Several are transmigrated with their owners as the narrator, or have the protagonist be able to transform into an animal, but off the top of my head there's 'Isekai Neko to Fukigen na Majo', which has an official English translation as 'A Cat from Our World and the Forgotten Witch'.
Reverse portal fantasies where it's a magical animal that is found in our reality are somewhat more common, like Kobayashi's Maid Dragon, or 'Daidokoro no Dragon' (no relation). It can be argued that 'Haritoge Kuremi to Ou no ie' counts(?), maybe? It's been a while since I read that last one, so I'm not sure.
Several are transmigrated with their owners as the narrator, or have the protagonist be able to transform into an animal, but off the top of my head there's 'Isekai Neko to Fukigen na Majo', which has an official English translation as 'A Cat from Our World and the Forgotten Witch'.
There's enough animal isekais to start a petting zoo. In addition to the one mentioned above...
We have "I Am Behemoth Of The S Rank Monster, But I Am Mistaken As A Cat And I Live As A Pet Of Elf Girl"
"A Story About a Cat Reincarnated in a Different World Where There Are No Cats" (Where I get Chief pictures from)
"The Hero Summoned from Another World is a Cat"
"The Adventures of Black Cat "Nyango": Since I got a rare attribute, I aim to be a carefree adventurer." (Debatable, bipedal, 6/10 on cat scale)
That's all the cat ones I know of.
In other animal isekai you have the excellent and genre-defining "So I'm a Spider, So What?"
"Reincarnated as a Dragon Hatchling" (pretty good, honestly)
"Polar Bear Reincarnation: The Legend of the Polar Bear that became the Guardian Deity of the Forest"
"Woof Woof Story ~I Said Make Me a Rich Man's Dog, But I Didn't Say Make Me Fenrir!~"
"Butareba: The Story of a Man Turned into a Pig"
"Reborn as a Phoenix: A Normal Bird Can't Beat a Dragon, Right?"
No doubt there's tons more.
There's also a ton of animal focused isekai, most of whom I've thrown into cameos for the CatCafe job.
The well goes deep. Very, very deep. The sheer saturation of isekai as a genre never ceases to amaze me.
Honestly, it's "So I'm a Spider, So What?". The only isekai where I've gone out of my way to hunt down fan-translated raws. I don't think in hindsight it's super impressive but it came at the precise right time to hook me.
I actually quite like the anime adaptation (it ends right as the story starts sucking!) even if it hilariously ran out of budget half way. At least they saved the money for the most important part of the show: Aoi Yuuki. I would listen to her read a phone book.
But as far as crazy isekai concepts go I do think Vending Machine tops the charts, but it was deliberately going for that absurdity angle. Vending Machine isekai only works because it's trailing a list of thousands of other isekais.
In other news I am fascinated as to how these like... sub genres or the such got so popular. I can trace the lineage of the Magical School subgenre due to Harry Potter. Modern Isekai is clearly jumpstarted by SAO. Xianxia is from Wuxia which is all from Jin Wong.
But like why is LitRPG so popular in the US? Where did that come from? Or... reincarnated as a dungeon stories. I can't actually find a Japanese example, it seems to be a completely western isekai concept that's surprisingly robust.
But like why is LitRPG so popular in the US? Where did that come from? Or... reincarnated as a dungeon stories. I can't actually find a Japanese example, it seems to be a completely western isekai concept that's surprisingly robust.
Don't quote me, as it's just my own thoughts but I think the LITRPG popularity came the from the gamer, the manwha. It was pretty popular on webtoon, and I guess people were inspired by that
Just to let people know the Social Camera Network does not work. The main character of Accel World which takes place in the future of SAO is starts the series being bullied because even the cliche bully alive can find blindspots. It actually makes the world a worse place and leads to an age of unparalleled poor parenting and neglect since no one thinks they have to watch their kids anymore.
Just to let people know the Social Camera Network does not work. The main character of Accel World which takes place in the future of SAO is starts the series being bullied because even the cliche bully alive can find blindspots. It actually makes the world a worse place and leads to an age of unparalleled poor parenting and neglect since no one thinks they have to watch their kids anymore.
Don't quote me, as it's just my own thoughts but I think the LITRPG popularity came the from the gamer, the manwha. It was pretty popular on webtoon, and I guess people were inspired by that
Just to let people know the Social Camera Network does not work. The main character of Accel World which takes place in the future of SAO is starts the series being bullied because even the cliche bully alive can find blindspots. It actually makes the world a worse place and leads to an age of unparalleled poor parenting and neglect since no one thinks they have to watch their kids anymore.
Worse than that, actually! Not only is there a well known hack that shows the camera blindspots, it's even possible to hack someone's Neuro Linker to alter what they're seeing when they look around them! Dusk Taker guy, if i remember correctly, uses this to switch the Male/Female signs on the school's bathroom so that the main character walks into the Female bathroom, which the guy had planted a camera in earlier so that he'd have 'proof' of the main character 'breaking the rules' or whatever. (Though this gets turned around on him, because how could he have gotten the camera footage unless he had also entered the bathroom to plant the camera in the first place, the planting of which would have been illegal anyways?)
[X] Hecate Aimopotis
I think the thematic here are stronger and weakness fishing is a bit out of our own tool kit, let's let sinon help us as she's asked to.
As for the phantom votes, they're all fine. Phantom Detective has some fun tricks and a solid archetype. Whereas Phantom Lady has a bit of elemental coverage thay we mostly already have covered, a risky archetype and a potentially really useful RR skill.
I don't feel strongly enough one way or the other on this one still.
You people are putting too much stock in Archetypes. It doesn't alter Hiyori's personality that much unless it's either Archon or Haunter in the Dark, and it only becomes mechanically relevant when we either reach rank 4 with a Social Link for planning, and with the plans they may or may not give.
Yeah, but other than A Story About a Cat Reincarnated in a Different World Where There Are No Cats, the ones mentioned in this post are about humans being reincarnated and transmigrated into animals, and not animals transmigrating as animals. I think the Behemoth one didn't even have a transmigrator but rather was a native reincarnated(?).
Honestly, it's "So I'm a Spider, So What?". The only isekai where I've gone out of my way to hunt down fan-translated raws. I don't think in hindsight it's super impressive but it came at the precise right time to hook me.
And this. I pretty much did the same thing as you, and the twists (spoilers!) were great. Like 'That Time I was Reincarnated as a Slime', or 'Overlord', I feel that it was (sub-)genre defining, though in retrospect there were definitely space for improvement.
But like why is LitRPG so popular in the US? Where did that come from? Or... reincarnated as a dungeon stories. I can't actually find a Japanese example, it seems to be a completely western isekai concept that's surprisingly robust.
While I don't know what kicked it all off, I remember seeing LitRPG on RoyalRoad first, and then abruptly it proliferated all over the web. But if I were to guess what inspired it, probably the webtoon the Gamer, which as the name suggests, has the protagonist get a game system in real life. As for the latter, wasn't that from the game Dungeon Keeper?
You people are putting too much stock in Archetypes. It doesn't alter Hiyori's personality that much unless it's either Archon or Haunter in the Dark, and it only becomes mechanically relevant when we either reach rank 4 with a Social Link for planning, and with the plans they may or may not give.
Solid and Risky are probably bad word choice. The influence of Archetypes is significantly more subtle than the skills and stats of a given persona, but it effects the way that Hiyori and by extension we get information. Basically it changes how a scene is going to play out in text but not necessarily in the mechanics, and I'm interested in both factors. Especially when I don't have a strong lean from a mechanical perspective.
WEDNESDAY - 244 CYCLES POST STARFALL
1600 Glocken Standard Time
You've long wondered who Lugh truly worked for. The poetic answer would've been Kikuoka, the whole thing being some convoluted kudzu plot that you were only a bit player in. Maybe they were working with RATH— somehow it feels like everyone was working for that company.
Today you finally learn the truth.
You step through the curtain in the back of Lievre's Speakeasy, a bit miffed to find the secret meetings were held literally one room away from where you got tune-ups. This time you've even got a name: «Subtilizer». A GGO veteran who only showed up in tournaments, and the one who eliminated Sinon in the last BoB. A stealth and close-quarters combat specialist who just so happens to be the mastermind behind Lugh's team.
"Senpai, senpai! You finally came!"
Lievre's voice cuts through the air the moment you round the bend. You've barely had the chance to take a look around the room before she's up in your face. "It's about time! Hehe, let me introduce you to the useless gang here. Seriously, all they're good for is making you do all the work..." She suddenly blushes. "Except Master of course! Hehe..."
"You must be Kuro."
You turn to greet the passionless voice calling from the edge of the couch. "And you must be «Subtilizer»."
"That is correct."
Subtilizer speaks in short, clipped words, the type of voice that makes you feel like he's reading off a script. Every part of his avatar screams generic soldier, the type you could've passed in Glocken a hundred times over and never noticed. But you know you've never met before— you don't think you'd ever misplace him.
Not with those eyes.
You've been able to pick out those with dreams of their own— potential sources of Personas— but this... this is the opposite. There's nothing there. No dream, no image of a better world just...
Nothing.
"Lugh speaks highly of you."
Your ally stands at attention near the doorframe. He gives you a silent nod but doesn't speak up, deferring to his employer. Of course you recognize Lievre, the girl patting the empty spot on the couch next to her. "Do you want to come sit down senpai? Or would you prefer to use my lap..."
"We have one other member of the team to whom you need to be introduced," Subtilizer continues, ignoring his subordinate, "this is Va—"
"So you're the chick everyone's been talking about?"
Standing in the back wall, a bottle of spirits in hand, is the final member of Lugh's team. He stands shoulders above the rest, his face obscured by his heavy black raincoat. He gives you a lazy wave when he catches you staring. "«Edge Punisher» eh? Nice. Rolls right off the tongue. Glad to be working with ya."
"He's just dumb muscle. You can call him pooface," Lievre helpfully adds. "Everybody does."
The muscle just grunts and shrugs, returning his attention to his drink. There's something you can't place about him, a feeling that's tickling the back of your head. Someone you've seen in GGO before?
"Now that we're all here, let's discuss our strategy for the upcoming Derby," Lugh says, stepping forward. "We must be all on the same page, so let's start by recapping the circumstances as we know them."
GENERAL INFORMATION [This is information KURO and GLOWGEN both know] PRIVATE INFORMATION [This is information that ONLY KURO knows]
THE FIRST BULLET
>Pitohui and M are effectively groupies. Genuine participants in the Death Gun Derby who have had no hand in its initiation or the greater conflict.
>Due to your actions they will not be participating in the Death Gun Derby.
>You choose to continue with LLENN rather than accept M's offer.
THE SECOND BULLET
>During the BoB a GM hacked the server in order to deliver Death Gun's announcement.
>Zeliska was the GM who was essentially tricked into activating it, but she wasn't the one directly cooperating with Death Gun.
>Zeliska wishes for GGO to stay as it is, so that Daisy need not fear deletion.
>Zeliska has a direct connection with the SEED through Daisy.
>Daisy is the original Type-X ArFA, the first ArFA class NPC created in GGO. She is also the ArFA that Zeliska uses to interface with the dev console.
>You and Lugh both strongly suspect Daisy is currently in possession of the SEED.
>Zeliska and Daisy will be participating in the Death Gun Derby.
THE THIRD BULLET
>XeXeeD is a veteran player who is seeking to avenge those killed by Death Gun.
>XeXeeD aims to be the champion of GGO.
>You suspect XeXeeD is deeply insecure.
>XeXeeD has bought into the Death Gun myth and has summoned his own Incarnated Death Gun.
>Johnny Black aimed to have XeXeeD kill him in order to strengthen the Incarnation of the Death Gun. You foiled this plot.
>Lugh was interested in using XeXeeD to obtain the SEED. He has abandoned this plot due to you.
>XeXeeD will be participating in the Death Gun Derby.
THE FOURTH BULLET
>Lievre had a plan that involved using Replica ArFAs to overwhelm Glowgen, kickstarting an ArFA lead AI apocalypse. This was foiled in its entirety by 『 』.
>『 』is an urban legend of an undefeated gamer. They attempted to hijack GGO to initiate their own plot.
>『 』was seeding fake NerveGears among the populace in order to facilitate their grand hack.
>『 』was utterly defeated by you, foiling their plans.
>『 』was trying to essentially kick start the apocalypse by destroying the "Underworld".
>『 』believed that even under ideal circumstances, there likely would've been a defensive force that would've risen up to stop him.
>『 』has given you the Stalemartyr, a weapon well suited to harming those from the Underworld.
THE FIFTH BULLET
>Lugh joined GGO in order to seek the SEED. This is needed in order to enter the Underworld, akin to what Asuna was trying to do.
>Lugh has informed you about Project ALICIZATION.
>Project ALICIZATION is a VR Afterlife Project currently funded by the Japanese Government.
>Lugh's client believes that Project ALICIZATION will bring about the destruction of humanity.
>Lugh's ultimate goal is to assassinate someone known as ADMINISTRATOR.
>Lugh has agreed to 'trust' you.
>Project ALICIZATION is being organized by a company called RATH.
>Yuuki is a test subject for the Soul Translator, the technology RATH intends on using to upload minds into Project ALICIZATION.
>Kirito was the first Project ALICIZATION test subject, and his mind is currently trapped in a VR World.
>RATH has created a Kirito clone, however it has never fully stabilized due to fundamental laws limiting Fluctlight Duplication. You have him in your possession.
>You have discovered that the 'mind upload' system Yuuki is a test subject for to be more of a copy/paste than a cut/paste job.
>The SEED can be used to enter into the Underworld. Asuna wanted to go but you stopped her. Lugh's team presumably wishes to use the SEED to accomplish a similar task.
>Project ALICIZATION calls for the creation of a VR Tokyo, a mirror of real life Tokyo.
>Project ALICIZATION has partnered with the Augma and the Social Camera network to gather enough data in order to make VR Tokyo a reality.
>There is someone called an ADMINISTRATOR. They are involved but to what extent you do not know.
>You have been warned by messages left over from your SAO account from "MHCP01" about not trusting ADMINISTRATOR.
>HYDRA has indicated that there may, in fact, be two entities who call themselves ADMINISTRATOR.
THE SIXTH BULLET
>XaXa, Kyouji and Johnny Black were the original 'Death Gun' trio.
>XaXa would gather contact information by spying using his Invisibility Cloak. Kyouji would confirm addresses IRL. Johnny Black would then go poison victims while XaXa killed their avatar in the game.
>Their intent was to Incarnate a legend of Death Gun into the game itself.
>They are assisted by HYDRA, who has been distributing real-life NerveGears to players of interest.
>XaXa, the lynchpin of their plot and arguably their most capable VR combatant, was arrested due to your actions. As such any further actions by the original Death Gun conspiracy were curtailed.
>Johnny Black is the only member at large. You do not know what he has planned...
>...but you know from experience that Johnny Black is not very good at planning.
>HYDRA is working with Yanai.
>HYDRA's goal seems to do with the SEED.
>HYDRA is ostensibly aligned with someone he calls ADMINISTRATOR. You have heard this title before, from Yanai and MHCP01.
>HYDRA is content in watching to see what you do with the SEED.
THE SEVENTH BULLET
>Kayaba Akihiko plans on shattering the collective unconscious of humanity, thereby ushering everyone into their own HEAVENs.
>Kayaba Akihiko is being supported by an entity that calls herself PHILEMON.
>There is an entity that calls himself ETTEILLA who acts in defiance of this plan. ETTEILLA has granted you the Persona to assist you in defeating Kayaba Akihiko.
>In the ancient past, you have dreamed of a girl named Quinella. She received a Persona from PHILEMON.
You spend the next hour going over the details. Lugh was sharing intel with his boss, so Subtilizer was largely already in the loop. Certain details about RATH you've kept under wraps largely because they're irrelevant to this upcoming operation, but you've not been shy about everything pertaining to GGO.
"Let us summarize our objectives. The goal is to secure the SEED, nothing more. Having Kuro be recognized as the 'champion' through the Death Gun Derby is our victory condition," Lugh explains, spreading photos of a few familiar faces out in front of him. "To that end we need to anticipate our opposition."
"We do not know the details about the Derby's format, but we can expect it to be similar to the BoB," Subtilizer says. "A battle royale."
"Welp, let's cross this bozo off the list," Lievre says, slamming her foot down on XeXeeD's photo. "Guy's a poser, stands no chance! Senpai's totally gonna kick his ass."
"If we can just avoid him that may be preferable," Lugh says. "Though knowing his personality I doubt he'll pass up the opportunity to take a shot at us. I concur that he is a secondary threat. No, the real problem is..."
"Zeliska. She's dangerous," you confirm, staring at the smiling photo of the GM. She's not evil, nor is has she done anything wrong, but she's certainly not your ally. The golden shield around Glocken is her doing, her declaration that GGO remains under her protection.
Subtilizer slowly nods, his eyes not leaving yours. "As a GM her power is vast, though the limits of what she can accomplish in-game are unknown. Lugh mentions your abilities provide a certain degree of defense against her GM powers?"
"...Probably. It's not foolproof."
"Then it will have to suffice."
"There's also a strong possibility that Daisy is in possession or connected to the SEED. I suspect she was using that power in the Stalemartyr incident, and it's likely how she reconstructed the Glocken safety zone so quickly," Lugh says, pointing to her photo. "She's our highest priority. By defeating her, we might expose the SEED without the need to win the Derby."
"Bleh, that's not gonna work," Lievre whines. "I doubt she's gonna be like, physically showing up. Most likely she'll be some judge or watcher, just a tool for Zeliska. Stupid Type-Xs got like, no initiative. Best way to get her attention is to off her dumb Master."
Agreement passes between the group. Compared to the likes of『 』they seem the lesser threat.
"There's one other individual we need to address," Subtilizer says, "HYDRA. Kuro, did you investigate as we requested?"
You frown, recalling your last encounter. "HYDRA came to me. Issued some cryptic warning and said he'd be watching. I suspect he's not even going to participate in the Derby."
"Is that so?" Subtilizer doesn't press. He knows you didn't talk to XaXa, but he doesn't even bring it up. You can't tell if he's disappointed or not. "It is too late to adjust for maybes. We will simply have to adapt. Are we expecting any other contenders?"
"I think that's all of them Master! Senpai ran those dirty little cheaters out on their butts! That giga-whale player also's quit... and that XaXa dude's arrested so... I think that's it?"
Zeliska. XeXeeD. Johnny Black might crawl out of the woodwork for one last hurrah.
Having it laid out on the table makes it feel surmountable.
"Then there is one last matter to attend to."
You feel... cold. The full attention of this Subtilizer's blank stare is focused entirely on you. You try not to shiver.
"Let us not mince words. You are the most powerful asset here. Our entire operation hinges on you winning the Derby and taking control of the SEED. We are placing the faith of our entire operation on your shoulders. Thus I need certain assurances."
You stare back at Subtilizer. You've spent months dealing with crooks and charlatans, masterminds who hide behind the curtains manipulating everyone else. From ALO through GGO— all the way into the real world itself. People who lie as a matter of habit, often even to themselves. There's nothing of the sort from Subtilizer. Not a drop of dishonesty. He doesn't care. This is a job— that's all it is to him. If you are an asset he will treat you accordingly. There's no knife waiting for you, no plan to stab you in the back once he gets what he wants.
You've never met a person like this. It's hard to imagine what kind of world could create him.
But you think you can deal with him.
"I've explained my terms to Lugh. I want to destroy the SEED for my reasons. I trust you have no problem with that?"
He doesn't blink. "...My team will use the SEED to access our target. I would prefer to take it with me, but I am willing to sacrifice that opportunity if necessary."
"Then let me make things absolutely clear. You can use the SEED but I am destroying it. That's the only deal I'm offering."
Subtlizer takes no time to consider before immediately nodding in assent. "Your terms are acceptable. Under the advisement of Lugh I will leave the ground operational details in your hands. He can provide you with a summary of our current combat capabilities. You are dismissed."
And so the agreement is sealed. There's no further discussion, he doesn't ask you to clarify your intentions with the SEED, and you don't offer. All in all? A far less painful—
"Hold up."
You didn't hear him move. You didn't sense anything wrong. One second the man in the raincoat was slouching in the corner of the room trying not to fall asleep, the next he's standing right next to you.
His face is close. Under the hood pulled down low his face is obscured, but you can make out one thing—
His smile.
He's never stopped smiling.
Just like...
"Something about this stinks Punisher-chan. Seems you got this Derby in the bag. Whatcha need us for?" he paces around the room, creaking his neck in the process. "Like, you took out that big conspiracy thing last week, right? Can you imagine me doing that? And Bro's pretty impressive but he can't chokehold a laser beam."
"What's your point?" you demand.
"The point is Punisher-chan, that if our little operation here wanted to say, stab you in the back..." he sticks his finger across his neck, drawing an imaginary line. "What do you think would happen? Lugh, you've been with her the longest, how do you think we'd stack?"
Lugh doesn't hesitate. "No contest."
"Right!? Like Punisher-chan, gotta give you kudos for being some kind of badass but like... this shit here is charity. I thought the Death Gun stuff would make things interesting but you've got like what, a dozen different Death Guns? You're spitting out rivers one day and ghosts the next. Who knows what kinda weird shit you'll pull out for the Derby. So... like, what's stopping you from betraying us?"
"Is there a point to this?" you ask. "I've already made an agreement. My motives are clear— I want to minimize variables in the Derby. That's all."
He's still smiling. That damn smile...
"Just so! Sounds like we are a nuisance to you. A chip to sweep off the table. But to us, you are essential. Our second best plan is so trash it's not even worth repeating. Hell when you stop and look at it, you've made yourself essential to us. Now ain't that convenient?"
The room is silent. Subtilizer remains expressionless but Lievre's fidgeting, nervously looking between her leader and her you. Lugh is stoic. This line of questioning isn't coming as a surprise to him. Out of everyone in this room Lugh is the most aware of the sheer power imbalance.
"Say you're correct. Say I will betray you." You don't flinch. "What can you do about it?"
This stranger said it himself. Subtilizer has no alternative. Lievre's plan is a nonstarter. You foiled XaXa. Without you their only chance is a dark horse victory in the Derby, and frankly? Between Lievre, Lugh and Subtilizer who has so little presence you'd be shocked if the Black Star even works for him...
You can take them.
"Hahaha, I knew I recognized a fellow scumbag! Now relax, I think there's a nice and simple way for us to all trust each other. I mean, at this point, we're already a team, right? So let's make it easy. Who's the chick behind the gun, eh Punisher-chan?"
You freeze. He can't mean...
"You can't be serious. I am not exposing my identity to you."
"Why not? Seems fair to me. If you betray us, we hunt you down in meatspace. That gives you incentive to play nice, and it alleviates my... anxiety about this arrangement."
"Do you think I'm an idiot?" you snap. "You can't just—"
"Hey, hey, it's alright! Chill. We're already halfway there. C'mon, Lugh here's met the real you already."
Lugh just shakes his head in exasperation. "I know her face. You really think I can hunt down one person in the most populated city on the planet using just that? Assassination is expensive, we have no local contacts, and most importantly none of us are getting paid to kill her."
"Heh, spoilsport. Seems you two seem to have hit off— so how about this? Why don't you two share? See I've got a lot of respect for Lughy here. If he agrees to be your secret keeper then I got no complaints. You tell him your IRL deets, nobody else needs to hear, and if you betray us then Lughy... well..."
He leers at you.
"You know what will happen, right Punisher-chan?"
You know what he's asking for. An assurance. You... you've trusted Lugh this far. Would you trust him with your life? No, that's not even the right question. This man was right about one thing. You don't need them. Not even slightly. "Then I suppose the deal is off."
"Wait!" Lievre cries, leaping to her feet. "Master, please! Can't we just—"
Subtilizer cuts her off. "Vassago. You're not done, are you?"
Vassago. So that's his name. Accounting for Sublitzer this Vassago was likely the teammate Lugh mentioned with some ties to the Death Gun plot. He's disgustingly flippant about all this. If you negotiate properly perhaps you can get some more information about Death Gun's whereabouts, maybe even the rest of Laughing Coffin—
...
Vassago? You've heard that name before.
"Of course not! Punisher-chan, this benefits you. First off you'd have my undying trust. I tell ya, worth its weight in gold... but fine, I'll give you something I know you want."
The voice. The smile. That name!
"«Johnny Black». The man in the gasmask, the pretty little mug who kick started this whole Death Gun craze. I know you spooks have been looking for him and I happen to know exactly where he's hiding. You can have the cops knocking on his door within the hour. So how about it? You give up nothing, and we gift you his head on a platter. One more crazy bastard off the streets. Sweet deal, right?"
The hood slips off his face. It's not the eyes. It's not the voice. It's not even the tattoo.
It's that smile.
You can die here or live with us.
He never tormented you in the way XaXa did. He was never the unhinged lunatic that was Johnny Black. No...
Shit, watching you is making me depressed. This ain't hard, just go into town and buy for us. Easy.
The «Prince of Hell» did not torture. He did not rule by fear. He did not have to. He broke people. He broke you.
Look, you think SAO's ever getting cleared? Face it. You're trapped. So why make your life harder?
You forget when it happened. You just looked back and realized that he had made it all... normal.
You think the Army's gonna be sympathetic? But hey, go ahead and spend the rest of eternity in jail. Your life, Lux.
One step at a time.
Yeah we've got a man in the KoB. We've got lots of people. Just collect the info and try not to make eye contact.
One transgression at a time.
His name's Grimlock. Not a bad smith, honestly. A real piece of work— you won't believe who he wants me to kill...
A promise that whatever you were doing was just intended design. That you were all just playing a game.
Hey, guess who just hit the big 50? Now JB can do more than just fart on people!
Always there with a laugh when someone was down. Always ready to break up fights. Always there with a smile. A natural charisma.
JB stop threatening to sleep PK everyone, we fucking sleep here and I ain't posting guards in my own base— XaXa, stop stabbing him! God, save it for the mission.
For you it was hell. But for everyone else? Being a Coffin was the time of their lives. There was no cult initiation, no dark ceremony. There were 10,000 people trapped in SAO. Less if you discount the early deaths.
Dude, why you worried? This is all Kayaba's doing, we're just playing the game as it was designed. Wise up, this is your world now. Your second chance. Let loose!
In a random sample of 10,000 human beings, how many murderers would slip through? How many insane, broken souls would there be? One? Three? Enough to fill a guild?
Lux just came back with the intel. Get this, these morons like going on picnics on the dumb flower floor! Let's send them a bouquet...
It's all him. PoH. The man who turned the sick into the depraved. Who took normal people and turned them into monsters. Who turned you into—
Why you scared, Lux? Relax. Have some fun. Go kill someone you don't like. That's all it takes to be a Coffin— trust me. You'll feel great.
"Hey, hey, don't zone out on me. I'm tryin' to help you out! So? It's a win win for everyone."
He doesn't know. He doesn't realize who it is he's talking to.
He's... unaware... of how much you want...
To see crushed beneath an ocean of shed tears.
To have his mind stripped down into a blubbering doll.
To have him ripped to shreds by a hundred teeth and claws.
A hundred thousand arrows loosed with the fire of Agni. The wrath of nature, speared into his flesh.
His warm blood running down your unseeing eyes.
The applause of the crowd as you mount his head on a pike.
To take from him EVERYTHING to strip out his SOUL to show him that now you are in CONTROL!
To peer into his pathetic SELF and reveal every WEAKNESS so that in the dark he can be UNMADE! To hold his LIFE in your palm. To watch him beg for the mercy you will not grant when you PULL THE TRIGGER!
You can do it. He's right there. Not now.
Why not now? This could be your only chance. What will you accomplish? Logging him off?
You could ruin their plans. Does he care? This is just a job to him. No, there's another way.
The Black Star sings to you. When he least expects it. No... if we tell XeXeeD we won't even need to pull the trigger...
You want to pull the trigger. There will be an opportunity.
Death is not enough. He needs to suffer. HYDRA's Master. Redirect their destination.
He needs to know it was you. But only once we have the final laugh. You have learned that Prince of Hell, the leader of Laughing Coffin, is part of Lugh's Team.
You have an near overwhelming desire to lash out at this very moment.
PoH is on the cusp of recognizing you.
[ ] Attack Immediately [Write-In] >Sucker punch PoH with whatever ability you want to use.
>Glowgen will immediately retreat. Glowgen will not cooperate with you in the final battle (Lugh included).
>PoH will be aware that you are Lux, his old guildmate.
>You will feel satisfied.
[ ] Smile and agree to his terms. [You lack the Astronomical MASK necessary for this option] [30 D] >Johnny Black's hideout will be given to you, and he will be arrested immediately.
>Lugh will not reveal your identity to Glowgen, provided you follow the agreement. You will NOT be given an option to betray Glowgen later. Simply put Hiyori is just not willing to be garroted on the street by Lugh.
>Glowgen will trust you as a whole, and will also put in a good for word you with ADMINISTRATOR. This effects your Arc 4 "entry point".
[ ] Smile and say he'll just have to trust you. [You lack the MASK necessary for this option] [20 D] >You will continue to work with Glowgen, and play things by ear.
>You will maintain your cover, counting on the fact that Glowgen is practically forced to work with you.
>If Glowgen gets what they want, they will put in a good for word you with ADMINISTRATOR. This effects your Arc 4 "entry point".
[ ] Maintain your poker face and call off the deal. [You lack MASK necessary for this option] [10 D] >You will simply tell Glowgen there is no deal. You will IMMEDIATELY log off and not leave any room for discussion.
>Lugh will leave your party. Glowgen will plan something else for the Derby.
>PoH will remain suspicious but unsure of your identity.
[ ] Plan to Betray PoH to HYDRA. [10 D] >Maintain cover but don't expose your identity to Glowgen. Insist they will have to trust you.
>Meet up with HYDRA and arrange a sabotage of Glowgen. He will gladly offer to assist you.
>If you later change your mind you will suffer a large DETERMINATION penalty.
[ ] Plan to KILL HIM. [10 D] >Maintain cover but don't expose your identity to Glowgen. Insist they will have to trust you.
>You will plan on assassinating PoH once you have the SEED. >If you later change your mind you will suffer a large DETERMINATION penalty.
[ ] Plan to trick XeXeeD into killing PoH. [10 D] >Maintain cover but don't expose your identity to Glowgen. Insist they will have to trust you.
>You will meet with XeXeeD and inform him of PoH and his connection to the Death Gun murderers.
[ ] Write-In [Variable D Costs] >It costs [10D] to maintain enough of a poker face for PoH to not realize you are Lux.
>It costs [10D] if your plan involves legitimate cooperation with PoH in any form. >It costs [10D] if your plan involves volunteering your IRL contact information.
>Be aware that stopping Glowgen's plan will piss off Subtilizer. PoH is here on a job, he'll mostly be disappointed if you stop him here, but not truly harmed.
>A legitimate betrayal attempt means trying to permanently harm PoH using either the Black Star or by sabotaging his destination with HYDRA.
>Simply blowing up PoH in game accomplishes effectively nothing.
>Otherwise feel free to mix and match or negotiate with Subtilizer.
>PoH is offering Johnny Black, if you will agree to expose your identity to Lugh.
Edit: ... could we talk with Lugh in private after this? Reveal our connection to PoH? Reveal Laughing Coffin's end? Sow the narrative hes not as trustworthy?
I feel giddy and my spine feels tingly. There is something... so wrong and yet so right about potentially killing PoH. I don't think it would be good for Hiyori though. It would probably be exceptionally bad even.
Edit: ... could we talk with Lugh in private after this? Reveal our connection to PoH? Reveal Laughing Coffin's end? Sow the narrative hes not as trustworthy?
Reasonable, but unlikely to accomplish much. Lugh explicitly doesn't 'trust' PoH especially considering how he was recruited. Mentally speaking Lugh is a career criminal who at this point in his life effectively has nothing more to lose, with the Underworld hitjob he sees as one final hurrah.
In many ways the chance to assassinate someone and ostensibly save the world in the process is essentially the core of Lugh's entire HEAVEN that basically validates his entire life.
[X] Smile and agree to his terms. [You lack the Astronomical MASK necessary for this option] [30 D]
We knew what we were signing up for and could've backed off way back when, so let's follow through?
Not interested in having Hiyori murder people directly or by proxy either.
Unless we want to talk to Argo about this guy, and/or the sacrifice we made to get Johnny in jail?
In many ways the chance to assassinate someone and ostensibly save the world in the process is essentially the core of Lugh's entire HEAVEN that basically validates his entire life.
Genuinely don't know what to do here. I feel like convincing Lugh in private to betray glowgen would be the best way forward, but I don't even know how to even argue him into doing that
