Nelson

"I am Nelson the Avaricious, the 11th Seat of the Knights of Rounds."

- Nelson

Jack Nelson (ジャック・ネルソン) was the acting archbishop who's secretly a member of the Cult of Diablos, being the 11th seat in the Knights of the Round and the leader of the faction operating in Lindwurm as well as the inventor of the Tears of Diablos. He was killed by Shadow when the latter blew up the Sanctuary to destroy Diablos' left arm.

Appearance
Nelson was an elderly fat man with brown eyes, thick eyebrows and mustache. Even his appearance has a little to no changes when compared to the past him in Hero Oliver's memories. The only notable difference is that he had a bald head with hair that only grows from the back, which he has lost his hair overtime, allegedly due to stress where he was always being called as "Baldy" by Alexia Midgar.

By the time Alpha finished explaining the main ingredients for making the Tears of Diablos and revealed his true affiliation, Nelson eyes are glowing red in a flash.

As Archbishop's official, he wears a neat appearance wearing a long-sleeved white shirt with brown and gold accents, a white collared robe with light blue and gold accents, white gloves, gray trousers, and a pair of shoes. He also wears accessories in the form of a red diamond ring.

During his battle against Alpha and Delta, his clothes have not changed in the novel/manga version, but in the anime, he is dressed in something like a body suit during battle.

Personality
"You will regret baring your fangs against the Cult."

- Nelson, to Shadow Garden

To the public, Nelson presented himself as a humble and benevolent archbishop who takes joy in his duties. However, there are times when his true personality came to the service as he shown to be acted arrogantly and arbitrarily when he did everything to cover up his crimes. Even with cruelty he did not hesitate to order several paladins, even the hero Olivier to kill his enemy. He was also shown to be perverse, easily giving up vital intelligence when Beta seduced him with her body as he took an opportunity to ogle at her chest.

Like many high-ranking members of the cult, Nelson is a delusional psychopath completely convinced of his invincibility. When pushed into a corner, however, he underwent a villainous breakdown, repeatedly trying to justify to himself why he was losing.

In the anime, Nelson gives the impression of a hard-working person, such as complaining at every opportunity and being confused by Alpha's behavior when she tries to retreated during the battle. He also possessed a severe superiority complex, claiming to have gone bald from the stress of having to deal with his "idiotic" comrades and being forced to work because of his immortality.

Background
Nelson was the original member "Knights of Rounds" of the Cult, around the time since Diabolos about 1000 years ago, and at that time he was involved as a scientist in researching demonic possession and Diabolos' left arm, and eventually was in charge of inventing the production of the "Tears of Diabolos" creation research and their derivatives, since the establishment of the Cult.

Nelson was a 11th Seat Knight of Rounds from the Cult of Diablos, also named himself as the Avaricious. Every year, he takes a drop of "Tears of Diablos" to maintain his strength and immortality. Nelson and his faction operate in the Lindwurm. Even though he is immortal, some parts of his body continue to age, namely hair loss due to stress as he was surrounded by idiots who made him do all the work since he has immortal body. Ten years ago, He has a subordinate called Venom the Executioner (possibly after he called Olivier when the "Goddess's Trial" event).

Nelson under the Cult's order tasked Venom to kill the Archbishop Drake when dark rumors regarding him reached the royal capital. In order to erase evidence from Princess Alexia and the Crimson Order before they arrived in Holy City Lindwurm to investigate him, Nelson was appointed as the acting Archbishop to host the "Goddess's Trial" event. Nelson then tries to dismiss Princess Alexia from investigating, explaining that she was there to investigate the previous archbishop's death, to which he replied that the church will be handling the investigation and she will need to be reapproved to conduct an investigation on the issue as Nelson already send the letter to the king Klaus Midgar.

Sanctuary Infiltration
Nelson hosted the "Goddess's Trial" until the last challenger is a student from Midgar Royal Spellsword Academy, Cid Kagenō was called out. When the student was called out Shadow appeared out of nowhere much to the audience's surprise. Nelson ordered his men to gather the Church’s Paladin to surround Shadow, before he was shocked that he didn't activate any summons and saw the figure of ancient warrior known as Aurora, the Witch of Calamity. Initially condescending, he was seduced by the writer Natsume Kafka's voluptuous figure into briefing her and the princesses about the witch and that Shadow was unfortunate to summon her as she is the most powerful witch in all of history. Shadow and Aurora only faced each other until they started clashing blades, as the Archbishop remarked that Shadow has no chances of winning while the three front row guests analyzed otherwise. As the battle went on, Nelson grew impatient and demanded that the witch end it until Shadow closed in the distance and pulled off the upset with ease. Nelson in shock and irk tried to order his men to capture him when the barrier breaks and a magic door suddenly appears in the middle of the arena.

He became startled and wondered if the magic door responded to Shadow and that he was worthy enough to pass through the Sanctuary. As the door starts opening, he gives orders to evacuate the citizens and canceled the trial. Nelson then tries to order Alexia and the rest leave however, Shadow Garden member led by Alpha appeared and asked the princesses to not do anything until the door is closed and then enters the door. Epsilon had taken down the Archbishop's guards and stated he will be coming with them inside the gate, but he refused and calls his guard Venom to kill the prideful elf. This attempt in resisting failed as Venom was cut down with her asking the witnesses if they saw anything to which they responded that they did not see anything before apprehending the Archbishop. Taking the Archbishop to the sanctuary, the princesses would soon follow on their own accord.

The group followed Alpha as she explains that the Sanctuary is the place where the hero Olivier cut the Diablos left arm and sealed it in Lindwurm. They've come to learn more about the Cult and its goal but knowing that Nelson refuses to talk, they decide to see for themselves as Alpha pointed out that the statue of the hero Olivier resembled more of a woman. Surprising the girls, Alpha even showed her face, which is the same as Olivier to them. Nelson then realized she was a possessed and that she supposed to be dead due to her incompatibility with the disease. The blonde elven stated they know the truth behind the Three Heroes and the Demon Possession, from which the Cult wanted to maintain the situation under their control, even suspecting that the Cult's goal isn't just reviving the demon and stated they should proceed to see for themselves by exploring the Hero Olivier's memories.

Nelson pretended to follow the group, luring them into the Sanctuary Center defense system as the group explored the facility and arrived at the center, knowing that the Cult's true objective is to create Tears of Diablos which grants extraordinary strength and immortality with its main ingredient being Diablo's cells cultivated from the demon's body and the hero's descendants blood. Nelson then confirmed every Alpha's guesses until she exposed his true affiliation as the 11th Seat Knight of Rounds, which he confirms by stating that he is Nelson the "Avaricious" and ambushed them into groups. As Nelson faces Alpha and Delta, he multiplies himself by making copies and stated that they will fell regret for baring their fangs against the "Cult".

Delta started by easily slaughtering down the Archbishop's copies, but felt something was wrong as he explained that the closer they are to the center of the Sanctuary, the more of their power is drained. Alpha added that at the same time the closer is Nelson to the center, the more he gains power. Nelson hoped to get them even closer, but decided that this is far enough to be able to defeat them. Even though Delta was being drained of power, she still obliterated his copies which shocked Archbishop as the memory starts to break. He was surprised that over hundred of his copies has been erased, which Alpha retorted that even if he was able to create a hundred copies, they still all share one brain and he couldn't have controlled them that well. He called for Olivier to come and join him, but at the same time the Epsilon's group join Alpha and reported the investigation is finished and that they can leave. He was surprised that they were running away, but Alpha explained their objective was to cut off the source of power and now know how the Sanctuary defenses work so they can outmaneuver them the next time they infiltrate one.

As Alpha and the rest leave, Nelson pondered on what to say on the reports to the rest of the Rounds and guessed he will explain to them that he lured them to the Sanctuary in order to expose their identities and with Alpha's blood they can perfect their experiments. Before he leaves, the defense system alerted that someone is in the Sanctuary's center, which he decide to personally deal with the intruder along with Olivier.

He went to the Sanctuary's center and confronted two figures, Aurora and the boy (unbeknownst to him that the boy is Shadow). He ordered Olivier to plunge at them and the boy goes to face her, even knowing that she is quite strong. Olivier skewered the boy, making Nelson order Olivier to finish the boy off until Aurora then jumps in and pleaded to stop, knowing that no human can defeat Olivier and told the boy that he has done enough. Nelson laughed at her, remarking that without magic she can't do anything, but if she agrees to help him, he will spare the boy. But, the boy survived and interrupted them, rebuking that he doesn't need help and they shouldn't assume he'll lose. Irked, he ordered Olivier to kill the boy for good and she lunges at him. However, the boy tanked the hit while grabbing her and biting her neck, ripping it and defeating her.

He questioned on how the boy is still alive after being skewered and the boy explains that it was easy to survive a stabbing as long as the vital organs and arteries are protected. Much to his surprised to see that Olivier being defeated by a kid with no magic. Still, he states that she was just a copy and with his amount of magic he has the Sanctuary's center, he summons countless copies of Olivier. Several of them attack the boy until he opens his right eye and defeats them using his magic, much to his surprised that the boy is able to use magic as the boy explains that he just tempered with the magic until it was too solid to be absorbed which took him some time, but simple.

Nelson was in denial when he heard boy's explanation about the method and orders the Olivier copies to kill him. The boy fought them while his wounds continues to bleed. He decides to take out all copies at the same time and start casting his ultimate spell "I Am the All-Range Atomic". One of the Olivier copies stabs him in the heart before he finishes the spell. However, the boy is unaffected and finishes his spell and unleashed the explosion to which disintegrated everything inside the Sanctuary taking alongside the Holy Sword and Nelson along with it.

Legacy
While the Cult of Diablos did not care about Nelson's death, the destruction of the Sanctuary posed a severe problem to them. Particularly, this event further deepened their antagonism toward Shadow Garden, using their authority and influence over the Midgar Kingdom's government from the shadows to place even more notoriety on them.

Despite their best efforts, the Cult was unable to cover up the Sanctuary's existence due to Shadow's "I AM ATOMIC" having blown the facility open for the entire public to see. Alexia Midgar also requested her older sister, Iris, to open up an investigation into the Holy Church due to Nelson's involvement with the Cult. However, she revealed that she already tried but was shot down by their father, king Klaus Midgar by told both princesses not do anything.

While the Cult would normally just choose another replacement for the 11th Seat position, they became worried that the Sanctuary's destruction would impact their production of Tears of Diablos. They thus opted to postpone the elections for the vacant 11th and 12th Seats until the confirmation of how many drops could be produced this year.

Eventually, the Cult indeed ran out of Tears. This prompted the 5th Seat of the Knights of Rounds, Fenrir, to attempt to resupply the Cult by retrieving Diablos' right arm, which was sealed underneath Midgar Royal Spellsword Academy. To release the limb, he kidnapped students and intended to use them as sacrifices but was thwarted by Shadow. Afterward, the arm was taken by Zeta and fused with Claire Kagenō, bringing it out of the Cult's reach.

Powers & Abilities
Despite only being the 11th Seat of the Knights of Rounds due to being the inventor of the Tears of Diablos, Nelson was still stronger than the average swordsman. His fighting style seemed to consist of him making multiple copies of himself to overwhelm his opponents through raw numbers by exploiting the Sanctuary functions. As acting Archbishop, Nelson held great influence within the Church and had the right to command the Paladin.

Physical Prowess
Nelson's physical abilities are quite weak since he used to be a researcher, not a warrior. His combat power is no more than that of an ordinary magic swordsman, rendering him too useless to be ever able to participate in a fight. So, Nelson only relies too much on his cloning skill coupled with the power of Sanctuary, although he can still fight with his longsword.

Regenerative Ability
Nelson was able to acquire this ability because consuming many Tears of Diablos for centuries. When Nelson’s cheek is torn by Delta's attack with her fangs, he seems unconcerned as he wipes the blood from his face as the wound from the attack has already healed.

Swordsmanship
Nelson's swordsmanship is mediocre. This was shown when he used his clone ability, Nelson and his clones were capable enough to swing his longsword to fight against Alpha and Delta.

Equipment
Nelson wields a longsword that is about the same height as his shoulders.

Magic Cloning
Nelson can create replicas of himself or another. However, due to the limit of his brain power, he cannot control multiple clones very effectively. These clones are weak when they were easily cut down by Delta.

Sanctuary Power
By using the Sanctuary power which absorbs the magical power of intruders and converts it into its power, Nelson can fight when he enters the defense system creating numerous duplicates of itself and Olivier to fight against two of the Seven Shadows, Alpha and Delta, including Shadow himself. However, their natural power which is supposed to be restrained and shouldn't have been able to control or manipulate their magic is no match for the Sanctuary's restrictive conditions system.

Memory Recall
Nelson who is a member of the Cult of Diablos has an access code to summon Three Heroes. He summons Olivier to fight Alpha and Delta, which in the end they retreat due to the Epsilon team's investigation being completed and uses the power of Sanctuary to summon the incalculable number of Oliviers to eliminate Shadow.

Enemy Detection
Using the sanctuary's abilities, Nelson can detect intruders within the area.

Fenrir
Fellow Round Knight member, the martial fanatic does not seem to respect the former researcher like other members of the Round Knights.

Petos
Fellow Round Knight member, their interactions is yet to be expanded upon. However, the two are after Diablos' tears and specialize in research as they target anyone with possession symptoms.

Venom
Direct subordinate and servant. After losing to Olivier 10 years prior, Venom at an unspecified time started working for the Archbishop. When Midgar received word regarding Drake, Nelson ordered Venom alongside other assailants the death of the former Archbishop. Their relationship came to an end when the Executioner would fall by hands of Epsilon when the Archbishop tried to resist capture.

Olivier
One of the Three Heroes responsible for sealing Diablos, Nelson alongside the Cult of Diablos only has control over a projected memory of her within the Sanctuary. The replica in question was merely a puppet at the Nelson's with no will of its own and performed such as being summoned as a challenge at the Goddess' Trial and protect the Sanctuary from intruders. This was until Shadow obliterated the two alongside the Holy Sword that was used to sever Diablos' left arm and the Sanctuary.

Aurora
Being an original member of the Cult, the Archbishop was aware of her existence and capabilities in the battlefield. This was demonstrated during the briefing before Shadow and Aurora fought. He firmly believed that she will easily win but grew impatient as the battle went on, demanding that the Witch end it before being defeated in one strike. However within the Sanctuary unlike Olivier, neither the Cult nor Round knight seemed to have control over the fragmented memory of Aurora possibly due one of her body parts being alleged to be sealed within the area. When Cid appeared to have been mortally wounded, the Witch pleaded to the Archbishop to stop with his response being that she is useless without magic before agreeing to stop under the conditions that she will help him. This was all for naught when Shadow obliterated the Sanctuary, freeing the fragmented Witch in the process.

Shadow
At first, Nelson thought that Cid was a nobody who was fooled by Aurora into helping her. He did considered sparring the boy before being irritated by his rude attitude and tried ordering Olivier to kill him. Then, he cried out in horror when Cid revealed his magical capabilities and defeated Olivier while bypassing the Sanctuary's effects. He was killed by Cid's "I Am the All-Range Atomic!", Obliterating the Sanctuary and the Holy Sword that was once used by Olivier alongside it.

Alpha
Despite being aware of her attempted disposal, Nelson was shocked to learn the blonde elven's survival and resemblance to her ancestor Olivier. When the Archbishop tried to set her squad up into an ambush, Alpha saw through it and left Delta to handle him. The two opposing sides fought to a standstill until Epsilon reported to her superior of the mission's success and left.

Delta
Underestimating the therianthrope, Nelson was horrified of her overwhelming strength as she mindlessly slaughtered countless copies of him despite having the Sanctuary activate its effects. The onslaught continued until Alpha ordered her to stop to which she frightenedly obeyed.

Epsilon
Nelson tried to resist capture when she approached him and became one of few people to be aware of her fake slime suit as a result. The prideful elf asked if he saw anything to which he responded that he did not see anything in hopes of saving skin.

Natsume Kafka
Fellow host and spectator, Nelson was unaware of the writer's true identity and was seduced by her voluptuous figure into revealing information regarding Aurora when Shadow fought her. When the venue was raided by members of Shadow Garden led by Alpha, he did not care as much when the writer was being held "hostage" as he only tried to save his own skin.

Alexia Midgar
Lead investigator of Drake's case and fellow host; Nelson was a person of interest as he actively avoided all attempts of investigating, irking the princess that she will need to be reapproved to conduct case within their jurisdiction and that the Church will handle it. Unlike the arrogant Archbishop, Alexia was able to analyze the battle between Shadow and Aurora and confidently conclude that Shadow will win the bout. The long string of avoidance came to an end when the Door of Welcoming activated and he was apprehended in connection. Alexia and Rose decided to follow suit in their own accord soon after.

Rose Oriana
Fellow host, Nelson was unaware that the Oriana princess was a possessed in connection to the King's involvement with the Cult. However, upon being apprehended by Shadow Garden, Rose alongside Alexia followed them into the Sanctuary to look for answers regarding the recent events that has happen to them. Soon after the Sanctuary became defunct, the remaining hosts of the Goddess' trial formed an alliance out of powerlessness and being left in the dark regarding important information.

Trivia

 * He is the only Cult's Knights of Rounds member to learns Alpha's identity as Olivier's descendant and Shadow's true identity, although he never noticed it.