Book1

## Chapter Chronology

**Christmas Eve** (크리스마스 이브, *Keuriseumaseu Ibeu*), is the 1st chapter of the Leviathan webcomic.

## Summary

“ “Privileged much, dear boss? Man, I’m jealous~
On this fine afternoon~ A certain someone gets to leave early~” ”—Denver

It was the night of Christmas Eve, with Vergilius leaving his office early to deliver the Christmas gifts to the children of his orphanage. Denver teasingly complained how he’s frontloading all the remaining work to his subordinates, with Lan Yen and the others reprimanding her selfishness. Exasperated, Vergilius agreed to pay it forward and pick up the slack if any of them were busy themselves, though Denver playfully brushed it off as the entire office surprised Vergilius with Christmas goodies and a Santa outfit to surprise his children with. Visibly reserved as always, Vergilius remained rather deadfish to the liveliness of his peers as they shoved him out the office—only fondly smiling once the door was shut.

“ “Normally getting to this part of the road makes me feel relieved.”
"But right now, I am overcome with unease.” ”—Vergilius

Making his way through Nest V and past the border point, Vergilius suddenly felt a pang of unease on what was a normal romp to the Backstreets orphanage. This dread was not unfounded, as evidenced by the destroyed buildings surrounding what was supposed to be the orphanage housing his beloved children—now reduced to a pile of rubble, painted with bloodstains. Tomerry—a colossal, humanoid monster with two heads and multiple appendages was the culprit behind the destroyed heath, brutally snapping an orphanage attendant’s neck with their bare hands. Vergilius leaps in and dismembers the arm holding the unfortunate woman, but he was too late from saving her. Gently setting the cadaver aside, the lone fixer takes in the carnage all around him, finding the crushed bodies of the staff and a few of his beloved children.

“ “What now..”
“Just what is your business…”
“…Was this your job?”
“Who, then…”
“Who gave you the order?” ”—Vergilius

The surviving orphans were left cowering behind the rubble, as Vergilius was steeling himself from his overbearing wrath.

Unsheathing his gladius to take down the monstrosity, his launching strike was intercepted by the blade of an old acquaintance—**The Purple Tear** (보라눈물, *Bora Nunmul*). Backing him off from the clash, the woman with the smug, all-knowing smile was none other than Iori, whom Vergilius had thought perished in the Library. Confused by her inexplicable reappearance, Iori shoots down his questions concerning her survival, feigning ignorance, while declaring she needs Tomerry for her plans in the future. Not understanding as to why she would need such a beast to finally reunite with her deceased son, Iori simply wafts on how all her “pieces have their place.”

“ “So you knew, yet stood on the sidelines. How typical…”
“And now you’ve dragged me into your little game.” ”—Vergilius

Vergilius sees through her unsympathetic wave-aways, ascertaining that she simply let the tragedies she knew beforehand happen as fated, forcibly making Vergilius a pawn in her scheme as well. Taunting him to lunge, she addresses her fellow color by his title, **The Red Gaze** (붉은시선, *Bulgeun Siseon*), with Vergilius discarding his calm and slamming an overhead to crush her. Missing, and cratering the ground, Iori effortlessly evades all of Vergilius’ strikes, which tore apart the surrounding buildings to slices. Getting a footing, the swordswoman feigns a leap towards Vergilius, purposefully pulling aside her blade at the last moment to avoid the clash so that she could speed past him—and reach the orphans behind his guard.

Setting off an explosive collision with her attacks, the environment is further ruined, with the fallen debris killing a few more orphans. Only a handful of survivors remain in the wreckage, as Lapis sees her adoptive father arrive on the scene, all but too late. Behind Vergilius, however, was Iori, attempting to deliver the coup de grâce with a single swipe of her katana—collapsing an entire building onto what's left of the orphanage. Of course, this was simply her way of keeping him on his toes, as the Red Gaze sundered the falling structure to broken bricks. Defending what’s left of his family, the two color fixers engage in their last struggle.

“ “Come now, junior.”
“You know there’s no point in dragging this out.” ”—Iori

But despite his efforts, Vergilius was still no match for his senior, as Iori easily brought him to his knees; his heart thumping out of his chest, and the talk that fell out of her mouth blurring together. Vergilius stares down the snacks and toys he was supposed to surprise his children with, all smashed against the ground and tainted with the viscera of the slaughter.

## Characters

* Vergilius *(Debut)*
* Denver *(Debut)*
* Lan Yen *(Debut)*
* Rikako *(Debut)*
* Nanseul *(Debut)*
* Tomerry *(Debut in Leviathan; second reappearance in the franchise)*
* Iori *(Debut in Leviathan; second reappearance in the franchise)*
* Lapis *(Debut)*

## Lore and Observations

* Vergil’s office is in Nest V, and the orphanage is in the Backstreets of District 22.
* Nanseul was the one to give Vergilius the firecrackers and Santa hat, though he didn't think a beard suited Vergilius, so he didn't include it in the outfit he gave to him.
* In Lan Yen’s birthplace, District 8 (H Corp), it’s a tradition to gift apples on Christmas Eve to wish others a peaceful night.
* Iori and Tomerry are among the first Guests of the Library to have been confirmed to have survived the events of *Library of Ruina*, and are considered the first to reappear after the White Nights and Dark Days towards the general public in the City.

### Translation Notes

“ \*T/N: The word meaning Gaze, “시선” (from 視線), is also the Korean homophonous readings of the characters “詩仙”, an epithet meaning “Immortal Poet”. ”—Page 21

## Notes

1. ↑ While it is unclear how much time exactly elapsed in-between *Leviathan* and *Limbus Company*, given the fact that Canto I: The Outcast takes place during **984-01** (January, 984), and how Book3 of Leviathan takes place “half a year” since the Christmas Eve of Book1—at the latest, Leviathan most likely occurs during the year of **983**.
This consequently means that the massacre of Calw that took place during the **Christmas Eve of 983** was not the same Christmas that took place during the span of time that Leviathan covered. Given the math, the furthest date of the Christmas Eve of Book1 is **982**, assuming if it wasn’t earlier in the timeline.

## External Links

### Official Links

* Book1 - Christmas Eve - ProjectMoon Comics (English)
* 1화 - 크리스마스 이브 - ProjectMoon Comics (한국어) - *Korean Translation*
* 1話 - クリスマス・イヴ - ProjectMoon Comics (日本語) - *Japanese Translation*

## Navigation

 #2 **Faust** -
 #3 **Don Quixote** -
 #4 **Ryōshū** -
 #5 **Meursault** -
 #6 **Hong Lu**
 #7 **Heathcliff**
 #8 **Ishmael** -
 #9 **Rodion** - #10 **Dante** -
 #11 **Sinclair** -
 #12 **Outis** -