[center][h3][color=e0115F]Zander Louvier – Frenzy Camp[/color][/h3] [@Raijinslayer][/center] Zander crossed his arms, preemptively looking side to side as if to find an opponent for Argus. Once finished, and having mulled over the idea of a potential demon in the prestigious guild called Frenzy Plant, the Ruby Knight ended up offering Argus a stiff nod. [color=e0115F]”Very well then. If you're eager to go for it now, then you'll most likely be fighting Cecilia herself, as the only C-rank soldier we have currently. Though, I do expect that Heisty Beardo is around here somewhere, if I know the man.”[/color] After following the gaze of Argus and landing his own on Salvoy, Zander shrugged mentally, deciding that he might as well tell the new arrival about the looming threat provided by the whale's brethren. With Hyun and Xyster present, and standing nearby in silent interest of the strange-looking, black-eyed man now among them, now was as good a time as any to divulge. [color=e0115F]”No, not at all. Pay attention. Hey! Nash and Salvoy, of the guild Tough Love!”[/color] He hailed the two mariners, who looked his way obligingly. Zander spoke to them before broadening his audience to everyone present. [color=e0115F]”This concerns you as well. Salvoy is one-of-a-kind. In the entire world, there are only twenty-five like him. They're like Celestial Spirits, but represented by cards instead of keys. Some are good, like the World here and the Hermit, who is affiliated with Frenzy Plant, but most are bad. Most worryingly, Ludo has told me that they seem to be congregating in Crocus. In particular, watch out for the Jester. To put it shortly, he's a frog that turns invisible, and he's a huge wild card.”[/color] The knight frowned severely. Ludo's report had set him on edge, even though neither he nor Magni had spotted anything unusual but Thor during their patrols. [center][h3][color=c2b280]Fleo Plector – Phoenix Wing Stands[/color][/h3] [@hatakekuro][@lmpkio][/center] Though fully prepared to scadoodle at Marlene's behest, acknowledging that popping up uninvited into a potentially tense situation wasn't the best way to introduce herself, the recognition from Enma convinced her to stay. She treated him to a warm smile as she readjusted her navy blue peaked cap, which her long fall had knocked askew but miraculously not off. [color=c2b280]”Aw, Nolan talks about me to his friends? I knew he cared about me! Man, I didn't know what to expect from an actual friend of Nolan, but I'm not surprised. You're a frightening man. Seriously, just being near you freaks me out.”[/color] For once Fleo forgot about her hands of dust, and tentatively reached out to shake Enma's. If he squeezed too hard, her hand's cohesion would be compromised. [center][h3][color=86608E]Nero the Dark Mage – Crocus Playground[/color][/h3] [@Caits][@liferusher][@Invisible Man][/center] For a moment, Nero's rage, swirling and churning like a cyclone, opened up ever so slightly. In that second he realized that the man who'd destroyed his face had been saved by another. That realization, however, was nothing compared to the jolt he got when he suddenly recalled that his friends Ayame and Eve were standing nearby and had seen his breakdown. The dark mage suddenly froze in panic, allowing Gabriel to tackle him to the ground. Nero ground his teeth as the impact sent a spray of his own blood over the grass, but this time, he did not allow his hatred to get the better of him. He couldn't afford to. He couldn't let Time Lord's implication be right: that he was a villain to even those he professed to care about. Nero forced himself to listen to Gabriel's howls, marveling how a man who just inflicted so much pain could still fancy himself the victim. A dozen twisted fates flashed through the genie's mind, but in the end, he decided that he couldn't kill Gabriel after all. Plus, with the event over, there would be people out on the streets. Witnesses never bode well for anyone. Nero summoned his energies and growled, with as much despair as anger despite his best attempts to suppress them, [color=86608E]”Five millimeter radius! There's no escape![/color] A point-blank Law of Embodiment radiated outward from the dark mage's skin and immediately took hold on Gabriel. Instantly, flesh and cloth transmuted to plastic, and Nero, still bleeding, shoved the Gabriel-shaped manikin off and worked his way back to his feet, assisted by Eve. After a moment of steady breathing, he spoke out to assuage her concerns, revealed that his voice had returned to normal. [color=d8bfd8]”I'm...I'm sorry about that. I've got...issues with surprise touching. But this doesn't mean that I'm a bad man. Everyone breaks...now and then.”[/color] He smiled, causing some of the blood to run into his pearly white teeth. Evidently, the pain didn't bother him so much. [color=d8bfd8]”We'll get goin' in a moment. Head away from here into another part of the city. Gimme a second though, please.”[/color] He turned to face the statues of Rat and Gabriel and snickered. [color=d8bfd8]”Listen up. I'm not gonna hurt you. In twenty minutes the curse will wear off and you'll be back to normal. Look, I know you were tryin' to be considerate, but there are times when you just oughta not mess. There's never been a time mindin' ya own business didn't work out. Here's the thing though: if your alternative to bein' nice is [i]to attack[/i], you've got issues even worse than mine. At least I own up to my problems. Thinkin' you're so great that you can do whatever you want without thinkin' of the consequences is the worst kind of crazy. If ya were really tryin' to be nice, ya wouldn't have gone and made it worse, no matter how I talked to ya.”[/color] Nero sighed and wiped some of the blood off his face with his sleeve. It was clear that he'd be scarred for some time. [color=d8bfd8]”Don't cross me again. Just...let it go.”[/color] With that, the genie span on his heel and began to walk away, hoping that Eve and Ayame still believed in him enough to follow, and wishing he knew the words to make things right.