>>3156442
Twitter: https://twitter.com/OuroQM
Ask: https://ask.fm/OuroQM

Archives: http://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/qstarchive.html?tags=Court%20of%20Swords%20Quest

>>3156442
Your room is a mess. That’s not a surprise, it’s never not a mess. You’ve always been a proponent of just leaving your stuff lying around wherever it falls and nobody has ever told you different. Your wardrobe has less clothes in it than your floor does, piled heaps of fabric joining discarded training equipment and stacks of books. In addition to your bed, which is an absolute unmade heap, there’s a table and a desk. The desk might be the only clean surface in your entire apartment and that’s because it holds your sabre up against the window for it’s daily sharpening every dawn. The table is covered in scattered puzzle pieces, relics of an attempt to regain a passion that now feels problematic and the window itself is propped open, allowing the City’s birds to come and go as they please. And while most birds vanish after a few minutes, their droppings sure don’t.

Normally this doesn’t bother you. But today isn’t normal. Today is the day you decided to invite a man in so you could have...some sort of interview. And so here you are, sitting on your only chair, surrounded by filth, while he awkwardly stands before you. Maybe you should have let him sit.
The man himself is apparently an acquaintance of Maccio’s, someone he met when you took Maccio to Sabino’s commencement ceremony several days ago. He’s a writer and when Maccio had asked you if you would grace him with your time, you had agreed. You’d been busy, alright? You didn’t really think it through.

But here he is. He’s a tall enough man, a little over six feet and you have to stop yourself from thinking of it as a hundred feet. That’s mostly past you now, you’ve reoriented yourself but occasionally you still find yourself with a perspective that’s four inches tall and all you can think about is how big you and everything else is.
The ‘writer’, who calls himself Signore Remo, is a fastidious enough looking man. He’s thin but not well toned, clearly someone more used to a life of inactivity. That said, he manages to pull of a waistcoat pretty well. Well enough that you wouldn’t mind pulling it off either. His brown hair is tied back in a very short ponytail and he has an expression of perpetual faint surprise.
“When was your last duel?,” he is asking, a pen in hand.

“Four days ago. It was right after the bit with the Rose Blossom thing actually. I don’t really want to talk about it.”
It had been a confusing day. And by the time you had woke up the following morning, Gloriana had vanished. Since then you’ve kept mostly to yourself while you recovered from a twist of perspective.
“What did you say you wrote again?”

“I write something called La Ressagna Mensile. I print a new book every month-”

1/2

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>>3156449
“Yeah I got that from the name.”
Alright, you understand now. He’s a booklet writer. The City churns out oceans of cheap paperbacks every day, full of gossip, speculation and often erotic art and literature. These lesser books are inherently disposable and often are. Sabino’s friends in the Book Burner’s Society probably do a brisk trade in them.
“I’ve never heard of it.”

“Really? It is rather popular. But mostly with men so it’s not all that surprising you wouldn’t have.”

“So it’s almost certainly pornographic, right?”

“Signorina! You wound me!”
He makes an affected wince.

“Am I wrong?”

“...yes, I often include a risque sketch or something salacious. But that is only to draw the eye. The stories I tell are real and so are the people in them. My readers know this.”

“And with this interview, I’ll be one of those people, huh?”

“Correct. Everyone is talking about your confrontation with Signora d’Passero. Not many people would challenge a Ringleader on their own turf.”

Is that so? You’d been unaware but it makes sense that people would spread word. And better yet, nobody will able to tell anyone that you screwed up. That your loss may have been foolish. All they can say is that you tried.
“I’m a public defender, you know. An interview to drum up reputation doesn’t have any real value to me.”

“Mmmhm. And I’m sure the people will love that. Are you ready?”


>”Hold on. I just said whatever you end up writing has no value to me. So what do I get out of this?”

>”Sure. Ask anything you want.” You’re ready.

>”Just keep the questions confined to the professional, alright?” You have no need or want to talk about your past.

>You can probably screw with him pretty hard if you wanted to.

>Other (Specify)

>>3156454
>You can probably screw with him pretty hard if you wanted to.

>>3156454
>>”Just keep the questions confined to the professional, alright?” You have no need or want to talk about your past.

>>3156454

>”Just keep the questions confined to the professional, alright?” You have no need or want to talk about your past.

No reason to be mean, but if he wants to discuss you and your dueling, it should be the focus. Your feelings insofar as dueling is the furthest this should stray.

Vote called, writing.

>>3156454
>>”Just keep the questions confined to the professional, alright?” You have no need or want to talk about your past.

>>3156454
>”Just keep the questions confined to the professional, alright?” You have no need or want to talk about your past.

>>3156547
So how's your carpal tunnel? Are you going to need surgery or something?

>>3156556
It may be temporary as long as I don't exacerbate it. I've been keeping it iced frequently and have got a wrist brace to wear a lot of the time.

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>>3156559
>long asI don't exacerbate it.
>Starts a CoS thread

>>3156559
you can type with one hand. Though it makes it very hard to write quickly

>>3156564
Questing has always been a form of self-harm.

>>3156569
Fair enough

>”Just keep the questions confined to the professional, alright?” You have no need or want to talk about your past.

“I’m ready. Just keep the questions confined to the professional, alright?”
You don’t really want to talk about yourself or your life, even if it’s literally impossible for something written down to hurt you. But some things are private and that’s all that needs to be said. You are Sofia Pseudonym and you have no other surname. Your family tree begins and ends with you.

“So just about the duels?”

“And about the Rose Blossom Ring, I suppose.”

After you completely fail to relinquish the only chair to him, he sits down on the floor before you and rests a large sketchpad against the back of his knee.
“I’m going to make a quick few sketches too. Now, for how long have you been a public defender?”

“Several weeks now. More than a month. And since then I’ve been involved in a professional capacity in seven duels.”
Come to think of it, you may have to lie a little about your debut.

“And why did you choose to become a public defender?”


“It was my own choice. You could say that it’s a way to give back. There’s a lot of people who can’t afford to hire a professional duellist except out of the gutter and that’s just not fair. Someone has to be there to fight for them and…”
You let yourself speak for a few minutes more, your worry slipping away. There’s nothing to be stressed about. This interview shit is easy. But after a few more basic questions that you field easily, all of that is blown away by a single reply.

“So...now that we’ve got all that out of the way, why did you challenge Signora d’Passero like that?”

Oh. Now this is something that might need a gentler hand. For the true form of that question is ‘are you willing to potentially slander Catalina d’Passero in front of the entire City?’. Even for you, that’s not something you can do without consequences.
But you don’t believe your feelings on this matter are lies either.


>”I wished to protest the way she treats her protege.”

>”I just got a little over-excited!”

>”I wanted to test my skill.”

>”I wanted a chance to learn. I hear she’s a pretty good teacher.”

>Take a page from Adriana’s book and refuse to comment.

>>3156620
>>Take a page from Adriana’s book and refuse to comment.

Let's let the public speculate about the reasons. They'll come up with their own reasons anyways even if we do answer honestly.

>>3156629
That or say 'she offered and I accepted' if we're really pressed.

>>3156620
>”I wanted a chance to learn. I hear she’s a pretty good teacher.”

>>3156620
>>”I wanted a chance to learn. I hear she’s a pretty good teacher.”
Not going to help Sabino by maker the ring leader our enemy

>>3156620
>”I wanted a chance to learn. I hear she’s a pretty good teacher.”

This one sounds fine. And it's partly true.

>>3156676
I hope Catalina doesn't have a reputation of... ah, being extremely fond of her potential students and that there's a noticeable trend when she picks up new students.

Vote called, writing.

>”I wanted a chance to learn. I hear she’s a pretty good teacher.”

All telling the truth would accomplish right now is just making things worse for Sabino. Even if it never blows back on you, it certainly would on him. And with that in mind you just shrug.
“I just wanted a chance to learn and I hear she’s a pretty good teacher.”
It’s not even wrong. You did learn a lot from that practice bout.

“And what are your thoughts on the result?”
Phew. Looks like he bought it.

“I got what I came for so I let her win. It’d just be mean to shame the Ringleader on Sabino’s big day.”
Not an ideal answer but you can’t really admit to her being better than you.

“Oh, speaking of which...what is your relationship with Signore Manfredi? I understand that you were personally invited to the event.”

“We’re friends. I met him on a previous case and he extended the invitation to me.”

“Just friends?”

You raise an eyebrow.
“I beg your pardon?”

“Signore Manfredi does have a reputation as a bit of rake, Signorina. Do you think he had any intentions towards you?”


>”No. Don’t write about any of this either, he has rough enough time as it is.”

>”Just friends.”

>”Does it count if it only happens inside a mirror?”

>”I am already in a committed relationship.”

>Other (Specify)

>>3156734
>”I am already in a committed relationship.”

>>3156734
>”No. Don’t write about any of this either, he has rough enough time as it is.”

>>3156734
>”Just friends.

Hm, as players don't really know much about Sabino.
Personally I can see why ladies go all gooey for Sabino... but I suspect most of his rakish reputation is because his teacher likes pass him around for her amusement.
Or is that really it?

>>3156734
Issue with the top one is that it'll lead into 'How is having a rough time?' line of questioning.

>>3156760
Personally, it was a mistake to accept this interview at all. I can only imagine how he's going to write his article, yellow journalism style.

>>3156771
Well the booklet he is writing for may not even be popular.

>>3156772
Even if it's obscure, the info will just add oil to the gossip fire when it's shared by readers to other folks. We don't even know what booklet he's writing for or how popular he really is. For all we know, he's the greatest relationship gossipmonger reporter there is and we don't even know it.

Also, we're getting absolutely nothing from this interview as a payment other than more salacious rumours of Sabino and possible later on Catalina. I rather don't like it.

>>3156734
>”Just friends.”

Vote called, writing.

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>”Just friends.”

“Just friends,” you say, your tone being all the warning he should need to know that this particular discussion goes no further. Poor Sabino has a rough enough time as it is and you don’t think he has any real control over his ‘womanizing’.
“By the by, when does this get printed?”

“If this all goes well, it should be on the street by tomorrow. Everything else has already been done.”

“Wow, you must have a very good printing press!”

“I don’t know if I’d call them good...but we do have ten.”

“Oh.”
This operation might be a little bigger than you thought it was. But how were you to know? You don’t read this kind of crap! But whatever, it should still be fine. A written word cannot hurt you. There is no ill end to which they can be twisted that your birthright will allow. This interview will be a glowing recommendation for it can be nothing else.
“Carry on then. Like I said, just friends.”

“Just friends indeed. Signorina, I can’t help but notice that you are unmarried.”

“What of it?”

“To segue from my previous question, is there a man in your life?”

“This really has nothing to do with duelling.”
You very much doubt Adriana would enjoy any amount of public scrutiny.

“Right, right.”
He keeps on sketching.
“Tell me more about your past duels.”

And so you do, keeping it relatively brief but triumphant. No matter what you say, all your victories must be said to be of your own skill and all your losses to be chance or happenstance. It’s not, strictly speaking, true but it sounds pretty good! It’s also an absolutely safe line of questioning, after you establish that there are certain duels whose exact circumstances you are not at liberty to discuss.

“And what is your opinion on women in duelling?”

“Eh?”

“You are the very image of a belle sabreuse, are you not? But most duellists tend to be sabreurs. So not only are you somewhat of a rarity as a female duellist, you’re also at odds with the Rose Blossom Ring, despite it being the very definition of the dueling feminine.”


>”Wow! No comment.”

>”I’m not at odds with the Roses. I’m just...not one of them.”

>”I have nothing but respect for the Ring but as a woman who doesn’t practice their ‘woman’s style’ I think it’s a bit limiting to call them that. Nobody ever calls a single style the ‘very definition of the dueling masculine’ or whatever.”

>”I’m not sure what I’m supposed to say in response to this but I think it’d be cool to fight more ladies.”

>”I don’t get why we need to make this distinction anyway, we’re not foreigners.”

>Other (Specify)

>>3156892
>>”I have nothing but respect for the Ring but as a woman who doesn’t practice their ‘woman’s style’ I think it’s a bit limiting to call them that. Nobody ever calls a single style the ‘very definition of the dueling masculine’ or whatever.”

Yeah, same as there is no undefeatable duelist or ultimate dueling style

>>3156892
>”I’m not at odds with the Roses. I’m just...not one of them.”

>>3156892
>”I have nothing but respect for the Ring but as a woman who doesn’t practice their ‘woman’s style’ I think it’s a bit limiting to call them that. Nobody ever calls a single style the ‘very definition of the dueling masculine’ or whatever.”

>>3156892
>"Gloriana is worse!"

>>3156734
>“Signore Manfredi does have a reputation as a bit of rake, Signorina. Do you think he had any intentions towards you?”
Lol, we should show him the mirror we have that is likely full of Sabino x Sophia porn.

Also, what noooo, we're not at odds with the Rose Blossom Ring! They still have so much to teach us.

>>3156892
>"Nothing but respect, ect"

>>3156990
You shut your whore mouth, Gloriana is the best.

>>3157052
Gloriana needs a friend badly... I'm not sure if we're exactly the type friend she needs, maybe we're more like a frenemy, she pretty much knows we're the honorable sucker type. Or at least the type that tries to be an honorable sucker.

>>3156892
>I’m not at odds with the Roses.
>I was simply taught different methods of dueling. It would be rather unusual for a Ring to invite a public defender.

Sorry about the delay, was busy with something else momentarily. Vote called and writing.

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>”I have nothing but respect for the Ring but as a woman who doesn’t practice their ‘woman’s style’ I think it’s a bit limiting to call them that. Nobody ever calls a single style the ‘very definition of the dueling masculine’ or whatever.”

“I wouldn’t say we’re at odds,” you say, conscious that every single word is being written down. “Not just because I fought their ringleader. I have nothing but respect for the Ring as a whole but if I’m at odds with anything about it it’s with what you just said. As a woman who doesn’t practice their ‘woman’s style’ I think it’s a bit limiting to call them what you just did. Nobody ever calls a single style the ‘very definition of the dueling masculine’ or whatever.”

He gives you a thoughtful look. Or perhaps a predatory one.
“So you’d say there’s somewhat of a double standard?”

“About presentation...yeah. There’s no ‘definitive Ring for men’ that any male duellist is going to be judged against. We just take it for granted that every single style save this one specific one is manly. Don’t get me wrong! I think the Rose Blossom Ring is doing a great job and I’m glad they exist but not every sabreuse is going to be like them and nor should they be.”
The whole floral theme is just a little too...stereotypical for you. As for the beauty of swordplay? A sword is there to speak for you, to invoke the universal language for violence. It’s a pen that isn’t daunted by your curse.

“And what is your style like, if you don’t mind me asking?”

There we go, back on safer ground. This is a question you have no problem answering.
“I was taught by Lanzo Croce and I’ve inherited a lot of his style. If you don’t know who he is, he’s….he’s actually opening a little school of sorts! Everyone should go check it out. But in addition to that, I guess you could say that I’ve been picking new things up as I go. My way of duelling is very malleable, I’m never afraid to use whatever I can learn.”

“And you are good at learning?”

“In a sense.”

*******

The questions drag on but mostly limit themselves to descriptions of your duels. He never asks for personal information again, presumably because he knows what’s good for him. And so, after you’ve finished elucidating on a particular moment, Signore Remo slowly gets to his feet.
“Well, thank you kindly for your time. Do you have any questions of your own? Any further remarks?”


>Not really, no.

>Encourage people to be public defenders. It’s not ALL gutter-work!

>Ask to see his sketches.

>”As long as you understand that misinterpreting anything I just said is a crime against my honor.”

>”Can I ask you not to describe this room? At all?”

>Other (Specify)

>>3157242
>>Ask to see his sketches.
I really want to see it. What did he draw... if it's lewd we'll probably have to get mad. If he drew how messy our room is, demand he get rid of it.

>>3157242

>Request to see his sketches, donning Maccio's glasses.

He claims that the "scandalous" parts of his work is entirely intended as eyecatches.

We can judge that for ourselves using practiced eyes, and in the meantime take the opportunity to get a last look into Signore Remo's heart.

>>3157242
Ask to see his sketches.

>>3157242
>Ask to see his sketches.
he definitely did it during the interview

Vote called, writing.

>Ask to see his sketches.

“No, feel free to leave.”
But then, as he picks his way through your apartment towards the door, an idea strikes you.
“Say, can I see your sketches? I know you did them.”

“Why?”

Because he almost certainly uses lewd eyecatches and you have no desire to want to be one.
“Just to make sure you got my likeness right.”

“Sure.”
He passes you the sketchbook and you idly flip through it.
“These won’t reflect the finished work though, they’re just rough sketches to make sure I have your appearance right before I do the drawing proper. It lets me illustrate without needing you as a reference.”

“Right.”
They all look accurate enough and none of them include your room. They’re just as rough as he claimed too.
“These are fabulous sketches by the way, just wonderful. These could pass for finished art!”
Huh? You...guess they’re better than you initially thought?

“Thank you Signorina. Look out for it tomorrow, alright?”

“Alright!”
And with that he’s gone. And you’re left alone, wondering if you didn’t just make a huge mistake. Surely not, right? If done well, this will be great for increasing your reputation. It’ll really get your name out there! You don’t really need that though. But...if this goes well, maybe you could keep doing it. Maybe you could draw more attention to the plight of your clients. That has to be good.

Sighing, you sit back down on your bed and thumb through your book. Blegh, it’s nothing. It’s tawdry and not even in a good way. You’ve been reading it for the past two days but now it just seems boring. You’ve got a whole afternoon to burn and your perspective is almost entirely unfucked! Shouldn’t you be doing something with it?


>No.

>Visit someone you know.

>Visit someone you don’t know.

>Try to do a puzzle in a normal way.

>Follow Remo.

>Other (Specify)

>>3157359
>Other (Specify)
>Visit someone you know.
See if we can get an appointment with Oronzo to talk about the Adriana situation and see if there is a way to be 'safe together'. He's a lawyer that's not Juicy and we owes us one for the Handprint.

We gave our word after all.

>>3157359
does Sophia not remember the thing about Pale Word? The thing about double standards might raise a few fires, but sure let it happen.

>Go to the book club Sabino showed you
maybe we can find actually useful books there.

>>3157374
>we
he*

>>3157376
>does Sophia not remember the thing about Pale Word?

She does, she just doesn't immediately recognise it right away when it's affecting her talking about something else. She's not used to that.

>>3157359
>>No.
Laaaaze.


>Go visit Sabino when it doesn't work.

>>3157359
Follow Remo.

>>3157359
Ouro would training let us refine a move we already know?

>>3157392
I recognize we just lobbed a firebomb but we voted for it and threw it to be published. It's going to be an interesting backlash. I'm sure there are more than a few who agree but it's going to get under the skin of those who really believe in the Rose Court ethos

>>3157425
How so?

>>3157440
Just slightly improve the mechanics of moves we've used well frequently to rpovise an oh so slightly better bonus?

Like Elegance starting at d6 instead of d4, or the like?

>>3157453
That's a huge buff, and not at all reflecting the amount of improvement you could get done in a day, particularly with Sophia's relative lack of talent/resources.

>>3157491
I was hoping ouro could work it to be workable.

>>3157453
Maybe. I've also been thinking of training to increase Composure.

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By the way, while the tie continues, here is a Christmas Sofia drawn by Tanq, QM of Panzer Commander!

>>3157495
Personally, I have a hard time grasping just how terrible Sophia is at learning things herself. She isn't talented, Pale Word means she isn't as conscientious on the little things, and Monkey Sight has convinced her that she can barely learn anything on her own.

>>3157499
What about "downgrading" moves, like making counting coup or Elegance generate d3s rather than d4s? Enough training in that direction, and maybe after a few months it could be 2d2s?

The only Composure buff that would round Sophia out is a d10, but that sounds more like balancing her psyche while retaining her stubbornness.

Another Ability slot would be broken as all hell.

Thematically, the Tech most likely to improve without any special inventions is Unassailable Rookie. Just working on the fundamentals so much that you achieve something that is clearly Veteran.

>>3157376
Will change to book store.

>>3157359
>Train

Vote called, writing.

>Visit the Aevum Book-Burning Society.

Well, if it’s a new book you need...you should probably buy or obtain another. But you’re facing somewhat of a supply problem. The street market down on the canal below doesn’t traffic much in books and what romance novels they did have are now, over the course of some time, all yours. And would you really commit to travelling any further just for the sake of a book?

Yes. Yes you would. Because right now, after several days cooped up, you just need a good long walk more than anything. The book isn’t even the goal anymore, just a fortunate by-product. So why don’t you take a nice long walk and find something weird? Something new. Something you will at least not have read half a dozen times already. And you know just the place to find a book you’ve never read anything like before.

*****

The district of Aevum is as beautiful and serene and personally distasteful as ever. That ever-present lotus scent, something you’d once grown up with, has given way to the equally-sweet scent of lotus-rot. Rotting flowers crowd the canal, floating on the surface and being trampled underfoot.
You’re wearing your duelling outfit, if only because it’s the only suitable outfit you own. Anything less might get you stopped by a constable. Not for any particular crime against Street Law, mind you, just for looking too shabby to be in a place like Aevum. And a lot of estates and families around these parts hired their own men to do the same and they weren’t bound by laws or banes like the constabulary. Where a constable might shoo an undesirable away, these rough men might have some fun with them first.

None of which could ever affect you, of course. You could wear anything and nobody would ever complain. But wearing your best clothes does make it more convenient.

And there it is, as resplendent as ever, the Aevum Book-Burning Society. It is topped with a golden sigil of a stylized flame and the entrance to the grand building is flanked by columns that are as beautiful as they are pointless.
You walk inside, finding yourself once more standing in the little atrium lit by fragrant braziers enclosed in little iron cages. No doubt they’re very careful about the fires here. It’d be a shame if all the books were to be burned in the wrong way.

At the back, flanked by two doors, is a podium crowded with paperwork. Standing behind it is a familiar looking woman, a tall and curvy apparition squeezed into a librarian’s frock that has a deeper neckline than is perhaps necessary. Her hair is almost as big as the rest of her, cascading brown ringlets that must take hours to set up right. She stares at you blankly as you approach, her round glasses reflecting the firelight.
“Hello. Can I help you?”

“We’ve met actually. I’m one of Sabino’s friends. He brought me here a while ago?”

1/2

>>3157584

She purses her lips and you catch a glimpse of something shrewd behind her eyes for just a moment.
“Doesn’t ring a bell.”
Maybe mentioning Sabino was a bad idea.

“Whatever, it doesn’t matter. I’m here in need of a book.”

“Sure. Do you want Ignition or Stacks?”

“Pardon?”

She nods her head at the two doors.
“Burned books are the whole point but some people like to search through the Stacks. They’re only a coin each.”


>Stacks. From what you remember there’s absolutely no filing system you can discern but at least it’s cheap.

>Ignition. You didn’t come all this way just to stretch your legs and get your perspective in line. You’re here for books you’ve never read for and a burned book has to be that by definition.

>Can you remember her name?

>”I didn’t fuck Sabino, you know. If that’s an issue.”

>Other (Specify)

>>3157586
>>Ignition. You didn’t come all this way just to stretch your legs and get your perspective in line. You’re here for books you’ve never read for and a burned book has to be that by definition.
>Can you remember her name?
Isidora

>>3157586
>Well Isidora what would you suggest for someone looking for a new book to experience?

>>3157586
Stacks.

>>3157586
>>Stacks. From what you remember there’s absolutely no filing system you can discern but at least it’s cheap.
>>Ignition. You didn’t come all this way just to stretch your legs and get your perspective in line. You’re here for books you’ve never read for and a burned book has to be that by definition.
whichever is more magical first, of course

Seem to be having some connection issues with 4chan, vote called and writing.

>>3157586
>Ignition

Just for posterity's sake.

>Isidora
>Ignition

The Stacks are tempting, particularly since you never had much truck with burned books to begin with, but that’s not what you’re here for. And with that in mind, you dredge up a name from the mnemonic abyss.
“Well Isidora, what would you suggest for someone looking for a new book to experience?”

She looks up, her eyes wide behind the spectacles.
“That’s my name!”

“Naturally. I remember it. And do you remember me now?”

“Hrm. Oh. You’re that girl who fucked Sabby in the Stacks that one time!”

“Yes and no that’s not what we actually did.”

“It’s fine, I don’t mind.”

“That’s nice. It’s still not true though. I can’t specify this enough.”

“Well it’s none of my business,” she says, her tone now much friendlier with the idea of shared experience. “I don’t need to ask about it, I already know what it’s like.Now, you wanted a new book right?”

“..Right.”

“Then you’ll want Ignition obviously. The Stacks have old books, regular books, everyone knows what those books are like. Ignition is where the real art is done.”
She pulls a key from within her bodice and bustles over to the door to the left.

“It’s where you actually burn the books, right?”

“Exactly.”
Isidora opens the door and a blast of heat so oppressive that it almost feels like walking into a wall bursts forth. You follow her inside, beads of sweat already forming upon your brow. But it’s a dry heat and the sweat evaporates as quickly as it comes.

The two of you are standing at the edge of a large circular room. The room is ringed with stacks of books, all very neatly organized but following no logic you can discern. A lit brazier sits beside each stack, enclosed in a little birdcage with a hatch to the side. And in the center is the main furnace itself, a vast red-bellied mechanical organ that pumps heat up through the pipes that feeds into each of the braziers sprouting up from the floor around it like roots from a mangrove. Red light shines forward from a grille that is firmly locked with no less than four separate padlocks.
The air is hotter than fire and fragrant smoke collects in curls and swirls around the top of the vaulted ceiling. The vortices move and change direction, little urchins of smokestuff swirling through the air.

“Where is everyone?”

“Most Society members only come in when they need to,” Isidora says. “I’m the only person who works here full-time.”

“But what about when you’re at home?”

She shakes her head.
“When I said full-time, I meant it. Now, the stacks alternate between burned and unburned. Can you tell the difference?”

1/3

>>3157755
“Yeah, pretty easily.”
You scan the titles as you walk past them. One stack might be full of rational, recogniseable things. A harlequin romance, an encyclopedia, a foreign travelogue. But the burned books have strange glassy-coloured covers and are titled things like Lost in the the U or Long Life Turncoat or Scrump.

“Would you like to see a burning? Most first-time visitors do!”

You nod, lacking anything better to do. Your throat is drying out dangerously fast.

Isidora grabs a pair of long metal tongs from the side of the wall and expertly snatches up an unburned book, one that must have been transported in from the Stacks some time ago. With her other hand, she opens the hatch on the birdcaged brazier closest to her, using the tongs to dip the book inside.
“Fire is not a destroyer,” she murmurs. “It’s transformative. Mostly it just transforms things to ash. But if you know the right way to burn something, it does something else. Like a blacksmith with a sword or, in my case, a librarian with a book.”

Passing through the flame in quick little thrusts, the book warps and changes with each pass. Within it, words were melting and reforming, illustrations were changing, meaning was undone and new things found.
You know about book burning, of course. You’ve just never been a huge fan. Burn a book right and the old book is gone and in its place is...something else. A potential book. A book built from all the books that never existed, all the words never said, all the stories never written. It’s a romantic idea. Unfortunately to you, most of them come out as pure nonsense. You’ve never been able to find the art in their incoherence like most of their enthusiasts do.

Isidora steps back and drops the still-smouldering book atop the stack on the other side of the brazier. Glowing letters across it spine declare it to be Alice in Wonderland, another nonsense title.

“So,” you say. “How much time do you spend filtering out the pure nonsense results?”

“Zero. The burning never churns out literal word salad or anything like that. It’s still a book, still a story. It just hews to something that isn’t real. Read enough and you’ll see new genres, new grammar, even new ideas. It’s all unreal of course but what isn’t real vastly outnumbers what is, don’t you think?”

“It’s always sounded a little fascina to me.”

She shrugs.
“All things can be fascina. And some of them do come here. Most of them just want to buy our burned books but a few can be...rowdy. It’s why the furnace needs so many locks.”

“What, why? What do they want with the main furnace?”

“To throw themselves into it,” she says with the same tone one might use to discuss the weather.

“Is there any point asking why?”

“More things can be burned besides books. Haven’t you ever wanted to be someone else?”

“...Does it work?”

2/3

>>3157757

“Sometimes. Sometimes they just burn. And let me tell you, sorry I don’t have your name yet?”

“Sofia.”

“And let me tell you, Sofia, people don’t burn easy even in a furnace this hot. They leave things behind. Bones obviously but the worst part is the fat. Have you ever had to scrub out person grease from something?”

“No!”
You don’t like this conversation. You don’t like it at all.

“Well…”
Her words hang in the blistering air as she takes a few more steps and, pulling out four more keys, starts to unlock the padlocks around the furnace’s hatch.
“You can try if you want.”

“Wha?”

“I’ll burn you, I’m very good at it, so it can be very precise and purifying. No danger. As for why? I can tell you’re not a fascina because you’re a duellist and...you seem friendly enough. Not many people bother to remember my name. And as a reward, I’m going to burn you alive.”

“Um.”


>Take her up on her offer. Don’t you have some aspects of yourself that you could improve? That you could reforge?

>”I’ll just take a book thanks.”

>Flee.

>”What happened to you? Why are you like this?”

>Other (Specify)

>>3157757
Booksmiths. WORDSMITHS. Oh god, it finally clicked.

>>3157758
>>Take her up on her offer. Don’t you have some aspects of yourself that you could improve? That you could reforge?
DO IT DO IT DO IT
>Can you do something like burn a last name away? I don't mind being ACTUALLY Sofia Pseudonym.

>>3157762
Sofia's surname actually is Pseudonym now, she had it legally changed. Technically her old family now no longer has any blood relation.

>>3157758
...fuck it

>Take her up on her offer. Don’t you have some aspects of yourself that you could improve? That you could reforge?

>>3157758
>>”I’ll just take a book thanks.”
>”What happened to you? Why are you like this?”

>>3157758
Just take a book.

>>3157758
>Take her up on her offer. Don’t you have some aspects of yourself that you could improve? That you could reforge?
Mayyybe she could burn away our birthright?
Barring that, improve our stats.
Barring even that, make our boobs bigger so that anons stop voting to learn it as an ability instead of something useful.

>>3157758
Iiiiii'm gonna abstain on this one. But WOW, I'm kinda laughing.

>>3157758

You know what

>Take her up on her offer. Don’t you have some aspects of yourself that you could improve? That you could reforge?

Let's go.

Vote called, writing.

Sorry for the delay, I got a phone call.

>Take her up on her offer. Don’t you have some aspects of yourself that you could improve? That you could reforge?

You take a deep breath, inviting the scorching air into your lungs.
“You know what? Sure thing, you weirdo. I’ll take you up on that offer.”

Isidora just smiles and then pulls open the hatch. Light floods the room and it somehow gets even hotter. The heat has a sound.
“Don’t worry,” she shouts to be heard over the roar. “I’ve got a lot of experience with this!”

“What do I have to do?”
You’re shouting too.

“Oh nothing scary!”
She strikes the tongs into the blazing depths and for a brief moment, they vanish from view entirely as they eclipsed by light. They return with a glowing coal clutched between the prongs.
“What do you want?”

“I...I…”


>You want a bodily change.

>Your nerve has broken in the past. Reforge it and strengthen your Composure.

>Make one of your trophies physically part of you.

>Have an aspect of your personality scorched away.

>Reforge your past.

>Strengthen a Technique.

>Other (Specify)

>>3157501
Lol, companion. Who's she again?

>>3157514
Cute, and the scar looks nice desu.

>>3157758
>“I’ll burn you, I’m very good at it, so it can be very precise and purifying. No danger. As for why? I can tell you’re not a fascina because you’re a duellist and...you seem friendly enough. Not many people bother to remember my name. And as a reward, I’m going to burn you alive.”“Um.”
Oh god what.

Mark me down as horrified and intrigued.

>>3157850
>Your nerve has broken in the past. Reforge it and strengthen your Composure.

>>3157759
>Booksmiths. WORDSMITHS. Oh god, it finally clicked.
That's great. That's just great.

>>3157850
Reforging the past looks like a nice way to create a time paradox.
Making one of the trophies a part of us could give us an extra technique slot, but it could also give us an unswappable technique instead, so nah.

>Strengthen a Technique.
Counting Coup, our BnB

>>3157855
We need to go hang out with Leo sometimes btw. We don't have many people who actually like us, so we need to maintain the relationships that we have.

>>3157850
>Reforge your past.
>Strengthen a Technique.
I want either of these.

>>3157850
>>Your nerve has broken in the past. Reforge it and strengthen your Composure.

There's something to be said for permanent stat buffs. Although

>Have an aspect of your personality scorched away

sounds interesting. Is there anything in particular to Sofia that she'd be better off without, you think?

>>3157850
>Reforge your past
Could we reforged in the way that our curse is no more?
Or is that we reforge only memory of it?

>>3157871
Unfortunately your birthright is enshrined in law. A mere changing of the past can't change law.

>>3157850
>>Make one of your trophies physically part of you.
Skin Unthorned

>>Strengthen a Technique.
I'll hold off on what until I get more data.

>>3157868
>sounds interesting. Is there anything in particular to Sofia that she'd be better off without, you think?
It does kind of seem like a real denizen of the City would be interested in this. After all, it's not like personality is permanent. If we don't like who we become, we can just turn back.

On the other hand, I like Sophia's personality the way it is.


(Except maybe her tendency towards sore loserhood.)

>>3157850
>>Your nerve has broken in the past. Reforge it and strengthen your Composure.

>>3157868
>Is there anything in particular to Sofia that she'd be better off without, you think?
There is, but unfortunately it's mostly anon-induced.

>>3157850
Strengthen composure.

Why composure? It's not really as though it'll help our playstyle. Having more Comp means that Brute Strike is less effective, and if the enemy actually beats our Comp score, that's already a loss.

>>3157890
Perhaps anons still can't stop thinking of Composure as hitpoints.

Elaboration.

Strengthening Composure involves upgrading your currently existing dice.

Fusing a trophy would let you select that trophy whenever you want, unlike normal trophies, which can be lost, stolen or destroyed.

Annons do you think we could do something here that would make Adriana incapable of taking over our body

>>3157860
>>3157881
>>3157888
>>3157868
>>Your nerve has broken in the past. Reforge it and strengthen your Composure.

>>3157862
>>3157876
>>3157864
>>Strengthen a Technique.

>>3157864
>>3157871
>>Reforge your past.

>>3157868
>Have an aspect of your personality scorched away

>>3157876
>>>Make one of your trophies physically part of you.

>>3157893
>Strengthening Composure involves upgrading your currently existing dice.
Which is good. As long as we keep a d4 and a d6 for Stances.

I'd still rather improve a Technique, though I don't know what I'd want to improve.

>>3157893
>Strengthening Composure involves upgrading your currently existing dice

Oh in that case

Switching >>3157860
To
>Strengthen a Technique.

>>3157850
>Other "Strengthen your identity. You are who you are. You are proud of it, and of choice you make as they are yours. Whats you, it cannot be taken, it cannot be crushed."

>>3157908
Oooooh.


But I think that counts as Composure.

>>3157908
Now that i wrote it, I cant really read it with voice other than narrator from darkest dungeon. Especially last sentence

Vote called and writing!

I'd like to turn a d8 into a d10. It allows us to reach d10s for Elegance very quickly if we lose our minor Comp Dice. Upgrading a d6 means we don't have one anymore and it's needed for stances.
Upgrading a d4 still leaves us with the need to go through three more and the new d6 if we're trying to reach higher numbers.
Upgrading a d10 is kind of pointless since we never really get that far.
Upgrading our d12 would be useful, being the only actual upgrade that improves our hp.

>Strengthen a Technique.

“...I want to become a better duellist.”
Your words are lost in the roar of the forge.

Isidora still nods however, lifting the glowing coal high.
“Then step forward! Come here! No, closer! Closer!”

You are mere inches from her now, your skin reddening from the heat. You feel faint, you feel dry, you feel withered, as if you might just shrivel up and blow away at any moment.

“Kneel.”

You do so without asking.

“Look up.”

Again.

“Close your eyes.”

And again.

“Open your mouth as wide as you can.”

Once more.

You feel something smash it’s way into your mouth, pushing your jaws wider and wider with a searing flash of pain. It’s metal and oh, she’s sticking the tongs down your throat. The tongs with the coal still in them.
It’s so hot that you don’t even notice the heat for several seconds. Then it obliterates you.

It slides down your throat, erasing it as it goes and settles into your stomach. Your humours are vapor. Your bones are charcoal. Your ego is aflame. You are alight with ecstatic pain, pain that grows so quickly and so powerfully that it cannot be comprehended.
Your heart beats once and then bursts inside of you, popping as the superheated gas that used to be your blood floods it.

You can’t open your eyes. Maybe you don’t have eyes left to open. You certainly shouldn’t have a brain left to think with. And yet think you must, your dualist spark of spirit soaring free of the immolation, outpacing the flames by only an instant. It’s as flammable as anything else.

And then it descends once more and you feel yourself. You are...liquid. You are flow. You are not unmade but you are undone. All that is Sofia is still Sofia, a soupy mess of Sofia that is no less Sofia than when that mess was in the shape of you.
But soon the fire will take even that from you. Some part of you is consumed and replaced by something that is jagged and raw and not-Sofia. A tempered, stronger thing.

The real gives way to and is replaced by the unreal when it is stronger.

>Sofia has gained the suffix [Tempered]! It can be joined to any Technique she currently has knowledge of. If a Technique has Tempered before it, it gains the additional line of rules text reading ‘Sofia cannot be defeated during this turn.’

1/2

>>3157979

>Choose a Technique:

>Brute Strike: [STRIKE]Siphon the lowest value dice from your Composure Pool to your Strike Pool. Roll all dice in your Strike Pool to inflict damage.

>Focussed Blow: [STRIKE]Siphon all dice from your Technique Pool to your Strike Pool. Roll all dice in your Strike Pool to inflict damage.

>Counting Coup: [FLOURISH]Generate a d4 into your Technique Pool. Next time you use this in the same duel, upgrade it by 2 sides. This caps at d10 and if done again afterwards, resets back to d4.

>Gritted Teeth: [TRICK]Move the highest value die from your Technique Pool to your Composure Pool.

>Elegance: [FLOURISH] Declare either Strike, Flourish, Trick or Stance. Generate a d4 into your Technique Pool. When your opponent makes their next move, if it is the same category of move as declared, generate a die of equal value to the lowest value dice in your Composure Pool.

>Unassailable Rookie: [STANCE]Once this Stance is active, all dice that your opponent rolls out of their Strike Pool take a -1 penalty to their final result. Can only be active while you have a d4 in your Composure Pool.

>Underhanded Deflection: [TRICK]Lower the sides of all the dice currently in your opponent’s Technique pool by 1.

>Crushing Grip: [STRIKE]Siphon no dice. Roll all dice in your Strike Pool to inflict damage. If no Composure dice are destroyed as a result of this, whether through damage or through an ability, destroy the single highest value die in your opponent’s Technique Pool.

>Circle Guard: [TRICK]Your opponent cannot siphon dice into their Strike Pool this round. If they attempt to, destroy the single lowest die in their Technique Pool. This Technique cannot be used if your Technique Pool is empty.

>Skin Unthorned: [STANCE]Once this Stance is active, any Strike pool targeting you cannot roll d4s. They remain in the Strike Pool unrolled. Can only be active while you have a d6 in your Composure Pool.

>Flashing Steel: [STRIKE]Siphon all dice from your Technique Pool to your Strike Pool. Roll all dice in your Strike Pool to inflict damage. Damage from this Technique is dealt first to your opponent’s Strike Pool, treating the dice within as if they were Composure dice for the purposes of destruction. The difference between the highest dice value in the Strike Pool and the damage rolled is then dealt to the Technique Pool in the same fashion. And if the damage continues to overflow, the remainder is inflicted upon the Composure Pool in the same way.


>Alternatively, Sofia can discard Tempered and instead reforge a Technique. This destroys it and replaces it with another she COULD have gained from the same source.

>>3157981
Underhanded deflection.

>>3157981
>Reforge Brute Strike into that Maccio's ability that we had regretted not taking several times already

>>3157981
>>Focussed Blow: [STRIKE]Siphon all dice from your Technique Pool to your Strike Pool. Roll all dice in your Strike Pool to inflict damage.

>>3157994
No way, just challenge Maccio again. Brute Strike is very useful in the right place.

>>3157981
>Counting Coup
I was thinking of picking Crushing Grip because it's our 'oh god we don't want to die' move, but we're now building a new 'oh god we don't want to die' move.
I also considered Elegance, but at that stage of the duel we don't have any Comp dice left, spamming it would just give us d4s.

>>3157981
>Crushing Grip
Tempered will not stop us from losing composure die, so the only mechanical benefit it can give us is turn a draw into a win. That can be done with any Strike, but Focussed Blow could eventually be replaced by Masterful Blow. Brute Strike is too dependent on other Techs to consistently be brought, which leaves a Fist tempered harder than Sofia's blade.

Thought I'd mention even though I'm not keen on voting on it:

If we temper Circle Guard, we can leave our opponent in a stalement like with constable guy. If they strike while we CG, it removes 1 tech die plus another from PP. Not many techs generate more than 1 tech die, so we could slowly whittle them down and bait them to keep generating tech die so we Strike them.

This also sounds INCREDIBLY unfun to do.

Consider the humble Gritted Teeth

No, not Tempered Gritted Teeth, Tempered Counting Coup into Gritted Teeth.

Strategy is as follows: We've been broken. Usually, at this point, we're done.


With Tempered Counting Coup, we play TCC until a D10 is generate in our tech pool. We then play Gritted teeth to put that d10 into our composure on the first step of the turn.

We're back in the game, hopefully with a stack of CC dice to respond with.

>>3157981
switching from >>3158034
to
>Countin Coup
to break the tie. This may turn all battles into a slog, but combined with Gritted Teeth it's too strong.

>>3158106

Going for it.

>Counting Coup

There's no point Tempering a defensive move. It only can prolong the match.

There's also no point in Tempering a strike, since it only prevents defeat: It only lets us win a cross counter when both duelists are broken.

Tempered CC into Gritted Teeth gives us a second chance, which is something that we could have used in recent duels.

Vote called, writing.

>>3157877
I find her sore loserhood to be entertaining and realistic.

Competitive people hate losing, and worse for us, losing means our poor bastard of a client (literally poor since they can't afford to pay for a duelist) gets screwed over.

>>3158142

No joke, that's a major part of the appeal of the strat I listed above.

I kinda want to get away from always going for mechanical buffs, but that's a hard sell, especially on a losing streak against unique duelists.

But I can get behind Sophia getting knocked down and deciding "No. This is bullshit. We're giving this another try."

It only costs a third of our customization (Really only a 6th, its's not like we're ever replacing counting coup)

>Tempered Counting Coup

Unreality gives way as what was merely possible or potential becomes certainty. A sudden flash of cold follows and it takes you a moment to realize that this is merely the stifling heat of the Ignition room, rendered frozen to you in comparison to the blaze briefly within.
You are kneeling on the floor and as far as you can tell, there is no visible difference. No sense that you had ever changed at all. Had anything you perceived been true?

But you are not the same as you used to be. You can feel it inside of you, some indiscernible cog that no longer turns quite in time with the others. A piece of you is gone forever. It’s been crystallized into something harder, stronger and foreign.

“There’s a price that needs paying,” Isidora says, standing over you, the coal still burning in the tongs. She dumps it back into the furnace and slams it shut. “And whether it’s metal or page or soul, you can’t forge something backwards to what it once was.”

You stay on your knees for the time being.
“Why doesn’t this feel right?”

“How do you think steel feels? It can’t be pleasant. But it’ll pass. It did for me.”

>Tempered Counting Coup: [FLOURISH]Sofia cannot be defeated this turn. Generate a d4 into your Technique Pool. Next time you use this in the same duel, upgrade it by 2 sides. This caps at d10 and if done again afterwards, resets back to d4.

You try to get up but your legs don’t get the memo and you just collapse on your side.
“How long until my body works again?”

“It might be a while. It can take some time to get used to it. Here, come on.”
She grabs hold of you by the elbows and starts to slowly drag you away.
“There’s a bench in the atrium I can stick you on. Rest it out.”

****

Isidora sets you down with a jug of water, one desperately needed, and then lets you sit there while you recover. This takes, oh, several hours. By the time you can stand again the day has grown dark and the shadows long.

“Oh, by the way Sofia, did you still want a book?”


>”No thanks.”

>”What is going on with you?”

>”Actually, yes. Let’s go get one.”

>”So how did you meet Sabino?”

>Other (Specify)

>>3158161
>>”What is going on with you?”

We can take alice in wonderland that she burned. It'll be interesting to see how it goes.

>>3158161
>>”Actually, yes. Let’s go get one.”

>>3158161

>”What is going on with you?”

>”Actually, yes. Let’s go get one.”

I'm intensely curious how she forged herself if we can ask with some tact.

File: sleep.jpg (114 KB, 577x515)

114 KB JPG

Alas, I must sleep now. Vote will remain open until I wake, at which point the session resumes.

>>3158161
>”Actually, yes. Let’s go get one.”

>>3158161
>”Actually, yes. Let’s go get one.”

>>3158161
>”What is going on with you?”
>”Actually, yes. Let’s go get one.”

>>3158162
Seconding that

>>3158161
>so how did you meet Sabino.

>>3158161
>”So how did you meet Sabino?”
>Isn't he adorable?

Vote called, writing.

>”Actually, yes. Let’s go get one.”

The question takes you by surprise initially as you sit up, pins and needles still spreading out across your entire body as you start to move. Isidora helps you up as you think about it.
“You know what? Yes. Let’s go get one.”

And with that it’s back into the Ignition room, the wordsmith guiding you through the stacks of burned books. You flip through a few idly but what you see doesn’t inspire you.
“So,” you say, “you can burn any potential or possible book into being?”

“It’s not like we choose what comes out but yes. It’s still a book. It’s just a book that could never exist.”

“So how much pornography do you wind up getting?”

“A lot. But most people find it...unerotic. Here’s one, actually.”
She picks up a shiny tome titled The Pink Book.
“We think this is supposed to be erotic to something with human bodies but with very inhuman minds. That’s because the pictures and the descriptions are people...it’s just that the actual acts are strange.”

“Neat.”

“Not every burned book is so unapproachable though,” she says, picking up another, this one titled THREM. “I’ve read this one, it’s basically a classic adventure story with a few cool twists. It’s just that all of its chapters are in the wrong order. Sort of a puzzle, you could say.”

“What’s a Threm?”

“It’s a plot point. It’s revealed in Chapter 2 but the actual set-up and context for the reveal isn’t until Chapter 7. Turns out that a plot twist can still work backwards!”

“So you never get any truly incoherent pieces then? Just some shit that never makes sense?”

“We do,” she says, clearly unwilling to admit that nonsense text can exist. “But we’re sure that they’re not nonsensical, we just lack the context to understand it. Like this one for example!”
She snatches up a book called Thirteenth.
“As far as we can tell, this is some sort of diary. But it’s a diary written by someone who doesn’t exist.”

“Isn’t that true for all your books?”

“Yes but this one goes a layer deeper. The author doesn’t exist within the story’s fiction either, if it is fiction. There’s a lot of musings on what it is to be unreal. Or at least that’s what we think it is.”

“Sounds delightful.”
What kind of experience are you looking for from a burned book?


>Alice in Wonderland.

>The Pink Book.

>THREM

>Thirteenth

>Just take all of them.

>>3159161
>THREM

>>3159161
>>THREM

>>3159161
>THREM.

>>3159161
>Alice in Wonderland.

>>3159161
>>THREM
we need to expand our reading outside of romance novels. At least we didn't get Crime and Punishment, that would be way too boring for our Sofia

Vote called, writing.

>>3159221
I wonder if Sofia would like Anna Karenina

>>3159281
I think she would, she probably would go 'blah' to it in the beginning but if she stuck with it she'd probably end up speed reading it to it's sad conclusion.

Sorry for the delay.

>THREM

It’s barely a choice.
“I’ll take THREM thanks. Do you know what order the chapters are meant to be in?”

“Even if I did, I wouldn’t tell you,” she says, handing the book over in exchange for coin. “Just read it regularly first and try to figure it out. That’s the whole point!”

“Isn’t the story itself the whole point?”

“Eh.”
She makes a dismissive motion that suggests the actual plot of THREM, absent the novelty of its incoherent and puzzle-like structure, isn’t all that inspiring. Or at least, not to her.

“Is it meant to be like this? Or is it because it was burned?”

“We can’t exactly ask the author, can we? It’s a book from a past that never happened.”

“Well at least it doesn’t sound like more of the same. So thanks and uh, thanks for the other thing too.”

“Don’t thank me for that just yet! You might not find it all to your liking.”

“What, THREM?”

Silence.

“Hey, you’re talking about the book right? Right?”

*****

You wander back home on tired and uncertain legs as the sun begins to set. After the first sunset, the sky remains lit with a circle of fire around the horizon as the sun remains up for the Lesser Realms below. But soon even that passes and with the ‘second’ sunset, the City becomes the domain of the stars once more.
Bright neon shades and pastels fade into dark silhouettes and the canals turn into a mirror of the night sky above, dotted with floating lanterns.

THRUM is about a boy named Pascal Subroutine or, at least, you think it is. Some of the chapters are from another perspective but you don’t know whose. Maybe their introduction hasn’t happened yet? The story is almost impossible to follow and yet, somehow, it sucks you in and keeps you reading anyway.
You think the first chapter is somewhere in the middle of the overall story but you can’t be sure. Elements of it are scattered all over the next two chapters in a way that makes you feel that the disorder is intentional on the part of the book’s hypothetical author.

You fall asleep reading THRUM.

*****

You wake in the middle of the night in a cold sweat. Something’s wrong! You’re not you! You’ve been replaced by someone else!

*****

1/2

>>3159404
You sleep in uncharacteristically late. The morning is nearly dead. You start your training all the same however, just as you always do when you wake. And to finish it all off, you go for your usual morning run. It’s later than usual so they’re more people than usual but you don’t feel particularly self-conscious about your training attire.
Who’s going to say anything?

But as you are heading back through the local street market, a certain something catches your eye. Something placed on the rack of the local paper-seller’s stall. This is not to be confused with the rack of the local paper-seller, which only catches your eye most of the other days.
“Hey Mina,” you say with growing dread. “What’s this?”

“Huh? Oh, La Ressagna? We get that every month Signorina. And, oh, I guess she looks a little familiar, huh?”

You stare at the cover of La Ressagna Mensile.

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>>3159410

You're not sure what detail is worst. Actually wait no, you can pinpoint it exactly. The clothes...the boobs...all that just skims past your own mind as you gaze upon the absolute worst part of it.
That sword looks like garbage! What the fuck! That's...that's a toy sword! A story sword. Nobody uses those!

"Is something wrong, Sofia?"

"This picture..." you say slowly. "It's amazing! I look so dashing in it! It's definitely very accurate!"
Fuck.

What are you going to do about this? Can you do anything about this?


>Find Remo right now.

>Get help from a friend.

>"Mina, please take these off your shelves. I'll make everyone do it if I have to!"

>Read the booklet.

>Denounce this publicly and immediately.

>Maybe if you don't acknowledge it nothing bad will happen.

>Other (Specify)

>>3159426

>Read the booklet.
It's going to be one hell of an article I imagine.
I knew I should have created an option at the beginning to kick him out of our apartment

>>3159426

...Yo that sword IS kinda jank for practical use when you look at it closer.

>Read the booklet.

>>3159426
>Read the booklet.
That sword is horrendous. Good work Ceg

>>3159426
>Read the booklet

Time to learn how angry we can be

>>3159426
Read it. It can't be worse than the picture on the cover, right?

>>3159444
Place your bets people! I vote that the article is an abomination of our interview and is worse than the picture.
I bet he wants to portray us as an anarchistic sabreuse out to topple the Rose Court's feminine style or something ridiculous. Perhaps a love triangle between us, catalina and Sabino with somehow Catalina in the middle of it.

>>3159426
>Read the booklet.

I personally think this picture is quite flattering.
Except the sword, of course. That thing is disgusting.

>>3159448
It's most definitely going to be horrible.

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>>3159426

>>3159426
>Read it
>While walking to Maccio’s since this guy is his acquaintance.

>>3159468
We should put on Maccio's glasses and get his artist ability to redraw the picture that makes the sword more accurate and better
damn it, it's an abomination. Then we can use our unlimited access and break into the print shop and print the right picture.
Boobs are fine, I think it's great but that sword just bugs me.

>>3159451

I think the most insulting part is that bust... He took some intriguing liberties.

Let's read.

Also. as long as we are VERY certain not to put any blame on Maccio for this, I think it would be hilarious to see what he thinks of the artist right now.

>>3159426
Let me separately compliment Cegremo on a magnificient job.

>>3159480
That bust might be intriguingly liberated, but at least it is pretty.

The sword, on the other hand...

>>3159490

I'm trying my best to focus on the parts of the picture that don't incite blinding agony.

Ceg drew a perfect cheesecake piece... Now if only I could crop out that immaculately rendered monstrosity of steel.

>>3159404
>tfw don't know if the change to "THRUM" was intentional or not
>tfw quest becomes postmodern

>>3159477
This

Vote called, writing.

>Read the booklet.

You snatch up the booklet and peer at it and at the Sofia on the cover. She’s mostly holding her pose but you can see her fidget. She looks up at you and, despite not being able to see or comprehend you, winks and blows a kiss.
You watch for a few minutes more, dumfounded, as she sneaks a coy glance back and forth before pushing her already-open shirt just a few more inches to the side to expose a nipple.

Blushing furiously, you open the booklet so you can stop looking at the cover. And then, a moment later, angle it so nobody else can see the cover while you’re reading it. What the fuck? This is agonizing, a humiliation you hadn’t dreamed was possible. How many of these get sold? How many people already have this as their sole representation of you?

But while Signore Remo might be fond of ...artistic liberties (by the looks of it he liberated your whole fucking vest), the interview is mostly as you remember it. Some of the more boring questions and answers have been omitted and you are not a fan of the framing device, which describes you in the manner of some sort of seductive temptress luring him into her boudoir. But at least your words aren’t misrepresented? Yay?
Now that you’ve seen La Rassegna for yourself however, you very much doubt its readers will care about your words.

The interview is accompanied with another drawing, presumably to keep the interest. You are...She is wearing a lot less clothing in this one. And though obviously the pose differs depending on the mood of the picture itself, she's clearly happy to flaunt it.

“It’s so sexy,” you say weakly, unable to say anything even slightly negative about a representation of yourself. And neither will anyone else so this will probably sell a lot.
“I look so good.”

This is you. This is what Sofia Pseudonym will soon represent in the eyes of the people. You’ve been entirely replaced by the unreal.


>Throw the booklet away.

>Keep it. Or at least...at least keep the cover.

>Make your complaints known.

>Get someone else’s help.

>Maybe this is fine. It’s probably not a big deal, right?

>Other (Specify)

>>3159609
I am laughing so hard. Really, Sofia brought this on herself by accepting the interview in the first place.

In any case

>Keep it. Or at least...at least keep the cover.

Let's use Maccio's glasses to fix the damn sword with proper art and then go to his place to advise him we are going to duel his acquaintance to get this fixed.

>>3159609
>Come to terms with our sexiness.
>Still go to Maccio and ask him to get his friend to fix the sword. The sword cannot be forgiven.

>>3159609
>Get someone else’s help.
Maccio save me!

...Remind me, does this mean that since she's seen as super sexy now in the eyes of the populace she's going to end up like that herself? I legit forget how this shit works. Freakin' fae laws.

>>3159609
>Maybe this is fine. It’s probably not a big deal, right?

>>3159651
Bad things cannot be said against her or images of her. So people will say she is beautiful anyway.

>>3159651
Only if it's in the paperwork.

>>3159659
No, I get that, but I thought there was a 'what the public perceives you as is what you are' thing going on.

>>3159609
>Get someone else’s help.
Maccio
>Keep it. Or at least...at least keep the cover.
So we can have evidence on hand.

Vote called, writing.

So do you think Adriana will get a copy of this from somewhere?

>>3159765
It's going to be the talk of the town since no one can say anything bad about it.

>Get someone’s help.
>Maccio!

Directly addressing this crime against your image will have to wait for now, even as your shock and fear is turning into a slow rage that makes you feel poisoned inside. Maybe you’ll do something about it later. You tuck the little booklet into a coat pocket, avoiding any stares that you feel that you surely must be attracting.
How many people know? And with your curse, how will you ever tell?

Remember when you were concerned if the interview would let your words reach others? About whether people would listen to your ideas about the people exploited by the duelling system? Luckily you’ll never have to worry about those ideas being entertained ever again! Everyone who reads this (and you doubt most people don’t even read it to begin with, they just look) is going to come away thinking you’re just some sex-crazed bimbo in a dumb outfit with an absolutely atrocious sword.
Who cares who Sofia Pseudonym is? She’s just going to be something for jerks to crank their dicks over.

You need Maccio’s help. That’s it. He knows...art junk. He can help you. He knows Remo, right? Maybe you can at least get the sword fixed. The sword is the worst part, even worse than you. At least Sofia Pseudonym, exhibitionist sexpot extraordinaire, might at least know how to duel. But for as long as you’re clutching that...thing, you’re obviously just a joke. Anyone who knows anything about duelling couldn’t possibly take it (and you) seriously.

So with this resolved in your head, you turn around to set off and get struck in the face by a scroll.

You catch it before it can fall and with a long sigh, unroll it. Sure. Why not now? Seems like a fucking good time for it. You read it, stop, read it again and then your brow furrows. This isn’t the usual summons. Normally you’re assigned by the City itself, drawn from its pool of public defenders through inexplicable means.
But if this is telling the truth…

Someone is requesting you as their defender. It’s not public defense work. That means you get to charge a fee. It means you get paid a commission. It also means that you’re free to turn it down or ignore it.
Ugh. It better not be because they saw that fucking booklet!


>You suppose you better go check it out.

>It can wait until you’re finished with Maccio first.

>Toss it away. You neither want or need it!

>Other (Specify)

>>3159811
>You suppose you better go check it out.

>>3159811
>You suppose you better go check it out.

>>3159811
Shouldn’t the request scroll have a name of the person requesting us? Is the name familiar?

>>3159823
I didn't mention the name because Sofia doesn't recognise it.

>>3159830
Can we message Maccio through the fountains?

>>3159811
>>You suppose you better go check it out.
Damn it, I hate our professionalism. If it's because some guy wants to see us because of that booklet, we are going to lose our fucking temper.

>>3159839
No. You're only authorised to send responses back through there.

>>3159811
>You suppose you better go check it out.

>>3159811
>You suppose you better go check it out.

>...But who are you kidding, of COURSE it's because of that fucking booklet.

Vote called, writing.

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>You suppose you better go check it out.

Fuck it, this all can wait. You have a job to do and even if it’s one you can turn down, doesn’t mean you actually have to. Plus, you have to admit to being intrigued. Why would someone request you personally?
Besides the booklet that is. Well...at least it might get you business? You don’t know how to feel about that.

But as long as your client doesn’t bring it up, you should stay professional. You chose this career for reason, people need your help. And you won’t ever stop yourself from giving it.

****

Once more, you find yourself within the Suffitus District. It really shouldn’t be a surprise, these are the people often most in need of a public defender. But for your first paying client to be here? You inspect the scroll again.
The name given is a ‘Lorrin’, which is interesting. You don’t recognise the name and there’s no surname. Odd. Oh, it better not be anything weird like an urchin or anything. But how would one of them even request anything?

As for the address given...you are standing right outside of it now. The shabby little terraced building’s role is indisputable, even if there wasn’t a vandalized sign outside declaring its purpose. This is an almshouse. Again, a place you might expect someone in need of a public defender. But from someone who requested you and presumably has the coin to back it up? Why would they be here?

You open the gate and step across the threshold, knocking on the front door. By the time of the second knock, the landlord opens the door. He’s old and short but he has a sort of wretched vitality to him, what’s left of his hair mostly confined to that which you can see sprouting up from his chest, arms and legs. You could make a carpet out of his body hair and hey, don’t entertain that thought any further.
“Hello, I’m Sofia Pseudonym, duellist and public defender. I believe one of your tenants hired me to represent them?”

“O’course,” he says automatically and then stops. “Pseudonym? Cor, I know you! I saw you this morning!”

“Yes thank you,” you say rigidly and automatically, shoving your way past him without looking back.

“You look even better in person!”

“Just tell me where a ‘Lorrin’ is, please.”

*****

1/2

>>3160255

You stand in the cramped quarters, leaning up against a wall, staring at its inhabitant with wide eyes. You can’t help yourself.
“Huh.”
It’s not that it’s odd, not quite, just unexpected.

Lorrin, your client, stands before you. He’s pale and dark-haired, his hair cut short close to his scalp in a style wholly unfamiliar to you. He’s clean-shaven as well, leaving his angular face to be defined by the three scars running up his cheek and across his nubby wreck of a nose.
He’s over six feet tall but not quite as tall as your godmother and you could say that he’s pretty well built. It’d be like saying that the canals are wet. Technically true but not really a statement in need of saying, you know? His threadbare black tunic clings to the contours of his chest, tracing the musculature with loving detail. It’s probably because he’s sopping wet.

But all of that is inconsequential to the truth of things, a fact that is as plain and obvious as the nose on your face. This man is a foreigner. He’s not from here. He’s holding up surprisingly well but still, the truth of it remains.

“Well,” you say, at a loss for words. “Here I am. A duellist. That you apparently wanted?”

He nods and then speaks slowly, choosing his words with obvious care. And that makes sense! He wasn’t born knowing how to speak a civilized tongue.
“Yes. Because I see you before.”
He makes an indecipherable gesture and looks frustrated with himself.
“We see before.”


>”No we haven’t.”

>”Wait, this is about the booklet isn’t it?”

>”Why do you need a duellist?”

>”Why are you here?”

>Other (Specify)

>>3160263
>”Wait, this is about the booklet isn’t it?”
>”Why do you need a duellist?”
>”Why are you here?”

>>3160263
This is about the booklet?

>>3160263
support >>3160272

Ouro what kind of rights do foreigners have compared to citizens?

>>3160289
They have a right to a defence, as all things that are challenged do. Their lives are also considered basically probably equivalent to citizen's lives in that the murder of a foreigner is a crime and whatnot. Not an oft-prosecuted one but still!
They do not have access to a great many rights enshrined in law however, such as the right to walk on water.

>>3160263
>>Other (Specify)
Let's flip a coin as a little game. We can use our ability to win, then claim a button for our win and choose his lower realm language skill to help out with communication

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I'm going to have a rest for an hour or so. Vote will remain open until then.

>>3160363
Remember guys, we have that coinflip insta win ability. We could get some clear communication going if we can win and choose lower realm language skills to help us along.

>>3160263
Ill support the coingame. Knowing lower realm culture will be good for sofia

Feeling more awake now. Vote called and writing!

>”Wait, this is about the booklet isn’t it?”

“We see before, eh?”
You have a sinking feeling in your stomach. Any lower and your stomach would probably be in the Lesser Realms by this point. Can’t there be a single thing in your day that doesn’t revolve around this fucking thing?
“It’s the booklet, wasn’t it? You read this and thought, wow I better get the duellist lady with the fancy sword and the big tits, huh?”
You pull it from your pocket it and hold it up, the illustrated Sofia lazing up against the side of the cover.

The foreigner just looks confused, his eyes fixed to the cover. He flushes red and shakes his head and then stares at you with a quizzical expression.

...Oops. You push the booklet back into your pocket as fast as you can.
“Okay. Okay. Cool. That’s good. Glad I showed you that. Real glad. You can just ignore that. Please ignore that. So how then? How have we met before?”

He stands there silent for a moment, his flat foreign face oddly more approachable now that it’s shown emotion. It looks like he’s trying to find the right words.
“I come here before. To…,” he stops and thinks for a time. “Akwatay Kogitoom. Fairyland.”

You don’t recognise that last word at all so it’s probably something from his own barbaric language. As for the City’s name, well, the pronunciation could be worse.
“So this isn’t your first visit?”

“No. This the first time I come here. Before I...I”
He looks frustrated once more, as if searching for the right word.
“I dream this place.”

“Oh! You came here in a dream?”
That’s possible, isn’t it? You vaguely remember hearing that people of the Lesser Realms can dream of the City under certain circumstances. But the details of it all escape you. You never were the best at learning and you’d never been particularly interested in the Lesser Realms. But if he has, it would explain why he’s adapting so well.

He nods vigorously.
“Yes! I dream here, I see you.”

“Wait!,” you say, despite knowing that he probably doesn’t know what that word means. “You dreamed about me?”

“Yes. Yes. I came in...through? In. You...hugged me? No. Touched me? Wrong word.”

“Uh…”

“Grabbed. You grabbed me. And then put me in cage until I woke.”

You stare at him blankly.
“Hrmm. I don’t think I did that. I’d remember that.”

“It happen. Is grab right word?”

The language barrier might be a bit of an issue. Maybe there’s something you’re misunderstanding because of the limited way he has to say it. Or maybe the fault lies with you…


>Challenge him to a coin flip. You can learn his own language, if you have to.

>See if you can get your godmother to come down here. She can make him speak a proper tongue.

>Head on over to the Foreign Quarter to find a translator. It’s not far from Suffitus.

>Remember what he’s speaking of.

>Other (Specify)

>>3160911
>Remember what he’s speaking of.
The bird she tried to sell?

>>3160914
I was thinking the same thing. Support.

>>3160914
>>3160911
this but still do this
>Challenge him to a coin flip. You can learn his own language, if you have to.

>>3160911
Yeah, coin flip

>>3160911
>do the coin flip
Birds in the city are people dreaming?

Wow, that sucks. Even while asleep, humans will spew shit on other people's property.

Vote called, writing.

>>3160914
I'm glad we didn't get to eat him.

>Remember what he’s speaking of.
>Game

Wait, are you sure you don’t remember that? Sure you don’t remember doing any of that to the man before you but was he always as such? He’d come in a dream. You know about that stuff. Those in the Lesser Realms can dream of the City and when they do...there’s an important detail you can’t remember. Or maybe were never told.
But setting that aside, you haven’t caged anything recently except for that one raven.

“Oh!,” you say, smacking yourself on the forehead. “You were a bird, weren’t you! That makes sense.”
Come to think of it, that’d explain why so many birds are temporary. They’re just dreaming barbarians. You hadn’t known that, having just taken disappearing birds for granted all your life but it’s logical.
“A raven ,right?”

He nods again.
“Yes. You grabbed me.”

“Well you were in my room, you little twerp! Probably shat there too. Is that a bird thing or is it a barbarian thing?”

He looks confused by your outburst.

“Oh, don’t bother about that word. It’s not a good word. And…”
You stop as you imagine how long this might take. After all, all you’ve been able to establish so far is your mutual point of connection, back when he was a raven and you caught him, caged him, considered eating him and then attempted to sell him. But getting a proper duel explanation and a contract out of this? No thanks! There has to be an easier way.
“Look, this is going to take a while if we keep this up. So how about we play a game first?”

“Game?”

“Yes! A contest! A distraction. It’s important, don’t worry.”


>Fish out your lucky coin from your handbag and use your single use of Test Your Luck.

>Don’t waste your luck on that!

>>3160961
Ouro, just asking. Didn´t "Test your Luck" work once every duel, but as long as we want during the slice of life sequences? I recall those were the rules govrning its use.

>>3160961
>>Don’t waste your luck on that!
Because I think being able to converse with him is easy enough already.

>>3160968
Once per thread.

>>3160961
Don't waste it.

>>3160961
>Fish out your lucky coin from your handbag and use your single use of Test Your Luck.

>>3160961
>>Fish out your lucky coin from your handbag and use your single use of Test Your Luck.
The goal of this is to save time, and doing repeated coinflips to the scared foreigner will do the opposite of that.

>>3160961
Don´t waste it

Fuck it all. I challenge you to a contest of tonguetwisters. In the city´s language of course.

>>3160977
We also dont want to potentially scare the guy away with Do Not Trust Fae. A game he will obviously lose is all sorts of sketchy

>>3160961
>Don’t waste your luck on that!
Just challenge him to a tongue-twister contest.

So, while we figure out what this guy wants, what should we do about our imagined portrait everywhere? I think we should challenge the interviewer to a duel, then make it his problem to fix.

>>3161013
we can arrange the duel to happen the next day, then find maccio.

Sorry, dozed off for a moment there. Vote called and writing!

>>3161013
>>3161021
The article is out. Rules of dueling means he makes a counter claim. Not worth it imo.

>Don’t waste your luck on that!

“I promise you that a game is very important. It’ll make everything better and after that, we should understand each other more.”
You probably shouldn’t specify that you’re going to take something from him. Barbarians probably believe all sorts of silly things about cityfolk.

“With a fae?”

“Don’t know what that means. But look, can you really say no?”

“No.”
And there it is. While he’s in the City, he has to obey its laws. And that includes your own. It’s not something you really want to do but you need to get this over with.

“Glad you agree. Now, you have to try to beat me. You have to try, that’s important. You can’t fake it.”

“Magic?”

“What are you, Gloriana? I don’t know what magic is and whatever it is, this isn’t it. You have to say this better than me. You have to try. You have to or else I can’t be your duellist!”
You think for a moment before you come up with a tongue twister that you’re sure you can do and that he can’t.
“Sopra la panca la capra campa, sotto la panca la capra crepa! Sopra la panca la capra campa, sotto la panca la capra crepa! Sopra la panca la capra campa, sotto la panca la capra crepa!”

Silence.

“You just have to try your best. I promise it’ll be good.”

“...Bench? Goat?”

“Yeah sure, good enough. But don’t worry, this really has a point beyond ritual humiliation. Now give me your clothes!”
You advance quickly before he can react, ready to claim your prize!

>His tunic.

>There’s a scarf on the floor behind him.

>Pull his knife free from his belt.

>Just take the whole belt.

>Other (Specify)

>>3161040
>There’s a scarf on the floor behind him.

>>3161040
A button from his shirt. The highest one, as being th eone closest to his throat might allow us to copy his speech.

>>3161040
>Just take the whole belt.

>>3161040

>There’s a scarf on the floor behind him.

>>3161040
>>Pull his knife free from his belt.

>>3161053
Does he even have a button on his shirt? his tunic might just be ties, apparently buttons are recent inventions for developed economies that poor societies/less developed economies in medieval times didn't even bother with due to expense.
The odd things I remember of history classes

>>3161053
>>3161040
This one, and also because it'll show more chest hair.

>>3161040
Scarf behind him.

>>3161062
>Does he even have a button on his shirt? his tunic might just be ties, apparently buttons are recent inventions for developed economies that poor societies/less developed economies in medieval times didn't even bother with due to expense.
Buttons are really easy to make. Bit of wood carving, a bit of thread. Could do sticks and loops. Everyone had buttons.

Vote called, writing.

Tired.

>There’s a scarf on the floor behind him.

You step past him as he backs off, clearly hesitant of anything you’re trying to do. What exactly is he afraid of here? That you’ll steal his soul or something? Come on. Instead you pick up the scarf from where it’d been sitting on what passed for a bed in this cramped little space. It’s knotted and coarsely-woven but it’ll do. Staring up at him, you wrap it around your neck.
Through words fought shall words be won.

And just like that, knowledge crowds your head. But it’s nothing something that pools within you or something you keep. It passes right through you like a lens, much as it had done when you had taken Maccio’s glasses. You can use it but you won’t have the knowing of it.
“There,” you say, speaking words you don’t understand. “Sorry about the confusion.”

He backs up even further, running into the wall of the tiny little room. And he speaks, a fast-paced stream of words you shouldn’t know and don’t know.
“What kind of magic is this? Was that an incantation just before? What do I owe you?”

“Eh? Owe?”

“I know how the fae work.”
That’s interesting, that word still remains what it is. Maybe it refers to something for which you have no concept.
“Anyone who deals with them must always pay a price in turn.”

You blink.
“That’s called economics, Lorrin. We trade quite a lot. But that doesn’t cover literally everything. I’m not going to do anything strange to you just because you owe me something.”

“Then what did you do just now?”

“I challenged you to a game and when you lost, I took this scarf from you as a trophy. Now I can speak your crude language as well as you can. I have, in a sense, borrowed your tongue. That’s not strange.”

“That’s magic.”

“It really isn’t. I’m just a competitive learner. Now, let’s get things started on the right foot. My name is Sofia Pseudonym and I’m a duellist. You have requested my presence specifically because you remembered me from when you were a raven. Again, nothing strange about any of that. What is your name?”

“My name is Ser Lorrin Medewes. I am a knight in the court of the Righteous King Alwyn, ruler of the Belgi, the free cities and the Mur.”
You don’t know what a knight is, nor any of those places or peoples, though you suppose that Gloriana’s late mother probably came from one of them. You do know what a king is however and you have to stop yourself from sneering.

“Hello Ser, I don’t understand a single one of those terms. So tell me, if your first name is Ser, why did you call yourself Lorrin? Is that customary among your people?”

“That’s just a title. But surely those words must mean something to you? Mur and Belgwyn both neighbour your fair city!”

1/3

>>3161178
“Do they?”
That’s news to you. As far as you and most cityfolk who don’t have to trade directly with the barbarians are concerned, the Lesser Realms are just one undifferentiated mass. You all know that theoretically, there are distinctions to be made, politics to be had, wars to be fought. But why should any of it matter to you beyond being an exciting setting for a heroine of a romance novel?
“Nothing really neighbours us, Lorrin. We are above and apart. The world below is not ours.”

“A privilege that may not last,” he mutters darkly. “I came to the lands of the fair folk with dark intent, Lady Nameless.”
Maybe Pseudonym didn’t quite translate over right?
“Surely at least you know of the Soissfolk and their Empire? Their emperor, the cloven Clovis, seeks to paint the map black. He is said to be more beast than man and a master of seven dark magics. And from his dark tower, he commands his armies and few dare ride against them. He is a storm upon the world.”

“It doesn’t storm here.”

“I came here because I wished to beg at the feet of your kings and queens.This is a matter of survival for us all and none of us can afford to stand apart. Please, you must lend to us your magic to match his own.”

Now you just feel bad for him. No matter whatever trouble he’s gotten himself into here, his goal was always impossible.
“I didn’t know of the Soiss until just now and I doubt I am alone. But whoever they are, they can’t touch us. It’s the oldest law. No foreigner with a foul intent against the City can set foot within it. Don’t worry, I do believe you. I believe that this issue is a dire one for the Lesser Realms. But the City stands apart.”

“And that will last forever? I have come to tell your leaders that that cannot be so. All rivers can be dammed. Fairy walls will not withstand forever. If your City stands above and does nothing, eventually the very foundations upon which it stands will crumble!”

“You don’t know a thing about our foundations. But it’s not me you need to convince anyhow. Do answer me one more question however. What is a ‘knight’?”

“A sworn warrior of noble blood. We also take care of the l-”

“Then I am just as you! I too, am a knight of sorts, Ser Lorrin. I am here to fight on your behalf.”

“You must be a far grander swordsman than I,” he mutters, looking frustrated and confused. You wonder what he’s been trying to say to you.

“Probably.”

“But there’s one thing I don’t understand. When I got in trouble, I was far from anyone who could speak my tongue, it took me some time to understand what I was being asked. But I knew your word for ‘sabre’ and I knew where I had seen one so I spoke of you. Are you well-known, Lady Nameless? Everyone seemed to understand me then.”

“I’d rather not discuss that right now.”

2/3

>>3161180

“But what is the purpose of the sword? You are some sort of barrister, are you not? A law-speaker and advocate?”

“What? Are you serious?”

“I’m not stupid,” he says hotly. “I know that I am to be brought up before some sort of law for my misbehaviour. Are you not, then, a barrister of some kind?”

“No! Me, a lawyer? I’d almost take that as an insult. What do you think lawyers are, Lorrin? Whatever you did, it is being settled by the sword. By a duel. The law will rule in favour of whoever strikes the final blow.”

“...Is that how law is done here?”

“Yes. I imagine it’s a bit more civilised than what you’re used to, some nuance might escape you.”


>”So what did you do? Tell me everything.”

>Try to convince him that his goal is pointless.

>Commend him on his ability to keep himself centered in the presence of the City.

>”Wait, you do have coin, right? I need to get paid.”

>”Uh so, don’t read too hard into anything I did while you were a raven. I didn’t know you were a person when I clutched you to my chest like that.”

>”First things first, let’s find you a better place than this. This is for beggars.”

>”Don’t worry, I personally feel bad about what your people are going through.”

>You should tell him about your curse, just to make things easier for him.

>Other (Specify)

>>3161181
>”So what did you do? Tell me everything.”