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>>43595461
Captain Laurentius was, to put it lightly, not happy to hear about what happened yesterday. The first thing he did upon hearing about the attack was gather the Honor Guard together and pointedly chastise them for leaving you unaccompanied. The second thing he did was yell at you for going anywhere unattended in the first place. From this point forward, he's made it clear that you are to be accompanied by no less than two of your guards at all times, without exception.

Admittedly, the guard had been getting fairly loose since you left Iseria, but he didn't have to get so damn angry. For an old elf, the man could shout almost as loud as Captain Gregory in Morsland. Almost.

After that was done, you and Laurentius spoke alone for a bit about what Leviathan had learned from the thug's mind. The new troubled him, but he didn't seem too surprised. You suppose you were bound to run into something like this eventually. Laurentius then advised that you stay in the palace whenever possible, suggesting that you send someone from your Honor Guard if you need something from the city.

That was yesterday, today is the morning of the High Council meeting. You and the others are currently gathered together at the palace's massive dining hall for breakfast, discussing the upcoming meeting as you eat.

“So, explain this to me if you will. This...council, it votes to decide the Kingdom's actions, right?” Roland asks.

“Yes, that's right.” You answer.

“Why? Isn't it a king's duty to decide that? What stops him from overriding the council's decision if it opposes his own? I've known about Iseria's High Council, but I never understood that part of it. The whole idea just seems so...foreign to me, I don't understand it.”

>>43595479
“The king can't override the council's decision, because they're the ones that fill his coin purse.” Reinhardt responds between bites. “Council's filled with our most important nobles. First are the dukes, there's five of them. The king has his spot, that makes six. Now all of them get to pick one other noble to sit on the council as well, that makes twelve council members. The dukes pay taxes to the king, and when there's a war they give him extra soldiers to fight with. On top of that, the appointed councilmen either have a lot of money or a lot of powerful friends too, so it'd be a bad idea to go against the council in most cases.”

Roland nods. “I see...Still, how did the council come to be in the first place? I can't see a king giving up his power willing.”

“They don't teach you this stuff in Galloway?” Reinhardt asks.

“No. Most people find Iseria's system as strange as I do.”

“I confess, it seems rather peculiar to me as well.” Ganelon agrees.

“Guess that makes sense.” You say with a shrug. “As for how it came about, the council was formed after the rebellion against Mad King Torrick. That was...150 years ago?”

“150 years and two months.” Laurentius clarifies.

“...Wait, that's right, you were around when that happened, weren't you?” Reinhardt realizes.

“I was there when King Torrick ascended to the throne, and I was there when his father ascended before him.” He answers calmly.

'I remember King Torrick as well.' Galadriel says to you, a tinge of annoyance in her voice. 'He came to the tower and tried to wield my blade. When I would not move for him he tried to kick me and stubbed his toe. After that he rode off, declaring that he would capture the Forsaken Lands without me. The man was...not all there. It gave me a headache to look into his memories when he tried to take my blade.'

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>>43595494
“So, this council was the product of a bad king then?” Roland continues.

You nod. “Yeah, it was. After King Torrick was deposed, the council was formed to prevent kings like him from harming the kingdom again. Torrick's successor was the one who signed off on the council, it was the only way they'd let him on the throne.”

“It sounds rather heavy-handed when you say it like that. King Harald III had his own reasons for signing that charter as well, you know.”

Just then, Lord Bernadotte approaches your table and takes a seat next to you. Thankfully, Erika is not here right now as she said she was going to go eat in the city, probably so she wouldn't have to take her helmet off near Lord Bernadotte..

“Forgive me for interrupting your little history lesson, but I thought it would be prudent to stop by and see how you were doing. By chance, have you decided what you are going to say when the council meeting asks you to speak?”

>”A vague idea, yes.”
>”Sort of. I haven't sat down and thought of what specifically to say, no.”
>”I was just going to tell them what I've seen out there. Surely some of them will reconsider their stance when they hear about the Farms.”
>”Truth be told, no. The meeting doesn't start until this afternoon though, right? I'll decide what I want to say before then.”
>Other

>>43595523
been a while
>vague idea yes
>wing it later

>>43595523
>”I was just going to tell them what I've seen out there. Surely some of them will reconsider their stance when they hear about the Farms.”

>Other
"Though any advice on this front would be helpful."

>>43595523
>”A vague idea, yes.”

>>43595523
>”I was just going to tell them what I've seen out there. Surely some of them will reconsider their stance when they hear about the Farms.”

Sounds like a possible direction,this one.

Damn,it's been a while.
And I can't stick around for long since I've got a morning lecture tomorrow.Bugger.

>>43595523
>”I was just going to tell them what I've seen out there. Surely some of them will reconsider their stance when they hear about the Farms.”
We should also recount story of whatshisname who brought that demonic axe back.

The demons are on the move and if we don't go to war, the war is going to come to us instead.

>>43595679
>>43595461
Welcome back, guys.

Alright, back and writing now.

And yeah, sorry it's been so long. Had a lot of work to do for my classes, starting to get better now but exams are coming up. I should be able to run more frequently once the semester's over.

>>43595523
>>”A vague idea, yes.”
>”I was just going to tell them what I've seen out there. Surely some of them will reconsider their stance when they hear about the Farms.”
>"Any advice you can offer me?

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Might as well drop this here.

Shitscribble during halloween,because why not.

>>43595890
Nice. Great work as always.

But whats the joke? Is it that she is already a snake girl?

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>>43595936
She split her hair so they would be more medusalike and Galadriel turned into stone.

Really Levi should be happy for her complimenting her costume so.

>>43595936
Partly that,and partly Gal playing along just to humour her

>>43595992
>>43596008
Oh. I feel like an idiot now.

>>43595523
"A vague idea, yes. I was just going to tell them what I've seen out there. Surely some of them will reconsider their stance when they hear about the farm."

Lord Bernadotte laces his fingers together on the table. "I understand why you would think that, but you should remember that the Forsaken Lands and it's Farms are a long distance from most of the council's lands. Those that are close to the border are already on our side, the rest won't be so easily swayed by horror stories that, from their perspective, have no effect on them personally."

"They can't all just ignore what's going on in the Forsaken Lands." You object.

"You give them too much credit. It's easy to deny how bad the situation is when you've never seen it yourself. From what I've heard, you should know that personally."

You can't really argue with him there. Before you came to the White Watchtower, you never really paid much mind to the Forsaken Lands. You knew people were being kidnapped from the border, but back then it seemed like such a distant problem.

"Well, if that's the case, any advice you could give me?"

"Well first and foremost, I would advice that you remember that the quickest way to a nobleman's heart is through his coin purse. A clever man can find profits even in war, and that should give you a chance to appeal to them. Beyond that, it is also worth mentioning that Belmore and Galloway will not take kindly to Iseria electing to stay out of the Crusade, I highly suggest reminding them of this during the meeting as well."

'If you would allow me, I'm sure I can also change their minds for you.' Leviathan points out.

'I highly suggest against that.' Galadriel says adamantly. 'It is better to gain their support willing than to try and force them. I don't think I need to point out how severe the consequences will be if they discover they were manipulated.'

'You wound me, pigeon. Weakened as I am, I can still cover my tracks.' Leviathan argues.

>>43596376
"Anything else?" You ask Lord Bernadotte.

"Not in particular, although I should say that while I said telling them about the Farms won't be enough, that isn't to say that such an appeal is worthless. While you won't be convincing the whole council that way, an eloquent speaker could persuade at least one or two that way."

"I'll keep that in mind."

"Good. Then unless you require something of me, I should return to my quarters. I still have a few last-minute preparations to make before the meeting begins. Until then."

With that, Lord Bernadotte gets up and leaves. The High Council meeting will be today in the afternoon, if there's anything you'd like to do before the meeting begins, you should probably do so now.

>Talk to someone, ask for advice (Specify)
>Head into town (Select two guards)
>Look for someone in the palace (Specify who)
>Go to your room, spend some time enchanting your equipment
>Meditate
>Other

>>43596398
>>Look for someone in the palace (Specify who)
Nerillion's daughter. We can ask our fellow guardsman what's been going on in the town and see how she wound up here with her father in a watchtower.

>>43596398
>Talk to someone, ask for advice (Specify)
I'm not sure who, but I suppose anyone that has an idea on how to turn the more 'affluent' councilmen minded on our side.

>>43596454
His daughter doesn't live in the palace, she's just a normal grunt guard in the city.

>>43596469
>>43596454
>>43596398
I guess both of these would be good if we have time. Its nice to have different perspectives.

Since we need to go outside take Nerillion and Roland with us,

>>43596398
>Talk to Laurentius
ask him how his intrigue is going, and whether he's aware of any new plots from pacifist councilors.

Also, what would King and Council do, if the watchtower set up a recruitment center without Iseria's formal participation in crusades? Surely champion's cause should at least draw some volunteers.

Also are there any centers of trade or industry located near Forsaken land borders? Those would be first to be overrun if the demons attacked. Although presumably demons could elect to attack other kingdoms first - even this would be felt by coffers of their trading partners though.

>>43596609
Come to think about it,how interconnected are the kingdoms aside from being trading partners?

Perhaps to emphasize that what's being hit isn't just their coffers when the demons do manage to invade.

>>43596609
>Also, what would King and Council do, if the watchtower set up a recruitment center without Iseria's formal participation in crusades? Surely champion's cause should at least draw some volunteers.
The Watchtowers and their armies are treated as autonomous organizations within their kingdoms. They get funds from the kingdom's churches and are allowed to recruit volunteers on their own. If the kingdom chooses not to support their crusade, however, that means they're all on their own and won't receive additional funds and troops directly from the kingdom.

>Also are there any centers of trade or industry located near Forsaken land borders?
A few, yes. Those are usually pretty well guarded though, and a good chunk of Iseria's trade is by sea rather than land.

Alright, so consensus seems to be talk to Nerillian's daughter (bringing Nerillian and Roland with you), and talk to Laurentius. Unless there's objections, I'll start writing now.

>>43596797
In that case,were there cases of invasions by sea then?

>>43596902
Sounds good.

>>43596902
Aye capn.

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>>43596398
Seeing as Laurentius is already here, you decide it couldn't hurt to ask him for some advice as well. After all, it seemed like he knew what he was doing yesterday when you were all talking to Lord Bernadotte.

"What about you, sir? Any advice for the meeting?"

"Beyond what Lord Bernadotte has already said? Just that you should remember that you speak with the authority of Champion. Whether the council wishes to participate in the Crusade or not, you are still the Champion, and thus you carry a lot of weight in society, both in and outside of Iseria. Whether you realize it or not, your word carries a lot of weight, and that can make you either a valuable ally or a troublesome enemy for the councilmen. You should remind them of this during the meeting."

You think over the captain's advice. True, a lot of people outside the council will listen to what you say. You could use that as leverage if you need to, either to bargain with them or to threaten them.

"Alright, I'll keep that in mind as well. What about you sir? Any luck with what Lord Bernadotte mentioned yesterday?"

Laurentius nods. "Yes, I've already made some progress there. I believe I may have found a couple other leads as well, though I should be able to handle them myself. If I need you at any point though, I will call for you."

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>>43597432
Breakfast continues a short while longer before people begin to leave. Laurentius is the first to leave, followed shortly after by Ganelon. As Nerillian stands to leave, however, an idea occurs to you.

"Say, Nerillian, do you have any plans before the meeting?"

"I was hoping to visit my daughter sometime this morning, yes. If you need something, however, I can visit her after the meeting."

"Actually, if you don't mind, I was actually hoping to thank her for yesterday, maybe see if she learned anything new from those thugs yesterday."

"Hm...I do not mind, I'm sure she will not mind either. I was under the impression that Captain Laurentius wanted you to stay within the palace though."

>"It's fine. He didn't say I absolutely had to stay in the palace, just that I have to bring two of you with me first."
>"Oh yeah, that's true. In that case, could you ask her about it for me?"
>Other

>>43597452
>>"It's fine. He didn't say I absolutely had to stay in the palace, just that I have to bring two of you with me first."

>>43597452
>"It's fine. He didn't say I absolutely had to stay in the palace, just that I have to bring two of you with me first."

>>43597452
>"It's fine. He didn't say I absolutely had to stay in the palace, just that I have to bring two of you with me first."

Doesn't seem to be Sieg's type to willingly confine himself within the palace walls anyways

>>43597452
>>"It's fine. He didn't say I absolutely had to stay in the palace, just that I have to bring two of you with me first."

>>43597452
>>"It's fine. He didn't say I absolutely had to stay in the palace, just that I have to bring two of you with me first."

>>>>43597432
I forgot if i already mentioned, but i suspect that erika's dad is setting up the bribe to reveal it at the worst possible moment, prompting erika to reveal herself in a rage and cause a bigger mess. Then the option comes up to mind control, with a high chance of revealing levi, call for some sort of succession where erika tries to take her dads place, or someone has a notcrazy plan.

>>43597827
That's horribly contrived, but I'm also worried about something of sorts. We definitely do have something unpleasant ahead of ourselves.

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>>43597827
That's quite a bit of shadowrunning going on there,but I do agree that something seems fishy.

Likewise if shit does hit the fan and the option to let Levi do her thing comes up,the voters would make the smart choice....right....?

>>43597920
Theres going to be a lot of factors in play. That said though I am leaning towards not using her powers at all for this situation. Everything blows up if its found about and I suspect Lilith is involved here somewhere.

>>43597944
Yeah, I agree. Using mind-control is bad enough in general, but giving into temptation here is asking for disaster.

>>43598209
>>43597944
Pretty much

At least I hope we don't end up making dumb decisions or anything.

>>43597452
"It's fine. He didn't say I absolutely had to stay in the palace, just that I have to bring two of you with me first."

Nerillian shrugs. "That's true. Alright then, who else is going with us?"

You look back to the table. It seem most of the others have already left, but Roland is still there.

"Roland, we're heading out. Would you mind coming with us?"

"Hm? Sure, but where are we going?"

"You remember the report yesterday, right? We're going to visit Nerillian's daughter, see if she's learned anything new from the thugs that attacked me."

>>43598568
---------
A while later, Nerillian is knocking on his daughter's front door while you and Roland stand behind him and wait patiently. A moment later, the same woman from yesterday opens the door. Without her armor on, you're able to get a better look at her. She has short brown hair, green eyes, and pointy ears which, interestingly, are shorter than her fathers, making you wonder if her mother was a human.

"Oh, there you are father. You brought others?" She asks, noticing you and Roland.

"Yes, I hope you don't mind. Siegfried wanted to speak with you about what happened yesterday, and this here is Roland, another member of the honor guard."

"No, I don't mind. Come on in."

Nerillian's daughter, Sibylle, opens the door and the three of you step inside. Her house is actually pretty nice, a little bigger than yours back in Morsland. A tray with two cups of tea sits on a table in the living room.

"I'm going to go make some more tea, go ahead and make yourselves at home in the meantime."

You do as she says and take a seat next to Roland. Nerillian takes a cup of tea and seats himself by the window, taking his boots off and setting them next to his chair.

"Sorry for coming unannounced." You apologize.

"No, it's fine. Been meaning to meet the guy father's been protecting anyways." Sibylle responds, returning with another tray for you and Roland. "So, you're here about what happened yesterday, right? What exactly do you want to know?"

>"Those thugs, they didn't look like this was their first time getting into trouble. Do you know who they were, or if they've had a history attacking people on the streets?"
>"Well first, where are they being held now? Has anyone had a chance to question them yet?"
>"I don't suppose any of them mentioned who sent them, did they?"
>Other

Sorry for the delay, handling some stuff on skype concerning a campaign I'm in. Might be a bit slow while I'm handling that.

>>43598593
>>"Those thugs, they didn't look like this was their first time getting into trouble. Do you know who they were, or if they've had a history attacking people on the streets?"

>>43598593
>"Those thugs, they didn't look like this was their first time getting into trouble. Do you know who they were, or if they've had a history attacking people on the streets?"

>"I don't suppose any of them mentioned who sent them, did they?"

>>>>43598593
Hows guard life around here? I'd like to hear your perspective about how the people feel about demons and a crusade.

>>43598593
>"Those thugs, they didn't look like this was their first time getting into trouble. Do you know who they were, or if they've had a history attacking people on the streets?"
>>43598742
Might be good to ask both,in fact

>>43598593
>>"Those thugs, they didn't look like this was their first time getting into trouble. Do you know who they were, or if they've had a history attacking people on the streets?"

Alright, back and writing now.

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Well shit,it's past 2am.
Why am I still awake.

Hope the thread is surviving when I'm free for the rest of the day then.

>>43598593
"Those thugs, they didn't look like this was their first time getting into trouble. Do you know who they were, or if they've had a history attacking people on the streets?"

She nods. "I recognized them. They're part of some small gang that causes trouble every now and then. Mostly just petty theft and assault, but I don't think they've ever actually tried to kill anyone before."

"They're from a gang? Does that mean there's more of them?" You ask.

"No, that was all of them that attacked you yesterday. Maybe gang is too big a word for them, I guess 'small group of idiots' is more accurate. Still, attempted murder is something completely new for them, someone must have paid them handsomely."

'The man in the one's memories offered them 500 gold.' Leviathan informs you.

You're surprised, 500 gold could easily buy a pretty nice house. Whoever hired them must be fairly wealthy to offer that much to street thugs.

"Anyways, they're behind bars waiting for trial now. You won't have to worry about them anymore, though if someone actually put them up to this, I'd suggest keeping an eye out." Sibylle says.

"I'll keep that in mind."

>Stay and talk more, you're interested in learning more about Nerillian and his family.
>Excuse yourself, get back to the palace and continue preparing for the meeting.

>>43599433
>Stay and talk more, you're interested in learning more about Nerillian and his family.

>>43599433
>>Excuse yourself, get back to the palace and continue preparing for the meeting.
As much as I want to stay (we don't hang with Nerillion nearly as much as we should) we have responsibilities and the like. Damnit.

>>43599433
>>Excuse yourself, get back to the palace and continue preparing for the meeting.
as much as i wanna talk with them we here for a reason

>>43599433
>>Stay and talk more, you're interested in learning more about Nerillian and his family.

>>43599433
>>Stay and talk more, you're interested in learning more about Nerillian and his family.

(also we only came with two people, if we wanted to leave we would also have to take them as well)

>>43599520
Well yeah Nerillion would come with us. I mean if you are sure about wasting prep time for some backstory alright then.

>>43599564

Well we would be taking him back from his daughter which he specifically said he wanted to spend some time with when we left this morning. On the eve of the Crusade. With him as part of our honor guard.

I think we should probably give him some time with his family before he has a good chance of dying horribly.

>>43599617
I mean, if we went back to the palace and claimed we never left...

Well, I'm sure we could get Roland, Nerillian, and Sybille to corroborate on our story.

You guys do know Sibylle and Nerillian could just follow you to the palace gate, then go about their business right?

>>43599735
Whoops, forgot my trip.

>>43599735
>>43599750
I mean I'm for that but I voted to go back to the palace anyways.

Anywho, staying won so I'll start writing now.

>>43599433
>Stay and talk more, you're interested in learning more about Nerillian and his family.

>>43599433
"So, how exactly do trials here work exactly? Back in Morsland our Lord-Governor was the judge for major trials, how does that work here when the king himself is here?" You ask, trying to start a conversation.

"Usually, we have paid officials that handle trials. Something as big as an attack on the Champion might end up in front of the king himself though."

"Sounds like you're going to have a lot of paperwork to do then."

Sybille groans. "Don't remind me. Sounds like you know a lot about this sort of stuff though, I'm guessing the rumors about the Champion being a city guard were true then?"

"Yup. Used to be a guard in Morsland before I ended up here." You confirm.

"Wait, Morsland? That trade city in the south?" Sybille asks.

"Yeah, you know it?" You ask.

"Our captain's cousin lives in Morsland. I heard he's the captain of the guard there."

You lean forward, eyes widening. "Wait, you mean Captain Gregory?"

"Yeah, that was his name."

Somehow, the thought of there being another guard captain here being related to Captain Gregory makes you shiver. Better not tell Reinhardt about that.

>>43600907
--------
Somewhere in the city, Reinhardt exits the courier office. He stretches, a happy grin on his face.

'Hope she gets that letter soon.' He thinks to himself, making his way back to the palace. 'Hopefully she'll write back by the time we get back to the tower, I-'

His thoughts are interrupted as he bumps into someone on the road. He looks up at the offender, mildly annoyed.

"Hey asshole, watch where you-"

His words catch in his throat when he notices the man's appearance. The man is very tall, easily towering over Reinhardt, has long hair, and a thick beard. Besides the hair color and some of his facial features, the man reminds Reinhardt very much of someone back in Morsland.

"Watch your tongue, citizen." The man says gruffly.

"Uh...right, yes sir." Reinhardt says, backing down immediately. He continues on his way, leaving the large man to go about his business.

'Sweet Aureus, it's like someone built a second Gregory.' He thinks to himself. 'Hope I never run into him again.'

--------
"So how did you end up moving here while Nerillian went to the Watchtower?" You ask.

"Well, I ended up moving here a little bit after I turned twenty. Before that, I lived with father out in the woods. I wanted to see the city, so once I saved up the money I moved here."

"A shame you did too. You would have made an excellent hunter." Nerillian states.

"Sorry father, but you know I never really cared for hunting."

"I know, and that's the tragedy of it all really. You had the talent, but not the motivation."

"You're exaggerating. Besides, I like the city. Here, if I want something to eat, I can just go buy food from the butcher instead of setting traps." She says.

"Yes, but where's the sport in that? Besides, none of the meat you'll find here will taste as good as that you caught yourself."

>>43600927
"If I can ask, Nerillian, why did you enlist at the Watchtower if you preferred the woodsman's life?" You interject.

"Simple, I was bored." Nerillian answers. "After Sybille moved out, the only people I had to talk to where the villagers I'd occasionally trade with. One day when I was there to trade, however, the village was attacked by Scavengers. I helped shoot down most of them, but a few got away with some of the villagers. I knew a few of the people they took, so I chased after them. It was a lot like hunting birds, except the 'birds' were big, ugly, and had sharp claws. I shot them down and took the villagers back to the village, then went home. I thought about it for the next couple of days and I decided that demons provided a better challenge than simple animals, so I traveled to the tower and enlisted."

"...You're saying you joined the tower for the sport?" Roland asks.

"That's father." Sybille groans.

Outside, the cathedral bell dings thrice. The meeting will be starting in about two hours.

>Head back to the palace, make some last minute preparations.
>Stay longer, ask more about them.
>Finish something in town while you have the chance.
>Other

>>43600941
>>Head back to the palace, make some last minute preparations.

>>43600941
>Head back to the palace, make some last minute preparations.

Huh both Sybille and Sieg gave up their father's professions to become guards. Must be a trend in Iseria.

>>43600941
>>Head back to the palace, make some last minute preparations.

inb4 Sieg has a PTSD flare-up from Gregory.

>>43600941
>>Head back to the palace, make some last minute preparations.

>>43600981
>In other news, recent statistics from Iseria indicate many guards decided their profession to get out of the family business.
>More at 11.

>>43600981
Not necessarily a trend, but it's not that uncommon. Joining the guard to avoid adopting your parents profession is like the equivalent of "I didn't want to work at McDonalds my whole life, so I joined the military". Though Nerillian and Sybille's situation is a little different, since she didn't necessarily change profession so much as decide living in the woods and hunting to get by wasn't her kind of lifestyle.

Also, doing something real quick IRL, will start writing when I get back.

>>43601136
this is what drawanon needs to make both Galadriel and Leviathan as news anchors and sieg's their man on the ground

>>43601189
Champion action news, for all their dedicated viewers in the void.
They're the only ones who can see it, so it's all Galadriel's ploy to troll her isolationist king.

>>43600941
"Sounds like it's about time we started heading back to the palace." You point out, rising to your feet.

"A shame that." Nerillian says, grabbing his boots and putting them back on. "I'll come back tomorrow if I have a chance, when will you get off duty?"

"I have morning duty tomorrow, you'll have to stop by sometime after noon."

"Alright then. I'll stop by as soon as I get the chance."

With that, Nerillian and Roland exit the front door. As you're about to leave, however, Sibylle stops you.

"Uh...Before you go, you mind if I ask you a favor?" She asks.

"What is it?"

"It's about father. Whatever the council decides on, he'll be going with you on crusade with Belmore and Galloway. I know he can take care of himself, but...I'm still worried about him, you know? Just...just keep him as safe as you can, please?"

"You're actually the second person to ask me something along those lines." You admit. "I'll do my best, I have no intention of letting anyone on the honor guard get hurt if I can help it."

Sybille sighs. "Thank you, that takes a load off my mind."

"Siegfried, are you coming?" Nerillian asks from outside.

"Right, sorry." You reply, stepping out of the house and following the others back to the palace.

--------
Upon returning to the palace, you see servants running to and fro to finish preparations for the council meeting. The meeting will be in a couple hours, if there's anything you want to do before then you should probably do it now as well. Alternatively, you could head to the council room now and see if any of the other councilmen are there early.

>Head to the council room now.
>Speak with someone (Specify)
>Check on Laurentius, see if he's made any progress since this morning.
>Meditate, talk to Galadriel or Leviathan about the meeting
>Other

Getting pretty late, I was hoping to get through the first council meeting today but I might have to call it a night at the start of the meeting and continue on Saturday. Sorry for the short run after such a long time folks.

>>43601986
>>Check on Laurentius, see if he's made any progress since this morning.

>>43601986
>>Speak with someone (Specify)
Talk to Erica's Dad, see if he knows where the individual dukes stand on the crusade. Which ones are in favor, which are on the fence, and which are against it. Concerning the later, ask if there are specific matters or issues they have with the crusades and what we could do to convince them otherwise.

>>43602078
>>43601986
I'll second.

Our resident angel and demon probably wouldn't have much advice for us anyways other than 'Tell them its the right thing' and 'Let me mind control em! Come on it'll be fun.'

>>43601986
>Check on Erica, see if she's been roped into something that will throw her dad off the game plan.
>Head to the council room early

>>43601986
You decide it's best to check with Lord Bernadotte one last time, get an idea of where the other councilmen stand and why. It's not hard to find him, you just need to ask the servants where his quarters are and they point you in the right direction. Once you find his quarters, you knock on the door and wait for his response.

"Who is it?"

"It's Siegfried, sir."

"Ah. You may enter then."

You turn the doorknob and open the door. Lord Bernadotte's quarters are...well, they're definitely fit for a High Councilman, that's for sure. His quarters could quite easily fit three of yours, and is furnished with a large bed and a very expensive looking carpet. Lord Bernadotte himself is sitting at his desk, writing something.

"What do you need?" He asks, still not turning his attention from his desk.

"Just thought I'd come ask you about the council, sir. Figure out which of the councilmen are in favor and which are against."

Lord Bernadotte finishes writing his sentence, then places his quill back in it's inkwell before finally turning to face you. "Currently, the council stands with five in favor, six opposed, and one undecided. The undecided councilman is Lord Kraemer, whom I've already spoken with your captain about yesterday. Those opposed are Lords Moeller, Lamprecht, Traultmann, Daffner, Barthelmes and, of course, his majesty King Harald V himself."

"So, if Lord Kraemer comes to our side, then the vote will be tied?"

"Yes and no. Yes, the council's opinions will be evenly divided, but no, as in the votes have not been cast yet. Where people stand when it's time to vote may be different than where they stand right now, which is why it's absolutely vital we sway everyone's opinions our way before it comes time to vote."

"Any ideas how to convince the people opposed?" You ask.

>>43603152
"A few, yes. Lord Lamprecht is opposed on the grounds that since the previous crusades have failed, this one will fail as well, and thus it would be wasting resources to support it. Convince him that it will be worth the resources to commit or, if your ambitious, convince him that this crusade will end differently, and he may change his position. Lord Lamprecht is a duke, and Daffner was the one he nominated to the council, so if you convince Lamprecht then Daffner will likely vote in favor as well. Daffner is known to have a soft heart, however, so you may be able to sway him to your side regardless by informing the council of what you saw in Alastor's farm, though you will have to really convince him if you want him to oppose Lamprecht's vote. Moeller will be significantly more difficult to convince, as he is a stubborn old man who will not change his opinion easily. He is quite greedy, however, so if you could find some way to grease his palms or secure a profitable trade agreement between him and the other kingdoms, I imagine he could be swayed. Traultmann was appointed to his position by Lord Moeller, and I don't think he's voted against Moeller even once since gaining his position. You will need to convince Moeller if you want Traultmann to vote in favor. Barthelmes was given his position by Kraemer, but I do not believe he will vote in favor of the crusade even if Lord Kraemer does. Rumor has it that the king has made some sort of deal with him to secure his vote, if you could figure out what that deal was then we could potentially make him a counter-offer and bring him to our side. As for His Highness himself...I fear I have no idea what will sway him, as I do not fully understand why he is opposed in the first place. If you could discover why, then we could discuss ways to convince him, but for now we will have to assume he will vote against no matter what.”

>>43603183
“What about the people voting in favor? Anything we can do to make sure they don't go to the other side?”

“You can leave that much to me, I'm already doing what I can to ensure their loyalty. In any case, the council meeting will be starting soon, if you have any other questions you'd best ask them now rather than later.”

>”Why are you voting in favor? What's in it for you?”
>”If I may ask, what exactly are you doing to ensure the people on our side stay on our side?”
>”No, I think I'm good.” Head to the meeting.
>Other

>>43603192
>”Why are you voting in favor? What's in it for you?”
And here is my next shadowrun theory
Dad actually really cares about Erika, and would prefer that she didn't have to risk her life everyday. If the demons are gone, she'll be safe. He'll immediately oppose the moment he finds out Erika will be on the frontlines.

or

Dad just wants Erika dead without staining his hands.

>>43603192
>”Why are you voting in favor? What's in it for you?”

Gift horse, mouth, etc. But I'm curious.

>>43603228
Das ice cold nigga. Supporting.

Have an idea about Lampretch.

Best Champ since Asher was Andras.

And we beat him

>>43603353
>Yeah, Andras?
>Lopped off his arm BEFORE I was champion.
>After Morslad, he's kind of lacking in the limbs department.

>>43603353
Twice. We beat him twice. Once without even being a champion.

>>43603192
"Just one thing, why are you voting in favor? If I may ask, what's in it for you?"

"Quite a few things, actually. Chief amongst them being that I do quite a lot of business with Galloway. My family actually originated from there, if the name didn't already give that away. It goes without saying that if Iseria elected not to participate in the Crusade, Galloway would be much less intent on buying Iserian goods. It goes without saying then that it's in my best interests that Iseria participated in this Crusade."

"So it's because you have money resting on this decision then?" You ask, perhaps a bit too bluntly.

"Yes, and I'm not the least bit ashamed to admit it. I'd much sooner have an ally with his own reasons to help me than one that does so because it's the 'right' thing to do. If you take anything away from that, it should be that I am undoubtedly on your side. Now, you should be off. It wouldn't do to be late to a council meeting, much less one of this importance. I will be there shortly, as soon as I finish writing this letter."

With that, you show yourself out and start making your way towards the room where the council will be meeting.

'Even without knowing how he treated poor Erika, I would be lying if I said I didn't dislike that man.' Galadriel confesses.

'Say what you will about him, what he said wasn't wrong though. I trust a man's greed far more than I trust their honesty.' Leviathan counters.

>>43603626
-------
Moments later, you find the others waiting for you outside the council room. Erika is there as well, though she's still wearing her helmet just to be safe. At least with Ganelon there it won't stand out so much.

"You're finally here, are you ready to go?" Laurentius asks.

"Yes sir."

"Good, then just remember what Lord Bernadotte said yesterday. Be careful what you say, it may be twisted against you. The rest of you, do not speak unless you need to, and when you do choose your words carefully. Understood?"

"Yes sir." The group says collectively.

"Good. Then without further adieu..."

Laurentius steps forward and opens the double doors leading in. Inside, 10 men are sitting at a large table, with four seats left unoccupied. It doesn't take long to notice that, strangely enough, the king is not here currently.

"Ah, there you are." One of the councilmen says. "Please be seated, the High Council Meeting will begin shortly."

Okay, gonna have to call it a night here folks. Next thread should be Saturday unless something comes up. Sorry again for the long wait between last thread and this thread, hopefully I'll be able to run more frequently soon.

I'll answer questions after I wake up if anyone has them. Thanks for playing folks, hope to see you all next thread.

Ugh I could never be a politician.

>>43603652
Thanks for the run boss. See you next time.

>>43603652
Thanks for the thread Sparks.
Hopefully Saturday stays free.

I wanted to ask if there are any types of mages in lieu of monks in d&d in the setting.


Also Nirellian is just a dad in a mid life crisis. Still a cool dad.

Hey if you are already making parallels between Siegfried and Sybille you can take it further as a joke.

Give her a gender-swapped Reinhardt, a guard as well who suddenly has a crush on Roland and so on...

>>43603652
Nice to have you back Sparks, hope to catch you saturday.

>>43603653
You would be astonished and disturbed to realize how easily power corrupts the most virtuous people.

>>43603771
Dang, elven midlife crises are hardcore.

Who the hell is Sybille though?

>>43603827
Nirellians daughter. Might have spelled that wrong.

>>43603839
Oh right, the one we talked to in this thread. Derp.

>>43601189
Alright I'm awake and-

…Yep.Sounds right up my alley.
I'd get to it after the lecture

>>43599385
I'm probably reading too much of ''Yuusha ga Shinda'' because dem thighs....
Ugh i'm turning into a worse creep nao.

>>43603771
And here I keep reading Sybille as Sybil Ramkins.

I do need to reread those books do I…

>>43603958
Oi.

>>43603998
Oh hello drawnon.
And good morning.

How's uni?

>>43604019
A shitload of reading,mostly.

At least my major's pretty light in the exams department,so most of the work is going towards essays.

>>43604040

Yeah know what you mean.

I'll probably re-enlist into uni this year and continue with my second year in history studies.

Shit's easy as long as you send in the essays early enough and prepare for the monthly tests.

Also a request for later if you don't mind.
Siegfried Roland, Reinhardt and Nirellian are in town and Nirellian is meeting his daughter.
She introduces everyone to Rose, her BFF and fellow guards-woman and then they go of on tangents that make them and Sieg/Reinhardt similar.... Ok as i'm writing this i notice how stupid this is so you may ignore this.

Capcha is cookies nom nom.

>>43604040
>...so most of the work is going towards essays.
This is my nightmare, I've already put off my writing classes until the end of this (my 4th) year. I'll take math over that any day.

Also thanks for the art, the colored, fallen Galadriel looks great!

>>43603827
>You would be astonished and disturbed to realize how easily power corrupts the most virtuous people.
I find it more likely that virtue of people who manage to get into position of power was superficial part of their image to begin with.
Although I suppose sticking to one's virtue and morals in gray world of politics can also lead to extreme, even brutal consequences. When one's burning with zeal for a good (or "good") cause, it might be easy to justify some collateral damage along the way...

>>43604040
Ganelon teaching Erika the mysterious ways of the helmet. Eat wearing a helmet, sleep wearing a helmet, meditate under a waterfall wearing a helmet, and finally SWEATING OUTSIDE THE HELMET

OK I'm back

Just gonna check that the recent Win7 updates doesn't screw with my tablet's driver,then I should be good to go.

>>43604571
that's picture worthy

Okay, I'm back now.

>>43603771
>I wanted to ask if there are any types of mages in lieu of monks in d&d in the setting.
Yes, actually. There is at least one church order in Belmore that's earned a reputation across the kingdom's for using magic to enhance their physical attribute, allowing them to allegedly smash boulders with their fists and block swords with their forearms.
>Also Nirellian is just a dad in a mid life crisis.
That's actually more accurate than you think.
>Hey if you are already making parallels between Siegfried and Sybille you can take it further as a joke.
Funny enough, their similarities were a complete accident. When I was writing up her backstory in my notes, I got all the way through it without realizing how similar they were and was just about to shut my computer off when I stopped and thought "wait a second, I've seen some of this before..."

Rather than change it though, I ended up throwing in the bit about Gregory's cousin. I think I'll resist going all the way and throwing in a Reinhardt parallel on top of that though.

>>43596934
>In that case,were there cases of invasions by sea then?
Forgot to answer this one earlier. Yeah, there's been invasions by sea before. There's actually one island south-west of Iseria that used to be part of it's territory before Alastor's armies went in and conquered it. They're not incredibly common though, as there's less aquatic demons them there are land demons, and Iseria has the strongest navy out of the three major kingdoms.

>>43605264
Where do you get the best ice cream?

>>43605015
Siegfried has a nightmare of being stared down by Gregory and his cousin. Wakes up screaming at the same time as Reinhardt who had the same nightmare.

>>43605264
>>43605334
err, best Ice cream in-setting, that is.

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>>43605015
And there we go

>>43605378
it's gorgeous

Gonna grab lunch then I'll finish these
>>43604571
>>43605334

>>43605378
Life is top - when you're cop.
Need a hobby? Become a bobby!
Work's too hard? Join the guard.
Join the team, fight the crime.
Flap you wings & foil some stings.
Life's never dull when you're on patrol.

>>43605483
Siegfried has special info on how to bribe one of the councilmen. He shares some rare dwarven tapestries lent by Joan.

>>43605378
>That pose
First thing I thought of was the Absolutely Disgusting guy.

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>>43605776
It was a coincidence,really

Though I did briefly consider turning it into a Whose Line skit

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>>43605483

>>43605334
For this one I'm going to need Gregory's ref pic

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>>43606693
On my phone, but I found the old reference pic in the archives.

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>>43606742
Gonna keep the running gag going

>>43607114
Ha. Nice work.

>>43607114
I was wondering how you were going to draw Siegfried without his helmet. This is perfect, thanks drawnon

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>>43607545
It ain't the first time m8

>>43607603
You still over in London drawanon?

>>43607718
Somewhat northern England actually.

I'd be broke if I were in London.

>>43607735
Expensive over there huh?

Hmm random question but you ever play SMT at all?

>>43607781
Not really,but I do vaguely remember watching that old Devil Children animu when I was a kid.

>>43607811
I see. Was just wondering since there's this Devil Summoner Quest that I thought you might dig. Takes place in London and the QM is also a britbong so its time slot is in the Britain timezone (As an American on the West Coast that means 6-7am start time for me).

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>>43605553
Well

>>43608739
but councilman animu is great...

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>>43605378
I love it when you turn my crappy jokes into pictures drawanon.

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>>43611612
Well it -is- a rather entertaining idea in the first place

>>43611828
>Pocky Game
>Axe chops pocky cleanly in two
>I-it's ok, I got the tastier half, so I won...

>>43606300
Starting to run out of ideas.

But to be honest , I meant more direct instruction, since Erika is currently going helmet all-day as well.

>>43611924
To be fair,she's doing that more of necessity rather than voluntary

>>43611949
>Siegfried council plan #2
>Do a puppet show for the children of the councilmen

>>43611990
I could pull a Muppets,but I'll prolly need some lines for the puppets

Preferrably if it's going to scare the shit out of the kids

>>43612030
gimme a sec

>>43611990
>>43612030
>The winged hero righteously smites the bad guy
>yaaaaay
>limbs of the puppet come off and blood/stuffing spew out
>eeeeeew
>Gal, Laurentius, and Erika's dad staring disapprovingly while Levi is laughing
>W-what, I thought hyper-realism was in with kids these days!

>>43611990
>>43612030
alternate
>classic guard propaganda like the slogan above >>43605532
>whoops, forgot I was trying to support the crusade. Man, the things we did to drum up support back in the guard...

>>43611990
>>43612030
obligatory alternate dwarven tapestries

the kids start dressing up as magical girls, even the guys. Wilhelm despairs even more as more become like him.

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>>43612085
>their face when Seig do Alastor's "I hope senpai notice me" part.

>>43612176
Eh I'm not sure,that's about as likely as me drawing Gal as Shimakaze or some shit

>>43611990
>>43612030
one more, although I'm just typing without thinking at this point.

>BULLY SNEK show
>puppet levi playing silly buggers
>poked with the holy sword until she stops
>Sieg, you're supposed to drum up support to KILL demons, not EMPATHIZE with them!

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>>43612085
How educational

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>>43612859

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>>43612859

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>>43612277
I would watch the bully snek show.

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>>43612277
Nice dub dubs

>>43613545
yeah, I'm out of ideas and I gotta go soon. thanks for the pics drawanon!