Lazarus



Lazarus is the leader and co-founder of the anti-monster terrorist organization Ilias Kreuz. Despite his calm and charismatic nature, many people who have interacted with Lazarus (Luka included) consider him to be insane.

Biography
He along with Marcellus, Merlin, and Karen slayed Alice XV (Fifteenth), but realized too late of her wishes of coexistence. As they were about to spread these wishes, the young Alice XVI (Sixteenth) came and attacked out of blind rage after seeing her mother dead by their hands, unintentionally killing Merlin and Karen, the latter a woman whom Lazarus and Marcellus loved.

Angered, they did not spread Alice XV’s wishes and founded Ilias Kreuz. However, Marcellus eventually betrayed the ideals of their organization (for helping monsters), and Lazarus executed him for that purpose.

Luka first encounters Lazarus at Port Natalia, who bombs a mermaid school and quickly flees the scene. Heading to the inn, Luka informs Alice of the terrorist organization and their leader.

After the events of the Pyramid, Luka meets Lazarus again at a Mermaid Bar within the kingdom of Sabasa. He gives Luka a cup of orange juice and the two have a long conversation, with Lazarus noting Luka to be similar to his father, Marcellus, as well as Luka’s fighting ability and their ideals of fighting for others, with Lazarus telling Luka that he will soon realize that coexistence between humans and monsters is impossible. Lazarus then leaves, telling Luka to follow suit once he’s finished with his orange juice. Afterwards, Luka suddenly realizes that Lazarus deposited another bomb within the bar, and it blows up, although none of the monsters seem to be harmed. Luka then asks Alice about self-righteousness and she merely tells him that it is just words, renewing Luka’s oath.

Luka soon heads to the Bird God Shrine where the Garuda Girl’s Egg is located, however it is missing. A nearby Ilias Kreuz skulks and Luka forces him to reveal that his comrades discovered the egg a few days ago and carted it off to the organization’s headquarters. Alice says not to worry - the egg can’t be destroyed by human hands. Luka then marches off to get it back, but Alice seems worried - not about the egg, but because of Luka’s attitude, given his own history with the organization and his father’s role in it.

Luka heads to Gold Port, the organization’s base of operations, commanding the guards to tell Lazarus that Marcellus’ son wants to talk with him. He finds Lazarus standing next to the stolen egg, wondering how to destroy it. Lazarus comments that Luka’s just like his father; they both like to go charging into things without thinking. He asks Luka if he’s here for revenge, which leaves Luka a bit confused, but he assumes Lazarus is trying to recruit him. Lazarus reveals that Marcellus was not slain by a monster; Lazarus himself was the one who killed him; Marcellus went soft on his hatred of the monsters, and eventually started shielding them and had to be punished for betraying the ideals of the organization he created. Luka’s still trying to come to grips with this when Lazarus reveals that he and Marcellus were two of the four heroes who killed Alice’s mother. When Alice went nuts immediately after, she killed their two companions, one of whom was a woman who they both loved. In their grief, they founded Ilias Kreuz to take revenge, and Lazarus clearly bears deep scars from seeing his love torn apart before his eyes: coexistence is impossible when the other side has the power to inflict such horrors upon them. It’s easy for a strong hero like Luka to preach his high-handed ideals, but the rest of humanity is weak and afraid.

Alice walks in and interrupts Lazarus’ ranting, but it only takes a minute for him to recognize her face. She tells him that she shares her mother’s hope for peace, but Lazarus isn’t hearing it from the monster who murdered his companions - in his eyes, anybody who lies down with a monster is betraying their memory, and that includes Luka’s father. Luka finally snaps and draws his Iron Sword, holding it to Lazarus’ chest. Lazarus yells to go ahead and kill him, he’d rather die than turn back now. Regardless of whether Luka decides to drive the blade in or not, Alice stops him from doing so at the last second; rather than let Lazarus die as a martyr, she turns him to stone. Two Ilias Kruez members walk in and immediately flee upon noticing their petrified leader. With that, Ilias Kreuz is no more.

Trivia
The real Lazarus is the subject of a prominent miracle attributed to Jesus in the Gospel of John, in which Jesus restores him to life four days after his death.