Succubusekai: The Demoness Just Wanted To Stay With Her Friends! [Original-Ish] [Quest]

[X] (Last Stop Before Keep) … Maybe something more funny than pervy? But would it even stick? Like, writing on their faces or something…
-[X] Draw horns on Tammy's forehead, and whiskers on Senaz' cheeks.

… If I'm honest, if we're dealing with a magical kitsune and a Succubus, I feel like doing a little something to maybe warn them off from Mind Control First And Ask Questions Later may be worth the effort, just from an ethical perspective. (... Okay, to be fair, Senaz didn't do that, but.)

I check my inventory… Oh, hey, a sharpie marker. That shouldn't exist on Mundus. Yep, this is definitely dream logic. Oh well.

… Tammy first. Let's go with… Horns. You mess with the Succubutt, you get the horns! Just little curvy line horns on her forehead. It'd take a while to get them off if they persist, and she'd have to explain to anyone she meets, which will make fluffy tailing harder and hopefully teach a lesson.

… I'm not the greatest eyeball sketch artist, but it gets the idea across.

For Senaz, who is less responsible for this to my continued surprise, something a little less severe. Whiskers on the cheeks. She might be able to pass that off as a Dumb Idea or something, but it'll still be there. Maybe. Or maybe it won't. Dream logic's kind of like that sometimes. Especially when it's very possible all of this is just Flamma testing my resolve or something.

… Hand up. Take a look at them both. Wonder if I can memorize Senaz's outfit and rock it later maybe.

And snap-

You blink. Wow, you spaced out hard for a moment or ten, didn't you? Did the others notice?

… Phew. Seems like they didn't. You don't want to know how Helen would interpret a space-out dream where you were hypnotized by a kitsune only to be saved by another one.

[X] (The Order) Deal with it - go forth and adventure, and in a few days relative to your experience, your stuff will arrive. You won't have it yet, but that's fine.

Helen shrugs. "Better to not risk discovery. Upgrades soon, right?"

You nod, and consider, as Eira blinks. "... Now that I think about it… You have access to an absurdly useful bribe or trade tool."

"Huh?"

"Even cheap sweet pastries could get a literal king's ransom around here," the Vulpecian says. "Chocolate, even moreso." Good thing Vulpecians could safely eat the stuff, unlike mundane foxes…

You ponder a bit. "Worth keeping in mind. Plus some decent stuff in the fridge is always nice. Or even cheap stuff like my energy drinks."

Eira nods. "... I wouldn't suggest bringing those out for sale, but fine candies? Long term, they're a great ticket to financial power, and even with the magic I'm aware of, hard to reproduce."

"Meaning finance for Helen's larger plans."

This draws an interested look from Helen. "That… I hadn't thought of. Good thinking, for sure," she responds. "But longer-term. Grocery delivery's gotta be faster, right?"

"Like, an hour," you respond.

Helen looks like she's about to make recommendations, but stops herself. She's spent her share of the funds you're opting to open up for use here, more diplomatic to let you pick for yours. Or that's your guess of her logic. You're going to opt not to ask.

Instead, it's time for some resources you can't easily get. Couple more vegetables, a few cooking ingredients, sliced bacon… And energy drinks. Because, as you have to keep reminding yourself - they taste like gaming.

And gaming is good for your brainset. Last night proved that.

Still…

"... We can do breakfast with what we've got here," you say. "Then I think it's time we tried our next steps out."

---

Breakfast is, of course, pretty good - Senaz knows at least enough of how to cook. But as you eat, you consider options for where to try next.

[X] (Path to Recommend) Check around the bandit camp you took out last time - and south of it, maybe?

… Safest place is probably where you've already cleared. And frankly, you need the experience badly. So, aloud, you say: "My first thought is to check around the bandit camp, and what's south of it."

---

Eira nods. "Good chance it's a bit of a quiet spot, and it lets us potentially scout ahead some, so that's good. We still don't know which of the mountains is 'Chaos Mountain', so starting with guesswork is basically all we've got. See if we find anything, or do some things that help us do things, basically."

You pause a bit. "... Seems like a start to me. Good as any, at least."

Helen nods. "I mean, it's ultimately all guesswork until we get some leads regardless, and getting more experience under the belts is never a bad thing."

Eira nods. "We'll figure this out bit by bit, then. Until then…"

"Well… Everyone close to ready?", you ask.

"Think so," Helen responds.

"Yup," comes the fox's voice.

"Then let's go," you declare.

---

The day is kinda hot, honestly. Good thing you're basically immune to heat exhaustion, Eira's dressed for the weather, and Helen's endurance borders on the absurd.

Before long, you're at the river you found the shortcut through - past it to the Bandit Camp - and, seeing little, you follow Helen's idea to keep going south. Another tributary of the same river doesn't prove much of an obstacle, before you're starting into deeper woods…

"Wait," Helen and Eira say, at about the same time.

Eira points down. "Kobold tracks."

Helen points to one side. "Damage in the bushes." Then, she quickly tracks where Eira's pointing. "... Most likely, the kobolds."

You blink, even as you now see that the tracks go to the bushes. "Wait, how can you tell they're kobold tracks?"

"Shape's distinctive enough if they're not wearing full boots. Looking closer… Footwraps. Looks like… Maybe six of them?"

You pause. "... What are the odds they're with the Cult of She Who Must Be Abjured?"

Helen pauses. "Very plausible, but not a sure thing. We should avoid assuming, that's sure."

This leaves a few choices…

[ ] (Kobold Tracks) Follow the tracks to try and locate their creators.
[ ] (Kobold Tracks) Try to follow the tracks backwards, see if you can find a camp or something.
[ ] (Kobold Tracks) Ignore the tracks, keep moving.
[ ] (Kobold Tracks) I wonder what other tricks I could try... (Audience idea time!)

---

I'll be angling to streamline the quest from here, since using Keep on the Borderlands, which is classically freeform, was probably not one of my better ideas.

Thankfully, once we actually get to the main dungeon, things should more easily pick up the pace. But hopefully you'll have a level or two before that.

Have not forgotten, I've just been traveling, ftr

So, now that I'm back from travel and actually starting to write the next chapter properly...