World Break: Aria of Curse for a Holy Swordsman

Plot

World Break: Aria of Curse for a Holy Swordsman takes place at a school named Akane Academy, where students with special powers and known as Saviors are trained to defend against monsters called Metaphysicals, which brutally and indiscriminately attack humans. Saviors, divided into Shirogane (White Iron) and Kuroma (Black Magic), are the reincarnations of talented individuals who possess awakened memories of their past lives. Shirogane manifest weapons and martial techniques while Kuroma manifest magic for defense purposes.

The story follows main protagonist, Moroha Haimura, who is unique in that he has awakened memories of two past lives: Flaga, a swordmaster and prince of a small country, and Shu Saura, a magician and King of the Netherworld. This gives Moroha the abilities of both a Shirogane and Kuroma. At the academy he meets Satsuki, a boisterous girl who is very boastful and brash and who was Sarasha, Flaga's sister, in her past life; and Shizuno, a calm and levelheaded girl, who was Shu Saura's wife. With his unique abilities he joins the Striker Unit, Akane Academy's team of elite Saviors.

Moroha's plans for a peaceful school life go up in flames when Satsuki and Shizuno begin to vie for his attention and matters only get worse when Metaphysicals start appearing.

Characters

Main characters

Moroha Haimura (灰村 諸葉, Haimura Moroha)

Voiced by: Kaito Ishikawa (Japanese); Clifford Chapin (English)

A dependable yet easily embarrassed individual, Moroha lives with the inherited memories of two past lives: the Shirogane named Flaga and the Kuroma named Shu Saura. This dual legacy makes him both a Shirogane and a Kuroma, collectively known as an Ancient Dragon. He wields the straight katana Saratiga, which he augments with the dark art Black Gehenna to form the Yin Yang Kurikara. His other abilities include the water-manipulating Ouroboros and the prana-enhancing Gorikitsu. An immensely powerful Metaphysical known as the Ancient Dragon curses Moroha, having hunted his and his companions' previous incarnations across lifetimes.

Satsuki Ranjō (嵐城 サツキ, Ranjō Satsuki)

Voiced by: Ayana Taketatsu (Japanese); Felecia Angelle (English)

A boisterous and often boastful classmate of Moroha and Shizuno, Satsuki is a Shirogane and a princess in her previous incarnation as Sarasha. She is determined to renew her past bond with Moroha. Frequent moves to evade Metaphysicals made forming friendships difficult, a situation compounded by her generally condescending demeanor. Despite this, she readily assists others and skillfully prepares Moroha's meals. As a Savior, she wields the materialized short sword "Acieal", can detect Metaphysicals, and eventually manifests the protective armor Kongoutsu. In her past life, Sarasha was killed by an ancient dragon.

Shizuno Urushibara (漆原 静乃, Urushibara Shizuno)

Voiced by: Aoi Yūki (Japanese); Jad Saxton (English)

Shizuno is calm and levelheaded girl who is classmates with Moroha and Satsuki. She is a Kuroma whose previous incarnation was the Witch of the Netherworld, and she uses dark arts by chanting spells and channeling them through her staff. Her dark arts seem to focus on freezing and ice spells, including "Dreadful Blizzard". In her past life, she was in a relationship with Shu Saura, Moroha's other past life. She is brazen with her feelings towards Moroha to the point that she doesn't mind kissing him in public, especially in front of Satsuki. Her elder brother is the president of the school, and who nominated her for inclusion in the Strikers, where she serves as a reserve. Shizuno was born into an affluent family of utmost influence; however belonging to such a family is burdensome for her; their high expectations make her feel shackled and her only means of escape is by sleeping and dreaming about her past life with Shu Saura. She and Satsuki are rivals for Moroha's affections although they can put aside their differences when the situation demands. In her past life as the "Witch of the Netherworld", the ancient dragon turned her to ice by using her own ice spell against her.

Striker Unit

Jin Ishurugi (石動 迅, Isurugi Jin)

Voiced by: Yuichi Nakamura (Japanese); Garret Storms (English)

A third-year student who is the Captain of the school's elite anti-Metaphysical fighters called the Swords of Salvation. He is a Shirogane whose weapon is "Naivete", a long and heavy broadsword. He recruits Moroha after he defeats his younger brother. He also recruits Shizuno as a reserves upon her elder brother's recommendation. He later recruits Satsuki after she confronts a dreadnought-type Metaphysical despite being at a disadvantage. Jin admires Moroha's courage and, even though he is a senior, is willing to learn from him.

Tokiko Kanzaki (神崎登紀子, Kanzaki Tokiko)

Voiced by: Yu Kobayashi (Japanese); Trina Nishimura (English)

Tokiko is a third-year student and vice captain of the Swords of Salvation. She is a Kuroma who specializes in fire spells like "Incinerator." She is a brash pervert who makes sexual advances at anyone who catches her interest, regardless of gender. She seems particularly taken with Moroha and has pinched his rear end, straddled him, and even hugged him with his head in her cleavage. She tends to get so carried away with her sexual fantasies about Moroha that Jin has to step in to restrain her.

Sophie Mertesacker (ソフィア・メルテザッカー, Sofī Merutezakkā)

Voiced by: Machico (Japanese); Alexis Tipton (English)

Sophie is a third-year student hailing from the United States and a Shirogane member of the Swords of Salvation. She tends to intersperse her speech with English words and phrases. Her weapon resembles a two-headed Kanabo.

Six Heads

Sir Edward Lampard (サー・エドワード・ランパード, Sā Edowādo Ranpādo)

Voiced by: Wataru Hatano (Japanese); Seth Magill (English)

The United Kingdom's executive of the Six Heads. He takes a liking towards Moroha after he is nearly defeated by him, nicknaming him "Jack", since Moroha is full of surprises like a Jack-in-the-Box. He seems to dislike Natto.

Vasilisa Yuryevna Mostvaya (ヴァシリーサ・ユーリエヴナ・モストヴァヤ, Vashirīsa Yūrievuna Mosutovaya)

Voiced by: Fumi Morisawa (Japanese); Lydia Mackay (English)

Russia's executive of the Six Heads. She is known as the Lightning Empress/Russian Terror or Terror Empress. She uses her powers to manipulate people into serving her, and then executes them when she deems them as being no longer useful.

Charles Saint-Germain (シャルル・サン＝ジェルマン, Sharuru San Jeruma)

Voiced by: Takehito Koyasu (Japanese); Eric Vale (English)

France's executive of the Six Heads.

Ando Suruga (駿河 安東, Suruga Andō)

Voiced by: Akira Ishida (Japanese); Joel McDonald (English)

Japan's executive of the Six Heads. He feels pain when Metaphysicals appear.

Lu Zhixin (ルー・ヂーシン, Rū Djīshin)

Voiced by: Hikaru Midorikawa (Japanese); Christopher Bevins (English)

China's executive of the Six Heads.

Other characters

Mari Shimon (マリシモン, Marishimon)

Voiced by: Yuko Minaguchi (Japanese); Heather Walker (English)

The Principal of Akane Academy and Maya's older sister. (Note: According to the Anime News Network, her name is Mari Yotsukado. She may, therefore, be Maya's older cousin rather than her sister or even not related to her at all (since it is customary in Japan to refer to females not too much older than oneself as 'older sister').)

Angela Johnson (アンジェラ·ジョンソン, Anjera Jonson)

Voiced by: Chiaki Omigawa (Japanese); Morgan Garrett (English)

Nicknamed AJ, she is Edward's maid and has deep affection for him. She later accompanies Moroha in his war against the Russian branch.

Takenaka (竹中, Takenaka)

Voiced by: Orion Pitts

He is friends with Mohoroha and Shizuno.

Media

Light novels

The first light novel volume was published on November 15, 2012, by SB Creative under their GA Bunko imprint. The series ended with its 22nd volume on June 14, 2018.

Manga

A manga was serialized in Kadokawa Shoten's seinen manga magazine Comp Ace from June 2014 to February 2016 and was collected in four tankōbon volumes.

Anime

A 12-episode anime television series adaptation by Diomedéa aired between January 12 and March 30, 2015. The opening theme is "Hi no Ito Rinne no Gemini" (緋ノ糸輪廻ノGEMINI), composed by Katakura Mikiya and performed by Petit Milady (Aoi Yūki and Ayana Taketatsu), and the ending theme is ""Magna Idea" (マグナ・イデア, Maguna Idea), performed by Fortuna (Aoi Yūki, Ayana Taketatsu, Maaya Uchida and Yui Ogura).

The anime series has been licensed for streaming by Funimation and Crunchyroll.

Reception

The first episode of the anime series received negative assessments in the Winter 2015 season previews from Anime News Network critics. Rebecca Silverman noted the premise showed initial promise and was not as poor as other seasonal offerings, but she ultimately found it generic due to weak storytelling and stereotypical harem characters that resulted in a lackluster experience. Theron Martin was interested in the fantasy concept used to frame the harem elements but was put off by repetitive humor, average production quality, and sexist dialogue. Nick Creamer strongly criticized the episode's reliance on common harem tropes, including bodily humor and sexist elements that he described as reflective of a worldview that treats women as unknowable prizes. Zac Bertschy characterized the adaptation as generic and flavorless, criticizing its direction, female cast, and character designs as zero-effort junk. Silverman later reviewed the complete series in 2016. While she acknowledged that the characters Moroha and Shizuno possessed more depth than typical harem archetypes, she criticized the series for its inefficient storytelling, underdeveloped characters, and insufficient world-building. She concluded that unless a viewer was in desperate need of a new magic school narrative, the series could be safely skipped.