Rune Soldier is a Japanese light novel series by Ryo Mizuno, which features the soldier Louie as the hero. The series takes place on the continent of Alecrast on the world called Forcelia, and is related to the series Sword World RPG. It is a sibling series to Record of Lodoss War, taking place on a continent north of Lodoss Island. An anime television series adaptation animated by J.C.Staff aired on Wowow from April to September 2001.
Characters
; Louie : A member of the Magician's Guild in Ohfun and the adopted son of Carwes the guild's master. Muscular and a little on the dumb side; Louie is prone to getting drunk in bars, chasing after girls, and brawling when he should be studying his magic. As a result, he tends to use brute force instead of magic, much to the chagrin of his companions. Despite his shortcomings as a wizard, Louie possesses a strong sense of justice and is unfailingly loyal to those he considers his friends. Louie's stupidity mostly results as a lack of planning and forethought, he's actually a lot smarter than he usually appears to be, often figuring things out that others overlook. While it isn't mentioned in the anime it is strongly hinted in the manga that Louie is the illegitimate son of the King., Jon Goiri ; Melissa : Adventurer and priestess to Mylee, god of war. Naive and idealistic, Melissa's dream is to serve a chosen hero of her patron god which of course causes her great despair when Mylee reveals her destined champion is Louie. Throughout the course of the series, Melissa gradually begins to realize that perfect heroes don't exist and by the end of the series not only fully accepts Louie as her chosen hero but may also have developed feelings for him as well., Jaione Intsausti ; Genie : Adventurer and former soldier of Ohfun. She has a rather cool demeanor but Louie's stupid behavior tends to push her to the point of violence. A highly adept warrior, Genie's favorite weapon is a broadsword as big as herself and likewise is strong enough to slug it out on the same level as Louie. As the story progresses, Genie comes to respect Louie as a friend when she finds that he, unlike most men, doesn't look down on her because she is a woman and even teaches him basic sword fighting., Maribel Legarreta ; Merrill : Adventurer, thief and part-time job worker with a fanatical obsession for money. When not adventuring, Merrill is either raising funds for the next adventure through various part-time jobs or looking at any scheme to get rich, including running booths at various events in Ohfun. Like Genie, Merril is driven crazy by Louie's behavior and frequently explodes in violence at him., Ana Bego Egileor ; Aila : Member of the Magician's Guild and Louie's friend. Despite many attempts to get Louie on a date, especially considering her rather voluptuous frame, their relationship remains platonic and open much to her dismay. Although highly knowledgeable in magic theory and magical item lore, Aila herself claims to be inferior to Louie in raw magical prowess. She also tends to go to pieces and pass out whenever trouble surfaces on adventures she tags along with. In the manga, Aila's character is more sultry than in the anime and she especially enjoys getting Louie flustered by flirting with him., Ana Tere Bengoetxea ; Celecia : A beautiful elf girl the group met while journeying through a forest. ; Anna ;Gannet, Jaione Instsausti ;Joan, Maribel Legarreta ; Dardanel''' : The main antagonist of the series.
Media
Light novels
First series 1. October 25, 1998 2. February 25, 1999 3. June 25, 1999 4. December 25, 1999 5. April 25, 2000 6. August 30, 2000 7. March 25, 2001 8. July 25, 2001 9. February 25, 2002 0. March 25, 2003: A side-story about Genie, Merrill, and Melissa before meeting Louie. Second series 1. Rune Soldier in the Sword Kingdom 2. Rune Soldier in the Lakeshore Country 3. Rune Soldier in the Dust Country Third series 1. Farram's Sword: Rune Soldier in the Sage's Country 2. Farram's Sword: Rune Soldier on the Island of Spells 3. Farram's Sword: Rune Soldier in the Pastoral Country 4. Farram's Sword: Rune Soldier in the Steel Country 5. Farram's Sword: Rune Soldier on the Island of Gods 6. Farram's Sword: Rune Soldier on the Stormy Sea 7. Farram's Sword: Rune Soldier on the Smokefire Island 8. Farram's Sword: Rune Soldier in the Rune Land ( June 20, 2012）
Anime
The Rune Soldier anime consists of 24 episodes. The episodes are either a stand-alone adventure, or a story arcconsisting of multiple episodes. In general the plot of each episode or story arc revolves around the group looking for, finding, and participating in an adventure. Probably due to interpretation or stylistic differences most episodes have a verbal spoken and written name that does not match exactly. The anime had an NTSC release of September 13, 2005 by Section 23. There were 6 discs total.
