Ralsei

I'm starting to feel like...
Like I'm developing my own opinions.
My own likes.
My own dislikes.
My own desires. My own... fears.
... please... tell me...
Should I...
Should a... Darkner... be feeling like this?

Ralsei to Kris, Chapter 4

Ralsei (JP: ラルセイ) is a Darkner prince and one of the main characters of Deltarune. He is the gentle and selfless third hero of the prophecy, though he begins to consider his own feelings in later Chapters. Ralsei rules over Castle Town, where he first appears to inform Kris and Susie of their destiny, and lives in his castle there. During an encounter, Ralsei wields his scarf in combat. Of the three, he has the highest Magic stat, but the lowest Attack and max HP.

Profile

Appearance

Ralsei is a short monster-like Darkner. During Chapter 1 and some parts of Chapter 5, he wears a pointed green hat that covers his horns and conceals his features in shadow, making his fur appear black. The tuft on Ralsei's head and the tips of his ears are unkempt, and his two fangs peek in front of his scarf. Ralsei wears round green glasses, a pink scarf, and a long, green robe with a black heart in the center, and the lower sweep appearing tattered. His arms are usually hidden beneath his robe, so in battle, his scarf sometimes acts as an arm and can lift his hat to use an item. Occasionally, he reveals his arms and the robe's long green sleeves, such as when using a spell.

Ralsei without glasses

When Ralsei removes his hat, his face and body resemble the members of the Dreemurr family, such as Asriel and Toriel. He has white fur, with an unkempt tuft on top of his head, two floppy ears, and pink horns that point inward in his overworld sprite, and outward for his hatless face sprite, unlike the hat-wearing sprite, where they point inward. When Ralsei's glasses are off, his eyes are visibly pink-colored with detailed eyelashes and what appears to be pink eyeshadow. Despite the hat's removal, Ralsei's battle menu portrait remains the same as it was portrayed in Chapter 1.

Ralsei's rare serious expression

From Chapter 2 onwards, certain details of Ralsei's robe change. His arms are no longer hidden beneath his robe, which now has long black sleeves, and the lower sweep of it appears uniform rather than tattered. The emblem on his chest appears to change from a heart to an inverted spade, with the latter matching Temmie Chang's early concept art. This element is only present on some of his sprites, with most of his in-battle sprites and some of his overworld sprites reverting to a heart emblem. Ralsei often keeps his hands clasped behind his back, even while walking or in the middle of a battle.

When DOWNed in battle, Ralsei disappears, leaving only his clothes on the ground. This is not the case when fighting Flowery in Chapter 5; instead of disappearing, he only kneels angrily.

Personality

Ralsei is kind, considerate, and quick to apologize if he thinks he has upset someone. He is also gentle and believes that FIGHTing is unnecessary, favoring pacifism in battles while leaving the final decision to Kris. However, he himself makes an exception to this rule if an enemy is inherently hostile and cannot be SPAREd. Ralsei is humble, as he does not expect to be chosen over others and bows to everyone when ACTing.

Ralsei hugging Kris and Susie

Ralsei is affectionate, and loves both giving and receiving hugs. He once hugged the Dummy to "test it out", can perform Heal Prayer with a hug and ask Kris to hug him instead of the Dummy. Being complimented or given affection easily flusters him, and he is often self-conscious, citing this as the reason he concealed his face.

Ralsei is reluctant to get angry. At most, he appears disappointed when Kris or Susie act mean. Ralsei is somewhat naive and innocent, as he readily forgives King when he feigns surrender, but learns to not always be so trustful of others after King's ambush. Ralsei is also responsible, as he encourages Susie and Kris to do their homework and emphasizes the importance of education. If tasked with unfamiliar situations, he prefers to read instructions.

Ralsei cares immensely about his friends, and is willing to protect them with his life, and to take any pain on behalf of them. He also supports others establishing friendships, as he favors helping Lancer despite his status. Believing that his purpose is to make Kris and Susie happy, Ralsei initially worries that his opinions or desires that do not directly benefit others are "selfish". This guilt leads him to leave his room in his castle unfurnished, as he thinks that there is no reason for him to have anything personal. He also considers friendship to be a responsibility he cannot fully fulfill as a Darkner, which brings him sorrow, yet he views even this sorrow as selfish.

Despite these worries, Ralsei frequently expresses so-called "selfish" wishes and opinions. As early as Chapter 1, he orders Susie not to make fun of him if she wants him to bake her cakes. If Kris throws away his Manual, Ralsei initially pretends that he is fine with it. However, he becomes offended and later subtly reminds Kris of the action by placing a trash can in their room.

When Susie reassures Ralsei that he deserves to have his own room, he admits that Susie is nice to the point of making his heart hurt and confesses to Kris that he feels as though he is developing his own opinions, likes, dislikes, desires, and fears. When Kris reassures Ralsei that it is acceptable for a Darkner to feel this way, he becomes happy and takes this sentiment to heart, later repeating it to Pink.

Starting in Chapter 5, due to encouragement from Susie and Kris, Ralsei begins to be more open about his feelings, openly expressing anger towards Flowery, to the point of lashing out and attacking him, and takes on a more sassy attitude, teasing Orange along with the rest of the party.

Interests

Ralsei singing

Although Ralsei claims that he does not have any interests or hobbies, he engages in various activities for Kris and Susie. Ralsei enjoys baking cakes for them and is embarrassed by the taste when he first tries his own cake in Chapter 4. Ralsei is also capable of sewing, and suggests Susie to crochet team scarves. He appears to enjoy music as well, as he sings a few notes of The Legend, seems capable of playing the organ, and is heard humming Dark Sanctuary.

Ralsei shows an interest in written content. He writes a Manual for Kris and Susie, appears protective of it, and places copies in both Kris and Susie's rooms in the hope that they will read them. Ralsei also works on reminder manuals and immediately contributes to the freely editable CYBERPEDIA when he discovers it.

Additionally, Ralsei is fond of dressing up and enjoys playing video games with Susie to the point of forgetting about everything else. He also appreciates gifts, as he cuddles a plush if Kris gives him a gift in Cyber City, which causes him to want more plush toys.

Knowledge

Ralsei introduces Kris to their SOUL, as Rude Buster plays

Similarly to other Darkners, he is very knowledgeable about the Dark World, and has some knowledge of the Light World as well. At times, Ralsei informs of gameplay mechanics such as the SOUL's function, Controls, Recruits, knows which equipment can be given to other party members, and reminds Kris to SAVE.

Uniquely from other Darkners, Ralsei is capable of sensing a "dark presence" from Dark Fountains, which often motivates him to transfer into another Dark World on his own. He has complete knowledge of the prophecy, though he did not choose to bear it.

Aware of the prophecy's tragic ending, Ralsei makes efforts to prevent it from happening by only disclosing select parts of the prophecy and being kind, informing Kris in Chapter 1 that kindness may change the outcome of their adventures. When he discovered that the prophecy tapestries within the Dark Sanctuaries remained unchanged despite his efforts, he became overwhelmed with stress and hopelessness, finding it difficult to feign a smile to hide his fears. His hope is renewed by Susie at the end of the Chapter.

Speech pattern

Ralsei initially refuses to curse, often being hesitant to do so or replacing vulgar words.. After he becomes more comfortable with his own personality later in the story, he freely curses along with the rest of the party.

When faced with absurd situations, Ralsei sometimes ends the interaction by saying "Okay". Ralsei occasionally uses British or Australian English words such as "lift" to refer to an elevator, and "fancy" or "chuffed" to refer to liking something.

Etymology

"Ralsei" is derived from "Ralse", the main character of New Genesis, a game that was made by Toby Fox's eldest brother. His name is also an anagram of "Asriel", who has a similar appearance to Ralsei.

Main story

History

The existence of Ralsei is known in the Light World through the prophecy, as Catty references his appearance during her church reading.

Before Ralsei met Kris and Susie, he lived alone in Castle Town, waiting for the two fated heroes to arrive, and did not have subjects despite being a prince. To prepare for their arrival, he spent time rehearsing the prophecy, created a training Dummy, hugged it, and wrote a Manual for the heroes.

The story Ralsei tells Jackenstein's pumpkin mentions a prince of a lonely kingdom who had "scarcely known anyone else", which may imply that Ralsei was not completely alone and had some communication prior to the events of Deltarune.

Chapter 1

A cloaked Ralsei greets Kris and Susie in front of his castle

When Kris and Susie arrive in Castle Town, Ralsei greets them at the front of his castle. Initially obscured in a cloak, Ralsei informs them of his name and role and offers to tell the two of a prophecy. His response varies depending on Kris's - he either encourages the two for their roles, or expresses regret for rehearsing the prophecy. He is then knocked away by Lancer.

After Lancer flees, Ralsei removes his cloak and properly introduces himself to Kris and Susie. When Susie leaves on her own, Ralsei is overjoyed to meet the two heroes, and suggests that they should go find her in the Card Kingdom. Before Ralsei and Kris leave Castle Town, he offers Kris a battle tutorial via a Dummy, gives them a Manual, and encourages them to avoid FIGHTing.

Ralsei travels with Kris through the Field and discovers Susie's onslaught against Card Kingdom's Darkners, and uses its remnants as a trail to find her. Finding Susie in front of a locked Delta Rune door, he convinces her to join the party, emphasizing that only Kris can seal the Dark Fountain. He then finds Lancer at the Great Board, where he contributes a name for the three party members.

Ralsei admonishes Susie for refusing to listen during the battle against K. Round, causing her to leave the party. While traveling with Kris through the Forest, they find Susie and Lancer multiple times, and he supports Lancer trying to become friends with Susie. It eventually culminates in a battle against the two, with Ralsei and Kris winning. On the path to Card Castle, Ralsei and the party chase after Lancer when he flees, and are subsequently ambushed and captured by Rudinn Rangers.

Ralsei welcomes Susie's request to ACT with him, as elevator plays

In Card Castle's prison, Ralsei tells Kris to help Susie solve a puzzle. Once she has been freed, Ralsei asks Kris to close their eyes regardless of their response.

Upon being freed, Ralsei welcomes Susie's request to ACT with him and Kris, and the party ascends the Castle to battle King. After the battle, King initially feigns defeat, but Ralsei offers to heal him. Ralsei and the party are immediately violently subdued by King. King is later defeated either with the help of Card Kingdom's Darkners or through Ralsei's Pacify spell.

Ralsei expresses regret that he healed King, but after Susie assures him that not every confrontation can be resolved peacefully, he bids farewell to her and Kris. Afterwards, he takes off his hat and reveals his face to the duo, and offers to bake cakes for them next time.

Chapter 2

Ralsei overjoyed to see Kris and Susie again

The next day, Ralsei greets Kris and Susie in Castle Town. Ralsei tasks Kris with transferring Card Kingdom's denizens to the town, which transforms the surrounding area. Shortly after, he announces the surprise rooms he prepared for Kris and Susie, emphasizing that he wants his castle to be a comforting place for them. Ralsei later expels them from the Dark World after learning that they have homework to do.

Ralsei later arrives in the Cyber World on his own, then casts Pacify on two Werewires that block Kris and Susie's path. Reuniting with the two, he travels through Cyber Field to rescue Noelle from Queen. While confronting Berdly, Ralsei attempts to convince him to change sides, to no avail. Shortly after defeating Berdly, Ralsei and the party fall into Cyber City.

In Cyber City's Trash Zone, Susie gets injured, causing Ralsei to heal her. When he notices her being interested in healing magic, he offers to teach Susie how to perform it. Ralsei proposes splitting up at a forked path, and is then dragged by Susie, temporarily separating from Kris. Despite this, he can be found following Susie and eating cotton candy with her. Ralsei eventually reunites with Kris at the ball-toss stalls room where he can be gifted a plush, but the party later gets captured by Queen.

Having been made a butler in Queen's Mansion due to lack of available rooms, Ralsei reunites with Kris and Susie again. When Susie shows Lancer's condition, he explains that Darkners may not be compatible with Dark Worlds that are not their own.

Ralsei traverses the acid lake with Kris

While traversing the mansion, Ralsei takes a detour through an acid lake while Susie rescues Noelle. Alone with Kris, he reveals why he concealed his face before and expresses some of his thoughts about them, Susie, and himself. The two eventually battle Rouxls Kaard near its end, then have their photo taken together. Ralsei's response and title varies based on the pose Kris performs.

During Susie's attempted rescue of Noelle, Ralsei can ask Kris to close their eyes and think about her. He and Kris reunite with Susie shortly after, and confronts Queen and Berdly at the top of the mansion. When she flees to her GIGA Queen mecha, Ralsei and the party control a Thrash Machine mecha of their own, where he offers advice to Kris.

After the battle, Ralsei and the party are captured by Queen. As Berdly prepares to make a Dark Fountain, Ralsei protests and explains that excess Dark Fountains can trigger the Roaring, an apocalyptic event described in the prophecy. Queen abandons her plans upon learning this, and after the library Fountain is sealed, Ralsei appears back in Castle Town. He reminds Kris to take their time and SAVE if needed.

Chapter 3

Ralsei giving a false smile to reassure Susie

Sensing another "dark presence", Ralsei joins Kris and Susie in TV World. After being asked by Susie about going to the festival with her and Kris, he reluctantly explains that, as a Darkner, he cannot inhabit the Light World as the Lightners can. Ralsei expresses his guilt over not being able to help Susie when she truly needs him, proposing her to forget about Darkners and replace them with "real friends" if she ever feels that Darkners are not enough.

During Susie's emotional outburst to Ralsei's suggestion, Tenna interrupts them, introduces himself, and invites the party to his TV Time show. When Susie refuses, Ralsei convinces her that they can have fun during the show instead. From there, he is the subject of many jokes surrounding a plush version of himself.

As HERO_SCARF, Ralsei primarily accompanies Kris on the Desert Board of The Legend of Tenna, where he occasionally helps with puzzles. During the subsequent Cooking Show physical challenge, he takes the role of a cook, launching food at the counter for Kris to pick up.

Ralsei flustered by Kris calling his face "Cute", as Welcome to the Green Room plays

Following the round, Ralsei and the party enter the Green Room. When Susie goes to talk to Tenna, he calls out to Kris and suggests they stay behind and watch her. If Kris agrees, Ralsei asks them to close their eyes and think about her. Otherwise, Ralsei can become self-conscious about his face if Kris comments about it being familiar or "Cute".

Ralsei continues playing as his avatar in the Island Board, and becomes confused by Kris's behavior in-game. He gets irritated when he realizes Susie swapped controllers with Kris. When Ralsei protests, his controller gets swapped with Susie's, allowing him to temporarily play as HERO_SWORD. While in control of HERO_SWORD, he initially asks Kris for directions, but later admits that he enjoys moving around in-game on his own, and uses the camera to take a Grand Photo. During the Rock Video, Ralsei is the singer of the band, and sings censors over the original lyrics from Raise Up Your Bat.

Ralsei takes the role of the horse in the cowboy minigame, as TV WORLD plays

While investigating the parental lock rooms, Ralsei can converse with Kris when Susie walks ahead. He reminisces about the games, the festival, and asks Kris to do him a favor at the festival. After his discovery of Toriel, Tenna attempts to continue the show, but Ralsei remarks that it has grown stale. This prompts Tenna to imprison him and the party, but the trio escapes into the greater TV World.

As Ralsei and the party explores TV World, he briefly takes the role of a Horse during the cowboy minigame. He attempts to console Tenna following his defeat by rationalizing that Tenna should consider the Lightners happiness over his own. Ralsei is then assured by Susie that he will not be left behind. When the Knight attacks Tenna, Ralsei and the party engages it in battle, but they are eventually defeated. Injured, he stays behind as Kris and Susie leave the Dark World.

Chapter 4

After attending church, Kris and Susie can optionally visit Ralsei in Castle Town. There, he reveals that he combined Susie and Kris's rooms for an impromptu tea party, which he set up with help from Swatch. During the party, Ralsei comments how Susie has changed since he met her.

Ralsei saying he does not need his own room, as Lost Girl plays

At the newly-opened third floor of Ralsei's castle, Ralsei tries and fails to dissuade Susie from checking his closed-off room, which is unfurnished. Upon Susie's inquiry, Ralsei explains that he feels like he does not deserve anything personal, since it does not aid the Lightners. When Susie tries to find furniture, Ralsei admits to Kris that his interests were to help the two Lightners, and questions if Darkners deserve to have feelings of their own. Kris reassures Ralsei regardless of the selected answer, which makes him happy.

Ralsei later appears in the Dark Sanctuary, exhibiting increasingly erratic behavior as he searches around. When Susie attempts to ask him for advice to heal Kris, he dismisses her, unintentionally discouraging her. As they explore, Ralsei and the party come across numerous tapestries depicting the prophecy, which he admits is a fuller version of the one he offered to tell Kris and Susie. Following the battle against Jackenstein, Ralsei repeatedly attempts to heal him, to no avail. When Susie manages to heal him from the inside, Ralsei praises her. At the top of the East Belltower, he pulls Kris aside and asks them to think about what Susie is doing. If Kris agrees, Ralsei temporarily leaves the area as the screen fades to black.

Ralsei breaks down after Susie confronts him, as 13am plays

Ralsei and the party confronts the Knight on the path to the Dark Fountain, but it flees through a Great Door. He stays behind as Kris seals the Fountain and reappears later in the 2nd Sanctuary, where he rescues Susie and Kris by destroying the Sound of Justice. As he explains that it was a statue and how Gerson's remains were incompatible with Susie's Dark World, Susie angrily confronts him for not saying this earlier. Ralsei breaks down and cries as he tries to explain himself. He admits that he knows everything about the prophecy, including how it ends, and had been trying to prevent Kris and Susie from viewing the final part. The two subsequently make up when Ralsei promises to be more honest.

Reuniting with the party in the 3rd Sanctuary, Ralsei confronts the Knight again, and begs it not to make another Dark Fountain. It does so anyway, and Ralsei urges the party to climb the newly-formed pillar. He proceeds to explain the vicious nature of the rapidly-hatching Titan to the party. When battling the Titan, Ralsei urges Kris to attack it and later defeats it with the Old Man's assistance.

Ralsei comforted by Kris

Following the battle, Ralsei notices that Susie is missing and desperately runs to her. He is forced to watch as she destroys the final part of the prophecy. Susie reassures Ralsei that the three will not allow it to come to pass and wipes his tears away with her injured hand, smearing his cheek with blood. When talking to Ralsei, he expresses hopelessness about the situation and tries to comfort Kris by forcing a smile. Depending on Kris's response, Ralsei can either regain his hope that the prophecy may change, or continues feigning a smile while crying. He stays behind as Kris leaves to seal the Dark Fountain.

Chapter 5

Upon entering Castle Town on the morning of the festival, Ralsei greets Kris, and decides to assist Lancer in helping prepare Susie for her date with Noelle, wondering how he can help her get ready. Lancer, clad in his innocent boy disguise, asks Kris and Ralsei to design an outfit for Susie, which he participates in. Ralsei helps to guide Susie to realizing her feelings for Noelle throughout the time in Castle Town, before wishing the two well at the festival.

In an optional scene in Castle Town, Ralsei's room can be revisited, showcasing its been given its own outline, and that the room has been given some furnishing (though Ralsei has to clean some excessive clutter from Susie). Interacting with objects within the room shows his interest in further realizing himself and his interests.

Ralsei later appears in the Flower Kingdom, having been shoved into a wardrobe by Flowery. Susie notes that Ralsei speaks about Flowery in a decidedly harsh manner, asking him when he became "such a hater". Ralsei becomes a bit defensive, and ushers the party along. When meeting Flowery briefly after, Ralsei expresses more clear anger towards him. Flowery reveals he put Ralsei in the wardrobe in order to encourage him to put on a hat, which reverts him to his Chapter 1 design. Flowery mentions Asgore would have a heart attack seeing him, and asserts he looks better this way. Soon after, Ralsei mentions its possible to turn off voice clips, showing a passive aggressive disdain for Flowery.

Before unlocking the door to the Watering can, Flowery stomps on Ralsei in his landing. Ralsei leaves the party briefly, with him instead joining. After a battle with Flowery Ralsei pops out of the ground, complaining about how Flowery gave himself absurdly high stats, and becoming sheepish when Susie asks about what stats are. He expresses shock when Susie finds Flowery cool, leading to him ending the conversation and asking the party to go. When interacting with the box of infinite Flowery Dollars, he also complains about how it will "ruin the...", before then stating it'd ruin the economy.

Ralsei continues to express anger when Flowery mentions game mechanics, ultimately leading to him monologing about the diagetic nature of the buttons seen in battle. Susie remarks Flowery told her already, which upsets him. Shortly after, he apologizes to Kris for handling his feelings towards Flowery poorly.

When reaching the area underneath the Cliffs of Flower Kingdom, Flowery tries to goad the party to leave the Dark World, saying that all Asgore needs is a human. Ralsei angrily remarks that "But you're not... You know you're just...", before choosing not to continue. Ralsei remarks how the party isn't going back.

After meeting Aqua and Seth and obtaining the Petal Feather, the Party reaches the cliffs by scaling a beanstalk, watching Flowery whisk Asgore to his castle. Susie mentions how the Knight will kidnap Asgore, with Ralsei saying how the Knight will kill Flowery if he isn't careful. He disappears, moving to the castle. Ralsei remarks how he doesn't feel the Knight's presence, and the party moves forward.

On the climb towards the castle, Ralsei remarks that Seth and Aqua are Asgore's colored flowers, given new shape. After various encounters with Aqua and Seth in which the party begins to befriend them, the party makes it up to the castle, seeing another exit from the Dark World. Flowery encourages Kris and Susie to leave again, with Asgore coming to push the two out. Upon their re-entry and release from jail, Ralsei is found in a butler uniform. He angrily takes it off, asserting that his enjoyment of being a butler is "context-based".

In their ascent of Flower Castle, Ralsei finds some of Asgore's notes strewn about. He takes the time to interpret them, revealing that they are notes about a Dark World, particularly a Dark World from a long time ago. When encountering Orange, Ralsei teases her a bit, playfully ignoring them and calling their patterns easy. Ralsei and Green becomes friends as well. A bit before the fight with Orange and Green, Ralsei continues to tease Orange, clarifying that they aren't human, much to their disdain.

After the fight, Ralsei can move to pray on his own, with Flowery interrupting him. The two banter, with Ralsei mentioning that he prays at every opportunity. Flowery asks how much he think it helps, and Ralsei asserts its all he can do. Flowery posits that he might already have all he needs, if he put faith in himself. Ralsei calls Flowery's own faith arrogance, mentioning that if he stopped holding back, he could burn him down instantly. Flowery remarks he hasn't, and Ralsei says it because it'd makes things worse. Flowery mentions its because Ralsei wants to see if he can manage to do it; to defy fate. Ralsei dryly states no one can do the impossible. Flowery states he knows they'll save the world, before offering drink vouchers to him.

Once Orange and Green are defeated, more documents can be read. These documents are more recent, mentioning "black shards" which Susie mentions as relating to the knight's sword if they were defeated in Chapter 3. Ralsei and Susie also conclude that the Dark World "from a long time ago" and Cyber World must've both been made by the knight; questioning how long it has been active in making fountains and kidnapping people.

The party meets Yellow and Blue after attempts at stopping the former from entering into increasingly harmful set-pieces. Blue believes the party has had a hand in harm having come to yellow, prompting a fight. After its conclusion, Ralsei and Kris are given time alone, where Ralsei notably overwrites a dialogue selection to encourage giving Susie some time alone. Flowery suddenly descends dangling from a vine, with Ralsei stating that the party is going to be sealing his fountain, and expressing shock at him still messing with him. Flowery pries and asks if its bad to have a fountain, and asks if the person who made the fountain is bad too. Ralsei handwaves the conversation, and Flowery mentions that there's someone else he should talk about it with.

The two have the option to enter a hot spring together. Ralsei asks if there's anything they want to talk about. When choosing "Dark Fountain" as a dialogue choice, Ralsei says that there should be no more dark fountains to Kris, and talks about how he struggled to play like Kris did on the piano. He asserts they're special, and that he has faith in them, even if they might do things he disagrees it. He concludes they have to avoid the end of the story somehow. After leaving the spring, Ralsei mentions to Susie that they cannot bring the flowers to their Castle Town due to their delicate nature. Susie is disappointed, but appreciates Ralsei's honesty, and Ralsei thanks her in return.

Scaling the beanstalk accessed by the golden watering can, the party reunites with the six flowers. Flowery reminds them of their conflicting goals, and challenges the party to scale to the top of the castle. On the ascent, Flowery attempts to dissuade the party by mentioning the freedoms the flowers now have. Ralsei asserts the danger of the fountains; but Flowery instead suggests closing the Castle Town Dark Fountain, asserting that to keep their fountain is to end their fantasy while keeping their own. Susie is enranged, but Ralsei reassures her, and they continue they climb.

Ralsei attempts to attack Flowery on the ascent. Flowery asks why they're still fighting, asserting that Ralsei likes to serve humans. Ralsei denies him being human, saying he's pretending to be something he's not. He simply asks Ralsei if there's anything wrong with that, and Ralsei states he can't run from his purpose, and he's doing what he must. Flowery reveals his teasing was to try and help him realize he doesn't have to follow the rules. Ralsei states that without him following the rules, everything would fall apart. Flowery asks what he wants, and leaves.

The party finally make it to the top of the castle. Flowery states they're fated to fight, and challenges them to either change that fate, or show who's fantasy is stronger. They ultimately fight, and come to the conclusion to seal the fountain. Upon its closure, its revealed they're all still within the Dark World, as the Knight takes Asgore. Flowery attempts to stop it, but is ultimately cleaved in two, leaving Ralsei to attempt to desperately heal him. Flowery comments that he knows it won't work. He mentions something terrible stirs beneath the town, and laments his uselessness. Ralsei remarks he isn't useless; he gave Asgore purpose, and that was enough. Ralsei asks Kris and Susie to seal the fountain, as he stands over the now broken golden flower.

Ralsei is shown helping Susie and the other Darkners set up a room for Noelle after the credits roll.

Weird Route

Main article: Weird Route

In the Cyber World, Ralsei waits with Susie in front of Queen's Mansion for Kris. He interprets Kris being distraught as hurt and tries to reassure them. When entering the mansion, Rouxls Kaard has already turned to stone, at which point Ralsei explains to Susie about Darkners being incompatible with foreign Dark Worlds.

Ralsei asks Susie what she did with Noelle, as wind_highplace plays

When they arrive at the rooftop, Susie stops at Noelle's bedroom to check on her. Ralsei asks Kris if they wonder what they could be doing, but Kris does not reply even after Ralsei insists. Susie returns quickly, surprising Ralsei. When he asks what happened, she reluctantly says she only convinced Noelle that the Cyber World is only a dream, adding that she will explain more to Kris later, much to Ralsei's irritation.

When encountering Queen, who is already in her giant robot, Ralsei explains the Roaring to her, skipping the battle altogether. Making peace with Queen, Ralsei explains to her about the new life he has to offer in Castle Town, leaving Kris to seal the Dark Fountain all alone.

After Susie destroys the Last Prophecy in Chapter 4, Ralsei expresses dread at the coming events, stating the possibility of a future worse than the one depicted in the prophecy.

Relationships

Kris

For Kris's perspective, see Kris § Ralsei.

Ralsei and Kris in the Monster Movie minigame

Ralsei was excited to meet Kris, and wants to be "great friends" with them. He cares deeply about Kris and, whenever possible, offers to teach or give advice to Kris during their adventures. Ralsei recognizes Kris as the party leader, asking them to lead the way immediately after they met, and leaves most decisions to them, sometimes protecting their choices from outside influence. Although he is more satisfied when Kris chooses to be kind in battles, he respects their judgment and follows their choices even if he dislikes them.

Ralsei is very respectful and deferential to Kris, even to the point of saying that he is okay with being hit. Even if Kris behaves rudely, he responds politely and may hide his resentment. He tries to preserve ACTing as Kris's "unique talent", dissuading Susie from learning S-Action, and only learns R-Action after being pressured by her, apologizing to Kris afterward.

Ralsei blushing near Kris

Ralsei seems to be sensitive to Kris's words, and takes them deeply, becoming very happy if Kris is nice to him, sometimes emphasizing that it was Kris who said it and appreciating their kindness, or becoming offended if Kris acts rudely. He is easily embarrassed or intimidated by Kris as well, blushing when they are nice or stand close to him for 10 seconds, and questioning if it is strange for him to enjoy spending time alone with them.

At certain points, Ralsei encourages Kris to close their eyes and think about what Susie is doing away from them. He may converse with Kris outside of the player's oversight during these moments and temporarily leaves in Chapter 4.

Susie

For Susie's perspective, see Susie § Ralsei.

Ralsei also wants to be "great friends" with Susie, and was excited to meet her. During Chapter 1, Ralsei remains patient and offers advice despite Susie's dismissiveness. When Susie's aggression towards Darkners becomes disruptive, he gently admonishes her. Susie abandoning the party causes Ralsei to express regret for trying to ask Susie to be peaceful, but he continues to be polite to her. After being captured in Card Castle, Ralsei is supportive of Susie's change of heart, and reassures her.

Ralsei and Susie eating cotton candy together

In Chapter 2, Ralsei and Susie's friendship grows. He starts becoming easily persuaded by Susie, as she forces him to learn R-Action when Kris's team ACTs does not work. Ralsei reciprocates when Susie gets injured from her fall, as he heals her with a hug out of concern. He lets himself get pulled away from Kris, and spends time teaching Susie how to cast her healing spell and having cotton candy with her.

During Susie's attempted rescue of Noelle, where Susie was briefly separated from Kris and Ralsei, he admits that Susie can be selfish, rude, and sarcastic, and is sometimes not very nice at all, but that it is still wonderful that she is herself. When Ralsei is reunited with Susie, he initially jokes that he did not miss Susie, but immediately reassures her that he was being sarcastic and that he truly did miss her.

Susie pushes Ralsei as he hugs her

In Chapter 3 and 4, Susie and Ralsei's relationship develops further, with Ralsei frequently asking Kris to make sure that Susie is happy and has company, and promises to write her fanmail. When Ralsei expresses his sadness over not being able to be Susie's friend in real life and encourages her to make "real friends", Susie refuses to believe that he is not real and is determined to find a way to continue spending time with him. In Chapter 4, he shows increasing care for Susie's feelings by hiding the final part of the prophecy from her, believing the truth to be too distressing for her to see.

Ralsei witnesses Susie's growth into a more kind and caring person over the course of the game's events, feeling proud of her and characterizing it as her finally being able to be herself. When Susie declares that he deserves his own room and brings furniture there, Ralsei admits that Susie is so nice to the point of making his heart hurt. When faced with the prophecy's seemingly inevitable end, he again highly appreciates her kindness and becomes inspired by her hope to believe in a better future.

Lancer

For Lancer's perspective, see Lancer § Ralsei.

Ralsei explains the team imbalance to Lancer, as Rude Buster plays

Ralsei finds Lancer's antics amusing and sometimes "a bit anticlimatic^[sic]", and remains polite to him, but sometimes may respond with visible irritation. He offers to explain to Lancer how his Hathy troops were unbalanced due to their bullets. When Lancer wants to impress Susie by making an evil plan, Ralsei favors helping him.

The two officially become friends after Lancer and Susie lose the fight against the team, with Ralsei immediately accepting Lancer as part of the party. When Lancer shows his "Stool Forme", Ralsei is initially skeptical. However, he later borrows it from Lancer and reuses it on different occasions. Ralsei and Lancer have more interactions during later Chapters, and Ralsei even makes a room for him in his castle (along with the ones he made for Kris and Susie).

Knight

Ralsei breaks from his usual mannerisms as he tries to stop the Knight

Despite the Knight's antagonistic actions, Ralsei hopes it has empathy, fearfully begging it to consider the consequences of the Roaring and to stop pursuing it. Even after being ignored, he continues trying to persuade the Knight, though his resolve weakens.

In Chapter 4, Ralsei suggests the Knight's intentions go beyond simply causing harm, noting it would have acted sooner otherwise. When the Knight begins to open another Fountain within the 3rd Sanctuary, Ralsei becomes terrified and tries to protest against the Knight's actions.

Flowery

Ralsei is initially disdainful towards Flowery, being upset with his attitude and lack of respect for the Dark World's rules, as well as for keeping it open for Asgore's sake despite dangers associated with doing so. As the Chapter progresses, Ralsei treats Flowery more as a rival, refusing to FIGHT him even at Kris's command, and attempting to heal him after he is injured by the Knight despite their previous disagreements.

Creation and development

Creation

Toby Fox's concept art of an early version of Ralsei from 2014 through 2015

Toby created concept art of Ralsei as early as 2014 through 2015, alongside Kris, Susie, and Noelle. He thought of the idea of Ralsei wearing a shadow-casting hat during Chapter 1's development. In the UNDERTALE 6th Anniversary Stream, Toby explains that he wanted Ralsei to be hatless to emote better.

In all Chapters, all of Ralsei's alternate costumes are created by Gigi D.G..

Development

In 2015, Toby had written script ideas for Ralsei, one of which is scrapped dialogue where Ralsei becomes self-conscious for often giving explanations to Kris.

According to unused code, Ralsei was going to be the enemy in the tutorial segment instead of the Dummy.

Outside of Deltarune

Chapter 1 Spoiler-Free Trailer

Ralsei covered in a pile of Annoying Dogs

Ralsei appears a few times in the DELTARUNE Chapter 1 Spoiler-Free Trailer. However, his face is censored by an Annoying Dog, and during an encounter against a Rudinn, his name is instead "Dogsei". In front of Castle Town, Ralsei is completely covered in multiple Annoying Dogs.

Merchandise

For the Ralsei plush Ralsei can have in-game, see Furniture § Ralsei's room.

Both the hat and hatless Ralsei plush features a surprise reference inside. The hat plush has a square scrap of cloth with a drawing of Ralsei, with the words "I'm looking forward to meeting you!" It references the scrapped manual cover that Ralsei gives to Kris in Chapter 1. The hatless plush features the cake that Ralsei makes in Chapter 2, which is made of felt material.

A commercial break featuring the No Hat Ralsei plush, as Glowing Snow plays

The hatless plush makes in-game appearances in Chapter 3 to often represent Ralsei in TV Time, and versus Tenna with the PopularBoy ACT, where Ralsei temporarily gets replaced by it. Similar to Ralsei himself, there are alternate costumes that can be purchased for the plush: the Butler Ralsei Costume from Chapter 2, and the Rockstar Ralsei Costume and Horse Ralsei Costume from Chapter 3.

• 
  Hat Ralsei plush sold on Fangamer
• 
  No Hat Ralsei plush sold on Fangamer

Newsletter

In ISSUE 5 - Winter 2024 of the Newsletter, three random Valentine's Day cards were included in the email version of the Newsletter. Ralsei has a total of four different Valentine's Day cards, with two being common, two being rare, with two of them are meant for other characters.

The first is a common card. Ralsei compliments the recipient and wishes to be their Valentines. The second is a common card meant for Susie. Ralsei expresses happiness that Susie enjoys the card and candy he included, and asks her to stop eating all the Valentines cards. Instead, Susie vandalizes the card at the end. This is similar to what occurs when inspecting the CYBERPEDIA in Chapter 2 a second time.

The third is a rare card for Lancer, though Ralsei admits it is actually a secret note. He pleads for Lancer's help, as Susie has been trying to get him to pretend to "smoke" a giant rolled tube made of Valentines papers. The fourth is a rare card for the recipient. He admits there are Valentines up on the shelf, and offers to let the recipient stand on his back. This alludes to Ralsei offering to perform "Stool Forme" to help the Old Man in Chapter 4.

In battle

Title

Main article: Title § Ralsei

Ralsei's title in the POWER stats menu can change based on his current weapon, the player's choices, and Chapter progress.

Stats

Main article: Stats

LV	HP	Attack	Defense	Magic	Guts
1	70	8	2	7	0
2	100-140	10-13	2	9-12	0
3	140-166	12-13	2	11-12	1
4	180-210	15-17	2	14-16	0
5	210-???	???	???	???	0

Ralsei's special stat slots change: the first slot changes to "Kindness", "Dogness", "Sweetness", and "Carried" based on the Chapter and the player's choices. His second special stat slot has "Fluffiness", with its tally changing based on the Chapter and his current weapon.

Spells

Main article: Spell § Ralsei

Ralsei preparing a spell

With MAGIC, Ralsei has support spells that can either heal the party or SPARE and remove enemies from battle. In certain boss battles, Ralsei can cast DualHeal through Kris's ACT menu.

When casting a spell, Ralsei is surrounded by a yellow aura as he closes his eyes, looks down, and clasps his hands. He then looks up, holding a yellow sparkle in his hand.

Name	TP	Effect	Availability
Pacify	16%	Spares one Tired enemy in an encounter	Any
Heal Prayer	32%	Heals one ally	Any
ReviveSong	85%	Revives a downed ally, high HP heal if up	Chapter 5

R-Action

Main article: Encounter § Action

For its function in Chapter 5, see Platforming § Ralsei's abilities.

Ralsei's standard ACT

R-Action is learned in Chapter 2 and is available in later Chapters. It costs 0% TP, and functions similarly to Kris's ACT command, where Ralsei often does a different described ACT than Kris or Susie. It is selected through his MAGIC menu and is performed independently from Kris's ACT command.

In some boss battles, it is instead replaced with a named ACT that costs TP, such as FluffyGuard or ReviveKris.

Gallery

• 
  Ralsei wearing a cloak
• 
  Ralsei's color scheme in the 2nd Sanctuary
• 
  Ralsei's floating animation
• 
  Ralsei's running animation
• 
  Party menu portrait (hat)
• 
  Party menu portrait (no hat)
• 
  Battle menu portrait
• 
  Intro/Enemy encounter (hat)
• 
  Intro/Enemy encounter (no hat)
• 
  In-battle animation (hat)
• 
  In-battle animation (no hat)
• 
  Victory animation (hat)
• 
  Victory animation (no hat)
• 
  Hurt/shocked (hat)
• 
  Hurt/shocked (no hat)
• 
  Fallen (hat)
• 
  Fallen (no hat)
• 
  Fallen (serious)
• 
  Singing a lullaby (hat)
• 
  Singing a lullaby (no hat)
• 
  Attack (hat)
• 
  Attack (no hat)
• 
  Attack (serious)
• 
  ACT (hat)
• 
  ACT (no hat)
• 
  Using an item (hat)
• 
  Using an item (no hat)
• 
  Preparing a spell (hat)
• 
  Preparing a spell (no hat)
• 
  Using a spell (hat)
• 
  Using a spell (no hat)
• 
  Defending (hat)
• 
  Defending (no hat)
• 
  Defending (serious)
• 
  Ralsei's dance from "R-Action" versus Sweet Cap'n Cakes
• 
  Ralsei's nurse outfit from "TakeCareX" versus Virovirokun
• 
  Ralsei's "wan" sprite from "R-Action" versus Tasque Manager
• 
  Ralsei's gangster outfit from "Sharpshoot" versus Shadowguy
• 
  Ralsei performing a pirouette from "R-Action" and "Whirl" versus Winglade
• 
  Ralsei nuzzling from "Nuzzle" versus Mizzle
• 
  Ralsei splatted on the ground
• 
  Ralsei using his fire magic
• 
  Ralsei's HERO_SCARF avatar in The Legend of Tenna
• 
  Temmie Chang's artwork of Ralsei from March 2019's Weekly Famitsu Magazine issue
• 
  Ralsei concept art by Temmie Chang
• 
  Temmie Chang's concept of Ralsei's hatless battle sprites
• 
  Ralsei LINE sticker
• 
  Ralsei Nendoroid sold on Good Smile Company

Trivia

• As the prince of a kingdom, a monarchy typically ruled by a king or a queen, Ralsei considers himself its ruler and also is recognized as such by King. A Cuptain suggests that the definition of kingdoms in Deltarune may include principalities.
• Ralsei's dance resembles 5's dance from the Peanuts TV special, A Charlie Brown Christmas.
• In Chapter 1, Ralsei's explanation of the SOUL is nearly identical to Flowey's explanation in Undertale.
• Susie's typo of Ralsei's name as "ralsay" indicates the correct pronunciation of Ralsei's name.
• In Chapter 3, Ralsei comments on the Dark World's nature with, "But what if? What if it became even darker? Darker than dark." This resembles a line from Entry Number Seventeen in Undertale: "DARK DARKER YET DARKER".

Version history

Game edition	Version tag	Changes
Chapter 1 Demo	Initial	Ralsei's hatless face sprite has less pixels around the tuft on his head, unlike the other Chapters.
Chapter 1&2 Demo	Initial	Ralsei's idle blushing sprite when he is facing down properly displays for Chapter 2 onwards, whereas Chapter 1 omits it.
Deltarune Chapter 4	v1.03	Ralsei no longer replies with a single button at the second bookshelf pushing puzzle.
		Ralsei and Susie no longer erroneously appear in the Rock Video minigame in Castle Town at the end of the Chapter.