Mary Ann

"Mary Ann"

- lecturing Lei about the importance of friendship.

About
Mary Ann is an ordinary girl from the Free City of Goa.

Born into poverty, Mary lost her mother while she was still very young. To stave off the depression caused by his wife's death, Mary's father turned to alcohol for comfort, refusing to get a job to support what remained of his family. Over time, Mary's father grew extremely bitter towards his daughter, telling her that the mere sight of her face disgusted him, and went out of his way to avoid her.

Without a mother and effectively abandoned by her father, Mary was forced to look out for herself from a very young age, taking up various odd jobs around Goa in order to support herself. Mary steadily became self-reliant, learning to live within her meager means while safely navigating through the dangerous backstreets of the city. Despite her poor circumstances, Mary remained optimistic and upbeat, confidently convincing herself that she would one day escape to a new and better life.

During the events of Rance X, Mary stopped a pickpocket from stealing a coin satchel from Lei, one of the Dark Lords in charge of invading the Free Cities during the 2nd Dark Lord War, who had been passing through the back streets Goa on a whim in between his rampage throughout the region. Unaware of Lei's identity, Mary returned the stolen item to him without hesitation and cheerfully attempted to initiate a conversation with him. Mistaking Lei for a vagrant due to his empty satchel and scruffy appearance, Mary offered him half of an Uppi sandwich that she had made for herself. While Lei attempted to ignore Mary, he eventually caved in to her persistence and accepted the sandwich, which he quickly spat out due to finding its taste strange.

While eating with Lei, Mary was approached by the pickpocket she had earlier detained. The boy had brought his father with him, who intended to beat Mary in retribution for scolding his son. Mary showed no fear when confronted by the man, stating firmly that she had done nothing wrong by stopping a thief, enraging him even further. Before the man was able to carry out the beating, however, he was sharply kicked in the back by Lei, who had grown agitated by the exchange. The force of Lei's kick launched the man high into the air, exposing the drifter as a Dark Lord. Goa was thrown into a state of panic upon realizing Lei’s identity, causing him to flee the city in order to avoid drawing attention to himself. While Mary was surprised to learn of Lei's true nature, she did not panic, and was instead merely saddened that he had to leave immediately after rescuing her from danger.

Mary encountered Lei a second time while he was escaping from a failed negotiation with Rance, the president of the United Human Army, that was held in Goa. Desiring to thank Lei for having rescued her, Mary was shocked to see that his body had been heavily injured after sustaining a surprise attack from Rance. Against the Lei's protests, Mary brought out a set of medical supplies and began treating his wounds, covering her hands with her shirt sleeves in order to protect them from the electrical current that ran across his body. Lei attempted to dissuade Mary from helping him throughout the treatment, reminding her that he was a Dark Lord and the enemy of all of mankind, but failed to phase the girl, who replied that she was merely returning the favor for his help in dealing with the pickpocket and his father.

While tending to his wound, Mary asked Lei if he was lonely, noting that he was by himself and seemed to be depressed both times she encountered him. Lei dismissed Mary’s question by stating bluntly that, as a Dark Lord, his life was inherently a lonely one, and that he had no need for anyone but himself. Lei’s claim angered Mary, who insisted that everyone, regardless of who or what they were, needed friends. Revealing her own lonely background, Mary offered to become Lei’s friend, noting that she knew that he was a good person due to the way that he had saved her during their first meeting. While bothered by Mary’s offer, Lei found himself unable to dismiss it outright, as he had not been directly confronted about his loneliness at any point during his thousand years of existence and was unused to thinking about it. Before being able to muster a response, however, the forces of the United Human Army began to approach Lei’s location, forcing him to once again exit from Goa and leave Mary.

Mary crossed paths with Lei for a third time while he was fleeing from the United Human Army through the back alleys of Goa after getting beaten to near death during the Battle of Sekigahara. Extremely concerned for his well-being, Mary offered to shelter Lei from the United Human Army while it searched through Goa. Her offer was sharply dismissed by the Dark Lord, who insisted that he wanted to go down fighting and that she had no reason to be concerned for him. Mary was aggravated by this claim, and shouted in response that he would likely die if she did nothing to assist him. Having never had his life so clearly valued by another before, Lei was shaken by Mary’s answer, but was cornered by Rance, who had managed to track down his location, before he had an opportunity to fully process it.

Desperate to defend Lei, Mary stepped in front of Rance in an effort to stop him from killing the injured Dark Lord. Mary at first attempted to appeal to Rance's humanity by insisting that Lei was a good person deep down, but was immediately brushed aside by the uncaring warrior. Unwilling to give up, Mary then attempted to offer herself to Rance, telling him that she would grow into a beautiful woman in a matter of years, but was quickly rejected for being an "ugly brat". The exchange was halted by the heavily injured Lei, who told Rance to ignore Mary and instead fight him one-on-one, mockingly asking if he was too scared to battle a dying Dark Lord on his own. While Rance nearly gave into Lei's taunt, he was persuaded by his sentient sword Chaos to not take any unnecessary risks, and instead chose to fight him with the aid of his allies.

Following Lei's defeat at the hands of Rance and his allies, Mary once again intercepted their attempts at killing him. While Rance initially tried to convince Mary to step aside, her refusal to do so eventually prompted him to decide to kill her as well. Finally accepting Mary’s affection for him, Lei spoke out against Rance in order to protect her, stating plainly that she had done nothing to deserve death, and that he was the one who Rance wanted to kill. Rance immediately recognized Lei’s concern for Mary through his protest and, seeing a prime opportunity to gain a powerful ally, demanded that the Dark Lord become his servant in exchange for Mary’s life. While Lei was surprised by Rance’s words, he agreed after considering them for a moment, deciding that protecting Mary was enough to continue living for. Following this, both Lei and Mary were taken into Rance’s custody and conscripted as members of the Dark Lord Extermination Squad.

As a member of the Dark Lord Extermination Squad, Mary began performing various chores around Rance Castle, such as doing the laundry and washing windows. During this time, Rance, initially ambivalent to Mary, became aware of her uncannily good luck at finding rare Shells, causing both him and Crook Mofus, the pope of the AL Church and a fellow shell connoisseur, to begin frequently following Mary around in order to expand their respective collections. Throughout the remainder of the war, Mary continued to work towards reforming Lei into becoming a less violent and more sociable person, teaching him how to play various card games as an alternative to fighting as a way of resolving conflicts with others. Mary also sewed a pair of insulating gloves for herself in order to allow her to touch the lightning-clad Lei without harming herself. While Lei expressed occasional agitation with Mary's constant pestering, he earnestly attempted to follow her wishes and become a more well-rounded and approachable person, much to her delight and the surprise of everyone around them.

Some time after the conclusion of the 2nd Dark Lord War, Mary took up residence in the desert nation of Shangri-La, which had since become a safe haven for all of the peaceful non-human species of The Continent. Mary was regularly visited by Lei, who frequently disregarded his duties serving under Demon King Rance in order to be with her. While she lived modestly, Mary, who had long dreamt of a happy and comfortable life, was beyond satisfied. Upon reaching adulthood, Lei discussed with Mary the possibility of transforming her into his Apostle in order to allow the two to spend eternity together. While Mary deliberated the idea for some time, she eventually concluded that it was better to remain a human in order for their relationship to continue being one between equals, which Lei agreed with.

While serving under Rance, Lei learned of the existence of the Toushin Tournament, a fighting competition between the strongest warriors in all of the Continent. Still eager to fight against strong opponents, Lei attempted to enter the tournament for countless years, but was forbidden from entering each time due to being unable to fulfill the entrance requirement of having a beautiful female partner. Unwilling to acknowledge anyone other than Mary, who was not considered beautiful enough to qualify, as his partner, Lei refused to so much as consider looking for another woman to enter the competition with, preventing him from ever successfully entering it.

During the events of Rance X: Part 2, Lei and Mary were briefly encountered by the adventuring party of El Mofus during their attempt to qualify for the 22nd Toushin Tournament. Lei once again attempted to enter the tournament with Mary as his partner, inevitably causing him to be denied entry. Somewhat frustrated, the duo left Toushin City shortly afterwards.

While Mary is not shown following her brief appearance at the Toushin Tournament, it can be assumed that she and Lei continued to live happily together following the newfound freedom he acquired after the loss of his Demonic Blood Soul and the complete destruction of the Demon King system.

If Rance chooses to give in to Lei’s taunt and fight him one-on-one during their final battle with each other, he will lethally injure Lei before Mary has a chance to intervene. During Lei's final moments, Mary will rush to his side and hold his hand, causing Lei, satisfied with getting to have one final duel before dying, to pass on with a smile. Mary is left saddened by Lei's death, stating that he could have become a good person if given a chance, and wanders off into the city, preventing her from becoming an ally. As Lei is shown to be alive and very close with Mary during part 2, however, this sequence is considered to be entirely non-canon. An alternate version of Mary appears during the events of Kichikuou Rance, but, outside of her status as a human that bonds with Lei, shares very little in common with her canonical portrayal.

Personality and Appearance
Mary is a young girl with a round face, slightly long brown hair tied back into a side ponytail, large eyes with beady pupils, a stubby nose and a rather severe overbite. Mary's clothing consists of a simple jean overall dress worn over a long-sleeved yellow shirt. Mary is noted to be quite ugly, with both Rance and her own father mocking her for her strange appearance.

By the year RA0015, Mary has grown into a young woman. While her appearance is quite similar to how it was while she was a child, with a round face and petite body, she has notably lost her overbite and now possesses much longer hair that is partially tied above her head in a loose pony tail. Mary's clothing as an adult consists of a long brown skirt and light grey sweater with a small brown shawl draped along her shoulders. Mary is overall significantly less strange-looking than she was as a child, though she is still noted to be rather plain.

Despite her harsh background, Mary is a very bright, optimistic and cheerful person who maintains a sunny disposition at nearly all times. Her largely unhappy life has caused her to constantly look towards the future for new opportunities for herself, causing her to take even the greatest of misfortunes in stride. This positive personality has caused Mary to become very sociable and talkative, to the point where she is quick to engage total strangers in extensive conversations as if they were old friends. Mary believes that companionship is more important than anything else for a person to survive, and thus treasures all friendships she can create, regardless of how small they may be.

Along with her optimism, Mary is very strong-willed and confident, and never shows so much as a trace of fear no matter how dangerous of a situation she finds herself in, even standing up to powerful beings such as Dark Lords and Rance without any hesitation. In addition, Mary is also incredibly stubborn, and never abandons any goal that she sets her mind to, no matter how difficult it may be to attain. While this combination of qualities has allowed Mary to survive through several difficult circumstances through hard work and grit, it also causes her to act rather reckless and foolhardy at times, forcing others to take action in order to rescue her from her own recklessness.

During private moments, Mary reveals a more vulnerable side than the one that she presents to the world. Though she often proudly that she will one day grow into a beautiful maiden when mocked for her looks, Mary secretly possesses something of a complex about her strange face. Having internalized the notion that she is ugly, Mary has grown to believe that others are naturally inclined to dislike her, and that she will only ever be able to win their affections through hard work and effort. Because of these feelings, Mary especially values the friendships of people who do not comment on her appearance, noting in particular that Lei has never once called her ugly.

From their very first meeting, Mary took an immediate interest in the Dark Lord Lei. Initially mistaking him for a homeless wanderer, Mary felt a strong sense of kinship with Lei due to believing the two of them to be similarly lonely, prompting her to make several attempts at befriending him. Mary maintained this notion even after Lei revealed his true identity as a Dark Lord, stating that she believed all living things deserved to have friends. While Lei was initially agitated by Mary, her persistence steadily forced him to acknowledge the desire for companionship within himself that he had long tried to suppress, eventually causing him to accept her friendship. Upon officially becoming friends with him, Mary devoted herself towards reforming Lei into a more sociable person, teaching him ways of resolving conflicts nonviolently and scolding him whenever he attempted to start fights with their allies. While largely staying the same outwardly, Lei was softened considerably by Mary's influence, having found a newfound purpose in his life through protecting her.

By the time of RA0015, Lei and Mary have become much closer, going so far as to refer to each other as “partners”. While it is left ambiguous as to whether their relationship has become romantic in nature or not, their affection for each other is undeniable, with Lei regularly sneaking away from Rising Dragon Mountain in order to be with her and refusing to proclaim any other woman to be his partner in the Toushin Tournament. Despite being vastly more powerful than her, Lei considers Mary to be his equal in every way, to the point of deciding against making her his Apostle in order to avoid exerting any kind of control over her. Through Mary’s influence, Lei has become considerably more social and less violent, but retains his quiet nature and love for fighting against strong people.

Mary formed a fast friendship with Sill Plain following her recruitment into the Dark Lord Extermination Squad, where the two would often assist each other with performing chores around Rance Castle. While Sill initially expressed a great deal of pity towards Mary for her unfortunate life, she quickly came to recognize and admire the young girl's unshakable resolve, causing her to regret viewing her as a victim. The pair bonded even further upon reflecting on their relationships with the men in their lives, with both admitting it to be rather unusual for them to see good qualities in the unruly and belligerent Rance and Lei.

Abilities
Mary is a naturally resourceful person with a wide range of mundane but very useful skills that she has developed from an early age. Possessing both the Cooking Lv1 and Sewing Lv1 Skill Levels, she is able to both prepare quality meals and clothing for herself and others even when the resources available to her are extremely limited. These skills helped Mary immensely during her time as an urchin, as they allowed her to remain comfortably fed and clothed in spite of her poor circumstances. Upon befriending Lei, Mary utilized her sewing skills to craft a pair of insulated gloves for herself, allowing her to touch him directly without fear of harming herself.

In addition to her more practical skills, Mary possesses the Shell Collecting Lv1 skill level, granting her an uncanny talent for stumbling upon rare shells. This talent often results in Mary finding several highly sought after shells whenever she so much as goes for a walk. While Mary enjoys collecting shells, her fascination with them is fairly casual, which often causes her to overlook the value of the ones that she finds and handle them carelessly, much to the horror of more dedicated shell collectors such as Rance and Crook Mofus.

Outside of her skill levels, Mary is an entirely ordinary human being with no noteworthy fighting ability. She is listed as being at the average Level of 9 during the events of the 2nd Dark Lord War, which is presumed to be her Level Cap, giving her a low amount of potential as a fighter. Mary's low level cap is compounded with her small body, causing her to be rather frail in combat. In spite of this physical weakness, Mary shows no fear on the battlefield, and eagerly cheers Lei from the sidelines whenever he fights, causing the Dark Lord to fight more intensely in order to ensure her safety.

Trivia

 * The clothing Mary wears during her appearance in Rance X: Part 2 is identical to the clothing worn by her counterpart in Kichikuou Rance.
 * During the early development of Rance X, Mary was intended to once again be an elderly woman and play virtually the same role as she had in Kichikuou Rance. As the game's scenario was further developed, however, this version of Mary was deemed incompatible with the alterations made to the setting, and the character was momentarily planned to be removed from the story entirely. While the development staff eventually settled on reimagining Mary as a young child, Orion, the Rance Series' main artist, also pitched a redesign that depicted her as an ugly and ill-tempered old woman who nonetheless was an extremely kind person. The design was immediately rejected by TADA, the director of the Rance series, who bluntly stated that he refused to allow something so ugly to live.