Warning: My knowledge of the Ultraman series starts and ends with, it exists, so feel free to correct me if I make a mistake.
Martial education: DC 0/20/40/60/80/100 | *3+20=23 Moderate Success*
67+20=87 Great Success!!
I began the second half of the year with a quick overview of why one must not neglect one's physical training and push oneself over one's capabilities. Trisha's lecture was about how it affects my mind and my education and Mister Khororhoth focused on how it affects my body.
The lectures lasted two hours each.
After that Mister Khororhoth informed me that from now on
Results: Martial Stat increased by 7.
Diplomacy education: DC 0/20/40/60/80/100 | 94+20=114 Crit-Overflow!!!
16+14=30 Immense Success!!!
The next day, Mister Khororhoth renewed my… diplomatic studies, but this time he tried a different approach with it.
"Where are we?" I said with unease, he did that spatial distortion which didn't use Mystery and now we were someplace I didn't recognise.
"In a town with low Mysteries, a place where you can mingle between the common people without anyone that matters giving it importance." He said with a calm smile as we walked out of the treeline and into a park, then that smile turned into amused. "Besides, who would care about a normal parent and his daughter mingling around the marketplace and the park?"
It took me a moment for those words to register, then before I could react he pulled a mirror from his coat and put it before me. What I saw wasn't my carefully cared for silver long hair, but a messy black crow nest of short hair!
The scream that I let out drew the attention of the passerby.
"Relax, it's just an illusion, a good illusion, but just an illusion, if you will it I can dispel it easily, but that would defeat the purpose of laying low." He said to reassure me, which didn't work.
"That doesn't give you the right to use Magecraft on me without my permission!"
He deflated and said "Alright, alright. Let's just go to a more private place." After that he dispelled the illusion and my hair turned back to normal.
"Now that that is taken care of, let's do what we came to do."
I looked at him with confusion, what could be done in a town with low Mys–
"What I want you to do, Little Star, is to make friends."
…
It took everything I had to not shout at him again. It was a near thing.
"And why would I do that?" I said with annoyance dripping from my tone.
"Well, I thought with how it seems that your only interactions with the outside world are always with Magi, that you should get to experience how non-Magi live their lives."
"So what? Are you saying that interacting with normal people will benefit me?"
"Something like that, yeah." I looked at his smiling face, it just irritated me more.
So instead of putting more effort to stop this farce, I humored him and started interacting with the other children in the park.
I failed miserably. "My hair is not WEIRD!!"
Half an hour in, He came back from wherever he went and asked how my task went. I responded with a tantrum demand, why did he even give me this task, why should she even need to interact with non-Magi?! No one insults my hair like that, NONE!!!
"Good, I would actually be worried if you could have archived it in your first try." He took a sip from his drink as he offered me a water bottle.
After throwing more tantrums demands, I eventually calmed down and he explained that every Tuesday of the remaining year, for Forty-five minutes we would be going to different parks around The United Kingdom and that her task would be the same each time. To make friends.
And so regardless of my own opinions on the matter, every Monday I went to different parks, all my visits of the first month were a failure.
Then in the second month something happened… Better to say that someone happened.
"Wow! Aren't you the girl that's going to become the President of the Earth!" The blue eyed blonde boy said. "My name is Flat, Flat Escardos, it's an honor to meet such a future celebrity!"
This… guy appeared out of nowhere and inserted himself in my useless unnecessary endeavors to make friends and- "-hey what is your opinion of the last episode of Ultraman Cosmos, "Final Test"? Musashi was awesome, right!?"
From then on I not only spent the better part of an hour trying to make friends, but spent another hour spending time with Flat talking about Ultraman, Sentai and Power Rangers and all things related… It is nice.
Also he was proof that I didn't need to interact with non-Magi as Flat is a Magus himself. Ignore the fact that I didn't get to know that until November when he used Magecraft to fix the TV.
No forgetting about my task *and now having advise from Flat*, the third month I actually could start talking with other kids and was actually enjoying myself from time to time. Sure there were still some that insulted me, I could *deal with* ignore them easily enough. "My hair isn't weird, you got that!" "Ye-yes!"
In November, Khororhoth started teaching me again. Now mister Khororhoth spends one extra hour after being with Flat teaching about Diplomacy… and this time I understood.
I could understand what he meant when I needed to listen to others. One time there was a kid who was sad and wouldn't come to play, so Mister Khororhoth encouraged me to go with him and ask why wouldn't come to play. I went and did it.
I didn't like what I heard. So I kept the kid company until my time was up talking about nonsense. He was in a better mood by the time I had to go.
Using that event as a foundation, I put myself through Mister Khororhoth tests. I did better in one after the other.
It still wasn't easy to put myself in another person's place, as an Animusphere I am to stand above the rest, meaning lowering myself to the same place as them is not something I can just do, but I could relate in some situations and predict how they would react.
The hardest part was to learn to 'Appease' someone, until Mister Khororhoth said that sometimes you don't or can't appease, but you could think it as brokering a deal. It still was hard, but I could pass as passable in those parts of the tests now.
And in the final test.
"Good work, Olga." Khororhoth said I preened smiled as he showed me a 71.33. "You pass."
Results: Diplomacy Stat increased by 12. Found a new friend, Flat Escardos (Bond 1). #1
Stewardship education: DC 0/20/40/60/80/100 | 84+20=104 Crit-Overflow!!!
71+4=75 Colossal Success!!!!
On Wednesday three hours of the day were spent with Trisha and Mister Khororhoth preparing for when I have to take the reins of the Animusphere Family and its Branches.
Trisha focused on administrative work. How to take charge, enforce and protect the familial traditions, supervising the main Mysteries that make up the Magical Crest of each branch, control and management of the resources allowed to be given and taken in equal measure. All important factors to take into account in the Stewardship of the Animusphere family.
Mister Khororhoth, as I should have guessed, focused on the Mundane side of the studies. How to book a good deal, how to see the flow of the market, how to manage debts of short-term and long-term, and so on.
While Trisha teached all the important obligations I would fulfill, Mister Khororhoth teachings overlapped a lot with them, making it when I was thinking of one, the other was filling the gaps that I didn't notice the first time.
By the end of the year I was on the level that I could take over the family and it won't go crashing down.
Results: Stewardship Stat increased by 18.
Bounded Field Theorem, Advanced (General Fundamentals) (Practice/Application): DC 70/150 | 81+20+33=134 Crit-Overflow!!!
97+34=131 Double-Overflow!!!!
13+31=44 Outstanding Success!!!!
Aside from the programmed hours of Monday and Wednesday, July was spent revising the theories I made on the bounded fields and comparing them to the theoretical foundations which the Animuspheres used, be it the main family, the whole family and the personal ones that each branch used personally.
Of course this was meant to be something that would have been reserved for later down the line, but it didn't hurt to check this early, and Mister Khororhoth said that my contract studies have been postponed to September for skipping my physical training for a week…
…As I was saying, studying the entirety of the Animuspheres culmination on this craft, even with Trisha at my side correcting me in what she could teach me without overstepping herself, was hard, but not impossible.
The results were worrying, exceptional, but worrying.
On one hand with how through my understanding of the 'Theory' was, understanding what I needed of the Mystery without going deep was easy.
On the other hand, I found it too easy. It was as if I could now unravel the Mysteries that make up Bounded Fields and Workshops so long I had the clues laid out before me.
Both Trisha and I decided that it would be better if we stopped this line of thought. For now.
Results: Lowered DC for some Stewardship actions. The Boon 'Bounded Field Savant (Theory)' has evolved into 'Territory Creation [Rank C--]'. Added 4000 to "Reality Marble (Advanced Theory)". 'You need to have a talk with Mister Khororhoth' #2
Explore the Animusphere Manor
- The East Attic: DC 10/50 | 52+20+21=93 Great Success!
Trisha had a important family reunion that she had to attend in August so Khororhoth covered up for her some of her studies. Not like he could cover anything besides Gradation Air, Reinforcement and the like.
Meanwhile I spent most of my free time in my room studying by myself or exploring the east attic.
There really wasn't much here, just old prototypes that none would use besides a third rate magus or a family that has just officially joined the Clocktower, one of them is sometimes sold to them if an Animusphere finds someone's research 'interesting', or as Trisha says, someone to 'keep an eye on'.
Putting those thoughts aside, I started looking around trying to find something to stave off the boredom and loneliness or maybe be inspired by, not that I was expecting anything.
In my search I actually found some Mystic Codes of note, so I brought them to my section of the Temple where I practice my Magecraft, the North Attic (Observatory).
After analyzing them one by one I was left with just two, a Magical Compass that only had three uses left and only worked within the Animusphere Territory, and the other was something curious.
This Mystic Code allows one to gaze upon the Inner World of the target when the conditions were met, but there was a flaw, the Mysteries were not properly woven together, so the conditions not only had to be met but the target must not resist strongly in any way or the backlash will break the Mystic Code.
It's, frankly, one of the most useless Mystic Codes of the bunch, but… it could be of use in my… personal research…
…I will put it on the side for now. A walk in the gardens should clear my head.
Results: You have found a "Magical Compass" (Reveals three of the hidden DC of the Intrigue actions within the Manor). You have found an "Inner World Observational Seer" or "I.W.O.S." (+100 to all dices in "Inner World" research)
Explore the Animusphere Manor
- The Gardens: DC 30/60/100 | 4+20+21=45 Moderate Success
Passing the bushes of the garden, I walked without direction. With all that has happened the past two months, the Contracts, the bounded fields, my physical growth, when Khororhoth contract said that his Boons would affect my learning and break my 'Limits', I did not understand then.
But now the implications have started to sink in, and with them the details which I ignored started to rear their heads.
"What the hell am I thinking? Reality Marbles are a Taboo among Taboo's, the thought of anything related to it shouldn't even cross my mind! Why am I even contemplating using that Mystic Code!? Why did I even choose that Boon??!!!"
"Something in your mind?" "IEEHHH–!!"
…
"So you are worried about your Reality Marble, huh, of all things I would have thought that that would be the thing you were going to be the most enthusiastic about. But I can see the problem if this 'Politics' you're talking about discovers you have such a thing." With a frown on his face Khororhoth looked at nothing, he did this when he was deep in thought. "Well nothing we can do about it for now" He continued, maybe he– "This just means that we will have to get creative." WHAT!?
"WHAT!?" He really thinks I would go through with this!! "Why the hell should I do something that will threaten the entirety of the Animusphere line!?"
"Bounded Field."
"Why the hell would I–HAH!!" And then I crossed the Bounded Field of the Animusphere Crypt without the proper procedures. I honestly forgot that we had a Crypt.
…
"Procure that this doesn't happen again."
"Yes Father."
He dismissed me with a gesture and went back to his paperwork while I left the office with Khororhoth behind me. He closed the door and followed me to my bedroom.
He went and opened my door, but before I could enter he said "Next week we can go to an amusement park if you want."
I stood there for a moment, processing those words. With all the emotions of today I just said "... Okay."
Results: You have re-discovered the Crypt of the Animuspheres, new Intrigue action unlocked.
Contract Education (Grand Rank) (+Focus on a task.): DC 100/200 | 58+20+20+38=136 Crit-Overflow!!!
4+36=40 Good Success!
As promised, next week I took Olga to the amusement park and she had a lot of–As promised, in September!! Mister Khororhoth restarted my education in Contracts.
The first week began with making them and finalized with how to undo them.
Second week focused on how to interpret them and how to circumvent them.
In the third week we started hidden clauses, how to notice them and how to hide them.
In the last week I went again to the Grand Spell woven in the Contacts, I could now partially read what was written.
[May _o_ __n__. ]
Results: ¾ done, ¼ remaining.
Research Reality: DC 0/10/20/30/40/50/60/70/80/90 | 100+20+38=158 NAT-100 Crit-Overflow!!!
73+58=131 Double-Overflow!!!!
91+31=122 Triple-Overflow!!!!!
79+22=101 Grand-Overflow
94+1=95 The World has acknowledged you.
Nat-100: The Reality Boon has attuned itself more, 1d800+200 => 1d1200+300.
- Reality Marble (Advanced Theory) (0/8500) | (20852+4000/8500)
- Reality Marble (Pride Rank Theorem) (18352/12000)
- Reality Marble (Brand Rank Theorem) (6352/15000)
Reality Marble (Egg World Theory): DC 0/10/20/30/40/50/60/70/80/90 | 25+20+33=78 Great Success!!
- Reality Marble (Fundations) (0/5000-2000(Reality Marble (Pride))) | (5156/3000)
- Reality Marble (Structure) (2156/8000-2000) | (2156/6000)
See Interlude "The Reality of a Star" #3
Research Fantasy: DC 0/10/20/30/40/50/60/70/80/90 | 12+20+38=70 Great Success!!
- Illusions (Basics) (0/1000) | (4831/1000)
- Illusions (Advanced) (3831/3000)
- Illusions (Pride Rank) (831/6000)
Illusions were something
Results: The path of illusions is one that has been carved and walked a thousand times, yet few ever master it. You gained 'Illusion Arts [Rank D]'
Education in the local Cosmological Beings: DC 50/100/150/400 | 37+20+14=71 Moderate Success
Spend time with someone (Increase Bond).
- Khororhoth
Rewards: Your first proper birthday party (Even if late). A book with knowledge every Magus worth their SALT would kill to have. A BIONICLE Toa set and the novels called 'Tales of the Toa' 1 and 2.
AN:
#1: Rolled a 1d8 to see which character you would get to know from the London Cast (the friendly ones), it landed on Flat. And ironically he was actually the most compatible one with Olga at this age, shared interests do that.
#2: If you guys break the dice one more time in this, I shall officially grant you the Pride Rank in bounded fields.
It's too much to ask for a set of rolls that would allow me to make a Slice of life chapter!
#3: And talking about breaking the dice, congratulations on your Grand Achievement, the Interlude is already half way done
