VitaVitaAR

Shadow Contract: An Urban Fantasy Action RP

Hate. Agony. Pain. Fear. Desperation.

The darkness writhed, nourished by these emotions swirling together.

A student desperately wishes to pass her next test. Another fears being bullied. A teacher wishes he knew how to help one falling behind, and laments his failure.

These emotions stirred together, swirling into is gaping maw.

It was going to feed well.

It was almost time.

---

The sun fell.

That slow, steady decline across the sky, heralding the approach of evening. And further beyond, the arrival of night. It stretched the shadows of the trees, buildings, and people on the street longer, as if each ray of light hooked its fingers into them and wouldn’t stop pulling.

It wasn’t a particularly abnormal day.

There wasn’t anything that could be picked out as unusual.

The students of the local High School probably didn’t think anything of it, either. Some lingered behind for clubs or other activities, some of them had already gotten home.

A few lingered behind longer, even now. Maybe their club activities ran late, or maybe they had some other reason.

They’d be an obstacle, one way or another. But one they couldn’t simply remove.

The black-haired girl inhaled deeply. They’d been preparing for this for a while, now. Suppressing it at the school could only work for so long, they had to act directly and destroy it.

Makimura-sensei’s efforts had to be respected, but they couldn’t keep going on forever.

How did one develop this quickly somewhere like this? She supposed the average school did have a lot of clashing emotions.

Hiromi folded her arms with a huff.

Still, it didn’t explain how one that was this much of a potential threat was developing so swiftly. It’d be a disaster if it formed fully during the day, and even now there were still students in the vicinity.

They’d have to act to swiftly contain it in one area and destroy it with as few potential witnesses as possible.

Indeed, that was their assignment. It was why so many students had been sent out in the first place.

The plan was simple. Her team would approach from the south. The other team would approach from the North. Both would enter the school using Hiroe-san’s contract ability to remain unseen, corner the Grudge, and destroy it out of sight before anyone else could get involved and it could grow too large and too dangerous.

Hiromi had no doubt that’d succeed.

If nothing else, she was there, wasn’t she? So that meant there was no chance of failure.

If nothing else, the Kobayakawa family didn’t accept failure.

Thus her path forward was to succeed.

As soon as Hiroe-san gave the signal, they’d be ready to enter. Makimura-sensei would lift the suppression field when they were in range, and they would encircle and destroy it.

All they had to do right now was wait.

The sun sank lower. The shadows stretched longer.

Maybe by the time Hiroe-san was ready, the school’s students would be cleared out entirely? It was all she could hope for right now, but anything more would be too unsubtle.

Was she getting impatient?

Perhaps.

@Raineh Daze@Rune_Alchemist@vietmyke@King Cosmos@PKMNB0Y@Teyao

A Cry In Darkness: A Higurashi no Naku Koro Ni-inspired RP Interest Check

You make it sound like a profession. But hey, one spot filled!

A Cry In Darkness: A Higurashi no Naku Koro Ni-inspired RP Interest Check

At one point this was going to be the site of a huge development. An effort to modernize Tokimori, regardless of how much it might have changed the landscape, how many people might have had to move.

But you haven’t seen anyone go there in a while.

Maybe the adults won? You don’t really understand much about the conflict over the new building. It’s hard to say if you even know for sure if your parents were for or against it.

It’s complicated, and you’re young. It’s hard for you to think too much about this.

Instead, you’d rather enjoy evenings like this. Evenings where you can hear the cicadas crying, and watch the sunset. Where it feels like you can find all sorts of new things down by the riverbank.

That’s the reason you’re here.

Some of your friends are around too, but you’ve spread out a bit in search of the biggest prize to show up the others.

Something really unique and exciting.

Something nobody would have expected to find.

You guess that looking around near the construction site might make it easier to find something different. Not just a shiny rock or an interesting insect, but something left over by the workers, even if they haven’t been there for nearly a week now.

The rocky riverbank nearby is the perfect place to look. Maybe your parents told you to be careful, but---

Well of course you’re going to be careful, aren’t you?

Besides, it’s not like this is the first time you’ve ever been here.

With the overhanging trees providing a shady backdrop as the sun sinks lower, you navigate the rocky bank with your eyes cast downwards, searching for anything that might spark some interest.

You’re not just looking for something commonplace, after all. You have to keep your eyes peeled for something truly special that will let you beat your friends.

It’s a little bit further then you were supposed to go, but it’s fine. It’s not like this part of the riverbank is that different from the riverbank just a little further down, right?

You can’t see or hear your friends, but that’s alright, isn’t it? They’re around, so it’s not like you’re really alone, right?

Maybe that thought makes you hesitate a little. Maybe it doesn’t.

All you can hear is the softly-flowing water, and the crying of cicadas. Your friends must be pretty busy looking for their own prizes.

It’s getting a little more dark, now. But you’ve been by this river plenty.

You’re not scared, right?

Of course not.

You move a little further down, eyes still fixed on the rocky bank, looking for anything strange from the construction site that might have gotten caught up in the stones.

The quicker your find something, the quicker you can get back to your friends.

It really is getting darker faster than you expected, though.

The cicadas crying is drowning out most other sounds. There’s a lot of them this year.

That’s probably why you can’t hear your friends. Because you still have to be close by, right?

That’s why you don’t hear them.

The wind blows.

The leaves rustle.

The cicadas cry.

You’re fine. You’re safe. Nothing bad has happened to you before, so you’re fine.

You don’t want to think about the stories your friends told you right now. The legends and folklore of your hometown. The ghostly figure with a Hannya mask. The oni that lives in the swamp. The ones spirited away by things that only come out at night.

It’s getting awfully dark.

You’re awfully alone.

You haven’t done anything wrong though, so nothing bad should happen, right?

There’s no reason anyone should be mad at you. There’s no reason you should need to be punished.

So there’s no reason you should be hurt, or spirited away, or---

A twig snaps behind you, cutting through the sound of the cicadas and the flowing water.

Your blood runs cold. Your whole body turns rigid.

You can’t move.

You hear something. Something like a faint whisper at your ear.

Your heart hammers so fast it nearly feels like it’ll burst out of your chest. Your breath catches in your throat.

You don’t want to turn around. You don’t want to see what’s there.

But you have to.

Running down the bank will only take you further away from your friends, further away from town. The river is too deep, you can’t swim well.

The only way to get back is to go the direction that you heard the snapping twig.

You take one deep breath.

Then two.

Then three.

You have to run. You have to go as fast as you can.

You whole body tenses. Your heart beats even faster.

You’re going to turn.

Whatever it is, you might see it.

Above all else, the one with you don’t want to see more than anything is that black-furred, red-eyed fox.

You spin in place, and---

There’s nothing there.

For a few moments, you’re unable to move. But aside from the water and the cicadas, you don’t hear anything else.

You got that scared, over nothing? The twig snapping could have been anything!

You can’t help but feel relieved. There’s no way you’ll ever mention this to your friends, though. You’re not some sort of scaredy-cat after all, right.

It’s only when you take another step that you see it.

There’s something in the water.

From here, it looks almost like a dead fish washed up. After a moment’s pause, your heartbeat quickening again, you take a step closer.

The water around it is stained red.

It’s dark, so from this distance it’s a little difficult to make out its shape. When you take another step, though, the details become clearer.

It’s not a dead fish.

You take another step.

It’s only then that you realize.

It’s---

---

The village of Tokimori, near the Gifu Prefecture in Japan, is looked upon by outsiders as a place out of step with the modern world. A vacation spot where someone can immerse themselves in rural life.

By those who call it home, it’s seen as the only place for them. Surrounded by the countryside, by old forests and mountainous terrain, it’s the kind of place where everyone knows all their neighbors, where doors are left open, and trust in one another abounds.

A village with close to 2,000 people, it boasts only a single school with mixed classes up to and including Junior High level. With the population, there’s a low number of students, and thus there’s little need for anything bigger.

A town with its own beliefs and culture. The two-faced, white-or-black fox deity Shirokaze-sama, said to watch over all its residents. To come as a white fox bearing blessings, or a black fox bearing curses. Those who see the white fox are said to receive good fortune. Those who see the black fox are said to be sinners, doomed to disappear forever.

A town where traditions are a backdrop to daily life, where the town’s council and its oldest families are looked upon with nothing less than the deepest respect. In fact, it could be said that the heads of these families command more respect and authority in Tokimori than any government official could ever hope to achieve. This is how most residents of Tokimori think it should be, but outsiders can find it difficult to deal with.

Especially if one of these families becomes their enemies.

It’s not exactly surprising that the resident of Tokimori aren’t so trusting of tourists and other outsiders. Sometimes they’re seen as tourists disrupting daily life, while others they’re heralds of projects that could potentially change the entire village for the worse, at least in the eyes of many of its residents.

This is what happened four years ago. The Tokimori Revitalization Project was in the eyes of some something that would bring the village forward in time.

In the eyes of many residents, it was the destruction of all they held dear. The conflict over the project lasted for a year, until eventually the proponents relented, and the project was ultimately canceled.

Perhaps this was due to the villagers’ protests. Perhaps this is due to a change in leadership for those behind the project.

Or perhaps, it was due to the mysterious death of a construction worker, who disappeared in mid-June three years ago.

Fukazawa Takehiro had been exhibiting increasingly erratic behavior prior to his disappearance, complaining of difficulty sleeping and the belief that he was being watched. The last time his coworkers spoke to him, he claimed to have seen red eyes watching him as he returned home the previous night.

He was missing for nearly a week before a child playing near the construction site made a grisly discovery.

A severed right arm washed up on the riverbank. DNA testing was required to confirm that it belonged to none other than Fukazawa Takehiro himself.

The rest of his body was never found.

While there were many suspects, including members of the oldest families in Tokimori, no conclusive evidence was ever found linking anyone to the apparent murder.

The next year, in early June, a local family who had been proponents of the Revitalization Project disappeared. Their child was found alive but unconscious and showing signs of exposure, requiring a hospital stay to recover.

The wife was found dead, drowned in the nearby swamp. The husband’s body was never recovered.

The next year, a vacationing photographer who had been hiking near the abandoned construction site disappeared in early June.

When he was found, he appeared to have disemboweled himself on the riverbank near where Fukazawa’s arm was initially discovered.

To outsiders, it seemed to be a string of bizarre murders.

To the locals, perhaps it was the anger of their local god. Fukazawa had mentioned red eyes.

Were these the red eyes of the black fox?

In a few days, it’ll be mid-June again.

In a few days, it’s said someone is bound to disappear and die.

And yet life goes on in Tokimori. Students attend their school and play. Adults go about their daily business. The old families make decisions that guide the entire village’s future.

Everyone gets ready for the Summer and its first festival.

The fox stalks the forest. When you see it, will it be white —

—Or black?

---

So I’ve recently been feeling super nostalgic, and one of the main things that set this off was rewatching Higurashi. So, as you might have already guessed, this is an RP inspired by Higurashi! Obviously it’s not going to be aiming for the exact same thing(the time loops and main character murders are just not very likely to work in RP form) but at its core I want to run something with the same sort of feel. From slice of life to trying to figure out what’s going on to creepy and unsettling events and even murders, that’s what I’m aiming for.

To begin with, we’ll be playing as students from elementary to junior high-age, specifically a small number of them no more than five or six at the max. I don’t want this to be a huge RP in terms of player count, though there will be plenty of NPCs.

While it’s not mandatory, I’d like at least one player to be an outsider who recently moved in, one player to be the one who discovered Fukazawa’s arm, and less importantly one to be the child of the disappeared parents.

I’d encourage people to really integrate their characters into the village, such as being a child of one of the families in control of the village, or being related to the Revitalization Project in some way or another. I’m super happy to work with anyone who wants to play these kinds of roles!

While of course there will be mysterious elements and efforts to work out what’s going on, I definitely want to place a strong emphasis on character interaction and how these people see one another and interact. That’s just as crucial to resolving the true source of the deaths as knowing what’s happening, after all.

Also there will be supernatural elements to the RP, I’m just not going to make those immediately apparent.

I’ll admit this idea is kind of experimental, but I couldn’t help myself from wanting to try it out honestly.

I’m looking for five to six players max, and expecting at least one post a week from everyone.

---

• Name:
• Age: (9-15)
• Gender:
• Appearance:
• Personality:
• Brief Backstory:
• Skills:

Shadow Contract: An Urban Fantasy Action RP

@RoadkilBanana: Personally I feel you went too far the opposite direction power-wise, as it's just double attacks with absolutely nothing else. I also feel a lot of elements of the character's backstory and personality could be better fleshed out.

For everyone else, I'll be starting the RP either on Friday or over the weekend!

Final Fantasy: Lightseekers

Izayoi and Robin

The next day, Robin could overhear some of the servants gossiping throughout the safehouse as she went about whatever morning routine she had.

“Did you hear? The Wild Dance is alive! She was part of that prison break last night to free Lord Hien.”

“Truly? She was the Emperor’s last hope five years ago. If Ranbu no Izayoi stands with our fighters, perhaps victory may be in sight after all.”

One thing that her old man had taught her was to never slack when it came to her training.

No matter what happened the previous day, if she wanted to keep improving, if she truly wanted to use her blade to help others, that meant that she should be practicing as long as she could safely move.

And so, that was her morning routine.

The speed of her draw. The manner in which the blade cut the air itself. These were all things Robin was supposed to practice.

And that’s what she did.

Draw. Slash. Once. Twice. Three times.

Sheath.

Draw. Slash. Once. Twice. Three times.

Sheath.

Draw—

It was part of her wakeup routine, and it only made sense to do it before she did any bathing. Practice always made her sweaty, after all, so why clean up and have breakfast before that?

It was on her thirtieth drill that she overheard the Servants.

It wasn’t like she was unfamiliar. Heroes, villains, those were the sort of people she heard about all the time. Robin already heard the name Ranbu no Izayoi before.

It was certainly more infamous in her homeland then famous, but at the same time—

She wasn’t quite sure what to think. She didn’t regret giving her assistance, and the mere fact that the samurai was so famous was something exciting, deep down. But the fearsome reputation she had in her homeland was still something that lingered in the back of her mind.

Robin didn’t particularly care for the uncertainty it left her with, deep inside, but she couldn’t ignore the fact that it was there all the same.

The subject of Robin’s musings entered the courtyard herself, and the servants’ whispers stopped. Izayoi had heard them briefly, but tried to ignore it. Though their faith still rankled. It wasn’t something she deserved. Truly, the situation in Kugane was desperate.

Regardless, she had her forms to go through. Five years. Five years spent not practicing at all. Iai slash from the draw. Follow-up. Uppercut. Downward cleave. All horrendously clumsy in her own eyes. She’d been a master before. Now all her skills amounted to was cutting down novitiates and impressing laymen. To the average eye, Izayoi was still fast. But it was a far cry from the godspeed she’d commanded once upon a time.

It was hard to focus on training when the subject of the servants’ discussion suddenly entered the courtyard. It was as if they’d been fortelling something.

Robin found herself distracted from her own training at the sight of the samurai woman’s own practice session. It was almost what she expected. Speed. Ferocity. The kind of thing the average person would surely think of when they heard of her reputation.

And yet—

Something wasn’t entirely right.

Her old man had drilled her extensively at her request, and though her school of swordplay was not the same as that of Osprey’s warriors, it wasn’t as if there was no overlap in skills.

Robin could see it, even just a little. It wasn’t quite as fast, quite as agile, as she’d expected. There was no doubt that Izayoi was far beyond the average warrior, and still steps ahead of herself as well.

But it wasn’t quite as fast, quite as ferocious, as she wanted it to be, was it?

Another series of strikes in Izayoi’s kata. Better than they’d been five months ago, yet still worthless compared to her heyday. She felt the eyes upon her, of course. At least that particular sense was still sharp enough to be usable.

It was the Fey girl. Izayoi resisted the urge to sigh. At least she wasn’t wearing that ridiculous coat this morning. Still, the Mystrel looked towards her, eyes narrowed.

”You were performing drills of your own before I arrived. Unless you’ve something to say to me, proceed with your own business, girl.”

Robin was not usually one to hesitate, but then she wasn’t usually speaking with such an infamous figure. The boyish girl paused a few moments as she chose her words, before stepping forward.

“... It’s impressive, how swift you are, but—” she paused again as she tried to figure out how to put it into words, “... You’re rusty, aren’t you? I… couldn’t help but noticing, even if we’re practicing different kinds of swordplay.”

She hesitated again. She wanted to offer assistance. Despite everything, the cause that Ranbu no Izayoi fought for now was one that would free her people from oppression. So, helping her would help with that goal.

“I don’t know if I can be of assistance, but if you ever want some sort of training partner I can offer my hand.”

”...I am.” Izayoi reluctantly ground the words out through her teeth. ”You heard me the previous day. I had not touched a sword for so many as five years.”

The older woman turned to face the younger, sword in hand. As much as it rankled, she’d do anything at this point to regain as much of her strength as possible, as quickly as possible. If she had to entertain this girl’s suggestion, then there wasn’t much of a choice. At least from what Izayoi had seen so far, it wasn’t as if Robin wasn’t at the very least passable with her blade. She’d likely get something out of this, more or less.

”Very well, I accept. Would you prefer live steel, or practice weapons?”

Robin inhaled deeply. It was probably for the best to use training weapons, ultimately. She’d been using her sword when she was training on her own, but when it came to sparring blade against blade training weapons made sure no-one could possibly get hurt.

While using live steel was a more romantic option out of the stories Robin so enjoyed, she couldn’t ignore the fact that this meant either of them could take hits from the other and avoid injury.

“Practice weapons would probably be for the best,” she said with a smile. Thankfully, it seemed as if they did have one of similar size and shape to her own sword. While certainly a blade was a blade, the shape and style of Osprey’s katana and other various swords were quite different from what she was used to, and it wouldn’t be a very productive training session if she was trying to learn how to wield one properly on the fly.
With her blade held pointed upwards and ahead of her, she slowly lowered it into place, taking her position across from Ranbu no Izayoi.

It was time to begin.

Izayoi nodded, sheathing her blade and taking a bokken from a nearby weapon rack, leveling it at Robin. Her style would be hampered without access to her battojutsu, but she’d trained for years in the fundamentals before her master had ever let her even attempt an iai strike. It wouldn’t be an issue, and it was always important to return to the basics every now and then.

She drew in a breath, gripped the wooden sword in both hands, and nodded.

”Begin.”

___

The bout was closer than Izayoi would have liked, though she still emerged victorious in the end. The girl had technical skill, at least. Whoever trained her did a fair job of it, and some of Robin’s tricks did give Izayoi a run for her money in her weakened state.

She removed the tip of her bokken from Robin’s throat, backing up a few steps as the both of them caught their breath.

”A passable effort. Comparable to Arton, at least.” She admitted, flicking and brandishing the wooden sword out of habit, as she would have flicked the blade off her real blade after a battle. ”You would have done well for yourself in the war, unless you had the misfortune to encounter me at my full strength in those days.”

Her old man had told her plenty of times that one small mistimed attack, one mistaken block, could cost her everything.

Had this been a real fight, it would have. Ranbu no Izayoi was rusty, to be sure, but even then she was still highly skilled.

Robin knew, really, that a hero always had a long climb, and this did help demonstrate that after the thorough defeats she’d doled out to her enemies prior. She managed to force down any disappointment at her loss. Her opponent was more experienced and this was for her sake, after all.

She couldn’t let herself look visibly let down by her defeat. Besides, it was a growing experience for her, too, wasn’t it? Her old man had told her that losing a duel could be just as useful as winning it when it came to learning.

“Given your history, I think I should take that as high praise,” Robin responded brightly as she lowered her training sword as well, “I’d be happy to do it again, if it helps you regain your old skills at all. I think it’s good for the both of us.”

”My history?” Izayoi scoffed, shaking her head. ”You’ve been listening to too many rumors and tall tales, from either side.” Her head inclined in the direction the servants had been whispering earlier. They’d departed earlier, once they realized the subject of their rumormongering had been present.

”You’ve said you wanted to be a hero. Ranbu no Izayoi is no such thing. A hero would have saved her nation from invasion twice over.” She remarked bitterly. ”Edren’s propaganda about my actions ekes closer to the truth than I would care to admit. A hero would have at least brought victory after resorting to the depths I did.”

Izayoi drew herself up, staring Robin dead in the eyes.

”If you must take a lesson from me, remember this: nothing of what we do matters in the end should we fail. Death was and is a preferable alternative.”

Robin hesitated a moment. She hadn’t intended to touch upon those topics, as she didn’t even really know how to address them herself.

But when it came down to it, despite her own desires—

“It’s not that I was seeing you merely as a ‘hero’,” she began. Though her feelings on the topic of heroes were quite evident(and so, for that matter, were Izayoi’s), her appreciation for Izayoi’s come from a different place.

“If I want to reach those heights and take such a title, it goes without saying that I need to hone my skills as sharply as I can,” she continued, “So… so if someone with as much experience as you have, even if your skills need to be honed again, gives me even the faintest praise I feel as if I’m on the right path.”

Addressing the ‘depths’, or the matter of failure, was something Robin still struggled with. Of course she knew. The Limbtaker was hardly an unfamiliar title.

But they were allies now, and the freedom of Osprey was a noble goal.

”If only you’d dodge my blows instead of the subject.” Izayoi sniped, shaking her head.

”Why do you wish to be a ‘hero’ so badly, in any case? Glory? Fame? Self-satisfaction? To aid those in need implies that people are ailing. Suffering.” She’d had her taste of all of the above once upon a time. Needless to say, Izayoi hadn’t been suited to such.

”Self-improvement is a worthy goal for any one person, yet you seek the destination more than the journey. Seek strength, skill, and cunning above all first, then do as you wish.” It was something her master would have said, though he would have been far more…brusque about the matter.

Robin opened her mouth to reply, and then slowly shut it again.

A hero helped people in need, the kind of people who were suffering. That’s why she’d taken down bandits and monsters for the various townsfolk before.

But—

The desire to be a hero specific, what was it for?

It was because of all those stories, wasn’t it?

So what did that mean?

“... Ah, well…” Robin scratched the back of her head awkwardly, “A perfect world probably wouldn’t need heroes, but as long as there’s people suffering, there should be people who should strive to help them.”

And of course, naturally, that meant getting stronger and more skilled. But her eyes were always on her goal no matter what.

Izayoi snorted. A simple answer, to be certain. But it wasn’t one that wasn’t noble. Perhaps the girl really was what she presented herself as. She replaced her bokken onto the rack she took it from, looking back towards Robin with a slightly less cold stare.

”Perhaps. Though you’ll help no one as you are. Clean yourself up and eat something, Lord Hien will likely have information for us soon. And for the love of Etro, do not wear that coat of yours so long as we stand within Osprey’s borders.” Her tone turned strict near the end before she walked off. For all Izayoi had talked, she needed a bath herself after the training session.

Clean herself up…

That’s right, she’d needed to take a bath even more after a training session like that!

And it was only now she realized how hungry she was.

It was time the aspiring hero’s morning routine to continue.

Her coat, though—

Well, as long as she could find something just as fashionable, it was fine.

Reborn in a Fantasy World, This Time I Shall...!

Witch's Household

"Excuse me? I'm plenty old enough to-"

The Witch's protest was swiftly cut off by Relki, who stepped forward with a smirk.

"Dear little Ilsa just turned thirteen this year~ But don't worry, I'll be here to take care of her full time!"

Ilsa's staff swung in a rather impressive arc, aimed directly towards the raven woman's head. But it struck only empty air, Relki swiftly sidestepping with a playful chuckle.

The only response she received was a rather intense glare from Ilsa, before the Substitute Witch of the Forest let out a heavy sigh and turned to face her guests.

"Hmph. Ignore her, she's just making things more difficult, and my age is much less important then abilities as a witch, anyway," she began, "Frankly, regardless of where you're from I'm shocked that you don't already know magic. Your kind wholly embraces it, as far as I know."

She let out another huff, crossing her arms.

"I'm not much of a teacher, but if you have any questions I'll try and answer them, I suppose," she continued, "It's not as if I have any choice, given I can't leave you alone until you're out of the forest. As for you---"

She turned towards the goblin.

"Brew? Really? Maybe I was right about one of you, at least," she commented, unfolding her arms to place her hands on her hips, "Then again, I suppose you could be an alchemist... Not that I've heard of many goblin alchemists before. Usually they're into necromancy, or things like that."

She waved her hand vaguely, as if mentioning necromancy wasn't a particularly big deal.

"In any case, don't go picking things from the garden without asking my permission first, got it?"

@Rune_Alchemist@Pyromania99

---

Dirt Road

"Lady Darnell, I agree with the both of them," the guard captain began, "Linie seems to have been stabilized, so we can probably move her safely."

The young lady glanced between the newcomers, her guards, and her armored maids for a few moments, before inhaling deeply and folding her arms.

"Very well, I've got little desire to remain here anyway," she said, glancing back towards Morwenna, who nodded quietly before stepping back into the carriage, "Gather the bodies of our dead so they may receive proper burial. Leave the filth for the crows."

The word 'filth' was spat like a curse.

Naturally, the duke's daughter had no interest in riding with commoners regardless of how helpful they had been, at least not so soon after meeting them. As a result, the two kitsune had been set to ride in one of the secondary carts, though it was still fully enclosed. Morwenna was in the main carriage with Lady Darnell, and the other two maids were in a third cart nearer to the Duke's daughter's, Sheila watching over the injured Linie.

Alongside the two kitsune were several guards riding in the same cart.

It was some time before the convoy arrived through a set of large, impressive gates, and further beyond that was a rather expansive and luxurious property. It was surrounded by a flourishing, well-cultivated garden, displaying well-cared-for roses as one of the most numerous plants but overall exhibiting a variety of different kinds of flowers.

It was only when they reached the very front of the white-and-red, stone mansion that the carriage came to a halt.

As the carts were unloaded, more maids emerged from the mansion. While they initially went to greet the young lady Darnell, the moment they realized the situation they were quick to rush Linie inside where she could be treated more effectively.

The young lady paused for a moment, before turning to address the two foxes.

"Given you helped ensure my safety, and saved Linie's life," she began, "I suppose I shall allow you to stay here until you get your bearings. I'm certain father shall agree. However, don't overstay your welcome."

@PKMNB0Y@Raineh Daze

Shadow Contract: An Urban Fantasy Action RP

Kobayakawa Hiromi

• Name: Kobayakawa Hiromi
• Age: 15
• Gender: Female
• Appearance: Petite for her age, and slim, on her own Hiromi doesn't present a particularly intimidating figure.
• Personality: A proud girl to the point of arrogance. At the very least, this is the typical perception of Hiromi's attitude. As the heir to one of the founding families, it is important to have pride in her bloodline. It's crucial to respect her origins. Thus, this is the mindset that informs the standards she sets for herself. Hiromi cannot accept anything but the best possible performance from herself, and ultimately this extends to her expectations of others as well. While she certainly does not believe the average contract-holder is capable of operating on equal footing with her, she expects them to do their best no matter the situation regardless. All of these factors lead a stern, prideful, and often irritable demeanor. Others frequently view Hiromi as cold or harsh, or overly egotistical. From Hiromi's point of view, she is simply holding others to the standards they should hold themselves, and taking pride in her own origins and family history. Despite this pride, the viewpoint of Hiromi and her family at large is that the purpose of their existence is as a shield to maintain order in Japanese society and in the hidden side of the world. They slaughter Grudges and protect the workings of the world. Hiromi's dedication to this purpose is paramount above all else, even her pride. Hiromi has an affinity for traditional clothing and food, things that are somewhat unsurprising given the often very traditional mannerisms of the Founding Families, but she especially loves Japanese sweets. Despite her slim figure, she can eat quite a lot of Japanese sweets. She is also rather reluctant to speak about the nature of her Cost, unusual given her typical pride in her own abilities. Hiromi is somewhat jealous of more mature-bodied girls, something she tries not to show directly but inevitably ends up letting spill.
• Backstory: Dating back to the very earliest days of the Heian era at least, the Kobayakawa are one of the Founding Families. It is at this time they established their contract, setting its payment and using the abilities granted by it to slaughter Grudges. Over a thousand years later, with the advent of the Shadow Academies, they were initially in opposition to their creation. By the logic of the Kobayakawa and their allies, it would dilute the status and overall capabilities of the protectors of Japan from Grudges. Only the Founding Families, in their eyes, possessed the capacity to act in this role. This conflict nearly lead to open violence, but it was the swelling numbers of Grudges as modernization bloomed in Japan that served as the final push. Though, the Kobayakawa never fully accepted it alongside their allies. Like most of the other Founding Families, traditions still remain important for the Kobayakawa, and so much of Hiromi's early life was immersed in these traditions. She was trained from a very young age to wield a sword, and lived in the large and isolated property owned by her family. She has been prepared for the purposes of serving as the heir to their bloodline and their techniques, something they invested a great deal of time and effort into. Her high degree of spiritual Energy, combined with her natural affinity for their techniques, proved to make her an excellent heir. While the Tokyo Academy Higher-ups view it as important to educate all Contract holders, it is viewed by the Kobayakawa as a formality rather than a necessity, born only from the agreements between the Founding families. It was for this purpose that Hiromi entered the Tokyo Shadow Academy after graduating from Junior High.
• Skills: Hiromi's early life was spent training her to wield a blade, and due to the high amount of effort placed in her training and her affinity for such purposes this has become considerably skilled for her age. Her training was particularly in the Kobayakawa's own personal form of swordplay, made to incorporate and formalize their various techniques for use with a blade.
• Spiritual Energy Grade: S
  • Contracted Being: Tsukuyomi
  • Contract Rank: A
  • Contract Abilities: The Kobayakawa Bloodline Contract with the Lunar Deity, Tsukuyomi, giving them a twofold ability. The manipulation of reflected light, and the localized alteration of gravity. The former is in a directed state for use as an offensive attack, by focusing and condensing reflected light from the edge of a blade into beams. This permits long-ranged slashes or thrusts by projecting moonlight from Hiromi's weapon, an important part of Kobayakawa Swordplay. This facet of their contract abilities is known as Mangetsu. Multiple techniques of the Kobayakawa family utilize Mangetsu, the strongest of which being Gekkou Hansha. This technique uses the reflection of the moon and the edge of the blade to bounce light back and forth thousands of times, creating a massive blaze of lunar light encasing the katana before swinging down. Hiromi, however, has yet to master this technique. The other facet of the contract ability is known as Shingetsu, and is used in a variety of ways. Hiromi in particular uses it to scale walls or swiftly pull herself from one point or another, or push herself away for evasion. She may also use it to greatly reduce or completely stop a single target's ability to move, though as of now her ability to affect others is limited to a single target at a time. She may also use it to increase of decrease their speed, causing them to fumble, or suddenly align them to another surface or object to send them flying. Spiritual energy reinforcement can be used to defend against this ability, but it will likely not block it entirely.
  • Cost: Performance of the Moonlight Cleansing Ritual by the family, once every ten years. The nature of the ritual is kept secret, with only those involved in its performance privy to its exact details.

Shadow Contract: An Urban Fantasy Action RP

• Name: Kobayakawa Hiromi
• Age: 15
• Gender: Female
• Appearance: Petite for her age, and slim, on her own Hiromi doesn't present a particularly intimidating figure.
• Personality: A proud girl to the point of arrogance. At the very least, this is the typical perception of Hiromi's attitude. As the heir to one of the founding families, it is important to have pride in her bloodline. It's crucial to respect her origins. Thus, this is the mindset that informs the standards she sets for herself. Hiromi cannot accept anything but the best possible performance from herself, and ultimately this extends to her expectations of others as well. While she certainly does not believe the average contract-holder is capable of operating on equal footing with her, she expects them to do their best no matter the situation regardless. All of these factors lead a stern, prideful, and often irritable demeanor. Others frequently view Hiromi as cold or harsh, or overly egotistical. From Hiromi's point of view, she is simply holding others to the standards they should hold themselves, and taking pride in her own origins and family history. Despite this pride, the viewpoint of Hiromi and her family at large is that the purpose of their existence is as a shield to maintain order in Japanese society and in the hidden side of the world. They slaughter Grudges and protect the workings of the world. Hiromi's dedication to this purpose is paramount above all else, even her pride. Hiromi has an affinity for traditional clothing and food, things that are somewhat unsurprising given the often very traditional mannerisms of the Founding Families, but she especially loves Japanese sweets. Despite her slim figure, she can eat quite a lot of Japanese sweets. She is also rather reluctant to speak about the nature of her Cost, unusual given her typical pride in her own abilities. Hiromi is somewhat jealous of more mature-bodied girls, something she tries not to show directly but inevitably ends up letting spill.
• Backstory: Dating back to the very earliest days of the Heian era at least, the Kobayakawa are one of the Founding Families. It is at this time they established their contract, setting its payment and using the abilities granted by it to slaughter Grudges. Over a thousand years later, with the advent of the Shadow Academies, they were initially in opposition to their creation. By the logic of the Kobayakawa and their allies, it would dilute the status and overall capabilities of the protectors of Japan from Grudges. Only the Founding Families, in their eyes, possessed the capacity to act in this role. This conflict nearly lead to open violence, but it was the swelling numbers of Grudges as modernization bloomed in Japan that served as the final push. Though, the Kobayakawa never fully accepted it alongside their allies. Like most of the other Founding Families, traditions still remain important for the Kobayakawa, and so much of Hiromi's early life was immersed in these traditions. She was trained from a very young age to wield a sword, and lived in the large and isolated property owned by her family. She has been prepared for the purposes of serving as the heir to their bloodline and their techniques, something they invested a great deal of time and effort into. Her high degree of spiritual Energy, combined with her natural affinity for their techniques, proved to make her an excellent heir. While the Tokyo Academy Higher-ups view it as important to educate all Contract holders, it is viewed by the Kobayakawa as a formality rather than a necessity, born only from the agreements between the Founding families. It was for this purpose that Hiromi entered the Tokyo Shadow Academy after graduating from Junior High.
• Skills: Hiromi's early life was spent training her to wield a blade, and due to the high amount of effort placed in her training and her affinity for such purposes this has become considerably skilled for her age. Her training was particularly in the Kobayakawa's own personal form of swordplay, made to incorporate and formalize their various techniques for use with a blade.
• Spiritual Energy Grade: S
  • Contracted Being: Tsukuyomi
  • Contract Rank: A
  • Contract Abilities: The Kobayakawa Bloodline Contract with the Lunar Deity, Tsukuyomi, giving them a twofold ability. The manipulation of reflected light, and the localized alteration of gravity. The former is in a directed state for use as an offensive attack, by focusing and condensing reflected light from the edge of a blade into beams. This permits long-ranged slashes or thrusts by projecting moonlight from Hiromi's weapon, an important part of Kobayakawa Swordplay. This facet of their contract abilities is known as Mangetsu. Multiple techniques of the Kobayakawa family utilize Mangetsu, the strongest of which being Gekkou Hansha. This technique uses the reflection of the moon and the edge of the blade to bounce light back and forth thousands of times, creating a massive blaze of lunar light encasing the katana before swinging down. Hiromi, however, has yet to master this technique. The other facet of the contract ability is known as Shingetsu, and is used in a variety of ways. Hiromi in particular uses it to scale walls or swiftly pull herself from one point or another, or push herself away for evasion. She may also use it to greatly reduce or completely stop a single target's ability to move, though as of now her ability to affect others is limited to a single target at a time. She may also use it to increase of decrease their speed, causing them to fumble, or suddenly align them to another surface or object to send them flying. Spiritual energy reinforcement can be used to defend against this ability, but it will likely not block it entirely.
  • Cost: Performance of the Moonlight Cleansing Ritual by the family, once every ten years. The nature of the ritual is kept secret, with only those involved in its performance privy to its exact details.

@King Cosmos: Looks good now, accepted.

@Teyao: Accepted.

@Aku the Samurai: I agree with my co-GM here.

Shadow Contract: An Urban Fantasy Action RP

Okay sorry for the delay, been a little bit distracted the past couple of days. I'll get to everybody's bios again tomorrow!

From Realms Beyond — An Isekai Crossover RP (Now Accepting)

In the very moment she heard commotion, she was already on her feet.

Without Yuyuko-sama, it was important to do everything she could. Both due to the fact it was the right thing to do, and because of her pride as a Konpaku.

What better way to display the skills of her lineage by cutting down monsters? It wasn't the most common thing in Gensokyo given most fights were against people you could reason with who would give up after losing a duel, but it wasn't as if those sword skills only applied to such things.

The carriage rocked slightly as she sprang from it. Even without her full speed, she was a blur as she reached the strange abominations.

Something about them felt wrong. The air around them felt sickly and unpleasant. It wasn't something that Youmu could identify, but it felt like some sort of spiritual corruption. As a half-phantom she could detect such things simply due to her partially-ethereal nature, and the air around the swarm of strange, oozing, slimy creatures was full of it.

Were they some sort of evil spirits? Were they curses of some kind? Youmu didn't know, not really. But it didn't change her response.

Roukanken slid from its sheath and flashed.

The first of the oozing creatures came apart, split in half in a single blow.

Youmu couldn't really describe the feeling. It wasn't quite the same as cutting through something with no physical existence. There was clearly some kind of body there.

But at the same time it was without mass and formless.

But it felt rotten to its very core.

The creature dissipated, dark blue-purple-black fluids spurting into the air and fading in that same moment as she moved past it, swiftly drawing Hakurouken in her free hand in the very same motion.

A twisted, blackened, oozing shape lurched out of the body of one of the creatures towards her.

It was trivial to dodge it, and immediately she drove Hakurouken into the creature's limb and dragged it along its body, severing cursed ooze as she sliced it all the way to the base.

But before she could do any further damage, the creature was already fading. Its body ceased to pulse and writhe, turning first grey and then fading to white before dissipating into nothingness.

Had she not been in active combat, Youmu would have paused. But even despite the battle, she wondered if Hakurouken had some sort of additional affect on it. They seemed to have some sort of physical form, but that was certainly different then the response to being cut by Roukanken.

And yet, either way, both had died. So in the end, it didn't truly matter what she slashed with. Just that she slashed.

Roukanken split the air as she moved, a sharp swing downwards severing one of the monsters down the middle in spurt of ooze before she moved on, passing its fading form to thrust Hakurouken directly between the eyes of another was it attempted to lash out at her.