Characters for Sword Princess Altina. Beware unmarked spoilers.
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Antagonists: Listed in order of appearance
Vincent:
The strategist of the seventh division, and the one who defeated Regis at strategy during their tenure at their respective academies.- Break the Haughty: During his volume 5 introduction, he'd have to work very hard to be any more arrogant than he is shown. At the end of volume 5, he is very broken indeed.
- Insane Troll Logic: Briefly in Volume 5 chapter 4 and 5. He somehow came to the conclusion that Regis was responsible for his "brilliant" strategy completely falling apart. The lieutenant general running the seventh division had to correct him harshly.
- Never My Fault: Blames Regis for his shortsightedness.
- Pride Before a Fall: Undefeated tactical strategist in the academy. Head strategist of the fifth division. Second in command at the fifth division. Heir to a long noble bloodline. Completely insufferable sot. Loses all of it in a single battle at the end of Volume 5.
- Suicidal Overconfidence: After a completely unblemished many year record of strategic victories in mock combat simulations (the one where he beat Regis most likely rigged), he came to believe he's infallible. He's not, and the seventh division paid for it, dearly.
- This Cannot Be!: He utterly fails to comprehend what's happening to him and the seventh division in Volume 5.
- Villainous Breakdown: Truly epic in scope. He has a complete mental breakdown that causes him to regress to the capacity of a small child.
- We Have Reserves: His "strategy" for dealing with the approaching Britannia army was nothing more than a glorified suicidal charge, hoping to overwhelm them with sheer numbers. It goes very, very badly.
Franziska
One of the younger sisters of Mercenary King Gilbert- Ax-Crazy: With the exception of her siblings, and to a lesser extent her mercenary band, she's only got two modes towards people, violent and bloodthirsty.
- Becoming the Mask: She begins to question if Regis is as much of a monster as she's been told due to eavesdropping on his strategic meetings with Latrielle. She ultimately subverts it after chapter 7 of volume 10. She plays it completely straight with Bastian, however.
- Improbable Aiming Skills: She shoots a Germanium Federation soldier turned bandit through the eye with her crossbow, fully intending to do so, without carefully aiming first.
- Leeroy Jenkins: Even more than Altina. She rushes in to battle, in close combat, without preparation, strategy, or back up despite her specialty being ambush, the crossbow, and agility.
- Shameful Strip: At the end of Volume 8, she and both her sisters are surrounded by Germanium Soldiers turned brigand, and the leader outright demands that she remove all her clothing, not just to humiliate her, but so that he and his merry band can have some fun.
- Suicidal Overconfidence: Even though her own brother, Gilbert, constantly scolds her that anything can happen in battle, she's completely convinced that she'll win any fight she gets into. Had it not been for Altina's sword breaking in Volume 5, Altina may well have killed her.
- Sweet Tooth: She loves sweets, like cakes, but being a member of a travelling mercenary band, she doesn't get much opportunity to indulge. Since Bastian buys some cakes for her in the capital, she really grows to like him, even if he's not very savvy.
- Waif-Fu: She's exceptionally nimble, and excellent at scaling trees.
Mercenary King Gilbert.
The commander of the mercenary band Renard Pendu.- The Apprentice: Due to his exceptional strength, his primary job is working under Enzo Smith, something he does gladly after Enzo covers for him when he accidentally picked up a sword without permission and could have been struck down.
- Badass Family: Every one of his siblings, including himself, is someone to be reckoned with, even the youngest, Martina, who is only 10 years old.
- Boxed Crook: He pretty much becomes this at the start of Volume 8. Altina offers him his life in exchange for serving her, faithfully, as opposed to the ransom or execution that normally occurs with captured enemy soldiers. Captured mercenaries usually get execution.
- Combat Pragmatist: His actions may be morally dubious, but as a mercenary, victory is all that matters.
- Genius Bruiser: While he lacks any formal education, and hasn't gotten his hands on books like Regis, it's a suicidal error in judgement to think he's stupid. Notably, his long experience in battle and his instincts has him not only see through Regis's strategy in volume 7, but be completely able to counter it. Further, he takes very reasonable precautions to prevent the gunpowder and other explosive supplies his group is carrying from becoming victim to stray fire and causing unintended explosions.
- Graceful Loser: When summarily beat down by Altina, having his trident utterly obliterated by a fully re-forged Quatre-Tonne, he surrenders quietly, with nothing but the highest respect for her strength and skill.
- I Owe You My Life: To Enzo Smith after the latter covered for him so he wouldn't be struck down by Altina's guards for picking up a weapon without permission.
- Laughing Mad: He breaks down and laughs at Altina when he hears about Latrielle taking the throne because she won't be able to keep her very sincere promise to make the mercenary band, Renard Pendu, an independent country.
- Martial Pacifist: Surprisingly. Unlike Franziska, he only kills because the alternative is his death, or the death of his loved ones. He does not like it.
- Poisonous Person: His trident is poisoned.
- Ragtag Bunch of Misfits: Turns out the mercenary group, Renard Pendu is this, and he's its leader.
- The Stoic: He is always calm and composed, and doesn't let his emotions show or get the better of him.
- Taught by Experience: He's got a long, distinguished record as the lead mercenary of Renard Pendu, and it shows. He's the first antagonist to ever be able to effectively counter one of Regis's strategies.
- Villain Respect: He praises Jerome's fighting capability after briefly engaging the latter in single combat, although both of them withdraw without harming each other. Better, he has nothing but the highest respect for Regis's brilliant strategic thinking, despite being only the second character to actually see through it, and the first to actually succeed in countering it, and for Altina's impressive swordsmanship.
Jessica:
Franziska's older sister and the head strategist of the mercenary band, Renard Pendu.- Leaning on the Fourth Wall: Her intelligence gathering or "divination" is so acute she knows things that only the audience should, like the fact that Margeret is motivated purely by boredom, or Regis has aligned with Latrielle. It's almost as if she's somehow got herself a copy of the earlier volumes and read them. The reason her ability is not infallable is that she doesn't have the "future editions."
- Precognition: She uses the pseudo-science of astrology to "divine" the movements of the movers and shakers in the world setting. Truthfully, it's merely a cover for her exceptional intelligence gathering capabilities, though it's not infallible, as the end of volume 7 reveals.
- The Strategist: She serves this role for Renard Pendu.
Martina:
Franziska's younger sister and the youngest of Gilbert's siblings shown to date.- Badass Adorable: She may be 10 years old, but she's already quite impressive, though she hasn't taken direct action in combat yet.
- Big Sister Worship: She adores her older sister, Franziska, and aspires to be just like her.
- Child Soldier: She's 10, but is an active member of Renard Pendu despite not having any direct combat roles.
- Sweet Tooth: As expected of a healthy 10-year-old, she loves sweets.
Paul Langschultz:
The new king of the Leonbalt Kingdom.- Berserk Button: If any of his soldiers or advisors recommend retreat, or worse surrender, for any reason, he immediately goes into a cataleptic rage.
- Bling of War: He's introduced decked out in a fine military uniform with a chest full of medals.
- Dogged Nice Guy: "Nice" is debatable, but he's clearly trying to woo Margaret's favor by doting on her with gifts, and entertainment. She finds it all boring and tells him, to his face, that she throws it away.
- Glory Hound: All he cares about is getting as much glory for himself as possible. This makes it very easy to lead him into a trap or ambush. Something Regis exploits to its fullest in volume 10.
- Hopeless Suitor: He's smitten with Margaret Steelheart. She's completely unmoved.
- Hormone-Addled Teenager: Despite being 25, he lets his gonads do his thinking for him, and falls for Margeret, letting himself and his army become a spectacle of death for her amusement.
- Humiliation Conga: A truly glorious and satisfying one occurs in the final chapters of Volume 10. Having his delusions of glory dashed over and over again, he's left with no choice but to throw his armor away and smack the rising river water with his sword in impotent rage, and because of his despicable use of human shields, he knows he has no way to negotiate an honorable surrender for himself or his men.
- Miles Gloriosus: He thinks he's a great general and brilliant strategist, able to utterly curbstomp the Belgarian First army with ease. In reality, he's a clown, blindly charging out to the battlefield due to Margeret lifting her skirt to Show Some Leg.
- Rank Scales with Asskicking: Implied. He's a highly decorated general, the narration notes he's very competent in battle, and he rules the Germanium Federation.
- Suicidal Overconfidence: He thinks that just because he's got his hands on the new High Britanian rifles, and has numerical superiority, his army is unstoppable, and the Belgarians he's chosen to antagonize can only charge like feral beasts. He's completely wrong. To make matters worse, he knew that Belgaria's top strategist, Regis, was going to be directing the enemy army, and Regis is famous at this point for his brilliant, often unorthodox, and highly effective strategies.
- This Cannot Be!: All he can do as his every move and order was foreseen and countered by Regis's bold strategy is shout "Impossible!" at the top of his lungs, while his troops are in full disarray and being worn down piece by piece.
- Underestimating Badassery: To the point of I Reject Your Reality. He constantly tells himself that Regis seeing through him and coming up with overwhelmingly competent strategies and tactics were all "just a fluke."
- Unwitting Pawn: He's so hormone addled for Margeret, that he doesn't realize how much she led him around by the nose until over an hour after she's left him to twist in the wind, with Belgaria's army rightly pissed due to his comitting numerous war atrocities, even by the in-universe standards.
- Villainous Breakdown: When his aides recommend retreat as his forces start getting torn appart by the First Army, he completely loses his composure and orders a suicidal charge into a meat-grider that Regis set up beforehand. After getting cocky because the Belgarian army withdrew, he gets a much bigger breakdown when a flash-flood annihilates his infantry, negates the advantage of his cavalry, and leaves him trapped in the Belgarian fortress he occupied, watching helplessly as the river waters continue to rise.
Lagenbolt Commander Ricks:
- Glory Hound: Despite the orders of his Lagonbalt king, he takes to the field, personally, so he can make a name for himself, by boasting the highest kill count. It doesn't matter to him if his kills are soldiers or unarmed civilians.
- In the Back: Because he was tormenting a lone Belgarian soldier trying to defend unarmed Belgarian citizens, he neglected the Belgarian cavalry coming up behind him, who threw a lance through his chest from behind to save their loyal citizens.
- Laser-Guided Karma: He attacked civilians, used human shields, and tormented a lone Belgarian soldier protecting unarmed civilians. He gets killed with a spear from behind, and his thuggish army is torn to pieces while in disarray.
- Misplaced Retribution: Because Regis was able to read through his king's very simplistic movements, and take his army apart, he takes the troops under his command to go after unarmed Belgarian citizens, including women and children, even infants. After the majority of those troops get taken out by a lone, brave Belgarian soldier, he tries to take said soldier down through a death of a thousand cuts. Of course, he neglects the Belgarian cavalry reinforcements that Regis sent to guard the fleeing civilian captives bearing down on him while he does it.
Supporting and other characters
Warning unavoidable spoilers ahead. Read at your own risk
Eleanor Ailred Winn de Tiraso Laverde
A merchant from a noble house that helps Regis with his plans against Prince Latrielle in Volume 3.- An Entrepreneur Is You: She runs several different trading companies.
- A Friend in Need: She backs Regis and Altina despite Latrielle being the favorite. Her bet pays off.
- The Gadfly: She deliberately leaves a lipstick mark on Regis, in a difficult place, just to see him squirm.
- Polyamory: She has three husbands and still had no problem flirting with Regis.
