[OOC: Just a thread to fish for new contacts in the world. The TLDR is that some little foreign princess looking kid is going around asking a bunch of questions about the local politics and events and they are rather difficult to miss.]
[spoilername="Unimportant Side Story"]A slightly plump but surprisingly fit shopkeeper stared down at the little girl who entered his establishment and found himself thinking "I would trade my fortunes for one of my sons to grace me with a granddaughter such as this." This was mostly because he felt like he would be able to marry her into a far greater fortune. With small graceful steps that seemed to be able to glide across water the child approached his counter and placed a box. of simple design but marvelous craftsmanship, on top of the counter they could barely see over, and the man found himself wondering if it would be insulting to apologize or to offer her a stool to stand on. Then the child opened the box. "P-P-Pa-Pa-Pa-Please have a seat over here Ohime-Sama. It isn't much but I will my finest cof- tea! My finest tea put on for you."
For a moment so quick that the merchant assumed he imagined it, he thought the child looked irritated when he used 'Ohime.' In an odd dialect the child said, "I am appreciative of your hospitality and am pleased to already have an opportunity to taste the leaves of this land," and gave a single nod. The merchant bowed and smiled while leaving the room backwards and immediately thrust coins into the hand of his understandably anxious aide. The merchant's orders were short, to the point and slightly frantic. "Tea and someone who can brew it."
When the man reentered the room his eyes first returned to the box and then to the child holding it. As if realizing something the child clapped their hands together lightly, "I should explain. The gentleman at a jewelry store was not confident in his appraisal or funds and directed me here." So it was his son who sent the girl here. He sent her here without sending word ahead that such an important guest was arriving. He would strangle the fool later.
"Ah yes, I have a few different businesses around the city and this is effectively our main office, though I mostly just handle the accounting these days. I humbly apologize that you had to come so far out of your way."
"On the contrary this location is rather convenient for me as I am heading to the Alcazar."
The merchant once believed he could rise to be a Merchant Lord and placed his main office in a place he could see his goal from. While he did have strong and steady businesses, he was never able to make that next leap. His shop was just a stone's throw... well maybe a few throws from a strong healthy man... away from where the most successful lived and worked. That aside... "Admittedly based on a first glance of these pieces I only have so much to purchase a piece or two from you directly. If you gave me a few days I could find some buyers, but that said are you sure you should be selling these? Are they not gifts or heirlooms?"
The girl's expression grew... cold. Far too cold for such a young one, but then relaxed again with lingering hate in her eyes. "These pieces are a drop of the debt a most despicable villain owes, so yes... heirlooms and gifts are correct descriptions." The man was now afraid the girl would storm out the door before he could take advantage of this opportunity. Where was that tea?!
As if the heavens heard his plea his assistant came into the room which a pot and their best cups. "My greatest apologies, I didn't mean to be insensitive or to pry. Please have a drink Ohime-Sama." Once again the girl's anger seemed to flair a bit when he called her a princess but she took a breath and brought the cup close to her face. He relaxed again after she smiled from the scent of the tea and from her relaxed expression from after she took a sip. What a foolish mistake that had been though. Curiousity was a dangerous trait at times.
A short time later the girl left his store and of all people his second eldest son burst in the door warning him of the girl's arrival. Then a number of things stopped adding up. His son had apparently departed his shop immediately after the girl but arrived nearly twenty minutes after she did despite coming as fast as possible. Another thing that was suddenly bothering him was that he wouldn't let such a child walk around without a full team of escort. Then he came upon the only thing it could mean. "She must have a shinobi escort in the shadows. Such a child is likely being taken care of by the shinobi her country sent for the exams." Yes if that were the case he could forgive his son a bit, maybe.[/spoilername]
Stepping out of the shop with a surprising amount of local currency Osu could help but feel disappointed he couldn't get rid of the rest of the jewels. They came from a now 'lost' lockbox belonging to a certain Marquess who once framed Osu and his friends for treason. That light novel sized story aside, he wasn't quite sure how to go about gathering info as he entered the Alcazar. Honestly his interest in the country's politics was mostly a distraction to occupy his time until the exams.
Still he was bothered by how many people were staring at him as he passed. Sure from their perspectives some foreign princess was walking around without guards wearing rather unique clothing and using a brilliantly crimson 'paper' umbrella to protect pale flesh that seemed to have never seen the sun. From Osu's perspective though the fact these people could move around with so much energy in this horrid light and heat was mind boggling. And it was so arid! He had to keep stopping to get a drink of water or juice or whatever they had that was cool. As composed as his outward appearance was Osu believed the people who lived here either had something wrong with them or some magical resistance to this climate.
Still aside from learning some terms like Merchant Lords and something called a cabal, Osu was finding it difficult finding anyone who could and would tell him more about the region. That and apparently he wasn't as approachable as he normally thought he was. In the step between the street and entering a rather upscale restaurant his crimson parasol vanished and a decorative fan of the same color appeared in a movement one would have to see from both inside and outside the building at the same time to catch. Ah great Raiden above they had air conditioning! It wasn't quite peak hours yet but Osu just wanted a light lunch and to hydrate more in comfort. Despite not having a lunch reservation it took the maître d'hôtel around 3 seconds to estimate Osu's net worth and smile graciously. Why but of course there was a table ready. A light lunch? They had the finest. The heat? Oh how inconsiderate was the sun. Why they had just the thing to cure his dry throat, a lovely imported juice blend, said to be good for the skin and very popular among the young ladies. The man's sycophancy was rather annoying but it was he who chose to come to this country without any of the actually loyal servants... Why did he decide to do that? It was a decision he made weeks ago that he was now honestly regretting.
There really weren't many people at the establishment at the moment so it was easy for Osu to hear a few of the conversations going on. Most of the talk was about the exams a little later that day and the wedding of course though there were a few concerning trade deals and such. It was rather funny that in the few minutes he sat there and listened while drinking his juice, which really was amazing and was also rather nice to look at with its many colors, he heard what little he had managed to gather that morning running around and then some. Wealthy people really were unguarded and unaware of their surroundings when they were comfortable. They didn't even consider the possibility that with so few people around that unless they actually whispered someone with trained hearing like Osu could pick their conversations apart. Not that any of them really seemed to have anything to hide but they should really be more aware of their surroundings. This time Osu picked up names of Merchant Lords, some very strange gossip concerning his own Kage and Kouin as well as other villages' leaders, the price of tea in Kaze, rumors rumors and more rumors... Really why was he even trying to gather information while on vacation? Osu lost interest in this activity entirely after he saw one man nudge another and say "Hey I think that beauty over there is looking at me" and their conversation devolved into a matter of who Osu was actually looking at and then some suggestive comments about him that made Osu consider the fact he was very much able to throw a dish across the room and nail either... no both of them in their heads. Really it was moments like these that made Osu consider wearing a sign that read 'I am male.'
Of course when Osu tried to just enjoy his meal he heard one of them comment loud enough for some of the other tables to hear about it didn't matter if the foreign girl spoke their language of not so long as she knew how to be quiet and stare at the ceiling like a good woman. The next moment was spent picking the largest, heaviest coin from his purse, tossing it clear across the room, bouncing it off the wall, and nailing the offender in the back of his head, which resulted in knocking him out and landing him face first into his plate... No one saw him throw that right? No, of course no one here did... Did they? Osu started using his world class bad acting skills to try and appear shocked and confused as to what could have possibly happened. If he was lucky no one would look too closely at him and recognize his obvious guilt.
[spoilername="Unimportant Side Story"]A slightly plump but surprisingly fit shopkeeper stared down at the little girl who entered his establishment and found himself thinking "I would trade my fortunes for one of my sons to grace me with a granddaughter such as this." This was mostly because he felt like he would be able to marry her into a far greater fortune. With small graceful steps that seemed to be able to glide across water the child approached his counter and placed a box. of simple design but marvelous craftsmanship, on top of the counter they could barely see over, and the man found himself wondering if it would be insulting to apologize or to offer her a stool to stand on. Then the child opened the box. "P-P-Pa-Pa-Pa-Please have a seat over here Ohime-Sama. It isn't much but I will my finest cof- tea! My finest tea put on for you."
For a moment so quick that the merchant assumed he imagined it, he thought the child looked irritated when he used 'Ohime.' In an odd dialect the child said, "I am appreciative of your hospitality and am pleased to already have an opportunity to taste the leaves of this land," and gave a single nod. The merchant bowed and smiled while leaving the room backwards and immediately thrust coins into the hand of his understandably anxious aide. The merchant's orders were short, to the point and slightly frantic. "Tea and someone who can brew it."
When the man reentered the room his eyes first returned to the box and then to the child holding it. As if realizing something the child clapped their hands together lightly, "I should explain. The gentleman at a jewelry store was not confident in his appraisal or funds and directed me here." So it was his son who sent the girl here. He sent her here without sending word ahead that such an important guest was arriving. He would strangle the fool later.
"Ah yes, I have a few different businesses around the city and this is effectively our main office, though I mostly just handle the accounting these days. I humbly apologize that you had to come so far out of your way."
"On the contrary this location is rather convenient for me as I am heading to the Alcazar."
The merchant once believed he could rise to be a Merchant Lord and placed his main office in a place he could see his goal from. While he did have strong and steady businesses, he was never able to make that next leap. His shop was just a stone's throw... well maybe a few throws from a strong healthy man... away from where the most successful lived and worked. That aside... "Admittedly based on a first glance of these pieces I only have so much to purchase a piece or two from you directly. If you gave me a few days I could find some buyers, but that said are you sure you should be selling these? Are they not gifts or heirlooms?"
The girl's expression grew... cold. Far too cold for such a young one, but then relaxed again with lingering hate in her eyes. "These pieces are a drop of the debt a most despicable villain owes, so yes... heirlooms and gifts are correct descriptions." The man was now afraid the girl would storm out the door before he could take advantage of this opportunity. Where was that tea?!
As if the heavens heard his plea his assistant came into the room which a pot and their best cups. "My greatest apologies, I didn't mean to be insensitive or to pry. Please have a drink Ohime-Sama." Once again the girl's anger seemed to flair a bit when he called her a princess but she took a breath and brought the cup close to her face. He relaxed again after she smiled from the scent of the tea and from her relaxed expression from after she took a sip. What a foolish mistake that had been though. Curiousity was a dangerous trait at times.
A short time later the girl left his store and of all people his second eldest son burst in the door warning him of the girl's arrival. Then a number of things stopped adding up. His son had apparently departed his shop immediately after the girl but arrived nearly twenty minutes after she did despite coming as fast as possible. Another thing that was suddenly bothering him was that he wouldn't let such a child walk around without a full team of escort. Then he came upon the only thing it could mean. "She must have a shinobi escort in the shadows. Such a child is likely being taken care of by the shinobi her country sent for the exams." Yes if that were the case he could forgive his son a bit, maybe.[/spoilername]
Stepping out of the shop with a surprising amount of local currency Osu could help but feel disappointed he couldn't get rid of the rest of the jewels. They came from a now 'lost' lockbox belonging to a certain Marquess who once framed Osu and his friends for treason. That light novel sized story aside, he wasn't quite sure how to go about gathering info as he entered the Alcazar. Honestly his interest in the country's politics was mostly a distraction to occupy his time until the exams.
Still he was bothered by how many people were staring at him as he passed. Sure from their perspectives some foreign princess was walking around without guards wearing rather unique clothing and using a brilliantly crimson 'paper' umbrella to protect pale flesh that seemed to have never seen the sun. From Osu's perspective though the fact these people could move around with so much energy in this horrid light and heat was mind boggling. And it was so arid! He had to keep stopping to get a drink of water or juice or whatever they had that was cool. As composed as his outward appearance was Osu believed the people who lived here either had something wrong with them or some magical resistance to this climate.
Still aside from learning some terms like Merchant Lords and something called a cabal, Osu was finding it difficult finding anyone who could and would tell him more about the region. That and apparently he wasn't as approachable as he normally thought he was. In the step between the street and entering a rather upscale restaurant his crimson parasol vanished and a decorative fan of the same color appeared in a movement one would have to see from both inside and outside the building at the same time to catch. Ah great Raiden above they had air conditioning! It wasn't quite peak hours yet but Osu just wanted a light lunch and to hydrate more in comfort. Despite not having a lunch reservation it took the maître d'hôtel around 3 seconds to estimate Osu's net worth and smile graciously. Why but of course there was a table ready. A light lunch? They had the finest. The heat? Oh how inconsiderate was the sun. Why they had just the thing to cure his dry throat, a lovely imported juice blend, said to be good for the skin and very popular among the young ladies. The man's sycophancy was rather annoying but it was he who chose to come to this country without any of the actually loyal servants... Why did he decide to do that? It was a decision he made weeks ago that he was now honestly regretting.
There really weren't many people at the establishment at the moment so it was easy for Osu to hear a few of the conversations going on. Most of the talk was about the exams a little later that day and the wedding of course though there were a few concerning trade deals and such. It was rather funny that in the few minutes he sat there and listened while drinking his juice, which really was amazing and was also rather nice to look at with its many colors, he heard what little he had managed to gather that morning running around and then some. Wealthy people really were unguarded and unaware of their surroundings when they were comfortable. They didn't even consider the possibility that with so few people around that unless they actually whispered someone with trained hearing like Osu could pick their conversations apart. Not that any of them really seemed to have anything to hide but they should really be more aware of their surroundings. This time Osu picked up names of Merchant Lords, some very strange gossip concerning his own Kage and Kouin as well as other villages' leaders, the price of tea in Kaze, rumors rumors and more rumors... Really why was he even trying to gather information while on vacation? Osu lost interest in this activity entirely after he saw one man nudge another and say "Hey I think that beauty over there is looking at me" and their conversation devolved into a matter of who Osu was actually looking at and then some suggestive comments about him that made Osu consider the fact he was very much able to throw a dish across the room and nail either... no both of them in their heads. Really it was moments like these that made Osu consider wearing a sign that read 'I am male.'
Of course when Osu tried to just enjoy his meal he heard one of them comment loud enough for some of the other tables to hear about it didn't matter if the foreign girl spoke their language of not so long as she knew how to be quiet and stare at the ceiling like a good woman. The next moment was spent picking the largest, heaviest coin from his purse, tossing it clear across the room, bouncing it off the wall, and nailing the offender in the back of his head, which resulted in knocking him out and landing him face first into his plate... No one saw him throw that right? No, of course no one here did... Did they? Osu started using his world class bad acting skills to try and appear shocked and confused as to what could have possibly happened. If he was lucky no one would look too closely at him and recognize his obvious guilt.
Kitsune had finally arrived in the desolate sand dune someone claimed to be civilized. That had yet to be seen, but hey. She was there. She had brought a catalogue of trade goods. If all went well, she could open up new trade routes from Lightning all the way to Wind. Should be simple enough, right? Hopefully. But history usually had other things in mind for nobles visiting foreign nations. Like kidnappings, extortion, and other such nonsense. But as luck would have it, today Kitsune would find herself seeing someone she actually recognized, and not just from a photo. Her protégé Chigokai Osuteno.
Fortunately, it was at this time that Miyako had shown up and was walking up to the table, so she could sit down as well. ”It was amazing up there. Despite it being a desert, they had a bubble bath, and the shower had so many different settings and water jets it was like being in a spaceship!” she exclaimed enthusiastically. ”Mother, we should get something like that at home. Or something just as advanced, but with better controls. Because, there were so many knobs… I tried to turn on the water to rinse my hair, but ended up turning on various jets instead… So confusing…”