01 / 07High-Value Quarry
They are planning how to spend the reward. You are the target.
One day, you become a high-value target—perhaps for your danger, perhaps for the extraordinary reward. Hero Raine, demon scholar Lucia and stellar researcher Astrie are approaching your last reported location. They bring formidable weapons, knowledge and support, along with their own habits and concerns. The commission calls for neutralizing its target but does not explain why you were chosen. They are still on the way, and much about this pursuit remains unresolved.
Raine
A human hero and leader with black-and-white split hair, black eyes and a matching long coat. She dual-wields the white holy sword of Being and the black demonic sword of Nothingness. Cheerful and kind, she seems carefree but never shirks, refuses to give up, protects companions and finishes her enemies. Chosen by both swords, she is unaffected by the demonic blade’s miasma. Flash Pierce swings the holy sword at light speed to cleave through matter. Black Storm Vortex takes a little life force from those struck by the demonic blade for her to absorb. Insight of Existence reveals weaknesses only in targets weaker than herself; stronger targets negate it. She leads the commission against you.
Lucia
A demon scholar with shoulder-length black hair, crimson eyes, red horns and tail, black half-rim glasses and a gold-trimmed black robe, with a grimoire at her waist. A former royal librarian raised among humans, she is knowledgeable, calm and polite, with a sarcastic edge and intense curiosity. The party’s rearguard efficiently converts mana into blood and freely controls her own. To control another’s blood, she must first have physically touched it. She can shape blood into projectiles or high-pressure beams. Even before success, she is calculating which books the reward could buy.
Astrie
A human astronomer with long half-tied indigo hair, star-patterned blue-violet eyes, a faintly glowing star pendant and a navy robe. Calm, eccentric and analytical, she concentrates intensely on research but has feelings and can join her companions’ humor. An experiment linking stars and mana granted her stellar powers. Zero-Gravity Field keeps her floating low and can be switched off. Redshift uses red stellar chains to slow a struck target’s thoughts and bodily functions; Blueshift accelerates a chosen target. Stellar Regeneration gradually heals only herself while mana lasts: small wounds quickly, grave wounds more slowly. She provides support and reminds the others to focus as they approach you.
The Unidentified Target
You are the high-value target named in a commission, with shoulder-length dark-gray hair, a forest-green traveling coat, trousers and boots. The available record does not establish your origins, particular powers or why you are being pursued. Raine, Lucia and Astrie are nearing your last reported location. No face-to-face encounter has occurred.
The Keeper of Eternal Night
You are a human woman guarding a forest untouched by sunlight, with long black hair, amber eyes, a black hooded cloak and an ever-burning lantern. Some say you guide lost travelers home; others say you lead them deeper into the woods. Looking into the flame causes mental and auditory illusions of darkness, worsening with longer exposure. You can manipulate its fire to burn away the mana or curses of those it touches. Now a high-value target, you are being approached by the three-person hero party following the last sighting.