I’m sure you’ve been through it by now. Time and again, you’ve seen him in every corner of your run. Especially now that fettered effects are the meta, you have to keep the Peddler alive. The items he sells are essential for beating the game.

You can even play as him, running through the realms as the guy who sells random shit that just happens to spawn at the most beneficial moment’s notice. I mean, you and I know that the Peddler is just that, right? A guy who, for the most part, sells items that help you through the run.

But let me ask you... where did he get those items? Isn’t he one of the strongest characters in the game? Why is he selling items if these items give you godlike powers? Who Exactly Is the Peddler?

Today I present to you: The Peddler Theory.

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Reading through his lore, there isn’t much to see, in all honesty. The system literally says, "couldn't be bothered to write anything".

The only two pieces of real lore I could get from him are his two alternative skins and the two characters that are connected to his skin: Rosalia and Ixchel.

Let’s start with his skins. His skin 'Super Bossman' doesn’t really give much, but it’ll fit into the timeline of the lore soon. His story says that he’s a delivery driver who strives hard to ensure that the goods he delivers reach their destination.

Honestly, good for him. He’s a delivery driver; he’s super strong. Pretty good life.

'Marauding Wolf' is his other skin, and its lore states that he’s a guard unit for Elfland, but malware made him fight like the Peddler.

Okay, wait, no, hold on. STOP! Right there!

Peddler? Now hold on; if Elfland is from another universe, how do they know who the Peddler is? 

Who wrote the lore behind this?

Elfland...That sounds familiar, doesn’t it? 

Well, that's because that's where Ixchel and Rosalia are from. They’re from the future.
Rosalia’s lore is that she’s from Elfland, and she fights for the revolutionaries against the Elfland Elites who run the entire show. She’s the reason why Ixchel is at the bar. She just flat-out stole the damn thing and called it a day.

Nowhere in both of their lore does it state they’re even remotely connected to the Peddler. It even seems like the Peddler came before his skins.

Who exactly is he? The answer doesn’t lead anywhere else. He’s just this enigma, much like Khan and Chao, the two NPCs you can interact with to change the lobby, skills, or get a starter weapon from. They’ve been there since day one, and it’s hard to argue with both of them.

That's exactly who peddler is. He's the third member of the group that first came into asura's rift.

Next, with Rosalia and her relationship with Marauding Wolf and Ixchel on the other hand? I think I have an answer to why she’s there along with the other two.

Now, it's not cut and dry. Feel free to share what you think and perhaps refine a few more details about it.

What I think: The story starts with the three people who first came to be in Asura's Rift: Khan, Chao, and the Peddler himself. Now, skipping the long talks, the three eventually decide on a clear-cut structure.

Khan and Chao are responsible for welcoming newcomers and briefing them on what happened, helping them get stronger.

The Peddler himself is tasked with searching for paradoxical relics and handing them to worthy comers. He never needed the gold in the first place; it's just there as a basis to see if the buyer is worthy or not.

Fighting and beating him doesn’t actually matter. He lays down and acts unconscious so you can have the three items presented to you; he never truly needed them in the first place, he just needed someone strong enough to face the Devas. 
That’s why you see him back at the bar, chilling, acting like nothing happened.

Meanwhile, back in the future, an ongoing revolution is happening at Elfland. Rosalia runs through the corridors of Elfland’s capital and sees...

Deus Ex Machina.

The weapon of the Citadel, specifically designed to stop the revolution. She hurries, but in her rush, she stumbles and falls into the BACKROOMS.

(Pause: I know the rifts aren’t the backrooms, but let’s just say that they are because I lack the damn vocabulary.)

She accidentally brought with her the very weapon meant to kill her and the rest of her friends. Instead of destroying said weapon, she activates it, surviving all the way until she reaches Khan and the others. After a long battle and insurmountable upgrades later, she eventually returns after defeating the Devas, along with the malware she designed to hijack the Marauding Wolves’ guard droids made by the Elfland Citadel to hunt down and kill revolutionary armies.

With the help of the would-be weapons of the Elfland Elites, they successfully take over and become the new government of the future.

Thanks for reading! Have a great day ahead!

Now, what happened to the other marauders?
Well, they end up living the lives of normal citizens. One of them of which, is super bossman 😎 (ok last part is a joke HAHAHAH)

The Peddler & Rosalia Theory: Who Exactly Is the Peddler?