07-Ghost

07-Ghost
Genre	Fantasy
Manga
Written by	Yuki Amemiya and Yukino Ichihara
Published by	Ichijinsha
English publisher	Go! Comi
Magazine	Monthly Comic Zero Sum
Demographic	Shōjo
Original run	2005-11-25 – ongoing
Volumes	6

07-Ghost is a fantasy manga by Yuki Amemiya and Yukino Ichihara. It is currently serialized in the monthly magazine Monthly Comic Zero Sum published by Ichijinsha. Four compilation volumes have been released. A drama CD has been released in 2007, known as Kamisama ni Todoku Koibumi. The manga has been licensed by Go! Comi for release in North America.

Summary

Teito Klein is a former slave sent to attend the Barsburg Empire's military academy thanks to his ability to use Zaiphon (a type of magic). The ability is rare, and thus highly prized. Teito is an amnesiac and doesn't remember anything of his origins -- what he does learn of his past comes from his recurring and often traumatizing dreams.

After a year at the academy, the graduation exam comes along; it's notoriously difficult, with a pass rate of only twenty in five hundred. Teito and his only friend, Mikage, pass easily. That night, in their shared dorm room, they each promise to help the other at any cost. The next day, Teito is delivering papers to a professor when he overhears his name. He stops to listen, and realizes that the speaker, a man named Ayanami, is the man who killed his father in his dreams. Teito is found eavesdropping and tries to attack his father's murderer. He's quickly brought down by one of Ayanami's subordinates and sent to prison. Mikage comes to help him escape, only to find out that Teito managed to fight past the guards by himself. The two flee the building, and when they're caught on a balcony, Teito pretends that he's holding Mikage hostage. He threatens loudly to kill him, but to Mikage he whispers, "We'll always be best friends, right?" After Mikage replies "Of course," Teito jumps off the balcony onto a waiting hawkzile (a kind of flying motorcycle) to escape.

Ayanami notices Teito trying to escape and sends a Zaiphon attack after him, which Teito manages to partly deflect. The injury eventually weakens him and he loses control of his hawkzile, sending it crashing into another. Luckily for Teito, the man on the other hawkzile is a bishop in the nearby 7th District, and brings him to the church to recuperate. Since at this point Teito is in chains, the bishop, Frau, mistakes him for a slave and comments that if Teito had been a soldier in the Imperial army, he would have killed him immediately. Thanks to the law of "sanctuary", Teito can stay in the church without fear of the Empire or Ayanami.

It's later revealed that Teito carries the Eye of Mikhail, the powerful artifact that his home country, the Raggs Kingdom, was ransacked for. The tragic death of a loved one catapults him into his quest for revenge against the Barsburg Empire, and knowledge about his past, all while he gets caught up with the Gods, Verloren, and the 7 Ghosts.

Zaiphon

Zaiphon is the "magic" of 07-Ghosts's world; Zaiphon is the ability to convert a life source into various forms of energy. It's mainly controlled by writing words in the air with your hands, though people do use weapons with Zaiphon. Those who can use it are a rare kind of human being and thought of as blessed by God. Every user's capabilities are different, and in many cases, reflect their nature. Zaiphon is generally categorized into three types:

• Healing Zaiphon: People with this type of Zaiphon are able to heal wounds and share their Zaiphon with others/ transfer their Zaiphon to others. A character who primarily uses this Zaiphon is Labrador.

• Offensive Zaiphon: Those with this kind of Zaiphon have the ability to attack their enemies and protect themselves from attacks directed to them. Teito or Frau are examples of characters who primarily use the offensive branch.

• Manipulation Zaiphon: This type is really quite special and rare. For example, those with Manipulation Zaiphon are able to move things (like a flower) at will. A character who has this branch is Castor.

There is also a variety of weapons used to manipulate Zaiphon, the most commonly known being the bascule. With the bascule, you can attack Kor. However, the healing branch cannot directly attack a Kor, but it can restrict and remove it from a person. The offensive branch is different and attacks a Kor outright. Even so, according to Castor in chapter 10 you can learn how to use the different branches of Zaiphon.

07-Ghosts and Verloren

According to a centuries-old myth, the God of Death Verloren committed a crime in the heavens and was forced to escape to the earth. As a result, the hearts of people were invaded by this evil god and they slipped into despair. Lamenting over their suffering, the Chief of the Heavens dispatched seven heavenly lights in order to punish the evil Verloren. Called the "The Seven Ghosts", they are said to have sealed the detestable Verloren on this earth and are the guardians of the Empire. Mothers tell their children that if they're naughty, the Seven Ghosts will come to take them away.

Since Verloren has been sealed away, his messenger goes out to people and makes contracts with people to bring them under his influence. If a contract is made, a mark appears on the person's chest. This is known as Verloren's curse, and makes one's heart be eaten by darkness. The 07-Ghosts work is to fight against Verloren and his curse, and try to stop contracts from being fulfilled. Only the Bishops can remove Verloren's curse, in a complicated ceremony.

Actually, the 07-Ghosts are humans with such extraordinary Zaiphon abilities that they are considered to be blessed by God. Even lesser known is the fact that each of the 07-Ghosts have died. Frau, Castor and Labrador are the only three revealed so far, and they all should have the mark of their ghost on their hand. The Ghosts' names are Zehel, Feist, Profe, Landokalche, Lirekt, Aea, and Fiattaak.

Even though Verloren had been sealed away in Pandora's Box for over 1000 years, as the series progresses he is freed and once again begins to invade the hearts of men.

The Three Dreams

When a person is given a life from the Chief of the Heavens, they are told that over the course of their life, they will have three dreams to complete. When all of the dreams are granted, your soul will be once again called back to the chief and be reincarnated. However, when you're born you don't remember the dreams you chose, and finding them out is said to be the joy of life.

There are evil beings that want to interfere with this process; among them are the Kor, who steal the dreams and drag humans into darkness. When a human comes under a Kor's power, the first dream is granted, but the person's heart becomes unstable and unable to be satisfied no matter what one does. When the second is started, the person falls into a state of starvation, or addiction. When the third dream is granted by the Kor, the soul has indulged in too much darkness and will forever be unable to go back to the Chief of the Heavens. The Kor then takes the body to increase its number of comrades waiting for their master Verloren's return. A possessed body with all three dreams fulfilled by the Kor is called a Wars.

It is the duty of the church to protect people from the Kor, so because addiction isn't easily removed, there is a correction center where people are helped to overcome themselves. There are cases when a Kor may grant a wish that is not one of the three dreams, but it upsets the equilibrium and the Kor also may also get punished for it.

The Eyes of Mikhail and Raphael

A set of 'eyes' embedded into a person's hand, they allow the Gods Mikhail and Raphael to descend into their host's body for a limited time. The eyes are undetectable until the God possesses their host's body, in which case the host's eye colour usually changes and they have godlike prowess with Zaiphon. The royal family of the Kingdom of Raggs had the Eye of Mikhail and the Barsburg Empire had the Eye of Raphael. A pact was established between both countries never to search for the other's eye, though it was broken by the Empire ten years prior to the story's start.

Characters

Main characters

Teito Klein (テイト・クライン, Teito Kurain) Voiced by: Saiga Mitsuki

The hero of the story. A former slave captured by the Barsburg Empire and considered to be the military academy's star pupil. His homeland is the former Kingdom of Raggs, and he was raised as an orphan in a church. It is later revealed that Teito had been entrusted with the Eye of Mikhail when the Empire invaded his home country, and he is the son of the former king of Raggs.

At the start of the manga, Teito makes a promise with his best (and only) friend, Mikage, that they would die together. Unfortunately, Mikage gives up his life to save Teito from the Empire. Teito, shaken, swears revenge even though Mikage told him not to. At the 7th District Church he starts studying to become a priest, so he can gain a priest's advantages on his way to revenge -- free room and board in any inn in the Empire, and less stringent inspections at borders. However, along his way he gets mixed up in the affairs of the Gods because of the Eye of Mikhail, and this eventually brings him grief.

Teito has a slave tattoo on his back from when he was first captured, and wears a slave collar around his neck, put there by Ayanami. However, Frau accidentally invoked a blood contract with the collar and became Teito's 'master.' The collar will explode if he gets separated from Frau, the collar's master, for over 48 hours.

His birthday is the 1st of December, his blood type is O, he's 159 cm tall and weighs 43kg. His favorite food is macaroni gratin, his favorite drink is melon soda, and his favorite color is sky blue.

Mikage (ミカゲ, Mikage)

Teito's best friend, he comes from a family of stewards. Despite the fact that his closeness with Teito makes him a target of ill will, he remains a bright and cheerful person. When his soul is taken by Ayanami and he dies, he begs Teito not to look for revenge, but instead to keep on walking towards the light. This shakes Teito's beliefs, because Mikage was his 'light'. Later, Mikage becomes reincarnated as a small pink dragon (called Burupya) so he can protect Teito, no matter what form.

His birthday is the 3rd of March, and his blood type is O. He is 167cm and weighs 51kg. His favorite food is yakisoba bread, and his favorite color is orange.

Frau (フラウ, Furau) Voiced by: Suwabe Junichi

A perverted Bishop, he saves Teito's life when Teito falls from his hawkzile. He is the member of the 07-Ghosts known as 'Zehel'. He finds Burupya for Teito and accidentally becomes Teito's 'Master' when he attempts to remove Teito's slave collar and invokes a blood contract. This collar gives Frau the ability to command three things of Teito: bind, sleep and pain. For all his teasing, Frau also keeps Teito's spirits up with impromptu pep-talks. Because of this, Teito sometimes makes associations between Frau and his late 'Father'. Frau also has a good relationship with Hakuren, having taken him on as his 'porn disciple'. His relation with Ayanami is as of yet unknown. Frau is the only Ghost who can wield a scythe, yet this scythe is revealed to Ayanami's.

Frau was adopted by the church and became Bastian's disciple when he was caught in the large scale 'thief subjugation' across the empire. All of his friends died, and he didn't believe in God, but nevertheless he was so powerful with Zaiphon that it was rumored he was a child blessed with God's strength. While Frau was a wild child, constantly getting into trouble, he and Bastian ended up having a good relationship.

His blood type is A. He's 190cm tall and weighs 84kg. He has a cross-shaped tattoo on the small of his back. Frau's favorite food is meat, and his most hated food is mice. His favorite color is black.

Castor (カストル, Kasutoru) Voiced by: Chiba Susumu

Another bishop, he is the one that convinces Teito to take the exam to enter the priesthood. The training he puts Teito through is vigorous and often involves his 'dolls', life-sized puppets he controls with Zaiphon. One of the 07-Ghosts, he is 'Feist'.

His birthday is the 24th of December and his blood type is AB. He's 180cm and weighs 68kg. His hobby is making dolls.

Labrador (ラブラドール, Raburadōru) Voiced by: Miyata Kouki

A bishop whose hobby is gardening, he gives Teito a flower of protection at the start of the manga. He later gives Teito a drink made from sweet flowers to heal his 'wounds of the heart'. An omake has confirmed that he is the one of the 07-ghosts, known as 'Profe'.

He's 170cm tall and weighs 50kg. His bloodtype is B.

Hakuren Oak (ハクレン・オーク, Hakuren Ōku) Voiced by: Fukuyama Jun

Teito's roommate at the church and, at first, his self-proclaimed rival for the priesthood exam. He wants to become a priest in order to help his ailing mother. He worships Frau for saving his mother from a Kor and also seems to have become his 'porn disciple'.

Teito and Hakuren grow close enough for Teito to tell Hakuren he'll be friends with him when he's strong enough to protect him. They end up becoming partners in the priesthood exam.

His birthday is the 15th of October and his blood type is A. He's 167cm tall and weighs 50kg.

Ayanami (アヤナミ, Ayanami) Voiced by: Hayami Shou

The main antagonist. He is the man that killed Teito's 'Father' and seeks the Eye of Mikhail, though he seems to also be searching for 'Zehel'. His relationship with the 07-Ghosts is unknown, but he seems to be working for Verloren. It has been revealed that Ayanami is the owner of Frau's scythe, however, how his scythe came into Frau's posession is still unknown.

His favorite colour is white, he is 178cm tall and weighs 57kg.

Mikhail

A god that possesses Teito's body through the Eye of Mikhail. When in control of Teito's body, Teito's eyes go red and slit-pupiled. He is very fond of Teito, and is put out by the slave collar that limits his strength. Though insanely powerful, he tends to act like a petulant child and often makes undignified faces when talking with the Bishops.

Minor characters

Miroku

The chairman who had Teito as his favorite student. He is 182cm tall and weighs 75kg.

Shuuri Oak (シュリ・オーク, Shuri Ōku)

A student from the prestigious Oak family, he often bullies Teito because he was a slave. During the final exam, Teito saves his life even though he has a grudge against him. Later, through connections with his father, he becomes a subordinate to Ayanami. Because Konatsu saved hims life, he has developed somewhat of a crush.

His birthday is the 3rd of February and his bloodtype is B. He's 165cm tall and weighs 47kg. His favorite thing is himself and his most hated thing is Teito Klein.

"Father" Fea Cloist (フェア・クロイツ, Fea Kuroitsu)

Originally only known as "Father" to Teito, he took Teito into a church and raised him. When Teito was a child, he taught him many things, including the majority of the church's writings.

He was 178cm tall and weighed 70kg.

Jio (ジオ, Jio)

An old Bishop at the church with one scarred eye. He is the leader of the seven Bishops and suspects spies in the church.

Bastian (バスティン, Basutin)

A high-ranking priest, he oversees the teaching of acolytes (people who will take the exam to become a priest). He was Frau's teacher in the past, and is his most important person.

Hyuuga (ヒュウガ, Hyūga)

One of Ayanami's subordinates. He refers to Ayanami as 'Aya-tan'.

His birthday is the 8th of July and his bloodtype is A. He's 187cm tall and weighs 80kg.

Konatsu (コナツ, Konatsu-Wōren)

Hyuuga's subordinate, he often gets exasperated at Hyuuga for failing to do his work. Recently, he also has to put up with Shuuri, who idolizes him.

Kuroyuri (クロユリ, Kuroyuri)

The youngest of Ayanami's subordinates, he often goes on missions with Haruse.

His birthday is the 25th of September and his bloodtype is O. He's 152 cm tall and weighs 37kg.

Haruse (ハルセ, Haruse)

Kuroyuri's subordinate, and often accompanies Kuroyuri on missions.

Lance (ランセ, Ranse)

The Bishop who organizes the priesthood exam and oversees it. He considers Frau his rival.

External links

• Yukimachi's (illustrator) official site Template:Jp icon
• Go! Comi's official 07-GHOST site