#wahn

A. What Is Wahn?

Well, we can safely guess that Wahn isn’t just a soldier in the royal army—he’s a palace guard.

We can also speculate that he was probably the guard on duty when Raya infiltrated the palace to steal the dragon scroll, by incapacitating him and using his key to get inside (much like Noi and the Ongis). Being sent on the dangerous task of chasing the thief through Druun-infested lands would have been the punishment for failing his duty.

Supposing the above, we can explain the harshness of Namaari’s reaction when he suggests that they forget about Raya and the scroll. Instead of making up for his failure by capturing the thief and recovering what was stolen, he’s trying to shorten his punishment by convincing Namaari to abandon their mission.

What’s worse is that he’s still displaying the complacency and negligence that led to his failure to guard the gate and prevent the theft. He doesn’t even see that retrieving the scroll isn’t what’s truly at stake. Because what makes their mission worth the risk is keeping Fang safe by determining what Raya’s up to and neutralizing any threat may she pose by capturing her.

B. Why Is Namaari So Angry?

It’s important to note that chasing Raya is manifestly a threat response for Namaari. Twice, she fiercely demands to know what Raya’s up to, why she’s stealing gem pieces. To Virana, she worriedly insists that Raya shouldn’t be underestimated and must be stopped.

So first, Namaari shows anger, especially when Raya evades her. Then, safely at home and to her trusted mother, she reveals a more vulnerable underlying emotion—fear.

Yet Raya doesn’t seem to have done anything so very threatening. She did successfully infiltrate Fang, but only to steal a scroll that's not useful for anything. Stealing the gem pieces is more concerning, but it’s not like they do anything other than repelling the Druun (and Fang is well-protected from the Druun by water).

Virana (who’s all about keeping Fang safe) certainly isn’t very worried about what Raya's up to. She advises Namaari not to make emotional decisions, implying that her need to stop Raya is irrational. And Namaari, unable to offer evidence to the contrary, pivots her argument to the benefits of gaining more gem pieces, in order to convince Virana to lend her the royal army.

Then why is Namaari so afraid? Why does she view Raya as a threat that must be dealt with? Because she caused Raya so much harm and irreparable loss. Her attempt to take the dragon gem led to the breaking of Heart and the world. And Raya came back to life from presumed death, broke into Fang, and took what was used to lead her to treachery. And Namaari doesn’t know what this ghost risen from her past sins will do if not stopped. Guilt leads to fear and fear leads to anger.*

Namaari’s guilt is so deeply repressed that it mostly only surfaces in the form of fear and anger. And—rather than proving a lack of remorse—her treatment of Raya as a threat, her angry and fearful gestures of aggression, can be understood as the product of a deep and overwhelming sense of guilt that she’s unable to properly process or express.

(*That’s not to say that Namaari’s psychology can be reduced to this simple formula. There's more going on, like how the problem of scapegoating factors into her aggressive defensiveness. And the pull of shared connection and attraction, of course, which complicates things even more.

To dig a bit deeper, I refer you to an article by an actual psychologist: “Anger: How We Transfer Feelings of Guilt, Hurt, and Fear.” Applying this article’s insight to Namaari’s case, we can also explain her anger as a psychological defense used to distance herself from distressing experiences such as feeling afraid, powerless, accused, guilty, ashamed, untrustworthy, unloveable, etc.)

C. Back to Wahn

Let’s wrap up this discussion by counting the buttons that Wahn manages to push:

1. “the Tail lands are infested with Druun” (Yes, an entire land has been destroyed by a plague caused by Namaari’s actions. Duly noted. Two down, three left.)

2. “Benja’s daughter is as good as stone” (Might as well have said, ‘lol Raya’s totally gonna die and, hey, remember how she lost her father thanks to you?’)

3. "useless dragon scroll” (Not that Namaari believes Sisu’s still out there, like some 12-year-old, but nobody likes to be reminded that there’s no way to fix the world they broke.)

4. Putting their safety before before their duty and mission. (A quality that Princess Selfless-Hero-Complex wouldn’t appreciate in her palace guard, especially one who failed at his job.)

5. Failing to treat a threat to Fang seriously. (See sections A & B.)