#narsus arslan senki

[tired-reader-writer]

Arslan Senki Chapter 129 Live-reaction Commentary

Edit: I meant to add this but I forgot— many thanks to @honig-bienchen for providing us w the link to the new chapter! I typically don't check right away bc I expect there to be a delay.

Appropriately spooky crow! Hello!

Yeahhhhh they wouldn't have gotten in so easily if Saam were guarding the waterways...

Why would someone's blood purify the throne and not taint it, Hilmes 😭😭😭

HERE COMES RUKHNABAD

Okay Hilmes working himself up when Arslan was just internally “oh yeah I have no royal blood so I can't really call him cousin can I :(” was just. Oh Hilmes...

This really just showcases where they're both at, mentally. Arslan has made peace with his non-royal origins, while Hilmes is incredibly insecure about his own fucked up origins because he'd built everything on a false pretense (not that he knew it was false at the time).

Okay, crows (ravens?) gathering on top of the tower is very VERY ominous

OH HE STILL CAN'T DRAW THE THING

“Where did His Highness learn such nastiness?” Yeah gee Narsus I really wonder where

NARSUS, IS THIS WISE???? Isn't Hilmes like stronger than you and Daryun?????????? Arslan's capable but surely he's not on that level???

It's not that I don't believe in Arslan it's that he's my son and I worry for him and I swear this kid's gonna give me multiple heart attacks

Y'know what, fuck it, imma believe in my son GET HIS ASS

Yes I'm still a Hilmes fan but Arslan always comes first in my heart

Lmao I'd make such a bad parent

HOLY SHIT THE SECOND ECBATANA UPRISING

AYO MERLAINE MERLAINE MERLAAAAAAAAAAAINE

YES GURAZEH PREACH ARSLAN TO THE CITIZENS

Wait does this mean Team Andragoras is entering the capital too—

I wish we got a glance of Isfan...

Omg they just YEET the food

Why am I so pleased that Andragoras' army got blocked by the citizens

*SCREAMS*

Oh, Hilmes... you shot yourself in the foot T_T

GASP HE REALLY DID IT OMG HE REALLY DID IT!!!!

[anusharao96]

They are Arslan's real mother and father for me.

I don't care what the canon says :3

[innerchorus]

Arslan Senki Chapter 129 (Part 1)

Okay, I had a fun time reading this one, despite the face off between Team Arslan and Team Hilmes it felt way lower stakes than the encounter with Zahhak so I was able to relax in the (correct) assumption that nobody was about to die just yet.

Early moment of appreciation for the attention to detail in Arakawa's storytelling. Yes, corvids cawing like this is frequently used as a sign of something ominous (and it certainly feels that way as another panel shows them atop this tower with Hilmes stood below) but I love that they have a reason for doing so in that they've spotted a hawk (Azrael!) circling above and are giving the alarm.

Sam's chin has gone full rectangle.

This is his reaction upon hearing how Team Arslan got in (yes, through the very waterways he'd been defending, Hilmes should've listened to Zandeh, but Hilmes hasn't been in the mood for listening to his followers as of late, has he?)

HILMES NO.

This is him trying to recover the situation, I guess.

Anyway no doubt you guys recognise Daryun's helmet on the left there, and he's about to jump in but Arslan holds him back in order to handle matters himself. He's the opposite of Hilmes throughout, calm and composed where Hilmes is shaken and erratic. The contrast is important and becomes starker as the scene goes on.

I feel bad but I laughed at Hilmes's expressions so many times this chapter, but I think it's only because I was feeling confident that no real harm will come to him? He really is having the worst day. Asking Arslan what legitimacy he has was a mistake because Arslan brandishes none other than Rukhnabad.

And thanks to Hilmes's tomb robbing adventure, the majority of the soldiers present recognise it, as does Zandeh (boy is shocked, he thought that thing was gone for good!)

I'm not sure Zandeh's had time to process any of this fully, but he saw what happened when Hilmes tried to take the blade at Mount Damavand. For Arslan to turn up with the blade and claim it's Kaykhusraw's will... No wonder he looks so shocked. It really does pose a challenge to Hilmes's claim.

Hilmes begins an attempt to defend his position by starting to reveal the truth about Arslan's parentage, when...

He falters, and misreads Arslan's composure as a sign that Arslan knows Hilmes's own secret.

Man, I fucking love this. Hilmes, who couldn't bear to share the burden of that secret with even his most loyal followers, cannot comprehend that Arslan has done just that. Arslan's calm demeanour comes from having done so; he has found his resolve with the truth out in the open, and it's part of what enables him to confront Hilmes like this.

Arslan addressing Hilmes as 'cousin' and then being all 'wait, that's not right' all but confirms to Hilmes that his suspicions are correct, but in truth Arslan is correcting himself because he already knows that he is not Andragoras's son. What Hilmes was threatening to reveal holds no power over Arslan, yet the effect that fearing his secret is out has on Hilmes is clear, and it makes him desperate.

Zandeh being all ??? when if Hilmes had just told him he could've had the reassurance that Zandeh would continue to support him no matter what 😭

Anyway, both Narsus and Arslan notice how unsettled Hilmes is, though they don't know why nobody cares about your fucking secret except you, Hilmes. And because Hilmes is so rattled, he calls for Arslan to fight him. Honestly, it's not a bad choice and even if he weren't so flustered about what Arslan may or may not know he likely would have done so, but his mental state going into it is already working against him.

Him ordering Arslan to face him with Rukhnabad is also not a bad shout. I imagine he's both hedging his bets and hoping that Arslan doesn't really have Kaykhusraw's favour, and assuming his odds against Arslan when it comes to a duel are good in any case.

The Rukhnabad twist I didn't predict! And just wait for the full reveal! But first I want to remind you of this moment from Chapter 93 where Hilmes speaks with the Master after having failed to retrieve the sword for himself:

Arslan's words can only remind him of his own failure.

He's definitely on the back foot here now; Arslan not only has Rukhnabad in his possession, but he's also bold enough to claim he will defeat Hilmes without it.

Now, if you had said to me that Arslan will face Hilmes without Rukhnabad and actually stand a chance of winning, I would have dismissed it as unbelievable. But that's where Arakawa's careful attention to Hilmes's inner fears has come into play, and combined with Arslan's (accidental) further shaking of his confidence and (deliberate) provocation by saying he's not worthy of using Rukhnabad on... How well will he fight? Combat begins before swords are even drawn, it seems.

Also ARSLAN STILL CANNOT DRAW RUKHNABAD JSHDFJSDHGG wow, honestly did not see that coming, what a bluff that was—

Presumably that means we will see him gain the ability to draw the sword when it comes to a fight against Zahhak? Or maybe there will be time for him to visit Kaykhusraw's tomb before then (since it seems less likely it's already happened)?

Narsus declaring that it's Hilmes's decree that this duel will decide who will be Shah is a smart move, too. There are those with personal grudges and those who may seek to object, but with the decision framed this way, they cannot. Alfarid knows too much is at stake. Sam can't go against Hilmes's own word.

Now here's a match where I feel we all already know what the outcome will be. ZANDEH PLEASE. I don't want you to get hurt.

I do appreciate Daryun still responding to him with tired exhasperation, though. It's like 'really, we're still doing this?'. And I'm just clinging on to the fact that it's clear he wouldn't hold a grudge if Zandeh just fucked off somewhere other than Pars like to Maryam with Hilmes.

I'm just relying on Zandeh to agree to let it drop in the end. If Hilmes does, Zandeh would too, I think.

Anyway, while I don't think he'll be able to beat Daryun, this is the first time he's facing him with a mace, a weapon he has acknowledged is better suited to his strength, so maybe he won't do as badly as I feared?

That's it for Part 1! Stay tuned for Part 2!

[importantdestinydefendor]

Azar was appointed the highest military rank in Maar (I know you gave it a name but you were considering changing some names so does that include the title?) at a very young age, 22 if I recall, though you said you might change that. Nonetheless, she was very young when she got the rank. You said it was a matter of survival for her. I assume it has something to do with her half-Maaren half-Parsian lineage, as she'd be half foreign in Maar. Did something happen to facilitate her scrambling to rise through the ranks? Was she discriminated against? Were her relatives (evil aunt?) involved in that? Oh and how old is she actually, by Pars era 320? 22?

(It's a lot of questions, I know, and I know you usually don't like spoiling stuff but it's been weighing on my mind since I saw you mention “it was a matter of survival for her” and I just have to give it a try.)

Finally getting around to this.

I'm so happy that I'm not the only one who has Azar brain rot and that you all love her as much as I do!

So, small correction. Azar is 100% Parsian.

She does have family in Maar but only through second degree. The sister of her father married a Maaren farmer and built a family there (a pretty big one... I should maybe make a separate post for that). And it is at their, like, inn/tavern/farm in the village Rus where she grew up after being brought to Maar by said sister and, to some extent, Vahriz when she was one year old.

Now to the question that sparked your ask, probably.

Her "evil" aunt was part of the reason. Vahriz knew her when they all were young (or rather when he was young and they (also meaning Daryuns dad and Azar's mom) even younger) Their families were friends since their fathers were old friends.

So, a little spoiler for the AU, Azar's "evil" aunt (she does have a name, will do a post/poll about that later maybe with a few options)  was the one who killed Azar's mom. That's why Azar lives in Maar right now as her dads sister and Vahriz thought that she was safer there than in Pars. But that was proven false when the "evil" aunt ambushed Rus and gave Azar her first scar on her back (she tried to protect a few children in a church during the raid) when Azar was very young. After that the aunt attacked one more time and scared Azar's uncle (the farmer).

So  Vahriz brought her to the capital of Maar, Visgard, to receive proper training and that's when Azar became a squire. Vahriz felt guilty that he failed to protect her so he was very strict with Azar's training. He was so strict in fact that he exhausted her and brought her to her absolute limits. Others thought that Vahriz was maybe even too extreme. It was a very rough and hard time for Azar but for Vahriz, it seemed necessary. So she can protect herself with utmost certainty because he knows he won't always be there and he does still have a nephew he also has to look after. He basically drilled her and that's why she rose through the ranks so fast.

In the end it was Vahriz paranoia and guilt that drove her up the ranks so fast. A lot of people lost their lives the day Azar's mom died and Vahriz swore to protect and take care of Azar. But he failed in his eyes - twice. So he taught her everything he knew, drilled it into her, so she had a chance of survival when she came face to face with her aunt.

And due that and her vast skill set she proved herself to be a capable knight and leader. So she got appointed Almennt (I won't change the name for this one as in georgian it would be called generali and that does not sound serious at all (I do not say that as to mock the language, mind you. It just doesn't fit Azar at all)). I will probably change her age at the time to 23. Seems more fitting

And since we are at the topic of age and you asked how old Azar is in Pars era 320 (for those who don't know - that is our current time in ArSen) - she is the same age as Narsus, 26. She would probably be a few months older than him. So it has been three-ish years since her appointment.

(I hope I have answered everything you wanted to know!)

If anybody has other questions that you want to be answered regarding Azar/Firelight AU or any other OC I had mentioned or shown - my inbox is always open! I will write if it is something I won't answer if I regard my answer too spoiler heavy.

Edit: forgot the discrimination part. I have not really thought about that yet but considering where Maar's citizens originally came from it would be highly hypocritical. But there were (and still are (this time out of jealousy)) probably some squires and knights who were discriminating against or at least hated her due to King Farzin showing interest in her and sometimes training her personally alongside Vahriz. She probably got more discrimination against her with being a woman in one of the highest ranks in Maar since all of her predecessors were men.

[xbuster]

[choujinx]

ARSLAN SENKI (2013-?) by arakawa hiromu

[daryun]

[strangeshipper]

"I have a mage!"

Arslan Senki : : Narsus, Daryun, Zandeh, Gurgin

(All is clear now about Narsus & Daryun quarrel :D And oh you know it's just a joke, I'm big fan of Narsus & Daryun, really.)

Interesting, Tanaka says Narsus dislikes magic a lot, but nevertheless he know how to resist it. How do you think, could Narsus learn magic? Or one needs some king of innate superpower to become a sorcerer?

[nanamiwifeyy]

Headcannons: Our boy's are jealous...how do they show it?

Anime: Heroic legend of Arslan

Including: Daryun, Narsus, Gieve, Jashwant,older Arslan, older Elam

Warning: grammer, ooc?

(●♡●)

Daryun: The dead stare, this man killed the person like 5 times in his head.He is most of the time okay with it. You are nice,pretty, attractive, kind, social, kind ....OF COURSE you will get attention.But when he sees a guy getting to friendly with you, his patience has reach the limit. He saw the stranger putting a hand on your shoulder and brushing your hair down.A vein popped on Daryun's neck and fist as he witnessed this scandal happing before him. He would rather see Narsus's painting than his lady being touched by someone else. Wishing you would spend the time with him instead, he will forcefully nvite himsef in the conversation in question..Keeping an arm around you and staring in the eyes of the person while drinking his beer. And when he is asked if he was jealous, he will deny it.

Arslan: He guy is a bit dense. He was talking with others during the banquete. You were enjoying the time when a Parsian official sat next to you, starting a conversation. You enjoyed the conversation until the guy begin to ask personal questions. This didn't went unnoticed by Gieve, who was having a fair time with women around him. He excused himself and went to the prince. Whispering to the prince that there is a damsel in distress in the room. The prince scanned the room but didn't saw anything. Gieve pushed him in your direction and Arslan saw you wanted to leave but the guy held you softly down. Arslan hurried his way to you and sat next to you. Immediatly the attention went to him as he is the prince. Arslan, by observing Narsus and Gieve, learned to have his way with words and made a conversation with the official while holding your hand, giving the reassearance that you needed. Arslan learned to make sure to keep an eye out for you.

Gieve did receive a blow to the head by Daryun for pushing the prince.

Narsus:This man can read the mind and body. His conversation with Daryun had to be distrupted as someone had the audicity to make moves on you. He saw you drinking your wine while a knight was talking to you.You of course, was trying to be nice and struck up a conversation. This man was holding your hand, brushing your hair away.He excused himself from the conversation, upon asked the answer was: saving my damsel in distress

He was walking normal untill he saw the hand sneaking to yor waist, he took a sprint save to say. He knows better than to not make a huge commontion in a baquet so he made his was to you and simply said that he needed you for something slapping the hand of your waist.He asked you to fully wash yourself that night.

Elam: This guy doesn't hesistate. He make sure everybody knows that, skilled in archery at that. When a guy makes you uncomfortable, he will make a make-shift bow and launch a rock to the guy's temple: knocking him out. But it's a different story during a banquete. He is usually very quite and help around during the banquete so he doesn't see you in the room usually. But once he saw that there was a knight, super drunk leaning on you, holding you ect. He went back in the kitchen and made a plate full of meat. He seasoned the meat with every spice and pepper in the kitchen. He asked a servant to serve it to him as he cleaned himself and sat next to you with a new bottle of wine. The knight didn't like this and pulled you closer to him. Then, the servant came and served the plate to him. The knight lost himself and digged in the plate. Only to cough and become one with a tomato. Elam quickly poured him a cup of wine, the knight grapped the whole bottle and drank it without a thought. Only to have his mouth burn more than it already is. Elam made sure to spike the bottle of wine- replace the wine with boiled water with spice flaoting in it.

That pour soul learned the hard way to never disrespect another guy's woman.

Gieve:This man is a certified womanizer and love to give woman attention but when other do it to you, than it's a problem. He just felt that the guy you were talking to had interest in you and he did not like that.He also saw the clear uncofortable signs that you. Believe me, he has experience. Not only will he plot ways to murder the guy but make sure to embarrasse the guy while he is at it. So he made his way to you and poured himself a cup of wine, inculding himself in the conversation you two were holding. He constantly wanted to talk to you, interruppting the knight's sentence to ask you something. Gieve will make sure to be pysical: holding hands, kissing you on your face and neck, rubbing your lower back. Al signs to show the guy you were his woman.

Let's say the guy quickly left.

Jashwant:He is an observer, nothing goes unnoticed by him. He is used to keep feelings aside, focussing on the work that is given to him. He was leaning against the wall, protecting prince Arslan while he was watching the banquet in full swing. He also saw you talking to a nice couple, the seems nice to him. But the jealousy started to rise when they introduced their son to you. A young, handsome guy from Sindhura. He kissed your hand and politely introduced himself to you. He wanted to walk over to you but prince Arslan would be unguarded as Daryun, Narsus and even Gieve were somewhere else. He had faith in the bond you two share so he knew that you wouldn't leave him. As the banquete went on, he didn't see you. His mind raced through the thoughts of this fancy guy kidnapping you. Gieve returned and he quickly traded position with him in search for you. He ran and ran and that's when he saw you and that guy. You tried to get away from the guy but he held a firm grip on you. Jashwant went for the jawkick and the guy landed on the ground. He asked you to leave and gp back to the banquete, the seriousness in his eyes said enoughh and you did as yo were told. When Jashwant returned, he had small bloodstains on his clothes that wold go unnoticed to the naked eye

The after he asked you to place red powder in the center of your hairline, showing the world that you are taken.

[meridiageek]

@colleyuriko after I saw your message, I got the idea to quickly make this picture

[marchdancer]

So I actually have created a small and simple timeline for my Arslan AU. ( I am actually writing a new chapter for the story and yes I am really, really slow). The Timeline is not fully complete, for example the year where Narsus became Lord of Daylam missed and I am not really sure with every canon data. So they will mixed up a bit with my AU and the canon data. A big thanks @tired-reader-writerfor the help to collect some year numbers and canon events.

In the timeline are some events from my AU that are a bit of a spoiler and I hope I can dissolve them with the new chapter I actually write. Hopefully I can posted it in a few days xD.

[tired-reader-writer]

I think there's just something in the way even Narsus was stumped when before he said something like “I fear nothing that talks” when faced against a sorcerer, but this time he's up against a true monster.

I know I've brought up this quote by Aozaki Touko from Kara no Kyoukai a lot but:

“There are three conditions to terrify someone: One, the monster can't speak. Two, the monster has to be unidentifiable. Three, it's meaningless if the monster can die.”

Zahhak, at present, qualifies for two of the three conditions, but can be stretched to all three since the characters don't know where he originated from, how he came to be. Even Kaykhusraw could not kill him.

[samballesbian]

i need to see narsus' art i need it so bad i need to see how awful his art is with my own eyes

[innerchorus]

@tired-reader-writer

Details from the novels concerning exactly how corrupt the priesthood are! To set the scene, it's Pars Era 317, Daryun has gone off to Serica and Narsus's proposed reforms are causing ripples and creating enemies among the priests and nobels, leading to the priests demanding that Andragoras exile Narsus from court.

'Narses, you see, had also been investigating the priests’ abuse of their privileged positions to perpetrate sundry transgressions. Not only were the priests exempt from taxes, even if they were to commit a crime, they would not be arrested or executed. They lent money to the peasantry at exorbitant interest rates and seized their lands when the money could not be repaid. They also monopolized the underground kariz aqueducts and reservoirs, imposing a water tax on the people. If anyone resisted, they sent forth their personal troops to burn and pillage, and afterwards divvied up the spoils. The salt they sold to the public was cut with sand. If the peasantry dug their own wells, they poisoned the wells. After investigating and collecting proof of all these misdeeds, Narses requested that the king exact severe punishment upon the priests.' (Book 1, Chapter 2, part i)

Andragoras fails to act, and the priests send assassins after Narsus at this point. It's worth noting that, even after deciding court is really not for him and fucking off for a peaceful life in Mt. Bashur, Narsus really did try to get Andragoras to open his eyes and do something about the corruption and injustice he had seen.

'When he absconded from court, Narses left behind a letter for King Andragoras. As Dariun’s uncle Vahriz put it, this was a rather uncalled for gesture. Nonetheless, in it Narses had written out a critique of the rampant corruption within the administration — of putting a halt to the priests’ moneylending, of entrusting management of the kariz to peasant representatives, of instituting a justice system unaffected by rank or position, and other such suggestions. O my liege, I beg you: open your eyes and bear witness to the true condition of your government! If only you were to look past that which is beautiful on the surface and face the ugly reality beneath, what a blessing that would be!' (Book 1, Chapter 2, part ii)

[importantdestinydefendor]

Some interesting differences I found

While writing Firelight AU I always have the manga open in a seperate tap since there are some canon scenes I have to describe. I do own the manga myself - but in German. So it is always interesting to see the translation choises in the different languages that have been made.

For example:

In chapter 29, Narsus says "I find that whenever our paths cross, I wind up staying far from human decency. It's rather troubling to me." to Hilmes. In german he says: "Finding you in such a remote area that is what worries me!" (original: "Dich in so einer abgelegenen Gegend anzutreffen, das ist es, was mich bekümmert!")

Like - these two translation of the same scene/dialouge in different languages conveys two complitely different feeling and messages! In English, he is more talking about himself and the unpleasantness he feels while in Hilmes presence. As in German, he talks about Hilmes - very disrespectfuly even - and sarcastically being worried about him (as in response to the same sarcastic tone Hilmes talks to him (Narsus actually starts first with the mocking in german as he says "Honored" Lord Silver Mask ("Verehrter" Lord Silbermaske). Narsus is such a little shit, I can't-)).

Does anybody know what he says in japanese originally? I want to see the original context and what Hilmes actually says to him.

Feel free to add more if you read in any other language other than English.

[xbuster]

"I've heard that you advised my father to end the slave trade, "and so he removed you from the post of royal historian. "I've given the same advice, and been reprimanded for it."