#epelfacts

Epel adores Leona, saying, “He’s everything I wish I could be.”

Epel says Leona has it all: “rugged good looks, a cool attitude and he’s a quick thinker…Leona’s a caring kind of guy,” but admits that he does not know how Leona acts with others outside of the Spelldrive club.

Epel is, at first, the only character who is worried when Leona disappears during Vargas Camp.

Epel says that he prefers “cool, strong animals like tigers and leopards,” so he might also have a thing for large cats.

During Spectral Soiree, a possess Epel “boops” Leona on the nose, saying, “When you make a scary face like that, all your happiness escapes!”

Epel is quick to follow Leona’s instructions during the event, saying that complaining won’t make things any better, “but the upside is that Leona pays close attention to all the club members…I’m sure if he’s having us hunt for fragments, it’s because he knows we can do it.”

Epel walks bodily into Leona in a vignette but Leona does not react. While an unnamed Pomefiore student wants to intervene Rook explains, “A king knows how to be magnanimous.

Leona joins Master Chef because Epel signs up first. When a ghost calls Leona out for having Epel fetch his ingredients Leona explains, “Epel’s less likely to screw anything up, since he’s got experience.” Epel is unsurprised, saying, “that’s pretty normal for Leona.”

Epel says that he might even be able to outdo Vil one day, if he keeps up his potionology studies.

Epel seems to know a lot about plants in general: he is able to find, recognize and utilize a medicinal herb during the Harveston event and he and Ruggie lead the charge against the firelotuses by weeding them during Glorious Masquerade. 

After Malleus clears the area around them of the plants with his magic it is Epel who realizes what actually happened, comparing Malleus’ attack to fertilizer burn and earning praise from Rook and Trein.

Epel has a line about wanting to learn about plant-growth potions and offers to give some starter seedlings to the prefect.

Epel says he used to "grow lots of different things to eat back home" and offers to check in on the prefect's plants: "I wouldn't want them shriveling to nothing!"

In a vignette with Crewel he accidentally knocks over a vial of lanternblossom nectar and is assigned the intentionally impossible task of harvesting an amount of nectar in two months that would normally take three years.

Refusing to give in to what he describes as a “hazing ritual” by Crewel and wanting to earn recognition, Epel manages to go above and beyond his assignment by combining what he learned in class with his farm experience and making his own fertilizer.

(Crewel is pleased with Epel’s success, calling him a good boy and saying that he has finally made it into the same kennel as all the other dogs: “Keep it up and leave your sneering classmates in the dust where they belong.”)

After Vil promotes Epel’s family’s apple juice Epel returns to Pomefiore with a newfound understanding, confessing that he has always looked down on people who care about their appearances, but after Vil’s support made his village happy, he now wants power like Vil’s.

(Epel looking down on people when they enjoy things he doesn't understand comes up again during Halloween: he first disparages waltzing, and then admits he was jealous of the fun everyone else was having.)

(Vil’s relationship to Epel’s apple juice seems to evolve alongside his relationship with Epel: When offered it for the first time Vil does not seem to drink it, saying, “Perhaps if the mood strikes me.” At the end of Book 6 when Epel offers it again, Vil accepts it immediately.)

Vil responds, “You were fortunate enough to be born with the weapon called ‘charm.’ Whether you sharpen that weapon into something useful or let it rust away is up to you.” 

Epel declares that he is going to keep getting more powerful, enough to beat both Neige and Vil himself.

(At first it seems that Epel interprets Vil’s words more literally than maybe Vil had intended: when Epel and Deuce are attacked on the beach he initially charms the bullies to convince them to let him go, only to headbutt one in the jaw. Deuce reacts with, “I don’t think your cuteness is supposed to be used for fighting!”)

By the day of the competition Epel says that he is ready to win, with Jamil commenting on how Epel has finally come around. 

After Vil’s overblot Epel throws his “people grow out of temper tantrums by the time they’re three” comment back at him, to the prefect’s surprise, but Vil agrees with him and apologizes.

Epel asks for Vil’s permission to take the center spot on stage, saying that he does not want to see Vil embarrass himself in front of an audience. Epel says, “I’ve kept my agreement with you. I’ve grown way stronger and more charming than when I first enrolled...I’ll take Neige down,” but Vil refuses his offer, saying that he expects Epel to captivate the hearts of the audience.

Epel’s actual favorite food is barbecue, but as he is under order by Vil to choose something more befitting their noble dorm, he typically lies and says that he likes macarons.

This comes up during Epel's first birthday vignette when he gushes over the deliciousness of grilled meat for several sentences only to claim that he actually likes macarons more.

He seems to be fairly adept at protecting the secret, receiving macarons from Sebek and saying, “I couldn’t finish them all, so we ate them together. Thanks to him, they tasted better than they usually do.”

Food tasting better with friends may be a theme with Epel, who has a similar line during the White Rabbit Festival: "Enjoying good food with good friends makes everything taste even more delicious!"

The lie puts Epel in an uncomfortable situation during the Glorious Masquerade event when Epel is less than pleased to be presented with macarons in front of Azul, who is surprised when Epel’s reaction does not align with the intel he has received.

(Azul is possibly referencing a registry of information on all of the underclassmen that he received from Jade that included home countries, hobbies, tastes, least favorite foods, worst subjects and Magicam accounts.)

In the original game Epel references Vil in a card groovy, two lessons lines and his "spell level up" dialogue, as a carryover to their shared history and feud from Epel's first day at school (as seen in Book 5).

On EN, every reference to Vil has been changed to Crowley.

Epel has at least two lines about not being a very good dancer.

Epel also has a line about how he does not like people touching him, and how he agrees that people should express themselves, but he is too easily embarrassed.

Vil and Epel meet for the first time before the school’s opening ceremonies have even begun, with Epel deciding that he is going to leave an impression on his new schoolmates via violence in order to make sure that he doesn’t get bullied like he was back home. 

Vil orders Epel to button up the collar of his robes immediately upon meeting him, while Epel’s first impression of Vil is of a feeble, girly person that he wants nothing to do with.

Vil compliments Epel’s physical beauty once he gets a closer look at him and Epel takes immediate offense, calling Vil weak and girly to his face (in a line that was rewritten for EN).

It seems that in the world of Twst Epel’s beauty may rival Vil’s: during Halloween, campus visitors see him and talk about having discovered the next top model.

Vil tells Epel, “The way you dress, the way you act…even the way you think is utterly devoid of any sensibility” and Epel challenges him to a fight, which Epel promptly loses.

Vil explains, “in this school, the rule is that the weak obey the strong…since you lost, you will do as I say.” Epel fears that Vil is going to take his money or make him into an errand boy, but instead Vil orders him to button up his robes, righten his belt, comb his hair and speak more politely (in a line that was rewritten on EN, but goes much deeper than simply a change in accent.)

Epel explains that he has never beaten Vil once despite challenging him every day, and has been stuck doing what he says since, as Vil has said Epel can only act as he wishes once he is capable of taking him in a fight.

Vil’s orders include but are not limited to table manners, speech patterns, participating in Film Club activities, wiping down windows, wearing a frilly shirt with his school uniform and tying his necktie in a bow, not getting into fights, fixing his posture, reading a book a week, becoming strong, and stretching properly.

When he learns about Vargas Camp Epel responds, “No matter how bad Coach Vargas gets, he can’t be more demanding than Vil.”

Vil also has Epel carve an apple for him so that he can “try one at its most beautiful.”

Vil does not seem to be above corporal punishment, tugging on Epel’s ear, pulling at his hair, smacking him in the back and gripping onto his head to emphasize his points.

We see Sebek and Epel meet for possibly the first time in a vignette where Sebek sits next to Epel in the cafeteria due to the lack of available seating.

Epel is carving an apple into a bird at the time, which impresses Sebek extremely.

He asks what other things Epel can carve and Epel is initially reluctant but he acquiesces after Sebek calls his carving a fascinating art, saying that he also has a personal interest in them.

Epel carves a rose, a castle and a poison apple for Sebek, who asks to receive the poison apple carving as a gift, saying, “I can’t reiterate enough how in awe I am of your skill.”

Epel explains that he taught himself how to carve in order to help his family sell bruised or damaged fruit, and though he cut his fingers more time than he can count and his family laughed at him, he persevered.

Sebek says that it has been a pleasure to hear about, as he has learned that Epel’s ambition is on par with his skill, and Epel offers to make him more carvings the next time he receives a shipment of apples from home.

Epel says he received macarons from Sebek for his birthday and they ate them together: “Thanks to him, they tasted better than they usually do.”

Epel invites Sebek to his hometown after Grim tells him to ask the first person he sees, calling out to Sebek on Epel’s behalf. Sebek initially refuses the invitation to participate in the sled race, saying that he has no interest in a race that serves as a “mere festival sideshow.”

Epel proceeds to use various tactics to change Sebek’s mind: Finally Epel asks, “If only there were a skilled athlete at this school who was equally strong with magic. Someone who was the very definition of brawny” (with light and sparkles).

Sebek declares that such an athlete is right here and Epel whispers, “Yesss! It worked!”

While Jade and Idia encourage setting up pitfalls on the race course to sabotage their opponents, Epel and Sebek join forces against them, saying, “I saw we beat ‘em fair and square...otherwise it won’t feel right!"Jade and Idia respond, “You freshmen are so dull—ah, I mean, diligent” and “Such arbitrary ‘morals’.”

Sebek intentionally crashes into Epel’s sled during the race in order to see him from a falling tree, knocking himself off course and becoming lost.Epel, Idia and Jade save Sebek from an avalanche (that he caused by yelling Epel’s name) and Epel apologizes for causing him so much trouble, but Sebek declares that they are now even, as he was merely repaying epel for sewing up his torn plushie.

Epel has a voice line about Sebek looking “kinda cute” all bundled up against the cold.

Epel and Lilia overlap in a vignette where Lilia watches Epel get into a physical fight with bullies attempting to steal from him. Lilia intervenes when Epel starts losing the fight, despite Epel’s insistence that he does not need Lilia’s help.

Lilia briefly acts like he intends to steal Epel’s flowers instead, but then returns them.

Lilia then teaches Epel a few “Tiny Tactics”: tricks for winning fights against much larger opponents, though Epel says that his advice sounds “less than manly.”

Epel asks if it would be all right to go to Lilia for martial arts training and Lilia responds, “If I feel inclined, I may indulge you.”

This incident may be what leads to Epel gifting Lilia with a jacket that matches one of his own (with a tiger embroidered on it), while Epel gifts most other people with apple-based products.

Lilia is Epel’s interviewer for his third birthday vignette.

Epel is Lilia’s judge for Master Chef and is baffled by his dish being “not even close to what (he was) supposed to make!”

Lilia explains that he wasn’t interested in cooking until there was “a sudden addition” to his family, and he started going to great amounts of effort to prepare balanced meals. Epel apologizes for complaining.

He is shocked again once he actually tries the dish, and when Lilia volunteers to bake a banana cake as a token of apology, both Epel and Jade turn him down.