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It was clear that Katya was regretting her decision about having Oscar and Muu sit beside her, especially when Ettamri was on the other side. As it stood, while Ettamri and Oscar tried to kill each other with words and mean looks alone, the blue-haired turnip squeezed herself as small as possible, looking downcast. Even Siwon was mad now, tossing his bowl like a petulant child with no self-control, before diving into the snow-hut, while Oscar, apparently totally done with human communication, went off by himself as well, naught but a shadow against the snow.

This certainly wasn't the happy camping adventure Katya thought it would be, and the priest wasn't happy at all about this. The stew tasted good, but it'd certainly taste better if everyone wasn't on the edge about basically everything. So much for campfire songs and roasting meat over the fire. As it stood, someone might actually end up getting stabbed to death. Father certainly had told her a whole lot about the statistics how bad party relationships ended up with dead party members and all. Maybe she should have found a merrier band of people, even at the expense of finding a big beefy warrior...

No! This was what she chose, so this was what she was going to stick with! Slapping her chubby cheeks together, Katya raised her spirit, made a silent prayer towards Alri-Qua, and turned to Ettamri, tugging at the armored woman's wrist.

"Um, Ettamri...I think you might want to, uh, be nicer? I mean, hm, Father told me that communication skills are like, pretty strong, and different party groups have different styles, so uh, if you want to be a good leader...I mean, not saying that you aren't good in the right circumstances, but that's probably not the right circumstance to be yelling? I mean, like, we're still going to all be together for another two days, and then we'll probably be travelling back together as well, so..."

Katya scrunched up her face, trying to figure out how to put her thoughts into words.

"Like, it'll basically be bad if the group exploded. Teamwork makes the dream work? Like, even if they're in the wrong, like, you don't have to try to kill them with words? Especially because you're the leader here, but only because they want you to be..."


Gawain slowed as well, the duel coming to a close not by blood drawn by either side, but rather the words of the spectator. Unfortunately, for the Caster of the Feather Fan, the knight wasn't nearly as well-mannered as Diarmuid; the moment he vanished, Gawain grinned mischieviously towards Diarmuid. He hopped off Gringolet, patting the horse's flank, before rotating his right shoulder slowly. It hadn't ever gotten to the point of being wholly oppressive, but now that the abnormal weight was gone from his body, the Knight of the Surcoat certainly felt twice as light.

"Well, looks like he's gone now, so...if not a fight, how 'bout just a duel, Diarmuid? Or hey, if that still sounds too violent, let's call it a nice, relaxing sparring session?" The polished sword spun in lazy circles. "Nothing's more depressing than ending a fight without a conclusion, y'know?"
^


At the edge of the jungle, facing the wide beach where various sports events were prepared, there was a small cafe, with an open entrance and a wide canopy roof, allowing customers to sip on smoothies while spectating the show. And Valerie had been put in charge of it. Having woken up sitting behind the counter, the monster girl wondered if the night shifts had caused her dreams to take a weird turn. She knows for sure she didn’t remember putting on a new work outfit, let alone travelling to a tropical resort. But she had travelled quite a bit in her search for new food; this was one of the least weird locations she had found herself in.


A magical dolphin soon arrived and told her to run the place, which begged even more questions. Oh well, at least she was getting paid. And she had the option of designing the menu as well, which was sweet. She was kind of laid back like that. She was in the backroom, plugging in juice machines and unloading crates when she heard somebody’s voice. “Sorry, we’re not open yet, still need to-Wait, where did you come from?” She had popped her head out, a quizzical expression on her face.

It must have been stifling in such thick fabrics, fine embroidery and delicate ruffles mismatched with the humid, tropical weather. But discomfort nor displeasure showed upon the pale-skinned girl’s face, her gothic dress and coat presenting no apparent demerit under such burning sunlight. Silver eyes stared in Valerie’s, unflinching and emotionless. Then, the strange girl shifted one foot behind the other, dipping down into a curtsy.

“Greetings, Valerie Herzstein. I am Dolly.” She stood up after, each word calculated, each word measured, the cadence and inflection wholly flat. “I derive no small amount of moral pleasure from supporting local businesses, and would, with the approval of my current owner, like to assist you in the menial tasks related to operating your establishment.”

Valerie’s eyes shot wide pen. “Oh, have we met before? I’m pretty sure we haven’t.” She stepped closer, and offered a handshake. “You must be the assistant the dolphin mentioned. You can start working right away.” Valerie smiled, finding Dolly’s emotionless behavior kind of cute; most girls happened to scream in fright when they met her on the magical community. Knowing that they were most likely isolated from civilization, she would take any employee she could get. “How about you mop the floor first? Some sand happened to sweep in. Oh, and afterwards you can help set up the drinks. Would that be fine?”

Dolly nodded. “You need not ask. Order me as you see fit.” Her eyes flickered, bright for an instant. “We believe it is recompense enough, being here to begin with.”

And without another word, the gothic girl got to work, completing tasks with the swiftness and precision of a professional part-timer. A good enough job that only sticklers for perfection would complain about, done in three-fourths the amount of time it would take for a regular. Measured grace, eloquence found in efficiency.

Soon, the others would arrive. Soon, her work could commence.
Exhaustion had already been settling into their bones throughout the day, but at double pace, no one was breathing well by the end of it. Pushed back against the snow, the sweat on their skin freezing over the moment they took a breather, it would be an understatement to call the group’s last spurt to the spare woodlands tiring. Ettamri felt the brunt of the fatigue, having sank the lowest into the snow; further out, the snow had turned powdery, and her feet habitually broke through the crusted ice surface. Her hunger was an obsession, stomach growling like a seething beast, the uncouth sounds drowned out by the winds of winter. The others hadn’t done all too well either. Bundled up as they were, Argen and Renault both felt the sticky coolness of having soaked through their inner clothing in the last segments of their run, while Siwon’s longcoat no longer billowed dramatically in the wind. Travelling through the many streams had dampened it, and now the bottom part was frozen over, snow accumulating over it. Katya, at least, could simply shadow Ettamri’s steps, but the priest was tired as well.

Work didn’t end just because they stopped for the night, however. Argen, having come to a stop after so much activity and being tasked only with keeping watch over the industrious mage, felt the bite of the bitter winds most sharply, tendrils of cold sneaking into his clothes to be amplified by the dampness of innerwear. Renault’s own efforts turned him into a tired lad as well, the thought of food greatly endearing. He was no beast, after all, and with no shovel in sight, constructing a domed shelter that everyone could fit in only added to his tiredness. His gloves may be of above average quality, and the same could be said for his boots, but nature always found a way. By the time he was done constructing the shelter, the brunette mage’s extremities were wrinkled underneath the fabrics that shielded them. Siwon’s own trials were suffering too. Though the Jaws of Death granted him the boon of the Hot Hunger this time around, Kur-Inuus deigned not to shield him from the fact that all the snow that clung onto his clothes had now melted due to the heat, soaking it in. With time and heat, perhaps it’d dry out, but then again…it was still snowing. And snow was still melting. What joy.

Katya was uncharacteristically(?) quiet as well, half-stumbling around the camp now that Ettamri was no longer plowing a way for her. What deadfall she found was frozen and wet, but after some general gesticulations, Ettamri was convinced to help her with simply breaking standing trees apart and dragging them over to the fireplace. Some large logs were used for stools, others were used to feed the flames, and soon enough, the party were gathered around the bubbling pot of stew. Their clothing began to steam, the humidity beginning to feel like a really cold sauna. The stew, though not finished yet, still looked thin and sorta miserable. If they were in Andeave right now, they’d probably be in a proper tavern, eating meat and bread, drinking mead and wine.

But it was alright.

Warming herself beside the fire, her eyes glittering with anticipation for a hot meal, Katya began to sing a wordless song again, slapping the sides of her log as her head swayed from side to side. It was a cheery, repetitive melody, more of an earworming jingle than a properly complex composition, but she looked at the others, as if expecting them to join in.

‘It’ll be fun’, her eyes said. And what else were they going to do while their dinner boiled down anyways? Socialize with actu-

THUMP. THUMP. THUMP.

Heavy footsteps sounded behind them, and as the five of them all turned, each with a different expression upon their faces, two shadows loomed out from the white curtain surrounding them. Half-frozen and burnt-out, but still very much alive, Oscar and Muu had finally caught up.

Katya was the first to smile, continuing her song as she scootched over to the side, pressing up against Ettamri as she patted the empty section of log beside her. Dramatic as Ettamri and Muu's beef may be, surely it wasn't as tasty as a soup that was more than just potato skins?


Amaryllis blinked, a bit taken back by this blondie's sudden appearance. Hair like that, eyes like that, it all felt very familiar, but it also wasn't a stretch to say that Amaryllis had met way too many people in the last couple of weeks. The buxom bikini babe wasn't wholly certain if this was someone who was actually familiar, or just shared too many physical traits with other people who were familiar. Ugh, but it'd be super awkward to just admit to her that she had no clue at all as to who this woman was. Alliances...last spoke...a vague image, distorted by the lack of less-physically-endowed-Amaryllis shifted in the swordbearer's mind, but...was there a name? There may have been a name. Wait, and there was Mint as well? She had the vague sense that the scarlet-eyed lady in the vermillion swimsuit was somehow important, but then...

"Uh...yes," Amaryllis ended up saying, no longer willing to let this crushingly awkward silence persist, "So it is you...too. Less of a small world, maybe, and more of just...small Penrose? And, uh..."

She blushed, noticing where the strange lady's eyes were directed, but with one hand used to hang onto the palm tree, Amaryllis's remaining hand wasn't a sufficient defense at all from leering eyes.

"T-thanks? If you're being, like, genuine about it? I dunno about stuff like alliances and all that...but I have been trying to talk to people? Which, hm...reminds me..."

In the corner of her eye, she saw a talking dolphin acting as a tour guide, and knew in that moment that she was missing out on so much exposition. Which was fine. Whatever. She may not fully be Knight of Rose Amaryllis at the moment, but even she knew not to violently end conversations for the sole sake of chasing after lore of questionable importance.

"I don't think I've actually, um, caught your name before? So...who? Are you."
Well, it was certainly a meatgrinder. Staying at the back of the troop of knights, Elodie watched as bandits, given false hope when faced against a singular Iron Rose Knight, took the bait, rushed at Aria, and were summarily cut down by the others. Who would want to be a bandit in a scenario like this? No one, that's who. Though they were all fated to be executed for their crimes, some still sought the gentle release of the noose over the savagery of steel, a couple of the bandits throwing down their arms and pleading mercy. Others scrambled over their own barricades, seeking escape but not realizing that they'd never outrun a zealot on a horse. Tragic, honestly. Elodie'd pray for them, but moronic lawbreakers were rarely worth the breath. May the Gods smile upon them in the next life, and grant them the ability to stick to a less self-destructive path.

As it stood though, she had no reason for getting involved. No priority targets, nor any intrusive obstacles to deal with. Her weapon could swap over to a halberd, but it wasn't as if she'd be contributing anything significant to this sausage fest of stabby and slashy folk.

So Elodie stayed in the back and watched them all go at it. Nice and relaxing. She stepped out of the way of someone's dismembered arm, observed the flow of combat, and waited for something extraordinary to happen.

@OwO@Crimson Paladin
>burrows through their hand and spreads through their body

Oh god, that's some real body horror right there.


Cecilia flashed her teeth at Gaius, less a smile and more a challenge. "No one saw it, so feel free to distrust me, but I got here after dodging lightning. I hope your bullets are half as fast as that, darling."

Well, nevermind the fact that she had to burn through a metric ton of MP for that particular feat.

17 people made for a prime number, but it wasn't anything that was wholly irreconcilable. It would be nice, of course, if they could get another, but as it stood...a round robin tournament with seventeen rounds. Sounded exhausting, actually, but perhaps people dropping out from exhaustion would work out too. A test both of martial skill and endurance? Exciting. Or maybe timed rounds instead? It wasn't even 10PM yet, judging by the system clock. Unless these people were weenies who followed their bedtimes to a tee (unlikely, if they were jumping about in the Guild this late at night), Cecilia suspected that a tournament going up all the way to 11PM would still be fine. Five minute rounds to see who can get the other person to the lowest HP value, before victor is declared and everything is reset? Paladins would probably love the set up, considering their Even the Odds. Maybe that'd require a ban...

Yeah, that sounded good.

Stopping in front of the tower that was Reliquia's Arena, Cecilia pulled out her spear again, flourishing the lightning-enchanted blade in the cloudy night. She turned to face the small crowd of aggressive battlefreaks before her and said, "Alright, listen up, cause I'm only gonna say this once, ok? The pot will be collected and entrusted to whichever NPC manages the Arena. Form up into pairs, and once we're inside, spread out to form battle rings across the Arena. The odd one out will stand off to the eastern side. Each round will last five minutes, and the winner will be the one who ends up with the most health. If we can find another NPC to tally up everyone's win-loss ratio, that will be great! If not, I'm fine with going with the honor system here. Once the round has concluded, everyone rotates to their right, switching sides or with the odd one out if necessary. Easy enough to understand? If not, it's also easy enough to understand after you see it in action."

She clapped her hands together, a blindingly lady-like smile emerging.

"Now, good luck, have fun, and pay up!"

With that, Cecilia pushed open the doors to the Arena, marching up right to the receptionist there with her unorthodox demands. Would be funny if Prome dynamically entered here too, hm? Or maybe...

Ding ding ding~ Ceci here with more hot takes on the coolest Reliquia stuff...NOT!

Hey, Kira, I'm hosting a Banquet of Bloodshed and Pride at the Collesseum of the Stormy Swamp, up against the Storm-Stricken Sheer Cliffs beyond the Hall of Hallowed Guilds. Alas, the wretched cowards within the Hall appear wholly disavowed to joining such glorious events in great numbers, and we tragically have accrued only seventeen brave souls for this ritual of vainglorious combat. Care you to appear and rise up as the eighteenth? Or have you too become naught but a yellow-bellied cur, too obssessed with gathering new strength that you see not the value in sharpening your original might?

Hugs and Disses,
Lycanbane, the Warrior Untouched By Heaven's Wrath
Out of curiousity, what happens to the scarf if it becomes a bomb?
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