tricolor_mina

Violet drew her blade in front of her, black smoke wafting from the hilt of her blade as she held it up close to eye level. They were slowly starting to run dry on their energy reserves, with only a few sparks left for them to gather. Their entire party was trying their best, just to cleave their way through the last little bit of health. Only two bars out of the original six were left, and they were fully in the home stretch.

The smoke from lament seemed to erupt into purple and red flames, licking across the blade hungrily, just itching for a release.

No faltering here, they had to finish this soon. Before everyone ran out of steam, and they were forced to retreat. They would be losing the faith of the people, the ones that they were fighting for the freedom of. Serration was bearing down on their team, its razor fangs trying to find purchase against the wooden barrier.

Violet let out a bellow, before launching herself at it, the red and purple mixing with the glow of a critical blow. Serration let out a Wail of pain, thrashing as Lament bit through its thick metal scales and drew out the last embers of its life. Now, She just had to rely on her team to keep up the good work.

Action - AoE I Vs Serration

217894, BD: 8 (Minor Crit! [Focus]) 28*15= 420 - 55 = 365 DMG to Serration! Serration goes down~ | Mina Recovers 4 EN, and loses 15 EN(11 + 2 +2 = 15)

(8) Freyd |  HP: 1334[250]/1334 | EN: 121/150 | DMG: 20 | MIT: 188 | EVA: 6 | ACC: 5(6/AA) | BH: 73 | REC: 8 | THRN: 40 | PHASE | FLN: 8 | FRB: 40(-1) | ENV.O: 32 | V.O.: 146 | V.D.: 146 | HELL: 80 | STNG[x1] | LD: 8 | PRS: 3 | DOTE: 1/3
(0) Hirru | HP: 1104[250]/1104 | EN: 103/104 | DMG: 1 | MIT: 182 | ACC: 2 | BH: 55 | REC: 8 | THRN: 76 | MENDING: 2 | HB: 44 | LD: 5 | DOTE: 1/3
(8) Katoka | HP: 668[250]/720 | EN: 63/106  | DMG: 28 | MIT: 98 | EVA: 4 | ACC: 7(8/AA) | BH: 31 | REC: 8 | BLGT: 32 | P.V.O | STK: 40 | HELL: 80
(8) Morningstar | HP: 844[250]/851  | EN: 44/106 | DMG: 28 | MIT: 142 | EVA: 1 | ACC: 6(7/AA) | BH: 18 | STK: 40 | FRB: 40(-1) | VO: 140 | HELL: 80 | LD: 6
(9) Elora | HP: 700[250]/700 | EN: 31/104 | DMG: 26 | MIT: 98 | EVA: 3 | ACC: 7(8/AA) | BH: 35 | REC: 8 | FLN: 8 | BLGT: 32 | STK: 40 | LD: 3
(7) Tricolor_Mina | HP: 720[250]/720 | EN: 24/106 | DMG: 27 | MIT: 78 | ACC: 7 | BLGT: 32 | BRN: 56 | FRB: 40(-1) | V.D.: 72 | TXC.: 32

Serration | HP: -26/2000 | DMG: 250 | MITI: 55 75 | ACC: 4(+3)(-1) | EVA: 0 | Shatter [-20] | FOCUSED [1/2] | Stun Immunity [0/3] | FB [40/1] | ENV. [32/3] | BLGT [32/1]
[Matches Holy, Bleed, Shatter, Phase]

 "Or, maybe I'll just need to try harder.  We must have missed one on the way somewhere." Violet snorted at that. She could honestly think of quite a few of them that the pair had missed. "Yeah, we probably need to try a little bit harder." she replied dryly, a wry grin on her face. "We could always go after good ol Sando Satsu, and run it ragged if we're feeling lucky. I'd suggest the Shadow's fucked-up version of the Avalanche if it weren't for the fact that I'd probably get frozen solid trying to fight it due to my lack of the Survival skill." More than a few ideas were running through her head now as they made the trek to the quest location.

"Honey bun?" Violet took the prooferred bun, a soft smile on her face. "Thank you, I actually quite enjoyed the last one you gave me." she nibbled at it, humming. "Maa... no wonder this quest looked longer than I thought it was, of course the stupid system added a prologue to this. I coulda sworn it was just a standard beat'em up, not... this." She had thought her information sources were just kind of... broken, somehow, when she'd seen the appearance of the prologue. Good to know that wasn't the part of the quest that got glitched out by the Shadow.

"I've heard news of some diplomacy-based quests up on twenty-seven, but haven't yet had time to tour the place yet.  Have you been?" A bemused look crossed her face. She had Not heard of the diplomacy quests up on floor 27, and she felt a pang of annoyance at the fact that she hadn't seen them talked about a whole lot. "If they aren't limited to a solo adventure, mind if I join you for them?" she said dryly, grinning as she took another bite of the bun. "I'd love to sink my teeth into a good diplomacy quest, there's been almost nothing in that regard that I've seen or heard of on the earlier floors."

they had finally reached the mouth of the cave, a grin crossing her face. "Alrighty~ This is where it said the stone tablet was!" she chirped, cracking her knuckles. "Now to find and translate it~"

217733, LD: 1 (LD Total: 1/60)

"Rosa?  I've... heard about her specialties." Violet tilted her head, bemused. "I would hope so, considering you're usually joined at the hip with Raidou-kun." she shrugged, busying herself with the pot as she began to portion out the food. "I would hope you wouldn't paint one example as a spoilt batch, Takeshi-kun. Buuut, that's neither here nor there. We're here to eat and chat about things, not talk about murder~" Her smile seemed a bit more forced than before, her eyes losing enough of their twinkle for both of them to immediately notice. She made a bed of rice in each bowl, before spooning some stew into each of the bowls. A few presses of a button in her menu spawned in a few glasses for the wine, the transparent blue crystal sparkling. "And some fancy glasses for the fancy wine... tadaa~"

"You've -- got a crabs problem --!" Violet sighed when she saw that the ingredients were trying to run away and free themselves from their impending doom. "Yeah, they tend to do that." She materialized a knife, before easily chucking it into the shell of one of the crabs Elora had missed, the critter instantly dying and turning into the non-living food variant. "And it looks like that one volunteered to be a snack for later, oh well."

Akane had gotten up while they were facing the kitchen, casually striding past Elora so he could enter. "'Scuse me." he muttered, before scooping up a bowl with one hand, and moving back towards the living room. "Just taking one of these back over here, just a ghost stealin' food." Violet rolled her eyes at his antics, a frown on her face. "You could also eat in the kitchen with us like a normal person, you dumbass!" "nope!" She let out a frustrated cry, swiping at him with her knife. He easily ducked underneath the swing, exiting the room with a laugh.

Her brother could be unbelievably annoying at times.

"So, you wanted to teach me a bit about normalcy?" Violet hummed, picking up one of the remaining bowls, and moving over to the dining table. "Well first on the list, we munch." she said dryly, "Then, while we do that, we can talk about whether or not you plan on taking me up on my offer, or some other idle form of chatter while we take the edge out of ourselves with a nice meal~" She sat down at the table, leaning forward on one hand. "That said, though... Mask or no mask, Takeshi-kun? And no, I'm not talking about the one hanging off the side of my face."

Violet turned to look at Elora, amused "The other order of business, would be chatting about this young lady right here~" she mused, a cheeky smile on her face. "And me trying to puzzle out just what about her caught your fancy, other than how pretty she is of course! And of course, working with her to figure out how to teach you the meaning of what normalcy is. After we do that, Elora and I can teach you how to cook something nice."

*Note: I made a fuckup and targeted the Wushy in my roll instead of Serration, MB gamers :'3

Violet let out a sigh as a second wall of ice seemed to shimmer into view, forcing them to focus on another head. It was like Wushen wanted to play a game of hide and seek rather than face them head on like it had been before. However, that wasn't the only barrier that seemed to have come into play. A beautiful oaken barrier seemed to sprout from the ground at Hirru's urging, the elegant tree protecting them from being wounded further by the dragon.

Violet launched forward, skirting around the barrier so that she could get at the metallic head that was looming over them. Despite the shiny coat making it seem almost impenetrable, she knew her blade was going to cut right through. It had to, she couldn't afford to miss her aim, to have her hands falter. "Alright, Serration... lets see what You're Made of!" she snarled, kicking off of its neck to land on the edge of the barrier, scowling underneath her mask.

Post action - ST-1 VS Serration

Roll ID#: 217648, BD: 3 (3+7=10, HIT! 12*27= 324-75 = 249 DMG to Serration! Mina loses 12 EN!

(8) Freyd |  HP: 1334/1334 | EN: 118/150 | DMG: 20 | MIT: 188 | EVA: 6 (+1) | ACC: 5(6/AA) | BH: 73 | REC: 8 | THRN: 40 | PHASE | FLN: 8 | FRB: 40(-1) | ENV.O: 32 | V.O.: 146 | V.D.: 146 | HELL: 80 | STNG[x1] | LD: 8 | PRS: 3 | DOTE: 1/3
(0) Hirru | HP: 1104/1104 | EN: 103/104 | DMG: 1 | MIT: 182 | ACC: 2 | BH: 55 | REC: 8 | THRN: 76 | MENDING: 2 | HB: 44 | LD: 5 | DOTE: 1/3
(8) Katoka | HP: 668/720 (637+31) | EN: 63/106 (+4) (-15) | DMG: 28 | MIT: 98 | EVA: 4 | ACC: 7(8/AA) | BH: 31 | REC: 8 | BLGT: 32 | P.V.O | STK: 40 | HELL: 80
(7) Morningstar | HP: 844/851  | EN: 50/106  | DMG: 28 | MIT: 142 | EVA: 1 | ACC: 6(7/AA) | BH: 18 | STK: 40 | FRB: 40(-1) | VO: 140 | HELL: 80 | LD: 6
(9) Elora | HP: 700/700 | EN: 31/104 (+4)(-15) | DMG: 26 | MIT: 98 | EVA: 3 | ACC: 7(8/AA) | BH: 35 | REC: 8 | FLN: 8 | BLGT: 32 | STK: 40 | LD: 3
(5) Tricolor_Mina | HP: 720/720 | EN: 35/106 (+4, - 12) | DMG: 27 | MIT: 78 | ACC: 7 | BLGT: 32 | BRN: 56 | FRB: 40(-1) | V.D.: 72 | TXC.: 32

Serration | HP: 897/2000 | DMG: 250 | MITI: 75 | ACC: 4 | EVA: 0 | Shatter [-20] | FOCUSED [1/2] (2000-509)

"Oh, this is the return of Shadow's shenanigans?" Violet looked amused, shaking her head. "This is basically the remnants of what the original floor looked like~" she looked amused. "You'd probably remember it, ya goof~ it was a swampy mess back then!" It was a testament to what the boss monster had been, and how powerful its work was when she'd seen her house almost get swallowed whole by the damn thing. It had been a terrifying time, but at least now her house was just an Oasis in a complete and utter hellscape.

right now, though, that wasn't important

Violet had almost immediately flitted over to the pair once she saw them walk in, humming to herself as she took in the appearance of the slightly-taller girl. "Aw, she's a cutie~!" she chirped, "I see you're fond of green, lil' miss~ It suits you quite a bit!" She looked up, at the rafters, a grin on her face. "And hello to you too persi~ Don't forget to come down here and eat when we do okay?" Violet glanced over at her brother, a faint frown on her face. Why even show up if he was going to just sit there and ignore everyone.

"The sour-pus on the couch over there is my older brother, Akane. Freyd, you actually met him briefly a lil while ago~!" Akane grunted, turning to look at them. "Nice to meet you, I guess." He quietly turned back to the newspaper, chosing to ignore them further. Violet's eyes widened when she saw freyd produce a cheese wheel and some alcohol. "Wasn't sure what we were making, but these tend to pair well with almost anything." "O-oh..! Thanks~ We should be able to use this!" 

"What did you make, exactly?" Violet smiled, guiding the pair forward into the kitchen. "Giant quail stew with a side of wild rice~" she chirped, gesturing at the rather large pot of food. "A friend of mine got me into the habit of making large portions, we used to run a community meal day back at her guild hall." a nostalgic smile crossed her face. "Her specialty always required me hunting down a bunch of Ragout rabbit, I've gotten pretty good at hunting them down if you couldn't tell~"

Violet watched as Hirru approached the flailing head, using a healing crystal on the severed wounds, and making the head vanish. A few moments later, the ice started to crack and splinter, watery chunks of cold fractals spilling around everyone. "Good work, dude!" she called out to the green haired man, watching as the barrier finally shattered, revealing the giant dragon to them once more. "Oh hey big guy, welcome back~!"

Her weapon glinted as she slashed into it, a grin on her face. "Here's a little payback from Earlier!!" she made her way back to the group, her armor gleaming with a deep red light, restoring her health. They were probably starting to approach the home stretch, and every hit was going to count at this point. If even one person from their teams missed, then they were going to be missing out on a massive chunk of damage.

Attacking the Wooshy boi with AoE II, vampy proc check

Roll ID#: 217311, BD: 7 (HIT!) 18*27 = 486 - 75 = 411 DMG to Wushen! 14+2+2 = 18! Mina loses 18 EN and gains 7 (Hyper fades away...)

217312, CD: 12 - Mina Heals for 72 HP!

(7) Freyd |  HP: 1326/1334 | EN: 124/150 | DMG: 20 | MIT: 188 | EVA: 6 | ACC: 5(6/AA) | BH: 73 | REC: 8 | THRN: 40 | PHASE | FLN: 8 | FRB: 40(-1) | ENV.O: 32 | V.O.: 146 | V.D.: 146 | HELL: 80 | STNG[x1] | LD: 8 | PRS: 3 | DOTE: 1/3
(0) Hirru | HP: 1104/1104 | EN: 94/104 | DMG: 1 | MIT: 182 | ACC: 2 | BH: 55 | REC: 8 | THRN: 76 | MENDING: 2 | HB: 44 | LD: 5 | DOTE: 1/3
(6) Katoka | HP: 606/720 | EN: 82/106 | DMG: 28 | MIT: 98 | EVA: 4 | ACC: 7(8/AA) | BH: 31 | REC: 8 | BLGT: 32 | P.V.O | STK: 40 | HELL: 80
(6) Morningstar | HP: 826/851 | EN: 59/106 | DMG: 28 | MIT: 142 | EVA: 1 | ACC: 6(7/AA) | BH: 18 | STK: 40 | FRB: 40(-1) | VO: 140 | HELL: 80 | LD: 6
(6) Elora | HP: 693/700 | EN: 55/104 | DMG: 26 | MIT: 98 | EVA: 3 | ACC: 7(8/AA) | BH: 35 | REC: 8 | FLN: 8 | BLGT: 32 | STK: 40 | LD: 3
(5) Tricolor_Mina | HP: 619/720 (+72) | EN: 43/106 (+7, -18) | DMG: 27 | MIT: 78 | ACC: 7 | BLGT: 32 | BRN: 56 | FRB: 40(-1) | V.D.: 72 | TXC.: 32

Violet was setting up the finishing touches on the stew, humming away. Akane was staring at the door, a frown on his face. "Shouldn't they be here by now...?" he grumbled, pulling out an issue of <<The Aincrad Times>> to pass the time. "They shouldn't be that slow, it's just a mile!" Violet sighed, pulling the stew off of the stove.

"Akane, not everyone is used to sprinting three miles in the span of an hour." she grumbled, shooting her brother a glare. "This 'Elora' character might not be able to, but Freyd can." "Not the point, dude. Have mercy on the poor non-fast people!"

Akane snorted, before going back to his newspaper. "Whatever, brat." Violet let out a huff, before turning back to the food on the stove and counter. "Fuck off!" she grumbled, pulling the rice away from the stove, a faint haze of steam flowing from above it. "If you're gonna be a jerk about it, then you aren't eating with-" "Don't care." Violet shot him a withering look after he'd cut her off. As much as she loved her brother, he could definitely get on her nerves. Violet scrolled through her menu, before retrieving Mask of Rose, sliding it over the scarred half of her face.

She didn't want to spook the new person

Speaking of, she could hear the door opening. A grin crossed her face as she saw the pair walking inside. Akane had perked up, turning to face the door with a bored look. "Welcome to the Leblanc Chateau~" she chirped, setting a few bowls on the counter. "Told you it's super hard to miss it. it is pretty green compared to the rest of the floor! It's one of the few locations that the Shadow didn't touch after the weird alterations the stupid thing did to everything else."

Akame had followed Elora inside, the tiny dragon chirping as she scampered up the greenette's leg, a content look on her face. "You must be Elora! Takeshi-kun told me about you~" she leaned forward on the counter with her elbows. "I can't wait to learn more about you over the time old tradition of cooking with friends~! Oh, and don't mind Akame, she doesn't bite. She's just a curious lil' lady~" Akane was watching the approaching pair from the living room, feigning disinterest. "Pretend like I don't exist." he grunted, turning back to his newspaper. "Not all that big on talking, just here to watch."

Violet eyed him carefully when he'd changed his appearance to that of a woman, a frown crossing her face. normally, she'd be down to joke around with Freyd, and banter away... for some reason, the fact that he'd decided to tease her about appearances had taken her aback. She let out a huff, folding her arms. "Ah yes, dressing up as a woman... how creative." she muttered, tugging her cloak so that it snapped shut over her clothes. "Wish I could do that, it'd save me a fortune in salves. Gotta do shit the old fashioned way." She checked her map, frowning.

"Mmmk, lets see..." she murmured, looking at the quest markers. it wasn't going to be that far of a hike, so they could probably make good time on the way back. "Most of the people who've done this quest haven't reported anything too weird, so I'd be more than a little shocked if something strange happened. Wouldn't be too surprised if having you around made a boss monster spawn somewhere nearby. You're three for four in our encounters so far." between the dungeon he'd dragged her through, the essence of steel quest, and the giant mutated sand shark, he'd been around for all three of them. Granted, nobody ended up hurt after they'd appeared, but still.

"Alrighty~ Let's go ahead and get moving!" she said, smiling. "We can chat on the way there, c'mon!" she started making her way out of the town, waving goodbye to one of the other NPC guards.

Violet was fiddling with her HUD, a frown on her face. She knew that the quest was going to take them into one of the deeper caverns of the floor, and then they had to search for the stupid tablet. Once they found that, then they would have to translate it, which could take a hot minute depending on how good their RNG was. Akame chirped, bunting her head against her cheek. "Maa... this should be relatively easy." she murmured, absentmindedly scratching the tiny dragon under her feathery chin. "Its the location thats bugging me... there's a chance it could spawn a dungeon, and I'm not entirely sure that I want to fight something like that right now. Maybe with Freyd there, but its not exactly worth it unless we somehow get a good-"

"Hey!  Booba!  Over here!"

Violet paused, looking up in the direction of Freyd, a deadpan look on her face. There went her good mood, damn it all. "I'm gonna kill him, why the fuck-!" she got up with a frustrated growl, striding her way over to the grinning boy. She ducked into the alleyway, before fully-equipping her gear, and making sure that she was fully covered up. Striding back out, she gave him a withering glare. "My eyes are up here, jackass." she grumbled, elbowing him hard enough to activate the anti-harassment code, a deep purple splash bouncing her arm back at her, and buffeting them both. "I know I have a nice pair, but staring is rude. Besides, we're going out of the safe zone. No time for distractions, we got a quest to do."

Mina Takes and Consumes: 

Liquor of Light (Potion) | Damage 3 | 183068-1
Red Velvet Meringue (Snack) | Evasion 2 | 197246

Mina Takes a portion of Gugnir’s Shard (Untradeable/Unique/Reusable Consumable): Crème Brûlée Tray | ACC 2 | Feast (4/6) - Filled
Updated Stat block below:

Tricolor_Mina | HP: 720/720 | EN: 106/106 | DMG: 24 | MIT: 78 | ACC: 8 | EVA: 2 | BLGT: 32 | BRN: 56 | FRSTB: 40 | V.D.: 72

Violet dusted off her clothes, letting out a faint growl as the burn effect triggered once more, scorching away another chunk of her health, putting her dangerously close to being at Half-Health. The boss had erected several massive walls of ice, sealing them off from the other teams, and leaving them Isolated with a giant head that was bearing down on them. Deep green and black scales, and a menacing sneer on its face.

A sneer crossed her own, before she slid her mask over her face, her eye glowing a bright reddish-pink underneath it. "Phase Two time, Everyone!" she shouted, "This one looks like it's got a different gimmick to what the main boss has, Be careful and lets try and kill this thing FAST!" She lept forward, roaring as she stabbed into the giant head, doing her best to try and eat away at enough health so that her team could finish of the head.

Every little thing counted, so they needed to pour everything they had into killing these things.

She pulled back towards the group, patting kataoka on the shoulder as she passed the other woman. "You're up, rookie!" she called, "Go kick its scaly ass, ok?" she drew closer to the back, standing next to Hirru, and keeping an eye out for the rest of the players healths. Even though she was badly injured, she was still able to keep kicking. She'd keep fighting til the boss made it so she had to run away.

Post Action: Targeting Overgrowth with AoE-I, Checking for VD Proc (Roll ID#: 216989, CD: 7 - No Dice baws)

Roll ID#: 216988, BD: 3 (3+7=10, HIT!) (15*27 = 405-75=330 DMG to Overgrowth! Mina Roasts for 112 DMG! BRN Fades away, CONF Fades away. Mina Recovers 7 EN, and loses 15 (Successful AoE-I Hit) (62+7= 69 - 15 = 54)

(8) Freyd |  HP: 1334/1334 | EN: 122/150 | DMG: 20 | MIT: 188 | EVA: 6 | ACC: 5(6/AA) | BH: 73 | REC: 8 | THRN: 40 | PHASE | FLN: 8 | FRB: 40(-1) | ENV.O: 32 | V.O.: 146 | V.D.: 146 | HELL: 80 | STNG[x1] | LD: 8 | PRS: 3 | DOTE: 1/3
(0) Hirru | HP: 1104/1104 | EN: 94/104 | DMG: 1 | MIT: 182 | ACC: 2 | BH: 55 | REC: 8 | THRN: 76 | MENDING: 2 | HB: 44 | LD: 5 | DOTE: 1/3
(5) Katoka | HP: 608/720 | EN: 90/106 | DMG: 28 | MIT: 98 | EVA: 4 | ACC: 7(8/AA) | BH: 31 | REC: 8 | BLGT: 32 | P.V.O | STK: 40 | HELL: 80 | BRN 4 [112/1] | CONF [2/1] 
(5) Morningstar | HP: 827/851 | EN: 59/106 | DMG: 28 | MIT: 142 | EVA: 1 | ACC: 6(7/AA) | BH: 18 | STK: 40 | FRB: 40(-1) | VO: 140 | HELL: 80 | LD: 6 | BRN 4 [112/1] | CONF [2/1]
(5) Elora | HP: 588/700 | EN: 58/104 | DMG: 26 | MIT: 98 | EVA: 3 | ACC: 7(8/AA) | BH: 35 | REC: 8 | FLN: 8 | BLGT: 32 | STK: 40 | LD: 3
(4) Tricolor_Mina | HP: 475/720 (-112)| EN: 54/106 (+7, -15)| DMG: 27 | MIT: 78 | ACC: 7 | BLGT: 32 | BRN: 56 | FRB: 40(-1) | V.D.: 72 | TXC.: 32 | BRN 4 [112/0] | CONF [2/0]

Overgrowth | HP: 1670/2000 (-330) | DMG: 250 | MITI: 75 | ACC: 4 | EVA: 0 | Thorns 4 [144] [0/1] | Freeze 2 [96/2]
[Matches Blight, Fallen, Thorns]

Violet bounced on her heels, a grin on her face. "Definitely~" she sang, waving at Ginger. "If you ever want to run another quest, or get help with getting ahold of something super rare, just hit one of us up! Freyd and I are always happy to help out some rookies! Just make sure you don't go wandering outside of the safe zones on the higher floors without" She honestly never minded helping out with some of the beginner quests, and was always prepared to go and assist other people. There was always strength in numbers, and it never hurt to have a few clearers watching your back in a dangerous situation.

"If you ever get any kinds of unidentified items, feel free to drop by this goofball's store~" she chirped, elbowing Freyd. "He's really good at getting some super special enhancements for weapons and the like. He even set me up with this cool sword and my armor~" Her armor, Queen's Gambit, seemed to pulse a faint red color as she spoke, the leather practically sparkling. Freyd had definitely given her the good stuff in regards to her gear, the specialty enhancements bolstering her strength.

Violet carefully placed a small bundle of spices into the boiling liquid, a mixture of pepper, diced up celery, bay leaves, basil, wild carrot, and cinnamon bark. She uncorked a bottle of apple cider, her eyes on one of the recipes that players seemed to be passing around. A very simple bone broth for a simple meal, and something that only needed just a bit more time to cook. She set a pot of fresh wild rice on the stove, sighing.

The timers on all of the different food items and their cooking speed were vastly different from the actual times that most items would take to cook. Rice only needed 5 minutes, and the broth on the stove - which typically took upwards of 9 hours - only took around half an hour to fully cook. It was almost boringly easy, but it was a good way to just relax and prepare for a gathering with friends.

"Having fun, punk..?" Violet looked up, frowning. Akane was standing behind her, wearing his more casual gear. "Just prepping some food for friends, they're on their way soon." violet hummed, pulling apart some of the quail so that she could get ready to prep it. "I found a nice recipe for quail and wild rice, and I wanted to try that new bone broth recipe that Rosa sent me~! Wanna try some when its done?"

Akane shrugged, walking into the living room. "Don't care all that much, 'm tired." he mumbled, flopping onto one of the couches. "Just here 'cause I wanted to make sure there weren't any shenanigan's from Freyd or his associates." Violet pouted at her brother, before turning back to her cooking with a grumble. "Don't be a sour-puss! Freyd won't pull anything like that, he's not-"

"Not risking it, gaki." Violet let out a low growl, an irritated look on her face. "God you suck!" she snapped, pointing the knife in her hands at the older man. "You better not start anything, or so help me! I never have anyone over anymore, and I like hanging out with Freyd. We even reached an understanding, we're trying to help each other-" "I would still rather be around. Told you, not risking it."

Violet sighed, before going back to prepping the meat. She carefully braised the chicken, adding salt, pepper, black garlic, and sliding the meat into the pot of stew, saving the liquid it produced in order to prep a simple gravy to thicken the broth. "Lets see... cracked snow peas, purple carrot, chopped Daikon, potatoes... There!" She set the timer on the meal, and let it cook. "Alright, it should be ready by the time those two show up! Hopefully they haven't gotten lost on their way, this place really isn't all that easy to miss." "Or burn up, this shitty floor is hot as balls. Can't even wear my scarf." 

Violet realized in hindsight, that teasing and taunting the boss was probably one of the worst decisions that she and the others could have made. There were loud, angry words echoing into the room, and at the last words spoken, Wushen had let out a vicious roar, blasting the entirety of their group with a burst of flames. If it hadn't been for Hirru and Freyd, she'd be almost down to half-health, and scorched by the painful blow she'd been dealt on top of what had Maimed her entire team. "Shit..! Looks like we're finally getting some action from the big guy!"

Hirru called to her, pointing at Elora and asking her to utilize the purify skill on Elora, prompting to rush forward. "Heard you loud and clear, Hirru-San!" she shouted, her hands glowing with a beautiful white light. "Don't let up, Everyone! We can't lose our momentum, or we're gonna have to fall back!" She clapped one of her hands on Elora's back, a feral smile on her face.

"Keep it together, rookie!" she said, falling back to where Hirru was. "Make sure you watch your statuses, I don't like the look of that Conflagrate effect!" There was a sharp burning sensation, and she let out a cry of pain as part of her health was burned away

Post Action - Using Purify on Elora, Checking for VD Proc. Mina Recovers 7 EN (Hyperactive), and loses 3 (Purify) Mina roasts for 112 HP!

Roll ID#: 216668, CD: 5 (No VD proc, sadge q.q)

(9) Freyd |  HP: 1334/1334 | EN: 122/150 | DMG: 20 | MIT: 188 | EVA: 6 | ACC: 5(6/AA) | BH: 73 | REC: 8 | THRN: 40 | PHASE | FLN: 8 | FRB: 40(-1) | ENV.O: 32 | V.O.: 146 | V.D.: 146 | HELL: 80 | STNG[x1] | LD: 8 | PRS: 3 | DOTE: 1/3
(0) Hirru | HP: 1104/1104 | EN: 94/104 | DMG: 1 | MIT: 182 | ACC: 2 | BH: 55 | REC: 8 | THRN: 76 | MENDING: 2 | HB: 44 | LD: 5 | DOTE: 1/3
(5) Katoka | HP: 720/720 (692+31) | EN: 90/106 (+12) (-12) | DMG: 28 | MIT: 98 | EVA: 4 | ACC: 7(8/AA) | BH: 31 | REC: 8 | BLGT: 32 | P.V.O | STK: 40 | HELL: 80 | BRN 4 [112/2] | CONF [2/2] 
(5) Morningstar | HP: 851/851 | EN: 59/106 | DMG: 28 | MIT: 142 | EVA: 1 | ACC: 6(7/AA) | BH: 18 | STK: 40 | FRB: 40(-1) | VO: 140 | HELL: 80 | LD: 6 | BRN 4 [112/2] | CONF [2/2]
(5) Elora | HP: 700/700 | EN: 58/104(-20) | DMG: 26 | MIT: 98 | EVA: 3 | ACC: 7(8/AA) | BH: 35 | REC: 8 | FLN: 8 | BLGT: 32 | STK: 40 | LD: 3 | BRN 4 [112/2] | CONF [2/2][Purified]
(3) Tricolor_Mina | HP: 587/720 (-112 from BRN) | EN: 62/106 (+7, -3)| DMG: 27 | MIT: 78 | ACC: 7 | BLGT: 32 | BRN: 56 | FRB: 40(-1) | V.D.: 72 | TXC.: 32 | BRN 4 [112/1] | CONF [2/2]

Violet was lurking around the streets of Floor one, peering at her quest logs. There were plenty of things that she hadn't done yet, most of which were either rookie quests like the <<First Few Lessons>>, which wouldn't even give her EXP at this point. Meanwhile, the DHA quests and Arabian Nights weren't up her alley, especially with how long they seemed to get towards the end of them. There was one that caught her eyes, though... and that was the <<Scents of the Wild>> Quest line, which involved hunting fabulous monsters, and logging them down.

And it started up on the first floor, in one of the many caves located on the floor. It was a rather simple fetch quest for the first one, simply requiring that the quest-takers retrieved a stone tablet, and work their asses off on trying to translate it into a readable language. Lament was hanging on her hip, swinging as she made her way down the street. She shot off a message to Freyd, humming to herself.

Quote

To: <<Freyd - The Whisper in Shadows>>

From: Tricolor_Mina

I'm down on the first floor prepping to try and get the <<Scents of The Wild>> Quest line, and I'm in need of a chit-chat pal

You want in?

With that, she took a seat at a nearby cafe, kicking her feet while she waited. Freyd tended to lurk around in odd places, and she wouldn't be too surprised if he popped up right out of the shadows. Considering who he took after, she wouldn't be that surprised.

Stats:

Tricolor_Mina | HP: 720/720 | EN: 106/106 | DMG: 21 | MIT: 78 | ACC: 5 | BLGT: 32 | BRN: 56 | FRSTB: 40 | V.D.: 72

Quest listed Below :D

Violet was bouncing around her house, a smile on her face as she moved around setting up a wide variety of ingredients. She'd caught some fresh Ragout Rabbit, along with a few dire boars and some wild greens. There were a few baskets of fresh fish and crabs, most of the critters still wriggling and alive. Nothing like a basket of fresh seafood to make you feel better about life! Akame was chirping away, chasing a wild rabbit around outside the window. Violet had decided to invite Freyd over to her house, and she was absolutely excited to meet his girlfriend.

Quote

Message to: <<Freyd - The Whisper in Shadows>>
From: Tricolor Mina:

Yo~! I'm taking you up on your agreement to learn how to cook~ Bring Elora with you, and meet me at My house over on floor 9! I'm about a Mile away from Yōgan Village, and it's super hard to miss it! You'll probably see Akame fucking around in the garden, and feel free to walk right on inside!

She busied herself prepping a few food items of her own, and making sure that there was something pre-made already simmering away in the cooking station that was nearby. Giant Quail stew, one of the newer items she'd decided to learn how to cook. She'd prepped it by cracking the bones of the giant bird with the special tool that the system provided, stewing it with roasted wild garlic and onions. And so far, the scent of the meal was absolutely divine! Violet bounced around in anticipation for their visit.

Hopefully they all got along, she wanted this to be a nice day~ After all, it wasn't often that she had company here.

Mina's Attire:

Tricolor_Mina | HP: 720/720 | EN: 106/106 | DMG: 21 | MIT: 78 | ACC: 5 | BLGT: 32 | BRN: 56 | FRSTB: 40 | V.D.: 72

Violet paused when asked about what she was trying to teach Akame. "I've been teaching her to learn how to track chests~" she said, looking over at her friend with a smile. "Akame loves to get into just about anything, so I decided I'd get her to put that to good use so we both could get some goodies from her shenanigan's~" a peaceful co-existance that allowed them to gather the things that they both needed to survive. Better gear and better items made her survival chances go up.

She liked this pace much better than the bitter song and dance they'd been going through earlier, a pleasant sensation flowing through her mind and body. It was relaxing, and much more in line with what she'd rather their conversation be like right now. She wanted to follow the advice of Montjoy, and avoid pushing too hard. And so, they would be chatting idly until the other was ready to talk about the pain.

"Maa... Hey, Takeshi-kun...?" she asked, tilting her head at her friend. "Have you ever tried to cook something before? In game, I mean." She grinned at him, her eyes suddenly beginning to twinkle with a mischievious light. "I'd be willing to bet that your lady friend would like a nice home-cooked meal every now and then, no? If you haven't learned, I can teach you~ It's so much easier than learning in the real world!"

Violet glared at him, her tone laced with venom as she spoke. "You think I don't know who killed my friends..?" she hissed, "I know what got them killed, I simply never noticed the 'Why'. Why would those specific people go after those specific friends. Raidou told me about that book, that list in it, and I told him he better get cracking on the 'Amends' part. He has quite a bit of work to do. And so do you if you plan on continuing his work."

The anger in her veins hissed, white hot with rage and coiled like a snake ready to strike its prey. "The walls have ears, and I have eyes thanks to my brother and Rosa." all at once, the vitriol vanished, her gaze returning in front of her. it was almost like flicking a switch, one moment feeling emotions acutely, and then they suddenly vanished, hiding under the frosty shell. "I'm willing to discuss a wide variety of things with you at the moment... but the crimes of that damn guild, and all those dead bodies are off limits, at least for now. Please respect that I have no wish to be involved in that particular part of your lives. I trust you two to do the right thing, even though it feels like most of the people I associate with don't feel the same."

Violet tilted her head, humming. "It used to look better than that, when I actively took care of my hair." she mused, rubbing her chin. "My parents seemed to think so, at least."

Violet watched Freyd shift his appearance again, his appearance changing to a rather unassuming look, paired with mousy hair and bright red eyes. She quietly fiddled with her menu, before pulling out a styling kit. "You get to use smoke and mirrors to change yourself... I have to rely on a more traditional method." She tapped a few menu's with her free hand, sliding a bottle of inky black liquid into the first one, and fiddling with some of the settings with the other.

A few moments later, her hair changed to a raggedy mop of curly black hair, just barely reaching her chin. "I used to style myself just like I did in the real world... for some reason, I found it comforting." her hand went back to the scars, her eyes squeezed shut. "But then I realized that the memories associated with this... they were too painful for me to look at every day. So, I hide it away under a candy-pink shell." she fiddled with the menu again, setting her hair back to the previous style, the long pink strands no longer in a ponytail, and simply lying limply on her head.

when Freyd retrieved the black book, she let out a sigh. "Put that away, I could care less what's written in Rai's little book of murder." she looked back at him, shaking her head. "I told him as much when he tried to show me the first time. I have no interest in who he's killed, or has contingencies to kill... I just care that he makes amends for those that have fallen because of it."

"Pink knight, huh..? wooow, sure haven't heard that one before." she grumbled, rolling her eyes at Nari. "At least I know you're gonna be somewhat entertaining to the other Clearers. Much more lively than people like Calrex or Shield... hell, probably even rai now that I think about it." She thought about the brunette, and his stoic-yet-banter-filled disposition during the less serious moments of the Raid she'd participated in. The fighting would easily get boring if they didn't have their banter, though hopefully it didn't end up like what occured during the Gabrandr raid. if she had to witness one more instance of players bickering over the semantics of whether or not an NPC would lie to them, she was going to go feral.

She perked up when she heard Kataoka mention that she was also prepping for the raid. "Maa... did I really stumble upon a trio of Clearers..?" she mused, a sharp grin on her face. "Can't wait to see what all of you are capable of~ It's not everyday that I see brand new faces making their way up the lines!" Freyd hadn't mentioned any rookies specifically that were joining the Raid, just that there were a bunch of old faces that weren't going to be present for the whole shebang. "Maybe you guys will hold up with the likes of Yuki or Baldur~ oh, the thought has me excited!"

TW: Mentions of Suicide

"Freyd..." the mask vanished from her hand, her brows furrowed. "The name Akame... it quite literally means red eyes." she tapped her face, her fingers ghosting over her deep red irises. "These were the color of my eyes in the real world. I named her for our shared quality, that small piece that reminds me of my home."

She paused for a moment, her hands stilling over the scarred flesh that marred her face. "The boy I knew back then, the one that helped me find her... his name was Evac." She could still picture that poor boy, the one who'd had his life cut so drastically short. "He was murdered, one of the first victims of the Laughing Coffin that I can remember, and certainly the very first one that I knew. Rai probably knew him too." She could vividly remember the first time that she'd visited the monument, her heart heavy.

and she could remember the bitter fury in her heart when she found out that he'd been murdered.

"He was only fifteen... his eyes still had light in them... and yet they had to hurt him so irrevocably, and cut his happiness short." she quietly gripped her legs, eyes narrowing. "He was kind, he was friendly... he had a little panda, her name was Nix. He had a friend named Rags, who I only ever got to meet once before he died too."

words spilt from her mouth, flowing as fast as the tears she wanted to let stream down her face.

"Paglikha killed himself, Birdie killed herself. Rin died to a mob. Beatbox was murdered, Kasier died all alone, Kirbs was murdered by that bastard pinball-" each name she mentioned, she could see their faces, the bitter sensation filling her heart once again. "All of them are gone..! Either murdered because of that damn guild, cut down because their hearts couldn't take it anymore, or killed because they weren't able to defend themselves against a monster."

"Maybe we see each other plainly enough that those illusions are no longer necessary, at least when it's just us." Violet tilted her head, blinking. "As feasible as that sounds... its most likely not the case." she said carefully, her tone neutral. "You probably won't see me like this again, especially not in public. I'm frail, fragile... just like a pane of paper-thin frost, just begging to be shattered by a careless hand." she nodded at his apology, humming. "I already told you, I can't blame you for that. All I'll ask is that you be more careful with your words, ok? not everyone is as understanding as me, not as willing to forgive."

A laugh escaped her throat, still lacking something. it rang hollow even in her own ears. "You're already much better than my clients back home, though..." she mused, a feral smile on her face. "You didn't try to snap my neck, or run up to me swinging. You just cut me with some unintentionally harmful words." She still remembered the times she'd gone in to do her job, only to be choked out by a suspect or two. More than once she'd had to spend a few days in the hospital, recuperating from her injuries. Sharp words were quite the welcome change for her.

much more so, compared to the hoarse throats and purple, blotchy bruises.

Freyd's hand brushed against hers as it went to her face, stopping her from putting her mask back up. Why? She stared at him when he asked about Akame, her eyes darkening just a tiny bit more. "Akame..?" she murmured, before leaning forward, allowing the tiny dragon to hop into her arms, chirping. "She's been with me since the very beginning of my time in this world, she's one of the few treasures I have. She's also the only memory I have of one of my first friends in this place. He's been gone for quite some time now, though."

♫

Violet kept clinging to montjoy, her shoulders shaking a bit. She felt like she had finally reached a decent understanding with Freyd... or rather, Montjoy, and she didn't want that moment to pass. The bitter ache was dulling, the painful burning underneath the frost had finally faded away, leaving nothing but a soft warmth.

"I will... thank you, Montjoy."

She could hear the line reeling, spinning out of control in Freyd's grip. She could feel him tense up in her grip, wiggling a bit. "Uh... why are we hugging?" his words were confused, something that didn't exactly surprise Violet. After all, it was like someone else was piloting that body of his for just a moment.

A soft laugh bubbled in her throat, her grip tightening for just a moment. "Shush, let me enjoy this for just a little bit longer." she said softly, closing her eyes as she buried her face in his shoulder. "Just... for what its worth... I'm sorry, ok..? I didn't mean to snap at you like that, its just... the 'why' behind my actions, that's a very raw subject for me. I don't think I've told anyone the proper reason, and I don't plan to for a while."

Violet finally pulled away from Freyd, leaning forward. If he looked at her close enough, he'd notice a key difference from before. her eyes felt... flat, for a lack of a better term. the 'fire' behind the scarlet having faded completely, leaving a pair of dull red stones in its place. her smile was still there, and it was still very much genuine... it just seemed to be lacking that same warmth. "For what its worth, though..?" she said softly, her tone gentle "You're the first person other than my brother and Rosa that's seen me like this. Right now... I don't have the energy to re-kindle the warmth that I usually convey."

Violet pulled her mask down over her face, and, with a few taps from her menu, she'd drawn out her cloak, the deep wine-colored fabric covering her. "That happiness you see... its probably the most beautiful lie I can tell." she slid the cloak that he'd laid atop her body back to him. "I've perfected it, almost. If it weren't for people like you and Rai, nobody would even be able to tell. Heh... I don't think I've ever been more desperate for nosy bastards in my life..."

Akame was lurking a few feet away, gnawing on more chest fragments, letting out a tinny growl as one of them shattered into polygons.

Roll ID#:216289, CD: 7 (Training Success! 3/3 attempts succeeded~)

Violet felt a surge of fury suddenly rise up in her heart at Montjoy's words. Psychotic? Sociopathic? Neither of those came to mind when she peered at the boy in front of her, not even when Freyd was the pilot. "Doctors like that are the reason they even keep people like me on call." she hissed, her hands dropping from her head as she looked up at him, eyes burning red-hot with fury. "Psychologists, first and foremost, are supposed to help their patients. Not exacerbate the problems by being self-righteous dickheads, and pretending there's smoke and flame when there isn't anything there at all. I HATE doctors like that."

that distaste made so much more sense now... she'd hate doctors too if they treated her like that.

"When I look at him, I see someone that is more likely to be suffering from a mild to moderate case of Autism (ASD) or a case of Depersonal-Derealization Disorder (DDD), just going based off of the emotional detachment issue you described to me. But i'd never diagnose it directly, because I'd need a full medical write up!" her words, while angry, had no fire directed at Montjoy or Freyd... they were directed at the people who had tried to 'help' him. "You have to have multiple doctors sign off on these kinds of disorders, there's a reason we have to train for literal years to figure out these kinds of disorders! Those doctors failed you so bad that you're quite literally starting to manifest multiple other disorders, and it isn't fair to either of you!"

She could hear hear her father (well, not really hear 'him', more or less hear his vocamodule) talking to both herself and Akane, explaining how slippery a slope psychology was. It wasn't something that could ever be explained by one thing, it was always a numerad of different factors that could affect how one would behave. It wasn't possible to diagnose a psychological disorder just exclusively based off of one particular flag, even if that was the most common one. You had to actively rule out every last one of those disorders, piece by piece, and with gentle prodding from the doctor in question.

and they always stopped when the patient became uncomfortable, no matter how close you felt to getting the answer or the key. The doctor was NOT the priority, that priority always fell to the patient. It was like that with every medical profession, honestly, but only a few doctors these days seemed to actively follow that rule. That oh-so-wonderful oath that they had to swear.

one that they'd all had to break by now...

But none of that mattered right now, what mattered was trying to fix what those assholes broke with their careless behavior.

"I'm not asking you to open up overnight, that would just be cruel." she said firmly, before shuffling forward, and wrapping them in a tight hug. "I'm just asking that you give me a chance, let me try to help where those bastards failed you. Both of you physically cannot hurt ME worse than I've already been hurt. I'm just scared that he's going to hurt himself. So, take your time, and BOTH of you come to me when you're ready. I'll wait until you're comfortable, and if, at any time, either of you'd like to stop, I'll drop it, and we can do something else instead."

Violet watched Freyd shiver, his appearance shifting slightly to match a slightly different person. the other person that was staring her down seemed to be... just another facet of the man she'd met. "It's... nice to meet you, Montjoy." she said quietly, her voice still detached and distant. "s'okay, i guess... I know he's not really doing it on purpose." there wasn't really anything that she had to say to this part of Freyd, he was just... another piece of him. Just another part that she wasn't understanding.

Violet looked up at him, frowning. "Do... do you have a grudge against doctors..?" she asked, tilting her head as she looked closer at Freyd, or rather, montjoy. "He didn't seem very happy about my questions, and the way he responded earlier... he was way too eager to change the conversation. If I upset either of you, I'm sorry... I just wanted to help, that's all." she quietly curled in on herself again, hanging her head. She just felt... drained, now. Drained and tired. The sharp bitter ache from earlier had returned in full swing, her hands going to her head, gripping her hair.

"He just... struck a nerve, with what he said. About me doing what I do for my own benefit." she whispered, her voice cracking a bit. "I just... I'm breaking myself into pieces, just so I can try to fix other people... its not for my benefit, and it never can be. Mental illness is hungry, and it eats away everything in its path if you let it rot, and I've let it eat me raw." she let out a quiet laugh, her grip tightening almost to a painful level. that ache had gotten stronger, more potent.

and it hurt.

"I'm just... trying to piece together something, anything that I can use to piece together the type of person he is. I pry, and when he reacts even slightly negatively, i'd back off. I can't understand what just isn't there, and he won't give me anything to understand. Emotions suck, and I'm learning that both of us suck at understanding them. Since you don't seem to suck at it, can you kindly give me something that I can actually fucking understand before I go insane?!"

Roll ID#: 216542, CD:9 (Training Attempt success! 2/3 attempts succeeded!)

"Sounds like things are getting worse for you, not better.  Would it be fair to guess that your efforts to have people find peace in simple living is a bit of proxy projection?  You can't find peace in yourself, so you're looking to help others find it in theirs?"

Violet felt oddly cold at Freyd's comment in regards to getting worse, her mind numbing itself. "I would prefer you not assume about my reasonings for asking you to try and live a normal life." she said quietly, her voice sounding somewhat hollow. "I'm trying to respect your own, so please extend that same courtesy to me, Freyd. If you had a problem with it, you could have voiced that instead of trying to humor me so i'd shut up." her mouth felt oddly dry, a strange feeling taking hold. It was like she was hearing static, a soft buzzing muffling her hearing as she struggled to keep her focus on Freyd as he continued to speak. The thought that someone believed that her work was exclusively for her own benefit stung much more than she thought it would, forcing her to remain silent.

She vividly remembered her lessons from Padmé, how the older woman had described that their job was ultimately to their detriment. They were going to hear shit that would ruin their mental health, that they were going to see things that could scare the hell out of hardened criminals. Their job had always been figure out what the potential medical reasons for someone's behavior were, and try to fix what they could. If they had to piece each other back together with what was left, then so be it.

for the health of other people, they would sacrifice anything.

"If anything, my actions come at my own detriment." she said quietly, looking at the watery expanse in front of them with an empty look in her eyes. "Psychology isn't something that the faint of heart should go into. I've seen and heard things that would break the average person, you know..? People like me, in the force... we were kind of expendable. Replaceable within a matter of days, with a constant stream of rookies hopelessly optimistic about their career choices." She remembered the day that the other shoe had dropped, and that what she was doing was not something that she could keep her heart whole and expect to survive.

She could still remember screaming her head off when her brother had almost died, because she'd fucked up her job.

"So no, I don't do this to make me happy, Takeshi." she curled in on herself, completely ignoring his proffered hand. "When you get to a certain level of being mentally screwed up... Happiness tends to be sold out on the mental market. It's fleeting at best, coming in flashes. I'm so used to experiencing the negative stuff that I keep forgetting what the good things feel like. I'm what they call a 'Stepford Smiler', on the off chance you haven't figured that out yet. Its why I 'bounce' from feeling to feeling, never seeming to stay one way for more than a minute." her words finally bled dry of the emotion she'd had before, the feelings locking themselves up tightly to try and shield her from the oddly blinding pain. Even though she barely knew all that much about the boy in front of her, it hurt immensely.

"Don't insult me by assuming that I find joy in listening to peoples trauma, to hearing people Suffer. Even Raidou hasn't stooped low enough to imply that to my face."