Application ♗ Empatheias

⌈ PLAYER SECTION ⌉
Player: Hojo
Contact: RasereiHojo
Age: 26
Current Characters: None


⌈ CHARACTER SECTION ⌉
Character: Ken Murata
Age: 16
Canon: Kyou Kara Maou
Canon Point: Chapter 117 (manga)

Background: 4,000 years ago, a man by the title of Daikenja, or Great Sage, helped a man with the title of Shinou, or Original King, seal a terrifying power into four separate boxes. This power could be categorized into the four classical elements: water, earth, fire and air. In order to contain this great power, Shinou devised four keys for the four boxes. These four keys were the bodies of people related to Shinou. The "keys" went inside the box and never came out again, all in order to keep the boxes sealed. The Daikenja and Shinou ripped open a hole between dimensions and the Daikenja left his world for Earth, taking two of the boxes with him to prevent them from being opened.

He was tasked with one more responsibility: to never forget his memories so that he could protect the boxes and perhaps find a way to destroy the power inside the now forbidden boxes. And so, eventually, the Daikenja died and his soul was reincarnated on Earth. While ordinarily this would mean the owner of his soul would never remember the life of the Daikenja, that person did. And so for thousands of years, the soul of the Daikenja was born on Earth and died on Earth in a cycle of reincarnation, never forgetting any of his memories. He reincarnated as various people all over the world such as: a Spanish baker; a boy who died when he was only 10; a French doctor in war; an adult film actress; and the latest in his dozens of lives: a Japanese high school student named Ken Murata.

The transportation of Murata's soul was done very carefully by the Mazoku (demons) of Earth. After all, a soul that is handled improperly could never return to life. All of this was in a calculated plan to make sure the forbidden boxes remained sealed and the great power never escaped its four prisons.

However, accumulating 4,000 years of memories can be very confusing and disorienting. This was made evident when Murata had difficulty distinguishing between the past and the present; which memories were his past lives' and which memories were his. In order to remedy this, his parents took him to see a pediatrician by the name of Jose Rodriguez -- who, coincidentally, had been the one to transport the soul of Murata's most recent past life, Christine. Through Rodriguez, Murata learned how to assert his own personality and claim ownership of his own experiences versus the ones of his past lives.

Closer to the present, eventually, Murata enrolls in middle school where he ends up being the classmate of Yuuri Shibuya for two years. However, Murata and Yuuri end up going to different high schools after never really interacting with each other. Although, as fate would have it, their paths cross again. While Murata is being hassled by some high school punks for some money, Yuuri just happens to pass by on his bicycle. After their eyes meet, Yuuri comes over to investigate. Murata takes the opportunity of Yuuri's distraction to ditch everyone and run away. After the thugs flush Yuuri's head down the toilet (and to the world of Shinou and Daikenja), Murata grabs a police officer to deal with the situation. When Yuuri comes to, Murata declares he could never actually abandon the guy who saved him.

And thus begins the friendship of Murata and Yuuri. They get along fairly well, although Yuuri keeps dragging Murata to all his various baseball activities. Oddly enough, it seems like whenever Murata is around and Yuuri is near water, Yuuri ends up sitting in it, or drowning in it, or nearly dying in it at every turn. It gets to the point where, while at a live-in job on the beach, Yuuri appears to be drowning in the ocean, Murata dives in after him to save him.

And Murata ends up in the parallel world Shinou and Daikenja are from. It's a world full of blonds and brunettes and varying other hair colors, but no one seems to have black hair and eyes... except for the two average-looking Japanese high school students. Although, as if by fate, Murata had just recently decided to bleach his hair blond and wear colored contacts as if he were expecting this to happen.

Together, Murata and Yuuri navigate through this new world. Although it wasn't actually new to either of them. Murata pretends that the Mazoku language sounds an awful lot like German, which he claimed to have studied in school, and that was why he understood the language. He obfuscates stupidity to a fault, acting as if he had no memory of this place, keeping a goofy smile plastered to his face for the majority of the time they fumble through the parallel world. They end up in a autonomous country named Caloria and arrange an audience with its leader under the pretense of finding a way "home," or at least back to Shin Makoku, the Demon Kingdom. However, they learn that the leader is actually deceased and his wife, Flynn, has been masquerading as him for 3 years. At dinner with Flynn, Murata "guesses" that the pendent around Yuuri's neck is a family heirloom from the Wincott family. Knowing that Wincott descendants could fetch a fortune and desperate to do something for her country, she decides to sell Murata and Yuuri off to Shimaron. More people barge into their meeting with threats and instead of ditching Yuuri this time, Murata actually attempts to defend Yuuri from the intruders. In the end, Yuuri activates his Maou state to get rid of them, as well as to protect Flynn and Murata, although he collapses shortly after using his power. Murata immediately understands what happened -- his average, everyday Japanese high school friend Yuuri Shibuya is the Maou of this world, or in other words, the Demon King. While he supports an unconscious Yuuri, Murata voices his suspicions of Flynn and asked what it was she wants with Yuuri. Despite the fact that Yuuri protected her, Flynn decides to lock Murata and Yuuri in jail until she can sell them.

At this point, Murata is 100% positive that Yuuri is Shinou's handpicked Maou. It's also the point in which Murata's part in the plot really gets rolling. And so, when a spy named Yozak from Shin Makoku breaks into the manor to rescue Yuuri, Murata is willing to admit to him who he is: the reincarnation of the Daikenja. Yozak, who immediately believes him due to one of Murata's lost contacts exposing an eye black in color, essentially swears his allegiance to Murata as he's already done with Shin Makoku.

Flynn transports Yuuri and Murata by carriage, and then by ship, to Big Shimaron. While on the boat, Murata and Yuuri learn of the terrible state that Caloria is in: citizens register for the army at 12 and so there is no one but the elderly, women, and very young children in the country. Flynn also tells them that Big Shimaron is in possession of one of the four forbidden boxes, the End of the Wind. Eventually, they get to what's basically a prison camp where everyone that has lost to Big Shimaron or defected in some way is imprisoned. While they're there, Murata acts rather peculiar, mentioning that although Yuuri doesn't remember it, their guardians held up their souls long ago and asked Yuuri and Murata to become like the sun and the moon respectively. Of course, Yuuri thinks Murata is out of his damn mind and that, whatever's going on, there are things Murata isn't sharing.

Maxine of Small Shimaron calls everyone together so that they may see the power of the forbidden box Small Shimaron has, and so that everyone can see what happens when the forbidden box is opened. When Yuuri learns that the arm of Conrad, someone Yuuri had become fond of during his time in this world, was the key to the box, Yuuri becomes furious. Although he tries to enter his Maou state, Murata grabs him and tells him not to, as triggering that power while in the human lands of Shimaron is incredibly dangerous. Maxine throws Conrad's arm into the box, but since the End of the Earth was mistaken for End of the Wind, Conrad's arm is the incorrect key and so a great power leaks out of the box, uncontrolled.

Yuuri insists that he has to do something, but Murata refuses to allow Yuuri to risk his life by using his Mazoku magic in the land of humans. Murata asks him if he'll be okay with whatever happens, and when Yuuri assures him he will be, Murata promises to make sure Yuuri is left with no regrets. Murata uses his own power to amplify Yuuri's, claiming to be the moon that holds him up, and together contain the calamity.

At this point, Flynn has warmed up to Murata and Yuuri. Which is good for her because, after a series of events, Yuuri agrees to be Caloria's representative in Big Shimaron's tournament. As it's a tournament in which the winner is given a reward of their choosing, Yuuri thinks it's perfect to ask for the box that Big Shimaron has. Of course, Murata comes along for the ride.

It's on this trip that Yuuri finally gets fed up with Murata keeping secrets, and they end up going to a secluded area of the ship to talk. Ever since Murata arrived in this world with Yuuri, Yuuri has asked him questions like "Who are you?" and "How old are you?" Neither of them have really taken it seriously, but this time when Yuuri asks Murata "Who are you?" he means it. It's then that Murata finally admits everything to Yuuri. He admits that his soul is the 4,000 year old soul of the Daikenja and that he remembers all of the memories of his past lives. When he tells Yuuri that one of his lives died when he was only 10 and Yuuri is visibly upset, Murata calms him by saying it wasn't him who died. Murata explains it in a way as if he's someone who empathizes with the protagonists of dozens of movies. They're not him; they were "him," but Ken Murata is a distinct entity. Yuuri wonders if he should call Murata by his title, but Murata desperately insists that he's just Ken Murata and no one else. When Yuuri confronts Murata about keeping quiet about everything, Murata offers him a genuine apology. He admits that if Yuuri had confessed to him about being the Maou and about his "outings" in this other parallel world, then he would have confessed everything in return. However, Yuuri seems surprised and asks Murata how he could expect him to admit something crazy like that -- and then he realizes what he said and comes to understand Murata's point of view a little better.

From that point on, Murata is, for the most part, fairly open with Yuuri and his friends. Murata signs up Yuuri, Yuuri's fiance Wolfram, and Yozak up for Big Shimaron's tournament, claiming that he's just an intellectual who could never participate in a fight. And from there, Murata mostly takes a back seat, choosing to observe rather than actively participate in too many things. In the mean time, Murata comes up with a plan to switch the End of the Wind with a fake box because he doubts Big Shimaron would give the real box to them even if Yuuri and co. legitimately win the tournament. In the middle of that plan, Murata senses that Yuuri is activating his Maou powers again in human lands. Because no one ever listens to their adviser. Murata considers what he should do, as his very presence will boost Yuuri's powers, which will drain them both thoroughly. However, he figures if he can get to Yuuri's side, he can calm him down enough that he won't use his Maou powers. Murata gets there in time to grab Yuuri as he's collapsing. In the end, Yuuri's team wins, although instead of asking for the forbidden box, Yuuri asks for Caloria's independence, which Big Shimaron has no choice but to grant.

After that, Murata takes a backseat again. Except for when the King of Small Shimaron, Saralegui, is involved. They met before on a carriage ride to Big Shimaron's capital for the tournament, during which time Murata was a sarcastic asshole to him throughout the entire ride since he was fairly suspicious of Saralegui's intentions.

The plots chugs along, and eventually Wolfram, the correct "key" to the forbidden box of Inferno on the Tundra, is drawn to the box and is sucked inside it. Yuuri desperately tries to save Wolfram, but Murata insists that he can't just open the box and pull him out. Still, Yuuri opens the box and dives inside to another dimension to rescue Wolfram. Unfortunately, Wolfram being inside the box activates the box correctly, meaning its power to bring back the dead goes into full effect. Everyone who had been buried suddenly reanimates and makes their way to the castle where the forbidden box is being stored. Luckily, Saralegui's twin brother just happens to be a Necromancer, and Murata comes up with a plan to use him to sever the tie between the box and its power output. Murata offers to boost the power of Saralegui's twin, but Saralegui insists that Murata use him instead since neither of them trust each other very much. Murata reluctantly agrees, stating that Saralegui's twin would be better, but in the end the three of them use their powers together to sever the forbidden box's power. This unfortunately has the side effect of killing Saralegui (again). Because no one ever listens to their adviser. Ever.

Luckily, Yuuri returns with Wolfram, and insists on using his powers to try to revive Saralegui. Murata absolutely refuses. This time it's way too dangerous, but Yuuri subtly enters the Maou state and asks Murata to offer him his power. When Murata still seems unsure, Yuuri loses patience and grabs Murata, telling him that he needs his assistance. Murata angrily pulls away and realizes that Yuuri's consciousness has been pushed out by the Maou state. Even so, Murata reluctantly agrees to use himself as a booster to Yuuri's power. Even though it's the consciousness of the Maou giving the order to Murata, he knows that it's still Yuuri's will and he can't bring himself to go against what Yuuri wants. Their combined power is enough to revive Saralegui, and even though Murata had been on bad terms with him, he was glad to see there wasn't a casualty from all this forbidden box business. Yuuri collapses once again after using so much of his magic, and Murata is glad to support him once more.

Things draw to a close with a party, during which none other than Shinou himself appears, albeit in a form small enough to ride in a tea cup. Murata and Shinou's first reunion after 4,000 years is short-lived, however, as Shinou uses the last of his power to send the two boxes Big Shimaron now possessed to a different dimension. Without the power to keep himself in the physical world, he fades away, but not before telling Murata he was glad to have met Murata in the end. And he bids Murata, the vessel of Shinou's half-brother's soul, the Daikenja, goodbye. Although Shinou had already disappeared, Murata angrily tells him that those words should have been said to the Daikenja, not him.


Personality: When Murata was young, he found it difficult to assert his own personality. After all, he had the memories of dozens of past lives inside him. With Dr. Rodriguez's help, Murata was able to assert himself and his own personality.

Despite the fact that he has a distinct personality that is, for the most part, different than that of his previous lives, Murata often appears to forget that he's an individual. While he is usually careful to specify which of his past lives did certain things, like "The Daikenja did this," or "Christine did that," sometimes he slips and says "When I..." but he always stops to correct himself. His memories often interfere with his life, and are the main reason he has become such a secretive person. Murata recalls times when in the past, some of his previous lives had revealed that they had memories of other lives, and even memories of living in another world. The consequences of this ranged from being treated as mentally ill to nearly being burned at the stake. After having experiences like those, it's difficult for Murata to admit he has those memories, even to someone he's close to like Yuuri.

The fact that he is able to open up to Yuuri, albeit only after it was obvious to Murata that Yuuri knew all about the Mazoku and the other world, was a big leap of faith for Murata. It also demonstrates just how much faith Murata has in Yuuri. In contrast, when Murata reveals his identity to Yozak, it's a very vague revelation. He had lost a contact lens, exposing one black eye, and Yozak essentially put it together the pieces himself. Murata hinted that yeah, he was basically the Daikenja, but he also added: "You don't have to believe me," onto it, as if he didn't expect Yozak to believe him.

For the most part, Murata hides his secrets and complicated history with a smile, goofy jokes, and a desire to start a comedy duo. His smiles come naturally to him, and often serves as a way to diffuse tense situations. His smiles often accompanies his biting sarcasm, which is usually directed toward people who try his patience. Although he has enough patience to carry the burden of Shinou for 4,000 years, it's deteriorated greatly over the years. For example, while he's patient with Flynn and gives her a chance mostly at Yuuri's behest, when he realizes that he's surrounded by reckless people who make selfish, impulsive decisions 24/7, he begins to lose his cool a bit, going so far as to call them idiots. Typically, though, he does his best to remain amicable and is fairly polite, addressing everyone by their proper titles unless given permission to call them otherwise. Although there are rumors that the Daikenja and Shinou were good friends, Murata insists that no, he and Shinou were not good friends. Basically, whenever Shinou is involved, Murata struggles to not be endlessly annoyed at Shinou's antics. His endless irritation with Shinou is proof that although he possesses the soul of the Daikenja, he is not the Daikenja; he's his own person. Still, he still holds the memories of the Daikenja, and so he remembers the fondness the Daikenja had for Shinou. It's hard for Murata to separate the memories of the Daikenja's fondness versus his own irritation of being burdened by Shinou for 4,000 years.

Murata is fiercely protective over Yuuri, most likely stemming from the fact Yuuri took it upon himself to rescue Murata from the high school thugs who were trying to rob him. Even though Murata and Yuuri go to different schools, they still manage to find time to hang out together. Murata patiently goes to Yuuri's baseball activities even though he's not very interested in the sport, and in return Murata drags Yuuri to other activities like going to Sea World. Murata is willing to listen to Yuuri's feelings on governing Shin Makoku as Maou, but at the same time he isn't afraid to offer his own advice on what Yuuri should do. Even though Yuuri doesn't listen to him half the time, Murata is supportive of him, so although Yuuri tends to make reckless decisions, Murata's faith in Yuuri is so deep that Murata is willing to put himself into sticky situations if it means supporting Yuuri.

When it comes to people he either doesn't know or doesn't trust, Murata's default attitude is obfuscating stupidity. He can be kind when he wants to be, but people who get on his nerves tend to either get sarcasm or an incredibly passive-aggressive WOW IT'S SO GOOD TO SEE YOU...~~☆★!! Murata doesn't discriminate about who's on the receiving end of his sarcastic attitude. For example, when twin children were bothering Wolfram about his past life, Murata intervened and asked them to tell him about his own past lives. When they were wrong (to be fair he has so many...), he took great pleasure in pointing out their flaws and casually wondered aloud what was wrong since he thought the twins were so good at predicting things like that. In short, the schadenfreude is very real with him.

Being as secretive as he is, there are times when Murata doesn't want information to get out, whether it's about him or about something that's supposed to be secret. So, if he happens to be with someone who's about to blurt out secrets, Murata's quick to step in and change the subject, steering the conversation completely away from the almost-revealed secret. Even if the person tries to get the conversation to go back to the secret, Murata will ignore them and continue talking over them about something completely unrelated.

In areas other than sociability, Murata is a pretty quiet guy, preferring to learn through books instead of active, hands-on activities. He doesn't seem to hang out with anyone other than Yuuri when they're on Earth, although that doesn't stop Murata from trying to get a date for Sea World (but since he failed, he had to bring Yuuri). Even though Murata's love life is pretty awful, he's very focused on girls, at least until he ends up in the other world with Yuuri, after which his priorities change dramatically. He's a big fan of puns, something he most likely picked up from Dr. Rodriguez, and he somehow manages to give off a carefree attitude, despite his lonely home life. He cares for the people who have been kind to him, and so his fondness for Dr. Rodriguez and Yuuri is great.


Abilities: Although Murata is technically a human, his soul is that of a Mazoku. Because Mazoku magic is determined by the soul, rather than the bloodline, Murata has inherited the Mazoku magic of his soul. However, on his own, Murata doesn't have all that much power. His true use is that of an amplifier -- in other words, his best Mazoku ability is to strengthen the power of others, usually people who are destined to be a king. Basically, Murata is sort of like a portable battery. He's also capable of drawing out the magic of others and using them as the amplifier, together with his own powers. Murata also serves as a "navigator" to Yuuri, which is why it's so easy for Yuuri to transport between Earth and the other world. In the manga, it never really delves into other magic he has, but as a Mazoku he must have them as it's what separates (most) humans from Mazoku in the first place. They are most likely non-elemental-specific energy blasts.

Aside from magic, he is also in a unique position in that his soul is approximately 4,000 years old. In canon, memories are etched into the soul, but when it is reincarnated, those memories are sealed in a deep abyss, out of reach of the new recipient of the soul. Because the door to the memories of his past lives is wide open, Murata is burdened to remember each of his past lives in detail. As he was reincarnated many times over the past 4,000 years, he has a lot of skills he wouldn't ordinarily have otherwise: medical abilities from being a doctor; languages his past lives spoke; etc. While he does have these memories, it's important to remember there are 4,000 years worth of them; it's not easy to sort through them all just to find one particular memory.

Alignment: Piphron -- Trust is a very important concept to Murata, and he is incredibly suspicious of most people and their motives. That being said, once someone has earned Murata's trust, they pretty much have it for life.

Other: Up until the Caloria arc, the manga pretty much follows the same plot of the novels and the anime, although all three mediums split apart at that point. That's why the events are different than the more well-known anime version.


⌈ SAMPLE SECTION ⌉
Sample: [ Core Character Portrayal ] [ Core Character Portrayal + Emotions ]


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