Petelgeuse Romanée-Conti

Petelgeuse Romanee-Conti (ペテルギウス・ロマネコンティ) was a Sin Archbishop of the Witch Cult, representing Sloth. He debuted in Arc 3 as its primary antagonist and, though he met his end in the same arc, he mentioned throughout the rest of the story, especially Arc 4.

In Arc 3, he led the Witch Cult to attack Irlam Village and Roswaal's Mansion. Overall, throughout this arc, he acted as a foil to Subaru, but is ultimately defeated. During Emilia's trial in Arc 4, it is revealed that he was once a family friend, but went insane after accidentally killing his beloved. He continues to be brought up in following arcs, primarily by the Emilia Camp and fellow Sin Archbishops.

Appearance
Petelgeuse was a thin man, slightly taller than Subaru. He was usually clad in black clerical attire specific for the Witch Cult, just like every other normal member of the Cult, with an exception of not wearing his hood. He was described as having a thin and sickly look with limbs consisting of nothing more than skin and bones. His complexion was extremely pale, reminiscing of a corpse, and his short, deep-green hair was lifeless and unkempt. Everything about him, save for the eyes, screamed "death and sickness". The madman's dark-grey eyes were perhaps the only "lively" part of him as they were brimming with insanity and were unsettling to look at, let alone being the sole object of their full attention. Strangely enough, he did have a strange and twisted sense of fashion as he could be seen sporting a pair of crimson-red teardrop-shaped earrings, similar to Regulus, with a small exception of Petelgeuse's being a tiny bit smaller.

About one hundred years ago, Petelgeuse could be seen as a much more normal member of society, sporting a rather tall and somewhat thin physique and sane and lively eyes. His hair bore perhaps a bit lighter shade of green, was much longer, and was evenly cut and tied to a small ponytail. His face wasn't as crazed and devoid of life, with his manner of speech being more calmed down and normal. He also did not self harm, meaning his fingers were not as disfigured as in the years prior to his demise. Emilia described him as very tall and skinny, but in a more lean way than frail.

It is also worth mentioning that due to his nature as a spirit and the ability to possess non-contracted spirit users, Petelgeuse often shifted between bodies. At some points, he even possessed women.

Personality
Petelgeuse was the general depiction of insanity, preferring to talk while in weird positions, such as tilting his head or bending his waist, and also liked to engage in self harming activities, such as crushing his own fingers, pulling his hair out, smashing his head onto nearby walls of the cave he was situated in, etc. Despite him being the Sin Archbishop of Sloth, he adhered to principles of living consisting of diligence and love. His love for Satella was the largest among the Sin Archbishops. He diligently followed and carried out orders from his gospel, always acting first in various situations, causing his name to be known as the most active Sin Archbishop, who was responsible for more than half of all the the Witch Cult's activities and attacks.

A hundred years earlier, Petelgeuse was a moderate, upright, and rational man. He was a close friend of Fortuna and Emilia, enough to be described as being like a family. He was also very respectful toward certain people, such as the elves of Elior Forest and the Sage Flugel. He was willing to sacrifice himself for the safety of Fortuna and Emilia, a trait which Pandora commended, and one which he would pass on to his future mad self. However, when Regulus and Pandora attacked their village, he accidentally killed Fortuna through Pandora's power, which combined with the damage he received when taking in the Witch Factors of Sloth, which he wasn't compatible with, causing him to go mad.

It is worth noting that both in his past and present, the members of the Witch Cult carried him in high regard, and carried out his orders diligently and without question.

Abilities
Authority of Sloth (怠惰の権能 Taida no Ken'nō): Petelgeuse was able to use the Authority of Sloth until his Witch Factors were taken by Natsuki Subaru following his death.


 * Unseen Hand (見えざる手 Miezaru Te)
 * Petelgeuse could cause physical interference by creating Unseen_Hands_Opening.png invisible force field in the shape of a hand. The effect area, power, and number of hands were based on the user. Normally, Petelgeuse was only able to use seven hands. However, if the Witch Factors he used to make people into his fingers returned to his body, he was able to summon up to a hundred or more of them. He could also combine hands together to increase their size.

Earth Magic: As Petelgeuse was originally a minor earth spirit, he was capable of using Earth Magic, although he did not rely on it much and only used it in emergencies.


 * Ul Dona (ウル・ドーナ): Petelgeuse was able to lift thick walls of earth around himself in a shape of a dome. Although the walls were extremely durable, they could be blown apart by strong sources of magic, such as a fire crystal.

Possession: While he differed from the norm as a Spirit, Petelgeuse could possess others' bodies, with Subaru describing it as a forcible one-way contract. Compatibility varied between people, which depended on whether the person had an affinity for Spirits, as he mentioned that Subaru's body was optimal while Ferris and Wilhelm's bodies were incompatible for various reasons. However, he was unable to possess people with an affinity for Spirits who already had a contract with one. He was usually accompanied by special followers, called the Ten Fingers, who acted as sub-commanders and spare bodies for Petelgeuse, with each one leading a group of several lower-ranking cultists. The fingers themselves had positions that corresponded with the names of fingers on the human body. To make other people into his fingers, he added Witch Factors to their body that allowed him to possess them, as he could possess people with an affinity for Spirits, but needed to make normal people into his fingers first. He used this over and over to live for 402 years until he was killed at the end of Arc 3.

Sloth (怠惰 Taida) (Web Novel exclusive)


 * Petelgeuse could let out a black wave toward his surroundings, corrupting the minds of those who have no knowledge of Spirit Magic. Those affected experienced hallucinations, auditory hallucinations, and severe pain, then exposed the whites of their eyes, foamed at the mouth, and were nearly driven mad. This ability was cut out of the Light Novel.

Trivia

 * According to the author, the basis of his actions, his relations with the witches, his past 400 years ago, and why his name is intentionally spelled as Petelgeuse are important plot points scheduled to be revealed in a future arc.
 * Red Star is the common Japanese nickname for Betelgeuse.
 * In Arc 5, Subaru noted that Betelgeuse, the star, was actually called "the hand of Orion", as it was located on the constellation Orion. This could possibly be a reference to his Unseen Hand.
 * Petelguese's last name is named after a famous wine under the same name that was originated in the French Revolution.
 * The author asked his readers on "Let's become a Novelist" about whether he should change the surname Romanee-Conti to something else in the Light Novel version. However, most readers told him to keep it as is, thus his surname was not changed.
 * According to the author Petelgeuse was the "nicest" Sin Archbishop compared to the others, but after he went mad, he lost every ounce of dignity and morals, frequently going on rampages all across the world, becoming responsible for more than half of all attacks orchestrated by the Witch Cult, being known as the most active Sin Archbishop of the aforementioned cult.
 * The author has stated that Petelgeuse used to be a lesser Earth Spirit
 * The author mentioned that Petelgeuse was unable to possess a Spirit Arts User who already had a contract with another spirit.
 * Before he lost his mind, Petelgeuse was shown to have a rather intimate and close relationship with Fortuna. Their relationship lasted for decades if not centuries.
 * According to the author, there were times where Petelgeuse was forced to use a female body. Despite that, Fortuna still loved him.

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