Mm, something like that. Admittedly I'm not certain what Ansem's title was--he was just called Ansem the Wise. I don't know that he was royalty, but he was kind of like the mayor of Radiant Garden--that's the name of the world I grew up on--and he spent most of his time in the castle basements, so far as I know.

[He taps his chin in thought. He doesn't talk about home much, but Asami seems interested in this, so he'll make the exception. Honestly, home is a bit of a sore subject for Lea, but he's learned a hard lesson in what selfishness can get you. He can talk about home for a dying girl.]

He was a scientist. You might say he specialized in... the human condition. He studied hearts. [Er, wait.] Ah, not the... [He pats his chest.] Not this one. His work was more with the ethereal heart, I guess you might say. He and his apprentices were studying how the heart was tied to emotion.