Rean Schwarzer

**Rean Schwarzer** is a major character of the Trails series and the main male protagonist of Trails of Cold Steel: Part I and one of the two male protagonists of Trails of Cold Steel: Part II. He is also one of the four male protagonists of Trails of Reverie: Part I and II.

Rean is the adoptive son of Baron Teo Schwarzer and the son of the Ironblood Chancellor Gilliath Osborne. He was a member of the First Generation Class VII at Thors Military Academy and later becomes the instructor of Thors Branch Campus and the Homeroom Teacher of the Second Generation Class VII. Soon after the Second Generation Class VII graduated, he became a member of PSD and was promoted to Captain of the Seventh Division.

## Appearance

Rean is a young man with unkempt dark hair, usually with a blue tint, and fuchsia eyes. During his time at Thors, Rean wears the red Class VII uniform, using black trousers and a lavender tie. Rean's traveling clothes consist of a black shirt over a white vest, a large red jacket with a fleece lined collar, blue trousers with a stripe pattern across one leg and leather laced-up boots.

An older Rean wears a long white overcoat with belt-like attachments on the shoulders, a flared collar and a loosely worn purple belt. He also wears a black zipped shirt over a white buttoned shirt, black trousers and a red suspender belt for carrying his tachi.

## Personality

Kind, sociable, easygoing and modest to a fault, Rean is about as upright as they come. He is incredibly supportive, often helping people (friends or otherwise) with their various problems, sometimes going through extreme lengths to fulfill requests. He is a natural-born leader, often taking the initiative when the group faces a problem, relying on his good instincts and deductive reasoning skills to get through them. However, despite putting on a confident front, Rean has a shockingly low amount of self-worth, often being harsh to himself and trying to spread credit to others. He is also unable to reconcile the love that his family has for him, often considering himself to be a burden, striving to one day "pay back his parents" for caring for them, unable to realize that his parents unconditionally love him.

He also has a tendency to put others over himself, often to his detriment. Both Dante and Jusis points out that his tendency to do this comes across as more abnormal than virtuous. He holds himself back when fighting due to the fear of losing control and accidentally hurting someone with his power. He is able to slowly reconcile his shortcomings over time, eventually learning to accept the love that people have for him and accept his unknown power as an extension of himself. He is quite overprotective of Elise, stating that he won't just let any man be with her and easily snaps to even the slightest of infractions (such as a simple stroke) against her.

Rean matures a great deal after the events of Civil War. Although his base personality is more or less the same, it's greatly tempered by his experiences in the military. He gains a greater understanding of the people and world around him, and makes a point to look at things "beneath the surface." He is more forthright than he used to be, and he tends to vocalize uncomfortable truths rather than coddle them (such as when he tells Kurt his sword skills and lack of resolve aren't enough to help him on his mission).

As a teacher, his kindness and easygoing nature are complemented by high expectations and a desire to maximize each of his student's potential. He is also fiercely protective of them, and while it often manifests in a desire to help them overcome whatever obstacle that might be in their way, his overprotectiveness of them can lead him to make questionable decisions in order to secure their safety. Over the course his time as the instructor, he learns to set aside his overprotectiveness towards them and genuinely trust his students as comrades. He shows a great deal of concern for students outside of his class as well and is always willing to lend an ear to any student in need.

Rean has shown himself to be rather popular with women due to his kind and gentlemanly nature. However, he is a bit oblivious when it comes to romance and occasionally says things that come off as intimate without much thought. Elise noted that Rean seems to be very close with several girls, such as his female classmates in Class VII and those outside of Class VII, and many would develop a crush on Rean. However, Rean himself isn't interested in pursuing a relationship and tends to keep a distance around himself to avoid getting too close or intimate with someone. When asked by Dante for his reasons for maintaining this distance, Rean responds that he is not comfortable having a relationship due to personal problems and several challenges he is facing in his life, and he doesn't want anyone to get too close to him because of it. However, the only person Rean shares a close relationship with is Alisa, and many often tease them when their feelings for one another are oblivious.