History Characters / TheBeginningAfterTheEndAgronaVritra

* KickTheMoralityPet: [[spoiler:His former paramour Sylvia was one of the few people that he cared for, but he thought that she had betrayed him when he was exiled from Epheotus. In truth Sylvia was still in love with him, but when she arrived in Alacrya hoping to save him from his fate, Agrona had already fallen into villainy and called for her death. Sylvia realized at that point that Agrona was BeyondRedemption and so went into hiding in Dicathen for the rest of her life]].

* ObviousVillainSecretVillain: The Obvious Villain. Agrona is the obvious main antagonist as the instigator of the DivineConflict and thus the invasion of Arthur's homeland of Dicathen. However, [[spoiler:his nemesis Kezess is eventually revealed to be just as evil as him, especially as his past atrocities were the cause for Agrona's StartOfDarkness. Following TheReveal, the two of them form opposing halves of the main BigBa Ensemble as the GreaterScopeVillain[=s=] whom Arthur seeks to defeat]].

** When he gives the order to [[spoiler:launch the final assault, he first attacks the rift as he knows that the dragons would prioritize defending it over their Dicathian allies given their FantasticRacism and LackOfEmpathy towards them. With the dragons abandoning their posts, his forces are free to launch their assault all over Dicathen via the teleportation devices he had Nico replicate for him]].

* DragonsVersusKnights: His rivalry with Arthur. Agrona, while technically a basilisk, fulfills the dragon role as both are referred to as serpents and the depiction of basilisks in the novel does convergently resemble that of classical dragons. Arthur on the other hand is obviously the knight.

* GodOfKnowledge: Given his clan's nature as a faction of divine scientists, Agrona fits this trope as he was always obsessed with studying the inner workings of mana and furthering his insight into it. After his and his clan's exile, he turned those intellectual pursuits of his to far more malevolent ends, as he began researching means to win the DivineConflict he started.

** He also does the same to [[spoiler:Highblood Denoir, given Caera's affiliation to both Seris and Arthur. When Caera is confronted by her extended family in the second Siege of Vildorial, her aunt Melitta tells her that she lost her husband and two young children because of Caera's defiance, while her great-uncle Justus says that Caera's treason led Agrona to condemn all of Highblood Denoir as punishment and that she has to die in order for their family to reclaim whatever is left of their honor]].

* KickTheMoralityPet: [[spoiler:His former paramour Sylvia was one of the few people that he cared for, but he felt that she had betrayed him when he was exiled from Epheotus. In truth Sylvia was still in love with him, but when she arrived in Alacrya hoping to save him from his fate, Agrona had already fallen into villainy and called for her death. Sylvia realized at that point that Agrona was BeyondRedemption and so went into hiding in Dicathen for the rest of her life]].

* ImmortalRuler: While asuras are not truly immortal but extremely long lived, Agrona nonetheless fits the trope as he has reigned over Alacrya since its inception millennia ago, being the one responsible for uplifting their civilization. He goes so far as to refer to himself as "The Eternal Ruler".
* InvincibleVillain: Considering Arthur is an InvincibleHero, it is only fitting that Agrona is the opposite trope in order to maintain the sense of narrative tension. Not only is Agrona an asura which puts him at the top of the power scale (as even [[ThoseWereOnlyTheirScouts the weakest among the asuras]] can outmatch the strongest mortal mages), he has also survived several attempts on his life. However, what truly makes him this trope is that he is arguably ''the'' top {{Chessmaster}} and ManipulativeBastard in the setting. Agrona is always one step ahead of his enemies, and [[YouCantThwartStageOne almost all of his schemes have come to fruition]] with his enemies being able to do little to stop them.
-->'''Arthur:''' What was a mere two mortal lifetimes of experience when compared to an ancient asura's lifetime of intellect and wisdom?

* GodAndSatanAreBothJerks: He may be the resident MaouTheDemonKing and SatanicArchetype, but it turns out that he only became the monster that he is now because [[spoiler:he discovered that Kezess committed genocide and after being exiled by him for threatening to expose the truth became just as reprehensible as his nemesis. Throughout the story, both him and Kezess demonstrate that there is no difference between them as both continue to commit various atrocities and cause CollateralDamage upon the lessers in a bid to overcome the other]].

* HeWhoFightsMonsters: [[spoiler:In wanting to exact revenge on Kezess and to expose his crimes, Agrona has become much, much worse than his nemesis. Case in point, he turned against Kezess for discovering that he committed genocide, but after being exiled Agrona is willing to commit genocide against his own kind if that is what it takes]].
* HellInvadesHeaven: His end goal is to either conquer or destroy Epheotus using both his army of asura/lesser hybrids and [[spoiler:the Legacy]]. Following [[spoiler:Kezess causing the destruction of Elenoir by forcing Aldir to use World Eater technique in a futile bid to kill the Legacy, Agrona finally has his casus belli to break the treaty and launch his invasion]].

* AllowedInternalWar: Due to his SocialDarwinist tendencies, Agrona tolerates conflict between the dominions of Alacrya as long as it does not threaten his overall plan and that the survivors come out stronger from it. All that matters to him in the end is that he gets soldiers strong enough to take on the asuras.

* DividedWeFall: He intentionally {{Invoke|dTrope}}s this trope to weaken his enemies.

** After [[spoiler:Seris and her supporters are forced to seek asylum in Dicathen, he took out his rage on not just those of her supporters who took him up on his offer of clemency and stayed behind, but on pretty much the entire population of Sehz-Clar. Not only does he reimpose martial law on the dominion and make examples of those who failed him, but when he launches his final assault, he sends entire extended bloods straight to the frontlines in Dicathen just for having any sort of connection to the rebellion]].

* PragmaticVillainy: In the aftermath of [[spoiler:Exeges's death, Agrona rallies the populace of Alacrya by not only framing the Indrath Clan of the act, but by surprisingly offering clemency to anyone who had been part of Seris's rebellion in spite of him normally punishing treachery with death. He does so not only to undermine whatever remaining support Seris has left in Alacrya, but to unite all of its populace against the asuras in preparation for his invasion of Epheotus]].

[[redirect:Characters/TheBeginningAfterTheEndVritraClan]]

[[WMG: [[center: ''Literature/TheBeginningAfterTheEnd'' [[Characters/TheBeginningAfterTheEnd Main Character Index]]\\
[-''[[Characters/TheBeginningAfterTheEndDicathians Dicathians]]'': [[Characters/TheBeginningAfterTheEndLeywinFamily Leywin Family]] ([[Characters/TheBeginningAfterTheEndArthurLeywin Arthur Leywin]]) | [[Characters/TheBeginningAfterTheEndRoyalFamilies Royal Families]] | [[Characters/TheBeginningAfterTheEndLances Lances]] | [[Characters/TheBeginningAfterTheEndXyrusAcademy Xyrus Academy]] | [[Characters/TheBeginningAfterTheEndAdventurers Adventurers]]\\
''[[Characters/TheBeginningAfterTheEndAlacryans Alacryans]]'': [[Characters/TheBeginningAfterTheEndVritraClan Vritra Clan]] ('''Agrona Vritra''') \\
''[[Characters/TheBeginningAfterTheEndAsuras Asuras]]'' ([[Characters/TheBeginningAfterTheEndKezessIndrath Kezess Indrath]])]]]]-]
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!! Agrona Vritra
!!!Lord of the Vritra Clan, High Sovereign of Alacrya, The Eternal Ruler
!!!'''Debut:''' Volume 6 (Novel), Chapter 148 (Webcomic)
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/x8bxhjs.png]]
->"''What I achieved through those experiments has benefited not only myself, but the lessers in Alacrya - to such a degree that they worship me. Not out of fear, but out of reverence. To them, I am their savior.''"

The main antagonist of the novel, Agrona is the Lord of the Vritra Clan, a faction of asuras that was exiled from Epheotus to the distant continent of Alacrya in the distant past for their experimentation upon the inhabitants of that land, an act that violated the asuras' policy of non-intervention in the lives of the lessers. In retribution, he began preparing for a DivineConflict that would span countless millennia and consume the entire world, a war that Arthur finds himself not only caught up in, but one that he has a much deeper role to play in than he realizes.
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[[folder:A to E]]
* AffablyEvil: Agrona is polite, soft-spoken, and occasionally generous to his allies. Even Arthur calls him eccentric and sociable.
* AllAccordingToPlan: By the end of Volume 10, [[spoiler:Arthur humiliated the Vritra at the Victoriad, escaped back to Dicathen and reconquered it, and inspired Seris to launch a revolt that he joins up with]]. How does Agrona react to this string of unforeseen setbacks? He is completely unfazed at the least and mildly surprised at the most. He had [[spoiler:already crushed Seris's rebellion by the time Arthur arrived and knowing Arthur would go after Cecilia to free Tessia he intends for exactly that to happen to fulfill his own ambitions. Not only that, but with Kezess having sent his forces to occupy Dicathen and bringing Epheotus out of the aether realm, the door has been opened for him to launch his invasion of Epheotus. Seris embitteredly remarks about how everything still ended up playing into his hands right before she withdraws from the Relictombs]].
-->'''Seris:''' (''To Arthur'') I'm afraid that [[spoiler:the division of Alacrya has played into his hands]]. I suspect that he wished for [[spoiler:this portal between our world and Epheotus to be opened]]. We have helped to make him look vulnerable, ensuring that [[spoiler:the dragons finally came to play]].
* AmbitionIsEvil: Not only does he desire to exact revenge on Kezess and the Indrath, but he wants to rule over the asuras if not destroy them all outright.
* AncientEvil: Agrona's villainy has been around for millennia. His StartOfDarkness occurred many generations ago in the distant past, long before the rise of mages in Dicathen which itself was a consequence of the DivineConflict he started.
* TheAntiGod: He is the main force of opposition against Kezess, the supreme deity of the setting. While Agrona is implied to be less powerful than Kezess on paper, he is still arguably the biggest threat Kezess has faced in the millennia he has reigned, and thanks to his own incompetence Agrona has been able to execute most of his plans unimpeded in order to level the playing field between them.
* ArchEnemy:
** Kezess, as the ruler of Epheotus and the one who exiled Agrona and his clan to Alacrya in the first place.
** Arthur, given how Agrona invaded his homeland of Dicathen, caused the deaths of many of his friends and family, and [[spoiler:was the one responsible for reincarnating him in the first place along with his friends Nico and Cecilia whom he has brainwashed into serving him]].
* ArchaeologicalArmsRace: Agrona seeks to unearth the secrets of the Relictombs in order to master fate itself and win the DivineConflict. While he is able to hide his plans from Kezess, Arthur ends up competing with him upon hearing about it from Sylvia's second message.
* ArchnemesisDad: To [[spoiler:Sylvie]].
* AssassinationAttempt: Agrona has been subjected to multiple attempted assassinations by Kezess. Not only has he survived every single one, but at times he has used Kezess's failings to gain favorable terms and capital in their conflict.
** After Agrona and his clan were exiled from Epheotus, Kezess heard word of their activities in Alacrya. He promptly sent a group of asuras to perform a DecapitationStrike. When the group arrived, Agrona was waiting for them with a group of Vritra-blooded mutants and killed them all. He then brought word of what happened, including the death of Sylvia who had stowed away with the group, to Kezess. In spite of Kezess's anger, the rest of the Great Eight pushed for what would become the treaty that defines the DivineConflict.
** Later on during the Alacryan invasion of Dicathen, [[spoiler:Kezess orders another DecapitationStrike on Alacrya without consulting his Dicathian allies. Not only does it fail yet again, but Agrona uses his failure to revoke Epheotus's involvement in the defense of Dicathen as a violation of the treaty. Without the aid of the asuras, Dicathen falls under Agrona's rule]].
** Notably, while Agrona has survived every single attempt on his life that Kezess has orchestrated, the same cannot be said for most of his clan. In trying to get to Agrona, Kezess's assassins wound up killing much of the basilisks who had accompanied Agrona in his exile. This has resulted in the number of true Vritra having dwindled to a fraction of their former numbers by the present, and those survivors have become TheParanoiac over any attempt on their own lives as a result. Though given [[TheSociopath what kind of person]] he is, Agrona undoubtedly couldn't care less about these casualties.
* BadBoss: Despite his claims of being beloved in his domain, Agrona has no regard at all for his minions, especially the lessers. As far as he is concerned, they are all expendable in his desire to wage war on Epheotus. Even his own clan is not exempt from this callous disregard of his. He is also willing to tolerate and foster internecine conflict among his minions just to have the survivors grow stronger in the long-term.
-->'''Seris:''' [Agrona] will burn us all for fuel in the furnace of his ambition, because he doesn't want to be Lord of the Lessers, he intends to become King of the Asuras.
* TheBadGuyWins: Considering his status as an InvincibleVillain and the top {{Chessmaster}} in the setting, Agrona tends to win quite a lot.
** At the end of Volume 7, [[spoiler:Agrona conquers Dicathen and has the Council executed. His reign over the continent only lasts for a year as when Arthur returns from Alacrya at the end of Volume 9, he undoes Agrona's conquest in a matter of days as Agrona's attention is distracted with both his plans for the Legacy and Seris's rebellion]].
** At the end of Volume 8, [[spoiler:Agrona is finally able to summon the Legacy when Tessia gets captured during her return to Elenoir and forcibly turned into the vessel for Cecilia. If that was not enough, but when Windsom and Aldir attempt to intervene the latter ended up using the World Eater technique to completely obliterate all of Elenoir in a futile attempt to kill Cecilia. In doing so, Agrona managed to trick Kezess into breaking their treaty and thus open the way for him to prepare for his invasion of Epheotus]].
** At the start of Volume 11, [[spoiler:Agrona had managed to quell Seris's rebellion before Arthur could arrive to relieve it, as the latter had been stuck in the aether realm for two months while trying to resurrect Sylvie. Not only had she and her closest followers been forced into the Relictombs, but after the botched mission to kill Exeges they are forced to abandon the Relictombs altogether and seek asylum in Dicathen]].
* BasiliskAndCockatrice: Agrona is a basilisk, which in the novel are asuras whose true form is that of a giant serpent. Fittingly, he is the leader of a clan of basilisks in the way the basilisk is sometimes called the king of serpents, albeit instead of a crown he has HornsOfVillainy.
* BatmanGambit:
** After being banished from Epheotus, Agrona tried to goad Kezess into going to war against him by informing him of Sylvia's death as he had already positioned his allies in a way that would lead to MutuallyAssuredDestruction. However, this ended up being {{Averted}} as the rest of the Great Eight settled for a treaty instead.
--->'''Kezess:''' Agrona was practically daring us to go to war. His clan and their allies had been placed very strategically to ensure that any battle would almost certainly result in the destruction of your world.
** Summoning [[spoiler:the Legacy. Knowing that Kezess would catch wind of his plan at this point, he has Tessia captured in Elenoir and the ritual to summon Cecilia to possess her performed on the spot. Kezess sends Windsom and Aldir to kill her and the latter [[GodzillaThreshold ends up using]] the [[FantasticNuke World Eater technique]]. The result? All of Elenoir is obliterated and Agrona not only has his ace in the hole for the war with Epheotus, but also his casus belli to launch his invasion as Kezess was tricked into breaking the treaty. While it came at the cost of thousands of Agrona's mortal soldiers who were in Elenoir, to Agrona they were completely expendable]].
** He knows that Arthur [[spoiler:would come after Cecilia so that he can free Tessia from her control, but that is entirely his intention as not only does he want Cecilia to get stronger from fighting Arthur, but he wants to see if their confrontations would reveal the true nature of power in the world for him to control given how Arthur and Cecilia have mastery over aether and mana respectively]].
* BecameTheirOwnAntithesis: [[spoiler:He initially wanted to expose Kezess for the genocidal tyrant that he was, but in his vendetta Agrona has been twisted into being no better than his nemesis, if not having become an even greater evil]].
* BetrayalInsurance: Should any of Agrona's servants betray him, he has a built-in countermeasure to deal with them. The same blood that flows in the veins of all Alacryans and the runes that are engraved into those who receive marks allow him to control their bearers, and if he so chooses he can MakeAnExampleOfThem in extremely graphic fashions. [[spoiler:When the time comes for him to march on Epheotus, he proceeds to force Seris and her rebellion back into his service by taking control of them and remotely killing the few who immediately resisted]].
* BetterTheDevilYouKnow: {{Invoked}}. Even though he could not care any less about the lessers of Alacrya whom he has ruled over for generations, throughout his rule he has demonized the asuras of Epheotus (and [[spoiler:[[JerkassGods rightfully so]]]]) and indoctrinated the populace into believing his rhetoric. This becomes especially apparent in Volume 11, as after [[spoiler:Exeges's mysterious demise, Agrona frames Arthur and Sylvie (and by extension the Indrath Clan and the rest of Epheotus) for the act. In doing so, Agrona rallies the populace to his side as he paints Epheotus as the greater evil, in spite of his own rule having been terrible for them]].
* BigBad: The main antagonist of the novel, given how he was the one who started the DivineConflict that ravages the setting.
* BigBadEnsemble: [[spoiler:As Kezess is no different from him with both being divine tyrants responsible for their fair share of atrocities and with no regard for the lives of the lessers caught up in their DivineConflict, they both act as the main antagonistic forces that Arthur and his allies are up against, although both remain opposed to one another. Though Arthur is willing to pull an EnemyMine with Kezess against Agrona]].
* BlackComedy: A subtle example. At one point, he serves [[spoiler:Cecilia a dish of star fruit and moon oxen from Elenoir, which he calls a rare delicacy. This is right after Aldir had destroyed all life in Elenoir in a failed bid to prevent Cecilia from being summoned in the first place]].
* ButForMeItWasTuesday: Sure, Agrona's planned invasion of Dicathen has led to the deaths of many of Arthur's loved ones, in particular Sylvia, [[spoiler:his father Reynolds, Sylvie (though she gets better), and the Council]], but as far as Agrona is concerned, those deaths are meaningless to him and just a natural consequence of his plans. Hell, even though he does employ TargetedToHurtTheHero to get an edge over Arthur and his allies, it is not out of any personal grudge but rather as a means to his end goal. He had no personal attachment, interest, or vendetta towards [[spoiler:Arthur's past self King Grey either; Grey's world just so happened to be the place where he found the Legacy and so he reincarnated him, Nico, and Cecilia to fulfill his ends]].
* TheCharmer: Part of Agrona's skill as a manipulator comes from his very charismatic personality which has drawn some of his pawns into working for him. Before his fall from grace, even [[spoiler:Sylvia fell for his charms and their relationship was a genuine and loving one]]. Afterward, he turned those skills of his to fulfill more nefarious purposes.
* TheChessmaster: Agrona is a master manipulator of both events and people to achieve his plans. In preparation for his war with Epheotus, he turns an entire continent into his own domain and amass an army of asura/lesser hybrids. All the while, he is able to hide his plans from Kezess, who does not discover them until he has already accomplished them.
-->'''Arthur:''' (''To Kezess'') I don't think you know half as much as you pretend to. If you'd understood any of this before [[spoiler:Cecilia's reincarnation, you would have had Windsom kill Tessia, or Nico, or even me]]. How has Agrona gotten so far ahead of you?
* CleavageWindow: A RareMaleExample. As seen in the above image, Agrona's outfit exposes the top part of his chest.
* TheConqueror: Having established rule over Alacrya, Agrona seeks to conquer Dicathen and bring it under his fold in order to conscript its inhabitants for when he invades Epheotus. He ends up [[spoiler:[[TheBadGuyWins accomplishing just that]], only to lose control over Dicathen a year later thanks to Arthur returning to liberate the continent]]. That being said, by then Agrona's focus has shifted to preparing his forces to invade and conquer if not outright destroy Epheotus itself now that he has [[spoiler:the Legacy]].
* TheCorrupter:
** Given his clan's nature as EvilutionaryBiologist[=s=], Agrona experimented on various mana beasts by splicing his essence into them, causing them to mutate into more monstrous creatures which sported his signature horns. These beasts can then be put into the control of his minions and directed onto anything that opposes his will. Anything that has his blood in it can be controlled by him. Just ask [[spoiler:Sylvie, Tessia, or the entirety of Seris's rebellion]].
** Agrona also excels at corrupting sapient beings and coercing them into doing his bidding through either fear or greed. He managed to corrupt the dwarven kingdom of Darv so thoroughly it effectively became a puppet state to him before the war even ended.
* CreateYourOwnHero: Agrona is just as bad as [[spoiler:his nemesis Kezess]] when it comes to creating individuals who would go on to stand against him.
** In his quest to attain the power of [[spoiler:the Legacy, Agrona reincarnated her childhood friends Grey and Nico to act as anchor points for her soul. However, thanks to the intervention of Sylvie (herself being his biological daughter and thus another example), the soul of the former wound up being reincarnated outside of his domain and in the wrong body. When Agrona launched his invasion of Dicathen, the reincarnated Grey, now calling himself Arthur Leywin, stood against him]].
** [[spoiler:Sylvie. Given that he is her biological father, he ended up conceiving someone who would not only go on to stand against him, but sabotage his plans for the reincarnates in the first place and seal his downfall]].
* CultOfPersonality: As the tyrannical GodEmperor of a totalitarian state, Agrona takes this trope a step further than most dictators and tyrants in that he is an actual PhysicalGod ruling over the lessers rather styling himself as one. Naturally, his subjects adore, worship, and glorify him for the deity that he is in spite of how repressive his regime has been for them.
* DarkIsEvil: Agrona has black hair and horns, wears black and gold clothing, and is the main antagonist.
* DarkMessiah: Agrona is a ruthless yet charismatic demagogue who claims that his rule has done wonders for the people of Alacrya who have come to view him as their savior. In the NewEraSpeech that he has read out [[spoiler:following his conquest of Dicathen and the execution of the Council, he claims that the same will happen to his newly conquered subjects as well]]. Agrona presents himself in this fashion to his mortal subjects in order to make them subservient to him in preparation for his war with Epheotus.
* DealWithTheDevil: As part as his nature as TheCorrupter, Agrona excels at striking bargains with lesser in order to turn them into his puppets. In such deals, he either promises them power or wealth or holds their loved ones' lives at stake. Just ask the many noble houses of Dicathen that he corrupted into accepting his rule even before his invasion. Even [[spoiler:the royal families on the Council end up being no exception]].
* DemonicPossession: He is able to control and possess anything and everything that has his blood in it, which is usually indicated by RedEyesTakeWarning. He ends up using this ability numerous times throughout the story to show how his reach is nearly limitless.
** At the end of Volume 6, [[spoiler:he takes control of the now-human Sylvie so he can talk to Arthur for the first time]]. Later on at the end of Volume 7, [[spoiler:he uses his control over Tessia by way of her beast will - which was derived from a failed experiment of his - to coerce Alduin and Merial into collaborating with him and letting his troops into the Council Castle]].
** His control over his spawn extends to more than just possession. At one point, [[spoiler:he causes a Wraith that Arthur had cornered to explode before he could spill any of his secrets. This forces Arthur to keep all of his Alacryan allies LockedOutOfTheLoop when the time comes for him to acquire the fourth keystone as he is wary Agrona could use them against him in the time he would be out of commission. He is proven horribly right as Agrona does this trope on a ''massive'' scale by taking control of Seris and her followers (if not the Alacryan people as a whole) to force them to capture Arthur for him and join his final assault. To show he means business, he proceeds to {{Make an Example of|Them}} of the few who defy him by subjecting them to agonizing deaths]].
* DidntSeeThatComing: While he is almost unmatched as a planner and manipulator, there are a few moments where Agrona does get caught off-guard by a sudden setback. That being said, the surprise is only temporary for him as he is often able to modify his plans to accommodate for the sudden turn of events.
** When he [[spoiler:claimed Grey's soul to reincarnate him into his vessel of choice as an anchor point for the Legacy, he did not expect the intervention of the temporally-displaced Sylvie who snatched Grey's soul from his grasp and took it away so that Grey would instead reincarnate as her bond and Agrona's greatest mortal nemesis, Arthur Leywin. This forced him to alter his plans for the Legacy, as he sent agents to Dicathen to look for the reincarnated Grey and thus find a different vessel for the Legacy]].
** He was surprised to learn of [[spoiler:Arthur's survival following the end of the war and his RePower as an aether-wielding demigod. What caught him more by surprise was Arthur's participation in the Victoriad. Not only did Arthur effortlessly defeat two of the Scythes, but when Agrona and the Legacy had him cornered at the end Arthur escaped them using God Step. All of this happened right in front of all of Alacrya, embarrassing Agrona in front of all of his subjects. To add insult to injury, afterwards Arthur returned to Dicathen and managed to reconquer the continent in a matter of days]].
--->'''Seris:''' (''To [[spoiler:Arthur]]'') I don't imagine your appearance and actions at the Victoriad were part of his grand design. I've never seen him so angry as when you vanished out from under his nose.
* DividedWeFall: He intentionally {{Invoke|dTrope}}s this trope to weaken his enemies.
** In the leadup to the invasion of Dicathen, Agrona sent spies into Dicathen to corrupt the noble houses of the continent into serving him. After the deaths of the Greysunders, who he had coerced into being his puppets, Agrona's followers in Darv stage a revolt. When his forces do arrive, they immediately begin collaborating with them as [[spoiler:the Greysunders' replacement is even more loyal to him than they were. After a failed AssassinationAttempt by Kezess, he uses it as an excuse to revoke Epheotus's involvement in the war. At the end of the war, he forces the Eraliths to work for him by threatening their daughter, which causes further strife among the Dicathians. And if that were not enough, in tricking the asuras into destroying Elenoir he creates a massive rift in their relations with the Dicathians]].
** When the time comes for him [[spoiler:to launch his invasion of Epheotus, Agrona begins to tear apart the fragile alliance Arthur had made. He first attacks the rift between Dicathen and Epheotus, which forces all of the occupying dragons to abandon their posts to defend it. Then, he takes control of Seris and her rebellion by way of his blood in their veins and - after making examples of the few who resisted him - forces them to rejoin his ranks. This leaves the Dicathians alone once again to fend off a second invasion, one that has him striking at all fronts by way of a rebuilt djinn teleportation device, and this time around Arthur is out of commission as he is busy unlocking the final keystone]].
* EeriePaleSkinnedBrunette: Agrona has pale white skin and raven black hair, which gives him an unearthly and villainous appearance.
* EmperorScientist: Even before his fall from grace, Agrona was known for his intellectual endeavors as befitting the leader of a clan of scientists turned EvilutionaryBiologist[=s=]. He is constantly looking to uncover new methods to gain an edge over his nemeses through furthering his own insight into mana and aether. His research is what led him to discover [[spoiler:the Legacy and her power, which led him to research the art of reincarnation and thus summon her and her childhood friends into his service]].
-->'''Seris:''' Agrona is a scientist at his core, and he operates on a timetable of centuries, not days. What is a few months of civil war or tens of thousands of lives lost to such a being?
* EnlightenedSelfInterest: He claims that his uplifting of the Alacryans and subsequent millennia-long rule over them is a case of this. In [[spoiler:the NewEraSpeech he has read out in the wake of his conquest of Dicathen, he claims that his rule will be beneficial to the Dicathians in the same it has been for the Alacryans]]. Of course, he has only been doing this to even the odds he faces by creating a SemiDivine army for use as CannonFodder for his invasion of Epheotus, and he more than willing to throw them all away in the pursuit of his vendetta.
* EvilOverlord: Agrona is a near-textbook example. In appearance, he resembles a demonic deity with black and gold clothing complete with an OminousOperaCape, RedEyesTakeWarning, and HornsOfVillainy to make him all the more ObviouslyEvil. He has ruled over the continent of Alacrya for millennia from his impregnable fortress of Taegrin Caelum, in the process twisting and mutating its inhabitants into his subservient minions, and he seeks to conquer the known world and assemble its inhabitants for his army to invade the HomeOfTheGods.
** However, Agrona turns out to be a tragic example of this trope. While he is a SatanicArchetype who seeks revenge on the very gods who exiled him, he used to be a genuinely good person who was exiled for [[spoiler:uncovering the fact that said gods had committed genocide in the distant past, and in his exile became the very monster that he sought to defeat]].
* EvilPlan: Agrona has played the long game when it comes to preparing for his inevitable war with Epheotus. Ever since he and his clan established rule over Alacrya, they had been experimenting on the lessers of that continent to create soldiers and mana beasts enhanced by their own blood for millennia, creating a society that was blindly indoctrinated and obedient to him. In turn, he intends to conquer Dicathen and do the same with its populace in order to have an army powerful enough to invade Epheotus. In the midst of it all, he ensures that Kezess is kept unaware of his true plans to deter him from interfering.
** The crux of Agrona's plan is [[spoiler:his attempts to summon the Legacy, whose power he came across as he was searching across time and space for a power strong enough to overcome Kezess. To summon her, Agrona reincarnated the souls of her childhood friends Grey and Nico to act as anchor points for her, which he followed on by reincarnating the Legacy herself into a suitable vessel. At the end of it all, Agrona had acquired an asura-killing PersonOfMassDestruction that he had manipulated into obedience as his ace in the hole for the inevitable invasion of Epheotus]].
** The ultimate end goal of Agrona's plan to win the DivineConflict is to master fate itself. To accomplish this goal, [[spoiler:he has been sending his mortal servants into the Relictombs for millennia to uncover the djinn's secrets. With the Legacy at his disposal, he hopes that her inevitable clashes with Arthur pitting mana against aether will reveal the true nature of power in the world and open the way for him to control fate]].
* [[spoiler:EvilVersusEvil]]: Agrona might be the BigBad, but [[spoiler:his nemesis Kezess is a major case of GodIsEvil and the two are no better than one another with regards to their conflict and their treatment of the lessers]].
* EvilWearsBlack: Agrona's attire is mostly black, a color scheme reflective of his role as the main antagonist.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:F to N]]
* FaceHeelTurn: Once a respected figure among the asuras who got exiled for [[spoiler:threatening to expose the true nature of their rulers]], but his vengeance has twisted him into outright evil.
* FallenAngel: He and his clan were exiled from Epheotus for [[spoiler:discovering the fate of the djinn and threatening to expose the truth to the rest of the asuras]]. In his exile, Agrona has been preparing to exact revenge on the rest of the asuras.
* FallenHero: He used to be a renowned figure among the asuras capable of charming the likes of even [[spoiler:Sylvia]]. Then came his exile, and in his fall from grace he has become far worse than he ever was.
* FlawExploitation:
** While Agrona has been known to target people's loved ones to get them to comply with him, he takes it to a much further degree with Arthur as he knows Arthur is primarily driven by his desire to protect his loved ones. In his conversation with him at the end of Volume 6, Agrona reveals to Arthur that his parents had been caught up in a recent ambush and had only survived because he willed it so, showing that he is willing to do so to get an edge over his mortal nemesis.
** Regarding Kezess, Agrona took advantage of his desire to uphold the treaty and his limited intervention on Dicathen that was driven by his own pride to empower his mortal savants in Alacrya to a degree that would surpass that of the Dicathians. As such, when the time came for him to invade Dicathen, he had armies of Vritra-blooded mages and mana beasts at his beck and call, while the Dicathians only had the Lances. In doing so, Agrona takes advantage of Kezess severely underestimating him to advance his own goals as much as possible.
* {{Foil}}: To his own ArchEnemy Kezess in several respects.
** In terms of their demeanor, Agrona presents himself as AffablyEvil and eccentric while Kezess has an incredibly dismissive attitude.
** While neither of them [[spoiler:have any regard of the lives of the lessers and view them as completely expendable]], Agrona realizes that lessers can serve a role in his plans and so has experimented on many of them to enhance their capabilities. Kezess on the other hand is such a prideful supremacist that he only reluctantly deigns himself to rely on lessers, and to a much more restrained degree than Agrona due to his own desire to preserve the world. Though in his case it is because he was hoping for the Dicathians to become strong on their own accord, which resulted in them being outpaced by the Alacryans in terms of magical development.
*** This contrast is reinforced by their respective CoDragons. While Agrona brought his own clan and a few others into his rebellion, his main servants are not fullblooded asuras like them but instead the SemiDivine Scythes, Wraiths, and [[spoiler:the Legacy]]. On the other hand, Kezess obviously relies only on proper asuras as his main servants.
** Agrona is TheUnfettered because his exile has twisted him into a monster and he is willing to go to any lengths to win. Kezess on the other hand is TheFettered because he sees himself as the good guy and claims he has the best interests of the lessers at heart, and so he holds back in his response to Agrona.
** As both are near-immortal deities in positions of power, they should be extremely intelligent {{Chessmaster}}s considering they have lived for thousands of years. However, only Agrona truly demonstrates this requisite intelligence, as he uses the millennia he has lived to plan ahead and see the big picture which always puts him one step ahead of his enemies, especially considering that he and his forces are the underdog when facing the rest of the asuras. On the other hand, Kezess, despite being even older than Agrona, continuously demonstrates himself to be rather short-sighted when it comes to dealing with any perceived threats as his position of TopGod causes him believe himself infallible.
** Perhaps due to his mindset as a scientist, Agrona is surprisingly impartial to his enemies. While he may employ liberal use of TargetedToHurtTheHero, he does so not out of pettiness but because it can get him closer to achieving his goals. Kezess on the other hand [[spoiler:has been known to commit some rather reprehensible acts all out of his own pettiness]].
** Although they both recognize Arthur [[spoiler:as a growing threat and could easily eliminate him on their own]], they have different reasons for not doing so at the moment. Kezess wants to extract what Arthur knows about aether, while Agrona being the EvilutionaryBiologist that he is wants to dissect him to find out how he works on top as a means to strengthen the Legacy's power.
** Their attitude towards [[spoiler:Sylvie, their sole living descendant. Agrona coldly disavows her as his daughter, while Kezess has a VillainousParentalInstinct to the point of being a KnightTemplarParent]].
* ForcedIntoEvil: Agrona has been prone to forcing normally good individuals who would resist his influence into serving him by way of threatening their loved ones. He does so in order to cause divisions among his enemies and take advantage of their infighting, especially regarding Arthur and his desire to protect his loved ones. He forces [[spoiler:Alduin and Merial into collaborating with him by threatening the life of their daughter Tessia, and later on forces Seris to order her followers to rejoin him by way of DemonicPossession and making examples of the few who resisted]].
* FounderOfTheKingdom: He and his clan were the ones responsible for uplifting the populace of Alacrya, and so he is revered as the founder of their nation.
* GenghisGambit: To put an end to [[spoiler:Seris's rebellion, he holds a public broadcast to all of Alacrya wherein he frames the recent assassination of the Sovereign Exeges on Arthur and the Indrath Clan, in the process condemning the Indrath as the greater evil to his rule. It works, reuniting all of Alacrya under his control and galvanizing them into war with the asuras, on top of forcing Arthur to return back to Dicathen with the remnants of Seris's rebellion in tow. Though as it always has been his end goal to invade Epheotus to either conquer or destroy it, it is merely him rallying his forces for the next stage of his plan]].
* GenocideFromTheInside: Agrona is so far gone from who he used to be that he is willing to kill off all the other asuras just to achieve his revenge. Even his own clan is not exempt.
* GodEmperor: An actual deity who rules over a kingdom of lessers since being banished from Epheotus. He even calls himself "The Eternal Ruler" to reinforce how far above his subjects he is.
* GodAndSatanAreBothJerks: He may be the resident MaouTheDemonKing and SatanicArchetype, but it turns out that he only became the monster that he is now because [[spoiler:he discovered that Kezess committed genocide and after being exiled by him for threatening to expose the truth became just as reprehensible as his nemesis. Throughout the story, both him and Kezess demonstrate that there is no difference between them as both continue to commit various atrocities and cause CollateralDamage upon the lessers in a bid to overcome the other]].
* GodWasMyCoPilot: Before his exile, Agrona was fond of sneaking off to Dicathen and Alacrya in disguise for his research. This ended up being used against him by the Indrath Clan when the time came to exile him as they used his visits as evidence for his experimentation on the lessers of those continents. The actual reason was that [[spoiler:he uncovered that the Indrath Clan committed genocide upon the ancient djinn and threatened to expose them for it]].
* TheGreatSerpent: As a basilisk, Agrona's true form is that of a monstrous horned serpent.
* GreaterScopeVillain: He is responsible for the main conflict of the story as he sees Alacrya and Dicathen as stepping stones that will allow him to conquer Epheotus by making Vritra-blooded lessers to act as CannonFodder against the rest of the asuran clans as well as [[spoiler:the reincarnations of Grey, Nico, and Cecilia in order to acquire the latter's power as the Legacy and for them to serve as servants in his invasion]].
* HateSink: He invades Arthur's homeland of Dicathen [[spoiler:and conquers it, in the process causing the deaths of many of Arthur's loved ones. Not only that, but it turns out he was responsible for the reincarnation of not only Arthur, but also his childhood friends Nico and Cecilia whom he had ReforgedIntoAMinion through MindRape. In the case of the latter, he even had Arthur's LoveInterest Tessia captured to act as Cecilia's vessel. Not to mention, but Arthur has been almost powerless to stop him as Agrona is an InvincibleVillain whose plans have almost always gone the way he wanted, on top of being an asura which puts him above Arthur in terms of raw power]].
* HeKnowsTooMuch: The reason for his exile from Epheotus was [[spoiler:his discovery of the Indrath Clan's genocide of the djinn, which he threatened to expose to the rest of the asuras]].
* HeWhoFightsMonsters: [[spoiler:In wanting to exact revenge on Kezess and to expose his crimes, Agrona has become much, much worse than his nemesis. Case in point, he turned against Kezess for discovering that he committed genocide, but after being exiled Agrona is willing to commit genocide against his own kind if that is what it takes]].
* HellInvadesHeaven: His end goal is to either conquer or destroy Epheotus using both his army of asura/lesser hybrids and [[spoiler:the Legacy]]. Following [[spoiler:Kezess causing the destruction of Elenoir by forcing Aldir to use World Eater technique in a futile bid to kill the Legacy, Agrona finally has his casus belli to break the treaty and launch his invasion]].
* AHeroToHisHometown: Claims that all of his Alacryan subjects revere him as a god. Of course, considering what [[spoiler:Seris ends up doing, this is ultimately not the case]].
* HopeCrusher: Agrona has a twisted sense of satisfaction in that he likes to make his opponents think that they have a chance to defeat him before showing them how wrong they were in that he had the game stacked entirely in his favor from the very start. In the case of the lessers, that game had been stacked millennia ago, long before their ancestors were born.
** A good example of this characteristic of his is the way he deals with [[spoiler:Seris's rebellion. After Seris's humiliation of the Legacy and the fall of Sehz-Clar, he allowed her rebellion to score a few victories in the weeks afterward. Then in the span of days, he immediately proceeded to undo all of her rebellion's gains, right as Arthur returned to assist her. If that was not enough, despite giving them a brief reprieve by letting them settle in Dicathen for a while and making them think they can have a fresh start away from the war and his control, he eventually takes control of all of them by way of DemonicPossession and forces them back to his side as part of his endgame]].
* HornedHumanoid: He retains his horns in his human form.
* HornsOfVillainy: The mark of the Vritra are their signature black horns which contain the source of their magical power. Agrona is of course the most obvious example.
* IControlMyMinionsThrough: Agrona controls his minions through a wide variety of means. For the most part, his minions are MotivatedByFear due to his godlike power as an asura. As such, many of them view him as a god, though said perception varies between being outright fearful or indoctrinated reverence. In some cases, this fear is due to him threatening their loved ones so that they will comply with him. However, for some of his other minions, in particular his LesCollaborateurs in Dicathen, are motivated by the promise of greed or power that he offers them.
** It is eventually revealed that the fear Agrona instills in his subjects is completely justified, as he [[spoiler:can control every action, word, and thought of ''everything'' that has his blood, which naturally includes the entire nation of Alacrya. He demonstrates this on Seris's rebellion when the time comes for him to launch his invasion of Epheotus, as he forces Seris and every single one of her followers to kneel before making examples of the few who resisted him. Faced with the extermination of everyone under her authority, Seris reluctantly returns to his service and brings all of her followers along with her]].
** As for [[spoiler:the reincarnates under his command - Nico and Cecilia - he claims that he has their best interests at heart and promises to fulfill their deepest desire should they help him exact his revenge on the asuras. Specifically, not only did he promise them that they would be reunited, but he also promises that once the DivineConflict is over that he will return them home to Earth. He also promises them that he will let them have their revenge on Grey, but in this case it is revealed he has been twisting their memories of Grey by emphasizing the harm he has done to them. Though like the rest of his minions they also serve in part out of their own fear of him]].
* IHaveNoSon: Despite [[spoiler:Sylvie being his own offspring, he refuses to acknowledge her as his daughter. In a conversation with Cecilia, he coldly refers to Sylvie as merely being "[Arthur's] dragon bond" without any regard to her blood ties to him. This is a mutual sentiment, as Sylvie does not acknowledge Agrona as her father after all the atrocities he has done]].
* IHaveYourWife: Part of his way of manipulating others into doing his bidding involves holding their loved ones' lives at stake. The most notable instance of this is when [[spoiler:he reveals to Alduin and Merial that he has control over their daughter Tessia's life thanks to her beast will, which he uses to get them to let his forces into the Council Castle at the end of the war. He also forces Seris and her followers back into his service by making examples of the few who resisted and threatening their loved ones with the same fate]].
-->'''Agrona:''' (''To [[spoiler:Caera]]'') These first brave few, for acting as my example to you, have spared their bloods from the same fate, but any others who disobey condemn their mothers, fathers, sons, and daughters to share their painful and gruesome end.
* IKnowYourTrueName: He closes off his first conversation with Arthur with this ominous WhamLine.
-->'''Agrona:''' I suppose it does no harm in telling you. Let's say I've enjoyed talking with an old friend of yours, King Grey.
* INeedYouStronger: His reason for not killing Arthur [[spoiler:after he becomes an aether-wielding demigod is because he wants to see how powerful Arthur can become in his current state, on top of him wanting to dissect Arthur and see how he works. The other major reason for doing so is that he wants Cecilia to get stronger as well from fighting Arthur. Not only does he want her to be as strong as possible for when he invades Epheotus, but he wants to see if the clash between the two would reveal the true nature of power in the world as Arthur and Cecilia wield the opposing powers that define magic, aether and mana respectively]].
-->'''Agrona:''' (''To [[spoiler:Cecilia]]'') You and Grey need each other now, [[spoiler:Cecilia]]. You are the hammer, he is the anvil. It is where you meet that the truth of power in this world will be revealed.
* ImmortalRuler: While asuras are not truly immortal but extremely long lived, Agrona nonetheless fits the trope as he has reigned over Alacrya since its inception millennia ago, being the one responsible for uplifting their civilization. He goes so far as to refer to himself as "The Eternal Ruler".
* InvincibleVillain: Considering Arthur is an InvincibleHero, it is only fitting that Agrona is the opposite trope in order to maintain the sense of narrative tension. Not only is Agrona an asura which puts him at the top of the power scale (as even [[ThoseWereOnlyTheirScouts the weakest among the asuras]] can outmatch the strongest mortal mages), he has also survived several attempts on his life. However, what truly makes him this trope is that he is arguably ''the'' top {{Chessmaster}} and ManipulativeBastard in the setting. Agrona is always one step ahead of his enemies, and [[YouCantThwartStageOne almost all of his schemes have come to fruition]] with his enemies being able to do little to stop them.
-->'''Arthur:''' What was a mere two mortal lifetimes of experience when compared to an ancient asura's lifetime of intellect and wisdom?
* JustToyingWithThem: Agrona adopts this approach when dealing with any lessers who stand against him, as he has had millennia to devise his plans and empower his forces to a degree that said lessers can stand no chance against. He could have easily conquered Dicathen within a week by just sending the Wraiths, but he let the war last as long as it did with only having the Scythes involved leading his mortal armies [[spoiler:and still managing to conquer the continent]]. He does the same with [[spoiler:Seris's rebellion, letting it last for a few months before crushing it just as Arthur arrived]].
-->'''Arthur:''' We hadn't been lambs to the slaughter. We had been fish in a net.
* KillItWithFire: When he makes examples of [[spoiler:those among Seris's rebellion who are resisting his order - including Sulla and Lauden - he ignites the runes that are engraved on them which consumes them all with their own inner spellfire]].
* KneelBeforeZod: When he [[spoiler:displays his control over Seris and her followers, he forces them all down to their knees as if they were kneeling to him, even though he is only speaking to them mentally]].
* LackOfEmpathy: Agrona has been so consumed by his desire for vengeance against Kezess and the Indrath that he has no regard for the lives of his pawns. They are all completely expendable to him, though some are more valuable than others (namely the Scythes, Wraiths, and [[spoiler:the Legacy]]). He does not care about how much suffering he causes in the pursuit of his revenge.
* LukeIAmYourFather: [[spoiler:Arthur learns from Sylvia's second message that Agrona was her former paramour and the father of his bond Sylvie]].
* MakeAnExampleOfThem: He is prone to making examples of those who defy his authority. After [[spoiler:taking over the Council Castle, he has the entire Council impaled on spikes and paraded around to break the morale of the Dicathians. Later on when he takes control of Seris's rebellion by way of DemonicPossession to force them to rejoin his forces, he proceeds to remotely kill off the few individuals who immediately resist him - including Lauden and Sulla - in extremely graphic fashions, thus forcing Seris and her followers to comply to his demands]].
* MakerOfMonsters: Agrona has experimented upon the inhabitants of Alacrya for years, and so his armies include hordes of Vritra-blooded mana beasts who are much stronger than normal. This is an act that most asuras find incredibly repulsive, and was the excuse that the Indrath Clan used to exile him from Epheotus (the true reason being that [[spoiler:he uncovered that clan's DarkSecret and threatened to expose them for it]]).
%%* MagnificentBastard: Agrona fits this trope to a T. As the main antagonist, he is a devious and cunning schemer who is able to execute his plans nearly unimpeded. No matter what his enemies do to stop him, Agrona is always one step ahead of them. Even when faced with a sudden setback, he is able to quickly adjust his plans to account for the change in circumstances, to the point they proceed as if nothing happened at all. In spite of his villainy, Agrona is a charming and affable individual whose charisma has been able to win over several of his pawns.%%
* ManipulativeBastard: Agrona is a master manipulator of both events and people to achieve his plans. He manages to manipulate [[spoiler:all three royal families on the Council into collaborating with him at some point (the Greysunders through their greed and the Glayders and Eraliths through the love of their children)]]. He also [[spoiler:manipulates both Nico and Cecilia into compliance by promising them that they will eventually be returned to Earth, all while stringing them along into committing various atrocities for him]].
* MaouTheDemonKing: Agrona is the leader of the Vritra Clan, the main antagonistic force in the novel. While he and his clan are basilisks rather than demons, they nonetheless resemble demons given how they have pitch-black skin and horns (which contain their magical power). He and his clan rule over the continent of Alacrya, and have interbred with and experimented on its inhabitants for so long that having Vritra blood is deeply integrated into the Alacryan social hierarchy, and a telltale sign of his corruptive influence is the presence of the same horns of power that all Vritra have. He is responsible for the DivineConflict that drives the story, and is later revealed to be [[spoiler:responsible for Arthur's [[ReincarnateInAnotherWorld reincarnation]] in the first place]].
* MarkOfTheBeast: A telltale indication that one possesses the blood of Agrona and his clan is the presence of their signature HornsOfVillainy.
* MindRape: As part of [[spoiler:reincarnating Nico and Cecilia, he subjects them to this to make them more compliant to him and his goals. In particular, he twists their worst memories of Grey, specifically his apparent murder of Cecilia during the King's Tourney, to make them flat-out despise him as Grey had reincarnated outside of Agrona's control]].
* MonsterProgenitor: While not the founder of the Vritra Clan, his status as their leader and thus the ImmortalRuler of Alacrya means that Agrona's blood has been found in the SemiDivine soldiers and monsters of the Alacryan army that Arthur comes to face. It allows him to control them as he sees fit.
* NotSoDifferentRemark: Not from Agrona himself, but to anyone who knows the true nature of the DivineConflict, it is very easy to compare him to his ArchEnemy Kezess as both deities [[spoiler:are tyrannical despots who are willing to tear apart the world in their conflict and have no regard for the lives of others, especially lessers. Arthur and Seris are prone to making such remarks]].
[[/folder]]

[[folder:O to Z]]
* ObviouslyEvil: Black and gold clothing, soulless red eyes, pale white skin and raven black hair, HornsOfVillainy - does he seem like a nice person at all?
* OminousOperaCape: In his sole visual depiction so far, Agrona sports a long, flowing black mantle that is split at the ends.
* OrcusOnHisThrone: {{Justified|Trope}}. In spite of being the BigBad and the prevalence of his minions, Agrona so far has not left the confines of Alacrya, though he has communicated to others through either his minions or through possession. He spends most of his time conducting his experiments into fate itself while sending his minions to invade Dicathen or investigate the Relictombs. To be fair, this is because of GodsHandsAreTied, as due to the treaty any direct involvement on his part would lead to MutuallyAssuredDestruction, and in the case of the last part the Relictombs [[spoiler:are designed to repel asuras]]. Even after [[spoiler:the treaty is broken, Agrona still remains in Alacrya for the time being as he is only getting ready to launch his invasion]].
* ThePowerOfBlood: Agrona is able to control anyone and everyone who shares his blood, which can range from simple possession to outright killing them if he so chooses. Even without his direct involvement, his blood empowers anyone it runs in with near-superhuman capabilities.
* PragmaticVillainy: In the aftermath of [[spoiler:Exeges's death, Agrona rallies the populace of Alacrya by not only framing the Indrath Clan of the act, but by surprisingly offering clemency to anyone who had been part of Seris's rebellion in spite of him normally punishing treachery with death. He does so not only to undermine whatever remaining support Seris has left in Alacrya, but to unite all of its populace against the asuras in preparation for his invasion of Epheotus]].
* RedEyesTakeWarning: Agrona's eyes are a piercing red, a clear sign of his villainy. Fittingly, anyone he possesses has their eyes turn red to signify his control over them.
* ReforgedIntoAMinion: [[spoiler:He reincarnates Nico and Cecilia, subjects them to MindRape, and gives them FakeMemories to make them compliant to him. Grey only narrowly avoided the same fate thanks to Sylvie's intervention. Tessia also qualifies considering he set her up to become Cecilia's eventual vessel]].
* RepressiveButEfficient: He might be an outright tyrant who holds no regard for the lives of his subjects, but he styles himself as their savior as he uplifted their civilization above that of the Dicathians, and for good reason. When he talks to Arthur at the end of Volume 6, he reveals that the ratio of mage to nonmage in Alacrya is one in five compared to one in a hundred in Dicathen, all thanks to his direct intervention. Then again, part of the reason Alacrya is so far ahead of Dicathen is due to Kezess's rather hands-off approach to uplifting them, namely giving the Royal Families the [[ArtifactOfPower Artifacts of Power]] that empowered the Lances who in turn taught the first mages on Dicathen.
* RevengeBeforeReason: Agrona has been so consumed by his desire to exact revenge against Kezess that he is willing to cause the deaths of untold thousands who had nothing to do with his vendetta. He is willing to sacrifice everything, be it the lessers, his entire clan, or even the whole world, just to achieve his revenge. A desire that [[spoiler:transcends across time and space as he is willing to pull Grey and his childhood friends from their world to his just to attain the power he needs to exact his vengeance]].
* SadisticChoice: [[spoiler:He approaches Alduin and Merial with the knowledge that he has their daughter's life in the palm of his hand thanks to her beast will and as such can determine whether she lives or dies. In return for sparing her life, he tells them to let his forces into the Council Castle to kill Virion, the supreme commander of the Dicathians and Alduin's own father. Between the daughter and the grandfather, they choose the former. To add insult to injury, he has both of them executed in the aftermath regardless to send a message]].
* SarcasmMode: In Volume 11, [[spoiler:when Cecilia asks him about the next stage of his plans following her confrontation with Arthur in Nirmala, Agrona asks her if she thinks that the reason Arthur has survived for as long as he has is because he is more powerful, intelligent, and prepared compared to Agrona. Of course, as [[YouCantThwartStageOne the events of the past volumes]] have indicated, the opposite is true as Agrona is an InvincibleVillain who has had Arthur OutGambitted at every turn. It leads into Agrona revealing why he has allowed Arthur to last this long and how it ties in with his current plans]].
-->'''Agrona:''' (''To [[spoiler:Cecilia]]'') Do you think Arthur has survived this long because he is...what...more powerful than me? More intelligent than me? Better prepared than me?
* SatanicArchetype: Agrona bears many parallels to Satan himself.
** His backstory mirrors that of Satan's rebellion and the War in Heaven as depicted in ''Literature/ParadiseLost''. Agrona was [[FallenAngel cast out from]] [[HomeOfTheGods Epheotus]] by [[TopGod Kezess]] when he discovered that [[spoiler:he committed genocide upon the [[{{Precursors}} djinn]]]]. This led to his StartOfDarkness as in his exile he instigated the DivineConflict that drives the plot. Not only that, but his end goal of uniting and empowering the mortal populations of both Dicathen and Alacrya to act as his army for when he invades Epheotus brings to mind ''Literature/TheBookOfRevelation'' wherein Satan unites the nations of the world for a final war with God with [[spoiler:the Legacy serving as TheAntiChrist]].
** While Agrona and the clan he rules over are basilisks rather than demons, their human forms nonetheless resembles traditional demons and are seen by such as by the inhabitants of Alacrya whom [[SupernaturalElite they rule over]]. In particular, Agrona is depicted as youthful as that of his archnemesis Kezess with the only inhuman attributes he has being his RavenHairIvorySkin, RedEyesTakeWarning, and HornsOfVillainy, invoking the portrayal of Lucifer as a {{Divinely Appearing Demon|s}}. Not to mention, but as a basilisk Agrona's true form is that of TheGreatSerpent, which brings to mind the first appearance of Satan as the Serpent in the GardenOfEden.
** Agrona also has a penchant for making [[DealWithTheDevil deals with lessers]] wherein either he holds [[IHaveYourWife their loved ones']] [[TheCommiesMadeMeDoIt lives at stake]] or promises them power and wealth. Through such deals, he is responsible for the corruption of the nobility of Dicathen and throughout the story approaches some of the protagonists and their loved ones at crucial points to strike deals that would favor him.
** He is responsible for much of the misfortune Arthur has faced in his reincarnated life, as he [[spoiler:has caused the deaths of many of Arthur's loved ones and conquered his homeland. In particular, he reincarnated not only him but his childhood friends Nico and Cecilia and subjected them both to MindRape so they would both be ReforgedIntoAMinion to turn them against Arthur, even stealing his LoveInterest Tessia as [[GrandTheftMe a vessel for the latter]]]].
* SecretSecretKeeper: In his conversation with Arthur at the end of Volume 6, he reveals that he has been aware of Arthur's past life as King Grey the entire time. After all, [[spoiler:''he'' was the one responsible for Grey's death and reincarnation in the first place]].
* ShadowArchetype:
** To Arthur, or rather his past self King Grey. Both are the instigators of a war and had good intentions behind doing so - Grey wanted to avenge his ParentalSubstitute, Agrona because [[spoiler:he had been exiled for attempting to expose Kezess's genocide of the djinn - but while Grey grew to regret the war he started due to the CollateralDamage, Agrona instead became a case of HeWhoFightsMonsters, [[GodAndSatanAreBothJerks becoming no better if not worse than Kezess]]. To further hammer in the similarities, in her second message, Sylvia remarks how Agrona truly had once been a decent person but after being exiled had gone insane out of grief and vengeance to an degree not even Grey went down]].
** To Mordain. Both [[spoiler:threatened to expose the truth about the genocide of the djinn and were exiled from Epheotus by Kezess as a result. While Agrona was consumed by his desire to exact vengeance on Kezess and became a case of HeWhoFightsMonsters, Mordain was content with creating a safe haven for the victims' of Kezess's crimes]].
* SnakesAreSinister: As a basilisk, Agrona is serpentine in his true form. True to his nature, he is the main antagonist, and befitting a snake is rather manipulative and conniving.
* TheSocialDarwinist: Has shades of this trope. Agrona is perfectly willing to allow conflict between his minions at all levels, from the lowliest of lessers to the Sovereigns themselves, just so that they can get stronger. As long as the infighting does not impede his master plan, he is willing to tolerate it.
-->'''Agrona:''' Conflict is necessary to grow in power.
* TheSociopath: In his current state, Agrona is a textbook sociopath. His desire to exact revenge on Kezess and the Indrath Clan has consumed him so thoroughly that he sees everyone under his command as little more than the means to that end. He does not care about how many lives he has to sacrifice to exact his revenge - no amount of casualties are unacceptable to him. He is a charismatic manipulator and charmer who can convince any weak-minded person to serve him as his pawn, and he is also not afraid to target people's loved ones to get the more resilient or resistant ones to comply with him. No act is reprehensible enough for him. For Agrona, all that matters is his revenge.
* SorcerousOverlord: As an asura, Agrona is not only much more magically adept than the strongest mortal mages, but his very body is infused with mana itself. With his unparalleled power, he and the clan he leads were able to establish themselves as the rulers of Alacrya and empower their mortal subjects to fulfill their ambitions to conquer the world and exact their revenge on the gods who had exiled them.
* StartOfDarkness: [[spoiler:Agrona had a vested interest in the ruins left behind by the djinn, which led to him uncovering that Kezess and the Indrath Clan committed genocide upon them. When he threatened to expose the truth, he and his clan were exiled to Alacrya. In his exile, Agrona swore vengeance upon the Indrath and the rest of Epheotus, leading him to become just as much a monster as Kezess himself]].
-->'''Agrona:''' That's all [Kezess and Windsom] told you? Arthur, do you think I one day just woke up wanting to commit genocide against my brethren?
* StrongFamilyResemblance: When Arthur finally meets Agrona in person, [[spoiler:he notes that the strong, sharp features on his face bear an uncomfortable resemblance to Sylvie, his biological daughter whom Arthur had adopted and raised]].
* SuperhumanTransfusion: Anyone who has Agrona's blood becomes unnaturally strong and powerful both physically and magically, on top of developing an affinity towards his and his clan's own corrupted mana arts. In terms of appearances, at best one will end up sprouting HornsOfVillainy on their head and at worst one will end up suffering a PowerUpgradingDeformation.
* TheSvengali: Acts as this towards [[spoiler:the reincarnates under his control, namely Nico and Cecilia. He strung Nico along into working with him by promising to resurrect Cecilia and to help him exact his revenge on Grey. Following Cecilia's resurrection, he promises them that after they help him exact his revenge on the other asuras that he will return them both to Earth. Of course, it is highly likely Agrona has no intention of fulfilling that final promise to them as to him everyone under his command is merely just a tool to be discarded. After all, he has already subjected them both to MindRape and twisted their memories of Grey into utter hatred, all to make them more compliant to him without them knowing]].
* TakeOverTheWorld: Not his final objective, but a major stepping stone towards it. He seeks to conquer all of the known world - namely Dicathen and Alacrya - in order to conscript its inhabitants into his invasion of Epheotus. He [[spoiler:[[TheBadGuyWins ends up accomplishing just that]], albeit only temporarily as Arthur is able to retake the former continent while Agrona's attention is distracted]].
* TargetedToHurtTheHero: {{Invoked}}. During his conversation with Arthur at the end of Volume 6, he reveals that Arthur's parents only survived a recent attack because he willed it to, and that he could just as easily rescind that mercy. He offers Arthur a deal to sit out the war if he wants his loved ones to be safe. Arthur ultimately refuses.
* ThenLetMeBeEvil: [[spoiler:He was once a good person who sought to expose Kezess for his crimes, but when he was cast out of Epheotus and exiled to Alacrya, he devoted his entire being to exacting revenge on not just Kezess but all of the asuras. In the process, Agrona's villainy wound up eclipsing that of his nemesis. To illustrate, part of Kezess's false pretext for exiling Agrona and his clan was that he accused them of interbreeding with and experimenting upon with the lessers of Alacrya. In their bid to exact their vengeance, Agrona and his clan have done exactly that. Similarly, even though Agrona sought to expose Kezess for the genocide of the djinn, he is now perfectly willing to commit genocide upon his own kind]].
* TheyStillBelongToUsLecture: [[spoiler:Despite Seris launching a rebellion against him, he makes it clear that she and her followers will eventually have no choice but to return to this side. When the time comes for the final stages of his plan, he takes control of her entire rebellion by way of DemonicPossession and gives them a speech where he tells them that they will either rejoin him or die where they stand]].
* {{Thoughtcrime}}: As part of his ability to control those who share his blood, Agrona is able to read their every thought. When [[spoiler:he takes control of Seris's rebellion, he makes examples of those who defying him on the spot by killing them where they stood in horrific fashions, even those who were keeping their defiance to themselves without speaking out against him]].
* TragicVillain: [[spoiler:Sylvia claims that he used to be a decent person who she had a romantic interest in, and that he was once a revered figure among the asuras for his personality and research. Then he uncovered Kezess and the Indrath Clan's DarkSecret, and when he confronted them and threatened to expose the truth, he was banished from Epheotus and exiled to the distant continent of Alacrya. In his exile, Agrona's desire for revenge has consumed him, making him as much a monster as Kezess himself]].
* TheUnfettered: Agrona will do anything to achieve he wants, in particular his desire for revenge on Kezess and the Indrath Clan. Even if takes throwing away the lives of all his subjects and razing the world to the ground, if that is what it takes then he will do it.
* UnseenNoMore:
** He was first mentioned in Volume 4 by Windsom. He makes his first "appearance" at the end of Volume 6, albeit [[spoiler:it is just him possessing the now-human Sylvie so he talk to Arthur]]. However, he does not appear in person until Volume 9.
** In a meta example, despite his appearance being described in the novel, Agrona's actual physical appearance was not depicted for a very long time until 2022. He initially appeared in silhouette in Chapter 148 of the {{Webcomic}} in a {{Flashback}} to when he informed Kezess of Sylvia's death. He was finally shown in an official illustration released at the end of Volume 9, which ended later that same year, depicting both him and [[spoiler:the Legacy]].
* VillainWithGoodPublicity: Agrona claims his rule has done wonders for his subjects and that the people of Alacrya revere him as a benevolent and just god.
* VillainousUnderdog: He is this trope against Kezess on paper. In the DivineConflict, Kezess has the support of all of the asuran races while Agrona only has a few basilisk clans at his side. Given how outgunned the Vritra and their allies are in the grand scale of the conflict, Agrona has resorted to subterfuge and underhanded tactics to gain an advantage over his nemesis. He conceals the true scope of his plans from Kezess, and takes full advantage of him holding back to go to lengths that Kezess would not cross.
* WickedCultured: Despite being the main antagonist, Agrona is an intellectual figure who is passionate about his scientific and cultural interest, a trait that he carried over from before his StartOfDarkness. To reinforce that image, he presents himself in a debonair and elegant fashion. This front is what draws some his pawns into working for him as not only does he act in a refined fashion that endears him to them but he comes off as suave, affable, and intellectual.
* XanatosGambit: Agrona attempted to goad Kezess into going to war against him by bringing to him the news of his daughter's death. He already had his allies in the right places so that MutuallyAssuredDestruction would occur in the ensuing war, but as Agrona was consumed by RevengeBeforeReason all that would matter for him was that he got his revenge. However, the rest of the Great Eight held Kezess back and settled for a treaty instead. This outcome was just as favorable to Agrona as it gave him the breathing room to build up his mortal servants in Alacrya, and as a near-immortal asura he could wait on his vendetta.
* XanatosSpeedChess: Part of the reason Agrona is an InvincibleVillain is that even when his plans face an unforeseen setback, he is able to manipulate events and circumstances back into his favor.
** Even though [[spoiler:Sylvie managed to retrieve Grey's soul from Agrona before he could reincarnate him into his vessel of choice, Agrona was easily able to adjust his plans for summoning the Legacy. He had Nico/Elijah sent to his servants in Darv so that he would one day cross paths with the reincarnated Grey/Arthur. In turn, this would allow him to choose a different vessel for the Legacy, which ended up being Tessia]].
** Despite not foreseeing [[spoiler:Seris's rebellion, which in turn allows Arthur to retake his homeland followed by him joining up with said rebellion, Agrona is once again able to manipulate events in his favor. Not only had he already hunted down most of Seris's supporters and forced the survivors into hiding within the Relictombs by the time Arthur arrived, but he took advantage of Exeges's demise to frame Arthur and Sylvie for it (tellingly, even if they ''had'' been the ones to kill Exeges, Agrona would have done the same) and thus rally public opinion in Alacrya against not only Arthur but also the Indrath and the rest of the asuras, as by this point he is readying his forces to invade Epheotus. As such, Seris and her supporters are forced to abandon the Relictombs and seek asylum in Dicathen]].
** He takes full advantage of [[spoiler:Kezess's occupation of Dicathen following his deal with Arthur to prepare his forces to invade Epheotus. Given that Kezess not only sent down a good portion of his forces to Dicathen but also brought Epheotus out of the aether realm, it opens the door for him to invade now that Epheotus has let its guard down]].
** It took Agrona and his clan millennia to mold the Alacryans into their ideal ServantRace, and he was willing to take the same amount of time to do the same for the Dicathians after conquering them before he launched his invasion of Epheotus. However, thanks to [[spoiler:Arthur reincarnating outside of his control and disrupting his plans, Agrona ends up accelerating his plans without compromising his end goals. Since Kezess opened a portal to Epheotus as part of his deal with Arthur, Agrona takes advantage of it to launch his invasion early especially since he now has the Legacy under his command]].
* YinYangClash:
** His rivalry with Kezess is this trope, given their contrasting powers and LightDarknessJuxtaposition. Though it turns out to be a case of [[spoiler:EvilVersusEvil]].
** Agrona attempts to {{Invoke|dTrope}} this trope later on in a different fashion. Given how [[spoiler:Arthur and Cecilia have complete control over the opposing forces of aether and mana respectively, Agrona wants pit the two of them against one another as he hopes that the ensuing clash will reveal the true nature of power in the world for him to master]].
* YouHaveFailedMe: Agrona is not known for his forgiveness of those who failed him, and in the society he created the punishment for such is usually death. That being said, he is pragmatic enough to know when to be more forgiving of his subjects.
[[/folder]]
----

[[folder:A to M]]

** In the leadup to the invasion of Dicathen, Agrona sent spies into Dicathen to corrupt the noble houses of the continent into serving him. After the deaths of the Greysunders, who he had coerced into being his puppets, Agrona's followers in Darv stage a revolt . When his forces do arrive, they immediately begin collaborating with them as [[spoiler:the Greysunders' replacement is even more loyal to him than they were. After a failed AssassinationAttempt by Kezess, he uses it as an excuse to revoke Epheotus's involvement in the war. At the end of the war, he forces the Eraliths to work for him by threatening their daughter, which causes further strife among the Dicathians. And if that were not enough, in tricking the asuras into destroying Elenoir he creates a massive rift in their relations with the Dicathians]].
** When the time comes for him [[spoiler:to launch his invasion of Epheotus, Agrona begins to tear apart the fragile alliance Arthur had made. He first attacks the rift between Dicathen and Epheotus, which forces all of the occupying dragons to abandon their posts to defend it. Then, he takes control of Seris and her rebellion by way of his blood, and - after making examples of the few who resisted him - forces them to rejoin his ranks. This leaves the Dicathians alone once again to fend off a second invasion, one that has him striking at all fronts by way of a rebuilt djinn teleportation device, and this time around Arthur is out of commission as he is busy unlocking the final keystone]].

[[folder:N to Z]]
* NotSoDifferentRemark: Not from Agrona himself, but to anyone who knows the true nature of the DivineConflict, it is very easy to compare him to his ArchEnemy Kezess as both deities [[spoiler:are tyrannical despots who are willing to tear apart the world in their conflict and have no regard for the lives of others, especially lessers. Arthur and Seris are prone to making such remarks]].

* SecretSecretKeeper: In his conversation with Arthur at the end of Volume 6, he reveals that he was aware of Arthur's past life as King Grey the entire time. After all, [[spoiler:''he'' was the one responsible for Grey's death and reincarnation in the first place]].

** It is eventually revealed that Agrona [[spoiler:can control every action, word, and thought of ''everything'' that has his blood, which naturally includes the entire nation of Alacrya. He demonstrates this on Seris's rebellion when the time comes for him to launch his invasion of Epheotus, as he forces Seris and every single one of her followers to kneel before making examples of the few who resisted him. Faced with the extermination of everyone under her authority, Seris reluctantly returns to his service and brings all of her followers along with her]].

* IHaveYourWife: Part of his way of manipulating others into doing his bidding involves holding their loved ones' lives at stake. The most notable instance of this is when [[spoiler:he reveals to Alduin and Merial that he has control over their daughter Tessia's life thanks to her beast will, which he uses to get them to let his forces into the Council Castle]].

* BloodMagic: Agrona is able to control anyone and everyone who shares his blood, which can range from simple possession to outright killing them if he so chooses. Even without his direct involvement, his blood empowers anyone it runs in with near-superhuman capabilities.

** Given his clan's nature as EvilutionaryBiologist[=s=], Agrona experimented on various mana beasts by splicing his essence into them, causing them to mutate into more monstrous creatures which sported his signature horns. These beasts can then be put into the control of his minions and directed onto anything that opposes his will. Anything that has his blood in it can be controlled by him. Just ask [[spoiler:Sylvie or Tessia]].

* WickedCultured: Despite being the main antagonist, Agrona is an intellectual figure who is passionate about his scientific and cultural interest, a trait that he carried over from before his StartOfDarkness. To reinforce that image, he presents himself in a debonair and elegant fashion. This front is what draws some his pawns into working for him as not only does he act in a refined fashion but he comes off as suave, affable, and intellectual.

** It took Agrona and his clan millennia to mold the Alacryans into their ideal ServantRace, and he was willing to take the same amount of time to do the same for the Dicathians after conquering them before he launched his invasion of Epheotus. However, thanks to [[spoiler:Arthur reincarnating outside of his control and disrupting his plans, Agrona ends up accelerating his plans without compromising his end goals. In fact, since Kezess opened a portal to Epheotus as part of his deal with Arthur, Agrona takes advantage of it to launch his invasion early especially since he now has the Legacy under his command]].

* TheCharmer: Part of Agrona's skill as a manipulator comes from his very charismatic personality which has drawn some of his pawns into working for him. Before his fall from grace, even [[spoiler:Sylvia fell for his charms and their relationship was genuine]]. Afterward, he turned those skills of his to fulfill more nefarious purposes.

* DemonicPossession: He is able to control and possess anything and everything that has his blood in it, which is usually indicated by RedEyesTakeWarning. He uses this ability numerous times throughout the story.

** A good example of this characteristic of his is the response he has to [[spoiler:Seris's rebellion. After Seris's humiliation of the Legacy and the fall of Sehz-Clar, he allowed her rebellion to score a few victories in the weeks afterward. Then in the span of days, he immediately proceeded to undo all of her rebellion's gains, right as Arthur returned to assist her. If that was not enough, despite giving them a reprieve by letting them settle in Dicathen for a while and making them think they can have a fresh start, he eventually takes control of all of them by way of DemonicPossession and forces them back to his side as part of his endgame]].

* MakeAnExampleOfThem: He is prone to making examples of those who defy his authority. After [[spoiler:taking over the Council Castle, he has the entire Council impaled on spikes and paraded around to break the morale of the Dicathians. Later on when he takes control of Seris's rebellion by way of DemonicPossession to force them to rejoin his forces, he proceeds to remotely kill off the few individuals who immediately resist him - including Lauden Denoir and Sulla Drusus - in extremely graphic fashions, thus forcing Seris and her followers to comply to his demands]].

* MonsterProgenitor: While not the founder of the Vritra Clan, his status as their leader and thus the ImmortalRuler of Alacrya means that Agrona's blood has been found in the SemiDivine soldiers and monsters of the Alacryan army that Arthur comes to face.

* SecretSecretKeeper: In his conversation with Arthur at the end of Volume 6, he reveals that he knows of Arthur's past life as King Grey. After all, [[spoiler:''he'' was the one responsible for Grey's death and reincarnation in the first place]].

* DemonicPossession: He is able to control and possess anything that has his blood in it, which is usually indicated by RedEyesTakeWarning. At the end of Volume 6, [[spoiler:he takes control of the now-human Sylvie so he can talk to Arthur for the first time]]. His control over his spawn extends to more than just possession. At one point, [[spoiler:he causes a Wraith that Arthur had cornered to explode before he could spill any of his secrets. This forces Arthur to keep all of his Alacryan allies LockedOutOfTheLoop when the time comes for him to acquire the fourth keystone as he is wary Agrona could use them against him in the time he would be out of commission. In the process, Agrona manages to negate some of Arthur's potential allies by forcing him to discard them for his plan]].

** A good example of this characteristic of his is the response he has to [[spoiler:Seris's rebellion. After Seris's humiliation of the Legacy and the fall of Sehz-Clar, he allowed her rebellion to score a few victories in the weeks afterward. Then in the span of days, he immediately proceeded to undo all of her rebellion's gains, right as Arthur returned to assist her]].

* AffablyEvil: Agrona is polite, softspoken, and occasionally generous to his allies. Even Arthur calls him eccentric and sociable.

** Notably, while Agrona has survived every single attempt on his life that Kezess has orchestrated, the same cannot be said for most of his clan. In trying to get to Agrona, Kezess's assassins wound up killing much of the basilisks who had accompanied Agrona in his exile. This has resulted in the number of true Vritra having dwindled to a fraction of their former numbers by the present, and those survivors have become TheParanoiac over any attempt on their own lives as a result. Though given what kind of person he is, Agrona undoubtedly couldn't care less about these casualties.

* DemonicPossession: He is able to possess anything that has his blood in it, which is usually indicated by RedEyesTakeWarning. At the end of Volume 6, [[spoiler:he takes control of the now-human Sylvie so he can talk to Arthur for the first time]].

** As for [[spoiler:the reincarnates under his command - Nico and Cecilia - he claims that he has their best interests at heart and promises to fulfill their deepest desire should they help him exact his revenge on the asuras . Specifically, not only did he promise them that they would be reunited, but he also promises that once the DivineConflict is over that he will return them home to Earth. He also promises them that he will let them have their revenge on Grey, but in this case it is revealed he has been twisting their memories of Grey by emphasizing the harm he has done to them]].

* SecretSecretKeeper: In his conversation with Arthur at the end of Volume 6, he reveals that he knows of Arthur's past life as King Grey. After all, [[spoiler:''he'' was the one responsible for Grey's death and reincarnation]].

* IKnowYourTrueName: He closes off his first conversation with Arthur with this ominous remark.

* BigBad: The main antagonist of the novel.

** The ultimate end goal of Agrona's plan to win the DivineConflict is to master fate itself. To accomplish this goal, [[spoiler:he has been sending his mortal servants into the Relictombs for millennia in order to uncover the djinn's secrets. With the Legacy at his disposal, he hopes that her inevitable clashes with Arthur pitting mana against aether will reveal the true nature of power in the world and open the way for him to control fate]].

* GreaterScopeVillain: He is responsible for the main conflict of the story as he sees Alacrya and Dicathen as stepping stones that will allow him to conquer Epheotus by making Vritra-blooded lessers to act as CannonFodder against the rest of the asuran clans as well as [[spoiler:the reincarnation of Grey, Nico, and Cecilia]].

** A good example of this characteristic of his is his response to [[spoiler:Seris's rebellion. After Seris's humiliation of the Legacy and the fall of Sehz-Clar, he allowed her rebellion to score a few victories in the weeks afterward. Then in the span of days, he immediately proceeded to undo all of her rebellion's gains, right as Arthur returned to assist her]].

* StrongFamilyResemblance: When Arthur finally meets Agrona in person, [[spoiler:he notes that the strong, sharp features on his face bear an uncomfortable resemblance to Sylvie, his biological daughter whom Arthur had adopted]].

* WickedCultured: Despite being the main antagonist, Agrona is an intellectual figure who is passionate about his scientific and cultural interests. To reinforce that image, he presents himself in a debonair and elegant fashion. This front is what draws some his pawns into working for him as not only does he act in a refined fashion but he comes off as suave, affable, and intellectual.

* AssassinationAttempt: Agrona is twice subjected to an attempted assassination by Kezess. Not only does he survive both times, but he uses Kezess's failings to gain favorable terms and capital in their conflict.

* BadBoss: Despite his claims of being beloved in his domain, Agrona has no regard at all for his minions, especially the lessers. As far as he is concerned, they are all expendable in his desire to wage war on Epheotus. Even his own clan is not exempt from this callous disregard of his.

** The ultimate end goal of Agrona's plan to win the DivineConflict is to master fate itself. To accomplish this goal, [[spoiler:he has been sending his mortal servants into the Relictombs for millennia in order to uncover the djinn's secrets. With the Legacy at his disposal, he hopes that her inevitable clashes with Arthur pitting mana against aether will reveal the true nature of power in the world]].

* SnakesAreSinister: As basilisks, Agrona is serpentine in his true form. True to his nature, he is the main antagonist, and befitting a snake is rather manipulative and conniving.

** In a meta example, despite his appearance being described in the novel, Agrona's actual physical appearance was not depicted for a very long time, with the closest being him appearing in silhouette in Chapter 148 when he informs Kezess of Sylvia's death. He was finally shown in an official illustration released much later depicting both him and [[spoiler:the Legacy]].

* BadBoss: Despite his claims of being beloved in his domain, Agrona has no regard at all for his minions, especially the lessers. As far as he is concerned, they are all expendable in his desire to wage war on Epheotus.

** After being banished from Epheotus, Agrona tried to goad Kezess into going to war against him as he had already positioned his allies in a way that would lead to MutuallyAssuredDestruction. However, this ended up being {{Averted}} as the rest of the Great Eight settled for a treaty instead.
-->'''Kezess:''' Agrona was practically daring us to go to war. His clan and their allies had been placed very strategically to ensure that any battle would almost certainly result in the destruction of your world.

* RevengeBeforeReason: Agrona has been so consumed by his desire to exact revenge against Kezess that he is willing to cause the deaths of untold thousands who had nothing to do with his vendetta. A desire that [[spoiler:transcends across time and space as he is willing to pull Grey and his childhood friends from their world to his just to attain the power he needs to exact his vengeance]].

The main antagonist of the novel, Agrona is the Lord of the Vritra Clan, a faction of Asuras that was exiled from Epheotus to the distant continent of Alacrya in the distant past for their experimentation upon the inhabitants of that land, an act that violated the Asuras' policy of non-intervention in the lives of the lessers. In retribution, he began preparing for a DivineConflict that would span countless millennia and consume the entire world, a war that Arthur finds himself not only caught up in, but one that he has a much deeper role to play in than he realizes.

* AmbitionIsEvil: Not only does he desire to exact revenge on Kezess and the Indrath, but he wants to rule over the Asuras if not destroy them all outright.

** After Agrona and his clan were exiled from Epheotus, Kezess heard word of their activities in Alacrya. He promptly sent a group of Asuras to perform a DecapitationStrike. When the group arrived, Agrona was waiting for them with a group of Vritra-blooded mutants and killed them all. He then brought word of what happened, including the death of Sylvia who had stowed away with the group, to Kezess. In spite of Kezess's anger, the rest of the Great Eight pushed for what would become the treaty that defines the DivineConflict.
** Later on during the Alacryan invasion of Dicathen, [[spoiler:Kezess orders another DecapitationStrike on Alacrya without consulting his Dicathian allies. Not only does it fail yet again, but Agrona uses his failure to revoke Epheotus's involvement in the defense of Dicathen as a violation of the treaty. Without the aid of the Asuras, Dicathen falls under Agrona's rule]].

* BasiliskAndCockatrice: Agrona is a basilisk, which in the novel are Asuras whose true form is that of a giant serpent. Fittingly, he is the leader of a clan of basilisks in the way the basilisk is sometimes called the king of serpents, albeit instead of a crown he has HornsOfVillainy.

* BetterTheDevilYouKnow: {{Invoked}}. Even though he could not care any less about the lessers of Alacrya whom he has ruled over for generations, throughout his rule he has demonized the Asuras of Epheotus (and [[spoiler:[[JerkassGods rightfully so]]]]) and indoctrinated the populace into believing his rhetoric. This becomes especially apparent in Volume 11, as after [[spoiler:Exeges's mysterious demise, Agrona frames Arthur and Sylvie (and by extension the Indrath Clan and the rest of Epheotus) for the act. In doing so, Agrona rallies the populace to his side as he paints Epheotus as the greater evil, in spite of his own rule having been terrible for them]].

* TheChessmaster: Agrona is a master manipulator of both events and people to achieve his plans. In preparation for his war with Epheotus, he turns an entire continent into his own domain and amass an army of Asura/lesser hybrids. All the while, he is able to hide his plans from Kezess, who does not discover them until he has already accomplished them.

** The crux of Agrona's plan is [[spoiler:his attempts to summon the Legacy, whose power he came across as he was searching across time and space for a power strong enough to overcome Kezess. To summon her, Agrona reincarnated the souls of her childhood friends Grey and Nico to act as anchor points for her, which he followed on by reincarnating the Legacy herself into a suitable vessel. At the end of it all, Agrona had acquired an Asura-killing PersonOfMassDestruction that he had manipulated into obedience as his ace in the hole for the inevitable invasion of Epheotus]].
** The ultimate end goal of Agrona's plan to win the DivineConflict is to master fate itself. To accomplish this goal, [[spoiler:he has been sending his mortal servants into the Relictombs for millennia in order to uncover the Djinn's secrets. With the Legacy at his disposal, he hopes that her inevitable clashes with Arthur pitting mana against aether will reveal the true nature of power in the world]].

* FaceHeelTurn: Once a respected figure among the Asuras who got exiled for [[spoiler:threatening to expose the true nature of their rulers]], but his vengeance has twisted him into outright evil.
* FallenAngel: He and his clan were exiled from Epheotus for [[spoiler:discovering the fate of the Djinn and threatening to expose the truth to the rest of the Asuras]]. In his exile, Agrona has been preparing to exact revenge on the rest of the Asuras.
* FallenHero: He used to be a renowned figure among the Asuras capable of charming the likes of even [[spoiler:Sylvia]]. Then came his exile, and in his fall from grace he has become far worse than he ever was.

*** This contrast is reinforced by their respective CoDragons. While Agrona brought his own clan and a few others into his rebellion, his main servants are not fullblooded Asuras like them but instead the SemiDivine Scythes, Wraiths, and [[spoiler:the Legacy]]. On the other hand, Kezess obviously relies only on proper Asuras as his main servants.

** As both are near-immortal deities in positions of power, they should be extremely intelligent {{Chessmaster}}s considering they have lived for thousands of years. However, only Agrona truly demonstrates this requisite intelligence, as he uses the millennia he has lived to plan ahead and see the big picture which always puts him one step ahead of his enemies, especially considering that he and his forces are the underdog when facing the rest of the Asuras. On the other hand, Kezess, despite being even older than Agrona, continuously demonstrates himself to be rather short-sighted when it comes to dealing with any perceived threats as his position of TopGod causes him believe himself infallible.

* GenocideFromTheInside: Agrona is so far gone from who he used to be that he is willing to kill off all the other Asuras just to achieve his revenge. Even his own clan is not exempt.

* GodWasMyCoPilot: Before his exile, Agrona was fond of sneaking off to Dicathen and Alacrya in disguise for his research. This ended up being used against him by the Indrath Clan when the time came to exile him as they used his visits as evidence for his experimentation on the lessers of those continents. The actual reason was that [[spoiler:he uncovered that the Indrath Clan committed genocide upon the ancient Djinn and threatened to expose them for it]].

* GreaterScopeVillain: He is responsible for the main conflict of the story as he sees Alacrya and Dicathen as stepping stones that will allow him to conquer Epheotus by making Vritra-blooded lessers to act as CannonFodder against the rest of the Asuran clans as well as [[spoiler:the reincarnation of Grey, Nico, and Cecilia]].
* HateSink: He invades Arthur's homeland of Dicathen [[spoiler:and conquers it, in the process causing the deaths of many of Arthur's loved ones. Not only that, but it turns out he was responsible for the reincarnation of not only Arthur, but also his childhood friends Nico and Cecilia whom he had ReforgedIntoAMinion through MindRape. In the case of the latter, he even had Arthur's LoveInterest Tessia captured to act as Cecilia's vessel. Not to mention, but Arthur has been almost powerless to stop him as Agrona is an InvincibleVillain whose plans have almost always gone the way he wanted, on top of being an Asura which puts him above Arthur in terms of raw power]].
* HeKnowsTooMuch: The reason for his exile from Epheotus was [[spoiler:his discovery of the Indrath Clan's genocide of the Djinn, which he threatened to expose to the rest of the Asuras]].

* HellInvadesHeaven: His end goal is to either conquer or destroy Epheotus using both his army of Asura/lesser hybrids and [[spoiler:the Legacy]]. Following [[spoiler:Kezess causing the destruction of Elenoir by forcing Aldir to use World Eater technique in a futile bid to kill the Legacy, Agrona finally has his casus belli to break the treaty and launch his invasion]].

* IControlMyMinionsThrough: Agrona controls his minions through a wide variety of means. For the most part, his minions are MotivatedByFear due to his godlike power as an Asura. As such, many of them view him as a god, though said perception varies between being outright fearful or indoctrinated reverence. In some cases, this fear is due to him threatening their loved ones so that they will comply with him. However, for some of his other minions, in particular his LesCollaborateurs in Dicathen, are motivated by the promise of greed or power that he offers them.
** As for [[spoiler:the reincarnates under his command - Nico and Cecilia - he claims that he has their best interests at heart and promises to fulfill their deepest desire should they help him exact his revenge on the Asuras. Specifically, not only did he promise them that they would be reunited, but he also promises that once the DivineConflict is over that he will return them home to Earth. He also promises them that he will let them have their revenge on Grey, but in this case it is revealed he has been twisting their memories of Grey by emphasizing the harm he has done to them]].

* ImmortalRuler: While Asuras are not truly immortal but extremely long lived, Agrona nonetheless fits the trope as he has reigned over Alacrya since its inception millennia ago, being the one responsible for uplifting their civilization. He goes so far as to refer to himself as "The Eternal Ruler".
* InvincibleVillain: Considering Arthur is an InvincibleHero, it is only fitting that Agrona is the opposite trope in order to maintain the sense of narrative tension. Not only is Agrona an Asura which puts him at the top of the power scale (as even [[ThoseWereOnlyTheirScouts the weakest among the Asuras]] can outmatch the strongest mortal mages), he has also survived several attempts on his life. However, what truly makes him this trope is that he is arguably ''the'' top {{Chessmaster}} and ManipulativeBastard in the setting. Agrona is always one step ahead of his enemies, and [[YouCantThwartStageOne almost all of his schemes have come to fruition]] with his enemies being able to do little to stop them.
-->'''Arthur:''' What was a mere two mortal lifetimes of experience when compared to an ancient Asura's lifetime of intellect and wisdom?

* MakerOfMonsters: Agrona has experimented upon the inhabitants of Alacrya for years, and so his armies include hordes of Vritra-blooded mana beasts who are much stronger than normal. This is an act that most Asuras find incredibly repulsive, and was the excuse that the Indrath Clan used to exile him from Epheotus (the true reason being that [[spoiler:he uncovered that clan's DarkSecret and threatened to expose them for it]]).

* OrcusOnHisThrone: {{Justified|Trope}}. In spite of being the BigBad and the prevalence of his minions, Agrona so far has not left the confines of Alacrya, though he has communicated to others through either his minions or through possession. He spends most of his time conducting his experiments into fate itself while sending his minions to invade Dicathen or investigate the Relictombs. To be fair, this is because of GodsHandsAreTied, as due to the treaty any direct involvement on his part would lead to MutuallyAssuredDestruction, and in the case of the last part the Relictombs [[spoiler:are designed to repel Asuras]]. Even after [[spoiler:the treaty is broken, Agrona still remains in Alacrya for the time being as he is only getting ready to launch his invasion]].
* PragmaticVillainy: In the aftermath of [[spoiler:Exeges's death, Agrona rallies the populace of Alacrya by not only framing the Indrath Clan of the act, but by surprisingly offering clemency to anyone who had been part of Seris's rebellion in spite of him normally punishing treachery with death. He does so not only to undermine whatever remaining support Seris has left in Alacrya, but to unite all of its populace against the Asuras in preparation for his invasion of Epheotus]].

** His backstory mirrors that of Satan's rebellion and the War in Heaven as depicted in ''Literature/ParadiseLost''. Agrona was [[FallenAngel cast out from]] [[HomeOfTheGods Epheotus]] by [[TopGod Kezess]] when he discovered that [[spoiler:he committed genocide upon the [[{{Precursors}} Djinn]]]]. This led to his StartOfDarkness as in his exile he instigated the DivineConflict that drives the plot. Not only that, but his end goal of uniting and empowering the mortal populations of both Dicathen and Alacrya to act as his army for when he invades Epheotus brings to mind ''Literature/TheBookOfRevelation'' wherein Satan unites the nations of the world for a final war with God with [[spoiler:the Legacy serving as TheAntiChrist]].

** To Arthur, or rather his past self King Grey. Both are the instigators of a war and had good intentions behind doing so - Grey wanted to avenge his ParentalSubstitute, Agrona because [[spoiler:he had been exiled for attempting to expose Kezess's genocide of the Djinn - but while Grey grew to regret the war he started due to the CollateralDamage, Agrona instead became a case of HeWhoFightsMonsters, [[GodAndSatanAreBothJerks becoming no better if not worse than Kezess]]. To further hammer in the similarities, in her second message, Sylvia remarks how Agrona truly had once been a decent person but after being exiled had gone insane out of grief and vengeance to an degree not even Grey went down]].
** To Mordain. Both [[spoiler:threatened to expose the truth about the genocide of the Djinn and were exiled from Epheotus by Kezess as a result. While Agrona was consumed by his desire to exact vengeance on Kezess and became a case of HeWhoFightsMonsters, Mordain was content with creating a safe haven for the victims’ of Kezess’s crimes]].

* SorcerousOverlord: As an Asura, Agrona is not only much more magically adept than the strongest mortal mages, but his very body is infused with mana itself. With his unparalleled power, he and the clan he leads were able to establish themselves as the rulers of Alacrya and empower their mortal subjects to fulfill their ambitions to conquer the world and exact their revenge on the gods who had exiled them.
* StartOfDarkness: [[spoiler:Agrona had a vested interest in the ruins left behind by the Djinn, which led to him uncovering that Kezess and the Indrath Clan committed genocide upon them. When he threatened to expose the truth, he and his clan were exiled to Alacrya. In his exile, Agrona swore vengeance upon the Indrath and the rest of Epheotus, leading him to become just as much a monster as Kezess himself]].

* TheSvengali: Acts as this towards [[spoiler:the reincarnates under his control, namely Nico and Cecilia. He strung Nico along into working with him by promising to resurrect Cecilia and to help him exact his revenge on Grey. Following Cecilia's resurrection, he promises them that after they help him exact his revenge on the other Asuras that he will return them both to Earth. Of course, it is highly likely Agrona has no intention of fulfilling that final promise to them as to him everyone under his command is merely just a tool to be discarded. After all, he has already subjected them both to MindRape and twisted their memories of Grey into utter hatred, all to make them more compliant to him without them knowing]].

* ThenLetMeBeEvil: [[spoiler:He was once a good person who sought to expose Kezess for his crimes, but when he was cast out of Epheotus and exiled to Alacrya, he devoted his entire being to exacting revenge on not just Kezess but all of the Asuras. In the process, Agrona's villainy wound up eclipsing that of his nemesis. To illustrate, part of Kezess's false pretext for exiling Agrona and his clan was that he accused them of interbreeding with and experimenting upon with the lessers of Alacrya. In their bid to exact their vengeance, Agrona and his clan have done exactly that. Similarly, even though Agrona sought to expose Kezess for the genocide of the Djinn, he is now perfectly willing to commit genocide upon his own kind]].
* TragicVillain: [[spoiler:Sylvia claims that he used to be a decent person who she had a romantic interest in, and that he was once a revered figure among the Asuras for his personality and research. Then he uncovered Kezess and the Indrath Clan's DarkSecret, and when he confronted them and threatened to expose the truth, he was banished from Epheotus and exiled to the distant continent of Alacrya. In his exile, Agrona's desire for revenge has consumed him, making him as much a monster as Kezess himself]].

* VillainousUnderdog: He is this trope against Kezess on paper. In the DivineConflict, Kezess has the support of all of the Asuran races while Agrona only has a few basilisk clans at his side. Given how outgunned the Vritra and their allies are in the grand scale of the conflict, Agrona has resorted to subterfuge and underhanded tactics to gain an advantage over his nemesis. He conceals the true scope of his plans from Kezess, and takes full advantage of him holding back to go to lengths that Kezess would not cross.

** Despite not foreseeing [[spoiler:Seris's rebellion, which in turn allows Arthur to retake his homeland followed by him joining up with said rebellion, Agrona is once again able to manipulate events in his favor. Not only had he already hunted down most of Seris's supporters and forced the survivors into hiding within the Relictombs by the time Arthur arrived, but he took advantage of Exeges's demise to frame Arthur and Sylvie for it (tellingly, even if they ''had'' been the ones to kill Exeges, Agrona would have done the same) and thus rally public opinion in Alacrya against not only Arthur but also the Indrath and the rest of the Asuras, as by this point he is readying his forces to invade Epheotus. As such, Seris and her supporters are forced to abandon the Relictombs and seek asylum in Dicathen]].

** At the end of Volume 7, [[spoiler:Agrona conquers Dicathen and has the Council executed. His reign over the continent only lasts for a year as when Arthur returns from Alacrya, he undoes Agrona’s conquest in a matter of days as Agrona's attention is distracted with both his plans for the Legacy and Seris's rebellion]].
** At the start of Volume 11, [[spoiler:Agrona had managed to quell Seris's rebellion before Arthur could arrive to relieve it, as he has been stuck in the aether realm for two months while trying to resurrect Sylvie. Not only had she and her closest followers been forced into the Relictombs, but after the botched mission to kill Exeges they are forced to abandon the Relictombs altogether and seek asylum in Dicathen]].

** Their attitude towards [[spoiler:Sylvie, their sole living descendant. Agrona coldly disavows her as his daughter, while Kezess has a VillainousParentalInstinct towards her]].

* HopeCrusher: Agrona has a twisted sense of satisfaction in that he likes to make his opponents think that they have the chance to defeat him before showing them that he had the game stacked entirely in his favor from the very start. In the case of the lessers, that game had been stacked long before their ancestors were born.

* ThenLetMeBeEvil: [[spoiler:He was once a good person who sought to expose Kezess for his crimes, but when he was cast out of Epheotus and exiled to Alacrya, he devoted his entire being to exacting revenge on not just Kezess but all of the Asuras. In the process, Agrona's villainy wound up eclipsing that of his nemesis. To illustrate, part of Kezess's false pretext for exiling Agrona and his clan was that he accused them of interbreeding with and experimenting upon with the lessers of Alacrya. In their bid to exact their vengeance, Agrona and his clan have done exactly that. Similarly, even though Agrona sought to expose Kezess for the genocide of the Djinn, he is now perfectly willing to commit genocide of his own kind]].

''[[Characters/TheBeginningAfterTheEndAlacryans Alacryans]]'': [[Characters/TheBeginningAfterTheEndVritraClan Vritra Clan]] '''(Agrona Vritra)''' \\

* GenocideFromTheInside: Agrona is so far gone from who he used to be that he is willing to kill off all the other Asuras just to achieve his revenge.

''[[Characters/TheBeginningAfterTheEndAlacryans Alacryans]]'' '''(Agrona Vritra)''' \\

* TheBadGuyWins: