Fourier Lugunica

Fourier Lugnica (フーリエ・ルグニカ) was the Fourth Prince of Lugnica and the childhood friend of Crusch Karsten and Ferris Argyle. Though having only been mentioned a couple of times throughout the main story namely in volume 6, Fourier played a key role in the spinoff novel Ex1, where he's featured as one of the three protagonists alongside Crusch and Ferris.

He died roughly a year before the events of the main story, having succumbed to the mysterious illness that plagued the Lugnican Royal Family, on the same day as his father Randohal Lugnica thus having had his death treated as nothing more than a small note, next to the news of the King's death.

Appearance
As a member of the Lugnican Royal Family, Fourier was characterised by his shining golden hair and large crimson red eyes that burned like the twilight sun. His extraordinarily handsome face would've captured the hearts of many women if not for his outgoing personality. He had a yaeba that became prominent when he laughed. Fourier strongly resembled Felt in terms of general looks, like all other members of the Royal Family.

When Fourier grew ill, his physical state greatly deteriorated. His beautiful golden hair lost its shining luster, the burning light of his scarlet red eyes faded significantly, and his usually charming smiles lost their energy. His body completely lost its modest musculature, leaving the Prince with an emaciated body and protruding cheekbones.

Personality
Fourier was an energetic and magnanimous young man who appeared more self-assured and assertive than he actually was. That said he had a gentle caring heart and a very strong sense of responsibility that earned him the faith and trust of Crusch and Ferris. Moreover, he had the potential to be the current generation's "Lion King" due to his unusually sharp intuition that sometimes manifested which made him seem wise beyond his years. This trait of his only grew stronger as he matured over the years.

Fourier had a dislike of both hot and cold weather, although he found cold weather far more unbearable. Even on a sunny day, Fourier always had a thick fur coat prepared in case the weather turned cold. He could be incredibly prideful and often spoke highly of himself, although the arrogance he exuded was considered endearing instead of condescending by those around him. Whenever he did a good thing unintentionally, he would always act as though he had meant to do so.

Another one of the prince’s charming features was his unconquerable optimism. Regardless of the situation he was in, Fourier almost always maintained a positive outlook. In an extreme case, the withering prince found joy in the peaceful state of the castle gardens, not taking heed of the fact that the reason it was practically deserted was because of the ongoing illness that had already claimed the lives of many of his relatives.

As a member of the royal family, Fourier was carefully nurtured from birth. He was forced to attend classes relating to the history and politics of the Kingdom. Fourier hated these classes, as he found them unbearably boring. Nevertheless, he learned many things from his tutors.

History
From birth, Fourier Lugnica had excellent intuition. Whether it be in arithmetics, history, or board games, the prince displayed paranormal talent at a young age. In an extreme case from his childhood, he once had successfully predicted that a wheel would fall off of his father’s carriage, and, almost as if he were an oracle, the event came to transpire. Even as a boy, Fourier understood that there was something special about how things came to pass around him, and he began to trust in his instincts to guide his actions.

As a young boy, Fourier had little patience for his royal duties. He would often do everything he could to avoid studying, causing quite the hassle for those who tutored him. The prince had hated relying on other people to solve his own problems and would never ask them to do so. That being said, he would graciously accept the favor of a person if they showered him with it of their own accord.

Although they would not properly meet until a little later, Fourier first beheld Crusch in the Royal Palace's courtyard gardens when he was 14 years of age when he found her staring at budding blossoms. He had been so transfixed by that moment in time, he had fallen for her at first sight but would be too embarrassed to approach her. In the later weeks since then, he would sneak out in disguise to the same spot hoping to catch glimpse of her without Crusch being aware. However one day during his excisions he would accidentally fall into the garden alerting her of his presence for the first time. Thinking he was an assailant after the Royal Family, Crusch would pull a dagger out on him with intent to attack. After frantically clearing the misunderstanding and stopping Crusch for trying to take her own life out of shame of pointing her weapon against a member of the Royal Family, they would become good friends. It was here that Fourier would exchange an important promise with her that would influence Crusch's worldview.

A year later Fourier would also meet and befriend Ferris and together the three of them – Fourier, Crusch and Ferris – would go through the trials and tribulations of navigating high society over the years of their teenage-to-adult lives. From dealing with his arranged marriage to Tiriena, to supporting Crusch as she dealt with the conflicts of her womanhood and becoming the noble expected of her, to being Ferris' stalwart ally as he confronted elements of his dark past that still had lingering effects on his present. These experiences would reaffirm their eternal friendship to each other.

It would be Fourier who recommended Ferris for knighthood and get him into the Royal Guard to better serve Crusch who was now coming onto her own as the head of one of the most prominent noble houses of the country. It would show his keen understanding of how important it would be both their futures and the one he wanted. At age 20 he played an important role in the "House Argyle Incident" doing work behind scenes such as secretly keeping Reinhard on standby to clean up the loose ends, where the maturity of his leadership skills and forethought would be displayed, which would serve to protect Ferris's place in House Karsten. However, it would be from that point on where tragedy would strike–he fell ill to the mysterious diseases that had been affecting the Royal Family of late.

In spite of this, Fourier's condition would gain little national attention due to the commonality of the occurrence among the Royal Family. An entire month later, he would still show no signs of improving despite the efforts of Ferris Argyle and best healers from the Royal Institute of Healing. Despite this, Fourier would surprisingly show signs of vitality, but it would merely be a front he kept on from adding to Crusch's worries, who was facing increasing pressure in her political life, as her duties mounted from crisis of the absence of Royal Family. During one of her visits, Fourier would ask Crusch to take him outside. They would go to the Royal Gardens where they first met, then sit on the bench and Fourier would talk about his dreams for the future and the promise he made to her there. He would then finally admit his feelings for her and pass away peacefully in her lap. Fourier's death was payed little to no mind, as the news of his passing came at the same time as the news of the last King Randohal Lugnica's passing, which resulted in everyone for the most part dismissing the Fourth Prince's death.

Abilities
Gifted Mind: Fourier was born with naturally excellent intuition in the form of a gut feeling that led Miklotov McMahon to believe he could become a wise ruler like the Lion Kings of old. The wisdom and intelligence demonstrated by the young prince were both well beyond his years. As noted by those close to him, the statements he made, no matter how outlandish they seemed, usually came true. In this regard, Fourier was excellent at predicting future events, almost as if he were an oracle. Under his direction, the incident involving the House of Argyle became a complete military success. Furthermore, as a member of the royal family, Fourier received the very best education the Kingdom had to offer, affording him with impressive academic capabilities.

Skilled Swordsman: As a child, Fourier made a promise with Crusch Karsten that she would never wear feminine clothing until he could defeat her in a duel. The young prince regretted the promise greatly, as he could never defeat his beloved, leading him to believe he was the reason she could never express her femininity. As such, Fourier trained diligently to surpass Karsten in terms of swordsmanship. His efforts provided him with skills that far surpassed a majority of nobles. While his skill never surpassed Crusch's, he was able to fight on par with her several times, a fact he felt pride over. he is much stronger than an average knight.

Trivia

 * For her 17th Birthday, Fourier had gifted Crusch a jeweled pommel sword of finest bladework, which she took to battle against the Great Rabbit that had appeared on Fourtour Plains that day.