These brave yet enigmatic helping spirits gained fame by hiding within the castle walls in Vampire Killer. When uncovered, they would assist the brave Simon Belmont by selling him new weapons and other power-up items for the price of a few hearts. Though stubborn in their methods, they served well the vampire hunter in his mission to hunt down the dreaded Count Dracula.

Similar robed figures appeared in the towns during the daytime in Simon's Quest. Their purpose, naturally, was the same: To offer Simon magical items in exchange for hearts.

A typical merchant wouldn't show up again until Castlevania: Harmony of Dissonance. This Scotland-born chap, inexplicably, set up shop within the two castles--one the normal haunt, the other a transient doppelganger--when he couldn't figure out how to escape. Juste Belmont questioned the man's sanity, insisting that it was a poor place to open for business. Despite Juste's confused tone, the merchant stayed true to his practice and did well to assist the able Juste by supplying special armor that couldn't be found elsewhere; he would also purchase from the hero gems in order to encourage more exchange.

As the series continued, the simply intentioned merchants were ultimately supplanted by multi-purpose characters like Hammer and Vincent Dorin, who while filling the role of merchant also contributed to the respective storylines in a much broader manner.