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>>1545894
>Attempt to stealthfully hijack the carriage by taking out the driver.
May as well try, I guess?

>>1545894
>Attempt to stealthfully hijack the carriage by taking out the driver.
>Other?
Chaos confusion and distraction via fire, as needed. Try not to burn down the forest.

>>1545894
Hiya announcer, how you doing?

>>1545894
Also, voting forthis
>>1546319

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"Louise." You whisper to your best friend. She stands beside you pondering a good way to take over the carriage. "-We're going to do this the old fashioned way. The way father used to tell me about."

"..How is that?"

"We're going to puffball the stage driver and then lead it off-course. If we're fast about it, the passengers inside won't even realize that the stagecoach has been taken."

Louise blinks, "I don't know what a 'stagecoach' is, but what do we do with them after we got 'em?"

"Take them someplace far, far away from here. Then do a little hostage negotiation of our own." You pound your fist into your palm. "That general needs the messenger inside that wagon. If he doesn't have him, then he can't hold Odelle hostage."

"Gotcha!" Louise happily chirps, "So, when do we do the zappy-burny?"
"Soon." You whisper, "We'll need a distraction so the driver speeds up. Think you can be that distraction?"

You can't see it.
-but you can feel her smiling.

"Of course." She says, in a very sing-song like manner.

"Good, I'll handle the driver."

You give your friend a light hug before parting ways into the forest. You have no doubt in your mind that she's going to put on a hell of a show. You just hope it's not loud enough to wake the whole forest up or alert the encampment to your plan.

Slowly, you creep through the forest's lower layer, and then intersect the path at a bend. The carriage should be coming through here, soon.
You ready your rifle, and take aim at where you think the driver will be. If you do this right, then your gunshot should time perfectly with Louise's diversion.

You first see the carriage as a dim light down the path. You can feel the torch the driver is using to navigate as it flickers and dances in his hand. He slows the cart down on the turn, and starts coming toward you. Your gun raises to meet his eyes. In just a few-

BAM!

A blue beam erupts out of the woods and skips across the underbrush of the forest! Everything drier than a leaf is immediately set ablaze! It's like the entire path is illuminated, now!

Damn it, Louise. That's way too soon!
Whatever, you'll just have to improvise.

The driver drops his torch into the path, and then reaches for a simple flintlock pistol. He yells something at the people inside, and then he turns to examine the path.
He turns just in time to see you take a shot right at him. He immediately puffs into a ball, and you assume the reins of the beast pulling the cart.

"YAH!" You yell! With a jolt, the entire cart lurches forward, and starts to stumble down the path at an uncomfortable speed!

Well, that worked out okay-ish. Now what?

>You're going to take them back to the guardpost for 'processing'.
>Take them a bit down the path, and then confront them.
>Keep going like nothing happened. You may be able to keep your passengers occupied all the way back to Biscotti.
>Halt the carriage, you got what you wanted.
>Other?

>>1546644
I'm doing fine! I'm tired tonight so I may turn in early if I can get another post done for tonight.

>>1546883
>Halt the carriage, then take the baddies a little away.
>Maybe try and send a message or something?

>>1546883
>You're going to take them back to the guardpost for 'processing'.

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Hello surprise line of thunderstorms! Looks like I won't be making another post tonight. Sorry!
We'll continue in the morning.

Rolled 37 (1d100)

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You yank back on the reins, and start to slow the bird down. You're roughly a few hundred feet away from the 'distraction', which is currently burning into the woods and the surrounding path.

Great 'diversion', Louise.
Either ways, you've successfully hijacked the cart. The passengers inside don't seem to be none the wiser, instead they appear to be staring at the fire instead of the person who is currently dashing down the path.

The thought of halting the cart and just confronting them right now crossed your mind, but you don't want them dashing away when they realize what has happened. Instead, you're going to take them a little far away and then try to confront them. You don't want any of them to make it to this 'captain' you're hearing about.
Captain of a Konditorei regiment. Who could that possibly be? You thought you met all of them, but all of them were either captured or routed. So who is-

WHUMP!

You jump slightly as Louise lands right next to you in the driver's seat!
"Tadaa!" She's beaming with an extra-wide smile! "How was that?"
"Loud, Louise." You're not sure if she can see your pout, but it's the thought that counts.
"Aw, thanks!" She seems to miss the sarcasm, and instead happily stares down the road, "So, where are we taking them?"
"To the guardpost, it's not too far away and it has a jail. I'll need you to go get Madeleine so she can meet us there. Can you do that?"

"Sure thing!" Louise happily gives you a slight hug, "Thank you so much for helping me look for Odelle."
"Don't thank me yet." You adjust your voice; Louise hugs are very loving but awfully constrictive. "-Thank me when we find Odelle."

She smiles, and then leaps off the carriage.

"Hey!" You hear one of the passengers, "You're goin' awful fast, what's the rush?"

>Don't say anything
>Sure, tell him exactly where you're going and what you're going to do to him.
>-Outrunning the fire! Say it in a deep voice
>Throw a fireball at him.
>Other?

>>1548878
>-Outrunning the fire! Say it in a deep voice

>>1548878
>-Outrunning the fire! Say it in a deep voice
Forest fires can move fast depending on the direction of the wind

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"The wind is making it spread! We're outrunning the fire!" You say in the deepest voice you can manage.
Which still makes you sound like a 12 year old girl. You're not very good at faking it.

You decide to make it a bit more believable.
You snap a fireball into your free hand, and then gently toss it behind your back and over the carriage.

It explodes with a pop on the path behind you. The passengers quickly duck their heads back into the carriage, and you're free to continue speeding down the path.

Perfect.

At this pace, you'll reach the outpost in just a few minutes. You hope Louise will be there to meet you; as the passengers are likely going to try and run for it the second that they realize that you're not going to the meeting place.

The one inside has snuffed his pipe, but you still estimate there to be five in total inside of the carriage. You're not even entirely sure if all of them have anything to do with the kidnapping. It's going to be really awkward if you open the carriage and find other children or women or something who could not have possibly known about the fiend they are traveling with.

The light of the guardpost is just up ahead.

"HEY! SLOW DOWN! THERE AIN'T NO FIRE HERE!"

You answer that by tossing another fireball over your shoulder.
The rude passenger ducks his head back in, and doesn't give you any more lip.

Standing in the dim lanternlight of the guardpost are several figures. You recognize one as Louise, and another as a Biscotti knight named 'Pomelo'. The third figure is no other than the snakedoctor you know as Madeleine.
Antonin, the knight who may be rogue, seems to be suspiciously missing.

You draw the carriage to a halt, and Pomelo quickly takes to one side of the carriage.

"Alright! Everyone out." The exhausted-looking Biscotti knight taps on the door of the carriage. "-This is an inspection. So I want everyone to calmly exit in a-"

Before she can even finish; the door on the other side of the carriage practically blows off the hinges. A single tall man immediately bolts from the other side of the cart and takes off for the woods!

He probably wasn't expecting Louise to zap right in front of him and grab onto his foot! He goes crashing face-down onto the pavement, and struggles to get away!

"Well." Madeleine touches her lips, "At least I know who to start with. Drag him over here, Louise."
"Okay!"

They both happily take him into the guardhouse, and Pomelo starts interrogating the remaining passengers.

>Stay out here and listen to the witness testimonies. Don't leave Pomelo alone
>Go inside, you wanna see this one!
>You need to be on the lookout. Keep your attention turned toward the forest
>Maybe you should quietly go check on Greta. Antonin being missing is giving you a chill.
>Other?

>>1552526
>Maybe you should quietly go check on Greta. Antonin being missing is giving you a chill.
better paranoid than sorry

>>1552638
This, but also have Louise listen in and be ready to either step in or go get us. She's not the best choice to recall information, but she should be able to take care of anything urgent.

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The fact that Antonin isn't here, and he's already expressed that he would definitely take Greta if it meant getting Odelle back; doesn't fill you with a whole lot of confidence.

You follow behind Madeleine as she slithers into the guardpost.

Louise flops the writhing prisoner down, and Madeleine swiftly takes over. With but a wave of her hand; she's already bound the suspicious bearman up to a chair and slithered around them. Her movements so graceful that it's difficult to call it mere binding or more of a dance.

Quietly, you whisper into Louise's ear.
"Hey, I'm going back to town to check on Greta."
"Really? Are you certain?"

"Yeah, I'm worried she's going to wander off again or something. Can you keep an eye out over here? Come get me if he says anything, okay?" You give Louise a slight hug.

"Right! You can count on me!" Her beaming smile seems to melt away your anxieties.

You step out of the guardhouse and make a mad dash for town. Greta shouldn't be too far away from where you left her.

--

That is, if Greta hasn't decided to completely disappear or anything.
"Greta!" You yell into the crowd, and of course no one yells back.

Instead of staying around with Camille like you asked; she instead decided to 'step out' for a minute and then run off.

That only figures.

Which just leaves you standing inside of the bar worriedly searching like a stooge.

Darn it, Greta. Did she decide to go back out into the woods?

Oh, there's a familiar face! She's dressed in plaid, and is wearily sipping from a drink. You think she's one of the detectives that helped find some spies some time ago.

"Hello?" You approach one. "Excuse me, I'm Kayda of Konditorei. I'm searching for someone."
"Good evening, Kayda." She barely manages a smile. She seems exhausted. "I'm Detective Suzette from Gallete. Who might you be searching for?"

You give her a brief description of Greta without mentioning her by name. You can't really trust random cat people, after all.
"Oh! You mean the princess of Konditorei." Suzette states matter-of-factly. How did she know that? "I saw her wandering around earlier. Not sure where she went."

>Can you come help look?
>Where do you think she would go at this time of night?
>Darn it, thank you for your help.
>You're a 'detective', right? That means you find things?
>Could you go to the guardpost just outside of town? I can pay you for your time.
>Other?

>>1553475
>You're a 'detective', right? That means you find things?
>Can you come help look?

>>1553475
>Can you come help look?
>Where do you think she would go at this time of night?
>You're a 'detective', right? That means you find things?
>If she's hesitant, offer silver.

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"You're a 'detective', right?"
"That's right." Suzette sighs, almost as if she knows exactly what you're going to ask next.

"That means you find things?"
"That's right." Slowly, she takes a sip from her cup.

"Then, can you come help look? I'm worried someone is trying to kidnap Greta. I absolutely must find her as soon as possible."

"Listen, I don't know Greta all that well. Furthermore, royalty is something I try not to get too close to. It's bad for business, y'know?" She perks up, slightly. "It's not that I don't care or that I don't want to look, but I think you should take your concern to the guard. They can probably find her faster than I can."

That's not going to work. If the guard finds out, then Yuuki may find out and come running to drag you back to the castle.
Or worse, someone inside the guard who isn't very trustworthy could find out as well.

You can't let that happen!

"Where do you think she would go at this time of night, then?"

"She's a young kid, about your age. Maybe she went back home."
"I told her to stay here, then."

"Maybe she tried following you, then. There really isn't much to do this late at night for a young girl." Suzette turns her attention back to her mug. "If she wandered off from an adult, then she'll turn up soon. I'm sure that adult is looking for her."

Except that adult is currently back at the guard post probing someone for information.

"Listen." You reach into your pocket, and pull out several silver. "I can pay you for your services if you can help me look for tonight."

"Where did you-" She examines the glimmering pieces in her hand.
She then suddenly drinks down her entire mug!

"Let's go, then." She stands up, and you suddenly realize that she's actually shorter than you are. "I'll give you a hand."

She immediately walks with her empty mug up to the bartender and strikes up a conversation.
You stand behind her to try and understand what she's asking.

"-and that's where?"
"Outside the north quarter, grey sign, can't miss it."
"Aye."

Suzette takes a girly twirl and walks out the door. She seems to know exactly where she is going.
Which is why you want to know.

"Where are we going?"
"That girl asked about a guard post somewhere north of town. The bartender didn't know what she was talking about, so she got directions to one of them in the inner-city. It's inside the wall, and goes through a rough part of town."

>Immediately take off past Suzette and get to where the bartender instructed
>Follow behind Suzette. She seems to know what she's doing
>Ask if she can help find Odelle later.
>It's probably her job, after all
>Other?

>>1553792
>Grab Suzette.
>Run to the target point.

>>1553911
This.
>sorry need your help and need to be fast let's gooo!

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Those words ring off the inside of your ears like pins and needles.
A little girl asked about where to find a guard post, and so she was immediately sent to the rough part of town?! In the middle of the night, even?! Who does that! Why would they do it?!

That's by far one of the most irresponsible things you've ever heard since coming to Biscotti!

Immediately, you feel a cold sweat run up your back.
"Sorry, Need your help and need-to-befastlet's go!"

"What? I didn't- HEY, WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!"

You swoop Suzette into your arms, and immediately take off! She struggles in vain as you quickly hop up to the rooftops and take a direct line for the guardpost!
"STOP! STOP! WAIT! WHAT IS THIS? WHAT IS HAPPENING?! WHERE ARE WE GOING!?" She seems obviously confused at your sudden burst of energy.

You decide to ignore her cries and continue the chase! With a leap, you bound straight over one of the run-down tenements and land flat in front of the guardpost!
A figure inside jumps, and then slowly starts walking outside.

"What the hell?!" You set the frightened detective down, and she immediately acts as if she's been manhandled by a ghost! "What was that about? Are you a sorceress? Who carried us here?!"

"Good evening, Kayda." A Biscotti knight steps out of the building. You know this knight as 'Bennet', one of the knights who assisted Jack some time ago. "Kind of you to drop in." He says with a kind of sarcastic tone.

"'Kayda'? You know this person?!" The detective seems almost offended!

"What? You mean you don't?" Bennet gives her a look like she's insane.

Suzette mouths something to herself, looks to you, and then looks to Bennet.
"Wait, are you Kayda of Konditorei, as in the HERO of Konditorei?!"

"I don't think you're a very good detective.." You say, slightly under your voice.
"What?!" Suzette seems to have caught only part of that sentence.

Bennet continues his deadpan stare, but you can tell that he's trying to suppress a smile.

"Never mind that! Bennet! Have you seen Greta come by here?!"
"I can't say I have, why?" Bennet seems surprised by this sudden line of questioning.

>Tell him everything, too!
>Just tell him there's been an incident and Greta may be in trouble.
>Ask him to start a search.
>Ask him to find Antonin.
>Other?

>>1557703
>Just tell him there's been an incident and Greta may be in trouble.

>>1557703
>Just tell him there's been an incident and Greta may be in trouble.

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"There's been an incident, and Greta may be in trouble!" You grab the black-haired knight's hands. "I don't even know where to start looking, she was told to come this way from the bar, and-"

"She's probably in the market." Bennet immediately concludes, "That place is a labyrinth. It winds around the north quarter with tons of stalls and rows of shops. Even if they're all closed by now, it's still hectic to navigate."

"Great! Come on Suzette, let's-"
"You're not going to have her guide you through the market, are you?"

You blink, and you can already feel Suzette about to say something

"She would get lost faster than you would." Bennet states in the most droll manner, and immediately Suzette goes on the attack.

"I am not as careless as you have me for! I'm just as good of a navigator as you are!" Suzette crosses her arms.
"I grew up wandering the markets barefoot as a kid. I think I know it better than you." He continues his dull but slightly agitated assault.

"-And I grew up going to the finest schools in Gallete. So don't even start with me about who is the most clueless, here!" Suzette strikes right back.

They continue your exchange, and you find yourself growing more and more anxious.

Greta is lost in the marketplace with possibly someone stalking her. Plus, you're already aware that Louise has no idea where to find you at this point. If she's found something important; you're far away from anywhere that she can find you. Which means Louise may be wandering around the market as well, soon.

Not to mention that it appears like their exchange isn't going to end anytime soon.

"Will you two QUIT IT?!" You shout, they both avert their gaze from each other onto you, "I know you both want to argue, but Greta needs our help!"

"I'll go, you stay here." Bennet steps out in front of Suzette.
"No! She paid me for my services, I can handle this myself."

"This is a knight matter now, Suzette." Bennet seems to be addressing her like he knows her. What's the deal?! "Greta is a dignitary in our country, and we're ordered to protect her."

"And Kayda has already given me compensation for my services!" Suzette seems to be getting really mad, now.

"FORGET IT! YOU CAN BOTH STAY HERE!" You shout out of frustration.

Immediately, you take to the roof and dash across the nearby building.

>Cont.

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Rolled 35, 64, 6 = 105 (3d100)

Bennet wasn't kidding when he called this a Labyrinth.
Even though you're looking at it from a bird's eye view; you can easily see where someone could get lost here.

"GRETA!" You shout into the night. Of course, even if she was yelling it would be hard to hear her from up here.

The occasional merchant and vagrant wanders the street. Each one you have to stop and question if they have something to tell you that may be worthwhile.

"Damn it." You whisper under your breath. "Greta, where are you?"

Then, you feel something. You first felt it as one of the ordinary sources of light illuminating the streets, but it seems to be spreading.
Two lanterns, no; four now. Four lanterns accompanied by two torches. They just lit up somewhere nearby.

You hop to the roof overlooking the city streets. Six men take to the market streets, frantically whispering and mumbling to one another. They wear black cloaks, so you cannot tell their nation of origin. They slowly start to patrol the roads, and seem to move with a purpose.

Merchants? Probably not. At least not out this late. Maybe just burglars? Well, you don't have time to prevent them from sacking someone's home. Greta's out here, still!

Suddenly, a chill goes up your spine. There's another lantern that's been lit, and it's going the opposite direction you just came.

With a small whisper, the six in the street split up and move in six different directions. They weave and wind between the alleyways and into the small passages between the buildings.

Huh, weird. You just felt another group of four people light up torches where the previous one had split. Those four seem to be following the same pattern, but in a different direction.

Quickly, you hop over to the adjacent roof and have a peek.
Sure enough, four people, four cloaked heads. These are ruffians, who are definitely up to no good. Oh, you only hope poor Greta has found shelter from these crooks roaming the streets.

Just as before, the four of them split up and move in separate directions down the alleyways. With ten of them looking, they could cover quite a bit of ground.

What could they be looking for-
You feel a slight tingle at your brow.

Oh no.

OH NO!

>Quick! Pick one to follow and stick with them!
>You need to find Greta, and do it right now.
>Try something crazy! That always works!
>Beat them into balls one-by-one.
>How did they even find out that Greta was here?! Panic!

>With your answer, include a 1d100
>Go back and get Bennet. You need backup!
>Other?

>>1558483
Thanks formatting. With your answer include a 1d100, those last two options are part of the first block of options.

Rolled 3 (1d100)

>>1558483
>Beat them into balls one-by-one.

Rolled 6 (1d100)

>>1558483
>Beat them into balls one-by-one
>If you've got a way, use ranged attacks to speed this up, otherwise just use Hero speed.

>>1559265
Oh come on really?

dice gods haet lolis today.

I'll wait a few minutes before I start writing just to see if we can get 3. I have something to do real quick before I can write anyway.

Rolled 80 (1d100)

Show must go on!

Writing!

>>1559671
Dice Gods.. cmon.. you're ruining my fun

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If you're not going to be able to cover as much ground as they can, then there's only one thing that you can do!
Remove their ability to cover ground!

You take a leap down to street level, and the hunt begins!

"Hey, did you hear something?" One tiny blip of light said to another.
"There's just us, right?" Another minor flicker comments to himself.
"Keep at it. The law might be onto us." A quick flash mumbles to his companion.
"We need to split up. This is going to slowly." A much more elaborate man yells down the alleys to his accomplices, "You take the east section and we'll move into the middle."


There's a clomp as you land behind one of the lackeys. He just drops his lantern with a shatter, and then turns to flee.
Immediately, your hand strikes outward and grabs the insignificant ember! There's half of a gasp, and then a cough as the hooded man puffs into a ball!

You can sense another torch waving around on the street adjacent to you. It walks quickly as it surveys the abandoned stalls and alleyways of the market. With a leap, you soar over the nearby building.

"C'mon out." It shouts at the darkness. The pitch-black veil held over the streets at this time of night is only vaguely defeated by the dim torch he holds in his hand. "-We're with Konditorei. You can trust us."
The cynical man uses his rapidly fading torch to light a cigarette in his mouth.
"Here!" The man's ears perk up, someone definitely said something.
"Where?" He states with irritation.

"Over here!" Young voice, sounds girlish. That must be his target.
"C'mon sweetie, let's get you back to-"

His torch waves at the night, and illuminates a young face who is standing much closer to him that he anticipated
"Huh?"
With a swift movement, you grab his shirt and toss him over you into the pavement. You step on his neck.

"WHO ARE YOU?" You shout at him, but you don't sound very menacing, "WHAT ARE YOU OUT HERE FOR?"
Before the villain can respond, he puffs into a ball. Whoops, you guess you were a bit too harsh with that one.

Not to waste any more time; you take off down the streets and toward the fabrics section of the market.

"So if the carpet matches the drapes, then what?" The bloke states to his compadre.
"Shit man, I don't even know." The rougher-sounding man replies. "You can't be sure with these women. Especially the top-class ones. They're into some weird-"
"The fuck was that?" His partner spins around.

"Ye-AAAARRGGH"
Fwoosh.

It's not a great idea to wear a full-garb that isn't made at least a little bit of leather. You never know when an errant spark or ember will make your entire outfit burst into flames while you're wearing it!
The two leap and hop around in some awkward form of interpretive dance, and then puff into balls!

You dash past them and down the street. This makes four of them. You're going way too slow! You're not even sure if these are the only ten roaming the streets!

>Cont.

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Alone in the city square stands a single figure wearing a dark hood. He searches the dark corners of the market, and takes extra care to pinpoint places that a little girl could hide.
"Greta?" It shouts to the nothingness. "Greta, it's me. Kayda is really worried about you. You need to come out right now."

He coughs, and then sinks onto a nearby box. He's clearly been drained of energy, and only continues his search on a weary set of buckling legs than on sure feet.

"Greta. You need to come out." He states one more time.

Within an instant, he jumps and throws his back against a wall!

Your fist narrowly avoids his face and shatters a nearby market stall!

Quickly, he reaches into his hilt and grasps for a sword. Your hand is able to deflect his attempt to grasp, and lands a clean hit right on his face!

-But despite your seemingly heroic strength, he doesn't puffball! He took that hit straight to the cheek with only a stumble and a grunt!

You decide to take another approach, and focus on his hood.
With a snap, you feel a kind of warmth gathering in your palm. It makes itself known as a wave of heat which streaks straight from your arm and toward the jerk's face!

With a wave of his hand; the heat vanishes. A strong gust of wind seems to have completely smothered your righteous flame!

He knows magic? And it's wind? Who is this guy?

Quickly he tries to ram you away with his shoulder, and you feel yourself getting pushed back by the sudden cheap-shot.
What he didn't expect is that your palm managed to make contact with his cowl. The black fabric slowly starts to erupt in smoke as he seems completely uncertain as to what just happened!

You hear him groan, and then he attempts to draw his sword once more.
There's a yelp, and he drops it!

He didn't notice, but you used your brief contact with him to heat his sword up to red-hot proportions! It glows eerily on the ground in an angry red hue!

The smoke on his cowl has picked up into a full-blown flame. His advancement stops, and he quickly grabs his cloak and throws it off of him. The black fabric continues to smolder on the pavement.

The light of the glowing hood hits this man's face with almost perfection. His eyes are marked with the signs of exhaustion, and his face shows a very clear sign of irritation and anger.
The top of his head are adorned with two brown-colored cat ears.

You squint to get a better look at the man. You already know who this fellow is, but you just wish to be sure.

"Antonin?!" You feel yourself stepping backwards.

He gasps at mention of his name, and assumes a more relaxed and friendly stance. The visage of a hardened warrior melts away as if it didn't even exist.

"Now, Kayda..." Antonin puts his hands up defensively, "Kayda, there's a very good explanation for this."

>Okay, hear him out.
>Don't let him finish.
>More fire.
>Count backwards from ten at him
>Have a miniature breakdown in trust of everything.
>Other?

>>1559923
Uh who was Antonin again?

>>1559671
Also thank god we got a high roll

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>>1560186
Antonin is the Gallete knight whose sister, Odelle, was kidnapped. You met him last thread as Louise, and the thread before that as Atlas as he was recuperating inside the guard post.
He's also better known as the knight who confronted Jack way back when while Louise was sick. He tried to stop Jack from bringing Madeleine into Gallete castle to look at Louise when she was sick.

He's brown-haired, uses a sword, and is one of the highest ranked knights in Gallete; even higher than the green-haired Felice.

>>1559923
>Where is she?
>Don't try anything stupid.

>>1559923
>Where is she?
>Don't try anything stupid.

>>1559923
>Where is she?
>Don't try anything stupid.
>Fire, but for effect rather than burning him. Yet.

>>1562079
Also, he clearly doesn't know where she is right now but we need to know anything he does. He had some clue she was out here at least.

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seem a bit more intimidating.

"Listen, I got word they were coming to search for Greta. I was able to outrun them and I thought I could start the search sooner! It's nothing like what it seems!" He's still on the defensive.

"Why were you looking for her, anyway?! Are you back to trying to exchange her for Odelle?!" You lift him slightly off the ground.

"This isn't the time for this!" He's certainly insistent. "Greta is out there right now, and we need to find her, fast!"

"Not before you tell me what you want to do with her, first!"

"I'm telling you-!"

Off in the distance, you hear something. It sounds like a man's voice.
You don't quite make out the full sentence, but you can at least pick out the relevant part:
"Boss! We got 'er over here! Quick!"

You drop Antonin to his feet, and your mind starts to race.
They got who? Greta? That was way too fast! You knocked out four of them! Was she really that bad at hiding?! Was she trying to hide?

Antonin breathes a sigh, and then quickly stoops over to grab his sword.
Without warning, he brandishes it at the ready!

"What-!" You shout, and then throw a fireball his direction. He quickly slashes it out of the air, and assumes his fighting stance. "Antonin! Stop!"

"No, Louise. I can't!" Antonin slowly starts to back away. Damn him! "I have to get Odelle back, I have to get my sister back! Please, just let me go catch them! We can have this resolved by morning if you just do it my way!"

"That's not going to happen, Antonin!" You shout at him, "You're not handing Greta over to them and that's final!"

"I don't want my sister to die, Kayda. They won't hurt Greta, but they would definitely hurt Odelle if they thought you were onto them. They have the power to kill Odelle at a moment's notice! My hands are tied here!" Antonin holds his ground, keeping his sword at the ready.

Forget this! You can outrun this clown!
Quickly you turn toward the alley from where you heard the voice, and start heading toward it.

That is, until a blur immediately darts in front of your path. You didn't even know Antonin could move that quickly.

"No! You can't!" He stands with his arms outstretched. "If you go, they'll know for sure. You're not getting past!"

"The hell I-"

"Stop."

>Cont.

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A shadow walks between you and Antonin. He travels with such light grace that you barely even notice that he's holding a halberd.
"You have a princess to rescue, Kayda. I got this one." Bennet casually inserts himself into this fight. He holds his halberd at the ready, almost as if he was expecting to use it.
"Bennet?! How did you find me?" You're more surprised at how quickly he was able to just
"No! Wait! You're both not getting it!" Antonin seems a little nervous, now.

You don't particularly care what Antonin has to say. You're just overjoyed that Bennet has stepped in to help.
"Okay Bennet, I admit. You're a little cool." You give him a tap on the shoulder, and then take off down the alley.

"WAIT!" Antonin tries to step in front of you again, but he's stopped by a halberd which nearly slices him in two.

"Where do you think you're going, Antonin?" Bennet's deadpan voice is almost offset by how frightening the tone it takes.

"Greta!" You yell into the night, continuing your sprint down the road.

You can sense them starting to congregate at one central street in the marketplace.
It starts with a several of them holding lanterns.
Then, it turns into a group.
Suddenly, there are no less than a dozen men standing in a circle around something on the market street just around the corner!
How could this be happening?!

--

"Fine, I'll go in next." One raspy voice states almost plainly to the rest.
The group of men make way as the lanky man walks into the middle of the circle. Slowly, he approaches a smaller figure who is nothing less than cornered.

"Good evening lil' missy." The tall man stoops down to meet the face of a much tinier person. "You clearly seem to be in a lot of trouble, but if you listen' te me. We can get out of this in one-"

With a whoosh; the man immediately flys straight out of the crowd and indent himself on a lamp-post! The metal fixture bends to his shape before he puffs into a ball.

"What did I tells ya?" Another, much burlier figure snarls, "She may be a little girl, but she's Konditorei royalty. They're ALL genetic freaks, just like the big one back home! It's the mighty strength of Konditorei." He paces around the inside of the circle. The tiny figure balls her hands up into her eyes at his presence.

"If we gonna take this one, we gotta do it quick, y'see?" One of the smaller chaps steps forward. "Who got the net?"
"Here."
"The rope?"
"Yah."
"Alright, we all go in on the count of three." All of the men seem to ready themselves for a charge! "One..-"

BOOM!

With a gigantic burst of flame; the men are thrown to every edge of the street! A fiery figure stands with flames rising from her hair, and a rage that burns like the sun!

"Kayda?!" Greta jumps at her sudden rescue.

>No talk! Get Greta out of here!
>Greta! Back! Behind me!
>Go all out!
>You can apologize to Jack later for turning the downtown market into magma!
>Other?

>>1562679
Urg, puffballing them is tempting... we have Antonin, so taking more prisoners for info may not be worth the risk. I'd say nuke the group and turn tail if we can't take them out quick, but we've already scattered them out. But if we eliminate the risk...

>No talk! Get Greta out of here!
>Go all out!

Get Greta somewhere safe first, close but inaccessible to anyone else. Maybe a roof, I don't think randos can't jump too well or fly? Then come back destroy them efficiently.

>>1562679
>No talk! Get Greta out of here!

>>1562679
>You can apologize to Jack later for turning the downtown market into magma!

Normally I hate collateral damage but it's time that Kayda made a very visible public statement about how serious she is about protecting Greta.

>>1562679
>You can apologize to Jack later for turning the downtown market into magma!
double loliheat power

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"Kayda! How did you even?"
Greta comes in for a hug, but you have something different in mind.

Immediately, you swoop her into your arms and take off for the roof! The men on the ground are still trying to collect themselves, and do very little to try and stop you.

You land on the roof overlooking the market street. Gently, you set Greta down.
"Wait right here, I need to stall them."

You don't actually need to stall them, but you just want to send a message.
A very angry, fiery message.

You extend your palms toward the inferno in the streets, and then concentrate.
You concentrate your rage.
Your frustration.
Your exhaustion.
Your desire to sleep at night without the creeping worry at the edge of your dreams.

Gently, you can feel a set of arms at your shoulders. Greta presses against you, and takes you into a hug.

You're gonna kill them for trying to take this away from you.

With a flame so pure as to be almost blue; a fireball streaks from your palms and into the streets below.

FWROOSH

A miasma of flame, boiling stone, and melted rock rolls across the market streets. Okay, sure, this won't actually kill them. At the very least you hope their puffballs get caught in the lava and sink to the center of the Earth.

You grab Greta and continue your trek toward the guardpost. If Antonin turned evil, then there's really no one you can trust right now. Except for one person-

--

-And she's not here.
DAMN IT!

"Louise?!" You yell into the empty guardpost. "Madeleine?! Pomelo?!"

"I guess they all left." Greta states, with confusion.

It's true, the guardpost you left behind seems to be abandoned. The carriage is still here, and the passengers have long since left. All that's left at this post is you, and Greta.
Louise must have found something. Why didn't she try to find you?

Oh right, she didn't try to find you because you went on an adventure through the labyrinth part of Biscotti. How COULD she find you?

>We definitely can't stay here, then.
>Greta, let's wait here and see if they come back.
>Try going back to the castle. You may have done enough for one night.
>No! This is serious! Maybe they went ahead and tried to attack?
>Go investigate the woods one more time
>Other?

>>1563582
>We definitely can't stay here, then.
>Try going back to the castle. You may have done enough for one night.

It's pretty unlikely that they could have put up more of a fight then they already did. I doubt the knights would have had a problem, and Louise is definitely ok. Just trust they took them into custody and get Greta home.

...Not sure if the guard post even should ever be completely unmanned though. Have a quick look for any signs of trouble here, and be aware of fires around there might be something. Still, Greta is priority.

>>1563582
>We definitely can't stay here, then.
>No! This is serious! Maybe they went ahead and tried to attack?

>>1563582
>We definitely can't stay here, then.
>Look for traces of wine?

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"Where would everyone go at this time of night?"

You wish you had an answer for her.

Instead, you start violently searching the guardpost for anything that might be of any value to locating their whereabouts.

"Hello?!" You yell inside anything where a person could even remotely hide. The carriage, the jail cells, even on top of the roof.

This makes no sense! Why would everyone just run off like that.
Not unless...
Not unless.

"Greta, stay back."
"What?" She seems confused, but you're not going to risk it.

You immediately start smashing open every bottle and container that could possibly even hold something. Every bottle, canteen, jar, all of it. Everything has to break.

"Kayda, what are you doing?" Greta observes your whirlwind of destruction, but you're not entirely sure you can explain it while still sounding the least bit sane.
"Wine." You say back to her. "I'm looking to see if there's any teleporting wine around."

"Y-you don't think that-"
"I don't know, but I have to at least look."

It's true, if everyone somehow fell victim to the ichor which can take a man to places unknown, then that means more people than just Odelle are in danger.

"Here! I can help." Greta picks up a jar, ready to throw it straight onto the ground.
"Wait! Greta, Don't. I don't know how that stuff really works. If it splashes on you, and you teleport, then I would have lost everyone!"

You gently take the jar from her hand, and then throw it with all your might on the wall of the guardpost. Nothing inside of that one but water, thankfully.

You rampage through everything even remotely breakable. It feels like they have an inordinate amount of canteens, jars, and bottles for how long this is taking.

"Kayda, look!" Greta grabs your attention.

Sure enough, indented into the sands is a set of footprints and one slithery snakeprint. It seems like a group of them decided to go somewhere all at once. Maybe, they got some important information? Something that you should have been here for?

The footprints aren't as easy to follow as the snakeprint. That particular snakeprint goes all the way off, into the woods.

"I.. can't tell if this is recent or from earlier." You state with embarrassment. You were never really taught to read footprints, much less the print from the belly of a snakewoman.

"What do we do, then?" Greta seems as confused as you are.

>Back to the castle.
>Onward! Into the forest!
>Other?

>>1567973
>Onward! Into the forest!

>>1567973
>Onward! Into the forest!

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"Greta, I hate doing this while you're with me, but I can't leave you here."
"?"

"Stay very, close, behind me. I'm going to follow these prints."

Immediately, she jumps onto your back and wraps her arms around you!
"N-Not that close." You try to give yourself room to breathe. "Just close enough where you won't get lost. I'm going to navigate by seeing if I can feel any torches or flames."

There's a torch still burning on the wall of this guard post. If you can use this as a kind of compass, then you can walk off into the woods and search to your heart's content.

"Again," You take her hand, "Stay close."
"Right, I won't let go!" Greta seems more than a little enthusiastic to be trailing along with you for this one.

You're not exactly happy about it, but what else are you going to do?

Quietly, you take the first step into the dark woods.

--

You can sense the encampment. It seems like all the enemies in it have hit the sack for the night. Aside from a few random patrols around the outset.
It seems like they didn't even miss the four that you kidnapped earlier. Isn't that strange? Maybe they have a high desertion rate, and simply write missing people off as another deserter.

Either ways, they're probably not fighting with Madeleine or Louise at the moment. Madeleine has some kind of night-vision, and wouldn't need a torch. On the other hand, you would think Louise or Pomelo would have a torch with them if they were seriously going back out into this forest at this time of night.

Frankly, none of this is making any sense.

"Um, Kayda."
"Yes?"

"Could we stop for a minute?"
"Huh, Oh, sure."

Greta slowly slumps down into the dirt. You keep forgetting how late it is, and how much more stamina you have compared to her.
Poor Greta, you're sorry she ever got dragged into this at all.

"I'm ready." She stands to her feet, much too soon than you would have expected.
"Are you sure?"
"Yes, let's keep going."

You're not even sure where you're going. You're merely following these tracks.
Suddenly, the bellyprint of the snakelady stops.
Slowly, you look upward.

There's a long serpant with flowing silver hair in the tree. She's looking down on you, and smiling.
With her hand, she gently puts a finger up to her mouth.

>Stay here, and stay perfectly quiet.
>You're not sure what Madeleine is trying to say. Slowly see if you can find the others
>Maybe this is getting a bit too involved for Greta. Slowly walk her back out of the woods and take her back to Camille's place.
>Other?

>>1568648
>Stay here, and stay perfectly quiet.
>Give her a confused look and hand gesture?

>>1568663
This works. Fish for a clue, here. See if she points you to something significant, like our allies positions.

>>1568648
>Stay here, and stay perfectly quiet.

>>1568854
Also, point Greta to her and indicate for her to be quiet as well.

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Oh, that's why you couldn't find anyone.
They're busy enacting some kind of plan without you!

You're not sure how they were able to do this without Louise tagging along and ruining everything, but you're not going to be the one to ruin it.

Gently you tap Greta on the shoulder, and instruct her to be quiet as well.
Greta seems confused, but you point upward at Madeleine just to be sure she understands what she's getting into.

Whoops.
It seems being met with the gaze of a snake-lady in a tree gave Greta a bit of a spook. She clings to your shoulders, and composes herself.

You look up to Madeleine, and try to give her a hand gesture.
First you point to the bears, and then yourself. Then you shrug.

She blinks at you, she doesn't get what you're trying to ask her at all.
Darn!

Madeleine points out over the encampment, and you try to focus your eyes to see what she's seeing.

Faintly, in the shadows, you can make out some people who clearly do not belong.
Two people, both dressed in cloaks, seem to be scouring the camp for something. They quietly step between the rows of tents and casually look inside of every basket, in every pouch, and inside every cage.

What the heck are they looking for?

Madeleine continues her watch, and you turn to Greta

"I think they already made a plan without us." You whisper, "We should stay out of this one until they really need our help."
"Oh, okay. Sounds good!"

That- Oh no.
There's a torch, you can feel it. Someone just lit a torch not too far from the camp.

-And they're coming this way.

"Someone's coming." You whisper to Greta, "Stay close."

Slowly, you walk back toward the path. Maybe you can confront whoever has come to try and disrupt this clearly complex plan already in place.

You step out onto the path, and are greeted with-

"Antonin?!"

The brown-haired catboy grasps at his shoulder, and holds a single torch in his hand. His sword is back at his side, but you can tell that any victories he's had as of late were pyrrhic ones, at best.

"How did you get here?!" You feel shocked, "I thought Bennet was going to take care of you!"
"Kayda.. listen. This is very important. You cannot disrupt the camp. I've already known where my sister is being kept. That's exactly why you cannot alert them! You have to hear me out, please!"

>Okay, fine, you stupid cat-man. I'll listen.
>No, you get fire.
>Wait! You can't make too much noise. That may alert the camp.
>You get punches instead.
>Other?

Rolled 50, 84, 2 = 136 (3d100)

I forgot to add! With your post, roll a 1d100. Best of three.

Rolled 75 (1d100)

>>1571585
>Explain.
>Where?
>What are you waiting for?

Rolled 73 (1d100)

>>1571585
>Other? Keep distracting him

Rolled 50 (1d100)

>>1571585
>Okay, fine, you stupid cat-man. I'll listen.
>Start. Talking.

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Rolled 44 (1d100)

Okay, you're starting to feel more irritated by this guy than anything.
You don't know how he escaped that fight, and got all the way here.

At the very least; you were able to catch him before he crawled his way into camp and alerted the rest of his bear-buddies. Maybe you can buy some more time before he tries to waltz right into the camp and alert his friends.

"Okay, fine, you stupid cat-man. I'll listen." You signal for Greta to stand directly behind you. You're not going to let him try something cheap. "Start. Talking."

"Odelle isn't being kept here. There's a group who is taking her from place to place, they check in periodically to give me some of her personal effects."

You know about that already, but the longer he talks the better it is for the people sacking the camp.
"So what are you waiting for?" You feel a little accusational, right now. "If you know that's what's happening, why did you try to take Greta instead of trying to rescue your sister?"

"I have no other choice. They'll kill her if I don't comply." He continues to be as stubborn as ever. "Please, you have to listen to me and just. go. along. with. it."

"That's not happening." You cross your arms, "I think you're waaay too close to this to be making rational decisions. You should just step back and let the heroes take care of it."

"I will not. You should step back and let me rescue my sister."

"I'm not letting you take Greta." You feel a set of hands clasp at your shoulders.

"I'm not letting you attack that camp, either." Antonin uneasily draws his sword. "You can't do this! You can't put my sister's life in danger just because you want to play grown-up hero! You're both just little girls putting your noses somewhere that it doesn't belong! This is an adult matter, and you need to let the adults handle it!"

"An adult wouldn't try to give a little girl to a marauding groups of bandits. You're a monster!" You point an accusing finger at him, "And you need serious help!"

"I'm not leaving, Kayda. I'll signal the whole camp from here and have them come if I have to! Don't think I won't! Back off!" Antonin seems completely serious.

In his hand he takes out a pistol, and levels it at you.
He knows well that a tiny gun isn't going to actually harm you and your heroic body. At the same time, the gunshot might be enough to alert the camp if he uses it.

"Antonin, you-"

BZZT

You don't exactly smell any gunpowder. Antonin has a very distinct, uncomfortable look on his face, as well.

Quietly, Antonin sinks to his knees, coughs, and passes out.

Standing just behind him, wearing an irritated glare, is a little girl with a shock of blonde hair.

"No!" Louise dusts her hands off. Blue sparks dissipate into the night as she does. "Bad Antonin! No being evil for you!"

>Hug your best friend
>What took you so long?
>Where were you?
>Never mind that. Let's drag this guy away from the camp before he does something.
>Questions, all of them.
>Other?

>>1573270
With your vote, 1d100. Best of three

Rolled 84 (1d100)

>>1573270
>Hug your best friend
>Let's drag this guy away from the camp before he does something.

Rolled 68 (1d100)

>>1573270
>Hug your best friend
>So, what's the plan?
>start tying him up and checking if he has anything interesting on him

Rolled 76 (1d100)

>>1573270
>Hug your best friend
>Questions, all of them.
>Let's drag this guy away from the camp before he does something.
>Other?
Letting Odelle die isn't an option, as is giving up Greta. Collect what info we can from Louise, snake lady and anyone else.

Antonin probably wasn't completely in the wrong, assuming he didn't mean to really hand over Greta. His mistake is in not trusting "kids" who are capable and powerful heroes.

Let's explore options, with Louise here we can maybe bait with Greta and play take back with insta-zap-aport, or exchange with a fake Greta (clothing swap?), or maybe just sleep-zapify everyone? (we don't know the limits of this new trick yet)

>>1574768
i think she just invented tasers

>>1574777
Well sure, but given the difference between a taser, the power of actual lightning bolts, and whatever the hell makes teleportation feasible, being able to tase an entire city block isn't completely out of the question so we should know if that's in the cards at the moment.

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You look down at the smouldering ash that used to be Antonin, and then back up to Louise.
She looks visibly mad, but you can't exactly blame her. She stands with her hands on her hips, and glares menacingly at the knocked-out catknight.

You care very little about that, though. Just the very sight of Louise lifts a burden from your shoulders.

Immediately, you feel yourself lurching toward her. With a short hop, you grasp her into your hands.

"Wha? Kayda?"
"You idiot." You gently whisper, "You big idiot, Louise. I had no idea where you went. I thought you were maybe kidnapped or taken again. Where did you go? Why did you just off? You had me so worried."

"Oh, that! Well, I- Kayda. Kayda your squeezing me too tightly."
You don't care.

Louise slowly writhes her way out of your grasp, and adjusts her voice. You still feel bitter, but not bitter enough to be anything but relieved right now.
"I could say the same to you." Louise tries to compose herself, "-I went to town to try and find you, but you weren't anywhere. You weren't at Camille's, and you weren't at the bar. I had no idea where you went!"
"But where did everyone go?! Didn't you think I would return to the guard post when I found Greta?!"
"That's why I was trying to find you! You see, they foun-"

Something shiny catches your eye. Quickly, you shove Louise behind you and find yourself face-to-face with the new threat.
Antonin, in his last gasp, has drawn his pistol!
Quickly, you kick it with your foot and the shining implement spins wildly off into the forest. He grumbles, and then falls back into unconsciousness.

"Wow, good eye Kayda." Louise pats your back. You respond by turning around and gripping her into another hug. She seems to fight only weakly against your advances.

"We need to do something about this guy." Greta bends down, and then effortlessly lifts Antonin above her head.
"Oh, right. I have something for that!" Louise reaches into her pocket and pulls a strand of something out. "Madeleine left this with me!"
She takes Antonin from Greta, and then starts to ball him up in what appears to be a strand of Madeleine's hair. With a very neat bow, she leaves him tangled up in the silvery bind.
Slowly, you and Louise drag Antonin some ways off the path and drop him off the cliff. He rolls down the slope, and lands on the forest floor below.

"Great! So, what's the plan now?" Louise turns to you, with a smile.
"I thought you would know."
"Well, Madeleine and Pomelo were able to get something from that guy, but it wasn't really-"

You hear a pop off in the distance, as well as some commotion.
Oh no, were they found out?!

>Quick! rush toward the camp!
>Get ready to blast bears!
>Hold on! You don't know the full story.
>Carefully sneak up to the camp
>Other?

>>1575517
>Quick! rush toward the camp!

>>1575517
>Hold on! You don't know the full story.
>Carefully sneak up to the camp
Have Louise quietly explain as you approach. Try not to be too slow though.

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Your first instinct is to rush toward the camp. Judging by the way Louise just jumped; you think it's her first reaction as well.

Then, something comes to mind.

"Louise, wait." You put your hand on her shoulder.
"Why?!"
"Because, what if it isn't what we think it is? We don't know what we're getting into. We should take it carefully!"

"But! Didn't you hear?!"
"I know I heard a sound, but we shouldn't jump to conclusions!"

You can tell that Louise still wants to rush over there, right now. You can see it in her big red eyes.

"We'll hurry along, don't worry." You take Greta's hand, "Come on, let's go."

Quickly, you walk through the underbrush with Louise and Greta in tow.

In the camp, you can sense it starting to happen.
First one torch.
Then two.
Then five
Then ten!

This is getting out of control! Is the entire camp going to wake up?!

Wait.
They're not moving?

Some of them are going out. Was it just a scare? Did they manage to fool them?

You continue to push through the underbrush, but on the way you wish to know something.

"Louise."
"Hmm?'
"What did they find out about that guy?"

"They were slacking because they thought the exchange for Greta was going down tonight. So they brought Odelle really close to the camp for the handover." Louise grumbles, "Didn't say where, though."

Well, that's a good start. If everything is foiled, then at the very least your group can comb the area one more time for her since they have a good starting point.

Speaking of starting point, the camp is well in-view.
You're certainly standing right under the tree that Madeleine was just in not a moment ago.

Yet, somehow, she's not there.

Inside the camp, another story unfolds.

>Cont.

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"-What do you mean 'he's gone'?"
"The messenger didn't make it. One of us needs to go get her, tell me where she is, and I'll go do the deed." One of the hooded figures standing inside of the camp states in a voice much more feminine than what you were expecting. "So just tell me where she is and get out of the way."

"Hold up, who the fuck decided ye' were gonna be the one te decide when she gets it?" One of the half-dressed bear-people questions the hooded figure.

Two other hooded figures continue their work in searching the camp. They're certainly the same hooded figures you saw earlier searching the camp while it slept.

"I'm on watch, I make the decision. That's the deal." The figure argues with the half-awake man, "Got problems with it? Bring it up with the captain."

The half-dazed man says something unintelligible, and points off into the woods. Within an instant, the figure turns and starts walking off into the darkness.

"Hey!" One of the other bear-men in camp yells at the hooded figure, "That guy isn't on watch! Who the hell is that? Hey! Get back here!"

Within an instant, the hooded figure turns around and freezes the more-aware bear-man into a solid block!
The confused and half-asleep sentry jumps a good foot into the air at the sudden aggression, and he screams!

There come the torches back on, again! One by one, the entire camp starts to wake up once more!

"What was that about? Was that.." Louise still doesn't seem to quite get it.
"Greta, stay behind me." You grasp her hand, "I think this is-"

Three torches flip on from inside of the tent and then rush outside to intercept the hooded figures. Immediately one of the figures throws his cloak off and guns them down with perfect accuracy!
The man behind the mask being none other than Cody Remington! He grumbles something, and then quickly reloads his firearm. The other cloaked figure says something to him, and then kicks over a nearby cage.

"-I think this is another one of Jack's plans." Louise sighs, "All of his plans seem to end this way."

"Louise, I'm fine here, go help!"
"Sure, sure."

Louise happily reaches into her ring, and pulls out her signature gigantic axe! Quickly, she takes to the field.

"What should we do?" Greta whispers in your ear.

>Stay here, I'm sure they are more than covered out there.
>Even then, wow, that's a lot of torches being lit.
>Maybe we should join in just a little
>Go see where that other figure went off to.
>Other?

Folks we are on page 10 and it's time for me to sleep. I'm not sure how I'm going to get this done before the thread is pushed off, but I'm certainly going to try. If not, I'll have to continue on Saturday.

But let's keep going until the last second, maybe I can pull something off!

>>1576485
>Go see where that other figure went off to.

>>1576485
>Go see where that other figure went off to.

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"C'mon Greta."
"What? Where are we going?" She tugs slightly at your hand.

"We're gonna find out where that other person ran off to."

You take a shortcut around the encampment and try to find your bearings.
She left out the north part of the camp. You think she's going after Odelle, so it's worth following her.

Quickly, you duck into the brush and continue your pursuit.

You can feel a lamp light up just ahead!

Just ahead, you hear a shout!

Then, suddenly, a lot more lamps and torches light up!

You push through a last row of hedges to be met with a new problem. On one side, the hooded figure, and on the other side; at least ten more bear soldiers!

Where did they all come from?!

Immediately, the hooded figure springs into action. She takes out a spear, and starts throwing bolts of ice! Each blue streak slices across a fuzzy scoundrel!

"Yuuki?!" You shout to the hooded figure, she stops her assault to turn her head toward you. Big mistake!
One of the soldiers use this opportunity to press his attack, and gets a clean hit with his axe right on the shadowy figure! Her robe tears, and she casts it off of her to reveal the silky black hair of the hero of Bruschetta!

Yuuki sets her sights back on the task at hand. Summoning ice bolts with one hand; while swinging her spear with another.

The soldiers, realizing that you've decided to join into this fight. Turn their attention to you in hopes of having at least an easier target.

Big mistake!
You snap your fingers, and immolate the first group of three who try rushing you! Quickly, you reach into your ring and yank out your rifle.

Clack
BANG!

The shot rings through the crowd, and more of them turn their attention to you!

"Wait!" You hear Greta say something behind you. "I can help, too!"

No, Greta. Please, don't help.

>Cont.

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You turn your head to see just what exactly she's going to do to help, but you're forced to look back at your targets to fire another shot.

You're not entirely sure what she's doing, but you start to hear something peculiar. It starts with a cracking noise; it's almost a splintering sound.

You don't have time to look! Another shot rings out into the horde of bears, and several of them puff up. Quickly, you throw a fireball and immolate more than a few of them. Yuuki doubles up her efforts, and rains icey knives down upon the crowd.

SNAP

Okay, Greta. You're doing something bad, and you need to stop it.

CR-CRACK

Fine, Greta. You'll turn your head to see what's going on.

At this moment, both you and Yuuki decide to look away from the chaos to see Greta's major plan.
Oh. My. Word.

There's Greta: the dainty princess of Konditorei, the beautiful summoner whom you've sworn to protect, and the gentle rose who wouldn't hurt a fly. She's currently holding the trunk of a fifty-foot tree in a single hand. Her face looks nothing short of extremely angry.

Greta grabs her makeshift club with both hands, and then swings it in a clean overhead! A swing that is so smooth as to appear almost effortless for her!

WHAM!

The impact of the gigantic club is enough to make your teeth rattle! Greta grumbles as she slowly lifts it back up for another swing!

SLAM!

With that, ten or maybe fifteen puffballs erupt from the crowd.
Almost all of the flea-bitten horde have changed their intentions immediately! Instead of trying to rush you and Yuuki, they've decided that they want to get out of here!

Greta doesn't allow them to! She brings the massive trunk back up to her ear, and with a slashing motion; throws it with all her might!

CRUNCH!

That's the sound that a fifty-foot tree makes being thrown with such force that it tangles the mass of woods behind it! Yuuki throws another bolt of blue cold at something, and then rushes further into the encampment!

You tend to your summoner, instead.

"Greta!" You scold the person you normally think as a younger sister, "What were you thinking?! What was that even?!"
"B-but I, I wanted to help." Greta seems sheepish.

"Well, I guess, but-! Try not to do that! Okay?!"
"Okay, okay." She adjusts her voice. "Hey, I feel kind of tired so-"

"FOUND HER!" You hear Yuuki yell with glee! She emerges from one of the tents holding a small cage which looks as if it couldn't hold a person. It's more like a cage you would hold a chicken in.

But, sure enough. Inside of the cage is a small, blonde puffball. It rolls uneasily from side to side inside of its enclosure. Quickly, Yuuki opens it.
"Odelle!" She grabs the fluffy ball, "Odelle, say something! Are you hurt?!"

Of course, puffballs aren't much for saying anything. She'll reform into a person after some recovery time.

For the time being, you have to-

>Cont.

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rip..
What was that?

"Did you hear something?" Yuuki holds the yellow ball of fluff close to her. "Sounded like something tearing."

"I did, sounded like-"

"Uh, you two.." Greta states something in a strange tone of voice.

crshhsh

You both turn toward your princess, and notice that she's standing in an odd pose.
"I-" Greta starts stumbling over her words, "I think I may have overdone-"
BAM!

Within a second, all of Greta's clothes explode off of her!
"I over did it." Greta states with certainly, before covering her bare chest with her hands. The rest of her remains completely exposed.
Great, you don't exactly have a spare set of clothes, so that means-

"Wait a minute." Yuuki seems confused about something, "You're actually a girl?!"

You and Greta both blink, and then slowly turn your sights toward Yuuki.
"What?"
"Huh?"

"I mean- Uh! You have such broad shoulders, and- such a muscular frame!" Yuuki seems flustered, and a little confused right now. "You're really a girl?!"

"What?" You state once more.
"Of course I am." Greta adjusts her voice, "My title is 'Princess', what else would I be?"

"Wait! I mean, you're- You're built like a boy! A very muscular boy. But-"
"And?" Greta seems even more confused than you are. "My mother looked like me when she was my age, too."

Yuuki's face is a beet-red right now. She seems like she wants to just slink away and hide.

"Never mind." She laughs awkwardly, and looks toward the sky, "-Forget I said anything."

>No, seriously Yuuki, what the heck are you talking about?
>Are you okay? Did you take any hits to the head?
>Try not to think about it.
>Let Greta wear your barrier jacket. You're at least wearing underwear.
>Ask Yuuki to go get something for Greta to wear.
>Try to find Louise so she can help. She sometimes carries spare clothes with her.
>Head back to the previous encampment. They might need your help, still.
>Other?

>>1576890
>Let Greta wear your barrier jacket. You're at least wearing underwear.
>No, seriously Yuuki, what the heck are you talking about?

So Greta's gender was a red herring

>>1576890
>Let Greta wear your barrier jacket. You're at least wearing underwear.
>No, seriously Yuuki, what the heck are you talking about?
>Since when can you do this, Greta? are you the only one in Kodoneti who can?

DDQ musou when?

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"No, seriously Yuuki, what are you talking about?" You feel as if this is a part of some joke that you're simply not privvy to.
"Well, I um- I thought Clair was forcing Greta to dress.. differently, for some reason. And I-"

"Yuuki." You're still not sure if she's being serious, "If Greta was a boy, don't you think I would have noticed? I've bathed with her before." You turn Greta around so you can pull bits and pieces of bark from her hair.
"Yeah, I know, but! Still! I thought that Clair was forcing her to do that because she was a sicko, or something."

"Well, she is sick, but I don't see why she would do something like that." You completely miss the implication of Yuuki's statement, and instead focus on trying to untangle Greta's long, blonde hair.

Greta turns back toward you; no matter how pretty she looks, she's still not wearing clothes.

"Here, take my barrier jacket." You start taking off your outer shell of armor.
Greta protests, "But then you'll be-!"
"It's fine, I'm at least wearing underwear." Including a bra, something that you've been forced to wear as of late thanks to a sudden growth spurt in several key areas.

"I don't feel really comfortable leaving my hero walking around in her drawers." Greta frowns.
"And I don't feel comfortable leaving my princess walking around in her nothing, either." You pull the last part of your dress off, and gently slide it over her head.

Greta hugs the loose-fitting leather close to herself. Geez, did you really grow so much in the chest area? It's barely clinging onto Greta's body.

"I'm going to go back to the camp, I need to tell them that I found Odelle." Yuuki squeezes the yellow ball of fluff. "Don't think that you two are off the hook. When we get back to the castle; you're going to hear a thing or two about sneaking out in the middle of thet night."

"Fine." Both you and Greta groan. A talking-to from Yuuki would be almost as exhausting as this entire night.
Yuuki quickly heads back through the woods, and you follow along behind her with Greta.

"So." You walk along behind Greta, trying to tighten the dress to fit her a bit better, "Since when could you do that, Greta? Can everyone in Konditorei do that?"
"No, no, of course not." She pulls at the chest area of your barrier jacket, "It's the 'mark of strength'. All Konditorei royalty have it. You've met my cousin, right?"
"Your cousin, you mean Gilles?"
"That's the one. He didn't become the, um, macho man that he is from training. That's just the royal blood flowing through him."

>Cont.

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"Wait.." You put something together in your head that may not make a lot of sense when you say it out loud. "-Are you saying you're going to eventually look like he does eventually?!"
"No, no." Greta giggles, "Nothing like he is, but throwing around a few trees doesn't bother me, either. I don't really know the upper limit of it, because I was mostly discouraged from using it."

You're really surprised at this. All your time knowing her; you had no idea she had such super-strength.
"Are you hurt? Still feeling tired?" You pull once more on the dress,.
"Yeah, but I was tired even before we left the castle."

"Let's go get Louise and go home, I'm tired too." You would be lying if you said this wasn't one of the more taxing nights you've ever had.

You shuffle back to the camp, and are awarded with a sight to behold. Jack, Yuuki, and Madeleine are busy having a look at the fluffy ball that is Odelle. Cody seems to be stealing something from one of the tents.
Louise quickly sees you, and rushes over with a wide smile on your face.

"Kayda! Greta!" She seems almost excited, "You should have seen it! It was-"

Louise looks you over, and blinks.
"-Kayda, what happened to your dress? Also, why are you wearing a bra?"

>Long story.
>We're going back to the castle, are you coming back with us?
> Say goodnight to Madeleine and the other heroes before you go.
>Ask if there's anything you need to do before you leave
>Other?

>>1577718
>Greta has my dress
>>A-and i need a bra, ok?
>We're going back to the castle, are you coming back with us?

>>1577718
>Greta exploded out of her clothes in battle, it was neat.
>I need a bra for bra things
>We're going back to the castle, are you coming back with us?

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"Greta exploded out of her clothes mid-battle. It was neat." Greta seems a little uncomfortable at the way you phrased it. Gently, you pull at Greta's sleeve, "So she's wearing my dress, now."

"Oh, okay!" Louise seems perfectly fine with that explanation, "-but still, why are you wearing a bra?"

"I need a bra, for bra things." You're feeling a bit self-conscious as Louise stares slightly below your neck. Her eyes are almost drilling past the simple piece of fabric.

"But I don't need a bra." Louise still doesn't get it.
"I- I just need a bra now, okay?" You try to change the subject, "But aside from that, we're going back to the castle. Are you coming with us?"

"Definitely." Louise gently holsters her gigantic axe back into her ring. "-but first, shouldn't we do something about Antonin?"

Oh shoot, she's right. You completely forgot about the big catguy you left bound and gagged along the path just outside of the camp.

"I'll handle that." Madeleine slithers up behind Louise, "I saw him on the way in. Leave it to me, and I'll take him back. You three go back and get some rest."

She roughly rubs at both you and Louise's scalp, mussing up your hair.
"Besides, it's unbecoming to walk around in just your panties; Kayda." Madeleine smiles, "You should try to get back before more people start to notice."

"Thanks Madeleine."
"Thank you Madeleine." Greta gives a short bow, "Thank you for all your help."

"Thankee Madeleine!" Louise gives the woman a brief hug, "Thanks for helping me find Odelle!"

You say goodnight to the fellow heroes, and try to slink away before Yuuki notices that you're leaving without her.
You don't want to have that talking-to. Not tonight, at least.

The three of you manage to make it back to the castle without anyone noticing you in your drawers. Even the maids seem to be oddly absentminded as they prepare for another long day.

Thankfully, your long day is over. You can only hope Charlotte isn't too mad at Louise for skipping out.

"This is where we part ways!" Louise stands just outside the threshold of your door. "Maybe if I pretend that I went out for a snack, Charlotte will just go back to sleep."

"I can only hope." You give Louise a big hug, "Thanks for helping me with my country's problems, again."
"Anytime, Kayda. It's what I'm here for-"

>Cont.

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There's a glimmer in Greta's eye as she watches you and Louise hug.
"Oh! Right! I almost forgot!" Greta states with enthusiasm.

Gently, she leans over to you. You're expecting her to whisper something, but instead she continues getting closer to your face.
With a quick peck, she plants a kiss right on your cheek!

You gulp, and your hand raises to meet the mark.

You're even more surprised when she saunters over to Louise, and then places the same peck on the side of her cheek! The side of her face is decorated with a light red blush as Greta smiles really widely.

"Thank you both for all your service and dedication! On behalf of Konditorei itself, you have my eternal thanks." Greta seems so mature when she tries to address things.
Of course, something about that didn't seem quite right.

"Uh, what was the kiss for?" You're still rubbing at the spot on your cheek.

"Oh, that? Well; someone told me that when a valiant hero does something for a young lady, it's customary to award them with a kiss." Greta states in a very matter-of-fact kind of way.

You're, not entirely sure about-

"Is that how that works?" Louise's eyes light up, as if she just had an epiphany. "Okay, I get it!"

Before you can even protest; Louise swoops in and plants a kiss on your other cheek! You feel like you're going to have a fever, now.
She slowly pulls away, and then takes Greta's hand. Gently, she places another kiss on Greta's ring finger.

Hey, why did she kiss you on the cheek but Greta on her ring finger?

"I have to say the same to you as well." Louise has a light redness to her face, "Thank you both so much for your service and help to Gallete! I couldn't have done it without either of you. You've done more for me than any knight or soldier of even my own country! I'm always so happy when we get to go on adventures together! I'm really.. I'm really happy to have friends like you." Her face is almost furiously red, now.

>Y-you too.
>I always enjoy our moments together too, Louise.
>Again, thank you for your help as well.
>Well, okay. Since it's customary, Kiss her back.
>Wait, who told you about this custom, Greta?
>Other?

>>1577968
>Y-you too.
>I always enjoy our moments together too, Louise.
>>And the ones with Greta too!

>>1578088
This, also:
>...Sure they weren't just making things up to kiss people?

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"Y-you too, Louise." You try to compose yourself, but you can feel a light moistness at your eyes. "I am so happy to have you and Greta as my friends. You've both done so much for me. I always enjoy our moments together too, Louise. And the ones with Greta, too!"

"AW, that's sweet!"
"Kayda, are those tears I see?" Greta asks, worried.

"I'm fine, it's just- a little dry inside. That's all."
You rub your huge liar hand across your eyes, and wipe the dampness away.

Immediately, you feel Louise and Greta give you a hug from both sides! You weren't expecting this kind of surprise attack at all!

"Thank you Kayda."
"Thank you Kayda!"

They let you go from their death grip, and giggle at your flustered appearance.

"Okay, I think I better get back!" Louise happily chirps, "Thank you for everything! I'm probably not going to be at training in the morning because it's really late." She says that last part in a really weary manner.

Then again, when has she ever showed up to training without having to be dragged there?

You follow Greta into your room, and get to changing into your nightwear. Greta kindly hangs up your barrier jacket for the night. You'll have to either reform it or wash it soon, and it's not an easy suit to wash.

With your nightgown on, you gently crawl into bed next to Greta.

Despite how much you would like to drift off to sleep; something else hangs on the edge of your mind.

"Greta?"
"Hmm?"

"Earlier, when you said that it was customary for young ladies to award heroes with kisses. Where did you hear that from?"
"Oh, that?"

There's a long pause as Greta thinks of a way to explain it. You have a feeling that you're not going to like the answer judging by the length of this pause.

"I read it in a book, and then I asked some people about it. Atsuko told me yes, Aligot said no, and then I asked someone else and they told me it was necessary if it was a hero who was in service to you."
"Who was that 'someone else'? Were they just trying to get a kiss from you?"

"I don't think so, it was Cody. He said that's how ladies awarded the heroes who were serving them, but only the heroes serving them. So he wouldn't count."
"I see. So Cody basically asked you to kiss me."

Greta pauses for another moment, "I guess?"
"I see, Good night Greta."

Tomorrow, you're going to have to kill Cody.

>Thread End

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Thanks for the thread, everyone! I'm sorry to kind of rush today, but I wanted to get done with this part so we could move on to part 2 of the Finale.

So, before thread is bumped off; What did you think? Did you like the reveals given this thread? Hate them? Like the interactions? Let me know!

If the thread falls off, then until next time! I'll see you on Tuesday.

>>1578356
it's good, thanks for running

based cody, bless the tomboys!
he thought Greta was a boy too, right?

>>1578400
No one ever told him otherwise!

>>1578437
i wonder how he'll react if he ever discovers the truth, haha