Ment
Story 1
-- Come on, come on!
The loud clatter of wooden swords added noise to the already bustling midday scene of a small Aeolian town. As far as one could tell from the situation, at the moment a Rafitee boy was trying to beat a Lily girl, while several other girls of various ages stood in a cluster nearby watching the whole affair. It must be said that the boy had clearly better innate combat instincts, but the fact that he was slightly younger worked against him, as did the fact that they were both at that age where girls grow faster: so the Lily, while not trying to counterattack, also didn't let herself be bullied.
The boy stepped back wearily, catching his breath.
-- How come? I keep swingin'... Swingin'... I mean, wavin' it around! Rilla, what gives?
-- What, giving up? -- Rilla remarked cheerfully.
-- Mmmmeeeeh, -- the boy feigned thoughtfulness, then suddenly threw his sword at his opponent like a boomerang. -- Ranged attack!
The sword hit the elf girl hard on the shoulder, drawing a sharp "Ow!" from her and a sharp gasp from the other girls.
-- Victory is mine! -- the boy rejoiced. -- So now...
-- Yes, you won, Milo, -- the Lily's face suddenly changed; she ran up and pecked him on the cheek, provoking peals of laughter around them.
The boy, of course, jumped back as if scalded.
-- Hey, are you crazy or what?! -- he tried to look around for support and saw his younger sister in the cluster of girls. -- Slava, tell her!
Slava is silent. Slava is trying to hold it in. This goes on for a long quarter of a second. And finally, Slava bursts out:
-- Milo and Rilla, sitting in a tree!!!!!
The other girls join in, though Rilla is also a little embarrassed by her sudden action, and Milo has no choice but to retreat as fast as he can toward his parents' house, trying to hide his beet-red face from everyone.
***
A few minutes later.
-- Mooooom?!
-- Milo, what happened, sweetie?
-- Why is this world full of stupid girls?!
It was merely an innocent statement of fact that Milo's peers in the yard were, for some unknown reason, almost exclusively girls, plus his two younger sisters (one had just been born), and he somehow didn't get along with the few boys around. But the partial validity of the remark did not save the youngster from being immediately sent to the corner.
And so now, in a firm voice, he was reading something about the creation of the world, about various Behemoth monsters, and about how a person, struggling against the chaos of this world, must sooner or later, with the help of laws, establish harmony and order in the world. Meanwhile, in the enchanting evening atmosphere, Milo's eyes fixed on his father's trophy rifle hanging on the wall. It had long been luring the boy, but according to his parents' strict ban, the rifle was not to be touched...
Convinced that everyone was absorbed in the reading and facing away from him, Milo, back turned, quietly climbed onto the back of the armchair and reached for the object of his desire; now he touches it, the metal surface so warm and pleasant... Strangely reminiscent of the chair's upholstery, even with buttons...
The important rhetorical moment was interrupted by the loud snoring of the boy, who had long since fallen asleep in the chair.
***
Generally, playing at night was forbidden, but father was on duty today and mother was busy with housework, so the responsibility for keeping curfew fell on Milo. And anyway, anyway — he would never break it, no, no, but that suspicious red-haired boy — why was he hanging around here? What if he went after Rilla? There had been incidents before, yes... And he had a strange accent, and everything.
The group of girls, which Slava had traditionally joined, clearly did not share Milo's concerns, but they didn't object to his guardianship. They weren't afraid of the dark, and apparently no one was rushing them home — native Aeolians were generally a pretty carefree people in this regard, after all, what could happen?
When the Ditlind boy had clearly disappeared from sight for a long time, and the darkness had grown so deep that Milo's conscience began to torment him openly, the young Refitee reluctantly started saying goodbye to everyone. After another hour or so, he and Slava finally took their leave of everyone and headed home — though Rilla offered to "escort" them and went along with them.
Due to the cloudy weather and the new moon, the darkness was terrifying that night. There were many lights in the town overall, but the children had to cross the market square, which at night resembled something like abandoned wooden ruins. The girls didn't even notice how they both huddled against Milo (Milo noticed everything, and grumbled quite a bit about it).
They had already covered half the long path — now the turn onto their street from the market was almost visible, and the house at the end was practically a stone's throw away... When Slava's face changed and with a trembling finger she pointed somewhere to the side, into the darkness... Then Milo and Rilla saw it too: huge, dark as pitch... A monster stirring somewhere among the stalls, making inhuman sounds. The children stood in the night as if paralyzed, just watching, unable to run because their legs had given out... Finally, Rilla took the initiative (because she was the only one whose instinct to flee was slightly stronger than the instinct to press into the ground) and hesitantly pulled the kids aside, prompting a hasty escape behind the nearest stall.
-- What is that? -- Slava whispered.
-- It's a Behemoth, -- Milo answered confidently. -- Remember, dad read to us about them?
-- I think it's a Nightmare, a creature from our dreams, -- Rilla objected uncertainly.
-- Definitely a Behemoth! -- Milo said again in a loud whisper. -- We need to get home...
-- But what about... How will Rilla get home now?
-- I'll go around through the bakers' quarter, I guess...
-- No! -- the Refitee objected firmly. -- What if the Behemoth has already memorized you and can find you by scent? -- Besides, Milo was sure that Rilla shouldn't be going through the bakers' quarter at all, because that Ditlind boy was there... In any case, the first reason sounded reasonable enough.
-- So what do we do?
-- I... I... I'll kill the Behemoth, and then you can go back! Is it still there? -- having confirmed that the Behemot hadn't gone far, Milo gave the girls final instructions. -- Wait here, I'll be right back! -- and he was gone.
***
Those few minutes were sheer torment for Rilla and Slava. They had, of course, asked themselves more than once why, if Milo wanted to kill the Behemoth, they shouldn't just hide in Milo's house while he did it... But by now they were too scared to stick their heads out from behind the stall that served as their shelter. Especially since the Behemoth seemed to have come closer and would surely find them now if it came to that. The girls could clearly hear its loud, snorting breath...
Then Milo arrived, holding the rifle — that very one, his father's. The boy signaled Rilla and Slava not to make a sound, while he hid behind another stall. After a few dashes, he was close enough to the filthy, black mass, the size of four adults. With hands numb from fear, he aimed the rifle (oh, how he had struggled to load it), slowly, hesitantly taking aim...
Bang-boom!
The night silence was cut by a thunderous roar and a bright flash, somewhere the sound of breaking glass was heard, the girls screamed, the monster with an inhuman squeal took off running, crashing through a small fence in its path, apparently struck by the righteous fury of Milo's rifle (actually not). He himself stood there stunned, with a stupid grin. He had won! Now this was a real warrior's weapon, not like those stupid wooden swords! And sure, his shoulder ached from the heavy recoil, but his dad would definitely appreciate this feat!
***
Milo was severely punished for taking the rifle without permission, for the store window shattered by the shot, and because the adults had to spend the next day searching the forest for the champion boar that had fled in terror. And yes, the merchant who had brought the pig for the upcoming festival gave the boy a long scolding... After that, the lad languished locked in his room for a whole week.
During the years spent in Aeolia, the boy absorbed the local patriotic spirit and love for the queen, whose tragic exile made his heart quietly seethe with anger. Milo did not understand what drove people like Canis, how they could so easily betray those who trusted them... When the moment came, the Refitee realized that it was a real man's duty to stand up for the country's oppressed rightful ruler.
(The story begins)
Origin
Refitea+1 to Attack, +1 to Accuracy, +1 to Will, +1 to Charisma, +1 to Beauty.
・Reading books is more effective than usual.
・-20% to the cost of learning Saber, Pistol, and Rifle.
Conviction
DanteFeatures
・Will +5.
・+2% to experience gained for each point of Will.
Skills
・Fight to the Last [500]. Once per battle, the character survives a lethal attack (remains with 1 hp). Works once per day.
Specialty
Pistol1. No penalty
2. +3 to Accuracy, +2 to Attack
Parameters
With 200 experience: +1 Beauty, +1 of choice (Speed)Attack: 11 (13)
Health: 100
Defense: 0
Accuracy: 11 (14)
Evasion: 10
Speed: 11
Will: 16
AP: 3
Charisma: 11
Beauty: 12
Event Points: 1
Inventory
PistolAmmunition
Everything needed for cleaning the weapon
Handkerchief and other small necessities, like spare clothes, etc.
"War and Light" -- a relatively well-known Refitean book, author N.E. Khudoy
Money
Небо
