Dragonar Academy (Japanese: 星刻の竜騎士（ドラグナー）, Hepburn: Seikoku no Doragunā, lit. The Star-Marked Dragonar) is a Japanese light novel series written by Shiki Mizuchi, illustrated by Kohada Shimesaba, and published by Media Factory under the MF Bunko J imprint. The first volume was released on June 25, 2010, with a total of 16 volumes available in Japan as of June 25, 2014. A manga adaptation by Ran began serialization in Monthly Comic Alive in its June 2011 issue, with four volumes currently available as of April 2013[update]. It was one of five MF Bunko J light novel anime adaptations announced at Media Factory's Summer School Festival event on July 28, 2013. It has been licensed by Funimation.[1]
Plot
In a land of dragons, where citizens called breeders tame their dragon pals. Races of dragons are born from breeders who are given a Seikoku: a dragon star-shape brand.
Learning to ride and tame dragons comes easy to most students at Ansarivan Dragonar Academy—except for Ash Blake, a first-year student who is known by his classmates as the "problem child." His dragon has never appeared. Despite his unfashionably large star-shaped brand that marks him as a future dragon master, he has nothing to show for it. Until now, that is. One fateful day, while challenging a princess, Silvia Lautreamont, to a dragon race, Ash's dragon awakes in full glory, but appears different than any dragon ever seen before—in the form of a beautiful girl!—naming her Eco. What's more, Ash soon discovers that this new dragon has attitude to spare, as she promptly informs him that she is the master, and he, the servant. Ash's problems with dragon riding have only just begun.
A 16-year-old student at the academy, Ash is known as a "problem child" due to the fact that his dragon "Pal" hasn't awakened and his tendency to react violently to any perceived insult to his dragon. As a child he had no interest in becoming a Breeder but during his chance meeting with Silvia during the Orphan Rite he assisted her in finding the Mother Dragon who found him worthy to become a breeder but Silvia was not chosen. Ash insisted on giving Silvia his Pal despite the Mother Dragon's wishes and the risks which resulted in him losing his entire left arm. Aware of his ability to ride any dragon, the Mother Dragon, not wishing to waste such talent, gave Eco to him thus replacing his lost arm. It is revealed that his newly replaced arm itself is his Star Brand. Despite his poor reputation, his power is very unusual, making him the only human (aside from his sister Linda) able to properly ride other people's dragons. Having to save the town from the Necromancia incident, Ash is deified as the Arch-bearing "Silver Knight", which corresponds to a noble rank.
He is later officially Knighted by Paladin Oswald gaining the title of Dragonar and becomes popular with the girls of the Academy. Navi also calls him the Knight of Avalon due to being Eco's master.
Ash's dragon pal who takes form as a human girl. She treats Ash as her servant calling him her dog, much to the latter's annoyance. In reality, Eco is fully aware that Ash is her master and that she is the "pet" (as she describes herself), but she doesn't want to admit it because of her pride and believes that if she does that she will be nothing but a "tamed pet" and will then only be loved as one, which is not the kind of love she wants Ash to give to her. While fighting a Necromancia Dragon, under Navi's guidance, she creates an Arch armor for Ash using parts from the blueprints of other Dragons' Arch armors. Since this armor is a mimic of other Dragons' Arch armors it's not as powerful as an original Arch armor, but was still powerful enough to defeat the Necromancer. She enjoys eating crepes and especially anything mixed with Ansil- the dragon version of alcohol- which is strictly prohibited to be given to dragons since it makes them drunken and unruly. She has feelings for Ash.
She is later revealed to be the Avalon's Holy Dragons' Emperor Family's Imperial Princess and her full name is Eco Aurora-Christa Pendragon Lena Anherusu-Ilya Roransu Liliane-Muriel-Octavia-Robertine de la Rosa Resuperansu van de Compostela Avalon. According to the Mother Dragon, Eco is both human and dragon. This was done in order for her to breed with Ash and save the dragon race from extinction.
Fourth princess of the Lautreamont Knight Family and a Dragonar. Her "pal" is a white Maestro Dragon named Lancelot. It is revealed that she wasn't supposed to become a Dragonar, but Ash yielded Lancelot to her while the two met during the quest to seek Mother Dragon at the Orphan Rite when they were kids, while receiving Eco instead, although both don't remember each other and that particular incident. Silvia is completely terrified of her older sister Veronica, but later overcomes it when she recognizes her skills. Despite being the 4th child of the king, her siblings are either not interested in politics, or have gone missing, which made her often recognized as the heir of the throne.
During their second visit to Albion Forest as part of their examination and to search for the Mother Dragon, Silvia and Ash regain their lost memories. Finally realizing that Ash was the reason she was able to receive Lancelot and after all he has done for her, she declares her love to him and kisses him causing her to quarrel with Eco. In later volumes, Silvia also becomes an Arch Dragonar, and Vice-President of the Academy.
Third year and the Student Council President. Her dragon "pal" is a Maestro named Cú Chulainn. She is a powerful Arch Dragonar armor user capable of summoning an unstoppable spear named Gae Bulg. She likes teasing Ash to make the other girls who like him jealous, however, she could possibly hold feelings for Ash as well. She later graduates from the academy leaving Ash the position of Student Council President.
Ash's friend and a self-proclaimed "ladies' man". His "pal" is an Earth Dragon named Brigid. He, Ash and Maximilian have known each other for a long time and were once roommates in their earlier school years. He is one of the very few students outside the Student Council to know about Ash's identity as the famous Silver Knight who had saved the town from a Necromancia dragon.
Rebecca's childhood friend who sees her as her rival. Although she acts like she's from nobility, the truth is that the Valentine family has been servants of the Randall family for generations, and Rebecca threatens to expose her whenever she causes trouble. She was the president of the Silver Knight Fan Club and when she founds out that the Silver Knight is Ash, she wishes to bear his children. To cover it up, Rebecca has her resign as the Silver Knight Fan Club president and join the student council. She has a crush on Ash. Her pal is a Hydra named Rhiannon.
The Student Council secretary. An Eckbald, an elf of the forest, she is the youngest person to ever become a Dragonar. Her pal is a Maestro Dragon named Gawain. After an accident where she fell off Gawain, she starts develop a fear in dragon riding, while Gawain refuses to let her ride in worry but she later overcomes her fear with Ash's help. She then becomes attached to him and more open to others. As an Eckbaldian Dragonar, she practices the Dragon Dance, a battle style that eventually won the battle against the Necromancia at the Willingham Mausoleum.
Maximillian Russell (マクシミリアン・ラッセル, Makushimirian Rasseru)
Voiced by: Genki Muro (Drama CD/Anime)
The self-composed Student Council secretary. His pal is a Wyvern named Airanlot. He is known to be a clean freak and does not tolerate any kind of untidiness. He, Ash and Raymond have known each other for a long time and were once roommates in their earlier school years.
Oscar Brailsford (オスカー・ブレイスフォード, Osukā Bureisufōdo)
Student Council vice-president, often being absent from school lecture and activities. According to Rebecca, his skills as a Dragonar are very exceptional despite his absenteeism.
Linda Blake (リンダ・ブレイク, Rinda Bureiku)
Ash's younger sister. Like her older brother Ash, she is able to ride any Dragon. Her "pal" is the reincarnation of the Mother Dragon.
The head of the Lautreamont family and the current ruler of the country, called The Paladin. He is a widower and a very cheerful man, who dotes on his children but is often scolded by Silvia which he seems to enjoy (it reminds him of her late mother, Elizabeth.) He asks to meet Ash at the continental congress and grants Ash knighthood but warns him not to pursue a relationship with Silvia. The Paladin was unable to bear seeing his only son killed for the crime of murdering his Dragon, and banished Julius instead, without realizing the reasons behind his actions.
First princess of the Lautreamont Family and the eldest of the four sisters. Nicknamed the Iron Blood Valkyrie, she always wears her armor, except while bathing or sleeping. Silvia is terrified of her after the harsh training she submitted her when she was little. Although she doesn't have a dragon, she decided to train her body and hone her swordsmanship to compensate that. Despite her harsh treatment towards Silvia, she loves her sister dearly and even went so far as to have pictures of Silvia and even a Silvia doll in her room according to Julius. She apparently does not respect her father and wishes for Silvia to be the next Paladin, the country's ruler, telling her to "try to make me kneel before you".
Julius Lautreamont (ジュリアス・ロートレアモン, Juriasu Rōtoreamon)
The only son of the Lautreamont family. He was supposed to be executed for the charge of slaughtering his own dragon, but was secretly spared and exiled by Oswald instead. The reason he killed his dragon was because he realized that his dragon, Mordred, was the reincarnation of an evil dragon and so he tried to kill it. Unfortunately, this caused Mordred's spirit to possess him thus creating the persona of Milgauss. He was later freed when Mordred chose to possess Eco instead.
Third daughter of the Lautreamont family. She has taken the position as Ansarivan Dragon Riding Academy's principal after the previous principal retired. She has a cold but calm demeanor and is usually seen drinking tea even in the middle of a ceremony or a conversation. According to Silvia, she is a scholar who is studying and doing research abroad. She becomes Ansarivan's principal on Veronica's orders to watch over Eco but she admits that she came for another reason and that she does not care for Veronica's orders. According to Ash, she does not seem to respect Veronica at all as she went so far as to call her eldest sister a "muscle freak".
A Doctor expert in the field of studying dragons. She kidnapped Eco and tried to vivisect her, but she was stopped in time by Ash. After that she becomes the new homeroom teacher of Ash's and friends class, much to the surprise of Ash and Sylvia, and the delight of all the other male students. She and Julius have known each other in the past and she is hinted to have feelings for him. Because of this, she is the first person to realize Milgaus' true identity.
Cosette Shelley (コゼット・シェリー, Kosetto Sherī)
Voiced by: Yoshiko Ikuta (Drama CD/Anime)
Sylvia's personal maid. She is very cunning and a master of disguise and often likes teasing Silvia and Ash. She is one of the few people who does not fear Veronica who has asked her to leave Silvia and serve her instead but Cosette refuses as she is loyal to Silvia.
Primrose Shelley (プリムローズ・シェリー, Purimurōzu Sherī)
Voiced by: Ai Kakuma (Anime)
Cosette's older sister and Veronica's personal maid. Unlike her sister, she's rather clumsy and carefree and has a large bust.
A former terrorist of the Tantalos tribe who now works for Veronica as her undercover agent. She decided to help her as a way of finding her long-lost sister Shamara.
A knight at Veronica's service. He was the best friend of Julius Lautreamont, until his execution, which caused him to become a serious and nearly emotionless person. He is also an Arch Dragonar armor user.
Orletta Blanc (オルエッタ・ブラン, Oruetta Buran)
Voiced by: Yuka Aisaka (Anime)
Royal postman who rides a wyvern.
Zepharos Empire
Klaus Viderhausen (クラウス・ヴィターハウゼン, Kurausu Vitāhauzen)
A nobleman sent to represent the Zepharos Empire in the Continental Congress. He found Julius wandering after he lost his memories and became possessed by Mordred.
A masked man working for the Zepharos Empire, he is capable of summoning a Necromancer Dragon, a resurrected dragon that's already rotting. He is later revealed to be Prince Julius, thought to have been executed many years ago, but now possessed by the spirit of the dark dragon king Mordred who tries to gain control of the Dragweiss.
An assassin and head of the Tantalos tribe who works for Milgaus and is very dedicated to him, but after being saved by Ash, she develops an interest in him. She is later revealed to be Avdocha's long lost sister.
Navi is the overseer of the Dragon Workshop and has access to all of the knowledge of past dragons. She appears as an older version of Eco. She is later revealed to be the incarnation of the Dragweiss itself, the repository of all draconic knowledge. Once she matures, Eco will absorb Navi, thus gaining access to the full knowledge, wisdom, and power of the Dragonweis. By doing so, she will direct the future of the Dragon race.
Mordred was the Dragon pal of Prince Julius Lautreamont. As his dragon grew older, Julius discovered that Mordred had a malevolent aspect to his personality born from his ancestral memory as a descendent of the dark kingdom of Nehalennia, and that it was slowly taking him over. To that end, Mordred conspired the Prince to kill himself, hoping that it would also kill his evil self.
Unfortunately, Mordred's evil self was able to escape the death of its body and possess Julius. When the Paladin spared Julius' life, he unwittingly allowed Mordred to survive as well. He tried to possess Eco in order to fully revive himself, but Navi resisted his attack which allowed Ash and Eco to defeat and forcefully expel him. His spirit flees and is last seen flying to the east.
Nuada (ヌァザ, Nwaza)
A Legendary Dragon, he was resurrected by Milgaus to fight Ash and his friends. According to his legend, he was the Pal of a sick girl. Believing his master was about to die, Nuada cut off its Astral Flow, the link that allows a dragon to absorb Astral (magical energy required by all things to survive, but no longer produced by extremely magical races like dragons and elves) from its rider, with her and left for the Willingham Mausoleum where he died alone not realizing its master had recovered.
She is an unseen presence in the world. Despite being called the mother dragon, she claims that she is not actually the dragon's mother but merely a system which distributes Dragons. The Mother Dragon is a large and powerful dragon and unlike other dragons, she is able to survive without a partner. Only people with the ability to become breeders are able to see her and it is she who chooses who, and who will not, become Breeders during the Orphan Rite. She was created by a wise dragon in order to save their kind after an accident took away the ability of magical races (such as dragons and elves) to produce Astral, bringing the dragon race to the brink of extinction. Only recently has the Mother Dragon realized that she was dying. She created a dragon with a human form (Eco) in order that she have a child with a human and so save their race. Whether this is required to replace the Mother Dragon, or the child will be a dragon capable of producing astral, is unknown.
Media
Light novels
Dragonar Academy began as a light novel series written by Shiki Mizuchi with illustrations by Kohada Shimesaba, published by Media Factory under their MF Bunko J imprint. The first volume was released in Japan on June 25, 2010,[3] with a total of sixteen volumes published as of June 25, 2014[4]
A CD drama was released by Media Factory on October 24, 2012.[18] The drama is split into two episodes: "Eco the Dragon Girl" (エーコは竜の娘, Ēco wa Ryū no Musume) and "The Streets of Ansarivan" (アンサリヴァンの市街区, Ansarivan no Shigai-ku). The opening theme is "Astral Flow" by Haruka Shimotsuki, and a short version of the song was featured as a bonus track. The full song was later featured in Uta J (うたJ, lit. Song J), Media Factory's album commemorating MF Bunko J's tenth anniversary, released on August 29, 2012.[19]
Manga
A manga adaptation illustrated by Ran began serialization in the June 2011 issue of Monthly Comic Alive (released on April 27, 2011).[20] The first bound volume was released by Media Factory on October 22, 2011,[21] with a total of four volumes published under their Alive Comics imprint as of April 23, 2013.[22] The manga is licensed in North America by Seven Seas Entertainment under the title Dragonar Academy.[23]
A television anime series premiered on April 5, 2014 on AT-X and at later dates on Tokyo MX, MBS, TVA and BS11. The anime series is animated by C-Station, directed by Shunsuke Tada with scripts written by Noboru Kimura.
^ ab星刻の竜騎士（ドラグナー） (in Japanese). Media Factory. Retrieved November 29, 2012.
^ ab"星刻の竜騎士XVI" (in Japanese). Media Factory. Retrieved August 19, 2014.
^ ab"星刻の竜騎士II" (in Japanese). Media Factory. Retrieved November 29, 2012. Cite error: The named reference "Dragoner_02" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
^"星刻の竜騎士IV" (in Japanese). Media Factory. Retrieved November 29, 2012.
^"星刻の竜騎士V" (in Japanese). Media Factory. Retrieved November 29, 2012.
^"星刻の竜騎士VI" (in Japanese). Media Factory. Retrieved November 29, 2012.
^"星刻の竜騎士VII" (in Japanese). Media Factory. Retrieved November 29, 2012.
^"星刻の竜騎士VIII" (in Japanese). Media Factory. Retrieved November 29, 2012.
^"星刻の竜騎士IX" (in Japanese). Media Factory. Retrieved November 29, 2012.
^"星刻の竜騎士X" (in Japanese). Media Factory. Retrieved November 29, 2012.
^"星刻の竜騎士XI" (in Japanese). Media Factory. Retrieved December 9, 2012.
^"星刻の竜騎士XII" (in Japanese). Media Factory. Retrieved May 24, 2012.
^"星刻の竜騎士XIII" (in Japanese). Media Factory. Retrieved July 28, 2013.
^"星刻の竜騎士XIV" (in Japanese). Media Factory. Retrieved August 19, 2014.
^"星刻の竜騎士XV" (in Japanese). Media Factory. Retrieved August 19, 2014.
