There wasn’t much room at all to maneuver down the narrow path, but Ari was flexible and agile enough that she didn’t have any trouble with exploring up and down the path. There were no rats that she could spot in broad daylight, however, while the ants that she saw crawling about went into crevices and cracks much too small for her to fit through. Something more promising appeared fifty meters away from the location of the hidden gambling den, however. An iron grate in the wall, four feet in height and diameter, leaked a trickle of water down into the stream before it. If she could wrestle the grate off and wasn’t feeling particularly claustrophobic, the catgirl could perhaps navigate into the tunnel system of Nyu-Taro and find herself another way into the Tsi-Lai Gang’s hideout that way?

As she entertained such thoughts, however, her human ears could pick up too, that the sound of squeaking vermin bounced through the small tunnels as well. If Cacophony Concord was the sort of word that would even count rats as monsters, she would definitely be disadvantaged, crawling through spaces so small that her min-maxed AGI/DEX build would be functionally useless.
[sub][@Greengoat][/sub][hr]
Heading west, Lew forgot his heartbreak by taxing his legs instead, climbing up several flights of stairs as the layout of the city-state became far more vertical. He could see up above him several dozen superhuman individuals bounding up and down the roofs or racing upon the strings from which koi fish streamers or paper lanterns were suspended. It was the same frenetic atmosphere as the main streets of Nyu-Taro, however, there was a key difference. As he watched their movements up above, one player launched himself at a steepled building, yet landed not on the roofs, but rather upon the vertical surface of an invisible barrier that sparkled where his feet landed. He kicked off soon after, redirecting his travels southwards, but for the raven-haired Lugh, that was his first exposure to barriers in this virtual world. Not just as methods of protecting his allies, not just as methods of blocking off monsters, but as magically constructed obstacles that could be used in any manner, so long as one’s creativity was up to the task.

Three blocks later, he found himself standing in front of a squat, one story building, a stone wall doing little to deter visitors when the oaken doors were swung wide open. In the front courtyard was a Zen garden, gravel being raked into hypnotizing swirls by a bald-headed monk, while the building itself sported a bronze statue of robed man with twelve arms, each stretched out and splayed to form a knife-hand. His expression was serene as he sat cross-legged, but behind the statue, faded paper screens depicted the chaotic creation of the world, molten flame and crushing waves battling each other until the storming heavens split them apart. Further within, the chanting of dozens of acolytes could be heard, reciting mantras in a language that wasn’t translated by the system.

A few Immortals loitered about the grounds, while other fresh-faced newbies spoke to a blue-haired priestess in a long-sleeved kimono, white laced with silver threads. She stood by the offertory box, and judging by her strained expressions and the snatches of conversation Lugh heard, it definitely didn’t sound like those players were interested in any of the training offered by the Temple. Didn’t sound like they were going to go away any time soon, either.

Was Lugh a patient man though? Or was he an indulgently heroic one?
[sub][@Cu Chulainn][/sub][hr]
Raime’s intentions were read, and the world slowed to a crawl as his Agility-enabled time dilation kicked in, every pounding droplet of water from the nearby falls visible to him. His hands moved, swift and certain, guided by the experience garnered from his fights as well as his attributes. Though Magpie was fast, his bolts were faster, four shots blasting out of his crossbow one after another. They crossed the distance to the frogman in mere moments.

And yet, in that slowed space, where even his allies moved half as fast as he did, the frogman was faster still. Snapping his head to the side, the monster pulled his knife hand back, dodging three bolts while catching the fourth. The ranger wasn’t fast enough to get a warning out; Amulak was already in the process of casting magic, and with both frontliners still rushing forwards, there once again was no one present to protect the backline.

With a flick of the wrist, the amphibious brawler redirected the bolt’s path, flinging it between Magpie and Klein to pierce right into Amulak’s mana-weaving hand. The force was tremendous, knocking his hand back and his Magic Bolt off-course as [b]27 points of damage[/b] was dealt. A numb pain pulsated in Amulak’s right hand, but more troubling was the fact that he seemed to have lost some of the functionality in his hand as a result. His fingers no longer responded to his commands so easily, and he couldn’t clench it at all.

The frog tightened his lips in the facsimile of a human smile, before springing to meet Magpie’s advance, left foot propelling him while the right foot slammed into her swinging fist, [b]inflicting 22 points of damage[/b]. The shock ran through her entire body, but the brawler wouldn’t be repelled by such a kick, holding her ground. She [i]had[/i] grown stronger. Her physical might was the greatest of them all. She could arm wrestle five men at once and come out ahead!

That same tremendous might, however, meant that her arm didn’t sway at all when the webbed foot gripped onto her fist and used it as a stepping stone. The frogman vaulted into the air, a dark silhouette against the sun. Klein could only watch as the monster flew over the second defensive line, straight towards Raime. The hammer fist, cocked back this entire time, finally surged forwards, a fiery light bursting from it as the frogman descended upon the ranger who had isolated himself from the party whilst repositioning.

If the blow landed, the results would be devastating.
[sub][@Searat][@Psyker Landshark][@Yankee][@OwO][@Shovel][/sub]