Sariel (Chinese: 沙叶) was a spirit sheep living in ancient Egypt during the reign of Ramses II. His human identity was a member of the many marginalized ethnic groups. Originally enslaved, he was freed by his second owner, then joined him in the uprising of the oppressed ethnic groups and participated in the late Exodus movement (around 1260 BCE). He also founded Octopass — the first documented spirit animal association in history.
Personality
Sariel was handsome, charming, gentle, and cheerful — making him widely popular among people. Yet he lacked strong moral principles and was a pragmatic realist: his treatment of others hinged entirely on how close or useful they were to him.
Sariel acted warm and attentive toward his own people — but always with ulterior motives; towards outsiders, he was often cold and ruthless, committing evil on them without hesitation. The sole exception is his second master — who saved his life, gave him his name, granted him freedom, and recognized his talent. To him, Sariel held genuine admiration and absolute loyalty, even joined him in the rebellion that he has neither interest in nor confidence in.
Sariel’s first master was a cruel, miserly spirit animal who raised Sariel only as a slave, subjecting him to constant abuse. This trauma deeply warped his values, fueling impulsive violence — sometimes over trivial matters — and a perverse enjoyment of wrongdoing. Though his second master often called him a “bad seed” and urged him to be good, Sariel never took the advice seriously.
Ability
Sariel was clever and eager to learn. Though initially illiterate, he rapidly became self-taught after the initial guidance by his second master, showing aptitude in business and intelligence. He made key contributions to the uprising preparations and the exodus from Egypt.
On the other hand, he was also narrow-minded and lacked deep wisdom, often acted rashly and made foolish mistakes, causing troubles for his allies.
Sariel was obsessed with revenge against spirit animals serving the Egyptian government, and he pursued it through excessive violence and despicable means. Yet due to his stiff body, poor coordination, lack of combat skill — and possibly karma — his attempts repeatedly backfired, “lifting the stone only to drop it on his own feet.” Despite this, he remained undeterred and took great pleasure in his efforts.
Sariel couldn’t swim: his wool absorbed water, became heavy, and nearly drowned him many times. Though this wasn’t an issue in human form, he still panicked in water – his greatest weakness.
The Second Owner
The identity of Sariel’s second owner remains unknown. The only first-hand account is Sariel’s late-life oral autobiography, “The Book of Sariel”, where he consistently refers to this figure as “Master”, while others called him “General”. Ancient Roman spirit animal historians speculated he might be Moses from Exodus, but modern scholars are skeptical and typically call him “Moshe,” following the Chinese transliteration (莫舍) in Spirit Animal Chronicles, to distinguish him from the biblical Moses.
Octopass
Sariel founded Octopass to provide low-interest loans to spirit animals for emergencies or business startups, with the intention of promoting trades in the Canaan area. Inspired by his second master’s final words, he established the “Sariel’s Code”, banning usury and violent debt collection. Later successors, unfortunately, abolished the Code for more profit and erased this history.
Octopass was the first documented spirit animal association in history.
Hidden History
Sariel’s story appears in the “Foreign Regions” chapter of the Spirit Animal Chronicles. Though other texts also reference him, the Octopass suppressed knowledge of his existence — until that chapter was found.
Relationship
[To be expanded in the future]
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