>>3157014
>>Tell him that you removed the threat that destroyed Anren and that the boots were 'payment'.

>>3157014
>Tell him that you removed the threat that destroyed Anren and that the boots were 'payment'.
>Try to make small talk, get a better feel for who he is other than “Noventus' son”.
>other: "I'm sorry, it's what I had to work with. I've tried to keep it clean ever since he gave it to me. Its lasted me 3 missions to this date. If it pleases you, I'll go shop for another set of boots before I hunt down the yoma."
>other: "Is that sword Old Man Brutus's work? I'd recognize that metalwork."

>>3157014
>Give him a genuine smile
>"You could say we were well acquainted in the past. Your father is a good man, and one i trust. I'd like to leave it at that, to be honest."

>>3157014
>tell him that we Cleansed Anren of a serious threat, but it destroyed our entire uniform, and we were thought dead so we'd have been running around naked without his father's largesse.

>>3157014
>>3157232
Yup.

>>3157014
>>Tell him that you removed the threat that destroyed Anren and that the boots were 'payment'.

>>3157014
>Try to make small talk, get a better feel for who he is other than “Noventus' son”.

>>3157014
>>3157232

>>3157014
>3d10, best of three

Rolled 10, 10, 10 = 30 (3d10)

>>3160586

Rolled 3, 8, 9 = 20 (3d10)

>>3160586
Whoops, those were the wrong dice.

Rolled 10, 1, 7 = 18 (3d10)

>>3160586
>>3160593
Calm down Noel

>>3160618
A Queen's gotta Queen

>>3160586
“Your father insisted on repaying me somehow for defeating the one that destroyed the town of Anren,” you explain. “It was a six-day fight that destroyed my uniform, and so he had that uniform replaced. Marshal Noventus is a generous man.”

“He mentioned you,” you conclude. “What is your name?”

“Titus,” he tells you with a frown. “You seem familiar.”

… no.

“I get that often,” you shrug, trying to dismiss the question.

“Your hair...” the muses, narrowing his eyes. “Were it redder, you would look exactly how I would expect the former princess to look had she survived.”

“Do I now?” you reply, feigning disinterest.

“About the correct age for that matter,” he continues, “and with a Hazari accent... and my father gifted you his own son's boots? No, that isn't something he would offer out of nowhere. You said he replaced your whole uniform?”

“I did,” you nod.”

“Did that include a particularly fine riding deel?” he asks.

Your silence as you try to figure out a suitable answer is all he needs to hear. “That deel was my mother's. That's not something my father would part with easily.”

“And what does all this mean?” you shake your head. “So your father was very generous with me and I look a lot like a dead woman. And even if you are right, and I'm secretly a princess, don't you think it would be better to keep your damn mouth shut?”

“You know, so I could keep my presence here a secret and prevent any unrest that might bring harm to my people?”

Titus considers your point for a few moments. “I suppose when you put it like that, the princess might truly prefer to keep her movements a secret.”

“Thank you,” you nod curtly.

“But... are you?” he presses quietly.

>Yes.
>No.
>Just move on.
>Other?

>>3160749
>yes

>>3160749
>Yes
>Your father is a good man, and I will trust he has raised you well enough to be trusted too.
>keep quiet about it, though

>>3160749
>If I was, I haven't been for a long time.

>>3160749
>Other?
"That would be telling, old boy." And wink.

>>3160749
>>Yes.

>>3160765
>>3160749

Rolled 1 (1d2)

>>3160767
>>3160791
Either of these is good. I'll let the dice decide.

>>3160749
Supporting >>3160767

>>3160749
>If I was, I haven't been for a long time.

>>3160791
>>3160749
supporting.

>other: hush him with a single finger to his lips and close on his personal space. Make it look semi intimate.
>other:"Shhh....Loose lips sink ships"

>>3160749
> I'm a warrior of the Organization now. It doesn't matter who I was or wasn't. ... but if you desire to know more, ask your father next time you visit him.

>>3160749
>If I was, I am only a warrior of the Organization now.

>>3160749
>Just move on

I don't like this quest

File: 54643567874654.gif (2.27 MB, 445x250)

2.27 MB GIF

>>3162801

>>3162801
Okay.
>writing

>>3162882
“If I ever was a princess it was in a past life,” you sigh. “I am a warrior of the Organization, a hunter of monsters with the blood of monsters within her. I am proud of my Hazari heritage but my duties killing yōma come first.”

Titus takes a few moments to weigh your words in his mind, before nodding. “I understand, ma'am. I'll keep silent about this.”

You relax slightly. “About what?”

“So if you are here that means there is a yōma,” Titus realizes, choosing now to move along from the topic of your royal blood. “Is that the case? Can I report that?”

“I can feel the presence of a yōma, but I can't tell where exactly it is,” you admit with a frown. “There was a report of one in the quarry across the Water, but I found that it had left. My hunch was that it was going to come here ahead of... the ceremony.”

You narrowly manage to avoid referring to it as 'your' death ceremony.

“Then I should probably let you return to your duties,” Titus tells you, inclining his head slightly to you. “I... hope you continue to enjoy my boots.”

You can't help but smirk slightly. “A little bit of home.”

Titus takes his leave of you, and you of him. The chapel is fairly small, sitting at the middle of a small square, its overall length amounting to seven arched windows a side and its height reaching to some seven times the height of the doors which reach two, perhaps three feet above your head. Outside that building are the physical supports which buttress the high walls, six rows to support the highest parts of the ceiling and two rows at the far end which support a lower roof. On each pillar is a niche in which a statue stands.

The two flanking the door, on one wide side of the chapel, are Clare and Teresa. One on the right of Clare is clearly your father... and the one on the left of Teresa is a very young version of yourself.

The glasswork shows religious scenes of course, which are all beautifully managed... some from the cult of the two Goddesses but some also drawn from the older local religions of Hazaran.

>Poke around the inside of the Chapel. There may be a crypt where the yōma will be hiding.
>Search the nearby square and roads for likely hiding spots, it will likely remain nearby.
>Check the grounds around the palace. That's another high-profile place to attack.
>Other?

>>3163034
>>Check the grounds around the palace. That's another high-profile place to attack.

>>3163034
>Check the grounds around the palace. That's another high-profile place to attack.

>>3163034
>>Search the nearby square and roads for likely hiding spots, it will likely remain nearby.

>>3163034
>other: If I was a drama loving yoma, where would I hide myself... of course the gargoyle statues atop the chapel!

>>3163060
>>3163034
This isn't a half-bad idea.

>>3163060
this

>>3163034
>>Poke around the inside of the Chapel. There may be a crypt where the yōma will be hiding.

>>3163060
Oh yes.

>>3163034
>>3163060
This

>>3163034
>Check the grounds around the palace. That's another high-profile place to attack.

>>3163034
>3d10, best of three

Rolled 10, 6, 10 = 26 (3d10)

>>3164555
forgive me rngesus for I have sinned.

Rolled 2, 9, 2 = 13 (3d10)

>>3164555
>>3164565
Is there even a point to rolling more lol?

Rolled 3, 3, 5 = 11 (3d10)

>>3164555

>>3164565
sinned by schooling a fool.

>>3164555
You do a wide circle of the chapel, carefully examining all of the statues even as the dignitaries begin to arrive through the main doorway. A few guards watch you carefully as you search the exterior of the building... any of these could potentially be a yōma in disguise, assuming said yōma's abilities at shapeshifting are high enough. Were it a guest coming in the door you would know it, but you get the sense that it's already here someplace.

“Can we help you, witch?” one of the guards eventually asks, though you hold one fingertip to your lips to shush him.

“Please,” you insist. “Not while I'm working.”

It's none of these, is it?

You find a more or less out of the way place to climb up one of the buttresses and onto part of the roof, reasoning that with a building this decorated there are probably sculptures in places only the craftsmen and the gods would be able to see but which the priests would all know about. To your surprise, everything from the top of the first row of windows upwards is just flowery scrollwork... no caryatids or gargoyles.

“That puts a massive hole in that idea,” you grumble, hopping down from the roof and accidentally startling several nobles in fancy clothes. “Please excuse me, just a little extra security.”

Then it occurs to you: there must be statues inside the chapel as well, maybe even some rooms hidden away below the main floor. A yōma may have slipped inside well ahead of the ceremony and simply hidden itself away to wait for the right moment to make its entrance... which would probably be shortly after the services began.

“Which means I have...” you mutter, before turning to a guard. “When does the ceremony begin?”

“Now,” the guard informs you, seemingly confused that you could not know the starting time of the ceremony you're ostensibly here to protect.

“Crap...” you mutter under your breath, racing towards the door.

You slide slightly across the smooth stones just on the inside of the chapel to see a sea of heads, the finer members of Hazari society all gathered under one roof to fill rows of wooden benches. A priest stands at the head of the room, bathed in slightly-tinted light that falls through the beautifully patterned windows, two small braziers of scented wood burning on either side of him and filling the space with a wholesome smell.

Behind that priest is a sarcophagus.

You catch sight of the lid of that stone corpse container moving...
>1/2

File: Spoiler Image (3.27 MB, 280x157)

3.27 MB GIF

>>3164690

>>3164690
“Oh, very well played!” you almost laugh to yourself as the yōma bursts from the sarcophagus. But what leaps to its feet is not what you expect, and your resolve momentarily falters as you realize what it looks like.

It looks like a very creative reinterpretation of your own appearance, as if someone tried to sculpt what they imagined you would look like as an adult based on childhood portraits of you. Some people scream, the priest stares at the yōma with your face with a look of complete non-comprehension. He does finally flinch as your sword hurtles past his face and takes the yōma's arm off at the shoulder.

The yōma glances at the neatly-severed stump of its arm, and all at once the flow of purple blood resumes in a sickening spurt and it howls in pain. The false image of your face deforms first with pain, then from a failure to maintain its facade. Long ears, fangs, inhuman musculature, and skin roughly the tone of tree bark all ripple across the monster's body, betraying the reality of what it is.

“Be quiet,” you grumble, releasing a burst of yōki of your own and slamming the yōma's head down into the sarcophagus. Then, with your free hand, you slam the lid down on top of that.

The stone cracks, and the yōma's body tenses... then the headless corpse falls to the stone floor.

You quickly retrieve your sword from where it's been lodged into a stone pillar, before realizing the sheer unrest behind you.

All eyes are on you, including his. The eyes of the man who had your father murdered. Who tried to have you murdered as well.

>Excuse yourself immediately.
>Try to say something polite to the usurper.
>Other?

>>3164715
>>Excuse yourself immediately.
Fuck it, just leave.

>>3164715
>>Excuse yourself immediately.

This is too convenient
Either the organization had a hand in this
the usurper has an In with an Awakened being
or
Mom contrived this.

>>3164715
>>Excuse yourself immediately.

>>3164715
>Excuse yourself immediately. Pay the ursurper no attention.
>other: At least clean up after yourself by taking the Corpse, the head, and the severed arm out of the church. No one, not even HIM will dare try to question you when you're hauling 500 pounds of dead yoma out of a church. In fact, when you're hauling the corpse, carry it so that the corpse forms an impromptu barrier between you and the side HE is sitting when you walk down the rows of pews.
The Usurper is likely too stunned to process the fact that the Witch Princess he had killed 10 years ago had saved his damn life.
And I don't think Noel can say ANYTHING to him without us having to roll to retain composure.
>other: Swear up a storm (as in Swear like a sailor) about "How the damn drama loving yoma picked the worst time and place to cause trouble." Put the distinction between the image that is Princess Noel and the Claymore Warrior Noel as far apart from each other.


Dear lord the circumstances. This is gonna have as slightly weaker political fallout as Noel name dropping Sabela's relationship as her mother to the Org heads.

>>3164778
More like the Timing couldn't be more perfect.

>>3164715
>Excuse yourself immediately.

>>3164715
>>Excuse yourself immediately.

>>3164715
>>Excuse yourself immediately.

>>3164715
>Excuse yourself immediately.

>>3164811
I like this. Maybe something like "condolences on the robe" to the king.

>>3164715
>glare at the usurper

>>3164715
>"PEOPLE OF HAZARAN, YOUR QUEEN HAS RETURNED!"

>>3164715
>Other?
"Ssssuup...?"
Please don't vote for this.

>>3164715
>Excuse yourself immediately

>>3165920
FUCK YEAH! TRUE QUEEN!

>>3164811
>>3164715
supporting the cleanup

>>3164715
You quickly grab what remains of the yōma around the ankle, and proceed to drag it past the priest.

“Sorry about your robes,” you mutter an apology as you pass, still dragging the corpse. “I'll just pop outside, clean this up.”

Most of the nobles scatter as you pass, either too terrified of you or still too terrified of the yōma even despite the fact that it is now plainly and undeniably dead. Which it is you can't possibly say.

But the guards at the door do not scatter.

“What is this?” you ask as the guards cross their polearms in front of you, barring your egress.

“This is precisely what it looks like, young woman,” a gravelly voice addresses you from behind, making itself heard over the crowd. “Silence!”

His barked order works immediately. “Face me.”

You turn, already knowing the face you should expect to see. It's the face of Lord Sigmunt.

He's older than you recall, and where Noventus has aged gracefully with the knowledge that he is respected by his subordinates and those over whom he has responsibility, Sigmunt has aged like you would expect a man with a guilty conscience to age. His hair is gray and noticeably thinner, his face careworn as though his frown never eases even in his sleep.

“Yes, sir?” you ask him, gesturing impatiently at the dead yōma. “Could... whatever this is wait until after I deal with this mess? Because if I don't burn this corpse soon it's going to smell.”

Sigmunt glances down at the dead yōma, then gestures curtly to the guards who seize it.

“My guards will handle things from here,” he insists sternly. “You and I have more important business.”

He gestures towards a staircase at the back of the chapel, which leads down from the far end of one of the aisles and under the floor. That must head to a crypt, or else some kind of storage room.

>Follow along, for the time being.
>Insist that you leave unimpeded.
>Whatever he has to say he can do so here.
>Other?

>>3167004
>>Follow along, for the time being.
Alright, we'll play ball for now.

>>3167004
>Other?
>>"No. Goodbye." Proceed to literaly leap away

>>3167004
We absolutely do not

>>3167004
>Follow along, for the time being.
im honestly curious

>>3167004
>Insist that you leave unimpeded.
I wonder if we can sic Organization's assassins on him.

>>3167004
>Insist that you leave unimpeded.

>>3167004
>>Insist that you leave unimpeded.

>>3167004
>Insist that you leave unimpeded.

>>3167004
>Whatever he has to say he can do so here.

>>3167004
>Insist that you leave unimpeded.

>>3167004
>Insist that you leave unimpeded.
>other: "I'm a warrior first and foremost. My prime task is that of of killing yoma AND saving lives. All other concerns are irrelevant, BUT I will not have this country break out into civil war over my face."

>>3167004
>Insist that you leave unimpeded.

>>3167004
>Whatever he has to say he can do so here.
He will either say some damning stuff infront of his political elite or he will hold his tongue and we leave.

>>3167004
>Insist that you leave unimpeded

>>3167004
>whatever he has to say he can do so here.
>insist you leave unimpeded
Public diplomacy.

>>3167004
In a moment of overwhelming indignation, you lean in closer towards Lord Sigmunt and lower your voice so that you can speak only to him. You even place your hand to your cheek to shield your lips from being read by anyone in the room who happens to be enough of a gossip to have learned that trick.

“I am leaving now,” you insist sternly into Sigmunt's ear. “I will not have my nation shed its own blood over this, nor will I have this discussion with you every time I am obliged to show my face here.”

“Now, nod and say you understand.”

After staring at you with wide eyes that are filled with both fear and anger, Lord Sigmunt nods curtly.

“I understand.”

“Good,” you reply, inclining your head just far enough for it to be considered a bow but not nearly far enough to disgrace yourself as the rightful Queen of Sigmunt's nation. “This was the yōma from the quarry, had a closer warrior been available to handle the task it might have been kept from entering the city. You have my apologies, I had to come up from Aquitan.”

“Understandable,” the usurper of your father's throne replies stiffly. “That is no small distance.”

“No distance is too far to serve the people of my homeland,” you insist, forcing direct eye contact. “I only wish to express my gratitude for the chance.”

“Would you oppose an expression of gratitude,” Sigmunt offers, his tone obviously disingenuous to you despite its politeness, “in the form of dinner at the palace?”

“Thank you, no,” you reply. “Unless there is any further business, may I return to my duties?”

After a moment, Sigmunt gestures to you. “By all means.”

Finally, you withdraw from the chapel and into the courtyard beyond. This is a problem, Sigmunt almost certainly knows your identity and despite your words you know that he is at heart the type to feel threatened by your sudden return. He does understand what this means: if you were to reveal your existence to the Hazari people there would be war. Perhaps not one which could be easily won, but one which Sigmunt would likely lose.

That is his concern, and in this situation such a concern is perfectly rational. After all, to believe otherwise would first require him to trust you at your word.

>Get out of town as quickly as possible. Lord Sigmunt's most likely decision will be to have you attacked.
>You'll need to contact Titus again. There must be other guards like him that could offer you shelter and help you move undetected.
>Lord Sigmunt will retreat to your father's quarters, in the palace. Your plan is to be waiting there for him when he arrives.
>Other?

>>3168983
>>Get out of town as quickly as possible. Lord Sigmunt's most likely decision will be to have you attacked.

>>3168983
>>Get out of town as quickly as possible. Lord Sigmunt's most likely decision will be to have you attacked.

>>3168983
>>Get out of town as quickly as possible. Lord Sigmunt's most likely decision will be to have you attacked.

>>3168983
>Lord Sigmunt will retreat to your father's quarters, in the palace. Your plan is to be waiting there for him when he arrives.
Long live the Queen.

>>3168983
>Get out of town as quickly as possible. Lord Sigmunt's most likely decision will be to have you attacked.

>>3168983
>Get out of town as quickly as possible. Lord Sigmunt's most likely decision will be to have you attacked.
It really says something on how much sway Noel's presence has on a country when even the ursurper who currently sits on the throne has to quietly concede to her modest public demand.

>>3168983
>Get out of town as quickly as possible. Lord Sigmunt's most likely decision will be to have you attacked.
>Request the Organization to assassinate him, because he's clearly a threat to all of it now.

>>3168983
>Get out of town as quickly as possible. Lord Sigmunt's most likely decision will be to have you attacked.

>>3168983
>Get out of town as quickly as possible. Lord Sigmunt's most likely decision will be to have you attacked.

>>3168983
>>You'll need to contact Titus again. There must be other guards like him that could offer you shelter and help you move undetected.

>>3168983
>contact Titus, let him know we’re leaving and that Sigmunt and the nobles know about me.
we need an insider.
>get out of here asap.

>>3168983
>GTFO

>>3168983
Now it's time for you to leave.

The longer you stay here the longer Lord Sigmunt has time to order you attacked... you'd say 'killed', but you know how that plan will end. The problem is that when the guards come after you you'll have to deal with them somehow. You do not intend to kill any of them of course, but just the fact that they're going to be coming after you means there will be a fight which puts lives at unnecessary risk.

So you run, at least initially. You want to get clear of the crowd, and eventually you settle on the main road as your exit strategy. While it may not initially seem to be the best plan, you're essentially daring Sigmunt to have you assaulted on the busiest road in the Capital, with the greatest possible number of witnesses.

“Come on,” you mutter under your breath. “Don't continue to disappoint me.”

There's a clamor as you're within sight of your goal. You realize that you're being shadowed by several armed guards, each carrying a rifle over their shoulder and a small sword at their waist. They're ready but not acting just yet, since it is a very public setting.

“You're waiting until I leave the city,” you realize. “Not Sigmunt's doing.”

You work your way through the street towards the largest gate in the city, guarded on both sides by square towers. Foot traffic and carts are flowing in and out even well into the evening, and you are still followed closely by what you count as twelve armed guards.

>Try to sneak out in one of the carts moving out of the city.
>Just carry on across the Water, and try to lose them there.
>They can't follow you if you jump off the bridge.
>Other?

>>3171443
>>They can't follow you if you jump off the bridge.
A leap of faith doesn't mean it can't be done stealthily.
They never think to look up or down at first.

>>3171443
>>They can't follow you if you jump off the bridge.
Smell ya later, nerds!

>>3171443
>>They can't follow you if you jump off the bridge.
Adios

>>3171443
>>They can't follow you if you jump off the bridge.

>>3171443
>>They can't follow you if you jump off the bridge.

>>3171443
>>They can't follow you if you jump off the bridge.

These look like Inquisition folk

>>3171443
>They can't follow you if you jump off the bridge.

>>3171443
>>They can't follow you if you jump off the bridge.

>>3171443
>They can't follow you if you jump off the bridge.

>>3171443
An errant thought drifts through your mind: they can't follow you if you jump off the bridge.

That thought, surprisingly, gains some traction because it's substantively true. If you were to jump over the edge of the bridge the guards wouldn't be able to follow you, and you're fairly certain that you can survive it without too much problem. Which essentially makes that a perfect solution.

So you find yourself walking across the bridge over the Water, then turning abruptly and vaulting over the low protective barrier that keeps people and animals from going over the edge like this accidentally. There's a momentary sense of horror as you fall through the air... you didn't quite consider how far of a drop this was, or how shallow the water might be when you get there.

Which isn't much after you come to that realization.

The pain is immense and blinding as your whole body decelerates, your eyes pressing against the inside of your skull and your bones breaking.

The world goes dark.
>1/2

>>3176166
The world around you shifts slowly from cold and dark to warm and dark, and eventually begins to grow lighter. You become aware of being enveloped by something soft, smooth, and slightly warming... a bed, with smooth sheets. The smell of a fire in a hearth. And the presence of someone else.

“I see you're finally awake,” a familiar voice greets you. “You must've had it hard.”

“Where am I, Valentina?” you ask wearily.

“Merced,” she informs you. “I found you in the river three days ago, clinging to a piece of drifting wood.”

“I jumped off a bridge,” you tell her. “The broken bones healed quickly, but I must have been half-drowned.”

“That would account for it,” Valentina nods, before abruptly pausing. “Wait why were you jumping off a bridge? I feel like I missed something.”

>Nothing that important. I just had to make a hasty exit from the Capital.
>I may have had something of a disagreement with Lord Sigmunt and his guard.
>Explain the whole story, it's not like your identity is a secret to Valentina anyway.
>Other?

>>3176252
>Explain the whole story, it's not like your identity is a secret to Valentina anyway.

>>3176252
>Explain the whole story, it's not like your identity is a secret to Valentina anyway.
Ain't it fucked the lenghts we go to not fight the frail people?

>>3176252
>Explain the whole story, it's not like your identity is a secret to Valentina anyway.

>>3176252
>>Explain the whole story, it's not like your identity is a secret to Valentina anyway.

>>3176252
>Explain the whole story, it's not like your identity is a secret to Valentina anyway.

>>3176252
>Explain the whole story, it's not like your identity is a secret to Valentina anyway.
>other: Be snarky about the sheer coincidental circumstance of the scene.
>"I crashed my own death anniversary to kill a yoma who crashed my own death anniversary." "The yoma was a drama queen." "It did the whole 'rise from the grave' routine' too before I killed it back into the coffin."

>>3176252
>Explain the whole story, it's not like your identity is a secret to Valentina anyway.

>>3176339
>>3176252
supporting the snark

>>3176379
>>3176252
Supporting supporting the snark

>>3176252
>>3176339
I like this

>>3176339
Sure, lets see if we can make her smile.

>>3178864
Important update/notice in Shinigami Savant that applies to both quests. Please check it out when you have time, but the summary is that you can expect a mix of daily updates during the week and short sessions of Claymore on Sundays.

>>3178866
Good luck with your dissertation!

>>3178877
I've been blowing through this chapter, if I keep this pace up I'll do just fine.

>>3176252
>>3176339
Seconding.

>>3178866
“I didn't realize that the anniversary of my death had been commemorated this whole time,” you muse, still honestly a little shocked at what you learned. “So I decided to see what that was like, and a yōma burst out of my sarcophagus.”

“Even assuming all that is true...” Valentina sighs.

You quickly interrupt her. “It's not actually that far from the truth.”

“... then that still doesn't explain how you ended up in the river.”

You roll out of bed, then set to work making up the sheets. “Lord Sigmunt took exception to the interruption and had his guards chase me out of the city. I had to do something to lose them, so I leapt off the bridge to get away from them without having a fight.”

After digesting that information for a few minutes, Valentina nods. “Okay.”

“Okay.”

“Okay,” she nods again. “I believe that not only did you go to the one place where you would cause the most trouble, then caused a disruption at a chapel dedicated to your own memory, and then escaped by throwing yourself off a bridge into the Water.”

She stares at you for a few minutes, as you watch her expression change. “You're... actually serious, aren't you?”

You nod in confirmation. “Things sort of escalated, and the alternative was to let a shapeshifted yōma kill a bunch of people wearing something that looked a little like my face.”

“I guess I can see that,” Valentina nods in understanding. “Well, happy to have pulled you out of the river. You starting to feel better?”

“I am, thank you,” you nod appreciatively, before your stomach rumbles loudly. “I'd feel better with some tea and a biscuit though.”

Valentina laughs to herself, walking over to a cabinet and rummaging through it. “Give me a few minutes and I'll arrange some hospitality... as much as I can, that is.”

>Would you like any help around here? I'd like to pay you back.
>Get dressed and check all your personal belongings.
>Just wait and make conversation.
>Other?

>>3179177
>>Would you like any help around here? I'd like to pay you back.
>>Get dressed and check all your personal belongings.

>>3179177
>Would you like any help around here? I'd like to pay you back.
>Get dressed and check all your personal belongings.
>other: Have a minor panic attack when you momentarily can't locate Titus's riding boots. Have an even bigger panic attack when you're looking for your claymore.

>>3179177
>>3179196

>>3179177

>Would you like any help around here? I'd like to pay you back.
>Get dressed and check all your personal belongings.

>>3179177
>>Would you like any help around here? I'd like to pay you back.

>>3179177
>>Would you like any help around here? I'd like to pay you back.
>>Get dressed and check all your personal belongings.

>>3179196
>>3179177
Supporting
Those boots be important now!

>>3179196
>>3179177
Yeah this sounds good.

>>3179177
Really? All her strength and she almost dies falling into shallow water from a high bridge?
Didn't even use any yoki or anything?

that's fucking retarded

>>3179177
>Would you like any help around here? I'd like to pay you back.

>>3179456
Really, her healing handled the 110ft fall. The problem was she nearly drowned in the time it took her to recover from the impact.

>>3180371
I'm saying if it was a long enough drop to hurt, she should have bulked up with yoki like any reasonable person.
And if she bulked up with yoki, she's strong enough for a fall from any height not to hurt her significantly.

It's dumb, and you're not going to convince me otherwise. I'm just letting you know what i think.

>>3179177
For a moment you panic slightly and look around for your sword, which is propped against the bed you were sleeping against So that's good to see. Even your Hazari riding boots have evidently been dried by a warm fire for however long you've been here. They'll smell of smoke, but there are worse things for boots to smell of than that.

“And my book,” you frown, glancing down at the battered and worn volume. “Have you examined it carefully?”

Valentina nods thoughtfully. “I... did what I could. But there was some damage.”

Several of the pages are totally ruined... thankfully you have committed most of their contents to memory already. The rest have been interlaced with roughly-made rice paper, which has served to wick away some of the excess moisture. A clever solution actually, one you're surprised to see...

You suppose Valentina doing something intelligent to save a book shouldn't come as a surprise to you. That's an unfair way to think of her. She may be of the common folk but that's no reason to suspect she doesn't know her way around a book.

“This town has a librarian,” Valentina admits. “I'd be totally hopeless without advice when it comes to stuff like this.”

You're momentarily thrown for a loop. “I mean, you can read, right?”

“Not well,” Valentina shrugs, “and none of my trainers ever fussed over it too much. But yeah, I can read better than the average person.”

“The average person can't read well at all,” you point out.

“Never said it was a lofty goal,” Valentina shrugs. “So I suppose you'll be going then?”

“Not so fast,” you shake your head. “I'd like to help you out if I can. Return the favor.”

Valentina chuckles to herself. “A warrior who thinks about favors and gratitude... that's actually kind of refreshing. But you don't have to.”

“I insist,” you tell her firmly.

After a moment, she smiles. “Alright.”

>There's a yōma nearby she was assigned to kill. You'll kill it for her instead.
>You'll get something nice for her with your discretionary funds. A gift.
>Go out and do something together, nothing work-related. Treat her to a meal maybe.
>Other?

>>3180847
>>You'll get something nice for her with your discretionary funds. A gift.

>>3180847
>You'll get something nice for her with your discretionary funds. A gift.

>>3180847
>Go out and do something together, nothing work-related. Treat her to a meal maybe.

>>3180847
>Go out and do something together, nothing work-related. Treat her to a meal maybe.
A Girls' day out!

File: b07.gif (3.5 MB, 600x331)

3.5 MB GIF

>tfw the claymores are good girls and you're worried queen is going to kill them all or worse

>>3180847
>You'll get something nice for her with your discretionary funds. A gift.

>>3180867
If they have any relation to Saber, they will not end up happy.
Poor Saber

>>3180847
>>Go out and do something together, nothing work-related. Treat her to a meal maybe.

>>3180847
>Take Valentina out shopping.

>>3180847
>Go out and do something together, nothing work-related. Treat her to a meal maybe.

>>3180847
>>Go out and do something together, nothing work-related. Treat her to a meal maybe.

>>3180847
>There's a yōma nearby she was assigned to kill. You'll kill it for her instead.
>You'll get something nice for her with your discretionary funds. A gift.
>Go out and do something together, nothing work-related. Treat her to a meal maybe.

Girls night out!
Start with a meal, kill a yoma or two, then have fun around town, finish with a small party at an inn with some drinks and food.
GirlsJustWanaHavefun.mp4

>>3181602
Do it all together of course

>>3180847
You decide to spend a little of your discretionary funding to pay Valentina back, and quickly settle on a plan.

“Come with me,” you insist, setting aside your empty mug and grabbing Valentina by the shoulder. “I insist.”

“Well,” she begins as you lead her forcefully out of her little home. “I guess if you insist?”

'Little' home didn't really do the place justice. It's no bigger than most of the one-room crofts out in the foothills, though substantially cleaner and more strongly built and nowhere near as isolated. In fact it seems to have been built down by the river on the edge of a town, where her neighbors are a larger block of apartments. Near enough to provide instant assistance in the event of a yōma attack but still at arm's length, you realize.

“How pragmatic,” you mutter.

“I'm sorry?”

You shake your head to Valentina, changing your expression instantly. “Sorry, it's nothing.”
>3d10, best of three

Rolled 10, 8, 7 = 25 (3d10)

>>3182677

Rolled 9, 8, 1 = 18 (3d10)

>>3182677

Rolled 4, 9, 4 = 17 (3d10)

>>3182677

Rolled 6, 10, 2 = 18 (3d10)

>>3182677

>>3182682
Nice, was the roll for how much fun the two are gonna have?

>>3182677
You quickly find the first goal you had in mind, leading Valentina into a likely-looking shop.

“Can I help you?” a kindly older gentleman with narrow eyes greets you... his vision must be poor?

“I want you to measure my friend's feet,” you declare, causing Valentina to glance at you with uncertainty. “Fit her for a pair of nice, Hazari-style riding boots.”

“I don't ride though!” Valentina protests. “So isn't it kind of a...”

“Nonsense,” you interrupt her. “Consider it my thanks, I know you'd enjoy wearing them and that's all that matters.”

“I... guess?” Valentina muses, still fumbling with the logic behind your sudden generosity even as the old man steps out from behind his wooden counter and begins taking measurements of her foot, having lifted it up onto a stool almost without her notice.

“Good girl,” you nod, satisfied.

>Take her out to a nice eating establishment while you wait.
>Take her out for street food and a walk through town.
>There must be a yōma nearby you can kill together.
>Other?

>>3182709
>Take her out to a nice eating establishment while you wait.

>>3182709
>Nice eating establishment

Good thing about barely eating anything is you can get the good stuff every time.

>>3182709
>Take her out for street food and a walk through town.

>>3182709
>Take her out to a nice eating establishment while you wait.
Local delicacies ahoy!

>>3182709
>>Take her out to a nice eating establishment while you wait.

>>3182709
>Take her out to a nice eating establishment while you wait.
The route to the heart is trough the stomach...

>>3182709
>>Take her out to a nice eating establishment while you wait.

>>3182898
Let's not go that route.

>>3184054
We should totally go that route.

>>3184570
No we should not.

>>3184572
Yes tho.

>>3184580
>>>akun

>>3182709
You pick what looks like the nicest place to eat in town, and lead Valentina into it. She seems a little uncomfortable at first, but at your insistence she finally agrees to take a seat at a small table with you, out on a balcony with a view down to the river she pulled you out of some days ago.

“It's fine,” you insist. “You pulled me out of a river, so I'm feeling pretty generous today. Just go with it.”

“I guess I'm not used to being treated quite so...” she begins, struggling with the right words.

You wait for a few moments. “Well?”

“I'm not sure how I feel about it,” she admits. “You're being so lavish with me. I've never been treated that way since even before I became a warrior, let alone since after.”

“I can see how this might be a bit overwhelming,” you tell her reassuringly, “so I don't feel insulted at all, I promise.”

“Good,” she nods, seemingly a little more at ease.

The food arrives quickly: roasted slices of sweet potato with goat's cheese and roasted peppers, and lightly pan-fried river fish with herbs and little chunks of cured bacon. You share one plate of each, which is more than enough to feed both of you given your lack of real appetite. It's all delicious of course, as is the tea that you wash it down with.

“Thank you,” Valentina nods, patting her stomach after the last of the food is gone. “Really, you've been very kind.”

“No sense rushing,” you observe. “We'll head down to the river and kill some time until the boots are ready. Sound like a plan?”

Valentina quickly agrees, and you pay the bill before heading back downstairs and down the street towards the river. When you arrive at the waterfront Valentina picks out a nice spot on a rock barrier at the edge of the river where she sits on a large boulder, dangling her legs over the river itself.

You take a seat next to her, and sit quietly. Just enjoying the breeze and the sun, really.

“Why are you being so kind to me?”

You glance at Valentina, and can tell that something is legitimately bothering her about this situation.

>You've been a good friend to me, and you helped me a lot by plucking me out of the river. This is my way of showing thanks.
>I just enjoy doing nice things for people who I trust and care about. There are so few people like that after all.
>I want to have closer relationships with other warriors again, but as a princess the only way I know to win people over for sure is... well, 'largesse'.
>Other?

>>3184626
>I just enjoy doing nice things for people who I trust and care about. There are so few people like that after all.
>I want to have closer relationships with other warriors again, but as a princess the only way I know to win people over for sure is... well, 'largesse'.
Both seems good, either would probably work, though I think the second one seems kinda impersonal.

>>3184626
>You've been a good friend to me, and you helped me a lot by plucking me out of the river. This is my way of showing thanks.
>I want to have closer relationships with other warriors again, but as a princess the only way I know to win people over for sure is... well, 'largesse'.

>>3184626
>You've been a good friend to me, and you helped me a lot by plucking me out of the river. This is my way of showing thanks.
>I just enjoy doing nice things for people who I trust and care about. There are so few people like that after all.
>Also I’ve noticed most warriors just trod from battle to battle until they die, that’s not a way to live. Sometimes a good memory can save your life, or someone else’s.

>>3184626

>You've been a good friend to me, and you helped me a lot by plucking me out of the river. This is my way of showing thanks.
>I just enjoy doing nice things for people who I trust and care about. There are so few people like that after all.

>>3184626
>You've been a good friend to me, and you helped me a lot by plucking me out of the river. This is my way of showing thanks.
>I want to have closer relationships with other warriors again, but as a princess the only way I know to win people over for sure is... well, 'largesse'.

>>3184626
>You've been a good friend to me, and you helped me a lot by plucking me out of the river. This is my way of showing thanks.
>I just enjoy doing nice things for people who I trust and care about. There are so few people like that after all.

>>3184626
>>3184632
This works for me

>>3184626
> I'm fattening you up before I slaughter you and eat your liver.

>>3184626
>>I just enjoy doing nice things for people who I trust and care about. There are so few people like that after all.

>>3184626
>I’ve noticed most warriors just trod from battle to battle until they die, that’s not a way to live. Sometimes a good memory can save your life, or someone else’s.
>I would like to remind you about what it means to be human. The Warrior part of being a claymore, the Organization has trained that aspect to our bones. But we often forget what it means to be human.
>other: it's the little things you do, having a friendly face you can confide in, saying hello to the owner of that stall you come by everyday. Isn't that why you set up shop within arm's reach of the town? You do have something that brightens up your daily life.

>>3184689
kek
probably not say that tho

>>3184689
Mmm, guts.

>>3186800
Sigh* QM makes a new thread without any notice.

>>3187698
the notice is on he QM's twitter