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"Wanna give death a try, brat?"

The man takes one more step forward. Cluttered strands of black hair obscure your view of his face, but despite that you can sense his deepset eyes boring into you. Like you're prey. As a shiver travels down your spine every other thought you have converges into one: RUN.

NOW.

You kick off the ground and regain your footing after a slight stumble. Out of the corner of your field of view you can see the man's eyes follow you, seemingly curious. Then he smiles lightly.

"This kind of thing can be fun once in a while, I guess." The sound of snow crunching underfoot sounds out as you continue running. "I guess that's enough of a lead. Make this interesting, brat!" A second set of sounds can be heard faintly from behind you, running in your direction. You do your best to tune them out and focus all your attention on processing the input from one of the ring's night-vision cameras and choosing the best route forward.

You run for a little while. You're not sure exactly how long. Bursts of sharp pain in your chest plague you as you run, your rib continuing its protests against your sudden activity. Occasionally you stumble on rocks or logs hidden in the snow despite your best efforts, not having the time to carefully navigate. As you run that sound from behind continues. The man chasing you. You think it's louder now, but you're not sure - you don't have much spare focus.

At this point, it strikes you that you need to come up with something. Anything, frankly. Putting one foot in front of the other is important, but... what exactly are you aiming to do here?
>Run. Run faster. Run further. Get out of sight and out of reach. Far away from here. [A vote for destination will follow if this wins.]
>Hide. Manage to get out of sight and then find somewhere to lay low, until he's gone and you can get help.
>Hide. Manage to get out of sight and then find somewhere to observe from, so that you can attack when he least expects it.
>Climb. Build some distance and then find a tree to scurry up. Even if he sees you, he won't be able to reach you up there - it's a defensible position, at least temporarily.
>Write-In

>>5672753
>Hide. Manage to get out of sight and then find somewhere to observe from, so that you can attack when he least expects it.
We probably have the better vision and know the terrain better, so guerrilla warfare it is.
Maybe it's finally time for our bow and arrow crafting lessons to pay of.

>>5672753
>Hide. Manage to get out of sight and then find somewhere to observe from, so that you can attack when he least expects it.
This is probably the most effective tactic we could choose, even if it isn't great. Let's just pray to the dao that this guy hasn't tempered his senses (if so then RIP)
>>5672765
I don't (think?) we have it on us sadly, although it probably wouldn't be too game-changing since this is going to be a close-quarter fight. The spear we bought would have been real useful right now...

>>5672795
Oh I know we only have the knife, I meant making one.
But checking again, Huo Mi hasn't taught us how to carve one. Yet.

>>5672753
>Hide, wait for a time to attack.

Hitting his leg would do some time for us.

Rolled 24, 7, 79 = 110 (3d100)

>>5672765 >>5672795 >>5672826
Alright, the vote seems clear enough. I'm gonna try something out for this:
I will roll three dice for [r]the hatchet-wielding man[/r]. Then you get to roll three 1d100s for yourself. Those three dice will then be compared to his rolls (in the same order) and the higher of each dice wins. If you win you gain distance on him, if he wins then the reverse happens. Depending on how much distance you have on him it will be easier/harder to hide. Will try and bang this out quickly so fun dice times don't slow stuff down too much, but can't do a 'real' update until later tonight anyways.
TDLR; roll three 1d100s to compare against these

Oh, it's the full name of the color, isn't it
the hatchet-wielding man?

Rolled 30 (1d100)

>>5672951

Rolled 34 (1d100)

>>5672951
So we have to beat a 79

Rolled 4 (1d100)

That's two wins, let's see if you can get a third.
>>5672955
For this one, yeah. But it's three separate contests, not one best of. The more wins the better.
(24 vs. 30, 7 vs. 34, 79 vs. this)

Rolled 56, 52, 82 = 190 (3d100)

Alright, two wins and one loss, you gain some distance on him, which will make it easier to hide.
I'll roll three 1d100s for hiding, DC of 32, the more successes the better. Update will be pretty soon afterwards.

Rolled 46 (1d100)

>>5672998

Rolled 47 (1d100)

>>5672998
rollan
so can we swallow our ring and make it an artifical dantian?
plus can we still pull the soul atack move?

>>5673130
>>5673146
I don't think he wanted us to rolll guys
The artifical dantian thing might be viable later on if the Shaping Dantian stage requires bullshit resources/pills but that'd be a long ass time away.
Furthermore we can't really do any cultivation crimes against humanity mad science stuff until we both have resources, a supply of test subjects and the resources/cultivation techniques of the past world.

>>5673146
Whoops, fell asleep.
>so can we swallow our ring and make it an artifical dantian?
You don't know what exactly a dantian is in-character but to avoid giving a complete non-answer the ring can automatically collect spiritual energy and help in providing it to you for cultivation, as it's already been doing. It cannot convert spiritual energy into qi though. (From your understanding qi is spiritual energy that is processed and stored so that you can easily use it for your techniques.) Stuff like the difference between spiritual energy and qi may warrant going into more detail when you're at a higher cultivation.
>plus can we still pull the soul atack move?
Your soul is a bit weaker after leaving the ring but it's still much stronger than the average person so you could definitely pull it off on a layman if you could form a stable telepathic connection to them. (The telepathic connection is 100% necessary because it's similar to a DDOS attack where you're trying to overwhelm them with as much bad information in as short a time as possible) But now that you're in a human body that is much easier said than done. You'd have to find (or research) some technique for telepathy in humans first.

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>>5672765 >>5672795 >>5672826 >>5672954 >>5673130 >>5673146
It'll be great if you can just get away, but what if you can't? Then you'd just be wasting time and energy by trying to run, exhausting yourself in vain and making it easier for him to see as the sun begins to rise. No, you need to do something now to gain the initiative. You could hide but that'd just make you a sitting duck so that's a... wait, no, you've got it. You SHOULD hide. You'll hide temporarily and then strike back afterwards. You've got the advantage in terms of visibility here, so why don't you take full advantage of it?

For now though, you run with all your strength as you look for a good spot to hide. Every extra bit of distance you gain now is equal to more time you can use to hide yourself, so you should get as much as possible now. ...Although you'll forfeit all that gained distance by waiting to get the drop on him. That thought makes you second-guess yourself for a moment, but then your determination redoubles - the risk is worth it. You need to do something.

While he may have gained a bit of distance before, he loses it now. Among the crunching sounds of feet over snow and the occasional snap of a twig comes a quiet, muffled swear from behind you. His footsteps are interrupted at the same time, drowned out by a louder noise. Although you probably shouldn't you use the ring and glance back, checking what's going on. You find the man some distance away regaining his footing after stepping through a pond that'd been frozen over. You gain a bit of breathing room as he does so, the light behind you growing dimmer.

As you move forward you catch sight of a dense patch of bushes to your right. More than likely to be uncomfortable and have way too many thorns? Yes. The best hiding spot you're going to find on short notice? Also quite possibly yes. You make a split-second decision and change your route to rush towards them as fast as possible.

Once you get there you fall to the ground and start crawling into the bushes. You resist the urge to groan as thorns and pebbles scratch against you. Once you're inside you get repositioned... and then notice the footprints in front of you once you turn around. Right, there's snow. That's probably how he's been following you given the lighting, actually. Seeing that you still have time before the lantern-light in the distance reaches your hiding spot you frantically mess up the snow nearby, doing your best to obscure your exact hiding spot even if it is obvious that you've been here. Probably for the best, since you'll need to lure him nearby to ambush him anyways.

As the lantern light draws closer you take the chance to crawl out from the other side of the bushes and circle around to the back of a nearby tree, where you shouldn't be seen. You hold yourself close to it and extend your hand just past the edge of the tree, peeking at your pursuer's approach.

>>5673413
He slows down upon seeing the mess in the snow, unsure of where to go. A moment later he fixes his attention on the nearby bushes and smiles. "You think you're smart brat?" He abruptly lunges forward and slices through the shrubbery with his hatchet... revealing nothing. Just as his eyebrows begin to raise you dash out from behind him.

It's not a perfect ambush. The sound of your boots crushing the snow gives away your location and he does have the time to turn around and at least ready himself a bit. But at the same time, he'd just attacked and wasn't prepared. You should have enough time to get an attack in before he can properly respond.
>Aim for his right arm. If you can make him drop his hatchet then it'll be easy going from there.
>Aim for his left arm. If the lantern gets put out in the snow then he'll be left in the dark, while you'll be able to see perfectly.
>Lean down and try to aim for his legs. It'll leave you a bit more open, but if you injure him there then running away should be a cinch.
>Write-In

>>5673414
>Aim for his left arm. If the lantern gets put out in the snow then he'll be left in the dark, while you'll be able to see perfectly.

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>>5673414
>Aim for his left arm. If the lantern gets put out in the snow then he'll be left in the dark, while you'll be able to see perfectly.
If we manage to pull this off then killing him or at least surviving becomes way more viable. You can't fight what you can't see.

>>5673414
>Take out his left arm

If you can't see, but we can, then we're in better stead. Moonlight is an issue on the snow, but hey ho.

>>5673414
>Aim for his left arm. If the lantern gets put out in the snow then he'll be left in the dark, while you'll be able to see perfectly.

>>5673421 >>5673431 >>5673436 >>5673477
You need to go for the arm holding the lamp. If you can get his vision, then everything else will become MUCH easier. In a split-second decision you thrust the hunting knife in your hand towards his left wrist. It jerks lightly, trying to get out of the way, but he can't quite respond in time. The smooth edge of your knife meets flesh and blood is drawn, staining the snow below crimson.

The man lets out a pained grunt as your weapon comes to a stop quite literally in his arm. His grip loosens and the worn lamp he's holding swings unsteadily, his fingers barely able to keep hold of it. A moment later you hear a sudden woosh of air as the man's right leg swings towards you. You have only a split-second to respond.
>You don't care about the knife or the lantern - you need to dodge.
>Let go of the knife and grab onto the lantern. He barely has a hold on it so it should be easy to take and snuff out.
>Pull your hunting knife from his arm - you need a weapon.
>Put as much force as you can on the hunting knife - you need to wound him more deeply.
>Attempt to do multiple actions at once. [Specify which.]
>Write-In

>>5673606
>Pull your hunting knife from his arm - you need a weapon.

>>5673606
>Do multiple actions at once [Dodge and lantern]

Methodology is simple, his leg is coming at us. grab that lantern and pull backwards, but let our body move in the same direction.

We can roll to a kneel and a stand if we are quick enough. We are on his left side and he is swinging his right leg, that means there will be a few seconds where he stabalises himself and we can get up.

I choose the lantern over the knife, because it's gonna be easier to grab it back if he remove it himself, or leaves it there so we know where it is.

>>5673606
>You don't care about the knife or the lantern - you need to dodge.
slow and steady wins the race. Especially since we got a good wound in, his arm is basically unusable so he's kinda fucked if we decide to run. I doubt he can carry a lantern AND a hatchet at the same time while running after us with his wound. I say we dodge and get the fuck out of here (I,E to our masters place or to get our spear/bow)

>>5673606
>You don't care about the knife or the lantern - you need to dodge.
overconfidence is a slow and insidious killer, and sometimes its really fast too

>>5673639 >>5673663 >>5674025 >>5674289
You need to get out the way. Now. You ignore the lantern and your knife, opting to throw yourself to the ground behind you in a bid to avoid his kick. While your shirt suffers a liberal soaking by the snow and you get a couple more scratches, this works. Thankfully so too - getting kicked by a cultivator in what you've now noticed are metal-toed boots would be less than pleasant.

As his leg sails over you you push yourself back to your feet and scramble to make some distance. Once the man's legs are both on the ground again he prepares to swing his hatchet, but seeing that you're back on your feet and a decent distance away he hesitates, just staring at you. He seems a bit less eager to pursue than before.
>Try to run back home. More than likely he'll be held up here dealing with his wound and once you get back home you can re-arm yourself and make sure Nui is fine.
>Try to run towards Huo Mi's house. The man doesn't seem much stronger than you so if you can make it there then she should be able to deal with him. She probably knows better than you what do in this kind of situation anyways.
>Try to run until you lose the man and then circle around back to the campsite he showed you. He should be delayed a bit dealing with his wounds so you want to take the chance to investigate it before he can clean up the area, to see if you can figure out anything about what's going on.
>Try to run towards Prosperity. In terms of where you're living you think it's a bit closer than your house, and you should be able to find help there.
>Return into hiding and keep an eye on the man. You're not done attacking just yet.
>Hold your ground and stare at him. If he attacks again then you'll try to dodge and then take advantage of the opening to either get your knife back or deal with his lantern.
>Write-In

>>5674314
>Try to run back home. More than likely he'll be held up here dealing with his wound and once you get back home you can re-arm yourself and make sure Nui is fine.

>>5674314
>Try to run back home. More than likely he'll be held up here dealing with his wound and once you get back home you can re-arm yourself and make sure Nui is fine.
It's really hard to determine how dedicated he is to killing us, but if he's smart then he could try using Rui as a hostage which isn't tolerable. I say we go back home, get geared up with our Bow/Spear and evacuate to Huo Mi's place with Rui.
Does any anon have any good motive ideas? The first thing that comes to mind would be kanekatsu being worried about us potentially joining a sect and becoming powerful to enact revenge, but he could just do the job himself without getting some rando middleman to kill us.

>>5674314
>Run to Huo Mi's house

Get to her as quick as we can and we can cut off his return to the camp.

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>>5674323 >>5674325 >>5674382
There's no reason for you to take risks right now. You're lucky to have made it this far and you don't want to wreck this chance for survival you've carved out by pushing your luck. The bastard can keep your knife, his lantern, and his life - you just want to get out of here with yours intact.

You break into a full sprint and, after making sure the course ahead is clear, turn your hand so that the camera you're receiving visual input through is facing towards the man behind you. He's still standing there with seemingly no intention of chasing after you. Instead he merely stares in your direction with a slight frown as you run away, cutting a bandage from part of his robe. Before long he blends in with the rest of the forest behind you, disappearing from sight.

Even after that you continue running through the forest at full-tilt, occasionally tripping over obstacles hidden in the snow or stepping in ruts in the ground you can't see. It's quite some time before you decide to give into the pleas of your injured rib and slow down, not wanting to risk hurting it further. Instead of a frantic dash punctuated by occasional tripping your journey becomes an anxious slog home.

You do get lost a bit on the way back, but after reorienting yourself once get a grip on where you are and find your way home without further trouble. A faint light leaking out from the hut lures you in, the fire inside still burning in the hearth. You stop yourself from approaching immediately though, quickly going around the area once to see if there are signs of the man making it here before you. Once you're satisfied that there aren't any you let out a sigh of relief and step inside, thinking about your next steps.

Those thoughts are interrupted by a light cry of surprise from inside as you push open the door. You instinctively swivel towards the source of the noise, still on edge, but both your eyes and ears confirm that it's just Nui, sitting at the table near the hearth. You thought she was asleep when you left... although it's been a while since then. Maybe she woke up to feed the fire and noticed you were gone.

You decide to grab your spear before talking, still not fully convinced that the man from before won't suddenly burst through the door when you let your guard down. This doesn't stop Nui from talking, however. "You're hurt. And soaked. And..." she trails off, perhaps unsure which point of attention to comment on next. "Well, for now you should change your clothes, before you catch a cold.

>>5675851
In response to her remark you shiver slightly, reminded of how wet everything you're wearing is. You pick up your spear, adjusting your grip a bit as you feel its familiar weight in your hands. 「Not right now mom. We're in danger.」Nui blinks at you a couple of times, her expression turning even worse than before, but she only makes one short statement. "Is there time to explain?" You go to find your bow.「There's a man who probably wants to kill both of us. Beyond that, no.」

Nui takes a deep breath in. "Alright then." Out of the corner of her eye you see her walk a few steps and pick up the fire poker, thrusting it at the air a couple of times. You comment as you grab your bow and arrows.「I expected more concern.」She forces a light smile in response. "That can wait, for now. What's next? Should I pack?"
>The two of you need to go to Huo Mi's, now. She'll be able to get the situation under control.
>The two of you need to go to Char's, now. His father is strong enough to help and their house is closer than Huo Mi's - time is of the essence.
>The two of you need to go to Huo Mi's, but it can wait for a moment. Until some food and clothing is packed, at least. Otherwise, if he comes by while you're out, the two of you may end up destitute.
>Nui can go alert Huo Mi that there's a situation by herself - you need to stay here to look after the place. If he comes back... well, you're armed now, and won't be taken by surprise.
>Nui can go alert Char's father that there's a situation by herself - you need to stay here to look after the place. If he comes back... well, you're armed now, and won't be taken by surprise.
>Write-In

>>5675853
>The two of you need to go to Char's, now. His father is strong enough to help and their house is closer than Huo Mi's - time is of the essence.
>Once Nui is safe with them, we can go warn Huo Mi.

>>5675858
Supporting

>>5675853
>Wait until the food is packed then get to Huo Mi.

Don't be a damn idiot guys. If we are evacuating, we need to take our food with us. There is zero good things to come from abandoning our stockpile, which we've tried our hardest to maintain. We have our bow, we have our spear and the element of surprise and better vision. If he attacks the house while we are packing then he's doomed.

His trail will go colder, but if it's between our families continued survival or getting the man, I pick our families survival.

>>5675988
I don't think food is that much of a issue, worst, WORST case scenario we can heavily ration and hunt if they take it just to piss us off. Plus his camp suggested that he may other people working with him and we'd be completely screwed if the time we spent gathering food resulted in them being able to gang up on us.
Safety comes first. I don't think they would take it, they have much bigger issues to worry about right now.

How about a compromise: Pack the food, and only the food, and head to Char?
We might have to share the food if we go to Char, since they aren't part of our planning scheme. But they are rich, so maybe they have enough?

>>5676002
Packing the clothes might be important too thinking about it, since it's winter.

>>5675853
>The two of you need to go to Char's + pack food
now im wondering if we could have dumped nui at chars place since way earlier when it was decided she would live there eventually anyways.
also the camp really makes me feel like this was a setup to make us look like we're conspiring (aka being a rebel). i dont know tho which of the two (huo mi/chars family) are less on the could be rebels scale. probs char's, if someone found out about huos guest/patient.

>>5676026
>now im wondering if we could have dumped nui at chars place since way earlier when it was decided she would live there eventually anyways.
That's an offer if you get into the sect and she in particular wants to instead of living on her own, which depends greatly on her. You could ask if you want, although something on a related topic should come up during the next vote.

>>5675995
You know the size of the rations they are handing out, it's not enough especially for a cultivator like us.

And if they have other people to come and fight, then we still have the advantage because we have a damn bow and superior line of sight.
We'll be cold keeping watch while she packs bt it shouldn't take more than 5 minutes of hurrying.

And I disagree on your assessment of other people coming to help him kill us. Organising stuff, maybe, but he lured up to the camp to kill us. If there was anybody else to take care of us they would have been at the camp and posed as another escaped convict.

Rolled 1 (1d2)

>>5675858
>>5675874
Don't pack (1)
>>5675988
>>5676026
Pack (2)

>>5676566
You can count mine as packing, but going to Char, since I offered that compromise.

>>5676584
Whoops, overlooked that. Thanks.
That's a win for packing the food then.

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>>5675858 >>5675874 >>5675988 >>5676026
「Pack... just the food. As much as we can carry. We need to get out of here quick though.」You don't have any idea how much time you have left before that man or someone related to him comes, or even if anyone else is going to come after you at all, so you need to act as quickly as possible. Every second counts - the less time you take, the less you leave up to chance.

You help stuff as much food as possible into a large burlap sack, carrying the heavy, mismatched assortment of food over your shoulder. What you can't see yourself carrying for a prolonged period of time you bag up and hide outside, covering with snow. All the active wildlife this close to the village has been hunted clean or scared off so it should be safe there, at least temporarily.

Not too long has passed by the time you're done. Five minutes maybe? Not much longer at least. The two of you set off towards the village center in the darkness with you leading the way. You forgo a lantern to avoid drawing attention to yourself, the moonlight enough for Nui to follow behind you by. Your pace is slow, which frustrates you, but it can't be helped what with your rib, and load, and Nui. After what feels like a very long time the two of you do finally make it through the snow and to the Mu family's home. The large house and its battered garden sit in unbroken silence, still asleep.

You reach for the front door and pull, but it doesn't give. You're confused for a moment before it occurs to you that they should have the money to get locks fitted. ...Perhaps you should've invested in that. After the moment your brain takes to process the obstacle you knock at the door instead, shattering the serene atmosphere. Loud thuds can probably be heard from the neighboring houses, your anxiousness making you knock more than a bit too hard. You shiver as you wait for the door to open.

Just as you're considering knocking again the door swings inward, Mu Jing standing in front of you. His usual orderly appearance is gone, his robe wrinkled and hair messy. He must've been sleeping. Mu Jing stares at you for a second longer, perhaps still waking up, before chuckling. "They say it's dangerous to answer the door during the demon's hour. Are you a doppelganger?"

「I, uh, came because I neededed help, actually.」Mu Jing's expression clears up a bit. "Urgent, I suppose?" You nod. 「There's not much time to explhain. Let's say that there's someone out for my life and leave it at that.」Mu Jing frowns as you continue.「I was, uh, hoping you could protect my mother for aa bit, while things are behing sorted out.」Nui steps forward and bows slightly. "I've heard a lot about you Mr. Mu. It's good to make your acquaintance." He does the same in response. "And yours. I'm not sure what's going on, but I'll do my best to help. Tell me if there's anything else I can do."

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>>5676681
You let out a sigh of relief. That's one problem dealt with.「Thank you. I, I'll leave this here as well.」You unload the bag of food from your shoulder and leave it in the entryway, leaving without another word exchanged. You think you hear Mu Jing say something else as you leave, but you don't pay much attention to it - not enough time. Now that loose ends are tied up you need Huo Mi's help.

The trip to Huo Mi's home goes faster now that you're alone and unburdened, but it's still a while before you arrive. You struggle a couple of times as you pull at the door. Oh. It's locked. You let out a light sigh and knock a few times instead.「It's Kinzou. Kinzou! I need help.」No immediate response. You wait a bit and knock again, but nothing happens. Just as you're about to knock a third time you suddenly feel a hand on your shoulder. You jump away in fear and stumble to the ground, sharp rocks digging into your clothes. As you glance upwards you see that your assailant is Huo Mi, who's just staring at you while gripping her hunting knife.

"Sorry for the wait. Had to check that you weren't being held hostage. What's the problem?" You instinctively want to ask her how she got behind you without leaving through the front door but manage to put that aside for now and get on topic.「There's this guy. He's, he's after my lifee. Woke me up early-earliier and forced me to follow him into the trees place, but I ran. I need your help.」Huo Mi takes a second to process that before nodding. "Alright then. But I need you to get inside and get changed. Now." You look at her for a second, confused, and then tilt your head.「But there's no time! He'll get awaay if we wait, or maybe, maybe, steal our house. I said that wrong. Er, the stuff in it.」

Huo Mi snaps slightly, responding in an angry voice. "Just look at yourself for a second." Taken off guard, you glance down. From your overcoat to your socks your clothes are torn, stained, and soaked at this point, with small cuts and bruises showing through them. You don't really want to, but you guess you should get changed. You take a step inside, suddenly noticing that you feel really weak now that some of the pressure has been relieved from you. You stumble slightly and glance around once you're inside, not quite able to piece together what you should be doing next.

"By the fire. Now." You feel Huo Mi push you towards the hearth. Kai comments from the side. "Is it a demon? I can't see." Huo Mi answers the remark dismissively. "Just an idiot. Make sure he doesn't wander off." "How am I supposed to do tha- hey, wait, don't go. I can hear you walking away!" Huo Mi steps into the other room for a minute, leaving you sitting by the fire impatiently as you try to remove your overcoat and some of your other wet clothes. You need to get going.

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>>5676683
After a short time Huo Mi re-enters the room, a man's outfit in hand. "These are Kai's. Put them on."「Nothing smaller?」"No. Now hurry up, I don't want you dying of hypothermia." Hypothermia? Hypo... oh. Something clicks and you much more frantically begin removing your clothes, finally realizing how weird you feel and how you can't move your fingers as well as you'd like to.

"You done yet?"「Yeah.」"Alright then, let me take a look. Hands and fingers." You hold out your hands and Huo Mi takes a look at them, turning them over and touching at them for a bit. Then the same happens with your feet. Not too much longer she delivers her verdict.

"Well, you probably won't have any permanent damage. But you need treatment. Now. ...I'll need Zhang for this. Don't move."

Everything after that goes quickly. Zhang and Huo Mi come back in a minute later, dragging a round, wooden tub with them. You've seen it in the warehouse before, you think. Then Zhang tends to the fire, feeding it generously, while Huo Mi comes in and out with water, back and forth, back and forth. As you wait Huo Mi gives you something warm to drink. It's sweet, although you can't really pin down the flavor. You don't think you've had a sweet drink before actually, at least not as a human.

The tub slowly fills up with warmed water that's just a little bit hot. At first you just soak parts of your body in it, but once there's enough water in there you just end up taking a warm bath. Normally you'd appreciate something this luxurious, but given the sudden, extreme pain you feel from the parts of your body that are warming back up, you can't really focus on it. Pain pain pain pain. You do your best to explain the particulars of the situation to everyone as you're being treated but, aware that you aren't quite all there, aren't sure how well it gets across.

The answer turns out to be that it doesn't get across - at all. While, impressively, what you were saying wasn't complete gibberish it, uh, wasn't much better. Confusion, mental fatigue, and extended pain that might be worse than what you feel from the ring twice daily will do that, you suppose. You take the chance to explain things again as you sit by the fire.

>>5676688
"I'll go check out that campsite then." You glance back at Huo Mi, the warm light coming from the hearth illuminating your face. Before you can say anything she cuts you off. "No, you can't come with me. I have a good idea of where it is from what you said anyways." ...Right then, that's what you expected. For the best really - you should stay here for now.

Kai goes back to sleep and Zhang takes his leave for a minute. For now, you're left alone. You let out a sigh and turn your mind to the events of tonight. It has been a bad night. A very bad night. But what about after this? Can you just... go home and pretend nothing happened? Or do you need to make a fundamental change to avoid the chance of anything like this happening again?
>There's no reason to leave home. Maybe to be a bit more careful, yes, but moving entirely... well, that's it's own set of problems. You can't just abandon the house and, well, that's not entirely your decision to make anyways.
>It can't really be helped, can it? You're in danger with just the two of you. You should ask Char's father if he'd be willing to let you and Nui stay. Given what he's said before it shouldn't be too much of an ask. It'll probably be harder to convince Nui, actually.
>It can't really be helped, can it? You're in danger with just the two of you. You should ask Huo Mi if you can join her growing set of boarders. With her around it'll be extremely difficult for anyone in the village, let alone that man, to pose a threat to you or Nui.
>It's dangerous, but someone needs to watch the house - it's too valuable to risk leaving alone. You'll try to convince Nui to stay with someone else while you keep watch over the house.
>It's dangerous with just the two of you, but maybe you could convince someone else to join you? Sure it'd be cramped, and it's not the nicest place, but... well, maybe someone you know would be willing to take you up on the offer. The more people the safer in times like this, really. [State which person/people you want to ask]
>Write-In

>>5676689
>It can't really be helped, can it? You're in danger with just the two of you. You should ask Char's father if he'd be willing to let you and Nui stay. Given what he's said before it shouldn't be too much of an ask. It'll probably be harder to convince Nui, actually.

>>5676689
>It can't really be helped, can it? You're in danger with just the two of you. You should ask Char's father if he'd be willing to let you and Nui stay. Given what he's said before it shouldn't be too much of an ask. It'll probably be harder to convince Nui, actually

>>5676689
>There's no reason to leave home

I'm gonna need some firm logic on this one here. We can fortify the house, and it's loss does us no favours.

>>5676703
We can't supervise Nui 24/7 realistically and having her live with Char's family will ensure that she's safe and sound.

>>5676703
We can fortify it as much as we want, but can Nui defend it? At some point we are going to go to sleep or leave it.

>>5676710
>>5676719
Fair enough. Then we can get the house sold, maybe?

But I'm not sure the price is that great.

Changing >>5676703 to
>Huo Mi

I already feel indebted to Char and his family, I don't want to deepen this debt.

>>5676723
We probably should try to sell the house after winter is over.
I doubt people are going to pay well during this crisis.

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>>5676691 >>5676702 >>5676703
As much as you think about it you can't see staying home working out. I mean, sure, you can if you just assume something like this never happens again... but you can't just assume that. The two of you live in a single room house with one entrance, so you guess you could just put a lock on the door and call it a day, but that has problems of its own. Getting a lock fitted costs money you don't really have right now, and while it guarantees a bit of prior warning, someone could just break it. What if you were out? Nui couldn't put up a fight against a cultivator, regardless of if she had some time to get armed.

While you hate to say it, you think you'll need to impose on someone's kindness here. Huo Mi... well, you'd ask, but she already has enough guests as is, and neither Kai nor Zhang will be leaving any time soon. Maybe Char's family, then? His dad mentioned in passing that, if she wanted to, Nui could room with them if you got accepted into the Verdant Mountain sect. Maybe he'd be willing to help given the situation, although it is asking a lot. You really do hate to ask after he's already helped you multiple times as is, but... well, you guess you'll just do your best to pay him back later. You have to do what you have to do.

Although you'll have to sell Nui on the idea first, of course.

As you think over how exactly to do that you consciousness starts fading a bit. It's only now that you realize you're exhausted. On top of it your legs hurt, your chest hurts, and you ache. You just want to sleep. Energy for other thoughts gone, that occupies your mind for a bit. Then, in a stroke of luck, Zhang reappears with a cot. One of several kept in the storehouse, apparently. Combined with Kai and Zhang's that means Huo Mi has at least... three? It makes sense if you're expecting something to happen, but...

Rather than continuing to question the decision-making behind the purchase of so many beds, however, you simply accept the good fortune and go to sleep. Your consciousness fades and you fall back to a deep sleep. By the time you awake you faintly notice that it's dark. Is it dark again, or just still dark? You don't really know. Nor do you care too much right now. You feel tired, and aching, and your head is pounding and on fire. Not the end of the world, but you can't really feel like you can focus. Back to sleep it is then.

A couple of days later your fever starts coming down. Apparently it was pretty bad but "nine hells less of a worry than nearly freezing to death". As you lie down, finally having enough energy to think again, you listen to Huo Mi reprimand you on how you shouldn't be running around wet in the snow at night, and how you owe her one for not charging you for medicine, and so on and so forth.

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>>5678054
Funnily enough, she doesn't mention your attacker during all this, so you end up having to ask how that turned out. Huo Mi stops her lecture temporarily, trailing off. Her reply comes in a slightly awkward tone. "About that, yeah... he was going to torture you."

A distinct feeling of unease settles over you. 「What?!」Huo Mi glances around a bit before standing up. "One sec. Let me grab something." She disappears into her room for a moment before reappearing with a large metal box with multiple tiers. You sit up in your bed and stare as she opens the bottom shelf of the box, noticing Kai struggling to try and get a peek at what's happening out of the corner of his eye.

From out within the box appear several peculiar metal tools, held up for you to view. One of them looks like it's used to grip objects, whereas the other is just... a tube with a piece of metal sticking out of it? You're confused. Just as you're about to ask what they're supposed to be used for, you notice that blood is caked onto one of the tools.

You think you see where this is going.

「What... what exactly are those?」You point at the tools Huo Mi are holding. She turns them over a couple times, examining them more closely herself. Then she holds up the one meant for gripping. "This is a pair of pliers. Or, well, something similar. It's specially built for some purpose or other. I think he might have been using it to pull teeth."

An uncomfortable silence settles over the room for a moment. "Of course, that's just my guess. But almost everything in here is used, and most of the tools have dried blood on them. Even the box itself does, although it's all on the inside. Stuff for pulling, stabbing, peeling... quite the variety really." Huo Mi grins slightly. "I gotta say, I might've annoyed him more by stealing his tools than you did by stabbing him." Huo Mi rubs her chin and mutters to herself. "Speaking of, you'll need a new knife."

「How exactly did you get those anyways? Did he leave them at the camp?」Huo Mi focuses her attention back on you. "Didn't I already... oh, yeah, fever. Guess you forgot. Yeah, that's the case. The place was already long abandoned by the time I got there. The guy was pretty decisive - left anything heavy behind and then left via the river. Probably went down far enough to avoid being tracked and then found somewhere to warm up. Or, well, he died of hypothermia, but I doubt we can be that lucky."

>>5678058
Probably not. There goes your main lead. You let out a slight groan and think about the situation. And then your thoughts turn to something else.「Wait, you said he didn't take anything heavy. Did you find anything else at the camp then?」Huo Mi nods. "A bit. A canvas tent that he rigged to set on fire when I went inside, but that failed. Some bedrolls. Firewood. Food. Not much of note, really." Hm. While the tent is interesting, that doesn't really add much.「At least you got some food out of the deal, I guess.」Huo Mi just shakes her head at that. "Not eating it. Could be poisoned." Poison? Surprised and interested, you try to dig deeper - this could be an important survival skill.「Why's that? Did it smell weird? Look weird?」Huo Mi gives one short shake of the head, same as before. "Nope. Looks and smells just like normal food. I just don't trust the bastard, so I'm not eating it. Not that desperate."

...That's it? As if echoing your thoughts, Kai chimes in from the side. "You're one paranoid old lady, you know that?" Huo Mi practically cackles in response. "May be. But I'm alive too, aren't I?"
>「...Can I have it then?」If she's not going to use it, may as well.
>「Makes sense.」The guy clearly knew what he was doing, at least to an extent. You wouldn't be surprised if he did something to it.
>Write-In

You mull over that in your mind.「...So he's a cultivator somewhere from the 1st to 3rd Tempering, experienced in torture, knows how to avoid being tracked, and has something against me?」Huo Mi thinks for a second before nodding. "Yeah, I'd guess so." Then she seems to realize what she just said and follows up that statement. "Although he might not have anything against you in particular. Maybe he just wanted to torture someone." Somehow that doesn't make you happier. Besides...「I don't think that's the case.」Huo Mi raises an eyebrow and leans back in her chair. "Why's that?"

You give her an explanation of the night in question in more detail. This causes Huo Mi to go silent for quite a while. Neither you nor Kai say anything to interrupt her. A few minutes later, she finally speaks. "You mentioned that he mentioned that your father sold his mother's ring to help pay off Kanekatsu's debt." You nod. "How many people know about that? Did your dad ever talk about it?"

That's a good question actually. But the answer is... not so good. At least not in terms of narrowing things down.「...He did. A lot, actually. To his coworkers, his acquaintances, anyone who would listen to him complain about Mu Bou or Kanekatsu really. Less after he started working for him, but... well, he held a bit of a grudge about that ring in particular even afterwards. Mu Bou had already sold it to a merchant who was only passing through, so he never was able to get it back.」

>>5678059
Huo Mi grunts in response. "Guess we can't narrow it down to Kanekatsu then based off of that, if everybody knows about it. But he's a local at least. Besides that... well, I have a couple guesses, but no one obviously matches the guy's description. 1st or 2nd Tempering is enough to pass under the radar too, although there aren't too many of them. I'll keep an eye out and ask a few friends though."
>Guess that'll have to do.
>...Actually, I think I have an idea. [State your plan for continued investigation.]
>...Actually, I think I know what might've happened. [State your suspicion about the attacker or night of the incident and why.]

>>5678059
>「Makes sense.」The guy clearly knew what he was doing, at least to an extent. You wouldn't be surprised if he did something to it.
>>5678060
>Guess that'll have to do.

So, big clue to me is that he only knew us by our new name, not our child name, so it must be a recent addition to the village if it's someone we know.

>>5678059
>「Makes sense.」
i aint touching food an old crone doesnt either

>>5678060
>Guess that'll have to do.
so yeah him knowing/calling us only by our new family name is notable, he might just have looked through some register but the question is in what register would we only listed by our family name, also how highs the chance its just some psycho who is out to torture peole who are new to the whole citizen thing?

>>5678060
>「Makes sense.」
>Guess that'll have to do.

>>5678060
>>5678059
>Makes sense

Well what do we know;
He knows our new name but not our old one, and he has the physical description down.
he does mention that he "Recently" entered the first tempering, so it could be that was what he was told by his employer.

Thing is though, why torture us. So let me just put a theory out there.

>I think I have the motive. They want information or just to inflict pain with torture. The guy calls us annoying because we keep following him while not trusting him and he is almost gleeful to hunt us down in the snow. He's not motivated personally to hurt us, so he should be doing it on orders. His skillset and decisive actions paint him to be a mercenary.
>If we follow this along, I reckon that Kane or Percival, probably Kane, dispatched him to find out why I can advance as quickly as I am able because only those two, and you Huo, know about my cultivation. Char's family does but they have expended too much to help me out to do this.

Ie, I think they are after the ring/information about our current state. And THAT puts it firmly at Kane's door. Remember that he was the second lifeform we ever encountered? And suddenly afterwards Daddio starts cultivating, then his son is some sort of really low key cultivating talent?
He can't tread on us, but he can definitely try and undo us through subterfuge.

>>5678268
I don't think Percival gives a shit about us and we haven't really wronged him in any significant way. There was the rationing riot but nearly everyone sperged out there and we were just a bystander compared to the more active rioters. He certainly wouldn't waste valuable money on killing a kid, he's a merchant at heart no?

>>5678269
He's also one of the only other people who knows about our cultivation AND has proven to be a man with a severe and distinct capacity for ruthlessness.

I don't think it's him. But I'd be a fool to discard that he COULD be connected.

Couldn't update because a relative was stopping by. Hoping to get one in before I head to sleep tonight or tomorrow morning.

>>5678061 >>5678112 >>5678241 >>5678250 >>5678268
Is there anything else that sticks out... you rack your brain for a minute and see if anything comes to mind. Well, first of all, the guy called you Testuya and not Kinzou. Your family name, ostensibly. What would lead to him doing that?

Well, if he called you by a surname your father never would have known then clearly he doesn't know the two of you very personally, even if he does know the facts. Perhaps the information came through another source, and then onto him? A register maybe?

「Do you know where information about citizenships are kept?」You elaborate a moment later.「I was wondering if he got my name from some sort of register.」Huo Mi pauses before shaking her head. "Well, the village head processes it directly and then sends the information to the county seat somehow or other. Before then I think there's a record keeper, or archivist, or some such who's supposed to keep duplicates. Can't remember who that is for Fogtop, or if we even have one. But that aside... how long ago did you register for citizenship again? Four months? Five?"

「Four.」Huo Mi nods. "Well, then it's probably not even at the county seat yet - we've been snowed in for most of that time, and your citizenship isn't exactly urgent news. Those kind of things just get passed along when someone happens to be making a trip. So in your case, someone could only get your name from a written document if they approached Percival or the village archivist for a copy, both of which seem unlikely given that, well, your name isn't a secret - plenty of people know it."

Huo Mi clears her throat. "Seems more likely to me that he got your name from someone and just didn't think to ask how long you'd had the surname." That... makes sense. The man had a massive amount of information about you, Nui, and Takigi. He couldn't have just have gotten that from a record. No, he's either a local or connected with one... and he probably did some digging.

A local or connected with one... connected with one. Maybe someone hired him? Having expertise in torture is a rare skillset to say the least, and that combined with a couple temperings under the belt... well, the man fits the profile of a hired hand, at least. But putting aside whether anyone like that lives in the village, who exactly would go through the effort of hiring them?

Kanekatsu is the first thought to come to mind. Obviously - you know that he's orchestrated murder before, so it wouldn't be particularly odd for him to do so again. And he has a motive. You don't like him, and you're only going to get stronger. It wouldn't be weird for him to try to nip off that problem in the bud. Besides him... well, Percival maybe? You can't think of a clear motive from his point of view, but he certainly has the money and power to do something like that.

>>5680400
Either way you can't conclusively prove anything, and even if you could you're not sure if any action would be taken. You guess you'll just leave things for now and hope that Huo Mi can turn up some more information in the future.

Two days later your fever has mostly subsided and you feel good enough to walk back to Char's again. As you prepare to leave Huo Mi's she says a few parting remarks. "Take it easy for the next while longer and tell me if you feel any lasting tingling, numbness, or loss of sensation in your hands or feet."「...Is that likely?」Huo Mi shrugs. "Fifty-fifty odds. Maybe a bit better. Even if it's there, it won't be much. Just telling you the usual spiel - I get frostbite and hypothermia cases every winter. Well, when they get to me before dying at least."「Great.」

"And for your own sake, be careful with that rib. I can cut you open if something goes wrong but I'm sure as hell not a surgeon!"「Will do! Thanks for everything, I appreciate the help!」You hear a quiet "You better." as you walk into the distance, making your way to Char's house.

Back at Char's house things are pretty much the same as they ever are. This afternoon Char is doing his best to escape the cruel fate of being forced to read a book at the hands of his sister, while his father is cooped up in his office, presumably managing the family's affairs. You greet Nui over the sounds of the family's hired servant preparing lunch, watching as she puts her knitting aside to hug you.

Before you can broach the issue of moving comes the lecturing. A lot of lecturing. Now that the danger has subsided and you're better, Nui doesn't hold back. You simply keep quiet and listen to the great deal of of admonishments about keeping warm, and being wet in the snow, and how you should have changed your clothes, and so on and so forth. Eventually that does subside though, and she moves onto the topic of heading back home, at which point you need to interrupt.

「About heading home... why don't we put that off, for now? Although I hate to ask him for another favor, If Char's dad is willing to take us in for the winter, then that would be safer.」Nui doesn't respond for a few seconds, as if processing what you've just said. Then she responds in a very flat tone of voice. "Kinzou. You know how we got our house, right?"

「Uh...」It doesn't take long to remember. Takigi liked to talk about it.「Both of your parents' helped you buy the piece of land and then dad built the house himself, with a little bit of help.」Nui nods slowly. "That's right. Your father and I built that house with our own hands, Takigi taking the lead and me doing everything I could to help. We put all of our time, money, and energy into building it, all so that we could have a home of our own." A sad smile slips over Nui's face. "Every piece of wood, every nail is a memory... how could I leave them?"

>>5680402
The two of you sit in silence for a bit as you figure out how to respond. You can't help but feel a new tinge of guilt over what has happened in recent years. Eventually you sigh and manage a reply.

「I understand mom. But it's just not safe. If that guy comes again, then the both of us would be in danger.」A short pause.「I don't want you to get hurt.」

「It's just temporary. Once things have gone back to normal we can always head back.」You leave the question of what criteria that entails and how long it will take before that happens unspoken. Nui seems as if she's about to protest, but then suddenly falls silent. Several several seconds pass before she suddenly stands up. "You're right, although I wish you weren't. I'm willing to stay here for the time being, if Mr. Jing allows it."

「Great, then I'll...」 You notice Nui looking around for a moment before focusing her attention on the door opposite of her. "I'll ask Mr. Jing about it. I'm the parent, after all." She leaves the room without saying anything else.

It's not long before you return. Char's father is fine with the two of you staying for the time being given the risk of returning home, and notes that they have more than enough spare room... but he does, somewhat abashedly, say that providing board for the both of you for the entire winter would be rather difficult. As such, you would need to provide your own food, at least until the situation in the village returns to... well, 'normal' is perhaps a bit much, but until it gets better, at the very least.

>>5680403
Naturally, you accept - letting you stay is already a big help. But that does leave the question of food. You have a decent stock on hand, probably better than most... but if things go on for very long, they will be insufficient for the two of you, even supplemented with the 'ration' that Percival is giving out.
>But you'll just have to deal with it. Rationing things out leave you too weak and hungry to deal with any problems that might arise. You need to eat full meals and keep your strength up. Hopefully the snow will break and caravans will come in before the food runs out.
>The only solution is to spend as much time as possible hunting. It's not likely to yield the best results with your rib the way it is, and it might even risk further injury, but... well, you need the food, and there's still a decent amount of game around where the rabbit was lurking that's now free for the taking.
>Rationing it out only makes sense at this point. You'll eat enough to keep you able to move around and able to go about your day to day activities for now. If the winter runs long then the food will definitely run out, but for now, well, you feel that it's enough action taken.
>Rationing it out only makes sense at this point. You'll eat barely more than the rations given, just what you feel you need to survive. That should be the way to make the food last longest, although it will be more than a bit torturous.
>Write-In [You can choose to ration and hunt at the same time, if you wish]

>>5680405
>Ration to have enough to move around.

We need to heal up before we go hunting again, even if the game will be scarce later.

>>5680405
>Rationing it out only makes sense at this point. You'll eat enough to keep you able to move around and able to go about your day to day activities for now. If the winter runs long then the food will definitely run out, but for now, well, you feel that it's enough action taken.

>>5680405
>The only solution is to spend as much time as possible hunting. It's not likely to yield the best results with your rib the way it is, and it might even risk further injury, but... well, you need the food, and there's still a decent amount of game around where the rabbit was lurking that's now free for the taking.

But be conservative about it. It's foolish not to try and take advantage of the new hunting we opened up, but we don't want to aggrevate our rib. Hunt when we can, ration when we can't.

Man, fuck this long winter.

>>5680405
>>5681260 +1

Rolled 2 (1d2)

>>5680576
>>5680579
1
>>5681260
>>5681284
2

Rolled 47 (1d100)

>>5682055

uh oh ominous dice being cast

Sorry for the wait, internet went out for a bit. I'll eat lunch and then finish writing the update - I'd expect in an hour to two.
>>5682528
Just rolling to figure out how the hunting is going.

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>>5680576 >>5680579 >>5681260 >>5681284 >>5682528
You really should be rationing your food out more conservatively. Or, more accurately, you HAVE to ration out your food more conservatively sooner or later, assuming the intermittent bouts of snow don't suddenly break and a trading caravan or three come rolling into town. But as for when you have to do that... well, you'd like to put it off for as long as possible. The longer you're on sustenance eating the longer you leave yourself defenseless, for lack of a better word. You want to try to keep in top condition as long as possible, even if it takes a lot of work to do it.

To that end, you've decided to hunt. Not that you weren't trying to hunt at all before, but, well... to hunt a lot more. With your rib as it is you can't really run, and getting to and from decent hunting spots takes longer. Unless you're willing to put almost all your time into it you're not going to get very far.

Decision made, you start on your preparations. There are supplies be double-checked, tears in your clothes you need to make sure are sewn up, and a new hunting knife that needs to be acquired. The first two tasks are rather simple and monotonous, whereas for the third you need to impose on Kai for the time being, asking if he can lend you his. After swearing several times that you won't lose or damage it he agrees to lend it to you until he gets better. A mild relief, given the temporary collapse of Fogtop's currency-based economy. Even if you did find someone willing to forge or sell you a new one right now you'd likely have to pay in food for it.

The last thing to be taken care of before you set off is the collection of rations. Normally you'd go to collect your, Nui's, and Huo Mi's portions but if you're going to be spending the entire day hunting... well, spending a good chunk of the morning in line isn't going to be possible. Fortunately, that's simple enough to deal with - Jack, Han, and Char all have to go to collect rations during the day, so it's not much trouble to get them to grab yours while you at it. The next day you make it known that Char has your permission to pick up the rations you normally take and introduce him to Jack and Han. The three get along fine enough and are happy to have additional companions. The larger the group the lower the chance of getting attacked on the way back home, after all.

For the next week you devote all your energy into hunting. It doesn't go quite as well as you'd hope. On the first day you spend most of your time walking back and forth between the forest and Huo Mi's house, which isn't too far from where you're hunting, so that you can warm up. After this happens twice she does make it known that she has a half set-up camp that's in the area of the forest you're hunting in, but that it needs some firewood and cleaning if you want to use it to warm up.

>>5683225
For the rest of that day and the first part of the next that's what you do, doing your best to lay a tarp over the area, clear off snow, fix up the fire pit, and get decent firewood. The latter is rather difficult with the forest as it is, although Huo Mi does give you a bit to get the stockpile started. She says not to thank her since it's her camp in the first place and she wants it fixed back up, but it's still a much appreciated donation, given how any wood you get from the forest will need some time to dry.

Once the camp is set up you can finally get to hunting again. Despite how much it irritates you you stick to a steady walk at all times, wanting to avoid the pain and danger that running on this rib brings. It makes traveling take significantly longer and reduces how much ground you can cover, but honestly doesn't matter too much for most prey. Well, unless they survive the first arrow and run for it. A silver lining, you guess.

Your haul over the coming days is mediocre. A bit of small game and forage, but nothing that really makes the days spent hunting terribly worthwhile. Although you guess that's it not a loss, at least; you're getting more food out of hunting than you're using up doing it, just not enough to support you completely. It slows down how fast you go through your stockpile if just by a bit, at least.

It's been a bit over a week since you got over your fever. You just got done with a break back at the camp and set out to find game again. Those breaks have been getting a little longer than you'd like in recent days - you're exhausted. Absolutely exhausted. But you need the food, so it can't be helped.

As you trudge through the forest you come to a small ridge. You force yourself to a stop and crane yourself to peer over it slightly. The way down looks steep. Dangerously so, really. You mutter to yourself.「Dangerous. Good thing I stopped.」As you glance down, plotting out your route around the area, you catch sight of something from between the trees, poking out of the snow at the bottom of the slope. You stare at it for a few seconds, squinting your eyes, before you realize what it is.

A winter coat, a leather pack, and what you think is hair. Someone didn't notice how steep it was and fell down.

In a hurry, you start finding a way around the slope and towards the bottom. The detour takes around 15 minutes. Eventually you do find your way there though, and start searching for where you saw the person. That takes a few more minutes longer.

Laying in the snow in front of you is a man partially covered in the snow. Ice crystals hang off his discolored face as he lays there unmoving. A grimace covers your face and your chest ties up into a knot. You kneel down and clear the snow off the man before feeling around for a pulse. Nothing. What you expected, really. Given that there was snow on him and it didn't snow today, he has to have been here since... a day and a half ago, at least.

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>>5683228
You let out a sad groan and get a better look at the man's face. Strands of grey hair cover his now wrinkling features. He must be pretty old, you guess - probably in his 50s. A little younger than Huo Mi you think, although he certainly looks older. A couple of scars are visible, but none of them are recognizable - if you've met the man before, it was only in passing.

You pause for a couple of seconds before pulling his pack out of the snow and gently opening it. Snow's gotten into it, but that hasn't ruined what's inside. A butcher's knife, a needle and thread, a firebox, some other odds and ends, and... food. A lot of food. Enough for a several day trip, although you can't imagine one being very safe given the current weather.

Not really thinking, you poke around for a bit longer, digging out the area around him. You find a light coinpurse, flung away from his body when he landed; a homemade spear of sorts, which suffered the same fate; and, most notably, a dead rabbit that you think was skewered on said 'spear' previously. Still good, thanks to the snow.

Once you're done you just stand there and glance around, thinking for a moment.

The man's body...
>can just be left here for now. Taking it back the village would be a lot of effort in this weather. Maybe once the thaw comes in and your rib is better you can help.
>needs to be taken back to the village. It will take a long time, and ruin your plans for the day, but you should try and drag it back to Huo Mi's.
>needs to be taken back to the village. You should go back to Huo Mi's and see if she's willing to lend a hand.
>Write-In

As for his things...
>naturally, they need to go to his family, assuming he has one. Losing the man will be enough of a blow, so the least you can do is return his belongings back to them.
>naturally, they need to go this family... but you can take a bit of a finder's fee, can't you? You'll be going out of your way to return the body and won't be able to hunt much today, so you need compensation. You'll take some of the food and leave the rest.
>the food is yours. You need to guarantee your own survival before you can afford to help others. As for everything else he has... well, you don't really need it. That can be returned to any family he may have, at least.
>they're of no use to a dead man. You'll take everything you can use and head back to the village. If the man has a family it'd be a nice gesture to track them down and return his things, but you don't really have the leeway for that right now... so you may as well do the second best thing and make sure they don't go to waste.
>Write-In

>>5683230
>can just be left here for now. Taking it back the village would be a lot of effort in this weather. Maybe once the thaw comes in and your rib is better you can help.
>naturally, they need to go to his family, assuming he has one. Losing the man will be enough of a blow, so the least you can do is return his belongings back to them.

>>5683230
>needs to be taken back to the village. It will take a long time, and ruin your plans for the day, but you should try and drag it back to Huo Mi's.
>naturally, they need to go this family... but you can take a bit of a finder's fee, can't you? You'll be going out of your way to return the body and won't be able to hunt much today, so you need compensation.

>>5683230
> Report the body to Huo Mi and other appropriate channels

>the food is yours. You need to guarantee your own survival before you can afford to help others. As for everything else he has... well, you don't really need it. That can be returned to any family he may have, at least.

>>5683239
>Support

I see. . . Exactly zero reason for us specifically to return the food.
We do good by people, but we still look out for our own.

>>5683261
The guy probably has kids and a family and for all we know the food he has might be the turning point for their survival or death. I don't think we're that desperate to doom someone's family to starvation just yet

>>5683236
I'll change my vote to support this >>5683235 if taking all the food stays ahead.
I wanted just a little bit, given back by the family as thanks, and returned it as soon as possible, but I'm willing to compromise.

>>5683271
Conjecture and ultimately not our problem. between OUR family and some strangers, there's not much to gain out of it.

Nor have we been terribly kind to everyone else, just people we like. So. . you know, why?

That being said, to prevent people carrying a foolish reward like >>5683274 whom wants a little bit for the cost of ruining our hunting day [which we haven't had a good run on], then I'm willing to drop to half the rations and the rabbit, everything else including the body to the family.

Also, I really don't think he's got a family if he was willing to take this much food out.

It'd leave them with scraps, and I'm not sure anyone would dare.

>>5683282
Half the food seems fair enough. I wanted to take more or less the equivalent of a good hunting day as compensation, but like I said, I'm willing to compromise.
>>5683284
>take this much food out.
That just made me think, what if he is taking it in? He could part of the party that left, somehow survived but died trying to come back. I imagine if they had luck on their venture despite being warned, then some might have been foolish enough to try and come back.
Of course this is mainly conjucture, and something simpler like him stealing the food and trying to run away would be more likely.

>>5683230
>needs to be taken back to the village. You should go back to Huo Mi's and see if she's willing to lend a hand.
>naturally, they need to go this family... but you can take a bit of a finder's fee, can't you? You'll be going out of your way to return the body and won't be able to hunt much today, so you need compensation. You'll take some of the food and leave the rest.

>>5683230
>can just be left here for now.
which is going to find out who he is a lot harder, maybe we can convince huo mi to come looking

>naturally, they need to go this family... but you can take a bit of a finder's fee,

Alright, so the consensus on the votes seems to be to take half the food and then tell Huo Mi about the body when you get back for the day? Only thing worth noting in this case is that you won't really be doing much to justify the 'fee' to yourself as telling Huo Mi takes up very little of your time.

>>5683937
Hey, it's called a "finders fee" for a reason.

But fine, for our own peace of mind.

>Changing >>5683261 to add drag the carcass back to Huo's.

>>5683937
We can take a smaller fee if just telling isn't going to take that long.
I still would rather waste our hunting day getting a garanteed fee than taking an undeserving amount or keep hunting with a broken rib.

>>5683941
>Our own peace of mind.
One day I want to finally have enough brainpower so we can download Hops' memory from the ring.
I wonder how different a general from a friendly bug people is from the paranoid guy Kinzou is turning into.

>>5683945
Uhh, Anon.

We are Hops. "Kinzou" is a tiny tiny part of our mega soul, we have become the same but "Hopps" is the predominant personality.

>>5683950
I think I remember something about Hops mainly having the memories of things being critical to the mission, with most of personal details being stored in the ring, together with more useful but heavy things like technology and cultivation techniques.
Maybe I should said Tetsuya, since it's the name we had a choice in picking, to differentiate between not-controlled background Hops and NPC Kinzou

>>5683958
Although that might be mixing OOC meta things with IC quest events. And I might be misremembering.

>>5683950
This is accurate and >>5683958 is also accurate. You've been influenced by (the original) Kinzou but your soul was stronger, so your final personality didn't change much. At the same time the you before being inserted into a ring was likely very different from the you after being inserted into it. Most of your memories were taken away and compressed into storage so that your knowledge could be made more relevant and to minimize (but not completely eliminate) personal biases that may endanger the mission in the early stages. What remains is essentially your name, detailed information about your vessel and your mission, and a great deal of information on Apoth culture. Things like what kind of life you lived, what kind of career you may have had prior to the ring program, and a large chunk of your personality are still in storage.

>>5683235 >>5683236 >>5683239 >>5683261 >>5683528 >>5683579 >>5683942
Taking into account what anons have voted for, these seem to be the most fitting courses of action:
>Take your time dragging the body back to 'earn' your fee and give up on hunting for today. You probably weren't going to get much anyways.
>Take your finders fee, continue on your hunting for the day, and tell Huo Mi where the body is later tonight. You're done here.
>Only tell Huo Mi, but in exchange take just a bit from the body. You shouldn't be too shameless.
>Write-In

And while we're here, we should probably vote on continued hunting:
>Try your luck for another week and keep hunting. You need food, after all.
>Stop hunting after this and start rationing heavily. While you feel hesitant to leave yourself drained and painfully hungry, you'd be better off staying around the house and using up less calories.
>Write-In

>>5683980
>Take your time dragging the body back to 'earn' your fee and give up on hunting for today. You probably weren't going to get much anyways.
>Try your luck for another week and keep hunting. You need food, after all.
If hunting next week also doesn't work out, then we ration.

>>5683980
>>5683984

Ehhh, support I suppose. I'd rather loot the food and just report the body but if we're going to insist on justifying this somehow

>>5683984
Supporting

>>5683984
>Support.

Rolled 56 (1d100)

Alright then, looks like the vote is clear.

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>>5683235 >>5683236 >>5683239 >>5683261 >>5683528 >>5683579 >>5683942
You stand there and just think for a while, possibilities popping up and being dismissed, before eventually coming to a decision on what to do. As much as you hate to admit it, you're probably not gonna get much in what's left of the day. In that case, you may as well do a good deed and help bring the old man back. There could be a family worried for him and waiting for news, after all. And even if that's not the case you're sure the man would rather have his body back than left lying here in the snow.

From what you can tell Fogtop isn't particularly religious, at least in the organized fashion, but everyone is a bit superstitious. That means a lot of things, but most relevantly, it means people have strong opinions in regards to what happens to their body after they die. For most, said opinion is that they need to be buried and properly put to rest, so as to avoid their spirit becoming a vengeful one. So even if the he doesn't have a family, he, at the very least, would probably be appreciative of the effort.

But doing a good deed doesn't guarantee that you'll be repaid for your efforts. Good deeds aren't done for that reason anyways. But... well, any of your time you give up is a chance at finding food lost, so... it's only right that you're compensated for that right?

...Well, 'only right' is probably a bit of an overstatement. No, you should be straight with yourself at least. If this were six months earlier, and winter hadn't started you'd be more willing to help without thinking about a reward. But things are rough right now and you need to look out for your and your own first. Your 'hive', although it isn't very large. You won't be unfair about it, but you will take some food for your trouble. You think it's an even exchange, given that without you the body might not find its way back to Fogtop at all. It's 'good business', as Percival might say.

...Or Kanekatsu, you suppose, although you wouldn't call him a businessman.

After settling on your course of action you get to work. First you take your share of the food, adding it to your pack, and then you gather up everything else nearby and put it in the man's pack, making sure it's secured to his body. Once that's done, all that's left is the hard part - dragging him back to 'civilization'.

To say that the process is slow-going would be an understatement. Dragging 150 pounds of weight behind you over snow and uneven terrain while trying to avoid stressing your injured rib or damaging the body is a proper pain in the ass. The frustration is almost enough to make you overlook the exhaustion you've built up over the course of the week and the unpleasant feeling of dragging his dead, frozen body across the snow. Almost.

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>>5686411
Several extended breaks and a stop at the camp later you finally approach Huo Mi's house. Your pace speeds up slightly once you realize you're in the home stretch, more than eager to get this all over with. As you make your way past the trees and into the clearing surrounding Huo Mi's, a familiar figure comes into view. Huo Mi, who's chopping wood. She glances back at you as you enter the clearing, staring at you and your accompaniment for a few seconds longer than normal.

"...You're supposed to hunt animals kid." Unsure of how to respond, you stand there for a second.「I'd rather have. I just kind of... found him.」Huo Mi stares at the body a couple seconds longer. "So I'm where cadavers get brought now?" Huo Mi blinks a few times, an odd expression on her face, before shrugging. "I guess I am where cadavers get brought now, actually. The ones that need attention, at least. There's no cure for death though, and if there was I wouldn't share. Hoping for an ID?"「Yep.」

Huo Mi says nothing and approaches the body, glancing closely at the face and clothes. It takes nearly a minute for her to respond. "Pretty sure this is one of the blacksmiths. Or, well, he used to be - his son in law might've taken over." She stands up with a grunt. "It's getting pretty late, so I say we bring it over tomorrow morning. That fine with you?" You nod slightly.「Sure.」

"Alright. It's a plan then." Huo Mi starts walking back towards the log she was splitting but turns back to you after a couple of seconds. "Drag him a little further out though. I don't want the smell of death hanging around if I can help it." You oblige and move the man further away from her house, a ways into the tree line, before washing your hands and arms thoroughly and heading back to Char's house. Once you get there you fall asleep almost immediately, tired not only from today, but the last week of sustained activity.

You go to Huo Mi's after eating breakfast the next morning. When you get there she's messing about with an odd looking cart, trying to drag it through the snow.「What's that?」She adjusts one of the wheels before responding. "A hearsewagon."

Interested, you take a closer look. The cart is painted almost entirely white, even the wheels. The only exception, besides dirt and flaking paint, is a symbol painted on each side in red: a large circle with two triangles inside of it. Covering the cart is a white sheet adorned with the same symbol.

「Is this what they normally look like?」Huo Mi continues adjusting the wheels as she responds. "Pretty much. The ones in the city are a lot bigger, though. And covered. Kind of like a palanquin." She stands up, apparently satisfied with whatever she was doing. "Most important is this symbol." She points to the red circle with two triangles inside of it. "That means death. Hearses, funerary parlors, and sometimes graveyards, slaughterhouses, or temples. I like to stay away from anything or anywhere with that showing, if I can."

>>5686416
"Anyways, just let me get changed and we can go." You wait outside for a few minutes until Huo Mi comes outside again, now dressed in a white robe. The bottom is tied up, to avoid it dragging in the snow.

「Should I be wearing white too?」Huo Mi shakes her head as she heads over to the hearsewagon, grabbing hold of it from two handles on the front. "Technically, but I wouldn't worry about it. We're just moving the body, not laying it to rest. The rest of the ceremonial formalities can be left to the people who make a living out of it." Huo Mi mutters the next sentence under her breath. "May as well just throw me off a cliff when I die and call it a day."

You follow alongside Huo Mi as she drags the hearsewagon behind her through the snow-covered paths and along several main streets,stopping once you reach a sparsely populated corner of the village. Everywhere you go you can see the little life that the village still has left disappear, the few people on the streets or peeking out of windows practically fleeing before you. The fear of death feels unusually real this winter, you suppose.

The two of you stop in front of a set of two buildings. One has a drawing of a hammer and tongs hanging from a door and a large chimney coming from the roof. The forge, you guess. The other is a two-room house, not much larger than your parents'. Huo Mi knocks at the door of the house. It doesn't take long for someone to answer.

A man's face peeks out from between the door and the doorway. Unlike the man you found his face is unmarred by scars and wrinkle-free. He's in his 20s, you'd guess. His expression is already gaunt and tired when he answers the door, but it becomes much worse when he notices the cart Huo Mi is holding onto. He lets out a deep sigh. Huo Mi stays silent as he stares at the ground.

While the two of them are standing there a woman's voice can be heard from inside the house. "Who is it Dou? You're letting the heat out!" He glances back and responds in a quiet, drained voice. "Nothing. It ain't nothing. I'll deal with it now." Huo Mi steps back as the man steps out from the doorway, joining the two of you in the snow. "I'd like to deal with this out back, if you don't mind." The pair of you follow him as he slowly walks away from the house, occasionally glancing back at it. Once he seems satisfied that you're hidden from sight he stops.

>>5686420
"It's the old man, isn't it?" Huo Mi finally speaks. "If you mean your father in law, then I think so. He was just found yesterday though, so he hasn't been identified yet. If you'd be willing..." The man makes a few slow nods. "Of course." After a bit of hesitation the man steps slowly towards the cart. Huo Mi lifts up the sheet on the far end of the cart up a bit, and the man bends down to get a look under it. It's a few seconds before he straightens up and backs away, stumbling over himself.

"That's... that's him." The man falls back, sitting in the snow. "I told the old jackass to stay put, but he didn't listen. He never did." He mutters to himself for a moment before trailing off. Once it's clear that the man has fallen silent, Huo Mi continues. "I'm sorry for your loss. Should I leave the body with you or is there another location you want me to take it?"

It takes nearly a minute for the man to manage a response. "...Leave it at the gravekeeper's, please. I'm not quite ready to break it to them yet." A few seconds later the man grunts and pushes himself up, although he stills seems a bit unsteady on his feet. "Thank you for bringing him back. Do you want to warm up for a minute, before then?"

Huo Mi thinks for a couple of moments before starting to remove her white robe and placing it on top of the hearsewagon. "I'd appreciate that, actually. I'll leave the robe out here, since you're waiting to break the news." She finishes removing it and folds it up. "I'm not the one who brought him back though. It was the kid who found him and did the heavy lifting. I just took care of the formalities."

The man glances down at you for a moment, as if just noticing your presence. He tries to give you a smile but just ends up looking like he's in pain instead. "I appreciate it. We're not getting much business this winter, so if you happen to need anything smithed, just give me a holler. The forge isn't running anyways, so it's the least I can do to show my thanks."
>Thank him for the consideration and don't say anything further. You already took your payment. You shouldn't take him up on it.
>Thank him for the consideration and mention that you were meaning to get a new hunting knife made. Only when he's free, of course, and you can carve the handle yourself.
>Write-In

A shorter second half of the update will be up within the next day. The full update had two votes and was getting long so I decided to break it here.

>>5686421
>Thanks but no thanks. We took our payment.
>Ask him for a quote on how much the knife would be in normal time.

>And ask where the hell the old man was going

>>5686421
>Thank him for the consideration and mention that you were meaning to get a new hunting knife made. Only when he's free, of course, and you can carve the handle yourself.

>>5686421
>Thank him for the consideration and mention that you were meaning to get a new hunting knife made. Only when he's free, of course, and you can carve the handle yourself.

>>5686421
>Thank him for the consideration and don't say anything further. You already took your payment. You shouldn't take him up on it.
>But ask about the price for a knife

>>5686421
>Thank him for the consideration and mention that you were meaning to get a new hunting knife made. Only when he's free, of course, and you can carve the handle yourself.
we can make a mental note and repay him later on.

>>5686443
the old man was going with a group of people who wanted to reach the next settlement to see if they could get food, well most likely he was with that group anyways. looks like they either all died or just stayed in where ever they got to

>A shorter second half of the update will be up within the next day
Remind me not to claim things. The current intent is to write the next update within a few hours after I wake up.

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>>5686443 >>5686684 >>5686685 >>5686831 >>5686864
Well, you won't look a gift horse in the mouth. Although you probably ought to pay him back for the knife at some point, when you're not quite so broke. It only seems fair.「Well, if you're willing I do need a new hunting knife. When you're free of course, and I can carve the handle myself.」"Ah. A woodworker." The man tries to give an appreciative nod but speaks in a dry tone. "I can do that, long as you're not hurting for time. I'll make it with another order to save on kindling."

「That's fine. I appreciate it. How much does that cost?」The man waves a hand dismissively. "Don't worry about it. Not much." As the three of you step foot in front his house he lets out a sigh, stopping in place. After a few seconds he seems to pull together the best expression he can manage and pushes open the door.

You can't help but frown slightly at the sight inside. Two women, a young child, and a teenage boy a few years older than you are crowding around a fire at one end of the room. None of them look like they're doing too well, their expressions a bit glazed over.

The younger of the two women, probably in her 30s, glances back at you as enter. Once she speaks you recognize her as the voice from earlier. "Who're they Dou? Customers?" The man nods. "Yup. We worked out the order already. They just need to warm up a minute before heading back."

After a moment the woman smiles and steps away from the fire, leaving room for you to sit next to it. Before you can decide whether to politely decline or not Huo Mi takes a seat by the fire, so you just follow her lead.

"Would you like some hot water?" The woman smiles down at the two of you as you sit there. Huo Mi glances at her and then nods once. "Yes please." The woman turns her focus towards you.「Me too then. Thank you.」

A small pot is placed on top of the fire. The two of you sit there in silence for a bit as it heats up. It's a rather awkward atmosphere. As the two of you sit there you can hear the two women talking between themselves, discussing whether 'dad' will come home from his hunting trip today.

Their conversation suddenly gets interrupted by the blacksmith, Dou, who seems uncomfortable. "Scuse me, honey. I think the water's ready." The woman glances back at the fire. "Oh, you might be right. Let me get that for you..." She hurries off to get cups. The older of the women, probably Dou's mother-in-law, just stares at him. He laughs nervously and then walks over to the two of you.

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>>5687961
"Any specific requirements on the knife, by the way?" You think about it for a moment.「Not really. Something like this, ideally. Maybe a bit shorter」You remove Kai's hunting knife from your pack, which the man takes a close look at. A few minutes later, after the two of you are already done with your water and nearly ready to leave, he hands it back. "I'll pop over when I have it ready then. You're the apothecary, right?" Huo Mi nods. "You could just leave it at the Mu family house though. The kid's staying with them, not me." The man's forced smile grows a little wider upon hearing the name 'Mu'. Huo Mi might be stronger personally, but maybe they have more respect.

Huo Mi sends you home instead of having you go to the gravekeeper's with her. Apparently not wearing white on the way there would be a slight breach of propriety, at least in the gravekeeper's eyes. You hear Huo Mi call them an 'annoying hardass' as you leave though, so you can't tell whether that's normal or if the one in your village is just a stickler for tradition.

Your hunting doesn't really pick up in the next few days. The hauls seem a little better, but... well, it's still not enough to feed both you and Nui if you keep eating as much as you are. You'll just have to appreciate it slowing down how quickly you're going through your stores, for now at least.

"How's the haul today?" Char greets you as you enter the house, still taking off your snow-covered outer layers and emptying your boots.「Fine, I guess. Same as every other day.」You pause for a moment as you adjust your belt.「I'd appreciate if you stopped asking. It's not helping.」He's not sure what to say to that and stares at you for a second. "Alright." Then he leaves the room, leaving you by yourself.

You sigh slightly. Maybe that was uncalled for. You have been a bit irritable recently. The exhaustion getting to you, maybe. You don't think you need to worry about it though - Char isn't really the type to hold onto a grudge about something that minor. Still, you need to remember to be polite. You're the guest, after all.

Nui doesn't eat as much at dinner that night, saying that she's already full from lunch. You don't really have it in you to question it out loud, even when the same thing happens the next day. Unless a big haul comes by real soon then you'll probably have to call the hunting experiment a failure. The snow might just be too much and the prey too little for it to be sustainable to get almost all of your food intake from hunting... not to mention your rib.

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>>5687964
On one early morning, as you're pondering this, you decide to start your hunting trip a bit later than usual. You haven't dropped by the family home in a bit, and you probably should get around to that. It snowed pretty heavily yesterday and with no one at home you're worried about some of the winterproofing giving out. Not a big deal as long as someone's around to repair it, but if they're not... well, snow flooding inside never did a wooden house much good.

You get there and go around the house. It looks normal and in good shape. A relief. Until you get to the back for the second time and take a closer look at your surroundings. Someone has been here. Not today, since there are no tracks in the snow, but definitely within the last week. Someone came by and took some of the firewood you had cut from the rack.

Or, at least you think they did. You double and triple check first to make sure you aren't imagining it. But there's definitely less here than you remember there being. You took a good chunk of it over to Char's with some help from Han, giving him some of it for the trouble. Then you left the rest here since there wasn't really an immediate need for it and there was a lot to move. And now some of what you left is gone. Not a ton, but enough to notice at least. Someone's been filching from your wood rack.
>You'll just have to move the rest, you guess. No one can take it if it's all over at Char's, kept with their wood. Kind of a pain, but the simplest solution.
>It's not a big deal. Annoying, yes, but... well, it's just firewood. Important in the winter, but Char's family doesn't have a shortage so you don't really need to worry about it. Unlike food, it's in pretty good supply. The village is surrounded by forest, after all.
>This is a big deal. A very big deal. The wood itself isn't, but the fact that someone is treating the family house like their own? Worrying. You should keep watch here for a bit and try to catch whoever comes by, so that you can get them to stop.
>Write-In

>>5687966
>You'll just have to move the rest, you guess. No one can take it if it's all over at Char's, kept with their wood. Kind of a pain, but the simplest solution.

>>5688102
Support. Better signal to any squatters that we're paying attention.

>>5687966
>You'll just have to move the rest, you guess. No one can take it if it's all over at Char's, kept with their wood. Kind of a pain, but the simplest solution.

>>5687966
>You'll just have to move the rest, you guess. No one can take it if it's all over at Char's, kept with their wood. Kind of a pain, but the simplest solution.

>>5687966
>Write-In
just move it into the house, no need to move it right now with our rib and what not.
im assuming we can close the door?

>>5689197
lock, i meant lock

>>5689200
We can't, those cost money to install.

Update later tonight, by the way.
>>5689197
And yeah, you'd have to track down a locksmith who's willing to fit a lock and then pay them.
Or at least someone who has a padlock and who's willing to sell it.
For most people in the village it's more money than it's worth to get one. Not impossible to afford, but a waste of money.

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>>5688102 >>5688169 >>5688279 >>5688363 >>5689197 >>5689298
Well, you can't just leave the wood here for the next passerby to snatch up, and neither can you wait around and guard it. Hard to think of a bigger waste of time and energy, really. You guess the only thing for it is to get the rest the wood back to the Mu household, even if it is a bit of a pain. What little is left inside, too - anything not built into the house really. You let out a slight groan and shake your head as you stare at the familiar hut. Things really are a shitshow right now, aren't they?

You make a rough estimate of the measure of wood left on the racks and how many trips you'll need to haul it back and forth. It's hard to put an exact number on it without measuring tools, but to be approximate, it's too many. That's why you left the wood there in the first place. You've always stocked a lot, now that you think about it. A continuation of a habit of Takigi's, you guess. He liked to keep a good chunk extra around for woodwork during the winter. Not always for big projects, since firewood wasn't usable for a good chunk of them, but just around to mess with. He liked whittling when he was bored. Nui said he made quite the habit of ruining perfectly good firewood that way.

After a moment spent staring at nothing in particular you shake your head, forcing the meaningless thoughts away for now. You don't have time to stop and think right now. You should get to work. You'll need a wheelbarrow... the family's should be back at Char's house and Huo Mi has a couple extra in her mess of a warehouse. Not ones used for corpses, of course. As for transport... well, maybe Han would be willing to land a hand in exchange for some wood again. Having him help would halve the time this takes.

Unfortunately Han is not willing to help, apparently occupied with other things for the time being. But he does remind you to check with Jack, in case, so you head over to his house. There you find a somewhat pale and listless version of your former coworker with slightly sunken cheeks. Not an odd sight around the village this winter, but not one you're used to seeing among those you're familiar with. ...Maybe you'll be next. You're not much that much better off than him, after all.

"Tetsuya. You should come in." Jack steps back and lazily gestures inside. You snap out of your thoughts and nod, stepping inside. 「Thanks.」You pause for a moment, the two of you standing there in an awkward silence. After a moment of consideration you decide to skip the small talk.「I need to move some wood from our house over to Char's. Wanted to leave it but someone started picking at it so... well, you know. If you're willing to lend a hand then I can pay you with some.」

Jack stares at you blankly for a second before reaching a hand back and gently scratching his head. "Well..." He pauses for a few seconds.

>>5690429
"I suppose I should engage in a bit of activity, rather than rot away in here all winter. Been trying to conserve energy but... oh, what is it they say? Poverty dulls the wit, and all that."

「You sure? You don't need to feel obligated or anything, just because I asked.」Jack shakes his head a couple of times. "It's not a problem. We're both gaining here, after all. Just let me get dressed." Jack turns away and goes to put on more layers.

With Jack's help you do manage to get the wheelbarrows retrieved and the wood ferried before most of the day is out, leaving you some time for other things. Not quite enough for a long hunting trip, you decide to stay home for the day. You read for a bit and whittle nothing in particular, having suddenly gotten the urge earlier today. You don't particuarly enjoy it, it's just... calming, you suppose.

The next day you go hunting again. The haul isn't good. The same for your mood, really. You feel like this entire attempt to keep yourselves fully fed has just been a pissing contest against nature with remarkably mediocre results. Not that it's useless or anything, because it has helped a little, but... well, it's been very draining and essentially a fight against attrition. It'd be much easier to ration at this point, as much as you hate to admit it.

But that leaves a question. If you ration, conserve your energy as best as you can, and stay around the house, then what exactly will you be doing all day?
>Reading. Hana has plenty of books and she's more than willing to let you read them, as long as you can put up within the dry writings contained inside. It'd do you some good to learn a bit before trying to join a sect.
>Woodworking. Personally you have some bad memories of a terribly boring apprenticeship under Wang, but that was the old Kinzou. Nowadays you have some more tolerance for the task. You should keep your skills sharp and engage in projects where you can, as long as you don't strain yourself too much in the process.
>Housework. The Mu family's house is pretty big and you're sure you can find some way to occupy yourself while helping out with upkeep. It'd be a good way to pay them back for the favor of letting you stay here, if only a bit. And it'll be a useful skill to have once you're on your own.
>Watch Char train. You don't feel ashamed saying that he's significantly better at hand-to-hand combat than you (it's a skill you've not trained in) and he spars with his father daily. Maybe you could gain a bit from watching.
>Observe Kanekatsu's 'manor'. It's not far from here, and they don't seem to be hurting for food in the slightest. Maybe if you watch for long enough you can find out where they store it, and perhaps when they might not catch someone sneaking in to grab some of it...
>It doesn't matter. You're going to keep hunting. You're sure that big haul will come eventually, now that your rib is starting to recover.
>Write-In

>>5690431
>Watch Char train. You don't feel ashamed saying that he's significantly better at hand-to-hand combat than you (it's a skill you've not trained in) and he spars with his father daily. Maybe you could gain a bit from watching.
Our combat skills need significant training so why not

>>5690431
>Write-In
maybe this is the time we can inverse ourselves in cultivation and fully integrating our soul into this body, maybe even try to actively find information in the ring?

>>5690431
>Watch Char train

We're more weapon focused anyway, so it's good to get some fundementals.

>>5690431

> Watch Char train. You don't feel ashamed saying that he's significantly better at hand-to-hand combat than you (it's a skill you've not trained in) and he spars with his father daily. Maybe you could gain a bit from watching.

God damn this winter

>>5690431
>Watch Char train. You don't feel ashamed saying that he's significantly better at hand-to-hand combat than you (it's a skill you've not trained in) and he spars with his father daily. Maybe you could gain a bit from watching.

>>5690431
>Reading. Hana has plenty of books and she's more than willing to let you read them, as long as you can put up within the dry writings contained inside. It'd do you some good to learn a bit before trying to join a sect.

>>5690431
>Reading. Hana has plenty of books and she's more than willing to let you read them, as long as you can put up within the dry writings contained inside. It'd do you some good to learn a bit before trying to join a sect.
Especially if we can practice words on the woodblocks we just brought in, maybe with a water/wood ash ink.

so dm i wanted to ask about the ring out of game, have we, the players, just not asked the right questions about the ring? is the ring just your form of handwaving a character having a bunch of voices in their head? i am asking because it strikes me as everweirder the species we hail from didnt even like include a survival guide/manual or anything really that would ensure we stay alive long enough to establish/protect our legacy?

unrelated (so so) can we withdraw stories from the ring?
and write them in books/scrolls and sell them as fantasy stories/legends/sagas?

Update within the next roughly 24 hours, by the way. Touching up some notes and then writing stuff up after I sleep. Should speed up again soon.
>>5692881
Any generic survival guide's effectiveness would vary greatly given the massive variety of planets and the types of life that could exist on them that you could land on. Theoretically, if a vessel manages to come across a suitable planet before being destroyed in space, then it needs to land without being too picky - finding one planet suitable for space-faring life where the vessel can land is already very lucky. The place could be uninhabited but support life later or it could have a space-faring civilization as or more advanced than the Apoth who capture and eliminates the soul immediately upon the vessel's landing. While there were obviously efforts made to ensure that those sent out weren't completely unprepared for space travel and a lot of effort put into the design and construction of the ring, preparing the souls inside for every possible eventuality just wasn't feasible. And besides... even if you die, it's not a very big deal. As long as you don't die immediately then the ring itself and the knowledge within should makes its way to the local inhabitants eventually, passing on some of the Apoth's collective legacy as a result. You surviving is a nice bonus, but it's not like you reproducing will revive the Apoth. They couldn't send your body, after all.
And this is of course not accounting for boring tertiary reasons like multiple other species-preserving projects competing for funding, interhive bureaucratic mismanagement, and the very wide 'scatter-shot' approach to this where they mass-produced a bunch of suitable vessels, shoved souls inside, and then accelerated them all up to near light-speed, letting them shoot off into the distance.
>>5692881
>unrelated (so so) can we withdraw stories from the ring?
>and write them in books/scrolls and sell them as fantasy stories/legends/sagas?
There are some cultural works preserved inside, yes. You would just have to decompress the files from where they're stored and then rewrite them to fit the empire's culture better. As for how they'd sell, well, who knows. It would depend a lot on the specific story and how well it was translated and altered. (Localization, really) Entirely possible in the future though.

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>>5690443 >>5690495 >>5690496 >>5690579 >>5690602 >>5690849 >>5691373
You need to start rationing more conservatively - that's not in question. With the situation as it is continuing to hunt is just wasting more of your time and energy in a futile bid to recoup what effort you've already poured into the endeavor. You need to be decisive and cut your losses. Maybe you should've been more decisive and put this to an end a week ago. But that's not worth putting too much thought into, at least not right now. What's done is done, and it will stay that way. Now you need to focus on the future. If you're not going to be hunting, what exactly will you be doing? It can't be anything involving too much physical activity given that you'll be rationing things out pretty thinly, but...

After something thinking you come up with a routine that you start following the next day. You get up fairly early in the morning, wake yourself up, and depart for the daily rationing. The walk to and from the rationing is the most physically taxing part of your day, so you decide to take one of your scarce meals in the morning, to help provide the energy to get through it. The other, of the rations provided, you eat in the afternoon. Dinner is sleep.

Between the much-awaited 'meals' you sit around and do your best to avoid wasting your time. Once you're back from the rationing you head to the Mu family's dojo, where Char often trains. By the time you get back he's usually done with his basic physical exercises and getting into practicing his martial arts. Punches, kicks, grapples, and the like. You think he's alright at it, but you can't really tell - you've only trained with the bow and spear, as far as combat goes, and not for terribly long at that.

For a good chunk of the day Char's partner is a training dummy filled with grain husks. A terribly boring fellow, but he can take a hit at least. During this time you pay what attention you can to Char's practice, trying to learn what you can from his constantly repeated movements, but the both of your attention inevitably wavers. Occasionally he'll stop and the two of you will chat, or you'll lose interest for a bit and read a book instead. The normal cycle of things, really.

Later in the day Mu Jing joins his son for sparring, usually for a couple of hours. Char always comes out of the process worse for wear, which results in him being constantly bruised somewhere or other. Having joined in one of these sparring sessions before you relate with his pain keenly, recalling the sensation of being dropped to the floor over and over and over. Even if it's padded it's still not pleasant.

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>>5693996
As one sparring session between the two draws to a close you watch Char lunge towards his father's waist, wanting to take advantage of his shorter height to rush towards it without being caught. Instead he ends up running into his father's raised knee, left in the air in front of Char as an implicit threat that he could've slammed it into his face in real combat.

Char lets out an annoyed grunt as stumbles back, having lightly run face-first into the knee in front of him.「Didn't that happen last time too?」Char grunts in what you think is agreement. "I was hoping it'd be different today." His father looks down at him with a slight smile. "I'd say that's enough for today." Char glares at the knee in front of him for a second before sitting down. "Fine. Tomorrow then!" His father just laughs before taking his leave. The two of you sit where you are for a bit longer.

「Your training is a bit... repetitive, isn't it.」Char shrugs. "Yeah. That's just how it is." He points towards the familiar piece of calligraphy that hangs on the wall behind him after saying this, as if offering an explanation.「Uhh... that means steady progress, right?」"Pretty much. Progress day by day, month by month, or something like that. Not sure how I feel about that, but grandpa was a big fan of saying it."

「And so he liked the meaning so much he drew the phrase up?」Char glances back at the wall scroll before nodding. "Probably. He used to train in here every day until his health went downhill, so it fits." The two of you stare at each other for a second as you sit on the padded floor before Char's grumbling stomach interrupts you. "Uh..." Char trails off and then stands up. "I'm gonna go to the bathroom. See you."

「...See you.」You watch as Char makes his way out of the room, closing the screen door behind him. You know full well he's probably going to go have dinner, but... well, he's trying to be tactful in his own way. Given that he's a normal kid he probably just doesn't realize how obvious his lies comes across.

With training over you occupy yourself by reading until you fall asleep. The other day you finished a large section of a book on history and switched to one on local cultural traditions for a change of pace. The going is a bit slow but it's a lot better than it could be. You wouldn't call yourself fully 'literate', but, well... you're better off than around 95% of the village, you'd wager, and that'll only improve with time.

The next day you wake up early, just before the dawn. Even after you eat it's a bit early to start lining up for the rationing, so first you head back to the family home to check up on it. A snow came in the other day (although it always feels like that's the case), and you want to make sure that the winterproofing held and that none of it got inside. A boring task all things considered, and quite nearly a waste of time and energy.

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>>5693997
Or, well, ideally it SHOULD be a waste of time and energy. In this case it isn't. It doesn't even take you a walk around the house before you notice a problem. There's quite literally several boards of wood missing from the structure itself. One is removed entirely while two more are snapped off. As you remember all of them were kind of loose and needed a bit of messing with, once winter was over at least.

First you wander around for a bit in the nearby snow, wondering if the storm got bad and tore the planks off. You don't find anything for your trouble though, the surrounding snow devoid of any conspicuously shorn fragments of wood. You look pretty thoroughly, so you're pretty sure they're not here, at least.

That leaves two main possibilities. Either they were shorn off and blown away by the weather, meaning you have some normal repairs to do... or somebody saw they were loose and pried them off themselves, figuring the planks would come right out with a little bit of elbow grease. As for what's more likely, you frankly have no idea. Perhaps the only reason you're thinking of the second possibility is because someone was taking from the firewood last week in the first place, or maybe it's just the most logical explanation. You didn't think the recent weather was quite THAT bad, after all.
>Whatever the reason you'll just have to do repairs. All it involves is getting a few planks of the proper size cut, sanded, and maybe treated and then nailing them into place. Nothing major.
>You'll leave anything qualifying as a proper repair to wait until the spring and bodge it. You can just put mud or clay or something where they were to stop snow from getting in through the cracks, right? Not quite as good as wood, but it'll probably suffice. Hopefully.
>You can't help but be suspicious, given the situation. You'll stake out the place for a while and see if anybody has been stopping by the place. If they are you'd like them to stop eating away at the place, for fuck's sake. [Choose what repair you'd like to do as well]
>Write-In

>>5694002
With a decision made about what to do later you do your best to quickly clean out the snow that got in from the new gap in the house before heading to the intake to collect the rations for the day. By the time you arrive there Jack and Han are already present. All of the three of you look worse for wear recently. You haven't been talking as much either - everyone's gotten a bit irritable. Not that they can be blamed, given the situation.

The snowy area in front of the intake slowly fills up with unhealthy and exhausted looking people standing about in small groups. Wherever possible these groups try to stay apart from each other, suspicious glances being exchanged when people wander too close to one another. There's not as much muttering as there used to be. Instead people just vacantly stare towards the intake's gates, waiting for them to begin setting up for the day.

It's not much longer until the large wooden gates of the intake begin swinging open and a wagon is rolled out from inside. Wary miltiaman surround it from all sides. After the initial incident nothing major has happened in regards to the rationing, but that's not for any lack of trying. While the large number of initial deaths and increased security scared people off from acting at first, the anger and desperation boiling under the village's surface seems to have started outweighing that. Just the other day around a dozen people tried to take what was provided for themselves, although they were all stopped and barred without it erupting into anything too big.

But that does make the general sentiment lurking under the surface clear: "What are they going to do, kill me? It's death either way." At this rate, something's got to give. The weather or the people.

As you think on the gloomy atmosphere Han taps you on your shoulder, pointing towards the militia. 「What is it?」Han stops pointing but stares for a moment longer. "It's that tightass from the first squad. Ki Tei. The Vice-Captain. Looks like he's in charge today." You squint, looking a little closer now that it's been pointed out to you.「Yeah, I guess. I don't see the first squad's captain around.」

「Did he get injured in the stuff the other day?」Han shrugs. "Dunno. Maybe he's just sick." The two of you fall silent again, before Jack interrupts. "Never been a fan of him." Han glances back. "Ki Tei?" Jack just nods, causing Han to chuckle.

"He catch you slacking off, drawing up in one of the watchtowers or something?" Jack shakes his head. "No, no one caught me when I was drawing in the watchtower. Just the other times." Han breaks out into an unusually spirited laugh before falling silent again, leaving the two of you to watch the rationing get set up.

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>>5694003
「It's taking a while, isn't it.」Jack replies in a tired monotone. "It always takes a while." A few seconds later, Han chimes in. "I dunno, I think he has a point. And besides the first captain, I don't see the second squad's. Or Percival."「Mmm.」You're not sure whether you can manage to care. Percival's usually there, but the same can't be said of all the captains in the first place. There's plenty of stuff to guard in the intake other than the rations being provided - they're probably just busy with something else.

A few minutes later you catch sight of the second squad's captain joining the rest of the group as they slowly unload the food for today.「There he is.」Jack and Han grunt in acknowledgement and join in staring at the group preparing the food. And then all three of your eye's widen as several containers appear from behind the second captain, brought along by members of the second squad.

Over the next couple of minutes sacks and boxes begin to stack up in front of the intake. Assuming they hold food, it's much more than what's needed for the rationing. All of the villager's attention is fixated on them. Some respond by gulping down saliva, while others just stare in suspicion. You fall somewhere in between both extremes.

Before you can quite figure out what's going on The captain of the second squad steps up to address everyone, Ki Tei standing next to him. Your old captain, Ryou, just stands to the side while giving the two of them an odd look.

"Everyone, please proceed calmly but quickly. We'll try to go through the rationing as quickly as possible. Bags will be provided to help carry them. If you live nearby then you can use one of your outer layers to hold it."

Bags... bags? The ration is much too small to warrant that - generally you can just hold it on the way back. Then you must be getting more. More food. Your stomach grumbles in hunger at the thought, having simmered in constant irritation during the week as your energy's crept away from you.
>Approach calmly and begin lining up in an orderly fashion, as ordered.
>Sprint forward and try to join the front of the line. Something weird is going on and you want your food now, before it can be jeopardized.
>Walk slowly and join a spot closer to the back of the line. This has a chance of getting real messy and you're not going to be trapped up front if it does. Your chance will come, eventually.
>Write-In

>>5694002
>You can't help but be suspicious, given the situation. You'll stake out the place for a while and see if anybody has been stopping by the place. If they are you'd like them to stop eating away at the place, for fuck's sake. [Choose what repair you'd like to do as well
>You'll leave anything qualifying as a proper repair to wait until the spring and bodge it. You can just put mud or clay or something where they were to stop snow from getting in through the cracks, right? Not quite as good as wood, but it'll probably suffice. Hopefully.
>>5694008
>Approach calmly and begin lining up in an orderly fashion, as ordered.

>>5694008
>Sprint forward and try to join the front of the line. Something weird is going on and you want your food now, before it can be jeopardized.

>>5694002
>You can't help but be suspicious, given the situation. You'll stake out the place for a while and see if anybody has been stopping by the place. If they are you'd like them to stop eating away at the place, for fuck's sake. [Choose what repair you'd like to do as well]

>Whatever the reason you'll just have to do repairs. All it involves is getting a few planks of the proper size cut, sanded, and maybe treated and then nailing them into place. Nothing major.

>>5694002
>Repair it properly
>Stake out the place.

>Approach calmly.

There's something fishy about this

>>5694002
>You'll leave anything qualifying
whatever is the least energy consuming
>>5694008
>Approach calmly
ah yes, meats back on the menue. huo mi with a witches nose huehue

>>5694002
>You can't help but be suspicious, given the situation. You'll stake out the place for a while and see if anybody has been stopping by the place. If they are you'd like them to stop eating away at the place, for fuck's sake
>You'll leave anything qualifying as a proper repair to wait until the spring and bodge it. You can just put mud or clay or something where they were to stop snow from getting in through the cracks, right? Not quite as good as wood, but it'll probably suffice. Hopefully.
>>5694008
>Approach calmly and begin lining up in an orderly fashion, as ordered.

>>5694019 >>5694046 >>5694052 >>5694349 >>5694546
Calmly but quickly. You'll follow that then. You approach the area where rations are being distributed in a fast walk. As you join up with the already forming line you stare at the front, where some people who have rushed forward have already arrived. They seem to be arguing with those distributing the rations. Very quickly most of them skulk away, heads down, and make their way towards the back of the line. The only ones who don't are forcibly driven off. One yells out, complaining, as he's sent away by swordpoint. A month ago that might have started a scene, but by now people are used to ignoring things like it.

The line in front of you moves quickly. Much more quickly than usual. Instead of putting a focus on safety and order, processing only a couple of people at a time, those distributing the food try to work as quickly as possible. Most of those present fill and lift sacks as quickly as they can, trying to get through the line. Only a minority stand around to serve as security, staring both at the crowd and behind them, back into the intake. You notice that the further forward you get the more nervous the guards seem to be, as if they're worried about something.

As the line moves forward it splits into more lines, a member of the militia in charge of splitting people into each one. You're sent to the back of one that's currently the shortest. Ki Tei is at the front of it, handing out sizable bags as food. Unlike some of the others doing so, he doesn't seem to be affected in the slightest by the weight, even when lifting multiple at once. You briefly wonder if he's a cultivator but don't have too long to think on it before you arrive in front of him.

He pauses for a moment as you approach. "Two members in the family, correct?"「Correct. And I collect Huo Mi's ration for her.」He stoops down and grabs two small burlap sacks from behind him that someone else readied. "She'll be fine on her own. Here." He goes to hand you both bags of food.
>Take them and leave. You just want to be done with this.
>Remind Ki Tei of who Huo Mi is and ask him for her portion. Neither of you want to get on her bad side, right?
>Mention that you're both cultivators and that you really need her portion to get by. He should understand what it's like.
>Respond that while that may be that she's still entitled to her portion. And promise to leave and get out of his hair as long as you get it.
>Write-In

>>5696238
>Take them and leave. You just want to be done with this.

Minor continuity error, you should still be collecting Kai's ration for him and bringing it over there every so often, so that should've been mentioned in the last post. Oh well, I'll correct it in the next.

>>5696238
>Be that as it may, she is entitled to it and I don't wanna get in trouble with her.

>>5696238
>Take them and leave. You just want to be done with this.

Grab it and go, something is about to get crazzzzy

>>5696238
>Remind Ki Tei of who Huo Mi is and ask him for her portion. Neither of you want to get on her bad side, right?

Anyone else figure the guards are breaking orders and handing out more food than they're supposed to? Maybe even emptying out the place? I keep wondering how long until they get caught.

>>5696502
You remember Huo Mi loudly thinking about the disappeared "rebelsymphatizers". Her saying not finding bodies is "weird". Her pointing out that cannibalism isnt unheard of? Yea i think its cannibal joe time.
And tbqh we'll just have to see if the village is making a stir or if we collectively decide to shut it.

I'll roll to break the tie if it the vote is still tied tonight.

>>5696238
>>5697387
forgot to vote, ups.
>Take them and leave. You just want to be done with this.

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>>5696240 >>5696439 >>5696460 >>5696498 >>5697488
Your first instinct is to protest but you pause for a moment and think as he gets ready to hand you the bags. He's not wrong about her not needing the rations - Huo Mi has been letting you keep them, so obviously that's the case - so you're not sure how to protest. After a moment you just decide not to. They seem to be in a hurry so arguing might just make things worse. They kicked quite a few people to the back of the line before and you're sure that you're no special exception. You just want to get done here and leave.

Ki Tei throws a glance at you as he lifts the small bags up and you extend out your arms. One after the other three burlap sacks fall into your arms. One for yourself, one for your mother, and a third that you'll need to hand over to Kai, as per usual. You tightly hug the sacks of food, so as to make it harder for them to fall from your grasp... or to be taken from it.

Feeling a bit nervous for whatever reason you take your distance from the line and start walking towards the edge of the clearing. Jack is already there, waiting while glancing around suspiciously. As you walk towards him you hear a commotion break out behind you.

"STOP THIS IMMEDIATELY." You instinctively turn around towards the loud scream and can vaguely make out that the situation at the front of the line is getting complicated, if not so much the why. Han, who was a bit behind you in line, catches up as you stand there. "Looks like Percival is pissed. We ought to get going."

Everyone else who already got their food seems to be of the same opinion, speeding up their departure. Only those still waiting are staying in line, waiting to see how things shake out. You decide to do the safer thing and follow along with the crowd, beating a fast retreat from the intake and towards the village center so that you can drop off your food. The sounds of yelling that had gradually increased in volume as you left grow quieter again as you get distance from the intake, eventually fading completely.

After dropping your rations off at Char's house, explanation not included, you head over to Huo Mi's. When you step inside you find her sitting at the table, whittling arrows, while Kai, as always, is lying in bed. As you enter he turns slightly to look at you.

「Hey. You getting any better?」Kai makes an odd movement that makes him seem like he's in pain more than anything, but that you think is supposed to be a shrug. "A bit. I'm moving a little more than I used to at least, and the bones are healing up alright. Just a matter of time I guess." His eyes turn towards the partially-filled sack you're carrying. "What's that?"

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>>5698332
「Rations.」You leave the bag at the foot of his bed, next to his less bad arm and then turn your attention to Huo Mi, who seems to have suddenly gotten interested in the conversation. "Something happen at the intake?" You scratch your head and respond noncommittally.「Not sure really. They gave out more than usual and then Percival showed up fuming. Left before things got any worse.」Huo Mi turns her gaze down and makes a humming noise under her breath, thinking.

When you glance back at Kai you find that he's managed to shove a piece of jerky in his mouth with his better arm. You stare at him, a bit speechless.「You're not worried about... y'know?」"Hmmf? Warheed about wha exacree?" Then he seems to get a spark of recognition in his eyes. "Mmh, noh." He finally swallows.

「Why not?」"Take a look at this." The two of you stare at each other awkwardly before you realize that it's difficult for him to point out exactly what and step closer. "Grab some meat from the bag." You glance inside and see that among the larger quantities of bread, preserved vegetables, and other foods, that there is some meat present. Not a massive amount, but a surprise given the ongoing lack of it. Your saliva wells up slightly as you grab a piece from the bag, glancing at it.

"What's that look like to you?" You stare back at Kai, confused.「Uh... meat? Of some sort?」He rolls his eyes slightly. "It looks like salted pork, smells like salted pork, and wouldn't you know it, it tastes like salted pork. There's no need to listen to an old woman's paranoid ramblings when I can tell what it is myself." Huo Mi laughs from her spot at the table.

「Well, what if people taste like pork?」Kai starts saying something in response but falters. Then he just stares at Huo Mi instead, as if waiting for an answer to your question. You join him. She glares back at the two of you a moment later, frowning. "Don't look at me like that. How would I know?"

The two of your stares linger for a moment longer before darting away. Kai clears his throat and you think he pretends to cough afterwards. ...That can't be comfortable with his collarbone, right? It's a few more seconds before he turns his attention back to you. "Anyways, that's just paranoia speaking. If you're too scared you'll never get anything done. I just go off of common sense, which tells me that it's pork."

Huo Mi, still a bit annoyed, responds immediately. "And being too careless can end up with you breaking half a dozen bones and taking up someone's bed for several months. Fear is what keeps people alive."

No one speaks for a few seconds, the mood a bit awkward. You glance around the room before breaking the silence.「Where's Zhang?」Huo Mi returns to her whittling as she answers. "In the warehouse. He's actually made a lot of headwork in that sorting that place. More than I'd ever have the patience for, at least."

>>5698333
You head out and say hi to Zhang before going back to Char's house. On the way back you think about the conversation earlier.
>You're still with Huo Mi on this - things are too suspicious. You're not eating the meat. Kai can have it, if he's so eager on it.
>Maybe Kai's right and you're overthinking things. You've got pork, so you may as well use it with your meals... even if it's probably oversalted and not terribly appetizing by itself. No need to help starve yourself further... and you're starting to miss meat.
>Write-In

Once you're back at Char's you sort through the stuff you need for the repair on the house. It's nothing too much - just basic materials that Takigi tended to keep stocked for general carpentry anyways. A relief on that front, at least. Even getting more nails made right now would be a pain, not to mention something more specific.

As you do that you consider the stake-out you have planned, to make sure nothing unfortunate is going on with the house. How exactly are you going to execute that?
>Stay a distance away from the house and keep watch from the trees. It'll be cold, and you'll need at the very least a sleeping mat or two and quite a few layers to avoid freezing, but it'll give you a better vantage point.
>Keep in and around the house. It'll be much warmer inside and you'll hear anyone that tries to mess with the place pretty easily from inside. And you'll be less exposed that way too.
>Write-In

And that besides, are you going to do it alone? Or should you bring someone with you?
>You don't see any reason to bring someone with you - you're just keeping a watch on the place to see if someone is stealing wood. It'd be a waste of their time and would make it easier to catch sight of you ahead of time, scaring whoever it was off before you could figure out who it was... assuming that there's still someone doing this, and that the most recent thing wasn't just the weather.
>It couldn't hurt to bring someone along, if you can find someone willing. The only catch being that you might have to make it worth their while or at least accept that you'll owe them a favor, whoever it is...although you already owe a lot of favors now that you think about it, don't you? [Specify who you want to invite along and incentive offered, if any.]
>Write-In

>>5698334
>You're still with Huo Mi on this - things are too suspicious. You're not eating the meat. Kai can have it, if he's so eager on it.
I'm passing on the long pork mystery meat.
>Keep in and around the house. It'll be much warmer inside and you'll hear anyone that tries to mess with the place pretty easily from inside. And you'll be less exposed that way too.
>You don't see any reason to bring someone with you - you're just keeping a watch on the place to see if someone is stealing wood. It'd be a waste of their time and would make it easier to catch sight of you ahead of time, scaring whoever it was off before you could figure out who it was... assuming that there's still someone doing this, and that the most recent thing wasn't just the weather.
Kind of wanted to bring Char along and make it some sort of sleepover stakeout adventure, but don't want to get even more indebted to the Mu.

>>5698334
Controversial opinion but. . what's really so bad about cannibalism, if the guy is already dead.

But anyway, if we really really want to know.
>Try measuring the bones up, see if they match a human's stature or a pigs.

People and pigs don't have similar muscular structure. It may be difficult to tell from a glance and without all the bits there, but we can at least look over a few and figure out where on the body they would have to have come from and extrapolated on that.

>Inside the house
>By ourselves, with our bow and spear.

>>5698450
Sentimental and cultural issues aside, it has a much higher chances of transmitting diseases.
It's already common with animals, not having to make the species jump in the first makes it exponentially worse.
Even if the meat would be very well prepared, someone would have to handle it when it's raw, and then spread it to the community.

>>5698479
Seems like a case of just cooking things, if things get really really bad.

>>5698491
It's not enough to just cook, it would have to be very well cooked (or frozen, or even salted) to make sure it's all dead, there are some really hardy parasites around. The body would also have to be butchered quite a lot first, by people that don't skip any sanitary precautions. I imagine it would take quite the mental toll, even if the butcher doesn't have to kill the person.
Also probably avoid the digestive systems and brain, it like. I think I read somewhere that the human body can transmit prions that can give a horrible death as well, but it has been years I think it was in an article during that time when zombie apocalypses where everywhere in pop culture.
I'm mainly talking about of some sort of industrial level human meat thing here though. In this case, I imagine that there is some danger because even though people seem to have some idea about germ theory, it seems to be for cultivators or the more educated. The person in charge probably chose jerky because it's the type of food that likely make it the cleanest, since it would have been cooked, dried and salted, but there is still risk of mishandling. But the biggest risk of disease probably will be from the people that prepared it catching something and spreading to others, unless they used masks, gloves, constantly washed their hands, and never accidentally scratched themselves or some mindless mistake.
Although I admit that my vote is entirely because I find the idea gross, and not for rational motives.

>>5698505
I might have written too much.

>>5698334
>You're still with Huo Mi on this - things are too suspicious. You're not eating the meat. Kai can have it, if he's so eager on it.
>Keep in and around the house. It'll be much warmer inside and you'll hear anyone that tries to mess with the place pretty easily from inside. And you'll be less exposed that way too.
>You don't see any reason to bring someone with you - you're just keeping a watch on the place to see if someone is stealing wood. It'd be a waste of their time and would make it easier to catch sight of you ahead of time, scaring whoever it was off before you could figure out who it was... assuming that there's still someone doing this, and that the most recent thing wasn't just the weather.

>>5698334
>You're still with Huo Mi on this - things are too suspicious. You're not eating the meat. Kai can have it, if he's so eager on it.
we can simply wait for our body to be all demanding of food before eating mystery meat.

>Write-In
no stakeout at all, thats just way to silly. either all our firewood is gone, or someone is deliberatly trying to get us to stay at the house overnight. if you need fire wood why would you only take token amounts? you take as much as you can carry, whats anyone go'n do with a days worth of firewood? if we are to paranoid to eat mystery meat we are to paranoid staking out because of 2 missing boards and some (read barely nothing) missing firewood. Also ask huo mi what she thinks about token amount of firewood missing, plus those 2 planks.
also we could just ignore it and use this coldheartedly to make our mother to stay with chars family, "oh no someone dismantled the house overnight".

>>5698334
>Maybe Kai's right and you're overthinking things
Cultivating requires energy and Tetsu needs more of it.

>Don't bother with stakeout.
If squatters come, so be it. Take the valuables to Char's, repair the house but lets not linger because the longer we are here then the more risk is presented by that rogue cultivator.

Heads-up, I'm planning on updating later today.
Current votes are:
>>5698335 >>5698450 >>5698746 >>5698850 >>5700603
The meat is probably fine - 1
Don't risk it - 3
Write-In - 1
and
inside, alone - 3
don't do it all - 2

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>>5698335 >>5698450 >>5698746 >>5698850 >>5700603
With the influx of food, the work you're expecting to have to do, and the need to stay somewhat energized and alert for the stakeout later tonight, you decide to eat more than usual. Not quite enough to fight off the hunger pangs after doing this for the past while but, well, it helps. Every bit does really. You'll take a bit with you as well, assuming that you're going to stay up late. You might need it.

Of course, neither what you're eating now nor what you're eating later includes meat. While you would certainly like some, even if it's a bit oversalted, you are not willing to trust what the intake hands out. Conjecture or not Huo Mi has brought up enough points to make you doubt any meat you receive, particularly under these circumstances. For better or worse you don't feel willing to be as carefree about the issue as Kai is being, even if it might seem a bit paranoid.

For the rest of the day, alongside your usual activities, you prepare for the repairs on the house. First you select some candidate boards to replace the missing ones with. You sand them until they're good enough to work with and then treat the wood. Once you're done quite some time has passed and you decide to just read until it's time to set off.

You set off for the family home a short while before dusk sets in. Beforehand you prepare your bow, spear, repair materials, and pack. It's a bit of a load but it's not like you've never carried that much before. Even if you are lacking in energy it'll be fine as long as you pace yourself.

And pace yourself you do. By the time you arrive it's gone from just before dusk to a ways into it, sunlight quickly fading. Hoping to get the repairs done with while it's still light you get to work fitting the new boards. What you have on hand doesn't quite fit perfectly so you have to cut it to fit. Lacking proper tools you make do with Kai's hunting knife. A few cuts on wood won't hurt it after all, as long as it's kept sharpened.

Cutting with the knife is a pain in ass but thankfully possible. A few rough cuts later and you have a plank of wood that more or less fits. It makes you wish you had thought to measure out the missing pieces exactly ahead of time but... oh well. You made do. That done with you remove a file from your bag. It's a rather large and coarse one. Inappropriate for delicate work, but fine for something like this. You get to work evening out the cut areas so that they're sanded... well, not nicely, but acceptably.

Not too long later you have a finished board to work with. A couple small places where you cut it are still untreated, but, well... that's not the end of the world. You can try taking care of that tomorrow, before you shove in something as filler between the board and the surrounding ones to keep air from leaking.

>>5701309
Once you've hammered the board into place you get to work on the next one, following much the same process. A splinter and some exertion later and you're done, that board in place too. That makes the repairs about 90% done in terms of effort, with just some finishing touches left for later.

That done with you head back into the house and set your pack down. You glance around as you do. It's almost pitch black, almost no light leaking in, but you can see well enough. There's... well, nothing. Or almost nothing. A bit of snow coats part of the floor, having leaked in from the missing boards, and a hearth sits in the middle of the room, the last remnant of what you couldn't leave with. It's depressingly empty.

You do your best to shake off the melancholy brought about by looking at the place and take a breather, sitting against one of the walls. You eat a bit of wastebread as you lie there, recovering from your earlier exhaustion. Then, feeling well enough, you get up again, deciding to get rid of any snow leftover from the leak. That doesn't take very long, leaving you naught but your stakeout to focus on.

For the next... couple of hours, you think, you lie there with a sheet laid over you for warmth, near motionless. During that time you struggle to stay awake. Or, well, that's what you'd say. For all you know you might've fallen asleep without notice. When there's nobody around to tell you if you've fallen asleep or not it can be kind of difficult to tell. But eventually you are stirred to attention by a barely audible noise outside. The sound of branches and leaves being snapped underfoot as someone approaches.
>Slowly stand up and exit the house. You'll go find a position with a view of the house so that you can watch them from there.
>Slowly stand up and exit the house. You'll circle around back and keep watch from there.
>Slowly stand up and exit the house. You'll try moving towards the direction the sound was from, to see if you can spot who it is.
>Grab your spear, stand up, and walk to the door. If they get up to anything odd you can leave and go after them quickly, and if they come inside they'll find you.
>Grab your bow, stand up, and keep aim on the door. Just in case.
>Grab your things and move to one of the corners on the door's side of the room, where moonlight coming inside couldn't illuminate you. You want to stay hidden for now.
>Grab your things and move to one of the deep corners of the room, far away from the door. You want to stay hidden for now.
>Write-In

>>5701310
>Grab our things and move to the deep corner of the room.
>Keep our spear handy, the gloom won't let us draw it easily.

>>5701310
>>5701370 +1

>>5701310
>>Grab your things and move to one of the corners on the door's side of the room, where moonlight coming inside couldn't illuminate you. You want to stay hidden for now.


>>5701370
>the gloom won't let us draw it easily.
wdym? do you mean drawing our bow? whats the gloom have to do with that? likewise for spear.

>>5701310
>Grab your things and move to one of the corners on the door's side of the room, where moonlight coming inside couldn't illuminate you. You want to stay hidden for now.

>>5702070
I mean that it's pitch black and hiding in deeper darkness don't lend itself well to drawing a long weapon quietly or proficiently without getting it stuck on something, like a wall, table or our blankets.

I'll update tonight and roll if there's a tie then.

>>5701370
Supportan this

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>>5701370 >>5701858 >>5702070 >>5702108 >>5702158
Your first instinct is to go outside and investigate the noise, but that might be... risky. For now you should prepare yourself and stay hidden. If they end up coming inside then you'll figure out who they are sooner or later anyways. No need to play your hand too quickly.

After a moment of consideration you stand up and start gathering the things strewn around you. You take them along with them to the far corners of the room, stepping quietly as you do. The quiet sounds of your boots on wood fill the room as you do so. Once you arrive you stow your things flush with the wall again and move to remove your spear from your back, wanting to have it at the ready in case anything happens.

Once that's done with you refocus your attention on what you can hear. After those first sounds you haven't heard anything else. Whether that's because you drowned it out, just weren't paying attention, or because they stopped, you're not sure. An anxious few seconds later hear the sound of another twig breaking, someone moving around just outside the house. Your breath catches slightly and you freeze up, staying as still as possible while you listen.

A few seconds of silence, and then another sound. And a couple of seconds later a loud thump from just behind you. You struggle not to jump. Then the sound of something hitting wood repeats a couple more times, just from the other side of the wall. Are they trying to take more wood?

The sound doesn't last as long as you expect, going on for only about half a minute before abruptly stopping. Confused, you continue straining your ears in hoping of catching something else. Then, a few seconds later, it comes. The sound of the door swinging inward on its hinges as someone forcefully shoves it open all at once.

You focus your attention on the door as you stand away from it, practically unmoving. A strong light comes in from the doorway, illuminating the one-room house as best it can. Even though the door is blocking your view you can tell that it's definitely not moonlight. Naturally, whoever came brought a lantern.

>>5702531
Two heavy footsteps sound out as someone creeps inside, the light drawing further in. You want to draw back so as to stay away from it, but can't move any further, already backed into the room's corner as you are. Not that you need to. The door's blocking the light from reaching you. For now, at least.
>You stay where you are, still. There's not much of interest here. They'll probably leave in a few seconds more.
>You raise your spear and prepare to rush forward. Once they step past the door it won't be long before they notice you. You'll take the chance to attack then.
>You call out towards the intruder. It would be for the best if this ends peacefully.
>You stay where you are, still. If they step inside two things could happen: They could turn left or they could turn right. If they turn left, then they'll see you. If they turn right, then they'll turn their back to you. ...You'll gamble you chance on them turning right, and prepare to attack when their back is turned.
>Write-In

>>5702532
>You call out towards the intruder. It would be for the best if this ends peacefully.

>>5702531
>>You call out towards the intruder. It would be for the best if this ends peacefully.

>>5702531
Yell "Private property!", rush forward and slam the door shut forcing this guy out of the house.

If they're the neighbourhood watch then they'll get the hint and respond verbally. If they're not, then they'll just try to force their way back in and we're in a solid room once more.

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>>5702546 >>5702709 >>5703023
You don't want to escalate the situation if it doesn't warrant it. After a moment of hesitation you call out towards the door in a loud voice. 「This is private property! Stay o-」

You're cut off by a much louder and more exasperated reply. "Fucking FINALLY. Thought you would never show up, you brat." The lantern inches forward further, lighting up the room and stretching past the door frame. As it does so you see that it's physically tied to someone's arm. That's an... interesting decision.

More interesting than that though is the face that follows, just barely peeking out from behind the doorframe. You freeze up as you see it. Deepset eyes, stringy black hair... you recognize that face.

Mere weeks ago this man tried to kill you.

Only a moment passes before he stops, seemingly content to stay at the doorway, staring in your general direction. He calms down as he continues speaking. "So, Tetsuya. I want to make a deal. I want my tools back." He stops speaking, just standing there, watching you as you adjust your stance and keep your spear raised towards him.

「Your... tools?」He nods his head a bit and "Yes. My tools. I left them at my camp. It's my understanding that you took them." Tools... the ones that Huo Mi found?「For torture?」The man pauses for a couple of moments. "And other things. But that too, yes."

An awkward silence falls as the two of you stare at each other. The man is the one to break it. "...So, my tools?" Your lips hang open as think of a response.「Why would I give them back to you?」A confused utterance slips out of the man's mouth as he stares at you.

"Well... I'll let you leave the house safely and not torch it, like I've been dying to for the last couple of weeks? I've got a lot of oil and not much else to use it on, really." He forces an odd smile towards you as he continues. "That offer even extends to after this - no torching your place as long as I get my stuff back! Frontiersman's honor. But if not... well, I lose something, you lose something."
>Break the deadlock and rush towards him. You're armed, so he'll have no choice but to get out of the way. You don't believe he could've set up much anyways - torching the place must be a bluff.
>「Fine... I accept. The tools are at Huo Mi's. Let's go.」She's the one that took the tools so odds are 9:1 that they're somewhere in her warehouse.
>「Fine, I accept. I gave the tools to Percival though, so they're at the intake. I'll need some time to get them.」It wouldn't be too out of the ordinary for you to give the tools to Percival, given that someone attempted to murder you. This should buy you some time to leave, at least.
>「Fine, I accept. The tools are in the woods. Follow me.」If you're in a dark forest then things should turn out the same as before. Time to end things.
>Write-In

>>5703046
>Break the deadlock and rush towards him. You're armed, so he'll have no choice but to get out of the way. You don't believe he could've set up much anyways - torching the place must be a bluff.

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>>5703046
>Break the deadlock and rush towards him. You're armed, so he'll have no choice but to get out of the way. You don't believe he could've set up much anyways - torching the place must be a bluff.
Fuck this, honestly our biggest problem is that we've often scared to fully commit, I don't buy this dude's bluff and he can taste the sharp end of our weapon. Worst case scenario we get a really nasty burn scar to freak people out.
No more bullshit. No more mindgames. Just pure unga bunga

>>5703108
Support

I am tired of this asshole's shit. This ends now. The fucking gall to show up and threaten us.

>>5703108
>>5703183
My first thought was to vote to lead him towards Huo Mi and attack him there, where hopefully her or one of the "guests" could show up when we started fighting.
But I voted to end it here and now because I'm also tired of him.

>>5703103 >>5703108 >>5703183
Alright, can I get three 1d100s? The more successes the better, DC of 55.

Rolled 60 (1d100)

>>5703231

Rolled 11 (1d100)

>>5703231

Rolled 5 (1d100)

>>5703231

>>5703249
One is better than none

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>>5703103 >>5703108 >>5703183 >>5703924
A frustration boils up inside of you. Curse this bastard son standing in front of you and whoever works with him. Does he really think he can just walk up, threaten you to your face, and get what he wants?

No. Not if you can help it, at least. You tighten the grip on your spear, straighten it out, and then kick forward with all your might, rushing towards the door. The man in front of you raises in eyebrow in response and quickly steps back, face and arm disappearing behind the front door.

It takes a moment for you to respond. By the time you process everything you're already next to the door. From around it you can make out part of the man. His left arm, partially bandaged, with a lamp tied to it, and his right... holding a sword at the ready, prepared to come down at any moment.

It's a bit too late to stop before you reach the door since you wanted to move in with as much speed as possible. Instead you swerve as far to the left as you can, trying to get out of range of his weapon. You succeed partially. As you pass the door he swings down, but he mostly misses. Only the tip of the sword connects with your right arm, leaving a glancing wound. Not deep, but not shallow either.

You come to a stop after passing by him, trying to face him again as quickly as possible. Instead of charging forward he just stays where he is, seemingly content to watch you from the doorway.

"So, that's a no then?"
>Say nothing and charge towards him again, this time head-on.
>Back away into the corner of the room and try to withdraw your bow. Maybe he'll just keep standing there long enough for you to shoot him.
>Withdraw your hunting knife from your belt and throw it at him. Maybe you can charge in with your spear while he's distracted by it.
>「...Not necessarily. I just had to give that a try first.」If might fails then you'll just have to negotiate.
>Write-In

>>5704087
>Say nothing and charge towards him again, this time head-on.

>>5704087
>Say nothing and charge towards him again, this time head-on.

>>5704087
>Say nothing and charge towards him again, this time head-on.

>>5704093 >>5704095 >>5704192
Three 1d100s, the more successes the better, DC 55.

Rolled 44 (1d100)

>>5704280
Surely we can't suck everytime we fight this guy.
Surely.

Rolled 17 (1d100)

>>5704280
I for one believe in our power to roll badly everytime.

Rolled 20 (1d100)

>>5704280

>>5704303
Even if we survive to the sect tryouts, I think we aren't getting in.

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>>5704283 >>5704303 >>5704384 >>5704386
I'll give a choice this time. Which consequence would you rather take?
>Disarmed.
>Non-permanently wounded. (sans possible scarring)

>>5704418
Disarmed

>>5704418

Take the wound and run at him again, I'm prepared to do this until someone dies or we wake up in a torture chamber with Kanekatsu.

>>5704418
>Non-permanently wounded. (sans possible scarring)

>>5704418
>none permenant wound

Left arm, right arm, torso, left leg, right leg.

Rolled 2 (1d5)

>>5704537
Whoops, dropped the dice.

>>5704093 >>5704095 >>5704192 >>5704384 >>5704522
Red flashes as you look back at the man in front of you. You don't bother to think, simply getting ready to move again. In response he just stares back at you, waiting. You charge forward again with your spear held straight in front of you, aimed towards his chest. Assuming he stood still and you have enough force, it could pierce straight through him. But he doesn't stand still.

While you're going as fast as you can your moves are actually clumsy and telegraphed. In your anger it's obvious what you're going for and when you're going to do it. He dodges with ease while you're running forward, sidestepping to his right. Then he stands there, watching you and preparing his own counterattack.

This doesn't go unnoticed. You move to follow his new position, but it doesn't help. You only end up lowering your speed and making yourself an easier target, while he moves out of the way once more, likely having expected this when he moved out of the way the first time. Your charge goes wide and only charges towards the wall behind him. As you rush towards him you feel the air leave your lungs. His sword stands still in midair, a distracting, the real attack having been a kick to the abdomen instead. Although it's not like he put that much force into it - he simply used your own speed against you.

You feel the urge to retch as you double over, still holding onto your spear. After a moment you stumble backwards, having lost your balance. The only thing that stops you from falling on your ass is your spear, which you end up grabbing onto with both arms like a cane, all so that you can stay standing. Only a single thought of confusion passes through your mind before you try and force yourself to stand steadily once more. But as you do you hear something from behind you. You glance back to see your opponent staring down from behind you, a bored expression on his face.

"Why do you have so many weapons when you're useless with them?" He stares as you regain your balance and turn to face him. "Well, whatever. I get the urge to keep weapons around. But more importantly..." He stares at your arm. "It's time to show you what getting stabbed in the arm feels like."

An intense sense of panic fills you and you try to move out of the way, backwards once more. But you can't respond quite in time. A moment before you can move back you see the glint of metal in front of you, approaching your right arm near the elbow. As it makes contact you feel like someone pushed you and are forced to the right a bit, stumbling that way and backwards. In what feels like slow motion you see the sword leave your arm as quickly as it entered, pulled back out during that movement.

>>5704552
As you stumble back you notice your spear sagging down, no longer supported from one side, so you hold it tight under your left shoulder and force it up with your left hand, pointing it straight. That way it would at least impale him if you ran at him. You spare a bit of attention towards your right arm and find that you're having trouble moving it - the area near your elbow is injured and you're struggling to put any force into it. Until it heals it will be effectively disabled. A particuarly troubling proposition given that you're right-handed.

The man flashes a rare smile as he looks at you. "An eye for an eye, an arm for an arm! All is fair in the world, huh? Although I might've gotten you a little worse than you got me. Oh well. Now, what should I..." You ignore him as he continues and look around. You've been pushed close one of the house's walls. You're still a ways to the door, but the man's not directly blocking it anymore - that's progress. Although he is still standing in front of you, so getting away probably won't be easy.
>Keep the spear raised and run forwards, aiming to impale him with it. There's less distance between you now, so maybe it's viable... although that might just prevent you from gathering enough force. It's a tradeoff, you guess.
>Let the spear drop and pull your knife from your belt. If you're going to be stuck with one arm you should use a one-handed weapon. Duck in and try to stab him with it,
>Let the spear drop and pull your knife from your belt and then throw it at him. It might be able to buy you some time to escape.
>Try to move around him and rush towards the door. You need to run.
>「...So, we were talking about your tools?」You can't get a read on this guy. Maybe if you go back to the original topic then he'll be willing to discuss that instead of pursuing this further.
>Write-In

Rolled 46 (1d100)

>>5704556
>Keep the spear raised and run forwards, aiming to impale him with it. There's less distance between you now, so maybe it's viable... although that might just prevent you from gathering enough force. It's a tradeoff, you guess.

He would never expect us to be dumb enough to try the same thing that failed twice before again with a handicap right? We now have the master plan.

Burning dice to shed bad luck

>>5704556
>Try to move around him and rush towards the door. You need to run.

>>5704556
>Keep the spear raised and run forwards, aiming to impale him with it. There's less distance between you now, so maybe it's viable... although that might just prevent you from gathering enough force. It's a tradeoff, you guess.
this is some impressively shit luck

>>5704556
>>Keep the spear raised and run forwards, aiming to impale him with it. There's less distance between you now, so maybe it's viable... although that might just prevent you from gathering enough force. It's a tradeoff, you guess.

>>5704641 >>5704654 >>5704768 >>5704788
Three 1d100s, DC 70.

Rolled 15 (1d100)

>>5704799
Come on, NAT 100 for fuck sake. Please dice gods

Rolled 37 (1d100)

>>5704799

Rolled 84 (1d100)

>>5704799
lol, lmao even
rollan

>>5704827
At least we got a SINGLE fucking success, jesus christ the dice dao hate our ass.

Rolled 4 (1d4)

>>5704537
Left arm, torso, left leg, right leg

>>5704849
great, we can't fecking walk.

>>5704641 >>5704654 >>5704768 >>5704788 >>5704806 >>5704827 >>5704865
You just need one good hit. That's all. If you get him down then plenty of options will open up to you and you can leave when you'd like. That in mind you ready yourself for one more attack. You're closer now so you might be able to hit him more easily. ...Or it might mean that you're out of your effective range and can't build up enough speed. You don't have enough experience to know for sure. Your only option is to try, really.

You run forward, spear in front of you, one last time. As the man looks on he just frowns, as if displeased. "This is getting boring." He forcefully pushes your spear aside with his sword. With only one arm's worth of strength put into it the spear goes along with it, stopping once it's harmlessly grabbed by his left hand. Then, with the right, he attacks once more. You practically run into the blade.

The one saving grace from the situation is that you manage to slow yourself down and not run into it with your chest, as he probably intended. The sword ends up hitting your right leg instead, impaling itself in your calf. You stumble forward as you're hit and watch as the ground rapidly approaches. You try to land on your knees but fail, meeting the ground face first instead.

Ow. Your everything hurts.

As you lay there, your warmth beginning to pool underneath you, you hear humming. The man is humming a pleasant song. Then, the humming starts to lower. He's going to crouch. To retrieve his sword, maybe?
>Stay as still as possible and pretend to be unconscious. Maybe he'll just leave, figuring you'll bleed out.
>Move your left arm slowly and reach for the knife on your belt. When he crouches down to remove your blade is your last chance.
>"You... still interested in those tools?" It's hard to speak with your face to the ground, but perhaps it's time to make amends.
>Write-In

>>5704866
>Move your left arm slowly and reach for the knife on your belt. When he crouches down to remove your blade is your last chance.

>>5704866
>Left arm slowly

He's going to set the damn place on fire is what he's going to effing do.

>>5704867 >>5705013
Three 1d100s, DC of 60. You really want 2 passes or more, although 1 success isn't necessarily going to result in death.

Rolled 76 (1d100)

>>5705137

Rolled 23 (1d100)

>>5705137
Come on dice, have mercy

Rolled 24 (1d100)

>>5705137
Okay dice.

Either it's 60 or not. We leave it too you.

>>5705237 >>5705381 >>5705390
You slowly stretch your arm towards you belt as the humming draws closer, straightening it inch by inch. Then, when he's probably just above you, you grab a hold of the hilt. A short pause follows as you pull back a bit and make sure your knife can be drawn with how you're lying. It can. You muster all the strength you can in your left arm as you pull the knife from your belt in one smooth motion and try to stab it into the man in front of you. You lift your head lightly to see what's going on as you do so, wanting to adjust your aim.

What you see is that the man in front of you has suddenly stepped back, stumbling backwards so as to avoid your final struggle. You hear him let out a grunt as he backs out of reach, trying to regain his footing. "Close one!"
>Force yourself to roll over and try to lunge at him again. You need to wound him, although the possibility is slim without the element of surprise.
>Force yourself up as quickly as possible and move towards the door. Even if you can't run on this leg, you need to get out.
>「Your tools. I know where they are.」Maybe he'll still be willing to talk. ...Hopefully. If you're lucky.
>Write-In

>>5705662
>Force yourself up as quickly as possible and move towards the door. Even if you can't run on this leg, you need to get out.

>>5705662
>Force yourself up as quickly as possible and move towards the door. Even if you can't run on this leg, you need to get out.
Man we're so fucked, it's over...
hard to get mad when we had such terrible luck

>>5705681
Yeah, it was just how the dice fell.
Nothing to do about it.

>>5705682
And just to be sure, I'm not being sarcastic.

>>5705668 >>5705681
Let's see if the dice shine upon you in the last possible moment. Three 1d100s, DC is 70.

Rolled 20 (1d100)

>>5705758
Something something enlightment via loss. Let's accept the consequences and see if the Dao has a merciful side. Honestly I wouldn't be too mad if we died though I would feel bad for failing to achieve the kid's promise considering we somewhat unintentionally groomed him. He deserved better

Rolled 80 (1d100)

>>5705758

Rolled 30 (1d100)

>>5705758
screw you dice, little bitches.

Rolled 56 (1d100)

>>5705758
one more for posterity

>>5705767 >>5705946 >>5706107
You start forcing yourself up with your good half, ignoring the searing pain from your leg and the limpness of your arm as best as you can. It probably only takes seconds for you to do so, but it feels excruciatingly slow knowing the stakes. Out of the corner of your eye you catch sight of the man doing the same... although his return to balance is much quicker. You struggle to hurry up.

Just as footsteps begin approaching you manage to eke out a few of your own. You lunge towards the door on your good leg, wanting nothing more than to just get through it. The biting cold of the snow outside is the best sensation you can imagine right now. You just want to be away from here.

But as the door nears so do the sounds coming from behind you. As you jerk yourself forward another force suddenly jerks you back, pulling on your injured leg to stop you. The familiar wooden floor greets you once more as you trip, thrown off balance. You yell out in pain and turn back to face the man, who's giving you an apathetic stare. His sword has fallen from your leg and is lying on the ground not too far away but he doesn't bother to retrieve it. Instead he moves to hold you down, trying to reach both hands towards you neck.

You know how he wants to end it.

And you know that you don't want that to happen.

But you don't know how exactly you can prevent it.
>Roll three 1d100s. The DC is 70.
Two passes are required to survive to another roll.

Rolled 47 (1d100)

>>5706161
The dice wants the quest to end

Rolled 64 (1d100)

>>5706161
The dice speak

Rolled 2 (1d100)

Well then.