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13 Aug 2023
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Nino: Feel refreshed after getting to hit one of your copycats.

Yeah, you won't lie. That was one satisfying kill.
With these guys, hopping straight into a fight rather than wasting time talking anything out is the best option. Man, Combat is so... simple, direct, and to the point.

If only you could solve all your annoying problems this way, huh?

  • Spirit: General!
  • Spirit: How- How dare you!?
  • Meimona: Nino! Careful!

Mei: Take down the other fake!

This one summons lightning at will, and it does so very rapidly.

If you got hit by those sparks, you could take some serious damage... and they seem really annoying to dodge, especially since you're not as fast as Mei - who's been able to keep up with everything here as you fought the other spirit.

Seems like she's noticed this too, and is trying to fend for you as a result.

Hah, as if you'd be content just sitting in the back!
You're the leader, for god's sake.

Nino: Rush forward.

You know well how to fight a long-ranged opponent with nothing but a sword.

First, all you need to do is dodge, and keep a clear eye on your target from a safe distance. Then, in your head, count very carefully.

--/-->

One, two, three, four, five.
Good. That's plenty.

--/-->

Your window is that interval of five seconds between each strike.

And within those five, the best opportunity is at exactly three seconds, when this spirit's aim is set, and couldn't be suddenly redirected.

So dodge one more time, and do not blink.

Nino: Fortify.

Instead, inhale, and hold in your breath.
Then, with your eyes tracking the target's movement, count again.

And at the most opportune moment...

Nino: Close the distance.

...Simply cut through.

  • Meimona: Woah!
  • Spirit: Gah... ugh!

--/-->

The spirit falls, defeated.
You did it. You... actually did it, huh?

You can finally breathe again, then.

And the moment you do, you suddenly feel your entire body shaking from head to toe. Wow, you are definitely not used to this sort of thing.

  • Spirit: .- ..- --. .... !
  • Spirit: No, not yet, I can still...

Nino: Approach spirit.

...The fight isn't over yet, is it?

After all, it doesn't look like your opponent has given up.
You can't relax now, nor let any weakness show at a crucial moment like this.

  • Meimona: ...
  • Nino: ...Look, the one you called "general" is dead and gone.
  • Nino: And now, you're the only one left.
  • Nino: Even though you're so heavily injured...
  • Nino: Do you still want to fight us?

--/-->

  • Spirit: We... we were taught...
  • Spirit: To never run from a battlefield.
  • Spirit: A soldier who deserts his position is a coward,
  • Spirit: He harms his allies' morale more than any enemy ever could.
  • Nino: Hm? But this isn't a battlefield, and we're not in wartime.
  • Nino: Words like "honor" and titles like "general" mean absolutely nothing here.
  • Nino: You'd just be walking to your death if you still want to fight me.
  • Spirit: ...Kh...! It doesn't matter...
  • Spirit: My duty is more important!
So, this one is eager to die, too?
Then so be it.

You'll spare no mercy here either.

Spirit: Fail to fight back.

  • Spirit: Aaah, g-gah...!
  • Meimona: Uah...
  • Spirit: N-no, wait... I... I...
  • Spirit: Please, I...
Why won't this spirit just remove that disguise already?
Screaming in pain using that voice, bleeding while looking like that...

It's too much! Nino can just handle this on his own!
Hopefully, it will all be over soon...

Child: Beg for mercy.

  • I'm so sorry! I was wrong! Please, please, don't kill me!
  • I, I want to live too...!
  • I'll do a better job this time, so please...
Wow, what happened to all that brave talk about duty?
Pain really is what uncovers someone's true self after all.

And these spirit things seem to feel it just like ordinary people do...

Nino: You'd better put it out of its misery.

Even though it's nearly dead, the spirit maintains its disguise.
You should end this before it has a chance to try any more illusory tricks.

--/-->

Yes, you... should... huh? No, no, wait...

Even though it looks like spirits aren't especially good at fighting, the reason everyone still believes these guys are dangerous enemies, is...

"Be careful, because spirits assume the form of a person... and they do that by reading people's memories, and using them for their tricks."

--/-->

Ah. No, hold on. You can't let it die yet.
This thing, this being...

It could still be useful, couldn't it?

Reed: Enter forest.
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Pilly
Pilly
1 year ago

NINO NO

BlueBunnySkull
BlueBunnySkull
1 year ago

Nino evil time.

pikarai
pikarai
1 year ago

Nino: Diplomacy
Nino: Take a look in here and tell me what you see, anything at all from before meeting Five?
Nino: Let it live in exchange for anything good.

Nino: Use forceful means if necessary
Nino: What's a war crime?

VBrainer
VBrainer
1 year ago
Reply to  pikarai

Nino: Can it see Aria and Five in the time before your fight with a "gorgeous divine lady", but after you met them? Aria proved you had to have known her and Five before, but it'd be good to get outside confirmation if possible.

yanagi
yanagi
1 year ago

ah man he's a genius

Lunk
Lunk
1 year ago

The mirror in the background of the spirit's flashback looks like the same mirror from the flashback to when Lune awakened her ability. They also look young, so it was likely a forced awakening, making it very likely that this spirit was an Umbra.

Unclevertitle
Unclevertitle
1 year ago

Oh no.

I suspect they can't undo your amnesia.

VBrainer
VBrainer
1 year ago

Nino: Extract information.

Spirit: You can't see what isn't there. Tell him such.

Nino: It's not torture, just... interrogation.

Mei: Try not to watch. Watch anyways.

Nino: Stop. You may not be a hero, but you aren't this.

Mysteriousmaverick
Mysteriousmaverick
1 year ago
Reply to  VBrainer

It isn’t torture, just threats for information! There’s (Probably) a difference!

Last edited 1 year ago by Mysteriousmaverick
Mysteriousmaverick
Mysteriousmaverick
1 year ago

Nino: Alright, remember. Be gentle with Meimona after this, comfort her and say that it was just a spirit, and that they as a species only exist to prey on the living. Remind her that you are her ally, and that those creatures would have likely seriously hurt her after the condition they put her in. Now, remember to be careful and be quick with this spirit, for if you let it live, it shall come back to haunt you and potentially others, and if you falter Meimona could disrupt things. You will find a way to retrieve your memories, though from how the Copy You worded things, you may not find answers here.

Slid
Slid
1 year ago

hooray? Мaybe Nino will learn something about his past.

Mots
Mots
1 year ago

Corona: How’s the festivities going so far?

MildTrash
MildTrash
1 year ago

Nino: Goad the Spirit. It'll have to try a better disguise than that to convince you to spare it.

Pun Lord
Pun Lord
1 year ago

NONONONONO Nino please don’t do this you stopped a phantom already, and you know these things are as tricky as him, they’ll show you illusions and trick you if you ask them for information mind your brain please.

^