B. Maybe there's a better candidate for the throne. Maybe some of them you wouldn't want on the throne. Maybe some of them are plants by the human kingdom... and you definitely don't want one of those on the throne.
Well! If Hook wants to taste some real food she knows where she can hit you up.

Right off the bat: A. We should take the offer. She went out of her way to ask when nobody else in this contest has, she seems like one of the better candidates to take the job, and I feel a little bad that she's been getting sabotaged and fed shitty food. Ignolia is our friend to, and I love her, but if I'm being brutally honest I don't really see her making for that great of a queen. Caissa is in league with Clausey, the worst person. And Tinuptia... Well she's probably fine actually, but she hasn't asked us to join her. Plus, her focus on tactics may not serve the throne well. Could lead to the plate getting into a war if her tunnel vision is really bad.

Even after accepting however, we should figure out what we're getting into and try to meet a couple of the other candidates.

We should talk to Ignolia of course, because it's kind of a dick move to go against a friend without at least offering some heads up and assuring her that we still really like them and that there are no hard feelings.

If the secret candidate is on the table, we should look into them, but most importantly of all I want to look into Caissa. What the fuck is her deal?

Finally, D. WHY THE FUCK IS YOUR MOM SABOTAGING YOU!?

Based on what Hook tells us, and what we eventually wring out of Satina later, we may or may not be tattling on her to the Queen later. She had better have a damn compelling reason, because if she doesn't then she can go fuck herself, we're not finishing her lesson.

Unless the Queen asks us to, because we like the Queen, the Queen is cool. In that case we'll get her back some other way. Ask her to test out our cool wingsuit design at a party or something.

(Also, maybe recommend a few restaurants to Hook so that she finally understands what good food tastes like? You could like, bring her something to taste if she can't leave home rn.

>>1026825
Tell her you think she has a good cause but you want to do some research on the other candidates before deciding. Like, what are IGNOLIA and TINUPTUA planning to do once they're Queen?
B, and see if you can figure out what Satina is doing too. Maybe find out what other candidates there are, and confirm if Noodle is really trying to become Queen. I bet she hasn't told you because a, it's a secret, and b, she doesn't want to make it sound like she wants you to do even more for her than you have already.

>>1026825
So, it seems like we are the best candidate by a long shot to rule; however that really isn't something we want to do. Could it be possible that we could be forced into it somehow?

Also, isn't Ignolia kind of old if she is in your parents' generation?

Does Noodle know if she is a candidate or not?

OH. Even if we *do* wind up deciding to support Hook right away, we should keep that fact a secret from Satina. We've caught on to her games, but we don't want her to know that, so it'd be best if she thinks we turned Hook down, and maybe Hook could act pissed about it to boot, since we were told to push her buttons.

>>1026824
>CAISSA
So that's why shes interested in Pawn.

>>1026825
B Lets meet with Caissa and the Mystery candidate.

>Satina
The two main explanations are (A) she genuinely doesn't want Hook to be queen or (B) she wants to make it harder so Hook will have to work for it.
Let's just assume the latter: If Hook succeeds, Satina's motivations will be their own reward/punishment.
Let Hook hear your reasoning.

the reason Satina doesn't want hook to be queen is because Satina is a royal concubine and doesn't want to be a concubine to her own daughter... this is a joke by the by

> WHAT DO
First, D: Grill Hook on what she plans to do AFTER she becomes Queen. What's her policy beyond "clean up crime?" Does she plan to expand that to counterintelligence and even proactive espionage? If so, you can voice your opinion that this does seem like a strong policy, given we're in the grips of a cold war right now, but she'll need to have some front-facing plan as well that the people of TENGU are actually allowed to see. Also, you're concerned about whether she can perform if the war were to turn hot. (Also, did she uncover dirt on anyone we're close to? We don't want anything nasty coming their way to be a surprise.)

This is followed by B:
"Given that you were likely told I was already on board, it should likely come as a disappointment that I'm going to investigate some of the other candidates; specifically, TINUPTUA and the MYSTERY CANDIDATE - I have a sneaking suspicion to her identity. I'm with you in writing off IGNOLIA, for what it's worth; it sounds like her heart's in the right place, but unless she plans to somehow fix what isn't broken in the first place, she seems to be a status quo candidate, and that's not what we need right now. Meanwhile, I simply don't trust CAISSA; she was a former student of mine who was close to CLAUSEY, the worst of the suspected 'plant' students hired by a foreign group, which I'm sure you heard about if you'd even been casually following my business. I don't know if CAISSA knew about that, but she was a spiteful one herself. Even if her 'friend' doesn't resurface, I wouldn't trust her not to get entrenched in FOREIGN INTERESTS over her own people's, at least a little bit. Plus, she's already looking into PAWN, I think, so I probably won't get 'in' with her even if I wanted."

> SATINA
"Your mother made it clear to me that she doesn't have familial bias in this matter. Given this context, I think what she truly meant by that is crystal clear; she's supporting someone else. She's possibly going to be that candidate's WILD CARD, in fact, assuming the non-LEADER roles don't have the same age restrictions."

"By the way, tell your mother she owes me that FANCY DINNER she promised, or I'm not finishing her lessons."

Perhaps we should take up the throne we got a halfwit, warmonger,peacetime leader and wildcard that can be a forgain wingkin or perhaps our snake friend

>>1026825
>Then there’s also the matter of Satina, why sabotage her daughter? What could she gain? What could she lose? There’s too many questions.
Now that I think about it, despite Satina saying that she won’t support Hook trying to become Queen (which makes sense, since a Royal Scientist helping her daughter become Queen looks extremely biased), she might be trying to help in her own subtle way. For example: The misinformation between Chi and Hook. That could’ve been prevented if Hook didn’t stay in her room all the time and came to speak with Chi herself. This could be a lesson to Hook that she should be more aware of what’s going on around herself instead of focusing completely on her goal.

And the reason Satina didn’t just tell Hook herself was probably because she thinks Hook would more likely listen to Chi instead of her.

As for what we should do about Satina, I think we shouldn’t do anything about it.

It would be unprofessional of us to stop Satina’s lessons because of this and it would hurt the kingdom by not helping one of our Royal Scientists learn Runescripting. And let’s not forget that the Queen herself has told us: “Sometimes we must work with individuals we dislike.” So even if we dislike Satina for what she’s done, we have to continue working with her.

Also if the Queen found out we stopped teaching Satina because of this, then she would be disappointed in our pettiness and she might take away that ROYAL FAVOR we haven’t used yet!

>What do?
D.

Tell Hook that she looks terrible. The bags under her eyes shows that she isn’t getting enough sleep and if the meal we just had with her is something she’s been eating for a while, then that also means that she isn’t eating properly. If she continues like this, she’ll end up getting sick and that’ll force her to drop out as a candidate for the throne!

You highly recommend that she takes some time to relax so that she can get some sleep and get some real food to eat. You’re confident that she’ll feel better and she’ll be able to work more efficiently when she does that.

>>1026961
All this.

>>1026961
If you end up being right about Satina, then she's got some terrible parenting methods.

Other than that, I agree with everything you said.

IDEA: Lets have a dream tea break with some of our friends, and VENT OUR ANGER, blow off some steam about what happened with them in a healthy way, gotta let that dog out every now and then, but in a safe environment. Our friends will listen and understand. I think the Runescripters will be willing to listen about what Satina did, and get their opinion on Hook since it's partly business related as we're teaching Satina. No sense in suppressing anger all the time, it is an important emotion as our others. Just let them know ahead of time that you're going to be ranting so that they can be prepared if they want to listen.

And we can ask Drift about him being an accountant during the dream tea break.

>>1026961
Yeah, agreed, lets just keep things mutural with teaching Satina, the whole situation is Hook and her mother to deal with, not us, even if we got caught in the middle of it. Do it for the royals if not for Satina. If Satina asks how things went the next time we see her, we'll just say things went as expected, and nothing more, let her interpret it as it is.

Edmango 2022/03/23(Wed)20:52 No. 1027123 ID: afe7de
File 164809394352.png - (16.32KB , 500x500 , SR2_067.png )

> DINNER WITH HOOK V
You think on her statements for a bit, there’s a pregnant pause as she looks towards you expectantly.

You: This will probably come as a disappointment
Hook: I knew it.
You: But I’ll have to investigate the other candidates before committing.
Hook: BLLLLUUUUUUGHHHHHHHHHHH
Hook: C’mon just take a leap of faith would ya’

After taking much longer than necessary to let her know that you’ll still consider her proposal you find out a few things from her. First, the position of Royal scientist is rather lax, with you needing to develop something new to assist the kingdom once every 4 years at the minimum, where the more productive and helpful you are, the more resources you will be allotted. You will also occasionally be given a MAJOR PROJECT which you will need to devote at least [2TP] a year to. These are rare, but typically quite important. Upon completion it will count towards your contributions.

You also let Hook know the virtues of PROPER NUTRITION and ask her to either come with you to get some food or visit PON. She tries to brush you off but you take a firm stance, stating that she’s cooped up in her home too much and needs to see the kin she wants to lead, which segues nicely into your next question, what are her future plans.

You rightfully guessed her future plans were to conduct counterintelligence and proactive espionage, but her forward face to the public was rather fuzzy and indistinct. You recommend she comes up with a solid plan on that front after taking some rest. She’s tired and even you know the proper importance of RESTING. You can practically smell the STRESS coming off of her. She sighs and brushes you off for now, you can only do so much. Lastly, you share some theories you have.

A. Satina is actively supporting another candidate
- Perhaps she’s not a fan of nepotism
- She might think Hook’s approach and apparent shut-in lifestyle isn’t good for the kingdom
- She’s likely someone else's WILD CARD or SCIENTIST
- You’re not sure what she has to gain from this
B. Satina wanted to use this as a growth opportunity for Hook
- Hook’s staying in her room a lot and relying on others for info
- This miscommunication could have easily been fixed if she took a second to investigate
- Perhaps she (rightly) assumed that Hook wouldn't listen to her and would only listen to a friend
- This has the bonus effect of slapping Hook’s ego down a peg no matter the result
C. Somewhere between A and B
- She’s supporting someone she thinks is more qualified
- And wants to use this moment to show Hook her focus should lie elsewhere
- It’s still an absolutely clucked up move

You plan to treat Satina the same, albeit keeping yourself at a distance, just in case. This situation has certainly unnerved you, but the Queen did tell you that “Sometimes we must work with individuals we dislike.” Hook sits on the thoughts for a bit as you head out, urging her to take some rest and maybe spend some time with you and the others at the Laputa house. She looks tempted, sorely tempted, but you get the feeling she’ll only do it if you too take a break.

You’ve gained a new OPPORTUNITY
- Take a break with Hook
- If you chose to take a break next year, Hook will join you on the break
- You get the feeling she’ll be quite clingy and annoying though…

> CANDIDATE INVESTIGATIONS
You get WILLIAM and IGNIS to investigate the other candidates. After a few days they return with some information.

> IGNOLIA
- She’s planning on enlisting your father’s help, as she’s convinced him of her value
- She’s been more proactive helping other students and there are rumors going around about her
- You can see that she’s putting in an effort to try to be more outgoing, but is still shy
- Ignolia knows she’s adorkable and is trying to use that to her advantage
- Her policies are related to better access to better education to the whole plate
- She also wants to try to make better ties with Canus
- She’s Anti-Human due to their treatment of Canus
> TINUPTUA
- She’s been greasing the wheels at the merchants district
- You’ve heard she was in contact with Pon a few times
- You think she’s planning some food based advertising to get the common folk on her side
- Her siblings will be supporting her but it’s unknown who will fill the wildcard slot
- She’s pro free trade
- She’s neutral on Humans
- She’s Pro Dopus ties
> CAISSA
- Caissa has played a lot of cards to her vest so most of this is inflection
- She’s aggressively attempting to make ties to the Hunter’s guild with mixed success
- She’s supposedly developing weapons but has shown no evidence of success
- She’s boastful
- There are concerns she might be exaggerating in an attempt to attract bad press to the plate
- She’s Pro Human, Canus, and Anti Dopus
- Clausey and someone named Plum will be backing her
- There are rumors that Plum doesn't fully support this plan but supports Caissa as a person
- It might be worth talking to Plum to find out more
> HOOK
- She’s been a shut in for a while
- Has been training with the Spymasters and diplomats
- Ignis knows personally that she’s extremely stealthy
- William thinks she’s actually not a shut in and has been spying on others
- You assume that might be why she’s so tired and lacking rest
- Her outward facing plan is currently unknown, but the rest of what she said was accurate
- She’s Anti-Human
- She’s Pro Canus/Dopus
> NOODLE?!?!?!?!?
- Noodle actually isn’t sponsoring herself, it’s the Hunters and various merchants
- Apparently she’s been promoting Pon’s cooking and other cooking
- There are rumors that Noodle is a skilled merchant and warrior
- Apparently Noodle made connections when she was injured in Dopus
- And they’re bringing business to Tengu
- Noodle is blissfully unaware of this.
- She’s slightly anti-Human and neutral towards Canus, but fully Pro Dopus
> OTHER CANDIDATES
- Apparently there’s one other candidate that lives on the outskirts of the plate
- They’ve created a small settlement on the edge of the plate as a stop-gap town
- They planned for it to be a trading hub for visitors to the plate
- This town is being funded by a duchess from Canus
- The Queen has tacitly approved of the idea
- They’re Pro free trade and Pro Human
- Ignis mentions that the woman likely doesn't know she’s being propped up to be queen
- Ignis mentions that she was the kin who got his writ of land from the secret santa
- This news concerns you, Ignis, and William

Edmango 2022/03/23(Wed)20:52 No. 1027124 ID: afe7de
File 164809396357.png - (11.24KB , 500x500 , SR2_068.png )

> NIGHT-TIME NOODLE
You IMMEDIATELY go to talk to Noodle and ask her about the news.

You: Are you going to try to become the QUEEN?
Noodle: Huh? It’s 4AM Chi… Let me sleeeeeep
Pon: Hmmm, we were sleeeepiiiinnngggg
You: Oh, uh, right, but is it true!?!?!?
Noodle: Uhhh maybe, I haven’t thought it through
Noodle: They said something about me having the heart of the kin
Noodle: And that we needed someone who struggled to get where they were
Noodle: But I just want to be helpful y’know
Noodle: Helpful to you, helpful to others
Noodle: I dunno if me being Queen is the right choice
Noodle: I just know about fighting and other random junk
Noodle: Plus it takes forever for me to learn stuff
Noodle: I’m sleepy, can we talk more later
Pon: Yeah, ya peck neck its 4AM.

You leave the two to their little cuddle nest and sneak off. Maybe you should have timed that a little better, oh well, now you know!

> PASSING BY THE AGGRESSIVE ONE
With the last bit of your spare time you try to speak with Caissa, catching her wandering around one day. Her plumage is a nice black on the upper half and a bright orange on the lower half. She’s got a manic grin on her face.

Caissa: Can I help you teacher.
You: I heard you were going to run for Queen
Caissa: I AM going to be queen, don’t worry
Caissa: No thanks to you
You: Excuse me
Caissa: You heard me, I won’t have any of your help
Caissa: I’ll show you who the real RUNESCRIPTERS are around here
Caissa: HAH HAH HAH CAW CAW CAW

She then takes to the skies and flies away. What the cluck? Does she have beef with you? When did you do anything to gain her ire? You let out a sigh, it looks like the next few years will be a bit complicated.

Edmango 2022/03/23(Wed)20:52 No. 1027125 ID: afe7de
File 164809397682.png - (9.11KB , 500x500 , SR2_069.png )

> [YEAR 17] TP 8 EVENT - TEA WITH LAPUTA RUNETECH
You invite everyone in the company for some DREAM TEA. Ignis has been messing around with it with Pon and they’ve come up with a nice platter of flavors. You ask everyone if they’d be okay with you ranting and they’re very excited to hear you rant, since you typically bottle it all up inside.

2 HOURS LATER
You gained [1 FUN POINT]!

You honestly feel so refreshed after that. Unfortunately, everyone other than Ignis looks absolutely drained. That guy could really listen to you talk about anything for hours on end. You give him a nice pat on the head and call him a good boy.

[LUST] EYYYYYYYY
[IGNIS’S CHARISMA] I approve
[LOGIC] UUUUUUUUGHHHHHHHH

You then bring up the idea of Drift becoming the team’s Accountant, helping manage the funds for the company, allotments and influx of materials needed, etc. He brightens up at that and is incredibly excited to be given more responsibility. You also Assign Ignis to the role of Merchant relations, he coos with excitement.

Morale at Laputa Runetech has improved!
- Drift feels needed
- Ignis feels loved
- William looks excited
- Upkeep has been automated
- You will see a slight discount in costs associated with experimentation

> [YEAR 17] TP 8 EVENT - CLARK’S PROGRESS
After class you hold Clark and speak to him. He’s looking slightly more rested, to which you sigh a breath of relief. It turns out he’s been focusing on his studies now that he has the influx of cash needed and has reached the requirements you’ve set for him to be the TA for the class. This lets you sag in your seat with relief, finally, freedom from that damned TA job. He accepts the position with a happy face and lets you know to ask him if you need him to work on anything else.

Clark is now your new TA
- You’ve freed up a new Background slot

CONGRATS! You’ve completed the GOAL - FILL THAT TA SLOT!
- You’ve gained 2 GOAL POINTS

You’re finally free to assign something to that background task. You could always assign it to DATING to get into a formal relationship with up to 3 kin at once. Ignis would certainly be pleased.

Edmango 2022/03/23(Wed)20:53 No. 1027126 ID: afe7de
File 164809399039.png - (228.62KB , 500x500 , SR2_070.png )

> [YEAR 17] TP 8 EVENT - COLOR THEORY UPDATE
Drift has made headway on COLOR THEORY, he still has no way to distill mana of different colors, but he has noted that there is a significant link between the stars in the sky and their colors. He thinks that ASTROLOGY and RUNESCRIPTING might be intimately tied together, but that it required further testing. He also has a theory that this may have something to do with PRISMATIC RUNES.

The COLOR THEORY task has been updated to COLOR ASTROLOGY
- The ETA on a new update is [TP4 of Y19]
- Investigating the stars independently may lead to a breakthrough in this field
- It’s unknown how it relates to Runescripting, but the idea intrigues your group nonetheless

> OPPORTUNITY - PAWN’S CONTRACT
You’re conflicted heavily on the matter. First of all you’re not financially stable enough to support him joining long term unless things change. Second of all, there’s no way in the worldplate you’re paying him 5k, it’s just not happening. You wanted everyone to be paid EQUALLY, not to elevate someone to a higher status and thus bring all the problems associated with that. You bring Ignis with you for a second round of negotiations, and they go by quite smoothly. Pawn even appreciates the amount of consideration you’re putting into this.

As you’re negotiating a thought comes to your mind, about how it might be better for more COMPETITION to exist in the runescripting market. Sure, you could monopolize most of it, hire all the good kin, but wouldn’t that defeat the purpose of what you were doing, letting kin of all walks that can learn it learn it to improve themselves. Your way might not be the right way after all.

[PRIDE] Lies, our way is always the right way
[LOGIC] Yeah there’s no way we’re wrong if we know so much!
[UNDERSTANDING] Logic, get back over here
[LOGIC] …
[PERSEVERANCE] You’re doing fine, Chi.

After some back and forth you’ve got new options for pawn.

An OPPORTUNITY has been updated - MICROSCRIPTING
A. Hire PAWN
- Pay him a base salary of [4,000 SHINIES a year] (the same as everyone else)
- Give him a [500 SHINY] consultation fee for his additions
- Guarantee him 3 years of safe work
- You will gain the MICROSCRIPTING MANUAL
- Development and research will increase in speed
B. Help fund his STARTUP
- Pay him half an ingot of Arcanum (you have enough in stock)
- Pay him 1000 SHINIES worth of Monster parts
- Loan him Ignis or Drift for a little bit
- Give him the SHAPE rune manual
- You will gain the MICROSCRIPTING MANUAL
- Pawn will establish his own startup
- Ignis or Drift are free to take the knowledge they gain and share with them back to LAPUTA
- Opens the road for JOINT VENTURES with Pawn in the future
- Increases the likelihood of others working with him instead of you in the future

If you chose this, you may set a [TP] to learning Microscripting Immediately
In the event of a tie vote, Chi will pick the option she prefers

Edmango 2022/03/23(Wed)20:53 No. 1027127 ID: afe7de
File 164809402850.png - (6.63KB , 500x500 , SR2_071.png )

> [YEAR 18] BEGINNING OF YEAR - UPKEEP
UPCOMING EVENTS
- ELECTIONS [TP 2 of Y20]
- MANA VEINS RESEARCH [NEXT UPDATE]
- RUBBER?!?!?!?!?!? [SOON]
- THE SECOND BUYERS [??? of Y18]

Your CURRENT GOALS are as follows
- REACH BASIC MASTERY OF A MARTIAL ART OR WEAPON (R7), 6/7 (ETA 1Y)
- DISCOVER A NEW RUNE OR RUNESCRIPTING TYPE
- FINISH YOUR MIND CAMPUS
(NEW) - [EMPTY]
Your current GP total is 10/15
Your next reward is a FREE STAT POINT

Your CURRENT BACKGROUND TASKS are as follows (3/3)
- MIND AND BODY DOJO TRAINING (-20S/yr) (Events at TP 6)
- PRECISION WITH NICO (-300S/yr) (Events at TP 3)
(NEW)- [EMPTY]

Your current RESEARCH TASKS are as follows (2/2)
- COLOR ASTROLOGY [UPDATES - TP4 of Y19]
- MANA VEINS [ETA TP1 of Y18] (NEXT UPDATE!!!)

Your current OPPORTUNITIES are as follows
> MISC
- Become a M&B Dojo Senior Disciple [Expires Y19 TP1]
- Rest with Hook
> PAWN (You may immediately spend a TP to learn Microscripting if you chose this)
- Hire Pawn
- Help fund Pawn’s startup
> GUN DEVELOPMENT (You may decide this the next time you spend time inventing)
- Battery and Generator Development (>>1026159)
- Crank Gun development
- Pure Arcanum pistol
> JOIN A TEAM
- Join Hook’s team for the elections
- You’ll need to approach others and be offered a position before more options are added

Your current OBLIGATIONS are as follows
- M&B DOJO MEMBERSHIP - 20S/y [VOIDED FOR THE YEAR]
- RENT AT IGNIS’S - 800S/y [TIME SLOT 1]
- COMFORTABLE LIFESTYLE - 160S/y [TIME SLOT 1]

You spent [2,500 SHINIES] worth of resources from the LAPUTA INVENTORY
You gained [6,400 SHINIES] from TEACHING at the ACADEMY [TP8]
You gained [12,000 SHINIES] from TEACHING the ROYALS
You gained [2,000 SHINIES] from your yearly SUPPLY STIPEND at the ACADEMY
You spent [800 SHINIES] on rent
You spent [300 SHINIES] on excess lifestyle expenses this year
You spent [16,000 SHINIES] on Laputa Runetech Financing
You have [36,198 SHINIES] remaining

Your STRESS is at 0 and you have [3 FUN POINTS] that will block newly gained stress!!
- You’ve held onto these FUN POINTS for so long you will lose one and gain a GOOD VIBE
- Your [FUN POINTS] are now at 2

> GOOD VIBE - ENERGIZED
- Everyone’s feeling energetic
- Your Linked companions will need less sleep for a bit and will have slightly more energy

You can take out a LOAN from the ROYALTY for [30,000 SHINIES]
- You need to pay it back within 4 years with a yearly interest of +2000 SHINIES a year
You have one ROYAL BOON
- This can be redeemed from the royalty for one thing within reason

LAPUTA RUNETECH
- 2 2/3 INGOTS OF ARCANUM
- 1 AIR CHOKER
- 9 SMALL MONSTER CORES
- [7,500 SHINIES] worth of misc supplies and resources
- [4,000 SHINIES] banked from your own funds
PROTOTYPES
- [CD WINGSUIT V1]
- [HOT AIR BALLOON V1]
- [PARACHUTE V1]
- [WASTEFUL FLAME-GUN]
EMPLOYEE ASSIGNMENT
Chi - Management
Ignis - Merchant Relations (NEW)
- Will now start trying to find potential buyers for creations
Drift - Accounting (NEW)
- Will reduce the overall costs of research
William - Resource Acquisition (NEW)
- He’s trying to find rubber and he’s so close!

You have 1 INGOT OF ARCANUM, and RUNESCRIPTING SUPPLIES stored in your POCKET DIMENSION

CONGRATS! You’ve turned 18! You can now be as nsfw as you want!
- Please note that the quest’s focus isn’t on nsfw content
- But now there will be mentions of it and you can sleep with kin

It is [YEAR 18] at the beginning of TP 1.
- This year your TP distribution will be 2/1/2
You have [2 TIME POINTS] to spend.

You may assign a new BACKGROUND TASK
You may assign a new GOAL

What do you do?

Action list: https://pastebin.com/Fd7Yzmmv
Stat list: https://questden.org/wiki/Shards_Stats

AUTHORS NOTE: So we’re reaching the point where y’all will likely want to do stuff like one-offs with characters all event style, so I’m removing the restriction of one dinner per year and it’s now going to be one character event per clump of TP. You all can suggest stuff you want to happen, be it dinners or character interactions, and rather than these being selected by popular vote, I’ll be picking the ones I think would be the most interesting or plot relevant. But if an idea does win the popular vote I’ll likely include it as well.

(edited)
PAWN: B. If we have competition, it’ll push us to do better with our runescripting, AND we’ll see faster and greater development in technology in Tengu as well if we have two competing companies!

GOAL: Break Runescripting's softcap by either discovering 2 Compound Runes or learning a gold or prismatic rune

BACKGROUND TASKS: DATING
We’ll do Ignis, William, and Nubs and see where that gets us.

TP:
1. Lets use that TP to learn MICROSCRIPTING with PAWN, and help fund his STARTUP
2. improve the WINGSUIT for NOODLE in memory of Glide since we haven’t seen him in awhile. We should also consider making a parachute on the side too in case her wingsuit breaks while she’s flying

With everyone having good vibes right now, it'll be a good idea to start improving our invention! Against gun making for now, too soon for that, and might cause Canus to raise some eyebrows if we start making higher tech weaponry too early.

Oh yeah, and lets do dinner with Ignolia, I want to learn about her stance at being queen. Maybe we can suggest introducing her to Drift too, seeing as she is teaching monster theory and all.

>- Ignis mentions that she was the kin who got his writ of land from the secret santa
Well we need to meet her, then.

So far I like these candidates, listed in order of preference:
HOOK
- a competent spy as a Queen would be huge, tbh, and she's likely to ally with both Canus and Dopus. She's got bonus points for seeking us out first as well, but what is going on with her mom? I guess she lost a couple points for not being totally upfront with us but that's good infosec anyway.
TINUPTUA
- because it's like having three queens, and her neutral attitude towards Humans might avoid war? Maybe? Well, it'd prolong peace a bit, at least. War is probably inevitable. Of course, she has good TACTICS so once war breaks out she'll be good at it.
IGNOLIA
- because she's being clever about it and having better ties with Canus will severely reduce our exposure to Human interference. Plus, a focus on education, which is always a good long term investment. How good would she be once war breaks out though?

I don't like Caissa for obvious reasons(everything she's doing looks like trouble), and I think Noodle is being set up to be a figurehead, which is not great, even if she'll be a decent enough war queen.

>free background slot
DATING. Ignis, William, Nubs. YEAR 18 HERE WE GOOOOOO

>Goal
Get laid! Well maybe that's too easy, I'm sure Ignis or Nubs would take care of that in a second. Become Royal Scientist is good too.

>Pawn Choice
B. Joint ventures are exciting! Also tell him it's important that he keeps good infosec. If he makes anything he'd rather not get into the hands of the Human government then he needs to restrict access, and he should generally vet his hires. Come to think of it, with two companies like this we'd avoid the "all your eggs in one basket" problem, which is a side benefit.
Immediately apply 1TP into Microscripting because let's be honest it's like the most important skill we can get at the moment.

Join Hook. We did our due diligence and nothing jumped out at us as clearly better.
>TP usage
1 TP Microscripting
1 TP Manufacture the wingsuit and some of that ceramic body armor for Noodle. Maybe we can make a hot air balloon to sell? Some parachutes for any non-wingkin that want to ride it? Get some income for the business by leveraging our working designs.

Also, I realize the we still need to find Nubs a job. I have an idea though, lets introduce Nubs to Chip, maybe he and her can make a startup business with his crafting, and her blacksmithing. Either that, or ask Chip for some advice to find some work for Nubs and her blacksmithing. In return... ummm... we'll commission him to design a figurine of a Laputa logo and display it somewhere!

Well let's get the obvious out of the way:

TP1: Microscripting
TP2: Use Microscripting to improve the glide suit (save one or two of the clothing damage designs for rainy day entertainment. Nubs or Noodle might get a kick out of it). Take advantage of the good vibes and get this ready for practical use on the field!

Moving on from there:

>NEW GOAL
Honestly, yeah I'm board with just having it be "Get Laid". I like Polt's idea too, but it's not bad to take an easy one every once in a while. Chi should get laid, this is a plan of action that LUST supports fully, and which LOGIC should appreciate the emotional benefits of.

(Shut up LOGIC we're doing it.)

>Free Background Slot
Yeah this is going to be dating. Ignis, William, Nubs. We'll have another opening once M&B clears up, so that'll be where we do something less predictable.

>Pawn
B, fund the start-up. You're right, it'll be better to have more groups working on more things than it would be to hoard all the talent in Laputa. Besides, if Pawn can manage his own group, then that opens up spots for runescripters we haven't even considered for Laputa! Though I'd prefer if we take Clark ourselves when the time comes, I want to see what having a human will do to Laputa's reputation (and if it's negative, let's not sabotage Pawn's startup by making him deal with that).

Loan him Ignis. Look, we JUST got Drift back from his extended leave, let him work on some stuff at home for a while. We'll still see Ignis, he just won't be working with us for a short bit. We'll make it up to him by doing his meditation thing next chance we get.

>Who To Support?
I firmly support backing Hook, BUT! Before we do, I would like to talk to both Noodle and Ignolia. They're our friends, and if they have any stake in this then they deserve to know where we stand. Just tell them that we're heavily considering joining Hook, share some of your reasons why, and give them a chance to invite us to their side. Make sure there are no hard feelings no matter what you choose, and if there are?

...Well that's petty af and they probably shouldn't be Queen then.

>>1027127
Honestly want to perhaps become queen or win the dopus eating competition return as a champion scoring major dopus points and for a sense of completion as its sort of the one thing we did not manage also how develop our one sexual feature.
Perhaps backing the winning candidate?

> NEW BACKGROUND TASK
Dating with IGNIS, NUBS, and... I'm not sure if the spark of romance is really there with William anymore? Like, we've been over how we're more like platonic life-partners at this point. I'm struggling to think of anyone else besides maybe Noodle, though, and she's got a political career to think of (plus dating the same person as PON could be awkward as cluck).

> NEW GOAL
Let's see about returning to DOPUS to complete our GURUSHIP with RAIN.

> TP 1: PAWN
Yeah, supporting B; not only is a competitive market a happy market, but A can't really be supported long-term, and we also have uh... personal experience regarding what can go wrong with putting all of a new industry/authority's eggs into one basket, even if the scope is a bit smaller this time.

> TP 2: ACTIVE RESEARCH - ASTROLOGY
Drift's theories excite you. Maybe runes were originally derived from making CONSTELLATIONS from same-colored stars! (It's as good a theory as any for how the peck runescripting's first practitioners figured it out and might be a hint for how GOLD and PRISMATIC work differently.) Peck, even if you don't solve the key to GOLD and PRISMATIC RUNES right there, you'll have more than enough insight to tackle the SURFACE RUINS later this year! (And if you have time in there to invent something, use MICROSCRIPTING to improve the WINGSUIT design.)

> DINNER - A MEETING WITH SPIES
Let's arrange a private dinner with IGNIS, plus possibly HOOK and SATINA if you can fit them in - for business rather than pleasure this time. You have... concerns about one of the queen candidates; while you haven't decided who you are supporting, one thing you're truly sure of is that CAISSA literally cannot be allowed to win. She was boasting to you earlier about not needing your help, but in a way that seemed oddly confident; given CLAUSEY's timely reappearance after clucking off back to CANUS for so long and his history of suspected sabotage, plus CAISSA's strongly pro-human stance, you suspect she might be cooperating with FOREIGN INTERESTS. "It would be no exaggeration to say that I firmly believe her victory to be the WORST-CASE SCENARIO for our country, irregardless of who might be considered the 'best-case.'" Obviously, these are just suspicions, which is why you're taking them to people who are capable of investigating her activities and associates more thoroughly, as well as maybe pass on your concerns to the queen.

>>1027124
>What the cluck? Does she have beef with you? When did you do anything to gain her ire?
You said she was a former student of yours. Odds are, she failed your class and blames you instead of wanting to admit she was a bad student. Which is why she hates you so much.

>>1027125
>Logic hates Lust
Come on Logic, don’t be like that! Lust isn’t just for sexual stuff! It can be a passionate desire for something! For example: A lust for knowledge!

Surely both Logic and Lust can work together for something like that, right?

>>1027127
>Chi is 18 now
>people are suggesting that Chi should get laid
Really? Come on, she just barely turned 18! She doesn’t need to immediately get laid! That can wait for a bit!

Besides, we need to at least learn how birth control works in this world first. That way Chi doesn’t accidentally end up getting pregnant before she’s ready to have kids.

>What do?
First of all, let’s take a break with Hook. That way we can make her relax and treat her to some real food. The sooner we do this, the better. That way she can work more efficiently and she won’t look like she’s about to collapse! After taking that break, we can tell her that we’ll support her.

However, her Anti-Human policy is a problem for us, since one of our best students is Clark, who is a human. Would it be possible to get her to change to “Slightly Anti-Human”, so that Clark doesn’t get affected? It’d really suck if Hook becomes Queen and she kicks out all the humans, including Clark.

>>1027180
>Caissa cannot win!
>possible foreign interests!
If the Spymasters that Hook has been training with are able to dig up any proof of this, then that could possibly disqualify Cassia as a candidate for the throne. Hook would be happy with that, since it’d mean less competition for her.

Fund Pawn’s startup, loaning him Drift. Two organizations can research more tech at a time and builds a wider foundation for the scripting industry.
Approach Noodle and encourage her to accept the nomination. You’d love to help any way you can. Personally, I see Hook as a better spymaster than a sovereign.
New goal: return to Rain.
New background task: Dating! Hang out with your friends more!

>>1027260
>Really? Come on, she just barely turned 18! She doesn’t need to immediately get laid! That can wait for a bit!
>Take a break with Hook
I agree with these things.

>>1027271
>Noodle should be Queen
I don't know about that. She seems like she'd rather be out doing things instead of being tied to the throne. She also seems like she'd struggle with politics, since she said that she only knows about fighting, some other random junk, and it takes forever for her to learn stuff.

But if she wants to try to be the Queen and she isn't being pressured into it by everyone around her, then she's welcome to officially announce herself as a candidate.

OH! just thought of an idea for when we design the wing suit

since you're good at remembering, look through your memories and visualize the boots Marth wore https://questden.org/kusaba/questarch/res/1002288.html#1003793. visualize what designs are on there as a reference if you recognize and know any of them to maybe help with the wignsuit design. Might not work since we might not know all the runescripting symbols on the boots yet and unable to draw them, but a frame of reference to perhaps get us inspired at least and think of alternatives nonetheless.

Let's find somewhere to relax with Hook.

Edmango 2022/03/31(Thu)21:36 No. 1027822 ID: afe7de
File 164878776363.png - (307.93KB , 500x500 , SR2_072.png )

> [YEAR 18] TP 1 EVENT - MANA VEINS RESEARCH UPDATE
Drift has been incredibly enthusiastic over this particular topic, especially after you very hesitantly lent him the GOGGLES OF MANA-SIGHT. He mentioned that his body's original 2 veins, with a core centered around his head and one in his chest have shifted, so he wants to study them. It appears that they’ve developed significantly. His veins connections are more robust and form something akin to a nervous system throughout his body. No longer limited to the two nodes, there are instead four, two in his skull, one WHITE and one YELLOW, one GREEN node near his heart, and one BLUE one near his stomach. The WHITE and GREEN nodes are significantly larger and you can see the veins leading out towards or even through his horns. The veins are thick and pulse like a heartbeat with a thicker, more potent energy. His full-body change must have had a significant influence on the veins which sends your mind reeling at the possibilities.

The changes don’t stop there. There’s a very minor, yet very noticeable, increase on the efficacy of devices created with a rune that corresponds with a vein that someone has. You never noticed before because there was never an instance where someone had extra nodes in their body of the same colors. It appears this is why it was slightly easier for kin to learn manuals that matched their veins. You check the others for progress, their mana veins haven't changed at all.

> IGNIS
- Blue Veins
> DRIFT
- Yellow/White/Green/Blue
> WILLIAM
- Red
> CHI
- Black

Drift still mentions that consuming cores is incredibly risky for anyone other than him, but offers another solution to experiment with, though everyone seems uncomfortable when he brings it up. He suggests attempting to inscribe runes onto FEATHERS or SKIN in an attempt to create RUNE TATTOOS. This brings up a potent question, who would you test this on? Livestock? Kin? Flesh bought from the store? Likely it’d need to be with a living subject, but you’re unsure of what results it would have, or if the rune would vanish after use. You shudder to think of someone disintegrating after being inscribed with a rune, like what happens with other materials. But if you’re able to tap into an individual's veins, it’s possible to strengthen them like a muscle. The idea excites you, as much as it slightly worries you. There’s no way humans haven’t discovered this… is there?

NEW RESEARCH OPPORTUNITIES HAVE BEEN UNLOCKED
> LIVE SPECIMEN RUNE TATTOOS - [Requires live specimen] [Updates after 1 TP]
+ Learn more about Runescripting applications on the body
+ Has 25% chance of failure
> DEAD SPECIMEN RUNE TATTOOS - [Updates after 1 TP]
+ Learn more about Runescripting applications on the body
+ May provide you with misinformation on how it functions on living bodies
> FEATHER RUNE TATTOOS - [Requires willing participant] [Updates after 1 TP]
+ Learn more about Runescripting applications on feathers.

> [YEAR 18] TP 1-2 TEACHING
Teaching goes by smoothly this year, and with Clark acting as your TA you have a lot more free time to listen to the rumors going about the campus. Every-kin’s been talking about Ignolia lately. She’s been teaching a few more classes and actively getting students involved and excited about education, filling out the teaching classes. You think she’s hoping to get more teachers of a higher quality and it fits the information you were given. You share lunch with her occasionally and she invites you to DINNER later on in the year. You decide to take her up on the offer and invite NOODLE, whom she is excited to meet.

[IGNIS’S CHARISMA] I think she’s a little embarrassed about talking to your dad
[GUILE] It also looks like she wants to talk to you about being queen
[LOGIC] I think she’s just nervous
[LUST] Maybe she wants a three-
[LOGIC] NO, BAD!

> OPPORTUNITY GRASPED - PAWN’S STARTUP
This decision is a simple one to you, this works to further your goals, and you help build goodwill, and avoid putting all of the eggs in one basket. A saying that you rarely hear in Tengu, but should definitely be said more considering how you’re mostly wing-kin. You give Pawn the Half-ingot, Monster parts, Shape rune manual, but then are torn between who to send over to help.

Instead of sending one, you send both, they’ll alternate and get to feel him out. Drift’s got different perspectives and ideas than Ignis does after all. You think this will be a good time investment for both of them as well, maybe they can learn to script from different perspectives, and maybe it’ll make Pawn more willing to work with you in the future.

You’ve gained the MICROSCRIPTING manual, you’re excited to dive into its secrets
- So excited that it’s the next thing you do!

Pawn has established a Runescripting startup called:
- [Runes & Ruminations: Arcane and Esoteric Consulting]

[CHARISMA] It’s a clucking mouthful
[LOGIC] So does he do consulting?
[PRIDE] I like his gumption!

Edmango 2022/03/31(Thu)21:36 No. 1027823 ID: afe7de
File 164878777325.png - (214.56KB , 500x500 , SR2_073.png )

> [YEAR 18] TP 3 - MICROSCRIPTING
You gather the crew, even a busy William, to work through the manual as a group, passing it between one another and pondering its infinite mysteries. Well it’s not an infinite mystery, you wrap this up rather quickly and create the updated runescripting pens using the design you made a few years back. It’s sleeker, simpler, and more portable than the older design and you beam with pride as your group now has a new tool under its belt.

You’ve unlocked MICROSCRIPTING!
- Your designs will have fewer limitations!
- Instead the limits will be mostly on energy minimum/maximum/uses
- As well as your current rune limit per object
- Unfortunately Microscripting does not enhance the speed or volume of the absorb rune
- You will still need to work on energy sources/containers

You notice as well that there’s a singular page with not much to go on of some notes about a NODE rune or subscript, you remember reading about that in the JOURNEYMAN'S REFERENCE VOLUME XII. It looks like Pawn was attempting to brute force the rune and left some of his notes in here for you. He hasn't made much progress, but Imagines that it lies somewhere between regular runescripting and microscripting.

Your bond with PAWN has increased to RANK 2
- Pawn will occasionally pop by to say hello or share a project idea

> [YEAR 18] TP 3 EVENT - PRECISION WITH NICO
The last few weeks of training with Nico have been uneventful and less than fruitful. You’re starting to see the limit of what he can teach you, and can tell that he’s rather uncomfortable as of late. You try to press for some information and on a particular day of the month he speaks up.

Nico: I might be going away for a little while
You: How come?
You: You alright?
Nico: It’s uhhhh complicated
Nico: I just got the news that some relatives passed away
Nico: Under uhhh
Nico: Questionable circumstances
You: Oh no!

You’re unnerved to hear that, but also get the distinct impression that he’s nervous and being a bit cagier than normal. Like a facade you never noticed was cracking. He hands you a small object wrapped in a rather nice sheet of paper.

Nico: Keep it, consider it a graduation gift or something
You: But I’m still not anywhere near your level?
Nico: Well, you being you, I’m sure it’ll be useful.
Nico: ... hedging too many bets…
Nico: Just… do your best in the future alright, I’ve heard the rumblings
Nico: Hopefully the worst doesn't come to turn.

He excuses himself to the restroom, so you take a moment to look over the present he gave you. Inside is a single dart, but it shines bright and appears to be made of… Arcanum? No? This is something else. You look at this with your goggles and it is DENSE with mana, so much more than a single ingot it’s blinding. The color itself is an iridescent black and bronze. It refracts as you look and move it. The paper itself also has a slight glow, so you look closer, noticing a small black mark on it, it looks like a rook, the chess piece. Your eyes squint as you debate its meaning before the paper itself disintegrates, just like the letter you got before, leaving you with the dart in your wing.

[UNDERSTANDING] This has to be COPCANUM, I think that book talked about it
[UNDERSTANDING] Wait and is this related to that letter you got?
[INTUITION] He’s not coming back is he
[LOGIC] Likely so

You get up, rushing to the restroom only to notice that he’s nowhere in sight. You take to the skies immediately afterwards, in some semblance of an attempt to find him, but the results are fruitless. He’s left you with many questions, concerns, and a gift. You wonder why he would give you this. You’ll have to research it to know more.

NEW RESEARCH OPPORTUNITIES HAVE BEEN UNLOCKED
> COPCANUM DART
+ Requires [1TP] of study
+ Seems to be more than just a chunk of COPCANUM
+ Results of study are currently unknown

The BACKGROUND TASK - PRECISION WITH NICO - has concluded!
- Nico has left for somewhere in Canus
- Your bond with Nico has been frozen
- You now have another free [BACKGROUND TASK] slot!
- Feel free to set it at any time!
- Not setting it to anything will automatically have it default to the rest action

Edmango 2022/03/31(Thu)21:36 No. 1027824 ID: afe7de
File 164878779483.png - (361.86KB , 500x500 , SR2_074.png )

> [YEAR 18] TP 4 - BREAK-TIME WITH HOOK
This was a mistake. It’s been a week and she hasn’t left your side. It turns out Hook has been desperate for socialization and physical affection and has been looking for an excuse, any excuse to take a break. Seriously, the hug quota that was reserved for Ignis mostly has been all but absorbed by her, not that you’re complaining, her neck fluff, whilst a bit untamed, is quite soft.

[LUST] I-
[CHARISMA] YOU SHUT YOUR MOUTH! THIS ONE IS WHOLESOME, SO IT'S MINE!
[ANGER] Woooo! You tell her!

It seems Hook just hadn’t invested in making bonds or connections with anyone other than her direct instructors, the spymasters, and those she directly worked with. But it’s so strange, how could she, with access to resources and knowledge like she is, have ended up this way, so sheltered?

At first you thought it was just an aftereffect of being raised by Satina, but other than her impeccable observational skills, her charisma is absolutely atrocious. The woman lacks grace, charm, fails to regularly take care of herself and is rude at every turn. Yet she clings to you and when admonished appears genuinely hurt. You can tell during the time she spends with you that she genuinely respects you as a person and as the days go by she starts to also care about your opinion.

If you had to pick at her faults, a truly easy task, you’d say that she’s intense, having a passion and heat to certain topics that you hadn’t expected. She also is quick to Anger and acts defensive at times. And when she’s upset, truly upset, she becomes mopey and defeated rather easily. You read her as a woman of extremes, who feels quite intensely and so shuts herself off from bonds so that she can focus her emotions, to tune them specifically and use them as fuel towards her goals. You’d say she’s full of herself, but that’d be wrong, she’s fully aware of her limits and is harsher on herself than others.

But, that’s not to say that the time is all bad, she has genuinely good insights when she sees your work and their potential applications. She isn’t shy when it comes to discussing things, and although she lacks decorum and is blunt like yourself, she refuses to back down from a challenge. She’s a fount of knowledge on oft overlooked elements as you take her out to eat a numerous amount of times, and she’s also decisive, staying her course to completion if she can.

You: So, why do you want to be queen anyway?
You: I feel like you’d be a great spymaster, maybe even Tactician, but why this?
Hook: Well…
Hook: Don’t laugh…
You: Uhhh no promises
Hook: UGH, whatever.
Hook: It’s spite. Pure spite.
You: I’m sorry what?
Hook: I was always told “You can’t do this, you can’t do that” growing up
Hook: And so I learned those things, I worked on those things, just to prove those fuckers wrong
You: Uh huh, and someone said you couldn’t become queen?
Hook: My mom, my dad, the king, the kids in my classes, merchants, yadda yadda
You: Your DAD said that? The King?
Hook: Well… not exactly
Hook: Look my family doesn't want me to do it because they think I’m too hot headed
Hook: I stay and work at home all the time
Hook: Yadda yadda
Hook: But that’s exactly WHY I should do it, push past those morons who don’t believe in me!
Hook: So I took an interest in the crime that was cropping up
Hook: All related to human influence and elements by the way
Hook: And want to pull a clean sweep and show that I CAN get things done
Hook: And before you ask I DO CARE about the city beyond that
Hook: Just… do you know how hard it is to find anyone else with VISION around here!?!
Hook: I’m not “unfit to be Queen”
Hook: I put in the work goddess dammit!
Hook: I even know just the tiniest bit of RUNESCRIPTING just to prove that SA-TIN-A SUCKED!

She slams the table in a huff, her voice heated and chest heaving. Spite seems to be a big motivator for her.

You’ve learned a bit more about Hook’s motivations
- Hook wants to be queen to prove others were wrong about her
- Hooks policies will be laden with espionage and anti-espionage operations
- She won’t purge humans from the plate, but will be strict with any non-natives
- She’s severely lacking in DIPLOMACY and CHARISMA
- She’s incredibly strong in INTUITION and PERCEPTION and GUILE
- She has a skillset that you would consider GENERALIST

You get the feeling that other queen candidates will be revealing their motives and qualifications soon. You can expedite this process by spending time with them or getting someone to spy on them.

Your bond with HOOK has increased twice to RANK 3
- Hook might occasionally suggest activities or provide intel to you
- Hook considers you a good friend (likely her only one)

After what seems like an eternity, Hook finally goes back home, you got to show her new things, and introduce her to new kin, but you’re not sure she made progress on forming bonds with anyone else, it looks like she really needs the other party to invest in her the most for her to care in return. Part of you kind of misses her constant presence, and the rest, the other 85% is so glad to have her out of your feathers, you like your featherin’ alone time!

Edmango 2022/03/31(Thu)21:36 No. 1027825 ID: afe7de
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> NEW BACKGROUND TASK - TRIPLE DATE
You’ve done it! You’ve blocked out the perfect amount of time in your schedule to allot to the big one, RELATIONSHIPS. [LOGIC] is a bit sad that you’re losing a task to this, but you don’t see it as a loss, instead you see it as a gain, to get closer to those near you. You care for them, and they’ll care for you back. But the question of who to actually date remains…

Just kidding, you know exactly who you are going to date. When you approach Ignis and ask him if he wants to start dating more regularly as “a thing” he faints. Immediately. So when he wakes up you ask him again, and you have to grip ahold of him to make sure he doesn't pass out. It’s kind of adorable.

Nubs practically bounces with giddy energy, exclaiming how she’s always wanted to kiss you but has been worried about being “too forward” or “a bother” or “too sexually charged.” She plants a huge wet smooch on your cheek and you refuse to admit that you blushed or were a bit heated after that. It just didn’t happen, no matter what your [STATS] say. You watch Nubs’s tail wiggle with sheer excitement as she leaves that day.

The tricky one happens to be William, the third you planned on pursuing, he’s absolutely hooked on his current goal, producing rubber and says that he doesn't really have the time for formal dates. You roll your eyes at him, knowing he does in fact have *some* time but don’t push him. He’s approaching this with a single-mindedness and perseverance you haven't seen from him. It’s not a self destructive obsessiveness, he’s just fully exploring the project, though he’s a bit behind, claiming to have something at the beginning of the year, but now pushing it back to [NEXT TP]. But there’s something else, something underlying in the frustration. You know he cares, and so do you, but it feels… weird, like something isn’t right. Eventually, after a bit too much pestering, you find out what.

William: I uh, I have no libido okay
William: Like it does not function that way anymore
William: I still care but is that even something you’d be okay with, just… not?
William: Also I’m calling bullshit we got the option for good bodies
William: What is this pile of bird droppings?!?!?

You wonder if William just isn’t interested in sex. Not that that’s a big driving force for you or anything, but he seems… flustered about it. It could be entirely mental if his body is functioning normally.

[LUST] Maybe he’s scared that when he has sex he’ll have kids
[LOGIC] That… could explain why he’s trying to find rubber… for condoms
[GUILE] What if he’s lying about having no libido, what if it’s the opposite?
[STRATEGY] Maybe it's that he has such a high libido but a fear of having kids?
[STRATEGY] Causing a sort of conflict in his mind turning off the valve so to speak
[SABA’S KN] Maybe, we were both raised in shitty circumstances surrounding childbirth anyway

You’re now DATING!
- Dating events will happen at random or by audience request
- You are dating Ignis
- You are dating Nubs
- You have one free dating slot

William has rejected your offer to date at this time, you can try asking him to date again later, or date someone else.

> DINNER - NOODLES WITH A SIDE OF IGNOLIA
Dating situated, you decide to have a nice dinner with Ignolia and Noodle. Ignolia is excited to meet Noodle and Noodle is just happy you want to invite her to a fancy dinner. The three of you meet and have a simple, yet flavorful meal in a quiet corner. After talking with the ladies about life, wings, monsters, boys and girls, the topic shifts towards your true purpose, the elections.

You: So Ignolia, I didn’t know you were planning on running until a friend told me
Ignolia: Well you’re sssometimes in your head
Ignolia: I’ve hinted it a few timesss
Noodle: Yeah she does get up in her mind sometimes
You: I got a lot to think about okay!
You: So many runes in the scripter!
Ignolia: Woah you made a machine to do it!
You: uh… it’s a figure of speech, but that might not be a bad idea.
Noodle: Please, no rune talk, my head will burst
You: Fine, fine, fine!
Ignolia: But uh, I just want everyone to have equal opportunitiessss!
Ignolia: I mean, not everyone’sssss lucky enough to get in the academy
Ignolia: And they only have ssssso many teacherssss
Ignolia: If we can improve the quality of the ssssmall ssssatellite sssschoolsss
Ignolia: Or increassse the breadth of their teachings it’d help the kin who fall through the crackss
Noodle: I know I got lucky with Chi over here, I wouldn’t be in such a good spot if she didn't help
You: I’m sure you would’ve done great Noodle!
Noodle: No, I wouldn’t have.
Noodle: You spent months tutoring me and I BARELY got in.
Ignolia: More kin like Chi ssshould exissst in the world!

[PRIDE] YESSSSS MOOOOOOREEEE
[GUILE] They’re buttering you up!
[LOGIC] I don't think Noodle is…

You: But if that was your goal, why become queen?
You: Why not go the extra mile and run a school for teachers or something?
Ignolia: Too ineffective, becoming Queen greasesss wingsss easssier
Ignolia: Also that kind of thing requiresss SHINIES which, while we’re paid well
Ignolia: Isn’t enough.
Ignolia: And I feel bad for Canus, I want them to learn too
Ignolia: A lot of them don’t know how to read
Ignolia: And they promote bad practices over there and encourage martial ones
Ignolia: The Humansss ruined my homeland, and we’re not ssstrong enough to fight back
Ignolia: So education isss how I want to fix it!
Noodle: This is all dumb why cant we just all work together, why one specific queen?
Ignolia: Yeah it is kind of dumb, but it’s just the sssystem
Ignolia: Not like we’re Insects from Hiven
Ignolia: Operating under the collective of a unified force that’s unselfish
Ignolia: It’s all “For the Colony” “For the queen” etc.
You: I’m pretty sure their society is run by the ROOKS though
Ignolia: Well it’s just an analogy, imagine I talked about regular bugs and about a collective
Noodle: Y’know I met some bugs on my journeys
Noodle: Insect-Kin I mean.
Noodle: Most of them were dumb as bricks and didn’t have like… hands
Noodle: Almost like their brains were exchanged for tools
Noodle: Except for the Knights, those guys had one hand at least.
You: Yeah, their societal structures are interesting too, but we’re off topic.
Ignolia: Oh, right!
Ignolia: Yeah, sssingle monarchy kind of sucksss but it’s how things are run
Ignolia: And we’re doing well off compared to Canusss, so I can’t really complain

Eventually the dinner dies down, Noodle shares that she’d rather someone like Ignolia be Queen, she just doesn't have the acumen to consider all of the different aspects and feels like she’d just pick things at random or listen to Chi.

You’ve learned a bit more about Ignolia’s motivations
- Ignolia wants to be queen to repair the broken ties between Canus
- Ignolia’s policies will lean towards education and diplomacy
- Ignolia will likely enact policies to restrict the rights of humans
- She’s severely lacking in TACTICS and GUILE and is a bit SOFT SPOKEN
- But she has a lot of physical CHARISMA, KNOWLEDGE, and EMPATHY
- Her skill set focuses on intellect

Noodle is unsure if she’s even interested in running and would require your support
- Noodle has no plans should she become queen
- Noodle would likely act randomly or seek advice from those close to her
- She’s lacking in KNOWLEDGE and DIPLOMACY
- She’s strong in TRADE, TACTICS, and EMPATHY
- You think that it’s possible to stoke her passion for queendom
- Thus removing how random her policies would be
- But you’re currently unsure how to do that

Edmango 2022/03/31(Thu)21:37 No. 1027826 ID: afe7de
File 164878782710.png - (127.50KB , 500x500 , SR2_076.png )

> [YEAR 18] BEGINNING OF [TP 5] - UPKEEP
UPCOMING EVENTS
- ELECTIONS [TP 2 of Y20]
- RUBBER?!?!?!?!?!? [NEXT UPDATE]
- THE SECOND BUYERS [NEXT UPDATE]
(NEW) - PUBLICITY [TP 7]
- You’ve heard rumblings that Caissa is going to do something

Your CURRENT GOALS are as follows
- REACH BASIC MASTERY OF A MARTIAL ART OR WEAPON (R7), 6/7 (SOON)
- DISCOVER A NEW RUNE OR RUNESCRIPTING TYPE
= Microscripting was a technique/syntax and did not count towards this objective
- FINISH YOUR MIND CAMPUS
(NEW) - [EMPTY]
Your current GP total is 10/15
Your next reward is a FREE STAT POINT

Your CURRENT BACKGROUND TASKS are as follows (3/3)
- MIND AND BODY DOJO TRAINING (-20S/yr) (Events at TP 6)
(NEW) - DATING - Ignis/Nubs/[Empty]
(NEW)- [EMPTY]

Your current RESEARCH TASKS are as follows (2/2)
- COLOR ASTROLOGY [UPDATES - TP4 of Y19]
(NEW) - [EMPTY]

REMINDER: RESEARCH SLOTS run in the background similar to a background task and take [8 TP] (1 year) per TP it costs to actually do the research.

Your current OPPORTUNITIES are as follows
> MISC
- Become a M&B Dojo Senior Disciple [Expires Y19 TP1]
(NEW! - I forgot to add this last update)- Get Nubs a job! [Expires mid Y19]
> GUN DEVELOPMENT (You may decide this the next time you spend time inventing)
- Battery and Generator Development (>>1026159)
- Crank Gun development
- Pure Arcanum pistol
> JOIN A TEAM
- Join Hook’s team for the elections
(NEW)- Join Ignolia’s team for the elections
= She’d be more than happy to have your support
(NEW)- Convince/Inspire Noodle to become queen
- You’ll need to approach others and be offered a position before more options are added

Your current OBLIGATIONS are as follows
- M&B DOJO MEMBERSHIP - 20S/y [VOIDED FOR THE YEAR]
- RENT AT IGNIS’S - 800S/y [TIME SLOT 1]
- COMFORTABLE LIFESTYLE - 160S/y [TIME SLOT 1]
- LAPUTA FUNDING - 16,000S/y [TIME SLOT 1]

You gained [12,800 SHINIES] from TEACHING at the academy [TP 1+2]
You spent [100 SHINIES] on resources for MICROSCRIPTING and snacks
You spent [300 SHINIES] on PRECISION WITH NICO
You spent half an ingot of ARCANUM on Pawn
You spent ⅙ of an ingot of ARCANUM on your new MICROSCRIPTING tools
You spent [1000 SHINIES] worth of Monster parts on Pawn
You spent [100 SHINIES] on your break with Hook
You have [48,498 SHINIES] remaining

Your STRESS is at 0 and you have [2 FUN POINTS] that will block newly gained stress!!
- Your [GOOD VIBE] is over

You can take out a LOAN from the ROYALTY for [30,000 SHINIES]
- You need to pay it back within 4 years with a yearly interest of +2000 SHINIES a year
You have one ROYAL BOON
- This can be redeemed from the royalty for one thing within reason

LAPUTA RUNETECH
- 2 INGOTS OF ARCANUM
- 1 AIR CHOKER
- 9 SMALL MONSTER CORES
- [6,500 SHINIES] worth of misc supplies and resources
- [4,000 SHINIES] banked from your own funds
PROTOTYPES
- [CD WINGSUIT V1]
- [HOT AIR BALLOON V1]
- [PARACHUTE V1]
- [WASTEFUL FLAME-GUN]
EMPLOYEE ASSIGNMENT
Chi - Management
Ignis - Merchant Relations +Buyers
Drift - Accounting +Reduced research costs
William - Resource Acquisition +Rubber… eventually…

You have 1 INGOT OF ARCANUM, and RUNESCRIPTING SUPPLIES stored in your POCKET DIMENSION

It is [YEAR 18 - TP 5]
You have [1 TIME POINT] to spend.

You may assign a new BACKGROUND TASK
You may assign a new RESEARCH TASK
You may assign a new GOAL

What do you do?

Action list: https://pastebin.com/Fd7Yzmmv
(NEW) Research list: https://pastebin.com/bG3aVMLY
NOTE: Adding a research pastebin for ease of reference
Stat list: https://questden.org/wiki/Shards_Stats

How did he disappear so fast? Did he jump off the worldplate? Did an eagle swoop him up? You read the book about secret societies, did the rook symbol appear in there? Is the rook symbol actually a rune maybe? ...No, it's probably the hivers.
Hook, becoming the leader of a country out of spite... there are seriously worse reasons to do so! You don't doubt her competence at it either, but you had better be real sure to delegate, delegate, [i]delegate[i] diplomatic tasks, and learn to act real well. Perhaps to someone like Ignis.
Still, I support Noodle. Think on how to stoke her passion. Not queendom, not hunting, but... Protection? Encouraging teamwork? Maybe taking down the system from inside the system - improving education and making more leaders, teachers, scientists and soldiers.
New goal: Make Noodle a true Queen contender.
New background task: Daydreaming... Can you set exploring the mist in your mind palace to a background task? If not, how about you set a background task to NETWORKING: Spend more time with your students outside of class, perhaps by running an extracurricular activity, to identify prospective future recruits for your company, and perhaps steer them away from human interest groups. Also, reach out and identify the others in your field. Do they hold some sort of international runescripters convention?
New research task: Copcanum!
Finally, work on inventing batteries. Do the theory now so you know what material you have to gather in the future.

>humans must have discovered rune tattoos
Probably! And they're in places that they can easily hide by covering it with clothing. Or maybe they've developed invisible ink. Uncolored mana ink... That might actually be a thing!

>another disintegrating paper
Dammit. We totally missed whatever was on the first one, and this one isn't much better. I'm guessing Marth is sending us secret correspondence and we're just not good enough at Runescripting or Perception to read it! Whatever war he's waging, off on his own, I wish we could help.
...wait, could we revisit our memories via Eidetic Memory and try again to read the first letter? Or this one?

>Noodle thinks there should be multiple Queens
Idea: Tell her she can have something like that- a small group of elite advisors that are like, Vice-Queens.

>TP
Read the PERCEPTION book and revisit the disintegrating letter memories. This just jumped to the top of my priority list.

>Background Task
Read the BOOK OF ORDERS.
>dating slot
Leave it open for now. Once William finds rubber we can test to see if he'll be interested in sex once babies are off the table. If he really is asexual then... meh, still leave it empty. That means more time for the two we do have. Or just some extra free time!

>Research Task
COPCANUM DART. We're being led somewhere, let's find out where that is exactly.

>Goal
Become Royal Scientist. Or, find out who's sending you disintegrating letters.

GOAL: Break Runescripting's SOFTCAP by discovering two compound runes, or learning a gold/prismatic rune

Background task: Considering what is going on currently, I think it is time to read the THE BOOK OF ORDERS, to be prepared, especially during the election.

Research task: MANA BATTERY DEVELOPMENT!

TP: lets get that WINGSUIT upgraded for Noodle, with possible parachute as well on the side.

Lets have DINNER with CHIP, ask about job opportunities for Nubs, he might have insight on jobs as a craftsman himself.

Okay, I'm bringing up something from a while ago, like last thread but...
Can we do the extra hard training for Tenacity now? I feel it will get us over that threshold for Claw mastery and should bring us to Tenacity 3, I think we should do this while we have excess fun points as the only reason we didn't do that was because it would cause stress.
Also I think we're rank 2 in Tenacity, not rank 1
For the research task I recommend doing battery development, as that unlocks a lot of avenues and it's best we do it first, hell I think we should also dedicate an entire TP to this research as well so it can go extra fast.

>Who to support
I don't know if we should choose someone yet but if we do I strongly suggest against Ignolia. Her intentions are noble and at any other time I'd say she's a good option but tensions seem to be rising with the human kingdom and reducing the rights of humans could spark unnecessary conflict, especially considering she has no guile to deal with it. With humans we need a subtle approach, not to give their politicians reasons to attack us.
Also physical charisma is a hell of a lot different than social charisma, and won't get Ignolia far once she's on the throne.
At least Hook has a good idea for that, be equally strict towards non-natives so you don't needlessly provoke one group, and her guile would most certainly help in dealing with the humans, her generalist skillset is also beneficial for a ruler. However a lot of this is overshadowed by her poor diplomacy so if we do support her we better hire the greatest diplomats available to pick up her slack.
Noodle... Is either a wild card or a bad idea, she wouldn't make a good ruler, nor would she make a bad one, and depending on what stokes her, it could go anyway. However if we have her rely upon advisors that would end horribly, essentially making an easily manipulable puppet queen, a very bad idea, I understand why her supporters want her on the throne, but she's not prepared for the diplomacy of being a ruler at all. Neither is Ignolia for that matter.

Also, Meditate, please. I know there's a lot going on and building the mind palace doesn't seem practical, but we're in turbulent times, there will always be something going on. We should build up our mind castle in order to get the SWEET BONUSES that should last us our whole life. (And maybe even beyond...)

Also, yeah.>>1027827
Research wingsuit.

>>1027841
Actually, meditating as a background task sounds good, I support this, in lieu of using the TP for Meditation or the background task for relaxing.
I imagine that meditating and building the dorms for out stats would be relaxing anyways.

Oh, meditating as a background task sounds wonderful. It is a long term project after all.

Tp: make wingsuit 2.0

Background task: read book of orders

Research: COPCANUM DART or mana battery

I approve of putting more birds in wingsuits

So many big updates tonight... Okay, let's break this down:

> Queen

It is still my belief that we should back Hook personally, as we really need someone in charge with a focus on espionage. Human agents have caused us such grief in the past, from our broken leg, to Clausey, to Mud Runt, etc. Hook's platform is particularly important to us, and we should support her. Also, and I really think this is worth bringing up multiple times: Hook remains the only candidate who has directly reached out to us and asked us to join her team. Like, even after this whole conversation neither Ignolia or Noodle straight up asked us to join them, whereas Hook did.

And I really want to focus on Noodle for a second. I love Noodle, and we've done a lot for her. It's amazing to see how far she's come since we last saw her. But if Noodle wants to become Queen, like REALLY make an attempt at it, then that is a decision I would like her to reach and realize all by herself. We can't just hold her hand through every part of her life, and if she cannot take the throne using her own skills, then she would be little more than a puppet ruler. Noodle hangs on our every word, so we'd better respect that responsibility. Don't push her towards running for Queen, and let her reach her own decision about it.

WITH THAT SAID! This doesn't have to be an all or nothing thing. Here's my pitch: Let's negotiate a deal of some sort between Hook, Ignolia, and Noodle that no matter who wins, the other two will still be given a spot in the winner's court. Hook can still focus on espionage and especially countering espionage, Ignolia can focus on education improvements, and Noodle can be a voice for the people who pushed for her to join the race, as well as offering opinions on trade and tactics. It DOES still matter who takes the throne, as they're the figure of our country, but this way we still get the benefits of what each is strong in represented. This is something we could discuss outside of the actual choice on who to back.

TL;DR: Back Hook, don't say a damn word to Noodle about running, try to broker deals between the candidates.

> TP

Finish up the glide suit for Noodle using your new powers of MICROSCRIPTING. Make sure to save one or two of the defective versions for special events

> GOAL

I agree with Polt: Break Runescripting's SOFTCAP by discovering two compound runes, or learning a gold/prismatic rune

> RESEARCH TASK

I would have preferred the weight rune, but I'll agree with the majority this time. Let's study the Copcanum Dart

> BG TASK

Mind campus. We set that goal of completing it so long ago, and need to make some damn progress on it already. Not sure if this counts for LINKED MEDITATION that's supposed to happen next time we meditate or not, but we also really do need to give Ignis a chance to work in our mind. Otherwise, let's work on those HALLS OF KNOWLEDGE before starting anymore books.

> NEW GOAL
Ensure Caissa's defeat in the coming elections. Betting on a winner is a little too ambitious, but placing a bet on who loses is a bit more manageable. I still stand by the notion that Caissa is the absolute worst candidate for this country, given a likely conflict of interest.

> RESEARCH TASK
Look into the Copcanium Dart. Nico wouldn't have given us such an expensive parting gift if it wasn't important! (Wait, wasn't the Rook symbol associated with the Hiver plate's Black Lotus group? Or am I conflating two separate groups? Dang it, we need to...)

> BACKGROUND TASK: BOOK OF ORDERS
Various underbelly groups have weeded their way into both our professional and personal lives. Navigating them is more important than ever, now.

> TP 5
We need to start talks between Hook, Ignolia, and possibly Tinuptia and Noodle. These are all very talented people, and it would be a shame for any of them to be excluded from the court after another's victory... Plus, going into "the game" with a secret 3/4-way alliance hellbent on wiping Caissa off the face of the board before finally facing each other would be... Though you'd need to put your suspicions of Caissa cooperating with humans on the table if you even want to begin convincing them of that.

>>1027826
>You’ve heard rumblings that Caissa is going to do something.
I've got a bad feeling about this.

Earlier, when she said, "I’ll show you who the real RUNESCRIPTERS are around here!" That makes me think that she's going to attempt to show off something and claim that she made it herself, in order to claim that she's better than us.

Or because she used to be one of Chi's students (who I believe ended up failing the class), she'll try to make something and that'll end up endangering everyone!

>what do?
Let's study the Copcanium Dart. Nico must've given it to us for a reason.

>>1027825
Tell William you don't mind. You still love him (though the jury may still be out on what kind of love that is).

>>1027825
>Ignolia
She can't be queen.
She sounds like a nice person, and has good intentions, but she also sounds dangerously imperialist. Specifically, in the "good"-natured, "uplift the natives" way the Spanish were. Especially how she says they are being taught the wrong things and are too martial. That is their culture. She seems rather close-minded and arrogant in this regard and I would imagine that this could very well fall down the slippery slope to crusades if she becomes queen.

>>1027893
Seconded; you're unsure of the best plan, but you know who the worst-case scenario would be. Keep them from ruining your kingdom and let the rest play itself out.

>>1027948
honestly she would be great for peace times but well this is not it, also perhaps its good she wants to make the canus learned no idea about there culture but perhaps she is right but it will not work as the canus will hate it and it would create exploitable weaknesses for the humans too use against us

wonder what holidays we have in this world, hopefully some with good traditional food