Balthazar Sham Ivam Draxi: The Reluctant Necromancer of The Devils
Overview
Balthazar Sham Ivam Draxi is a magician convicted of Black Art and held in the secret Chapel of the Holy Expediency. When Pope Benedicta I binds him with a simple red line on his wrist, he is forced to protect Princess Alexia and help install her as Empress of Troy. Over the course of the novel, Balthazar struggles against the binding, suffers repeated humiliations, and eventually summons a demon out of sheer desperation. His arc moves from arrogant defiance to reluctant cooperation, then to self-destructive rebellion, ending in a choice that reveals his deepest fear: irrelevance.
Plot Role and Chronological Arc
Balthazar first appears in Chapter 5 (A Flock of Black Sheep) as a naked prisoner in a Carthaginian cell. He loudly declares his name and prophesies vengeance. His imprisonment is the result of his magical crimes, and he is considered one of the "devils" kept by the Church for dangerous missions.
In Chapter 7 (The Start of a Bad Joke), the ten-year-old Pope performs a binding ritual that forces him to escort Princess Alexia to Troy. Balthazar tries to defy the binding and becomes violently sick, proving its potency.
During the ambush in Chapter 8 (Hold on to Something) and the inn fire in Chapter 10 (Wrath), the binding compels him to protect Alexia. In Chapter 10, he uses reanimated corpses—his trademark magic—to defeat a pyromancer, saving Alexia while groveling and complaining.
Later chapters show his repeated attempts to break the binding, all of which fail. In Chapter 43 (My Greed Is a Famine), despair drives him to summon the demon Shaxep, Duke of Beneath, at a standing stone circle—a reckless act that nearly destroys his companions.
By Chapter 63 (Evil Friends), the binding has shifted: he is now compelled to leave Alexia alone. The others choose to stay with her. Balthazar refuses at first, but Baron Rikard reveals he was never bound (as a soulless vampire) and chose to help anyway. Balthazar is left alone on the ship, stranded by his own stubbornness.
In Chapter 71 (All Bad Things), Balthazar is recaptured by Cardinal Zizka, manacled with rune-forged fetters, and thrown into a cage with the other survivors. He vows to escape using the secret of Lady Severa, but his fate remains unresolved.
Motivations and Personality Traits
Balthazar's primary motivation is freedom from the binding. He values his autonomy above all else. The narrative shows his pride through his insistence on his full name and his contempt for those he considers lesser (sorcerers, thieves, Baptiste). He is bookish and aloof, preferring intellectual over brute force.
He is also a survivalist. In Chapter 10, he grovels before the pyromancer, admitting he will "grovell when his life is on the line." Yet when cornered, he uses clever improvisation—reanimating corpses—to win. This combination of cowardice and cunning defines his character.
The text also suggests a deep insecurity beneath the arrogance. His obsessive efforts to break the binding stem not only from pride but from a terror of being a tool for others. When Baptiste calmly says "Of course you're not" going to help Alexia in Chapter 63, he feels it as a stinging dismissal.
Key Decisions and Consequences
Summoning Shaxep (Chapter 43): Balthazar summons a demon out of desperation. The immediate consequence is terror for his companions and a near-disaster. The demon binds him to further service. This decision reveals that he will risk everything—including the world—to regain control.
Refusing to follow Alexia (Chapter 63): After the binding changes, he chooses to stay on the ship. This leads to his isolation. The narrative implies that his refusal is less about principle and more about spite; he refuses because he was not asked.
Trying to break the binding (throughout): His repeated failures humiliate him and waste opportunities. The binding remains unbroken, suggesting that pride alone cannot overcome papal magic.
Relationships
Princess Alexia: Balthazar resents her. He calls her a "little weasel" and a "turd of a princess." Yet the binding forces him to protect her. Their relationship is one of mutual contempt. Alexia exploits his forced loyalty; he schemes to escape it.
Baptiste: She mocks him constantly, calling him a "dunce" and a "joke." Despite this, she tends his wounds and rebukes his self-pity. In Chapter 38, when Countess Jovanka assumes they are lovers, both deny it. The text hints at unacknowledged respect between them.
Baron Rikard: The vampire observes Balthazar's struggles with amusement. In Chapter 63, Rikard reveals he encouraged Balthazar's efforts to break the binding because he found them funny. This is a cold revelation: Balthazar's most private desperation was entertainment.
Sunny and Vigga: Balthazar has little direct interaction with the elf and werewolf. They are fellow prisoners, but he keeps aloof.
Themes and Symbolism
Binding as loss of agency: The red line on Balthazar's wrist is a physical symbol of his enslavement. It represents the theme of power and corruption—the Church using a devils to fight devils.
Nakedness and vulnerability: When first seen, Balthazar is naked. Stripped of his name's power and his clothes, he is reduced to a body in a cage. Later, retrieving a dead man's trousers (Chapter 33) marks the beginning of his slow restoration of dignity.
The demon as ultimate gamble: Summoning Shaxep is his most extreme act of rebellion. It mirrors the theme of survival and pragmatism—he chooses a worse master to escape a lesser one.
Failure vs. persistence: Balthazar never breaks the binding, but he never stops trying. This ties to redemption and guilt: his past crimes (Black Art) cannot be undone, but his repeated attempts suggest a longing for a different outcome.
Five Book-Specific Questions and Answers
Why does Balthazar protect Princess Alexia even though he hates her?
Pope Benedicta I placed a magical binding on him that forces him to protect Alexia and help her claim the Serpent Throne of Troy. When he tries to defy it, he becomes violently sick. The binding compels his actions regardless of his will.
What demon does Balthazar summon at the standing stones?
He summons Shaxep, Duke of Beneath, a demon with antlers of twenty-nine points, dripping with jewelry. The demon speaks of her greed as a famine and her envy as a plague. The summoning succeeds because the demon wanted to come.
Why does Baron Rikard help Alexia when he is not bound?
Rikard reveals in Chapter 63 that the binding does not affect him because he is a vampire and lacks a soul. He claims he needed something to do with his time; the text implies he simply chose to care, despite his undead nature.
How does Balthazar escape the pyromancer in the burning inn?
While groveling, he secretly reanimates two dead guardsmen and the upper half of a serving girl. He uses the corpses to grapple the sorceress while an undead innkeeper crushes her skull with a beer cask. He explains that dead bodies are his "strong suit."
What happens to Balthazar at the end of the novel?
In Chapter 71, Balthazar is captured by Cardinal Zizka and placed in rune-forged fetters. He is thrown into a cage with Baron Rikard, Sunny, and Vigga. He vows to escape using the secret of Lady Severa, but the novel ends with his fate unresolved.