Heine Wittgenstein is the titular royal tutor and the main character of the series.
Appearance
Though Heine is a grown man, he's often mistaken for a child due to his short stature. He has dark red hair and amber eyes, and wears glasses. He wears a black cap with white lining at the bottom and a white tassel.
Personality
Heine rarely shows any type of emotion and is incredibly stoic. He acts polite towards everyone at all times, even when insulting them. He seems harsh and cold, but is actually very empathetic and understanding of people. He's intelligent, but does not flaunt it. The only times he loses his composure is when someone mistakes him for a child.
History
Much of Heine's past is shrouded in mystery. But when questioned by Bruno, it was noted that he did not attend a university, and Licht deduced that he knew the King personally, which is later confirmed to be true, as they are on first-name basis. Count Rosenberg discovered that Heine used to be a tutor at the Maria Vetsera church for children before coming to the palace, but his past before that is unknown. He was actually a volunteer tutor at the church. He was rewarded a meal each day for volunteering at the church. It's implied that he used to be a violent man due to the fact that the King told him to use the skills of the "old him" to defend his sons.
Anime
Later it is known that the King used to sneak out of the palace when he was young, and got his pocket watch stolen by two street children who were reprimanded by a younger version of Heine, and gradually, the two became close. Heine could not read, which was revealed when he said he did not know what the brand of white wine he had in his hands was.
During the Harvest Festival, the King, who was then Prince Viktor slipped out of the palace again to meet Heine, but did not know that the entire palace was in an uproar due to his disappearance. Troops of guards were sent out to look for Viktor, and catch the kidnapper they supposed had kidnapped him. One troop found Viktor with Heine, and when Heine dropped Viktor's pocket watch which Viktor had given him previously to buy warm blankets and clothes for the street children Heine took care of and the guards saw the royal crest on it, they assumed that Heine was the kidnapper automatically.
As Heine and Viktor were running away, one of the guards levelled his gun barrel at Heine to shoot him, but Viktor halted, taking the shot for Heine by leaping into range of the rifle, taking a severe wound near his heart. The guards instantly surmised that Heine had used the Prince as a shield, and labelled Heine as a true felon. Upon seeing Viktor lying in a pool of blood on the ground, Heine saw red, snatched up a wooden beam and proceeded to attack the guards, snatching the rifle from one of the fallen guards to attack the rest, while Viktor pleaded in a weak voice for Heine to stop.
When Heine eventually heard Viktor, he came to his senses and fell to his knees, crawling to Viktor as he passed out, calling out his name desperately, even when the recovered guards swarmed around him, arresting him and dragging him away. Heine was in prison all the time for kidnapping and attempted murder of the Prince, but never pleaded his innocence, and only prayed that Viktor would recover. After a very long time, Viktor made his appearance before Heine, having recovered his consciousness, smiling at him and saying that he had come for him, and Heine saying tearfully that he was glad he was alright. Heine was pardoned when Viktor told the then king the truth, and Viktor was shortly afterwards crowned as king. Heine became a tutor at a church Viktor built for street children to stay in, and became the Royal Tutor on this condition: That if his past was revealed, he would leave instantly.
After all this was revealed to the current princes, they were told from the King that Heine has resigned from his position as Royal Tutor.
Heine was shown to have battle skills and knew how to handle a gun. This attributes to the fact that he was once a thief.
After Count Rosenberg dropped Heine off at the castle, he makes the area fill with tension by saying, "What I mean to say is... You are not from our side, are you?" Heine replies by making a stern look. When the Princes mention about a criminal being in the Palace, Heine decides to teach them a lesson and questions them what their reactions would be if the so called 'criminal' was Heine himself.
King Viktor tells his sons the tale of how he met Heine and what led him to being a criminal.
In this episode it is revealed that Heine was the leader of an underground group of orphans (who were part-time thieves, part-time labor force) who were struggling to survive during the previous King's reign. Viktor, a prince at the time, became fast friends with Heine during the time he was out of the palace in commoner clothing. Also Viktor, through his excursions from the palace with Heine, became aware of the poverty that plagued the country. On the night before the harvest festival, Heine and Viktor (incognito) went out on the town as always, however the palace staff discovered that Viktor was missing and it was assumed that he had been kidnapped. The palace guards were mobilized and when they encountered Viktor and Heine, it is assumed due to Heine having Viktor's pocket watch (which was a gift to Heine to help fund the children's survival in winter), that he is the kidnapper. Viktor attempts to diffuse the situation while Heine runs away, but the palace guards do not listen and take aim at Heine. Viktor is shot by the palace guards by accident as Viktor moves in front of Heine in an attempt to prevent Heine from being killed. After the palace guards pin the accidental shooting of the prince on Heine and as Viktor lay bleeding out on the cobblestone alley, Heine is overcome with vengeful feelings and attacks the palace guards (to great effect). Just when Heine is about to kill one of the palace guards with one of their rifles, Viktor begs Heine to stop. Heine reluctantly obeys and is taken prisoner. Viktor is taken immediately to surgery where he recovers, but couldn't visit Heine until a few weeks later when he was up to it. Viktor, feeling sorry for his friend, told his side of the story to the King; who agreed to pardon Heine. A few months later, Viktor becomes king, and uses his wealth and power to create a church for the orphans living on the streets. Heine, becomes a teacher after extensive study and resided in that church until being called, years later, by Viktor to be the Royal Tutor for his sons.