Isabeau

Isabeau is a character from Shin Megami Tensei IV.

Appearances

 * Shin Megami Tensei IV: Guest party member, Boss (Human Race, Law and Chaos routes only)
 * Shin Megami Tensei IV DEMONIC GENE: Supporting character
 * Shin Megami Tensei IV -Prayers-: Supporting character
 * Shin Megami Tensei IV Final
 * Shin Megami Tensei x Fire Emblem

Design
Isabeau has short cut brown hair, light skin, and reddish-brown eyes. She wields the Gauntlet COMP that all samurai use. She wears the female variant of the samurai uniform, which has shorts instead of trousers and a shorter coat that she wears like a cloak, a red kerchief around her neck, and minimal makeup (red eyeliner and red nail polish). Art from the Design Book included with first-run copies of Shin Megami Tensei IV shows Isabeau wearing a red high necked zipper sweater.

Personality
Isabeau comes from a family of Luxurors and is a veracious young woman with a strong mind. She is strong willed yet dignified, and there is a side of her the others must never discover. For this reason, Walter calls her "iron mask" which does not please her at all.

Despite her strength of character, Isabeau's solitary flaw is her lack of conviction. She leaves the decision-making to someone else, often opting to take a neutral stance when it comes to complicated situations.

Though Isabeau bears a stoic and no-nonsense personality she secretly harbors a great love for Manga, especially ones that involve a strong female lead in male garb that actively participates in events who later falls in love with her male lead companion. This is brought up a few times where Isabeau admits that she desired to find more Manga of the series she's currently reading so that she could finish it even as they're on a journey of great importance.

Isabeau will even shield herself from spoilers by covering her ears or leaving behind a Manga issue that is much farther ahead than she has currently progressed upon it to prevent herself from falling to temptation. Isabeau also is willing to ask, if on Neutral, if Flynn is fine with her reading the final issue of her Manga before continuing their journey. If he agrees she happily reads it, hugs it, and than packs it away after talking about the ending a bit with Flynn and how sad she is that the lovers could only unite in death in the end.

Another thing about Isabeau is that she's quite awkward around boys her age due to how they seem to only talk about themselves. Due to this she keeps her distance but early on she takes an interest in Flynn when he beats them in their early Samurai trials. This interest would eventually grow to full blown affection as they continue their journey with Isabeau placing far more care towards Flynn and always siding with Flynn's opinions over Walter and Jonathan.

However, Isabeau will make a stand in what she feels is morally wrong. If Flynn follows the paths of Law or Chaos she will oppose them on her own as a Samurai and demand that Flynn face her as an equal. When she's defeated Isabeau reveals her own affections towards Flynn as well as her desire to have remained by his side. To spare him any more pain she takes her own life. This was done so that his hands wouldn't be stained with her blood thus showing the true extent of her feelings as even when she disagreed with Flynn she didn't desire for him to suffer.

Though if Flynn had chosen the path of Neutrality than Isabeau wakes him and reveals that she looked everywhere for him after expressing how glad she is that he has awakened at last and is safe. Isabeau will then beg Flynn not to send her away but to allow her to remain by his side as he's the only one she can turn to as the war between angels and demons begins, to which Flynn agrees. Later when learning of the truth about Flynn's destiny and speaking with Masakado, Isabeau reveals that this was the path she desired all along - a path of Neutrality where neither extreme is taken and the people of Tokyo and Mikado are both saved.

Isabeau's strong love for Mikado's people is later shown after the defeat of Merkabah when she works hard to save everyone in Mikado by getting them to evacuate even when they initially doubt her words. Though Isabeau is obviously conflicted about not being able to accompany Flynn as he goes to face Lucifer she knows her skills are best used to aid the people of Mikado and to leave the final battles to Flynn whom she will wait for his return at Cafe Florida.

Shin Megami Tensei IV
Isabeau is a new prentice and the lone lady of the newly recruited Samurai. Her family have been Monks for generations and a monk in the monastery mentions she goes there often to pray. She is surprised at the true nature of their duty which was never taught to her by her father. She decides to take part in the challenges made by Navarre alongside the others and later comes to Flynn's aid against the Hooded Man. She tells the Hooded man he was wrong to underestimate them simply because they are Prentices. She decides to continue aiding her fellows after the battle in order to heal Navarre after Walter is done with him.

She often declines to hang out with her fellow prentice Samurai. After eating breakfast at Lake Mikado, Flynn can come across her at the bakery, where she is learning about literature from the Baker. Surprised at seeing Flynn, she asks that he keep their meeting a secret and apologizes for declining opportunities to hang out with her fellow prentices, as she is used to boys her age being full of themselves. In exchange for keeping it a secret she promises to improve her disposition.

Later that night she is on the rooftop and the boys decide to spy on her to learn what she's up to. She gets the jump on them by appearing from behind Walter. She reveals to the others that she is reading a manga that takes place in a fictional kingdom called France, and is loving the story she is reading about a woman dressed in male garb who has fallen for her male companion. She is the first one of the prentices to see the fire from Kiccigiorgi.

After the decree for the capture of the Black Samurai, Isabeau is in front of the blackboard at K's tavern and reveals to Flynn that the Monastery has a hidden motive of wanting to collect ancient, priceless relics from the Unclean Ones country, which they can do while ordering them to hunt the Black Samurai. After hearing the others plan on going, she decides to come along.

When they finally tracked down the Black Samurai, Isabeau attempts to tune her out when she tries to spoil the ending to the manga Isabeau likes. She carries the last of the masked men from Kagome Tower and is embarrassed at seeing another man who wasn't her father naked. Like Walter, she falters at the request by Gabby to murder the Black Samurai who had already been killed, when their Code is to protect the people. After learning what Red Pills are made of, she is influenced by Yaso Magatsuhi's gas, and makes a bad pun about demons before running off. She cuts off Jonathan when he attempts to explain what Flynn did, embarrassed by what they saw.

Before Flynn chooses to go with either Jonathan to kill Lilith or Walter to meet her, she says that she cannot come with them and that she is worried about Skins and Fujiwara, wishing to have time to think of the best way to help everyone. She can be found in Obelisk Plaza afterwards, thinking about whether there is a best choice for everyone. She appears after Flynn joins Walter or Jonathan and states that she can not go with him, still having much to think about. She tells them to take care before leaving.

Isabeau's final fate depends on what alignment path is chosen in the endgame. If Flynn allies with either Law or Chaos, then when he next meets Isabeau, she reveals that she will oppose him on her own upon what she views as morally wrong. The fight is unavoidable with Isabeau demanding that Flynn face her as an equal - as a Samurai. During the fight she severely berates Flynn upon the malicious acts he's trying to accomplish and even when bloody and beaten she will get up multiple times to try and stop Flynn. After defeating her, she admits that her true desire was to stay by Flynn's side and, not wanting Flynn to become traumatized by killing her himself, takes her life herself by slashing her own throat.

If, however, Flynn follows the Neutral path, Isabeau becomes an ally, helping Flynn to restore Masakado's power, as well as to defeat Merkabah. After Merkabah's demise Isabeau reluctantly allows Flynn to fight Lucifer with only Masakado supporting him, as she must oversee the evacuation of Mikado for when Masakado regains his full power.

Upon the defeat of Lucifer by Flynn she awaits his return at Cafe Florida along with Fujiwara and the others. Here she welcomes him back and is glad that he's safe. After things settle down a bit the pair than head over and hand the spheres to Masakado who devours them thus restoring his power. With his power restored Masakado removes the ceiling over Tokyo as Isabeau watches at Flynn's side as the sun shines upon Tokyo once more thus opening it to the rest of the world.

Shin Megami Tensei IV Final
Isabeau has been confirmed to appear in Final in some capacity.

Stats
As a guest teammate in battle, she uses a normal attack and the Zio line of spells. If any teammate is critically wounded or under the effect of a status ailment, she will use healing spells.
 * -|Guest ally=

Isabeau is fought in a boss battle if player chooses either the Law or Chaos routes. Her skill repertoire is the same in either route, but she is slightly stronger in the Law route and the female demons she summons are different. In the Law route she summons demons of the Chaos alignment, and vice versa.
 * -|Boss▾=

Trivia

 * Similar to the heroine of the first Shin Megami Tensei, Isabeau learns to use the healing and electric spells.
 * While never stated by name, the manga series she reads is . In Demonic Gene, she even references characters from the manga by name.
 * Isabeau's name might be a reference to Isabeau d'Anjou, one of the protagonists of the 1985 film . This theory is further reinforced by the fact that the names of Navarre and King Aquila are also references to said movie.
 * Voice actress cosplayed Isabeau during the live streaming of Shin Megami Tensei IV Final broadcast on Nico Video, even though Koshimizu did not voice Isabeau in the original game.