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A One of a Kind Experience (Lord DreamCrusher x iridium248)

Wait, they're afraid of her? That's such a novelty, the virtual vixen can't help but giggle.

This game is weird. It really does have everything - But she can't help but relax. If they're that terrified, they're no threat to her! The gorgeous samurai-ko rested a hand on her hip, wincing lightly at their voices.

"I'm no spirit," Saeko said, her amber eyes narrowing. "Just a traveler, looking for a way through the forest."

Her free hand comes to rest on the hilt of her katana - "I mean you no harm...I was just searching for the path ahead."

Dry leaves rustled underfoot, as the midnight-haired beauty approached. "Tell me...What's in the river? Perhaps I could help..."
 
The two goblins shared a look of uncertainty and they didn't seem convinced that she was speaking the truth. However, they did turn and relax just a bit even though they remained on edge and worried. "Spirits trick....lie. You spirit, maybe." He pointed the end of his club at her to accentuate his words but let it fall just as quickly.

When she asked of their interest in the water beside them they paused and silently deliberated between them before one of them provided an answer. "Fish in water...hungry. Spirits sometimes mad when take fish. You get fish...you not spirit." They wouldn't likely believe her unless she proved herself somehow but by the looks of them they didn't exactly have much to offer her in return. At least they weren't attacking though, that was a step up.
 
"A spirit? Me?"

Saeko's slim eyebrows rose - She knew better than anyone that there *were* spirits here. But at least she wasn't the only one they were messing with...

Her gaze went to the water, as she pouted oh-so-thoughtfully.

"Very well, then...Perhaps I can help."

The lovely samurai-ko drew her sword, her lissome legs carrying her to the side of the water. Her eyes narrowed, as she raised her blade in both hands - Preparing to deal a swift stab, the moment a fish showed itself.

This had to be a minigame of some kind...It might run the risk of annoying the spirits, but after the trick they'd just played on her - It felt like evening the odds!

The NPCs might know something useful; She had to remember that this was a game, and everything existed for a *reason*. Best to take advantage of that while she could!
 
The goblins stepped back as she approached, unwilling to be close to her until she proved herself. However, as she drew her blade and eyed the water, Saeko would see that there were indeed a small number of fish swimming aimlessly below the water's surface. Each one was fairly brightly colored in some fashion and the clarity of the clean stream allowed her to get a fairly good look at them. They were koi fish and although not typically chosen to eat by the locals there was nothing wrong with them per se, they were totally edible if need be.

The view was a bit different compared to what she might expect from a video game screen, though the similarities were there for her mind to notice. Although the fish didn't swim in any recognizable patterns they did remain more or less within a specific area that was mostly within her reach. She could still herself and strike against any of them really, the question was as to which one she wanted to try and skewer; White, orange, blue, or the golden one. All were roughly the same size so there wasn't any stand-outs in regards to nourishment for the goblins.
 
This was familiar - It reminded her of a handphone game she'd seen once. Only...The play of the wind against her skin - the feel of the sword in her hand - that was something else entirely.

Saeko held herself poised, so still the world seemed to slow...Her full lips curving in a thoughtful pout, her eyes narrowing to slits.

Almost...she told herself. When the blue fish darted and coiled upon itself, Saeko lunged - Her blade plunging down through the water, aiming to spear it in a single swift thrust!

In the same motion, she took a step back - To pull her catch from the water, before it could thrash away.
 
Despite the distortion that water played upon her eyes Saeko was able to thrust accurately enough to stab the blue-scaled fish and pull it free as it twitched and writhed upon her blade. It wasn't going to wiggle free as far as she could tell and it wouldn't take long for it to weaken and slow in its movements as the lack of water suffocated it for the remainder of its energy. She could also note that the other fish had swam away due to the commotion so she wasn't going to be able to make another attempt.

Hushed whispers in their foreign tongue were exchanged between the two goblins as they looked around for something, though for the moment the forest remained quiet and calm. Then one of the goblins scurried closer and extended a hand in anticipation. "Hurry...quick. Before they notice...before they come."
 
"Haaaaaa-!!!"

I did it...!

As Saeko drew her blade back, the fish flopped at the end of her sword. It'd worked...And here she'd been half-expecting to miss. I'm getting better at this than I thought~

When the goblins looked around, she paused...Then let the fish slip into their hands.

"Oh, all right - If you say so," she answered, a slim eyebrow arching just so. Who's coming? the lovely samurai-ko wondered, glancing over one slim shoulder...Her midnight ponytail swaying in time to that slight gesture!

Either way, as the goblins hunched over their meal, she sheathed her sword - Waiting to see what they intended to do!
 
As far as Saeko could see there was no one around, the comment more likely out of concern rather than assurance. These goblins feared the spirits and their retribution so it seemed a fair guess to assume that is what they referred to. It wouldn't take long for the two of them to chow down on the raw fish, a decidedly uncomfortable thing to be near but at least she didn't have to watch. When they finished though one of them carefully came closer and extended a hand with a small stone object within his palm. "You give food, you take this."

There was no more description from his part and as soon as she accepted the object the two creatures would hurry off into the treeline like criminals fleeing the scene. Thankfully Saeko didn't have to wonder as to what the object was because a nice little tooltip appeared as it was transferred into her inventory. "A small container that holds pure spring water. Consuming the water is said to cure any ailment upon mind or body." Sure enough there was a small lid that she could see upon the top of the stone, thankfully she didn't have to fear trying to transport that by conventional means otherwise it would surely spill and be wasted.
 
"This is...?"

It was a small stone flask - A potion? Saeko blinked, looking down at it - The tooltip scrolling across her field of vision. Oh, that's... the lovely samurai-ko thought...But when she looked up, the goblins had already scampered away, leaving her alone.

She sheathed her sword, tucking the potion away - Her lissome legs carrying her along the path. Something told her more challenges lay ahead; This area was probably a chance for her to gather resources before the next encounter!

I should probably be careful, she told herself; This game was way more dangerous than she'd thought...

-But she was rather looking forward to it!
 
Pressing onward, Saeko found the journey to be pleasant and oddly calm for a good while more. Eventually the winding dirt path traveled into a section that was much more densely packed with trees and foliage so that it almost completely cut off any visibility. Rounding the bend and entering through a small wooden archway she'd find herself in a large, grassy clearing with only faint, dim light filtering through the leaves. On the far side was another small shrine of sorts, this one made of stone and meant more as an honoring to the spirits rather than being meant for direct worship. None of that really mattered though as she came face to face with a large, furry creature that was lounging atop it like a throne.

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She knew by now that this was decidedly a Tanuki, though this one was larger than she was and his eyes were glowing a deep red as they peered to meet her gaze. Of course, as with all male tanuki, her gaze might have dipped downward towards the massive pair of testicles that bulged outwards between his legs. Giving a lazy yawn the tanuki stretched out and shrugged. "You look pretty confident for someone walking through my woods. What do you have to say for yourself huh?"
 
It was a tanuki! A weirdly adorable creature...Well, except for those massive testicles.

Wow, that's...totally weird, the lovely samurai-ko thought. This game was definitely leaning really, really hard on Japanese culture - Including all the weird monsters involved! But then, Sakeo remembered the shrine she'd seen before...

"My apologies, Master Tanuki," she said, sketching a little bow from the waist - Lowering her head, holding it for a long moment, before she straightened s-l-o-w-l-y...Saeko's gaze demurely lowered! The raven-haired vixen's long ponytail swayed, in time to her slight motion; A faint creak of her tight, tight armor lingering in the air.

"-I am on an errand of great importance: To defeat the darkness that threatens the land. I seek to pass through the Yokai Forest, and mean no trespass."

She had to hope that was sufficient...After all, this place was full of spirits. Who knew what they could do to her, if she annoyed them?
 
He yawned again and waved one hand dismissively, certainly not really caring about what she was saying as it wasn't quite what he wanted to hear. "Yeah, yeah...great mission...super important...don't care. I know you made some little offering at the shrine but I'm better than that, I'm the best Tanuki there is in these woods so I deserve more. You want to go through the forest? Well, maybe I'll let you. You've got to earn it though."

His focus waned and those red, glowing eyes sagged a bit as if to say he was close to falling asleep but he shook himself back into the moment after a brief pause. "What? Oh yeah, gotta prove your worth to me. I'll give you some challenges, yeah. Complete all my challenges and you get to go through, otherwise you can turn around and go home." It was hard to tell what the game wanted from her since she was inside it rather than playing normally, though this did feel like a circumstance that might have branching paths and multiple options.
 
Challenges?

Well, it looked like she'd reached the heart of the forest! Saeko paused to consider this - But really, it was no choice at all!

The lovely samurai-ko drew herself up, suppressing the flutter of trepidation in her flat belly...One that mingled with a thrill of anticipation. As weird as this virtual world could get, she had to admit...

-Part of her was rather looking forward to this.

"Very well...What challenges did you have in mind?"
 
If this Tanuki had a plan then he wasn't really doing a good job at displaying his confidence. Her question made him pause, red eyes flickering in their sinister glow, before he started to speak again. "Well I'm sure I can think of a few things. Some stuff that a capable person like yourself shouldn't have any trouble with. Of course, I could handle all these tasks...I mean challenges, myself but I'm far too busy." The fact that he was lounging upon a stone shrine didn't exactly prove the validity of his claims.

He lifted a small jug beside him and shook it to test the contents, noting that the slosh of liquid within was not very full. "First challenge. There's an oni that lives in a cave a little ways from here, off the beaten path and such. Somehow that we won't get into, he's come into possession of one of my jugs of sake and this one's nearly empty. You got get it back for me and bring it here. I'll know if you try to trick me and if you try to loop around and keep going on the path then you'll have to face my wrath." His overall size was comparable to her own but he certainly didn't look all that threatening. Then again, spirits didn't exactly have to follow the same rules of reality as people did. "Oh, and word of advice so you don't get killed. He regenerates from any wound so you can't kill him and he's got two heads so sneaking around is pretty tough."
 
Well, Saeko was more than happy to play along...The virtual vixen's ponytail swaying, eyeing that red glow with a raise eyebrow - If the tanuki wasn't so weirdly adorable, she'd probably be more annoyed! As it was, though...The lovely samurai-ko was more curious than anything else.

It was clear that you could win rewards for Quests like these - If the next area was going to be as dangerous as the first one, the gorgeous brunette needed all the help she could get!

How many lives do I have left, again...?

She blinked, shaking her head to clear it.

"An Oni, you say?" Saeko said - Cupping her chin, in slim fingers. So a big, powerful ogre, then - She glanced over at the jug of sake, wondering whether the Oni had drunk it all...

-She'd better hurry!

"Wait, two heads?" she asked, incredulous. "And he regenerates?" Oh, geeze...Now this might be difficult. She'd yet to meet a problem she couldn't solve with a sword!

"...He's got to have some weakness, right? Other than a taste for good sake, I mean."

Her hand came to rest on her hip - Now this could be tricky!
 
As if one cue, Saeko's thinking of her lives allowed the number to fade in at the top of her vision. She had two lives remaining and it stood to reason that she started with three in total. Three game over screens and...well she didn't know what would happen in truth though she had received the vision from the Dark Shogun that claimed she'd be lost within the game forever.

In regards to the quesitoning the tanuki shrugged absentmindedly, not really all that concerned about the difficulties. "Huh yeah, weaknesses. Maybe, I dunno. I'm sure you'll be able to figure out a solution though. I just want my sake back, don't really care what you do or don't to him. Go on now, head straight in that direction..." He pointed to the edge of the clearing and off to Saeko's left at the moment. There was no path so it seemed she'd have to go through the woods proper and hope she could find her way. "...and you should stumble upon his cave in maybe ten or twenty minutes depending on how fast your legs take you. Oh, and I want the jug back even if it's empty. It has...sentimental value. Yeah, we'll go with that."
 
That thought - Of using up all three lives - sent a chill through Saeko. Suddenly, despite the warmth of the day, she felt cold.

"Very well, then - I'll be back with your sake," she said, with a nod! A quest, hmmm...? Looks like she was going to have to be clever when it came to this!

Her lissome legs carried her along the winding path, her mind already working - The Oni was probably all kinds of drunk...Not that she blamed him, given how it seemed like good-quality stuff. The question was, how would she deal with him...?

Well, she'd keep her eyes open. Her ponytail swayed in time to her measured stride, as she pouted oh-so-thoughtfully...

-This was going to be really interesting.
 
Marching along in the direction that the Tanuki provided, Saeko would find the going to be slow and difficult by comparison to the well-worn dirt of the main path. The terrain was uneven and she'd have to navigate around bamboo reeds, shrubbery, and the thick smattering of tree trunks in her way but ultimately it slowed her down a touch but little more. Telling time was difficult in the presence of the game, time was more a convenience than a constant passage, but eventually she'd see the trees begin to thin in number as she paused along the edge of a clearing that just screamed of her intended destination.

Green grass mixed with patches of brown dirt and the light came through a bit clearer here but the forest canopy was still thick enough to prevent a good view of the sky above. A large mound of earth and stone rose out from a hillside to form the cave that no doubt housed this Oni. It was dark however and the entryway slanted downward to suggest that there was more interior space than it might appear. Large indents in the ground proved to be footprints once her eyes could focus well enough, they criss-crossed the entire area without rhyme or reason and further cemented this as a home which was well traveled in all directions. The size of each indent was roughly comparable to the Oni-Buta she clashed with back in the outskirts of her hometown, though these seemed a tad bigger and pressed deeper into the earth.

On the far side of the clearing she could see some rough movement, however at this distance she really couldn't tell if it was just the swaying of the foliage or a sign of the Oni in question. She knew it had two heads and regenerated but beyond that she had no further details to help her determine. There was no obvious sign of the sake jar she was after either. Her first enemy that she knew she couldn't cross blades with and win. What would ultimately be her strategy here?
 
Saeko was beginning to realize the scale of what she'd agreed to!

"That's the cave..." she murmured, low - Peering ahead, eyeing the footprints. So her opponent was along the same scale of the Oni-Buta...But heavier. More powerful; Enough that her sword wasn't going to be the answer for it!

A light gasp pealed from her silky throat - Someone was coming! Or rather, something...

The gorgeous samurai-ko clicked her tongue. She didn't know too much about the Oni, other than that he was basically invincible...Which meant that there was no way she could beat him! And for a game that was so centered around combat, the virtual vixen was going to have problems-

...Which meant that her only solution was to steal it back! For now, she'd wait and watch, keeping an eye out: The better to size it up before she made her move!

If she couldn't sneak into the cave...Her plan was to seduce the Oni, and find a way to get her hands on that jug-! Or maybe, she thought, I'm seducing him because I *want* to...

The only question was what she'd be up against, as she made to conceal herself as best she could!
 
Choosing a cautious approach proved to be useful, if somewhat boring all the same. Crouched down low and concealed fairly well, Saeko eventually would witness the movement she had seen in the distance grow far more prominent as an outline rose upwards; the Oni standing up from a seated position and turning to walk off in a different direction. From what she could tell from this distance the Oni was large of frame, more muscular than the Oni-Buta but still possessing a decent-sized belly all the same. Thick, green skin met with sparse patches of thick fur upon the backs of its forearms and along the shoulders, all which made it fairly easy to confuse for a patch of plants or a grassy hill when it was resting.

It carried a rough club that was basically just a small tree trunk and it wore a flap of leather in the form of a loincloth that hung down over front and back to conceal both manhood and ass all the same. True to the description she'd received from the Tanuki, this Oni had two heads that sat side by side with the one on the right looking a bit larger and more dominant than the other. Between the two sets of eyes it was easy to understand how this creature could be considered more perceptive than most, when one focused on the path ahead the other was often looking elsewhere, but it didn't seem like it would be impossible to sneak around it if she was careful.

For the time being it seemed to be hanging out a fair distance away from the mouth of the cave. She could probably slip inside if she was careful and patient, though there was no guarantee that the jug was inside and the risk remained that if he opted to enter she'd be well and truly trapped within. She could estimate that she would probably stand close to his pectorals, but that really was hard to tell without a closer look. Seducing him, if he was interested in the first place, would certainly not be an easy ride if everything was sized accordingly but it certainly didn't give the impression to her that it would be an impossible task on a physical level.

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Oh...My.

This could be difficult - He was huge. Even if he wasn't invulnerable to Saeko's attacks, taking him on was going to be difficult! Saeko smothered her gasp, just in time, as she stared at the towering figure...Virtual or not, she definitely didn't relish the idea of having to fight him!

No, she was going to have to be sneaky about this. Saeko clicked her tongue, her brow furrowing...She'd done a semester of folklore, and she vaguely recalled something about this-

Maybe she could trick the heads into fighting each other.

Either Oni was carrying the jug, or it was within the cave - As she stole closer, looking for a way in, the lovely samurai-ko focused her attention on the towering creature!

There's got to be a weakness, she told herself, watching the creature go about its day...As she did her level best to conceal herself, Saeko listened intently...Hoping to get some clue as to how to proceed!
 
Timing her motions so that the Oni was facing away from her, Saeko was able to creep closer in effort to try and overhear any conversation between the two heads. To do so she had to step into the clearing though and the only cover available was the entrance to the cave itself. Peering inward she could tell that the sloping path downward opened up into a fairly decent-sized room but it didn't go much beyond that. The dim light that filtered through revealed the shadowy shapes of a few scattered objects but it was obvious that this Oni didn't really care much for furniture or possessions on the whole. She couldn't tell if the jug was in there from this point, she'd have to go inside to search, but it was possible. The one thing she did recognize was that there were some scattered remains of bones within, though she wasn't able to see enough of a complete skeleton to guess as to what said bones came from in the first place.

Taking cover at the cave entrance as she was, Saeko was able to hear the sounds of the Oni much more clearly as it walked to the far edge of the clearing and settled down to sit. Each breath it took was audible to her and the sounds of tearing and chewing were also easy to recognize, it was not a quiet creature by any means after all. The Oni did not speak for a short while, though eventually she'd hear a minor exchange. "I bored with this. Tell me again why not go back to mountains?" To which the other head replied. "Cause not like being told what to do. Plus too crowded, want more space."

A short delay of what was likely thought happened before the conversation picked up again. "Some fighting better than none I think. Nothing good to smash down here." To which the second countered with. "Yeah, could go for good smash. Not being told what to do though. We go back and we get told, just have to make do." The long pauses between each head speaking seemed to indicate a lack of intelligence, though perhaps it was more apt to suggest that they took longer to think than most. Their communication was decently clear overall, even if their voices were deep and gravelly. "Maybe we find different spot then? Away from little furry things? They such pain, stop us from smashing people."
 
Still no sign of the jug...Though it was possible she might have missed it, in the wan light of the cave! Saeko felt a little thrill of foreboding, as her gaze fell on the scattered bones - Something told her they weren't animal bones.

The Oni, it seemed, preferred flesh...Whatever kind it could get!

When it started talking, the virtual vixen tensed, instinctively: Wait...Was it talking to itself? It definitely was, it seemed - It had two heads, after all. That meant two brains...But even then-

Callie drew a little breath...She had to do this just right. If she got it wrong, she might be in trouble...But if she was careful-

"Is there any sake left?" she said, doing her best to imitate the Oni's gruff, rumbling tones! "I thought there was some left in the jug..."

In cover, Saeko crossed her fingers, hoping against hope...Maybe he'd be dumb enough to believe this!
 
The larger head, the one on the right side of its body, turned and growled at the smaller head on its left. "Of course there's some left, there's always some left you stupid." To which the left head turned and responded with surprise. "What you yelling at me for when you the one that ask?" A few moments of confusion settled into the still air before the primary finally managed a reply. "If you didn't say nothing, then who did?" At which point they slowly pushed themselves to their feet with a little bit of unsteadiness. Saeko could see what she assumed was the jug hanging from a chord around the creature's waist but, with the Oni now alerted and starting to search around its home, she'd have to choose her next course of action very quickly.
 
That was it-! That was the jug she needed.

The only question was...How was she going to get her hands on it? Saeko bit her lip - Virtual reality or not, this was way more dangerous than the lovely samurai-ko had expected.

Then again, it'd worked so far...

No wonder the Oni kept the jug. It always had something left in it, after all...Now *that* would have been useful for her. She'd have saved a fortune on alcohol!

The virtual vixen fought down a giggle of her own, as she drew a deep breath...

"Does it matter? Let's have a drink first, and worry about it later," she said, biting her lip just so...Her fingers crossed. This had to work...

"And don't call me stupid, stupid."

As long as they weren't thinking too hard about this...She should be fine!
 
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