Session 9 (LW)

Arrested by the Shore

General Summary

After gathering the various spellbooks and the Temptress of the Sea from Linus' tower, the party delivered the Temptress of the Sea to Rizor. After some simple discussion, Rizor took the gem, returned to seal his cavern, and then made his way off out to the oceans of the world, attempting to put any threat lured in by the Temptress of the Sea as far away from land as possible.
The group returned Linus' affects to him for a healthy profit, before he made his way on a boat and ventured back toward his tower to continue whatever experiments he might deal with. The party's next objective was Aomori, visiting with the shrine there, and looking for information regarding Zoe's strange stalker. No sign had been seen of him at this stage, which no doubt brought worry to his whereabouts.
Lance also received his first letter from Niles, his squire and companion, who had not been seen since Lance had been transported from home so long ago. Niles had traveled to Opalesce, and Lance set about to asking him to visit the capital of Formosa, meeting them there as their journey moved ever-westward. Lance, in this time, was still having strange visions of individuals he did not know in his dreams. What he could understand of this, he did not know.
Zoe, meanwhile, was still struggling to make heads or tails of the Ephemeris. The group, as such, decided the best course of action was to pursue the rumour of a Weaver, and individual who could read the book natively. Traveling to the small town of Mihama where the Weaver was said to be located, Lance was confronted with the sudden realization that he recognized this town from the strange visions he had been given in his dreams. The group decided to explore the town and get a handle over the small abused person who had been illuminated in Lance's dreams.
They found their way to a small shrine to pray at, perched on the beautiful western shoreline. Here, however they encountered a person dressing. She revealed that she was a pearl diver, and Lance quickly realized that he had seen this exact girl in her dreams. Although Lance's bluntness pushed her away in a bad mood, it was clear that she was connected as well to the young boy who was being abused. Their priorities had thus been set, and they were off to find out who the mysterious individual from the dreams was.
The group made their way to the outskirts of Mihama, finding a small set of buildings. Here, they discovered a mage by the name of Hastings Lubbock, who was in charge of hosting a small mage college and orphanage on the west coast of Ezo. Among all the other eclectic students the man held, he also held one by the name of Xi, who was said to be the weaver by the academy in Ezo. He was very stern, and seemingly shy. Lance made the connection that this is the person whom his dreams were revolving around, and began to interrogate the young man about his family strife, which made him shut down immediately and reject aid being offered.
Eventually, from Lubbock more about Xi's situation was learned. Xi's family were orphans in Aomori for some time in the lower districts when a man, a wealthy merchant by the name of Kajiwara, adopted them and brought them to their current location. Kajiwara was unfortunately not a kind individual. He indentured the kids to his estate, helping them pay off many debts they rightfully owed, but for hard labour. Eventually, Xi was lured to Lubbock's college, and being of an adult age, he was allowed to stay without any legal repercussions. This did not save his brother and sister however, who were still indentured to Kajiwara.
Xi had no interest in traveling or aiding in their task to read the Ephemeris until his family was taken care for. As the group spread out throughout the town to learn more, they spoke to Xun - Xi's sister - who explained her side of the situation. She was skilled at pearl diving, and it had helped gain graces with Kajiwara. But Xi had not helped her leave the town - more focused on his studies - and she was determined to run away from Kajiwara's estate as soon as that night if she must. It was also revealed, in private talks with Zoe, that Xun had a stash of pearls she had been stealing away from Kajiwara.
The group went to the Kajiwara estate, where they met with the morally dubious man. He saw no issue in indenturing the orphans, and took gumption with Xi having run away and offering him no more value. When the group asked if they could pay off the remaining debt, Kajiwara demanded an exorbitantly high amount that the group could not afford. Seeing that he was a nasty individual, the group left the man behind, determined to save the children and help Xi.

Character(s) interacted with

Xi Bai'ling, Xun Bai'ling, Chen Bai'ling, Master Kajiwara, Hastings Lubbock, Kaguya, Kazuma, Meredith, Asagi, Shin'Ichi.

Report Date

17 Mar 2019

Primary Location

Ezo