Darius

Darius (ダリウス, Dariusu) is one of the main characters in Harukanaru Toki no Naka de 6 and its sequel. He becomes the Seiryu of Earth (地の青龍, Chi no Seiryuu) for this era in the majority of its scenarios.

He has an image song called Nise Ri no Kyoukai Sen.

Background Story
Aside from being raised within a demon village, Darius's origins are not clear. He apparently lived a peaceful life and was naturally blessed with the most powerful abilities of his people. Four years before the main setting, the legs of the previous chief were ailing and plans were made for his eldest son to succeed him. However, the heir was inept with their clan's powers and the people worried about their future. Upon witnessing the heir's agonizing training firsthand, Darius offered Rudkhane another solution: relinquish the traditional order of succession in favor of judging a chief by their own merits. Rudkhane convinced his father to accept the idea and Darius was soon named the next chief.

Once Darius proved himself worthy to be chief, he was entrusted with the clan's ancient Chieftain Mask. The mask is seeped with centuries of each chief's powers and powerful yin energy. It greatly heightens the wearer's spells, letting them tap into the clan's most archaic techniques. Yet the mask is also drenched with the raw hatred and madness of many prosecuted generations. While he is disturbed by the mask's effects on him and its untold potential, Darius will resort to using it if it will achieve his means.

A year later, Darius had an optimistic view of the clan's future. He believed that they could somehow use their powers to benefit both human and demon society, wanting to do something to bridge the gap. Seishiro visited the demon village and proposed Darius with a trade. The demons would become government spies into foreign territory in exchange for the village's peaceful coexistence. Darius hesitated until Seishiro appealed to the demon's nationalism, insisting that the effort would be a great service to the country's future; only then did Darius agree.

The demons kept their end of the bargain; Seishiro did not. Under the guise of friendship, the commander-in-chief had members of the Demon Clan guide him to the seeds for the clan's forbidden flowers. He then had his escorts executed and proceeded to manufacture horrific experiments on soldiers using the demon flower's miasma. These experiments led to vengeful spirits being conjured within the imperial capital. Darius learned of the deception too late and demanded that the experiments be stopped at once. Seishiro responded by publicly placing the blame of the vengeful spirits solely on the Demon Clan, letting time-tested prejudices do the rest of the work. It took everything Darius had to escape with his scattered people, and only Darius survived to keep the truth.

Seeking to correct his grave error, Darius started gathering resources for his revolution. His main goal is to locate and destroy the main laboratory for Seishiro's supernatural militarization through any means possible. His secondary goal is to overthrow Seishiro. Darius is well aware that toppling the capital's most influential official would only worsen the public's opinions about demons so he originally planned to do it by himself. Rudkhane swore to be his ally to the bitter end. He had the rest of his people relocated to a faraway island away from the capital.

Darius set up a barrier around his manor near the capital and posed as a foreign antiques dealer. During his monthly selling periods, he also established a working relationship with Murasame in exchange for learning anything new regarding the Imperial Army's laboratories.

Once he becomes aware that the Black Dragon Priestess was scheduled to be summoned, Darius feared that the Dragon Priestesses would only be used to bolster Seishiro's plans for global militarization. He devises a bold plan to steal her from the Imperial Army's clutches the instant she is summoned. Realizing that he would need more muscle for his revolution, Darius hires Tora about eleven months before the priestess's prophesied arrival.

A week before the main story, the Demon Clan receives word that the Imperial Army intend to preform the priestess summoning ritual. Intrigued, Darius warps alone into the dimensional portal and arrives in the Quiz Battle Toukiden world. He discreetly observes the Slayer's movements from afar. Although he is bemused by his foreign surroundings, Darius is content to have the chance to assess the Imperial Army's capabilities before starting his rebellion. He then heads back to his own world. Lady Akatsuki briefly senses his presence but figures that it was her imagination. After Darius's departure, his sentiments manifest into a Mitama to help the Slayer.

Story Events
On June 18, the prophesied date of the Black Dragon Priestess's summoning, Darius and his comrades storm the Imperial Army's grounds and Darius sweeps a dumbfounded Azusa off her feet. Using his teleportation powers, he warps him and his companions away to safety. Before he can further discuss his plans, Azusa bites his hand. Her rebellious act surprises Darius enough to lose his grip on her. Although they quickly catch up to her before she is killed by a vengeful spirit, Darius remembers her unexpected fiery streak and privately catalogs it away as an element to consider for the future.

When Azusa faints, Darius proceeds with his original plan: raise the Black Dragon Priestess's powers until she is strong enough to summon the Black Kirin. Until then, she is his honored guest at his manor in the Enchanted Forest. He and Rudkhane debrief her the basics regarding her new surroundings, the Enchanted Forest, and the Demon Clan. When the topic touches on the Imperial Army, they state that simply that they aren't on friendly terms and must be stopped. They tell her that she can return to her home world once she gathers enough yin energy from defeated vengeful spirits; Azusa has her doubts but innocently believes them, trusting them as she sees more of the parallel world herself. They ease Asuza into her new priestess duties by patrolling with her around the capital. During one of their daily strolls into the capital, Darius eventually introduces Azusa to Café Haikaraya and Murasame.

As Azusa's priestess powers matures, she has a premonition of the spiritually possessed and defends an amnesic youth suffering its symptoms. He can't remember his real name so Azusa names him Kohaku after the color of his eyes (topaz). Darius immediately recognizes Kohaku as an atypical spiritually possessed and seeks to study him, hoping to gain more information about the laboratories and his experiences. Darius keeps quiet about his private agenda, instead offering to employ and shelter Kohaku for as long as he wishes. To instill camaraderie in their new group, Darius invites them to the lake in the Enchanted Forest and enjoy a meteor shower together.

Murasame informs them that the White Dragon Priestess's summoning draws near a month later at Mount Atago. Darius doesn't elaborate for Azusa or Kohaku about their true purpose, only stressing that it is necessary to keep the White Dragon Priestess away from the Imperial Army. On the night of the summoning, Darius teleports everyone to the mountain. This time, their infiltration is expected and Kudan's powerful barrier keeps the Demon Clan out. Darius resorts to using his trump card: he dons the Chieftain Mask and draws the Black Kirin out of Azusa's body against her will.

The mystical beast blasts through the barrier and, without Azusa consciously controlling it, runs amok. As the Black Kirin's rampage kills many in its path, Darius uses the chaos to teleport himself directly to the summoning site. He smashes the Star Clan's Dragon Gem to prevent the selection of the Eight Guardians and tries to apprehend the confused Chiyo. Kudan shields Chiyo, and Darius tries to beat the Star Clan sorcerer away. Azusa's panicked pleas and Chiyo's resonance with her causes Darius to relent, hoping to cut off the priestesses's combined powers before they grow to be threat against him. He teleports his group away from the mountain. Although their mission ends in failure, Darius is content to have at least severely weakened the White Dragon Priestess.

Darius attempts to explain his revolution to Azusa, but she is so stricken by the bloodshed and her unintentional involvement to listen. Instead, he insists that they should return to the manor together. His suddenly cold tone causes Azusa to reject him. She challenges him for her freedom, but Darius swiftly overpowers her. Seeing that she is too upset to listen to anything he has to say, Darius has Azusa locked away in her room in the manor. He intends to tell her more about his revolution with time but he also can't afford letting her escape, especially when he suspects the Imperial Army will be on high alert. Until then, Darius and Rudkhane decide to sell antiques at a fair for funds and to gauge the Imperial Army's censorship of Mount Atago. The fair lasts five days throughout the daytime hours. He orders Tora and Kohaku to guard Azusa in his absence.

Although Darius becomes aware of Azusa's discreet activities, he overlooks them. On the last day of the fair, however, he senses a powerful divine energy while entering the manor and realizes that she came into contact with the White Dragon Priestess. Darius interprets this to mean that she is trying to seek asylum with the Imperial Army. Before Azusa is brought her dinner, Darius loses his temper and privately confronts her. When Darius grabs her wrist too hard and claims to have ownership over her, Azusa panics and inwardly prays for someone to save her. Her thoughts resonates with Chiyo's, and their combined priestess powers breaks through the barrier around the manor and reunites the priestesses.

Losing Azusa is a dent in Darius's plans, but he works his way around it. While he continues his antique trade, Darisu quickly surmises that Murasame is covertly forming a political group and appeals to him to take action, especially when Seishiro publicly announces the formation of the disastrous Force Protection Squad. When a portion of the Force Protection Squad turn into the spiritually possessed in the city streets, Darius and his companions subdue the sane squad leader, one of Seishiro's trusted subordinates. Darius uses his mask to force the man to reveal the location of Seishiro's main laboratory, which is located in the basement of Ryuonkaku. Kohaku's exposure to the spiritually possessed and his own fatigue from using the mask halts Darius's actions for a brief period.

When they recover, Darius and his group attempt to discover a method for breaking the Four God barrier without relying on the Dragon Priestesses. Learning from his own sources that it is impossible, Darius decides to personally appeal to Azusa on the night of the military ball. By now, he concludes that the Black Dragon Priestess has seen enough of the corruption within the Imperial Army to listen to him. Darius promises to tell her the truth about his revolution and the Imperial Army on the night of September 1 at Ryuonkaku. Azusa agrees. Darius is summoned for the challenge against Seiryu, fleeing from the Elite Squad after his role with the divine beast is finished.

Keeping true to his promise, Darius and company tell Azusa everything when she arrives at their promised location. They plan to use explosives to destroy the laboratory. After they topple Seishiro, they plan to remove the military in the capital in favor of fair governance run by Darius and Murasame.

Their movements are noticed by Seishiro who surrounds them in the laboratory with an armed gun squad. The demons easily overwhelm them. Before Darius can kill Seishiro, the Elite Squad's entry interrupts him. Darius dispels their aggressions towards the demons by telling them about their surroundings, causing the Imperial Army to lose faith in Seishiro. Seeing the immediate threat of the unleashed spiritually possessed, Darius and company temporarily join forces with the Elite Squad. In the majority of story routes, he is donned the Seiryu of Earth when Chiyo uses her powers to restore the broken Dragon Gem. If the player chooses, he may be a party participant for the final battle.

The default route has Darius and his comrades withdraw from the story after Seishiro's defeat. They do nothing to help the fight against Kagutsuchi.

In the best ending, Kagutsuchi is temporarily immobilized by Azusa's Black Dragon Priestess powers. Darius teleports himself to the roof of Ryounkaku to investigate. The evil god's miasma is too much for him to handle by himself so he teleports away. From the sky, he sees Murasame in the city streets and warps quickly to his side. Darius learns of the people's paranoia and brings Murasame with him to the entrance at Ryounkaku. They play a minor prank on the panicking soldiers. After they defeat Kagutsuchi, Darius works to help rebuild the ruined capital. He happily attends Azusa's informal victory party.

Personal Route
One day after exterminating vengeful spirits, Azusa starts to feel homesick. She tries to distract herself from dwelling by going on an evening stroll. As she wanders in the Enchanted Forest, she loses her way back to the manor. Darius, having just returned from his work, finds her through teleportation and lightly chastises her. He explains that the forest is protected by Rudkhane's barrier, and his dimensional distortions and illusions to distort reality around the manor; if someone were to wander into the forest without knowing the proper way, they could be lost forever. As Azusa ponders the supernatural powers, he asks if she is now afraid of him. Azusa is too embarrassed by Darius leaning close to her and calling her his destiny that she can't answer him. Darius gently holds her hand like she is a lost child on their walk back to the manor together.

After Azusa retires to her room, Rudkhane serves Darius tea. The teenager addresses his concerns about their lax security over Azusa, citing this as the second time that she has tried leaving the manor unintended. Darius is charmed by her innocent wish for a walk and defends her for it. He invites his comrade to treat her nicely in their time together. The chief gladly lets Azusa access to his library of history books and tries to make food for her. Azusa is attracted to his merriness and affection for everyone at the manor throughout these encounters.

One day, Azusa spots Darius taking care of Dahlia flowers outside the manor. She offers to help him in gratitude for everything he has done for her, but he has already finished. He says she can entertain him over a cup of lemonade. While they relax, Azusa inquires about the Demon Clan and their current whereabouts. Upon remembering the commentary that she had heard from the citizens in the capital, Azusa comments that she is sad to hear that the demons are so blindly persecuted. Darius thanks her for the sentiments. Azusa remarks that life at his village sounds like a comfortable living. Darius proposes for her hand in marriage, complimenting her as an ideal bride for him. Despite her embarrassment, Azusa seriously considers the proposal and requests that he wait for her answer. Darius begins to laugh at her and reveals that he was half-joking. When Azusa starts to get upset, Darius promises an apology and asks her to lend him her ear. She expects him to whisper into it; he kisses it and apologizes sweetly. As she stammers, Darius chuckles at her reaction and walks away. She is left doubting his trustworthiness.

Darius happens to have a free day so he invites Azusa to go with him to Ginza. He insists on holding her hand the entire way, much to Azusa's embarrassment. When Azusa overhears two women expressing their envy, Azusa realizes that they're on a date. She starts to feel subconscious about her appearance, even when Darius praises her. She thinks he is half-lying again, despite his insistence to the contrary. He brings Azusa to a clothing store and has her dressed up in a outfit of his choosing. Azusa likes it but frets when Darius wants to buy the entire outfit for her as a gift; she doesn't want to impose more on him than she already has with her stay. Darius relents to buying one piece of the outfit: a teardrop necklace.

Azusa is happy to see Darius enjoying himself during the date, but she can't help wondering if he is only being nice to her because of her circumstances. Her concerns intensifies when she sees Darius patting Kohaku's head in the same way as he once did for her. She later decides to show off the necklace to him at his office as a show of her appreciation. Darius is initially confused by her entry and her flustered apology for wasting his time. He notices the necklace and sincerely compliments her. After she leaves with a merry heart, Darius is troubled by his own reaction. He didn't expect to feel anything for her.

During the afternoon hours of one of their patrols at Tokyo Station, Azusa feels fatigued and nearly faints. Darius catches her. He explains that gathering yin energy must be taking a toll on her body and requests for her to rest for the remainder of the day. With Azusa in his arms, he teleports them back to his manor. He explains again that he is only taking responsibility for what he has done to her. Azusa thinks he is only referring to her physical burden and accepts that it's simply a part of her duties. She warmly thanks Darius for his kindness and promises to do her best to repay him and everyone in the Demon Clan. In spite of his inhibitions, Darius swoops Azusa into his arms again and admits that she is cuter than he had anticipated. Azusa wonders if that should be meant as an insult in her embarrassment; he answers that he means it. Darius carries Azusa back to her bed, but the wavering she noticed in his eyes worries her.

Later, Azusa senses that Darius is troubled about something and goes to comfort him in his office. She politely intrudes, interrupting him while he is deep in thought. While he contemplates on how to address her, Azusa babbles about her joy staying at the manor, feeling that she could stay at Darius's room forever. He gets her to rethink her sentiments, wishing to know if she would forever give up her home world to be with him. Realizing the gravity of her words, Azusa stammers to answer. Darius realizes he is fooling himself and cuts her off. He reasons to her that since she is going to her home world soon enough, they should act appropriately as host and guest while they prepare to retake the White Dragon Priestess. He tells himself that he should end this while he can, knowing that he will inevitably hurt her with his plans.

While he is deeply hurt by what transpires during Mount Atago, Darius feels he can't afford to give up his revolution for anyone. He knows that he has betrayed Azusa's trust in him but gently requests for her return to his manor. On top of being traumatized by the deaths she witnessed, Azusa becomes afraid of him, thinking that he could use the mask on her again at any moment. Darius continues to subdue Azusa and lock her away in his manor, but makes a stronger effort afterwards to try to have her understand his revolution. On his first visit, he delivers dinner to her room. Azusa braces herself and reiterates her earlier refusal to him. She strains her courage to face him, losing her appetite afterwards.

On the second night, Darius looks at his Dahlias and remembers about the tree next to Azusa's second-story window. He immediately deduces that she has been running away during the day. Rudkhane had finished baking cream puffs to lift Azusa's spirits. Darius delivers them to her himself. She doesn't tell him the truth about her activities, fearing that he may be onto her. Although his outward demeanor doesn't change, Darius force-feeds her a cream puff with an air of intimidation. Azusa knows that he is upset and pleads for him to stop. Ashamed and frustrated with himself, Darius takes the dessert away and broods in the dining hall.

The next morning, Darius uses the mask to strengthen the barrier around the manor. He is surprised when he removes it and sees Rudkhane gesture to his hand, which had ripped off the head of a Dahlia without him noticing. Darius figures that it is likely the mask's influence and promises to keep himself in check in the future. Before he heads to work, Darius visits Azusa and gifts the Dahlia to her as an apology for the night before. Azusa is unsure of what to think about him and remains distant. He understands and allows her to take her time. He still hopes to tell her everything once she's ready.

As he and Rudkhane return from the last day of the fair, he shares his plans to go out with Azusa the next day to lift her spirits. They notice the divine energy within the air, and Darius immediately confronts his guardsmen about it. He gets them to confess about sneaking Azusa out of the manor. When he sees Azusa privately, Darius knows that it's already too late for him to do anything to stop her. Instead, he steps behind her and moves her hair away from her neck. Azusa is terrified but surprised when he simply ties the teardrop necklace around her neck. He apologizes for hurting and using her, giving the necklace away as his final parting gift. He figures that she probably wouldn't have wanted to listen to him even if he told her about her revolution from the start due to the all-too-familiar prejudice demons have experienced. He confesses her time with him truly made him happy as Chiyo's prayers begin to resonate with her earlier thoughts of running away from him. As she begins to disappear, Darius hopes she'll learn much while she is away from him and admits he'll feel lonely without her. His parting words leaves Azusa torn about her decision and her feelings for him.

While Azusa adjusts to her new living conditions with the Imperial Army, she notices one night in her room that the teardrop necklace has been in her pocket the entire time. Her thoughts return to Darius and, although she is still hurt to think about the horrible things he had done to her, she can't bring herself to forget about him and continues to carry the necklace with her. As she patrols with her Imperial Army comrades, Azusa remembers the happier moments that she shared with Darius such as his love for Dahlias and their date in Ginza. When she walks near the Enchanted Forest, Azusa finally remembers Darius's pained expression and his personal laments. She realizes that her fear at his touch had hurt him in their final parting and wants to apologize to him.

The fireworks festival nearly a month after her departure from the Enchanted Forest brings people from all corners of the capital to celebrate, including Darius and his comrades. Azusa spots them enjoying themselves and breaks away from her comrades to give chase. While Darius and company flee, the spiritually possessed attacks the festival grounds. Azusa and her comrades in the Imperial Army pacify the threat, so she quickly resumes her lone search for Darius. As she runs in the vague direction of Darius's escape, she distances herself from the festival grounds and cries his name. In her haste, she trips on a rock. Darius catches Azusa as she falls, exasperated by her persistence. He teleports them to the roof of Tokyo Station. Although he didn't want to see her, Darius wants their chat to remain uninterrupted.

Congratulating her battle against the spiritually possessed, Darius ventures the possibility of her accusing the demons for sending them to attack the festival. Azusa retorts that she would never make a claim without proper evidence. She instead shows him the teardrop necklace she had in her pocket and apologizes for being afraid of him. She asks him to put it on her again to prove to both of them that she is no longer afraid of him. As he complies, Azusa is pleased to validate her sentiments to herself and gushes over the necklace. Darius humorlessly warps them back to Kasenshiki. He retorts that they were both using one another and they have their own responsibilities to deal with now. Darius warps away before she can express herself, leaving her more distraught than before.

In spite of the reality of being on opposing sides, Azusa swiftly comes to the conclusion that she hasn't truly made amends with Darius and wants to try again. When the Imperial Army receives a threatening letter and the Elite Squad investigate it, Azusa uses this as a chance to enter the Enchanted Forest and question Darius about it herself. Arima permits her solo gambit only if she promises to return within thirty minutes. Her presence is dully noted by the chief who meets her by the forest's lake.

When asked about the letter, Darius admits he didn't send it but he may have a hand in supporting it. He rouses Azusa to think of him as her enemy; she can't. Rather than proceed with that line of thinking, Azusa bashfully confesses that she can never forget about Darius and her precious memories staying in the Enchanted Forest. Her honesty catches him off guard, so Darius tries to redirect the conversation back to their enemy ties. He teleports both of them within the cold waters of the lake and threatens to drown her or lock her up again. Despite his efforts to hide it, Azusa knows that Darius is actually afraid of getting his hopes up and being rejected again because he is a demon. She repeats her absolute trust in him and assures him with a hug from her free arm. Stunned at first, Darius eventually sighs and drops all pretense. Once Azusa affirms that she will accept him for what he is, he warmly returns the embrace. Darius uses his powers to dry her from the lake and to grant her an easy path to her waiting comrades. As she sheepishly answers Arima's inquiries about the letter, Azusa is beaming at the thought of lifting the sorrow from Darius's eyes.

Following Tomobe's spiritually possessed attack, Azusa excuses herself from the military ball to rest near the garden. Darius greets her with the same fondness he did when they first met. He orders Rudkhane and Tora to stand guard from a distance, wishing to speak to Azusa alone. After she shares her assessments that the spiritually possessed may be coming from within the military and that Darius and Murasame may be trying to stop it, Darius pats her head to congratulate her. She embarrassingly remarks the gesture is demeaning; Darius teases that she didn't mind his touch at the lake before entrusting her to break the Four God seal around Ryounkaku. He leaves her with flattering remarks about her evening dress and teleports him and his comrades away.

After Darius helps with lifting Seiryu's seal, he leaves a note in Azusa's pocket, telling her to meet him around Tokyo Station. When she appears, Darius thanks her and offers to talk. He promises to take two hours of her time before warping them to his manor. Rudkhane is stupefied to see Azusa but quickly prepares teas and snacks to accompany her visit.

In his office, Darius applauds Azusa for lifting the seal over Ryounkaku and for finally lending an ear to his view about his revolution. He tells her about his past deal with Seishiro and clarifies that he seeks to restore the capital to its rightful state before it's too late. If his plans don't succeed on September 1, he has to rely on the mask. Azusa freezes upon seeing it, as she is still afraid of it. Sensing a strange power emitting from the mask, she implores Darius to refrain from using it. She reasons that he can't fight a revolution with a tool that manipulates people. Not wanting to scare her, Darius promises to not use the mask. Once business is out of the way, Darius embraces Azusa and brings her with him onto his couch. As he dotes over her, Azusa chastely asks if he loves her. He replies he does and wants to know her thoughts. Despite her timidness, she confesses her love for him. Darius proposes to her again with complete honesty this time, requesting that she consider being his wife after she is done with her priestess duties. Azusa promises she will, to his relief.

Outside the office door, Rudkhane accidentally overhears them with a replacement teapot. He ushers Kohaku away from the spot at once, shyly uttering that he will have to someday look into arranging a wedding. Azusa is later returned to the Military Residence as promised. To honor his promise with Azusa, Darius stores the Chieftan Mask in a drawer in his office.

Seishiro is defeated, Kagutsuchi is on the loose, and Chiyo uses the last of her powers to don the Eight Guardians. Before the dragon god can spiral its way up Ryounkaku, Darius teleports with Arima and Azusa to the roof. They challenge the malevolent god together while their comrades work together to safely evacuate the crumbling skyscraper. Azusa and the Seiryu Guardians try but can't overpower the god with their current strength. Before Azusa is hit by Kagutsuchi, the mask has magically warped to them and shields her. Wanting to save the capital at any costs, Darius apologizes for breaking his promise and dons the mask to subdue Kagutsuchi. The other Eight Guardians are warped by the mask to the rooftop, allowing them to challenge the god again.

They succeed in slaying the god's body; however, the mask's massive yin energy acts like a magnet for Kagutsuchi's miasma. The god's soul overwhelms and takes over Darius. Darius tries to warn Azusa, but the god takes over and slashes her with Darius's weapon. Before the others resort to killing Darius, Azusa rises and speaks to Darius. His soul briefly regains enough control to resist the mask and Kagutsuchi. He can't restrain Kagutsuchi completely so he warps away to save his comrades. Azusa collapses from her injury.

In her dreams, the Black Dragon urges her to awaken. She does within a hospital and is informed that Darius has fled into the Enchanted Forest. The Elite Squad have already barricaded the public away from Kagutsuchi's miasma, while Kudan and Rudkhane try to break the barrier around the forest. Arima doesn't personally condone bringing the wounded Azusa with them yet concedes to her demand; he wants to save Darius and Azusa is the only one who could reach through to him. Meanwhile, Darius has strengthened the barrier around the Enchanted Forest. He tries but fails to remove the mask containing Kagutsuchi by himself.

By the time Azusa arrives at the Enchanted Forest, Kudan and Rudkhane haven't made much progress with the barrier. Their conversation is interrupted by an angry mob of civilians carrying torches. They know that a demon is in the forest and they want it burned to the ground. They identify Rudkhane as a demon and blame him for the capital's current woes. An angry civilian stones Rudkhane. Trying his best to keep his composure, the teenager remonstrates the mob by stating Darius's goals for peace; he's frustrated that even though Darius has given up everything for them, they can't even try to understand him just because of his race. Kohaku and the Elite Squad support their comrade's words, but the mob refuses to be soothed. They cry that they won't be fooled by the demon's words. Azusa is horrified by their denial but can't rebuke them since she was once not so different.

She focuses her energies on saving Darius and remembers about the Black Kirin. Believing herself powerful enough to control it, she rushes past the crowd with Kohaku and Rudkhane close behind her. The Elite Squad hold the angry mob at bay until Murasame and Tora arrive. Murasame offers to oversee the blockade himself until Kudan drags him along for his Guardian duties. The Guardians leave control of the mob to their respective groups and proceed further within the forest. While she still has negative memories about her mystical beast, Azusa sets them aside to successfully summon the Black Kirin. The remaining Eight Guardians regroup and ride the Black Kirin directly to Darius.

Kagutsuchi lashes out at Azusa when they dismount; the Black Kirin protects her and vanishes soon after. Darius regains control long enough to reveal that his mind has nearly fused with Kagutsuchi. He tells Azusa and the other Eight Guardians to kill him before the evil god can complete its awakening. Everyone objects, but Darius loses control before they can debate any further. Inspired by Chiyo and Darius's determination, Azusa readies herself. She commands everyone to fight and to believe in her. The group quells Darius's rampage long enough for Azusa to fire a final shot at his mask. Her bullet contains all of her priestess powers and her prayer to her dragon god to save Darius. The mask flies off, Kagutsuchi is defeated, and Darius falls. Rudkhane wails at his master's apparent demise, but Azusa confirms that he is still alive in a coma.

Peace has been restored to the capital, yet Azusa can't go back to her home world. She sacrificed that chance in order to live with Darius. While he sleeps on a bed in the Enchanted Forest, Azusa resides at his manor. A year passes. In that span of time, she works with Murasame and the other demons to publish a book in the capital containing the history of the Demon Clan, hoping to dissolve the prejudice they have suffered. The rest of the Demon Clan are making plans to return to their hidden village near the capital. Every day during her wait, Azusa tells the slumbering Darius about her day and presents him with a pink Dahlia. On the day of the book's first publication, Azusa finally entertains a childhood fairytale and kisses Darius. She scoffs to herself when he doesn't wake up but gives in to her loneliness. She cries for the first time in a year. Darius opens his eyes and holds the weeping Azusa. When their comrades return to see the lovers embracing, Rudkhane hurries Kohaku and Tora back to the manor so he can start the wedding plans. During the wedding, Darius confesses he had heard Azusa in his dreams but couldn't feel that he could rise until she cried. They happily reaffirm their affections for one another before they exchange their vows.

Development
Following the theme of returning to the series's roots, Ruby Party made Darius to fit Akram's position into the story and to instill warm feelings of nostalgia for Haruka 2 players. The reference to both characters is purposefully done through the Chieftain Mask both characters wear and their ties to the Black Dragon Priestess. Although his general role for the main scenario was decided quickly, his personal route was an endless struggle for the writers; they wanted to keep his darker traits without making him appear too nefarious to love. At one point, they considered rewriting the main story to accommodate his route. They instead chose to go with the theme of "loneliness" for Darius and made his separation from Azusa an essential component for their romance.

Following the theme of other demons in the series, Darius is a Persian name. Ruby Party was particularly attached to the Greek Dareîos and the meaning, "he who holds firm to good." Everything about Darius, from his vocal performance and his visual design, was made to reflect his name's varying etymologies. Suzumura was instructed to sound "mysterious and charismatic", but the director feels he didn't quite nail the character until the voice director told Suzumura to "sound like a Frenchman." The golden chains, multiple rings, fur-trimmed trinket, and one-shouldered mantle are meant to give him a worldly and regal image. Designers call him a mysterious, beautiful prince with shades of childish charm.

The demons in this narrative were devised to use inconspicuous weaponry that could be used to fight on a moment's notice as a contrast to their Imperial Army counterparts. Darius was given the sword cane as a symbol of his wealth and to further differentiate himself from his demon comrades.

Character Symbolism
Darius's symbolic item is the Dahlia flower which is a synonymous namesake for the feminine form of his name in Japanese katakana (Daria). The flower was first brought to Japan by the Dutch during the Edo Period. Since the fully bloomed Dahlia resembled the Chinese peony and originated from the West, the Dahlia was mistakingly named "the Tianzhu (Indian) peony" in archaic records.

In France, the Dahlia flower was said to be favored by Joséphine, Napoleon's wife, who often boasted about the giant Dahlias she had cultivated. She obstinately refused to give away any of its bulbs and took pride in her creations. One of her maids defied her and stole a Dahlia bulb, keeping it within her room to bloom. Once Joséphine learned about the stolen flower, she dropped all interest in Dahlias. It's due to her cold reaction that the flower can mean volatility or betrayal in the flower language. Dahlias can positively mean splendor and appreciation. The pink Dahlias especially represent a maiden's sincerity.

His symbolic color is sky blue.

Gameplay

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 * , undefined: Darius launches the enemy up into the air, and slashes them three times with his cane.
 * ,, undefined: He slashes the enemy and stuns them.
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 * ,, , , , undefined: He clicks his fingers to keep the enemy up in the air, and then summons lightning.


 * Dashing :
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 * Darius puts on his mask and summons a ball of energy to blow the enemy away.

Talismans
If Arima and Darius have their Eight Guardian talismans equipped and start a co-op attack together, they will summon Seiryu on their target.

Visit Darius's favorite spots at least once in a single playthrough to unlock Penghou on the map. Defeat it at least once at Hibiya Park to obtain his last talisman. If Darius and Rudkhane have their last talismans equipped and start a co-op attack together, they will perform a powerful non-elemental attack on their target.