Summary
The Sword Princess of Orario has cemented herself as one of the central characters intheDanMachiseries. Despite her few words, Ais is loved by many and admired by the general populace. She stands as a figure of strength and beauty, but few know beyond what they can see. Ais’ past, her ambitions, and the things that drive her to become stronger are known to a select few.
While Ais Wallenstein is very well known in the city of Orario and the world ofDanMachias a whole, as a character, she embodies a mystery that invokes curiosity in others. This leads to the question of the true nature of Ais Wallenstein beyond the title of Sword Princess and what makes her so essential in the series.
The Sword Princess Of Orario
Silent But Powerful
Ais Wallenstein might not be the loudest or the most rambunctious of characters; however, she has one of the strongest presences. Her beauty and grace draw people to her, making her an idol of many. However, unknown to many, the Sword Princess is like every other girl, and much more clueless about the ways of the world than average girls.
With just 149 words of dialogue inDanMachi’sfirst season, Ais is seen to rarely speak and generally comes off as a quiet and mysterious person who helps the weak. She prefers to stay mute in most situations, simply observing or answering with certain head nods or body language in general.
Many view Ais Wallenstein as a hero, but she doesn’t believe she’s a true hero, only an adventurer who selfishly pursues her goals for her sake—even if they do end up benefiting others. Despite her quiet nature, Ais can be quite stubborn and strong-willed, a trait that has no doubt brought her this far.
As a member and executive of the Loki Familia,one of the strongestFamilia in Orario, Ais serves as a first-class adventurer with great talent and actively pursues strength. Joining the Loki Familia at the tender age of seven, Ais showed her immense potential by quickly leveling up and setting the record for being the fastest person to reach level two. Her record stunned many until therising star Bell Cranelbroke it and set his own record, gaining her attention.
Ais Wallenstein’s Quest for Strength
A Journey Fueled by Revenge
Very few know of Ais Wallenstein’s past due to her taciturn nature, but many praise her for her strength. However, to gain the strength that she has, Ais doggedly pursued power in her childhood, even with self-destructive tendencies, and has an end goal in mind. This goal is none other than to defeat the one-eyed black dragon, a legendary creature that defeated both Zeus and Hera’s Familia. Moreover, slaying the dragon is one of the Three Great Quests, showing how powerful the creature really is. While slaying the dragon is a worthy goal, Ais’ reason for attempting it is not a heroic quest, but revenge, and to save her mother.
The very nature of Ais’ birth is a mystery, as her father was a hero of the dungeon, while her mother, Aria, was a spirit. IntheDanMachiseries, spirits are believed to be unable to have children, so how exactly the Sword Princess was conceived remains in the dark. The precise details of Ais’ past are unknown; however, upon joining the Loki Familia at age seven, the only thing Ais did was pursue strength.
Her single-minded focus on defeating monsters long turned into an obsession that granted her strength but was described by many as irrational. In fact, the beautiful and graceful Sword Princess used to be notorious for disrespecting others, doing only what she felt would make her stronger, irrespective of the potential damage. Whether launching herself at infant dragons or facing floor bosses higher leveled than her, Ais did everything in pursuit of physical strength before she eventually met Finn, the captain of the Loki Familia.
Ais’ Role In The Loki Familia
Bonds of Strength And Trust
While she doesn’t interact favorably with every member of the Loki Familia,the Familia would be incompletewithout Ais Wallenstein. Ais’ relationship with members like Riveria Ljos Alf and Lefiya Viridis is very strong, with Riveria being like a mother to Ais. While many struggle to understand Ais and her emotions, Riveria sees right through them, helping Ais navigate emotions she herself may not understand.
Ais’ relationship with Loki, the mischievous head of the Familia, is often made comedic by Loki’s various attempts to grope Ais. As the Sword Princess threatens the goddess in a lighthearted manner, they generally get along. However, Loki tends to take advantage of Ais’ naivety in the ways of the world, pulling off various antics.
Being level six, a level that shows her immense power and experience, Ais is one of the most powerful adventurers in the Loki Familia and Orario as a whole. With her abilities, she often leads expeditions into the dungeon to conquer monsters and advance the Familia’s progress.
With her taciturn nature, Ais doesn’t shout grand words of heroism or sacrifice but has others follow her simply through the strength and confidence she displays. With her innate charisma to draw others to her, Ais is able to inspire others, making them trust in her calm demeanor. As an adventurer with a specialty against monsters, Ais can always be counted on when it comes to leading expeditions in the dungeon. The bond between her and the Loki Familia as a whole is great, as seen in how easily they trust her judgment and decisions. In a sense, she serves as a symbol of strength and growth to the younger members of the Familia.
Ais’ Powers And Combat Skills
A Legendary Sword Princess For A Reason
Ais’ moniker as the Sword Princess isn’t for show, as she’s earned herself the title of a level six adventurer. Through various hardships, Ais has forged her battle style and is hellbent on continuously improving it, making her a hard person to beat.
As an adventurer, Ais is most capable with a sword. She’s an extremely quick and agile fighter, but her techniques rely much more on her superior strength than speed. When it comes to battling others, Ais generally overpowers them with strength, as seen when she battled Riveria. Her physical prowess alsooutclasses normal humansand even those of the same level as her.
While Ais is incredibly powerful, her true strength is only seen when she’s facing monsters, as her techniques are more suited to fighting them. One of her most powerful skills, Avenger, increases her base attack power against monsters and further boosts it against dragon-type monsters. This ability is fueled by the hate Ais has toward monsters, and the stronger her rage in the moment, the stronger the power she can display. While powerful, Ais’ Avenger is inherently similar to Naofumi Iwatani’s Curse Shield. It’s the type of ability that grants immense power but at the cost of losing oneself.
Another of her abilities, Ariel, is a form of wind enchantment highly similar to Yuno’s Spirit Form. With this ability, Ais was capable of going against level six adventurers as a level five. Despite the abilities she already possesses, Ais seeks much more strength, as the power of the one-eyed black dragon remains unfathomable, and Ais seeks to defeat it by all means.
The Evolution of Ais And Bell’s Relationship
Setting Herself Up As A Pivotal Character
Ais’ relationship with Bell is interesting, considering Bell wants to be a hero and Ais considers herself unworthy of becoming one. Early on in the series, Bell single-mindedly admires Ais and considers her an idol and a goal to reach. Bell still sees her like that, but now, it seems that Ais has warmed up to the young adventurer and may be developing romantic feelings for him. In terms of navigating her emotional state, Ais Wallenstein isn’t the best. Her interactions with Bell have made her feel emotions different from those she’s used to. Some members of the Loki Familia have noticed that Ais seems to be happy whenever she’s with Bell, an emotion she rarely displays.
Before the deepening of their relationship, Ais was simply worried about Bell being an adventurer, as he had some sort of purity that she was afraid he’d lose. Moreover, even after showing that he could build himself up without succumbing to the darkness that constitutes most adventurers, Ais was inherently curious as to how Bell leveled up so fast.
The relationship between Ais and Bell continues to evolve as the duo spends time together. From their secret training sessions to dancing together during a ball, their relationship is one that many fans hope will play out in a good light.
WhileBell’s relationship with herhas greatly improved the character of Ais Wallenstein, she still has to confront her past and eventually come to terms with what happened. Overall, Ais Wallenstein remains a great character who grows from being just a strong and dependable fighter to one who is more relatable, even as she confronts her struggles. With her growth, Ais becomes more and more of a pivotal character, with her deepening relationship with Bell Cranel and the continuous exploration of her past and personal struggles.
DanMachiis available to watch onCrunchyrollandHulu.
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