>>5956926
[[Al-Kimia Story has 4 different “Personality” stats.
Courage allows you to keep a cool head in stressful situations. Someone with low Courage would be cowardly, while someone with high Courage can keep their cool even when fighting a much stronger foe. People with high courage can also be reckless, ignoring fear even when it serves a purpose.
Love is the stat of passion. Someone with low Love can come across as cold and unfeeling while someone with high love can be bolstered by the feelings they have for others. People with high love can be flighty, pursuing one passion to the next and never settling down. Knowledge increases your affinity for acquiring knowledge. Someone with low knowledge can be stupid and forgetful, while someone with high knowledge can recall information quickly and dedicate themselves to study. People with high knowledge can be paralyzed by indecision from all the knowledge they hold.
Reliability is your affinity for learning about the mundane. Someone with low Reliability can have their head in the clouds while someone with high reliability can be counted on to stay steadfast in the worst of times. People with high Reliability can be bad at dreaming of a brighter future, preferring instead the certainty of the present.

When you make decisions against Marron's wants in-the-moment, you acquire stress. Accumulate enough stress and you will accrue penalties to your roll depending on your stress level.

While playing, you can also obtain ‘Affinity’ for the people you meet. Essentially, this is your level of closeness with that person or group]]

>>5956926
> Dad, how can I leave when the woman I love is here? (Love +1, Reliability +2)

>>5956926
>> Dad, I can't take this. You're better off saving it for Aubergine. (Stress +1, Family affinity +1, Reliability +2)

>>5956927
> Dad, I can't take this. You're better off saving it for Aubergine. (Stress +1, Family affinity +1, Reliability +2)

>>5956926
> Dad, how can I leave when the woman I love is here? (Love +1, Reliability +2)

>>5956926
> Dad, I can't take this. You're better off saving it for Aubergine. (Stress +1, Family affinity +1, Reliability +2)
Romancefags in body bags.

>>5956926
> Dad, I can't take this. You're better off saving it for Aubergine. (Stress +1, Family affinity +1, Reliability +2)
Nice, you're finally running this

>>5956926
>> Dad, I can't take this. You're better off saving it for Aubergine. (Stress +1, Family affinity +1, Reliability +2)

>>5956926
> Dad, I can't take this. You're better off saving it for Aubergine. (Stress +1, Family affinity +1, Reliability +2)
As another QM is fond of saying, let's not breed loathsomeness.

>>5956926
>Pester your mom and dad for more information about Tarrasque (Knowledge +2, Family affinity +1)

>>5957271
>>5957177
>>5957139
>>5957110
>>5957088
>>5956962
>>5956961
>>5956960
>>5956944
>>5956926

You look at the money your dad is trying to give to you. In truth, your heart calls out for adventure and there's nothing you'd like more than to take the money and see the world.

However…

“Dad, sorry. I can't take this. You should save it for Aubergine.”

Your dad is a bit taken aback by your declaration.

“Oh, it seems I've misjudged you. I thought I saw the desire for adventure gleaming inside your eyes. Between you and me, I don't really trust Aubergine to be sensible for a long while yet.”

“I mean, don't get me wrong, dad. I do want to go out and see the world, but I don't think I can do that with peace in my heart if I knew I was taking opportunity away from my siblings.”

“That's commendable, Marron. Just don't be so afraid of stepping on anyone's toes that you forget to eke out a place for yourself,” your dad said, beaming with pride.

“Hold on, I have something else to give you,” he says as he rummages through a well worn chest of trinkets.

“Here. It's not much but…”

What your dad hands you is an old, rusty knife. It's chipped and looks damaged beyond just simple resharpening. Pebbles are embedded all over the blade and the rust grew over them, keeping it in place. … Just what does your dad expect you to do with an old, rusty blade?

“Don't refuse this gift,” your dad says as you turn over the knife in your hand. “It's your grandfather's lucky knife. Your grandfather, my father, gave it to me when I started courting your mother. I don't know if luck is real or whatever, but I like to think that it's why a guy like me managed to make such a cozy family.”

You wrap the rusty knife in a bit of cloth and place it in your bag.

“Thanks, dad. I can tell the knife means a lot to you.”

Weeks pass and the Vermilion season is in full swing. Everyone is busy with farm work to ensure the harsh heat of the Vermilion season doesn't dry out the crops.

However, there's another reason that everyone's busy today. With the Vermilion season at its peak, the Wooden Mask Merchants are coming to visit Seis.

Seis doesn't have its own blacksmith because metal is hard to come by this close to Carp River.

The Wooden Mask merchants do a round of all the villages near Carp River to trade metal goods for crops.

With the Vermilion season at its peak, what are you most busy doing?
>You'd been busy helping your dad out with the farm work
>You'd been busy helping the mayor prepare the welcome for the merchants
>You'd been busy making sure your siblings stay out of trouble.

>>5956926
Hey OP, your quest logo's vibe and all these food named people reminds me very strongly of Magical Vacation and Magical Starsign. Have you heard of either of those?

>>5957522
>You'd been busy making sure your siblings stay out of trouble.

>>5957570
I haven't but they sound interesting! Tell me about them.

>>5957522
>You'd been busy helping your dad out with the farm work
Get some muscle on ya, boy. Ya look like spaghetti with those arms.

>>5957585
I haven't played Magical Starsign (the DS sequel to Magical Vacation) but Magical Vacation is a jp-exclusive GBA game. Both are JRPGs, but I dropped Magical Vacation real early on despite me liking it because I got disgusted at 100% completion being literally impossible without cheating (and I didn't find any cheats online though I might not have looked too hard) or having been there for some jp only event held only twice back in... 2002.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magical_Vacation
I might force myself to play it properly and finish it one day, irregardless of 100%ing it. Finding out party members randomly leave your party and permanently take all their equipment with them too was also a kick in the nuts to me

>>5957590
I gotta say, I love how you associated the quest logo with those games, since the goal of this quest is to be a love letter towards JRPGs.

>>5957522
>You'd been busy helping your dad out with the farm work
We're the oldest child and oldest son too. Responsibility comes young

>>5957596
Thank you.

>>5957522
>You'd been busy helping your dad out with the farm work

>>5957522
>>You'd been busy helping your dad out with the farm work
>>5957570
I've played Magical starsign, never finished it though

>>5957522
>You'd been busy helping your dad out with the farm work

>>5957855
>>5957735
>>5957678
>>5957601
>>5957596
>>5957590
>>5957588
>>5957583
>>5957522

It was the week that the Wooden Mask merchants were supposed to arrive. You, your dad and Aubergine were tending to the crops. Although this close to the river, they didn't need to be watered every day, the land was fertile enough that removing weeds was an every day job.

Your mother and Carrot were in the village's communal kitchen, where the other womenfolk are preparing lunch.

Although the Wooden Mask merchants were supposed to arrive this week, the exact day they arrived was indefinite, making it hard to plan for.

Some of the other men were helping the mayor's sons set up the stalls for the merchants to use.

With the weeding almost done, your father hollers at you from the opposite side of the farm.

“Alright, Marron. I think we're done here. Can you check on your mom and Carrot for me? I'm just…” your dad takes a deep breath and sighs, exhausted from all the weeding. “... You know?”

Man, your dad is getting old. He must be in his late thirties by now and although all the farm work has tempered his body somewhat, you can't really fight against old age.

Your dad reclines on a rocking chair on the porch, staring at nothing in particular.

“Marron, let’s go see mama!”

Your younger brother, Aubergine is about 5 years younger than you. He's older than Carrot by about an hour. Thankfully your village doesn't have any weird superstitions about twins.

“Hey mama!” You call out with your gangly little brother in tow. “Dad wants to know if lunch is ready.”

Already, you can smell the rich vegetable stews cooking in the communal kitchen. Being a farming village, meat is a rare treat for you and it seems like meat isn't on the menu for today.

Your mom comments about your dad being impatient, but her nagging is cut short when you hear the clopping of hooves in the distance. Well, her nagging wasn't really cut short per se, but you kind of tuned her out due to the new stimulus.

There was a man in a red cloak embroidered with gold. The bold colors of his cloak spoke of the man's wealth. Behind him, more caravans and more red-cloaked people follow. As they get closer, you see that they're all wearing wooden masks. It's the merchants!

“Oh! Oh! They're here. Marron, quick. Come get your father!” Your mother says, almost forgetting the stew she has cooking on the stove.

The merchants’ wares are numerous, ranging from iron tools to preserved meats. They also have some interesting looking textiles for sale, but you're a lot less interested in the common fare. No, even if you'd never be able to buy one, you always enjoy looking at the exotic-looking swords that the merchants keep in the back of the caravan.

>Mom? Why do the merchants wear the mask?
>Delegate the task to Aubergine and gawk at the merchants as they set up the stall.
>Get your father quickly! Maybe if you're fast enough, your mom will get you a treat.

>>5957970
>Mom? Why do the merchants wear the mask?
Jeez, our parents couldn't have been much older than we are now when they had us. We'd better hurry or we'll fall behind.

>>5957970
>Mom? Why do the merchants wear the mask?
TELL ME ABOUT THE (((((MERCHANTS))))), MOM!
WHY DO THEY WEAR THE MASK
IF I TAKE THEM OFF, WILL THEY DIE?
Sorry, had to get it out of my system

>>5957979
We still need that call to adventure. I don't know what we're working with here. How high or low fantasy? Are we going Recettear or Atelier games or softer setting RPG, or a bit darker or further? Or a balanced soup mix of everything?

>>5957970
>>Mom? Why do the merchants wear the mask?

>>5957970
>Mom? Why do the merchants wear the mask?

>>5957970
>>Get your father quickly! Maybe if you're fast enough, your mom will get you a treat.

>>5957970
>Mom? Why do the merchants wear the mask?

>>5957970
>Delegate the task to Aubergine and gawk at the merchants as they set up the stall.

>>5957970
>Mom? Why do the merchants wear the mask?

>>5957970
>>5957979
>>5957990
>>5957994
>>5957996
>>5958002
>>5958006
>>5958029
>>5958199
>>5958398

“I've been wondering, but why do the merchants wear the masks?” You ask your mom. You'd seen the Wooden Mask merchants about five or six times a year ever since you were small. You always found the masks kind of creepy.

“Oh, that. I'll tell you later at dinner, but go fetch your dad for me and help him pack up the Vermilion season crops for the merchants. It's not polite to talk about magic items in public…” Your mom says, her voice a bit hushed.

From what little your mom has told you, you can guess that the masks were some kind of magic item? You can only guess at the purpose since you don't know anything about magic, and it's not polite to talk about it. Magic has nothing to do with you anyway, being out on a farming village like Carp River Seis.

You help your dad load up the Vermilion crops. In the heat of the Vermilion season, most of the crops were tubers and root crops. There were also some fruits like tomatoes and watermelon, but tomato doesn't travel well so tomatoes are mostly eaten in the village they were harvested from. However, other stuff like the watermelons could be safely traded to the Wooden Mask merchants because they travel very well. They fetch a good price too because the fat earth near the river makes them grow exceptionally sweet.

While you were helping your dad load the crops onto a wheelbarrow, you saw one of the Wooden Mask people staring at the river. Unlike the other Wooden Mask merchants, she had her mask hang loosely from a cord around her neck. She was wearing a fairly simple white dress and had strikingly pale complexion, matching her near-white platinum hair. Her attire was less gaudy than the other merchants. Perhaps she's a servant or a slave?

She catches you looking at her and hastily puts her mask back on.

Well, whatever. It's none of your business.

(1/2)

>>5958457
Your dad decides that it's time for you to learn how to haggle with the merchants, so he has you observe while he trades for metal goods and tools, as well as some thread and cloth for your mother to use. Aubergine and Carrot were at that age where they need new clothes every so often because of how fast their body was growing.

You are growing fast as well, but your growth focused more on making your muscles bigger and more resilient than getting taller, so you don't need as many new clothes.

While observing your dad haggle with the merchants, you learn quite a bit about advocating for the quality for your goods. However you were somewhat distracted by the merchants’ white-clad masked attendants. One of them looked like she was trying to stare a hole into your head and you were pretty sure that it was the platinum-haired girl you saw by the river.

You have to admit, she was pretty underneath the mask, but you're not the type to fall in love because of looks.

It was time for dinner by the time haggling was over.

A nice campfire lit the communal eating area, where other people from the village were having dinner. The merchants made camp just outside Seis, so you felt pretty safe about asking your mom what's up with the mask.

Your mom's face scrunches into a frown.

“Oh, yeah, the masks are magic. Remember when you were young and we kept warning you not to play in the woods?”

You nod. There was mention of the woods housing some kind of magical aura that made it so once you enter, you're never going to find your way out. The other villagers are scared of entering the woods because of that aura, that when one of the younger kids decided to disobey the adults’ words, the kid was considered dead by the village. You thought it was pretty messed up, the way they didn't even try to find him but you never said anything about it.


“I don't know the specifics because I don't know anything about magic. But your dad told me about it before, that they make you wear the mask when the caravan is moving through the woods so the trees don't take you.”

Your dad? Could he know more about the weird masks that everyone wears? You decide to pester him to find out.

However, on your way to pester your dad, you see a girl in white staring at you from just outside the village.

>Ignore the girl and ask your dad about the masks.
>Ask the girl what her problem is. She's been stalking you the whole day.
>Try and make friends with the girl. Maybe she'll be able to tell you more about the masks.

>>5958458
>Try and make friends with the girl. Maybe she'll be able to tell you more about the masks.
Is that an ADVENTURE HOOK I spy?

>>5958458
>Try and make friends with the girl. Maybe she'll be able to tell you more about the masks.

>>5958458
>Try and make friends with the girl. Maybe she'll be able to tell you more about the masks.

>>5958458
>Try and make friends with the girl. Maybe she'll be able to tell you more about the masks.

>>5958458
>Try and make friends with the girl. Maybe she'll be able to tell you more about the masks
It begins?

>>5958458
>>Ask the girl what her problem is. She's been stalking you the whole day.

>>5958458
>Try and make friends with the girl. Maybe she'll be able to tell you more about the masks.
What good is a farmer without a hoe?

>>5958710
I want to have a long and exciting adventure first before I want our player character to plow her fields. We still have no idea what sort of setting this is or what we're in for. Anything can happen. This girl might not be the one the MC goes for, but just the one that starts the adventure. I'm more curious about the masks.

>>5958772
Befriending her is still the better option either way so the motive can be both for all we care.

>>5958799
>>5958772
>>5958710
>>5958704
>>5958698
>>5958583
>>5958554
>>5958553
>>5958545
>>5958458

“Hey, uhh… I'm Marron,” you say awkwardly as you approach the girl. You haven't talked to any girls other than your mother and Carrot and they don't count.

“Umm, I'm Chouxcreme. You can call me Choux if you like,” she says equally awkwardly.

“You're with the merchants, right? What's with the masks?” You refrain from telling her that the masks are a bit creepy, since you didn't want to offend her.

“Oh, umm. I'm not really with them. I'm from Troix. I'm just trying to learn some stuff from the merchants and find a husband along the way,” she says nonchalantly. The way she just directly mentioned she's looking for a husband is a little…

Anyway.

“The guys from my village are all ugly trolls,” she says with distaste. “Oh, but you're not bad looking for a farm boy,” she says flirtily.

She's a bit haughty. If she's from Troix then that would make her a farm girl too, but you don't say anything since you didn't want to offend her.

“I'm basically on tour until we get to Douze, then I'm coming back to Troix… I really don't want to but these Wooden Mask merchants don't like outsiders that much, unless you're paying for an escort…”

“Yeah, anyway. I wanted to ask, but I'm not sure if you know anything about it. What's with the mask?” You ask, pointing at her face.

“Ugh, I hate these stupid masks too, but we have to wear them so we don't get lost in the forest. They make it so hard to breathe…” she says, lifting up her mask to reveal a button nose and pale, pink lips.

>Well, she did mention she's looking for a husband. You just happen to be looking for a wife yourself. You should introduce her to your family.
>Ask her about the outside world. Has she been to Tarrasque? You've never been outside of Seis.
>Ask her if she'd like to go on an adventure. You have an idea about how you can obtain one of those masks…

>>5959275
>Ask her about the outside world. Has she been to Tarrasque? You've never been outside of Seis.
Let’s not get too hasty and fumble the 10 early.

>>5959275
>Ask her about the outside world. Has she been to Tarrasque? You've never been outside of Seis.

>>5959340
+1

>>5959275
>>Ask her about the outside world. Has she been to Tarrasque? You've never been outside of Seis.

>>5959275
>Ask her about the outside world. Has she been to Tarrasque? You've never been outside of Seis.

>>5959275
>Ask her about the outside world. Has she been to Tarrasque? You've never been outside of Seis.

>>5959275
>>Well, she did mention she's looking for a husband. You just happen to be looking for a wife yourself. You should introduce her to your family.

>>5959791
>>5959516
>>5959490
>>5959452
>>5959441
>>5959359
>>5959340
>>5959275

Finding out about her travels sparks an ember of excitement from within you. Perhaps in another world, you could have been like her, traveling with the Wooden Mask merchants to far-away places. You try to stop a smile from growing on your face so she doesn't find you creepy, but it's a futile thing.

“So, what's travelling like? Have you ever been to Tarrasque?” You ask, leaning on a tree, hoping the motion would distract from the dorky smile on your face.

“Oh, yeah. Tarrasque is beautiful, but also… It's weirdly difficult to live there. I just can't describe it. City people just think differently from us village-folk.” There's a flicker of pain on her face from thinking about Tarrasque, but equally, there's also a glimmer of wonder. “The whole city is on a giant mountain. They say it's called Tarrasque because it used to be a monster called the Tarrasque… but I just can't imagine something that huge and still being alive.” Her breath catches a little.

You've heard of the terrible monsters that used to live in Al-Kimia during the time of the Alchemists. Your mom always used to tell you those stories when you were misbehaving. Even now that you know better, you can't imagine willingly living on the remains of one.

“Its… Uhh, are there Alchemists on Tarrasque?” You ask tentatively. You know it's a stupid question, but…

Choux starts laughing. “I'm… I'm sorry,” she tries to say as she catches her breath from laughing. “Alchemists don't exist, at least not anymore. We can only copy what they once did with…” She lowers her voice. “Magic.”

You never quite understood why people were so touchy about bringing up magic. Maybe it's because everyone practically worships the Alchemists and their works and magic is just an imitation of their works.

Wasn't it the Alchemists’ fault the forests in Al-Kimia were so dangerous?

“Whoah, sorry. I didn't mean to offend you. Sorry for bringing up the M-word!” Choux apologizes profusely.

It was then that you noticed that your smile had turned into a frown.

“No, no, sorry. I'm not offended at all,” you say defensively. “I was just thinking about the Alchemists.”

“Huh? Are you religious or something?” Choux asks.

Before you could answer, you feel someone clap their hand down your shoulder. “So Marron. Why don't you introduce your lady friend to everyone else?” Your dad jokes.

Your cheeks redden. Sure, Choux was a little bit creepy for stalking you… But she was awfully pretty underneath that mask.

(1/2)

>>5960104
The night passes with you introducing Choux to everyone, but introductions had to be quick as Choux had to return to the merchant caravan before they noticed she was gone.

It had been three turns of the moon before anything else interesting happened. In that time, you managed to pick up a hobby.

>Skinning and butchering the animals that wandered out of the woods surrounding Seis. Being able to more easily obtain meat had been a treat.
>Woodcraft and carpentry. There was just something meditative about turning base wood into something beautiful.
>Strangely enough, you had a talent for mending clothes. Normally, it's a woman's job, but since you're unmarried, your mother decided to teach you so you could take care of yourself.
>Nothing in particular. However, you'd been hanging out with Kale. He's older than you by about two years and married to boot. You'd been helping him take care of his yearling child in exchange for his stories from before he settled down.


(Sorry I keep getting carried away and making the updates too long.)

>>5960105
>Woodcraft and carpentry. There was just something meditative about turning base wood into something beautiful.

>>5960105
>Woodcraft and carpentry. There was just something meditative about turning base wood into something beautiful.
Maybe we can make a mask...?

>>5960105
>Woodcraft and carpentry. There was just something meditative about turning base wood into something beautiful.
Make cool figurines and trinkets.

>>5960105
>keep getting carried away and making the updates too long
WOW! We get MORE CONTENT!

>>5960183
Too much good content and we’ll all collectively melt like those nazis in Indiana Jones.

>>5960105
>Skinning and butchering the animals that wandered out of the woods surrounding Seis. Being able to more easily obtain meat had been a treat.

>>5960105
>Strangely enough, you had a talent for mending clothes. Normally, it's a woman's job, but since you're unmarried, your mother decided to teach you so you could take care of yourself.

Cool stuff thus far, QM! It's got some interesting vibes.

>>5960105
>Woodcraft and carpentry. There was just something meditative about turning base wood into something beautiful.

>>5960105
>>5960137
>>5960154
>>5960156
>>5960183
>>5960213
>>5960247
>>5960305
>>5961076

In the weeks leading up to the Amber season, you'd taken up doing a bit of woodworking. Of course, you do the proper reverence rituals when taking wood from the forest because your mom got weirdly agitated if you didn't.

There are countless tales of the forest just taking people for not giving it the proper reverence. You'd never been a big believer in that, but the stories passed from your maternal grandmother (Alchemists bless her soul) meant that your mother was deathly scared of anything to do with the forest. Of course, that stuff feels silly to you because your house is made of wood, and nothing bad ever happened because your dad helped cut down a few trees.

You'd met with Chouxcreme once during the Amber season and showed her the nice chairs you made. She helped vouch for you and get you a good price for them, which meant that your family was able to trade for some extra meat.

The village had been coming to you for help in building a couple of wooden knicknacks. You'd managed to save quite a bit of coin– almost as much as your dad had initially offered you.

However, rather than take the opportunity to travel somewhere like Tarrasque, you find yourself eagerly awaiting the times that Choux would come visit your village. While you could certainly visit her in Tarrasque, you felt like there was something special about catching up with her every other month or so.

Choux had been rather obvious about the idea of marriage from the start, and you're starting to warm up to the idea. You'd just never met a girl be so assertive about it because just about every girl in town is a year or two younger than you and would dance around the subject whenever it came up. Honestly, you like the attention you get from Choux.

It was a clear Amber season evening. It was neither too hot nor too cold, characteristic of the season of Earth. You'd heard from Choux that people in the city don't generally think of Amber as its own season and merely the transition from Vermilion to Glinting, which sounds silly to you as someone from a farming village. The way you take care of crops in the Amber season is very different from the way you take care of crops during Vermilion or Glinting.

You were working on a bench when you heard someone making a commotion at the Mayor's lodgings. Seis was a small enough town that there weren't any secrets among the villagers.

Which made it all the stranger that the person making a commotion at the Mayor's house was someone you didn't know.

The noise wound up disturbing your dad, who made his way to the unknown person. Before he went though, he told you to stay put because something didn't feel right.

>>5961081
It had been about an hour and the sun had fully set before your dad returned.

“Marron, there's something very important I need to tell you. Don't argue with me on this because I have my reasons, but get your mom, Aubergine and Carrot. You need to skip town for about a month or so,” your dad said, his tone serious.

“T-that's sudden. What's going on?” You ask.

“The guy that was making a ruckus at the Mayor's house was from Cinq. Apparently bandits came out of the forest and ransacked their town. The people who managed to escape are warning the other towns.”

“The forest? That's impossible. All the stories say it should be impossible to navigate them without…” You wiggle your fingers, a sort of shorthand for the taboo topic of magic.

“You're right, it should be impossible. But just to be safe…”

“I'm old enough. Let me fight too,” you say, gripping your hammer tightly.

“Listen, I want you to go with your mother because otherwise there wouldn't be anyone to take care of her and Aubergine is too young. I'm not sure if I'm gonna make it out of this so I need you to take care of the family.”

You wanted to argue, to make your dad let you stay and fight. However, you're not really sure what else you can say to your dad without wasting time and putting your family in danger.

There are four well worn paths that lead out of your town. One of them leads to Cinq, where the possible danger of the bandits come from. The other three lead to opportunities.

>To Sept, in order to warn the other towns of bandits.
>To Opule, the city of opportunity and glistening coin
>To Tarrasque, the town of danger and adventure, also where Chouxcreme studies the way of the masked merchants.

>>5961083
>To Tarrasque, the town of danger and adventure, also where Chouxcreme studies the way of the masked merchants.
The masked merchants can navigate the forest just fine…convenient. I don’t see a reason why we can’t investigate a little bit. Maybe pay off Choux for some information in return for a damn good night.

>>5961083
>To Tarrasque, the town of danger and adventure, also where Chouxcreme studies the way of the masked merchants.

We really should've heeded the call to adventure right away, huh. Then there'd be no need to motivate us with the destruction of our hometown

>>5961083
>To Tarrasque, the town of danger and adventure, also where Chouxcreme studies the way of the masked merchants.

I'd vote for Sept, but the other refugees are off to warn the other towns. Heading to Tarrasque to take care of our family while also letting Chouxcreme know what's up seems more prudent.

>>5961083
>To Sept, in order to warn the other towns of bandits.

>>5961083
>To Tarrasque, the town of danger and adventure, also where Chouxcreme studies the way of the masked merchants.
This isn't just Marron's call to adventure, it's Choux's too.

>>5961105
Imagine if we did go on the call to adventure immediately but the town still gets BANDITS offscreen without us knowing until much later

>>5961134
*Quietly shuffles DM notes*

>>5961139
It's normal for most events to be set in stone in quests unless the players accidentally interfere in one of the cogs, relax buddy

>>5961141
>>5961134
>>5961123
>>5961106
>>5961102
>>5961088
>>5961083

You prepare to leave, but it was a rushed thing due to your dad's urgency. You'd only managed to bring a couple of clothes and your grandfather's lucky knife.

Aubergine and Carrot were confused and scared, not understanding why it was so imperative to skip town. Your mom was scared too, but it was less because of the bandits and more because you had to travel through the forest.

Even with the safety of the path to Tarrasque, your mother is still deathly afraid of the strange enchantments that weave their way through Al-Kimian forests.

“Let's… Let's go,” your mother said with a tremble in her voice.

You had to travel light, but thankfully you had the savings from your carpentry hobby as well as the savings that your dad intended to use to send you to Tarrasque.

It was risky, travelling by night. Even with the safety the roads provided, strange monsters lurked when there was little light. The creatures, once animals, had been mutated by the thick alchemical miasma that permeates the forests of Al-Kimia.

That miasma was repelled by Waypoint Quartzes in order to keep the paths safe. However since the Waypoint Quartzes were mere magic and not true Alchemy, they were still prone to being destroyed by the occasional monster that wanders onto the paths.

Thank your lucky stars that it wasn't the case when you were travelling.

The moon was high in the sky, shining its sharp crescent light upon the first Waypoint Quartz. It was a good place to rest as any.

3 people please roll 1d2 and I'll take the highest as your Ordee sixe.

(Rolls in Al-Kimia story consist of two d20 rolls. The first die is the “Order Dice”, which determines how successfull you are. The second die, rolled by the QM is the “Chaos Dice”, which determines shenanigans. When the Chaos Dice is higher than the Order Dice, bad things happen.

The Chaos Dice isn't all bad though, and it only causes strange things to happen. Ideally, you want the Chaos Dice to be as high as possible without exceeding the Order Dice. Under this system, an Order Die of 20 and a Chaos Die of 20 is the best possible result, while an Order die of 1 and a Chaos die of 20 is the worst result.)

>>5961837

>3 people please roll 1d2 and I'll take the highest as your Ordee sixe.

3 people please roll 1d20 and I'll take the highest as your Order Dice*

Rolled 5 (1d20)

>>5961837

Rolled 1 (1d20)

>>5961837
Interesting dice system you've got, DM! Let's see if we get into shenaniganry.

>>5961850
Huh, didn't see that coming. Not every day you're happy to have rolled a 1, but I suppose that in itself is a mixed blessing.

>>5961852
It's 'take the highest" of 3 rolls for Order Dice anon...

>>5961866
Oh God…Anon #3 we’re counting on you.

Rolled 6 (1d20)

>>5961837
>Waypoint Quartz
If this is a reference, I think I get it. If not, I'm a dummy.

>>5961866
Ah, I see. That makes more sense-- so it's our three dice against your single die. Gotcha.

Well, here's hoping shenaniganry will be something we can deal with.

Rolled 1 (1d20)

>>5961884
>>5961852
>>5961850

Chaos Dice vs the highest roll of 6.

>>5961917
Gonna have dinner first, but wow those are some kind of rolls.

>>5961918
If 20 for Chaos and Order is great, ai wonder what both being increidbly low results in? Just... A dull and uneventful trip? I guess we'll see...

>>5961884
To what? I thought it was one to fast travel points in video games

>>5961921
>>5961920
>>5961918
>>5961917
>>5961892
>>5961884
>>5961873
>>5961866
>>5961852
>>5961850
>>5961841
>>5961840
>>5961837


The Waypoint Quartz shines a bright beam of light onto the next Waypoint. You follow the soft ray onto the next waypoint that indicates you're almost halfway to Tarrasque.

From the moon's high position, it was once more beginning to sink. The darkness being more intense just before dawn was not just a pithy saying. If it weren't for the magical light of the Waypoints, you wouldn't be able to see anything at all.

All around you, the forest is full of the sounds of animals. Although humans are barred from the forest, the animals can navigate the miasmatic forests just fine.

You're surprised when an animal crosses your path. It looks like a white deer with pale pink flowers growing from its antlers. For a moment, it stares at you, wondering if you're dangerous. For a monster, it almost looked elegant.

Your mother was terrified though, and her scream frightened the white deer away.

Following behind the white deer were wolves. You'd heard of them in stories, but nothing could have prepared you for how large a single wolf is, let alone how much space an entire pack takes. You move in between your mother and the wolves, but the wolves pay you no mind. It seems that their quarry is the white deer.

(1/2)

>>5961948
From out of the forest, something comes out at great speed. You almost thought it was a bear, but it was an armored human. He was way more agile than his armor should allow and his tackle had taken down one of the wolves.

Wounded, the wolf flees into the forest.

… Wait, what? Did that guy just come out of the forest?

“Dammit, Offal. You nearly crashed into that lanky guy over there,” says a woman who was just walking out of the woods.

“Sorry, Leber. We can't let the wolves get the Albedo. Gizzard will have my head if we let anyone else kill it.”

‘Offal’ turns to you.

“As for you, isn't it a bit late for you four to be in the forest at night?”

Recognizing Offal as a threat, the wolves begin circling him. Offal had been distracted by talking to you and before you knew it, you, your family and Offal had been surrounded by wolves.

“Ah shit. Here we go. Leber, get the stupid Albedo. I need to make sure these guys don't get killed.”

As if by instinct, your hands find themselves gripping the stone-encrusted rusty knife that your father gave you.

You had to make sure you protect your family.

The wolves attempted to attack Carrot and Aubergine, however you quickly use the knife to dissuade the wolves from attacking your mom and siblings.

The knife surprisingly slid easily into the wolf's ribs, despite being a rusty and brittle-looking piece of crap.

The wolf you stabbed flees into the forest, leaving you and Offal with two wolves circling around you. After you stabbed one of their packmates, the remaining two seemed much more hesitant to attack.

Offal raises his arms in the air and makes loud noises. He looks like an idiot, but apparently that was enough to scare the wolves off. If it looks stupid but it works… then it isn't stupid.

“Sorry for scaring you folks like that. We're on a mission so I can't chat much. If you're ever looking for a job, come find me. My name is Offal Barbacoa, from the Glinting Silver Guild. I'll put in a word for you.”

Offal leaves just as quickly as he came. As you sheath your knife, you can't help noticing that it was completely clean of blood.

The rest of your trip to Tarrasque had been uneventful. Uneventful is good, since you had your family with you.

Tarrasque was much larger than you ever thought a city could be. It was on a mountain that resembled those spiralling shells that the Wooden Mask merchants occasionally had on display.

After a guard grills you with questions you're allowed to proceed into the city.

It was very early morning, since you'd travelled through the night to put as much distance between you and Seis as possible.

[Achievement Unlocked: Avert your family's fate with the bandits.]

What do you do first?
>Go find Chouxcreme so she can orient you on city life
>Take up Offal's offer and try to find a job at the Glinting Silver guild
>Help your family find lodgings first.

Now that we've made it to Tarrasque, how are you guys feeling about the quest so far?

>>5961921
In the Trail series of JRPGs paths are protected from monsters by technomagical lamps made from magical crystal called quartz. Replacing a failed quartz in a lamp is a traditional low-level quest there.
>>5961949
>Help your family find lodgings first.
>>5961951
Nothing much happened so far

>>5961949
>Help your family find lodgings first.

>>5961951
Pretty interesting thus far! You've got daily updates, which is more than most QMs can say, and a simple, yet interesting 'Personality' system to go along with the dice system.

Overall, your writing is pretty solid, and the vibes are quite comfy. I'll be reading the threads with great interest, but will reserve my judgement until later.

All in all... keep it up, QM!

>>5961949
>Help your family find lodgings first.

>>5961949
>Help your family find lodgings first.

>>5961951
I'm fine with this slow start. We are thread 1 and we're getting into the story and setting. I know you'll make things pick up eventually when appropriate. Nice dice system too

>>5961961
>Trails
I just fucking downloaded all of them except the latest one from gog-games.to before it closed last week. What timing

>>5961951
I'm enjoying it! Cozy vibe, and a neat setting. I appreciate the worldbuilding and agricultural, ecological focus so far.

File: Marron.png (6 KB, 300x400)

6 KB PNG

not an update, but I think you guys would enjoy this ms paint doodle I made of Marron.

>>5962049
He is certainly maroon, yes

>>5961949
>Help your family find lodgings first.

>>5962049
Cute!

>CAPCHA: TPKK
I sure hope not!

>>5957990
There there bud

>>5962049
Looks like a knockoff JRPG protag. I approve!
>>5961951
It’s cool nice and comfy and SFW. I can’t wait for anonymous to turn Marron into a bloodthirsty horndog murderhobo that brings about the rebirth of alchemical weapons and the civilizational collapse of Al-Kimia.

>>5962174
Also, does the not!Arab influence stops at the name or are we gonna be facing emirs, sheikhs, bazaars and raiders from the desert of Agrabah?

>>5961949
>Help your family find lodgings first.

>>5962604
>>5962176
>>5962174
>>5962170
>>5962081
>>5962075
>>5962051
>>5962017
>>5962005
>>5961990
>>5961977
>>5961961
>>5961951
>>5961949

Your siblings are dead on their feet from walking the whole night until morning. You and your mom had to carry them from the last waypoint to Tarrasque and your mom isn't looking too good either.

You manage to find an Inn near the north side of Tarrasque where you came from. It was disorienting just how large Tarrasque was, when you've only lived in Seis your whole life. Even just the north district with its numerous taverns and businesses was already four times the size of the entirety of your hometown.

You'd managed to get settled into an inn while your mother tries to find something more long term. Staying at an inn would be prohibitively expensive, even if you're only expecting to stay for a month.

It takes most of the day, but with your help, your mother manages to find an apartment that you can rent for a bit. The savings you had helped alleviate the strain on your country-family finances.

You'd never seen so much coin exchanged in your life, since most of the bartering that your town does was in exchange for goods. It almost makes you wonder how your dad managed to save so much actual cash.

It doesn't take too long for you to settle in, because you'd only managed to snag a few clothes. … and your father's lucky knife.

You inspect the knife. You were sure you'd stabbed that wolf last night, but the knife is completely dry. It also seems a little less caked in rust, but you aren't sure if that wasn't just your tired eyes playing tricks on you.

It took about a week for you to settle down, although Carrot and Aubergine wouldn't stop asking about your dad. You're not really sure what to tell them, since they're pretty young. You certainly wouldn't be able to tell them that your dad died fighting off bandits so you four could escape.

As money starts to dwindle, it's becoming imperative that you need to find a job. After all, you'd be a pretty useless son if you couldn't even take care of your family after your dad explicitly told you to take care of them.

>You buy some wood to set up a meager carpentry business. There are plenty of carpenters in Tarrasque, but based on how busy they all look, Tarrasque could use more.
>Visit Chouxcreme and ask her if there were any jobs you could do for the Wooden Mask merchants.
>You remember that Offal offered you a job at the Glinting Silver guild. Adventuring seems pretty lucrative…

>>5962632

Whoops forgot tripcode.

>>5962632
>Visit Chouxcreme and ask her if there were any jobs you could do for the Wooden Mask merchants.

We've got a contact here, we might as well use it. She works with the merchants, so she might know where the coin is.

>>5962639
+1
Offal's contact in the Glinting Silver guild can come later

>>5962632
>Visit Chouxcreme and ask her if there were any jobs you could do for the Wooden Mask merchants.

>>5962632
>Visit Chouxcreme and ask her if there were any jobs you could do for the Wooden Mask merchants.

>>5962632
>You remember that Offal offered you a job at the Glinting Silver guild. Adventuring seems pretty lucrative…

>>5963609
>>5962893
>>5962673
>>5962669
>>5962639
>>5962633
>>5962632

It took you a bit to find the Wooden Mask merchants headquarters. Despite what you initially believed, the Wooden Mask merchants weren't well known in Tarrasque. Only after describing their iconic wooden masks were people able to point you in the right direction.

The Wooden Mask merchant headquarters was a marketplace filled with various goods. The sound of haggling and the scent of cured meats and exotic fruits permeated the air. It was busier than you expected it to be, but apparently the Wooden Mask marketplace was one of the less busy marketplaces in Tarrasque.

In the safety of the city, the merchants opted not to wear the wooden masks that theybwere known for, choosing instead to let them hang loosely from their necks. It certainly made them look more friendly as opposed to their intimidating and commanding presence when they were trading with the townships along Carp River.

You ask around if anyone knows Chouxcreme, describing her as a pretty girl with platinum hair. After asking around a bit, you're told that she works under someone named Raisin d'Etre. That's certainly a rich sounding surname. It doesn't take you long to find Choux after that.

“Marron! Is that you!?” Choux exclaims, running up to you and giving you a hug. Although you've only talked about two or three times before, you'd found yourself fast friends. You were even considering proposing since Choux hadn't been shy about her interest in you. “I was worried. I heard that Seis got raided by bandits. I wasn't sure you'd made it out alive.”

News travels fast. The bandit raid had only been a couple of weeks ago, you weren't expecting Choux to already know about it. You're still setting down roots in Tarrasque.

“So, I actually came here for a reason.” You start explaining to Choux about how you were looking for a job before the money you'd saved from carpentry dried up.

“I'm not sure what to tell you, Marron. The Wooden Mask merchants aren't exactly actively recruiting since we have to worry about stepping on the toes of the larger guilds. I'm sure there's something for you to do around here, but you won't be paid as well as a full member,” Choux responds, a bit embarrassed that she couldn't help.

>Tell her it's fine for you to work with less pay, as long as you have a job.
>Ask her what toes the Wooden Mask merchants will be stepping on… Maybe you can do something about it.
>Decide to shop around for better offers. Although you'd prefer to work with Choux, you also want to provide a good lifestyle for your family.
>Work on getting set up as an independent carpenter.

>>5963665
>Decide to shop around for better offers. Although you'd prefer to work with Choux, you also want to provide a good lifestyle for your family.
Don’t shit where you eat.

>>5963665
>Decide to shop around for better offers. Although you'd prefer to work with Choux, you also want to provide a good lifestyle for your family.

It's nothing personal, we just have mouths to feed. Hope the offer stays open regardless though.

>>5963665
>Decide to shop around for better offers. Although you'd prefer to work with Choux, you also want to provide a good lifestyle for your family.

>>5963675
+1
There must be no shortage of work to be found around here, and with no deliberately convoluted restrictions and requirements for jobs like in our real life hellscape finding work is easy in this fantasy setting. Now if those jobs pay well enough to support Marron's family without Marron suffering for it? That remains to be seen

>>5963670
Wise

>>5963665
>Decide to shop around for better offers. Although you'd prefer to work with Choux, you also want to provide a good lifestyle for your family.

>>5963665
>Tell her it's fine for you to work with less pay, as long as you have a job.
What 'doesn't pay as well' by Choux's standards might still be more than we need.
"Raisin d'Etre"? Cute.

>>5963958
>>5963859
>>5963846
>>5963801
>>5963675
>>5963670
>>5963665

Hearing the amount that Choux quoted, it would have been enough for your family to get by if your mother also gets a job. Your mother is a surprisingly capable seamstress and cook. However, if both of you work, that would leave no one to take care of Carrot and Aubergine.

At age 10, soon to be 11, your siblings are surprisingly capable of fending for themselves. However, given the trauma of having to leave your dad for dead and moving from Seis to Tarrasque, you'd rather take the load off both your mom and your siblings.

The amount that Choux quoted to you was a lowball according to her. The merchants being an adventuring guild means that there were laws that restricted how much they could pay non-members. You don't see any sense in that law, but whoever is in charge of Tarrasque clearly thought it was important to restrict guild business and who are you to argue with the people in charge? Until recently you were just a farm boy.

Choux is actually really nice and offers to introduce you to a carpenter atelier that her master Raisin regularly works with. Unlike adventuring guilds, craftsmen's pay isn't restricted by law so you'll be able to get the full worth of your money.

Raisin himself was a jolly guy who was all to happy to send Choux on an errand to that same carpenter. He says something about loving to help the youth and a rising tide raising all ships, but all of that goes over your head.

You help Choux load her cart up with wood, and even help her pull it along. She's already helping you so much and helping her with some manual labor is the least you can do.

Entering the atelier district, you're surprised at the high concentration of guardsmen. There seems to be some commotion that they're helping to quell because there are people running the HELL away from the atelier district.

“Halt! What's your business in the Atelier district!?” Says a guard in polished steel armor. Choux shows him an invoice for the wood.

“Haven't you heard? There's an infestation of Darkrats emerging from the sewers. The atelier district is dangerous right now,” the guard explains. “Although since you're here on guild business, I can send you on your way. Just stay to the areas with guards.”

((Thread, please roll me a d20, best of three for your Order dice))

Rolled 12 (1d20)

>>5964654

Rolled 14 (1d20)

>>5964654

Rolled 9 (1d20)

>>5964654

>>5964674
>>5964843
>>5964873
Not great, not terrible!

Rolled 7 (1d20)

>>5964674
>>5964843
>>5964873
>>5965586

Chaos Roll

>>5965670
>>5965586
>>5964873
>>5964843
>>5964674
>>5964654

You ask Choux what Darkrats are, though you can guess what they are from the name.

“Darkrats are nasty and their bites can cause disease,” she says. Along the way, the density of guardsmen increase, then sharply decrease to near nothing. Something about the atmosphere tells you you've crossed some kind of threshold.

“Do you feel that? It's alchemical miasma…” Choux said. She changes her stance immediately and draws her weapon. She holds a heavy-looking mace with both hands.

Following her lead, you draw the only weapon you have on hand– your grandfather's rusty knife.

The strange feeling you have, which Choux called the feeling of ‘alchemical miasma’ grows stronger until you see a swarm of dog-sized rats emerge from the alleys.

The Darkrats had fur black as pitch and pink, scaly flesh along their extremities. Their tail was long and worm-like, covered in the same scaly flesh that covers their hands and feet. Most important of all was that they stank of sewage.

Choux rushes towards the swarm and takes a swing, sending one of the Darkrats flying. However, one Darkrat barely makes a dent in the entire swarm. The Darkrats seem scared of Choux, and a circle free of Darkrats immediately forms around her.

Not wanting her to get surrounded, you make your move and use your grandfather's knife to slash into the rats. At this close a range, you're in danger of getting bitten, but thankfully the rats were cowardly.

Between you and Choux, you're able to rapidly thin the Darkrat horde. As the pile of Darkrat corpses accumulated, the already skittish Darkrats were running away instead of trying to fight back.

You finished the fight completely unscathed… Strangely enough, your grandfather's knife, which had been slicing through the Darkrats as if they weren't there, was completely devoid of blood. Was it just you or was your grandfather's knife getting considerably less rusty? You can see the glint of shiny metal among the scattered pebbles adhered to the knife's blade.

While you were admiring the make of your grandfather's knife, Choux calls your attention. She's deep into the Darkrat corpses, checking their teeth.

“Hey Marron! Help me check the rats. There might be an alchemical core in them,” she says. There's a glint of greed in her eyes as she inspects each rat's teeth.

>>5966419
You're not sure what an ‘alchemical core’ looks like, but you help check anyway. It doesn't take you long to find something that COULD be an alchemical core. One of the rats had a purple tooth that glistened like jewel, with a gold crown at the base that looks like it was man made instead of something that could have formed naturally.

“Good job, Marron! You found one! This should fetch a good price. I'll split the money with you since you helped beat the rats. Have you considered becoming an adventurer? With talent like that, you could easily get into the big three.”

With the way Choux fights, you had no doubt she could clear the rats by herself. However you weren't one to look a gift horse in the mouth so you gladly accept Choux's offer to split.

It doesn't take long to get to the carpenter's after that. You helped unload the cart of wood while Choux hypes you up to the guy in charge.

“Hmm, let's see what the kid can do, then,” mutters the old carpenter. It seems your soon to be boss's name was ‘Acorne Carpenter’, although he wasn't particularly rich. He was one of those people who had to take a surname because their first name was very common and it made things easier for the taxmen.

You decide to show off the techniques you've learned by yourself by doing carpentry back at Seis.

“Wooden pegs, eh? You're not from around here are you. Did you learn carpentry from somewhere that doesn't have a lot of metal? Your carpentry is a little rough, but you have a lot of potential if you learned all this by yourself,” Acorne comments.

>Thank him and take the job. The price he quoted was enough for your family to live comfortably.
>Knowing the proper price range for carpentry, you think you can make it on your own as an independent carpenter. (Stress +1)
>Something about fighting those Darkrats spoke to you. You think you'd rather be an adventurer. (Stress +2 >> Stress+1)

>>5966422
>>5966419

((Everyone, I have an announcement to make. Since my vacation is already over, I can't keep updating nearly daily as I have been. However, there's still more content before thread 1 concludes, so I'll try to update as often as I can. Sadly, I'm not a NEET so my IRL job takes priority. thank you everyone so far for participating.))

>>5966429
Once a day or like 4-5 times a week is still good, please don't die or flake this quest when it's already this nice and you posted about it a few times on /qtg/ and you have a cool logo and all that

Oh right my vote
>Something about fighting those Darkrats spoke to you. You think you'd rather be an adventurer. (Stress +2 >> Stress+1)
We can send money to our family, can't we? Also I'm glad that went well because I know from many works that the "clear the rats" beginner mission (which you also had here, great job QM!) can turn wrong and deadly real fast

>>5966422
Replying properly>>5966480

>>5966480
don't worry, I'm not gonna flake. I'll warn you guys when we're getting near the end of the first thread though because after the last event I have planned, my next vacation is somewhere in July.

>>5966422
>Something about fighting those Darkrats spoke to you. You think you'd rather be an adventurer. (Stress +2 >> Stress+1)
Gotta impress Choux if we wanna stand a chance.

>>5966422
>Something about fighting those Darkrats spoke to you. You think you'd rather be an adventurer. (Stress +2 >> Stress+1)

>>5966422
>>Thank him and take the job. The price he quoted was enough for your family to live comfortably.

>>5966422
>Something about fighting those Darkrats spoke to you. You think you'd rather be an adventurer. (Stress +2 >> Stress+1)

>>5966429
No problem QM, thanks for the heads up! Regardless, we hope you can keep up regular updates here when you're available.

>>5966422
>Something about fighting those Darkrats spoke to you. You think you'd rather be an adventurer. (Stress +2 >> Stress+1)

It's a lucrative job, if a little dangerous. And we keep getting into combat anyway, so we might as well, heh.

>>5966422
>Something about fighting those Darkrats spoke to you. You think you'd rather be an adventurer. (Stress +2 >> Stress+1)
Before something happens that forces us.

>>5966800
>>5966774
>>5966749
>>5966637
>>5966614
>>5966607
>>5966603
>>5966482
>>5966480
>>5966429
>>5966422
>>5966419
While Choux and Acorne discuss the particulars of your employment, your eyes glaze over. You can't stop thinking about your fight with the Darkrats and the way it made you feel on the inside. Tarrasque is the city of adventure and now that you've had a taste, you can't seem to get it off your tongue.

“Choux, sorry. Let's take a raincheck on this. There's something else I want to do…”

“Wh- what? What do you mean?”

There's a glint in Acorne's eye as he evaluates you. “What else could this boy mean, girlie? I can recognize that look from me youth! He's clearly had a taste of what Tarrasque can provide. Adventure! Adventure is a man's romance.”

You try to speak, but Acorne's completely understood what you meant. Choux is dumbfounded by your decision but also seems to recognize that she can't change your mind.

“Don't worry m'boy. The job's here when the allure of adventure fades away.”

“W-well if you're going to get into adventuring, you better understand what that means here in Tarrasque,” Choux explains.

She explains how there are three major guilds in Tarrasque who offer adventuring careers. Lord Roquefort Briar had laws instituted that severely limits what activities that guilds in partake in, which includes recruitment.

The first among these three major guilds is the Briarguard. The Briarguard is considered the gold standard for guild activity. Of course, you can intuit from the name that this is the guild officially recognized by Lord Briar. They offer lessons in fighting with the spear and the sword and shield. Alongside these lessons, members of the Briarguard are required to study and take tests on civics and Al-Kimia's history.

The second among the three major guilds is the Church of Living Alchemy. They're a bit more like a religious group than a proper guild, but they hold territories even outside Tarrasque's jurisdiction. If you want to travel a lot, then the Church of Living Alchemy is the place to go to. They teach mace and staff fighting, but you're required to pledge allegiance to the Church and act in their best interest.

The last guild is the Glinting Silver. Although by law, the Briarguard's activities are the gold standard, most people instead think of the Glinting Silver guild as Tarrasque's prime adventurer's guild. They teach broadsword and knife fighting. Unlike the other two guilds, the Glinting Silver doesn't have any ideological philosophies to push. Great if you want freedom, not so great if you want help from your seniors since everyone is in it for the money.

>>5966889
The Glinting Silver will usually help you join a smaller guild if you manage to fail their entrance exam, but the Glinting Silver is the easiest guild to join by far.

>Apply to join the Briarsguard
>Apply to join the Church of Living Alchemy
>Apply to join the Glinting Silver… naturally, you'll try to leverage being referred by Offal.

>>5966891
>Apply to join the Glinting Silver… naturally, you'll try to leverage being referred by Offal.
They teach knife fighting. We have a knife. It's all coming together.

>>5966906
+1

>>5966889
>Apply to join the Glinting Silver… naturally, you'll try to leverage being referred by Offal.

Money's not a bad goal, when you're in it to feed a family.

>>5966891
>Apply to join the Glinting Silver… naturally, you'll try to leverage being referred by Offal.

>>5966891
>Apply to join the Glinting Silver… naturally, you'll try to leverage being referred by Offal.

>>5966889
>>5966906
>>5966928
>>5967031
>>5967059
>>5967118
Another week passes without incident. Thankfully, your savings hadn't been completely depleted, but you and your mom have started to get worried. You really need a job.

You start your day by visiting Choux at the Wooden Mask merchants’ headquarters. She seems a bit miffed at you for blowing off the job that she referred you to, but she understands how easy it is to get swept up in Tarrasque's atmosphere.

You head to the Glinting Silver guildhall which wasn't all hard to find, actually. Unlike the Wooden Mask merchants’ guildhall which was a busy market, the Glinting Silver guildhall was positively palatial. You could easily fit Seis inside the guildhall.

In the hall, there were two marketplaces. One was open to the public and another one that was members only. You head to the reception and ask how to join.

Behind the counter was an effeminate man with green hair and thick make up. He was doing his nails while simultaneously doing his duties. Truly a difficult balancing act.

“Oh, honey. In order to join, you need to get assessed by the doctors first. Head down the east hall and you'll find a room labeled ‘Clinic’ and get assessed there.”

You stare at him blankly.

“I don't know how to read,” you say with a straight face. Although you can do some basic math, reading was still somewhat beyond you.

“Oh, just head down that hall, then. You can ask the people for directions. The clinic tends to get a bit full, so you can't miss it… Although I really advise you to avail of our reading course…” The green-haired man goes on about the various courses the Glinting Silver has to offer. There were courses on mathematics, reading, and even how to temper your body.

Ignoring the man's pitch, you head down the east hall. Despite not knowing how to read the countless directions strewn about the hall, the clinic wasn't all that difficult to find. There were plenty of injured people trying to get help at the clinic.

You make some small talk with your future seniors before you get called in.

The doctor is an old man named Croissant. He puts you through a series of tests that you can't discern the purpose of.

“Your body is remarkably tempered,” he comments. “Have you been doing manual labor?”

>>5967470
You nod. Until recently, you've been doing farm work and although you're almost three weeks out of work, the tone of your body hasn't had time to diminish yet.

“Alright, I'll write you a recommendation to skip the body tempering classes. You can go straight to weapons. It's not every day we see someone so young with a good physique.”

Taking the paper Croissant gives you, you head back to the green haired man.

“Alright, it's a little late for you to start lessons today, but you can come back tomorrow. Go ahead and pick your classes, but we need you to at least know how to read or do some basic math, and then finish one of our weapon courses.”

>Tell him you already know how to do math, and ask if you can just do the weapon course.
>Learn reading
>Learn math
>Learn broadsword fighting
>Learn knife fighting.

>>5967471
>Learn reading
A critical skill
>Learn knife fighting
I want to be a knife protag. Swords are overrated and overdone

>>5967471
>Learn reading.
>Learn knife fighting.

If we're going to be in the city, we'll need to learn how to read sooner or later. And knife fighting is a good skill for someone who has a lucky knife.

>>5967471
>Learn reading
>Learn knife fighting.
Lots of people named after foods. Wonder if Omelette will make an appearance.

>>5967567
We're getting a lot of classic European foods or ordinary ingredients as names. Now that I think about it, that combined with the setting and a few other details are starting to feel similar to Wakfu and Dofus to me. I already mentioned the Magical Vacation/Starsign similarity earlier >>5957570 >>5957590.
Jojo part 5 food names when?

>>5967471
>Learn knife fighting
>Learn reading
In that order of importance.

>>5967471
>Learn reading
>Learn knife fighting.

>>5967471
>>Learn math

>>5967867
>>5967785
>>5967722
>>5967586
>>5967567
>>5967493
>>5967483
>>5967471


Your experience in the Glinting Silver Guildhall so far tells you that the place really wasn't made with people who can't read in mind. The mission board didn't have anyone to help people who can't read.

You decide to sign up for a morning class in reading since you're used to waking up early for farm work. For the afternoon, you sign up for a knife fighting class.

The classes were pricy and ate into your budget, but the sooner you can finish these classes, the sooner you can get jobs to make up for them.

You do surprisingly well in both classes. The reading one was just rote memorization. You go from reading individual letters, to reading words, and finally to reading passages from texts by the end of the week. According to the instructor, it was good that you learned to read fairly young since learning how to read gets harder the older you get.

You had a little mishap in the knife fighting class where you thought you were supposed to use real knives and brought your lucky knife.

“No, no, no! Put that away, boy!” said the instructor. “Weapons don't have eyes. Use one of the training knives instead.”

You're not entirely sure what he meant by ‘weapons don't have eyes’ but you could guess that you did something wrong by bringing a real knife to class.

Like the reading class, the knife fighting class was more rote memorization, except this time, you used your whole body. You were taught the most effective way to slash, stab and defend. There was a bit of dodging involved too.

The end of each knife fighting class was finished off by a sparring match. You make quick friends with your sparring partner, Langoustine. He was about the same age as you and was already married with a kid on the way.

You learn that his family is from a long line of innkeepers. His aunts and uncles ran a series of inns in Tarrasque, but he decided to try being an adventurer so he wouldn't have to compete with his other family members for profit.

>>5968388
At the end of the week, you gain papers certifying that you'd taken the reading and knife fighting classes, which you present to the effeminate green-haired man running the guildhall's concierge. Oh, you also learn that the green-haired man is named Salade, from the nametag that he wore, now that you can actually read.

“Wonderful! Now make your signature here, and here, and you can officially be an ‘Outer Member’ of the Glinting Silver.”

You ask Salade what an ‘Outer Member’ meant.

“Well, Outer Member means that you'll be getting the full pay for missions, but the more lucrative missions are for Full Members only. In order to become a Full Member, you need to complete three Outer Member missions, then take the membership exam, which is just a spar. Just note that if you stay an Outer Member for three years, then you'll get kicked out of the guild.”

Huh, that seems easy enough.

Now that you're done with classes, you have a lot of free time. What do you do?
>You've been feeling a bit stressed, so you do some woodworking to ease your mind.
>Spend some time with Chouxcreme, she seems a bit miffed at you.
>Spend your time teaching your siblings to read, an important skill for living in Tarrasque.
>Go on a mission with Langoustine in order to make some cash.

>>5968389
>Spend your time teaching your siblings to read, an important skill for living in Tarrasque.

>>5968389
>Spend your time teaching your siblings to read, an important skill for living in Tarrasque.

Now that we've secured a source of income, we can afford to spend some time with the family. We'll need to go see Chouxcreme and go on a job or two sooner rather than later as well.

File: image-18.png (12 KB, 480x400)

12 KB PNG

>>5962049

Not an update, but here's Choux next to Marron

>>5968389
>Spend your time teaching your siblings to read, an important skill for living in Tarrasque.
Choux next, though.

>>5962632
>and your father's lucky knife.

How is the knife? Is it a switchblade kind of knife? A classic dagger? A Bowie knife?

>>5963665
>You were even considering proposing since Choux hadn't been shy about her interest in you.

Finally! A protagonist that isn't stupidly dense when it comes to affection!

>>5964654
>Darkrats

If there's Darkrats, surely there must also be Whiterats, right?

>>5966422
>‘alchemical core’

Not the shirikodama! D:

>>5968471
Choux looks like she's made out of ice vanilla cream.

>>5968389
>Salade
>effeminate

Ugh, unless Al-Kimist describes otherwise, I'm calling it now, there'll be thirsting about tossing some femboy salad by anon.

>>5968389
>‘Outer Member’
>“Well, Outer Member means that you'll be getting the full pay for missions, but the more lucrative missions are for Full Members only. In order to become a Full Member, you need to complete three Outer Member missions, then take the membership exam, which is just a spar. Just note that if you stay an Outer Member for three years, then you'll get kicked out of the guild.”

Oh fiddlesticks, Marron just signed up to a violent fantasy pyramid scheme didn't he? This sounds fishy like a multilevel marketing initiation, but oh well.

>Now that you're done with classes, you have a lot of free time. What do you do?
>You've been feeling a bit stressed, so you do some woodworking to ease your mind.

Everything becomes more dysfunctional in one's functionality when they're in undue stress I'd love for Marron to carve something goofy like a penis or bizarrely ornate like an automaton, maybe he'll even be struck by a strange mood while he's at it!

>>5968471
Nice how both of them also look kinda like food. Also after this thread ends and you go to your wage cage, I suggest trying to play Magical Vacation in your off time for more food names and food characters and magic RPG stuff or whatever
https://www.romhacking.net/translations/2662/
Find the rom yourself

File: nathan.png (171 KB, 294x639)

171 KB PNG

>>5968503
>thirsting about tossing some femboy salad by anon
I was picturing him as looking like a green-themed Nathan Seymour/Fire Emblem in terms of age and aestehtic, which isn't my type.

File: Epilogue_Leeron_.jpg (180 KB, 1920x1080)

180 KB JPG

>>5968557
In my head, I saw him as more like this guy

>>5968389
>Spend your time teaching your siblings to read, an important skill for living in Tarrasque.

>>5968503

Anon, you should

Learn to line break

Less, so that your posts

Aren't as obnoxious to read

>>5968389
>>Spend some time with Chouxcreme, she seems a bit miffed at you.

>>5968571
Same vibes. Still not my type.

>>5968580
Eh, I do agree that those are a lot of linebreaks, but at the same time, I'll take that over somone who posts it all in a single block of text. le reddit spacing aside, I think legibility and readability is always nice.

>>5968389
>Spend some time with Chouxcreme, she seems a bit miffed at you.

>>5968707
>>5968631
>>5968624
>>5968598
>>5968580
>>5968579
>>5968571
>>5968557
>>5968551
>>5968503
>>5968476
>>5968471
>>5968443
>>5968397
>>5968389

From what you learned during your reading classes, learning how to read is easier the younger you are. You decide to start teaching your siblings to read, given how many text-based signs are in Tarrasque. Learning how to read has definitely made navigating the city much easier.

Carrot enjoys the lessons, although you think part of that is just her getting to enjoy some time with you. Aubergine is having a hard time picking up reading though. His attention span just isn't as good as Carrots and you have to take so many breaks when teaching him, which is slowing down your progress.

During your lessons, your mom listens in and asks questions. Apparently, your mom doesn't know how to read either and enjoys the little stories that come with your teaching.

“C'mon big bro! Tell that story again where you stick grampa's knife into the wolf,” nags Aubergine.

“Why do you even want to hear that story? You were there,” you counter.

“But it's so cool when you tell it. You go like, POW and then the wolf runs away! So cool!” Aubergine mimes the action of stabbing something with a knife. Carrot laughs and does the stabbing action too.

“So cool!” Carrot repeats.

Theres a knock at the door of your apartment. You open it and Salade is there, with a hand on his hip. You wonder how he got your address.

“Marron, sweetie, there's an emergency at the guild and they're asking Outer Members to report to the atelier district,” he says. You're a bit bewildered. You were at the atelier district just last week.

“Wait, uhh, Salade, how did you get my address?” You ask.

“Marron isn't exactly a common name in Tarrasque, you know. It's like, you're from the river towns aren't you? Anyway, that's not important.”

Salade tells you that the Darkrat problem has been getting worse in the atelier district. Normally, the atelier district is protected by the Glinting Silver guild, but if the Darkrat problem continues to get worse, the Briarguard or the Church might step in and take control of the area.

You'll be working with some other Outer Members with an Inner Member leading your squad.

(Roll 1d20, best of 3 for me for your Order Roll please.)

Rolled 15 (1d20)

>>5969180

Rolled 2 (1d20)

>>5969180

Rolled 17 (1d20)

>>5969180

Rolled 13 (1d20)

>>5969299
>>5969191
>>5969184

Chaos Roll

>>5969978
Unlucky number, for such a roll...

>>5969978
>>5969299
>>5969191
>>5969184

The issue with the atelier district is a bit troublesome. You get the feeling that attendance is mandatory, but according to Salade, you're getting paid.

When you get to the atelier district, you see people from the guild already grouping up. Since you don't know too many people from the guild yet, you decide to group up with Langoustine. He's wearing a thick blue jacket that could probably ward off a good stab or two.

Since everyone is grouping up in threes, a girl in red later joins you. She has a face that looks standoffish and constantly angry, so you're surprised when she turns out to be really personable.

The red girl's name is Framboise and she's an outer member of the guild. You learn that she has special permission to not join as a full member because she's got a Soul Knot. However before she can explain what that means, another person joins your party of three.

“Oh, hey. Looks like you decided to join the Glinting Silver after all!” The tall, muscular man is familiar. After thinking about it, you remember that he's Offal!

“Why didn't you hit me up, kid? I did say I'd vouch for you,” Offal says, smiling. “Anyway, do you guys know what we're here for?”

You, Framboise and Langoustine all look at each other, clueless. Offal fills you in.

While the Inner Members of the Glinting Silver are looking for the cause of the Darkrat outbreak, you're meant to stand guard. The duty is twofold– First, make sure the Darkrats don't escape containment, and second, to make sure the Briarguard and the Church don't weasel their way into getting the Atelier district territory.

“I won't bore you with the economics of it all, but the atelier district is important to the smaller adventurer's guilds and the Glinting Silver. If the Briarguard or the Church gets a hold of it… Well, let's just say things won't be good for everyone else.”

You nod, understanding.

You see what looks like soldiers or town guards marching towards the atelier district. Unlike your ragtag bunch, they actually have uniforms in the form of leather armor.

From the opposite side, a swarm of Darkrats is heading towards your direction. Although Offal is officially in charge, he asks you what you think you should focus on.

>Making sure the Darkrats don't escape containment
>Making sure the Briarguard don't take control of the area
>Provoke the Darkrats and then rush towards the Briarguards in order to stymie both. (Unlocked from rolls)
>Focus on grouping up with other teams in order to break up the enemy formations. (Unlocked from rolls)

>>5969996
>Focus on grouping up with other teams in order to break up the enemy formations. (Unlocked from rolls)
We can always kick the Briarguard out when there ARE NOT evil demon rats trying to spread throughout the city and eat everyone.

>>5969996
>Making sure the Darkrats don't escape containment

>>5969996
>Focus on grouping up with other teams in order to break up the enemy formations. (Unlocked from rolls)

I suppose by linking up with other squads, we can make sure that whatever enemy we're fighting, whether it's Darkrats or one of the rival guilds is always at a numbers disadvantage.

>>5970008
+1

>>5969996
>Focus on grouping up with other teams in order to break up the enemy formations. (Unlocked from rolls)

>>5969996
>Focus on grouping up with other teams in order to break up the enemy formations. (Unlocked from rolls)

>>5969996
>Focus on grouping up with other teams in order to break up the enemy formations. (Unlocked from rolls)

>>5968580
>>5968631
>>5969996
Al-Kimist, I think you should add a "choose one or more" kinda thing with the options, otherwise players are just gonna assume they can pick as many as they want. In regards to the line breaks, I don't have the habit of expanding the reply box, so It gets all crushed up and making me think I'm creating some kind of massive copypasta like block of text, only for me to post and it actually ends up appearing way smaller in the post. Also, I don't use really reddit, didn't know they spaced thing up like that. Anyway.

>Focus on grouping up with other teams in order to break up the enemy formations. (Unlocked from rolls)

Not only will this give us more street cred, but It'll also give us meatshields with plausible deniability!

Sorry for no updates today. I'm busy with commissions. We'll resume Monday

>>5971063
Thanks for the heads-up, QM!

>>5971063
No problem QM, real life always comes first. Thanks for the heads-up!

>>5971925
>>5971075
>>5971063
>>5970402
>>5970193
>>5970104
>>5970050
>>5970030
>>5970022
>>5970008
>>5969996


From what you can tell, the Briarguard was here in order to make the Glinting Silver look bad. To your mind, it makes sense that they wouldn't wantonly murder your guildmates. At best, they would be causing mischief so that the Darkrats can escape and they can point to that and say your guild wasn't doing its job.

Knowing that, it makes sense that your team should reinforce the other teams and correct any mistakes that they make. Certainly not the most glamorous approach to the problem, but a solution that will help minimize the trouble that can come from the Briarguards’ interference.

Langoustine and Offal seem disappointed at your choice while Framboise commends your tactical thinking.

“Well, I'm not here to tell you what to do. I'm just here to make sure that people don't end up dead,” Offal says with a sigh.

After discussing the particulars of your plan, you learn from Offal that the Briarguard is extremely selective on who gets to be a Full Member of their guild so the Glinting Silver at least has the numbers advantage on them. However, the Briarguard has extremely good fighters and tactitians on their side.

Framboise offers her expertise. With her Soul Knot, she can set traps at any weak points that the Briarguard might try to exploit.

You observe while Framboise sets up the trap.

Using the point of her broadsword, she draws a circle in the ground. She then spreads a foul-smelling paste on the flat of her blade, and a good dollop inside the circle.

You ask her what that is.

“It's Alchemy,” she says.

You're not really sure what the difference between Alchemy and magic is, only that it's rude to bring up the latter because it's considered a pale imitation of the former.

However, you're also aware that some incident long ago caused Alchemy to be unusable. So what gives?

“My first Soul Knot,” Framboise explains. “By the fragment of the Tabula Smaragdina: The small intestine is the seat of Vermilion power.”

As she finishes the words, her sword absorbs the foul-smelling paste. Similarly, the foul-smelling paste she smeared on the ground disappeared, leaving behind a faint sense of heat.

“Wait, this won't kill anyone, will it? I don't want to get in trouble for… you know.” You say, dragging your thumb across your neck.

“Don't worry. It'll be a little hot, but the worst outcome would be that they lose their sense of sight for a little while,” Framboise says with a mischievous smile. You suddenly don't want to get on Framboise’ bad side.

You spend the whole day setting up traps with Framboise help. There were a few close calls, but with your grandfather's knife, you were able to prevent any Darkrats from escaping the atelier district.

1/2

>>5972828
It seems that your traps had prevented the worst of the Briarguards’ sabotage as no one had reported any sightings of the Briarguards. However, some teams reported hearing explosions… just what kind of traps did you help Framboise set!?

Ultimately, the choice to prevent Briarguard sabotage had also prevented any ‘glorious’ battles from happening. You're glad. You think seeking glory over a guaranteed success is pretty stupid, even if people might not think the same way.

You got paid in “guild tokens”. Apparently, you can use these in any Glinting Silver-sponsored establishment and get a discount. The bad side is that any establishments sponsored by the Briarguard and the Church won't honor them. It doesn't make a difference to you, as the district your family lives in is considered Glinting Silver turf.

At the end of the day, that's more purchasing power for you since you don't tend to travel much outside of visiting Choux at the Wooden Masks.

Now that everything's settled, what do you do with your free time.

>Try to make amends with Chouxcreme. She's pretty mad at you, and not acknowledging what she's mad about has only ticked her off even more.
>Find books on ‘Soul Knots’. Framboise's ‘Alchemy’ interested you and you want to find out more about it.
>Go on missions with Langoustine. Although you made a decent amount during the last mission, more money is always nice.
>Your siblings are learning how to read rather quickly. It's time to start teaching them some basic math next, so they don't get taken advantage of when purchasing things from the market.
>It's been a while since you wound down and did some carpentry. Make some nice pieces for your home… you kind of miss the furniture you had in Seis.

>>5972829

I just want to say that we're one or two updates away from the end. It's been an enjoyable ride.

How did you guys enjoy the quest? I'd love to hear some feedback.

>>5972829
>Try to make amends with Chouxcreme. She's pretty mad at you, and not acknowledging what she's mad about has only ticked her off even more.

>>5972829
>Try to make amends with Chouxcreme. She's pretty mad at you, and not acknowledging what she's mad about has only ticked her off even more.
No losing the girl this early, come on. I hope she's understanding about the family learning to read from Marron

>>5972830
You're good OP
Also threads can last weeks on /qst/ without dying, just so you know

Rolled 24 (1d100)

>>5972829
>You think seeking glory over a guaranteed success is pretty stupid, even if people might not think the same way.
As opposed to one that's not, like this 100 or these dubs?

>>5972840
Yeah, but after this thread I don't get another vacation until July.

March/April just happened to have a lot of holidays in the philippines

>>5972844
>Filip QM
>writing a lighthearted JRPG fantasy quest with lots of French food names
Interesting. Ever checked out that guy who wrote Sira Brothel and Prinzessin and that other quest I can't recall? He's a Thai guy and his quests have a certain flavor to them that I think is new to /qst/

>>5972852
I'm actually not on /qst/ much. I mostly run quests when I can get away with taking a week off from work Like Frogcore and Onion Adventures

>>5972830
The tone is lighthearted, the stakes, though low, matter enough to the PC to keep him grounded and out and about, and the story thus far has some interesting stuff.

Overall, your writing style is pretty solid, mechanics are simple, but easy to learn, and you've got a good handle on how you want to approach things.

I will say that both dialogue and combat seem to be progressing quick without much player input-- which is both a good thing and a bad thing, I'd say. Too much micromanagement can really kill the pacing of a quest, but too little can mean not being too invested in the characters, and all that. Right now, it definitely leans more towards Marron having his own personality, than what is defined by players, which I think is good.

If you want to lean into the Personality stats, I do think there should be more opportunities to raise and lower the four Personality stats through dialogue and other choices (Courage, Love, Knowledge, and Reliability). If you've already been raising and lowering through those options, consider showing those stat changes as they occur.

It would also be nice to have a running track of how much Stress and how much Affinity we have with our various contacts.

Overall, good job, QM! If you do end up running in July, I'll see about hopping in.

>>5972844
>PH
That explains the surge during Holy Week. From one Filipino to another, it's always a pleasure to see more folks from SEA around!

>>5972829
>Try to make amends with Chouxcreme. She's pretty mad at you, and not acknowledging what she's mad about has only ticked her off even more.
Might as well not fumble the bag here. She's helped us out, so it's only right.

>>5972829
>Try to make amends with Chouxcreme. She's pretty mad at you, and not acknowledging what she's mad about has only ticked her off even more.
Can we bring her flowers or something we carved?

>>5972893
Sure, why not.

Unless other people are against it, I'll include this in the next update.

>>5972829
>Try to make amends with Chouxcreme. She's pretty mad at you, and not acknowledging what she's mad about has only ticked her off even more.

>>5972830
It was a passably nice quest, a solid 7/10 or 8/10. Good but not great, it’s not breaking any ground nor trying to reinvent the well, but it doesn’t have to be in order to do goodnesses.

>>5972857
Can you link those? By any chance, do you also frequent other questing websites.

>>5972906
Can we roll for our simping masterwork’s quality?

>>5973354
Just look up the names on suptg, anon.

>>5973368
>>5973355
>>5973354
>>5973351
>>5972945
>>5972906
>>5972893
>>5972888
>>5972857
>>5972852
>>5972844
>>5972843
>>5972840
>>5972839
>>5972832
>>5972830
>>5972829

Chouxcreme has been upset at you about something and you don't know what. You could just ask her directly, but you get the feeling that it's the wrong move so you instead ask someone else that might know. That means visiting Acorne at the atelier district.

Acorne's workshop smells of the aromatic woods that he works with. The woods are harvested by the Wooden Mask merchants from deep within the miasmatic forests and the alchemical miasma has mutated them to have pleasant aromas.

“Little Choux is upset at you, and you don't know what you did, you say?” Acorne strokes his bushy beard. If he wasn't so tall, you'd think he was a dwarf. He certainly has the stocky build of one.

“How about you make her something as a peace offering? You can use some of the scrap wood we have. Maybe she'll be more willing to talk if you give her a gift.”

You tell Acorne that it's an excellent idea. You make your selection from the fragrant woods in Acorne's scrap pile.

You take it home and start carving a doll that looks like Choux.

“Aww how cute,” your mom says, ruffling your hair. “Me and your dad were about your age when we had you.” There's a bit of sadness in your mom's voice upon remembering your dad. You never did hear back from him and you greatly suspect that he's dead or sold as a slave. Whatever the bandits did.

[Stress reset to 0]

Your mom helps you by sewing some scraps of cloth into a nice dress for the doll. You give your mom a hug and head to the Wooden Mask merchant headquarters the following day.

You get a few strange looks because you're a grown man carrying a doll across the city. You pay it no mind.

“Choux. Hey,” you call her attention while hiding the doll behind your back. Her face twists into a frown when she sees you. It's been that way for a while which is how you could tell she was upset about you for something. “I just wanted to say… I'm sorry for whatever it is I did.”

You present the doll to her. The wood you used in its construction smelled faintly of vanilla and that perfume seeped into the doll's clothes.

“Oh no… I can't stay mad at you if you give me something like this…” Choux says, blushing. “Did you… did you make this?”

You nod. “Now that I've properly apologized, I hope you don't mind me asking why you were mad at me in the first place.”

>>5974788
“Sorry, it was silly. I guess. I went out of my way to introduce you to Acorne and you decide you'd rather join an Adventurer's guild after fighting some monsters one time. It was really impulsive and I didn't expect that of you. It made me feel stupid,” Choux says, holding the wooden doll up to her nose. She takes a huge whiff of its vanilla perfume.

“Oh no… You're not stupid, Choux… It really was impulsive on my part. I don't know what came over me. It's just I've dreamed of being an adventurer since I was a kid… From seeing the masked merchants.”

“I didn't realize it was your dream. Sorry for getting mad. I hope you find success, whatever it is you decide to do.”

> Thank Choux for forgiving you
> Actually, there is something else… What do you think about getting married?

>>5974789
>> Actually, there is something else… What do you think about getting married?

>>5974789
>Actually, there is something else… What do you think about getting married?

>>5974789
>Actually, there is something else… What do you think about getting married?

It's the question she's been waiting for, and the one we've been thinking of a lot. If she says no, then that's that-- but if she says yes, or she needs more time to think... then I think that's something worth pursuing.

>>5974789
>Actually, there is something else… What do you think about getting married?
Going for it IMMEDIATELY

>>5974789
> Actually, there is something else… What do you think about getting married?

>>5974789
>Wanna marry
Nice

>>5975603
>>5975188
>>5974818
>>5974813
>>5974796
>>5974792
>>5974789

You met Choux during Vermilion of this year. Currently it's the middle of the Ivory season. Two and a half seasons is way too long for a man and a woman to “just be friends”. Never mind that you and Choux have been flirting with each other the whole time. If you were still back in Seis, Choux's virtue would be in question already.

So you decide to pop the big question.

“Choux, since we've been talking about important decisions, I think there's one more important decision that I want to ask you. Will you marry me?”

Upon asking the question, Choux's blush had spread from just her cheeks to turning her whole face red. She rushes to you and gives you a hug, her wooden doll still in hand.

“Oh, Marron… I almost thought you weren't interested. Of course! Of course, I'll marry you.”

As for the wedding, the most auspicious time to have a marriage is in the Azure season, which is two more seasons from now. The next season is the Ebon season and it's generally considered bad luck to get married during Ebon.

Having delayed your engagement for so long, you don't intend to make Choux wait for longer than she has to.

Although your family already knows Choux, you decide to reintroduce her properly as your fiance. Your mom is extremely supportive of your decision, and even chastises you for making Choux wait for so long.

Carrot's a bit jealous that someone has come to take her big brother away, but you gently remind her that she's a bit too old to still be dependent on her brother.

The date is set, and you're ready to marry Choux once Azure rolls around.

You've achieved your dream and engaged to a beautiful young woman. You don't know what you did to deserve this, but life is truly good.

[Thread 1 end]
[Engaged to Choux, Reliability +1]

See you all in July!

>>5975676
Thanks for running, QM! This was a fun first thread.

Don't forget to archive this thread!

>>5975676
Cute note to leave off on for now. Thanks for running!

>>5975699
It already was a few days ago, anon.

https://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/qstarchive.html?tags=Al-Kimia

>>5975676
Hell yeah. We scored the 10. Thanks for the quest, QM. Was nice.

>>5975676
Take care QM. I look forward to seeing you run this again. Please do not vanish into nothingness

>>5975676
>I almost thought you weren't interested
>chastises you for making Choux wait for so long
First it's the bandits raiding and escaping the hometown, then it's the training and reading in the big city, c'mon. We had a lot to handle before we could agree to this