The Duke

The Duke was the village's resident merchant for years. He is an obese person with a jolly personality, his Emporium littered with supplies and bedecked with garlic to fend off vampiric monsters. His motives are often purely profit-driven, as he is willing to do business with anyone in the village, including Lady Alcina Dimitrescu, as he had a station inside her castle.[1] Despite this, he has occasionally granted favors to several villagers; he brought old newspapers to Ernest upon request so that he could read about goings-on of the outside world, despite it being forbidden by Mother Miranda.[2] He also seems to know the Merchant.[3]

As the game's merchant, he sells Ethan weapons, supplies, upgrades, and blueprints to craft supplies on the go. He will also buy valuable treasures from Ethan for Lei, and provide boosts by preparing special dishes from meat, poultry, and seafood Ethan brings him.

Despite his human façade, he seems to have an omnipresent, omniscient, and immortal nature. He is able to move his cart around quite quickly, and is conveniently present in several locations whenever Ethan needs him. He has extensive knowledge of the village and its history, as well as the true nature and plans of Mother Miranda and the Lords despite not being physically present. He supplies valuable information integral to Ethan's journey, and serves as something of a guide to him. He is also unaffected if Ethan fires weapons or attacks him in any way.

The first thing that catches the eye is his incredible obesity, which, however, does not prevent him from appearing in places where, at first glance, he would not be able to crawl. Also, his height is definitely greater than the height of an ordinary person. Even in a sitting position in a room in Dimitrescu Castle, he is taller than Ethan. It is noticeable that he is dressed unkemptly, and his clothes are clearly not his size. He wears a blue vest, under which there is a gray shirt. His hair is light, neatly styled, medium length. Throughout the game, his appearance does not change in any way. He knows French, behaves calmly and kindly, communicates politely and conducts a conversation on an equal footing, is not devoid of a sense of humor, constantly smokes a cigar. He has culinary skills, as well as basic knowledge of weapon assembly.

The Duke loves gourmet food. His speech suggests that he is a man of the upper class. However, he is not arrogant. He is an art and ancient relics connoisseur. Although in some moments he prefers to express himself in hints, when necessary he speaks directly, even if it can offend a person (an example is telling Ethan that Rosemary was divided into parts and stored in flasks, which infuriates the protagonist). Although throughout the game he states that his interest in the protagonist is strictly commercial, in the finale he hints that he was still interested in the destruction of Miranda's mother and her offspring. Despite his appearance, he shows attention to the female sex, in particular to Lady Dimitrescu, making a rather interesting comment towards her crystallized body. Each of his appearances is hung with garlic, which may mean that he is afraid of vampires.

Despite his human form, the Duke seems to be omnipresent, omniscient, and immortal. He moves his carriage quite quickly and is always in the places where Ethan needs him. He knows a suspicious amount about the village, its history, Miranda's mother's plans and her true nature, as well as the nature of the four lords. In this way, he helps Ethan quite a bit on his "journey", providing valuable information and serving as a guide of sorts.