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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-nSDbancP4A

Samson and his crew leave the capable little company he motivated up and out of Fort Dalshin, the last of the Dory Company sailing them from their ruined and discovered secret headquarters to Holmstead. Hal, Samson, Millicent, and even Norman are outwardly excited to revisit their old homes, while Edwyg and Adelais just can't wait to see it for themselves. The Noban agents wonder if Sir Jovan has seen Holmstead claimed for their own territory yet, and how they should feel about the fact that, until recently, it was a VERY controversial topic in both Holmstead and Noba as to whether the two should unite.

Less controversially, Dyrus is still more than a little surprised by recent familial revelations! His grandfather gives Hauteclere a simple "Dyrus knows" ("Knows what?" "I'll tell you later, Laurise."), and she immediately seems to know what secret he has learned. For now, though, with the town and castle guard pacified by Marduk's promise that they can keep their jobs under new management, they can approach the sinister, undead-guarded fortress of Methodius. He has no Warp Pendant, he's surrounded and guarded only by himself, and the world is more than aware of the kindly old necromancer's monstrousness.

Rene and her company, still slowly freezing their way through the Ice Authority, tread carefully, knowing that their backup, at their point in the timeline, has yet to return from re-kidnapping Lazare and, unbeknownst to them (though they'd probably indifferent at worst to finding out), killing Oswald Dory. They have their own priorities, even with Methodius, his granddaughter, and his green-haired yes-man making their own poorly-conceived plans... A-anyway, here, they think, this would be the capital of the Ice Authority! Gods, why don't they just NAME their towns? Not everyone is an immortal dragon with all the time in the world to know where everything is...

>A. Be Samson
>B. Be Dyrus
>C. Be Rene

>>47825901
>C. Be Rene

>>47825901
>C. Be Rene

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>>47825950
You must admit, the sound of heavy snow crunching beneath your boots is a pleasant novelty to you, but you and your horse both agree that this is absolutely awful. You were raised by bright, sunny beaches, brought up with your sister on a reclusive island manor!

You wish you were in Central fighting rebels. The snow blows over your conversations, your feet hurt, you're hungry...

You don't show any of this, though, no. Absolutely not! You need to be setting a strong example.

Alfred, having taken to a MUCH thicker coat/hood and replacing his parasol with a very large umbrella for your tenure in snowy hell, and Veiz, who he shields beneath said accessory with him, can probably relate to your problems the most, but if you hear them complain you tell them to get over it, that you won't be here long.

Cicero is as stone-faced about the cold as you are (it's cute how snowflakes get trapped in his beard, though...), while Saye has been staying transformed to give herself a big natural fur coat.

On the outskirts of the Icy Capital, a fellow with a silver-blue beard, clad in blue robes, with a noticeable set of wings behind his back approaches you through the snow, stepping by it like it's nothing. "You're clad awful heavy, travelers... Not too often we get Imperials up here in the mountains."

"H-h-how d-do yo-you know-w that?" Veiz asks him.

"It's all in your outfits," he remarks. "Humans around here've always just enchanted what they have to keep 'em warm. Out-of-countriers never think to. Anyway, what brings you here?"

>A. You seek a half-manakete
>B. Is he an Ice Dragon?
>C. Who's asking?
>D. Let someone else answer
>E. Write-in response

>>47826129
>C. Who's asking?
>A. You seek a half-manakete

>>47826129
>C. Who's asking?
>A. You seek a half-manakete

>>47826129
>C. Who's asking?
>A. You seek a half-manakete

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>>47826291
"May I have the honor of learning who we address?" You ask, stepping forward and bowing your head politely.

"You may know me as Ormr, humans," he responds, smiling with obvious approval at your small gesture of politeness. "I'm a representative of the Ice Authority. My domain is right by the border of the Empire, so I'm not sure how I didn't find you sooner..."

"We... Were teleported here, for a mission, Sir Ormr," you respond, trying to remain cordial. "About two decades ago, a prince by the name of Xerxes bore a child with an ice dragon. After his death on an attempt to search for her, this knowledge was lost for sixteen years, and now..."

"Xerxes... Empire..." Ormr rubs his old-looking beard, "sixteen years... Is he the one that Lord Tordo granted Xouide to?"

"That was... many generations longer ago than that, Sir Ormr," Cicero corrects. "He is a descendant of the original Emperor, however, and Xerxes' also-deceased brother has given us a mission of vital importance to the future of the Empire, that we must find any of his heirs."

"Relax, I'm just pulling your legs," he jokes, "of course I remember hearing about Xerxes! It's not often a human can steal the heart of a dragon, after all!"

"So... Could you at least introduce us to Sara's mother?" Veiz asks.

"...I'm afraid not, unless you wished to visit another realm," Ormr muses, sadly. "Sara's mother was killed in a recent skirmish with a fugitive Fire Dragon. To be robbed of your mother at such a tender, formulative age as twenty..."

>A. Then can we see the girl herself?
>B. Fire dragons?
>C. You can relate
>D. Write-in response
>E. ...

>>47826503
>C. You can relate
>B. Fire dragons?
>A. Then can we see the girl herself?

>>47826503
>C. You can relate
>B. Fire dragons?
>A. Then can we see the girl herself?

>>47826503
>C. You can relate
>A. Then can we see the girl herself?

Sorry for the delay, had to go eat really quick. Starting post now.

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>>47826586
"My... Sister and I can relate," you say, sharing a sad look with Veiz, before resuming professional-speak. "Could you show us to Lady Sara?"

"Well... She is half-human, and she's been itching to leave the nest quicker than most dragons. Still, though, with the looming threat of a Fire Dragon and its fell followers razing the nearby area..."

"A... Fire Dragon?" You ask. "I was wondering about those..."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z-CgqoaWjAo

"Yes, they're... Quite dangerous beasts," Ormr warns. "They rampage throughout our fair mountains, causing nothing but strife, destroying people's houses with their firestones and bending humans to their will. Them and those Chameleons are both nothing but trouble. We've put orders out to hunt them down to a man, but more always grow bold and attack..."

"You-" Veiz starts.

You immediately interrupt, knowing that whatever she says will just cause for further ethical dilemmas. You're here for a job, not to play heroes. "And the... Fire Dragon who killed Sara's mother is in this area?"

"We suspect so, yes... A settlement due North of here recently dealt with a horrible fire, and then stopped paying their dues to the Ice Authority. It's the hallmark of fiery savages..."

>A. You could help her get revenge
>B. ...
>C. Why don't THEY fight them?
>D. Write-in response

>>47826995
>A. You could help her get revenge

>>47826995
>A. You could help her get revenge
>D. But taking on a fire dragon that killed a ice dragon might be too much for us.

>>47827248
"We could help Sara find the Fire Dragon who killed her mother," you suggest. "My team and I have fought and survived an awful civil war. Without draconic blood in our veins, it may prove difficult, but with her as our guide, the pavement to a better future for ice dragons and humanity..." You say whatever you think can stroke this old man's ego.

"You speak with conviction," Ormr says, "come, I will... Introduce you, at the very least."

The winged old man shows your lot into the stone city that makes up the Ice Authority's capital. Leading you into its centermost administrative building (chilly in here, but beats outside by an infinite stretch), he shows you to a small room, decorated with childish decorations and ice sculptures of bael that refuse to unfreeze in the corner. Painting vibrant, colorful interpretations of these faux-monsters is a small-looking girl with wings much shorter than Ormr's, even comparatively to her smaller size, and silver-blue hair far bluer than Ormr's silver. Her robes are browner than Ormr's regal blue ones, and you'd estimate that this probably twenty year-old looks... Well, like a 14 year-old human who barely ever grew.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j16UHTECGu0

"Hello..." The girl, turning towards you, says softly, rising just a few centimeters above the ground and flying towards you. Her voice is quiet, yet chilling, and her blue eyes are far more... Human-looking than the other ice dragon you've seen.

"Pardon our interruption, Lady Sara," Ormr apologizes, "but... These women and their bearded friend are from the human territories to the South."

While Alfred grumbles bitterly to himself, Sara continues looking you over. "More guests from the Empire..? It's an honor to actually... Meet them this time."

>A. 'This time?'
>B. Get right down to business
>C. ...
>D. Let someone else handle this
>E. Write-in response

>>47827584
>A. 'This time?'

>>47827584
>A. 'This time?'

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>>47827655
"This time?" You ask.

"Ah, yes," Ormr says, "I think it was... Almost a year ago now? I'm not good with small timeframes like that, but anyway... A woman who carried herself quite like you and her daughter paid our nation a visit. Lord Tordo saw fit to bestow another gift to the world below, and apparently deemed her a worthy champion. His gifts this time were... I believe a staff and a silver wyvern egg that had actually been fertilized."

"That's..." You start, catching yourself before calling them on callously giving Lady Hauteclere the weapon that would kill Emperor Ximeno.


"What the humans do with their gifts is of no meaning to us, so long as they do not turn them towards their gracious donors," Ormr says.

"Anyway, it's... Nice to meet you all," Sara says, clearing her throat. "But... Ormr would not introduce you to me without purpose."

"Ah, right... You're awfully observant, Lady Sara," you address the unknowing princess, "we're speaking to you because..."

>A. Helping her hunt her mother's killer (make mental note to mention princess thing later)
>B. Helping rid the world of fire dragon scum (make mental note to mention princess thing later)
>C. Mention her human parentage
>D. Combine A and C
>E. Combine B and C
>F. Write-in response

>>47827913
>E. Combine B and C
Once we gain her trust of course.

>>47827913
>D. Combine A and C

Rolled 2 (1d2)

>>47828024
>>47827994
Let's see which angle Rene tackles the whole "sell her on fighting Fire Dragons" thing from.

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>>47827994
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3wTIrwav0Ek
"...is it not part of your duty as an Ice Dragon to help exterminate this plight of Firebreathers?" You ask. "Torching homes, slaughtering innocent ice dragons and mothers, turning cowards to their will... The lot of them need to be wiped from this country."

"R-Rene!" Veiz looks... Well, more than a little taken aback with your tone here. Horrified, might be the better word. Saye, still transformed, merely snarls, while no one else says a thing or makes a move.

"I won't hear it, Veiz," you say. "Now, Sara... Won't you help us do your duty as an Ice Dragon?"

"First off... I'm only half-dragon. It's why I look so old for my age," she says, tone making it unclear whether she's trying to be funny or just factual. "Second... You can give speeches all you like, but you wouldn't come all this way to recruit me for dragonslaying. If you came for the glory of the hunt, you would do it alone, and if it were out of a genuine hatred for them, you would work with a more experienced Ice Dragon. So... Tell me, outright."

"I was... Just getting to that," you say. "It has to do with your aforementioned human heritage. Your father wasn't just any man, but the prematurely-slain rightful Emperor of the declining Gerxel Empire. You are the second of his children, and if we can find at least four of you... We might be able to restore the Empire to its former glory and turn this war back into our favor, using the very gift Lord Tordo once gave to our first ruler."

"My... Existence is not widely known, even within this nation. For word to have reached you even in human territory..." Sara nods. "I've always wanted to travel... I'll believe you. And since you seem so eager to help me avenge my mother, I suppose we can humor that before we go..."

>A. Does she not want to?
>B. Great!
>C. ...
>D. Write-in response

>>47828244
>B. Great!
>D. "Sara, I need to know this first; do you truly wish to avenge your mother's death?"

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>>47828415
"Then we'll be happy to have you along," you start, before noting her apparent lack of enthusiasm. "But... Tell me truly, Sara. Do you wish to avenge your mother's death?"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DG3G0A_FXNg

Sara is silent for awhile, returning to her canvas and painting the vividly stylized bael again. "...do I hate the person who did this to her? Yes, I suppose I do..." She strokes masterfully as she speaks, "and... Fire Dragons are to be punished by death, but... None of that means very much to me."

"I... See... We don't have to if you don't want to," you say.

"No, I want to," she responds, "but... I don't suppose I'm passionate enough about anything to care too deeply. The fire dragon who happens to have killed my mother... Has razed a village and taken over its remains. It would be irresponsible of me to neglect it if asked to fight..."

It's... Almost unsettling to see how disinterested someone who looks as young as she does can speak, even when you consider the fact that she's only a couple years younger than yourself.

"Excellent!" Ormr says, "good to see that you're starting to understand! Let me go find your mother's icestone..." The older dragon scurries off, leaving you a few minutes to loiter, probably have a short chat with someone if you so desire.

>A. You so desire (specify person, topic preferred)
>B. You no desire

>>47828665
>B. You no desire

>>47828665
>B. You no desire

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>>47828733
Veiz and Saye go to speak outside alone, leaving you to stand around awkwardly with Sara, Cicero, and Alfred.

After Ormr gives Sara her Icestone, the inexperienced Manakete assures him that she can show you all the way to the site of the recent fire-stricken settlement.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jkI26OHT6XI

"I'm... Not terribly experienced with combat, and I never had my own Icestone," she says. "So... I might need some help for awhile."

"Well," Saye says, having reverted for the time being and walking close to the manakete, patting her on the back, "I'm pretty much an expert in beaststones, and they're... Basically functionally identical! I could show you proper techniques involving weaponizing reverting, and learning the strengths and limitations of your new body, and..."

"I... We can try that some other time," she says. "We'll be traveling together for awhile..."

"Yeah, it sounds like it'll be fun!"

"Fun as it will certainly be," Cicero says, "we would be better off spending this time planning for our imminent encounter with this fierce firebreather. Lady Sara, what do you know about them?"

"My mother, before her final fight with them, said that they had a gang of... At least 13 highly-trained human subordinates, skilled in various weapons and fighting styles. This number might have raised or lowered since then, but... It's a basis. And since you wouldn't be aware as outsiders, all Fire Dragons have red hair and eyes, a fiery complexion, and talons for feet... On top of the usual wings one would expect of a dragon. If they're not disguising themselves, they stick out like sore thumbs."

"So... What is our plan of action?" Alfred asks.

>A. Take the dragon out as quickly as possible
>B. Eliminate his human subordinates first
>C. Most of us keep the heat off whoever challenges them first
>D. Write-in action
>E. ...

>>47829104
>B. Eliminate his human subordinates first
Support should always be destroyed before the main guy. Also, nice choice of music.

>>47829104
>B. Eliminate his human subordinates first

>>47829104
>B. Eliminate his human subordinates first

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>>47829253
"The Fire Dragon's underlings must be eliminated first," you suggest. "We leave them alive to focus on their leader, we're blindsided and killed."

"Send me on ahead, then, Rene," Cicero requests. "I'll poke open more than my share of holes in whatever formations they have, report back with my modifications to their defenses."

You nod. "Just be careful."

"I always am," he assures you before vanishing into the snow.

As luck would have it, he would return some 10 minutes later. "Your late mother's estimate was... Slightly off," he explains to Sara. "I reduced the number to what you were expecting, so don't feel too downtrodden about it."

"How many did you..?" Sara shakes her head. "No, no, we can count them all when none of them are fighting..."

"I made particularly certain to eliminate their healers and mages," Cicero mentions. "To my knowledge, only one-" An assassin hops out from a nearby snowbank, Cicero merely giving the sound a glance and whipping a blade through his neck-"only one healer is still among their surviving ranks."

"H-hey! There's the phantom, boss!"

"Phantom..." Cicero looks proud at the approaching enemies' comment, producing and writing in a notepad with an amused look. "That's a new one."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0mMs8mMM3vo

A winged fellow, flanked by two thick-clad swordsmen on foot, flies into view. You can make out more figures behind them, but it's harder to tell their exact equipment...

>A. Call them out! (suggestions preferred)
>B. Start shooting (specify target)
>C. Approach with your lance!
>D. Write-in action
>E. See what happens

>>47829433
>>B. Start shooting at the winged fellow

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>>47829583
You immediately fire off your Brave Bow once, twice, but one of the mercenary-looking sorts immediately jumps in your way, taking the arrows for his boss.

"Y-you..!" Accidentally continuing to follow your plan of 'pick off the little guys' seems to have set off the winged guy. He shifts and grows, letting out a horrific stream of fire to melt through the snowstorm surrounding the area. "You all have a lot of nerve, picking off my friends from afar! Let's see how you humans like it!"

On the ground, the man hurries forward with much more speed than expected, Sara quickly stepping forward and transforming into a smaller-looking Ice Dragon in the hopes of repelling him.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UsBfQUqqoE8

She's knocked to her side relatively quickly, but she's easily captured the fire dragon's attention, getting to her draconic feet and freezing his feet around him with icy breath. "Keep his... lackeys off of me. You wanted me to fight him, yes?"

"A hatchling challenges me? Does the Authority think that little of me?!" One leg at a time, the fire dragon works to break free of his icy shackles.

"Tell me... What's your name?" Sara asks. "Mine is Sara..."

"Caring enough to know who it is you're killing, huh? I can tell already I'll remember you!" The Fire Dragon laughs. "It's Zeff. Remember that when I'm burning it into your skull!"

As Zeff blatantly toys with Sara, pretending to be trapped in their conversation, the other mercenary (looks like a Hero, actually...), along with a Bishop, Four Warriors, two Falcon Knights, three Halberdiers and a Swordmaster, trying to close in on Sara in a semicircle formation.

>A. Attack someone! (specify)
>B. Just sort of keep in Sara's way
>C. Write-in response
>D. Stand around

>>47829958
>A. Attack someone! (Bishop)

>>47829958
>A. Attack someone! (Bishop)

>>47829958
>A. Attack someone! (Bishop)

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>>47830013
You take aim at the bishop, firing your arrows at him next. Surviving your two arrow strikes, he responds, in turn, by striking you square in the face with some sort of light magic, knocking you off of your feet (gods, you wish you'd brought Lyka along, but the poor thing was having a tough enough time just walking normally in the snow, and the town in question was said to be a short walk away) and into the snow. Just after you've been hit, Veiz manages to have a Bonewalker descend on the bishop from behind, cutting him down permanently while she stops the Falcon Knights from taking advantage of your current state to skewer you.

Unhesitating, Cicero stops swerving tauntingly around the nimble Swordmaster to heal you up, to which you respond by producing your Steel Lance and stopping the swordsman by forcing him to run into it as he nearly strikes the butler-assassin. Smiling at each other, you share a quick, chaste kiss before taking aim at the halberdiers and hero that Alfred is trying to stop from interrupting Saye's beatdown on the warriors.

"Grh..!" Zeff groans, leading you to turn around as you leave the rest of his men to everyone else. Sara keeps breathing ice all over him. "I'm... Gonna be frostbitten by the end of this!"

"Far worse than that, probably..." Sara looks at him. "You burned half of this village down and made the rest into your hideout, so... You're going to die..."

"Ahaha... You really think that I'm losing this!" The shivering Fire Dragon taunts.

"...you look like you are," she responds, icy wings flapping as she rises above him.

"Well, I've got a retort there," Zeff responds, breathing in deeply...

>A. See what happens...
>B. Distract Zeff! (suggestions as to how preferred)
>C. Write-in action

>>47830262
>B. Distract Zeff! (Shoot at his eye)

>>47830262
>B. Distract Zeff! (suggestions as to how preferred)
Shoot an arrow into his eye or mouth, assuming it's open and vulnerable while he breathes in. Or both, since we can fire twice.

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>>47830367
You fire your arrows into Zeff's eye, hoping to distract him from setting the hope for the Empire's future ablaze, but all it seems to do is add in horrible roars of pain to his deathly burst of fire.

The sight leaves you speechless, dropping to your knees in outright horror, already unable to make out her form amongst the ashes his ruthless attack spreads.

"N-now... I'm down an eye thanks to you!" Turning towards you without a second thought as you fail to move, he exhales...

And you see a familiar dragon-girl's face, untransformed, above him, quickly transforming and falling onto his neck.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YXQH6hT_Fcc

"G-ghr..! H-how did..!" The Fire Dragon chokes out.

"The... Wolf-girl mentioned something about strategic un-transforming... I really am faster in that state than my other one..." Having injured the murderous fire dragon's neck quite severely with her little fakeout there, she turns and buries his face a self-contained, deadly blizzard, holding out until he reverts into his more humanoid form, no longer moving or struggling.

Then, she reverts, clutching her chest, taking a deep breath, and sighing. "Ice breath... Leaves this really sharp aftertaste..."

>A. Is she alright?!
>B. H-how did she... You didn't even see...
>C. Just be speechless
>D. Write-in response

>>47830666
>A. Is she alright?!
>B. H-how did she... You didn't even see...

>>47830666
>A. Is she alright?!
>B. H-how did she... You didn't even see...
Unholy trips

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>>47830765
"A-are you alright, Sara?!" You hurry forward, grasping her shoulders and looking her over. "You're not hurt, are you?"

"...I'm fine," she responds. "Let's just... Secure the area and go back home... Wait until your teleporting person arrives..."

As you look over the area, reassure the surviving townspeople that an Ice Authority representative will be with them shortly to aid in rebuilding efforts, you continue your conversation with Sara, this time with Saye in tow.

"Really... How did you do that? I swore I saw you burn away, and..."

"I'm... pretty light on my wings," she responds. "You learn to cope when you don't have a Dragonstone for awhile..." She gives a slight smile to you, though, the first time you've seen her lips curl upwards. "Thank you for trying to save me anyway, though. It... Makes me feel a little better, knowing we'll be seeing the world together..."

Right when you're starting to think things are turning around, even if Veiz is a little cross with you, Kristina's return puts your optimism back in check.

"Kristina," Veiz says, sounding... Conflicted, between being happy to see her rival again and mad at her for her own last mission. "How were the islands?"

"They were fine," she responds, "sunnier than this frozen mess. Lazare's in Director Hera's custody, and every single Dory on Oswald's hideaway's dead, right down to the man himself."

"How did that happen?"

"It was weird... He said he'd cooperate however we wanted if we kept him alive, but then. I dunno, he refused to write for us, got all defiant... Said some shit about his daughter. It was clear he was more dangerous than his scrawniness implied, so I put him down."

"Wait..." You remark, curiously, "where's Hal?"

"You won't fucking believe it," Kris says, scowling, "fucking fell off a cliff by accident. And drowned. Tide carried his body off."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ni6MzkZv4nc

>A. ahaha what the shit
>B. Suspicious...
>C. Oh no...
>D. Write-in response
>E. ...

>>47831084
>C. Oh no...

>>47831084
>C. Oh no...
Play it cool for now.

>>47831190
"O-oh, no..." You bring your hand to your mouth in shock. People you know don't usually live long enough to die in pointless freak accidents, but... A purposeless battle is what killed Felix and Sara's father, over a decade and a half ago. A gross barfight settled with broken glass is what started the Empire down a path of ruin.

"Er... A word please, Rene?" Cicero asks, having one of those 'looks' in his eyes.

"Er... Sure, Cicero," you say, nodding and following him off. "What's the matter?"

"The circumstances of Hal's alleged death... They don't add up. Think it through... Did he truly seem the sort to make life debts with folks such as Methodius?"

"Cicero, what are you getting at..?" You ask.

"Out of anyone who might have been our rat, I must admit I was the most uncertain of him," he says. "He was from Holmstead, and every excuse he made for why he was fighting an ally of Noba was laughable. I thought, perhaps, he could just genuinely have been a fool, but..."

"You think he might have been the one to take Xerxes' last page?"

"It's entirely possible to fake a death in the manner Kristina described his fate," Cicero says. "He might not only be alive, but have hand-delivered knowledge we don't have of the true heir to the Gerxel too its enemies."

"But... Why would you propose that if he's gone?" You ask. "It means we can speculate about him freely all we want."

"No, no, because I also have a second, slightly less plausible theory... Kristina can be a cold person, but to not even use her teleporting pendant to try and save Hal's life? Not implausible, especially since I cannot consider solid motivations for her, but... She is a loose cannon anyway. Let's keep our eyes on her."

Later, the lot of you discuss your next move. You're going to all warp closer to the next heir, but time is growing tighter. Conrad is a bandit leader on the edge of your archenemy's territory, but Central, where Ludwig is, is a warzone too...

>A. Conrad
>B. Ludwig

>>47831466
>A. Conrad

>>47831466
>A. Conrad
The other guy won't die if we don't pick him, right? R-right?

>>47831584
It'll probably be dependent on the actions of characters in whosever's scenario finds that character first. Also my laptop is being shitty and laggy, so bear with me.

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>>47831541
Veiz remarks on the irony that you're recruiting the children of Xerxes in the order precisely opposite that which he intended... Er, bar the eldest, of course.

On Conrad, Xerxes writes, 'the Tarvosian nomads have... Perhaps the worst lot out of any of the Empire's subjects, living under the thumb of the Wolfskin. Naturally, I spent quite some time on my third world journey riding with them, as well as riding...' Ew, okay, skipping a few paragraphs, as well as some... Probably in-depth analyses on how to improve Tarvosian-Wolfskin relations circa 16 years ago. 'For a time, I could have sworn that what Maya and I shared was... Well, love. But the crown prince of the Gerxel couldn't afford to marry for love, that's what I told myself. Now that I think about it, I just wanted an excuse to chase more tail. She and her toddler of a son, Conrad, apparently travel often, even beyond the reaches of the valley, so they may prove difficult to come into contact with...' Thankfully for you, however, the grown-up Conrad strongly prefers to stay in one place, "guarding" his mountains and milking protection money from nearby villages. Though he's purported to be a hilariously poor horse-rider, his Tarvosian archery training and mountain bandit axe training both left him a force to be reckoned with. Most people just take different routes to circumvent them, so thank the gods nobody's killed him yet. You need to get to him as quickly as possible to make sure he STAYS not dead, though!

You try to focus on this, and not the growing inevitability of your already-small group falling apart at the seams due to damned ethical disagreements.

>To be continued next thread
The "finding heirs" arc, if this chapter was any indication, is going to be surprisingly good at demonstrating Rene's protective/dedicated AND unsavory/impressionable sides.

Thanks for playing, as always. Update twitter and ask.fm are qmgrandflocto, and I'll be around in-thread to chat for awhile.

>>47831885
Thanks for running.

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>>47831885
Thank you for running, Octo.

>>47831923
>>47831943
Always a pleasure.

Also, a preemptive thing I'll mention again on twitter on the day of as I would for any other "can't run" announcement. This Sunday, for Father's Day reasons, I won't be able to run, so regularly scheduled questing will resume on Monday.

I do still check the ask.fm at least once every day, though.