Aeri (Naerium) – Master Thief and Lost Princess in Five Broken Blades

Overview

Aeri Soo is a central figure in Mai Corland's Five Broken Blades – Verrat ist Pflicht. Introduced as a nimble thief with a talent for sleight of hand, she later emerges as the long‑lost daughter of King Joon, carrying the true name Naerium. Her arc weaves together the heist plot, a forbidden romance, and a painful choice between blood family and found family. Aeri possesses a time‑freezing amulet—stolen from a dead prince—that lets her stop the world around her, but every second she uses ages her disproportionately.

Plot role

Aeri is the “thief” of the five‑member assassination team. She recruits the strongman Royo in Umbra by offering a diamond worth thousands of gold mun, claiming she needs protection while stealing the king’s crown. In reality, the crown is made of Ätherum and makes King Joon mortal. Aeri’s role is to physically remove the crown during the Millennium Tournament, allowing the others to kill the god‑king. She also serves as the group’s moral anchor, often questioning the mission’s brutality, yet she commits fully because she hopes to win her father’s approval.

Motivations and traits shown through actions

Aeri’s driving motivation shifts across the story. Initially, she wants to prove herself to her father—King Joon—and earn a place in his royal household. She believes that stealing the crown will give her the security and belonging she never had. This explains her willingness to risk her life and conceal her identity from the team.

As the journey unfolds, Aeri’s actions reveal a deep longing for connection. She saves Royo from pirates using the amulet, shares warmth on a barren island, and later admits she “likes” him. At the villa in Aseyo, she refuses to abandon the group even when she could slip away. Her traits include resourcefulness (coaching Royo to win a rigged ring‑toss game), emotional resilience (hiding her anxiety behind a cheerful facade), and a strong survival instinct that sometimes borders on selfishness—she hesitates to jump overboard because she doesn’t want to leave her luggage.

Chronological arc

1. Recruitment in Umbra – Aeri meets Royo at the Black Shoe inn, proposes the crown heist, and leaves him a diamond as a down payment. She exudes confidence, yet worries alone in her room.

2. Journey and bonding – After pirate fire ships attack, Aeri uses the amulet to save herself and Royo, landing in a lifeboat. They grow closer during a freezing night on a sandbank and later during a fair in Rahway, where a near‑kiss is interrupted.

3. Meeting the conspiracy – In Rahway, Aeri formally joins the team of assassins. She demonstrates her thieving skill by stealing Prince Euyn’s hat while Royo juggles pomegranates.

4. Internal conflict – At Prince Dal’s villa, Aeri wrestles with her loyalty to her father versus her attachment to Royo and the group. She admits she feels like part of a family for the first time, but still plans to seek her father’s approval.

5. Climax – During the Millennium Tournament in the royal arena, Aeri uses the amulet to freeze time, snatch the Crown of Yusan from King Joon’s head, and hand it to Mikail. The act ages her more than a month.

6. Turning point – Just before the theft, Aeri internally decides to betray her father rather than her friends. She chooses Royo and the team, signaling a complete reversal of her original motive.

Relationships

• Royo: The most significant relationship. They start as employer‑bodyguard, develop mutual respect and physical attraction, and end with a fragile romantic bond. Royo’s stoicism contrasts Aeri’s openness; he warns her not to betray him, but she eventually chooses him over her blood father.

• Mikail: The master spy who recruited her. Aeri initially views him as a job contact, but after he tells her to run if things go wrong, she realizes he cares. He provides her with the diamond‑stealing opportunity.

• Sora: A fellow operative. Sora sees through Aeri’s lies in Capricia and later washes blood from her dress. Their bond is pragmatic but genuine—both are women forced into dangerous roles.

• Euyn and Tiyung: Euyn trusts Aeri’s skills after the hat trick; Tiyung saves her life in Oosant. She thanks him, and he becomes part of her growing sense of family.

• King Joon (father): The most painful relationship. Aeri wants his approval and a home, but in the arena she rejects him, realizing that family can be chosen rather than inherited.

Key decisions and consequences

Theme/symbol connections

Aeri embodies the novel’s central themes of betrayal and trust. She is the traitor who ultimately betrays her own father, yet her betrayal is framed as a choice of love over duty. Her amulet symbolizes the sacrifice that comes with power—each use costs years of her life. The physical aging mirrors her emotional maturation; she starts as a naive thief seeking approval and ends as a woman willing to lose everything for people who matter.

The crown’s Ätherum links to power and corruption: Joon uses it to rule immortally, while Aeri’s theft strips that power. Her arc also explores redemption—she redeems her earlier selfishness by sacrificing her royal future.

5 book‑specific questions and answers

1. What is Aeri’s true heritage, and when is it revealed?
Aeri is Naerium, the long‑lost daughter of King Joon of Yusan. The revelation comes late in the story, during her internal monologue in Chapter 78, where she decides to “betray her father” by stealing the crown instead of helping him.

2. How does Aeri’s time‑freezing amulet work, and what is its cost?
The amulet is a small glass bell that looks like a yellow gemstone. When held, time stops for everything except Aeri. The cost is accelerated aging: each second used ages her at a supernatural rate. By age nineteen she already looks twenty‑four.

3. Why does Aeri recruit Royo instead of working alone?
She needs physical protection on the dangerous journey to Tamneki. She also implies that she wants someone reliable at her side, and she is attracted to his strength and gentleness. Her deeper reason may be loneliness.

4. What does Aeri steal in the arena?
She steals the Crown of Yusan from King Joon’s head while time is frozen, then hands it to Mikail. This act makes the king mortal and allows the assassins to kill him.

5. Does Aeri ultimately choose her father or her found family?
She chooses her found family. During the arena scene, she internally resolves to “betray her father” and stay with Royo and the others, acknowledging that “these liars and murderers belong to me.”

For more analysis, explore the full book page, the ending explained, or our questions and answers section.