Corkus

Corkus is a dark-haired, dark-eyed man of ordinary build; supplementary material lists him at twenty years old, 173 centimeters, and 66 kilograms. A recurring gag in the manga has him striking showy poses that mimic the wrestler Hulk Hogan.

Outwardly jaded and world-weary, Corkus still lets flashes of ambition slip through. He relishes every rung the Band of the Falcon climbs and revels in their ascent to nobility. Judeau notes that he once chased a dream of his own, failed, and drifted into the band as a result. His envy cuts deep enough that he resents Guts for slaying Bazuso, a kill he had wanted for his own renown.

His loyalty to Griffith verges on worship; he insists the leader has no equal and waves off any setback as a fluke. Toward Guts he is openly hostile, often for no reason, going so far as to confess loosing arrows at his back and swearing to cut him down should they ever meet in battle again. The hostility is not absolute, though. He frets when Guts nearly falls to Boscogn, cheers when Guts stands against Wyald, and even reassures Guts over his guilt about Griffith's capture.

Before the falcons, Corkus led a ten-man gang of thieves. When his crew challenged the fledgling Band of the Falcon and lost badly, he cast his lot with the winners. He grumbled when the child Casca was taken in, yet she stayed all the same.

His first brush with Guts came as an ambush: spotting the swordsman flush with reward money after felling Bazuso, Corkus led mercenaries to rob him, only to retreat and be saved by Casca. After Griffith recruited Guts, Corkus repeatedly schemed to murder the newcomer in his sleep, each attempt thwarted by Casca. Across the years that followed, he stood with the band through its triumphs, from the rout of Tudor's knights to the storming of Doldrey, where he watched in astonishment as Guts beheaded Boscogn.

When Guts finally departed, Corkus berated him for throwing away everything the band had earned. The falcons' fortunes then collapsed: Griffith was imprisoned and the group became hunted fugitives. Corkus rode in the effort to free their leader, faced the monstrous Wyald, and learned the ruined state to which Griffith had been reduced, snapping his sword against a rock in despair.

The Eclipse ended him. Swept into a warped dimension by Griffith's beherit, he refused to accept that the God Hand were real until the sacrifice began and a brand seared onto his brow. Fleeing the apostles in terror, he convinced himself the whole thing was a dream, then stumbled upon a female apostle. Sensing something was deeply wrong, he pressed his face to her chest anyway, and she devoured him.