- what?:
Catty Spas
Katsumi
- 
- 
- 
Lineage : Feeling Empty
Position : None
Posts : 194
Guild : Luminous Rose
Cosmic Coins : 0
Dungeon Tokens : 0
Mentor : Shane
Experience : 28,105
Katsumi- - - -
Lineage : Feeling Empty
Position : None
Posts : 194
Guild : Luminous Rose
Cosmic Coins : 0
Dungeon Tokens : 0
Mentor : Shane
Experience : 28,105
Katsumi looked around Hosenka. It was vaguely reminiscent of a town in LAO on the 37th floor. She'd loved it there. It had been a place of relaxation. Hosenka seemed to be such a place as well. The air was warm, moist from the various hot springs. Spas seemed to be around every corner. The owners hawked outside them, trying to draw Katsumi into their warmth. She wanted to. She really did. Relaxing would be amazing. She'd had such a rough time of things recently. Soaking in warm water might make her worries disappear for a while. Getting the stress off her shoulders would do wonders.
However, there was no time for such activities. There was a thief on the loose and Katsumi had been dispatched to take care of them. The sneak thief looked like a shadowy cat according to witnesses. They'd made off with roughly 200,000 jewels worth of loot. A hefty sum. It really made the Rune Knight wonder why they hadn't contacted anyone for help earlier than this. They could have saved many valuables. Even contacting one of the legal guilds would have been a smart idea. Civilians. Unless that call hadn't been made by the town. It was possible the law enforcement here had made it.
Katsumi went to the latest crime scene to see what she could find. The thief had almost been caught here. There had been a scuffle between the owner and the thief. A couple streets away where a trap had been set, the thief had been encountered again. Katsumi suspected stealing from under the cops noses had been merely an act of arrogance. The thief hadn't fought with anyone there however. They'd managed to slip in, take a few things and slip out. Katsumi had a feeling that the thief had allowed themselves to be seen there. A big middle finger aimed at the police. Perhaps the pride of this division of the Rune Knights was why it had taken a while for help to be called in. No one liked to call for backup. Or at least so Katsumi assumed cause she hated calling for backup.
The scene of the crime was a complete mess. The thief and the owner had tumbled through a few things. Yet the thief hadn't lost any of their loot. Katsumi tried to recreate the fight in her mind from the evidence she could see. The owner had opened their bedroom door. The thief had been in the middle of taking a glass angel. It was there broken on the floor. Katsumi looked over the report in her hands. The angel must have broken when the owner launched themselves at the thief. A slender eyebrow rose at that. A civilian had immediately leapt into danger? Seemed a little out of the ordinary. Weak players in LAO had cowered behind the stronger players. Some had tried to stand beside them and most ended up dead. This guy must be of the same idiocy as those guys. Though he was lucky. He'd only ended up with a few scratches mostly from crashing into things. The theif hadn't tried to hurt him at all.
Katsumi walked around the edge of the ruined room, tracing the path of the fight. Broken angel to the wall. There was a sizable dent there. A quick examination of it revealed nothing was left behind. From there into the table. There was a skid mark on the floor where it had been pushed back. Nothing to find there. They had rolled over the table before smashing into the bookcase, spinning and slamming into the couch. According to the statement, they'd tipped over the couch. As they went over, they'd split apart. When the civilian rose again, the thief was gone. Katsumi checked the surface of the table, the bookshelf and the couch. Nothing. It was odd. She expected to have found at least a jewel or a small trinket. If the thief had had a bag or pockets, one or the other surely would have fallen out.
The lack of valuables or discernible marks led Katsumi to believe the thief was magic. There were other clues pointing to it but it was always good to double check and back up what you knew. Katsumi was betting the magic was spatial in nature. It would explain the ease of the thief's entrances and exits. It also lent an explanation as to why none of the thief's loot had fallen out. However, Katsumi wasn't going to put all her chips in that pot. She'd seen too many players bite it in LAO from putting everything into an assumption. There was always explanations you didn't think of.
Katsumi moved outside the crime scene. "Thank you officer." She bowed to the man that had allowed her inside. "I've gotten everything I can from the crime scene. The other sighting was over on Third and Cranial, yes?" The officer nodded, scratching the back of his neck. "Yes ma'am but you won't find much. He got in and out without anyone seeing him. He let himself be seen when he stopped at the corner." Katsumi frowned, tapping her cheek with her finger. "What makes you think the thief is a he? Couldn't they be a woman? There isn't a clear description from what I hear."
The Rune Knight had the decency to blush at his slip up. "I'm sorry, ma'am. The thief could be either or neither. We don't have the information to pinpoint anything other than they have black hair -- or fur -- and are cat-like at the very least." Katsumi smiled at the man, patting him on the shoulder. "Keep that up and you might make a higher rank soon. Never make assumptions. It muddies up whats in front of you and keeps you from seeing clues you don't consider relevant to your theory. I'll check out that other scene just to see if I pick up on something you boys missed." She flashed him a toothy grin before strolling down the street. Her white coat flared behind her, briefly catching the sun. This case wasn't going to be an easy one. Bias police and lack of evidence were going to stand in her way. She could really use someone with an outside perspective. That would help her investigation quite a bit.
WC: 1058
@Chalk
However, there was no time for such activities. There was a thief on the loose and Katsumi had been dispatched to take care of them. The sneak thief looked like a shadowy cat according to witnesses. They'd made off with roughly 200,000 jewels worth of loot. A hefty sum. It really made the Rune Knight wonder why they hadn't contacted anyone for help earlier than this. They could have saved many valuables. Even contacting one of the legal guilds would have been a smart idea. Civilians. Unless that call hadn't been made by the town. It was possible the law enforcement here had made it.
Katsumi went to the latest crime scene to see what she could find. The thief had almost been caught here. There had been a scuffle between the owner and the thief. A couple streets away where a trap had been set, the thief had been encountered again. Katsumi suspected stealing from under the cops noses had been merely an act of arrogance. The thief hadn't fought with anyone there however. They'd managed to slip in, take a few things and slip out. Katsumi had a feeling that the thief had allowed themselves to be seen there. A big middle finger aimed at the police. Perhaps the pride of this division of the Rune Knights was why it had taken a while for help to be called in. No one liked to call for backup. Or at least so Katsumi assumed cause she hated calling for backup.
The scene of the crime was a complete mess. The thief and the owner had tumbled through a few things. Yet the thief hadn't lost any of their loot. Katsumi tried to recreate the fight in her mind from the evidence she could see. The owner had opened their bedroom door. The thief had been in the middle of taking a glass angel. It was there broken on the floor. Katsumi looked over the report in her hands. The angel must have broken when the owner launched themselves at the thief. A slender eyebrow rose at that. A civilian had immediately leapt into danger? Seemed a little out of the ordinary. Weak players in LAO had cowered behind the stronger players. Some had tried to stand beside them and most ended up dead. This guy must be of the same idiocy as those guys. Though he was lucky. He'd only ended up with a few scratches mostly from crashing into things. The theif hadn't tried to hurt him at all.
Katsumi walked around the edge of the ruined room, tracing the path of the fight. Broken angel to the wall. There was a sizable dent there. A quick examination of it revealed nothing was left behind. From there into the table. There was a skid mark on the floor where it had been pushed back. Nothing to find there. They had rolled over the table before smashing into the bookcase, spinning and slamming into the couch. According to the statement, they'd tipped over the couch. As they went over, they'd split apart. When the civilian rose again, the thief was gone. Katsumi checked the surface of the table, the bookshelf and the couch. Nothing. It was odd. She expected to have found at least a jewel or a small trinket. If the thief had had a bag or pockets, one or the other surely would have fallen out.
The lack of valuables or discernible marks led Katsumi to believe the thief was magic. There were other clues pointing to it but it was always good to double check and back up what you knew. Katsumi was betting the magic was spatial in nature. It would explain the ease of the thief's entrances and exits. It also lent an explanation as to why none of the thief's loot had fallen out. However, Katsumi wasn't going to put all her chips in that pot. She'd seen too many players bite it in LAO from putting everything into an assumption. There was always explanations you didn't think of.
Katsumi moved outside the crime scene. "Thank you officer." She bowed to the man that had allowed her inside. "I've gotten everything I can from the crime scene. The other sighting was over on Third and Cranial, yes?" The officer nodded, scratching the back of his neck. "Yes ma'am but you won't find much. He got in and out without anyone seeing him. He let himself be seen when he stopped at the corner." Katsumi frowned, tapping her cheek with her finger. "What makes you think the thief is a he? Couldn't they be a woman? There isn't a clear description from what I hear."
The Rune Knight had the decency to blush at his slip up. "I'm sorry, ma'am. The thief could be either or neither. We don't have the information to pinpoint anything other than they have black hair -- or fur -- and are cat-like at the very least." Katsumi smiled at the man, patting him on the shoulder. "Keep that up and you might make a higher rank soon. Never make assumptions. It muddies up whats in front of you and keeps you from seeing clues you don't consider relevant to your theory. I'll check out that other scene just to see if I pick up on something you boys missed." She flashed him a toothy grin before strolling down the street. Her white coat flared behind her, briefly catching the sun. This case wasn't going to be an easy one. Bias police and lack of evidence were going to stand in her way. She could really use someone with an outside perspective. That would help her investigation quite a bit.
WC: 1058
@Chalk
Eireen- - - -
-
Lineage : Empyrean Reaper
Position : None
Posts : 112
Guild : Hidden Blades
Cosmic Coins : 0
Dungeon Tokens : 0
Experience : 19,499
Character Sheet
First Skill: Melancholy
Second Skill: Edge of Infinity
Third Skill: N/A
Eireen strode silently through the streets of Hosenka, the black skirt of her military-esque uniform swaying with each step. That city was the lively kind of place with a perfect atmosphere for vacationers and tourists alike. But that also meant some more “unsavory” people gathered there to exploit such poor, naive people. But of course that specific time around she hadn’t come around for the sake of the super secret fun club she had joined. No, she was back to her usual manhunting ways, not like she was actually doing much things differently now that she was part of Hidden Blade. If you were to really dive into that matter, one would find Eireen hadn’t done much at all for the “club” if you thought about it. A few easy assassinations, but that was it, nothing noteworthy. She was still even considered a “newbie” purely because of how little time she put into the group. Realizing this, the pink haired woman could do little more than simply let out a sigh. “Eh, whatever, I guess they’ll just kick me out…” She voiced internally.
“Gosh darn it Eireen, why do you have to be so non committal about things?” A voice ruptured through the reaper’s thoughts, one belonging to the ethereal Chance. His annoyance plainly displayed in his voice, and although he had no physical body to speak of Eireen could perfectly imagine his expression based on voice alone. “You’ve joined the thing, and against my advisement not to! And now you’re just going to sit around and wait for them to tell you to stop loitering on their property?” He exclaimed, demeaning his retainer for such short sighted behavior. However, unlike how she usually would, the reaper stayed silent, not bothering to even offer her usual snarky reply. Instead, she turned sharply into an alleyway and abruptly closing her eyes. “Uh, Eireen? Are you deaf now? I spoke directly into your head, so your ears shouldn’t be effected...”
“Gotcha~!” Eireen remarked, a fluffy white squirrel dog thing materializing in her outstretched hands. It’s tail was nearly as long as it’s entire body, and just as soft. She began petting it without another thought, her gaze smug yet triumphant.
“Eireen, what the heck?” Chance said, who was coincidentally the very creature Eireen was caressing. Well, it didn’t happen randomly per say, if the ethereal wasn’t on guard Eireen could do all sorts of things with him. And that included forcing him to assume a corporeal form of her personal preference, which of course was something she found adorable. “What even am I supposed to be…?” Chance queried, looking over his body with disdain he didn’t even try hiding.
However, EIreen chose to ignore him, simply petting Chance with greater vigor. “Who’s a good boy? That’s right, you are~!” She cooed with a voice dripping with mock tenderness.
“Eireen.”
The reaper snuggled the ethereal so close to her that half her face was buried in his poofy fur. “Aw, you’re so cute! I’ll make sure to feed you and give you baths and-”
“Eireen! Cut it out!” Chance yelped, cutting Eireen’s vows to care for him short. Unlike his previous attempts at communication, the woman actually brought Chance far enough away from her face to face him with an expression of underlying annoyance. “Why in the world did you force me into my corporeal form? It’s much less compromising when I don’t have physical stuff to worry about.”
“Well, I don’t want my little friend to become a hikikomori up in my head, do I?” Eireen answered promptly as if it made complete sense, beginning to cradle Chance in her arms like an infant. “Also I need it for my plan. You’re my informant, and I need you to be seen this time around.” She tacked on like an insignifigant afterthought.
An air of silence sat between the two before Chance simply sighed, “Is that really all you’re going to tell me? You’re such a pain sometimes, the pay off better be worth using all this energy...”
Eireen nodded, placing Chance on top her head and allowing for him to balance there. “You can’t pin down our target, so we’ll be doing it the old fashioned way! Word has it a special visitor will be here in Hosenka today.” She exclaimed, exiting the alley she had materialized Chance in to make her way through the city. “Trust me, I got this, I can even do some stuff for the club~” Eireen said with a distinct finality, poking the ethereal playfully. It was Hosenka after all, and some rich clients would probably like their things back plus interest. A target was a target after all, and their fate had already been sealed long ago.
WIth no time to waste, the reaper broke into a brisk job, weaving between the crowds of people. “Eireen, you’re going to have to watch out for people.” Chance said flatly, clinging onto the reaper’s head with a placid expression.
“Wha? I can’t hear you that well, it’s not the most quiet-” And that was when Eireen had found herself barrelling right into a raven haired woman. Of course, the pink haired woman found herself on the street, face to face with a stranger, and was about to book it without another word. That is until she got a good look at her. According to a rumour floating around, a Rune Knight had arrived to work on the case of a chain of burglaries. And if her sources were right, Eireen was looking right at that very person, however unlikely that may be. Just run down the street without paying attention and you’ll bump into the person you want to. The description matched up perfectly, although it was unfortunate she didn’t have a name to double check her guess. Anyways, she would just leg it, if it wasn’t them she’d move onto the next person.
“Hi, I heard of the case and I’m, like, soooo into mysteries. You should see how many books I’ve read, I predicted, like, um, all their endings!” She explained rapid fire. “And that’s why I, the rising junior detective, should assist you with this burglary case!” Eireen exclaimed, not actually providing a reason that she should “assist” besides her literary endeavors. After all, she wasn’t really asking, just informing the poor lady she’d be tailing her no matter what.
“Gosh darn it Eireen, why do you have to be so non committal about things?” A voice ruptured through the reaper’s thoughts, one belonging to the ethereal Chance. His annoyance plainly displayed in his voice, and although he had no physical body to speak of Eireen could perfectly imagine his expression based on voice alone. “You’ve joined the thing, and against my advisement not to! And now you’re just going to sit around and wait for them to tell you to stop loitering on their property?” He exclaimed, demeaning his retainer for such short sighted behavior. However, unlike how she usually would, the reaper stayed silent, not bothering to even offer her usual snarky reply. Instead, she turned sharply into an alleyway and abruptly closing her eyes. “Uh, Eireen? Are you deaf now? I spoke directly into your head, so your ears shouldn’t be effected...”
“Gotcha~!” Eireen remarked, a fluffy white squirrel dog thing materializing in her outstretched hands. It’s tail was nearly as long as it’s entire body, and just as soft. She began petting it without another thought, her gaze smug yet triumphant.
“Eireen, what the heck?” Chance said, who was coincidentally the very creature Eireen was caressing. Well, it didn’t happen randomly per say, if the ethereal wasn’t on guard Eireen could do all sorts of things with him. And that included forcing him to assume a corporeal form of her personal preference, which of course was something she found adorable. “What even am I supposed to be…?” Chance queried, looking over his body with disdain he didn’t even try hiding.
However, EIreen chose to ignore him, simply petting Chance with greater vigor. “Who’s a good boy? That’s right, you are~!” She cooed with a voice dripping with mock tenderness.
“Eireen.”
The reaper snuggled the ethereal so close to her that half her face was buried in his poofy fur. “Aw, you’re so cute! I’ll make sure to feed you and give you baths and-”
“Eireen! Cut it out!” Chance yelped, cutting Eireen’s vows to care for him short. Unlike his previous attempts at communication, the woman actually brought Chance far enough away from her face to face him with an expression of underlying annoyance. “Why in the world did you force me into my corporeal form? It’s much less compromising when I don’t have physical stuff to worry about.”
“Well, I don’t want my little friend to become a hikikomori up in my head, do I?” Eireen answered promptly as if it made complete sense, beginning to cradle Chance in her arms like an infant. “Also I need it for my plan. You’re my informant, and I need you to be seen this time around.” She tacked on like an insignifigant afterthought.
An air of silence sat between the two before Chance simply sighed, “Is that really all you’re going to tell me? You’re such a pain sometimes, the pay off better be worth using all this energy...”
Eireen nodded, placing Chance on top her head and allowing for him to balance there. “You can’t pin down our target, so we’ll be doing it the old fashioned way! Word has it a special visitor will be here in Hosenka today.” She exclaimed, exiting the alley she had materialized Chance in to make her way through the city. “Trust me, I got this, I can even do some stuff for the club~” Eireen said with a distinct finality, poking the ethereal playfully. It was Hosenka after all, and some rich clients would probably like their things back plus interest. A target was a target after all, and their fate had already been sealed long ago.
WIth no time to waste, the reaper broke into a brisk job, weaving between the crowds of people. “Eireen, you’re going to have to watch out for people.” Chance said flatly, clinging onto the reaper’s head with a placid expression.
“Wha? I can’t hear you that well, it’s not the most quiet-” And that was when Eireen had found herself barrelling right into a raven haired woman. Of course, the pink haired woman found herself on the street, face to face with a stranger, and was about to book it without another word. That is until she got a good look at her. According to a rumour floating around, a Rune Knight had arrived to work on the case of a chain of burglaries. And if her sources were right, Eireen was looking right at that very person, however unlikely that may be. Just run down the street without paying attention and you’ll bump into the person you want to. The description matched up perfectly, although it was unfortunate she didn’t have a name to double check her guess. Anyways, she would just leg it, if it wasn’t them she’d move onto the next person.
“Hi, I heard of the case and I’m, like, soooo into mysteries. You should see how many books I’ve read, I predicted, like, um, all their endings!” She explained rapid fire. “And that’s why I, the rising junior detective, should assist you with this burglary case!” Eireen exclaimed, not actually providing a reason that she should “assist” besides her literary endeavors. After all, she wasn’t really asking, just informing the poor lady she’d be tailing her no matter what.
1065 ❈ 1065
Last edited by Chalk on 26th June 2019, 4:26 pm; edited 1 time in total
Katsumi- - - -
Lineage : Feeling Empty
Position : None
Posts : 194
Guild : Luminous Rose
Cosmic Coins : 0
Dungeon Tokens : 0
Mentor : Shane
Experience : 28,105
Katsumi stumbled as someone ran into her. She got a flash of pink hair and something fluffy. Was this an attack? She pulled her Henkan from her belt, clicking the lacrima. A black sword blossomed in her hand. It was held at the ready as Katsumi stepped away from the person and dropped into a defensive stance. Her ears only slightly registered the words pouring from the woman's mouth. Her brow furrowed. She hadn't been assigned a partner. Though it didn't sound like the woman had been assigned per say. Rather that she had assigned herself. The Rune Knight slowly relaxed her stance. If this woman really was a detective, Katsumi didn't want to start an incident with the local police force.
LAO had made her very suspicious though. There were many people who claimed to be something they weren't. Others had smile in your face only to stab you in the back. There was no identification or uniform on this woman to suggest what she was saying was true. Then there was the fluffy thing. It was clinging to the woman's head. It reminded Katsumi of Pino in a way. The fluffy dragon thing that Selene had tamed in LAO. Why would a detective have something like that? None of this made a lick of sense. She decided to roll with it for now. This was what she got for being a Rune Knight. Had to work with suspicious people without regard for your own safety.
Katsumi slowly lowered her sword. "I could use the help, I guess. The perp is rather elusive by all accounts. I'm Recruit Katsumi of the Special Operations branch, Rune Knights." She stuck her free hand out in a semblance of friendliness. "It's nice to meet you, Ms. ..." The Rune Knight let the pink haired woman fill her own name in. She managed to plaster a smile on her face too despite it being rather delayed. Her lack of social skills was probably showing through. That was most likely why Ri had broken off their relationship. Couldn't have the inept girl at balls and parties now, could we?
Katsumi wasn't able to mask a grimace from those thoughts. This wasn't the time to grieve over her first real boyfriend breaking up with her. She'd taken this job to get her mind off of that anyway. There was nothing good about dwelling on such a painful experience. The Rune Knight turned away from the pink haired woman. "There's nothing at this crime scene. I was just heading over to the other sighting of the thief on Twentieth and Aerial. Apparently, you locals had a trap set up for them over there?" Katsumi used deliberately inaccurate information to see if this newcomer slipped up. She wanted to trust someone at her back or at least know enough to give them a glimmer of trust. If the woman could correct her, maybe she was telling the truth. If she couldn't, it was more likely she wasn't a detective at all.
Regardless of the woman's response, Katsumi smiled and began walking toward their destination. A few people looked at them as they passed. One or two spit in their direction. That reaction confused Katsumi greatly. Weren't the Rune Knights at least somewhat respected around here. She glanced at the sword in her hand. Maybe that was part of the issue. She deactivated the sword mode but kept the Henkan in her hand. No need to go anywhere unarmed as it were. The silent judgement of the locals made Katsumi feel uncomfortable. What had the Rune Knights done here in Hosenka? She'd have to take a look into it once the job was done. Perhaps she'd need to report it into her superiors over at the HQ. They could take a look into it better than she could. The silence was starting to get on her nerves however.
"So, you like mysteries, right? And reading?" She said to her companion as they turned onto Third Street. "Read any good ones? Have any you'd suggest?" There was barely any time for the woman to respond before a thug rushed them. Well not exactly a thug. Sweat poured down his brow. His body was painfully thin and Katsumi could see bones through the clothing that hung loosely on him. The arm holding his improvised weapon, a pipe, shook violently. It was amazing he could stand let alone run at them. Still he was an enemy. Her fist slammed into his stomach. He coughed, going down to the street. Katsumi knelt by his side.
"What was the point of that?" She asked softly moving the pipe away. "You can barely stand and neither of us really has anything to steal." A broad assumption on the part of her companion but Katsumi didn't care. It was better to make him think he'd done this for nothing, if money was the goal. "Not about money. You took my wife, my daughters. You bastards." The man wheezed. He scrambled weakly for the pipe. "Give them back. Give...them back. ...Them back." His voice faded as he slipped into unconsciousness. Katsumi looked up at the 'detective' with her.
"Know anything about that? Or is that as much of a shock to you as it was to me?" Katsumi asked, her voice hard. The Rune Knights of Hosenka were abusing their authority if what the man had said was true. She couldn't investigate that now however. There was another case that needed her attention. Once that was finished, she'd come back to Hosenka to find the truth on this matter. They were not going to get away with abusing the citizens. Katsumi pointed to a passerby. "You there! Take this man to the nearest medical facility. Here's a few jewels for the payment." She placed a few jewels in the woman's hand. Katsumi took the hand in a tight grip. Her cold eyes bore into the woman's. "You steal these and leave him here, I will hunt you down and drag you back to Max One. It's the prison below HQ where the worst of the worst are held. You wouldn't last a day." The woman nodded frantically, setting about to get the man to a medical facility.
Katsumi turned back to her 'partner.' "Shall we go? We have a thief to catch. Then I can report this back to HQ." The Rune Knight didn't wait for an answer. Instead, she turned on her heel and marched toward the next crime scene. No wonder the Rune Knights of Hosenka couldn't catch this thief. They were too busy abusing their authority. Probably. She couldn't let snap judgments cloud the truth. Not again.
WC: 1114
TWC: 2172
@Chalk
LAO had made her very suspicious though. There were many people who claimed to be something they weren't. Others had smile in your face only to stab you in the back. There was no identification or uniform on this woman to suggest what she was saying was true. Then there was the fluffy thing. It was clinging to the woman's head. It reminded Katsumi of Pino in a way. The fluffy dragon thing that Selene had tamed in LAO. Why would a detective have something like that? None of this made a lick of sense. She decided to roll with it for now. This was what she got for being a Rune Knight. Had to work with suspicious people without regard for your own safety.
Katsumi slowly lowered her sword. "I could use the help, I guess. The perp is rather elusive by all accounts. I'm Recruit Katsumi of the Special Operations branch, Rune Knights." She stuck her free hand out in a semblance of friendliness. "It's nice to meet you, Ms. ..." The Rune Knight let the pink haired woman fill her own name in. She managed to plaster a smile on her face too despite it being rather delayed. Her lack of social skills was probably showing through. That was most likely why Ri had broken off their relationship. Couldn't have the inept girl at balls and parties now, could we?
Katsumi wasn't able to mask a grimace from those thoughts. This wasn't the time to grieve over her first real boyfriend breaking up with her. She'd taken this job to get her mind off of that anyway. There was nothing good about dwelling on such a painful experience. The Rune Knight turned away from the pink haired woman. "There's nothing at this crime scene. I was just heading over to the other sighting of the thief on Twentieth and Aerial. Apparently, you locals had a trap set up for them over there?" Katsumi used deliberately inaccurate information to see if this newcomer slipped up. She wanted to trust someone at her back or at least know enough to give them a glimmer of trust. If the woman could correct her, maybe she was telling the truth. If she couldn't, it was more likely she wasn't a detective at all.
Regardless of the woman's response, Katsumi smiled and began walking toward their destination. A few people looked at them as they passed. One or two spit in their direction. That reaction confused Katsumi greatly. Weren't the Rune Knights at least somewhat respected around here. She glanced at the sword in her hand. Maybe that was part of the issue. She deactivated the sword mode but kept the Henkan in her hand. No need to go anywhere unarmed as it were. The silent judgement of the locals made Katsumi feel uncomfortable. What had the Rune Knights done here in Hosenka? She'd have to take a look into it once the job was done. Perhaps she'd need to report it into her superiors over at the HQ. They could take a look into it better than she could. The silence was starting to get on her nerves however.
"So, you like mysteries, right? And reading?" She said to her companion as they turned onto Third Street. "Read any good ones? Have any you'd suggest?" There was barely any time for the woman to respond before a thug rushed them. Well not exactly a thug. Sweat poured down his brow. His body was painfully thin and Katsumi could see bones through the clothing that hung loosely on him. The arm holding his improvised weapon, a pipe, shook violently. It was amazing he could stand let alone run at them. Still he was an enemy. Her fist slammed into his stomach. He coughed, going down to the street. Katsumi knelt by his side.
"What was the point of that?" She asked softly moving the pipe away. "You can barely stand and neither of us really has anything to steal." A broad assumption on the part of her companion but Katsumi didn't care. It was better to make him think he'd done this for nothing, if money was the goal. "Not about money. You took my wife, my daughters. You bastards." The man wheezed. He scrambled weakly for the pipe. "Give them back. Give...them back. ...Them back." His voice faded as he slipped into unconsciousness. Katsumi looked up at the 'detective' with her.
"Know anything about that? Or is that as much of a shock to you as it was to me?" Katsumi asked, her voice hard. The Rune Knights of Hosenka were abusing their authority if what the man had said was true. She couldn't investigate that now however. There was another case that needed her attention. Once that was finished, she'd come back to Hosenka to find the truth on this matter. They were not going to get away with abusing the citizens. Katsumi pointed to a passerby. "You there! Take this man to the nearest medical facility. Here's a few jewels for the payment." She placed a few jewels in the woman's hand. Katsumi took the hand in a tight grip. Her cold eyes bore into the woman's. "You steal these and leave him here, I will hunt you down and drag you back to Max One. It's the prison below HQ where the worst of the worst are held. You wouldn't last a day." The woman nodded frantically, setting about to get the man to a medical facility.
Katsumi turned back to her 'partner.' "Shall we go? We have a thief to catch. Then I can report this back to HQ." The Rune Knight didn't wait for an answer. Instead, she turned on her heel and marched toward the next crime scene. No wonder the Rune Knights of Hosenka couldn't catch this thief. They were too busy abusing their authority. Probably. She couldn't let snap judgments cloud the truth. Not again.
WC: 1114
TWC: 2172
@Chalk
Eireen- - - - -
Lineage : Empyrean Reaper
Position : None
Posts : 112
Guild : Hidden Blades
Cosmic Coins : 0
Dungeon Tokens : 0
Experience : 19,499
Character Sheet
First Skill: Melancholy
Second Skill: Edge of Infinity
Third Skill: N/A
Eireen flashed a grin at the woman upon seeing her immediately draw a sword seemingly without a second thought. But it was that precise thing that ignited the reaper’s interest, what in the world happened to this lady to make her so reactant? A perfect skill for anyone doing a mage’s work, but practically such an instinct would only be a nuisance. But who knew, the woman might just have something against people bumping into her. Either way, after she relaxed a bit after realizing the pink haired reaper didn’t have a gun or something. Well, she technically did, it was just tucked away nice and safe into her “armory”. But as the woman apparently called Katsumi asked for her name, Eireen cleared her throat, her answer already well defined in her head.
“I am Okashi-san, the fierce magical maiden raring to solve some mysteries!” Eireen held out both of her hands to make peace signs, striking a flashy pose to go along with her introduction. Chance let out a sigh at her over exaggerated mannerisms, shaking his head in disapproval. From the sorry excuse for a smile on the woman’s face, she guessed that either she hated talking to people or just wasn’t equipped to do so. Either way, it along with her very introduction to the woman only poked at her curiosity more.
“Oh? Nothing at all?” Eireen remarked. It was slightly surprising that a major organisation like the Rune Knights went into a crime scene and came out with nothing of substance, but in a sense being ineffective were what they were known for. It was a good thing that the thief decided to target more than one place, otherwise there wouldn’t even be a case. “Hm? A trap?” Eireen raised her head upon hearing of such a thing. Who would set up a trap for a human being? Locals weren’t exactly the perfect keepers of secrets, in fact one of the people working on the thing might’ve been the burglar. “I haven’t heard of anything like that, how ineffective…” She remarked, following closely behind Katsumi as she continued her route through the town.
As they did so, Eireen noticed some of the many not so savory gazes directed at her associate. She more or less ignored it, although she still found it intriguing. Whether or not their emotions were directed at specifically Katsumi or not was irrelevant to Eireen, she was just interested in the full story. However, she tore herself away from her pondering as the raven haired woman inquired about Eireen’s personal favorite mysteries. “Oh, I’ve read a lot of Chris-”
“Whoever it is I bet that they’re so old their books aren’t in print.” Chance interrupted, still holding a grudge against the pink haired woman for turning into a fluffy little creature. But all he got for his witty remarks was a swift knock on the head from Eireen. She was about to go as far as to rebuke him, but the fast approach of a third party, wait, wouldn’t it be fourth? Either way a deathly looking man rushed towards Katsumi with a pipe, a sorry excuse for a weapon. The reaper was a moment away from stepping between the two to apprehend the attacker, after all it would be a hassle that the person she had been looking for got killed all of a sudden. But it seemed like the Rune Knight had it under control, giving the frail man a punch to the gut. After that, she simply watched the two’s exchange after the brief, and overwhelmingly one-sided, scuffle.
A grin found itself spreading across Eileen's face as she heard the man’s words right before he passed out. How delightful, not only were the people of Halogen against Katsumi’s presence but one person was willing to attack her! She had wondered by extracting the woman’s information from the locals had been so simple, even if they thought Eireen was a hitman they would’ve gladly led her to her. But as the raven haired woman turned to speak to her, the reaper wiped off any sign of pleasure from her face. “No, but that was pretty random, huh?” She offered, shaking her head slowly. It was then Katsumi sentfor some medical attention for the unconscious man, handing the messenger jewels before sending them on their way. “Oh~? Kindly letting a potential charge of harassment get away before threatening someone?” Eireen said teasingly, a smirk displayed plainly on her face. But her associate had already began her route down the streets once more, prompting the pink haired woman to simply follow in her wake.
“I actually have an idea for this case,” She said abruptly, “To find the thief we must be the thief! If you were to steal from some place, you’d do it far away from where you actually hang out, right? Don’t want anyone to accidentally recognize you, and all those close by would look to each other first.” She held up a finger as she went on, “But that would bring up the issue of knowing who to target, but in a place like Hosenka that would be simple. Tourist who you’d know for a fact wouldn’t fight back, and yet our burglar went for someone who owned a house here.” Eireen turned her eyes towards her associate, “In fact, the civilian tackled the burglar, right? Any sensible person would just call the police in case they were armed. But then again, if you knew that person wouldn’t hurt you there’d be no need to take such precautions. Or that’s what I think at least.” Talking to the civilian would be a must, at least in Eileen's mind. Getting an idea if they were actually just an empty headed dunce would determine if her trail of thought was actually going somewhere. But a detail at the crime scene they were headed to may just point out another clue to add additional knots in the investigation.
Once they finally arrived, Eireen immediately began combing the scene for a hint towards the culprit. It was a flower shop of all things, the display glass shattered with fragments of glass littering the sidewalk. “I guess they did that upon their escape.” Eireen remarked out loud, stepping over the police tape surrounding the scene. “Chance, could you check it for traces of the culprit?” Without answering vocally, the white squirrel dog leapt off his place on top the reaper’s head, padding up the the broken glass to investigate.
“Lucky for us, there are traces of blood.” He murmured, sniffing a shard of glass tipped with a tinge of blood.
“Nice, can you try finding who it belongs to?” Eireen asked, placing her hands behind her head.
The ethereal nodded, quickly disappearing into an alleyway without another word. Eireen turned her blood red gaze onto Kasumi, “Alright, that’ll take him a while, however, do you still want to investigate?”
“I am Okashi-san, the fierce magical maiden raring to solve some mysteries!” Eireen held out both of her hands to make peace signs, striking a flashy pose to go along with her introduction. Chance let out a sigh at her over exaggerated mannerisms, shaking his head in disapproval. From the sorry excuse for a smile on the woman’s face, she guessed that either she hated talking to people or just wasn’t equipped to do so. Either way, it along with her very introduction to the woman only poked at her curiosity more.
“Oh? Nothing at all?” Eireen remarked. It was slightly surprising that a major organisation like the Rune Knights went into a crime scene and came out with nothing of substance, but in a sense being ineffective were what they were known for. It was a good thing that the thief decided to target more than one place, otherwise there wouldn’t even be a case. “Hm? A trap?” Eireen raised her head upon hearing of such a thing. Who would set up a trap for a human being? Locals weren’t exactly the perfect keepers of secrets, in fact one of the people working on the thing might’ve been the burglar. “I haven’t heard of anything like that, how ineffective…” She remarked, following closely behind Katsumi as she continued her route through the town.
As they did so, Eireen noticed some of the many not so savory gazes directed at her associate. She more or less ignored it, although she still found it intriguing. Whether or not their emotions were directed at specifically Katsumi or not was irrelevant to Eireen, she was just interested in the full story. However, she tore herself away from her pondering as the raven haired woman inquired about Eireen’s personal favorite mysteries. “Oh, I’ve read a lot of Chris-”
“Whoever it is I bet that they’re so old their books aren’t in print.” Chance interrupted, still holding a grudge against the pink haired woman for turning into a fluffy little creature. But all he got for his witty remarks was a swift knock on the head from Eireen. She was about to go as far as to rebuke him, but the fast approach of a third party, wait, wouldn’t it be fourth? Either way a deathly looking man rushed towards Katsumi with a pipe, a sorry excuse for a weapon. The reaper was a moment away from stepping between the two to apprehend the attacker, after all it would be a hassle that the person she had been looking for got killed all of a sudden. But it seemed like the Rune Knight had it under control, giving the frail man a punch to the gut. After that, she simply watched the two’s exchange after the brief, and overwhelmingly one-sided, scuffle.
A grin found itself spreading across Eileen's face as she heard the man’s words right before he passed out. How delightful, not only were the people of Halogen against Katsumi’s presence but one person was willing to attack her! She had wondered by extracting the woman’s information from the locals had been so simple, even if they thought Eireen was a hitman they would’ve gladly led her to her. But as the raven haired woman turned to speak to her, the reaper wiped off any sign of pleasure from her face. “No, but that was pretty random, huh?” She offered, shaking her head slowly. It was then Katsumi sentfor some medical attention for the unconscious man, handing the messenger jewels before sending them on their way. “Oh~? Kindly letting a potential charge of harassment get away before threatening someone?” Eireen said teasingly, a smirk displayed plainly on her face. But her associate had already began her route down the streets once more, prompting the pink haired woman to simply follow in her wake.
“I actually have an idea for this case,” She said abruptly, “To find the thief we must be the thief! If you were to steal from some place, you’d do it far away from where you actually hang out, right? Don’t want anyone to accidentally recognize you, and all those close by would look to each other first.” She held up a finger as she went on, “But that would bring up the issue of knowing who to target, but in a place like Hosenka that would be simple. Tourist who you’d know for a fact wouldn’t fight back, and yet our burglar went for someone who owned a house here.” Eireen turned her eyes towards her associate, “In fact, the civilian tackled the burglar, right? Any sensible person would just call the police in case they were armed. But then again, if you knew that person wouldn’t hurt you there’d be no need to take such precautions. Or that’s what I think at least.” Talking to the civilian would be a must, at least in Eileen's mind. Getting an idea if they were actually just an empty headed dunce would determine if her trail of thought was actually going somewhere. But a detail at the crime scene they were headed to may just point out another clue to add additional knots in the investigation.
Once they finally arrived, Eireen immediately began combing the scene for a hint towards the culprit. It was a flower shop of all things, the display glass shattered with fragments of glass littering the sidewalk. “I guess they did that upon their escape.” Eireen remarked out loud, stepping over the police tape surrounding the scene. “Chance, could you check it for traces of the culprit?” Without answering vocally, the white squirrel dog leapt off his place on top the reaper’s head, padding up the the broken glass to investigate.
“Lucky for us, there are traces of blood.” He murmured, sniffing a shard of glass tipped with a tinge of blood.
“Nice, can you try finding who it belongs to?” Eireen asked, placing her hands behind her head.
The ethereal nodded, quickly disappearing into an alleyway without another word. Eireen turned her blood red gaze onto Kasumi, “Alright, that’ll take him a while, however, do you still want to investigate?”
1160 ❈ 2225
Last edited by Chalk on 26th June 2019, 4:27 pm; edited 2 times in total
Katsumi- - - -
Lineage : Feeling Empty
Position : None
Posts : 194
Guild : Luminous Rose
Cosmic Coins : 0
Dungeon Tokens : 0
Mentor : Shane
Experience : 28,105
Katsumi blinked at the exuberant display of this 'detective'. This encounter might be a little higher than she could handle at her current level. This girl was more peppy then almost anyone she'd ever interacted with enough. Her Speech skill was too low. Her Charisma stat wasn't high enough to make up for the difference either. There were no items to help her with this encounter either. The Rune Knight chewed her lip trying to think of the appropriate response. In the end, her heightened Intelligence was outweighed by the debuff her knowledge of the real world imposed. "Uh nice to meet you?" Katsumi stammered, turning away from Okashi. She didn't want the other woman seeing her blushing cheeks.
The Rune Knight looked back at the question. "Nothing I can use anyways. The thief, despite fighting the local, managed to leave no evidence whatsoever. Either they have magic to clean up after themselves, or naturally leave no trace or potentially have something on them that keeps them from leaving a trace." Katsumi tapped her chin. If the thief had maxed out their Stealth skill, it was possible there was a bonus ability granted by such a feat. Though there were always various subskills and professions that could give someone such abilities too. Quiet Step in LAO for example erased one's noise made with footsteps.
Okashi's words were nearly missed in Katsumi's musing. A small smile quirked her lips. Miscommunication was still a major issue with her. She really needed to raise her Charisma trait. Or at least her Diplomacy or Bluff so as to be a better speaker. "I apologize. Not locals as in the town folk. Locals as in the local chapter of the Rune Knights. They set up an elaborate trap for the thief. Spared no expense as well. However, the thief went and circumvented the trap with ease. So it was nearly as ineffective as if the towns folk had set it up." The Rune Knight turned forward. Her fingers were lightly caressing her Henkan. She didn't like the ineffective nature of the trap either. The money the local chapter had wasted on it was rather awful as well. Their leader needed to boost his Leadership skill quickly or it would all fall to ruin.
After the incident was taken care of, Katsumi glanced at Okashi. The woman had several good points. The otaku struggled to find her words. What could she say to assuage the woman's doubts? Assuming they were doubts and not some expression of social nuance that Katsumi couldn't really identify. Her Speech needed to be higher for sure. "It wasn't random if the local chapter has been abusing the citizens. It might explain why the one fellow attacked the thief instead of calling for them." Interesting on how certain things really clicked with more information one had. "The rest... well Special Operations gets to make the hard calls. He wasn't really a criminal simply desperate." She tried to flash a smile but it ended up being too big. Too many of her teeth were showing for it to look like a genuine smile.
Katsumi listened to the entirety of Okashi's suggestions. There were many fair points in the argument. However, they didn't take into account the possibility of magic. The Rune Knight tried to wrack her brain as to a way to politely shoot down the suggestions or at least add to them. "You're wrong" She finally blurted out. Her eyes widened in realization. That hadn't worked well. Another debuff to her various Charisma and Speech skills. Oh well too late now. "Those are uh good thoughts but you forget about magic. Not to mention the people not trusting the Rune Knights around here. Both factor into someone deciding to attack another and 'hunting' where people might recognize you." Katsumi glanced at the woman. She couldn't tell if the other female was happily listening or not. "The thief could be using Take Over to gain cat-like appearance and abilities. Or using a spell to increase the aggression of the people around. There are a variety of other things that could come into play to make your suggestions useless. This isn't like the novels you read."
Katsumi decided to stop talking there until they reached the crime scene. She didn't think she'd raised her Speech skill much and her Charisma wasn't helping her gain any extra XP. She would do better keeping her mouth shut at the moment. Otherwise she might alienate Okashi. That wasn't something she wanted at the moment. There was something odd that pricked Katsumi's sixth sense. She'd picked that up in the death game where liars could hide their face. There wasn't anything to go on so Katsumi wouldn't trust it blindly. However, a random woman, claiming to simply love mysteries with a strange creeper creature on her head inserting herself into an investigation? That was more than a little strange.
The Rune Knight watched Okashi walk around the crime scene. For a civilian, or potentially a mage, the woman seemed very comfortable with flouting the law. Katsumi didn't comment as she too stepped over the police tape. "Mhm." She said in response to the woman's question. She was already deep into looking around the crime scene. There was glass littering the cobblestone. However, that pointed to the thief coming out the window from the inside. Not crashing into the window from the outside. Somehow this thief had managed to slip inside the building without alerting the trap. How? That was an important clue as to how this thief worked. Potentially it could tell them who the thief was.
"A look inside will tell us more than the trail of blood, Okashi." Katsumi said finally gesturing toward the door. "They got in without alerting any of the police outside. Without being spotted whatsoever. That should be impossible. The thief purposefully broke the window from the inside. If they ran afterward, it was because they had already accomplished what they wanted." Katsumi stepped inside. A swift look told a telling story. The thief had also trashed this place. Again without alerting the police outside. Stealth Attack had to be maxed for this guy in addition to everything else. No way they had done this without magic. "This thief has to be magic. All of this is impossible otherwise." The thief would be difficult to catch. That much was clear.
WC: 1069
TWC: 3241
The Rune Knight looked back at the question. "Nothing I can use anyways. The thief, despite fighting the local, managed to leave no evidence whatsoever. Either they have magic to clean up after themselves, or naturally leave no trace or potentially have something on them that keeps them from leaving a trace." Katsumi tapped her chin. If the thief had maxed out their Stealth skill, it was possible there was a bonus ability granted by such a feat. Though there were always various subskills and professions that could give someone such abilities too. Quiet Step in LAO for example erased one's noise made with footsteps.
Okashi's words were nearly missed in Katsumi's musing. A small smile quirked her lips. Miscommunication was still a major issue with her. She really needed to raise her Charisma trait. Or at least her Diplomacy or Bluff so as to be a better speaker. "I apologize. Not locals as in the town folk. Locals as in the local chapter of the Rune Knights. They set up an elaborate trap for the thief. Spared no expense as well. However, the thief went and circumvented the trap with ease. So it was nearly as ineffective as if the towns folk had set it up." The Rune Knight turned forward. Her fingers were lightly caressing her Henkan. She didn't like the ineffective nature of the trap either. The money the local chapter had wasted on it was rather awful as well. Their leader needed to boost his Leadership skill quickly or it would all fall to ruin.
After the incident was taken care of, Katsumi glanced at Okashi. The woman had several good points. The otaku struggled to find her words. What could she say to assuage the woman's doubts? Assuming they were doubts and not some expression of social nuance that Katsumi couldn't really identify. Her Speech needed to be higher for sure. "It wasn't random if the local chapter has been abusing the citizens. It might explain why the one fellow attacked the thief instead of calling for them." Interesting on how certain things really clicked with more information one had. "The rest... well Special Operations gets to make the hard calls. He wasn't really a criminal simply desperate." She tried to flash a smile but it ended up being too big. Too many of her teeth were showing for it to look like a genuine smile.
Katsumi listened to the entirety of Okashi's suggestions. There were many fair points in the argument. However, they didn't take into account the possibility of magic. The Rune Knight tried to wrack her brain as to a way to politely shoot down the suggestions or at least add to them. "You're wrong" She finally blurted out. Her eyes widened in realization. That hadn't worked well. Another debuff to her various Charisma and Speech skills. Oh well too late now. "Those are uh good thoughts but you forget about magic. Not to mention the people not trusting the Rune Knights around here. Both factor into someone deciding to attack another and 'hunting' where people might recognize you." Katsumi glanced at the woman. She couldn't tell if the other female was happily listening or not. "The thief could be using Take Over to gain cat-like appearance and abilities. Or using a spell to increase the aggression of the people around. There are a variety of other things that could come into play to make your suggestions useless. This isn't like the novels you read."
Katsumi decided to stop talking there until they reached the crime scene. She didn't think she'd raised her Speech skill much and her Charisma wasn't helping her gain any extra XP. She would do better keeping her mouth shut at the moment. Otherwise she might alienate Okashi. That wasn't something she wanted at the moment. There was something odd that pricked Katsumi's sixth sense. She'd picked that up in the death game where liars could hide their face. There wasn't anything to go on so Katsumi wouldn't trust it blindly. However, a random woman, claiming to simply love mysteries with a strange creeper creature on her head inserting herself into an investigation? That was more than a little strange.
The Rune Knight watched Okashi walk around the crime scene. For a civilian, or potentially a mage, the woman seemed very comfortable with flouting the law. Katsumi didn't comment as she too stepped over the police tape. "Mhm." She said in response to the woman's question. She was already deep into looking around the crime scene. There was glass littering the cobblestone. However, that pointed to the thief coming out the window from the inside. Not crashing into the window from the outside. Somehow this thief had managed to slip inside the building without alerting the trap. How? That was an important clue as to how this thief worked. Potentially it could tell them who the thief was.
"A look inside will tell us more than the trail of blood, Okashi." Katsumi said finally gesturing toward the door. "They got in without alerting any of the police outside. Without being spotted whatsoever. That should be impossible. The thief purposefully broke the window from the inside. If they ran afterward, it was because they had already accomplished what they wanted." Katsumi stepped inside. A swift look told a telling story. The thief had also trashed this place. Again without alerting the police outside. Stealth Attack had to be maxed for this guy in addition to everything else. No way they had done this without magic. "This thief has to be magic. All of this is impossible otherwise." The thief would be difficult to catch. That much was clear.
WC: 1069
TWC: 3241
Eireen- - - - -
Lineage : Empyrean Reaper
Position : None
Posts : 112
Guild : Hidden Blades
Cosmic Coins : 0
Dungeon Tokens : 0
Experience : 19,499
Character Sheet
First Skill: Melancholy
Second Skill: Edge of Infinity
Third Skill: N/A
Eireen couldn’t help but grin when faced with Katsumi’s brand of social ineptitude. It was almost as if the woman couldn’t even begin to find her words, although Eireen did admit that was partially her fault. She had thought it would be fun, and went ahead and introduced herself in the most exuberant way possible. But thankfully, the Rune Knight could explain why exactly there was no evidence at the crime scene. “Ah, okay!” Eireen replied to Katsumi’s explanation, “I guess that just means the perp is even more dangerous than I thought~” The pink haired mage said sweetly. It was true she knew a lot about her target now, but none of the data relayed to her had said anything about their magic yet. To be able to evade the apprehension of so many Rune Knights suggested they had something that allowed for them to move undetected, and with the amount of people in town Eireen was glad she’d chosen the fun way instead of going straight for the kill. In her line of work, the goal was usually to be as efficient as possible, but the pink haired reaper only did so when it came to the murdering part.
Even after the man who had attacked Katsumi out of nowhere was dealt with, Eireen felt as if there was still more to be gained by prodding the Rune Knight more about it. “Aren’t all criminals desperate? Of course unless…” The mage barely managed to suppress their smile as she spoke. “They do it for fun?” Personally, Eireen just did stuff because she was instructed to, but anything beyond that was for her own satisfaction. There had been no reason to use any of the tools already provided to locate her target, but she found much more enjoyment in doing it with the raven haired woman around. And the way she smiled awkwardly after she said it! It was wonderful how the Rune Knight seemed to be adept in all sorts of professional aspects of her job, but not the “talking to people” part. Despite that, she seemed to be a rather stand-up sort of person, at least ay more than Eireen was.
Even after stating her potential ideas for the case, Eireen was met by a sudden, abrupt statement from Katsumi. ‘You’re wrong.’ An odd smile began to spread across her features, but she quickly masked it with one of pure intrigue. After all, if Katsumi saw her grinning like that she might think Eireen was a bit of a masochist. It was just that even after the amount of time she was alive, she’d forget all the basic stuff in favor of the drama. It was admittedly a bad assumption on her part, but Katsumi’s unminced words certainly made it worth it. As a certain detective in a mystery novel containing magical elements, you have to abandon the “how” of the crime and instead focus on “why”. “Oh, you’re right, this isn’t a book. It’s real life after all!” Eireen replied, barely holding back her laughter.
At the most recent crime scene, Eireen opted to listen to Katsumi’s diagnosis of the scene. So, what the two had so far was that there was that the theif was destructive, very sneaky, possessed some sort of magic abilities, but careless. Instead of breaking the glass properly like someone who actually wanted people to believe they had no kind of magic, they were lazy about it! But even so, they neglected the presence of the guards making it impossible for any regular person to break into without detection. Chance was out trying to trace their scent, but who knew if he would run into a dead end? Once one scent mingled with many others, it would be impossible for him to do anything. So, why not have some more fun playing detective? Eireen was sure they’d find her target eventually. The only potential problem between Eireen and her goal was Katsumi herself. “I wonder what was stolen from these places anyways~” Eireen mused as she lightheartedly swung the door right open and stepped into the building.
“Aha! This place looks just like my room! Very homely.” She chirped as she stepped into the building, her voice laced with over enthusiasm. She personally didn’t have or need a bedroom, but the mess would probably be any cleaner’s nightmare. Papers were scattered everywhere, a desk was turned onto its side, and a trail of blood drops was coming from the backroom for “staff only”. Even the ceiling wasn’t untouched, several cracks and gaping holes present that let you see the plumbing and insulation. It was clear to Eireen that making such a resounding mess should’ve alerted the guards outside, but it didn’t. They could’ve done something with the guard’s memories, cast some sort of illusion, anything really. And the fact the ceiling was in such a state could possibly mean apprehending the burglar would be a whole other problem in itself. Going for a frontal attack was always an option, but that could lead to them simply slipping away.
Well, the only thing she could do at the moment was to find where the culprit was in the first place. Eireen could use all sorts of maneuvers to corner them, blackmail, kidnapping, espionage, the usual. But first things first, a proper analysis of the crime scene was needed. Sadly, Chance, her own personal informant could be there to give out clues, so the only thing left was to do it herself. Or make Katsumi do it, but would it be more suspicious if she chose to poke around or let the other mage do it by herself. It wouldn’t be all too fair to her, would it? “I, rising detective Okashi-san, am hereby committed to combing this crime scene for any and all clues!” She exclaimed, placing her hands on her hips as she faced Katsumi. “Yes, this truly mesmerizing case would be the perfect point of reference for my fanfiction!”
Even after the man who had attacked Katsumi out of nowhere was dealt with, Eireen felt as if there was still more to be gained by prodding the Rune Knight more about it. “Aren’t all criminals desperate? Of course unless…” The mage barely managed to suppress their smile as she spoke. “They do it for fun?” Personally, Eireen just did stuff because she was instructed to, but anything beyond that was for her own satisfaction. There had been no reason to use any of the tools already provided to locate her target, but she found much more enjoyment in doing it with the raven haired woman around. And the way she smiled awkwardly after she said it! It was wonderful how the Rune Knight seemed to be adept in all sorts of professional aspects of her job, but not the “talking to people” part. Despite that, she seemed to be a rather stand-up sort of person, at least ay more than Eireen was.
Even after stating her potential ideas for the case, Eireen was met by a sudden, abrupt statement from Katsumi. ‘You’re wrong.’ An odd smile began to spread across her features, but she quickly masked it with one of pure intrigue. After all, if Katsumi saw her grinning like that she might think Eireen was a bit of a masochist. It was just that even after the amount of time she was alive, she’d forget all the basic stuff in favor of the drama. It was admittedly a bad assumption on her part, but Katsumi’s unminced words certainly made it worth it. As a certain detective in a mystery novel containing magical elements, you have to abandon the “how” of the crime and instead focus on “why”. “Oh, you’re right, this isn’t a book. It’s real life after all!” Eireen replied, barely holding back her laughter.
At the most recent crime scene, Eireen opted to listen to Katsumi’s diagnosis of the scene. So, what the two had so far was that there was that the theif was destructive, very sneaky, possessed some sort of magic abilities, but careless. Instead of breaking the glass properly like someone who actually wanted people to believe they had no kind of magic, they were lazy about it! But even so, they neglected the presence of the guards making it impossible for any regular person to break into without detection. Chance was out trying to trace their scent, but who knew if he would run into a dead end? Once one scent mingled with many others, it would be impossible for him to do anything. So, why not have some more fun playing detective? Eireen was sure they’d find her target eventually. The only potential problem between Eireen and her goal was Katsumi herself. “I wonder what was stolen from these places anyways~” Eireen mused as she lightheartedly swung the door right open and stepped into the building.
“Aha! This place looks just like my room! Very homely.” She chirped as she stepped into the building, her voice laced with over enthusiasm. She personally didn’t have or need a bedroom, but the mess would probably be any cleaner’s nightmare. Papers were scattered everywhere, a desk was turned onto its side, and a trail of blood drops was coming from the backroom for “staff only”. Even the ceiling wasn’t untouched, several cracks and gaping holes present that let you see the plumbing and insulation. It was clear to Eireen that making such a resounding mess should’ve alerted the guards outside, but it didn’t. They could’ve done something with the guard’s memories, cast some sort of illusion, anything really. And the fact the ceiling was in such a state could possibly mean apprehending the burglar would be a whole other problem in itself. Going for a frontal attack was always an option, but that could lead to them simply slipping away.
Well, the only thing she could do at the moment was to find where the culprit was in the first place. Eireen could use all sorts of maneuvers to corner them, blackmail, kidnapping, espionage, the usual. But first things first, a proper analysis of the crime scene was needed. Sadly, Chance, her own personal informant could be there to give out clues, so the only thing left was to do it herself. Or make Katsumi do it, but would it be more suspicious if she chose to poke around or let the other mage do it by herself. It wouldn’t be all too fair to her, would it? “I, rising detective Okashi-san, am hereby committed to combing this crime scene for any and all clues!” She exclaimed, placing her hands on her hips as she faced Katsumi. “Yes, this truly mesmerizing case would be the perfect point of reference for my fanfiction!”
1003 ❈ 3228
Katsumi- - - -
Lineage : Feeling Empty
Position : None
Posts : 194
Guild : Luminous Rose
Cosmic Coins : 0
Dungeon Tokens : 0
Mentor : Shane
Experience : 28,105
Katsumi cocked her head to one side. Weren't all criminals desperate? Or doing it for fun? If only it were that simple. Her time in LAO hadn't been kind. It had also shown her the different kinds of criminals. Some were desperate, attacking out of need. Others did it from greed. Some did it as a sense of revenge and still, others did it only for fun. A criminal's motivations could be vast. Desperation was merely one of them. Now if only her Speech was high enough to convey that clearly. As it was, she'd only manage to botch everything if she tried to explain. The Rune Knight pouted slightly, turning away from Okashi.
The Rune Knight stepped into the building after her impromptu partner. Her musing made Katsumi chuckle softly. There was something about the latest crime scenes. It caused a wonder as to if anything really had been stolen. This thief could easily slip in and out of places. Had, in fact, done so for most of the thievery they'd done. Yet these last two thefts were messy. Really messy. Like the thief was failing on purpose. She doubted much was missing. If anything was, the owners may have hidden it in order to collect payment for stolen goods. Glancing about the room only strengthened the feeling. It was messier than it should have been. Assuming her Perception was high enough to catch all the minutia of the room. Clues might have been hidden within the chaos.
Katsumi sighed softly, looking around once again. A second look made the source of damage obvious. "Unfortunately, the damage doesn't g-give us much. It's Rune Knight in origin." She raised a hand to point out the signs. Multiple laser scorch marks, crushed furniture, the damage on the ceiling. "None of the damage is consistent with the last crime scene." Katsumi mumbled under her breath. There was a trail of blood. That was probably the only thing salvageable from this place. There had been one outside too though. The local Rune Knight chapter had made an awful mess of this entire thing. Okashi wasn't helping either with her cavalier attitude. Katsumi rubbed her temples. The 'detective writer' whatever she was, proclaimed she'd comb the crime scene.
"I was wrong. There's nothing here to tell us more. The blood trail is all we've really got." Katsumi said after clearing her throat. A blush covered her cheeks. Her Charisma wasn't high enough to hide her embarrassment. It was her fault they were in here after all. She'd insisted there were more clues in here. "If there was anything here, the local Rune Knights obliterated it. It's awful they blamed it all on this thief." She rubbed her forehead. An inquisition would have to be led against this chapter. Not all the Rune Knights here had to be bad. The Engineering Corps was starting to look much better than Spec Ops. She had always enjoyed building new things.
The Rune Knight lifted her head to look at her temporary tag-along. Okashi seemed to have an uncanny sense for this kind of thing. It wasn't something you picked up from simply writing fiction. "Since I'm completely inept at this, perhaps you'd like to lead us for a little while, Okashi-san?" Katsumi said attempting to be subtle. With her Speech as low as it was, she wouldn't be surprised if Okashi saw right through her plans. So long as the other woman led them for a little while, the swords-woman didn't care.
WC: 586
Total: 3827
The Rune Knight stepped into the building after her impromptu partner. Her musing made Katsumi chuckle softly. There was something about the latest crime scenes. It caused a wonder as to if anything really had been stolen. This thief could easily slip in and out of places. Had, in fact, done so for most of the thievery they'd done. Yet these last two thefts were messy. Really messy. Like the thief was failing on purpose. She doubted much was missing. If anything was, the owners may have hidden it in order to collect payment for stolen goods. Glancing about the room only strengthened the feeling. It was messier than it should have been. Assuming her Perception was high enough to catch all the minutia of the room. Clues might have been hidden within the chaos.
Katsumi sighed softly, looking around once again. A second look made the source of damage obvious. "Unfortunately, the damage doesn't g-give us much. It's Rune Knight in origin." She raised a hand to point out the signs. Multiple laser scorch marks, crushed furniture, the damage on the ceiling. "None of the damage is consistent with the last crime scene." Katsumi mumbled under her breath. There was a trail of blood. That was probably the only thing salvageable from this place. There had been one outside too though. The local Rune Knight chapter had made an awful mess of this entire thing. Okashi wasn't helping either with her cavalier attitude. Katsumi rubbed her temples. The 'detective writer' whatever she was, proclaimed she'd comb the crime scene.
"I was wrong. There's nothing here to tell us more. The blood trail is all we've really got." Katsumi said after clearing her throat. A blush covered her cheeks. Her Charisma wasn't high enough to hide her embarrassment. It was her fault they were in here after all. She'd insisted there were more clues in here. "If there was anything here, the local Rune Knights obliterated it. It's awful they blamed it all on this thief." She rubbed her forehead. An inquisition would have to be led against this chapter. Not all the Rune Knights here had to be bad. The Engineering Corps was starting to look much better than Spec Ops. She had always enjoyed building new things.
The Rune Knight lifted her head to look at her temporary tag-along. Okashi seemed to have an uncanny sense for this kind of thing. It wasn't something you picked up from simply writing fiction. "Since I'm completely inept at this, perhaps you'd like to lead us for a little while, Okashi-san?" Katsumi said attempting to be subtle. With her Speech as low as it was, she wouldn't be surprised if Okashi saw right through her plans. So long as the other woman led them for a little while, the swords-woman didn't care.
WC: 586
Total: 3827
Eireen- - - - -
Lineage : Empyrean Reaper
Position : None
Posts : 112
Guild : Hidden Blades
Cosmic Coins : 0
Dungeon Tokens : 0
Experience : 19,499
Character Sheet
First Skill: Melancholy
Second Skill: Edge of Infinity
Third Skill: N/A
Eireen was messing with some neatly stacked paperwork that had somehow survived the disaster that hit the rest of the town. It was just standing there innocently in the corner, and how dare it just lay around while everything else is so disheveled. And so the reaper took it upon herself to go through and make an absolute mess out of them. Of course, she had originally resolved to at least pretend to be combing the crime scene for clues, but her attention span was far too short for that. The reaper had just about finished her masterpiece when a familiar voice rang through her head. “Target pinpointed. Sending over coordinates now.”
And there it was, the little alarm signaling that her little escapade was coming to an end. Katsumi was an absolute blast, but business was business and it was her assignment to just go ahead and kill the burglar. Hopefully the Rune Knight would forgive her for not being the most honest person in the world in the end though. But even if they ended up fighting, that'd be okay too! Eireen was the kind of person who didn't care whether or not someone she was intrigued with actually wanted her to be around them.
“Wait, did you just call me an alarm? Stop treating me like a utility belt!” Chance exclaimed, his voice echoing through Eireen’s head. “Aw, my little Chance! You sound so far away~!” Eireen cooed, ignoring what the ethereal actually said and avoiding his complaint entirely. “Yeah, no duh. I literally just said I found the target, right? Now hurry up and get here.” Chance sighed, “I’ll be filing a report for mistreatment though…”
Eireen turned to face Katsumi, observing the mage as they reviewed all their observations of the building. It would make sense if all the mess was actually caused by the Rune Knights and not the burglar, after all the typical thief would want everything to be exactly as they left it. But what struck her fancy the most was that Katsumi went ahead and let her choose the next destination for investigation. “Oh my gosh, I can’t believe I of all people was chosen for this honor!” She exclaimed with mock-surprise. “I truly understand the gravity of my decisions now as I, Okashi-san the wonder detective, rise to an even higher calling.” The mage monologued, exaggerating her gestures. “Ah yes! I know the perfect next stop for my fan fiction research!” Eireen chirped, immediately breaking out of her speech-mode. “It’s field trip time!” She called, prancing out of the building out onto the bustling streets of Hosenka.
Immediately calling for a taxi, Eireen wordlessly slipped into the vehicle, waiting for Katsumi to also enter before finally speaking. “Could you take us downtown?” She asked the driver sweetly before turning to Katsumi and saying, “I heard there’s this really great pastry shop around there!” Of course, Eireen enjoyed a good pastry once in a while, but her main excuse for going to such a discreet restaurant was because the culprit was apparently one of the staff there. According to Chance’s reports, the place was just your average local business, targeted more towards those living in Hosenka more so than those only there for the hot springs. What a person with a stable job like that resorted to theft was beyond her, it wasn’t her job to know in the first place. She was supposed to be there to kill the culprit, and although understanding their motive could be interesting the extermination took priority.
And there it was, the little alarm signaling that her little escapade was coming to an end. Katsumi was an absolute blast, but business was business and it was her assignment to just go ahead and kill the burglar. Hopefully the Rune Knight would forgive her for not being the most honest person in the world in the end though. But even if they ended up fighting, that'd be okay too! Eireen was the kind of person who didn't care whether or not someone she was intrigued with actually wanted her to be around them.
“Wait, did you just call me an alarm? Stop treating me like a utility belt!” Chance exclaimed, his voice echoing through Eireen’s head. “Aw, my little Chance! You sound so far away~!” Eireen cooed, ignoring what the ethereal actually said and avoiding his complaint entirely. “Yeah, no duh. I literally just said I found the target, right? Now hurry up and get here.” Chance sighed, “I’ll be filing a report for mistreatment though…”
Eireen turned to face Katsumi, observing the mage as they reviewed all their observations of the building. It would make sense if all the mess was actually caused by the Rune Knights and not the burglar, after all the typical thief would want everything to be exactly as they left it. But what struck her fancy the most was that Katsumi went ahead and let her choose the next destination for investigation. “Oh my gosh, I can’t believe I of all people was chosen for this honor!” She exclaimed with mock-surprise. “I truly understand the gravity of my decisions now as I, Okashi-san the wonder detective, rise to an even higher calling.” The mage monologued, exaggerating her gestures. “Ah yes! I know the perfect next stop for my fan fiction research!” Eireen chirped, immediately breaking out of her speech-mode. “It’s field trip time!” She called, prancing out of the building out onto the bustling streets of Hosenka.
Immediately calling for a taxi, Eireen wordlessly slipped into the vehicle, waiting for Katsumi to also enter before finally speaking. “Could you take us downtown?” She asked the driver sweetly before turning to Katsumi and saying, “I heard there’s this really great pastry shop around there!” Of course, Eireen enjoyed a good pastry once in a while, but her main excuse for going to such a discreet restaurant was because the culprit was apparently one of the staff there. According to Chance’s reports, the place was just your average local business, targeted more towards those living in Hosenka more so than those only there for the hot springs. What a person with a stable job like that resorted to theft was beyond her, it wasn’t her job to know in the first place. She was supposed to be there to kill the culprit, and although understanding their motive could be interesting the extermination took priority.
592 ❈ 3820 [WC Met]
Excess WC: 320
Excess WC: 320
Last edited by Eireen on 10th April 2020, 9:01 pm; edited 1 time in total
Katsumi- - - -
Lineage : Feeling Empty
Position : None
Posts : 194
Guild : Luminous Rose
Cosmic Coins : 0
Dungeon Tokens : 0
Mentor : Shane
Experience : 28,105
Katsumi clasped her hands together and bit her lip at Okashi's outburst. Her gestures didn't help Katsumi keep quiet either. How did a field trip help them? Were there clues that she had missed that required the field trip? Regardless, she'd offered this opportunity to the other woman. The Rune Knight took a deep breath. This was going to require every point in her CHA attribute. Probably every point in her Speech skill too. "You are absolutely right, Okashi-san! I've been way too focused on this case! Let's take a field trip." She smiled widely and popped a 'v' with her fingers. Her attempt to cheerfully walk after the other woman nearly ended in disaster. The crap on the floor tripped the Rune Knight up. Limbs pinwheeled wildly, her eyes staring widely at the floor. Luckily, her Luck stat came in clutch. Katsumi was able to regain her balance before following after Okashi.
The raven-haired woman climbed into the taxi. Taking a few moments to fix her hair, the gamer girl watched Okashi. "I do love pastries..." Katsumi admitted. Her finger tapped her chin. "Which one do you think is the best? Or maybe I should try them all... My doctor does always tell me I'm too thin." Her body had wasted away over three years. The lack of boobs when she awoke had terrified her. They were a defining feature. Not to mention her best feature. Katsumi tended to scare people once she opened her mouth. The neverending nerd stream drove everyone away. Now she'd regained a little weight. Not nearly enough according to everyone. Eating a few pastries might help. Katsumi never had been very good at eating though.
The taxi stopped outside a rather plain-looking building. The aromas wafting from it were extraordinary however. Chocolate mixed with cinnamon. A cherry scent carried on some moist smell. Something else she couldn't identify but it made her mouth water. The Rune Knight popped out of the taxi. "I wasn't sure before. Now I know I need to eat here." Katsumi gushed grabbing Okashi's hand once the other woman was out of the taxi. She tugged Okashi inside. The excitement for these pastries had Katsumi shoving Okashi toward a seat. The petite swordswoman bounced up to the counter. She returned to the table moments later with a large paper bag. A pastry was already stuffed into her mouth. "Hngm ymfs" Katsumi choked around the pastry. She was holding one out to Okashi. The Rune Knight hoped this would butter the other woman up.
WC: 423
Total: 4250
The raven-haired woman climbed into the taxi. Taking a few moments to fix her hair, the gamer girl watched Okashi. "I do love pastries..." Katsumi admitted. Her finger tapped her chin. "Which one do you think is the best? Or maybe I should try them all... My doctor does always tell me I'm too thin." Her body had wasted away over three years. The lack of boobs when she awoke had terrified her. They were a defining feature. Not to mention her best feature. Katsumi tended to scare people once she opened her mouth. The neverending nerd stream drove everyone away. Now she'd regained a little weight. Not nearly enough according to everyone. Eating a few pastries might help. Katsumi never had been very good at eating though.
The taxi stopped outside a rather plain-looking building. The aromas wafting from it were extraordinary however. Chocolate mixed with cinnamon. A cherry scent carried on some moist smell. Something else she couldn't identify but it made her mouth water. The Rune Knight popped out of the taxi. "I wasn't sure before. Now I know I need to eat here." Katsumi gushed grabbing Okashi's hand once the other woman was out of the taxi. She tugged Okashi inside. The excitement for these pastries had Katsumi shoving Okashi toward a seat. The petite swordswoman bounced up to the counter. She returned to the table moments later with a large paper bag. A pastry was already stuffed into her mouth. "Hngm ymfs" Katsumi choked around the pastry. She was holding one out to Okashi. The Rune Knight hoped this would butter the other woman up.
WC: 423
Total: 4250
Eireen- - - - -
Lineage : Empyrean Reaper
Position : None
Posts : 112
Guild : Hidden Blades
Cosmic Coins : 0
Dungeon Tokens : 0
Experience : 19,499
Character Sheet
First Skill: Melancholy
Second Skill: Edge of Infinity
Third Skill: N/A
Eireen was indeed worried over whether or not Katsumi would go along with her idea of a field trip, but thankfully the Rune Knight was actually exceptionally flexible. And wow, compared to her previous responses to a bit of Eireen’s nonsense, she was actually being extremely amiable! Maybe Katsumi really did need a small break from the case after all, she must be catching a cold from all the stress! The “peace~!” sign, the failed attempt to execute proper leg functions, all the signs of a lady in need of sweets! I mean, how absent-minded do you need to be in order to trip? Was she just using all her brain cells on something other than body operations and basic thought processing? Truly, Katsumi was a perplexing creature, Eireen was glad she took time to cooperate with her instead of doing her own investigation.
“Oh, I absolutely adore anything that is remotely sweet!” Eireen squealed, “Croques, mochi, and guys hot enough for me to just eat them up!” She clasped her hands together as she spoke passionately about her sugar-related preferences. “So, in regards to what hot guy you’d like to have a taste of, I think it’ll be fine to just have all of them! I’m sure you could use your womanly charms on anyone who piques your interest! Wait, ‘thin’? Hm, yes I do worry over how well you are eating Katsumi.” She muttered, briefly examining the other woman’s lean body. How could she weidl magic with those spaghetti arms of hers?
“But even so, all the hot guys could be like, ‘You seem thin, want me to go on and spoil you?’ And then you’d be all flustered and be all like, ‘As long as I get home before my curfew, I have school tomorrow!’ And then the hot guy would be all like, ‘BAM! Kabedon!’ And then-” Eireen’s brain seemed to short circuit for a minute, because she stopped talking. “I can’t wait to get back to my fanfiction~” Seeing as they were in a taxi, Eireen didn’t think at all about what was coming out of her mouth. Her neurons were tofu and Katsumi’s only real choice was to remain seated, so no need to worry about being comprehensible.
Eventually, the taxi ride ended, and the pair had arrived at the ever so important pastry shop. “Umu! I knew you’d enjoy a pastry shop!” Eireen exclaimed, doing a haughty hair flip. If only she had some drills, then her villainess motif would be complete. But wait, didn’t Eireen have more of a military fellign to her clothing? She didn’t have an ounce of self restraint you’d expect from a soldier, but it fitted her typical form so that’s what she went for. Maybe one of these days she should try a frilly rose-these European dress. Oh, to be a true villainess from shojo manga she’d need blue eyes and blonde hair too! Wait, some people nowadays were using silver too, right? Either way, she needed to practice her hime laugh, you know, ‘ohohoho’.
While the reaper was pondering things that were frankly, absolutely meaningless, she was left at the mercy of her raven haired companion. How forthright Katsumi was in the face of a pastry shop was actually rather surprising, who knew she had such a sweet tooth? She was literally brought into the shop, thrust onto a seat, and had pastries delivered to her instantly. Honestly, for Eireen who was more used to being forthright it was a nice change of pace. “...” Eireen was speechless, false tears welling up in her scarlet eyes dramatically, “F-For me?!?” She cried, tentatively taking the pastry from Katsumi’s outstretched hand. “It’s… It’s…” Her hands trembled, a single tear elegantly falling onto the sweet treat. “It’s just like my love for you… Sweet and unrequited…” She uttered dramatically before anticlimactically eating it in one bite. “Mmmh, wow! These are actually pretty good!” Despite the fact her mouth was full of parties, she still took the time to speak.
“Oh, I absolutely adore anything that is remotely sweet!” Eireen squealed, “Croques, mochi, and guys hot enough for me to just eat them up!” She clasped her hands together as she spoke passionately about her sugar-related preferences. “So, in regards to what hot guy you’d like to have a taste of, I think it’ll be fine to just have all of them! I’m sure you could use your womanly charms on anyone who piques your interest! Wait, ‘thin’? Hm, yes I do worry over how well you are eating Katsumi.” She muttered, briefly examining the other woman’s lean body. How could she weidl magic with those spaghetti arms of hers?
“But even so, all the hot guys could be like, ‘You seem thin, want me to go on and spoil you?’ And then you’d be all flustered and be all like, ‘As long as I get home before my curfew, I have school tomorrow!’ And then the hot guy would be all like, ‘BAM! Kabedon!’ And then-” Eireen’s brain seemed to short circuit for a minute, because she stopped talking. “I can’t wait to get back to my fanfiction~” Seeing as they were in a taxi, Eireen didn’t think at all about what was coming out of her mouth. Her neurons were tofu and Katsumi’s only real choice was to remain seated, so no need to worry about being comprehensible.
Eventually, the taxi ride ended, and the pair had arrived at the ever so important pastry shop. “Umu! I knew you’d enjoy a pastry shop!” Eireen exclaimed, doing a haughty hair flip. If only she had some drills, then her villainess motif would be complete. But wait, didn’t Eireen have more of a military fellign to her clothing? She didn’t have an ounce of self restraint you’d expect from a soldier, but it fitted her typical form so that’s what she went for. Maybe one of these days she should try a frilly rose-these European dress. Oh, to be a true villainess from shojo manga she’d need blue eyes and blonde hair too! Wait, some people nowadays were using silver too, right? Either way, she needed to practice her hime laugh, you know, ‘ohohoho’.
While the reaper was pondering things that were frankly, absolutely meaningless, she was left at the mercy of her raven haired companion. How forthright Katsumi was in the face of a pastry shop was actually rather surprising, who knew she had such a sweet tooth? She was literally brought into the shop, thrust onto a seat, and had pastries delivered to her instantly. Honestly, for Eireen who was more used to being forthright it was a nice change of pace. “...” Eireen was speechless, false tears welling up in her scarlet eyes dramatically, “F-For me?!?” She cried, tentatively taking the pastry from Katsumi’s outstretched hand. “It’s… It’s…” Her hands trembled, a single tear elegantly falling onto the sweet treat. “It’s just like my love for you… Sweet and unrequited…” She uttered dramatically before anticlimactically eating it in one bite. “Mmmh, wow! These are actually pretty good!” Despite the fact her mouth was full of parties, she still took the time to speak.
671 ❈ 4491
Total Thread WC ❈ 8741
Total Thread WC ❈ 8741
Last edited by Eireen on 10th April 2020, 9:08 pm; edited 2 times in total
Katsumi- - - -
Lineage : Feeling Empty
Position : None
Posts : 194
Guild : Luminous Rose
Cosmic Coins : 0
Dungeon Tokens : 0
Mentor : Shane
Experience : 28,105
Okashi's imagination was running a little wild. Katsumi wasn't sure what to make of it. Enthusiastic people were something she had to deal with but Okashi took it to a whole other level. The fact that she stopped in the middle of her sentence made Katsumi shiver. Just what kind of fanfic was this woman writing? If it was the smutty kind that simply threw people together, Katsumi wanted no part of it. The black swordswoman didn't voice her opinion. Okashi seemed like the kind of person that would ramble on and on about their fanfiction if asked a question about it. Katsumi's Charisma was nowhere near high enough to deal with that.
Katsumi missed Okashi's villain impression. She was too focused on getting in and out of the sweets shop. The 'detective' woman fanfiction writer's tears caught the Rune Knight completely off guard. Had she done something wrong? Picked out the wrong sweets? She opened her mouth to apologize when Okashi spoke. Scarlet bloomed across her cheeks. Several moments passed as the gamer struggled to say something. Should she be sarcastic? Respond in a similar fashion? Giggle awkwardly? Her head couldn't wrap itself around this new side to Okashi. If it was indeed a new side and not some joke. The raven-haired girl screamed internally for someone to provide a distraction. Luckily her mouth was full keeping her from making a stupid comment.
There was a clatter from behind the counter. Katsumi glanced backward. She glimpsed blue-black hair and a lithe body disappearing into the kitchen. The manager - an older blonde woman in a green apron - was screaming angerly at the employee. "Koneko! Get back here and clean this mess up!" When the employee failed to return, the manager bent down. She was muttering angrily under her breath. Katsumi turned back to Okashi. Chewing quickly, the Rune Knight casually asked her companion "Do you believe in coincidences, Okashi-san?"
After three years in a death game, Katsumi had stopped believing in coincidences. There was always a link between happenings. The employee that had just left was probably their thief. The question was how had Okashi-san known the thief was here? It was highly suspect that the sweet shop she'd brought them too just happened to contain their thief. Katsumi kept all suspicion off her face. No matter what Okashi's goal was, Katsumi couldn't take her one on one. She wasn't up to snuff for a PvP match. Stick close to your enemies, right? That was what the Rune Knight planned to do until Okashi was revealed as a friend or a foe. Or until the investigation came to an end. Whichever came first.
WC: 446
TWC: 4696
Katsumi missed Okashi's villain impression. She was too focused on getting in and out of the sweets shop. The 'detective' woman fanfiction writer's tears caught the Rune Knight completely off guard. Had she done something wrong? Picked out the wrong sweets? She opened her mouth to apologize when Okashi spoke. Scarlet bloomed across her cheeks. Several moments passed as the gamer struggled to say something. Should she be sarcastic? Respond in a similar fashion? Giggle awkwardly? Her head couldn't wrap itself around this new side to Okashi. If it was indeed a new side and not some joke. The raven-haired girl screamed internally for someone to provide a distraction. Luckily her mouth was full keeping her from making a stupid comment.
There was a clatter from behind the counter. Katsumi glanced backward. She glimpsed blue-black hair and a lithe body disappearing into the kitchen. The manager - an older blonde woman in a green apron - was screaming angerly at the employee. "Koneko! Get back here and clean this mess up!" When the employee failed to return, the manager bent down. She was muttering angrily under her breath. Katsumi turned back to Okashi. Chewing quickly, the Rune Knight casually asked her companion "Do you believe in coincidences, Okashi-san?"
After three years in a death game, Katsumi had stopped believing in coincidences. There was always a link between happenings. The employee that had just left was probably their thief. The question was how had Okashi-san known the thief was here? It was highly suspect that the sweet shop she'd brought them too just happened to contain their thief. Katsumi kept all suspicion off her face. No matter what Okashi's goal was, Katsumi couldn't take her one on one. She wasn't up to snuff for a PvP match. Stick close to your enemies, right? That was what the Rune Knight planned to do until Okashi was revealed as a friend or a foe. Or until the investigation came to an end. Whichever came first.
WC: 446
TWC: 4696
Eireen- - - - -
Lineage : Empyrean Reaper
Position : None
Posts : 112
Guild : Hidden Blades
Cosmic Coins : 0
Dungeon Tokens : 0
Experience : 19,499
Character Sheet
First Skill: Melancholy
Second Skill: Edge of Infinity
Third Skill: N/A
The clatter from the kitchen’s direction caught Katsumi’s attention, but Eireen chose to be more attentive to her pastries than to her surroundings. After all, her partner Chance had to be in the area, so he could always just relay information. However, from what she picked up through passive listening it seemed like her target was this “Koneko” person. Although she didn’t bother paying any heed to the culprit, she did steal a glance of the older lady who was very publicly scolding her. A grin spread across her visage, several ideas swirling around in that head of hers about how she’d be going about this. If possible, she would like to not damage her reputation with Katsumi, especially now that she was familiar with the appearance EIreen used most frequently. Also, that raven haired Rune Knight was just so fun to be around~!
“Hm, coincidences? Why do you ask?” Eireen replied with a wide, unadulterated smile. “Did you find out something on the case. Suspicion was unavoidable, but as long as Katsumi believed Eireen’s intentions weren’t bad, they’d still be on good terms. So, she’d have to work around a few things a bit, what an interesting challenge! “Did you find out something on the case?” The pink haired mage said, licking her fingertips to be rid of some leftover frosting. “I knew the store was a good idea, sweets always help me think.” She mused innocently, her gae wandering back to where Koneko had been scolded. “I wonder what was up with her. Rather unprofessional to speak to an employee like that in front of customers, isn’t it? I’m going to have to rate this visit badly on Yelp.”
It was then a flash of white streaked across the room, a squirrel-dog hybrid creature tossing itself onto Eireen’s lap. “Ah, it seems like Chance is back.” She exclaimed cheerfully, stroking her partner playfully.
”Get your hand off the fur.” The ethereal demanded, his purple gaze aimed sharply at Eireen. However, the reaper chose to ignore it, instead directing her eyes to a waitress with a mop of blue-black hair. The way she moved was as if she were perpetually walking on stilts, every step carefully placed. There was no doubt that this was their thief, and just about anyone who saw the girl would come to that conclusion. And that same culprit was coming right towards them, what a poor little girl. It’s always the quiet ones who are secretly master burglars, isn’t it? Eireen was starting to become legitimately bad for the girl. By making trouble with the Rune Knights, she had sealed her fate. Even if Katsumi didn’t find her, the RK were such a large organization that simply putting up a job to hunt her down would be very simple. Whatever her motive was, it’d better be good for putting herself into such danger.
“E-Erm, that… the little one is yours?” Koneko asked meekly.
Eireen beamed at the girl, “Why yes he is! I hope he wasn’t too much of a burden, following you around and all. It’s a bad habit of his.” She articulated with maturity uncharacteristic for her.
“Oh, n-no! I didn’t mind… not at all…” She trailed off, her gaze travelling from Eireen to Katsumi and back again.
“Hm, coincidences? Why do you ask?” Eireen replied with a wide, unadulterated smile. “Did you find out something on the case. Suspicion was unavoidable, but as long as Katsumi believed Eireen’s intentions weren’t bad, they’d still be on good terms. So, she’d have to work around a few things a bit, what an interesting challenge! “Did you find out something on the case?” The pink haired mage said, licking her fingertips to be rid of some leftover frosting. “I knew the store was a good idea, sweets always help me think.” She mused innocently, her gae wandering back to where Koneko had been scolded. “I wonder what was up with her. Rather unprofessional to speak to an employee like that in front of customers, isn’t it? I’m going to have to rate this visit badly on Yelp.”
It was then a flash of white streaked across the room, a squirrel-dog hybrid creature tossing itself onto Eireen’s lap. “Ah, it seems like Chance is back.” She exclaimed cheerfully, stroking her partner playfully.
”Get your hand off the fur.” The ethereal demanded, his purple gaze aimed sharply at Eireen. However, the reaper chose to ignore it, instead directing her eyes to a waitress with a mop of blue-black hair. The way she moved was as if she were perpetually walking on stilts, every step carefully placed. There was no doubt that this was their thief, and just about anyone who saw the girl would come to that conclusion. And that same culprit was coming right towards them, what a poor little girl. It’s always the quiet ones who are secretly master burglars, isn’t it? Eireen was starting to become legitimately bad for the girl. By making trouble with the Rune Knights, she had sealed her fate. Even if Katsumi didn’t find her, the RK were such a large organization that simply putting up a job to hunt her down would be very simple. Whatever her motive was, it’d better be good for putting herself into such danger.
“E-Erm, that… the little one is yours?” Koneko asked meekly.
Eireen beamed at the girl, “Why yes he is! I hope he wasn’t too much of a burden, following you around and all. It’s a bad habit of his.” She articulated with maturity uncharacteristic for her.
“Oh, n-no! I didn’t mind… not at all…” She trailed off, her gaze travelling from Eireen to Katsumi and back again.
548 ❈ 5039
Total Thread WC ❈ 9735
Total Thread WC ❈ 9735
Last edited by Chalk on 2nd November 2019, 7:20 pm; edited 1 time in total
Katsumi- - - -
Lineage : Feeling Empty
Position : None
Posts : 194
Guild : Luminous Rose
Cosmic Coins : 0
Dungeon Tokens : 0
Mentor : Shane
Experience : 28,105
Katsumi's defenses were up now. Okashi-san's responses seemed too innocent. Like she was hiding something or attempting too hard to be innocent. It could also be that the stress was finally getting to her. Stress activated her paranoia skill. Paranoia led to suspicions about everyone and everything. Her paranoia had injured relationships in the past. The Rune Knight barely managed to avoid narrowing her eyes. At the moment, Okashi-san was an asset. Whatever the woman was hiding didn't matter. They only had to make it through this one case. Katsumi didn't need to bring the other woman onto her other investigations.
The swordswoman tapped her fingers against her lips. "Perhaps something has come up in the case... Might simply be connecting too many dots." She tried to smile apologetically. Her face felt resistant to the motion. Her Charisma stat needed a few extra points, stat! The Rune Knight had never known being Charismatic would be a big part of her job. Perhaps... she could try something else. Katsumi scooted her chair around the table. Sitting close to Okashi-san, the swordswoman propped her chin upon her hand. "So tell me about this...Yelp was it? What is it? What does it have to do with-" Koneko's approach cut off the rest of her question.
The confidence and surety in the waitress' gait were unnatural. At least unnatural for one waiting tables. Katsumi would have placed that gait for someone playing a Thief class or a Rogue class. Then there was the fact this girl had snuck around her manager somehow. This despite the angry woman still blocking the door. A few other things caught the black-haired woman's gaze. Clear indications that she needed for proof. The corner of Katsumi's mouth tugged upwards. If this wasn't their culprit, Koneko was at least a thief. That would give them an in. The questline could continue! Koneko's unsure gaze didn't match the crimes. Then again, the thief hadn't truely faced a real Rune Knight before, had she? Katsumi smiled at the girl. It was a cold smile, full of steel.
"Tell me Koneko-kun, how does a waitress afford such a fancy bauble as the one on your wrist?" Katsumi asked slowly. The waitress's eyes widened, hurriedly covering her wrist with her sleeve. "I w-worked...um hard for it." Katsumi's smiled widened, turning dark. She pushed up from the table. Koneko took a step back. "That's funny. The bracelet looks identical to one that Roger-sama had stolen from him. Would you mind telling me who you got it from? They're probably connected to our current case." This wasn't the best solution. In fact, it was a terrible way to catch the thief. Katsumi didn't care. She was not going to let a lead - or the culprit - slip through her fingers. The stress of constantly being the 'perfect' Rune Knight as she saw it had finally gotten to her.
WC: 484
TWC: 5180
The swordswoman tapped her fingers against her lips. "Perhaps something has come up in the case... Might simply be connecting too many dots." She tried to smile apologetically. Her face felt resistant to the motion. Her Charisma stat needed a few extra points, stat! The Rune Knight had never known being Charismatic would be a big part of her job. Perhaps... she could try something else. Katsumi scooted her chair around the table. Sitting close to Okashi-san, the swordswoman propped her chin upon her hand. "So tell me about this...Yelp was it? What is it? What does it have to do with-" Koneko's approach cut off the rest of her question.
The confidence and surety in the waitress' gait were unnatural. At least unnatural for one waiting tables. Katsumi would have placed that gait for someone playing a Thief class or a Rogue class. Then there was the fact this girl had snuck around her manager somehow. This despite the angry woman still blocking the door. A few other things caught the black-haired woman's gaze. Clear indications that she needed for proof. The corner of Katsumi's mouth tugged upwards. If this wasn't their culprit, Koneko was at least a thief. That would give them an in. The questline could continue! Koneko's unsure gaze didn't match the crimes. Then again, the thief hadn't truely faced a real Rune Knight before, had she? Katsumi smiled at the girl. It was a cold smile, full of steel.
"Tell me Koneko-kun, how does a waitress afford such a fancy bauble as the one on your wrist?" Katsumi asked slowly. The waitress's eyes widened, hurriedly covering her wrist with her sleeve. "I w-worked...um hard for it." Katsumi's smiled widened, turning dark. She pushed up from the table. Koneko took a step back. "That's funny. The bracelet looks identical to one that Roger-sama had stolen from him. Would you mind telling me who you got it from? They're probably connected to our current case." This wasn't the best solution. In fact, it was a terrible way to catch the thief. Katsumi didn't care. She was not going to let a lead - or the culprit - slip through her fingers. The stress of constantly being the 'perfect' Rune Knight as she saw it had finally gotten to her.
WC: 484
TWC: 5180
Eireen- - - - -
Lineage : Empyrean Reaper
Position : None
Posts : 112
Guild : Hidden Blades
Cosmic Coins : 0
Dungeon Tokens : 0
Experience : 19,499
Character Sheet
First Skill: Melancholy
Second Skill: Edge of Infinity
Third Skill: N/A
Eireen almost laughed aloud when she was once again granted the pleasure of seeing Katsumi failing at human interaction. Seriously, just where did this girl come from for her to be so socially inept? A hole? The edge of the world? It was just so amusing to push her into situations she wasn’t exactly sure how to talk her way out of, Eireen simply couldn’t help herself! Not being able to smile on command was a sign of someone of Katsumi’s “type”, but thankfully that wasn’t something the reaper struggled with in the least. After all, years of having to constantly fake your identity typically makes you into a terrific actor! Take for example her current facade as Okashi. At first, she wasn’t sure if the Rune Knight would even buy into the flamboyant personality of the fictional junior detective, but look at Eireen now! She was permitted to follow Katsumi around up until this point, so that was basically a win, right? Of course, it was also her own fault that she tipped Katsumi off to such a large degree about the whole fabrication, but it was already way too late to turn back.
Eireen listened to the raven haired woman’s intense pressuring of Koneko with a grin. It was funny how Katsumi couldn’t deal with more casual situations, yet excelled at laying on the pressure. The thief was absolutely scared stiff, her lips pursed into a thin line. It was clear that it never occurred to her that she left any clues that traced the burglaries back to her. Of course, the reaction was only appropriate when faced with the intimidating Katsumi. However, more and more attention being turned towards their little interrogation. Which, in this town at this time, was a bit kinda bad. Eireen stood up, “Hey, Katsu-”
“Hey, what’re you trying to do to that waitress?!” Alas, one of the customers of the pastry shop finally spoke up, striding up to the mage. They were a slightly stout man, seemingly having come to the establishment with his two daughters. “You Rune Knights are always pushing us locals around, and frankly I’m sick of it!” His glare was intense, “Always thinking you can do whatever you want and get away with it just because you’re dealing with ordinary people who can’t fight back! Look at that poor waitress you’re harassing, she’s close to tears!” The man pointed at Koneko, who at this point was wiping away some false tears. How flexible~ “You’re bullying her just to lord your power around, aren’t you?!”
“Miss Rune Knight,” The pastry shop’s owner had jumped into the fray, placing a hand tightly on Koneko’s shoulder. “I ask that you leave before this situation whirls out of control. Of course, not before you offer me some reimbursement for the ruckus that you caused in my shop.” The blonde woman grinned, her grip tightening on Koneko even further.
Eireen listened to the raven haired woman’s intense pressuring of Koneko with a grin. It was funny how Katsumi couldn’t deal with more casual situations, yet excelled at laying on the pressure. The thief was absolutely scared stiff, her lips pursed into a thin line. It was clear that it never occurred to her that she left any clues that traced the burglaries back to her. Of course, the reaction was only appropriate when faced with the intimidating Katsumi. However, more and more attention being turned towards their little interrogation. Which, in this town at this time, was a bit kinda bad. Eireen stood up, “Hey, Katsu-”
“Hey, what’re you trying to do to that waitress?!” Alas, one of the customers of the pastry shop finally spoke up, striding up to the mage. They were a slightly stout man, seemingly having come to the establishment with his two daughters. “You Rune Knights are always pushing us locals around, and frankly I’m sick of it!” His glare was intense, “Always thinking you can do whatever you want and get away with it just because you’re dealing with ordinary people who can’t fight back! Look at that poor waitress you’re harassing, she’s close to tears!” The man pointed at Koneko, who at this point was wiping away some false tears. How flexible~ “You’re bullying her just to lord your power around, aren’t you?!”
“Miss Rune Knight,” The pastry shop’s owner had jumped into the fray, placing a hand tightly on Koneko’s shoulder. “I ask that you leave before this situation whirls out of control. Of course, not before you offer me some reimbursement for the ruckus that you caused in my shop.” The blonde woman grinned, her grip tightening on Koneko even further.
486 ❈ 5525
Total Thread WC ❈ 10705
Total Thread WC ❈ 10705
Katsumi- - - -
Lineage : Feeling Empty
Position : None
Posts : 194
Guild : Luminous Rose
Cosmic Coins : 0
Dungeon Tokens : 0
Mentor : Shane
Experience : 28,105
The raven-haired woman heard Okashi-san get up and speak. As the customers and then the manager approached, Katsumi's expression got hard. She hated facing many people. However, she hated letting the bad guy get away too. Laughing Coffin had pulled the wool over her eyes more than once. Yet, eager to complete the case, she'd forgotten how Rune Knights were viewed in this place. Her zealotry was biting her in the ass. Why couldn't she have invested in that Charisma while she had the chance?
The waitress appeared to be playing up her distress. Katsumi's eyes narrowed. There were several cards she could play. None of them were good. Her hands popped up onto her waist. They wanted to see power? They'd see power. Channel the Field Marshal. Remember her training and all those cop shows she'd watched. "Oji-san, if you would kindly step back. I only asked the girl a question. The bracelet on her wrist is connected to our case. Should you continue to impede me, I will arrest you for obstruction of justice. I do not wish to do so." The man's face turned red. Katsumi held up a finger to stop any retort. "If I wanted to bully or harass this girl to... what was it? Ah, yes, 'lord my power' over her, I would have simply arrested her. Its an effective show of power, don't you think? To further prove my point, while you are getting in my face, I haven't once laid a hand on you nor drawn my weapon nor used my magic. Step back, Oji-san." She put force into the end of her sentence. Then she cocked her head and smiled sweetly. At least that was what she attempted to do. "Please?"
The man stepped back. Not much, but at least he stepped back. He probably wanted to be in striking distance. Didn't want the 'evil' Rune Knight 'lording her power'. Katsumi resisted sighing. The other half of this problem was simply rule stating. "Oba-san, are you attempting to extort money from an officer of the law? A rightfully appointed exactor of the Magic Council's rule? If so, I'm afraid I will have to take you to HQ for booking. That falls under misappropriation of funds which is illegal. Now, would you like to continue attempting to force me to pay for causing a 'ruckus'? I should remind you, being found guilty of attempting to extort an officer, you will likely lose your food license, be fined for anywhere from two hundred thousand jewels to five hundred thousand jewels and will serve a jail sentence of no less than six months and no more than two years." Katsumi paused to take a breath. The woman had gotten increasingly pale as the Rune Knight had continued to talk. Koneko had slipped out from under her hand and vanished. The raven-haired woman scowled when she noticed. If these two idiots hadn't stuck their nose in, Koneko would have been cornered. Now she had time to get rid of the evidence.
Ignoring any further replies from Oba-san and Oji-san, Katsumi bolted down Koneko's only escape route. "Okashi-san, stay here. She called over her shoulder. "Keep an eye out for Koneko-san" The Rune Knight charged through the door to the kitchen. Koneko hadn't been that far ahead. Katsumi could hear her fellow workers calling out to her. The swordswoman grinned evilly. So it was to be a chase? Game on. Katsumi took off running, putting all of her training into attempting to catch the little thief.
WC: 590
TWC: 5770
The waitress appeared to be playing up her distress. Katsumi's eyes narrowed. There were several cards she could play. None of them were good. Her hands popped up onto her waist. They wanted to see power? They'd see power. Channel the Field Marshal. Remember her training and all those cop shows she'd watched. "Oji-san, if you would kindly step back. I only asked the girl a question. The bracelet on her wrist is connected to our case. Should you continue to impede me, I will arrest you for obstruction of justice. I do not wish to do so." The man's face turned red. Katsumi held up a finger to stop any retort. "If I wanted to bully or harass this girl to... what was it? Ah, yes, 'lord my power' over her, I would have simply arrested her. Its an effective show of power, don't you think? To further prove my point, while you are getting in my face, I haven't once laid a hand on you nor drawn my weapon nor used my magic. Step back, Oji-san." She put force into the end of her sentence. Then she cocked her head and smiled sweetly. At least that was what she attempted to do. "Please?"
The man stepped back. Not much, but at least he stepped back. He probably wanted to be in striking distance. Didn't want the 'evil' Rune Knight 'lording her power'. Katsumi resisted sighing. The other half of this problem was simply rule stating. "Oba-san, are you attempting to extort money from an officer of the law? A rightfully appointed exactor of the Magic Council's rule? If so, I'm afraid I will have to take you to HQ for booking. That falls under misappropriation of funds which is illegal. Now, would you like to continue attempting to force me to pay for causing a 'ruckus'? I should remind you, being found guilty of attempting to extort an officer, you will likely lose your food license, be fined for anywhere from two hundred thousand jewels to five hundred thousand jewels and will serve a jail sentence of no less than six months and no more than two years." Katsumi paused to take a breath. The woman had gotten increasingly pale as the Rune Knight had continued to talk. Koneko had slipped out from under her hand and vanished. The raven-haired woman scowled when she noticed. If these two idiots hadn't stuck their nose in, Koneko would have been cornered. Now she had time to get rid of the evidence.
Ignoring any further replies from Oba-san and Oji-san, Katsumi bolted down Koneko's only escape route. "Okashi-san, stay here. She called over her shoulder. "Keep an eye out for Koneko-san" The Rune Knight charged through the door to the kitchen. Koneko hadn't been that far ahead. Katsumi could hear her fellow workers calling out to her. The swordswoman grinned evilly. So it was to be a chase? Game on. Katsumi took off running, putting all of her training into attempting to catch the little thief.
WC: 590
TWC: 5770
Eireen- - - - -
Lineage : Empyrean Reaper
Position : None
Posts : 112
Guild : Hidden Blades
Cosmic Coins : 0
Dungeon Tokens : 0
Experience : 19,499
Character Sheet
First Skill: Melancholy
Second Skill: Edge of Infinity
Third Skill: N/A
Eireen had thought that Katsumi had been caught in a pretty bad situation, but apparently not! The Rune Knight, instead of getting all frazzled, stood her ground before all the citizens who bore animosity for those in her line of work! If the pink-haired mage could tip her hat to the raven-haired woman at that very moment, she would’ve been glad to. However, interrupting Katsumi’s natural flow could possibly lead to a less interesting conclusion, so she stayed silent with a wide grin spreading across her features. Watching the Rune Knight deflect each of the interlopers’ claims and demands was truly a treat for Eireen. If only more people had joined in, maybe she would’ve been able to see her seamlessly deal with an angry mob. Katsumi really did seem awkward a lot of times, but it seemed like at times like these she really pulled through.
Sadly, Eireen did not get to look upon Katsumi for an unlimited amount of time, because both the old guy and owner of the shop had been silenced by Katsumi’s words. And, of course, during that small interval of time Master Thief Koneko had easily disappeared from sight. Naturally, Katsumi promptly chose to follow her, leaving for the kitchen with demands that Eireen stays in one place. She said to keep an eye out for Koneko, but it wasn’t likely that the cornered kitty would come back to the establishment. Instead, she’d probably choose to dart randomly around the entire city, right? And thus, as the raven-haired mage disappeared from the reaper’s vision, it was sadly time to rip the mask off this charade.
“H-Hey you! You, erm, you’d better do something about this!” Cried the shop owner. Somehow, the woman still had the nerve to speak to Eireen despite the scolding she got from Katsumi. Despite how annoying it was, the reaper would refrain from getting too violent at the moment. She was capable of not acting on impulse, so even if she was agitated to a large degree it was unlikely she'd cave in to her desire to see blood.
“Why, I’m afraid I must be going, ma’am!” Eireen replied brightly while wearing a wide smile. “But I’m afraid you should focus more on the customers a bit, gotta keep an eye on that Yelp rating! If the lady from the Rune Knights comes back, tell her I’m off to work on my fanfiction.” The shopkeeper seemed to want to say something else, but before she had the chance Eireen had already exited the pastry shop. Katsumi was probably going to come back to the shop at some point, but it would should work out alright. She just needed to follow the target, kill them, and leave quickly before there are any issues.
Eireen turned off from the main roads into an alleyway, altering her appearance to a tanned woman with silver hair and eyes. Thankfully, Chance still had a rough idea about Koneko’s location, so it shouldn’t be too hard to follow if she just traveled via rooftop. Requipping a set of speed-oriented armor that gave her a ninja-like appearance, the mage smoothly leaped onto a building’s roof and proceeded on the most direct path towards Katsumi and Koneko. Hopefully, the pursuit and capture would almost be over by the time she got there, and she’d only need to execute the thief. A concern would be if her approach was detected, but that didn't change the reaper's objective. And so, she continued to quickly make her way through Hosenka by jumping from one rooftop to another.
Sadly, Eireen did not get to look upon Katsumi for an unlimited amount of time, because both the old guy and owner of the shop had been silenced by Katsumi’s words. And, of course, during that small interval of time Master Thief Koneko had easily disappeared from sight. Naturally, Katsumi promptly chose to follow her, leaving for the kitchen with demands that Eireen stays in one place. She said to keep an eye out for Koneko, but it wasn’t likely that the cornered kitty would come back to the establishment. Instead, she’d probably choose to dart randomly around the entire city, right? And thus, as the raven-haired mage disappeared from the reaper’s vision, it was sadly time to rip the mask off this charade.
“H-Hey you! You, erm, you’d better do something about this!” Cried the shop owner. Somehow, the woman still had the nerve to speak to Eireen despite the scolding she got from Katsumi. Despite how annoying it was, the reaper would refrain from getting too violent at the moment. She was capable of not acting on impulse, so even if she was agitated to a large degree it was unlikely she'd cave in to her desire to see blood.
“Why, I’m afraid I must be going, ma’am!” Eireen replied brightly while wearing a wide smile. “But I’m afraid you should focus more on the customers a bit, gotta keep an eye on that Yelp rating! If the lady from the Rune Knights comes back, tell her I’m off to work on my fanfiction.” The shopkeeper seemed to want to say something else, but before she had the chance Eireen had already exited the pastry shop. Katsumi was probably going to come back to the shop at some point, but it would should work out alright. She just needed to follow the target, kill them, and leave quickly before there are any issues.
Eireen turned off from the main roads into an alleyway, altering her appearance to a tanned woman with silver hair and eyes. Thankfully, Chance still had a rough idea about Koneko’s location, so it shouldn’t be too hard to follow if she just traveled via rooftop. Requipping a set of speed-oriented armor that gave her a ninja-like appearance, the mage smoothly leaped onto a building’s roof and proceeded on the most direct path towards Katsumi and Koneko. Hopefully, the pursuit and capture would almost be over by the time she got there, and she’d only need to execute the thief. A concern would be if her approach was detected, but that didn't change the reaper's objective. And so, she continued to quickly make her way through Hosenka by jumping from one rooftop to another.
596 ❈ 6121
Total Thread WC ❈ 11891
Total Thread WC ❈ 11891
Katsumi- - - -
Lineage : Feeling Empty
Position : None
Posts : 194
Guild : Luminous Rose
Cosmic Coins : 0
Dungeon Tokens : 0
Mentor : Shane
Experience : 28,105
Katsumi raced through the kitchen. She'd thought it would be a straight chase. It became a game of dodge the dangerous objects. Her body protested the abuse as she ducked, jumped and twisted rapidly through the flow of people. The gamer in her relished the challenge. The police officer did not. The hole Koneko had left in her wake was easy enough to follow. It was the constant flow of the kitchen. Even while staring after the thief, the cooks and aides were still moving about doing their jobs. The raven-haired woman slid to the floor as a massive man turned around. It wasn't a smooth trip but she went through his legs without getting hit. If Katsumi hadn't been focused on chasing Koneko only, she might have remembered she didn't need to do all these acrobatics. She only needed to flash her guild tattoo and shout 'Rune Knights'.
The swordswoman popped back up. The sound of a crashing door reached her ears. There must be a back door. The thief was escaping! Katsumi started looking at her surroundings rather than focusing on chasing her suspect. The back wall wasn't too far away. Unfortunately, there was a sea of white clad cooks working in front of it. The Rune Knight grit her teeth as she charged the people. Time couldn't be wasted if she wanted to apprehend Koneko. First obstacle! A man was standing directly in front of her. He was bending over to inspect some dish. Up and over! The cook never even know a shadow had passed. Next up! Twist! Spin! Step to the left! Again! Forward! Katsumi got into a rhythm of moving through the crowd. Some miracle caused her to simply know when and where to move. The back door was barely closing as she crashed through it. The daylight nearly blinded her.
Katsumi put a hand over her pulsing shoulder. Perhaps crashing through the door hadn't been the best plan. Her eyes scanned the crowd. Where was Koneko? A flash of black hair with cat ears caught her eye. The thief was trying to act like one of the crowd. As Katsumi watched, the girl snitched a scarf and tied it over her ears. Then she glanced behind her. The thief and the Rune Knight locked eyes. Koneko released the scarf darting into the crowd. Now Katsumi remembered the power of her guild, the authority behind it. "Hey! Stop! You're under arrest!" She cried out.
Not the best words to shout in a crowded street. Apparently, there were a few other criminals in this place. They all began drawing weapons and firing off magic. The crowd quickly dissolved into panic. The local Rune Knight branch was going to be in big trouble when she got back to HQ! This was despicable. She drew the Henkan I. The small silver handle elongated into a midnight black sword. Katsumi was stuck on her next action though. Koneko was getting away. However, these criminals were threatening the civilians. Her bigger magics would strike the innocents and she didn't have time to fight each bad guy, one on one. Katsumi's teeth worried her lip. What path did she need to take?
The criminals made the choice for her. Three of them approached her, clearly recognizing her uniform. They growled. One spit off to the side. Katsumi sank into the first sword form of her self designed Arashi style. "Arashi Style - Bird in Rain" She murmured, sliding through the attack. The first criminal looked down at the X on his stomach. "Arashi Style - Night Twister" The second criminal screamed as Katsumi finished the second move. His hands were on the ground, severed near the elbows. "Kennonai Style - Shooting Star" Her hand shot out to crunch the third criminal's sternum. He wobbled for a second. When it appeared that he'd remain standing, Katsumi repeated the punch and aimed a little lower. All three bad guys collapsed to the ground. It had taken mere seconds.
Any evildoer on the street that saw Katsumi's feat quickly fled. There were only a few that remained. The Rune Knight decided to leave this cleanup for the local police. She had a thief to catch. The swordswoman shot forward. Where was the cat burglar now? Soon after she started running, the raven-haired woman slowed down. Running aimlessly wouldn't get her anywhere. Koneko had gotten at least half a minute to disappear. That might be plenty of time in a place like this. Katsumi looked around. Unfamiliar sights greeted her eyes. Strange streets twisted off into the unknown. Too many good places to hide that the Rune Knight could run straight by. "Damn it." Katsumi muttered, trying to figure out the best course of action.
It was the Rune Knight's lucky day. Koneko stepped out of an alleyway cradling something. Katsumi didn't even hesitate. Magic flooded into her feet. Her body sprang across the distance. Her body shrieked from the abuse. Katsumi ignored it as she screamed, slamming her sword downward. "I've got you!" Koneko raised her hands above her head to protect herself. Cloth fell, revealing a blood red lacrima. It flashed. Katsumi almost felt it calling out to her. The strange siren call threw the mage off. She misjudged the remaining distance and Koneko's hands slammed into her chest. Air, gone. "Ooofff" Katsumi managed. The lacrima touched her skin. It vanished from Koneko's grasp, worming into Katsumi's body.
"No!!" Koneko shrieked as the Rune Knight slammed onto the pavement. The thief was sturdier than she looked. "What have you done?! Give it back! I need that!" She leapt at Katsumi's prone body. The swordswoman's head was lolling back and forth. A host of new sensations were assaulting her senses. Her brain couldn't keep up and her body was close to convulsing. Koneko would easily be able to kill her, should she wish it. That is if a blood red membrane hadn't formed over Katsumi's body. The thief slammed the shield a couple of times. She screamed in frustration before running away. The Rune Knight slowly slipped in and out of consciousness, unable to make sense of everything anymore.
WC: 1026
PWC: 6726
TWC: 12917
The swordswoman popped back up. The sound of a crashing door reached her ears. There must be a back door. The thief was escaping! Katsumi started looking at her surroundings rather than focusing on chasing her suspect. The back wall wasn't too far away. Unfortunately, there was a sea of white clad cooks working in front of it. The Rune Knight grit her teeth as she charged the people. Time couldn't be wasted if she wanted to apprehend Koneko. First obstacle! A man was standing directly in front of her. He was bending over to inspect some dish. Up and over! The cook never even know a shadow had passed. Next up! Twist! Spin! Step to the left! Again! Forward! Katsumi got into a rhythm of moving through the crowd. Some miracle caused her to simply know when and where to move. The back door was barely closing as she crashed through it. The daylight nearly blinded her.
Katsumi put a hand over her pulsing shoulder. Perhaps crashing through the door hadn't been the best plan. Her eyes scanned the crowd. Where was Koneko? A flash of black hair with cat ears caught her eye. The thief was trying to act like one of the crowd. As Katsumi watched, the girl snitched a scarf and tied it over her ears. Then she glanced behind her. The thief and the Rune Knight locked eyes. Koneko released the scarf darting into the crowd. Now Katsumi remembered the power of her guild, the authority behind it. "Hey! Stop! You're under arrest!" She cried out.
Not the best words to shout in a crowded street. Apparently, there were a few other criminals in this place. They all began drawing weapons and firing off magic. The crowd quickly dissolved into panic. The local Rune Knight branch was going to be in big trouble when she got back to HQ! This was despicable. She drew the Henkan I. The small silver handle elongated into a midnight black sword. Katsumi was stuck on her next action though. Koneko was getting away. However, these criminals were threatening the civilians. Her bigger magics would strike the innocents and she didn't have time to fight each bad guy, one on one. Katsumi's teeth worried her lip. What path did she need to take?
The criminals made the choice for her. Three of them approached her, clearly recognizing her uniform. They growled. One spit off to the side. Katsumi sank into the first sword form of her self designed Arashi style. "Arashi Style - Bird in Rain" She murmured, sliding through the attack. The first criminal looked down at the X on his stomach. "Arashi Style - Night Twister" The second criminal screamed as Katsumi finished the second move. His hands were on the ground, severed near the elbows. "Kennonai Style - Shooting Star" Her hand shot out to crunch the third criminal's sternum. He wobbled for a second. When it appeared that he'd remain standing, Katsumi repeated the punch and aimed a little lower. All three bad guys collapsed to the ground. It had taken mere seconds.
Any evildoer on the street that saw Katsumi's feat quickly fled. There were only a few that remained. The Rune Knight decided to leave this cleanup for the local police. She had a thief to catch. The swordswoman shot forward. Where was the cat burglar now? Soon after she started running, the raven-haired woman slowed down. Running aimlessly wouldn't get her anywhere. Koneko had gotten at least half a minute to disappear. That might be plenty of time in a place like this. Katsumi looked around. Unfamiliar sights greeted her eyes. Strange streets twisted off into the unknown. Too many good places to hide that the Rune Knight could run straight by. "Damn it." Katsumi muttered, trying to figure out the best course of action.
It was the Rune Knight's lucky day. Koneko stepped out of an alleyway cradling something. Katsumi didn't even hesitate. Magic flooded into her feet. Her body sprang across the distance. Her body shrieked from the abuse. Katsumi ignored it as she screamed, slamming her sword downward. "I've got you!" Koneko raised her hands above her head to protect herself. Cloth fell, revealing a blood red lacrima. It flashed. Katsumi almost felt it calling out to her. The strange siren call threw the mage off. She misjudged the remaining distance and Koneko's hands slammed into her chest. Air, gone. "Ooofff" Katsumi managed. The lacrima touched her skin. It vanished from Koneko's grasp, worming into Katsumi's body.
"No!!" Koneko shrieked as the Rune Knight slammed onto the pavement. The thief was sturdier than she looked. "What have you done?! Give it back! I need that!" She leapt at Katsumi's prone body. The swordswoman's head was lolling back and forth. A host of new sensations were assaulting her senses. Her brain couldn't keep up and her body was close to convulsing. Koneko would easily be able to kill her, should she wish it. That is if a blood red membrane hadn't formed over Katsumi's body. The thief slammed the shield a couple of times. She screamed in frustration before running away. The Rune Knight slowly slipped in and out of consciousness, unable to make sense of everything anymore.
WC: 1026
PWC: 6726
TWC: 12917
Eireen- - - - -
Lineage : Empyrean Reaper
Position : None
Posts : 112
Guild : Hidden Blades
Cosmic Coins : 0
Dungeon Tokens : 0
Experience : 19,499
Character Sheet
First Skill: Melancholy
Second Skill: Edge of Infinity
Third Skill: N/A
Eireen found that her venture across the rooftops was utterly unhindered. She would say she was moving faster than Katsumi and Koneko would be with all the people they had to go through, but that didn’t change the fact she had a late start. Additionally, the reaper wasn’t one hundred percent sure where the heck she was heading, so eventually, she was forced to slow her pace to the point where she could inspect the streets. And from what Eireen could tell, things seemed to be in quite the disorder, which was a good thing for her for a multitude of reasons. First of all, it meant Katsumi and Koneko had probably passed through the area, signaling that the mage was on the right track. And from the looks of it, Katsumi had even taken care of a few crooks while chasing after the cat burglar. After seeing what kind of state they’d been left in, she made sure to take a mental note that Katsumi was some sort of multitasking maniac. Actually, “maniac” was the wrong word, perhaps just “weirdo” would be sufficient?
But the other reason the reaper appreciated the ensuing chaos was how easy it would be to blend right back into the crowd once her business was dealt with. However, when Eireen finally located Katsumi and Koneko it… wasn’t what she was expecting.
“What in the…?” She muttered under her breath, eyes narrowed. Koneko was slamming against this weird shield-thing that had formed around Katsumi, the Rune Knight laying on the ground. Eireen was just about ready to step in before the catgirl let out an outcry before dashing off. But before the reaper could pursue, she should at least go through the trouble of assuring Katsumi’s safety. She was cold-blooded, sure, but it would be a shame to have such an interesting person die from a medical complication. “Hey-”
“Yeah, whatever, I’m on it.” The fluffy ethereal manifested itself, nimbly moving to watch over unconscious Katsumi.
“I knew I could count on you, my little butterfly~ Make sure not to immediately reveal yourself, okay?” Eireen spoke mockingly, quickly resuming her pursuit of Koneko before Chance could rebuke her. “Now where are you, little kitty cat?” After messing around for a while, it was finally time for her to go about her task of finishing off the pesky thief. To her, Koneko was no longer a person, just a walking target.
Koneko couldn’t have completely escaped within the few seconds she’d sent Chance to look over Katsumi, and for an assassin like Eireen, that was more than enough. It was easy to find the panicked young girl after leaping past only a few buildings. Then, before she was detected, Eireen sent a jagged dagger flying towards the thief. “Arghk?!!” Sadly, the girl wouldn’t be treated to instant death, the mage’s initial attack had missed any vitals and instead found its way to her thigh. But seeing as Koneko had proved herself to be quite the runner, perhaps it was better this way. The reaper sighed, finally leaping down into the alleyway along with her target.
“Wha- Why?!” The catgirl’s eyes were awash with disbelief, stumbling slightly as she struggled to stay on two feet. “Why?” Eireen echoed, her expression cold, “That’s a boring reply. Almost as boring as running around Hosenka looking for a target of assassination.” She summoned a katana to her hand, Koneko’s eyes widening with fear in the face of death. The girl attempted to turn and run for the more populated area of town, but with a knife stuck in her leg, she couldn't outrun Eireen. She could barely make it a few strides before the mage intercepted her, seemingly materializing out of nowhere.
“You have some sort of weird magic, why couldn't you use other ways to earn money besides stealing?” She drove the hilt of her sword into Koneko’s gut, winding her. “I mean, I can’t be one to talk in that regard, but still. You had a chance.” By now the girl’s eyes were full of tears, her body trembling like a leaf in the face of death. “No- Please..!” But Eireen disregarded her and pushed her blade through her target’s heart. She receded her blade, allowing Koneko’s corpse to sprawl onto the bloodied concrete.
“Hey, at least your blood’s a pretty color.” The reaper said lightly, turning away from the dead body.
But the other reason the reaper appreciated the ensuing chaos was how easy it would be to blend right back into the crowd once her business was dealt with. However, when Eireen finally located Katsumi and Koneko it… wasn’t what she was expecting.
“What in the…?” She muttered under her breath, eyes narrowed. Koneko was slamming against this weird shield-thing that had formed around Katsumi, the Rune Knight laying on the ground. Eireen was just about ready to step in before the catgirl let out an outcry before dashing off. But before the reaper could pursue, she should at least go through the trouble of assuring Katsumi’s safety. She was cold-blooded, sure, but it would be a shame to have such an interesting person die from a medical complication. “Hey-”
“Yeah, whatever, I’m on it.” The fluffy ethereal manifested itself, nimbly moving to watch over unconscious Katsumi.
“I knew I could count on you, my little butterfly~ Make sure not to immediately reveal yourself, okay?” Eireen spoke mockingly, quickly resuming her pursuit of Koneko before Chance could rebuke her. “Now where are you, little kitty cat?” After messing around for a while, it was finally time for her to go about her task of finishing off the pesky thief. To her, Koneko was no longer a person, just a walking target.
Koneko couldn’t have completely escaped within the few seconds she’d sent Chance to look over Katsumi, and for an assassin like Eireen, that was more than enough. It was easy to find the panicked young girl after leaping past only a few buildings. Then, before she was detected, Eireen sent a jagged dagger flying towards the thief. “Arghk?!!” Sadly, the girl wouldn’t be treated to instant death, the mage’s initial attack had missed any vitals and instead found its way to her thigh. But seeing as Koneko had proved herself to be quite the runner, perhaps it was better this way. The reaper sighed, finally leaping down into the alleyway along with her target.
“Wha- Why?!” The catgirl’s eyes were awash with disbelief, stumbling slightly as she struggled to stay on two feet. “Why?” Eireen echoed, her expression cold, “That’s a boring reply. Almost as boring as running around Hosenka looking for a target of assassination.” She summoned a katana to her hand, Koneko’s eyes widening with fear in the face of death. The girl attempted to turn and run for the more populated area of town, but with a knife stuck in her leg, she couldn't outrun Eireen. She could barely make it a few strides before the mage intercepted her, seemingly materializing out of nowhere.
“You have some sort of weird magic, why couldn't you use other ways to earn money besides stealing?” She drove the hilt of her sword into Koneko’s gut, winding her. “I mean, I can’t be one to talk in that regard, but still. You had a chance.” By now the girl’s eyes were full of tears, her body trembling like a leaf in the face of death. “No- Please..!” But Eireen disregarded her and pushed her blade through her target’s heart. She receded her blade, allowing Koneko’s corpse to sprawl onto the bloodied concrete.
“Hey, at least your blood’s a pretty color.” The reaper said lightly, turning away from the dead body.
post word count: 735
total word count: 6856
thread word count: 13582
total word count: 6856
thread word count: 13582
Last edited by Eireen on 3rd July 2020, 3:30 pm; edited 1 time in total
Katsumi- - - -
Lineage : Feeling Empty
Position : None
Posts : 194
Guild : Luminous Rose
Cosmic Coins : 0
Dungeon Tokens : 0
Mentor : Shane
Experience : 28,105
As Katsumi convulsed uncontrollably, her mind was finding a way to rationalize things. The new sensations, the feeling of grit almost exquisite torture - her physical stats had been increased. Specifically her perception stat. Given the myriad of piercing lights, and disgusting smells now reaching her, she wished it hadn't happened. Kat didn't want to focus on the pain anymore. Think about something else. Koneko's reaction. Whatever she'd been holding had vanished. Into Katsumi. It was fueling all the changes. Apparently it was also whatever Koneko had been focused on stealing. For a brief moment, the Rune Knight wondered if it was also the true reason Okashi had sniffed out the story. The crystal had to contain some sort of magic. Magic now altering Katsumi in a variety of ways. The swordswoman would have groaned if she could. When would it be over anyway?
And just like that it stopped. As she opened her eyes, Katsumi saw a thin blood red membrane surrounding her. It blocked out the surroundings. Her fingers gently brushed against it. A pulse ran through the membrane. The creation folded back like an opening flower. The Rune Knight was struck by new scents. Light pierced her overly sensitive eyes. "Gods damn it all." She muttered, trying to block out the light with one hand. It didn't work well. "Damn it all!" Katsumi cried out. A new scent reached her. A tantalizing scent that made drool gather in her mouth. A second set of eyelids, transparent, slid over her eyes. They blocked out the light, dimmed it rather to make it tolerable. Hunger erupted inside her stomach. Drool began to leak out her lips.
The Rune Knight leapt forward. Whatever that scent was, she needed to have it. Her body moved gracefully. Things that would have tripped her before seemed to pass smoothly under her feet. It didn't feel right running upright though. Katsumi hunched forward. Yes. Hands out. The swordswoman couldn't notice anything around her. It was all about that delicious scent. Closer. Closer. To an observer, small wings ripped their way out of Katsumi's back. They were incomplete, too long in some places, too short in others. Patches of tight skin hung off the abominations. Katsumi's eyes turned red. They glowed with magical power. From her outstretched hands, atop her fingers, claws sprouted. They were a dark black color nearly half a foot in length. And for all the changes, Katsumi was entirely unaware. The scent was all consuming.
When she reached the source of the scent, Katsumi dove for it. Warm flesh parted under her claws. Her teeth cut deep, ripping free a mouthful. Flavor burst onto her tongue. Katsumi moaned in delight. Her hunger abated for brief seconds. In those seconds, her awareness returned. Katsumi screamed in horror. Koneko lay beneath her. Part of her chest had been torn open. Pieces of flesh scattered against the alley wall. Not enough though. The swordwoman bent over and threw up when she realized where the rest had gone. The delicious scent, that indescribably delicious taste was flesh. Human flesh. The changes of the predator receded as Katsumi stumbled away from the body. Her mind took snap shots of the scene. The pooling blood. The knife in Koneko's leg. An unnaturally straight area near the torn section of chest. Dried tears on Koneko's face.
The Rune Knight struggled to make sense of things as she moved away from the crime scene. She hadn't killed Koneko. Had she? Oh gods what had that girl shoved into her chest? Was she going on murdering sprees unexpectedly now? At least until she got her mouthful of flesh? Katsumi wiped her mouth. This was a fresh hell to torment her. She'd investigate Koneko's death. Later. Now. Now she needed to report in to her superiors. After which, she would hole up in her room for a long damn time until she understood the new changes that crystal thing had wrought. It took everything she had to hold it together. Katsumi didn't know what had happened to her. She could only hope it was reversible. Otherwise, she might end up locking herself away for the good of all.
WC: 698
PWC: 7424
TWC: 14280
And just like that it stopped. As she opened her eyes, Katsumi saw a thin blood red membrane surrounding her. It blocked out the surroundings. Her fingers gently brushed against it. A pulse ran through the membrane. The creation folded back like an opening flower. The Rune Knight was struck by new scents. Light pierced her overly sensitive eyes. "Gods damn it all." She muttered, trying to block out the light with one hand. It didn't work well. "Damn it all!" Katsumi cried out. A new scent reached her. A tantalizing scent that made drool gather in her mouth. A second set of eyelids, transparent, slid over her eyes. They blocked out the light, dimmed it rather to make it tolerable. Hunger erupted inside her stomach. Drool began to leak out her lips.
The Rune Knight leapt forward. Whatever that scent was, she needed to have it. Her body moved gracefully. Things that would have tripped her before seemed to pass smoothly under her feet. It didn't feel right running upright though. Katsumi hunched forward. Yes. Hands out. The swordswoman couldn't notice anything around her. It was all about that delicious scent. Closer. Closer. To an observer, small wings ripped their way out of Katsumi's back. They were incomplete, too long in some places, too short in others. Patches of tight skin hung off the abominations. Katsumi's eyes turned red. They glowed with magical power. From her outstretched hands, atop her fingers, claws sprouted. They were a dark black color nearly half a foot in length. And for all the changes, Katsumi was entirely unaware. The scent was all consuming.
When she reached the source of the scent, Katsumi dove for it. Warm flesh parted under her claws. Her teeth cut deep, ripping free a mouthful. Flavor burst onto her tongue. Katsumi moaned in delight. Her hunger abated for brief seconds. In those seconds, her awareness returned. Katsumi screamed in horror. Koneko lay beneath her. Part of her chest had been torn open. Pieces of flesh scattered against the alley wall. Not enough though. The swordwoman bent over and threw up when she realized where the rest had gone. The delicious scent, that indescribably delicious taste was flesh. Human flesh. The changes of the predator receded as Katsumi stumbled away from the body. Her mind took snap shots of the scene. The pooling blood. The knife in Koneko's leg. An unnaturally straight area near the torn section of chest. Dried tears on Koneko's face.
The Rune Knight struggled to make sense of things as she moved away from the crime scene. She hadn't killed Koneko. Had she? Oh gods what had that girl shoved into her chest? Was she going on murdering sprees unexpectedly now? At least until she got her mouthful of flesh? Katsumi wiped her mouth. This was a fresh hell to torment her. She'd investigate Koneko's death. Later. Now. Now she needed to report in to her superiors. After which, she would hole up in her room for a long damn time until she understood the new changes that crystal thing had wrought. It took everything she had to hold it together. Katsumi didn't know what had happened to her. She could only hope it was reversible. Otherwise, she might end up locking herself away for the good of all.
WC: 698
PWC: 7424
TWC: 14280
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