History Characters / TrailsSeriesGrandmasterAndAnguis

[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ouroboros_1.png]]
'''Ouroboros''', also known as '''The Society''', is a mysterious organization responsible for several incidents occurring throughout the whole series. Their final objective is shrouded in mystery, but they are known to search for the '''Sept-Terrion''' and intent to use their power to launch the '''Orpheus Final Plan'''. Despite being discreet from the public eye, they possess a lot of influence and connections to many powerful individuals and politcal powers, with seemingly unlimited resources coming from their '''Thirteen Factories'''. As for their military, they mainly use the services of Jaeger Corps and numerous Archaisms of their own creation.

The organization is directed by a council of seven powerful and extraordinary individuals named '''Anguis''', who all swore allegiance to its leader, a woman only known as '''Grandmaster'''. Each of the Anguis are selected for their power and/or vast knowledge of the Zemurian history, regardless of their morality. Finally, whenever Ouroboros enacts a Plan, an Anguis will be deployed along with '''Enforcers''', who serve as the main commanding force, to ensure its success.

[[Characters/KisekiSeries Main character page.]]
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[[foldercontrol]]

! Tropes applying to the organization itself
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[[folder:Grandmaster]]
-->'''Voiced by:''' Miwa Yasuda (Japanese, drama CD), Yuki Nagaku (Japanese, ''Sky the 3rd Evolution''), Creator/KanaeIto (Japanese, ''Cold Steel IV'')
-->'''Appearances''': ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsInTheSky The 3rd]]'' | ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsOfColdSteel Cold Steel IV]]'' | ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsOfOrigins Origins]]''

The overall leader of the Ouroboros Society, she aims to complete the Orpheus Final Plan by any means necessary.
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* AllAccordingToPlan: Despite not physically obtaining the Earth, Fire, and Mirage Sept-Terrion, she declares that the Phantasmal Blaze Plan is a success and the losses that the society had were within expectations.
* EarlyBirdCameo: First shows up in ''The 3rd'' as a voice only.
* TheFaceless: Her face isn't revealed in ''Cold Steel IV'' though observant players can somehow make out the rest of her face. For the most part, only her mouth is shown in the reveal.
* SheIsTheKing: The overall leader of the society.
* TheUnseen: Until ''Cold Steel IV'', the Grandmaster has not made any appearance whatsoever. She's finally revealed for the first time at the end of the GoldenEnding of ''Cold Steel IV'', although her face isn't fully shown (though an observant player can somewhat see the color of her eyes being red).
* WhamEpisode: The declaration that the Phantasmal Blaze Plan is finished and the third phase of the plan, the "Eternal Regression Plan" is about to commence despite not obtaining the Earth, Fire,[[note]]Both have disappeared from Zemuria for good[[/note]] and Mirage[[note]]Killed itself to prevent being abused by people a long time ago[[/note]] Sept-Terrion is one to fans as everyone thought that the Orpheus Final Plan requires that Ouroboros and the Society obtain all seven of the Sept-Terrion.
** Also states that the world is going to end in 3 years, and that they only managed to delay its destruction by averting the Great Twilight.
* YouGottaHaveBlueHair: When she finally makes an appearance, she has a long flowing hair.
[[/folder]]

!! The Seven Anguis

[[folder:First Anguis]]

[[/folder]]

[[folder:Second Anguis - The Azure Abyss]]

!! Vita "Misty" Clothilde
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/vita_clotilde_sen_ii.png]]
[[quoteright:350:Vita as she appears in ''Cold Steel III'' [[note]] https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/vita_clotilde_sen_iii.png [[/note]]]]
-->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/YukariTamura (Japanese), Creator/EricaLindbeck (English)
-->'''Appearances''': ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsInTheSky The 3rd]]'' | ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsOfColdSteel Cold Steel]]'' | ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsOfColdSteel Cold Steel II]]'' | ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsOfColdSteel Cold Steel III]]'' | ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsOfColdSteel Cold Steel IV]]''

A stunning woman who is the top star of the Heimdallr Opera House and known as the Azure Diva. She also has another job at Radio Trista where she goes by the alias "Misty" and serves as the hostess of show Abend Time. She is later revealed to be the Second Anguis of Ouroboros whose title is Azure Abyss.
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* AbsoluteCleavage: Her default dress in ''Cold Steel I'' and ''II'' shows off plenty. Averted with her outfit in ''Cold Steel III''.
* AffablyEvil: Played with. Perhaps the worst acts that she's done so far is kidnapping Alfin and Elise early on in ''Cold Steel II'', and her role in triggering the Erebonian Civil War, considering the other villains in the game have done even more terrible things that even she sometimes disapproves of. Her earlier BitchInSheepsClothing role as well as her tendency to taunt the protagnosists early on in ''II'' make it ambiguous whether her politeness throughout the games is genuine or an act, but by the end she proves to be a GracefulLoser with some very clear scruples of her own, making her a genuine example.
* AnIcePerson: One of her Crafts, Eternal Winter. Her primary element of her orbment is also water.
* BeautyMark: Has one beneath her left eye.
* BigBad: Of ''Cold Steel II'' overall.
* BitchInSheepsClothing: Initially acts friendly towards Rean and the members of Class VII when she first meets them before her true allegiance is revealed. Downplayed in that she's not exactly all that bad compared to the other villains in ''Cold Steel II'' and by ''III'', she drops the "bitch" part.
* BrokenPedestal: For Machias and Eliot after finding out that she's part of Ouroboros. For Emma as well for breaking an unknown taboo of their clan.
* TheCastShowoff: In-universe, she shows off her singing voice by performing an impromptu rendition of [[CallBack Whereabouts of the Stars]] during a broadcast. Then she gets called out for it.
* ClarkKenting: Her disguise as Misty consists of glasses, a hat, and simpler and more conservative casual clothing. No one, could tell who she was, not even people who were fans of both her personas such as Machias and Elliot.
* CombatHandFan: Uses one in ''Cold Steel III'' after she loses her staff in ''Cold Steel II'' thanks to Rufus.
* ContraltoOfDanger: A low regal voice befitting her abilities, mysterious nature as a witch, and former occupation as an operra singer.
* CoolBigSis: She was this towards Emma when they were younger. Even now, though they're on opposing sides, it's clear that Vita still cares for the former in her own way and is willing to give her advice too.
* DeathGlare: Gives a FRIGHTENING one to Duke Cayenne after [[SpeakIllOfTheDead insults the recently killed Crow]] while holding Prince Cedric at blade point, complete with glowing BattleAura and [[PowerEchoes booming voice]].
* DragonWithAnAgenda: In ''Cold Steel II''. Although she's ostensibly subservient to Duke Cayenne for a majority of the game, she's not particularly interested in his goals and is merely pursuing her own aims irrespective of the Noble Alliance's well-being.
* EarlyBirdCameo: In an interview with [[WordOfGod Kondo]], she was the woman flirting with Kevin at the beginning of ''The Third.''
* EasyAmnesia: She has a form of memory-manipulating ability. If you speak to Trista Radio's manager before the final battle, he'll tell you that he honestly doesn't remember ever hiring 'Misty'. She also performs it on the Jaegers who were hired by Duke Albarea in the prologue, making them forget about what they saw in addition to having them leave Ymir.
* EnemyMine: In ''Cold Steel II'', She and Crow team up with Class VII to defeat the out-of-control Vermillion Apocalypse.
** [[spoiler:And then in ''Cold Steel III'' she lends her assistance to the heroes when they go up against Osborne and the other members of Ouroboros. What prevents it from being a full [[HeelFaceTurn Heel-Face Turn]] is that she's still loyal to the society - she just disapproves of their current operation.]]
** [[spoiler:Carries on in ''Cold Steel IV'' as well. She is even invited to the Imperial Wedding.]]
* EvenEvilHasStandards: When the Anguis discuss Weissman's death, she, Arianrhod, and the 1st Anguis consider him an AssholeVictim. And then there's Ymir where she thinks it was too much for Duke Albarea to raze Ymir just to grab Princess Alfin.
** [[spoiler:Happens in ''Cold Steel III'' as well. The whole reason she teams up with the heroes in it's climax is that she finds the Great Twilight plan to be way too dangerous to enact. As the ending shows, she was absolutely right.]]
* {{Familiar}}: Grianos, a blue-feathered bird capable of transforming into EldritchAbomination to attack enemies. It later died at Rufus' hand during the finale of ''Cold Steel II''.
* FanNickname: In-universe. Her fans call her the Azure Diva.
* GenkiGirl: When she's hosting Abend Time as Misty.
* GrandStaircaseEntrance: Her first appearance during Rean's field study in Heimdallr is this. There are only members of Class VII (and front desk) down there and clearly, two of them are awed by her appearance.
* GreaterScopeVillain: For the Erebonia arc as a whole, but particularly the first game and much of the second, when she's pulling the strings behind the scenes to enact the Phantasmal Blaze Plan, but does not get directly involved until her proxy, Crow, is in danger. It's hinted she may also have been heading up operations in Crossbell around the same time, making her this to Zero and Ao as well.
* HotWitch: Very beautiful and is a witch just like Emma.
* InstantFanclub: She's a famous opera singer. Well, famous in Erebonia at least and the idol of the capital. Machias and Eliot are ''huge'' fans. Goes double for her when she's also Misty.
* LimitBreak: Her S-Craft is "Aria of the Abyss."
* MagicStaff: She fights with one in ''Cold Steel II'' but later loses it thanks to Rufus.
* MasterOfNone: Not as extreme as Emma, Eliot and Alfin but she has rank for all attack type with relatively lower individual rank than most fighters. The difference is that unlike 3 other MagicStaff users, she manages to score B on "thrust" and "pierce" type.
* MsFanservice: She's very beautiful, something several characters (both male and female) comment on, and her default dress in the first two games is a [[SexyBacklessOutfit Sexy Backless Outfit]] that shows plenty of her ample cleavage and long, shapely legs.
* NotInThisForYourRevolution: Much like the other members of Ouroboros joined with the Noble Alliance, Vita has no interest in their goals and says as much towards Duke Cayenne during the finale of ''Cold Steel II''.
* NoodleIncident: Was apparently banished from the Hexen Clan after breaking an unknown taboo seven years ago. What the taboo was and her motives for doing so and her reasons for joining Ouroboros remain a mystery.
* OperaGloves: Wears these in her outfit in the third game onward. Fitting considering her former occupation.
* OptionalPartyMember: You can make her playable in ''Cold Steel II'' using DLC item in Japan. For the rest, all players just need to do is to buy a Phantasmal Mirror for 200,000 mira.
* OutGambitted: By Osborne at the end of ''Cold Steel II''.
* PetTheDog: Seems to have genuinely cared for Crow and is clearly upset over his death. She even apologizes to Class VII and asks them to take care of him. Partnering them up at the Reverie Corridor and she refers to him as an ideal knight in their victory quote.
* PimpedOutDress: When not disguising herself as Misty, her main outfit is a flowing blue dress befitting her status as an opera singer. She eventually trades it in for a somewhat more practical yet still just as fancy outfit in ''Cold Steel III''.
* PromotedToPlayable: While ''Cold Steel II'' allows players to use her via Phantasmal Mirrors, she isn't physically present herself. [[spoiler:''Cold Steel IV'' finally allows her to be playable once again alongside a lot of characters.]]
* PurelyAestheticGlasses: Justified because it's part of her double identity as Misty. Only Rean sees through it and this is because of his powers being able to detect through her illusion.
* PurpleIsPowerful: Her eyes are purple denoting her status as a powerful witch.
* PurposelyOverpowered: [[spoiler:While she's decently strong on her own, her Brave Order in ''Cold Steel IV'', "Secret Art - Azure Peacock", allows all characters a flat 100% increase in damage for eight turns, effectively doubling their attack power. She's only available for her dungeon's boss and the TrueFinalBoss fight. It's balanced by the fact that it costs 5 Brave Points to cast but at that point, players already have ways to regain BP pretty quickly.]]
* RapunzelHair: Her hair goes to her thigh.
* RedBaron: Nicknamed as the "Azure Diva" among her fans. Her her title as an Anguis on the other hand is "Azure Abyss".
* SecretIdentity: In addition to being an opera singer she took on the Misty persona and a job at Radio Trista for fun. Rean is the first person to find out about it and rewards him with a Misty sticker when she drops it off at his mailbox.
* SexyBacklessOutfit: Her default blue outfit
* ShowSomeLeg: Her usual dress.
* SignatureScent: Lavender
* TokenGoodTeammate: [[spoiler:In ''Cold Steel III'', all the other Anguis were willing to side with the gnomes in order to reclaim the Phantasmal Blaze Plan. Vita disapproves and goes independent.]]
* TranquilFury: When Cayenne is holding Prince Cedric hostage and calling a dying Crow a worthless wretch from a destroyed country, Vita stands, closes her eyes, and calmly orders him to unhand the prince before she makes him do it by force which is punctuated by her opening her eyes in her extremely creepy, shrunken-iris spell-casting expression.
* VillainousFriendship: Despite Crow not being an Ouroboros member, her friendship with him is genuine, as shown by their Combat Link and when she mourns his death.
* TheUnfought: In the first game. She's also this in the third game, [[spoiler:but that's because she and Class VII technically aren't enemies since Vita is currently opposing the current operations of Ouroboros.]]


[[/folder]]

[[folder:Third Anguis]]

!! Georg Weissmann, "The Faceless"/Professor Alba
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/georg_weissmann_s_craft_sc_evo.png]]
-->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/HideyukiTanaka (Japanese), Creator/KeithSilverstein (English)
-->'''Appearances''': ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsInTheSky FC]]'' | ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsInTheSky SC]]'' | ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsInTheSky The 3rd]]''

An archaeologist whom Estelle and Joshua meet in the Prologue of FC and appears several times since. He is researching relics of ancient Zemuria. At least, that's what he claims. He is in fact a high-ranking member of the secret society Ouroboros.
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* AbsentMindedProfessor: Has shades of this as Professor Alba.
* AdaptedOut: Does not appear in the OVA.
* AdventurerArchaeologist: Double Subverted. In ''FC'', he appears to be a weak archaeologist who explores the Tetracyclic towers regardless of the risks, only to be revealed as the BigBad. Then ''SC'' reveals that despite his false name and persona, he actually is a certified archaeologist.
* AssholeVictim: [[spoiler:As cruel as his method of execution was, it's hard to feel the slightest bit of pity for him.]]
* BarrierChangeBoss: The first half of fight with him[[spoiler: at his [[OneWingedAngel second transformed form]] after merging with Aureole]], thanks to the mooks around him. The vulnerability exist even after the mooks were defeated and he can summon those indefinitely.
* BigBad: Of FC and SC
* CardCarryingVillain: [[spoiler:Zigzagged. He's a proud {{Sadist}}, yet he still views himself as the savior of humanity.]]
* TheChessmaster: Combined with ManipulativeBastard. [[spoiler:He was playing Cassius, Joshua, and the Bracer Guild since the opening cutscene of the first game by making Joshua a ManchurianAgent. Years later, he brainwashes Richard into starting a coup that allows Ouroboros to further undo the seals on the Aureole.]]
* CruelAndUnusualDeath: [[spoiler:Very ''very'' cruel. He is shot with a Salt Bolt, a 'cursed' weapon that slowly transforms the victim into salt from the inside out. Weissmann is fully aware what is happening to him as his body succumbs to the effect, cursing his killer with his last breath. After his whole body was turned into salt, Campanella ''shattered'' his salt body to pieces.]]
* CutscenePowerToTheMax: His True Evil Eye outright traps the party in cutscenes. In battle, it simply deals AOE damage while inflicting confusion and AT Delay.
* DarkMessiah: This is essentially how he sees himself. [[spoiler:Not for nothing is the final battle BGM of SC called The Merciless Savior. Though this might be a subversion because he seems to be the only one who believes he's doing any "saving." The Enforcers working under him all have their own agendas and consider their teamwork with him to be a matter of convenience.]]
* DeaderThanDead: [[spoiler:As a consequence of being killed with a Salt Bolt]]
* DeathGlare: His Evil Eye craft is far stronger than Joshua's.
* DyingDeclarationOfHate: His last words before dying are used to insult his killer.
* EternalRecurrence: His view of human nature is such that he is convinced that humanity can't be trusted to not make disastrous decisions over and over. The fact that about half of the known issues with the modern world are Weissmann's fault or are otherwise attributable to Ouroboros seems to have passed him by.
* EvilSoundsDeep: [[spoiler:In the ''Evolution'' remakes, when his voice sounds basically really deep, especially when he is gloating about his plans]].
* FaithHeelTurn: He used to be an academic priest after being taken in by the Septian Church, but his fascination with the Aureole and meeting with the Grandmaster led to him discarding the path of faith, in his own words.
* FauxAffablyEvil: [[spoiler:After his cover is revealed in FC, he tries to come off as an affable ex-boss to Joshua, while still planning on making his life miserable and turning him into a puppet again. At the end of SC, he even gives the party a historical lecture before forcing Joshua to kill Estelle in order to break him.]]
* FlawExploitation: He pulls this on Estelle, knowing that if some of her comrades are put in danger she'll [[LeeroyJenkins charge in to rescue them]]. [[spoiler:[[MagnificentBastard Cassius]] and [[ManipulativeBastard Kevin]] pull this on ''him'' at the end of the game, knowing that he won't possibly be able to resist the temptation to be a completely sadistic asshole once he regains control over Joshua. [[BatmanGambit They're right.]]]]
* ForTheEvulz: Subverted for the most part. [[spoiler:While he's a card-carrying sadist, his acts of cruelty are usually related to advancing his agenda in some way, with everyone's suffering being treated as the cherry-on-top. Even the trauma he puts Joshua through is supposedly part of an experiment for brainwashing humanity.]]
* FourEyesZeroSoul: He wears glasses before and after the reveal. He's also the most evil character in the trilogy.
* TheFriendNobodyLikes: A Type 4 for the Anguis. No one in Ouroboros likes him but they are forced to put up with him, as he is the only one who knows how to find the Aureole.
* FromNobodyToNightmare: A series of coincidences turned an ordinary young man into one of the most dangerous people in Zemuria. [[spoiler:First, the [[CataclysmBackstory Salt Pillar Incident]] devastated his homeland and led to him being taken in by the Church. Then, his curiosity led to his desire to study [[TheseAreThingsManWasNotMeantToKnow the Sept-Terion and the Stigma phenomenon, which is forbidden.]] His desire caught the attention of [[TheAce Rufina Argent]], who [[AllThereInTheManual informed higher authorities about it.]] Weissmann was eventually excommunicated, but not before making a great deal of progress studying Stigmas... and not before he was approached by [[AncientConspiracy Ouroboros]].]]
* GoodEyesEvilEyes: His eyes are [[EyesAlwaysShut mostly shut]] as Professor Alba. As Weissmann, however...
* GreaterScopeVillain: Probably more so than any other members of Ouroboros as a lot of tragic events can be traced back to him. [[spoiler: He was involved with the Hamel incident that does change the lives of Joshua, Loewe, [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsOfColdSteel Rean, Osborne, Lechter and Ash]] which then spiraled with Osborne becoming the chancellor and started conquering other countries, Joshua and Loewe becoming Enforcers, Rean having a SuperpoweredEvilSide because Osborne had to transplant his heart to Rean, Lechter joining the Ironbloods to atone for his father's sins, and Ash carrying an Erebonian curse with the activation that he has "shoot the ones responsible for the incident", culminating with Ash shooting the emperor (who was innocent but offered his life to cure Ash of the curse) with a gun from Calvard and allow Osborne to declare war on Calvard.]] In short, ''the entire series'' can be blamed on him for pulling the metaphorical trigger!
* HateSink: He has absolutely ''no'' redeeming qualities. Not even his fellow Ouroboros members seem to like him all that much: His treatment of Joshua earned scorn [[EvenEvilHasStandards even from the other Anguis]], such as [[spoiler: Vita]] and Arianrhod. To top it all off, [[spoiler: after Kevin shoots him with a salt arrow, Campanella makes sure he'll ''stay'' dead, by smashing him to pieces.]]
* HolierThanThou: Estelle calls him out for acting this, complete with outright telling the trope name. [[spoiler:Made [[{{Irony}} ironic]] and somehow an [[InvertedTrope inversion]] since he was excommunicated from Septian Church due to his heresy act.]]
* JerkWithAHeartOfJerk: He "cured" [[spoiler:Joshua]] of his catatonic state, but only because he wanted to use the boy as a brainwashed pawn. Not to mention he was behind the tragedy that caused the latter's trauma in the first place.
* KarmaHoudiniWarranty: [[spoiler:At the start of ''The 3rd'', most of the party thinks Weissmann escaped and became a KarmaHoudini for all his atrocities. They have no idea that Kevin delivered karma in the form of a Salt Bolt.]]
* KnightOfCerebus: His reveal as the BigBad establishes that the lighthearted mood of FC isn't going to last.
* KnightTemplar: A completely unsympathetic example. [[spoiler:He insists that humanity is hopelessly flawed and is doomed to either constant warfare or complacent hedonism, so he wants to use the Aureole to brainwash them via Stigmas like he did to Joshua. He also likes to conveniently ignore his own role in actively causing conflict between Liberl and Erebonia and insists that the fact that he easily manipulated these conflicts is proof that humans are sinful. He sees himself so far above humanity that he thinks his sadism is justified.]]
* LightIsNotGood: His name certainly indicates this [[spoiler:and even his OneWingedAngel form actually looks angelic in a way.]]
* LimitBreak: His S-Craft is "Another Dimension."
* MagicStaff: Uses one in combat, one given by the Grandmaster along with Loewe's Kernviter.
* MeaningfulName: His fake and real name mean "white" and "white man" respectively, which is the [[LightIsNotGood color he dresses in]] after TheReveal. His real name could also be considered a pun on "wise man", which fits as he is a scientist.
* NeverMyFault: [[spoiler:Even when Loewe gets him to admit to starting the 100 Days War, Weissmann has the audacity to claim that it was humanity's fault for being so easy to manipulate.]]
* NietzscheWannabe: [[spoiler:The ultimate explanation for his Gospel Plan and why his final battle BGM is called The Merciless Savior: He believes humanity is doomed to continually repeat the mistakes of the past and that everything will be pointless unless he forces the species into a new direction. Other characters (namely Estelle) are only too happy to point out that part of the problems are ones ''he'' caused and get a few points for thinking more like Nietzsche had in mind when they tell him that ''they'' don't think humanity is hopeless and are working to overcome their flaws.]]
* NotSoWellIntentionedExtremist: [[spoiler:He claims to be fixing humanity's flaws by using the Stigma to make them perfect, thus preventing their ViciousCycle of complacency, regression, and violence. Given that he constantly instigates human conflict and enjoys the suffering caused by his schemes, it becomes obvious he's a misanthrope who cares more about [[ControlFreak controlling]] and toying with humanity than actually saving them. This is further shown in his interactions with Joshua and Kevin. He claims the Stigma can save them from their tragic pasts, but is angered when their friends help them overcome their issues with their own free will, since that robs him of the opportunity to experiment on them and mold them to his liking.]]
* ObfuscatingStupidity: Downplayed. He actually does own his archeology credentials, but he pretends to be ditzy in order to hide his role as the BigBad.
* OneWingedAngel: [[spoiler:Twice, as a result of his merging with Aureole. His first transformation is into a gigantic white monster with what look like wings folded over the front of his body, no legs and [[EyesDoNotBelongThere too many eyes.]] When Aureole forcibly transforms him further, the 'wings' unfold to reveal enormous arms, a serpent-like tail attaches to his lower body and actual glowing wings sprout from his back with a halo completing the angelic imagery.]]
* PeoplePuppets: [[spoiler:His specialty, and it's implied his plan for "evolving" humanity is going to involve brainwashing.]]
* PerpetualPoverty: Professor Alba's excuse for never hiring Bracers.
* PsychoticSmirk: [[spoiler: His default expression after TheReveal.]]
* RedBaron: [[spoiler: Weissmann the Faceless.]]
* RedEyesTakeWarning: [[spoiler:His eyes glow bright red when he finds opportunities to engage in sadism.]]
* {{Sadist}}: [[spoiler:Ragnard accuses him of being unable to feel joy unless he's making his fellow humans suffer, which Weissmann takes as a compliment.]]
* SimpleStaff: His weapon is a staff given to him by the Grandmaster[[spoiler:which like Kernviter is described as being connected to the 'Divergent Laws' and was apparently given to Weissmann as a test and failsafe in case he went rogue]]
* SinisterMinister: [[spoiler:SC reveals that Weissmann was once a member of the Septian Church who was excommunicated for unspecified reasons. He certainly dresses the part. Outside material explains in more detail that he wanted to conduct research the church considered to be [[BrideOfTheMonster tampering in the Goddess' domain]], particularly concerning the Sept-Terion and the Stigma phenomenon.]]
* TheSociopath: He feels no guilt for the lives he ruined, acts charming to manipulate others, can only feel joy from tormenting others, and believes he's superior to the rest of humanity.
* SquishyWizard: His human form has less HP than all the Axis Pillar Enforcers while having the highest ATS, though he still has high DEF thanks to being about 5 levels higher than all of them except Loewe.
* TakenForGranite: [[spoiler:His death at the hands of Kevin is essentially this.]]
* {{Ubermensch}}: [[spoiler:He sees himself as this. The fact that his ideal is a new kind of human who will always make the 'right' decisions (as determined by Weissmann) should let you know how far off the mark he is.]]
* WeCanRuleTogether:
** [[spoiler:He tries to convince Estelle to join Ouroboros under the rationale that she can reunite with Joshua this way. Though this is a ruse because he only kidnapped her to lure Joshua out of hiding.]]
** [[spoiler:In Phantasma, a copy of him tries to convince Kevin to throw away his humanity to control the Stigma and be free from his grief. When Kevin refuses, the professor sics two devils, Rostrum and Astarte, on him to force him to change his mind.]]

!Mariabell Crois, "The Primordial Alchemist"

See [[Characters/TrailsSeriesCrossbellGovernmentAndInfluentialGroups International Bank of Crossbell]]

[[/folder]]

[[folder:Fourth Anguis - The Thousand Oathbreaker]]

[[/folder]]

[[folder:Fifth Anguis]]

[[/folder]]

[[folder:Sixth Anguis]]

!Professor F. Novartis
-->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/MitsuakiMadono
-->'''Appearances''': ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsInTheSky The 3rd]]'' | ''[[VideoGame/ZeroNoKiseki Ao]]''

Sixth Anguis of Ouroboros and leader of the Thirteen Factories, appearing in ''Ao''.
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* EarlyBirdCameo: Namedropped as early as the [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsInTheSky Second Chapter]], and had spoken lines in ''The 3rd'''s Star Door 14.
* ForScience: His motivation for doing just about anything is to satisfy his scientific curiosity.
* {{Gonk}}: A creepy-looking man with ScaryShinyGlasses, a bowl-cut and a hunched back. His hair colour and wrinkly face make his age quite cryptic.

[[/folder]]

[[folder:Seventh Anguis - The Steel Maiden]]

!Arianrhod
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/arianrhod_cs3_portrait.png]]
-->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/AyaHisakawa (Japanese), Creator/CheramiLeigh (English)
-->'''Appearances''': ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsInTheSky The 3rd]]'' | ''[[VideoGame/ZeroNoKiseki Ao]]'' | ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsOfColdSteel Cold Steel]]'' | ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsOfColdSteel Cold Steel III]]'' | ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsOfColdSteel Cold Steel IV]]''

Seventh Anguis of Ouroboros known as the "Steel Maiden". First appearing in ''Ao'', she makes a cameo appearance in ''Cold Steel I'' and later makes a full return as an antagonist in ''Cold Steel III'' and ''IV''. Due to the sheer number similarities between her and the legendary "Lance Maiden" of Erebonian history, many assume her true identity to be Lianne Sandlot herself. It's later confirmed in ''Cold Steel III'' that she truly is Lianne Sandlot, having survived her historical death through mysterious means.
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* TheAce: Easily one of the strongest fighters on Zemuria.
* AllLoveIsUnrequited: Averted with Dreichels himself as her feelings were reciprocated but circumstances prevented them from getting together. [[spoiler:Once Dreichels had reincarnated as Osborne, a part of her had hoped that this time she would have been able to get together with him. Unfortunately for her, by the time that she found him, Osborne had already fallen in love with Kasia and started a family with her that resulted in Rean. Lianne, for her part, muses that so long as he was happy then it was alright.]]
* AntiVillain: Easily one of the least villainous members of Ouroboros.
* AmazonBrigade: The Stahlritter are Arianrhod's bodyguards ([[BodyguardingABadass not like she needs them]]) and they are exclusively female.
* {{Archenemy}}: [[spoiler: Ever since she learned about Ishmelga from Dreichels, she has made her number 1 goal to destroy him.]]
* ArmoredVillainsUnarmoredHeroes: Guess which side of the spectrum she's on.
* BackFromTheDead: [[spoiler:''Cold Steel III'' reveals that she did die as Lianne Sandlot, but she mysteriously came back to life. It's because as an Awakener, her life is tethered to her Divine Knight.]]
* BadassBoast: In ''Cold Steel III'' she delivers one towards [=McBurn=] when he asks for a fight.
--> "I, too, shall enjoy the night breeze if you break my helm."
* BigDamnHeroes: In ''Cold Steel I'' she appears in time to rescue Rean's field study group in Lohengrin Castle. It's revealed retroactively in ''Cold Steel IV'' that the reason she rescued him and his group is because [[spoiler:he's the son of the reincarnation of the man who she once loved.]]
* BlueBlood: As Lianne Sandlot, she was a Countess who ruled Lohengrin Castle and Legram, which were then taken over by her retainers of the Arseid Family.
* CharlesAtlasSuperpower: She is able to crush a truck engine simply by throwing her spear from faraway.
* ContraltoOfDanger: One of the most powerful women in all of Zemuria with a suitably low voice.
* DualBoss: In ''Cold Steel III'', you actually fight her and ''all 3 members of the Stahlritter at the same time'' in Chapter 3. [[spoiler:And then in the final chapter, you have to fight against her and '''Demon [=McBurn=]'''. Then in ''Cold Steel IV'', she ends up fighting alongside Osborne and this time, [[{{Foreshadowing}} they're ARCUS linked.]]]]
* EarlyBirdCameo: Along with the other Anguis, she made a voiced appearance in ''The 3rd''.
* EvenEvilHasStandards: She steps in to prevent a swindler from fleeing to Calvard with stolen medicals goods following Crossbell's raid by the Red Constellation because she can't stand such a distasteful behavior towards civilians.
* FallenHero: Once she was Lianne Sandlot, a heroic legend of Erebonian history who joined forces with Dreichels the Lionheart to put an end to the "War of the Lions". Over 250 years later however, she joined Ouroboros (a terrorist organization) and becomes one of the highest ranking members of the Society in addition to being one of its two strongest fighters.
* {{Foreshadowing}}: Unlike her DualBoss fight with [[spoiler:[=McBurn=] in ''Cold Steel III'', she's ARCUS linked with Osborne in ''Cold Steel IV'' despite having no known relationship with him at the time. It's a sign that she trusts and loves Dreichels and his reincarnation.]]
* FreudianExcuse: [[spoiler:The reason for her being an antagonist throughout the series? All done out of loyalty towards Dreichels, who in current times has now been reincarnated as Giliath Osborne. She feels responsible for not being there to aid him when he needed it most, aka the death of his wife and near death of Rean, which resulted in Osborne making a literal DealWithTheDevil. She decided to join Ouroboros as a means to an end, and later sides with Osborne himself directly, in order to help put a stop to the curse of Erebonia once and for all.]]
* HairOfGoldHeartOfGold: One of the nicest member of Ouroboros, and has blonde hair.
* HeelFaceDoorSlam: [[spoiler:After her defeat, it seems like she's going to accept Rean's offer to save her life and join the heroes' side. Then Rufus shows up...]]
* HistoryRepeats: [[spoiler:Her final fate directly parallels that of her student, Loewe.]]
* HonorBeforeReason: [[spoiler:She tells Roselia the reason why Dreichels never told Rose about the curse is because it would have been a terrible and feeble life for someone who is nearly at the end of his life and the problems of man still linger on.]]
* HumongousMecha: In ''Cold Steel III'', she appears alongside the Aion Type Alpha II. [[spoiler:Said game also reveals that she's been the Awakener of Algreion the Silver Knight since before the War of the Lions.]]
* IAmNotLeftHanded: She is so strong that she was holding back '''every time''' we see her fighting. [[spoiler:Not even Aurelia, the then strongest woman in Erebonia at the time, was enough to make her fight seriously.]]
* ILetYouWin: [[spoiler:It's revealed after the fight that despite her kneeling against Rean and Crow, they both note that she threw the fight in order for Rean to absorb Algreion's essence. Unfortunately, she didn't expect Rufus to back stab her at her weakest moment.]]
* {{Immortality}} : [[spoiler:A trait common to all Awakeners as they cannot die so long as their Divine Knights remain. This is how she was able to survive her historic death.]]
* ImpaledWithExtremePrejudice: [[spoiler:Rufus fatally wounds her by running her through with the Gold Knight's sword.]]
* IWantMyBelovedToBeHappy: [[spoiler:After finding Osborne and discovering him married with a child, she finds herself content enough that he is living an happy life.]]
* JeanneDArchetype: As Lianne Sandlot, she was an inspirational warrior and general who lead the Eisenritter to help Dreichels put an end to the War of the Lions and was canonized as a Saint after her purported death.
* JoustingLance: Her weapon of choice. [[spoiler:Even her Divine Knight has one.]]
* LadyOfWar: One of the most beautiful, graceful, and powerful women in the entire series.
* LawOfInverseFertility: [[spoiler:As it turns out, this is the reason why she left Dreichels as she was left unable to bear any children after coming back to life.]]
* {{Leitmotif}}: Unfathomable Force and Aria of the Saint.
* LikeASonToMe: [[spoiler:How she views Rean after spending years looking out for him from afar, imagining him to be the son that she could have had with Dreichels.]]
* LimitBreak: Her S-Craft in both ''Ao'' and the later ''Cold Steel'' games is "Grand Cross." [[spoiler:Also her finishing move when piloting Algreion.]]
* LivingLegend: As Lianne Sandlot, the Lance Maiden.
* MeaningfulName: Arianrhod was a goddess of Celtic/Welsh Mythology with dominion over time, fate, fertility and rebirth. All three of which symbolize reveals of her origins and true motivation. Both also were rulers of a castle of great renown and signifigance(Caer Arianrhod and Lohengrin Castle.)
** Arianrhod also means 'Silver Wheel' in Welsh. [[spoiler:She's the Awakener of the Silver Knight, and is motivated by breaking the cycle of misfortune caused by the Curse of Erebonia.]]
* MetallicMotifs: Lead a group of knights as Lianne and Arionrhod respectively named the Eisenritter (Iron Knights) and Stahlritter (Steel Knights), is known as The 'Steel' Maiden, [[spoiler:and pilots the Argent (Silver) Knight.]]
* MysteriousProtector: Briefly plays this role in ''Cold Steel I'' during Class VII's field study in Legram for reasons unknown. [[spoiler:''Cold Steel IV'' reveals that this was because ''Rean'' was there. It's also revealed that she had been secretly watching over him as he grew up, to the point that Osborne actually refers to her as one of Rean's mothers alongside Kasia and Lucia.]]
* NiceJobBreakingItHero: [[spoiler:By not telling Rose all about the curse that's stalking Dreichels, Osborne ends up making a deal with Ishmelga that nearly starts a global conflict all over the world.]]
* OldFriend: To Roselia. [[spoiler:She's the one who guided her to Algreion, her Divine Knight, a few years before the War of the Lions happened.]]
* OnlyTheWorthyMayPass: She serves as this in ''Ao'' where she tests the SSS's conviction and strength under [=KeA=]'s demands.
* PaperThinDisguise: It's quite obvious she didn't even bother to try and disguise her identity as Lianne Sandlot. Everyone who's ever heard about Arianrhod are quick to assume that she has something to do with her past self.
* ParentalSubstitute: She is one for the youngest members of the society and the Stahlritter. She explicitely calls Duvalie her child in ''Cold Steel IV''.
* PhysicalGod: A contender for being the most powerful character in the series. Very few could hope to match her, with Ein Selnate and [=McBurn=] being such people. Lloyd and the SSS were lucky enough to break her helmet when they fought her. [[spoiler:Even after Aurelia Le Guin (a contender for Erebonia's strongest warrior) manages to bring Arianrhod to her knees in battle, it's revealed that she was holding back and only fought with the strength she had as a human when she was Lianne Sandlot.]]
* PoorCommunicationKills: [[spoiler:Because she never told Roselia about the curse and Ishmelga stalking Dreichels for 250 years, the issues with Erebonia continued on.]]
* RedBaron: "The Steel Maiden." And formerly, "The Lance Maiden" when she was still Lianne Sandlot.
* ReligiousBruiser: Technically, since she was canonized as a Saint for her role in the War of the Lions.
* ReallySevenHundredYearsOld: From a chronological standpoint, she's well over 250 years old despite looking like a young woman in her early twenties.
* TheReveal: ''Cold Steel IV'' reveals the reason why she joined with Ouroboros without saying anything to Roselia for twenty years: [[spoiler:she's been looking out for Osborne ever since she found Dreichels' reincarnation. Then tragedy struck towards Osborne's life which she then takes it upon herself to help out Osborne get rid of the curse for good. Roselia did not take it well when she finds out about it.]]
* SingleTargetSexuality: In all of her centuries-long life, she never loved anyone but Dreichels. [[spoiler:To the point that her feelings even extend to his reincarnation in Osborne.]]
* TheSmurfettePrinciple: [[spoiler:The only female Awakener of the seven Awakeners. She's also the oldest of them all.]]
* StarCrossedLovers: With Dreichels. Both fell in love and had sworn to live with each other after the "War of the Lions" ended, but circumstances such as her "death" prevented that from ever happening. [[spoiler:It turns out that she left him due to her inability to have children after coming back to life. She clearly regrets this however as by the time Dreichels reincarnates as Osborne she once again has a desire to be with him. Unfortunately for her she missed her chance since Osborne had already married Kasia and had a son with her (Rean) by the time Lianne finds him.]]
* TakeUpMySword: [[spoiler:Or rather her name, as Lianne asks Laura to continue the tradition of having the initial letter "S." in the Arseid line as one of her last wishes before she dies.]]
* ThatManIsDead: When Laura calls her Lianne Sandlot, she describes that name as an "illusion of the past".
* TheStoic: She is a little bit short on the emotions scale.
* TogetherInDeath: [[spoiler:With Dreichels[=/=]Osborne and Rutger at the end of ''Cold Steel IV''.]]
* TurnsRed: In her bossfight in ''Ao'', when her HP reach a certain threshold, her mask will break and she will stop holding back. [[CurbStompBattle By the end of the fight, her mask is probably not the only thing who is broken.]]
* UndyingLoyalty: [[spoiler:To Dreichels. So much so that she even ends up developing feelings towards his reincarnation in Osborne, and later joined Ouroboros out of a sense of duty towards him.]]
* YouShallNotPass: [[spoiler:She and [=McBurn=] serves as the first opponents guarding the Gral of Erebos.]]
* WalkingSpoiler: Much of the white tropes come from ''Cold Steel III'' and ''IV'' revelations.
* WalkingTheEarth: [[spoiler:After her resurrection she decides to travel around outside of Erebonia for decades until Dreichels' deathbed. Afterwards she then spends the next two centuries looking for his reincarnation out of worry that the curse that haunted him would come back to do so again. It's during this time that she meets the Grandmaster, but it's not until she finds Osborne and believes him to be safe that she decides to join Ouroboros.]]
* WeaponTombstone: [[spoiler:After her death, the Stahlritter used her lance and helmet to make a grave in Crossbell.]]
* WhamShot: [[spoiler:When she summons her own Divine Knight at the Naval Fortress. Even her Stahlritter were shocked and were unaware of its existence.]]
* WhoWantsToLiveForever: [[spoiler:She says as much after she's defeated in ''Cold Steel IV''...]]
-->[[spoiler:It's been a long journey. So long...]]
* WreckedWeapon: [[spoiler:Her iconic lance finally breaks in ''Cold Steel IV'' while fighting Class VII. [[{{Foreshadowing}} Considering what happens next...]]]]

[[/folder]]

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

* HistoryRepeats: [[spoiler:Her final fate directly parallels Loewe's]]

* JeanneDArchetype: As Lianne Sandlot she was an inspirational warrior and general who lead the Eisenritter to help Dreichels put an end to the War of the Lions and was canonized as a Saint after her purported death.

* OnlyTheWorthyMayPass : She serves as this in ''Ao'' where she tests the SSS's conviction and strength under [=KeA=]'s demands.

* PurpleEyes: Denoting her status as a powerful witch.

-->''Voiced by:'' Miwa Yasuda (Japanese, drama CD), Yuki Nagaku (Japanese, ''Sky the 3rd Evolution''), Creator/KanaeIto (Japanese, ''Cold Steel IV'')

[[folder:Third Anguis - The Faceless]]
!! Georg Weissmann

->'''Introduced in:''' First Chapter
->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/HideyukiTanaka (Japanese), Creator/KeithSilverstein (English)

!! Professor F. Novartis

!! Arianrhod