Hildegard

"..........."

### Relatives

Sir Frederick of the Sunguard (father, alive)Annette (mother, missing) Ruben (grandfather, deceased)

## Introduction

**Hildegard** is a *traveler* originating from the city of Solwatch. She is very light with words, often choosing to speak in small sentences and would leave strange pauses in her speech, often confusing those that have conversed with her.

Hildegard suffers from a mental illness that makes it difficult for her to socialize and feel comfortable when around other people. This also causes her to be very delusional: often choosing to believe in legends and tales without much explanation or logic given to her. Hildegard also experiences hallucinations, and sometimes her hallucinations would coincide with her more recent delusions, often claiming to have heard voices or seen images pertaining to a legend or myth. However, her hallucinations mostly consists of people that are in close proximity of her, often hearing voices that speak about her in a negative tone. She has a strong belief that no one truly likes her, often referring to those who had conversed and spent time with her as mere "acquaintances."

## Backstory

Hildegard was born to a knight by the name of Sir Frederick, and a woman called Annette who was an artisan from Hallengard. Her name was chosen by her mother, with the belief that she would one day develop an arm suitable for battle.

### Childhood

At a very young age, her mother went missing. Her father would later claim that she had returned to her homeland, although the integrity of this claim is questionable. Her father, seemingly busy with his duties. gave Hildegard over to his own father, who was more than happy to raise her.

Hildegard then grew up in a somewhat isolated environment. Her Grandfather was the only person whom she felt truly had love for her and, in return, loved him very much. Her Grandfather would then teach her the basics in wielding a sword and using a bow starting at an early age. Her Grandfather also taught her how to cook various nutritious soups using herbs gathered from the surrounding land, in preparation of the day when Hildegard must live on her own.

Hildegard, even at an early age, experienced delusions and hallucinations. While in more recent times she is a little more resistant to her hallucinations, in her earlier years she would hate to be around other people aside from her Grandfather out of fear that they would be out to harm her. She would constantly see shadows around the corners of non-illuminated buildings, which fueled her paranoia even further. Eventually, she would develop the belief that her own father planned to murder her due to his very rare visits. Consolations given by her Grandfather would have little effect in changing this belief.

One day while Hildegard and her Grandfather were at a local market, she witnessed a nobleman riding through. A distressed peasant was seen screaming at the nobleman and his guards, with demands involving compensation for the peasantry of the kingdom. The nobleman, as seen through the eyes of Hildegard, spat on the man and continued to ride pass the crowd. This, combined with various other comments overheard by the populace, would birth a hatred for nobility.

One winter, her Grandfather had gotten sick. She cradled him into her arms on his last day, and would later bury him deep in a forest. She would then gather a few of her belongings, and depart from her home forever.

### Arrival

A week after her Grandfather's passing, Hildegard would then decide to seek out her mother in search of closure. Hildegard then set out for a port city in Ascad, in hopes of potentially convincing a sailor to give her passage to the Hales.

A sailor had agreed to let her onto his ship, however she would need to help man the ship as his crew was several men short, and the sailor could not afford to hire more men. Hildegard reluctantly agreed to this agreement, and had set sail for the Hales a day after. Hildegard made it a priority to have her sheath remain in her sight at all times, despite the liking the sailor and the crew had for her.

After several months aboard the ship, the crew had finally arrived in the Hales. Upon reaching the Aedwin harbor, Hildegard cut ties with the crew and rejected any sort of monetary compensation from them. From then on, she searched for her mother vigorously, but to no avail. Believing that she was long dead, she moved on.

## Present Day/Her Time in The Hales.

One day, she had met a self-proclaimed knight who had an obsession with folklore and theology. The knight would then inform her of a variety of things, such as his concerns over the Hales and its leadership, as well as the existence of The Gate. The knight would also tell her that he believes she might be a hero of Hedatist myth. Hildegard had believed the man, and would soon fear The Gate as much as him.

Hildegard, aspiring to live up to what this man had thought of her, would gather information over the nature of the alleged hero she was assumed to be a reincarnation of. Poorly masking her identity to avoid potential humiliation, she sought out the wisdom of a Hedatist woman whom she thought was a scholar of sorts. Hildegard eventually met this woman at a local tournament after searching for her for some time. The woman, seemingly irritated by Hildegard's intrusion, would then give her the answers to all of the questions she had for her.

Hildegard's determination to live up to what the man had thought of her was completely shattered. Not only did she lack the physical traits of one who would be the alleged mythical hero, but she was completely ignorant to the fact that the mythical hero would never be reincarnated. Bidding farewell to the woman, Hildegard left the scene, feeling humiliated and lied to.

A few weeks would pass, and she would not get over the humiliation she had faced. However, one day, she had heard word of The Kingdom of Signendia planning an attack on Aedwin. She had strong suspicions that they were going to attempt to open The Gate, and release what she believed to be an evil God held captive within. Having discarded the hope that she was a mythical hero of some sort, she retained a desire to stand against the Signendians. Upon entering the city however, she was quickly escorted out of the city as well as facing further humiliation from the guards that had escorted her. Hildegard then made an effort to enter the catacombs from behind the city.

Once she had reached The Gate, Hildegard slumped down on a wall and waited for what seemed like forever to her. She experienced hallucinations that tormented her continuously, often echoing the voices of the people she believed to have mocked her as well as the voices of people she had considered acquaintances, berating her for her inadequacy and stupidity. At one point, she even believed the rats that ran around the cave were mocking her.

After spending nearly 8 hours, Hildegard finally decided to leave the catacombs to check on the state of the war, only to discover the complete annihilation of the Signendian invasion force. Despite the seemingly pleasant news, she felt no relief whatsoever. She continued into the city, and sat on a stool inside The Ol' Beard. Over the coming days, she would develop an illness she believes to have been cast by The Gate.

Hildegard, for a time, gave up any interest in protecting The Gate, at the behest of another acquaintance. However, she had begun to hear rumours of a potential Hallengard incursion on the Kingdom of Aedwin. Hildegard had begun to panic as a result. As she was roaming the town in search of answers, she found the very same man who had warned her to never approach the Gate. She had found him confronting the King of Aedwin in a heated argument. She began to fear for the Gate more than ever despite being warned not to, and rushed into the catacombs immediately after.

As she was running in the catacombs, she had fallen down the steps leading to the Gate and injured her leg. Despite this setback, she continued onward until she finally reached the Gate, where she waited approximately 4 hours.

As she slowly returned to the surface, she found out that no battle had occurred. However, while roaming the city in search of someone, she nearly collapsed and held on to a nearby table. However, the King of Aedwin had helped her into his own armory where she would be cared for. This event would then change her perception of nobility, as she had previously thought of him as a generic noble who cared not for his citizens.

### **Final Days**

Over the course of many months, Hildegard experienced a series of events that would range from terrible to promising. From her inner belief that she was cursed, to outright declarations from certain individuals that she was a witch who would bring forth the end times. One day however, a man who previously cared for her offered her a job as a chef. Not knowing how to make complicated meals aside from soup and bread, she accepted the job with hopes that it would lead to an escape from her inner torment.

But her new duties did not halt the voices she heard, nor did it truly extinguish the belief that she was cursed. A fact that she quickly realized as she visited Aedwin when accompanying King Sion's group during a diplomatic mission. Having been reminded of The Gate, she fully lost hope of ever escaping from the delusions that had plagued her for so long. Hildegard decided to finally purge herself of the alleged curse once and for all. With the hope she would be redeemed for the sins she had committed and be free from the grasp of her delusions, she made her way to Greenfields.

As she looked over the waterfall, Hildegard, for the first time, felt truly relieved and with a real sense of purpose. Knowing what must be done, and that the delusions that had haunted her would soon disappear, she clenched her fist and approached the rope of the bridge; the final barrier between Hildegard and the salvation that awaited her. As she climbed over the rope, a genuine smile formed on her face.

Having written a farewell note to the two people she had ever considered true friends, she leapt towards salvation; the hope that she would at last be relieved of the curse that had plagued her for so long.

The *traveler* whom the people of the Hales knew as **Hildegard** has since perished.

## Personality + Other Info

Hildegard was very timid and paranoid, and was seemingly on edge at every moment. Despite this, she was known to be courteous with others, even with those that had wronged her in the past. She was slow to get angry or irritated. She had a great memory, and is able to remember many events that may seem insignificant to some.

### Trivia

* Hildegard has a very strong affinity for soup.
* Hildegard is a moderately skilled acrobat, although she gets injured more often than she might think.
* Hildegard has moderate combat experienced, but is terrible with a bow. Nonetheless, she carries a flimsy bow and a small supply of arrows.
* Hildegard has a dislike for nobility.
* Hildegard, however, has an interest in a person she simply refers to as The Conqueror.
* Along with soup, Hildegard also has a liking for herbal water.
* Hildegard was loosely inspired by the values that were rolled through the /getvalues command in-game.
* She had maternal feelings towards a certain Mute from Hallengard, and often took it upon herself to watch over him.