TwistedJester
Tired Lurker King
- Location
- Hell
[X] Fine
[X] Maximal Greed
[X] Maximal Greed
-
Going forward, links to content from Twitter (now X) will no longer be embedded. Pre-existing links should not be affected.
A Simple Transaction I
- Thread starter Rihaku
- Start date
- Original
So building on my voyaging realm theory
I'm more inclined to think that the Forebear built this place now.
We know the voyaging realm is stupid-big, possibly a billion+ worlds big. We know it's a sphere on the outside. I think "kaleidoscopic arrangement" is a good description for a billion worlds cut up into tiny pieces and then crammed into a magical sphere, with those tiny world-fragments being constantly moved around into new arrangements.
As for the Foremost, maybe the Forebear created them to manage his constantly shifting kaleidoscope universe? They do have similar names.
Things get more confusing later on of course. In Hunger's time, the Forebear is dead and there is only one world with one magic system. I don't really have a good explanation for this, other than lame answers that don't actually explain anything like "time travel" or "alternate universe".
...
[X] Unelemental
You're crazy Unelemental, and I love you for it.
I'm more inclined to think that the Forebear built this place now.
We know the voyaging realm is stupid-big, possibly a billion+ worlds big. We know it's a sphere on the outside. I think "kaleidoscopic arrangement" is a good description for a billion worlds cut up into tiny pieces and then crammed into a magical sphere, with those tiny world-fragments being constantly moved around into new arrangements.
As for the Foremost, maybe the Forebear created them to manage his constantly shifting kaleidoscope universe? They do have similar names.
Things get more confusing later on of course. In Hunger's time, the Forebear is dead and there is only one world with one magic system. I don't really have a good explanation for this, other than lame answers that don't actually explain anything like "time travel" or "alternate universe".
...
[X] Unelemental
You're crazy Unelemental, and I love you for it.
OctarineShrike
Avatar of Mandos
I realized there's some thematic overlap between the Forebear as described in World-Defeating stance and the Fates/Nameless/Presumably the Hidden Masters
Whose march is steady and inevitable, carrying all before it - Echoes of the Fates, the procession of ages Nameless brought to an end.
Systems of the World in Kaleidoscopic arrangement and all bent to his will - Nameless in the Ending of Even Further Beyond, presumably the Hidden Masters of the Isekai world Lord Hunger came from.
The last bit - All the Diagram Liches got killed by capital D dooms. The fates intended to bring Nameless to heel with a fated love between him and the heroine/Spring. (Edit: Also this is giving me echoes of an Exarch from Chronicles of Darkness).
Whose march is steady and inevitable, carrying all before it - Echoes of the Fates, the procession of ages Nameless brought to an end.
Systems of the World in Kaleidoscopic arrangement and all bent to his will - Nameless in the Ending of Even Further Beyond, presumably the Hidden Masters of the Isekai world Lord Hunger came from.
The last bit - All the Diagram Liches got killed by capital D dooms. The fates intended to bring Nameless to heel with a fated love between him and the heroine/Spring. (Edit: Also this is giving me echoes of an Exarch from Chronicles of Darkness).
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- Location
- Pindorama
You can get your marker back too; I'm not that cruel.
[X] Unelemental
OctarineShrike
Avatar of Mandos
Thanks!
Personally, it also reminded me of the Plenary Brand. That's pretty much what the Curse promised. And the Amarlt line possessed Procyon, the Plenary Armament.
ImperatorV
The Laughing One
- Location
- The Voyaging Realm
I was waffling on what I wanted to vote for this run, but...
[x]Unelemental
Ya gotta respect the 8k word Reaction Post. Which I have to now go read.
...If our Arete gets high enough, would it be possible to get Crimson Flare and a stance? I don't think we're at that point, but with the Arete generation bonus and snowballing it might be possible, I don't know how the snowballing is calculated.
[x]Unelemental
Ya gotta respect the 8k word Reaction Post. Which I have to now go read.
...If our Arete gets high enough, would it be possible to get Crimson Flare and a stance? I don't think we're at that point, but with the Arete generation bonus and snowballing it might be possible, I don't know how the snowballing is calculated.
By this point I can only assume that the Forebear had been a Combat-type Cursebearer, because taking the Plenary Brand (and maybe the Tyrant's Doom?) as a Progression-type and then proceeding to do all that is just too swole for any single man.
...though maybe the Forebear had been a woman? How 'bout that.
...though maybe the Forebear had been a woman? How 'bout that.
LordOfMurder
Bhaal
- Location
- Australia
Any of the four bears that made up the Forebear could have been men or women!
I think that the Forebear was a normal dude (or bear in the secret canon omake that Rihaku hides from us) but his Accretion power was supercharged and lived on even after his death. He had a stance when fighting mages (probably showing them middle finger during fight to distract their concentration) but in the legend it was Magic-Defeating stance.
His blade was just a normal blade, but in the legend it was a tool of unfathomable destruction.
He managed to conquer several villages with fifty peasants each but in the legend he was a conqueror of countless worlds.
He managed to beat a guy in a debate, in the legend he was so guile and witty that no social encounter could stand in his way.
Basically it is not what you are, it is what people think you are. Being honest is probably pointless, having reputation for honesty is usefull.
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OctarineShrike
Avatar of Mandos
Maybe. I suppose that'd be a decent enough bait and switch if it turned out to be true.
In the end we could become the Forebear as he/she/bear was in the legend, not the actual person.
I'm not sure this is all that meaningful.
The hero has a thousand faces. Time is a flat circle. The wheel turns. Thematics are less important than direct references.
...
Here's another theory: There are two timelines, or two alternate universes if you prefer
1: In the first timeline, the Forebear conquered one world, then died in his bed. The Tyrant conquered one world, then was killed by Hunger. There is only the Isekai world, which only has one magic system, and no one knows how to get to any other worlds. The ring Hunger was profaned and never revealed its power. This is the first world/timeline that Hunger was summoned too, the one where he was doomed to die. The Hidden Ones live in this timeline, and are working hard to insure no one can ever challenge them.
2: In the second timeline, the Hidden Ones died out a billion years ago or never ascended or something. So the Forebear was born on the isekai world, and instead of dying he conquered a billion worlds, created the Voyaging Realm, and ascended to godhood or something. This timeline is the one that the Accursed deposited Hunger into after their Simple Transaction.
This means that
-Ceathlynn "Catherine" of Amarlt is the alternate universe version of the Catherine that Hunger knew.
-The Hidden One's can't access this timeline because it's a timeline where they don't exist, and didn't ever exist.
-Resurrecting the Catherine from Hunger's original Timeline will result in the Hidden One's being able to follow that link over from Timeline 1 to Timeline 2, at which point they'll kill Hunger and conquer everything and plant their boots on everyone's necks, same as before.
If this theory is correct, then we should expect that there is another Hunger ring out there somewhere, although it's probably been destroyed. It's also not clear if summoning the Forebear would summon the Forebear from timeline 1 or 2.
Rihaku has said that the Forebear could tell us much about the nature of the HIdden ones. If the theory above is correct, the Forebear never became a Hidden One but managed to learn something about them before they killed him. "Once and Future" should connect with the Forebear from timeline 1, which makes sense given our Forebear's Sword comes from timeline 1.
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- Location
- Omniverse #1345
Considering what this update consisted of I'm not sure what is with the name. We didn't meet a legion or anything scarlet here. Perhaps it's a reference to Hunger's blood powers being used to grant magic? But then I still don't really understand Rihaku's naming scheme so I'm probably not quite getting it.
Of course even after all this Gisena is graceful. Truly, the Maiden is a curse as immense as those handed out by the Accursed. ...Wait a second... But damn this place is insanely impressive. I suppose there is a reason it's so damn expensive that 2 nights is worth most of the bounty for killing a Primary Rotspawn. Though even then that feels like a bit much. Primary rotspawn don't grow on trees!
Hunger is a weird guy indeed. But I suppose harvesting the fruit himself counts, even if it was just reaching out and grabbing it. I wonder what he would think of Pillars, given the place allows for opulence incarnate, but it all ultimately originates from him?
Ah, they understand you can't have a proper hotsprings episode if everyone isn't present to enjoy it. What a waste! Let me have your slot then!
I suppose magic experiments are worth it. Maybe. If you squint a little. But I shouldn't complain, the group is still having fun and enjoying themselves, which was a lot of the point of the vacation to begin with. Even if we ended up failing at it a bit.
Ah Hunger, a man after my own heart. It's such a massive expenditure of money to just... not go into the super-awesome hotsprings.
But Gisena does bring up a good point. It would be remiss to not stick together in all things. Especially relaxing! Relaxing must be done exactly right, you heretics! But seriously, in most quests I see more fights over how to relax than I do on battle tactics or build votes...
By all of your enemies lying broken before, and reality itself not daring to oppose you. With the Accursed clapping you on. I mean, dying isn't how you know you trained your hardest. Winning against everything despite everything is!
He isn't joking. It's a problem. We really need to do... something about it before it gets him killed. More beach episodes, less Temple madness in the future. Please.
See what I mean? Damn it Hunger, we've been working on this! ...In probably the wrong direction, now that I think about it.
Ah Gisena, making even a mistake into an advantage. I am very glad you were picked, even if you aren't ideal in every situation.
Ah Letrizia, you aren't considering that the realm might try to stop you from extracting yourself! Then what will you do!? But more seriously if the voyaging realm is made for Cursebearers to grow then it probably isn't going to stop Hunger or anyone with him from leaving, regardless of its behavior in other circumstances. Because that is it's purpose. Probably.
Obviously she's going to make you handle it then try to claim all the credit for stopping it, Hunger. I'm not sure why this isn't obvious!
...It actually isn't. At all. We probably can tell the Voyaging realm to fuck off in a few weeks. Maybe. If we keep taking insane risks, anyway. So lets make that a few months.
Hunger, you would bankrupt the entire universe with those rates. So no, they can't. But are you really going to abandon Letrizia anyway? Or are you just going to decide the Empire owes you itself and take it over?
Good attitude! Yeah, it must really rankle Letrizia to have to be so crippled compared to what she is used to. Armaments are usually the stuff of legends and here she is being protected by two random people she ran into when she was in trouble.
Huh, I never really thought about that. I hope you didn't park him on city hall or something Letrizia!
Yeah, an armament isn't worth sending against a bunch of people that simply left your jurisdiction. Not worth it at all. But if said group happens to be making off with armaments, even heavily damaged ones... That is something they can not abide by, even if they intended for the pilot to die.
I suppose Gisena is very good at noticing things like that. Shame they are terrified of her, though. They should be saving all that fear for us!
Ah, we finally get to the interesting part! Magic! Blood! Blood magic!
See, Letrizia agrees with me!
Man, I never really thought about how much that must suck for Gisena. She knows her power is anti-magic and will always be anti-magic. And is weighted down by seeing the incredible things others can do while all she can do is take them down.
Of course with proper application, lots of talent, and even more work Gisena will be able to do miraculous things herself with Nullity. Though it will always be by making things cease. It just happens to be that if you make certain things cease in just the right way Fate will be forced to Kneel. At least for a time. So don't give up, Gisena!
Interesting. But then again we do cheat, and apparently the water can unlock magic in people spontaneously, which means we really just need to make sure that process actually happens rather than sputtering like it does on others, and also rather than anything more esoteric or complicated to perform.
Not without the Voyaging realm forcing the issue, anyway. Which it probably does sometimes, but this doesn't seem like one of those times. This almost feels like a magic system designed for cursebearers like us to grab as we wander by, given the lax requirements, ease of obtaining it, and the ability to use it reasonably basically right out of the gate.
It is interesting to consider if their discovery of the spring was chance or if it was forced by something that has other things in mind. Given I think this place is a training ground for cursebearers I suspect it was the second one, with the realm itself being responsible.
Geronimo!
Interesting that this is complex work, when all it is is sufficing her essence with the magic contained in the water. And good to know the ring can distinguish between aiding and harming an ally, and can avoid doing one even if used poorly.
You know, you probably don't need to be that still, Letrizia. Relax a little.
Good this doesn't take that much focus from Hunger, though. Probably hard to maintain for the length of time needed if it did.
Charge! Have fun guys!
Yes! In fact, it isn't enough! More! Bury her!
Indeed, Gisena isn't complaining! Increase your willpower Letrizia! You want magic then you must suffer for it!
But... that isn't your school uniform. In fact, who did you steal that from? Are they going to miss it? What if it was their last spare you monster!?
Good point Gisena. I suppose Letrizia is a little traitor to the crown herself!
Hopefully this isn't all for nothing!
Ooh, that good. Probably a bit expensive, though. Letrizia isn't going to be happy about sitting these that long, or about having to wait for her magic to come in!
It's worth it! It's a small sacrifice for magic, Letrizia! Hold strong! You want it more than anything!
Good that Hunger noticed that before it turned into a Tyrant incident. That would have been awkward, particularly as we paid for a second day here.
Yep, Hunger at least knows to be cautious of it. Probably more than we do, really.
Desk staff probably get bribed all the time, now that I think about it. Well, good thing we didn't have any other reason to need the money.
Bad Hunger! Bad!
Thankfully Hunger is perfectly reasonable. As long as you reimburse him. A lot.
If anything it increases it Hunger! She's spending your money for you! That privilege demands a price!
Good, nice and easy. Thought with Gisena's Charisma that seems to have been a foregone conclusion.
Slowwwwww.
lol, poor Letrizia. Don't worry, your suffering will have been worth it!
Neat. This magic seems interesting, at least, if only in how it is gained.
You say this like you have a choice Letrizia! Now sleep on it!
Obviously. But Hunger is never going to admit to that.
That is an interesting question, but the answer is a bit less exciting.
For Gisena's power is nullity, and only nullity. It is always nullity. She is not freed so easily from that. Not yet.
Sounds like a plan and a good deal to me. Now how can we arrange this...
Silly Gisena. You mean in 5 minutes
Indeed!
Good response Gisena, good to know you agree with me.
That's good at least. One more day gone, and power gained from it yet again. Progression cursebearers are scary.
Well, Letrizia is happy. Very happy. Perhaps a bit too happy. We may have miscalculated.
I am suddenly very glad we did not get the curse of slumber.
...Get me a newspaper I need to bop her for that one.
Rihaku
The Internet
Current vote count?
It'd be inferior to buffing Hunger and not buffing Avecarn at all, of course!
Hm... but does Accretion actually work that way?
Catherine was certainly a woman! But the Forebear has generally been referred to as a man.
If your Arete gets high enough, sure. But which one would you guys actually take?
It'd be inferior to buffing Hunger and not buffing Avecarn at all, of course!
Hm... but does Accretion actually work that way?
Catherine was certainly a woman! But the Forebear has generally been referred to as a man.
If your Arete gets high enough, sure. But which one would you guys actually take?
TwistedJester
Tired Lurker King
- Location
- Hell
@HoratioVonBecker
Here's your system! Got delayed due to IRL affairs
Kinda merges you're two prompts together.
Inner Edifice:
The Soul has always been a source of great power, bestowing a myriad of vastly differing powers. The users of Inner Edifice are capable of direct interactions of their personal souls from the start to conjure the remainder of their repertoire.
The magical art functions through tearing out pieces of you own soul to modify, and enhance them. Modification requires both a understanding of the portion of the soul taken out, for example the piece of the soul containing memories of war would require personal understanding of war, and mechanical knowledge for modification takes tunes from both personal awareness, and scientific knowledge scaling in efforts with extent of knowledge from both. After the modification and enhancement is done the construct would then be absorbed back with no permanent loss.
The soul fragment and personal awareness would form the base of the new construct and the user' mechanical knowledge would shape it to their liking. The aforementioned memories of war could be shaped into a plasma caster that would allow for personal creation and manipulation of plasma.
Such effects can be created with imagination as the limit as long as the two requirements are passed for a chosen modification, and enhancement. A side effect would be the overall strengthening of the soul as its parts are tempered, and altered overtime. If new understanding and/or scientific knowledge surfaces old constructs could be broken down to new ones or be enhanced to a new extent.
As people are skilled in a disparate number of fields constructs would vary from a computer that allows for magnified mental speed and memory recovery to a engine that would supply limitless stamina.
To gain access to the Inner Edifice a epiphany must be gained when contemplating both their scientific knowledge and their own self.
The constructs are entangled very deeply, beneath the level where "destruction" is a viable concept. The practical ramification is a linking in dreams and in fate; no matter how scattered or diminished, the components of an Inner Edifice reflect their completed whole, and are drawn together by ontology.
Edit: The last paragraph was taken from Horatio's excellent analysis and expansion on the system. I frankly couldn't put it any better.
Here's your system! Got delayed due to IRL affairs
Kinda merges you're two prompts together.
Inner Edifice:
The Soul has always been a source of great power, bestowing a myriad of vastly differing powers. The users of Inner Edifice are capable of direct interactions of their personal souls from the start to conjure the remainder of their repertoire.
The magical art functions through tearing out pieces of you own soul to modify, and enhance them. Modification requires both a understanding of the portion of the soul taken out, for example the piece of the soul containing memories of war would require personal understanding of war, and mechanical knowledge for modification takes tunes from both personal awareness, and scientific knowledge scaling in efforts with extent of knowledge from both. After the modification and enhancement is done the construct would then be absorbed back with no permanent loss.
The soul fragment and personal awareness would form the base of the new construct and the user' mechanical knowledge would shape it to their liking. The aforementioned memories of war could be shaped into a plasma caster that would allow for personal creation and manipulation of plasma.
Such effects can be created with imagination as the limit as long as the two requirements are passed for a chosen modification, and enhancement. A side effect would be the overall strengthening of the soul as its parts are tempered, and altered overtime. If new understanding and/or scientific knowledge surfaces old constructs could be broken down to new ones or be enhanced to a new extent.
As people are skilled in a disparate number of fields constructs would vary from a computer that allows for magnified mental speed and memory recovery to a engine that would supply limitless stamina.
To gain access to the Inner Edifice a epiphany must be gained when contemplating both their scientific knowledge and their own self.
The constructs are entangled very deeply, beneath the level where "destruction" is a viable concept. The practical ramification is a linking in dreams and in fate; no matter how scattered or diminished, the components of an Inner Edifice reflect their completed whole, and are drawn together by ontology.
Edit: The last paragraph was taken from Horatio's excellent analysis and expansion on the system. I frankly couldn't put it any better.
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Projectile
Thinking of Rabbits
- Location
- USA
Fanwork#1654 Words
There were amazing and annoying parts of the last AST, more of the former than the latter, but all in all I like this one more. The recklessness that led us voters to confront the Sorceresses with an unmitigated brand is clearly still in full effect, so I guess we're just never going to get rid of it.
I wasn't expecting an answer to my question, but the boy would've progressed to manhood and heroism in a season. If only. Instead of months or even a decade, you're in this for an octillion years, brotato. Strap in for the long haul.
I can't quite decide how metaphorical the Tyrant's theft of Hunger's youth is. A decade was stolen from him, but was any more? Is he suffering from a similar Affliction as Letrizia, and was that why the option was offered in the first place? Hunger's never implied that it wasn't an additional cruelty rather than time's, but after his final attack I'm not sure if he'd even remember.
I just posted that we don't know enough about the Tyrant's cruelty in my last reaction, but if he punished the world for the "impudence" of a single Hero, he was a total dick. How surprising, not.
We now know about Catherine, the most important, and there was a mention of his own mentor when he was giving Letrizia a pep talk, but Hunger backstory is slow to be parceled out. We're grabbing another EFB, one hopes, but unlike Cut Through this one seems to be very focused on the present story. Then again, this Ring did sit in disguise on the villain's finger all those years, who knows what it has seen? Now that Hunger is part of Hunger, at his deepest self has he seen this tragedy from three perspectives? Maybe that's what he keeps imprisoned.
The last line has not changed since the first update, but our path is set. Baenlixnaire approves.
"Be like the Forebear" is meme now, but the Sword that Was Stolen was the first of the Hero's artifacts, I think. Was he once even more Thick as Thieves than he is now, even after he Cut Through? Meditating on the potential locked within the sword for years, it would be less likely to be otherwise. What parts of him were in the Blade when it shattered for that final strike, and how much of the Blade was in his mind when it likewise fractured?
Hunger's lecture to Letrizia over a fish didn't come from nowhere, the importance of the little moments was established in the first post. A small spot of brightness.
The Hero was the stronger in the final confrontation, but he was still forced to burn himself to win. If he didn't, he might have survived the nobility afterwards.
For more information, see Accursed Implement. Damn, that lesson was also there from the start, I wonder how many 25-Arete buys will reference this post. Catherine was probably last on purpose, not because of narrative, but because the Tyrant never intended to kill her.
The Tyrant loses, but it can't really be said that Hunger wins. It's a good thing, still.
Even losing everything didn't keep the hero down; if happily ever after is a lie, then so are the tragic endings, because stories don't end where books do. I wish it worked out for him, because using his reputation even as his body is ruined to continue to make things better would be so fucking meaningful. I'm tearing up a bit, his heroism is inspring me from another reality!
Painting him as a Tyrant for attempting to bring equality, though, is shameful, so whether or not they had a point, fuck those guys. I mean, he's a Tyrant now, but not when you called him that. Also, he deserved better than backstabbery, even crippled as he was you didn't have the gonads to be honest? Well, Hunger'd approve, actually, if it was less personal.
I see Temple parallels, especially since it also boasts of being well-ordered and keeps the people fed. Is Hunger's attempt to reform this society as doomed as the last one? This is actually an incredibly interesting question, I'll bring it up outside of the spoiler if anyone wants to last-minute brainstorm.
The Accursed is here to save the day, with the Plenary trumpets announcing him. Interesting that the curse doesn't reveal that he isn't a devil, he wouldn't need the boilerplate speech, then, but the Brand of the Wretched talked into into a compromise to maximize his suffering. He's the opposite of a devil, he would have saved us if only we let him, but tricking mortals into damning themselves is the devil's favorite, so a biased view (which all would be) could fit this into the mold. This is only the most amusing of the trials he faces, poor dude.
There's no surprise in the winner of vs arguments knowing something, but the "truly responsible powers" only come up like three times so I'm desperate for information about them. If only he could've told us more, but we still don't have the power to do anything other than stress about them, after all. I suppose he might not have been bound, and simply offered us the kindness of telling us enough for honesty while minimizing worry.
The Accursed is just. The best. We need to survive and grow strong, not only for ourself and our friends, but also this guy. Or maybe that didn't need to be said, we only talked to him once but that's enough for friendship from Hunger's direction.
Just throwing that parallel out, really.
Alright boys, girls, and enbies, I thought I was had gone Beyond but Unelemental has inspired me to go Further Beyond myself, so now I'm writing a simple reaction in the time we have left. This quest shares a title with the last Cursebearer quest starring Seram. Title analysis of the florid, poetic chapter posts is incredibly entertaining, so the simplicity Rihaku prefers in his overall titles makes me tilt my head. "Unnamed Quest" doesn't even have a Nameless protagonist. is it perfectionism, or is the contrast intentional?
There were amazing and annoying parts of the last AST, more of the former than the latter, but all in all I like this one more. The recklessness that led us voters to confront the Sorceresses with an unmitigated brand is clearly still in full effect, so I guess we're just never going to get rid of it.
Hey, the first line is acknowledging the thing I just said, seeing all this cleverness is the best part of writing reactions. The second best, actually, the best part is the Arete. Isekai happens - I wonder if there's any significance to the boy becoming a man before a hero, if he was going hard from the start, is this just a turn of phrase or is it referencing a particular epiphany? It will never be, but destiny probably would have given the Hero more time to breathe than the Tyrant, and its intentions don't matter against its master.
It's clear that the Hero/Overlord dichotomy is a huge part of the Rihakuverse. Nameless could also have been said to be aware of and, eventually, greater than destiny, but as much as he liked the Truth I don't think he was so fussed with causality. This Tyrant might also have Just Shot the Fates, but he doesn't have quite the powerlevel. And on the lower end of High Rank, it wouldn't be enough to be a destiny unto himself for the entire world; he probably had a specific effect that is to Fate what the Ring is to Blood.
I wasn't expecting an answer to my question, but the boy would've progressed to manhood and heroism in a season. If only. Instead of months or even a decade, you're in this for an octillion years, brotato. Strap in for the long haul.
I can't quite decide how metaphorical the Tyrant's theft of Hunger's youth is. A decade was stolen from him, but was any more? Is he suffering from a similar Affliction as Letrizia, and was that why the option was offered in the first place? Hunger's never implied that it wasn't an additional cruelty rather than time's, but after his final attack I'm not sure if he'd even remember.
I just posted that we don't know enough about the Tyrant's cruelty in my last reaction, but if he punished the world for the "impudence" of a single Hero, he was a total dick. How surprising, not.
We now know about Catherine, the most important, and there was a mention of his own mentor when he was giving Letrizia a pep talk, but Hunger backstory is slow to be parceled out. We're grabbing another EFB, one hopes, but unlike Cut Through this one seems to be very focused on the present story. Then again, this Ring did sit in disguise on the villain's finger all those years, who knows what it has seen? Now that Hunger is part of Hunger, at his deepest self has he seen this tragedy from three perspectives? Maybe that's what he keeps imprisoned.
The last line has not changed since the first update, but our path is set. Baenlixnaire approves.
I'd forgotten that Hunger's Age and Treachery was as intentionally cultivated as this implies; his brutality was there even before we slurped 4bear juice, then. As far as forbidden arts go, Abduction doesn't seem that terrible even with the slurping. As terrible as the Tyrant was, you'd think that those nameless mentors would've given him more slack on the "forbidden" label. If they knew something to make the cost more terrible than it appears, we might have more trouble in the future from ghosts than expected.
"Be like the Forebear" is meme now, but the Sword that Was Stolen was the first of the Hero's artifacts, I think. Was he once even more Thick as Thieves than he is now, even after he Cut Through? Meditating on the potential locked within the sword for years, it would be less likely to be otherwise. What parts of him were in the Blade when it shattered for that final strike, and how much of the Blade was in his mind when it likewise fractured?
Hunger's lecture to Letrizia over a fish didn't come from nowhere, the importance of the little moments was established in the first post. A small spot of brightness.
The Hero was the stronger in the final confrontation, but he was still forced to burn himself to win. If he didn't, he might have survived the nobility afterwards.
There is no victory in Strength, Age was the greater and Hunger and Catherine's Treachery greatest of all. Except for those elder unseen. And then the Accursed. Shut up, brain, accuracy isn't important, I was trying to write cool lines.
For more information, see Accursed Implement. Damn, that lesson was also there from the start, I wonder how many 25-Arete buys will reference this post. Catherine was probably last on purpose, not because of narrative, but because the Tyrant never intended to kill her.
The Tyrant loses, but it can't really be said that Hunger wins. It's a good thing, still.
Eleven years, not ten. I had been rounding.
Even losing everything didn't keep the hero down; if happily ever after is a lie, then so are the tragic endings, because stories don't end where books do. I wish it worked out for him, because using his reputation even as his body is ruined to continue to make things better would be so fucking meaningful. I'm tearing up a bit, his heroism is inspring me from another reality!
Sadly, "better" would only be for most people, the ones not currently in power. I wouldn't dare say this in Hunger's hearing, but one of course has to have skepticism for a modern high-schooler's uplift education, even after a decade has passed. I'm fairly sure he was at least 90% in the right here, but the nobility might have had part of a point and not been entirely self-serving.
Painting him as a Tyrant for attempting to bring equality, though, is shameful, so whether or not they had a point, fuck those guys. I mean, he's a Tyrant now, but not when you called him that. Also, he deserved better than backstabbery, even crippled as he was you didn't have the gonads to be honest? Well, Hunger'd approve, actually, if it was less personal.
I see Temple parallels, especially since it also boasts of being well-ordered and keeps the people fed. Is Hunger's attempt to reform this society as doomed as the last one? This is actually an incredibly interesting question, I'll bring it up outside of the spoiler if anyone wants to last-minute brainstorm.
Shit, I literally just wrote "stories don't end" without realizing I was subconsciously plagiarizing from the Accursed's assertion of the opposite. I'll plead the Accursed clause, "except in case of Accursed" is always assumed. He's also the heartbeat of everything, which maybe explains why blue is truth, 's his favorite.
The Accursed is here to save the day, with the Plenary trumpets announcing him. Interesting that the curse doesn't reveal that he isn't a devil, he wouldn't need the boilerplate speech, then, but the Brand of the Wretched talked into into a compromise to maximize his suffering. He's the opposite of a devil, he would have saved us if only we let him, but tricking mortals into damning themselves is the devil's favorite, so a biased view (which all would be) could fit this into the mold. This is only the most amusing of the trials he faces, poor dude.
There was only ever one real option for Hunger. Uttermost, no matter the cost, etc. That's just retroactive, though, at the time the vote was pretty close. Fluffy family life with Catherine and kid and maybe also the rest of his friends was possible, but the hidden ones would never get punched in the face and Hunger would always be asking in the back of his mind when everything would come undone. It's heavy.
There's no surprise in the winner of vs arguments knowing something, but the "truly responsible powers" only come up like three times so I'm desperate for information about them. If only he could've told us more, but we still don't have the power to do anything other than stress about them, after all. I suppose he might not have been bound, and simply offered us the kindness of telling us enough for honesty while minimizing worry.
The Accursed is just. The best. We need to survive and grow strong, not only for ourself and our friends, but also this guy. Or maybe that didn't need to be said, we only talked to him once but that's enough for friendship from Hunger's direction.
Quoting this bit outside of the spoiler because it seems relevant to the current situation. Hunger's again trying to reform a society, a stable and well-fed one, and it didn't go so well last time. Not sure what lesson to take from it, though, other than either lowered expectations or obliteration of the dominant class. The yoke might not be so light if Selune's any indication, so there's a potential faultline. And pay attention more to what people want than your own ideals - I would say, but Uttermost is about the opposite, so just do your best, Hunger.
Just throwing that parallel out, really.
Duquette7
I am Fire, and I am Rain
Well, Magic is my favorite, but Guile has it's charms.
- Location
- Pindorama
Inserted tally
- Location
- Pindorama
I don't know how much a sculpture of Hunger with the making-of live-stream would be worth; but it's likely a lot. @Microwave MKII and @Priest are basically carrying Maximum Safety in terms of omake power now. @Orm Embar has two omakes that are currently wasted on Somewhat Safe as well.
- Location
- Omniverse #1345
Well, for this fight does it matter very much? Both Guile and Hero seem like they increase our odds significantly, and when paired with Crimson it should basically guarentee victory.
