Hermit/Lore

—Anniversary Tales Collection Booklet

**Alva Lorenz**, also known as the **Hermit**, is one of the **28** playable Hunters added to Identity V.

This page is a compilation of lore and story content for this character.

## Backstory

### Character Introduction

“Alva, my friend, if you deny my research, I don't know who can understand me in this world."

Because this is a nightmare of Alva Lorenz, but because it ends with him. Herman was still working with him at the time. The two always quarrel over the "perfect eternal machine". But a fire sparked by an experiment destroyed everything, the smoke cleared, and all he had left was Hermann's records and manuscripts.

Over the years, Alva has become a famous inventor in the city, and even a sincere student. But just when he was going to give everything, he was accused and betrayed by his beloved student.

"A thief with all his talents is not worth such wisdom. You monopolize my father's research results, and you have been blocking my research, why are you so afraid at first time?"

The dispute between master and student quickly became a topic of discussion, and Alva was reluctant to defend himself, but public opinion was already rapidly fermenting in every corner of the city. As the situation intensified, an explosion the same as many years ago ended everything, and when he woke up, some people in robes pushed through the door.

They told Alva that he was saved by a generous god who would give him new powers...and a new life no longer disturbed by others.

Alva chose to stay, where he could at least do his favorite research in peace. Now he understands that formulas and principles can never deduce human feelings, and there is no one in this world worthy to stand by his side except the God who saved him from his predicament.

### Weibo Post

"Alva, my friend , if even you deny my research, I don't know who else in the world can understand me."

This was a long-standing nightmare for Alva Lorenz, with whom Hermann was still working, and the two always quarrel over the "permanent perfect machine". But a fire sparked by an experiment destroyed everything, the smoke cleared, and all he had left was Hermann's records and manuscripts.

Over the years, Alva has become a famous inventor in the city, and even has a sincere and industrious apprentice. But just when he was going to give everything to him, he was accused and betrayed by his disciple:

"A thief with all his talents is not worthy of such wisdom. You monopolize my father's research results and keep blocking my research, why? Are you so afraid of being robbed first?"

The dispute between master and apprentice quickly became a topic of discussion, and Alva was reluctant to defend himself, but public opinion was already rapidly fermenting in every corner of the city. As the situation intensified, an explosion the same as many years ago ended everything, and when I woke up, some people in robes pushed through the door.

They told Alva that he was saved by a generous god who would give him new powers...and a new life no longer disturbed by others.

Alva chose to stay, where he could at least do his favorite research in peace. Now he understands that formulas and principles can never deduce human feelings, and there is no one in this world worthy to stand by his side except the God who saved him from his predicament.

### Character Trailer

Identity V - Hermit Background StoryHermit's backstory trailer
#### Trailer Transcript

*Creating a perpetual motion machine*

*is like being trapped in a never-ending dream.*

*Reality grows from these sketches,*

*expanding through years of fruitless effort.*

*Yet this illusion is ceaselessly reflected in silent thoughts.*

*It should have died in flames with the last generation.*

*Mr. Lorenz,*

*based on our preliminary investigations*

*the suspect may be a student of yours.*

*Yet the embers rekindled in the next generation.*

*This is the law of nature.*

*If you really wish to rise above this law*

*you must dive deeper and deeper*

*to the bitter end*

*of darkness.*

## Deduction Quests

*All completed Objectives reward the player with +335 Logic points for the Logic Path. After the character's deductions are completed, their Worn Clothes will be available.*

## Character Resources

The additional in-game and external documents for this character include:

### In-Game Documents

* Character Relations
* Quotes & Media
* Event Appearances
* Mentions

The Character Relations menu shows how certain characters are connected and how they feel about each other. It also contains other personal information on characters that cannot be found anywhere else. It can be found in the Notebook, under the "Clues" tab. Although the web of relations for Hermit have not been released, we know a few of the characters that would be on it, which have been included below.

### Quotations

* 5th Anniversary Congratulatory Video quote:
	+ *"I haven't been in such a crowd for a while. It's been a long time since I've had to communicate with people like this. I'm okay to have a cup of tea alone in the corner. You are very kind to show me the way."*
* Valentine's Day 2023 Cards quotes:
	+ *"Overly complex emotions affect a person's ability to make rational judgments. Still, thank you for being fond of me, and I hope my response doesn't come off as rude."*
	+ *"Your card reminds me of some old friends and some meaningless things that bring unnecessary sadness. Forget it, destiny always moves in a fixed direction, just like these gears. It isn't something that we can change. The same can be said for my meeting with those old friends, and you."*
* Deduction Star 2023 quotes:
	+ *"Formulas are elegant laws of the cosmos, yet the human heart is so unpredictable that it's beyond its calculation."*
	+ *"Hoping a person would repent is as ridiculous as hoping a faulty experiment would succeed."*
	+ *"Whether it's a science experiment or in life, even the slightest mistake may escalate into a disaster."*
	+ *"Is there anything in this world more elegant than a machine that never stops spinning?"*

### Japanese Twitter Replies

Please press "Expand" to see in-character replies from the official Japanese Twitter.

**Hermit** has been mentioned in the following documents for other characters:

### Letters

* "Disciple's" Letters (2021, 2022 & 2023)
* "Prisoner's" Letter (2021 & 2022)

### Deductions

* "Prisoner's" Deduction Quests (3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 & 11)

### Backstories

* "Prisoner's" Backstory (Character Introduction & Character Trailer)

## Canon Manor Game

We can gather who was in a canon Manor Game together by information in Letters and Diaries, and very occasionally from character quotes during events. However, there is currently not enough information to determine which Manor Game the Hermit participated in. It is known that he traveled to Oletus Manor with the "Disciple", but it is unknown if they participated in a game there.

## Compiled Overview

The following section contains an overview based on canon information.Please note that some information may be missing as it may not have been provided from official sources. See the given references for further information.
#### Backstory

Alva Lorenz left his home for a better place. While in schooling, he met Herman Zeeman. The two became close friends and research partners. Herman was obsessed with the idea of a perpetual motion machine, which the two investigated in their research. At some point, Herman disappeared for two years before returning to their research, without an explanation for Alva. Alva by this time began to get doubts about their research. He was starting to think it wasn't feasible and that they shouldn't focus their research on something that "does not exist." The two began to quarrel about the perpetual motion machine. Tabloids began to come out revealing that Herman had spent his family's fortune on his research and had abandoned his family, causing his wife to die and his son to run away. Herman, perhaps sparked by Alva's doubts, began to write that Alva had betrayed him, deprived him of his ideals, and destroyed his life. One day, a fire broke out which killed Herman, leaving Alva with his manuscripts.

Some time later, Alva would attend an exhibition. Despite his unease towards it, he was persuaded to display the work done on the perpetual motion machine. This would attract the attention of Luca Balsa. Luca would write a letter to Alva, asking to become a student of his and attaching some of Herman's manuscripts that he had in his possession. Alva would take Luca on as a student and apprentice, the two continuing work on the perpetual motion machine. At some point, Luca discovered evidence of his father's work with Alva on the machine. Luca believed Alva had stolen Herman's work and claimed it as his own. Some of Alva's manuscripts went missing, which Alva reported to the police. It was believed that the stolen manuscripts may have ended up in the hands of a competitor. The police believed a student of his may be responsible. Alva and Luca had a confrontation, which led to an explosion similar to that which killed Herman. Alva died and Luca was blamed for his death and sent to jail.

Alva would awaken to a group of people in robes. They claimed their god had saved Alva's life and would give him powers allowing him to continue his research. Alva decided to join the religion and serve the god. Sometime later, he would convert Ann's father to their religion.

#### Alternate Theories and Conclusions

The below article or section(s) contains speculation, analysis, or theories which may include unconfirmed information.When adding content, use references to link or explain **legitimate/official** supportive evidence for specific theories, otherwise it may be removed.
* It is unknown if Alva actually stole Herman's inventions and passed them off as his own as Luca claimed. It is also unknown if Luca actually gave Alva's work to a competitor.
* "Prisoner" description from the Official Website mentions that Alva had a wife. (He can no longer conduct scientific research and all of his savings went to the immense compensation for the **inventor's wife**.)

## References

1. ↑ While Hermit's current career is also a priest of the Eye of Darkness, the exact career term was never confirmed.
2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Translated from the official 2024 Character Days announcement post on Weibo https://weibo.com/6140485374/4985311753405780
3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Backstory from the official Identity V website - https://idv.163.com/character/index.html
4. ↑ Hermit Background Story Weibo Version - https://weibo.com/6140485374/M0fZu5Q3M
5. ↑ Translation by @IdentityV\_\_Sub.
6. ↑ It is currently unknown exactly what occurred and who attacked who first. In Luca's trailer, Alva looks like he was attacking Luca however in Alva's trailer, the opposite seems to be true.

### Deduction Quest Changes

1. ↑ Previously: *Basic Objective: Achieve more than 650% decoding progress in a match* / *Advanced Objective 1: Achieve more than 650% decoding progress in a match* / *Advanced Objective 2: Achieve more than 650% decoding progress in a match*
2. ↑ Previously: *Basic Objective: Use Abnormal 1 time(s)* / *Advanced Objective 1: Use Abnormal 2 time(s)* / *Advanced Objective 2: Use Abnormal 3 time(s)*
3. ↑ Previously: *Basic Objective: Simultaneously deal damage to 4 Survivors 1 time(s)* / *Advanced Objective 1: Simultaneously deal damage to 4 Survivors 2 time(s)* / *Advanced Objective 2: Simultaneously deal damage to 4 Survivors 3 time(s)*

Hermit’s Deduction Quests were adjusted on April 27th, 2023.

1. ↑ Previously: *Basic Objective: Teleport and hit Survivors 1 time* / *Advanced Objective 1: Teleport and hit Survivors 2 times* / *Advanced Objective 2: Teleport and hit Survivors 3 times*