She smirks a little lazily. 

"Hit me." 

"How do you feel 'bout bein' washed up 'nough that this makes sense for you? You're clearly the sorta woman that can handle herself, that can do good fuckin' work, and this is you slummin' iit, to the standards that you were used to, in a sense. You're not being the fucking showy seinen hero, you're bein' a gym coach explorin' the world. What's the fix you're after?"

She snorts, and swirls her own drink in her glass. 

"Sharp of you, to notice." 

She takes her own drink and purses her lips thoughtfully. 

"It's not just the Ouroboros's boon for the why - if anything, that's been the sort of blessing it's supposed to be. I'm more vital then ever, my durability, my strength, my regeneration spiked, though not quite to the level of the high king's knights. It's not even like the Earthbound I swore my service to did anything outside of the scope of their regency or the role he was intended to serve under her. I just stopped making sense as an investment, because of that, and once it no longer made sense to pour his treasures down my throat there was no point in keeping me around, to him. I can't even say I blame him." 

She sighs, and orders her own dish - a fillet and a hadnful of cooked vegetables decked out in pungent spices.

"That's not really an answer, but that's cool, 'ause part of the fun of this is expoundin' on what I see, and skippin' tho the answer sheet isn't always the most fun a thin'." 

I grab my own meal.- hearty meats and rich sauces alongside some good ol' pub style wedges bedecked in vinegar, pepper and salt, alongside some ketchup and shit to dip 'nn. 

I start eatin' up, chowin' through the delic. dish while I rattle off my take. 

"You're idealistic, you're physical, from the start. You've got all the bloody potential in the world, 't least for your part of the map. You probably train yourself, 'fore the whole thin' go through whatever tests and tribulations they have to become the henshin hero that you see on TV. " 

I gesture vaguely 'bout that - the aesthetic 'f Labradoris seems more classical then that, but vagaries like that 're worth sweepin' under the rug, 'nd the translation faclty here fuckin' knows that. 

"You go 'nd get the empowerment - the food and drink's swell, the powers are sweet af, the company is pretty nice, if sometimes a chore, the fights are kinda scarce but that's fine, they're scary and dauntin' 'nd havin' those gives you the chance to improve, tho keep on upskillin' and excellin' in everythin' you do. You prob. impress your minder that you had on your first few missions, then it's kinda lonely, and m'ybe becomes increasingly easy but hard on the psyche in the average case. You try and play 'long - you're workin' to preserve the empire! There's people to help, there's things to do, there's satisfying work to be had. You get into the teaching, then the encounter happens and bam, it's all different, at least eventually - there's no point in keepin' you 'round of rthe feasts, there's nothing you can do the keep lockstep w/ the rest of the crew, there's probably a buncha coordination things that don't quite work. with the way that your powerset developed relative to the modern v, there's no actual patronage, save what exists when you're turning into somethin' actively more valuable. There's no actual trade, there's just ever movin' reqs and allocated hours for trainin' up in the grind. 't's ultimately about enforcin' their order, in their way, and there's no reciprocal loyalty. You're still in the sys, but you're askew and set aside from the normal processes, then you agree to disagree 'cause they think you're more trouble then your worth," 

Goddess this shit is nice - and yep I need to make sure to that I take the pill f'r the day, let's do that - and this is a thrill. 

"So this is peaceful, probably, if kinda melancholic. There's no fuckin' point to be mad that he's doin' somethin' that you projected 'n him, but you're a bit disillusioned w/ the specific project of the High King's Kingdom. You're tryin' out other things - playin' around with all the bloody weapons and traditions and ways to fight for your ideals. You want a new mission, and a new perspective to get t' appreciate the new place that you'll get, and someone to swear your loyality to properly, this time, 'r alternatively to throw away the old identity you've got 'nd figure out something new." 

I shake my head and smile ruefully.

"I have the chance to get 'll the bloody stuff you could possibly ask for, 'n a leader, through ascension and a perfected guide, plus whatever inherent virtue I happen to have, natively. I have a crazy good affinity for one of the most profound magics out there, 'nd a p. solid plan for makin' this all work. 'm not gonna pressure you and obviously all of this is just a plan, for now 'yond a few networkin' opportunities. Amaya's skills are pretty impressive in smithin' and I bet she'll have something to offer for you, 'nd there's a few other people that I should intrroduce, if you're gonna jump on, but like." 

I tilt my head and drink more, washing away the lingering depth of flavour 'long my tongue. 

"'m jumpin' ahead. Tell me your thoughts?"

"You're impetous, too." 

She laughs softly. 

I laugh a'nd shake my head bemusedly. 

"Yep. 'nd proud 'f it, at least personally." 

She scarfs down some of her food unhesistantingly. 

"That's... definitely a reasonable enough way to see it. I love being able to get into the fight, getting the connection of working closely together with the people I'm serving and who are making use of the services I provide, and this felt disconnected, and... off. I am not to be lied to, and the service that is my trade should be somethign clear and bright to all." 

She sighs. 

"I'll think about your offer. Thallasa Cruises has the resources to make your dream real - if they could make the first summer empire, then you can surely make yours, with what they offer now - but that doesn't mean that it's something that's truly wise to pursue. I'm going to see what your myth looks like, what the classic says of your preformance and see what you make of yourself, with the resources you have, here. Anyways, there's no need to rush ahead, when there's so little to build from, as of right now."

I chow hungrily down on nother leg of chicken , and pause for a moment, before barreling ahead after a brief hum of thought.

"True enough. Still tho, do wanta get that shit out of the way."

Sinking into the raw experience of the tearing met and the stretching failing skin helps, with hte lili bit of anxiety slippin' under the bluster.

"Have you read up on the Capital K-knowledge of the Capital L-light?"

"Not too much - my talent for it was rated as fairly mediocre, and the named sounded reasonably self-explanatory." 

She keeps on eating, a smile creeping onto her face. 

I recline back and sighhhhhhh, happy that the synchronocity sys means that I won't be burping from any of this at an inopportune mo. 

"Nah - it's nothin' like what the name advertises, 'n terms of total scope. Radiance is kinda that, though 't 'ncludes the qabbalistic implications of the hihger light, baically, plus some energy construct shit and cool EM spectra stuff. Purity is a generalized super-defense 'gainst even abstract ills, espec. at the higher levels, 'nd Emergence is well..." 

She smiles softly. 

"'n a way, it's everythin' that you've been looking for." 

'nd not gettin' things all grimy when typin' is super nice, now that I think 'bout that. Queueing up the basic description is simple 'nough, but might as well expound verbally, a lil. 

"The power tho make thin's ideal, to cast 'way their imperfections 'nd the fetters of the material world t' get to be there, with you. You can do shenanigans w/ that, 'f course, but more importantly, we can do that for each other. Get the ability to 'lways have each other's back, always helpin' each other wether or notwe're actually like incarnated there 'round each other, gettin' the edge and havin' the sorta entanglement that's too deep to really just 'p 'nd sever. It'll take a long while 'fore we can both do that - 't least 'til I get the superskill trainin' on my end, and probably 't least a few years 'fore you'd be able to get t' the point where you can get somethin' like the whole package of my abilities, but the basic idea'd remain. You could set it up so that there's no actual drain 'n the standard instnace 'f each of us, or we could lead maxially entangled lives, but either way, we have every bloody reason to help each other grow, t' be a benefit for each other, to prosper and build somethin' that both 'f us 'd value. THere's no mind control, no tricks, just the chance to reach out 'nd be of service." 

I sigh, and dig in to the wedges. 

"And look - this isn't just a pitch t' you. 've always loved servin' - I've had my own fantasies 'bout being a valiant lady knight -"

"Or a Geisha!"

I shake my head and snicker-smile. 

"Or that, yeah. I want to get more people linked in, and I have 'n instinct that you can grok this, w/ some fiddlin' in your mind, in the sorta way that promotes this pretty well, 'nd we can probably entwine our blessin's to make this bit easier. 'nd sides, my mythos'll be able to slot this 'n, eventually, a'nd I don't like havin' to make the fucking compromises that you'd normally expect from the practical piss that you end up dealin' w/ when tryin' to scale up." 

And yep I'm clenching my fist now. 

"There's no need for compromises. There's a long list of tools 'll have, 'nd I genuinely think this 'll work out. This is..." 

I breathe in deeply. 

She smiles softly, and places her oddly clean hand against her wrist. 

"I understand. Take your time."

I nod warmly, and relax back into my seat. 

It's super plush and nice, of course, a'nd that defuses some of the flame, thre. 

"So I guess this is my way of reaching out 'nd sayin'..." 

I shrug widely and grin a bit. 

"What do you want to make a part of my story?"

She squeezes, lightly. 

"You've already started on a good number of things. You're clearly working on your physical and magical prowess and if how you've been treating me is any indincation you want to make yourself a hero-amongst-heroes, an idol, a star, a leader. You have whatever you have from simply doing what you find natural, but my question is..." 

She steeples her fingers. 

"What's your play for building something real?"

"Idk!" 

I laugh a bit timidly. 

"Realistically, my current plan is 'Just follow the principles in the classic'. Ultimately, anything that happens 'fore I get my hands on it is just a degenerate approximation of that strategy, or some holding pattern desinged to make that work out. I don't want to drill on speciics, but there's probably some virtue in doing the basic familiarization shit...? To be honest, I feel like it's the sorta thing that's most directly somethin' that 'm not too natively skilled at, and something that I don't like thinkin' about too much. It's not even like there's a singular thing there - there's negotiating, all sorts of polticing and beaucracy manipping skills and I don't have too much in mind? There's a contact or two I could reach out to here but." 

I shrug a lil helplessly. 

"You know that's no excuse." 

Her lips quirk up into a sharpening smile. 

"Oh but 'f course!"

I grin. 

...Yeah it's a bit too early for a 'make me' but...~

"The promotion of competence through the association with you, and being under your banner and amplified with your strength is a good start, at least. Get yourself familiar with management philosiphy at least, and probably throw in some study of economics and such too. Wargame it - make it story, a trick, a ploy. Keep yourself on your toes, and learn well." 

"Oh I will." 

I flush with a bit of excitement, then hide myself in the process of eating, for a while.

"...You're setting out to burn yourself out, I expect, if you're going to take all of this on so quickly."

I shake my head and groan a bit. 

"...M'ybe? A big parta the premise o'f this i's that 'm seeking out the experts, the kinda traini' tools that peopel use to not fuckin' mess up their mind in the efforts to improve.vAlos, more conjecturally, it's not like figures of myth, typically, to properly burn out, when the goin' gets too tough." 

"You hardly know if a story is going to be a tragedy before the telling." 

I wiggle a hand as I take a break from the nomming. 

"The specific instance of the power 'd be gettin' isn't like that? There's def versions like that, but this one 's rated to actively self-modify and apply or not apply wherever it'd be advantageous. Worst comes to worst it's a marginal contribution, more realistically 'll keep growing throughout - the openin' to the Knowledge of the Light thin' augments my mind, to a degres, so that'll make me progressively harder to tax, like that. The perfectin' elixir 'll help too, when I get that, 'nd probably by the time I get to the Classic and latter augs I'll get to avoid any of the pitfall that an infinite civ know about, in that sorta thing so." 

I press a hand 'gainst my forehead. 

"Oh. Haven't explained us to you, have I?"

"Nope."