Zagine Axeloake

Zagine Axeloake (ザジーネアクセルロック Zajīne Akuserurokku) was a skilled assassin who mentored Train Heartnet after killing his parents.

Appearance
Zagine was a tall, muscular man with red eyes and wavy, blond hair that reached his ears. He mostly wore a black tattered coat and a grey scarf. Underneath it, he wore black pants and a black shirt, a chain necklace and crest-shaped earnings.

Personality
Cold-hearted and ruthless, Zagine was a merciless killer who saw that only the strongest could survive this world. This harsh and cruel side is demonstrated in his way of teaching Train. He also appeared to be calm when in serious situations, such as getting shot at, or on the brink of death.

Despite being an assassin, however, Zagine was not entirely evil. For example: he refused to kill children or people with kids. Whether or not this is due to him losing his parents from a young age is still a mystery. He also took it upon himself to raise Train after killing his parents and taught him how to survive.

History
Little is known about Zagine's past. As a child, he lost his parents in an accident. Later on, he became an assassin and made a good life for himself in the underworld. Zagine had a one policy: Not accepting jobs to kill people with children.

At some point, he was hired to kill a couple. This couple however, had a child, whom he had been unaware of due to the client keeping the boy's existence a secret. Once the job was done, he encountered his victims' son, Train Heartnet. He offered Train the choice between life and death, Train chose life, so Zagine took him in and trained him in marksmanship and other killing techniques for four months.

On a rainy day, Train returned from buying groceries to find Zagine bleeding, which frustrated him, as killing Zagine was his goal. Zagine told Train to live and become better than he ever was, before dying.

Anime Plot
While trying to rescue Eve, Train encounters Zagine on the way. They fight and Zagine initially has the upper hand, but Train then realizes that the man is just an illusion created by Eden, and saves defeats him.

Equipment and Abilities
Marksmanship: Zagine was a highly skilled marksman, able to tear a target sheet from the inside out.

Guns: Zagine owned various types of guns, from simple handguns to rifles, which he collected on missions.

Train Heartnet
Zagine was Train's mentor. Originally, he was unaware of the boy's existence and had not planned on meeting him after killing his parents. He gave Train the choice to either live or die and took it upon himself to raise the child after he had chosen to live. For four months, he trained the boy in marksmanship and other killing techniques. To this day, Train does not know what the man's motives were. Zagine was very harsh on Train and constantly pushed him to be the best, while berating the boy, especially if he made a mistake. His last words to Train was to become stronger than anyone else and survive.

Trivia

 * In one of the English translations, his name is Sardius Nickroke.
 * In chapter 68, he was reading what appeared to be The Art of War.
 * He is similar to Saya: Both had died long before the start of the series (With the cause of death being murder), both were expert marksmen, both had suffered throughout their lives, and most importantly: Both played an essential role in Train's life.