Van and Balgus

"'Lord Van, take Escaflowne and flee. And someday... return and rebuild Fanelia...' - Balgus"Van Fanel and Balgus Ganesha.

After the death of his father and disappearance of his brother and mother, Van was left an orphan without any family. Balgus looked after Van and began to train Van in the art of swordsmanship. Balgus took over the role of father to Van, and Van views him as not only a mentor but as a surrogate father. At the beginning of the series, Hitomi witnesses Balgus and Van training. Balgus encourages Van to charge more aggressively, and Van comments that he does not particularly enjoy "mortal combat." Van continues to show his true pacifist nature throughout the series.

Balgus dies protecting Fanelia. His death and Fanelia's burning traumatizes Van deeply, and he develops a grudge against Zaibach for what happened that day, sometimes justifying his violence against Zaibach as being "for Balgus" or "for Fanelia." However, seeing the ghosts of the Dragonslayers after murdering them leads his courage to falter, and he begins to lose his will to fight. When confronting his memories of Fanelia and the deaths of the Dragonslayers, Van is encouraged and comforted by Balgus.

According to Allen, Balgus lives on in Van, as his swordsmanship is very reminiscent of Balgus' fighting style. Allen was himself a student of Balgus and similarly was shown the true nature of swordsmanship by him. Although Balgus was killed early on in the series, Van and Allen carry on his legacy as a teacher.