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Spoiler Alert: This page contains spoilers. Read at your own risk. |
| Introduction |
Kudou Retsu (九島 烈) is the former head of the Kudou Family, which was one of the Ten Master Clans.[1] Now it is part of 18 Assistant Houses.[2] He is one of the most important figures from the Ten Master Clans in the 21st century, and until twenty years before AD 2095, was acknowledged to be one of the strongest Magicians in the world.[3]
He was the Family Head of the Kudou Family, an elder known as the "Patriarch".
Appearance[]
He is an elderly man, whose age is around 90 years old. Despite his old age, his sharp, hawk-eye like gazes and booming, clear voice contrasts his aged appearance. He is always seen wearing a formal black coat and tie with his hands held together at his back.
Personality[]
Despite being over nine decades old, Elder Kudou's mind still retains his keen intellect displayed in his younger years. Being a man who speaks his mind freely, he believes that magic is a means, not the end goal of magicians, and that unrelentingly training to raise one's magical power was not enough to become a great magician.
While this flies in the face of ideals the upper echelons of modern magic society seek to uphold, using wit and cunning to demonstrate the validity of his convictions and show that even a thoroughly crafted and executed small-scale magic can be a flexible and agile tool that outshines larger-scaled magic that is used ineffectively.[3]
Background[]
Military Life[]
- Until Kudou Retsu joined the 9th Institute, he underwent strength enhancement measures at the Research Institutes put up by the National Defense Force.[4]
- Hailed as the pinnacle and the craftiest of magicians, Kudou Retsu rose to prominence during the early days of the Ten Master Clans as a soldier within the National Defense Force. He is described as a veteran magician of hundred battles and has participated in the military engagements occurring within the East China Seas against the magicians of the Guangdong Army. After retiring from the military, Retsu has since chaired the committee for the Ten Master Clans and currently remains a magic adviser to the Ministry of National Defense.[5] Retsu fought to protect the rights of magicians and his younger brother Kudou Ken worked with him by urging magicians to receive education. This resulted on Retsu being forced to give up the rank Lieutenant General while Ken was expelled from Japan and sent to USNA. [6]
Patriarch of Japan's Magic Community[]
- When he retired from service in the military, Retsu held the rank of Major General. Back when he was in the service, the rule that the "Ten Master Clans shall not assume high roles in government" had not been established yet. That was because this rule was put into effect after experiencing a series of circumstances involving Retsu himself that ultimately led to the establishment of this rule.[7]
- Retsu stands near the pinnacle of magical society within the country. His influence in this magical community is enough to shake the foundation of modern magic society. He is considered to be the head of the Japanese Magic Community.[8]
Retsu being a private teacher of the Yotsuba Twins
- Thanks to his tenure as Chairman of Committee of the Ten Master Clans, Elder Kudou seems to be very knowledgeable about the current situation within the Yotsuba family, as well as some of its secrets. He is at the same time concerned that the combination of Yotsuba Maya, Shiba Miyuki (as the possible new head of the Yotsuba), and Shiba Tatsuya would elevate the Yotsuba into an existence that would eclipse that of the Ten Master Clans and perhaps upset the balance of the entire magical community. Ironically, Retsu was close to Yotsuba Genzou and because of this, he became Yotsuba Maya and Yotsuba Miya's private teacher for a short time in their youth. [9]
- The mandate placed on Magicians by him and other leaders to create humanoid weapons out of them, caused him to form a belief that in the future there will come a time when a rift will form between Magicians and the rest of humanity. What he envisions happening as a result of this rift and what his plans are for it are unknown, but for now, he seems to be focusing on gaining support from people with ties to the Yotsuba in order to prevent them from becoming too powerful.[7]
Plot[]
Nine Schools Competition Chapter[]
Kudou addressing the 9SC Competitors
- Outside of his work from the military and Magic Community, he has rarely appeared at public events, but for some reason chooses to appear every year at the Nine Schools Competition.[3] Retsu watches in person the Monolith Code match between Ichijou Masaki and Tatsuya. He would later intervene when Tatsuya attacks a Committee Member placing an Golden Electron Silkworms in Miyuki's CAD and tells Tatsuya that he would like to speak with him sooner or later. [10]
Visitor Chapter[]
Ayako and Kudou having an agreement on taking one parasite each
- Having witness Pixie's psychic connection with Mitsui Honoka, Retsu took interest in the parasites' potential of becoming weapons and deploys the "Sword Corps" to capture the parasites. After the parasite's battle against Tatsuya's group, only two parasites were sealed. Retsu and Kuroba Ayako, representing the Yotsuba Clan came to an agreement that they each take one parasite for their own purpose. [11]
Steeplechase Chapter[]
- Like Tatsuya, Retsu wants to release magicians from their fate as weapons so that his grandson Kudou Minoru can have a chance at life [12]. During the Steeplechase Event of the 9SC, Retsu plotted to test the Parasite Dolls on its participants and anticipates that Tatsuya will stop this human experimentation and was glad when Tatsuya did. [13]
Ancient City Insurrection Chapter[]
- Retsu meets with Tatsuya during his mission to search for Zhou Gongjin who fled to Kyoto and is being protected by Traditionalists. During their meeting, Retsu apologizes to Tatsuya for the inconvenience caused by his use of Parasite Dolls in the Steepelchase Event and agrees to cooperate with Tatsuya's mission. [14]
Master Clan Conference Chapter[]
- During the Ten Master Clans Meeting, Retsu proposes a compromise before the other clan heads condemn Kouichi's actions of colluding with Zhou that the Kudou Clan will be taking responsibility for this and leaving the Ten Masters Clan. Realizing Retsu's intention to maintain order in the Ten Master Clan, Maya shows support on Retsu's proposal and nominates the Shippou Clan to the Ten Masters Clan. [15]
Invasion Chapter[]
| Spoiler |
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| Retsu asks Kuroba Ayako and Kuroba Fumiya to support him as he knows Minoru who became a parasite will take other parasites sealed in the 9th Institute. He is aware that once Minoru is captured he will be experimented like an animal and could not stand the thought of that happening thus he resolves to kill Minoru himself. He lost his life fighting against Minoru. |
Legacy[]
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Abilities[]
Retsu's Ability Chart
Twenty years ago from the present time in the novel, Elder Kudou was once known as the strongest Magician in the world. In the world of Magic, he is regarded as the "Sly Warlock" from his reputation as being the most "Pinnacle" and "Craftiest" among Magicians. The Magic of Kudou Retsu is in nature mischievous and superlative. Even in his 90's, Kudou is still highly capable of using magic as a flexible and agile tool better than most Magicians out there. His knowledge and skill in Magic are vast and deep enough where he can easily use low-level Magic in terms of Magic Power, but excellently prepared and executed to have even the most talented, elite magicians hailing from all nine Magic University Affiliated High Schools to succumb to it.[3]
His words can shake the very foundation of modern magic society today.
He is an expert in information gathering, shown by his ability to breach the Yotsuba Family's information control; knowing some customs and names of family members as well as knowing about Tatsuya and Miyuki. No other family has mentioned the ability to do this.[7]
Retsu is wary of his magic, even though he is well over ninety.
Magic[]
➨ Sensory Interference Magic[]
- This Magic was used by Kudou Retsu to trick everyone except 5 people in the opening ceremony during the Nine Schools Competition in AD 2095. It was used on a large scale to cover the entire meeting. The magic's scale was large enough to impact everyone present at the same time, yet subtle enough to escape detection. By using an obvious distraction to capture everyone's attention which was a captivating, young lady during the meeting, this sort of "change" doesn't qualify as phenomenon rewriting, but as a "phenomenon" that occurs naturally. This "magic trick" was low in strength and was used as a demonstration to remind everyone present at the opening ceremony that Magic is a means, magic itself is not the end goal.[3]
➨ Parade[]
- A Kudou Family secret magic developed by Kudou Retsu himself after Yakumo's predecessor taught "Matoi" to him in the 9th Magical Research Institute. While the original illusion magic Kudou learned, "Matoi", focused on creating a body clone, his magic, Parade, focuses on changing the image of the user. It writes coordinates into a false body that is a superficial duplicate that can't be differentiated with the caster.
- This magic is helpful in fights since all of the opponents' attacks cannot target the real body. Thus, in order to break through 'Parade', it's necessary to either locate the body between the time when the old illusion breaks down and a new illusion is created or disregard the five senses to find the coordinates of the body directly in the dimension of information (this option only applied for Shiba Tatsuya).[23]
References[]
- ↑ Volume 13, Chapter 0
- ↑ Volume 17, Chapter 5
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 Volume 3, Chapter 4
- ↑ Volume 13, Magician Research and Development Institutes
- ↑ Volume 4, Chapter 11
- ↑ Volume 28, Chapter 6
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 Volume 4, Chapter 12
- ↑ Volume 13, Chapter 5
- ↑ Volume 14, Chapter 1
- ↑ Volume 4, Chapter 11
- ↑ Volume 11, Chapter 16
- ↑ Volume 13, Chapter 0
- ↑ Volume 13, Chapter 4
- ↑ Volume 13, Chapter 3
- ↑ Volume 17, Chapter 5
- ↑ Volume 26, Chapter 7
- ↑ Volume 26, Chapter 8
- ↑ Volume 27, Chapter 1
- ↑ Volume 27, Chapter 3
- ↑ Volume 30, Chapter 2
- ↑ Volume 31, Chapter 6
- ↑ Volume 32, Epilogue
- ↑ Volume 9, Chapter 7