There's definitely things to do instead of crying or feeling victimized. You could calmly digest the nice advices people gave you 14 hours ago, for example.
4
likes
Bio
Seriously, pineapples are, like, miracle fruits. Pineapple jelly? Yum. Pineapple juice? Ooooh. Pineapple cake? Yesss. Pineapple cookie? Godly! Pineapple salad? Ambrosia. Pineapple pizza? The best pizza there is, fight me. Got nothing to do with pens though, so I wonder what that one Japanese guy was all about...
Things had ended up proceeding in a way that was quite unexpected by Ryuuko. Considering how all in attendance had seemingly been unwilling to volunteer until she herself had done so, she had thought that she'll be the only one to actually volunteer. Evidently that wasn't the case at all, what's with even non-egoists also ending up volunteering to supervise Jeanne for the next three days. Unexpected, yes, but hardly an unwelcome development. It's definitely different from what she had planned, but that might just make things even better for her purpose instead.
When Franz came forward to defend Jeanne, Ryuuko smiled widely. Frankly, Ryuuko didn't really doubt that Jeanne was indeed the one who had burned the library down. The evidences aside, it took someone like Jeanne to be able to do so. However, even if indeed she was the arson, it didn't mean that some sort of foul play had not occurred. After all, as wild and unpredictable as Jeanne's actions had been, it's extremely unlikely that she would burn down the entire library without some kind of reason. And considering everything, it didn't take a genius to note that the undisclosed person that had managed to detain Jeanne and spread the photograph around were very likely involved in this fishy occurrence. Thus, she at least agreed with Franz's conclusion that there's definitely more than meets the eye here.
Of course, that wasn't the only thing that made her smile. Franz had once more proven to be quite the interesting and likeable fellow indeed, what's with being so ready to state his opinion and question the wigged boy's proclamation despite the boy's position. It was quite impressive indeed in Ryuuko's mind. As for the other volunteers, Ryuuko also definitely didn't expect that Bang out of all people would volunteer for this. But then again, they did said that he's a hero and a real sweetheart to boot. Perhaps he had volunteered out of the kindness of his heart. If so, that was not a bad motive at all. Again, impressive. The next to volunteer, Ryuuko knew quite little about. I think I saw him yesterday... One of those who danced? And that was all that Ryuuko thought about it. She did found his question to be a bit weird. Could it be that this young man didn't know that a proper Egoist would be able to very quickly and very decisively stop Jeanne before she can cause any damage, if it ever came to that? But hey, he did asked a question that no one else asked. Going against convention, in a way. I can very much respect that.
The last person to volunteer, again not an Egoist, actually nodded at Ryuuko. This one she definitely had seen before. She were one of those that Ryuuko didn't recognize among the group of four that she talked with Bang about during yesterday night's party. In any case, Ryuuko returned the gesture by nodding back, adding a friendly smile to go along with it. Considering the situation, she will obviously be getting acquainted with this white haired girl and the equally white-haired boy that had became her fellow volunteers. It should prove to be interesting, if nothing else.
Soon enough, the "examination" were concluded. Other students aside from Ryuuko, Jeanne, Franz, and the other volunteers started to leave, as did the pompous wigged boy. Ryuuko paid them no heed as she quickly moved to join the others. The very first thing she did was to walk straight to Jeanne. She smiled as she addressed the still bound arson. "When we parted ways yesterday, I didn't expect that our next meeting would be like this, Jeanne. Very... curious, to say the least, heh. Anyway, let's get these things off you, hmm?" She proceeded to remove the leather mitts that covered Jeanne's hands, freeing her of the bounding. "In any case, we definitely have quite a bit to talk about. And by 'we', I mean all of us here, of course."
Next, she turned to Franz, nodding at him and giving him a wide friendly grin. "And if you are to defend Jeanne here, then it seems we will be working together in this, dear friend. Truly, you kept on exceeding my expectations... Very delightful! And of course, I agree with you that there's definitely something fishy going on here." She then finished with a giggle before turning around to address Inti as he introduced himself to all those present. She nodded at him, keeping her smile on. "A pleasant to make your acquaintance, Inti. I'm Ryuuko. Higashiakemi Ryuuko. I'm looking forward to working with you!" Lastly, she turned her gaze toward Bang and Nazca, the latter of which she still know virtually nothing about. "And of course, the two of you as well, Mr. Bang and miss...?"
It all began with a rather gaudy welcome befitting the equally theatrical procession of new students to the academy, just as she had been told beforehand by her handler. The ringing bells, the voices of the crowd, the flower petals raining down upon the students, all the bright colors typical of a festive celebration. These were all also things that she had been told to expect.
This is... Quite a lot to take in.
And yet despite all the information and expectation she brought with her, it all still felt so weird; almost out of the world even. The last time she had seen this many people gathered together was the day she and the rest of the new candidates of the Lotus Sentry were formally inducted into the organization after a few months of intense training, and even then it had been a rather subdued ceremony despite the great number of people present. It was cold, tense, and spartan that day. The only loud enough noises back then began with the main part of the ceremony: the noises of weapons clashing, screams of the dying, and the cacophony of magic tearing the arena apart. The ceremony that she and half of her peers survived after killing off the other half. Unforgiving, horrible, and heartless. It was a far cry from this procession where joy, excitement, and extravagance reigned supreme. This celebration was a new experience with a bit too much stimulation for her senses. Too much for someone who were trained to be dull to emotions and needless stimulation.
Memories of other, far humbler but just as joyful celebrations surfaced in her mind. Chuseok, the yearly harvest festival celebrated in her home village. Heroes Day Celebration, in honor of the Tan Keoulian heroes who ensured Tan Keoul's independence against invaders. And her own 15th birthday party... It was when she remembered this that the memories wavered, replaced with bleaker ones. A sense of dread started to fill her mind, and she involuntarily flinched as she walked. It was just a few days after that very birthday celebration that Eun-Ji's life were to no longer be her own.
No. There's no point in remembering such things. No point in lamenting what had already came to pass.
With that though, she quickly regained control of her mind, shaking the distracting memories off. She was here in a mission after all, as her commander had repeated again and again to her. A student she might be and study she will indeed, but she must always remember that this were all so that she will be an even deadlier weapon for the emperor and Tan Keoul to utilize.
So there, among the artisans and the other civil servants that made up this section of the student procession, Seung Eun-Ji kept her gaze mostly straight to the front. She tried her best not to attract any attention as she definitely didn't need anymore stimulation considering what were already there were quite enough to discomfort her. Unfortunately, her rather exotic dress wasn't really helping her much with not attracting any attention. Sure, she was far from the only one with exotic appearance in this day and the crowd of students made it unlikely for her to be anyone's specific center of attention, but that fact didn't really help with making her feel anymore comfortable. She hoped that the procession will end quickly, but hoping by itself won't actually affect anything much. So she decided to focus her attention towards the beating of her own heart instead as she walked with the rest of the procession. Thump thump thump. Focusing on the sound of her heart had always been a source of comfort for her. It reminded her that even if her life were no longer her own, at least she's still alive regardless. Thump thump thump thump. Soon enough, all other noises faded away, shut out of Eun-Ji's mind. She continued to walk while performing her own little ritual. A deep breathe in, a deep breathe out, repeated over and over for a minute and finished with a softly whispered mantra. "Long live the emperor, All hail Tan Keoul, For the prosperity of the Lotus we live."
And just like that, she had fully obtained control. The previously overwhelming noises, sights, and vibrations no longer affected her as all became nothing more than barely perceptible distractions. She looked to the side, to where the crowd were cheering the students on. Yet in her eyes, they were as if mere blurred images. Nobody in the crowd were of particular note, as with the noises they made. She continued her observation of the surrounding, all pointless stimulation tuned out from her senses. Here, far behind the noble students, there really didn't seem to be anything much worth of note. If there had been any, her focused mind would quickly pick it out among the insignificant. It would have been like a sharp image among the blurred ones, or a clear sound among the tuned out silence. If only she had been closer, Leon Solaire and the little show he had put on would have been one such sharp image and clear sound, but as it happened she was simply too far away from there.
One with the flow, one with tranquility. Merge with the world. One with the heaven, one with Dunjia. And the world will declare to you its shape and voice.
Thus Eun-Ji continued walking with the procession among the artisans and other civil servants, senses at peace yet also focused. One of the five hundreds, moving onward to the plaza that was to be their destination.
"As young children, we learnt that it is wrong to put out the light of another. Yet inevitably, innocence will be lost over time. And all became but means to an end, even as the voice in our heart kept telling us that it's wrong."
Eun-Ji is a rather quiet individual, possessing a calm and contemplative demeanor. For the most parts, she is an individual with little personal ambitions. She would have been completely fine continuing to live a normal life as a commoner like her parents, yet instead her gift caused her to be what she now is, far away from a mundane and peaceful life. Thus she saw her gift in rather of a melancholic light; like destiny having a bit of fun out of her life. Furthermore, she's naturally honest and possessed of strong aversion towards lies and deception. Considering her line of work often necessitated the usage of such dishonest means, this made it even more of a dilemma for her.
Still, she's not in reality one of melancholic disposition, and thus had decided to still live her life as best she can; she saw no point in dwelling upon circumstances that are now out of her control.
C H A R A C T E R A P P E A R A N C E
General Outfit
Design Details
Of purely Tan Keoulian heritage, Eun-Ji generally possessed the typical physical features of her people. At 158cm tall (5'2), she is of average height for an adult female Tan Keoulian. She is rather on the slim side and is well-toned, mostly owing to the athletics and martial arts training she received upon becoming a Lotus Sentry. This can be a bit difficult to perceive due to the way that she dresses, mostly wearing clothes inspired by the traditional clothing of Tan Keoul called Hanbok which are baggy dress that covers most of the wearer's upper body. Most of the clothes that she wears were brought over from Tan Keoul due to the fact that it was hard to find a tailor in Revidia who knew how to properly make Tan Keoulian clothes. They were all confused by the significant differences and complexities of what were basically very exotic fashion to them.
Her significantly long hair is typically done quite simply with a single front braid and a pair of pig tails on the back, giving it a more intricate look than it really is. A notable physical trait, if it is to be called as such, would be her much paler complexion in comparison to most other people of Tan Keoul.
L A N G U A G E S
Eun-Ji is completely fluent in Tan Keoulian, owing to it being her native language. Additionally, she is also fluent in Avincian as a matter of necessity. Furthermore she is semi fluent in Kanjikish and Rettanese, being able to hold conversations in the two languages quite well although not as capable of writing and reading the letters.
T H E G I F T
Eun-Ji's gift in magic pretty much defined what her life had ended up becoming. Born to a family of simple farmers, Eun-ji's life took a significant turn upon the discovery of her being a Skyborn; an already rare lineage made even rarer by the fact that she's not East Constantian. While her RAS score is rather average, it combined with her Skyborn lineage made her the perfect candidate for the Tan Keoulian's Lotus Sentries; the country's equivalent of a special operations force tasked with the protection of the country's internal stability via clandestine operations. In practice, she doesn't really need an extraordinary RAS score.
Eun-Ji's natural talents with magic are highly specialized. First and foremost, she is a Kinetic mage with a strong disposition toward Liquid Telekinesis. This natural specialty then became the focus point of her entire magical repertoire, as even the training she received upon her induction into the Lotus Sentries was centered on it. Given the best instructors that the organization can provide, these same instructors guided her to learn from the Arcane school of magic as her secondary specialization, specifically the utilization of illusion and misdirection that are unique to the school. Combined, these two specializations created something unique to Eun-Ji's magic: Illusion based not only on light, but reinforced by actual substance and corporeality in the form of liquid (most often water) instead of merely a trick of sight. She's even able to cause the illusion to vocalize thanks to the Kinetic school's manipulation of sound waves. All of these combined practically allowed her to create liquid clones of herself, her own unique spell: Mirage of Lotus.
Her training continues heavily along this line, with Eun-Ji constantly working on perfecting the Mirage of Lotus. However, due to this specialization (which can be argued as overspecialization) in liquid manipulation and illusion, she's not much good at anything else. She is able to conjure elementary spells such as creating licks of flames or the average fireball thanks to her Arcane training, or somewhat strengthen the impact of her physical strikes thanks to her Kinetic training, but such things are not her specialties and indeed remained at rather elementary level.
Being a Blackblood-Skyborn, Eun-Ji is middling in regards to the many determinants of spell power. She is much or less average in drawing efficiency, containment efficiency, and conversion efficiency. However, as part of her specialized training as a Lotus Sentry, she received intensive training in the practice of Freecasting, making her of considerable skill in being a Freecaster.
B A C K G R O U N D
Born to a family of farmers, Eun-Ji's life prior to the discovery of her gift by the government was very much mundane and not unlike most other commoners. She went to a typical Gwanhak (public government school for commoners) for her education, helped with working in her family's farm, and played with her friends as all common children does. There are many that would consider such a life boring, but Eun-Ji was completely content with such a life. It was mundane and filled with hard work, but it was also honest and humble; a simple yet idyllic life. Her weird natural ability in manipulating liquid itself was no secret, it first happened when she were 8 years old, helping move containers of water around the farm. Somehow, she were able to make the water move by themselves, which were very convenient as far as watering the farm plants went. Yet the simple family and their friends didn't think much of it beyond that; they were simple people with simple aspirations. It simply made her especially helpful as a farmhand as far as everyone were concerned. In everyone's eyes including her own, her ability was no different from those parlor tricks that the not-quite-mages are able to do. Compared to that, it was then no surprise that the fact of her seemingly being far more agile, light-footed, and tireless compared to most other children weren't at all considered as anything unusual.
Of course, this all changed upon her gift coming to broader light. As part of the Tan Keoulian government's efforts in discovering talents like Eun-Ji's own, examinations were done for all children attending a Gwanhak once they reached the age of 15. Turned out the extend of her potential went far beyond "moving water around for watering farm plants". Being that Eun-Ji's RAS score very nearly reached the mark of 7, the government officials in charge of the examination knew immediately that they had found a valuable asset among the commoners. They took her aside away from the rest of her peers, performed more in-depth examinations on her, and found something even more intriguing. The things with her being far more agile, light-footed, and tireless than most other? Those were no fluke either. Those were because of Eun-Ji being a Skyborn. From there, things developed quite rapidly. The government officials immediately explained everything to Eun-Ji, offering her to work for the government with promises of wealth and elevated social positions and all such other benefits that would be nothing more than dreams for most commoners to ever possibly achieve.
And yet she refused, a humble life was all that the young Eun-Ji had ever wanted. All these things about greatness and magic and so on intimidated her; she didn't want to lose her peaceful life. No further promises of prosperity were able to change her mind... So the promises quickly changed to subtle threats of harm to herself, her family, and her friends. Underhanded remarks of how easy it would be for a village such as the one she lived in to disappear, how unfortunate it would be for that to happen. Eun-Ji quickly realized that the "offer" wasn't one that she can refuse. Left with no choice, she resigned herself to it. And so her blissful simple life promptly ended. What came next were things she would never even had thought of learning or doing at all before. Martial arts training, athletics training, magic training, espionage training, political indoctrination, training training training training training. "Long live the emperor, All hail Tan Keoul, For the prosperity of the Lotus we live."
Three years passed. Long enough of a time for a child to lose the innocence of her mind. "Fighting" every single day, not knowing when her own light might go out. Once an innocent crying child, now sharpened into a knife to pierce the heart of the emperor's enemies. The child's training with her appointed instructors were done, there wasn't anything left to learn from them. Yet there are others still that can help sharpen her. And where best to do so than in the school boasted to have the highest quality of education in the arts of magic?
M O T I V A T I O N
Long resigned to her "destiny", Eun-Ji is motivated simply by the fact that she have no other choice but to continue doing her best. In her mind, there is clearly no way for her to be able to get away from her current path. Even attempting to do so will likely bring upon terrible consequences upon herself and her family and potentially even the village she once called home. Faced with such possibility, what else can she possibly do? Fear is as strong a motivation as any, if not even more than most others.
Thus continue doing her best she will, as such is what the great emperor and the prosperous Tan Keoul requires of her.
I N V E N T O R Y
- As far as monetary wealth is concerned, being government funded meant it isn't really an issue for Eun-Ji. The money's not actually hers, so to speak, but regardless she will find no trouble in funding her study and daily life in the academy. - Paper Talismans: Commonly used across Rettand in place of staff or wands, these paper talismans were specifically made to aid a mage with the process of Preservation. While Eun-Ji generally have little use of these due to her skill in freecasting, she still keeps them around just in case. - Blank Talismans and ink pens: Tools to make more of the above talismans. - Waist Case: Wooden ornamental case serving as Eun-Ji's bag. - Books: Mostly philosophical tomes. She always bring at least one with her in her case, while the rest would be stashed in her dorm room. - Meditation Mat: An otherwise simple linen mat, with intricate patterns and Tan Keoulian letters drawn upon it. As the name implied, this is used for meditation.
S T R E N G T H S & S K I L L S
❖ Athletics: As a Lotus Sentry, Eun-Ji were trained to be considerably athletic. Specifically for her, she is given even more intensive training in regards to physical speed, agility, and flexibility to take advantage of her lineage as a Skyborn. ❖ Martial Art: Similarly, Eun-Ji were trained in the Tan Keoulian martial art of Seun-chi-go up to an adept level as per Lotus Sentry standard. The martial art takes advantage of quick and precise movements among other things, fitting quite well with Eun-Ji's athletic capabilities. ❖ Calmness: Eun-Ji is in general capable of remaining calm under pressure and even in intense situations. ❖ Honesty: Due to Eun-Ji being very honest, people are more likely to trust her. ❖ Philosophical Knowledge: Due to her natural predisposition towards philosophical thought, Eun-Ji is quite knowledgeable in regards to philosophy.
W E A K N E S S E S & F L A W S
❖ Resignation: As a result of her background, Eun-Ji possessed a kind of proneness towards being resigned. That is to say, she kind of gives up easily if she believe that something is out of her control. ❖ Lack of Ambition: Eun-Ji lacks personal ambition, believing that she is at the mercy of destiny. As such, it is quite unlikely for her to pick up on new skills out of her own will. ❖ Calmness: Being calm meant that she is also bad at being spontaneous. In situations where impulsive action would net better results than a carefully measured one, Eun-Ji is at a clear disadvantage. ❖ Honesty: Being honest also meant that Eun-Ji is horrible at lying or performing other forms of deception. Even without considering her line of work, the inability to lie can be a serious disadvantage in certain situations. ❖ Street-Blind: That is to say, she's the exact opposite of a street smart individual. For someone that were supposedly trained as a clandestine agent, she's horrible at dealing with shady individuals or situations.
M I S C E L L A N E O U S
- Eun-Ji's true role as a Lotus Sentry for Tan Keoul is unsurprisingly being kept a secret from the people in the academy excepting those that need to know it. The cover story given to her was that she's just a cadet of the Tan Keoul Army's Mage Division. - Eun-Ji's hobby is, unsurprisingly enough, reading. Additionally she also enjoyed fishing, which was accomodated by Tan Keoul being a heavily maritime country. - Eun-Ji is fond of animals, partially influenced by her experiences in taking care of farm animals. - She loves sour food but can't handle spicy food at all. Kimchi, which is basically a traditional Tan Keoul pickle, is a serious dilemma for her due to it generally being both sour and spicy. - Eun-Ji and her family members are not religious, although they do follow a system of belief heavily based on the karma aspects.
Changelog: - January 27th, 2022: Changed learned martial art to Seun-chi-go. - February 12th, 2022: Updated RAS because ate "something" accidentally.
"As young children, we learnt that it is wrong to put out the light of another. Yet inevitably, innocence will be lost over time. And all became but means to an end, even as the voice in our heart kept telling us that it's wrong."
Eun-Ji is a rather quiet individual, possessing a calm and contemplative demeanor. For the most parts, she is an individual with little personal ambition. She would have been completely fine continuing to live a normal life as a commoner like her parents, yet instead her gift caused her to be what she now is, far away from a mundane and peaceful life. Thus saw her gift in rather of a melancholic light; like destiny having a bit of fun out of her life. Furthermore, she's naturally honest and possessed of strong aversion towards lies and deception. Considering her line of work often necessitated the usage of such dishonest means, this made it even more of a dilemma for her.
Still, she's not in reality one of melancholic disposition, and thus had decided to still live her life as best she can; she saw no point in dwelling upon circumstances that are now out of her control.
C H A R A C T E R A P P E A R A N C E
Design Details
Practical Outfit
Of purely Tan Keoulian heritage, Eun-Ji generally possessed the typical physical features of her people. At 158cm tall (5'2), she is of average height for an adult female Tan Keoulian. She is rather on the slim side and is well-toned, mostly owing to the athletics and martial arts training she received upon being an agent of Tan Keoulian's government. This can be a bit difficult to see due to the way that she dress, mostly wearing clothes inspired by the traditional clothing of Tan Keoul called Hanbok which are baggy dress that covers most of the wearer's upper body. Her significantly long hair is typically done quite simply with a single front braid and a pair of pig tails on the back, giving it a more complicated look than it really is.
A notable trait, if it is to be called as such, would be her much paler complexion in comparison to most other people of Tan Keoul.
L A N G U A G E S
Eun-Ji is completely fluent in Tan Keoulian, owing to it being her native language. Additionally, she is also fluent in Avincian as a matter of necessity. Furthermore she is semi fluent in Kanjikistan and Rettanese, being able to hold conversation in the two languages quite well although not as capable of writing and reading the letters of said languages.
T H E G I F T
Eun-Ji's gift in magic pretty much defined what her life had ended up becoming. Born to a family of simple farmers, Eun-ji's life took a significant turn upon the discovery of her being a Skyborn; an already rare lineage made even rarer by the fact that she's not East Constantian. While her RAS score is rather average, it combined with her Skyborn lineage made her the perfect candidate for the Tan Keoulian's Lotus Sentries; the country's equivalent of a special operations force tasked with the protection of the country's internal stability via clandestine operations. In practice, she doesn't really need an extraordinary RAS score.
Eun-Ji's natural talents with magic are highly specialized. First and foremost, she is a Kinetic mage with a strong disposition toward Liquid Telekinesis. This natural specialty then became the focus point of her entire magical repertoire, as even the training she received upon her induction into the Lotus Society was centered on it. Given the best instructors that the organization can provide, these same instructors guided her to learn from the Arcane school of magic as her secondary specialization, specifically the utilization of illusion and misdirection that are unique to the school. Combined, these two specializations created something unique to Eun-Ji's magic: Illusion based not only on light, but reinforced by actual substance and corporeality in the form of liquid (most often water) instead of merely a trick of sight. She's even able to cause the illusion to vocalize thanks to the Kinetic school's manipulation of sound waves. All of these combined practically allowed her to create liquid clones of herself, her own unique spell: Mirage of Lotus.
Her training continues heavily along this line, with Eun-Ji constantly working on perfecting the Mirage of Lotus. However, due to this specialization (which can be argued as overspecialization) in liquid manipulation and illusion, she's not much good at anything else. She is able to conjure elementary spells such as creating licks of flames or the average fireball thanks to her Arcane training, or somewhat strengthen the impact of her physical strikes thanks to her Kinetic training, but such things are not her specialties and indeed remained at rather elementary level.
B A C K G R O U N D
Born to a family of farmers, Eun-Ji's life prior to the discovery of her gift by the government was very much mundane and not unlike most other commoners. She went to a typical Gwanhak (public government school for commoners) for her education, helped with working in her family's farm, and played with her friends as all common children does. There are many that would consider such a life boring, but Eun-Ji was completely content with such a life. It was mundane and filled with hard work, but it was also honest and humble; a simple yet idyllic life. Her weird natural ability in manipulating liquid itself was no secret, it first happened when she were 8 years old, helping move containers of water around the farm. Somehow, she were able to make the water move by themselves, which were very convenient as far as watering the farm plants went. Yet the simple family and their friends doesn't think much of it beyond that; they were simple people with simple aspirations. It simply made her especially helpful as a farmhand as far as everyone were concerned. In everyone's eyes including her own, her ability was no different from those parlor tricks that the not-quite-mages are able to do. Compared to that, it was no surprise that the fact of her seemingly being far more agile, light-footed, and tireless than most other children weren't even considered as anything unusual.
Of course, this all changed upon her gift coming to broader light. As part of the Tan Keoulian government's efforts in discovering talents like Eun-Ji's own, examinations were done for all children attending a Gwanhak once they reached the age of 15. Turned out the extend of her potential went far beyond "moving water around for watering farm plants". Being that Eun-Ji's RAS score very nearly reached the mark of 7, the government officials in charge of the examination knew immediately that they had found a valuable asset among the commoners. They took her aside away from the rest of her peers, performed more in-depth examinations on her, and found something even more intriguing. That thing with her being far more agile, light-footed, and tireless than most other? That was no fluke either, it was because of Eun-Ji being a Skyborn. From there, things developed rather rapidly. The government officials immediately explained everything to Eun-Ji, offering her to work for the government with promises of wealth and elevated social positions and all such other benefits that would be nothing more than dream for most commoners to ever achieve.
And yet she refused, a humble life was all that the young Eun-Ji had ever wanted. All these things about greatness and magic and so on intimidated her; she didn't want to lose her peaceful life. No further promises of prosperity were able to change her mind... So the promises quickly changed to subtle threats of harm to herself, her family, and her friends. Underhanded remarks of how easy it would be for a village such as the one she lived in to disappear, how unfortunate it would be for that to happen. Eun-Ji quickly realized that the "offer" wasn't one that she can refuse. Left with no choice, she resigned herself to it. And so her blissful simple life promptly ended. What came next was things she would never even had thought of learning at all. Martial arts training, athletics training, magic training, espionage training, political indoctrination, training training training training training. "Long live the emperor, All hail Tan Keoul, For the Lotus we live."
Three years passed. Long enough of a time for a child to lost the innocence of her mind. "Fighting" every single day, not knowing when her own light might go out. Once innocent crying child, now sharpened into a knife to pierce the heart of the emperor's enemies. The child's training with her appointed instructors were done, there wasn't much left to learn from them. Yet there are others still that can help sharpen her. And where best to do so than in the school boasted to have the highest quality of education in the arts of magic?
M O T I V A T I O N
Long resigned to her "destiny", Eun-Ji was motivated simply by the fact that she have to continue doing her best. In her mind, there is clearly no way for her to be able to get away from her current path. Even attempting to do so will likely bring upon terrible consequences upon herself and her family and potentially even the village she once called home. Faced with such possibility, what else can she possibly do? Fear is as strong a motivation as any, if not even more than most others.
Thus continue doing her best she will, as such is what the emperor and Tan Keoul requires of her.
I N V E N T O R Y
- As far as monetary wealth is concerned, being government funded meant it isn't really an issue. The money's not actually hers, persay, but she will find no trouble funding her study and daily life in the academy. - Magical Talismans: Commonly used across Rettand in place of staff or wands, these paper magical talismans were specifically made to aid a mage with the process of Preservation. When attached to the body, they can even aid in the process of Freecasting, providing the necessary protection for such endeavors. - Blank Talismans and ink pens: Tools to make more of the above magical talismans. - Waist Case: Wooden ornamental case serving as Eun-Ji's "bag", so to speak. - Books, mostly philosophical tomes. She always carry at least one with her in her case, while the rest would be stashed in her dorm room. - Meditation Mat: An otherwise simple linen mat, with intricate patterns and Tan Keoulian letters drawn upon it. As the name implied, used for meditation.
S T R E N G T H S & S K I L L S
❖ Athletics: As a Lotus Sentry, Eun-Ji is trained to be athletic. Specifically for her, to take advantage of her lineage as a Skyborn, she is given even more intensive training in regards to physical speed, agility, and flexibility. ❖ Martial Arts: Similarly, Eun-Ji is trained in the Tan Keoulian martial arts of Taekwondo and Taekkyeon up to an adept level as per Lotus Sentry standard. These martial arts took advantage of agility, thus fitting quite well with Eun-Ji's athletics capability. ❖ Calmness: Eun-Ji is in general capable of remaining calm under pressure and even in intense situations. ❖ Honesty: Being honest means people are more likely to trust a person. ❖ Philosophical Knowledge: Due to her natural predisposition towards philosophical thought, Eun-Ji is quite knowledgeable in regards to philosophy.
W E A K N E S S E S & F L A W S
❖ Resignation: As a result of her background, Eun-Ji possessed a kind of proneness toward being resigned. That is to say, she kind of gives up easily enough if she think something is out of her control. ❖ Lack of Ambition: Eun-Ji lacks personal ambition, believing that she is at the mercy of destiny. ❖ Calmness: On the other hand, being calm meant that she is also bad at being spontaneous. In situations where impulsive action would be better than a carefully measured one, Eun-Ji is at a clear disadvantage. ❖ Honesty: Being honest also means that Eun-Ji is horrible at lying or performing other forms of deception. Even without considering her line of work, the inability to lie can be a serious disadvantage. ❖ Street-Blind: That is to say, she's the exact opposite of a street smart individual. For someone that is supposedly trained as a clandestine agent, she's horrible at dealing with shady individuals or situations.
M I S C E L L A N E O U S
- Eun-Ji's hobby is, unsurprisingly enough, reading. Additionally she also enjoyed fishing, which was accomodated by Tan Keoul being a heavily maritime country. - Eun-Ji is fond of animals, partially influenced by her experience taking care of farm animals. - Loves sour food. But can't handle spicy food at all. Kimchi, which is basically a traditional Tan Keoul pickle, is a serious dilemma for her due to it generally being both sour and spicy. - Eun-Ji and her family is not religious, although they do follow a system of belief heavily based on the karma aspects.
The battle had proceeded rapidly and ended quickly enough. As Anki had expected, the Kobolds were barely any trouble at all for the group of highly capable adventurers. Her own geomancy combined with Fei's martial arts and Srikandi's expert sword fighting skills made it very clear to the Kobolds just how utterly outmatched they were despite their superior numbers. It was hardly surprising. After all, one hundred ants are still just easily killed ants in the end, and in essence this one-sided "battle" (if it can even be called that considering it was closer to a massacre) wasn't very different from that. The Kobold leader were evidently at least smart enough to realize the hopeless situation that he and his brethren had gotten themselves in, as it soon signaled a frantic retreat to avoid an imminent total wipeout.
"Mmm." Anki mumbled softly as she watched the Kobolds running with their tails between their legs, some literally so in their panicked attempt to protect their dear life. She then relaxed her posture, letting her scepter rest slanted against her left shoulder. Since they've completely abandoned the notion of fighting and was now running away, Anki saw little reason to continue attacking them. "I suppose that is that then..." She looked around briefly, finding that the other adventurers with her were all pretty much fine as expected. On the other hand, Kobold corpses littered the area, soon to be consumed by nature to fulfill the circle of life as it should be. Satisfied with her brief observation, she turned to Srikandi as the party leader asked if anyone was hurt during the fighting.
Anki walked over closer to Srikandi, slowly shaking her head briefly before answering. "I am fine and unharmed, Ms. Srikandi... It should be no trouble for me if we are to continue our travel."
Of course, just like the others Anki have yet to realize the young dragon flying towards them, far away across the mountains as it was...
The shout full of rage from the now really pissed off villain caused Rosaria to immediately turn her attention to the inside of the lobby. Drats. That doesn't sound good at all. She realized that there's no time at all. Not even to wait until the wounded girl outside with her respond to her question. It was bad. Rosaria didn't like this at all. Moving in without a clear plan had never been something she liked as it more often led to undesirable consequences than the other way around. And yet there was just no time, so whether she liked it or not she will have to act now or never.
And then a thud as another woman just got thrown out from inside the lobby, landing right in front of the entrance where Rosaria and Paige were standing. Rosaria immediately moved to check on the woman, but then there's yet another quick development as she heard another loud shout from inside. "Everyone! ALL IN!" She saw the man who shouted, rushing toward the blinded villain with everything he got. So in the intense situation, Rosaria quickly surmised that she had two possible things to do. Help drag the woman that just got thrown from the inside get to safety or help the man that was attacking Thundercloud. Both seemed crucial, yet there was no time to think which will prove to be the better course of action. So it seemed obvious to Rosaria what she should do.
She decided to do both. Nothing else much I can do... Can only hope that this will actually make a difference! She quickly took out her combat knife, flipped it around so she's holding the tip of the blade, and then used all of her considerable knife fighting skill to thrown it as strongly and accurately as she can, aimed at Thundercloud from an angle that will not hit Kane. Thus the knife flew through the air, its blade pointed straight to hit Thundercloud on the side of his chest. Without skipping a beat, Rosaria then demanifested her power to make herself fully corporeal and then started dragging Kestrel away as fast as she can. There was no way to know whether her knife and Kane's strike will be enough to stop the villain's own attack and that was a risk she had to accept when she decided to both attack and protect in one move.
And with all that was going on Rosaria unfortunately didn't notice the other body in the lobby, that of the now unconscious Olivia. But then again even if Rosaria had noticed her, there wasn't really any way for her to help Olivia...
"Ugh, yuck..." Complains and grumblings can be heard coming out of the bathroom for a while now. Waking up had been a decidedly unpleasant experience. Darned mist not only made the room damp, sticky, and smells unacceptable, but also made Ryuuko felt physically less than ideal despite the sleep. Both taking care of the mess in the room and the fatigue shouldn't be too difficult in the end, but definitely annoying. And who would want to deal with such annoyances first thing in the morning indeed? For now, all she did earlier was made sure sunlight entered the room by opening all the "windows". That should help with the dampness, but as for more thorough cleanup... Yeah, no. Maybe later... Ryuuko thought to herself as she changed out of her pajama to a set of casual clothes fitting to go outside. That announcement through the gramophones had piqued her interest, and she decided to go see what that was all about.
Soon finished with her preparations, she exited the bathroom looking far more presentable. Briefly, she regarded Franz. "Hey Franz, I'm going to go out and see what that announcement is all about. As for the room, well... We'll see later, I guess." She sighed, not looking forward to dealing with the annoyance. "Anyway, I'll see you later!" She nodded and smiled to Franz before then leaving the room, and then heading straight to also leave the ryokan.
Outside was definitely more pleasant. Standing on the side of the road in front of the ryokan, Ryuuko took the time to stretch her arms a bit, enjoying the sunlight while at it. She then looked around, watching other people passing by or doing whatever it was that they decided to do in this morning... Soon, she noticed someone looking intently at her. A middle-aged Japanese man wearing a formal navy blue suit and trousers, a white shirt underneath the suit. As soon as the man's eyes and Ryuuko's met, he started approaching her, and a certain detail regarding his outfit made her realize who this man was. She waved casually at the man, smiling lightly; gestures that the man returned in kind. They then began to speak in Japanese, seemingly having a casual chat. To most outside observers, it mostly looked like a Japanese man and his niece or daughter just having a morning talk for a few minutes. The talk ended with Ryuuko waving goodbye at the man as he left. Ryuuko herself then turned around, casually walking to the closest tram stop to get to the Central Monument Library. As she walked, she smiled lightly, eyes slightly narrowed. Well then. This should be most... interesting, to say the least. Haha... And thus, she was off to her destination for the morning. She arrived to the Central Monument Library promptly enough. Or what remained of the Central Monument Library, to be exact. Most everything of the library was practically gone, burnt to ashes. Ryuuko didn't seem like she was surprised at all. Instead, she headed straight to the front rows of the crowd now gathered there. Neither was she surprised to see the culprit that had eliminated the library, the very same girl that she met last night that had also eliminated the front door of the ryokan and a nearby gazebo. There she was, standing on top of the raised stone platform with her hands bound together encased in leather gloves.
Ryuuko maintained a neutral expression as she looked up at Jeanne on top of the platform. Her gaze then quickly moved to the young man presiding over the examination. Ryuuko waited quietly, arms crossed under her chest. Soon enough, the man started speaking while using a Crystal Amp to amplify his voice for all of the crowd to hear. She listened intently to his every words. Some parts, she agreed with the man. Unfettered by convention is one thing, but unfettered by the law is another. Ryuuko herself would definitely not do anything like burning down an entire massive library for whatever reasons, for one... Okay, not unless she had very good reasons and was absolutely sure that she can perfectly pin the blame on someone else, at least. If you must break the law, then might as well make doubtlessly sure that it can't be traced back to you. Regardless, she thought briefly of Jeanne's action. She's way more chaotic than I expected alright... Way, way more.
In any case, none of this was the main point. Thus she continued listening, until finally the man declared: “Jeanne Du Bordeaux will be placed either under house arrest or under the supervision of one Egoist willing to be held responsible in any circumstance in which their charge acts out, for a period of time lasting three days. After that time, she will return here to defend herself amongst a jury of twenty students. If deemed guilty, she will be expelled from Bermuda Academy City.”
Ah, so that's how it's going to be... Ryuuko smiled lightly and briefly. As expected, they sure worked fast. Hehe... Her expression turned back to complete neutrality afterward as her focus returned to the man.
“And for those questioning under whose authority I make these proclamations, allow me to introduce myself. Appointed to lead the Committee of Public Safety by the Administration of Bermuda, I am Maximilien François Marie Isidore de Robespierre, Polymath and Enforcer. Now, are there any here who wish to volunteer for the supervision of Du Bourdeaux?”
This Maximilien was definitely another person to keep a close eyes on. But for now Ryuuko had something more important in her mind. She remained quiet, arms still under her chest with the knuckle of her right hand now placed on top of her lips as she seemed to be in deep thought, her eyes closed. So many factors to consider, risks and benefits and possible consequences and a bunch of other things. Yet there was definitely nowhere near enough time to mull it all over for the most efficient and effective decision to be made. Ryuuko took a quiet but deep breath in and out, and then her eyes opened as her body relaxed, her arms lowered down. Tsk. Not ideal in the least... Oh well, nothing like taking yet another big risk, huh? Ryuuko allowed herself another brief grin. Then she looked straight at Maximilien and raised her right hand back up higher.
And thus she spoke a simple sentence to declare her intention. "I would like to volunteer myself for this task, Mr. Robespierre."
Anki nodded politely as Fei thanked her and took the water bottle from her. "You are welcome, Mr. Fei." Fei then downed the water in one go, and soon looked like he had gotten a bit better already just from sating his thirst. He started to speak after. “Sorry if I scared any of you guys, I was extremely thirsty and hungry but the water should suffice for now, I would like to get to know y’all better…” But before more can be said from him or any of the others, tiny Kobolds started appearing and surrounding all five of the them. Only one, the red colored leader, was somewhat bigger compared to the rest.
Anki looked around calmly at the surrounding creatures. She already noticed that there were more than just Fei watching them earlier, thought she of course didn't know what they were. "Kobolds... I see." It was the first time for Anki to encounter these creatures directly. However, these creatures were included in a basic adventuring book that she had read before as well as being mentioned in several other books she had read as well, so she had sufficient theoretical knowledge of them. And judging from the Kobold leader's words, it seemed that the stereotypical accounts Anki had read of Kobolds resorting to banditry had truth to it after all...
To Anki's knowledge, taking out the leader of such a pack will always be the best way to quickly cause the others to retreat in fear. Course of action clear, she turned her body around and faced the direction of the leader directly. As she was mulling over whether to just bury the creature in earth and stones or to squish it between two palms of stone however, Fei declared that he shall be the one to face the leader and promptly launched an attack to engage it. He seemed capable enough, and Catherine had thrown him something mentioning that it will help him with his fatigue, so Anki decided that it was probably fine to leave the leader to Fei. "Very well, Mr. Fei. I shall entrust you with the red one. As for me..."
As far as personal tendency was concerned, Anki preferred to take the supporting role in combat situation. This was affected by the training she often received, being taught by the Lord of Gaea to always work together with allies whenever they are present (and if an ally was not present; make one from the earth itself). This time, she believed a preemptive attack would be best, though she will keep in mind helping her allies if the needs arise. Then again that might not be necessary... She knew for a fact that Srikandi was an accomplished adventurer, and the others with her looked quite capable as well. A martial artist capable of shrouding his limbs in flame, an alchemist with bottles of what looked to be highly volatile concoctions and an attitude that showed she knew very well how to use them, and an intimidating half-orc man that looked like he can snap the spines of these Kobolds with ease. Yes, this group against a band of Kobold bandits seemed like very good odds to Anki.
Thus decided on offense she turned her gaze to the smaller Kobolds, eventually picking out three that were standing close to each other, still excitedly watching as they held their likely stolen weapons in their hands. Anki nodded to herself. "Hmm. Yes. Let's start with those ones." Immediately she started manipulating the flow of natural mana around her, focusing the magic unto Ur Terra. Then, she slammed the bottom of the scepter once on the ground. "Earth Spikes." And with that simple incantation the ground under the three Kobolds immediately trembled for a split second before three large spikes made out of stones burst out at high speed the next second. Solid stones, warped and molded by Anki's Geomancy to be lance-sharp at the top ends; the very same top ends that were aimed at the little creatures' torso, skewering them like grilled lizards on sticks.
Kind-hearted as she might be, she were also taught not to show any quarter towards evil. In reality, not all bandits were evil of course. But unfortunately for the Kobolds, that fact slipped Anki's naive and young mind. So she didn't think of showing any mercy in this occasion, just like a young child not showing any mercy to an ant that bit them.
Anki didn't say much more after the initial introductions between her and Catherine. Zavim arrived, but just like with Catherine, Anki didn't really know who he was. On top of that, the man evidently wasn't the talkative type as he barely made any responses of his own as well. With all considered, Anki ended up defaulting to a polite greeting again, a simple "I am Khaltesh Anki du Oberia. A pleasant to make your acquaintance."
And then just like that, the party of four left the guild to finally begin their journey to the Dragonspine Mountains. Soon enough, they were aboard a boat heading for the mountains. She mostly stood on the front part of the deck during the journey, still as a statue while listening to idle chatters such as Srikandi's quips of explanations regarding Pataliputran culture. In reality, Anki were "sleeping". Sleep for sentient constructs such as herself was a very different thing compared to the sleep that biological living things needed. When Anki "sleeps", she had to stay still and not do any active actions. If she talked, then the sleep is interrupted. If she moved her eyes, then the sleep is interrupted. If she so much as actively moved a finger one millimeter, then the sleep is interrupted. However, she remained completely aware of her surroundings, not even needing to close her eyes while she "sleep". Passive functions that she possessed does not interrupt her sleep. To others not highly familiar with sentient constructs, it might be a rather weird thing, seeing her standing completely still seemingly doing absolutely nothing all throughout the journey.
It was only after they arrived that she stopped her "sleep", disembarking with the rest of the party after she gave a polite thanks to the captain and crews of the ship. As Srikandi checked the map, Anki stood near her, idly observing the surrounding.
"We'll be heading to the Great Table, located... right here." Srikandi's words put Anki out of her idle observation, her gaze moving to the map instead. She quickly analyzed the map, seeing that as far as distance was concerned their destination wasn't actually all that far. Then Srikandi told the party to keep their wits up, and Catherine pretty much clarified what they will likely face during their journey. "Difficult terrain and troublesome creatures. I see..." She had read as much as part of her preparations for the journey. She followed her words up with a nod to both Srikandi and Catherine. "I shall be sure to stay vigilant... In any case, I'm ready to go."
Thus, the party began that travel by land, into the mountains...
.............
The party had then ventured for a few hours deeper into the mountains, the sun now starting to set. Thus far, it had been a pretty smooth journey. That might just be about to change however, as Srikandi suddenly signaled for the party to stop. Being an observant individual and making true her promise to stay vigilant, Anki had noticed the noises around the same time as Srikandi did. The feeling of being watched came soon after, though the sensation was quite different for sentient constructs like her compared to people of other species. It was like something physically nagged at the mind granted to her body by the divine magic during her creation... Regardless, it was enough to put Anki into high alert as her eyes and head quickly moved around to survey the surrounding, her scepter held in her left hand ready to be used be it for magic or for more direct physical utilization.
And then it roared. Well, kind of roared. And "it" being the sound of a stomach growling. Anki's gaze quickly snapped to the direction of the noise, and in came a wild (both in terms of appearance and attitude) young man that looked very obviously to be a fighter of some sort, jumping out right in front of the party.
The stranger greeted the party. “Hello fellow travelers, I am Fei Bai Ho, greatest martial artist this world will ever see and I have only one question for you all.” His demeanor was serious, and he seemed very much ready for confrontation as he looked at them straight in the eyes. Anki wondered briefly why the man had suddenly appeared before them. Was he looking for a fight? Her sister had told her stories before of martial artists that roamed the world looking for fights whenever they met anything or anyone that they deemed likely to be worthy opponents. Was this man one such individual? Anki's posture remained calm, though she was very definitely ready for action if it was required to do so...
And that's when the fighter suddenly came into action. That is to say, the action was to literally threw his head into the ground as he knelt in front of all of them, yelling from the top of his lungs. “Please, I need food and water desperately, you guys are the only living things I have seen all day, I’ll definitely pay you guys back you have no worries there I personally guarantee it!”
"................"
Ah. So less looking for a fight with the party and more already in a fight for his life against starvation and thirst then. "Umm." To Anki, it was then the obvious course of action to help this desperate man. Anki had brought no food with her by virtue of not needing them. But she had brought some water, as water was obviously useful for so many different things. She took out a bottle of clean water from her pack and offered it to Fei as she approached him and nodded at him. "Please, take it. I hope this will suffice, Mr. Fei Bai Ho."
Anki turned her attention away from Taring back to Srikandi, listening intently as Srikandi talked, mentioning how the task at hand was an especially dangerous one. In truth, while Anki had read enough regarding the Dragonspine Mountains through many writings from story books to hands-on account by various adventurers to know that it was a dangerous place, she doesn't yet have a clear vision of how dangerous it truly was. Her father and mentor had of course also gave her warnings and advice, telling her to be as careful as can be and that was indeed what she was intending to do, but regardless one can argue that she was a part of those that are "uninitiated" for the dangers ahead.
One can only wonder whether her capabilities will be able to make up for her lack of experience, and whether she will be more of an asset or a burden for Srikandi and the others that might join them on the task.
Then, just as Srikandi was explaining about the meaning of Taring's name to Anki, the conversation was interrupted by a noise from the outside. Anki didn't show much reactions to it; only that her eyes had strayed from Srikandi to the direction from where the noise came from. She wondered briefly about what the noise were all about and who had caused it when said cause then revealed itself soon enough as the door to the room was swung open.
In entered Catherine Blackwood, the "Walking Disaster" and apparent bane of the academics of Gremarre. Of the three now in the room, the alchemist were the tallest; slightly more than Srikandi and significantly more than Anki. The woman muttered something about the staff being nervous about her arrival before regarding Srikandi, and Srikandi's own response to her appearance revealed that they already knew each other. Anki observed the two quietly, completely missing the enmity Srikandi displayed towards Catherine. That is, she had noticed the peculiar expression on Srikandi's face due to her being naturally very observant, but she failed to realize what the expression itself represented. Regardless, the alchemist's attention then switched towards Anki herself. She returned the alchemist's gaze directly, her eyes following the alchemist as she muttered about how intriguing Anki was. Even as Catherine walked around her to observe her, Anki's head and gaze followed her the whole time.
Followed her very literally, that is. Her body didn't shift a millimeter. Instead, as Catherine walked around to her back, Anki's head rotated around a full 180 degrees. She kept her gaze entirely toward the alchemist, observing her in return as she observed Anki, taking in everything from her physical characteristics to what she wore to the flasks of liquid on her coat.
The rotation of Anki's head was almost completely silent, just like her joints when she curtsied to Srikandi earlier. The typical person would probably be freaked out as the doll princess' rotating head reminded them that she was indeed a living sentient doll. By the end of it, Anki's head had rotated a full 360 degree and then some as Catherine finally took a seat.
And even after all that, Anki had no idea who this woman was. She only introduced herself as "Catherine, an alchemist", and while Srikandi had called her "Ms. Blackwood", Anki had no further information than that. To be fair, even if Anki had somehow recognized Catherine from hearsay or rumors, she still wouldn't have had much reactions aside from defaulting to a polite response; she still never met Catherine in person in the end.
So defaulted she did indeed. She bowed her head politely toward Catherine after the alchemist introduced herself and returned Catherine's smile with a polite smile of her own. "I am Khaltesh Anki du Oberia. A pleasant to make your acquaintance, Ms. Blackwood." And that was all she said, a simple response to a simple introduction.
Seriously, pineapples are, like, miracle fruits. Pineapple jelly? Yum. Pineapple juice? Ooooh. Pineapple cake? Yesss. Pineapple cookie? Godly! Pineapple salad? Ambrosia. Pineapple pizza? [s]The best pizza there is, fight me.[/s] Got nothing to do with pens though, so I wonder what that one Japanese guy was all about...
Now on to actual info:
[s]1. I love pineapples[/s]
<div style="white-space:pre-wrap;">Seriously, pineapples are, like, miracle fruits. Pineapple jelly? Yum. Pineapple juice? Ooooh. Pineapple cake? Yesss. Pineapple cookie? Godly! Pineapple salad? Ambrosia. Pineapple pizza? <span class="bb-s">The best pizza there is, fight me.</span> Got nothing to do with pens though, so I wonder what that one Japanese guy was all about...<br><br>Now on to actual info:<br><span class="bb-s">1. I love pineapples</span></div>
Ti
Izurich
Phase
jasbraq
Kumbaris
