There's "secret" in the sense that knowledge of it is genuinely restricted to a small minority of the population who have all been personally entrusted with the knowledge.
And there's "open secret" in the sense that the knowledge isn't widely confirmed or acknowledged to be true by official sources, but where there is no particular barrier keeping any given person from finding it out, and most people who are interested will probably find it out sooner or later.
There's "secret" in the sense that knowledge of it is genuinely restricted to a small minority of the population who have all been personally entrusted with the knowledge.
And there's "open secret" in the sense that the knowledge isn't widely confirmed or acknowledged to be true by official sources, but where there is no particular barrier keeping any given person from finding it out, and most people who are interested will probably find it out sooner or later.
I understand what you're getting at but it being a Open Secret doesn't make sense either to me because I feel like the main character would already know this considering how much she's assessed with the magical womans
It's never said that Miyako didn't know that about Hanazakari, Koyomi even figured she already would, Miyako just hasn't brought it up yet. Hope that clears things up
[X] Emi and Vasilisa.
[X] Improvising something when they got there.
"Oh alright," Koyomi sighed out in the end. "Daimon, Mirova, you can come. Hate to admit it given what you've put us through," she then glared at Vasilisa, "but anti-gravity is just too useful a Cultivar to turn down, so let's just see how serious you are about helping now. Count yourself lucky you didn't get garbage detection or invisibility in the dark or whatever."
Vasilisa having trouble replying in Japanese, she actually found Emi speaking up for her.
"Actually, trash detection would be most certainly useful for house-cleaning, be used to orient yourself around a certain trashcan for navigation, and depending on the definition of 'trash' could detect counterfeit objects," Emi said, then realising how much she was rambling, backed off with, "Er sorry, it's just sometimes my mind gets caught up on superpower mechanics since-"
"You wish you had any but the one you do, huh?" Koyomi cut to the chase and said.
"Ah, I was going to say it's because my line of work kept me thinking about these sorts of things when plotting, but... yeah, that's definitely part of it too," Emi said, looking downcast again.
"Listen, Daimon, not for one second will I force you to use your Cultivar," Koyomi spoke clearly, though the thought occurred, even if this whole thing escalates, you could be pressured to use that Cultivar out of desperation. She instead went with the slightly less alarming addition of "Still, Narcissus doesn't know for sure you won't use it, likely despite what Izumi tells her."
Emi had to flinch a bit hearing that, but said, "Thanks, that er... helps to hear."
That left one last Hanazakari. "Maimi, I'm sorry, but you'd best stay here," Koyomi told the swan, "Maybe if your wing was in better condition we could have you fly high and scout the area, but as you are right now, the answer's no."
Maimi of course reacted by squawking and trying to flap right up into Koyomi's face, but her still wounded wing meant that came to nothing as she found herself panting on the ground. Only then did she give a swan version of a nod.
All the while Vasilisa just sat there staring at this talking to a swan, something transforming would've quickly cleared up.
Seeing Maimi's spirits falling, Koyomi then said, "How about this? Go back to the shrine and keep an eye on Miyako, in case Blue Lotus or RUNE or the Purified or whoever try anything on her while I'm gone."
With a squawk of approval, Maimi took off to do so. But those words just left Emi asking, "Blue Lotus?"
Vasilisa cut in bluntly while Koyomi was unsure how to respond. "Frostfarer. Alive," she said.
"I'll explain on the train," Koyomi stepped in to say, then took Emi's arm before she started trembling all over at those words.
Once on said train, the rice paddies outside soon replaced with mountain foliage, Koyomi then told Emi, "Blue Lotus, as he calls himself, is the only known living Frostfarer. I've only faced off against him once when he escaped from RUNE, but from what I saw of him, he's still your typical Frostfarer. Delusionally acting like the war isn't over as long as there's one piece left on the board."
"I mean, yes, I guess thinking every single Frostfarer was dead was a bit hasty," Emi said, but then smiled at Koyomi with, "but if it's just one, you will protect me from him, I know it. He'll be no match for you!"
Protect yourself already, Koyomi was tempted to snap, but restrained herself, breathed out, and instead said, "Yeah, of course."
"I-I know it's really shameful of me to admit this," Emi then said as she shrunk back in her seat, "It's just, knowing there's a Frostfarer out there again makes me, um, kinda nostalgic I could put it? I know all the horrible things the Fair did, I really do, but with all that's happened to me since," she looked at her robotic hands, "Well, the Fair wasn't the reason I was forced to get prosthetics. Being a Mangaka was still something I could look forward to in the Frost Decade."
At first, those words made Koyomi severely tense up, like Emi having anything positive to say about the Frost Fair at all stabbed at her. Hearing her reason out in full helped Koyomi calm down a little, not that she still wasn't a little bit on edge. "RUNE and YamahiPro would say the same," she muttered, "wistful for the days when there was a real war to fight, when Hanazakari were the most important thing ever, when we could call ourselves Guardians of Truth and Love and whatever with a straight face. But unimpressed as I am with the modern world, trust me Daimon, you do not want to go back," she then took Emi's hand.
"Y-yes, you are absolutely right," Emi said on instinct. "Guess I said that too impulsively. Yours was a most elegant statement, ah, as is appropriate for our leader."
"Leader?" Koyomi flinched all over as she heard that, especially recalling who Emi had previously called that. Oh, and that time Palmira had called her 'Boss Lady'. I don't know how anyone in their right mind could think of me as a leader, she thought, till she considered the alternatives here were unstable Emi and gung-ho Vasilisa, then conceded a little. "Right, fine," she just said. Maybe the whole idea of leaders is dumb?
On the train's arrival, they still had to walk further into this town and even the forest before they reached where reports had it Chigusa's house was. And it sure was a house, looming, creaky, and at least a century old by the look of it. They could see it being a regular celebrity retreat way back in the day, but now it looked like somewhere you'd host a Test of Courage if anything. The iron gates and surrounding blue mist were like the cherry on a sundae.
"At first, I had no idea why any celebrity would ever make their home address public," Koyomi said then just add to had, "I dread any random person finding mine online. But now I clearly see it's for a side-business doing ghost tours," she chuckled.
There weren't any security guards around despite there being an alien inside, if the three were on time anyway. Not that Narcissus really needed them when she apparently had an army of herself. But expectedly there were more than a few security cameras set up, which Koyomi had the perfect solution for as she transformed and shrouded them in darkness.
With that, Vasilisa was quick, and Emi much slower, to transform. "Finally, I can talk no problem again. Oh, I have missed this," the cosmonaut said, then grinned and cracked her knuckles. "Now, allow me."
She then grabbed Koyomi and Emi by their waists and levitated up with them, over the gates and onto the gargoyle-ringed roof. "Best thing about anti-gravity, your weight is no issue," Vasilisa had to smirk, that remark just as sudden as her floating them up and over. Not that she could land and stand, her legs having been wrecked by another Hanazakari meant she had to keep hovering.
"Congratulating ourselves too soon, are we not?" a voice said from behind, one icily familiar to Koyomi.
"How dare you-" she snarled as she charged across the roof to strike down the reemergent Blue Lotus, only for him as in Taito Base to simply skate out of the way.
"Careful, would not want Narcissus and Hellebore to find out you are up here, hmhm," he said. The blue-haired alien emotional vampire had since gotten dressed in the fashion of a Victorian lord, wearing a black coat with a cravat above tight white trousers, even a checkered top hat and cane despite him having no need of the latter. "My, that blonde not with you now? I wonder what she is up to, she did set me free after all. Instead, you have a Zinnia and an Orange blossom, a somewhat unsightly bouquet I must say."
"What are you planning? What have you been up to?!" Koyomi hissed, quill-sword pointed at his neck.
"And a lovely day to you too," Blue Lotus said then suddenly sighed, "I see Earth manners have not improved in all these years. Or perhaps that is only among you Hanazakari, for I was given the warmest welcomes when I saw to putting the band back together. No, not any of my Fair fellows, I am still a Tigger or Aerith in that regard. No, I meant all your charming megacorps, zaibatsus, and sweatshops that so graciously helped us out in the war."
"Of course you would, you piece of-" Koyomi roared out before her swing missed again.
"Language, Black Rose," Blue Lotus said, now standing above on a weathervane. "For that slight, I shall not what I have planned with them. Not that I would anyway, not right now, for what fun would it be if I just told you? Just that it involves quite the big order.
But I can offer you three my own generousity, to lead by example. I shall give you a head start, freedom to scour out Narcissus and Hellebore to your hearts' content, and provoke an emotional reaction in either. Narcissus will have her buttons easily pressed, but to wring a real emotion out of that Hellebore, why that would be a real achievement."
"Or you could stop playing around. Just attack us already!" Koyomi spat out.
"Hah, such gratitude," Blue Lotus had to laugh.
"Yeah well, all your bootlicking corpos won't mean a thing when the Pathragadans get here," Vasilisa then spoke up, brandishing her raygun, "One's already arrived on Earth right now!"
"Oh yes, that bamboo shoot. I do have eyes, my dear," Blue Lotus said back with no change in tone. "What do you know of Pathragada, really? Other than what its low-caste Dandelionhearts were obliged to tell you? I admit I am biased, but if I were you, they would be the last people I would place any hope in.
Well now, head start like I promised. Do not disappoint me," he then tipped his hat before he leapt back and vanished into the mist.
"Hah, seeing a Frostfarer again after so long makes me wonder why I ever cared for alien life," Vasilisa said impromptu,
"If only the USSR had been there for Frost Decade, we at least wouldn't have had corporations sucking up to Frost Fair."
"W-what do you think he meant about Pathragada?" Emi asked.
"Could've meant anything," Koyomi muttered. "It's been a while, but you have to remember. A Frostfarer doesn't care what they say, all that matters is their words get a rise out of people. Granted, what I've heard about Pathragada doesn't make me look favorably on them either."
"Oh, right. It's just what I was told about the Frost Fair back then was- no, nevermind," Emi had to say.
"Wait, 'told about' the Frost Fair?" Vasilisa asked. "You say that like you didn't fight them."
"I did fight in the Frost Decade!" Emi insisted, though didn't say against whom. She tensed as Koyomi looked at her, but then that gaze softened.
"You were with a big publishing conglomerate, of course you were drafted to fight for the Frost Fair. It's no big surprise," Koyomi said the very thing Emi feared she would. But then she put a hand on Emi's shoulder and said, "Again, don't beat yourself up. You're not like Hibiki, you're not fighting to keep Sfira locked up and experimented on, but to set them free. You're not your teenage self anymore, and getting all guilty over the past won't fix it." Yeah, like I'm not a hypocrite for saying that.
"Yes... thank you. We will save Sfira, and when Blue Lotus comes back, I won't serve under his banner again!" Emi said, as if on a high.
Again, Koyomi couldn't tell if Emi was just saying what she thought her 'leader' wanted to hear, but it not being self-pity was good enough.
Article:
They were past the security, and had a 'head start' against Hibiki and Chigusa, whatever Blue Lotus had meant by that. Their plan of action was:
[ ] Staying in darkness to head directly to Sfira.
[ ] Taken the Idols by surprise by crashing through the roof.
[ ] Dealing with any Narcissi around to work out just what Chigusa's power was.
[ ] Heading after Hibiki first, being only one person made her relatively easier to deal with.
[ ] Eavesdropping on Hibiki and Chigusa together, see what info they might let slip.
[ ] Do what Blue Lotus had warned and make some noise up here, to lure the Idols up onto the roof.
[ ] Tell Hibiki and Chigusa that Blue Lotus was nearby... if they didn't already know.
[] Splitting the party to track down Sfira, Hibiki, and Chigusa separately. [Koyomi has too much Mind and too little Technique to do this.]
[ ] Write-in
By the way, I did consider changing this arc's title, especially after the tournament got derailed, from 'Fountain of Youth' to 'Echo and Narcissus', it'd still refer to the same characters either way. Or even to 'Army of Me' (after the Bjork song) given Chigusa's power. However, I think I'll probably stick with 'Fountain of Youth', as I've been using it for long enough
[X] Dealing with any Narcissi around to work out just what Chigusa's power was.
[X] Eavesdropping on Hibiki and Chigusa together, see what info they might let slip.
I wouldn't be suprised if there's some kind of Chigusa prime running around. Well that and we probably don't want to make too big a scene before everybody's favourite talking popsicle decides to drop in and steal the show. I can see he's also part of the missing Miyako club.
"At first, I had no idea why any celebrity would ever make their home address public," Koyomi said then just add to had, "I dread any random person finding mine online. But now I clearly see it's for a side-business doing ghost tours," she chuckled.
[X] Dealing with any Narcissi around to work out just what Chigusa's power was.
[X] Eavesdropping on Hibiki and Chigusa together, see what info they might let slip.
Not knowing how Chigusa's multi-woman powers work makes it potentially risky to actually take on any of her individually, but I am interested in seeing what happens.
[X] Dealing with any Narcissi around to work out just what Chigusa's power was.
[X] Eavesdropping on Hibiki and Chigusa together, see what info they might let slip.
"Actually, trash detection would be most certainly useful for house-cleaning, be used to orient yourself around a certain trashcan for navigation, and depending on the definition of 'trash' could detect counterfeit objects," Emi said, then realising how much she was rambling, backed off with, "Er sorry, it's just sometimes my mind gets caught up on superpower mechanics since-"
Any power that lets you detect something with enough precision can be used as a restricted form of clairvoyance if you're resourceful enough. (This epiphany brought to you by Taylor Hebert making bugs crawl over everything to know where it is.)
"I-I know it's really shameful of me to admit this," Emi then said as she shrunk back in her seat, "It's just, knowing there's a Frostfarer out there again makes me, um, kinda nostalgic I could put it? I know all the horrible things the Fair did, I really do, but with all that's happened to me since," she looked at her robotic hands, "Well, the Fair wasn't the reason I was forced to get prosthetics. Being a Mangaka was still something I could look forward to in the Frost Decade."
I'm with Emi here. I too am nostalgic for a time when things still sucked but I was ignorant enough to think I had a future.
[quote Maybe the whole idea of leaders is dumb?
[/quote]
Well, yes. But good luck telling that to a barely-deprogrammed cult member looking for a new shepherd and a nationalist zealot.
"Congratulating ourselves too soon, are we not?" a voice said from behind, one icily familiar to Koyomi.
Did Blue Lotus coincidentally arrive around the same time as the others, or did he hang around on the rooftop waiting for some other Hanazakari to show up to rescue/kidnap Sfira so he could make a dramatic entrance?
...it's not that implausible. He's clearly a drama king. Look at what he's wearing!
The blue-haired alien emotional vampire had since gotten dressed in the fashion of a Victorian lord, wearing a black coat with a cravat above tight white trousers, even a checkered top hat and cane despite him having no need of the latter.
"What do you know of Pathragada, really? Other than what its low-caste Dandelionhearts were obliged to tell you? I admit I am biased, but if I were you, they would be the last people I would place any hope in."
An idea which works better when there aren't humans trying to treat the sociopathic Chinese-Room monsters like fellow people, needing to be saved by the magicians who try to murder them on sight.
[X] Eavesdropping on Hibiki and Chigusa together, see what info they might let slip.
The drawback of writing a story whose elevator pitch is "the Great Magical Girl War ended twenty years ago and life goes on" is that all the big revelations about the nature of the magical girls are already public knowledge and you don't get to see the shock and profound impact they might have had at the time.
This is offset by the many many many advantages of writing such a story; it's just a question of which things the story lends itself to.
Not to nitpick, but we were just shown a pretty major example of something that hasn't become common knowledge: the fact that a Cultivar can malfunction, and the potential implication that without the Dandelionhearts to monitor them and fix them when they go wrong, the Hanazakari are all going to eventually suffer a breakdown on par with the swan-girl, if not worse.
Actually... @ArlequineLunaire, what happens when a Hanazakari dies? Is the plant hybridization only present in their activate form, or is it persistent? Does the Cultivar 'die' with them? Has humanity even reached a point where it's possible to determine what becomes of it after the human terminal shuts down?
what happens when a Hanazakari dies? Is the plant hybridization only present in their activate form, or is it persistent? Does the Cultivar 'die' with them?
I'm a little hesitant to go that much into this since it could likely be addressed in the Quest itself, but my idea right now is they still remain part-plant on death, even if it's now a dead plant. It ties into some reasons people think the Hanazakari but only them can somehow be resurrected.
As Cultivar's the name for their powers, yeah it usually goes with them after death. Though some Cultivars are exceptions to that due to their death-related mechanics, and there's the rare cases of Hanazakari becoming Jack Frosts (Frostfarer-controlled ghosts mentioned in Blue Lotus' first appearance). And of course it is theoretically possible for two Hanazakari to share the same Cultivar, even after one's death
There's "secret" in the sense that knowledge of it is genuinely restricted to a small minority of the population who have all been personally entrusted with the knowledge.
And there's "open secret" in the sense that the knowledge isn't widely confirmed or acknowledged to be true by official sources, but where there is no particular barrier keeping any given person from finding it out, and most people who are interested will probably find it out sooner or later.
There's a pretty good example of this in real life, The government in Kansas (US State,) refuses to acknowledge that Mountain Lions exist in the area, even with multiple pictures and people seeing it. Or the Appalachian ghost that ended up being a hermit who got arrested after 30 years in isolation.
For some trivia, a first name I could've given Emi instead had I known its meaning at the time was Fumie. It can be read as 'writing; picture', which I feel is super-fitting for a mangaka, as opposed to Emi which with the characters I've used means 'picture' and 'fruit; nut' (or alternatively 'truth; reality'). Though Fumie would work less well with the Ms. Peel pseudonym she uses (Emi/Emma)
Character names are obviously something I think about a lot, like with Miyako Nozawa I went through quite a few before I settled on hers. Koyomi though came quite early on, though her surname Arisugawa took longer for me to settle on.
Also @GreatWyrmGold since you were comparing MG series to battle shonen on the A Little Vice thread, I'm curious which one of those you'd say Fool Bloom would be closest to?
Egg in the Freezer. That girl's love was truly the strongest emotion Blue Lotus has felt.
The Frostfarer was able to coast along using her emotions for long enough to set up an entire civilian front and to contact some of his old corporate friends. And set up a new home base from which he could build a reputation as a regular in several bars where he could allow attract a date.
Unfortunately however, his endeavors to get a date turned up without much of anything. Several women had he tried to get a date with immediately became very defensive. Blue Lotus was astounded at how much harder it was to get somebody to genuinely love him than his earlier economic marriage. It was probably something with his clothes, the suit Blue Lotus was wearing didn't fit quite right, especially the pants.
He supposed that it was one of the disadvantages of being a male human, given that females had been trained to treat men like him as predators.
Lotus mused that it would have been easier if he was a femme fatale. And if he could string men along wearing a cute dress. Dating as a woman meant that he would be seen as prey however and Blue Lotus couldn't stand the thought of the Frost King being seen as a mere trophy.
He sat to think about his options. He couldn't go on a rampage, yet, because he would get taken down by those inferior creatures. He didn't have many emotions left to study human dating.
He could maybe locate that girl again. It wasn't perfect, but it would buy him some time.
And then he could study human fashion.
Meanwhile Miyako was laying on her bed reading an article about how the Frost Decade had changed fashion forever; "Hey, I can wear this now!"
Egg in the Freezer. That girl's love was truly the strongest emotion Blue Lotus has felt.
The Frostfarer was able to coast along using her emotions for long enough to set up an entire civilian front to conduct his operations from. A home, a low effort job and a growing reputation as a regular in several bars in the area that would allow him to attract a date.
Unfortunately however, his endeavors to get a date turned up without much of anything. Several women had he tried to get a date with immediately became very defensive. It was probably something with his clothes, the suit Blue Lotus was wearing didn't fit quite right, especially the pants.
He supposed that it was one of the disadvantages of being a male human, given that female's had been trained to treat men like him as predators.
Lotus mused that it would have been easier if he was a femme fatale. And if he could string men along wearing a cute dress. Blue Lotus had already chosen his disguise however and there were several logical reasons to be a man.
He sat to think about his options. He couldn't go on a rampage, yet, because he would get taken down by those inferior creatures. He didn't have much emotions left to study human dating.
He could maybe locate that girl again. It wasn't perfect, but it would buy him some time.
And then he could study human fashion.
Meanwhile Miyako was laying on her bed reading an article about how the frost decade had changed fashion forever; "Hey, I can wear this now!"
The fact that Blue lotus began cosplaying as a Hanazakari the moment he stole the Hanazakari fangirl's emotion made me wonder if Miyako's other emotions might have an influence on him.
It might be funny to write Real Person fics with Blue Lotus as the author in the future🤭
This Omake has been on my mind for at least four update, so some details may seem a bit outdated. I hope it's readable.
EDIT: Made a few edits to make it my Omake more cannon complaint.
I'd probably put a couple more paragraph spaces in the first half for readability.
Think the one part that's most outdated is having Blue Lotus going for a civilian front this soon. While he's not averse to lying low, we now know the first thing he did was get back in contact with the corporations who'd sided with the Frost Fair.
I could've specified it before, but there's also that Frostfarers can have more than one disguise. They would've needed quite a few given all the planets they invaded. So if he wanted to be a femme fatale, he could go ahead and do that, though he'd likely leech a few people first to find out which women they're most attracted to.
On the upside, I really do like the idea that those they leech affects the Frostfarers' own personalities. There's a lot of plot and character possibilities with that, even if only so many since we've just got one Frostfarer.
The Frost Decade influencing fashion is also neat worldbuilding detail, especially with how that plays into Miyako now being an adult and passing.
I also usually prefer prose Omakes to be at least 400 words long to prevent Omake spam, I said this in a previous Quest but I guess I should've mentioned it earlier here. But I'll still count and threadmark this Omake, helps that spam hasn't been an issue in this thread so far.
So, which Stat would you like your 50 points assigned to?
For some trivia, a first name I could've given Emi instead had I known its meaning at the time was Fumie. It can be read as 'writing; picture', which I feel is super-fitting for a mangaka, as opposed to Emi which with the characters I've used means 'picture' and 'fruit; nut' (or alternatively 'truth; reality'). Though Fumie would work less well with the Ms. Peel pseudonym she uses (Emi/Emma)
Giving all of this info I think her name Emi actually fits even better in a semi-ironic sense
as she fell for a cult and any Cult makes you think their "truth" = reality
An alternative perspective from someone who isn't a cult member is that they are Nuts (insane)
it's also something to note that it [her first name] could also be seen as she's a picture of someone who's nuts or fruit(y) which fits considering her character so far
Also @GreatWyrmGold since you were comparing MG series to battle shonen on the A Little Vice thread, I'm curious which one of those you'd say Fool Bloom would be closest to?
Off the top of my head? My Hero Academia. MHA kinda frames All-Might and Endeavor as the Hero and Lancer of a past generation of heroes; the Hanazakari are that generation. Izuku is an idealistic but Quirkless hero fanboy whose life is changed when he meets his favorite hero; Miyako is an idealistic but powerless Hanazakari fangirl whose life is changed when she tracks down a magical girl. You could probably even draw a comparison between All For One and Blue Lotus, as nigh-immortal villains from that past generation who have returned to threaten the world again.
The big thing in MHA's favor is that generational vibe, the sense that the mentor characters went on their own genre-fiction adventures back in the day. The biggest thing against it is that Izuku has his own superhero adventures. All-Might's generation was not the only generation of superheroes; Izuku was just uniquely unfit to join his generation, before he got One-For-All'd. But if supervillains hadn't been a thing for 30 years, if Miyako couldn't become a Hanazakari and fight Blue Lotus and his henchmen, she couldn't be a battle manga heroine.
For that reason, Fool Bloom is closer to last season's Level 1 Demon Lord and One-Room Hero than any shonen battle thing. A fantasy slice-of-life about semi-retired heroes of another story, with an action-y plot that pokes its way in occasionally. Granted, the action-y plot has been steadily taking center stage, but the slice-of-life-ey introduction and the fact that the main action character isn't the young(ish) idealist limit comparisons to shonen battle series.
Off the top of my head? My Hero Academia. MHA kinda frames All-Might and Endeavor as the Hero and Lancer of a past generation of heroes; the Hanazakari are that generation. Izuku is an idealistic but Quirkless hero fanboy whose life is changed when he meets his favorite hero; Miyako is an idealistic but powerless Hanazakari fangirl whose life is changed when she tracks down a magical girl. You could probably even draw a comparison between All For One and Blue Lotus, as nigh-immortal villains from that past generation who have returned to threaten the world again.
The big thing in MHA's favor is that generational vibe, the sense that the mentor characters went on their own genre-fiction adventures back in the day. The biggest thing against it is that Izuku has his own superhero adventures. All-Might's generation was not the only generation of superheroes; Izuku was just uniquely unfit to join his generation, before he got One-For-All'd. But if supervillains hadn't been a thing for 30 years, if Miyako couldn't become a Hanazakari and fight Blue Lotus and his henchmen, she couldn't be a battle manga heroine.
For that reason, Fool Bloom is closer to last season's Level 1 Demon Lord and One-Room Hero than any shonen battle thing. A fantasy slice-of-life about semi-retired heroes of another story, with an action-y plot that pokes its way in occasionally. Granted, the action-y plot has been steadily taking center stage, but the slice-of-life-ey introduction and the fact that the main action character isn't the young(ish) idealist limit comparisons to shonen battle series.
I'd probably put a couple more paragraph spaces in the first half for readability.
Think the one part that's most outdated is having Blue Lotus going for a civilian front this soon. While he's not averse to lying low, we now know the first thing he did was get back in contact with the corporations who'd sided with the Frost Fair.
I could've specified it before, but there's also that Frostfarers can have more than one disguise. They would've needed quite a few given all the planets they invaded. So if he wanted to be a femme fatale, he could go ahead and do that, though he'd likely leech a few people first to find out which women they're most attracted to.
On the upside, I really do like the idea that those they leech affects the Frostfarers' own personalities. There's a lot of plot and character possibilities with that, even if only so many since we've just got one Frostfarer.
The Frost Decade influencing fashion is also neat worldbuilding detail, especially with how that plays into Miyako now being an adult and passing.
I also usually prefer text Omakes to be at least 400 words long to prevent Omake spam, I said this in a previous Quest but I guess I should've mentioned it earlier here. But I'll still count and threadmark this Omake, helps that spam hasn't been an issue in this thread so far.
Thank you for the advice.
I will keep the 400 words for advisement in the future, but I hope that I'm still allowed to post non-xp omakes. There are two other fanfic ideas for this quest in the freezer already, because I'm struggling to pull them off. Something about this world just gives me an itch to do something, anything with it.
Speaking of Fanfics in the freezer.
Hmm, I might have a fanfic somewhere in the future that I might want to show you before posting to see if there are any glaring holes and such. I'm not sure if I can succeed with completing that fanfiction, but would it be rude if hypothetically were to PM it to you first?
On the upside, I really do like the idea that those they leech affects the Frostfarers' own personalities. There's a lot of plot and character possibilities with that, even if only so many since we've just got one Frostfarer.
So, is there like, any romance literature about "fixing" frost farers by having them leech of the heroine's uncoruptable pure pureness? God, just imagine if Koyomi's publisher insist that her experience with them means she should write that.
Off the top of my head? My Hero Academia. MHA kinda frames All-Might and Endeavor as the Hero and Lancer of a past generation of heroes; the Hanazakari are that generation. Izuku is an idealistic but Quirkless hero fanboy whose life is changed when he meets his favorite hero; Miyako is an idealistic but powerless Hanazakari fangirl whose life is changed when she tracks down a magical girl. You could probably even draw a comparison between All For One and Blue Lotus, as nigh-immortal villains from that past generation who have returned to threaten the world again.
I suppose Yumemi isn't that close off from Endeavor, if we consider wanting to be prime minister to be an analogue to him wanting to be the top hero. She was even going to have fire powers at one point, which the way she uses her actual cultivar still leans into at times and part of how she wanted to get to the top involved unethical behavior involving someone with ice powers. Man, good thing they weren't experimenting on making a hanazakari-frost farer hybrid, right? ...Right?
Oh god, please tell me we just didn't stumble across Yumemi having a secret test tube baby. Although, I guess Blue Lotus might actually like finding out he has a potential successor.
Koyomi as All Might is a much longer stretch of course. I mean, from what we've heard of the past, I can kinda sorta see a timeline where Koyomi gets a reputation as the ace, but neither to the overwhelming degree as All Might nor nearly as... let's call it inspirational. You know, like the difference between "joining law enforcement is still a perfectly respectable career" and "heroes as a profession exsist to accustom for the ussage of Quirks, so wanting to be a hero without one is just an ego thing."
Understandable. I call my backlog the endless list for a reason. Even when I get to some of the stuff on it, new material joins it faster than I can work through it.
The MHA comparisons surprised me, especially with the lack of any school, but I can see the similarities now they're pointed out.
FMA however I definitely had in mind, you can tell since I've used a couple of tracks from it. Though Koyomi's closer to Izumi than she is to Edward (a lot closer than the character actually named Izumi), and the parallels between the Frost Decade and Ishvalan War don't go much between 'past traumatic war certain characters took part in'.
Probably the only 'ace' thing Koyomi did back then was keep her Dandelionheart alive the longest, and that was as much due to luck and the Frost Fair seeing her as a lesser target as anything else. She would've been seen as Yumemi's sidekick at most.
Hmm, I might have a fanfic somewhere in the future that I might want to show you before posting to see if there are any glaring holes and such. I'm not sure if I can succeed with completing that fanfiction, but would it be rude if hypothetically were to PM it to you first?
