Alright, guess I'm here.
To say that a lot of things happened would be a massive understatement, but I don't know what to write here that wouldn't look like an empty excuse. Everything was messed up to the point writing felt like a waste of time, and not because I don't like doing it, but because everything else felt more important.
Long story short, I pretty much locked myself out of doing any work around here.
As an apology, I decided to try and get back into writing by making this one story as fast as I could.
… Now, as for the people who have no idea what I'm talking about!
I'm Delusion Dreamer - Iota, formerly Zetta but I thought I needed some change. The whole name is too weird? Well, I just thought just "Iota" looked a bit empty without anything else, so there you have it! I hope I won't disappoint after being away for so long. To be honest, I'm a tad worried that somebody already wrote this except better, since I didn't check the Neptunia fanfictions for quite some time by now, but it can't be helped!
Well, I hope y'all enjoy it!
With that, time to dive into a very late delusion...
Disclaimer: Just how necessary is this, really?
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[Lowee] [Basilicom - Higher Floors]
[Sunday] [08:16 AM]
"Good morning, Lady Blanc!"
"Hello, Miss Blanc!"
"L-L-Lady Blanc, I-I didn't see you— N-No, have a nice morning! Ah, no, I-I meant day, a nice whole day!"
As she walks down the Basilicom's large and ventilated hallways, open book in hand and pleased expression on her face, the Loweean CPU makes sure to nod back at each worker that speaks to her—not actually respond out loud, because there are just so many—and sends a particularly kind smile to the young maid on the verge of panicking, no doubt a newcomer yet unused to her surroundings.
From the way the girl's eyes widen comically, Blanc isn't sure her attempt actually made things better, but what can she do? These are the simple thoughts going through her mind as she focuses back on her book—normal as this Sunday morning she plans to spend in her room, reading and writing to her heart's content, as soon as she's done with a couple chores.
And speaking of a normal Sunday morning…
"Lady Blanc, watch out!" the new maid from before shouts all of sudden, but that doesn't really come as a surprise to the CPU.
After all, she was waiting for this.
In a movement she practiced far more than a normal person should, Blanc closes her book and flings it upwards, before turning around and summoning a hammer to her side. Her eyes spot a blurry object flying down the hallway so fast it's almost impossible to analyze
Directly towards her face, that is.
But Blanc's smile remains the same.
Initializing prediction. Time until impact: Approximately 1.27 s. Material: Not completely solid, spillage is a possibility. Evasion: Inadvisable, may lead to collateral damage. Deflection: Forced counter inadvisable, but redirection possible. Exit point: Found.
Solution acquired.
With a grace that someone wielding a hammer shouldn't have the right to display, Blanc steps out of the way, at the same time swinging her hammer towards the projectile. The weapon hits its very front with a slimy noise, before launching the object out of the window next to her with what was probably enough speed to obliterate a big dogoo.
Still not done, Blanc lets go of her dematerializing hammer, grabs onto her falling book, and casually lobs a green ball of energy towards the projectile, exploding it mid-air a good thirty meters away from the Basilicom. And, if her eyesight is as good as she believes, judging from the color and texture of the fragments being dragged down by gravity…
Someone might just have the misfortune to experience a rain of blueberry pie filling today.
Three seconds have passed since the maid's warning. With a prideful smile that wouldn't be out of place in a certain twin-tailed ravenette's face, Blanc glances down the hallway from where the projectile came from, and beyond the utterly flabbergasted workers who seem to have forgotten how to close their mouths, she spots a familiar dress disappearing into the next corner.
In a normal Sunday morning, the CPU would be fuming beyond belief, and then instantly give chase. In a normal Sunday morning, however, her dress would also be dirtied with pie by now, so she doesn't feel particularly inclined to do that.
Also, it might be important to note that, as the CPU of Lowee, Blanc pays people to do things for her.
"RAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAM!" a shrill female voice sounds through the hallway, just in time for the only worker in the vicinity whose mind hasn't been blown away to zip by the brunette, maid dress fluttering messily and speed so high she simply must have used at least two spells on herself.
Godspeed, Financier.
Humming to herself without a care in the world, Blanc turns around and resumes walking while reading in an even better mood than before, unbothered by the stares she gets for it.
All things considered, that "prank" was rather crude, and she honestly expected more of that girl, but she can't really blame her little sister for being in that kind of mood.
This is Ram's fifth failure in the morning, after all.
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•Way of the Ninjer - Pranver Versus•
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[Lowee] [Basilicom - Candidates' Room]
[Sunday] [09:22 AM]
"It's! Just! Soooo! Unfaaaiiir!" Ram whines, hugging her pink pillow and rolling on her room's big bed, hat long discarded on the floor nearby. "Why can't I even touch her these days?! I want my fun back! I have to prank her at least once!"
"Ah, well..." Seated on a cushion by the tiny table in the middle of the room, Rom just stares at her worked up sister, feeling lost as to how she should respond. "M... Maybe you could not...? Rather, please don't…"
"Out of question," the pink-clad brunette speaks seriously all of sudden, putting a stop to her rolling and sitting upright. "This is all about honor! Like eating a whole candy bar even though you got sick of it in the middle! Or sneaking a half-eaten cup of pudding out of the refrigerator even if Financier says it's only for dessert!"
"That one was mine, though..."
"I don't get it at all!" Ram pointedly ignores her sister's accusation with a pout, hugging the pillow tighter. "Even though that dummy totally fell for my stuff before, it's like nothing I do is working anymore!"
Rom starts mumbling to herself. "Calling her a dummy even though you're the one doing this is a bit..."
"Eh? What was that?"
"I-I said that maybe you should try something else?" the blue Candidate stutters with a bright smile. "Like... hugging her when she's not expecting and saying you love her? That has to surprise her, right...?"
The suggestion earns her a blank stare. "What are you, a good girl?"
"I am, though..."
"No, that won't do! I need to do something serious!" Ram insists, shifting on her spot. "If it's not an attack at a hundred percent, then what's the point?!"
"Um..." Rom looks at her sister weird. "About that, what is the point? If Blanc got so good at dodging pranks, then wouldn't it be better to just stop being mean—"
*knock* *knock*
"Eh?" At the sudden interruption, the blue-clad Candidate looks back at the wooden door in confusion. "... Who is it?"
*BANG*
The door swings open right into the wall, very nearly making Rom's heart leap out of her throat.
"RAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAM!" Financier shouts into the room, her maid dress completely ruined by what looks like so much pie stuffing that it's a miracle the whole thing isn't dripping on the floor. Her brown eyes meet the little girl's wide ones soon enough. "Rom! Where's your brat of a sister who's about to die?!"
Still feeling some shock cursing through her body, the girl in question blinks. "That's... She's right he...re..." Rom trails off as soon as she glances back at where the other Candidate stood, the current sight showing no signs of her aside from the open window which was certainly closed before. After a moment gaping, the girl looks back at the woman. "... She jumped out."
"Transformed?!"
"I don't think so...?"
"Oh, the brat thinks gravity's fast enough?!" Financier doesn't waste time in breaking into a sprint, leaping right out and into Lowee beneath. "RAAAAAaaaaaaa..." her scream fades away, because they're certainly not on the first, second or even sixteenth floor.
As such, no one can blame Rom for spending some good twenty seconds staring.
... Well, if a fall like that stopped the woman, she wouldn't have such a high position in the first place.
Honestly, as much as she doesn't like to think about her sister's inevitable demise, maybe it'd be better if Rom just spent the rest of the day on her own, away from the crossfire. Now, where did she put that one drawing she had yet to finish?
Oh, that's right, it's under the bed!
The smiling girl leans down on the floor, looking for the work she may or may not have hid so that Ram wouldn't mess... with... it…
Huh.
"Is she gone?" Ram asks from her hiding spot down there. It's important to note, of course, that there's a somewhat crumpled sheet of paper sticking out from underneath her.
An important crumpled sheet of paper.
Rom stares at her precious twin sister like the Pink Candidate is a broken crayon. "... She is."
"Oh, good..." Ram sighs in relief as she wiggles out of her spot, slowly dragging the paper with her. When she's done, the girl sits up, takes a glance at the ruined work, carelessly grabs it by a wrinkle, and presents it to Rom. "Um, is this yours?"
"Yes," the sudden victim replies curtly, taking it in her hands and eyeing what is definitely going into the trash later. Oh fun, time to spend two hours tracing all the lines. 'You're a good girl, Rom, keep being a good girl,' she thinks to herself, looking back at the bra—her sister and doing her best to keep her voice soft. "About Financier... What... did you just do...?"
"Oh, that?" The other girl gives her the toothiest grin she can manage. "Super Ram-style misdirection technique!"
"..." The blue Candidate's puzzled face makes it rather obvious how much information she got from that. "Um... Is that some ninja thing from 4GO?"
"No, no, nothing like that!" Ram waves her off, wearing a proud smile that feels a bit too self-serving. "It's just the bestest way to deal with a mad... Financier..." The girl's smile dies all of sudden, replaced by a realization. "... That's it."
"Oh no," Rom lets out. "I-I mean, what is it?"
"In order to beat Blanc..." the girl starts, her voice growing more certain by the second. "... I just have to become a full ninjer! Like I was in that game, except for realsies now!" she finishes with a massive smile, looking straight at her twin sister.
Said twin sister returns that with a puzzled look. "A full ninja?"
"A full ninjer!" Ram nods excitedly as she proclaims her latest whim. "They do traps and stuff, right?! Those are like pranks!"
Rom blinks. "I guess, but... A ninja?"
"A ninjer!" There's a worrying glint on the blue Candidate's face.
How to respond to that... is something Rom isn't really sure about. "But how?"
"I'll just do it!" Ram announces, jumping to her feet. "Watch me, I'm totally bringing Blanc down! Zuiuuunn!" With that, the girl spreads her arms like a plane and runs out of the room, not even bothering to close the door behind her as she goes.
... Is she going to be alright?
The only brunette left blinks. Slowly, she glances at her sister's forgotten hat, lying just over there, then at the crumpled paper in her hand, and finally back at the hat. Maybe she could set it up with…
No, no, no! Rom shakes her head. She's a good girl, she's definitely a good girl, she can't just booby trap Ram's hat! Besides, there's a good chance her sister's going to screw up hard, so whatever punishment Rom wants to deal on her would be redundant, right? In fact, if she just refuses to bail that girl out of trouble, then…
Oh, so it's that easy!
"Hehehe!" Rom giggles, a warm and innocent smile on her face as she prays for her dear sister's doom.
Now, time to use up her troublemaking sister's crayons for the tracing!
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[Lowee] [Basilicom - Middle Floors]
[Sunday] [09:37 AM]
Even on this day of the weekend, the attendance halls of the Basilicom are usually packed. Hunters walk around, form groups to discuss important matters, chat with the workers behind several counters, look at the holographic displays showing the news or vital quest information, and just generally do the same things you'd expect people to do at the Guild.
This obviously isn't the Guild, however, and much less an extension of it. Rather, this one of the most recent additions to the system—a place where the Basilicom hands out important quests that they can't just give to the more civilian-based Guild. Which is to say, all Hunters allowed in here are either government agents or special cases.
One such special case is currently at one of the corners of a certain attendance hall closest to the higher floors, clad in a uniform about to burst from her sizable chest and wearing a rather bashful smile.
"It really wasn't much, heheheh..." MarvelousAQL manages to say with a blush, fighting the impulse to break eye contact with the girl before her.
"That's not how I see it," the CPU herself replies easily with a smile, holding her book under an arm. "As a neutral party, you don't exactly have an excuse to undertake this number of Loweean quests, much less accept my personal requests on top of it."
"We~e~ell..." the ginger drawls, scratching the back of her neck. "I... might just be partial to snowy places...?"
"That does make some sense, yes." Blanc smiles knowingly. "You were born in this nation, after all."
Embarrassment is quickly replaced by shock on the taller girl's blanching face. What in the... That's the kind of information a ninja should guard close to their heart! "T-That's, I didn't—" She stops herself before fully losing control, instead leaning closer to the CPU and whispering. "How do you know that?"
Blanc, for her part, isn't shaken at all... even if her eyes do linger on the ninja's bounciness for a bit. "If it's about how I obtained this information, then..." She brings up her book, covering her mouth with it and glancing away with a mischievous glint. "You just told me."
"... Did I just fall for the easiest trick ever?"
A quiet giggle is all the answer she needs.
"Aaaahhh..." The girl leans back, bringing a hand to cover her heating face even as a tiny smile appears. "Tammy's never letting me live this down... Lady Blanc, you're too dangerous when you're in a good mood!"
"Is that so?" Blanc responds softly, lowering her book to reveal a barely hidden smirk. "Then perhaps you shouldn't put me in a good mood in the first place."
"Your fanclub's going to tear me apart if they hear this conversation..." MarvelousAQL sighs, leaning her shoulder against the wall.
The CPU's smile grows a little bit. "I think the phrase goes, 'Such is the path of the ninja,' yes?"
"Something like that... Gosh, I feel like such a failure right now..."
"A perfect ninja certainly wouldn't be as fun to talk to," Blanc teases in a tone much similar to a certain blonde CPU... although it might not be a good idea to point it out. "In any case, you have the rest of the day completely free, right?"
The ninja's long sigh couldn't carry any more suffering if she tried. "Lady Blanc, please... Flirting and then inviting me to a date? I am free later, but isn't it easier to just put an assassination mark on me?"
That earns her a quiet laugh from the CPU. "Don't worry, it's not an invitation. I was just wondering." The calming effect she was going for is somewhat weakened by the beginnings of a grin. "Sounds like you have a hard life. Don't hesitate to ask for help if you need."
"Y-Yes..."
"Well, I suppose I already took too much of your time," Blanc finally decides, stepping away from the taller girl. "Enjoy the rest of your free time."
"I'll definitely try." Lowering the hand from her face, she shoots a bright—if a bit tired—smile, waving at the brunette. "With how much Lady Blanc works, I guess I should say the same, huh?"
The CPU's face brightens ever so slightly in humor. "I do appreciate it." With that, she turns around and starts moving away... before suddenly coming to a halt, glancing back at the ninja. "By the way, now would be a good time to use your ninja skills."
Now that has MarvelousAQL's eyebrow rising in confusion. "What do you—"
"NIN NIN!" a young girl's voice comes from above, sending a thousand jolts of surprise down the ninja's spine.
It's only because of her training that she manages to turn around in time to see something falling from the ceiling, but that's when she realizes a rather obvious fact that her mind, due to a mixture of shock and the previous easy atmosphere, didn't even bother to acknowledge.
She should've evaded first.
*BAM* "Kyah?!"
Something heavy impacts the girl's torso and sends her tumbling down on her back, bringing most eyes of the massive hall towards her. Silently cursing her ongoing string of embarrassments, MarvelousAQL rubs the back of her head.
"Ow..."
That got her by surprise, so of course she couldn't shield that well... Mana protection or not, if she could turn off the pain receptors themselves, that'd be pretty great for missions.
"Z... Zwichun..." a muffled voice sounds from the area of impact. Pushing her ninja world problems aside, she glances down at whatever hit her, encountering a certain hatless CPU Candidate whose face is buried rather deeply into her... valley. Before the ninja can question her, the little girl brings her face up with some effort, and instead plants her chin on that spot in order to look straight into MarvelousAQL's eyes with that worryingly excited look. "Marvy!"
"Y-Yes?!"
Something shines deep within Ram's eyes. "Teach me how to be a ninjer!"
Oh, True Goddess, this is trouble.
Thinking fast on how to deal with this girl's whims, MarvelousAQL places an apologetic smile on her face. "I'm really sorry, but I have some work to do—"
The Candidate smirks. "You just told Blanc you were free."
"Y-You guys were conspiring?!"
"Nope, I was just watching from the start!" Ram wear the most massive smile she has. "It was pretty easy, since Marvy's always here every Sunday morning!"
Wait, MarvelousAQL has such an obvious schedule...? Hold on, the little girl was on the ceiling all this time? And the ninja in the room didn't realize?!
Should she just give up and change careers now?!
'Oh geez, what to do?!' she panics mentally, because if there's one thing that everyone in Lowee knows, it's that the pink twin with an idea is bad news. 'I know, Lady Blan—'
As soon as she looks upwards towards the spot the CPU was standing, she does find her.
Several meters away.
Near the large doorway that is the exit.
Their eyes meet, and the ninja sends the best "Help! Me!" expression she can. The leader of Lowee stares for a moment, smiles at MarvelousAQL, and then disappears into the corner.
'Lady Blaaaaaaaaannnnc!' the ninja shouts in her mind, for she has never experienced such cold betrayal before! Did the CPU seriously notice Ram and then maneuvered the conversation specifically so she couldn't deny any requests the Candidate made?! What an amazing big sister! What an incredible traitor!
"Marrrvyyy!" the excited pink Candidate calls from her comfortable spot between the ninja's breasts, eyes sparkling. "Ninjer! I said I wanna be a ninjer! Teach me some stuff~!"
"U-Um..." As MarvelousAQL looks at the puppy-like being, she's unsure on how to respond. She does have some tricks she could teach, but isn't Ram very much into pranks? Wouldn't that be really bad?
The ninja glances at her surroundings for a moment, and notices that everyone seems to have reached the same conclusion. Wide eyes and lips mouthing "no" are aplenty, coming from Hunters and normal workers alike. Indeed, to say the pair on the floor became the center of attention would be an understatement, for the musical-eyed ginger understands her decision will affect the fate of everyone in this hall, if not the entire Basilicom.
She must reject Ram, and leave no room for arguments. As such, she looks down at the little girl, who returns the stare with an impatient smile and eyes full of innocent thrill. MarvelousAQL simply has to deny the request of this child-like Candidate who looks like a little puppy asking to play, waving her tail excitedly like a fan. That's right; all she has to do is tell Ram that she will not, no matter what, teach her a single thing, and then the ninja will just have to watch as all happiness escapes those shimmering blue eyes from what could very well be taken as a harsh scolding...
The phrase MarvelousAQL must speak is simple, easy, practical—
"Marvy, pleeeaase~?"
"I-I guess I could teach you a trick or two...?"
—and she lost.
A happy gasp escapes the little girl's lips as she dives headfirst to hug the ninja. "Aww yeah, thanks! Heheheh!"
"Um, it's no problem at all!" the ginger lets out with a smile, bringing up a hand to pat this ball of happiness of a troublemaker.
Yeah, there's nothing wrong with this... She just has to ignore the frigid cold atmosphere that just descended the attendance hall... And the looks of betrayal from all her occasional companions in this line of work... Well, keepíng her guard up at all times for the foreseeable future should be a good training, right? Ahahaha…
... Were this high school, now would be a nice time to say goodbye to all her lunch money.
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[Lowee] [Eastern Outskirts]
[Sunday] [10:12 AM]
After a short HDD-assisted lift, the two girls find themselves in one of Lowee's forests painted white by the snow, the developed ginger trudging forward with purpose—and a nice heating enchantment that's really eating at her SP—as the excited brunette follows, clad in a red ninja outfit whose very existence feels a tad too convenient for MarvelousAQL.
It could be cosplay, but the fabric seems genuinely fit for fighting, as if made by a true craftsman. Maybe she's missing some vital information here, but from what she knows, Lady Vert is definitely involved, and Lady Noire is a maybe.
Sounds like a funny story.
That aside, it might be obvious, but this forest is where the Candidate's training will take place—an open area filled with obstacles and visual obstructions, the perfect training ground for a ninja!
... Of course, even with that said, MarvelousAQL can't just go all out and raise Ram's troublemaker level to insane heights. Which is why she has the perfect plan to diffuse the situation: play around with the little girl until she tires and heads home!
That has to work, right?
As such, there's nothing weighing on the ninja's heart as she comes to a stop amidst a clearing, spinning around to smile at the starry-eyed little girl. "Alright, we'll be starting here! Are you ready?" The way Ram keeps nodding in quick succession is rather endearing, if a tad excessive. "Okay! Then, the first step of the training will be..." The Candidate perks up at each word, eyeing the ninja intently. "... hide and seek!"
"... Eh?"
Ram deflates instantly. In the moment that follows, MarvelousAQL holds her breath in surprise.
Oh no.
"Hide... and seek...?" the Candidate repeats slowly, her smile still there but as frigid as the snow. "As in, the game...?"
Darn, her attempt was too obvious...!
"N-No, not at all!" the ginger tries to save face in a laughing voice. "It's a ninja exercise! While I look for you, you're to try and take me by surprise! It's to see if you can understand how a ninja is supposed to think!" she wings it really hard, inwardly apologizing to every single tutor she ever had in her training days.
Getting the naive pink twin of Lowee to eye you suspiciously is quite the feat, and yet MarvelousAQL managed it so easily! "... Is that so?" Ram asks cautiously, to which the ninja can only nod in response. "I think that makes sense...?"
"That's right!" The ginger smiles broadly, and so very shamelessly. "I'll just go to that tree over there and count to ten, so get ready to hide!" The little girl's positive hum is all the consent she needs to do just that, her feet making a trail on the snow. Placing her forehead close to the frozen trunk, she starts to count.
This... isn't going according to plan, but that's fine! If Ram actually tries to surprise her, she'll have to get closer, and that's all MarvelousAQL needs to spot her and bring the game to an end! Knowing that girl, she'll keep asking for more chances until finally giving up, but there's no other way...!
"I'm done counting!" the ginger declares, turning around to the white clearing. Of course, the little girl is nowhere to be seen, but she can easily begin the search by looking at the trails in the snow…
... There aren't any, though...?
MarvelousAQL raises an eyebrow. Save for the marks they made while coming here, there's just nothing else! Activating HDD and flying away would have been incredibly noticeable, so that's out of question, but then that means... Oh! Realization crosses the ninja's face. That's it, Ram backtracked over the trails to avoid leaving any obvious clues! What a clever girl!
As soon as the smiling ginger discerns that, her form disappears from the clearing in a shadowy blur, landing on the branch of the tree above an instant later.
Geez, Ram should know a little trick like that wouldn't be enough to beat her. It's a bit disappointing.
With an impressive speed that might just match a flying CPU's, the ninja starts jumping from branch to branch, eyes on the trail in search for the girl. The way things are going, this will be quite a simple task... is what MarvelousAQL wants to say, but didn't she already cross all the distance the Candidate should've managed to backtrack, even with a buffed speed? The girl doesn't stop in her tracks to check, because being that defenseless would be an affront to everything she ever learned, but the thought still lingers.
What, did she make a magic minecart? Hold on, that's a possibility... In that case, she should just keep going this wa—
*CRACK* "?!"
Without warning, as soon as her feet touch the next branch, it breaks like a twig. The ninja's mind is sent reeling, because that doesn't make sense! She glanced at all possible branches for her next move on the corner of her vision and used magic to analyze which ones could support her weight, all over the course of a third of a second! That's something a first-year learns how to do, and it eventually becomes borderline automatic, so how in the name of…
That's when her startled eyes catch sight of the spot of the branch that gave in—more specifically the way it seems to be sliced so perfectly.
Wait, that means—
*Splash*
Something cold impacts the ninja's left hand just as she attempts to do a saving maneuver. A quick glance reveals that—her hand is encased in ice?! But that's—
"ZAPAT!" a battlecry sounds, just in time for a weight to impact her back. With only one hand and no way to get out of this, MarvelousAQL can only let out a yelp as she's send straight into the trail of snow beneath, falling in the white facefirst and skidding for several meters until coming to a stop.
'... Ow.'
Her first thought is that Ram needs better battlecries.
The ninja raises her face off the ground, spitting out a bit of snow. Taking advantage of the downtime, she uses a small fire art to thaw out her hand, but that doesn't erase the fact she took such a hit in the first place.
89% HP left, but a real attacker would've made it 0% by now.
"Hahahaha!" her assailant lets out, and—Oh, Ram's sitting on her. How did this happen? "Okay, being a ninjer is way more fun than I thought!" she declares, getting off the taller girl and rising to her feet. The little girl then begins spinning around as she laughs, still high on her victory. All things considered, it's an understandable reaction…
"Well, I guess so..." MarvelousAQL replies in a somewhat weary tone, getting off the ground with a groan and shaking the snow off of her clothes. It even got in some difficult places... The ninja promptly unbuttons and takes off her top, wiping the white stuff off her cleavage before it has the chance to give her some bad sensations. "Okay, I definitely underestimated you. How did you do that?"
"Eh~? It was pretty easy~!" Ram gloats with a big smile, although it sounds more cute than annoying coming from her. "I just..." she begins, only to trail off when she looks at the ninja. "... Is showing off your boobies a ninjer thing?"
The girl in question freezes, as if only just realizing who she's accompanied with. "N-No, not at all, it has nothing to do with ninjas," she corrects the Candidate, hurriedly putting her top back on and buttoning it as much as possible. "I was just taking out the snow, really!"
"Uh-huh." Ram nods slowly, looking a bit doubtful, because of course this would be what she finds suspicious, and not all the clear signs that MarvelousAQL is trying to trick her.
Gosh.
"T-That aside!" the ninja braves on. "How did you manage to move without leaving any trails in the snow?"
With an incredibly proud smile, the little girl points downwards as she shuffles her feet. When MarvelousAQL catches sight of it, she can only gape.
Even though Ram is moving her feet, the surface of the snow isn't showing any trails… No, that's wrong. There's some pressure all over the area, and the snow is a bit too flat around there, so this is more like… a spell for weight redistribution?
There's astonishment in the ginger's eyes as she looks back at the little girl. This isn't a difficult technique, but it does require a lot of finesse to avoid looking like a giant animal was stepping around! The way Ram is doing, even if someone finds signs of the flattened snow, the tracks will completely disappear within the hour!
If she didn't know any better, MarvelousAQL would say this girl has been a ninja in training for three years!
As if noticing the questions in her eyes, the Candidate grins. "Financier would find me in seconds if I didn't do this!"
… Right, of course she learned this to escape punishment.
"Okay, I understand that much." Even if any instructor she ever had would laugh at her face if told such a story. "But how did you manage to jump me like that?"
Ram tilts her head in confusion, like she just heard a very dumb question. "I was following you on the branches; I always do that when Financier's really mad."
"I-I'm sure I'd have heard you...?"
"There's a spell that takes out noise, though." Now she's looking at MarvelousAQL in worry, wondering if there's something wrong with her.
The ninja can feel her expression twitch.
"Ffffffine, I underestimated you!" she somehow manages to sound cheerful saying so. "How about we go to the next step?"
"Oh, really?!" Just like that, that curious and childish glint returns to the little girl's eyes.
Under her smile, MarvelousAQL gulps.
'Here goes nothing… Again…'
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[Lowee] [Eastern Outskirts]
[Sunday] [10:38 AM]
This time, MarvelousAQL brings the Candidate to a particularly large dark tree in the forest, about as wide as a house and as tall as six stores, featuring so many branches with snowy leaves it's hard to count.
It should be enough for this.
Turning to face Ram with a smile, she starts speaking. "This time around, how about we do a little climbing?"
And once again the little girl gives her a weird look. "Um, that's supposed to be hard?"
"It is!" the ginger finds herself responding defensively before catching herself. "Wait, I meant climbing like a ninja, not normally!"
"... Oh." Just like that, Ram's back to looking interested.
Now she's being easy?!
"V-Very well! Observe!" Figuring she might as well do this as quickly as possible, MarvelousAQL turns to the tree and immediately starts running towards it. As soon as she closes in, the ninja jumps as if planning to dropkick the trunk, and when her feet touch it, she begins running upwards instead, as though gravity has lost its meaning.
Reaching the peak doesn't take more than a couple seconds, at which point she stops and stands sideways on the trunk. Ram will try to replicate it, but chances are she won't manage to.
Simply put, this technique is bullshit.
When you get down to it, the whole thing is several Wind buffs—some to negate gravity, some to add a new gravity, and some just to stabilize her—that amount to far too much SP for a normal person to withstand using.
Fortunately, MarvelousAQL isn't just an average person; rather, one of her passives is exactly a massive cost reduction to Wind techniques which allows her to implement them even on normal moves! That is to say, a blatant cheat, like that one person in her class who could use a certain amount of fire magic without dissipating any SP at all!
Of course, Ram might have a cheat of her own—most people have such railroading passives, really—but as long as she attempts to use the Wind method, she'll likely never succeed! It's with such a thought that MarvelousAQL turns around, looking downwards towards the little girl…
"... Well, would you look at that," is all the ginger manages to let out, because right below her is the grinning Candidate, holding onto the tree's surface like a spider.
"So? How did I do?" she asks excitedly, not noticing the ninja's blank gaze as she takes one hand off the trunk and waves at her.
Still with an empty smile, MarvelousAQL raises an eyebrow. The spot where Ram's hand was seems a bit frosty, so this seem to be a very thin sheet of ice she actively maintains to glue her to the trunk, plus some obvious protection spells to avoid hurting herself.
Huh.
"Do you have any experience with this?" the ninja finds herself having to ask.
"Isn't it the easiest thing ever?" is the answer she gets, and MarvelousAQL doesn't know how to respond.
Because no, it isn't.
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[Lowee] [Eastern Outskirts]
[Sunday] [11:03 AM]
"Okay, we're drawing ninja spells now!" MarvelousAQL announces all of sudden, sitting on a cut trunk and taking out a bunch of paper from her inventory.
For once, Ram actually looks thrilled from the start. "Drawing?! Ninja spells?!" Then she blinks, realizing something. "Wait, where are we drawing?"
"Now that's a good question, isn't it?" the ninja plays it up, bringing a hand to her chin. In truth, she has a foldable table right here in her invento—
*CHING*
"This should work, right?" the smiling Candidate asks, sitting on the ice chair she just made, facing the ice table between her and the seated ninja.
What a resourceful girl.
"..." Bringing down the hand which was on her chin, the ginger touches the table and notices that, yes, there are enchantments in place to make it not feel so icy or stick to things. "... It's perfect!" she declares cheerfully, acting as though she hasn't just been shown up by a little girl.
Just gotta keep moving forward.
Smiling, she places the paper over the table before doing the same with a few brushes and pots of ink.
"These are all special materials!" MarvelousAQL declares, placing her hands on her waist. "As long as you draw each symbol perfectly, that should let you prepare spells beforehand and use them immediately!"
"That's so cool!" The Candidate almost seems to be sparkling as she leans towards the materials.
The ninja smirks internally.
What she said is correct. This allows you to prepare spells for instant use during battles… if each symbol drawn on the paper is flawless, that is. Which means Ram will keep trying again and again, until she finally grows hungry and goes home!
Yes, this is perfect!
"Now, for the first symbol…"
"Ominaeshi!" Ram shouts as she slashes towards a tree with an oversized shuriken which MarvelousAQL didn't know she had, featuring a certain paper filled with symbols wrapped on one of the four handles.
Right on cue, the paper in question shines, before several pink energy slashes shoot forward, shining with power. At the same time, the paper turns blank, but that's not an issue; with this particular kind of tool, as long as she can charge enough energy and spend the activation cost, the symbols should reappear and the skill becomes usable again. The goal is to make particularly strong skills easier to use without detailed preparations, with the trade-off being a higher activation cost.
Unfortunately, in this particular case, the slashes fade away just a bit before reaching the trunk, giving way to the Candidate's disappointed groan.
"Aww, the range is too short!" She shoots a look at the ninja besides her. "Marvy, can you help me check if there's something wrong with the drawing?"
"Of course…" the ginger responds absent-mindedly, eyes stuck where the slashes disappeared. Although the trunk is still whole, there's a rather visible path on the ground where the snow melted, even though the energy wasn't that close to it.
By all accounts, this shouldn't happen.
'I-Isn't this a hitsuden ninpo…?'
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[Lowee] [Eastern Outskirts]
[Sunday] [11:31 AM]
"Ram, this is a secret technique to throw two kunais in quick succession!"
*flick* *flick*
"I know, I know! You used the mana trail from the first one to repeat the throw!"
"T-That's…! Yes, I'm glad you noticed! But how about a curved shot?"
*flick* *flick*
"Oh, oh! You kept the first trail going and waved it like a rope!"
"Yoouu aaaare correct... Of course!"
"Wouldn't it be easier to make an ice string like this?"
"What in tarnation—"
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[Lowee] [Eastern Outskirts]
[Sunday] [11:45 AM]
"Now, Ram! I'm going to teach you how to run on water!"
"Oh, like this?"
"I-Ice… Yes, exactly like that! But can you hide your trail like that?"
"Hmmm… Maybe if I put a fire spell inside to melt the ice…"
"Hoooowww… smaaarrt you are!"
"Heheh! I'm learning so many things today!"
"I'm so dead!"
"Eh?"
"I said that I'm so proud!"
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[Lowee] [Eastern Outskirts]
[Sunday] [11:59 AM]
"Okay, Ram! How about hiding yourself from sight?"
"Like this?"
"A-An angular ice mirror?!"
"Eh, it's no good?"
"No, I just… am taken aback by your skills!"
"Yaaay!"
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[Lowee] [Eastern Outskirts]
[Sunday] [12:10 AM]
"Ram! Make this kunai bounce on things!"
"Maybe if I use tiny explosions...?"
"Hold on, that shouldn't… It worked?!"
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[Lowee] [Eastern Outskirts]
[Sunday] [12:23 AM]
"Ram! For lunch, eat these futomaki without spilling anything!"
"Then… a fork and knife!"
"H-Heresy..."
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[Lowee] [Eastern Outskirts]
[Sunday] [12:32 AM]
"Ram! Hide under the snow while still being as comfortable as possible!"
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[Lowee] [Eastern Outskirts]
[Sunday] [12:45 AM]
"Ram! Swing around the forest like a spider!"
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[Lowee] [Eastern Outskirts]
[Sunday] [12:53 AM]
"Ram! Break this boulder while using 10 SP at most!"
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[Lowee] [Eastern Outskirts]
[Sunday] [13:13 AM]
"Ram!"
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[Lowee] [Eastern Outskirts]
[Sunday] [13:56 AM]
"Ram!"
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[Lowee] [Eastern Outskirts]
[Sunday] [14:21 AM]
"Raaaaam!"
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[Lowee] [Eastern Outskirts]
[Sunday] [15:33 AM]
"Yaaaaaaay! Being a ninjer is so fun, hahaha!" Ram shouts in happiness as she circles a certain clearing, alternating between swinging over the forest and jumping from branch to branch with all kinds of acrobatics. "C'mon, Marvy, let's go do quests like this! Nin nin!"
'Oh… She actually wants to work instead of playing games. I wonder if Lady Blanc would praise me for pulling that off…'
These are the thoughts of MarvelousAQL, the ninja currently lying on the snow in the middle of a clearing, surrounded by the trees of a white forest in Lowee as she stares blankly at nothing.
Boy, this sure didn't go the way she expected.
Finding some additional strength, the ginger speaks up. "Say, didn't you want to become a ninja for a reason?"
"Oh, yeah!" By that tone, the Candidate just realized something. Right on cue, she changes trajectories and jumps straight into the clearing, rolling mid-air until safely landing right next to MarvelousAQL with her arms spread open. Then, still in that pose, she rotates to the side and falls on her back next to the taller girl, giving her a big smile. "If I'm like this there's no way I'm gonna lose!"
"Hm? Lose?" That actually piques the ninja's interest. "Who do you want to defeat?"
Ram shoots her a massive grin. "Blanc!"
"Hm?" MarvelousAQL considers this, raising an eyebrow. "I see, so that's why…"
Then what the little girl said finally hits her, and the words die in her throat. Wait a minute, doesn't this mean that…
Oh.
No.
Nope.
This is not good.
Rather, this is very bad.
Maybe she can still talk Ram out of it, because if not, then…!
"I know!" the Candidate pipes up, sounding even more excited all of sudden. "Since you helped me like this, I'm gonna give you a front seat to my big sister's defeat!"
MarvelousAQL's eyes widen at the proposal—no, from that tone it was more of an order! True Goddess, if you're listening, some assistance would be appreciated.
Before she can pray properly, the excited Ram is already getting on her feet and grabbing onto the ninja's hand. "Let's go, I can't wait anymore!"
Just then, a white light envelopes the Candidate, and soon enough it's White Sister standing in her place. It should be noted, of course, that Goddesses are strong, so it stands to reason that the ginger is pulled off the ground effortlessly.
When she realizes what's happening, they're already flying back to the Basilicom, with only her hand being held by the flying Goddess.
As expected of a tiny heart attack, the interior of her chest feels like it's shaking uncontrollably.
"Ah, w-wait!" the ginger calls out to the CPU above her. "Maybe you could rethink this? I-I mean, defeating Lady Blanc is a bit…"
"You're such a worrywart!" White Sister responds with a laugh. "I'm not gonna prank her too hard!"
"Oh, you're just going to prank her? Then I guess it's fine—No, no, it's not! Look, if you land right now we can go eat some sweets and talk about this!"
"Praaa~annks~, praaa~aaanks~!"
"R-Raaaaaam!"
MarvelousAQL isn't winning this fight, is she?
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[Lowee] [Basilicom - Higher Floors]
[Sunday] [16:21 AM]
'This is bad…'
That's what MarvelousAQL thinks as she lies inside the ventilation shaft, looking at the luxurious hallway underneath through a metal grid. From down there, Ram waves at her from her spot behind a potted plant, her big grin more than enough to know she won't be backing down any time soon.
'This is so bad…'
The ginger smiles back the best she can, trying not to let her panic show. Because she quite literally trained the Candidate to prank the CPU.
By the True Goddess, so this is what will do her in.
She lets out a long breath, trying to calm her heart. No, this isn't over yet; sabotaging Ram would be too obvious and lead to even more problems in the long run, but Lady Blanc can still go through this whole thing unscathed!
Tilting a bit to the side, the girl's musical eyes glance at the excessive amount of papers taped to the walls—spells just waiting to be activated, every single one of them—and the wires running all over the hallway.
… Lady Blanc's going to be fine, right?
At the thought, MarvelousAQL finds herself praying again.
'This is great!' Ram thinks, peeking out towards the hallway's entrance from behind the potted plant, right next to one of the many windows letting what remains of the sunlight into the area.
At this hour, Blanc should be walking to the kitchen in order to get a snack, which means she'll go past this point, and walk directly into dozens of pranks!
Finally she'll have her revenge!
Glancing at the one who taught her, the Candidate is glad to see she seems to be looking forward to this about as much as her. Heck, Marvy's even shaking in excitement!
Ram can't afford to make a fool of herself now.
And so, she waits, expecting her big sister to appear any moment now…
"... What are you doing?"
"Hiiii!" the Candidate shrieks, turning around in an instant.
Blanc's standing there by the other end of the hallway, past even more wires and papers, looking at her with confusion.
"U-Um, how did you…" Ram begins, only to trail off. In her mind, she imagines the architecture of this floor, then glances at which side the windows are on, and...
Oh.
She was so happy after setting everything up that she accidentally got the direction wrong.
The Candidate clicks her tongue. And this was going so perfectly…! Well, no matter; all she can do is keep going! Deciding on that, Ram rises to her feet, walking to the middle of the hallway instead of another hiding spot.
Finally, she points at her sister with a flaming gaze. "Blanc! I'm not letting you escape this prank!"
"Is that so...?" The CPU raises an eyebrow, before simply moving to continue forward rather than turn into the hallway filled with traps. That was the plan, of course. "Ow!" She sure didn't expect to run into an invisible wall instead.
Rubbing her nose, Blanc sends her little sister an annoyed glare before turning around, going back the way she came from—"Ah!"—only to run into another invisible wall that certainly wasn't there before.
"Ram, you…"
Of course, the Candidate's response is to grin. "I told you, I'm not letting you escape! Entrances and windows closed off! If you hit the barrier hard enough, it'll totally break, but they're stuck to the walls, so you're gonna mess them up too and Financier's getting mad!" Announcing that, she materializes her giant shuriken. "So just stay right there and let me prank you, big sister!"
At that, the taller brunette narrows her eyes. "So this is how it'll be, huh…" In a single motion, she summons her hammer and readies herself. "If you think you have what it takes, then so be it. Just don't regret it later…!"
"Nope, I'm not the one who's gonna regret it!" Smirking, the little girl assumes her own fighting stance straight out of 4GO, eyes fixed on her sister.
"Hoh… You might be getting a tad overconfident," Blanc shoots back, baring her own little smirk.
She's wrong, though. Ram isn't being overconfident; rather, she trained so hard for this exact moment!
This is it! She'll definitely prank her sister this time around! Now, what was line Marvy told her before… Oh!
"Ram!" the excited little girl shouts, "I'll dance to the will of our fight!"
A moment later, the papers on the walls burst.
"Zuiun! Ominaeshi!"
"Tch…! Tanzerin Tromb—" *BOOM* "Trap?!"
"Ha! Hundred Flower!"
"Stop clinging to the walls, you brat!"
Up in the ventilation shaft, MarvelousAQL finds herself facing upwards instead of the event beneath, covering her face with both hands and trying not to cry.
'This isn't a prank anymore, this is just a duel! Raaaaaaam!'
If there were any doubts before, now it's certain she's dead. Argh, why didn't she ask Ram why she wanted to be a ninja before?!
The noises below continue, and the ninja finds herself on the verge of sobbing. This is just too muuuuuch! Even if she tries to jump down there and stop them, she'll just become a victim of the crossfire!
How terrible! This is terrible! She'll be punished so hard!
And then, after what feels like an eternity of fright…
It all grows silent.
"... Huh?" Noticing this, MarvelousAQL stops panicking for the time being, instead adopting an expression of bewilderment. Is it over, just like that…? She flips around, looking through the grid at the scene.
"!"
So this is the result…!
"N-No way…" Ram mumbles, fallen on her knee. There are no clear signs of injury on her, but that doesn't change how utterly exhausted she looks—her barriers are totally down by now. "Even though I became a ninjer… Nin nin..."
"I have to admit... you were stronger than usual," the CPU of Lowee points out calmly, her voice noticeably weary, even if not to the same extent as her sister's. "It seems she's an ever better tutor than I expected. That said, congratulations."
"Even so, w-why... " the words escape the little girl's mouth, her big azure eyes looking up to meet her sister's. "... Why are you the only one without clothes?"
"Oh?" The taller brunetter crosses her arms, completely unbothered by the fact she only has white panties and a similarly colored sports bra as the sole remnants of her previous outfit. "Didn't you know? It's a quirk of ninja attacks. I expected MarvelousAQL to mention it."
"I don't remember her saying that..."
"Maybe it didn't cross her mind." Blanc shrugs, turning away from the Candidate. "If we're done, I'm going. Chances are I'll have to tell your 'teacher' she's not in trouble before she has a panic attack."
Right on cue, a banging sound comes from the ventilation shaft above, followed by a quiet "ow.'
Letting out a chuckle, the CPU begins to walk away, but that's when Ram speaks up. "Wait…"
"Hm?" Coming to a halt, the CPU glances back with some interest. "What is it? Got a few more tricks?"
"N-No…" As much as it pains her, the little girl admits it anyway. "But how… were you escaping my pranks…? Ever since a week ago, you just..."
"Ah, so you haven't figured it out yet? It's rather simple." Smiling, Blanc turns around, eyeing her little sister. "Evading pranks… No, evading traps... The one who was gracious enough to give me pointers days ago, the assistance which allowed me to deal with your troubles, well…" A slight smirk crosses her features. "You spent the whole day with her, didn't you?"
"No…" The revelation hits Ram like a truck, a gasp exiting her lips. "Marvy was… You... You're lying…"
But…
"It really wasn't much, heheheh..." MarvelousAQL managed to say with a blush, fighting the impulse to break eye contact with the girl before her.
"That's not how I see it," the CPU herself replied easily with a smile, holding her book under an arm. "As a neutral party, you don't exactly have an excuse to undertake this number of Loweean quests, much less accept my personal requests on top of it."
"P-Personal requests…" the Candidate mutters to herself, feeling it all coming together in the worst way possible.
So that's why she hadn't been able to prank her big sister for a good while now…?
Now that she thinks about it, Marvy did panic too much when she mentioned pranking Blanc in particular… So she wasn't being just a worrywart, but realized she was working for both sides…?
"Something like this is…"
"As for why I didn't ask for her help before, it's simple—I didn't think about it," the CPU confesses easily, continuing her explanation without hesitation. "I'm usually busy, so of course such thoughts wouldn't cross my mind. Luckily, someone else came to me with the idea that speaking with a ninja would be able to make my life easier… In fact, she looked just like you."
"What…?" Hearing that, the little girl's eyes widen in shock. "That can't be… Rom did…?"
But that's… impossible…!
Unless…
"No, that won't do! I need to do something serious!" Ram insisted, shifting on her spot. "If it's not an attack at a hundred percent, then what's the point?!"
"Um..." Rom looked at her sister weird. "About that, what is the point? If Blanc got so good at dodging pranks, then wouldn't it be better to just stop being mean—"
She knew there was something off about the way her twin sister said that… As if it was something she had been thinking for a while...
Rom, who saw her pranks escalating, decided to help Blanc, who was so busy she never thought about it…?
"I-I can't believe this…"
"It's rather unfortunate, isn't it?" The CPU adds, her mouth turning into a small grin. "Betrayal is part of a ninja's path. If you can't take this much, then perhaps you're not made for this life?"
Ram grits her teeth, but she can't say anything to refute that. Her big sister is right—she should have expected something like this. And now, faced with such a terrible truth, she can't as much as let out a single word to prove her opponent wrong. "S-So this is the truth, huh…" the tired girl's weak voice mutters as she lets her head hang.
This is horrible...
"'This is the truth,' hm? Well, so it seems." Footsteps approach her, but she doesn't react. "That said…"
A hand falls on the Candidate's head.
"... Huh?"
She brings her eyes up once more, this time finding herself face to face with her big sister's kind smile.
"You were great," the CPU speaks honestly in a serene voice, patting her head.
"B-Big sister…"
Blanc gives her a thumbs up. "Your reactions just now… I'll definitely use them as writing references for my new story."
"… Eeeeh."
Just like that, any traces of emotion on the Candidate's face are replaced by a blank look.
Did her big sister really need to go there?
"Now, I should get going." With that declaration, the underclothed CPU rises to her feet, looking at her little sister kindly. "Remember to keep up with your ninja training if you're still interested in it. Also, now would be a good time to hurry to your room."
"Huh?" The little girl blinks at that, puzzled. "Why—"
"RAM!"
Experiencing an attempt by her heart to leap out of her chest, the Candidate in question couldn't have turned around faster if she tried.
She freezes at the sight that meets her.
"What. Happened. Here?" the woman dressed in maid clothes asks slowly, her outfit now a clean one but her face that of a devil's. Next to her, Rom is simply gaping, as if still processing the scene.
Now that she thinks about it, she and Blanc were probably pretty loud here, so of course it'd attract someone… Even so, why is Financier so mad? Puzzled by such a reaction, Ram glances around.
"Oh."
The hallway is, for lack of a better word, ruined. Well, not structurally, but there are scorch marks, puddles of water and signs of frost all over, which… certainly looks difficult to clean.
*CRASH*
Right on cue, a chandelier falls right next to the little girl clad in a ninja outfit.
"Oh."
Yeah, this might be bad.
"W-Wait up!" Ram begins as she scrambles to her feet, raising both hands to her side. "I can totally explain! I mean… This is just…" Panicking, she turns back to her big sister. "Blanc—"
There's no one there.
She almost chokes on air.
"T-Then…" The Candidate looks upwards, at the ventilation shaft's grid. "Mar—"
"Good luck," is what the glowy writing on the other side says, slowly fading away as to not leave any clues there was an intruder up there.
"..." Ram gulps, slowly directing her gaze back to the maid and other Candidate.
"..." Unsurprisingly, Rom seems to be at a loss for words, simply watching to see what becomes of the scene.
"..." Financier has the same evil look on her face as before, but it's pretty easy to notice that she now has a knife between each pair of fingers.
Inside the scarlet Candidate's mind, a certain piece of wisdom she just received echoes loudly.
"Betrayal is part of a ninja's path..." "Betrayal is part of a ninja's path..." "Betrayal is part of a ninja's path..."
"... You're totally screwed, aren't ya?"
When that thought comes, Ram relaxes, breathes slowly, and gives her assailant-to-be a big, twitchy smile.
'Sure looks like it…'
Then she promptly turns to the side and jumps out of a window.
"RAAAAAAAAAAAM!" Financier roars with fury as she moves to pursue, following the Candidate's lead and leaping after her without an ounce of hesitation.
…
…
...
"Um…"
Once more, Rom is left on her own, staring listlessly at the empty area.
A few moments later, she lets out a rather undignified groan, turns around, and goes back to her room.
Another peaceful day passes by in the Land of White Serenity.
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•Way of the Ninjer - Pranver Versus•
~END~
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I wonder if this is good enough for a return…
Well, that was that. Might be a bit long, but I still feel like I shouldn't have skipped those "training" scenes… Well, I guess it's not much, but still.
Did y'all enjoy it? I sure hope so, but it's not like I'll say something like "Of course these mongrels would enjoy my perfect writing! Fuhahahahaha!" and be done with it.
Whether you enjoyed it or not, reviews are appreciated afterwards, even if they're pointing out mistakes!
This is just between us, but number of reviews is also an attention catcher, y'see?
I guess there's not much else to say, then. Time to fade away for a while, though preferably not as long as my previous disappearance.
Until next time, I hope!