Hilling

**Hilling** (ヒリング, *Hiringu*) is a character in *Ousama Ranking* and its anime adaption.

She is Bosse's second wife, the second queen of the Bosse Kingdom, Bojji's step-mother, and Daida's birth-mother.

## Appearance

Hilling is a thin, average-height woman with long blond hair, a prominent nose, and blue eyes. She typically wears her hair in a style that makes it appear chin-length. Her preferred outfit is a red bustle dress with a white fur-tufted neck, white gloves, and a solid gold crown.

## Personality

Hilling appears to have a very brusque personality, and behaves in a distant, reserved manner befitting her rank as Queen. In reality Hilling cares deeply for the people around her, particularly her two sons, and is just bad at conveying her emotions.

Unfortunately Bojji took the brunt of Hilling's brusqueness, with Hilling's initial affection for him slowly changing into a domineering protectiveness that severely underestimated her step-son, and ruined their hard-won intimacy. It wasn't until Bojji, deeply distraught over being passed-over for kingship, attempted to escape the kingdom that Hilling realized her own behavior had driven a wedge between them. She then began to relax her protectiveness and allow Bojji more freedom.

Hilling was similarly domineering with Daida, insisting he become an exceptionally-strong man to help protect his brother. Though this motivated Daida, it also made him resent Bojji for years.

Dorshe, Hilling's personal bodyguard, was one of the first to understand her personality, and has since become one of her closest allies (though even he is kept at a relative distance).

## Plot

### Early Life

Hilling's origins are unknown. She appears to have been a priest/nun/cleric of some kind before marrying Bosse, which may be the source of her powerful restorative magic.

### Second Queen

At some point in the past Hilling was actively courted by King Bosse, as a part of a long-running plot conceived by Miranjo. After a brief courtship she became the second queen of the Bosse Kingdom. Hilling was very excited to make Bojji's acquaintance, and strived hard to gain his trust and affection as his step-mother, even going so far as to heal the near-dead snake Mitsumata to cheer up Bojji.

After the birth of Daida Hilling began to become much more strict with her sons, and by the time they reached their teens she had become a domineering presence in the castle, demanding perfection from Daida and not trusting Bojji to look after himself. It appears Hilling's affection for Bojji had morphed into an extreme form of overprotectiveness, which compelled her to demand Daida become a powerful king, specifically so he could defend Bojji as well.

### Passing Over Bojji

In the aftermath of Bosse's death Hilling conspired with the rest of the king's council to ignore Bosse's will, which had chosen Bojji as his successor, and instead crown Daida as the second king. The fallout from this, primarily Bojji's reaction, would compel Hilling to reassess her overprotective nature and eventually allow Bojji to go on his first adventure.

Unbeknownst to Hilling, a spiteful Daida had ordered Domas to assassinate Bojji during the trip. When Hilling discovered the attempted assassination she ordered the deaths of both Domas and Hokuro (a loyal guardsman who had joined Bojji on his journey), but the two escaped. Soon after, Hilling fell into a brief despair when she realized Bosse's soul had seized control of Daida's body, and resolved to get her son back by any mean's necessary.

### Confronting the Coup

Hilling, with her personal guard, was the first to confront the Underworld prisoners after they had taken the Bosse Kingdom's castle. A bloody exchange followed, with Hilling's soldiers only surviving due to her healing magic. Things looked dire until the arrival of Bojji, who quickly subdued the prisoners and turned the tide. Realizing her step-son had become a powerful warrior, Hilling withdrew with her guards, first hiding and eventually regrouping with the Big Four to ready themselves for the penultimate confrontation with the monstrous Ouken.

Hilling supported her step-son in his final confrontation with King Bosse, and witnessed their battle first-hand, as well as Bosse's eventual surrender and release of Daida's body. Though she initially tried to remain strict, Hilling couldn't help but embrace both of her sons as the threats finally ended. She also couldn't help but be baffled when Daida announced his intent to marry to a restored Miranjo.

### Aftermath

In the aftermath of the attempted coup, Hilling resumed her duties as the queen mother of the Bosse Kingdom, and supported Bojji as he claimed the throne. She was the first to notice Bojji's listlessness after Kage's departure, and counseled him to follow his friend and see the world, to become an even mightier king.

## Relationships

### Bojji

Hilling has a deep and abiding love for Bojji, and was very excited to become his step-mother upon marrying Bosse. Though she worked exceptionally hard to gain Bojji's love and trust, Hilling's own love for her step-son eventually transformed into a severe overprotectiveness. Hilling seemed to fear that Bojji was completely incapable of taking care of himself, and became extremely strict with him as he grew older.

Thankfully, once Hilling realized how much her severity had alienated her from Bojji, she began to relax, and came to accept that Bojji is a capable person on his own. Later, realizing Bojji's exceptional talents, Hilling became strict once again, only now she began demanding that Bojji rise to his many challenges so he could grow into a powerful king.

### Daida

Hilling has a deep and abiding love for Daida, but he often received the brunt of Hilling's strictness. In particular, Hilling commanded Daida to grow strong specifically so he could protect Bojji, a symptom of Hilling's overprotectiveness. This eventually created a deep resentment of Bojji in Daida, one he would only overcome once he was trapped in his own body.

### Bosse

Very little is shown of Hilling and Bosse's relationship, but several flashbacks depict a relatively quick courtship and several happy moments between the two.

### Dorshe

Dorshe is arguably the member of court closest to Hilling, as he's been her constant companion since his appointment as her royal bodyguard. He appears to be one of the few in the kingdom who has seen past Hilling's brusque and standoffish nature, and appreciates her as a caring individual.
For her part Hilling seems to quietly appreciate Dorshe, but uses her station as an excuse to remain distanced. This softened a bit after Miranjo's attempted coup, and Hilling was seen affectionately holding Dorshe's arm.

### Kage

Hilling was initially scandalized by Kage's behavior, as Kage had no patience for her brusqueness. However, she quickly came to see the truth in Kage's words, and quickly came to accept him as Bojji's friend.

## Abilities

### Restorative Magic

Hilling possesses powerful restorative magic that allows her to heal wounds, cure poisonings, and emit holy light. With enough power and concentration Hilling has even been able to revive the recently-deceased.

The true extent of Hilling's magic is unknown, but it appears to sap power from her own body quickly, forcing her to use restorative potions to compensate.

## Trivia

* Hilling's name likely derives from the English word "healing" (ヒーリング, *Hiringu*).