B. Ginerva possibly getting poisoned is really bad, but it sounds like she's doing better than Niccolo right now.

D. Niccolo is... Niccolo, reduce the number of hostiles by socking it to this masked maniac.

tippler 2022/02/11(Fri)18:37 No. 1023179 ID: eedbeb
File 164463346170.png - (332.80KB , 1000x1000 , p42.png )

>B
Elaine dodges the swing of the club and lunges for the smoke goat, tackling him to the ground. He gasps in surprise and thrashes in her grip, soft fur slippery under her fingers. He manages to tear open the reinforced front of Elaine’s robe with his stubby horns.

Niccolo lazily sits up and blinks at the display in front of him. The masked bandit, without a target, redirects their attention to the cart.

“We’re being attacked, Niccolo, do something!” Elaine knocks the pipe out of the goat’s hand while he locks his thighs around her waist. The smoke starts to thin immediately.

“Ignore her, gorgeous,” the goat says. He scrabbles for his pipe, but Elaine pulls him back.

Niccolo’s eyes are very pink and he stares at the tangle of bovidae. “Who’re you?”

“I’m Bruto, darling, why don’t you lie back down and make yourself comfortable.” the goat grunts. Elaine knocks his hand away from her horns and knees him in the crotch, which is sadly ineffective due to the armor spell from his Church amulet.

The deacon rubs his face and groans. “Man, I need to jerk off.”

As the smoke fades, the light dims as well, until a shimmering orb of red and blue sparks leaps into the air to fully illuminate the campsite.

tippler 2022/02/11(Fri)18:37 No. 1023180 ID: eedbeb
File 164463347804.png - (210.35KB , 1000x1000 , p43.png )

Actions:
Elaine: Partially uncharmed Niccolo
Snake: Bit Ginerva, who will shortly pass out
Ginerva: Bit Snake, who is injured and sad
Bruto: Sexily wrestled with Elaine and undid her robe
Mask: Rifled through cart, discovered box
Niccolo: Horny
Naomi: Summoned a light orb so she can see what’s going on, she’ll start shooting next turn

(By some miracle the gun in Elaine’s pocket has not gone off.)

This is infuriating. Elaine is going to wring Niccolo’s neck, who would have guessed he needed maintenance masturbation to resist charm magic?

Her choices:
A. Fully break Niccolo out of the spell by being sexier than Bruto so the Censor can be useful (suggest how, and it has to be very lewd because that goat is hot)

B. Pin Bruto to the ground and attempt to take off his amulet (risk of breathing in too much pipe smoke)

C. Other, suggest non-goat related actions

Fling goat to mask and protect the box!

A. You left the box alone, so now you really need the backup!
You could try wringing his neck, he seemed to find that hot last time. Or smother him in your chest.

A, Undo the top three buttons on your corset, and start choking out Niccolo while demanding he snap to attention and bind this goat up with his brush. It's a triple threat of things he likes: Attractive bodies, asphyxiation, and using his brush on people.

Quick addendum, maybe call out to Naomi to blast any bandits near the cart. Elaine has Brutus under control, but she doesn't know how the cart is. She presumes it's bad though, since these guys are bandits after all.

>>1023183
A: And going with this option. He did almost seemed to like the domination before from one of his comments when he was chastised by Elaine.

>>1023180
A. Give Niccolo some discipline.

>>1023180
B, but dont pin and just keep them in a chokehold till they pass out.

>>1023183
A. Elaine should undo the corset as best she can and aggressively smother Niccolo in cleavage and chest fluff.

Also she should angrily tell Niccolo that he does NOT have permission to jerk off until she says he can.

A. Aggressively choke the goat out while you lick your lips and tell Niccolo he's next as long as he's a good boy.

tippler 2022/02/12(Sat)12:01 No. 1023237 ID: eedbeb
File 164469610334.png - (276.75KB , 1000x1000 , p44.png )

>A
Elaine remembers Niccolo’s reaction when she told him off in the gnome woods and decides on her strategy. She keeps Bruto in a headlock with one arm as she sits up and unclasps the front of her corset with the other, so her ample breasts and chest fluff can spill out. Niccolo’s eyes pop wide with appreciation.

“I’ll smother you with these if you’re a good boy.“ Elaine says in her best approximation of a dangerous purr. “And, uh, you’re not allowed to touch yourself until I say so.”

Bruto turns awkwardly, neck still trapped in Elaine’s arm and shakes his firm behind at Niccolo. “Check this out. You could bounce a coin off these sweet cheeks and I just love being spanked.”

Niccolo nods in approval like a wine connoisseur tasting a quaint vintage. Everyone looks over in temporary distraction as a trio of magic missiles crash into the masked bandit, who gets tossed around by the blasts, but seems unharmed. Naomi cackles with glee and lays down more suppressing fire.

Elaine clears her throat. “If you listen to me, you can have the best of both worlds. Tie up this naughty goat and you’ll get a special reward.”

The pink glow finally fades from Niccolo’s eyes, and he takes out his brush. “Yes ma’am.”

She holds Bruto still while Niccolo wraps him in shiny bands of black, until the goat is tightly bound and she can lower him to the ground.

tippler 2022/02/12(Sat)12:02 No. 1023238 ID: eedbeb
File 164469612277.png - (223.31KB , 1000x1000 , p45.png )

Something slides against Elaine’s hoof and she gasps. Five meters of thick green snake is sluggishly winding through the grass to curl up next to Bruto. There’s a nasty red gash on the creature’s side, but even as Elaine watches, new skin and scales creep across the wound.

“I didn’t think she’d be ssso upssset.” the snake complains, ignoring Niccolo and Elaine who are frozen in instinctual terror.

“You don’t have the best track record Luce. What’d you tell her anyway?” Bruto yawns, flesh straining against his flat restraints.

“Can I jerk off please?” Niccolo asks Elaine in a small voice.

“Well I sssaw she wasss with the Church, and you know I have some hissstory there, ssso I told her the current Goddess is a fraud and all these nudity rules are about controlling the populace which is antithetical to the Church’s original purpose of civil ssservice.” Luce sighs.

“Yeah, maybe that was a little much.” Bruto tests the bindings again. “Mind letting me out of here?”

Actions:
Elaine: Uncharmed Niccolo with sexy threats of violence
Bruto: Tried to seduce Niccolo
Niccolo: Tied up Bruto with brush
Luce the Snake: Self-healed while talking to Bruto
Naomi: Shot at Mask, damaging cart
Mask: Took shelter in cart, broke through one of three box bindings.

Elaine choices (she can also direct Niccolo now, so suggest for him):
A. Talk to Luce
B. Attack Luce
C. Go to the cart to stop Mask

Elaine: B. Luce is probably gonna try to free Bruto and we do NOT need him back in action.

Niccolo: C. I'm not sure how effective bindings are gonna be on a snake, so let's leave Elaine to handle it herself.

C. Tell Niccolo to tie that snake into a pretzel.

Elaine - A, The snake can self-heal, and can retaliate with poison bites. He seems weak-willed though, so let's try to charm him ourselves. Gently rub his back and console him, while convincing him to just stay put and rest so that the hyper powerful astral fox with you doesn't have to obliterate him to smithereens from which he cannot recover. Make it sound less like a threat, and more like you're concerned for his well-being.

Niccolo - C, Whisper to him to restrain the masked man in the cart, letting him know that once the battle is resolved, then you just might let him jerk off.

>>1023238
nicolo on the cart man. C
Elaine grab snake by the back of the head so that it can't bite anyone if its a constrictor you can get help later but the importnat thing is to disable thier head. B

C. Follow the mission, protect the box. Niccolo can keep these two restrained.

C. Tell Niccolo he can have as much fun as he wants tying up these two.

C, we were told box was priority

Elaine: C: We need to get some assistance to the cart before it's blown right up.

Niccolo: B: In order to keep him from getting distracted and wandering away. We have to keep up our sexy dommy denial. The snakes healing means the brushes ability to bind is a lot better at dealing then our limited damage.

tippler 2022/02/13(Sun)09:40 No. 1023349 ID: eedbeb
File 164477403140.png - (336.38KB , 1000x1000 , p46.png )

>Niccolo: B
“Tie up the snake. We don’t want him undoing our hard work. Once everyone’s secure I might give you permission to come.” Elaine orders.

Niccolo nods and hesitantly approaches Luce. The beast doesn’t move, and Niccolo starts lashing his coils together. Elaine isn’t sure how well ropes can hold a snake, but the poor thing seems mentally defeated and doesn’t resist.

>Elaine: C
Elaine sheds her torn robe and runs to the cart. She winces when she sees the damage, Naomi’s attacks have broken some of the wheel spokes and burned the protective tarp, revealing the polished wood box.

Mask scrabbles at the paint bindings around the lid and screams at Elaine when she approaches. The bandit has crushed their food rations with their dirty feet. They can’t reach for their club fast enough before Elaine seizes them.

Unlike the mostly demure Bruto, Mask struggles fiercely and grabs hold of the base of Elaine’s tail. Elaine can’t dislodge their hands fast enough before they pull the cloth knots free.

tippler 2022/02/13(Sun)09:40 No. 1023350 ID: eedbeb
File 164477405102.png - (288.60KB , 1000x1000 , p47.png )

Actions:
Elaine: Grabbed Mask
Niccolo: Tied Luce, sort of
Luce: Allowed himself to be tied, then talked to Niccolo
Naomi: Stopped firing and approached cart
Mask: Undid Elaine’s loincloth

“Are you okay?” the fox asks.

“I’m fine.” Elaine puffs. She gets a good grip over the bandit’s arms and pins them in place.

Naomi is perfectly eye level with Elaine’s bare hips, and the fox feigns professional disinterest but keeps snatching glances at the bovine. With the bony bandit writhing in her grasp, Elaine can’t refasten her underwear and flushes with embarrassment.

Elaine choices:
A. Get Niccolo to tie up Mask (all bandits will be bound)
B. Search Mask for an amulet
C. Check on Ginerva

B.

A and C. Tell Niccolo to bind Mask up and finish the job, while you go check on Ginerva. She was poisoned, you need to make sure she's alright. You can always check Mask for an amulet AFTER he's bound up.

A

A. We have to be safe from future harm before we try and help Ginerva.

C)

A and then C will just naturally follow after. You can loot the bodies after you make sure your charges (and wares) are safe

A + C. Ginerva is in need of medical attention, we should wrap this up quickly.

tippler 2022/02/13(Sun)16:00 No. 1023402 ID: eedbeb
File 164479683612.png - (254.20KB , 1000x1000 , p48.png )

>A
Elaine wants this situation to be resolved quickly so she can retrieve her clothes and check on Ginerva. It’s mortifying to only have a corset on. She drags Mask back toward Niccolo, Naomi following behind.

The deacon has arranged himself on a stump, with one shoe resting on Bruto’s back while the goat trembles on his forearms and knees. Luce is coiled in a circle like a thick length of rope and all three seem to be deep in conversation.

“Hello ma’am, these bandits aren’t too bad, what do you think about letting them go?” Niccolo says brightly.

“Goddess, no! What are you thinking?” Elaine splutters.

Niccolo turns back to Luce and Bruto with a shrug. “Sorry, the lady said no.”

“Darn.” Bruto deadpans. “Hey Fiore, did they have anything good?”

“Fancy box. Couldn’t get inside.” Fiore grunts. Niccolo ties their wrists and ankles together and they sit sulkily on the ground.

tippler 2022/02/13(Sun)16:00 No. 1023403 ID: eedbeb
File 164479684556.png - (207.83KB , 1000x1000 , p49.png )

>Bandits Captured
Combat with the bandits has stopped, but can start again if they attempt to escape. Since they all still have their protection spells, Elaine cannot effectively threaten them. The bandits can’t leave the campsite while they’re restrained.

Elaine retrieves her robe and loincloth, but stops dressing at the sight of Niccolo’s puppy dog eyes. Right, she still owes him a breast smothering.

“I did well, right?” he simpers.

“Yes, you were a very good boy.” Elaine sighs. Ginerva will have to wait a few more minutes, though a quick glance around the cart shows the badger is breathing fine and doesn’t seem to be bleeding.

Naomi bites her lip and inches closer to get a front row view of the show. Elaine feels this whole situation is doing terrible things to the fox’s mind.

While Elaine rewards Niccolo, what should she talk about with the assembled group? She can also address individuals though the peanut gallery will interject.

"Please don't tell anyone I wear this corset... I'm supposed to be taking a vow of poverty, but I needed something durable.

Chide Luce (Lucifer?) for doing this without full protection. What if he got hit in the head with a bullet or something? You can't regenerate from that.

Question why they decided to assault the cart in the first place. It seems like they specifically came to loot this one in particular.

I think we should ask about the amulets Bruto (and possibly Mask man) are wearing. How did they get them?

Ginerva's asleep and Niccolo's face will be busy, but... You could ask Naomi to collect these amulets from them. All they have to do to get new ones is turn themselves in to the local church!

tippler 2022/02/14(Mon)15:41 No. 1023480 ID: eedbeb
File 164488206069.png - (162.71KB , 1000x1000 , p50.png )

Niccolo stands so Elaine can take his seat on the stump, then straddles her hips while supporting part of his weight with his feet. It’s strangely reassuring to have someone more experienced to move things along.

Elaine undoes her corset and takes hold of Niccolo’s curly mop to press him into her cleavage. His scruff is a little scratchy and the human relaxes into the hold.

>Amulets?
“Where did you guys get those censorship armor amulets? Don’t you need to pray to the Goddess to use them?” Elaine asks.

Bruto rolls awkwardly into a sitting position to answer. “They hand them out at churches all the time. It’s easy enough to learn the prayers but our crew has extra special talent to help jailbreak the spell.”

“Oh ssstop.” Luce says.

“Are you, er, a magic snake?” Elaine asks. She’s not sure if that’s a rude question.

Naomi replies first. “He’s a spirit, I can tell. I could take him though, he’s old and tired.”

tippler 2022/02/14(Mon)15:41 No. 1023481 ID: eedbeb
File 164488207099.png - (148.30KB , 1000x1000 , p51.png )

“I sensssed a powerful magic artifact here and thought there’d be something valuable to sssteal.” Luce explains.

Elaine considers taking the amulets from the bandits, but then someone could really get hurt and she doesn’t want that on her conscience.

“They’re living the life.” Niccolo says, muffled but audible. “Out here they don’t have to obey nudity laws and once they get enough loot they can retire somewhere in a city.”

He sighs dramatically, warm air tickling Elaine’s fur.

“Are you a Wayfinder?” Luce asks.

“Yes I am, still just an initiate though. The monks took me in after my parents were killed during a long journey despite their best efforts.” Elaine says.

The snake perks up. “Did you know the Wayfinders often take in orphanss as new recruits? Given the low number of volunteers, one can asssume that they occasionally allow their clientsss to die–”

“Luce.” the masked bandit interrupts. “Shut up.”

“I’m sssorry, I’m sssorry, I always put my tail in my mouth when I meet new people.” Luce buries his face in his coils.

tippler 2022/02/14(Mon)15:41 No. 1023482 ID: eedbeb
File 164488208684.png - (221.10KB , 1000x1000 , p52.png )

Elaine laughs at the absurdity of the situation, partially to cover the sting of the snake’s words. Samantha gives an irritated groan and covers her head with her pillow to block out the noise. Out of courtesy, everyone quiets down, still whispering to each other.

It’s in this brief moment of peace that an ominous growl ripples through air. Elaine turns her head to see Ginerva limp around the cart. The badger is completely naked but doesn’t seem to care. Niccolo immediately pushes himself away from Elaine and smoothes his clothes with nervous hands.

“What are you doing?” Ginerva snarls.

“We caught the bandits, we were just interrogating them, uh, for their secrets.” Niccolo stutters.

“Consorting with the devil.” Ginerva is frothing slightly at the mouth, and her eyes are wild. Between Luce’s venom and his words, Ginerva seems to have been driven to a fit of rage, and Elaine feels a shiver of fear up her spine.

The badger stalks toward Elaine and glares down at the pink corset like it personally insulted the Goddess. Elaine covers her chest and starts hastily doing up the clasps. For a second she’s afraid Ginerva will strike her.

Instead, the badger turns to the bandits, who tense and bunch together. Elaine sees Luce worm out of his bindings in preparation to escape.

How does Elaine deal with Ginerva?
A. Talk in an attempt to calm her (suggest what to say)
B. Attack and restrain her until the bandits leave
C. Demand the truth about the Church
D. Do nothing

>Consorting with the devil
Yeah, that's Lucifer.

A. Tell her to put some clothes on. Then while she's distracted doing that ask what the usual punishment is for banditry.

>>1023482
angry honey badger D DDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD

Get dressed, do D, nothing, she kind of has the right to be mad after getting snek poisoned. Plus letting her vent on them will be good for not letting her vent on *you* you kept the package safe, and captured the bandits, which was your job.

(also wear clothes so you don't get fluffed up)

Punch the bandits first before she does. She will like it.

A, We need to get her thinking again before she does something rash.

Tell her that she's in no state to act in the name of the Church if she isn't going to set the example, and instruct her to put her spare clothes on.

That should give her enough time to slow down and reconsider what she's doing. As much fun as it would be to set her on the bandits, she got hit by Luce's venom. She really ought to rest.

Hopefully her anger won't totally overpower reason, else we may have to step in and restrain her.

Side note: Any chance our robe is salvageable? If not, really hope you brought spares- you totally didn't, vow of poverty, shit. Welp, if your robe won't suffice, then you've done more than enough for Niccolo at this point to earn borrowing whatever spare vestments he's brought.

A. Tell Ginerva that you'd gladly join her in teaching the bandits (Luce) a lesson, but she needs to get cured of poison as soon as possible. And clothed, less importantly.

A: Remind her of your conversation earlier about the church and excessive punishment and how she isn't truly a fan of it. Much preferring the ways of her earlier time of church. That she should get her clothes and something to help with the poison in her system.

tippler 2022/02/15(Tue)16:56 No. 1023537 ID: eedbeb
File 164497297418.png - (256.16KB , 1000x1000 , p53.png )

>A, talk to Ginerva

Elaine hurriedly pulls on her robe and gets to her feet. "Ginerva, please you need to rest, you've been poisoned and we have everything under control with the bandits. The relic is secure and the Church wouldn't want anyone else to get hurt."

The badger staggers to stop, breathing heavily. "I saw you just now, pleasuring my deacon and laughing with these criminals. Hold your damn tongue about the Church's will."

The moment of distraction is all the bandits need. Luce unravels with surprising speed, paint flaking off his scales as some kind of countermagic melts the restraints. Ginerva tackles him and they go down in a flurry of claws and fangs. The other bandits wiggle into motion. Fiore reveals Bruto's pipe on the ground from under their feet, snagged during the conversation or
while they were carried to the stump, and awkwardly shoves it between the goat's teeth. Pink smoke flares out from his mouth, obscuring the two from view.

The badger is moving sluggishly, but still has power behind her blows. This time Luce isn't messing around, and quickly wraps Ginerva in his coils. He squeezes, and the badger’s eyes bug out as the force strains against her armor spell.

tippler 2022/02/15(Tue)16:56 No. 1023538 ID: eedbeb
File 164497298285.png - (231.12KB , 1000x1000 , p54.png )

Elaine doesn't want Ginerva to be hurt more, and tries to insert herself between the hard muscle of the snake and the bishop. She can't make Luce budge, and Ginerva's breathing becomes more strained.

“I’m gonna shoot you if you don’t stop, snake! I’ll do it!” Naomi shrieks. The fox sounds more scared than fierce at the sight of the frantic brawl, but raises her hands anyway in preparation to fire.

Magic missiles flare to life and hone in on Luce. The spirit yelps in alarm as the powerful spells smash against his form, and he flings Ginerva aside so he can slither into the pink smog. Elaine hears the thud of footsteps on hard earth as Fiore and Bruto are freed and run away.

The bandits have been defeated, but also escaped unscathed. The relic is safe and Ginerva is injured.

The bishop shakily gets to her feet. When Elaine tries to offer a hand, Ginerva shoves her to the ground. The initiate lands hard on the gun in her pocket and it goes off with a deafening bang. Elaine's robe scatters in a cloud of cloth scraps as her armor spell redirects the momentum of the bullet into a harmless outward force.

Stunned, Elaine stays on the ground as Ginerva turns toward the cart and limps away. Niccolo spares a brief glance down and then nervously follows the badger. There's the beginning of a sob stuck in Elaine's throat and she's terribly exhausted.

Naomi crouches down by Elaine’s side. The fox is breathing hard, her eyes wide and full of uncertainty, like she doesn't know what to say.

Seems like working with the church is more trouble than it's worth. So Naomi, what is your party up to?
Keep the gun, it could at least be worth something if you don't learn how to use it.

Regardless of things.. We still have our duty afterall. We have to defend the cart, and well. It is something we need to do.

Don't feel bad Elaine, you did your job and ensured that the artifact was safe. Every choice you made in that fight, including the boob smother that pissed Ginerva off, was totally reasonable under the circumstances.

It's okay to be upset though. Don't try to deny your emotions, that's just not healthy. Stinks that the bandit's got away, and Ginerva was being a stupid unfair bitch, but just remember how sweet it's going to feel when she eventually has to apologize for being unreasonable. And ruining your robe, stripping people is kind of a big no-no for Censors I would imagine.

Speaking of which, you really need to get dressed. Since Naomi is the closest and seems concerned about you, why don't you ask to borrow something to cover your hips at least. You should also retrieve the underwear that mask dude untied, should still be wearable! Naomi is pretty short, but maybe Samantha has some spare clothes you can fit into. (She does kind of owe you for letting her sleep through things.)

>>1023538
You know what? We're not working with the church again after this. Of the two ranking members we know, one is a pervert openly abusive of their station, and the other is a unreasonable mule of a woman that refuses to act on what she views as injustices unless they are beneath her.

For now we keep quiet, but we remember this. We remember what we witnessed here and how we were treated for doing the job we were assigned.

You know what? This job sucks. Everything about this situation sucks. The only thing we have to feel happy about is that everyone's still alive and the relic is OK, but apart from that, everything sucks.

It's okay to cry.

You may tell Naomi to let the public know what she witnessed the church did to you here today, that should start getting some bad rumors about the censors started, and maybe one day it'll snowball into something bigger and they'll get what they deserve

We'll have to keep going on this mission though, it's still a job. But refuse to say anything to Ginerva for the rest of the trip. Niccola maybe, but you dont even want to look at her.

Tell Naomi after this is done, you want to spend an entire day to relax in a soothing lake. Maybe you'll Learn about Saiorse's secret swimming spot from Naomi. You deserve it.

You know what? You got to see Ginerva's fat titties and that's what's important.

tippler 2022/02/16(Wed)16:34 No. 1023639 ID: eedbeb
File 164505805739.png - (185.08KB , 1000x1000 , p55.png )

Elaine could almost fall asleep here, on the warm, hard ground. Instead she gets to her knees and motions for Naomi to come closer. She protected the cart and her companions, but she still feels like she failed.

"Do you or Samantha have any spare clothes?" Elaine whispers.

"Um, yes, I have my old dress you can wear as a shirt and Sammy has a skirt that might work with a belt." Naomi scuttles to her pack and rifles through it while Elaine ties her loincloth back in place. Hot tears drip off her face and hit her hands as she cries in silence. Ginerva wasn't in her right mind, but the badger’s actions tonight were still hurtful.

Elaine commits Luce's words about the Church and the Goddess to memory. Outside of the Censors, she was the only one who heard.

tippler 2022/02/16(Wed)16:34 No. 1023640 ID: eedbeb
File 164505806782.png - (224.92KB , 1000x1000 , p56.png )

Naomi returns with the clothes, which fit better than expected on Elaine's slim figure.

After the fox leaves to her straw mat at Samantha's side, Elaine takes a deep breath, lies down, and drifts to sleep. Maybe she won't feel so bad in the morning.

The party is scheduled to arrive in Tavarone tomorrow afternoon. There will not be any further danger or interruption. Elaine has four updates’ worth of time to resolve her questions and problems with the Censors before she's released from her duties.

What should she do first?
A. Talk to Niccolo
B. Talk to Ginerva
C. Talk to Naomi and/or Samantha

A. maybe you can use your position in the church to actually change it to be a bit less uptight?

>>1023640
Niccolo is definitely the lesser bastard from what we've seen, but I don't think he'd be the one to kickstart anything and he's of limited use due to his open vices.

I'm torn between A and C, but mostly leaning towards c.

C. Probably a good idea to give it some time before talking to Tweedledee and Tweedledum again.

>>1023640
C. Need some time to decompress.

C, Elaine deserves a break before she gets thrown right back into the fire of Censor babysitting

C. Get some time to relax, and ask their opinion on how to approach things going forward

C. Naoimi is cute.

tippler 2022/02/17(Thu)19:42 No. 1023767 ID: eedbeb
File 164515577008.png - (200.14KB , 1000x1000 , p57.png )

The next morning brings bright, clear skies and a fresh breeze. It's a beautiful day, but Elaine's heart is heavy. She's a little sore, though she slept well outside of being awoken for her watch shift, and she's not quite ready to face the Censors.

She's grateful when Naomi and Samantha linger at the campsite until the cart is hitched to the donkey so they return to the road at the same time as Elaine. Having outside company gives her an excuse not to talk to her clients, and Elaine joins Naomi and Samantha a good distance in front of the cart.

"What brings you two adventurers from Busalla?" Elaine asks.

Naomi pulls out a map similar to Niccolo's, with large stars scribbled on it to mark points of interest. "We have a whole trip planned out. This morning we're going to see the Supreme Butter Cow in all its glory."

"Oh, that sounds very nice, is there some kind of trouble with the cow you're going to solve? Is there a thief in the area stealing butter and you have to stop them?"

Naomi squints at Elaine like she isn't sure what the initiate is trying to say. "We're just looking at the cow. It's big. It's made of butter."

"How charming! So you're just sightseeing and not–"

Elaine's words are abruptly cut off by a death glare from Samantha who adeptly mimes gutting the air and pulling out its entrails. Elaine gapes at her. Despite the human's full night of sleep, she still has the wild look in her eyes of a woman who has nothing to lose.

tippler 2022/02/17(Thu)19:47 No. 1023769 ID: eedbeb
File 164515603059.png - (262.55KB , 1000x1000 , p58.png )

"Our quest is to observe the magical spells keeping the butter cow fresh and intact." Samantha grits out.

"Right, my apologies." Elaine laughs nervously. "That's very exciting, good for you."

The early morning passes with much more relaxed chatter. Naomi tells wondrous stories of magic and mischief growing up in Minga, while Samantha talks nostalgically about her childhood when she lived further south.

Naomi quite literally explodes when they see the first sign advertising the cow, only a few kilometers away. The fox tugs on Samantha's arm with excitement and scurries back and forth across the road, working herself into a panting frenzy.

Finally, from around a bend, a shining statue of grease comes into view. It's about twice the height of a normal dairy cow, about level with Elaine. An old couple is sitting at the base of the statue, with a hat out for donations.

"Wow!" Naomi looks at the cow for a solid five seconds before turning back to the road. "Okay, I saw it. Let's keep going."

Elaine glances behind to check that the Censors are still close by, and notices Niccolo beckoning to her. What should Elaine do next?

A. Talk to Niccolo
B. Ignore him and keep talking to Naomi and Samantha

Alright, let's talk to Niccolo. If he tries anything creepy though, do not hesitate to shut him down. You aren't in the mood.

He'll probably be creepy even if that isn't his intention though, so you'll probably have to tolerate some degree of it.

>>1023769
A

Any parting words? maybe Naomi can let us know about The Secret swimming spot. Elaine deserves it.

But yeah, A

A: The butter cow has been observed. Might as well see what Niccolo has to say.

A. You are NOT jealous of the butter cow.

A. Be prepared to dip on the conversation if he demonstrates an astounding lack of awareness.

B

tippler 2022/02/18(Fri)17:26 No. 1023859 ID: eedbeb
File 164523397342.png - (233.54KB , 1000x1000 , p59.png )

>A
“Sorry, I should see what he wants.” Elaine tells Naomi and Samantha. “It was really nice talking to you both, I hope I can see you again soon.”

“We’re still walking to Tavarone together, don’t act like this is goodbye.” Samantha points out.

“Yeah! If those Censors give you more trouble, I'll yell at them and you can come hang with us.” Naomi says.

Elaine thanks them and takes the long way around the cart to where Niccolo is walking in the back.

“What?” she asks brusquely.

Niccolo looks taken aback at her tone. “Are you alright?”

“After last night? Of course not!” Elaine lets some of her frustration show in her voice. “Ginerva hates me and ruined my robe and you were being an annoying perv like always instead of taking things seriously.”

“Sorry, I know you’re not into that stuff, I just thought–sorry.” Niccolo says.

tippler 2022/02/18(Fri)17:26 No. 1023860 ID: eedbeb
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Tears blur Elaine’s vision. “What do you want? I’m not here to entertain you if you’re bored.”

“I kind of wanted to check on you and say thanks, if you hadn’t stopped Bruto I’d probably be a bandit right now.” Niccolo admits.

“I was doing my duty as a Wayfinder, that’s all.”

“Yeah, um, speaking of that, thanks for protecting the relic.” Niccolo lowers his voice. “It’s an extremely valuable purification artifact, we’re going to cleanse several towns’ wells that were poisoned so the residents can have safe water again.”

Elaine glares at him. “Why are you telling me this?”

“I just wanted to show the Church isn’t all arrests and rules. I know you don’t have a high opinion of us but we do a lot of good stuff too. I don’t know if what Luce said about the Goddess was true, and honestly it doesn’t matter to me either way, but the Church still cares about civil service.”

Luce was obviously a spirit of deception and strife, despite supposedly trying to change his ways. What he said could easily be interpreted as subjective opinion, despite the implication that it's truth.
What did he mean by "current" Goddess though? Was there a different one before?

Y'know, Niccolo is a lot more reasonable that he really seems. Granted, he was in fact almost more of a hindrance than help in that last encounter, but that was while he was under the effects of some kind of charm spell, almost tailored to hit him the hardest. Now that it's out of his system, he actually has the decency to properly thank you without even a hint of creepy perversion.

I think the more telling point though is that he's actually standing up for the Church. He really doesn't come off like the kind of guy who respects its teachings, but maybe there's a reason he stays beyond a fancy brush or his parents pushing him into it.

We've seen some of the worst of the Church on this journey, but I think we should keep in mind that there are a lot of reasons they're looked up to beyond just armor spells. That doesn't dispel the bad parts, but it's only fair to acknowledge the good alongside it.

As for Niccolo, while you're still not totally over last night, you should thank him. He made you feel a little better than you did before.

If he uses your improving mood as an opening to be creepy though, do not hesitate to trip him and walk away.

>>1023866
Seconding this because if he doubles back and ruins the mood he had it coming

I mean why would we believe a bunch of bandits who were out raiding and stealing from people in the first place on the first dialogue exactly? We saw that they stole from and broke down someone else's cart beforehand so they're screwing others livelihoods for their own gain, old spirit or not. Yes we had some issue going on with our group, but we aren't exactly joyriding here.

Immediately ask if you can be given a demonstration. You want to be sure that this is a purification artifact and not... something worse.

I think it's best to act so that what Luce said remains untrue. It's good to know our mission has a practical purpose.
In the event of dire circumstances, should we focus on the relic over you and Gi- well, obviously Ginerva, but you?

You're still a bit upset, buy you can at least forgive Niccola.

>>1023860
yeah we ain't got beef with nic, he seems to know things are screwy and this approach is appreciated.

Thanks Niccolo, he is being nice and looks sorry for the "reward for getting out of mind control" thing.

Elain might be still upset, but leting know that this mission is for something good is also a nice gesture.

tippler 2022/02/19(Sat)12:02 No. 1023990 ID: eedbeb
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Niccolo is actually speaking sense, without even a hint of his usual sleaze. At least the deacon seems honest about the Church and where he stands. Elaine dries her eyes and sighs. Time to give him one more chance.

“Thanks for helping tie up the bandits.” she mutters.

“You did most of the hard work.”

They walk in amicable silence. Elaine keeps an eye out for danger, but now that they’re approaching civilization, the road is smoother and there are enough other travelers that there isn’t a sign of magical creatures or bandits.

“If you’re feeling up to it, I’d like to ask you for a favor.” Niccolo says carefully. “Not for me! Ginerva’s been really quiet, she’s walking fine so I think she’s okay physically but maybe Luce has weird magic venom and it’s having other effects. What he said is probably also bothering her. She won’t talk to me about it, but she might talk to you.”

Final Choice:
A. Help Ginerva with her crisis (restore Ginerva’s faith, return to business as usual)
B. Naw (Ginerva will realize the falsehoods of the Church, which will have mixed consequences)

A. But only if Niccolo comes with you nearby for your support as she still might be irrationally angry at us.

Best to tell her that if the church is corrupt and doing those bad things, Ginerva should do something to make a change to stop the church from killing clients, change it from the inside to make it better with Niccolo's help and set a better example for others. It'll take awhile, but you know she is tough enough to do it.

She can start by apologizing to you.

A. Talk it out, don't leave her to figure it out on her own.

B. You've seen what faith has twisted her into. Still, make sure she isn't brainwashed into following blindly into the nudist bandits.

Here's the thing, Ginerva's not *bad* yeah she's a bit extreme, but not *evil* and she's feeling remorse for what she did. Getting her to swear off the church will likely have pretty bad consequences.

A because they're at least trying, and maybe talk about doing things in a less radical way sometimes, practicing some moderation in the extremeness of her attitude. It's a fools errand for sure, but I don't think you would want to upset the balance so heavily when someone even more depraved then these two could just as easily take their place. The enemy you know is better than an unknown foe.

A, Ginerva messed up last night, but it's clear that she's in a tumultuous place right now. Luce's words and venom must have really gotten into her head, because that wasn't how she was before.

You've made it clear to her already that you have problems with the Church, but the biggest issues aren't impossible to fix. It's not something that goes straight to the top like a fraudulent goddess or the nudity laws themselves, it's basic Compassion. Almost every single time you've seen somebody upset with the Church on this trip, it's been because they were getting punished for just trying to live their lives.

Like the sheep woman at journey's start who bought a permit to go out in her wool. She bought the permit! She genuinely believed she was living by the rules set by the church, and Ginerva was going to fine or arrest her! If anyone should have gotten in trouble, shouldn't it have been whoever was selling such a document? And if the permit was allowed, and someone in your religion had granted this permission, couldn't you have approved her permit for the district? If literally nothing else, if she needed to be dressed at that very moment and you had nothing to offer, could you not have escorted her to a tailor?

How about the adventurers stripped during the gnome attack? They barely had a chance to catch their breath before Niccolo hit them with a one minute warning 'til arrest. He didn't even ask if they had spares to change into, the mandate was "Be dressed or you will go to jail". If the Church cares so much about people being clothed, then wouldn't it be easier to just bring extra garments to give to indecent adventurers than it would be to make arrests out in the woods and have to drag them along for the rest of the journey? If Niccolo had offered them clothes and they refused, this wouldn't even be an example. The adventurers would be in the wrong, and the threat of arrest would have been deserved. They didn't leave angry because they were forced to wear clothes, but because she and Niccolo would have punished them for something outside of their control. And before the argument gets made that they should have had spares, would the Church have acted differently had their bags been lost in the skirmish.

Maybe there is something to what Luce was talking about, maybe not. But even if the Goddess is legit and the nudity laws a necessity, it doesn't matter. People are still going to hate the Church for punishing every offense without a shred of mercy. If she saved punishments like those for the real criminals, like the bandits from yesterday who were willfully breaking the rules and hurting innocent people, then the Church's reputation would be a lot better than it is now.

This is something Ginerva herself can change. Not for every priest ever of course, but at least for herself. She can be the better example.

...

...

Also, please ask why she has red gropey hands on her boobs, please, we're running out of opportunities to bring it up.

>>1023990
I want the action of A with the consequences of B. booooo.

tippler 2022/02/20(Sun)14:04 No. 1024129 ID: eedbeb
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>A
A bitter, hurt part of Elaine wants the badger to suffer alone. Honestly, it might be in Elaine’s interests for the bishop to lose faith in the Goddess if Ginerva decides to reject the Church’s stricter teachings.

It’s not in her nature to ignore suffering though, and Elaine raises her eyes to the badger’s broad back. “Fine, but I want you to step in if she gets mad at me.”

“Of course, thank you so much–”

Elaine lengthens her stride, leaving Niccolo in the dust. Up close, Ginerva indeed looks miserable. The badger doesn’t even acknowledge Elaine except for a short glance.

“Good afternoon.” Elaine begins. “I hope you’re not taking Luce’s words about the Goddess seriously, he was trying to rob us and I bet his powers have something to do with causing strife.”

The blunt words take a moment take a moment to penetrate Ginerva’s funk. She blinks and falters, and Elaine has to backpedal slightly.

“He was a bandit.” Ginerva says slowly, as if just realizing this fact.

“Right,” Elaine says patiently, “He even said something to me about the Wayfinders that was blatantly untrue.”

tippler 2022/02/20(Sun)14:04 No. 1024130 ID: eedbeb
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The shadow over Ginerva’s brow eases a fraction. “I–I’m still bothered by what the snake said about our nudity laws. There have been more complaints about them recently, despite the safety improvements brought by our armor spells I fear the Church is becoming unpopular.”

This is it, this is Elaine’s big opportunity to gently push reform. Careful now, don’t want to scare the big bad badger bishop away.

“The Church has done great things for the community.” Elaine says slowly. “Maybe deacons should try to enforce the laws with more compassion. From what I’ve seen on this trip, from the sheep to those three adventurers in the forest, it seems like people are trying to comply, but sometimes outside forces or misunderstandings get in the way.”

Ginerva seems like she’s listening, so Elaine continues.

“Church officials already carry spare clothes for themselves, but perhaps it would earn them goodwill if they had simple garments for the devoted.”

The badger exhales loudly through her nose and Elaine tenses instinctively. The bishop puts a clawed hand on Elaine’s elbow. “You speak wisdom beyond your age, initiate.”

Elaine really felt like it was common sense, but holds her tongue. “A simple Wayfinder’s opinion.”

“I will recommend your idea once I return to Busalla.” Ginerva pauses. “I do appreciate it.”

tippler 2022/02/20(Sun)14:04 No. 1024131 ID: eedbeb
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After a late lunch of biscuit crumbs thanks to Fiore’s stomping the previous night, Elaine walks alongside the cart with Ginerva and Niccolo until the barns turn to houses and pastures shrink into quaint personal gardens.

Tavarone is a bustling town, slightly larger than Busalla. Elaine spots a monk in traditional garb and asks directions to the local monastery where she’ll stay for the night before finding a job back to Busalla. He gives her new clothes a skeptical look, but seems to understand that she lost her robe without having to ask.

Naomi and Samantha split from the group to head downtown, waving goodbye to Elaine. Before the fox goes, she tugs on Elaine’s sleeve and whispers in her ear about Saoirse’s secret swimming spot.

Ginerva takes the donkey and cart to a gleaming white chapel, before unhitching the tired animal and and leaning against the cool stone wall.

“You did a wonderful job, Elaine.” the badger says, eyes closed. “I’ll be sure to send a message to the Wayfinders praising your ability.”

“See you around sometime. I’ll let you know if I need any more help with bandits.” Niccolo says.

Elaine gives a short bow. “It was my honor to help you on your journey.” she says formally.

A bright afternoon in a new town and the whispers of forbidden knowledge lingering in her mind. Elaine turns away from the Censors and heads for the monastery.

tippler 2022/02/20(Sun)14:08 No. 1024132 ID: eedbeb
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Thanks for reading!

Huzzah!

Such a nice quest, I liked it!