Royce Lashiec

**Race** | Demon 1st Class
 **Muse** | Cuisine

**Royce Lashiec** is a major antagonist in the webcomic *Heartcore*. The king of the demons of Asgar, he is the one chiefly responsible for the near-extinction of the beastman race, over the course of which he forcibly syphoned power from his daughter, Amethyst Lashiec , setting into motion her eventual rebellion.

## Appearance

Royce has long, dark red hair, and amber eyes. As a demon, he has pointed ears and black, backwards-curving horns. He has a large and imposing stature.

## Personality

Royce has a flair for the dramatic, and is a very showy individual. He at times comes off as not being very bright, but this is only an obfuscation meant to make his opponents underestimate him: in truth, he is highly intelligent, cunning, and ruthless. While he tries to maintain a facade of level-headedness and suave sophistication, they can quickly give way to unstoppable rage if things don't go his way.

## Powers and Abilities

As the king of demonkind in Asgar, Royce is among the most powerful magic users in the story. Like Amethyst, he is capable of using "**Devil Drive**", a combination dark/fire spell that causes grave injury and, upon direct impact, psychological pain.

One of his more powerful spells, shown in the opening scenes of the comic, is the "**Ritual of Possession**", a spell unique to the Necromancer subtype of demon: this spell transforms the caster into a lich and allows them to take control of another's body. This spell requires a sacrifice in order to perform: in this case, Royce used Amethyst. While demons can survive the process of being used as a sacrifice for the Ritual, it is a brutal and painful process, one that left Amethyst permanently scarred.

Another spell in Royce's arsenal is "**Dominate Demon**", which allows the user to assume direct control over a target's actions and speech, essentially functioning as mind control.

## History

Royce was born "Royce Radinov", the younger brother of Asmodai Radinov. One day, the two brothers met Lilium Lashiec, a demoness possessed of great power. Together, the three would commit genocide against their home kingdom, the atrocities the brothers committed transforming them into demons.

The two brothers worked with Lilium to help her create a realm that she could rule over. As part of the plan, Lilium would have the two brothers help her perform the Ritual of Cataclysm. Royce, who had become Lilium's lover and taken her family name as his own, would sabotage the Ritual at the last moment by refusing to commit a portion of his power. In the years that followed, he and Lilium would wage war with one another, their fighting radically altering the realm. Eventually, however, Lilium would suddenly renounce her life. With Lilium now gone, Royce would reign over the realm of Asgar as its undisputed king.

When Lilium reincarnated as Amethyst, Royce allowed her to continue living, likely taking pleasure in the fact that a weaker version of his nemesis was now dependent on him. Ame looked up to Royce as a father figure for ages, until Royce performed the Ritual of Possession on her to forcibly siphon her energy.

## Trivia

* Like Amethyst, Royce's surname is taken from a villain of the *Phantasy Star* series of RPGs, which itself is an alternate spelling of "Lassic".
* Royce's favorite food is birthday cake, which he eats every day. His muse drives him to consume any kind of food, from fine dining to the unhealthiest of junk food.
* Royce is the younger brother of Asmodai Radinov. He would later take Lilium Lashiec's family name.
* Of the Seven Deadly Sins, Royce represents Gluttony: a representation of excessive consumption and a reference to his hunger for power and fancy foods.