Rondo

Rondo
Current Residence	Maple Island
Gender	Male
Race	Anima
Affiliations	Explorer Sugar Tess Olive The Goddess of Maple World
Enemies	Black Wings Black Mage
Status	Alive
Name (Other Servers)
KoreaMS	론도 (Rondo)
JapanMS	ロンド (Rondo)
Voice Actors
GlobalMS	Lucien Dodge
KoreaMS	Seongtae Park

Rondo is an Anima thief and a friend of the Explorer.

Story (Post-Remaster)

Note: Rondo's storyline was remastered under the KMS story team's new continuity in the Destiny Update.

The Explorer

Rondo was an orphan from Maple World who grew up without knowing his family. Because of this, he had no idea why he was born with his Anima ears or where his people came from, and so he decided to become an Explorer in the hopes of finding others like him.

Rondo traveled to Maple Island and boarded The Sangri-La, where he met four others hoping to become Explorers: a girl named Olive who hoped to become a bowman, a boy named Tess who wanted to become a pirate, a girl named Sugar who wanted to become a magician, and a Beginner who had hesitantly come along with Sugar. After arriving at Victoria Island, the five went their separate ways and Rondo went to Kerning City in order to become a thief.

The Jewel Thief

Soon after, Rondo received a note that contained an announcement for all Explorers that Olive was wanted for stealing an important treasure of Victoria Island - a jewel known as the Seal Stone of Victoria Island. Rondo tracked down Olive to Ereve, where he found her talking to the Explorer. Rondo immediately apprehended Olive, despite her claim that she was innocent.

Recovering the Seal Stone

Soon after, the Explorer discovered evidence that the jewel thief was actually a Black Wings officer named Baroq the Master of Disguise. Rondo, along with Tess, Sugar, Olive, and the Explorer, were sent to Edelstein in order to infiltrate the Verne Mine and recover it from the Black Wings.

At the entrance to the Verne Mine, Sugar told them that they would need to disguise themselves as Black Wings members in order to enter the mine. After obtaining a hat from a passing Xenon, the group decided that the Explorer and Rondo would enter the mine together. While the Explorer used the hat to disguise themselves, Rondo used his Dark Sight skill to hide in the shadows.

Inside the mine, the Explorer and Rondo encountered two rooms and wondered which was the right one. Rondo told the Explorer to close their eyes, after which he took off his hat and used his fox Anima ears to listen and determine the right room. Inside, they found the Seal Stone of Victoria Island and a note from Baroq written to Eleanor explaining that he was leaving the Seal Stone in her room.

Laughing at Baroq's stupidity at leaving such an important object unguarded, the Explorer and Rondo took the Seal Stone and the note and returned to the others. Outside, Rondo gave the note to Olive and told her that she could use it as proof that Baroq had impersonated her for his mission. Sugar then opened a Mystic Door to the Bowman Instructional School, where they gave the Seal Stone to Athena Pierce.

The Black Shadow

After the Explorer inadvertently freed the Black Mage from his seal, the Black Mage sent his shadow to lay waste to Maple Island. As the black flames ravaged the land, Rondo and the other Explorers rushed back and regrouped. The Explorer realized that the shadow had something to do with the Black Mage and explained to the others about what had happened with the seal.

Tess immediately blamed the Explorer for having unleashed the Black Mage, but the others jumped to their defense. They then realized that they could use the Seal Stone of Victoria Island in order to restore the broken land, just as Athena had mentioned. Tess took the Seal Stone in order to try using it, but he was unable to make it work.

As they wondered why the Black Mage had attacked Maple Island instead of a larger target, Tess accused the Explorer of having deliberately freed the Black Mage, claiming that it was too convenient of a story that the Explorer was the only one who could enter the Gate of the Present, with the seal breaking immediately after someone entered it for the first time in centuries. As Olive and Rondo began bickering with Tess, the Explorer told them to stop, admitting that it was all their fault. They then gave the Seal Stone to Tess and decided to leave with the refugees, believing that they didn't have what it took to be an Explorer.

As Olive attempted to change the Explorer's mind while they walked away, Rondo and Tess rushed over to call them back, explaining that the black shadow was heading to the Maple Tree where Sugar was. They were shocked to find Sugar slowly dying as the Maple Tree burned down, with the Black Mage's Shadow towering over her.

Seeing Sugar still believing in them, despite her knowing that they wanted to run away, the Explorer felt powerful determination awaken within them. Their determination allowed them to tap into a portion of the Adversary's power contained within their maple leaf, with which they defeated the Black Mage's Shadow. The Explorer then told Tess to hand over the Seal Stone, with which they restored Maple Island.

Following the incident, Tess apologized to the Explorer for the way that he had treated them throughout their journey. The four of them then agreed to make Maple Island their hometown, even though Explorers were meant to be wanderers.

Finding the Anima

After hearing stories about the Interdimensional Portal, Rondo believed that he may be able to learn more about his people in Grandis. He traveled to the Six Path Crossway, where he attempted to cross through the portal when the Explorer ran into him. The Explorer decided to scare him as a prank, causing his hat to fall off his head, revealing his Anima ears.

The Explorer then helped pick up Rondo's fallen hat and listened as Rondo explained that he was an orphan, and so he had no idea why he had been born with his ears. He told them that he had decided to become an Explorer in order to find others like him, although he had realized that the only animal ears that he had seen on people were all decorations. Suspecting that he was from a different world, he explained that he was trying to use the Interdimensional Portal in order to visit Grandis and find his people.

The Explorer decided to accompany him and the two traveled to Pantheon, where they asked Cartalion about people with fox ears. Cartalion told them that the Anima had animal features, although many of them had gone into hiding after the High Flora had declared war on the other species of Grandis. He explained that Pantheon was perhaps the safest place on Grandis, as the Nova relics protected them after they had been forced to flee their capital of Heliseum.

Rondo asked where the Anima refugees had fled, but Cartalion told them that he had no idea, as the Nova had rarely crossed paths with the Anima even before the war. Rondo suggested venturing out to old Anima villages, but Cartalion told him that it was too dangerous outside the Protective Shield.

To prove his point, Cartalion escorted Rondo and the Explorer to the border, where they found themselves overwhelmed by the Specters. Realizing that he stood no chance at his current strength, Rondo decided to become stronger in order to find his people and thanked the Explorer for accompanying him and keeping his secret. Rondo told the Explorer that he planned to stay in Grandis for a while and told them that they could return to Maple World.

The Heroes of Maple

Some time after the Black Mage's attack, Athena called the four Explorers to the Bowman Instructional School. She explained that she wanted them to meet the Heroes in order to consult with them, as the ones who had originally sealed the Black Mage might have knowledge on what to do now that he had returned. Rondo volunteered to speak with Phantom, a fellow thief.

Black Heaven

Before the Black Heaven operation, the Explorer met with Tess, Olive, and Rondo on Maple Tree Hill in order to catch up. They told the Explorer that as space was limited on the Lumiere, they wouldn't be able to come and fight alongside them. However, the Explorer promised to fight harder on their behalf and received buffs from each of them.

Aftermath

After the defeat of the Black Mage, Rondo reunited with the Explorer, Tess, and Olive on Maple Island. Just as they all wished that Sugar could reunite with them one last time, Sugar herself popped out of the Maple Tree. Sugar greeted the Explorer and told them that it had been a while since they had met in her current form. Tess and the others then decided to give Sugar and the Explorer some time to catch up.

Story (Pre-Remaster)

The Explorer

Rondo was an orphan from Maple World who grew up without knowing his family. Because of this, he had no idea why he was born with his Anima ears or where his people came from, and so he decided to become an Explorer in the hopes of finding others like him.

Rondo traveled to Maple Island and boarded The Sangri-La, where he met four others - Olive, Tess, Sugar, and an Explorer. After arriving at Victoria Island, the five went their separate ways and met with their job instructors.

Finding the Anima

Note: This section only takes place if the player is an Explorer Magician.

While training around Victoria Island, the Explorer ran into Rondo at the Six Path Crossway and noticed that he was trying to convince himself to enter the Interdimensional Portal. The Explorer tapped on Rondo's shoulder in order to get his attention, but when he didn't notice, they tapped him a bit harder, accidentally knocking his hat off. Rondo yelled at the Explorer, fervently trying to cover up his furry ears. He then made the Explorer go look for his hat so that he could blend in with humans.

The Explorer went to speak with Luke, a Victoria Guard, and asked if he had seen any hats. Luke showed them three hats and asked them to pick the one they were looking for. Rondo revealed that he had been born with his furry ears, but as he was an orphan, he couldn't ask his parents about his origins. He explained that he had hoped to find others like himself by becoming an Explorer, but as he hadn't had any luck in Maple World, he was planning to use the Interdimensional Portal in order to search for his people in Grandis. As the Explorer had gotten dust on his hat, Rondo explained that they were indebted to help him and took them with him into the Interdimensional Portal.

In Pantheon, they asked Cartalion whether there were any people with animal ears in Grandis. Cartalion explained that the Anima possessed animal characteristics, but added that the war had displaced many of them from their homes. Rondo asked where he could find the Anima, to which Cartalion replied that he didn't know, as the Nova had never been too close with the Anima.

Rondo then asked where the Anima used to live, hoping to find clues of their whereabouts, but Cartalion explained that the trip would be too dangerous, as the land outside Pantheon was filled with enemies. When Rondo and the Explorer insisted, Cartalion agreed to escort them to the border in order to show them how dangerous it was.

Outside Pantheon, Rondo and the Explorer were faced with waves of Specters, forcing them to retreat. Rondo accepted that he was currently too weak, but he swore to become stronger and find his people. He told the Explorer that he would stay in Grandis for a while, but added that they were free to return to Maple World, adding that he was grateful for their help.

The Jewel Thief

Note: This section only takes place if the player is an Explorer Warrior or an Explorer Magician.

Soon after, the Seal Stone of Nihal Desert was stolen while being transported to Henesys. After it was discovered that the culprit was Olive, Rondo was sent by the Dark Lord to capture her in Ereve. There, Rondo discovered Olive speaking with the Explorer. Rondo immediately attempted to apprehend Olive, who insistently claimed that she was innocent and told the Explorer to speak with Neinheart about the Master of Disguise.

The Explorer then spoke with Neinheart, who told them that the Master of Disguise had once infiltrated the city, though a certain Knight had managed to stop him. He then wrote a lengthy letter to explain all he knew about the Master of Disguise and gave it to the Explorer to deliver to Athena Pierce. After reading the letter, Athena realized that Baroq had likely disguised himself as Olive and thanked the Explorer for uncovering the truth.

The Seal Stone of Nihal Desert

Some time later, Baroq the Master of Disguise was tracked down to the Holy Ground at the Snowfield, where Sugar, Tess, Olive, Rondo, and the Explorer were dispatched to recover the Seal Stone of Nihal Desert. After touching the Holy Stone, the five Explorers were transported to another dimension, where they heard two voices speaking. As none of them could properly hear what they were saying, Rondo had no choice but to remove his hat and use his Anima ears to hone in on the conversation.

He overheard Baroq telling Hiver that he had been told that there was a Seal Stone hidden in the pocket dimension, though he couldn't find any traces of it. He began complaining that the executives needed to get their facts straight and wondered why they even needed the Seal Stones in the first place. Hiver replied that it was above their pay grade to know and asked if Baroq still had the Seal Stone from their last mission, reminding him that Orchid would dock his pay if he didn't bring it to her soon.

After Hiver left, Sugar used a powerful attack to destroy a large stone blocking their way. The Explorers then confronted Baroq, who used his powers to attack the group. Sugar pushed the Explorer out of the way, allowing them to dodge Baroq's spell that teleported the other four Explorers back to Victoria Island. After the Explorer defeated Baroq and recovered the Seal Stone, they returned back to the Bowman Instructional School, where they reunited with Rondo.

Though Athena was happy that the Seal Stone had been recovered, she wondered why the Black Wings wanted them so badly. Rondo told her what he had overheard, and Athena was interested to know that even the middle management of the Black Wings had no idea what the Seal Stones were for. She thanked the Explorers for their help and told them that she would let them know of any other leads.

The Black Shadow

After the Explorer inadvertently freed the Black Mage from his seal, the Black Mage sent his shadow to lay waste to Maple Island. As fire ravaged the land, Sugar sent a distress call to Rondo and told him that Maple Island was in trouble. Rondo and the others came in response to Sugar's distress call, where they were shocked to find Maple Island in flames. The Explorer filled them in on what had happened with the Black Mage's seal and his attack on Maple Island. Rondo was surprised that the Black Mage was real, as he had thought that the Black Mage was a story used to scare orphans like himself.

Olive was both disturbed and bemused that the Black Mage had destroyed the island out of petty revenge for the Explorer not obeying him. However, Tess believed that his other reason for destroying Maple Island was to intimidate the Explorers, who all started their journey on the island, though he was confused why the Black Mage hadn't destroyed the island entirely, as new Explorers could still arrive and get to Maple World.

The Heroes of Maple

Sugar then reminded them that their first priority was still to save Maple Island. Tess recalled the story that Athena Pierce had told them about the Seal Stones, explaining that their original purpose was to restore ruined continents. They then wondered whether they could use the Seal Stone of Nihal Desert in order to save Maple Island.

However, they were unsure of how the Seal Stone could be used in the first place. Tess reasoned that Athena didn't know either, or else she would have used it to help them. He decided that they would need to ask the Heroes, as they were the original creators of the Seal Stones. After the five Explorers met the Heroes, they compiled together what they had learned from the Heroes and summarized it.

First, there were multiple Seal Stones, but they were limited in power to the area they were created for, which meant that Maple Island would need its own Seal Stone. However, Olive pointed out that there was no Seal Stone for Maple Island, as it hadn't existed when the Heroes had made the Seal Stones. As they couldn't think of any other options, Tess suggested that they take a break, since everyone was exhausted.

Saving Maple Island

Soon after, Tess, Olive, and Rondo discovered the Black Mage's Shadow at the outskirts of Amherst. When Sugar and the Explorer arrived, they told the pair that they had been trying to fight the shadow, but that their attacks seemed to have no effect. The Explorer charged in to attack the shadow, but found that they were dealing no damage to it either.

The shadow then raised its hand to launch a powerful attack on the Explorer. Just as it fired, Sugar used her powers to protect the Explorer from harm. Following her lead, the others also lent their powers to the Explorer. Because of their support, the Explorer felt much stronger, though they realized that it still wasn't enough.

Just then, they felt another power surging up inside them. From their Explorer Book, the Maple Leaf that they had kept inside shot out and transformed into the Seal Stone of Maple Island. Simultaneously, the Goddess of Maple World appeared and bestowed her blessing upon the Explorer. Empowered by the collective strength of their friends and the Goddess, the Explorer fought the Black Mage's Shadow once again and was able to defeat it for good.

After defeating the shadow, the Goddess thanked the Explorer for saving Maple Island and explained that she had been watching them throughout their journey through Sugar, her avatar. Though the Goddess' energy had been infused into the Maple Tree over time, as she had no physical body, she had sent Sugar after sensing something ominous brewing in Maple World. She then thanked them for saving both Maple Island and Maple World.

However, the Explorer pointed out that Maple Island was still in ruins. The Goddess told them not to worry, pointing out that their collective determination had been poured into the Maple Leaf, transforming it into the Seal Stone of Maple Island, just as the Heroes had done centuries ago. She explained that in order to restore Maple Island, they needed to channel their desire in the same way they had done to create the Seal Stone.

The Explorers poured all their hope for a rebuilt Maple Island into the Seal Stone, triggering its divine power to restore their home. With that, both the Seal Stone and the Goddess disappeared. The Explorers all congratulated each other on a job well done. Rondo asked Sugar if she would return back to the Maple Tree, since the island was saved, but Sugar replied that she would stay for a while until things settled down. With that, they exchanged their goodbyes and promised to stay in touch, even as they all went their separate ways once again.

Black Heaven

Before the Black Heaven operation, the Explorer met with Sugar, Tess, Olive, and Rondo on Maple Tree Hill in order to catch up. They told the Explorer that, as space was limited on the Lumiere, they wouldn't be able to come and fight alongside them. However, the Explorer promised to fight harder on their behalf and received buffs from each of them, just like when they had saved Maple Island.

Aftermath

At Maple Tree Hill, the Explorer met with Tess, Olive, Rondo, and Sugar. As the avatar of the Goddess of Maple World, Sugar thanked the Explorer for saving Maple World and apologized for leaving them with such a heavy burden. Olive asked Sugar if she would disappear, since the Black Mage had been defeated. Sugar told them that she had fully expected to return back to the Maple Tree, but her continued presence meant that there was still more for her to do in order to ensure Maple World's safety.

The Goddess of Maple World then manifested before them and explained that Maple World had not yet reached harmony, as a destructive Transcendent still threatened both Maple World and the Other World. However, she told them that, just as a simple Maple Leaf had defeated the Black Mage, so too would the determination of the people protect Maple World, adding that her blessing would always be with them.

After she vanished, Sugar told them that she was glad to know that she would remain with them, though her continued presence signified that the world was still in danger. Olive, Tess, and Rondo headed out to prepare for the next big adventure, leaving the Explorer and Sugar alone. Sugar told them that they had been through a lot together and showed them past memories of all that they had accomplished. The two then made a promise to meet again one day with the others under the Maple Tree.

NPC

Maple Island

Rondo
Location	Cutscenes

Bowman Instructional School (Explorer Quest)

Rondo
Location	Bowman Instructional School

Six Path Crossway (Explorer Quest)

Rondo
Quests involved	[Explorer] Rondo's Hat [Explorer] The Truth Beneath the Hat
Location	Six Path Crossway

Mine Entrance (Explorer Quest)

Rondo
Quests involved	[Explorer] Infiltrate
Location	Mine Entrance

Power Plant Lobby (Explorer Quest)

Rondo
Quests involved	[Explorer] Retrieving the Seal Stone
Location	Power Plant Lobby

Pantheon (Explorer Quest)

Rondo
Quests involved	[Explorer] The Fox-Eared People
Location	Pantheon

Gallery

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  NPC Portrait of Rondo
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  NPC Portrait of Rondo
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  NPC Portrait of Rondo
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  NPC Portrait of Rondo
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  NPC Portrait of Rondo
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  NPC Portrait of Rondo
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  NPC Portrait of Rondo
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  NPC Portrait of Rondo
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  Pre-Destiny Rondo NPC sprite (Beginner)
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  Pre-Destiny Rondo NPC sprite (Magician)
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  Pre-Destiny Rondo NPC sprite (Magician)
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  Pre-Destiny Rondo NPC sprite (Thief)
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  Pre-Destiny Rondo NPC sprite (Thief)
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  Pre-Destiny Rondo NPC sprite (Thief)
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  Pre-Destiny Rondo NPC sprite (Thief)
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  Pre-Destiny Rondo NPC sprite (Thief)
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  Pre-Destiny Rondo NPC sprite (Thief)
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  Pre-Destiny Rondo NPC sprite (Thief)

Trivia

• In the original RED Explorer storyline, the Explorers would choose their job around what the player chooses, such that there is one member of each branch in the group. Rondo will choose to be a magician by default, although he will become a thief if the player chooses to be either a warrior or a magician.
• Just like how the names of the five Heroes spell out MAPLE (Mercedes, Aran, Phantom, Luminous, Evan), the names of the five Explorers spell out STORY (Sugar, Tess, Olive, Rondo, and You - the player).