History Characters / TrailsSeriesCalvardArkrideSolutionsOffice

* SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome: She might be able to FlashStep to [[spoiler:save Quatre, but she's also not able to stop in time to get away from an explosion. All she can do is shield her body from said explosion.]]

* LightFeminineDarkFeminine: She's the innocent and demure Light Feminine to Renne's mature and graceful Dark Feminine. One promotional image even puts the former in a white dress and the latter in a black one.

The protagonist of ''Trails through Daybreak''. He's a (self-proclaimed) hard-boiled Spriggan working for the "Arkride Solutions Office" in Edith. One day, he accepts a job from a schoolgirl named Agnès, but said job ends up being much more than he initially expected, one that may very well decide the fate of Zemuria.

* BlueIsHeroic: It's his color scheme, from his coat, hair highlights, swimsuit, Xipha, car, and even his lightning hue. Despite his troubles, he's ultimately a heroic guy. This also extends to his Grendel form. Even when the form takes on a more greenish hue, it's still described as "Demonic Gear Clad in Blue Darkness", and provides [[GoodColorsEvilColors nice contrast]] to Grendel-Zolga's [[RedAndBlackAndEvilAllOver red and black]] color scheme.

* ChoiceOfTwoWeapons: He is shown fighting mixing his [[FantasticFightingStyle "Kunlun-style" martial arts]] and his Stun-Caliber.

* DeathFromAbove: His "Aerial Buster" Craft, and by extension its upgrade "Raging Buster," has him jump up, do a vertical spin, then slam his Stun-Caliber on the target.
* DrawAggro: His "Coin Bullet" allows him to have enemies go after him instead of going after the rest of the party.

* GoodOldFisticuffs: His "Souha Houken" Craft has him stab his weapon to the ground, dropping lightning towards his targets and then delivers a punch afterwards.

* LaserBlade: His second S-Craft, "Souten Hansho," has him gather up his [[spoiler:Devil King]] power from within with the use of his "Kunlun" martial arts, complete with PowerGlows, then pointing his Stun-Calibur upwards to create an extending energy beam to slam it above an enemy, dealing massive damage.

* LimitBreak: His normal S-Craft in ''Daybreak'' is "Vandalize Raid." He then gains a new S-Craft in ''Kuro II'' called "Souten Hansho".

* MoneyMauling: His appropriately named "Coin Bullet" Craft uses [[ContinuityNod five 10-mira coins]] to flick at his enemies.

* PracticalTaunt: His "Coin Bullet" allows him to taunt his enemies and go after him.

* SpectacularSpinning: His "Stun Slash" Craft, as well as its upgrade "Magna Slash," has him turn in a circular motion as he slashes the target.

* SwordPlant: At the start of his "Souha Houken" Craft, he'll stab his Stun-Calibur into the ground for the express purpose of shocking the enemies in range.

* YellowLightningBlueLightning: His "Souha Houken" Craft normally has blue lightning, but its upgrade in ''Kuro II'' changes it to yellow.

* AttackAttackAttack: Whenever Van transforms into Grendel, he can only attack his enemies. He won't be able to heal himself during battles unless someone heals him. While his "Savage Hands" Craft heals him while attacking, the amount of HP it recovers is very low. Thankfully, it can hit more than one enemy, so it's still a good idea to spam it when possible.

* BareFistedMonk: When in this form, Van uses attacks that are primarily hand-to-hand combat: "Quick Blow" has him throw a forward punch, "Heavy Spike" a kick, "Savage Hands" a chop, "Mortal Raid" a pair of dropkicks, and "Destruction Fist" a gut-punch.

* DivingKick: "Regal Strike" ends with him pulling a dive kick as his finishing move.

* KamehameHadoken: The "Limited Blaster" Craft has him fire a beam of energy from his hands at the opponent.
* LaserBlade: Grendel itself doesn't utilize a sword, but "Kouten Hansho" has Van summon a beam of light that parts the skies and then grabbing it like a sword to slam it down on his enemies from above like its original form "Souten Hansho".

* LimitBreak: Van's S-Crafts as Grendel are variations of his normal ones, with his first S-Craft in ''Daybreak'' being "Regal Strike", then gaining a new S-Craft in ''Kuro II'' called "Kouten Hansho".

* SuperScream: The "Howling Roar" Craft has him let out a yell to damage the target.

* YellowLightningBlueLightning: The "Destruction Fist" Craft normally utilizes blue lightning, but its upgrade in ''Kuro II'' changes it to yellow.

* DeflectorShields: Her "Djibril Guard" Craft has her surround herself and allies around her in large, white spheres, giving them Guard gauges.

* DropTheHammer: Her "Glow Hammer" Craft, as well as its ''Kuro II'' upgrade "Sacred Hammer," has her conjure a magical hammer on top of her staff and then drop it on her enemies.

* LimitBreak: Her S-Craft is "Brilliant Halo."

* MagicMissileStorm: Her "Etoile Ray" Craft, and by extension its upgrade "Pleiades Ray," has her shoot magical beams of light straight at her targets.

* TheMedic: Thanks to her "White Heal/Innocent Heal" Craft and her S-Craft "Brilliant Halo," she fills the role of the Solutions Office's designated healer.

* SwordPlant: Her new Craft from ''Kuro II'', "Holy Bloom," starts with her sticking her staff into the ground.

* WhiteMage: In fact, she's the only playable character in the Calvard arc to have more support Crafts than offensive ones.[[note]]"Glow Hammer"/"Sacred Hammer" and "Etoile Ray"/"Pleiades Ray" are the only ones that do damage; "White Heal"/"Innocent Heal" and "Brilliant Halo" restore HP immediately, while "Djibril Guard" and "Holy Bloom" grant HP Recovery.[[/note]]

A young girl who is a member of the Jaeger corps known as the "Kurgha Warrior Clan," she first meets Van to request his help in looking for her friend Aida, but later joins the Solutions Office as a part-timer in order to gain more worldly experience.

* DualBoss: [[spoiler:She faces the party alongside the monster "Garva-Alcon" during Chapter 3D of ''Kuro II''.]]

* FlamingSword: Her "Heat Edge" Craft, and by extension its upgrades "Blaze Edge" and "Sapphira Edge," has her slash with her Assault Sword while it's covered in fire. Her "Ifreeta Raid" Craft from ''Kuro II'' also utilizes this.

* KukrisAreKool: Her "Kurgha's Guardian Blade" Craft has her pull out a Kukri and throw it at the enemy.

* LimitBreak: Her S-Craft is "Ignes Rampage."

* MoreDakka: Her primary weapon is a machine gun, and her "Rapid Burst/Rapid Eruption" Craft has her mow down the enemy with it.
* MorphWeapon: She can turn her machine gun into a sword, as seen in both her "Heat Edge/Blaze Edge" Craft and the end of her "Ignis Rampage" S-Craft. Fittingly enough, her weapon is classified as an "Assault Sword".

* ReusedCharacterDesign: [[spoiler:As the red aura from the cutscene is not present in the battle itself, it's clear that "[[https://i.ytimg.com/vi/x4ZX1ciB0-g/maxresdefault.jpg Garva-Alcon]]," the monster she summons in ''Kuro II'', and "[[https://i.ytimg.com/vi/Lg2_XyHJtfA/maxresdefault.jpg Loa-Gryam]]," the Cryptid fought during Chapter 4 of ''Kuro I" use the exact same model, down to the color scheme.]]
* StatusBuff: Her "Chant of Flame" Craft increases the Strength and ATS stats of herself and any ally around her, while also granting them CP Recovery.
* SwordBeam: The first part of her "Ifreeta Raid" Craft from ''Kuro II'' has her shoot fire slash-beams from her [[FlamingSword Flaming Assault Sword]].
* TechnicolorFire: In ''Kuro II'', her "Blaze Edge" Craft can be upgraded to "Sapphira Edge," which uses blue flames instead of the normal red.

* CastFromHitPoints: His "Haoukou" Craft gives him Insight, among other bonuses, in exchange for some HP.

* DanceBattler: His "Hiten no Mai" Craft has him perform a dance that lowers the target's Defence.
* DeathFromAbove: His "Hyakkazan" Craft, as well as its upgrade "Rekkazan," has him slashing down on enemies while airborne.

* DivingKick: His "Yousoukyaku" Craft, as well its upgrades "Yousou Renkyaku" and "Yousou Enkyaku," has him jump off of the enemy before performing this on them.
* DualWielding: His primary weapons are his "Twin Fencers," a pair of straight-edged swords based on Chinese Jian.

* FantasticFightingStyle: He uses the "Gekka" style, one of the 3 greatest forms of Eastern martial arts alongside "Taito" and "Kunlun," and he uses it in both swordplay and hand-to-hand combat.

* FlamingSword: Both of his swords are on fire during his "Rekkazan" Craft.

* HotWings: His S-Craft "Houou Ranbu" has him gain fiery wings before delivering the final blow. These wings will also appear in "Yousou Enkyaku," the ''Kuro II'' upgrade of his "Yousou Renkyaku" Craft.

* LimitBreak: His S-Craft is "Houou Ranbu."

* SwordBeam: His "Sousei Koujin" Craft unleashes 2 waves of energy, one red and one blue (inflicting Arte damage).

A 20-year-old "Service Concierge" working for the Marduk Total Security Company who frequently gives Van support with his tester duties. After assisting the Arkride Solutions Office in Tharbad, she is assigned to join them for the time being.

* DeflectorShields: Her "Cobalt Curtain" Craft has her surround herself and allies around her in {{Beehive Barrier}}s, giving them Guard gauges.
* DoppelGangerAttack: ''Kuro II'' gives Risette the "Mystic Vision" Craft, which works like Melchior's "Phantom Vision" from the previous game: she summons a transparent clone of herself using her Xipha, with the clone acting as a non-playable ally.

* EnergyWeapon: Her "Ether Snipe" Craft, and by extension its ''Kuro II'' upgrade "Perfect Snipe," has her shoot a lightning-esque laser beam from her gun.

* FlashStep: Her "Sonic Chaser" Craft, as well its upgrade "Lightning Chaser," involves her moving at blinding speed. [[spoiler:It's how she saves Quatre after he tries stopping the bomb going off and she ends up losing her left arm and right leg, which are revealed to be mechanical, instead.]]

* SpectacularSpinning: Her "Silent Rip" Craft involves her slashing the enemy as she spins.
* StatusBuff: "Cobalt Curtain" has the added bonus of raising the affected characters' Defense and ADF stats.

* AttackDrone: An Orbal Drone named "FIO" follows him in and out of battle.
* BeamSpam: [[spoiler:His "Exusia Ray" Craft from ''Kuro II'' has him shot multiple energy beams from his wings.]]
* DashAttack: His "Procyon Fang" Craft has him order XEROS to charge into his opponents.
* DeflectorShields: His "Laplace Code" Craft has her surround himself and allies around him in translucent, rectangular prisms, giving them Guard gauges.

* EnergyWeapon: His "Optical Cannon" Craft has FIO shoot out a laser beam, similar to the laser-based Crafts used by various Combat Shells in the ''Cold Steel'' series.

* HealingHands: His "Satellite Cure" Craft has FIO rain down green particles that restore the HP and CP of him and others around him.

* LimitBreak: His S-Craft is "Digamma Driver."
* NonstandardSkillLearning: [[spoiler:His "Exusia Ray" Craft is obtained after the end of ''Kuro II'''s Intermission.]]

* PowerGivesYouWings: [[spoiler:Gains angelic wings of light when fought as "Quatre-Angelus" during ''Kuro II'''s Intermission. Afterwards, they'll briefly show up whenever he uses his "Exusia Ray" Craft.]]

* RobotDog: He is accompanied by a canine-like robot named "XEROS." [[spoiler:The Final Chapter of ''Daybreak'' allows Feri to give orders to XEROS while Quatre is in captivity, giving her access to "Procyon Fang" during this short period.]]

* SpinAttack: "Procyon Fang ∆" from ''Kuro II'' has XEROS add a forward spinning motion to his original charge.
* StatusBuff: "Laplace Code" has the added bonus of raising the affected characters' Strength and ATS stats.

* AnimalMotifs: She is heavily association with cats: her heels have a picture of a cat on the bottom, "Wild Snatch/Valiant Snatch" shows her slashing an enemy with claws, the card seen in her "Twilight Kiss" Craft has a picture and inscription referencing cats, and her alter-ego, outright named Grim''cat''s, has a tail and cat ears as part of the costume.

* EyeColorChange: The most noticeable change "Valiant Snatch" brings to the "Wild Snatch" Craft is briefly changing Judith's irises to gold right before the slash.

* GratuitousFrench: Her "Twilight Kiss" Craft shows her throwing a card inscripted with ''Il ne faut pas éveiller le chat qui dort''[[note]]Do not awake the sleeping cat.[[/note]]

* InstantArmor: Her "Wild Snatch" Craft (as well as its ''Kuro II'' upgrade "Valiant Snatch") and her action-based moves shows that she is able to summon part of her Grimcats armor mid-fight.

* LimitBreak: Her S-Craft is "Grimm-Night Waltz."

* SpectacularSpinning: Her "Criminal Bute" Craft has her swinging her whip as she spins.

* WhipOfDominance: Her primary weapon is a whip referred to as "[[NamedWeapons Stellabute]]", fitting with the [[DressedLikeADominatrix dominatrix design]] of her [[PhantomThief Grimcats]] costume.

* BadassBack: His "Shishiohkou" Craft involves him turning away from his opponent and slamming his back against them.

* DeathFromAbove: His "Titas Hammer" Craft has him jump and [[GroundPunch smash the ground with fist]] as he descends.

* FantasticFightingStyle: He uses the "Kunlun-style," one of the 3 greatest forms of Eastern martial arts.

* LimitBreak: His S-Craft is "Koha Rokugosho."

* SuperScream: His "Howling Boost" Craft has him attack the enemy by shouting at them.

* LimitBreak: In his second form, he gains the S-Craft "Gadea Vi Zea Voam."

* RedBaron: He's known as "The Wandering Demon King", one of the 77 high-ranking Devils from beyond Zemuria.

* LightFeminineDarkFeminine: She's the innocent and demure Light Feminine to Renne's mature and graceful Dark Feminine. One promotional image even puts the former in a white dress while the latter in a black one.

* TheSmartGuy: Van outright refers to him as the Office's designated "tech guy."

* TeenGenius: Only 15 during ''Daybreak'' (16 in the sequel), but is already shown to have a strong affinity with technology, being a researcher at the prestigious Basel Institute of Science.

* AnimalMotifs: Cats. Her heels have a picture of a cat on the bottom, "Wild Snatch/Valiant Snatch" shows her slashing an enemy with claws, the card seen in her "Twilight Kiss" Craft has a picture and inscription referencing cats, and her alter-ego, outright named Grim''cat''s has a tail and cat ears as part of the costume.

* CoolShades: She owns a pair of aviator sunglasses, though she usually keeps them tucked into her top, [[https://www.falcom.co.jp/kuro/assets/character/individual/ss/judith_01.jpg putting them on]] only when she doesn't want to draw.

* JustLikeRobinHood: Specifically targets the corrupt and powerful.

* MsFanservice: Judith is the most frequent provider of {{Fanservice}} among the Calvard arc's female cast. For a few examples:

-->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/DaisukeOno (Japanese, adult), Rie Manaka (Japanese, child), Damien Haas (English)

* DudeLooksLikeALady: His face appearance is androgynous enough that some people, such as Van, can't tell if he's supposed to be a boy or a girl, [[https://www.falcom.co.jp/kuro/assets/character/individual/ss/quatre_02.jpg to his displeasure]].

* DudeLooksLikeALady: His face appearance is apparently androgynous enough that some people, such as Van, can't tell if he's supposed to be a boy or a girl, [[https://www.falcom.co.jp/kuro/assets/character/individual/ss/quatre_02.jpg to his displeasure]]. Though interestingly, Aaron and Feri actually question how Van could make that kind of mistake.[[labelnote:Explanation]]While they (including Quatre himself) acknowledge that such a mistake would be somewhat plausible from a distance, Van made this mistake while face-to-face with Quatre.[[/labelnote]]
** ''Kuro II'' reveals that [[spoiler:Quatre is actually a {{Hermaphrodite}} due to the experiments he suffered at the D∴G Cult's hands, which explains Van's confusion. [[labelnote:Explanation]]Van's sharper sense likely made him notice something is off about Quatre[[/labelnote]]]]

* MultiEthnicName: "Aaron" is from English, while "Wei" is Chinese.

* ColorCodedCharacters: As stated in BlueIsHeroic above, Van is associated with the color blue.

* AntiHero: As a Spriggan, he is willing to accept any job from ''anyone''. This includes morally corrupt groups like Heiyue, jaegers and even Ouroboros. However, he is still shown to have heroic qualities as he is a kind man deep down and is shown to have standards with his work.

* ColorCodedCharacters: As stated in BlueIsHeroic above, Van is associated with color blue.

** To Estelle, Lloyd, and Rean. Unlike his predecessors who all started out as teenaged rookies, Van is the first main protagonist of an arc who starts out as a young adult[[labelnote:*]]taking aside Kevin and "C," who were only main characters for one game each[[/labelnote]] who's already plenty experienced as a person and fighter. He's also less averse to the shadier walks of life, and insists on reciprocal transactions (ie: while he'll do the right thing, he'll always ask for compensation in return.) He's even willing to work for anyone so long as he thinks it's worth it though he generally doesn't cross any lines he's not comfortable with, whereas the aforementioned trio were more morally upright and took to more straight-laced careers. [[spoiler:He also ends up averting the ThouShallNotKill rule they adhered to by being the first ''Trails'' protagonist to kill someone onscreen when performing a MercyKill on Aida, then deliberately going for the killing blow when fighting the members of Armata later on.]]

** ''Kuro II'' reveals that [[spoiler:Quatre is actually a {{Hermaphrodite}} due to the experiments he suffered at the D∴G Cult's hands, which explains Van's confusion.[[labelnote:Explanation]]Van's sharper sense likely made him notice something is off about Quatre[[/labelnote]]]]

* MercyKill: [[spoiler:He stabs Aida in her final moments in place of Feri, reasoning that the latter is still too younger to be forced into such a deed]].

* MrFanservice: Van is rather attractive man, who has caught the attention of more than a few female characters. His [[https://www.falcom.co.jp/kuro/assets/product/dlc/detail/swimsuit_van.png swimsuit]] DLC and bath scenes also show that he's pretty ripped.

A young girl who is a member of the Jaeger Corps known as the "Kurgha Warrior Clan," she first meets Van to request his help in looking for her friend Aida, but later joins the Solutions Office as a part-timer in order to gain more worldly experience.

* CommonalityConnection: She forms a instant bond with Fie over their shared circumstances and kin, with Fie taking the role of a older sister.

* ACupAngst: Unsurprisingly for somebody who just entered their teens, she's the only girl in the Solutions Office who doesn't have a well-endowed chest, and a few instances in both ''Daybreak''[[note]]When the party first encounter Grimcats in Chapter 1 where she points out her womanly figure, and when bathing with Fie in Chapter 3[[/note]] and ''II''[[note]]When bathing in Chapter 2A[[/note]] show that she wants to look like [[BuxomBeautyStandard Agnès and Risette]] someday.

* FormalCharactersUseKeigo: The Japanese script further cements her refined "maid" image by having her always speak using polite, formal speech and address most other characters with the honorific "[[UsefulNotes/JapaneseHonorifics -sama]].

* ChildhoodFriends: With [[Characters/TrailsSeriesTheBracerGuild Elaine]] and René, both of whom he hadn't seen for years prior to the event of ''Daybreak''. The start of said game shows that he's still on good-enough terms with the latter, but has a harder time dealing with the former.

* ChildhoodFriends: With Albert and Odette.

* ChildhoodFriends: He's known Ashen since they were little.

* FormalCharactersUseKeigo: To help highlight her mild-mannered demeanor, she speaks to everyone[[note]]even her friends and those younger than her[[/note]] with polite, formal speech. A conversation with Quatre in ''Daybreak'' reveals that Agnès's friends want her to get out of this habit.

* FormalCharactersUseKeigo: Further cementing her refined "maid" image, she always speaks using polite, formal speech, and addresses most other characters with the honorific "[[UsefulNotes/JapaneseHonorifics -sama]].

-->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/YokoHikasa (Japanese), Creator/BrittanyCox

-->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/MikuItou (Japanese)

-->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/YuiOgura (Japanese)

-->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/YuumaUchida (Japanese)

-->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/YuiIshikawa (Japanese)

-->'''Quatre voiced by:''' Creator/MutsumiTamura (Japanese)

-->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/YokoHikasa (Japanese)

-->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/AkioOtsuka (Japanese)

-->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/MariaNaganawa (Japanese)

** Agnes: Pink.

* TheFellowshipHasEnded: [[spoiler:Subverted at the end of ''Daybreak'': Van thought this was happening, until everyone announced that they're just going to [[LetsSplitUpGang split up for the holidays, then return]] to the Solutions Office afterwards, a detail Agnes deliberately kept quiet about. Needless to say, [[RunningGag Van was not exactly thrilled with this information]].]]

* LetsSplitUpGang: At the start of ''Kuro II'', Van is still enjoying his alone time in the Office, as his part-timers are still handling their own stuff to take care of, save for Agnes who still visits and helps him from time-to-time.
* RagtagBunchOfMisfits: In a fashion [[ContinuityNod similar to]] [[Characters/TrailsSeriesEstelleParty Estelle's party]], Van's party all come from different walks of life, all (forcefully) joining his office either due to wanting to repay Van in some way, or to learn more about/take revenge against Armata by joining Van and Agnes' quest for the eight Genesis artifacts.

The protagonist of ''Trails through Daybreak''. He's a (self-proclaimed) hard-boiled Spriggan working for the "Arkride Solutions Office" in Edith. One day, he accepts a job from a schoolgirl named Agnes, but said job ends up being much more than he initially expected, one that may very well decide the fate of Zemuria.

* ChickMagnet: He is quite the looker and a decent man to boot, so girls finding him attractive isn't all that surprising: [[PrecociousCrush Agnes]] develops a crush on him over the course of ''Daybreak'', Sarah is all but stated to gain similar feelings, [[TheTease Renne]] acts more openly affectionate towards him than any other character she's interacted with, and [[ChildhoodFriendRomance Elaine]] still longs for him [[spoiler:[[OldFlame even though they've broken up for years now]]]]. Even on a smaller scale, Ashen, despite crushing on Cao, claims that Van's not a bad catch himself, and even a random girl admits that Van is her type.

* HardboiledDetective: Likes to portray himself as a "cool and no-nonsense" type of back-alley solver [[spoiler:and even admits to having killed people before he met Agnes and the others, on top of his DarkAndTroubledPast]], but his laid-back attitude, love of cuisine and sweets, and general TeamDad moments towards his office's younger members would tell people otherwise.

* TheNoseKnows: As [[spoiler:a survivor of the D∴G Cult]], he has a heightened sense of smell. He displays it in the prologue when he's able to tell there's someone tailing him and Agnes from far away from a scent he smelt [[spoiler:which is Renne atop a building adjacent to the place they're about to enter]] and him sensing people escaping the room where Giacomo is murdered even though they used RAMDA's stealth feature.
* ObliviousToLove: As stated in the initial magazine scans for ''Kuro II'', any signs of Agnes having a crush on him go right over his head.

* PinkGirlBlueBoy: With Agnes; his jacket and Xipha are both colored blue.

* SweetTooth: Van loves his sweets (blaming Elaine and René for getting him addicted to them during their childhood years) and can be bribed with it: in the first ''Daybreak'' game's Prologue, he finally takes Agnes' job when presented with tarts from a famous bakery, and during said game's ending cutscene, [[spoiler:Agnes successfully bribed him into going to her house to [[HintDropping meet her father]] with cake, causing Van to lament that she's become more cunning since their first meeting.]] He even has it mandated on his Five Tenets[[note]]''Sweets are once Daily''[[/note]].

* TeamDad: Being TheLeader and the oldest of the main party sans Bergard, he's understandably protective of the more juvenile members of his office (Agnes, Quatre, and Feri). He's seen prioritizing their safety and even goes out of his way to make sure they don't always have to see or interact with dead bodies while he's with them.

* TheWorfEffect: At the climax of the first ''Daybreak'' game's prologue chapter, he downs two Armata mobs in a cutscene. They ingest a pill that gives them more power and ends up dominating against Van. Before they get to land the finishing blow however with Agnes trying to block the attack, time stops and the Genesis artifact glows with both Van and Agnes in a space void with Mare showing up, offering Van the powers of Grendel.

[[folder:Agnes Claudel]]

[[caption-width-right:350:Agnes during ''Daybreak'']]
[[quoteright:350:[[labelnote:Agnes in her Aramis uniform]]https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/agnes_uniform.jpg[[/labelnote]]]]
[[quoteright:350:[[labelnote:Agnes as of ''Kuro II'']]https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/agnes_1_1.png[[/labelnote]]]]

* BettyAndVeronica: As one of Van's two primary love interests, Agnes serves as his openly sweet assistant who shows a surprisingly mature and determined side underneath her normally demure personality, while Elaine's aloof nature hides an adorably immature side. Additionally, Agnes's biggest obstacle in winning Van's heart is in [[JustAKid how he largely doesn't see her as an equal]], while Elaine's is in how [[spoiler:he's not yet ready to open up about his issues with her.]]

* BuxomBeautyStandard: Agnes is quite curvy for her age, particularly in the chest area, making her the target of envy from Feri, Shahina, and even the older Fie.

* ClingyJealousGirl: While Agnes never gets outright clingy towards Van, there are plenty of moments where she seems distinctly unhappy with his interactions with other women. Chapter 3 of ''Daybreak'' alone gives at least 3 instances of this:

* ContrastingSequelMainCharacter: While "main heroines" from previous arcs were around the same age as their respective protagonist, there's a notable gap between Agnes (who just entered high school) and Van (who's in his mid-20's).[[note]]While Juna and Altina were also younger than Rean, they were never given the official label of main heroine.[[/note]]

* ExpyCoexistence: Like [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsInTheSky Tita Russel]], Agnes is a mild-mannered girl with blue eyes and blonde hair who's related to a famous engineer and is close friends with Renne on top of that. In Agnes' case, her adoptive great-grandfather is Claude Epstein, the father of the Orbal Revolution. They also both have crushes on older guys, with Agnes being 8 years younger than Van, while Tita is 12 years younger than Agate.

* FormalCharactersUseKeigo: To help highlight her mild-mannered demeanor, she speaks to everyone[[note]]even her friends and those younger than her[[/note]] with polite, formal speech. A conversation with Quatre in ''Daybreak'' reveals that Agnes's friends want her to get out of this habit.

* GivenNameReveal: [[spoiler:Her birth name is "Agnes Gramheart," making her the current president's daughter. However, Agnes sticks with her mother's maiden name "Claudel" as is family tradition out of respect to Claude Epstein who adopted her grandmother years prior]].

* HopelessSuitor: Agnes gains a bit of a crush on Van over the course of ''Daybreak'', but she's also aware that Van both sees her as JustAKid and has something going on with [[ChildhoodFriendRomance Elaine]] [[spoiler:([[OldFlame his ex-girlfriend]])]]. Nonetheless, the ending of ''Kuro II'' has her claim that, even if she has no chance of winning, she hopes to one day find the courage to properly express her feelings to him.

* WhiteMagicianGirl: Like Elie before her, Agnes is an archetypal example, as she's [[GirlyGirl the most traditionally feminine]] member of the Office, is arguably the most [[NiceGirl compassionate]] member, and leans towards [[WhiteMage support over offense]].

* ACupAngst: Unsurprisingly for somebody who just entered their teens, she's the only girl in the Solutions Office who doesn't have a well-endowed chest, and a few instances in both ''Daybreak''[[note]]When the party first encounter Grimcats in Chapter 1 where she points out her womanly figure, and when bathing with Fie in Chapter 3[[/note]] and ''II''[[note]]When bathing in Chapter 2A[[/note]] show that she wants to look like [[BuxomBeautyStandard Agnes and Risette]] someday.

* ChildrenAreInnocent: Her relative youth means that she doesn't understand certain terms or implications that other characters pick up on. Agnes, in particular, regularly tries to protect said innocence whenever somebody, such as Aaron, threatens to set a bad example for her.

* RequiredPartyMember: [[spoiler:She, Van, Agnes, and Aaron are forced to be the only party members in the fight against Aida-Ghoula and Demon Taikun during ''Kuro II'''s Final Battle.]]

* HeyYou: With the exception of [[LastNameBasis Judith]], he forgoes using the other party members' names in favor of (often insulting) nicknames. Specifically, he refers to Van as "Old Man,"[[note]]おっさん, "ossan"[[/note]] Agnes as "Little Girl,"[[note]]小娘, "ko-musume"[[/note]] Feri as "Shorty,"[[note]]チビ, "chibi"[[/note]] Risette as "[[{{Meido}} Maid]]," Quatre as "Kid,"[[note]]小僧, "kozō"[[/note]] and Bergard as "Gramps."[[note]]じいさん, "jiisan"[[/note]] By the end of ''Daybreak'', however, Bergard is the only member who isn't referred to by their first name during battle.

* LikesOlderWomen: As a result of him growing up a MommasBoy, he mostly prefers women older than him while denouncing younger girls like Agnes; he's even trying to hit on Paulette at one point. About the only debatable case is Sarah, whose exact age isn't stated.

* MommasBoy: His late mother Yuefa raised him by herself, so he naturally has a very high opinion of her. Ashen goes so far as to say that the resulting "mother complex" means that there should be [[LikesOlderWomen no reason to worry about him trying to hit on younger girls like Agnes or Feri]].

** [[spoiler:He, Van, Agnes, and Feri are forced to be the only party members in the fight against Aida-Ghoula and Demon Taikun during ''Kuro II'''s Final Battle.]]

* ShipTease: He has a few moments where he shows attraction towards Agnes and Risette:
** He blushes when talking with Agnes for the first time, something that Renne, Odette, and even Albert [[EveryoneCanSeeIt instantly spot]]. When the player listens to his thoughts in a later scene, he even admits to finding her cute.

* LetsYouAndHimFight: Despite both parties being good guys, Van and whoever he's with at the time[[note]]Feri and Agnes in Chapter 2, Aaron in Chapter 3[[/note]] have to fight Judith as Grimcats twice in ''Daybreak''.

The AI of Van's custom-made Xipha Hollow Core. Initially an assertive but otherwise typical experimental support AI for Van's Hollow Core, it materialized in the real world and acquired a hologram-like avatar after being exposed to Agnes' Genesis orbment. Since then, it obtained "free will" impossible for a normal AI to have, and the capability to make Van "wear his nightmares" whenever he's in a pinch, transforming him into the explosively strong Grendel.

* ArtificialIntelligence: Or at least it was just a normal support AI, until an incident with Agnes' Genesis orbment somehow gives it sentience, [[{{Hologram}} a holographic avatar]], and [[HenshinHero the ability to transform Van into Grendel]]. Subverted when [[spoiler:it's revealed that the Mare everyone knew isn't actually Van's Xipha AI, but someone from the Beyond using the AI as her identity while she's in Zemuria.]]

* SealedInsideAPersonShapedCan: He was asleep for a very long time, sealed within his human shell "Van", and was supposed to stay that way for a few hundred years more. It wasn't until Agnes and the other members of Van's office tried to break him out of his self-imposed imprisonment did he prematurely wake up.

[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/fio_concept_art__kuro.jpg]]

[[quoteright:300:[[labelnote:Demon form]]https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/kuro_rip_demon_taikun_3.jpg[[/labelnote]]]]
%%[[caption-width-right:350:placeholder]]

* SpellMyNameWithAnS: Her surname was romanized as "Ranster" on the official Japanese websites for the first two ''Daybreak'' games.
* {{Stripperiffic}}: The [[https://www.falcom.co.jp/kuro/assets/character/individual/ss/grimcats_01.jpg amount of skin exposed]] in her Grimcats outfit shouldn't be all that practical. Van even reprimands her for openly wearing that kind of outfit in front of [[ChildrenAreInnocent Feri]] when the party first encounter her as Grimcats in ''Daybreak''.

* ExperiencedProtagonist: At 24 years of age, he's older than any of the previous arcs' protagonist,[[note]]The only ''Trails'' protagonist that was older than him was only a protagonist for one game.[[/note]], and he's been in the Spriggan business for about 5 years before the start of his arc.

[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/vagrantz_zion_concept_art_29.jpg]]

-->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/DaisukeOno (Japanese, adult), Rie Manaka (Japanese, child)

-->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/DaisukeOno (adult), Rie Manaka (child)

-->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/MikuItou

-->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/YuiOgura

-->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/YuumaUchida

-->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/YuiIshikawa

-->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/MutsumiTamura (Quatre), Yukina Shuto (FIO)

-->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/YokoHikasa

-->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/AkioOtsuka

-->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/MariaNaganawa

Within Calvard, there exists an underground profession known as "Spriggan," that accepts jobs that one can't consult with the Bracer Guild or the police about. One such Spriggan is Van Arkride, who established the Arkride Solutions Office in the capital, Edith. While he worked by himself from the start, the year S.1208 would see him getting several assistants. Together, they serve as the main cast of ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesKuroNoKiseki Kuro no Kiseki]]'' and its sequel.

* CombatPragmatist: They have no problems fighting dirty if need be, even using distractions just to obtain their objective. A stand out example from the first ''Kuro'' game would be [[spoiler:when Van's nearly losing against Kasim, Judith comes out and tries to do a sneak attack only for Kasim to block said attack. Judith then goes to try to disarm Kasim with the latter resisting, only for Feri to get behind him and steal the keycards the party needs to advance.]]
* TheFellowshipHasEnded: [[spoiler:Subverted at the end of ''Kuro I'': Van thought this was happening, until everyone announced that they're just going to [[LetsSplitUpGang split up for the holidays, then return]] to the Solutions Office afterwards, a detail Agnes deliberately kept quiet about. Needless to say, [[RunningGag Van was not exactly thrilled with this information]].]]

* TheFriendsWhoNeverHang: During the first two ''Kuro'' games:

* KansasCityShuffle: During the first ''Kuro'', [[spoiler:their entire plan for their fight against Kasim and the MTSC was for Kasim to think Judith is trying to disarm him, only for Feri to get behind him and steal their keycards. The party then makes their escape with the guest characters stalling the MTSC crew.]]
* {{Leitmotif}}: The aptly-named "Arkride Solutions Office" in ''Kuro I''.

* RunningGag: Back in ''Kuro I'', a chapter would often end with a character deciding to join the office without Van's consent, to his very obvious dismay.

-->'''Appearances''': ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsIntoReverie Reverie]]'' | ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesKuroNoKiseki Kuro]]'' | ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesKuroNoKiseki Kuro II]]''

The protagonist of ''Kuro no Kiseki''. He's a (self-proclaimed) hard-boiled Spriggan working for the "Arkride Solutions Office" in Edith. One day, he accepts a job from a schoolgirl named Agnes, but said job ends up being much more than he initially expected, one that may very well decide the fate of Zemuria.

* AccidentalPervert: During ''Kuro I'''s Intermission Chapter, Van unintentionally gets an eyeful of Judith's naked body after she suffers from a WardrobeMalfunction. Predictably, he gets slapped for his troubles.

* ButNowIMustGo: [[spoiler:He was ready to leave Zemuria for good after defeating Gerard, taking back his stolen Devil Core and becoming a Devil in the process... but the remaining members of the main cast want him back, so they chase him to the boundary between Zemuria and the Beyond, where the first ''Kuro'' game's true FinalBoss fight takes place.]]
* ChickMagnet: He is quite the looker and a decent man to boot, so girls finding him attractive isn't all that surprising: [[PrecociousCrush Agnes]] develops a crush on him over the course of ''Kuro I'', Sarah is all but stated to gain similar feelings, [[TheTease Renne]] acts more openly affectionate towards him than any other character she's interacted with, and [[ChildhoodFriendRomance Elaine]] still longs for him [[spoiler:[[OldFlame even though they've broken up for years now]]]]. Even on a smaller scale, Ashen, despite crushing on Cao, claims that Van's not a bad catch himself, and even a random girl admits that Van is her type.
* ChildhoodFriends: With [[Characters/TrailsSeriesTheBracerGuild Elaine]] and René, both of whom he hadn't seen for years prior to the event of ''Kuro''. The start of said game shows that he's still on good-enough terms with the latter, but has a harder time dealing with the former.
* ChildhoodFriendRomance: Of all the girls he's seen interacting with in ''Kuro I'', Van has the most notable romantic tension with Elaine, [[spoiler:whom he confessed to and dated during their first year of high school. And despite the relationship ending after he suddenly disappeared during their second year, it's hinted that neither have truly gotten over the other.]]

* CrazyEnoughToWork: At the climax of chapter 5 in ''Kuro I'', he makes his team [[spoiler:jump from the balcony of the castle, which is getting blown up thanks to Melchior, to the river below while letting the Shard Field taking most of the impact.]]

* DarkIsNotEvil: His primary element is Time, and he's the main good guy of ''Kuro''. [[spoiler:As is tradition for ''Trails'' characters with Time as their primary element, it foreshadows just how much baggage he really has.]]

** [[spoiler:In Chapter 5 of ''Kuro I'', he can see that Elaine is extremely upset about the whole ordeal with Creil Village, so he tells her that she has plenty of people she can rely on, including him. But as Elaine points out in the following chapter, he refuses to rely on anybody else; not her, not René, not even his assistants.]]
** [[spoiler:Another moment happens during the cutscene before the final boss in ''Kuro I''. Van had just banished himself to another plane to delay Vagrants-Zion's awakening when the members of his Office followed to save him. He says they shouldn't have come to his rescue, but Quatre points out that he would've done the same if it was his part-timers in that situation and not him, outright calling the man a hypocrite in the process.]]

** [[spoiler:In Chapter 5 of ''Kuro I'', he's on giving end of this trope, finishing off Gerard in Chapter 5 by reverting out of Grendel and stabbing him.]]

* LimitBreak: His normal S-Craft in ''Kuro I'' is "Vandalize Raid." He then gains a new S-Craft in ''Kuro II'' called "Souten Hansho".
* MaamShock: Given that he's still just 24 during the first ''Kuro'' game (becoming 25 in the second), he understandably does not like it when Aaron calls him "ossan."[[labelnote:Translation]]A rude Japanese term used to refer older, usually middle-aged, men, with "old man" being the usual English equivalent[[/labelnote]] Worse still, when Shahina innocently refers to him as "ojisan"[[labelnote:Translation]]Literally "uncle," but often used for any older adult man.[[/labelnote]], he looks outright dejected.

* PunchClockHero: In a CallBack to ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsFromZeroAndTrailsToAzure Zero]]'', Van saves a bus from monsters during Chapter 1 of ''Kuro I'', and once the incident is resolved, gives the driver his business card in order to get paid for his troubles, as he's not doing volunteer work like the Bracer Guild.

* {{Reincarnation}}: [[spoiler:It's revealed in ''Kuro I'''s Final Chapter that Van is the [[SealedInsideAPersonShapedCan human "shell"]] of Vagrants-Zion, a Devil King that at some point in time was sealed in Zemuria and became "Van". Van became aware of this fact at some point during his childhood, presumably after his captivity by the Cult, and even admits that he doesn't remember who "Mare" is supposed to be, implying they knew each other at one point.]]

* SweetTooth: Van loves his sweets (blaming Elaine and René for getting him addicted to them during their childhood years) and can be bribed with it: in the first ''Kuro'' game's Prologue, he finally takes Agnes' job when presented with tarts from a famous bakery, and during said game's ending cutscene, [[spoiler:Agnes successfully bribed him into going to her house to [[HintDropping meet her father]] with cake, causing Van to lament that she's become more cunning since their first meeting.]] He even has it mandated on his Five Tenets[[note]]''Sweets are once Daily''[[/note]].

* TheWorfEffect: At the climax of the first ''Kuro'' game's prologue chapter, he downs two Armata mobs in a cutscene. They ingest a pill that gives them more power and ends up dominating against Van. Before they get to land the finishing blow however with Agnes trying to block the attack, time stops and the Genesis artifact glows with both Van and Agnes in a space void with Mare showing up, offering Van the powers of Grendel.
* WorkingWithTheEx: [[spoiler:There are multiple instances during the first two ''Kuro'' games where he and his ex-girlfriend Elaine have to team up with one another. Thankfully, any negative tension between the two is mostly gone by the time of the second game.]]

* YouAreNotAlone: As seen in the first ''Kuro'' game, one flaw he shares with his predecessor Rean is in how they try to shoulder everything onto themselves rather than letting others carry the weight with them, much to the frustrations of those who care about them. As such, Van too must learn to rely on others over the course of the game.

* BadassCreed: During ''Kuro I'''s Intermission chapter, Van ends up reciting a creed when he transforms into Grendel complete with both Japanese and GratuitousEnglish voices overlapping with each other. The English sentence itself sounds very silly.

* DangerousForbiddenTechnique: Transforming into Grendel wrecks Van's body, [[spoiler:which comes to a head in the final fight against Gerard, as him reclaiming his lost Devil Core while in Grendel Sin form would turn him into the Devil the core was housing. He gets better midway through the first ''Kuro'''s FinalBoss fight though.]]

** "[[https://youtu.be/GUEwfQdRqTU RISE OF THE GRENDEL]]" in ''Kuro I''.

* LimitBreak: Van's S-Crafts as Grendel are variations of his normal ones, with his first S-Craft in ''Kuro I'' being "Regal Strike", then gaining a new S-Craft in ''Kuro II'' called "Kouten Hansho".

* ThemeMusicPowerUp: Whenever Van transforms into Grendel in ''Kuro I'', there's a good chance that "RISE OF THE GRENDEL" with play throughout the fight. If he does it in ''Kuro II'', "Solid-State Shard Blow" will play instead.

[[caption-width-right:350:Agnes during ''Kuro I'']]

-->'''Appearances''': ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsIntoReverie Reverie]]'' | ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesKuroNoKiseki Kuro]]'' | ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesKuroNoKiseki Kuro II]]''

* ClingyJealousGirl: While Agnes never gets outright clingy towards Van, there are plenty of moments where she seems distinctly unhappy with his interactions with other women. Chapter 3 of ''Kuro I'' alone gives at least 3 instances of this:

* CovertPervert: Aaron calls her out on this near the end of ''Kuro I'''s Intermission, citing her tendency to read risque novels from time to time. She first panics and tries to make excuses, but later makes a face of TranquilFury at him, at which point he uncharacteristically goes quiet.

* {{Deuteragonist}}: Of the first ''Kuro'' game. She serves as the game's heroine, and her storyline with the Oct-Genesis drives the main plot.

* EarlyBirdCameo: She appears to be [[https://static.wikia.nocookie.net/kiseki/images/e/e5/Renne_at_Aramis_3_-_Episode_23_%28Hajimari%29.png/revision/latest?cb=20210316154026 the girl from Renne's short story]] in ''Reverie'' that tried to stand up to Ronald for his treatment of Renne. And given that she's confirmed to be in the student council during ''Kuro I'', it's likely that she's one of the students in [[https://static.wikia.nocookie.net/kiseki/images/9/9c/Renne_at_Aramis_8_-_Episode_23_%28Hajimari%29.png/revision/latest?cb=20210316154036 this picture]].

* FoodAsBribe: In ''Kuro I'''s Prologue, she successfully gets Van to take a job that's essentially a WildGooseChase with some tarts she bought. She attempts to pull this again in the game's ending when she [[spoiler:tries to get him to [[HintDropping go to her house and meet her dad]] by offering him some cake, and the Final Chapter of ''Kuro II'' confirms that he indeed ate that cake.]]
* FormalCharactersUseKeigo: To help highlight her mild-mannered demeanor, she speaks to everyone[[note]]even her friends and those younger than her[[/note]] with polite, formal speech. A conversation with Quatre in ''Kuro I'' reveals that Agnes's friends want her to get out of this habit.

* HopelessSuitor: Agnes gains a bit of a crush on Van over the course of ''Kuro I'', but she's also aware that Van both sees her as JustAKid and has something going on with [[ChildhoodFriendRomance Elaine]] [[spoiler:([[OldFlame his ex-girlfriend]])]]. Nonetheless, the ending of ''Kuro II'' has her claim that, even if she has no chance of winning, she hopes to one day find the courage to properly express her feelings to him.

* {{Joshikousei}}: She's a student at Aramis, and the first teaser for ''Kuro I'' shows her wearing the [[https://dengekionline.com/images/0soZ/T0Xk/ScuO/QZBv/yFqEP1cOA6x3M7sNSsde1NWsISCjwOLNhgK4Kbf8yHuzqef32P6pWwi0ZbnQjJsYa2NjLv3shlt7zn9v.png school uniform]]. This also makes her the arc's first confirmed character to have more than one costume.

* MissingMom: Her mother passed away 4 years prior to the events of ''Kuro I''.

* ObliviousToLove: It's outright stated in ''Kuro I'' that [[ObliviouslyBeautiful she's unaware of her own attractiveness]], so she unsurprisingly doesn't notice when others, such as Albert, have otherwise obvious crushes on her.

* PinkGirlBlueBoy: With Van; her sweater in ''Kuro I'', shirt in ''Kuro II'', and Xipha are all colored pink.

** One of the side quests in the first ''Kuro'' game's Final Chapter requires that she be included in the party.

* SexySweaterGirl: She wears a pink sweater as part of her outfit in ''Kuro I'' that does little to hide her curves.

-->'''Appearances''': ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesKuroNoKiseki Kuro]]'' | ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesKuroNoKiseki Kuro II]]''

* ACupAngst: Unsurprisingly for somebody who just entered their teens, she's the only girl in the Solutions Office who doesn't have a well-endowed chest, and a few instances in both ''Kuro I''[[note]]When the party first encounter Grimcats in Chapter 1 where she points out her womanly figure, and when bathing with Fie in Chapter 3[[/note]] and ''II''[[note]]When bathing in Chapter 2A[[/note]] show that she wants to look like [[BuxomBeautyStandard Agnes and Risette]] someday.
* ADayInTheLimelight: Chapter 1 of the first ''Kuro'' game focuses on her getting help to search for a missing Aida.

* TheGlomp: [[spoiler:She runs up and hugs Van after he and Shizuna rescue her and Fie during ''Kuro I'''s Final Chapter.]]

* WhyDidItHaveToBeSnakes: Similar to [[Characters/TrailsSeriesCrossbellSpecialSupportSection Elie]], Feri is shown to not be fond of ghosts, as seen in Chapter 4 of ''Kuro I''.

-->'''Appearances''': ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesKuroNoKiseki Kuro]]'' | ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesKuroNoKiseki Kuro II]]''

* ADayInTheLimelight: Chapter 2 of ''Kuro I'' focuses on him dealing with some punks working for Armata causing trouble in the Eastern Quarter.

* ArrangedMarriage: Heiyue wants to set him up with Ashen, but there's no indication in the first ''Kuro'' game that he's remotely interested, as both are see each other LikeBrotherAndSister.
* BadassBiker: When Bergard joins the party, he gets the opportunity to ride Bergard's bike, due to Van's car running out of space for everyone. And in one of ''Kuro I'''s endgame {{Side Quest}}s, he'll use his Xipha to ''launch himself'' in the air and gain more speed for the race quest.

* BuxomBeautyStandard: There are plenty of scenes in ''Kuro I'' hinting that he prefers girls with larger chests.[[labelnote:Examples]]A scene in Chapter 3 has him claim that Risette and Sarah are the only girls on the other side of the sauna worth going for, he points out Esmeray's chest as one of her attractive traits in Chapter 4, Judith's WardrobeMalfunction in the intermission was a complete HellYesMoment for him.[[/labelnote]]

* {{Delinquent|s}}: [[https://www.falcom.co.jp/kuro/character/aaron.html His page]] on ''Kuro I'''s official website describes him as the de-facto leader of aggressive youths.
* DisappearedDad: In the first ''Kuro'' game, he claims to have never known his father from the day he was born. [[spoiler:This is misleading, as the second game reveals that he knew his father Leroy up until the age of 6.]]

* DuelBoss: Ends up having a one-on-one battle with Van when they first meet up in ''Kuro I''. Both end up having fun fighting one another until Elaine interrupts them.

* HeroicBSOD: [[spoiler:After seeing all but one of his friends lifeless on the ground during Chapter 2 of the first ''Kuro'' game, he could only kneel down in shock before he screams at the sky.]]
* HeyYou: With the exception of [[LastNameBasis Judith]], he forgoes using the other party members' names in favor of (often insulting) nicknames. Specifically, he refers to Van as "Old Man,"[[note]]おっさん, "ossan"[[/note]] Agnes as "Little Girl,"[[note]]小娘, "ko-musume"[[/note]] Feri as "Shorty,"[[note]]チビ, "chibi"[[/note]] Risette as "[[{{Meido}} Maid]]," Quatre as "Kid,"[[note]]小僧, "kozō"[[/note]] and Bergard as "Gramps."[[note]]じいさん, "jiisan"[[/note]] By the end of ''Kuro I'', however, Bergard is the only member who isn't referred to by their first name during battle.

* {{Leitmotif}}: "Kirinji, Meeting" from ''Kuro I''.

* MissingMom: His mother, Yuefa, passed away some time before the events of ''Kuro I''.

* PoseOfSupplication: There are two instances from the first ''Kuro'' game where he ends up kneeling on the ground in shock: [[spoiler:once after seeing his friends' corpses and once after hearing of Gien's plans to make him the new Taikun.]]

** [[spoiler:If you choose to ally with Heiyue during Chapter 5 of ''Kuro I'', the battle against Cao and Yin (Rixia) will be fought by just him and Judith. If not, they'll just be forced into the starting party.]]

-->'''Appearances''': ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesKuroNoKiseki Kuro]]'' | ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesKuroNoKiseki Kuro II]]''

* BigDamnHeroes: Her proper introductions in both of the first two ''Kuro'' games have her bursting onto the scene to assist the heroes:
** Chapter 3 of ''Kuro I'' has her stylishly saving an immobilized Van from Ishtanty.

* BuxomBeautyStandard: The sauna scene in Chapter 3 of the first ''Kuro'' game has Aaron expressing his positive opinion of her well-endowed figure, and Chapter 2A of the second game has Feri ask about what she needs to do to look like Risette ''while staring at the latter's chest''.
* CleavageWindow: In contrast to her conservative default costume, her {{DLC}} outfit from the first ''Kuro'' game has an opening that shows off some of her cleavage.
* {{Cyborg}} : Chapter 4 of ''Kuro I'' reveals that [[spoiler:most of her body are artificial]].

* {{Meido}}: It's pointed out by other characters that her uniform looks like a maid's outfit, to the point where Aaron outright refers to her "Maid" in place of her name during Chapters 3 and 4 of ''Kuro I''. Her Amazon-exclusive pre-order {{DLC}} outfit from ''Kuro I'' is also specifically referred to as a "battle maid suit."

* OutOfFocus: Neither of the first two ''Kuro'' games give her ADayInTheLimelight or reveal much about her background.

* RidiculouslyHumanRobots: [[spoiler:She is using an artificial body to interact with the party, but her exact circumstances are still unknown as of ''Kuro I''.]]

-->'''Appearances''': ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesKuroNoKiseki Kuro]]'' | ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesKuroNoKiseki Kuro II]]''

* ADayInTheLimelight: Chapter 4 of ''Kuro I'' focuses on him.

* RobotDog: He is accompanied by a canine-like robot named "XEROS." [[spoiler:The Final Chapter of ''Kuro I'' allows Feri to give orders to XEROS while Quatre is in captivity, giving her access to "Procyon Fang" during this short period.]]
* {{Sarashi}}: [[spoiler:During the party's stay at Lonlai in the first ''Kuro'' game, he's seen wearing a sarashi on his chest while trying to bathe in the hot springs in private. Given that ''Kuro II'' reveals that Quatre is a {{Hermaphrodite}}, it's implied that he was trying to hide this from the others.]]

* TeenGenius: Only 15 during ''Kuro I'' (16 in the sequel), but is already shown to have a strong affinity with technology, being a researcher at the prestigious Basel Institute of Science.

-->'''Appearances''': ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesKuroNoKiseki Kuro]]'' | ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesKuroNoKiseki Kuro II]]''

* AmbiguouslyAbsentParent: Her father and maternal grandfather are never brought up. In sharp contrast to this, her mother Chloe and grandmother Dominique are occasionally mentioned and/or shown throughout the first two ''Kuro'' games, and they clearly had a big part in her life.

* ConnectedAllAlong: [[spoiler:She and Rixia were already well acquainted with each other for a good 8 years before the start of ''Kuro I''.]]

* FieryRedhead: Barring the blond tips, her hair is stated by ''Kuro II'' to be orange[[note]]Her page on the official website for ''Kuro I'' refers to it as pink[[/note]], and she's often the loudest of ''Kuro I'''s main characters. It serves as a fitting [[RedOniBlueOni contrast]] to [[ShyBlueHairedGirl Nina]].

* HonoraryTrueCompanion: Subverted; no matter what the characters say, it's clear that the story considers her just as much a member of the Arkride Solutions Office as any of the part-timers. This is best shown at the end of ''Kuro I'', [[spoiler:where she was able to join the others for the FinalBoss battle, while Elaine and Renne couldn't.]]

* LastNameBasis: Aaron doesn't refer to her by her first name until ''Kuro I'''s Final Chapter.

* {{Leitmotif}}: "I'm Grimcats!" is, as the title implies, the theme that plays in ''Kuro I'' during her boss battles as Grimcats.
* LetsYouAndHimFight: Despite both parties being good guys, Van and whoever he's with at the time[[note]]Feri and Agnes in Chapter 2, Aaron in Chapter 3[[/note]] have to fight Judith as Grimcats twice in ''Kuro I''.

* MeditatingUnderAWaterfall: When the party finds her at Longlai during the first ''Kuro'' game's Intermission, she's trying to meditate under one but horribly fails at it. It doesn't help that a monster decided to interrupt her, nearly eating her until she busts out her Grimcats form.

** She's seen in a bikini during ''Kuro I'' Chapter 3.

** Despite realizing that she misunderstood the situation after her second boss battle in ''Kuro I'',[[note]]She thought Van and Aaron did something to make Sarah cry, when they did nothing of the sort[[/note]] she refuses to apologize for attacking Van and Aaron, and even acts as if ''she's'' the one letting ''them'' off the hook.

* OutOfFocus: In spite of her status as a main character, she mostly stays out of the spotlight during ''Kuro I'' and ''II'', not even joining the party during the first game until more than halfway through.

* PaperThinDisguise: Downplayed with her Grimcats disguise. It normally does work as a disguise, but Van and Feri already put two-and-two together the moment they saw both Grimcats and Judith on the same day, and it didn't take long for the other party members to see either. Even as late as ''Kuro I'''s Intermission, she still tries to convince Van and the party that they're supposed to be two different people before her transformation disappears. She can however disguise herself with an untied brown hair with no one in public knowing who she is.
* PervertRevengeMode: She slaps Van when he accidentally saw her naked during ''Kuro I'''s Intermission. And unlike [[Characters/TrailsSeriesEreboniaThorsClassVIIOriginal Alisa]] and [[Characters/TrailsSeriesEreboniaThorsClassVIINew Juna]] before her, she's never shown apologizing for this.[[labelnote:In fact]]Van's the one who had to apologize to her for the whole incident after said slap.[[/labelnote]]

* PoorCommunicationKills: The boss battles against her in the first ''Kuro'' game are all triggered by her jumping to conclusions without hearing the party out.

** [[spoiler:If you choose to ally with Heiyue during Chapter 5 of ''Kuro I'', the battle against Cao and Yin (Rixia) will be fought by just her and Aaron. If not, they'll just be forced into the starting party.]]

* ARottenTimeToRevert: During the Intermission of ''Kuro I'', her Grimcats transformation ends right in front of the Solutions Office while she's trying to hide the fact that she's actually Judith.

* SkewedPriorities: [[spoiler:Arioch mentioning in chapter 5 of ''Kuro I'' that he's never seen a movie before, despite apparently being a fan of hers, really rubbed her the wrong way. Both Feri and Quatre point out how weird it is for ''that'' to get her all worked up.]]

* {{Stripperiffic}}: The [[https://www.falcom.co.jp/kuro/assets/character/individual/ss/grimcats_01.jpg amount of skin exposed]] in her Grimcats outfit shouldn't be all that practical. Van even reprimands her for openly wearing that kind of outfit in front of [[ChildrenAreInnocent Feri]] when the party first encounter her as Grimcats in ''Kuro I''.

* WardrobeMalfunction: After a boss interrupts her waterfall meditation in ''Kuro I'', she ends up giving Van an eyeful after her transformation as Grimcats runs out and her clothes start unraveling itself.
* WhatTheHellHero: [[spoiler:After the battle with Shizuna in ''Kuro I'''s Intermission, she calls out the party and Shizuna as to why they're even fighting the latter when they're supposed to be retrieving a possessed Yume. She then calls out Shizuna as to why she's even attacking them when they have no reason to even fight one another, even calling her out on her BloodKnight nature. Shizuna actually is shocked that Judith has a point.]]

-->'''Appearances''': ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsOfColdSteel Cold Steel III]]'' | ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesKuroNoKiseki Kuro]]''

* BadassBiker: As first revealed in ''Kuro I'''s mini soundtrack PV, [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8N9l2TUYdcc he rides a bike.]]

* TheBigGuy: The biggest and most muscular member of the first ''Kuro'''s main eight. And though Zin and Walter might be taller than him, they're not as buff and as muscular as him.

* HonoraryTrueCompanion: He's technically not supposed to be an employee of the Solutions Office during the first ''Kuro'' game, full-time or otherwise, yet is still treated like an equal comrade, [[spoiler:even joining in on the game's FinalBoss battle]].

* LastNameBasis: During his time as a Dominion, he was always referred to by his last name Barkhorn, to the point where his [[OnlyOneName first name wasn't revealed]] until ''Kuro I''.

* OldMaster: He's 69 years old as of the first ''Kuro'' game, and he taught Van martial arts back when the latter was in his teens. He's also the first old-looking playable character in the ''Trails Series''[[note]]Roselia and Zeit might be centuries old, but their supernatural origins prevent them from looking their age[[/note]]
* OutOfFocus: The most notable example from the first ''Kuro'' game, likely due to his StoryBreakerPower; despite being listed as a main character, his screen-time is surprisingly minimal, [[spoiler:not even ''appearing'' until more than halfway through. And even when he does show up and join the party, he never receives any real spotlight during said game. And that's not even getting into [[PutOnABus the sequel]].]]

* RetiredBadass: By technicality, he's no longer a Dominion since he did give Gaius his Stigma. [[spoiler:He still visits his former colleagues in the ending of the first ''Kuro'' game.]]

* StoryBreakerPower: As a former Dominion and Van's martial arts master, having him in the party too soon would have made all the enemies Van had to face a complete non-issue, hence why he doesn't join the party until the penultimate chapter of the first ''Kuro'' game.

-->'''Appearances''': ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesKuroNoKiseki Kuro]]'' | ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesKuroNoKiseki Kuro II]]''

* DemonicPossession: [[spoiler:Gets a chance to possess Yume due to the Genesis' influence during the first ''Kuro'''s Intermission. She's more than happy to be running around with an actual body even when being reprimanded by Van and his party for endangering the unaware Yume.]]

[[folder:Spoilers for ''Kuro I'' Chapter 2]]

-->'''Appearances''': ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesKuroNoKiseki Kuro]]'' | ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesKuroNoKiseki Kuro II]]''

Aaron's previous life who died 40 years prior to the events of ''Kuro I'' after being backstabbed by Heiyue.

* BattleInTheCenterOfTheMind: The last fight in Chapter 2 of the first ''Kuro'' game is a showdown between him and Aaron inside of the latter's head.

* DuelBoss: His battle with Aaron in ''Kuro I'' is fought one-on-one.

* OneWingedAngel: Taikun was human in life, but the third Genesis orbment triggered a transformation into the more demonic form that serves as a boss in ''Kuro I''.

[[folder:Spoilers for ''Kuro I'' Endgame]]

-->'''Appearances''': ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesKuroNoKiseki Kuro]]''

* PostClimaxConfrontation: He's the FinalBoss of the first ''Kuro'' game, but the main conflict had already ended with the defeat of [[ClimaxBoss Gerard]].

[[folder:Judith Ranster]]