>>31003332
The first rays of sunlight sneak into the room, causing you to stir slightly from your sleep. You groggily recall where you are – you’re still in Undine’s bedroom, and in her bed. The warmth next to you indicates that she’s cuddled up to you and still in her meditative rest.

You have the whole day ahead of you and no real work until the afternoon. You…

>1. Go back to sleep.
>2. Make some breakfast for yourself and Undine.
>3. Find a training room and do some morning practice.
>4. Custom

>>31003343
>3. Find a training room and do some morning practice.

>>31003343
3

>>31003343
3

>>31003343
Pretty sure we have catering at this location.

>>31003343
2

>>31003343
>3. Find a training room and do some morning practice.
>4. Custom
Order breakfast for udine.

>>31003453
You do, but Undine would also appreciate you making her breakfast.

Looks like a 3 anyway, though votes may turn.

>>31003343
>2

>3.

You might be a monster on the battlefield already, but that’s no reason to let yourself fall out of practice. You can grab a catered breakfast later, once you’ve started the day with some exercise. It seems you’re not the only person to decide that some early practice is good for the soul and you find both Salamander and Mal in one of the training rooms.

Wait, Mal?

“I never took you to be the sort to do morning exercises, Mal,” you say lightly as you begin your warm-up regime.

“I don’t,” Mal growls out, giving Sala a cutting look. His familiar only grins in return.

“Master said he stays fit from adventure and he missed the last one,” Sala says as she stretches her tanned legs. Mal follows her lead easily – as much as he might grumble he’s hardly unfit. If he were, you’d have left him behind in some dungeon years ago.

“I hardly think missing a short trip to Farun will result in my getting unfit,” Mal says.

“You were complaining about not having enough endurance the night before last though,” you say, grinning a bit as you know he was talking a very different type of endurance.

Mal shoots you a glare and Sala almost literally brightens up. As you go through your standard warm-up you almost relish the sight of Sala being a slave driver to Mal.

“Say, Tallie, how about some fun this morning?” Sala says to you after your finish your warm-up.

“What sort of fun?” you ask.

“Pick something,” she answers, nodding her head at the weapon racks nearby. Ah, so she wants to challenge you to something. You choose…

>1. Archery
>2. Swords
>3. Hand-to-hand
>4. Custom

>>31003682
>2. Swords

>>31003682
>1

>>31003682
>3. Hand-to-hand

>>31003682
>3. Hand-to-hand

Rolled 96

>>31003682
>1. Archery

Rolled 1

Tie-breaker roll

1 = Option 1
2 = Option 3

>>31003682
>3

>>31003894
Actually, I'll still count this as it's an additional vote and we've already done an archery scene before. New content etc.

>>31003919
yay
that's why I wanted it lol

>3.

“How about some hand-to-hand?” you ask.

Sala grins. “Oooh, I didn’t know you knew some of that? Has Gnomey been teaching you?”

“A little,” you say, unwilling to admit you barely know more than the basics.

As Sala takes up a position opposite you, and Mal leans against a wall as a spectator, you sincerely hope this doesn’t result in getting beaten black and blue by a girl half your size. Even if she is a fire elemental.

Judging by how much she’s bouncing around, she’s very excited to do this. Mal’s excited too, it seems, but probably more in that he knows you don’t much hand-to-hand and that he’ll get to see you getting beaten on for once.

Mal calls the start of the match and Sala darts towards you, incredibly light on her feet. You raise your hands in a pose you recall Gnome teaching you and prepare to counter her.

[DC18 Hand-to-hand Combat]

Rolled 15

>>31003961

Rolled 10

>>31003961
Oh jeez

Rolled 7

>>31003961

Welp, time to get an ass kicking

>>31004040
this is training, the objective is not to win but to improve
it's meaningless if we just pick what we're good at and win

>Target not met

Sala closes the distance in a flash and you barely catch her fist with your forearm, saving your face from being cratered. You’ve seen Sala’s ridiculous strength before – she’s more than a match for you in that department and so you have no wish to find out what it’ll do to your looks.

Unfortunately, in catching her fist you missed her other arm snaking through your guard. It’s not until you suddenly feel a vice close around you that you realise her real intention was a throw. You desperately try to break her grip but it’s too late. The next moment you’re crashing into a wall next to Mal, trying to keep your vision of the room straight. It feels like your brain is bouncing around in your skull, made worse by Mal’s raucous laughter echoing in your ears. Your shoulder feels like hell, too.

“Ooh, was that a little too much, Tallie? I thought you’d be able to handle that with Gnome’s help,” Sala says, her voice practically oozing innocence. She has to be mocking you. There’s no way a girl could throw a man twice their size across a room and act so innocent.

You…

>1. Swallow your pride and ask her to go a little easier on you so you might actually learn something.
>2. Keep going. Activate Iron Body to push through the pain and try to match her.
>3. Go all out. Empowerment, Iron Body – the works. She might be more skilled, but you bet you can match her with magical aids, even if she responds in kind.
>4. Custom

>>31004192
>3. Go all out. Empowerment, Iron Body – the works. She might be more skilled, but you bet you can match her with magical aids, even if she responds in kind.

>>31004192
>>1. Swallow your pride and ask her to go a little easier on you so you might actually learn something.

>>31004192
2

>>31004192
2 pushing ourselves to stupid lengths is how we improve right? I mean it worked against Gnome.

Rolled 18

>>31004192
>>2. Keep going. Activate Iron Body to push through the pain and try to match her.

>>31004192
>2

>2.

You swallow your anger. Knowing Sala she’s most likely being completely honest. The innocent tone is probably because she’s surprised. Yeah, that’s it. It still hurts your pride, though, and your best friend laughing his arse off at you doesn’t help. You’re not going to give in just yet.

You try to move your left arm and get little more than screams of pain and resistance from your body. Hell, even moving your fingers is an effort – you grit your teeth against the resulting pain and ignore the sudden look of concern that flashes across Sala’s face as she realises she actually hurt you. Your shoulder’s busted and it’ll need to be healed before you can use your left arm. Which makes this the perfect time to test a new ability. You push yourself to your feet with one arm.

“Um, if you’re badly hurt you don’t have to keep going, Talon,” Sala says, her voice laden with concern.

You hold up your right hand to silence her as you focus yourself. Believe in your strength, huh? Mind over body. Or, really, soul over body. You can do that – you’ve never really thought of yourself as a spiritual person but you’re not so old to get set in your ways. You draw on your power and push it through your body. If your current body can’t keep up with your strength, you just need to build a body that can. A frame of magical energy seems to lock itself into place over your body, though you sense it rather than see it. There’s no glow or other effects, but the pain vanishes and you can move your arm again. Focusing, you can sense the damage that you’re doing to your arm by using it despite its condition but you can’t feel it. Even so, you also sense your power mending the damage slowly.

>continued

>>31004669
You open your eyes and let out a breath you didn’t realise you were holding. That took a little longer than you’d hoped. With a bit more practice it should become as natural to you as empowerment is. Still, this is a nice supplement to your current repertoire of abilities. It’s not healing like you thought it was before, but it acts like it. If using it in battle, it’s probably a good idea to get somebody to finish the hearing or wait for the slow regeneration to kick in before dismissing the power. You don’t want your body to suddenly fail because you took a serious injury without realising it.

“Hey, hey, hey – what the hell is this?” Mal asks. “This isn’t your usual empowerment.”

“New trick I learnt,” you say flippantly, moving into a fighting stance. “Regeneration and it lets me ignore wounds.”

“That’s an interesting trick there, Tallie,” Sala says, her eyes bright and focused on you. “It’s also not what Vaddie taught you.”

You frown. “What are you talking about? Of course it is.”

“Nope!” Sala says brightly. “But if you do well against me, maybe I’ll tell you what it really is.”

Well, now you have an even better reason to do well, beyond just improving yourself and defending your pride.

Sala’s a fast fighter, you think, but also frighteningly strong. How do you try to get one past her?

>1. Be defensive. If she makes a mistake then you’ll be able to capitalise on it better.
>2. Go on the offensive. She’s too fast for you to defend against – the best chance is just to try and overwhelm her.
>3. Try to grapple her. You’re probably a little stronger than Sala and she can’t use her speed against you if you’ve got her in your grasp. Catching her might be hard, though.
>4. Custom

>>31004690
>4. Custom
Counter grapple. Take a hit, then grab her and grapple.

>>31004690
>1

>>31004768
Sure, why not.

>>31004690
>4
Suicidal fighting, ignore defense to hit her

>4. Try to counter grapple her

Sala might be strong and fast, but you can take the hits now and she’ll be at her most vulnerable when she’s striking you. If you can grab her at one of those moments, you should be able to land a hard blow against her.

[DC14/17 Sparring]

Rolled 18

>>31004938

Rolled 12

>>31004938
keep our pimp hand strong

Rolled 5

>>31004938
Better odds than I expected.

Rolled 1

>>31004938

>>31004981
Good thing you're a bit too slow.

>>31004981
Social sabotage denied!

>Higher target met

You’re a little more on the ball this time. A little more aware of just how fast Sala is. She’s as bouncy as before, lashing out with a series of kicks and punches. You’re not so capable that you can hide your intentions of catching her in a grapple so she’s been doing her best to dodge you at the same time.

It was only a matter of time before she slipped up, though, and as she launches a high kick at your head you catch her and force her back. Or rather, you try to force her back. Instead she falls and manages to pull you down with her. Catching your fall is something you’ve been trained to do, though, and you manage to keep a grip on Sala as you go down. You wind up on her back, pushing her down on the floor. She squirms a little bit under you but you’re confident this is your win.

“Sooo,” Sala drawls out, “now that Mal’s slunk away, are you planning some real fun?”

Real fun? You suddenly realise that in this position you could very easily move from sparring into a very different form of physical activity.

Hold on, Mal’s gone?

“Bastard ran off,” you exclaim, jumping to your feet. “I was looking forward to seeing you push him more.”

“So we’re not having sex now?” Sala whines.

“Not right now,” you mutter. “I still want to hear about what skill I was apparently actually using.”

“Oh, that’s easy,” Sala says, rolling over. “It’s something all the god-knights use. I remember them using that when I fought alongside them against the shadow-beasts. The angel’s revenants also tended to use them.”

The god-knights and revenants both used this skill? How… strange. Perhaps the angels’ selected their revenants for astral talents. Unfortunately, Sala has little more to say. After a little more practice and some special ‘exercise’ and some breakfast you consider what to do next.

>Martial Arts I learnt

>1. Check out the Commercia
>2. Read a book in the library
>3. Have a nap
>4.Custom

>>31005301
>1. Check out the Commercia
want to see how things are adapting to our rule.

>>31005301
>Check out the Commercia.

>>31005301
>2. Read a book in the library

Might as well read for a little while.

Rolled 12

>>31005301
>. Check out the Commercia

>and some special ‘exercise’
oh sala.

>1. Check out the Commercia
see how the merchants are doing, what's the commonfolk's opinion of the new rule, speak with filthy peasantry

>>31005538
We're common born, cut out that spoiler.

>1.

You decide to pay a visit to the Commercia. You don’t have anything in particular to buy – instead you’re interested in seeing how things have changed since you first saw it. Most of your travels through the Commercia lately have been either very early or very late so you haven’t had a chance to see the markets at their most busy. On your way out you bump into Lynn, who is also on her way out.

“Anywhere in particular you’re going, Caitlyn?” you ask.

“Mmm, I need to buy a brush for Vad so I’m going to the Commercia,” she answers.

Your brain stops working for a second when you realise what she said.

“Why are you buying a brush for Vad?” you ask, the very picture of calm.

“He kept complaining about the fact I’ve been touching his tails. He said that if I wanted to keep playing with them I’d have to start brushing them. So!” Lynn says brightly.

“You seem to like his tails,” you say, still appearing very calm.

“They’re so fluffy,” Lynn chirps. “I could play with them all day.”

“Do you?” you ask in a flat tone.

“Of course not. I have work to do,” she says, giving you an odd look. “Plus, Vad also runs off after a little while. It’s hard to get him to stay still.”

“I see,” you say, actually meaning it. Remember when he’d suddenly dropped into your tent on the way back from Farun, you have a feeling why he’s running away from her.

Lynn ends up joining you as you step out into the Commercia. There’s a little bit of silence and you feel you should fill it with something.

>What do you talk to Lynn about?

Rolled 19

>>31005733
Keep messing with vad, and have sala help you.

>>31005733
You do know why Vad keeps running away right?

The Idea of her trying to put together a harem of her own made up of fluffy tails makes me laugh.

>>31005858
this. I wonder if we can top the mistress comment.

>>31005733
Oh god
I just realized, when we accept Vad's proposal and a bunch of foxes pour into our little nation people will get hooked on fluffy tails.

It'll be the most corrupting, yet tantalizing drug mankind has ever faced, and Talon must learn to stand above otherworldly temptations.

...or fall into the rabbit hole and make big buxx out of quality mofumofu~ time, kickstart and monopolize the fluffy tail service. This is a dangerous thing to have on our hands, and our juggling could result in a great leverage power...or disaster. Reminds me of nuclear weaponry.

>>31005826
I assume this is a suggestion to give to Lynn?

>>31005899
>the mistress comment.
What was this?

>>31005920
The obvious plan is to gather as many fluffy tails as possible then force everybody else to sign a Fluffy Tail Non-Proliferation Treaty.

Rolled 10

>>31005963
yep lets add on to the suffering.

>>31005963
>What was this?
Remember when Lynn panicked when she realized that she'd been implying that we were an item? I'm hoping for something similar when she realizes what she's doing to poor vlad.

>>31005963
I support to plan to help Lynn mess with Vad, mainly by telling her that's she's a walking aphrodisiac for fox dudes. Leave out suggesting Sala participation, Vad wouldn't survive those two together.

>>31006011
Oh, fun times.

>>31006097
Better not to tell her then laugh at Vads pain.

“You do know why Vad keeps running away, right?” you ask Lynn.

“I have a few suspicions but nothing concrete,” Lynn says as you enter the markets. “Why? Do you know?”

As you consider how to answer her question you look around the stalls and shops that have sprung up overnight. A lot of space is still empty but it’s nowhere near as desolate as it was when you first arrived in Vitria. There’s even a few more permanent structures being built again – when you visited the city years ago the plate had been filled mostly with buildings rather than stalls. An assortment of shops are near you. Many are trading food, including honey and wine. There’s a lot of wine and brandy, really, but this region has always been famous for its reds.

“Well,” you eventually decide to tell Lynn in a roundabout manner, “on our way back Vad dropped into my tent and asked me about our relationship. Having just run away from you, he was pretty relieved when I told him you were already taken and had made the right decision. He said to watch out for foxes, as they would make their attraction apparent. Does that make sense?”

>continued

>>31006257
Lynn nods sagely, looking at you with a funny expression. “It does, actually. It explains a lot about how he’s been behaving. Hmm, I wonder if I should act any differently.”

You frown. She took that a lot better than you’d expected her to. Something feels… off about how she’s reacting. Still, you press on with your plan to tease Vad, “No, no. Just act the same. He’s pretty happy with things, trust me. In fact, you should invite Salamander along.”

Lynn giggles. “Sala would probably like to play with his tails, too. It should be extra fun.”

As you’re persuing a range of brushes for fur on animals, Lynn suddenly picks one out. Then she frowns and gives it to you.

“You might need this more than I will,” she says seriously.

“You keep it,” you say bluntly. “Heck, I’ll also buy another for Salamander.”

Lynn gives you an odd look as she mutters something about that being a bit too much. As you go to pay for the brushes you notice the merchant and a couple of passers-by giving you odd looks. Ah, they may have recognised you. That might make it difficult to find out more about their opinions about the change.

[DC 14 I-am-not-an-Imperator Check]

Rolled 17

>>31006279

Rolled 7

>>31006279
Time to be Flashy!

Rolled 2

>>31006279

Rolled 4

>>31006279

>>31006279
>>31006311
Nothing to see here citizens

>>31006551
I really hope we develop a full camo ability out of all these Pressence checks.

Rolled 8

>>31006279

>Target met

Luckily, it seems that if anybody did recognise you as their supreme ruler they kept it to themselves. Although opinion of you had been positive before conquering the city you didn’t want to risk getting mobbed in the Commercia if it had since turned. Sarah had announced the planned changes to taxation and farmland ownership and the nobles had not taken it well. News was no doubt spreading and the opinion of the urban merchants might be different to rural peasantry. Not that you really knew what the peasants thought at all about the changes or if they even knew yet.

Asking around about people’s opinions of the recent tax changes it seems that news had spread fast. They were all on top of it. No surprise, given that the new rules would be taking effect in under a fortnight and you had to be an active merchant if you wanted to be successful.

“The tariff drops can only be a good thing,” a Malataine trader tells you as he loads up his small cart with cases of Vitrian wine. “Plus, being able to pay a fee to lower than for years will be great for my business. I can only carry so much on my ship, so the less of it I need to give away in taxes the better.”

“I’m worried that the nobles might rebel,” a Vitrian peasant purchasing some food says. “They’ve always been so willing to fight each other. What if they decide they can take the Imperator? They’ll lose but so many will die.”

>continued

>>31006717
“At least there’s no bloody poll taxes,” grumbles a merchant from behind his spice stall. “The property tax is a nuisance, though. Just because I have a larger home shouldn’t mean I pay more tax.”

The variety of opinions is vast, but the merchants seem to have little worry about the tariff drop. But then, that’s merchants for you. There’s few here selling manufactures, who will likely be the worst affected. One other piece of news you received from the spice trader is that a large trading ship from Pharos is due in port in a month and a half, in conjunction with a large festival held yearly.

You head back to the spire and Lynn darts off to find Sala and tell her your idea of double-teaming Vad. You smile inwardly, imagining the fox’s torment. It’s lunchtime now and although it’s catered there aren’t any large lunches planned. You didn’t make any plans but it’s early enough you could get somebody to join you. Sala, Lynn, Sarah, Mal and Vad are out of the question as they’re busy. That leaves Gnome and Undine. Or eating by yourself.

>1. Eat lunch with Gnome.
>2. Eat lunch with Undine.
>3. Eat lunch with both.
>4. Eat lunch alone

>>31006736
>3.

>>31006736
>3

>>31006736
>3.
May as well.

>>31006736
>3. Eat lunch with both.

>>31006736
>4

>3.

What’s the point in being an Imperator if you’re not going to be greedy? You gather up both girls for lunch, and they cooperate with little more than giving each other an odd look. Finding a spare room to eat in wasn’t difficult either, given the size of the spire and the fact that Sarah’s working her staff to the bone. Poor bastards, you think, as you get the kitchen staff to send some lunch for the three of you. At least they’ll get to enjoy good food and Sarah pays them well. Or you pay them well, seeing how Sarah pays for them with tax revenues. That kind of annoys you.

Gnome and Undine flank you around the table, leaving most of it empty once the plates arrive. It’s a creamy ravioli pasta, the sort that was commonly made in the far south of the RSK. You haven’t had a plate since you left there. Gnome’s giving you her expectant look, and you know what she’s after for lunch. Undine on the other hand is staring at her food with an odd look.

“This is pasta, isn’t it?” Undine asks, sounding uncertain.

“That’s right,” you say, before it clicks. “Undine, you haven’t had pasta before?”

She shakes her head slowly. “It wasn’t popular in Ahm when I was there so I never had the chance and after the rebellions started…”

“Well then, this is your chance,” Gnome says suddenly, subtly pushing her plate closer to you. “Dig in and enjoy it. Don’t worry about anything else.”

You give Gnome a look and she smirks back. Undine doesn’t notice though, instead concentrating on her pasta. It’s not going to jump up and attack you, Undine, you think, unwilling to verbalise it and risk interrupting her moment. It’s quite adorable, really.

>continued

>>31007225
Even as you feed Gnome, taking some bites between serving up morsels for the demanding earth elemental, you keep a close eye on Undine. She’s almost like a child in the way she’s reacting to the pasta as she slowly eats away the dish. Her constantly shifting facial expressions and looks of wonder. The matching chardonnay works wonders, too, and you enjoy watching her face twist in pleasure when she first tastes the two together.

“Talon, what’s a food you’ve eaten that I haven’t,” Gnome says suddenly, her voice low.

You look at her in surprise, then realise that she’s sporting a dark look despite the fact you’ve been feeding her. Ah, somebody’s jealous. Thinking back on Undine’s behaviour yesterday, you can’t help but laugh inwardly. But only inwardly. You don’t want to risk Gnome’s wrath without a chance to tease her.

You…

>1. Tease Gnome about getting jealous of her baby sister.
>2. Genuinely try to think of a food that you’ve had but Gnome hasn’t.
>3. Change the topic and talk about something else.
>4. Custom

>>31007254
>1. Tease Gnome about getting jealous of her baby sister.

>>31007254
>2. Genuinely try to think of a food that you’ve had but Gnome hasn’t.

>>31007254
>2. Genuinely try to think of a food that you’ve had but Gnome hasn’t.

>>31007254
>2.

>>31007254
>2. Genuinely try to think of a food that you’ve had but Gnome hasn’t.

>>31007254
>2.
Don't say Undine, don't say Undine..l

>>31006717
>“They’ve always been so willing to fight each other. What if they decide they can take the Imperator? They’ll lose but so many will die.”
We just need to distract them. Honestly, there are only 5 or so Nobles who can realistically lead a rebellion against us, as there are only 5 noble houses with notable territorial or military strength (Hawkins, Tabeth, Argyle, Rorek and one other). Rorek and the one I'm forgetting are probably the least trustworthy, but are also the weakest right now. Probably, Tabeth, Argyle and Rorek seem pretty close together in terms of military strength right now. The easy way out would be to anex Raupe into the Archduchy of Vitria once we conquer it and hand out various fiefdoms to reward our allies and such. Especially if it becomes known/rumored that we will do so.

>>31007395
LEL

>>31007225
>>31007254
d'aaaaw, they're adorable, wonder if Sylph still the genki girl as in MGQ

>2. Genuinely try to think of a food that you’ve had but Gnome hasn’t.

You guys just voted for an option that wasn’t ‘tease Gnome’. I’m shocked.

>2.

You hastily begin to run through your memory for dishes from the cuisines you’ve eaten before. There’s quite a few, thanks to how much time you’ve spent adventuring.

“Green curry?” you ask, picking a far western dish you once had as a child. Maybe…

“Had it,” Gnome says, her voice a tad petulant.

“Bean curry? Yogurt? Dragon meat? Noodles? Stir-fries? Kebab? Sate? Kiev?” you ask, continuing to ratchet off dishes you can think of that Gnome might not have tried.

She nods her head to each one, her expression getting more and more unhappy with each one. You don’t say it, but seeing her react like this is almost as fun as watching Undine first eat pasta. Speaking of Undine, she’s been staring at the two of you with a confused expression. Eventually, she seems to catch on what’s happening and pipes up with her own suggestion.

“What about women?” Undine says and you almost spit out your mouthful of wine. You’d thought of saying that but for Undine to say it so flippantly – yes, she’s being mean. Her face is a smug smile as she realises she’s somehow gotten one over her older sister. You’d initially thought that Undine and Sala would be the worst combination but Undine and Gnome certainly didn’t hesitate to be competitive. Sisters…

After a moment you realise Gnome hasn’t answered and is instead looking away from you with a slight blush lightening her dark skin. Wait, don’t tell me.

>continued

>>31007704
“You’ve had one?” you ask and notice a barely perceptible nod. You suppress a laugh.

“It’s because I’m old isn’t it,” Gnome whines.

“Talon’s only thirty-four,” Undine says. “It makes sense he hasn’t eaten anything you haven’t. By the way, I haven’t had most of those dishes. So if you want to we can have some together Talon.”

Gnome’s face darkens and you realise this is moving into dangerous territory. Luckily, inspiration strikes.

“Say, how many Pharos dishes have you had?” you ask.

“I’ve had sushi,” she says.

“What about a grilled meat dish?” you ask.

“We have those here so I don’t see how it’ll be different,” Gnome whines.

You grin. “Heh, so I do have. Vad might have to help me but I can probably come up with a dish that none of you sisters have had yet.”

“Oh? So when did you have a special Pharos dish?” Gnome asks.

“When I nearly married a fox,” you say, not expecting the uproar that followed. Once they quietened down, you’ve got a moment to spend with the girls before you need to help Sarah with her work.

>What do you want to talk to Gnome and Undine about?

>>31007704
Lesson learned. Always tease Gnome.

>>31007729
Tell them how hard it was to resist the fluffy tails

>>31007807
This.

>>31007807
I'll admit, I kinda want to hear this story.

Rolled 9

>>31007807
thirded

>>31007925
Whilst I will go with the fluffy tail talk option, I'm not going to explain the full story. There is a very good reason for this that will become clear over time. As it is now, there's nothing special about the story. Talon visits monastery whilst injured, fox falls in love with him, Talon falls in love with fluffy tails, a few weeks pass and Talon bails at the altar, so to speak.

>>31007996
pretty lame of him

Rolled 15

>>31007996
you gotta explain why, and will we meet siad tails later on?

>>31008036
>you gotta explain why
Talon was not a man for commitment at that time. Even now he has doubts about it.

>will we meet siad tails later on?
Yes.

>>31008051
It's the fox girl coming to help us with vampires, isn't it?

God damn it Talon

>>31008070
I sorta assumed he knew her name.

>>31008070
Nah, Tsucchi has seven tails. The fox you met only had five. It'll be maybe another ten to fifteen threads before you meet this particular fox.

Rolled 4

>>31008102
Fake name, or she only told him a part of her name or vad calls her by her nick name.

>>31008070
>>31007996

Well it could be her, Vad's sister or one of the foxes that are on their way from Phaeros who's going to be on the ship from there JUST in time for a festival in Vitria.

“I don’t think you girls understand how hard it is to resist the fluffy tails,” you say, launching into a grand exposition on the merits of fluffy tails. The girls stare at you, dumbfounded, as you expound on the greatness of the fluffiness of the tails of the mystic foxes. Eventually you trail off, having run out of ways to describe them.

“I see you aren’t immune to the same brainwashing of all the other men,” Gnome says flatly, looking exceedingly unimpressed. How sad. You had thought that Gnome of all people would see the glory inherent in the fluffy tail.

“Umm, are they really that fluffy?” Undine says uncertainly.

“You can find out for yourself, really,” you say. “Just join Sala and Lynn in their merciless assaults on Vad.”

Gnome stares at you for a few moments before breaking into a fit of giggles. Undine looks even more uncertain.

“Um, should I not do that?” Undine asks Gnome.

“No, no. You really should,” Gnome coughs out, trying to halt her laughter. “In fact, I might join in. And Sarah. He has five tails, after all.”

“You’re crueller than I am,” you say, shaking your head.

>continued

>>31008229
“You have a long way to go before you reach my cruelty level,” Gnome says imperiously. “And I suppose I should take it as a small comfort that you haven’t started feeling up Vad’s tails.”

“Not really my thing,” you say.

“But weren’t you just saying how great fluffy tails are?” Undine asks.

“Half the praise was no doubt for the woman the tails are attached to,” Gnome says.

“I’d word that as ‘the woman attached to the tails’ really,” you say.

After the brief discussion you head up to Sarah’s common room. She had asked you to join her up there. When you arrive, there’s nobody in the suite of rooms.

>You’re alone in Sarah’s private suite of rooms. What do you do while she is absent?

>>31008253
Peruse her personal library.
My money is on romances of the embarrassing variety.

Rolled 7

>>31008253
Snoop

>>31008253
raid her underwear drawer
masturbate furiously

Someone was gonna say this, might as well be me.

>>31008354
Seconding

>>31008330
I can dig it.

>>31008253
Strip yourself naked and pose sexily on the bed.

Can't resist. :)

>>31008253
Sit down somewhere and stare bored at the room.

>>31008354
Gotta veto
Someone has to. May as well be me.

>>31008354
This

>>31008421
>>31008422
>>31008428
>>31008453

God damn it anons. pls no.

>>31008330
This.

>>31008482
Accept it

>>31008482
>Linked me
Whut?
I wanna see what her library has.

I bet it's romance novels too.

Rolled 10

>>31008354
>>31008428
Seconded.
>>31008335
Chaning vote to the above.

I am horribly confused. I don't know if you guys are serious. I think I'm going to assume you're not and that Talon is in a serious mood anyway. He's here to meet Sarah, not have sex with her (right now). I might offer this opportunity again another time...

>snooping on her books

While the cat is away, the mice shall play. Though, really, Sarah’s a very unintimidating cat and you’re the sort of mouse that eats the cat, but you still like the saying. Especially as you snoop around Sarah’s room and study for anything… interesting. Her personal library catches your eye for one.

The study is full of a lot of boring books. Accounting, economics treatises, history books… the sorts of books you’d expect to find in the study of a ruler. You believe this to have belonged to her mother, really, or at least many of the books themselves. The only thing interesting to you is the sheer value of the books, with many of them being worth as much as the bookshelf they’re on if not more. You’d learnt a bit about the value of books during your adventuring days – made a pretty penny by knowing which ones were worth holding out on and which ones to just pawn.

As you move your exploration into Sarah’s room you eye off the underwear drawer for a second before writing it off for now. It’d be more interested to go through it when Sarah’s here. You still have fond memories of when you had her model for you a fortnight ago.

The only bookcase in her room is full of magical tomes on spells and catalysts. Quite a few of them are well above your level if you’re any judge, which you’re not. There is an odd lack of fiction in Sarah’s personal collection and you suspect they are hidden.

[DC11 Detective Work]

>>31008253

>>31008330
This.

>>31008354
Not this.

>>31008591
It's all because you didn't provide prompts, obviously.

That and possibly samefags. Not sure.

Rolled 8

>>31008591

Rolled 15

>>31008591

Rolled 15

>>31008591

Rolled 4

>>31008591

Rolled 13

>>31008591
Roll provided

>>31008591
>I am horribly confused.

This really shouldn't happen. You're asking a bunch of anons what do with no prompt. Their going to go for something around the accord of "I take off all my clothing and play the bongos."

Rolled 18

>>31008694
we should do that.

>>31008591
As the person who made that suggestion originally, please feel free to just veto stupid shit.

>>31008354
how the heck did this awful choice get any vote?
It merely comes off as creepy loser and ruins talon's image. it seems like a lolrandumb choice that isn't really all that lol

>>31008602
Sometimes I worry that when I provide prompts in these sorts of situations I preempt the chocies of you guys a little too much. Of course, bizarre responses happen regularly in quests from my experience.

>>31008737
It's best done in real life. While wearing a executioners hood. I would know.

>>31008763
I made it, and people love me, and want to back up my opinions. That's why.

>>31008354
>>31008763
PS. talon is way too occupied by his harem (some of which are really insatiable) to go around masturbating.
PPS. remember there are servants everywhere, it is far more likely her maid would catch us instead of her. (oh god the rumors)

Rolled 19

>>31008820
lets do this to surprise Gnome and see if she has experienced this before.she will say yes

File: 1395548612578.gif-(997 KB, 350x242, 1388600442338.gif)

997 KB GIF

>>31008852
>That mental picture.
Hahahha.

>Target met

Poking about you discover you were right in your suspicion. You find a false wall leading into a small room between the study and the bedroom. Inside are the sorts of things you expect a teenage girl to have. The bookcase full of trashy romance novels is the least of them. You even manage to pick out the handful of books written about you, though they’re not all romance books.

“Somehow I don’t think the woman who wrote this ever met me,” you mutter aloud as you leaf through one of the books. “Or understands male anatomy very well.”

“For the record, I didn’t either,” comes Sarah’s voice behind you. “Why are you in here?”

“I got curious when I noticed you didn’t have any fiction books,” you say as you return the book to its original place. “You need to provide more of a semblance of normality if you don’t want people to get suspicious.”

“I don’t let that many people into my suite of rooms to care,” Sarah says, a little unhappy.

You ignore her unhappiness and return to the common room. “Why would you hide the books in that case?”

Sarah ignores you and instead puts you on track for work. Mostly paperwork, though she does ask you to make a few decisions about the military and nobles. A lot of it is just Sarah asking for your approval.

>1. Tell Sarah that she’s the archduchess for a reason and you trust her to make the right decisions.
>2. Don’t comment on the fact she’s asking, just give your approval for each of them.
>3. Try to get into more detail about the decisions she’s making and why. You want to be more involved, even if this is Sarah’s job first and foremost.
>4. Custom

>>31008737
>>31008863

You fool quit talking about this until roll time. It seems you are blessed by the dice gods so long as you keep this conversation train.

Rolled 14

>>31008899
>1. Tell Sarah that she’s the archduchess for a reason and you trust her to make the right decisions.
>>31008909
not always.

>>31008899
>3. Try to get into more detail about the decisions she’s making and why. You want to be more involved, even if this is Sarah’s job first and foremost.

>>31008899
well.... we DO trust her to make the right decisions. But we have been meaning to actually learn some of it. (have we?)
Seems a bit odd to have it all go over our head

>>31008899
>3. Try to get into more detail about the decisions she’s making and why. You want to be more involved, even if this is Sarah’s job first and foremost.

No need to go full info but it's a good idea to get a idea.

>>31008899
>3. Try to get into more detail about the decisions she’s making and why. You want to be more involved, even if this is Sarah’s job first and foremost.

We brush this off a bit too much

>>31008958
ugh, poor choice of words there, sorry. not odd but... improper for our position?
oh, and PS by that I meant option 3 and get her to actually teach us some

>>31008899
Hm...

"Hey, you know I appreciate you involving me in this. I do. But I chose you to be the Archduchess for a reason, you know. I trust you utterly to make the right decisions when it comes to this stuff...now, that said. Don't hesitate to come to me if a decision comes up you're not sure about. I'd gladly offer my input if you think it's required, or you'd simply like it."

>>31008976
>>31008969
>>31008946
So you guys want to pull her decisions into question and assume more of Sarah's responsibility?

>>31008899
>1. Tell Sarah that she’s the archduchess for a reason and you trust her to make the right decisions.

>>31008899
>1. Tell Sarah that she’s the archduchess for a reason and you trust her to make the right decisions.

>>31008899
>1. Tell Sarah that she’s the archduchess for a reason and you trust her to make the right decisions.

>Archduchess for a reason
doesn't she know full well that the reason was that she was the one who made the deal with us? (fealty for her on vitria throne).

>>31009015
No, not call her decisions into question, but have this is a learning experience for talon. It is all about the tone used

>>31009015
no
what makes you think that?

>>31009015
Nah. Just more know what she is doing at the moment. Would suck to do one think then realize our archduchess had another really great idea instead. The right hand wants to know what the left is doing.

>>31008899
>3.
Honestly I just want a tutorial and I want to sit Sarah in out lap as we go over the documents and she explains what she's doing in the duchy.

>>31008899

>3. Try to get into more detail about the decisions she’s making and why. You want to be more involved, even if this is Sarah’s job first and foremost.

>>31009052
>>31009037
>>31009033
>>31008943
So you guys want to put more trust into her then we need to and risk her doing things without our approval, things we might not like, while also distancing ourselves from overall control, and therefore leadership?

Rolled 13

>>31008899
Proper vote please.

>>31008958
It's not that this stuff goes over your head, it's that a lot of it is relatively trivial stuff that Sarah doesn't need to get your approval on. It's like if a cabinet minister or secretary is asknig the PM//President for approval on decisions they don't need to tell them about. (Granted, that may be what said leaders want, as evidenced Down Under for the past six+ years).

On the other hand, getting more involved would be less about meddling and more about learning more about why Sarah's making the decisions she is because you don't really understand that.

CONTENTIOUS VOTE

Option One
Tell Sarah that she’s the archduchess for a reason and you trust her to make the right decisions.

Option Two
Try to get into more detail about the decisions she’s making and why. You want to be more involved, even if this is Sarah’s job first and foremost.

Rules for voting are to make a post with a link to this post and the number you are voting for. No other text, no greentexting the number. All informal votes will be discarded. Voting window will be five minutes after the first vote.

>>31009160
1

>>31009160
Option Two

>>31009160
1

>>31009160
1

>>31009160
>getting more involved would be less about meddling and more about learning more about why Sarah's making the decisions she is because you don't really understand that.
in that case, definitely option 2.

>>31009160
2

>>31009160
2

>>31009160
2

>>31009160
2

>>31009180
>>31009195

Did you two read the voting rules at the bottom of the post?

>>31009160
2

>>31009160
2

Vote cut-off.

>>31009253
I noticed after posted and reposted with a valid vote

>2.

You hold your hand up to get Sarah to stop. She’s been going through them at a rapid-fire pace and you want to get more detail out of them.

“Sarah, with the pace you’re going through your list these are either things you don’t need my approval for or you need to slow down to give me a chance to understand what the issue actually is,” you say.

Sarah looks a bit uneasy at that. “You don’t ever seem to understand these things so…”

You grimace a bit at that. It’s true that you don’t have the in-depth understanding of how the nation is run or the mechanisms used to run it. Unlike Sarah, you weren’t raised to be a ruler. Still, that just means there’s time to learn.

“Why don’t go through them with me one-by-one and we’ll see how well I understand them,” you say.

Sarah nods a bit but before she starts you take the opportunity to shift her into your lap. She gives you a pointed look that makes it clear she doesn’t want you to do anything… yet. Once you’re finished…

[DC13 Matters of State]

Rolled 11

>>31009342

>>31009342
we are going to hilariously fail

Rolled 17

>>31009342
Crud.

Rolled 10

>>31009342

Rolled 3

>>31009342

Rolled 18

>>31009342
Rolling anyway

>Target met

Most of the issues were as trivial as you suspected. There were a few political issues, but you’re no dunce in that regard and easily comprehended and agreed with Sarah on how to handle them. You did argue a bit over her decision in regards to a merchant and his cow, but that was more about making sure that Sarah understood the decision she was making and the ramifications of that.

The financial matters on the other hand… well, you managed to get a basic grasp of them. You still had to make the leap of faith in trusting Marcus and Sarah on how they priced the ‘Preferred Merchant’ licenses but you at least learnt a little about how they were determined.

“So the discount rate is simply a way of accounting for the fact that money you have now is worth more than money in the future,” you say slowly, feeling a little like a student explaining something to his teacher. “And that’s because money you have now can be used to make more money to be used in the future. Right?”

“Right,” Sarah says happily. You feel a little assuaged by the fact your teacher fits in your lap and you’ll likely be having some… special ‘exercise’ with her shortly.

You feel a little chuffed about not disappointing Sarah in regards to actual management matters. Before you steal some of Sarah’s time with ‘exercise’ you let her know one more thing.

“Those trivial ones, Sarah,” you say. “Don’t worry about getting my approval for them. If you know I’m just going to agree then remember that you’re the archduchess. If you’re worried, ask me and we can hash it out like this.”

Sarah gives you a happy nod before squeaking loudly as you become a bit more aggressive. Sarah’s had a busy day, so you should let her relax a bit.

Much later in the day, shortly before a late dinner, you bump into Vad. He gives you a glare that would kill you, if he were capable of such a thing.

“Busy day, Vad?” you ask blandly.

>continued

>>31009660
“Mal warned me that you could be a cruel bastard to your friends,” he says darkly.

You chuckle a bit. “You’re telling me you didn’t enjoy being brushed by Salamander and Caitlyn?”

“I would’ve enjoyed it more if I could actually have done something with them. It’s tortuous to be fondled by a bunch of women who aren’t actually interested in you. Just the tails attached to you.”

“That’s the problem with being attached to the tails,” you say, walking past him. “Also, there’s an important part of Mal’s message that I’m sure you missed. Have a good night, Vadoric.”

The fox stares at you dumbfounded for a bit as you walk off. Then, just after you round the corner you hear an ‘Oh!’ noise as he finally realises. Smart fox. You wouldn’t have teased him if you weren’t certain he’d understand. Now you just need to worry about his retaliation.

>That’s the thread.

Thanks for tuning in, folks, even if it was a short and impromptu thread. I’ll be around for only a little while if there’s any questions.

Next thread is in a fortnight on April 5th at 6pm EDT. Later start than usual due to daylight savings shenanigans. There’s limits to how early I’ll get up to QM, being from Aussieland.

Rolled 3

>>31009673
>“That’s the problem with being attached to the tails,” you say, walking past him. “Also, there’s an important part of Mal’s message that I’m sure you missed. Have a good night, Vadoric.”
>
>The fox stares at you dumbfounded for a bit as you walk off. Then, just after you round the corner you hear an ‘Oh!’ noise as he finally realises. Smart fox. You wouldn’t have teased him if you weren’t certain he’d understand. Now you just need to worry about his retaliation.
>
explain

>>31009728
Talon teases his friends.

>>31009728
we are treating him as a friend (merciless teasing), we don't behave that way with EVERYONE. We do know how to be professional.

>>31009742
Awesome thread bro.
One question that's been bugging me for a while now.
The hell is a fortnight?

>>31009818
...what

Its two weeks.

>>31009818
2 weeks

>>31009853
>>31009857
Cool. Thanks.

>>31009742
I just caught up on this and last thread but, am popping in to say thanks for the run and I greatly enjoyed both threads.