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mobage_manual
Welcome to Recommending Characters! In this section of the blog, I’ll be making an overview of a certain character from one of the franchises I’m into once every two weeks, as well as highlighting their best and most important moments in canon, in hopes that it’ll make the readers interested both in the character and in the game itself!
Today, November 26th, is Mahoyaku’s 4th anniversary! And what’s the best way to celebrate other than featuring a character from this game in today’s entry of Recommending Characters? So here is Heathcliff, yet another wizard from the Eastern country.
Being the only son of a noble family in the East, Heathcliff hasn’t had a lot of chances to interact with others his age, though that’s not the main reason why some of his insecurities are so deep-rooted, and only intensify further after being summoned as a Sage’s wizard and having to carry the responsibility it entails… But I won’t say anything else for now, so let’s more on to his profile!
Profile & General Overview
"I’m not good at talking to others. I can’t even say something interesting..."
Like the other two characters featured from this game, Heathcliff is a wizard from the Eastern country. He was born on June 29th, making him a Cancer, and he’s 1,76m tall, placing him at the same height as Chloe and Rutile, the three of them often being dubbed 176cm group (or 176組/176gumi, in Japanese) because of this. His voice actor is Keisuke Koumoto, whose other work in mobages includes characters like Siams (HELIOS Rising Heroes). Regarding his magic abilities, his magic tool is a pocket watch which he enjoyed taking apart and putting back together when he was younger and he’s good at engraving (he did the engraving in Shino’s scythe, for example). Other details in the Sage’s manual include a few likes and dislikes, as well as royal etiquette being one of his strengths…
… Which is something he was mostly forced to learn during his childhood so as to not make himself and his family look back, as wizards are really frowned upon in the game’s society, and even more in Eastern country. Despite this, Heathcliff’s family was supportive of his identity as a wizard, and hired a magical teacher to train both him and Shino, a servant similar in age to Heathcliff whom he made friends with. However, said teacher tricked the two into making a promise, something extremely risky as if it breaks, which is also what Heathcliff tells the Sage in his Affection Story, so I’ll continue explaining the next section!
Stories:
Location Story and Affection Story
Like I said before, Heathcliff’s Affection Story explores his backstory before being summoned as a Sage’s wizard, as well as his relationship with Shino. The two boys met when the Blanchett family took Shino in as a servant, and after a couple of rough meetings, they were able to make up and become real friends. However, this friendship always stayed a bit rocky, and only intensified when they got tricked into making a promise: to protect each other no matter what. If they broke it, they would lose their magic. This is why the story is called The dilemma of the promise.
But why is Heathcliff troubled by this promise? In general, he’s never wanted to be a wizard as its brought trouble to him and his family, and these feelings get back at him in his Location Story, visiting his home, the Blanchett Castle, in which a ballerina doll he built as a child has been cursed into speaking his thoughts… But I don’t want to spoiler what is probably one of my favorite Heathcliff scenes, so let’s move on to the highlighted event stories!
Event Highlights
Prelude of the Festival of Miracles
(also known as ‘Eastfes’ or ‘East Prelude’)
“They surround the injured Shino and Heathcliff, as if to protect them with their backs. I feel my heart well up with warmth.
The Eastern wizards like being alone.
But when their comrades are hurt — when they are in danger, they will approach them without a second thought, and gather together as one.
They could run away all alone; they could hide all alone. And yet.
This is what I love about them.”
One of the game’s first events, pertaining to the Festival series, but still relevant and interesting nonetheless! I’d say it focuses more on the Eastern wizards as a whole, but Heathcliff still plays a huge role along with Shino, getting involved in a pretty dangerous fight that also touches on his affliction from the Great Calamity discovered at the end of the Main Story – his transformation into a beast. A pretty intense event with a few emotional monologues featuring the Eastern and Northern wizards working together for once!
Rhapsody of the Greenhouse of Smiles and Sunset
(also known as ‘East Rhapsody’)
“Maybe that tree loathes me. Maybe he’s trying to steal Shino from me in revenge.
...The scene in the miniature garden is a sight that I once dreamed of. It’s the very dream I told the orange tree about, time and again.
Maybe that’s why the miniature garden of memories is recreating that vision now.
And when I thought about that, I couldn’t use magic anymore…”
Similar to Nero, Heathcliff didn’t have a permanent event banner until a few series of events had passed, but he finally got his well-deserved focus in this one! On a visit back to Blanchett Castle to do some joint training between Central and East, they detect a spell coming from the greenhouse… Which leads to Shino falling unconscious as a result, the wizards now trying to get him back to reality. A really nice event that dwells a little on Heathcliff’s childhood!
Other stories:
For more of Heathcliff interacting with other characters: Valentines 2021. 176gumi play a big role in this story, helping Chloe overcome his insecurities creating an outfit for a human after still being affected by the rejection he faced in the Main Story. It’s also one of my favorite events, so I just had to mention it somewhere.
Fun-facts:
Heathcliff is actually terrible at waking up in the mornings.
His spell, ‘Repsevaivulp Sunos’, is stated to mean ‘twilight and the sound of rain’, and this mostly true as his spell contains the words ‘vesper’, ‘pluvia’ and ‘sonus’, which come from Latin and mean ‘evening’, ‘rain’, and ‘sound’!
Closing thoughts:
All in all, Heathcliff is a well-loved character by everyone in the manor, even if some tend to tease him more than others, and although his relationship with Shino is quite complicated and rocky due to their recklessness and wishes, it’s slowly developing into something they can both be comfortable with as the two grow on their own. I’ve always liked him because of the conflict his Location and Affection stories offer, which I think lots find relatable, so I was glad I could cover him in an entry!
And with that, this entry is done! Due to a few external factors, I couldn’t work on this as much as I would have liked, but it’s here on time, thankfully! Next up is an entry that I’ve been postponing for a while due to scheduling conflicts, but now it's finally time to work on it! Please look forward to December’s entries.
Credits:
Eastfes and East Rhapsody quotes taken from healingbonds’ translations.
