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You are Arthur Bernhard, 20 year old university student, target of an organization of alchemists and new wielder of the Power of Destruction.
This morning, you were attacked by a hulking monster of a man and forced to flee your home. You then met with your long time friend, Shirley Renard, who revealed herself to be a Vampire Hunter. She also revealed that you are being targeted by a group of Alchemists for reasons she herself is unaware of.
Then you met the mysterious Theresia Gotthelf, a mute girl who has attempted to stay by your side from the moment you met her.
You decided that the three of you would stay in a hotel, which has come under attack by a group you presume to have been sent by the alchemists.
During an attempt to shut off a magical circle, you were knocked unconscious and met a man made of shadows within your dream, who offered you a portion of "your power".
You accepted.

Archive: http://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/qstarchive.html?tags=WhatIsAQM

Last Thread: >>3861311
>>
October 8th 2019 - Tuesday, 5:35 PM

You peek through the door, drawing the dagger as quietly as you can. You don't want to ruin your sneak attack now!

"But I'm quite bored of this now. I think it's time I finished you off, hunter." as the monster finishes it's sentence, you notice that it's left hand begins glowing with a red energy. It's now or never!

You kick the door wide open, the door loudly slamming against the wall as you launch yourself towards the monster, knife in hand.

Time seems to slow as you fly through the air towards the winged creature. You watch helpless to change your trajectory as the creature turns it's head towards you, staring you directly in the eye as it does and swiftly moving it's huge body out of the way of your attack. But it's too late for it to dodge you entirely, the point of the knife scrapes down it's left arm before piercing it through the elbow of the monster.

Your knife slips from your hands, stuck in the flesh of the monster.

The monster groans slightly in surprised pain before batting you with one of it's wings, slamming you against a wall with incredible force.

You smash against the plaster, somehow, you cling onto consciousness despite the pain. The monster towers over you.

"Arthur!" Shirley screams your name, even through your pain, you take note that this is the first time in your life that Shirley has sounded afraid in front of you. she starts to run towards you and the demon, two fistfuls of knives.

A purple sphere of energy thrown from the demons right hand knocks her a distance backwards before she can reach the two of you.

"Oh? Was this your plan then hunter? A sneak attack? Pathetic. But perhaps your interloper friend here just wished to play the knight in shining armor for you. To use a simple blessed dagger in an attempt to kill a Demon, he must truly be a fool." It laughs savagely. "But I digress it's unimportant, after all. Now he dies."

The monster slowly starts reaching for you, and you can't help but smile. It hasn't noticed the dagger still in it's arm has started glowing slightly. As the monstrous hand is merely inches away from your face, the dagger erupts in a blinding light, you raise an arm to cover your eyes as the demon stumbles backwards.

The demon roars in tremendous pain, the unearthly sound chills you to your core. The light subsides. metres away from you now, It's entire arm is missing from the shoulder. the demons inhuman face is twisted in rage, but then the rage fades nearly immediately. "A good effort, boy. But this sort of damage would never be enough to stop me, now behold, and despair!"

Nothing happens.

The monster's face for the first time takes on one of surprise and fear. "Impossible! The contract was canceled? How?!" The demon is so thrown off by something that it doesn't even notice Shirley racing across the room towards it. In a flash, Shirley is between you and the demon.
>>
"No more healing, huh?" Her voice is cold, and at her declaration, a small ball of fire appears in her hands. "Die." The tiny orb of flame transforms into a torrent of fire, crashing into and engulfing the demon.

It's screams of agony are the last thing you hear before the pain becomes too much to bear and you slip into darkness. Though this time there's no world to greet you, just the feeling of floating in an abyss of nothing.

Eventually you are dragged from the world of emptiness as you awaken. This time, there are three girls standing over you with worried faces. You probably don't want to make a habit of this

"Are you OK, Arthur?" Shirley is the first one to notice your eyes flickering open, her voice unusually soft.

Now that she mentions it, despite the blow you took from that thing, it doesn't actually feel like anything is broken. "It's strange, but I think I'm alright." You unsteadily rise to your feet as you say this, Shirley and Theresia both attempting to help you up while Holly stands to the side.

"Well, it looks like the hotel idea was a bust then huh?" you groan. You'll probably have to find alternative accommodations unless you want to risk sleeping in the hotel and putting everyone in danger.

"Wait!" It's Holly who speaks up. "W-well, I don't know how to say this, but can I go with you three? My apartment is being renovated and I've sort of been sleeping in this hotel. I know it's a lot to ask, and you don't know me. But I don't know about you, but today I just found out that monsters are real and I really don't want to stay here alone." She pleads to you.

Vote for both
>Deny Holly's request, the threat is probably gone now anyway.
>Allow Holly to come with you.
and
>Ask Shirley if her organization has any safe-houses that the three/four of you can take refuge in
>Sleep in the hotel anyway
>See if you can catch a cab to your Aunt's mansion.
>Write-In...
>>
>>3885932
>>Allow Holly to come with you.
>>Ask Shirley if her organization has any safe-houses that the three/four of you can take refuge in
>>
>>3885932
>Deny Holly's request, the threat is probably gone now anyway.
>See if you can catch a cab to your Aunt's mansion.
Also, let's make sure we don't leave the dagger behind.
>>
>>3885932
>Deny Holly's request, the threat is probably gone now anyway.
>See if you can catch a cab to your Aunt's mansion.
>>
>>3885932
>Allow Holly to come with you.
>See if you can catch a cab to your Aunt's mansion.
RETRIEVE THE DAGGER
>>
>>3885932
>Allow Holly to come with you.
>Ask Shirley if her organization has any safe-houses that the three/four of you can take refuge in
Is every woman we come across gonna start following us around? Whatever, the more the merrier I guess. At the very least, she can't be less talkative than Theresia.
>>
>>3885962
The dagger was a one-time thing tho. Might as well get it anyway I suppose.

>Ask Shirley if her organization has any safe-houses that the three/four of you can take refuge in
>>
>>3886198
It recharges.
>>
>>3885932
>Deny Holly's request, the threat is probably gone now anyway.
But calm her down

>Ask Shirley if her organization has any safe-houses that the three/four of you can take refuge in
>>
>>3885932
>Deny Holly's request, the threat is probably gone now anyway.
>See if you can catch a cab to your Aunt's mansion.
>>
>>3885932
>Allow Holly to come with you.
>Ask Shirley if her organization has any safe-houses that the three/four of you can take refuge in
>>
>>3885932
>Allow Holly to come with you.
>Ask Shirley if her organization has any safe-houses that the three/four of you can take refuge in.
>>
>>3886029
>Is every woman we come across gonna start following us around?
I would hope not.
That could lead to some issues.
>>
>>3886344

>Our power was secretly control all along
>>
>>3886365
It turns out that your real power was the friends you made along the way

Anyway
Looks like
>Allow
And
>Safehouse
Win

Writing...
>>
>>3885926
>wielder of the Power of Destruction
But what does it DO?
>>
>>3886413
It destroys, duh
>>
>>3886415
I get that, but I feel like testing out our new superpower is something we should fast track.
>>
>>3886423
We don't have the power of control to control it yet, though
>>
>>3886426
Is that how it works?
I'm pretty sure thats probably not how it will work.
I'll call bullshit if that's how it works
>>
>>3886426
>>3886428
That's not how it works, no.
>>
Looking into Holly's pleading eyes, you consider her request for a moment. After some thought, you decide that it would probably be fine to allow her to stick around for now. You allowed the same for Theresia, who simply kept following you around after you helped her, and Holly was only put through all this because of you anyway, so you do feel somewhat responsible for what she went through.

"I guess you can come with us for now." Your voice lacks any real energy as you accept her request. You hope she won't get in the way.

"Yes!" Holly freezes, covering her face with her hands in embarrassment. "I-I mean, thank you." She squeaks out.

But now that you've decided to let Holly come along, you need to decide where you'll actually be going. Staying in the hotel is probably a bad idea, not when they know you're here, it's just asking to be attacked again, while it looks like there were no innocent casualties this time, you might not be so lucky the next.

So that leaves you with only two options you can see, staying at your Aunt's mansion, or seeing whether Shirley can organize some sort of safe-house for the four of you, surely her employers must have something prepared in case of a situation like this.

You make up your mind and turn to Shirley, who immediately notices the look on your face. "What's on your mind, Arthur?" She pre-empts you with a question of her own.

"Ah, it's just that I'm thinking that the hotel probably isn't safe for us to stay at anymore, so we'll probably need to find somewhere else to go. I was hoping that you might be able to get us a safehouse" You won't be going anywhere unless you ask her first.

"Well, there is one I know of... but it's pretty out of the way and kinda... sparse." Shirley pauses for a moment and sighs. "But it's better than nothing at all I suppose." She finishes, sounding disappointed.

"Alright then. Holly. If you're serious about coming with us, go pack your bags. I'm going up to my room to collect my luggage." You turn towards the stairs, Shirley follows you whilst Theresia seems to decide that she'll take the lead, quickly walking in front of you both.

Halfway up the stairs, you feel a light tap on your shoulder, you stop. Turning around you see Shirley, a sad smile on her face.

"Arthur, I just... I just want to say thank you for what happened back there. I would've preferred you to stay out of danger, but I can't deny that you saved me from that thing." Her voice is almost a whisper, to be honest, you thought she might be angry that you disobeyed her order, but that doesn't seem to be the case. Shirley then exhales deeply. "I know you must think I'm only protecting you because I'm being ordered to or something. But that isn't the case. It's just that..." her voice trails off. She sounds reluctant to finish the sentence, her face is pained.
>>
>"It's just what? You can tell me, Shirley."
>"It's fine, I appreciate the concern, no matter the reason."
>Try to comfort her somehow (How?)
>Simply nod, turn around and continue walking, you don't want to have to deal with this right now
>Write-in
>>
>>3886873
>>"It's fine, I appreciate the concern, no matter the reason."
>>
>>3886873
>Simply nod, turn around and continue walking, you don't want to have to deal with this right now
>>
>>3886873
>Simply nod, turn around and continue walking, you don't want to have to deal with this right now
>>
>>3886873
>"It's fine, I appreciate the concern, no matter the reason."
>>
>>3886873
>Simply nod, turn around and continue walking, you don't want to have to deal with this right now
GOTTA WORK THRU THAT CHILDHOOD FRIEND BETRAYAL ANGST GRADUALLY FOR PROPER CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT
>>
>>3886919
Didn't we thank her for protecting us a little while ago? Isn't this kind of a 180?
>>
>>3886873
>>"It's fine, I appreciate the concern, no matter the reason."
>>
>>3886930
Oh yeah. my bad

>>3886873
Changing my vote from >>3886919 to
>"It's fine, I appreciate the concern, no matter the reason."
>>
>>3886919
How dare she protect you for 8 years from things trying to murder you while trying to keep you out of the danger you are now actively putting yourself in by not telling you.
The nerve of it.
>>
>>3886936
It would be a sort of Castlevania logic, I suppose?
>>
>>3886873
>>"It's fine, I appreciate the concern, no matter the reason."
>>
>>3886939
Are you saying that you would've preferred fighting defenceless against the terrors of the night at age 12?
>>
>>3886945
Well it would either kill me or give me a real problem to worry about instead of this eternal depression and non-existence I'm currently living so yeah both are a step up.
>>
>>3886873
>Write-in
Stare Shirley in the eye.
"Explain. It's gonna be something crazy in which I will refuse to believe,isn't it? To tell you to truth,I touched the weird circle and a mysterious stranger gave me the power of Destruction. And i don't know how that works."
>>
>>3886977
Hey, you never know, one of those terrors of the night could've been an Ojou Vampire.
So that's something.
>>
>>3887010
>implying I could ever get with a vampire babe
I thank you for your faith but it is more misplaced than all of the Soviets that went to the Gulags under Stalin's orders.
>>
>>3887010
And that is the backstory of how Arthur B. became a commie.
It is due to the horrid cheesy sound of snotty laughter from a rich kid.
Oh hohohohoho!
>>
>>3887017
But

He is a rich kid?
He's lived in mansions for most of his life.
>>
>>3887017
>ojousama laugh is horrid
I'm sorry about your hearing, anon. I hope they find a cure for bad taste within your lifetime.

>>3887021
Well that settles it. Now we *definitely* have to get with an ojou heroine. Never date below your station, people.
>>
>>3887033
>Never date below your station, people.
Ah so you're one of those "keep it in the family" types. Got it.
>>
>>3887036
If by "it" you mean money and property, then yes.
>>
>>3887033
Rather bold claims to make that Theresia and Shirley are below your station.
>>
>>3887039
We get it your sister is your aunt.
>>
>>3887041
I guess we don't really know about their families yet. Theresia certainly has potential to be an ojou once her voice returns.

>>3887044
So, you assume all wealthy people are related? Come on, anon. Try thinking about the world around you a bit.
>>
>>3887045
I suppose I should say that In-Character, Arthur knows that Shirley is an orphan.

Her mother died a year after they first met and her father either died before they met or abandoned her, she has never talked about it so it's only his assumptions.
>>
>>3887021
Karl Marx is considered a rich kid
but he got class not to laugh like an ojou
>>
>>3887056
Oh, have you ever heard Karl Marx laugh?
>>
>>3887058
Yes, his laugh is a mix of three concepts: communism, writing and beard.
>>
>>3887045
>So, you assume all wealthy people are related?
Nah. Just the ones with their heads up their asses. A rather unfortunate birth defect.
>>
>>3887058
It certainly wouldn't sound shrill and annoying.
with lungs full of tobacco tar.
>>
>>3887073
But why would the laugh of an Ojou Vampire sound like they have lungs full of tobacco tar?
I'm genuinely confused by this thought process.
Vampires don't even need air.
>>
>>3887075
I was talking about Karl Marx laugh.
>>
>>3887075
Are you saying Karl Marx is an ojou vampire? Deepest lore.
>>
>>3887069
I know you're not likely to think too hard about what you say when trying to get a rise out of somebody online, but this is just laughable.
>>
>>3887080
Shoo shoo now little inbred child.
>>
>>3887079
Real deepest lore is that in universe, WW1 was actually planned by Elizabeth Báthory, who was behind the assassination of Franz Ferdinand all along.

I'm not even making this up.
>>
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>>3887086
Poor lad.
>>
>>3887069
You know that if you ever meet a vampire in this quest, the odds of them being supremely arrogant are like 100 percent right?
Vampires are effectively the top dog supernatural race in Castlevania.
Especially the more powerful ones, who can even take on Death.
>>
>>3887104
And it's safe to assume they are inbred.
>>
>>3887113
Ok how?
How on Earth do you come to that conclusion?
>>
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>>3887117
>>
>>3887104
This is why we must romance one ASAP.
>>
>>3887123
You say that like it will be an easy thing to do.
>>
>>3887166
"We do these things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard."
>>
>>3887173
Some of you guys really want to seduce an Ojou Vampire, huh?
>>
>>3887182
Some anons go into quests with a goal in mind. Doesn't mean it's a practical goal.
>>
>>3887182
You better believe it.
>>
>>3887188
I'm not saying it's an impossible goal, it's just I didn't really expect people to want to try to seduce a vampire in the setting primarily based around killing vampires.

I mean, this quest in particular isn't about killing vampires in particular too much, because there's no Dracula around, but you get my point.

But there will be vampires and there will be ojous and the two might even overlap
>>
>>3887182
For the record I think that idea's asking to get fucking murdered.
>>
>>3887350
Also for the record I think most quests that resort to writing down to anime tropes get kind of boring, and I'd like to have at least 1 regularly-updating vidya quest that doesn't devolve into waifu wars. I can respect wanting to waifu an ojou vamp, but in CV I think that's pretty dumb. Much more likely and interesting in VTM where vamps tend to be in command of fewer monsters and thus need to rely on pawns for power struggles, where CV has more direct conflict/subjugation. The notion of us being taken as an equal/superior to a vamp in this setting is contingent on aiming for a bad end (or villain end), and I don't think those are very fun to play in (but that's personal preference, and I feel that Arthur is being set up to defy Chaos in this campaign based on his pretty average life up until this point, unless some major revelation screams otherwise).
>>
>>3887361
>but in CV I think that's pretty dumb
>The notion of us being taken as an equal/superior to a vamp in this setting is contingent on aiming for a bad end (or villain end)
Not really. Lisa is a thing that exists.
>>
>>3887361
As a guy going for an ojou vampire waifu I'm also going for a villain end. I also can't stand Vampire: the Masquerade. Take that for what you will.
>>
>>3887182
You're god damned right. I'll stake my life on an Ojou heroine.

>>3887350
This is Castlevania, anon. It was the NES Dark Souls. Just booting up the game is asking to get fucking murdered. What we're going to do is take Arthur's power, grow it to its full potential, and power through just like the old games. We'll prove we can stand beside a vampire bride with our head held high!
>>
>>3887191
>>3887191
>>3887450
Now you just make me want to go for killing all vampire waifus.
>>
>>3887450
I don't want him to be a villain though. Not a hero either. Just a particularly badass bystander. Everyone loves good side characters.
>>
>>3887494
You want the protagonist of this quest... to be a side character.
Anon, that's something I really can't understand.
>>
>>3887182
I'm just here because
>It's a fucking Castlevania quest
>It's written decently enough
>The prospect of monstergirls
>I want to see where it all goes
Because fuck, Castlevania has such great designs and all sorts of silly shit thanks to Japan and when Konami was good, that I want someone sane (like Alfred) to react to them and deal with them. Also, there's so many fucking cute monstergirl designs in Castlevania games that I don't even think Alfred will be able to resist going for one, even though they are all technically ultra fucking evil inside... maybe? I mean, if love can bloom on a battlefield as Metal Gear Solid (yet ANOTHER Konami series) proved, then maybe it can apply here???
>>
>>3887516
Who's Alfred?
>>
>>3887525
I meant Arthur, damnit
Geez it's like calling Trevor Belmont "Ralph"
>>
>>3887531
Ralphu Berumondo?

I should also mention I am writing the update.
>>
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>>3887635
I stand by what I said before. You strip naked, you climb in, you close the lid except only a tiny opening for airflow, and you proceed to make Descartes proud. Bonus if she wakes up and goes along with it.

...man, I'm afraid of this cancerous shit ruining the quest this early on. Can't QM just write faster so there's less breaks for autism?
>>
>>3887655
I'm trying anon.
Keep being forced away from writing and rewriting what I do have.
>>
"It's fine, Shirley. Really. I appreciate the concern, you don't need to give me a reason. That doesn't matter to me." You tell her in a voice slightly softer than your usual. Shirley doesn't get like this often, in fact the only time you remember her showing weakness like this in front of anybody at all was around 7 years ago, just after her mother died.

Her face goes blank in surprise at your declaration. A silent moment passes between to the two of you "...Really?" Shirley's response is faint, but hopeful.

"Of course. I don't want you to force yourself to tell me anything." You try to reassure her, but you aren't really sure if you're succeeding.

"Thank you, Arthur. That means a lot to me." Then, in a burst of speed, she's wrapped her arms around you in a hug tighter than her lithe build would suggest possible. The embrace only lasts for a second or two before she suddenly breaks off from the unexpected hug and turns away from you, her face hidden from view. "I-I'll wait for you downstairs!" She calls out rather awkwardly as she vanishes from sight. What on earth was that all about?

You feel slightly perturbed by Shirley's rather sudden show of weakness, but decide against following her, you still need to get your luggage and you don't want to leave Theresia waiting outside the room for too long, she doesn't have a key to the hotel room after all.

You try to put Shirley's actions out of your mind as you ascend the rest of the staircase, but they do weigh on you, regardless. If she meant what she said, about not her orders being the reason, then why? You said that her reason didn't really matter to you, but it would be a lie to say you weren't at all interested in what motivates her if it isn't her duty.

You bury the thought upon reaching your floor. You can think more about this later, there's no use dwelling on it right now. There's way too going on to worry about things like that and you'll just end up with even more questions.

You push open one of the double doors leading to the floor 6 hallway, turning to see an impatient looking Theresia tapping her foot outside of the locked room, when she notices your arrival though her face lightens up.

"Sorry for the wait, Theresia." You apologize to the girl, but she doesn't seem upset at all anymore, simply waving and smiling at you happily as you approach. It seems she isn't as upset at being made to wait as you expected.

You put the key in the door, swiftly unlocking and opening it. The two of you enter the room, it's exactly as you left it, thankfully. Theresia looks longingly at the television while you grab your luggage bag from the foot of your bed.

The journey down feels far swifter than the journey up to your room, and it's not long until you're back in the lobby with Shirley and a rather out of breath Holly dragging around a fairly overstuffed looking suitcase.
>>
"OK everyone, the trip to the Safe-house I have in mind is kind of a long one, and we'll have to walk it, we can't risk taking a cab." Shirley cheerfully tells the group the bad news, being met with a quiet groan from Holly and no visible reaction from Theresia.

As you step outside, you notice that the weather really has taken a turn for the worse, as the cold autumn air sends a chill through you. A few minutes into your journey, in which Shirley takes the lead and demands the group go through dark back alleys and barely used subways in order to keep out of sight so that they aren't spotted, you see that Theresia is shivering.

Of course she would be, she's only wearing that cheap looking t-shirt and some jeans after all.

>Stop and give her your jacket
>Stop and find something in your luggage for her to wear
>Ignore her shivering, she'll just have to wait until you reach the safe-house
>Write-in...
>>
>>3887740
>Stop and give her your jacket

I'm calling it now, Holly is totally an agent of that organization that's hunting us. She's way too sketchy not to be.
>>
>>3887740
>>Stop and find something in your luggage for her to wear
>>
>>3887740
>Stop and find something in your luggage for her to wear
A spare jacket
>Write-in...
"Lead the way Shirley."
>>
>>3887741
Poor Holly. First her life is flipped upside down and she's nearly murdered but now she's being accused of treachery too!
>>
>>3887762
You have to admit her behavior is super unnatural. If she isn't a spy, she has some other hidden motive for following us.
>>
>>3887763
>some other hidden motive for following us.
She has a hero fetish.
>>
>>3887785
I mean, maybe, but if that's her only reason it'd be pretty bland.
>>
>>3887798
she is either the character who will die horribly or become a hero
>>
>>3887798
That would be rather bland.
I wouldn't write a character that shallow.
>>
>>3887813
But you didn't say she doesn't have a hero fetish.
>>
>>3887740
>Stop and give her your jacket
>>
>>3887823
I didn't say she wasn't a spy either.
>>
>>3887827
Eh everyone is a spy. If you have the right leverage at least. I'm not too concerned about it.
>>
>>3887740
>Stop and find something in your luggage for her to wear
>>
>>3887740
>Stop and give her your jacket
>>
Just asking real quick...
How far are the vampire/monstergirl supporters willing to go to get a chance at seducing them?
We talking "I reject my humanity" levels here?
Or just "I would buy them a drink" levels?
>>
>>3887901
It's worth going to "I reject my humanity" levels, I'd say.
>>
>>3887902
Only if it's a vampire ojousama or vampire loli, though. No rejecting humanity for dominatrix Carmilla or some random snakegirl.
>>
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>>3887907
Not even for an Alura Une?
>>
>>3887901
Brought this up last night, but my ID's changed so I'll say it again. I want to reject Arthur's humanity, and also want to seduce a vampire. Good thing they're complimentary goals.
>>
>>3887901
The answer to that is..
Be a good casanova. Be that charming person.
>>
>>3887913
Nope. Inferior monsters may be worth chatting up, but only a top-tier vampire girl deserves the full measure of Arthur's devotion.
>>
>>3887901
"I reject my humanity" levels for someone really good and who can go through actual character development, maybe. Like that blue snake girl from MGQ
Regular charming for all others.
>>
Vampires are shit-tier waifus but top-tier husbandos. If you disagree you're at the bottom of the list for taste.
>>
>>3887927
But Alura Unes are all effectively just plant-vampire girls.
>>
>>3887938
See, it's the plant part that downgrades them.
>>
>>3887901
Imma put my two cents in here and say that, if we had strong, actual motivations that clashed with having a vampire gf they wouldn't give her the time of the day.
People tend to overestimate the impact waifutism has on quest because of the more extreme cases (PGQ comes to mind) but in practice, anons are lazy fucks that can't be arsed to put any effort into a relationship unless the QM throws them a bone and if given the choice they do slightly more fun, slightly less shallow stuff like grinding.
First example that comes to my mind is Nukaloha, where the 2 love interest gave for some discussion and then promptly got ignored and died. And there was a certain quest where my pairing won and anons bitched but did fuck all to stop me.
All I'm saying is, this quest is slow as fuck and we need something to do to get some actual discussion going on, please, I beg you.
>>3887936
That's some patrician taste right there.
>>
>>3887901
I'm with >>3887933; I will reject my humanity ONLY for an Alice-tier girl.
>>
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>>3887951
>strong, actual motivations that clashed with having a vampire gf
At this point your motivations could really go either way on that front, honestly.
Though you have taken a step towards one route now.

>>3887936
Get out of here Lisa, you're supposed to be dead.
>>
>>3887987
>Get out of here Lisa, you're supposed to be dead.

>[brooding alucard noises]
>>
>>3887951
So, there are two ways to read what you're saying. If we had strong motivations that clashed with a particular girl, I can see where you're coming from.
If, on the other hand, we had strong motivations that clashed with the very idea of seducing a vampire (which seems to be what you're suggesting) I'd probably drop the quest. HFY Van Helsing type protagonists are something I'm just not interested in reading about.
Of course, dropping the quest can be interpreted as doing fuck all, so I guess you'd get your way in that context.
Of course, I'm just speaking for myself.
>>
>>3887998
To be fair, had I wanted a quest where the players just went around killing everything supernatural in sight...

I probably would've made you a Belmont.
Or a Lecarde
Or a Belnades
Or an actual vampire hunter.
And thrown you straight into Dracula's Castle.

You'd always be playing second fiddle to both Alucard and Julius if you went the full on vampire hunter route anyway, and I don't really think anybody wants that.
>>
>>3888008
Yeah, I didn't think that was what you were going for; just wanted to make my views clear, since anon was theorizing on what the vampire romance supporters would do.
>>
>>3888009
>>3888008
I should clarify,
I'm not saying you have to take the evil route or anything.
I'm just saying the "DIE MONSTER, YOU DON'T BELONG IN THIS WORLD." thing is kind of overdone in setting with every single protagonist except Soma and maybe Alucard.
Not saying you can't be a good person here.
Just that going full Belmont on everything would be a little odd, given what you are.
>>
>>3888014
But if you guys really do want to kill everything you meet be it hostile or otherwise, then I guess that's up to you.
I don't want to railroad anybody here, but it would just be a very strange path for Arthur to take, to emulate the Belmonts.
>>
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>>3887998
It could be either way really, if by the time we find said character we have no aim.
If we do, then it's a question of whether spending time with said character takes away from the then main selling point of the quest, not necessarily it being opposite to our motivations. And if said character is worth spending time around too, of course.
Anyways, I wouldn't be too worried if I was you, it seems like the Qm is rather interested in this theme.
Me, I'll just be around and see what's sticks and if it is endearing..
>>
>>3888024
So is Julius the last Belmont for you or do you consider Kokoro canon?
>>
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>>3888043
I'm not quite sure what I consider Kokoro, anon.
>>
>>3888008
Hey, isn't Julius amnesiac right now?
That plot point made very little sense, why did no one tell him his name? Fucking thank you, Arikado.
Well, I guess is to be expected, Castlevania was never a story driven series.
>>
>>3888035
Or consider that by spending time around certain characters, Arthur's own perceptions and character can be altered especially through choices? So far Arthur is an odd mix of suicidally reckless (kicking doors down TWICE, choosing Power of Destruction, attempting to knife the blue demon thing), a bit dark (some humor and perspective narration here and there, resenting that his parents kicked him out, initial sourness towards Shirley), and slightly eccentric (literally picking up Theresia off the street, bringing her to a cafe for a date, then taking her and Shirley to a hotel right afterward). I could see him being a different sort of Dark Lord Candidate honestly, when compared to shit like "I want to see my own limits, so fight me" Dmitri, "BURN BURN BURN HAHAHAHAHAHA" Dario, and "fuck you for fucking with my girlfriend, I'll kill you all" Soma.
>>
>>3888089
What about "I am a fucking god you ants" Graham?
>>
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>>3888053
Yeah, Julius is currently probably wandering around, randomly beating things up. Arikado just felt like being a dick again, I guess.

>>3888054
I don't quite know who you're talking about, do you have any more info?
Unless you're talking about Shanoa, but she's neither a nun nor is she a Belmont.

>>3888089
Don't forget "I'm Dracula now because I'm sitting in his chair" Graham.
>>
>>3888095
>Yeah, Julius is currently probably wandering around, randomly beating things up.

>"A skeleton! GRAND CROSS!"
>Breaking news, anorexics being targeted by elderly man with dementia
>>
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>>3888094
I literally forgot about him lmao. What a meme.

>>3888095
>"I'm Dracula now because I'm sitting in his chair" Graham.
Check out pic related. I only feel bad about not screencapping it when Dracula was right there looking at Hector doing this.
>>
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We are tied right now, by the way. I think.

>>3888099
Graham is such a piece of shit.
>"I could send you all home right now."
>"Cool, well, can you do that now then?"
>autistic screeching ensues

>>3888089
But yeah, how Arthur develops is really up to your choices.
Door kicking is fast becoming a new hobby, it seems.
>>
>>3888106
I am perfectly fine with door kicking becoming a set-in-stone character trait for Arthur if this happens more times.
>>
>>3888106
>for some reason Arthur starts to knock on doors with his feet instead of his hands
>he is often heard mumbling about the durability of door handle construction
>frequently watches videos of police entering locked buildings on the internet
>>
>>3888095
>I don't quite know who you're talking about, do you have any more info?
Couldn't find anything about it.

>we're tied
Fug
>>3887740
>Stop and find something in your luggage for her to wear
>>
>Stop and find something in your luggage for her to wear
Alrighty then.
We have a winner.
Anything in particular you want to give her coat/jacket/whatever or shall I pick?
>>
>>3888170
Give her an oversized sweater with sleeves longer than her arms, that will look cute.
>>
>>3888170
How about a wool cardigan?
>>
>>3888170
>>3888173
This one.
>>
>>3888170
this >>3888173
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>>3888170
Something that fits her, if we have it. Intentionally giving her an oversized sweater just seems like a dick move.
>>
>>3888170
Fine, do >>3888211 first.
>>
"Everyone, hold up for just a second" You call out to the group when you pass under another empty underpass, you can't just leave Theresia in the state she's in, the poor girl must be freezing.

"What's the problem, Arthur?" Shirley questions your decision, there's some amount of confusion in her tone.

"It's Theresia, she isn't really dressed for this sort of activity, you know. I'm going to see if I've got anything that might fit her." You start rummaging through your bag while Theresia looks on with an unreadable expression. The majority of your clothes will be too big for Theresia, you realize. In fact, most of your clothing would look ridiculous on her. but then you find something that might work, a large woollen sweater, it's not an ideal situation, you know, but it ought to work for now.

"Theresia, wear this." You pass the oversized sweater to the girl, who holds it for a second before lifting it over her head to begin putting it on.

The sweater is obviously too large for Theresia, the sleeves totally covering her hands. Though when you see her face again, she doesn't seem at all concerned by this, in fact, she's smiling again. Though it isn't long before Shirley's voice snaps you out of it.

"OK, break over, we do really need to get moving now everyone!" Shirley's voice has a hint of worry in it, maybe she really does think that you're being followed.

You quickly pack up your bag and start following after Shirley again, you notice that Theresia is following you closer than she was before, while Holly matches your pace at the back of the group.

After what feels like an hour of ducking through alleyways and underpasses, Shirley stops at a dead end, standing just in front of a manhole cover.

"Please tell me you took a wrong turn, Shirley." Now you are beginning to understand Shirley's own trepidation towards staying at this safe-house.

Shirley shakes her head, before bending down and lifting the manhole cover, revealing a dimly lit ladder. "Don't look so down, it's not like it actually leads to the sewers, now after you." you shrug, climbing into the hole in the ground and start descending the ladder. Theresia rolls up her sleeves and enters after you, with Holly requiring some amount of coercion from Shirley to start climbing.

The ladder is deceptively long, after what feels like two minutes of descending it, you finally reach the bottom, you have no idea just how deep underground you are now, but you certainly weren't expecting such a long climb down. Holly is the only one that seems to share your sentiment though, she's actually out of breath. Theresia and Shirley however don't seem to have been bothered at all by the impromptu exercise.

Though looking around at your surroundings, you just find yourself in a very poorly lit concrete sphere, the floor slightly damp. "Is... Is this it?" It's not really much of a safe-house.
>>
>>3888170
Something warm that fits her. Let her look for something she likes.
>>
"Of course it isn't! I doubt any of you three could sleep on concrete anyway." Was that a boast? While you wonder what she meant, she walks over to one of the wall and cuts her finger with a dagger pulled from seemingly nowhere, one of her sleeves you presume. Planting the cut finger on the center of the wall, she mutters something below her breath.

To your surprise, the wall begins to shift slowly downwards into the floor, revealing a hidden room. The room in question though, is as sparse as Shirley said. It's fairly large, it seems to be a dining room and kitchen with individual bedrooms behind doors, in the far corner, there seems to be a fairly high tech looking set-up, multiple monitors and machines that you couldn't guess as to the function of. This isn't a safe-house at all! This is a bunker!

"Well, here we are, the single most secure location in the city that I know of. This place was designed with basically everything magical in mind. It's cloaked against most of the magic they might try to use to track us down, as well as countermeasures should they manage to find us and try to break in" She says quite proudly "though honestly, it is a bit much isn't it? The ladder climb is always a pain, even when you're used to it. I guess it's useful for us now though." As she finishes her explanation, she wanders off, apparently to check on the bunker's state in her absence as she starts inspecting various gauges on the wall.

You are getting fairly tired though, today has been fairly exhausting. Holly is looking at the monitors in the corner, with a fascinated expression on her face. Theresia meanwhile has managed to locate a television and is now staring at some news broadcast. It's impressive that there's even a signal all the way down here.

>Talk to Shirley (About anything in particular?)
>Talk to Holly (About anything in particular?)
>Interact with Theresia (How?)
>Get an early night's sleep
>Write-In
>>
>>3888346
>Talk to Holly (About anything in particular?)
So yeah, magic is real. Monsters are real. How are you holding up?
>Talk to Shirley (About anything in particular?)
So uh... I broke the magic circle spell thing by reaching out to the crystal. I feel pretty weird now though. Almost stronger, if that makes any sense? I was wondering if there was a training room in here or somewhere I could try to do something?
>>
>>3888346
>Talk to Shirley
I got the power of destruction, do you know anything about how to use it?
>>
>>3888346
Supporting >>3888365
Also waifufagging quests are worst quests.
>>
>>3888346
Supporting >>3888352. I actually feel like we should interact with Theresia more, but I'm at a loss for what we'd say to her, given her problems communicating. Maybe make small talk about the TV, her inexperience with modern gadgets, etc?
>>
>>3888595
There's a certain difficulty in writing a character that can't properly communicate back.
Obviously, the problem goes for you guys interacting with her as well.
>>
>>3888352
Support.
Theresia a best btw.
>>
>>3888713
>Not going for the patrician option of the childhood friend
>>
>>3888717
>going for first girl the liar
Why tho
>>
>>3888719
She only lied to us because she loves us.
>>
>>3888346
>Talk to Shirley (About anything in particular?)
"Holy shit,Shirley! I didn't know the Ninja Turtles are real !"
>Write-In
Inspect the gold coin Theresia gave us. There must be some clues to her origins.
>Get an early night's sleep
Lie on the bed. Start screaming. We had the most exciting day ever. Curl up and cry ourselves to sleep. Start rationalizing all the bullshit we saw. Fail. Impossible non science things!
>>
Should I make a Character Sheet Pastebin, do you think?
Just as a place to jot down your current inventory/abilities/weapons.
>>
>>3888792
If you think it would be useful. At the moment I feel like we don't need one, and that'll stay true if you go for the realist "carry 1-3 things on your person" model. If we're going to be picking up and carrying the kind of inventory load metroidvania protagonists tend to scavenge, though, we'll want a way to keep track.
>>
>>3888346
>>Talk to Holly (About anything in particular?)
"I just found out about the whole magic and monsters thing too. How you holding up?"
>>Talk to Shirley (About anything in particular?)
Ask if there's a place to train.
>>Write-In
Invite Shirley, Theresia and Holly to watch us train.
>>
>>3888803
Going for the sweat-on-muscles appeal, huh?
>>
>>3888731
The road to Hell is paved with good intentions, anon.
>>
>>3888352
I think this one wins.

Writing...

>>3888803
>>3888827
I mean, I think anon means more training their new magical ability.
Not actual physical excercise
>>
>>3888889
Why not both
>>
Deciding it would be best to first have a conversation with the newest member of your little group, you take a walk over to the corner towards Holly, who is too busy admiring the assortment of monitors and machinery to notice your approach.

"What's up, Holly?" You casually remark to the girl still intently staring at the assortment of technology, who promptly jumps in shock at your sudden question.

"O-oh, It's Arthur, right?" Holly readjusts her glasses, which were shaken slightly loose by her sudden movement.

"Yeah, I just came to ask you how you're holding up, I mean, magic and monsters both being real is a lot to take in, trust me, I know." Honestly, you do find it a little strange with just how quickly you've come to accept the existence of magic and monsters yourself. Only this morning did you find out they were real and you immediately accepted it as truth.

"I'm doing a little better now, It's just, I can't believe that I was living my life completely unaware of all this stuff going on... it's kind of mind boggling." Holly has her hand to her chin, deep in thought. "So who exactly are you guys anyway? Some sort of monster hunter group?"

You hesitate for a moment before answering her question, thinking of the best way to phrase things. "Actually, I'm sort of like you. I only just recently found out about all this supernatural business myself, I'm not quite sure on the specifics. If you're that interested, you'll have to get Shirley to tell you."

"Shirley? So what, she's the leader of this little group then?" Holly's innocent question shouldn't, but it bothers you quite a bit. It's of no fault of Shirley's, but for some reason, a part of you deep down seems to rage at Holly's implication that you're Shirley's subordinate, especially because it's practically true. You try to stop your thoughts from taking this dark turn by changing the subject.

"So, why did you want to come with us anyway? I mean, you must've realized that it would probably have been safer to stay at the hotel then to come with us, right?" You ask her the first thing that comes to your mind.

"W-well, I um... I k-kind of..." The girl starts sputtering in a panic, trying to find the words, before stopping for a moment to think of her response. "Well, fine, alright. I was scared, yes. But I was mostly... interested?" Her response is unbelievable.

"Interested? You'd put yourself in danger just to satisfy a simple curiosity?" Surely she can't be this short-sighted.
>>
"It's not... It's not just a simple curiosity!" Her shout is unexpected, but she lowers the volume as she continues. "I don't know if you felt the same, but today has shown me the world in a new light. The supernatural, magic, those monsters, It's like I'm seeing the truth for the first time, how could I want to go back to living a normal life after that?" Her outburst has forced you silent for a moment, what a strange girl. To willingly throw herself into mortal danger out of some desire to find out the truth

"I... I see. Well, while I don't entirely see things in the same light as you, I suppose I can see your reasoning" You walk away from the bizarre girl. So she did have some personal reason to follow you after all, albeit not a malicious one, thankfully.

After a moment's consideration, you decide to find Shirley, you haven't had a chance to talk with her about what went on with that crystal yet, and it's been weighing on your mind rather heavily.

You explore the rest of the bunker, looking for Shirley. Other than the barely furnished living room and kitchen area you were in, the other rooms you go through are all completely empty, it's really rather jarring, the size of the place. It's huge! After some exploring, you eventually find Shirley, on the far side of the bunker, still inspecting it.

"Arthur? What are you doing all the way back here?" Her voice a mixture of confusion and concern, though she doesn't turn her back to you.

"Looking for you, actually." Your short response is enough to make her turn around to face you.

"Why? Has something happened?" The worry in her voice becomes more pronounced.

"No no. It's nothing like that. It's just.. back at the hotel, there was what I can only assume to be some kind of magic circle. Holly said that the monster we fought came out of it." Shirley's eyes widen at your mention of this, but she lets you continue. "I... tried to shut it off somehow, but nothing seemed to work. Until I touched this strange jewel fragment floating in the middle of it, for some reason, it exploded... and I was knocked out." her face is now one of regret, but still, you continue your story. "But, there was something strange in the dream. A man, he offered me power."

"Are you sure it wasn't just a normal dream?" You notice the anxiety in her voice increase further.

You shake your head. "No. After I agreed to his offer, I woke up, but I felt... different somehow. Do you have any idea what this might mean?"

Shirley sighs. "It doesn't really sound like any cases I'm aware of... But you may have accidentally agreed to some sort of contract with a demon." You nearly choke at her sudden statement. "But the only way we can know for sure is if I can see you use this so called power, follow me."
>>
After regaining your senses, you begin to follow Shirley. Contracted with a demon? Could you have really done something so foolish?

Before long, you find yourself in a rather poorly equipped gym, for it's size. A few punchbags hang from the ceiling, and there are a few exercise mats scattered about the floor in a haphazard manner.

"Ok, Arthur. I need you to see if you can access this power somehow, if we're going to get to the bottom of this." She states gravely

>Draw upon the power of destruction and punch one of the bags
>Punch one of the bags without trying to draw upon the power of destruction
>Try using the power of destruction in a different way (how?)
>Write-in
>>
>>3889647
>it's really rather jarring, the size of the place. It's huge!
In fact, just walking through it, it feels like you're creating a mental map of endless boxy rooms...
>>
>>3889649
>Try using the power of destruction in a different way (how?)
Try to attack a bag with the Power of Destruction without touching it. See if we can destroy it from a distance.
>>
>>3889649
>>Draw upon the power of destruction and punch one of the bags
>>
>>3889656
Support.
>>
>>3889654
Purely coincidental.
>>
Remember, Castlevania protags don't suffer fall damage. So if we are ever concerned over whether or not we're special just jump out of an eighth story window.
>>
>>3889837
Someone hasn't played the original games.
Fall into a deep pit? Die.
Fall into harmless water? Die.
Fall off the screen into an area you just climbed up from? Die, die, die.
>>
>>3889843
The pit is bottomless you just fall forever. Ya bois the Belmonts forgot to take swimming lessons. Obviously on the previous screen are infinite medusa heads on the entire screen, they just assume you die and be done with it.

Jeez guy come on what is this amateur hour?

Seriously though Belmonts you nearly lost your bloodline because you decided swimming wasn't an essential skill. It is.
>>
>>3889847
they ate devil fruit and they can't swim.
also imagine a belmont swimming in a pond of holy water
>>
>>3889649
>Punch one of the bags without trying to draw upon the power of destruction
>Draw upon the power of destruction and punch one of the bags
>>
>>3889656
Support.
Let's get some ranged attacks going. Melee is boring.

>>3889837
Well I remember Soma falling through like 15 floors in a boss battle. I don't think we should rely on game logic that much though, otherwise we need to stock up on food for instant hp.
Maybe we'll find a relic or something.
>>
Only 5 votes?
Guess that's what I get for updating only once and way later than usual to boot.


I'll call for >>3889656 in about an hour unless we get some more votes in that change things.
>>
>>3889649
>Draw upon the power of destruction and punch one of the bags

>>3890091
Some people run with 3 voters.
>>
>>3889649
Support >>3889656
>>
>>3890103
I know, I'm just wondering if the reduced number of votes from the last few is due to the update time.
>>
>>3889649
Support >>3889656

>>3889724
I would unironically enjoy this quest more if Arthur actually made it a habit to keep mental maps of the places he's been to, and it's basically Igavania maps in his head.

>>3890018
Gergoth battle.
>Relic
What, like Lament of Innocence? Those were pretty nifty.
>>
>>3889656
Is the winner
I'll get to writing

>>3890145
>Igavania maps
I was considering doing something like that, actually.
Making them might delay the updates a little though.

I was considering potentially including relic style items.
There's quite a few interesting magical items you can find in Castlevania.
It's not just in Lament, they are often used as progression items in a lot of Metroidvania style games.
And it's not just because I want to give you the one that tells you an enemies name so I don't have to keep referring to everything as "creature" or "monster".
>>
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>>3890157
Here's what the bunker might look like if it were in an actual game!
Obviously, you haven't explored it all yet.
You're in the large bottom right room right now
>>
>>3890245
>forgot a single door
God damn it.
>>
>>3890245
>>3890247
Are you going to use an igavania map generator or something?
>the map is in shades of red as opposed to blue, because Arthur is a Dark Lord Candidate and not a real Castlevania protag
I love this detail
>>
>>3890260
>igavania map generator
I looked for one.
Ended up making it by hand.
>>
>>3890245
neat. I like it
>>
>>3890245
Kickass, QM. Great detail.
>>
>>3890280
Are you going to take actual ripped igavania map assets from online and use them for the authentic experience too?
>>
>>3890337
Well fuck, I couldn't find any. You might have to actually rip them by hand yourself from high quality screenshots or youtube videos?
>>
>>3890353
I did manage to find a near complete one from Dawn of Sorrow. So I might just be able to, if it's relevant.
Here it is
https://imgur.com/a/Hbk7t

Also managed to find a complete SotN map here
https://revned77.github.io/maps/Castlevania%20-%20Symphony%20of%20the%20Night/Dracula%27s%20Castle.png
>>
>>3890370
That's interesting, and all, but personally I prefer the look you have going now, with it reflecting the in-game maps. It's less work for you to put in as well as (I think) looking better.
>>
>>3890370
see >>3890415, because sometimes simple is best, like here in this situation
>>
When are we going to meet a helpful but greedy librarian?
>>
"Access it? Alright then, I'll see what I can do." You close your eyes, intending to draw upon this power somehow. You immediately notice something is wrong as you do. It's far too dark for you to have merely closed your eyes. Upon opening them, you find yourself in the same dark landscape from your dreams yet again.

Except it's quite different from before now. Instead of just an endless expanse of that strange pitch black substance the floor seems to be made of, there are now dark gray columns rising from the ground, the majority of the columns are cracked or destroyed. In some places, you can even see slabs of black stone overlaying the bizarre liquid that seems to make up this world.

Before you can properly look around though you find what you came here for. A black rift, vaguely spherical in shape, through which nothing is visible. Hovering mere metres away from you, it feels as if it's trying to pull you in, though despite the gravity it feels like it's exerting upon you, you stay rooted to the ground

You take another step towards the rift, then another. The effects of the unnatural gravity seem to increase as you get closer, the strength of the pull by all rights should be enough to break your bones. Yet still, the effect is has on you is minimal. Then a strange, alien notion takes hold of you. This power is yours and you will not be threatened by it!

You stand in front of the malevolent portal now. Without even thinking, you thrust your hand into it, as if some unseen force guided your actions. As your hand enters the rift, there's a brief jolt of pain as something seems to begin to flow into you, nowhere near the same level as before, but enough to make you feel significant discomfort.

This discomfort does allow you to clear your mind of whatever has come over it however, and you snap out of it, pulling your hand away from the malicious rift, the world fades to white.

Slowly, colour returns to the world, you're still in the gym, standing in exactly the same place you where when you entered what you can only call your "inner world" at this point, Shirley still looking at you expectantly. It's almost as if no time has transpired at all since you attempted to draw upon the Power of Destruction and were dragged into that mindscape.

You feel a familiar pain in your right hand, unknowingly clenched into a fist. However when you take a closer look at it, there seems to be no visual cue that there's something amiss at all. Focusing further, you find that you can somehow move the pain, shifting it around your hand. It's like manipulating some strange invisible substance, you mentally command it coil around your arm, then you shape it into a ball in the palm of your hand with another though. Though it still causes you pain wherever it touches, you find yourself able to bear it as you continue to control the substance.
>>
"Well, aren't you going to do something then? You're probably going to need to spend a few hours meditating to find out whatever that power that you were offered is, You know?" Shirley, getting the wrong impression, tries to help with some well-intentioned advice.

"I don't think that will be necessary, Shirley." Before she can ask what you mean, you hold your palm out, willing the ball to fire forward, towards the punch-bags. The ball obeys your command, the moment it does though, you begin to feel yourself growing drowsy. It punches a hole straight through one of the bags, leaving no debris as it passes, then it punches through the one behind that, not stopping until it disappears through a wall, leaving a tunnel as wide as a tennis ball bored into the wall. As you admire your handiwork, you begin feeling lightheaded and sluggish. Shirley quickly moves over to you while you attempt to get steady.

"Arthur, what the hell did you jus- Whoa!" Before she can finish her question, an attempt at moving has led you to start collapsing backwards. Luckily before you can dash your head open on the concrete floor, Shirley catches you, grabbing your hand just before you impact the floor.

"I... I used the Power of... Destruction." You barely manage to breathe out, it feels like your entire body is drained of energy, is this a side effect of using the Power of Destruction?

"Try not to talk, OK?" Once again, her voice is worried. "I'll carry you to a bed." Shirley stops, taking a moment to consider something, before eventually hoisting you onto her back, putting you in an awkward piggyback hold. She doesn't seem at all bothered by your weight, even though you're heavier than she is by a fair amount.

Shirley mercifully doesn't carry you through the living room, your incredible ability to incapacitate yourself is one that you would rather have as few people know about as possible. She instead sets you down in a bedroom just outside of it.

"As much as I want to know what happened in there, you need the rest. All I can say for now is, just, try your hardest not to use that ability again. It's far too dangerous, whatever you did nearly killed you." Shirley slumps down in a chair, still facing you. Now she just watches you, resolutely, a tinge of regret shows on her face.

Unable to respond to her, or even move, you feel yourself begin to drift off, your eyelids growing heavier and heavier until eventually, you succumb to exhaustion.
>>
You are back in the darkness. Looking around, you can see a throne with 5 statues surrounding it, each with a different pose. One wears a face of crazed madness, laughing manically. Another of uncontrolled rage, posture showing a readiness to leap into a fight . The third wears an expression of smug glee, arms held wide. The fourth is crouched down, hands covering their face. Perhaps the most interesting though, is the fifth, it's expression neutral, a dagger held behind their back however, indicates something far more malevolent. You reach out to touch the throne, but just as you are about to make contact with it, you are pulled backwards into the darkness by claws that dig deeply into your skin.

October 9th 2019 - Wednesday, 7:00 AM

You wake with a start. You seem to be able to move now, though your body still feels rather sluggish. You force yourself out of bed, looking around the dimly lit room, it seems that Shirley left the room some time after you fell asleep.

>Explore the Bunker, see if you can find anything interesting lying around.
>Check the living room, see if there's anybody else awake.
>Write-in.
AND
>Decide on a new outfit
>>
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>>3891829
>Check the living room, see if there's anybody else awake.
Outfit on the right.
>>
>>3891829
>One wears a face of crazed madness, laughing manically.
Dario Bossi
>Another of uncontrolled rage, posture showing a readiness to leap into a fight.
Unknown
>The third wears an expression of smug glee, arms held wide.
Dmitri Blinov
>The fourth is crouched down, hands covering their face.
Soma Cruz
>The fifth, it's expression neutral. A dagger held behind their back however, indicates something far more malevolent.
Unknown

One of the two unknowns is Arthur Bernhard, if not any of the five assuming Dario Dmitri and Soma are excluded from all this entirely. Which one will it be, I wonder?

>Check the living room, see if there's anybody else awake.
go with >>3891852 I guess
brown coat, blue dress shirt, blue pants
>>
>>3891861
Wait no, Dario would be the second because he's always in that weird gorilla hunchback pose thing except when doing his fire moves. I guess Soma could also be the first one too, maybe, because of his evil sprites. I just assumed Soma would be the one crouching and covering their face because I thought he did that at one point.
>>
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>>3891829
>Explore the Bunker, see if you can find anything interesting lying around.
>Decide on a new outfit
Wear the jacket on our hips and put on a vest over our shirt, maybe we can pull of the Nathan look.
Speaking of Nathan, the Hunter Whip must be around somewhere, right? Having a near perfect replica of the Vampire Killer would do wonders against some of our enemies.
>>3891864
I think the first one is Graham and Soma is the one with the dagger.
>>
>>3891829
>Explore the Bunker, see if you can find anything interesting lying around.
>New Outfit
I'm going to keep voting for the same "black wool coat, white shirt, and slacks" combo I suggested earlier until we get access to something that properly evokes Soma, Alucard, and Dracula (i.e. long, goth, and expensive).
>>
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>>3891890
Oh yeah, Soma has that in artwork doesn't he? And I forgot about Graham AGAIN. That means Arthur is
>The fourth is crouched down, hands covering their face.
Which I guess could also be interpreted as a symbol of anonymity and obscurity, since he's technically controlled by anons from a meta-perspective.
>>
So, this quest takes place in the present day, and Aria of Sorrow takes place in 2035, doesn't it? Wouldn't it be sort of weird for the dark lord candidates from 2035 to be showing up in our dreams, 16 years earlier? And demonstrating their future personalities?
I feel like these are statues of original characters, personally.
>>
>>3891913
I mean, I'm pretty sure Fate is a thing in this universe. The whole reason Graham went to the eclipse is because of a prophecy that said the new dark lord would reclaim the castle or something, us dreaming about the candidates isn't too farfetched.
>>
>>3891897
Dude stop forgetting about Graham. He's got a baller suit. White of course in opposition to Arikado's black suit. Because the Dracula / Alucard dichotomy isn't apparent enough.
>>
Well we're tied right now. And currently, your outfit is going to be spicy keys.

As for the statues, they all appeared to be around the same age.
You're also pretty certain none of them looked like you.
>>
I might have to roll a dice if we don't get a tiebreaker in the next hour and a half or so.

>>3891913
I should mention that all of the Dark Lord Candidates were born at the exact same moment.

Soma is a special case among candidates in that he wasn't.
>>
>>3891829

>explore the bunker

>voting a regular suit for outfit. dark grey will do.
>>
>>3891829
I'll change my vote to supporting a dark grey suit for our outfit.
>>
Right well
Exploring the bunker it is.

I'm gonna go with the Dark Grey Suit for outfit because it's a little more in character than jeans, a light blue shirt and a poor quality beige coat

Do you want to wear a tie?
>>
>>3892645
Yes. Dark blue would probably work best for our character, with his eye color. It's a good combo with a grey suit anyway.
>>
>>3892645
agree with >>3892669
>>
>>3892645
>>3892669
>>3892672
>Castlevania /fa/ quest
>>
Stretching your tired limbs, you spot your luggage bag by the entrance to the room. Seems that somebody decided to bring it to your room while you slept.

Convenient, because yesterday's outfit is really in no position to be worn ever again, taking a look at it in a mirror. The jacket is torn in various places from where you were thrown around yesterday, the same is true of the pants, a rip beginning to form on one of it's seams.

You look through the bag for a moment to find a new outfit. Eventually, you decide on an expensive gray suit with a white dress shirt, this suit did cost a fair amount to purchase, and you're fairly certain your family would've denied the request normally, but it was at your aunt's behest, so they eventually complied. Quickly changing out of your ruined clothing and into the suit, you grab a blue tie from the luggage bag to complete the outfit.

Finished changing, you step out into the hallway. The lights just outside your room are quite blinding, coming from your dim room, forcing you to flinch away from the light before you adjust. Aside from the faint hum of the fluorescent tubes in the brightly lit hall outside your room, you briefly consider checking to see if anybody else is up yet, though it is fairly early so you decide to spare yourself the effort of checking.

Instead, you decide to explore what you can only assume will be your new home for the next few days, if not weeks.

You head over to the ladder you climbed down to reach the gym with Shirley yesterday, but you decide to keep climbing till you reach the bottom of the ladder. Going down four more floors before reaching the bottom, this place is unbelievably huge, you ponder just how much it would've cost to create such an underground fortress. Shirley's organization must be powerful indeed to be able to afford to create a bunker such as this one and then seemingly leave it in disuse.

Continuing your exploration, you find yourself in a colossal room, metal and wooden crates are stacked all the way to the ceiling, at least 15 foot high. On closer inspection of the crates, it seems that parts of them are glowing ever so slightly, namely the strange lettering that is inscribed on each one seems to hum with a blue light. You decide against breaking into the crates for now, the idea of doing so makes you feel strangely guilty, and who's to say that the clearly magical lettering isn't some anti-theft countermeasure?
>>
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You keep looking around the huge room for a while, checking to see if there's anything other than the copious amounts of crates. As you look around the rest of the room, you find a desk at the far side of the room, hidden away from your view as you walked in by a stack of boxes. There's a fallen chair in front of the desk. On top of the desk, there's a letter and an envelope. Your curiosity gets the better of you as you pick the letter up from the table, It's addressed to Shirley, though your attempts at reading through it any further are foiled immediately. Not through some magical privacy countermeasure though, instead, the content of the letter just isn't written in English. It's some Eastern script, Chinese or Japanese, you imagine. You haven't really got any experience with either country to actually tell though. After some thought, you place the letter back where you found it

Eventually, you're satisfied with your exploration of the huge room, and head back to the room with the ladder. Checking the side rooms, you only find more storage, with the same assortment of crates packed tightly into the far smaller rooms, each only the size of your bedroom.

That leaves only a single door left to go through. Though as you open it and the door from the small connecting room you find yourself in yet another connecting room. However, the door in front of you now isn't a simple metal one like the rest of the Bunker's doors. Instead, it seems to be some highly fortified vault door. you can see all sorts of warning signs plastered over it. 'Top-Level Personnel only!' 'Warning! Danger of Death!' in particular are repeated far more often than makes you feel comfortable. Though you find yourself dangerously interested in what could be behind this door.

>Try to open the door
>Try to open the door, even if you have to rely on the Power of Destruction
>Back away from the door and heed the warnings
>Write-In
>>
>>3893661
>Try to open the door
This is where we find out how powerful we really are. Let's save the Destruction for the boss monster inside, though.
>>
>>3893661
>Try to open the door
>>
>>3893661
>Back away from the door and heed the warnings
>>
>>3893661
>Try to open the door.
>Examine the locking mechanism, any hinges or ways the door would open.
Could there be a way to open it from the control room section from before?
>>
>>3893661
>>Try to open the door
>>
>>3893661
>Back away from the door and heed the warnings
Let's not be an idiot.
>>
>>3893692
>>3893695
>>3893718
>>3893901
No door left unkicked.
>>
>>3894066
Oh and
Writing...
>>
Despite the apparent danger, you cannot resist the temptation to find what lies beyond the heavily fortified door. You try first to turn the metal door handle, but you have no luck. It refuses to even slightly budge, no matter how much strength you put into it. Though you feel like you could probably put more strength into it, there's really no cause to, even if you did have the physical capability to force open the door, all it would likely end up doing is breaking the handle off before actually breaking the locking mechanism. You give the hulking behemoth of a door a swift kick, but there's obviously no effect, all you end up doing is slightly hurting your foot from the impact.

If you're going to get through this door, you're going to have to go about things in a different way. You stop for a minute and think. Surely, this door must have some sort of opening mechanism? You start investigating the door. There are no visible hinges, meaning it must open inwardly. But there's no locking system visible. No keyhold, no combination lock or even a keypad. Just a slab of metal, painted in metallic red with the aforementioned warnings.

There must be some way for this door to open. Perhaps the mechanism is hidden somehow? You take a closer look around the room, looking for any sort of discrepancy. At first, there's nothing obvious, but as you inspect every corner of the small room, you notice something slightly off with one of the walls, it's faint and hardly visible, but there's a small rectangular patch of the wall that is a slightly different shade of gray than the rest of the concrete walls.

You scrutinize the strange off-colour patch further, reaching out to touch it. Though as you make contact with the wall, your fingers pass straight through it, instead making contact with cold metal instead. Is this another illusion then? The false image of the wall flickers away, leaving you staring at a small alcove, within it, a metal shutter.

It seems that whoever designed this door is obviously either insane or way too fond of puzzles, potentially both. You can't be bothered to find how the metal shutter is supposed to open, instead you simply try once again to force matters with brute strength, it only looks flimsy, you wouldn't be surprised if a punch or two can bend the metal out of shape enough for you to be able to lever it open from a gap in the bottom.

However, what does surprise you is your punch busting straight through the metal, the impact of your punch immediately making the shutter give way to your fist. What the hell sort of low quality metal did they even use for this shutter?

Taking a hold on the shutter through the newly created hole, it only takes a single yank to tear it away entirely, you toss it away and hear the mangled metal clatter on the floor behind you.
>>
Now you can see what the shutter hid, and it is quite the rewarding sight indeed. A single red button, with 'EMERGENCY DOOR OVERRIDE' emblazoned on a sign above it. Just as you reach out to press the override, you hear a familiar "Ahem." from behind you.

Turning around, you see Shirley staring directly at you! "Just what is it that you think you're up to? Arthur?" She taps at one of the many warning signs "I know you can read." Her tone is sharp and she seems pretty angry, you're going to need to think of a way to explain this to her, and fast!

>"I was curious as to what could be so 'dangerous' in a place that is supposed to be the 'single most secure in the city' though I may have been going a bit too far in my curiosity."
>"For some reason, I was unnaturally interested in opening it, it almost feels as if I was meant to open this door. Sorry, I don't know what quite came over me."
>"Honestly, I was just seeing if I could open it, I wasn't actually going to go ahead with it." (lie)
>Write-In
>>
>>3894164
>Write-In
"I don't read! YOLO!"
Smash that red button!
>>
>>3894164
>"For some reason, I was unnaturally interested in opening it, it almost feels as if I was meant to open this door. Sorry, I don't know what quite came over me."
It's called Anonitis.
>>
>>3894164
>Write-In
>"I was curious as to what could be so 'dangerous' in a place that is supposed to be the 'single most secure in the city'
>>
>>3894164
>"I had to, or the voices wouldn't stop!"
>>
>>3894164
>"For some reason, I was unnaturally interested in opening it, it almost feels as if I was meant to open this door. Sorry, I don't know what quite came over me."
>"Also, the shutter felt surprisingly flimsy. As if it was meant there for me to smash through. Not to mention the illusion being a different color than the wall. Almost as if it was intended to be found. How do you explain this clearly intentional design, Shirley?!"
CASTLEVANIA PROTAG AUTISM GO
>>
It would be hilarious if Arthur was born with this eccentricity. Maybe he crawled all over his aunt's mansion as a kid and got to like 90% map completion for it? Wait, could Soma been this way too?
>>
>>3894164
>"I was curious as to what could be so 'dangerous' in a place that is supposed to be the 'single most secure in the city' though I may have been going a bit too far in my curiosity."
>>
>>3894245
support.
>>
>>3894164
>"I was curious as to what could be so 'dangerous' in a place that is supposed to be the 'single most secure in the city' though I may have been going a bit too far in my curiosity."
>>
>>3894246
>Arthur's trying to get behind the paintings looking for secret passages again!
A maid's life is hell.
>>
>>3894341
You don't want to know how many candlesticks he's broken over the years
>>
>>3894362
He'd been keeping the local candlemakers in business, clearly.
>>
>>3894164
Switching >>3894201 to >>3894245 since they're similar.
>>
Made a character sheet to help keep track of things.
https://pastebin.com/zZKZAjgU
>>
>>3894531
Nice. The item descriptions really have the feeling of the ones from the games.
>>
>>3894245
So
"Sorry, but no seriously, why is your secret door override so poorly hidden"?

Technically wins.
I think?
Because somebody had an altered vote.
Good grief, poor Shirley...

Writing...
>>
>>3895135
Here's my tally.

Unique votes:
>>3894243
>>3894196

Unnaturally interested:
>>3894245
>>3894399

Curious what could be so dangerous
>>3894217
>>3894260
>>3894320

It seems to me like the curious option wins.
>>
>>3895144
You missed
>>3894316
Supporting unnaturally interested

And >>3894217
Slightly altered his vote to remove "going too far"

It's a 3-3 tie sort of.
>>
Rolled 1 (1d2)

>>3895159
Ok fine.
I'll flip a coin
Curious is 1
Unnaturally is 2
Just to let me start writing.
>>
>>3895312
>autism denied
A shame, really.
>>
>>3895320
I mean, she does think there might be some kinda possession stuff going on, so do you really think that saying you felt unnaturally interested in the very dangerous door before questioning it's defences would've been a good idea?
>>
>>3895312
>autism denied
Welp, I guess he doesn't quite have the same sort of Igavania autism Belmonts and CHARLOTTE/JONATHAN and Shanoa and Soma would have. Soma has it because he's a Castlevania game protag, despite being the reincarnation of Mathias Cronqvist a.k.a. human Dracula. I guess here since Arthur is neither a Belmont or a game protag, his Igavania autism shit is extremely subdued instead. That's fine too, I think I'd prefer that for this quest.

>>3895334
>there might be some kinda possession stuff going on
Yeah - by Anonymous from another reality.
>>
You match Shirley's angry gaze, defiance in your eyes. "Oh? I was just curious as to what could be so 'dangerous' in a place that is you described as the 'single most secure in the city'" You break away from her glare awkwardly "But... I might have gone a little too far in my curiosity."

Shirley covers her face with her hand and sighs. "Am I seriously going to have to keep reminding you not to put yourself in danger?" she seems to ask herself. "Look, I know you think you can handle yourself, but you've been incredibly lucky so far, you know? Anyone else that found themselves in even one of the situations you put yourself in yesterday probably would've ended up dead. It's honestly a miracle that you're still alive." She sounds genuinely upset.

"I-I uh." You don't really know how to respond to that.

"Look, let's just... forget it for now." resignation in her voice. "I shouldn't really be congratulating you at all, but I'm pretty impressed that you managed to find out how to open this ridiculous door. How did you do it?" Her somber tone is gone, and now she takes on a rather interrogative personality towards you.

"W-well I first, uh..." Totally taken off guard by her sudden change, you stumble over your words before regaining your composure. "Well, first off, I tried looking at the door itself for any sort of way to open it, but saw nothing. It was at that moment that I decided to look around the rest of the room too."

"And that's how you found this, right?" She says, taking a closer look at the mangled metal shutter on the floor as she does. "You really did a number on this thing, huh? So what, was the way to open this door behind it then?"

Her sudden revelation baffles you. "You mean... you didn't know?"

"Nope!" her response is strangely cheerful. "I don't exactly count as 'Top-Level Personnel' you know, even if looking after this bunker is one of my responsibilities. I've never figured out how to open that door. You know, I have always been a little curious myself about what lies within, the warning signs always warded me off from looking too seriously. Though just because I know how it's opened, doesn't mean I'll do so. There could be anything in there, the potential danger is far too great and the consequences could be deadly. If even the brass didn't tell me, it's obviously safer we leave it be, whatever it is."

"So, you truly don't know what's behind it either? Now there's a surprise!" How intriguing, so even the guard is unaware of what it is they are guarding? Whatever lays beyond that door is a total secret, and you would be lying if you said it didn't make you want to uncover just what it might be even more. With Shirley right here though, it's obviously impossible. You also can't get it out of your head that maybe she is right, what if opening that door leads to everyone in the bunker's death somehow? It's not really a thought you can abide. So for now, you put the idea of opening the door out of your mind
>>
"I think we've talked enough about this door anyway. We need to discuss what we're going to be doing today. That weapon I ordered for you should have arrived today, and we... we did get the location of those alchemists."

Shirley's right, you need to decide on what you're going to do now.

>Go have breakfast, help Shirley cook while you wait for the others to get up.
>Wake the others up early.
>Skip breakfast, go straight to the alchemist's hideout.
>Skip breakfast, go with Shirley to get that weapon she mentioned.
>Write-In
>>
>>3895520
>>Skip breakfast, go with Shirley to get that weapon she mentioned.
Muh 'quipment.
>>
>>3895520
>Go have breakfast, help Shirley cook while you wait for the others to get up.
>>
>>3895520
>Skip breakfast, go with Shirley to get that weapon she mentioned.
>>
>>3895520
>Go have breakfast, help Shirley cook while you wait for the others to get up.
>>
>>3895520
>Wake the others up early.
>>
>>3895520
>Go have breakfast, help Shirley cook while you wait for the others to get up.
>>
>>3895520
>Go have breakfast, help Shirley cook while you wait for the others to get up.
Do not split up the party.
>>
>>3895339
>Belmonts
>Igavania autism
I mean, outside of like Juste, most Belmonts just walk forwards until they kill Dracula. Simon doesn't really count because while Simon's Quest is just him wandering around aimlessly being given wrong directions while trying to resurrect Dracula to kill again, in Castlevania he just takes the most direct route.
But yes 100% map completion isn't really a good motivation for a character.
>>
>>3895520
>Write-In
"Also I found a letter on a desk addressed to you."
Lead her towards abandoned desk with moon-runes letter.
>Write-In
Help her cook breakfast. Nothing bad can go wrong with doing normal household stuff,right?
(Flashback to Valen lord quest. 2 fire elementals for a sandwich.)
>>
>>3895543
>>3895593
>>3895744
>>3895814
Hope you like canned food, MREs or powdered food.
You are kind of in a bunker, after all.

Writing...

Though if you do have any input on what you can prepare for breakfast, please suggest it.
>>
>>3896662
Spam,powdered eggs,hardtacks,koolaid powder juice,beans and hostess twinkie cream cakes made in 1960's to 1980's
Also grab some ancient discontinued candy .
>>
>>3896662
Only the most succulent protein. What, you don't have Flesh Golem soul yet?
>>
>>3896662
Candied Eggs, Candied Yams, Candied Cod, Candied Beats, Candied Bread, Candied Coffee, Candied Beef.
>>
>>3897157
Are you sure you don't mean "canned"?
>>
>>3897167
No, I do not.
>>
"Fine then, let's go make breakfast the, shall we? Oh and by the way, is anyone else awake yet?" You ask Shirley, realizing that with her usual schedule, she probably woke up way before you did even today.

"Well..." Shirley pauses "I don't think anybody else was up when I heard you start walking off down the corridor, so I can't really say. But breakfast? Well, if you're certain, but I'm not sure just how well that's going to go for us." You briefly wonder the meaning behind Shirley's words, before she starts walking back towards the ladder heading up. Naturally, you follow.

The climb back up to the top level of the bunker is a fairly long one, your thoughts for a moment flicker back to the imposing sealed door, you were only moments away from opening it. But what could be considered so dangerous that it would need to be sealed like that? If Shirley has never seen it open, then whatever it is, it seems likely to be some form of weapon, it's highly doubtful that it's something alive.

When you reach the top floor once more, you make your way back to the kitchen. You ponder on what you could make that will satisfy everyone, perhaps an omelet? Shirley seemed to enjoy hers well enough yesterday, and you aren't quite sure what sort of ingredients you'll have to work with. You open up the fridge... and find it completely empty.

"Yeah, I don't come here all too often so I don't really use the fridge much... or at all." Shirley is quite apologetic about the lack of anything in the fridge. "One of these days I'm going to finally get them to install an elevator instead of that stupid manhole and ladder." Her muttering is just audible enough for you to catch.

"So, do we have any ingredients here, Shirley?"

"Well, of course, but..." she opens one of the kitchen cupboards, revealing dozens of simply labelled tins and various silver colored packets of various shapes and sizes. "This is a bunker, remember?"

This does make cooking anything far more of an issue, as you search through the myriad of freeze-dried, powdered and tinned ingredients.

Looking through the shelves, you find all sorts of bizzare packages and jars, though there aren't any that are of significant interest to you right now.

Eventually, with Shirley's aid, you manage to collect everything you'll need in order to create omelets, and the two of you set about cooking the meal, the preperation for the ingredients to be ready to cook with takes far more time than merely cooking the dish, however.

As you work on the meal, you notice Theresia quietly enter the room, still wearing your oversized woolen sweater from yesterday, you'll have to remember to make sure she gets some new clothes at some point today, she can't just keep wearing that outfit.

Theresia rubs her tired eyes with the sleeves of the sweater, her hands hidden from view by the garment. before taking a seat at the dining table.
>>
The breakfast is nearly done, and it seems as if Holly has yet to wake up. You wonder if it's worth bothering the girl over something as trivial as breakfast.

>Wake up Holly, she's slept long enough.
>Call Holly, if she doesn't respond though, leave her to it
>Let Holly sleep, it's not like it's imperative she eats breakfast. She'll just have to go hungry.
>Write-In?
>>
>>3897241
>Call Holly, if she doesn't respond though, leave her to it
>>
>>3897244
>Call Holly, if she doesn't respond though, leave her to it
>>
>>3897244
>Wake up Holly, she's slept long enough.
Can't be that heavy a sleeper.
>>
>>3897244
>Wake up Holly, she's slept long enough.
>>
>>3897244
>Call Holly, if she doesn't respond though, leave her to it
>>
>>3897244
>Wake up Holly, she's slept long enough.
Is she okay? Sleeping too long is a sign of depression, right?
>>
>>3897244
>Wake up Holly, she's slept long enough.
"I'll go get Holly,don't think she slept at all. Considering that this is also her first time being in fantastical danger."
>>
>>3897292
>>3897311
>>3897559
>>3897688
>Wake up Holly

Writing...
>>
Thinking about some other uses for the Power of Destruction besides the erase tool/invisible baseball of death, I wonder if it would be possible for us to work out some Kenshiro-style delayed reaction punch-explosions. That falls into the category of Destruction, right?
>>
>>3898169
What about controlled excision of matter? Arthur could just put his hand on an object and selectively erase specific parts of that object, not necessarily right where he is touching on it?
>>
Taking another cursory glance over to the dining room and seeing Holly has still yet to make an appearance, you decide it might be best for you to wake the girl. You aren't quite sure what her plans are for today, exactly, but whatever she may intend, it's probably for the best that she eats with everyone else.

"Shirley, what room did Holly sleep in last night? It seems she's late for breakfast and I would hate for her to miss it." You quickly ask, already walking out of the kitchen towards the center of the room.

"Oh, the receptionist girl? Hmm, I think she's in room 1-Q. Just try not to take too long, it's almost done!" She calls out as you walk out of the dining room and into one of the connecting halls. Room 1-B... Room 1-D... Did she seriously choose a room on the other side of the floor? Why?

You pick up the pace and speed up, eventually finding yourself at the opposite end of the bunker, facing door 1-Q. Annoyed at Holly's decision to sleep so far away from the dining room, you knock loudly on the metal door, hoping to prompt a reaction.

After the third knock, you finally get a response "Go away! I'm tired!" It would seem as if Holly here isn't a morning person. Though that's not going to stop you from waking her up, her impolite response has incensed you quite fiercely.

"Breakfast is ready and I've decided that as a group, we should all eat together. Now you can decide to try to go back to sleep, but I'll just keep knocking." You give the girl an ultimatum, and you do mean it. In fact, there's a strangely dark part of you that wants to break the door down and demand she gets up. Before you can question where the sinister thought came from however , her response comes.

"Fine. Just, give me 5 minutes, alright?" Finally, she agrees to get up. You can hear her quickly getting dressed behind the door.

After a few minutes of waiting, you hear a click as the door swings inwards. Rather blearily, Holly walks out of the now open door wearing a white blouse, black pants and a beige overcoat. She adjusts her glasses as she steps into the hallway and straightens up. "Ok then, let's go have breakfast, I guess."

The journey back to the dining room takes a few minutes, but soon you find yourself sat at the dining table with all three girls. Shirley is happily eating the omelet, Theresia is rather slow in eating it, and Holly is eying it suspiciously for some reason. When you try it yourself, you yourself find the dish to be tolerable, you could even call it 'good' when you take into the account the ingredients that you used to make it.

Eventually, the four of you are finished with the meal. You barely managed to finish it, while Theresia and Holly only eat about half of the breakfast. Shirley of course finished hers long before anyone else did and is now pacing around the room on a mobile phone, rapidly texting.
>>
You stare at her walking back and forth, her face unreadable as she does. Eventually, she lets out a sigh as she puts the phone away. "Well." She turns to face you. "I have some good news. The weapon request I put in has been completed, so we should probably go and get that first. Before we go check out this alchemist hideout." She then pauses and looks at the two girls, before getting too close and whispering in your ear "I know you're fine with putting yourself in danger, but do you really want to bring those two with us? They might get hurt." Her voice is grave.

Shirley does make a good point, bringing the girls with you could put them in unnecessary danger...

>Shirley is right, you should leave the two of them here for today.
>Shirley might be right, but you don't want to leave the two down here alone.
>Ask the two what they would prefer to do.
>Write-in...
>>
>>3898169
>>3898430
You don't quite know the limits of the Power of Destruction right now.
But you somehow know that you can use it for more than just the erase tool.
>>
>>3898462
>In fact, there's a strangely dark part of you that wants to break the door down and demand she gets up.
I like this. I like this slow buildup of the Dark Lord Candidate core shit stewing inherently inside Arthur as a character. I'm not sure if the door kicking should be a part of that DLC stuff or part of Arthur's core personality though.

>>3898465
>Ask the two what they would prefer to do.
They should know the dangers and everything going into this. We will NOT split the party, but we should give them an out before we get the weapon and hit the hideout. Maybe we could also put in weapon orders for them too, if they still choose to tag along with us on this quest to get revenge on the alchemists or whatnot.

>>3898557
Is there an upgrade tree for this, or is it straight up different uses of the power along the same vein as something like, say, Shanoa's tattoos?
>>
>>3898465
>>Shirley might be right, but you don't want to leave the two down here alone.
>>
>>3898465
>Ask the two what they would prefer to do.
>>
>>3898568
>Is there an upgrade tree for this?
Hmm, not in the traditional "upgrades with one leading to the next." sense. But there is more to it than just what you've seen so far.
You've already subconsciously activated one of the other applications before. Gaining concious control over more of your powers is a little more complicated though.
>>
>>3898465
>Shirley might be right, but you don't want to leave the two down here alone.
>>
>>3898465
>Ask the two what they would prefer to do.
>>
>>3898465
>Shirley is right, you should leave the two of them here for today.
>>
>>3898465
>Ask the two what they would prefer to do.
>>
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Happy Halloween, everyone.

I'll call the vote when I can start writing.
>>
>>3899195
Found a thing which may be relevant to the quest is you decide to make it obey math:
https://www.omnicalculator.com/other/humans-vs-vampires
>>
>Halloween
>get awful cold and can't breathe properly.
What a horrible night to have a curse.

Anyway, the girls picking wins.
Writing...

>>3899411
Luckily the vampire hunters here are very effective and there's magic to restore recently turned vampires.
Also vampires don't turn everyone they feed on, they aren't zombies.
>>
archive before the abyss gets this.
>>
>>3900141
I've not died just yet and we're only on Page 5
Just overestimated the time I would have to write earlier in conjunction with this horrible cold generally slowing me down.
I'm back writing now though.
>>
"I'll ask them what they want to do then, It's only right I let them decide for themselves, I'd be a terrible hypocrite otherwise." You give Shirley your answer, after all, it's only fair that you let them choose what they are going to do for themselves. Right?

Shirley looks like she might object to the girls getting to choose whether they want to come on this little expedition, but she holds her tongue.

"Theresia. Holly. Today, I'm going to go with Shirley to help put an end to these alchemists that are after me. I'm not going to lie, it's going to be dangerous, and the two of you might get hurt if you come with us... or worse.

"Oh, I think I'll stay here, actually." Holly responds, though it's not the response you were expecting from her at all, not after all that stuff about 'finding the truth' from yesterday.

"Really? Why? You aren't going to find much hiding down here, you know." You can't stop yourself from asking the obvious question.

"Oh, you went to bed last night before I found out about what those computers over there are for, didn't you?" She gestures to the high-tech corner of the room and you spot Shirley grimacing slightly out of the corner of your eye. "Well, it turns out that it's some sort of tactical operations center, and it's got access to an insane amount of information too! So I figured that I could use it to help out. I'm not stupid, I know I'll just get in the way if I go with you."

"Hold on a second, are you sure you know how to use all this stuff?" It looks pretty complex, personally, you wouldn't know where to start with all those machines.

"It's really not as complicated as it looks, not unless you're a complete barbarian that doesn't even know how to hook up a monitor to a computer tower." Her eyes focus on Shirley, who looks visibly annoyed by her remark, you wonder for a moment what happened last night while you slept. "But anyway, I stayed up quite late last night figuring out how it all works, there's quite a few instruction manuals that don't seem to have ever been read either." As she finishes speaking, she opens up a drawer and hands you two small boxes from it.

"What are these?" You ask her as you open the two cases. Inside one is quite obviously some sort of earpiece and in the other is a single contact lens

"These are the two things I'm going to need you to wear in order to help you out, the first should be obvious, it's an earpiece for me to talk to you through. The other is a special contact lens, it's got a high definition camera embedded into it to allow me to see what you're seeing." She says seems quite proud at what she's accomplished. "Try them on!" You do as the girl says, inserting the contact lens onto one of your eyes and clipping the earpiece on.

"Alright, I guess that's you sorted then, how about you Theresia?" You ask the girl standing suspiciously close to you what she wants to do... Did she get closer while you were talking to Holly?
>>
Theresia's response is to simply grab ahold of one of your arms. Guess she wants to come with you.

"You know it's going to be dangerous right? You could get hurt." All this makes her do is grip your arm tighter. Looks like there's not going to be a way to convince her out of this, she just seems so defenseless, you worry about what could happen to her if you can't protect her. But she seems dead set on going with you, it's really her choice at the end of the day. "Fine then, Shirley, let's go."

Shirley opens the rather clunky looking stone doors to the bunker once more through the same mechanism she used yesterday, her blood once again used as a key. You wonder if this is a use of magic or technology, this organization of hers does seem rather fond of both.

You find yourself at the foot of the incredibly long ladder, the climb down might have been a chore, but the climb up will be even worse. Bracing yourself for the day, you feel a strange thrill run through you. You have no idea what awaits you, or why it awaits you, even. You feel excited and you can't explain why, you've never relished being in danger or fighting, so why?

The long ladder climb up takes far more effort than it did going down and you have to take a moment to catch your breath when you reach the top. Shirley once again seems fine and Theresia has that same impassive look on her face she normally does, you're not sure she'd let it show even if she was exhausted by it.

Before you can say anything though, a familiar, fairly surprised voice crackles in through your earpiece. "A-ah! Arthur, It's Holly, can you hear me? I think I just got the transmission working."

"Loud and clear." You give her a simple response before the line goes dark again. Guess she's still setting stuff up.

"OK then, my weapon dealer is a short walk from here, follow me." Shirley starts walking down the alley.

>"Hold on, I want to make a quick detour before we do that. Theresia is going to need some new clothes."
>"Lead the way."
>Ask Shirley something as you walk to the weapon dealer (What?)
>Write-In
>>
>>3900424
>"Lead the way."
Let’s get this show on the road.
>>
>>3900424
>"Lead the way."
>>
>>3900424
>"Lead the way."
>>
>>3900424
>"Hold on, I want to make a quick detour before we do that. Theresia is going to need some new clothes."
>>
Will call the vote shortly.
>>
>>3900424
>"Hold on, I want to make a quick detour before we do that. Theresia is going to need some new clothes."
Buy her a pair of sneakers if she doesn't have any footwear.
maybe a hoodie
>>
>>3900424
>"Hold on, I want to make a quick detour before we do that. Theresia is going to need some new clothes."
Get a dress for her, plus a jacket that fits.
>>
>>3900677
Aaaand now it's a draw.
>>
>>3900424
>"Lead the way."
Big sweater makes her cuter plus stays warm.
>>
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I found that nun Belmont that one anon brought up not too long ago...
Sepia Belmont.
I have questions.
>>
>>3900871
Whaaa...
>>
>>3900875
Ok so she's from some Bomberman spinoff which is just "Bomberman, but cute girls."

Her official bio is...
Well it sure is something.
>"Sister Sepia is a vampire hunter with the blood of the Belmont clan. With affection that runs deeply to the point of madness, she drives into her prey with eternal love!"

Konami why.
>>
>>3900885
Guess I shouldn't be surprised. This is the company that brought us the Castlevania pachinko machine with a tagline of, what was it? "High-impact sexual violence"? Nothing is sacred.
That's pretty ridiculous though. Chainsaw-wielding Belmont nun. It's so weird that I almost hope Arthur runs into her.
>>
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>>3900871
Just give me the fucking IP I'll actually do something worth doing with it goddammit. Fucking konami.
>>
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>>3900900
But anon, there's a mobile game now!
And it even goes out of it's way to let you play as characters from across like 500 years of history because magic time controlling books let you summon them.
Who needs new characters?
>>
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>>3900918
>>
>>3900894
>It's so weird that I almost hope Arthur runs into her
I'll bear that in mind. With what little her bio says I could only write her as a literal love obsessed lunatic though.
I'm quite unsure about trying to include some of these wacky spin-off characters.
>>
>>3900927
No pressure if you don't feel like she fits into the story. I totally get the reluctance.
>>
>>3900979
She... could potentially fit into the story, I'd just have to take some liberties with her character.
In that I'd actually have to give her one.
>>
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>>3900871
>>3900885
I was the one who mentioned she and I half regret it. The chainsaw's interesting, though. And she's apparently Belmont enough to wield Vampire Killer.
>>
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>>3901073
If I included either Sepia or Kokoro, I'd probably just use the concept of their characters and mess around with them in order to have them fit.
It's not like they really have established stories.
>>
>>3900446
>>3900457
>>3900505
>>3900864
Looks like Theresia will have to stay wearing the big sweater then.
Writing...
>>
"Alright, Shirley. Let's go." After taking a moment to consider things, you should probably get on with procuring this weapon Shirley keeps going on about. While you would like for Theresia to get some more suitable clothing, she seems happy enough wearing her current outfit for now.

Once again, Shirley takes you through multiple barely used paths and alleyways. As you take a corner, you decide it might be an idea to converse while you walked, rather than just walking in complete silence again.

"So, Shirley. Just where exactly are we going?" Honestly, getting dragged from place to place with no indication of where exactly you're heading is going to get old.

"It's not far, I had to set up a location this morning and the guy isn't officially a part of my organization, so I couldn't really just show him the location of the bunker. It's supposed to be top secret." Wait, really?

"Hold on, if it's supposed to be top secret... what about Theresia, Holly and I?" Surely she can't have just forgotten something so crucial.

"Oh! Right, about that. Well, you three are now officially recruits of the Dorin Organization!" She happily announces.

Hold on just a minute, what? "Shirley, what did you just say...?"

"Well, I can't just invite normal people into that bunker, and all three of you are now aware of the supernatural, so I sort of had to... conscript you?" Does she even realize what she's saying? She can't just recruit people into some sort of supernatural organization without even telling them!

"Shirley, you... You can't jus-"

"We're here." Before you can finish your sentence, Shirley interrupts you, cutting you off with a cold voice as she comes to a halt. You're stopped in yet another alleyway, it seems no different from any of the others you've walked down this morning. That is until you notice a tall blonde man wearing a gray trench coat walk out from behind a pillar that you didn't even notice. He's carrying a bulky looking silver case.

"Ah! Shirley! It really is about time you showed up, I do hate waiting for my clients." The tall man greets Shirley, smug derision in his tone, there's a faint accent too, but you can't place it.

"Hello Sten, I take it you have what I asked for?" Shirley is acting far differently than she usually does around this man, she's completely serious.

"Of course. I'll be taking the payment first, as usual." At his prompt, Shirley lobs a wad of cash at him, and he snatches it out of the air immediately as it comes into range and starts flicking through it. "Everything seems to be in order then, enjoy." With that, he tosses the case carelessly towards Shirley, who grabs it just as easily as he grabbed the notes.

Shirley unlocks the case for a moment to check the contents before quickly nodding and closing it, despite trying to peek yourself, you couldn't get a good luck at the contents before she shut it again. "It looks fine to me." Her response is brief.
>>
The tall man gives a laugh that sounds mechanical and fake before talking again. "Thank you for your patronage, Shirley. Please don't hesitate to get into contact if we can provide anything else." The man spins on his heel and walks off down the alleyway.

Shirley visibly relaxes as the man turns a corner, taking a moment before she turns around and thrusts the case at you as she smiles. "Open it!"

>Do as she says and open it, you can't turn her down when she's making such an expectant face.
>"Alright, but first I want you to tell me who that man was. If he isn't a part of this 'Dorin Organization' of yours, who is he?"
>"Only if you tell me more about this organization I'm now apparently an official part of."
>Write-In...
>>
>>3901689
>Do as she says and open it, you can't turn her down when she's making such an expectant face.
>>
>>3901689
>>Do as she says and open it, you can't turn her down when she's making such an expectant face.
Renon?
>>
>>3901689
>Do as she says and open it, you can't turn her down when she's making such an expectant face.
>>
>>3901689
>Do as she says and open it, you can't turn her down when she's making such an expectant face.
>>
Will call vote shortly
>>
>>3902058
Thoughts on this?
>>>/v/483587362
>>>/v/483587921
>>
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ALSO WHAT ABOUT PIC RELATED?
>>
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>>3902137
Henry will never not be a silly character. At least Albus, the other gun user in the series, has a magic gun. (And magic in general, including teleport spam.) And he never even once enters the castle anyway.

Running through the Castle with just a gun is by all rights suicide. Especially with all the zombie soldiers we see in the Castle in Aria.

>>3902146
Victor... or Sonia?
Time travel is something that I'm hesitant to include.
For obvious reasons.

Anyway
Open the case is the winner.
>>
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>>3902156
Running through the Castle with just a gun is by all rights suicide. Especially with all the zombie soldiers we see in the Castle in Aria.
But a gun-only run is possible regardless.
>>
>>3902156
I don't mean time travel, just that at least there's a subtle or passing mention of either one if Belmonts ever come into play. I hope not though, because playing as Dank Edgelord Representative in the form of Arthur would still be a lot more interesting.
>>
>>3901689
>Do as she says and open it, you can't turn her down when she's making such an expectant face.
>Write-In...
"If we are recruits of your organization,do we get badges or something?"
>>
>>3902159
That's just cause Soma only has a handgun. What he should have done is found a rifle. Busting down doors with his M4 spitting hate at everything. He never reloads so clearly he's getting ammo the same way the Julius was using his subweapons of unlimited quantity. Full auto, bottomless magazine.
>>
You take the case from Shirley, who's still looking at you, clearly waiting for you to open it. You decide to oblige her, she clearly wants to surprise you with whatever she's got for you.

You place the case down on the floor before kneeling down to unlock it. Slowly opening it, you see that inside the case, embedded in some sort of packing foam, appears to be a beautiful silver revolver, you don't recognize the make, yet it seems rather extravagantly decorated. The whole gun is covered in all sorts of carefully engraved symbols that you don't recognize at all.

You carefully lift the gun out of the case along with the holster next to it, examining the fine firearm in further detail as it shimmers in the morning sun shining through the alleyway.

"Well, what do you think?" She asks for your opinion, though honestly, without actually knowing why she considers it so impressive, you can't really give an accurate answer.

"I don't quite know what I'm supposed to be looking at here, though it is quite beautiful." Shirley obviously wasn't expecting your reaction to lack any enthusiasm at all, and for a moment, she looks completely crestfallen.

She shakes her head and returns to a cheerful disposition once more. "This is, in laymans terms, a magical firearm. It doesn't use conventional ammunition though." A magic gun? Now that is interesting.

"If it doesn't use conventional ammunition, what does it use?"

"Just spin the barrel!" she prompts.

Somewhat bewildered by her instruction, you do just that. Spinning the barrel, which you now see has no space for bullets at all, you suddenly feel a strange drain come over you. the odd sensation ends soon enough. You feel slightly lightheaded as the symbols on the gun glow blue, before fading away.

You stagger backwards for a second before catching yourself, the lightheadedness vanishes and you feel fine once again. This drain was nothing like when you used the Power of Destruction, though you feel the need to ask what exactly just happened.

"Shirley. I would like to know exactly what this gun just did to me, now, if you would." You tell the smiling girl in a stern voice.

"Oh don't fret so much, that's just how it reloads." Shirley's tone switches to one of a teacher, trying to explain something to a student "It transfers the magical energy of whoever spins the barrel into the gun in order for it to create it's bullets. I uh, probably should've warned you though. It's kind of disorienting until you get used to it, and you probably shouldn't try reloading it too much, because you will pass out if you do." She looks you straight in the eyes as she says that.

"Alright alright, fine, but how does this differ from a normal pistol anyway?" You decide to try to brush off the obvious warning with a question. This seems to work, as she continues her explanation.
>>
"I was getting to that, what you're holding there has about the same stopping power as an anti-material rifle, with hardly any recoil. It should be able to punch right through anything that these alchemists can throw at us." You don't think you're ever going to get used to Shirley and her terrible habit of saying insane things like they are completely normal, she continues "While they don't have any sort of holy property, that gun should be more than enough for you to be able to defend yourself without throwing yourself into danger... again." She's quite humorless as she finishes her last sentence.

It occurs to you that it might be a good idea to change the subject before she turns this into some sort of chastisement for your rash actions so far.

>"Right, well I wanted to ask you some things anyway, before we set off." (What?)
>"Let's go put a stop to these alchemists, then."
>"Actually, before we go to this hideout, I wanted to do something else first." (Clothes for Theresia/Other?)
>Write-In...
>>
>>3903553
>>"Let's go put a stop to these alchemists, then."
>>
>>3903553
>"Let's go put a stop to these alchemists, then."
Hopefully we get a chance to walk down a long entryway with oversized drapes and shoot zombies.
>>
>>3903553
>"Let's go put a stop to these alchemists, then."
I'm starting to see a pattern here in terms of weaponry.
Not that I'm complaining, because this plus the Power of Destruction just means we have the arguably top-tier bullshit that is projectile spamming.
>>
>>3903621
>I'm starting to see a pattern here in terms of weaponry.
It's great! We're staying in keeping with our true heritage.
>>
>>3903553
>Clothes for Theresia
Take care of our cute mute
>>
>>3903550
The thing you called a barrel is actyally the cylinder. The barrel is a completely different part that can't be spun.

>>3903553
>"Let's go put a stop to these alchemists, then."
>>
>>3903828
This kids is why you don't push out an update when tired.
I knew this.
>>
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>>3903923
>I knew this.
>>
>>3903553
>"Let's go put a stop to these alchemists, then."
I wonder if we can charge the gun with Power of Destruction to make it fire eraser bullets?
>inb4 this erases the gun instead
best to try with a cheap expendable weapon I guess
>>
>>3903553
>Write-In...
"I was actually hoping the arms dealer would sell more stuff."
>"Let's go put a stop to these alchemists, then."
>>
>>3903828
It's a magic alchemy gun. Maybe you can spin the barrel
>>
>>3904346
It'd be the worst gun for Russian Roulette.
>>
Alright, finally, it's time to go after the alchemists.

Writing...

I did mean cylinder please end my life.
>>
You decide to say the first thing that comes to your mind, rather than letting Shirley keep worrying over you again. "Let's go put a stop to these alchemists then."

Shirley looks as if she's about to say something, but seems to decide against it at the last moment. She's quiet for a moment. She quickly turns away from you. "Alright then. Follow me."

"How far is it, anyway?" You hope it's not too far, you've really had enough of walking around as it is.

"You don't have to worry about that. We won't be going on foot this time, we're actually going to catch a taxi to get there. It doesn't really matter if we use a more public method of transport to reach them. They won't be tracking down the Bunker from just that, especially not from this location."

That makes sense, you suppose. You're mostly just glad that you won't be forced to walk all the way there again. Following Shirley out of the Alleyway, Theresia close behind you, you feel a tinge of uncertainty about heading into danger, but it only lasts for a second before fading away.

Eventually, you find yourself waiting on the side of a road as Shirley tries to attract a taxi, as you wait, you hear a crackle from your ear piece as Holly's voice starts coming through it. "Arthur, you can hear me, right? I think I've got everything set up now, the camera is functioning now as well!"

The sudden out of nowhere happy outburst from the girl catches you off guard somewhat, and you're quite slow in formulating a response. "Oh, that's uh... great! So, you can see what I'm seeing now?"

"Yeah, it's pretty neat, huh?" You should probably remember to take out this lens whenever you aren't on... well, now that you're a recruit of Shirley's organization, you suppose that you could call this 'official business'. Regardless, you don't want anyone to have a complete first person recording of everything you do.

"I should really ask how this is going to help me, I'm not wearing this stuff without a good reason, Holly." You try to remind the girl that this isn't just some big game.

"Oh right, yeah, of course. Well, I'm still learning the system right now, but I think I'll be able to bring up entries of the umm... Monsters, that have been recorded by the computer when you're fighting them." Well, that is useful, actually. Seems like Holly will be of more use to you than you first thought.

"Is there anything else that it can do then?" You press for more info.

"W-well, I'm still sorting through all the files, but I should be able to watch most of the CCTV feeds throughout the city as well. Anyway, I should be getting back to figuring all this out. If you need anything, just click the button on your earpiece." Her voice fades as the line grows silent once again.

Looking around, you see that Shirley has finally managed to successfully hail a taxi, which has just come to a stop in front of the three of you.
>>
Shirley gets in first, with Theresia following slightly behind you. Shirley relays the address of the building to the driver, who nods before he begins to drive towards your destination.

You're in the middle seat, sitting in between Shirley and Theresia. You quickly notice that for whatever reason, it seems that you're the only one actually wearing their seatbelt, the two girls are rather unconcerned about the possibility of a crash, apparently.

You quickly come to the realization that you won't be able to talk about anything relating to the supernatural while the driver is here, so you instead sit in a rather awkward silence, waiting to arrive.

About 20 minutes later, the car pulls up in front of a large mansion, nothing seems too peculiar about the building, well, nothing you can see anyway. Shirley hands the fare to the driver as you get out with Theresia.
In front of you is the hideout of the people who've now tried to have you killed two times, though before you take any actions, you will have to decide what approach you are going to go for.

>Direct, walk up to the front door and kick it down.
>Stealthy, try to enter through one of the windows.
>Patient, observe the mansion to see if you can get a better idea of what to do.
>Write-In...
>>
>>3904978
In your defense, the barrel of a gun is cylindrical and the cylinder of a revolver is shaped like a barrel. It's hardly a ridiculous mistake to make when tired.

>>3905328
>Direct, walk up to the front door and kick it down.
Dark Lord Candidate of Destruction, baby! Tear this place apart!
>>
>>3905328
>>Direct, walk up to the front door and kick it down.
I AM THE HEIR OF THE NIGHT, COME TO VANQUISH THIS TERRIBLE DAY!
>>
>>3905328
>Direct, walk up to the front door and kick it down.
>>
>>3905328
>>Direct, walk up to the front door and kick it down.
Knock knock motherfuckers, the pizza's here.
>>
>>3905328
>>Direct, walk up to the front door and kick it down.
Time to start the party
>>
>>3905328
>Patient, observe the mansion to see if you can get a better idea of what to do.
>>
>>3905328
>Direct, walk up to the front door and kick it down.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7HHkJH_0leU
>>
>>3905339
>>3905349
>>3905355
>>3905363
>>3905366
>>3905548
At this point I should just accept that if there's a door, you're going to try and smash it down.
Actually opening doors is for losers and only thieves go in through the window.

Well, I suppose it's a good way to make a dramatic entrance wherever you go.

Writing...
>>
>>3905328
>Patient, observe the mansion to see if you can get a better idea of what to do.
And then,
>Direct, walk up to the front door and kick it down.
Kick it like a keg of powder!
"How do you like it when someone else ruins your front door you sonuvabitches!"
>Write-In...
Use our normal pistol and shower them with hot lead!
>>
The imposing mansion is laid out in front of you, and within it, the people who dared attack you. While it might be the wiser choice to think of some sort of plan, or to try sneaking in, a rage burns deep inside you. You think you hear Shirley call out to you as you march up to the wooden double doors of the mansion, but you pay it no mind. It's an eye for an eye, after all.

Standing in front of the large wooden doors, you feel like laughing as you draw your new revolver. Did these so called alchemists expect this result when they attacked you this morning? Before you can actually go through with kicking the door down though, you notice Shirley standing next to you.

"The direct route then? Fine, that's how I prefer things anyway. If there's any humans in there, I'll deal with them, OK?" She pulls a handful of knives from somewhere faster than you can perceive. Really, where does she keep those? "Alright then, Arthur, let's do this." With that, she gets into position to kick open her half of the door, you follow suit, getting ready yourself.

Whatever is about to happen, you feel far more excited than you should in a situation like this. You don't feel scared at all, despite the danger that lays within this mansion.

Then, with a brief glance at each other and a nod, you and Shirley kick the doors near-simultaneously.

The two heavy doors loudly slam open, the door bar cleanly snapping in two from combined force of the kick.

You peer inside before walking in, the lobby is rather extravagant, a grand staircase leading to the upper floors dominates the area, finely crafted wooden statues decorate the sides of the room. Deciding that the room is clear, Shirley walks into the lobby, signalling you to follow.

You're standing in the middle of the lobby now, Theresia lagging just behind the two of you, somewhat cautious about entering the building.

Suddenly, your earpiece crackles to life, a somewhat panicked sounding voice on the other end. "Arthur. I don't mean to alarm you, but those statues surrounding the room? According to the information I have here, those are magical guards!" Holly's sudden warning comes a minute too late, as the statues around the room all begin shake, creaking sounds emanating from them as they begin moving towards you. In total, there are eight of them, two block the open doors while the rest begin to encroach on the three of you.

"Holly! Do these things have any weak spots I should be aiming for?" You yell, quite agitated, it would appear as if you have walked directly into a trap.

"Just give me a second and I'll check..." crucial time ticks away as the statues slowly move towards you." Right! The Wood Golems I have on record here all had their power source in their heads! Also, being made of wood, they will burn quite easily... though I doubt you really want to set the whole building on fire at this point." With this information, you're ready to deal with the golems. Though you need to act fast!
>>
>Aim for their heads with your new revolver, you've wanted to see how effective it actually is since you got it.
>Tell Shirley to use her magic to burn them away, you know from what she did to your apartment her proficiency with it.
>Try drawing upon the Power of Destruction to deal with them.
>Climb the stairs while trying to pick them off with your Revolver.
>Write-in
>>
>>3905655
>Aim for their heads with your new revolver, you've wanted to see how effective it actually is since you got it.
Save ammo since it comes from our lifepower.
>>
>>3905655
>Aim for their heads with your new revolver, you've wanted to see how effective it actually is since you got it.
>>
>>3905655
>Climb the stairs while trying to pick them off with your Revolver.
>>
>>3905655
>Try drawing upon the Power of Destruction to deal with them.
We need to build stamina.
>>
GUYS
GUYS
HOLY FUCK
>Arthur Bernhard
>Bernhard
https://castlevania.fandom.com/wiki/Walter_Bernhard
https://castlevania.fandom.com/wiki/Walter_Bernhard_(Lords_of_Shadow)
https://youtube.com/watch?v=6PrHEelh5oo
>>
>>3905655
>Aim for their heads with your new revolver, you've wanted to see how effective it actually is since you got it.
Time for a test run.
>>
>>3905759
>First vampire to face the Belmonts
We certainly have a great destiny to fulfill.

>>3905655
Changing to
>Try drawing on the Power of Destruction to deal with them.
>>
>>3905655
>>Aim for their heads with your new revolver, you've wanted to see how effective it actually is since you got it.
>>
>>3905655
>>Climb the stairs while trying to pick them off with your Revolver.
OPTIC SHOT. STAR SHOT. VERTICAL SHOT.
>>3905759
It took you this long to realize?
>>
>>3905655
>Aim for their heads with your new revolver, you've wanted to see how effective it actually is since you got it.
We can passively regen mana slightly thanks to Power of Destruction, right?
>>
>>3905658
>>3905760
>>3905937
>>3905987
>Go for the heads.
Writing...
>>
>>3906326
Annoyingly, this update will have to wait a little longer, as much as I would like to continue writing it, unforeseen circumstances won't allow me to update again today.
>>
There's no time. You're going to have to stand your ground and hope you can deal with them before they can reach you. Thankfully, the golems themselves are mercifully slow. It seems as if this trap was designed by somebody who imagined that anybody caught within would have no means of defending themselves. A foolish notion.

Taking aim at the golem closest to you, you fire the revolver directly at it's forehead. There's a crunch as a shining white bolt of light crashes directly through the construct's head, it slumps backwards motionless, the top half of it's head missing entirely.

Marvelling at the damage for just a moment, you almost forget about the oncoming danger until one of the fallen golem's comrades shifts a step closer towards you.

They are still far too slow to pose a threat from this distance however. You raise the gun at the golem second closest to you, except just as you pull the trigger, you feel two soft hands grab ahold of your shoulders. You find yourself being dragged to the ground by Theresia just in time to see a large tiled slab fly past where your head was just moments ago. Watching it as it flies, seeing it slam into the far side of the room, embedding itself deep into a thick wooden pillar.

Looking up, you see that you failed to hit your intended target, instead of obliterating the head of the golem, the bullet instead seems to have only glanced off of it's face. The damage dealt looks more deadly than it is, a a wide channel is cut through the side of the golem's face from where the bullet dealt a glancing blow, but the damn thing doesn't seem to even register the damage.

As you get up, you quickly check to see how Shirley is getting on, though you needn't have bothered. She's already dealt with two of them, the handles of two of her knives poking out of the foreheads of the two golems that are slumped forwards, one is even missing it's arms. She's now facing off against the other two on her side of the room.

Not to be distracted from your own enemies, you whirl around, looking for the source of the projectile, quickly you spot it. The Golem standing furthest away from your group is breaking off large chunks of tile from the floor in order to throw them at you

As you bring your revolver up in order to put a stop to this, it seems as if it's allies realize just what it is you're about to do, the two of them block your line of sight on the rock thrower with their bodies. Seems that you'll have to change your tactics if you want to take out the most dangerous of the remaining golems on your side of the room.

>Just deal with the closer ones first if they are going to keep trying to block any potential shots, you'll just have to try to dodge any of those thrown lumps of tile and concrete.
>Try to get a better shot at the golem at the back, going up the stairs should give you a better vantage point.
>Try to dodge around the golems in order to deal with the rock thrower
>Draw upon the Power of Destruction.
>Write-in...
>>
>>3907070
>Draw upon the Power of Destruction.
I'm really hoping this is a "the more we use it, the more attuned to it we become" situation, in keeping with the typical Castlevania RPG mechanics.
>>
>>3907070
>Write-in...
Kick those blocking you.
>>
>>3907070
>Try to get a better shot at the golem at the back, going up the stairs should give you a better vantage point.
>>
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I recently found a DS Igavania Randomizer, while the functionally unlimited content is fun (randomised castle, attacks, enemies, stats, etc) I find the most entertaining part is the option for randomized dialogue.

Here's the link if you're interested.
https://github.com/LagoLunatic/dsvrandom/releases
>>
>>3907070
>Try to get a better shot at the golem at the back, going up the stairs should give you a better vantage point.
>>
>>3907070
>Draw upon the Power of Destruction.
>>
>>3907070
>Draw upon the Power of Destruction.
Triple kill? Also what >>3907100 said about adapting to it.
>>
>>3907100
>>3907137
>>3907624
Looks like Power of Destruction wins then...
Finally.
>>
>>3907883
>this thing made you pass out last time you used it
>let's try it behind enemy lines
Truly the wisest of decisions.
>>
>>3907941
The same sort of thing would happen if a non-Belmont were to start swinging around the Vampire Killer for the first time, it doesn't mean they will never use it again just because of the side effects.

There is another reason you passed out, too, but I'll let you figure out that one.

...can you really say our hero is capable of wise decisions at this point?
>>
>>3907954
Oh I'm just saying there is a time and a place. And sources point to this not being the ideal of either.
>>
>>3907965
You've passed the absolute worst place to use it, thankfully.
>>
>>3907971
On the bathroom door with Shirley on the other side mid-shower? Instant game-over territory there.
>>
You've had enough of these damn golems already. Both these constructs and their masters must be eliminated for daring to oppose you. A sinister thought makes it's way into your head. Usually, you would dismiss a thought like this, but the adrenaline of the situation causes you to go along with it.

With barely any prompting, a dark rift appears in your minds eye, as the pain you're becoming familiar with starts coursing through your veins. You feel it once more, responding to your wishes, that strange deadly energy of the so-called 'Power of Destruction' begins to swirl around your right hand. It stings quite badly as the hand is engulfed entirely in the invisible force.

Yes. This will do.

You dash towards the nearest golem, hand outstretched. The golem moves it's body far faster than it's bulk and walking speed would suggest it capable of as it reaches out to crush your hand within it's own. A huge mistake. The wooden statue doesn't even seem able to comprehend the situation. Instead of it's victim's hand being crushed into a pulp, it's hand has disappeared entirely.

You bring your hand up in an arc, gouging a huge C-shaped chasm straight through the body of the golem and not stopping till you reach the neck head, decapitating the wooden artificial lifeform, the severed head hits the tiles with a heavy thud. You quickly turn to spot a section of the floor being lobbed towards you at high speed once more. There's no way you can move fast enough to dodge it, nor will such fortune as being dragged out of the way of it occur once more. But you aren't worried at all, almost by itself, the shapeless energy forms into a small barrier around your right hand.

You witness the chunk of rock disappear completely from sight as it collides with the barrier at high speed, you don't let such a sight distract you however, letting the energy go back to the formless mass around your hand. You sprint towards the second and now nearest golem, ducking under one of it's attempted attacks as you run your hand through it's legs, cutting it off at the knees as it falls backwards and for some reason writhes uselessly on the floor. For a moment, you wonder if even poor replicas of life like these can pain.

As the golem on the floor struggles, you lock eyes on the last victim as it is attempting to break another section of the floor off to throw at you, even in the face of annihilation, the simple-minded strategy of the last remaining construct remains unchanged. How simple.

You allow the energy to sink back into your body as you look upon the final golem with contempt. Quickly drawing the revolver once more to finish things off. You carefully aim at the last animated sculpture's head as it works on breaking the floor. A single shot is all it takes to put it down, the damage however isn't quite as impressive as the devastation caused by your first shot, but is still enough to blast a hole straight through the golem's forehead.
>>
You look upon your handiwork, the mangled wooden bodies of the golems the direct result of using your power on them. You can't help but wonder how chaotic this scene would instead look if the creatures you were facing were of flesh and bone. You notice that you feel nowhere near as out of energy as you did when you demonstrated the Power of Destruction back in the bunker, before you can think further on the matter, you feel a reassuring hand on your shoulder, spotting Shirley from the corner of your eye with a concerned smile on her face.

"You... You really did a number on them, huh?" Shirley seems to be having mixed feelings about your performance, if the tone of her voice is any indication. "I did tell you not to use that power, but I suppose it can't be helped in situations like these, huh? How are you feeling after that anyway? You aren't going to collapse on me again, right?" Her voice is cheerful but you can hear the underlying worry.

"I'm fine, Shirley. I do feel a little drained after all that, but it's nothing I can't handle, unlike what happened in the training room." You wonder why you don't feel so drained now as you did yesterday. You'll have to figure it out later, right now you're fine, and that's enough for taking down these alchemists.

Shirley makes a concerned sounding noise before she thankfully changes the topic. "Alright Arthur, if we want to find these alchemists, we're going to need to look around, they obviously aren't going to come to us. Anywhere you think we should look first, or should I take the lead?"

You originally see two possible routes you could take, you could explore the ground floor in an attempt to locate your enemies or take the staircase up to the next floor. However, as you get a closer look at the staircase, you spot a small staircase leading downwards directly behind it.

>Search on the ground floor.
>Look upstairs.
>Enter the basement.
>Let Shirley decide.
>Write-In?
>>
>>3908205
>Let Shirley decide.
>>
>>3908205
>Search on the ground floor.
>>
>>3908205
>>Search on the ground floor.
>>
>>3908205
>Search on the ground floor.
"I fully expect some sort of basement level section with manors like these. Alchemists stereotypically have secret labs or similar, right? Why not here?"
>>
>>3908384
wait no there is a basement stair right there, I am retarded my bad
>>
>>3908205
>Let Shirley decide.
>>
>>3908205
>Search on the ground floor.
Complete each floor before proceeding to the next, map completion demands it!
>>
>>3908575
>laughs in speedrunning
>>
>>3908771
>trying to speed through a blind run
shiggy
>>
>>3908776
Not just that but with ironman on as well. Go hard or go home.
>>
>>3908771
Now, I am admittedly biased because I think speedruns are terribly boring in any and all games, but I can't think of a franchise worse for them than Castlevania. The more perfectly you do it, the more effectively you sabotage your own experience.
>>
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>>3908781
And with that in mind, I present the Maxim speedrun.
https://youtu.be/brSsTm_yz0U
>>
>>3908785
And I thought the heart refresh skip in Symphony was bad. Good fucking lord.
>>
>>3908785
When I see things like this, I just can't help thinking "the ultimate speedrun here would be not to play the game at all".
>>
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>>3908791
Eventually, speedrunning conventions will just play the game's final cutscene and credits-scene to save time.
>>3908310
>>3908316
>>3908384
>>3908575
>100 percent map exploration mode initiated
Writing...
>>
"Let's look around the ground floor first, we can't guarantee what floor they are on. Hell, they might all be on seperate floors." You tell Shirley your thoughts, she seems to still be looking over the wrecked golems on your side of the room for some reason.

"That ought to be fine. Luckily, with these magic researcher types, we won't really have to worry too much about them making their escape. Not unless they can escape with all their equipment and research. At least that's how these things normally go." Her face is cold and expressionless as she seems to be remembering something. "Lead the way then, Arthur I'll be right behind you."

Taking her prompt, you head towards the door on the right side of the room. Theresia is still following you, though she's not following as close as she normally is. You hope it isn't because of what she just saw.

Ignoring Theresia's increased distance to you for the moment you push open the door. Or well, you try to, but there's something that seems to be blocking it from opening more than a tiny amount. The door opens further as you apply more force to it, and you hear a ripping sound come from the other room as the door swings open.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O19laNkwLts

The room in front of you is a dining room, or at least was a dining room. Now it's completely overgrown, covered in all sorts of flowers and plants. Furniture is overturned or crushed by strong looking stalks of the various plants. Long grass sprouts from cracks in the tile floor all around the room. The sight nearly makes you take a step back in confusion. Not many people would keep a garden inside like this, and they especially wouldn't allow it to be so poorly kept.

The three of you make your way into the room slowly. Thankfully, aside from the wide variety of plants, it seems as if there's no life or trap to be sprung on you. The room is just quiet, aside from an occasional gust of wind coming through one of the windows causing the foliage to briefly rustle.

You decide to continue on to the next room, aside from the bizarre overgrowth of the plants, there's nothing that interests you. Pushing open this rooms door requires a little more effort to move the vegetation out of the way, but it eventually opens.

The first thing that hits you upon opening the door is the pungeant stench of decay, it's all you can do to prevent your gag reflex from taking over. This room is far more overgrown than even the last one. The entire ceiling is obscured by vines, the only source of light in the room being an exceptionally bright hanging lamp suspended from the ceiling, directly beneath them, the source of the horrendous odour. 4 decomposing corpses lay on the floor underneath the sunlamp, the rest of the plants seem to have been cleared away from them.

Something about this whole situation gives you a terrible feeling in the pit of your stomach.
>>
>Try to avoid going near the corpses, cut through the overgrown parts of the room to reach the door on the other side
>Go back to the lobby and try taking another route, this feels like some sort of trap.
>Inspect the corpses in the middle of the room
>Write-in...
>>
>>3909386
>>Inspect the corpses in the middle of the room
Oh no, please don't show you-know-what this early...
>>
>>3909393
It's not like Alura Une is the only plant based enemy in the series, anon.
>>
>>3909399
I know, but can you say my concern is really unjustified after getting to know the anons?
>>
>>3909412
Not... entirely, no.
>>
>>3909386
Oh boy, trap corpses!
>Go back to the lobby and try taking another route, this feels like some sort of trap.

>>3909399
Thornweeds?
>>
It's a mandragora guys.
>>
>>3909386
>Inspect the corpses in the middle of the room
Time for more destruction!

>>3909393
We're saving our charm for the vampire ojou, anon.
>>
>>3909379
>Go back to the lobby and try taking another route, this feels like some sort of trap.

>>3909552
You mean we're saving our Power of Destruction for the vampire thot, anon.
>>
>>3909603
You mean we're saving the destruction of thot for vampire power?
>>
>>3909386
>Go back to the lobby and try taking another route, this feels like some sort of trap.
Corpseweed? Mandragora? A random bunch of Une? Man-eating Plant?

>>3909393
>>3909399
>>3909412
>>3909416
Fuck you faggots, we're gonna go for the monstergirl route and you'll like it. Also, I think that would be more feasible when Arthur finds out he's a Dark Lord Candidate. Maybe telling them that might help sway them to his cause instead of some other random baddie's? Maybe he can abuse the fact that Castlevania villains don't seem to be doing anything for the monsters that work for them, honestly.
>>
>>3909735
I'm sorry that your sex life is so bad that you have to fantasize about being a monster to keep it together. You have my sympathies.
>>
>>3909747
The fuck kind of heavy-projecting ad-hominem condescending response is that shit?
>>
I'll call the vote shortly.
Now I'm kind of disappointed that I DIDN'T make it Alura Une/Venus Weed.
>>
>>3909791
Don't worry, that time will come in the future. And let's face it, if there WAS an Alura Une in this manor, you bet your ass one of the alchemists will have already tapped that. And if not, and by some miracle 100 things do happen, then how the fuck would Arthur carry her all the way to the bunker in plain sight? One Alura Une is her plus the big plant body you have to uproot and shit. There's no fucking magical forklift or whatever the fuck. And don't get me started on the fucking ladder and sewer pipe. Logistics would make it all impossible.
>>
>>3909422
>>3909603
>>3909735
You know, I wasn't actually expecting you to run.
Alright.
>>3909859
Thanks for the laugh anon, though actually, transporting an Alura Une wouldn't be that difficult if it just retracted into it's Une form. Magic and all that.
>>
>>3909889
>If it just retracted into its Une form
...and now I'm picturing Arthur trying to explain to Shirley why he just *has* to take his new potted plant from the alchemist's mansion home with them, then looking for a room in the bunker where she could bloom to her normal size again without anyone noticing, etc. That'd be a laugh.
>>
>>3909889
The real problem comes with feeding the thing. What with the human blood nutritional diet and all.
>>
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>>3910087
The mental image of first trying to coerce an Alura Une to get into a plant pot is killing me.
>>3910299
They can be fed with demon blood too, so I imagine the blood of any intelligent humanoid is enough for them.
>>
I am still writing by the way. I got called away halfway through it.
I am also having a fun time figuring out how to write you suddenly having the foresight not to walk into a blatant trap.
>>
>>3910314
>They can be fed with demon blood too, so I imagine the blood of any intelligent humanoid is enough for them.

That'd still be a problem though. It wouldn't be weird to anyone we'd be carrying a bucket of blood around?

>>3910324
>I am also having a fun time figuring out how to write you suddenly having the foresight not to walk into a blatant trap.

>Corpses = bad time ergo avoid the corpses
>>
>>3910338
You could just raid blood banks for blood bags.
I'm not sure why you'd go to so much effort for a plant though.
>>
>>3910366
>You could just raid blood banks for blood bags.

>he says as if carrying blood bags around is LESS suspicious
>>
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>>3910376
Not unless you find someone like this guy to hook you up.
>>
>>3910650
The problem is walking past Shirley or Mutey or Deskey with a bunch of blood.
>>
Something about this room is too much for you to stand. It's strange, but the atmosphere of the room is giving you a horrible sensation of ensuing danger, it almost feels as if it might come alive and attack you!

"Shirley. Theresia. I think we should go back to the lobby." You say just loud enough for the two girls to hear you as you try to slowly back out of the room without making a noise. Hopefully if there was some sort of trap in the that room, the act of opening the door wasn't the trigger for it.

Though as you turn to face the prior room, something feels different about it too. Almost as if some of the vines coating the walls have shifted slightly and you could've sworn that gray bulb in the centre of the room wasn't as pronounced. The foliage seems to be rustling more now too, you hope it's just the breeze.

Trying to shake the unease from your head, you head over to the door back to the lobby. It seems like Shirley or Theresia must have closed it behind them. You turn the handle and attempt to pull the door open. Though just as you bring the handle down, the vines surrounding the door-frame seem to come alive! The animated plants quickly slither in front of the door, blocking it's opening as you take a step back in shock.

"Shirley. We... might have a problem here" You begin to turn towards the girl, who doesn't give you a response for a few seconds.

"Yeah, I noticed." As you turn completely, you notice a huge plant in the center of the room, stem whirling about at random as the red flower of the towering plant seems fixed on Shirley, Theresia and you. The flower itself is horrifying. Razor sharp thorns line the edges of the flower, somewhat resembling teeth. The crimson red of the petals are the exact same shade as blood. But worst of all is the pulsating yellow orifice in the middle of it.

"Shirley! What the hell is that thing!?" You can't help but yell in shock. It seems so bizarre, first some wooden sculptures and now some plants? Is everything just going to come alive and try to kill you from now on?

Before you receive an answer from Shirley though, a calm voice starts talking through the earpiece again. "That's a Stone Rose... or more commonly called a Man-Eating Plant. There's not really much information documented on them here, just that the best way to kill them is to slice through the main stem." The voice abruptly cuts off, Shirley is still facing off with the plant, almost as if the two are daring the other to attack first. That's impossible though, right? It's just a plant.

That being said, while the plant seems to not be attacking, you've got the perfect opportunity to take action yourself.

>Try to break through the door and escape the room (Force/Holy Dagger/Power of Destruction)
>Draw both your knife and dagger and attempt to slash the plant's stem
>Rely on the Power of Destruction to slice through the plant.
>Draw the revolver and try to shoot it right in that yellow orifice.
>Write-In...
>>
>>3911234
>Rely on the Power of Destruction to slice through the plant.
Erase tool, don't fail me now!
>>
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I can't believe I forgot to post the image.
Ah well.
>>
>>3911234
Fire our revolver at the plant while advancing to holy dagger range
>>
>>3911234
>Draw both your knife and dagger and attempt to slash the plant's stem
>>
>>3910661
Well WE won't have to feed it after that anon makes a move on it, because it'll eat us.

>>3911234
>Rely on the Power of Destruction to slice through the plant.
>>
>>3911472
>Well WE won't have to feed it after that anon makes a move on it, because it'll eat us.
Fat chance, I'm not a vore person. I'll just take a swim in weed killer. It's totally safe, it only kills weeds. Says so in the name.
>>
>>3911234
>Rely on the Power of Destruction to slice through the plant.
I'd add a more specific strategy suggestion, but this honestly seems to cover it. Just do to that thing's stem what we did to the golems.
>>
>>3911234
>Rely on the Power of Destruction to slice through the plant.
Avoid any seeds or whatever.
>>
>>3911234
>Is everything just going to come alive and try to kill you from now on?
https://castlevania.fandom.com/wiki/Poltergeist
https://castlevania.fandom.com/wiki/Magic_Book
https://castlevania.fandom.com/wiki/Tombstone
https://castlevania.fandom.com/wiki/Killer_Mantle
https://castlevania.fandom.com/wiki/Kyoma_Demon
Is it?
>>
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>>3911609
Don't forget the Ruler Sword.
What a cool sword.

And it looks like you're going to use the Power of Destruction again.
Ok then.
>>
This is your chance to end this fight before it can even begin! While the plant seems to be focused on Shirley, you once again draw upon the Power of Destruction. As you bring the energy out to surround your hand, you feel that the sensation is different from before, when you last used it, the energy seemed eager to follow your command. Now it seems to resist your attempts to manipulate it. Threatening to explode out of control, it's all you can do to keep it contained around your arm. Most alarming of all is that the energy appears to have erased the cuff of your jacket's sleeve as well as a part of the shirt underneath it, luckily, it doesn't seem to be affecting your body.

Trying to focus on both keeping the now unruly Power under control and the fight proves quite difficult, but you manage to snap back to reality just in time to notice a vine begin to creep up your ankle. You quickly bring your fist down on the vine, cutting cleanly through the rogue vine as well as gouging out a sizable chunk of the floor.

You look up and see Shirley dodging at least a dozen of those vines, slashing through them when an opportunity to arise. It seems that you were out of it long enough for the fight to have started properly. Looking around the room, you spot Theresia hiding behind one of the upturned tables.

Shirley seems focused on fighting the plant, though for every vine she slashes through, another takes it's place. Shiley just can't seem to close the distance, and setting a fire here might burn down the entire mansion with you inside. It's a complete stalemate, it appears that neither side can break through the other's defence. Every vine that approaches Shirley is mercilessly slashed apart, but every knife she tries to throw at the main stem of the plant is batted away by one of the constantly sprouting vines.

For whatever reason, since you cut through the first vine, the rest seem to be avoiding you, focusing solely on Shirley. You wonder if the plant has any reason behind it's actions, or if it's acting on some strange predatory instinct. You decide to carry on with your original plan. All you need to do is get close enough to the stem in order to put an end to this overgrown houseplant.

You sneak around the side of the room, trying to keep the monstrous plant from noticing you. As you reach the other side of the room, the flower still faces Shirley, occasionally rhythmically jolting from side to side as it watches her.

Not wanting to waste another second, you charge the monster, hoping to cut it in half without it ever realizing you're even there. Your sprint towards the plant only takes a few moments before you're nearly in range of the colossal stem of the beastly plant, only for it to whirl around, the Red Flower staring directly at you as something appears from what you could only call it's mouth!

Before you can deal a killing blow, the creature fires what appears to be a dark gray skull at you at high speed!
>>
>Focus on destroying the skull, you have your doubts about your ability to survive getting hit by something traveling at such speed.
>Try to dodge the skull and finish the plant off.
>Let the skull hit you in order to ensure you can put an end to the plant.
>Write-In...
>>
>>3912827
>Try to dodge the skull and finish the plant off.
NOPE
>>
>>3912827
>Focus on destroying the skull, you have your doubts about your ability to survive getting hit by something traveling at such speed.
>>
>>3912827
>>Focus on destroying the skull, you have your doubts about your ability to survive getting hit by something traveling at such speed.
>>
>>3912827
>Try to dodge the skull and finish the plant off.
>>
>>3912827
>Try to dodge the skull and finish the plant off.
Wait is this skull attack from Lament of Innocence? Am I remembering right?
>>
>>3913460
It was in Symphony, it petrifies you. I don't remember the stone rose in Lament at all but I can hardly remember that game anyway.
>>
>>3912833
>>3913449
>>3913460
>Dodge and attack
Congratulations on successfully learning how to backdash.
>>
File: sotn backdash.gif (3.55 MB, 400x200)
3.55 MB
3.55 MB GIF
>>3913733
>>
>>3913733
>backdash
aw yiss
>>
Deciding to dodge, you take a step backwards and twist your body around just in time to narrowly avoid the skull. As it passes just by your face, your eyes track it's path without fully meaning to, watching as it slam into a tree near one of the windows. As it hits the tree, it explodes into a cloud of fine gray powder.

The powder seems to have a strange effect on everything it touches, the bark of the tree is now a sickly gray color. It's a similar case with the leaves, which somehow remain perfectly still despite the breeze coming in from the windows causing all but the gray leaves to rustle slightly.

You don't let yourself be distracted by the strange effect of the skull for long, though you're immensely glad that you dodged it now, you don't even want to imagine what that powder would've done had it hit you. You quickly turn back to face the plant fully.

The plant's flower is still focused on you, though it hasn't yet brought any of it's vines to bear against you, which appear to still all be focused on Shirley on the opposite side of the room. You aren't going to give it the chance to use them against you, nor will you allow it to spit another of those skulls at you either, you're going to end this. Now.

The huge flower rears up in preparation to lunge towards you, the intended move is horribly telegraphed, you suppose it really is just acting on instinct after all. You deftly slide underneath the huge flower as it barrels towards you, taking extra care to avoid the razor sharp looking thorns lining the flower's edge directly above your head. The huge stem of the flower is now directly above you, though it's more like a tree trunk than the stalk of any flower.

Just as you're about to bring your arm up to sever the flower from the stalk, you feel a horrible constricting pain around your legs, as countless numbers of the plant's vines sprout from near the base of the plant and begin binding them.

But it's too late to stop you now. You slash your right arm at the stem, effortlessly severing it completely with the energy coating your hand. The decapitated flower lands next to your head with a heavy thud, uselessly snapping open and shut as it uses the last of it's energy. The vines binding you lose the strength they had as the stem shudders. You take this to mean the monster is dead, thankfully it seems Holly's information was correct, though the entry could certainly stand to have a few amendments made to it.

While the plant might be dead, it's stem is still positioned directly over you, a green fluid seeping from it. Then you realize that without the 'head' keeping it animated, it's going to collapse directly on top of you! You try your hardest to break the now inanimate vines binding you, but try as you might, your legs are still bound by the damn things. Looking up at the plant, you see that your struggles were all for naught, the huge stalk moments from crushing you.
>>
>>3915190

You close your eyes and brace for the impact, you hope it's lighter than it looks, but you doubt it. Luckily, the impact never comes, you wait a moment before opening your eyes, only to see Shirley standing over you, the stem seems to have somehow missed you, though upon looking at Shirley you soon realize the reason it didn't crush you is because she somehow saved you. The strange green 'blood' of the plant coating one of her legs is evidence of that. You only now take a look at Shirley's clothing and realize just how impractically she's dressed for this activity , does she really think that short blue dress she's wearing is practical at all? Not that you can really talk, considering that you're wearing an expensive suit which is already ruined, but it does make you wonder the logic behind showing skin when you're assaulting an enemies fortress, is she really that confident?

You shake your head as you realize that Shirley is cutting the vines binding you with a knife and soon your legs are free again. You brush yourself off as you get up from the floor. A silence hangs over the room as the two of you look at each other, once again Shirley is making a complicated expression, while you just can't find the right words to say.

"Are you OK?" The silence is broken as Shirley eventually decides to ask how you're doing.

"I'm fine, my legs feel a bit sore from those vines, but I'll be alright, moving won't be a problem, at least." You answer her, somewhat downplaying the pain those vines dealt you. You feel like with the amount of pressure being exerted on them, your bones should have broken. It's really a miracle that they didn't.

Looking over at the dead flower, now motionless and fully open, you notice what seems to be some kind of fruit has sprouted from the yellow orifice in the center. Purple in color, it's like no fruit you've ever seen before.

>Pick the fruit and take it.
>Pick the fruit and eat it immediately, what's the worst that could happen?.
>Leave the fruit.
AND
>Return to the Lobby and check the other side of the mansion, you might have more luck going that way
>Return to the Lobby and check the basement, it's the most obvious place for their laboratories
>Return to the Lobby and check upstairs, there's bound to be something up there.
>Try going back to the room with the corpses in it. (Write-in what you want to do there)
>Write-in...
>>
Oh man, we're on Page 10 again?
It might be an idea for me to make a new thread and repost the update there...
>>
>>3915195
>Pick the fruit and take it.
>Return to the Lobby and check the other side of the mansion, you might have more luck going that way
>>
>>3915195
>>Pick the fruit and eat it immediately, what's the worst that could happen?.
>Try going back to the room with the corpses in it. (Check corpses)
>>
>>3915195
>Pick the fruit and take it.

>Return to the Lobby and check the other side of the mansion, you might have more luck going that way
>>
>>3915195
>Pick the fruit and take it.
>Return to the Lobby and check the basement, it's the most obvious place for their laboratories
>>
>>3915190
>the intended move is horribly telegraphed
Dumb enemy AI at its finest :^)
>You deftly slide underneath the huge flower as it barrels towards you
Nice, we got the slide too.
>While the plant might be dead, it's stem is still positioned directly over you, a green fluid seeping from it. Then you realize that without the 'head' keeping it animated, it's going to collapse directly on top of you!
Oh yeah, that's the actual death animation where segments of the stem collapse down and can damage Alucard if he walks into them. Nice touch!
>You only now take a look at Shirley's clothing and realize just how impractically she's dressed for this activity. Does she really think that short blue dress she's wearing is practical at all?
I like how Arthur acts like an everyman sometimes, pointing out this quirky Japanese shit around him.
>Not that you can really talk, considering that you're wearing an expensive suit which is already ruined
Then again, he's as much part of the world as anybody is, meta jokes aside. He cannot escape it either.
>it does make you wonder the logic behind showing skin when you're assaulting an enemies fortress, is she really that confident?
Nah, it's just Castlevania. Or rather, it's a Japanese franchise.
>You feel like with the amount of pressure being exerted on them, your bones should have broken. It's really a miracle that they didn't.
You did this again back when Arthur got flung by the blue demon into the pillar and his back didn't break. I like how you keep a lot of realism in this quest in regards to Castlevania shit, but you also blend in "game" stuff too.
>>
>>3915195
>Pick the fruit and take it.
Who knows what it could do?
>Return to the Lobby and check the other side of the mansion, you might have more luck going that way
EXPLORATION
>>
>>3916139
>we got the slide
TAS when
>>
>>3916148
>Arthur enables TAS somehow
>Power of Destruction enables boundary breach
>Arthur runs and jumps at sanic speed
>glitches through walls and up/down floors and through objects
>any%'s and becomes successor to Dracula within 2 hours
>>
Oh shit, Page 11
New thread soon



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