>>3186800
>>Try and go find Serana. You have to go through your own region to get to hers anyway.

>>3186800
>Try and go find Serana. You have to go through your own region to get to hers anyway.

>>3186800
>>Head back to your own post, taking a wide loop to the North.

>>3186800
>>Try and go find Serana. You have to go through your own region to get to hers anyway.

>>3186800
>Try and go find Serana. You have to go through your own region to get to hers anyway.

>>3186800
>Try and go find Serana. You have to go through your own region to get to hers anyway.
>other: Pick up Alyesheba from Lord Byron's stables. She's been waiting for you for an entire week.

>>3186800
>3d10, best of three

Rolled 5, 1, 5 = 11 (3d10)

>>3189434

Rolled 8, 8, 1 = 17 (3d10)

>>3189434

Rolled 4, 5, 3 = 12 (3d10)

>>3189434

>>3189442
>neither good luck nor bad luck
Okay. Will write after SSQ update.

>>3189458
>>neither good luck nor bad luck

Seems pretty bad to me homie

File: Claymore_Aquileia.png (728 KB, 1375x707)

728 KB PNG

>>3189434
After spending the rest of the evening with Valentina, you part on good terms with a promise to see each other again as soon as your assignments will allow.

You settle on a northward path which will take you through the Dari pass and into Sakia, where you'll eventually find your way to Acerrae. At one point you need to sneak past what you suspect is a small band of bandits, whom it is not your place to deal with, and you reach Acerrae early on the third morning after leaving Valentina's modest home.

“Hello there,” Lord Byron greets you cheerfully as you reach his estate. He and Laura are both out at where the little path leads from the main road out of Acerrae towads the main buildings of the estate, the former watching carefully as the latter hefts large stone blocks into place. It seems like they're in the middle of constructing some sort of small gatehouse, two floors with a substantial brick chimney and a door on the side facing away from the main road.

“Building a gatehouse?” you ask.

Byron nods. “I designed what we could really have used anyway, and offered to let your friend Laura here live in it.”

“Since it seems I will be staying here for a while,” Laura adds. “It was a kind offer, Lord Byron pays for the materials and I do all the manual work.”

“A fine arrangement,” you nod appreciatively to Byron, who seems to understand that Laura is absolutely the type to feel less worthy as a person if she is not given some sort of useful work to do with her time while effectively in exile.

That bit goes unspoken.

“I should retrieve Alysheba,” you explain as Lord Byron follows you towards the stables. “I hope he was not any trouble.”

“Not at all!” Byron chuckles. “You Claymores are always so serious, so unnecessarily mindful. Nothing you or Laura have done while you've been here has caused me even the first bit of trouble, so you can quit worrying.”

With a breath of relief you didn't even realize you were holding, you chuckle as well. “Thanks, that's good to know. Apologies, but I'm in a bit of a hurry... there's something I want to do before the Organization manages to track me down again.”

“Well then I won't keep you,” Byron nods. “Take care of that horse, you hear? And yourself too.”

“I do what I can,” you shrug before mounting Alysheba and taking off out of the stables.

You continue your northward loop past the northern border of Cuilan entirely, only stopping when your horse needs to eat or drink or sleep, until you reach the border where Cuilan, Shukzan, and the southeasternmost point of Sakia meet.

>Head south, following the border of Cuilan and Shukzan as closely as possible looking for signs that Serana has been around.
>Seek out any yōki auras that you can sense by following the main roads through Shukzan, then break off if you don't find Serana.
>Head to Shukzan's capital, in a high valley where the nation's western boarder bends toward Cuilan.
>Other?

>>3189577
>Head south, following the border of Cuilan and Shukzan as closely as possible looking for signs that Serana has been around.

>>3189577
>>Seek out any yōki auras that you can sense by following the main roads through Shukzan, then break off if you don't find Serana.

>>3189577
>>Seek out any yōki auras that you can sense by following the main roads through Shukzan, then break off if you don't find Serana.

>>3189577
>>Seek out any yōki auras that you can sense by following the main roads through Shukzan, then break off if you don't find Serana.

>>3189577
>>Seek out any yōki auras that you can sense by following the main roads through Shukzan, then break off if you don't find Serana.

Wait
-
Seek out any yōki auras that you can sense by following the main roads through Shukzan, then break off if you don't find Serana.
-
Does that imply that we'd just let Yoma roam if we sensed them?

>>3189577
>Head to Shukzan's capital, in a high valley where the nation's western boarder bends toward Cuilan.

>>3189577
>>Head south, following the border of Cuilan and Shukzan as closely as possible looking for signs that Serana has been around.

>>3189577
>3d10, best of 3
>DC 15, critical 24

Rolled 6, 1, 5 = 12 (3d10)

>>3189831

Rolled 5, 8, 7 = 20 (3d10)

>>3189831
Got a good feeling about this one.

Rolled 8, 10, 8 = 26 (3d10)

>>3189831

Rolled 5, 9, 10 = 24 (3d10)

>>3189831
here goes the woof

Why are we looking for Serana again?

>>3189831
You head south along the first main road you see, deep into the realm of Shukzan. The mountains here are even more impressive in some regards than in Hazaran... what they lack in obvious prominence they make up for in the way they rise dramatically, almost violently from the high plains.

After two days your senses finally give you an impression to work with, that there is yōki emanating from a little to the east down a side road that branches off from the one you're on. You follow that road and by nightfall you have a much clearer sense of what had attracted your attention.

One of them is definitely a yōma, while the other is a warrior. Strong in terms of their yōki, strong enough perhaps to be Serana, but not moving any closer towards the other yōma.

“How strange,” you muse, trying to make sense of it. You have little doubt that this yōma would be easy pickings, it definitely doesn't feel anything like your mother or any of the other awakened beings you've crossed paths with.

>Head towards the town, ask around there.
>Head straight for Serana and speak with her.
>Take out the yōma then find Serana. Business first.
>Other?

>>3190088
>Take out the yōma then find Serana. Business first.

>>3190088
>>Take out the yōma then find Serana. Business first.

>>3190088
>Head straight for Serana and speak with her.

>>3190088
>Head straight for Serana and speak with her.

>>3190088
>>Head straight for Serana and speak with her.

>>3190088
>Head straight for Serana and speak with her.

>>3190088
>>Head straight for Serana and speak with her.

>>3190088
>>Take out the yōma then find Serana. Business first.

>>3190088
>Head straight for Serana and speak with her.

>>3190088
>Head straight for Serana and speak with her.

Hostage situation?

>>3190088
You head towards where you sense that Serana is, finding her on a hilltop outside of the town where you also sense that there is a yōma hidden. The spot she has chosen is a rocky outcropping which peeks up over the scraggly trees that have grown with a certain hopefulness in this little valley. It has a commanding view, you can see clearly down into the town and across to the far side of the valley in one direction, and up into the mountain peaks on the other side.

After hitching Alysheba literally to the ground with an iron peg holding his reins in place, you walk the last little ways up the bare hill to where Serana sits atop a granite boulder.

“Nice spot you found to camp,” you smile, springing up to join her atop the boulder like a mountain goat springs up a hillside. “But you do intend to actually go down into that town, don't you?”

Serana shakes her head slowly, then turns to face you.

She makes a quick cutting motion with her fingertips, then the gesture for 'coins' or 'money'.

“There's a problem with the payment?” you ask.

Serana nods.

“As in, they've already failed to pay in the past for your services?” you press.

Serana nods again.

You think you understand the problem now. “And they've earned their way onto the Organization's blacklist, haven't they?”

Serana turns back towards the town again, before making a series of one-handed gestures.

WANT. HELP. THEM.

That doesn't surprise you in the slightest, she certainly strikes you as the type to place the good of others before any other consideration. But you're also not sure what will happen in this situation, because while the Organization is very clear that you aren't to take any requests from those who fail to pay nobody has ever told you what happens if you decide to help anyway. You don't know of anyone who has been in a position to try.

“Have they requested our service?” you ask.

Serana shakes her head after a moment's consideration. NOT. THINK. YES.

>Well then we won't be accepting their request. Isn't that technically okay?
>I'll take care of it. I'm not supposed to be there anyway.
>Do what you think is right. I won't say a word about it to anyone.
>Maybe we shouldn't help. In the long run it might be better that way.

>>3193480
>I'll take care of it. I'm not supposed to be there anyway.

>>3193480
>>I'll take care of it. I'm not supposed to be there anyway.

>>3193480
>Well then we won't be accepting their request. Isn't that technically okay?

>>3193480
>Well then we won't be accepting their request. Isn't that technically okay?

>>3193480
>Well then we won't be accepting their request. Isn't that technically okay?

>>3193480
>>Well then we won't be accepting their request. Isn't that technically okay?

>>3193480
>I'll take care of it. I'm not supposed to be there anyway.

>>3193480
>I'll take care of it. I'm not supposed to be there anyway.
No one knows about her secret sign language ability right?

>>3193480
>I'll take care of it. I'm not supposed to be there anyway.

>>3193480
>3d10, best of three

Rolled 9, 10, 10 = 29 (3d10)

>>3196139

Rolled 8, 5, 8 = 21 (3d10)

>>3196139

Rolled 4, 4, 6 = 14 (3d10)

>>3196139
for chaos?

Rolled 7, 2, 3 = 12 (3d10)

>>3196139

>>3196139
“Then we won't be accepting a request,” you point out. “I'm just going down there to exterminate a yōma and you're going to tag along.”

After a few moments, she shakes her head and begins to sign to you.

“You want me to go in alone?” you ask, and she nods emphatically.

She signs again. “You want me to get something to eat and sit down?”

She nods.

“And you'll be waiting outside town, suppressing your yōki?” you guess, starting to see her reasoning.

Serana taps her finger against the tip of her nose.

“I got it?”

She nods.

“Alright, we'll try your plan,” you agree. “I'll let you get into position.”

You give Serana the better part of an hour to maneuver down the hill and around the edge of the town before returning to Alysheba. While your partner hides herself you try to make yourself as obvious as possible so that when you ride into town there's no chance that the yōma hiding here could possibly have missed you.

The locals give you much more room than you could possibly have use for, probably because they've grown to fear you. Likely they recall what Serana did to the last yōma who was hiding here.

“I'm looking for a place to eat,” you call down to a nearby shopkeep, bringing Alysheba to a halt. “Do you have any suggestions?”

The man initially refuses eye contact, at least until you repeat your question a little louder.

“Try the inn by the church,” he says, barely looking up at you.

That actually works well enough, it means going through the heart of town and making even more of a scene. And all you have to do is ride through town and make it obvious who and what you are.

Eventually you hitch Alysheba out front of the inn you were suggested, and walk inside. You set your sword at the end of a table and sit down calmly, waiting for someone to come and take your order. It's easy to tell that the yōma is doing exactly what you would have assumed that he would do: fleeing the scene.

“Can I help you?” a waitress asks hesitantly.

You nod. “Bring me some cheese, crackers, and a little wine please. For two.”
>1/2

>>3196186
The yōma disappears not long after it leaves town, and less than half an hour later Serana joins you at your table.

“The cheese is good,” you muse, gesturing for her to eat and drink. She gratefully does.

“So I take it you succeeded?”

Serana nods, and makes a few quick gestures.

NO. DIFFICULTY.

You begin to resume eating, only to find a hand atop yours. When you glance up, you find Serana gesturing again.

“It's no problem,” you assert. “I was glad to do it.”

Serana holds eye contact, silently insisting that as much as you try and downplay it your involvement here means a lot to her.

You sigh, and shake your head. “Right, I get it.”

WHY. HERE?

>To find you of course. I wanted to see how you've been doing.
>I'm a little concerned about the way the Organization has been doing things.
>I wanted to confide in you a little, about what happened it Hazaran a few days ago.
>Other?

>>3196200
>To find you of course. I wanted to see how you've been doing.
Top is most important. The other two should flow into the conversation later.

>I'm a little concerned about the way the Organization has been doing things.

>I wanted to confide in you a little, about what happened it Hazaran a few days ago.

>>3196200
>I wanted to confide in you a little, about what happened it Hazaran a few days ago.

>>3196200
>>I wanted to confide in you a little, about what happened it Hazaran a few days ago.

>>3196200
>To find you of course. I wanted to see how you've been doing.
>other: engage in fake small talk by having your hand tell her the secret message while your mouth talk about mundane things...like boys.
>other: Real talk in sign language. "FOCUS ON HAND, NOT MY MOUTH."

>>3196200
>To find you of course. I wanted to see how you've been doing.

>>3196200
>>I'm a little concerned about the way the Organization has been doing things.
>>I wanted to confide in you a little, about what happened it Hazaran a few days ago.

>>3196200
>To find you of course. I wanted to see how you've been doing.
>I wanted to confide in you a little, about what happened it Hazaran a few days ago.

>>3196206
>>3196200
This is good.

>>3196200
“To find you,” you admit. “Why else would I bother coming here?”

WHY.

She repeats her question, staring at you intently. You sigh, glancing at your current company.

“Because I wanted to see how you were doing.”
SPEAK. HAZARAN. MISTAKE.

After frowning silently, Serana makes a few gestures.
WHAT. MISTAKE.

“I'm doing fine, thank you. I just had to collect my horse in Sakia.”
RULER. KNOWS. NAME. POSSIBLY.

Serana takes a sip of her wine, then sets the glass aside.
POSSIBLY. YES. NO.

“Yeah, I'm still trying to figure that one out too. Do most animals still tend to avoid you, like they do most warriors?”
YES. TRIED. KILL. JUMP. BRIDGE. ESCAPE.

Serana makes a few more flitting gestures. NEED. RETURN. SOON?

She phrased it like a question. “I see, that's strange.”
MAYBE. NO.

She narrows her gaze slightly.
WANT. RETURN?

“I'm sorry?” you ask, not even bothering to sign the same. “Maybe rephrase that for me?”

WANT. RETURN. RULE. HAZARAN?

“I don't think that would be safe,” you reply. “The horse might not take too kindly to it.”
WOULD. BE. DANGER. PROBLEM. FIGHTING.

Her gaze does not change.

WANT?

>No. I don't want any part of that.
>Only over my own objections.
>I do, but I can't right now. Not yet.
>Other?

>>3198015
>I do, but I can't right now. Not yet.

>>3198015
>I do, but I can't right now. Not yet.

>>3198015
>>I do, but I can't right now. Not yet.

>>3198015
>I dont know, but right now I am too worried about what's happening in the organization and how it will affect us warriors

>>3198015
>>I do, but I can't right now. Not yet.

>>3198015
>I do, but I can't right now. Not yet.

>>3198015
>I do, but that basically requires toppling the Organization first.

>>3198015
>I do, but I can't right now. Not yet.

>>3198015
>>I do, but I can't right now. Not yet.

>>3198015
>I do, but I can't right now. Not yet.

>>3198015
You sigh deeply. “I guess I could try to teach you how to ride a horse if you really want me to, assuming we can find the time. When we're done eating we can see how Alysheba responds to you first of all, but I really can't make any promises.”
YES. WANT. NOT. WANT. WAR. DEATH. PAIN. MY. PEOPLE. POSSIBLE. TIME. PEOPLE. NEED. ME. NOT. NOW.

You hope that your quick succession of signs makes sense for her... you want to return to your rightful place, because Lord Sigmunt has apparently been a disaster. But you do not want to do so in a way that causes your people to suffer, and you will not do it in a way that will just bring the Organization down on you. That's the sticking point... it isn't the right time.

It may never be the right time.

“So are we on the same proverbial page here?”

After a moment, Serana nods silently.
YES. I. UNDERSTAND.

“Good,” you nod back to her, spearing a bit of cheese with a small fork.

The rest of the meal passes in contemplative silence, apart from a few polite exchanges. Even when you pay the bill it's a rather mechanical feeling, something that simply has to be done to get on to the next thing which simply has to be done. You think it has something to do with Serana... for a mute, she sure has an incredible way of setting a tone.

After stepping out of the restaurant you lead Serana towards Alysheba.

“I explained it, didn't I?” you muse as she stares at you quizzically.

You have her reach out her hand, almost painfully slow, towards your horse who seems not to appreciate this turn of events.

“Knock it off,” you tell Alysheba sternly, “you're embarrassing me in front of my friend.”

“That's it,” you continue as Serana's hand finally makes contact with his head, and the sounds of his protest die down. “She's not all that different from me, you know.”

Alysheba snorts.

“That was rude.”

Serana cocks her eyebrow, but continues to pat Alysheba for a few seconds before your horse finally seems to calm down somewhat.

“They can sense when you're uncertain,” you tell Serana calmly. “That's part of it. You just have to find the right match, and break down the barrier a little. Once that happens... well, you've seen the result.”

>Assure Serana that you won't speak about any of this if she won't.
>Suggest that Serana come and visit you at some point.
>Suggest that you both should be more careful from now on.
>Other?

>>3199918
>Suggest that Serana come and visit you at some point.
>Suggest that you both should be more careful from now on.

>>3199918
>>Suggest that Serana come and visit you at some point.

>>3199918
>>Suggest that Serana come and visit you at some point.
>>Suggest that you both should be more careful from now on.

>>3199918
>Suggest that you both should be more careful from now on.

>>3199918
>Suggest that you both should be more careful from now on.

>>3199918
“You should come and visit us some time,” you suggest.
BE. CAREFUL.

Serana watches your hands for a moment before giving you time to mount Alysheba. Then she shows you her reply.

ORGANIZATION.

You nod slowly. “Well, nobody knows what the future may hold. So just keep it in mind.”

MUST. TELL. TOWN. PAY. ORGANIZATION.

“Sounds like a good plan,” you nod with a smile. “You're welcome any time.”

Serana raises her hand to see you off, and eventually you take your leave of her, riding back towards the pass which crosses the border into Cuilan. It's a hard ride into the mountains, but you make fairly good time. It's in a small mountain village on the Cuilan side of the high pass that a familiar voice greets you from a darkened corner of a tiny inn.

“Was your little side-trip fruitful?”

It's Tomas of course. He probably came here anticipating that you would use this pass to return to your own region after having been in Serana's territory, so now he can intercept you. But you do have to wonder who reported your detour in the first place.

Strange. Perhaps the Organization's contact networks among the regular population are more developed than you realized. Or maybe they pay border guards to report to them on the quiet? The latter possibility seems most like them.

“It was,” you nod, taking a seat in an overstuffed chair across a small table from your handler. “A nice long swim and a good ride is always so bracing. Good for the constitution.”

“You didn't just ride, did you?” Tomas smirks.

“Are you asking, or demanding?” you frown.

“I think you know the answer,” he replies calmly.

>Explain the plan you and Serana worked out, assure him that Serana is trying to get the town to pay.
>Tell him that you wanted to see Serana and your arrival spooked the yōma. She dealt with it outside of town, so the Organization had no official involvement.
>Tell him that slaying yōma is as much your own personal pleasure as it is his business. If they never knew it was there, then their policy remains in force.
>Other?

>>3202133
>Tell him that you wanted to see Serana and your arrival spooked the yōma. She dealt with it outside of town, so the Organization had no official involvement.

>>3202133
>>Tell him that you wanted to see Serana and your arrival spooked the yōma. She dealt with it outside of town, so the Organization had no official involvement.

>>3202133
>Tell him that you wanted to see Serana and your arrival spooked the yōma. She dealt with it outside of town, so the Organization had no official involvement.

>>3202133
>>Tell him that you wanted to see Serana and your arrival spooked the yōma. She dealt with it outside of town, so the Organization had no official involvement.

>>3202133
>>Tell him that slaying yōma is as much your own personal pleasure as it is his business. If they never knew it was there, then their policy remains in force.

>>3202133
>>Tell him that you wanted to see Serana and your arrival spooked the yōma. She dealt with it outside of town, so the Organization had no official involvement.

>>3202133
>Other/ Omake?
Noel explaining to Thomas of her capital visit.

*Groans* I had tracked the yoma to a cathedral that was memorializing my "death" But that was not even the worst of it. It tried to jump out of the crypt as a 10 year old version of me, and on top of it I had to kill it in front of the current king and most of the upper nobles of the kingdom.

>>3202133
“I wanted to see Serana,” you explain, “especially since I paid Valentina an unexpected visit and found that enjoyable. When I arrived in town it spooked the yōma, and Serana used that opportunity to eliminate it I guess.”

“How industrious,” Tomas muses, seemingly considering whether you have told him he truth or not. Eventually he seems to settle on yes.

“Very well,” he sighs. “Though I might suggest you be a little more restrained in your social activities in the future.”

“And why would that be?”

“The Organization does not care for warriors who waste time that way,” Tomas tells you, frowning as he speaks. “I believe you understand why that is.”

“I have an idea,” you admit.

Tomas seems to think to himself for a few minutes, staring into the fire. “Quite a bit goes unsaid between you and I, doesn't it?”

“Tends to be the case,” you sigh. “Isn't it the same with most handlers and their warriors? If it is you'd have to tell me, I don't actually know.”

“Tell you what,” Tomas declares, abruptly leaning forward in his chair. “You get one.”

“... one?” you ask, somewhat confused. “I don't follow.”

“You can ask me one question,” he replies with a placid smile. “If you want. Any one question, and I will forget what you asked entirely. No report will find its way back to the Organization, from my mouth or anyone else's.”

“Any one question,” you repeat.

“Any one,” Tomas insists. “I'm sure you have plenty that you would like to ask. You're a thoughtful young woman after all.”

“How do I know this isn't a clever trap?” you demand.

Tomas shrugs. “I have my own reasons.”

>What were the circumstances around my mother's awakening?
>How are warriors selected and recruited, really? What's the truth?
>What IS the Organization, and where does it get its funding?
>No questions.

>>3204109
>>How are warriors selected and recruited, really? What's the truth?

>>3204109
>What IS the Organization, and where does it get its funding?

>>3204109
>>How are warriors selected and recruited, really? What's the truth?

>>3204109
>How are warriors selected and recruited, really? What's the truth?

>>3204109
>How are warriors selected and recruited, really? What's the truth?

>>3204109
>how did mother awaken?

>>3204109
>How are warriors selected and recruited, really? What's the truth?

>3d10, best of four

Rolled 3, 5, 3 = 11 (3d10)

>>3206520

Rolled 3, 7, 6 = 16 (3d10)

>>3206520
>>3206520

Rolled 1, 3, 10 = 14 (3d10)

>>3206520

Rolled 10, 1, 2 = 13 (3d10)

>>3206520
dghmn

>>3206523
>>3206524
>>3206550
>>3206531
Yike. Nowel ain't having luck.

Rolled 9, 9, 4 = 22 (3d10)

>>3206560
Sure she is. Watch.

>>3206588
well it is a good roll, but that roll is to late, you get what i mean?

>>3206602
>>3206588
At least we aren't getting our bottom smacked by our handler I guess...

>>3206520
“I do have a question” you admit.

Tomas nods and gestures for you to speak.

“How does the Organization recruit its warriors?” you ask, narrowing your eyes. “And I want to know the truth.”

“The truth is that some of you truly are recruited,” Tomas explains, his expression carefully neutral. “There is a certain advantage in methods of quantity. However some warriors are selected more carefully for certain qualities. An example of this was the experimentation into the use of twins.”

Certain qualities, he says... he hasn't confirmed anything of course, but it does seem to imply that the Organization knew of your 'heritage' before giving you the procedure. And though you want nothing more than to ask the logical follow-up question, to demand to know whether your suspicions are correct, you know that you can't.

Tomas is nothing if not true to his word, exactly. Were you to attempt to ask another question he would inform the Organization, which would quickly become a problem. Of course he would craft his answer in that way.

And he knew that you would arrive at this conclusion as well.

Damn it.

You can't even ask him which among your friends were so selected, since that implies knowledge of the answer to your first question.

“I see,” you sigh. “I guess more needs to go unsaid between us, then.”

“Were that it not so,” Tomas shrugs. “However considering my own position your discretion is the correct course.”

“Well,” you grumble, now staring at the fire yourself. “What happens now?”

“I can pretty much assume how your mission in Hazaran went,” Tomas tells you dismissively. “So no need for a lengthy debriefing. You exterminated the yōma and fell off the bridge trying to escape the guards.”

“Anything I missed?”

>The yōma was wearing my face and hiding in my coffin.
>Lord Sigmunt knows I'm alive.
>Nothing additional to report.

>>3206869
>The yōma was wearing my face and hiding in my coffin.

>>3206869
>>The yōma was wearing my face and hiding in my coffin.

>>3206869
>Lord Sigmunt knows I'm alive.

>>3206869
>Lord Sigmunt knows I'm alive.

>>3206869
>>The yōma was wearing my face and hiding in my coffin.
>>Lord Sigmunt knows I'm alive.
>>At the very least he suspects that it truely was me

>>3206869
>>The yōma was wearing my face and hiding in my coffin.
>>Lord Sigmunt knows I'm alive.

>>3206869
>The yōma was wearing my face and hiding in my coffin.

>>3206869
>The yōma was wearing my face and hiding in my coffin.

>>3206869
“The yōma was an exceptional shapeshifter,” you add to Tomas' summary. “It took a form that looked like what it must have thought I would look like as an adult and hid inside my own empty coffin.”

Tomas remains inscrutable for several moments. “Did anyone notice?”

You nod. “Sigmunt. He sent an armed squad of his miscreants after me.”

“You really have a way with people,” Tomas muses joylessly. “Has anyone ever told you that?”

“It comes part and parcel,” you point out. “If what you've said is to be believed you knew what you were getting when I was recruited.”

“Buyer beware, is that it?”

“Something like that,” you shrug. “Now, are you going to send me off on another mission? Or will you give me the chance to sleep indoors tonight?”

“No such luck, I fear,” Tomas muses, handing you a black envelope.

You stare at it like you hate it... because you do. “Who?”

“Claudia, the current number Nineteen,” Tomas informs you.

Claudia... Claudia... try as you might, you can't recall ever having met with her. So why would she have put your name on her black card? You put that exact question to Tomas, whose brow furrows.

“Are you sure you've never met?”

You nod. “I can assure you. I can remember all of the names and faces of warriors who I have fought alongside, and Claudia is not among them.”

Tomas strokes his chin. “I suppose there is a chance it has been tampered with. But by whom?”

>I will go to her home territory and seek her out. Maybe this is all an elaborate ruse.
>Where did this come from? I will go there and if it's a trap I will spring it.
>There must be some mistake. Did she have any other close friends who should receive this?
>Other?

>>3210323
>where did this come from ...?

Did not expect tomas to be so chill about what we told him, on the other hand, the organization has insane intel

>>3210323
>where did this come from ...?
>I will go to her home territory and seek her out. Maybe this is all an elaborate ruse.

>>3210323
>Where did this come from? I will go there and if it's a trap I will spring it.

>>3210323
>Where did this come from? I will go there and if it's a trap I will spring it.
>I will go to her home territory and seek her out. Maybe this is all an elaborate ruse.

>>3210323
>I will go to her home territory and seek her out. Maybe this is all an elaborate ruse.
>Where did this come from? I will go there and if it's a trap I will spring it.

>>3210323
>>Where did this come from? I will go there and if it's a trap I will spring it.

>>3210323
>where did this come from ...?
>I will go to her home territory and seek her out. Maybe this is all an elaborate ruse.

>>3210323
>I will go to her home territory and seek her out. Maybe this is all an elaborate ruse.

>>3210323
>other: where was Claudia last deployed? and Where did this black envelope come from?

>>3210323
>where was Claudia last deployed? and Where did this black envelope come from?

>>3210323
>There must be some mistake. Did she have any other close friends who should receive this?
Mom?

>>3210323
>>I will go to her home territory and seek her out. Maybe this is all an elaborate ruse.
Might as well check things out.

>>3210323
“From where was this sent?” you ask with a stern glare.

“Claudia was last deployed near the border between Sila and Karluk,” Tomas explains. “The letter itself came from a town on the Sila side of the border, which does not necessarily mean that she crossed the border in pursuit of her target.”

“Remind me,” you muse, “whose territory is Sila?”

“Helen, our number five.”

“And is she currently there?” you press.

“I would not profess to know the whereabouts of any specific one of our warriors,” Tomas shrugs dismissively. “I hardly know where you are half the time.”

“I think you know more than you let on,” you grumble. “Though I'd be hard pressed to suggest a reason why you would feign otherwise.”

“Moving past your incredibly unhealthy mistrust of all things that draw breath,” Tomas frowns, “the point remains that I cannot tell you precisely where Claudia might be or what her situation is. I cannot even tell you for certain that this is not a trap.”

“If it is not a trap then Claudia requires my 'mercy',” you observe, shutting your eyes in thought. “And if it is a trap, then springing it will bring out the scheming reprobate behind that trap. Either way, my path is clearly laid out before me.”

“I go tonight.”

Tomas eventually nods in agreement. “I see how you could make no other decision. Go then, and I will report my doubts to the Organization. Do not expect reinforcement.”

True to your word, you head out immediately with Alysheba. Your path takes you almost due north to the capital city, Tarskavaig, where you leave your trusted mount in the hands of the local lord who is keen to repay you for your previous investigative work in the bottom of the local mines.

From there you go on foot.

>Search for yōma. The most likely culprit is an awakened being.
>Head for the border, ask if anyone has seen a warrior here lately.
>Try to find Helen. Whatever happened, it happened on her doorstep.
>Other?

>>3213288
>>Search for yōma. The most likely culprit is an awakened being.

>>3213288
>Search for yōma. The most likely culprit is an awakened being.

>>3213288
>>Search for yōma. The most likely culprit is an awakened being.

>>3213288
>“I go tonight.”
>Search for yōma. The most likely culprit is an awakened being.

>>3213288
>Try to find Helen. Whatever happened, it happened on her doorstep.

>>3213288
>Try to find Helen. Whatever happened, it happened on her doorstep.

>>3213288
>Head for the border, ask if anyone has seen a warrior here lately.
>Try to find Helen. Whatever happened, it happened on her doorstep.

>>3213288
>>Head for the border, ask if anyone has seen a warrior here lately.
>>Try to find Helen. Whatever happened, it happened on her doorstep.

>>3213288
this >>3213359
>Head for the border, ask if anyone has seen a warrior here lately.
>Try to find Helen. Whatever happened, it happened on her doorstep.

>>3213288
>3d10, best of three

Rolled 9, 3, 3 = 15 (3d10)

>>3215404

Rolled 3, 3, 8 = 14 (3d10)

>>3215404

Rolled 4, 4, 5 = 13 (3d10)

>>3215404

>>3215404
... take one more roll. Courtesy of Noel's extraordinary senses.

Rolled 10, 7, 5 = 22 (3d10)

>>3215520

File: 1546654398265.jpg (47 KB, 963x830)

47 KB JPG

>>3215524
My Master!

>>3215404
You search widely from the moment you crossed the border into Sila, but it takes you a day or two to track down any meaningful information on Helen's movements. Eventually however you find yourself in a small, poor town in the northern reach of Sila, along with the unmistakable aura of another single-digit warrior.

She's in a small house, little more than four walls and a roof patched with thick mud and straw. You knock politely at the door, and wait for her to open it.

“How formal,” she greets you with a stern look, before waving you in with her free hand. “Though I admit I appreciate the gesture.”

“Thank you,” you incline your head slightly before stepping through the door. Inside you find that she has nothing more than a fireplace, a small table with two chairs, and a simple bed. A washing basin sits on the floor, and it seems like she has a cold pit dug into the floor in one corner. The soil here is certainly chilly enough to keep food fresh.

“So, why are you here?” she asks, seating herself across the small table from you. She runs her fingertips through her short crop of hair, pushing a few errant strands back and over her leaf-shaped ear. “Certainly not a simple social call? Not one of your rank.”

“I'm here because of something which happened on your doorstep,” you frown, before recounting the delivery of the black card.

Through your explanation, Helen's frown deepens. “And you suspect a trap?”

“I cannot rule it out,” you sigh. “Since it did happen along the northern border of your district I figured I would bring it to your attention.”

“And what is your goal in raising this with me?” she presses, watching you cautiously. “Do you seriously intend to ask me for help?”

“I'm not sure I appreciate your tone right now, Helen,” you frown. “It almost sounds as if you see me as a potential threat.”

Helen shakes her head. “We do not know each other. Had you my experiences then perhaps you would understand my suspicion.”

“I am concerned,” you insist sternly, “for the safety of our peers. The simplest possibility is that Claudia is in a position where she needs someone to help end her life before the worst should happen. The worst possibility is that someone, or some thing, is killing warriors and using their black cards as traps.”

>So yes, I'm asking you for your assistance. Even if you mistrust me this is bigger than either of us.
>I'm simply asking you to show me the same trust and courtesy that I would offer you on principle.
>If you do not trust me then that's fine. But you should at least know what's going on here.
>Other?

>>3215559

>So yes, I'm asking you for your assistance. Even if you mistrust me this is bigger than either of us.

>>3215559
>If you do not trust me then that's fine. But you should at least know what's going on here.
>What were those experiences you mentioned?

>>3215559
>>I'm simply asking you to show me the same trust and courtesy that I would offer you on principle.

>>3215559
>>I'm simply asking you to show me the same trust and courtesy that I would offer you on principle.

>>3215559
>I'm simply asking you to show me the same trust and courtesy that I would offer you on principle. But I am not asking for your assistance.
>What were those experiences you mentioned?

>>3215559
>>So yes, I'm asking you for your assistance. Even if you mistrust me this is bigger than either of us.

>>3215559
>If you do not trust me then that's fine. But you should at least know what's going on here.

>>3215559
>>If you do not trust me then that's fine. But you should at least know what's going on here.
If she's not comfortable then I'm fine with backing off.

>>3215559
>>If you do not trust me then that's fine. But you should at least know what's going on here.

>>3215559
>>If you do not trust me then that's fine. But you should at least know what's going on here.

>>3215559
>3d10, best of three

Rolled 4, 8, 4 = 16 (3d10)

>>3217406

Rolled 9, 10, 9 = 28 (3d10)

>>3217406

Rolled 6, 10, 5 = 21 (3d10)

>>3217406

Rolled 9, 6, 2 = 17 (3d10)

>>3217406
>>3217406

>>3217406
“If you don't trust me that's fine,” you insist with a sigh. “If you decide not to help me, that's fine too. I just wanted you to know what was going on here... and if this is a trap? If I don't come back?”

“Be careful, Helen.”

Your fellow warrior stares at you blankly for a few seconds, then glances downwards. But she says nothing. And so you invite yourself out of her home. You take a deep breath, somewhat disappointed that didn't go better, but that was always a possibility. You'll just have to...

A hand on your shoulder snaps you out of your thoughts.

Helen sighs, then glances at you out of the corners of her eyes. “I can see why Valentina spoke highly of you.”

“You know Valentina?” you muse, somewhat taken aback.

Helen nods, then glances away. “Our... outlooks tend to differ. Sometimes I take her insight to be more a reflection of her boundless optimism.”

“Do you think this is one of those times?” you ask with a smirk.

Helen shrugs. “Something about the way you speak, maybe...”

Then she shakes her head. “I don't know. And I won't know unless I follow along with you. So let's get a move on.”

“So, do you have a plan?”

You frown. “I thought you're the higher ranked warrior here.”

“It's still your mission,” Helen glances at you. “Just think of me as going the same way as you for a while, so use your own judgment.”

“Alright then,” you nod, understanding her decision. “So the plan is to track down where this black card came from, and discern the truth from there. Either we find Claudia and do what needs to be done, or we find whoever it was who killed Claudia for her black card.”

>We'll start by heading for the border, the town where the card came from.
>We'll be crossing the border, to the town she was last seen in.
>Chances are Claudia, or her killer, are laying low in the wilds somewhere.
>Other?

>>3217768
>>We'll start by heading for the border, the town where the card came from.

>>3217768
>>We'll start by heading for the border, the town where the card came from.

>>3217768
>>We'll start by heading for the border, the town where the card came from.

>>3217768
>>We'll start by heading for the border, the town where the card came from.

>>3217768
>We'll start by heading for the border, the town where the card came from.

>>3217768
>We'll start by heading for the border, the town where the card came from.

>>3217768
>We'll be crossing the border, to the town she was last seen in.

>>3217768
>We'll be crossing the border, to the town she was last seen in.

>>3217768
>3d10, best of four

Rolled 1, 3, 5 = 9 (3d10)

>>3220525

Rolled 6, 3, 6 = 15 (3d10)

>>3220525

Rolled 8, 6, 4 = 18 (3d10)

>>3220525

Rolled 7, 1, 6 = 14 (3d10)

>>3220525

>>3220529
Oof.

>>3220525
Your plan as you explained it to Helen is to head for the town where Claudia's black card was sent from and start there. Even if she isn't currently there you know that the card must have been there at some point, so either someone there handled it who may recall seeing Claudia and where she went afterwards or whoever is trying to trap you was there. Either you come away from that town with useful information or you spring the trap.

“You really intend to risk your own life to spring the trap, assuming that is what this is?” Helen muses quietly as you walk. While you miss Alysheba, you have to admit that things are perhaps a bit simpler this way.

You nod, resolute in your plan. “Of course. In doing so, it becomes my trap, in a sense.”

“Only if you prove more than the mastermind bargained for,” Helen points out.

You shrug. “That's part of why I have you.”

“You would risk my life as well?”

“Not without your permission of course,” you point out. “If you're not comfortable with that plan feel free to turn back.”

“Not a chance,” Helen snorts. “I still want to see you in action.”

“You may get the chance,” you muse.

After a few hours of walking, the sun goes down and the air grows bitterly cold.

“Well that's disappointing,” you grumble. “Shall we huddle together for warmth for a while?”

Without saying a word, Helen walks off the trail to a small hollow between two good sized rocks and sits. She makes no obvious efforts to start a fire, and so you begin preparations for both of you.

“You find that necessary?” she wonders aloud as you break up some sticks and small branches you find, remnants of a bush or small tree that once stood here but must have died a few seasons ago. “Were it not for the color of your hilt I might have mistaken you for a hybrid failure.”

>We could sit in the dark for a few hours if you'd prefer that.
>We can TOLERATE being cold and miserable, but why seek it out?
>The warmth doesn't matter. It's just more cheerful this way, don't you think?
>Other?

>>3220735
>We can TOLERATE being cold and miserable, but why seek it out?

>>3220735
>>We can TOLERATE being cold and miserable, but why seek it out?

>>3220735
>>We can TOLERATE being cold and miserable, but why seek it out?

>>3220735
>The warmth doesn't matter. It's just more cheerful this way, don't you think?
We still got some holiday cheer leftover to share.

>>3220735
>>We can TOLERATE being cold and miserable, but why seek it out?

>>3220735
>We can TOLERATE being cold and miserable, but why seek it out?

>>3220735
>The warmth doesn't matter. It's just more cheerful this way, don't you think?

>>3220735
>We can TOLERATE being cold and miserable, but why seek it out?

>>3220735
>We could sit in the dark for a few hours if you'd prefer that.

>>3220735
“I know we can all tolerate being cold and miserable,” you sigh, fumbling through a pouch to find a flint and steel. “But that's no reason to seek it out. Misfortune will find us easily enough without us looking.”

“You have a point,” Helen admits quietly. “And I have to admit, a little fire can be quite cheerful. It's just...”

“You're not used to allowing yourself the feeling,” you guess.

Helen nods. “It feels like something that's not allowed for us.”

“It's up to us to choose how human we are,” you insist, finally getting a good spark. “Every day we choose to put our human selves in charge, to deny the yōma side, is a small triumph. I'd say that entitles us to a little human comfort every now and then.”

Helen watches the little fire as it catches. It doesn't provide much warmth, but there is a noticeable change in the atmosphere between the two of you. You could almost swear you see Helen relax slightly... which is surprising, it was impossible to tell how tense she really was around you until that constant tension eased just a little to betray its presence.

>I appreciate that you've relaxed around me slightly. I hope that's just the first step.
>You seem to have a lot of trouble trusting people. You feel comfortable explaining why?
>It's not that I'm inherently trusting, you know. It's just my fellow warriors aren't what concerns me.
>Other?

>>3223164
>I appreciate that you've relaxed around me slightly. I hope that's just the first step.

>>3223164
>>I appreciate that you've relaxed around me slightly. I hope that's just the first step.

>>3223164
>>You seem to have a lot of trouble trusting people. You feel comfortable explaining why?
Didn't Valentina say she knew another half-awakened warrioir? maybe it's helen

>>3223164
>You seem to have a lot of trouble trusting people. You feel comfortable explaining why?

>>3223164
>It's not that I'm inherently trusting, you know. It's just my fellow warriors aren't what concerns me.

>>3223164
>>You seem to have a lot of trouble trusting people. You feel comfortable explaining why?