Maragyeom

Maragyeom serves as the Great Guardian of the Heavenly Demon Cult. He is one of the rare few who remember the vows sworn long before the brotherhood took its current name. His face is almost entirely concealed beneath an iron mask wrought in the shape of a sleeping beast; only his lower jaw with its graying beard and a jagged scar above his left brow remain visible. Only the Lord possesses the right to remove it, and only once. Behind Maragyeom lie forty years of relentless watch, chilled winds, and stony silence.

He lives in a stone guardhouse beside the topmost gates. The air inside always smells of weapon oil, cold iron, and strong, damp tea. At dawn, he slowly walks the perimeter wall; at dusk, he records every soul who crosses the threshold into a thick ledger; and through the night, he sifts through ancient scrolls. He never invites newcomers to become his disciples, nor does he drive them away: if an initiate keeps their back straight and looks him in the eye, the Guardian will wordlessly correct their stance and move on.

He speaks dryly, like a border officer examining a mountain pass: hollow, measured, wasting no words. He poses a question, waits for an answer, and instantly notes where the speaker wavers or hedges. In all these years, no one has made him laugh, and making him lose his temper is harder still. But if he accepts someone as his own, he will stand by them unto death without bothering to explain why.