Plunderer is a battle fantasy serialized in Monthly Shonen Ace. Its protagonist, Licht Bach, was known as the "Ace of Pilots" for ending a war 300 years ago. However, his existence is shrouded in mystery, as he is still alive today despite being 300 years old. So, why were the protagonists called Aces of Pilots? What exactly is an Ace of Pilots? Let's introduce seven more Aces of Pilots!
What is an Ace of Pilots? The Discarded War that inspired its creation
Ace of Pilots, known as the heroes of the Discarded War, refers to those who underwent special surgery for a certain war. While the story may seem set in a peaceful fantasy world, it actually takes place on Earth 300 years ago, in a future where resources were depleted and population saturation led to food shortages for all nations. In other words, there were no fantasy elements at the time, and countries were plunged into nuclear war, the world was engulfed in nuclear flames, and humanity seemed doomed.
An Out-of-Place Strikes Back
As humanity lies on the brink of extinction, an unknown out-of-place artifact descends from space: a machine known as the "Parliament," which determines majority decisions with absolute power. With the power of the Congress, the world renounces nuclear weapons and concludes a time-limited ceasefire, but this merely postpones the problem. The leaders of each country abrogate the nuclear renunciation and ceasefire agreement through a majority vote in Congress, and the Plunderer War is launched, a war to thin the human population until humanity can overcome its current food shortage.
The Plunderer War Creates a Pilot Ace
In preparation for this war, the protagonist and the military's top brass transplant a certain individual's genes into suitable individuals to create human weapons capable of harnessing the power of the Congress, in order to create wizards who can harness the power of the Congress. These are the true identities of the ace pilots who brought the war to an end. There are seven of them, including the protagonist. Their growth stopped at a certain point, and they are still alive today, 300 years later.
"Pilots of the Flash" by Licht Bach/Rijin Sakai
The protagonist of this work, Licht Bach, has white hair and usually wears a mask. He is a man similar to the protagonist of the previous work, repeatedly sexually harassing beautiful women. However, his true identity is that of a legendary ace pilot. He currently lives at the bottom of society and is always hungry. He's a man who loves sexual harassment and is passionate about erotic pursuits, and his behavior is far from that of a legendary hero. His real name is Sakai Rito. While his count is significantly negative due to the number of times he's been dumped by women, his count as an ace pilot is "the number of enemies he's killed in place of everyone else."
Lightning Strike Ability
Able to move at blinding speeds, he's said to be the strongest ace pilot. His nickname "Lightning Strike" was given to him by his military academy buddies when he was still known by his real name, Sakai Rito, before he took on the name Richt-Bach. If he uses his powers excessively, his count skyrockets as a side effect of the Ace of Pilots surgery, causing him to go into a rampage that becomes uncontrollable. His normal count is 5,700, but when he goes into a rampage, it soars to 57,000. This side effect is unique to Ace of Pilots, but it is especially pronounced for Licht, who has been transplanted with so many genes.
Licht 300 Years Ago
He was the first person to undergo the Ace of Pilots surgery and be deployed to the battlefield. Rijin himself had no desire to kill anyone, but the side effects of the surgery caused him to go out of control, to the point where he even attacked his allies, so he was usually isolated and only given drugs when deployed to the battlefield. After the war, he went against the decisions of his superiors and was sent to kill Tokikaze, who had stolen the Original Ballot, and ended up killing his own brother. This caused him to regain his sanity, but he dies from the shock of killing his stepbrother. However, his body did not decay, and he revived 20 years later, learning the cruel truth.
"Pursuit Ace" by Sonohara Mizuka
As a member of a special forces unit, she seeks to kill anyone she sees on the Abyss Demon. She has a brutal personality, even ruthlessly killing children. However, her true personality is kind-hearted and cowardly, far from the type to kill others, making her unsuited for military service. A common side effect of being a ace pilot is that she is overcome by destructive impulses when activating her powers. When deployed, she is drugged to bring out a different personality, allowing her to be used for convenience.
Ability of Pursuit
She has the ability to fire wide-range, high-density shots using firearms, and even if an opponent escapes, each shot is a guided missile, allowing her to pursue them without them being able to escape. Furthermore, she has high mobility and demonstrates high combat ability. However, her natural personality is completely unsuited for combat, so she is always drugged. The count is "Perseverance."
Sonohara Mizuka 300 Years Ago
Weak and timid, Mizuka was always bullied for her personality, unsuited for military service. She followed Rihito, the only person who stood by her, and enrolled in military academy. While she had no aptitude for military service, she was suitable for the ace pilot surgery. However, even after the surgery, she was treated as useless, unable to kill a single enemy on the battlefield. As Rihito continued to kill enemy soldiers, she became dominated by destructive impulses. Rihito went into a rampage and cut her, causing her to become depressed from the shock.
"The Instantaneous Attack Ace of Pilots" Sakai Tokikaze
The brother-in-law of Sakai Rihito, also known as Licht, who possesses overwhelming skill. He has a strong sense of justice and a personality similar to Jail, who came from the past. However, perhaps due to a mutual hatred between the two, they do not seem to get along. His combat abilities are among the best in his class, and his unique sword-drawing technique boasted speeds beyond those of ordinary people, even before he became an ace of the game.
Shingeki Ability
Although his abilities are similar to Licht's, his swordsmanship is so overwhelmingly fast and powerful that it can even cut through space. His count was an incredible 500,000, but that number refers to the number of loved ones he had killed. Since not everyone could survive in this hellish environment, those who had reached a certain age were forced to reduce the number of mouths to feed in order to pass on to the next generation. To ensure that they would not suffer, Tokikaze killed his adult children with their consent.
Sakai Tokikaze 300 Years Ago
He was a central figure in the A-Class and a good older brother to Rito. However, at the end of the Disposal War, he was the only ace pilot to oppose the establishment of Alcia. He rebelled, but was sent to kill Licht, who had been turned into a lethal weapon by drugs. Perhaps due to his immortal nature, the ace pilot never died. Meanwhile, he honed his skills on the ground with the surviving A-Class pilots, lurking in a hellish environment and waiting for his time to come.
Doan Taketora: The "Heavy Attack" Ace of Pilots
With his huge physique and frog-like appearance, he doesn't hang out with anyone, and his rude attitude and attempts to force Sonohara Mizuka into taking disciplinary action make him, in short, the villain. However, this is because he tries to keep Mizuhara, who is not suited to being a soldier, away from the battlefield. When the military academy becomes a battlefield, he takes the brunt of the attack and tries to protect Mizuhara, and Mizuhara's presence is at the root of his motivation.
Heavy Attack Ability
This ability, which allows him to manipulate gravity and possess superhuman mobility, makes him a natural enemy of Rijin. While this ability may temporarily bring Rijin to his death, it doesn't actually kill him completely. The ability counts the number of times someone has been subjugated.
Doan Taketora 300 Years Ago
Although he was a man of rude demeanor and prone to violence, he believed that war was not something that could be easily dismissed, and was a realist who was critical of "non-lethal armies." After undergoing the Ace of Pilots surgery, he was deployed to the battlefield and teamed up with Rito. Rito was heavily influenced by Schmelman as a side effect of the Ace of Pilots surgery, and was no longer able to kill children. In his place, he killed all the children who attacked. They were partners who survived hell together.
"Bomber Ace" Aleksandrov Grigorovich
Jail Mardog's stepfather and the head of the Alcia Royal Army. He is doting on his son and very kind to Jail, but he can also be ruthless at times. He was one of the heroes of the Discarded War 300 years ago and was originally an officer in the Russian army. He is actually quite popular, and is well-liked by his subordinates and the Loli Queen of the Alcia Kingdom.
Bombing Ability
Just as the name suggests, this ability allows him to manipulate explosions, and if he goes all out, he's said to have enough firepower over a wide area to decimate an entire town. While the details of his count are still a mystery, it's estimated to be 200,000. He's powerful enough to completely crush Jail, who challenged him to a Star Snatching Battle when he went all out, making him the military's most powerful warrior.
Alan 300 Years Ago
300 years ago, he was a strict instructor at the military academy, instructing the A-class students. At the time, he held the rank of captain, and the scars on his face were from protecting his students during an attack on the military academy, a prelude to the Discarding War. He was one of the members who ended the Discarding War and founded Alcia, but this was also a difficult decision, as it meant abandoning the A-class members. He was a strict yet compassionate person, but he decided to create Alcia in order to ensure the survival of humanity.
Nana, the "Ace of Aces"
A tanned, well-built woman. She usually runs a traveling bar, working Licht hard and accompanying him. She knows Licht's past and is actually one of the Aces. Using her powers, she sends Jail and the others back in time to reveal Licht's past.
Nana's Abilities
She has the ability to time travel and change the past. She uses this ability to send Jail and his friends back in time. There, Jail and his friends learn about the pasts of the ace pilots and the mystery of the Disposal War. While the normal count is the number of times others have said a plane is delicious, it is unknown what the ace pilot's count is. However, it appears there is a limit to the number of times she can use her ability, as it is consumed each time it is used. It is unknown what happens when the count runs out.
Nana 300 Years Ago
She was the first to successfully undergo surgery on an ace pilot, and was still a child at the time. Perhaps due to the nature of her abilities, she never served on the battlefield, but she did teach the truth to Jail and the others who had come from the future. After the war ended, she sought out Licht and joined forces with him, but her growth halted at a certain point. According to her, her growth halted when she felt regret for something. This may be why the timing at which each ace pilot stopped growing varied.
Pelle Popolo, the "Heart Attack" Pilot Ace
As Rean's subordinate, Pelle is always busy making comments about Pokemon. He holds the rank of sergeant, and while he may seem like a character who explains the allied forces, he was actually the last pilot to win the allied forces. He is the founder of the special forces, and has always kept his true nature hidden. He betrays Rean and his crew, but in fact, his betrayal was a bluff. He turns against Schmelman and his crew for a certain purpose and returns to the allied forces. His purpose in serving in Rean's rural town was to assassinate Jail, but he was sent flying by Jail and was unable to accomplish his goal.
Pelle's Abilities
An expert in infiltration, espionage, and assassination, Pelle's ability is to read other people's minds. As a pilot, he possesses high combat abilities, but he is a natural enemy of those who act instinctively, like Rean. While this may seem like an afterthought, there were actually many hints behind his abilities, such as his knowledge of firearms and medical care, which Alcians do not know, and his ease in adapting to equipment that does not exist in Alcian. His real name is Gespens-Zelegen
Pelle 300 Years Ago
Though he never appeared in the game, he engaged in infiltration, espionage, and assassination activities, and apparently weakened the enemy forces by assassinating commanders of each military force. He was actually the unsung hero who ended the war. While the past Pelle did not appear in the prequel arc, he was certainly present somewhere, meaning that there were two of the same person 300 years ago.
[Plunderer] Summary of Aces
We've introduced the key ace pilots in the story. In fact, he's not a war hero from a fantasy world, but a hero from the end of the century, exhausted by nuclear war. He'll naturally be a prominent character in the anime, and will likely play a major role in future developments. There are still many mysteries, so we're looking forward to seeing how things unfold!
