Yui - Horunka village <<8>>

They walked out of the store with Yui looking as proud as she could. She felt that this day was a good day as she opened up her inventroy to look at her cool new armour. She didnt hesitate to equip it right now, she seperated herself from Timi by running towards the back of a tree and quickly changed from her old armour to her bra and underwear only and after that to her new armour as fast as she could so no one would see it. Yui jumped from the back of the tree to show of her new armour to Timi "Ta-da" (insert picture of new armour her sometime latter) she made a little twirl in front of the girl and walked over to her at the same time "Doesn't onee-chan look a lot cooler now." She said with a big a smile "Enough joking now, lets head back before it gets dark" she opened up her inventory to get out another teleport crystal, her smile slowly faded. The crystal wasnt in her inventory she needed to walk back all the way. Timi probably didnt have one either since she didnt use her own to get to horunka village. Her finger was shivering at the tought that they would need to walk back in the dark. She closed down the Inventory window and faced Timi "I-i forgot the teleport crystals i think. We need to walk back." She didnt want Timi to know that she was afraid of the dark. It would make her look like a crybaby in front of Timi and she didnt want that. A message from Ayame saying that Fujiwara was okay and that they all should head back. She glanced over at timi, she would likely get the same message.

Timi waited, shifting and looking about as Yui went behind a tree. She took out one of the knives, and made an effort to try and use it, but she wasn't that good with it. Still, the throwing knife was a good weight in her hand, so she decided she'd learn how to throw the knife. Perhaps if she became skilled at it, she could be beneficial to the team.

She looked up when Yui came out of the tree, and gave her a smile, "it looks good" She said, then tilted her head, "I think the armor would be hot, no cool. But you don't need armor to be cool" She smiled, and went to her inventory, to look for a tolbana crystal.

When she didn't find one, she frowned, looking over to Yui, seeing that she seemed slightly afraid. Timi went over to her, and took one of her hands in hers and gave her a smile. "It will be alright" She said "We will get back safely" She looked up when she got the PM, "I hope there isn't any more trouble tonight. Running off into the labyrinth was just foolish, and would could just as easily have been mourning then waiting for him to wake.."

Umichi

Watching Suki jump in to land two quick attacks, Umichi mentally sighed a little as he ran up to Suki and the Minotaur. Although she had dodged out the Minotaur's attack and had gained some distance on the enemy, just that moment of stopping, led to the Minotaur the ability to catch up. Charging through and attempting to swing it's battle axe with a <<Sword Skill>>. The battle axe started to glow a pink color, Umichi was unfamiliar with the skill, but interrupted it, but intercepting the Minotaur in it's charge.

Umichi had run between Suki and the Minotaur, his Anneal Blade glowing a sky blue color. Activating <<Uppercut>> he intercepted the Minotaur's <<Sword Skill>>. Noticing Suki had turned back to look, he advised her, " You really should be more careful.", while his blade glowed blue, activating <<Vertical>> cutting into the Minotaur. He followed his blade's downward motion, rolling over and under the Minotaur's legs, leaping up into a fighting stance behind the Minotaur.

Jumping up, Umichi cut twice into the Minotaur without any <<Sword Skills>> as the Minotaur turned to him. It readied it's battle axe to swing, but Umichi was already on the ground, ready to dodge the blow. However, a message notification popped up, distracting him very temporarily, causing him to guard the swing. The swing connected with his blade, starting to cause Umichi to lose a little bit of health at a time. This only lasted a quick moment though as Umichi's quick reaction allowed him to alleviate the resistance he placed against the swing of the Minotaur and redirect it. This lead to creating a clear shot to do some major damage. Attacking with a <<Vertical Square>> Umichi dealt most of the Minotaur's remaining health.

Stuck in the post-motion, the Minotaur had changed it's weapon to a war hammer. It was getting ready to pound Umichi flat, but the post-motion wore off, allowing Umichi to run past, and deal two big slices in the Minotaur, finishing it off. "Well, that's that." he smiled at Suki, getting around 400 exp again from the Minotaur. Looking at what he got, he got the cream as per the quest, as well as ... Minotaur horns. He had not gotten this before, so it was not any of the common drops the Minotaur would give. He was curious what it was for, but decided to wait for next time.

Reading the message from Ayame, he quickly replied, "Alright, heading there soon."

---

YukiHana

Backing down a little, due to the aggressive nature of the Onii-san that had stayed behind, YukiHana replied to his question.
"Um.... I can't just stay in town ... doing nothing ... and .... I just ... thought I would train a little ... I didn't expect to find so many enemies suddenly or anything ...."
The girl was just about to cry, unsure of what to say, since she had no real excuse. She was afraid that he would get angry and more aggressive, starting to yell at her or scold her.

Keisuke sighed and stopped frowning he then looked at her blankly. "Well, If it will keep you safer you're welcome to travel round with me. This place is too dangerous for a child to be left on their own. You hungry?"

Suki frowned. She hadn't meant to lose focus, had she so quickly grown lax because she felt safe with Umichi? But no. She hadn't assumed that the minatour wouldnt follow her. That was why she had looked back to make sure. Yet it was nice to know Umichi would step in between her and danger, even as she resolved never to let it happen again. She didn't want him dying because of her. She wouldn't be able to live with herself. sometimes I wish I could speak with you, mum she closed her eyes for a moment, opening them again.

She shifted, watching as Umichi continued to fight the minatour until he killed it. She then relaxed, but only slightly, glancing about them to make sure they hadn't attracted any more monsters. It appeared however that there were no frenzy board or wolves around, something she was relieved about. She reached the message from Ayame after the Minatour was defeated, and quickly wrote a reply 'okay. Umichi and I will be returning soon, hopefully Fujiwara won't go off on his own again, or won't be so foolish as to not ask for someone to go with him'

She then nodded, already searching through her inventory for a Tolbana crystal. She thought the quicker they got back, the less trouble Fujiwara could get into. "Right, probably best to head back. We haven't had any lunch, so dinner would be great" she smiled, taking her crystal out, ready

---

Paka hesitared and then accepted the party quest. Surely the others would be okay without him for a day. His only worry was Suki, but so far she seemed okay without his watchful eye. He gritted his teeth then nodded and returned rhe smile "alright, sure thing"

Yui

Yui quickly looked around her to see if there where any monsters that could possibly attack them while it was a bit more darker and kept doing so.she wanted to pull her hand away when she felt something tiny and warm sudenly grabbing it. Yui looked down at Timi who was holding her hand, a warm feeling could be felt througout her body just by the small warm hand of Timi. She smiled back at Timi and calmed down a bit ''Lets get back for dinner.'' She started walking with Timi towards the direction of Tolbana ''I can carry you if you feel tired. I used to run a lot back in the day so It's no real problem.'' The area around them seemed clear but Yui still scouted it with her eyes from time to time just to make sure. It was quickly getting darker as Yui shivered lightly and walked a bit closer to Timi ''I-its fine. Nothing can h-happen'' she tried to smile but it was more like in a creepy way.

Ayame sat down quietly as she listened to Fujiwara's defense for his actions, shaking her head at how foolish he had been. Of course, she couldn't call him out on it if he had actually risked his own life to save a bunch of strangers; that wouldn't feel right to her at all. Sighing, Ayame looked at Fujiwara and, pointing her finger in his face, began to lecture him.

"Though it maybe true that a bunch of people might have lost their lives if you weren't there, your willingness to go headfirst into such a dangerous situation without notifying us is absurd. I may not be your older sister, but I certainly can act like one if you're going to be sticking your life out on a limb without caring about us." she said, staring straight into his eyes. "Though it pains me to treat you like a child, I'm not going to let you head out into danger without someone else."

Fujiwara sighed, as if he expected such a response from Ayame. He did make a pretty big mistake, but he came out of it all right... So why was it so important that someone stick to him?

"You know, I'm not the same little kid who almost fell off that small cliff all those years ago."
"I can see that, but you're acting so reckless in your endeavors! Can't you just dial it back a bit?"
"But if I want to be useful to everyone, then I need to train? What use is a weakling on the battlefield other than cannon fodder?"
"You're far from weak! What are you even going on about?"
"If I can't stay at the head of the pack like Umichi and the rest of them, then what good am I? If I'm just going to be dead weight, then what am I even doing here on the front lines? If I can't get myself out of a simple situation like the one that happened last night, then-"
"Stop! Just... Stop. You're not worthless. Nobody here thinks you are."
"But-"
"I said, nobody thinks that you're useless. You've been acting really aggressive lately, and if this is the reason why then you're getting all worked up over nothing. It's okay to not be at the top of every scoreboard all the time. Sometimes, it's okay to be mediocre."
"But this isn't just about scores; it's about life and death! If I don't have the strength to fight, then-"
"You don't need to have the strength to fight; you just need to have the strength to protect, the strength to accept your own shortcomings."

Taking a deep breath, Fujiwara sighed before a small 'Ha' left his mouth.
"That was the most cliche thing I've heard all day." he smiled slightly as he looked at Ayame.
"Well, you've been asleep for most of it, so that's to be expected. Now, if you're done wallowing in self-pity, come with me to the kitchen. You're helping me cook, whether you want to or not."

Without giving him a chance to respond, Ayame swiftly left for the kitchen on the inn. Fujiwara breathed another sigh of relief as the tension in the air seemed to have dissipated; almost as if revitalized by a sudden burst of energy, Fujiwara swiftly followed Ayame into the kitchen. As he walked in, Fujiwara saw Ayame sending a few messages off to the rest of the party. Peeking over her shoulder, he noticed that the one she was sending off at the moment was addressed to both Umichi and Suki, telling them of her 'declaration' of sorts to check if that was okay... And that the night's dinner would be roast boar and assorted vegetables with rice. Sending that message off, Ayame looked at Fujiwara, a half-joking smile on her face.

"Didn't you ever learn to not stare at other peoples' mail?"
"Well, I'm curious. Anyways... What do I do?"
"What do you do? That's easy." Ayame responded shortly before materializing a bunch of ingredients and cookingware. "Organize everything. Vegetables, pots, meat, and so on and so forth. Cut up the boar as such." Ayame responded as she took a small knife and made light cuts all over the boar's corpse. "On that note, remove all the bristles and make sure to clean up after we're done. That's your punishment for making everyone worry."

Fujiwara stared blankly at the entire mess of stuff before turning to Ayame, who was already preparing to boil some rice. "You... Aren't kidding, are you?"
"You know me~!" she responded joyfully before looking over at the unlit fireplace. "Oh right, start up the fire too. Can't took without heat!"

"...Well. Guess I brought this on myself, didn't I?..." he said to himself as he began preparations for that night's dinner.

Umichi

Hearing Suki speak, Umichi turned towards her, tilting his head quizzically. "Um... A few things .... We still have to hand in the quest for one. Another thing is, takes less than 30 minutes to reach by walking, I highly doubt Fujiwara will get into any sort of trouble in that time, given that Ayame is keeping an eye on him. Lastly .... we ate at the "Inn of Faith" for lunch ... remember?"

He was curious as to how she could forget about handing in the quest, and that they had lunch before even going out to do any quests in the first place. Suddenly, he noticed Paka's health bar vanish, and being the leader of the party, notified of Paka leaving the party. "Huh...." Typing a message to Paka, "Yo, sup? Did something come up? You should let people know before you go off and leave the party." Sending the message, he turned towards Tonkilo. "Come on Suki, we should at least hand in the quest first, before going back."

Heading in the direction of Tonkilo, it did not take long to reach the town, and find Tabu. Tabu really stuck out with the bright green mohawk against his dark skin and his Hawaiian shirt. Not to mention the Greek accent he had. It was just .... so nonsensical. Completing the quest, he had the usual quest completion box open.

Quest complete said
Rewards
Col:
- 1000

EXP:
- 1000

Items:
- Delicious Cream

If Suki had followed Umichi, after the quest was done, he would walk up to her and say "Well, let's go." Suggesting to walk. If she did not, he would run the way, rather than being reliant on the convenience of a teleportation crystal.

---

YukiHana

Hearing the Onii-san's words, YukiHana, she looked up at him, tears welling a little in her eyes. He didn't seem as aggressive now, in fact he was acting kind. She was wondering if he was possibly trying to trick her ... but she had no-one she could really rely on right now. Instead of verbally replying, she nodded her head at the suggestion. "Food... would be nice ..." she said.

"Um... Onii-san ... no namae wa?" (Um... What's your name?) she asked him, still a little timid.

---

Quest Chance said
Keisuke has a chance to activate a quest. Given he does three things, it will activate. First is answer YukiHana's question, the second is inviting her into his party. Thirdly is to hold her hand. However, there will be no quest window popping up when it activates. Instead, only when the clear conditions are met does the quest pop up and are the players informed of the quest details.

For Keisuke:

Rescue the damsel in distress [+]

Rescue the damsel in distress

Description
You have found a female player who is in need of rescue! Become the knight to save the lady from evil!

Pre-requisites:
- Male
- Meets female player of lower level

Activation:
- Run into a distressed looking female
- Take her hand
- Run away with her
- Party with her

Conditions to clear:
- Both members survive
- Both must reach a town
- They must become closer to each other and at least know each others names
- Pledge to meet again

Rewards:
- 50 exp
- 100 col
- 1000 relationship points
- Wedding ring(P)

For YukiHana:

Meet your hero [+]

Meet your hero

Description
Having become distressed about your situation, regardless of whether it is life threatening or on the mundane side, you meet a male player who decides to help you.

Pre-requisites:
- Female
- Meet Male player of higher level

Activation:
- Have Male run into you
- He takes your hand
- Run away together
- Party with him

Conditions to clear:
- Both members survive
- Both must reach a town
- They must become closer to each other and at least know each others names
- Pledge to meet again

Rewards:
- 50 exp
- 100 col
- 1000 relationship points
- Wedding ring(P)

---

PS: The rings are made of plastic and fake. The relationship points have no value nor do anything in the game.

Timi smiled, looking up at Yui reassuringly. "I'm fine. Really" She said brightly, smiling and continuing to head back to the town, glancing about them and searching for any danger. It seemed that there were a lot of people either heading to tolbana, or heading back the way Yui and Timi had gone. Obviously a lot of people had been training today, with had kept the numbers of Frenzy Boars, Dire wolves and Little nepents down to a minimum. For which Timi was glad. Yui was trying to be strong for her, Timi knew, so by being happy, Timi hoped to put Yui at ease.

She held her blade in her hand lightly, prepared to fight, but given the number of people traveling, it seemed like there wasn't too many monsters around. As they reached Tolbana, Timi smiled again at Yui, "Safe and sound" She said, tugging on Yui's hand lightly, and sheathing her short sword.

---

Paka sighed as he received the PM from Umichi. He pondered what to repy, before sending 'I donn't have to runn everything through you. I can look after myself, and considering I haven't left the town all day, there's no way anything could have befallen me, given that its a safe zone. I am merely helping sme people, since it doesn't look like anything will happen today, and doubtful we will reach the bosses room tomorrow.' he sent it, before heading to where Ayame and Fujiwara. "Ayame? Do you know if its possible to make a cake in this world?"

---

Suki sighed knowing she shouldn't be so distracted, but the last few days, she had been thinking back on the real world. On her brothers and father. She was beginning to worry about what was happening to them in the real world as well. How long could they survive on technology and medical abilities? Surely for a while, she had read of coma patients being kept alive for years on end. There were complications, she knew. Lying in bed al day couldn't be good for any of them. She was tired of pushing those thoughts away, of trying to be strong.

She bit her lip, waiting for Umichi outside of Tabu's place. This time last year, she would have just been coming in from being out in the field, and would have come into a barrage of noise, light and fun. Now, she stood watching the darkening sky, and she decided that both had their perks. She looked over as Umichi came out, and she smiled brightly, thinking that Umichi just seemed to make things better. She nodded, but looked back ahead of them, watching as the first star came out. "I miss my family. But...does it make me a bad person to think that I was meant to be here? i mean...What would have happened to Timi if we weren't here? Or Yui, nearly dead with the monsters around her? We've survived, and we're going to continue to survive, and..." She trailed off, shrugging.

Would she have ever met any of them in the real world? Would she have ever met Umichi? That thought was upsetting, and off putting. "Questions, without certain answers" She said with a sigh, before falling silent as they walked.

Angelo walked into the inn and went into his room to go to sleep knowing try would need to get to work tomorrow and find the quests they need.


The next morning Angelo woke up and yawned softly. Once he got up he went downstairs and he bought some bread from the owner eating it outside the inn waiting for paka and Angelo's partner so they could get going to start their quest....

"Right ok food it is. I assume you don't have any money on you? If not then I'll get us food but you're not allowed to complain about how I get it" keisuke replied sending her a party invite "Just call me DancingLeaf or whatever abbreviation of that you want to use..." he said blankly. Keisuke was thinking about which place would be best to steal food from, going orange again wasn't something he really cared about, heck it might even mean people will be more likely to stay out of his way though he was pretty sure the kid would complain about stealing being wrong or something but at the end of the day she was getting free food so he hoped that'd be enough to stop her complaining though he wasn't sure at this point what her morals were, just that she seemed to like calling people siblings. That he was sure would get annoying

Umichi

Hearing what Suki said, Umichi's eyes widened. He was a little surprised that she thought she could be classified as a bad person so ... simply. *Sigh* he heaved a heavy loud sigh. "Helping people makes someone a bad person? Aren't you being ironic?" Sighing once more, he continued. " There's nothing wrong with feeling like you belong here. Yes, our families are probably worried, but that should only drive us to survive. There's no point in such philosophical things. No point in the ifs of what could be. We need to only focus on now and what is to come. Live, and be happy. by standing still, that will only be making your family's concerns all the more real. Move forward and survive, there is no need to dwell on what might have happened if things were different.."

He finished his little speech as they walked onward to Tolbana. Randomly, he added on afterwards, "Or is it, that you regret meeting me? That although you miss your family, it is me that is on your mind?" Umichi spoke nonchalantly, facing forwards in the direction they walked, but was glancing over Suki, to see her response. He wanted to tease her a little, to hopefully uplift her spirits.

---

YukiHana

"Um... I have some money Leaf-san. But ... with what you were suggesting ... did you intend to steal?" YukiHana started to back off. Scared. The Onii-san who stayed to help her, seemed to want to steal ... She was told many times that stealing is wrong. Taking what is not yours is something bad people do. "Is ... Leaf-onii-san a bad person?" YukiHana's voice trembled, backing off, afraid of him.

Yui - Tolbana <<8>>

Yui gave a sigh of relief when they finally arrived back at the lovely town Tolbana. Timi clearly wasnt afraid as Yui for everything that would happen outside at night. She gave a nod with a small smile to Timi as they walked back towards the inn again. Umichi and Suki hadnt arrived yet but the other where still there like they where when they left. Yui walked towards the kitchen area where all the others where. Yui leaned her back against the wall closest to Paka and dropped herself down onto the ground by sliding against the wall. Only a puff came out of her mouth as she didnt say anything yet since she entered. Her head slowly angled as she opened up her mouth "I'm beat." She judt noticed Fujiwara being up again "O Fujiwara, nice to see you again." She tried her best to smile but still felt a bit down from the dark.

Suki stopped, shocked at what he said. She tried to figure out what to reply, then said softly "I will never regret meeting you. Aside from the fact that I doubt I would have gotten as far as I have, without you, I really really really like you" she said softly, looking down, hiding her blush which probably didn't work as well without her hair to curtain her face now. "So no, I'll never regret meeting you. "I guess I just fell guilty that I'm happy, when I know they are probably worried and concerned. And it also worries me that death is all that will come out of this, and that I'll never get to meet you in real life" she sighed softly, and started to move again to catch up, biting her lip.

She glanced about, but there were no monsters around them, before glancing to Umichi. "I know it's pointless to worry and to think about it all...but I can't help it. Ever since that guy jumped off the barrier and didn't return...what happened? Did he know he wasn't going to wake up in his bed? Or was it just...darkness? Did he suffer?" She sighed again, "there's been rumors that some people have deliberately jumped off the barriers or deliberately let themselves get killed, because they can't deal with this. And I feel bad, because I've managed to find happiness...and now I'm just going around in circles" she said, with a small laugh.

She seemed to have finally come to what was really bothering her. She looked up at the sky and said softly, almost a whisper "my mother died on this day. Two hours after I was born. my dad always puts on a brave face and gives me a good day, but now..." She trailed off

---

Timi was glad to have reached Tolbana and even gladder to know they had rooms, unsure that they would have been able to get a room with the people coming in now. She sat down be side Yui, and snuggled up to the older girl, with a smile, content for the time being, but also wanting to give Timi some comfort

Fujiwara sighed and moved the items around, making sure to try and conserve as much energy as possible. The amount of vegetables, garnishes and such was stupid; each individual plant and pot was coded in as an individual item, which made it more annoying to move things around. Sighing, he returned to his little job before noticing Paka and Yui enter the kitchen. Acknowledging Yui's appearance with a nod of his head, Fujiwara finished up his little organizational job and moved onto the cutting of the boar. Sighing, he took the butcher knife next to the boar's body and tested the weight a bit before positioning the cleaver over one of the marks that Ayame had created before lifting it up and swinging it down.

---

Ayame turned as she saw Paka in the doorway and though for a bit before shrugging.
"I wouldn't doubt the possibility; I mean, it's such a commonplace food and it's so popular that I'd be surprised if they didn't. How well it'd come out... Well, that's another story entirely." she responded to his question before looking over at Fujiwara.
Noticing that Fujiwara had finished the first job she had given him, Ayame took action as Fujiwara moved to the boar. She immediately began washing the vegetables (after all, nobody knew if sanitation could be an actual factor in the game itself, and she wasn't willing to test such a theory) and the pots, rinsing them out with water as quickly as she could.

"You know, it'd be nice if I could find some white rice somewhere. It's mostly standard Western foods right now, and I'd love to be able to eat rice again..." she trailed off before turning to Fujiwara, who had just finished his first cut on the boar. Ayame blinked a few times and shook her head before walking over to the boar's body before looking it over.

"Er... Wow. That is... A very... Rough cut. You need to be a bit more accurate. Try not to hit the spinal cord, or it might chunk the knife's durability down." she said, looking at the (slightly...?) messily beheaded boar. "Think of it like hitting the weak spot of a boss, if that makes any sense."

Fujiwara cocked his head to the side. It was just the head- they weren't eating it, as far as he knew, so why should it have mattered so much? But... Well, she did have a point for everywhere else. Slices were easiest to distribute after all, so he tried once again, this time on the boar's left foreleg. This time, the cut was much cleaner, to Ayame's pleasure. Satisfied, she returned to cleaning the vegetables before turning to Yui and Paka.

"You two are free to watch if you want. This might take a while, though, so it's up to you."

Umichi

*Sigh* Umichi heaved a heavy sigh once more. It seems he failed to lift her spirits and made things worse. "There's no telling what happened. It's impossible to save everyone. There's only so much each person can do. But to give the best they can to live on and support each other, that is all they can really do. Living happily is all we can do, we cannot do anything, except move forward and try to help as many as we can." As they walked, he stopped talking for a moment. Suki revealed what was truly troubling her. "Wait, wait wait ..... you are saying ... it is your birthday? I HAVEN'T EVEN GOTTEN ANYTHING FOR YOU!!!! NO TIME TO EVEN PREPARE ANYTHING!!!" He acted panicked. Trying to do what he could to lift her spirits, even if it made him look like a fool in public. "Um... Um... Should I be your servant? No ... that's not really anything. Col? No ... that's just being cheap and unworthy. NO!!!!! WHAT DO I DO!!!!???" He brushed his hair with his hands, gripping his hair, showing signs of stress.

Suki couldn't seem to help it. She started to laugh, and was soon doubled over, laughing hard, breathless. It took her a few moments to get herself, and even then, she was still giggling, as she struggled to catch her breath "I don't-" She struggled to take in a breath, "Need anything. If I did, I would have mentioned it weeks ago" She managed to calm herself down, and she smiled at Umichi, grateful for him.

"You're adorable, you know?" She said, shifting so she could give him a kiss, "I really don't need anything. Just you" she said brightly. Umichi's panic, whether real or not, had served the purpose of cheering her. "I'm happy, with you" She spoke truthfully, easily, and twined her hand through his. "Thank you"

---

Paka nodded, "Thanks. I'm going to head out to the market area, but I'll be back soon" he seemed to hesitate, glancing over to Fujiwara, "I'm sorry for all I said. But you were foolish to go off into the labyrinth alone. Be more carefu" And then he was gone, heading out the inn and down the street, to the market area.

With Suki feeling better, and laughing, Umichi was glad that he could lift her spirits. Being called adorable was not something ... he could really say he was happy about, since as a guy, it is not something to take pride in exactly. But if it was her, he would be fine with it. If she thought it was adorable then that's good enough. He started to blush when she said, "I really don't need anything. Just you." being given a kiss. Their hand intertwined, "Still, there has to be something I can do for you." He said, as they were soon approaching Tolbana.

Suddenly he remembered he got a message from Paka, but did not actually see it. Opening it, it read:

Paka said
'I donn't have to runn everything through you. I can look after myself, and considering I haven't left the town all day, there's no way anything could have befallen me, given that its a safe zone. I am merely helping sme people, since it doesn't look like anything will happen today, and doubtful we will reach the bosses room tomorrow.'

Umichi sighed for a moment, replying "I wouldn't stop you or anything. If you want to leave, you are free to. I am just saying, you should let someone know, before you do something. I mean, a sudden disappearance and then everyone begins to worry about the person, like with Fujiwara, unsure what has happened to them. Anyway, have fun helping those people. If you need help, we will be glad to help out."

"Hm... somehow, I don't think Paka likes me very much. I mean, we got along in the line, and when we were messaging. But after meeting ... well ... I don't know ... he just seems to have something against me." Umichi sighed to Suki, complaining a little.

Suki shook her head. "Just don't get tired of me. There's nothing really in the game that I want, after all. Not at the moment. I mean, I'd love a monster companion, like with the beast tamer profession, but I chose alchemy, so..." She trailed off, not wanting to ramble on, she paused a moment. "I really don't need anything" She watched as the outline of Tolbana appeared. it wasn't a big town, but it was definitely er then some of the other towns, except the city of beginnings. The city of beginnings was large enough for 10,o00 players. Did the fact that Tolbana was smaller mean that there was going to be a drop in numbers? there she was, being pessimistic again.

She looked over when Umichi said about Paka disliking him. She frowned, thinking. Then shook her head. "I don't think he dislikes you, or anything like that. I thin he more dislikes the situation. Trapped here, he feels responsible for me. How could he not? We grew up together, he saw how my brothers and fathered acted. He's more of a brother then a cousin at this point. I think he's just...worried that he will become redundant...he doesn't know his place, which leads him to react to you like he does. He'll brood, mope, and snap for a while, and then he'll be alright. Don't worry" She said, hoping to be reassuring.

Sh sighed softly, "I don't think he's doing well here. And I' worried about him. But if I go to offer him help, he'll snap at me, and say everything's fine. So if he's doing something that he needs to do, then I don't think we can stop him. If he finds how to belong here...then I'll be happy for him. It will all be okay" She said.

"I am not gonna get tired of you, also it seems beast taming is not available at the moment." replied Umichi. "Well, even if you say that ... all I did was to ask him to tell someone before leaving the party to let us know, instead of just vanishing like that from the party. And then he snaps at me. "He sighed at the end. The path was short and there weren't really any monsters, since they were being mostly picked off by other players. Reaching Tolbana, he guided them back to the Maiden Inn. Walking through the market area, he spotted Paka, but could not call him as he had gotten further from them.

Arriving at the inn, he opened the door, letting Suki enter first, before stepping inside. "Hey everyone." Umichi greeted aloud. Some strangers stared at him as he greeted. Ignoring them, he approached Yui, Timi, Ayame and Fujiwara. "What's going on guys?" he asked. "What did you all get up to today?" He was being casual and upbeat to just get some nice everyday conversation going, as he pulled out a seat for Suki before getting a seat for himself.