Hermes is not the traitor in Record of Ragnarok. His conversation with Brunhilde might have been very suspicious but this doesn’t mean that is the traitor. Fortunately, no news confirming Hermes has betrayed the Gods has been revealed yet and will likely never be because, like the other Gods, he wants nothing but to claim victory over the human race.
In Greek Mythology, Hermes is known as the God of Thieves and Trickery. He is known as the God who most of the time put his entertainment above the welfare of his fellow Gods, which made his actions unpredictable. However, he is also the messenger of Gods who delivers messages and advice to the main order among his fellows. These traits of the Greek God can also be noticed in the Record of Ragnarok’s version of Hermes.
Similar to the Hermes from which the character was based. Hermes in Record of Ragnarok also possessed intellectual abilities. As seen in the anime, he is always standing beside the Chairman of God’s Council, Zeus. In every battle that has occurred, he has shown keen intellect in assessing each move of the challengers. This intellectual ability of Hermes was vital for fans in coping with and understanding the happenings in each particular scene of the battles, which we greatly owe him for.
Why is Hermes Suspected as a Traitor?
Hermes is the 10th God of the 12 God of Olympians. Hence, even his true strength is still unknown up until now. We can safely assume that he also possessed unimaginable strength like the Gods who we have witnessed on the battlefields. However, during Zeus’ introduction for round two, we saw Hermes playing the divine violins using his abilities.
Through this scene, we came to know that Hermes can manipulate and has the ability to perform telekinesis. With his intellectual and physical abilities, Hermes can easily become a traitor and at the same time avoid being caught. But, this is not the case.
The scene that led fans to assume that Hermes is a traitor was featured in the final episode of season one. After the battle of Poseidon and Sasaki Kojiro, Zeus’ announced to Shiva, Loki, Ares, and Hermes that a Greek God must take revenge for the loss of Poseidon. Hermes is portrayed in the series as a detached God who rarely shows any emotion, except when he is caught by surprise because of the humans’ strength. However, during their meeting with Zeus, he was furious about his fellow Greek God, Hercules’, death.
After this, a few minutes before the fourth round begins. Göll went to find his sister, Brunhilde. With surprise written all over her face, she saw her sister with someone who she wouldn’t even imagine that Brunhilde was in contact with. The young Valkyrie saw Hermes and Brunhilde whispering in the hallways of the arena.
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When Göll asked her sister what their conversation is about. Brunhilde didn’t bother to share any information and told her that it was nothing that Göll needs to be concerned about. This scene raises theories of Hermes being the traitor in Record of Ragnarok. Given his title as the God of Thieves and Trickery there was no stopping fans from pointing their fingers at him.
To strengthen this theory, Hermes also admitted that he was the scoundrel rotten traitor among the 12 God Olympians to Ares in season one episode nine. He admitted that his betrayal was made for it was too exciting for him to not do it. He was able to convince the young Zeus to start a war in the Heavens. Hence, the theories of fans weren’t baseless at all.
However, Comic Book Resources have noted that Brunhilde and Hermes’ shady talk does not only insinuate betrayal. They highlighted that there is only one most acceptable explanation. It is safer to say that their sneaky encounter was Hermes’ way to bargain with Brunhilde for his safety, and for Brunhilde to get acquire pieces of information regarding God’s roster of challengers.
As mentioned earlier, he is also known as the God of Tricky. Hermes tends to make decisions for his entertainment or welfare. But, when it comes to betraying the Gods, Hermes is not that type of guy. We have seen him getting angry and irritated when the champions of humans overpower the strength of the Gods. So just like the others, Hermes also wants to claim victory after the Ragnarok.
Spoiler Warning: This part of the article contains information about Record of Ragnarok Season 2 Part 1. Read at your own risk.
Who is the Real Traitor in Record of Ragnarok?
It is none another than the founder of Buddhism, Buddha. When the Scandinavian God, Loki, speculated that a traitor is lurking behind the other Gods, he went to confront Hercules at first. Hercules is the God whose side is always with justice regardless if they are Gods or humans. Being a former human, Hercules has always proudly expressed his undying love for humanity. Thus, it made him the first suspect for Loki’s suspicion of a traitor.
When confronted, Hercules grabbed Loki by the collar and did not hesitate to tell him that he will save humanity. But, not in the means by which Loki suspects him. He reiterated that he will save humanity after he claims victory over his human opponent, Jack the Ripper. Which didn’t end up the way he wanted to.
With the human race winning twice against the Gods, Loki questioned the power that the Völundr has. Völundr is a divine weapon. It is capable of uniting the souls of humans and valkyries making those who wield it stronger. This suspicion was made by Loki when the human challengers showed that they can rival the strengths of Gods with the help of the Völundr. After extensively assessing human challenges, Loki came to the conclusion and went to meet Buddha.
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The two met in the garden area of the arena. In there, Loki confronted and accused Buddha of betraying the Gods by helping the oppositional side – humans and valkyries. The power of the Völundr or the union between two souls is possible through one of the teachings of Buddhism called Samavadhāna. When Loki asked Buddha directly if he was the traitor. The founder of Buddhism didn’t deny it. Instead, he answered, “what if I am?”
Loki’s suspicion was further proven to be correct in round six. Even after agreeing to Zeus to be the Gods next contender, he just wasn’t up to it. Many bystanders inside the arena were shocked when the challenger of the Gods walked along to the human’s side. In the final episode of season two part one, Buddha announces to everyone inside the arena that he will be fighting for the sake of his beloved humans.
He made the audience inside the arena surprised and the Gods angry due to his unexpected betrayal, including the emotionless Hermes.
If the Gods won’t save them…I will. And if any God gets in my way…I’ll kill them.“
Buddha (Record of Ragnarok – Episode 10)
