Qifrey's Atelier - The World of Witches - Witches Auditorium - Enemies of Witchkind
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Kahln (Karoon)
Mr. Nolnoa
Mr. Nolnoa
An old witch who runs the magic supply shop known as "The Starry Sword" in Kalhn with his grandson Tartah.
- Cool Old Guy: He's a very nice guy and is very welcoming to all his customers. He even teaches Qifrey's apprentices how magic ink is made.
- He Knows Too Much: Downplayed/ Zig-Zagged. Downplayed in the sense that Qifrey wipes Mr. Nolnoa's memory, rather than killing him, in order to conceal the fact that the Brimhat witches managed to get an ultra-powerful ink into Coco's possession — Mr. Nolnoa had wanted to share the fact with the Magic Security Council, which would have ruined Qifrey's strongest lead yet. Zig-Zagged in the sense that Qifrey performed extremely forbidden magic on Mr. Nolnoa, which would see him tried and convicted by the Council of Magic Security using magic that "tampers with the body" if anyone ever found out what he'd done. Given how the Witches Auditorium views even the victims of such crimes as guilty, Mr. Nolnoa himself could get in trouble if it ever got out that he had his memory tampered with.
- Making a Spectacle of Yourself: Mr. Nolnoa either wears two pairs of glasses (with triangular lenses!) at the same time, or a single pair of glasses with two sets of lenses that can be raised/ lowered, much like a jeweler's magnifying glasses. Either way his spectacles make an impression.
Tartah
Tartah
Mr. Nolnoa's grandson. He's a young boy with an optical condition which from birth has rendered him colorblind, and because of that, he can't be a witch.
- Color Blind Confusion: Tartah has a condition where he can't see colors called Silverwash. This ends up biting him when an accident scatters the bottles of ink dye ingredients and leaves them disorganized.
- The Dark Arts: Medical magic is forbidden in witch society, but Tartah has been secretly learning the medicinal applications of various herbs from the healers in Kahln. He hasn't put any of his knowledge into practice, but even studying medicine could get him into big trouble with the Assembly.
- Dream-Crushing Handicap: Tartah, a young worker in the magic supply shop, has an eye disease that makes it hard for him to see colors. Because of the emphasis on witch education in visuals, he's been unable to become a fully-fledged witch.
- Fictional Disability: He has a fictional condition called 'silverwash' that causes him to only see the world in shades of silver. It is essentially a type of colorblindness.
- Hiding the Handicap: The readers and Coco aren't immediately aware of his colorblindness, as it is something he deliberately keeps under wraps. He compensates for his inability to distinguish color by memorizing the exact locations of where everything is organized in the store as well as each of their individual characteristics other than color.
- Muggle Born of Mages: In a sense. Literally speaking, Tartah could cast magic if he were properly taught, but because he's unable to distinguish colors, and Witch society largely doesn't accommodate for his disability, he's been left out of the opportunity for a proper magic education and barely knows anything about casting. The best he's been able to do so far is be an assistant in his grandfather's magic supply store.
- Puppy Love: He has a growing crush on Coco who is as young as him. However, Coco is oblivious to this, as she's more focused on learning magic in order to help others, as well as her mother.
Coustas
Coustas
Click here to see Coustas's transformation
An orphan who was taken in by a minstrel named Dagda, Coustas lived his life on the road until an accident injured his legs. Now he's stuck in Kahln while he heals. Coustas and Tartah have taken to studying herbal medicine at the Kahln Healers' Clinic as a way to pass the time.
- Animal Motifs: Birds-of-Prey. When Coco and Tartah gifted Coustas with a magical cape, it was compared like being as free as a bird. Throughout Coustas' backstory, he was always surrounded by birds. This takes a much darker turn after he became a Brimmedhat if Chapter 51's cover page is any overt indication. With Coustas attacking via swooping down like a Bird-of-Prey, turning his tree feet into the talons of an eagle, his cape becoming more like the silhouette of a bird's wing and his brimmedhat being made out of bird feathers.
- Armed Legs: Ininia made tree roots grow from his legs. Besides this allowing him to walk again, Coustas can make the roots grow at will to attack people.
- Body Horror: His return in Chapter 51 showed us Ininia fixed his legs by making tree roots grow out of them. Suffice to say, it ain't pretty.
- Break the Cutie: Coustas had already had a difficult life before the incident in the Stairway River, being an orphan who was only saved from a life of harsh poverty due to Dagda's kindness, but after his accident things only got worse. While going through the pain of recuperation, he witnessed his adoptive father take increasingly dangerous jobs in order to help support his recovery. Coustas had previously helped Dagda make money by performing alongside him, and with the knowledge that he could no longer earn his keep combined with seeing Dagda risk his life to pay for his care, the poor boy sunk deeper into self-loathing and anger, becoming bitter and volatile. This was all alongside the difficulty of adjusting as a newly disabled person in a world not built for accessibility, even facing things such as thieves attacking him in order to steal his sealchair. At the end of Volume 8, Tartah and Coco are able to create an enchanted set of crutches with a cape that allows Coustas flight, giving him a great deal of mobility, and it seems like things are about to turn around for him and Dagda— when they're suddenly ambushed by a group of thieves, leaving Dagda on the brink of death. It's hard to blame him for finally snapping and joining the Brimhats.
- Bullying the Disabled: Coustas and Tartah met when a gang of magic thieves tried to steal Coustas' walking chair and Tartah defended him.
- Cape Wings: Coco and Tartah build Coustas a set of artificial wings with levitation/weightlessness magic imbued in an enchanted cape. The wings are attached to a set of walking crutches that can be triggered to release bursts of wind, allowing Coustas to control the direction of his flight and land safely.
- Delicate and Sickly: While trying to retrieve his and Dagda's instruments from the riverbank, Coustas' legs were trapped by a falling boulder and he nearly drowned. His leg injuries were severe enough that he's had to stay at the Kahln Healers' Clinic for an extended period of time, unable to walk except with the aid of a magical chair. Subverted later on when he gains root legs that sprout out from his legs which allow him to walk.
- Disabled Snarker: All the difficulties Coustas has faced since his accident combined with his self-loathing for himself being unable to make money anymore has given him a newfound sense of bitter cynicism:Coco: What I'm saying is... there's hope for everyone! So, please...Coustas glares at her.Coustas: (suddenly smiling) Yeah! Maybe you're right! If I'd had a house and a school... and no worries about food or money... and the ability to cast spells, maybe I'd be just like you!
- Evil Former Friend: To both Tartah and Coco after he pledges allegiance to Lord Restis' tutelage.
- Face–Heel Turn: He returns in Chapter 51 as a Brimhat and blackmails Coco and Tartah into helping them at the threat of being branded with a magic circle, which would immediately result in their mind being wiped.
- Forgotten First Meeting: Coustas is the boy Coco saved from drowning in the Stairway River after a boulder fell and trapped him on the banks — he recalls their first meeting, but she doesn't.
- Ham and Deadpan Duo: Coustas is far louder and more bombastic than Ininia, by a lot. Meanwhile, it's hard to tell whether Ininia feels anything at all.
- Happily Adopted: He and Dagda love each other as true father and son, regardless of not being blood related. After he is placed in a wheelchair, he begs Dagda to not go on dangerous missions to pay for his treatment, and says he just wants them to stay together. When Dagda is killed by bandits, the Brimhats recruit Coustas, and promise they can perfectly resurrect Dagda with the use of forbidden magic. He has since been resurrecting Dagda each time he dies, desperately finding a way to keep his adoptive father with him.
- Inspirationally Disadvantaged: Downplayed, but watching Coustas struggle to get around inspires Tartah and Coco to innovate "magic that can change the world" for him. This lead to them creating "wings" for him to fly on.
- Male Might, Female Finesse: Ininia is an incredibly elegant witch that flies on her staff like a Victorian lady, 'heals' people and rarely go into direct combat. Compared to her, Coustas just attacks with his augmented tree feet without bothering with magic and flies like a wild bird-of-prey with his cape.
- Mood-Swinger: In Chapter 43, it's clear that Coustas isn't doing well mentally and trying to keep positive, leading him to swing between forced cheeriness and bitter resentment and self-loathing.
- Necromantic: In the more familial sense. His adoptive father Dagda is fatally wounded by bandits. The Brimhat Ininia draws a magic circle on Dagda's chest to resurrect him. However, the time reversal magic causes Dagda to die repeatedly, so Coustas joins the Brimhats in order to perfectly resurrect Dagda.
- Red Oni, Blue Oni: The emotionally unstable Red to Ininia's emotionless Blue.
- Shadow Archetype: To Coco. Both of them have their parent stuck in a state between life and death because of forbidden magic. Coco has her teacher Qifrey to guide her in the way of the Pointed Hats, while Coustas can only ask the Brimmed Hats to save his father figure. Coco can't judge Coustas for joining the Brimmed Hats because if she were to become too desperate and didn't have the people of Qifrey's atelier to support her, she likely would use forbidden magic to save her petrified mother.
- Stepford Smiler: When Coustas returns in Volume 8 he's trying to keep positive in the face of all the challenges he's had to deal with since his accident, but it becomes clear very fast how much he's forcing it. It results in a heartwarming moment near the end of the volume when he uses the wingcloak and genuinely smiles for the first time.Dagda: I'd been worried about him. His smiles... for a while now, they've felt a bit forced. I hadn't seen pure joy on his face for a long time.
- Super Wheelchair: Although his walking chair is a simple, hospital-issued model that doesn't do well on stairs or rough terrain, it's still a highly magical artifact capable of giving an injured person near complete freedom of movement. Lucy of the Council for Magical Security even reflects on how valuable items like the wheelchair are to non-magical folks when she comes to collect it:Lucy: It's not often this kind of magical tool is returned. Magic chairs are expensive, so people who need them can't afford to permanently give them up. If they've been cured and no longer need them, the chairs are usually sold on the black market. That's why we use tracking magic to locate them.
- Would Hit a Girl: He lashes out at Coco with his new magical legs as a Brimhat.
Dagda
Dagda
Traveling musician and adoptive father of Coustas, Dagda values little more than his son's safety and happiness. When Coustas is injured and left unable to travel after the riverbank collapse, Dagda takes on dangerous mercenary work to pay for the boy's treatment.
- The Dark Arts: He practices forbidden magic due to Ininia healing his mortal wounds/reviving him with a time reversal glyph. Dagda is unaware of the highly illicit nature of healing magic, and by the time Coco and Tartah meet with him at the Silver Night Festival, Dagda's memory is fragmented due to the number of times he's relived his death and revival.
- Death Amnesia: Each time he dies and is brought back by Coustas, he can't remember anything about his death. Only his name, and that he used to play music.
- Like a Son to Me: He genuinely loves Coustas and does what he can to keep the boy safe. Where he even sacrifices himself to bandits chasing Coustas, telling his adoptive son to flee to safety.
- Living on Borrowed Time: He's fatally injured by bandits, but Ininia draws a time reversal glyph on him to save him. However, the time reversal magic is imperfect since the fact that Dagda died won't change and the magic circle disappears after 24 hours, forcing Coustas to repeatedly redraw the circle to keep Dagda alive.
- Mark of the Beast: He unwittingly bears a magic tattoo on his chest, which is considered The Dark Arts and forbidden by witch customs.
- Match Cut:
- Ininia's use of time magic to "rewind" Dagda's injuries in the forest is paired with illustrations of a broken ink bottle in Quifrey's atelier enchanted with time magic to "rewind" the spilled ink and shattered glass back to an unbroken state, plus Quifrey's explanation to Coco of how the time-reversal magic works.
- When the time reversal glyph that keeps him in a Time Loop Trap of the day of his death runs out of power, he again suffers the mortal wounds he received in the forest as Coco and Tartah look on in horror. This scene is again paired with illustrations of the broken ink bottle in Qifrey's atelier, but with added context: Qifrey explains to Coco that time-reversal gylphs only revert and object to its prior state for a day at most before the magic runs out and the object "catches up" with the moment it broke.
- Orphan's Ordeal: He doesn't mention having any parents or family members to look after him in his childhood. So that mixed with living in the mud slums led to Dagda living an unfortunate life.
- Papa Wolf: The first time Coco meets him, he's willing go down into the rushing river to save Coustas when it seemed like the witches couldn't actually do anything. He even fights off bandits to save Coustas, and dies in the aftermath. Even when his memories are erased due to him dying each day, he instinctively protects Coco and Tartah from one of the knights.
- Parental Substitute: He's Coustas' adopted father.
- Power Tattoo: He survives a fatal assault by bandits thanks to Ininia branding him with a time-reversal glyph. But time-reversal magic fades after a day or so, causing Dagda to relive the moment of his death over and over as Coustas rushes to re-apply the magic circle.
- Reformed Criminal: He used to be a street rat who needed to steal to survive. One day, he was captured while trying to rob a traveling music troupe. Instead of killing him or turning him in, the musicians taught him how to play the circular koto in order for him to make a living in a more honorable way.
- Street Urchin: He confesses to Coco and Tartar that he grew up as a street rat who stole and did questionable deeds to stay alive.
- Time Loop Trap: Played for Drama — The "healing" magic Ininia used on him was a time reversal glyph. That type of magic is limited in scope, only reverting an object (or a person) to its past state for a day at most. When the Power Tattoo on Dagda fades during a fight with Garuga in Chapter 55 he collapses, reliving the mortal wounds he suffered during the bandit attack on the way to the Silver Night Festival. Coustas rushes to his side to reapply the glyph, recognizing that he's trapped his beloved mentor in a cycle of repeating the day of his death but unwilling to break the cycle.
- Wandering Minstrel: He's a traveling minstrel who earns his living by playing the circular koto.
Witch Mentors
Kukrow
Kukrow
"Oh my, how promising... a world of difference from my little dropout here. No matter how many times he takes it, he can't seem to pass properly."
Head of his own Atelier and Euini's mentor, Kukrow is a haughty, disdainful witch. Kukrow's cruelty towards Euini is one of the major drivers of Euini's lack of confidence.
Though he acts callous towards Euini, Kukrow is shown to conduct himself in a fawning, sycophantic manner when confronted with those in authority over him, specifically Estheath of the Magical Security Council.
- Laser-Guided Karma: What happens when a Sadist Teacher shows little to no concern for his student? His superiors force him to take responsibility by threatening to blacklist and grant him a reputation as an irresponbile witch.
- Sadist Teacher: Kukrow has no issues with openly belittling and insulting his only student in front of other witches. He does this as Euini stands by, unable to defend himself. Kukrow even has Euini browbeaten to the point that Euini will apologize after being insulted, or after another witch calls Kukrow out on his behavior.Kukrow: I would trade my right hand for her, the daughter of the distinguished Arklaum house.Qifrey: Kukrow, pupils are not mere items... Nor are they things to be traded.Kukrow: That's just the thing. At least objects can be fixed...Qifrey: How can you say such things...?Euini: Ah, um, it's fine. It's my fault for being so useless. It's all true. I'm always causing problems for Professor Kukrow because I'm such a poor student. Um... I mean since I'm so useless the Professor was criticized again, and I really am sorry, if only I could become a proper witch...
Hieheart
"As expected of my senior! You're so cool! Seriously, pleeeease let me call you my master!!"
An acquaintance of Olruggio's from their time as apprentices, Hieheart has grown up and taken on a pupil of his own. Hieheart looks up to Olruggio for his craftsmanship and ability to solve problems, calling Olruggio his "Senior" and often joking that he'd like Olruggio to take him on as a student.
- Ambiguously Brown: He has brown skin but not much is known about his lineage.
- Enthusiastic Newbie Teacher: Jujy is Hieheart's first apprentice. He's clearly very excited to be her tutor, even when she overshadows him in maturity.
- FanBoy: He genuinely admires Olruggio for his crafts and cool personality.
Atuarto (Spoilers)
The boyfriend of the member of the Council of Magic Security, Garuga. After Garuga's memory is erased by Ininia, Atuarto makes him his apprentice so he can teach him magic again while staying together with him.
- Sensitive Guy and Manly Man: Atuarto comes across as more delicate-looking when compared to his boyfriend/apprentice Garuga who is very much a Manly Gay.
- Teacher/Student Romance: He decides to become Garuga's magic teacher so they can stay together despite Garuga losing his memories. Although Garuga can't remember Atuarto being his lover, Atuarto is determined to restart their romance and give Garuga his memory back if possible.
- Undying Loyalty: He's completely devoted to Garuga, being determined to stay with him even though Garuga can't even remember him after Ininia erases his memory.
Apprentices
Euini
Euini
"The only thing holding me back is my own reflection."
A shy and insecure apprentice who has failed the second test many times and is taking it yet again with Agott and Richeh.
- Distressed Dude: The Brimhat in the second test turns him into a scaled wolf by tattooing a glyph into his skin against his will. After he becomes an animal, Coco, Agott and Tetia try to rescue him and turn him back, which is exactly what the Brimhats wanted, in an attempt to force Coco to use forbidden magic.
- Foil: To Richeh. While she is a girl who is trying to find a way to do everything in her own way, hates going by the book, and refuses to listen to others, he only has confidence in doing things exactly as he was instructed, and does very little for himself. While he is called an embarrassment by his teacher, Richeh is recognized as one of the most promising apprentices.
- Forced Transformation: Euini gets forcibly transformed into a Scaled Wolf by a Brimhat. Worse, because it was graphed onto his skin, he might never be able to change back willingly.
- Hiding Behind Your Bangs: His eyes are normally covered by his long bangs, as a symbol of his shy and meek behavior.
- His Own Worst Enemy: Euini tends to think lowly of himself, causing his hands to tremble nervously and his ability to think of solutions to freeze. He eventually acknowledges that no one else around him thinks the same.
- Mark of the Beast: Euini was captured by Sasaran and forcibly tattooed with a magic glyph that turns him into a scaled wolf. The glyph can't be removed with magic, only nullified to allow Euini to turn back into a human.
- Put on a Bus: At the end of the Second Exam Arc, the main characters realize that he is in trouble if the Great Hall realizes that he has forbidden magic in him, even if it can be controlled with the amulet Coco gave him. Richeh creates a portal gate and Alaira takes him under her wing and the two set off to hide him away from the Great Hall and make her his new teacher.
- Shrinking Violet: He has difficulty standing up for himself, and worse still gets so nervous when he knows others are looking at him that he shakes and can't draw spells properly. He eventually realizes that he can use the Mirror Mantle to hide himself in the shadows, and becomes more confident realizing he's devised a way to draw his spells in public without anyone actually looking at him.
- Voluntary Shapeshifting: Downplayed. Euini still has a glyph on the back of his neck that turns him into a scaled wolf, but Coco manages to steal an amulet that allows him to be human as long as he is using the amulet that he puts on and takes off.
- Wardrobe Flaw of Characterization: His hair is so poorly done it covers his eyes, but it hammers down his Shrinking Violet characterization and how afraid he is to talk to others.
Riliphin
Riliphin (Ririfin)
"I'm a pathetic older brother."
Richeh's older brother. Richeh was abused by his teacher until he became depressed and almost catatonic, before fleeing his previous atelier and being taken under the tutelage of Sage Beldarut.
- Curtains Match the Window: Like his sister, he has sky blue hair and sky blue eyes.
- Long-Haired Pretty Boy: He had shoulder length hair in flashbacks, but he currently has a long braid and is quite pretty looking.
- My Greatest Failure: He is deeply ashamed of not helping Richeh when his abusive teacher started targeting her as well. All he could do is tell her to flee, which she did and he didn't until much later. When Richeh comes to the Assembly, he goes to great lengths to hide himself, unable to bring himself to face her.
Jujy
"If choosing between the two is too difficult, then maybe it's not about choosing one or the other."
Hieheart's pupil in the magical arts, Jujy is a sweet girl and an attentive student. When she's introduced in Chapter 39, she is accompanying Hieheart on a magical job request for the nobility of Claude Territory.
- Girlish Pigtails: Jujy's hair is styled in afro puff bubble-tails on either side of her witch's cap. Although she acts mature around her mentor, her hairstyle reminds viewers that she's an apprentice.
- Hypercompetent Sidekick: Downplayed. She's a tad more mature then her teacher but she's still a witch in training.
Kingdom of Ezrest
Deanreldea Ezrest
The current king of Ezrest, ruler of the Six Monarchs and a man who has a keen interest on being able to learn magic.
- Ambition Is Evil: He discusses with Beldarut the possibility of allowing magic to be known to all. Beldarut refuses to unbalance the scales of trust and tells Deanreldea he would not allow that to happen. Once he leaves, he tells Lagler that Deanreldea, a man who would have magic and his skills in medicine, would become a Demon King.
- The Charmer: He's able to appease and most people to do what he wants when he talks with them.
- The Gadfly: Seems to enjoy messing with Beldarut a bit.
- Happily Married: When he sees his wife Zayamaia come to join him during the Silver Night Festival, he gets up in pure excitement and lavishes her with affection.
- In the Blood: He and Eoleo both show a deep interest in being able to learn magic, something Eoleo seems to pick up from his father.
- Light Is Not Good: His blonde hair, bright eyes and cheery attitude aside, he has dark ambitions that Beldarut wary of his intentions on wanting to make magic accessible to normal humans like him.
- The Medic: He's called the King of Life, and seems to have a vast array of medical knowledge under his belt. He even offers his services to Beldarut and treats the ulcers on his back from laying down in one position for too long.
Eoleo
The prince of Ezrest, who Tetia meets during the festival. He shows a great interest and desire to learn magic and become a witch.
- Animal Companion: He has a dark brushbug that perches on his shoulder and follows him around.
- Creepy Child: Played with. He acts like any other normal kid, but when Tetia says they could be friends, he recalls the days when witches and royalty served worked side by side. While he's seemingly pleased at this idea, Tetia is not. Tetia later feels weird that Eoleo is one of the few people she feels she wouldn't be able to get along with.
- Inconsistent Spelling: Some translations write his name as "Eouleou".
- In the Blood: He seems to get his interest in magic from his father, with both of them desiring to be able to use magic themselves. He also picked up his father's charming personality, which initially gets Tetia to trust him quickly.
