you opened your eyes, spreading it wide

[promittere]

THIRD QUARTER ALLEGRO

While our newly-arrived wizards have been settling in, learning their magic, and getting to know one another, the sage and their mentor have been busy with a different kind of work behind the scenes—bureaucratic work. It hasn't been particularly exciting, but it has paid off.

Because now, the world is ready to receive them.

Put on your finest clothes, because Granvelle Castle invites you to a welcome ball in your honor.

Didn't bring any fine clothes with you? No need to worry—specially chosen tailors from Central Capital have been commissioned to take care of you, and they will be visiting the manor to get you gussied up in the fashion of your choice for the day (by this, we mean feel free to pick whatever fancy clothes you want for the ball).

As the sun sets on the designated day, all the residents of the manor make their way to the castle. Granvelle Castle stands proud in Central Capital, its lights a beacon in the darkening city, and its doors open to outsiders for the first time in weeks. Upon arrival they're greeted by brightly lit halls, welcoming staff, and a grand ballroom, windows flung open to let in the spring breeze and pale moonlight. Everyone and everything seems determined to make this a cheerful affair, despite the underlying sense of dread and tension.

Live music fills the air, played the greatest musicians in the world. There are some larger ensembles, solo acts; some pieces are of more traditional folk dances, while some are slower, and some are upbeat and avant-garde. Regardless, the floor is open for dancing—grab a buddy and dance the night away!

Lining one wall is a long banquet table, filled with plenty of food and drink, both alcoholic and non to sate the new arrivals. The hors d'oeuvres and small plates comprise an array of delicacies from around the world, with everything from savory lobster bites to the sweetest portions of tres leches you have ever tasted. It seems someone has also put in a specific request for Japanese food—a part of the banquet table has been set aside specifically for Japanese dishes, and this includes small portions of ramen. There also seems to be a plate on the far end of the table filled with lovingly stacked pieces of charcoal... Is that meant to be food?

You aren't the only ones in attendance tonight. Representatives and dignitaries from around the world are also present—they have quite a lot to say about the unusual situation, and they are most curious about these otherworldly individuals tasked with fending off the moon under their national banners. The most dignitaries are from Central, West, and East, while there do seem to be a few representatives from the less populated North and South. Those from Central, West, and South in general seem to be the most social, while the rest are more reserved. There are also a few of the castle staff that seem (begrudgingly) willing to speak with the new wizards. Most are here to chat and mingle—lend them an ear, you may learn something new...

For those tired of socializing, the ballroom opens out onto a breezy, spacious balcony. It looks out over the main thoroughfare leading to the main castle entrance, and the nighttime lights of the Central capital twinkle in the near distance. For those that would rather take a breather, there is a small patio table and a couple of chairs. Despite the waxing moon in the sky, it is a very nice evening.

If you would like to have a chat with an NPC, then please respond to this comment. NPCs will be assigned randomly if no preference is given. While everyone has something valuable to say, they're not giving potentially sensitive info out for free—let's hope your diplomatic skills are up to snuff. We're doing our best to give everyone meaningful conversations, so please bear with us!

JOB BOARD

Rejuvenation. Thanks to your Southern friends' hard work, the South has been saved from a potentially devastating crop failure, and these fledgling towns can continue to grow as they're meant to! Give them a pat on the back and a round of applause.

But the South is not without its scars. While the root cause has been taken care of, the damage has been done. A town's wheat field has been partially destroyed—help them tear out the blackened, dead wheat, till and fertilize the soil, and replant what can be replanted. The City of Clouds, the most prosperous of the Southern settlements, have also offered extra tools, hands, and seeds to help set the town back on the path to recovery. Transport these supplies to the town. Let's hope your broom skills are up to snuff too, because it's a long ride.

Shadows in the night. The residents of the Central capital have recently been reporting eerie sightings after sundown: shadowy figures lurking in corners, the constant feeling of being watched, and, in some extreme cases, these shadowy figures attacking when traveling alone at night. Many reports seem to indicate an odd concentration of these creepy figures lurking around the Granvelle Castle moat, as though trying to find a way into the castle. Residents are understandably frightened and unnerved and cannot go about their nightly business—beat back what shadows you find and make the streets safer for the Central capital residents.

While physical attacks don't seem to do much against them, they dissipate rather easily under magic. Try not to wear yourself to the bone, though—there are a lot of them.

Escorting nobility. The Eastern Blanchett noble family have called an important meeting, inviting nobles and others of import from across the Eastern Country. However, their castle lies beyond Sherwood Forest, a very large, dense, and deep wood—while a fine natural defense for the Blanchett family, it's a bit of trouble for those looking to visit. While the Blanchett's own forest guard is absent, it is your job to safely escort these nobles to the Blanchett abode, and back out. But be careful: lurking in the shadows amongst the trees are all sorts of territorial predators like bears and wolves, not to mention the magical beasts that sneak up on unsuspecting prey. You may come across a brigand or bandit or two, since the forest is a near perfect hiding place for illegal activity. And please—try not to get lost.

Typical of any Easterner, the nobles are reluctant to make much small talk and are a bit suspicious of the new wizards, but they are otherwise pleasant and will generally comply with most requests.

WANDERER TASKS

Can you go a week without ruining food or the pots and pans? Stop being so wasteful and learn how to cook or stop trying.

Learn how to use magic to repair things. Again, if you're going to keep ruining the kitchen at least learn how to put it back together.

TATARA ACTIVITIES

I need milk. I'm trying to perfect latte foam art, but I haven't really gotten the hang of it yet... I used up all the milk (oops, sorry!), so I need more. Actually, could you grab me other kinds of milk while you're at it? I want to experiment! I'm sure other markets in the farther reaches of the world will have weirder milk... Please!

We should start a veggie garden! Or an herb garden? Doesn't matter! I found a nice sunny patch of grass in the training forest—we could dig up that spot, right? Help me get it set up! I need people to dig, and till... Oh! We need seeds to plant, too! Please and thank you~

OOC NOTES

🌙 Welcome to your second event post! Get out your snazzy outfits. It's time to party.
🌙 As you grow into your magic, your character might start realizing they can differentiate between everyone's magic. Everyone has a unique signature, and you may be able to start sensing who cast what, where. Someone put a magical seal on the kitchen door? Smells like Shinjiro's magic. Akira had some of Solomon's sugar? You can sense that, too!
🌙 As you start getting past the basics, your character might realize they have a much easier time with certain kinds of magic over others. For North, this will be offensive and attack spells; for East, this will be intricate seals and curses; for West, this will be manipulative magic like illusions and transformation; for South, this will be healing, purification, and protection. Central? A little bit of everything. Read up on your country if you need a refresher!
🌙 It's been peaceful at home in the manor thus far, hasn't it? Do you think that will last?
🌙 Your OOC plotting post is here! Remember to keep all wider plotting contained to the OOC post, since not everyone checks plurk or discord frequently.
🌙 Our next group to go on their mission is Central. Be ready, heroes...

» NAVIGATION

Comments

[shortleash]

( :/ keeping up!!! )

Is it a race if I don't need to put effort in? Don't drop your supplies trying to keep up.

( Friendly(?) trash talk... maybe, )

[dyingtohealyou]

Implying this is any effort for me. Even if I hate magic, I always did get good grades in it.

[Going to maintain that lead as casually as he can... Wowee he's so good at this no sweat.]

[shortleash]

Why try hard in something you hated?

( They're going to pass an imaginary speed limit at this point... At least there's no wizard police, )

[dyingtohealyou]

[They're gradually getting faster and faster...]

What do you mean, try? I slept through class all the time.

[shortleash]

( need to stick a radio on one of their brooms like that witch from kiki's )

Voluntary classes?

[dyingtohealyou]

It's a prestigious magical academy. ...The government pays for most the tuition though, so it's dirt cheap to attend.

Gran and I aren't exactly swimming in money, so I can just sleep on the kingdom's dime and learn about the enemy while I'm at it.

[shortleash]

( Eyebrow Raise )

... I wouldn't attend, no matter how cheap it was. Not in your position.

( Mika, who will spite himself to death gladly, )

[dyingtohealyou]

...Then good thing it's me dealing with it and not you.

The researchers there can't just pluck the school's bright-eyed and hopeful students as test subjects. In a way, it's probably safer there than anywhere else.

[shortleash]

( That's messed up... )

... Is that why you attended?

[dyingtohealyou]

[Snickering.]

No. It was mostly about the money.

[shortleash]

( Can't exactly judge, given he was an orphan, but, still... )

It sounds like they'd be using the financial desperation of students like you to their advantage.

[dyingtohealyou]

In a way, they probably are. Magic's falling out of fashion - not too many want to pursue it these days. Low tuition's probably their way of enticing people to the craft.

Hopefully it all collapses sooner rather than later.

[shortleash]

All things humans create will, eventually.

( Ever the optimist. )

I don't know if you'd be lucky to be around to see it, though.

[dyingtohealyou]

Probably not.

[It's slowly dying out; himself, not so much.]

But if I can take out the organization behind the experiments I was in, I'll call that good enough.

[shortleash]

Are you going to kill everyone involved?

( How many people would that be? Whatever. That's for Ahito to bear, if he wants to. )

[dyingtohealyou]

That'd be the ideal. ...But if I have to, I'll settle for the leader.

[shortleash]

We're they personally involved?

( Or is it more a matter of them being a figurehead, a symbol for the rest? )

[dyingtohealyou]

He's the one that offered me healing magic to begin with. ...He also called the shots on how the experiment would proceed.

He's the one who called the whole experiment off, in the end. They originally wanted that girl's power, but he decided I was more valuable for future testing. So, they discarded her and kept me instead.

[...In many ways, he'd rather it had been the other way around.]

[shortleash]

( that's rough buddy.gif )

... Is there something that'd stop you from killing him, or any of them?

( Since Ahito sounded like he might have to compromise somewhere during the process... Fragility ? ? ? )

[dyingtohealyou]

I need to find them first... And my only lead turned to a dead end.

It took me years to find even that one.

[shortleash]

( Oh, that really is rough. )

... I think I'd go stir crazy if it took me that long to get my hands on someone's neck.

( But not even, because Ahito didn't even get to kill someone in the end. )

Super secret organization, I'm guessing.

[dyingtohealyou]

Seems that way. And my parents didn't leave behind anything useful for tracking them down, either.

[Useless to the last.]

[shortleash]

Were they involved?

[dyingtohealyou]

Yeah. They weren't leaders or anything, but they were with the group. That's why when the experiment with Mizuki failed, they followed up with experiments of their own.

[shortleash]

Yours?

( Regardless: )

I'd hope you had a hand in killing them, at least.

( It doesn't sound like Ahito did, but what does he know except that this sort of thing is disgustingly layered. )