[IC] SAO: Living in Aincrad

[Little_ninja]

Umichi

Hearing Suki say "Sounds good", and follow after him, Umichi walked over to a table and sat down. It seemed that Ritaka and Aikoto had gone to do other things, without telling them. Seeing a menu pop up, Umichi went on to order the Katsudon. A standard pick for himself. Also, it felt like it would help him finish this game, having Katsudon as his first meal. Turning to Suki, he smiled seeing her smile and relaxed.

She then squirmed, looking around again. Umichi wondered what she was doing. Then she suddenly shifted slightly, speaking to him, "hey, Umichi...What do you think's going to happen back home?" Umichi leaned back, folded his eyes and took a deep breath. Back home huh ... Wonder what's the best way to say some of this he thought for a moment.

Leaning back forward, he spoke to her, "Well, it's likely, that, people will be sad, they will be upset, and may despair a little." He paused for a moment. "But, they will hold on. They will hope and pray for us to come back to them. They probably don't know what it's like in here. They don't know, if we are fine or not, happy or sad. Nonetheless, we must be strong. We should live on, to answer those hopes and prayers. Instead of making them worry, we should do what we can, and have fun while doing it. You don't want your family and friends to end up sad right? I'm sure they also don't want you to be sad. So, do your best, and smile. Try to have some fun. There's so much to do in this world, so why not live a little? I am sure they would prefer it if you were at least having fun all the way. That they would want to hear of the fun when you return to them. Until then, stay strong and be happy." Looking towards her, he gave a soft, kind smile. "So let's do our best, and have fun doing it. Okay?"

Umichi wasn't sure what to really say, he tried his best to comfort her at least. However, in the end, he believes he needed to hear those words for himself. Words to give him strength as well. He then apologized, a little randomly, "Sorry. I am not sure if you wanted to hear something like that. Especially what I said at the start. Anyway, what did you order?" As he spoke, Umichi could see that Ritaka was coming back. "Hey, where did you go? You seem awfully pleased with yourself. Anyway, you should sit down and order something to eat." He suggested.

@Caits @Savo @Ebil Bunny

---

YukiHana

Before Nagayama and Jax left to search, YukiHana could hear her name. "HANAKO!!!"

Jumping up, she tried to look around, however, her tears blurred her vision. She sniffled one last time, and said, "I can hear him." She turned her head around but still couldn't see. "OJII-SAN!!!!! She called out once more. "WHERE ARE YOU, OJII-SAN!!!!?" YukiHana continued to call out. Lowering her voice to speak to Jax and Nagayama, "Can you see Ojii-san?" She started to wipe away her tears in an attempt to clear her vision a bit.

@Stale Pizza @Eklispe @Thanatos @Animus

[LokiLeo789]

Lao Jaximas

Current Info

Level
3

Current EXP to next Level [208/825]

Col: 240

Stats
Strength: 8
Health: 600
Ability: 8

Weapon Skills
-One-Handed Sword Skills
-Katana Skills
-Martial Arts

Combat Skills
-Parry
-Battle Healing

Passive Skills
-Acrobatics
-Hiding
-Sprint
-Tracking

Current Equipped Items
Light Leather armor
One-Handed Blade

@PKMNB0Y
@Little_ninja
@Ebil Bunny
@Caits

Lao leaned back in his seat and literally, twirled his thumbs in bordum. Lao did not know how long it took for a NPC to make food in the game, but it would have been right to assume it could have not took to long. He could not help but think if they really did need food, was it really necessary. It may have been an addition to keep them sane in this game, have something from home, something that every normal human did. But it may have served to make the sane, insane, the constant reminder of the real world's food was a struggle that many would have faced. Maybe he was just reading into everything to much, which was a thing he did every once and a while.

Lao noticed that there were more people here also, 2 players by the looks of it. It was safe to assume he was not the only player that had made it to this town. As much as Lao wanted to greet them, he wanted to be alone at the moment. It was just a feeling that came over him once and a while. If they wished to speak, the could, but for now, Lao would not initiate.

Eventually, that NPC appeared once again, but this time with his food. Lao could not help but admire the smell, despite knowing that it was all virtual. The NPC placed it in front of Lao and opened up the lid. Stem billowed from the stack of ribs underneath, or that is what they looked like. The game called them Galbi, a food that Lao was no familiar with, or was sure came from the real world. On his interface, a not popped up with a description of the food.

Made with beef ribs thinly cut across the bone. Its name derives from the way it is prepared; the letters L and A come from the first two letters of "lateral," as the ribs are sliced in this manner. It is prepared in the same way as regular galbi, except that the ribs are cut differently. South Korean-owned restaurants made galbi with these thinner cuts of beef with several ribs. This variation has since made its way back to South Korea as well.

Lao frowned, the explanation did nor so much to install confidence in the meal, but at least it was real world food. Despite that, Lao would eat it anyway, he was not going to pay 70 Col for 6 ribs and not eat it. Lao brought his hands together for a quick prayer before digging Into the food. He picked up one and bit into it, despite his earlier thought, the food was great, it tasted amazing. Lao are faster and faster, before he knew it he had finished all six, even eating the the last one in two bites. His plate disappeared and Col was taken out if his account and what not. Lao stood up and was about to make his way back to his room, unfortunately, fatigue coupled with a full stomach made Lao very drowsy. Before Lao knew it he had it the ground face first and was asleep, his whole body face down.

[Aerandir]

"Well this is interesting ...." William or Fenros that is, said after the huge reveal that this is. Death game. He was of course scared, who wouldn't be but he soon became somewhat excited. BasicLly this was his life now, a medievalist time period as a knight. Something he always dreamed to be. He wasn't too worried about the game, he knew the general gist of the bosses and how to stay alive, only dying three times in the beta version. Having always had a personal goal of never dying in games anyway.

He made his way through town watching people as they scurried around trying to find partners and learn all they can before heading out, now even scared of the basic wolfs on this floor. Fenros has already reached level three in a few hours on his own before the announcement.

Walking into a tavern he knew he could be a solo player with no real issue for the most part but he also knew he would need help later on. The best choice is to have a group that works extremely well together stick together till the end, where they would be an unbeatable force.

With that in mind he walked to the bar and turned toward the people inside, most of the groups seemed pretty well balanced save for one. Two girls and a man. By the looks of them they were light and medium weapons by the look of it. He then made his way over to them.

"Excuse me." He waited for them to look at him and then continued. " sorry I couldn't help but notice that you do not have any heavy weapons /armor expert with you, which would be extremely handy on the battle field. I will be the tank if you will."

He smiled, which he then said, "My name is Fenros, and I am also an a Beta user, so I know my way around pretty well to level up quickly."

@KOL @Asuna Yuuki @PKMNB0Y

[Ebil Bunny]

@Savo@Caits@Little_ninja

- Ritaka -
"I do have something to eat, in fact." Ritaka said, trying not to grin too widely, but not succeeding very well. So much for a great surprise.

Ritaka opened his menu, turned to his inventory, and selected several items, of which then appeared.
"I may have over spent, but totally worth it!" Ritaka said, laying several pies, cakes, and other delicious pastries on the table.

"Help yourselves, on the house!" Ritaka said, "And if you don't know what something is, then that makes two of us."

Ritaka took a slice of cake, leaned back, and enjoyed it's wonderful cake-y goodness.

[MarshiestMallow]

Suki frowned as Umichi spoke, but in a few moments, it smoothed out into a thoughtful expression. She could say that she was just worried that her family wouldn't survive without her, but that would just be her worrying that they couldn't go on, someone else would just have to get Lucas up as the youngest of her older brothers had a tendancy to sleep in. Someone else would just have to get breakfast cooking. Maybe one of them would actually learn to cook good food. She laughed softly to herself at that thought.She nodded and smiled "thank you" she said softly, looking over as Ritaka rejoined them.

She smiled once more as he showed them an array of food. She hesitatingly grabbed a pastry, trying it. It didn't taste like any pie she had ever had. In fact,
It had a slight....jam like taste. She was pretty sure it wasn't meant to be a desert and found the taste, while not something dinner worthy, was nevertheless enjoyable. She glanced about, looking for Aikoto, hoping that they had all gotten to the town. She hadn't thougjt to check

Doing so down, she shoved the remainder of the small pie in her mouth, chewing as she used both hands to check her player interface, pulling it town, she accessed the party, finding Aikoto's name. Well, he was in the town at least. She supposed he would join them later. She swallowed and said with mild amusement, "does anyone else find the food has an odd taste?" as she selected another pastry, this time something that looked like a chocolate exclair, but tasted like something savory as she bit into it. She chuckled with amusement, opening her guide book.

There was something about professions in it. Not that she couldn't increase her cooking skill without a profession. She wondered if you could mix flavors together to actually get things like soy sauce, or proper flavors from the real world. It would be interesting to find out.

@Ebil Bunny@Little_ninja@savo

[hivekiller]

Jason/Scythe

It was harder than I thought... Jason, or his IGN - Scythe was practicing his sword skill like most of the new players on the field just beside the Town of Beginning. The field was mostly made up of scary dire wolves and frenzy boars, even Scythe played a lot of RPG before the chaos happened, it was still very scary to face the real thing face to face. At least the field has enough wolves and boars for all the players that would like to practice their combat skills and level up like Scythe. After training for two hours, he finally managed to level up twice very fast to level three. Scythe took his time looting the prize he defeated earlier, some meats from the boars and leathers from the wolves.

Scythe went back to the Town of Beginning and sold all the loots he got, he then went to the weapon merchant to purchase himself a better blade. Monsters here gives low experience points, I probably should move on to a new area... Scythe open his map and found out that there was a village not far from the Town of Beginning, which was "Goniku Village".

While on the way to the Goniku Village, Scythe's real life memories started to appear in his head. "How ironic... I started to miss my old life already, even this chaos thing just happened few hours ago." He mumbled to himself, as he remembered that the song of "Sing, Sing, Sing" by Benny Goodman can be heard every time he walk past the Kyoto Tachibana High School, as the school band was practicing their performance song in the field beside the main road. Scythe will walk pass the Momoyama Elementary School after that, there were always kids playing around cheerfully with each other which somehow will light up his mood a bit.

Scythe finally reached his destination, and tons of players were already made it there before him. The village can be described as designed behind a big lake. The settlement in the village itself looks luxuriant. With its spruce wood rooftops, chiseled stone walls and ever clear night sky, Goniku Village has a pleasant atmosphere. Merchants and players can be found on the both sides of the main road, negotiating with each other for a better price or discounts. Since Scythe had traveled a long way here, it was the right decision for him to find a good inn and order some foods to fill his hungry stomach.

Scythe found an Inn. From what he saw from the outside, the inn looks enchanting, cheerful and cozy. Logs and tree trunks make up most of the building's outer structure. It's impossible to see through the large, curtained windows, but the music and voices from within can be felt outside. As Scythe entered the tavern through the old, hard wooden door, he was welcomed by aromas of roasted meats and joyful music. "Jeez, there are more players in here than I thought." as Scythe walked slowly around the inn to find a good spot to sit down and order some good food. The tavern itself is packed. Players just like Scythe seem to be the primary clientele here, which could be seen as the best sign you can get. Several long tables are occupied by several smaller groups of people. The other, smaller tables are also occupied by people who seem to be close with the owner, though they happily welcome others among their midst. Even most of the stools at the bar are occupied.

[Asuna Yuuki]

@Aerandir @KoL @PKMNB0Y

"Hello, Fenros," Asuna says quietly, not moving from her spot. "Thank you for your offer. We were just discussing how we are going to continue. You will have to ask this girl here on whether you can join, she brought us together. However, you may sit down if you wish." She was somewhat cautious of this new person, due to his directness and his bluntness. She had known they would probably need someone with heavy weapons, expecially if the others didn't have as high a level as she did, but she knew that some people may choose to be the villains in this game. Her friend had met several of that kind as a betatester. Still, this guy didn't have an orange cursor, so she hoped he was okay.

[Stale Pizza]

@Little_Ninja @Eklispe @Thanatos @Animus

Masae bit her lip and looked around; if she wasn't going to answer her, then things were going to be far more difficult. Jax was turning quiet, and so they needed a change of plans. "Yuki, if we can't find your grandpa, we might have to find somewhere to sleep for the night..." she responded to her, expecting the worst to happen.

Only that it didn't, when she heard a nearby "HANAKO!". Immediately, Yuki-Hana jumped up, and she looked around in response. So the girl's real name is Hanako? Either way, Hanako began to call back, and Masae tried to trace where the voice was, slowly moving towards the source. "Yuki...Hanako, follow me," she commanded, moved through the sparse crowd to see...an old man and a man who also appeared around her age. Surely this old man is her "Ojii-san"?

Masae glanced back at Hanako and Jax, if the latter had decided to follow them. "Is this your Ojii-san, Hana?" she asked.

[Animal]

Cam-Cam

There was a moment of silence between the two when the girl delivered the bad news in attempt to give Cam-Cam's hopes up. He just stood there without saying a word, blinking at her awkwardly. When the girl took a couple of steps back, he just followed her footsteps and kept the same short distance between them. Talk about invading her personal space...

However, that all changed the minute she offered him dinner. What joy! "DINNER?! Oh thank god! It has been awhile since I have eaten some munchies! I left a bed-load of snacks and drinks on my bed that has yet to be opened! What a waste! But it's okay, because we can eat together! Like friends do! Hehe~" He cheerfully stated. It seems he throws around the term 'friend' a bit loosely, so it wouldn't be hard for the girl to take advantage of it, if she hadn't already. The girl would see him pull up his map now and placed a way point on the nearest tavern, which was a couple of blocks from them.

"I've been slaying pigs and taking their skin so I can make myself a hat! I still haven't figured out how to yet, but I will soon! Say, maybe I can make one for you! Yes, that is what I will do! You will have a pig hat with the little ears sticking out, like how I want mine! Which reminds me...okay, so we will go to the tavern now and I will tell you a secret! But only if you promise to introduce me to your friend! The more friends the better! Okay? Pinky promise?" He requested as he stuck out his pinky finger to her. The thought process that goes through this boy's mind is unbelievably random, has he caught on to the girl's lie already and will she accept his hat offering? The image of her wearing such a ridiculous hat alongside with this boy is bound to cause more grief for her. The main issue is regarding this 'secret'...is that the girl would be able to tell he was sincere about it, judging by the honest look on Cam-Cam's face. The question was, how will he react when he finds out that this imaginary friend of hers does not exist?

@Lennon79

[PKMNB0Y]

Fujiwara

"Can't say you're wrong there, but it'd be bad if we went around mindlessly following orders without at least some form of consent..." Fujiwara stated, shaking his head at Asuna. "And there's no need for introductions; our names are right up there."

Motioning towards the general location of the party listing on his HUD (and, by extension, everyone else's), Fujiwara stopped his snarky actions to drink some of the water that was given to him. Definitely better than alcohol.

The entrance of a new person and Asuna's subsequent reaction were... Well, contrary to what he would've wished. A 3-man squad was much more mobile and much easier to work with, but past experiences with anything more were purely business related. That being said, though, trying to monopolize a future blacksmith was pretty greedy to begin with. Oh well, the issue was probably best left to Minako... Or something. Even so, he was still a beta tester...

Which meant he might try to gimp them later on to tag along with a better party. Not worth.

"Fujiwara. As our friend here has said, it's up to the leader to decide on that issue. That being said, though, I'm not sure if someone with prior knowledge of the game should be tagging along with us. After all, you probably have some friends that you made during the beta floating around waiting for you somewhere, right?"

Yes, that comment sounded way more dickish than it should have been, but to Fujiwara it seemed like the truth. Especially given the man's demeanor so far...

@KoL@Asuna Yuuki@Aerandir

Ayame

Ayame looked at Rey, then at the minimap, before shrugging. She seemed to be a bit to occupied with something else (maybe the exhaustion after running?), and since they were in a safe zone it was probably okay to let her catch her breath for the moment.

"Well, in any case, I'll see you later. Gonna make sure that we both have a room for the night, then." Ayame said joyfully as she walked off into the town.

After a half an hour or so of exploration, Ayame found herself staring at the door to the tavern/inn that Lao seemed to be in on the minimap. Given that she had promised Rey to do so before her little bout of exploring, Ayame entered the building...

Only to see Lao passed out on the floor. Ayame sighed, a slight smile on her face as she casually paid for two rooms- one for herself and one for Rey to use whenever she arrived. With that completed, Ayame walked over to the now-unconscious Jax and attempted to lift him up. He wouldn't budge. Great. From what she had heard from the receptionist at the desk, he already had his own room...

The question now, though, was how to get him there.
@ItsToppyTippers@LokiLeo789@Little_Ninja@Caits@Ebil Bunny

[Animus]

@Little_Ninja @Eklispe @Thanatos @Stale Pizza

Moments after the old man’s yell, the shout of a little girl could be heard.

Well this confirms it, thought Natto. He was glad that the situation was going to be solved so easily. Then again, it was unlikely that Hanako would have wandered off. Judging from the way the old man was acting and the sound the voice that responded to them, Hanako was a young child.

“Well, ain’t that good for you, Ojii-san?” Natto gave a warm-hearted smile and nodded towards the direction that Hanako shouted from. Though several people were now blocking the view between them, Hanako appeared through them, apparently being led by a teenage girl and boy. Were they siblings?

"Is this your Ojii-san, Hana?"

First name basis. But it didn’t seem like she knew the old man. Although this was a perfect opportunity to get the party he wanted, Natto didn’t exactly embrace the idea of joining into a party that had an old man and a young child, as cruel as that sounded. There was bound to be complications considering «Sword Art Online» was now a death game. However, he decided he was obligated to at least stay around and accept thanks before deciding whether or not he should leave them be.

Deciding he wouldn't interrupt Hanako's reunion with her Ojii-san, Natto directed his attention to the older girl. “Are you guys acquaintances or something? What do you plan to do now that «Sword Art Online» has come to this?” It was rather direct but there was no need for pointless banter considering the chaos that was happening.

[KoL]

@Aerandir@Asuna Yuuki[@PKMB0Y]

"Alright, I think that division is good enough for me." Minako said after she founded settling the terms of her agreement with her companions.

Right after that someone calling himself Fenros came in and asked to join they as a heavy infantry member. Asuna asked the boy to share a place at their table before Minako could say anything, not that she would have refused the boy's help anyway, actually all that help that they could get would be most appreciated.

Turning towards the boy, she said, "Well, I guess I am quite lucky today, eh? I didn't even needed to search for another people to round our numbers. Though I don't know if we'll find enough materials to make a new weapon for you too, you're more than welcome to join us, Fenros-san."

Then, Minako gave firm handshake to their new member before inviting him to the party and introducing herself,"I'm Minako, the aspiring blacksmith, and contrary to what my antisocial partner here thinks, in business it's common courtesy to introduce oneself even if you already know the other party's name."

"Talking about him," said Minako refering to Fujiwara, "I guess that now that Fenros-san is here, Fujiwara-san doesn't have to spend the night alone while we girls share a room. That's if Asuna-doesn't have any objections, of course."

Minako then stand up from the table and moved towards the door before saying, "Either way, it's better that we find an inn to stay now, because we're leaving at first morning light tomorrow. Oh, I almost forgot, by the way, Fenros-san, we're going to the swamps north of here in search of crafting materials and treasure." She said before leaving the tavern.

"Strike fast and strike hard, that's the only way for a businessman to survive in this unreasonable world." Minako repeated the words that she heard from her father after leaving the tavern and going to the inn on her own.

[Eklispe]

Jax grinned surpised at how easy it had been, what a stroke of good luck, perhaps a good omen to start off this death game, at least it seemed unlikly that there where any other old grandpas wandering around in a place like this. He shrugged and responded to the guy who was hanging out with the grandpa, "Well we know each others names so I guess we are acquaintances at the very least. As for what we plan to do next, kill stuff until we win I guess, thats the point of the game right?" Jax said cheerfully. "Although since we are already in a party, care to play with me? At least for a little while, seems like the more the merrier in a place like this." He said to Masae gesturing around.

@Animus@Stale Pizza@Little_ninja@Thanatos

[Asuna Yuuki]

@KoL@PKMNB0Y@Aerandir

"I apologise. I was not sure if... Wait. How did you know my name if I had not introduced myself yet?" Asuna looked at the party list and nodded. "I see. I didn't realise our names were listed. And I am Asuna, if introductions are as necessary as you say." She looked at the others. "I'm fine with sharing a room with you, Minako."

She stood, and, after nodding at the other two, she followed Minako out of the tavern and towards the inn.

[KoL]

@Asuna Yuuki

"Phew! I don't know about you, but for me that was a tiresome day." Minako said, addressing her new roommate, after dropping in the bed like a rock. "To be sincere, I still can't believe that until a few hours ago I was doing my geometry homework and now, after that mad man's speech, knowing that all the effort I've put on it, even though I hate that, was for nothing, just makes me want to laugh... I just wonder, why I can't bring myself to it?" Minako breathed deeply and rubbed her eyes with the bakc of her armor clad hand, trying to control her emotions. If her partners thought that she was weak or fragile they could easily exploit her, but... she stole a quick glance of the other girl... if it was another girl, even if she looked to be a couple year younger than her, maybe she could understand, without Minako having to go out of her way to say what she, no, what everyone in this game was feeling right now.

"Either way, I guess I'll have to deal with it for sometime. But..." Minako suddenly stopped talking and made a surprised face, "How stupid of me, hehe," with a motion of her hand Minako summoned her interface and removed all of her equipment leaving only the standard underwear on, "How am I supposed to sleep while still wearing that armor?"

Now that she was free of her armor restrictions, Minako turned face down on the bed and grabbed the pillow tightly before facing Asuna again, all the while she didn't stopped swinging her legs half-consciously, "Now, let's talk about something different. What are your objectives on this world, assuming that we'll stay here for sometime yet? I for once, plan to start a guild as soon as I've raised the money I'll need to it. I'll call it, hmmm... let me see... Aincrad Arts and Crafts Association, and I'll try to have as many craftsmen and entertainers as possible join it, that way we can make our word be heard when the top fighters begin need our equipment.

"I know that it may sound stupid, trying to become some sort of CEO inside of a videogame, but my family has been dealing with real state business for a long time and my father taught me a lot about how to become a good businesswoman, so I think that doing this is my way of remembering they while I'm stuck on this world." Minako said with a wistful voice before becoming silent, uncertain if she had said too much and, or, was bothering Asuna in any way.

[Asuna Yuuki]

@KoL

"Hey, it's okay. This is pretty horrible for all of us," Asuna's voice softened when she noticed the other girl was slightly upset. "It's pretty surreal to know how real this all is. I can't believe we can actually die in here."

Asuna removed her equipment on the interface, hesitating a little as she removed the cloak. "Well, this is me. Sorry if I'm a little cold sometimes, it's just... I had planned to go solo for the game. I didn't expect to have to trust other people. I didn't really want to have to look after others." She smiled a little, and got into the bed.

"Hey, if you close your eyes, it's almost as if you're back at home, in your own bed," She whispered, wrapping herself up in the blankets. "If we weren't stuck, I would log out, and go to see my family. We would eat dinner, and talk, and I would tell them about the first day of the game... That would have been nice."

Asuna laughed. "How ironic, one minute I'm hiding under a cloak, not even telling you my name, and the next, I'm pouring out my life story."

[KoL]

@Asuna Yuuki

"I'm sorry if I forced you on this without thinking first." Minako said while going under her own blankets and staring at the plain wooden roof above their heads, "It's just that I'm a little impulsive sometimes. When I see an opportunity I simply can't let it pass."

"Anyway, since it's just the two of us now, I guess that I can tell you what that dear thing I was talking about earlier is." Minako stole a quick glance to see if the other girl was already sleeping, because she didn't wanted to look like a fool, before continuing, "The thing is... on real life I can't walk because of a car accident when I was small. I just don't like people pitying me, or thinking that I'm weak, because of that since I really don't care for it. Or thought that I didn't because being able to walk again is really awesome, so that you know."

"I'm sorry for rumbling about me for so long. Anyway, I'm better now, so we should get some sleep, 'cause tomorrow's gonna be a long day for us." Minako said before turning to her right and trying to finally fall asleep, thinking that she had bothered enough people for one day. It was then that she just wondered, what were her parents thinking now? But before she could elaborate that thought further she was already a long way into the dream land.

[Asuna Yuuki]

@KoL

"Wow... That's... wow. It must be amazing to walk again, even virtually. And don't worry, going solo can wait." She smiled as Minako turned over, her breathing becoming stable.

Looks like you're in this for the long run... Asuna thought to herself about what would happen tomorrow. It would be harder for her to have to fight with other people, especially a group of 4. One more person she could probably handle, but having to rely on three other people? She definitely wasn't used to that. She just hoped that this would go well... And none of the others would die...

[Savo]

-Makoto Aiko/Aikoto-

"Hm, I must of miscalculated how she would react to a degree. I expected some sort of denying to my action as she is a very strong willed woman who I easily understand holding her own. I can only hope that she isn't really like Kazuki, otherwise we could be in trouble. She doesn't seem too rash nor too overly-confident right now, but I feel she desires that type of freedom... maybe, maybe I'm incorrect."

"Umichi seems quiet for the most part and is a tad bit focused than I and the others! Ugh, how could we of let our guard down in such dire times like these? I'm glad someone was paying attention, or one of us would been forced to pay the price... we wouldn't of died from my inference, but we do have to stay vigilant as there are others who are probably not as forgiving as some of us."

"Ritaka has done more than his fair share to an extent as he understands this realm better than the rest of us. He doesn't feel like a leader, but more or less like our guide through this forlorn place. Leaders are the people everyone follows, however guides you can always trust. He warrants the face of someone who wouldn't do no harm to another, so I like the guy."

As he let those thoughts settle in his head, he felt the need to stay careful because anything could change as they all looked to be moldable just like him. He could trust them, yes, but how far did that trust exactly extend itself in a dangerous world where anyone could probably make a face heel turn. The boy annoyingly dispeled those thoughts as there was no need to be seeing the world in such a negative facet, and mentally cursed himself for not keeping an eye on things.

He recalled the twos comments about when he asked about this world, Suki finding it rather ravishing, even with the challenge. Umichi missed his main question, but he encouraged his secondary thought to go into play which he was thankful for. As he wandered with the trio, it wasn't long until he spot the dim lights of the town with the others. As they went to the inn, he decided to segregate himself from them as he felt the need to remove the cloudiness within his head. The boy snuck away as quietly as he could, and redrew his sword in a discreet place in the town. Kendo always lightened his spirits, so maybe it would work here in this place too.

The boy let out a soft breath as he gripped the blades hilt with two of his hands, his mind becoming blank. Makoto kept himself calm an collected as if nothing peculiar was transpiring for the most part. In a few moments, he left out a wave of slices at a swift pace, his eyes fixated on some invisible opponent trying to end his life. As he practice, he forgot a bit about the world around him, and was swiftly brought back to reality.

"Well, surprise, surprise, Makoto is at it again, practicing Kendo to reach enlightenment or some crap?"

The boy broke from his trance, fumbling a bit with his sword as he was slightly cut off guard, and pointed it in the direction of a familiar female. His eyebrows furrowed as he slightly frowned at the girl who was ensnared with him and the others fighting for their lives. He could understand he coming to this town to collect, but he could tell from her tone of voice that she was pissed. Searching, his sword, he walked toward the girl who stared daggers at the boy. He knew that they both went head to head sometimes, but he hoped she would understand the pretense of the situation.

"Kazuki, it's nice to see that your here. Gathering? No wait, you don't want to go along with my plans, even thought you know its for the best. Its too risky , plus its for the best as we have our own roles to pl-"

"Roles, roles, roles Makoto, it doesn't matter! Let us choose our own path! We aren't people you consistently need to keep a birds eye on, and I can fend for myself dummy! I want to fight, not spend all day collecting items for people to se-"

"Look, its for the best so please calm down Kazuki as you need to understand. You guys take too much of a risk at times, I don't. This whole place is sort of a function of sorts! We need a correct balance of people to perform, otherwise we might not make it!"

"Yeah, but your endangering yourself idiot, plus you never took any consideration for us and what we wanted t-"

"I did, and that's why-"

"Let me finish! What we truly wanted to do! We aren't there to constantly be watched over. The other two were livid about their jobs, but I'm not. I'm fighting alongside you whether you like it or not! Now if you'll excuse me Makoto, I'm off to get some rest and train so we can escape! Don't you dare try to talk me out of this!"

"Kazuki, wait!"

Makoto saw the girl leave with a huff, ignoring his responses as she made her way to the inn. The boy jammed his fist into the tree before seeing the immortal object screen pop up beside it. He grinded his teeth and stared in irritation at his own feet, as if they were the cause of all this. He could only wonder what was going through Kazukis head as they spoke. He wasn't trying to protect, he was... trying to do what he thought was the best thing for everyone. He felt the need to clear his head, and walked outside town for a bit, and began working on slicing up any remaining mobs around the town. As he did so, myriads of thoughts roamed the tracks in his head, unable to find closure.

Eventually, after finishing his slaughter, he briefly sighed and rubbed the lense of his glasses with his shirt be for returning them to his neutral appearing face. With a sigh, he trudged back to the town in search of the inn. As he did so, he took note of the people around him, along with some of the shops. Night really was something, but eventually it would be gone again, and return upon a person becoming ignorant. That was what it would be like every day, wouldn't it? With the help of Ritaka, he could possibly light the way to a degree. Upon reaching the doors of the inn, he sheathed his sword, put on a calm demeanor, and entered into the room.

As he did so, he looks and eventually came upon his companions who were dining on familiar cuisine. He resisted glomping down the food, and paid the NPC for a room before joining them. He took a seat next to one of them, and looks them over before asking in a mundane way.

"So, what have I missed?"

[_Middle_]

Lincoln was happy to see a couple of friendly faces, "Yeah, I am okay. But I don't know what to do about my health," Lincoln referred his red health bar, "But thanks for saving my butt guys." Lincoln looked at Dar and Geist, giving them a smile. "I know I shouldn't be out here alone, but I didn't know what to do when I found out...we're stuck in here." Lincoln looked around the grassland a little, "Where are you guys headed?"

@Grayscythe@LupusIntus