>>4746257
>[Tell him why it ended up like this for him]
>”Have you ever thought that you might have wanted it too much, Nishiyama-san?”

>>4746257
>[Just walk away]

>>4746257
>>[Tell him why it ended up like this for him]
>>Offer to help him with his final rites, to preserve his honour.

A final courtesy for a misguided samurai.

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Also, honor chart!

>>4746271

+1

>>4746262
>>4746271
>Offer to help him with his final rites, to preserve his honour.

This bit too.

>>4746257
Wong can we get the updated char sheet?

>>4746293
Now that I think about it, we haven’t checked up on our honor score in a while, at least not since Daisuke ganked seven bandits in a ten bandit band.

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"Have you ever thought you might have wanted it too much?" Your voice comes out less harshly than you expected. He's dying. The harm he's done is over. Soon he'll be just another bit of unclean meat. "You longed for the rewards of your station, without ever considering the duties involved. If you had just kept your head down, worked hard, served your Clan, and didn't try to just live as you liked, hurting everyone who offended you, you could have become someone important in time. Those you maimed probably went home to their Clans and served honorably and became respected samurai, a pity you, the person you maimed first, never did the same." You adjust your grip on the sword, "You had no involvement with this vile magic. Die as a samurai. Do you desire mercy and final rites?" You raise your sword.

He nods, just a jerk of his head, and your blade falls. You are no monk, to send his soul onward properly, but you do what you can.

[Continue, Honor gained from showing sincere courtesy to an enemy or rival and facing a superior foe in the name of your family...Miho was quite powerful]

>>4746304

You're at 6.6. Arguably you should have lost some Honor for Minor Etiquette Breach by being so affectionate with Sayaka, but that's probably counterbalanced by the sheer depth of shit you've waded into because it's the right thing to do.

>>4746311
>>4746319
Hot damn. We're actually abit too honourable for a pragmatic crab.

>>4746319
>>4746345
Dad certainly named us Daisuke for a reason, and it wasn’t just because his own name ended in D-A-I.

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Rolled 10, 3, 1, 6, 3, 3 = 26 (6d10)

You step outside, where Sayaka is pulling her bisento out of one of the guards you originally saw playing kemari with Nishiyama when you first came to the castle. It apparently wasn't just her serving-women Miho had subverted. "It's done." You tell her. "It's all over."

"Your aunt is...?" Her voice trails off.

You nod, "She had the power to manipulate minds and control the bodies of others like puppets. Takeshi knew nothing, although he was probably willing to fight me regardless. She tried to use it on me, but was too slow." That and she couldn't keep casting spells with a jade finger being shoved down her throat.

"How long had she had this power?" Sayaka cuts straight to the point, leaning on her bisento.

"Since she was a little girl. She said she had used her gifts to disturb the mind of your aunt, an act of childish, petty cruelty. When she came close to figuring out the truth, she made her throw herself off the roof. Your aunt didn't kill herself, she was murdered with heretical magic."

Sayaka sighs, and smiles bitterly, "I don't know whether or not to be relieved, but at least now she has been avenged. She can rest in peace. As a samurai, I wish I had done it myself, but I feel like my mother would approve of me getting my lover to kill my enemy for me." She jokes. "Truly you are the best of boys." Her expression twists with concern, "Wait, where is the baby?"

"His father came for him." You state grimly, "His true father."

"Yoshi-san is down below, praying for the dead. Let me see your arm properly." She takes out salve and begins tending to your injury, "Human nails can be shockingly dirty and bites and scratches often fester." She hesitates, then says, quietly, "What are you going to do?"

>[We go after the child tonight, we cannot waste any time]
>[It's too risky to pursue O-Tora through his own caves in the dead of night when he can see in the dark, we go in the morning, when his guard may be down]

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>>4746319
>6.6 honour
Damn we an honourable crab
>>4746311
Rip cuckoo in another life we may have hated eachother slightly less.

>>4746362
>[It's too risky to pursue O-Tora through his own caves in the dead of night when he can see in the dark, we go in the morning, when his guard may be down]

>>4746362
>[It's too risky to pursue O-Tora through his own caves in the dead of night when he can see in the dark, we go in the morning, when his guard may be down]

>>4746362
>[It's too risky to pursue O-Tora through his own caves in the dead of night when he can see in the dark, we go in the morning, when his guard may be down]

>>4746362
>>[It's too risky to pursue O-Tora through his own caves in the dead of night when he can see in the dark, we go in the morning, when his guard may be down]
“Yoshi may know where the jade used to be kept. The witch likely did something to get rid of most of it, but maybe we can find some she may have missed?”

>>4746362
>>[It's too risky to pursue O-Tora through his own caves in the dead of night when he can see in the dark, we go in the morning, when his guard may be down]

The bodies must be gathered and burnt and a new townwatch setup. Theres things to do and we cant immediately leave.

Rolled 5, 3 = 8 (2d10)

>>4746362

One explosion, one reroll.

>>4746362
>[We go after the child tonight, we cannot waste any time]
>Any more signs of Miho's coven? Any more undead about? Have the heads of the non-risen dead been severed? We also need to check the Jade Stores, and make sure my Uncle does not rise again from his daughter's sorcery.

If we don't chase after he's going to rabbit to who knows where, likely into the shadowlands though. Either that or the more desolate Imperial lands. So we need to put the castle in order and track him down or else we're derelict in our duty, and frankly with how he's built us sleeping is a terrible idea given he's semmingly very agile and stealthy.

>>4746381
Did we retrieve the jade finger?

Daisuke is back up at full health. Medicine is actually a really useful skill if you have the kit. A shame I can't find where, if anywhere, it lists how much money your lord normally gives you as a stipend per what period of time.

>>4746379
Oh, yeah, bring her over to the fan collection, maybe she’ll be able to find her aunt’s fan to bring back home. Better she have something to remember her by then have it sit here forever as a trophy of our lecher of a dead uncle.

>>4746386
yes
>The dim light gleams off the rippling patterns in the blade as you lift it high overhead and bring it decisively down, freeing her head from her body. The jade finger comes free, looking just slightly more pitted than before but still intact. It is disgusting, yes, but you retrieve it, wiping it thoroughly clean before tucking it away.

How long till reinforcements come upon hearing that the dead have risen?

>>4746362
>[We go after the child tonight, we cannot waste any time]

Phew! I almost missed this session.

>>4746408
unknown
Could be here in an hour
Could takes weeks.

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>>4746390
From Imperial Archive, 4e.
https://kupdf.net/download/l5r-4e-legend-of-the-five-rings-4e-imperial-archives_58dce14edc0d602b058970ec_pdf


It's worth noting that it says that this is a suggestion. Because a yearly stipend of 6 koku is... not great. One other houserule ive seen appears to be rank x 10 per year.

>>4746319
I'm hoping to achieve a rank of 8 honor. Insane for a Crab, yes, but we must have something to strive for.

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>>4746427
>8 Honour Crab
Honourable Madness

>>4746362
>[It's too risky to pursue O-Tora through his own caves in the dead of night when he can see in the dark, we go in the morning, when his guard may be down]

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"It is too risky to pursue him through his own caves in the dead of night when he can see in the dark, we go in the morning when his guard may be down." An idea strikes you, "Come with me."

"Daisuke? Where are we going?" She asks as you lead her down the steps, towards a particular room you remembered seeing on your first visit here, "I swear, is this the noodle pot all over again?" Even in this situation, she manages to smile, remembering what she probably considers a victory and YOU consider to be a point you PROVED on what a noodle SHOULD BE.

You let her simmer in curiosity as you take her to the trophy room of your uncle, a room whose every wall is lined with fans. Fans marked with flowers, with waves, with nature scenes of all sorts. Simple fans, fancy fans, demure little fans and elegant big fans. "You should at leave have something of your aunt's." You state simply.

"Daisuke, I couldn't, these are your uncle's." She says, even as she walks towards the end of the room, where one fan is set in a place of honor on a lectern.

"I insist. No matter what happens, his things will be put in storage or disposed of somehow over time." You fold your arms across your cuirass.

She smiles at you over your shoulder, stopping before the fan on the lectern, "But these fans are so beautiful, how could I make the collection incomplete?"

"My uncle may have enjoyed collecting beauties, but I have the most beautiful of all. Take the fan, you impossible woman." You grumble for her sake.

Her dark-painted lips form a gleeful smile as she picks up the fan, which depicts a plum tree in blossom along the side of a river. "She put this here herself, didn't she?" Her voice becomes a little wistful, "She must have thought she had truly leashed him."

"He never moved it." You point out, "And Miho was his daughter, not his true wife, part of a scheme for the illegitimate child of his illegitimate heir to take over his lands, just a way to get back at my father and my other uncle. Lady Chouko was his true wife." As the vermillion rays of the setting sun cover the ugliness of the world in a pleasant light, so you put a thin veil over a truly ugly situation.

She tucks the fan into her obi and walks over to you, taking your hand. Your thumb caresses her palm as you gaze at each other.

There is something painfully fragile in the air, bittersweet. She has accomplished what she came here for, and so have you. Her family awaits her back home, and the Wall waits for you. Affairs are common among samurai, but love, love is a dangerous weakness. The Kodo family would never approve of a mere soldier on the Wall wedding their highborn daughter, born of a Bayushi womb. This is a clandestine thing, and ephemeral. None would likely judge either of you for your youthful passion, but there are heights out of your reach. "How long, do you think, until your escort arrives?"

[Continue]

>>4746425

Keep in mind, that koku goes above and beyond all the free food, supplies, and lodging you get from your lord.

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"Some days yet, three or four. They will make haste when Ritsu reaches them." She smiles softly, sadly. She has thought of the same thing you did, how could she not?

The last time a member of your family loved a member of hers, he held her honor hostage by destroying every rival. She threw away everything, even her family, to be with him...and in the end, paid the ultimate price for it after years of suffering. True, Sayaka is not Chouko, and you are surely not Toshiaki, but even so. Can you ask her to throw away her life and her happiness for yours? Even if she wanted to as badly as you do, how could she? You are the head of your own household, and although Uncle Mitsuaki will surely use his experience and connections to help with the matchmaking process, ultimately the decision is yours.

She, for all of her wealth and family influence, is not so lucky. Golden chains bind her. Her mother and father likely have the finest young men of the Scorpion Clan, and any other Clan they might want influence with, lined up outside their door, warrior-poets of a pedigree that make you look like naught but a muddy little bug.

It is galling.

It is the way of the world, but it is galling. For perhaps the first time, you think seriously that your father was perhaps less than completely admirable in his nigh-ascetic tendency towards modest living. Rather than a grand manor, he lived in Kyuden Hida, in rooms that were nice and certainly more spacious than the barracks he insisted you live in with the other rank-and-file soldiers, but which he passed on to his replacement rather than you. He distrusted wealth and lived a simple, martial existence, generously donating towards the care of wounded soldiers and other ventures that would assist the Crab. You admired him for it, yet now, despite being a general's son and a lord's nephew...you feel practically empty-handed, and while that never bothered you before, someone you want very much to hold onto might be beyond your reach.

Especially as being kin to a Tainted witch has never done anyone any good. It can ruin a family, cause their Clan to scrub them out, innocent relatives might even be required to commit seppuku. True, you SOLVED the problem, which would otherwise have festered over time, but is it enough? You don't know. You can't know.

>[Things are impermanent, they either will be or won't be. Accept this, enjoy them while they last, and continue to simply be dutiful and continue your steady march onward. You will end up where you end up.]
>[For the sake of something truly wonderful, refuse to be crushed into the dirt by fate. Ignite the fires of ambition, and seek to rise even higher than your father or uncle did. When you soar high enough to block out the sun, even Sayaka's parents will be forced to acknowledge you]

>>4746481
>>[For the sake of something truly wonderful, refuse to be crushed into the dirt by fate. Ignite the fires of ambition, and seek to rise even higher than your father or uncle did. When you soar high enough to block out the sun, even Sayaka's parents will be forced to acknowledge you]

We will come for her.

>>4746481
>>[For the sake of something truly wonderful, refuse to be crushed into the dirt by fate. Ignite the fires of ambition, and seek to rise even higher than your father or uncle did. When you soar high enough to block out the sun, even Sayaka's parents will be forced to acknowledge you]
We thought about it before, right? Just because a dream’s impossible doesn’t mean it isn’t worth having. Serving the Hiruma, like our father, with their dream of reclaiming their ancestral lands, taught us that.

>>4746481
>[Things are impermanent, they either will be or won't be. Accept this, enjoy them while they last, and continue to simply be dutiful and continue your steady march onward. You will end up where you end up.]

We literally just lectured the Peacock on this lol.

>>4746481
>[For the sake of something truly wonderful, refuse to be crushed into the dirt by fate. Ignite the fires of ambition, and seek to rise even higher than your father or uncle did. When you soar high enough to block out the sun, even Sayaka's parents will be forced to acknowledge you]

As long as we stay honorable and based bros

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>[For the sake of something truly wonderful, refuse to be crushed into the dirt by fate. Ignite the fires of ambition, and seek to rise even higher than your father or uncle did. When you soar high enough to block out the sun, even Sayaka's parents will be forced to acknowledge you]
I REALLY LIKE THIS GIRL! She's worth the risk, besides I would risk even winter court for her, and we non-committaly grunted that we would *maybe* go.

>>4746493
I think the implication is that we will get there through hard work, now I want very much to continue for story sake, but I share your concerns. I want Daisuke to continue down his path through his own prowess.

>>4746493
We will serve honourably and dutifully but we also aspire to higher stations. The two are not indivisible.

>>4746481
>Too much ambition and one ends up like Takeshi and Yokisaki. Cruel and arrogant, blinded and prideful. And yet, too little and one ends up like the guards of the castle. Good men but lacking spines unable to truly fight back the worst the darkness has to offer because they see it as impossible.

You’ve done what many consider impossible here today. So you will strive to do what is right and good and honorable stubbornly and mightily like and good Crab should. You may not end up with Sayeka, but you will try and pray the kami guide us where we need to be.

>>4746513
>>4746495
changing to my based balanced brether

>>4746481
>[Things are impermanent, they either will be or won't be. Accept this, enjoy them while they last, and continue to simply be dutiful and continue your steady march onward. You will end up where you end up.]
>Too much ambition and one ends up like Takeshi and Yokisaki. Cruel and arrogant, blinded and prideful. And yet, too little and one ends up like the guards of the castle. Good men but lacking spines unable to truly fight back the worst the darkness has to offer because they see it as impossible.

We will cuck her husband if it comes to it though.

I don't mind ambition, as long as it's done though honor and merit. Keep in mind lads, hard work is half the battle here. It's up to fate whether we get that chance in the first place.

>>4746481
>>4746513
Based, and supporting. Duty and service can take us far, I just hope it is far enough.

>>4746513

In this case, unfortunately, it is a binary choice between accepting that Sayaka is out of your reach as more than an affair, and refusing to accept it and seeking to overcome fate by pursuing her.

>>4746517
>>4746523
>>4746525

I am sorry, I cannot accept this writein. Either you give up on her, or you vow to do what is necessary to have her. There is no "well I don't want to give up but if it's TOO HARD...guess I'll just hope and pray." You either reach for the heavens, or you don't.

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>>4746528

>>4746528
In that case, should we just vote [pursue] or [don’t pursue] so it doesn’t get confusing?

>>4746530
Alas, fair enough.
>[Things are impermanent, they either will be or won't be. Accept this, enjoy them while they last, and continue to simply be dutiful and continue your steady march onward. You will end up where you end up.]
Duty before all.

>>4746530
then I shall maintain my first vote

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>>4746530
MY THIRST FOR GENKI TOMGIRL NINJA GOODNESS WILL NOT BE QUENCHED, THIS IS YOUR FAULT WONG!

>>4746528
The write in was meant for us to go after her. But not to the extent our uncle ruined everything else she had. We accept one day we might fail, but until then we’re going full Crab in the face of fate. It was meant to be more nuanced than us going 100% ambition because we’ll naked ambition with no grounding gets you peacucked or uncle’d.

>>4746543
>>4746546
Then vote “For the sake of something truly wonderful”, ya ding dongs.

>>4746481
>[For the sake of something truly wonderful, refuse to be crushed into the dirt by fate. Ignite the fires of ambition, and seek to rise even higher than your father or uncle did. When you soar high enough to block out the sun, even Sayaka's parents will be forced to acknowledge you]

>>4746546

Daisuke will always be Daisuke, he is not the kind of person who would do Toshiaki-esque things, at least not without a very dramatic personality change.

>>4746551
I did!

>>4746551
>>4746554
My apologies, Xgc82Jkv. I thought you haven’t voted yet. I will commit seppuku in recompense for calling you a ding dong.

Or just go to bed and hope Sayaka wins.

>>4746481
>[For the sake of something truly wonderful, refuse to be crushed into the dirt by fate. Ignite the fires of ambition, and seek to rise even higher than your father or uncle did. When you soar high enough to block out the sun, even Sayaka's parents will be forced to acknowledge you]

>>4746530
You can take my first vote then Wong. I do plan on cucking her husbando if it isn't us though.

>>4746481
>[For the sake of something truly wonderful, refuse to be crushed into the dirt by fate. Ignite the fires of ambition, and seek to rise even higher than your father or uncle did. When you soar high enough to block out the sun, even Sayaka's parents will be forced to acknowledge you]

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There is just a little bit of Toshiaki in you, just a bit, but more importantly there is a lot of your father, a man who went from a threadbare outcast son to a respected shireikan of the First Crab Army. You've spent your life simply putting one foot ahead of the other, but now the flames of ambition have been lit within your heart.

Yes, it is difficult, but you will not let fate stamp you into the dirt. If it wants you, it will find you with sword in hand! You will rise even higher than your father or uncle did! When you soar high enough to block out the sun, even Sayaka's parents will be forced to acknowledge you. You will do it even without sacrificing who you are, and remain the boy Sayaka liked rather than becoming a grasping thing like your uncle or his daughter's yojimbo.

“No matter how long or cold the winter is, spring will always come again.” You reach out, and with your thumb against her cheekbone you slowly slide Sayaka's mask up until you're gazing into her pretty green eyes.

Both of her hands clasp around her wrist, yet she leans into your touch, “You risk death by doing so.” She tells you plainly.

“I am no stranger to that.” You tell her, just as plainly, “You struck more than my chest when we first met.”

“Must you remind me?” She tuts, “I'm embarrassed enough at mistaking that handsome face for a bandit's.”

“I'll remind you even when your hair turns grey.” You smile down at her.

She turns her head and kisses your palm, “What if it never does?” She asks playfully.

“Then I'll still remind you. Such a fine swing it was.”

“How like a Crab! All you can say to me is that I hit you very hard!” She scoffs.

“I could spend a lifetime saying more than that.” You tell her, bluntly, honestly.

“...My mother is going to murder you.” Her shoulders droop in defeat.

“I'm used to things trying to murder me.” You tell her, “How bad can it possibly be?”

She gasps, “You have not the faintest whiff of an idea, Daisuke!”

...Meanwhile, in Scorpion lands, a small and exceptionally beautiful woman whose age barely shows in face or body frowns down at her yarrow sticks. “A storm on the horizon?” She questions, and snorts, “It underestimates my umbrella collection.” She looks out the window at her garden, and smiles, “The oleander is coming in beautifully this year. As is the aconite.”

[Continue]

One minute, dog needs outside. Hopefully she doesn't sneak in a dead animal and hide it under the couch again.

>>4746481
>>[Things are impermanent, they either will be or won't be. Accept this, enjoy them while they last, and continue to simply be dutiful and continue your steady march onward. You will end up where you end up.]

>>4746602
Damn Wong.

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Together, you retrieve Yoshi and explain what happened to him. The old monk looks even older and more tired than usual, yet somehow stronger. As if an old wound had finally healed. “You will need purification.” He informs both of you, “Before you sleep. Come, let us leave this place.”

“O-Tora is still out there.” You remind him.

The old man's singular fist snaps out in a remonstrating punch to your bicep, it stings surprisingly, “Don't underestimate the Temple of Osano-Wo!” He laughs, “Our purification rituals are swift. The well water should be cold enough at this time of year. We can do it again after we handle that shuffling corpse.”

You exhale, relieved. “Good. I know this ritual.” Though the rain is cold enough, pouring down in a torrent and soaking you to the bone. At least, that's what you think before you reach the well, and each of you has a soul-chillingly cold bucket of water splashed over your head and a prayer spoken over you by the old monk. Sayaka squeals, and you and Yoshi both have a good laugh at her.

The walk back to the village seems to take almost no time at all. Although you keep an eye out for the living dead, it seems that your blades and Yoshi's kiho have slain them all. He explains, bluntly, that his studies at the temple have taught him the way of sensing every vibration of an approaching enemy in the ground. “I should have retired many years ago.” He jokes, “I cannot regret the loss of my arm, when it has meant gaining so much. Even, at last, peace.”

“...But O-Tora is still out there.” You say again.

He nods, “He is. Beaten and alone. From what you have said, he will not harm his son, not yet. We will assault him together, and kill him together.” His expression clouds,

Sayaka pipes up, “...But when the world knows the truth, what kind of life can that child have? A bastard's bastard, born of a witch and a deserter, deformed even if he is not tainted. What will become of him? Will he be made ronin? Will he even be allowed to live?” As much a tomboy as she is, she is still a woman, and her concern for the baby is evident in her voice.

“If he is tainted, that is that. An adult can cope, for a while, sometimes, with the memories of the past reminding them of what they used to be. Long enough, at least, to seek death in battle before their souls degrade.” Yoshi's voice is sympathetic, but grim. “A child is not so lucky. As we have seen.”

“For nine months, he has stewed in a pot of taint.” You tell her plainly. “He will be tested before anything is done, but...”

[Continue]

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“What a cruel thing.” She laments, no humor in her voice for once, “What a cruel thing, that witch has done.”

The three of you speak not another word until you reach the village. There, the eta are clearing away the bodies of the dead bandits to be disposed of.

Incidentally, yes, you did behead all the bodies. All of them. It almost goes without saying.

The village headman runs up to you with almost indecent haste, wringing his hands and bowing with each step, “Master Arinaga, how are things at the castle?” He looks behind you, “Er, did those brave guardsmen stay behind? I suppose they would have to return to their duties, after all...”

>[Obscure the truth without directly lying, by telling the villagers what happened and that a witch was to blame...but make it sound like Miho was a victim, not the witch herself. ]
>[Tell the complete truth, even that Miho was the witch]
>[Blame Takeshi for everything, the ronin had no honor and was widely hated anyway]
>[Say nothing]

>>4746663
>>[Tell the complete truth, even that Miho was the witch]
>>Ask him to select trustworthy healthy males who will be now be the temporary town guards who will report to us directly, that we are taking direct control of the castle and town.

Theres no obscuring that all the guards are dead and the Eta will need to enter the castle regardless and will speak of what they see.

>>4746663
>[Obscure the truth without directly lying, by telling the villagers what happened and that a witch was to blame...but make it sound like Miho was a victim, not the witch herself. ]

>>4746663
>Tell the complete truth
Better to tell it now than for it to be discovered later.

>>4746663
>>4746670
+1
The need new guardsman is a good touch.

>>4746663
>[Tell the complete truth, even that Miho was the witch]

>>4746663
>[Tell the complete truth, even that Miho was the witch]

>>4746663
>Especially as being kin to a Tainted witch has never done anyone any good. It can ruin a family, cause their Clan to scrub them out, innocent relatives might even be required to commit seppuku. True, you SOLVED the problem, which would otherwise have festered over time, but is it enough? You don't know. You can't know.

Just so you lads know what you're getting into. Otherwise...

>>4746663
>[Obscure the truth without directly lying, by telling the villagers what happened and that a witch was to blame...but make it sound like Miho was a victim, not the witch herself. ]

I think this is the more honorable option incidentally, as we gain no honor telling the whole truth at our expense and protecting our family's reputation is honorable here.

Oh, important second question

>[Do you tell these peasants that Miho was illegitimate and thus her son is NOT actually their lord?]

>>4746590
For those who don't know oleander and aconite are both toxic with the later even used IRL to bring down bears. Also both are quite nice decorative plants. Wonder if she has some foxglove, sweat pea flower, or castor bean plants kicking around as well.

>>4746693
What would our father do? Because I'll do the same as him here.

>>4746693
I'ma vote Yes.

>>4746691
My reasoning for telling that miho was a witch is due to security. We've see that her maids too were apart of her cabal. We need the headman's help to see if she consorted closely with anyone else in the village. Otherwise there could be another acolyte out here and the food stocks can be tested for safety.

>>4746693
.....
Dear peasants, turns out Miho was actually my uncles illegitimate daughter whom he he married, but at least it turned out her son wasn't actually my uncles child and was in fact the product of a rape by an honourless Ronin who abandoned the wall and is now a taint zombie, who is unfortunately roaming the lands after kidnapping his rape son....

.....
I don't know how man
The blunt crab in me says just do it, trying to remember whatever half truth or lie we concoct feels like too much work.
>Yes

>>4746702
>>4746704
>>4746707
I think we could just chalk it up to witchy business and say she and her son were not legit.

>>4746693
Yes but just say shes a witch and not legit.

>>4746705
I understand stand the concern. However, the castle did isolate itself from the village. It's reasonable to assume that she didn't put her claws into the village, otherwise there would have been a lot more interaction between them.

>>4746693
>Did we actually tell them that Miho was our uncle's daughter in the first place? If not, we can just say Shirou is not uncle's son and that's that. And we'll spare our family the shame of our uncle's scheming and him marrying his own daughter

>>4746707
Just keep it vague, no need to go into the details here.

>>4746707
Dear God.... We need to say it EXACTLY like that. It's perfect!

>>4746716
Hard no on that. Dishonor to our family is not an option.

>>4746663
>[Obscure the truth without directly lying, by telling the villagers what happened and that a witch was to blame...but make it sound like Miho was a victim, not the witch herself. ]

>>4746693
No, HONOR AND FAMILY YOU FUCKING DOLT. I bet our dad will be fumming if we just yap that our uncle did some shit and ruin our family name further wtf guys.

Im angry people want to be honest and also try to go after a scorpion girl. Guys its time to flex those lies.

>>4746731
>You will do it even without sacrificing who you are, and remain the boy Sayaka liked

Ah yes, let's start acting like someone else now...

>>4746731
I find it funny that they choose ambition, then precede to commit the political equivalent of stabbing themselves in the foot. Funniest bit is that we don't even gain as much honor from this as we would by protecting our family's reputation. You just can't make this shit up.

>>4746739
>>4746731
But I get what you're getting at and there is no reason to tell the common people the entire sordid story.
Just that our "nephew" is illegitimate

>>4746750
Ya, just say shes a witch, illegitimate and the cause of every bad thing that happened here.

>>4746707
If it wasn't obvious the nongreentext portion of my Post was supposed to be a joke

>>4746707
Right since captcha seems to have eaten my Post before, let me try again.
If it wasn't obvious the none greentext portion of my post was meant as a Joke.

>>4746754
>>4746757
............

File: 8765765765.gif (1.25 MB, 500x250)

1.25 MB GIF

>>4746763

Well, I fell asleep, I will wrap this up tomorrow. Consequences and all.

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>>4746763

>>4746808
Aight homie cya on the flip side.

>>4746663
>[Obscure the truth without directly lying, by telling the villagers what happened and that a witch was to blame...but make it sound like Miho was a victim, not the witch herself.]
This is some political bullshit guys, we have to be careful.

>>4746687
>>4746663
Eh screw it I'll swap my vote, that's assuming Wong hasn't already prepped it for posting tomorrow.
>[Obscure the truth without directly lying, by telling the villagers what happened and that a witch was to blame...but make it sound like Miho was a victim, not the witch herself. ]

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>>4746808
Cya later, Wong.

>>4746663
>[Obscure the truth without directly lying, by telling the villagers what happened and that a witch was to blame...but make it sound like Miho was a victim, not the witch herself. ]

>>4746663
>>[Obscure the truth without directly lying, by telling the villagers what happened and that a witch was to blame...but make it sound like Miho was a victim, not the witch herself. ]

Fuck damn it, I always come into these threads either too early or too late.

Anyway

>Tell the truth, no details

Miho was a witch; even if this bites our standing in the ass, we can't keep that under wraps, especially considering her son (and theoretical heir) might be double plus tainted. If we have to protect someone's honor, as galling as that may be, protect Uncle's. He really WAS enthralled by a witch, after all, and he DID try to protect the villagers... even if it was far too late.

>inb4 his ghost shows up to laugh in our face

>>4746663
Forgot to link

>Only tell a part of the truth, explain that dear ol' Uncle was the victim of Miho, who was a witch

Let's keep the whole "actually his illegitimate daughter" bit under wraps.

>>4746663
>>Tell the truth, no details

>[Tell the complete truth, even that Miho was the witch]

>>4746663
>[Tell the complete truth, even that Miho was the witch]

>>4746663
>[Tell the complete truth, even that Miho was the witch]

>when you realize a bunch of fifth columnists took over the quest

...unless it's someone samefagging again.

>>4748169
We are a samurai wtf do you owe to a fucking villager.

>>4748378
>>4748387
>>4748410
>>4748466

>1 post by this ID

Wew same fagging is strong in this one

>>4746663
>[Obscure the truth without directly lying, by telling the villagers what happened and that a witch was to blame...but make it sound like Miho was a victim, not the witch herself. ]

We can tell the truth to our family later.

>>4748795
>fifth columnists

How exactly does that even make sense in this context? Is there some kind of enemy we're supposed to be working against undermining our efforts? What?

>>4746663
>[Obscure the truth without directly lying, by telling the villagers what happened and that a witch was to blame...but make it sound like Miho was a victim, not the witch herself. ]

>>4748821
not a samefag
also my id had 7 posts, now i have 8.
stay salty.

>>4748830
It means a bunch of anons want to undermine our own efforts, and our family's reputation. Truth isn't the highest virtue here, it's face, and we'd not only be damning us but the rest of our living family with reputation of incompetence and traitorous corruption to the Shadowlands. Lesser slights require seppuku to be resolved, and as a Crab clan vassel, incompetence and corruption are the two cardinal sins here.

>>4748839
Didnt mean to include you
My bad you faggot

>>4748821
Some of us missed last night's runtime.

>>4748871
Weak.

>>4748889
Hey man, it's like 3am in GMT. Not everyone on the board is a murriclap.

>>4748893
So you admit it? You've got guts. Puny, scrawny guts. But guts nonetheless.

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>>4748896

>>4748905

I think we might have to upgrade up to light armour after this if we're going to be more prominent.

>>4748970
Depending on how this pans out, we may be looking at anything from a raise in rank and status to getting exiled and branded a ronin, or even asked to commit sudoku. I'm pretty sure you don't just randomly roll up to a blacksmith and pay him to make you armor in L5R, so we'll have to wait for everything else to settle before we can look into upgrading our gear.

>>4746590
Jesus Christ, I thought those flowers looked familiar. The devil's helmet - the whole plant is dangerous, but even consuming a small portion of the roots could be enough to stop your heart.

>>4748859
I'm in agreement. Considering that we are both fairly distant from our Aunt, and that we were the one that "fixed" her, we should be alright ... but why risk it? Any oddities of her current condition can and will be attributed to blood magic being blood magical, right?

>[Obscure the truth without directly lying, by telling the villagers what happened and that a witch was to blame...but make it sound like Miho was a victim, not the witch herself. ]

>>4749029
WHY exactly are we covering for Miho (who will sooner or later be outed as being the witch responsible for all this regardless of what we say here)? She's not even part of our bloodline (as far as everyone knows). Wouldn't we want to defend our Uncle (as shitty as he was) and throw her under the bus instead?

>>4749029
Meanwhile, I just realised my gran has a few bushes of oleander in her garden, lmao. It's dirt-common around these parts.

>>4749034
I think it's less covering for Miho and more preventing the villagers from finding a reason to kill Shirou, seeing as he's a rape baby born from a union of a tainted and now zombified mutant bandit lord and a maho witch. They'll be looking at him funny for the rest of his life without us mentioning the truth, no need to turn it into infanticide.

>>4749034
Because we're not covering for Miho, we're covering for our Uncle and the rest of the family. A Crab Lord marrying a Bloodspeaker after his wife committed suicide isn't a good look at all for our family, and calls into question the competence of said family.

Also, how will it come out Miho is a witch? We killed and beheaded everybody involved with this situation, and remember anon, evidence is a secondary consideration to testimony.

>>4749046
>>4749047
But putting it out that shes to blame and illegitimate by implying she bewitched our uncle means that she and her 'son' are now out of succession, which means that we will be the new rightful liege of these lands. By lying and covering, we still affirm that the kid is the new legitimate heir.

>>4749060
Keep in mind, we'd only be telling the peasants that, not our higher ups. The farmers get the redacted story, our superiors hear the truth of what happened.

>>4749060
>implying we wont be killing the kid if it has taint
If ever the kid doesnt have the taint tho, I think we are in a strong position after this ordeal. I wanna know what moniker they'd be calling us after this.

>>4749074
>I wanna know what moniker they'd be calling us after this.
Unclefucker.

>>4749060
We're not lying, we're simply not telling the whole truth, and telling them they were ruled over by a witch would make them panic over taint and being purge by the Crab. Plus, it doesn't really matter what the plebs think, as they don't really get a say over who rules them.

>>4749046
If the kid is tainted (which as Daisuke mentioned in game is unfortunately highly likely) it's getting the chop, no matter what. Even if it isn't, it's going to be under suspicion fpr pretty much the rest of its life, and not going to be allowed to inherit anyway.
>>4749047
Bloodspeakers bewitching lords, even Crab lords, isn't exactly unheard of. Maho is freaky shit.
As for how it will come out? Remember, the whole castle is probably going to be scrutinized and purified to the last tile by the Kuni. They live in the village. Someone's going to say something they shouldn't. Besides, what's the alternative we're presenting exactly? Random bloodspeaker just happened to live in the castle and control everyone in the family? How is that better than just Miho being the witch?

>>4749070
Our superiors especially must not know the whole truth. They're the ones who can order us to seppuku.

>>4746663
>[Tell the complete truth, even that Miho was the witch]

>>4749094
A servant being a Bloodspeaker is infinitely preferable to the Lady wife of your lord, and apart of your family. A Bloodspeaker bewitching a lord is incredibly shameful to the family, and to the Crab, deadly. It's stupid to outright admit it to peasants.

And someone saying something they shouldn't is exactly the reason why we don't tell they anything substantial, anon. They're not going to know about it unless we come forward with the information.

>>4749094
I mean if you don't tell anyone there are only four people who know what went down. The three amigos and the creepy zombie spider tiger rat boi.

And no one is going to listen to that freaky corpse rodent monster. So unless you decide to say something, literally no one will be the wiser.

Oh goddamnit I completely forgot I said I'd do this tonight. Welp.

>>4749145
>>4746590
Wong is the Scorpion Land bit lacking?

>>4749145
Does this mean we get a session tomorrow

>>4749208
>doesn't know

Kek

>>4749208
Wong runs his Swamp Lord quest Monday and Friday, so probably not ...

Hey, uh, Thread #5 isn’t archived on sup/tg/ yet. Just a heads up before it drops off the board entirely.

>>4755184
I just archived it, no need to worry lads.

>>4755286
Thanks, anon.

>skewers a Takeshi
Damnit, anon, you were so close to making a joke about chicken yakitori...

>>4755299
Funny thing, I'm currently eating chicken atm. Unfortunately, I didn't know about yakitori, and 'skewers a chicken' doesn't roll off the tongue, but man, skewering some yakitori does sound delicious.

>>4755286

Thanks, with what was going on I basically forgot. I had a good reason, it's not one that's pleasant to discuss or dwell on, but someone in the family died and they shouldn't have.

>>4760004
Hope ya feel better soon bud. Take yer time eh.

>>4760004
Shit wong, condolences.

RIP.

>>4760004
>and they shouldn't have
I am sorry for your loss, but I'm also really confused by that addendum.

>>4760004
Shit, that's tough.
My condolences.

>>4760271
Presumably he meant someone died "before their time", so to speak. Anyway, it's not polite to pry, anon.
My condolences, Wong.

>>4760004
No problem Wong, I'm always happy to help in a time of need.

Trapped by the snowstorm, waiting at a relative's until the tow truck.

>>4761856
Snowong

>>4761856
>>4761856
OOF, you gonna be ok?

>>4761856
Stay safe mate.

>>4761869

Yeah, wasn't my fault I ended up in the ditch. Guy ahead of me swerved.

>>4761894
Worst part about driving in the snow is always idiots who don't know how, being everywhere on the road.

En route home

>>4761950
Hype!

Game Thursday after how long it's taken me to get home and get food in me.

>>4761910

In this case it was that it was coming down so hard and so fast that it obscured all visibility, and when I finally made it home the snow had stopped but the mist was so thick I could barely see ten yards in front of me with the brights on.

>>4761959

I am so sorry

>>4761994

No worries man, getting home through Nature taking a greasy shit all over the roads is more important.

>>4761994
No problem mate. The major thing is you didn't get caught by yourself in the middle of a snowstorm.

This quest is just extra cursed, isn't it.

Note to self: 2j

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You explain to the village headman, quickly but with some degree of detail, everything that happened from the time you entered Koumugi Valley until now, at least as far as it related to the relevant topic. At the knowledge that your uncle hadn't even known about the bandits, the village headman's shoulders pull tight as a drawn bow, and he shakes with wordless grief. Such emotional displays are not usually permitted to your caste (although occasionally even a samurai gives way on that) and you cannot help but envy the sincerity of his mourning. “We thought our brave lord had become a...” He doesn't have the stomach to call your uncle a coward, and good for him, “It is good to know he wanted to protect us.” His eyes shift to Yoshi, “Revered monk, I do not mean to question Master Arinaga, but all of this is as he described, yes?”

“It is.” The monk gravely states, “Although it breaks my heart to say so, it is. You knew me, once, as Yoshimitsu, one of the Arinaga family retainers. When I was defeated and maimed by O-Tora, I retired to a monastery and trained vigilantly in hopes of returning to administer justice. Thanks to Arinaga Daisuke-sama and his companion, it has been done.”

“Praise the Fortunes.” The headman bows his head again, then speaks, slightly more timidly, “My lord, gossip about one's betters is unseemly, yet I have a duty to inform. I am less surprised than I should be, it was widely whispered in the village that something was wrong with the child. When our lord's father had children, their mother often brought them down to the village, that we might know their faces. At least, that was what the man I inherited my post from told me. Yet, Lady Miho's...apologies, the witch's...child was shut away from us, the guards drawn protectively tight around him, and the household ceased to mingle with the village, even the servants who had family here. Even our midwife never returned from the castle, we were brushed off when we asked why. To know he came from a tainted womb explains everything, and that he was not our true lord explains even more.”

“Do you have peeled poles prepared for the repair of your residences?” You question, “We will need them, along with torches and sharpened bamboo stakes.” Your voice turns grim, “And drums, if you have them.”

“We do, my lord.” The headman does not ask why with his mouth, but his eyes hold the question.

[Continue]

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O-Tora is powerful and extremely mobile, and whether day or night you will fight him in a dark maze of caverns which he knows intimately and you don't, where he can see and you can't. Even if they quail at his approach, even if they scream and flee, the peasants will give some warning. Moreover, they will carry torches to provide you with light without having to take a hand off your sword, and use the wicker sections and sharpened stakes to form walls of spines with which to block passageways O-Tora could use to get behind you. Slowly, methodically, you will corner him. As for the drums? Their purpose is simple.

The noise will boost their morale, and hopefully make Shirou cry, betraying O-Tora's location. You explain to him what you want done, “Summon the eta, the castle is full of the dead.” Those are the last words you speak to him that night, as you feel fatigue creep in as the rush of battle slowly wears off.

Next, you collar Yoshi. “Did my uncle keep any reserve of jade fingers or powder in the castle?” You ask.

He smiles bitterly, “In another Clan, this would be considered looting. He did keep some jade powder as an emergency reserve, I will have to go see whether the witch found and disposed of it.” You can't blame him for not calling his former liege lady by her name, it must be somewhat of a sore subject for her former retainer.

You feel fingers on your elbow, and a soft voice in your ear, “Daisuke, you are swaying on your feet. Come, before you tip over in front of the heimin.” Sayaka guides you to the home of the teashop proprietress, where you had stayed before, and all but undresses you. For all that has happened, for all that you have seen and done today, you feel a little numb until her fingers graze your bare skin, and then you discover that you still have some energy left.

You have a good night, and sleep peacefully in the Scorpion woman's arms.

[Continue]

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The next morning you wake up refreshed and clear-headed. For once in your life, you oversleep, Lady Sun is well risen by the time you are dressed, refreshed, and emerge, but the hours of light have not been misspent. Every man in the village is putting their parangu to better work than the bandits did, working beneath the eaves of their homes to avoid the rain, chopping bamboo stalks at an angle to make nasty sharp points, and arguing about how best to carry the tied-together frames that will turn the bundles of poles into mantlets through the gaps of which the stakes can be stabbed. O-Tora can bowl over any one of these peasants, but a half-dozen with their shoulders set into the frame and leaning hard? A much more challenging prospect. At your approach, they cheer, “Arinaga banzai!”

You adjust your sword at your side, your mouth feeling just slightly dry. Are they expecting a speech? “Be careful.” You inform them. “You are not samurai. Most of you have never held a weapon. Your strength is in your numbers and strategy. Stay together in the groups we assign you, talk only to communicate relevant information, and if you see O-Tora approach...scream.”

You see several of them blink at you.

“Screaming will alert the rest of us.” You inform them, although asking them to scream at the sight of a monster seems somewhat redundant. They nod, satisfied.

With that, you set off through the woods, through the bamboo, towards the abandoned watchtower. With the bamboo blocking your vision in all directions, the sounds of the rain, now more gentle than last night, make the world soft and numb. The nightmare is nearly at its end. The sun has risen. Your family's honor is almost avenged.

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You did briefly consider the secret passage in the castle, as a way that would conceal you from O-Tora until you were closer, but you decided it was a waste of time. Miho surely would have blocked it off after being raped by the bandit leader, if it was still open she would have sent the sake shipments through there instead of the forest.

You do not speak until you reach the abandoned watchtower, seated atop its lump of rock. Mossy and in ill repair, it looks dead where it previously looked disreputable and shabby. Not a single bandit remains to guard it, a fact made all the more evident when you find one of said bandits. His eyes gaze up at the sky, foggily open in horror and incomprehension, rain dripping onto the eyeballs and spilling down his stubbly cheeks like tears. He has been practically hollowed out, his throat torn open, sternum crushed and ripped open by something unimaginably sharp and powerful, his organs ripped out. There are teeth marks on some of the ribs, inhuman teeth marks.

“They must have come back here after seeing their leader killed.” You note, “At least some of them.”

One of the peasants noisily vomits, followed by a few of his fellows.

Sayaka wrinkles her nose, and nods, “Unmade by their greed. Surely they were hoping to take whatever ill-gotten gains they had stashed here and make for a place notably more devoid of your presence.”

Wooden beads rattle between Yoshi's fingers as he murmurs a prayer. Perhaps he thinks even bandits don't deserve to die like this.

[Continue]

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You find the others who fled in similar state, at least some of them. Perhaps they split up, or perhaps O-Tora dragged them down into the caverns for a snack. You keep a careful watch, and thoroughly search the tower, but are unsurprised that by the light of day the creature O-Tora has become would prefer to lurk underground. You don't remember him being particularly clever as a human, and as a monster, he hasn't gotten much smarter. In his position you surely would have set some traps for your pursuers, not that you would ever be in his position. In the storage basement of the watchtower, a crude fissure in one of the walls gives access to a natural cavern. It is narrow, but by the light of the torches you see the marks left by picks and chisels, where it has been expanded and made easier for armed men to traverse. Soon enough, it widens out. The cavern is crude, and poorly kept, with dying or dead lamps placed haphazardly around wherever the bandits found convenient, the smoke from the flames leaving a black carbon pall that dulls the glitter of popcorn quartz in the ceiling.

At every side-room, you, Yoshi, and Sayaka move in with two peasants holding torches. This is deliberate. If there are two, and O-Tora pounces on one and extinguishes the light, the other will continue to provide immediate illumination. Not that you tell them this. In some, goods are piled up. Silks, ore, parchments...some of which have been torn or crudely doodled on. A scroll containing financial records of some sort has a picture of a smug bandit whose dangling phallus extends as far as the scroll will unwind crudely drawn on it with ink expensive enough that it was likely stolen from the same merchant, which Sayaka snorts with laughter at. Once you've ascertained the room is free of undead monsters, and any part of the wall covered by anything that might conceal a secret passageway has been exposed and examined, you pass on. When the path splits, you dispatch six peasants to hold the lesser fork. They set the framework down, and pile before it bundles of bamboo poles, wrapped tightly together, to form a barricade with gaps just wide enough to punch a sharpened stake through.

You have no strategic reason for when you signal the drummers to begin beating their festival drums, just your gut telling you that you're in deep enough for it to be heard.

>[Begin rolling dice, this is an Investigation/Perception check]

Rolled 7 (1d10)

>>4763607
Yosh!

Rolled 8 (1d10)

>>4763607
Not snow Nor bandits Nor ice-slick roads stop Mr. Wong.

Rolled 10 (1d10)

>>4763607

Rolled 3 (1d10)

>>4763607

Rolled 3 (1d10)

>>4763607

>>4763617

Explode that 10!

Aside from that explosion, that's enough dice, since your normal roll is 4k2 and with Wary it's 5k3.

>>4763617
Holy shit, roll again, anon!

Ah, in these circumstances, someone else can roll for him. From here on out, since this happens a fair amount, if within five minutes someone doesn't roll again when they roll a 10, someone else can roll for them. Just remember to link to their post!

Rolled 7 (1d10)

>>4763617
>>4763633
(shrugs) Guess I'll take it.

Rolled 5 (1d10)

>>4763617
>>4763633
Ok Wong.

Rolled 9 (1d10)

>>4763633
>>4763617
ok then

Your total is 34, a pass by 4.

>>4763650
Niceee

Er, 32, a pass by 2.

Rolled 5 (1d10)

>>4763617

Rolled 1, 5, 8, 10, 3, 2 = 29 (6d10)

Rolled 3 (1d10)

>>4763665

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[Void Point spent to increase Armor TN, 2/3 remain]

In the instant you turn your head to give the order, you see a flicker of movement along the ceiling. This part of the cavern rises high overhead, and the smoke from the torches obscures it somewhat. O-Tora's mistake is breathtakingly simple, he's failed to understand the simple reality of vision.

Your sensei once told you that when one focuses on something, one looks directly at it. The center of the eye sees detail and color best. Therefore, most people focus their mind on what they perceive directly before their gaze, narrowing their field of view mentally. However, the edge of vision is not without its merits. That part of your eye is faster to perceive movement, and thus comes the expression 'seeing things out of the corner of one's eye', the perception of subtle, nigh invisible movements. One who knows this can direct the center of one's gaze on something and yet be aware of the edges, learning to avoid betraying their intentions in combat with where they're looking in addition to sharpening their ability to react. An ability, in your case, honed by the Wall and patrols beyond it. You have always, always been quick to spot an impending ambush, moreso than your peers.

Even with extreme luck, and more agility than he ever had in life if he was able to cling to the ceiling like that, O-Tora's stealth is no match for the corners of your eyes.

Something like a braided whip lashes out from the darkness, and if you had not been aware of it, it would have seized you by the throat like a noose. The sheer speed of its passage parts the smoke, and for just a moment, you see O-Tora, clinging to the ceiling by the ugly, curving black talons that have replaced his fingernails, and you realize that leathery appendage was his tongue, fringed and frayed at the tip from being scored by his razor-sharp rows of black teeth. As he's out of reach of Sayaka's bisento or your sword, you grab for your bow, but he turns and scuttles away into the darkness, beyond the reach of the torches.

In the distance, up ahead, you hear a baby crying.

>[Order pursuit at a full sprint]
>[Order pursuit slowly, cautiously]

>>4763677
>[Order pursuit slowly, cautiously]

>>4763677
>[Order pursuit slowly, cautiously]

Caution is the order of the day.

>>4763677
>>[Order pursuit slowly, cautiously]

Slowly. steadily. Corner the beast and slaughter him.

Resume rolling dice, same roll as last time.

Rolled 1 (1d10)

>>4763692
Same DC as well?

Rolled 6 (1d10)

>>4763692

Rolled 8 (1d10)

>>4763693
...damn it.

Rolled 2 (1d10)

>>4763692
Yosh!

>>4763693

Much lower, actually.

Rolled 9 (1d10)

>>4763692
need some strong rolls to deal with this, unless his tn got dropped.

Rolled 4 (1d10)

>>4763692

>>4763700
Oh thank god.

>>4763693
>>4763694
>>4763696
>>4763697
>>4763701

23, pass by 3.

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“Slowly, cautiously! Advance forward, block off branching paths the same as before!” You order, leading the way.

The tripwire is almost clownishly easy to spot, the fact that it's hidden at a spot where the passageway angles upward, then dips, to hide it makes it too obvious. You make sure everyone steps over it carefully, so as not to pull the peg out from under a portcullis of spiked logs that might otherwise come crashing down on your heads.

“Daisuke...” O-Tora's voice hisses from down the corridor, made louder by lungs that no longer need to save any air for speech, “I was wrong. You were right.”

“If you're sorry, kneel and present your neck.” You call out. Up ahead, you can see that the passageway opens out, into some kind of larger chamber.

“I was wrong, to be afraid of that place. To see myself the same way as those children who died there. You knew, didn't you, the truth of it? You look so unnatural here, in this world of weaklings. The place beyond the Wall...I finally understand what it is.” His voice rises in pitch, excitement tingeing it, “It's a paradise! A land that makes one strong! Thank you, Daisuke! Thank you for showing me that! I'm so happy I got a second chance! That is why I didn't run away. I am going to kill you, and drink your blood, the way the voices whisper to me, and when I have feasted on you all my son and I will go there and he...he will become the strongest of all! Finally, I feel such joy!” His laughter echoes down the corridor, “I will make someone greater than me, unlike my father who always treated me as someone lesser! Even when the axe came down, his eyes were full of contempt!”

“Daisuke, while he's monologuing, give me the jade finger.” Sayaka says quietly.

“Ah...that reminds me.” Yoshi hands you three small bags, “Jade powder, in case he is immune to your sword. I don't think he is, I see numerous small cuts he must have gotten climbing around, he just doesn't feel them...but in case I'm wrong, you have it.”

You try to offer one to Sayaka, and she shakes her head, “No, I need the solid piece specifically. I can't tell you why.”

>[Give it to her]
>[Don't give it to her]

>>4763725
>[Give it to her]
Hope he's hungry.

>>4763725
>>[Give it to her]

>>4763725
>[Give it to her]

>>4763725
>[Give it to her]

Impossible woman.

>>4763725
>>[Give it to her]

Rolled 3, 10, 4 = 17 (3d10)

File: ono-axe.jpg (228 KB, 594x826)

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You hand it to her, “Impossible woman, keep your secrets.” You grumble good-naturedly, and she gives you just the prettiest smile in response.

The main chamber of the bandit hideout, the lair of its leader for the past few years, is a grand, circular cavern. Half of it is roofed and ringed by rock, half of it protrudes out over a great chasm into the earth. You quietly remind yourself not to let him fall into it, he'll surely climb back out the moment you think he's dead.

There are two other exits, and at your command, the peasants fan out to erect the makeshift barriers over them, sharpened stakes protruding, and at a second command they do the same behind you through the corridor you came in.

O-Tora laughs. He's managed to strap some of his armor back on, not the full set, but enough to give him some extra defense. He once again has an ono strapped to his back, a rather more plain one than the one he left behind when you struck him down, and he unlimbers it and takes a stance, “No matter how sweet it feels to kill with my bare hands, I'll end this as I began it.” The undead samurai promises.

You notice that there is a huge pile of cushions on the other end of the room. Shirou, swaddled in blankets, is laying on them, bawling. Along with the remains of two women, dressed in merchants' attire. Their manner of death looked extremely unpleasant, but you have seen worse.

>[Finish this with single combat, it's the right way to do it]
>[He is an abomination, gesture for Yoshi and Sayaka to join in]

>>4763742
>>[He is an abomination, gesture for Yoshi and Sayaka to join in]

>>4763742
>[He is an abomination, gesture for Yoshi and Sayaka to join in]

>>4763742
>[He is an abomination, gesture for Yoshi and Sayaka to join in]
"I would not want to deny my friends the chance for closure in this sordid tale, Daichi."

>>4763742
>>[He is an abomination, gesture for Yoshi and Sayaka to join in]

>>4763742
>[He is an abomination, gesture for Yoshi and Sayaka to join in]

Yoshi does deserve some closure here.

>>4763742
>Along with the remains of two women, dressed in merchants' attire. Their manner of death looked extremely unpleasant, but you have seen worse.

Huh. I guess if we charged off in the middle of the night we'd have rescued the two of them. RIP i guess but high risk high reward.

Rolled 1, 1, 8, 8 = 18 (4d10)

Once again, dice for initiative.

Rolled 10 (1d10)

>>4763761
THEN DICE YOU SHALL RECEIVE

Rolled 9, 10, 9, 10, 4, 5 = 47 (6d10)

>>4763760

Possibly, but you'd be alone in the dark with O-Tora and fewer void points without the peasants, whose real use is stopping him from circling around in the tunnels and attacking you from the rear.

Rolled 10 (1d10)

>>4763761

Rolled 6 (1d10)

>>4763761
Die, horror from beyond!

Rolled 8 (1d10)

>>4763764
Exprosion 2!

Rolled 5 (1d10)

>>4763761

>>4763760
In all honesty, them and the bandits would have probably died regardless of our timing. He was simply too fast for us to presue in time to save them. Still, how does he expect to feed Shirou without any milk?

Rolled 1 (1d10)

>>4763762
Just in case it matters, HAVE MORE OF THEM, FOUL BRIGAND

Rolled 9 (1d10)

>>4763761

Rolled 6 (1d10)

>>4763761
Yosh!

>>4763763
Yea, not a great thing. Better samurai have died with that amount of hubris.

Rolled 3, 3 = 6 (2d10)

>>4763763

Holy shit Yoshi.

Rolled 8, 8, 4, 5, 4 = 29 (5d10)

And Sayaka. She's not you, so she's still Rank 1 until the end of the arc, but her school gives her a +1k1 bonus, meaning 5k4.

>>4763783
Man is trying to suplex o-tora to make up for missing his single combat

>>4763783
He mad bro. Never underestimate an angry old man, especially a monk.

Rolled 3, 10, 5, 1, 5, 6, 1, 6, 9, 6 = 52 (10d10)

Initiative order is: Yoshi, you, Sayaka, O-Tora.

I need to quickly figure out Yoshi's actual unarmed damage.

>>4763794
inb4 Yoshi Raging Demons O-Tora

Rolled 7, 10, 3 = 20 (3d10)

>>4763794

Rolled 5, 4, 8, 10, 6, 1, 2, 8, 6 = 50 (9d10)

Normal damage 5k3 if I did my math right, and using this Kiho (Falling Star Strike) it becomes 9k7.

Rolled 6 (1d10)

>>4763801

He hits, even though Falling Star Strike costs 2 Raises, by one point plus whatever this is.

>>4763803
>9k7.
Holy *shit*

Rolled 9 (1d10)

>>4763803

>>4763807
56 damage. Christ.

File: hell_yeah.gif (657 KB, 500x281)

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>>4763807

>>4763807
>>4763808
Omae was moe shinderu

So how does Daichi like the taste of his own spleen?

>>4763808
Did Yoshi just One Punched O-Tora?

>>4763813
Given he's an undead monster?

Not likely. However he probably took off a chunk of health.

>>4763808
>>4763812
>inb4 Yoshi just tore O-Tora's arm off

>>4763813
Probably not but very heavily hurt.

And also:
Falling Star Strike

Ring/Mastery: Fire 7 (Atemi)
Type: Martial

One of the most blatant and powerful of all Kiho, the Falling Star Strike is a devastating martial attack that can cripple opponents permanently if not used with restraint. When employed, the fists of the monk using it are wreathed in flame, and his eyes burn like fiery embers. This Kiho may only be activated by spending a Void Point, and may not be activated by making a Void / Meditation Skill Roll. It also requires two Raises on an unarmed attack to activate. The unarmed attack inflicts normal damage, plus an additional amount of damage with a DR equal to your Fire Ring in rolled and kept dice. Additionally, you and the target must make a Contested Fire Roll. If you are successful, the target is struck Blind for a number of hours equal to your Fire Ring.

Might literally be struck blind.

>>4763817
>>4763820
Looking through the Core 4th ed, pretty sure Daichi's not seeing shit now.

Rolled 7, 8, 10, 3, 6, 7 = 41 (6d10)

>>4763808

And an opposed Fire check or O-Tora is blinded for four hours. Yoshi's Fire is 4 as most of his Kiho are Fire Kiho, O-Tora's is 2 (though his Agility is 3).

>>4763824
Furthermore, that 9k7 of his shows how strong he is.

His fire rank is a 4 and school rank was at least 3.

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This isn't a duel, or even a battlefield match for the dramatic fulfillment of his personal story arc. Single combat ended when his heart stopped beating. He is significantly more dangerous now, and a monster. This is a hunt. “Sayaka, Yoshi-san.” Your sword glitters in the light of the torches behind you. Your side of the arena is bathed in light, while O-Tora stands alone in the darkness. “I won't deny them closure in your sordid tale, Daichi-kun.”

Yoshi's singular fist begins to glow, streamers of fire flickering along his fingernails, across the back of his hand, and along his forearm as he takes a stance. Sayaka's bisento's blade shines like a cold crescent moon. “O-Tora. You struck me down in one blow, once.” The old man's legs bend, and his arm bends and dips, his overmuscled fingers all twisting and bending into claws of his own, index tightly pressed against middle finger and pinky pressed tightly against ring, the lesser digit of each pairing shifting beneath the other to stiffen and support it, thumb tucked back, forming a crab's claw. His eyes ignite into pools of flame, “But you were not the only one to rise stronger. A pity your soul was not refined through the process.”

“Out of the way, old ma-” O-Tora's voice cuts off as Yoshi moves, kicking off the ground and leaping forward like a striking mantis, every muscle in his body behind the weight of his arm. To first appearances, he is a skinny man of average height, but every pound of him is trained muscle, and his hand bursts into flame as he drives it into O-Tora's face. There is an appalling noise as the two tines of the claw his hand was formed into snap forward, knuckles popping up sharply as the digits bury themselves to the bases in O-Tora's eyes, his palm crushing his nose through his skull. The strike is perfectly contained, O-Tora's body absorbs every last pound of force, none of it wastefully spent on pushing him back or knocking him down. Flames burst from O-Tora's eye sockets around Yoshi's fingers

Sayaka bounces the jade finger on her palm, its glint the last thing O-Tora's eyes see. Still, O-Tora isn't dead yet, and you run forward, bringing your sword up in a powerful slash.

>[Give me 7d10!]

Rolled 7 (1d10)

>>4763837

Rolled 9, 3, 4, 3, 10, 5, 4 = 38 (7d10)

>>4763837
YOSH!

Rolled 1 (1d10)

>>4763837

Rolled 9 (1d10)

>>4763841
Explosion!

Rolled 5, 10, 10, 9, 3, 7, 9 = 53 (7d10)

>>4763837

Rolled 10 (1d10)

>>4763837

Rolled 2, 3, 3, 6, 8, 8, 5 = 35 (7d10)

>>4763837
rolling for big hits.

Rolled 7, 9 = 16 (2d10)

>>4763844
Double explosion!

>>4763842
Ouch

Rolled 7, 5, 6, 2, 7, 4, 2 = 33 (7d10)

>>4763837

>>4763845
Rolling for explosions

Rolled 3 (1d10)

>>4763845
>>4763850
Ah. Fug me.

Rolled 8, 8, 4, 2, 9, 2, 7 = 40 (7d10)

>>4763837
FOR HONOR AND GLORY!

>>4763844
>>4763847
...and with the explosions, I got a 69.

...anything special for that, Wong?

>>4763858
...you get to hold hands with Sayaka from that heart-eyes inducing action. Truely, the best of boys!

Rolled 10, 4, 8, 6, 2, 7, 3 = 40 (7d10)

>>4763837
Oh wow almost missed a run

Rolled 9 (1d10)

>>4763869
Exploding the 10
Otherwise a mediocre roll for this late anon

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...Which opens his belly and spills his entrails, unnaturally rotten and withered, across the floor like so many twitching snakes. He staggers backwards beneath the powerful blow, although his very flesh resists you, it's like cutting through thick chitin or leather.

“No, no I won't let you kill my son! He's like me! Like his mother! I know what you'll do!” O-Tora raises his axe high overhead. Even blind, a blow from it can kill in a single blow.

Sayaka tosses the jade finger into the air, twirls her bisento, and neatly bats the slightly pitted jade finger with the tip. It gleams with wholesome green irridescence as it describes a graceful arc through the air...

...and dark lips curl into a smile, “Right on the baby.” She says, as it does, indeed, thump gently down right on little Shirou's swaddled chest.

The albino infant stops crying, and inquisitively reaches for it with little pudgy fingers.

O-Tora's inhuman face twists with horror, and for just a moment, there is something on that face that reminds you more of the big, moon-faced boy you once knew than the sobbing coward or wicked bandit he became. “No! No! Don't touch it! It will burn you! Shirou! SHIROUUUU!” Dropping his axe and stumbling to all fours, forgetting any method of attack, he crawls towards his son.

The baby coos at the bright bauble, and wraps his little hands around it.

[Continue]