Yuji Sakai (坂井悠二, Sakai Yūji) (Mistes)

Yuji, the main character of the story, is just an average high school student. However, his world is turned upside down when he discovers that he is already dead and does not have much time before he disappears. Fortunately, Yuji is a Mystes who contains a treasure known as the Reiji Maigo (零時迷子, Reiji Maigo "Midnight Stray Child"). Unlike normal torches, the treasure inside him restores his Power of Existence every night at midnight. With the Reiji Maigo, Yuji has the possibility to live on like an average human as long as he makes sure that his Power of Existence does not run out before midnight. Later, he begins to learn to use the yet untapped potential of the treasure kept within him.

Shana (シャナ, Shana?) / "Slayer with Flaming Hair and Blazing Eyes" (「炎髪灼眼の討ち手」, "Enpatsu Shakugan no Uchite") (Flame Haze)


The female lead of the show and a Flame Haze. Initially she is concentrated solely on her duty as a Flame Haze, going as far as to not bearing even a name. She sees Yuji only as a Torch, an object, marginally interesting because of his status as a Mistes. However, she slowly opens up to Yuji, coming to think of him as a person, despite being a Torch, and eventually comes to love him. Until she met Yuji, she was identified by only her Flame Haze title "Slayer with Flaming Hair and Blazing Eyes," or her sword, Nietono no Shana (贄殿遮那, Nietono no Shana "Vairocana of the Offering Room"). Yuji, in his need to humanize her, chose to name her "Shana" after her sword. Shana has a habit of saying "Urusai!" ("Shut up!") three times in a row whenever Yuji asks her questions or makes remarks that disturb her original worldview. But in reality they really care for each other. She has a great fondness for melon bread.That during Lunch Breaks she buys and eats it....

Alastor (アラストール, Arasutōru?) / "Conflagration upon Heaven and Earth" (「天壌の劫火」, "Tenjō no Gōka"?) (Lord of the Crimson Realm)
He is the Lord of the Crimson Realm to whom Shana is bound. He expresses his will through a divine vessel called the Cocytus, which (in Shana's case) takes the form of a pendant. His name is actually the name of a demon in mythology. Alastor is considered to be the strongest of all Lords or Denizens, even comparable to a god in the Crimson Realm. But even so, he tries to keep the Denizens from consuming Power of Existence. Sometimes reffered as " Flame of Heaven "... He also seem to like Yuji's mother for she has great wisdom that sometimes overcomed even him..

Yuji Sakai, a high school student, expected his very normal life to last forever. However, this expectation is quickly shattered one day while on his way home.

The world suddenly freezes in time, leaving Yuji to watch in horror as blue flames engulf the people around him. Soon a monster resembling a large doll appears and begins sucking the flames into its mouth, until it notices Yuji. Surprised with Yuji's insusceptibility to the time-stop, it jumps with glee.

Just as the monster prepares to consume Yuji, a sword-wielding girl in black attire with flaming red eyes and hair that burns like embers appears, swiftly and confidently destroys the monster, before noticing Yuji moving freely. The girl calls herself a "Flame Haze" who hunts the "Denizens of the Crimson Realm" and the "Rinne" they send to do their bidding. When Yuji notices a blue flame in his chest, the Flame Haze tells him that the "real" Yuji died some time ago, and that he is a "Torch", a temporary replacement for erased humans. Torches take on the forms of those erased persons, but after a period of time, they will vanish from existence and the memories of the living. Unfazed by his apparent death, Yuji befriends the strange girl and names her "Shana" after her sword. Expecting Yuji to slowly fade away like all other Torches do, Shana is surprised to find that Yuji is not a normal Torch, but instead a special kind called a "Mystes": he has a treasure inside him, known as a "Hougu", a device possessing special abilities of sorts, and an extremely powerful and valuable one at that. Shana resolves to protect Yuji from the Denizens, who would use the treasure to disrupt the balance of the world, and Yuji decides to join Shana in her fight.

Shana's fight is actually a long-standing struggle between the Lords and Denizens of the Crimson Realm. The Denizens steal Power of Existence, the energy that forms the basis of the world, from living people and utilize it for their own selfish ambitions. Lords are the mortal enemies of Denizens, and utilize Flame Hazes to attempt to retain balance. Thus, the Flame Hazes create Torches in the image of the dead in order to relieve the strain on reality resulting from the actions of the Denizens.

During their time together both Shana and Yuji begin to realize that their affection for each other is more than just friends. During Shana's numerous battles with the Flame Haze she has come to realize that whenever Yuji is close and cares about her, her powers increase, thus awakening the Flame inside her.