Ryoma Raidou

* Bio

**Ryoma Raidou** (雷道 (ライドウ)  龍馬, *Raidou Ryoma*?) is a third year student and the dorm leader of Ignihyde of his generation (23rd). Primary *Onmyōji* General of the Shogunate's military, he specializes in air magic and is a highly respected samurai amongst the military's ranks.

Residing high in Daimyo-ruled lands, Ryoma's position as the Primary General of the Shogunate's miitary means that he answers to the Raiden Shogun and nobody else. As the Shogun's right hand man, he handles all of her decisions that pertain to the safety of the Seraph Empire and the Shogunate's citizens. Like a gentle storm that grows in intensity and power when it is threatened, so too does Ryoma strike down all of the Shogunate's enemies.

Amongst his clan members, he is known as **Young Master Suzaku** or **Young Master Vermillion Bird** due to his fierceness in battle and general ruthlessness. His older sister Rikyū is known amongst their fellow clan members as **Exalted Daimyo Byakko** or **Exalted Feudal Lord White Tiger** while his own daughter would come to be known by her father's clansmen as **Hime Seiryū** or **Princess Azure Dragon** for her affinity towards the water element and general disposition towards providing for her clansmembers.

## Profile

### Introduction

Amongst the storied Dorm Leaders of Night Raven College, there have an exceptional few that are considered to be incredibly popular amongst the current generation (in the current events of the game), Ryoma is the few Dorm Leaders whose name is wide-spread not just for his accomplishments during his tenrue but also for his accomplishments after leaving the school in the field of warfare. The aster flower, which symbolizes Wisdom, Faith, and Valor was named in honor of Ryoma's shattered blade Aster-Malleys. **Onmyōdō** (陰陽道, also *In'yōdō*, lit. 'The Way of Yin and Yang') was practiced by Ryoma and some of his leading Emissary friends of their school generation.

### Personality

An *Onmyōji* specialist, Ryoma's demeanor is like that of the wind and cannot be contained by mortal means, only being contained in some form by his even-temperment and lack of true aggression towards the mortals of the world. Focusing more on the magical part of his job instead of divination himself, Ryoma is capable of listening to nature's sounds and has an innate ability to utilize magic to a high fidelity. A traveler who is constantly wandering the lands of various nations, especially the Empire in which he was born---Ryoma is a self-taught swordsmith, and sword user having taught himself martial arts amongst other skills---never seeking luxury, he is dismayed by the lavishness and riches provided to him by his family members. Much like a snake, he appears to be cold-blooded being incredibly pleased just by sleeping on a sun-warmed rock---his older sister Rikyū appears to be his hot-blooded opposite, favoring to sleep indoors---while their parents preferred to sleep both indoors and outdoors. He can sense dangers, read people and track them down in an instant no matter how well they try to conceal it, hence his job as a *Onmyōji* specialist. He is so skilled in this field, that he is the foremost tracking specialist for the Shogunate, despite his family's traditionally being primary Generals for the military of the Shaftlands' Empire. Calm weather is his preferred weather, as it makes his tracking far more efficent and never stays in one place for too long, due to fearing the stagnation of his skills.

### Appearance

Gentle and lilting like the wind, Ryoma's appearance is a stark reminder of the perilious times through which he had lived, one of his closest childhood friends Raiden Ken being slain in a final attempt to protect him from a malicious demon during their childhood years with his young, mallable mind being scarred from the experience forever. His softness masks the tired but powerful, waiting warrior inside. His attire is standard-wear for the Raidou clan which walks the "thunder path" of which they are fated to never return, sacrificing their lives in the name of the Shaftlands and it's innocent citizens. He has platinum blonde hair with a single orange-red streak on his right. He has red eyes with a yellow hue at the bottom, unusual features that make him stand out amongst the *Onmyōdō* specialists.

When he was the dorm leader of Ignihyde, battle-wear was incredibly popular, the split hakama pants and haori's being a standard part of dorm-wear.

## Story

### History

Little is known about the early history of Ryoma Raidou, childhood best friend of Prince Ken of the Raiden clan beside what is already common knowledge. Born into the high-ranking military-aligned Raidou clan, one of three major clans sworn to eternal servitude underneath the watchful eye of the Shaftlands' Empire and the entire Imperial Family. From a young age, Ryoma was overshadowed by his far more talented but also burdened older sister, with the hopes of the clan passing onto the shoulders of Rikyū. Free from the burdens faced by his older sister, Ryoma turned out to be far more carefree than the other members of his family, often attracting critism for his far more playful and swiftly shifting demeanor. **Sirin** or **Senhime** (千姫, *Princess Sen*?), as she was known before ascending as a member of the divine, notes that Ryoma and the Raidou Clan's members are incredibly old compared to most of the currently ruling dynasties but fairly young compared to some of the most famed divine. Ryoma "split" from the rest of his family but especially his older sister Rikyū — making the decision to serve as her spymaster during the second iteration of the interfaith wars while Rikyū would serve as the head of the Raidou and lead the military during the second iteration of the interfaith wars — this partnership lasted until the death of Raiden Kendrix, Ryoma's fiancée. Heartbroken by Kendrix's death, Ryoma withdrew from all familial functions and eventually ran away from the family's estate, in order to fufill the last wishes of his fiancée. The current Raiden Shogun, Iwasaki Mei, found Ryoma lying nearly half-dead and nursed him back to help before offering a chance for revenge against the current world order. Unwilling to take revenge, Ryoma refused his chance to get revenge but accepted her offer to work underneath her.

He would rise in rank until he joined the ranks of the Primary General---his likability and general lack of bias made him a promising young General---to the point where even the current Raiden Shogun, Iwasaki Mei appointed Ryoma as her current right hand man in order to protect the interests of the Seraph Empire and the Shogunate from those greedy enough to attempt to take down the current reigning ruler.

## Synopsis

### Current Era

#### Prologue (Main Game Storyline)

Ryoma is first mentioned within the prologue as being the mentor to the first-year transfer students; Iwasaki Nori, Kenta Kamisato, and Sora Kamizato.

## Trivia

* 龍馬 is comprised of kanji that carry the meanings of "dragon" and "horse" while the kanji for his surname 雷道 (ライドウ)  means "thunder path"---the translation of his name is "Thunder Path of the Dragon Horse" which directly references the Longma from Chinese mythology.
* Thunderous silence is a phrase constantlly used in reference to Ryoma's swordsmanship and is an oxymoron, being a silence so profound it is, itself, loud.
* **Onmyōdō** (陰陽道, also *In'yōdō*, lit. 'The Way of Yin and Yang') is a system of natural science, astronomy, almanac, divination and magic. It is distinct from the system first developed in China earlier on.
* Ryoma's demo theme, "Wandering Soul" is based on the Japanese folk song *Sakura Sakura*.
* The aster flower, which symbolizes Wisdom, Faith, and Valor was both named in honor of Ryoma's shattered blade Aster-Malleys, as well as the aster ore (the standard ore mined from the Onmyōdō Temple of the northern Shaftlands), and Malleys after one of the most famed Aster Onmyōdō practioners Malleys Draconia.
* Malleus Draconia is believed by many to have been named after Malleys Draconia, who was a member of the Draconia Dynasty during the 10th century and earlier. Given that Ryoma has clear knowledge of who she is and even reportably worked in extensive projects with her, it can be assumed that Ryoma is closely allied with the Draconia Dynasty and Malleus Draconia. Though she "claimed" to neither hold either in-depth knowledge of her or know her well enough to describe her personality, she contradictes herself in one of her quotes claiming to having worked in the same department of Onmyōdō "as her" (directly referencing Malleys) and "as co-patriots in the Imperial Senate".
	+ Eden, a Draconia Imperialist Historian for the Briar Valley Press Association for the Conservation of the Arts and Sciences, even wrote an entire paper contradicting Ryoma and even provided substaintial pieces of evidence to back her point of view up. It is not currently known (in-universe and irl) why Ryoma has denied being close with his fellow Onmyōdō practioner but it is generally assumed to be a form of preserving a person's identity.
		- Later it was revealed that Ryoma taught Malleys, his form of Onmyōdō and was the fae's mentor, having fought alongside Malleys during the Second Cataclysm. In honor of his close friend, ally, and favored student, he named his blade (at the time) Aster-Malleys.
* Ryoma is believed to have knowledge of other dimensions and dimensional travel, given how his fourth victory Quote "*あなたはここに来た最初のアウトランダーではありませんし、最後でもないでしょう.*" "*Anata wa koko ni kita saisho no autorandāde wa arimasenshi, saigo demonaideshou*" = "You are not the first Outlander to come here nor shall you be the last either" directly refers to the MC's other-dimensional nature and the MC's true homeland. Being a descendant of the divine as well as a skilled Onmyōji, may very explain his knowledge of such things.
* The author wanted to create a character that combined the appearance, general personality, and swordsmanship skills of Kaedehara Kazuha, but also had the seemingly endless emptiness of the Shogun puppet, as well as the sterness and same views on eternity as Raiden Ei.
* Ryoma's name was inspired by the Japanese dragon or (日本の竜, *Nihon no ryū*), as in Japanese mythology dragons are seen as symbols of good luck and were often prayed to in the past of Ancient Japan, as well as the present time. Moreover, the author felt that dragons were instrumental to the development of the character and felt that giving this particular member of the Raidou clan such an aspicious name meant that he would be blessed with good luck in the story universe.

## Quotes

### English

* (To Malleus Draconia about Malleys Draconia) "*She was one of the most famed Aster Onmyōdō practioners of her day and age, though I didn't know her personally. We worked in the same department of Onmyōdō and as co-patriots in the Imperial Senate but I didn't know her enough to speak about her. If you're working for a person who knew her well, one of my historian friends might be the best people to ask about Malleys.*"

### Japanese

* (First Sequence Attack) "*星を授けよ！*" "*Hoshi o sazukeyo!*" = "Ordain the stars!"
* (Idle Quote) "*眠れる星よ 我が刃は真実に鳴り響く 透き通った月の水の輪は儚い宮殿の中で空洞に*". "*Nemureru hoshi yo waga ha wa shinjitsu ni narihibiku sukitōtta tsuki no mizu no wa wa hakanai kyūden no naka de kūdō ni*" = "Sleeping stars, my blade rings true, clear moon water rings hollow in the ephemeral palace"
* (Pondering Quote) "*この世界の「真実」とは何だろうか？*" "*Kono sekai no `shinjitsu' to wa nanidarou ka?*" = "I wonder, what is the "truth" of this world?"
* (Victory Quote I) "*安らかに過ごされますように*" "*Yasuraka ni sugosa remasu yō ni*" = "May you pass in peace"
* (Victory Quote II) "*永遠を象徴する刃は不変であり、死にも人間の野心にも打ち負かされることはありません。受け流すには完璧すぎるブレードだ。*" "*Eien o shōchō suru ha wa fuhendeari, shini mo ningen no yashin ni mo uchi makasa reru koto wa arimasen. Ukenagasu ni wa kanpeki sugiru burēdoda.*" = "The blade that symbolizes eternity is unchanging and cannot be overridden by either mortality or human ambition. It is a blade too perfect to be parried."
* (Victory Quote III) "*これは永遠です！*" "*Kore wa eiendesu!*" = "This is eternity!"