The Kingdom of Eonis

[Bloodedge]

Kou laughed again when asked by Hikari about the status of Miki, and whether he'd aided her at all. "Nope! She's not a Knight, and I didn't do anything. Don't worry though. Hanging with us, you'll level up fast!" he proclaimed. He understood that, especially if Hikari was also a player, she would quickly catch up to the others in level. Now that he thought about the situation involving her status as such, he decided to look Hikari's way and check properly. Indeed, her stat sheet showed the mark of a player from the other world. Perhaps she was one he'd become familiar with when playing online. A simple act of further investigation proved to Kou that Hikari was far, far more familiar to him than he could have imagined... while also being an impossible existence. 'Aimi... Yumi...' he chanted in his mind, understanding at last why he could have been comfortable with this demi-human so quickly. Without a doubt, Kou was absolutely befuddled by what he was seeing. There was no way this person should have been brought to this world, yet the name was unmistakable, and Hikari's eyes fed further into his certainty.

Karna was far more interested in the banter he was sharing with Miki, than he was with the existence and rising Demonic Power of King Eon. Most importantly, he took interest in her reaction to how he'd referenced Kou. With his hands on his hips, he leaned forward to look at the blonde quizzically. "Hoh? Relax. I can smell your blood pressure rising. If you want it to happen that badly, you could just finish what you started in the Marshes, you know? Shishishi~!" he said, laughing as he leaned away again to gaze upon the King. Aurelius Eon was quickly becoming something beyond human, but just as quickly as he was doing that, he also began to phase out of perceivable existence. There was another dark and demonic presence in the vicinity, one which rose to power quickly enough that even Karna buckled under its pressure. Said presence seemed to be taking hold of King Eon as the reason he was fading away. "Oujo-san, I think it's time for a change of plans regardless~"

[Apollymi]

Hikari was overall very excited. The news that Miki wasn't in fact a knight, and that she'd managed to get this level of strength without any direct assistance from Kou, was shocking to say the least. In this moment though, it made perfect sense why one would party up with such a capable individual. In fact, everyone she'd seen in this group so far seemed to be pretty capable, and Kou apparently thought simply hanging out with them would help her a great deal. "Sugoi! You didn't have to help her out, and she's really cool, and pretty. Actually..." a devious light came to the fox girl's eye in this moment as she took a moment to glance over at Miki. She made a decision about this moment really quickly, one which would likely seem strangely familiar. "Is she your girlfriend?" she asked with plain and reckless abandon. Sheer excitement was on her face, as she would consider them to be an epic power couple of such a thing were taking place.

Meanwhile, Miki was once again the target of the bullying nature of Karna. The white-haired young man was content, to laugh at her expense, while making the rather open-ended claim that she could finish the activities of the Marshes if she was so concerned with her relationship status with Kou. "Ugh, you live to annoy me don't you!" she claimed hiding her face. There were bits of this lad's conversation she would normally pick apart, but before she could say anything more she shivered deeply, nearly falling over as the pressure rose from the King of Eon. Beyond this, there was the matter of the nasty nature of that energy which Miki could also feel. "Understatement of the century. But to be honest, even with my skills, I'm not sure I can take him..." she mentioned. Still she balanced her spear over her index finger with magical energy prepared to try and use it to its current fullest potential. But strangely enough she wouldn't get the chance. Madoka, had tried reasoning with the King but he wasn't hearing her. Even though, she'd been polite and tried to go along with what he said, she couldn't sense the evil nature of him, and was instead simply forced to feel the pressure of his power and the shift into something very different. "Forgive me, Father, but I cannot allow this!" she said firmly for once. And then she jumped into the air, the Key Staff she wielded with the large egg gem atop it aiming to swing into the King's fore, "Ars Arcaneum!~" it was the name of her first skill, one which would allow a series of thirteen strikes to be aimed at the King's body. Her aim to render him unconscious, perhaps physically broken, but able to come out of whatever was wrong with him. Strangely, she wielded this weapon directly, using it like a giant club, which was a surprising thing for Miki to see. "What the hell, kind of build is that?" she asked aloud. "Well at least there is planning time now, what do we do about a demon? I never encountered one before..." mentioned Miki to Karna.

[Bloodedge]

The presence of a new power shook Kou to his very core. It was far beyond anything he'd experienced previously, and yet it seemed to be coming from a source other than the King. The King's own power was becoming tremendous, but watching him fade away, Kou believed there was someone - or something - else pulling him to safety via some strange magic. What bothered him more though, was the query of Hikari, whom he suddenly became more certain was the person he thought she was in the other world. "My g-... No, Yu-... Hikari, it's not like that!" he said with as much blood filling his face as there was power filling the throne room.

Meanwhile, the King's disappearance was becoming more clear, though Madoka remained incapable of sensing that there was a demonic presence as the cause. The girl made a very clear, albeit strange effort to stop his behavior. When she approached by using her magic-leaning weapon for melee, she would encounter the King's right hand, which forged an instantaneous barrier of demonic energy whose successful defense would be followed by the barrier shattering outwards as an attack of both blunt and cutting nature. Karna watched this attempted assault with displeasure, while Miki questioned dealing with a demon such as King Eon. "Ideally, you kill it before it finishes becoming a Demonoid. You know, like how I was killed as Sharrkan in phase 1. This one's fine, though. He'll only be around for a few more seconds, before his boss finishes dragging him away to finish the transformation. Oh, and yes. I do live to annoy you. I'm a fun guy like that," he stated, taking a moment thereafter to look toward Hikari with a sly grin.

[Apollymi]

The rising power of the king even made Hikari shiver, as the demonic energy made the hair on the tips of her ears and tail stand at attention. "Uh, this doesn't look like a winning situation..." she said, even as she watched the assault launched by Madoka have less than the desired effect. What did have the proper effect though, was her questioning of his relationship with Miki, such made the boy blush and stumble over his words. "By the way... that no doesn't sound too firm... sounds like, it could be that way~" the girl managed to tease, even in a situation such as this, which was exactly the sort of nature she had as a person. Whatever the case, what Madoka was attempting was met by obvious resistance.

The grey haired girl's attack didn't quite reach the way she'd intended. In fact, she was blocked by the King's right hand, which formed a barrier against the combat, causing the girl's attack to be countered rather easily. Beyond that, the reflective nature of the counter would aim to deal, both cutting and blunt damage as the barrier formed against her. "Oh no!" exclaimed Madoka, whose weapon changed seamlessly from a staff, to a giant shield with the egg shaped gem in the middle. Doing such allowed her to wordlessly use her Beta Skill, which would aim to counter the strike. It wasn't done perfectly though so it didn't reflect back, and instead only caused the girl to become launched across the room. The egg in the center of her shield cracked in the shape of the bladed attack, a large cross like deficit appearing in its center. Small shards of this egg scattered around the room, and upon watching this Miki used her middle finger to motion towards herself, collecting all of these pieces for herself for some undisclosed reason, she'd pocket them for her later usage. "That weapon is pretty good, but its like she doesn't know she can't take him. Why doesn't she know that wouldn't work... it doesn't make sense..." Miki muttered to herself in a pattern she normally used when conversing with herself in online game play with completely random people, while having her microphone turned off. Beyond this, Karna was also giving her information about what to do with a Demonoid. Apparently his Sharrkan form had been on its way to becoming one, and as such being killed before it was finished was the optimal choice. Miki scoffed, it hadn't initially been her intention to kill him when she'd found him like that. "Sou ka, that wasn't really my intention though... that form is a bit too forward. Hm... I wonder if what I was originally planning then would work now...."

[Bloodedge]

At the mention of the present situation seeming less-than winnable, Kou focused his attention briefly on the transforming king. It didn't seem to be the absolute worst thing they'd encountered, especially thinking back to the Sharrkan fiasco, but the pair of Adventurers had been given a certain edge in that battle as well. What's more, Kou himself had a few distractions piling up in his mind. First and foremost was the existence of Hikari, and the identity he believed her to have in another world. Beyond that, there was the connection being drawn between Miki and himself, which he chose to address first for clarity. "It doesn't work that way; we're partners!" he insisted before moving on to the more important matter. "But forget that. Tell me... Who are you?" he asked, ignoring even the dangers being presented by King Eon in favor of finding the answer he sought from the demi-human.

Karna winced, then sighed, as Princess Madoka failed her assault against her transforming father. "Yare yare. Poor thing picked the wrong combination, not like your boy-toy over there. Rather, that combination is being used the wrong way entirely," was all he said regarding Madoka's decisions in character building. He shook his head, coming to a simple conclusion regarding dealing with King Eon, yet there was a clause started by Miki which sparked his interest. "You had a plan?"

[Apollymi]

While the disruption in the castle might have been a problem, it seemed that Kou was more or less distracted by his conversation with Hikari. The young demi-human, seemed to be having quite a bit of fun at the white-haired male's expense. His reaction to her prodding made her eyes widen deviously. "That sounds like the same thing with extra steps~" she teased, but she'd willing drop the subject to avoid the chiding she knew would come if she continued to push the matter at the present moment. When asked who she was she looked at Kou with those big pink eyes of hers. His question made her frown slightly. "Really? I thought I was really obvious... I'm Hikari!" she said with Nexus overriding the use of her given name that she tried to say but couldn't. "DAMN IT ALL I STILL CAN'T SAY MY OWN NAME!" the girl exclaimed seemingly upset. "Yugi, you should know your own sister, jeez!" she snapped crossing her arms over her chest and looking outright pouty. It seemed that for all intents and purposes she'd already recognized the lad, but he had a very familiar username when she'd looked. She'd hoped to become a Knights Apprentice as a means to potentially find her brother, knowing that he would take that route. She hadn't expected to stumble upon him playing with others no less. She was quite surprised. "Hopeless, Baka-onii!~" she chimed. "S'all good though, I'm here now to sort it all out for ya!~ Thanks for having me along!~" she said happily. She'd always wanted a co-op experience with her brother, after ending up here, she was almost certain she'd see him again, and now it was a dream come true, and she was even more certain of his identity given his antics.

In the meantime, Miki and Karna were locked into a deep conversation, with Karna shedding some light upon the choices that had been made by 'Princess Madoka' as far as her class and type were concerned. She was using the wrong combination for her playstyle and hadn't yet managed to adjust for what she'd chosen. When it was stated like that it was obvious to Miki what had actually happened. "Sou ka, she chose the offered options when building her character, she doesn't have any magical support skills, even though she's classed as a caster..." she said with wide eyes. "That's so stupid..." she muttered quietly to herself. She had the forward thinking that such a combination would make her worse overall than people who'd chosen purist in either category at the same level. It made it so that this place was virtually the only one she could shine with those abilities, and made her an impossible candidate for dungeon exploration or any further growth. "That sucks, she's a liability..." she finished. It seemed her words about a potential plan she'd had for dealing with the 'dragon' Sharrkan had some effect on the curiosity of Karna. She looked to him and shrugged. "Well, I am Druid partly, and I have access to that set of class skills. As a favor to King Sharrkan I was going to simply try and purify the necromancer influence from the Sharrkan avatar. But I don't think I had the power for it at the level I was at, I was going to get Kou's help for the push. I'm not heartless or anything, it wasn't my own intention to kill another player if I didn't need to..." she said calmly. Of course she spoke these words while playing with the shards of broken stone that had come from Madoka's staff.

Madoka pulled herself off the ground and stamped her foot. "You can't do this, I won't allow it!" she said on the verge of tears as she looked over the crack in her staff. She'd tried taking the king with her strongest attack and had gotten nowhere, she literally didn't know what to do now, so she stood there, fuming silently.

[Bloodedge]

Every word spoken by Hikari offered Kou a greater amount of certainty as to her identity in relation to him. At long last, his mental certainty was replaced with solid confirmation, if only during the moment of her outburst. Of all the things Kou could have done, he eventually started laughing. "Boke~. You could be upset about so many things, but you're picking that?" In spite of what he had to say, Kou wore a smile he couldn't dream of removing from his face. He had so many questions as to how this was possible, how his younger sister even managed to be alive - much less in another world - but he couldn't be bothered to go beyond the satisfaction of stumbling upon her here. He focused on the king once more, knowing that if he intended to address any of his questions and concerns, there was something that needed to be done. As such, he steeled his resolve. "We've got a lot of catching up to do, yeah? We never teamed up on anything like this before, so let's topple a monarchy!"

In the meantime, Karna absorbed the information from Miki's plan, once meant to be used against his previous incarnation. For a Druid to be capable of dispelling outside influence on other beings was not necessarily uncommon, but to such an extent as removing a demon's influence was quite rare indeed. Perhaps, though, there was a very simple answer. "I wanna say you should give up on that, Oujo-san. But... I think it can work out just fine if..." The completion of this clause proved fruitless, and the same could be said of Kou's intention to attack. The hidden demon's grasp on King Eon completed one of its goals by phasing the man out of this very plane of existence, taking it to wherever the demon resided to complete the transformation without interference. Karna scoffed. He'd been thinking most recently to take something out of this interaction for himself, but now he had to await a different opportunity. Kou, on the other hand, only managed to seem confused that the king had disappeared just as he planned to engage.

[Apollymi]

"No teasing, it's really annoying not being able to say my own name," the girl said still in a bit of a huff. Regardless it appeared that her brother was truly happy to see her, and as such it was an exciting prospect to be able to finally work with her brother. It'd taken her a long time to get to where she was currently and she couldn't wait to partner up with her brother and be of use to him at something she knew he enjoyed. "Yosh! I'll do my best!" the young girl said, having found her brother here, she knew they likely wouldn't be separating any time soon, she'd already been accepted into his party so she was content to give their chats some time before they engaged in them properly.

Meanwhile, Miki's plan seemed to be one that Karna had a bit to add to, but before he could even complete his statement, the King disappeared from this plane of existence. Ruining the plans and discussions of everyone present in just a few moments. Miki relaxed after realizing this and having the nagging annoyance go away. "To be fair, it's probably for the best he disappeared. It would have been a bit risky to try and take him right here and now," she said. After this Madoka could be seen stamping her foot apparently mad, "Father get back here!" she exclaimed throwing a tantrum. Miki took a moment and ran her open hand over her face. She began thinking in terms of the future, if this was like one of those boss fights were the boss would eventually resurface, they likely had a limited amount of time to properly regroup and level up and do what they needed to. Madoka looked around the room and realized she was the only one who appeared disheveled and immediately straightened up her posture bowing to all present. "Thank you all for your patience in this matter. I am sorry about father, I will try and talk to him about it later..." she said which made Miki tsk. "That probably won't work, you didn't take any magical support skills did you, Madoka-san?" she asked the girl in an outright manner. Madoka managed to look confused and shook her head. "Of course not, why would I do something like that, I am a warrior, I only chose caster to boost my affinity with magical weapons," she said which made surprise come across Miki's face. She couldn't even begin to explain everything wrong with what she'd just heard. "Yare yare, he broke my staff, I can't fix this... what am I going to do?!" Madoka questioned, tears coming to her eyes.

[Bloodedge]

The disappearance of the king seemed to put most of the others at ease. Of course, this was far from true in the case of the princess. She happened to be the only person demanding that the king return to this plane, despite being the only one to clearly fail against him in a rather blatant way. Karna took exception to her attitude in making such a demand. "Yeah, get back here. Your little princess wasn't done kicking your ass yet," he quipped as sarcastically as he could. Madoka was also confronted by Miki about her choice in character build, to which she replied with information that wasn't exactly stellar news. "Affinity with magical weapons? You're swinging a staff around like it's a beat-stick!" he chimed in. Kou had taken the downtime to approach the others, gesturing for Hikari to come along as well. He managed to catch the tail end of the discussion, and he seemed even more bothered upon hearing what Madoka's issue as a fighter was. Either way, Madoka's existing problem was one he could offer assistance with. "Eto... I could do something about the staff for you, but the way you play... err, fight... isn't going to help you sustain it. That piece isn't just a Legendary Weapon, you know? It's an Artifact."

[Apollymi]

Karna's commentary was heard by Miki just as she was initially recovering from suppressing the desire to call the princess' build choice stupid and her attitude dumber. Of course, it would happen to be the case, that Karna would take care of this for her, by way of sarcasm. The words that dropped from is mouth, made Miki slap her hand over her mouth and she turned around suppressing the laugh which should have been coming out of her face. Karna was kind of funny when his snide commentary wasn't aimed at Miki and she knew this to be the wrong way to think about it. "What's wrong with swinging it around, it's a giant mace?!" questioned Madoka, and strangely it would be Kou to answer this by virtue of what he had to say about a potential fix for her weapon. Madoka looked at the white haired lad her eyes sparkling. "I know it's an artifact, that's why I had it put in the staff, so it'd always be with me. But really?! You'd do that for me, Kou-san?!" she said seemingly excited enough to glance over all the extras. She'd been under the assumption that the lad didn't like her, perhaps he was warming up to her a bit overtime. Hikari who'd come over with Kou had her brow raise. "Oi, he offered to help fix your weapon, not take you on a date, calm down missy!" Hikari said taking a bit of exception to the actions of the princess, who seemed under equipped for regular jobs. All the while, Miki casually used her ability to take the crown from the top of the princess' head without her noticing, having finally recovered from her laughter. "I wasn't thinking like that..." Madoka said, not looking sheepish enough for Hikari's liking. "Yes you were... you can't lie to me. I have a woman's intuition!~" the small raccoon girl said triumphantly. "I might be able to help mediate the potential extra damage to the artifact... " she said producing a few of the shards she'd taken from the weapon. "I could enchant these to stop the decay of the weapon, and give her a few passive magical abilities to mediate her play... er... fighting style," mentioned Miki with a bit of a smirk. "Miki-san, you're so nice. Thank you... thank you..." she said to the other girl which made Miki raise her left brow at the princess. "Iie, I don't work for free... you'll be paying us if we do it..." mentioned Miki... she'd done all the good will for this lass that she intended to ever do. Madoka looked at Miki and nodded, seeming to find something a bit strange in the girl's countenance. "Hai, of course, I can provide a sizable bit of gold if you two can help me out..." she mentioned keeping to herself her thought of wanting to join this blossoming party. They looked like so much fun, but maybe they considered her current moments as a test of some sort. She then looked to Kou intending to brainstorm. "If we do this, I'd need you to combine these with this crown after I am done with them..." mentioned Miki, which made Madoka look at the other lass aghast. "Hey, when did you?" she asked confusedly touching her own head, but Miki only shrugged not bothering to answer her at all.

[Bloodedge]

"My ass it's a giant mace!" Karna replied flippantly. "It's a normal-sized staff... Also a giant key, but that's not the point! You use those to casts spells and shit, not bash people's faces in! At least enchant it or something if you're gonna do that!" he concluded. Meanwhile, Kou wondered what the princess could even be thinking when placing an artifact inside her staff if she intended to use it in such a way, though the act alone was not the worst of ideas. "Yeah, I'll do it, but..." Kou paused to lift his hand and point his thumb in Miki's direction. "Like she said. What's in it for me? I don't need more money." Interestingly enough, Hikari managed to interject by pointing out what she believed to be the intentions of Madoka. Kou sighed, though he also smiled and chuckled at the antics of the sister he remembered. "Girl's intuition," He added/corrected before he decided to leave well enough alone there, and address Miki's plan to fixing the staff and egg. "You want to give passive magical abilities to a Caster? Seems a little doting to me. I was going to replace the missing pieces of the Artifact entirely, but... putting the missing pieces on the crown might actually be the perfect thing to fix that build," Kou mentioned, holding a hand to his chin whilst processing his own thoughts and ideas alongside Miki's assertions.

[Apollymi]

"Eh, you're so rude!" the princess said, seeming to have a problem with Karna. While, Miki agreed that Karna wasn't necessarily to everyone's taste, the lad wasn't really a bad guy, and even Miki realized this. Meanwhile, it seemed the raccoon child was very serious about no moves being made at Kou, and Miki found that funny as well. Perhaps the girl was related in some way, Kou even went on to try and change the girl's words about her woman's intuition. Hikari looked at the lad with a huff. "I said what I said!~" she commented flippantly. Madoka was in a very strange position after a few moments, she could easily provide Miki with the gold she wanted to help in fixing her weapon, but she wasn't sure what someone like Kou would even want. "Ano, I don't really know what you'd like, you are already a Knight. But if it is within my power to grant it, I will," Madoka said firmly. She realized of course, that you couldn't get something for nothing, and that she'd been a bit outlandish to them initially. She'd been trying to do better, but it didn't really seem to be working in her favor.

Meanwhile, Kou and Miki talked over the actual schematics of the things they wanted to do, when mentioned that she was doting on a caster who had the magical base abilities, Miki shook her head gently. "I wasn't thinking full helmet-build or anything, maybe just scan so she had some understanding when a fight isn't winnable. Anti-decay for the artifact, only because I don't really intend to return all of the pieces. They register as ultra-rare loot... I can't just give them all back. Besides, I figure, if the crown is put together by you, she might have an easier time channeling the magical abilities of the weapon until she can shift her abilities some," said Miki which seemed to her as a solid a plan as any. If Kou agreed, and secured his own payment, she'd begin working with a few of the shards, while handing over the crown to Kou.

[Bloodedge]

"Is it rude if I'm right? No. No it isn't," Karna stated clearly whilst turning up his nose to the princess. On Kou's end of things, Madoka agreed to pay tribute to his assistance as well, so long as it was within her power to make an offering. The white-haired Adventurer grinned in a way that could almost be considered devious"Oh? Well then, what I need is Dragon Glass." Though he knew this to be an outlandish request to make of anyone, especially one so bound to a single location, Kou reached out with the intention of claiming the keystaff Madoka wielded. In the meantime, he looked toward Miki and held out a hand meant to claim some of the egg shards as well. "I guess that should be fine. Re-imagining the build would be better off, but something like Scan should do a ton of heavy lifting. I can enchant the staff to passively draw and accumulate Mana until the learning curve is addressed."

[Apollymi]

According to Karna he hadn't been rude, he'd only told the truth, this of course made Miki have to stifle another giggle, and even Hikari had to do the same. In Hikari's mind, the angry-eyed man wasn't nearly as bad as this princess, so he was winning the dispute. Regardless of the fun and games, it seemed that Kou was content to ask for something which no one on the planet could rightly get. The eyes of the Princess widened as he asked for something she didn't have and didn't really know how to get. "Ugh? Dragon Glass?! There aren't even any dragons anymore, no one can even get Dragon Glass!" claimed Madoka. 'Baka, of all of the things he could ask for, he asks me for something I don't know how to give him...' thought Madoka as her hands went up to the sides of her head and she pressed against the sides of her skull trying to wrack her brain for potential answers. 'Come on, think! Think! It has to be somewhere right?!' she seemed to be struggling a bit. She'd told the lad she could provide him something within her power, how on earth did he expect her to be able to come up with something like Dragon Glass. While Madoka freaked out trying to figure out to provide the thing that Kou had asked for, Miki shook her head from left to right.

"Her head might explode trying to figure out how to get you Dragon Glass," she said snickering. Of course, in the meantime, she applied a few runes to a single stone to give the ability Scan. It took her a few moments, but she was able to hand over those pieces and a few others to Kou without much hassle. "That ought to do it for my part of it," she said calmly. She began thinking over the lad's desire for Dragon Glass and wondered what he intended to do if the Princess couldn't actually provide it, it was very likely she wouldn't be able to, given that she had spent the whole of her time in this area. That being said, she did have an artifact, which meant she had to know where at least some semblance of Dragon influence had been in this area, since all the artifacts were related to dragons in one way or another.

[Bloodedge]

Madoka was of the belief that there was no one capable of retrieving Dragon Glass, yet Kou's desire was firm. "I beg to differ. You have all the tools and abilities you need to get Dragon Glass, and I need as much as you can get me. Gambatte~" he said in an almost sinister tone, despite the smile on his face. Leaving the topic behind for the moment, he took in hand the fragments Miki offered, and immediately began funneling his own Mana through the bunch. He'd yet to receive the staff from Madoka, but perhaps she simply wasn't sure of her ability to meet his demands. Continuing to hold out his hand, he offered one more query to the princess. "So, what's it gonna be? I need Dragon Glass, and you need the ability to go get it... and to lead this kingdom, right? I'd say your best move, for multiple reasons, is to take the deal."

[Apollymi]

The sinister look on the lad's face went unnoticed by Madoka, but it just made Miki laugh again. There was something about the exchange between Madoka and Kou in this moment which seemed to clear something up in the mind of Miki, which she decided to keep to herself for the moment. 'Sou ka... he believes in me!~' Madoka's eyes sparkled, as she tried to think through this situation. It didn't seem like it would work though, she had nothing outright to offer the lad, but she saw nothing sinister in his outlook. He was still holding out his hand for the staff, even though they hadn't yet come to an agreement. 'He'll help me now... if I offer to help him later? Huh... I guess that makes him a better politician than I am... but I do need to be able to keep a hold of this place and... obviously I am in no position to argue currently,' thought Madoka. This of course, only made her more inclined to like the white-haired Knight. "Hai! I'll offer my assistance when the time comes to help you get the Dragon Glass you need, in exchange for your help now..." she said extending the staff to the lad to get it fixed up in whatever way possible. 'That's the way... guaranteeing help for later is an interesting method. Sounds like an unnecessary debt to me, but I am used to being able to do things for myself... I guess, working together is always a useful option,' she thought with appreciation. Hikari managed to simply look pouty this entire time, "Damn it took long enough... that was a simple one," she commented about the situation in a way which would leave one to believe she knew what was going on the entire time.

[Bloodedge]

"I figured as much," Kou said as he took hold of the staff. The six crystal fragments he held in his opposite hand had already gained an ethereal glow that was beginning to sink in, and a simple movement of them toward the crown - alongside a similar glow in Kou's eyes - the shards were bound to the bottom of Madoka's crown. A bit more attention was paid to the staff than this, as Kou placed in on the floor and knelt over it to perform an enchantment that seemed more like a ritual of some sort. While performing this enchantment, Kou was a bit taken aback by the sensation the staff gave him. "This staff is its own type of Artifact. It's giving me more magical feedback than anything else I've ever touched, and you were swinging it around like that? Bad move," he stated blandly, unable to withhold his honesty in the midst of his shock.

[Apollymi]

It seemed that Madoka had reached the right conclusion, and beyond that, Kou had started on his actual work with the staff and crown. She watched with wide eyes as he took on an ethereal glow and worked with the pieces, beyond that he seemed to have something to say about her choice in techniques. She managed to look a bit embarrassed by being told such a thing, in such a direct manner. "I mean... I didn't know that, it is a mace. I built like a warrior," said the white haired lass, as she crossed her arms over her chest. Miki couldn't help but look a bit abashed on the other person's behalf, while she also thought Madoka's choices were bad, she didn't have a good way to say it. As such she thought to leave this part to Kou, "Fine then, what do you suggest?" she asked of the lad, though she seemed a bit haughty she was willing to try and take some advice, particularly when Kou wasn't being overly aggressive when presenting it. In the meantime, Miki had her weapon transform back into a pillow and sat atop it, willing to just watch until such a time as her input was necessary.

[Bloodedge]

It seemed Madoka was content to keep addressing the keystaff as if it were a mace. Karna fully intended to chime in at this moment, but Kou had already begun shaking his head. Karna had already opened his mouth and raised his right forefinger to stress his point, though hearing Kou begin to speak led him to pause. "It's not a mace. This is literally one of the most magically-inclined weapons you could have chosen. Warrior Caster, right? That's the opposite of my classing, but I chose mine knowing exactly what I wanted: the magical power of a Mage, and the sword skill of Saber. You have the strength of a Warrior, but the magical skill of Caster..." As Kou continued speaking, he seemed to reach an incredible level of focus. Such was the case when he spoke of classing in video games and the like. "Your magic is weaker than it could be, so you can't expect your class to produce any high-tier spells. There might be physical strength, but there isn't enough skill with weapons to supplement it. Max DPS always requires playing your class to its design. The strength of a Warrior, paired with the skill of Caster has the power to fight an army. It can be done using this weapon for melee, but that would require a set of skills meant to protect and empower the staff and its wielder. Supplementary skills are the only way to win with a build like yours."

[Apollymi]

Madoka was left to stare wondrously as Kou explained the true nature of her weapon. It seemed she'd been thinking about her build the wrong way the entire time, she hadn't built with any particular thing in mind, she wasn't a hardcore gamer or anything of the sort. As such she took everything at face value and was content to play the way the game offered her. "Sou ka..." Madoka said, she didn't know anyone thought about games to the extent that the lad before her was claiming he did. And it seemed that all he was saying was indeed correct. She listened intently trying to piece together what was wrong with her build based on what Kou was saying. "So you're saying, I am built wrong for the way I am fighting... and if I wanted to be a warrior like what I thought, then I should have picked some support skills instead of all attacks?" she reasoned seeming to understand at least a bit. There wasn't much to be done about this right at the moment, but she supposed she could try to re-spec to fix her current issues.

All the while, Miki watched the amount of focus that Kou showed while making his explanation. 'Ah, he's really good at talking to people... I couldn't think of a nice way to say anything like that... might leave him to that sort of thing, it's a good set of skills to have actually,' Miki thought to herself as she watched the lad intently. All the while, Hikari stared at the goings on with the abject curiosity of a child, when her eyes settled on Miki, she could very easily see her watching Kou and given the blonde lass' disposition she could even surmise that she liked the boy. 'Hm, there is a girl who is interested in my brother not simply for what he can do for her... chances like this don't come along often,' she thought to herself. 'I could be wrong I guess, it hasn't been that long, I should watch more carefully,' there was a devious look in the raccoon girl's eyes as she decided upon her course of action. "Miki-nee, can I sit with you?" the girl asked of the young woman atop her pillow. It was in this moment, that Miki's eyes shifted away from Kou for a few seconds, she looked at the girl and lowered the pillow a bit. "Sure." and with this the small raccoon child jumped atop the pillow and settled in with Miki content to watch and rest her legs for a bit. 'First test... pass!~' she thought.

[Bloodedge]

"Hai," Kou answered as he rose from the floor, lifting the keystaff with him. "The way you're using this build, you should have been classed the same as me. Your primary focus should always be your Class, not necessarily your Type. If you're stuck on playing that way, though, you should at least make sure you use the skills to make it a viable build, or... Game Over." With that said, Kou offered the princess her crown and weapon of choice. He then sighed and looked to his companions, whom he found to be in a rather strange state as a group. Nothing was odd about Miki, but Hikari had taken a place upon the former's pillow, while Karna watched on in a more devious manner than normal. "So uhh... What were we doing after this again?"

[Apollymi]

Madoka was astounded to find out that she'd built her character wrong or rather in a manner that was less than viable. Whatever the case, her weapon and crown were soon restored to her, and she took her crown and placed it upon her head. Doing so gave her the ability to magically scan the entire room which was something she'd never done before. She found everyone in the room possessed a great deal of magical skill compared to herself. "Sou ka... arigatou gouzaimasu, Kou-san... Miki-san," she said to both of them, she walked over to Miki herself and removed from her person a bag containing some 200 gold pieces. Miki took the bag in her hand but didn't bother trying to count it. She had a pretty good idea of how much was in there. "Sankyuu~" she said tossing around the pouch a little bit. After a moment, Kou went on to ask what they were planning on doing next.

Miki thought for a moment but then remembered what their plans had been after setting out from the Marsh Kingdom. "Ano, we were going to go and secure a cart and cho...ahem... I mean Filolial for general group transport. Maybe some camping gear too considering the size of the group now would be pretty good," she said with a curt nod. She didn't know how long they intended to travel, but she figured they would definitely need supplies and the like, which was partly the reason she was alright with charging for her services. "The Filolial farm is to the east of this place off the grasslands..." she said calmly. "We could do the last minute stuff here and then head out to meet the farmer in the morning..." Miki suggested. She didn't know if Kou was the type to do what she wanted in this case, but she had every intention of being completely involved in the creation of their Filolial. There were too many variables for her to one a really low tier one.

[Bloodedge]

Filolial raising was the plan they had. Once reminded, Kou considered the great boon it would be to deal with that sooner, rather than later. He also wished to focus on the breeding process of the Filolial for the sake of producing the best one possible, and to do so, starting on a morning was optimal. "Yeah, that sounds good. A Filolial and a cart is pretty much a necessity, especially now that we have a group of four. Xerxes definitely can't carry that much of a burden by himself, even if he did agree to pull cart all day. Besides... that'd be weird." And so, the group's time in the royal castle of Eonis came to an end. They went about their way until they departed, on foot, the very next morning.

Continue the Adventure Here (http://www.roleplayuniverse.net/forums/showthread.php?906-Grasslands).

[Apollymi]

Quite a while since her last visit to the Kingdom of Eonis, a young blonde haired lass found herself waiting around outside of the Kingdom for her companions to join her. It'd been a bit more than a week since they'd last seen their group together. She sat atop the back of a large white dire wolf, a young girl with twin tails sitting in front of her sleeping having eaten a bit too much, again. Even so, the blonde lass couldn't calm down, nor could she stop smiling. She was well and truly happy, and quite excited to be seeing her companions again. They were all good people but on in particular had been on her mind for far longer than the week they'd been separated. "Are you feeling alright? Did you enjoy the trip?" she asked of the teal haired lad she'd had with her for the duration of her trip. The golden cage she'd collected while in the Migrating Vale, oddly belted to her hip and gently rocking as moved forward. If one had to take note, the lass was looking quite spry. She had a new quality to her Mana and everything about her seemed to have increased quite a bit.

[Bloodedge]

"I am fine, yes. You... realize you can speak normally, right? I can understand the other language, it's just harder to speak it," said the teal-haired male in the girl's company. His Mana had also undergone a bit of an alteration, though a bit more... subtle than the blonde's. One that wasn't so subtle at all, though, was encroaching upon them as they spoke. Three left, but four returned. The identity of Geno Killer returned in the form of Kou, the ashen-haired Saber. Arjuna was in the group's company, and no different than he had been before, and of course there was Hikari and... one other.

Kou's Mana had been restored to its normal functionality, albeit with an incredible boost in the quality of its movement. His physique was heavily adjusted as well, though the eyes of a Witcher were currently not a trait he bared. Over the course of the journey back, he had suppressed the physical traits of a Witcher, reducing them mostly to something he chose to activate. As the group encroached upon the likes of Miki, Diva and Fiona, Kou's stepped gained a bit more... pep, so to speak. "Oi! Suman! It took longer than I thought it would!" he called out, arm elevated to wave down the other group during his approach.

[Apollymi]

Miki looked to Diva with wide eyes. She managed to look a tad abashed and turned her head to the side, "Well, yeah. Of course, I figured that was fine... I just uh, like practicing too," she said putting off the fact that she'd completely forgotten all about that in her anxiousness. Of course, her excitement would soon reach other level as in the distance she saw and felt the coming of the group she'd been part of, with a new plus one. That much didn't matter to the lass, she figured anyone Kou chose to make part of the group wouldn't be any sort of problem. "He's here!" slipped out of her face in an excited moment. She gently shifted so she could dismount, leaving Fiona sleeping atop her weapon shaped like a pillow on the back of the direwolf. She waved with just as much vigor as the group approached. "Iie, it's cool. There was a bit more to do our way than expected as well. How was your trip?" she said taking note of the group she was happy to see everyone well, but it was quite obvious where her attention truly was.

Hikari on the other hand managed to scoff audibly. She could see the happiness practically radiating off this pair of individuals. She cut a side eye at Arjuna and rolled her eyes to emphasize the point. The pair had made quite a bit of progress even without them meddling in their affairs directly, but it was clear as day to anyone with eyes that they liked each other. This was true, even of Jaskier who watched this approach with furrowed brow. Obviously, he'd been told this group was a conglomeration of individuals, but what he didn't expect was the blonde lass and the white haired lad he'd gotten to know, seeming to be more than a little happy to see each other. "Diva, Ohayou~" the Demi-human managed walking forward to greet the lad while keeping an eye on her brother making sure as she passed him he caught her devious wink.

[Bloodedge]

Moving forward, Kou only slowed his pace when he was nearing the others. He'd seen Hikari passing him with her cheesy little wink, and offered nothing more than an expression of disgust in return. Arjuna, on the other hand, had already seen the roll of her eyes, and shrugged. "Oh, cool. Guess it all works out for the best, then. Our trip was alright. You know, week of torture to undergo a transformation, winding up in a place where everything costs too much, dealing with a small Elf army and their demon-turned leader, having a song written about me... Oh, and getting the first Cavalry member for the Band of the Hawk. This is Jaskier. He's a bard, but he's alright," he summarized. Of course, his story could not do justice to the actual events, but it was good enough, he thought.

During this exchange, Diva was approached by Hikari. He gazed upon her with the stare he always used on the brunette, nodding once and reminding himself to speak using the common tongue. "Ohayou, Hika... ri," he said, even managing something resembling a smile as he spoke to the lass.

[Apollymi]

Miki very happily processed the story of their trip. Apparently the Witcher Trials were just as horrific as she'd read about them, even so, he seemed no worse for wear now. He claimed he'd ended up in a very expensive place and picked up a bard for his Calvary. Fought an Elf Army, had a go against a Demonoid and had a song written about him? "And I thought my week was busy. You picked up a bard, dealt with Elves and Demons, had a song written about you and you thought the expense was worth mentioning? Must have been one hell of a place to burn through that much," Miki said, realizing of course, that Hikari had a decent bit of gold, even if she'd managed to spend some of it at some point. Hikari while talking to Diva found his speech much improved from the last time she'd chatted with him, and found his smile that seemed to be reserved for her rather endearing. "Oh?! You're out here talking like normal. That language practice is setting you up for success. Nice!~" she congratulated the lad. She managed to catch Miki's last bit of speech and her eyes widened and her face lost all color she turned back and looked at her brother. "Kuso!"

Whatever the case Miki didn't immediately get why the lass was suddenly swearing and shook it off, "Nice to meet you, Jaskier... I'm Miki," she said greeting the new comer with the same general amount of pleasantness that she usually managed. Jaskier had been quiet until he was addressed seeming to be focused on all that was going on around him. This new lass was quite pretty, beyond that, it seemed that she and Kou were very happy to see each other. He wouldn't intrude on a happy reunion. "Ah, yes. Thank you of course. I am not sure how much use I can be, but I am glad that you'll will have me," he said softly. Miki looked at the lad and blinked several times. This was a very soft-spoken lad, obviously very much from the other world. 'Huh? This is an oddly likable bard... seems a bit gun shy but, I guess there are worse ways to be,' she thought remembering times in games where she'd kicked them or just pushed them over because they'd been interrupting her game play.

[Bloodedge]

"That much─" Kou wasn't initially sure what Miki could have been referring to. They didn't leave with currency of any sort, considering she had it all... unless... Oh. It didn't take long to realize what was going on, especially hearing Hikari's utterance. Kou's face contorted into the most repulsive expression his otherwise angelic features could manage as he set his gaze upon the Demi-human. He was upon her without pause, looming over her like some dark, ominous cloud of fury.

"Imouto..." he said in a sing-song tone, though with nothing but malice in his voice. He'd reach out with both hands to take her by the ears, at which point he'd begin pulling them in opposite directions as he snarled through his speech. "How much money did you have on you, huh? You wouldn't just be holding a wad of cash and hiding it from your darling big brother, would you? Noooo, that's not you at all, is it!?"

As this occurred, Diva took a step back. He had begun a conversation with Hikari, but this seemed to have taken immediate precedence. He seemed shocked, but in a matter of moments, he was clearly giggling at the sight of it all.

[Apollymi]

An interesting sight was taking place before Miki. She hadn't meant to throw the lass under the bus so to speak. Even so, seeing such sights wasn't really all that unusual to her, and she had a strict policy about staying out of sibling arguments. She'd make it up to the lass later, she always did that at least. In the mean time, Hikari soon had her brother upon her and she would have cowered if she'd been that sort of lass. But alas, she wasn't she stood up straighter and almost managed an equally malicious look until of course he grabbed her ears. "Nii-san!!! Let me go!!!" she cried her face turning red as she heard the giggle of Diva at her expense. When asked how much money she had on her she mumbled out a reply followed by many more words. "Well, it's like 100 gold coins. But I've had them since Atlantis!" she said quickly. "Miki-nee told me I could keep them after she gave them to me when I went on my adventure to the Black Forest. It's not like I am used to just having cash on me or anything. Besides..." she said as her head shook from side to side causing her eyes to go dizzy. "It's your Super-NERD-SHUT-IN FAULT! Being so damn hype about an adventure and making money and not giving me time to think!!!" she exclaimed her head fell back, she was too dizzy. There were stars in her vision, the world was spinning. Her brother was a mean jerk-face. Yeah, she'd remember that maybe... maybe when her mind stopped feeling like scrambled eggs.

"Huh, I didn't know he giggled. That's pretty funny," Miki managed quietly, somehow keeping herself from laughing at the lass though she found the whole situation quite hilarious. "That was a while back... if I had been thinking, I would have reminded her," Miki said, going against her general policy while feeling a bit bad for the girl and drawing some attention back to herself. Jaskier didn't know what to think, he'd been with these two for a while, and he thought the girl to be the boss of the boy for quite a bit of time. It seemed he was mistaken in this assumption.

[Bloodedge]

"A HUNDRED FUCKING GOLD!?" Ridiculous. Absolutely... ridiculous. No way was he going to let her go after discovering exactly how much gold she'd been carrying around the entire time. He'd gone hungry. They had to stay the night in a broken house. They couldn't acquire transportation enough for three, and eventually a fourth. He tugged the girl's ears with increased ferocity, jerking one forward while jerking the other back. "Do you know what we could have done, boke!? We could have been living the life in that rich ass, shitty valley! I oughta─" Suddenly, he realized something. He hadn't been able to do this sort of thing in... years. That rambunctious little scamp of a girl had been lost to him, and it seemed she was officially back in full force, with all the accompanying 'bite' of her attitude. He stopped his actions abruptly, releasing the dizzy lass' ears and placing a hand atop her head. He then... laughed. With Miki offering words regarding how long it had been, and how she simply hadn't given a reminder, Kou shook his head. "It's not a bother. It was fun the way it played out, wasn't it?"

[Apollymi]

Hikari's head was now moving forward and backward as her brother bullied her. Was this real life? She still couldn't see straight. Was it a bit inconvenient to not have money during their adventure? Yes. But, they'd had a pretty good time, and it had been his own fault. The girl's mind was almost completely blank, the world wouldn't be still. She thought her eyes were closed, they weren't but then...

A warm hand atop her head and her brother's laughter. He was a shut-in. Completely hopeless when it came to women, but he was her big brother. He was a great person and she'd missed him a lot since coming here. Actually, this was a different type of nostalgia for Hikari, who had been sick when she'd last seen her brother. Given that, he'd been very careful of her for quite a while, taking care of her. It'd been a while since she was bullied in this fashion for doing something stupid or crazy by her big brother and she'd missed it. "BA-KA-NII!" she chimed as her vision finally stopped spinning. "Of course it was fun, I wouldn't have gone along otherwise. And you got to live out your Nerd-Hero fantasy, hmpf." she said seeming to get her bearings back. She put her hands on her hips and turned away from him, seemingly cross, but there was still a little wag of her tail which would give away her happiness. Miki on the other hand found this whole thing to be quite hilarious, and very normal. 'Uh-huh, siblings are weird,' she thought a small smirk appearing on her lips. "Sounds like you guys had a very interesting adventure," Miki said with a casual shrug, happy that nothing had gone amiss.

[Bloodedge]

"Fucking right I did," he retorted, retracting his hand before tapping Hikari's forehead with his fore and middle fingers. Once that was done, he decided to inflate his chest and press his hands against his hips with a rather smug, albeit joking, expression on his face. "You peons must feel so lucky to be able to share the presence of a glorious man such as myself! My song will be sung for ages to come, and you have the privilege of hearing it! Ah ha ha ha!" Even his laughter was overly-exaggerated in this moment, and there was an accompanying flip of the lad's hair as if he were in some sort of shampoo commercial. It was, in truth, a showing that accentuated his angelic features for a moment, but a motion of jest regardless. "Anyway, how about we check in on Eonis while we're here? I'm sure that... princess is either accomplishing something, or crying in a corner of the palace by now."

[Apollymi]

Of course her brother was happy about his weird hero journey. She had nothing else to say about it, even as he thumped her forehead in a manner most familiar to her. She backed up and managed to look huffy for just a second in a showing of rather cute sibling bonding. "Baka." she said softly only to shun him and his following antics. Hikari might have been ignoring her brother from this point forward, but the words of the lad reached Miki's ears and caused her brow to rise. Obviously he was joking, but that was fine, it was worthy of a giggle which would have continued escaping her if he hadn't decided to do such a randomly casual hair flip. Actually, her laughing had died down while she watched him and completely stopped by the time of the hair flip. Beyond all of that she couldn't take her eyes off him for several seconds. It was like he was the only other person standing there besides herself and she was quite literally fascinated. No arguments about not being a peon, she couldn't formulate the words. Only a upturn of her lips while she twirled a single lock of hair around her finger. "Sugoi..." she muttered. Jaskier looked at the lass and wondered what a man had to do to get someone to look at them like that. "Princess Ma.do.ka...? Ugh, not her again..." these were the words of Hikari and also managed to bring Miki back to attention.

"Yeah, I do like this town and all, and our Blacksmith is here. And it's probably for the best to check in on her. Maybe by now she's gotten some materials to fix up her build," mentioned Miki with a strange blush on her face as if she'd been caught doing something naughty. Whatever the case she called her pillow forward and placed herself atop it, leaving ample room to be joined as was her way. "Ikouka..." she said on the move again. But alas, no visit would ever be easy. As they approached the Kingdom of Eonis they would find several guards turning people away, hundreds of yards away from even the front entrance. "Turn back, Travelers. They city is overrun. There is only death here!" exclaimed a guard.

[Bloodedge]

In the midst of his mock boasting, Kou heard something escape the mouth of Miki. He didn't hear it properly because of his own exaggerated laughter, but he looked her way, and seemed to have picked up just a bit of what she said. "Five what?" he asked, seeming legitimately lost in the moment. Only a second later, though, he was back to his antics. His eyes closed, a smile spread across his face, and he held his right fist against his chest with another jest-filled visage of supremacy. "Ah. Five songs, I'm sure. Yes, yes. Jaskier, remember this moment! Your supreme lord and master requires five songs of his epic tale per day! Sing them to the mountains, HA HA HA!"

Indeed, it was a shame, but... they had to go deal with Princess Madoka."Could be, yeah. She at least seemed like she had the resolve to be better. Whether she has the ability or not, I guess we'll find out soon." Ah, but they would not be finding out soon at all. When they reached the gate, they were halted by the Royal Guard. This was an occurrence that was far too frequent for them in this world, and Kou had but one thing to say about it. "Fuck," he snarled. Why did this have to happen again, and why here? What could that useless princess have let slip under her nose this time? "Overrun with what? It's obviously not Dragons, so it's not that big a fucking deal. Let us in."

[Apollymi]

Whatever Kou thought he heard from the blonde lass, he'd heard it wrong. Totally wrong. Miki's eyes widened in the moment and she also managed to look confused, while still blushing and looking naughty. "What?" she said softly. But it didn't really matter, the boy had gone on another funny tirade. She didn't have to explain herself, crisis averted. In the meantime, Jaskier was put on the spot and he managed to look surprised as well. How could this lad have not heard this girl? Did he really not see how she adored him? Confused. Jaskier had nothing but confusion in his soul at this moment. "Uh, well, I mean I could. But right now I only have the one song... you'd have to do some more stuff I guess," he mentioned feeding into the joke in a sort of passive way.

But alas this happiness wasn't to last, the Royal Guard who'd stopped them, after their gentle conversation about Madoka, had nothing good to say. "Just once, I'd like to walk up to a place and have it not be infested by something..." Miki managed. Then again, she had all the skills necessary to deal with an infestation of any sort so whatever. Kou's question to the guards was one which she also would have asked. "That. Exactly that..." she said backing him up from atop her pillow. "They are creatures which aren't of this realm. Demons swarm the city at night. They break down doors, steal children, kill indiscriminately. They returned with King Eon, but they will not leave. Only one place within the City is safe, everyone else is outside of it being hunted except..." there was a pause from this guard. "There is a lone farm on the outskirts which bears unnatural immunity to the Demon Horde. The farmer there graciously houses many who have taken refuge from the city," said the man formally. "Travelers I implore you, turn back, this place is damned," he said grimly. This was all he could do, defend the people by standing between them and danger. Miki heard out this tale and sighed. 'She didn't kill the king when he returned... and she didn't take any of the earlier opportunities to do so either, ugh...' Miki slapped a hand over her face and simply shook her head from left to right. There were several moments in this story line where the King of Eonis could have been killed. One of them was as soon as the player could take over, which seems like a bad thing to do, if you don't do enough side quests to learn of his background. There was also the chance before he became a Demon which was obviously not taken, and the chance to get him immediately after his return. Nope. Princess Madoka let the whole Human Kingdom of Eonis, get overrun by Demons simply by making bad decisions. Miki turned not to go back but to go around, she had a pretty decent idea of which farm was immune to Demons. "Is Princess Madoka at the farm or in the church?" she asked. "Her majesty has been traveling between them to keep the people who don't want to leave within fed. You should be able to meet up with her at the farm if that is what you'd like. It's on the western outskirts of the Kingdom," said this guard. "We know where it is," was Miki's only sentiment at the end. "Wait, why do we know where it is?" asked Hikari. She'd put together all the rest of it, but this prior knowledge was a bit weird for them. A random safe space shouldn't have been something possible during such an invasion.

[Bloodedge]

This situation was becoming more repulsive with every word spoken by the guard. This didn't seem to be entirely the princess' fault, but there were still many things she could have done to prevent it. Kou could only sigh, knowing this was another thing they were going to invest time into. What choice did they have? They still had the goal of becoming official Adventurers, even forming a Guild of their own. They very well couldn't lose the vote of an entire kingdom, and besides... they had already invested so much time into this place, and Demons could become a danger to the entire world with great ease.

"Fuck," he said again. "Can we not have repeat problems in one place, though? It'd be really nice to be able to just... you know, travel. Make a quick stop by somewhere we've been already. Have everything be hunky-dory when we show up, maybe the praise of the masses and an entire banquet thrown in front of us─" His tirade was cut short by mention of the safe havens in the vicinity. One, he could assume to be the Church in Eonis, though he doubted that would last long. The other, though... could only be the farm they visited during their first quest. Deciding to join Miki on the trek, he peered over his shoulder to address Hikari's query. "Because that farm is where it all started. We took out some boars, and now it's protected by a Bounded Field."

[Apollymi]

"That." Miki said to Kou's sentiments. This was a pretty dire situation by her own approximation. There was also a lot to be done and not a lot of time to do it in. Hikari's question was a valid one, but Kou had taken care of it in a matter of seconds. "Oh? So this farm is where you two met... " she said with a devious smirk coming to her face. Miki was floating forwards her hand still clamped over her face. "We're going to have to finish evacuating that church, it isn't going to last..." she said aloud softly. "Why does the church need evacuating?" asked Jaskier who was curious now as well. "Because, church protections run on faith. The more you believe the better they work. If they've been within that church, watching the demon hordes swarm all night, for days on end... their faith will run out. If it hasn't already," Miki explained with a quiet nod. "That isn't a concern with the Bounded Field though?" this was Hikari's follow up. "Runes and Rune Magic run on nature. So, long as the mage who places them lives they will stand. They also become more potent the more powerful those mages are..." Miki mentioned.

As they approached the farm, a white haired lass with a large crown atop her head would be seen giving directions to various soldiers who soon left her. She could be seen, holding a book of obvious mystical origins but otherwise this was the same young woman they'd come across. She was Princess Madoka, and held within another hand a large key staff with an egg glowing in the top of it. "Make sure the rations are ready, I'll be making one last trip before sunset," she said. Her attitude had at least improved quite a bit since she was last seen. She turned to see the approaching group and looked strangely relieved. "YOU'RE HERE!! " she said seemingly excited by the prospect. "There was so much going on, and I didn't know what to do. And I couldn't beat the king... and I sent word for help but no one will come... I just... I just..." tears started streaming down the girl's face as she broke down. This might have been a bit of a stressful situation for her. Miki took a deep breath and exhaled it, she needed a few more seconds before she spoke. At the very least, the girl's rambling said that she'd at least tried to do a couple of the right things, they just hadn't worked out for her.

[Bloodedge]

"Basically, yeah," Kou said to Hikari without bothering to look her way again. He knew she was likely wearing an expression he wasn't going to enjoy if he saw it. The group made their way to the farm, and of course they were greeted immediately by Princess Madoka herself. It was an annoying greeting, her speaking as if she felt a special amount of joy in seeing the group. Kou sighed as well, pinching the bridge of his nose while working up a retort. "You... couldn't beat King Eonis? At level 50? Fuck," he said, tossing back his head and sighing into the open air. How could she be so horrible at this life? Whatever the case, Kou had already resigned himself to being involved in the repair effort. "Did you even finish the quest before? Where's Aerona? The Lost Prince? Any of the things necessary to take on the King at this point in the story?"

[Apollymi]

Hikari was amused right up until the introduction of Princess Madoka. This girl saw that the lass was one of the more useless players of this game. She could even tell by the tone her brother took and Miki's current silence that they were in for quite a problem based on what they'd walked back into. "Aerona? The Lost Prince..." there was confusion in Madoka's voice and that wasn't good at all in Miki's eyes. The blonde lass let out an audible sigh as well, which caused Madoka to look at her through tears. "I said before, Aerona-nee left. She hasn't come back yet. She took her knights with her... besides she isn't level 50," the lass explained. "I got brought here before I finished the quest, but I had just spared King Eon. And I don't even know what a Lost Prince is..." she said seemingly beside herself. Miki would fill in here. "The Lost Prince, is the reason there was an opening in the royal family within Eonis. He and his father had some disagreements and he ran away to wander alone in the world. It's information that any of your subjects could tell you half of them for free..." Miki mentioned finally moving her hand away from her face. "Aerona not being level 50 also doesn't matter, you want her for her skills not her level. Games only give optional help like that when they have something that will make the fight easier. Usually by striking up friendship/romance or whatever. And you can't make up the difference on those skills... which is why you lost," she said to the lass. This was a statement of fact, but... Miki's affect was flat while she said it making it sound harsher than she intended. "Really? I didn't know... I haven't been able to add any new spells to my Lexicon yet. I had to flee the palace...I didn't expect it to go like this..." she managed wiping her tears away. She wanted to be protected from this girl suddenly being mean to her, there was no one for her to hide behind. So, she edged closer to Kou to escape the blonde's eyes.

"Waiting until he came back makes him problematic. This fight is gonna be a bitch... how do you want to approach it?" this sentence was said to Kou and Kou alone, though the blonde looked more displeased than she'd managed to look in quite a while. To be fair, they weren't actually at level to take on the King of Eonis either, they were just a bit better prepared but they still couldn't make up the different in his skill set.

[Bloodedge]

She didn't even know about the Lost Prince of Eonis. How lost could this player be, that she didn't have information about her own family in this world? "He's your fucking brother!" he blurted out, seeming to have become short of patience. By the time Madoka approached him, his arms were crossed, and his head was turned. This was going to be truly annoying, but luckily, he didn't have to go through the explanation about everything; Miki had that covered.

At this point, their general lack of ability to deal with King Eon by the time one of their options could be found... was still distressing. No, even having one such as Arjuna along would require something more than what they had on offer. 'What's worse is, he's already been here long enough to infest the kingdom. We can't just find Aerona, or even the Lost Prince. We'll have to go the rare, multiplayer route and get both of them but... Ugh, that princess is such a bitch─"

[Apollymi]

Madoka cowered once more, this time because Kou snapped about her not having any idea about the lost prince. "Well, yeah, but I never met him. He was gone long before I got here. And no one ever talks about him," she mumbled. Still the information Miki offered was stuff she didn't know, even if it did come a bit harsher than the last time. "Look this place seemed like the easiest to become a princess. I watched like five streams and people seemed to have an easy time of this human in a human kingdom thing... I didn't expect so much!" this was apparently Madoka's breaking point and it only made Miki scoff. People always wanted to play princess, having no idea what having such responsibility actually included. She left the other girl to her small break down and continued her conversation with Kou.

Apparently the lad thought it would be a better idea to try and get both of the extra potential characters because even with Arjuna around it was going to be an arduous task to finish up King Eon. "The prince isn't much better. I definitely reloaded a save because I was annoyed by him. At least I already know where he is... " she mentioned to the lad. So the current plan, then seemed to be falling into place. "So, we have to run the rescue mission in that church before the people left die. I can make a secondary Bounded Field around the Kingdom to hold back the Demon Horde for a bit. Then we, go get the proper heirs of Eonis at the two different places they are at. And then we still have to fight King Eon, alright..." she mused. Of course, the truth of the matter was, she had just wanted to enjoy the kingdom and spend some time with Kou, maybe try out a second date.

[Bloodedge]

"You never met him, and you also never heard of him? I can understand why King Eon wouldn't talk about him at all, and the same for any Royal Knights serving him, but..." Kou paused, sighing again. All things considered, he wondered if he should be blaming Madoka as much as he was. "... Never mind. I guess you can at least be spared the blame of when you were brought here. At least you didn't die to King Eon or anything..."

Kou was back to rubbing the bridge of his nose, though he soon began tapping his temple in thought. He really didn't want to go through that annoying quest again, but there didn't seem to be much choice in the matter. 'Don't even. I'd rather romance a dude than have to deal with Little Miss Daddy Issues and attitude problems again,' he said to Miki, though he quickly thought to clarify. '... That's not to say I want to trade, or anything. I ain't romancing a dude. I like roleplay and all, but I can't go that far. Guy kisses me once? Dead guy. No games. Will take an impossible fight against Demonoid King.'

[Apollymi]

Kou seemed as if he was about to yell at the white haired lass, but apparently thought the better of it considering when she'd arrived to this world. A sigh of relief escaped Madoka. She'd actually been putting forth a bit of effort since they'd left last time and all she wanted was to be praised. As such she fit strangely directly into the dynamic of the Royal Family of Eonis, more so than she'd ever understand. "Thank you, Kou-san!~" she mused a small blush coming to her face seemingly utterly pleased by the part of his statement that could be considered a compliment. "Oi, oi, you look too happy for the time period. Read the room, sheesh!" these were the words of Hikari who'd already had enough. She disliked this girl for very different reasons.

In the meantime Miki was treated to the actual issues of courting the Princess Aerona. She couldn't help but find that a bit amusing if she was being honest, given what was said about her, she would have had an easy time making friends of the lass, even without potential romance involved. It seemed for just a second she might even get the chance, but alas, it seemed Roleplay alone wouldn't allow Kou to court the Lost Prince. "Sou ka, well, Mr. Melancholy No One Will Ever Love Me, is an annoying challenge. I doubt he'd even try and kiss you, since apparently it takes like annoying circumstances to convince him of your sincerity in any situation," she said of the Lost Prince. But it seemed beyond this Kou had no intentions of courting the man. "Yeah, I find it harder to box up to romance a girl if I am not actually playing a dude at the time. I figured I must always be a bit too much me for me to let it slide when I am a girl. I am also not really interested in the trade," Miki mentioned rubbing her hand away from her face to look directly at Kou for a second. "Though admittedly I am not into the Prince, that makes this extra annoying, I think─"

[Bloodedge]

The silent discussion betwixt Miki and himself continued, eventually becoming an agreement that neither party wished to switch their targets, despite a clear distaste for them on either side. 'I still don't care to take any chances. Even if he just wound up giving me the George Michael eyes, I'd kill him. Dead.' He was very insistent upon retaining every ounce of his comfort and sexuality in this adventure, even though it was agreed that there would be no crossing. He supposed there was nothing much to do but... make the trip. Once more, the group would have to separate somewhat. 'I mean, the princess is pretty hot and all, but... fuck. Her backstory isn't a good enough reason for her to be so bitchy about everything,' he concluded. With that, he finally spoke aloud once more. "Right, so... how are we splitting the group this time? Someone has to get Aerona, and someone has to do the Lost Prince route."

[Apollymi]

"Still doing better than me, I almost killed him when I found out his name..." Miki mentioned. This was a factual statement. She might have been able to look past quite a few things about the prince in the hopes of getting together a decent in-game party and rounding out her skills. But his name was the dumbest thing Miki had ever heard. She'd literally laughed aloud when she'd heard it the first time. Moreover, Kou was very real about his desire to maintain his sexual integrity while in his own body. "Ah, yeah. They both are pretty 'tragic' as characters, but he's too fucking sad for me. And the name, we can't forget how stupid his name is..." Miki finished her statement. She removed her hand from her face for the first time in a while. It was rather daunting to have to split up again so soon after meeting up again, but it needed to be done. Luckily Kou was more than willing to speak on it first.

Hikari looked at the pair and wondered how they'd come to the conclusion that they needed to separate and do two different quest lines to make this sort of thing happen. "Uh-huh, I'll go wherever. Pretty sure you should keep your party in tact and all. Assuming you plan to go get Aerona, she had Knights with her, you might need the clout," mentioned Hikari who seemed to be at least familiar with all the characters involved. Jaskier not knowing which way was up simply shrugged. "I'll follow whoever you think is best for me to follow. Or stay here if you think I could help..." he said seemingly fine with wherever he ended up.

All the while Madoka silently stewed over being chastised. Aloud she was mumbling to herself. "Why are girls always so mean to me? I thought I caught a break with Miki-san but even she doesn't seem to care too much... I just wanted to be a princess," she seemed to have fallen a bit into depression. Still she'd been hearing enough to catch the general plan. "You're both going to get the other two? You know where they are?" she seemed surprised. Aerona had literally left without a word and the Lost Prince was called lost for a reason. "Adventuring has perks, so does a bit of immersion in a solo experience. Thus we both know where the perspective Prince or Princess is right now..." Miki mentioned seeming to have returned to a more neutral speech pattern.

[Bloodedge]

Kou gave great consideration to potential party composition while the others spoke. There was much to think of, as there were numerous factors that could potentially spoil the entire quest on either end. He decided to ignore Madoka's query. Of course they knew where the others were; they had actually done this series of quests to completion without first being sucked into this world. Luckily, he didn't have to think on the matter for long, as it was Arjuna who spoke up with a rather decent plan. "If you have others with you to complete the quests, you are essentially signing up for the longer route. Remember, the King's power is its own time-sensitive event. You may each be better off going alone," he said, and Kou had no choice but to agree with a sigh. "Yeah, but... fuck. What are you guys gonna do then? I guess if you wanted to try doing something about the Church and everyone trying to stay safe there, it would be worth it if we each went alone..."

[Apollymi]

Arjuna's input caught Miki's notice as well. He was quite right, it would be much easier to overcome the personalities of the Prince and Princess of Eonis if they went at it directly. Even so, Miki also didn't really look forward to the idea, "Kuso, it's such a pain in the ass..." she mentioned with obvious discontent. One would have thought this was just about potentially tracking down the prince but it wasn't. Miki had been with someone for most of her journey, even while in the Migrating Vale she'd had the voice of Virqen and Enkidu's ghost to keep her company. As it stood, she'd soon be left to travel to obtain the Lost Prince of Eonis which would be the first proper thing she'd done alone since coming to this world, and there was something about that she truly didn't like though she couldn't quite place it. "It's still a good plan though, even if it annoys me," Miki conceded to the idea without too much fuss.

Hikari took note of the faces and gestures of everyone present. She figured such a quest had been undertaken by her brother, such was the nature of a shut-in. To see that Miki had also done something similar simply let the lass know that the two were indeed a perfect match. Beyond this, if they could both achieve their goals and get back with the extra pieces to defeat the King, there likely wasn't anything to worry about. "Hm, if that is the case, then you two go, and the four... or rather five of us will run damage control here..." she said gesturing to herself and even the now woken Fiona who was back in bird form investigating the farm with great interest. Madoka perked up when hearing the change in count. "You included me?" she asked seeming to be pleased by it, with large imploring eyes. "No, I added the Chicken..." Hikari said in general cut throat fashion. Such a statement made Miki smile and cover her face by turning it to the side lest she further upset the princess. Meanwhile the princess managed to fall into a shadow of gloom which was almost comical.

[Bloodedge]

"Yeah, I'm not a fan of it either," Kou admitted. He, too, took issue with having to embark on this journey alone. For him, it wasn't even a matter of being alone for the endeavor. He was used to being alone, and in fact, he preferred it. Why did he feel differently now? The answer was clear, but perhaps to Kou himself, there remained a question. Instead of spending much time thinking about it, his ears were invaded by the speech of Hikari... and the resulting query of Madoka. He already knew the count, and understood all who were included in it. This wasn't going to end very well...

Just then, she said it. Surely, it had to be something soul-crushing for Madoka to hear that the Demi-human counted a Filolial before her, but for Kou, there was a result of only laughter. He couldn't stop it; the laughter escaped him as easily as a sudden cough, or even a sneeze... and it only built from the moment it began. Did he care? No, not really; it was absolutely hilarious to see the reaction on Madoka's face. In fact, he even stepped closer to Hikari while raising his right hand toward her.

[Apollymi]

Kou seemed to be just as displeased by their current plan as Miki was. Somehow this was comforting to the blonde lass, and again, she wasn't quite sure why this was the case. She played solo all the time. In her life she spent more time alone than in the company of others, even when she was in a room filled with people she was generally all alone. Being lonely wasn't reason enough for her to dislike breaking with the group. No, that to was wrong. Deep down she knew the reason she didn't want to go alone and it wasn't necessarily about the whole group, though the others she was on good terms with distracted her from the truth which stared her right in the face.

Speaking of being unable to see the truth, Princess Madoka was left to wallow in her own personal sadness, only to have another two knives stuck directly into her heart. The first of which came from the sound of Kou's uncontrolled laughter and the second came from the turned grinning face of Miki. The white haired lass' heart sank, it was like she was being further persecuted and she couldn't even begin to explain the feeling. Still, as Kou approached the Demi-human her already broken heart, shattered into a million pieces as his right hand was outstretched and then met hers which lifted as well with a look of smug satisfaction. "Yosh! Anyways, you two are good to go. We can handle this until you get back, Nii-san. Be quick about it though, and for fuck's sake, dodge!" Hikari said to her brother. "Good Luck, Miki-nee!" the lass said to Miki who only nodded. "Hai hai. You guys take care of yourselves... don't forget to utilize everyone's extra skills. And the barrier around the farm will double to heal you so don't waste any extra energy..." Miki mentioned. A gentle whistle brought the blonde lass her wolf which lowered itself as she climbed aboard and lifted her hood. "She gets to call them, Nii-san and Nee-chan... they both told me off for it." the Princess said, she was basically drowning in her sadness, poking her index fingers together while staring at her feet like a child who'd been scolded.

[Bloodedge]

"Urusai! If I dodge the princess, I fail the quest. Time and place, Hikari," Kou said to the Demi-human after their palms made contact with one another. He was more than ready to be done with this entire ordeal, so naturally, he was prepared to depart almost immediately. The Ryuuko, Xerxes, was to be summoned beneath him. "Remember to keep everyone else around you from fucking up, as well~" he said as he made his way.

While the other two left, Arjuna decided to speak again. This princess of Eonis seemed to have gotten herself into quite a slump over the antics of others in the group. He understood why the Demi-human was allowed to refer to them by such titles, beyond any distaste they may have harbored for Madoka. As such, he commented on the matter. "It is my understanding that she is the Geno Killer's legitimate sibling. Why does this trouble you?"

Continue Adventure with Kou Here (http://www.roleplayuniverse.net/forums/showthread.php?911-The-Black-Forest&p=12936&viewfull=1#post12936).
Continue Adventure with Miki Here (http://www.roleplayuniverse.net/forums/showthread.php?906-Grasslands&p=12938&viewfull=1#post12938).

[Apollymi]

"Baka-nii, you know good and well that isn't what I meant. Though, never mind..." whatever thought the Demi-Human lass had, she'd keep to herself for now. She didn't really think she had to caution her brother against the wiles of women in video games. Whatever the case, she'd trust him to to get too caught up in the quest line thus ruining her chances to have a proper older sister, only to leave her stuck with one of those 'princess' types. She was also cautioned to make sure she kept everyone in line, and she'd keep to that without any further prompting. "Yosh! Gotta be impressive today. I haven't gotten to do much of anything since I joined up. Come on people, we must aim to exceed expectations!~" she chimed putting forth her best effort to begin helping to fix the problems of the Kingdom of Eonis.

In the meantime the down trodden Princess Madoka was left to watch the departure of Kou and Miki in their opposite directions atop different mounts apparently to go and retrieve her adopted family members. It would be Arjuna who spoke directly to the lass, choosing to help her through her apparent depression by pointing out some information she was missing. "Really!? They are actually related... well I guess it's less upsetting..." she said seeming to still be pouting. She supposed that given what the lad had gone through to add the Demi-Human to his party, it would make sense if they hadn't just met in this place. It still didn't really explain the closeness between him and Miki though. The lass was still constantly being confronted with the idea that Kou just didn't like her, thus ruining her Princess/White Knight fantasy. And she couldn't help but think Miki had something to do with it. What did the blonde lass have that got her acknowledged as an equal that Madoka didn't have? She didn't know. She wasn't jealous of the girl. Madoka had a more voluptuous figure, a place as a Princess, and she was even kind-hearted. What was the reason behind the lad not seeming to like her, why did his younger sister also not like her. These were the things that would plague the mind of Princess Madoka. "You... you like me right?" she asked of the dark-skinned newcomer. Perhaps she just needed affirmation that she was attractive and not completely aghast in some way she didn't understand.

[Bloodedge]

Arjuna seemed entirely impassive while conversing with Madoka. She seemed to have quite a few issues that went well beyond the amount of 'fantasy' most players sought in this alternate reality life. What was he to do about her reaction? Karna would never have initiated this conversation in the first place, at least not in the manner Arjuna had. In fact, Karna would have purposefully withheld all vital information, choosing instead to tease the princess. "Yes, beyond this world, they have a connection. I am relatively certain it is a true sibling bond," Arjuna commented. There was more, though. Madoka questioned whether the Archer liked her or not, prompting his brow to elevation. What was the logical reasoning behind this question, or even any of her issues during this time of crisis? Whatever the case, he responded in kind. "I hold no grudge against you, nor do I take personal issue with your behavior. However, I do believe now should be a time of focus toward helping the people of this kingdom. Hikari, I have reason to believe you should take charge here."

[Apollymi]

True sibling bond? That meant they were actually related, brother and sister. Alright. Madoka could work with that, it meant that the lass wasn't of romantic competition. Perhaps then, getting on the Demi-Human's good side could work out in her favor. After all, being chummy with people's siblings was always a good way to ingratiate yourself into the group. Beyond this, there was a sincere bit of happiness in the white-haired lass, because apparently this Arjuna didn't dislike her and that was good enough for now. He claimed now to be a time of focus, and immediately deferred to the Demi-Human girl, a bit of puff came to the Princess' cheeks. She'd been doing all of this on her own. She was fine deferring to Kou and Miki. The pair had already proved they had a decent idea of what was going on, and could do everything she could do way better. Was she really just supposed to give up her command right now to Hikari? The Demi-Human girl who was also Kou's little sister, seemed to already be planning out a rescue mission. One which didn't make any sense to her.

"Alright, Miki-nee said the Church needed to be evacuated. It's right in the middle of town and open on all sides. No telling how many people are in there," she said softly looking at a rough outline of the Kingdom she'd made on the ground. Jaskier was on one side of her looking at the drawing wondering what exactly the lass planned to do. "Obviously, if we can convince all of the people to march out calmly we could protect them from all sides as they moved through town," she said. "Ah but stuff like this is never that easy... Sensei, you could take care of any straggling Demons if we needed to move a mass of people right? And Diva, you can protect the actual people from like projectiles and things?" she asked of Arjuna and Diva respectively. There had to be a better plan than this. The Demi-Human began pacing her ears and tail twitching. She had to make use of everyone she had available. Jaskier could obviously help keep the spirits of the people up once they were settled. The Princess could provide support and all but... There had to be a better way to move a mass of people. And it was right here in front of her. What was it? Madoka seemed a bit distraught. "Why would the Church need to be evacuated? They've been holding up there for almost a week. They have food and supplies and the walls are sturdy. Demons can't cross the path, it'd be better to leave them. Set up a perimeter for the night. Maybe try a rescue in the morning." Madoka said offering her own opinion. The still pacing Demi-Human looked up at the lass and frowned.

"BAKA! Miki-nee said the Blessings of the Church fail without faith. If they've been watching death and darkness for a full week, they won't be able to keep their spirits up. Even if they could..." she paused her movements and stared at the other lass. "We can't protect two fronts at the same time. The farm itself is fortified in a way that it doesn't matter what the people believe when they are in it. As long as they are there, they are protected and healing. Demons can't cross the lines so we don't have to worry about infiltration... " she summarized. Given the information had come from Miki, Hikari trusted it implicitly. "But we don't know that the barrier will last!" the white haired lass complained. She'd done enough of the Church's interactions to believe in them and in this situation really wanted to be helpful. How as she supposed to make this girl like her, if she wouldn't even listen? "Tell her defending the Church and this place isn't a bad idea..." Madoka said hoping for some back up. A scoff came from the Demi-Human as she went back to pondering the potential movements of people. Her ears twitched and she looked up seeing the still playing full sized Fiona. "Shit! I FUCKING GOT IT!!! I need a cart. BIG CART, EMPTY. COME ON CHICKEN, IT'S YOUR TIME TO SHINE!!" Her idea was fully ready all it would take now was for the rest of the group to realize where she was going, or she would explain, it didn't matter, but they had a limited amount of time to work with.

[Bloodedge]

Taking the prompt to lead this group, Hikari produced a plan of attack that she seemed to have already been working on. Clearly, the princess of this kingdom was taking issue with not being in charge herself. Arjuna, for one, knew who the better fit for leadership was among those present. Brandishing his bow, Arjuna nodded his acceptance of Hikari's idea, and spoke on the matter of the part he could play in it. "As I recall from the last time Karna was here, there are a number of good vantage points in this kingdom. I could easily handle lesser Demons from a distance here," he said. One other who had a part to play was Diva, whom Hikari expected to protect escaping citizens. "Hai," Diva spoke. It had only been recently, but he had acquired the ability to use his Guardians far from Atlantis. It was now within his power to protect numerous people from harm.

Ah, but Madoka took issue in a more intense manner than even Arjuna anticipated. Was this why the others had such problems with her? He could only imagine so. "Defending the Church and the farm at once is not a beneficial strategy. We would be spreading our numbers and ability thin. If the Church's barrier weakens, and the horde attacks this place at the same time, we will all die," he surmised. Just then, Hikari's outburst reached his ear. She needed... a cart? Ah, yes. Fiona was a Filolial, and they were primarily used for caravans and the like. If they had a cart, the large Filolial could easily carry multiple humans and objects in tow. "That sounds perfect. We are on a farm; there should be something fitting nearby, yes?"

[Apollymi]

It seemed that Arjuna was more than appreciative of the idea which Hikari put forth. Diva also agreed to play this role as general support to any particular moving operation. All seemed to be leading up to a pretty smooth operation to evacuate the people before sunset. That was until, Madoka opened up her mouth to speak on the lack of necessity about the evacuation. Hikari explained the necessity and Arjuna even backed her up, but this only seemed to serve to further Madoka's personal sense of victimhood. Tears streamed downt he white haired lass' face and she managed to look more distraught than ever before. "But... But...." what could she do to argue. She hadn't meant to put forth a bad idea, she'd only been trying to get some common ground with the Demi-Human girl so she could perhaps use that good will to get in better with her brother. Was this so wrong?

In the meantime, Hikari watched the Princess' tears even as Fiona in her large bird form, seemed excited by the prospect of pulling a cart. Everyone who needed to agree to things was set to do their job. "I know I didn't mention you Jaskier, but I feel like I may need you a bit more after we get all of the people. Music eases tensions, I am technically giving you the job of keeping spirits high, after everyone's arrival..." Hikari added at the end. The bard simply nodded. He didn't really expect to be included in the plan but he was more than willing to do something so small as play a few songs to keep the spirits of everyone up. Everyone seemed to be going about their jobs, even as the princess shed a great deal of tears. "This isn't fair!! It wasn't supposed to go like this... I was just trying to get you to like me," she cried aloud for all to hear. This made Jaskier's eyes widen as he had no idea where this outburst came from. Fiona didn't seem to care one way or another, but Hikari was now without any further patience for the Princess' whining and crying.

"Why?!" A single word question posed by Hikari was as ruthless as her earlier commentary and came with a certain grit that she'd not actually been shown using with anyone before this point. Madoka had thought the girl was being mean to her before, with this new found attitude she wasn't really certain how to respond. There was definitely a reason she was trying to befriend the Demi-Human but she felt it wasn't for the best to be honest about it. "Oh? You're quiet now? Let me guess... Somewhere in that stupid head of yours you decided to befriend me, so I'd hook you up with my brother?" she said right on the mark so much that Madoka couldn't keep the look of surprise off her face. Hikari on the other hand was absolutely disgusted. "Let me save you the trouble. He's too good for you, and I wouldn't do it with my dying breath... " she said with the flattest tone. She walked right up to the Princess' still shocked expressed and reached up with her right hand issuing a slap front hand to her left cheek and backhand to her right in rapid succession. "Read the fucking room and pay attention. Either you are going to put on your big girl panties, and figure out a way to actually be helpful to us and your fucking Kingdom. Or you are gonna sit your ass down somewhere and wait like the Damsel-in-Distress you are. There aren't any other options. This isn't a game anymore, lives are at stake. No one has time for your stupid Romance RP White-Knight-Please-Save-Me-Bullshit!" Hikari finished her rant and stared at the lass with nothing but distaste. "Buck up or Get Carried and shut up!"

[Bloodedge]

Arjuna would have shared a few more words with the princess of this kingdom, but it seemed there was no need at all. No, Hikari appeared to lose what little patience she had for the white-haired lass, and gave her quite the earful as a result. "Should we not be... progressing?" Arjuna said, having it in him at the time to heave a sigh. Though these words were ones an individual such as Madoka needed to hear at some point, time was of the essence. His bow was at the ready for whenever they mobilized.

In the meantime, there was another presence near the church. Lancelot, of the world above, had finally caught up to this location after following Miki's trail. Much to his chagrin, he saw no signs of the person bound to Gugalanna. How did she continue to elude him? He'd traveled far, and at every turn, he encountered only remnants of her presence. Now, he even found the kingdom of Eonis to be in great peril. What could be happening here? As a knight, could he ignore this situation while striving to complete his given task? Perhaps he couldn't...

[Apollymi]

Deflated. That is how Madoka felt at this present moment. Tears had started a new, but no sound accompanied them. The last time someone had yelled at her like this, it had been Kou because she'd been ignoring the Kingdom. Now his younger sister had basically called her trash and figured out her entire plan and completely thwarted it in a matter of seconds. She might have been in awe of her abilities if it didn't contradict her whims at such a great extent. "Yeah, I know. It's covered, it was a message that needed to be delivered right here and now," she said calmly. Strangely, Fiona walked up pulling behind her a cart with her large body, seemingly happy about the task. While, Hikari had been giving Madoka an earful about her responsibilities, Fiona had proved herself a better team member than anyone could ask for. "Farmer said this is mine now!~ I can drag lots of people... let's go get them!" said the Filolial happy to be included and useful. "Yosh! Chicken out here, pulling her weight, let's go guys. Jaskier you stay here. See if you can't help with the set up. Diva, Sensei... we ride to the Church!" she said happily taking up the reigns to aim Fiona towards the western gate. There was no need to go around and no ceremony to stand upon. They had to get going and get these people whether the Princess sulked or not was none of her concern. Madoka, didn't currently know what to do, so as the others apparently readied themselves to go, she wept silently as the whole work kept moving around her.

If the group was on their way, surely they'd be in sight of this new knight at some point. As he a friend or foe? Perhaps that didn't matter at present.

[Bloodedge]

True to what was commonly spoken about Filolials, Fiona was very, very excited to pull a cart, it seemed. Diva took his place in the back of the cart, while Arjuna merely glanced at it and shook his head. Being inside the cart wasn't ideal for his role, so he hopped atop it instead. His eyes were keen, and he intended to use them while they made their way into the kingdom. En route, though, there was indeed a pair of eyes to be caught by this cart and its passengers. Lancelot paused all movements while watching the cart pass him by. He couldn't just watch this kingdom fall to whatever ailed it at present, and this group was clearly one which endeavored to be of assistance. Could he leave it to them, then? No, the chivalry of a knight was too strong in him. As such, he began running after the cart with an arm raised to wave down its passengers. "Oi! If you're going in to save the kingdom, let me join you! I am a knight; I can help!"

[Apollymi]

Arjuna was on top of the cart and Hikari was driving. Well, that was an over approximation, Fiona was pulling this cart with all the happiness and pride of a small child with a new toy. Though that seemed to be working to their advantage as far as speed and control was concerned. But, like many things, this would have to be slowed as they were soon flagged down by a Knight. She slowed the now pouting Filolial, and looked at the Knight quizzically. "You want to help? Fine, doing better than that princess. Get in, I'll explain on the way!" she said as they continued. They'd be making their way to the church in record time and Hikari would begin trying to explain the plan to this newcomer. If he got in he'd receive an info-dump worth of names and information about their current plan.

"Our group has a plan to save the Kingdom. But two of our members had to go get some more pieces to make it work. In the meantime, we are going to save the people in the church and make sure the potential battlefield is clear," she said quickly. "We have an Archer, Arjuna above for support. The guy in the back is Diva he's a mage, and on support and protection. I'm Hikari, I'm driving and the stand-in brains of this operation. Who are you? And what kinda role are you good for in this?" she asked of the man seeming to want to cut straight to the chase. She could have been a bit more suspicious but she figured that this situation was desperate enough that she didn't want to risk turning down some potential good help just because the world and town were sketchy. There was too much at stake and she wanted to make sure that she didn't let anyone ruin this, and they were technically down whatever usefulness the Princess could have had here. The Knight could fill-in potentially.

[Bloodedge]

During the approach of this stranger, Arjuna watched with slightly-widened eyes. Did he recognize this person? No, surely he had to be mistaken. There was no way this was the face he recognize, yet... it certainly was. The purple-haired male hopped into the cart with a nod, taking in the information and introductions made by Hikari. "I am Sir Lancelot of the Round Table," he said, causing the eyes of Arjuna to widen even further from atop the cart. Indeed, it was exactly who he thought, no simple lookalike.

On Lancelot's end, he was questioned as to what role he could play in this endeavor. They had an Archer, a Caster, and he could assume Hikari herself to be the only melee-range warrior of the group. With her being the leader, though, he knew his place immediately. "If you are the one leading this escapade, it would be a hindrance for you to fight as well, yes? I will protect our vantage point from any who make it beyond the others. I swear to you, there will be no need for you to break your concentration by fighting."

[Apollymi]

"Sir Lancelot?! THE FUCK?!" This was the only reaction Hikari could have. She hadn't known about the major group from her world, she'd been here far too long to see their rising in the game world ranks. No, but as a child in the village of Demi-Humans, she knew of the Knights of the Round Table and their Chivalry. "It must be my lucky day!~" she chimed, this was a strangely fortuitous outcome. One which was only made better by the place this man wanted to take up in their rescue mission. He claimed that he would take up what would have been her own position by fighting any people opposing in Melee range. This would in theory free up her own mental capacity as well as allowing her to rescue all of the people from within the Church without having to worry about the potential damages associated with her person. "Alright that is what I like to hear. Welcome aboard, Sir Lancelot... we're counting on ya'," she said offering the man as smile as they came to a halt in front of the Church. She arranged the carriage in such a way that it could be defended from a forward onslaught as well as guarded from the sides as people gathered within it. "Nice job Fiona... now we just have to get the people inside and we can head back..."

But as she approached the Church she was acutely aware of something. It didn't feel right, there was no hum of ambient magic. No blessings flowing from within. Stepping on what should have been hallowed ground caused no spike in her sensory skills. Senses she'd been honing for quite some time. No... all she could do, was hear the soft sounds of the people huddled within, and something else from way deeper within. 'Ugh, and she thought this place could last another night?' she thought angry at the lack of understanding that one such as Madoka had. She ran up the steps of the church and pushed open the doors. All eyes of the people within were on here. Hold up here were some thirty to forty men, women and children. All at various stages of haggardness. These didn't look like the upper crust people who would have had access to the Church first, they looked like the most degenerate poor she'd ever seen. "Oi! We don't have a lot of time. So here... we have a cart outside and we can get you out of here. There is a farm outside of town, fresh air and no demons. On my word, if you come we can protect you. The old, women and children first, then the able bodied men. Pick it up people..." she said, but strangely no one moved.

[Bloodedge]

"I am he, yes," Lancelot answered. He didn't seem particularly pleased to hear recognition of his own name; he was more invested in what he could do to protect and serve. Luckily, there was use for him yet in this very moment. Lancelot hopped out of the cart to stand at the ready next to Hikari. In the meantime, Diva remained prepared to shelter any who left the building, and Arjuna began picking off lesser Demonic Beasts in the distance. Alas, there was an issue inside, which Lancelot was able to bear witness to alongside Hikari. These people did not abandon the Church in spite of the fact that they clearly gained no protection from it, and worse yet, there was something... off about the building in general. The holy protection was gone, so why hadn't Demonic Beasts broken through already? It didn't make sense at all. "Hikari-dono... Get behind me," he insisted, stepping out ahead of the Demi-human whilst a hand took the hilt of his broadsword.

[Apollymi]

Holy Protection... gone. Demonic Beasts... still outside. That didn't really make sense. What was keeping them out of here if the Church was no longer protected. Hikari looked around and soon enough had Sir Lancelot asking her to get behind him, she did, but it came with just a bit of her normally sassy attitude. "Fine, fine... but... I'm a whole kid. Hikari-chan, suits me fine..." she said casually. Still, she knew for a fact these people weren't corrupt so they shouldn't have been safe here. Why where they? The sound of robes flapping in the wind came forth as the hurried steps of a lanky priest made their way forward. He stepped up to the Pulpit, looking out at the crowd. He had dark circles under his eye which shown for the briefest of moments with something. It wasn't Demonic Light though. "Look out into the world my children. And know that only death and destruction await you. Only here can any of you hope to survive!" he exclaimed. "Wait for your King to deliver you... wait and you shall be rewarded. I have seen him, I know his truth... there is nothing to fear, until you leave this place! The Old Gods have forgotten you, but your King, KING EON! Still cares..." these were the words of a zealot. 'Fuck!' was the only word present in the mind of Hikari.

No one clamored or moved. No, only the children seemed to register that something was wrong. They looked around, towards Hikari with honest fear in their eyes. "You can't honestly believe that. There aren't any blessings here. And every small child in here is scared to death... nothing good will come of staying here. Leave while you can!" Hikari exclaimed. A scoff escaped this priest as his hooked nose leaned forward and he looked down with condemnation. "A disgraceful animal! Who dares try and lead astray the flock. How could I in good faith let such a thing stand? Stay children, you shall be fed, there is no need to fear what will happen here," mentioned the priest. "Uh-huh... one of those..." there was no outright violence. Not yet. It needed a trigger but what was it. The whole of congregation seemed entranced, were they perhaps under a spell? They had to be right? No one would willingly wait for... "Sou ka, they turned the church into a farm... but the kids' instincts are still good... they don't trust him. The adults don't see what they do..." Hikari said. She knew what was needed. "Sir Lancelot, you said you'd be the brawn right now... well on my mark things are gonna get scary, but I promise you won't miss the signal..." she explained. She had a plan, and it was to show every adult here what was actually waiting for them if they stayed. To be honest, she couldn't see it either, but there was still that sound... making her ears twitch uncomfortably and more than ever, she was sure it was coming from behind the priest.

A glowing ball of light started parallel between this Demi-Human's hand and grew for several seconds. All the small children watched and even a small twitch would shift attention away from the priest. Such was a light they hadn't seen before. "If you can't hear my voice. If you won't hear reason... then see for yourself what you're giving yourself up to. Make a choice here and now... RELEASE!" the ball of light exploded in the ceiling and rained down upon the church. It wasn't the Holy Light which could smite Demons, instead it was the Dispelling Light, which revealed all that was hidden before them. The sound of gnashing teeth an horns, upside down against backdrop. Where a statue of a savior should have been, was a Demonic alter. Without a doubt, the one which had been used originally to summon King Eon. Strings appeared on the back of the Priest, but could not be undone. He was completely human, but blinded by his own hatred. "See the Illusion this witch casts before you!" he tried to blame Hikari, but the children knew better and their parents began to back away. This Priest was so blinded by his own delusions that he couldn't see the creature behind him, pulling his strings. Moving ever so slowly towards the lass, as the first stumbling footsteps became stronger still. "That's right. No pushing... let's go. Quick as you like!" she began funneling them out towards the door, and as the first step over the threshold was taken, demons appearing. Crawling over the ceiling, body parts of devoured humans raining down upon the priest and his puppeteer as the people fled this tainted place. She wouldn't focus on this, no, Lancelot had made her a promise, she assumed he'd keep. She'd focus on the people and start getting them loaded into the cart.

[Bloodedge]

Hikari's rebuttal was noted, but Lancelot would not be adhering to her request. So long as he served someone, he would refer to them as such. Besides... as she delivered her orders, she reminded him of another. He took no issue at all following her instructions, but first, he wound up staring down what seemed to be a priest. This man with his rather offensive-looking nose was the issue here; Lancelot had no doubt of this. A bit of a spat occurred between the priest and Hikari, and Lancelot remained ready for her signal all the while. He was repulsed that a man of the Church could present himself in such a way, twisting the words of his own faith to captivate his congregation for evil purposes. Alas, he was patient.

While Lancelot awaited his moment to strike, Arjuna and Diva were at the ready outside. The former had already begun picking off Demonic Beasts with well-placed arrows, killing some while maiming others. The latter merely waited for any civilians to escape, that he might encase them in his Guardians until they reached the cart safely. It was during this period of protecting the vantage point that Lancelot saw just what he needed. This priest was not necessarily an evil man, but a possessed one, as revealed by the Demi-human's magic. This was his sign, and with it, he drew his broadsword from its sheath. Beneath him, and around the sword, his Mana manifested in a way that seemed to create ripples. Spreading out from him was the cool, tranquil sensation of a magical lake, radiating from his blade and person as he launched himself forward.

Lancelot would leap over the priest while aiming one strike - just one. His sword rose overhead, then aimed to crash down upon the puppeteer manipulating the poor man of faith in an ocean-blue crescent of calming, yet destructive force.

[Apollymi]

The Priest didn't know what he was doing, but he saw all the parishioners leaving and became upset. A bellow escaped him that wasn't his own, he didn't know where this anger came from. Happily enough the members of the party who were outside were already doing their jobs, as the first few people began running for the cart, they were keeping Hikari's warnings in mind. Small children, women, old people and then finally at the back the young men, were filing out of the church to be protected until they reached the cart and loaded into with out hassle. All the while the newly added weight of each individual seemed to be making Fiona ever so happy. There was a look of odd determination in this bird's face, as if she was ready to face the world.

In the meantime, with all of the people out of the way, Lancelot did the one thing he was always going to. While Hikari kept directing the people outwards and pushing them towards the protection of the cart, he jumped and slashed at the Demon behind the Priest. The slash with its calming effect seemed to do a great deal of damage to the Demon, so much that it couldn't keep its hold on the priest. "NOOOOOO!!!!!" was the final scream of this creature as it died. The priest, had thought his life was over, but instead found himself stumbling forward as the demon lay writhing in agony. "WHAT IS THAT?!" he exclaimed as if he'd never been aware of this before. "THAT CAN'T BE IN THE CHURCH THIS IS A HOUSE OF GOD!!" he seemed to be outraged and normally he'd be right but... "You really question that!? There is no god here, only demons, puppets and livestock! This church lost its blessing long before we arrived, probably around the time you started preaching hate..." she said turning her back on the man as she watched the cart be filled up, she held no punches, people like these delusional types needed the truth, as gritty as it could be presented.

The priest managed to look stunned. He'd done this? He'd brought this evil into this place? How could he face his parish now? Hikari could hear the man's shoulders slump in his shame... "I... have behaved regrettably. I don't deserve to be saved this day, nor any..." he said softly. Perhaps this was the man he'd always been before, skeptical, a bit ugly but not a bad guy. "Spilled milk. Moving on, get your ass in the cart. This isn't about you right now. I'm not letting some random old dude die because he feels bad. Atonement shouldn't be as easy as dying, it should be as hard as living..." she said the man looked stunned. Could he really join them, would she really let him. He stumbled forward moving past Hikari who didn't look upon him at all. He saw in her the light he'd long since stopped seeing. "That should about do it, we have to get back to the farm. Get the people inside the barrier, and I have a feeling its gonna be a bumpy ride. Let's go!" she said to Lancelot as she began to move forward. "Oh, and thanks for the help," she added. This man really didn't have to waste his time doing this sort of thing, and she was generally appreciative of him, making up for a potentially missing piece of their formation.

[Bloodedge]

In one fell swoop, the knight Lancelot bested whatever demonic presence consumed this priest, freeing the man of his sinful behavior. This did nothing to quell the beasts outside, but it was a grand step in the right direction for the kingdom's salvation. The next step, was ensuring the safe evacuation of all those who sought refuge within the Church of Eonis, including the priest himself. The man thought himself undeserving of being delivered, but the Demi-human spoke words to the contrary. Once again, she made herself seem like the first person Lancelot pledged his sword to. "I should thank you for accepting me. It has been an honor," he said, bowing his head toward the lass before taking off to keep by her side during her exodus. He still had tasks of his own to deal with, but a true knight could not stand by idly while innocents suffered. "Is there more you require of me, my lady? My sword is yours if you have use of it."

[Apollymi]

A grin crossed the Demi-human's face. "Iie, you saved me from a bit of a tight spot. Don't worry about it..." she said as she stepped out of the threshold of the church. The cart had been loaded up and the Filolial who was hitched the front had an aggressive look of determination on her face. Arjuna was busy sniping from a distance and all was right in the world. An extra body for the actual clearing of the Church had been nice, but the ride itself had all the protections it needed. She couldn't rightly keep this man from whatever mission he'd put on hold to do a little melee damage against the horde as they moved. Especially when safety wasn't really that far off. "Nope, I don't require anything else. We are just gonna get all these people to the barrier setup outside the Kingdom. You are welcome to hitch a ride out if you like. You definitely deserve it. The rest of our party should be back with the missing pieces for this puzzle in no time at all. The next time you cross through here, it will be thriving," she said as she took her place at the front of the cart. She'd pick up the reins and practically feel the vibration of Filolial. "Ah, but as a piece of advice, stay away from the Princess Player in this Kingdom. She's all princess and no sense. And has a weird fixation on Knights..."

And with that she'd raise her arms to clap the reins. If everyone was aboard she give one final shout to let them know what kind of movement was to come. "ALRIGHT WE'RE MOVING OUT!! HANG ON TIGHT!" And with that and a downward clap, Fiona would thunder off towards the western front happily dragging along the evacuees without a care in the world.

[Bloodedge]

Since she required nothing else of him, the knight Lancelot took his leave of Hikari and the others. Arjuna kept up his efforts of fending off Demonic Beasts, Diva kept up his efforts of protecting the party, and eventually they managed to hold the fort overnight. On that next morning though, they would be visited by the return of others. Alongside this kingdom's princess, riding thr Ryuuko named Xerxes, was Kou. The night was just about over. Only an hour or so lay ahead of them before the sun's rays would begin illuminating the sky, so there was ample time to devise a battle plan after grouping up.

Only upon passing the bounded field surrounding the farm, did he even consider dismounting and banishing the creature which carried him. It seemed there were many more people inhabiting these farmlands now. Good. Seeing this, he could only assume Hikari and the others had successfully evacuated the Church of Eonis. Before looking for the rest of their group, he decided to turn toward Princess Aerona. He'd been the one to bring her here, so he'd also taken it upon himself to explain the existence of this protected farm along the way. "This is the place. Looks like they rounded up all the survivors. Everybody else has probably been turned into a Demonic Beast by now, so... this is what we're working with aside from whatever Royal Knights are still around and not influenced by King Eon."

[Apollymi]

They'd managed. Even after, Sir Lancelot left, the group at large had managed to stay alive and keep alive everyone who'd been found within the church. It was a victory however small it was. And now the group was gathering for a much more handed assault. Hikari sat propped up against the farmhouse and Fiona, nestled into her bird form enjoying a few moments of rest. Jaskier managed to be up pretty early, he was helping out as best he could. Handing out food and the like. And Madoka, well... That white haired lass in particular was also handing out food. After being thoroughly reminded of her place the previous day, the Knights she had under her control were deferred to Hikari for the duration of her charge as captain. Soon after she'd begun small works as she wasn't useful for the fights against the Demons that stalked in the night. "Kou-san is back!" she exclaimed. Hikari instead of moving mumbled and swatted at the sound of Madoka's voice. "Shaddup, five more minutes..." she grumbled seemingly exhausted. Kou actually had Princess Aerona with him, which was welcome and surprising to all who saw them. Aerona herself looked around the place, the situation wasn't as bad as she imagined it, but it still wasn't the absolute best to work with. "Pitiful. But... I suppose given the circumstances, it could definitely be worse. As long as we have enough extra bodies to keep us from being overrun, I can't complain..." said the Princess. There was still a bit of snideness to her, but this group looked as if they'd actually done a reasonable amount of their own work, she couldn't fault them for the present situation.

As this conversation happened, the last couple of members of the party were showing up. This was Miki atop her dire wolf which bounded into the field only to slow pace to a gentle padding as he approached. With her, atop this creature was likely a certain Lost Prince. "This is the place. It seems the barrier I placed here held overnight. We should meet up with the others and see what kind of plan they have going..." she said softly, as she dismounted giving the wolf a thorough petting for all his hard work. She'd explained in a bit more detail about the people she'd been with before going out to the Grasslands. Though she wasn't truly romantically interested in him, she did hope to keep his spirits up while they approached. The people now hold up in this place seemed to be doing just fine considering the state of the Kingdom, but they were all who currently survived.

[Bloodedge]

"I don't think it could have gone any better," Kou commented as he viewed the number of people present. Considering what they started with, this was a very nice turnout. And, considering the number of Demi-human colonies he knew were on the outskirts of the kingdom due to King Eon's mandate against their existence within the wall, this would be a bitter, yet certain improvement on the kingdom's structure if said law was rescinded. "It's a shame so many have fallen, but the future kingdom would be overrun otherwise. I'm not seeing many able-bodied fighters here, though."

Meanwhile, Miki brought along Prince Aeronius with a few final notes as to their specific location. He remembered this farm from his childhood; the old man tending it was a very nice fellow to the younger ones. Such was especially the case when said youths did not fall into his preconceived notions of 'children' based on generalizations. Now, this farm had become a safe haven for the kingdom's survivors, and... the rest of the kingdom was gone? Sad though this was to see, the important thing here was development. "Let's. This group's leader then, who is it? Is it you?"

[Apollymi]

It seemed that Kou didn't think this could have gone any better, and Aerona could only agree. There was a certain lack of strength in the Kingdom since her father forced out all of the Demi-Humans and she knew this to be the real reason that there weren't any really good fighters left on hand. Whatever, she'd remedy that problem as soon as she was able, there was no need for Demi-Humans to be second-class citizens under the rule of a just leader. Hikari continued to sleep for a few more minutes though she was closer to conscious than unconscious. Miki's entrance into the barrier strengthened it a great deal, adding an extra vibration of natural magic as she became physically present. "Ugh, alright like one more minute..." she mused managing to open her eyes and give Fiona an extra pat. "You can sleep longer, you did great yesterday!~" she said to the Filolial whom she'd been bonding with in the past couple of days.

In the meantime Miki approached the group ahead with a smile on her face. "This group doesn't function with a single leader," she explained of the general situation. It was true, she and Kou had formed their partnership without one of them being outright leader of the other. If it was to be explained in layman's terms it would be that she and Kou were both the leader and everyone else was part of their group. "A young man named Kou and I, are technically both leaders of this group," she mentioned as the group came into proper view she gave Kou a look. 'Save me!' she exclaimed in their private conversation. In the meantime Aerona looked up and saw a face she'd never thought she'd get to see again. "Bro─ther."

[Bloodedge]

Kou didn't expect Hikari to be rising right away; he never did. His eyes continued to wander the farmland, inspecting every able-bodied individual he could see while he opened his senses to their Mana reserves. They were all pure humans, having such little magical potential that none of them could do anything of true substance. It didn't seem like more than a few of them could even swing a practice sword, much less fend off even a single Demonic Beast alone. Kou understood this problem; it was the inverse of Atlantis in a certain way. Where the sunken city suffered those who wielded power dominating those who didn't, Eonis suffered the condition of an uprising from the weaker side. These pitiful humans had the numbers and political influence to push out the more capable Demi-humans, and here they were paying the price for removing such an asset. "Fuck. Even with the extra knights, everything between the wall and castle should be a hellhole by now. We need support magic," he said, once again pinching the bridge of his nose. What would it take if they decided to round up the Demi-humans to fight? Well, the answer was clear to him, but such an offer required clearance from any potential new monarchs after King Eon.

It became clear to the 'Lost Prince' during his return, that there was no one reigning body in this group. Instead, there were two? What an interesting concept; it sounded almost like a King and Queen where one didn't have some amount of dominance over the other. What sort of rule could come from that? He was curious to find out for himself, but first, he saw a face he never imagined he'd see again, and the owner of said face looked to believe the same. "Ah─ hello... sister. It has been some time..." he said, almost nervously. As this reunion began, Kou received a telepathic message from Miki. Looking toward the pair of her and the Lost Prince, he determined that... she didn't need much saving. A silent chuckle ensued as he gave his retort. 'Looks like it'll be fine. Family reunions must not always be annoying, yeah?'

[Apollymi]

Kou was once again pinching the bridge of his nose. And Madoka for all she was worth had at least been listening to what the man had said. "Oh? But how do we get that?" she asked seeming to not understand at all how such a thing could be accomplished.

In the meantime, Aerona was greeted almost nervously by her brother, who seemed to be, just the same as she remembered him. She marched directly up to him and frowned with a determined light in her eyes. "Oh? You've got a lot of nerve to still be acting so soft all the time!" she said her voice seemingly more angry than the situation called for. But such was to be expected of the resident tsundere. Soon after though she had a little more to add. "Still, it's a good thing I'm here, to be a sterner voice than you. So, I'll say all the things, if you want..." she said adding in that softness that made the lass just a bit more palatable. "I'm glad you're here. But I am not hugging first..." she finished seeming to look at her brother with her nosed turned up in the air. She'd missed the lad when he'd left, but she'd also respected his reasoning. His return was a mark of goodness in her eyes, that which she'd tried to convince him of, before he'd done something so impulsive as leaving. Apparently the pair of siblings had a decent enough bond. When Kou's words reached Miki she had a look back at the pair who seemed to be working towards coming to terms.

"Hai, hai, I suppose you're right. I guess, everyone has a family member they can bond with... and depend on," she said, thinking of something, or rather someone in particular. A small smile came to her face as she saw within her mind the only close family member she considered to be that sort of reliable. Alas, such a thought was also rather sad in this world, though she enjoyed her new independence, she did have at least one other 'minor' weakness. Not that it was possible for such a thing to come up again. Moving right along, "There is still the manpower problem though... it's the opposite problem of Atlantis really. What do you want to do about it? I mean, I can run a bit of support myself, but not enough for the whole of the demon horde. Not... without tearing down the whole of the Kingdom anyways..." she said. Initially thinking of using Gugalanna only to decide its destructive potential would do more harm than good for a kingdom they were actively trying to save. Hikari was up and stretching while walking towards her brother, her ears had picked up the entire conversation which was spoken aloud and she smiled when reaching his side. "Shieldfreeden." she said in a single word answer while pouncing on her brother in an active greeting. She also had ulterior motives for the suggestion which would become obvious after her next statement. "Also we did the thing, saving the Church people and holding the line." she said, which brought about the end of the quest line and gave her a massive boost in EXP which sent her straight to level 30, while encasing her in a golden light for a moment or two.

[Bloodedge]

"Well, there's an annoying way... and a less annoying way," Kou said in response to Madoka's query. Whatever the method, they would require both resolve and input from the future monarchs of this very kingdom. The white-haired lad could assume Miki had properly motivated the prince, but their collective resolution remained in question. What would they do when the game's romance plot didn't work out while this path was being taken? It had to be assumed that they were fully functioning on conjecture alone henceforth.

Continuing his discussion with Miki, he observed the approach of the prince and princess toward one another. It was indeed a boon for them to gravitate toward each other, freeing everyone else of their antics for a bit. Kou knew he'd had his fair share of the princess, so he imagined Miki's dealings with the prince resulted in the same outcome. 'I guess so. It's not all it's hyped up to be, though. Family, friends─ it's all the same shit in the end.'

An opposing situation to Atlantis indeed. One could even say it was exactly what the Merfolk of Atlantis feared, as well as a situation Atlantis itself could still see in the future if it did not remain structurally sound. The ideal solution in this case was to acquire the help of Demi-humans, to which Hikari chimed in with a single word of advice. Shieldfreeden was a country of Demi-humans, and likely, many of the refugees from Eonis had been let in. "Sou ka. Good work with the Church. I guess calling a group from Shieldfreeden would be way easier than trying to find camps around the kingdom."

Aeonius was rather quickly chastised by his sister in the meantime. Of course; it had always been like this. It wasn't that he was simply timid by nature, rather... he was a bit sheltered by his own methods. "Sister, that is entirely uncalled for!" he said. He didn't think himself soft, even if he realistically was far too reserved for a prince. As for the female's mention of 'not hugging first' as she put it, he reacted with a huff and crossed arms, as he turned his gaze from her. "Nor am I!" he said, even as his eyes occasionally cut back toward Aerona.

[Apollymi]

"Oh? Well... I'll do what I can to help," these were the words of Madoka, much subdued from the last time she'd been seen. This was such a surprising change that Miki's left brow rose in question of it. "Huh? That's different..." she said only to look towards Kou with obvious confusion about this shift. In the meantime, Kou's words about the likeness between family and friends made Miki smile. He was quite correct after all, something as simple as running into Tsukiko had been just as heart-warming for her as such interactions seemed to be for everyone else. She even held a great deal of respect for Kaiba Seto and Hisakawa Hiromi as far as her general interactions were concerned. Though she considered them more business associates than friends. In the meantime the matter of how to get proper help for this war on demons was something else entirely.

"Hm, Shieldfreeden is the Demi-Human independent country, yeah? It might be easier to get them to come and help, but... outsourcing completely might not be best for future peace talks between the Kingdoms. We wouldn't want to leave a complete imbalance one way or the other," Miki added in her thoughts on the matter, while giving Hikari a thumbs up on her completed mission. While it wasn't complete disagreement, looking at it like a business, the Demi-Human's left here, might not take the word of its rulers seriously, if they replaced them with different Demi-Humans and didn't negotiate directly. An open line of trust and communication was needed to rebuild a group injured by the opposites of those things. "Hm, weird perspective, but I hadn't considered it. Though, I still need to go there soon regardless, my hourglass is there... I don't want to be stuck at level 30 forever," Hikari mentioned. Though she hadn't looked at it form the same perspective as Miki, she'd made a reasonable point. Perhaps, a combination of things would be needed to get the proper strength for fighting off the horde, and doing it quickly. "Well, at least someone won't be, my hourglass wasn't where it was supposed to be... I'll be stuck at level 30 until I figure out a way to track it down. Though that's a problem for later..." said Miki.

In the meantime, Aerona's brother had reacted the exact way she'd expected him to. Claiming that what she'd said was unnecessary and crossing his arms over his chest claiming he also wasn't going to hug first. Did she know she was a bit much to handle given her reactions? Sure, but she'd always been this way and she had people like her brother to keep her from being too overbearing. She looked back at him from down her nose a couple of times only to mutter a few words and take a step forward. "Same time then?" she offered in mild compromise and if he accepted she make a move that would leave them to hug each other at the same time as offered, a nice family moment. After this she'd be ready to get to work properly, it seemed that Kou and this blonde lass who'd brought her brother were discussing potential ways to handle lack of manpower.

[Bloodedge]

"... Right─" said Kou. It was strange to hear such speech coming from Madoka, especially so forward. Had she been whipped into a state of reliability during his time away? With Hikari around, it wouldn't have been surprising to learn that was the case. Moving on, the matter of Shieldfreeden was one worth addressing in detail. Miki had her piece to say regarding outsourcing versus accumulating forces that were more involved, and though she was right, Kou had something else in mind. "Fair point, but it's not Shieldfreeden itself we need to think about. Give consideration to the Demi-Humans who were pushed out. At the end of the day, they still have human minds. Some will want better refuge than the camps outside of Eonis can offer, and some will think ahead to... well... to what the next step of oppression is. What better place would they think to go, than the one country that'll accept them without a second thought? If we arrange a moot with those refugees, we can basically do what we did in Atlantis. The people need to fight for their own freedom, in the end."

He thought it to be reasonable enough. They could find a single, presumably large collection of Demi-Humans, and Hikari could locate her hourglass to push beyond level 30. As much as he rationalized these things in his own mind, he still awaited the input of the others. Meanwhile, the young monarchs of Eonis were having a here-and-there stare-off. Aeronius nodded his acceptance of his sister's offer, and stepped forward with a somewhat relaxed pair of arms outstretched to meet her embrace, countering it with one of his own.

[Apollymi]

Madoka had indeed been brought to heel by Hikari, but the white haired lass wouldn't be saying that. No, instead she'd be staying out of the direct way unless any of her usable skills were needed. In the meantime, the hug between brother and sister, took place and ended with nothing more to pass than a look of smug satisfaction. "I mean, you could have squeezed a bit tighter but I guess it's fine. We'll work on it," said Aerona as she turned her eyes back towards the group. She didn't know what to think about how it was turning out but it seemed the lad Kou and this blonde lass Miki were in some kind of deep discussion about how to properly help the Kingdom.

"Oh? Is that what happened with that... I still don't really remember the time I spent in that form," said Miki about the time period in which Kou managed to pull together the free-folk of Atlantis to get them to fight their oppressors. "Whatever the case, I'll believe in you and assume it works. I'll instead work towards incentivizing their continued cooperation. You know, past the whole, we need to slay demons phase," the blonde lass mentioned, she was already unconsciously flipping around that strand of hair over her finger as she thought through the different problems the Kingdom of Eonis had from a financial perspective. They'd encountered quite a few problems in coming to Eonis, the food shortage, the wild boars, the corruption of the rich. All things fixed by a properly functional trade system and an economy not in the hands of the slothful aristocracy. "Though for all of those things to work out, we'll need the Royalty of this area to back the things we say with their word," she finished up as her mind continued to wander down the path of the future, a model of commerce which could be sustained by the ambitious but moderate merchant/working class was optimal to keep in check the less balanced rule of Monarchs and would keep the same darkness from falling over the area again. The whole time Hikari listened to this conversation with a huge smile on her face. She hadn't seen what this pair had managed in Atlantis or how they'd managed it directly, but it seemed they had the perfect set of skills to create a functional kingdom between them. Aerona heard out this entire thing and scoffed. Of course, she'd willingly do whatever to make sure her Kingdom flourished again, "What, it isn't like I had a problem with Demi-Humans to begin with, they were always nice from my experience. But I don't take orders from any of you, I will be Queen here!" said Aerona haughtily, which just caused a shake in Miki's head, she couldn't imagine dealing with this lass for an extended period of time. Still Aerona as Queen was a better bet than Madoka, who seemed a bit distraught by the proclamation.

[Bloodedge]

"Well, you could stand to be a bit more gentle..." the prince replied. Sure, he was a bit lax on the hold, but this sister of his was always too firm with her... well, everything. It didn't matter at present, though; he was still elated to see her again. Now that their moment of reunion was over, he took the time to hear out a discussion between the apparent leaders of this Adventurer group.

"You uh─... it was... um..." Kou was taken aback for a moment when Miki mentioned having no memory of Atlantis' uprising. Now that he remembered, she was in the form of Tatsuki during that time. And, in remembering that, his train of thought went elsewhere. There was a tint to his face as he coughed into his fist, going on to alter the subject a bit. "Anyway. We do need the backing of those two for anything to really happen, and I trust you'll be able to handle the longevity of substance." As this conversation went on, it became apparent that the royals themselves had been paying attention. Aerona became the first to chime in, as she always would, with her usual attitude. She didn't take orders, did she? No, no. Everyone aside from the Demi-Humans were in place now, and there was no room for anyone to muck it all up before it started. As such, Kou turned to the princess ─ the future Queen ─ with great resolve and a single curiosity in mind. "Oh? Then what would you suggest?" he asked. Depending on her answer, he may or may not have been prepared to overrule the future Queen for the sake of a kingdom he had no intention to rule himself.

[Apollymi]

"Hmphf, as if." the future Queen of Eonis managed. She had no intention of being any softer than she already was. In fact, she was made this way by interactions with others and though she was always fair in how she handled others, she always came off as more than a bit pretentious. As she listened to the pair having their discussion, she noted that neither seemed to be completely taking over the situation, that they'd come to an agreement to simply handle different aspects of the problem. That was a novel idea, both of them working different angles of the same problem to come up with a reasonable response. Even so, she wasn't sure such a thing could work, and she definitely had no idea of what her part to play in this would be aside from whatever her apparent word would carry. But why would she give it? She didn't know either of these people enough, and though she was quite content to try and woo the white haired lad, she had no idea what kinds of things this blonde planned to do, and as such couldn't simply back her ideas whatever they were.

Miki for all that was happening right now, paid close attention to Kou. Finding his pause and tinted face shocking. She managed to look a bit abashed as well, having no idea what all she'd done while she was Tatsuki, but taking from context clues that what she'd been told by Seriri had been pretty spot on. She wanted to cover her own face, but she couldn't reconcile whether she should apologize for the forwardness of that avatar. Whatever the case, she was saved from this by an ever conscious Kou. "Hai hai, leave it to me. I can work it out, probably a lot easier than Atlantis. Especially since Eonis already had at least a functional economy. No prep necessary, just negotiations," she said managing to move on from her own bashfulness and fall into a regular pattern of speaking. Aerona when she was asked her opinion after her grand declaration had only a few things to say. Obviously, there were only a couple of things to handle, or so she thought. "Well..." there was a pause from her before she continued. "Obviously, we should just march over there. And tell the citizens to come back and defend their Kingdom from the current tyrant King. And if they help, they can have safety within the Kingdom, and know that they helped with the Demon menace," she concluded. Miki for her credit managed to look away her pillow came beneath her person as it was obvious to her that though this Princess was better suited for leadership than one like Madoka, she might have skipped out on person-to-person interactions. For instance, not realizing that these people should have no reason to care about a country they already abandoned, especially not just for the sake of a new pushy leader to take over.

[Bloodedge]

Aerona's answer was very, very important indeed. Did she have rationality within her, or was she too tainted by the methods of her father and basic lack of consideration for others? The answer was soon clear, and it was the latter. He hadn't heard such disappointing words since the Siren in Atlantis. In fact, Aerona's current mentality was one that would make her reign follow the tyrant's path, even if involuntarily. Kou breathed deeply, standing in silence until a powerful sigh slowly passed his lips.

"Yeah. That's a genius idea. You know, I've even got the perfect speech. Congratulations, peasants! You will now be given the honor of fighting for the kingdom that kicked you the fuck out, left you for dead outside the wall, and gave you every reason to believe you would soon be executed for existing! It's nothing to worry about, though! The child of the same fuckface who did this to you says she'll LET YOU LIVE HERE AGAIN after you've risked your fucking lives just to get your rightful home back! Oh yeah, that'll work." His rant came to an abrupt halt. It was in his best interest to stop then and there, but he wasn't quite done talking. He simply couldn't let himself become too angry, as his new understanding of Aerona's mentality led to him having a declaration to make.

"You say you'll be Queen of Eonis, and that attitude will lead to you being Queen of Nothing in no less than two years. Make the smart decision and take your nothingness now, before your rule. Sit back, stick to playing General of the Army, princess, and watch and learn while the pros work. This is a puzzle now, and you've got no place in charge here; got me?"

[Apollymi]

Miki was right to take her seat. The tongue thrashing that came from Kou in the moments immediately following Aerona's speech was one for the ages. She actually felt like she'd probably missed something good while she wasn't herself in Atlantis, though she admittedly believed her friend had been much better than this future Queen was being. Aerona for her part in this was completely speechless, for several reasons. The first of them was simple, no one ever spoke to her this way. She'd gone her whole life without anyone but her father ever daring to say anything against her. The second was that she was apparently wrong in her approach. She didn't truly believe that she'd manage to lose her Kingdom in so short a time period while not being a tyrant herself, but, something about the lads words made her believe it was a possibility. 'Am I really that wrong... would he really have me step aside while taking back and setting up my Kingdom... for me?' her mind was quite upset by the idea. She didn't want to be her father, she was obviously not anything like him, but would people still see her that way? And she couldn't quite get over it. "I... ah... but..." she tried stating.

Hikari had been quietly watching, and she understood by Miki's actions that her brother had been doing this sort of thing, at least enough that she knew when to sit down and wait out his speeches. A snicker escaped the little Demi-Human girl as she couldn't help what fell out of her face next. "Hehehehe!~ Looks like you broke her, Nii-san. Should I slap her for the mental reset? I worked on Madoka..." she said with a shrug. Miki found herself repressing a snicker, if only because she imagined immediately Hikari slapping Madoka and looked over to the white haired woman and could tell by the look on her face, and the absent touching of her cheek that the lass wasn't at all lying about slapping her. "That's pretty harsh... Hikari-chan," Miki finally managed after a second or two. Aerona managed to take the time to get herself together, she didn't really know what to say. "I was raised to rule!" she said firmly but there was more. "But, I'll admit that those methods obviously don't really work in this situation... I am skeptical of this," she said motioning around and obviously still lacking understanding. "And I can't sit by and let someone do things for me..." she said working up to what she wanted to say. "But if my being in charge here would put the main objective in danger, I will stand aside," she managed her first rational thought, though with all the bite of her personality still present. 'That's pretty good, the Kingdom will still need her as a bit of a tyrant, but getting her used to differing on things she isn't familiar with is important. Everyone has a role to play after all...'

[Bloodedge]

"You were raised to rule, and look what happened to the ruler who raised you. That trash dad of yours is the entire reason we're in this situation, so maybe it's time to consider a different approach?" Kou's stance was firm, but he seemed to be going a bit far to make his point. He didn't even pay heed to Hikari's interjection, in spite of the fact that he would have normally hazarded a laugh. He was becoming far too invested in chastising the princess, even overthrowing her rule for the time being. He wasn't even aware that the Nexus' light was beginning to erupt from his body the more he spoke.

At least she accepted the terms. Still, it wasn't over just yet. The strangest occurrence of all happened to be Kou's skin gaining a deep tan, his hair becoming strangely spiky, and his eyes gaining an ageless, golden hue. His clothes were even beginning to change while he remained unawares, his attire becoming the black vestments of a priest, featuring a red shroud. "This isn't a matter of standing aside and letting someone else save your kingdom from you. This is a matter of stepping outside yourself, and letting someone save you from what you could become. No one here is going to question your rule. This is your board, and we are all just playing the game."

[Apollymi]

Aerona, couldn't argue against this man's point, but she was also a bit awed as she watched him take on a different visage. Was this magic? Was an illusion being cast away as he became something closer to a priest than a warrior? "Umphf, maybe a different perspective wouldn't hurt," she managed. Was this a ringing endorsement? No, not at all. That being said, it was at least a step in the right direction one of many. Hikari might have been a little upset that her joking nature wasn't properly answered, but she could see her brother's current work was having an outward effect on him. As such she let it slide to see what kind of Avatar he was creating. Aerona in the meantime was left to ponder what the lad said. He made the claim that no one here would question her rule, and that they were all pieces playing the game created for her. Was this truly something she could trust? Should she believe that someone was truly just trying to help her get everything together instead of wondering if it was an aim to usurp her. At the very least, she had a decent reason for feeling this way, considering how Madoka had come into the picture. "Kou-san is right. None of us would question this whole thing. I actually don't really want to be Queen. I'd feel better if you kept me around as a Princess though..." Madoka managed, finally admitting the thing that she didn't actually want was to rule this Kingdom.

"I... see," mentioned the lass who found Madoka's words strangely reassuring considering the kind of life they'd lead together. Perhaps, it was worth seeing, what kind of changes, Kou and this blonde girl had in mind. And it was worth finding out how they managed to motivate the people beyond them. As this revelation took place, Miki had eyes only for Kou for several moments as he was enveloped in the Nexus' light and became another person entirely, though with the same general features and only a few things different. One of those differences, was startling golden eyes which warranted a bit of commentary, which slipped from the lass' mouth. "That one looks like Raizen," she said making a reference to character from a manga she was sure he'd read before. This caught the attention of Madoka who seemed surprised that he could take another form so readily. "Wait, you can do that?!" she said seemingly shocked and causing Hikari to facepalm visibly. "Jeez, how helpless can you actually be?" the Demi-Human muttered.

[Bloodedge]

"That's a much better way to think about it. Let's get started; we're going to save a kingdom." The male said this, and he was quite content to be done and move forward. However, he felt strangely the moment Madoka chimed in to agree. It wasn't the usual matter of the princess speaking which made him react strangely, but the name she used. It simply felt... wrong, even though he wasn't quite sure why yet. It wasn't until Miki spoke in reference to a manga character that he came to realize, something had changed within himself. Staring into his own hand, he finally came to realize that he wasn't Kou at all. "Oh. That's interesting; I didn't feel a difference this time," he commented, closing his eyes and viewing himself internally through the Nexus.

"Sou ka. Amakusa. I think I may have become my strongest self," he said about this transformation. He had become some strange Class called Ruler, which was one he'd never seen prior to this very moment. As for how he felt, well... his current knowledge of his own abilities was something quite ridiculous, and it would be unquestionably useful in the immediate future. "Raizen, huh? Kumori Raizen? Does it suit me?"

[Apollymi]

Aerona would not agree or disagree. She'd decided to take a wait and see approach. Madoka's words seemed to set her at ease a bit, and personally Aerona though the other girl was better served as a princess with little to no actual power than a Queen or next in the line of succession. "I don't plan to strip you of your title. So long as you don't bring unnecessary strife to me," said Aerona to Madoka. The lass seemed excited by this news, and thus she could continue on her way. The lad who'd previously been Kou was apparently unaware of his current transformation. "Well, Nii-san is Nii-san... you were just being more like I remember," mentioned Hikari with a shrug. "Well, not enough nerd but whatever..." she added.

Soon after, he was naming himself and claiming to feel like a stronger version of himself. "Amakusa, huh..." Miki said aloud putting this name in her memory as well for later. The lad now had at least two of these Avatars more than she did, but she didn't feel currently inclined to make any new ones. 'Ruler?' she mentally questioned. That was a strange special class, she'd never seen before this point either. Perhaps she had a few in the works, but it would wait for now. When asked directly if the relation to one Kumori Raizen suited him, Miki gave a more thorough appreciation of the lad's new avatar. Actually the truth of the matter was much more complicated than it simply suited him. Miki or rather Kimiko had quite the raging girl crush on Kumori Raizen as a character. Her own mind wandered towards thoughts of having unfettered access to an Avatar so similar to a man whose look she liked while he had a personality she could also enjoy. She then went on to realize she'd been quiet for far too long and coughed gently into her hand hiding a slight tint on her face. "Definitely suits you," she added while diverting her attention. "Oh, there's the nerd! I should be more shocked by these choices in fiction... but whatever. Should we cart up the Chicken and get ready for a ride?" she said moving on pretty quickly but happy that Miki seemed to be maintaining interest in her brother.

[Bloodedge]

"More like─... Sou ka. I guess this does feel more natural. Daijoubu," he said while looking into his other hand, then both simultaneously. He almost couldn't believe what he was beginning to discover about himself. In fact, he was becoming elated by the realization of this new form's abilities. 'No way! That's totally cheating!' he thought.

Apparently, the form did suit him. This came from Miki after a long silence, which he equated to nothing more than time spent giving consideration to the query. Either way, when he received these answer, there was an immediate upturn to his lips. "Sugoi. Arigatou na," he said, finally lowering his arms. It was time to move on, but Hikari brought up the idea of loading onto a cart they had apparently acquired for Fiona during his and Miki's absence. A moment of consideration, and the lad now called Amakusa shook his head. Up went his left arm, which enshrouded itself in a white-blue Mana that spread out to create a rather massive gateway of sorts. It seemed only slightly stressful on his Mana's stability, with no reaction showing in his physical state.

"No; that would take too long. If we do this, we can get there ten minutes ago."

[Apollymi]

Her brother claimed that he felt more natural as he was now, and Hikari didn't really doubt that given his current demeanor. Moving right along, it seemed her brother was learning all about his own power. Though this didn't happen before he smiled at the appraisal of Miki who managed to look just as pleased as he did about how he'd taken his compliment. 'Ugh, get a fucking room... preferably soundproof,' was the only thought in the Demi-Human's mind. Though further inward than that she was more than a little pleased about her brother's current level of progress. She even noted the blonde lass' apparent shock at her statements, meaning she was falling much easier into the comfort of the group than she had been before. "Yosh! Let's go then. Admittedly, the Chicken will be disappointed... she really likes the cart!~" claimed Hikari who was more than content to move along, she seemed to have no problem hopping through the portal and did so first knowing she was going to have to do something on her own, upon reaching Shieldfreeden.

In the meantime Miki moved forward atop her pillow having a slightly more in depth look at the lad. His current level of magic was indeed astounding, but what he'd managed to do in opening this portal was worth commenting upon, even with only the most basic of understanding. "That's looking pretty janky, only 10 minutes? I'm getting jealous I haven't rolled another face in a while~" the blonde said with an appreciable amount of humor. She'd move into the portal as well. With two others within it and no screams to count on, Aerona approached as well. "This is strange... but if I die, I'll kill you." she said in her usual tone to Amakusa as he was now called while walking through as well. Jaskier was still sleeping, the same could be said of Fiona so they would remain behind. There was no doubt this farm was safe so there was nothing to worry about as they approached Shieldfreeden.

Continue the Adventure Here (http://www.roleplayuniverse.net/forums/showthread.php?960-Shieldfreeden).

[Bloodedge]

And so, part of this group departed through the gate toward Shieldfreeden of the very recent past. Amakusa himself was the last to pass through the arch, but the first to return... only a second after departure. One second after another, others would make their way through, until an entire small army of Demi-Humans passed through alongside those who so recently left. The time was upon them; they could begin their escapade against the Demonic Beasts plaguing this kingdom before them. Seven minutes. Ideally, they could be upon King Eon in seven minutes, while the remainder of their forces dealt with the beasts outside the palace. "Alright. Optimally, Madoka and Diva should support the Demi-Humans and Royal Knights with offense and defense respectively. Arjuna supporting offensively from range is a given, and Jaskier's music can be used to keep up morale. Hikari, take Fiona through the horde to funnel the enemy toward yourself, taking out those you can while others pick them off from the outside. You should run the charge outside the palace."

[Apollymi]

It took no time at all for them to pass back through the gate and end up where a great number of them started. After Amakusa, Miki came through the gate still floating atop her pillow as if she hadn't a single care in the world. Orders were being passed out and those who now surrounded the army heard them out. Jaskier knew what part he had to play and was content to do so. He ran his hand through his blue locks but nodded his understanding. Hikari found herself being picked up by Fiona and tossed onto her back in one swift motion, a look of sheer determination in the black birds crimson eyes. "Oi, oi... I know you're excited and all but a little warning would be appreciated!" Hikari mentioned though overall she was content atop this soft feathered bird. "And gotcha covered, Nii-san. Have fun!~" she mentioned giving a quick nod to both him and Miki. Madoka also readied herself as well. "Hai!" Madoka managed, she had no idea who Diva was, but at least she wouldn't be alone in providing support to the masses.

Miki while all of this was happening, simply waited. In the meantime, Aerona looked at the whole of this small army and wondered who would be joining her in taking on the King. Obviously that was the true goal here so who would it be. "If all of those people are doing that, who is storming the castle with me?" she asked though it still wasn't exactly friendly she at least seemed fine with hearing out the lad's plan.

[Bloodedge]

Those who were to be considered more essential pieces to the battle were making their moves, with one among them ─ Fiona ─ being particularly excited about her role. While the others prepared themselves for the charge, Princess Aerona wondered aloud who would be accompanying her. If he was being honest, Prince Aeronius shared this mentality of hers. He would certainly be going into the castle, so there was an assumption of two, maybe three people doing so. When Amakusa spoke on the matter, he clarified any doubts to the number. "Aerona, Aeronius, Miki, and myself will assault King Eon. We should be able to manage with light difficulty, given this setup. I can be of more use to the rest of you like this, as well. Are we ready to move?"

[Apollymi]

Aerona upon hearing the lad's plan for actually dealing with King Eon was more than a bit skeptical. Herself and her brother, this lad who was currently a mage of some sort, and Miki the girl who'd been floating along on a pillow all day. Was she too some kind of mage? That didn't really make sense to take along an essential person for battle who seemed less prepared than the Demi-Human atop the Filolial. "Myself and my brother are understandable. He maybe soft but I can see him being useful," she said in a manner which was probably more backhanded than she meant. "Obviously, you have magical ability which is pretty high, so that I understand... but is it really wise..." she paused "To take along a girl with no obvious weapons? What does she add to the group that won't end in her untimely demise?" she asked blankly. Truly Aerona wasn't a mean person, if anything these words came from a softness in the girl's heart, though it could have used better wording. "Huh?" Miki questioned realizing that Aerona was being nice in her own way. "Oh, right... you were gone then. Lancer desu..." she said hopping off her pillow and having it transform into a boar spear with a large circular opening that still just seemed to float alongside her. "I'm always armed, Princess. Thanks for worrying about me, but... We're good to go," Miki reassured with a smile. This caused Aerona to look at the girl and immediately double back on her words. "Oh, well, as long as you don't hold me back. It doesn't matter to me at all..." she said shaking it off content to take on the actual challenge of the day. All that awaited them now was actually storming the taken city, which she was sure was going to be a sight worth watching.

"Welp, that sounds like certainty to me. I'm off!" said Hikari was she began the charge which would lead through the western gate of the city. Behind her a large gathering of Demi-Humans and Royal Knights who knew now what they were supposed to be doing and aimed to get into position. Madoka was along as well, charging her mana and getting ready to combine her abilities to create any great number of weapons for the fighters.

[Bloodedge]

Having information regarding who would enter the castle, Aerona decided to question one particular presence: Miki's. He supposed it was fair, considering the fact that this princess had no reason to know of the blonde's capabilities. Little could she know, the abilities of her brother and herself were the ones lacking. That didn't matter though; what did matter was the movement for now. Hikari took the lead, and Arjuna was close behind her to provide support with his arrows. Diva remained as close to Madoka as possible, readying a cube to produce Guardian barriers around everyone she armed. Considering how many souls he could draw from Atlantis' barrier, he found no issue defending so many.

In the meantime, Amakusa made his move as well. "Haste," he spoke in a hushed tone, applying a blanket boosting effect to the entire army with a single, massive pulse of Mana. There was an additional application of the effect to those who would storm the castle, and with that, he began to hover. "Game on," he stated. Another movement would see to it that he began flying toward the same gate taken by the others, while he applied the same effect to the other three. Taking Hikari's lead, he gathered that they would have ample space to make their way through the kingdom.

[Apollymi]

Hikari started her rush atop the Filolial Fiona, only to lift her sword in time to feel the increase in Mana. A grin crossed her face as she brought down her weapon for the first time atop a charging Chimera like Demonic Beast. "Instant Blade!" That single creature met several thrusts, of magical energy and several behind it got hit as well. "Sou ka, that's pretty awesome. Come on Chicken, we've got some attention to grab!" she muttered to the creature she was atop. Fiona gave a gentle nod of her head with aggressive look in her eyes as she let out a caw which drew in more creatures before she started running around to gather them all in an area which would make them easier for the crowd to attack. With the creatures following Hikari the crowd of Demi-Humans and Royal Knights were able to flank them and begin picking off their number with 'relative' safety.

In the meantime, Madoka, cast her own magic in a purpley haze, causing several different weapons of ethereal nature to appear in the hands of the troops as their own broke or were taken from them in the fray. This took a great deal of concentration from Madoka as she tried to make sure everyone was properly armed for the occasion. It took a great deal of concentration but she seemed to be managing alright. This was a fine amount of development. And while it happened Miki pulled up her hood and moved about falling out of the general line of slight but content to make her way towards the Castle. Aerona watched the start of this mayhem and wondered how so many people had managed to simply fall behind the things they said. She knew she couldn't stay idle and made her way forward as well, taking the road beneath Amakusa.

[Bloodedge]

As Hikari charged through and pierced the first Demonic Beast along her path, Arjuna gave a bit more slack to his follow. The beasts were already beginning to converge on the Demi-Human's location, and he was picking them off with powerful arrows from the inside out. Though this hardly did a thing to quell the group, he managed to slow many of them by making them have to move over or around fallen members of the front line on either side.

Seeing the frontal assault, Aeronius flew by while thinking he could be of greater use. A wave of his hand spread a thin aurora veil over the battlefield. Doing such would produce something akin to a blessing for allied fighters. It was a small effect, but offered just a bit of a boost to Mana regeneration for the attacking forces. Amakusa expected the prince to do such a thing after being properly motivated, and seeing it happen was confirmation of the lad's usefulness in the near future. Onto the castle he went, sweeping over many Demonic Beasts who could do nothing but grasp at air due to the speed at which he, and the other three, were capable of moving. "The King isn't going to be one for talking. Aerona, you should set your traps early. I'll give us the ability to see them while they're hidden."

[Apollymi]

Hikari's charge, supported by Arjuna seemed to lead to the ability to move around fallen bodies of both sides. Whatever the case, everyone seemed at least to be doing the regular parts of their tasks in this case. It seemed even the Prince Aeronius was more than ready to do something, moved into action simply because he was here, he provided a gentle bit of support to the entirety of the army. This was comforting for one such as Aerona, she didn't know when her brother had become so reliable, but she was quite proud. That being said she didn't do much if anything, aside from chopping down anything that made its way in front of her. She was soon enough told by Amakusa to set the traps because the King wouldn't be ready for conversation. "Hai, I will... it might take some time, because I'll still have to clear out anything else I come across..." she said moving forward, dozens of strings being produced from her fingertips, which disappeared from sight immediately.

"Oh, it's no problem really. It's all clear, take the time you need though..." these were the words of Miki who appeared back directly under Amakusa holding in her hands teeth from Demonic beasts which she was looking as strangely as if she'd collected them all while moving about. A couple dozen slayed creatures lay between the Princess Aerona and the place the battle should be taking place. Aerona for her part managed to look surprised but moved along, "Hmphf! At least you're proving your worth..." she managed which was about as close to a compliment as the ones which Kimiko received from Kaiba. Miki while standing as such impaled another creature which approached from behind her. She grinned seeming to find it a bit funny. "These ones are a bit stronger than the ones outside..." she said with a casual shrug of her shoulders only to take off again. She'd felt several bursts of energy, all of them passed along to allies by the support mages in their group. She was a bit lacking in this department right now, but she could at least pick off any stray creatures.

[Bloodedge]

Aerona claimed her traps would take time, but Amakusa seemed unbothered. Miki spoke up in regards to the fact that she had already cleared a great deal of Demonic Beasts ahead of them, and the white-haired Ruler chortled. "There's no need to be concerned about the throne room, either. It's boss battle time; there won't be a full horde. I'm thinking... twelve Pseudo-Demonoids from the King's Guard." Amakusa had the strangest thought as he spoke these words. In some alternate reality in which he tackled this world alone, decided to root himself in Eonis, and not taken out the King beforehand, he could have been one of those guards. He wondered if there would be another Player among them. By his understanding through being Licht, it was undoubtedly possible for outsiders to fall victim to these things.

Soon, they set foot in the throne room. There were indeed twelve Royal Guards in two lines of six, each standing before a support pillar. All of them sported black armor with adorning red cloth, mimicking King Eon's preferences while possessing Demonic Auras that leaked through every space in their protective casings. King Eon himself sat upon the throne. His broadsword was in hand, his eyes glowed a deep crimson, and the aura emanating from him was clearly the one causing those of the guards. Speaking of the guards... they were on high alert. Once the group entered the throne room, all twelve guards prepared their spears, swords, and maces. Amakusa scanned the room, nodding to his companions. "Mini-boss wave first."

[Apollymi]

Aerona was apparently clear to set her traps as she saw fit. And with that information she utilized Presence Concealment and went about moving around the room. Her traps, as they were being so casually referenced, were a great number of invisible wires being strewn about. Each still connected to her person each tight with her able to relax or increase the tension as she saw fit. These would be her easiest method for doing damage, and along each of these strings she could move her weapon, the Eye of Magnus along this as well.

While this took place, the "Mini Boss Wave" was up for everyone else present. Miki looked at these 12 King's Knights who'd become something demonic as an extension of their King. She sighed, from her own experience dealing with such things in the game, she figured that she would be better off not trying to take the sneaky approach at present. Instead she reached for the small cage at her side, hanging off her hip and with it in her hands, she shook it back and forth. Doing so would cause a strange chiming sound, which would aim to attach itself to every one of the twelve before them. The sound alone would lull them into a death-like trance, marking them for claiming by the Underworld. At the same time, it seemed to have the opposite effect on those of her allies who could hear it, seeming to cause them to reject anything resembling instant death. Strangely, what she couldn't know, was that the sound of this bell, could be heard by others, who knew the touch of death as she did. Ah but maybe this didn't matter at all...

After this her hand would close around her weapon and she'd stand to the left side of the column beginning the first of her assaults, surprisingly enough with her Alpha Skill. "Rapid Tempo Assault," which would aim to punch several holes in the first mace-wielding Knight, she targeted with it, while allowing her enough freedom of movement to dodge in case it didn't work.

[Bloodedge]

While Aerona went about setting up her concealed wires, Amakusa took to the woman's side and reached out to tap her shoulder. In doing so, he interfaced with her Mana to become capable of seeing through the concealment. His own Mana pulsed outward in the same moment, allowing all four members of the attacking group to see these traps. Amakusa didn't seem very interested in doing much else, but he understood that he didn't have to. Miki marked each of the knights for claiming by the Underworld, removing any possibility of regeneration by Demon abilities. Watching her stab her way through the first of twelve confirmed that they were not far gone enough in their transition to return and reforge themselves into proper Demonic Beasts, as the energy filling the first returned to the King.

As for the other eleven corrupted knights, Amakusa had something else in mind. Rather, he understood the use of one particular piece to this game board in relation to another. He merely waited while Aeronius came to the marvelous conclusion of using his sister's wires. "Sister," he called out as a black, swirling magical energy encompassed both of his hands, as well as the bodies of the Royal Knights. It was his intention to use this Gravity Magic of his, a very underused ability he possessed, all for the sake of pulling them into the wires and dicing the entire group of them in one fell swoop.

[Apollymi]

Amakusa's doings with the Princess caused him to be able to see her movements, beyond that it made her wires visible to their team keeping them from having to run into them. Of course, since they were produced by her own Mana she could always see them, but she could tell by the call of her brother's voice he would be doing something with them as well. The blonde lass Miki, also did some reasonable work. In addition to having earlier killed several Demonic Beasts, she apparently made it possible for them to be called into true death, as was evidenced by her killing of one of them. Only it wouldn't just be the one who died.

Miki looked on in awe as the first of these Demonic Knights fell. The second thing to happen though, was beyond what she thought the pair of brother and sister together were capable of. Interestingly enough, Aeronius used his Gravity Magic to control the bodies of the Knights and move them into the wires created by his sister. This caused the instantaneous death of the remaining 11 Knights. Miki knew this without a doubt for several reasons including her own connection to death. "Sou ka, that's a pretty good combination... I'm legitimately impressed," she said with an appreciative nod. Of course, she maintained the power to move things herself, but never would she have moved all the live people into existing traps just to kill them. Luckily enough they wouldn't be coming back to make any large problems for them and Aerona now knew that all of the foot soldiers had been taken care of. She continued to string lines together and stared towards the King, wondering when he would move to do something about the death of all his men. Her fingers spread wide causing the strings to separate and redistribute, this time in the area immediately surrounding the throne which she intended to be the first of many strikes against the King as soon as he stood up. All of this with a great deal more power than she'd started off with, considering that her Mana Drain ability had been applied to every wire which had been used to cut each of the Knights except for one to ribbons.

[Bloodedge]

Twelve rose, and twelve fell. Rather, one fell while eleven others fell apart. Only King Eon remained, and he rose while the energies from his minions returned home. There was something in his way. Aerona's wires were in direct contact with him when he stood, and they were draining him of his energy in a very direct fashion. Even as this occurred, he didn't seem perturbed at all. This body, it knew of the abilities Aerona possessed; it was there during her development. He found this drain of Mana to be nothing more than an annoyance, as he powered his way through even the energy-draining invisible strings. His sword rose, and its descent brought with it a shockwave of sheer force which tore through the air. It wasn't Mana, but instead a vacuum created by the movement's power alone. Its target was none other than Aerona herself, but Aeronius was at her right side with Gravity Magic in place to pull her from its path.

In the meantime, Amakusa seemed to be in deep thought. A lack of concern painted his face, his train of thought centered only on the movement of all present. "The sword is more dangerous than the King. Most of his abilities are channeled through it."

[Apollymi]

Energy draining wires? They didn't seem to be helping much if at all. In fact, there was a counter-attack launched which aimed to slam directly into the King's own daughter. Miki's eyes widened at this, but it seemed Aeronius was there to defend his sister in her moment of need. Well, defend was the wrong word. He pulled her out the path of a falling blade's vacuum. Aerona's blue eyes widened as she was just barely missed by what she knew to be an exceedingly heavy strike. "He sure isn't softening any blows. Not like we are his children or anything..." she said in a huff, which was very characteristic of her general tone. The entire time Miki, seemed to think it strange for a father to react that way, but her own was very different in her own experience. 'Ugh, that is a damaged Dad.' she thought with her head tilted to the side. The words of Amakusa reached her ears and for a moment or two the lass thought about doing something directly about the sword. She opened and closed her hand gently. 'Sou ka, I guess it can't be that easy... she felt the tug of the weapon, and much like the time she spent in the Migrating Vale, she ran the necessary mental checks. While she could steal the item, it didn't seem like something she'd get away with doing. "Whatever, I am not taking it from you Old Man..." Aerona said as several more strings were created and atop them the Eye of Magnus aimed to drop the item down atop the man.

Miki took the opportunity to pass her weapon through the middle of the eye throwing it like a javelin, coating it in the poison energy created by the item. Aerona watched as this and wondered why she threw a close range weapon. It seemed that the spear would go past the man only it doubled back as the Eye itself fell like a large mace atop the Demon King. If Aerona succeeded he'd be given concussive damage along with the poison which applied by her weapon. If Miki succeeded before he could recover, he'd experience being pinned to the ground by his left leg via the spear with the additive magical poison of Aerona added to it.

[Bloodedge]

Amakusa's eyes traveled toward Miki, whom he expected to attempt a capture of the monarch's sword. He saw in her a moment of hesitation, assuming it to be a check for the ability to accomplish such a feat. There was a method of guaranteeing success, but it would take time. Amakusa's biggest concern at this point, was how much time they could take before they were done. "You might be his children, but that's not anyone's dad anymore. I don't think there's much other than the Demon in there, at this point. Sorry," the lad said in passing, merely offering a bit of commentary to the sibling royalty.

King Eon seemed unconcerned with the lance being thrown his way. It wasn't even aimed properly, and flew right past him despite the preparation done beforehand. Little did he know. As the tool of his 'daughter' came crashing down, his sword rose to clash against it. He paid no heed to the lance, thinking only of what he could see directly. As a result, the back of his leg was pierced by the poisoned spear, yet he seemed content to move forward anyway. His strength was incredible; some javelin wasn't going to pin him down. The poison didn't seem to bother him either, but having taken note of its application, Amakusa grinned. "Right on track," he said as the King leapt toward his children, landing on the floor only a few meters in front of the pair. When he landed, his sword slammed into the ground. Not only did a shockwave fire forward as a result, but it seemed twice as powerful as its predecessor. The floor itself was torn asunder, large chunks of debris firing forward along with the concussive force of the strike.

Aeronius was able to see the charge, and applied Gravity Magic to his sister and himself. They could function as if under zero gravity, leaving them capable of only being thrown back by the force itself. However, he hadn't anticipated the debris that would be moving at a more rapid pace due to originating at the point of initial impact.

[Apollymi]

"Ugh, you don't have to tell me..." Aerona mentioned as her own weapon was stopped heartily from making contact. She might have had time to question the aim of the blonde lass, but it seemed her father was content to jump towards her and her brother. Beyond this there was no real way to prepare as the floor was ripped asunder. Beyond that he kept moving even after Miki's maneuver. "That's just not fair," the lass said. Though she remembered him being a pretty strong individual. She wasn't exactly thrilled to be living through seeing how little damage her weapon did to such an enemy. "Is this really what it's like fighting a raid boss under level?" she said aloud as she jumped aside. With high level agility to aid her, she pulled her weapon clean through the man's leg since it wasn't going to do anything more than it had done. Though, if he was going to keep moving and not dodging she'd keep aiming, this time for his upper right shoulder going straight through from front to back. If she had her way it would go clean through that part of his body as well.

In the meantime, Aerona was saved from the heaviness of her father's attack by her brother's use of Gravity Magic. Still they were knocked back a great deal, but her own fingers moved effortlessly as she righted herself. "Thorny Barricade," she said, triggering an ability which shot a great number of thorns from her body which would pelt every bit of debris as well as aim to overtake the King as they shot forward from her person.

[Bloodedge]

Perhaps King Eon should have been considered a member of the Berserker Class. He certainly exhibited the traits in the mind of ever-observant Amakusa, but the lad knew just what was going on. "Just a friendly note~" he said in passing to Aerona, who was momentarily ejected from his periphery thereafter. That leg wound left a through-and-through hold in the King's body, yet he showed no signs of slowing down. The poison obviously had some potency to it, but as he recalled, the injury shouldn't have been present for very long. Good. There was a great deal of progress being made here. "This isn't at all what it's like to be under-leveled. This is a landslide victory," he quipped in response to Miki's open query. His tone was a joking one, but he meant it truly. Watching as Miki's lance drove its way through the Demonoid's shoulder was further confirmation of the victory, as the man was left with two gaping holes in his form.

"Interesting. I thought there might be a bit of the King in there, but there really is nothing left. He doesn't feel a thing in there; he's a marionette. But... he's done for soon." As if on cue, the King's form underwent an advancement. His skin became molten in appearance, his hair spiked, and his eyes glowed. While Aeronius attempted to apply his Gravity Magic to slow or jettison the Demonoid, it seemed to have little effect on impairing his movement. That weighted broadsword was still swinging even with an injured shoulder, pummeling every thorn which came his way while the two holes in his body slowly, slowly healed. "See? It's there. He should have been crippled by that poison, and he wasn't. But... he also should have healed those wounds in about six seconds since the first one happened. King Eonis only uses his Mana for support." While he wasn't doing much of anything actively, Amakusa's mind was constantly racing. He had several plans toward victory, but this form was new, and he was adjusting to making the proper decision. In a matter of moments, though, he had it. "Oh! He's dead in there, so... what if you called his soul with his body as a catalyst?" he asked, rhetorically of course. The white-haired lad knew just what would happen if Miki did what he asked about; it was merely his way of suggesting it.

[Apollymi]

This version of King Eon was indeed something a bit more akin to Berserker than Saber but that didn't really matter at present. The friendliness of Amakusa in this moment was rather stunning to Aerona, if she'd had more time to think about it, she might have been embarrassed. But perhaps he did this on purpose, to help her in his own way, not think about the patricide they were trying to commit. "Whatever, say what you will..." she snapped back, as she was always going to. Still this lad's joking and light tone continued, even as he spoke to Miki about this fight. She found his current demeanor quite interesting, but she took what he had to say about the fight at face value. "Still wouldn't want him looking my way. I had minions for a reason..." she said in a round about way of mentioning how little damage her body could take. Moving right along, apparently what Amakusa saw in this fight was something definitely winnable and that was at the very least encouraging. He even claimed within a few moments to have something resembling a plan, after pointing out a few key differences which were present between how this fight should have gone, and how it was proceeding. His plan involved Miki showcasing one of her lesser used abilities.

"Sou ka. Sounds like a plan, I'll take care of it..." said the blonde lass. Her own magic began to stir as she reached for the cage at her side. Unlike before, with this particular piece of equipment it was no longer a requirement for her to sacrifice a piece of herself to call out to and bind the dead. No, in this case all she needed was this cage and a targeted catalyst. This golden cage, slowly but surely gained a blackened tint, as she started the incantation. The cold, rigid air of death surrounding her, as she voiced this spell.

"I am the one who becomes all the good of the world of the dead,
I am the one who lays out all the evil of the world of the dead.
Your self is under me,
Your fate is in my hands.

This bell tolls for Aurelius Eon!"

The incantation complete she felt her magic pull, it aimed by chime of bell and magical power to summon from his demise the soul of Aurelius Eon the former King of Eonis and replace him with his body. Given the wording of the incantation he'd be restored as he was before he left, capable of his own thoughts and fighting off the demon who possessed him. Though this would not restore his life in truth it would give him the opportunity to right the wrongs he left in his Kingdom before he was returned to the Underworld. If this succeeded the cage would finish blackening, signaling the tether to herself which would tie this King to the world of the living, if only temporarily.

[Bloodedge]

"I plan to. Nice form, by the way~" he teased while gazing upon the princess. Of course, he meant exactly what he said. Her stance against the debris King Eon sent her way was precisely what it needed to be, in order to deal with the assault she faced perfectly. The same could even be said of the others. Speaking of things that could be said at any given moment, Miki's choice of words regarding her potential fate were... interesting ones. Amakusa chuckled almost nervously while rubbing the back of his head. "Eheh─ yeah... about that..." He had an assumption about what would happen with the return of King Eon, who was already mentally weak enough to be consumed by Demon influence.

The King's counteractions against the princess' thorns came to an end with the end of the barrage, and he began his assault anew. There was a sudden halt to all movements, as the human soul was brought back from the Underworld into its original body. He could see the gleam of that elevated broadsword, and just below it, there were his children. He very quickly gained enough ability to resist that he could not go through with this assault. As such, his body contorted to redirect his strike. This twisting motion rerouted his attack toward Amakusa, sending an even more potent shockwave his way. The force was great enough to rend its way through the palace, as if cutting through everything the blade could 'see' along its path... except Amakusa himself, who split into two, leaving the rending strike to cleave the space between them. "Yeah, alright. It works just like I thought," he said as the two forms of him merged once more.

Realizing that every strike of King Eon's was something more powerful than its predecessor, Aeronius took action once more. He focused the maximum potential of his Gravity Magic, aiming for the King's sword this time. He wasn't selecting its path, but instead applying anti-gravity to it. If that weighted blade could be stripped of its massive weight, it could be returned to something more akin to a normal weapon. "I'll keep zero gravity on the sword. How do we end this?" the young prince asked, sparing a glance in his sister's direction.

[Apollymi]

"Of course, my form could never be anything else," such was the attitude of the princess, who was left aghast by the teasing compliment she was paid. Even so, she felt as if this goal was properly achievable now. Even more so when, Miki performed some dark magic which returned her father's soul to his body. His first act upon trying to retake control was to turn his attention away from his children. Miki immediately took this and chuckled, "Oi oi, that's almost too carefree isn't it?" she asked rhetorically. This was ideal for Aerona though, as she'd been running around dodging this man for the entirety of the fight so far. Aerona was more than a bit shocked when Amakusa split himself in two, from her perspective she almost thought he was cut in half, but... things weren't what they appeared.

Beyond that the last of Aerona's traps was shredded along with everything in the downward path of the King's sword. Aeronius for his troubles applied Gravity Magic to the blade, to make it lose its weight which was overly helpful to everyone involved. Aerona's body began to glow with powerful magic and the threads which began falling towards the ground reconnected all around King Eonis. "Well, there is one more thing I could try I suppose. I still hate doing it though..." she said obviously already committing fully to using this ability of hers. Her final ability even, as she didn't have much more to work with. It was the pinnacle of her thread control and the use of a singular extra magical ability. The Eye of Magnus began to glow, emitting a faint hum which with each pulse aimed to pull the king towards it. The threads created, would vibrate at even higher frequency each felt and controlled by Princess Aerona herself. "Oblivion Thorn Web." the attack which created an intricate web of her threads which used the Eye to pull the target towards its center to cut the target to ribbons. It was her highlighted ability and one which made Miki's light up with appreciation. Beyond that the blonde lass aimed to pull the now lightened weapon out of the King's hands, it wouldn't do to have him blocking any potential damages he would take here. And the pull was made much easier by the applied magics of Aeronius, "Thank you, Prince!~ Fox Assault," she mentioned as she aimed to pull the sword and have it drop casually beside her. If it worked, it would relieve the Prince of his burden as well as allowing the Princess to properly maim the Demon King's body.

[Bloodedge]

"I don't really have much to care about, honestly. I've almost figured myself out, and... I think I can do anything," said Amakusa as he set his eyes upon Miki. If he had the time before this assault, he realized he probably could have faced the King by himself... and yet, he also felt he would have been far weaker if he did so. There was a strange blend of factoids within his own existence now, but he knew one thing; success would soon be met. Aerona's most potent skill saw use in the wake of King Eon's attack, and in that moment, Miki was finally able to make use of her own ability.

King Eon fought against the pull of the Eye of Magnus using his incredible physical strength alone. Even though he had enough consciousness to avoid striking down his children, his survival instinct remained intact. Alas, Aeronius had been freed of his Gravity Magic's application to the sword by Miki, and he could therefore use it for the sake of amplifying the pull. What could the King do? He was moving despite his every effort to remain grounded, and he felt the sword slip from his hand, removing any ability he had to cleave through the threads again. No matter the case, he had to fight against the forces causing him to slide along the floor.

"Oh, this is the part where an entire group puts an end to one boss," Amakusa stated, holding out his right hand as a red and black Mystic Code encompassed that same hand and forearm. His palm was pointed at the King's injured leg, and after a few seconds of aiming, that hole in Aurelius' extremity spewed gratuitous amounts of blood, and enlarged until could no longer make use of the limb. The King could no longer brace himself, and nothing further prevented him from being thrown against the web's high-frequency vibrations, and diced on the spot.

Oddly enough, he was reduced to the state of a Mystic Code right then and there. His code consisted of a deep crimson color, divided into nine segments surrounding the core code itself. Attached to the core, though, was an eerie black aura which seemed to leak out, proving itself to be the source of Demon influence on the King. Stepping forward, Amakusa inspected the accumulated identities. "I was wondering how that would work. I think if we each copy these, we each get the drops. There seems to be a Code Overlay here that registers everyone who participated."

[Apollymi]

"Oh? Well that's just totally fair isn't it?~" Miki mentioned mostly in jest. Still, at this moment even she could see the potential end of King Eon and as such she had fewer problems with this potentially overpowered Avatar Amakusa that she likely would have had normally. Having successfully stolen the King's sword he was left without that particular line of defense. Clearing the Prince of the Gravity Magic he had to use on the weapon, allowed him to further assist his sister in her endeavors. And soon, even Amakusa finally entered the fray to widen the wounds suffered by Eon sealing his demise at the hands of his children. He was reduced in this moment to lines of Mystic Code, clearly visible to all present. Amakusa after inspecting this Code, went on to explain how it would work and that everyone present could also claim it. "Oh, so are we just skipping over the part where you definitely just used Blood Magic? Or were we not supposed to notice?" Miki asked the lad in their general private conversation.

Aerona as a child of this world, understood enough of how its powers worked to know that she could claim what was rightfully hers along with a title. "I am aware, it is mine to claim first after all..." she said and Miki had no problem with this though she found it funny. This Code Overlay, as Amakusa called it would be used to copy forth her own ability and make her into the rightful ruler of Eonis. Doing such a thing left her to claim each of the items granted by this and redressed her as a proper queen. After she was finished the tiny crown atop her head grew to the established proper size. Miki casually strolled forward as well, but she'd only bother to begin claiming this code when Amakusa did.

[Bloodedge]

Miki's question of fairness, whether rhetorical or not, received a shrug and a casual snicker from Amakusa. He did lay claim to this Avatar's ridiculousness when first realizing it himself, but he had to admit that he enjoyed it in use. This amount of potential in one entity was beyond satisfactory, even unfair just as Miki claimed, but the clarity he felt within his own mind was something he otherwise found sparingly. Whatever the case, the first of their group was stepping forward to claim their reward. As one could expect, it was none other than Aerona who took the first share. Amakusa saw this coming a mile away, and he even looked to the more timid prince with a nod, prompting him to take the second share.

And take, the prince did. He didn't undergo much of a change, but his clothes gained various segments of magical, bronze armor to form a lattice on his boots and gloves, as well as a similar design on his coattails and tunic. He wore no crown, but the hair hanging behind his right ear braided itself in the way a newly-crowned prince of this kingdom typically wore it. 'Yes, we're definitely skipping that. I told you, I can do anything. I've got a Magic Cheat in this form.' This was his singular reply to Miki as he, too, stepped forward to claim his prize. He had no use of the articles, or even the weaponry at present, so he chose to do something else with it. This raw Mystic Code was a thing he held out toward the blonde lass. "Could you hold onto this? I don't really want to waste any of it in this form. That room should be able to keep its structure, being time-locked and all."

[Apollymi]

It seemed their private conversation would come with more jest, as Amakusa confirmed that he was indeed able to do just about anything in his current form. He even went so far as to refer to it as a Magic Cheat. "Definitely seems like it," Miki confirmed of her knowledge given the variety of abilities he'd been shown using. After the Prince stepped forward to claim his Miki had been preparing to think of what to do with the ones she'd claimed when Amakusa held his out to her, asking if she'd store them for him since he didn't want to use them now. He claimed that the space he'd given her was also timed-locked and as such the materials they collected here would hold their integrity until such a time as they were pulled out again. Miki managed to look surprised, "Really? I mean I figured I didn't know everything about it yet, but...jeez that is extra helpful. Also ridiculous... absolutely ridiculous. I mean I barely know what to do with something like that..." she said the golden ball appeared before her eyes via her own magic as she sat atop her weapon after it transformed back into a pillow. "But of course, I can hang onto it for you, just a second..." she mentioned.

She'd found recently that she was able to use her Mana on this sphere directly to open it, without the necessity of her hands through her Mana Manipulation ability so she had the orb turning within her eye sight and some 10 twists later she and the orb and everything touching her person would disappear into that once completely white empty space. The space was now a bit different. She'd visited it a few more times since they'd split up, and began partitioning it, to keep it more organized in her own mind. Upon reaching the room she created a new partition, named it Mystic Codes and when she did she walked into that partitioned piece of infinity and placed her own new Mystic Codes to one side, and the ones she'd taken from Amakusa to the other. With this type of organization she could easily separate all aspects of the things she had going on within this room. And soon enough she'd be standing back in the center of the room ready to return to the space she'd left.

In the meantime, Aerona managed to look at her brother with a chuckle. "That's more like it. At least you look the part now..." she said playfully punching her brother in the arm. "I suppose with him gone we have..." she paused seeing Miki disappear. What kind of trickery was that? How were two people who looked totally unprepared for battle so nonchalant afterwards as well. She could hardly imagine what went on with these people, but she kind of admired them if she was being honest. Of course, she absolutely wouldn't be that, but it was at least worth a passing thought in her mind.

[Bloodedge]

"Hai. There are a lot of features. If you want to give it consideration, it's structured something like a secondary source file in a game's coding. In every RPG, there's a room filled with every item players can collect, including the ones that were created but never made obtainable. Think of that space as a copy of the same room─ an empty one that you can fill with whatever you like." With that said, Amakusa stood in wait of the blonde's return. He gave a few moments of consideration to what he'd do with the codes, but he came up with nothing. It seemed this Avatar granted him a great deal of clarity to plan his way to victory, but it did not apply to his other selves.

In a matter of moments, Miki returned from her treasure room. The new monarchs of Eonis were beginning a discussion amongst themselves, it seemed, and Amakusa was content to stay out of it. "As do you, sister. It is a shame things had to end this way, but I suppose father was taken long ago," the prince said. What Aerona had to say, he was unsure of. He, too, was taken by the shock of Miki's disappearance. These people had strange abilities, and skills beyond what he ever thought possible. He would have thought them tainted by Demons, if he didn't have evidence to the contrary. "... What strange warriors those are."

[Apollymi]

Miki heard out the things that Amakusa had to say about the room he'd given her as a present a few weeks prior. It was quite a strange thing to imagine, but she knew exactly what he meant. "Sou ka, that's really really good. Arigatou na..." she said once more. It was beyond her understanding why he'd gone so far as to give her something with so many varied uses. She'd only done something she thought was simple and sweet for him, still she couldn't help but feel strangely appreciated by this generosity. Soon after she left, she returned sitting atop her pillow with the puzzle ball still in her lap. She seemed at the moment to be quite relaxed and managed to pick up on the start of the conversation between brother and sister. "Alright, stored everything. And redecorated a little..." she said lightly. "Let me know when you want that back... or if you want me to store anything else... or if you like need anything else. I've started a pretty decent inventory," she commented absently.

Aerona apparently looked the part of proper Queen now according to her brother. She chuckled at his words with her nose turned up in the air. "But of course, I've always looked this way after all..." she managed. Upon seeing the blonde lass return in such a lax manner she couldn't help but be more confused. Her brother was quite right, "They are strange indeed. It's hardly apparent how they manage to be so helpful..." she said with a shake of her head. "Regardless, work to be done. First, the castle needs repair. Then the Knights need to be re-established, so order can be restored. Then we have to get all of the people settled back into the Kingdom," she claimed. While all of these things certainly needed to be done, the order of them was a key component into making the Demi-Human/Human Kingdom work harmoniously. Her words were a bit too tyrannical for an initial approach, and would end with her being broke and without the people on her side. Miki looked at the lass and sighed. She supposed it was now her turn to step up as Kou had done earlier to take responsibility for the secondary half of this adventure. "With all due respect, Queen Aerona, doing it that way will make you destitute in a matter of months. Not to mention it would do nothing to reassure the Demi-Humans, who fought off the Demonic Beasts here."

[Bloodedge]

Amakusa nodded. There was much use to the tool he'd crafted for Miki while assuming his original Avatar's form, and still a few other things he'd yet to mention. He actually wondered if it was worthwhile to address the matter at present, or if he should wait for a better time to do so. She did, after all, hardly have time to add a reasonable collection... as far as he knew. Miki's return came with the information that she had, in fact, accumulated something. "Oh? Good on you; I guess I shouldn't be surprised that you've already started growing a collection. It might be worth it to tell you about the rest..."

As Aerona spoke of her plans, Aeronius seemed to be taken aback, just a bit. She was always so forceful, it was hard to even keep track of her concepts at times. Aeronius was silent for a moment, but Miki's intervention planted in his mind just the segue he needed to speak on the princess'... or rather, the soon-to-be Queen's ideals. "She's right, sister. Perhaps we should switch the order of your plan? If we let the people settle and restore their homes first, the effort to rebuild the kingdom will be simpler, will it not? We can let everyone, Human and Demi-Human, help us rebuild, and the Royal Knights can be reestablished... perhaps with an application, rather than immediate access based on nobility? Let us not simply go the route of father; we don't want to take the path of Demon madness."

Amakusa had been prepared to speak as well, but between Miki and Aeronius, he didn't have to say a word. He felt himself nearly phase out of existence for a moment. He could recognize this sensation. This Avatar of his wasn't going to remain for much longer, but then... he wasn't surprised. Much like the Dragonoid Akashi, this form was well beyond what should have been obtainable to him, especially given these ridiculous parameters and the like. "Hmm. This didn't last very long at all."

[Apollymi]

Miki heard out what Amakusa had to say in reference to her storage space. Apparently the lad was a bit surprised by her already managing to gather a decent stock of items. She'd still simply chuckle managing to shift the whole thing off. "I mean, tell me whatever... whenever you like," she said with a slight quality of teasing in her voice. "Assuming, of course, I don't figure it out first!~" she added at last. But soon enough they were moving on in conversation quite a bit, to the matters addressed by Queen Aerona. It seemed that she heard what the blonde lass had to say, and might have been about to chide her for questioning her tactics, but well, her brother spoke soon after. And though always abrasive she seemed alright with at least hearing out his statements.

"Brother?" she said somewhat softly to the start of his conversation. It seemed he thought her ideas were fine, but the order of them was wrong for the goals they had in mind for the Kingdom. He claimed that the people should be allowed to settle and organize first. Then they could be apart of the rebuilding process and it would be easier. She gave it pause, it was the case that they wished to create long lasting peace with the Demi-Humans. And she didn't want to end up without money and she certainly didn't wish to follow a path similar to her father. But being such a rough military type leader was all she knew. "Well it isn't as if I intend to be Father," she snapped. Still she had some reservations. "It still seems counter-intuitive. All of the things listed will still be done, what does their order matter? How will it be simpler? How will it actually save me from becoming 'destitute' as she put it?" the Princess' questions were ones which made sense, but they didn't come without a silver lining. "I don't mind changing the way the Knights work, I always thought merit should have something to do with such things. But how will I know merit for things I am unfamiliar with..." she commented with hesitation. It seemed that the Princess was a bit fairer than she was given credit for. Miki chuckled, in response hearing it out she knew exactly what to do, but she wouldn't comment just yet. First she wanted to see if the lass' brother had any answers for her, after all, Miki herself wouldn't always be here to mediate.

Amakusa seemed to be experiencing a coming shift between his Avatars. He noted this by claiming the one he was currently wasn't likely to last and noting how short the time had been for it. "Well, with the others, it seems to be the case that they last longer if they aren't exerting themselves. These ones when they are created seem to be out of necessity. We'll likely find it easier to keep them up when our base levels catch up to them," she hypothesized based on the length of time they'd managed to spend as Dragons.

[Bloodedge]

"Well, I have been tossing around the idea. I'll probably wait until you've finished solving the puzzle." Yes, indeed. There was still the matter of the helix puzzle he'd stored in that room after creating it. Once that was solved, she would be able to make full use of everything. Only then would it even matter if he explained things fully. As such, he'd wait for that moment. For now, he was continuing to fade, so he chose to take it upon himself by reverting to the form of Kou. "That's better. It was starting to feel pretty weird," he mused.

Moving on to the discussion between monarchs, Aeronius was once again skittish in his approach. This time, however, he knew just what to say. "With all due respect, sister, the methods you suggest are somewhat tyrannical. These people are in a fragile way; they need a sense of stability. If I were among them, I would want nothing more than to know that I was not simply included in the reclaiming of Eonis, but also in its restoration. It should produce a sense of... equality. If they can feel that, they shall truly feel like members of the kingdom. That would certainly quell the chances of oligarchy."

[Apollymi]

It seemed that Amakusa wouldn't bother explaining the uses of the items given to the lass as a present, until she finished up her puzzle. To be honest, she'd not gotten an opportunity to work on that one, considering all that was necessary while she was in the Migrating Vale. It'd been her hope to complete it before they met up again, or maybe in the downtime of being in Eonis but... that time had yet to come. "Hai hai, I'll be sure to let you know when its finished then," she said with amusement in her voice. She found these things interesting and enjoyed talking to this man about them. And soon enough he returned to his original form, the white haired man known as Kou. "Okaerinasai!~" Miki said to the lad welcoming his primary avatar back into existence. As she wondered over the depth of this gift, the monarchs of Eonis seemed to be coming to some sort of understanding.

Aeronius, though meek in nature, seemed to know exactly what to say to his sister. She began thinking at least lightly of how the people would feel in this situation. If they needed stability she could understand that. And of course, she'd like everyone to feel like they were equal but... how did that work out, exactly. "That's overly idealistic, Brother..." said Aerona. She'd been thinking about what he said and in truth her statement would make sense given how she was raised. "The Oligarchy exists because besides people it takes money to fund a Kingdom. Those who have it and give, can levy their opinions. As objectionable as that may be, it is the reason the funding is available to do things like reconstruct the Kingdom. If we cut off such a system for the sake of 'equality' we'll all die before anything is done." Aerona concluded. She'd like to believe in what her brother had to say. And she'd like for the people to be on her side, but it didn't seem to be a functional way to run a Kingdom, especially one already in disarray.

Miki chuckled, she knew exactly what this Kingdom needed, and both of the Monarchs also knew, but they simply hadn't made it all the way to the end yet. Miki stared at the pair and began speaking from her perch, all the while a glow would begin to overtake her. "Actually, you're both right in this case. Or wrong, depending on how you wish to see it. You do want the people on your side and to feel safe, comfortable and equal. But you also want and need the same amount of money provided by your former aristocracy, which they will not give you without the status quo of their previous positions," Miki said she'd thought through the whole of the situation already so she knew how it would play out. Actually, it reminded her a bit of a game she'd played when she was younger, but beyond that it reminded her of her day to day life as a consultant for failing and declining businesses. "Obviously, you can't uphold those old notions, as it would simply recreate the problem the Kingdom had previously. So, if what you want is your people and the money you need, then what you need, isn't money sitting in the coffers of an elite few people who just want to express themselves. You need it in the hands of every man, woman and child. Demi-Human and Human, noble and commoner..." she said with a knowing smile. "Basically, you need to restructure your markets and treasury. Everything else, will fall into place after that. And now is the perfect time to do it, because there's just been a hostile takeover and new management has appeared."

[Bloodedge]

"Tadaima," Kou said as his fists pressed against his lower back, which itself curved to pop his spine. He felt as if he'd recently woken, but in a far different way than the transition between his other Avatars. Whatever the Ruler Class was, it was something far flung from any other sensation. Perhaps he'd be able to toy around with it later. He would have liked to have a bit more access to it, if only to discover more about its Class-related abilities which... seemed quite ridiculous already.

The royalty of Eonis had reached an impasse. Aeronius knew the old ways wouldn't work, that oligarchy would only create further strife and segregation in the kingdom. Something had to be done, but he didn't know what. Aerona argued that preventing such a thing would only result in failure, but surely there had to be something. Luckily, Miki produced the solution. As she spoke, Kou paused and shifted his gaze in her direction. That odd light was not something he had the chance to see himself, but the sensation was incredibly familiar. Within the last hour, he'd felt it before, and it was the only time he'd ever sensed such a thing. He could easily surmise that Miki achieved a similar criteria to his own.

[Apollymi]

Aerona looked to Miki, what she said did make sense. If what they needed was people and money, then what they needed to do, was have money not be limited to certain kinds of people. Still for the girl to speak with such authority on such matters was quite odd. This pair of Adventurers had already shown themselves to be quite strange, and Miki was becoming moreso. The white haired lad Amakusa, had turned back into Kou and seemed to be very different. And now she witnessed a similar glow in Miki that she had to Kou, before he'd turned into a different person. "You are saying that now, in the middle of a crisis... is the time to start over on the way that money works within this Kingdom? From the ground up?" she said seeming surprised. If she understood this other lass correctly fixing the funding problem of the Kingdom, would allow both Aerona and her brother to find happiness in ruling here.

"Yes, that's exactly what I am saying!" the girl said. And with it came that unnerving smile of hers. "Money and education are equalizers for the people. If everyone has both of those things, nobility and nepotism are replaced by honor and merit. This will give you a much stronger base for your Kingdom." she said as her body came full circle. Her hair had shortened in this moment, becoming jet black. Instead of trailing pigtails she now sported two short buns with her own frills hanging off the back of them. Her dazzling red eyes, replaced when they opened with ones which could be classified as golden. She was still floating in the seated position but her pillow had disappeared from beneath her. Her outfit replaced by a Chinese style black halter top with golden filigree and a large opening directly over her cleavage. Her legs covered in black trousers which were fit exactly to her frame with large openings down the sides and laced with golden strings across them. And on her feet small white boots, though her outfit was completed best by what appeared to be a puffy white jacket. Unlike her previous Avatar, this one seemed to support her body's exact natural proportions.

"To make this all happen we start with a few simple steps. The current people who are still alive and well should be allowed to claim any building within the walls that isn't currently owned by someone alive. If they can fix it, they can have it. A Restoration Committee should be established with members from all facets of society represented among them. Day-laborers, craftsmen, merchants, nobility... etc, they will be able to help organize a better way to fix up the entirety of the kingdom from a physical sense. Doing it this way, you will get to see the talents of your people and learn their strengths and weaknesses, while giving them the opportunity to interact with you," this raven haired lass said. Aerona was stunned. Such a thing didn't seem like it could work but she supposed she'd get to see it in action at least a little. Beyond that there was no mention of how this would be funded at all, which was a little concerning but obviously there was more to come. Still she couldn't quite admit that... "Do you see this, Brother?" she said seemingly stunned by the girl's transformation and the information she gave.

[Bloodedge]

While Aerona questioned the blonde, Aeronius gave consideration to the specific approach made. She did raise an excellent point. With the old king gone, and old ways gone as well, it was likely the most ideal time to restructure the kingdom entirely. "It does seem quite sensible. With Eonis under new rule, now is the ideal time to start everything anew. I believe the Demi-Humans would be especially appreciative of it, if they had some say." There was much more to be said, but it would be said by Miki... or rather, by whatever new identity she had from this sudden, ongoing transformation. "Again?" the prince spoke aloud.

Kou continued to play the role of an observer while Miki underwent this change. Over time, his eyes widened. His mouth was repeatedly opening and closing soon after, as this new form with its mainland influence seemed... frankly more stunning to look at, than to sense. He had little choice but to look away after realizing just how long he'd been watching, not even paying mind to a single word that escaped the lass' mouth. Lucky for him, Aeronius chimed in after Aerona's query. The curiosity he had, happened to be based on the earlier mention of the male Adventurer's second name. "I do see it, sister. Does this state have a different name as well?"

[Apollymi]

Aeronius was right of course, all things made about this plan would benefit a Demi-Human/Human United Kingdom. Perhaps this lass required a bit more credit than the normally pessimistic Aerona gave her. Beyond this point though, the girl had indeed transformed and she was quite a stunning sight to behold. Aerona had no jealous inclinations and she found the lass' new form dictated or rather held a strange amount of perfection. And beyond this, her words felt even more trustworthy after this change, as if her own authority was simply over this aspect of creation. "I suppose I can't argue it," Aerona said. All were seemingly stunned by this transformation, enough that Kou's staring went unnoticed by Aerona and whatever this Avatar of Miki was. The question of if she held a different name this time brought pause to the raven-haired lass. "Who me? Did I change?" she said seemingly confused by the occurance.

A moment within her Nexus vision let her know she'd indeed become someone very different, but that being said she felt no different than her usual self. "Oh? I feel like me, the original me. That's pretty good, I understand what you meant now, Kou." she mentioned mostly to herself in this moment appreciating the shift in her own body and her personality. "Tangents about business tend to do weird things to me anyway," she said coming up with a general explanation for why she didn't realize she'd experienced this change. But her sight within the Nexus told her this was indeed a Ruler-class Avatar. "Oh, right. I do have a different name, Daiyu desu." The lass' words left her mouth and she stretched her leg, down to the floor allowing the Golden Puzzle ball to roll from her lap. Her eyes widened at the sight of it, knowing she'd changed she'd thought it'd be gone too. She reached for it, having it come back to her hand by way of Mana Manipulation. Seeming not to lose much from her previous Avatar's special skills. "I HAVE IT IN EVERY AVATAR!" she mentally exclaimed looking at Kou with wide eyes.

[Bloodedge]

Much as the case was with Kou/Amakusa, Miki's new form didn't seem to even realize a change had occurred. Kou remembered well enough to know why this was the case, or at least have some slight understanding. It was a very 'natural' transition, as far as sensations were concerned. "Well, yeah. It looks─" He had to stop himself from speaking, as well as looking for too long. What he first intended to say, he wouldn't speak into existence consciously. "More like... your normal self as well. Sort of like a fancy vacation or something," he said to cover his original thought.

There was one matter of great importance, which Kou didn't expect the lass to discover so soon. He fully intended to segue into such a topic, but as she was now, she placed herself in a situation to realize... she still had that sphere. Her reaction, albeit sent directly into his mind, reduced him to a state of rubbing his scalp sheepishly. 'Eheh─ yeah. It's not character bound. The signature I attuned it to was the underlying Mana identity shared between Miki and Tatsuki. The identity it connects to, as a result, is Ashikaga Kimiko."

[Apollymi]

"If you cannot argue then there is work to do," Daiyu said with a knowing smile. She looked to Aeronius and Aerona and tilted her head from side to side. "Announce the victory over the demon hoard. Tell the Demi-Humans that you rescind your father's previous ban on them within the walls. Allow them to lay claim to any space unoccupied by Humans so long as they are capable of fixing it. It will go a long way to get money flowing within this place, as well as allowing everyone to settle into the new rule," Daiyu said calmly. "It is all good news so make the announcement together. Cementing your image as properly benevolent rulers is important," she said. Aerona looked at her, and nodded her understanding of this situation. It appeared that one of her first acts would be to undo the injustices presented by her father she began walking towards the front of the palace. Choosing not to make the speech from above as her father would have, but from ground level to help cement her bond with her new people. This wasn't anything Daiyu had mentioned directly, but it was the best choice to make. Good. She was thinking for herself a bit. "Come along, Brother. You were always better at presenting good news." she said as she walked past this new young woman and couldn't help but give her another passing glance.

In the same moment, Daiyu heard the words Kou had to say about her current appearance. Claiming it looked more like her original self, if only on a vacation of some sort. "Hm, that's good. I was thinking before that if I'd known I'd end up here, I might have chosen the look I was more used to. Is it reasonable?" she asked softly. She had no real idea of how much of her changed, but hoped she'd not gone too far unconsciously. At the very least she knew her body proportions weren't completely out of sync, but what she looked like to most others didn't really matter to her. She'd made that clear when speaking to Kaiba, only the lad before her had an opinion she cared about. What was more in their private conversation the lad looking sheepish, explained that the Mana of this item was attuned to the her beneath the surface of Miki and Tatsuki. Meaning, as long as she was herself she could keep her Treasury and access to it, including her ability to fill it. "Sugoi! That was really, thoughtful of you..." she said approaching the lad directly. He'd put so much of himself into this gift, she was only becoming progressively more surprised with everything she learned. Once she was standing in front of him, she flashed him the most sincere smile. She couldn't give him anything equivalent to this thing he'd done for her, she only hoped her gratitude was enough. "Arigatou gozaimasu,"

[Bloodedge]

"Y─yes... of course," spoke the ever timid prince of Eonis. He knew what had to be done, and he understood his position in ensuring that progress was made. With these things in mind, he kept in close proximity to his sister, Aerona. They would make this work; they had to do so for the sake of their kingdom's future.

In the meantime, Kou's gaze continued to shift to and from the Avatar named Daiyu. He had every desire to stare, to gawk even, but he kept himself from doing so. Since she was asking for his opinion on her current look, though, he let himself glance a bit more frequently than he otherwise would have. "Huh─ yeah. The name fits the look as well. It reminds me of that Libra Saint, theme-wise... but it's..." Could he bring himself to admit that he preferred this visage to that of the character in question? No. He did, however, fully believe this to be an improvement over even that bombshell of a fictional entity. It was quite odd for him. Moving on, he was being approached directly with words of thanks from the lass. Kou couldn't even keep himself from shying away just a bit, averting his gaze as he felt the temperature of his face rose significantly. "Ano... it's not that big a deal. I figured there would be more consistency to it, and a bit more use overall... that's all." When he gave this response, he chose to do so aloud. The monarchs were gone, so the lad saw no purpose in continuing a silent discussion. Aside from that, he didn't want to accidentally think something 'at' Daiyu that would incriminate him.

[Apollymi]

The pair of Monarchs from Eonis went about making their declarations, and Daiyu received in return a moment to relax. She could at least trust that such a thing could be handled without her direct interference. Especially given that she'd more than practically handed them instructions that couldn't necessarily be messed up. Instead of dwelling on this she was left to her conversation with Kou, one which continued aloud after the exit of the royalty of this place.

"Oh? I look themed? That's good, I enjoy Libra Daiyu myself. Actually she makes my top 10 in that series..." she said loosely of the title which the character she seemed to look like now came from. "I kind of chose the name based on the hair while being relatively unsure about the rest," she gave a bit of pause to her speech. She was a bit worked up, enough that she didn't really question the lad not finishing his sentence which seemed to be something which happened often enough that she'd gotten better at interpreting the extra silence. "I was just hoping I didn't go overboard unconsciously," she finished up that bit only to move on to the more important thing. Her Treasure Trove which upon being thanked for, the lad showed an exceedingly sheepish reaction. "Kawaii!~" Daiyu chimed finding this reaction to be noteworthy and beyond cute. Enough that it was her incriminating herself in the moment. "Oops, that was supposed to be in my head..." she murmured only to recover pretty easily, though she had the grace to at least look a bit sheepish herself now. "That's all?!" she repeated the lad's last words and chuckled. "That was a lot. It's okay though, I'll let us both off the hook for now," she stated content to make sure she kept the rest of her thoughts in her own head for the duration of their conversation.

"So, do you think we should stick around for a bit? Make sure nothing goes wrong, maybe see the Blacksmith?"

[Bloodedge]

"Definitely top ten," he agreed. Afterwards, there was a brief moment of thought. That was yet another series he'd yet to see to its completion, sadly enough. "I wonder if she paired up with Indra. There were a lot of would-be ships in that one. Maybe as many as Air Gear had," he continued, seeming to be almost mumbling to himself. Now that it was a topic of conversation, he couldn't really help it.

It seemed he wasn't the only one accidentally letting too much out of his own head this day. Even though he succeeded in refraining from his most recent clause, he'd have rather avoided saying a few other things beforehand. However, Daiyu let slip her own reaction to his antics. Did it make him less embarrassed? Just the opposite, in fact. "Oi oi, you─" There was no point finishing the statement. The girl claimed she'd let them 'both' off the proverbial hook, and he could easily interpret her meaning. It felt as if something was being missed here on either end, or perhaps only on his part. Whatever the case, he was glad to move on right away. "Right, yeah. It'd be worthwhile to swing by the smith before we head back to meet the others. After all, this is probably our last chance to be down here for a while. We could gear up, grab a bite of some human food, all that good shit."

[Apollymi]

It seemed they were once more in agreement about a particular manga related thing. This time a favored character. He went on to question a potential relationship which only caused Daiyu to laugh. "That one is pretty obvious. Given how those two write, I wouldn't be surprised if that relationship became official a couple of chapters after it was hinted at," she said of her favorite mangaka and their habit of shipping people which was almost as bad as their fandoms. "Hm, it's hard to rival Air Gear in pure ship potential. Indra x Daiyu, Capricorn x Pisces, Nemesis x Kiryu, and the original pair of why don't we know for certain yet, Amar x Katsu." she said having a whole mental tangent of her own. "Scratch that, you're right. It's definitely top contender, at least as far as visible potentials go," she mused seeming to find it nice once again to just be able to have a quiet nerd moment with someone else for a change.

Moreover, he seemed to get over his embarrassment with much more relative ease than normal. Allowing the lass with him to relax into a more normal amount of conversation. "Hai hai, sounds good to me," Daiyu managed about food in addition to the Blacksmith. Perhaps another date would come out of such a situation but before she could prod a bit further she was interrupted once more, though it wasn't unwelcome. Surprisingly enough, Hikari had wandered in from the outside and watching this exchange only to make her presence known afterwards. "Yahello!" she chimed in a strangely familiar tone, though there was a light in her eyes that hinted she'd been there much longer than she needed to be. "So, you changed up too...Nee-san?" she said looking over at what she'd previously known to be Miki. "Daiyu desu," the raven-haired lass managed which only made Hikari's ears twitch. "Come on, everything's won and they are out there giving a not terrible speech. I'm trying to see this Blacksmith about this weapon I picked up in the rift," she said seemingly excited by the prospect. Daiyu was fine with this and would be content to follow along along with any of the others who decided to join them on this little expedition to the Blacksmith.

[Bloodedge]

The discussion continued, and Daiyu came to the conclusion that the series of their current topic did, indeed, rival the other in terms of character relationships. "Exactly! Though I felt like Nemesis and Kilik could have also worked out. Somebody has to keep that guy from using sacrificial attacks every five seconds. Maybe Kilik and Xiaolian, though. Oh! And Sagittarius with Pegasus is a no-brainer!" He was prepared for an entire tangent, but alas, it was time to move on. Rather, it could be said that the only choice was to move on, since Hikari made her presence known with a greeting he hadn't heard in some time.

"Don't, don't... don't bring that here of all places. Fucking hell, if that catches on─" Apparently, Kou took slight issue with the greeting Hikari chose. He didn't seem upset at all though, at least not visibly. He knew she'd been around for some time as well, if only due to the way she so brazenly introduced herself. At the very least, she was also interested in visiting the blacksmith. There were indeed some items that had yet to be appraised, and Kou thought he could perhaps gain some ability to do so himself, if he were to expand upon his existing craft skills. As such, and considering he had already discussed the matter with Daiyu, he was content to move on immediately. "We were just talking about that. Come on then; let's go see Dreyfus."

[Apollymi]

"YES! Pegasus x Sagittarius!! Imagine the combo attacks, oh and purple haired babies!!~" she said softly, there was quite a bit of depth coming from this young lass. She seemed to be enthralled by the idea. "I NEED IT!!" Daiyu exclaimed but soon enough they had been interrupted and she allowed that part of the conversation to fall away from her, with the grace to look a bit sheepish about how hard she'd fallen into their shipping discussion. Of course, this would be immediately noticed by Hikari, she'd been standing their for quite a while after all. Whatever the case, it seemed Kou didn't like the greeting too much, or rather didn't want it spreading. "What are you talking about, half the Demi-Human kids say it like that thanks to me!~" she mentioned seemingly oddly proud of herself. With any luck every girl in the world would greet each other as such. She'd used it a lot and would eventually find the alluring charm of it, appeared only to girls, but that was a matter for another time.

"You were just talking about visiting the blacksmith? And taking a left turn into a complete discussion of character-shipping. Fucking Nerd!" Hikari said, her words had venom but were not particularly hateful. "You even managed to pull Daiyu-nee into it... shame!" she berated as they walked but it was all in good fun. "Baka-nii!~" she ended her statement which made Daiyu giggle just a tad. "Ano, I feel like I should take some responsibility here..." she said softly which only seemed to fuel Hikari a bit more. "Iie! Girls discuss shipping all the time. It is a staple of conversation... only he is to blame!!~" Hikari said, seeming not to notice that by assigning such an activity to girls, she was basically making the lad blameless. Ah, apparently this whole thing was only pay back for her brother's bullying about their cash shortage. Whatever the case, Hikari jumped onto her brother's back and hugged him. "Still, it's nice to see you, finding some one you can nerd out with!~" she whispered for him to hear alone. "Anyways, you guys have a blacksmith you trust on your own? I assume he's decent... But is he like us?" she asked, wondering if they trusted the blacksmith organic to the this world, or if they'd managed to find a skilled player instead.

[Bloodedge]

Of course. He should have figured she had already spread that atrocious introduction across the Demi-Human population at least. If she had her way, he'd probably never go a day without hearing someone say it. What was even the point? Well, whether that was a matter of importance or not, Hikari apparently thought it was a worthwhile investment to begin chastising him for his media preferences. "Blah blah! Conversations have segues, you one-trick, dimwitted Loli Bait Chibi!" he barked in retort. It went without saying that she'd be trying to shift all the blame in his direction as well, even though it didn't make an ounce of sense when she gave justification to her methods. He would have sighed, perhaps even said something on the matter, if the lass wasn't suddenly latched onto his back and whispering to him. "Piss off," he said, shrugging in an effort to release him of her embrace while stomping onward. He did, at least, have it in him to speak regarding the blacksmith. "He's a Player... sort of. Seems like immersion went a little too far for some people, and he's one of them. Either way, he did right by us when we first showed up and needed gear."

[Apollymi]

'Siblings are weird...' this was Daiyu's only thought upon witnessing the interaction between Kou and Hikari. Of course, it wasn't the first time she witnessed strange interactions between siblings. In fact, she used to see only these sorts of things all the time. Strangely, it made it no less confusing to her. Perhaps because she'd never had anything like that relatively, she couldn't quite commiserate properly on the topic. No matter. She was content enough to observe quietly as they walked along.

In the meantime, Hikari's antics seemed to garner a decent bit of annimosity from Kou. Somehow this was exactly what she was going for. "Nii-san!~ I'm not loli bait!~" she said in a tone most demanding. All the while Daiyu looked up and gave the younger lass a general assessment. One she without a doubt kept to herself as she preferred to stay out of such things. 'You, definitely fit the profile of loli bait,' the raven haired lass thought. Still there was nothing but that same dangerous or rather deceptive light behind her eyes. As if she found this entire thing more amusing than harmful. "Still, it's too easy!~" she snickered, and with one final squeeze she let go of the lad as he stomped off. Satisfied that she'd ruffled the lad's feathers a bit, she was content to hear out his conversation about Dreyfus their apparent Blacksmith. He claimed that the blacksmith was a bit more immersed by virtue of how he acted, but he'd done right by the pair of them the first time they'd come through. "Too immersed... You think that's really a thing? Sounds like something a NEET would do..." mentioned Hikari in an off-handed way. Daiyu walked onward and had a bit of a contribution to make this time as well.

"I am not too certain about that. Those who play games and do so all the time have moments of immersion but usually can't throw themselves whole-heartedly into the experience. You play one RPG you play them all... after all," she mentioned with an unknown bit of familiarity. 'Dreyfus has a full Irish accent and all associated mannerisms... he's more method actor than shut-in, he really was awesome with us though. Did the work of crafting our weapons in exchange for some extra magisteel. The sort of deal you only make when you know the reality of the world.' Daiyu's mind was wandering around the context that she and Kou had discussed at their last dinner. What was the difference between those who were too immersed and those who weren't? "Huh? Daiyu-nee, that's almost like admitting to being a shut-in too~" Hikari teased, while poking the other lass. Daiyu wanted to argue, but couldn't really, she spent a lot of time playing video games and not a lot interacting with people outside of work and school. Knowing this Kimiko was basically a shut-in with financial prospects. This being pointed out made the lass turn her nose up the same way she would have it the commentary had come from Seriri in Atlantis. Still what Daiyu said made a certain amount of sense. Hikari wondered how many people she'd encountered that had been too immersed.

[Bloodedge]

"Of course you are! The only positive thing is that you're too dense to notice how many creeps are taking the bait!" he retorted. Moving on, Hikari seemed to think this 'immersion' matter was one of his own thinking. Judging by what he'd seen in Eonis alone, it was not so simple a topic. If it wasn't due to immersion when playing Age of Eternity, it could only be something far more ludicrous as a concept. "He's definitely a Player, but there's hardly any 'Player' left in there. His Avatar is a half-Dwarf... and it seems like he's suffering the same effect we do when we become Dragons." This was Kou's single assertion regarding Avatars and their states of being. Now that he thought about it, there was such a difference between the existences of Rook as well. Karna and Arjuna were a near-literal example of night and day, so it could be assumed that they were a similar case.

Regardless, they would soon be upon the smithy. Dreyfus had only recently returned to his forge, and seemed raring to get into his work. Upon witnessing the return of one familiar Adventurer, he perked up. "Welcome back, laddie! Brought a few friends this time, eh? I'll fix 'em up anaw, long as yer willin' tae pay!" he said, bowing to the pair of young ladies who came along with Kou. He did find one of these two vaguely familiar, but... no, that couldn't have been right.

[Apollymi]

Kou's snap back at Hikari not being Loli Bait was about expected. She gave a sigh though she still seemed to be light hearted. "It should really worry me, the negative opinions you have about the population in general," she said but left it alone after that. Sadly, Daiyu could only agree with Kou. Girls who knew the sort of power they had over boys didn't usually turn out to be good or even okay people. They took advantage, ignored and contributed to a lot of the general misunderstandings between the sexes. Daiyu continued to think about these things as Hikari was content to hear out her brothers words about the immersion of players. It seemed that this man was more like the two of them were as Dragons.

"Sou ka..." she said, getting a general sense of the situation but it wouldn't be until they reached the blacksmith and he opened his mouth that she would get a full understanding. This red haired man's words seemed to catch a bit of her attention. They were spoken in a strange dialect which came off like a full grown Irishman. That made sense of the 'Dwarf' half of him but still this was more than a little extreme. "Uh, alright I get what you mean now..." she said to Kou, giving the slightest lift of her left brow. Moving right along she smiled to the large man and nodded. "Hai hai. Hikari desu! I actually just need something appraised, how much do you charge?" she asked while pulling it from her back and showing it to the man before them. While this happened Daiyu was left to wonder how different she actually looked. "Hm, did my face change too much? I figured I'd still be recognizable considering... I suppose that version of me is very different," she muttered wondering if this was the case in general. If Kou only knew her now because he was there when she changed or if Hikari was simply observant enough to figure her out before saying anything.

[Bloodedge]

Two introductions were made, albeit on two very different wavelengths. Dreyfus received greeting from the Demi-Human of this group, whom he beamed at while taking hold of her ancient Artifact. "Ho─ I havenae seen one li'at in aer decades! Could be a coot, could be a hoot! Let's 'ave a looksee..." This object he took in hand was a sword; that much was clear. Its power would require awakening, perhaps quite a bit... or perhaps it would be similar to another weapon he'd made in recent months...

Alas, there was one other whose attention he had, and who would receive his in turn. Daiyu spoke as if she should have been recognized, and indeed, Dreyfus did have an inkling. Could it be true, then? There were hardly many other answers, so the hulking blacksmith blinked repeatedly while inspecting her. Ah... the identity within was the same after all. "Well I'll be! Apologies, lass! Didn't take ye for the type to go fixin' yerself up, doin' yer hair fancy anaw! Somethin' for you too? It's all on the house, whatever ah can manage."

[Apollymi]

The sword Hikari had picked up was a strange one indeed. Upon being appraised he would become a long golden sword with a large seated blue gem in the middle. It was a magical weapon, which took on properties of the items it consumed and of the creatures it slayed. Unlike many weapons, it wouldn't need to be interfaced with to change these properties. Once it killed something it would simply gain an alternate form which abused the stats and characteristics of the creature it'd slayed. It would become an excellent weapon as it wouldn't need to be changed for different jobs, it'd simply need to be fed. Currently it could be fed the Mana belonging to Hikari, granting it a light form and a dark form, aligned to her magic types.

After a few seconds of thought, it seemed that the blacksmith did recognize her. That was quite a bit relieving for the now raven haired lass. "Iie, there isn't any need to apologize. After all I do look different, so I can't be upset," managed Daiyu. "I figure you'll have plenty of work as they start to rebuild this place, but you really can't make a decent living if you do a bunch of stuff for free all the time," she said chiding the man lightly. Still she didn't really need anything but she was a collector of specific kinds of items and she wondered if he'd come across anything new or different from what she had already. "I don't think I need anything. Unless you've come across something, unique since I last saw you. I'd buy it off you. Actually buy it, and not have you give it to me. I am working on a collection after all..." she said with a large smile.

[Bloodedge]

Dreyfus wasted no time before beginning his appraisal of Hikari's weapon, taking a fine chisel to it and working through the fossilized casing right away. He kept an open ear all the while, even though his eyes remained on the tiny chips he was managing along what should have been the sword's hilt. His words went toward Daiyu when he finally chose to speak. "It's nary a bother, bonnie. I've almost nothin' left in this old forge. Tell ya' what! Take me with yer group on the next journey, an' I'll give up all I've got left for somethin' new! What say ye?" A few ticks later, and the hilt of Hikari's sword had been unveiled enough for its covering to crumble away. The blade itself remained encased, yet he still handed it to the lass. "Ah, there we go! It should be stable enough fer unleashin'. Use yer Mana, an' you'll see!"

[Apollymi]

A chuckle came from Daiyu as Dreyfus claimed that he didn't need much he just wanted to go on a journey. Strangely, he put this up as an offer for what was left of his current stock. The young woman's left brow rose ever so slightly. "That's a deal weighted in my favor, Dreyfus. You'd want to go with us, even while having no idea of where we're going yet?" she asked of him. At the same time, she wasn't totally against the idea either. She had no problem with the blacksmith and having such a person on hand was beyond useful even if he didn't manage to last for the extended part of the journey. She looked to Kou and questioned him in the more direct manner. "So, what do you think? Take along Dreyfus the Blacksmith for a bit. You can pick his brain about the skills, I can grab up his inventory and he gets another adventure?" she asked of the lad. Though she was fine with making such decisions, it concerned the whole of the group and thus their dynamic was taken into consideration.

In the meantime, Hikari was left with an opening of her sword. She had the skill Appraisal, but she had neither the tool nor the skill to break into this weapon. Watching it happen was amazing to her for several reasons. "Sugoi! You really are good at this whole thing..." she said seemingly happy about it. When she was told to use her Mana on the weapon, she reached for it and picked it up. Her own light and dark magic swirled about it. Changing the blade and further cementing it. Giving it the form of a short blade with golden etchings and a large blue green crystal in the middle. Beyond all of that it turned light and then dark as the girl switched her hands. "Sugoi! Sugoi! Arigatou gouzaimasu, Dreyfus!~" she chimed pleased with her new weapon, and using her own skill to figure out its parameters in her Nexus vision.

[Bloodedge]

"It might be, lassie. Still, there be nothin' here fer ol' Dreyfus. New adventures means new materials, and a lot o' experience to go along with it. It'll be temporary," the smith explained. True enough, he only intended to tag along and acquire some materials to further his work. Once he was satisfied with that, he could move on. Besides, he figured the kingdom would do without him, so long as they still had access to Princess Madoka's abilities during this interim.

Daiyu seemed to accept the idea that Dreyfus could come along, but thought to confirm matters with Kou anyway. Upon receiving her message, he gave it nothing more than a few seconds of thought before snickering. 'If you think it'll be worth it to get the loot, sure. I had a look at that appraisal, and I think it's not much different from what I can do already. Actually... it seems more like a developed thing, than something coded in.' Of course, he took no issue with having the blacksmith along. If nothing else, he could learn. At best, they would have an endless supply of gear. Yes, as a matter of fact, Dreyfus himself planned on crafting numerous things along the way, and he had zero intention of keeping anything experimental. "So, what say ye folks? It'll be made worth yer while, I assure ye."

[Apollymi]

Dreyfus apparently wanted an adventure. Not just the experience, but crafting new items and going to a new place. He ironically didn't wish to stay with them for an extended period of time, instead he wished only to travel temporarily. "Temporary contracts, are the best..." she mentioned, while keeping an ear open for Kou's response. After a few seconds, and a snicker, it seemed that Kou was also on board with this. Even though the coding of Appraisal wasn't needed, there were still several fringe benefits to keeping the man around. She looked to Dreyfus after receiving confirmation of this from Kou and flashed Dreyfus a huge grin. He was apparently offering himself along with his skills for a short while, and they were both alright with that. "Hai hai, welcome aboard. And I have no doubts it will be worth it having you around. Just didn't know if you were sure about being uprooted. We seem to get into a lot of things... really randomly," she mentioned as fair warning.

"Hm, is this what you guys do? You pick up people... while you do every day stuff?" Hikari asked which made Daiyu shrug but nod gently. "Is this what it looked like when I joined?! Did I look like a stray kid animal?!" she asked seemingly outraged.

[Bloodedge]

And so, it seemed the half-Dwarf blacksmith named Dreyfus would be coming along for a bit. Daiyu wanted acquisitions for her treasury, and she would be sure to get them now. As for Kou... he'd gain something else, including - but not limited to - further understanding of his own weapon and abilities. The moment he received confirmation of this temporary agreement, Dreyfus even seemed ready to ship out right away. He didn't know where they were going, he didn't know what they had planned at all. He did, however, know that these two were destined for greatness in this world. "Aye! The whole shop's yours fer lootin' then, lass. Now, sign me up for the randomness!" he exclaimed.

In the meantime, Kou was mentally preparing himself to poke at Hikari a bit. In fact, he did so physically while hazarding a laugh at her curiosities. His forefinger repeatedly made contact with her forehead, and he chuckled his way through every word leaving his mouth. "Baaaka~ you still look like a stray kid animal, probably because you are one. Feral too. Really, we might have to get you checked for rabies. Does rabies exist in this world? If it does, I think you've got it─"

[Apollymi]

Daiyu looked around the shop after hearing Dreyfus' words and chuckled a knowing smile coming to her face. Strangely, she didn't move from where she stood after being given the okay to loot this place. Instead she searched through her skills list and found a very strange one. It wasn't at all the skill listing she'd gotten used to, but apparently one of them still worked in general. "Natural Born Genius? That sounds a little presumptuous... even for me," she mumbled mostly to her self. At the same time, she realized she could use every skill she had previously and even ones she didn't quite have yet. There didn't seem to be a limit on what she could do as far as skills were concerned. "Fox Assault..." items around the room began to come towards her. Various metals, pieces of leather, cloth wrappings, jewels, stones and all manner of thing used to craft came to her in an instant and were left hovering in her general vicinity. "Hoh? You aren't exactly outta stock or anything..." the lass mentioned before she found an item she hadn't just pulled to herself. There was at least one she'd not been able to pull with the rest, that she'd had to concentrate for and it was covered in some strange stone casing thicker than she'd imagined. Obviously another weapon but not yet appraised. Still she didn't need one in this form so she simply smirked. Soon after she'd be holding her Golden Orb in her hands, beginning the process of opening it. "Yare yare, I didn't really expect you to be the excitable type, Dreyfus... though I suppose you'll fit right in," the girl said with a chuckle before she, and everything else her magic was currently touching disappeared.

In the meantime, Hikari was being poked at, both literally and metaphorically by her brother. "Nii-san! No teasing!" she demanded as he kept poking her, by the time he'd gotten around to asking about rabies he'd done it. Call her feral?! He didn't yet know the meaning of the word. But he would. She opened her mouth as if about to pout more but instead she quickly turned her head and aimed to clamp down on the lad's finger a solid bite to be delivered to him for his audacity. "If I have rabies you got it too!" she'd say only if she managed to deliver this bite.

[Bloodedge]

It seemed the raven-haired lass had stumbled upon a rare find. The item she failed to pull her way initially was one which Dreyfus himself had yet to appraise, not for lack of trying, but for lack of ability. There was something very fine, very delicate about that one. If he made anything resembling a wrong move with his physical tools, he just knew it would be destroyed beyond all repair. "Careful with that one, lass. It holds a mighty power, but it'll take a better man than I ta bring it out," he explained. Kou heard this, and found himself watching the object. With only a glance, it was as if he could feel just what Dreyfus meant. 'Sou ka. That's more delicate than Magic Gold,' he thought.

Soon enough, Kou was caught unawares while looking toward Daiyu's new acquisition. While his eyes were averted, there was a sudden chomp on his finger. He was in an immediate state of shock, and to a lesser extent, agony due to the abrupt biting of his digit. Would that stop him from lashing out? Of course not! "Don't infect me with your disease, you Loli Bait bitchy dog! What if I get mange or some crazy shit like that!?"

[Apollymi]

Before she disappeared to put away her most recent haul, she got a warning from Dreyfus about the unappraised weapon she'd just picked up. She smiled at the man, finding his caution a bit endearing. "Hai hai, I'm pretty sure... when I have use for it, I have someone who can take care of it for me~" she said with a teasing tone to her voice, and a wink aimed at Kou. Strangely, though she had only a couple of pieces of information to base it off of, she was quite sure Kou could himself appraise this weapon for her when she was ready for it. Given the quality of his craftsmanship, as it concerned her Treasury she was quite sure there was very little of this world which was outside of his reach. A smile on the girl's face was all that was left for a few minutes while she sorted through her item.

Hikari, for the time being was now content to have bitten her brother and had him in pain, yet still insulting her. "I'm not loli bait you..." she paused, the big one was coming. A blow up of massive proportions. "Fucking Nerd! Lolicon! Puzzle-Loving! Smarty-pants! Jerk-face! Yugi!" A string of insults, ending in the man's name, all while Daiyu was gone. The Demi-Human girl stood with her hands on her hips, tail swaying in the breeze, feeling triumphant for just a moment only to burst into laughter, before the raven-haired girl appeared again. A large smile was plastered across her face, as she tucked away the Treasure Trove and the Helix Pendant Necklace, until all that was left in her hands were a few gems. She was playing with these a bit, as she cycled through more of her skills. "Alright are we ready to go?" she asked, having everything she needed and having set up quite a bit.

[Bloodedge]

The buildup was palpable; Hikari was preparing herself to spew one insult after another, in a chain reaction of unknown length. He immediately found it strange, even off-putting to be referred to as a lolicon by one he he just addressed as loli bait. That, however, was not the biggest problem. Kou's expression was flat for the majority of this chain. "H'ah─ was that last one even an insul─" He paused with haste, keeping that same abandon as his eyes darted around the room. For just a moment, he'd forgotten. For just a moment, Hikari and himself were at home, having their normal form of conversation. However, it was not true. Lucky for him, Dreyfus was busy packing up while Daiyu had yet to return. "Are you fucking insane?" he said, yelling while simultaneously hushing his own tone.

"Don't put that out there! I work hard to keep that secret, Bokemouto!" Soon after he spoke these words, Daiyu returned. Dreyfus also seemed to be finishing the tasks he'd taken upon himself, and with all that done, the group could move forward. "Hai hai," Kou said with a sigh. "Back to Atlantis, then to the skies."