Deen Lhant

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Third Zero
Name	Deen Lhant
Kanji	ディーン・ラント
Romanji	Dīn Ranto
Alias	None
Characteristics
Race	Human
Birthday	November 11
Age	23
Gender	Male
Height	172 cm
Weight	47 kg
Eyes	Pink
Hair	Black
Professional Status
Affiliation	Magic Council (loosely) Tsuruko Faction (largely)
Occupation	Rune Knight
Previous Occupation	Unknown
Team	Paranomal Investigation Unit Tsuruko Faction
Partner	Kirika Hotsuin
Base of Operations	Hargeon Era
Personal Status
Marital Status	Single
Relatives	Unnamed Parents (Deceased)
Education	Basic
Status	Alive
Powers and Abilities
Magic	None
Curse	None
Other	None
Weapons	CW-AIM02X: Blue Rose Chimera Driver Arms Weapon: Mantles
Soul Armour
Soul Armour Name	Soul Armour Knight Zero (神鎧纏最高戦士 (ソウル・アーマー・ナイト) ・絶狼（ゼロ）, Sōru Āmā Naito Zero lit. God Armour Clad Supreme Warrior Slicing Wolf)

"At the same time as... hmph... at the same time as trying to lead a good life, I have to reconcile myself with the fact that, yes, I have killed people in the pursuit of order. Not many people. Most of them were not very nice people. Listen here little missy; most of us are kind-hearted law-abiding human beings who would never dream of committing murder in private life. We're just...people. It's the only way to keep the money rolling in so that we keep a roof over our heads and eat every night. It's just, a job. Nothing personal."

— Deen Lhant, to Tsuruko Sejren, in Paragon of Hope

Deen Lhant (ディーン・ラント, Dīn Ranto) is the Head Captain of the Rune Knights in Daybreak Chapter: A Change of Perspective. A troubled young man, Deen often bemoans the fact that the Magic Council which he works for is seen as tyrannical, whereas most of the employees hold no real grudge against regular mages, but are simply doing a job they're getting paid for, repeatedly telling people that they're totally personable joes who go hang out like anyone else. Nevertheless, he is seen arresting Tsuruko Sejren in his first appearance, before he lets her go due to a trick Giselle Mercury played upon him. Later on, he becomes the "official" bodyguard of Team Daybreak for a while, before he returns to the council. As a former lacky, grunt, and mook, he delved into the darkness of the world and turned into an anomaly that disrupts the plans and calculations of others time and time again.

Deen Lhant is the duotagonist of the Daybreak series, receiving the second most standalone arcs, with his storylines in the first installment of the series delving more into the central overarching plot around the Magic Council and its corruption, including the catalyst that would drive it to become the dystopian government that it is in Dawn.

When Deen inserts the Beast Ring into the Chimera Driver, he can become Soul Armour Knight Zero (神鎧纏最高戦士 (ソウル・アーマー・ナイト) ・絶狼（ゼロ）, Sōru Āmā Naito Zero lit. God Armour Clad Supreme Warrior Slicing Wolf).

Appearance

Deen is a youth with somewhat spiky black hair with a pink streak on the left hand side, and a spiky black ponytail running midway down his back. He has pink eyes; he's described as having a cool look. Tsuruko described him when she saw him for the first time to have a silky black hair, and a pretty face that could almost be mistaken for a girl's, but his eyes were strangely sharp. His expression was stiff, and he exudes an air of coldness and spoke with a severe voice.

Deen's clothing appears to be influenced by Eastern culture. He wears a dark green diagonally buttoned long-sleeved suit that is red on the inside, with black and gold trimming and pink cuffs. The trimming goes down the right side of his torso and forms a black collar. There are black undersleeves underneath the suit. He also wears light tan pants and black shoes. Deen also wears skates that have a pattern of small "jets" on the bottom which Deen uses to propel himself forward at high speeds.

Personality and Traits

Deen is a bitter, impatient, and complex young man, akin to a tragic villain; demonstrating empathy for others despite his pompous attitude. He believes that one becomes strong by struggling and fighting for what they want. However, he expresses contradicting mindsets; he did not want good luck because he felt he could control his fate, but also believed he was marked unlucky and that the world was against him. His reaction to the perception of the world always set against him is an iron-willed defiance and inflexible determination. He is clever, yet hot-headed, often letting his temper get the best of him. He seems adverse to the thought of harming others without any motive or benefit.

Due to his lack of magic, Deen shows an inferiority complex that makes him think he can't do anything right or complete. The main reason behind this is that he had been always branded as a powerless person and a mere "mook", he has yet to display any manifestation of an esper ability. Therefore, due to his lack of power and mockery by genuine magicians, he decided to join the Rune Knights in order to be the one pushing the magicians around. This complex can be seen in his usual snarks, as he always complains about the situation. In battle, he prefers to avoid fighting if possible or to finish the fight as quickly as possible; due to his perceived "weakness"—being highly pragmatic and merciless, aiming to target the opponents weak-spots and tactically disable them as fast as possible before dealing the finishing blow.

Deen is a highly dedicated worker—he's very serious, calm, wise and disciplined, but also opinionated and somewhat arrogant at times. Despite this fact, he is usually eager to find danger to flex and polish his skills. His dedication to his missions often leads to him going to extremes in order to complete his tasks, no matter how minor; taking everything that has to do with his job absolutely seriously. Amusingly, Deen is suggestive to anything sex-related, as shown when he got a nosebleed simply by seeing Giselle putting a stuffed bunny doll behind Tsuruko to give her a bunny girl look. While Deen is generally a stoic person, he secretly has a childish dream of becoming a super hero—something that he tells Tsuruko when she asks him about his dreams. When he first becomes his alter-ego, his face showed great discomfort, but was actually quite delighted in secret; going so far to prepare a hammy speech.

History

Not much is known about Deen's past; other than the fact that he was born into poverty, and his parents died when he was young. As a result, he was forced to scavenge on the streets, and as the magicians bullied him, he grew to despise the concept of magic. Soon after, he joined the Rune Knights and quickly rose up the ranks.

Equipment

CW-AIM02X: Blue Rose (青薔薇, Aobara): The Blue Rose is a mass-produced version of the Chain Blade (変形銃槍剣, チェインブレイド, Chein Bureido), which is an Earth Land weapon; once a unique weapon, it has now become a staple of the Magic Council's standard equipment; developed by Caledfwlch Techniques as a AIM Armament (AIM武装 AIM Busō); which is a series of weapons manufactured by Caledfwlch Techniques for the Magic Council's Rune Knights; the primary function of the AIM series is to counteract the effects of magic. The abbreviation "AIM" presumably stands for "Anti-Magic"; however, AIM can also stand for An Involuntary Movement (無自覚 Mujikaku, lit. "No Awareness"); meaning that the weapon is at the pinnacle of power. Visually, the Blue Rose is a sword of average length characterized by its mechanical nature and looks. It sports a notably long handle wrapped in bandages, allowing the wielder to wield it with both hands (even maintaining a certain distance between the two of them), ending in a large pommel with an arched outer part. The sword's blade is double-edged, and is notable in the fact that it lacks a sharp tip, instead ending in a squared section. The handguard is the tool's most complex part, being massive and hollow on the edges, extending for several inches over one side of the blade itself, sporting two small wings on each of its sides, meant to offer protection to the hand, and bearing two openings on one of such sides, each surrounded by bolts: the first is small and trapezoidal in shape, serving no visible practical purpose, while the other has an elongated, complex polygonal shape, and a prominent lever jutting out from it, which is used to activate the weapon's special qualities. It looks very similar to the standard Chain Blade, so much so, that people can generally only tell the difference from colour schemes most commanders apply to their weapons and the increased performance of this version; Deen's version of the weapon is coloured azure with golden linings. The Blue Rose features a more powerful powerplant compared to the regular Chain Blade, which in turn, gives it greater power. This allows Deen to move and attack at speeds 3x faster and more powerful than he would with a normal Chain Blade; making it incredibly dangerous in the hands of the commanders it was handed out to. The model designation of the Blue Rose, "CW-AIM02X", stands for "Caledfwlch Anti-Magic Experimental Weapon 02". Blue roses, which cannot occur naturally, have long been a symbol for extreme rarity or attaining the impossible. Roses also traditionally symbolize love, while blue flowers are used to signify great faithfulness and loyalty; the combination of the two would thus denote a lasting, faithful love.

• Hidden Blade: By manipulating the lever located on one of its sides, the user can almost instantly reveal several smaller segments of the handguard's protrusion (usually partially overlapping), which together extend some meters past the squared blade and end in a secondary, smaller one-edged blade, usually kept hidden, which sports a sharp point, and is thus suited for stabbing. This allows the sword to double as a polearm of sort (with the added blade granting it the possibility of both slashing and stabbing, much like a halberd or a naginata), whose notable length, thanks to the segments composing it, can be bent to some degree to better attack targets; not only that, the speed at which the weapon elongates is fast enough to catch opponents off-guard, making for an effective and possibly lethal surprise attack, and the sheer force present in such motion is such that not only what it hits, but even objects out of its physical reach can suffer heavy damage, being struck by an aerial shockwave which can cause devastating effects, obliterating large-sized trees with ease.
• Gunner Mode: The user is capable of turning the Chain Blade into a firearm reminiscent of an assault rifle. This is handled with two hands and can fire barrages of bullets at high speed, granting its user an effective ranged weapon to attack foes with; a weapon that poses a treat even to fast-moving enemies. Its magazine seems to contain a considerable amount of projectiles, allowing the one handling it to shoot for quite some time before reloading the gun. In such state, it is wielded using one of its handguard's protrusion (now complete with a trigger) as the handle, with the blade disappearing and a dark barrel emerging on top of the handguard; a rectangular detachable magazine has to be pulled down diagonally by the user from the weapon's lower side in order for it to be employed. The Chain Blade's original handle can be laid against the user's shoulder, acting as a stock, while a forestock is now located below the barrel. The weapon's lever isn't visible in such state.

Chimera Driver (キメラ・トドライバー, Kimera Doraibā): The Chimera Driver, much like Tsuruko's Phoenix Driver, is a mysterious Driver Belt that Gary found at an archeological excavation; the Chimera Driver holds the Advanced Hellion called Chimera within it; with it, the user can become the Soul Armour Knight known as Zero. It is activated when a ring is inserted in the left slot and turned it counter-clockwise, opening the front buckle that reveals the lion head inside, allowing the user to use Mantles from the Chimera. The form that the Chimera Driver takes that of a rusty belt composed fully of bronze—with numerous sparkling emerald gems encrusted upon the sides, and a lion's head serving the purpose of the buckle. When not transformed, the Chimera Driver appears as an ordinary belt with a closed gate-shaped buckle. It is activated when the Monster Ring is inserted in the left slot and turned it counter-clockwise, opening the front buckle that reveals the lion head inside; using a ring in the right slot calls out the name of the Ring, and a transformation chant for Zero's alternate forms. Unlike the other Driver Belts, which can utilize any Super Soul Ring in their inactive state, the Chimera Driver must be active to use any ring other than the Monster Ring. Amusingly, the Chimera Driver can't scan Super Soul Rings, since the rings can't be inserted into the slot- however, in one memorable occasion, the Chimera Driver has been shown to be able to scan an Enhance Ring stolen from a Mass-Production Soul Armour Knight's belt. Like all Prototype Driver Belts, the Chimera Driver is capable of being utilized by somebody without magic; which Deen utilized to his advantage in order to become the second Zero after Gary leaves the belt with Tsuruko.

Magic Ring Enhancing Adapter (魔法輪強化アダプター, Mahōwa Kyōka Adaputā): The Magic Ring Enhancing Adapter is a special device that increases a Magic Ring's power output threefold; developed by Mr. E after first obtaining the secret of how to create the Super Soul Rings. The Magic Ring Enhancing Adapter takes the form of a chain which is dark purple with cyan highlights and made up of eight links. Each link is shaped like a rounded triangle with three spikes on top, resembling a crown. Each link also has a crown-shaped symbol carved out of its center. One end of the chain is a thin, silver ring, while the other is similar in shape to a fleur-de-lis and has a crescent on either of its sides. The middle of the chain is outfitted with a USB port, meant to fit a Magic Ring. When a Magic Ring is placed into it, the Adapter displays "Download Complete" on it's screen as it upgrades the Magic Ring placed into it. The symbol of the Ring placed into it is then displayed. The Adapter was also used by E before it was stolen by Rosa Dimaggio, who gives it to Deen to serve as a fulcrum for activating Zero's Survive Mode.

Powers and Abilities

Physical Prowess

Ways of Combat

Master Swordsmanship Specialist:

• Spar Claw (上昇斬(スパー･クロー) , Supā Kurō, lit. Rising Slash): A simple move in which Deen wields Blue Rose with both hands; from a position which is below the foe, which is usually achieved by crouching down for a split-second, Deen applies his free arm to the back of the blade, before leaping upwards with a quick burst of speed, then jumps into the air; something which also allows him to avoid other attacks, and performs a vertical, upwards slash with the blade; unleashing a rising attack meant to strike the jaw from below; continuing to rise, Deen appears slightly above his foe's head, before slamming down with the intent to strike their brain. The wind that accompanies this strike is twice as fierce as before, feeling almost as if a razor had cut the foe at the same time of the strike. A violent wind which is generated through the sheer velocity generated by his movements accompanies this blow to deal additional damage.
• Atomic Spar (微塵牙突(アトミック･スパ) , Atomikku Supa, lit. Particle Fang Thrust): Atomic Spar is a technique in which Deen unleashes a powerful thrust after lunging forward, plunging Blue Rose into an enemy with high speeds; making it extremely useful; interestingly, Deen appears to be dragged by his sword, as his feet literally slide over the ground after he simply thrusts Blue Rose in his foes' direction. Atomic Spar can also be used outside of combat to allow Deen to use a long jump when performed off of a ledge. This can be useful to reach areas that are unaccessible with a normal jump—the swift motion of the blade which is accelerated and augmented by the buildup of energy—with kinetic enhancing it— slices through any and all barriers and unleashes a vortex of destruction; this slash is almost unrivalled, releasing a slicing horizontal cyclone with Deen at its origin that tears through the landscape, wreaking havoc everywhere. Atomic Spar has only a precious few blind spots to be exploited. Despite the apparent inflexibility of using one attack repeatedly, it has many useful applications. The motion of the Atomic Spar can also be used even with his bare hands.
  • Atomic Spurt (微塵速牙突刀(アトミック･スパート) , Atomikku Supāto, lit. Particle Speed Fanged Thrust Blade): Atomic Spurt is a destructive piercing technique which requires the use of the mechanical sword Blue Rose; and it is Deen's most powerful sword technique. When performing Atomic Spurt, Deen extends the weapon's secondary blade in his foe's direction at high speed, trying to impale them, all the while wielding the sword's handle in the same way he would wield a spear. The blade also carries tremendous force when extending; and Deen can maintain the extension and swing the spear-form in wide arcs, attacking multiple targets quickly and simultaneously; Blue Rose's maximum length is equivalent to one hundred times its original length—The momentum generated by this motion is astonishing, enough to reduce a large tree several meters away from its target and from the blade itself to pieces; at its full power, Deen is capable of swiftly cutting an entire house in half with a single slash while standing a great distance away.

Master Hand-to-Hand Combatant:

• Spiral Hollow (螺旋抜掌(スパイラル･ホロウ) , Supairaru Horō; lit. Helix Uproot Palm):

Master Assassin:

Physical Prowess

Enhanced Strength: As a regular human, Deen's physical strength is really nothing to write home about- it is very much below average- a major contributing factor to this is his low physical durability, and the fact that it is virtually impossible for him to take a 'serious' hit; though it is still very much above the average human. Deen possesses an enhanced amount of strength; enough to shatter wood with his bare hands. However, compared to the others, Deen's strength is somewhat lacking; he more often than not finds it difficult to perform physical tasks; and struggles to withstand a strike. Because of this, Deen uses quick palm strikes to produce extra pain to the opponent, and while at first these blows do not seem as if they are inflicting any particular harm, the damage racks up frighteningly fast.

Immense Speed:

Innate Fragility:

Assorted Others

Incredible Tactician:

Soul Armour

Soul Armours (神鎧 (ソウル・アーマー), Sōru Āmā lit. God Armour) are specialized armours worn by various powerful warriors known as Soul Armour Knights (神鎧纏最高戦士 (ソウル・アーマー・ナイト), Sōru Āmā Naito lit. God Armour Clad Supreme Warrior); they are human or humanoid warriors who transforms from a natural human form using a Driver Belt into a superhuman form clad in the armour. The Knights secretly patrol their respective territories to protect civilians from demons. Armed with special magical equipment, the knights carry an eternal war to maintain the light over the darkness in the realm. When transforming into his Soul Armour form, Deen's willpower flared up in the form of a wolf—quickly, Deen withdraws a golden ring which had an armoured face engraved upon it—with emerald compound eyes. Throwing his jacket off, Deen inserts the ring in the right slot of his Driver Belt and turns it counter-clockwise, opening the front buckle that reveals the lion head inside. Pure energy is released from his Driver Belt—which quickly wraps around Deen's body, as an orange glyph manifests before him. So casually, Deen walks through the glyph unflinchingly; the glyph erupts magnificently, causing Deen to become Soul Armour Knight Zero (神鎧纏最高戦士 (ソウル・アーマー・ナイト) ・絶狼（ゼロ）, Sōru Āmā Naito Zero lit. God Armour Clad Supreme Warrior Slicing Wolf).

Armour Forms

Zero Zero: Survive Mode Zero Amazing Deen as Soul Armour Knight Zero, the third of the Prototype Soul Armours to be created. ""Drive on!" [CODE: KINZAN ZERO] "Let's go!" (ドライブ・オン, Doraibu On!) 「コード・金斬・絶狼, KŌDO: KINZAN ZERO」 (いくぜ！, Ikuze!)" — Deen's activation phrase and the Chimera Driver's transformation announcement for the Zero Soul Armour. Soul Armour Knight Zero (神鎧纏最高戦士 (ソウル・アーマー・ナイト) ・絶狼（ゼロ）, Sōru Āmā Naito Zero lit. God Armour Clad Supreme Warrior Slicing Wolf): The Zero Armour is a Soul Armour which is completely different than the standard—the Zero Armour is an ancient Soul Armour which has been around since the beginning of time—it is one of the seven Prototype Soul Armours. Unlike the other Soul Armours, the Zero Armour's Driver Belt, the Chimera Driver, houses a symbiote, the Chimera Symbiote—this is the source of the Zero Armour's powers. In order to fuel the powers of the Zero Armour, the user must devour the magical energies of their opponents to feed the Chimera Symbiote and keep the armour running, lest they be devoured themselves. Zero's armour design is also quite different than the others; the armour consists of a black jumpsuit with golden armour covering the user's body, and a large lion head-shaped shoulder pad covering their right arm with the lion's mane stylized to flow over the user's chest; additionally, the armour possesses long, golden claws on both hands. Their head is covered with an odd, feline-like mask with large green eyes. Additionally, the user utilizes single shoulder mantle armaments called Mantles (マント, Manto) to help them gain an advantage over their foes. Very few users of the Zero Armour are known to survive their tenure holding the Chimera Driver. While the very first Zero is still unknown, the Second Zero (代目・絶狼（ゼロ）, Nidaime Zero; Slicing Wolf) is Gary Straights; whom leaves Chimera satisfied with his fill of eternano—after this, Gary discards the Chimera Driver and gives it to Tsuruko Sejren. However, during the chapter A Hero from Zero in Daybreak, Deen Lhant takes the Chimera Driver when Tsuruko is fighting Cancer and Gemini and forms a contract with the Chimera Symbiote in order to become the Third Zero (三目・絶狼（ゼロ）, Sandaime Zero; Slicing Wolf). While the other iterations of Zero do not possess this weakness; at first Deen only stay in the Zero suit for 2.5 minutes due to the fact that he did not forge a proper pact with the Chimera Symbiote and he is only a normal human; additionally, he could not use the Mantles at all; this is known as the Incomplete Form. Regardless of this flaw, he decides to hold off on any serious combat with the suit and manage any threat on his own before bringing it out, seeing all threats as easily defeat-able within his 2.5 minute limit. However, once he had formed a proper pact, Deen was able to use Zero's power indefinitely as well as harness the Mantles. Zero's name comes from the kanji for "Slicing Wolf" (絶狼, Zerō), displaying the prominent beast motif that the armour has, as well as it's claws. Arms Weapon: Mantles (マント, Manto): The power of Zero leaves the user capable of accessing the power of one of the five creatures that Chimera is composed of; which are lion, falcon, chameleon, dolphin and buffalo; and the user is capable of shifting between several or any species that they wish, as long as it is one of the five; perculiarly, this is the Zero Armour's Arms Weapon. All of the creatures are designed to outfit the user with the powers needed to fulfill specific roles with maximum efficiency. Each of the different creatures has their own powers, strengths and weaknesses; when harnessing each of the powers of the beasts, the beast that the user chooses takes the form of single shoulder mantle armaments; which are the Mantles, to help the user gain an advantage over the user's foes. The Falco Mantle (ファルコマント, Faruko Manto) takes the form of a long, orange sleeve with yellow patterns; on Zero's shoulder, the pauldron appears similar to that of a falcon's head. When the Falco Mantle is active; it grants the user the ability of high speed and flight; along with enhanced reflexes and a supercharged brain activity. With the Chameleo Mantle (カメレオマント, Kamereo Manto) equipped, Zero gains a long, green sleeve; with numerous spotted patterns upon it; the pauldron takes the form of a chameleon's head with golden eyes, and the tongue sticking out. When using the Chameleo Mantle, Zero possesses the ability to camouflage into their surroundings and become invisible. By a simple act of concentration, they can cause all wavelengths of visible, infrared, and ultraviolet light to bend around them without distortion; they also somehow directs enough undistorted light to their eyes to retain their full range of vision while invisible. With the Buffa Mantle (バッファマント, Baffa Manto), Zero's sleeve becomes a deep crimson; with golden and scarlet designs littering the mantle, the finishing touch is the bull head which is the form that the pauldron takes upon. The Buffa Mantle drastically enhances Zero's physical strength and endurance; reminiscent of a wrestler, and the magical energy emitters upon the mantle allow the user to perform devastating physical attacks; it is a perfect combination of offense and defense. The Ardor emitter within the forearm of the Buffa Mantle wraps Zero's forearm in a powerful circular blade of willpower. The last of Zero's mantles; when activating the Dolphi Mantle (ドルフィマント, Dorufin Manto), Zero's sleeve turns a dark aqua; mostly blues and golds in texture; the pauldron takes the form of a dolphin's head. Equipping the Dolphi Mantle enables Zero to utilize the element of water; which is placed under their command for them to employ it for various purposes. Additionally, Zero is capable of utilizing the water as a way to heal the target; emitting a pulse of water that washes away their wounds. Dolphi Mantle is Zero's fastest Mantle. It grants the user incredible swimming speed, as well as the ability to cure injuries or poisons. Magical Absorption: As Soul Armour Knight Zero, the user is capable of absorbing the magical energy of their opponents; each and every one of the user's attacks will drain a portion of the opponent's magical power and add it to their own; this allows them to rejuvenate their wounds, as well as deal tremendous damage to their foe. While regular mages use the magical power created from their soul to utilize their magic, fighting using a power from within. On the contrary, the user is capable of absorbing a portion of the foe's magical energy with any one of their attacks; it doesn't matter if the attack connects or is deflected; once the attack at least touches the opponent's body, then a small rift will open upon the foe, releasing a portion of their magical energy in the form of small crimson orbs which is then absorbed into the user's own magical reserves via Chimera's power. From there, the magical energy instantly takes effect; rejuvenating the user's wounds and bolstering their offensive and defensive power by the amount of energy absorbed. With the Chimera's power, the user gains a perpetual power source, which can be used to power them, granting the user near-inexhaustible energy; as the magical energy is transferred to the user, essentially healing them when they damage an enemy. Chimera's magic inflicts damage based on the maximum magical power of a foe, and thus, it is effective against extremely powerful mages. Interestingly, even though Deen cannot utilize magic by himself, becoming Zero enables him to wield an Eternano Saber and an Eternano Rifle. Limit Break (必殺技 (リミット・ブレイク), Rimitto Bureiku lit. Finishing Move): A Limit Break is the "ultimate attack" (絶招, Zesshō) of a Soul Armour—they are extremely powerful attacks enabled via the user taking damage in some way. When the user takes enough damage to gain an enormous amount of energy, they may perform a Limit Break. The user gains more energy to perform a Limit Break as they get angrier, and foes push them to their limits, the user unleashes an "unimaginable power". When the user's fighting spirit rises to its ultimate limit, for a short while it aligns with and emits from the user's body, allowing powerful abilities that cannot be performed in a natural state. Though generally, a Soul Armour Knight has no problem dealing with mere magicians and other magical races, against beings such as symbiotes and other Soul Armour Knights, they require much more than 'stab it/kick it/punch it until it goes down'. Thus, the Limit Breaks come into play. It gathers their fighting spirit and transforms it into power, unleashing a single attack with no equal aside from other Limit Breaks. As Soul Armour Knight Zero, Deen has access to the Limit Break known as Chimera Glanzer (キメラ・グランツァー, Kimera Gurantsā), where a burst of electrical energy surges from the Driver that travels up his body to his back, erupting into wings of flame, and then surges to his right leg. A loud bird screech echoes through the air as several red feathers manifest around Deen's body and he disappears in a red and gold blur; leaping up into the air; finally, a titanic phantasmal red falcon appears over Deen's body, his right leg extended in front of him and into the falcon's beak. The phantasmal falcon and Deen then kick into the opponent. "[CODE: S-S-SURVIVE] 「コード・サ・サ・サバイブ, KŌDO: SA-SA-SABAIBU」" — Chimera Driver transformation announcement. Zero: Survive Mode (ゼロ・サバイブ・モード, Zero: Sabaibu Mōdo): Survive Mode is the term pertaining to Soul Armours that have unlocked a much more powerful form. The Survive Mode is activated by scanning the Survive Rings (サバイブ・リング, Sabaibu Ringu) over the Driver Belts, causing the Soul Armours to undergo a specific evolution exclusive to themselves, more often than not resulting in a sleeker form. The Survive Rings were developed to the blueprint stage but never constructed, as it were considered too powerful for any user; and later on, Giselle Mercury managed to stabilize them with help from her father, who added his own exalted magical power into the rings. The Survive Modes offer drastically enhanced parameters, which are actually the user's powers boosted to their absolute limits. However, in the case of Zero, Deen is simply capable of activating the form by a strong desire of any kind. When entering Survive Mode, Deen revs the Chimera Driver, exclaiming "Survive!" at the top of his lungs; his wild emotions influence the Chimera Driver to unleash the form- this causes Zero to become wreathed in brilliant and powerful flames, while Zero discards its unnecessary armour, granting an enormous boost in speed and power; especially the former. The introduction of lighter parts and vernier/attitude control thrusters allows Zero in Survive Mode to achieve mobility unprecedented in the history of armour-type warriors. What should be noted that there is a time lag of half a second when Deen initiates Survive Mode- giving his opponents time to get the jump on him. In addition, because Zero has discarded its unnecessary parts, it has paper-thin armour. The weakness of that Survive Mode is stamina itself. Using it involves consuming great amounts of stamina, causing Deen to only be capable of utilizing it for ten seconds at most. In Survive Mode, Zero's speed and power can wreak havoc on the battlefield, piercing through the enemy lines and smashing everything in between. Essentially, the Survive Mode allows Zero to move at ten times the speed of sound for usually ten seconds, his physical attacks also become twice as strong and he can perform a new variety of his regular finishing techniques. Hyper-Speed Combat: From the moment that he activates Survive Mode, Deen compresses his power into a small, condensed form, and uses the power of the form in order to perform high-speed combat; hitting the peak of his speed when he sheds the back armour of Zero. His new speed enhances his movements a hundredfold, allowing him to create dozens of afterimages to confuse his opponent. When in Survive Style, Zero generates excessive amounts of heat, before dissipating the excess heat by shedding the outer layers of the armour; to onlookers, it seems as if Deen utilizes some form of Teleportation Magic; creating multiple afterimages made up of metallic particles while enabling him to move at even higher speeds than before. As the afterimages are composed of metallic particles; they contain mass; and even if someone could detect his trajectory, it is near impossible to catch him. It can be theorized that Deen can keep up this speed as long as he wishes. By focusing this power into a single leg, Deen can launch a much faster kick with much greater impact. Deen's speed appears to create up to eight doubles of himself while in motion. These doubles are not illusory; Deen is moving at a speed between different positions that is faster than the speed of sound. As such, were all the doubles to attack at once, it would mean that Deen is attacking from all those positions simultaneously, giving him incredible destructive power. Similarly, because of this same speed, attacking the doubles would be futile as Deen would have moved long before the attack even reaches him. Essentially, because of this power, Zero in Survive Mode has extreme high speed and maneuverability, along with unlimited bursts of accelerations; increasing amount of thrust produced. It should be noted that the expansion of this energy produces a crimson sphere of power solidified energy, causing it to become essentially an energy ball that surrounds him as he moves. Overall, Survive Mode increases Zero's speed and attack by thrice its normal specifications. Deen as Zero Amazing, the final form of the Zero Soul Armour. ""Super Drive On!" [CODE: G-G-GENESIS] "Let's go!"" — Deen's activation phrase, as well as the Chimera Driver's activation chant for Amazing Style. Zero Amazing (ゼロ・アメージング, Zero Amējingu): Zero Amazing is the name of the Zero Soul Armour's Super Mode. It appears as a drastically enhanced Zero with a completely overhauled design, featuring silver markings and long, red scarves ending in heavy rings, which are used to snare opponents. Two emerald wings composed purely of willpower manifest from the armour's back, granting the wielder the power of flight. An aura of energy manifests around him, the intensity of the created aura is such that its appearance is akin to an aura of pure fire surrounding the body whenever utilized; complete with crackling lightning surrounding his body while it spreads out in the form of Chimera surrounding him within combat, striking fear into the hearts of his opponents. However, in this case, Zero Amazing is the combination of all of his Mantles into one supreme form; gaining Falco's speed and flight, Chameleo's invisibility and barriers, Buffa's strength, durability, and magnetism, as well as Dolphi's water magic and healing powers. Nevertheless, with all these improvements, Chimera Hyper Mode suffers from one glaring flaw: Deen himself. Due to Deen's unusually high fusion co-efficiency, Chimera exceeded its perimeters and exposed a disastrous glitch in symbiotes. In the case of individuals like Deen, activating the super form initiates the fusion of, not just one, but all of the Mantles. Enhanced Physical Attributes and Powers: While in Zero's Super Mode, Deen's natural abilities are multiplied many times over. His already impressive strength is increased a thousandfold, his speed and reflexes are highly increased, he gains the ability to fly and he also becomes virtually invulnerable so long as his transformation lasts. Deen's natural bond with the Chimera is also more open to him while in this state, granting him abilities he would not otherwise be able to utilize. In this form, Deen has access to a unlimited potential of power that is hindered within his individual Mantles, such as telekinesis and the use of the Chimera insignia as a weapon. While stacking the powers of each Mantle into one supreme form, the power of Zero Amazing eliminates the drawbacks of each Mantle and only multiples their benefits tenfold. In this form, Deen's kicking and punching power has nearly doubled from his standard form, making him a force to be reckoned with. He has now fringes that are both offensive and defensive weapons; as his speed, strength, and durability have doubled as well. Additionally, Deen can utilize every single power that he possesses, either naturally or bestowed upon him by Chimera, but in a drastically enhanced form that is bolstered to the point that Deen can go toe-to-toe with the strongest warriors in the entire series and even gain the upper hand. As Zero Amazing, Deen's flight speed is faster than any Survive Mode, has greater jumping height, and its punching and kicking powers are stronger than any of his other forms.

Relationships

Kirika Hotsuin

Kirika's most unique interactions are with that of the Rune Knight known as Deen Lhant- indeed, they have a dynamic relationship that is almost universally agreed by the fans of Daybreak to be the most rewarding portions of Kirika's own story arcs. Their relationship got off to a rocky start in S1, where Kirika approached both Deen and her rival, Tsuruko Sejren after the latter had first activated her Deus Machina Mode in public, laying waste to Cancer and Gemini of the Zodiac Knights. Laughing at her "allies" defeats by a berserk Tsuruko, Kirika jokingly mentioned that she would date him if they weren't enemies because of how caring he was- ironically, later on as they interacted more, it became more ad more obvious that she meant it. During the Silver Flash arc, Kirika, beginning to become interested in Deen after he took on the mantle of Zero, offered to assist him in locating the Enderdragon, though like most other things she does, Kirika also had ulterior motives. During this arc, Deen and Kirika got to know each other better, with Deen being the very first person to actually see her heart of gold, buried deep down. After Kirika's fight with the Gemini Symbiote, who attacked her for deserting the Zodiac Knights and inflicted upon her the Tsuchigumo Brand, Kirika accidentally revealed her deepest insecurities to him, breaking down and letting her past experiences slip. Definitely surprised that somebody who had the reputation of a sadistic felon had such an insecure and broken side, Deen became more determined to help her- this was the catalyst for Kirika unlocking Blazing Soul and purging Varian from her body, allowing her to become Soul Armour Knight Airgetlam for the very first time. Kirika brushed off his concern, letting off a few snarky remarks at him, though deep down, she appreciated what Deen did for her. It was at this moment that she began to grow feelings for the Rune Knight, though Kirika herself wasn't sure of what these "gooey feelings" were, as her fractured childhood gave her a stunted understanding of love.

After Kirika had achieved her goals of using the Philosopher's Stone to wish that people wouldn't forget her, she joined Tsuruko to fight against Amadam, Kirika unconsciously or not protected Deen from several of Amadam's magical blasts- she was taken out of the battle as Amadam had switched Deen's place with Excellen, causing Kirika to rush towards him and shield his body from the full blast of an Abyss Break. Even so, Deen didn't really understand Kirika's motives for doing so. However, during the Nega End, Kirika was the first person to find Deen and gave him a place to stay- as the group had all been separated due to the force of the world-enveloping darkness that transformed Earth Land. When Kirika tried to kill Alexis, Deen tried to stop the two from fighting- and when a stray blast of Alexis' struck a roof and had Deen's arm broken; rather than fighting on like she expectedly would, Kirika immediately goes to Deen to protect him instead of finishing Alexis off. Even so, Deen was disgusted with her desire to kill, and the two had a fight- Kirika managed to momentarily render Deen speechless with her answer to "why are you so at ease with killing!?" -Kirika left after that. Despite this, after a talk with Giselle Mercury over whether or not power corrupts, as it had nearly done to Kirika, Deen decided to search for Kirika and help her reach the light. Finding her once more nearly about to kill Alexis after her fight with Alexis' Magitek Dragoon, with a gun pointed to Alexis' forehead, Deen was able to talk her down and showed her that she really wished to become normal, as Deen was able to walk up to her and slowly take the gun from her hands.

Overalll, Deen reaching out to her and showing her that she was never alone, and he'd be there for her was what allowed Kirika to really fall in love with Deen, instead of just flipping out whenever she didn't understand what was going on with her heart. Deen is indeed, the only person that Kirika explicitly trusts, and even before their relationship upgrade, she only showed her softer side to him, explained her more sympathetic motives to him, or performs a good deed after talking to him. Interestingly, Deen is perhaps the only person that Kirika will listen to more often than not; meaning that Deen serves a leash to Kirika's more violent impulses; Deen is one of the very, very few people that Kirika respects, and though she normally puts on an air of faux-kindness towards everyone else, her kindness towards Deen is very much genuine, though she tends to get angry whenever she doesn't understand her feelings- with poor Deen usually as the recipient for her fury. Amusingly, she seems to really enjoy teasing Deen—and openly acts lovey-dovey with him, something that embarrasses him.

Tsuruko Sejren

"Deen: "Well, you're free now."
Tsuruko: Hey, Deen? Don't give up on your dream, okay? Maybe we'll cross paths again.""

— Tsuruko Sejren and Deen Lhant, in Paragon of Hope

While Tsuruko and Deen's relationship started off on a sour note, though only for the latter, Deen was shown to be touched by the former's kindness towards him, even though he had arrested her on the charges of being rather suspicious. As Tsuruko told Deen to not give up on his dream of being a superhero, the words struck him on a high note; as she gave him one of her Super Soul Rings and left. This caused him to become intrigued by her, seeing her as somebody other than any other mage—until he had met Tsuruko, the mages that Deen had encountered in his profession were cruel and arrogant, even those under Legal Guilds. His impression of her was further softened after he witnessed her petting a kitten on La Pucelle grounds. When his superiors instructed him to infiltrate La Pucelle, Deen immediately jumped at the chance—not for the higher pay, but for the chance to meet Tsuruko once more. After posing as a student and a later bodyguard for Team Daybreak, Tsuruko and Deen had become friends officially.

Deen is shown to be a bit of a tsundere towards Tsuruko, being somewhat harsh to her, but deep down, he cares; as he doesn't openly admit that he worries or cares about Tsuruko, usually feigning anger and yelling at her, which only makes Tsuruko smile because she can tell Deen's true feelings. In dire situations, Deen openly shows concerns and proclaimed he will do anything to protect Tsuruko from danger. It was shown many times that Deen holds romantic affection for Tsuruko; blushing when he is close to her or when she is being kind to him—because of this, he has a rivalry with Gary. While normally being cold, Deen will listen to Tsuruko's words and advice even when he is angry. However, Tsuruko's love turns out to be more of a platonic one- more like a sibling love than anything else- and since Deen himself is nearly a decade older than her, and Deen wasn't really interested in her in such a way.

Gary Straights

Upon meeting Gary, the two immediately got off to a bad start—having an intense rivalry in regards to the very same girl. Noticing that Tsuruko was acting different towards Gary than she did to other people, Deen quickly deducted that Tsuruko was in love with Gary, which caused him to instantly develop a certain coldness towards the young man, and as a result, he was known to be extremely rude to Gary, who responded in kind—the two often flinging insults against one another and butting heads at every opportunity that arose. Gary and Deen's rivalry can be fierce enough to the point of trying to kill each other, and at other times an intense competition. In any case, one always wants to outdo the other. Gary and Deen frequently fight due to their own views on justice and morality, and how to act on them. Each does not care what the other thinks of those views. In a sense, the two young men are polar opposites in every way except their appearance. Almost every time they meet, they battle ferociously. Neither is ever willing to accept defeat.

Interestingly, as the story of Daybreak progresses, Gary and Deen venture into more of a friendly-enemy territory. As love rivals, Deen tends to get jealous when he notices how casually Gary is capable of chatting with Tsuruko, and when their mutual past was finally revealed; Deen was quite shocked and saddened by this fact. As it was shown when Deen remarked that Gary's childhood friendship with Tsuruko was "ancient history", it caused Gary to become enraged at Deen and punch him across the room—startling others around, as Gary is shown to be a highly patient person. Even so, Gary later apologized; and after seeing Tsuruko and Gary's reunion, Deen noticed how happy Tsuruko was with his rival and after some thought about it, peacefully admitted that he had lost in their rivalry and wished the two the best.

Alexis Tenjouin

Interestingly, Deen's approach to Alexis is different from most characters in the series. Deen sees Alexis as the super-genius she has proven to be, rather than the kooky megalomaniac that Tsuruko and the others see her as. This can be backed up by the fact that Deen almost always calls Alexis by her title of "Archmage", as opposed to her first name. Alexis has shown similar respect by referring to Deen's potential as "spectacular", and by how she sometimes applauds Deen. However, even though Deen and Alexis display a level of respect toward each other, they also show a dislike toward one another—especially after Deen decided to side with Tsuruko over Alexis herself. Despite being respectful towards her, Deen has the habit of snarking at Alexis' more odd behaviours, albeit in a more subtle way; however, Alexis herself rarely, if ever, notices these comments as they fly over her head.

Quotes

• "When I was a kid? I wanted to be a superhero. Like, run around, beat the bad guys, save people kind of heroics. Hehe, wasn't that every kid's dream? You guys can do all this awesome stuff, like punching demons to death, and flying around, and making other stuff fly around... I can't fly around, okay? I can't do anything...I wanted to be a hero, and now I'm stuck as a member of the damn goon squad." –Deen Lhant, to Tsuruko Sejren, Paragon of Hope
• "I often think about how people like us always tend to be weak foils to stars like you in fiction. Whenever the supernatural protagonist appeared, we'd always be lying in a puddle of blood, just to emphasize the strength of the opponent. That's fine. It just goes to show how powerful people think we are. It's staged, so there's not much we can do." –Deen Lhant, to Tsuruko Sejren, Floating Lilies
• "Humans really are scary. As long as they can make the excuse that they are doing something no matter how terrifying to protect those they care about, they can do almost anything. That's how I see it anyway. I'll be showing you just how cruel us regular humans can be."

Trivia

• Deen is Per's strongest non-magician.
• Deen's secret dream is to be a super hero. The obvious pun is "super", a play on "Supa"; which appears in many of his attack names.
• Deen's stats are:

Offense		3/5
Defense		3/5
Speed		3/5
Intelligence		5/5
Batman		5/5