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>>5540566
Ashe suddenly awakens with a jolt, giving you quite the scare and causing you to drop the book you’d been reading. It had been two days since the man you loved had been conscious. Sebastian had given him quite the beatdown. Thanks to Elizabeth’s healing magic, there shouldn’t have been any long-term damage or injury. But there was a limit to what even she could accomplish. As a result, Ashe slumbered for two days straight while his body fought to regain its lost strength. And you had remained by his side during that time, watching over his recovery.

“Where am I? What happened?’ Ashe asks groggily, rubbing his eyes as though he’d awoken from a mere nap.

>“Good morning.” You whisper, running your hands through his hair. “Glad to see you back in the world of the living.”

“The duel!” He suddenly remembers. “Did I-“

>“You lost. You’ve been unconscious for two days.” You retrieve the tome you’d dropped from the floor. It was the gift you’d received from Leopold. Your reward for assisting Mary and her pegasus knights. The cover of the book was designed with gold etchings in an ornate style. Were one to attempt to read its contents, they’d find an arcane language only recognizable to a mage of the highest level. This was “Forseti”. S-Tier supreme magic of the wind domain. According to Leopold, the book had been looted by a group of bandits that had pillaged Garreg Mach after it had been abandoned. After routing the thieves, he’d found the tome haphazardly thrown at the bottom of a chest. Evidently, the bandits were unable to tell its true value. With the monastery’s library still in shambles, Leopold opted to hold onto the tome until it could be properly stored again. Though in the meantime, he had no issues with lending it to you. While you could say with no shortage of confidence that you were a skilled mage, magic of this caliber would take some time for you to unlock. It would be a while before you could make use of the spell.

“I lost. That’s…too bad.” Ashe lays his head back onto the pillow. “Wait, did you say two days?!”

>“Well, you were banged up pretty rough. Don’t feel too bad though. You fought well out there. Sebastian may have had the advantage over you, but it was close.”

“I understand his logic. He had all the right in the world to fight me and win. Still…I can’t say I feel too great about getting beat up in front you.”

>You lean forward over where Ashe is lying. Brushing his hair past his forehead, you plant a small kiss on his lips. “I thought you looked great.”

Your words manage to drag him out of his gloom as his smile returns. “Well, so long as I have you as my fan, I can live with that. Say, where are we anyway?” His senses returning to him, Ashe realizes for the first time that he’s moving. Outside the room the two of you are in, one can hear the tell-tale sounds of horses, wagons and men marching.

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>>5540568
>“We’re in one of the wagons we use to transport our injured soldiers. Our next mission is in Ordelia, located in the Leicester Alliance. Though before that, we’re actually heading towards a village called Wino, within the vicinity. We’re to meet up with one of Claude’s people first.”

“One of Claude’s? Who is it?” Ashe asks, sitting up.

>“I don’t know. But word of whatever has been happening in Ordelia has reached his ears. No one has been able to get in contact with anyone from the city. Scouts that have been sent to investigate have all failed to return. Even the Pro-Imperial faction within the Alliance is staying far away. Ignatz rode day and night on a wyvern to find us and tell us the news. Claude wants to make sure we’re prepared to go in.”

“You think these Agarthans have something to do with it?”

>“Undoubtedly. My own contact reached out to me while we were in Garreg Mach to tell me just that. This trouble has their name written all over it. I suspect we’ll come into combat with one of their leaders there as well.”

Ashe sits in his cot, staring at you bewildered.

>“W-what!?

“I-it’s nothing! Just...you really have changed a lot, you know. I mean you’re over here talking about…secret contacts and missions. And all these strong-looking mercenaries follow your every command. I guess I’m just…a little struck by it is all.” He smiles.

>“I-it’s nothing. Really. And besides, don’t forget you’re one of those ‘strong looking' mercenaries now too. I’ll be counting on you out there.”

“Can’t say I looked very strong out there while I was getting pummeled.”

>“Nonsense. You’ve warmed yourself up to the others with that fight. These men respect a strong fighter with guts. Even if you lost, it served as the perfect initiation into the Blackwings. You’re one of us now.”

“That’s right. My bow is yours…Commander!”

>“Commander…I like the sound of that coming from you.” As you lean forward for another kiss, a knock on the door of the wagon steals away your attention.

“Oy, Commander!” Nero barks from outside. “Think you might wanna come out and have a look at this.” You notice at that moment that you are no longer moving.

>“What now?” You grumble. Tearing yourself away from Ashe, you open the wagon door and plant your feet outside. It isn’t just your wagon that’s stopped moving. The entire company seems to have come to a screeching halt. “What’s going on?”

“Captain Yara.” Nero says. “She forced everyone to stop marching. Says there’s a…bad omen on the road or something.”

You walk towards the front of the column, where you find Yara on her knees. As you draw closer, you can hear her fiercely whispering prayers under her breath to the spirits of Duscar. Before her, a circle of crows are lying on the ground, dead.

>A): Examine the crows.
>B): Ask Yara what’s going on?
>C): Command the group to keep marching.

Oh hey, this is up again. Welcome back, Tree!

>>5540569
>A): Examine the crows.

Good to see this back!

>>5540569
>A): Examine the crows.

>>5540569
>A): Examine the crows
Cute!

>>5540569
>B): Ask Yara what’s going on?

Well, birds don't suddenly drop dead for no reason. Darn birds, taking our time away from smooching Ashe. We could've been "rehabilitating" Ashe right now after his injury!

>>5540569
>>B): Ask Yara what’s going on?

>>5540569
>B): Ask Yara what’s going on?
Curse you birds! We were having a moment there.

>>5540569
>>A): Examine the crows.

>>5540569
>>A): Examine the crows.
Yay, we're back

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A's win. Writing.

Is anyone else playing Engage? Just got to Chapter 8 on Maddening. Story is about as lackluster as I expected, though I'm pleasantly surprised so far by the gameplay.

>>5541967
I was thoroughly repulsed by what I've seen of the character designs and nostalgia baiting mechanic. if the gameplay's good then maybe I've judged it too harshly but...I dunno, I just can't get over how ridiculous everyone looks

>>5541967
I straight up cannot handle the sheer tonal clash between the new character designs and the completely untouched classic characters. The UI, story, and very low difficulty makes me think I'm playing an FEH book.

At least the core gameplay is relatively better, but definitely worse than 3H.

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>>5540569
You examine the strange scene before you closely, paying particular attention to the strange formation of crows. The birds, six in total, form a circle on the ground. They’re clearly dead, though by what means elude you. None of them seem to bear any discernable wounds that you can make out. While you find their formation somewhat unnerving, you’re unable to sense any arcane influence. Perhaps the crows were killed separately, and then placed in a circle on the road by some sick individual? You couldn’t say definitively for sure. Yara on the other hand, seems to be under the impression that this is more than it seems. And the usually calm and collected captain suddenly losing her cool is now affecting the other mercenaries. You notice that it’s just you and Yara up here, while the others give you both a wide berth.

“Commander, we must divert our course immediately.” Yara says, not looking up. The woman is still on her knees, praying to whatever spirits will listen to her. “This is an ill-omen. One of the worst that my people know of. If we continue as we are, we’re doomed to suffer a terrible misfortune.”

>“I don’t understand. They’re just dead crows. They’re creepy sure, but what’s the big deal?”

“That’s right, you don’t understand girl!” Yara hisses. “In Duscar, signs such as these appear only before a great tragedy is set to occur. All who cross their path are doomed to be dealt grave misfortune.”

>“How can you be so sure? Have you ever seen them before?”

“Only once. Just a few days before what you people call the ‘Tragedy of Duscar’ transpired.”

The Tragedy of Duscar. An incident that occurred when the former King of Faerghus, Dimitri’s father, lost his life while travelling through the territory. The people of Faerghus, angry at the loss of their king, slaughtered thousands of Duscans in retaliation. The Duscan people, mostly pacifist in nature, never claimed responsibility for the attack, and most held a bitter grudge over the slaughter. You imagine the topic to be a sensitive one for Yara. Particularly so if this omen were anything to go by.

>“So…if we wish to avoid this omen, all we need to do is take a different route to our destination?”

Yara nods her head. “If we cross this circle as we are now, tragedy will certainly befall us. But if we can put enough distance between us and the circle, we should be able to avoid its effects.”

>“How much distance?”

“A few miles to be safe.”

From your memory, there was another road that your group could take that would lead you to Wino, where your contact was waiting. The problem was that you’d have to backtrack several miles to get there. At best, you’d add an extra day to your overall travel time. Given the urgency of Anemone’s message and the unknown nature of whatever was occurring in Ordelia, you truly didn’t know if you could afford that.

>A): Divert your course.
>B): Continue on as planned.

>>5541967
Gameplay is alright but the less we speak of the social elements and design the better.

>>5542008
>A): Divert your course.
Not risking it.

>>5542008
>A): Divert your course.

Never ever doubt what a fortune teller says, especially when they've been right on the money prior.

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>>5541989
>>5542003
I'm enjoying the animations and the core gameplay so far, but it's definitely a step back from Three Houses in terms of story and character design, which even then I don't think is anywhere near the top of the series. TH could at times suffer from characters that were overly cliché or just plain boring, but so far I've yet to encounter a character that I could force myself to care about in this game. Even the supports seem shorter and way less impactful. Everyone is some degree of friendly helpful person. It makes me long for even just a glimmer of a Felix, which would feel like a refreshing take at this point.

>>5542008
>>B): Continue on as planned.
It'll be fun

>>5542008
>A): Divert your course.

>>5542008
>>A): Divert your course.

>>5542008
>>B): Continue on as planned

>>5542008
>B): Continue on as planned.

If anything it is a sign that disaster can be avoided by making haste such that we arrive in time to help.

>>5542008
>A): Divert your course.
As a fellow fortuneteller I say we understand the truth in Yara's words.
Also that interaction with Blair and Ashe was very cute.

>>5542027
Now I've heard that there is an evil dragon with the title 'Fell Dragon' in the game, is that like Grima or did some fuck stole his epithet?

>>5542008
>>B): Continue on as planned.
missed the start of the thread, I think we can't lose an extra day. Honestly, considering "don't drink the water" from the last thread, I'd say that the great tradegy have already happened.

>>5542008
>A): Divert your course.

cowards, lots of you

>>5542398
Yes, and?

>>5542398
I pride myself in being a coward because that's how I'll survive this bullshit of a world.

>>5542008
>>B): Continue on as planned.

>>5542475
failed samefag, cool
how many more in this vote?

>>5542008
>A): Divert your course.

>>5542008
>B): Continue on as planned.

I trust Yara, but in this instance I think the the crows are just dead because the water has been poisoned.

>>5542008
>>B): Continue on as planned.
Tragedy will happen whatever we choose

>>5542008
>B): Continue on as planned.
There's already a tragedy under way and if we divert we'll most likely be too late to make a difference.

>>5542671
Wow, crazy coincidence that the crows happened to fly this far down the specific road we were using and form a circle while they were dying of poison.

>>5542008
>A): Divert your course.

>>5542822
>“Come to Ordelia as soon as possible. City in chaos. Hostiles everywhere. Identity of target still unknown. Don’t drink the water. Hurry. – A”

>disaster is happening(we know it already from the note and the fact that the region went quiet)
>note says to go as quickly as possible
>see the sign that reaffirms the fact that disaster is happeing RIGHT NOW
>okay, lets go slower then
utterly retarded

>>5542835
Look I'm not saying I voted so Anatema would be in more trouble due to us delaying ourselves because she stole our Scythe... I just don't want to trouble our crew is all.

>>5542835
It's a sign that disaster is going to happen TO US

>>5543017
nah, it's about the city, same as with Duscar

honestly, we have abundant and overlapping signs about shit hitting the fan in Ordelia. wasting time now is a silly decision

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There's a tie. Let's say next vote or vote change wins.

I would hope no one would samefag for this. You don't know either way what's going to happen, and you might end up regretting it.

>>5542008
>B): Continue on as planned.
Fuck it, now we know its gonna be a shitshow

>>5542008
B): Continue on as planned
Fuck it, hubris is a coward's word

I'm honestly surprised there's such a divide here. You'd think we'd trust Yara's advise and premonitions more after everything.

>>5543304
They think the omen is only for the town and couldn't be something on the road about to fuck us up.

>>5543304
So many death flags were flying here and in the scene with Ashe

>>5543304
>"This bad omen surely isn't meant for us!"

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>>5542008
You recall the note you received from Anemone. ‘Come to Ordelia as soon as possible. City in chaos.’ While the letter itself was vague, the sense of urgency Anemone was trying to convey couldn’t be any clearer. Coupled with what scant intel you’d had from Claude; it was plain to see time was of the essence here. If you put this off any longer, it was possible a great many people would die. Perhaps just as bad, Diogenes may become aware that you were after him and flee the city. No, you had to continue down this road. You were absolutely certain you couldn’t waste any more time.

>“I’m sorry, Yara, but this mission is of the utmost importance. It’s imperative we get to Ordelia as soon as possible. We’ll have to continue moving forward and brace ourselves for the worst.”

“Foolish. A foolish idea, girl. Your haste will prove to be the death of us all.” For the first time since you can remember, Yara is angry. She gets up off the ground and turns without sparing so much as a glance towards you.

>“Alright, that’s enough lollygagging!” You clap and turn to face the other Blackwings. “Let’s get this thing moving again!”

The army once again begins marching upon your orders. Despite Yara being the only person from Duscar in your company, some of the other mercenaries seem to be taking her prediction to heart. There were those within the Blackwings that doubted the shaman’s abilities. Damian was one such person, usually claiming that her predictions were vague in nature, and often self-fulfilling prophecies. As for yourself, you believed there was some merit to her words. And right now, you weren’t the only one. You could see vague grimaces on the faces of some of the men and women under your command. You just hope that this little scene won’t have a detrimental effect on morale once the fighting starts.

You pass by on the road without any further complaints, and before you know it, you’re able to make it to Wino Village within the expected time. The village lies within Anti-Imperial territory, situated between Derdriu and Ordelia. You’re greeted by odd stares from the locals, though you can’t blame them. Wino appears to be a peaceful, somewhat wealthier village than what you’re used to. With their location near the border of Pro-Imperial territory, they’d be one of the first places attacked were the Alliance to fracture in two. Fortunately, you’re only here to meet your contact, and then head straight to Ordelia. According to Ignatz, they should be residing in the local inn waiting for you. You enter the humble-looking establishment with Corrine behind you.

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>>5543403
“There you are. About time you showed up.”

A young, serious-looking girl sitting near one of the inn’s windows calls out upon seeing you. Even if she hadn’t spoken to you first, it would have been impossible to have not noticed her upon entering this place. Her hair is stark white, and her eyes an unusual shade of violet. You’ve hardly ever spoken to this person before, but you definitely knew her. Lysithea von Ordelia. A Golden Eagle, a Crest bearer, and the heir to Ordelia, where your next mission would take you. Of course, some things made more sense now. Claude didn’t send her to assist you. You’re here to assist her with bringing Ordelia back under control and into the fold of the Anti-Imperial faction.

>“Lady Lysithea.” You bow your head in her direction. “It’s good to see you again. It’s been a while.”

“Is that Lysithea?!” Corrine interjects. You note an unusual sense of enthusiasm and warmth in her voice. “My goodness! You’re looking cute as always, girl!”

“Are you ready to march?” Lysithea asks, ignoring Corrine’s teasing advances. “We shouldn’t waste any more time.”

>A): What are you doing here, Lysithea?
>B): Do you know anything about what’s happening in Ordelia?
>C): Does Claude have a plan for us?
>D): You’re right, let’s move.

>>5543404
>A): What are you doing here, Lysithea?

>“Foolish. A foolish idea, girl. Your haste will prove to be the death of us all.”
Sorry Yara we can only hope her assessment is wrong.

>>5543404
>>B): Do you know anything about what’s happening in Ordelia?

>>5543404
>>B): Do you know anything about what’s happening in Ordelia?

Ya'll motherfuckers don't know shit about fortunetelling
>>5543404
>B): Do you know anything about what’s happening in Ordelia?

>>5543404
>B): Do you know anything about what’s happening in Ordelia?

>>5543404
>>A): What are you doing here, Lysithea?

>>5543404
>D): You’re right, let’s move.

If we're going to avoid whatever catastrophe is coming, we need to outrun it.

>>5543404
>>B): Do you know anything about what’s happening in Ordelia?

>>5543640
>outrun fate

>>5544032
On the bright side, if it were fate then it wouldn't have mattered if we chose to avoid the omen or not.

>>5543404
>D): You’re right, let’s move.

>>5543404
>A): What are you doing here, Lysithea?

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>>5543404
With the addition of Lysithea to your group, the Blackwings are ready to depart Wino Village. You can remember interacting with the talented mage only once before. It was when you’d faced the Golden Deer during the opening mock battle at Garreg Mach. Your group had managed to win, but not before Lysithea had rendered you unconscious. With only that for context, it was hard to deduce much about her usual personality or attitude. But from what you could tell in front of you, Lysithea looked anxious. She could hardly sit still in the wagon she was riding in, and the hem of her dress was wrinkled from where she’d been grabbing and pulling at it. You attempt to start a conversation with her to try and gleam more information about the current situation.

>“Do you know anything about what’s happening in Ordelia?”

Lysithea shakes her head. “No. No one has been able to get in or out of the city.” You note that she’s unable to make eye contact with you.

>“Do you believe that someone within the city may be responsible for whatever is happening?”

“It’s possible. My mother and father have been surrounded by vipers for years now. Each of them have been vying for their own personal gain and power. They were all too happy to sell out Ordelia to the Empire as soon as they were able to. I wouldn’t trust anyone from that place.”

>“You don’t exactly speak fondly of your home.”

“Why would I?” You note an edge to Lysithea’s voice. “Ordelia has brought my family nothing but suffering. Our noble status has become increasingly meaningless in the face of those snakes that have sought to take advantage of our house. We may be here to find out what’s happened in the city, but once we discover who’s responsible, I swear to destroy them by any means necessary. Can I depend on you to help me with this, Blair?”

A thought occurs to you as you sit there with Lysithea. Tomas, Garreg Mach’s librarian, had been able to assume his role at the monastery on the recommendation of House Ordelia. In reality, he’d been Solon, one of the Seven Sages of Agartha. And now, Diogenes, another Sage, had managed to infiltrate the city for his own machinations. Evidently, Ordelia has been a hot spot for the Agarthans for several years now. The question was whether the girl knew more than she let on. You could swear to Lysithea right now to stop the one responsible. But in reality, you already know exactly who the culprit is. You could tell Lysithea all about what you know about the Agarthans and Diogenes, but that of course carried all the usual risks behind it.

>A): Confide in Lysithea about the Agarthans.
>B): Promise to assist her and say no more.
>C): Write-in

>>5545326
>>A): Confide in Lysithea about the Agarthans

>>5545326
>A): Confide in Lysithea about the Agarthans.
A bit unfair to tell her before our captains, but for her it's personal and more importantly I want her to go nuking mole people with us.

>>5545326
>A): Confide in Lysithea about the Agarthans.
While, I support this action, we should keep in mind whether our knowlege of mole people lines up with Lysithea's.
our knowlege of them as peopld who oppose the church of seiros may clash with her idea of them as people who mess with crests, an important part of the chuech of Seiros.

>>5545326
>>A): Confide in Lysithea about the Agarthans.
You ever heard about moles that slither?

Man, we're redpilling people left and right aren't we?

>>5545326
>>B): Promise to assist her and say no more.

>>5545326
>>A): Confide in Lysithea about the Agarthans.
I missed the omen vote but you all chose poorly!

>>5545326
>A): Confide in Lysithea about the Agarthans.
We're already in a mess, might as well.

>>5545863
Hey, don't bunch me into that!

>>5545326
>>A): Confide in Lysithea about the Agarthans.

>>5545707
Secrecy is what the dirt dwellers want. Fuck em.

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>>5545326
>“Lysithea…these “vipers” that you’ve mentioned. The ones that were undermining the authority of your father. Did you ever notice anything strange about them?”

The mage looks up at you, squinting her eyes. It seems as though she’s sensed the hidden meaning behind your words. “What do you mean strange?”

>“Tomas was from your territory was he not? As you know, he turned out to be an imposter that was behind the tragedy in Remire Village. Were there any others like him in Ordelia? People who’d perhaps had sudden personality shifts? Ones whom proven themselves to be enemies of your family?”

“I…can’t really say. I’d never met Tomas before, even when he did work in Ordelia. The man was a complete enigma to me. As for any suspicious people… there was a certain group that comes to mind. Officials from the Empire, back when they’d assumed control of our territory for the first time many years ago. They were around the castle often. They stayed for only a short time, but the grief that they caused our family was endless. Those people were truly nothing short of evil. But where are you getting at? What would Tomas have to do with any of this?”

Things were moving fast. Everywhere you looked in this war, the Agarthans had their hand in something. They were operating freely, their schemes and plotting going mostly unopposed. You could keep the secret of their existence to yourself, and perhaps in some instances that was warranted. But at what point would you speak up and tell others? You were sitting on a great secret, and the pressure you felt to reveal the existence of this nefarious race to the world was something that bit at you often. Anemone had asked you to keep much of what you knew to yourself, in order to protect those in Arcadia. But now Anemone was in trouble. And it wasn’t just her. Lysithea’s home was facing some sort of unknown disaster. She had a right to know what was going on, especially if she could help you identify Diogenes’ identity. You just hoped that she’d believe you.

>“Lysithea. I have it on good authority that the group that Tomas belonged to is behind what’s going on in your homeland right now. It may sound hard to believe, but Tomas, or Solon rather, was an Agarthan. They’re an ancient race of humanoids hiding in the shadows that possess the ability to take the form of others. There are several of them controlling the Empire right now, as well as the Faerghus Dukedom. And I have evidence that they’re currently operating in Ordelia as well.”

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>>5546631
Lysithea’s mouth is slightly open, and she stares at you dumbfounded. “W-what? Are you well? What evidence? What are you talking about, Blair?”

>“I know it sounds strange, but believe me, I’ve encountered these creatures several times now. One of them was a merchant who’d done business in Ordelia. He went by the name of Echeverria. Did you know him?”

The girl’s eyebrows raise slightly. “I’d heard of him. I know he’d done some business with the castle before. But what of it? By all accounts he was an honest merchant. He’d done good business with our family despite our financial struggles.”

>“Perhaps. But that Echeverria you’d heard of met his end at the hands of one of these Agarthans. They’d assumed his identity and began working on destabilizing the Alliance. Our company fought and killed this Agarthan, and that’s where I’d found his diary, along with far more incriminating evidence. His cargo had consisted of people that him and his men had kidnapped from the local villages. As for the diary, it stated that he was taking those people back to Ordelia for some sort of experimentation.”

“What?!” Lysithea suddenly erupts from her seat in the wagon, shouting. The girl is much shorter than you, and far less physically imposing. But at that moment, she grabs your shoulders forcefully, digging her nails into your skin. Her face is frenzied.

“What are you talking about?! What experiments?! Make sense damnit!”

>“I…don’t know the specifics. Only that they relate to Crests.”

The color drains from Lysithea’s already pale face as she releases her grip and sits back into her seat. “You…said you read that in his diary? May I see it…?”

>Producing the damaged journal from the satchel you kept it in, you hand it over to the shaken girl. “Here. I know it doesn’t help, but I should mention that it’s written in a language native to the Agarthans. I was only able to get it translated after finding someone familiar with them who was willing to help.”

Lysithea studies the tome for a long while, flipping through each page. You notice that she’s shaking, but it doesn’t seem to be with fear or trepidation. It’s rage, and for a second, you wonder if she may rip the book in half.

“I’ve seen these runes before.” She speaks, finally.

>“Pardon? You have? Where?!”

“In Castle Ordelia. Those men I mentioned. The officials from the Empire. They had scrawled runes such as these into some of their writings. Back when they’d done Crest experimentation on me.”

>A): Ask Lysithea to elaborate on these experiments.
>B): Ask Lysithea what she knows about the Imperial officials.
>C): Ask Lysithea if there is anyone back home she might suspect to be an Agarthan.
>D): Write-in

>>5546637
>B): Ask Lysithea what she knows about the Imperial officials.

>>5546637
>B): Ask Lysithea what she knows about the Imperial officials.

>>5546637
>B): Ask Lysithea what she knows about the Imperial officials.

>>5546637
We got her boys
>A): Ask Lysithea to elaborate on these experiments.

>>5546637
>>C): Ask Lysithea if there is anyone back home she might suspect to be an Agarthan.
Trust no one

>>5546637
>B): Ask Lysithea what she knows about the Imperial officials.

>>5546637
>>A): Ask Lysithea to elaborate on these experiments.

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>>5546637
>You can hardly believe what you’re hearing. You may be sitting across one of the only other humans in all Fodlan that has had first-hand experience dealing with the Agarthan menace. You quickly press Lysithea for more details. “These Imperial officials…do you remember anything about them? Who were they?”

Lysithea does not immediately respond. She’s still hardly able to meet you in the eyes, seeming lost in her thoughts as she drums up the memories of whatever it was the Agarthans had done to her. Finally, after an extended pause, she speaks. “Perhaps I should start from the beginning. Nearly 20 years ago, House Ordelia had lent their assistance to House Hyrm in a failed rebellion against the Adrestian Empire. As retaliation for our part in the revolt, the Empire sent emissaries to our court. These men, backed by the Empire, took control of every aspect of Ordelian politics while the other nobles of the Empire stood by and did nothing. They drained our coffers dry and were the de facto rulers of our territory. Would that be all they were guilty of, though.”

She takes a deep breath, before continuing. “We quickly discovered that these were no ordinary government bureaucrats. They possessed a few select interests, namely in the area of Crests. The Crest of Charon has run through the Ordelian noble line for generations. I possess it, as did my siblings. That made us the perfect guinea pigs for their research. They built a research laboratory in the bowels of our castle, and we were subjected to something they called ‘Blood Reconstruction’ surgery.”

>“I never knew you had siblings, Lysithea.”

“I did. Once. Unfortunately, I was the only survivor of their experimentation.”

>“Lysithea…I’m so sorry. What was the purpose of this surgery? What was their aim?”

“In short, they wanted to see if they could implant more than one crest into a single person. And they succeeded. Partially, at least. Though it’s not common knowledge, I possess two crests. The Minor Crest of Charon, which I was born with, and a Major Crest of Gloucester. To my knowledge, I am the only person that bears two crests.”

This was certainly news to you. From what you understood, it was impossible for someone to have more than one Crest. There was no record of such a person having ever previously existed. But it would make sense in the context of Lysithea. Her command of magic was supposedly second to none, able to wipe out waves of enemies with but a single spell.

>“What do you mean they only partially succeeded?”

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>>5547572
“The surgery successfully implanted a second Crest within me, though at the cost of dramatically shortening my expected lifespan. Apparently, this was not considered a success to those researchers. After the conclusion of the surgery, they quickly left Ordelia, and never returned. It was as if the Blood Reconstruction was their goal from the start. They never cared about Ordelia for a second. It was simply a convenient excuse to use me and my siblings as nothing more than test subjects.”

>“Do you remember who they were? Their faces?”

Lysithea nods. “I do. I’ve even tried looking for them. But, as far as I could find, there was no evidence that these officials even existed. For a while, I’d thought they simply used alternative names. Or possibly disguises. But, if what you’re saying is true, it would explain how they could easily vanish as though they weren’t real.”

>“The diary I’d found said experiments were continuing in Ordelia. If that’s true, it’s likely that the ones who’d performed the Blood Reconstruction on you are back. And if they’re using the same lab as before, then they must have access to the castle.”

“But you said they can take the form of anyone.” Lysithea grits her teeth.

>“They can, but with limitations. They need to have killed the person they’re assuming control over first. And even then, they can only take over their physical appearance. They wouldn’t be able to copy their personality or memories. So, is there anyone you know back home that’s undergone a serious personality shift?”

She bites her thumb. “No one with a ‘personality shift’ comes to mind. However, we did have several new retainers pledge their service to our house over the years since those Imperial officials left. Perhaps they’d sneak back into the castle that way? Assuming new identities that we were unfamiliar with, so that we’d be unable to notice any differences in personality.”

>“How many of these Imperial officials were there? And how many new retainers?”

“There were five envoys sent by the Empire. As for retainers…it’s hard to say. We’ve had everything from cooks to ministers of state join our household.”

>“Assuming it’s the same group as before, and with Solon’s death, we can assume there’s at least four Agarthans in Ordelia right now. Tell me, is their laboratory still there?”

Lysithea nods. “It’s sealed off, but it remains.”

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>>5547574
>You lay back into your seat and think. Anemone once claimed she’s able to tell immediately when an Agarthan in disguise is in front of her. With her help, you could immediately recognize who the culprits are. But you’d need to find her first. “Our targets are likely within the castle still. We’ll make a beeline there. I have a friend in the city. Someone who can help us uncover their identity. We’ll need to find her first. But with her help, we can turn the table on those vipers and pin them down once and for all.”

“Blair…” Lysithea starts. This time, she has no trouble staring you directly in the eyes. “I’ve never spoken about this to anyone before. A part of me had resigned myself to believing that those fiends would get away with their crimes freely. And yet…you’ve given me a renewed sense of hope. That I could finally, after all these years, bring justice to my brothers and sisters. To my parents. To everyone back home.” She grasps your hands tightly. “Let’s do it. Let’s kill them all. We’ll make them pay!”

>“We will.” You squeeze her hands. “For the ones we’ve lost. They’ll rue the day they messed with us.”

>A): Spend the night chatting with Lysithea (+4 temp. Mag)
>B): Spend the night with Ashe (+4 temp. Dex)
>C): Look over the “Forseti” tome you received from Leopold (+2 temp. Mag/Luck)
>D): Spend the night with Corrine, Shelley, and Diana (+3 HP temp, +1 temp. all stats)

>>5547575
>B): Spend the night with Ashe (+4 temp. Dex)
Heh.

>>5547575
>B): Spend the night with Ashe (+4 temp. Dex)
Yes! Yes!

>>5547575
>B): Spend the night with Ashe (+4 temp. Dex)

Y E S. TAKE WHAT IS OURS.

>>5547575
>B): Spend the night with Ashe (+4 temp. Dex)

>>5547575
>>D): Spend the night with Corrine, Shelley, and Diana (+3 HP temp, +1 temp. all stats)

>>5547575
>>B): Spend the night with Ashe (+4 temp. Dex)
Now no one can disturb us

>>5547575
>C): Look over the “Forseti” tome you received from Leopold (+2 temp. Mag/Luck)
Reject boy, lances and magic are our only true partners

>>5547575
The tiny mage is now not only redpilled, but also furious. That went super well.

Honestly, all the choices here are good. Night with the girls is good, dumping deep lore on Lysithea is good, and the super magic tome is calling. But I feel like there is Absolutely no escape for Ashe this time

>>5547575
>>A): Spend the night chatting with Lysithea (+4 temp. Mag)
Feels appropriate. I'd also like to spend some pre-fight preps looking over Forseti so it's, you know, prefigured or foreshadowed or whatever when Blair finally does learn the spell

>>5547575
>A): Spend the night chatting with Lysithea (+4 temp. Mag)


>“Let’s do it. Let’s kill them all. We’ll make them pay!”
YEEEESSSSSS! THE BOAR HAS BEEN REPLACED WITH THE WHITE LOTUS!!!!
BLOODSHED HERE WE GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!

>>5547575
>D): Spend the night with Corrine, Shelley, and Diana (+3 HP temp, +1 temp. all stats)
Girls night out

>>5547575
>B): Spend the night with Ashe (+4 temp. Dex)
Achievement gained: Cherry popped

>>5547575
>A): Spend the night chatting with Lysithea (+4 temp. Mag)

THE SHAPESHIFTER WAR STARTS NOWWWWWWWW

>>5547575
>>A): Spend the night chatting with Lysithea (+4 temp. Mag)

>>5547575
>B): Spend the night with Ashe (+4 temp. Dex)

>>5547575
>>B): Spend the night with Ashe (+4 temp. Dex)

This is for all those years lost

So I haven't played Engage but from the clips I've seen the game seems more... Comedic? Or is that just a thing in Support convos?

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B wins. Writing.

>>5548762
It definitely is. There's a fair bit of gags that go on in the main story. I believe the main writer is the same person behind Fates, which I abhorred. That being said, the gameplay has been pretty top-notch, at least on Maddening. Don't ever take the dub off Japanese and you may enjoy it.

>>5548769
>main writer is same as fates
That would explain why it keeps tossing royalty and retainers at me.

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>>5547575
After spending some time with Lysithea, you depart from her wagon. You’re set to arrive in Ordelia tomorrow, and the young mage has plenty of thinking to do before then. You’re feeling something akin to excitement yourself. While you know that tomorrow has the potential to be a bloody day, you’re eager to at last deal a crushing blow to the Agarthans and their plans. The Blackwings have set up camp for the night. Most of the mercenaries have turned in to bed, with the exception of a few sentries and some insomniacs. As you’re heading towards your tent to rest, you instead pass by it and walk towards the direction of the wagon Ashe was resting in. Taking a quick glance at the perimeter, you ensure no one sees you as you open the door to the wagon and let yourself in.

“Blair?” Ashe asks, groggily sitting up from where he was resting. You’d woken him from his slumber. “Is that you?”

Wasting no words, you straddle yourself on top of his prone form. Before he can say anything else or offer some sort of protest, you press your mouth against his and push him back to the floor. You’re not sure what’s gotten into you. You’re excited. And you’re nervous, and you’re stressed. Perhaps more than you’ve ever been. But you intend to let loose some of that energy here and now. Ashe kisses you back, having quickly caught on to what’s going on. You’ve never done something like this before, but it somehow comes naturally. You rip his shirt off, running your hands across his toned body. As you move your hands lower, he lifts your shirt over your head. The two of you roll around the wagon for several hours, hungrily grabbing. grunting and grinding at each other. You’d once heard from Roxanne that one couldn’t call themselves a real woman until they’d lain with a man. You don’t know if that’s exactly true, but you do feel good. Better than ever, even. And you’re glad you waited for your first time to be with Ashe.

>+4 temporary Dex!

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>>5548850
The next day, the Blackwings arrive at the outskirts of the city of Ordelia. Once there, you encounter your first problem.

“The gates are sealed shut.” Caleb observes, flatly. “And my scouts have reported the same thing from the other entrances into the city.”

>“And I suppose there was no one there to greet you at the gates?”

“Not a soul, Commander.”

>“Well, I suppose it would be too easy if they just invited us in. Lysithea. Is there perhaps another entrance?”

Lysithea shakes her head. “None that I’m aware of. The only way into Ordelia is through the main gate, directly in front of us, or one of the side entrances on the west and east of the city.”

“Well, we’ve got to get in somehow.” Corrine says. “Can’t we just have someone fly over the walls and open the gate for us on the inside?”

“We could, though that option may potentially pose a great risk.” Lysithea says. “None of the scouts Claude sent here returned alive. There’s a clear hostile element in the city dealing with any unwanted outsiders.”

“Well then why not just break the damn thing down?” Roxanne asks, twirling a strand of hair in her finger. “Who’s gonna stop us?”

“It’s certainly an option.” Lysithea says, glaring darkly at her. “Though I’d prefer it if we didn’t start destroying the city freely. Additionally, we may end up alerting whatever is inside that we’re here and we mean business. Either way, I’ll leave the choice up to you, Blair.”

>A): Send a scout team over the walls to assess the situation and open the gates.
>B): Lead a scout team over the walls to assess the situation and open the gates.
>C): Tear down the gate and march into the city.

>>5548852
>B/D): Lead a scout team over the walls to assess the situation.
We wouldn't neccesarily need to open the gates at all, we're specialized in flying units with plenty of wyverns and pegasi so we can simply taxi all units onto the walls fairly quickly if we need to, except the wagons and cavalry (Roxanne and Uriel, everyone else can be taxied or fly over). It would be significantly less noisy than to open or destroy the gate.
If we decide to just taxi units over, we can park the wagons along the wall and leave a small unit to guard them until we're done here.

Make sure to bring Stormy too if he's still with us, he might be able to points us in the direction where Anemone is (something something Pegasi bond strongly with their riders) or at the very least he could take us to where she was keeping him while he was in the city.

>>5548852
>>B): Lead a scout team over the walls to assess the situation and open the gates.

>>5548852
>B): Lead a scout team over the walls to assess the situation and open the gates.
Use that DEX glow!

>>5548850
boy sexed, mission complete
>>5548852
>>B): Lead a scout team over the walls to assess the situation and open the gates.
What can go wrong?

>>5548852
>>B): Lead a scout team over the walls to assess the situation and open the gates.

>>5548852
>A): Send a scout team over the walls to assess the situation and open the gates.

>>5548769
Ah well that would explain it, I do like Fates but more as a guilty pleasure for playing literally hundreds of hours of it as a young teen, I'll give it a try one day.
>>5548850
Whew goddamn Blair, nice, I know that her behavior was mostly due to being nervous and stressed over the coming battle but I can't help but slightly wonder if some of Corrine has rubbed into her with her seemingly being 'Excited' over potential bloodshed.

>>5548852
>B): Lead a scout team over the walls to assess the situation and open the gates.
>>5549406
>DEX Glow
You know what yeah it would be called that kek

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Man, Edelgarde has such a baby face in Engage, Dimitri and Claude look about the same as in 3H but she looks less sharp if that makes sense.

>>5548852
>>B): Lead a scout team over the walls to assess the situation and open the gates.

>>5549895
Chibi is a mistake

>>5548852
>B): Lead a scout team over the walls to assess the situation and open the gates.

>Pins Ashe down
>Takes what belongs to her
>Refuses to elaborate

>>5548852
>B): Lead a scout team over the walls to assess the situation and open the gates.

>>5548852
>B): Lead a scout team over the walls to assess the situation and open the gates.

>one boy locked
it's harem time

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>>5548852
>“We’ll avoid destroying anything. For now, at least. I’ll lead a team over the walls and see what we’re dealing with. Shelley and Diana, you’re with me. Ava and Nero, you too. Lysithea, you can climb on the back of my pegasus. You know the city better than any of us.”

Other than the faint trails of smoke you see rising from behind the walls, you have no idea what’s waiting for you over there. Rather than charge ahead recklessly, it would be better to get an appraisal of what the situation is. And when it comes to scouting, you trust no one to do the job better than yourself. While you could technically order your subordinates to do it for you, what sort of leader would that make you? Once your allies have prepared themselves, the five of you take to the skies, leaving the rest of the Blackwings camped outside the city.

As you draw closer and make it over the walls, you’re shocked by what you find. ‘Chaos’ was an apt way to describe the city, but you find even that word falls short to describe the scene below you. Everywhere you look, the streets are stacked with corpses. The stench of violent death and blood wafts up to your nose even from this height.

“W-what is this?!” Lysithea gasps from behind you.

“Those bodies…they’re all torn apart!” Nero says, astonished. “Was this the work of an enemy army?”

Down below, there isn’t a single living soul in sight. Here and there, you spot corpses clad in the armor of the Leicester Alliance. These were likely the remnants of the city’s guard. However, most of the bodies below are in civilian clothing. Your immediate thought is that these people were poisoned. After all, Alena’s note had cautioned you about drinking the water once you'd arrived in the city. But that can’t be right. Nero is partially correct in his observation. Severed limbs, innards, and shattered bones, which are scattered around haphazardly, indicate that these people died violently, rather than through some sort of poison. And if a battle against an enemy did occur, you’d expect to at least see a few bodies belonging to said enemy.

>“Remain calm. We knew the situation we were heading into was bad. Let’s focus on opening that front gate. Then we can move in and find out just what’s going on.” You try to maintain an air of confidence and calm, but even you are shaken by the situation.

“The lever to open the gate should be up along the ramparts.” Lysithea shakily points out your destination. “You’ll find it within that tower.”

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>>5551622
The ramparts overlooking Ordelia are deserted, save for the occasional discarded body. These corpses, like the ones down in the city streets, are also mutilated. Several bear wounds that look as though they may have been inflicted after death. You’ve taken part in many battlefields, but you’ve only seen this level of brutality once before. It was back in Remire Village, when Solon had poisoned the water supply to turn the villagers against each other. Could this really be a repeat of that incident? The six of you dismount in front of the tower and face the door from the outside.

“Guess we’re going in…” Nero says as he approaches the door. Before he can open it, Diana suddenly stops him.

“Wait! I hear something inside…”

“Eh? What are you talking about. This entire place is…” Nero trails off as it suddenly hits him. You can hear it too. The sound of someone or something within the tower unmistakably…growling?

“Could it be survivors?” Lysithea asks hopefully.

>A): Open the door.
>B): Open the door and attack whatever’s inside.

>>5551625
>A): Open the door.
This is probably a bad idea, but on the small chance it isn't anything really bad I'll go with this.

>>5551625
>A): Open the door.


Maybe its friendly?

>>5551625
>>B): Open the door and attack whatever’s inside.

>>5551625
>>A): Open the door.
The growling sounds bad but just in case it's a false alarm, we should prolly still try to prepare for anything lunging at us tho

>>5551625
>>A): Open the door.

>>5551625
>>B): Open the door and attack whatever’s inside.
It's a trap

>>5551625
>A): Open the door.

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>>5551625
You’ve yet to see any signs of life from your quick glance over the city, but you can’t discount the possibility that some people may have managed to escape the chaos. Therefore, you don’t give the order to attack that was lingering in the back of your mind. Instead, you nod towards Nero to open the door, while simultaneously grasping onto your weapon should the worst occur. The Wyvern Knight grimaces as he grasps the door’s handle, and pulls it open. You’re greeted by a pitch-black darkness that your eyes struggle to pierce through, along with a certain smell that makes you regret your decision to not immediately light the inside on fire.

“Eugh, what is that smell-” Before Nero is able to finish, several figures emerge from the shadows. They’re visible in the sunlight for only a moment before three of them grasp onto Nero and pull him inside the room, shutting the door behind them. In that split second, you’re able to see that their visage has been grotesquely twisted, and their eyes are completely white.

>“Nero!” Your companions rush towards the door and attempt to open it, but they struggle to pry it loose. “Move out of the way!”

You launch a fireball at the door, splintering it into pieces and exploding it inwards. Several of the fragments ignite, illuminating the dark room and allowing you a clear picture of the inside. The room, much like the rest of the city, is a blood-soaked mess that reeks of death. And in the middle of it, five people in mixed garb are doing their best to pull apart your screaming wyvern captain piece by piece.

“Get these bastards off me!” Nero shrieks.

Your Killing Spear plunges through the back of one of the assailant’s heads, while Shelley and Diana follow suit with similar killing strokes. The two assailants that remain turn and face you, confirming your fears. They’re just like the villagers you’d fought back at Remire Village. These people have been turned into bloodthirsty monsters, and there’s nothing anyone can do to turn them back. You’re attacked on your left side by what looks like an archer from the Ordelian guard. He attempts to grab your spear from your hands, but lacks the skill to do so in his current state. You twist your spear and kick his legs from under him. Before he can get back up, you cleave his head off with a well-placed swipe. Behind you, Shelley, Diana and Ava finish off the remaining assailants, while Lysithea stands at the doorway, horrified.

>>5552631
“W-what…” She stammers out, but is unable to finish her sentence. She simply stares at the mess before her.

>“Nero, are you okay?” You kneel at the man’s side. He’s wounded bad, but fortunately his armor kept his uncoordinated and feral attackers from killing him. Still, in his current condition, he’ll be of no help to you for this upcoming battle.

“W-what the fuck was that?!” Nero groans.

>“I’ve seen this before, back in Remire Village. The people of this city have lost their minds completely. Someone’s poisoned the water supply with the same thing they used back in Remire. It turns all those who drink it into twisted fiends who seek only to kill and maim. And with Ordelia having been shut down as long as it has been, those things have probably been running loose with nothing to stop them.” As you’re speaking, your eyes land upon the lever you had come looking for. It’s covered in blood and other filth but looks as though it should still be operational.

“The Agarthans…did this?” Lysithea says, having finally walked into the room on shaky legs. “So…these things are all over the city right now…?”

>You nod. “If they haven’t killed each other or starved to death yet, then most likely. We’ll need to cut through a lot more of them if we’re to make it to the castle.

“No!” Lysithea shouts as you approach the lever. “Think about it. The city was dead quiet when we arrived. If you open the main gate, the noise will attract more of the Ordelians to us. We’ll be forced to kill the entire city!”

>“Lysithea…there’s no saving them. We were unable to find a way to do it in Remire, and I can’t imagine we’ll find a way to do it now.”

“So what?! We should just give up?!” The girl’s face is red, and she looks to be on the verge of tears. “There could still be people in need of saving out there. We can’t just bring an entire army into the city and start slaughtering!”

>“You were fine with it before!”

“That was before I knew we’d be fighting my people! The people my family swore to protect!”

>A): Pull the lever, open the gate, and slaughter whoever stands in your way to Ordelia Castle
>B): Attempt to convince Lysithea to open the gate (Charm Roll: 22%)
>C): Adhere to Lysithea’s request. Refrain from opening the gate and bring only a small strike team to attack the castle.

>>5552633
>B): Attempt to convince Lysithea to open the gate (Charm Roll: 22%)

>>5552633
>>B): Attempt to convince Lysithea to open the gate (Charm Roll: 22%)
Zombies aren't people

>>5552633
>>C): Adhere to Lysithea’s request. Refrain from opening the gate and bring only a small strike team to attack the castle.

>>5552633
>C): Adhere to Lysithea’s request. Refrain from opening the gate and bring only a small strike team to attack the castle.
I really don't like our chances of convincing her, and a smaller force is probably more practical here anyway.

>>5552633
>C): Adhere to Lysithea’s request. Refrain from opening the gate and bring only a small strike team to attack the castle.

>>5552633
>>C): Adhere to Lysithea’s request. Refrain from opening the gate and bring only a small strike team to attack the castle.

>>5552633
>A): Pull the lever, open the gate, and slaughter whoever stands in your way to Ordelia Castle
Sucks for her, but they're not coming back either way.

>>5552633
>B): Attempt to convince Lysithea to open the gate (Charm Roll: 22%)

C wins. Writing

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>>5552633
This is absurd. You know damn well that these people can’t be saved. You were forced to kill countless of them back in Remire. It was painful, but it was the best thing you could do for them given their circumstances. Still, you can’t afford to antagonize Lysithea before you’ve managed to find Diogenes. You’d grant her wish and refrain from having the Blackwings fight their way through the city. You just hoped you’d have enough manpower for the fight ahead.

>“Girls, grab Nero and help bring him back outside the city. We won’t be pulling the lever after all.”

“Thank you, Blair.” Lysithea whispers under her breath.

You and your group return to the outside of the city, where the rest of the Blackwings remained camped. As you land, you’re quickly surrounded by a group of mercenaries wishing to know just what you saw. You leave the explanation to your comrades though as you head over to find Stormy. The ebon pegasus was able to locate you flawlessly from halfway across Fodlan just from having ridden him once. By that logic, he should know exactly where Anemone is. You mount the unfamiliar pegasus, internally hoping that Beathan wouldn’t get jealous, and fly back to the top of the Ordelian walls. As you land, you remove the note Anemone had written for you and place it under the steed’s nose.

>“Go on boy. Where is she?” You ask Stormy, stroking his mane and allowing the pegasus to get a feel for his lost master.

The pegasus raises his head from the note and beams towards the north end of the city. What he’s staring at does not elude you. Ordelia Castle.

>“She’s in there? You’re sure?”

Stormy only neighs softly. Most would probably think you mad for assuming you could understand the strange creature. For someone like you though, understanding a pegasus tended to be easier than understanding humans. Ordelia Castle appears to be about as ominously desolate as the rest of the city. You can’t make out any archers or soldiers manning the walls, meaning that you should be able to fly over and land without any issues. If that corrupted archer you’d fought in the lever room was any indication, mechanisms such as bows may be too complex for them to use in their current state. With a few Pegasus Knights and Wyverns, you can drop off your strongest fighters into the castle and have Lysithea lead you in. You’d be fighting unmounted, but there was no helping that. If Anemone was in the castle, it was likely that’s where the four Agarthans were as well. You remount Stormy, and land back at the camp.

“Commander.” Uriel salutes you upon your return. “Shelley has informed us of the plan. We’re ready to fly over whenever you give the word.

“We’ll need to leave a few people behind.” Corrine adds in. “Someone’s got to watch the rest of this rabble, after all. And they can be our backup should things get dicey in there.”

>Choose two Blackwings to leave behind as reinforcements.

>>5555291
>Roxanne
>Boleslav

Someone scary and bulky, and in the confines of a castle I see an archer being less effective

>>5555291
Ava and Uriel

>>5555291
>Roxanne
>Caleb

>>5555291
>Boleslav
>Caleb
for the one guy voting Uriel you should know that he has a skill that gives him extra damage against dark mages and demonic beasts which I'm thinking might become pretty useful here.

Tie between Roxanne, Boleslav and Caleb. I'll default to Roxanne and Boleslav for now.

>>5556154
Sounds good

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>>5555291
>“Roxanne. Boleslav. The two of you stay behind and watch things. If we don’t return within a few hours, come looking for us.”

“Leaving me behind while you go and have all the fun? Not very cool of you, Blair.” Roxanne pouts.

“No complaints here.” Boleslav adds. “I’ll have a stew waiting for you upon your return.”

Ferrying everyone across the city is a simple task given the abundance of spare wyverns and pegasi within the Blackwings. It had been a while since your company had performed a drop-in maneuver like this. Typically, the plan always carried some risk that you’d be spotted and shot down before making it to your destination. However, nothing in the city stirs to stop you. Here and there, you can see some movement down below. Figures shuffling about looking for their next victim. Someone pounding on a door to be let in. Dogs and other scavengers picking apart bodies that had likely been dead for days. But nothing seems eager or even capable of stopping your group as they fly over towards Ordelia Castle. As you near the imposing figure, you brace yourself in the event that there may actually be archers or even a ballista ready to fire on you. But still, nothing. The castle is virtually defenseless. You hope that the interior will prove to be just as easy.

“Goddess protect us all.” Elizabeth gasps as she dismounts in front of the gates to the castle. Your cleric is pale and looks to be on the verge of expelling morning’s breakfast. You had already seen what happened to the city. But for those who weren’t with you when you’d made the first trip in, the sight is a grisly shock.

“That was…something.” Theo remarks. Any trace of his usual joviality is absent for once.

“Yes. Let us not waste anymore time dwelling on it.” Uriel says. “If the person responsible for this atrocity is inside, better we destroy them now rather than allow this evil to be perpetuated one second longer.”

“Well…how do we go about doing that?” Ashe asks. “The doors seem shut.” As if to prove his point, the sniper walks up towards the door and pushes. Much to the surprise of all though, the doors freely give way, allowing entrance into the castle.

“…I don’t suppose your family just typically leaves the front door open, do they?” You ask Lysithea.

“Why wouldn’t they? This seems like such a good neighborhood.” You hear Corrine mutter.

“No…they do not.” Lysithea says. Of everyone currently present, she seems to want to go inside the least. “We are far from an affluent family. But even still, we had security present to ward off outsiders. People that manned the gate. Soldiers that watched the walls. And yet…everyone’s gone. I have a bad feeling about this, Blair.”

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>>5556274
She wasn’t the only one. It was beyond obvious that this was a trap. You were being invited inside, where the Agarthans were expecting you’d never return. Still, what other choice did you have? Anemone was inside, as was your target. You’d just have to out-do them at their own game.

>“Enough idle chatter. Let’s move.” As if to make the point clear, you take the front position, leading your mercenaries inside.

The inside of the castle is drab and dreary. While built in a structurally impressive way, you note that the interior is almost barren compared to the other castles you’ve been in. There are scarcely any decorations, ornaments, portraits, or really anything inside that would improve the aesthetics of the place. It seems Lysithea had not been kidding about her family’s lack of affluence. Save for two, dingy and worn suits of armor flanking a large door at the end of the hallway, Lysithea’s home was downright depressing. Within the large hallway, there were several doors, including the main one ahead that you had just spotted. There were also two staircases present. One leading to the upper levels of the castle, and the other to the lower.

“Up ahead is the great hall.” Lysithea says. “Upstairs are the personal chambers, while downstairs is the basement. That includes the dungeon, as well as…the lab. These other rooms are for the kitchens, chapel and storage.”

“Perhaps we should start with the Great Hall fir-” Corrine begins speaking, but everyone’s attention is immediately stolen by the doors to the Great Hall opening.

A man emerges into the hallway that your group had been standing in. He wears a neat, soldier’s haircut, as well as well-worn, durable looking armor that puts the flanking suits next to him to shame. The armor, you note, does not extend to his arms, allowing one to see the plethora of scars and cuts that cover them, some of which seem fresh. At his sides are both a sword and an axe. He does not look pleased to see you.

“What the hell’s all this?” The man calls out to you, from the opposite end of the wall. “Castle’s closed. Fuck off.”

“What did you just say?” Theo pushes to the front. “Who the hell are you?!”

“Oy! You lot barge into a castle you have no business of being in armed and start asking ME questions? You’re nothing but petty thieves ain’t ya? Well, we ain’t as defenseless as we look. So, piss off before I gut ya!”

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>>5556276
“Kendo! Is that you?!” Lysithea pushes her way to the front to allow the rude man to get a glimpse at her.

“Eh? Who the hell are-“ He stops himself as he gets a closer look at her. “Why…is that the Little Lady? I ain’t seen you in years! What in the Goddess’ name is you doing here?! Whole damn city’s gone mad!”

Lysithea moves to get closer to the man, but you place a hand on her shoulder, stopping her in her place. The action prompts Kendo to move closer and unsheathe his own weapons. Before you know it, the entire room is on the edge of bloodshed.

“Little Lady! Are these leeches holding you prisoner?” Kendo asks, drawing closer.

“W-what? No! Blair, what are you doing?” Lysithea asks you. “Kendo is a knight in service to my father!”

>“Did you forget what I told you? These Agarthans could be anyone. Even someone you’d known for years. Are you sure you can trust him?”

“The fuck are you blabbering about, you bitch!” The foul-mouthed ‘knight’ spits. “Little Lady, hold still! I’ll free you!” He moves closer still, weapons at the ready. You’re able to hear other shouts coming from the Great Hall, along with clanking armor. It sounds as though Kendo wasn’t alone.

>A): Attack Kendo before he reaches you.
>B): Ready your weapons to defend yourself.
>C): Allow Lysithea to defuse the situation.
>D): Wait and see what happens.
>E): Write-in

>>5556278
>>C): Allow Lysithea to defuse the situation.

>>5556278
>C): Allow Lysithea to defuse the situation.
Might be worth prompting, that we're here to find someone.

>>5556278
>>C): Allow Lysithea to defuse the situation.
C'mon Lys, sniff out the snake

>>5556278
>C): Allow Lysithea to defuse the situation.

>>5556278
>C): Allow Lysithea to defuse the situation.

>>5556278
>>B): Ready your weapons to defend yourself.

>>5556278
>D): Wait and see what happens.

>>5556278
>>C): Allow Lysithea to defuse the situation.
If this guy's attitude is a larp then it's a pretty good one. I believe he isn't a snake

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>>5556278
You can’t say for sure whether Kendo is an Agarthan. He’s certainly an ass, but that itself is no evidence of anything. You decide to place your face in Lysithea. You release your grip on her arm, and she moves to stand between you and the soldier, who by now was just a few feet away from you with his weapons drawn. It turns out you didn’t imagine those footsteps you heard earlier. Six additional heavily armored men have emerged from the Great Hall, wearing the colors of the Leicester Alliance.

“It’s okay, Kendo! They’re with me. We came to figure out what’s going on in the city and bring it to an end.” Lysithea says.

“With you, eh?” Kendo narrows his eyes as he glares daggers at you, but eventually he relents and sheathes his weapons. “It’s good to see you again, Little Lady. Things have certainly gone to hell here since you’ve been gone. We’ve been in the process of trying to learn where your father and mother have disappeared to. Fortunately, though, we’ve got the culprit apprehended within the Great Hall.”

“Didn’t I ask you years ago to stop calling me that?! More importantly, what do you mean ‘the culprit’? Mother and father are missing?” Lysithea’s eyes widen. “Kendo, please! Start from the beginning. What’s going on here?”

“Eh, right, sorry.” Kendo scratches his head. “Forgot you only just arrived. Follow me and I’ll explain.” Kendo turns and heads through the double doors he’d come in from.

On edge, you and the group follow him inside, flanked by the six Leicester soldiers. You enter the Great Hall, quickly finding that the name is rather ill-fitting. Much like the previous room, this one is barren, dreary and cold. Count Rusalka had never exactly been one for aesthetics, but even the castle back home looked like a palace compared to this one. What catches your eye though isn’t the lack of hospitality, but the people sitting inside, one of whom is tied up and bleeding.

“Sorry for the interruption, you son of a bitch.” Kendo spits at the prisoner. “But I brought you someone you might feel a little more comfortable opening up to. Does she look familiar?”

The man recoils in his chair. He turns a battered and bloodied eye towards Lysithea before recognition hits his face like a stone. “L-Lady Lysithea! M-mercy! Please! Help me! Save me from this brute before he kills me!”

To the side of the room, you notice four additional figures, two women, a man, and a little girl huddled together.

“Martin!” Lysithea cries out. “Kendo! What is the meaning of this?!”

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>>5557699
“This bastard’s the one behind everything!” Kendo snarls. “It’s no secret that your father has been ill, Little Lady. While he remained bedridden, he had entrusted Martin with leadership over Ordelia. This snake gave his word that he’d take care of things while your father recovered. And what’s the first thing he did? Sell us out to the damn Imperials!” Kendo spits on the ground. “The bastard couldn’t wait to start sniffing up the Gloucesters’ asses! He was draining the damn coffers dry to aid the Pro-Imperial faction and pledge the country to Her Royal Highness. Ain’t that right, Martin?” Kendo grabs the man by his hair and lifts his head.

“M-my lady! Please! I beg of you! Help me!” Martin cries, pathetically.

“What does that have to do with what’s going on outside?!” Lysithea asks.

“That’s just what I’m trying to figure out.” Kendo says. “See, your father got sick of what Martin here had been doing. So, even in his poor health, he gathered a group of loyal soldiers and knights, led by his man-at-arms, Cornelius. They were going to confront Martin during the Feast of Saint Indech. Only that never happened. Cause the same day we were supposed to gut this rat, the entire town went fucking mad. I’d never seen or heard of something like it in my life. Men and women were foaming at the mouth, this crazed look on their eyes. I saw family members falling on each other, blade in hand. In all my years fighting, I’d never seen anything so…evil. It was pure evil. And it was your fault! Wasn’t it?!” He lifts Martin up by his hair again, almost ripping the man through his binds. “How did you do it?! Who told you about our plan?!”

“Kendo please!” Lysithea runs towards the raging soldier, grabbing his arm and easing him away from the seneschal. “We can’t kill him! Not until we know for sure! You said the killing started the day you were supposed to confront Martin here? What happened to my father?”

Kendo takes a step back from Martin, who by now has loosened his bowels and is sobbing softly. “When…everything started going to hell, he gave the order to abandon the mission. We went into the city to try and bring things under control. Only, we didn’t know the full extent of what was going on. During the fighting, we were all split up. Me and my men, your parents, as well as Knight Cornelius. My men and I managed to fight our way back to the castle. We opened the gate, and when we came inside, we found this cretin hiding, along with them.” He points towards the four figures by the wall, who’d been watching the proceedings with looks of great nervousness. “They’re regulars around here. Employed by your family.”

“I don’t recognize them.” Lysithea shakes her head. “But unlike Kendo, they most likely joined our household after I’d already left to Garreg Mach.”

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>>5557701
>“So, you believe Martin was responsible for turning those people out there into…what they are?”

“Of course!” Kendo roars. “The timing was too perfect! Someone in our group must not have been as loyal as we thought. They more than likely tipped Martin off about our plan, and then he went to work poisoning those townsfolk somehow. He probably got some sort of concoction from that black devil, Hubert von Vestra!”

>“Were these the only people in the castle you found?” You point to the four quiet huddlers.

“Them and one more.” Kendo answers. “We conducted a thorough search of the castle, but the only other person we found was a bandit, locked in the dungeon. She’d been there for a few weeks now, waiting for her execution. I left her to rot where she was.”

Lysithea turns to you, utterly exhausted. “What do you think, Blair?”

Lysithea was certain that Kendo was acting as normal as he’d ever been. Excluding him and his men, if you were to stick to your theory that there were four Agarthans present in the city, then that would mean the six people present in the castle prior to Kendo’s arrival were your prime suspects. Kendo had said they were the only people he’d found, and yet Stormy was sure Anemone was inside the castle as well. What a headache this was turning out to be. How could you tell who was who? Could you even?

>A): Let Kendo kill Martin,
>B): Question Martin.
>C): Question the other five suspects yourself (What are you asking?)
>D): Kill all six suspects, just to be safe.
>E): Seek out the Agarthan Lab in the bowels of the castle.
>F): Write-in

>>5557714
>E): Seek out the Agarthan Lab in the bowels of the castle.
It would certainly help discover any Agarthan activity if we could assert what they were doing, and checking in on "the bandit" doesn't sound like a bad idea. Since there is no grantee that Kendo's recollection is accurate.

>>5557714
>>D): Kill all six suspects, just to be safe
Won't be the first war crime Blair commits nor the last

>>5557714
>E): Seek out the Agarthan Lab in the bowels of the castle.

>>5557714
Fucking hell, now it's murder mystery?
God damn it.
>F): Go speak to the bandit locked in the dungeon
She might be our contact actually. Think about it.

>>5557961
Supporting

>>5557714
>F): Go speak to the bandit locked in the dungeon

I bet this is Anemone

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Found some hours to finish coloring the Adrestian Psycho

maybe I'll come up with the background later, can't think of anything right now

>>5558058
Looking graceful there Corrine.
>>5557961
I was about to suggest just killing everyone but that sounds smart.
>>5557714
>F): Go speak to the bandit locked in the dungeon

>>5558058
Hahaha I love it! Bright and vivid coloring, I especially love the pink. Corrine may be an axe murderer but there is still a sense of feminine charm there that isn't hard to see. What did you base the outfit on? Now that it's in color, it sort of reminds me of the War Cleric uniform from I think Fates? Hot stuff anon.

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>>5558195
>Bright and vivid coloring
Leaned into "sellswords dress like peacocks"
Plus she has landsknecht sleeves, and those lads were *bright*
>What did you base the outfit on?
Post-timeskip Hilda and landsknecht drip.
Honestly, now I think her sleeves might not be puffy enough. But whatever, she's on a budget. Therefore shorter sleeves and simple gloves
>Now that it's in color, it sort of reminds me of the War Cleric uniform from I think Fates?
No idea, 3 houses was the only FE I ever played

>>5557714
>D): Kill all six suspects, just to be safe.

>>5558058
Really captured those axe murderer vibes

>>5558226
Definitely see the resemblance to Hilda's outfit as well as the landsknecht vibe now. Funny to think Corrine is more "modest" than Hilda and doesn't sport the exposed back lol.

F wins, writing!

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>>5557714
The thought of killing everyone in this room crosses your mind, though you quickly abandon the idea. You’re unsure you could live with your conscience if you killed an innocent person under suspicion of being an Agarthan. Besides, you doubt it would go down that easy. The Sage among them would likely prove difficult to terminate. This bandit that Kendo mentioned has you intrigued though. Perhaps it was Anemone? Or even Eulalia, the other Agarthan turncoat who had been captured while on reconnaissance duty in Ordelia? Either one of them would be a great help in figuring out the identity of your targets. Perhaps you should start there first.

>“I’d like to have words with this bandit you mentioned. You said she’s in the dungeon?”

“She is. What of it? Are you just going to start wandering around the castle to your liking now?” Kendo snarls.

“It’s fine, Kendo.” Lysithea interrupts. “I’ll stay here, and make sure no one slits anyone’s throats unnecessarily. Don’t be too long, Blair.”

>You nod. “Corrine can come with me. I’ll leave the rest of my men here with you, just to be safe.” Before you go, a thought crosses your mind. “Kendo, you said these four are regulars in the castle, right? Who are they exactly?”

Kendo turns towards the four people off to the side of the room and begins pointing them out one by one. The first person his finger lands on is one of the women. She’s blonde, wearing white robes similar to those Elizabeth wears. A priestess of the Church of Seiros. “That’s our cleric. She tends to the castle’s chapel. Name’s Nancy.”

Nancy bows her head respectfully towards you. “Goddess be with you.”

Next, Kendo points towards the other women present, dressed in noble regalia and sporting a scowl on her face. “That’s one of Lady Ordelia’s handmaidens. Mariah.”

As if on cue, Mariah attempts to plead her case. “Lady Lysithea! Please, I must insist that you keep me away from these lecherous brutes! That they would have the nerve to lay their hands on-“

Kendo interrupts her babble to point towards the only male present, a plain ordinary man with stains on his shirt. “That’s our cook, Wally. Roasts a damn good pig, that one.”

Wally simply nods, unbothered by his current predicament. “Aye, hope to cook for you again one day, sir. Assuming we make it out of here alive.”

“And the little girl there is one of our stable hands. Don’t got too many horses these days, but the ones we do she tends to just fine.”

The small girl, wearing a green tunic, turns away shyly as the attention of the room centers on her.

>“Thank you. I won’t be gone long. Uriel, please make sure things stay civil.”

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>>5558675
You and Corrine exit the Great Hall. Lysithea had already pointed out to your group which door leads to the dungeons, so you have no trouble making your way downstairs. As you descend further below, the temperature growing colder, Corrine begins speaking.

“Wasn’t life was so much simpler when we already knew who we had to kill? I can’t say I care much for this skulking in the shadows the Agarthans do.”

>“You and I both. Fortunately, if this ‘bandit’ is who I think it is, we may just have the solution to our problems.”

“We can only hope Lysithea was wrong and Kendo is one of them. Goddess, what an annoying man.” She mutters.

As you open the door to the dungeon, you’re greeted by pitch blackness. Not a single torch is lit inside, leaving you with zero visibility.

>“They just left them in the dark?” You ask aloud, shocked. “Bandit or no, that seems a bit cruel.” Snapping your finger, you summon forth a small flame that offers you a slight reprieve from the darkness. Now that your surroundings are partially illuminated; you can definitely tell you’re in the dungeons. Rows of empty cells line both sides of the wall, leading further down into pitch blackness. The hair on your neck stands up as you stare further into the abyss. Somewhere in here lies the entrance to the Agarthan lab that tortured Lysithea and her family for years.

“Well…you first.” Corrine says. There’s an unusual hint of nervousness in her voice.

The two of you walk past empty cell after empty cell, looking for the bandit Kendo told you of. Though it is only a few feet, it feels like an eternity in that darkness. Suddenly, Corrine lets out a yelp and grabs on to your arm tightly, causing you to almost light the surroundings on fire as you struggle to control the spell from earlier.

“Oy! What’s with the damn racket?” A groggy voice calls out from beside you. “You lot finally ready to kill me? About time, get on with it…”

Peering into the cell closest to you, you spot a woman lying on the stone floor. She’s dressed in dirty rags, with unkempt greasy strands of long, dark hair. She covers her eyes quickly and backs up into the cell, the light from your spell hurting her eyes.

“Who the hell are you?” She asks, shielding her face. “And could you snuff that damn light out? Bad enough I’m down here, least you could do is not blind me before taking my head off.”

>“We’re not here to kill you. We just have some questions.” You weaken the spell so that it only produces a mere dim.

The woman barks a laugh. “Questions? For me? That’s a new one. Go ahead, knock yourself out. Ain’t like I got much better to do. Who are you two, anyway?”

>“Blair. This is my associate, Corrine. We’re mercenaries, employed by Lysithea von Ordelia.”

“Never heard of her. My name’s Scratch.”

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>>5558676
>“…Scratch?”

“Yeah. On account of my tendency to scratch out the eyes of people I don’t like. Now, get on with it.”

Even with this accursed darkness, it was clear to see that this person wasn’t Anemone OR Eulalia. Still, perhaps they might be worth questioning in the hopes they knew something useful.

>“Okay…Scratch. How long have you been down here?”

Scratch…scratches her head. “Don’t know. Weeks, I think. Maybe a month? Hard to tell what day it is though when you’re just sitting in the dark alone. Most of the time I just pass out. It’s impossible to tell for how long too. I’ll just…fall asleep, wake up, and then repeat. Over and over and over.”

>“Even for a prisoner, this all seems to be a bit excessive.”

Scratch shrugs her shoulders. “Ain’t like I don’t deserve it. Every so often, my new friend would come and visit. She tried to leave a torch on for me once, but when one of the knights found out, apparently he’d screamed at her to never do that again.” She mumbles under her breath. “Wish I could rip that bastard’s head off for that.”

“Friend?” Corrine asks incredulously. “You made a friend in this dump?! I thought you were alone?”

“Yeah. Her name is Mariah. She’s a good girl. Not like that other bitch. Imagine my surprise that a little noble lady would want anything to do with a crook like me?”

Mariah? The handmaiden from upstairs? Why would she come to a place like this? And who was this “other bitch”? Interesting.

“How are you even alive?” Corrine asks. “From the way you spoke earlier, seems you’ve been waiting to be executed for a while.”

“At this point, I’m so bored I’d welcome it.” The bandit scoffs. “Some time ago, I stopped getting fed. The soldier that would come by with my meals just up and vanished. I thought maybe they forgot about me, and I’d starve. But Mariah told me that was because of all that ‘trouble’ going on outside. Now she’s the one taking care of me. She stops by with scraps to keep me fed. Even spends some time chatting. Hey, is she okay?”

At this point, you notice something strange about Scratch. Despite being kept in hellish conditions with little to no food for days, or possibly weeks on end, she looks to be in good health. Her body is still muscular, perhaps even more so than your own. And despite her isolation and sensory deprivation, her mind seems to be all there.

>Choose three questions to ask.

>A): Ask about Mariah.
>B): Ask if she’s seen anyone else in the dungeons.
>C): Ask about the knight that yelled at Mariah.
>D): Ask if she’s seen signs of the Agarthan lab.
>E): Share your observations about her health with her.
>F): Write-in.

>>5558681
>E): Share your observations about her health with her.

>>5558681
Okay at first I thought she was just a random bandit but that last comment now makes me think she actually is an agarthan? Either she's a reject or she has mad acting skills.
>E): Share your observations about her health with her.

>>5558681
>E): Share your observations about her health with her.

>>5558681
Ah damn it, it's just a regular-ass bandit. Well, that was a bust.
Anyway, I guess we can now conclude that Mariah is not a snake? because she is nice?
My head hurts. We're hired killers, not detectives. Maybe we *should* just kill every suspect and let angst consume Blair
>A): Ask about Mariah.
>E): Share your observations about her health with her.
The kinight who yelled at Mariah was probably Kendo, but whatever, ask that one too
>C): Ask about the knight that yelled at Mariah.

>>5558681
>>B): Ask if she’s seen anyone else in the dungeons.
>>D): Ask if she’s seen signs of the Agarthan lab.
We should just kill everyone

>>5558681
>A): Ask about Mariah.
>B): Ask if she’s seen anyone else in the dungeons.

>>5558681
>E): Share your observations about her health with her.
People really want to channel Dimitri instead of having to think lol

>>5559471
Writing. A, B, and E wins.

>>5558681
>Why would the attendant to a noblewoman come to the dungeons to visit a mere bandit? The thought of it opens a new line of questioning for you. “Mariah is fine. She’s upstairs safe from the chaos happening outside the castle. Why don’t you tell me about her?”

“Eh, not much to say, really.” Scratch says. You make note that she’s gone back to laying on the cold stone floor. “She just started coming down here one day after hearing about me from one of the soldiers. Says a lot of fancy words, that one, but I’d seen her type before all my life. People that kiss up to the Goddess and talk a whole lot about ‘redemption’ and ‘forgiveness’. Can’t say I care too much for that stuff, but she meant well. All things said, she just wanted to keep me company in my ‘final’ moments. Too damn bad for me those final moments are so long.”

“Doesn’t sound very Agarthan to me…” Corrine whispers to you. “Charity doesn’t seem like something they’d do. Especially when it comes to the Goddess.”

>“So Mariah just wanted to preach to you?” You ask Scratch.

“Aye. Whatever. Not like I had much better to listen to down here. She also told me that my execution kept getting pushed back by the ‘Minister’. Whoever that is. She didn’t know why, but she thought it could be a sign from the Goddess to repent for my sins.”

That must be Martin, who was currently pissing himself in his chair under Kendo’s useless interrogation.

“I’m surprised the handmaiden would be the one to preach to you.” Corrine remarks. “We saw a cleric upstairs. Sounds more like something she’d do.”

Scratch hisses and sits up. “That creepy bitch? I should thank the Goddess it wasn’t her!”

>“You saw her?” Scratch must be referring to Nancy, the priestess you saw in the Great Hall.

“Aye. A few times. I’d wake up and she’d be sitting there in the dark, staring at me. Maybe she thought I couldn’t see her or something? But she obviously forgot I was a thief. My eyes are sharp. I’ve been scoping things out in the dark my entire life. Her white robes stuck out like a sore thumb.”

>“She was…watching you? That’s it?”

“Yeah, and occasionally she’d write something in some damn book she had. No clue how she managed to do that in the dark. But like I said, she gave me the creeps, so I wasn’t about to ask. I just pretended to sleep until she went away.”

“Now that’s quite a bit more suspicious…” Corrine whispers. “What do you suppose she was writing?”

It was suspicious. Though it wasn’t hard evidence, if Scratch was telling the truth, it was very likely that Nancy was up to something. In any case, it was a start. You had one final question for the bandit, before you took your leave.

>>5559839
>“You know, for someone who’s been living under extreme conditions as a prisoner for as long as you have, you seem fairly normal. In fact, I wager I could put a weapon in your hand as you are now and you’d go back to cutting people like you never stopped.”

“Is that an offer?” Scratch asks. She’s now staring you directly in the eyes for the first time. Make no mistake about it, she’s a hardened killer. And an experienced one at that.

>“Just an observation.”

She stares at you a moment longer, before answering. “Aye. To tell you the truth…I feel normal. No, that’s not right. I feel…better than normal? Somehow, better than I’ve ever felt in my entire life. I thought maybe it had something to do with me accepting death. Like Mariah had asked me to. But that wouldn’t explain why I haven’t gotten any skinnier or weaker, even though I should be starving. In fact, it feels like I’ve gotten stronger. Like I’ve passed my limits. But all I do is sleep. Endless sleep. And when I wake up, it’s just darkness. Darkness, or that weird woman, always staring.”

What to make of that. You didn’t believe Scratch was an Agarthan. If she was, her acting skills would be impeccable. But what could the source of this supposed strength be? Unless…

You turn around and stare into the darkness of the room. The Agarthan lab that Lysithea spoke of is here somewhere. Supposedly sealed off, though likely still active. Unable to be found by anyone under the cover of this darkness. Could it be possible that they had performed some sort of experiment on Scratch?

“Blair, they’re likely wondering where we’ve gone off too.” Corrine says. “If this is all, we should go back upstairs.”

>“Right…let’s go.” As you turn to leave the dungeon, Scratch calls out from behind.

“Wait! You said you’re mercenaries, right? Take me with you. If the city’s really gone to hell, I doubt anyone will be coming for me. And you said it yourself that I can still fight. And I’m damn good too. There’s a reason I was the only one from my gang to survive. And I’m probably even better now after…whatever’s happened.”

You look at Corrine, who shrugs nonchalantly. “It wouldn’t be the first time we’ve hired a criminal. If we’re to confront Nancy, having her with us could be useful. Though I don’t imagine Kendo or Lysithea will appreciate letting her out.”

>A): Let Scratch out.
>B): Leave her in her cell.
>C): Write-in

>>5559840
>A): Let Scratch out.
Best way to sniff out the Agarthan.

>>5559840
>A): Let Scratch out.
She's useless to everyone sitting in a cell forever. Call it community service.

>>5559840
Allright, so cleric is a snake, Scratch was probably experemented on, and the Lab is most likely accessible and operational.
Let's go share this new info with the rest
>A): Let Scratch out.
Another neutral evil killer joins the party!

>>5559471
but thinking is hard

>>5559840
>>C): Tell her you'll free her once you've settled the manners upstairs, freeing her now might cause unwanted mistrust with Kendo.

>>5559840
>>C): Write-in
Kill her

>>5559840
>A): Let Scratch out.

>>5560259
Brutal.
Why though?

>>5559840
>B): Leave her in her cell.

>>5559840
>A): Let Scratch out.
Kick the beehive

>>5560407
You can never be too cautious when dealing with them.

>>5559840
Ordelia had fallen, that much was plain to see. If you were to leave Scratch inside her cell, it was unlikely anyone else would come looking for her. Sure, she was of questionable moral fiber, but who in the Blackwings wasn’t? More importantly, if your theory about her strength was accurate, she could help shed further light on what Diogenes was up to. In any event, she was no good to anyone here. The lock to Scratch’s cell is rusty, and easily falls off after a few well-placed strikes from the butt of your spear.

“Yes!” Scratch exclaims excitedly, jumping to her feet from where she was lying. Now that she is standing upright, you’re able to notice for the first time just how tall she is. Her height was likely dwarfed only by the likes of Sebastian, and she’s forced to duck her head as she steps out of the cell to stand there with you and Corrine.

“Thanks, boss. You won’t regret this, I swear. Anything you need at all, I’m your woman. I’ll fight for you no matter what.”

>“I’ll hold you to that. You’re free to come with us, but don’t cause me any trouble. I’ll be watching you closely, so you better not fall into any of your old habits. And most of all, be on your best behavior upstairs. We’re in a bit of a sensitive situation, and I’d appreciate your cooperation.”

“Right. Do what you say, no stealing, and don’t piss anyone off. I can do that.” Scratch spits on the ground. “So, who are we fighting?”

>“With any luck, you’ll help me find that out. What weapons are you good with?”

>“Been using an axe all my life. It’s what I’m best with, I think. Good with a bow, too. Did my fair share of poaching around these parts. I ain’t no sniper, but if it’s a big enough target, I can hit it.”

You wince. “Probably best if you don’t mention any of your more “illicit” activities in the company of our employer.”

“Illicit?” Scratch asks, puzzled.

>“Forget it.”


>Scratch
>Level 35 Axe/Bow Warrior
HP: 62
STR: 34
DEX: 25
SPD: 22
LCK: 12
DEF: 25
RES: 12
Personal Skill: Tormentor (+5 DMG to enemies not at Max HP)

With Scratch now in tow, the three of you leave the dungeons behind and head back upstairs, into the Great Hall. The scene doesn’t look to have changed much. Martin is still tied to his chair, with Lysithea being the only thing keeping Kendo from splitting his head open. All eyes turn to you and your new ally as you walk in. You’re sure Kendo sports a ghastly look on his face, but it isn’t him you’re looking towards. It’s the four others who were huddled by the wall that you examine closely.

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>>5560877
Mariah sports the most obvious reaction of the bunch. She’s clearly surprised to see Scratch in the Great Hall, though there doesn’t seem to be anything else there other than shock.

On the other hand, you see what looks like visible confusion and perhaps even anger flash across Nancy’s face. The emotions appear for only a moment before they subside into a more normal appearance.

As for the stable hand, the small girl looks fearful upon laying eyes on the bandit. An ordinary reaction for a child to have upon spotting an escaped prisoner, you figure. Still, better to not leave anything to chance.

Finally, the cook, Wally, simply glances towards your direction, but doesn’t seem to have any reaction at all. He bears the same composed look on his face that you recall from earlier.

“What’s all this, then?” Kendo asks. “Why’d you let that prisoner out?!”

>“It seems in the chaos of everything that’s occurred in Ordelia, she had been forgotten down in the dungeons. Better to have her with us and find some use out of her then letting her continue to starve in prison, languishing in complete darkness, no?”

Kendo looks towards Lysithea for assistance but finds none.

“If Blair thinks it’s a good idea, then I support her.” Lysithea says. “Though I’m somewhat troubled by what she just said. You had prisoners starving in darkness down in the dungeon? Since when do we do such things? Were these my father’s orders? Martin’s?”

“No, Little Lady.” Kendo says. “That order came directly from Cornelius, our Knight Commander. It was certainly a bit harsh, but Cornelius is a good man. We saw no reason not to comply. It’s just a bandit after all.”

>You feel Scratch bristle next to you, but fortunately she manages to restrain herself and recall your words. “And where is this Cornelius now? Is he among you?”

Kendo shakes his head. “I’d imagine he’s probably still out in the city, looking for Count Ordelia and his wife.”

“I tried to do something, Lady Lysithea.” Mariah suddenly stands, speaking determinedly. “But when I tried to offer the prisoner some reprieve, he screamed at me! I’d never seen anyone so mad before. He said if I did it again, he’d expel me from the castle!”

So, Cornelius gave the order to keep the dungeon under complete darkness. Could he have done so in order to keep the newly active lab hidden? His absence would make finding out his true intentions impossible for the time being. But if Nancy was one suspect, Cornelius was likely the second. And if he was in fact an Agarthan, you didn’t like the idea of him wandering around the city while the rest of the Blackwings were camped outside. You needed to find your last two suspects.

“So, did this little sideshow of yours provide you with any useful information? Or can I go ahead and finally kill this rat?” Kendo asks you.

>A): Question someone in the room.
>B): Let Kendo kill Wally.
>C): Write-in

>>5560881
Oh man, we got a 6'8 dommy tomboy bandit out of this, nice.
>A): Question someone in the room. (Nancy)
Scratch saw her looking at her in the complete darkness writing in a book, gonna need some details on that.

>>5560881
>>5560921
Supporting.

>>5560881
>B): Let Kendo kill Wally.

>>5560881
>>5560921
+1

>>5560921
Support

>>5560921
+1

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>>5560881
>“Scratch was actually able to provide me with a few interesting insights. Ones that I’d like to share with the cleric here, if you wouldn’t mind?”

Nancy gives you a scathing look. Evidently, she’s already decided she wants nothing to do with you and would prefer that you stay as far away as possible. A sentiment that Kendo seems to share as he openly questions your motivations.

“What exactly has the cleric done to warrant your suspicions? Nancy has been the priestess at Ordelia Castle for three years now. Ain’t a bad bone in the woman’s body. Is it your intention to start going around and sticking your nose where it don’t belong? Besides, already told you the culprit is right here.” He slaps Martin on the shoulder harshly, causing the man to jump in his seat.

>“It’s very possible that Martin is in fact behind this entire mess. At the very least, I fully believe he’s guilty of selling out Ordelia to the Empire. But I don’t believe he’s been acting alone. In fact, I have it on strong suspicions that a few of the people in this room were his collaborators, and perhaps aren’t who they say they are.”

“Who are you again, exactly?” Kendo asks, squinting his eyes. “The way I see it, only suspicious one is-“

“Kendo, please. That’s enough.” Lysithea interjects. “I know you mean well, but Blair is right. Martin here isn’t the only traitor in our midst. I intend to make them ALL pay. To only punish Martin would not only be a disservice to our countrymen, but it would also be exactly what the ones pulling his strings want.” She turns to you. “Go ahead, Blair. Ask your questions.”

“Very well.” Kendo sighs and steps out of the way, allowing you full access to the cleric.

“…Ask whatever you wish of me, child.” Nancy says. She does nothing to disguise the look of pure loathing and resentment she has for you.

>“Not to worry, this won’t take long, priestess. I simply wish to confirm something that this prisoner told me. She had mentioned that on more than one occasion, she’d witnessed you staring at her while she slept in her cell. You were writing something in a journal. Is this true?”

Nancy barks a harsh laugh. “What nonsense is this? You would take the word of a mere bandit over a Priestess of the Church of Seiros? The Goddess is watching you, child. Falsely accusing one of her devout followers of committing wrongdoing is a grave sin indeed.”

“You lying creep!” Scratch calls out, having already completely forgotten her vow not to interject or embarrass you. “I’d seen you down there plenty of times! Every time I woke up, you were watching me and writing in that fucking book of yours! And when you were done, you’d tuck it right back into your robes! Boss, hold her down and take that book! You’ll find what you were looking for!”

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>>5562935
“I wouldn’t waste a second of my precious time on filth such as you!” Nancy screams. “You’re nothing but trash! Criminal refuse unfit for mercy from the Goddess! You’ll burn in hell, sinner! You and this conniving bitch you’ve managed to seduce to your side!”

“Control her.” Kendo growls towards you, speaking of Scratch. “We don’t need criminals speaking out of turn.”

Before you can respond, Elizabeth of all people interjects, speaking to Nancy. “Sister, your words trouble me. Condemning others, criminals or not, to be unfit of the Goddess’s mercy…” She closes her eyes. “The Archbishop teaches that forgiveness is a virtue. No one is unworthy of the Goddess’ love. As a priestess, you should know better than to speak this way.”

“What would you know of the Goddess?” Nancy snarls. She turns towards Kendo and pleads her case. “Sir, do not let these outsiders sully my good name! You said it yourself; I’ve been the priestess here for years now. How many services have I lead? Have I not always provided counsel, healing and aid for the soldiers when needed? I do not know what manner of beasts Lady Lysithea has become enamored with, but this woman means nothing for us but evil!” She points directly towards you.

Kendo sighs and turns to face you. “Even if the Cleric here’s a voyeur, so what exactly? How does that bear any relevance to what we’re trying to figure out?”

You don’t say anything at first. The room is silent, save for the sound of Martin whimpering in his chair. Taking a quick glance at the pathetic man, you find it hard to believe he was an Agarthan. More than likely, he’d just been a convenient pawn readily taking their orders. As for Nancy…

By now, with both Scratch and Elizabeth’s testimony, as well as Nancy’s strong reaction, you had good reason to believe she was an Agarthan. And while it all made sense to you and Corrine, everyone else in the room was likely confused. You could continue going down this route of pleading your case and attempt to convince Kendo of what was going on. How the real Nancy was likely dead and replaced by an imposter who had been feeding Martin his orders. But he didn’t know you, and he believed he knew Nancy. Trying to convince him of anything would be an uphill battle. Moreover, Lysithea seems to have placed her full confidence in you despite the protests of her subjects. And perhaps most importantly, the Blackwings fully outnumbered everyone else in this room.

>A): Attempt to convince Kendo how Nancy was involved in all of this.
>B): Question Martin
>C): Question one of the other suspects
>D): The time for investigative work is over. Order your men to hold down Nancy and retrieve the book from her robes.
>E): Write-in

>>5562936
>>D): The time for investigative work is over. Order your men to hold down Nancy and retrieve the book from her robes.
By all means if it's just a regular book with nothing wrong we'll just apologize and stand down, not like a cleric would have anything troubling in her hems hmmm?

Also I've been thinking of running a DnD game set in a fire emblem setting, prolly awakening, just need to like allocate all the Fire Emblem classes to DnD classes to get working, now would you guys say that a Pegasus Knight would fit under Ranger? Animal companion and all that and I can't just shove most of the classes into Fighter.

>>5562936
>D): The time for investigative work is over. Order your men to hold down Nancy and retrieve the book from her robes.

>>5562936
>D): The time for investigative work is over. Order your men to hold down Nancy and retrieve the book from her robes.

>>5562936
>>B): Question Martin

>>5562936
>D): The time for investigative work is over. Order your men to hold down Nancy and retrieve the book from her robes.
She shouldn't be so defensive if she has nothing to hide.

>>5562936
>>D): The time for investigative work is over. Order your men to hold down Nancy and retrieve the book from her robes.

>>5562936
>D): The time for investigative work is over. Order your men to hold down Nancy and retrieve the book from her robes.

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>>5562936
Nancy might be capable of fooling those in Ordelia, but to you she positively radiated suspicion. She was hiding something, that much was certain. Thanks to your investigative work, you were able to identify two likely Agarthans. One was Nancy, who was currently glaring daggers towards you. The other was Cornelius, the Ordelian Knight Commander who was supposedly searching for Lysithea’s parents somewhere out in the city. Due to a lack of evidence, you couldn’t be sure if the others present were Agarthans or not. But perhaps if you forced Nancy’s back against the wall, they would reveal themselves. It was certainly worth a shot. While you could conduct more investigative work, the fact of the matter was that time was crucial. You’d still seen no sign of Anemone and were beginning to suspect she might be in danger. The time for action was now.

>“Scratch said you tucked that book of yours into your robes, right? Let’s see it.”

“Don’t you dare lay a hand on me!” Nancy recoils, standing and placing her back up against the wall.

>“Corrine! Theo! Grab her!”

The two of them look at each other, before closing in on the shrinking cleric. Kendo and his soldiers, appalled at what they’re seeing, move to intercept, but are quickly stopped by the other Blackwings.

“I would implore you to reconsider getting involved, good knight.” Uriel says. The man very rarely fights, often serving more as an advisor to you. But now, his Blessed Lance is unsheathed and glowing a pulsating blue. “Your loyalty to your house is commendable, but this is between my Commander and that woman. Do not throw away your life so readily when your lord still has need of your service.”

“L-Lady Lysithea! You can’t seriously let these sellswords go around harassing your father’s subjects!” Kendo exclaims.

Lysithea pauses before answering. “You better know what you’re doing, Blair.” She shows no intention of stopping Corrine or Theo.

“You heard the Little Lady.” Clay says. “Best you stand down. I have a feeling your viewpoint on the cleric here might be about ready to shatter.”

Nancy twists and screams as Theo and Corrine grab her and hold her down. Mariah, Wally and the stable hand have now separated themselves from the scene.

“Unhand me! No! How dare you defile a cleric of the Goddess! Sinners! Help! Help me!”

Corrine sticks her hands inside the woman’s robes forcefully, moving them around in search of her prize. The absurdity of the scene coupled with how long it takes has you worried for a brief moment that you may have miscalculated. However, after enough tussling, Corrine escapes with her goal in hand. A small, worn-out book.

“Give that back!” Nancy screams.

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>>5563877
Corrine hands you the book while the rest of the room stares at Nancy writhing in the grasp of Theo. It’s small, the cover the color of burgundy and bearing no special inscription. One thing’s for sure, it wasn’t one of the holy books of the Church of Seiros. The attention of the room has now shifted towards you, wondering if all of this chaos was worth the retrieval of the book now sitting in your hands. You open it and begin flipping through the pages, only to quickly discover that the entire thing is illegible.

“Well? What’s is say?!” Lysithea asks, a nervous edge to her voice.

>“I don’t know. I can’t read it.” You say, continuing to flip through the pages of Agarthan text and runes. The writing inside is exactly similar to the writing you’d found in Echeverria’s book. Your suspicions proved accurate. There was no longer any doubt that Nancy was an Agarthan.

“Y-you…you can’t read it?” Kendo asks, stunned.

>“Nope.” You continue perusing through the pages as the room descends into an eerie silence. You land on one page towards the middle that catches your eye. Unlike the rest of the pages that contained Agarthan text scribbled inside, the page you’re staring at has only one rune carved on it. It looks more like a drawing than an actual word, and something about it seems familiar. Your first thought is that it might be a Crest, but you can’t remember seeing any Crest like it before.

You stare down at Nancy. The rest of the room likely thinks you’ve gone mad, but Nancy knows better. She’s no longer struggling or protesting while Theo holds her down. And the outrage and indignation that was previously on her face has been replaced with a look of smug satisfaction.

“Honestly…what point is there in playing at being the maiden in distress if no headstrong knight will come to my aid?” She says, sparing a glance towards Kendo.

Out of the corner of your eye; a movement. A momentary flash from the stablehand. A flying objects speed towards your head.

>A): Evade the object (SPD Roll: 76% to Succeed)
>B): Grab the object and toss it back (DEX Roll: 56% to Succeed)
>C): Stand behind Scratch and let her take the attack.
>D): Write-in

>>5563879
>D): Write-in
Grab the object (DEX Roll: 56% to Succeed)
I don't think returning it to the sender is a good idea since we should still have a slight chance at de-escalating things.

>>5563879
>A): Evade the object (SPD Roll: 76% to Succeed)

>>5563879
>>B): Grab the object and toss it back (DEX Roll: 56% to Succeed)
Fuck the guy two posts above me, ESCALATE THIS BITCH!

>>5563879
>B): Grab the object and toss it back (DEX Roll: 56% to Succeed)
This is badass, we gotta try it.

>>5563879
>>A): Evade the object (SPD Roll: 76% to Succeed)

>>5563879
>B): Grab the object and toss it back (DEX Roll: 56% to Succeed)

>>5563879
>B): Grab the object and toss it back (DEX Roll: 56% to Succeed)

It's not like Blair needs to be able to read it anyway, all she has to do is show it to Lysithea.

>>5563879
>>B): Grab the object and toss it back (DEX Roll: 56% to Succeed)

We got that +4 temp dex from plundering Ashe, surely this will work.

>>5565000
Afterglow to the rescue

>>5563879
>>A): Evade the object (SPD Roll: 76% to Succeed)
50/50? really guys?

>>5565219
Yeah, I was wondering why everyone was going for that.
Don't want to risk not exposing Agarthan conspiracies just for the sake of looking cool.

>>5565225
>I was wondering why everyone was going for that.
Consider what / who may be standing behind us, dodging does not stop the projectile, only means it won't hit us.

>>5565219
A mere 20% difference for an objectively better option? Yes really.

>>5563879
>>5563885
Support, if only for Lysethia to keep her allies.

Rolled 12 (1d100)

B wins. Roll needs to be 1-56 to succeed. Writing

>>5565810
Success!

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>>5563879
With only milliseconds to react upon noticing the flash, your hand deftly moves forward to snatch the flying object out of the air. Much to your own surprise, you succeed, and catch the throwing dagger mere inches away from your eye. Perhaps working more on your body’s own defensive instincts than anything else, you quickly hurl the dagger back where it came from with all your might. It sails back and lands directly into the chest of…

The little girl?

The pink-haired stablehand, whose name you had either already forgotten or never learned, lets out a cry as the dagger connects into her chest and sends her flying back into the wall with a thud.

“Unhand me, swine!” Nancy cries. The cleric gains the strength to stand up from where Theo had her pinned. She grabs the far larger berserker by his wrist and tosses him flying into the other side of the room. You sense a buildup of magical energy not unlike that which you’d felt in Edmund Woods. It’s coming not just from Nancy, but…the cook as well?! Before you can give the order to fight back or take cover, the two Agarthans cast their respective spells, and the room erupts into blinding chaos.

“Master!” You hear Martin cry. “Save me!”

A purplish orb of energy is set flying into the room courtesy of Nancy, barreling into Kendo and the Ordelian soldiers present in the room. Reminiscent of dark magic, the orb pulverizes the entire group of soldiers, as well as Martin, in a spray of blood and bone, all but destroying them completely in one blow. You manage to unsheathe your spear and ready to attack the woman when a wall of fire erupts from the ground. The flames almost engulf you, but you are safely pulled back by Scratch before that can happen.

“Blair d’Rusalka!” A voice cries over the flames. Wally. Or at least whoever was pretending to be him. “To think the Agarthan Hunter herself would find the time to visit me in my own home. I’m flattered. I hope you’ve been finding the castle so far to your liking. You’ll be staying a while, after all.”

>“Who are you?!”

“Why ask what you already know? You wouldn’t be standing here otherwise if you weren’t acutely aware of who I was, right?”

>“Diogenes?!”

The man bows behind the flames, which are still active and threatening to engulf the entire Great Hall. “Indeed. One of the Seven Sages of Agartha and the True Lord of Ordelia. I am so BEYOND pleased to finally meet you. To tell you the truth of it, I’m somewhat of an ardent admirer of your work.”

>“I had no idea I had any fans amongst your kind.”

“On the contrary! I greatly admire your singular purpose and devotion towards killing us. In a way it reminds me of myself-”

>>5566025
From behind you, a blue light. A Crest has been activated, and another purplish orb of dark energy is fired through the flames. This magic though, is of Lysithea’s doing. The spell blasts through Diogenes’ own flames before exploding, engulfing the entire half of the hall the Agarthans were standing in with smoke and debris.

“Mariah!” Scratch cries out. In the heat of the action, you’d forgotten about the handmaiden, who was likely the only person on the other side of the room that wasn’t an Agarthan. The wall of fire was down though, and you saw an opportunity to strike.

>“Kill them!” You cry.

Yourself, as well as the Blackwings that had avoided the brunt of Nancy’s attack charge forward only to be repelled back by a wave of magic that knocks you off your feet. You’d definitely seen this spell before. It was the same type of attack Solon had used to damage you and the rest of the Black Eagles back in the Sealed Forest.

>Blair (48/53 HP)

The smoke clears as this time four tornadoes spawn out of thin air in the space between you and the Agarthans. The entire room has fallen under a torrential gust, and if you’re able to keep your eyes open long enough, you can see the cook standing there, arms outstretched as if greeting a long-lost friend.

“Lady Lysithea!” The voice booms over the winds. “Don’t think I’d forgotten about you. It’s so good to see you again as well! You’ve really grown into that Crest of yours, haven’t you? I’d love it if you allowed me to work on you again. I think with the advances in magic and surgery that I’ve made, I can really fix you-”

Lysithea wordlessly begins casting several more orbs of magic at the Sage, her Crest activating over and over again to boost her already heightened abilities. Diogenes though easily knocks each spell out of the air before they can land. With a flick of his hand, one of the tornadoes rips a large piece of stone from the floor. The stone hovers in the air for a moment, before being sent hurdling towards you at a high speed. You can only wince briefly as you wait for the attack to connect, only for another blue Crest light to activate. Unlike Lysithea’s own though, this Crest comes from someone standing right next to you.

Scratch steps forward, glowing, and punches the block with her fist, shattering the projectile. Instead of the two of you being flattened, you’re simply sprayed by a hailstorm of dirt and pebbles that cut into you.

>>5566027
What Scratch just did seems to slow the room down to a crawl. Those on the Agarthan side of the room looked shocked. Both Nancy, as well as the stablehand, who by now had jumped back to her feet, bear a fearful countenance on their faces. Only Diogenes seems to be amused by the entire thing.

“Look! It worked after all!” He remarks excitedly.

With a clap of his hand, Diogenes, as well as his two counterparts, begin to sink into the ground. Mariah, you notice, lies flattened on the wall, dead.

“Let’s say we take this someplace else. You’ll find exiting the castle to be quite impossible but have no fear. I am the Master of Ordelia, and above all else, a generous host. I invite you all to explore the castle to its furthest depths. I have a litany of wonderful things to share with you all. Lysithea should be able to show you the way down.”

The three Agarthans disappear, leaving only the Blackwings remaining inside.

>A): Head down into the dungeons and search for the lab.
>B): Examine Scratch more closely. Ask her what that was.
>C): Attempt to escape the castle and reunite with the rest of the company.
>D): Write-in

>>5566029
>B): Examine Scratch more closely. Ask her what that was.
Information is key. We can devise a plan if we know the cards we have.

>>5566029
>>A): Head down into the dungeons and search for the lab.

>>5566029
>>B): Examine Scratch more closely. Ask her what that was.

>>5566029
>>B): Examine Scratch more closely. Ask her what that was.
''Hey Scratch, did those slithers, touch you? Show us on the doll where they shoved the magic heart ball.''

>>5566029
>B): Examine Scratch more closely. Ask her what that was.
Agarthan Hunter, eh? *plays Vampire Killer from Castlevania*

>>5566029
>>B): Examine Scratch more closely. Ask her what that was

>>5566029
>B): Examine Scratch more closely. Ask her what that was.

>>5566025
>Agarthan Hunter
We're famous! wooo!
>Mariah, you notice, lies flattened on the wall, dead.
Well, there goes the only nice person here. At least scratch is now MOTIVATED to kill some snakes.
QM, was there any way we could have saved Kendo or Mariah?

>C): Attempt to escape the castle and reunite with the rest of the company.
Just because snake said we can't leave it doesn't actually mean we can't. Worth trying at least

>>5566029
>“Secure the perimeter and tend to the wounded!” You scream. Everything’s happened so fast that you’re left spinning. Kendo, along with the soldiers under his command, were completely wiped out by Nancy’s attack. They aren’t the only ones either. Martin, Ordelia’s de facto leader, was caught up in the blast as well. Mariah, you note, is also dead. The handmaiden was likely killed during Diogenes’ attack that knocked everyone back. You doubt the Sage killed her with intention. She probably didn’t even register under his notice, the bastard. Scratch stands by, staring at her corpse.

“Poor girl. Didn’t deserve this one bit.” Scratch says as you approach. She sucks in air through her teeth and rubs her right hand. As you get a closer look, you notice it’s hardly bruised despite the fact she’d punched solid stone just a moment ago. “Spent a lot of time with me while I was locked up. She didn’t look at me like I was a criminal. Wanted me to be ready to accept my death with no regrets. And in the end, she died first.” Scratch cracks her knuckles. “So, who was that guy, boss? And what are we waiting for to go get him?”

>“He’ll pay for this, trust me. Before that, I’d like to know more about you. You didn’t tell me you had a Crest.”

“A what?” Scratch looks at you with confusion. “Don’t only nobles have those things? If I had a damn Crest I wouldn’t have to resort to banditry, would I?”

>“And what of that boulder? You punched clean through it as though it were paper.”

Scratch contemplates your words but brushes them off quickly. “Well it’s true I never did anything like that before…but how would I even get a Crest? It must have been the heat of the moment or something.”

“It’s a Crest, alright.” Lysithea says, joining you. “The Blood Reconstruction surgery. They must have done it to her as well. Only…” Lysithea gets close up to the bandit, who recoils back from the much smaller child. "I don’t sense the same loss of vitality in her as in myself.” She says. You sense a trace of wonder in her voice. “Did they truly find a way to implant a Crest without affecting the subject’s lifespan?”

“Blood recon-what?” Scratch says. “If someone was doing surgery on me, I think I’d know.”

Lysithea shakes her head. “You may not. Every time I underwent the same experimentation, I was unconscious. They’d drag me to their lab, and the next thing I knew I’d reawaken in my room. They must have done the same to you.”

>“Why implant a Crest in her though?”

“I don’t know.” Lysithea says, not taking her eyes off her subject. “But that isn’t even the most surprising thing about this. The Crest she bears is Indech.”

>>5567265
Of all known Crests, Indech was one of the rarest and most noble. Its namesake was one of the Four Saints, holy warriors that fought alongside Seiros during her war against Nemesis, the King of Liberation. The crest ran almost exclusively through House Varley, of which Bernadetta was from.

“From what I was able to gather all those years ago, the surgery was performed using blood samples of people who bore certain Crests.” Lysithea continues. “My own Crest of Gloucester had been implanted in me using the blood of one such person. If they implanted this woman with Indech, they would likely need something similar.”

“So, you’re saying I’ve really got a Crest now?” Scratch asks, cracking her knuckles rudely.

“Yes. And a major one at that. I don’t believe even Bernadetta possesses such a thing. I’d like to study you a bit closer once time allows. If Diogenes considers you a success, then those fiends may now have access to a truly dangerous power. And from a more selfish standpoint, it may help with my own problems I’m facing from the same surgery.”

A Crest of one of the Four Saints of Seiros, now being utilized by a bandit of all pople. There was some irony in all that somewhere, you supposed. But for now, Scratch would be a useful ally, as well as the first Crest bearer to join the Blackwings. The first admitted Crest bearer, in any case. As if on cue, Clay and Ashe come running in to report their findings.

“Everyone’s bandaged up and ready to go, Commander.” Clay reports. “Only one problem, the door to the outside is locked shut, and there’s no way to pry it open.”

“We could try escaping through one of the windows and regrouping with the others.” Ashe suggests. “Though…I have a bad feeling about that. That man said leaving the castle was impossible. It seems he wants us to go after him.”

“He’s in the dungeons.” Lysithea says. “He’s right…I can lead you down there. To where we’d sealed off the lab, all those years ago. Just…give the word.”

>A): Lead the way, Lysithea.
>B): It’s too dangerous. Let’s try and find a way to escape first.
>C): We’re walking into an obvious trap. Let’s think of something first before we go in.