Characters / King's Maker

Main Characters

Wolfgang Goldenleonard

Click ^here  to see Wolfgang after the time skip.

Click ^here  to see Wolfgang's appearance in Season 2.

The fourth prince of Goldenleonard, and the focal character of Season 1. It's very clear he would rather be anywhere but in the same building as the man responsible for his mother's death, but seeing as nobody else seems to be willing to take him down...

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• Action Hero: Between Soohyuk, Sys, and himself, Wolfgang is easily the most combat-oriented, and is not shy about wanting to put his father in the ground.
  • Arguably Deconstructed and then Reconstruction, at least in Season 1. Wolfgang tries to take an Action Hero approach to his problems at first, picking fights upon witnessing any real or perceived injustice, but he is quickly reminded that this is likely to get either himself or other people in trouble instead of actually helping. And while in later episodes he's in charge of the parts of the rebellion concerned with physical combat, he makes it very clear that he won't stand for causing any unnecessary casualties or deaths just for the sake of making a point.
• Berserk Button: While he's far more amicable and understanding than His Majesty, woe to you if you dare to disrespect his mother or Soohyuk in his presence.
  • Harming a child in any way, shape, or form also seems to be a big one. God help you if you manage to kill them, too.
• Big Brother Instinct: Seems to have one ingrained into him - it's most noticeable with Dandelion, despite him initially not knowing how to react to the kid idolizing him at first.
• Big Ol' Eyebrows: Downplayed, but definitely thick enough to be striking. They're unusually dark, too, in contrast with his blonde hair. It's later revealed the Golden Blessing keeps his hair and eyes gold. Whenever he's severely poisoned or injured, part of his hair turns dark to match his eyebrows, implying that's his actual hair color.
• Character Development: Over the course of Season 1, he goes from a petty, unruly Rebel Prince prone to picking fights at random (especially whenever the King is involved) to a self-assured and resourceful man who is dead set on restoring the kingdom to its former glory - although he still makes no effort to hide his desire to see his father six feet under.
• Comically Missing the Point: Upon first meeting Lord Sys, Soohyuk expects Wolfgang to be put off by his more... out-there mannerisms, and is quick to try to explain that all appearances aside, Sys is their best bet at getting through to the Duke of Ulysses. Wolfgang immediately cuts Soohyuk off to angrily point out that he and Sys are apparently already on a First-Name Basis with each other, while he's only just learned Soohyuk's full name.
• Deliberate Injury Gambit: Pulls one in Season 2, Episode 8 in an attempt to lure out whoever poisoned him only weeks prior, by deliberately neglecting to inspect the food for an upcoming banquet, combing through the shipments until he found a poisoned sample, and then playing dead for all of five minutes until someone came forward to inspect his body. He finds a suspect in an unknown redheaded maid… only for her to turn into smoke and disappear into a nearby bottle. Wolfgang remarks far too nonchalantly that it’s probably magic-related and will need further analysis, much to Soohyuk’s frustration.
• Determinator: And how.
• Hair of Gold, Heart of Gold: Subverted. He's closer to a Knight in Sour Armor than an example of Incorruptible Pure Pureness, but thanks to his longterm goal being to undo the damage that his father has done once he takes the throne, he technically qualifies as this.
• He Cleans Up Nicely: So much so that even Soohyuk seems flustered upon seeing him dressed up in royal garb for the first time. This, of course, doesn't stop him from pointing out that said garb is highly impractical for everyday use, and that Wolfgang will have to change (again) into something simpler.
• Heroic Bastard: Christine and the King never married, as far as anyone is aware - Christine even goes as far as to describe Wolfgang's father as an "old fling."
• Hot-Blooded: In contrast to Soohyuk's Tranquil Fury, pretty much everything Wolfgang does is done with a lot of impassioned yelling and righteous anger. Somewhat downplayed in the sense that he actually does make an effort to hold himself back once he realizes he's at risk of getting himself killed if he keeps snapping as often as he does.
• Knight in Sour Armor: Is fully aware of Goldenleonard's current state of disrepair and most other effects his father's blatant disregard for actual politics has had on the country, having lived in its slums for several years after the death of his mother, and also isn't shy about making it clear that he wants the man dead. That being said, he bears no ill will towards Goldenleonard as a whole - only its royal family and nobility for letting it fall as far as it did.
• Love Makes You Dumb: Downplayed. Wolfgang was already a Hot-Blooded character from the get-go, but in Season 2, his impulsiveness doubles whenever Soohyuk is involved - like, say, using up one of his three chances to actually use magic until they find a more permanent solution on a pair of glasses to make a magic artifact Soohyuk can actually use.
• Major Injury Underreaction: He takes the fact that someone attempted to fatally poison him surprisingly well, and is in fact more irritated that the council won't let him lead an investigation to find the culprit than anything else. Somewhat justified, since the Golden Blessing's main draw is an incredibly convenient poison-cleansing ability, but it's explicitly stated that he still needs time to fully recover.
• Opposites Attract: Wolfgang is short-tempered, honest to a fault, and more skilled in physical combat than anything else due to spending most of his childhood in an environment where etiquette didn't matter nearly as much as being able to make a quick getaway. Naturally, his Love Interest is a poised and reserved intellectual who has no qualms about deceiving others for the greater good.
• Royals Who Actually Do Something: In Season 2, this is what he wants to be more than anything else, both for the sake of the country and to see Soohyuk's dream of a benevolent king realized. However, he feels as though he is unable to truly grow into the role as long as the culprit behind his assassination attempt is active and Soohyuk and the council are preoccupied with his health as a result.
• Satisfied Street Rat: Played with. Wolfgang is far from ashamed of his roots, and at one point even refers to himself as "the king of all things shameless," however jokingly. What little we see of his childhood, however, implies that he would've had no problem with staying in his mother's estate if fate had allowed it.
• Self-Made Orphan: Becomes this by the end of Season 1.
• Supernatural Gold Eyes: Season 1, Episode 22 reveals them to be this, as a result of "The Golden Blessing."
• Violently Protective Boyfriend: Their actual relationship status is unclear by this point, seeing as Wolfgang only found out about Soohyuk reciprocating his feelings the previous episode, but he loses his shit upon seeing Soohyuk being subjected to a Shameful Strip in the dead of winter in Episode 25, as punishment for becoming intimate with him - the only thing that manages to hold him back is a note from Soohyuk himself reading "do not stop," as a reminder of their greater mission.
  • This carries over into Season 2, albeit played for laughs as Wolfgang very briefly considers firing or even executing a congressman that had been butting heads with Soohyuk, despite everyone (Soohyuk included) coming to the conclusion that said congressman was right to do so.

Shin Soohyuk

Click ^here  to see Soohyuk after the time skip.

Click ^here  to see Soohyuk's appearance in Season 2.

One of the King's many catamites living in the palace, and unfortunately his favorite. Aside from the obvious longterm mental scarring, it's obvious that Soohyuk's capabilities are being squandered in his current position, causing him to turn to Wolfgang to work with him to overthrow his father.

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• All of the Other Reindeer: Downplayed, but the other Children can be seen making a few snide remarks at his expense, namely that he at least has a father who's worried about him and can actually visit him, when boys who are taken in as Children tend to be orphans more often than not.
• Almighty Janitor: In the eyes of the law, he's basically property, but he proves to be almost frighteningly intelligent and has almost top-notch insight into the country's current political and economic climate thanks to having connections in the form of his Minister father, making him an invaluable ally to Wolfgang even before they form anything close to a friendship. He's also been drafting plans for a rebellion with Lord Sys long before Wolfgang entered the picture - it's all but stated that the only thing keeping him from acting upon them without the help of a prince was his status.
• Asian and Nerdy: Is unquestionably The Smart Guy of the main cast, and is one of the only two East Asian characters introduced in Season 1, the other being his father.
• The Chessmaster: Benevolent example. When the 3rd Prince tries to expose him for manipulating Wolfgang's endeavors in order to ensure their success - and in turn, ensuring that he's at least one step closer to gaining back his freedom, he makes no move to deny this. However, he's still noticeably ashamed, as he's come to actually respect Wolfgang as an individual (and has also started developing stronger feelings for him around this time) and wants to believe that he has what it takes to overthrow his father and set things right again.
• Chessmaster Sidekick: Officially becomes one to Wolfgang in Season 2.
• Contrasting Sequel Main Character: Played with. Season 2 is told largely from Soohyuk's point of view, and he contrasts with Wolfgang quite a bit by being a stoic, dark-haired Almighty Janitor who relies primarily on his intellect, rather than a brash and boisterous blonde swordsman.
• Deadpan Snarker: Most noticeable with Wolfgang, although it's hard to tell if that's just how he is when he's comfortable enough, or if he's doing it deliberately to get a rise out of him.
• Defrosting Ice King: Mostly due to Wolfgang; it's subtle, but he slowly becomes more emotive and willing to be honest with others over the course of the story.
• Deuteragonist: Of Season 1, anyway.
• Guile Hero: While it doesn't always escape other characters' notices, Soohyuk is ridiculously adept at using palace etiquette and his status as a "favorite" of the King to his advantage, so much so that part of his deal with Wolfgang is becoming his de facto mentor to show him the ropes. And while he may be shrewd and manipulative, his reasons for wanting to become the Minister of Financial Affairs once he gains back his freedom aren't for personal gain at all - instead, it's to stabilize Goldenleonard's shambling economy and ensure that its ministers no longer have any opportunities to hoard money for themselves, since he sees that as the fastest way to set the country back on track.
• High-Class Gloves: Occasionally dons a pair, usually whenever he has to physically handle Wolfgang - according to him, it's a loophole around the inane "never touch the king's property" rule.
• Insecure Love Interest: In Season 2. To anyone in the know about their relationship, it’s obvious that Wolfgang genuinely loves him, but Soohyuk himself believes that Wolfgang is only as affectionate as he is because of his determination to take everything that belonged to his father (including people) and improve upon them - which according to Soohyuk, effectively makes them his. This is not helped by the fact that Wolfgang’s Love Confession in the Season 1 finale was a very possessive “You shall be mine.”
  • On a less loaded note, Soohyuk also isn’t enthusiastic about the possibility of his and Wolfgang’s relationship getting in the way of their duties, and attempts to distance himself (albeit ineffectually) from Wolfgang as a result.
• Knight in Sour Armor: Arguably even moreso than Wolfgang - he is seen remarking on the extent of corruption within the kingdom (and the King himself) several times, both to other characters and to himself, and he isn't shy about pointing out when other characters have majorly screwed themselves or others over. Despite this, he has a genuine interest in securing a minister position for the good of Goldenleonard as a whole, and seems confident that with a complete overhaul in authority, improvement is inevitable.
• Last-Name Basis: Downplayed. Wolfgang often refers to him as Shin, but he's apparently the only character to do this, as both the King and Sys refer to him by his first name. And even Wolfgang eventually ends up calling him Soohyuk during more serious or intimate scenes.
• Odd Friendship: With Lord Sys. Soohyuk is, for the most part, stern and particularly hard to read, which on a surface level, would be expected to clash with the far more sociable and laid back Sys. Not to mention that Sys was struggling with some nasty trust issues involving the King's Children when they first met... In the present day, however, they're good friends and secret co-conspirators in Soohyuk's plan to make Wolfgang the head of their rebellion.
• O.O.C. Is Serious Business: If his air of stoicism breaks at all, it's usually a sign that something is very right or very wrong. Amusingly, he's self-aware enough to use a downplayed instance of this as evidence that his feelings for Wolfgang are stronger than he realized. Perhaps less amusingly, this is also what leads him to identify said feelings as an obstacle that could get in the way of his actual job.
• Opposites Attract: Soohyuk himself is a poised and reserved intellectual who has next to no qualms about deceiving others for the greater good. Naturally, he ends up falling for a Hot-Blooded hero who often falls into the habit of being honest to a fault and initially knows next to nothing about the royal way, but has the combat skills to make up for it.
• Raven Hair, Ivory Skin: The king in particular is taken with his "exotic" looks - as such, he ends up having not one, but two members of the royal family chasing after him. For obvious reasons, he's only interested in one.
• The Stoic: Although considering that a Flashback reveals him to have been a Cheerful Child before his family migrated to Goldenleonard, it's possible that part of it could stem from a coping mechanism...
  • Not So Stoic: One that occasionally falters, too. As it turns out, internalizing just about every strong emotion that comes your way can have some unforeseen consequences.
  • Stoic Spectacles: Also sports a pair of these in the present.
• Sugar-and-Ice Personality: The sugar is subtle, to say the least, but it's there. For all his stoicism and cold, calculating demeanor, he is visibly taken aback on several occasions by Wolfgang's genuine desire for his freedom and to be closer to him, and eventually comes to reciprocate the feeling despite initially having viewed Wolfgang as a disposable pawn who would easily be taken out once his temper got the better of him.
• Tranquil Fury: Usually Played for Laughs; At one point, when Wolfgang attempts to pass off his eagerness to fight as a display of equal opportunism, Soohyuk reasons that Wolfgang should be perfectly fine with him smacking him over the head with a book as a form of discipline, with the only indication that he plans on following through with that being that he picks up said book as he's speaking. Unsurprisingly, Wolfgang quickly changes his tune.

Supporting Characters

Lord Sys of Ulysses

Click ^here  to see Sys after the time skip.

A flamboyant and outgoing noble who is best known for his "odd pastimes" - often involving buff men and high fashion - who allies himself with Wolfgang and Soohyuk within minutes of them arriving to settle the dispute between the King and the Duke of Ulysses, Sys' adoptive father, in Episode 4. Though his decision to aid them in their plans for a revolution may seem spontaneous, his friendship with Soohyuk notwithstanding, he is eventually revealed to have his own reasons.

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• Agent Peacock: Fashionable, pretty, often decked out in pastels, and a key part in ensuring that Soohyuk and Wolfgang's plans for a rebellion succeed.
• Beware the Silly Ones: Lives a cushy life as a duke's (albeit adoptive) son and initially doesn't seem to care for much beyond fashion, treating the main duo to some tea, and engaging in lighthearted mockery - however, he later proves to have been in on Soohyuk's scheme all along, and he has quite a way with apothecary science.
• Camp Gay: With this being a Boys' Love series set in a fantasy world, the word "gay" is never mentioned outright, but when you're one of the only characters to have an Unlimited Wardrobe, wear eye makeup, and have a staff full of male eye candy, it's not exactly ambiguous.
• Coat Cape: His standard outfit consists of one, although it seems to be more for dramatic effect than trying to look tough.
• Establishing Character Moment: Greets Wolfgang and Soohyuk to his estate with a wide smile and open arms... and being flanked by two musclebound guards in borderline Stripperific uniforms consisting of a Cleavage Window, Combat Stilettos, and sheer tights. Yes, really.
• The Gadfly: Most of his earlier conversations with Wolfgang consist solely of him trying (and often succeeding) to get a rise out of the other.
• Happily Adopted: By the Duke of Ulysses. Although really, it was one part adoption and one part long con revenge scheme.
• Hidden Depths: Has a wide array of knowledge regarding apothecary science thanks to his biological parents, who were doctors running a small hospital in the Duchy of Ulysses. Unfortunately, they were executed under His Majesty's orders, and their hospital was subsequently burnt down - with a young Sys hidden beneath a trapdoor. To make matters worse, they were only killed as brutally as they were thanks to a Child (who had been treated by Sys himself) claiming they had touched him, likely in order to avoid a similarly gruesome fate. While he ended up being Happily Adopted by the Duke of Ulysses, the incident left him with some Stepford Smiler tendencies and a deep distrust of the King's Children as a whole, at least until Soohyuk came along.
  • His staff? They're as beefed-up as they are for a reason: To use them as some extra muscle in the rebellion. Although their good looks might actually just be some self-indulgence on Sys' part.
  • The Duke's decision to adopt Sys also has another layer to it aside from merely giving him a new father figure - it was also to give Sys a chance at having his vengeance.
• Odd Friendship: With Soohyuk. When they first met, Sys was still struggling with some pretty understandable trust issues regarding the King's Children, making it unlikely that he would warm up to Soohyuk right away - but the latter's courteousness was apparently quick to win him over. In the present, they're good friends and co-conspirators in Soohyuk's plan to make Wolfgang the head of their rebellion.
• Science Hero: Downplayed. Science is far from the only tool available to Sys, but his being well-versed in medicine comes in handy when finding suitable allergens so that Soohyuk can keep up his Wounded Gazelle Gambit in Episode 25 or creating a potent enough anesthetic to knock the palace guards out come The Coup in Episode 34.
• The Un Twist: The Duke is an Ambiguously Brown Reasonable Authority Figure with a reserved personality, while Sys himself is a campy, lilac-haired Pretty Boy who borders heavily on being a Perpetual Smiler. The first mention of Sys being adopted is in Episode 26.
• Vague Age: It's never stated how old he is in comparison to Soohyuk and Wolfgang, although he's generally assumed to be roughly 2 or 3 years older.

Dandelion Goldenleonard

The fifth prince of Goldenleonard. Due to having been born sickly, Dandelion has spent most of his life with his nanny in the subject state of Depennia, where he was promptly raised on years and years of propaganda about the royal family, oblivious to the country's actual state as well as his father's true nature. He quickly comes to idolize Wolfgang, who takes it upon himself to look out for Dandelion upon learning of the extent of his naiveté.

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• Big Brother Worship: Read greatly exaggerated accounts of Wolfgang's arrival at the palace and his victory at the festival race, and is positively star-struck upon meeting him in person, even after Wolfgang tells him the actual story.
• The Cutie: And because the story he's in is only partly BL, with the other part being a high-stakes political fantasy drama, this inevitably leads to...
  • Break the Cutie: Upon finding his father with one of the Children in the Chamber of Bloom - more specifically, finding said Child being mauled to death by a dog. And then while trying to escape from his father, who is enraged at being intruded upon, Dandelion loses his footing near an open window, which leads to...
  • Kill the Cutie
• Hair of Gold, Heart of Gold: Is the most unambiguously kind character in the entire cast of Season 1, and just so happens to be a downright cherubic blonde child.
• The Ingenue: His innocence is adorable, sure, but woefully inconvenient for living in his father's Decadent Court. Pretty much the only thing that's keeping him from getting killed is his status as a prince and even that only goes so far in the end.
• Innocent Blue Eyes: His eyes are a bright blue.
• Kiddie Kid: After the second Time Skip, he's around 13, but still acts almost exactly the same as he did when he was first introduced, save for the angst brought on by the abrupt execution of his tutor. Soohyuk pins some of the blame on Wolfgang for having coddled him a little.
• Plot-Triggering Death: Subverted. His death ends up jumpstarting the final siege of the rebellion - in other words, the last fourth of Season 1.
• Too Good for This Sinful Earth: He's a kind, purehearted ill boy who loves his family and has lived a sheltered life that's made him oblivious to the true nature of the world he lives in. Naturally, he's killed off at the age of 13, and just to twist the knife even further, the King uses his funeral as an opportunity to remind the people of Goldenleonard to remain ever mindful of the rules of the palace, lest they should face a similar fate.
• The Wrongful Heir to the Throne: Played with. Only golden-haired and golden-eyed heirs are considered viable to inherit the throne, since those traits indicate that they are capable of receiving The Golden Blessing, but Dandelion has golden hair and blue eyes - meaning that while he's the same level as his brothers in terms of status, almost nobody considers him an actual heir to the throne.

Minor Characters

Lady Christine Luccia

Wolfgang's noblewoman mother, who gave up her life saving him from a house fire. For obvious reasons, she only appears in flashbacks.

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• Brutal Honesty: Her first response to finding that her son has killed a bird? Tell him all about the extent to which his mistake is irreversible, and spin it into a lesson about the importance of never taking another's freedom while she's at it. Sure, it's far from malicious, but still...
• Calling Parents by Their Name: Wolfgang never actually called her any variant of "mother" when she was alive, despite them being related by blood.
• Good Parents: Despite her... questionable choice of partner, she loved Wolfgang as her son, and did her best to mentor him before his father began to interfere - which would eventually end up costing her life.
• Heroic Sacrifice: Ended up staying behind in her home while it was in flames to make sure Wolfgang got out alive.
• Plot-Triggering Death: Her death was what allowed Wolfgang to escape certain doom himself, leaving him on the streets and with plenty of time to nurse his healthy resentment of the current monarch.
• Posthumous Character
• Small Role, Big Impact: She's been dead for years by the time the prologue roles around and is only featured prominently in one episode (during a Flashback, no less) but it was her teachings that first convinced Wolfgang to run as far away from the royal family as possible and take to the streets when he was first left to his own devices - and then, years later, a search party is deployed to weed him out...
• Statuesque Stunner: Possibly downplayed; she's portrayed as both beautiful and physically imposing, but then again, we only ever see her from the perspective of a very young Wolfgang.

The Duke of Ulysses

Sys' adoptive father, with a self-explanatory title. He first garners the attention of Wolfgang and Soohyuk when they arrive in his duchy to solve an irrigation dispute between him and the King

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• Ambiguously Brown: Noticeably darker-skinned than any of the other characters, but holds the title of Duke in a kingdom that also has no clear real-world counterpart, but leans heavily towards European. As such, his actual race is never touched upon.
• Good Parents: Sure, he had to lure Sys out of hiding with promises of a long con, but all scheming aside, he genuinely cares for Sys, and did his best to raise him as his own and accept him for who he was, strange pastimes and all.
• Reasonable Authority Figure: Cut off his duchy's irrigation system in a seemingly abrupt and poorly planned move, especially considering that their economy is agriculturally-based. In actuality, this was done only after the King raised their taxes to an unprecedented and highly unreasonable degree, leading the Duke to cut irrigation off in order to exempt his people from paying, and is currently supplying food and water for them out of pocket while they seek work elsewhere. He also, unsurprisingly, disapproves of the current King's actions, and aids the heroes in overthrowing him from the sidelines.
• The Un Twist: The Duke himself is an Ambiguously Brown Reasonable Authority Figure with a reserved personality, while his son Sys is a campy, lilac-haired Pretty Boy who borders heavily on being a Perpetual Smiler. The first mention of Sys being adopted is in Episode 26.
• Wealthy Philanthropist: After cutting off his irrigation system, he only saw it fit to provide for the duchy's residents himself since the palace was no longer going to.

Theodore

Prince Dandelion's mute tutor, and a native of the subject state of Depennia. Since Dandelion has spent most of his life there recovering from illness, Theo has essentially raised him in the absence of his actual parents.

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• Ambiguously Brown: Played with. He's from Depennia, where darker skin is evidently more common, but it's unclear if Depennia is supposed to be based on any real-world country.
• Cute Mute: Is mute, and rather easy on the eyes. He and Dandelion apparently communicate using a method involving signing in the other person's palm.
• Kill the Cutie: Appears to be gentle, well mannered, and a good mentor to Dandelion. He is later decapitated for his attempt on the King's life.
• Off with His Head!: His ultimate fate.
• Papa Wolf: Once he discovers the King's less savory pastimes, he takes it upon himself to poison his wine, unaware of the Golden Blessing's effects, out of fear that he may one day turn on Dandelion.
• Parental Substitute: Having known Dandelion for most of the boy's life and being responsible for his education, Theo was more or less the one raising him before his return to the palace.
• Really Royalty Reveal: He was a Depennian prince, but was unlikely to inherit the throne as he was only one of several siblings. He had volunteered to become Dandelion's caretaker when the latter was due to return to Goldenleonard.
• The Reveal: He was the mysterious assailant of Episode 21.

The Three Princes

From left to right: The 1st, 2nd, and 3rd princes of Goldenleonard.

Wolfgang's other half-brothers, the three eldest sons of the king. Although they may be only following their father's lead, they also stand as a shining example of the deep-seated flaws of the royal family.

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• Even Evil Has Standards: By chapter 35, the first prince is the only one left standing at the king's side, his brothers having fled at the first opportunity Wolfgang gave them - but it's implied he's following his father out of fear more than anything else, given that he had just beheaded a man in front of him.
• Jerkass Has a Point: The third prince is the only noble not in on the plan to point out that Soohyuk is using Wolfgang as a pawn to gain back his freedom, and even his eventually becoming king of Goldenleonard is only a means to that end. He's not entirely wrong, but by the time he caught on, not only had Soohyuk started to care about Wolfgang as a person, but Wolfgang was already aware that Soohyuk was using him for his own agenda - it just so happens that he and Soohyuk have very similar goals.
• Put on a Bus: The second and third princes are spared via exile during the coup, and have yet to be heard from since.
• Royal Brat: All three of them, as a result of their upbringing.

Major Antagonists

The King of Goldenleonard

A tyrannical hedonist who's more concerned with preserving his own opulence and satisfying his more depraved urges than tending to matters of the state. While his apparent lack of ambition should make the task of overthrowing him a fairly easy one, his rather violent responses to any degree of opposition and determination to preserve his identity as the king decidedly do not.

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• Abusive Parents: Is outright neglectful of the sons he deems unworthy to inherit the throne, such as Wolfgang or Dandelion, is implied to be emotionally manipulative of the ones who actually are loyal to him, and even goes as far as to throw a glass bottle at one's head, implicitly threaten them with decapitation, and uses his firstborn as a Knifeproof Human Shield when Wolfgang eventually comes after him in person.
• Ambition Is Evil: Inverted; he has next to no ambition or desire to actually govern, while his far more heroic son Wolfgang takes an active interest in the kingdom's political and economical climate in order to improve upon it once he becomes ruler.
• Archnemesis Dad: Wolfgang's main adversary throughout Season 1, and his biological father.
• Arc Villain: Is the Big Bad of Season 1.
• The Caligula: Dangerous levels of incompetence? Check. Hair-Trigger Temper with a generous amount of Ax-Craziness? Check. Sexual deviancy? Huge check.
• Despotism Justifies the Means: He couldn't give less of a damn about the state of the kingdom of Goldenleonard, just as long as he gets to rule over it.
• Dying Curse: Delivers one upon being mortally wounded by Wolfgang, but is immediately shot down and beheaded.
• Ephebophile: Apparently attempted to become one after the death of one his favorite boys, declaring that he would no longer take any partners under the age of 15. Naturally, it didn't stick.
• Expy: In terms of appearance, of Father from Fullmetal Alchemist. He also has shades of the same character's cold foreboding, but that seems to be where the similarities end. Haga herself states in the authors' notes that this meant to be homage to the series itself.
• Freudian Excuse Is No Excuse: It's stated In-Universe that it was the king's excess levels of privilege and pampered upbringing that lead him to his current state. Wolfgang even acknowledges the possibility of a Freudian Excuse in Episode 36, but is quick to shoot it down as anything worth finding out.
  Wolfgang: There was a time when I wondered what made you the man that you are... but it matters not anymore. No reason is reason enough... to excuse you of your atrocities.
• Light Is Not Good: Is most often seen in white and gold, and is easily the most depraved character in the comic thus far.
• No Name Given: He's only ever referred to as His Grace, His Majesty, or simply the King.
• Off with His Head!: His ultimate fate is having his head placed on a pike and put on display in the courtyard as proof of his death. Also counts as a Karmic Death, considering he's decapitated dissenters before.
• Paper Tiger: Wolfgang and co. avoid making any actual attempts on his life for years, both in order to focus on the rebellion and because if his use of magic in the past is anything to go by, he's likely a nightmare to go up against. Come the final siege, and it's revealed that he's actually lost his magic abilities, roughly some time between burning down the Luccia estate and targeting Sys' family.