Crusch Karsten

Crusch Karsten (クルシュ・カルステン) is the Matriarch of House Karsten and a candidate to become the 42nd King of Lugnica.

Appearance
Crusch is a beautiful woman with amber eyes and long dark green hair that reaches to the middle of her back. Even though she is a woman, she generally tends to dress as a man, and is described to be someone whose impression changes if she wears a dress and smiles.

Personality
While normally calm and serious, Crusch is honest, sincere, right, being a type of person who is destined to stand above others, though she has talent and has worked hard to reach where she is now. She is already the head of her family, finishing her work better than her father. She prefers to act herself and has the pride of a warrior. Crusch is also gentle, often believing the false knowledge jokingly told to her by Ferris, and sometimes displays an airheaded side. Like her mother Helena Karsten, she is shown to be ruthless and reckless.

Crusch is also dense toward any feelings of love above kindness, often not understanding why certain people behave a certain way, such as when she sometimes didn't understand Fourier's behavior. However, this only applies to feelings of love directed towards herself, as she has been shown to comment on the feelings of others.

History
Crusch was born as the only daughter and heir to Karsten family, one of the most powerful noble families in Lugnica. Even as child she considered an oddity among the nobility for being mature more than other children her age. Moreso as a girl who favored things like weapons over finery. As she grew older Crusch would developed a preference for men's clothing, and take on more masculine pursuits like learning swordplay which earned rumors about her from other nobles. Crusch held a strong fascination with history of Lion Kings (獅子王 Shishiō) which would come to serve as the basis for her radical but conflicted ideas about Lugunica present state. Her close friendships with both Fourier and Ferris would further have a huge influence on these aspects of herself and facilitate finding the balance between Crusch as a woman and Crusch the as noble she felt needed to become lead House Karsten.

On Crusch's 17th birthday an incident with Great Rabbit occured in the Karsten lands. Her efforts and leadership there would latter play a crucial role in her father passing down the position as the of head of family to her couple weeks afterward. Several years later, Crusch would catch wind of trouble afoot at House Arygle, through an report by her advisers. Not wanting this to burden Ferris whom still had trauma from his time with the Argyles nor let what was happening affect her attendant's standing among the knights in a very delicate period that would decide his future, Crusch would endeavor to take of the problem quietly herself and confer with Fourier to keep Ferris away from it.

Crusch would directly head to Argyle estate to confront Biehn Argyle and Miles to learn the truth of the matter. After a tense conversation Crusch would fall into a trap she is drugged by the scent of odorless poison in the tea she had been given. She would find herself held in the same underground cell Ferris had lived in for years before his rescue by her. After a conversation with Biehn, Hannah Regret would later appear to loosen her manacles so she could escape when it was time. Crusch still completely unsure which side she was on would inquire about her motives and why she was betraying him. Hannah would only mention that it was out of love and Crusch wouldn't understand. It was at this point Crusch noticed the similarities between Hannah's appearance and Ferris, but the maid would leave before she could ask. Miles would soon visit Crusch himself intending break her will in preparation to make off with her and Ferris later, only for Crusch to reverse the situation to his shock by cutting him and the corpse soldiers around down. She then meet up with Julius in in the manor's first floor and then a distraught and shaken Ferris. The three would escape the blazing inferno the place had become.

A year later, due to her increasing amount of workload brought about by royal family being unable to forfil their duties, Crusch found little time to visit Fourier after he fallen ill to the unknown epidemic sweeping through the palace. Eventually, one day during one her rare visits she brought Fourier out to gardens in the palace courtyard unbeknownst to her his would be the last time the two would speak. Reminiscing about the old days and reaffirming their childhood promise Fourier would die suddenly, but peacefully. During day the same day the current king would be the last royal to succumbed ending the Lugnica line. In the emergency meeting hereafter an emotional Crusch privately became outraged by how cavalier the royal court had treated this national tragedy moving on quickly as were a footnote compared to loss of the contract between the kingdom and dragon. It was there then that the Dragon Insignia as well as prophecy regarding the next step the country should take would be revealed. Crusch be discovered as first of the five potential candidates deeded worthy to lead the country. Learning this with strong conviction, Crusch would return to garden where Fourier died with Ferris and vow to forever server the tie between the dragon and Lugncia whose influence she become convinced had distorted the way Lugnica should be.

Abilities
Divine Protection (加護 Kago): Crusch has the Divine Protection of Wind Indication (風見の加護 Kazemi no Kago). It enables her to read the wind and to see invisible things just like the wind. Crusch can also use it to read the situation of others' emotions, making her able to tell if someone has lied.

Wind Magic: Crusch is highly skilled at Wind Magic, allowing her to combine it with her sword skills for devastating results.
 * One Blow, A Hundred Felled (百人一太刀 Hyakunin Hitotachi): Crusch combines her sword skills and Wind Magic to unleash a sword strike that enables her to cut anything within her range of vision with an invisible blade.

Skilled Swordsman: Crusch is considerably skilled at using a sword in combat, or using her Wind Magic to act as one.

Equipment: She wields the Lion Rampant, a sword which bears the lion shaped crest of the Karsten family on it's cross-guard.

Trivia

 * According to the author, Crusch's birthday is April 4.
 * She remarkably sheltered when comes to romance or at least when it is directed at her.
 * She has a habit of raising her finger upward when she is going to explain something.
 * On her 14th birthday, her father had gifted her a dagger that bore the head of a lion on it's pummel which became her favorite keepsake as remind her of the Lion Kings of Yore.