A quick refresher on the cast so far! Note: may contain spoilers! NOT required for story!

  The Many Aspects of Josephine

  Our main character, Josephine actually has three separate entities residing inside her. The first is the soul of the gamer, Steve, who was pulled into the world of The Hundred Years War and forced to endure over 255 lifetimes as Joan of Arc. The second is the Demon Sword. Whether it has a soul or not is unknown, but it is entirely devoid of emotion. The last is the partially formed soul of the child whose body the sword had taken.

  Stephen Tagenet (Steve): The original soul. A modern-day gamer, Steve was obsessed with winning the strategy game The Hundred Years War as his favorite general, Joan of Arc. After failing over 255 times to bypass her scripted death, he discovered a game-breaking exploit that launched him to global rank #1.

  When prompted by the game for a name to mark his victory, his hubris led him to enter his real identity, resulting in his soul being pulled into the game world.

  Though memories of his life as Steve had eroded over the lifetimes he had lived as Joan, a recent curse revealed his true origin: a high-functioning child who excelled at solving puzzles and finding the "patterns" within games.

  Joan of Arc(Jehanne la Pucelle): Steve is thrown into the world of The Hundred Years War as Joan of Arc at age sixteen. He knows no French and is forced to live the completely alien life of a medieval village girl on a farm. Guided by what he believes is the ‘Voice of God,’ he is quickly propelled into war, only to be betrayed, captured, and burned at the stake.

  The cycle repeats over and over. Because of the [Curse of the Flame Martyr], she usually only has three years to live, dying at the tender age of nineteen. The endless cycles wear away the memories of his previous self, and he becomes just her.

  In early lifetimes, she is naive and tries to live the life of a pious Joan in the hope of redemption. Later on, she becomes a bitter, nihilistic girl who rages at all authority figures, from the Dauphin to God, but remains unable to break free from the game script.

  Each lifetime, she only gets a year with her French family. She is, at first, wary and rebellious. She even runs away in a few cycles, which results in her having different backgrounds. But in time, she realizes how precious they are, and how much they love her. Eventually, she loves them in return.

  After over 255 lifetimes, her soul is nearly ground to dust, but she finds the exploit that lets her cheat death by fire at the stake: the Demon Sword. She finally conquers the game, but is then faced with betrayal by her men, leading her to turn the Demon Sword upon herself.

  As one of only three female generals in the game, Joan’s appearance is her "dolled-up" game rendering. This polished, idealized look stands out jarringly in the gritty, realistic game world, further cementing her status as The Maid.

  Demon Sword (The Demon Soulfire Blade): After Joan stabs herself with the sword, the sword merges with her soul and reappears in the Hearts of Flames world. She is then sent by the Demon King and the lich Murion to an unborn baby’s soul.

  Joan’s soul hugs the baby’s soul and they are both stabbed by the sword, fusing the three of them together.

  Josephine’s status screen hints that she might be human flesh and soul wrapped around the sword, which means that the core of her is the Demon Sword. This is reinforced by the fact that weapons striking her bone make a metal clang sound.

  Whenever anything dies nearby their souls are absorbed by the Demon Sword as Soul Points. After enough soul points the Demon Sword increases in rank and gains a Demonic power. And each time, Josephine is transported to Murion the Lich’s office.

  The Demon Sword can be unsheathed by Josephine, and would take control of her, this is referred to by Murion as ‘Manifesting’. Whenever it does this, all of Josephine’s emotions become detached, and she is unbound by [Virtuous]. Demon sword Josephine is unemotional, analytical, and mischievous, always teasing Josephine for her illogical behavior.

  Like Joan, the sword is also very nihilistic and always searching for an end. Though, it has begun to question if this drive is its own desire or merely a game-scripted "Directive." The sword stumbled upon this realization when it discovered it possessed skills that allowed it to break into a high-tech computer system found in the dungeon ants' lair.

  Child Soul (The Child): The soul of the unborn child whose body was taken by the Demon Sword. Her name was originally supposed to be Cecilia, which is also the name of the Villainess in Hearts of Flames. But Priscilla, her mother, changed her name after Joan as the baby cried over the name.

  Because the soul of the child isn’t fully formed, she can only take control of Josephine for brief periods of time. Usually, she emerges to play and have fun, trying to take back some of the life that she had lost. However, she did come out to tell Meridol that she, herself is evil during her first birthday, and also emerged later to tell her father that she, Josephine, is his daughter.

  Josephine always lets the child do as she wishes because of her guilt. She envisions the child as a reflection of Priscilla, possessing her mother's bright eyes, and has even painted a portrait depicting the two of them together.

  Josephine de Bloomcrest (Jo): Initially Josephine thought she had murdered her birth mother, Priscilla, when she was born. Her guilt, combined with her father’s unwillingness to see her due to his grief, isolated Josephine from the rest of her family and she grew close only to her wet nurse, Meridol, and her maids. It is only through her saving the family from multiple attacks that they finally begin to reconcile.

  Because she had migrated between game worlds, Josephine is actually a merger between the Villainess of Hearts of Flames and Joan of Arc from The Hundred Years War. The system merged the two characters using a contrived [Sync Penalty], which doubles Josephine’s attribute development, and might have contributed to her abnormal height as well. Because of this and her [God’s Chosen] condition from Joan, she’s grown up at an unheard-of rate, shocking everyone around her.

  Josephine is reserved and grim, due to the lifetimes she lived as Joan. She’s always wary of being betrayed, and has distrust of royals and nobles because of that past.

  Like Joan, she is also bound by the [Virtuous] condition, which means she always adhere to the virtues of Prudence, Justice, Fortitude, and Temperance.

  Despite her reserved nature, her miraculous feats have earned her several infamous titles among the populace, such as the "Blue Flower," the "Savior of Bloomsil," and even a "Saint." However, given her history of being revered only to be burned at the stake, she views these grand monikers with bitter irony and quiet dread.

  Family

  Josephine never had a chance with her new family early on. Completely cut off from them, she didn't even share meals with the rest of the household. She didn’t mind, though; she was just an infant, and her peasant background as Joan meant she was more comfortable among the servants anyway. However, much like Joan with her French family, she eventually grows close to them, forging bonds with her new family one by one.

  Leopold de Bloomcrest (The Duke): Josephine’s father, and the ruling lord of the Bloomcrest lands. At first, it appears he blames Josephine for the death of his wife Prisicilla. However, the truth is that Josephine simply resembles Priscilla too much, bringing up painful memories whenever he looks at her. Following a demon attack on the Bloomcrest estate, where Josephine saves her newborn sister’s life, the two of them finally begin the process of reconciliation.

  It is revealed that Leopold is actually a companion character in the prequel, Hearts of Flames: Zero. He is highly skilled with the rapier, and is known even by demons as the “Prince of Ice”. Other nobles regard him as ‘stuck-up’ due to his strict adherence to the rules.

  He is close with both the King and Queen and considers the Queen a good, longtime friend even though she leads the Western faction while he is a prominent noble of the Eastern one. Because of this deep friendship, Josephine is hesitant to bring up the Queen’s plotting to him.

  Priscilla de Bloomcrest: Josephine remembers, even though she was newly born, the warmth of her new mother's face, and her voice, giving her the name that she shouldn't have had. But that final fleeting moment is all she has of her.

  Meridol reveals to Josephine that Priscilla is actually the illegitimate daughter of the previous King. Leopold took her in and sheltered her from the conflict that wiped out the rest of the royal line.

  As Meridol notes, "Unlike most noble marriages, theirs was one of love."

  At first, Josephine believes that her Demon Sword form killed Priscilla during childbirth. However, she later deduces that her mother was actually poisoned by the Queen.

  When confronted, Queen Sarsee and Long Aotian reveal that in the original game, giving birth to the Demon Sword would drive the mother mad. She eventually tries to attack the household, forcing Leopold to "put her down"—the catalyst for her child becoming the Villainess.

  Josephine is described as having a face that looks exactly like her mother's, serving as a constant, painful reminder to her father of what he has lost.

  Benjamin de Bloomcrest (Ben): Josephine's older brother and the heir to the Bloomcrest house. While initially harboring anger and trauma over his mother's death, he quickly warms up to Josephine after a trip to town where she opens up and dances with him. Her saving him from an ambush later cemented their relationship.

  They often play pretend together under the tablecloth, an activity Josephine is reluctant to admit to because of how old she actually was. Ben desperately wants to play the part of older brother and protector to Josephine. He is deeply self conscious of the fact that Josephine is taller and more capable than him, even though he is simultaneously proud of her.

  Currently enrolled at the Academy, Ben still sees her often at their family residence in the capital.

  Winthrop: He is Leopold's half-brother, and a highly trained mage. He seems to serve various duties at the House from commanding the knights, to tutoring Ben in magic.

  A former adventurer, he is affable, worldly, and was at first Josephine’s only connection to the rest of her family, though he also keeps his distance. He tries and succeeds in bringing Josephine and Ben together, only to have an ambush nearly ruin everything.

  Well-connected to both the aristocracy and the commoners, Winthrop appears quite familiar with the Queen and remains in close contact with his former adventuring party: The Valiant Fist.

  Remarkably, it is as a favor to this very party that Winthrop sends his five-year-old niece down to cleanse a dangerous dungeon of corruption.

  Elise de Bloomcrest (formerly of House Blackstorm): Leopold's second wife and the stepmother to Josephine and Ben. Due to unfortunate timing, she is introduced to the children just after they return from a violent ambush, which leaves Ben with a poor first impression of her.

  She has settled into her role as the Lady of House Bloomcrest and genuinely wants the best for her new house. However, she often goes about this in a heavy-handed manner, such as setting Josephine up with the Second Prince, only to openly conflict with the royal consort by revealing that Josephine possesses royal blood from a past lineage.

  Elise’s attempts to bridge the gap between Josephine and Leopold are similarly clumsy, exacerbated by the fact that both father and daughter are deeply awkward themselves.

  She even goes so far as to show the Duke Josephine’s private painting room without permission, an invasion of privacy that further triggers Josephine’s deep-seated fear of betrayal.

  After Josephine saves both Elise and her newborn daughter, Cecilia, Elise warms up more to her. She now tries to treat Josephine more like a true daughter, making efforts to include her in family dinners and daily life.

  In a moment of trust, Elise reveals to Josephine that she was actually a magic researcher before marrying Leopold, which explains her lack of social awareness. She also confides that she once assisted the Queen with a secret project. Though Elise is completely oblivious to it, this research could be both the reason that she was targeted for assassination, and even more crucially, the key to Josephine's ultimate fate in this world.

  Cecilia de Bloomcrest (Cece): The newborn daughter of Leopold and Elise. She bears the name that Josephine was supposed to have, but given what’s known of Hearts of Flames, Josephine must still be the villainess because she is the demon sword.

  Her life is saved while still in the womb when Josephine utilizes the [Voice of the Maiden] ability to stabilize her heart rate during a poisoning attempt on her mother. This intervention appears to have resulted in a singular, supernatural attachment to Josephine; the infant is often inconsolable when held by anyone else, which sometimes includes her own mother.

  Attendants

  This is infant Josephine's real family. They took care of her, and she loves them fiercely in turn. She is much more comfortable playing with the maids and helping out in the kitchens than dealing with the nobles who had betrayed her so many times as Joan. Besides, her birth family didn't want her anyway.

  Meridol: Josephine's wet nurse turned governess. Initially wary of the uncanny, much-too-aware eyes of an infant, Meridol took to calling her “little demon” in private, even at first blaming her for her friend Priscilla’s death.

  But after Josephine is injured by a book, Meridol slowly turns around. She begins to see a mirror of her own pain and misfortune in the despair of little Josephine’s eyes.

  Eventually, she steps into the emotional vacuum in Josephine’s life, becoming the mother figure she needs, and earning the title of ‘Mama’.

  A level 10 Wizard with a tragic past of her own, Meridol is strict, highly educated, and willing to defy anyone, including the Duke and the royal family, to nurture and keep her daughter safe. She is Josephine’s rock, the one she leans on for support when she is hurt, physically or emotionally.

  Despite being a mentor to both the Queen and Priscilla, there is no love lost between Meridol and the Queen. She hints that the Queen is the reason behind her House’s downfall(her husband having “flew too close to the flames”), where she lost not only her husband, but also her children as well.

  She is the only person Josephine trusts fully and will tell all her secrets to, which she does when she breaks free of the [Dark Binding] via the [Tiara of Solace].

  Beatrice: A young, energetic nursemaid and Josephine's primary caretaker alongside Meridol since infancy. Highly optimistic and cheerful, she absolutely adores Josephine, frequently referring to her as perfect, an angel, or "Little Josephine." Beatrice is a firm believer in the god Lumus and thinks that Josephine is blessed by him because of the items she magically receives and her exceptional abilities. However, when Josephine is severely injured while under the protection of one of Lumus's own Paladins, Beatrice shows her true devotion by faulting the church, fiercely declaring that she sees Lumus's light in Josephine.

  Claire: The primary attendant for Josephine's makeup and aesthetic details, Claire expertly handles everything from the delicate application of mascara to ensuring her overall appearance is completely flawless. She serves as second to Beatrice in maid duties and is frequently the one attending to Meridol and guests. Beyond her professional duties, she loves to chatter and is a devoted confidante who has promised to personally look after Josephine's needs should she ever choose to run away.

  Miona: Possessing a friendly, forgiving temperament, Miona is in charge of Josephine's hair and intricate styling. She is responsible for managing complex braids and securing the jewel-encrusted pins that signal Josephine’s high status. She shares a playful bond with her mistress, often laughing off Josephine's antics—such as the time Josephine "borrowed" her uniform to sneak through the house. Miona has generously offered to supply Josephine with sweets from her family’s shop if she ever decides to flee.

  Nellin: A highly practical and protective figure, Nellin often displays a deep, motherly concern for Josephine’s well-being. She is entirely dedicated to managing and maintaining Josephine’s personal wardrobe, focusing on the meticulous sewing and repair of her gowns, such as applying delicate lace to her skirts. Fiercely loyal, she has offered the use of her family’s inns as a safe haven if Josephine ever needs to hide from the household to escape her fate.

  Ishikawa Ayaka: A level 7 Ninja that is a recent addition to Josephine's select group of maids.

  Josephine first encounters Ayaka at her own betrothal party, where Ayaka is masquerading among a group of diplomats from Orlina to assassinate Crown Prince Anthony. Josephine thwarts the attack by stepping between the two and taunting Ayaka into attacking her instead.

  This taunt is effective because Josephine killed Ayaka's father and brother when they ambushed her and Ben.

  Josephine breaks Ayaka's sword, stopping the attack and capturing her. She even declares the sword is a "toy sword" to defuse the possible diplomatic row and to spare such a young girl.

  But when the Consort demands that she be handed over, Josephine realizes that Evelyn was actually the one who hired her. Empathizing with the girl's plight of being used as a disposable pawn by royalty, Josephine decides to release her, letting her escape.

  When they cross paths again, Ayaka has trained relentlessly to level up, while Josephine is suffering from the debilitating effects of [System Rebuild]. Josephine still manages to win the resulting duel, but not before being stabbed while trying to protect Beatrice.

  Afterward, Josephine learns that Ayaka has lost her entire family and can never return to her clan. Recognizing the girl's immense drive and potential—having managed to level up even while starving and on the run—Josephine decides to take Ayaka in as one of her maids.

  Royals

  As Meridol ominously warns, the two most dangerous people in the entire kingdom are the Queen and the Consort. They sit at the apex of a fiercely divided court, with the Queen leading the powerful Western Faction and the Consort heading the Eastern Faction. Caught dead center in their political tug-of-war is House Bloomcrest. To make matters infinitely more complicated, both of these formidable women have royal sons who have their sights firmly fixed on Josephine.

  Queen Sarsee Warwick: The imperious Queen of Avatince and leader of the powerful Western Faction. We first see Sarsee snapping at Josephine during her first birthday, when she swiped away the Crown Prince's attempt to reach out to her.

  Through clues gathered in the dungeon—including an admission from Zadina, Aaron's journal, and a conversation with Murion the lich—Josephine begins to piece together that the Queen is a reincarnator from Steve's original world and the mastermind behind the plots against House Bloomcrest.

  When she eventually confronts the Queen, the Queen reveals her plans to use the game's eventual heroine to break her as the Demon Sword and use the resulting energy to send her and the other reincarnators home to their original world. What's worse, Josephine realizes Sarsee might actually be Allison (Ally), Steve's devious and fiercely protective older sister.

  Josephine also confronts the Queen about killing her mother, Priscilla. The Queen reveals she did it out of mercy, because birthing the Demon Sword would have driven her mad, forcing Leopold to kill her. In the process, Sarsee also reveals it was actually her that was supposed to be Josephine’s mother, a fate which she had to do everything to avoid because she needed to get back to her grieving parents in the real world.

  The dynamic between them shifts dramatically when the Queen visits a bedridden Josephine. Caught in the throes of fevered dreams caused by a system virus, Josephine blurts out a desperate apology to "Ally," effectively revealing her true identity to the Queen. Though Josephine has no memory of the apology, her household informs her that Sarsee stayed by her bedside the entire night and has now demanded full custody of her—a request steadfastly refused by her father despite their close friendship.

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  Crown Prince Anthony: The bold and reckless Crown Prince of Avatince. Josephine first meets the Prince during her first birthday, where he quickly notices she is wearing a hero's bracelet. He immediately demands Josephine as his partner, a request that is promptly rejected by the Queen, most likely because she already has other plans for the child.

  Undeterred, he becomes obsessed with Josephine and begins sending her presents covertly every birthday. He is forced to do this in secret because House Bloomcrest and his mother's family lead rival political factions.

  The underlying reason for his obsession is only hinted at by the reveal that the Queen is a reincarnator who, as Tomas later mentions, has killed many monsters. It appears that Anthony sees a reflection of his mother's dangerous strength in Josephine, leading Josephine to bluntly ask him, "If you want someone like your mother, why not just go after her?"

  Despite Josephine being betrothed to the Second Prince, Anthony casually gifts her a powerful ring, [First of Avatince], seemingly just for the fun of it. However, Meridol later warns Josephine that those who managed to wear that ring in the past had used it as a mandate to seize the throne.

  Furthermore, Anthony appears to be a love interest in the game’s dating mechanics: at her first birthday, Josephine sees a green affection bar above his head, which has since turned yellow.

  First Consort, Lady Evelyn de Contellas: She appears regal and sophisticated at first glance, but that facade quickly fades when she speaks and her self-serving nature comes through. Josephine is introduced to her like an offered lamb due to an arrangement between the two houses, and the Consort immediately treats her as nothing more than a prized object.

  At the betrothal party, Josephine stops an attack on the Crown Prince by an assassin. Through her interactions with Evelyn, Josephine quickly deduces that the Consort ordered the hit based on Evelyn's desperate attempts to stop Josephine from extracting information from the captive. Furthermore, because the assassin is the daughter of the foreign lord who previously led the ambush on Josephine and Ben, Josephine comes to the conclusion that Evelyn orchestrated that attack as well.

  Following the demon attack on the Bloomcrest estate, Josephine and her father gather evidence that heavily implicates the Consort. However, Josephine realizes the evidence was far too easy to come by—after all, why would the attackers conveniently bring their contract with them? She also notes that the poison used to attack Elise was the exact same poison that killed her own mother, Priscilla. This crucial detail shifts Josephine's suspicion toward the Queen, who she knows viewed Priscilla as an enemy she needed to keep close.

  This realization leads Josephine to secretly infiltrate the Consort's quarters to confront her. Reduced to groveling on the floor, the Consort confesses that she only intended to give the Duke a "hard shove" and make an example of Elise. Josephine then leads her to the horrifying realization that she had actually been set up by the Queen, and that the planted evidence could be her downfall.

  Instead of being [Virtuous] and justly punishing the Consort with death, Josephine unsheathes her Demon Sword persona. She decides to make the Consort her pawn to use against the Queen, taking a few drops of Evelyn's blood to magically bind the Consort to her will.

  Second Prince Tomas: The truly innocent Second Prince of Avatince. Unlike his reckless older brother and self-absorbed mother, Tomas is genuinely earnest and honest. He is instantly taken with Josephine after their very first dance.

  The next time they meet, Josephine—always fearful of royal betrayal from centuries of trauma under the Dauphin—makes Tomas promise to always be truthful with her, and to tell her to her face if he is ever going to betray her. Tomas eagerly agrees, and the two exchange [Mind Messenger] rings so they can keep in touch from afar.

  While deep in the dungeon, Josephine uses the rings to advise Tomas on how to traverse the political machinations that beset him. She guides him through everything from handling religious groups, to leveraging servants for intelligence, to vital geopolitical lessons. Tomas comes to rely heavily on Josephine, and their bond steadily grows.

  When they reunite in the Capital, Tomas manages to get a kiss from Josephine, though it is actually initiated by her inner ‘child soul,’ which momentarily bypasses the restraints of her [Virtuous] condition.

  Their dynamic takes a dark turn when Josephine, suffering from the fevered memory attacks of a system virus, hallucinates that Tomas is the Dauphin and inadvertently chokes him. To make up for this terrifying incident, she brings him along to a lively town festival.

  It is obvious that while Tomas takes their betrothal literally, Josephine views him more as a child she needs to protect rather than a true romantic partner.

  Tomas too appears to be a love interest in the game’s dating mechanics. His bar, like Anthony's is also currently yellow.

  Leticia of Dawnport: As the betrothed of Crown Prince Anthony, she occupies a high-ranking position within the imperial court and serves as a prominent figure in the Western faction.

  Despite her servants' attempts to bully Josephine and her maid, Leticia treats Josephine with sisterly kindness. She even helps her pick out a beautiful dress for an upcoming gathering she invites her to, which is later revealed to be Anthony's birthday party.

  However, the dress Leticia so helpfully chose is actually highly inappropriate for the occasion, prompting Elise to strictly warn Josephine, “Do not trust that girl.”

  At the dance, Josephine notices that Leticia's soul tastes distinctly bitter when she looks at Anthony—a flavor that Josephine later realizes is wrath.

  The Valiant Fist

  A veteran, top-ranking adventuring party in the Bloomcrest region, and the former group of Josephine's uncle, Winthrop. They came to Josephine's rescue when she and Ben were ambushed. After seeing her skills and abilities in the ensuing battle, they enlisted her help in cleansing their dungeon of a strange corruption.

  Gorian the Wall: The leader and main tank of the group. As a Level 14 Vanguard, Gorian usually commands the front lines. However, he is remarkably humble and lacks any ego, perfectly content to let Josephine take charge, which she frequently does during their dungeon dives.

  He affectionately refers to her as "lass" and is always tender with her, a gentle demeanor he displayed even when they first ran into each other at the weapons shop.

  He and the rest of the party enjoy the meals she prepares for them. During one of their camps, Gorian praises her cooking, saying it is like eating at a "fancy inn." This sparks a conversation where Josephine reveals she wants to start an inn where everyone can eat.

  Even though Josephine is exceptionally capable and tall for her age, the guilt of bringing a young child into a deadly dungeon weighs heavily on Gorian. He constantly frets over her well-being, panicking and offering her his own healing potions whenever she gets battered and bloody during their fights.

  Throughout their journey, Josephine saves his life multiple times. This culminates at the entrance to the final boss room, where Gorian is grievously wounded and Josephine gives him the sole Full Heal potion from her starter items to save his life.

  Serina the Eyes: The knowledgeable and observant Level 12 elven Ranger of The Valiant Fist. She serves as the group's scout and provides ranged damage with her bow. Josephine has always drawn intense scrutiny from her, a sharp curiosity that was present even when they first met.

  Serina is the first to recognize that Josephine used the "ancient tongue" (French) when fighting the bandits. This leads her to suggest bringing the child to Lodindale, a suggestion that is promptly shut down by Winthrop.

  During their dive into the corrupted Bloomsil dungeon, Serina leads the harvesting of defeated monsters for valuable crafting materials and meat. At camp, she brews tea to pair perfectly with the meals Josephine prepares.

  Proving her title as "The Eyes," Serina is also the first in the party to catch on to the fact that Josephine is betrothed to a Royal Prince and will one day be a future princess. This revelation shocks everyone and changes the dynamic between them.

  Her unwavering loyalty to her comrades is on full display when the party is overwhelmed by a horde of corrupted trolls on the lower levels. As the group faces certain death, Serina steadfastly refuses to abandon the grievously wounded Gorian, choosing to stay behind and guard his unconscious body while urging Josephine to break through the enemy lines and leave them.

  Justin the Firestarter: The snarky and pragmatic Level 10 Fire Elementalist of The Valiant Fist, providing vital Area of Effect (AoE) magic for the group. He is the first to panic and scream for them to flee, and yet, he never abandons the party.

  Despite constantly complaining about Josephine's aggressive tactics and openly displaying his cowardice, he faithfully follows her commands and is usually the quickest to answer her call to battle.

  He has a tendency to put his foot in his mouth with his impulsive comments, especially when they are directed at Josephine. However, beneath his sarcastic exterior lies a humble origin: he reveals to Josephine late one night that he used to be the poor son of a tailor before being sold off as a blacksmith's apprentice, which is where he first discovered his affinity for fire magic.

  Snarky as he is, Justin always has Josephine's back. He agrees readily when she asks out of nowhere for the party to be her vassals. And when Josephine asks if they would burn her if she were possessed, it is Justin, the fire mage, who declares, “I wouldn’t have let them.”

  Kamuel the Cleric: The calm and steadfast Level 9 Cleric of Mundline, goddess of the woods, who serves as the primary healer for The Valiant Fist.

  When the party joins Josephine in fighting off the ambush, Kamuel readily accepts Josephine's call for them to be her followers. However, he catches sight of the shadow spells she uses and is unsettled when he tends to her severe injuries, watching her flesh unnaturally seal itself back together. His duty to his faith eventually wins out, and he secretly reports her unusual nature to his Church.

  During their dungeon dive, Josephine deduces that Kamuel was the one who reported her when she confronts Paladin Zadina about her true reasons for being there. This revelation creates a lingering layer of tension in their relationship. Kamuel's rigid religious convictions continue to clash with Josephine's darker tactics, such as when he refuses to stitch up Polly, her pet gnoll, forcing Josephine to coerce him into doing it.

  Despite this fracture in their trust, Kamuel seemingly attempts to act honorably going forward. When the party discovers an abnormally intelligent ant colony later in the dungeon, Kamuel keeps his word and explicitly asks for Josephine's permission to report them. When she denies his request and asks for his trust, he relents after Zadina agrees, conceding, "I trust you as well."

  Church of Lumus

  In Hearts of Flames, Josephine finds another faith under another Lord of Light: one that also sends missionaries out to the world, and one that promises absolution for all. She is again reminded of the faith that abandoned her, burning her away as a heretic, over and over again.

  Sister Zadina the Paladin: A Level 17 Paladin and Silver-rank adventurer, Zadina is introduced to Josephine as her guardian, hired to protect her during The Valiant Fist's attempt at cleansing the corrupted Bloomsil dungeon.

  Throughout the grueling dive, Zadina fights valiantly on the front lines with her hammer and shield, providing crucial, soothingly cool healing magic when Josephine is injured. She is thoroughly impressed by Josephine's battle prowess, bravery, and natural command. After a brutal fight where Josephine is severely injured, Zadina expresses to the other party members that while she is disturbed by the girl's shadow powers and unnatural skills, she also senses a deep "divine purity" within her.

  Josephine is very much aware of Zadina's intense scrutiny and eventually confronts the Paladin about her true motives. Zadina confesses that she was secretly ordered by the Church (at the behest of the Queen) to spy on Josephine and report on her dangerous peculiarities.

  Despite this initial deception, Zadina's loyalty shifts entirely over the course of their many battles down the dungeon floors. Having witnessed Josephine repeatedly risk her own life for the party, and having sensed the raw divinity in her [Voice of the Maiden] ability, Zadina becomes fervently devoted to her. She promises that her inevitable report to the Church will emphasize Josephine's righteous heart and noble nature above all else, seeing her not as a demonic threat, but as a pure, righteous figure.

  This absolute loyalty is cemented later in the Capital. When one of Zadina's own students, Armiger Jacob, attempts to attack Josephine, Zadina immediately intervenes. She forces her student to apologize, sinking to her knees before Josephine to tearfully express her profound relief that her "righteous" Lady is safe.

  Through her demon sense, Josephine is able to taste a distinct "saltiness" in Zadina's soul whenever the Paladin looks at her. However, she doesn't figure out until they reunite in the Capital that salt actually represents lust to her demon sense—a revelation that makes Josephine awkward around her devoted protector.

  Twin Stars

  A famous adventuring duo loyal to the Queen due to a debt they owe her, currently serving the Crown Prince. Aaron mentions in his diary that they are "late-game companions" and wonders how the Queen managed to unlock them.

  Samson: A Sword Lord and a Gold-rank adventurer. As former royalty from a distant land, he carries a haughty and elitist demeanor, often dismissing others as inferior. A master of the long katana, he is characterized by a fierce, overprotective nature toward his sister, Simone.

  He and his sister lead Aaron down into the Bloomsil dungeon, and while they seem to begrudgingly acknowledge the boy's growth, they ultimately abandon him to die in the final boss room.

  Later, Samson and his sister confront Josephine in the hall of mirrors while she is searching for the Queen's chambers. Josephine easily defeats both of them and is only stopped by the arrival of Crown Prince Anthony, who reveals his plans for all of them to enter another corrupted dungeon.

  Simone: A Sword Saint and a Gold-rank adventurer known for her exceptional speed and deadly dual-blade combat style. Like her brother, Samson, she is former royalty and shares his arrogant, dismissive temperament toward those she deems inferior.

  Operating as the other half of the infamous Twin Stars, she is fully complicit in their plans. It seems, however, that she is the more thoughtful and methodical half of the duo.

  The Hundred Years War

  The brutal game world that Steve was forced to relive more than 255 lifetimes as Joan of Arc. In every loop, she always starts at sixteen years old and never survives more than a year beyond nineteen, often dying sooner—leaving her stunted. The setting is deeply rooted in the nitty-gritty, historical reality of the medieval time period, yet it also contains deadly magic and fantastical beasts.

  Mamen: Joan's mother during her French farm-life loops. Coming from the modern-day US, Steve initially knows nothing of the French language or the harsh realities of medieval farm life, making Joan appear to be a complete invalide. However, rather than throwing her out or scolding her, Mamen patiently nurtures and painstakingly teaches Joan the language and their way of life.

  Mamen treats Joan with unconditional maternal love, despite her daughter looking like a flawlessly rendered game character entirely out of place among the gritty peasantry. She affectionately calls Joan her petite marmotte (little groundhog) and sings lullabies to comfort her. On the days when the grueling work becomes too much and Joan tries to shirk her duties, Mamen sits with her in the hay, gently begging her to bear the hard life just a little longer so they can remain together.

  But each loop, the voice calls in a year, and Joan has to go to war.

  Papa: Joan's father in her French farm-life loops. He is deeply protective and frequently covers for Joan’s early fumbles when she first arrives in the world.

  He and Mamen always give her precious meat and soft bread on her name day. And despite Joan being an awful cook, he forces down the terrible soup she makes. This memory inspires her to make a better soup as Josephine (which, ironically, becomes a favorite of her new father).

  He harbors a primal fear of losing her, almost as if he can see the future. In all the lifetimes where Joan decides to tell him and Mamen that she is going off to war, he grabs her as she is about to leave and yells desperately, "Je ne te reverrai jamais"—I’ll never see you again.

  Pierre: One of Joan's three older brothers. Like her parents, he treats her like his own flesh and blood.

  Despite Joan being a awkard, bumbling dancer, he always makes sure to dance with her. He twirls her around the floor during village festivals, holding onto her even as she clumsily bumps into others.

  In many loops, he joins up with Joan in her army. He is captured in the same battle where she falls, and Josephine is haunted by the memories of him reaching for her as she is violently torn away.

  Beau Duc (The Duke of Alen?on): Historically one of the first French nobles to believe in Joan and take up her cause. Known to Joan affectionately as Beau Duc—Fair Duke, he is a nobleman who fervently believes she is divinely sent.

  In her early runs, Joan naively hopes his faith in her can change her fate. Though he acts as a loyal friend who celebrates their victories, he ultimately becomes a figure of perpetual betrayals—he never gallops down from the hill to rescue her when she is captured and sent to the flames.

  The Bastard (Jean de Dunois): Historically known as the “Bastard of Orléans,” he is the illegitimate son of the Duke of Orléans and the grandson of King Charles V. Unlike the straightforward and [Virtuous] Joan, he is shrewd and conniving, frequently suggesting the use of underhanded tactics, feints, and sleight of hand during their strategy sessions.

  Despite these clashes, Josephine remembers him with a measure of fondness for their intellectual sparring and the fact that he is consistently honest with her: he never gives her false hope that he will save her.

  The Dauphin (Charles VII): The disinherited heir to the French throne and the central figure of Joan’s past betrayals. In every game loop, Joan is physically forced by the "script" to comfort him and join his cause. Even when she senses his insincerity, the game compels her to offer him reassurances and promise him the world, effectively trapping her in a relentless cycle of serving his ego.

  In the game's "death cutscene," which Joan suspects reflects the reality of her past lives, he coldly turns away and refuses an offer to pay for her ransom.

  Many of Josephine's current insecurities with Tomas are a direct result of her deep-seated trauma regarding the Dauphin, culminating in a harrowing moment where Josephine chokes Tomas while in the midst of a fevered hallucination.

  The Reincarnators

  Josephine is not the only soul from another world to awaken within Hearts of Flames. Scattered across the realm are other transmigrated individuals brought over not just for the main game, but for its prequel, DLCs, and perhaps even its sequels. The Queen, for example, is from the prequel. These individuals have dangerous meta-knowledge of the game and have already used it to change the world. They have irrevocably altered the course of Josephine's own timeline.

  Lark (Aaron): Josephine only meets Aaron through the words left behind in his greasy, oilcloth journal: "Aaron (Not a hero!)’s Diary." Like Steve, Aaron was pulled into the game world after using an exploit to achieve a perfect ending. However, he was slated to play Lark, the protagonist of Hearts of Flames: Zero, a prequel to the current game.

  Aaron, too, is forced to live the harsh life of a medieval villager, since the hero Lark also starts from humble beginnings. Much like Joan, he perseveres and forges a genuine life in his new world, even falling in love. It is while desperately seeking medicine for his sick lover that he crosses paths with Sarsee, the Villainess of the prequel. Aaron discovers that Sarsee is a fellow reincarnator whom he had inadvertently offended, but he still naively believes she will help him. This results in a brutal trap set by Sarsee, where Aaron meets his end at the hands of the Troll King in the final boss room of the Bloomsil dungeon.

  From Aaron's diary, Josephine deduces that Queen Sarsee has managed to drastically change the trajectory of the game's history. In the original script, the hero Lark is supposed to place Priscilla (Josephine's mother) on the throne to achieve the good ending. Sarsee even admits later that she was originally supposed to marry Leopold instead of Priscilla, which would have made her Josephine's actual mother.

  Because of Sarsee's machinations, the timeline of the current world has been drastically altered, leading to consequences that remain completely unknown to Josephine—especially since Steve never actually played the game.

  Long Aotian (Liu Xia): A modern-day transmigrator from China who serves as the "Hero" of the DLC expansion Hearts of Flames: Romance of Dragons.

  He is an emissary from the Great Dragon Realm and is currently assigned as a protector to Lady Leticia.

  After Josephine defeats him in her family's garden, Long becomes thoroughly enamored with her when she heals him using [Voice of the Maiden], to the point where Josephine can literally taste the salty lust in his soul. He reveals that he possesses 'Soul Sight', an ability that allows him to see a person's true self.

  Josephine realizes he must be seeing her flawlessly rendered, game-version Joan of Arc form, which leaves him utterly convinced she is a real-life model. The fact that she admits to never actually playing the game only reinforces Long's conviction.

  When he reveals his alliance with the Queen, Josephine warns him that Sarsee is evil. In response, Long confesses that to 'win' his own DLC game, he was forced to kill a fellow transmigrator, a close friend. He justifies this with his desperate need to return to the real world and support his sick mother and struggling father.

  Now that he is taken with the "goddess-like" Josephine, his guilt compels him to reveal the Queen's true plan: they intend to sacrifice Josephine in order to send all the reincarnators home.

  Josephine later learns from him that if she, as the Demon Sword, is left alive, her awakened power will eventually end the world.

  Because Long sees her radiant goodness through his 'Soul Sight', he tells her he believes she will do the right thing.

  Josephine tells him, “I thought you said you weren’t cruel.”

  Vampire Centaur Ants

  Deep within the lower floors of the dungeon, Josephine encounters a colony of centaur ants. She kills their queen, but rather than wiping out the rest of the hive, she uses [Seduce] to effectively make herself the new Queen of the hive. However, these aren’t just regular centaur ants, they are hybrids crossed with Vampire Changelings from The Hundred Years War. And Changelings can take on the form and abilities of other beings by drinking their blood.

  Valorie (The Valkyrie): A Level 7 Praetorian Valkyrie ant. She originally wields a formidable bardiche until Josephine slices it in half during their duel. After the fight, Josephine uses her [Seduce] skill to dominate Valorie, successfully making the elite monster her loyal follower.

  Once converted, Valorie immediately commands her sisters to execute a gruesome culling of the previous queen's young. She then brings a single surviving larva to Josephine, prompting her to cast [Seduce] on it as well. To complete this bizarre succession ritual, Josephine feeds the new larva her own blood and pours her mana into a strange gem the ants refer to as a "Heart Stone."

  Once the ritual is complete, Josephine is connected to the hive mind, able to hear her new subjects telepathically.

  Valorie informs her that she is now the "First of the Line," having officially started a new lineage of ants. The blood-fed larva is declared their new princess.

  Josephine affectionately names the princess "Ally" after Steve's sister from his past life.

  Ally (The Princess): After feeding on Josephine's blood, Ally the ant begins to look strikingly similar to her mother. By their next meeting, the young princess has developed Josephine's distinct purple eyes, blue hair, and a much more human-like face.

  The other ants in the hive begin taking on Josephine's features as well. Josephine soon discovers that the hive is absorbing her blood essence from Ally through the Heart Stone. Upon tasting this essence and sensing her immense power as the Demon Sword, the entire colony begins referring to her with absolute reverence as "Your Majesty."

  Curious about the implications of this change, Josephine asks Valorie whether the previous Queen had fed on anyone. She learns that there was a previous subject, but rather than being obeyed, he was merely kept cocooned as a living food source.

  This grim detail makes Josephine realize exactly why Valorie insisted she cast [Seduce] on the larva in the first place: without that magical dominance, Josephine might have fallen victim to the larva's own innate [Seduce]-like ability and ended up cocooned like her predecessor. Of course, this is before Valorie realizes just how terrifyingly powerful her new Queen truly was.

  Ironically, Josephine ends up completely enamored with the adorable Ally anyway. She becomes so fiercely protective of the young princess that she actually unsheathes her Demon Sword self to order the creation of unVirtuous birthing pods—all just to spare Ally from having to go through childbirth at such a young age.

  Demons

  The soul of a fallen Saint is absorbed by the very Demon Sword she uses to end her own life. And who else but the Demons would awaken such a weapon? We only get a fleeting glimpse of the Demon Lord, giving his own blood to bind the sword with a spell. Then she is sent to the human realm, for an endgame that we know not of.

  Murion the Lich: Josephine first encounters Murion while she is still in her original form as the Demon Sword. He places a binding spell on her using the Demon Lord's blood, assuring his master that neither the humans nor Murion himself could ever break the blade.

  Whenever Josephine accumulates enough Soul Points to raise her rank as the Demon Sword, she temporarily appears in a crystal ball within Murion's study. Upon her first rank-up, Murion actively attempts to stall her progress, strictly forbidding her from advancing beyond Rank 3 before she reaches the Academy.

  This restriction, along with the mention of a hidden plan and his muttered assurance that "he certainly won’t notice," heavily hints that the lich has his own nefarious agenda for her.

  In these visits, Josephine also uncovers that the Queen (referred to by Murion as "the witch") has colluded with the demons, and that she deliberately sent a demon over to the Bloomcrest estate.

  Pets

  Josephine has made little friends in the world, all through the power of [Seduce].

  Polly (The Gnoll): Encountered unusually early on the second floor of the Bloomsil Dungeon, this muscle-bound monster ambushes Josephine's party, only for Josephine to cast [Seduce] on him. The terrifying beast instantly turns docile, dropping his aggression to pant at her like an obedient, overgrown puppy.

  Josephine names him "Polly" after Pollichon, one of her fidèles from Joan's lifetimes, because the gnoll's droopy, subservient expressions perfectly mirror her old friend's face whenever she scolded him. Despite his fearsome nature, Polly’s fur is surprisingly soft, reminding Josephine of a beloved farm hound she once cared for and carried home when it was injured.

  Polly quickly becomes the party's fierce frontline meatshield, loyally following Josephine's every command and tearing through other dungeon monsters with brutal efficiency.

  The loss of Polly to a hybrid Wraith Knight brings back the trauma of losing good men over and over again, causing her to unsheathe her Demon Sword self for the very first time.

  Cat(The Little Tiger): Josephine acquires this pet by accident when it pounces on her in the woods around the Bloomcrest estate. Reacting purely on reflex, Josephine casts her newly acquired [Seduce] the instant before its claws come within a hair's breadth of slicing her sundress to ribbons.

  The cat isn't quite smart enough to follow commands, and Josephine initially has to spend half the day shooing it away. But its loyalty never fades; it regularly leaves dead birds and small animals on her balcony as heartfelt offerings for its new mistress. Every time it sees her in the woods, it bounds toward her with a fresh catch.

  Josephine hesitates to actually name the "cat," as it is too soon after Polly.