- 「――剣の道は果てしない. 皆伝など通過点のひとつに過ぎぬであろ.」
"The path of the sword is endless, where succession is just another passing point." - —Laura's intro quote, Trails of Cold Steel III
"This body is thou ‘sword’ — That vow is expected."
Laura S. Arseid is a main character and a heroine of The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel tetralogy. A student of Thors's and member of Class VII, she is one of the main heroines and the daughter of Victor S. Arseid, also the heiress to the Arseid family.
Laura is a gifted swordswoman and is known as one of the strongest first years at Thors. While she may initially come across as stiff and formal, she is greatly respected by all of her peers for her fighting ability, and praised as a hero by many of the girls who grew up around her.
Profile
Appearance
Laura has long blue hair that she always keeps tied back in a ponytail. She wears the standard Thors Military Academy uniform in the first game.
In Trails of Cold Steel II, she wears a formal jacket, lengthy black socks, knee-high laced boots, shorts, various shirt layers with a button black vest.
Personality
Laura is known at the Academy for her pride, dignity and composure. She is not easily provoked, and tends to take everything in her stride, making it noteworthy when she is bothered by something.
She is single-mindedly determined to do everything in her power to become stronger. She views every new challenge and encounter as an opportunity for her to learn and become a better swordsman. She has a hard time accepting those she believes are not truly dedicated or trying hard enough. She values friends such as Rean, a fellow student of the sword, for the opportunity to grow as swordsmen together, and respects anyone who shows great strength.
Laura has a strong sense of duty as a noble, and a strong belief in the path of righteousness. She is often described by her classmates as like a "knight in shining armor". She can be a bit rigid in her beliefs, leading her to conflict with those who do not share her same ideals, such as Fie, who she has a hard time accepting due to her perception of Fie's past as immoral. However, she also shows an ability to move beyond her own prejudices, and has expressed shame in her own narrow-mindedness.
Due to her determination to become as strong as possible, and her upbringing as a noble, she can sometimes come across as overly formal and intimidating. However, this is not her intention, and she shows a willingness to teach and become friends with those weaker than her, such as Monica.
Character Bond
Character Profile
Laura S. Arseid is the noble daughter of the Arseid viscount family, a distinguished noble family known for their unmatched swordsmanship in the Empire. She learned the Arseid style at a young age, where she eventually enrolled into the prestigious Thors Military Academy becoming a member of Class VII. From that point she worked hard with Rean as someone also pursuing the way of the sword while deepening their friendship.
After the Erebonian Civil War and graduation from, she entered training with her father to inherit the succession for the school where she eventually mastered the style at the young age of 19, qualifying her as “assistant instructor”. She decided to travel to all the training grounds in order to further craft her skills.
During her journey, she notices the accelerating military preparations all over, and is looking for signs that Ouroboros has started to move once again within the Empire.
Trails of Cold Steel I
Year 1, Class VII Swimming Club
Daughter of the viscount who rules over Legram. Practitioner of the Areseid school, and the strongest first year.
- Lofty Goal: Laura seems to aspire to be like St. Sandlot, who fought valiantly during the War of the Lions 250 years ago.
- Mishy: She seems surprisingly taken by Mishy, the mascot character she spotted at the general store.
- Like Father...: Laura seems to have taken after her father, in both character and strength.
Trails of Cold Steel II
Year 1, Class VII Swimming Club
Daughter of the famous warrior Viscount Arseid. Always trying to pursue greater heights in swordsmanship.
- Trial: She sees the current situation as yet another trial she must overcome to become stronger, and intends to do so.
- Weakness: She isn't very used to working with machines and has a habit of pressing the wrong buttons and breaking things.
- Pride: Despite being mocked by Duvalie, Laura never lost her composure, and used their battle to improve her own skills.
Quotes
Trails of Cold Steel
- 「我が渾身の一撃、食らうがよい！奥義・洸刃乱舞！」
Behold, my most powerful strike! Radiant Blade Dance! - —Laura's S-Craft for Radiant Dance
Trails of Cold Steel II
- 「アルゼイドが秘剣、篤と見よ！奥義・洸刃乱舞」
Behold the might of the Arseid School! Radiant Blade Waltz! - —Laura's S-Craft for Radiant Waltz
- 「受けてみよ、我が全霊の奥義！せぃ！やぁ！とう！おおお…！吼えろ、獅子洸翔斬！」
Witness the fruits of my training. HOWL! Radiant Lion! - —Laura's S-Craft for Radiant Lion
Trivia
- She is a member of the Swimming Club at the Academy.
- Her bonding trophy in Trails of Cold Steel is called "Here With You To Knight".
- Her bonding trophy in Trails of Cold Steel II is called "Arseid School of Courtsmanship".
- She is often used as a cover girl or poster girl alongside Alisa Reinford and Fie Clausell.
- Laura's power and Fie's speed are commented as the "greatest combination".
- Laura takes a particular liking to a keychain of Dogi from the Ys series in Trista's general store during a bonding event. Interestingly, Dogi and Laura both have blue hair and are both the physical powerhouses of their respective series. This may imply Laura is attracted to built men.