Nalrond

**Nalrond** is a Werefolk and last surviving member of the Rezar Tribe, a tribe of Light Masters.

## Appearance

### Human Form

Nalrond's human form resembles a man in his mid 20's about 1.84 meters (6') tall, with a lean and toned body. He has raven black hair, green eyes, and bronze skin, making him resemble someone from the Blood Desert.

### Rezar Form

In his Rezar form, Nalrond resembles a giant humanoid Pangolin. He stands about 2.5 meters (8'2") tall with his body covered by large hardened overlapping plate-like scales. His belly and the inner side of his paws as well as his snout are covered with soft grey fur. His head looks like an anteater and he has a long tail coming out of his back. His hands extend into 30 cm (1 ft) long claws.

### Life Forces

His two life forces are completely isolated from each other by an airtight barrier that prevents any energy exchange.

### Soul Projection

A giant figure resembling his Rezar half floats in mid-air, clawing at the human half while weeping non-stop.

### True Form

Nalrond's human and beast sides stop fighting against each other and both now hang from a cliff, their bodies covered in deep wounds from the fall and the long battle. They are partly fused together so if one of them dies, the other would quickly follow. It is clear that they still can't decide whether to prioritize survival or put an end to their struggle once and for all.

## Personality

Nalrond is straightforward and blunt, never one to mince words. After Acala's betrayal and the death of his entire village, he sabotaged his relationships due to the fear of finding happiness again. As long as he was alone, no one could hurt him whereas letting someone get close to him also implied the risk of getting hurt again.

## Abilities

Having two cores grants Nalrond double the mana pool of a normal creature and twice the effects of fusion magic. His hybrid form has poor eyesight but enhanced hearing and smell. The Rezar is able to curl up in a ball, using air fusion to roll faster and earth magic to remove all obstacles from his path. He is able to feel vibrations through the scales covering his anteater-like body and can raise his scales to expose their razor-sharp edge and infuse them with air and darkness magic.

He has a breathing technique that lets him call world energy to himself, allowing his twin cores to breathe in what the other breathes out. This makes sure no world energy is wasted, generating a slow but constant flow that replenishes his mana, though it is no Invigoration.

Nalrond practiced the mystical arts since he was four, studying light magic his entire life and is specialized in manipulating life forces. Since his people were searching for a cure to their condition they studied the separation of life forces from conception, making them experienced with unborn children.

With his constructs, Nalrond is a fantastic babysitter, but a terrible cook and is forbidden by Selia from using the stove except for warming non-explosive liquids.

## Background

The Rezars lived in the Fringes in peace, becoming Light Masters and Healers thanks to Dawn. However, she managed to escape by manipulating Acala who had sought refuge with the tribe into becoming her host, and annihilated the tribe. Nalrond survived because he had Blinked away early to heal from an injury, and Dawn's monopoly over the light element prevented him from saving anyone.

Ever since the destruction of his village, Nalrond had never reverted to his human form for long, letting his grief and animal fury drive his actions. When Rangers Lith Verhen and Acala investigate the vampire hideout in the Kusha route, Nalrond infiltrates the cave and makes his way to them. Nalrond attacks Lith, mistaking Solus for Dawn. He briefly realizes his mistake and runs away to recover.

When Dawn lures Lith to the undead, Nalrond appears and attacks Acala, exposing the cursed object. After a brief three-way skirmish Lith brings Nalrond inside Solus as she assumes Tower Form, where he explains the origin of the Werefolk and Acala's betrayal leading to becoming Dawn's host. The pair make their way to Dawn's Odi laboratory and fight Dawn's vampires. After Dawn's defeat, Nalrond asks Lith to kill him, content with having avenged his people. However, Lith while fused with Solus directs Nalrond to Protector's home.

Nalrond proves to be a valuable housekeeper to Selia and the children with his hard light constructs. He explains how he wandered around human and beast communities before finding a sense of belonging with the Fastarrows, but inadvertently reveals Solus' existence to Selia. Later, Lith brings Nalrond to meet Faluel to help cure Rena's triplet of the Strangler disease.

Nalrond accompanies the Verhens to Jambel after Lith's promotion to Archmage, where Tista has him pose as her boyfriend to ward of potential suitors. He uses Lith's hologram to create a hard light baby stroller to the delight of the mothers present. Lith brings him and Tista to the silver mines where they meet Zolgrish and Ratpack again. Returning to the city, Lith shows Tista and Nalrond how to use true Healing magic to regenerate the Gate Sergeant's missing arm, making him ambidextrous. Lith agrees to teach Nalrond about anatomy in exchange for when Nalrond teaches him Light Mastery.

Nalrond and Protector accompany Lith to rescue the Ernas sisters at the Feymar crystal mines. His hard-light constructs demoralize the undead who mistake him for "Demon Manohar" and he rescues half of the Crystal Shield guild members. Protector and Nalrond meet with the sisters at Solus' tower and shapeshift into their human forms to introduce themselves.

### Awakened Academy

Nalrond, impressed by Faluel's procedure to save Rena's child, agrees to teach her Light Mastery in exchange for learning Healing magic. She forces him to switch between his human and Emperor Beast bodies to train his human body to withstand the strain of the beast side. Nalrond attempts but fails to learn Spirit Magic due to his two cores, making it twice as difficult and mana-expensive compared to others. This also prevents him from learning Forgemastering. Frustrated with the limitations of his dual nature, he asks Lith to teach him fake magic hoping it can train his cores and potentially help him Awaken. After the lesson, he teaches Faluel, Solus, and Lith Light Mastery and receives physical training in exchange.

During one of their breaks Nalrond decides to ask the baker's daughter, Brina Cornerstone, out on a date after resolving to make some pleasant memories before Faluel's test. He visits Rena for advice and preparation for the date, which results in him being dumped due to his being a mage and Brina's desire for a family. Night's attack on Lutia cuts the dinner short and he contacts Faluel before rushing to the Fastarrow home. He distracts the undead long enough for the Fastarrows' magical beast companions Crash and Slash to escape with Selia and the children. Faluel later heals his severe injuries.

#### Fringe

While Lith, Tista, and Phloria venture to the Jiera continent on Council duty, Nalrond decides to bring Quylla and Friya to his people's Fringe in the Blood Desert in a gesture of faith. Morok Eari decides to tag along, much to Nalrond's annoyance. Nalrond helps Quylla and Friya enter the Fringe, experiencing part of their emotional burdens and leading him to revise his opinion of them from "a woman unhappy with her life" and a "magic enthusiast" to "two walking sacks of grief." Nalrond notices signs of life and rushes ahead, fainting at the sight of the Dewan tribe who he mistakes for his tribe's survivors.

Nalrond waves in the Dewan village and meets villager elder Kimo and his wife Sephe. After confirming their Soul Projections bear no ill will, Nalrond returns to his party to bring them to the village. Nalrond asks their help in conducting the Rezar communication ritual to draw Mogar's attention, and maintains wariness that the Dewans might seek to derive his tribe's ritual and knowledge of Light Mastery from him. The Dewans explain how the Dewan came to share a territory of the elves before their Fringe was merged with the Rezar's, and how they found no survivors of Dawn's escape.

Kimo becomes upset by Nalrond's decision to perform the communication ritual for Mogar with his human companions instead of the Dewans and refusing to share his Light Mastery. Nalrond establishes a link with Mogar and asks three things - the solution to fixing Lith's life force, how to free Solus from her tower, and how to merge his two halves. The answers assume the shades of the Mad King Arthan Griffon, Solus' mother Ripha Menadion, and Nalrond's Rezar half respectively, who all challenge him upon approach. The wounds he sustains in the mindscape transfers to his real body, and Nalrond barely manages to survive thanks to Quylla, Morok, and Friya's healing.

Nalrond is brought back to the Dewan village to recuperate, where Friya contacts Solus in Jiera. She offers her insight and Morok decides to make the next attempt due to his peace of self. Nalrond learns from Morok's attempt before entering the mindscape again and decides to listen instead of attempting to defeat Mogar's shades like so many before him. Mogar imparts her wisdom before severing the mind link. Quylla theorizes that the werefolk's beast halves have been trapped all this time by their makers. The group decides to leave the Fringe, when they are confronted by hostile Dewans and elves.

Morok manages to escape the Fringe while Nalrond, Friya, and Quylla defend against the elves. Morok manages to wipe out the backup squadron outside with his Tyrannical Eye and regroups with Friya before returning to distract Elf Lord M'rael long enough for them all to escape. They call Faluel who helps them Warp away. Nalrond meets with Lith and the others to share their respective adventures, and when Lith reveals his Abomination origin Nalrond shrugs it off, instead inquiring after the Eye of Kolga and Hands of Menadion which he hopes can help him with his hybrid situation.

#### Self Reflection

Lith's return from Jiera resumes the Awakened academy. Nalrond meets Nyka and Nok, though Nalrond quickly distances himself from Nyka after her social blunders and Vampire habits. Nalrond practices using his tribe's meditation techniques to communicate with his beast half rather than suppress it. The more he trains my human half, the more his beast side feels respect rather than contempt towards him.

Faluel lends Nalrond her improved version of the Royal Forgemastering wand to practice Spirit Magic with and introduces Spirit Mastery. Nalrond practices enhancing and manifesting the fire element in his mana due to his affinity. On Blackest Day, Nalrond is forced to accompany the men of the Fastarrow and Verhen families as they take the children to the village fair while the women take time off.

Faluel resumes her lessons after grieving her son Sedra's death and teaches them gravity fusion. Lith approaches Nalrond for advice about Kamila, and Nalrond urges him to give her space. Lith in turn gives Nalrond advice about his hybrid nature, theorizing that Nalrond's bodies have been kept apart, but the beast and the human minds are likely to already be fused.

Nalrond spends several months studying Lilia's and Leran's hybrid forms. He asks to inspect Tista after her evolution to a Red Demon to study the difference between their life forces. Tista suggests he inspect Morok's life force as well. Nalrond sets a plan to make his life forces become like those of Protector's children first, then like Tista's, and lastly merge like Lith's. He asks to study Morok's life force, who accepts amid a plethora of bad jokes.

With Morok forced into hiding from his estranged father Glemos after his Awakening, Faluel sends Protector, Quylla, and Nalrond on a mission with Morok to help Ajatar the Drake lure out Glemos. The group is assigned to subjugate monster tribes in the Weghan region. They encounter mutated monsters wearing collars around their necks and a deep cave system. The group realizes the collars and the rich world energy of the geyser have enabled the monsters to revert to their pre-Fallen forms. They witness a reverted Balor named Rhona leading other Balors in using their eyes to artificially germinate and grow mana crystals. When Rhona gives a speech to motivate the other Balors and goblins, she inadvertently reveals the group's presence.

After a prolonged battle, the monsters are killed. Morok alerts Ajatar and the group continues exploring the cave. The group comes across a room filled with Harmonizer-wearing test subjects, and interrogates a survivor to learn that the mastermind is posing as Ajatar. They escape a capture attempt thanks to Quylla's Home Stone.

## Quotes

* *"You can hide behind a human form, but I know your real face. You'll pay for slaughtering my tribe, women and children alike, just because you considered us nothing but monsters. Your scales and fire will not protect you from me. It took me months to track you down, but now that you're in my element, there's no way out for you."* (Chapter 872)
* *"We took you in as one of our own. We saved your life and shared with you our very homes. Yet you turned on us, killed our youths, stole our treasure, and you dare to say you're sorry?"* (Nalrond to Acala, Chapter 879)
* *"I'm no warrior. I lived all my life in my village as a Healer and making sure that the Bright Day wouldn't escape. Gods, how I missed meat. I never had the time to field dress animals."* (Nalrond to Lith, Chapter 887)
* *"This is ridiculous. If you wanted to kill me, there are countless less idiotic ways to do it. Why are you throwing away your life for some books?"* (Nalrond to Lith, Chapter 889)
* *"I'm tired of fighting, tired of running away. I've lost everything I held dear and one way or another, I've achieved my revenge. I've no regrets left, do what you have to do."* (Nalrond to Lith and Solus, Chapter 899)
* *"Back home we used to say that it takes just two people to make a child, but a whole village to raise them." (Nalrond to Selia, Chapter 905)*
* *"I tried living among humans, but I didn't fit...Then I tried to live among beasts, but it didn't go much better...They all treated me like an oddity. It was only when I came here that you made me feel...[special]. I felt like I belonged."* (Nalrond to Lilia, Chapter 906)
* *"It's amazing how I'm the one who lived in the middle of nowhere all of his life and yet it's you who is this painfully ignorant."* (Nalrond to Quylla, Chapter 920)
* *"Nalrond, hybrid or not, you'll make a wonderful husband. Selia is right when she says that the woman who gets you will count her blessings on a daily basis."* (Rena to Nalrond, Chapter 973)
* *"Worst case scenario, I'll pretend to listen and nod from time to time. I don't know them or what they went through and honestly, I don't care. The problem is that I can't keep living like this. I must learn how to interact with the other races properly. I can't use my grief to cut everyone out of my life."* (Chapter 1052)
* *"I know I'm a great Healer and that many would kill to learn Light Mastery, but I would give up all my magic if it meant to have my tribe back...I can relate to [Friya] because my life got turned upside down as well and I know how hard it is to find a place where you belong after being uprooted."* (Nalrond to Lith, Phloria and Quylla, Chapter 1053)
* *"I can't let fear stop me. I can't live with Protector forever. When the time comes and I decide to settle down, I don't want my children to feel like I do every single day. Like there's no place on Mogar where I belong."* (Nalrond to Lith, Chapter 1079)
* *"Please, no! Let me go home or you'll live with the shame of forcing a grown man to cry."* (Nalrond to Faluel after a grueling lesson, Chapter 1083)
* *"You feel a bit out of my league and your brother scares me. Quylla already has a suitor and her baggage seems as heavy as mine. Friya is pretty, but she's way too self-conscious of that while Phloria would clearly spend the evening talking to me but thinking about someone else. Bye!"* (Nalrond to Tista after saying he will ask Brina out, Chapter 1093)
* *"I've never seen anyone with so much genuine passion for the study of magic like you, Quylla. People usually consider magic either as a means to an end or as a weapon, whereas you love experimenting even on the most insignificant spells...I'm thrilled at the idea of what you could achieve if you had the long life and the access to the seventh element that only Awakened have. I hope that the Fringe can give you this chance."* (Nalrond to Quylla, Chapter 1139)
* *"Our people have gotten too used to living in peace and have forgotten the reason why we searched for the Fringes in the first place...Rather than dooming someone else to this existence, I prefer to gamble on contacting Mogar. If I succeed, I'll dedicate my life to make sure that Werepeople become a proper race. If I fail and survive the meeting, I don't plan to stay here either. I've learned more in the year I spent outside than in my whole life inside the Fringe. If I decide to have children, I want them to grow free to experience everything that Mogar has to offer, to see the marvels of Forgemastering instead of spending their lives like frogs in a dignified well."* (Nalrond to Kimo, Chapter 1181)
* *"I stand corrected, you're worse than Morok. He's unable to read the room whereas you just don't care!"* (Quylla to Nalrond, Chapter 1182)
* *"Life is for the living, elder, while my ancestors are long dead. I've learned more in the couple of years I spent outside than in the 23 years I lived in my village. I've not stooped so much as made progress."* (Nalrond to Kimo, Chapter 1199)
* *"Ever since we met, I've never considered you a human. Humans don't shapeshift nor do they turn into frigging giants. I always knew you were a monster so giving it a tag changes little. Protector trusts you and Mogar considers you one of her children. That's more than enough for me."* (Nalrond to Lith after learning of his Abomination origin, Chapter 1268)
* *"Thanks. I mean, yes, I have more than one. I'm a two-timing scumbag."* (Nalrond to Nyka to hide from her after she asks if he has a girlfriend, Chapter 1325)
* *"Why is that, miss talented, rich, and gorgeous?"* (Nalrond to Friya, Chapter 1343)
* *"Don't! For the love of the gods, don't. That's the dumbest thing I've ever heard and we both hang out with Morok."* (Nalrond giving Lith advice about Kamila, Chapter 1433)
* *"What if what you call Nalrond has never been a human to start with? What if you're just like I was, an imperfect fusion waiting to fully merge?"* (Lith to Nalrond, Chapter 1433)

## References

1. ↑ Chapter 885
2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Chapter 875
3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Chapter 1185
4. ↑ Chapter 882
5. ↑ Chapter 1150
6. ↑ Chapter 2615: True Natures (Part 1)
7. ↑ Chapter 2616: True Natures (Part 2)
8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 Chapter 1138
9. ↑ Chapter 1174
10. ↑ Chapter 1101
11. ↑ Chapter 876
12. ↑ Chapter 917
13. ↑ Chapter 907
14. ↑ 14.0 14.1 Chapter 884
15. ↑ Chapter 872
16. ↑ Chapter 899
17. ↑ Chapter 905
18. ↑ Chapter 919
19. ↑ Chapter 976
20. ↑ Chapter 979
21. ↑ Chapter 1030
22. ↑ Chapter 1033
23. ↑ Chapter 1049
24. ↑ Chapter 1083
25. ↑ Chapter 1093
26. ↑ Chapter 1130
27. ↑ Chapter 1098
28. ↑ Chapter 1102
29. ↑ Chapter 1120
30. ↑ Chapter 1151
31. ↑ Chapter 1173
32. ↑ Chapter 1175
33. ↑ Chapter 1188
34. ↑ Chapter 1207
35. ↑ Chapter 1232
36. ↑ Chapter 1270
37. ↑ Chapter 1325
38. ↑ Chapter 1333
39. ↑ Chapter 1345
40. ↑ Chapter 1433
41. ↑ Chapter 1494
42. ↑ 42.0 42.1 Chapter 1555: Harmonizer (Part 1)
43. ↑ Chapter 880: Author's Note