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 Lugunica. She played a crucial supporting role in Arc 3 and a supporting role in Arc 5. She was also the protagonist of Ex 1.
Daughter of the former Duke Karsten, she was raised in high society, where she grew to love the sword. Befriending both Fourier Lugunica and Ferris, she became incredibly popular among her people, eventually coming to be known for her skill on the battlefield as the Valkyrie and in office as the next Duchess. Following the demise of the royal family, which included Fourier, she was discovered to be a candidate in the Royal Selection. Following the belief that the country has become reliant on the Divine Dragon, she has made her goal to strengthen the country and sever the covenant with the dragon. Presently, however, she has been left without her memories and cursed due to the Witch Cult’s Sin Archbishops.
Crusch is described as a beautiful woman with almond-shaped amber eyes and long dark verdant-green hair that reaches down to her lower back. Even though she is a woman, she generally tends to dress as a man (or at least very formally). Unsurprisingly, her impression changes if she wears a dress and smiles.
As a child, Crusch Karsten maintained a posture that reflected both refinement and beauty. Her pale white skin and sharp eyes helped exemplify her charming looks. Crusch's long hair was tied up in a ponytail with a light-pink bow. She wore an elegant grass-green dress of fine make that complimented her appearance perfectly and a necklace of pearls. Shortly after meeting Fourier, Crusch stopped tying her hair back and began wearing more refined masculine clothing.
The formal outfit she is usually seen in consists of a deep purplish-blue long-coat trimmed in white with golden epaulettes on the shoulders, a white blouse underneath, blue trousers, black white-laced knee-high heel boots, white gloves, and a blue cap with a single horizontal white stripe along the middle. The cuffs on her coat are burgundy red with white frills; the inside of her coat and an armband on her left arm bearing the emblem of the Karsten House are very much the same shade of red. The decorative items she wears include seven golden cross pattée–two on each cuff, four on her mid section connected in pairs by golden aiguillettes, and one in the middle of a red flower on upper left side of her chest, also connected to the shoulders by its own aiguillette. Her long hair is often tied at the end by a single white bow.
When heading out to battle, she wears steel armor trimmed in gold, though it only covers part of her upper body, shoulders, and forearms. Along with the armor, her hair is tied into a ponytail, the gloves she wears are brown, and she bears a bright red cape.
In one failed loop of Arc 3, she wears a black dress with a pink ribbon, black high heels, and a pink cover over her shoulders with black frills along its edge. Later, in the Water Plumage Inn in Arc 5, she wears a yukata.
As of Arc 5, her body is heavily infected by Capella Emerada Lugunica's cursed Dragon’s blood, leaving her skin, including on half of her face, covered in black vein-like markings. Since it seems to also have affected one of her eyes, she wears a medical eyepatch over it.
Personality[]
While normally calm and serious, Crusch is honest, sincere, righteous, being the 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 air-headed 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 behaviour. However, this only applies to feelings of love directed towards herself, as she has been shown to comment on the feelings of others. Because of the time she spent with Fourier, she has strong feelings concerning the Lion King, a term formerly given to the kings prior to forming the covenant with the Divine Dragon.
During the events of Arc 3, Crusch's memories were eaten by Lye Batenkaitos. As a result, she now remembers nothing of her past and has regressed into a far more shy and reserved individual. However, hints of her former, strong-willed self remain, as shown by her choosing to maintain the anti-Witch Cult alliance with the Emilia Camp despite the dangers, though her gravitas has decreased. She also displayed an ease to get along with. Despite his reservations about her, Shorty Megan felt at ease when talking to her, and later, she was able to talk with the other members of the Royal Selection as if she were speaking to her friends. She was also simply flustered, as when Ferris teased her, she was left dumbfounded by his statement, and she asked for help from Subaru since she didn’t know how to feel about it.
In Arc 5, she has shown to put the well-being of others over herself, as seen when she pleaded with Subaru not to take her curse into himself, as the people needed him more than herself, not to mention the unknown consequences of Subaru taking her curse.
Crusch was born as the only daughter and heir to House Karsten, one of the most powerful noble families in the Dragon Kingdom of Lugunica, who were known as one of the king's most trusted supporters.[1] Even as a child she was considered an oddity among the nobility for being more mature than other children her age. More so as other girls, Crusch also favoured things like weapons over finery from a very early age; at a very early age, Crusch already asked her father for a crested dagger. As she grew older, Crusch would develop a preference for men's clothing, and take on more masculine pursuits like learning swordplay which earned rumors about her from other nobles. She held a strong fascination with the history of Lion Kings, which would come to serve as the basis for her radical but conflicted ideas about the Kingdom of Lugunica's 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 as the noble she felt she needed to become in order to lead House Karsten.
When she was 9 years old, disturbing rumors about House Argyle, concerning the alleged abuse and torture of Felix Argyle by his own father, Biehn Argyle, were investigated by Duke Meckart Karsten and his daughter, Crusch Karsten. The result of the investigation led to the Argyle family losing all of their territories and assets, save for one piece of uncultivated land, which effectively stripped them of their nobility. The Karsten family took Felix in after this event.
On Crusch's 17th birthday, an incident with the Great Rabbit occurred in the Karsten lands. Her efforts and leadership there would latter play a crucial role in her father passing down the position as the head of the family to her mere six months afterward.[2] Several years later, Crusch would catch wind of trouble afoot at the House Argyle, through a 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 to affect her attendant's standing among the knights in a very delicate period that would decide his future, Crusch would endeavor to take off the problem quietly herself and confer with Fourier to keep Ferris away from it.
Crusch would directly head to the 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 to 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 met up with Julius in the manor's first floor and then with a distraught and shaken Ferris. The three would escape the blazing inferno the place had become. As soon as they'd reunite with Fourier who was waiting outside the Argyle manor in his carriage, disaster would once again strike – Fourier collapsed on the floor, unable to regain his consciousness.
A month later, due to her increasing amount of workload brought about by the Royal Family being unable to fulfil their duties as they have all fallen ill and became bedridden, Crusch found some time to visit Fourier after he fell ill to the unknown disease 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 this 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, while laying in Crusch's lap. During that the same day the then-current king would be the last member of the Royal Family to have succumbed ending the Lugunica 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 the loss of the contract between the Kingdom and the Divine Dragon. It was there then that the Dragon Insignia, as well as prophecy regarding the next step the country should take, was revealed. Crusch was discovered as the first of the five potential candidates deemed worthy to lead the country. Learning this with strong conviction, Crusch later returned to the garden where Fourier died with Ferris and vowed to forever sever the tie between the Divine Dragon and the Dragon Kingdom of Lugunica whose influence she became convinced had distorted the way the Kingdom of Lugunica should be.
At some point, she and Ferris witnessed an argument between Wilhelm van Astrea and Bordeaux Zellgef regarding the White Whale which resulted in Wilhelm temporarily being imprisoned to cool his head. Aware of his strength and reputation, she and Ferris recruited him into her camp, offering the chance to slay the White Whale in return. The Sword Demon accepted her proposal, and during his time in the camp, he helped Crusch hone her skills with the sword.
Some time in the year following the Subjugation of the White Whale, Crusch was requested for an interview with Shorty Megan and Lululala regarding their stand in the Royal Selection. Though by this point she was without her memories, she still accepted the interview. She and Ferris gave their opinions on the other candidates, stating that the camp she believed people should keep their eyes on is the Emilia Camp.
At some point during this same year, her father returned to assist her in running her duchy.
Abilities[]
Divine Protection (加護 Kago): Crusch has the Divine Protection of Wind Reading (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 is lying.
Magic (魔法, Mahō): Crusch is highly skilled at wind magic, allowing her to combine it with her sword skills and Divine Protection for devastating results.
One Blow, One Hundred Felled (百人一太刀 Hyakunin Hitotachi):
Crusch attacking the White Whale with One Blow, One Hundred Felled
Crusch combines her Divine Protection of Wind Reading, and wind magic to unleash a sword strike that enables her to cut anything within her range of vision with an invisible blade. The attack is sharp enough to slash through the White Whale’s thick hide, toppling the witchbeast. Though, the farther away the target is, the weaker the attack becomes. And while its range is indeed impressive, this skill truly shines in enclosed spaces, as there is less room for an opponent to dodge, and the power is stronger the closer the opponent is to Crusch when she uses it.
Skilled Swordsman: Crusch is considerably skilled at using a sword in combat, or using her wind magic to act as one. From her youth, Crusch Karsten trained in the art of the sword. The many years of painstaking training Crusch subjected herself to transformed her into a mighty swordsman. Her skill with the blade was considerable, so much so that she bested ten bandits simultaneously with her trusty sword. Karsten's mastery surpassed that of Fourier Lugunica's, which was considered far above the swordsmanship displayed by an average young nobleman. After taking Wilhelm van Astrea under her employ, Crusch began taking lessons from him, presumably improving even further. Even after her memories were eaten, she managed to regain her skill with the sword after retraining with Wilhelm.
Curse of the Dragon’s Blood.
Curse (呪い, Noroi): During the Battle for Priestella, Crusch was cursed with so-called Dragon’s blood by the Sin Archbishop of Lust. While inflicted, her skin is covered in black veins across her body that causes Crusch great pain when it throbs. This curse has spread across her body and even to her face, having even affected her eye. Any other effects of the curse are presently unknown. The curse is a tad lessened thanks to Subaru’s body absorbing a small part of it, but she is still bedridden because of the curse.
Equipment: Crusch wields the Lion Rampant, a sword which bears the lion-shaped crest of the Karsten family on its cross-guard. When heading out to battle, she wears steel armor trimmed in gold, though it only covers part of her upper body, shoulders, and forearms. The armor is engraved with the Divine Protection of Durability (堅固の加護, Kengo no Kago), which makes it more durable so long as Crusch's mana is not exhausted.
Trivia[]
According to the author, Crusch's birthday is April 4.
She has a fear of heights, also known as acrophobia. This was mentioned in Arc 5.
She is remarkably sheltered when it comes to romance, 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 its pommel which became her favorite keepsake as it reminded her of the Lion Kings of yore.
During the negotiations in Arc 3, Crusch revealed how she had a habit of writing down "enemy" on her palm and "swallowing it" in order to steel herself. Coincidentally, the same "trick" was used on her by the Sin Archbishop of Gluttony a mere day later.
↑"That's right–I remember now! The lion crest was not lost but gifted by the ruler to an especially valuable subject. And the lion bearing its fangs––Became the symbol of my family, House of Karsten."Re:Zero Ex Light Novel Volume 1 Chapter 1; Section 4
↑"It was a mere six months after these events, that Crusch Karsten took over the position of Duke from her father, Meckart."
