Minor Existence Quest

[WitheringFlowerCrown]

>"Of course, I just need to allow me into the tree."

>"No, well, you see, that's the problem! I'm pretty sure you'll get hit with this fog as well. There's so much of the stuff in here, that if we open up, it'll explode like a container of pressurized gas!"
>"That was a surprisingly smart simile, for you.
>"You can still try, just prepare yourself for a storm when we open up!"
>_?

[Philosopher]

>Summon some more familiars
>Order them to eat any of the fog that leaks out.

>"Please, direct me to the door."

>In front of the door get on our hands and feet and get ready to throw and jump through.
->"Alright on the count of three."

[WitheringFlowerCrown]

>Summon some more familiars
>Order them to eat any of the fog that leaks out.

>"Please, direct me to the door."

>In front of the door get on our hands and feet and get ready to throw and jump through.
->"Alright on the count of three."

>You summon more familiars, you need to be prepared.
>"Okay, the 'door' is at the place you knocked earlier. There's not really a door there, we open and close this place with our ability. So get ready!"
>You and your familiars get in front of the 'door', and you prepare yourself for expeditious flight.
>"Okay! One! Two! Three! Go!"

>A hole opens up right in front of you and two small figures speed out as you and your familiars rush in.
>You admit, this is risky, can you really eat Misfortune? It's usually intangible and invisible unless in this form...
>As you bite in you find out, yes you can eat Misfortune. And it's delicious.
>It's like a Bittersweet snack made by a confectioner who's skills approach a god! The more you bite in, the more you want! And the texture! In this form, Misfortune is like a Cotton Candy that melts in your mouth and is easy to swallow! You don't think you could ever get tired of this!

>Once you're done 'Cleaning the plate' so to speak, you look around, finding your familiars eating some leftovers and 4 Hina Dolls on the floor.
>Now that the misfortune is cleared, you can also tell that the tree seems bigger on the inside than the outside. But 2 voices interrupt your thoughts.
>"Hey, are you done in there? We kind of like that tree."
>"But can I even regenerate it from this?"
>_?

[Philosopher]

>Wipe our mouth

>Swipe the dolls

>"The fog is gone.  Though I would recommend seeing Miss Hina before doing anything with your tree."

>"That fog was actually misfortune."

[WitheringFlowerCrown]

>Wipe our mouth

>Swipe the dolls

>"The fog is gone.  Though I would recommend seeing Miss Hina before doing anything with your tree."

>"That fog was actually misfortune."

>You clean yourself, this was an enlightening meal!
>You grab the Dolls. Now you can return them to Hina.
>"Okay. but, uh, who's Hina, Moth Lady?"
>The other culprit answers for you. "She's that Misfortune Goddess, remember?"
>"Oh, right! That explains the Misfortune! I didn't know it was stored in Dolls..."
>"Anyway, we don't know where Hina is so could we follow you to her, Purifier?"
>_?

[Philosopher]

>"Of course."
>Lead the fairies back to where we last saw Hina

[WitheringFlowerCrown]

>"Of course."
>Lead the fairies back to where we last saw Hina

>"All right, after your lead!"
>You lead the fairies to your last known location of Hina, The River.
>While flying there, you decide to examine the culprits.
>>The culprit on your right side has a pair semi-transparent wings and is wearing a red dress with no discernible details other than an accessory that looks like a worm in her brown hair. Yep, definitely a Fairy.
>>The culprit on your left looks similar, with the same pair of non-descript wings, but with a black dress that shifts to brown near the bottom, and black hair. A duo of thieves. You have heard of fairies working together, but not often to the point of sharing the same house, in the Great Youkai Forest no less.

>Thankfully, Hina was still at the riverside crime scene. You approach her with the two fae perpetrators in tow.
>She notices you and seems worried in both expression and tone. "You're back! You did find the Dolls, right?! And I'm guessing those are the thieves behind you? They're covered in Misfortune!"
>You do a once-over of the fairies and find that they do have that Purple Aura of Misfortune. You briefly consider licking it off them, but that would be awkward and probably slower compared to Hina's Ritual.

[Philosopher]

>Present the dolls to Hina

>"The dolls expelled a miasma of misfortune that killed plant life inside their home."
>"I did my best to purify their home before we came back."

>Turn to the fairies
>"I apologize I never got your names."

[WitheringFlowerCrown]

>Present the dolls to Hina

>"The dolls expelled a miasma of misfortune that killed plant life inside their home."

>She takes the dolls and looks at them for damage, seems there's none because she doesn't panic.
>She nods understandingly. "Yes, large, dense Misfortune tends to do that." She seems unsurprised, like she expected this.
>Your next statement shocks her however...

>"I did my best to purify their home before we came back."

>Wait, did you just say you purified it of Misfortune?! How did you, especially a Youkai- no...That's a question for later. I'll check their house for any remnants."

>Turn to the fairies
>"I apologize I never got your names."

>The Black-Haired Fairy jumps at the offer to explain. "Eheh, glad you asked!"
>The Brown-Haired one seems unenthused, however. "C'mon, are we really going to do that? It's not even accurate."
>"We are going to do it! We need to practice it anyway!"
>The fae-folk then launch into a speech/explanation that you're pretty sure is choreographed.

>"I, the Black Apple, can cause and control decomposition. The natural death of all living things lay in my hands. All who oppose me shall wither into dust."
>"I, the Worm in Red, can cause and control regeneration. The rebirth of life is within my reach. I shall save all who join us and stave off the Shinigami's Gaze."
>"Together we control life and death, our potential is unfathomable, and our power is unstoppable!"
>You're pretty sure they're overplaying their power just a bit...

>Hina interrupts the performance before it gets more grandiose. "So why did you steal the Dolls?"
>The Black-Haired one, 'Black Apple', has no defence. "Uh, well, you see-"
>The Brown-Haired one, 'Worm in Red', saves her. "We didn't know that you store your Misfortune in Dolls and thought that someone just lost them. We apologise for our accidental larceny."
>Hina doesn't seem calm however. "Just an apology won't fix this! You saw for yourself what kind of impact Misfortune could have! What if you accidentally cursed someone else, or caused all the plant-life to die off! A disaster could've happened because you couldn't keep your hands to yourselves."
>Black Apple seems genuinely remorseful. "We're really, really sorry about it Miss Hina!"
>Hina starts thinking. "Yes, that's good, it shows a potential for reformation. I'll think about your punishment after dispelling your Misfortune and checking your house. Don't worry, despite my outburst, it won't be extremely harsh... Probably."

>"Detective, I'm leaving to check the Fairies house to dispel it of any remnants and then cure their Misfortune. Want to join me? I'd like you to explain how you purified it."
>_?

[Philosopher]

>"I'd be delighted to join you."

[WitheringFlowerCrown]

>"I'd be delighted to join you."

>"Okay, Fairies, lead the way."
>The Fairies lead you and Hina back to their Treehouse. You decide to take a mental note of where it is, just in case you need to come back later.
>"Alright, welcome back to the Shrine of Life and Death!"
>"I forgot you were calling it that."
>"'We', 'we' are calling it that!"

>Hina does a thorough examination of the area in and around the Tree, or Shrine, or whatever.
>"My analysis is complete."
>"It seems that there is only residual Misfortune outside the tree, should be easy enough to purify. But first."
>Hina pulls out 2 Dolls, holds them in her left hand and touches the Fairies with the other. The Aura of Misfortune around them moves from them, to Hina's hand, and finally into the Dolls.
>"Okay, that's done. Now, one thing I noticed was that there was no Misfortune inside the Tree itself."
>"Okay, first of all, it's the Shrine, and that's the place the Purifier cleared up."
>"Uh, Purifier?" Hina realises what Worm meant. "That only creates another question. Detective, how did you purify the tree of all its Misfortune?"
>_?

[Philosopher]

>Give an embarrassed chuckle
>"Purify might have been overstatement.
 I ate the misfortune."

>"I can show you, if you want a demonstration."

[WitheringFlowerCrown]

>Give an embarrassed chuckle
>"Purify might have been overstatement.
 I ate the misfortune."

>"I can show you, if you want a demonstration."

>Hina gives you an astonished look. "...This is getting more incredible by the second. I need to see this."
>She pulls out one of the Dolls she used for the fairies, pulls out its Misfortune until it becomes a thin fog in front of her, and takes a step back.
>"Okay, Dig in..."
>_?

[Philosopher]

>Can we touch the misfortune with our hands?

>Eat the misfortune, but savor the flavour

[WitheringFlowerCrown]

>Can we touch the misfortune with our hands?

>You swipe your hand through the fog, and it passes right through, acting like regular fog. This is honestly a bit disappointing, you don't like it when food tries to evade you, especially when it tastes as good as this. You can probably make up for the lack of grip with Moth Familiars though.

>Eat the misfortune, but savor the flavour

>You eat the Bittersweet Nectar of Misery and Adversity, savouring the soft texture as the flavour explodes in your mouth.
>Hina is taking mental notes in awe while watching.

>You (unfortunately) finish your meal, and Hina speaks up.
>"By my observations, you completely consumed all of the Misfortune. And I don't sense any Misfortune above the normal amount within you. This just leaves the questions."
>"First, do you feel any different now? Second, did you have to focus to eat it? Third," Hina's face shifts to embarrassment. "How does Misfortune taste?"

[Philosopher]

>Take a moment to take stock of ourself

>Besides less hungry do we feel any different?

>Did the misfortune go down our throat like other food?

[WitheringFlowerCrown]

>Take a moment to take stock of ourself

>You decide to do some introspection...

Stats, Shown and Explained:

>Hunger:

>>Hunger represents how full your stomach is, it powers any extremely taxing feats and Spell-Cards you may use. If this gets low enough you perform sub-optimally.
Thankfully, you have a large stomach and due to your...Novel purification methods, you won't be going hungry soon.

>Danmaku Expertise: Level 1
>>DE represents your experience in Danmaku, it influences your ability to dodge, predict enemy movements, and your imagination for Spell Cards. This grows based on how you resolve quests or incidents

>Investigation: Level 2
>> Investigation represents your abilities in Memory-Recollection, Visual or Verbal Tics in others, and influences how much detail you see in your surroundings on a first glance. This grows based on how you resolve quests or incidents

>Special Ability: Level 2
>>Capable of Consuming anything: This surprisingly includes Misfortune.
>>>This represents your development of your special ability, and how much you know about it so far. This grows as you experiment with it.

>Bombyx Mori: Level 1
>>This represents the development of your nature as a Silkworm Moth, you may have abilities related to them. This grows as you experiment with it

>Besides less hungry do we feel any different?

>Did the misfortune go down our throat like other food?

>Nope, no different.
>Yes, thankfully.
>_?

[Philosopher]

>"I feel full, but no different than when I eat anything else."

>"I didn't need to do anything special."
>Pause for a moment then place a finger below our cheek in thought.
>"I chewed and swallowed the same as I do with any other food item."

>"Misfortune is delicious!  It has this bittersweet flavour with a cotton candy texture."
>Glance at our hand, mentally go through the senses, and curl our fingerers as we mentally name them.

>"Oh, I almost forgot.  I noticed that misfortune has a similar scent to yourself."

[WitheringFlowerCrown]

>"I feel full, but no different than when I eat anything else."

>"I didn't need to do anything special."
>Pause for a moment then place a finger below our cheek in thought.
>"I chewed and swallowed the same as I do with any other food item."

>"Misfortune is delicious!  It has this bittersweet flavour with a cotton candy texture."
>Glance at our hand, mentally go through the senses, and curl our fingerers as we mentally name them.

>"Oh, I almost forgot.  I noticed that misfortune has a similar scent to yourself."

>"Okay, you can subsist on Misfortune as though it has a nutritional value, not only that, but it tastes great to you. I'll be honest, I did wonder what Misfortune would taste like if I could eat it, and now I know! That question was entirely due to my curiosity."
>"As for the Scent, that makes sense. I am a Pestilence God and in charge of gathering Misfortune, I'm surrounded by it nearly all the time so of course you would associate the smell to me."
>Hina's observations are cut short. "Wait, that's how you purified the Shrine of its Misfortune?!"
>"That's an...Interesting Purification method, but I'm still going to call you Purifier."
>"Oh shush, you two!"

>"Moving on, I'm very grateful for all you've done and now I have a suggestion. Now that I know you can consume Misfortune with no adverse effects, I'd like to give you any future Hina Dolls that come through The River."
>"Usually the Dolls are given to other gods and they dispose of them, but this is a slow process, especially with how weak most of the gods are in this area. Giving it to you would be simple and faster: I collect the Dolls, give them to you when I can, you break it open to release the Misfortune (don't worry, you have my permission) and then eat the Misfortune!"
>"So, do you agree?"
>_?

[Philosopher]

>"Your offer is very gracious and I happily accept."

[WitheringFlowerCrown]

>"Your offer is very gracious and I happily accept."

>"Thank you! Consider this the beginning of a lucrative friendship!"
>Hina gives you a Misfortunate Hina Doll
>> Misfortunate Hina Doll: A Doll filled with Misfortune, given to you by Hina. Use to release the Misfortune. This destroys it.
>"I'm sorry to act like a broken record, but I really must thank you for helping me. A lot of people avoid me, or don't even talk about me because they fear the Misfortune I bring, but you just walked up to me and asked me what's wrong. I hope that you have good luck, as ironic as that sounds coming from me, and anytime you think you might need my help you can find me and I'll help no questions asked. You know how I smell, right?"
>The fairies pipe up too. "Hey, Moth-Lady, since you cleared the Shrine, I'll also extend the offer."
>"Just shoot these into the air and the Avatars of Life and Death will be there as fast as possible!" Black Apple gives you a bouquet of flowers
>>Bouquet of White and Red Roses: Given to you by the Fairies of Life and Death, Use this to summon them whenever you need.

>"That brings me to my Punishment to the fairies." Both the fairies stiffen in fear.
>"Relax, you two, I'm just going to make you do some 'Community Service', so to speak."
>"Community Service?"
>"It's obvious that you two don't know when you're pushing too far, so you need a balancing force to stop you from making mischief. It's a good thing we have someone who's competent and more powerful than you two." Hina gestures towards you.
>"So you're suggesting that we act as followers to the Purifier?" The Worm in Red guesses excitedly.
>"Yep! You need more experience in the world to temper your intelligence." Apple still looks discontent. "And Power" She immediately perks up.
>"Of course, this is all assuming she agrees to this." Hina turns to you. "Will you?"

>"Regardless of whether or not you agree, I'll tell you where to find some more errands."
>"The Human Village may have people that need assistance. Youkai who can't solve something alone or Humans desperate enough to ask a Youkai for help."
>"Alternatively, The Youkai Mountain has some potential. The Kappa may need aid with experiments or resource gathering and the Tengu might want to pester you for stories, a good way to get your name out there."

>_?

[Philosopher]

>Smile at Hina
>"I do and thank you.

>"I'd be happy to have Black Apple and the Worm in Red accompany me."

>"The human village sounds like a good place to start."

>Float up in the air
>"Take care Hina!"

[WitheringFlowerCrown]

>Smile at Hina
>"I do and thank you.

>"I'd be happy to have Black Apple and the Worm in Red accompany me."

>"Good! But before we go..."
>Worm in Red goes towards her Tree-house/Shrine and focuses.
>The Tree/Shrine, previously a dead husk, suddenly starts growing Cherry Blossoms. During Summer?
>"Cherry Blossoms, symbolic of the Transience of Life, fitting for a Shrine of Life and Death isn't it? Now the Shrine is truly restored, whenever Apple or I die we respawn here, not that we die often considering my ability. Not to mention it's easy to find due to the unseasonal Cherry Blossoms."
>This must be Worm in Red's Regeneration ability at play.

>"The human village sounds like a good place to start."

>Float up in the air
>"Take care Hina!"

>You float upwards, preparing for flight. The Fairies also prepare.
>"Good luck, Detective! No, you're more than a detective, you're practically a Divine Insect! I will look forward to hearing about you!"
>You fly off and through the air, in a straight line towards the Human Village.

>While flying there, you realise that you actually positively impacted someone else's life! A god no less! This is a first step towards a climb on the Mountain of Fame.
>You fly over the Forest of Magic and eventually see the Human Village. Even looking at it from afar, it seems extremely busy, compared to The Great Youkai Forest anyway. You see a School, a Temple, a Dragon Statue, and a Mansion with a sizable garden.
>Now that you're out of the forest you notice that it's the early afternoon right now.
>You land at the front gate, something tells you that the Humans won't appreciate a Youkai just flying into the village unchecked.
>The Fairies are still taking in the sights "Whoa, so this is where most of the Humans live? Seems cramped."
>"It looks that way, but Youkai make up the majority of Gensokyo's population. So when the Youkai leave it's more quiet and average." Worm in Red seems to have a good intelligence base. Where'd she learn this from?
>_?

[Philosopher]

>What do we know about the human village?

[WitheringFlowerCrown]

>What do we know about the human village?

>Not much, just hearsay.
>The Human Village is the main settlement of the Humans in Gensokyo, hence its name. Youkai can go inside the village, but most Humans are uncomfortable unless they're here for a good reason. For you, you just to have to make sure that you don't cause trouble and scare the Villagers.
>You've heard that there's a teacher in the Village, but other than that you don't know many people here. There could be more People of Interest but you don't have much to go on other than what you saw during your flight.
>_?

[Philosopher]

>Head to the school and see if it is out session

>Keep our eyes peeled to get a feeling for how most of the people here view the three of us.

[WitheringFlowerCrown]

>Head to the school and see if it is out session

>Keep our eyes peeled to get a feeling for how most of the people here view the three of us.

>You walk through the front gate, into the village.
>While walking to the school you note people's reaction to your party. Most Villagers look at you for a moment but immediately go about their business. Seems like you're all blending in well.
>When you make it to the School you notice children, most likely students, playing outside the building. Looks like school isn't out of session yet but there is some sort of recess.
>"Huh, they let the kids play outside? I thought they would just drill info into their heads for eight hours."
>"That's not recommended, children have a fairly low attention span, even lower than fairies sometimes. It's good to give them a break so they can unwind and let the lesson sink in."
>"Hey, my attention span isn't that bad- oh look, a flower shop!"
>Well, Worm's point was proven.
>_?

[Philosopher]

>"Where did you learn all this?"

[WitheringFlowerCrown]

>"Where did you learn all this?"

>Worm freezes "..."
>"Huh, why are you being all quiet now? I thought you were going to elucidate us with your big brain?" Apple says smugly.
>"Sometimes, when I was bored, I would sneak into the Youkai Mountain or the Human Village and I would ste-... 'appropriate' copies of Bunbunmaru Newspaper or Kakashi Psychic News and pretty much any books I could get my hands on. I would return them after fully reading them though."
>"So that's how I learned most of what I know. There could be other things I don't know about, usually things that are not common knowledge or stuff that even the Tengu don't want to talk about."
>Apple crosses her arms. "You know 'appropriate' is a synonym of 'steal', right? You just caught yourself out."
>"...Damn."
>_?

[Philosopher]

>" 'Borrow without permission', might be a better phrase."

>Do we know about the stalls at the festivals?

>Look for a teacher
->Approach the teacher

>If there isn't a teacher in sight then do the following.
>"Let's head inside before recess ends."
>Go inside the school and look for a teacher.