Walter

## **Background**

Walter is a supporting character, and serves a *big brother* role to Ryu until certain events unfold and lead to his eventual demise. He started off a nobody in the Warrior's Guild, barely being able to scrape by with what little he made from the easiest quests he could take on. Ella, one of the first S-Ranked members of the guild would continuously berate his lack of talent, and claimed he would never reach her. This only fueled his desire to prove her wrong, as he worked tirelessly to improve upon his swordsmanship.

During one quest meant for the disposal of an ogre, he encountered its remains, horribly disfigured beyond what could be considered normal. Gripped in the creature's right hand was a small dragon eye like stone that caught his attention. He took it for himself, assuming it would fetch a nice price somewhere. Yet, upon coming into contact with it, the influence of the Wyrmstone immediately took hold, a surge of power coursing through his body. For once he felt powerful, enough to take down any manner of creature.

Since then, he and the stone have become inseparable. Due to its influence, he had soared through the ranks of the guild, and became an S-Rank himself. Ella became his rival, and eventually his wife where she would retire the day she became pregnant. During one of his quests, he encountered a half elf name Sylvie, who had been beaten to an inch of her life, rescues her, and takes her in. The two have since been like siblings, with Sylvie eventually becoming his support on his adventures.

Some time after their daughter Nana was born, Walter began to notice drastic changes to his body, his right side had begun to grow scales, thick crystalline veins jut from his flesh and before long he realized it was the Wyrmstone corroding his body. He tried to be rid of it, but found that he could not dispose of it no matter how much he tried. Even being without it for a few moments felt as if he had gone weeks without rest, his mind clouded, body weak. Out of fear what his wife may think of his affliction, he instead began to take on quest after quest, choosing to rest outside, away from his family, only to see them during parts of the day.

Once Ryu joined the guild, Walter felt compelled to help him become a better person, seeing just how rough he was around the edges. On occasion, he would force quests upon him and tag along just to see how he would go about completing them, offering guidance when needed. Fearing the effects of the Wyrmstone, Walter chooses to entrust Ryu with alerting his family of his demise should it come about, and that his wedding ring be given to Ella.

During one bandit routing quest, the two come across an abandoned fort, where Walter feels something beckoning him within, yet he resisted for a time, and researched what it was intended for. There were no records of the building, nor had it ever been used, to his surprise. He decides to investigate alone, until Sylvie and Alice discover him only to come across Seraiya who had hunted them down.

With both of his companions down, and Seraiya explaining the effects of the stone to him, he welcomed his death, reminding Ryu one last time to take his ring to Ella, to keep what he saw to himself. The man would eventually return to life through means unknown and arrive within the Tower of Eternity, along with his fallen comrades. They battled Ryu, claiming it was his fault they perished, and with his death their souls would be set free. Defeated, he regains his sanity, and thanks his friend for releasing him before turning to dust.

## **Appearance**

Walter is fair skinned, with a broad pair of shoulders and chest. He has dark curly hair kept short enough to where it doesn't look overly messy. He, like Ryu, has a gruff expression as if he has a permanent scowl upon his face. He has dark eyes set beneath a thick brow.

He dons a set of dark full plate usually intended for quests at night, but chose to keep it on at all times later on. It is unadorned, plain and one can only wonder how he manages to move as he does in it. A drab cloak is affixed to the armor, one that has seen many years of use, a prized possession stitched by his wife, with countless mismatched patches sewn in. Little notes were etched upon them, equal parts chastising and encouraging, as if to fully remind him of the woman who was formerly his rival, and now his love. The most recent of them are from his daughter.

## **Personality**

He is quick witted, compassionate and kindhearted. He will not hesitate to aid someone in dire need, nor does he let things such as pride get the better of him. Through quests, he acts like the party leader, often giving commands for his companions to undertake to better fit the changing situations. A natural born leader and scholar, his knowledge on creatures and geography far outmatch those in the guild and he knows it. As such, he is always ready to assist in one's search for knowledge.

He talks about his child a lot, a tad too much for others, oftentimes inviting those he knows to birthday parties for his daughter and guilt tripping them into coming along.

## **Trivia**

* Walter is named after the person he was based upon, and his role, as the author's older brother.