Mydia’s portrait is only used in the game for this one scene. She’s sad and scared and dying. She’s confessing to killing every last one of her people. You’d expect a forlorn expression on her face, but she’s smiling. That one look speaks volumes about her greatest character trait: her resilience.

After Velis’s defeat in Leskreta, the land of the Yarhi, Mydia regained some of her anima. While her soul had not been entirely dead before then, Velis’s sacrifice helped her recover a tiny shred of the woman she used to be. While the party went to Ivalice to figure out what happened BEFORE she lost her anima to Feolthanos, she experienced true sorrow and anger for the first time in a long while. It’s sad to think about, but the extinction of the Feol viera and Mydia’s death most likely could have been avoided if the party had discovered the truth sooner.

Unlike many other mass-murdering villains in the series, Mydia saw her slaughter as an act of kindness and mercy. She broke the auraliths to collect anima for Feolthanos, but she saw no regret in killing aegyl because they lacked the ability to feel joy in the first place. By that same token, she killed her own people rather than stand by and watch them possibly suffer at the hands of Feolthanos. She saw her actions as a means of protection. Flawed logic, yes, but nevertheless understandable. Not so deep down, Mydia has a kind heart.