Gilan

Biodata

Feature	Details
Name	Gilan Iros (吉兰); listed on later Panels as Gilan Iros (Mo Xing) 440 556
Alias(es)	Red Sage; Mr. Vic; tower host “Mr. Crescent” while disguised 384 450 530
Species/Race	Human transmigrator; later an Ascendant and Apostle 502 554 570
Gender	Male 440
Age	21 at Rank 5–6; 22 after Ascension 440 518 556
Affiliation	Bremen Empire; Imperial Special Operations Group Two; Midnight Rose 343 454
Occupation/Role	Former prisoner; Prohibition Agent; Gravedigger; Foreign Minister; Midnight Rose representative 183 296 354 454
Status	Alive; reaches Rank 9 and becomes an Apostle by the endgame 570 616
First Appearance	Chapter 3 3

Power Progression

Stage / Realm / Level	Chapter	Notes
Tier 2 — Actor	222	Ascends within his Mind Kingdom. Gains Keen Observation, Masterful Acting, and Selfless Immersion.
Tier 3 — Radiance	296	Advances rapidly enough to surprise the Investigation Committee; operates as a Gravedigger against modified humans and cultists.
Rank 4 — Abundance / Player	327	Becomes a Long-Lived One and forms the Player essence, gaining Appearance Adjustment, Guiding Prompt, and Golden Exclamation Mark.
Rank 5 — Panel	440	Advances on the Player Pathway; gains Attribute Enhancement, Difficulty Adjustment, and Environment Settings.
Rank 6 — Game	518	Reaches the mortal limit. Gains Save Load, Attribute Respec, and Frame Limit.
Rank 7 — Cheating	556	Ascends beyond the mortal world; his Panel identifies him as a Rank 7 Hour-God Candidate and bearer of the String of Law.
Rank 9 — Cheat	570	Panel records Rank 9, an enhanced String of Law, and Apostle status as a user of Bubble Law.

Background

Gilan first appears as a blond prisoner trapped in a deadly survival scenario. When other prisoners attempt to use him as a shield, he kills their leader with a concealed wrench, throws the body into a bear trap, and escapes into the forest rather than remain with the group. 3

He acquires Espi’s Secret Notes and begins practicing the White Cross Body-Forging Technique without the medicines normally required. Iridescence allows him to accelerate his training dramatically; he later completes the Healing Knights’ entrance test on his first attempt and becomes a squire. 16 17 102

Gilan’s origin is anomalous. Lady Hera states that he “appeared out of nowhere” and that his past is gradually created. Film reels nevertheless depict an extensive history in which he studied alchemy under Silver Bottle Lady, travelled through Klein, aided Sasha and Peyton, witnessed the Healing Knights’ rise and fall, and survived the Bremen border bombing. Gilan himself did not know this history existed. 451

Appearance

Gilan is initially described as a blond youth with cold, murderous eyes. His later appearance is markedly more variable due to his abilities and transformations. 3 327

• He has blond or gradient shoulder-length hair; during Mad Owl Form, his body can exceed two meters in height and develop an overtly bestial presence. 400
• He is described as violet-eyed during later arcs. 450
• His normal body is exceptionally dense: after one cultivation breakthrough, he weighs more than two hundred pounds despite standing around 1.89 meters tall. 390
• Appearance Adjustment can alter his height, weight, facial features, sex characteristics, and other physical traits within defined limits. 327
• His King’s Descent form manifests stone-bone armor, a scarlet cloak, and the Ferocious Ram mount. 484

Personality

Gilan begins fearful, traumatized, and deeply suspicious of others, but quickly becomes decisive when threatened. His survival instinct is ruthless: he kills enemies efficiently, loots useful equipment, and treats combat as a source of both power and information. 3 23 405

He is analytical and relentlessly improvement-oriented. He prioritizes meditation, physical training, secret techniques, and Iridescence deductions over ordinary obligations, repeatedly seeking to turn his strongest traits into overwhelming advantages. 275 331 410

His power can expose a crueler side. Upon becoming an Actor, Selfless Immersion briefly brings his desire to kill Ramon Fahan’s family and Jenna Claire to the surface; later, he toys with hostile representatives while disguised as Mr. Crescent. 222 450 454 Despite this, he can be courteous to allies and protective toward civilians, such as when he shelters the unconscious Liliya beneath the tower’s central pillar. 450

Abilities & Skills

Iridescence

Iridescence is Gilan’s central supernatural aid and intelligence-like companion. It stores items, spends Mystic Energy to accelerate learning, deduces new pathways and techniques, and assists with analysis. 13 17 301

• Stores weapons and supplies in a dimensional space, including the Double-Barreled Shotgun and Alchemy Pocket contents. 13 96
• Instantly accelerates mastery of languages, acting methods, body-forging arts, meditation, swordsmanship, and alchemical knowledge when supplied with Mystic Energy. 198 301 400
• Corrupts defeated mystics, negatives, and other targets to extract Mystery Points and Kingdom Brands. 405 470
• Its effects can cause film characters to overlook Gilan’s actions and the disappearance of corpses. 405
• It has influenced people in the past, allowing Gilan’s actions to produce lasting effects across altered histories. 432

Actor Abilities

At Tier 2, Gilan gains abilities suited to observation, impersonation, and psychological immersion. 222

• Keen Observation — Builds a mental profile of a target’s experiences, habits, personality, and “self.” 222
• Masterful Acting — Replicates another person so faithfully that imitation becomes difficult to distinguish from reality. 222
• Selfless Immersion — Uses suggestion and fabricated scenarios to draw out the potential of the id; it can also compromise Gilan’s restraint. 222

Player Abilities

The Rank 4 Player essence combines disguise, intelligence gathering, and self-enhancement. 327

• Appearance Adjustment — Alters Gilan’s appearance, including height, weight, and bodily proportions. It cannot create nonexistent functions, has physical limits, and steadily consumes spirituality. 327
• Guiding Prompt — Places him in a half-awake analytical state that can identify targets, reveal information, and expose weaknesses. 327 333
• Golden Exclamation Mark — Provides feedback-based enhancement; one activation increases the density of his muscles, bones, and organs, raising overall strength by roughly ten percent. 331

Panel Abilities

At Rank 5, Gilan gains direct control over character-like mechanics. 440

• Attribute Enhancement — Spends Mystery Points to increase attributes directly, though Gilan considers technique-based advancement more efficient. 440
• Difficulty Adjustment — Can raise or lower difficulty. Raising it weakens and suppresses Gilan himself; lowering it can provide combat assistance such as highlighted weaknesses, move breakdowns, and slowed perception. 417 440
• Environment Settings — Adjusts brightness, shadows, volume, and resolution within a ten-meter radius, allowing him to obscure enemies, mute his movements, or expose concealed targets. 417

Game Abilities

Gilan’s Rank 6 Game essence grants manipulation over survival, attributes, and combat timing. 502 518

• Save Load — Enables him to preserve and return to a prior state; combined with Pilan, it later allows him to return from death at a massive Mystery Point cost. 518 605
• Attribute Respec — Redistributes attributes toward a chosen specialization, such as raising Endurance to heal from otherwise lethal injuries. 502 533
• Frame Limit — Can slow his perception of an opponent’s movements or make his own movements appear to skip frames, disrupting an enemy’s timing. 502

Body Forging and Martial Arts

Gilan builds his combat style around extreme physical conditioning, close-quarters skill, and a succession of secret techniques. 169 440

• White Cross Body-Forging Technique — Healing Knights art that develops superhuman strength and combat ability; Gilan ultimately reaches mastery. 16 102 440
• Life Star Orbit — His later body-forging discipline. Its Reversed form is recorded as complete, raising his physical attributes by a total of twenty-six points during its final upgrades. 410 472
• Iron Shattering / Star-Shattering — A fused kicking technique that becomes a decisive finishing move after inheriting the Helmet King’s law. 277 472
• Forge Tempering — Ancient hammer technique centered on explosive, highly precise force control; it can flatten, shatter, or purge impurities from a target. 400
• Mad Owl Form — Permanent enhancement state that greatly increases Gilan’s physique. Initially sustainable for about ten minutes, it becomes nearly normalized through repeated training. 389 400
• No Thought — Berserker state that lets him respond with extreme speed and force when faced with death. 297

Swordsmanship

Gilan adopts secret sword arts as his primary combat method after mastering all twelve forms of Gerard’s Bloodletting Sword. 301

• Gerard’s Bloodletting Sword — Secret sword technique integrating astrological mysteries with the power of the human body. 169 301
• Cosmos Sword — A sword art that progresses from Stars to Galaxy; its Silver Core is described as the Galaxy Chapter’s strongest sword. 390 410 449
• Reflux — Force-deflection technique that pairs especially well with his blood-feather cloak. 440 469

Alchemy and Mind Kingdom

Gilan is an accomplished alchemist whose mental defenses and transmutation methods complement his physical combat. 379 467

• Refine — Transmutes materials, creates defensive structures, deconstructs enemies, and can reconstruct matter into useful forms. 467 487
• He uses alchemical arrays to manipulate earth, create mud pythons, and bombard enemies with stone shards. 379
• His Cross-Sword Bonfire protects his consciousness from mind manipulation and nightmare influence. 423 428
• His Mind Kingdom withstands a Long-Lived One’s Mind Suppression and contains manifestations such as the Mad King and Sinister-Grinning Ram. 297 411
• King’s Descent: Rainstorm creates a domain of rain, gales, and lightning that weakens enemies and incorporates Bloodletting Sword Law, Cosmos Sword Wind, and Alchemical Decomposition. 519 532

Equipment / Weapons / Items

• Double-Barreled Shotgun — Early firearm stored in Iridescence’s dimensional space; used to kill Detective Granny Remo. 13 23
• Echo — Alchemical revolver later rebuilt through Bubble Law and the Sage Secret Pattern into a 1.3-meter single-barreled hunting gun. 285 575
• Hammer of Justice — Transforming hammer weapon powered by Green Gunpowder. 108
• Steel-core Cane / cross-sword cane — Cane weapon that transforms into a cross sword, commissioned from the Staff-Making Elder. 183 305
• Philosopher’s Sword — Crystalline scarlet sword used during Gilan’s battle at the Jacobin Grand Opera House. 532
• Blood-feather cloak — Mad King equipment that resists mystical attacks, hardens into bladed edges, and launches independent blood feathers. 469
• Defensive bracers and engraved pistols — Taken from Purification Squad members and stored in the Alchemy Pocket. 96
• Sal Card and Taunos Statue — Items received from the Forsaka royal family after Gilan completes Lady Crow’s commission. 411

Relationships

• Iridescence — Gilan’s supernatural companion and source of deduction, storage, accelerated learning, and pathway development. 301 440
• Vivi — His familiar; conducts reconnaissance, relays information, casts curses, and performs mind invasions at Gilan’s command. 108 296 336
• Pala — Teacher and mentor who trains Gilan in practical combat, alchemy, and the improvement of Mad Owl Form. 301 388 389
• Paracelsus — Healing Knights physician who recognizes Gilan’s affinity for the White Cross technique and later inscribes his Sage Secret Pattern. 102 411
• Thesel — Brother and Tier 5 ally; fights alongside Gilan in the Battle Festival and praises him as an outstanding warrior. 405 548
• Nancy — Gilan’s younger sister. 147
• Joann — Gilan’s younger brother, defeated by Gilan in a cane-fighting tournament match lasting less than five seconds. 176
• Lady Crow — Record Society contact and commission partner; Gilan proposes cooperation to gather the fragments of Curtain Call. 388 466
• Lemei Nicola — Old acquaintance who saves Gilan from an assassination attempt and urges him to ascend quickly. 432
• Menis — Mysterious ally who provides Gilan with intelligence and a Tier 5 Spirit Mystic Disc Stone. 427
• Sasha — Acquaintance from the Land of Gods who addresses him as “Brother Gilan.” 544

Story Role / Major Arcs

Prisoner and Survivor

Gilan survives the initial prisoner scenario by rejecting the group’s attempt to exploit him, killing its leader, and escaping the monsters that slaughter the remaining prisoners. 3

Healing Knights and Revenge

After obtaining the White Cross Body-Forging Technique, Gilan enters the Healing Knights’ orbit, passes its trial, and gains access to Gerard’s Bloodletting Sword. His physical and mystical growth soon puts him beyond conventional fighting masters. 102 169

Prohibition Agent and Gravedigger

Gilan infiltrates illegal gatherings as a Prohibition Agent, crushes Viscount Loben Fasor’s followers, and later disrupts South Muse bootlegging operations so effectively that he becomes newspaper news. 183 200 As a Gravedigger, he leads operations against modified humans, cultists, gangs, and Nightmare Steles. 296 300 334

Midnight Rose and Long-Lived One

Upon becoming a Rank 4 Long-Lived One, Gilan is offered formal support from Midnight Rose and retakes parts of Late Autumn Town from the Blood Harbor Gang. His Player abilities allow him to read enemies, copy combat methods, and identify health bars. 327 333

Diplomat and Red Sage

Gilan becomes Bremen’s Foreign Minister and later gains recognition as the Red Sage. 354 530 After reaching Rank 6, he launches a campaign against the Federation’s secret societies, eliminates the Ascetic Sect, attacks the Hymn Choir, and defeats Hellman and the Federation’s Five-Star Generals. 528 530

Ascension and War Against the Hour-Gods

Gilan accepts that his identity as a transmigrator places him in conflict with the Three Art Hour-Gods. 520 He passes the Gate of Lion’s ascension trials, becomes a Rank 7 Ascendant, and eventually reaches Rank 9 Apostle status. 548 556 570 In the final conflict, he assists in ending the Three Art Hour-Gods’ “final curtain call.” 616

Notable Quotes

“Sorry, but I really can do whatever I please.” 527

“I'm really looking forward to the final battle of this game. Don't you agree?” 450

“Not enough...” 607

Trivia

• Gilan’s original White Cross training begins “dry,” without the secret medicines and ointments normally required. 17
• He can master languages, makeup, and acting methods through Iridescence, spending Mystic Energy as the cost. 198
• At the mortal limit, all six of his principal attributes reach 50; through later enhancements, his displayed post-threshold values rise far higher. 536 584
• His artificial history is linked to the fragmented True Film Reel Curtain Call; Lady Hera claims that gathering all fragments will reveal the truth of his existence. 451