Final Note: Ilberd's betrayal was the catalyst for Arden's downward spiral that led him to becoming an angry, vengeful and reckless fighter throughout the war and the Final Days Crisis.

It also allowed Fray to latch on to his anger and sadness and eventually drove him to become a Dark Knight.

Pictured: Freja and Poplyamo realize Ilberd's ploy moments too late to stop Arden from killing him and allowing Shinryu to be summoned.

(11/11)

Arden took the bait and drove his blade into Ilberd's chest, not realizing that his plan was to sacrifice himself to summon the primal, along with his rebels and any remaining Garlean forces.

As Ilberd died, Shinryu was summoned, requiring Poplyamo to sacrifice himself to contain it.

(10/11)

With the fight seemingly won, Ilberd revealed he had obtained Nidhogg's eyes, and planned to summon a primal to destroy the Garlean forces. He then goaded Arden into attacking him, referencing his betrayal at the banquet and calling him "the face of his father's weakness."

(9/11)

~1 Year later, Arden, along with Freja, and a number of Scions, encounter Ilberd again at the Battle of Baelsar's Wall, a false flag operation meant to force the Eorzean Alliance Into liberating Ala Mhigo.

Arden, Freja, Yda and Alphinaud engage in a hard battle with Ilberd and his rebels.

(8/11)

Arden believed at the time that he had been betrayed by both Lolorito and Ilberd, only learning the truth that Lolorito had saved him some time later while working to clear his name.

Around this time as well, Ilberd disappeared while Arden and friends helped save Raubahn from execution.

(7/11)

**Pictured: Eadger Stein and Lolorito Nanarito walk through the Sapphire Avenue Exchange discussing business plans with a young Arden Stein in tow.

Arden would move to Lolorito's estate not long after to study thaumaturgy at the Milvaneth Sacrarium, due to being seen as a prodigy.

(6/11)

Arden was only spared execution due to Lolorito, another friend of his father's (and his former guardian) stepped in to wrench control of the situation from Adaledji, preventing the assassination of Nanamo and giving Arden a chance to escape.

(5/11)

Due to this, when it came time to set his plans in motion, Ilberd chose Arden as the "sacrifice" needed to put himself in a place of power to force the Eorzean Alliance to join the fight to liberate Ala Mhigo, and framed him for the death of Nanamo Ul Namo along with Teledji Adeledji.

(4/11)

Over the years as Ilberd started to become more obsesses with the liberation of Ala Mhigo, he started to see Arden as a reminder of his father's "unwillingness" to go back and fight for Ala Mhigo, instead settling and making a life for himself in Eorzea while their homeland suffered.

(3/11)

Pictured: Eadger Stein (Arden's father,) Ilberd Feare and Raubahn Aldynn guard a supply cache in Gyr Abania circa 1557 6th A.E.

(2/11)

Lore context: When Arden's family was killed in the calamity, he was introduced to the refuges at Little Ala Mhigo by his older half-sister, Freja. Ilberd, a friend of his father's, mentored him and taught him to fight with a sword in the wake of Arden losing his ability to manipulate aether. (1/11)