| “ | It was so hard, keeping secrets from you. I just wanted you to know. | „ |
| ~ Asra |
Asra Alnazar is a wandering magician and the Apprentice's teacher in magic. He is one of the six available love interests.
It is implied there is history of romance between him and the Apprentice, as their first memory is of waking up in Asra's arms. He is intensely fond of the Apprentice regardless of which route the player currently follows. His patron Arcana is The Magician.
Appearance
Asra is a svelte young person with golden brown skin, fluffy white hair, and deep violet eyes. He has a mischievous grin, and dimples appear on his cheeks when he laughs.
Asra wears a baggy white shirt rolled up at the sleeves and has it unbuttoned to reveal his chest. He has a magenta, gold-tasseled shawl wrapped across the shirt. When traveling, he wears a long, sleeveless coat, decorated in a multitude of colors and with the symbol of the Arcana in the corners. A maroon scarf sits across his shoulders, and he occasionally wears a wide-brimmed, black hat with a large, bright feather. His brown and black slacks have decorative gold studs and end in a pair of dark magenta boots. Around his neck, Asra wears a thick gold choker with simple, rounded carvings and a small blue crystal on a thick cord.
Personality
Asra is characterized by a wanderlust and curiosity that often leads him away on mysterious journeys, and he enjoys exploring faraway lands.
To the Apprentice's enduring annoyance, he is often enigmatic and acts ambiguously, especially when pressed about their past. However, he confesses to hate keeping secrets from the Apprentice, and refrains from telling them complete truths only to keep them safe. He is very devoted to and protective of the apprentice, admitting that he journeys partly to escape his overwhelming feelings for them, as he cannot tell them how he feels.
At times Asra is difficult to predict, but he can always be depended upon to arrive whenever the Apprentice needs him. He is free-spirited and sociable, although ultimately private, preferring to spend his time alone or with only the Apprentice. He has a mischievous sense of humor and enjoys teasing others, delighted when he makes them flustered. However, when the teasing is returned, or upon receiving genuine affection, he appears comically uncertain of how to respond. Carefree and content to live in the moment, Asra appears to dislike worrying about the future, and will remind the Apprentice to do the same.
History
Early Life
Asra is the only child of Aisha and Salim, two magicians from the country of Zadith. As a child, Asra would develop magical powers when he attempted to make a tea kettle produce tea for his sick mother. Although his first attempt ended in a messy fiasco, Asra's parents found it amusing. They would later supply him with magical knowledge, mainly through a book on tarot. His father had drawn all the pictures, and his mother supplied the riddles that went along with them. Asra would later use the book to develop his own tarot deck.
When Asra was still a child, Aisha and Salim were employed by the palace and tasked by Count Lucio to construct him a magical prosthetic arm. When it was completed, he had them both thrown in the dungeons, claiming that he didn't want anyone else to know the secret of how the arm worked. In truth, Lucio was instructed by the Devil to imprison the magicians, as he needed them for his own plans. While imprisoned, they were each visited by the Devil, who made deals with them to ensure the safety of their son and spouse; they failed to realize both of them would make the same deal and that it was all a trick until it was too late. Both were subsequently imprisoned, alongside their familiars, in the Arcana Realm for approximately twenty years.
When his parents failed to return from the palace, Asra was left alone and became one of many orphans on the streets of Vesuvia. Asra would begin living in a magical alcove under the docks, where he kept several magical ingredients and items, including the book of tarot his parents had made him. The spirit of the Magician archetype continued Asra's tutelage in magic, appearing to the boy as a purple-eyed, anthropomorphic fox. Seventeen years before the start of the game, Asra met Muriel, another orphan living on the streets, and the two became close friends. They eventually moved to a small hut in the woods, outside of the city.
At some point, another magician gifted Asra with Faust's egg. Faust would become Asra's closest companion and eventually his familiar. Asra also created a tarot deck for himself, choosing the designs and animals based on what he believed fit the archetypes. Eventually, he began to explore places beyond Vesuvia, as well as other magical realms. During his travels, he came to own a small adobe house in Nopal, which he last visited prior to the outbreak of the Red Plague.
Asra met the Apprentice nine years before the start of the game during a Masquerade. He had been giving fortunes and selling masquerade masks behind the shop when they met. Immediately after, the two would watch Nadia's carriage as it arrived in Vesuvia. After this event, the two are implied to have started something of a romantic relationship, although Asra later tells the amnesiac Apprentice that he was frequently away from them and could not often act on his feelings. The two would continue to attend masquerades together, and Asra would eventually move in to the Apprentice's shop.
At the Palace
Sometime during the outbreak of the Red Plague, the Apprentice and Asra found themselves arguing about whether or not to stay in Vesuvia. Ultimately the Apprentice stayed behind to help the people, and Asra left for an undetermined amount of time. Upon returning, he found out the Apprentice had died of the plague and had been cremated at the Lazaret. Broken by their death, he resolved to do one thing: bring the Apprentice back.
Following Lucio's demands and subsequent use of Asra's connection with Muriel to coerce him to work for the Count, he came to work in the palace to help find the cure for the Red Plague, hiding his true intentions from everyone.
While there, he befriended the Countess Nadia and the doctor Julian, and entered into a physical relationship with the latter. The trio appear to have become very close, at one point celebrating Nadia's birthday and embarking on a trip together. Asra would use his time at the palace researching ways to bring the Apprentice back to life rather than finding a cure. Both Muriel and Julian warned him of Lucio's ire, largely due to Asra's flippancy. Asra insisted that he needed the palace's resources, and that Lucio posed no real threat to him while sick. During his stay at the palace, it is clear that Asra missed the Apprentice, telling Faust they had gone to "a place [he] can't follow", and even carving their name into the trunk of his favorite tree.
It was during this time that he gave Julian a raven statuette, which was similar to Muriel's bear figure and the fox, horned owl, and snake statues in his cottage in Nopal. At some point, the relationship between Asra and Julian came to an end, with both retaining resentment towards each other.
Night of the Masquerade
All of Asra 's work in the palace led him to the night of the Masquerade, and his final goal: to bring the Apprentice back. He went about the Masquerade as everyone else did; he was, however, readying himself for the ritual Lucio was going to perform to get himself a new body. During the ritual, Asra would meet with his patron arcana and deal for the apprentice's new body. In return, he had to give half of his heart to them. As this new body was the same as the one Lucio wanted, Asra had to also sabotage the ritual. He would disrupt the part of the ritual that involved drinking Lucio's blood, by substituting it with pomegranate juice. Whatever else he did in regards to manipulating the ritual and his further actions during the rest of the Masquerade are unknown.
At some point, Asra asked Muriel to find Julian and take him to Count Lucio's rooms, which would already be ablaze when they arrived there.
Three-Year Interlude
After the Apprentice's revival and horrific amnesia, Asra spent three years rehabilitating them and re-teaching them magic. Although he tried to restore their memory several times, remembering their past would send them into a catatonic state, and only the erasure of their memories would bring them back to normal. After attempting this several times, he gave up on trying to help them regain their memories out of fear of permanently damaging them. He settled for teaching the Apprentice to meditate whenever remembering caused them to have headaches, warning them not to try and evoke their memory deliberately.
He frequently asked Muriel to check up on the Apprentice while he was away on trips, despite Muriel's dislike of them. Nonetheless, the Apprentice would always forget him.
Prologue Interactions
The game opens with Asra and the Apprentice at the shop. He is introduced as their teacher in magic, and the apprentice calls him their “master,” which Asra appears to not like. It is revealed that Asra is leaving on a journey, to the apprentice's annoyance. Asra tells the Apprentice he is leaving his tarot deck with them. Before he departs, he asks them to read the cards for him to test their skill. The apprentice pulls “The High Priestess,” revealing to Asra that he has forsaken her and ignored her attempts to reach him. Before he can respond further, there is a knock on the door. Asra uses this as an opportunity to leave. When Julian later arrives at the shop, he reveals that he is searching for Asra, and insinuates that he is not who the apprentice thinks he is. After an eventful night, the apprentice goes to bed and dreams about traveling alongside Asra. He tells them that change is coming, and they will soon come to a crossroads and have to decide which path to take. Later in the prologue, while at the palace, the apprentice dreams of Asra once again. They see him going down the wrong path and urge him to stop. A paid choice allows the apprentice to enter a memory from before Asra set out on his journey, where they can question him about leaving them behind.
After Nadia gifts the apprentice an emerald necklace that they feel drawn to, they come to realize the emerald is infused with Asra’s magic. Waiting until midnight, they sneak out of their room and into the gardens, where they discover Asra’s familiar, Faust, hanging from the tree over the garden fountain. Putting the emerald in the water, the apprentice focuses on a spell to find Asra. To both the apprentice and Asra’s great surprise, this opens up a viewing portal for them to communicate through. Asra expresses happiness at Faust being there for the apprentice, while the apprentice regales Asra with what has happened since he left. The apprentice then has the option to ask Asra what either Julian or Nadia mean to him, which he will answer. If the player unlocks the paid option "What do I mean to you?", the apprentice can also ask Asra what they mean to him. This causes Asra to confess his love to them, and hint at his struggle with it. This brings on a sudden headache, however, so Asra has no choice but to wipe the apprentice’s memory of this reveal. Asra tells the apprentice to go to sleep, promising that he will see them soon.
Route
Powers
Asra has a wide range of magical abilities that have barely been seen in-game. Magic in this universe seems to follow a 'Whatever you can imagine, you can make real' rule, so this list will mostly cover key abilities.
- Water : Asra has an affinity for water related magic. The Apprentice was able to reach out to him in another realm through the palace fountain, where they sensed his magic leaking through. He made a dramatic entrance where his form collapsed into sand and reappeared in a waterspout he created.
- Divination : He has a mystical tarot deck that he is well known for and taught the Apprentice to use. The Apprentice can both feel it speaking to them when they do readings, and sense its mystic energies.
- Familiar : Asra and Faust have a special bond. They can telepathically communicate over great distances, but it is not a constant thing. Asra needs to consciously reach out to speak with her.
- Healing : He can heal small cuts with little effort.
- Protection : He uses magical glyphs to ward doors, and weaves protection charms out of dried grass. He has heavy protections on himself to keep Lucio's ghost away from him.
- Illusions : He used a glamour spell to disguise both him and the Apprentice to speak to a fortune teller.
- Teleportation : He unlocked the library portal for the Apprentice and Julian and appeared from seemingly nowhere with a flashy display of smoke when entering the palace.
- Personal Gate : The vibrantly colored oasis is Asra's personal connection to other realms, created by Asra himself.
Relationships
The Apprentice
The Apprentice is a love interest for Asra. He lives with them at their magic shop in the Center City district of Vesuvia. The two are very close despite his frequent absence, which he admits is partly due to how overwhelmed he is by his feelings towards them. The two are revealed to have met 9 years prior at a Masquerade, when Asra was selling animal masks outside of the Apprentice's shop. Story implications imply that the two became romantically involved after their first meeting, although Asra explains that they were never quite as involved as he would have liked.
Sometime during the outbreak of the Red Plague, the Apprentice and Asra argued over whether to stay in Vesuvia or not. Ultimately the Apprentice stayed behind, while Asra left the city for an undetermined amount of time. Upon returning, he found out that the Apprentice had died of the plague and had been cremated at the Lazaret. Devastated, he resolved to bring the Apprentice back to life.
Asra missed the apprentice dearly during the time they were gone. He explains that he was in a very dark place during this time period. When Asra succeeded in reviving the Apprentice, he gave them half of his heart as part of his magical deal, caring more for them than for any consequences he might have faced.
Upon realizing the Apprentice's memory had been wiped clean, Asra focused his time and energy into reteaching them everything they knew, including magic. When reminders of their past left them in a catatonic state, Asra kept his romantic feelings to himself to keep them safe. However, due to how overwhelming these feelings were, Asra frequently left on journeys when the Apprentice was well enough to care for themselves.
The Apprentice often appears to be annoyed by the many secrets that Asra keeps from them, since he cannot even say it is for their own good. Asra cares deeply for them, but is afraid of acting on his feelings. If the two begin a relationship during his route, Asra can focus his attention solely on the Apprentice. Muriel appears to think this behavior is exactly how Asra acted in the past, claiming that the Apprentice and Asra hide away in their own world. During Asra's upright route, however, he lets go of his fears and need to protect the Apprentice so that the two better balance and support each other.
During the other routes, Asra remains supportive and caring towards the Apprentice regardless of who they romance. He often seems to arrive just when they need him.
Faust
Faust is Asra 's familiar. Asra received her as an egg, and she was his constant companion during the years he spent on the streets. The two are incredibly close and inextricably linked. Faust helps Asra temper and control his magic, and without her Asra cannot properly cast spells. Asra is one of the only people who can hear Faust 'talk', and they can communicate telepathically over great distances. The two are rarely seen apart, although Asra frequently uses Faust as his eyes and ears when they are separated.
Julian
Asra and Julian met while working at the palace, helping to find a cure for the Red Plague. The two became friends, and eventually Julian developed romantic feelings towards Asra. Although he was aware of Julian's growing feelings towards him, Asra seemed to view him as an annoyance, claiming that his heart belonged solely to the apprentice. Eventually, however, he acknowledged Julian's desire and the two began a physical relationship.
At some point, their relationship met a messy end for an unknown cause. Story implications suggest Asra may have found out that the Apprentice was once Julian's assistant, and he may blame him for their demise. Regardless, both are bitter about it for different reasons and hurt by their fallout. If the Apprentice asks Asra who Julian is to him, Asra tells them that Julian is whoever he needs to be to get what he wants, and that he is also "a hack physician with a lot to learn." This conversation shows that Asra still feels resentful towards Julian, clearly believing him to be selfish. During Julian's route, Julian admits he had unfair expectations of Asra, and hopes that he is a different man now compared to when they were together. The two eventually make amends and have become friends once more.
During Muriel's route, the Apprentice can note that Asra and Julian have become very close, hinting at the rekindling of their romantic relationship.
Nadia
Asra tells the Apprentice that Nadia was once a dear friend. The two were very close and trusted each other, sharing secrets and talking late into the night. Asra is now a stranger to Nadia, however, due to her memory loss. Asra appears saddened by this, although he has not yet tried to rebuild their relationship. He expresses a belief that she may not want to remember him.
During certain routes, Nadia may begin to remember Asra. Regardless, the two become friendly again, Nadia once more trusting Asra and his abilities.
Muriel
Muriel is Asra's oldest friend. They grew up together on the streets of Vesuvia, meeting seventeen years before the start of the game. The two lived around the wharf alongside other orphans, although they became singled out early on and would frequently only interact with each other. At a certain point, the two moved into a hut in the woods near Vesuvia. Asra appears to have taught Muriel some magic during this time. To make money, Muriel carved and painted Masquerade masks for Asra to sell in the city. Although Asra tries to recall their childhood fondly, Muriel describes it as 'bad.' When the two were older, Muriel became the champion fighter of Lucio's coliseum in order to protect Asra, while Asra also did unsavory tasks for Muriel's protection without either knowing of the other's arrangement until later on. It appears Lucio singled them out after meeting them as children and being shown defiance.
In the present, Muriel watches over the Apprentice when Asra is out of town. Although Muriel appears to dislike the Apprentice, he will begrudgingly do whatever Asra asks due to their closeness. When Muriel finds the Apprentice in his hut alone, he is initially hostile to them until Asra returns. During Nadia's route, Muriel and Asra appear to start a romantic relationship.
Lucio
Asra has extreme dislike for Lucio, due to his blatant narcissism and selfishness. Given the nature of the Count's personality, the feeling was likely mutual. As a child, Asra was one of the only orphans to stand up to Lucio and show him defiance, which would later cause Lucio to single him out. At some point, Lucio revealed to Asra that he was responsible for the disappearance of his parents. This caused Asra to harbor an intense grudge against him that would only build on his existing dislike.
During Asra's route, Asra, the apprentice, and Nadia play a game of truth or dare to bait Lucio. During the game, Asra admits that Lucio was the one person Asra could never forgive and thus, never forget. Later on, Lucio laments that Asra is impossible to hate and impossible to love. During several routes, when Lucio returns, Asra shows thinly veiled hate and impatience towards him.
Although Asra is supportive of the Apprentice's relationships with other love interests, he seems slightly uncomfortable and worried when the Apprentice pursues a relationship with Lucio.
Trivia
- Although referred to with he/him pronouns in-game, Asra is canonically non-binary.
- Some inspirations for him came from Howl Jenkins and Yoshitaka Amano’s art for Vampire Hunter D.
- The name Asra is of Arabic origin, which means "travel at night".
- He is known to have unusual tastes in food. Among his less eccentric favourites are rainbow sorbet and blue raspberries.
- Julian is the most impulsive thing that he has ever done.
- His favorite season is Spring.
- He knows how to do cool showy knife tricks.
- He speaks three languages.
- He has an airy, intimate voice.
- He has very soft hair.
- His sleeping habits are 'predictably unpredictable'.
Gallery
