Gold Steiner is the older brother of the famed alchemist Silver Steiner, who had died by 1897 when Izumi Harnet sought him out. While Silver was well known for his master alchemy skill, Gold was famous for his hand-to-hand combat abilities. Being hard of hearing at the old age of 88, Gold did not understand that Izumi was seeking an apprenticeship from his brother and, therefore, gave her a machete and told her that she would have to survive alone on Mt. Briggs for one month as a test to see how worthy she was of his training. When Izumi did return a month later with a dead bear slung over her shoulder, Gold realized his mistake and cleared up the misunderstanding, but impressed by her tenacity, offered her an apprenticeship under him instead. He challenged her to a duel to test her abilit