Fairy Forest

[Bloodedge]

Indeed, the puzzle nearing its completion would depict the insect. However, upon seeing it closely, Kou realized this was no conventional bug of any sort, but something more akin to a Fairy due to the designs within its outline, though these designs only began appearing once the outline was incredibly obvious. The moment he slid the last piece into place, the entire pedestal began to glow... and with that came the disappearance of the ground beneath them. Two other paths also vanished, leaving only the 'insect' path and the sun path. Kou looked at the two skeptically from the safety of the podium's immediate area, which remained safe from the collapse. "Nice trick. This puzzle's got a good amount of thought in it to challenge arrogance. This isn't an exact match to that path over there, but trees need sunlight to survive... and Fairies use light. That's the one," he said as he pointed the way to the path marked with a sun symbol.

[Apollymi]

The blonde-haired young woman found herself a bit shocked with two of the paths and most of the floor collapsed after the puzzle in the middle of the room was completed. Even so there were still two paths left, one which had the sun over it and the one which had the pattern of insect wings. She looked at the picture in its completeness for a moment longer and then back at the one over the path and also determined that it wasn't an exact match. Given this she wouldn't be alright with it, but it seemed her line of thinking would be expanded upon by Kou himself. Who stated that though the wings were a tentative match, this puzzle actually questioned hubris and challenged arrogance. It also would be the sort of thing which required the pair of them to understand more than just the puzzle. "Sou ka, so it was put in to make sure the people who were coming here understand and respect the laws of nature. 'As flowers move towards the sun, so should we...'," Miki remarked remembering a particular lesson in rune mastery. "Someone who was doing it just to try and get there would make the wrong choice and just follow fairy wings seeking the guardian, without checking the details... I get it," Miki said with a firm bit of expression. Given her present understanding of nature she could also agree that the sun path would be the best. "Hai, so we move towards the sun..." she said content to take the next steps towards this path with Kou at her side.

[Bloodedge]

They were of the same mind, it seemed, when it came to the true answer to this puzzle. Miki even presented further confirmation backed by the teachings of her Rune mentor. "Really?" he questioned aloud in the wake of her quote. "I was just making an assumption based on Fairies and light-related stuff. That's just more proof. Hell yeah boi!" With enhanced vigor from the additional knowledge Miki offered, Kou also moved along the path bearing the sun insignia. His gaze was once again toward the space above the hedges, but in doing so this time, he remained a single pace behind Miki. "I know it might not make sense, but... I like the way this puzzle feels."

[Apollymi]

Miki gained the knowledge that Kou had been making an educated guess, but that the information she provided helped him further cement his idea. His enthusiasm at this moment was something she could appreciate and it made a small smile form on her face. "Yeah, that is what Endros-sensei said, and he seemed really earnest so I believe in his teachings..." she said about the man she'd learned her runes from. As she began walking along the next leg of this particular area, the words which came from Kou were indeed strange, but she was almost certain there was a good explanation for it. In this moment, she wanted to know how his mind worked so she questioned it directly, "It does seem a little strange, but that only makes me curious... why do you like this puzzle?" she asked. It was obvious this lad took his puzzles very seriously. That he enjoyed them in some way Miki hadn't previously considered possible, as such she wanted to understand his meaning as truly as she could.

[Bloodedge]

As they followed this path, Miki stressed that she didn't follow his meaning. This much was expected by Kou when he first brought up the topic, but since Miki questioned it directly, he was content to give her the answer she desired. "Because it's a good puzzle. I don't mean it's a good challenge, but... I've done enough puzzles that I think I can feel the intent behind them sometimes. Everything here so far feels like it was done with care. There might be death traps, but they're only for people who don't want to learn from the experience. The Fairies themselves wouldn't have to do the puzzles, I don't think... so everybody else has to understand the Fairies and their ways to move through it, and anybody else who's going to a place as important as this Sacred Tree is up to no good. This puzzle is a deterrent, and it's also an offer of acceptance..." There was a certain glimmer in Kou's eyes as he explained how he felt about this labyrinth thus far, and it didn't fade. He took a great deal of pleasure in this experience overall.

As the Adventurers progressed through the chosen path, they would eventually stumble upon the next of the puzzles. Giant roots from the Sacred Tree itself littered the air overhead in the next clearing, though many other beams were elevated without being connected to the tree roots. Some of the beams carried water which only began to flow as the pair of Adventurers entered the area, though they threatened to eventually flood the maze if left untouched. Overall, there was a massive and convoluted collection of beams, and three ropes to be pulled and interact with a grand series of gears in the upper workings. Kou saw this and knew what type of puzzle they were up against... and he was quite certain two of the three ropes, if pulled, would result in a very quick flood of the space they were in.

[Apollymi]

In answer to her question, Miki received an in-depth response from Kou. He claimed that he'd done enough puzzles to feel occasionally like he could feel the intentions of them. He felt that this one was crafted with care so that those who went to the Sacred Tree could know and understand the Fairies, and their way of life and eventually become accepted by them. He also claimed that though it likely contained death traps those were deterrents for potential evil-doers and for those who didn't want to learn. Hearing such an optimistic outlook on the situation they were currently in, gave Miki quite a bit of insight into the lad known as Kou. "Sou ka... well, it seems like you're pretty optimistic. I don't really do puzzles that often, so I don't really feel that way, but I understand feeling intent through action. I think I can sort of understand what you're getting at, even though I haven't experienced it in relation to the same thing..." Miki concluded. She wasn't sure if she had said exactly what she meant, but she couldn't have found a better way to say it.

Soon enough they would find themselves standing at the foot of a wide collection of the roots of the Sacred Tree. Beyond this there were three pullable levers which would increase the water flow of the area eventually flooding the entire bottom of it out with the two adventurers here. As Miki looked at this puzzle she seemed to be a bit at ease. It was strange but something about the layout of the gears and straights looked a bit familiar to her. As she looked at each of them she saw within them something different. "This... looks really familiar to me..." Miki said as her eyes traced the different routes she could see she wondered what Kou would have to say about this puzzle and if it would help her figure out why it looked familiar.

[Bloodedge]

Optimism was what Miki saw in the lad's observation. Sadly, he couldn't quite agree with this. He appreciated the intent behind this series of puzzles, but to call it optimism, or rather to say he was an optimistic individual, seemed a bit off. "I'm not very optimistic. It's just what I get from this puzzle," he replied. He had nothing else to say on the topic, yet everything to think about the puzzle they were now in front of... or rather, underneath. Miki thought this was something familiar. Kou couldn't possibly understand why she would think this, but his eyes followed the overall outline of the structure above until he realized there was a disconnect between the beams and the tree roots. "The other thing plants need... is water. I guess Fairies need it too? Or maybe it's just a nature thing. Either way, only one of these ropes can be the right one. There are a lot more water chutes than there need to be though... so at least one of the wrong ropes will probably flood the place. If I had to take a wild guess, I'd say the third one probably sends all the water backwards and breaks the whole system?"