Saint-Germain

> *"What, you don't trust me? Can't say I blame you. There are times when I don't trust myself."*
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### Voice Actor/Actress

Hirakawa Daisuke (Japanese)Brandon McInnis (English)

**Count Saint-Germain** is a wealthy landowner with a mansion in London and a gentleman at heart with an air of grace and dignity. He graciously opens the doors of his home to the protagonist and her party. He is somewhat of strange bird but he is happy to help everyone for the amusement it provides.

He is one of the five characters the player can choose to pursue in the game.

He is also voiced by **Daisuke Hirakawa** in Japanese and **Brandon Mcinnis** in English.

## Appearance

Saint-Germain is always seen with his eyes closed, in keeping with his "fox eyes" type personality. When they are open, however, they appear to be a clear, icy blue color. It is very rare he is shown with his eyes open. If he is, it often means he is giving his "zero temperature smile", or the situation is considered serious.

However in the sequel games this is not the case and his eyes are more often shown open. In his own route, his eyes are open for most of its duration.

He first appears in the second episode.

His wardrobe consists of many watches and clock motifs. Being the wealthy noble that he is, he dresses more lavishly than the others, though he tends to stick to dark, purple colors. His gloves are resistant to Cardia's poison and contain hidden blades.

## Personality

Like Van Helsing, Saint-Germain is quite mysterious and not much is really known about him. He seems to be a kind and warm-hearted man who wants to stay out of trouble, but he is always willing to join the gang on any adventure. He finds most dangerous things amusing, even when others would not. He often jokes about whether he comes off as "old." Out of all the gang, he appears to be the only one who believes in God.

It's hard to read his emotions because he's always smiling. He's even-tempered, but when angered, he's incredibly intimidating. The fastest way to anger him is to threaten to steal or destroy his beloved art collection.

He is very fond of the gang, and gets lonely whenever his mansion sits empty for too long.

## Story

### **Chapter 1: London Steam**

Cardia first runs into Saint when she sees a shadowy figure moving through his mansion in the night, and when she follows the figure, she eventually stumbles across Saint in one of the many rooms.

###  **Chapter 3: A Girl’s Education**

The gang agrees that it would be best for Cardia to take lessons with each person there. In her first lesson with Saint, he takes her around the city of London.

### **Chapter 4: Train Robbery**

During the train heist, Cardia can choose to go with Impey, Lupin, and Saint and leave the station to plan their getaway.

###  **Chapter 5: The Vampire’s Requiem**

It comes to their attention that the gang is broke. Saint is willing to let them keep living there, but he refuses to pay for their expenditures, quoting "If a man will not work, he shall not eat." As such, the gang decides to try to apprehend the thief who has been stealing vampire artifacts in order to get the bounty on his head. At the auction, Cardia is uneasy that their funds will come at the expense of someone else's life, and Saint sympathizes with her. He agrees to help cover the gang's expenditures for a while, although he insists that this is only a temporary solution.

###  **Chapter 6: Negotiated Solution**

After Lupin steals from several noblemen, the gang's funds are replenished. Saint and Cardia go out shopping for groceries when they are attacked by Twilight soldiers. Thankfully, Sholmes comes to their rescue, but he informs them that soon he will start hunting their gang in earnest, as Scotland Yard has enlisted his help in tracking down Victor.

After they successfully clear Victor's name, the gang celebrates with a feast. Sholmes drops by to congratulate them on their victory, and Saint offers him a seat at the table in exchange for not sharing their location with the Yard. To everyone's surprise, Sholmes accepts cheerfully.

###  **Chapter 7: The Buoyant and the Bellicose**

When the gang catches wind that Isaac's writings are the first place prize in the Black Gathering, the annual underworld airship race in Steel London, they decide to compete to win the papers in order to find information on where Isaac's secret lab might be. With a lot of hard work, the gang fixes up a stolen airship in time for the competition.

Saint is in charge of keeping a lookout on whatever damages the ship takes during the race. When they're on the brink of defeat, Impey unveils his special human cannon meant to fire Van Helsing at their enemies. While everyone else is unsure if it's a good idea, Saint casually launches Van through the air, toward Nemo's ship.

### **Chapter 8: Nobody Understands the Truth**

Before the gang goes to Isaac's laboratory, Saint finds Cardia in the gardens. Cardia is both eager and afraid of seeing what is in the laboratory, and she finally explains the tragedy that happened 2 years ago that terrified her into never leaving her old manor again. Saint expresses his condolences for all she has suffered.

At the lab, Cardia splits off with Saint. When the gang gets ambushed by Twilight soldiers, Saint is assigned to be her bodyguard and to get her away from the danger. In the darkness, however, they get separated. Cardia eventually stumbles upon the chamber where all of her previous failed homunculus prototypes are, and Finis is there to revel in her despair. Before he can capture her, however, Saint sneaks up behind him and stabs him through the chest. Saint opens his eyes for the first time before Cardia and reveals to Finis that he is an Apostle of Idea, which terrifies Finis, as the Apostles of Idea were feared by Isaac as the one organization that could destroy him. Saint leaves Finis to bleed out on the ground, so coldly that Cardia is for a moment terrified of him. Upon recognizing her fear, Saint looks heartbroken but gently urges her to come with him so that they can rejoin the others.

After finding out the truth about what she is, Cardia decides to leave the mansion to protect the others. On her way out, though, she runs into Saint. Saint agrees that she should separate herself from the others, and asks her if she would like to go to another location to hide out instead. Cardia accepts, and they head into the forest.

###  **Chapter 9: Twilight**

As they walk through the forest, Cardia and Saint make idle conversation about all the places he has been, and Cardia realizes that despite all they've been through, there's a lot about Saint that she doesn't know. He claims that he is just a wealthy nobleman burning through his inheritance. Saint confesses that many years ago, he made a terrible mistake, and that he must take care to never let such a thing happen again. Once they arrive at Saint's secondary mansion a day later, Saint asks her once again if this is what she wants. If Cardia changes her mind, then he will walk her back to the original mansion before disappearing, never to be seen again.

While eating dinner at this second mansion, Cardia feels homesick and asks if the others can know about this place, lest they think she's been kidnapped. Saint muses that they wouldn't be wrong to think so. Cardia is unnerved by this before she passes out at the table. Saint carries her to her bedroom, and after a while she wakes back up only to find Saint with a dagger. He tells her that he is going to kill her, but that it won't hurt because he has coated the dagger with a special poison that numbs the pain. If Cardia doesn't resist, then he will go through with it and weep over her dying body. If she does fight back, then the dagger will fall to the ground, rendered useless, and Saint will strangle Cardia until she passes out.

### **Chapter 10: Seeker**

When she wakes up, Cardia finds that the entire room is poison-proofed, and Saint tells her that the gang will not find her as he destroyed their Horologium tracker. He will let her live for a while longer, until he can prepare a fresh batch of numbing poison so that she can die painlessly as intended. Cardia tries to get him to explain why he's doing this, but he won't answer, saying only that he wishes they could have met under different circumstances, and been a hero for her like Lupin instead of her enemy. He lets slip that their time with Lupin's Gang reminds him of when he was alive, but Cardia doesn't understand what this means. He begs her to hate him for what he is going to do. That night, Cardia tries to break out of her room, but she can't.

The next day, Saint ties her up to the bedpost because they have an unexpected guest, and he needs to make a show of restraining her should that guest see her. This gives Cardia the opportunity to burn through the ropes and free herself. If Cardia tries to melt the keyhole of the front door with her poison, it will take too long and Saint will find and kill her. If she picks the lock, she will escape, leaving a stunned Saint behind as she runs into the night.

She manages to return to familiar streets quickly, and wonders if the forest had some magical properties before heading back to the original mansion. Suddenly, she is attacked by an armor-clad Assailant, the same one she'd seen in Saint's mansion before. Victor and Van thankfully find her and they hurry to safety. The gang has been looking for her and are glad to see her again.

###  **Chapter 11: Saint-Germain**

After escaping back to reunite with the gang, Cardia explains everything that has happened, along with her suspicions that he's acting on someone else's orders. Everyone decides to dig into Saint's past. Victor finds an alchemical text written 200 years ago by someone known as the Count of Saint-Germain, with the same handwriting as the Saint they know. Cardia remembers Finis's dying words about Idea and they go back to Isaac's lab to see if Isaac had any writings that might shed light on things. Lupin notes that Cardia is different now that she is in love.

They end up finding one of Isaac's papers where he details how the Apostles of Idea have been shepherding humanity for eons, and as Isaac's plans will upend society, they are seeking to stop him. They also find a red gemstone pendant left behind in the homunculus chamber that reacts to Cardia's Horologium. Victor explains that this gemstone might catalyze the transformation of the Horologium into the Philosopher's stone, and also cause Cardia to release a massive amount of lethal poison gas.

Suddenly, they are attacked by the Assailant. The others stay behind to stop them while Lupin and Cardia make a run for it. Saint appears at the last minute to fight the Assailant, declaring that he will be the one to kill Cardia. The Assailant says that she is only here because Omnibus sent her to finish what Saint could not. During their fight, Saint gets impaled upon the Assailant's blade, but he heals before everyone's eyes. The Assailant, named Guinevere, wonders how many more times he can come back to life, now that he's going against Omnibus's orders. With Saint holding Guinevere off, Cardia escapes with the gang.

With all that they've found out, Cardia feels restless, so Lupin takes her for a stroll. The world comes to a halt around her, and Omnibus appears before her. Omnibus has created a shift in reality with magic to allow them to speak to each other. Omnibus explains how the Apostles are dispatched to stop humanity's hubris as atonement for original sin. In truth, each Apostle is already dead, their soul cut away from their original body and placed into a magical vessel that can be regenerated by Omnibus. Saint has already destroyed Finis and ruined Isaac's plan. Still, it is necessary for Saint to kill her because her Horologium is too dangerous, and that the last time Saint disobeyed her orders, the Black Death ravaged Europe and killed tens of millions. As such, she tells Cardia to meet Saint at Tower Bridge in a few nights to allow him to kill her. This will allow Omnibus to spare Saint and the rest of humanity. The weight of the decision causes Cardia to cry.

###  **Chapter 12: Time For Decision**

While looking over the city and noting how it has changed over the centuries, Saint thinks back on his failure in stopping the Black Death. Centuries ago, Omnibus had ordered him to monitor a village for any signs of disease, and to kill anyone who caught it. During his stay there, he took in an orphan boy and grew fond of him, enough so that when the disease inevitably did appear in the village, Saint ended up killing everyone except the boy. Sadly, the boy ended up spreading the Black Death to the rest of Europe, so Saint blames all of those deaths on his weakness.

Cardia confronts Saint at the bridge. Saint prepares to kill Cardia, but he is still terribly conflicted and asks what he should do. If Cardia says that she doesn't know what the right answer is, that she is afraid to die but afraid to cause his death, then he will apologize for putting the burden of decision on her when it is his. He weeps, and says that these will be the last tears he ever sheds because his heart will be truly dead after she dies. Then, he kills her.

If Cardia tells him not to hesitate, she will say that she was never truly alive in the first place, so killing her isn't murder. To save his life, she will gladly sacrifice her artificial one. This angers him, and he reminds her that dying means never sharing happiness with her loved ones ever again. In truth, Cardia is afraid of that, but she doesn't believe that a monster like her has the right. Her words break Saint's resolve, and he is unable to kill her. He takes her bare hand and presses it to his face, reminding them both that they are unnatural beings who are not truly alive. To hear her say that her life is meaningless cuts him to the bone, for that would apply to him, too. He realizes that the reason why he cannot kill her is because he loves her.

After his face heals, he resolves to save Cardia by killing all of the other 12 Apostles that Omnibus will inevitably send. Each Apostle can only be brought back so many times, after all, so if he kills them enough times, then they will truly die. He knows, however, that once Omnibus realizes his intentions, she will halt his own regenerative abilities. He temporarily paralyzes her to keep her from following him, and thanks her for allowing him to truly live by dedicating his life to saving hers.

At Idea's headquarters, Omnibus calls for Guinevere and informs her that 2 of the Apostles have died. Guinevere is stunned by Saint's betrayal. Omnibus notes that Saint may even succeed, as he is fighting desperately in the name of love. Guinevere resolves to stop him.

###  **Chapter 13: Promise**

Saint confronts Guinevere, after having already killed 4 of the Apostles. If he can kill her, the strongest Apostle by far, then he knows that even should he die, Cardia will be safe. Meanwhile, Cardia and the gang determine that the only way to save Saint is to somehow negotiate with Omnibus. Once Victor realizes that the red pendant that they'd picked up from the lab can trigger Cardia's transformation into the Philosopher's stone, Cardia decides to use it as a bargaining chip to force Omnibus into allowing them to live. Using an old text, they pinpoint Idea's headquarters in a mysterious forest called the Forest of Fog in western Britain.

Once in the forest, Cardia gets separated from the other and is led to Omnibus's home by her dog, Lilith. Cardia demands that Omnibus restore Saint's immortality to keep him from dying at Guinevere's hands, but she refuses as Saint's betrayal cannot go unpunished. Cardia threatens to turn herself into a monster that even Idea could not vanquish unless Omnibus complies. Cardia offers to destroy herself should Omnibus spare Saint, to remove herself as a threat. Omnibus tries to prey upon her fears of loneliness, but Cardia is steadfast, saying that the memory of Saint's touch could sustain her through the rest of her life.

Finally, Omnibus agrees to extend Saint's life if he can defeat Guinevere. By Omnibus's predictions, it should be impossible, but if he can surprise her, then she will believe that the future can be changed. Omnibus takes her to Tower Bridge, where Saint is gravely weakened from his fight with Guinevere. Cardia explains the bargain she struck with Omnibus, so Saint gathers the last of his strength to take on Guinevere. However, she omits the part where she promised to destroy herself, knowing that Saint would not go through with the deal if he knew. Saint throws himself into the fight and, with Cardia's help, defeats Guinevere. Before he can fully kill Guinevere, however, Cardia tells him the truth of her bargain.

When Omnibus arrives to collect on her deal, she heals Saint but cuts his lifespan to a normal human one instead of an immortal one. Saint stops Cardia from killing herself and begs Omnibus for time to find a cure for her Horologium. Omnibus appears unmoved until Guinevere arises to support him. With her two strongest apostles standing against her, Omnibus agrees to give Saint and Cardia time to find a cure to her poison, but warns that Idea will come after them again if they are unsuccessful.

If Cardia and Saint's affection isn't high enough, then Saint will be killed by Guinevere even though he defeats her. Heartbroken by his loss, Cardia ends up joining Idea herself, with Omnibus promising to kill her and deliver her to the same place as Saint. She cuts off contact with the gang, preferring that they not see what she has become. Still, she will not obey Omnibus's orders blindly, and she will intervene when she feels Omnibus is incorrect, just as Saint did for her. Cardia endeavors to keep smiling, however falsely, as that was Saint's dying wish.

### Epilogue + Short Story

In the epilogue, Cardia and Saint are traveling in search of clues about curing her Horologium, although the gang was a little concerned about her being alone with him after everything. Lupin and Impey have gone looking for something, Victor has opened a clinic, and Van has been working with Delly to help surviving vampires. Saint sulks at how she's so eager to reunite with everyone despite him being right by her side, though she reassures him that they belong to each other and that she'll always stay beside him. He kisses her, despite the poison, and reminds her that he alone can do this with her. Cardia gets flustered and tells him to save it until the poison is gone, although she secretly looks forward to that day.

In the short story, Cardia goes to get Saint for lunch, but he appears to be struggling to put on a recently imported kimono. Cardia tries to help him, oblivious to the implications of a woman being alone with a half-dressed man, but Impey arrives and is devastated at walking in on them in Saint's current state of undress. Saint finds the entire situation amusing.

## Relationships

### Abraham Van Helsing

They get along well enough, but Saint is not above shooting him out of a cannon in midair while they're being fired upon.

### Arsene Lupin

Of all of the potential love interests, Lupin and Saint have the greatest rivalry when it comes to Cardia. When Saint feels insecure about his relationship, Lupin will threaten to steal Cardia away from him if he doesn't get his act together. Still, they get along perfectly fine and trust each other in the heat of battle.

### Cardia Beckford

He feels a great kinship with Cardia, as both of them are "monsters" who shouldn't be alive. Whenever Cardia speaks about herself, it pains Saint because he has had similar thoughts in his life. He loves her deeply and enjoys showering her with gifts. He's also somewhat smug about the fact that he is the only one who can touch her directly even with her condition.

### Impey Barbicane

He finds Impey very amusing, and enjoys trolling him, but not enough to allow Impey to threaten his art collection.

### The Assailant

As Saint was the one to recruit her to Idea, they have a unique relationship. She finds him strange and illogical, especially when he defies Omnibus. Their relationship gets strained during his route, as she cannot understand his unwillingness to carry out his duty.

### Omnibus

He has followed Omnibus for almost his entire life, and trusts her orders unconditionally until Cardia. Omnibus sees him as something like a son, but she will always prioritize the safety of mankind, first and foremost.

## Trivia

* Saint-Germain is based on The Count of St. Germain, a real-life European courtier who was shrouded in mystery throughout his life.
* Saint-Germain placed 3rd in the official Code: Realize poll with a total of 1112 (13.3%) votes.
* Saint-Germain's design features many time motifs, like the watches strapped all along his arms, the Roman numerals, and the partial clock outline on his hat. This is in reference to his immortality.
	+ During his final confrontation with Omnibus, all of his watches are cracked, symbolizing that he is out of time.
* Saint-Germain makes an appearance alongside the other characters of Code: Realize in the Idea Factory otome card game *Sephirot ~World Tree of Time~* , which contains characters exclusively from otome games published by the company Otomate.

## References

1. ↑ http://aksysgames.com/code-realize/characters/saint-germain/