Wilhelm van Astrea

About Wilhelm van Astrea

Wilhelm is Crusch's butler and Reinhard's grandfather, an elderly swordsman once called the Sword Demon, still hunting the White Whale that killed his beloved wife Theresia. Polite, formal and quietly terrifying with a blade, he joins Subaru's alliance for one reason only. His love story, told in fragments, is among the series' most loved tragedies.

Appearance

Wilhelm is a tall, dignified old man with grey hair and a neatly kept beard, dressed in the formal black uniform of a Karsten butler, with a sword worn as naturally as the gloves. Age has not stooped him. When he draws his blade the butler vanishes and the Sword Demon stands there instead, veterans who watched him fight the White Whale say he dances with the sword like a man half his age.

Personality

Wilhelm is formal, courteous and consumed by a single grief. He loved his wife Theresia, the previous Sword Saint, with a devotion that became legend, he, a common swordsman, won her heart against her duty. Her death against the White Whale turned the rest of his life into a hunt, and complicated his feelings toward his grandson Reinhard, who inherited the blessing Wilhelm believes should have protected her. He serves Crusch impeccably while waiting, year after year, for his whale.

Background & Story

Wilhelm Trias, born a commoner, rose as the Sword Demon of Lugunica's civil war era, the swordsman who fell in love with Theresia van Astrea, the Sword Saint, and married into her house. When Theresia died fighting the White Whale while Wilhelm was kept from the battle, he left the Royal Guard, took service with House Karsten as a butler, and spent decades preparing for revenge. Subaru's alliance finally gives the old swordsman his hunt: a place in the subjugation force and the White Whale in front of his blade at last.

Powers & Abilities

• Sword Demon swordsmanship: Wilhelm's technique, honed over a lifetime, rivals the kingdom's best, he duels the White Whale itself in single combat.
• Master of the Astrea style: Marrying into House Astrea, he perfected its sword forms without ever holding the Sword Saint's blessing.

Key Relationships

• Reinhard van Astrea: His grandson, the current Sword Saint, their love is real and so is the grief standing between them.
• Crusch Karsten: His employer, who gave an old butler's private war her army's full support.
• Subaru Natsuki: The boy whose plan finally delivered Wilhelm's whale within reach of his sword.

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