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WHO: Val and quest takers!
WHERE: Bluo, the woods, around town
WHEN: December
WHAT: Open quests
WARNINGS: None for now!

A. Quest 36, blue for quest, anyone for chatting

[He reads it several times and honestly he has no idea what caroling is. A human thing, surely. Does he know much about human things? Not the joyful spirited kind.]

You there. [Stranger or not, blue or not.] What is caroling?

B. Quest 38, wide open

[He has no idea what Christmas spiders are, but decorating a tree is at least something that makes sense. There are no little bat charms around, but he could pretty easily make them with enough effort.]

I'm a yellow. [It's as abrupt as he ever is.] Come get and decorate a tree with me. [It's more like a demand than a request.]

C. Wildcard
[Wildcard, just tag him here for any other ideas. He sure loves fishing.]

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Simple, they pay off their sins.

[He means literally. They very literally spend time doing menial work for incredibly poor pay and then use the wages to pay off their sins.

That's not what he says though.]

[ That's not what he says, so she doesn't quite get it. ]

Pay...off? You mean that they try to resolve their own sins?

[ Like, if a guy kills 5 people, he becomes a Prinny and has to save 5 people's lives or something??? ]

No, I meant it literally. The weight of their crimes can be paid off by the work and wages that they earn acting as prinnies. Both the Netherworld and Celestia have plenty of menial work.

[He even pairs it with a dramatic, unnecessary cape swish.]

[ The extra-ness. She loves it. Although she is curious as to just what sort of world he's from, now, if she wasn't before. So he is from the Netherworld, a place she has heard is the realm of demons, but has never quite been there herself. Still, this fellow seems all right, and if he's an instructor, then he's probably not malicious, so she continues having an open mind. ]

I see, I see. How are their sins measured in a quantifiable way? I would think it difficult to judge.

[ Murder probably racks up the highest "debt", she's thinking. Stuff like sneaking someone else's snack is probably down there, in comparison. ]

[Val doesn't tend toward malicious when he's left on his own. There's just no reason for it. Besides, it's not in his job description anyway.]

I am not the one that does those judgement. Those are between the prinny and God. I just teach them how to behave while they're prinnies.

Edited 2018-12-10 01:03 (UTC)

[ Nero's...track record with Christianity and Abrahamic religions that follow a single god (and not multiple gods, like with Roman paganism) is not the greatest, so she will pointedly look away when he mentions God with a capital G. ]

And how should a Prinny behave?

[ If it's menial work, she feels kind of bad for them already. ]

[Technically Val has a really long list of complaints, but that's for the creature calling themselves "god" at home.]

Prinny rule number one! They must always include the word "dood" in every line they say!

[ Nero is Confused, and squints in said confusion. ]

"Dood"?! I-Is that not a form of modern slang? What does that have to do with becoming a worker?

It's a constant reminder of their place in the hierarchy! "Dood" is a reminder of all the sins they need to pay off!

[ Nero nods...hesitantly, but then understandingly. ]

I see, I see! Constant reinforcement! Perhaps I would have used things other than slang to drill in one's place, but...

[ Whatever works, works, really. ]

Anyway, what is Prinny rule number two?

They don't stop talking, so they'll never stop reminding themselves.

The second rule is that they must accept their meager pay! It may take centuries of hard, backbreaking labor, but they sinned in their human lives! Now they must pay it back!

[With how loud they are, they're probably disturbing the local wildlife.]

[ Most likely, yes, and Nero senses that a small woodland creature or two have already evacuated the premises, leaving them alone with the larger sort. ]

And how meager is this pay?

[ Her hands carefully trace the needles of the nearby pine tree she is also examining (with the grain, not against it), and she lets out a thoughtful hm. Maybe this is the one? A tree about the size of her, all almost-5-feet of her. ]

[It's amazing a mutated bear hasn't charged at them yet.]

It depends on the demon who ends up with them. The standard is a single sardine a day.

[ Maybe soon(tm), once they think they've got the perfect tree, a mutated bear will come and try to ruin their day and tree.

Nero raises an eyebrow. Who uses sardines as currency??? ]

Y-You use sardines as currency to pay off one's sins? Why those?

[ Because they're penguin-like creatures, but...Valvatorez is clearly a vampire, and supposedly he's also part of this...economy. ]

Most demons would tell you they're cheap. I will tell you they're full of nutrients like omega-3 fatty acids and vitamin B. They're an excellent replacement for human blood!

[Val does dress exactly like a vampire.]

[ He's rather loud for one though!! Not that she minds in the least, honestly. And everything he says about the seafood is true, so she nods, her hand stopping on the pine tree she's standing in front of. ]

I wholeheartedly agree. Er, except the part about human blood. I would not know about such things. Do your kind require it that frequently that you need substitutes in the form of fish?

[ Her question is not judgmental or disdainful, but genuinely curious. No, she's not even worried about him basically outing himself as a vampire, since she's confident she can hold her own. ]

No, but it is the source of all vampire's power. I gave it up due to a promise. A proud and noble demon must always keep their word, no matter what it might be.

[Which basically boils down to: I failed to keep half a promise so I'm bound forever to the part I can keep.]

[ Nero looks at him with a smile on her face, surprisingly gentle. Surprisingly pleased to hear that he might be a vampire, a creature of the night who feeds on humans, but at least he has some semblance of honor, and he doesn't drink human blood. Still, she can't help but think that such things can't be made lightly; her mortal life as an emperor, full of conspiracy and scheming, taught her that much. ]

That is correct. If you do not have pride in upholding your own actions and words, then you do not have pride in yourself.

[ Pride. Honor. An oath. It's something she understands, as a Servant and emperor herself, with a beloved. ]

Was the person you promised to someone important to you?

[Val gives his promises out like candy, without much though put down behind his words. But once it's out of his mouth he's bound to it. He means it when he says anything. A proud and noble demon is one who doesn't back out of his words.

There's a strange pause before he answers. That person might mean a lot to him now but-]

We only met briefly back then.

[ Only briefly. Well, that does not mean that person can't still be important to him. She knows from experience that even chance encounters or relationships can turn out to be important in the end, and very much so. ]

I see. How did you two meet? They must have made a strong impression on you.

As a vampire, I needed human blood. She offered her own as long as I didn't feed on any other humans. That kindness was never lost on me... but she wasn't scared, so I needed to scare her first.

[ She takes in his words, forming a strong first impression of him already. A vampire, but proud and noble. A creature of the night who keeps his promises to those who walk in the day. Someone fundamentally inhuman who hasn't forgotten kindness.

And a seeming prerequisite to scare humans if he's to partake in their blood. Huh. Extra Vlad didn't have to do that. He just scared people by existing. ]

You don't seem very scary at the moment, admittedly.

[ Maybe a little intimidating, if that were even in her vocabulary. ]

[He knows full well what kind of misery can be caused by breaking a promise. There's nothing that will stop him from fulfilling any other promise he makes.

The only reason Val has that prerequisite is his own pride. There are probably plenty of vampires who don't care.]

Scaring humans hasn't been my job for centuries.

Have you found a tree you like, lass?

[ You know what she's going to say. ]

Indeed! [ UMU! ] I think this one is perfect.

[ She points to it, a pine tree approximately 6 and a half feet tall, aka quite a bit taller than Nero herself, but she doesn't seem to mind that. Still, it is not too small nor too large, so it is perfect in her eyes. ]

What do you think?

[ If he approves, they can uproot it or chop it down (though doing so means they'd have to find a way to stabilize it later). ]

[Val himself is only 5'5", but he doesn't seem bothered by her picking this height for their tree.]

This will work. Shall we cut it down? If we keep it outdoors, we can dig a hole for it.

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neronian - 2018-12-29 08:17 (UTC) - Expand

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