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12 Feb 2022
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Nino: Begin to have your suspicions.

Kaji hands you a key to a room in the hotel.
He does so very readily.

Perhaps a bit too readily. Hm.

  • Kaji: Just as I promised ya, and there ya go.
  • Nino: Thanks. But...

Nino: Ask Kaji about why he let you go despite what you and the other humans did.

Nino: Still, it's unlikely that he'd risk the townspeople's reactions for one small victory over long term gain... right?

  • Nino: You could be thinking of turning us over for big profits while we're distracted!
  • Kaji: Oh! Alright! Maybe I'll turn ya over for big profits now.
  • Kaji: Is that what ya want me to do?
  • Nino: Whoa! Don't you dare!
  • Nino: I'm armed and I won't hesitate to defend myself again!
  • Kaji: ...So it's not what ya want.
  • Kaji: Lemme tell ya somethin', nobody's out there lookin' for y'all to be arrested or anythin'. So if I were to get ya to jail...
  • Kaji: I wouldn't get anythin' out of it. Not a single coin.
  • Kaji: I'll say, nicer reputation here is a better payoff than nothin' at all.
  • Nino: Oh. That would be one less reason to be suspicious...
  • Nino: ...If I can even believe your words, that is!
  • Kaji: Hahahah! Yer very cautious, eh?
  • Kaji: I dunno... is me lettin' ya off here not enough?
  • Kaji: Despite the fact that I didn't have to at all?
  • Nino: Ummm...
  • Kaji: Well, ya don't have to trust me. Yer choice.
  • Kaji: And usin' this room or not is also up to ya.
  • Kaji: But, y'all have been excused for real.
  • Kaji: Nothin' was filed about yer trespassin' yet, and so, nothin' says anythin' about what happened here. Yer names ain't recorded anywhere.
  • Kaji: I'm sayin', we're perfectly clear, kid.
  • Kaji: So, I don't plan to do anythin'... unless ya cause actual trouble on Icicle Bay.
  • Kaji: But I'm way tired of goin' after people for no good reason!
  • Kaji: Please don't make me do it again.
  • Nino: ...Is the law against crossing the barrier not a good reason for it, though?
  • Nino: You said that those were the prince's orders, after all...
  • Kaji: If ya ask me, not really.
  • Kaji: I don't like absolutes too much.
  • Nino: For what reason would a guard choose to break such an important rule?
  • Kaji: Heh, right, it's important...
  • Kaji: But weren't y'all just tryin' to get back to safety... to yer home?
  • Nino: Oh, uh...
  • Nino: Yeah! We totally were!
  • Kaji: Then that there is why I don't like it.
  • Kaji: Not bein' more careful with these things causes trouble for innocents.
  • Kaji: It's just like thievin', with your angel friend.
  • Kaji: ...I couldn't think all thieves were bad anymore after hearin' her out.
  • Kaji: Stealin' ain't right, but that's just the action.
  • Kaji: The same goes for crossin' the barrier.
  • Kaji: Y'all ain't bad people if yer just lookin' to find home.
  • Nino: Oh...
  • Kaji: I like it more if there's a better way out for both sides.
  • Kaji: Just like makin' an honest worker out of a thief!
  • Nino: ...

  • Kaji: Besides...
  • Kaji: I just gave ya the key to the room.
  • Kaji: How the shit am I gonna lock ya in there, dumbass?
  • Nino: Y-you could be holding on to a spare!
  • Nino: Or you could order the staff to do it using your authority!
  • Kaji: What! I ain't that creative or devilish!
  • Kaji: Please let me quit chasin' people, I've been at it with Mei for a whole year.
  • Nino: Or, or...!
  • Nino: You could use your Sea Patrol to outnumber us, now that we're on your homebase!
  • Kaji: What the fuck, are ya givin' me these ideas on purpose?
  • Nino: Nice try!
  • Nino: That's exactly what someone who thought of this WOULD say to look innocent.
  • Nino: Try anything and I WILL shove this sword down some orifice.
  • Nino: I don't care which, but it'll hurt.
  • Kaji: Kid. Get that shit outta my face.
  • Kaji: I'm not goin' after ya no matter how much ya try.
  • Kaji: And I'm grabbin' a drink if there's nothin' else but this nonsense.

Nino: What if Kaji is just holding you here while he waits for royal soldiers to arrive?

  • Nino: Ok, maybe I am being a bit too suspicious.
  • Nino: However, you could be... wait.
  • Nino: Why did we go to the bar.
  • Kaji: Ya followed me here for some reason.
  • Nino: ...What? Oh, right.
  • Barkeeper: Hi there! No swords in my bar, please!
  • Nino: Sorry, I'll put it away.
  • Kaji: Atta boy.
  • Nino: ...Uh. Hey.
  • Nino: Hey, really, you're just going to go drinking now?
  • Kaji: Yea. I do that before bed sometimes.
  • Kaji: Makes sleepin' easier.
  • Kaji: Ya probably shouldn't try this when yer all grown up, though.
  • Nino: Wait, AND you're just going to SLEEP after this?
  • Kaji: Yea?
  • Kaji: It's real late right now.
  • Nino: Ho, no way you'd be that careless...
  • Nino: Or are you just doing this so that I would let my guard down?
  • Nino: Hah. Nice try.
  • Nino: I have my eyes on you, pirate.
  • Kaji: Then looky here with those eyes.
  • Kaji: I couldn't care less what yer thinkin'.
  • Kaji: So yer welcome to watch me drink n' sleep if ya want.
  • Nino: ...
  • Nino: I don't want to...
  • Kaji: Then don't, ya dumbass!
  • Kaji: My head already hurts, don't make it worse.

Nino: Apologize for what you did to him.

  • Nino: ...That's probably because I kicked you in the face.
  • Nino: Sorry about that.
  • Nino: That's the only thing I'll apologize for.
  • Kaji: Well, water under the bridge now.
  • Kaji: This is the kinda pain yer meant to just sleep off.
  • Nino: Y-you're already over it?
  • Nino: You don't... hold a grudge about that?
  • Kaji: Do ya want me to?
  • Nino: ...No, but...
  • Nino: Have you no pride, man?
  • Kaji: Sounds like yer the one with too much of it.
  • Nino: And you have, like, none at all!
  • Nino: I mean, I kicked you in the face, dude!
  • Kaji: And I was gonna toss a wave at ya first.
  • Nino: ...Right, you were willing to go that far just to stop us.
  • Nino: So why would you have let it go so easily?
  • Kaji: Cuz... I was desperate there to not fail somethin' again.
  • Kaji: But bein' hit back seems like a fair response when I look back on it, hah.
  • Nino: ...No way! This is all just a trick, it has to be.
  • Kaji: Are ya tryin' to convince me to change my mind about changin' my mind now?
  • Nino: Aaah, I'm not falling for it!
  • Kaji: Yer funny, kid.

Nino & Kaji: Get wasted.

Ok sure you're just going to get absolutely destroyed and consume copious amounts of unidentified drinks like a cool fucking adult. Down the hatch it goes, best drink of your goddamn life. You start double-fisting drinks of all kinds, even. Delicious. A truly fitting brand new start for a little man to have on this little island.

Just kidding, no way in hell you'd do any of that, stupid!!!

This guy right next to you could be just biding his time until you let your guard down by doing something stupid like that!!

Also, you're not old enough to drink, not that you want to.
...So why did you even imagine it!? Stupid!!

Just to check, you ask Kaji how old he is, and he says he's about 29, and you say, holy shit grandpa what the fuck. His lack of reaction tells you that he didn't hear that last part. He also doesn't look that old at all. Goddamn winged and their eternal youthful appearance stretching over a 300-year long lifespan, or whatever.

Nino: Forget that. Instead, ask Kaji about his superiors.

  • Nino: Hmm... what would your superiors say if they saw this right now?
  • Kaji: My superiors...?
  • Nino: Think about how furious they'd be! And what they'd do to your pay!
  • Nino: Maybe even to your job!
  • Nino: Wouldn't want to lose your precious Sea Patrol, do you?
  • Kaji: ...My superiors would be disappointed.
  • Kaji: Hey, I can't have that be happenin' now, c'mon.
  • Kaji: I already felt bad 'cause I kept failin' at catchin' Mei...
  • Kaji: So this here would be a real nightmare if they knew how it happened.
  • Nino: ...Oh.
  • Nino: Hey, that's one more reason not to dare betray us, then!
  • Nino: Otherwise, I'll be sure to tell on you immediately!
  • Kaji: Well, not like they'd visit here unless I ask 'em to.
  • Kaji: So tough luck, boy.
  • Kaji: Nobody gets to betray nobody, lemme sit in peace.
  • Nino: ...
  • Nino: What kind of people are your superiors...?
  • Nino: Really, they didn't even think to send you a little help to deal with Mei?
  • Kaji: ...Captain Lune.
  • Kaji: Does the name ring a bell to ya?
  • Nino: Not really.
  • Nino: Am I supposed to know who that is?
  • Kaji: Lune Umbra, the head of the royal guards.
  • Kaji: I think she coulda caught Mei and all ya rascals at once if she were here.
  • Nino: H-huh? An Umbran!?
  • Kaji: Mmhmmmm.
  • Kaji: Ya really wanna bring someone like that here?
  • Nino: ...Not at all. She sounds terrifying.
  • Kaji: That's about right!
  • Kaji: Yer lucky she wasn't helpin' deal with Mei.
  • Kaji: She's a good lady, though. Never meddles in me work if I say no.
  • Kaji: And she says she believes in me to do it well all the time.
  • Kaji: Feels bad for failin' her a whole lot...
  • Kaji: But at least I don't feel totally useless if I got somethin' to do.
  • Kaji: ...Like I probably woulda felt if she just did all the work for me.
  • Nino: Oh...
  • Kaji: But, aw man! Ya know what this means!?
  • Kaji: I can finally brag about somethin' if the thievin' problem is done with!
  • Kaji: And no human's gonna badmouth me in front of her anymore!
  • Kaji: With all these changes...
  • Kaji: Maybe this place will finally feel like home!

  • Kaji: Cheers, kiddo!
  • Nino: C-cheers...?
What are you now, his non-drinking drinking buddy? Jeez, talk about careless!
You're not going to leave a bro hangin' though, that'd be going too far.

Anyway. You are by no means a careless person, you think. You had your suspicions about walking into a trap, and yet... this guy does not feel like a threat at all if he's acting this way. You feel like there's no logic-ing his actions out.

When you got to the island, you kept a close eye on Kaji. He never took the chance to contact anyone to betray you somehow, and now, here he is, drinking and complaining to you about a bunch of crap in his daily life. This is beyond letting one's guard down, isn't he being kind of irresponsible, too? If that serious superior of his saw this display, you bet she'd be even more disappointed than he thinks.

In hindsight... his lax attitude may be why everything worked out the way it did.
After all, had he been more of a stickler for rules, then he'd never have been convinced to break a law in your favor.

Today, you learned that Kaji is the type of person who makes no sense to you.

Well, it would be incredibly easy to escape a shitfaced guy if he did try anything at this point. Maybe you ought to calm down a little. Looking on the brighter side, you could get useful(?) information incredibly easily out of a shitfaced guy!

Nino: Ask him what he meant about you looking like a noble.

  • Nino: Uhm...
  • Nino: Remember when you said I looked "positively" noble?
  • Nino: What was that all about...?
  • Kaji: Whut? I don' remember sayin' any o' dat.
  • Nino: Uuuh, are you drunk already...
  • Nino: Well, whatever. You DID tell me I looked noble.
  • Nino: What did you mean by it?
  • Nino: I mean, ha, I know that I'm incredibly HANDSOME looking, of course.
  • Nino: But what do I even look like... a noble's kid?
  • Kaji: Hmmm...?
  • Kaji: Oh, yea, ya do.
  • Nino: Huh? Really!?
  • Kaji: Look at yer clothes.
  • Kaji: Reminds me of what they wear in the capital.
  • Kaji: Especially yer belts, styled all fancy like that.
  • Nino: Then... does that mean I'm really the son of some noble or royal person?
  • Kaji: Are ya?
  • Kaji: Why ask me, kid, I'm not you.
  • Nino: ...Right, right.
  • Nino: I don't know... I don't remember.
  • Kaji: Huh.
  • Kaji: That's rough, buddy.
  • Nino: Then, um, how about my sword?
  • Nino: Someone told me that it looks like what some royal guards use.
  • Kaji: ...That thing does look familiar.
  • Kaji: But if yer a guard, ya would've known Captain Lune right away.
  • Kaji: She'd be yer boss, after all.
  • Nino: Oh...
  • Nino: Maybe I did, and I just forgot about her?
  • Kaji: Shit, kid, do I look like I know anythin'?
  • Kaji: Maybe yer just a kid with a sword tryin' to roleplay a hero for all I care!
  • Nino: (W-why does everyone keep saying that lame thing about roleplay!?)

Nino: Give Kaji his stuff back.

  • Nino: By the way, uh... here you go.
  • Nino: I feel bad for keeping these on me.
  • Kaji: ...?
  • Kaji: What the fuck.
  • Kaji: Why do ya have my shit.
  • Nino: ...Sorry! We had to take these so that we could, uh...
  • Nino: Um... it's a long story...
  • Nino: But Mei's a reformed citizen, and I've fully quit as her temporary accomplice!
  • Kaji: Yer testin' me kindness here.
  • Nino: I-I promise everything in your room is intact!
  • Nino: And I don't even know what the other key's for! I never touched it, so...!
  • Kaji: Fine, ya fuckin' kleptomaniac.
  • Kaji: Just don't do this kinda thing again, ya hear?
  • Nino: Of course, haha...
  • Nino: Oh... speaking of kleptomaniacs!
  • Nino: I have something else to show you, actually.
  • Kaji: ...? What is it?

Nino: Show Kaji the two-sided note.

  • Nino: Is this impolite item yours?
  • Nino: The more I hear you talk, the more I'm inclined to believe it is.
  • Nino: The words on it are definitely something you'd say, so...
  • Kaji: ...Whoa! No way!
  • Kaji: How's somethin' this old still around!?
  • Kaji: Aw, this brings back so many good memories!
  • Nino: I found it in the monster world.
  • Kaji: Did ya now? That's just where we left it!
  • Nino: "We"...?
  • Nino: Oh, right!
  • Nino: There's writing on the back of the note!

Nino: Ask Kaji about the two-sided note.

  • Nino: Is that from another pers...
  • Nino: ...
You suddenly feel that something here is off.
Huh... is it just your imagination?

  • Kaji: Yea, I remember this! That's my handwritin'!
  • Kaji: Heh heh, this is a great find, kid!
  • Kaji: Are ya curious to know how somethin' of mine ended up all the way there?
Nino: Hesitantly inquire. Get the deets.
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Eel
Eel
2 years ago

Nino: Hesitantly inquire. Get tha dirty deets on Kaji but also like position yourself close to the door because shit's gettin fucky

Mysteriousmaverick
Mysteriousmaverick
2 years ago

Nino: Listen, but if something goes too wrong, to the point that you will likely be physically harmed or detained in prison, you can likely get others on your side by acting very confused or shocked due to their opinion of Kaji likely not changing too rapidly, him being drunk, and you being perceived as a newcomer. You can also stab yourself with your sword and run, healing the harm caused later on, or just threaten with your sword and run. Only do it as a very last resort until one of those scenarios occur though. Until then, listen to him quietly, asking only a few questions if you need to, and perhaps let him keep the two-sided note if he truly wishes for it.

Lay's Chips
Lay's Chips
2 years ago

Kaji: Reminiscence those fond memories of the note

wee
wee
2 years ago

Nino: Realize how hot Kaji is and question your sexuality

HikLight
HikLight
2 years ago

The suspense. . .

^