Chapter 1: The Shadow in the Dorm

"N-naked girls?" Luna couldn't help but be surprised by Athena's revelation. She blushed a bit at the implication of why Hanami was doing it, but her face did show a bit of judgement of Hanami's past times...

Nyeh haha, it seems there's a voyeur in this little group!
I don't think that's a good thing, Freya...

As they traveled to the next room, Luna listened to Bentsuyon introduce himself. She wanted to believe his words since he wasn't openly hostile, but him waiting down here was very strange to her.

Dressed in black and obviously waiting for us, this buffoon seems highly suspicious to me, Luna.

"Um, who do you mean by 'they'? Who shut the gate?"

Bentsuyon

Apr 17, 2025 1:31 pm

Bentsuyon

Betsuyon sighs in mock frustration at Hanami's inquisitiveness: "My, are all young people so cynical these days? I could very well have solely the intentions of helping you out!" He chuckles.

He seems even more amused at Sumeryu's question, his eyes getting sharper, "Heeh... Let us not rush ourselves into conclusions! I am here, indeed, just as you are! Further on, I am, in fact, trying to stop the party that did the kidnaping. That's why I'm here, talking with you."

As more questions come, like Luna's, he adds: "The party that kidnaped your colleague is but a bunch of revolutionary ruffians who wish to turn the world upside down, and for that, they seek what's in the depths of this dungeon, in other words, on the forth level. Just as that little fairy there was used for opening the first floor, they intend to use the girl to open the next one." He concludes, closing his eyes and breathing relaxed.

Then a big grin grows in his face, "As for my intentions, it suffices to say it is in my great interest to stop them from doing that... I must apologize, if you think I'm not doing enough to help, but... I must keep complete secrecy of my presence from them, for now, you see? That's how I can help out the most." He finishes.

"Now, before you go, be warned, the man who's currently with the girl is a powerful sorcerer, don't underestimate him."

With that, he starts walking away.

Apr 17, 2025 2:00 pm

Lín Jìng does not move out of her tactical cover. "Definitely meme Tuxedo. Uh, Sumeryu-kun, could you ask him if we should prepare for a big showdown right now, or if the big sorc is actually hidden away and we'll need to keep investigaing? If he knows, that is."

Bentsuyon

Apr 17, 2025 3:12 pm

Bentsuyon

For Ling Jing's surprise, he overhear her, stopping on his tracks and directing his shar eyes at her, "If you hurry, you may find him and the girl, just after the closed gate. The ritual for breaking the seal is quite long..." He says, nonchalantly, then going back to his walk.

Hanami Matsuyama

Eltesla

Apr 17, 2025 4:00 pm

Hanami still can't completely trust the man. She feels he might have his own agenda, but there isn't much time to interrogate him, so she limits herself to just a couple more questions, her curiosity piqued by something he said.

"Wait! Those revolutionaries... What they want is a book, isn't it?" Hanami asks, remembering the strange dream she had this morning. "Not just any book. It's kept on a pedestal in the deepest recesses of this dungeon. What do you know of it? How exactly would it let them achieve their goals?"

Hibana

Legendary_Sidekick

Apr 17, 2025 4:43 pm

Hibana recalls the tiny trail she followed. "Then that trail to the wall I passed through… I wasn’t following one of my kind. I was following myself.

"And I don’t remember because my mind was…"

Her temperature starts to rise, fiery hair crackling audibly. (Yet, even angry, she can’t help but look cute! It’s a blessing and a curse.)

OOC:

Also, naïve, so he’s as good as the real Tuxedo Mask, as far as Hibana is concerned!

She doesn’t have any questions. She simply says, "Arigato gozaimasu for your secret help, Mr. Tuxedo Hat."

The Tuxedo Mask reference is lost on the fey amnesiac. For one, he’s not wearing a mask. There doesn’t need to be a Two…

Ibuki doji

tacokarp

Apr 17, 2025 6:34 pm

"... overturning the heavens and earth, sounds like they follow the path of the Amanojaku. In that case they must be stopped, while I cannot say I know what your intentions are if you do not intend to impede us I will graciously accept it as a blessing, Our priority here should be to rescue our peer i do not believe we have the luxury of time in this situation" Deciding to take the man at his word that the procedure to open the gate will require some time Ibuki will begin inspecting for any clues on how to open said gate

"tell me what charade will you have me play"

Last edited April 17, 2025 6:34 pm

Luna/Freya

SpeckTech

Apr 18, 2025 1:34 am

"If what he says is true, we should hurry then." If the man was to be believed, Luna thought that they didn't have much time to spare. They could put off worrying about the mystery man's agenda for after saving their fellow student.

Bentsuyon

Apr 18, 2025 4:08 am

Bentsuyon

The man is forced to stop on his tracks again, as Hanami mentions a book. Having his back to her, he starts, "Ooh..." Then turning to her again, "Heh, how interesting... Yes, that's correct. They're looking for the Grimoire of Kabeela. It compiles all the findings from the wretched experiments that were conducted in here."

Apr 18, 2025 4:45 am

If one checks the next room, where the gate is, they see:

A square room with a gate on the south wall, piles of bones and skeletons pile the corners of the room, some burned, some crushed. The walls are mossy and slimy and the floor is polished to a sheen, even being slippery; perpendicular to the side walls, scratches can be seen on the stone-floor. A cylindrical pedestal lies in its center, with a recess running along one side of it, four strange glyphs can be seen in a column, in this order:

🜂
🜁 🜄 🜂 🜃
🜄 🜂 🜃 🜁
🜃 🜁 🜄 🜂

They notice the glyphs can be rotated, alternating between the 4 kinds. Only the top one is fixed, and cannot move. Atop the pedestal, there's a lever.

Finally, scribed above the metal gate, a phrase in Latin can be read: "Flectere si nequeo superos, Acheronta movebo." If I cannot move the heavens, I shall move the waters of the underworld.

Himeji Sumeryu

BlondeDragonGenie

Apr 18, 2025 5:35 am

Sumeryu is intensely skeptical of Benstuyon. She also can't resist the call to rescue a helpless victim.

"Thank you then, I suppose, Bentsuyon-san. Be seeing you."

She unfolds her arms and advances into the next room as Ibuki opens the door. Simultaneously, she says to Hibana, "We'll get this guy and make sure he's punished. And then the rest of his cabal."

She gets out her phone to check if she gets reception in the dungeon. Her intention is to alert Ruby and the Headmaster both that there is a cult of sorcerers kidnapping students and a mysterious stranger traipsing about.

If no reception though, she won't be deterred or go back. A dragon never retreats. Other things retreat from dragons.

After examining the pedestal and column, she ventures, "It looks like the puzzle is to align the symbols in order based on the elements. And -thank you for translating, Dr. Matsuyama- I think the correct order is fire at the top for the sun, then air for the atmosphere, then earth for the ground, then water for the river of the river of the underworld. What does everyone else think?"

Apr 18, 2025 5:37 am

"Waters of the underworld? Should that mean we need to move water under the earth, and leave fire and most importantly air untouched on this cylinder?" wonders Lín Jìng from behind Sumeryu.

She then realised that she blurted this out right after Sumeryu, and, embarrassed, tried to become even less noticeable, quietly and slowly putting up an invisibility spell, though only using its minor form to reduce the attention, not eliminate it entirely.

OOC:

Spending 20 Endurance to gain Invisibility 5, but only activating the 1st level for now.

Last edited April 18, 2025 5:44 am

Hanami Matsuyama

Eltesla

Apr 18, 2025 7:49 am

Hanami's eyes widened slightly. So my hunch was right. That dream had been a premonition of sorts.

"The Grimoire of Kabeela... I've never heard of that, but if it really holds all that cursed knowledge, we can't let it fall into the wrong hands."

Pushed on by the need to hurry, Hanami follows the others into the next room. She does translate the Latin phrase, deciding upon the more literal translation since it seemed most relevant to the puzzle.

"I believe Sumeryu and Lin Jing are right," Hanami says, yet there is an unsatisfied look on her face. Was it really so straightforward? She felt it was too simple of a riddle for the amount of lives it claimed, judging by the bones. Sure, maybe those that died were simply unable to read the phrase and suffered the consequences of their ignorance, but Hanami still couldn't shake the feeling there was a trick to this.

Bentsuyon called it a charade. Why?

Hanami is silent for a bit as she wonders, but she eventually speaks. "Just in case, I think we should hang back and have Lin Jing pull the lever from outside the room with her powers. I can't help but feel like the answer is too obvious, as if it's what they want you to think. Plus, we might end up getting locked inside if we're wrong, then I presume the traps trigger and we end up like them." She looks at the bones piled up in the corners. She found it rather strange that the remains were exclusively gathered in the corners, rather than being more scattered.

Himeji Sumeryu

BlondeDragonGenie

Apr 18, 2025 7:57 am

"Ah-hah. Yeah, that's a very good idea. Those bodies definitely look like people who were trying to escape after they were trapped in here," Sumeryu agrees with Hanami. Leading by example, she goes back out of the puzzle room and waits for the group.

Apr 18, 2025 8:04 am

"Wha?" Lín Jìng teleports a few steps instinctively after realising the mobile cover has moved, then follows the others.

"All right, I'll spin the cylinders and teleflip the switch once everyone is ready from outside. If the door closes, maybe Hibana or I can still get into the room to check how safe it is. Or we could scry, I guess."

OOC:

Moyreau, feel free to describe the spin/flip and the events on my behalf once it's time (i.e. once everyone is safe and gives the signal) if I'm unavailable for the action.

Last edited April 18, 2025 8:05 am

Hanami Matsuyama

Eltesla

Apr 18, 2025 9:06 am

"S-Scry? Uh... Let's just leave it to Hibana if it comes to that," Hanami replies nervously. "Athena's quite tired." Of course, after what Athena said earlier, Hanami's hesitant to pull out the mirror again unless it becomes absolutely necessary.

Hanami stands just outside the puzzle room alongside Sumeryu.

Apr 18, 2025 9:12 am

Only now Lín Jìng realised that the mention of scrying was connected to the mirror in Hanami's mind.

"Oh?" Lín Jìng spotted a momentary weakness in Hanami's confidence. "I guess if you want to make our itsy bitsy cutesy firefly go through a locked door to a room of traps to check what's there . . . " she trails off for a second, looking at Hanami. "Oh, I there's also the option of me teleporting in and out quickly."

Last edited April 18, 2025 9:12 am

Hibana

Legendary_Sidekick

Apr 18, 2025 10:06 am

Hibana thinks what Sumeryu said is logical. "Earth is the world. Water moves under it. I, too, support this answer.

"If wrong, I will pass through the wall, trap it no trap."

Apr 18, 2025 5:27 pm