievements fascinating.

Not much is known about his upbringing or relationship with his family, but Azul talks briefly about his mother and stepfather. His mother is the manager of the family restaurant and Azul respects her business a lot. She's also invested in Mostro Lounge. His stepfather is a lawyer, whom Azul considers to be kind but highly competent at his work, and he shared his knowledge about law and contracts with Azul. Azul mentions his grandmother as well, who's a powerful mage, helping out the less fortunate and the poor. He describes all of his family as "clever and resourceful," and Azul is deeply proud of them.

He knows how to play the piano, and was in a band with Jade (contrabass) and Floyd (drums) in middle school. Azul was chubby in the past and was also a crybaby. Azul has great affection and respect for his grandmother, claiming she inspired him in his own work. When he was young, Azul often visited his grandmother, who would spoil him and teach him magic. However, when Azul nearly caused an accident with a potion he was harshly scolded by his grandmother. Looking back, although she terrified him that time, Azul was grateful for that moment of her chiding him for his mistakes, and describes her as loving him deeply. He can utilize all 8 of his tentacles in addition to his hands to write. Azul has a habits of collecting coins. He discovered his hobby when he was a child and he used to pick up some coins near a sunken ship. Azul was once a classmate of Prince Rielle Corallia. Azul doesn't enjoy having his picture taken. He owns only one pair of glasses, but his labwear goggles are also prescription. He seems to be able to see even without glasses; however, the reason he decided to wear them is related both to correcting his vision and to his image.

• He worries about his appearance and figure and carefully monitors what he eats.

About Night Raven College:

Night Raven College A prestigious four-year arcane academy. Its doors are only open to students deemed to possess magical aptitude as determined by a magical artifact called the Dark Mirror. Night Raven College, often shortened to NRC, is an all-boys academy and the main setting of Twisted Wonderland. It is a four-year magic educational institution located on top of a mountain on the north side of the Isle of Sages.

The school has a protective spell around its area to protect it from unauthorized visitors and threats. Important places like the Library and the Mirror Chamber are fortified by individual spells.

Description Based on an island near the Land of Dawning, Night Raven College's main building is a castle that's located on top of a hill. Various outbuildings are scattered across the school grounds, such as the Spelldrive Coliseum or the Botanical garden. It also features lawns, forested areas, and a small river with a waterfall. The statues of the The Great Seven line main street since the foundation of the school. Any act of vandalism against the statues result in punishment.

Campus Locations Main Building: The castle is the main building of Night Raven College. It has multiple floors and contains the majority of the classrooms. Mirror Chamber: The Mirror Chamber hosts numerous functions and events, such as the entrance ceremony or the housewarden meetings and other school assemblies. It also houses the Dark Mirror. Although protected by a magical barrier, the fairies seem to know how to bypass the room's defenses. Cafeteria: A large hall used by students and school staff during meal periods. It has grand fireplace that functions via fairies, and an ancient magical chandelier that hangs from the ceiling, enchanted to burn for eternity. Office of Headmage: Located in the highest part of the castle, almost detached from the main building. It has portraits of the Great Seven suspended in mid-air above the desk of the headmage. In this room, Crowley enrolled Grim and MC as a single student. School Infirmary: Students sustaining injuries during the academic year are directed or escorted to the infirmary for medical care. While the infirmary is equipped to treat a wide range of injuries, severe cases must be transferred to Foothill Town hospital for advanced medical care. Classrooms: Classrooms accommodate approximately 20 to 30 students. Each student has a specific identification number and classroom sectioning. Ace mentions that first-years rarely ever bump into the third-years. However, some classes can have combined lessons. Laboratory: The laboratory facility is used for Potions classes, but also serves as the Science Club's room for its extracurricular activities. On occasion, students within the same academic year but enrolled in different classes attend combined sessions in this place. Courtyard: Students tend to use the courtyard during their breaks. Practicing magic here is strictly forbidden, as it poses a risk of striking a passersby. Side Street: Connected to the Coliseum and main street. It's usually used for various school festivals. Coliseum: The Coliseum is used for Spelldrive matches and magic exams. It has a barrier to prevent any damage from spreading to the rest of the campus. It's also used for large events such as the Song & Dance Championship. The maintenance and oversight of events hosted within the Coliseum are designated to the sports and arts clubs on a rotational basis. Professionals handle a few specific tasks. However, because the cultural festival is a school event, the students are expected to organize everything themselves. Stables: The stables hold horses for the Equestrian Club. The club is also responsible for cleaning the stables. Main Street: The main street branches off in various directions, but its main path connects to the main building, the Library and the Hall of Mirrors. The statues of the Great Seven line the main street from each side. Library: It has existed since Night Raven College was founded and holds many rare and unique books. Some volumes cost tens of thousands of madols each. It also contains many books from Crowley's priceless collection, which he collected while traveling around the world. Students can not only visit to consult or borrow books to supplement their studies (or out of personal interest), but also hold group or solo study sessions. Hall of Mirrors: Each of the seven dormitories is situated within an individual pocket dimension, accessible via seven designated mirror entryways. The Hall of Mirrors houses these mirrors. Gymnasium and Sports Field: Used for PE Classes and by the Sport Clubs. Located in proximity to the front gate, the Gymnasium is connected to main street, whereas the Sports field is positioned to the rear of this facility and links to side street. Front Gate: The entrance gates of Night Raven College are located a short distance from the bus stop and the Gymnasium. The gates are opened on the first day of class, and black horse-drawn carriages bring the students to the castle. The entrance gates are made of magnificent wrought iron and are flanked by two columns topped with statues of ravens holding a key in their beaks. Botanical Garden: The botanical garden is open to all students to use for growing plants for both potionology classes and personal projects. Alchemy Workshop: Used by classes from the first to the third year, the workshop serves as a greenhouse and classroom for teaching Alchemy and Herbology. Set in special containers and reserved spaces, it houses many exotic and magical plants, including some that are extremely rare, hard to grow and maintain, or difficult to handle, such as Mandrakes. Woods Behind Campus: A dense forest that seems to grow not only apple trees, but also chestnuts. Students can use this land for harvesting. Ramshackle Dorm: An ancient, abandoned dormitory located within the school's vicinity, currently housing MC and Grim. Ghosts have been living inside the building too, prior to MC's arrival. Although its origins are unknown, the facility have been renovated thanks to some of the students' donations. Mister S's Mystery Shop: Mister S's Mystery Shop is run by Sam. Teachers and students visit the shop to buy snacks or unique items. Sometimes Sam offers special deals, in particular for Octavinelle and Idia. According to Crowley, the teachers get a faculty discount.

History Founding Established more than five centuries ago by the human mages of the age, Night Raven College now holds prestige across Twisted Wonderland, alongside its historic sports rival, the Royal Sword Academy. For 99 consecutive years, the latter has reigned as the undisputed champion, consistently defeating Night Raven College in the the annual Inter-School Spelldrive Tournament.

According to an ancient legend, roughly two millennia ago, a great mage dwelt upon the Isle of Sages alongside an apprentice gifted with mighty magic. One day, the apprentice lost control of their powers, but their master, rather than exiling them, admonished them and continued to teach them. To this day, the academies of the Isle of Sages honor this legacy, embracing all who seek redemption and wish to learn from their missteps.

Dormitories Over time, the academy established the seven current dormitories of Night Raven College modeling each after The Great Seven, a group of legendary and revered figures in Twisted Wonderland's history. Upon entering the school, students are sorted into these dorms based on the qualities of their souls.

Enrollment Students are only allowed to enroll in this school if they have the potential for being a great magician, a factor which is determined by the Dark Mirror. A black carriage will be sent to personally pick up incoming students, which can even travel underwater. They are kept unconscious in coffins called "Gates" until arriving at the academy. In most cases, they can only be awoken if their Gate is unlocked with a special key, however there are exceptions.

All students are given a magical pen upon enrollment. These are fountain pens which hold the user's magic gemstones, and so are also utilized as wands. The color of one's gemstone is determined by which dorm they are in. They are capable of changing form, but so far this has only been shown with the housewardens.

Students who have received an invitation to enroll in the school can choose to decline or ignore the offer. However, if someone changes their mind, they can approach the principal with the original invitation at any time. The principal will accept them if they are motivated to learn and enroll them in that year's new cohort of beginning magicians. Invitations have no time limit, and this policy applies even if the Headmage who sent the original invitation has retired.

Dark Mirror The Dark Mirror is a magical mirror that sorts the new students into one of the seven dorms based on the nature of the student's soul and essence of their being. It can only sort students who possess magical powers. While it's possible to transfer dorms, it's a complicated process and requires a new ritual.

Every year, this mirror is used to determine who is eligible to attend Night Raven College, and prior to MC's arrival, the Dark Mirror had never made a single mistake in its one hundred years of use. Regarded as one of NRC's most prized magical treasures artifacts, the Mirror Chamber is the location where it is enshrined and is strictly off-limits to outsiders regardless of circumstance, with the special exception of Halloween, during which photography is prohibited.

There are many types of magic mirrors, but ones like the Dark Mirror, are considered rare. Before coming to NRC, Vargas had never seen one. However, it's implied that its omniscience and power seems limited because items carried inside the Dark Mirror can disappear if someone is not careful with their luggage. Crowley always remembers that any valuable item should be sent through the mail. In Book 5, Jamil is skeptical about the mirror's power to identify the nature of souls.

School Mirror Ace implies that there is at least one mirror gate, called a school mirror, in each student’s hometown that only connects to the Dark Mirror within NRC. During the winter holidays, these mirror gates can close and disallow travel from one end to the other. If anyone needs to return to the school, they will have to use other modes of transportation.

Magestone Kept inside the Mirror Chamber, the Magestone is housed alongside the Dark Mirror and is one of Night Raven College's most precious objects. This magestone serves as a source of fairy energy for the fairies who work within the academy, making the campus buildings, including the seven dormitories, pleasantly livable all year round. Without this stone, it is impossible to power the fairies' magic and control the academy's climate.

However, the defenses of the chamber are not impenetrable; during the Fairy Gala story, fairies somehow managed to get in and steal this important object kept there.

School Life Academic Progression The school year begins in September every year. New students participate in a ceremony in the Mirror Chamber, which housewardens also attend each year. Each grade has about two hundred students, around thirty from each dorm. Dorms usually throw a welcome party for the freshmen the same night as the ceremony.

Night Raven College's school year is structured in a similar way to normal schools, with two semesters punctuated by winter and summer holidays and ending with a final exam. Students have the option of staying at NRC for the winter holidays. Those who choose to stay at the dorms during the holidays do not have to attend classes, and participate a feast on New Year. However, students whose scores on midterms are low have remedial classes during winter holiday.

Other than breaks and weekends, students do not receive holidays but are occasionally allowed to visit Foothill Town, the local village. There are various feasts in a year, and the school normally celebrates Halloween, Starsending, Night Raven College Founding Day, and Spelldrive Tournaments (Interdorm and Interscholastic).

Third years attend an orientation meeting in the springtime to prepare them for the application process. To graduate NRC, students must complete mandatory off-campus internships in their fourth year, which is a structure common among magic schools. Internships begin in September, around the same time classes start and they don't return to campus until the cultural festival in February. Because of this, seniors are unable to participate in a majority of school events until their return.

Obligatory rules for the fourth year There are three periods for the internship; students can choose to remain at the same site or take up to three different internships, each lasting three months. A student's internship site options will vary depending on the individual's electives, class credits, and grades. Some internships require special technical exams and/or interviews. Some internship sites will also scout students in advance. Each quarter, fourth years must receive an evaluation of B or higher, as well as submit a written report about their experience. In order to take the final exam to graduate, the student must receive credit in at least two out of three internships in order to qualify for graduation. Subjects of Study There are a variety of classes that include both the core curriculum and elective classes. All students are required to complete a set of exams to advance to the grade. Every year, there are always a couple of dropouts or students who have to repeat a grade. However, there have been no such cases for Heartslabyul after Riddle became the housewarden of that dorm.

Some fields of study taught at the school are: History of Magic, Physical Education (P.E.), Flying, Alchemy, Potionology, Magic Analysis, Poison Refining, Astrology, Practical Magic, Art, Musicology, Animal Linguistics, Technomantic Engineering and Ancient Magic.

History of Magic A required class. The lessons contain information about the names and deeds of significant people, important dates and events in magical history of the Great Seven. Its material seems to be sectioned into parts, each one taught to different grade years.

Flying and P.E. Flying is described as an elective class, and it is mentioned that not many Pomefiore students take it. All students must take part of P.E, but Physical Training and Swimming seem to be P.E. elective courses.

Alchemy Alchemy is the study of magical plants and fungi, including their care and their magical properties and uses. Some magical plants are important ingredients in potions, while others have magical effects on their own.

This class is a required course for all students, as it seems to provide the base knowledge for potion making before students qualify for other more complex science electives. Alchemy classes are held in the greenhouses and include many hands-on activities, such as taking care of the plants and harvesting them.

Potionology Potions are magical liquids created by mixing various ingredients in a cauldron following specific rules. These mixtures are usually consumed to gain their magical effect.

There are legal restrictions on who can brew and administer potions in society at large. Riddle even mentions licensed potion pharmacists that formulate potions, as those who consume them may undergo physiological changes. Magical potions can only be brewed by licensed professionals or under the supervision of a licensed professional like Crewel.

Some potions are ineffective if not brewed by the person who intends to drink it, while other potions require infusions of magic while harvesting the ingredient or preparing the potion in its cauldron.

Enigmics Enigmics is a branch of magic that was concerned with the magical properties of numbers. Enigmics at Night Raven College is taught by Professor Crewel. In his class, students are expected to write essays and to be able to understand complicated number charts, which are part of their homework.

Astrology Astrology is the system of using the relative positions of celestial bodies (including the sun, moon, and planets) to try to predict future events or gain insight into personality, relationships, and health. The students of Scarabia particularly excel in this subject.

Ancient Magic Ancient Magic is a subject and presumably be taken by students third year. It is the study of ancient language (or runes) and it is a mostly theoretical subject that studied the ancient scripts of magic.

Practical Magic Practical Magic involves using spell formulas in order to achieve a practical goal, such as autocleaning. Enchanting objects is described to be a "basic, rudimentary magic" that even first years are capable of performing. This is a required subject; failure to pass means you are held back one year.

Training Class There is a mandatory practical training class in which students fight magic projections of staff; this puts things learned in Practical Magic into use via combat. The practical training class used to be done off-campus in deserted areas booked for NRC use. This, however, led to issues like people going missing, students colluding, and fights between teachers and students. Modern technology has made it possible to create realistic environments and opponents while still on-campus.

Culinary Crucibles The Culinary Crucible is a program in which the student can develop culinary skills by helping in the Cafeteria. Those who pass the Culinary Crucible taste tests will be granted optional credit.

Art and Musicology Art and Musicology are required, as they encourage and expand one's imagination. This is important because spellcasting is enhanced by having a strong imagination.

Defense Magic In this class, students learn how to cast offensive and protective spells, as well as how to properly handle and deal with opponents. The lessons generally has a practical approach, with competent teachers like Crewel, but also has theoretical assignments given as homework. The class curriculum varies depending on the year and is a course that could be linked to Training Class and Practical Magic.

By his own admission, Leona seems particularly talented in this subject. This course is also called Protective Magic.

Summoning This course is a challenging arena of magic, requiring both breadth of knowledge and ability to quickly and accurately execute complicated procedures. It is Idia's favorite subject and, according to him, the summoning's basically a game IRL and parts of it feel just like it is filling out a bestiary or nabbing trophies. Despite the possibility of summoning a familiar or a fairy, the summoning would nonetheless cost a considerable amount of magic.

Deuce might have a natural talent in this field, as he was able to summon cauldrons even before his official training. However, summoning seems to have its limits: it appears impossible (or at least extremely difficult) to conjure something that doesn't exist. Deuce, for instance, can summon cauldrons only because they exist somewhere else in the world.

Abbreviated Spellcasting in Ancient and Modern Magic: Changes and Comparisons This course is a elective that involves drawing chronological charts and writing reports. Cater and Lilia avoided it, choosing Poison Refinement instead. It seems to be linked to the Ancient Magic course.

Animal Linguistics This course allows for the study and understanding of animal language. Students are required to take it starting from their first year, and each year the difficulty tends to increase.

Further subjects Elective courses we don't have much information about: Biology, Toxicology, Magic Energy Engineering, Mathematics and Poison Refining.

Vice-housewardens are picked by the Housewardens. Vice can be voted into power by the rest of the dorm’s members. For vice-housewardens, they seem to have the responsibility of supervising the dorms in the event that a Housewarden is unavailable. Housewardens can decide whether to implement a curfew. Heartslabyul and Pomefiore, each for their own need, have one while Diasomnia does not. Riddle also mentions needing to attend orientation rehearsal. Savanaclaw and Ignihyde currently lack vice-housewardens. They have the power to abolish the seat of vice. Housewardens are granted the privilege of altering their dorm uniform. It is revealed that Heartslabyul's Housewarden is responsible for assigning the suits of cards on each student's face, and applying it for the first time. Participation in the Arcane Academy Interscholastic Games is mandatory for Housewardens. Uncertain Rules Trey says that he can issue “a sleepover pass” as vice-housewarden, but it is unclear whether it is a power reserved for all Vice-Housewarden rather than something exclusive to Heartslabyul. Lilia says that students need the Housewarden’s permission to reserve the dorm lounge for events like parties, but it is not specified if this is a school rule or a Diasomnia rule. Riddle says that has been trained as a first responder in the event of an emergency, but it is unclear whether that rule only applies to Housewarden and Vice.

School Clubs The school has various clubs that are broadly divided into two categories: sports teams and cultural clubs. When creating a club, the student is required to declare which of the two categories the club is classified under to the school. The creation of new clubs is subject to the approval of the headmage. There is a Student Club Fair held at the beginning of each school year.

During the intercultural festival, sports teams assist with manual labour, such as setting up the SDC stage, while the cultural clubs prepare booths to showcase their respective club's activities. It seems that there's no minimum number of members needed in order to run a club, as some clubs have only one member. However, every student must join a club.

Should club members exhibit poor academic performance, the designated hours for club activities may be subject to reduction.

---

Royal Sword Academy Considered one of the two powerhouse schools in the world of Twisted Wonderland along with Night Raven College. It's NRC's rival school and has beaten them in Spelldrive tournaments for 99 years straight.

The school is located on the southern coast of Sage's Island.

According to Leona and Ruggie, it’s a school full of snotty, pampered rich princes, and their school buildings and uniforms are needlessly flashy. Judging from Leona's line, it can be assumed that Royal Sword Academy is also an all-boys school.