Xio

Biodata

Feature	Details
Name	Xio Derecha
Alias(es)	Judgment (Tarot Club codename) 769
Gender	Female
Affiliation	MI9; Tarot Club 769 1406
Occupation/Role	Bounty hunter; MI9 deputy director 336 1406
Status	Active 1406
First Appearance	Chapter 183

Power Progression

Stage / Realm / Level	Chapter	Notes
Sequence 8 — Sheriff	341	Had recently advanced after acquiring materials through Fors; worked bounties and commissions to repay the resulting debts.
Sequence 7 — Interrogator	885	Identified as an Interrogator while assisting MI9 during Viscount Stratford’s disappearance.
Sequence 6 — Judge	994	Joined MI9 as an official member after George III’s fall; her Sequence 6 strength positioned her for work in the Extraordinary Affairs Tribunal.
Sequence 5 — Disciplinary Paladin	1093	Digested the Judge Potion through tribunal work and recently advanced. A later account calls her a “Sequence 5 Punishment Knight.” 1215
Sequence 3 — Chaos Hunter	1406	Reached Sequence 3 before her final promotion; MI9’s director is stated to have been equivalent to Xio before her advancement.
Sequence 2 — Balancer	1387	Advanced through a politically arranged restoration of her position and the dismantling of a Grade 0 Sealed Artifact; became an Angel.

Background

Xio worked as a practical, financially driven bounty hunter in Backlund alongside her close friend Fors Wall. After Audrey Hall paid the pair for investigating Vice Admiral Hurricane Qilangos, Xio immediately calculated whether her share and savings would be enough to purchase the Sheriff formula. 183

Her early investigations placed her in danger from Lanevus. After informant Williams was murdered for searching the East Borough, Xio continued pursuing leads despite grief and frustration over being unable to protect him. 207 208 209

At Viscount Glaint’s salon, Xio met Angel under the alias Irene Watson. Angel gave her Lanevus’s location near East Balam Dock as a “meeting gift,” and Xio later delivered that intelligence to Audrey and Fors. 208 209

Appearance

Xio is a notably petite adult woman, a little over 1.5 meters tall and roughly a head shorter than many of the people around her. 208 209 Her compact build is distinctive enough that strangers and allies alike sometimes mistake her for a child. 629

• Emerald-green eyes 208
• Slightly round cheeks 208
• Usually favors practical clothing, cloaks, and trousers over aristocratic dresses 209 338
• Uses elevated shoes when necessary to conceal her height and project authority. 1003

Personality

Xio is blunt, pragmatic, and uncomfortable with aristocratic performance. At noble salons, she dislikes false smiles, ceremonial manners, and being expected to pretend she enjoys the social atmosphere. 208 Her directness carries into her work: she questions suspects, clients, and potential allies without much patience for evasions. 336 339

Despite her focus on money and advancement, Xio has strong moral boundaries. During the Great Smog, she helped Sherman carry the ill washerwoman Liv toward medical care rather than abandoning the family in the East Borough. 369 She later remains troubled by MI9’s interrogation practices and values assignments involving clear targets rather than indiscriminate violence. 920

Her loyalty is most evident in her relationship with Fors and Sherman. She accepts responsibility for Sherman’s safety, hides her in a safe house after the Baelen operation, and remains emotionally affected by Sherman’s transformation and dangerous attachment to Viscount Stratford. 341 649 855

Abilities & Skills

Arbiter Pathway Authority

As a Sheriff and later an Interrogator, Xio can project authority through speech and behavior, pressuring targets to submit or comply. Her early Intimidation was insufficient to break Baelen on its own, but it still amplified the pressure of an interrogation. 338

• Can impose an oppressive presence through words and actions. 319 338
• Possesses sensitivity to abnormalities within her surroundings. 319
• Retains strong close-quarters combat ability and a physically powerful strike. 319 339
• Her professional intuition eventually became unable to sense Angel’s strength, demonstrating the scale of Angel’s concealment rather than a failure of Xio’s training. 629

Investigation and Bounty Hunting

Xio developed extensive knowledge of Backlund’s East Borough, using local contacts, informants, surveillance, and disguises to locate targets. 335 338

• Located Baelen’s residence and negotiated his capture for cash and a share of his possessions. 336
• Conducted surveillance on Viscount Stratford while disguised as a newspaper seller. 855
• Detected that she was being followed, prompting Fors to provide additional protection and advancement resources. 628
• Investigated the destruction of Mr. X’s gathering and warned Sherman about Aurora Order retaliation. 629

MI9 Service

After learning more about her father’s wrongful death and the political changes following George III’s fall, Xio formally entered MI9. 994 1093

• Worked in the Extraordinary Affairs Tribunal, using official cases to digest the Judge Potion. 1093
• Participated in wartime counterintelligence operations against enemy spies. 920
• Rose through MI9 to become its deputy director and highest-Sequence Beyonder. 1406
• Refused a subordinate’s proposal to secretly control Melissa Moretti, instead ordering a respectful approach through Melissa’s mentor. 1406

Equipment / Items

• Short dagger — Drew it while interrogating Baelen after her Intimidation failed to secure cooperation. 338
• Leimano’s Travel Notes — Fors offered the notebook as emergency insurance for dangerous assignments, while warning Xio not to become reckless because of its recorded abilities. 628
• Elevated shoes — Used to compensate for her short stature and enhance her authoritative appearance. 1003

Relationships

• Fors Wall / Magician — Xio’s closest friend and housemate. Fors supports her investigations, provides Leimano’s Travel Notes, and gives her an Interrogator Beyonder Characteristic to prepare for advancement. 183 628
• Angel Granger / Empress — Began as a cautious acquaintance after Angel approached her at Glaint’s salon. Xio later worked for Angel on the Baelen case, witnessed her overwhelming strength, and became increasingly respectful of her judgment. 208 338 340
• Sherman / Xue Man — Friend and East Borough associate. Xio helped protect Sherman after the Baelen operation, supported her despite confusion over her transformation, and later worked with her to manage the Black Claw Gang. 341 649
• Audrey Hall / Justice — Employer, benefactor, and eventual Tarot Club colleague. Audrey rewarded Xio’s dangerous investigations and later relied on her intelligence concerning Lanevus. 183 209 769
• Klein Moretti / The Fool — Admitted Xio to the Tarot Club after Fors brought her above the gray fog. Xio later reports major supernatural incidents directly to him. 769 1406
• Mason, former Palace Guard Captain — Xio’s father. His supposed rebellion was fabricated after he discovered a royal secret; his death and her family’s disgrace became central to Xio’s pursuit of justice. 887 1406
• Viscount Stratford — Former colleague of Xio’s father and a key subject of her surveillance. His connection to Mason’s death transformed Xio’s professional investigation into a personal one. 642 734 887

Story Role / Major Arcs

Early Backlund Investigations

Xio and Fors investigate Qilangos for Audrey, seek Beyonder formulas through underground gatherings, and search for Lanevus through East Borough informants. Williams’s murder makes the Lanevus case personal and demonstrates the danger faced by Xio’s contacts. 183 207 209

Baelen and the Human-Trafficking Network

Hired by Angel, Xio helps locate, capture, and interrogate Baelen. She serves as the operation’s visible combatant and interrogator, while Angel supplies stealth, fear-based coercion, and later Spirit Channeling. 336 338 340

After Harras attacks the group, Xio witnesses Angel defeat the Judge through deception and close combat. She accepts a Sequence 9 Criminal Beyonder Characteristic as her share of the spoils, choosing its potential value over immediate cash. 339 341

East Borough Protector

Xio assists Sherman during the Great Smog, helps her establish safer control over the Black Claw Gang, and remains wary of Aurora Order activity in the East Borough. 369 582 596

Her concern for Sherman deepens as she watches her friend advance along the Demoness pathway, become Xue Man, and become involved in the dangerous operation targeting Stratford. 649 734 855

Tarot Club Membership

Fors brings Xio before The Fool after the pair encounter a dangerous spirit-eroding force. Xio asks to join the Tarot Club, draws the Judgment card, and becomes its newest member at the time. 769

MI9 Career and Family Restoration

Xio’s work for MI9 becomes tied to the truth behind her father’s death. Stratford’s interrogation reveals that Mason had discovered a secret involving the royal family and the Three Great Churches before a royal Demigod killed him. 887

Following George III’s fall, Xio formally joins MI9, clears her father’s name with the Tarot Club’s help, and rises through wartime and postwar service to become MI9’s deputy director. 994 1093 1406

Trivia

• Xio drew the Judgment Tarot card herself when The Fool offered her a codename. 769
• Her short stature has repeatedly led others to underestimate or misidentify her. 209 629
• She prefers the authority and flexibility of MI9’s deputy director position over succeeding its director. 1406