Kaoru Kashiwagi

柏木（かしわぎ）　薫（かおる） Kaoru Kashiwagi ka̠ɕiɰᵝa̠ɡ̃i ka̠o̞ɾ̠ɯᵝ
Kaoru in Brilliant Pagoda or Haze Castle
Character Titles
Dense Fog Standing in the Imperial City
Information
Species	Human
Abilities	Manipulating miasma
Occupation	Captain of the Goefu
Location	Devanagara
Music Themes
死に至る絢爛　～ Toxic gem (BPoHC)
Appearances
Brilliant Pagoda or Haze Castle Stage 4 Brilliant Boss Possible Stage 5+ Midboss

Kaoru Kashiwagi (柏木　薫) is the captain of the "Goefu", an imperial defendant force of Devanagara. They are the Stage 4 boss on the Brilliant route of Brilliant Pagoda or Haze Castle.

General Information

Personality

They have utmost confidence in their skills, and holds great pride in the Goefu. They speak loudly and flamboyantly, to the point of sounding as if they're acting out a role in a play. They are quick to anger if they or the Goefu are insulted or mocked, and their leading rank makes them strict to uphold their code. They also seem insistent to take the lead in conversations.

Abilities

Manipulating miasma

Kaoru can spontaneously emit clouds of thick fog, in an array of different colors and chemicals. Their mists can be used passively (covering Devanagara in red fog during a state of emergency) and aggressively (poisoning enemies in battle).

Background Information

Name & Origin

Their full name is Kaoru Kashiwagi (柏木　薫). Their first name Kaoru (薫) can literally mean "aroma", "fragrance", "scent" or "smell", and their surname Kashiwagi (柏木) literally means "oak-tree". The name "Kaoru" also has the trait of being a common Japanese name that's also gender-neutral.

Their name and concept are also based from The Tale of Genji (源氏物語, Genji Monogatari). The main character's wife has an affair with his nephew, named Kashiwagi. She then birthed a son, and named him Kaoru. It was said that Kaoru always had a pleasant aroma.

Design

Kaoru has light blue hair and eyes and is dressed in the Sokutai (束帯) attire, commonly used by courtiers to the Emperor, and was traditionally worn by the members of the Emonfu (衛門府), which Kaoru is a part of. Their uniform is dark blue in color, which would indicate that they rank around 23 to 26 out of 30 official ranks, or 45 to 52 out of 60 ranks. The hirao (平緒), the strip of cloth in the middle of their uniform, features a design based on the Gorintō (五輪塔), a Japanese type of Buddhist pagoda in which the shapes represent the Five Elements as mentioned in Buddhism; they are from bottom to top: Cube for earth, Sphere for water, Pyramid for fire, Hemisphere for air and Jewel for ether. Their hat is similar to an eboshi (烏帽子), which were hats typically worn as formal wear by men during the Heian period; the hat features a logo of the Pagoda of the Heavenly Mirror, one of the capital's symbols. They wield in their left hand a jitte (十手), a weapon commonly used by police in the Edo period, and a bow in their right hand, carrying a quiver of arrows on their back.

Appearances

Brilliant Pagoda or Haze Castle

Kaoru appears as the stage 4 boss of Brilliant Pagoda or Haze Castle on the Brilliant route, where they attempt to stop the protagonists from entering the capital and pushing the frontline further into Devanagara territory.

• They attack the Preschool Team in an attempt to recruit Tenkai Zuifeng as the emperor's retainer.
• They attack the New Emperor Team in an attempt to capture Taira no Fumikado, who is a wanted refugee in the capital.

Kaoru is also responsible for the red mist seen across Devanagara in stage 5, a sign that leaving the capital was forbidden at the time.

Relationships

Fujiwara no Shirogane no Sanra

Despite them both being in military service, it's implied that Kaoru and Sanra have low opinions of each other. Sanra belittles the Goefu frequently and ultimately sees them as useless, to the dismay and frustration of Kaoru.

Ooama no Ake no Mitori

Although they take issue with their budget being cut, they still serve Mitori loyally. However, this could simply be because they're unable to do anything about it.

Suzumi Kuzu

Kaoru is particularly disliked by Suzumi, to the point where not only did Ardey almost told Hamee to kill Kaoru before they rewind with Trace, but they had to be much more hard towards Hamee to avoid getting Kaoru killed as suggested by the dialogue in the secret team's Brilliant scenario.

Additional Information

• Kaoru once released a fog that glowed in rainbow colors in celebration of Christmas. This however, upset the residents of Devanagara and Kaoru ended up getting their salary cut.

Spell Cards

Spell Cards

Name	Translated	Comments	Games	Stage
Total: 11
連射「毒霧の蛇」	Rapid Fire "Snake of Toxic Fog"		BPoHC	St. 4: E/N
速射「ヘラクレスの矢」	Quick Fire "Heracles' Arrows"		BPoHC	St. 4: H/U
毒矢「瘴気の矢」	Poison Arrow "Miasma Arrows"		BPoHC	St. 4: E/N
毒霧「毒蛇の息」	Poison Fog "Poison Viper's Breath"		BPoHC	St. 4: H
毒夢「ヒュドラの血」	Poison Dream "The Hydra's Blood"		BPoHC	St. 4: U
侵風「猛毒の風」	Eroding Wind "Wind of Lethal Poison"		BPoHC	St. 4: E/N
熱風「シムーン」	Heated Wind "Simoom"		BPoHC	St. 4: H/U
毒牌「ケミカルアロー」	Poison Card "Chemical Arrow"		BPoHC	St. 4: E/N
侵牌「バイオアロー」	Erosion Card "Bio Arrow"		BPoHC	St. 4: H
「血狼煙」	"Bloody Signal Flare"		BPoHC	St. 4: U
瘴気弾	Miasma Bullets		BPoHC	Upgrade

Notes

Official Profiles

Brilliant Pagoda or Haze Castle - Official Profiles

帝都に佇む濃霧 柏木　薫 Kashiwagi Kaoru ●種族 ヒト ●能力 瘴気を操る 　　　　的な能力 帝の身辺や都の警護の任に当たっている 【五衛府】の長である衛門督。 しかし実際のところは新帝が 「朕の警護などに無駄な兵力を割く必要はない」 と布告を発し、さらに 都の警備は皇御軍が取り仕切るようになってからは 予算が大幅に削減され、 今となっては規模として たかが知れてる組織になってたりする。 組織解体はなんとしてでも防ぐ為に、 薫は今日も警備をがんばっている ちなみに五衛府は皇御軍からは"マネキン" と呼ばれ揶揄されている

Dense Fog Standing in the Imperial City Kaoru Kashiwagi ●Species: Human ●Abilities: Something like manipulating miasma The Emon no Kami (captain) of the "Goefu" (Five Palace Guards), tasked with guarding both the emperor and the capital. However, in actuality, the new emperor made a proclamation saying "there's no need to expend excess military resources just for Our personal safety," and on top of that, the Imperial Military also took over defense of the city. The Goefu's budget was thus massively cut back, and now they don't amount to much as an organization beyond being a name that people know of. Kaoru works hard at patrolling the city every day, in the hopes of preventing the organization from being dismantled altogether. Incidentally, the Goefu are often ridiculed by the Imperial Military, who call them mere "mannequins".

Official Sources

Official sources

• 2016/12/01 Brilliant Pagoda or Haze Castle - Official Profiles, Brilliant Stage 4 Boss