Maria Renard


Castlevania: Dracula X
Castlevania: Symphony of the Night
She's in the catacombs of Stage 4 behind a locked door
She shows up several times to confront Alucard. (Note: In the Sega Saturn version, she also acts as a boss)

Maria Renard was the younger sister of Annet Renard, Richter Belmont's girlfriend, and served as a strong presence in their lives. The young Maria, though naive, was fiery, determined and driven by her belief in people and ultimate good. Too, she was gifted with great magical powers--hers the power of nature, an unexplainable connection to animals and a deep understanding of their ecology.

So when Dracula sought to gain leverage over Richter Belmont by ordering his dark forces to ravage Warakiya and kidnap those close to Richter's heart, it was no surprise that Maria was among their many targets. Not even her youthful appearance was a good enough cover--Shaft, in testing her soul against his wicked magic, came to grasp the extent of her power and just how great a threat such a being could be to the master, Count Dracula.

Maria was hauled off to a chamber within Castlevania's main halls, where Shaft would conduct his dark experiments. Richter arrived in time to break Shaft's spell and thus rescue the tenacious Maria, who was more than prepared to accompany him for the rest of the adventure--until, she insisted, Dracula's eventual defeat. (Mainly, in Rondo of Blood, she becomes a playable character after this rescue. Note, though, that in the Castlevania: Dracula X version of the story, she's instead captive in the catacombs and is only there to be rescued. For continuity's sake, we'll stick with Rondo's as the true story.)

Five years later, and one year after Richter disappeared suddenly, it was Maria that set out to look for him. She entered into the recently re-risen and beckoning Castlevania only to run into Alucard, to whom she took a strong liking. While herself unsuccessful in finding Richter, she offered her assistance to Alucard and played a crucial role in the half-breed's campaign to solve the mystery; most notably, she offered him the holy glasses that helped him to discover that Richter Belmont was alive and well and under the still-dwelling Shaft's control. (In the Saturn version, Alucard must immobilize Maria during battle in order to win her ultimate trust and thus the holy glasses.)

After the defeat of Shaft, and later Dracula, Alucard escaped the castle to find Richter and Maria waiting. When Alucard revealed that it was necessary to purge from this world his own cursed bloodline, the smitten Maria wasn't ready to let him get away even if logic would not permit it; releasing Maria from her state of confused emotions were Richter's encouraging words, which gave her the strength to chase after him.

          

 
 
Next Character