What is Ralsei? The horned headband that Kris wore growing up? The knife that Kris always carries with them? Well, I think Ralsei's something far more complex than an inanimate object related to Kris.
In chapter 2, we learn from Swatch and Seam that Mettaton (the ghost) went to the librarby and drew his dream body in a paint program. The NEO body. Seam refers to the body Mettaton drew as "an incarnation of a lightner's will" Mettaton gave up on the drawing however, causing the NEO body to be cast away into Queen's secret basement.
This sparked an idea in my brain... an incarnation of a lightner's will..
Kris, ever since they were adopted, has always had a will to fit in with monsterkind growing up. That pure, concentrated willpower of wanting to be a monster is what made Kris wear that horned headband in the first place.
I believe that Ralsei is the incarnation of Kris's will to be a monster, a mirror image of Kris themself, but as a goat monster. Just like Toriel, Asgore, and Asriel are. But Kris abandoned this idea, casting the will into the deepest dark. Hence the title, "The prince of deepest dark"
When in Ralsei's room in chapter 4, we see that Ralsei is unsure if a darkner should have feelings, asking: "Should a darkner... be feeling these things?" Kris has been mostly emotionless through the whole game, hardly ever changing their facial expressions. I feel like the parallels are too similar to be a coincidence. Since Ralsei is theoretically Kris's mirror image, it would make sense that they're both unsure how to express their emotions.
There could be more to this theory, or I'm completely wrong. This is just how I like to interpret Ralsei. Thank you for reading my thoughts, and I appreciate your time! Feel free to comment what YOU think Ralsei is, if ya wanna.
Okay, I finished Chapter 4 and I've had some time to sit with my thoughts and... well, let me ramble a bit.
First off, Susie's the main character, right? She's got me the most emotionally invested. I care about what is going to happen to her and her character development. Her and Noelle are a train wreck and she is basically a paladin at this point by being a primary dps and secondary healer. If this were another game, she would absolutely be the main character.
Secondly, Kris (and us, by extension) are the treacherous party member, but handled in a way where we, the players, have less information than everyone else BUT Susie. Is the SOUL the traitor? Or is Kris? We don't know who put the SOUL out there, or what Kris's ultimate goal is. But they/we are pretty much Kain from FF4 without all of the jumping, and that is a compelling angle for perspective on a story like this.
Ralsei is just the GM's self-insert used to keep the players on track. I get the weird feeling that Ralsei and Asriel are related in a way similar to Gerson and the Hammer of Justice. Some part of Asriel was left behind when he went wherever he went (they say college, I don't believe it) and that part is Ralsei. That's why Ralsei knows 'the rules', but he is also becoming his own person and starting to crack under the pressure to fulfill his function and be his own self. Goat boy is in for some tragedy, no mistake.
And another thing, where the hell did the Castle Town fountain come from??? Like, we're just never gonna talk about how the school's supply closet is a full on Dark World and NOBODY NOTICED?? When did it open? How long has it been there? Did Asriel and Dess open it? Does Toriel know it's there? Does Asgore?! Does the KNIGHT?? Likely the Knight opened the Chapter 1 Dark Fountain that gets sealed, but why is the Castle Town left untouched? You'd think the Knight would bust in and just open fountains left right and center if that was their plan, right? I get we need a hub area to see all our friends again, but... something awful is bound to happen to the Castle Town if it's discovered, or maybe if the reason it exists at all is discovered. Maybe its destruction is what the Prophecy foretells, and that's what Susie is determined to not let happen?
Anyway... yeah. Those are the thoughts I'm wrestling with. Thanks for reading.
Thinking about how Jevil says 'I'M FREE! I'M FREE'
And we, as the player, look at him through the bars, within the confines of the castle. Inside the darkworld which is inside the closet inside the school. The school is within hometown and hometown is within Deltarune as a game. Of course Deltarune is also confined, within the game console.
Jevil is within 8 layers of being 'trapped', yet still says he's free. So that begs the question: from what?
What freedom does Jevil have that we don't?
From a different perspective, what are we, as the player, doing that Jevil does not need to do?
What we are doing is immersing ourselves into the game, this other world. These layers that Jevil finds himself in.
We are performing escapism.
Despite being confined in these 8 layers, Jevil isn't doing any kind of escapism. He is free from this.
We aren't.
(Feel free to add onto this I love hearing thoughts)
Kris and Ralsei's relationship is just as significant to both characters as Kris and Susie.
(so is Susie and Ralsei, but that's way easier to argue.)
So, this is not to downplay Susie and Kris. They are so incredibly important and wonderful and meaningful. Obviously.
But with Ralsei, Kris gets the one thing they can't with Susie, it's private.
And if the piano tells us anything, Kris values their privacy over even their autonomy.
As much as Kris loves their time and their friendship with Susie; it is something they're always sharing with us. We are present for every bonding moment and experience they have, and thats not mentioning how much of the Kris Susie knows isn't fully them.
But Ralsei knows, thus is capable of having a separate relationship with Kris, and one with Us.
Something very under discussed and yet I think it absolutely necessary for understanding Ralsei is that we, by definition, have never seen how he acts when we aren't watching, and this extends especially to how he treats Kris.
What has been called a preference for the Player is what I'd interpret as a fawning fear response, he is wary of Us and our power. He'd prefer to befriend us but he doesn't know our intentions and is playing it safe in hiding information for the Party's sake. If he refused to go along with violent playthroughs, remember that would be abandoning Kris alone with us after we've proven ill intent.
If Kris is our Cage, Ralsei is their Keeper, and our jailer, as the one who knows enough about our logistics to create pockets of respite for them and constantly checks in and knows the thing that answers isn't always them and is hiding just as many secrets as they are.
Who's just as much an object in his own life as they are in theirs.
And Ralsei is aware, to some degree, he's failing in this role. If that chapter 3 dialogue, and the chapter 4 Gerson tea party is anything to go off of. Susie has Us and Kris looking out for her, but there's no one as aware as he is of Kris' situation to make sure they're eating and sleeping properly. (no one willing to step in at least)
Our relationship with Ralsei's is just that: ours. It does not matter how suspicious and fake we find him or how badly we want to kiss him on his adorable fluffy face, we cannot influence whats happening between him and them.
We don't know what Kris and Ralsei's dynamic is really like, and thats what makes it so significant. It's important developments happen away from our prying eyes, on their own terms. For two characters who get to have almost nothing to themselves.
And then people somehow concluded Kris hates him and he only cared about the Player because even in the 'its not about you' story we cannot stop making it about us for five fucking seconds.
I just saw someone saying Gerson not being able to finish his story before he died was a sign you should stop playing the game at that point and I'm just like
"Wow how did you miss all of the signs of hope for the future he and Susie sowed? The part about hoping the next generation would pick up where he left off? The whole somber part about his son not wanting to follow in his footsteps because his work would be viewed lesser in comparison to his dad? That wasn't a warning not to finish the game, that was Toby worrying he wouldn't be able to finish the game!"
I swear people keep expecting all of Deltarune to end identically to Undertale's Genocide Route regardless of what you do. They have since Chapter 1, true, but it's a little darker now that there's a bit more hope and uncertainty in the story.
Love how tumblr has its own folk stories. Yeah the God of Arepo we’ve all heard the story and we all still cry about it. Yeah that one about the woman locked up for centuries finally getting free. That one about the witch who would marry anyone who could get her house key from her cat and it’s revealed she IS the cat after the narrator befriends the cat.
stormborns
turnnoffyourmind
germansingergirl
tangentwithtanner
titsay
