Zeref
The most powerful—and most evil—mage in recorded history, Zeref lived over 400 years ago, yet his shadow still looms across the magical world today. Dark guilds and dark wizards continue to operate almost entirely in service of his memory, with most founded explicitly to revive him or aid his conquest of the world.
What made Zeref truly dangerous wasn't just raw power. He was a genius-level intellect who never stopped researching and innovating magic, constantly pushing the boundaries of what was possible. Death magic was his specialty, but he's best known for developing living magic—a technique he weaponized to create tens of thousands of demons that still wander the earth causing havoc centuries later.
His influence hasn't faded. If anything, modern dark magic draws directly from his work, and fans of dark fantasy often note that understanding Zeref is key to understanding why the magical underworld is the way it is today.
Content compiled by AnimeList.moe from publicly available sources.
