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Character and setting info: http://pastebin.com/u/MagicalPrincess
Archives: http://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/archive.html?tags=Start+Over+Quest
Twitter: https://twitter.com/MagicalMarquise
Ask.fm: http://ask.fm/MagicalMarquise
Collection of character descriptions (WIP, courtesy of anon): http://pastebin.com/pzYffs0R

>>40409187
>”What do you do here?”.
>”Do you have news?”.
The best time of the week is finally here!

>>40409187
>”It’s distilled grape”.
>”What do you do here?”.
Best time indeed.

>>40409187
>”What do you do here?”.
>”Do you have news?”.

>>40409194
>filename
Oh, clever.

>>40409515
Well they're so big, it can't be helped.

>>40409187
>>”What do you do here?”.
>>”Do you have news?”.
Wow, I stumbled into a live. Nice.

"It's distilled grape", you briefly explain the weremouse. You remember there's other, more popular ways her kind is called, such as ratling or ratfolk, or maybe ratkin, except one of them is considered rude and outright offensive and you can't remember which one. Talking about alcohol, however, makes your stomach hurt more than it already does, which is considerably a lot, to the point you can't quite straighten your back without being struck by pangs of pain, "It's not quite as strong as that thing I just drank, though".

"They don't have it where I come from and I never had a chance to drink it", she cheerfully explains as she opens the lid of the simple terracotta pot she's using to brew your medicine, sniffing its fumes. It has, of course, a somewhat foul smell, but it's also strangely soothing to the nose, "But I managed to get my hands on wine, you lucky northeners should drink it more often".

"I heard they drink it all day in Verdenia", Tahenohan adds. Coming from Tahenohan, you might even believe it.

"What do you do here?", you then ask Afra. She hasn't quite explained much, but she has the look of someone who is glad to oblige you.

"I'm an explorer, and royal scout, since everything attached to the army is "royal" according to my experience", she grins at what you presume to be a joke of some sort, "I've been going back and forth from here to Reboldeux to Maner ever since the walking dead. I've done some cleanup, but I'd say there's not much threat all considered".

“An explorer?”, you force a smile, “I’m an explorer too”.

“Well cheers to you then, my dear colleague”, she answers in stride, “I’ll give you a toast as soon as it cools. You can’t drink this hot, it’s not going to actually cure you if you do”, she explains as she removes the terracotta pot from the fire, which she doesn’t douse.

>Ask for exploration tips.
>Ask what she does in the army.
>Ask where she comes from.
>Ask about Maner.
>Ask about Reboldeux.
>Other?

>>40409659
>>Ask what she does in the army.
>>Ask where she comes from.

>>40409659

>Ask for exploration tips.
>Ask where she comes from.

>>40409659
>Ask for exploration tips.
>Ask where she comes from.
>Ask about Reboldeux.

>>40409659
>Ask about Maner.
>Ask about Reboldeux.

>>40409659
>Ask for exploration tips.
SENPAI! Where the fuck were you when we first arrived here?

>>40409743
She was apparently there the entire time, we just kept missing her. I KNEW we should have ran to the meeting with the duke with a piece of toast in our mouth...

>>40409743
>>40409769
You fools, do you even know how this works? We had to run up against our first enemies before senpai could show up, so we see how outmatched we are.

"You're not from around here", you note, though you realize you're stating the obvious, "Where are you from?".

"I'm from Morroc, I was born in Nastaran, I... Don't presume you've heard of it", she smiles, looking at your face like it's particularly curious, "It's hard to pinpoint your place of birth, you look more like someone who comes from another world altogether".

"That's... Not completely incorrect", you concede, and she laughs back, "By the way, could you help me out with this... Exploration thing? I'm kinda new to the job".

She chuckles some more, as if realizing you've just made quite an understatement there, "This is not something you can learn by hearing some tips in someone's tent", she then pours some water from a jug into an iron teapot, which she then puts back on the small fire, "I could teach you, but right now you'd only slow me down, and I can't afford that. I'm sorry but we're kind of... Well, we just can't afford to waste time".

"By the way", you take the chance, "What's the word around? What's going on in Reboldeux?".

She stops and just sighs, saying nothing for a while. "A mess", she then explains, "And not the kind I can solve”. She tries to remain quite for a little, but whether it’s because you keep looking expectantly at her or she’s afraid the half-elf may start talking instead, she continues, “Simply put, there’s too many people, too little resources thanks to the piracy scare and the undead scare combined, and either we start sending people back, and I mean a lot of people back, or we’re not only going to run out of space but also of basic supplies”.

“Is everyone still scared of going outside because of the undead?”.

“Of course they still are, it just happened! It’s going to take at least a month before everyone will calm down”.

>”What’s going to happen to Reboldeux?”.
>”I have friends there, can you help them?”.
>”Aren’t both the piracy and undead problems solved?”.
>Other?

>>40410002
>>”Aren’t both the piracy and undead problems solved?”.
Please educate us, senpai.

>>40410002
>”What’s going to happen to Reboldeux?”.

>>40410002
>”I have friends there, can you help them?”.

>>40410002
>”Aren’t both the piracy and undead problems solved?”.

It's a little annoying we can't get in contact with our pals while on the move. Hope they're doing okay.

"Wait, I thought we solved both the piracy and undead problems", you point out. This is odd.

"We did", Afra confirms, "But by the time news get there, and somebody gathers enough courage to make the trips, see that nothing bad happened, come back, report that everything was fine, then convince others to do the same... By the time everything goes back to normal, it'll be no less than a month, if nothing else happens", she sighs, "You don't follow politics much, do you?".

"I don't", you admit, and she just smirks, shaking her head and motioning for you to continue. "What's going to happen to Reboldeux? I have friends there, I must help them out".

"Unless they're in an enviably good position I advise they move out of there", she answers matter-of-factly, "Unrest is only going to increase, and so is crime, and so will follow force and repression. The duke can't actually send boatfuls of people back to Izulde or the king will have his head for hampering the Reconquista, but his city can't support twice the amount of people it had out of the blue".

This is worrying, your friends were just scraping by when you last left them, if the situation is so dire... And Zillis is expecting a child, too. "Look, I really need to help my friend, is there anything you can do?".

She seriously considers your request, then pulls out a small terracotta cup and pours some of the no longer steaming liquid that’s supposed to be your medicine, “I can help you get better so you can go and help them out yourself, I’m not sure what I can do. As I already mentioned, I have my hands full right now and I don’t think Cassilda is their best bet. Unless they’re really desperate”, she pauses for a moment, then stares at you as she hands you the cup; it is filled with a green and blue liquid with a strong scent that soothes your nose like you’re inhaling mint, “... Are they?”.

>”Yes”.
>”No”.
>”Not that much”.
>”I don’t know”.
>”Who’s Cassilda?”.
>Other?

>>40410412
>”Who’s Cassilda?”
>Explain just how desperate everyone is.

>>40410412
>”I don’t know”.
>”Who’s Cassilda?”.

>>40410485
Do we really know how desperate they are though?

>>40410412
>>”I don’t know”.
>>”Who’s Cassilda?”.

>>40410632
We do, Lillith was as desperate as them. Remember, they all tried to rob random travellers before coming here. They only got the money for to the travel here because their first victim took pity on them.
Still waiting for that write up

>>40410412
>>”I don’t know”.
Things might've changed.

"Who's Cassilda?", you wonder; Afra's talking about her like she's the sort of person you wouldn't want to meet unless you wanted to make your life a lot more interesting. Kind of like getting in a relationship with you, which makes you briefly wonder if it's something that simple.

"She's the...", she stops for a moment as she looks for the right words, her eyes staring into the void, "... Second in command at Maner? I presume? Well she's the second highest ranking officer. Strategist extraordinaire, or so I've been told", she shrugs, "Never seen or heard about her working one day in her whole life, but she gets everyone else busy, which considering Maner's situation is quite a useful skill, I presume".

You frown slightly, "Is Maner also in Reboldeux's situation?".

"Oh, no, not at all", Afra chuckles, "We have lots of people and lots more that needs to be done, but we're very... Ah, disorganized. For several reasons", she doesn't go into further detail, "So what about your friends?".

"Well, there's Lucas, who's doing his darndest to earn some coin so he can afford his incoming child a semblance of life, there's Zillis who's working as hard as se can while carrying said child, there's Reiram who's built like a brick house but is kinder than an acolyte of Jure on his best day, and there's Mires who cannot sit still for more than one minute", you count off your fingers, "Four. And last I heard of them they were working for just food and lodging in a small inn. I don't know if that counts as desperate".

Afra nods, "Any particular skill? Military ones would be best".

"Afraid not", you have to say.

“Well, it might still be worth a try”, she shrugs, “Send them to Maner and tell Cassilda I sent you. Or just have them stay in New Royo or however they’re going to call it, whatever suits you, just don’t leave them there”.

>Drink the medicine.
>Ask about Maner.
>Ask about New Royo.
>Ask about military skills.
>Ask Tahenohan (what?).
>Other?

>>40410763
>>Drink the medicine.
>>Ask Tahenohan (Any spells to contact people over great distances lurking about you?)

>>40410763
>Drink the medicine.
>Ask about Maner.

>>40410763
>Drink the medicine.
>Ask about military skills.
>>Does dancing count as military skills? Cause I know how to swing my hips real good.

>>40410810
Isn't this for our friends and not us?

>>40410853
...maybe Reiram knows how to dance too.

Before your own stomach murders you, you drink the medicine, fighting the urge of throwing up that assails you as soon as its foul stench enters your mouth.

Its soothing qualities immediately supplant the nausea effect and you start to feel fresher than a rose; you have no doubt that your breath never scented this good, even though you can't quite feel it. Once you feel the oddly thick liquid hit your stomach, it goes cold, but pleasantly so, and the pangs of pain slowly begin to subside.

You can't quite claim it's miraculous, you still feel uncomfortable and your stomach is quite heavy, but there's no doubt you're incredibly better off than even just a moment ago.

"The effect won't quite last forever but it will help mend your stomach, so you won't get an ulcer or anything. And when it wears off, well, you'll just have to be careful about what you eat for a while. You shouldn't have problems finding fruit and you don't look like the type that can afford meat everyday, so no need to advise you not to do that", she smiles.

"Thank you", you heartfeltly say, "Tahenohan, can you use your magic to send messages over large distances?".

"Yes", she claims with a manic smile, but then it falls, "No", she corrects, "Well, yes, but they need to be able to catch winds".

You have no idea what that means but you safely assume that your friends can't do that.

“How’s the situation in Maner?”, you then ask Afra, “Why are military skills needed?”.

“The regular army is consistently busy defending and fortifying our position, we cant’ afford to send many people out and we’ve been counting on elites. So, well, more really strong people would be welcome”, you suspect they’re looking for the really strong, and invariably really weird kind of people.

“But there’s other work that needs to be done, right?”, you wonder.

“Yes, yes”, Afra chuckles, “There’s still hope, don’t worry”.

>Ask something else (what?).
>Thank her and leave.
>Other?

>>40410991
>Thank her and leave.

>>40410991
>"...do I look strong and invariably really weird?"
>How fast from the caravansary to Reboldeux again?

>>40410991
>>Thank her and leave.

>>40410991
>"Do you think I look weird enough to become one of the elite?"

"Do you think I could make it into the elite you need?", you ask, putting the boldest face you know right on your game. You even take advantage of your newly recovered ability to move to flex your arms a bit, "You need people to be strong and very weird, right? Well I-".

You're interrupted by Afra bursting into laughter, along with Tahenohan. The two of them just laugh their hearts out for long enough for you to start wondering whether you should ask them to stop or just keep patiently waiting until they completely run out of breath or their own abs start aching so much they are forced to stop. Unfortunately, they both look like the adventurer type, which you've heard is capable of laughing for ten hours straight. Fortunately, it doesn't quite go on that much, mostly because their laughter was bouncing all over the tent and it made for a quite shameful effect.

"Well I... Condone your... Attributes", Afra manages to answer between the constant snickering, "But I'm afraid it takes more than just looking like a weirdo, you have to be a dangerous, murderous weirdo on the inside as well. It's not all about looks".

"But you're on the right path!", Tahenohan assures you with a manic smile of approval.

"Thank you", though you're not sure if that's the appropriate thing to say.

"Look, before you go", Afra smiles and pulls a stainless steel container with a weird, stone slab covering it, it's dark ochre with black and purple grains and feels quite heavy even just from the looks; she also produces three terracotta cups, "You need to eat something, that drinking balm is rather heavy on the guts and if you don't eat some actual food you're going to have... Problems later".

She pulls the slab open, revealing that the box used to be full of ice cream, although there's not much left of it, but its inviting scent of vanilla easily reaches your nose.

"How about you stay for a while more?", she offers with a smile.

>Continue

>>40411258
>"Well I... Condone your... Attributes",
Hey, those are some nice, soft yet firm attributes!

>>40411258
>"Well I... Condone your... Attributes",
Doesn't she mean "endorse"?

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>>40411418
Yes, yes she does.

Sorry, I'm suffering from quite a bit of sleep deprivation, I have the energy for just a couple more posts I'm afraid.

You have to admit: the ice cream is really good.

You had doubts about eating it at first, since your stomach still feels full and heavy, but like Afra explained it's mostly because the balm, while meant to be drank, has the consistency of a balm rather than a soup or syrup or whatever other medicine you might give someone, which will be somewhat rough on your digestive system if you don't also eat something.

And it has to be something cold, or the medicine will lose its potency and effect, or maybe it's just an excuse to feed you ice cream.

"I couldn't get more vanilla so I can't make more of this", Afra admits with a wistful sigh, "I should try making fruit ice cream, I heard maracuja and pineapples are really good for that, but I'm not quite sure how to do it, I'm used to make creams. We mostly use these to make desserts in Morroc".

"Really?", Tahenohan sounds particularly eager to know more, "Like what?".

"Like cannoli, or babà, or bignolata, or cassata. We have others too but I prefer cream in my sweets. Lots of cream", she adds, clearly diving into some warm (or, rather, cold) memories.

"It's because you don't have much sugar, do you?", Tahenohan inquires, "The places I've been relied a lot more on that for sweets".

"You don't need sugar for ice cream", Afra grins, "And yet it's still very tasty, don't you think".

"Oh, I do!".

It’s actually good, and feels very refreshing. Despite giving you the wrong idea of being full, your stomach seemed actually quite eager to get something so it could focus its gastric juices into something other than trying to eat itself, which would have brought back all the pain you’re hoping to leave behind you for good.

After that, Afra collects the bowls and closes the stainless steel box with that odd stone slab, “Well then, if you don’t need anything else, I actually have to pack and leave”.

>You need something else (what?).
>Thank her and leave.
>Other?

>>40411492
>Thank her and leave.

>>40411492
>Thank her and leave.
>Spread the world about our performance, if you could?
Hey, more business is always good.

>>40411492
>>Thank her and leave.

>>40411549
Is that our business, though?

>>40411623
It can be. Rather, it kinda is? According to the last thread, Lillith and Tahe have just become an artistic duo.

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>>40411623
Lillith is pretty good at dancing, no reason to not put the skills to use.

>>40411492
>Thank her and leave

You thank Afra and leave her to her preparation for whatever fantastic adventures she's going to have, though you presume they're going to involve the gratuitious slaughter of other lifeforms, some of which might not even actually be alive.

Once outside, the sun's glare makes your eyes and head hurt for a few moments, and when you slowly get used to the light again you just have to deal with the fat that you can't quite stand being out in the sunlight much without at least trying to cover your eyes. It's suddenly too bright for you, and it might be the alcohol or the medicine or maybe both.

"Well that was fun", Tahenohan smiles, "So what are we going to do now?".

You stop and wonder about that for a moment. You're supposed to be back to New Royo before evening falls, so you can join Astreya on her magical flight at Susanna's place and make sure the monster girls are all well and doing okay. Then again, the situation in Reboldeux really seems to be going downhill fast, and your friends might be just waiting for your help. Actually, you have to go to Reboldeux in any case since you have to hand in your report to the duke... Once Bryld is done with her map.

There's plenty of stuff to do, in fact, and you have to give something a higher priority than the rest, for one thing because you do have an appointment for this evening, and for another because you cannot be in more than one place at a time, which is kind of an unnerving limitation sometimes.

"I guess there's plenty of stuff that needs to be done", Tahenohan says while waiting for you, "Helping your friends, handing the map, checking on the monster girls, but you'll have to build a list of priorities. Unless you want to...", she pauses for dramatic effect, "... Split the party".

She makes it sound like a really, really bad thing.

>Head back to New Royo, for now.
>Depart for Reboldeux, immediately.
>Ask Tahenohan for advice.
>Other?

>>40411831
>Ask Tahenohan for advice.
Thinking that Lillith should go to Astreya and Tahe go fetch the friends in Reboldeux.

>>40411831
>>Head back to New Royo, for now.

We'll take care of the long-term stuff as soon as possible, but for now, we'll keep on keeping on.

>>40411831
>>Head back to New Royo, for now.

>>40411831
>>Head back to New Royo, for now.
At the very least don't leave bunnybutt in the lurch. And we can scout to see if tree are opportunities for our friends here.

>>40411831
>Ask Tahenohan for advice

>>40411831
>Head back to New Royo, for now

You don't have any doubts on what you need to do.

"We're heading back to New Royo", you tell Tahenohan, "I know my friends are in trouble but rushing there without warning isn't going to help them out much".

"No?", the half-elf tilts her head.

"No", you confirm, "I can't abandon Bryld and disappoint Astreya to just show up there with no plans, little money and not even a map for the duke. Besides, we had a caravan for our coming trip, securing some similar transportation for the trip back would be ideal".

"Can't you ask Astreya? She has some nice magic trick for that".

Although you didn't consider that, you're not sure it would work, "I think she has better things to do than just ferry me along where I need to. Besides, she said she can't carry more than just me, and I need Bryld with me when I return to Reboldeux".

"Oh. Oh right", Tahenohan looks crestfallen for a moment, but then her manic smile returns with appallingly little effort, "Oh! What if we borrow some pecopecos?".

"From whom?", you frown.

"From the volunteers. We can say it's for some useful matter. Hey, I'm sure if you ask Agnes she's going to be... Quite happy to help".

The way she's so obviously winking and nudging is painfully clear as to what she's thinking. “I don’t think it’s that simple”, you of course have to be the one to bring some realism to the table, “Besides, what if she asks me to join the volunteer brigade in exchange?”.

“What’s wrong with that?”, she blinks.

“... I can’t fight”.

“I’m pretty sure none of the other volunteers can”, the half-elf claims without a hint of shame, “I don’t see the problem”.

Even if you can’t say you disagree with her impression of the volunteers, this doesn’t make the prospect of having to rely on them for protection worrysome, especially if something worse than three skeleton warriors appears.

“We’ll have time to ponder that”, you assure her, “For now, let’s move, we have no time to waste”.

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Terribly sorry, but like I said on twitter I have to finish this early.

I'm about to fall asleep on my keyboard anyways, so forcing myself to continue isn't going to work well.

I'm sorry, I'll try to work out more time for next episode.

>>40412228
Aww, just as I arrived.
Thanks for running!

>>40412228
Don't fret about it. Thanks for running, evne if for a short while.

And here, have this: http://i.imgur.com/HAN8jRr.jpg

It's an artist's attempt at drawing Bryld, but it...kinda didn't turn out very Bryld-like. At all. I guess he just saw a bunnygirl and went with the stereotype. It's also lewd.

>>40412266
Art is always nice anon.

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>>40412266
I agree with >>40412399, my thanks to the artist for contributing.