>Inventory
>What are the practical limitations of our shapeshifting ability?
>Skills.
>Who else has graced the presence of our futon?
>Do we even have a true form?
>How effective are we at impersonating people, visually?
>Quests
> Relationships
> Do we have any regular customers?
> How often do we shapeshift nowadays?
> How often have we opened the tavern in the last, oh, month? Maybe it's time for a break.
And you have a few specific shapes of wilder things that you keep in practice.
>What shapes would these be?
> Rummage around in our room. Anything interesting or useful?
>Finally, you can impersonate Sanae Kochiya's shape quite well, though not perfectly yet. You did this mostly on her insistence after your UFO incident.
>On her insistence? Why? Was she just curious to see it done?
>How close is the resemblance? Could we fool anyone who knew her, but wasn't necessarily close to her?
>Also, what about apparently non-corporeal forms? Such as, say, a glowing ball of light?
>On her insistence? Why? Was she just curious to see it done?
>How close is the resemblance? Could we fool anyone who knew her, but wasn't necessarily close to her?
>Also, what about apparently non-corporeal forms? Such as, say, a glowing ball of light?
>What sorts of tricks can we do with these seeds? How much control do we have over how they make something look?
>Is it normal for them to 'wear out' like that? If so, about how much usage can you expect to get out of one?
>How many do we have in our possession, and is it possible to replace them somehow?
>Anything special about those novels? Maybe a day off to read would be nice.
>Anything special about those novels? Maybe a day off to read would be nice.
> Eh, today we'll just relax. Why not go ahead and get that seed ready?
>Just do enough to move the seed along a bit; there's no telling when something might happen. Especially in Gensokyo. Don't want to be caught weakened.
>Better yet, leave the seed until we retire for the evening. We don't need our power while we're asleep. And we have two in the meantime, anyway.
>Do we actually happen to have suitable clothing in our wardrobe to pull off the Sanae look?
>Head downstairs
>If there's no rush to get things open for business, let's go for a little walk. Head outside.
>Go west.
>Go west.
>Incident senses tingling
>Hold on a moment. It may possibly be worth hearing.
>What kind of fee to these people usually charge, anyway?
>To the best of our knowledge, how often is what they're selling worth the price? Have we been around enough to be able to get a decent read on whether what they're hawking is something we might actually care to hear?
>For that matter, what kind of money do we have spare, that isn't tied up in business expenses?
>Put on just a touch of a confident, yet unassuming smirk
>"Got anything you think I'd care to hear?"
>"How much?"
>Incidentally, did we ever collect that favor from Maribel?
>Are these things typically negotiable without slighting the other party?
>Assuming so, make a counter-offer at whatever we think a fair response is. Nothing low enough to put her on the defensive.
>You suggest 10☼
>"Thirty," she says. "And that'd because I like your plum wine."
>_
> "Twenty, and I'm the first to hear the next rumour worth paying for."I think this may be pushing it a bit.
The problem I see with Fightest's suggestion is the "I'm the first to hear the next rumour worth paying for" bit: the streetear has no reason to come to Nue with future information if Nue's trying to control the negotiations in her favor. If Nue's going to try to control the next big bit of information, she's going to have to give up something in return.
I say we challenge the streetear to a dance-off.
I say we challenge the streetear to a dance-off.
> "Twenty, and I'm the first to hear the next rumour worth paying for."
>Do we have any idea which Deva she might be referring to?
> Do we have any streetears or information brokers we deal with often or who work for us?
> For that matter, who do we currently have employed?
Twenty's generous enough already. The deal is an investment of trust, the streetear knows that the next rumour she picks up will be bought (assuming she's any good at gathering information). It's simple trade.Except we're trying to get her to trust us: oni, by their nature, are honest to a fault, while we, a, well, Nue, are pretty much the definition of connivery. If we're going to build a relationship of trust, then we need to offer something to her, not demand that she give us something. In fact, her counter offer of us letting her know of juicy gossip would have been perfect to go with the offer of 20.
I'm with Fightest on this one. Besides, we're haggling. We're supposed to go back and forth until we reach an agreeable price.When you haggle, you also need to offer something of value to them.
> How much do we sell a shot of something good for?
> If it's five or less, then: "Okay, twenty, I'll pass on something interesting to you, and a shot of (insert drink here) to go with it."
> To shake, or for the cash?
> Did we remember to grab cash? Or our spellcards, for that matter?
>orz
> "Huh, left my cash in my other dress. Tell you what, I'll let you inside so you can take a seat, and you can give me the info over a shot."
Except we're trying to get her to trust us: oni, by their nature, are honest to a fault, while we, a, well, Nue, are pretty much the definition of connivery. If we're going to build a relationship of trust, then we need to offer something to her, not demand that she give us something. In fact, her counter offer of us letting her know of juicy gossip would have been perfect to go with the offer of 20.
When you haggle, you also need to offer something of value to them.
> Listen to what the oni has to say.
> Give her a shot. Nothing too fancy, just enough to loosen the tongue without the warm tingle of good liquor.
We're in a position of power here. If we don't buy, the oni goes hungry. Offering regular custom would be enough to have her eating out of the palm of our hand.No, she had the power in that exchange. She knows enough about us to claim that we want the information that she has, while we have no idea who she is or what her situation is. Also, why would she want "guaranteed" patronage from us? We're only interested in certain bits of information most of the time, since we don't really deal in information like she does, so she can only sell to us when she thinks she has something worth selling. On the other hand, she's interested in any information that can make her a profit, so she'll definitely get a return on the deal.
> "Huh. What'd they look like?"
> Go ahead and start digging up the money from the register: we can replace it on the way back down from our room after grabbing some cash and spellcards.
> Play it cool, and open it up.
> "What the hell?"> No, don't panic. We're a professional at acting, we can keep it cool.
> No, don't panic. We're a professional at acting, we can keep it cool.> I meant it in more of a "Hmmm..." way not a "WTF!?" way. :3
> Would they be worth 200☼ combined?
> What other jewelers do we know?
> Furthermore, why are these in here? Do we own any jewels like this?
> "What the hell?"
> What kind of expression does the oni have right now?
> No, don't panic. We're a professional at acting, we can keep it cool.
> I meant it in more of a "Hmmm..." way not a "WTF!?" way. :3
> How much would one of those emeralds be worth?
> Do we at least have any spare change upstairs?
> "Gimme a few seconds. Forgot I emptied the till."
> Head back there, then, with the quartzes. Cautiously open the cash box.
> Where else do we keep money?
> Check there
> "... Ffffff..."
> When was the last time we left the store for a long period of time?
> Take all the gems then.
> What do we guess these gems would be worth?
> Okay, calm down and don't kick over the cash box.
> First thing's first: we need to pay that oni. What's the lowest denomination gemstone we have?
> Add Quest: Empty Till
> Find out what happened to all the money in the tavern, and why there are these little jewels here.
> Do we have a bag we can carry with us today? We may come across several things!
> Keep the gems in the cash box for now, we'll get a bag after we deal with the oni
> What's the name of our pub anyway?
> Has the name ever changed?
> How many of each gem do we have?
> What kind of stock does the pub have besides liquor? Do we have food and such?
> How much booze is left in the bottle we served the oni from? About how much would it be worth?
> I called a Nue Quest ages ago, parser. GIve me my precognition cookies.
> From a simple glance, can we tell if the money was the only thing stolen?
> The bottle in it's half-full state is worth 50, or the bottle if it were full is worth 50?Agreed.
I say we try offering the bottle regardless.
> The bottle in it's half-full state is worth 50, or the bottle if it were full is worth 50?
> How much did it cost to make the bottle of booze?
> How many more bottles do we have of it, and is it a particularly popular drink?
>Do we know of anyone who could pull off something like this?
>At a glance, how do the values of the gems left behind compare to the amounts of ☼ they replaced?
>Is there anywhere we left money that wasn't substituted for gems?
> Do we have pockets?
> Where did we leave the bottle we're currently mulling over?
> Go back out to the oni at the counter.
> "Sorry to say, but my morning is really not going my way so far. Can I offer you the rest of that bottle in lieu of cash for your information?"
> Do we lock our doors and windows before we head to bed?
why are we worried about embarrassment from admitting we were cleaned out again?"Again"?
> We've still got our cash box on us, right?
> "Well, seems like someone decided that my funds should be a little less useful"
> Show off one of the pink quartz gems.
> "They took all my cash and replaced it with these gems. I'm looking around back there to see if they took everything else, but once we're square over here I'm going to go talk to K about this and let her know. No way she's going to be happy about this either."
>Do we know of anyone who could appraise these gemstones? Not for monetary value, for any sort of magic they may have or any enchantments or anything like that?
>"I'll report it. This is my issue."
>Make a note to check with other taverns' owners to see if anything similar has happened to them.
> ...Is that Tewi?
>"Also, important lesson: don't let people in just because they say they know me. Come get me and let me be the judge of that."
>"Still, letting random people in just because they say they know me isn't a smart move. Just remember that, okay?"
> "Hey." Pour her another shot. "Thanks for the info."
> "All right. Later."
> Wait for her to leave, then pour a shot for ourself and down it.
> Sigh.
> Mentally assess the feasibility of each type of carrying item, in terms of wandering around for a while.
> When shapeshifting to an alternate humanoid body type, we require new clothes to match, correct?
> Do any of them other than the briefcase close securely?
> Do we have any outfits to go with our penchant for turning into an Eientei rabbit?
> Pocket the rose quartzes, then head back upstairs and pocket a couple each of the red and black stones.
> While still upstairs, since no one is around, check chest for usual growths.
> How much of a drain on power would such a change require?
> Deposit eight of the rose quartzes in the cash box with the red and black gems. We don't need all of them on us, just a couple to show people should we need to while we're out.
Well hell, if people aren't going to be around to progress I'm just going to indulge in this for a while. <_<
> And presumably, letting the transformation go stops the flow of power, but it doesn't just send it all back to be reused elsewhere?
> How much of a drain would one cup size increase be?
> Oh snap, we're pretty awesome.
> Eh, we could use the pick-me-up. Pump 'em up a cup size. Or two, if it wouldn't put a meaningful amount of strain on us.
> Recall known interactions and relationships with Tenshi Hinanai, Kogasa Tatara and Utsuho Reiuzi.
> Recall memories of the bizarre dream about the outside world from a while back.
> Did we ever see Iku's ghost buddy again after that one night?
> Grab one of the purses in better condition with a working zipper. Make sure there aren't any holes in it, then stick the gems currently in our possession into it and zip it shut. No sense in risking the tiny things falling out.
> If the purse starts to get a bit awkward on our shoulder, how much energy would it take to form a marsupial-style pouch on our stomach large enough to carry it?
> ...Eh, bump them up one more cup size. As long as it's still no strain.
> Is our shapeshifting purely topological, or does it work closer to melding?
> Topological transformations are nothing but rotations, translations, stretches and squishes. There are no breaks and no fusions involved. For example, you could topologically transform a donut into a coffee mug, since they both have a closed loop, but you couldn't topologically transform a donut into a bicycle wheel because all the spokes would create a whole bunch of other loops that weren't present before. Melding would be something like touching our index finger to the palm of our hand and then fusing the two so the skin becomes seamlessly connected, as if our body easily transitioned from solid to liquid to solid again at the point of contact.
> So we could conceivably create the aforementioned marsupial-style pouch, place something inside, and then seal the top of the pouch by melding the necessary skin together, effectively trapping it inside ourselves? For as dangerous and energy-consuming as this would be, of course.
> Check around the more obvious places for some spare change
> Are they colored glass beads?
> Add glass beads to inventory
> Look around a little more for change
> Well damn
> Head out to the street.
> Do we know where Deva K lives?
> That's quite unsettling. Make a note to ask Deva K about that.
> Head over to K's place!
No, she had the power in that exchange. She knows enough about us to claim that we want the information that she has, while we have no idea who she is or what her situation is. Also, why would she want "guaranteed" patronage from us? We're only interested in certain bits of information most of the time, since we don't really deal in information like she does, so she can only sell to us when she thinks she has something worth selling. On the other hand, she's interested in any information that can make her a profit, so she'll definitely get a return on the deal.
>Vine Street itself is practically an alley between two buildings; looking around one of them, you can see a group of noisy, angry oni, gathered around the unassuming stairway that leads down into the Deva's manor. Standing there, doing her best to calm the crowd, is a tall, thin oni with dark hair and long horns protruding forward from her temples, doing her best to talk to the crowd. You recognize her as one of Deva K's followers. You get the feeling things are not going to stay this peaceful for long.
>_
> Are our newly-acquired gems well-cut?
> If not, we should consider cutting them, that will be likely to increase their value, and we should be able to control our denominations better.
> Is there a moneylender/pawnshop/fence that we are familiar with?
> Eavesdrop.
> Listen to the rabble and try and discern what the issues are.
>They seem to be at a glance; you probably couldn't improve upon them. But you've also not sat down with a scope to look at them.
>You know of a number of pawnshops.
>You eavesdrop on the crowd, as well as you can. While you can't really make out what specific people are saying, you hear quite a bit of "I've been robbed!" and "Where's my money!?" It's really hard to hear what Kay's underling is saying, but it sounds like, "We know!" and "She's on it!"
> Then the only obstacle we'll have is that there's a 70% likelihood that the pawn shop will have the same problem as us.
> That said, it is not actually a problem. Gems are a perfectly fine form of currency.
> Speaking of currency: who mints the actual money that we normally use?
> Ask an oni at the back of the crowd: "Lost your money as well? Was it replaced with anything?"
> Oho.
> "We're in the same boat. Tell your friends that it ain't a problem, I've got this, as long as a riot don't break out."
> Major Objective: Economic Reboot. Until we get new currency minted, we can use gem trade as a stopgap, as long as the oni accept their value. We'll need a voice of power for the last bit.
> We can make a lot of money off this, if we're careful about it.
> Make our way to the front of the crowd, get better detail what the underling is saying.
>"Ain't no friends of mine," says the oni.
>You do smell the potential to make a lot of money, if this can be played correctly.
>You make your way toward the front of the crowd, where the dark-haired oni is shouting, "We know! Go home! She's not here anyhow!"
>_
> Does the average Oni even have friends, as opposed to drinking-buddies or people-on-my-side-in-a-fight?
> Hm. Modulate voice-box to average Oni voice. Pull back one row into the crowd so we're not seen by the flunky.
> Shout, "Hey, stickface! If she ain't here, then where is she?"
>It'll take you a couple minutes to get your voicebox like you want it. Do you still wish to do this?
>_
> Do we really want to be lying to oni? The consequences of doing so last time didn't seem very pleasant.
As well, having lived among the rigorously honest oni; quick to answer injury with violence; has done much to quietly shape you toward being a more socially-minded soul. Particularly after the end result of your first attempts to run scams and thieve your way through as you used to...
Voice box will take too long, why don't we just ask the lackey where she is?
Additionally, there's a good chance that K is actually home and the lackey's saying that K is away is a basic ruse to get the mob to leave.
Not a possibility worth considering. Remember that oni are honest to a fault.
Actually, there's an easier way to get to K, and it won't even involve lying (well, not really): just get up close to the oni controlling the crowd, and tell her that we need to talk to K because we have a lead on whoever's been replacing the money (Tewi).
Requires removal of crowd. They are a far more pressing concern to K and subordinates than some Nue.Some Nue who claims to have information on the situation that they're dealing with? Not to mention that K knows who we are, and even frequents our tavern, so there's a strong likelihood that K would want to her what we have to say.
News to me, but will be taken under consideration.
> Better idea.
> Shout at nobody in particular:
> "I think I saw her downtown, like, two minutes ago!"
> Watch mob mentality do the rest.
> Do we really want to be lying to oni? The consequences of doing so last time didn't seem very pleasant.
> No idea what you're talking about. What last time?
> Regardless, we have deniability, even if our voice is easily identified, and that's a big if in a mob. Plus, I don't think we'll be around in one place for very long, there are a lot of things to be done.
> This last time.
> How good are we at seeing through other's lies?
> How far away is the Earth Palace from here, and how long would it take to travel there?
> Has an oni ever lied to us?
> Do we think oni are capable of lying?
> Look around. Is the crowd starting to get more rowdy or less rowdy?
> Could we wiggle our way to the front of the back, next to Kay's bodyguard?
> Debate flashing the crowd to get them to shut up. It's not like they're normal now anyway!
> Go around and get closer to K's bodyguard.
> Keep an ear out for any useful info.
> Also, how long exactly does it take to make a spellcard? Because whoever did this really deserves a real bullet shit storm (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=85QE3Jxlu4c#t=6m30s)
> Days or weeks!? Even if it's just Bow of Yorimasa Genzami on steroids?
> Do we know where Yuugi resides? Wonder if she's having the same problems.
> Is the underling within reasonable earshot? If not, keep getting closer, keeping outside the main crowd.
> Raise our voice to stance a chance of her hearing us over the din. Cup our hands around our mouth if we need to.
> "I got a lead on this!"
> Turn to the speaker.
> "Heard some rabbit visited my place last night. Claimed she was my friend to get in. You get a visit like that too?"
> "Guess I'm just lucky. Need to check it out, though. Pretty sure she didn't hit everyone, but I don't have many rabbit friends."
> Recall known information about Reisen Udongein Inaba. Specifically consider any underground visits.
> How do the oni refer to Reisen?
> "Those rocks are worth stuff, 'specially topside. Wonder if its worth talking to the moon rabbit about this."
> "Wasn't her what did it, the rabbit that came down here was dressed wrong. She might who that rabbit is, though."
>Those would be general terms. Enhancing "The Bow of Genzanmi Yorimasa" would probably take anywhere from several hours to a day in optimal circumstances, but it would likely be a very draining card to use.
>_
> "Wears a pink dress. Says she's a friend. Info says she didn't look like she stole anything, but who knows. If she didn't, she might know who did."
> How draining, exactly? Would it be as much as a "Last Word" spellcard? Could we enhance it for more "Last Word" levels?
> Do we even have a "Last Word" type spellcard, for that matter?
> "We'll see. I don't want to up and accuse the topside rabbit house of anything, but I think I'll need to talk to them all the same. And speaking of topside..."
> Point at the first oni's hand which held the onyxes.
> "You could probably get about 40☼ for those there."
>"How much money were they in place of?"
> How much attention is on us now?
> "Dunno. But the one that visited me might. I need to find Kay, in case she knows anything else useful before I go find the rabbits myself."
> Could we at least make an enhanced BoGY without having to discard two cards? Like, without actually adding it to our main set?
> And I assume Last Spells are similar to Last Words in the way that they are more face-saving than anything?
> "So everyone here is planning on going topside and fixing things, then?"
>"Yeah, and the difference is that most of you are just complaining. I'm going to tell her what I know and then head up to the surface to see if I can find whoever did this. Were you planning on doing that?"
> "The way I see it, we can talk about what happened, or we could find the person that did this and get our stuff back."
>"Oh, and another thing: how do you expect the Deva to find who did this if you all keep yelling at her all day? I pay her, too, but I'm not here to complain. I'm here to tell her what I know so she can go do her job."Guy, are you trying to get Nue's ass kicked? Between this and the sharpear pretty much saying that she'll spread the word to kick the ass of anyone who claims to be our friend, it'll be a wonder if we can still get any business down here.
Guy, are you trying to get Nue's ass kicked? Between this and the sharpear pretty much saying that she'll spread the word to kick the ass of anyone who claims to be our friend, it'll be a wonder if we can still get any business down here.
Wait, who said this and when? Because if it's about what happened when we first moved down here, that's in the past, and we've learned our lesson.
>"Alright, we'll just end up givin' your friends a trip to the clinic too," says the oni with a shrug, as she hops off the barstool.
> What's terminology supposed to be? Not a native speaker here and wikipedia gave me nothing worthwhile. But to try and answer, I think of a Last Spell more of a weaker Last Word.
> Also, stop ninja'ing me.
> "I'd expect so. I'm gonna chase after her soon enough, because I wanna know how friendly we really are."
>"Oh, and another thing: how do you expect the Deva to find who did this if you all keep yelling at her all day? I pay her, too, but I'm not here to complain. I'm here to tell her what I know so she can go do her job."
>Are there people besides Deva K who offer similar 'protection' services, and if so, who are they?
> Don't say this.
>This isn't working.
>Approach the guard. If anyone complains, say: "You all want to speak with Deva K. I'm just telling this guard something, then I'll be on my way."
>Tell the guard about the rabbit.
>"Then please pass on a message to her from Nue as soon as she returns. Last night, a rabbit in a pink dress was seen entering my tavern and leaving a few minutes later. I didn't know until a streatear told me about it. I don't know if this rabbit has anything to do with this, but it's possible. I'm going to look into it, and I'll let Deva K know right away if I learn anything."
>Unless the guard has something more to say to us, depart.
>Inventory check; did we remember our spellcards?
> Add:
> "If K would consider working with me, I can get everyone to accept the gems as a new currency until we get the main problem figured out with minimum hassle and disruption."
> Also, trying to reason with Oni. You guys. :3
Have you ever seen a riot? [...]
What we need to do now is at least attempt crowd control: if it works, then the oni may disperse, and K's lackey will be grateful to us. If it doesn't, well, we'll at least have that deniability that you've been wanting so much.
Don't look at me, I wasn't the one with the bright idea to go blabbing about the rabbits. Also, you haven't presented a way to stop the riot, so less ironic eye-rolling at me, thank you very much. That said:What? No.
> Fly up just above the lackey, yell at the top of our lungs at crowd:
> "Hey, chuckleheads! We got this! For time being, I'm accepting those stones you've got as cash for booze, with discount, and it's staying that way until problems are fixed! Just let K alone so she can figure stuff out!"
What? No.
> Don't do or say this.
We're kinda trying to leave and solve a problem, not sit around the bar all day.
Yeah, the problem that will only be solved by getting the mob out of here. The rabbits aren't going anywhere.And then you're going to have a crew of oni that will overrun the pub and prevent us from going anywhere since we're going to have to make good on our promise to serve them!
> Do do and say this.
Beyond that, we need to get to the surface quickly since rabbits and people who know them live up there moreso than down here.
I don't see where the haste is coming from. The rabbits aren't going anywhere. The most important problem on our hands is the oni mob. Riling them up for a drink might tie us down for the rest of the day, but it will also keep them off rioting for a while longer. Not only that, but it will also move a respectable amount of the gem volume in this city into our direct control, from where we can more easily work on ~*~~*~~*~the economy~*~~*~~*~ with K and Yuugi.Firstly, how in the world is the oni mob our problem? It was already around before we got there and there are most assuredly others in the city right now and will be more throughout the day. We aren't the oni police. As for the haste, the theft occurred sometime "last night" which could have only been a few hours ago. We should pursue the rabbit trail while it's still hot, giving it any time to cool and we could find ourselves having to do far more work than we had to. The quicker we move, the better chance we have of catching someone unprepared for something (like hiding an incredibly heavy amount of money). In addition, unlike the underground, the surface tends to shut down at night. We can always come back down here anytime, but we're wasting daylight. Putting us in a position stuck at the bar all day will make solving the incident that much harder. Having a mountain of jewels is worthless without the cash to back it. Double also, why do we have to fix the economy anyway? I don't recall it being broken earlier?
[fakeedit] That word filter. Whose bright idea was it, and how can I make it stop?
> Fly up just above the lackey, yell at the top of our lungs at crowd:
> "Hey, chuckleheads! We got this! For time being, I'm accepting those stones you've got as cash for booze, with discount, and it's staying that way until problems are fixed! Just let K alone so she can figure stuff out!"
>Do do this.What exactly are you planning to do in the short-term anyway?
The oni currently have no money and only have the "rocks" that only have value because we said they did. Do you really think they'll readily give them up just for drink? Beyond drink, if you're trying to merely collect gems then there is probably an easier way than "stand at the bar all day"
Uhm, they think the rocks are worthless and they're angry oni. I think they WILL give them up for booze >.> Besides, this is Nue. We haven't lost any monetary value, why not take advantage of the situation and make a whole bunch of profit?I like to think they're more concerned about getting their money back than about drink.
Even still, what are we going to do with all the gems? No matter how many we manage to get they're going to be useless with cash to back them. Once we manage to recover all the stolen cash we're going to have to return all the cash the oni lost (leaving us with a mountain of stones that the economy isn't prepared to buy) unless you feel like explaining to every single oni why you're not paying them all their money back.Why would we have to give them money for things they traded to us fairly for booze again? That's strangely honest of you. We haven't checked if there's cash above ground yet. There's no way we can get every single gem from every single oni in the underground with one tavern's booze anyways. I was thinking we would make a profit off of them later when things return to normal. Don't be in such a rush, take it easy!
Why would we have to give them money for things they traded to us fairly for booze again? That's strangely honest of you.You said yourself they see them as worthless. Good luck explaining to all of them they actually were worth real money and they just pissed away everything they had on drink using "worthless stones".
We should pursue the rabbit trail while it's still hot
Having a mountain of jewels is worthless without the cash to back it.
Firstly, how in the world is the oni mob our problem?
I am amused that I predicted this turn of phrase occurring and here it is. No. The trail cannot get cold, as we know exactly who to pursue. Moreover, it's not as if they can flee the country. A day here or there is meaningless.I actually wanted to say "Follow the white rabbit" but decided it wasn't worth it. The problem is that we don't know who to follow aside from "a rabbit" and going by how Eientei is presented in past quests it's full of rabbits that look an awful lot like Tewi. Besides, we have absolutely no proof that it's Tewi besides a witness saying "rabbit in pink dress". If we know who it is, why not go capture them and end this quickly?
Do you, uh, know how money works? What you said is literally the opposite of what happens in real life. Jewels are such a potent form of currency because of how well they last, and their almost direct representation of the amount of skilled work that went into them. To further my point, the parser has explicitly said that there is a mint down here, as well as topside. If a whole bunch of money went missing, it literally does not matter, because more can be made.Firstly, gems have no set and agreed upon value unlike precious metals. Secondly my point wasn't a commentary on economics, it was literally "If we acquire so many gemstones, we'll have to find a buyer for them when we need cash, we won't just be able to exchange our entire stockpile straight across for cash."
Finally:I never said that, much less anything about a riot.
Because we can solve it. Your words: if it breaks into a riot, there will be far more property damage than you'd be willing to deal with. Boozing them up prevents that.
[edit] Oh, right, final point. We don't have to actually mind the bar. We can get our regular stand-ins to deal with everything, and go off gallivanting god-knows-where. Hear that, people? We can make an exorbitant mountain of money and not lift a finger.What regular stand-ins? We don't have any, unless you're talking about someone from the Myouren crew? They're on the surface last I checked, which I am all in favor of going to.
I actually wanted to say "Follow the white rabbit" but decided it wasn't worth it. The problem is that we don't know who to follow aside from "a rabbit" and going by how Eientei is presented in past quests it's full of rabbits that look an awful lot like Tewi. Besides, we have absolutely no proof that it's Tewi besides a witness saying "rabbit in pink dress". If we know who it is, why not go capture them and end this quickly?Because we have opportunity now and it doesn't knock twice! Eientei and it's rabbits are seriously not going anywhere. We can also use getting all the onis in our bar, drinking and talking to comb THEM for rumors or anyone they might have seen who doesn't fit in. There's no reason to rush off. Some of us don't think Tewi is responsible after all.
What regular stand-ins? We don't have any, unless you're talking about someone from the Myouren crew? They're on the surface last I checked, which I am all in favor of going to.
>You have a couple of regular contacts who watch the market for you, feeding you information on prices and surpluses in exchange for cheap drinks. When you have to leave the pub while it's open, you usually put one of them in charge or a regular you trust; it's a pretty rare occurrence.
Also, we wouldn't make any money, we'd make gemstones and lose out on liquor at a loss which we would have to use cash to replace, meaning we'd have to actually go out there and solve this incident.We'd make gemstones at a gain and can solve the incident after we take in some shinies. :P
Firstly, gems have no set and agreed upon value unlike precious metals. Secondly my point wasn't a commentary on economics, it was literally "If we acquire so many gemstones, we'll have to find a buyer for them when we need cash, we won't just be able to exchange our entire stockpile straight across for cash."
I never said that, much less anything about a riot.
What regular stand-ins? We don't have any, unless you're talking about someone from the Myouren crew?
Because we have opportunity now and it doesn't knock twice! Eientei and it's rabbits are seriously not going anywhere. We can also use getting all the onis in our bar, drinking and talking to comb THEM for rumors or anyone they might have seen who doesn't fit in. There's no reason to rush off. Some of us don't think Tewi is responsible after all.How do you know it's Eientei? How do you know it's even a rabbit? You're right, we have the perfect opportunity now that we may not get again, so let's investigate! I never said Tewi was responsible, I never even said it was a rabbit. I can't say one way or another without actually getting out and looking.
We'd make gemstones at a gain and can solve the incident after we take in some shinies. :P
Yes they do. They quite certainly do. By size, grain, quality of cut, purity. Otherwise the gem trade wouldn't be quite so popular, don't you think? And we don't need a buyer. Once we've accumulated that many gems in exchange for perishable stock, we've got a large amount of economic control. With K on our side - which is why I was so adamant about getting to her - we can jump-start the subterranean economy using gems as base of currency, have the mint make a whole bunch more metal coin, and roll in the cash.Gold is traded on a set price by weight. There are several different classifications to take into account with gems before pricing. As a result there is no international set of official guidelines for pricing and no one trades or banks on the speculations for the prices of diamonds or emeralds. That's my point.
You're right. It was somebody else.
Pretty sure the parser mentioned in the introductions that we get the occasional someone to stand in at the bar when we're out or somesuch. This seems like an eminently sensible idea in the first place even if it were not mentioned, so I'll go on the assumption that we have.
How do you know it's Eientei? How do you know it's even a rabbit?
"...Well ain't that a thing," she says, frowning deeply. "Zoggin' burglars. Roit, you're paid up, this is what I know. Last night, some rabbit type in a pink dress invited herself in,
How would we make them at a gain? If we're treating them like cash and selling drink at a discount, then we'd be making less money than by selling at full price.
Gold is traded on a set price by weight. There are several different classifications to take into account with gems before pricing. As a result there is no international set of official guidelines for pricing and no one trades or banks on the speculations for the prices of diamonds or emeralds. That's my point.
How would you have any economic control? Nue is the only person in the Underground that sees gems as valuable, the other oni see them as worthless. You'd have to introduce an entirely new economic system to the oni, a new system wherein the wealthiest person is not an oni and in fact set up this entire new economic system in order to establish themselves at the top. That seems incredibly underhanded and dishonest to me and I doubt the oni will take kindly to the idea at all.
When we have to leave the bar very briefly during operating hours, we have someone stand in. No one runs the bar open to close except us. Further, I'm sure that most of our regulars are in a similar situation. "Hey, I know that you think all your money is gone, but believe me when I say it isn't! Now be a dear and go run the bar? Kissies!"
Re: Planning, situational awareness, Fightest not being careful with language
The Turkish release of Nue Quest is indefinitely delayed
They might be Oni, but in a way, they are still people, with real emotions and everything, wouldn't YOU get pissed if you got called "chucklehead",
And fightest, that's not enough to prove it was a rabbit who did this.
Also, you haven't presented a way to stop the riot, so less ironic eye-rolling at me, thank you very much.I already did, you just decided to ignore it.
>"Right, I said what I have to say."> Don't do this yet.
>To the guard: "Might be a good idea to have people keep tabs until we have the money back."
>Get out of there. Deva K's people probably know how to handle a crowd of angry oni much better than we do; we'd likely just get in the way.
>Return to the tavern.
> Fly up just above the lackey, yell at the top of our lungs at crowd:
> "Hey, chuckleheads! We got this! For time being, I'm accepting those stones you've got as cash for booze, with discount, and it's staying that way until problems are fixed! Just let K alone so she can figure stuff out!"
> Don't do or say this.
> Do do and say this.
>Do do this.
>"Right, I said what I have to say."
>To the guard: "Might be a good idea to have people keep tabs until we have the money back."
>Get out of there. Deva K's people pprobably know how to handle a crowd of angry oni much better than we do; we'd likely just get in the way.
>Return to the tavern.
>Don't jump on anything yet, especially calling a gang of angry oni "chuckleheads"
>Are oni more or less rambunctious when liquored up?
>How frequent are riots/gang fights in the city, and how significant are the consequences?
>Do we have any idea whether it's possible to hire (de facto) mercenaries on the surface, and/or how quickly such people could be mustered?>Is the ancient city a libertarian paradise
I> Don't do this yet.
> How do we compare to Yuugi strength-wise? Not physically, but in danmaku.
> Inventory
> How far are we from the pub?
However, I'll have to agree that getting everybody up at the bar and giving them cheaper drinks is a bad bad idea, like it was said, we'd have to work all day (and a lot harder than normal too!), could we ask someone doing this for us? Yes. Would they refuse? Gee, what do you think?I think they would accept, because this is a thing that we have been told specifically that we have asked of people and they have done for us. Sect has a point though about helpers needing to be taught gem values. I think just skipping off in general is a bad idea. Spending the day solving the incident, coming back and finding everything smashed because the oni rampaged would be bad. The oni riot should be considered part of the incident that we need to solve. It's not our fault if we make some profit or get in K's good graces with it..
> Ask the crowd of oni's if any change they had in their pockets was also turned into gems or clear beads.First one's not very good, mostly because we just don't have that much time to ask before things get bad. Plus, I think I recall one of the oni showing us her own gems: I'll need to look back to find that. I'm not quite sure what the second one's asking, though, that does remind me of something.
> What exactly is our money made of, including all denominations?
> Add Quest: Demonic Suppression! The oni are restless and we should do something about it! Something that isn't destroying our bar again!
> Ask the crowd of oni's if any change they had in their pockets was also turned into gems or clear beads.
> What exactly is our money made of, including all denominations?
So am I the only one that thinks the gems ARE the money and all the money underground was transmuted into gems? >.>
Well, it's either that or someone's using seeds of non-identification to fuck with everyone.Oops, sorry, completely forgot about "Nue Quest: Day 0". :blush:
> To K's lackey: "Hey, I'll get them off your back for you."
> Fly upwards, and fire a danmaku burst in the sky to grab everyone's attention. "Hey! All you listen up! Deva K is trying to deal with the whole money situation, so while she does that, the Rose and Weasel will be opening shortly, and we will accept gems and beads!"
This might be reading ona phone talking, but when we were presented two plans to get the gems, one that wastes time and alcohol and one that does not, why did we choose the former?Mostly because I jumped the gun and didn't take precautions. :/ That, and the only other plan I noticed was "bail and hope everything turns out all right", which I don't think is what you're referring to.
This might be reading ona phone talking, but when we were presented two plans to get the gems, one that wastes time and alcohol and one that does not, why did we choose the former?
> "We're selling by the bottle as well, to keep and take home! Also we've got a limited-time bulk discount, first come, first served!"
> Gauge crowd response from additional revelations.
> If over 3/4 of the crowd are interested, seriously consider heading back to the bar.
Oh please, don't start splitting hares over this. The street-ear said "rabbit type." That is a very specific turn of phrase, and she would not use it in a circumstance when the person in question was not a rabbit.
>Head back to the tavern and open it up for business.
>"Yeah. What'll you be having?"
>"Yeah."
>Take a look at the gems the first oni put down. What's their approximate value?
>What are our minimum, mean, median, and maximum prices?
>"That looks like a cobblestone. Did you find this in place of money, or did you just pick it up outside somewhere?"
>To the first one: "Got it."
>Find something in the 10☼ range and offer it to her.
>Hmm...
>Well, it's not like they just put down random rocks. Proper cobblestone takes a bit more than that.
>Also, probably shouldn't risk angering the oni.
>"Well, it is a proper cobblestone. I'm not taking just any random rocks, but that's a bit more than just a random rock."
>Still a rock, though. Hand her a fairly cheap bottle.
>"You can't just pick up any old rocks and make a path out of them. It'd be kind of a bumpy ride, 'cause, well, how often've you seen two rocks at the same time look exactly identical, shape and size and everything? No, you'd get far too many different shapes and sizes to make any sort of decent pathway. You've gotta work 'em proper, you know? Smooth 'em out and stuff."
>"Yeah, but things like that have different uses. Cosmetic stuff, mostly."
>To what extent do oni wear necklaces/bracelets/any sort of jewelery?
This is now Nue Market Z-Machine where the goal is to take over ~*~~*~the economy~*~~*~ and make Nue Enterprises into a multi-million dollar corporation. No honestly allowed! Seriously saying something isn't in the spirit of the game when any interactions can be beneficial to everyone's goals is a little mean-spirited Kilga. I believe this will help us find out more in the long-run. Bartenders always get to hear the juciest secrets.
> "I know where I can get money for 'em. They're an inconvenience, but they won't stop me from doing business."
> "Topside."
> Turn to the newcomer.
> "Yeah."
> "All righty."
> Pour something in the 35☼ range and send it over, then turn back to the black-haired oni.
> "Accessorizing is one common use. They're rare and look pretty, so they tend to go for a decent amount."
> "Different beads differ in price based on rarity, but yeah. I've been around that block a few times, I know what they tend to go for."
> "This is place is still what it's always been, alcohol at a reasonable price. Only thing that's changed is the currency, really."
>"The stuff that replaced our money? Yeah, I'm taking those."
>"People topside'll buy the stuff left in place of our money-and I'm pretty good at telling how much those things are worth-but that brick? Not so much."
>"Yeah, it's kinda weird, but there are people topside who'll pay good money for stuff like those beads. It's a fashion thing; they like how the stuff looks."
All right, if this is how events are going to go down, let's make sure they're able to go down regardless of who's online, since I'm just kinda shooting in the dark here. If anyone is going to input long-term action plans with specific reasons and goals, when you disappear for a time, leave notes for other people about what you recommend doing and not doing to make progress so that progress can actually be made. This is doubly important if there is opposition to your idea, because forcing a course of action and then leaving the game to people that disagree with it only serves to ruin their interest and ability to play, as well as make everything take an unnecessarily long time.
>"Maybe so," says the oni. "But it's still not worth as much as this."
>She pats the brick for emphasis.
>_
> "That's a brick, and it's not a gem or a bead - the stuff your money got turned into. No gems, no beads, no service, and that's final, and tell your friends that, too."
> Confirm: "That is just a brick, not what your money was before, right?"
> Draw up a quick sign that says "Only accepting the stuff your money got turned into."
> Draw up a reference chart, describing beads and gems' appearance and their relative values.
> Put these somewhere visible.
>"What," says the oni, giving you a look while you look for materials to make a sign with. "So it's not good enough for you now? What're you playing at, then?"
>_
I think they really don't understand the difference because they don't understand the difference between rocks and gems. Also, every time someone asks if we take rocks the answer is some variation on "yes" instead of "No but we are taking those shiny gems that replaced everyone's money". We've also already traded drink for a non-gem rock. They've seen that and they're honestly trying to get drink based on our past actions.
> Aren't oni supposed to be honest to a fault? This is wilful ignorance of intent, and is two degrees away from lying. Of course, rumour is also to blame.
> Put on our best poker face.
> "It sure looks to me like you're trying to cheat me out of my hard-earned business. I slave away at the counter day in, day out, providing only the best in drinks and cocktails, and you still don't respect me enough to pay me properly?"
>You suspect it is an attempt at being diplomatic rather than outright calling you a liar and attempting to bash your face in.
>"I did," she says, "It's right there on your zoggin' bar, isn't it now? Better than anything anyone else came with, I'd bet! And even though you went an' bloody well said it was okay the first time, now it looks like you're trying to go back on it, and tell me you ain't! So what makes that good enough and this not, huh? That's what I want to know."
>_
Gosh Kilga, if you want to call me out on something, just say it straight. Point taken, however, I don't actually want to be hanging about trading booze for too long, either.
Alternatively, we could accept a small loss in profit in the name of preventing anger and aggression in our bar and take the brick for another cheap drink, then state that this is the last time and make a sign that details exactly what we are and aren't accepting (and also apologizes for the confusion).
Also because I remembered someone else (Sect?) helping advance this line in a manner that suggested they knew what was going on. :VYeah, that's my fault: there was a few things I intended to add, but got sidetracked along the way. Not that I know what's going on more than anyone, really, but writing notes could've made things a bit easier and prevented screwups.
> Shouldn't have taken that cobblestone.
> Damage control.
> Can't get out of this without lying, unless anyone has any bright ideas.
> "That particular rock was worthless by itself, however, it had some of the valuable stuff encrusted on it. So I accepted it."
> Have we drawn up the reference sheet yet? If so, show her the sheet.
> "See? Brown and shiny. Worth something. Your brick has none of that. Not worth something."
>"Actually, I took that first one because, well, everyone's been calling the beads and gems and such rocks, so, hey, innocent misunderstanding. That's why I was more specific when you walked up."
>"But, well, I guess I can understand where you're coming from. As soon as I have a moment, I'm going to make a sign saying what precicely I'll be accepting."
>Hand her a bottle of something in the 10-20☼ range.
>"In fact, how about doing me a little favor? I'll get the sign done, but while I'm doing that, could I get you to just tell people I'll be ready in a minute?"
> "Yep. Glad I've studied them as much as I have, it may just keep me in business."
> Do we have the material for such a sign?
> "All right. I'll be right back, gonna go make that sign so people know what they're in for."
>You decide to be honest enough.
>"Huh, alright then," says the oni, seeming to be mollified as you hand her a cheap bottle. "This mean you'll be taking other beads, too?"
>_
>The oni nods, as she starts on her drink.
>_
> Make sign as quickly and accurately as possible.
> Write "We accept gems and beads at our appraisal value. We do not accept other rocks. Our apologies for any confusion or inconvenience. - The Management" on the sign.
> Set the sign up in an obvious location and listen in on this conversation about the market.
> Return back behind the bar.
> "Wonder if they got hit by the same person that hit all of us?"
> "Think the bridge princess might've seen someone? Or maybe Satori, if whoever did this decided to have a go at her place."
> Nod and take the pearl.
> Give the pearl-possessing customer another 10☼ drink.
> Where are we keeping what we're getting "paid", anyway?
> "Someone should probably go ask them. Maybe the Buddhists in the clinic, too. Though I suppose the bridge princess was probably the first place Yuugi would have went, assuming everyone got hit."
> "The clinic also might know if anything's going on topside. Who knows, that info could be worth something."
> How far is the clinic from where we are?
> Frown and raise voice a bit.
> "I think I may want to talk to the clinic. Will you lot be okay by yourselves for about 20 minutes?"
> So much for a few hours.
> "You have another of those glossy brown gems?"
> "Let's see it. If it's the same kind of gem, I'll get your group another bottle before I take off."
> What do we have that would go for 20☼?
> "Mmm, that'd get you another smallish bottle of plum wine if you want, or a bottle of decent sake. If you have another one of brown ones from before, you could get another of your current bottles."
> Pull out the brown jasper again and hold it up so they can see it for reference.
> You're quite the jeweler, parser. I never knew!
> What do we have that'll go for 50☼?
> Nod.
> "All right, that works. Tell you what."
> Point at the agate and the carnelian.
> "Those two and the green one you pulled out first will get you another of what you just had."
> Point at the amber.
> "And that by itself will fetch something a little more expensive, if you're interested."
> Collect the three offered gems.
> "Thank you kindly."
> Fetch another bottle of plum wine for the group.
> Nod to that one.
> "Enjoy yourselves."
> Turn back to look at the center of the room.
> "Anyone else before I make a quick info trip?"
> "All right. I'll be back soon, and hopefully I'll know a little more."
> Leave the bar, take flight, and head to the clinic.
> Did the damage to the stalls look calculated or like reckless angry oni behavior?
> Enter the clinic and assess who is present.
> A curious look?
> ...Oh, right. How obvious are they, anyway?
> Make our way over to Nazrin and keep our voice low.
> "Hey, how's things with you folks?"
> Give a small smile.
> "Nah. I'm just not having the best day and I need a pick-me-up. Have you heard about the city's money problem? A whole bunch of us had our cash replaced with gems overnight."
> "That's basically it. Whole bunch of oni got hit, as well as me. You guys have any cash on-hand from donations or such? Might want to check it if you do."
> "Huh. That's odd."
> Take out the two rose quartzes and show them to Nazrin.
> "I found a handful of these babies in my petty cash box this morning. My regular cash box had other gems in it. Oni all over the place are stuck with what they see as worthless rocks and no money. Things aren't going too well today for any of them."
> Frown.
> "So you had the box in your view for most of the night and watched no one touch it, then?"
> "I have no idea. But this is really weird. The rest of us, none of us had our money boxes in our line of vision all night like you did. So someone is capable of changing cash into gems without needing to touch them or even open the cash boxes. And they're smart enough to know general conversation rates, since my gems, at least, roughly matched up to my money total."
> "It seems that Priority One should be letting Byakuren know what happened. I sure as hell don't have any solution ideas, and I imagine if any of you lot would know how it happened or how to fix it, it'd be her."
>"I don't suppose you know the last time you saw actual money go into that box? Or took a look inside it, yourself?"
>"For that matter, did anyone at all out of the ordinary drop by at any point?"
> "Can you leave this place on its own for a while to tell her? I kinda have to scoot back to the pub since I'm accepting gems in place of cash, otherwise I'd head topside for you."
> Frown.
> "I guess I'll probably have to find a way to close the pub down for the day, then. In the meantime, though, is there any way you could relay a message to the Komeiji manor? If anyone in the Underground would know how or why their cash was mysteriously replaced with gems, it would be Satori. If she got hit, she might have very useful information."
>Is standard currency here minted in precious metal?
>Do we have any idea how good a dowser Nazrin is?
> How far is Parsee's bridge from the clinic?
>For that matter, how long a trip is it from here to the Myouren Temple and back again?
>"Hey, Naz, a thought occurs to me. Let's just say someone used some trick to make off with all these coins and leave gems in their place. That's an awful lot of money taken, and if they'd gone to all the trouble of getting it, maybe even all in the same place now. If there was that much precious metal in one spot, do you think you might be able to sniff it out?"
I think it's a good plan. We need to talk to Parsee anyways to find out if she saw anyone come in or out. Trying to get Nazrin to dowse for the money's a good idea too, but I think it'll end up proving what I suspect about the money instead. If not then bonus!
>Nod
>"Thanks, Naz."
>Head outside and wait for her.
>"Noise? Like what? Would other precious stuff interfere with that? Like, say, all those gems out there? Or is it more specific than that?"
>"Ok, so it's definitely still out there then?"
>"Do you think this is something intentional, to block people tracking it? Does it interfere with you searching for anything else?"
>"Can you tell anything about it other than that? Like, is it all in one place? Even a general direction?"
>"Uh... sorry for giving you 20 questions and all, here... It's just, well, every little bit helps."
>"Meaning there's probably someone either blocking the location of the money specifically, or it's a side-effect of the process that somehow got it there in the first place, and it's having spillover effects. I kinda doubt that the fact that it's worse with money than other things is accidental."
>"Have you ever bumped into anything like this before? And, uh, I don't suppose you have any idea on some way we could help you see through it? Like, would it be easier if you were on the surface? Or is there some way to, I dunno, supercharge the process? I mean, I don't really know how you do it, anyway."
>"Hmmm.... yeah, I really need to get topside. See if this has happened up there too, or if anything else is up. At this point, who knows? Whoever could pull this off is probably capable of a lot more, too."
>"So, you'll cover for me at the bar a bit, if I can get someone to cover for you? I trust you can appraise gems well enough to tell what's worth the price of what they're trying to buy with it?"
>How many different types of drinks do we have available, roughly?
>Particularly, do we have anything whose value is appreciably greater than it might appear to an untrained eye? Like a special vintage of something? If we have anything like that, it would be a shame to find it sold off for cheap when we get back.
>Are those special drinks kept in a separate location that would be easy enough to point out to Nazrin without actually showing her them in person? Or is there something else that she could reliably use to identify them?
>"Hmm... point. Here, let me give you a quick run-down, just to make sure you're in the ballpark, anyway."
>Give her a quick run-down on general price ranges, in broad enough terms that she's likely to remember it, without making an imposition out of precision.
>"And the stuff in the display cabinet behind the bar is special stuff, not for regular sale. If anyone asks, tell them to wait until I get back."
>"I wouldn't be asking this of you if I didn't think that having some place open that'll take payment from them wasn't doing at least a little bit to keep things calmer down here. Well, I hope. I certainly don't want to see this go further south than it already has; I'm sure you can imagine."
>"Fair enough, I suppose.'
> How foolproof is Nazrin's dowsing? Can she have merely picked up the signal from topside money, or is it specifically "the money that the underground is now missing" to the exception of anything else?
>You honestly don't know. But you'd think if there was that kind of problem with it, she would have been straight about it. She might not be nearly so good at the business as you are, but she's not dumb.
>_
> Fair enough.
> Bridge next, or detour at the Palace?
>Do we know of any ways in and out of the underground besides the main path?
>Even if we don't know the specific other paths, do we know that there are other paths?
Yeah, so I'm thinking Satori, as long as we're still down here.
Parsee -> Clinic (to drop Parsee off) -> Pub (to finally pick up our stuff, as well as give confirmation to all the oni that Naz is in charge and to tell them to where we're off) -> Satori (assuming Parsee doesn't mind the extra few minutes spent at the clinic -> Topside (conversing with whichever of Yamame and Kisume we run into along the way)
> Take flight and head toward Parsee's bridge.
>Go to the house and knock on the door
> "I'm not here for sales. Has Yuugi told you what happened in the city?"
> "Because I need a favor from you on direct behalf of the Buddhist clinic and indirect behalf of the whole city, but I'll give you the low-down first. Across the entire city, it seems everyone's hard currency has been transformed into gemstones. If you have some money on-hand, you might want to check on it yourself."
>The door flies open immediately after. "Who did this!? She made the biggest mistake of her life! How the hell did she even get in, I've been at the bridge all week!"
>_
> Nice.
> "Did anyone visit your home recently? Not even strangers, I mean people you know well, or never pay attention to."
>"Yeah, there are a lot of similar situations. Also, it seems that the gemstones left are in fact approximately equal to the value of the missing cash."
>"I think there's more to it than that. The entire city's been hit, as far as I can tell, and nearly all at the same time - even people who'd been practically looking right at their money. The donation box at the clinic had the same thing happen to it. I had Nazrin try to dowse for the cash, and there's some magic or something blocking her from finding it. Whoever did this is more than just some thief."
> "I got a tip from the street that whoever did this looked like a rabbit. Did you see anyone at all come in last night?"
> Do we know of anyone who would possess the magical ability to perform such a stunt? Besides Byakuren.
>"I don't suppose the rabbit said anything to you? Even anything innocuous?"
>"I don't suppose you saw anyone else come this way, that caught your eye?"
>"Hmmm... I really need to head topside if I'm gonna figure this out. Whatever the answer to this is, I don't think I'm going to find it down here."
>"And, uh, that brings me to something else... I don't suppose you'd be willing to fill in at the clinic real quick, while I go and fetch someone else from the Temple? I promise I'll be as fast as I can, but I just don't want to leave it unattended for the time it'll take me to get them."
>"No, I don't blame you for that. And yes, I promise I'll be quick."
>Grin
>"Thanks a million, Parsee. Seriously."
>Do we have any idea what Parsee might know about the clinic?
>Even if we've never worked there, we do know the general gist of the duties involved in running it, though, right?
>Well, she certainly doesn't need to worry about house calls for this length of time.
>"Just keep an eye on the place, really. I'm sure you've been around oni too drunk to stay on their own feet, before. You won't be there long enough to need to worry about much else."
>"Well, the sooner I get going, the sooner I can get someone else down here to take over for you. Thanks again."
>Head off towards the surface, and make it brisk
>Nod
>"Well, the sooner I get going, the sooner I can get someone else down here to take over for you. Thanks again."
>Head off towards the surface, and make it brisk
> Hold off on these for a moment.
> "Out of curiosity, do you know if Utsuho is working right now? If she isn't, I could ask her to keep you company, since I want to meet with Satori about this anyway."
> "Oh. Well, shoot. And I don't think we can ask Yuugi, she'll have enough to deal with right now...what about Rin?"
> Frown.
> "I'm kinda sacked for ideas for people that'll stick with you while I'm fetching one of the Buddhists, then."
> "I don't think I'll need to stay at Satori's too long. I just want to find out if she noticed anything the rest of us didn't."
> Nod.
> "If you don't mind. And thanks again, this is a huge help for everyone. I'll have one of the Buddhists along to relieve you as soon as possible."
> Take flight and head to the Palace of the Earth Spirits at a brisk pace.
> Knock on that door and announce our presence
> Do so with haste!
>"What's up? I don't think the fight's close to here or anything."
> "Actually just the opposite, I'm looking to solve this incident. I stopped by to try and ask Satori a few questions about last night. Is she available?"
> Follow Orin
> "Last night it seems that a rabbit came through and replaced almost everyone's cash with gemstones. I can't speak for everyone, but with me they exchanged cash for the same value in gemstones. Everyone I've talked to so far today has been affected, so I recommend checking your cash-stores if you haven't already."
> "Needless to say, the oni are less than pleased since they view the gems as nothing more than regular rocks. I think I've helped a few to calm down, but it's certainly a big issue that I'd like to resolve soon."
> "I'm absolutely serious, please look into your cash as soon as you can, preferably while I'm here so I can know how big of an issue this is."
> Continue to follow
> Do we know anything about the Eientei rabbits besides Reisen?
> Sit down.
> "Thank you very much. Forgive my intrusion, but I've heard much about your ability and as much as I hate to impose, this situation concerns a great deal of the Underground, so I feel that I should at least ask. May I ask you a few questions about last night?"
>> If yes, "I've heard several reports of a rabbit, or someone resembling a rabbit, entering the village last night and leaving shortly afterwards. Did you notice anything like this?"
> "What do you remember about last night? I'd ask for anything strange, but given these circumstances I'd prefer to hear everything from last night if possible."
> "I see, and you didn't detect an unwanted guest in your house?"
> "For that matter, I'm not sure of the range of you ability but did you detect anything out of the ordinary out in the village? By that I meant anyone moving around that wasn't an oni?"
> "I apologize if I come across as curt, but this is a rather worrying situation."
> "Very curious, that you would not notice anything around your home, unless you were somehow not victimized."
> "No. Most of us were asleep or otherwise not paying attention. The mouse youkai at the clinic, though, she had the donation box in her view all of last night. She didn't see anyone touch it, and it somehow still got hit."
> "To have someone that does not need to be seen or even in the vicinity, though, and still be able to pull this off...gotta admit, I'm stumped good."
> Do we have any comestibles in stock aside from alcohol right now?
> "If the cash was in your room and you didn't detect anyone last night then I'm afraid the problem is much more serious than I had imagined."
> "Well, if you think you might need something, I'm taking gems in place of cash back at my place."
Maus: If certain subtler happenings in Iku Quest (and the postgame questions) are any indication, I think I know why.
But I don't want to ruin the surprise. :>
> "For someone slip by you unnoticed, would that require any specific special ability, or would just being powerful suffice?"
> "You haven't encountered those precautions, but have you encountered someone who could elude your gaze, or at least distract it?"
>"What about someone on whom it, for whatever reason, simply does not work?"
>To our best ability to tell, does it seem that Satori's being completely honest?
>To our best ability to tell, does it seem that Satori's being completely honest?
> "I see. That's about all I have to ask for now; thank you very much for answering my questions. Would you like me to keep you updated as the situation progresses?"
> Thank her again for her hospitality and take our leave.
> Once outside the palace, fly towards the pub.
Okay, question. Koishi's closing of her third eye is supposed to have made her immune to mind-reading, right? And yet apparently Satori's telling the truth when she says she doesn't know of anyone she can't read. I understand that exact interpretations of the characters vary, so has anything happened in previous quests (I've only read Iku's and Utsuho's) that would explain this apparent inconsistency?Satori rarely brings up Koishi in these quests unless asked directly. Not sure of the reasoning, but that could be why she didn't mention it. Considering Koishi never goes Underground in these quests I don't think Nue would have ever heard of her. Also, you didn't read Maribel Quest?
Satori rarely brings up Koishi in these quests unless asked directly. Not sure of the reasoning, but that could be why she didn't mention it. Considering Koishi never goes Underground in these quests I don't think Nue would have ever heard of her. Also, you didn't read Maribel Quest?
> "Thanks, but I gotta grab something real quick, excuse me."
> Head up to our room andcatchpalogueget our spell cards
> Oh for fu-
> Observe our room
> Where else could we have possibly put them?
> Is there anything else in the room that could be helpful in a danmaku battle?
> How big is our trident? Would we be a likely target for the oni if we were to carry that through the streets?
> Do we have a costume resembling the rabbits from Eientei?
> Get that dress and put it in our purse. We're probably going to need it.
> Do we have any rabbit ears? What do they look like?
> What would be needed to take on the appearance of one of the rabbits?
>> Gather up whatever of those materials we have.
> Today is going to be a long day, so let's conserve some energy. Drop our size down one cup size.
> You also note that the place across the street has put up a sign saying that it is accepting precious stones and beads for drinks.
>_
> FFFFFFFF-
> Actually this is a good thing.
> Proceed.
> Grab our mirror as well.
> Who do we know underground who carries spellcards besides: Parsee, Yuugi, Okuu, Orin, Satori.
Can I request clarification as to why we want to return to Satori for investigation purposes after finding a replacement Buddhist? I'm not sure there's any more to be gained from her; at the very least, not more than talking to Byakuren or an Eientei higher-up.To ask if her spell cards are also missing mostly, but if we run into Okuu topside and find out about how Koishi not only exists but can't be detected by Satori I want to bring that up with her.
Problem is, we don't know if Nue knows anything about Koishi, or even know if she exists. So:Hence why we left the house earlier despite our outside suspicions. My current idea is, as I mentioned before, to go back after we learn about Koishi's ability to evade Satori.
> Inventory
> Any Seeds of Non-identification or other such items sitting about?
>Also, check those places we'ew cwerain we didn't put our spellcards anyways, just in case we're wrong.
Also, given the oni's penchant for not comprehending gemstones, the opening of the bar across the street is worrying.
> Stop being sick, parser. It's not healthy.
> Take our trident and the seeds of non-identification.
> Leave the brick in our room, it'll just weight us down. We have the trident for stabbies and the cobblestone for smashies if we really need to get rough.
> Did we grab the sheath as well?
> Head back downstairs
> Find Nazrin. When we see her, call out.
> "Hey, Nazrin. Real quick: you still have your cards?"
> Are there any roads in Gensokyo or are they just trails?
> Frown.
> "Because I don't."
> Add a bit of a sneer.
> "I think I may have some ass to beat topside."
> What a shame. If only there were roads then you could patrol them today as some kind of...warrior.
>Add Quest: Become the Road Warrior
> "Sure seems that way, but I hope that's not a widespread problem."
> "I'm about to head back to the surface and find you a replacement, any questions before I go?"
> Take to the air, yes.
> Fly carefully through the tunnels if we have no business with Parsee.
> Keep an eye out for buckets.
> Do we recognize this voice?
> Dodge sideways if possible, just in case
> Come to a stop and look up.
> "I owe someone topside a good, old-fashioned beatdown!"
> "Don't think you did. I mean more topside than you. Actually, since you're here, have you seen anyone unusual travel underground recently?"
> "Damn. Okay, thanks. And speaking of walloping, you're outta luck in that regard. All of underground's money is gone. Turned into gems. The oni are throwing a total fit."
> "Glad you're fine, I guess. What about Yamame? She doing okay?"
> "Oh. Well, okay."
> Give Kisume a small wave.
> "Catch you on the replay."
> Head the rest of the way through the tunnel to the surface.
> "Yamame?"
> Frown.
> Go up to investigate that light. Not too fast, though. And don't plow through the web sign, that's how she gets her money.
> All right, topside time.
> Make a beeline for the Myouren Temple. We're on a mission!
>Is that an unusual amount of danmaku? If so, then there might be more than the Underground caught up in this...
>Do we have any idea/way of telling who's firing it off?
>Ignore it.
>Head for the temple.
>What would the most direct route to the human village be?
> Whatever that route is, fly it.
>Just have a UFO deal with her (unless we can only use those in spellcards).
> Grit teeth.
> Use one arm to shove the fairy that ran into us aside, while dropping a bit ourselves. Try not to fall further than just above the treeline, though.
> Continue onwards
> Mourn our lack of practice with the marsupial shift. Maybe we could have hid that escaping fairy.
> Too big? All the more reason to practice, then!
> Huh. Did topside get hit too...?
> Fly down toward the crowd and listen in to what's going on.
>We, on the other hand, run a tavern in a city of oni.
>Approach one of the ones from the temple that are off to the side.
>"Hi. Um, let me guess: everyone's money has been replaced by jewels."
>Belay that
> Our spellcards have gotten nicked (and nobody else's), a large amount of gems has appeared out of nowhere and Nazrin is having trouble locating things?
> Hel-lo, I might be on to something. Should have asked Nazrin to double-check.
> Current theory - seeds of non-identification were involved in the process of the "theft," or, at least, something to do uniquely with our powers.
>How much do we know about the habits of humans, especially in the human village? Not having a riot here would be nice, but the 'how' would be trickier than just providing a way to get booze like with the oni.
>Would normal humans be nervous about having someone like us show up and ask what's going on? If so, are there any youkai near the edges of the crowd to ask further?
> Listen intesley to the group, try to pick up the exact complaint.
> Land if we haven't already, somewhere away from the crowd center yet close to Shou or Ichirin.
> Make our way towards them slowly and calmly.
Chances are good that witnesses saw a rabbit if the situations are the same.
> Move over to join Ichirin.
> Keep a similarly low voice.
> "You're telling me. All of underground's money is gone, too, and the oni are furious. None too happy m'self, to be honest."
> "Came pretty close, but I think they've been placated for the time being. Is topside's money outright gone, or did it get replaced by gems, like ours did?"
> "Okay. so the topside money has been replaced or transformed as well. I can't speak for anyone else, but the gems that replaced my money are roughly equal in value to the cash I had. I know there's a jeweler up here somewhere; has anyone talked to them? What did they have to say?"
I'm starting to suspect that that particular rabbit had nothing to do with the money-stealing-gem-replacing directly, and was only there to steal our spellcards. Why, however, is another matter that eludes me for the moment.If we were the only to lose our cards last night, I could actually go along with that. If it's widespread, then I imagine it'd be the same culprit, who I am still 100% sure is not a rabbit.
> "Were you hit as well?"
> Chuckle. "If that wasn't bad enough, my spell cards are also missing right now. I'm less than happy right now."
If we were the only to lose our cards last night, I could actually go along with that. If it's widespread, then I imagine it'd be the same culprit, who I am still 100% sure is not a rabbit.
>She frowns, and checks her pocket. "They're still there."
There you go. Your point does stand, and, in fact, is now more likely: a rabbit was not responsible for the money-gem switching, but was responsible for the spellcard theft. The two occurrences, unless proven otherwise, should be assumed to be related, as the timing was too specific.Well I did post before him buuuuuuut :derp:
> "I have an idea, take me to Bartertown!"
> "Why is Byakuren trying to calm everyone down? Are the usual incident solvers out investigating?"'
> Does the temple have anyone watching it at night?
> How skilled are we with our trident?
> Do we know of a Kyouko Kasodani?
My guess at the spellcard thievery is actually that it was done to specifically get our attention. The purpose of such an act would be to call attention to what's going on and provide a possible lead as to how to fix things without being really super-obvious about the intentions, much like how Rin sent spirits topside in the SA pregame story. Now, why us and not literally anyone else is a question I do not have an answer for quite as readily, but if it was Tewi, my guess is that she would know who we are, and that she'd know we're probably the best combination of fighter and jeweler to be able to deal with the situation.
I can think of several circumstances where it would the most appropriate action, but as long as all we were directly told by the streetear was that a rabbit claiming to be our friend visited, we can simply travel to Eientei, apologize for being unavailable, as inquire as to what the visiting rabbit desired of us. The question of what happened to our spellcards can (and should) be brought up after we hear the rabbit's explanation, and it should be brought up as a curiosity question rather than an accusation. After the number of times assumptions bit Iku in the ass last game, I am leery of the potential ramifications from using less well-seeming approaches to the rabbit situation, such as trying to sneak in uninvited or busting in (no pun intended) and flinging accusations of theft.
If we act innocent and get suspiciously denied information or entry, then that would be the time to use our disguise.
We're free to point fingers at whomever we suspect, and those at whom we point fingers are free to get offended and refuse to offer any help (and they will) if/when they turn out to be innocent. Maybe you don't care about sacrificing information sources for little to no benefit so early in the game (which is a surprising thought given how economically inclined you are), but I do.
[fakeedit] Unless we actually do have a rabbit that is our friend that the Parser neglected to mention, which I find unlikely.
> "What about Shou?"
> Do we know of a Kyouko Kasodani?
> What were the spellcards that we had available? Were they unusual as far as spellcards go, regarding construction, use of strange materials, application, such jazz?
> Give a small frown.
> "I see. I didn't realize you folks would be taking up the mantle of keeping the village calm...part of the reason I came up here was to help get clinic coverage."
> "No, it seems normal for the moment. But Nazrin is covering the Rose and Weasel. Need to restore some semblance of normality down there for the oni, and she knows her jewels well enough. But it means she can't cover the clinic."
> "That could be doable. How much do you all know about it, aside from what the jeweler told you?"
> "Figured. I know a little more than that, though I don't know how to fix things yet."
> Glance over at Byakuren to see how she's doing.
> "Still, I think she'll take whatever help she can get right now."
> Pull out a rose quartz.
> "I'll be right back. Get in touch with Shou if you can, the stand-in clinic help isn't going to remain happy for too long."
> Take flight above the crowd and head to Byakuren with a serious expression and the rose quartz visible in our hand.
> Turn our head a little away from Byakuren so we're not talking right at her, but keep our eyes looking at her.
> Raise voice so some people gathered below can hear.
> Hold the rose quartz a bit above our head.
> "Underground got hit too. But I think we know a bit more, and sharing is caring, after all."
> "Whatever happened, it's obviously really wide-spread. But two things have stood out as really bizarre."
> "First comes from the underground clinic. The caretaker on duty had the clinic's donation box in her site her entire shift. No one touched it. It still somehow got hit, just like everything else."
> "Second. I talked to the satori in the underground manor. She hasn't detected anyone weird around her home recently. She still somehow got hit, just like everyone else."
> "So whoever did this didn't need to get near their targets or touch the cash containers, and they managed to do it both topside and underground without either side noticing until after it happened. That takes some skill. If nothing else, it certainly wasn't anyone in this village, because you'd have to be braindead to try something that large-scale and obnoxious right under her nose."
> Point a thumb at Byakuren.
> "The clinician's dowsing is getting massive interference in her attempt to find where all the money went. She's certain it's intentional, and that it's coming from somewhere topside. Which is what brings Detective Houjuu here."
> Frown.
> "So what this means is that there is investigating to be done. I have some ideas, but they're very personal, and it would be best to not get a large crowd involved. In the meantime, your best bet is to go about today as best you can. If the cash-to-gem process is this quick, I'm pretty sure I can convince the culprit to make it just as quick in reverse."
> Turn back to Byakuren properly with a sheepish grin and a normal voice.
> "Sorry. I never was very good at helping."
> Assuming she's not completely surrounded by people, land near Byakuren, behind her if necessary.
> If Byakuren is surrounded, fly over to the tavern entrance and land there.
> Either way, listen in on the direction of the speech.
> Take a chance to catch our breath.
> How long does it take to transform into Sanae? That might be good for some looks.
> Shoot. So much for quick entertainment value.
> Smile and give a small wave at anyone that happens to be curiously regarding us.
> Take one last look at Byakuren, then walk over to and enter the tavern.
> Come to think of it, do we even know how to get to Eientei?
> Listen carefully to the ambient sounds of the tavern. Are there not even any sounds to indicate perhaps someone hidden from view somewhere?
> What time is it?
> Leave the bar.
> Take to the air slightly and look around at the crowd. Is there anyone there we recognize?
> 4 PM? What time did we wake up?
> Do we know who would know how to get to Eientei?
> Where are the school teacher and her friend relative to the rest of the crowd.
>Do we have any idea whether Yukari would care about money at all?
> What season is it?
> How long has it been Bhava-Agra fell?
> Do we know where the Buddhists kept their cash?
> Who else is with Byakuren besides Ichirin?
> Fly back over towards Ichirin.
> "So what exactly happened here? When did people find out their money was stolen? How did Byakuren end up on crowd control? Has anyone mentioned that they saw something?"
> "Sorry, I'm trying to piece everything together, days start really later Underground."
> "So this morning things were normal? What time does the market usually open anyway?"
> "Seems strange that something like this has happened and neither Reimu nor Marisa have appeared to say or do anything."
> "Did you discover it at the temple, or did you only check after hearing about everyone else being hit?"
> "Could be, after what happened with you bunch I figured they would have shot the place up minutes after it happened."
> Who is more easily accesible: Fox-tailed youkai or teacher and her friend?
>> Make our way towards that one
> "Sorry about the entrance earlier. I really am trying to work towards fixing this, but I only knew about what was happening Underground and I jumped the gun a little. Now I'm trying to piece more of this puzzle together if possible."
> "Forgive my manners. My name is Nue Houjuu. I'm a friend of Byakuren's and I run a bar Underground. Days start much later down there, and I only just discovered my money was missing. The oni are less than thrilled, but no one down there knows anything about what happened, so I took my investigation up here."
> "Do you mind if I ask you a few questions about all this?"
>> If Yes: "I learned that this only happened recently, not during the night as I had previously thought. Were you in the market earlier before the change happened? Was it just normal up until the change? Did anything seem off?"
> Oh boy.
> "How exactly did it happen? My friends from the temple only found out after the fact. Was it a mass event that everyone was aware of, or was it an isolated incident that spread as people checked their pockets for coins?"
> "Also, have you seen Reimu or Marisa? I imagine an event like this would have had them here immediately."
> Do we know how to get to the Hakurei Shrine or Marisa's place from here?
> "Thank you very much for your answers. Do you know where exactly Reimu and Marisa live?"
> Thank Ran again.
> Fly out of the crowd and start east along the road towards the shrine.
> Turn to face her.
> "That's correct. Initially I thought it was limited to the Underground and I wanted to solve it before the oni really got out of hand, but seeing as it's affecting all of Gensokyo my new goal is to try and solve this incident as best as I can. Is there something else I should know first?"> "Also, do you wear I can find a leather jacket that's missing one sleeve?"
>She nods. "Yes, there is a bit more I could tell. I was going to wait until your questions were satisfied, but then you left so suddenly. It's not much, but, before people started to shout in the market, felt...something. It was only for a second, and I cannot tell you what it was as my thoughts were elsewhere. It was akin to an unseen spider's web across one's cheek, or a motion out of the corner of the eye, but I believe I did feel something for that instant."
>_
> "Sorry, today's been a little hectic."
> "So I imagine that the web feeling was only fleeting? Did the vision and the feeling occur simultaneously?"
> "How very cryptic. Please try to remember what it is you felt, otherwise it's not particularly helpful."
>"It was neither of those things," she says. "I can't really express what it was like, but those two things compare closely with differing senses. I can't quite describe how I felt it, only that I did for an instant."
>She shakes her head as you complain about the crypticness. "It would be less helpful to say nothing, would it not?"
>_
> "You are well-aware of the fallacy of your question, I assume. Regardless, you sensed something fleeting with touch and sight, then? You know your senses best, what can you conclude?"
> "Were there any other notable youkai in the market at the time. For that matter, was there anyone you hadn't seen before?"
Did we manage to get anyone sent to relieve Parsee or have we forgotten about that already/want her to get Yuugi on our case?I don't think it's a pressing issue considering we haven't been topside for too long and the temple crew is currently preoccupied. We haven't talked to Murasa yet, so feel free to ask her.
Ran appears to be doing her best to insult our intelligence, giving me reason to suspect that she knows more about the incident than she is letting on, but that's a personal thing. I can try pulling information out of her, but if you folks don't want to, then I won't bother, it's not that big a deal.
Could you give examples of this? I never got that impression.
This sensation is worth asking others about, I think. Maybe super fox youkai lady with her supremely good senses was the only one to notice it, or maybe it happened to everyone? Could be an important distinction.
I think it was silly of you to snap at her for giving us extra information freely, Fightest. It'll be good to ask other magical types if they noticed something. It does imply it was a wave of energy. It doesn't sound like it was technological, so the kappa probably can't help much. It can't be a Moriya Shrine Conspiracy right? :ohdear:
There's also the big and obvious option of asking people on the mountain, with the Moriya Shrine given special attention since Kanako is demonstrably Perceptive Of And Good With Bizarre Things.
> Try to remember if we felt anything strange this morning.
Oh yeah. It's too bad we didn't bring a miko outfit, we could easily get to the shrine as Sanae.
> What is our current status on Sanae relationships?
> Can our disguises fool trained Tengu?
>"Sorry, sorry. Been a frustrating day already, and it's all the more frustrating to get clues too cryptic to use. Not saying I'm not glad to hear something, but well...
>"Anyway, about this feeling you mentioned. Seems reasonable to think it was a trace of whatever it is that did this. It obviously took some pretty serious power to swap all this money, all over Gensokyo at the same time, but no one else I talked to felt anything at all. You sensitive to that kind of stuff? Don't suppose you have any idea if we might be able to track down what it was, more than just a vague sense?"
>"Close? Do you mean that it was physically close in some sense? Rather than somehow orchestrating all of this from a distance?"
>"Oh, oops. Well, I guess that could make it harder to figure out, if it's not real regular magic, eh? Would that mean it could be almost anything?"
>What do we know about the schoolmarm, all told?
>Raise an eyebrow
>"Other intrinsic forces?"
>"Fair enough. Then I guess I just keep casting about until I find something more to go on?"
>Could we slowly make our way through the crowd towards the schoolteacher and companion, without being too pushy?
>If so, do so.
>Approach comfortable speaking distance, where we can be seen by them.
>Give a quick little wave at the two of them
>"Some day we're having, isn't it?"
>Do we know anything about the schoolteacher's companion, aside from the fact that she probably lives in the Bamboo Forest?
> "I can imagine. But I've heard about you, and I think I might need your help in fixing things, because I know you know something important that I don't."
Before we leave the crowd/village I really want to go by the shrine. It happened 3 hours ago in close proximity to Reimu. That she hasn't showed up to raise hell is something I find concerning.
> Glance around a bit, then look back at the other woman.
> "Need to get out of the crowd first, though. Don't want to incite more anger."
> Follow!
> "Okay. I do have one lead. Didn't want to say anything about it, half because some of them back there look ready to go postal, half because it's partially born of a personal issue I don't want to talk about if I don't have to. There's been some rabbit shenanigans underground. I need to get to Eientei."
> Nod.
> "So I hear from a reliable source that some rabbit came down to my place while I was asleep. Got someone to let her in by claiming she was a friend of mine. Funny thing, that. I don't have very many rabbit friends. Now, this happened right about the time that all this crazy shit went down, and I'm missing some pretty important not-money things that I know I had before I went to bed. So I think I need to talk to this alleged friend of mine and find out what she knows about what's going on."
> "Yeah. Don't want to go accusing them directly if I don't have to, since I've no proof they actually did it. But no rabbit is that close a friend of mine, and they didn't even bother leaving a message."
> Look away and grimace a bit.
> "If you gotta know..."
> Put a hand on our trident.
> "...my cards got lifted."
> Look back at them and nod again.
> "Thanks. I owe you one. Oh, and can you tell me where the town jeweler is? I think I might want to talk to him myself."
>"Also, I seem to have failed to introduce myself. I'm Nue Hojuu."
>Offer a hand for shaking
>Offer the hand to her companion once Mokou is done with it
>"I'm unsurprised. But, I'll admit Byakuren has had at least a little bit of an effect on me."
> Tilt-nod our head in the direction of the crowd.
> "Anyway, I won't keep you two any longer, if you want to get back to listening."
> "Whatever you need. Imma head over to the jeweler, I think. Catch you at sunset?"
> "Got it. See you then."
> Assuming no objection from either of them, depart and follow the given directions to the jeweler's place.
> Enter!
> Look around for anyone present.
>You enter the shop, and all of that falls away. Sitting there at the counter, frown at a ring setting, is some of your latest work. You'd know that dark hair, those eyes, and that brown skin anywhere. The nose, you think, was especially nice. She sits there in her white blouse; you can see the brocaded blue coat of hers hung on the wall. Iku's little ghost friend.
> Please clarify: who is this?
> Allow a little surprise to creep across our face.
> "Hey there, kiddo! Fancy meeting you here. How'd a sort like you get mixed up in a business like this?"
>"How's the, um, you-know-what working out for you?"
>Take a moment to admire our work.
> "Oh. Right. You like...yeah. Sorry. It's been a while. Seems like you're holding up pretty well for yourself, though, if this place is any indication."
> "Anyway, don't worry, I'm not selling. I actually came by to find out the wideness of the array this place has probably seen today. I'd love to be able to put a price guide up back home for these crazy things, but there's just been so many of them. Quartzes, pearls, jaspers, aventurines, agates, carnelians, all sorts of stuff. What's the spread been like up here?"
> "Lovely. That just makes things even worse. Wish the oni knew what things tend to go for, it would make rebuilding the underground economy a lot easier."
> "Master, huh? Can't say I ever thought I'd hear you call anyone that. Good for both of you."
> "So how's your ol' oarfish doing these days? I see her home isn't visible from the surface anymore, which I bet she's glad for."
> Did we ever introduce ourselves properly to this ghost?
> Give a confused expression.
> "She doesn't talk anymore? What? How does that work? I thought she was supposed to be a Messenger, or something. How's she supposed to deliver her messages?"
> Mental note: Find Tenshi and figure out what the fuck is up with this.
> Introduce yourself properly to her.
> "So is the master available right now?"
> "I see. When he comes back, could you please tell them that I'd like to speak with him? I'm not looking to sell, I'd just like a chart with the approximate values of the gems on it so that way the oni can still buy their liquor and not riot or feel like they're getting ripped off. I should have mentioned, I run a bar underground."
> "For that matter, can you describe him so I might recognize him if I see him before he makes it back?"
> "Well actually, how much do you know about the average prices of these gems?"
> How many gems do we remember seeing back at the pub?
> "Alright, I appreciate your help. Please tell the master that I stopped by and that I'll be back later. Thank you."
> Unless she stops us, leave the shop.
> Fly towards the road to the east and the shrine.
> Fly up to the forest, then land and continue along the road on foot.
> What do we know about Reimu and Marisa?
> Aww, how cute.
> But this is no time for a nap. Even if she can't solve the problem, the villagers would probably like to see her and Marisa getting involved.
> Hail and approach the shrine
> "I'm sorry if I woke you up, but this entire day has been unexpected, and unfortunately I'm not here just to visit."
> "Have you been out in the village yet today?"
> "Well there's been an incident that just came to light in the past few hours: all the money in Gensokyo has been replaced with gemstones."
> "I first noticed it at my bar underground and thought I may have been robbed, but I soon found out that it had affected the entire Ancient City, from Parsee to Satori and all the oni. I came up to the surface and discovered that the situation was the same up here. No one has any cash, just gems."
> "The only upside is that the gems that replaced the cash are equivalent in value, but no one is happy about this."
> Oh fuck oh fuck oh fuck
> Nudge our trident. "I'm with you on that."
> "Anyway, I first noticed it at my bar underground and thought I may have been robbed, but I soon found out that it had affected the entire Ancient City, from Parsee to Satori and all the oni. I came up to the surface and discovered that the situation was the same up here. No one has any cash, just gems. The only upside is that the gems that replaced the cash are equivalent in value, but no one is happy about this."
> "I asked around a bit in the village and found out that it happened suddenly only a few hours ago. Until then it had been business as usual. Most of the villagers and in the square now while Byakuren is trying to keep them calm."
> More importantly, is our trident lethal or can it be used in danmaku battles?
> "She's trying to at any rate. There was lots of grumbling and muttering, but people seem more confused that upset right now. The oni were downright furious and were fixing to riot. The devas seem to be on the case but the oni don't see the gems as anything more than regular rocks."
> "So far I've only talked with Ichirin and Ran. Ichirin only heard about it after the market ground to a halt, while Ran was in the thick of it. Ran said that no one could recall actually seeing anything happening, she reported that she had a strange feeling. She described it as feeling a spiderweb on your face very briefly, only that she never actually felt anything. According to her it's not proper magic, much more indirect."
> "She also gave the schoolteacher a rather cold look after that point. Is there something going on between the two of them?"
> "I think a visit might be reassuring to the villagers. When no one mentioned seeing you or Marisa I decided to come by and see if you two knew about the situation yet. I came by your place since it was closer, so I'm thinking of going to Marisa's after this and getting her up to speed as well."
> "After that I'm a little unsure of what to do next. Ran said that she could even detect high-level magic and she couldn't figure this out. Is there anyone in Gensokyo that can detect changes in reality? For that matter, can anyone cause them?"
> "Something else I find concerning is that Satori kept her money in her room and it was somehow taken without her knowing anyone was there. Has there ever been anyone that she couldn't detect?"
> "Alright, I'll leave Marisa alone then. And Satori has a sister? That's something I didn't know. I'll have to go back and ask her about that later, seems like it's probably a big piece of this puzzle."
> "Alright, I'll leave Marisa alone then. And Satori has a sister? That's something I didn't know. I'll have to go back and ask her about that later, seems like it's probably a big piece of this puzzle."
I think we're done with her for now
Hold up.Yeah, I doubt Koishi's involved either, I went more with the flow than picking my words more carefully.
First, I doubt Koishi is that important in this incident. Nothing concrete to prove either way, though, it's just a hunch.
Second, why would Reimu attack us? Unless she's a psychopath, which would be a new development for me, at which point why did we even come here?
> "Well, it seems strange to me. Someone took Satori's money without her detecting anyone. If she can't detect her sister, then it seems to me that her sister or someone with a similar power might be responsible. Then again, Ran did say that she suspects indirect magic. I just know oni these days, so all I can say for sure is that I want to find who did this so I can get my damn money back!"
> Exhale. "I don't know who to suspect since I'm kinda new to this whole investigation thing, but I figure that it's worth talking to as many people as possible, even if they turn into dead ends. I can't really suspect Satori's sister since I imagine she would have mentioned her if she was to be considered a suspect."
> Sigh.
> "All I wanted to do today was run my bar like normal, now I'm trying to solve a mystery I have no idea about."
> "Out of curiousity, what's your plan? Regarding this whole mess that you've just learned about, that is."
> What do we know of Tenshi's hangouts, aside from the fact that she's from Bhava-Agra?
> "Huh. I don't you'd be up for sending me to any of those places? I kinda really wanna do this now for some reason."
> "Huh. I actually made arrangement in town to head to Eientei later today, so I guess that works out."
> "I'll do what I can."
> Point at the fairy.
> "So who's your friend?"
> Grin.
> "I like her. She's bloodthirsty."
> Turn to the fairy.
> "Don't worry, you're still you."
> Turn back to Reimu.
> "You're lucky. I wish I had one. I'd get Alice to make her a doll-sized weapon, and we could go around kicking some ass and taking some names. I could even keep her hidden, and then when we find our mark, I could pull her out and go 'Say hello to my little friend!' And we'd just go to town on 'em."
> Can we get a complete inventory-style list of the gems we currently possess, including count and estimated value?
> Can we get a complete inventory-style list of the gems we currently possess, including count and estimated value?
> "Aww, I bet she could hold her own if given the proper motivation. Like if you were ever in trouble, she could grab a fork or something and just go crazy."
> "Maybe."
> Turn back to the fairy and point at her.
> "You just keep on keepin' on, little lady."
> How close are we to the shrine donation box?
>Do we know of anyone who works at the Moriya Shrine aside from Sanae and the goddesses?
> Do we have a change of Sanae's outfit in our possession?
> "I'll head toward the mountain to see what they know up top. Good luck in the village. Tell Byakuren I said hi and that I'm sorry for fucking up her speech."
> We're helping!
> Take flight and head toward Youkai Mountain.
> Land and begin our ascent up the mountain path toward the Moriya Shrine.
>Can we recognize these people?
>Which way are they traveling?
>Can we tell anything obvious about their manner?
>"New yakuza gang, Tenshi?"
>How normal is it for other celestials to be in Gensokyo proper?
> Is the tengu blockade usually serious enough to prevent even the passage of, say, fairies?
> Hail and approach Tenshi.
> "Something going on up in Bhava-Agra again?"
>You're not sure. They might well ignore a harmless enough looking faerie.
>_
> Raise an eyebrow.
> "Oho. Sensei, huh? This is new."
> Iku Quest postgame request, if possible, since I forgot to ask and the thread already got archived: Whatever happened to SuperFortress OmegaSpiffy?
>Grin
>"Don't have to be so formal. Want to go a round, then?"
>Is her sword wooden, too?
> And our trident is metal, right?
>Have we ever fought Tenshi before, or seen her fight?
> Pull the trident out while talking, but don't enter a stance yet.
>Would wielding our trident have a positive, negative, or negligible effect on our danmaku?
>Presumably we're adept enough with it to use it defensively without accidentally jabbing Yuli with it?
>"Ground rules?"
> Pull the trident out while talking, but don't enter a stance yet.
>Give it a little flourish as we do so. Style points and all.
> Our trident sheath should render it non-lethal, right?
>"I think I can manage that."
>Stretch, then adopt a defensive stance with trident extended at mid-range
>Grin at Yuli
>"Show me what you've got."
>Be ready to receive the attack
>"I think I can manage that."
>Stretch, then adopt a defensive stance with trident extended at mid-range
>Grin at Yuli
>"Show me what you've got."
>Be ready to receive the attack
>You take your Trident in hand and adopt a defensive stance. As long as you keep your distance, you can bat away just about anything. And if you do it just right, you can catch and disarm just about any kind of sword. But if they get close, things get difficult...
>Yuli approaches you, then after a moment, she slashes low, moving in after the attack.
>Shift aside from the attack, and keep our distance. Let's get a gauge of her speed and followthrough.
>If she threatens too close, use our trident to redirect her sword aside
> Should that comma be a period, or is there more to that update?
> We have a trident. Why haven't we won yet?Wanna unsheath it first?
> As the next attack comes in, catch the sword between the prongs, twist and wrench the sword downwards with our weight, then keep it pinned to the ground with our foot.
> Should force our opponent into a handy kneeling pose as well.
>Take a few steps back, and ready ourselves to receive the next attack
>As the attack arrives, sidestep if possible and otherwise parry
>Follow up with a thrust aimed such that it should be dodgeable without being too threat-less. Either way, make sure not to actually cause damage with it.
> We have a trident. Why haven't we won yet?
> As the next attack comes in, catch the sword between the prongs, twist and wrench the sword downwards with our weight, then keep it pinned to the ground with our foot.
> Should force our opponent into a handy kneeling pose as well.
> So the blade hasn't touched the ground yet?
> Twist the trident and push it sideways. Try to knock the sword away.
> From what direction did she slash when we caught the sword with the trident?
> In which direction did we try to twist to bring her down?
What's reactionary? o_O I want to do a mental check of what has already happened, which takes zero game time.
> From what direction did she slash when we caught the sword with the trident?
> In which direction did we try to twist to bring her down?
> Too reactionary. We've got the momentum.
> Swing the entire trident by the very end in a sweep through the legs, step forward and do another sweep through the legs.
> If she's still standing, get right up to her, catch her right wrist in the trident's tines with our left hand, put our right hand on her face and shove downwards.
>If she's flat on the ground, poke the trident at her throat, but don't jab. Just have it lightly touch
>If this happens, say "And you've lost."
>If she's still able to recover from her fall, shift the trident to where she'd try to step and block it.
> Since we have Tenshi around as reference material, how long do we think we would need to transform into her?
> Would this effect our tridenteering in any way aside from the obvious physical changes, or is transformation purely a magical drain?
> How about just the hair and a rough estimate of the facial features?
> How do our heights compare?
> Pull the trident back from Yuli's neck and raise a hand in a 'stop' pose.
> "Hold up! I don't mind this, but give me a minute before we go again. I have an idea, and I wanted to talk to you regardless."
> Give a small grin.
> "Sorry, that's a surprise. But you'll see in a couple of minutes. Don't worry, I have no plans on running away or anything."
> Drop the grin.
> "Unless you lot have somewhere you need to be."
> "All right. This won't take long."
> Pull out our hand mirror and angle it so we can look back and forth between Tenshi and our reflection without moving our head.
> Begin working to make our face match Tenshi's. If we need a distinct starting point, begin at the top of the face.
> "So what are you looking for?"
> Give a wider grin. At least, as much as we can given the work we're doing on our face.
> "Making things interesting."
> "I'm thinking this will be a good additional test of discipline. Doubly so now that you've suggested aiming for my head. Once I'm done, maybe they'll want to aim for it less. Or maybe they'll want to aim for it more. Who knows? But I have faith in their willpower and your teaching methods that they won't let it be a factor."
> "Oh. My bad. Well, still, this should a decent discipline test regardless."
> "Tenshi, when have I ever done anything weird?"
> How's the reconstruction coming?
> Chuckle a bit.
> "There's a bit more to me than that. I do what I do for business exchange or my own entertainment. You're getting a freebie sparring partner because I like you, but you're getting what I'm doing now as a little bit of those other two things. Speaking of, this next part means I can't talk. I heard Nagae isn't talking these days either. If'n you don't mind, could you tell me what happened?"
> Get to work on the jaw and cheeks.
> Frown.
> "Huh. I wonder if our little picture-taking escapade was partly responsible for that. I hope not, I'd feel kinda bad I encouraged her to do something that contributed to her feeling that down on herself. Even if the idea was hers."
> If the face is set, do the hair.
> Grin again.
> "Didn't I tell you? This should be a good discipline test."
> Finish the hair off, if we haven't already.
> Put the mirror away, then turn to the group of non-Tenshi celestials.
> "How do I look?"
> "This is just a quickie facial. I could do the whole body if given time to study, but I don't have the time right now, and it sounds like you lot don't either."
> Give the trident another flourish and resume our initial defensive stance, trident again at mid-range. Adopt a neutral expression.
> "But that's not why we're here, is it?"
> Are they trying to surround us, or are they just forming a sort of line?
>They are definitely trying to surround you.
>_
> Well this seems just a smidge unfair. Well, whatever.
> Can we do extremely quick shifts with our transformation ability without really fixing where they go or making it look decent? Like make bones bend where they're not supposed to? (I can't remember if this was addressed.)
> Either way, don't let them surround us. Pick the most unsure-looking of them and just charge while they're getting into position, give them a solid blow to the stomach, get behind their back, and press our back against theirs. Always move along with them to maintain this back-to-back position - that'll make it easier to fend off the rest, what with them having to come from the front.
>You can theoretically do those kinds of things, but not fast enough to be useful.
>You charge at the least prepared-looking Celestial, the second one on the right. She cries out and tries to bring her sword to bear, but you slip through her defenses and bat her firmly with the head of your trident. She stumbles, and you are able to move past her.
>The others are moving quickly now, trying to surround you.
>_
> Darn. Is it within the scope of this game for us to become able to do so?
> We're going to have to get tricky.
> Rotate our celestial by pinning her foot with our trident and then bodily pushing backwards so that she is facing one of her allies, then unpin foot and continue pushing backwards to have the two collide.
> Always continue pressing up against the back of our celestial.
> Start channeling Jackie Chan.
> Keep trident in right hand, slip our left arm up the back of the shirt of the celestial at our back, and through her right sleeve.
> Wrench forward with our left arm. We've got to make that joint hurt so we can use it later without impediment.
> Then step back and just a bit around and swing our left arm back and across - see if we can use our celestial to smack the one she'd just collided with, ideally with her sword.
>You try to pin the celestial's foot. Unfortunately, with her being behind you, you can't really see her feet. Trying to ascertain where they are, she starts to break away from you, by moving forward.
>_
> None of that. Bonk her on the head to instill nausea. Then proceed as above.
>You turn and hit her on the head! Wile this does dizzy her, it does little to keep her from stumbling away. You should be able to keep up with her, but you're not sure if you can keep up with her movements.
>At the same time, the others are largely in position, having you mostly surrounded and closing in.
>_
mostly surrounded
> Hm.
> Keep close to the dizzied celestial. She's more of a danger to her allies than she is to us at the moment, provided we're careful she doesn't grapple us.
> Trip up the dizzied celestial just enough that we can shove her in the direction of the opening.
> Follow closely, using her as cover on one side, stabbing at feet that come too close from the other. We have to get out of the surround.
>You keep close to the dizzied celestial, shove her toward the opening, and move as the celestials do. You go around her to the the left, and jab at the celestial you tries to close in on you. Holding the celestial to the right off, you managed to break free of the their encircling maneuver.
>_
> Spin our celestial around, just to keep her disoriented, send her stumbling into the nearest celestial, follow up from behind her with a blunt-end jab to the solar plexus to the crashed-into celestial.
>In escaping, you have left the dazed celestial behind. And hitting someone in the solar plexus from behind would require you to be Yukari.
>_
> I meant from behind the dizzied celestial. Poking out, as it were, and, well, poking forward.
> That said, if we've lost our celestial, then retreat away from the group, and start to pace in a lazy circle around them, forcing them to reorient.
>You start to circle around, and it is a good thing too. The other Celestials have not just be standing there during your antics, and have been moving to try to maintain an advantageous position on you. Your circling brings you close to one.
>_
> Dirty fighting is also part of the repertoire.
> Kick up any loose stuff at our feet in her face.
> Make a jabbing strike for her sword wrist, nothing fancy, just to make it hurt.
>Can we shift our trident with the force of the blow and nail her in the head with the back of it?
>If so, do this, and as we strike, leap upwards into the air
>Quick assessment behind/around us
>Can we release clouds of darkness normally, or is that restricted to spellcard use? And can we see clearly in said clouds of darkness?
>Turn around and face the one moving to our left
>Thrust out with our trident as we fly towards her
>If she parries the blow aside in a way that positions us to strike with the back of the trident, do so
>If she sidesteps the blow as we charge, swing our path wide in the opposite direction that she sidestepped and quickly circle around - attempt to strike from the back
>If she swings as we pass, try to grab the blow with our tines and disarm
>In each case, if an actual trident trust would make direct contact, hold back the full force of the blow, and upon imminent contact, call: "Yield."
>Are there any celestials towards our back at the moment?
>Shift a bit to the right and dash forward, trying to stay slightly out of melee range of the one to our present left.
>If she rushes at us while we dash past her:
>Quickly drop altitude below the height of her attack, thrust trident up from below her guard, towards torso. Hold off on real damage, as before
>If no attempt to intercept, circle around to face her - try to keep this turn as narrow as possible. Then thrust, with similar reaction instructions to previous command's attack
>Pull weapon back, dash right, circling to the side of her (wider, this time) while ascending
>Try to sidestep from her attack, rather than parry
>Do we have a sense of how close the ones behind us are now?
>"No slouches; I'll give ya that."
>Shift right, then dash foward towards the rightmost celestial, thrust readied
>Just before reaching melee range, as it looks like the celestial is readying her reaction, ascend quickly, cutting much of our forward momentum
>Thrust at her from above as we pass over her
>As we pass her, turn around and descend enough to get viable positioning on the following strike
>Thrust at her from behind (or the side, if this turns out to be more viable). If the attack would hit, halt the momentum of the thrust just before it would have hit and call "Yield."
>Shift backwards and aside to let the stab move past us, while parrying the slash
>If this gives leverage to shift the parry into a strike against the celestial with the butt of the trident, do so
>Otherwise, dash a little further back, following the parry
>Call back to Tenshi: "You really want me skewering your students?"
>How high is the stab incoming?
>For that matter, how high are each of us, compared to each other, and the ground?
>"They gotta learn somehow!" says Tenshi.
Or, y'know, we could just take flight.
>The stab is going toward your ribs.
>_
>Shift a little to the side of the stab (in the direct that's the most back from the bulk of the ground)
>Hold our trident vertically, tines up, and catch the sword thrust crosswise with the haft. Push it to the side.
>Dash forward, sliding the haft of our trident along the length of her blade as we move
>Shift the tines down to level with the celestial as we move forward, aiming for chest or neck, but halt momentum just before contact.
> How's that dizzied celestial doing?
> Dodge just to the side, overhead smash to the wrists.
> If it connects, slip past, wrap left arm around their neck from behind and dash down and backwards until our feet are touching the ground, keeping our grappled celestial between us and any active ones.
>"So, what, does that mean you're just gonna thrash them if I don't?"
>The smash to the wrists is unnecessary, you grab the other celestial around her and use her as a shield. This nice forestalls the other from stabbing you in the back, as she was about to do.
>Your prisoner begins to thrash against your neck hold.
>_
> See if we can get her to recoil away and smack into the one that was about to stab us.
> Poke our celestial lightly in the back with the pointy end of our trident and, simultaneously, release our grip.
>You let your prisoner go, while drawing back the trident to give her a light prod. She does indeed stumble away, toward the celestial in front of you, then off to the side.
>Something pokes against the small of your back. "Yield," says a voice from behind.
>_
> Is it a voice we recognize?
> Stiffen for a second, then frown.
> "Damnit."
> Droop our head a little bit and plunge the head of the trident into the ground. If the road is made of material the trident won't pierce, swing the head down to the ground in a non-aggressive instead.
> "I must be getting old."
> "She's right. When you lot have a numbers advantage you need to press it as hard as you can. If this were real combat, you'd have multiple stab wounds on your hands. Far too many to be worth taking one down rowdy customer. Probably even more than what would have happened here, really. I'm sure your sensei has drilled this into you, but not everyone will play as fairly as I just did."
> If (and only if) Tenshi starts speaking to her students again, revert our face and hair back to their normal forms.
> Wait until a point where Tenshi seems finished.
> "Now, given all that, you did still get me."
> Turn to the celestial that poked us in the back and smile.
> "So well done with that."
> Offer a hand for a handshake.
> Shank all of the celestials before Parsee can shank them.