[h3]Hokkaido[/h3]
[@Medjedovic][@TheFake]
After a good while of chatting, walking and almost freezing to death in the metal suit, Rook had reached the town with Node. He was certainly not a feeble man, but even the warmth of the sun seemed unable to defeat Hokkaido's frozen terrain. Tough as he was, there would be no avoiding a cold for him, but at least he managed the town before suffering hypothermia. It'd be best for him to get inside as soon as possible, but the locals looked rightfully distrusting of the man in full plate.

In the town, there were plenty of public buildings, but moving around was going to be difficult due to the less-than-subtle presence of Rook in his armor. The duo could barely take three steps into the town before a woman, of approximately 50 years approached them. "Oi! What's your business here, stranger?" Alongside the woman a few other people slowly gathered. People started riling each other up and mumblings like "You better not be planning something." and "Someone like that can't be up to any good." started to form in the crowd. They definitely seemed on edge, but it was not hard to figure out they expected Rook to be up to something. 

Node, meanwhile, received little to no glances of suspicion, in fact, she was almost ignored entirely. Node could probably walk away without any real effort, but since she was wearing his cloak, she was faring a lot better in the cold than the knight himself.

[hr][h3]Aomori[/h3]
[@LazyJustice][@Progenitus]
Frowning slightly upon the fallen angel's introduction, the jester sighed. [color=6ecff6]"I know what you do, don't try to make me the bad guy in this. As for a name, no matter how much I'd like to give you one, I am unfit to wield it. Instead, please refer to me as a jester, for it is the closest description of who I am now."[/color] 

As Anathea introduced herself and turned to him, the 'clown' slipped a small notebook out of his sleeve and wrote down a few things while she spoke. He nodded boredly while she asked her questions in long-drawn sentences, eliciting a yawn before the end of it. When she eventually finished, the jester closed the notebook shut with a loud clap. [color=6ecff6]First of all, I'm not a clown, I do not make my living in the circus. I am a jester, which means that I mock and jest, and you, young lady, are very suited to be mocked right now. One does not make a feeble attempt at insult before expecting information, it is inefficient as you'll drive the person you're questioning to be unwilling to answer.[/color]

The jester's mask warped into a smug grin. [color=6ecff6]"Of course, as such a [b]benevolent[/b] host, I'll still be so [b]kind[/b] as to answer your [b]pitiful[/b] questions... Perhaps."[/color] The jester emphasized each word the praised himself or mocked his opponent, clearly trying to draw out some reaction. [color=6ecff6]"While it is true that this world isn't a beatly mess like your own, it isn't entirely without merit. The few people who think like you have mostly ended up as stains on the street, after throwing themselves from a high building. Any lack of purpose you'll find stems from yourself, purpose is something one grants oneself here."[/color] 

Agonizingly slowly, the jester spoke his next sentence. [color=6ecff6]"As for your brother..."[/color] His mask briefly turned contemplative, but soon returned to the sadistic grin. [color=6ecff6]"Who knows? I'm sure he's having a blast right now, so why don't you relax a little, too. No need to be shy, we're all friends here, after all. Get to know your partner here, make some new friends, find the ones who dictated your fates, have a good time in general, that kind of thing."[/color] 

After barely a moment, the jester hit his fist into an open palm in a gesture of mock-surprise. [color=6ecff6]"Don't tell me, you still rely on your older brother, despite being old enough to be expected to be independent? That's adorable! Frankly, he kind of has to be south of here, since we're pretty much to the northern end of Japan, well, there's also Hokkaido, but that place doesn't matter, does it?"[/color] It was just a little too clear, everything from the way the jester spoke, to his body language, it all indicated he was trying to hide something.