Just as Purgatory has many names, so do the Reapers: Grim Reapers, Malach, Grimnir, Shinigami, Śmierć, Yamaraj, Ankou, Keres, and so many more. There is no official title for these denizens of Purgatory, and they often call themselves whichever name for a "spirit of death" that they were raised around. These guides of the dead do, however, operate under a singularly named organization: the Dirige.

Founded by the God of Death himself, the Dirige exists to protect and pass souls waiting in the transition world to the next life. Until thirty years ago, such organization was unnecessary; Death required only a couple of dozen of his own personal apprentices/disciples to sufficiently assist the souls of the dead. As the world's population continued to grow over time and break into the billions, the average death rate, too, increased rapidly, and became too much for Death and his assistants to deal with. This prompted the founding of the Dirige, roughly twenty years ago.

The Dirige is vastly organized compared to Death's assistants. Ran by Dirige superiors--some of which are former assistants of Death--like a loosely bound military, Reapers are broken up into rank based solely upon their performance in both traditional work (the protection and passing of wayward spirits) and special jobs (such as dealing with those that threaten wayward spirits, Voleur d'âme).

Secondary to its militaristic and important purpose, the Dirige also functions as its own society. As of seven years ago, most Reapers reside within the Dirige compound, a massive structure that exists in Purgatory alone. There, they make wages based upon their rank, and can spend their wages on goods and services within the compound--or take secondary jobs within the compound to increase their average wages. This highly structured society is a veritable boiling pot of cultures and peoples, but for organization's sake, inductees are required to learn the Common language of the world.

Prior to seven years ago, Reapers would live either as ghosts or members of the population in various cities, towns, hamlets, and villages of the world. The number of Reapers in an area depended on the size of the populous. When the Compound was founded through the research of Reaper Zaki Sa'id, most Reapers were relocated to the compound, and sent directly to regions requiring their guidance from there. Sa'id's revolutionary discoveries were founded upon the idea of machines that are fueled by the energy of Purgatory, often known as Qi, allowing many a number of technological advancements.

Although their service to the dead seems mostly pure, the Reapers are in no way classified as "heroic" or "evil." This sort of classification depends solely upon each individual Reaper. A Reaper on sortie can mostly decide on his or her own methods of completing a goal, often differing strongly from Reaper to Reaper.

Take, for instance, this hypothetical scenario: a general uses the souls of those killed by his army as power, assimilating them into himself and growing stronger with each one. This general, thereby classified as a Voleur d'âme, is targeted by the Reapers for eradication. The Reaper(s) sent to eliminate the general in question can take any number of approaches, ranging from merciful to cruel. As Reapers are always cleared to eliminate Voleur d'âme and any of those associated with Voleur d'âme, both the general and his army can be subject to any number of fates, so long as the general is eliminated in the end. There is no prohibition against immoral approaches to a mission. Utter brutality, such as torture and mutilation of general and soldiers alike, may be viewed as condemnable by fellow Reapers, but those that prefer that brand of approach are not punished by their superiors, and stand on equal grounds to those that prefer a more moral decision of assassinating the general and leaving unnoticed.

Likewise, the actual fates of the living, so long as it remains unrelated to Voleur d'âme activity, is hardly the concern of the Dirige. They do not exist to protect the living, but the dead. A Reaper is not prohibited from assisting and even saving the living, but unless it has anything to do with the guiding and protection of the dead, the Reaper is forbidden from using any boons from their profession (such as the control of spiritual energy, used mostly to pass spirits on, but also a weapon in defending themselves) in such activities. As most Reapers are absolutely powerless, normal human beings without the control of spiritual energy, a majority of the organization simply doesn't bother with acts of vigilantism.

That is one of several strict rules followed by Reapers. Other vastly important rules are as follows: Reapers are forbidden from using their powers for non-Dirige interests; Reapers are forbidden from manipulating spirits in any way other than to pass them on; and most importantly, Reapers are forbidden from revealing their occupation to others. The existence of Purgatory and all issues relating to it is to be kept a strict secret. Punishments for the former two may range from moderate to strict, but punishments for the latter is and always has been strictly punished, regardless of justification.

The Dirige is presided over by the God of Death himself, who participates in standard Reaper activity as frequently, if not more, than his direct and indirect subordinates.

More often than not, it is Death who personally chooses who he'd accept as a Reaper, and mostly through striking deals that end in the person owing Death their servitude (but not through trickery, however: such deals usually entail Death openly stating his intentions, and offering such a service as the saving of a loved one, the preservation of particular lives, and/or etc.). Half of the time, however, Reapers are conveniently found in vaguely conscious spirits--that are likely to be condemned to an unfortunate next life--that are desperately seeking to escape from their fate.