altimit | catch all >> august

Pretty "spooky", huh?

[It suited them well indeed. Matoba didn't consider himself to be such a creepy or sinister person, although he was quite certain that others perceived him that way; the dark quiet and murk of the forest was calming, though. It reminded him of the mountains at night.]

[He follows along at a leisurely pace after Fandandiel, glancing about for any sign of monster or treasure.]

I suppose this will be a good spot to make use of our Lightning spell. We shouldn't have to worry too much about SP; I think we're a little overleveled still for this place.

We're a little over-leveled for everything at this point. I do hope they raise the level cap soon and boost the difficulty.

[ Having a close call in a game like this is thrilling, after all. He takes his time picking a direction through the murky woods and heading out. There's the barest peak of a stone wall rising above the treeline in the distance, so he suspects that's where they'll find the monsters. ]

Ah, so this is the Shadow element area? I'd been wondering.

Hear, hear! Power fantasy isn't all that exciting after a day or so. Life or death is so much more fun.

[Of course these two edgy ass Shadow Warlocks would be all over that. Maybe that's why they're so okay with being the squishy mage class?]

[Matoba is content to let Fandaniel take the lead, since he seems to be having such a good time getting in tune with the forest.] Ahh, your element, as they say.

Lightning magic should do nicely then. [And Matoba is eager to try out his new multi-target lightning spell.]

[ The terrible reality: he's fallen behind on levels, leaving him with only the single target lightning spell. Ah, he'll need to fix that. How embarrassing, but at least the area itself isn't actually harder. ]

Mm, it should.

[ His element indeed. No surprise he's a fan of this place, in that case. ]

Although I admit I appear to have lagged behind you during my trip abroad. I'll need to fix that...

[ That said, they're fast approaching the stone-wrought entrance of the dungeon. The murky forest parts way for it and around the entrance, statue-like Evil Armors wait to spring to life and attack. ]

[Never fear, Fandaniel; for all of 0koto's notorious behavior, when it comes to his guild, he's a team player. He wouldn't go and abandon his dear Telo leader, even if he's a little underleveled!]

[After all: sworn brothers look out for one another.]

Oho, you went abroad again? [Matoba sounds delighted.] Where to this time?

[--Ah. Maybe not the time for smalltalk, not with those HP bars appearing suddenly over the seemingly inert statues at the gate. Matoba opens his grimoire and casts PhaRai Rom, spreading out bolts of lightning over their foes. While he focuses on AoE, he'll let Fandaniel handle the singling-out.]

[ Are they sworn brothers, though? Fandaniel would claim he swore nothing, particularly since Telophoroi itself has no rules for its members. Still, he hardly has any underhanded plans for this run, and when the Evil Armors begin stirring and lumbering their way, he'll do just that.

Let Okoto handle the AOE while he finishes them off with lightning bolt after lightning bolt. ]

No, not again. I was in California for a little over a week and then I had the tournament to oversee. They just had to go and raise the level cap while I was out and about and busy.

[Not to worry, boss. Not that he expects anything of others........... It's about a united front, you see.]

[He can't let others go and get themselves bullied or beaten up, and let it reflect poorly on the rest of the clan. I mean, guild. :)]

I see..... That's the trouble with scheduled content updates, isn't it? [Matoba clicks his tongue, watching Fandaniel finish off the last of the Armor Evils.] I tend to try and finish everything very quickly while I can, so that I can relax for the rest of the patch. Ahhh, but my schedule tends to be very difficult to predict....

Do you perhaps work in tech as well, Fandaniel-san? In the capitol?

[ Everyone for the claaaaan-- wait, guild. Right. ]

Truly, I had not thought I would be as intent on keeping up in a beta as I have with this one. I suppose they've managed to figure out the exact ratio needed for a quick addiction, hm?

[ Because a lot of what CCCorp has put into this game is just that. Bursts of serotonin without the problems typically connected to them. In any case, the Evil Armors handled, it's onward! Into the dungeon itself! ]

The depends on what you consider the capitol to be. Kyoto or Tokyo? [ Some people are weird about it, okay? ] But no. It isn't tech that I wor in.

That's right....... Admin-kun said something to me about that, once, when I asked about the casinos in Lumina Cloth. "They wouldn't be addictive if they weren't enjoyable". So I suppose that would mean that you are enjoying yourself, Fandaniel-san.

[Or enjoying something about the experience, anyway. This technology had the ability to feed various needs in people, even if they barely interacted with the gameplay at all.]

Hahaha. But I take it you aren't a Kansai man. [Not with how he speaks. Matoba's accent tinges slightly for a moment, a deviation from standard Japanese to the looser tumble of southern Kumamoto-ben. (There aren't that many Japanese players in the beta, surprisingly enough; with the game's auto-translate, there's not so many chances to catch it.)] 'at's okay. Neither 'm I.

[He hums as they pass through the old stone walls and into the dungeon proper, actually looking like a proper "dungeon" with the spooky atmosphere. Matoba found himself quite liking it- on the alert for the sound of any other monsters.]

Finding the Shadow Warlock class rewarding, yet...?

You've got me. I am from Kanto, through and through, although I only live in Tokyo because of work.

[ If he could abandon the detestable place and move somewhere more open, quieter, without all this clutter, where everything closed and slept at night... ]

Ah, but I do admit I'm enjoying how actively I can mess with others in this game. It's just so much more satisfying when it feels this real.

[ Again, the walls ahead are lined with a new type of monster holding still, not unlike the Evil Armors, but these ones, with their massive shields, are clearly Shield Men. Once they're close enough, two-by-two, they begin to peel off their stands to face the two warlocks. ]

Hmm, though I wonder, sometimes, how much fun Harvest Cleric must be. It seems to do well for Hien at a high level. [ He'll crack out some more lightning at the approaching mobs, this time with double damage thanks to their elemental weakness. ] But Shadow Warlock fits me very well. And yourself?

[Time to move into the mountains, Danny boy.]

[Fandaniel-san... He's a strange one, isn't he? But Matoba doesn't dislike his sense of menace. Whether it's due to a sense of resentment and striking back at the world for some belittled salaryman, or simply just a natural result of his personality, it's entertaining and fun to watch.]

[As long as he stayed in his lane, of course.]

Oh... How threatening. [Matoba stops to open his grimoire again as the Shield Men face them. They ought to have very high Physical Defense, but how about their Magic Defense? Matoba starts out by casting a BiJuk Rom to fill the corridor with sharp leaves swirling around the enemies, trying to hit them from the back behind their shields.]

I get the sense that he was able to mix and match and design-his-own, [Matoba demurs, as if Hien didn't tell him straight up when he asked.] As for me.... I think that it's more fun to do things in a game that you can't do in real life. Anyone could throw a punch, or pick up a knife and stab someone. [C-can they??] But magic? That is a unique experience.

[ If he could, he would...

Ah, but will Fandaniel stay in his lane? Only time will tell but for now, these two are on an adventure as allies and so there's nothing to fear for now. If anything, the Area's monsters are what should be fearing, and fearing them at that. A pity they don't have feelings like that.

Still, the Shield Men turn out to be laughably easy for two casters. Their shields don't deflect magic anywhere near as well as physical attacks, so they'll find themselves being made short work of. ]

I'll give you that. [ The knife part doesn't seem to even raise an eyebrow with him, hello? ] If magic were real, our actual lives would be so much more interesting.

[Honestly, even if Matoba would be quite annoyed with Fandaniel messing about his plans, he thinks it might be fun at the same time. Maybe the reason they could get along, and the reason they were interested in one another, was the same- they both liked unpredictability, to a certain extent. And a bit of a challenge, too?]

[Danny has obviously gathered up a bunch of unherdable cats into this guild, so it's bound to happen....]

[With the Shield Men disposed of, they're free to continue on their way deeper into the stone walls, overgrown with murky vines and mist that make the atmosphere quite mysterious and aesthetic.]

Haha, don't you think? [What sort of life would Matoba lead if he could control his territory with magic? If he fought monsters for a living instead of other men? Would it be more peaceful, or less...?]

[He can't really imagine a life of peace. No, it would probably be impossible. He looks to Fandaniel.] --What would you do? If you could use magic in reality. How would things change for you?

[ Unheardable cats, yes, but that's also why the guild itself has no rules. ]

Hmm, what would I do, how would things change... why, if we are to assume everyone has some access to magic, I have no doubt the rich will still have their foot on the throat of mankind.

[ Further into the dungeon they go, only to be greeted by the distant rustle of something plant-like. Interesting. ]

So how could I use my magic for anything short of removing them from the equation?

[ If he's bitter about something, it doesn't show in his face or his voice. He says it all lightly like it's one big joke because it is, isn't it? They'll never have this power out there, what they have in the game. It's an impossible dream. ]

Although, first I think I would burn down the orphanage that I was stuck in for far too long. I think that might be... cathartic.

I suppose that's true, [Matoba agrees, on account of the "level" playing field. Fandaniel's bias sure doesn't escape his notice, but hey, could he be blamed? He isn't wrong. The wealthy who controlled the ivory towers of the world over would use that advantage the same as they used every other; it wouldn't be a power that changed the balance of the world. It would only shift how control was maintained.]

[But...]

Who do you think would take their place? [He smiles instead, flattening his back to one of the cool stone walls and peering around a corner. There they are; the Pumpkin Kings were awaiting them at the end, guarding the glint of a treasure chest in the broken courtyard.] In the vacuum that opened up.

[He pauses, and turns his smile up at Fandaniel brightly.] Orphanages, huh? I've heard some of those get run as tax schemes for yakuza.

[Haha, you know. He's just heard.]

Oh, you know. Either better people who will become corrupt over time or worse people who already are. The cycle is endless, isn't it?

[ Fandaniel is no starry-eyed hero. He would be killing them on his own whims, not for some greater good. He hates them, he hates what they've done to the world, and he hates how the world has simply accepted it.

Ah, ahead is treasure, he can see that chest, but when Okoto pauses, so does he. ]

Hm? [ A curious glance is thrown Okoto's way, followed by a lopsided sort of smirk. ] You don't say. Well, then I suppose I would have to add them to the hit list for taking part in that.

[Isn't that fun? Matoba smiles at Fandaniel's cynicism... Or maybe it was realism. Yes, that was likely exactly what would happen- if you erased one echelon of power, the next would simply rise up and take its place. If not money, then might; if not might, then influence. No matter the resource, people would try to control each other.]

[Because, after all: a level of control was necessary.]

[Of course this world bred individuals like Fandaniel who would try to rebel, uselessly, against it.]

Oya? [He grins back as the Pumpkin Kings notice them, and charge to attack. He readies a GiVak Kruz from his grimoire; time to set the plants aflame!] Yes... I suppose you'll have to.

[ Fire isn't the most effective spell to use against the Pumpkin Kings but just as Matoba thinks it, Fandaniel is of the same thought. He summons up flames to launch at the first pumpkin-headed plant monster that comes wriggling out into the light, and again, and again. ]

Yes, them and then everything else. I would burn the whole world to ashes and then myself. If there is no one at all, then who can abuse that power?

[ Destroy everything, let God or the planet or whoever knows what sort it out. ]

[Boy. Gee. And Matoba thought he had issues.]

[But he gives the question its due, and thinks on it as he queues up his spells. He frowns as the fire doesn't seem to be doing a lot of damage. Ah, that's right. The previous enemies had been Darkness, right? So he cues up a MiRai Kruz instead, zapping the closest Pumpkin King.]

[Ahh, much more effective. And satisfying, to watch its body convulse as it's electrocuted.]

So you acknowledge that even you would not be able to resist the allure of power? [He's charging up another lightning as the rest of the Pumpkin Kings draw close.] An unfortunate byproduct of being a living thing; the drive to survive means surviving at the cost of others. Greed can't be stamped out of us.

[ Fandaniel has some, uh... issues. Yeah. ]

You said it yourself: an unfortunate byproduct of being a living being.

[ Fandaniel snaps out a MeRai Kruz of his own to follow up on Matoba's, leaving that first Pumpkin King to crumble. Briefly, he wonders if they'll ever be able to collect actual pumpkin drops from those. Hmm, monster pumpkin croquettes... pumpkin tempura... what else? ]

Although I would contest that greed is not a trait of a living being, only a human being. We are fully capable of deciding to help one another above all else and yet? We aren't allowed to, not to any useful extent.

Edited 2023-09-04 15:29 (UTC)

[Look at you, Daniel, thinking crafty already! Matoba has hardly gotten around to paying attention to monster drops still; he's not a very artistic-minded guy. But maybe once he notices Fandaniel gathering up the spoils, he'll think to join in!]

[Now with the rest of the Pumpkin Kings shambling forward, he lets loose a larger PhaRai Rom to do a good chunk of damage, while Fandaniel focuses on taking out the rest with his single-target attack.]

All living creatures compete for resources, no? I see... Is your argument that our evolved sense of morality should raise us above that base squabble for resources, then?

I wonder. Even if we have the means, could that knowledge still erase our natural instincts? Maybe... But all it takes is one marble to knock all the dominoes down.

[He says, timed with tumbling one of the Pumpkin Kings. Poetry!]

Should it not do exactly that?

[ Lightning, lightning, and more lightning, and soon enough, the last of the Pumpkin Kings fall, and even though Fandaniel is considering what kind of foods could be made using their parts, those drops have not yet been added to the game. Thus, it remains wishful thinking.

Ahead, beyond the slowly despawning monsters, the treasure chest, glinting away in the candlelight of the dungeon.

As to their... what is this now? A philosophical debate? ]

Why develop reason and morality and the idea of what's right and wrong if we will only ever resort to acting as beasts scrabbling in the dirt at the first sign of hardship? Why evolve at all in that case?

[If only they could collect some hefty pumpkins! It'd be just in season for pumpkin bread and pumpkin cupcakes. Alas. :(]

[Matoba waits in the wake of the fallen Pumpkin Kings, shiftily glancing about to listen for the sounds of any more monsters, but the clearing goes quiet. All done? He cautiously lowers his grimoire, bound by thickly-woven silk cords around his waist, and steps forward towards to cross the approach to the chest.]

"Why"... Hmm. [He crosses over the head of a fallen Pumpkin King as it despawns, barely regarding the monster's corpse.] "Why".... "Right and wrong"... Do you think that you have a well-developed sense of "right" and "wrong", Fandaniel-san?

[ They could do so much with pumpkins, so much! Fandaniel will have to send a complaint to Hien, noting to do exactly that when the Pumpkin Kings leave absolutely zero delicious pumpkins behind. ]

Do I? A fair question to ask. I would like to think that I do...

[ Ah, but there's a huge "but" in that sentence somewhere, left unsaid. He trails along after Matoba, following him along to the chest, though he isn't too keen to open it himself. That inevitably fruitcake discovery is aaaall yours, pal. ]

Only we all have different ideas of "right" and "wrong", don't we?

Exactly~

[And thus, you've stumbled upon the problem, Danny! Matoba cheerfully calls back as he runs his hand along the front of the digital treasure chest and hits the button to unlock it, thus revealing their spoils:]

[Ah, a fruitcake! Matoba will never say no to a sweet, no matter how hard it is. He sticks it into his inventory with a pleased hum. No armor today, but that's alright...]

And thus, if we cannot all agree on what is "moral", then it's not a real "law", is it? How can we humans place ourselves above the beasts that are loyal to what is factual? And what is factual is survival...

[He dusts off his hands as the treasure chest despawns.] ...And power.

catch all >> august

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me not realizing the level cap was raised actually ignore me OTL

no worries!! however you wanna play it timing-wise :3

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