Claude Fortis ( クロード・フォルティス , Kurōdo Forutisu ) is the Duke of the autonomous state of Fortis and the fiancé of Princess Amaluna Luirasalle . He is also one of the top five politicians of Fortis.
Personality[]
Having been in politics for many years, Duke Fortis is very capable. He knows how to bide his time until he's truly caught his opponent. He is also a skilled sailor and soldier.
He is revealed to be a very kind and upright man who cannot stand the exploitation of children or others in a position of weakness.
History[]
During the Great War, a ship bound to the neighboring autonomous state of Miraba landed briefly on Fortis. The ship carried kidnapped children that the Governor of Miraba was importing, to make them his "pets". 100 of the children escaped the ship and begged Duke Fortis for help.
Fortis met with Miraba's Governor, who admitted to the plot and tried to make an ally of the duke, inviting him to cash in on the trade. Fortis pretended to agree - then threw a handful of bills at the Governor, stating that he'd buy the freedom of the 100 children and that of any others currently enslaved by him. Fortis also publicly exposed the Governor's inclinations, which led to him being overthrown in a coup.
Despite his heroism, only the story's 'headline' (that Fortis had bought hundreds of children) circulated, and soon devolved into a rumor that Fortis was a degenerate who liked beautiful things and went after males and females, adults and children. Despite this, the Duke rose to prominence after the war for his military prowess and didn't care to waste time dispelling rumors.
After the war, Fortis continued to lead naval operations, sometimes as a privateer, for his home country. During a particular operation, Fortis captured a pirate ship loaded with Black Rizeria flowers, a narcotic used to create a dangerous, addictive drug known as Night of the Witch. Under duress, the seller revealed that the flower was bound for the Ocean Kingdom's royal stores. Horrified that a royal family might be involved in drug trafficking, Fortis decided to infiltrate them. He investigated the entire family thoroughly, then pursued an engagement to princess Luna. As the princess was too young to be married, the long engagement ensured that Fortis would be able to investigate the family at length and properly uncover the plot.
The engagement earned him Luna's hatred. Fortis was aware that she was working to get him to break it off, and so he persisted: when Luna came back from the Sun Kingdom with King Livius I and a man named Kanaris Micaine, who claimed to be willing to fight for Luna's affections, Fortis did not let the young man intimidate him. He responded gallantly to Luna's provocations, sending her thousands of Rizeria flowers - the flowers were a coded message, secretly communicating to Luna that she should try to see through the lies and realize he was her ally.
When Luna invited him to sightsee an island on Ariado Lake, Fortis agreed. When their small ship met with trouble and Luna fell off, Fortis rescued her. Upon arriving at the island, he discovers it is part of a plot: Luna, Livius and Kanaris meant to leave him there for a few days, then have Kanaris rescue him to shame him. The plan fell through when Livius and Kanaris's boat was carried off and Kanaris, who was actually Princess Nike Lemercier in disguise, succumbed to exhaustion and fainted. Fortis takes charge of the group as the only adult. He cuts off the bodice Nike had been using to hide her breasts, revealing he knew it was her all along, and explains that the bodice was probably suffocating her.
During their captivity, Fortis endears himself to the young people: he teaches Livius to fish and makes a good impression on Nike. While out gathering herbs with Luna on a ledge, Fortis instructs her on how to climb up for them. When Luna loses her footing and panics, Fortis relies on the information he gathered for the infiltration and sings Luna's favorite song to calm her and help her get back off safely. Her courage and determination move Fortis, who comes close to revealing he feels something for Luna before she storms off, confused by her own feelings. Once they are found, Fortis takes the fall for Luna, claiming they saved him from drowning and that it was Livius's idea to use Nike's Rain Summoning to signal their rescue.
Once recovered from their ordeal, and following Luna's request, Fortis shaves off his trademark beard and attends dinner with the Ocean Kingdom's royal family. While there, he brings out a dish with a black flower: the Black Rizeria. Then he proceeds to uncover the trafficking plot, revealing that Prime Minister Garariya was behind it, and that the engagement was all a ploy. After the revelation, he and Livius have a private conversation: when Livius reveals that he noticed how Fortis's story reveals that he engages in privateering, Fortis answers by revealing that he has noticed that Livius has been hiding his actions during the war from Princess Nike. Fortis insists to a discomfited Livius that the world can't only be beautiful, and that he should tell Nike about this himself before she finds out on her own.
His plan concluded, Fortis breaks off his engagement to Luna and, unbeknownst to the princess, announces that he will begin the journey back to Fortis the following day.
While on the road, Fortis and his retainer Liu are stranded in a town: the roads ahead have been closed and the inns and hotels have been forbidden from accepting boarders. He is shocked when Princess Luna appears, riding a horse: she leaps from her horse into his arms and demands Fortis resume their engagement. Fortis attempts to discourage her, as he fears she'll change her mind when she's older and men begin to line up for her attention. When Luna insists, Fortis agrees.
Relationships[]
Amaluna Luirasalle[]
At the beginning, Fortis only pursued the engagement as part of his plan to infiltrate the Ocean Kingdom's royal family. He researched all its members thoroughly, and came to know a lot about the princess in the process. Unaware of the princess's place in the plot, Fortis did not reveal his intentions to her. His dedication to his plan also led him to remain steadfast in the engagement, even through Luna's attempts to discourage him.
When he and Luna, along with Nike and Livius, are stranded in the island of Ariado Lake, he begins to learn more about Luna and tries to get her to learn more about him, even while Luna rebuffs him.While out looking for medicinal herbs, Luna volunteers to pick a bunch growing on a steep cliff side, despite Fortis's protests. Amazed by her bravery, the duke became aware of a deep feeling for her. Luna was able to grab the herbs but stepped on a broken stone and slipped, almost falling. She panicked, but Fortis remained steadfast: remembering how he'd calmed panicking sailors in the past, he started to sing Luna's favorite song to calm her, prompting Luna to call him insane to tell him that he sang it quite horribly. After this scare, the duke hugs her, praising her and saying it was alright for her to cry on his chest. When Luna says she needs no such thing and excuses herself, Fortis is aware that she'd gone off to cry on her own. He is hurt at knowing she still does not trust him with her vulnerable side, which he found cute.
Fortis later confides to his trusted retainer Liu that he feels something powerful for Luna, and that he believes she'll be very beautiful in a few years. Despite this, he is unwilling to keep her captive by keeping her bound to their engagement agreement. Unbeknownst to Fortis, Liu visits Luna before they set out, to make her realize that Fortis is an upright man.
When Luna catches up to him, Fortis is reluctant to continue the engagement at first, explaining that Luna may come to regret the engagement once she's older and realizes there are more men out there. When Luna persists despite his warnings, Fortis finally relents. When he asks her if she's certain for the last time, he says that since he's given her plenty of warnings, she better not get cold feet later "because by then, it'll be too late."
After this, Liu teases Fortis that he'll now have to deal with a reputation as a 'lolicon'. Fortis is unbothered. It is later revealed that Fortis firmly believes that even love does not excuse a man from becoming intimate with a child, and that he intends to be respectful of Luna until she's old enough.
Livius I[]
Though the two are initially indifferent to one another, the duke and Livius soon clash when Fortis declares himself the 'leader' during their time as castaways: though Fortis is clearly more experienced, Livius is unused to being ordered around by anyone. Things begin smooth over when Fortis teaches him how to fish, and Livius (as usual) excels at it. Livius is also reassured by how respectful he is of Nike and how he clearlyhas good intentions towards Luna.
Having lived through the war, Fortis and Livius understand each other as warriors, and comprehend that war forces difficult decisions on people. Fortis openly states that he likes Livius and wishes him the best. He is concerned that Livius's attemtps to hide his wartime actions from Nike may harm them in the long run, and urges Livius to tell her the truth.