Lunatea's jaws dropped at Kerry's question. What?! Where did that come from?! Since when did they have that kind of relationship?!

Her glare moved to Takeshi, who coughed before answering that he had no such relationship. Judging by his reaction though, and the smell, which her rabbit nose only detected now, there was no doubt about it. They really did it!

A pang of jealousy burned inside her bunny heart. She wanted to have a husband too!

Still, it would be unbecoming of her to show her jealousy. As a fellow monster, she couldn't act petty in front of her friend's fortune.

She watched the others tease the young human with a sour face as she tried to pretend she wasn't offended by it all—an act that obviously fell flat on its face.

It's not just the goblin. Now Takeshi is taken too!

@AzureKnight@PaulHaynek

@The Irish Tree (LIL) @Enkryption @Nakushita @AzureKnight (HIN & ATS) @PaulHaynek @Restalaan (SKA)

"Are there any streams or baths we can dunk them in real quick? I'd use my sword's magic but its just as likely to shoot magma at them than water."

"Errr....Lilianna, was it? First off, nice to meet you. Secondly, what kind of random ass sword do you have!? And third, you know damn well that it'll take more than a bath to get rid of the scent of a freshly mated pair. Takeshi will have to NOT have sex with Alice again in order for the scent to go away on its own....... and that's IF he can control himself around Alice's charms, which I now doubt.", Kerry answered the fairy before noticing what the mad hatter was doing.....in broad daylight! Thinking fast, Kerry quickly slapped the mad hatter's hand off Takeshi thigh, grabbing her attention.

"Not. Here!", she said with gritted teeth in low volume, eyes scanning to see if anyone saw the sensual display. "Think about where you are, Madam Mushroom! Save it for later!"

“Though, I will admit this was the last thing that I was expecting to learn about after returning from the mission and getting some relaxation at the hot springs, but I can say you guys at least keep things interesting for me, soooooo when is the wedding”

"Yuki, make no mistake, I'm finding all of this hilarious too. But our stay would go a lot more smoothly if we keep this particular scandel strictly between taskforce members, yes?"

Geez, why am I being the responsible one here?, the hornet thought to herself, groaning mentally. Where's Shizuka when you need him!?

Then she heard a commotion between the Hangni sisters, giving the two siblings a deadpanned stare.

"Atsuha, everyone that's been on this taskforce for more than a day knows that you, your sister and Skar are a mated trio. It's an open secret at this point. Even now, Skar can't seem to keep his hands off you two."

Sighing, Kerry would turn to Takeshi, giving the young lord-to-be a serious look.

"Listen, Takeshi. Ayu is right. Deny it all you want, but you can't fool a mamono's nose, ESPECIALLY when it comes to sex. Right now, it would be very wise to keep this quiet and not bring any more attention yourself. Otherwise, people are gonna notice, which leads to people talking, which leads to people questioning.....which then leads people to finding out. And that's the last thing you want right now, isn't it?"

@The Irish Tree (LIL), @Restalaan (SKA), @Rezod92, @Nakushita, @Hammerman, @AzureKnight (ATS & HIN), @Enkryption

Io gave a small nod to Hinami. A comrade in undeath was always worth having, even if she did not have the magical inclinations that Io had. Lunatea was a task force member she had not met before, either, but she seemed rather collected compared to the ones Io had already encountered. Io couldn't help but consider Luna's conspicuous bunny ears to be cute, but she stifled the urge to touch them.

However, far more demanding of her attention was Skar, who had more or less been confirmed as an astronomically rare specimen in Io's eyes. "I do have questions." She said to Skar, her calm voice failing to reinforce how much of an understatement that was.

She began sorting out the questions she would ask in her head. Soon she stopped in place, merely blankly staring ahead as her thoughts began to overrun everything else for her. 'There are far too many to ask... How do I find the ones that will cut to the heart of the question?' Despite her lack of movement, her grimoire gently glowed as lines upon lines were entered into it magically, directly from Io's thoughts. Io had to consider that there may be factors that lead to his creation that could explain why he was such a rarity, but they may be hard to formulate questions around. Plus, there were questions about his current existence as well, such as physiology and abilities... Even a perfect question could be answered incorrectly, due to faulty memory or bias as well.

Her deadpan expression and sudden, complete stop may have been a cause for alarm, if most of the task force members weren't busy turning their attention to Takeshi and Alice. Of course, she was certain to not let the secret slip - she was sure that there were several task force members that would do that far before she did. Of course, Io had a trace of jealousy for Alice's part, but she could lock that away easily. There would be a time and place for that... Hopefully. She would let them handle the interactions and gossip in the meantime.

At the same time, Io didn't consider how it may have looked to the others: Suddenly stopping and standing in rigor mortis, as though her soul had left her body, at the mention of Takeshi's... 'indiscretion.' She was simply too engrossed in her own thoughts to consider how the others may interpret it.

@Nakushita@Enkryption@Hammerman

Skarsneek of the Red Hill

Seeing the panicked look of Takeshi, Skarsneek at first raised an eyebrow before smiling mischievously when he felt it. The lingering demonic energy of a mamono on him.

"Hey, Takeshi, looks like you got your fields tilled." He showed his thumb between his index and middle finger and giggled.

"But yea, enough teasing. We'll have to keep it a secret. Otherwise, we might face a rebellion." Skarsneek said and getting the group on track on just how terrible the consequences would be. Honestly, he was expecting it to happen later. Not literally within the first week. "Not to mention his own family will ask him to open his own stomach."

Well, he suppose life was unpredictable. Just like his own marital stage.

@AzureKnight@Rezod92

Speaking of which.

"Well, I wasn't hiding it per say." He shrugged his shoulders and pat the two sisters on their backs. "Besides, who could resist not keeping their hands off from their own wives?"

@Crowvette

"And also, in case you're wondering among your many questions. Here's one answer I'm sure you're dying to know." Skarsneek slide to the lich, hoping to break out her deep thoughts and most asked question he got from other females he met. "It works, just ask my wives."

With a grin, he left her to ponder on that answer. Purposefully being vague but also truthful.

Nevertheless, with Shizuka not here, he suppose someone has to take charge for now. So Skarsneek clapped his hands together to get the group focused.

"Right, we got plenty of things to sort, hide and air out. Let's get some food, a private place and we can talk it all out on what to do next." He then turned to Ayu with a nod. "Got any place for that?"

---

@PaulHaynek

Gringor of the Ironhide Tribe

Hmm.

Gringor thought on those words with a frown and squat down.

So beat the enemy down when they aren't looking or expecting it?

Sounds...not his style. That's admitting that he's inadequate. That he was weak.

Yet, Gringor does know one other thing he hated more than admitting he's not strong.

And that's losing.

Thinking back again, it wasn't exactly a fun scrap since he went alone and those warriors kept sending those annoying chaffs. No sport.

Yet also, wasn't he also not taking this seriously? He's seeing this as a fight on his own. Not the true, all-out war. That had him frowning, to think that he was insulting the opponents! No, that must change. If they want a true proper scrap, then he'll give them everything.

With that change in thinking, Gringor figured one thing out. What if he gets others to just deal with the chaffs and make sure they don't interfere?

Then he can hammer the rest down easily. His proper tribe wasn't here, but he suppose he can get more by bashing heads in or asking the boss.

Come to think of it, what if get that sneaky git to help?

No, not the goblin. The other sneaky git that he recruited when he fought the warlocks. Maybe she'll help out?

"Yer right. I'm gonna go bash some heads in, get more boyz and have them all come for a scrap with the basketheads." Gringor decided as he stood up and started to head out, but not before stopping and turning to Nobutada. "What about youz? Coming? Or you just gonna sit here all day?"

With that, he wandered around the woods and see if he can track Kageho scent. Otherwise, Gringor would just walk around the village aimlessly until the task group noticed him.

[@Basically anyone paying attention to Takeshi's Stank]

---

This was...um...bad? Really, really bad? Skarsneek even brought up that, if this got out, Takeshi's family would make him commit Sudoku! And she was absolutely sure that would lead to yo-kai getting expunged from the island with everyone's fears proven! Even if her Queen was only sending Liliana as a favor, the little knight couldn't help but feel as if she absolutely had to do something...and besides, if the people of the land started hating monsters, more and more would side with the Varjans!

As such, this affair was becoming more and more dangerous as seconds passed. The bee lady named Kerry beside her was doing a very good job of laying out the predicament for Takeshi, but Liliana felt they needed to do...something! Anything, even! And the longer a group of mamono gathered around Takeshi with one sleeping on his back, the worse this looked! As such, Liliana could only turn to the absolute smartest person she knew! Io-

Oh god, she was dead! She looked dead! Stiff as a board! Come to think of it, wizards stayed cloistered in big towers all day and never talked to anybody...was she dying from remembering failed romances, or never scoring!? Concerned, Liliana would float over and return to her larger size, gently touching her shoulders. "H-Hey, Io, do you have any ideas!? You're super magic-smart, so...i-is there a spell or anything that can cover the scent up? For Takeshi's sake and everymono?"


@AzureKnight

---

With numerous swordsman approaching her in spite of her stungun shots, Eula was beginning to run out of options offensively. Her strength was beyond human, but her very nature prevented her from harming humans grievously. She was even a bit shaken that she had it in her to return that cannonball from earlier. Had she already violated her protocols? What did "seriously harm" even mean? Bleeding? Bruising? A broken limb? Eula's mind raced as she considered the possibility before arriving to a conclusion:

If she didn't act to defeat the bandits, she was jeopardizing both Shizuka's safety and her own. She couldn't seriously harm the bandits...so, she simply wouldn't. With her resolve mustered as blades faced her down, Eula forsook the path of using her stun gun in rapid succession in hopes of thinning the crowd to instead stomp her foot on the ground, kicking up a good amount of dust before a shockwave followed, sending the half-dozen swordsman trained on her stumbling.

"Hm...Eula Thirty-Nine, huh? Is there really a need to use a number if you're the only one left?"

Eula wasn't sure who's voice she remembered as she slammed her fist into the side of one of the swordsmen, sending him against his comrades and causing six men to be defeated by a single blow, weapons left where they stood with their bodies crashed against a tree. An overwhelming feeling of disgust overwhelmed her mind. ...She hated this feeling. Of harming humans. But right now, she knew she was strong enough to fight without killing. Another swordsman would approach, jumping in an attempt to avoid Eula's shockwave-inducing stomps, but would find his blade caught by the Automaton. Left dangling, he'd be left wide open to the kick Eula unleashed, sending him flying towards the house where the bandit's leader had been flung.

Unflinching and with her eyes focused on the enemies around her, Eula would take great care to not get surrounded. Even if she was mostly metal, a clean strike through her limbs or torso could still damage her severely. And so she'd keep on the move, each wave of swordsman receiving the same warning.

"This unit is currently fighting at 43% strength to ensure that you all may be captured successfully. Please cease and desist by laying down your arms and allowing yourselves to be captured before you come to harm. Your resistance will be noted, and your cooperation will be appreciated," she would say, before probably immediately being charged and having to retaliate.

"This unit is currently fighting at 43% strength to ensure that you all may be captured successfully. Please cease and desist by laying down your arms and allowing yourselves to be captured before you come to harm. Your resistance will be noted, and your cooperation will be appreciated,"

Having taken down so many of them with her monstrous strength alone, the remaining bandits considered Eula's warnings to them. After seeing her make the ground quake with a stomp and sending six men crashing into a tree with a single punch, the Swordsmen hesitated in their desperate attack and began to doubt their chances against her.

But perhaps, their crossbowmen could be of some help. They knew that those crossbows had magical bolts that could give them a fighting chance against foes more powerful than them. However, those crossbowmen had already been defeated. Shizuka had snuck behind them, shooting bolts of ice that froze the ranged weapons solid and riddling their hands with instant frostbite.

Now, the bandits knew they were truly alone in this lost battle. Their leader was gone and their support was disabled, there really wasn't anything they could do anymore. As soon as the first bandit who ran away did so, tossing away his sword, the rest followed. They ran towards every direction besides Eula's and Shizuka's, screaming in terror and leaving behind their unconscious or beaten brethren.

The battle was over, with the taskforce victorious. If they wanted answers as to what really happened, they had plenty of bandits still left in this desolate village: There were the Swordsmen that Eula defeated, the crossbowmen that Shizuka took care of and the bandit leader probably still alive in that house.

---

Any and all attempts to hide his fling with Alice went down the drain the moment the Mad Hatter herself woke up and decided to explore his body as she roused awake. She then finished with a stolen yet affectionate kiss, done in front of virtually the entire taskforce. Ayu blushed at the sight and looked away.

"I rather liked the taste of your Royal Tea."

Takeshi could only watch with a miserable frown as the taskforce remarked on his situation.

“Though, I will admit this was the last thing that I was expecting to learn about after returning from the mission and getting some relaxation at the hot springs, but I can say you guys at least keep things interesting for me, soooooo when is the wedding”

"Takeshi-san, you naughty boy~ Seems you've finally succumbed to the charms of the 'dreaded' yokai. I'm glad to see that you've learned that were not so bad after all. Although, I didn't take you for being into the cute Lolita type."

"Hey, Takeshi, looks like you got your fields tilled."

...And he saw Lunatea glaring at him. Was she jealous? Well, he did give her a ride that one time.

At least, Kerry had the sense to try and talk the rest of the taskforce to the reality of the situation. As she did so, Takeshi disembarked from his horse and despite it all, still courteously helped Alice get off too. There was talk of keeping this within the taskforce, but such a secret as big as this and known to so many already was futile to hide. All he could do now was convince the others he was still of Shizuyama. If not, at least its defender.

"Agreed, we must keep this a secret... for now. These kinds of secrets don't stay secrets for long." Takeshi spoke to the yokai. "I'll take responsibility and reveal this... incident on my own terms. Hopefully, the others will understand and put the Varjan invasion first before anything."

"Now then, you'll have to forgive me but I must take my leave for now." The young lord Oja told the taskforce before leaving, patting Alice's head as a parting gesture.

"Lord Takeshi..." Ayu had a bad feeling about this. But she returned her attention to the taskforce. "I heard you guys were hungry? Well, you're in luck 'cause we just got done cooking a fresh batch of rice and fish. I know they're not the top dishes of Shizuyama, but we're not exactly running a restaurant here."

The dinner would sound tempting for those whose stomachs were rumbling, but to pursue Takeshi and see what he would do next was also an option.

"What about youz? Coming? Or you just gonna sit here all day?"

"It is called..."

"Nobutada."

The large monk stood up. "Lord Takeshi."

Indeed, the young lord Oja approached the two and interrupted the conversation between them. He looked crestfallen but determined, as if he was in the middle of accepting a gret loss or tragedy. A concerning mood that Nobutada noticed. "Milord, is everything alright?"

"Nobutada, gather the others. I need to talk to all of you. Privately." He ordered the monk before turning to Gringor. "Real sorry, but I must ask you to rejoin your taskforce for now. I heard they're having dinner."

---

---

---

*Finish 'Pre-Emptive Strike' to unlock next tale*

@PaulHaynek
Lunatea's eyes widened when Alice decided to grope Takeshi's body when she woke up. Her jaws then dropped the moment she ended it with a kiss.

Such… boldness… she didn't expect to see it… not out in the open like this…

Her glare only intensified and now she aimed it towards Alice as well.

When Takeshi said that they had to keep it a secret, she gritted her teeth.

He was right. It would be unwise to reveal it immediately. Especially knowing the humans of this place.

And yet, hiding a loving relationship like this, it gave a bad taste in her mouth. She didn't like it. Not in the slightest.

And so, she remained silent, eyeing the young lord with a grumpy "you screwed up!" look before he left.

"Lord Takeshi..." Ayu had a bad feeling about this. But she returned her attention to the taskforce. "I heard you guys were hungry? Well, you're in luck 'cause we just got done cooking a fresh batch of rice and fish. I know they're not the top dishes of Shizuyama, but we're not exactly running a restaurant here."

The dinner would sound tempting for those whose stomachs were rumbling, but to pursue Takeshi and see what he would do next was also an option.

"I'll have your dinner, please," she replied to her. "I'm starving."

There was no need to pursue him. There was nothing to say to him after all.

[ @Smellgate peeps]

Io returned to her body (more literally than the others may have realized) when she realized she was being directly talked to. Skar had proactively answered a question of hers... Question number six, to be exact, in her ordered list. Her pallid skin flushed ever-so-slightly as she worked through the information, and the grimoire quickly glowed as the information was recorded. "Noted." She said quietly, before Liliana diverted her attention back to the greater problem with a touch.

Io cocked her head at Liliana's request - partially due to the request, but partially due to her usage of 'everymono.' "There are plenty of spells that can clean all evidence of that, though I don't have any prepared. It seems like a waste of 'essence' to simply remove it..." Io plainly stated her stance on the matter to Liliana, wondering if her choice of words were too blunt. "I can prepare something quickly if needed. This kind of cleaning is elementary magic." She looked past Liliana, to Ayu, then to Takeshi, then back to Liliana. "Should it be taken care of now?" It seemed to Io that Takeshi was going to admit what happened, so covering things up may be a foregone conclusion. At the same time, the task force could convince him to hide things if they had the right tools... She would let the others decide, as Io was notably out of her element in predicting the behaviors of the townsfolk.

_{@PaulHaynek@The Irish Tree}

Stronghold

---

His plan uninterrupted, Shizuka's ice bolts hit their mark without issue. The crossbowmen yelped in pain as their hands completely froze over along with their weapons. "Apologies, gentlemen, but I'm afraid you won't be sniping at anyone at this point." He said, walking over to them. Taking his sheathed weapon off his side, he proceeded to bludgeoned both of their legs with it. Now unable to fight back, he also made sure they couldn't run away. "If you fella's have a moment, my comrade and I would like to ask you a few questions. We overheard a few of your friends talking about a woman who fell in love with one of your associates, and had even killed her whole family just to be with him. But it seemed that her love went unrequited, and she was abandoned. It hasn't been lost on me that my comrade and I may have been knowingly sucked into this farce, but we'd like to know the whole story."

He then turned his attention to Eula for a moment, noticing how easily she dispatched the remaining swordsman that tried to swarm her. Knocking them every which way with simple punches and kicks, kicking up dirt and debris in the process. Either that or subduing them with multiple torrents of projectile attacks, it seemed she had the situation under control. The remaining bandits throwing down their weapons and running away in a panicked frenzy only served to confirm this. Mission accomplished.

"Eula-san, that was well done! I trust you've no serious injuries, yes? Well, aside from the one on your arm..." He said, walking over with the two bandits he just got through tying up. "Could you watch this two louts for me? I want to check on that larger fellow, their leader. I think it's best we bring them back to the temple, we'll have them confirm with that woman the whole truth of the matter"

Phasing from view for a moment, Shizuka instantly appeared in the hole that was made by the leader sent flying. There he saw the brigand, lying belly up and the cannon ball off to the side. He immediately bound his arms and legs as well. "Up and at 'em, scoundrel." He said, kicking him out of the house and back into the fort clearing.

"Eula-chan, I believe it's safe to say that our business here is concluded. Time to head back and get some answers. Not to mention your arm would probably heal more efficiently off the field."

---

_{@PaulHaynek@Hammerman@Restalaan@Crowvette@Nakushita@Enkryption@Rezod92}

Terauchi Temple

---

Much to her chagrin, Kerry went ahead and aired out the business between her and her goblin lover. But, she did raise a brow at her and even Skarsneek decided to include Hinami as part of it.

"What are you all on about? Hinami is just my sister, not my sister wife! I'm actually rather selfish and don't like to share! Besides, Hinami's never even seen his member." As she made her rebuttal, she realized this may have started to make things awkward for her little sibling.

That was before she turned to see that Hianmi was too busy stuffing her face full of the food the temple had prepared. She could nothing but sigh at the whole situation. Seeing some of the other members still obsess over Takeshi situation, she decided to leave them to their devices. It did make her worry that what happened between him and Alice would further ostracize him from his people, and the possibility of his execution was enough to change her mind on the matter entirely. She certainly didn't save him on the beach those nights ago just to have him be killed by his own people.

"Io-chan, just so you're aware I'm also a spell caster, and you look unsure about how to approach the situation if you don't mind me saying." She said. "Let me try and talk some sense into the young lord."

Atsuha followed after Takeshi, getting his attention and stopping him for a moment.

"Takeshi-san, could you spare a moment? Perhaps there's a better way to handle this situation. Having been here for the past few days, we've seen that your people's hatred for the yokai equals, if not surpasses the threat they feel toward the Varjans. I mean, some of the natives have even begun to ally with them! Some members of the taskforce, like myself, are quite magically inclined. I'm sure can find a way to work something out." She said, trying to reason with the young lord.

Awakening, slowly, but fully, Alice would come to - the underlying aura of the other power fading - and look around. Takeshi's departing pat to the head would bring her into the scene in full.

She was surrounded.



Shaking, Alice raised Carroll, as the Cursed Blade creaked - his jaw forming in the Mundane state he'd been in. "Danger. Close. Targets. Food. Feed." Jerkily, the Cursed Blade spoke and moved; twisting Alice's left arm like a leashed beast, chomping at the bit for his chance. Alice stepped backwards, and tried to find a place to get out of the crowd, and the imaginary prison of social introversion.

Stumbling backwards, Alice fell into a familiar striking stance, but froze up - too many people were looking - they'd judge her, if she messed up - laugh at her and call her names behind her back.

Quivering, Alice would tear up, as her anxieties took over; creeping into thoughts from the desperately reclusive mushroom that crept through her body and mind. Tear-filled eyes scanned the smiling faces, twisting and perverting them into sneers of mockery and contempt. They were pointing; laughing; taunting her for her weakness before and now. Despite the power she demonstrated before Takeshi, there was a clear divide between that sealed personality, and the sheltered woman before the taskforce.

Carroll was growling like a wild beast, straining his restraints; his parasitic mass reaching further up Alice's left side; encroaching upon her neck and jaw. However, before the Cursed Blade could do anything dangerous, the Mad Hatter would "sheath" him inside her coat, and pull her hat down - hiding behind it.


Her voice was small, so small; terrified and sob-stricken

@PaulHaynek @AzureKnight (ATS) @Enkryption @Crowvette @Nakushita @Hammerman

"There are plenty of spells that can clean all evidence of that, though I don't have any prepared. It seems like a waste of 'essence' to simply remove it... I can prepare something quickly if needed. This kind of cleaning is elementary magic. Should it be taken care of now?"

"Io-chan, just so you're aware I'm also a spell caster, and you look unsure about how to approach the situation if you don't mind me saying. Let me try and talk some sense into the young lord."

"Girls, I don't think that's gonna help in the end. If the general demeanor of these Shizuyama folk is anything to go by, they'll freely admit to any guilt or shame they may feel to their peers, regardless of how harmless the act actually is.", Kerry chimed in, her finger scratching her cheek in thought as she watched Takeshi walk toward the temple, no doubt to confess to his inner circle of what happened. "The damage is already done, no matter how much we can try to hide it. All we can do is keep this particular scandal out of the ears of anyone who might do something destructively stupid."

Kerry would've gone to stop Atsuha from following Takeshi, as it was pretty clear that the fledgling lord had made up his mind, but was made to take a detour when she saw Alice in the midst of having some kind of breakdown. The sight bewildered the hornet. Just a few minutes ago, the mad hatter was in full seduce mode and was feeling Takeshi up like she wasn't out in broad daylight where people can see her. Now, she's acting like she just committed a grave sin and is scared witless, complete with crying.

Seriously, where did that 180 even come from?

"Whoa, whoa, h-hey now! No need for the waterworks, okay Alice? You didn't do anything wrong, really. It was kinda funny, actually. Nah, you just made things a bit more.... complicated.", stammered Kerry, trying to calm Alice down while looking toward Yuki and Luna for backup. "...Right?"

[@Stinkgate]

---

Liliana felt her heart break a bit when Alice looked ready to cry. ...Had...they all made her uncomfortable by making it seem like this was a bad thing? ...It wasn't. It really wasn't. It was just...a good thing at the wrong time. Takeshi's culture made it bad so...it was just something they'd have to deal with. Liliana would look a bit downtrodden, growing to her human size and looking to Alice. What could she possibly say to make this better?

...Nothing. Nothing at all. "I...um...maybe we should leave Alice alone for a bit. Takeshi too," she said. Even if she didn't have a lot of smarts about her, she did at least understand that calling so much attention to it was a mistake. She couldn't even approach Alice for fear of making her nervous breakdown worse. She'd never expected to see someone from a Wonderland look so afraid of people.

Turning back to the crowd, Liliana said: "Yeah...everyone, we should give Alice some space. Mr. Takeshi, whatever you want to tell people...give it some thought." With that, the fairy would start to float off, feeling a bit glum after all of that. It was hard to get a fairy down, but she sure was flying lower than normal.


@AzureKnight

---

Eula would begin binding the hands of the various bandits that she'd managed to take down, honestly amazed at how well the fight had gone. She herself hadn't gotten a scratch, and Shizuka had handedly disposed of many bandits from behind them with the rest running away in terror. They'd won...even if she would have liked to capture far more than they'd ended up with. She'd have to bind each of them together with rope to ensure that they couldn't get away, tying them to a sturdy tree. It wasn't like they could walk a dozen or so men back to town, so they would have to be left here for proper authorities to pick up. Perhaps they could at least take back the leader however.

At Shizuka's praise, Eula would bow her head. "If it were not for you, I would have been heavily damaged by the crossbowmen. Perhaps even fatally. At the mention of her arm's damage, Eula would undo the binding covering it and examine her circuitry in detail. "Luckily, a simple fix due to damage being to the circuitry and not the joint." She would keep watch on the two bandits that Takeshi tied up, believing that they would take these three back.

Once everything was ready, Eula would look at the Bandit Leader. "Be aware that refusing to answer my questions is not an option. Query 1: Were you tasked with slaughtering the home of a woman who professed her love to you? Query 2: Can you describe this woman if she does exist in detail? Query 3: Have you encountered any Varjan patrols since your criminal activities in the area began?" Eula knew that humans could be stubborn, and as such looked to Shizuka. "Shizuka, if he does not answer, are you comfortable with torturing him on my behalf? I am incapable of grievously harming humans...but, I suppose he is strong enough that my parameters could be loosened."

Seeing that as an opportunity to demonstrate how outmatched the bandits were even now, Eula would pick up a decently sized stone in her good hand before crushing it into pebbles with one motion. "Non-vital body parts may be optimal for targeting, including: Hair, pinky fingers, and testicles..."

@Enkryption
Lunatea scratched her head at Alice's sudden change of demeanor. She was just flirting with him yet all of a sudden she acted like she was scared? It didn't make sense!

Maybe she got some… condition that disturbed her mind or something?

"Please, don't be afraid. We meant you no harm." She said as gently as she could, bending over a little to look at her right in the eye. "We're just… concerned about your relationship with Takeshi, that's all."

Yes, concerned. That's the word. It wasn't because she was jealous or anything like that!

"It's not our business to question your relationship with him. However, we are simply worried that he will be in hot water if his people know what has transpired." She glanced at Takeshi. "These humans… they won't take it lightly that their leader has a relationship with our kind."

@Rezod92@The Irish Tree@PaulHaynek@Enkryption@AzureKnight@Hammerman@The Irish Tree

Yuki

Yuki couldn’t keep the grin off her face as she continued to revel in the moment. “That is true, but it wouldn’t be quite as fun without a bit of distraction every now and then Kerryyyyyy” Dragging out her name as she had said it as her eyes drifted towards Takeshi and Alice. “Besides, I’m not the one you have to worry about keeping things a secret, I wouldn’t mention it to anyone that I don’t know regardless, butttttt, if she is going around grabbing him like that, well it may be a bit hard to keep such a thing a secret even if we don’t say anything” Clasping her hands behind her back as she continued to smile.

Hanging back as she listened in to the other members of the task force all discuss the situation. Finding it all quite entertaining, though she was also able to learn a bit more about each one of them. After all, she had only had the chance to interact with a limited number of the task-forces members in her short time here. Though she could have never imagined this would be the way she would meet some of them for the first time. But oh well, at least it was proving to be interesting at the very least.

Hearing Kerry and the twins get into it for a moment as Yuki stayed out of it. Not knowing much about the situation or relationship between those that was being brought up. Regardless, Yuki was quite enjoying herself, especially since none of it was directed her way. Meaning all she had to do is sit back and relax while she enjoyed the free entertainment.

Though when Kerry looked for her for support Yuki relented not wanting to leave her hanging “My My, there is no need to be saddened or shed tears, it is quite natural to engage in such extracurricular activities, besides no one is really all that upset about it, so no need to worry. I’m sure there will be a solution suitable for everyone”

"If you fella's have a moment, my comrade and I would like to ask you a few questions. We overheard a few of your friends talking about a woman who fell in love with one of your associates, and had even killed her whole family just to be with him. But it seemed that her love went unrequited, and she was abandoned. It hasn't been lost on me that my comrade and I may have been knowingly sucked into this farce, but we'd like to know the whole story."

"We don't know anything!" One of the crossbowmen exclaimed. "We just do what we're told! We didn't even know this was a lover's quarrel or something. Well, there were rumors circulating around the group but we thought they were just rumors! We didn't know it was true, much less the details." He explained. "The leader, the one who got cannoball'd. He has all the answers."

"Non-vital body parts may be optimal for targeting, including: Hair, pinky fingers, and testicles..."

"What the hell is a testicle?" The cannoneer muttered before coughing from the pain of his abdomen. "But I get your message. I don't plan on any of me getting crushed into powder."

"Heh, this is about a girl named Saki, isn't it?" The bandit leader then laughed. "She put you up to this? Nah, you wouldn't be asking these question if that's the case. You got suckered, didn't you?" He laughed again, savoring the moment while he still had it. "If you were this easy to trick, yokai, then no wonder we kept you out of this island all this time."

"But yeah, about Saki. We saved her from a bunch of Varjans. She got lovestruck, told her we needed food, she told us where her house is, we came for the food." The leader laughed again. "The food wasn't that much, probably why her family fought pretty ferociously. They all died, either way." Another laugh followed. "We kept the girl alive, though. Y'know, fair's fair."

"And nah, hadn't seen a Varjan ever since that incident. Haven't seen a proper Shizuyaman warrior either. They're all dead, aren't they? Gotta be the only reason a yokai could enter this island."

---

Before Liliana could leave, Ayu placed a hand on her shoulder to stop her.

While the others consoled Alice, Ayu tried her hand on a pep talk for the gloomy Fairy. "Come on, Liliana. Don't be like that. I mean, you're not just any Fairy but a knight Fairy in direct service to a Titania. Don't let stuff like this get you down. Don't leave when we need your inspiring personality the most."

"And besides, a sad Fairy in our midst? It's pretty disheartening, you know?" Ayu finished.





Moments after dismissing Gringor, Takeshi was about to speak to Nobutada when Atsuha appeared. Her sudden arrival surprised the young lord Oja, although he soon figured what she was really here for. "Nobutada, I think need to be alone with her right now. Just gather the others for now and I'll meet you all later."

"Milord, if the yokai are giving you trouble..." Nobutada offered.

But Takeshi put up a hand. "Just... trust me, my friend. I can handle this just fine." The large monk bowed and quickly left the lord and spider yokai alone in this secluded location with a huge tree to the side.

"Takeshi-san, could you spare a moment? Perhaps there's a better way to handle this situation. Having been here for the past few days, we've seen that your people's hatred for the yokai equals, if not surpasses the threat they feel toward the Varjans. I mean, some of the natives have even begun to ally with them! Some members of the taskforce, like myself, are quite magically inclined. I'm sure can find a way to work something out."

"I... appreciate your efforts to help me. Really, I do. But... I don't want to hide anything, especially not from my trusted friends." Takeshi began his reply. "They trust me, and as the heir to this island, look up to me as well. You know, set an example and all that. I don't want to betray their trust, and while I don't mind keeping secrets, what... happened to me and Alice is one secret that I can't keep."

"And besides, if I do keep it and it gets discovered, I'd be more in trouble. Right?" Takeshi finished before scratching the back of his head. "I... don't know what's gonna happen to me. Normally, that act usually warrants death. But we're not in normal times, and I'm the son of the island's Lord. Maybe I'll just be exiled, or just disinherited."

Takeshi wanted to place a hand on Atsuha's shoulder for reassurance, but she was too tall and large for his hand to reach it. He eventually settled on patting the Jorou-Gumo's arachnid legs. "All I'm saying is, you guys don't need to worry about me. Worry about the Varjan invasion, and the people of Shizuyama."

---

---

---

*Finish 'Pre-Emptive Strike' to unlock next tale*

@AzureKnight

Skarsneek of the Red Hills

Seeing Takeshi taking his leave had him waved to the young lord before finally leaving out of sight.

"Well, let's go get something in our stomachs." He put both hands on the back of his head before eyes tilted to Atsuha's own words and snickered. He suppose he'll have to stop teasing her on it.

Though as they left to get some food, Atsuha chased after Takeshi. For a moment, he wondered if he should follow.

Well, it's not something he can solve. Honestly, this was a situation with no happy ending. Well, not for Takeshi's family as a whole. He certainly can get one but Skarsneek doubt Takeshi would be happy to hear that conclusion.

That and well, he wasn't the best for such a delicate situation. Skarsneek was an outsider, even though he spoke near-perfect Zipangu language. He'll never be seen as anything but that, even if he was human. Better to leave it to a local to handle it. So in the meantime, he'll have to take care of the younger sister.

With that in mind, he followed Hinami, completely missing out Alice breakdown as he sat and dine with the younger Hangai sister.

"Slow down. You don't want to choke, and chew your food properly." Skarsneek said to Hinami and then used his finger to pick off some of the stray rice off her cheeks.

"By the way, how's the mission with your sister?" Skarsneek asked in between bites with a nodding look. "Did Sorae go nuts again?"

---

@PaulHaynek@Hammerman@The Irish Tree@Nakushita@Rezod92@Enkryption@Crowvette

Gringor of the Ironhide tribe

"Underboss," Gringor greeted and inclined his head. "You missed the fight, want to join in next time?"

Though on hearing of him being asked to join others for dinner, Gringor grunted and gave a small wave.

That's when he saw the spider lady, Atsuha was it? The one that's infatuated with that garbage of a goblin.

"Underboss says to go eat dinner." He said to the spider but seeing how determined she was, he'll let Takeshi handle the discipline.

Moving back to the group as he tromped forwards, his wound already scabbing after the day. By tomorrow after a good night's rest and he'll be right back to full health.

Though seeing everyone gathering around, he wondered what was going on before reaching the mad hatter. An eyebrow rose as she looked hunched over and threatened to cry.

Was she that upset over the loss? Or was it because she missed out on the fight?

Probably the latter as his eyes looked upwards, he'll feel a lot bummed out too if he knew that he just missed a good fight. Especially since she fought against them before.

"Ey, mad boi." Gringor bit the side of his lips before admitting that he hadn't beaten them. "There's plenty more of those basket 'eads that we need to bash their heads in, you in?"

He got no other choice but to get more hands to join in for this one. Some of the task force already know earlier, but if Alice bothered to look at Gringor, she'll notice the wound and slight bruises around his body.

[ @ eating peeps ]

Io watched the events unfold with a detached look - Alice was clearly in a worse state than Io had first thought, but she wasn't sure if there was anything she could directly offer. Especially not in the moment. She was glad there were far more empathic members of the task force to help - Though she did agree with Ayu that Liliana becoming sad seemed simply wrong.

Io tried her best to enjoy a modest amount of the food being offered. While it had been a while since she last ate food physically, it was something she didn't mind revisiting now and then. She didn't want to take too much food from the living but she admittedly did need to recover energy somehow - and her preferred method would not go over well, especially after the most recent incident.

As she slowly ate, she stole looks at Gringor. He was the first example of a male mamono she had seen, and stood in stark contrast to Skar, the other she encountered today. She didn't want to play favourites, of course, so she tried her best to record notes about them in an unbiased manner. 'That being said... Extra care must be taken to sketch his muscles...' She thought, the note being copied to her grimoire's pages.

...In the end, there was a certain amount of Io's nature that she couldn't deny.

Emotions were a powerful and fickle thing; able to induce great strength, and inflict great weakness, in equal measure. Of the Emotional Pantheon, Anger and Fear were equals and opposites - able to cancel each other in extremes, and invoke the strongest physical responses. As everyone crowed around Alice, her fear only mounted - she'd only been able to handle Takeshi due to needing to replenish her Energy, and him being acceptably close.

He was a snack.

A fling, in Human terms.

Arguably enjoyable, but nothing that she would take seriously - at least, emotionally. A consistent snack was a good thing for someone that drained Magic as recklessly as she did.

However, she needed a feast...

"Ey, mad boi. There's plenty more of those basket 'eads that we need to bash their heads in, you in?"

Mad?

Gringor's voice cut down her fear of the crowd, effortlessly, and extended a hand to allow her anger to surface.

She wasn't mad.

Far from.

She was hungry.

She needed something filling.

Someone filling.

Like a switch flipped, her tears dried and her shakes ceased; replaced by a narrowed gaze, and an amused smirk.

"You'll more than suffice," Alice says, with a strange edge to her softness - like a predator speaking to her prey.

Stepping forward, Alice made the same dipping motion she had days ago, and cast part of the spell that set her behind Gringor - however, the plume of flame never came. Instead, it was replaced by her soft, silken fingers running lazy circles around his pectorals; fingertips coming to rest at the sensitive center, before sliding down to his navel, and ending with a dip below the belt.

"Such a hard body, yet soft in the wrong place," Alice purred, fingers sinking lower. "Tempted to have that rematch, now. See which of us winds up on their back first, straddling the other in control..."

Anyone with half a brain could understand the innuendo beneath the veil of aggression.

@PaulHaynek @Restalaan (GRI) @Enkryption

"Ey, mad boi. There's plenty more of those basket 'eads that we need to bash their heads in, you in?"

As she finished up her meal, Kerry would notice Gringor's approach and apparent invitation. It would seem the high orc wanted to take on a quest that not only sent him running, but Alice as well. Speaking of which...

Seriously, where did that 180 come from!?, Kerry thought in exasperated bewilderment as she saw Alice go from weeping her eyes out in lament to blatantly trying to get into Gringor's pants. What, was the Takeshi special not the meal of the day for the mad hatter!?

With a sigh, Kerry stood up, stretching for a moment before approaching the duo.

"Yo. If you're down for having a third member, let me tag along. This quest sounds pretty tough if it bounced you and Alice back, so why not go at it as a team?", Kerry asked Gringor with a smirk. Then she noticed Alice's hand going down south....very down south, to which the hornet once more slapped the hand away. "Will you cut that out!? Not with the locals watching!"

@Enkryption@Crowvette@Rezod92

Gringor of the Ironhide Tribe

Gringor looked at the Alice eagerness for a lay with a tilt of his head before planting his axe upwards to the side.

Then without any word, his arms wrapped around Alice own. Eliciting shock from everyone around but that was as far as the shock went.

Hmm. He tapped her arms first, slender and slim, then moved to pat her down to her waist and thighs. Inspecting her even before standing straight back up.

Brows furrowed, Gringor clicked his tongue and shook his head.

"Too skinny." Gringor said, before lifting his axe again and left. That was the end of it. "Youz want a fight, sure. But a mate, no."

That he barely had any pheromones, while a constant, being emitted out or at its weakest. Was a definite sign. Gringor just wasn't interested.