Rolex Gadras

"Rolex Gadras"

- vowing to rid Helman of its internal corruption.

About
Rolex Gadras is the general of the Helman 5th Army. A party-loving battle fanatic, he is known and feared across The Continent as "The Sword Demon of Helman", the great northern nation's strongest swordsman.

Having served in the Helman Army from a young age, Rolex was able to quickly earn the coveted rank of knighthood through his astounding fighting technique, an advanced form of swordplay of JAPANese origin known as the Bajibahal style that allowed him to masterfully wield two blades at once. Despite the title of knight requiring him to pledge to defend Helman with his life, Rolex possessed no real love for his homeland, which he considered to be too barren and ugly to be worth protecting, and remained in the position simply due to the ample opportunities it provided him to test his skills in combat. This lack of commitment, combined with his naturally unruly personality, caused him to often act in a careless manner that led him to clash with his superiors, though their complaints were largely silenced by his unquestionable talent.

The numerous victories Rolex scored in battle eventually resulted in him being entrusted with the duty of serving as general of the Helman 5th Army, an elite combat unit specializing in penetration and maneuverability. Though his love for battle and poor conduct made him lead his army in a way that more closely resembled a group of brigands than an organized military force, his upbeat and informal disposition naturally bred a strong sense of camaraderie among his soldiers. Under Rolex's command, the 5th Army became equally well-known for the raucous drinking parties it held in-between battles as it was for its devastating effectiveness during them.

At some point during his youth, Rolex met and fell in love with a woman named Lil, who he was soon wed to. In stark contrast to his usual attitude, married life filled Rolex with a sense of purpose outside of fighting in the form of devoting himself toward ensuring his wife's happiness. Whenever Rolex had free time, the couple would go on long walks along the countryside together to enjoy each other's company. During one such diversion, Rolex made a sly remark to Lil about Helman's desolate landscape. To his surprise, his wife argued against his cynicism, telling him that, regardless of its appearance, the country was responsible for bringing them together and was beautiful for that reason alone. Lil then asked Rolex to promise her that he would protect Helman no matter the cost just as she would protect their household. Rolex agreed without hesitation, gaining the drive needed to protect what was most precious to him that he had lacked throughout his career as a knight.

The happy couple was struck by tragedy some years later, when Lil contracted a terminal illness that ultimately took her life. Rolex was rendered despondent by her passing and fell into a deep, inconsolable depression. Losing his cheerfulness and vigor, he buried himself in alcohol and began to forsake his duties as a general entirely, with even his love for fighting vanishing without a trace. The strength and skill that he once took immense pride in decayed significantly until they became close to unrecognizable, and the 5th Army's reputation plummeted in turn. The useless state that Rolex had fallen into worked in the benefit of Stessel Romanov, the Prime Minister of Helman who sought to remove all influential people who could potentially threaten his bid to gain complete control over the nation from power, allowing him to avoid termination in spite of his failings.

Rolex was eventually lifted from his drunken stupor when he was approached by a mysterious man. Introducing himself as Oruore the 3rd, the man claimed to have been a fan of Rolex's after having read about his exploits in the newspaper and had enlisted in the army in the hope of being able to witness his fabled swordsmanship up close. While Rolex initially attempted to ignore the stranger, Oruore's persistence forced him to relent and take him up on his request. Oruore's laid-back and friendly nature, combined with his genuine admiration for his talents, gradually allowed Rolex to rediscover his love of fighting, which in turn caused his mood to steadily improve. Slowly but surely, Rolex was able to regain enough of his former strength and bearing to return to leading his troops, who welcomed him back with open arms. As a show of gratitude, Rolex appointed Oruore, who he had grown to see as an indispensable friend and comrade, as the lieutenant-general of the 5th Army, and the group returned to their former activities of fighting, drinking, and partying.

Rolex was briefly mentioned by Patton Misnarge, the rebel prince of Helman, during the events of Rance VI, where he listed him alongside his friend Hubert Lipton when discussing with Rance who he believed the strongest person in Helman to be.

During the events of Rance IX, Rolex and the 5th Army were ordered by Kechak Bangor, the supreme commander of the Helman Army, to intercept The Outlaws, an enigmatic group of criminals that appeared suddenly within Helman and had begun causing major disturbances along its southern border. Just as they began to approach the Outlaws' last known location, however, their assignment was abruptly changed to instead launch an assault on the Kingdom of Leazas, a longtime rival of Helman's that was suspected of being responsible for the appearance of the unknown new enemy. While frustrated by the suddenness of the new orders, Rolex nonetheless obliged and called for his soldiers to begin moving toward Fort Maunes in the Barao Mountains, where the Leazas-Helman border was located.

Upon reaching Fort Maunes, Rolex was shocked to find the Leazas Red Corps, the enemy country’s most elite fighting force, awaiting him. Unwilling to risk facing off against the legendary penetrative tactics of the Red Corps in the narrow confines of the mountain range, he considered giving his troops the command to retreat but was stopped by Cholchotov, a company inspector assigned to monitor the 5th Army’s activities, who threatened to have him court-martialed if he did not follow through with his orders and attack. In an effort to protect his soldiers, Rolex approached the Red Corps alone and challenged its general, the famed Red Reaper of Leazas Rick Addison, to a one-on-one duel, wagering that the loser would have to withdraw their army without any further struggle. To Rolex’s great excitement, a figure that appeared to be the Red Reaper emerged from behind the enemy lines to accept his challenge.

Face to face with the strongest warrior in all of Leazas, all trepidation within Rolex transformed into glee at the prospect of getting to test his swordsmanship against a worthy adversary. These feelings dissipated soon after their battle commenced, however, as Rolex became suspicious of his opponent’s technique. While the person fought with the practiced skill of an experienced sword fighter, their movements were distinctly reserved and methodical: a far cry from the unrelenting speed and aggression that the Red Reaper was famous for. Rolex succeeded in throwing the enemy general off balance with little difficulty and delivered a finishing blow to them with a powerful downward slash.

The force of the attack was enough to shatter the Red Reaper’s helmet and armor, revealing the person underneath them to be a woman, the captain of the Leazas Royal Guard Leila Grecni, who had elected to act as a decoy for the real Rick as he traveled through Helman incognito as a member of the Outlaws. While Rolex did not recognize Leila, he was able to discern from their battle that she was not the actual Red Reaper and expressed irritation at the deception. To his disgust, his feelings ran counter to the ecstatic Cholchotov, who desired to bring the ruined armor to the Helman capital of Lang Bau to discredit Leazas’ famed Red General. Prioritizing his honor as a swordsman above his duty as a soldier, Rolex refused Cholchotov’s order, causing Cholchotov to move toward the unconscious Leila to collect the items himself. Cholchotov’s selfish actions inadvertently broke the agreement between the two armies, which resulted in the soldiers of the Red Corps suddenly beginning to charge. In a last-ditch effort to stop the assault, Rolex killed Cholchotov and shouted for the Red Corps to halt, which they complied with out of shock. Without another word, Rolex gently handed Leila’s body and the broken equipment off to a soldier of the Red Corps and called for the 5th Army to retreat back into Helman, reminding Leazas to uphold its end of the agreement by withdrawing from the area before making his exit. After returning to Helman, Rolex and the 5th Army resumed their original mission of searching for the Outlaws in various small towns across Helman. Rolex had little interest in accomplishing the task, however, and deliberately went about doing so in as halfhearted and cumbersome a way as possible. The 5th Army’s search route was eventually intercepted by the Outlaws following their victory over the crazed Doctor Oama Motohide. Patton, the leader of the Helman Revolutionary Army and sub-commander of the Outlaws, attempted to exploit Rolex's pride as a warrior by challenging him to a duel against Rance, the group's leader and strongest fighter, with the intent of subduing the 5th Army in a single battle. While Rolex immediately saw through the plan, his admiration for its audaciousness pushed him into agreeing to it. When it came time for the duel to happen, though, Rance brusquely refused to participate, stating that he had no interest in devoting a significant amount of energy into fighting another man.

At the pressuring of his agitated allies, Rance named Rick as his substitute in the duel, claiming that he would consider allowing Rolex to fight him if he managed to win. Rolex agreed to the altered conditions, but was unenthusiastic due to not recognizing his new opponent as the Red Reaper he had previously desired to cross blades with. This ambivalence quickly disappeared as the battle commenced and Rolex’s initial attempt at knocking Rick off balance by parrying his attacks was met with a ceaseless barrage of counterstrikes, preventing the 5th Army general from closing the difference in reach between them. Adapting to his opponent’s unexpected skill, Rolex matched offense with offense and began striking at Rick with his swords simultaneously from two different directions to place greater pressure on him.

While Rick was able to keep up with the onslaught for some time, he was eventually caught off guard by an attack and pushed backwards, causing Rolex to move in for a finishing blow. To the surprise of everyone observing the fight, Rick managed to regain his footing quickly enough to strike back at Rolex in the instant before he was able to complete his attack, wounding his opponent while managing to avoid taking damage himself. Frustrated at being outperformed in close combat, the injured Rolex retreated some distance away to launch his special attack, the Type-2 Soaring Wave, at his rival. To his great astonishment, Rick was able to nullify the wave by bisecting it in half with a well-timed swing of his sword, once again emerging unscathed. Recognizing that his defeat would soon be at hand, Rolex took advantage of the confusion caused by his special attack to call for the full retreat of his army from the town. Fleeing along the outskirts of the region, the irate Rolex revealed to Oruore that he had deduced from his swordsmanship that the man he had fought against was the actual Red Reaper of Leazas, and that he had proven himself as the superior warrior in their clash. Oruore attempted to calm his friend’s nerves by proposing that they join forces with the Outlaws, noting that their great strength and offbeat atmosphere made them much more desirable allies than the Helman Government in its present state. Rolex admitted that the idea was slightly appealing, but refused on the grounds that he wanted to redeem his loss to the Red Reaper by facing off against him once more and instead ordered Oruore to send a report of their defeat to Lang Bau.

Upon receiving word of the 5th Army’s defeat at the hands of the Outlaws, Stessel ordered Kechak to station its forces within Fort Solotoy along the path to Lang Bau. Stessel also instructed Kechak to outsource aid from several high profile mercenary groups and place them at the same fort, hoping that the threat of competition would motivate Rolex and his soldiers to work harder. The tactic instead had the opposite effect, with Rolex finding recruiting the aid of mercenaries to be cowardly and in conflict with his own desire to face the Red Reaper in a duel once again. As a form of protest, he refused to deploy any of his troops alongside the mercenaries on top of the fort, instead choosing to remain inside of it and take a nap, reasoning that the Outlaws would likely avoid approaching such a heavily fortified location and would instead move toward the city of Kulov, which he intended to reposition the 5th Army into the next morning. To his surprise, he was awakened only a short while later by Oruore, who revealed that the Outlaws had succeeded in approaching Solotoy undetected and were poised to invade it. Rolex maintained his refusal to deploy any soldiers despite the unforeseen circumstances, believing that fighting among the panicking mercenaries would pose an unnecessary risk, and commanded the 5th Army to begin marching toward Kulov, evading the Outlaws entirely in the confusion.

On their way to Kulov, Rolex and the 5th Army stopped in the small village of Seagas to recuperate. By sheer coincidence, Rance, along with several female members of the Outlaws, happened to also be in the village at the time assisting Merci Archa, the leader of the Helman Revolutionary Army’s logistics unit, in gathering supplies. Rolex seized the opportunity to challenge Rance to another duel and offered to ignore his presence in the area if he succeeded in defeating him. The offer was refused yet again by the disinterested Rance, forcing his companions to hesitantly debate among themselves as to who would step forward as his replacement. Without consulting anyone else in the group, Pigu Geliciam suddenly began to approach Rolex while dragging Rance’s sword Chaos, which was too heavy for her to lift, behind her. Rolex laughed at the sight, mockingly declaring that it was fitting for a coward like Rance to allow a small girl to fight his battles for him. This taunting proved to be enough to incite Rance into finally agreeing to face Rolex himself.

Despite accepting the challenge, Rance remained ambivalent to the threat Rolex posed. In an attempt to outshine his opponent, Rance entered the fight wielding both Tilde Sharp and Alkanese Rize's swords in addition to his own; believing that he could easily defeat the other swordsman's technique if he simply fought with a greater number of swords than him. This blasé approach continued even after the battle commenced, with the two trading tongue-twisters to one another between blows. Rolex quickly succeeded in disarming two of Rance’s swords, forcing the brutal warrior to begin taking the clash seriously. Now fighting in his usual style, Rance began to overwhelm Rolex through a combination of his free-flowing and unpredictable movements and forceful strikes. After much struggling, Rolex was eventually able to push Rance backwards and rid him of his last sword. Rather than declare defeat, however, Rance immediately began charging at Rolex and took advantage of his shock at the action to pick Chaos back up and deliver a devastating Brutal Attack. The strength of the blow sent both of Rolex’s swords flying, ending the fight in Rance’s favor. Rance poised himself to pierce Chaos through the enemy general’s neck, but was stopped at the last moment by the Dark Witch Miracle Tou, who desired for Rolex to be left alive so that he would one day be able to serve in her fantasy guard the Twelve Knights. With his life saved, Rolex upheld his end of the bargain and allowed the group to continue their activities in the village without any conflict.

A short while later, the remaining members of the Outlaws, having learned of the 5th Army’s location, arrived at the village in a panic. Upon noticing them, Rolex informed the bewildered reinforcements that he had agreed to avoid antagonizing them as punishment for his loss against Rance. While recounting Rance’s skill throughout their battle, Rolex came to the realization that he was likely the Black Swordsman who had slain Thoma Lipton, the Helman Army’s strongest warrior, during the 7th Leazas-Helman War and marveled at the number of incredible people among the Outlaws’ ranks. Patton took notice of Rolex’s amiability and attempted to offer him to join the Outlaws, but was turned down before he could even finish asking; with Rolex dryly stating that he had no intention of breaking the promise he had made to defend Helman. Before ordering his men to exit the village, Rolex made a final declaration to the Outlaws that he would settle things with them once and for all in Kulov.

While stationed at Kulov, Rolex was alarmed to learn from Oruore that Empress Sheila Helman was being sent to the city on the eve of the Outlaws’ invasion. Though initially angered at the apparent incompetence of his superiors, Rolex’s outrage transformed into suspicion when Oruore proposed that Sheila’s presence in Kulov during the Outlaws’ attack was a deliberate ploy by Stessel to get the 5th Army to put their lives on the line defending her. At Oruore’s suggestion, Rolex met privately with the supposed Empress Sheila to ascertain whether or not she was a decoy. To test her identity, Rolex presented the person posing as Sheila with a hair bauble he had received from the real Sheila when she was a child, which she reacted to with confusion. Now certain that their loyalties were being played against them, the affronted Rolex called for the 5th Army to abandon Kulov and move elsewhere.

Going completely against the government’s orders, Rolex moved his soldiers into the city of Micrograd. As Micrograd connected directly to Lang Bau through the Great Eastern Bridge, Rolex planned on ambushing the Outlaws as they approached the capital. His strategy was eventually disrupted when a subordinate reported that General Minerva Margaret of the Helman 3rd Army had commissioned for the Great Northern Bridge, which connected Lang Bau to Kulov, to be barricaded using the grave markers of the Helman Imperial Cemetery. The wanton desecration of one of the country’s most treasured historical sites, as well as the place where his beloved wife was buried, threw Rolex into an unshakable rage that dispelled all lingering allegiance he held toward the government. Realizing that protecting Helman also meant removing those who would harm it from within along with defending it from outside invaders, Rolex resolved to topple the oppressive regime himself and ordered his troops to prepare for storming Lang Bau.

As the 5th Army crossed the Great Eastern Bridge, they were approached from the opposite end by the 3rd Army, who had moved in to quell their impromptu rebellion. Fueled by his great anger, Rolex launched himself at Minerva directly while their soldiers fought against each other and began pushing her backwards with an unceasing volley of attacks. Though Minerva sustained numerous wounds through Rolex’s onslaught, her exceptional fighting instinct and sturdy physique prevented any of them from cutting deeply enough to seriously injure her, allowing her to calmly bait him into moving toward the bridge’s eastern gate.

Upon being pushed past the eastern end of the bridge, Minerva shamelessly threw her hands up in surrender, claiming that she stood no chance against Rolex in a direct confrontation. Immediately after saying this, she triggered a trap she had ordered her soldiers to set up that ignited hundreds of Puchi Hannies set up along the sides of the bridge, bombarding it and everyone on it with explosions. Incensed even further by her willingness to throw her soldiers’ lives away for the sake of achieving her own goals, Rolex fruitlessly tried to slash at Minerva, with his attacks deflected by a Magical barrier she had employed to protect herself, until the blasts finally enveloped his body. When the explosions finally ceased, the gravely-injured Rolex regained his senses for long enough to discover that he had been buried beneath a pile of the corpses of his subordinates, who had used their own bodies to shield him from the attack. Minerva tauntingly praised the loyalty of the 5th Army, claiming that their courage would allow her to have the pleasure of killing Rolex personally, and readied an axe to sever his head. Her attack was interrupted at the last moment by a kunai thrown by Oruore, who had used his agility to escape the bombing. Without sparing a second, Oruore lifted Rolex’s barely living body and leapt off the side of the bridge to the riverbank beneath.

Several hours later, Rolex awakened to find himself in bed at an unknown location with none other than the actual Empress Sheila at his side tending to his wounds. Sheila explained to the confused Rolex that she had been secretly traveling with the Outlaws in disguise and that Oruore had carried his unconscious body to the group’s temporary base in a small abandoned village along the outskirts of Lang Bau to receive their assistance. Sheila’s presence also prompted Rolex to finally recognize Hubert, the son of Thoma, through the mustachioed disguise he had been wearing. Realizing that the Outlaws possessed far greater ties to the country than he had believed, Rolex accepted Hubert’s offer to introduce him to the group’s leader.

As Rolex emerged from his shelter, he was greeted by the sight of Patton staring determinedly at Lang Bau across the stretching sky. Understanding at last that the gallant figure before him was indeed the former crown prince, who had forged his body into a powerful and unrecognizable form through unending struggle, Rolex approached Patton with a single question: whether he truly believed that he would be able to change Helman for the better after becoming its ruler. Patton looked Rolex directly in the eyes and, without any reservation, answered that he was. For the first time in his life, Rolex was filled with a sense of genuine loyalty as a knight and kneeled before Patton, the man who embodied the ideals of the country he had promised his wife he would protect, to swear fealty to him. Having pledged himself to Patton’s cause, Rolex became officially recognized as a member of the Outlaws in time to assist them in their final siege of Lang Bau. Due to his experience as a general, he was placed in command of a decoy invasion squad, which would infiltrate the capital through the imperial family’s secret underground escape passageway to draw the enemy forces away from the true invasion squad led by Rance that would charge into the capital directly. Rolex’s team fought through several waves of soldiers before reconvening with the rest of the Outlaws in the imperial throne room to assist in the final battles against Minerva, who had claimed the title of Empress of Helman for herself after slaughtering Stessel and his associates, and Toushin MM, the tremendously-powerful super weapon with which Stessel had intended to conquer the Continent.

Following the destruction of Toushin MM, the Outlaws raised the flag of the Revolutionary Army from atop Lang Bau, marking the end of the Helmanian Revolution. Rolex and the rest of the Revolutionary Army’s forces gathered within the imperial throne room soon afterward to witness Patton be crowned the 47th Emperor of Helman. To their great surprise, the first decree Patton made as Emperor was to abolish the nation’s imperial system entirely in favor of a democracy, symbolically finalizing the action by shattering the imperial crown in his hand. While Rolex had not anticipated this outcome, his faith in Patton, along with his loyalty toward Sheila, who Patton advocated to become the nation’s first elected leader, caused him to remain hopeful for Helman’s future. In the wake of the revolution’s success, Helman began the long and arduous process of recovering from the numerous losses it had endured over the last several years. As the only general to have survived the conflict, Rolex maintained his position as leader of the 5th Army, which was placed in charge of overseeing the reconstruction of the Great Imperial Cemetery at his request. Rolex also made an offer to personally train Tillday Sharp, the young vice-captain of the Leazas Royal Guard, who had impressed him with her swordsmanship while serving in his squad during the attack on Lang Bau. Seeking to gain the strong inner resolve she had observed in several powerful women throughout the revolution, Tilde requested special permission from the Leazas Army to accept the offer and begin studying abroad under Rolex. Despite their opposing personalities, the veteran knight and the young up-and-comer soon formed a close bond as mentor and student; a relationship emblematic of the newfound peace between their countries.

Rolex spent the following few months dividing his time between training Tilde in the Bajibahal style and restoring the Great Imperial Cemetery. Freed at last from the personal and national tribulations that had tormented him for years, he enjoyed a brief period of respite in the reborn Helman. In spite of this, he did not lose sight of his promise to his wife and reaffirmed to her grave after completing work on the cemetery that he would continue to protect their country for as long as he lived.

In September of LP0007, less than a year after the end of the revolution, Helman was invaded from its southern border by an enormous army of Monsters in what would come to be known as the opening movements of the 2nd Dark Lord War. The country was unequipped to defend against an attack of such a size from the south, causing it to send a portion of the Helman 2nd Army, its primary monster subjugation unit, to assist in the effort. This proved to be a critical mistake, as a second large army of monsters approached the nation from its border with the Monster Realm soon afterward and was able to quickly overwhelm the reduced numbers of the 2nd Army stationed there. In an instant, Helman was occupied from two sides by the Monster Army and pushed to the brink of collapse. The strength and mobility of the 5th Army played a key role in mounting a resistance against the new foe, moving all across the country while alternating between cutting through swarms of monsters and assisting civilians in evacuating from settlements located along the war path of the titanic Dark Lord Babolat.

During the events of Rance X, the forces of the Human Realm were, through various circumstances, formally united under Rance to create the United Human Army. Due to possessing the Dark Sword Chaos, one of the only weapons capable of penetrating the Invincibility Field that protects Dark Lords from all forms of damage, Rance was able to form a specialized squad made up of humanity’s finest warriors designed to fight against and defeat each of the Dark Lords invading human territories. Titled the Dark Lord Extermination Squad, this group allowed humanity to begin to mount a more effective resistance against the Monster Army, providing hope in a seemingly hopeless situation.

The Dark Lord Extermination Squad eventually succeeded in subduing Babolat, ridding Helman of the most immediate and unconventional threat it was facing and allowing its army to begin placing more focus toward combating the Monster Army. This victory proved to be short-lived, however, as Kesselring, the other Dark Lord charged with invading Helman, began taking action more actively soon afterward. Transforming his body into an imperceptible fog, Kesselring infiltrated the 5th Army’s encampment in the middle of the night and bit Rolex in his sleep. Rolex was instantly infected with chupacabra, a terrible curse that reduces its victims to a mindless zombified state, and made to turn against his own soldiers. Though he was detained and placed under quarantine within the dungeons of Lang Bau before being able to spread the virus further, his removal from the battlefield deprived the 5th Army of its leader and the country as a whole of its strongest warrior at a crucial point in the war. After a long and arduous struggle, Kesselring was finally slain by Rance, which freed Rolex and all others who had contracted chupacabra from its corrupting influence. Rolex did not waste a second in returning to the frontlines and, together with his soldiers, steadily began to push back the enemy army, which had been weakened substantially by the loss of both Kesselring and Babolat, toward its base in the city of Laborie.

If Rance chooses to assist in liberating Helman from the Monster Army, Rolex and the 5th Army accompany him with the intent of launching a final attack on Laborie to defeat LeMay, the Great Monster General in charge of coordinating the invasion of Helman. Unbeknownst to his allies, however, Rance merely took on the mission under the promise that Cream Ganoblade, the Helman Army’s chief strategist, would sleep with him if he brought her the head of LeMay, and had no plans of actually attempting to siege Laborie. He instead leads the group to the much less distant city of Parnas, intending to defeat the ordinary Monster General stationed there and disguise its corpse as LeMay’s to fool Cream. Rolex uncovers the truth of the situation just as the group arrives at Parnas and abandons the Dark Lord Extermination Squad in a fury along with his troops to begin moving toward the actual Laborie.

The 5th Army’s exit from Parnas is halted at the last minute when one of its soldiers notices a flying Monster Soldier carrying an explosive emerge from the city's central fort. Choosing to investigate further, Rolex and his troops re-enter Parnas, where they discover that it had been reconfigured into an explosives depot for the Monster Army and by sheer serendipity happened to also be housing LeMay. The 5th Army manages to destroy the remaining flying monster soldiers in the area before they are able to carry out any more explosives and proceed to charge the city’s central fort from its back entrance to prevent LeMay and his subordinates from retreating from the assault by Rance and his comrades at the front. Rolex manages to reach LeMay’s location and kill the Great Monster General with a powerful slash to the back just as he is preparing to burn Rance alive, saving the other man at the last minute and ridding the invading army of its final remaining commander. Rance attempts to play the freak coincidence off as a deliberate strategy on his part and congratulates Rolex for following it perfectly, to which he responds by first feigning enthusiasm before angrily attacking Rance in retaliation for his careless self-involvement.

If Rance does not assist in liberating Helman from the Monster Army, LeMay divides the main forces of his army into several small squads and orders them to attack several innocent cities along the outskirts of the country, intending to distract the Helman Army with protecting them for long enough to launch a decisive strike on Lang Bau with his remaining soldiers. Rolex is made aghast by the cruelty of the attacks and, unaware of their true intention, vigorously demands Hubert, the supreme commander of the Helman Army, to authorize sending out as many people as possible to protect the targeted cities. The proposal is challenged by Sanada Tourin, a famed JAPANese strategist that had been assisting Helman throughout the war, who argues that they cannot risk spreading out their troops with a chance at taking the enemy army’s main stronghold so close at hand. Rolex objects immediately and proclaims that, as a knight of Helman, he has no intention of abandoning its people when they are in need. His words remind Tourin of the last ones spoken to him by his departed comrade Baba Shouen and, reinvigorated by the vow he made to live on as the embodiment of bushido following the collapse of Takeda, cause him to resolutely state that he would personally see to it that no innocent lives would be lost in carrying out his strategy. The determination in Tourin’s eyes finally pushes Rolex into acquiescing, trusting that the other man would follow through with his promise.

Organizing a joint attack alongside the Helman 1st Army, Rolex and the 5th Army charge toward the Monster Army base in Laborie during an intense blizzard. Rolex leads his men in carving through the enemy lines, aided by Oruore’s keen scouting skills and the unwavering defensive abilities of the knights of the 1st Army. Unused to fighting in blizzard conditions, the opposing monster soldiers are unable to keep up with the Helman Army’s attacks and quickly give way as it begins to approach Laborie. With the enemy army quickly drawing near, LeMay is airlifted out from his base by a flying monster soldier and begins moving in the direction of Lang Bau, attempting to decimate the capital by dropping the human-destroying m Bomb atop it. He is stopped before being able to do so by Patton, who, with the assistance of his partner Hunty Kalar and the Dragon Cantel, manages to knock him out of the air and destroy his core. With LeMay defeated and nearly all innocents safely evacuated to the tundras of Siberia through the combined efforts of Tourin, Sheila, the Helman City Guard, and the Dark Wings, the 1st and 5th armies make a final push to eradicate the remaining monsters and free the country once and for all.

At some point during the war, Rolex was recruited to serve as a member of the Dark Lord Extermination Squad. As a part of the group, he made numerous attempts at challenging Rance to a rematch, but was rejected nonchalantly each time. To satiate his agitation, he sought out new sparring partners in the form of Uesugi Kenshin, the famed JAPANese Goddess of War, and Cordoba Burn, the stalwart Blue Wall of Leazas.

During the “From the Sea” ending route, Rolex boards the ship the Sunset along with half of the Dark Lord Extermination Squad’s members to covertly invade the Monster Realm from the sea. The Sunset is unexpectedly swept away during the voyage by a violent storm, leaving its crew shipwrecked on a small island and unable to immediately accompany the remaining half of the Dark Lord Extermination Squad into enemy territory. After several days of hard work, the crew succeeds in repairing the Sunset and, following a signaling beacon sent out by Miracle, rescue their comrades from a large army of monsters within the underground waterway of Mount Bezdog, which the Monster Army’s leader, the Dark Lord Kayblis, had been using as his keep. Rolex is the first of the group’s Helman contingent to appear during the battle, making his presence known by launching the Type-2 Soaring Wave through several enemy monsters. After reuniting, the combined forces of the Dark Lord Extermination Squad engage in a final decisive battle against Kayblis, freeing humanity from his tyranny and ending the war.

During the “Great Invasion of the Monster Realm” ending route, Rolex and the 5th Army join forces with the Leazas Red Corps in leading the Leazas and Helman armies in invading the Monster Realm from the north. Despite being greatly outnumbered, the passion and drive of the United Human Army allows it to break through the Monster Army’s defenses and capture the Demon King’s Castle. Using the combined strength of all four nations of the Human Realm, humanity takes part in a final decisive battle against Kayblis in his emergency hideout in the mountain cave Lucconfood. Despite his great power, Kayblis is eventually overwhelmed by humankind's strongest warriors and defeated, freeing humanity from his tyranny and ending the war.

While Rolex does not appear or get mentioned at all throughout Rance X: Part 2, Sheila’s daughter Lelikov Helman is shown to be able to utilize an unarmed variant of the Type-2 Soaring Wave, suggesting that he played some part in overseeing her training.

In the non-canonical Kichikuou Rance, Rolex is portrayed as still being deep within the throes of depression and alcoholism following the death of his wife. His broken emotional state is taken advantage of by Katyusha Bosch and Saulnia Benz, a pair of conniving barmaids from a tavern in the city of Sudori 10, where the 5th Army’s headquarters are located. Sedating Rolex with liquor and sex, the two women extort the 5th Army’s budget for their own personal spending, causing it to be weakened even further.

Rolex and the 5th Army will engage the Leazas Army in battle after it approaches either Rosesgrad or Sudori 10 while at war with Helman. Fighting at only a fraction of his power, the drunken Rolex will recklessly charge at the enemy armies, not caring whether he lives or dies.

If Rolex is killed in battle against Leazas, his body will be abandoned on the battlefield. If either Katyusha or Saulnia remain in the 5th Army’s forces, they will take his death as a signal to flee from Helman, taking the remains of the 5th Army’s funding with them.

If Rolex is not killed and both Katyusha and Saulnia are captured by the time Leazas succeeds in capturing Lang Bau and conquering Helman, he can be encountered by Rance in a graveyard while levying Sudori 10. Speaking to his wife’s grave, Rolex reveals that he has sworn off alcohol after being confronted about his drinking by a subordinate and reminded of her. Born anew, he declares that he will organize a rebellion to take back Helman from Leazas, causing Rance, who had been eavesdropping up to that point, to step in and attack him.

If Aristoles Calm, the erstwhile general of the Helman 2nd Army, was recruited into Leazas’ forces prior to the duel, he will interrupt it by launching an arrow in between Rance and Rolex. Persuading Rance to stand down, Aristoles tells Rolex that Empress Sheila is still alive and residing within Leazas Castle and, arguing that it is better for the people of Helman to be able to live in peace regardless of who rules over them, asks him to join the Leazas Army. Rolex is initially hesitant, but is pushed into accepting after Aristoles reveals that he had succeeded in tracking down and recruiting all of the surviving members of the Helman 5th Army. With his strength restored and his old subordinates back at his side, Rolex begins a new life fighting under Leazas’ banner.

If Aristoles was not recruited prior to the duel, Rolex and Rance will struggle against each other using the full extent of their strength. After a tense 10 minutes of nonstop fighting, Rance eventually emerges victorious and abandons Rolex's lifeless body alongside his wife's grave.

Personality and Appearance
Rolex is a middle-aged man with shaggy brown hair, a matching set of thick brown eyebrows, and light stubble along his jawline. Like most Helmanian men, he possesses a large and robust physique, and stands at an impressive 195cm. He generally always wears a relaxed and lazy grin on his face, but his features sharpen considerably during serious situations to reveal his strong inner resolve. Rolex's clothing consists of a set of the heavy black armor worn by all Helman knights that has become dilapidated due to a combination of seeing constant combat and being poorly maintained by its owner.

Described as bohemian in nature, Rolex is a boisterous and somewhat crass man who prefers acting on impulse over critical thinking. Despite being a high-ranking military official, he is generally carefree and fun-loving, and enjoys partaking in leisurely social activities in-between his work. In particular, he is an excessively heavy drinker with a deep love for all things alcoholic, and has claimed that his favorite thing about living in Helman is the ease at which vast quantities of liquor can be obtained. He is also very strong-willed and opinionated, however, and has no qualms with going against orders that he does not agree with. While these qualities have earned him a reputation of being a maverick, he is by no means an irresponsible person, and takes great care to ensure the health and safety of his subordinates and civilians above all else. For these reasons, he is held in incredibly high regard by the soldiers of the 5th Army, who would all gladly lay down their lives for his sake.

Along with drinking, Rolex is also extremely fond of fighting, and is always eager to test his swordsmanship against strong opponents. In contrast to his usual attitude, Rolex takes the art of sword fighting very seriously, and is easily aggravated when his honor as a warrior is disrespected. He considers the markings left on his armor after intense battles to be a far greater symbol of pride and achievement than any medal, and refuses to have it repaired between them as a result. Rolex's willingness to stake the outcomes of important martial conflicts on one-on-one duels against people who interest him has led many to call him a fighting fanatic, a term that is used to describe him with endearment just as often as it is used with derision.

While outwardly indifferent to his status as a knight of Helman, Rolex is deeply patriotic at his core. Though he often makes critical remarks about its unforgiving climate, he recognizes the indispensable role that his country played in bringing him together with his beloved wife, and has vowed to protect it with every fiber of his being to honor her memory. This devotion is firmly rooted in the belief that a nation is defined by its people, however, and he is only willing to pledge loyalty to the government itself when he is certain that its leaders have honest and selfless intentions. In particular, he considers the defilement of sites with great cultural significance to be an unforgivable crime, and pursues those brazen enough to do so with uncontrollable fury.

Rolex is presented as being a considerably more quiet and morose person in his portrayal in the non-canonical Kichikuou Rance. Without any kind of positive influence in his life following the death of his wife, he has fallen into a deep depression that has caused him to lose all will to live. His situation is exacerbated further by the manipulations of Saulnia and Katyusha, who keep his mind in a haze of sex and alcohol in order to siphon money from the 5th Army. After being separated from the pair and regaining his sobriety, Rolex is able to reclaim his inner resolve to defend his country for the sake of his wife, but remains rather somber and muted.

Abilities
Revered across the Continent as the Sword Demon of Helman, Rolex is an exceedingly talented man who is regarded as the nation's greatest swordsman and, following the death of Thoma Lipton, strongest warrior. He possesses a Level Cap of 71, among the highest in all of humanity, granting him an outstanding amount of innate potential that he has made great use of throughout his life. While Rolex is consistently referred to as one of the strongest people on the Continent, however, his actual strength is otherwise somewhat erratic; with his Level dropping from 60 to 45 between the end of the Helmanian Revolution and the beginning of the 2nd Dark Lord War, a period of less than a year. Rolex’s strength is also said to be linked directly with his anger, and can only be harnessed to its fullest extent when he has been infuriated by something. Though these relative flaws have resulted in him being defeated in duels against others of comparable skill to him, his power is said to surpass that of Rick Addison, a similarly top-class swordsman who he is often compared to, when at its peak.

Rolex is one of only a select few people to possess the Sword Combat Lv2 Skill Level, bestowing him with a genius level of talent that has allowed him to earn a reputation as among the Continent’s most preeminent sword masters. In combat, he utilizes an unconventional technique of JAPANese origin known as the Bajibahal style that requires its user to freely manipulate two swords at once. Wielding the standard wide-edged sword used by the majority of Helman’s knights in his right hand and a one-of-a-kind single-edged JAPANese blade known as MUSASHI in his left, he is able to overwhelm his opponents from multiple angles at once. Rolex’s attacks are described as wild and aggressive, and focus on breaking through his enemy’s defenses with forceful blows from his right and delivering devastating finishing strikes to their exposed weak spots from his left.

Due to possessing the Sword Combat Lv2 skill, Rolex is capable of performing a special attack known as the Type-2 Soaring Wave, in which he releases a powerful shock wave of energy by swinging his swords in a downward motion. The attack is capable of moving great distances once released, allowing it to split apart entire armies through sheer penetrative force.

Outside of his own combat ability, Rolex is exceptionally skilled at evaluating the fighting styles of other warriors. Along with serving him well within the heat of battle, where it allows him to understand his enemies' techniques from a glance, this perceptiveness makes him an excellent fencing instructor, as he is able to acutely recognize the strengths and weaknesses of his disciples and reshape their skills as effectively as possible.

In-Game
For more in-depth gameplay information regarding this character's appearances refer to:
 * Rolex Gadras/Kichikuou Rance
 * Rolex Gadras/Rance IX

Trivia

 * Rolex came in 4th place in the "Male Outlaws" category of the Rance IX Popularity Poll and in 15th place in the "Males" category of the Rance X Popularity Poll, tying with Saias Crown in the latter.
 * According to his profile in the Kichikuou Rance manual, Rolex is fond of practicing calligraphy in his spare time.
 * Rance considers Rolex to be among the three least attractive men that he knows, alongside Rocky Bank and Barres Province.
 * Rolex is the only general in the Helman Army at the start of the Rance Series to survive until the end of the series.
 * In a Twitter Q&A, Orion, the Rance series' lead character designer, stated that Rolex would not be able to wield Chaos and Nikkou together due to his poor compatibility with Chaos making the sword too heavy for him to hold in one hand.
 * According to Orion, Rolex's slightly altered characterization from Rance IX onward was done to make him more similar in personality to the character of Dikacis do Hook from the Alicesoft game Mamatoto. Rolex's role in Rance IX, as a well-rounded dual-wielding swordsman that joins the player's party late into the game, also parallels that of Dikacis. In the same game, Moonquay, Dikacis' strongest weapon, goes on to serve as the ultimate weapon of Tilde Sharp, who eventually becomes Rolex's protegé.
 * In a Twitter post, Orion revealed that the only mention of Rolex in the initial story draft of Rance X was that he would become infected with the chupacabra virus and be forced to retire from the battlefield. As a result, the first piece of concept artwork that Orion drew of Rolex for Rance X depicted him in his zombified state. When Rolex gained a more substantial role in the story through various character events added later in development, Orion simply modified the original zombified Rolex portrait to create his standard appearance.
 * Rolex's unique weapon, MUSASHI, derives its name from the famous historical Japanese swordsman Miyamoto Musashi. Like Rolex, Miyamoto Musashi was known for fighting with a distinct two-sword style and was said to be a skilled calligrapher. Depictions of Miyamoto Musashi in fiction also often characterize him as being an uncouth and slovenly man very reminiscent of Rolex. Similarly, Miyamoto Musashi's most legendary rival, Sasaki Kojirō, was famed for wielding a long two-handed sword in battle and is often depicted as being a fair-featured and elegant man, similar to Rolex's primary rival Rick Addison. This parallel is furthered by Rick's initial sword in Rance IX being named Tsubamegaeshi, in reference to Sasaki Kojirō's signature technique of the same name, as well as by Rolex mockingly comparing it to a laundry pole, a nickname that Sasaki Kojirō allegedly gave to his own sword.
 * In Kichikuou Rance Rolex is depicted as wielding a longsword resembling those used by the soldiers of the Leazas Army rather than the JAPANese sword he uses in canon.
 * The first piece of concept artwork for Rolex's appearance in Rance IX gave him slumped over posture and a more irritated expression on his face than in the final game. While this design was approved for use by Rance IX's director Purin, Orion elected to redesign him in a more upright and confident pose due to feeling that the initial design made him come across as weak-willed rather than aloof as he had intended. Rolex was also planned to have the Mach Piyo nested in his hair in a way reminiscent of how it perched on the shoulder of Ragnarokarc Super Gandhi in Kichikuou Rance, but had it eventually removed from his design for unknown reasons during development.
 * Rolex was initially intended to possess full beard while drunk in Kichikuou Rance, only shaving it off after becoming sober. While this was removed from the final version of the game, the drunken Rolex's battle sprite still features a beard.