At the time, Alex was regretting on the fact that he would be on a vacation right now, but was stuck here, at a checkpoint to figure out this issue. then again, this would make a good opportunity to gain a new weapon, but how to get through.. Alex was sitting in a chair thinking how to escape. He didn't really have a passport, so he would have to cause a distraction.

Well, this is a mess. *Kai had been in town hunting some idiots who had robbed the wrong guy of a thousand dollars in ornaments. Although he offed the criminals, they had already sold all but an old looking pocket watch. Being a nameless nobody, he lacked any ID to get out of town and the way he entered was a no go due to it finally being located and sealed off. As such, he rented a room in a local inn with the money he took from his victims and decided to wait a while.* With any luck, this'll just take a few days and I can get my reward from the old man. Heh. Wonder if anyone needs a mercenary around here in the mean time? Ha ha ha ha!

A bronze skinned man with long purple hair he kept in a single braid that fell down to his waist and sunglasses on that hid his golden eyes would make it through the checkpoint. He had a slim yet muscular build and wore long blue jeans with a black sleeveless shirt. In his left hand was a metal suitcase and a sliver wristwatch that didn't have any hands or digital interface. He was an operative of the secret ops group Raven designation 13 who had received intel about this dangerous cursed glass from 33. He was supposed to be meeting with another operative here in time but for now he would do his best to uncover as much of the mystery as he could on his own. "The checks are thorough enough. Now where would I be if I was a cursed glass." The man said as he walked into the town.

Naoya would have found himself wondering in the town as per usual, just to satiate his boredom, before coming across the checkpoint and waited to be scanned. while waiting, he looked at his surroundings. "...Well, this looks a bit drab here..." He noted, seeing the hard times that have fallen on the city.

Since Alex is entering the town, he gets through the checkpoint rather quickly, they’re here to keep infected from leaving, not idiots from entering. He hears one of the guards mutter as he passes by Guard: “Can’t believe people are still dumb enough to come here.” but little attempt is made to stop him. So Alex gets off the train station and onto the Main Street, where he can already see a department store, a few restaurants, an inn, several smaller stores ranging from tailoring to wood carving, and even an antiques shop. Not to mention the large hospital at the far corner, offering free screenings for the new disease Off in the inn, Kai waits for a bit in the lobby, the innkeeper, a friendly man in his mid-forties, decides to strike up a conversation across the counter Innkeeper: “sure chose a bad time to be a tourist. Guess you planned to get one of our specialty hand-crafted items, now there’s this mess going on.” The innkeeper gestured to the whole area around him, as though that could possibly make his intent more apparent Innkeep: “at least they’ve got enough respect to let us bury em. Guess they can’t really stop us without admitting there’s a problem.” 13 leaves the checkpoint coming to the same Main Street as Alex. The antique shop is a natural place to start looking for an antique, but perhaps a bit too obvious. It would be easy to stop by and ask any of the passerby about what’s going on, but the hospital would likely be a better spot to ask for anything health related Edit: Missed Noaya there, but either way you’ll be at the same Main Street. One thing to note is that, while I probably won’t close it off for time, I will limit the number of players, maybe 6 or 7 max seems like a decent number

13 would look around as he walks before thinking back to the map of the city he memorized before arriving. Things like memorizing the layout and blueprint of an entire town was pretty normal for the Ravens as per their training. Didn't want to accidentally leave a map with your plans on it now would you. He would remember where the hospital is and walk towards there. Maybe finding where the epidemic originated would help with the investigations as well as finding out exactly what the symptoms were. He would hum to himself the song its a small world as he walked and observed the overall mood of the town. Taking note of the number of elderly, young, men and woman as he walked. He also took notice of the necromancer whom for some reason in this town as well. Well, as far as he knew the boy wasn't a suspect if the reports were anything to go by. Still, he would keep a mental note of his presence and anything else that would stand out or seem out of place.

Heh. Yeah, well. My luck ain't exactly good. Still, I get by. It's a nice enough place to get trapped in. And you get more money the longer I'm here. Win win, yeah? Ha ha ha! *Kai takes the old man watch and looks at his reflection in it.* Prolly gonna a foggy evening if I had to guess. If there are any more visitors like me, you may end up getting an early retirement yet. Hmm. *Kai looks up at the man.* So, anything fun going on? Any good rumours or happenings in town? You know. Apart from the whole... checkpoint... thing.

Naoya would just look by the antique shop before noticing Alex, though, he'd then turn his attention away as he didn't really care much for now...but 13 on the other hand... "well, he looks slightly out of place..." He notes to himself...but then again, there are a lot of people like him...so not that it mattered...though he puts his hand on his the handle of his katana just in case trouble showed up...

well that was easy. But that guy, he just looked at me! And that other guy! Let's see... Different looking souls than that of other, check. They'll be important. *Alex would rummage around his 'holster' pocket and would put a syringe into it with a silver wand and a bone* "Now, let's check out the hospital :)" as he said that, he would be walking there. it would be good to have a few more souls and to sample/have knowledge of the virus

As with the others, the guards at the checkpoint don't really seem to care too much about checking people coming in. With a sigh, the nearest one looks him over once, not even bothering to ask him to remove his hood before waving him in with a single comment Guard: What's with people today? I get the reporters, but so many weirdos too. There aren't many other people in the line to get in, so unless Quintus feels the need to talk to a guard, he would end up in the same main street that Naoya is still standing at. For some reason. Best to ask him about that rather than me. More importantly, though the streets are filled with people trying to get on with their daily life, Quintus can practically taste the faint hint of fear in the air. Its almost as though its permeated the entire place, with no one feeling a need to acknowledge it any more. Rather, they simply go about pretending it doesn't exist As mentioned, Since Naoya didn't tell me he would check anywhere out, he's not moving much, rather standing around hoping for something interesting to pop up 13 heads to the hospital immediately, taking note of the passerby, most people walking through the town are below 18, too young to be at a major job. There are almost no elderly, possibly due to the illness, as older people tend to have less resistance. Nothing else of note stands out until he enters the hospital, followed by Alex. Up front there are surprisingly few people, mostly a frustrated desk clerk who, upon hearing the door open immediately snaps clerk: No, we don't have any official comments, stop as..... Once he actually looks up towards the door, it is apparent that these people aren't news reporters, he breathes a sigh of relief, though his temperament doesn't improve that much clerk: Sorry about that, I've had to turn down like six interviews so far today. We're not allowing visitors right now, guess you probably know why. Back at the inn, the innkeeper takes a sip of the coffee he has at his desk and pauses for a moment, thinking for anything he's heard innkeeper: Well, the whole disease thing is all the rage nowadays. Like every misfortune there are always that half dozen crazy people at the church two streets down that insist its God's divine judgement for our sins. Said that about last year's earthquake, the tornado from three months ago, and now this. Guess you could check that out if you wanted. The man sighs, putting one hand on his chin as he tries to think of anything else that's come up, he frowns as he looks back at Kai innkeeper: Apparently some kids have decided to go gravedigging, now of all times. Weird thing is the only things they've opened are those who died of the disease. Don't they know that's a good way to catch something? Guess they must be desperate. I get there's been hard times recently, what with mass-produced stuff taking precedence over hand-crafted, but stealing from the dead? That's just shameful.

Disease, eh? Hmm. God's Judgement. What a joke. Still... *Kai puts his clients watch into his pocket and turns to leave.* Suppose I've gotta go and deal with a few Grave robbers, yeah? Heh. The dead deserve more respect than anyone else. I can't just let that slide. Thanks for the info. Stay healthy, yeah? I'll be back when I feel like sleepin. If I'm late in, I appologize *Kai leaves the Inn, waving the back of his hand at the inn keeper, and decides to wait outside of the local graveyard to see if he can catch some stupid kids before they disturb anyone else.*

With boredness really starting to kill him, he decides to go and check out the antique shop for eff's sake... "I really...really miss being a teenager..." He notes to himself, now just simply a bumbling adult...

hmm...I need to distract this guy so I can get inside.. But how about the virus? I know! A floating skull would be more sneaky and more discreet. Now to distract the guard. Alex would cast prestidigitation and would make a (very sexual) noise coming from a janitorial closet to try to draw the clerk over there and if he was, he would animate a skull, tell it to look around, and slip it through the door.

I can definitely understand your anguish over the matter. It reminds me of an epidemic that hit turkey a few years back" he would say with a friendly smile as he walked up to the counter and pulled out a card. "I'm a certified doctor from the states and I came here hoping to get information and hopefully a cure. Maybe you can give me a list of the symptoms and hopefully show me to the morgue so I can get a better look myself." The card showed he was a licensed doctor despite his appearance. Soon after a sexual moan could be heard coming from a room down the hall and he couldn't help but wonder if the kid next to him didn't know the meaning of discreet. Then again, according to what information they have on him he shouldn't have expected the kid to use a different approach. He would look at the man hoping he didn't hear the moan and would stay to tell him the symptoms.

Alex, seeing this oppertunity, would put the skull away and would start to hurriedly sink into 13's shadow

"C'mon kid, no playing with peoples shadow okay" he would mutter just loud enough for Alex to hear. Even Alex might be a bit baffled at the fact he couldn't sink into 13's Shadow. Shadow magic was after all the one thing every operative in Raven was trained in. Knowing how to manipulate their own shadow as well as the shadows of others was par the course and 13 had years of training under his belt as far as that went. 13 would give Alex a glance through the sun glasses with a bit of pity in eyes hoping the kid would clean his own mess. Besides, beyond reports he'd never even met Alex before. Letting a complete stranger get cozy in your shadow just felt strange.

Kai heads over to the graveyard at the edge of town to begin his stakeout, the place is fairly small, at least small enough to all fit within sight from a vantage point on a small hill near the middle, though off on the far side he can see a small group of people working on expanding the place outwards, in anticipation for any new arrivals. Of course, its hard to imagine people would be graverobbing in the middle of the day, but stranger things have happened Quintus walks along, trying to feel out for anyone abnormally unworried. He doesn't find much of a difference there, however, he would still possess the journal linking events to different artifacts. Looking there, its easy to note the Glass of Conchita, linked to thinks such as the Black Plague, Smallpox, and other epidemics. Though its specific abilities are mentioned absolutely nowhere, its the only one with a direct link to illness. The person at the desk looks over 13's papers, it seems to be good enough for them, so the clerk sighs, jotting down a few notes on a nearby notepad clerk: Can't believe the government actually asked for help. Thought they were doing their best to keep the whole thing covered up. Still, let me ring up doctor Shosuke, he's the head of operations here, so he should be able to see what's up. they don't seem to pay any attention to whatever it is Alex is doing, instead, the clerk, with 13's papers as reference, picks up his desk's phone and starts a call. clerk: Hey, sorry for the bother. No, its not another newsman, I can deal with that at least. Apparently there's a foreign expert here to help out. Yeah, weird, I know. His papers check out though, least as far as I can tell. Naoya heads to the antique store, finding.... Well, a lot of what you might expect, a lot of decorative items like porcelain vases, some old cabinets, and even what seems like a suit of armor behind the counter, though most of the items out and about in the shop don't seem to have much value, the good stuff is probably in the back. By the counter is an older, bespectacled man who waves to Naoya Antique dealer: Been a while since I've seen any new faces. Seems like you chose a poor time to come by though. Now then, what can I help you with?

Quintus would begin whispering to himself like a completely normal person. "Well, looks like we have a bit of a lead. Now the question is, do we look for the demon or the contractor. I think we have a bit of an advantage on finding the contractor by feeling out the fear but the question is, where do we start looking?" He'd think about his own question a bit. The item in question was a glass that seemed to spread disease but who exactly benefited from spreading disease across the area? It was an odd question for him since it seemed there was little to no advantage in doing this. Then again, he didn't know of all of the properties of this demon. "Wait, so the person in question must have had to be capable of getting their hands on a rare and expensive glass that could be considered an artifact. They would've had to be rich or have a lot of connections, either way, I think I should look for where the nobles in the town would be." Quintus would look around to try and figure out where homes in the village got bigger, possibly to the point where they could be considered mansions. It was a vague guess at best but he felt that it was a better place to start than any.

"So a lot of newsmen have been coming around to harass this place huh? That must be a real pain in the butt. You guys at the front desk really have my sympathies." 13 would start up a conversation partly to lighten the mood a little while hoping the clerk vents enough to let slip a little information as he waits for this Dr. Shosuke to appear. "Things must have gotten really hectic around here. I noticed there aren't many people in here either. Are you short staffed?" He asked with a bit of worry on his face

Prolly a real bad idea to be doin this right now, but whatever. I'm good at patience. *Kai goes to lie down, but glances down at the small group of people. He checks the time using his employers watch.* Huh. Still works. Could come in handy if I'm wandering about. Still, strange time to be doin that. Welp, I got time. *Kai starts advancing towards the group of people.*

what? He noticed me? Crap. Alex would pop the floating skull through the door and would instruct it to explore the area and find information about the disease. "Well, nothing for me here, guess I'll be somewhere else." And with that, he would leave to the graveyard, looking for answers from the dead

"...yeah could tell..." Naoya said, noting the town's state when he had arrived... "What exactly happened here though?" He asked, his curiosity peaking...

It wouldn't be too hard to locate the biggest buildings in the town at least, though it seems most of them are either businesses, or for sale. Not like they'll be getting any buyers in these circumstances, but maybe some day. Naturally, the biggest occupied building would be the palace, built centuries ago, its been inhabited by the same family this entire time, renovated and updated over the years by its successful inhabitants. Though I describe it as a palace, it would be on the small side, comparable to a mansion, outer gates opening into a courtyard maybe twenty feet long before reaching the front door, complete with an intercom by the side for any would-be visitors. The clerk finishes his call, and shrugs, totally unconcerned with Alex's decision to exit clerk: Well, you get a new outbreak that's apparently serious enough to limit travel, and at a peaceful time like this too, and everyone's going to be rushing to get the story. More they try to hide it, the more desperate people get to be reassured. Sure, its pretty close to under wraps for now, but give it a few more weeks and I bet there'll be a full on panic. Especially with as many doctors as we've lost so far. They've been refusing to call anyone in, so there haven't exactly been replacements. Still, its actually been kinda peaceful, but I guess the doctor should fill you in on that bit. It only takes a few minutes for a tall man with spiked, jet-black hair to find his way to the front, white lab coat and all, they walk with an air of confidence, giving the clerk a friendly smile and waving to him and 13 Shosuke: Thanks for the call, you're that specialist from the states right? Please, call me Doctor Shosuke Shosuke reaches out to shake 13's hand, giving it a firm shake before dropping his arm to the side Shosuke: Needed a fill-in right? 'Fraid there's really not that much to say though, now you're probably just as stuck here as the rest of us. As Kai approaches, it becomes more apparent what they're doing. Its about three middle-aged men with shovels clearing away some debris from a recently demolished wall, probably part of the cemetary that was replaced by the iron fence about a hundred feet beyond. There's a bit of a hole leftover from what seems to have been a cleared tree stump that everyone makes sure to step around. After shoveling some of the debris into a nearby wheelbarrel, they take it out to a pile by the fence out back to empty for now and get back to working. One of the guys looks back at Kai and, after a moment of conversing with his peers, takes a few steps out towards Kai and waves worker: Don't think I've seen you around these parts. Guess that means you're new. Anything I can help you with? After a while, Alex would end up in the graveyard that I described last post. Worth noting is that several of the graves seem a lot fresher than the others, probably victims of the disease. For Naoya in the antiques shop, the old antiques dealer would wipe off his glasses with a sigh before he leans on the counter and starts talking antiques dealer: Right right, you're new here. Really not that much to say on it, people have been falling sick recently, started a few weeks back. Usually die within two days of showing any symptoms, which is pretty fast as far as I can tell. Government's requiring a health screening for anyone who wants to leave, don't want it to spread after all. Aside from that they don't really seem to be taking this seriously though.

*Kai scratches the back of his neck* Well, I heard a rumour 'bout some grave robbers or somethin' from the guy running the inn. Thought I'd drop by and see if I could catch em red handed. I have a thing about people messing with the dead. Heh. Mind if I ask if ya know anything bout that?

Quintus would head to the mansion-sized palace seeing as it was the most obvious building to demonstrate wealth. Once he arrived if he was unimpeded he'd simply examine the building at first. "Now, to go with the direct approach or to try and find my own way in. I think being direct could be dangerous given the demon we're dealing with but it'd probably be better to try and confirm my suspicions first." Quintus would first try the small outer gate to see if it was locked. If it wasn't he'd go up to the front door and knock on it a few times to see if there was an answer. If the gate was locked he'd simply examine it further to see if there was something akin to an intercom system or a gate bell.

13 would chuckle while returning the handshake. "Then I'd better figure out the cause quickly so I can return home to my wife then huh?" he pause for a few seconds before wearing a more serious look "Can you take me to the morgue. If possible I'd like to see the bodies before they're buried and you can tell me the symptoms on the way. I'd also like to know the incubation period before the patient dies if at all possible. Are there any theories on how its contracted like being airborne or infecting the water supply?" The truth was that if it was in fact contracted through normal means then it would be more difficult to handle but at least certain precautions could be taken. If he just ended up catching it despite all of his wards and magical defenses then it would indicate that it was indeed a curse and would actually make it much easier to find. For now he would investigate the bodies so he could have a chance to use his family magic. A magic that was only really helpful in investigations on sight to begin with. The hospital and graveyard were the first on his list of places to check out.

Alex would walk over to the more recent graves and would summon the souls of those people and would ask them if they got the disease, if yes then what the symptoms we're and then if they could help somehow, mostly that of areas of interest

The worker with Kai sighs and scratches his back with a sigh while the others continue working worker: Not too much for me to add there, its kinda weird that they'd go for infected bodies rather than anything else. And to remove them too? You ask me this whole thing smells of some kinda fishy government cover up. With how lightly its being taken. Either way, no one's seen anything so far at least. as for Quintus, he finds the outer gate to be unlocked, ready to swing open, though on his way in he can't help but catch sight of a few security cameras watching him. Quintus strolls up to the door, a resounding knock heard on the other side. Nothing happens for a few minutes, until a rather young servant opens the door. Servant: Pardon the wait, we weren't expecting any visitors. The mistress is out at the moment, what is it that you need? Shosuke: Right, of course. There are really more convenient ways to see the virus than looking at the bodies, but in all honesty I'm just about out of ideas. Shosuke sighs before gesturing for 13 to follow him. The two would walk down some uninteresting corridors as Shosuke explains the situation Shosuke: I uh... Don't think you'll be getting back any time soon. From what we can tell its very simple. From the point when the patient first shows symptoms, coughing, headaches, fever, nothing major. You could easily mistake it for a cold or something. Except for a gradual loss of energy that continues on for a full twenty-four hours, at which point they fall into a coma. one day after that, and they're cold. Every method we've tried the virus immediately adapted and became immune to. It doesn't seem to be in the water supply, and we haven't found it in the air, nor is contact with the infected required in order for it to spread. Really we don't have any clue how it happens. As Shosuke finishes bringing 13 up to speed, they come out into the morgue, in which there are three bodies, covered of course, and just about ready to be buried. Shosuke stops by the door, where there are several face masks, hairnets, gloves, and similar sanitation gear, and begins putting it on Shosuke: I know I just finished talking about how little this stuff does, but if we're going to go in there its still best to take standard precautions. Would be a real shame for this epidemic to be going around and you end up losing to something lame like a cold. Alex heads over to the most recent graves, where the most victims of disease would be, but much to his surprise, he doesn't find any response from the bodies or souls there. Either they are simply missing, or something is simply blocking this ability. Overriding it perhaps. He gets a few weird looks from the guys working in the back near Kai, but none of them feel the need to do anything about it

Only the infected corpses? Hmm, I suppose they'd have the most to take but... eh? *Kai notices the workers looking at Alex and follows there gazes.* There you are, ya bastard. Hey! I got some questions for ya! *Kai walks through the hole in the wall made by the workers and starts approaching Alex, thinking he was one of the grave robber he was told about.*

Alex did not know what to do. He simply prepared to flee and would reach for the silver wand in his pocket.

13 would begin to put on the equipment but would gesture to Shosuke to stop. "If you don't mind I would like to go in and look at the bodies by myself. I have a method that needs my full focus to examine the body and I don't need any distractions. I hope you'll understand. I'll share with you anything i find out." He said as he finished putting on the equipment. He would walk into the room with the bodies hoping the doctor doesn't follow. If the doctor doesn't follow he would then move the cloths from atop the body and examine if there are any clear signs of infection on the skin. He would then make sure he wasn't being monitored and would proceed to set up his magic. His family magic was one that has no combat ability unlike most but it was something that could be used in investigations or the gathering of info. Strong thoughts that people left when they died or even when they were alive are imprinted in the natural mana of the surroundings and linger. He could recreate a scene in detail depending on how strong the thought left behind was allowing him to gain clues and even solve mysteries that had long thought impossible to figure out. If things went according to plan he would watch these memories and hope to find some sort of clue. if not then the grave yard would be his next destination. If the doctor does follow him in he would attempt to persuade him and if all else fails he would just observe the body and look at autopsy reports before leaving for the grave yard.

Quintus would take off his hood to properly greet the servant and begin speaking in the most formal tone he could manage. "Hello, I'm a representative of the historians association and I've heard rumors regarding a series of artifacts that were recently purchased by this estate. I apologize for our lack of communication as we had trouble reaching the mistress here so instead I was sent to ask if it'd be at all possible to get an account of exactly what was purchased." He wasn't sure of how effective his facade was but he believed he could make himself sound at least somewhat official. At worst he only believed this might result in being kicked out but if that were the case then he'd simply resort to plan B.

Shosuke raises an eyebrow and pauses for a moment, before starting to take his gear off with a sigh Shosuke: You think this is one of those supernatural whatevers that have been going on. Like the statues from like a month ago, demon attacks... You're some kind of weird medium, right? The doctor sighs again, shaking his head before coming to a conclusion. Shosuke: You'd have to be crazy to come here for any other reason. Especially on such short notice when we won't even admit something's wrong. But you know what, we need a miracle right now. And I hope that you're it. when 13 enters the morgue, he would find few external blemishes, though some of the bodies had their own various scars, wrinkles, they weren't consistent, and likely just a result of the individuals' lives rather than the disease. Of the three bodies present, one is female, two are male. Of note is that one man has what seems to be a small puncture wound in his back not present on either of the other bodies. It would only be caught upon thorough examination, and could have been from nearly anything One of the men never even realized they were ill. Rather, they were visiting in with a few friends who'd recently lost part of their own family. They worked to try consoling their friend, even joking about how the whole thing might blow over soon. Shortly before they collapsed. The older woman had been in an argument with her husband at the antique shop some time before contracting the disease. 13 can practically hear the man's concern about her going to out to confirm the authenticity of something, on account of the questionable means of its acquisition. This vision is filled with anger and, to some extent, regret. It seems she had never gotten to apologize for it. Finally, the injured man, after having heard of people disturbing the graves of the ill, decides to keep watch over the graveyard at night, tired of course, he yawned as he kept a lone watch, apparently having not even told anyone he was there. There is a great bit of surprise as the man feels a sharp pain in his back, and then falls unconscious, having never seen his assailant. When 13 leaves, Doctor Shosuke would be leaning against a wall near the morgue, having waited for him the whole time, the doctor steps forward to stop 13 Shosuke: Please tell me there was something useful. No need to talk about your method, wouldn't make sense to me anyways. But.... Any bit of hope would be helpful As for Quintus, the servant at the front door sighs, adjusting his collar. He glances out at the sky, and notes the rapidly setting sun. So, he steps back and opens the door, leading into a posh lobby of sorts, complete with a front desk that currently seems unoccupied. The servant gestures to a few chairs set up around a small table for visitors servant: The mistress should be back from her business in town soon enough. I trust you can wait here until then? In the graveyard, the workers decide enough is enough, with how late its starting to get, they begin to pack up, and head outside, looking over to Kai and Alex, but deciding to leave them be as the sun goes down. Night should fall soon enough

Get back here, Grave Robber. I just wanna talk to ya. *Kai breaks into a sprint as he tries to catch Alex* Kids these days are so irritating to work with...

Okay, okay, easy! Calm down will ya? *alex slows down to a stop and uses the same mocking tone he used on Kai*

13 would stand silent for a few moments as he tried to organize what he saw. As a whole he came across quite a few clues but nothing concrete. The other problem was that as much as he would have liked to he didn't have enough information to truly trust this Shosuke. "Honestly, I don't know what to say right now. I don't have anything concrete and what I do know is pretty much what you'd understand from doing an autopsy. One probably died from murder with an unknown weapon and the other two, well considering I didn't see any sign of anti-personal damage, died from the disease. Can you give me a copy of the autopsy reports and directions to the graveyard. I would also like info on the first couple of victims. Also" he would hand Shosuke his card with his phone number and email on it "call me if something comes up" He would go to the graveyard after and hopefully meet the grave keep if this town had one and ask when the first victim died and was buried. When alone he would go to the fresh graves and conduct the same magic in hopes of finding more clues and if he was able to gain info on the first few victims he would also visit their graves as well hoping the thoughts left behind would still be strong enough to see anything.

Quintus would take a slight bow as if to thank the servant before walking inside and taking a seat where indicated. "Yes, I already know this must be an inconvenience so I'd be more than happy to wait until the mistress returns." On the outside he was continuing to try and keep his act up but internally he was already working out a plan with Hookworm. It would be better not to alert the servants or anyone in the house that he was up to anything yet so he would attempt a different approach. Quintus would already be trying to summon a root beneath the flooring under his seat. He'd keep an eye out to see if the servant was still watching him. He had to make sure he wouldn't seem too suspicious.

fortunately I don't really need to do much for Alex and Kai yet, the sun keeps dipping lower, by now the whole graveyard is shrouded in dusk Doctor Shosuke looks at 13's card, before closing his eyes for a moment. The doctor takes a deep breath and sighs, before looking back up at 13 Shosuke: Alright, just promise to keep me updated on your investigation as well. Anything you think might be linked to this, and I'll help as well as I can. Afterwards, Shosuke moves to get the entirety of the autopsy reports, for all the victims. However, almost none of them have any real visible signs of damage, its like their life simply left their body, leaving it entirely intact. As for the first victims, 13 might rethink their plan to visit the graveyard keeper, seeing as he was the second victim. The first was a chef who had recently retired from the castle nearby, and the third was a young boy whose parents had often visited the church before all this mess. This would naturally take some time, so you won't be getting to the graveyard until the next update I'm afraid. No matter how efficient 13 is. The servant sighs and waves at Quintus, shaking his head servant: I'm not the one you'll need to apologize for, just stay here a short while and the mistress will probably be home soon. though the servant soon leaves him alone, looking around the room Quintus would likely notice the existence of two small, dome-shaped security cameras along the roof, relatively advanced technology, though they're not watching under his seat, it would be hard to move much without being noticed

Geez. Did ya have ta run? I ain't scary, am I? *Kai pauses to catch his breath before looking back at Alex* Right then. Anyway. You're that grave robbing brat I was told about right? You really shouldn't be doing that. Especially not in a plague zone. Bad for your health and bad for my temper, ya get me?

13 would be walking through the main road as he sifts through the autopsies. One of the first victims was the very person he wanted to see. Even stranger was that all in all the bodies were in perfect condition upon death. It was as if it was a natural death but that made no since with the child dying as well. There were no indication of finding any unknown substances in the victim bodies or signs of murder or abuse. This was more than enough for him to understand that this wasn't a disease but a curse after all. The problem was the corpse he'd come across earlier. It was obviously murder and to make things worse the victim seemed to die without struggling. The wound is even found in a place where if the victim was stabbed it would more than likely paralyze the victim and cause the blood to pool in the organs and not the ground. This meant that whoever killed him knew enough about the human body to do so. Well, at the end of the day it could be a simple murder and have no connections to this curse but it was something to keep in mind. The other thing of interest was the memory of the wife from the antique shop. The memory wasn't strong enough for him to hear all of the dialogue but it seemed to concern an artifact of some kind that was a cause for concern. Were they connected to the glass. From the information 33 collected they knew the glass was last seen being transported to this town but did it go through the antique shop first or maybe they were called to authenticate its value and origins. Should that be the next place on his long list of visits. He still wanted to see if the bodies in the graveyard had any clues but his power was no omniscience. Even if he found the corpse it didn't mean he would see a relevant memory and sometimes the memories are strongest at the place of death and not actually in the body. In other words it could turn into a waste of time. The antique shop seems like a place that would have some pretty interesting memories on the subject if what he saw was any indication. He would also still need to check out the large estate at one point since they would have the money to acquire such things. If he remembered correctly the owner of the glass was always someone whose taste would suddenly change as well. something he would need to look for as well but when it says taste exactly what would that mean. A change in preference, literal taste or something more. For now he would continue to read the autopsy and head to the Inn. The fact was it was going to take some time and he was still waiting on his companion to arrive. He also still needed a place to sleep for the night.

"I'm not a grave robber, ya dumbass! I'm that idiot from the gym!" Alex decides to call up the spirits near him now

The inn lobby would be fairly simple and empty, as there aren't that many people visiting right now, there aren't too many other guests to worry about. Up at the front desk the innkeeper looks up at the sound of 13 opening the door and waves innkeep: Another visitor? Seems you chose a rather bad time for it. Let me guess, got in, can't get out now, and need a few nights til this whole thing blows over? I can help you with that at least. Quintus's root immediately comes out into an old storage cellar, which is stacked with barrels of wines, some dried meats, and... Weirder things like dead insects ranging from a Goliath beetle to honeypot ants. There doesn't seem to be anyone in there at the moment, fortunately, but its worth remembering that there's a room a very short distance below his position. As for the area around Quintus, he would notice a few things, first, there are a few vents inside the walls near the ceiling, though it would be difficult to burrow straight into them, its likely one of the stealthier places. There are two hallways splitting off from the room, one to the north and one to the east, the northern hallway is the direction the servant went off to, and has a two rooms opening off to the east before it turns off to the right As for the eastern hall, goes on for some time, with only a single door opening off each side, one to the north, one to the south, before the hall splits into two separate ones ending its visibility. Alex would attempt to call any nearby spirits to find.... Nothing, its almost like they're being blocked off from him. Or simply aren't there. More importantly, it'll officially be night time next post, and our first time shift will be complete. Isn't that exciting?

The Necromancer brat. I know. There's a reason I didn't just think ya were mournin for the dead. I know whatcha you gravewalkin bastards do. Makes ya my prime suspect. *Kai glances up at the sky for a second before looking back at Alex* But, hypothetically, if ya ain't the grave robber I'm after, what are ya doin, eh? Tyin to collect skulls or some shit? Cause, if that's the case, I ain't lettin ya do that either.

"well I am trying to talk to dead people, but there's something wrong so it ain't working" "Alex animates a skull that he has in his bag and leaves to the streets, though the skull stays to watch*

13 would make a little small talk before paying for his room then going to it. Afterwards he would lay his suitcase down as well as the papers from the autopsy reports. Taking a deep sigh he would look out the window to the large estate. "Should I check out the most suspicious place next I wonder?" He would ponder about his actions. H still needed to check the graveyard at some point as well as the antique shop. The antique shop would be best save for tomorrow since it should be closed now that the sun has set. The graveyard would normally be the next stop but maybe he can collect a little info before then. People who live in such luxury usually have a skeleton or two to hide. After a few seconds of pondering he'd drink a cup of water preparing himself for a night that might be a little more exciting. Soon his shadow stretched out and then engulfed him for a moment. After the shadow receded he was wearing his Ravens attire. A black cloak with a pure white mask. He would walk to the wall that had a shadow on it and walk into the shadow sending a single ripple through its surface as if it was water exiting the other side outside. He would then quickly make his way to the estate keeping to the shadows.

As 13 makes their way towards the estate, they catch sight of a black limousine driving past from the direction of the local church, with little other traffic to contend with it soon goes out of sight. A few minutes later 13 would find the same vehicle parked near the estate, its occupants having already left. Quintus's root would find some room in the east wall, space left open for piping and wiring to be put into the adjacent room, which not only gives Hookworm the space to go into the wall, but also provides somewhat of an anchor for them on their way up. However, soon Quintus hears what sounds like a car rolling up outside, followed by light chatter. Around this time, the servant from earlier emerges from the second room in the north hallway, cheerfully clasping his hands as he approaches the door Servant: Sorry for the wait sir, that should be miss Banica, I believe it would be best for you to speak of the matter yourself. Alex decides to walk the city streets alone at night, as he wanders aimlessly he'd note a few points of interest are still open, an old church, the only inn on main street, the hospital, and even a few of the stores. All of which are likely good places to search for the latest gossip. Aside from the hospital that is As Alex runs off, Kai hears some voices coming from the edge of the graveyard near the entrance, though they're too far away to make out what they're saying. After a few moments, the voices gradually begin to soften until they're totally silent, almost as if they had simply walked away

Wait a minute da- Eh? *Kai stops for a moment, listening out for the voices.* Hmm. I wonder... *Kai decides to search around to see if he can find the source of the voices, just in case they're not quite as gone as they seem to be.*

Alex's skull follows kai from above while Alex walks into the church, wearing a mask. If there was no one there, he would explore the place freely, but if someone were there, he would talk to them

13 would make sure there wasn't anything in his surroundings first and if there wasn't he would do a quick preliminary investigation on the limo. Afterwards he would find a wall on the side of the building that has a shadow cast on it and put his hand on it to see if he could hear anyone on the other side. If not he will walk through the shadow into the estate but if he can hear voices he would eavesdrop and listen.

All would remain calm as Kai slowly approaches the graveyard gates to investigate the sound. Soon, he reaches the gate, looking around the edge only for a young, blonde-haired boy, who doesn't seem to be much older than thirteen, if even that, wearing a black vest with a long, white-sleeved undershirt and black dress pants, to emerge from the right side of the entrance and immediately try to grab hold of Kai's right arm and wrestle him down with a strength unbecoming of his boyish appearance. blonde boy: So you're the one who's been skulking around are you? Don't even bother making excuses. After the boy, a blonde girl wearing a simple black dress comes out from behind the graveyard wall as well, a grin spread across her face as she steps beside the boy blonde girl: A stranger too, must be pretty desperate to come all the way out here. Guess its as good a place for graverobbers as any. Alex walks into the church, its a rather old-fashioned catholic one, with stain-glassed windows looking into the alleys beside it, lined with rows upon rows of pews, with an altar in the back. There are two people there, both focused and kneeling by the altar, as well as a staircase off to the left inside the back wall leading to a second floor behind the scenes 13 would find nothing of import around them, the castle has a rather large outer gate leading to a largely empty courtyard lined with well-trimmed hedges to liven it up a bit. The hedges not only make a somewhat convenient space to hide in, but also close enough that their small shadows from the moonlight touch the wall. He walks around to one of the sides, and upon leaning in, hears a bit of a conversation on the other side voice 1: Seems lady Banica's running a little late today voice 2: 'least that means she won't have to wait for us as long. You know how impatient she gets voice 1: I don't really get why she went to the trouble of hiring some of the best chefs in Japan to cook.... This stuff. voice 2: Yeah, neither did the last three, if you still want a job I'd suggest not mentioning it again. And seeing as you can't really leave for now... voice 1: I got it I got it, geeze, if I didn't know better I'd almost think you cared for me. Finally, the servant opens the front door, bowing as a young, shapely woman, likely in her mid twenties, with brown hair and eyes wearing a long, elegant, light-red dress with a darker red corset walks in. She doesn't seem to pay Quintus much attention initially, but soon notices the stranger sitting in her lobby. Banica: so you're the appraiser I heard about yes? Not to worry not to worry, I understand the situation your group must be in. But all that can wait a moment. Really, you should tell me more about yourself The woman smiles as she walks by Quintus grinning at him before she takes a seat in a second chair nearby, legs crossed as she watches him carefully. As for Hookworm, it takes a few seconds, but they are able to drill into the vent without too much more difficulty than he had the floor. Of course, off to one side of Hookworm is the vent opening point leading into the same room as Quintus, but on the other it continues for some time, branching off to the right in a total of four locations, in the middle of which a small shaft moves upwards, likely so it can go over the hallway to the rest of the house. A short way in front of Hookworm is an opening pointed downward leading into the first room to the east

*Kai is suprised by the kids sudden appearances, but grits his teeth in an attempt to hide it.* Tch. Little past your bed times ain't it? Well, whatever. I'm looking for graverobbers. Children, they say. So. I'm assuming that your the brats I'm lookin for, right? *Kai frowns, attempting to pull himself from the boys grasp.* You should get better hobbies. The dead have had their stories told. You should let 'em rest.

there's someone here. Should talk to them. But that door... Alex tries to sneak up to the stairs and go to the second floor while the skull prepares to kamikaze the boy

Quintus would smile a bit in a friendly manner as the woman sits. He didn't expect her to buy his act so easily but he feels as though he may not have completely convinced her yet. He decides to answer her question to the best of his ability, making up details as he goes along. "About me? What's there really to tell? I'm just a rookie really when it comes to this stuff but I'm also the only one with the free time to come all the way out here for this. The older members of my association are too busy doing their own research on various other historical sites and objects. Of course, if you wanted to know more about me personally then I suppose I could talk about my own life but I'd need a much more specific question in regards to that." Hookworm would first choose to move towards the first opening leading downwards shortly in front of it. Since it was closer it was only wise to try to check the first room to the east first. Now that they were in the vents they felt no need to worry too much about time or being caught. Even if Quintus got kicked out they could still remain as long as he didn't wander too far from the house. The root would simply hover over the first opening in front of it as a beady red eye would open to try and observe however much of the room it could.

Lady Banica. Considering the way they refer to her she's probably apart of the family that owns this place. Even more interesting is the sudden change in taste. Wasn't that one of the symptoms?Does that mean this glass is somewhere here? Considering the size of the estate it wouldn't be surprising at all if they were the ones who bought the glass. He pondered for a while as he wait to make sure no one else was on the other side of the wall. Once the area on the other side became completely quite he would walk through the shadow and come out the other side. Afterwards he would inspect his surroundings as he tries to remember the blue prints. Blue prints that may no longer be accurate considering it's age and the renovations that were probably made after being bought out by this family. He would cast magic making his steps silent and then proceed forward while keeping close to the shadows as best he can. Maybe the first place he should go is the kitchen. Usually there would be a map located there to help new maids better understand their routes.

The boy is a lot stronger than he might seem at first glance, the pair wrestle for a moment, with little progress being made for Kai to either escape, or the boy to get Kai to the ground Boy: Don’t call me a kid, I’m a lot older than I look. And I haven’t done anything wrong yet either Girl: I thought we agreed I should do th... Watch out While watching the contest, the girl takes note of Alex’s human skull in the air about to divebomb the boy, she runs to his and Kai’s side to break the two up, but not before Kai feels some sort of prick in his arm, and together with their sibling, grabbing the skull as it dives. Giving Kai a good chance to get some space Boy: is this thing real? Girl: Real or not, what it’s doing here is a far more important question. Alex would find the people by the altar to be too concentrated on... Whatever it is they’re doing to bother him as he heads upstairs. The church’s second floor is rather crowded, a large amount of the space being taken up by a massive pipe organ that actually looks quite a bit newer than the church itself. It’s pipes go all throughout the walls to allow its sound to reverberate around the entirety of the church when played. In addition, there’s a small bedroom off to the side, with only enough space for a single bed and side table, and finally a small desk tucked against the opposite corner with various papers strewn about [i]For Quintus, I’ll cover Hookworm first. In its place in the vents, Hookworm looks down to find a small, carpeted changing and makeup room, with a closet just at the edge of their viewing angle. Directly beneath Hookworm is a Vanity, like a desk with a mirror in the back for use while putting makeup on in the morning. Off to one side of the vanity is a simple makeup kit that seems to have been closed in a rush. On the other, a small, ornate hand mirror much like the one Quintus might remember from the old woman in the hall of mirrors. Finally, Hookworm can barely make out the closed door, it seems to swing onwards rather than outwards and has a deadbolt, likely for whenever the owner is using the place.

As for Quintus himself, Lady Banica lets out a little puff of a breath, smiling as she comments Banica: More likely they were too scared to come anywhere near the place. Stuck it on the young blood to watch as the disaster happens. Guess there’s nothing for it now. As for yourself... Banica smiles playfully as she leans on the arm of her chair, using one arm to prop up her head as she goes on Banica: Well, your name would be a good place to start. Really I should probably fire the other guy for neglecting to ask, but you take what help you can get these days. That and why you thought it was fine to walk into this town despite all that’s happening. Won’t be let out until the whole situation’s resolves and all. After a pause to give Quintus a chance to reply, another butler would come out from the northern hallway at a rapid pace, breathing rather heavily as he bows to Lady Banica Butler: Sorry for the wait madame Banica. There was a bit of a delay in preparing supper but everything is ready now. Banica waves the servant off, leaning forward in her chair to get a closer look at Quintus Banica: I do hope you can join us. It’s been so long since I’ve had any visitors. That and it’s a chance for you to see the object I’m question. I think It goes quite well with my dining set. 13 continues listening into the conversation on the other side of the wall Voice 2: Well, you’re most certainly better than the twins Voice 1: speaking of which, shouldn’t they be here helping out instead of.... I don’t know Voice 2: well, either they’re slacking off or they’re out working on something for miss Banica. Can’t be bothered to tell everyone everything after all. If I were to guess I’d say it’s the latter. Voice 1: if it gets them out of the house it’s good enough for me... Oh, right, you should probably tell the Lady that we’re mostly done in here. And get anyone else you can find to help bring it out, I’ve still got to work on dessert. Hopefully there’s enough for a guest too. Voice 2: he’ll probably think of some convenient excuse to get out of it. It’s never a big problem. With that, the voices fade away, though from what they were saying it seems this probably is the kitchen, so it’s still unlikely to be completely unoccupied.

"Eating at this time a night? Isn't it a bit late for that?"he would ask himself Considering that the kitchen is actually being used then the odds of him being able to glean too much information from it about the layout was low. Regardless, he did hear an important tidbit. This Lady Bianca was present in the dining hall. It wouldn't be a bad idea to get a good look at her and see if he can't feel any mana or old magic on her. Considering her drastic change in taste recently she may very well be the person he's looking for. 13 would stay for a while to try to glean anymore useful gossip before shadowing the maids carrying dishes to the dining room in hopes of seeing this Lady of the house and hopefully draw a concrete conclusion.

*Kai takes his chance to back up from the two kids. Assuming he just brushed past a zipper or something on the boys clothes, he ignores the pricking sensation.* Guess I owe that necromancer brat a thanks or something later. Well whatever. Ya brats gonna explain what the he..heck you're up ta? Cause ya got me curious now. Or, if ya wanna insist on playin' rough as well, that too is an option. Won't be the first time I've taken disiplinary measures against brats like you. *Kai puts his splint and sunglasses into his inside coat pocket.*

oh well. Attack. The skull doesn't explode, but it does start wailing and it tries to break free/bite the girl. Alex starts perusing the papers to see who was here.

Hookworm still controlling the root would attempt to slowly move down the vent into the room. Their first instinct was to try and use the deadbolt to lock the door immediately while still moving slowly as to not make too much noise. If they were not interrupted by anything else they would next examine the mirror first with a wide-open red eye. Hookworm remembered the mirror from the shop or at least remembered it through Quintus' eyes. The parasite would grow curious as to whether this was a similar mirror and if it was then this might provide even more useful information. Quintus, on the other hand, would continue smiling and making sure to pay attention to the woman's questions. He had almost forgotten that his name might be asked for but had to think of something quickly. "Oh yes, how terribly rude of me not to give my name out sooner. You can call me Tatsuya Geminus, it's a pleasure to meet you. As for my reasoning behind entering despite the trouble? I wasn't going to let some disease stand in the way of my job. I should answer more honestly than that though. The older more experienced members were too afraid to come themselves because of the current incident which is why I knew I had to. It was the perfect chance to prove to them that despite being new I take my job with the association very seriously. So, despite the risk I wanted to get ahead I suppose." Quintus would grow a little nervous as the servant enters and the invitation for a meal is thrown out. He almost loses his nerve as Lady Banica begins looking closely at him. However, he does his best to shrug his unease off, he's come too far to give up now and he'd rather keep his host entertained while Hookworm is still busy searching for clues. The offer of being able to see the artifact is tempting as well and might help speed things along if he can confirm whether or not it's the artifact he's searching for. "I'd be happy to join you. It would be rude to turn down such a generous offer, after all. You've gone to the trouble to greet me personally."

as 13 listens in the kitchen remains largely quiet, just the faint sounds of food preparations being finished. Once they go through the wall in order to follow one of the servants, he finds himself in a large hallway, easily enough room for three people walking side by side, lined with various portraits, presumably of the family members in question. on the side nearest him to his right, would be the kitchen he was recently looking into, two doors opening into it. The nearest door is cracked open, showing there to be apparently only one person in there at the moment, a woman wearing a hair net working on... Something or another, it looks like some kind of green goo. Opposite of 13, some way to his left, is a large, sliding doorway with thin, transparent, fabric doors from which he can vaguely tell the shape of a smaller, inner garden. On his left, he can see a butler talking to a rather pale gentleman he might have been told about earlier, Quintus, and a rather young woman wearing a light red dress with a darker red corset. In a moment. 13 can only faintly make anything out of their conversation. Speaking of their conversation, the butler bows and begins to lead Banica and Quintus down the northern hallway, though he doesn't say much, mostly just nods along as Banica speaks Banica: Tatsuya? I feel like I've heard that name before..... No matter, its probably a fairly common one after all. I'm glad to hear you've got ambition, something we could use more of in this world if you ask me. So many people are scared to just go out and take what they deserve. That's what life is about, reaching out to take what's rightfully yours. The trio walk past various portraits on their way to the dining room, presumably members of Banica's family. The woman smiles at a few of them, before continuing on Banica: As a historian, I'm sure you're familiar with this place. My family owned the town for a long time, at least since the days of the first emperors. We made our fortune, then moved here, hiring artisans and scholars to move here and provide many works of art. They would work for us, and in return we fed them, gave them homes, it was a wonderful mutualism. The woman grimaces, shaking her head as the three pass a large fabric door to their right, from which Quintus can barely make out the shape of a garden Banica: Of course, ever since the great war their descendants forgot about all we did, or perhaps they never cared. With the housing and funds my family had given them, they started moving out and treating us like nobodies. When they probably wouldn't even be here if it weren't for my ancestors. Soon the three would come to another pair of wooden doors, which the butler opens up to reveal a large dining room, clearly intended for feasts which seems to have seen better days. Dominating the center of the room is a long, wooden table, its finish visibly scratched in several places, as though they simply couldn't have afforded to fix it. Similarly, there's a large chandelier hanging over the head of the table, with several light bulbs out, making it look sad more than grand. Banica motions for Quintus to follow her as she moves to sit under the chandelier, gesturing to a spot on her right for him to sit

back in the graveyard, the twins, look back up to Kai, the boy's eyebrow twitching as his sister continues to hold the skull Boy: I've told you, I'm not a.... the girl puts a hand on her sibling's shoulder, only for the skull to begin moving again, she initially jumps, only to quickly smash the skull against the nearby stone wall, bone fragments flying out as it is flattened. The sound attracts the boy's notice, who looks at the remaining fragments and comments Boy: Awww, I had hoped we could keep it. Girl: That thing tried to bite me and that's seriously all you have to say about it? Boy: Well, you're fine anyhow, there's no problems are there? The girl looks back to Kai, at first she seems somewhat angry, but her expression lightens, as though coming up with an idea, the girl smiles and drags her brother back Girl: I've got a better idea. How about we play a little game of tag? You catch either of us, and we'll tell you whatever you want. If not, well, I guess you'll never know. Boy: But.... The girl nudges the boy with her shoulder, rather hard judging by his reactively grabbing the spot she hit, only to shake his head Boy: Fine. Not like he can do it anyways, old as he is. Back in the church, Alex searches the pile of papers. There are a few pages of music, mostly hymnals for the pianist to play during services. In addition, near the bottom of the pile are a few financial records, it seems the church was in rather poor shape until a few months ago when it started receiving much larger donations from an unspecified source sorry it took me so long, last couple of days have been rough for me, but here's the update I owe you guys

*Kai watches the girls impressive feat of strength, shattering a skull like that. He raises an eyebrow, muttering to himself.* The hell... That's some strength. Heh. *He then raises his voice to answer the girls proposal.* A game, is it? Well, I suppose if it gains me somethin in the end, I can play along. No leaving the graveyard though. We need some sort of boundary, after all. *Kai rolls one of his shoulders.* Accept my condition and I'll play with ya. We gotta deal?

Boy: Alr.... The boy in the graveyard with Kai starts to speak up, only to be nudged by his sister again before he can say much of anything, letting out another pained cry and rubbing his side Girl: Not a chance. Not here anyways, there's barely anything to go with. How about this, there's a small wood nearby we can stay in as well. Its not too big, but the trees will give you a little extra challenge to make up for you being able to corner us. Plus you only have to catch one of the two. The girl grins, patting down her dress, before looking back at the town Girl: Unless you'd like us to call the police to report a stranger rummaging around the graveyard at night. And with that graverobber around.... They'd probably have a few questions at least.

Tch. You crafty little... *Kai laughs.* I respect that. Very well. I abide by your rules. I never back down on a challenge. Feel free to lead the way, but, before we start, I wanna know your names. As for me, I'm Kai. Nameless Nobody from Nowhere.

Seeing Quintus here, he wasn't surprised. 33 had informed him of the boys involvement in all of this. If he's here he's most likely investigating the same the thing. The glass. Quintus's dealings with demons give him more experience than himself so it wouldn't be a bad idea to speak with him later and share information. He seems more reliable than the others he's come across thus far. The face of the woman in red reminds is probably the same woman he saw in the car earlier and judging from her attire and mannerisms towards the butler she is of a higher standing. Is she this lady Banica he heard about earlier? He would try to get a little closer to see if he felt any kind of old magic about her. After thinking over it a little he'd decide to go through the fabric door to the small garden. If Quintus is with her he can probably come to him later for more information on the woman, assuming he can convince the boy to trust him.

Quintus would listen intently to the woman's words. It was obvious she seemed to hold some resentment in regards to those who left and perhaps towards those without ambition or at least the ones that Banica perceived as having none. He felt that perhaps she was more dangerous than he had originally thought if she was the one using the demon's power that was but it would be better to keep up his little act than to escape now as he felt escape wouldn't be an easy option anymore either. Quintus would try to check Hookworm's progress as he felt he hadn't gotten any signals from his parasitic friend in a while. Upon reaching the dining room Quintus would follow the woman in silence and respectfully sit where she indicated for him before beginning to speak again. "It certainly does seem unreasonable that they would abandon your family after all you've done for them. Though I imagine it must be hard especially now with the plague currently inflicting the town. Still, the history associated with this place really is remarkable. Makes me wonder what it must have been like back in the day as well. Regardless, I must once again thank you for allowing me to stay and to even join you in your dining hall during these troubling times."

............ I knew I was forgetting something. Alright, time for a second mini-update since I'd like to wait on Alex anyways. If he doesn't say anything tomorrow I'll just move on. As for Hookworm, who totally wasn't forgotten about, it takes a moment for their thin, slender body to move the lock, but no one attempts to open the door in the meantime, in fact, he can't even hear much of anything outside, leaving Hookworm pretty safe on their own. Looking closer at the hand mirror, its outer edges are laced with gold, giving it a nice, fancy inlay that would catch anyone's eye, the fact its authentic making it all the more attractive to the upper class. It looks identical to the one in the Old Woman's hall of mirrors, however, Hookworm cannot make out anything abnormal in it, just their own reflection and that of the nearby room. If it has any occupants, it would seem they're uninterested in non-humans

out in the graveyard, the blonde girl bows to Kai, a grin on her face as her brother stands there, arms crossed and giving an annoyed glance off to the side Girl: I am Arte, maidservant to the greatest family around here Boy: My name's Pollo.... That's all you're getting. Arte turns to her brother with a Scowl, before shaking her head and gesturing to follow Arte: Now that everything's settled, lets go ahead and get this game started alright. You too Pollo, he probably doesn't know the way Pollo: Alright Alright I'm coming don't really see the point to it though after getting another jab from his sister, the pair start walking away from the graveyard, looking back to see if Kai is following them. If he does, it would only take a few minutes for the three to arrive on the outskirts of a wooded area. Though calling it a forest might be a bit of a stretch, as Kai can almost make out what seems to be the other side of it in the distance. The pair would turn back to Kai with a grin, before splitting up and running further inside, the girl darting towards the right side, in the direction where the graveyard would be, while the boy runs towards the left Arte: And begin. While 13 can't risk getting too close, he is able to tell the woman in red has next to no magic in themselves, at least not of any kind they'd be most familiar with. Soon they slide aside the cloth doorway, closing it behind them as they enter the garden. The first thing they would notice is the stone fountain in the middle, around the edges are an intricate flowery design, which draws the eyes towards a smaller basin at the top that doubles as a bird bath. There are four flower beds stretching to fill corners of the area with a paved path leading from 13's doorway, parting around the fountaint, and ending with a similar door on the other side. The flower beds contain, ordered clockwise from 13's position, a bed of roses, red as fresh blood, a bed of cattleya orchids, flowers a mix of red and white, another of Scabiosas, their white petals pointed outwards almost like needles, and finally, a type of flower they would have trouble identifying. It appears to be another type of rose with pale emerald petals. In addition, it seems to have fewer thorns than the roses opposite it. Possibly bred that way. As for Quintus, Banica sighs and shrugs, taking her own seat, standing straight up as she shakes her head Banica: Such a tragedy I know. Its been getting harder to find good servants because of it. Lost a few myself to the disease. Would be far better if the thing would run through its course, get everything over with. in spite of her words, her tone and manner seem rather detached, nonchalant about the whole issue, as if it were of no real concern to her, just another speed bump. A few moments later, the butler from before once again enters through the same door Quintus and Banica did,carrying a jug of a thick red liquid, the liquid smells a little like blood, but it seems some efforts have been taken to disguise the scent. balanced on his other arm is a pair of small plates with what look to be some sort of noodles with a black sauce over them, not too unusual a meal. The servant would set the plates in front of Quintus and Banica before pouring a drink into each of their glasses. Banica lifts her own glass before taking a deep drink and dismissing the servant, who leaves the jug between the pair. Once she's done drinking, Banica twirls the end of her short hair a little before commenting Banica: I've found it simpler to pour our refreshments ourselves. A shame, but I hardly have enough staff to go around now. The sooner this whole mess is over with the better. With that, Banica slowly begins eating, keeping one eye on Quintus as she does so, almost as though waiting to see his reaction.

*Kai cracks his neck* Very well. Let the games begin. Ya ha ha! This shouldn't take long. Gotta be careful though. Towns got enough problems without me settin the forest on fire. *Fire ignites under Kai's feet as he propels himself after Arte. As one foot hits the ground, the fire reignites, allowing him to move at high speeds around the forest, though it's still slower than he would like seeing as he tries to be careful not to land close enough to a tree to start a forest fire.*

Alex takes photos of the documents and leaves yet another skull before leaving to the streets to go to the inn

13 would look at the different flowers including the one he could barely recognize. He would observe them for a while before carefully reaching out and taking only a single petal from each of them to analyze later. Afterwards he'd observe to see if there was anything out of place with the fountain, taking out a vial from the cloak and taking a sample of the water as well. He knew where the dining hall was and could easily retrace his steps to it when the lady's dinner was over and the servants finally leave. For now he would wander beyond the next set of cloth curtains being careful not to be seen or make any noise. He would listen in on anymore gossip he'd hear in the halls as he proceeds.

Quintus would look at the blood-like fluid with some apprehension for a moment. He also felt an odd thirst just from its presence, he knew it was a lingering effect of Hookworm's influence but still, the thirst made him curious. However, he knew it probably wasn't actually blood. He doubted the woman would be giving him actual blood unless she figured out who he was which was almost impossible. Though he still couldn't doubt it was suspicious, drinking such a subtance could prove to be a mistake but if he ignored it he would risk looking suspicious himself. The conclusion he reached was to trust it for now. If it was poison then he could simply cure it with his own power, the only real risk was if it was something more complicated or harder to remove than mere poison. He would take the glass and hold it up. Suddenly he would stop and turn to Banica with a question as if looking for a reason to delay drinking the liquid. "Oh yes, you said that you used the artifact as part of your dining set? I'd like to ask exactly what you meant by that before anything else if that's acceptable."

Arte continues running for a moment, before looking back to see Kai gaining on her. The girl turns tightly around a tree before heading towards the middle of the area, with how fast Kai's going it would likely be difficult to turn immediately, allowing her to regain a little of the distance between them. More notably, the girl seems more intrigued than surprised when she comments Arte: So you're a Mage? Even stranger you'd wander all the way out here then. Come on, just a bit longer. I want to see what else you can do. Alex's skull doesn't see anything of note, at least not yet, soon the boy heads over to the inn, where he finds the innkeeper, most of his duties done for the day, reading at the front counter. After a moment, the man looks up and waves to Alex innkeep: You seem a bit young to be wandering over here. Somethin' happen to your parents? See it a lot more nowadays than we used to. As for 13, nothing seems out of the ordinary within the garden, though the unidentified plant has an almost sickeningly sweet scent when one of its petals are plucked. Looking more closely at the fountain, its obvious that a fair amount of craftsmanship went into the stonework, an intricately petaled design flowing around the outside of the centerpiece. There are four stone flowers spread evenly around the fountain, each even with one of the beds of flowers outside it, with a precious stone embedded in the center. From the place 13 entered and moving counterclockwise the gems embedded seem to be, a white opal, pink quartz, a red ruby, and a rather pale green emerald. In addition, the stone path doesn't go all the way up to the fountain, instead a small patch of grass can be seen making some attempt to grow there, though it doesn't seem to be succeeding very well. Of course, there's still a door on the other side if you wish to use it, seems you have a tendency to try doing a bit much in one post. Banica chuckles at Quintus's obvious hesitation, rather than give a direct answer, the woman leans forward a little, toying with her food at the end of her fork as she gives Quintus a playful glance Banica: Now now, you're the specialist here. The artifact in question is a clear wine glass, if its being used it must be used as such. There are only two in use, yours and mine, so it must be one of them. if you can't tell which then you're never going to succeed out there are you? Somewhat curious, Banica slides her own almost empty glass closer to Quintus to allow him to examine it more easily. Both his and her glasses seem like fairly standard clear glasses, their inside tinged red by the liquid that had previously been inhabiting them. Both glasses are flawless, without so much as a crack in them, and are shiny and spotless.

Tch Tricksy little... *Kai slides across the ground before kicking off, igniting the flames beneath his feet once again and continuing launching after Arte.* You're wrong. I ain't a mage. I'm am mercenary. A nameless nobody destined for nowhere. I just happen to be able to manipulate and create fire as well. Of course, trying not cause a forest fire limits my abilities in this scenario. Ya got lucky with your choice of Arena, Arte.

a mini update for a few people, not skipping anyone yet When 13 continues through the next set of curtains, after pausing to make sure no one would see them, they enter another hallway, similar to the previous one, with a red carpet floor and lined with various portraits, at several spots there are small decorative endtables with a few of the flowers from the garden sitting atop them. Notably, the halls seem to be completely empty, when one might normally expect a place so large to be bustling with servants, possibly on account of the disease. To their right the hallway extends for some time before turning off back towards the entrance, on their left, a similar case where the hall stretches a fair distance before splitting off, one side moving by the garden, and the other extending outwards away from the garden. Of course, no other door opens into the garden side, but on the other there are a total of four doors, spaced almost evenly, all closed of course. If he were to take a closer look at the decorative tables he might notice that some of the flowers seem to have begun wilting, that and it seems they haven't been dusted in a while, almost like this section of the house hasn't been used in some time. Kai is almost able to reach the girl this time before she dodges around the nearest tree to force him to turn again, the girl smiles and continues talking, a grin spreading across her face Arte: So you're talented but have no actual training then. I'm no mage myself but I've heard of them at least. Kinda sad to see you wasting your life like that, but I guess whatever makes you happy.

Alex says to the charming man, "Well, I actually came here after a flight accident, United, am I right? And you know looking at the news, when this all begin?"

*Kai growls as he is duped again. He spins around and continues the chase, his flames slightly larger than before, which causes Kai's speed to increase as he continues chasing Arte.* I'll have you know I have plenty of training. Informal self training, but training nonetheless. *Kai chuckles* You trying to analyse me, eh? Heh. Alright, I'll play along. So, what would you suggest I do to "Stop wasting my talents" as you so eloquently put it?

13 would walk down to one of the tables and would see the layer of dust on top of it. Was this part of the mansion not being used? He would then walk over to the four doors and lean close enough to make sure there wasn't anything else inside. He would try to open it and if it was unlocked he would walk in but if it wasn't he would find a good angle where the shadows were deep enough and walk through it. Upon entering the room he would look around. If there was anything of interest he would observe it in detail. If not then he would move to the next rooms in the same fashion.

Quintus would almost be suprised that the artifact was already in use, however, he supposed that much already made sense if it was being used to spread the plague. He would now look at his own glass and the glass presented, trying to spot a difference between the two. They seemed almost identical on first glance but he believed there had to be a way to tell them apart. One would be possessed by a demon in some capacity, right? This had to give him a clue of some kind. "I'll admit, I didn't expect to possibly be holding an artifact myself. It's a bit surprising but I suppose I can follow the logic of using it for its intended purpose. Now, to tell the difference between the two... I'll need to glance at my notes for a moment. I was sure to try and record everything known about it beforehand." Of course, Quintus would be pulling out the notebook from before and turning back to the previous page. He would quickly try and look back through the book. He thought there might've been some detail he missed about the way the glass would look or any details associated with it. He wasn't sure if he'd find anything else but otherwise he might have to call Hookworm back to offer assistance. Hookworm would still be in the room from before deciding if the mirror was worth taking. In the end the root would attempt to wrap around the mirror and pick it up. If it was able to do so it'd return to the vents for now to try and explore the rest of the rooms.

The innkeeper chuckles a little, sighing and shaking his head as he continues talking innkeeper: Very funny kid. Well, whatever you're doing isn't really my concern. This whole mess started a few weeks ago, not sure why or how, but its been consistent. Were never that big of a town to begin with, add a few people dyin' every day and its bound to get even shorter. After a moment, Arte stops running from Kai, stepping aside to ensure he doesn't crash into her, the girl puts both hands behind her back and stands on her toes Arte: Nothing in particular. Just that you seemed to have SOME talent at least. A skilled mage can do a lot more than just shoot out a little fire like you are, seems a shame you're so.... Limited, is all. 13 would find the first door they come across to be unlocked, opening it into what's likely a guest bedroom, its rather sparsely populated, a pair of twin-sized beds, a small closet nestled between them, a bathroom opening off to the side, and a smaller desk towards the front of the room with a few empty drawers. Unless they find this interesting somehow 13 would proceed to the next door... A surprisingly large closet filled with cleaning supplies. Though they don't seem to have been used in a while, much like the rest of this part of the house. The third room they check would be of much more potential interest, its a storage room, filled with boxes of various items stacked on a few tables, or simply on the floor This room is in better condition, more well-dusted and cared for, than the previous two had, and it seems may have been used fairly recently. At the moment there is a suit of armor, an old journal locked shut with a leather strap holding the pages together, and an antique vase. Banica impatiently drums her fingers against the table as Quintus begins to read. It takes him a moment to find the correct page, though it seems the author had rather little interest in the objects themselves, not bothering to describe them in great detail, rather he theorizes on their own abilities after linking them to several events, in this case the glass's ability to create and enhance plague and a tendency for its owners to have strange appetites. The only picture of the glass is shaded in a light red, but since most of the other artifacts are shaded similarly its difficult to tell if that was purposeful or not. As she waits, Banica decides to finish the black, noodle-like meal before her while keeping her dissatisfied eyes on her guest before finally asking Banica: Mind if I have a look at that when you're done? I've gotten a bit of an interest in history after learning all the things that happened here, I'm sure your notes must be very fascinating Finally, after a little effort Hookworm would be able to wrap around the mirror, though bringing it into the vents is somewhat of a different story. No matter how the mirror were twisted or turned its too large to fit through the grate in the air conditioning. In order to bring it up he would have to open a bit of a hole in this, which could attract attention later on, if not immediately. Whatever hookworm chooses they would find the vents as they had entered them, with one major line of metal with four paths branching off to the right, each leading to another vent opening downwards into the next room, and one branching upwards to go over and across the hallway.

*Kai stops in front of Arte.* Is that so? Heh. Limited, eh? Well, if that's what you think, I ain't gonna try an change ya mind. Even if that opinion is wrong. Anyway. Tag. *Kai prods Arte in the shoulder.* Ya plannin on livin up to your end of our little deal then?

13 would look at the journal observing the lock for a few seconds to understand the type of lock. He didn't want to force it open since this room seemed to be in use. No reason to let anyone know someone was here. He would pull out a long metal needle from a strap on his leg and stick the needle into the key hole on the strap. Once inside he would manipulate the small shadow on the under side of the needle to take the required shape needed to unlock it. After words he would open the journal and read its pages. If in any way he fails this however, he would use his magic to recreate the scene of the whatever strong thoughts still remained in the journal.

Alex left. He went to an alley way and recalled his skulls.