Aurien/Stories
Quotes
Adventurer Story Episodes
Lady Luck's Tamer
Ranzal: Damn! That's ANOTHER loss! How've I still not won a SINGLE ROUND?!
Euden: What's got you shouting, Ranzal?
Euden: Are you playing dice?
Ranzal: Yeah, and this guy's a total beast.
Ranzal: It's like he knows what number's gonna come up before he throws the things.
Aurien: Hah! You flatter me. I'm many things, friend, but clairvoyant isn't one of them.
Aurien: You mustn't rail against your own luck.
Aurien: Lady Luck is a sensitive soul. Slight her, and she'll surely forsake you.
Aurien: But put your trust in her, and she'll return your love tenfold—in due time!
Aurien: Patience and faith. That's how Lady Luck is wooed.
Ranzal: Spare me the poetry, pal.
Ranzal: Don't think ya got it all figured out just 'cause yer on a lucky streak.
Ranzal: Rrgh, I'm passin' the baton to you. Avenge me, Euden!
Euden: B-but I don't even know the rules of the game!
Ranzal: Eh, it's easy. Yer gonna be fine.
Aurien: Then you're my next opponent?
Aurien: Aurien is the name. I'm a traveling gambler of sorts.
Aurien: A pleasure to make your acquaintance...?
Euden: Euden. And the pleasure is mine.
Aurien: Ahh, a familiar name.
Aurien: I've heard the rumors, friend. All of them good. Now, shall we begin?
Euden: I'm ready. Er, but try to go easy on me.
Aurien: ......
Aurien: What?! That's not...
Euden: I...won?
Ranzal: Bwa ha ha! Looks like Lady Luck just dumped ya, buddy!
Ranzal: I knew it! Beginners always catch her eye.
Aurien: Heh heh... I see.
Aurien: You've been chosen by fortune herself.
Euden: That seems like a bit of an exaggeration.
Euden: I think Ranzal has the right idea. Just a bit of beginner's luck.
Aurien: There are no coincidences in this world, Euden.
Aurien: Fortune does not pick winners haphazardly.
Aurien: If what I've heard is true, you're looking for allies to join your cause.
Aurien: Looking to do something truly big.
Euden: Well, yes, I suppose—
Aurien: Will you deal me in?
Euden: You want to join us? Are you sure?
Aurien: A betting man is never certain, but that's half the thrill.
Aurien: I'll take my chances that you'll prove to be a man smiled upon by fortune.
Ranzal: He's a pretty smooth talker, and he's got a head for strategy. Might be useful.
Euden: If you would fight alongside us, I welcome the help. Nice to have you along, Aurien!
An Innocent Game
Elisanne: So you were born a noble, Aurien?
Aurien: Yes, to an old aristocratic house some seven generations deep at this point.
Aurien: But my own path diverged when I first picked up dice at the academy.
Aurien: Now they're my life.
Cleo: A rather remarkable turn.
Elisanne: Yes. I don't know much about those sorts of amusements, but your story is fascinating.
Elisanne: Your dice game has certainly captivated Ranzal. It must be quite alluring.
Aurien: Any interest in finding out for yourselves, ladies?
Aurien: I would be happy to teach you. A single round and you'll have it mastered.
Elisanne: Oh! May I?
Cleo: I...think I'll sit here and watch, thank you.
Aurien: As you wish. If you change your mind, you need only say the word.
Elisanne: Ah, they match! Then I've won?
Elisanne: I can see the appeal. This IS rather fun!
Elisanne: Look, Cleo! I've won again!
Cleo: Yes...so it seems.
Aurien: I can see you're much beloved by fortune, Elisanne.
Elisanne: Er, I suppose? But I'm curious: you've yet to win a round, yet you seem absolutely delighted regardless.
Aurien: Ahh, games of chance are a matter of luck, and a humble human cannot hope to alter fortune's course.
Aurien: Luck flows like a river, you see. All I can do is let its current take me.
Aurien: At times, Lady Luck may turn a cold shoulder your way.
Aurien: But her caprice makes her no less alluring. It's all part of the game's charm.
Elisanne: You're quite humble, I see.
Aurien: Besides, how could I be anything but delighted sharing a table with a beauty such as yourself?
Aurien: To ask for any greater fortune would surely be hubris.
Elisanne: You, sir, are incorrigible! I'll not be taken in by such obvious flattery.
Elisanne: ...What is it, Cleo? That's quite the look on your face.
Elisanne: He's a shameless flirt, but he's harmless.
Cleo: I wonder.
Cleo: I've been watching the dice rather closely, and something feels extremely unnatural.
Cleo: Almost as if he's intentionally making you win.
Aurien: Ha ha! And just what would I stand to gain from losing?
Cleo: I've been told that it's the clumsy card sharp who does nothing but win.
Cleo: After a handful of losses, most patsies will cut their losses and run.
Cleo: But give them a few wins to make them think their luck is infallible, and they'll bet their last coin.
Cleo: Quite an effective strategy, really.
Cleo: Indeed, Elisanne was well on her way to falling for it.
Elisanne: I was?!
Aurien: You're very wise, dear Cleo.
Aurien: Which is why it pains me all the more that someone I so respect would doubt me.
Elisanne: I'm sorry, Aurien. I'm sure she meant no insult.
Elisanne: Really, Cleo, you mustn't go flinging around baseless accusations.
Cleo: ...Indeed.
The Gamble That Counts
Euden: And you're absolutely certain Aurien is cheating, Cleo?
Cleo: He's fleeced half the castle by this point.
Cleo: If he were simply outplaying them, I'd have no complaints. If it were luck, so be it.
Cleo: But I saw him manipulate the dice with my own eyes!
Aurien: You have me dead to rights, my dear.
Aurien: Wise, observant Cleo. Your kind is always trouble for men like me.
Euden: So you've been rigging the games all this time?
Euden: Why stoop to such tactics?
Aurien: Luck is a fickle friend.
Aurien: It will help you win sporadically. But to win reliably? That takes a bit of ingenuity.
Aurien: Feign destiny. Sprinkle a bit of drama and mystique! And always make it elegant.
Aurien: That doesn't end with the dice.
Aurien: I've lived my entire life that way, meticulously stage-directed to appeal!
Euden: And to misdirect your audience while you take advantage of them.
Cleo: You're a fraud. A swindler. A con man.
Aurien: Ha ha ha! So many names. Choose whichever you like.
Cleo: Leave at once.
Euden: Now, let's not be too hasty, Cleo. I'm sure that Aurien had his reasons. Some desperate circumstance, perhaps?
Aurien: She's largely on the mark about the sort of man I am. I make no bones about it.
Aurien: But I've a history that's brought me where I am today, the same as anyone.
Aurien: My father was a noble, and he also held a vast business empire.
Aurien: Everyone agreed he was a man of vision, talent, and drive. But in his last great venture, it was luck that he lacked.
Aurien: We were left with a mountain of debt, abandoned by all but the moneylenders who circled us like vultures.
Aurien: But they did not get to pick this carcass clean.
Aurien: I clawed my way back out with a pair of dice and a bit of smooth talk.
Euden: That must have been quite arduous.
Cleo: Indeed, a story like that warrants pity. ...Or it would, were it true.
Aurien: You won't believe me?
Cleo: Deceit is your stock-in-trade.
Cleo: Whatever it's won you, the price you've paid is the trust of others.
Aurien: Ha! Quite the stern appraisal.
Aurien: I respect my father as a man, but he made one unforgivable mistake...
Aurien: He gambled and lost.
Aurien: And his poor fortune ruined the lives of those he held dearest.
Aurien: When you face down the greatest gamble of your life, you mustn't lose. You cannot.
Aurien: I'm not about to get picky about the means.
Euden: So you deceive others?
Aurien: Quite gladly. You, too, will face a battle you're unwilling to lose someday, Euden. I'm certain of it.
A Gambler's True Joy
Ranzal: Anybody else notice the shady guys skulkin' around outside the castle?
Aurien: My, my... I'm impressed they found this place.
Ranzal: They yer guests, Aurien?
Aurien: They're a pack of city roughs. I played a few rounds with them, and they proved to be sore losers.
Aurien: Though considering the sum I took from them, I'm not entirely surprised.
Aurien: Still, it's awfully childish. They knew the rules and chose to play. It's unbecoming to fuss about the outcome.
Ranzal: Provided ya FOLLOWED those rules...
Cleo: I assume you cheated them as well?
Cleo: Rather rich to hear you lecturing them on proper behavior.
Ranzal: I guess ya try coppin' to it and just apologize?
Aurien: Ha ha ha! No cheating was involved this time, I assure you. And I doubt an apology would satisfy these rogues.
Aurien: After being so roundly embarrassed in front of his men, their boss is rather furious.
Aurien: I barely escaped with my life, frankly.
Ranzal: Over a dice game? Seems a bit extreme.
Aurien: ......
Ranzal: Okay, what ACTUALLY happened?
Aurien: I came across a starry-eyed young man in the main plaza, you see.
Aurien: An actor, it turns out—broke, but talented, and over the moon at having just landed his first leading role.
Aurien: But the head of this pack of thugs chose to rain on his parade by openly mocking him.
Aurien: I overheard and thought it was in poor form, so I proposed a little wager on how the play would fare.
Aurien: The conditions were overwhelmingly in his favor, but should he lose, he promised to kneel before the actor and grovel.
Ranzal: So, how'd it do?
Aurien: The smash hit of the decade! It's the finest show in town—save for the sight of that ruffian on his knees in the city square.
Aurien: The crowd loved watching both. It seems the villain is rather unpopular with his fellow citizens.
Aurien: The actor's gone on to do quite well for himself, though. He sends me box seat tickets to every performance.
Cleo: A charming story, though it means you've made yourself a target.
Aurien: I'm not too broken up over it.
Aurien: I stand by my bet. I want to see that rising star ascend to its rightful spot in the sky! Encouraging those dreams is my joy in life.
Ranzal: Huh. That's actually pretty decent of ya. I'm starting to see ya in a different light, Aurien. Eh, Cleo?
Cleo: Yes... Perhaps.
Aurien: I consider what I did a public service. If that earns me a few grudges, so be it.
Aurien: ...Though I'm not entirely convinced it's me they're after this time.
Cleo: Oh? And what does that mean?
Aurien: Heh. Perhaps nothing at all.
Aurien: ...I suspect it will become clear soon enough.
A Mesmerizing Dice Roll
Cleo: Thank you for your help with the shopping, Euden.
Euden: Of course. I couldn't very well ask you to carry this mountain of groceries alone. We can—
???: End of the road for you, Yer Highness! ...Get the ropes, boys.
Euden: Huh?
Euden: Augh!
Cleo: Euden! Just what do you people think—
Cleo: Hngh!
Euden: Ngh... Why are you doing this?
Boss: There's plenty of folks would pay a pretty pile'a coin for you, Highness.
Boss: You're about to make me a veeery wealthy man. Heh heh heh...
Cleo: So those thugs hanging around the castle weren't after Aurien.
Euden: Rgh, I was careless.
Aurien: Need a hand?
Boss: Aurien!
Aurien: It's been a while, friend. Speaking of which, these two are also friends of mine.
Aurien: Perhaps you could see fit to let them go as a favor to me?
Boss: ＂Friends＂ my gouty foot. You were after him for yourself, weren't you?
Boss: Well, you were too slow. I'm not handing over the goose with the golden eggs now.
Boss: But you're welcome to try taking him by force! Gwa ha ha ha!
Aurien: Perish the thought! Violence is so terrifically inelegant.
Aurien: I propose a game of dice.
Boss: Are you completely daft?
Boss: We know all your tricks by now.
Boss: If you think your little game's going to end the same way it did before, you're sorely mistaken.
Aurien: I see. Then why don't we have a good, clean game and leave it all up to fortune? You can name your conditions.
Euden: Aurien, don't!
Aurien: No cause for alarm, friend. I'll see you two freed.
Aurien: Besides, it's time I showed I'm more than the sum of my tricks.
Aurien: I'll make Lady Luck stand up and take notice of me yet!
Aurien: Now, shall I roll the dice? Watch closely... Hah!
Euden: What?! *cough* Those dice are SMOKING!
Boss: Dammit, I can't see a thing! Aurien! *cough* You scoundrel!
Cleo: Euden, I believe this is our cue.
Aurien: Shake a leg, you two! Let's go!
Cleo: I might have known you were up to something when you proposed an honest game.
Aurien: Gambling isn't just about dice games. This is how I live my life.
Euden: Well, thanks to you, we made it back home safe. And without a drop of blood spilled on either side.
Euden: Elegant indeed. Thank you, Aurien!
Cleo: I will confess I did not expect you to come running to our rescue.
Aurien: I told you before, when the stakes are highest, a gambler mustn't lose.
Aurien: And right now I'm eyeing the gamble of a generation.
Aurien: I'm betting Euden reshapes all Grastaea's future.
Aurien: I'm not about to allow anyone to get in the way of that!
Euden: All Grastaea! You really think so highly of me?
Aurien: From the moment I saw you.
Aurien: It was reason enough to cheat my way into your entourage, at any rate.
Euden: You cheated back then?
Euden: But wait, when we first played, I was the one who won.
Euden: Don't tell me you intentionally...
Aurien: Heh heh. Who can say?
Aurien: Perhaps I did...or perhaps I'm bluffing.
Aurien: Just know that the fact that I'm betting on you is very much the truth.
Aurien: And I have every intention of winning!