Akashic Records said:
"Well, Lili is a Supporter with many years of experience-!" she began, but Taylor raised her hand to cut her off.
"Not what I meant. What can you do beyond carry our supplies and baggage?"
kinda want to focus on this, because a big part of Lili's hangups in the early going were from adventurers treating her like sh*t. Here? Taylor isn't treating her as a(n un)glorified pack mule, she is treating this like an interview, with Lili as a potential serious member of the team. someone with skills and experience to be listened to...but if the skills and personalities don't match up Taylor might actually turn her down (taylor won't, but that's probably never been a possibility Lili has considered)
Akashic Records said:
and another reason to include Lili in the team: she is hooked into the information network!
we kind of miss it since we mostly following the Hestia familia, but there is all kinds of discussion and deals going on in Orario that the protagonists completely miss because they are so singularly focused on simple things
Lili however is intimately acquainted with the workings of Orario's rumor mill, because not being so could get her killed
Akashic Records said:
This meant that instead of being a perfect sphere, her field of influence was closer to a mass of groping psychic tendrils, at least as far as she could tell.
This did have the effect of increasing the range of her control. Still the same volume, so to speak, just flattened and spread out.
other posters have already sprung on this, but also putting my hand up to say this is dope
Akashic Records said:
"A regular ant can sense vibrations as well as smell using its antenna," Taylor informed them as they fought. "In essence, they are the ant's ears and nose at the same time. You will be able to cripple them by cutting them off. Aim for those if you need to escape as it will severely hamper their ability to chase you."
another note for Taylor being completely different from every other adventurer Lili has ever known: Taylor is taking the time to explain what's going on, give Lili tips, is letting her practice in a safe environment.
like, this is normal (or will become normal) for Taylor and Bell, because she's the more experiened member of the team and she's been a mentor before. training him is what we expect.
but Lili? Her entire life nobody has done that.
a surreal experience in more ways than one
Akashic Records said:
"I-is it really okay for Lili to have this much?" Lili asked hesitantly, as if she couldn't believe her luck.
"We divide everything evenly between us," Taylor told her. Each of them had gotten a quarter of the haul, with the final fourth being put into the Hestia Familia's bank account as usual.
and finally this- Lili is used to getting scraps from the adventurers' haul, if they pay her at all. most of what she gains is probably stuff she hid away or stole while they weren't looking
but here? While some money does indeed go into the 'bank' for the Familia...among the members of the team they all get an equal share.
granted this IS something this story shares with canon, but much like earlier Taylor is treating Lili as a full member of the team. she is expected to pull her weight in a fight and she IS carrying the bags...but when time comes to split the loot Taylor isn't taking a bigger share of the loot and neither is Bell.
even the size of the haul notwithstanding, that means a lot
Akashic Records said:
As for where it will stay, I'm going to have Anne dig a den nearby. She'll make a small cave for herself and Chris, and it'll also be where the spiders will work on making silk."
this is a good idea, but i was legitimately expecting Taylor to start gathering more and have them start expanding the basem*nt so they can have more space
like, unless they plan to move sometime soon (which...they might) it's probably on Taylor's to-do list to improve their living situation
and while sprucing up the church or knocking down the adjacent buildings might get them in trouble if the person who happens to own the deed to the land stops by...digging out a few extra rooms underground proooobably isn't going to be noticed
Akashic Records said:
'It seems my hum has gained its own sound, for better or worse,' Taylor noted as she waited for Hestia to finish.
and how appropriate it is
Akashic Records said:
MAGIC – H 101 → F 319
"Well, I think I can safely say you are going to end up being perfect as a Mage," Hestia said as Taylor examined her stats. The parahuman could only nod at that, as her Magic stat was by far the highest of them at the moment, and it was growing the fastest.
so this just occured to me: Taylor's magic is already at an F. it literally tripled in a single day
she only needs a D rank to qualify for a Level Up
granted I don't think Taylor is going to do that- even if she doesn't decide to munchkin, it's still probably not worth it/she hasn't faced a big enough challenge yet- but as far as stats are concerned she'll probably qualify for that Level Up inside of a week
Akashic Records said:
"It didn't increase by much. Just a few feet. But even if it's just a centimeter every point or so, that will certainly add up fast at the rate the stat is improving," Taylor said.
yeah, it's not a huge boost, but even if we are being conservative and saying it's two points to a centimeter, even if she doesn't go into S-ranks she could probably add a dozen feet or more to her range in every direction (which we now know is flexible) per level
and that's assuming that gain remains both linear and conservative; neither of those is guaranteed
Great Greedy Guts said:
I mean, she has no real reason to. Bell, in canon, IIRC, wasn't really bringing in an unusual amount in a day, and had a knife potentially worth a huge amount. No reason to not treat him like any other adventurer.
Taylor, on the other hand, brings in way more money than usual and does so in a way that can't be replicated. She's also notable enough that she might be missed if she vanishes by more than just one minor goddess.
So I'd be very surprised indeed if she pulled a canon on them, without being genuinely forced into doing so (and honestly even then, given Taylor's pets being able to threaten Level 2s).
065tdsa said:
Going with Taylor also happens to be the safest way anybody can adventure in the upper floors. Being able to just take over one of the more common monster types trivializes the entire experience and all but eliminates the small persistent chance of death that exists otherwise, because you literally don't have to do anything but harvest corpses and carry loot.
yeah, Canoe or some other Soma crony
couldtry and pull her into some sort of revenge scheme, but realistically speaking this is probably the best setup Lili could have for getting what she wants (funds to get out of her sh*tty position). she does not trust adventurers, but this is still probably her best ticket out even without considering their personal conduct, so it would be a conflict of her interests to kill them on her own
Rooks Fiction said:
I wonder if hestia will get the credit? As goddess of hearth and home, she's basically the goddess of family. With the Way other god's families excel in in areas corresponding to their God's domain, I could see people deciding hestia had some secret way to help her family thrive.
If i had to point to anything on the subject, give them anything to point to: Hestia is the goddess of home and family. she doesn't have much, but she gives to those in need, even and especially those that other people have given up on, and puts her whole heart into taking care of them.
Hestia is finding diamonds in the drainpipes because nobody else is looking
Ravenwood240 said:
i'm not holding my breath...but by god, i hope this happens!
I want
for Taylor and her new family to come home after a long day to relax among colorful tapestries and silken bedsheets, absolutely spotless because of the giant spider she left to take care of the house
