You are Kuroda Haruka and King Lot of Lothian and Orkney. You are also King of Camelot by right and claim! Of course, so far, shouldering this heady title has only resulted in lots of work, bizarre discoveries of how things work in Avalon, and the responsibility of fending off attacks from enemies. Like the monstrous Wyvern, which had the temerity to eat two of your vassals! Even if all the vassals are unruly Anarchists, rigid Nomenklatura, religious Fanatics, disloyal Pirates and other such odd characters... Going down that mental route is verboten for a King. You need as many Baphomets alive to enact your ultimate ambition of returning home with your identity restored! The unnatural two headed creature lashes out with its long, poisonous stinger tail to disrupt your attack. Black smoking ichor beads at the end of the scorpion-like stinger, and the odd droplet sizzles as it drips on to the ground. Perhaps attracting the attention of this thing wasn't the best idea...StatsKuroda Haruka, 16 year old. A forgotten but genuine member of the Kuroda samurai clan.Identity: King Lot of Lothian and Orkney+1 Charisma diceTrait: A True Heart "Magokokoro", bonus in one on one interaction with a hostile opponent.Crafty attacker: When making artful gambits and trickery in a fight, gain +2 dice to attack! It's not cheating, it's stratagem damn it!Let No Insult Pass! - When attacking, 4s also count as successes in addition to 5s and 6s. Use 1 per dayFrostbind - Your weapon. A spear with ice powers. Finally able to summon it whenever you want.Beira, the Cailleach; your ice ability grows stronger and with better control.Dignity - Greater Mana reaped from targets able to pose a challenge to you.Knowledge : Quality Tea Ceremony articles and expertise in SadoA True Name: You possess your True Name! None can take it from you.Mana Reaper : Can harvest Mana but requires a tool.Evolved Flaw:Always Someone Better - You have a tendency of gloating and enjoying the sight of people you've defeated. But now, only over those who are superior to you in something. You don't indulge against the weak and unworthy.Past threads: https://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/qstarchive.html?tags=villainess
It is a minor miracle that that stinger doesn't land a hit on your unprotected body and pump a dose of nasty black poison into it. Whether it is instinct, luck, or just simply not knowing how to fight at all, you manage to flinch in your charge and slow down just enough for the attack to almost miss. Almost miss being the key detail. The sharp end of the Wyvern's tail catches on a fraying piece of rapidly decaying clothing and pulls it away. Your clothing is a False Relic, a thing that persisted in Avalon for a brief while before revealing its temporary nature and disappearing. And apparently, a single rip is enough to dissipate it completely. You are now standing before your vassals and the enemy, completely naked. A cold wind blows, and every part of your body feels it. "No.... No... NOOOO!!!" You scream, desperately trying to cover your private parts. The Baphomets clearly misunderstand the true source of despair. In fact, the gaggle of goat men believes you are injured and swarms to interpose their bodies as an obstacle between you and the Wyvern. "Protect Her Majesty!""MEEP MEEP MEEP!""Are you injured? Someone call the Doctor!""Form up! Form up!" The only thing that's injured is your pride! You can now use 'Let No Insult Pass' against the Wyvern "I am not hurt! Get back into formation!" You shout, but it's too late. Because the Baphomets are so focused on protecting you, the encirclement containing the Wyvern is weakened. The gaps are wide, and the wyrm senses the opportunity to escape. It takes full advantage, charges through a particularly weak section, and bulldozes its way through by pushing aside the hapless goat men in the way. Damned serpent of the nine Hells, do ye believe that a mere beast can escape my wrath!?! Fury burns away whatever embarrassment you feel about your state of nakedness. The Baphomets aren't even aware of it! You run after the Wyvern, barefooted and naked as a baby. The Baphomets scamper after you with loud meeps and yees in their wake.The Wyvern cannot escape! You won't allow it the pleasure of humiliating you like this!Yet escape it has.It is heading straight towards the garden containing many stone arches. Does it intend to enter a Gate? A flash of light pierces the darkness, and your fears are answered. The damn thing has escaped through a twisted metal arch of greenish brass and disappears."HUZZAH! It's gone!""What a terrible night.""Oh poor goats, eaten by a Wyvern.""Tis a small price to pay. It can't take more of us."The Baphomets seem satisfied with chasing it away and slow their pursuit. What will you do? >write in...
>>5987732>We cannot let this insult pass! Gather a guide and a cohort of volunteers to come with us to pursue the beast! It has rendered us naked and eaten two of our goats, it must pay with its life (and mana)! Let our seneschal handle the casualties and damage in the aftermath of the attack, and have him get some clothes for us.
>>5987732>Let No Insult PassDon't let that thing escape. Purse it immediately and fight like a true Avalonian (nude).
>>5987732Pursue
>>5987871+1
>>5988035>>5987945>>5987917>>5987871>>5987840Going Wyvern hunting !
Ugly feelings twitch and bristle within you as the goat men grimly proclaim satisfaction that the crisis has passed adequately. The enemy chased off, and though it killed two of their comrades, it was a job well done, in their opinion. It satisfies your black rage naught. "I'll be damned if I let that thing glut itself without properly settling the score. Summon a guide! I call upon willing spears to hunt with me. Damned worm. I'll chase it round the islands of Avalon, round the lands of the hateful World and round perdition's flames before I give him up!" Your shout shatters the night and puts an end to the lackwit twittering of the Baphomets. "Your Majesty, please! The enemy is gone and cannot return. There's no reason---" Hanbei weakly attempts to protest, but you silence him with a sharp glare. "Bring me clothing and take care of things Hanbei." Your servants know better than to get in the way of a King on the warpath. They rush about to do their duties and follow the efficient orders of the Seneschal. The injured are attended to, servants sent out to find clothing and so forth. All the while, you are standing in the courtyard of the Castle in the nude and waiting. You hope that there's some stitch of clothing left in the Castle. You watch as small groups of certain Baphomets go about preparing and debating with each other quietly. Certain groups are clearly coworkers, but others are more mysterious in composition. The group of five Yatagarasu gravitates to and organizes with are clearly all guides. When these particular five start sorting out and packing a kit for a guide, it becomes clearer through their actions that Yatagarasu won't be joining your hunting expedition. To your surprise, the guide that steps forth is a very fat Baphomet. The stout goat man is as wide as he is tall, as though he ate two of his fellows and then started chewing a third one because he was still hungry. His fellow goats are all svelte and sinewy, so the fat guide stands out all the more. "Huff, at your service, Your Majesty! The Brass Gate is my area of exploration." The guide trundles along slowly and shoulders a hastily assembled pack put together by his comrade guides. "And three spears are at your service. The Longship Meeps won't forgive the taking of our own!" A trio of hardy Baphomets step forth. They are of a different attitude from the majority of goat men and have an indefinable quality to them that you can't quite grasp. Then you realize what it is: these were vassals used to violence and combat, and they have a poised bearing to them.
>>5989012"One of your own? So that Wyvern ate him. Let's go and kill it." There's no room for the meek and reluctant on this hunt. You don't want them. It's surprising that a Faction has sent members to the Castle as guards; you were under the impression that the vast majority prefer to keep their section of Camelot. As you think about it, a servant comes running towards you with something in his hands. At first, you thought it was your clothing, but you quickly see that it isn't.It's...>A vibrant red cloak trimmed with white fur...>A silvery cloak with a hood....>A black cloak with gold thread embroidery...>A deep blue cloak with white snakes decorating it...>A pure white cloak with a green tree embroidered on the back....
>>5989014>>A vibrant red cloak trimmed with white fur...Just a cloak? Nothing else?
>>5989014>A silvery cloak with a hood....All the better to hide our shame. It wouldn't do to let people see our blushing face as we run about the isles and the world naked. Plus we can be all chuuni and edgemax with our hood, all mysterious-like.It was this or the red one for me, I do love vibrant colours.
>>5989014>A black cloak with gold thread embroidery...Black and gold is a fucking CLASSIC, anons. Absolutely stylish villainwear.
>>5989014>A pure white cloak with a green tree embroidered on the back....If we're going commando we should pick something that matches the skin
>>5989014>>A deep blue cloak with white snakes decorating it...
>Literally every single option gets a single voteIs this a joke? Are we in a clown world? What is happening?At least no one can accuse us of being a hivemind right now. Only the most individualist taste for the discerning anon.>>5989073I mean...you could also argue the opposite would provide a nice contrast.
>>5989091>>5989024>>5989029>>5989040>>5989073>>5989076The real question is which of these are closest to real life Kuroda colors?
>>5989014>A black cloak with gold thread embroidery...Proper villain look
>>5989014>A black cloak with gold thread embroideryVillain drip
>>5989131Depends on the Samurai lord. Kuroda Kanbei's armor is... well...I'm not a fan.The bright red tea cup helmet always make me thing it doesn't suit the mempo face guard mask.Kuroda Nagamasa went for black with a silver helmet mount thingy.
>>5989210OK thank you for the infoYou know, somebody vaguely Japanese running an interesting setting quest on here... it takes me back to STANDO QUEST from many years ago...>>5989014>A black cloak with gold thread embroidery
>>5989014>A vibrant red cloak trimmed with white fur...
>>5989014>A black cloak with gold thread embroidery...
>>5989024>>5989029>>5989040>>5989073>>5989076>>5989138>>5989153>>5989220>>5989617>>5989638Looks like we go for black and gold drip.I'm surprised the sartorial choice attracted so much attention. Admittedly, each cloak has a unique power.
"Meep, Your Majesty. I am sad to report that almost every piece of clothing you possess proved to be a False Relic. There are some things left behind by the other Kings, so we broke open some chests, searched, and searched.... AND FOUND THIS!" The servant dramatically flourishes a long piece of black cloth so that it billows in the air. It is a beautiful black cloak; the tint shimmers even in the fire light. It reminds you of the oily black plumage of a crow, with hints of blue, purple, and green flashing depending on the angle the light hits. The hues of black are subtly shifting before your eyes as it undulates in the air and settles downward to the ground. A cloak of this color, full of grace and sumptuousness, is one heck of a fashion statement. Yet somehow, it manages to be even more impressive. The striking tenebrous tint is paired with a thick band of gold embroidery running along the collar and center hem. The black emphasizes the brightness of the gold; you reach out to touch it and find that the threads are made of metal. Is it real gold? You take up the cloak and put it on your shoulders. It is lighter than you expected, and the length goes all the way down to your knees. You are grateful that it is long enough to cover up your nakedness, though it must look silly to have the cloth terminate above bare knees and bare feet. There's no fastener, but fortunately, the servant has brought a cloak pin made of pure gold. It is a circular brooch covered with a stunning swirling pattern of interlocking bands. This has got to be the most luxurious piece of clothing and jewelry you've ever worn in your life. There is gold and gold and gold, wedded to the most voluptuous black color you've ever seen. What was Sen no Rikyu's obsession with the color black again? Black is the color that remains after all excess is removed, or so he claimed. In your opinion, adding gold elevates black to a realm of fashionableness you never knew could exist. "Which King stashed this treasure away?" You can't believe that someone would hide such an astonishing thing in a chest and not wear it. "Ser Rodomonte, I believe. He liked the color black," is the answer you get back from Hanbei. You make a face. Of course, an edge-lord murderhobo would like the color black. You don't have much choice; it's either wear the cloak or go completely naked. With a sigh of resignation, it is time to begin your hunt. "This is the Brother Brass Gate goes into the World. It is fixed to always open in an abandoned location with no one around. Better yet, the Gate will remain in that location for a week before shifting to another! It's a unique feature and always reliable. Huff. There shall be no witness to create excess Backlash. I have Talking Stones, one-time use. I'll hand one to the vanguard who crosses the threshold; they can report back what they see on the other side. The Wyvern might be lurking about right at the entrance."
>>5989859The guide explains as two plain rocks pop into existence in his hand. They are small, round stones; they look completely normal. "I'll go in first; someone lend me a shield!" You're curious to use the Talking Stones but one of the spear-wielding Baphomets protests. He is a well-scarred goat man with numerous marks of combat over his body. "Nay, nay. Tis not a good idea for the strongest to risk an ambush. I'll go in first with the shield and Talking Stone to make sure the damn Wyvern be not lingering about at the Gate. Me shipmate will go unavenged if the most puissant dies." "Hard to argue against a volunteer. All right then, go in first." The scarred Baphomet enters the Gate without hesitation. The familiar flash of light briefly blinds you as the goat man disappears. Your group huddles over the stone in the hand of the guide and waits. Ten long seconds pass before you hear the voice of the brave warrior emitting itself from the Talking Stone. "The deck is clear. No wyrm hangs about."Then the Talking Stone splits in half as easily as a dirt ball. So the Talking Stones are a magical one-time walkie-talkie. No hesitation now. Your group steps boldly through the Gate under the watchful, apprehensive eyes of the other Baphomets. The light blinds for a second as you take a step forward and through.The familiar stinging of the transfer washes over you but it is not painful. A clear sign that wherever you are going is not witnessed by anyone.Your advancing bare foot splashes into ankle deep cold water before resting on an equally cold stone. The familiar night sky of Earth is above, with a familiar moon shining down. In the silvery moonlight, you see a grand abandoned estate. It is startling to see the size of the house looming above and the area you are in. You can't possibly be anywhere near Tokyo; a house this gigantic and derelict would have long since been demolished and built over. The place is not silent, but it is silent. There's no sound of birds, insects, or anything human, but the place 'breathes' in an unnatural manner. You are not alone in this place. Goosebumps rise on your arm, and it is not from the cold wetness soaking your tender bare feet."Huff, I'll hold the light." The fat guide takes out from his voluminous pack an old look oil lantern and lights it. A feeble amount of luminescence creates a circle around your group."Meep, water everywhere but we aren't on a ship. Fortuna's fickle affection. So, what's the plan?" The three spear wielding Baphomets turn to you for orders.Hm, where did that Wyvern go? You injured its wings very badly, so it can't fly any time soon. "Try to find the tracks of the thing. Also, what happens if the Wyvern lingers too long in Japan?" You ask as the Baphomets look downwards to find out where the Wyvern has gone off to.
>>5989860"If we are lucky? The World will destroy the invader in a few days since it cannot find a way back to Avalon. Worst case, it does find a Gate and return." The guide moves his lantern close to the ground to look for some trace of the monster. "Wait, what happens if some person finds the damn thing before that happens?!" You don't like the first part of the answer from the guide at all. "Then that mortal shuffles off into the gullet of the beast alongside our shipmate," one of the hardened Baphomets answers. "Are you to tell me that monsters from Avalon attack and kill people regularly?" You try not sound disturbed by the realization. This hunt has taken on greater urgency than you expected. It should not startle you overly much to learn that Avalon's deadly creatures can spill into the World, after all your classmates riding the train spilled over into Avalon and got attacked. You should have realized that it is entirely possible."There are Gates everywhere in Avalon and some lead to the World. It's not as if anyone here realizes one or two blighters disappearing into the ether. The World 'corrects' itself and fills in any holes created by the missing mortal. Hundreds could be dying each night and not one would notice." Another of the Longship Meep callously shrugs."Ah ha! Tracks of the beast. Damnation, it leads straight into the manor," with a spear in hand, one of the warriors points downwards to the muddy impression of claw tracks. Your eye traces the path of the tracks as it goes straight into the open doors of the abandoned house.What will you do now?>Burn down the house, no need to go in.... (this will attract attention)>Enter the abandoned house as a group, it's time to go hunting...>Explore the surrounding area, maybe you can find something useful...>Split the group up and enter the house to cover more ground... >write in
>>5989863>Enter the abandoned house as a group, it's time to go hunting...The wyvern's death (and mana?) come first. We have to pay back the insult that was dealt to us as a matter of priority. Saving lives comes in as a close second. Even without burning down the house, we may be on the clock, the magical girls may sense the beast somehow. Relics will have to wait.
>>5989863>Enter the abandoned house as a group, it's time to go hunting...killing the wyvern for mana sounds interesting, but i wonder if we could capture and tame the damned thing. feels like a more fitting end instead of granting it the mercy of death
>>5989863>Freeze the expanse of water surrounding and inside the house. If it's on the first floor, the Wyvern will be trapped within the ice. If it's not, the lack of a reaction will tell you to search the second floor instead. Besides, having so much ice around will be a boon to you in combat.Another benefit is that the ice will melt after a few days at most. If nobody comes across the ice in that time, it's like it never happened at all. Should be less attention-drawing from the world than a house burning, since that's more permanent.
>>5989863>>Enter the abandoned house as a group, it's time to go hunting...
>>5989863I'll switch to supporting >>5989917It's a good idea.>>5989881Come to think of it, regardless of whether we kill or capture it, we'll have to drag it back to Avalon for the mana either way. I don't think we paused to pick up our mana reaping sickle, what with the rush to defend our home and pursue the beastie. Should be worth a lot of mana though, natives of Avalon are supposed to be chunky.
>>5989863>>5989917>support
>>5989917+1
>>5990042>>5989983>>5989957>>5989931>>5989928>>5989917>>5989881>>5989875You choose a very ambitious course of action that Haruka can't pull off at her level of expertise. I'll let her do something a little more practical as she's hunting
>>5990395I figured we'd be able to manage it because we had the option of creating a big boulder of ice in front of the gates of Camelot right after receiving our powers back in thread 1, thought the volume created would work out to be vaguely similar. We have plenty of water to work with after all, more than back then in the rain. Just gotta freeze it, or does it not work like that?
>>5990414Create a boulder of ice? I guess my writing was bad, you happened to find a stone boulder and hid behind it. Otherwise, Argeste would have noticed an unnaturally large ice boulder outside the gates of Avalon....Also, uh, you have to pray to Beira while making ice.
>>5990418More specifically truly powerful ice effects require asking the Queen of Winter for assistance. Minor effects like creating small chunks of ice or creating a limited slippery path of ice doesn't require it.You'll get powerful enough not to constantly bother grandma winter.
>>5990418>Otherwise, Argeste would have noticed an unnaturally large ice boulder outside the gates of Avalon....Yes, I think that was the point of the prompt.Oh well, I'm confident of victory either way.
Ran out of time, I will post tomorrow
Have just returned home. So I don't have time to post.Also, I shall be absent from May 2 to May 7 due to a trip. So I will make a post detailing the hunt before it at least.
The house before you is possibly the largest home you’ve ever seen. The main house is three floors tall and still in remarkably good shape despite the neglect. A lot of wealth must have been poured into acquiring the expertise of very skilled carpenters to build it, as you note the rarity of nails. Evidence suggests that complex wood joinery is used extensively throughout. There is a broad garden, now waterlogged, and covered wataridono corridors connecting the main house to two smaller buildings close by. An imitation of a very old-fashioned manor. Only an eccentric homeowner would recreate a Heian-style home by putting other parts of the house into separate buildings. This is very annoying because that means there is a lot of ground to cover. The damn Wyvern has the choice of hiding out on one of the three floors of the main building or perhaps crawling along the rooftops of the corridors to other buildings. If the house is older-style inside too, that also means the stairs will be extremely narrow and steep. Frostbind is a spear, and your three armed Baphomets also have spears. In a tight indoor space, these weapons would be a detriment. You don’t bother counting the fat guide as a potential fighter; he’s too valuable to risk in front-line battle and, quite frankly, is not made for combat. The goats remain silent, waiting patiently as you do the brainwork required to hunt down the enemy. “Other than spears, what other weapons do you have?” “I have an axe; my shipmates have hammers. If we really need to cut loose and fight, we can eat some Hjaldr mushrooms and go at it. But chowing down on them mushrooms means we see everything needs to get chopped up and killed, including you. Fatty here has his guide stick and probably other goodies if you make him cough it up.” The battle scarred Baphomet answers without hesitation. “Huff, I am NOT fat! This is only an unfortunate, temporary condition! As for ‘goodies’, huff, I have two Tourney Stones, a Smoke Bomb, my Mana Reaper, and a ‘Peacemaker’ with one charge.” You can easily guess what the Smoke Bomb will do, but a ‘Peacemaker’? What the hell is that? “Let me see that ‘Peacemaker’,” you order the guide to bring it out, and he obliges by pulling it out of his pack. The Peacemaker is a gun. An actual freakin’ gun. A revolver with a single silvery bullet. “Where the hell did you get a gun!?” You blurt out in shock. It has to be a Relic, Avalon would have rejected it otherwise and let it fade away into nothing. “I won it in a game of cards against Black Phillip. Huff. Are you opposed to powder weapons because they go against Chivalry, Your Majesty? Lord Mordred wasn’t too enthused,” the guide is absolutely sincere and not sarcastic in his response.
>>5992031"Chivalry? Why would I care about that? The true way of the warrior is to loyally achieve victory for your Daim---, I mean, King. If guns are effective against all enemies, then I would move heaven and earth to arm all of Camelot with them." It is a simple declaration of truth. Rodomonte must be of the same mindset since he went on a Quest to Florida to rob someone of his gun collection. The fat guide has a very powerful weapon. "Tis unfortunate, but powder weapons are not useful against all enemies. And, alas, I only have one silver bullet left. But fear not! I trained diligently on Time Crisis II while wandering the World, I shall surely hit my enemy this time!" The guide boasts and poses with the revolver, his finger on the trigger. Your confidence in the guide's ability to aim plummets to rock bottom and starts digging downward. A powerful weapon means very little if the blow doesn't connect. Your cohort of Baphomets switches to weapons more appropriate for close combat while you experiment with shortening the haft of Frostbind. Varying the length of the haft is easier than expected, but the best part of a spear is how it keeps the enemy as far away from you as possible. What you have now is a Frostbind that's like a weird sword with a slightly longer handle. Then again, why should you enter the ruined manor and hunt the damn monster room by room? You cut down on the search time and keep yourself safe by freezing the first floor with ice! If that Wyvern is still on the ground floor, it'll be trapped. If not, then it's on the higher floors. "Before we go in, I want to try something first." You announce and begin concentrating. The air around you changes, and you can smell it. That strange, subtle scent of winter in the wind, the first hint of fresh snow about to fall. "Beira, oh Beira, hear me. Old and wise, mighty and proud, sovereign of the darkest season! My enemy spited me, affronted me, injured me. I go to return the bitter favor with hateful blows. Let the Wyvern not scape; create for me an icy prison to pinion the foul wyrm." Where do the words of prayer come from? They don't feel like your words at all. Never in your life have you prayed to this foreign Kami until you became King Lot. Yet you know the sweetest words to appeal to the old veiled Dame. And the divine Cailleach answers... partially.
>>5992032The area you are trying to freeze is simply far too large; there's too much water, and you aren't powerful enough to fulfill your ambition to freeze the first floor. Instead, ice crawls slowly around the house in a rough circle and then tries to advance inward but the strain of covering so much area is too much. Dizziness and nausea threaten, so you let your concentration go. Frost and ice might have penetrated the outer reaches of the house, but the inner sections must be completely untouched. White ice tendrils crawl on the windows of what surviving glass exists on the first floor. "It seems we'll have to do things the hard way," you sigh with disappointment."Aye, a shame. Oh well, let's go gut that wyrm so we can return to our Eilean nan Gobhar." The axe wielding Baphomet commiserates with you.It is time to hunt!When you get past the entrance and inside...>You step on something nasty...>There's a loud creaking noise above you....>Something dashes away into the darkened hallway....>You hear unnerving whispers...>The inside of the house is simply wrong....>The guide immediately fires his Peacemaker at something...>One of the hammer wielding Baphomets smells something...
>>5992034>You hear unnerving whispers...
>>5992034Guess we didn't go with the practical option, but I'm thankful to discover our current limits.>You hear unnerving whispers...Oh no...
>>5992034>>One of the hammer wielding Baphomets smells something...
>>5992034>You hear unnerving whispers...Huh?
>>5992068+1
I'm off on my trip so I won't be posting soon... but I guess everyone really like J-Horror stuff.
>>5992034>You hear unnerving whispers...bet its gonna be ghosts
>>5992034>>You hear unnerving whispers...
>>5992046>>5992068>>5992150>>5992155>>5992343>>5992374>>5992996I hath returned!So let's see if I can write out a post tonight.
>>5997349Welcome back! I await the horror.
Your bare feet are tender and soft things. A lifetime cocooned in socks and sturdy shoes has done nothing to harden them. The moment you step through the threshold and onto debris-lined floors, you immediately feel it. It is like stepping onto a floor with thousands of Lego pieces scattered about. It is a testament to the depths of your grudge and anger against the Wyvern that this is not enough to stymie your icy determination to kill the damn thing. You'd step barefoot into Hell itself if necessary. The abandoned manor has dust everywhere. At one point, the owner or heirs of the property attempted to box up belongings to remove but gave up midway. A hammer-wielding Baphomet pokes a slightly frozen cardboard box, causing it to spill out the items inside it. Clothing, books, and some dishes; the abandoned detritus of a family who no longer residing here. The Wyvern has gone this way: shoji paper doors shoved aside, a trail of deep scratches and gouges on the floor, and tatami mats tell the tale. Your group follows the trail grimly and with tense anticipation. Painted shoji doors block line of sight; it is necessary to move them aside and unblock the view of wasted, ruined rooms. Each and every one of them shows signs of sudden abandonment. One room has a table with a teacup; the liquid has long since evaporated from it and left behind a stain ringing the white porcelain. There are books lying scattered on the ground in another room, with an ashtray overflowing with cigarette butts nearby. The kitchen has black, shriveled vegetables laying on the chopping board next to a rusty, chipped knife. The corridors connecting the rooms are numerous and interminable. There are so many rooms. Too many rooms. "Stop, stop! Huff. It's not because I need a break, you hear... But... There's something wrong. I've been counting our steps the moment we entered this manor. A thousand trots we've done. Why haven't we reached the back?" What you had suspected has been spoken aloud by another. "The Wyvern is a blind, dumb beast that relies on sound to find its prey. Meep. It is incapable of trapping us in endless rooms. Something is afoot. AND I DON'T LIKE IT!" With a swift slash of his axe, the Baphomet leader angrily knocks down another shoji paper door to reveal a long corridor that seemed to stretch out to infinity. It is so long that your eyes cannot perceive the end of it. "Look upward," a colorless sentence from the guide tears out from his reluctant throat. Upwards, your eyes go up to look. At first, in the pale light of the lamp, you do not understand what you are trying to see. The ceiling panels are made of very old wood that somehow avoided rotting despite the abundance of moisture everywhere. There are brownish smears and shapes on them. The years have reduced them to something akin to watermarks. As your eyes track the strange slashings and spatters of brown, you eventually lock on to what looks like a footprint.
>>5999127"Tis old dried blood staining the wood..." One of the warriors pronounces gravely."Aye, and lots of it. The entire length of the ceiling has them." Another points to a series of wooden ceiling panels down the hallway. "There are weapon marks nicking the wood too." The final battle hardened Baphomet announces his discovery. "A chitenjo worthy of Genkoan," you mutter. The dark story of the siege of Fushimi Castle comes to the forefront of your mind. The tale of two thousand samurai holding out against an army of forty thousand for eleven days and then the entire castle garrison committing suicide at the very end. Their blood streaming over wood floorboards and staining them for centuries to come. That's when you realize something. The strange sounds within the house are not wind blowing through or wood shifting; it is something else. "Quiet, and listen." You order your group. Your group strains their ears and listens; the place is alive, for lack of a better term. Rooms weep, wood groans, paper sighs, metal screeches. There are moments when the house steals a sobbing intake of breath and then unfetters a panting, ragged exhalation of a quiet something. You can only designate the sound of it as a scream. One long, silent scream. Relentless. Eternal. Unnatural. Words! Your ears don't quite understand, but the lacerated shapes of the sound are most definitely words. What sort of horror have you walked into!? "I hear, 'let me out'." A terrified, weak voice interrupts your concentration. It takes all your nerve not to jump in surprise at the sudden sound of your guide's voice. The fat goat man looks pale and is shaking in terror, eyes wide, and frantically looking around for an exit. The three battle-hardened warriors look only mildly spooked and irritated."Meep. Me shipmates can hack and bash at fleshy things. Meep. Ghostly horrors require different equipment." Gripping his axe tighter, the leader of the three grimly eyes the hallway leading further into the house. You sigh. "I've watched enough horror movies to know that retracing our steps back to get out is pointless. I am open to hearing what you think is actually going on." You hate this situation. Why are you suffering through a real-life version of the movie Ju-On? "Huff. The Brother Brass Gate is paired with the Sister Brass Gate. So the Sister must have allowed a terrible thing into the World."Great, so there are TWO fucking things that need killing! Those things might even be working together to kill the Baphomets and you. Of course, if you are lucky, maybe the Wyvern will eat the other damn monster.>three anons roll 2d6 each!
Rolled 6, 2 = 8 (2d6)>>5999129
Rolled 6, 6 = 12 (2d6)>>5999129
Rolled 2, 4 = 6 (2d6)>>5999129
>>5999137>>5999157>>59991833 successes!
>>5999280Succeed against one threat, fail against the other?
