Royal Guard
| Royal Guard | |
| Dragon Quest I HD-2D Remake | |
| Japanese name | 近衛兵 |
| Romaji | Konoehei |
The Royal Guard is a supporting character in Dragon Quest I HD-2D Remake. He is one of the many knights dispatched by King Lorik to search for the whereabouts of Princess Gwaelin after she was kidnapped by the Dragonlord several months prior to the beginning of the game.
Appearances[edit]
Dragon Quest I HD-2D Remake[edit]
The Royal Guard is first seen in the game's opening alongside the Captain of the Tantegel knights and Gwaelin's personal bodyguard, where the group is cornered by a horde of monsters. The timely intervention of the Hero saves their lives, and they escort him to Castle Tantegel so that he can seek an audience with the king.
He is next seen along with his fellow knights on the bridge leading to Kol, where he encounters the Hero kneeling over the body of a Tantegel guard mortally wounded by monsters. When the Hero explains that the common knight's final words were that the princess was last seen being taken into the Quagmire Cave and that the second expedition force was wiped out, the Royal Guard is overcome with fear. He begrudgingly accompanies the Captain and Gwaelin's Guard into the mire, but feigns an injury so that he can withdraw to his home village of Kol. Ashamed at his cowardice, he locks himself away in his family home and remains inconsolable to even his wife and daughter. His father, the local blacksmith, is furious with his son for abandoning hsi career as a knight when he had forsaken the family business to do so
Much later, when the wretched Spiketail begins his attack on Kol, the Royal Guard is able to muster his courage when his wife and daughter are attacked by dragonflies and fends off the beasts with a certain familiar hammer. Unfortunately Spiketail witnessed this and ambushed the Royal Guard, dealing him a critical blow to his back. The Hero arrives on the scene seconds after this and dispatches Spiketail and the remaining monsters, putting an end to the threat and obtaining the ultimate key from their remains. Having overcome his cowardice and regained his confidence as a man, the Royal Guard speaks with his father and decides to take up the family trade as a blacksmith. It turns out that he is none other than the distant descendant of the Jipangese swordsmith who forged Erdrick's fabled blade so many centuries ago.
If the Hero speaks to the Royal Guard while he is carrying Princess Gwaelin, he will admit his trickery and beg that his princess forgive him. Being the saintly monarch that she is, Gwaelin states that she was rescued unharmed and there is no need for him to worry.
Trivia[edit]
- The Royal Guard's sidestory embodies what Bianca Whitaker said in Dragon Quest V's party chat, where she states that having something to protect makes a man stronger than he realizes