Memory of Chaos: Climb

Memory of Chaos: Climb was a character scenario released in Mass for the Dead, featuring the character Climb.

Episode 1: Current State
In Re-Estize, the capital of the Re-Estize Kingdom, in the royal palace, is Lakyus Alvein Dale Aindra and the third princess Renner. Alongside the princess is her bodyguard, Climb. The two listen to Lakyus who informs them on the situation ever since the Cracks appeared throughout the lands and haven been the cause of destructive disasters occurring in not just the Kingdom, but even in countries like the Baharuth Empire and Slane Theocracy as well. And according to rumors, all over the continent, the damage caused by Chaos Beasts is said to be also enormous.

The number of the dead are too many to count and those that have survived after being attacked by Chaos Beasts have fled and became refugees fleeing to any large city with a castle wall. However, not all of the cities can accept such a large number of refugees entirely and there is still damages caused by Chaos Beasts and monsters.

Lakyus states that her adventurer team is doing their duty by guarding refugees and subjugating Chaos Beasts, with help from the capital. However, the adventurer is not convinced that it will be enough to solve this crisis. Renner thinks that even if they had enough people, not everyone can deal with the new monsters they face, which Lakyus agrees on. She mentions that its even worse for the city of E-Rantel as there are plenty of Chaos Beasts whom have been prowling around the city as of late. And while Lakyus's comrades are dealing with other matters, she thinks that the city should be monitored too.

Climb watching how the discussion went, is disgruntled at the the Kingdom's lack of adamantite adventurer teams to address these issues that they are facing and ponders on the strength of the Chaos Beasts. Lakyus asks if her talk is making him worry, which Climb states he is just thinking about the potential dangers. Lakyus tells that him that he is not alone in that regard as even Renners has difficulty sleeping with all the trouble they have on their plates. This causes him to feel bad as his woes are nothing compared to his princess's plight on being unable to protect her people. Lakyus wishing to change the mood of the room, decides to give her friends some three good pieces of news.

One of which being that they already know is the conclusion of the signing of the Tripartite Agreement with the Empire. It was seen as a major step forward between both the Kingdom and Empire, given the poor relationship over the past few years and for them to come together as allies is seen as a miracle to have happen. Secondly, she reports that the Adventurer's Guild officially gave them permission to follow through with the national requests, allow her to move openly even if she gets requests of her "friends," without having to worry about the eyes of the guild who would normally try to keep a distance from politics. This second bit of news while good for Renner, causes Climb to be envious as Lakyus can now actively help the princess in more capacity. As for the third piece of news, the adventures states that a proposed facility for refugees from the vicinity of the Royal Capital has been proven successful all in due thanks to Renner's efforts. And while there isn't much space, and scattered around here and there, at least it has been finally resolved. But right now, Lakyus would like to go over the supply list with Renner. Though Lakyus has been working with the soldiers managing the refugee camps, Lakyus's main duties have been subduing Chaos Beasts, so the management of the supplies have been left in their hands. She wishes to have the princess review the numbers of the administration and make sure there are no discrepancies. Renner then takes a look at the list and states that there isn't any serious excesses of deficiencies, but recommends that they have equipment ready for the refugees for rain and cold weather. While refugees may bring their own equipment and gear, its better to be prepared ahead of time. The talk about rain causes Renner to recall and mention that was when she happen to encounter Climb for the first time during that one fateful day. The two would reminiscence at that time until Lakyus steps in to have them return their attention and focus back to the situation at hand. It was then arranged that they will have proper weather proof tents be prioritized for the old, pregnant women and children.

After finishing her calculations, Renner that enjoyed some black tea. Lakyus takes the moment to praise the princess for her idea in investing private funds to establish the evacuation facility and supplies as it paid off in the end. Renner still feels guilty as it was actually from a small amount of tax from the people, but her friend Lakyus states that it was for a good cause as opposed to her brothers and the other nobles that compete for the throne. Lakyus feels nobles should use their powers to help the common people, as anything else is a hindrance. A person like Renner is worthy of respect, which Climb agrees to the comment. Lakyus then asks if Climb could allow her and Renner to speak in private as they need to address something. Climb obeys her request and proceeds to leave the room afterward, having already decided to then head over to the soldiers' dining area for lunch.

Episode 2: Warrior Chief Conflict
After finishing lunch at the dining area, Climb walks down the hallway towards the training ground to kill time as both Renner and Lakyus are still talking in private. Climb notices that he wasn't harassed like normally at the dining area, and wonders if the diminished hostility is accredited to the soldiers being weary. The Kingdom still does not have enough manpower for the reconstruction of the castle, security, and measures against Chaos Beasts. Though Climb knows his role in the castle, he yearns to help Renner who is suffering from the plight of the people.

Climb spots a graven faced Gazef Stronoff and approaches him asking what has happened. The Warrior Captain at first tells him he was just lost in thought, but Climb presses the matter. Gazef asks Climb why he is not with the princess, which he is informed by the young man that he is on break while his mistress is having a private discussion and was about head to the training grounds. The older man thinks Climb should take it easy and not push himself too hard. Noticing Stronoff is not his normal self, Climb once again asks what happened which the Warrior Captain relents and takes Climb to an empty room.

There, he tells Climb that the number of Chaos Beasts' attacks on E-Rantel have been steadily increasing which correlates with what Climb heard from Lakyus and that there is a serious shortage of human resources who can deal with the monsters. Right now, the king and him are trying to find alternative ways to suppress the damage, with the best way being to send some of the Royals defenders as reinforcements. Climb realizes if the king does something like that, it will only end up leaving the Royal Capital to become defenseless during the process.

Another way would be for Gazef to take some soldiers heading to E-Rantel and deal with it himself, but he cannot leave the king's side during these perilous times. The captain is a trump card of the Royals, defense in an emergency, as a powerful Chaos Beast could be waiting to target the city. It lays out the hard choices Gazef is dealing with to his friend Climb. The young man lists some options that they could take, like increasing the number of requests to adventurers, since the Adventurer's Guild is now accepting missions from the government.

This being new to Gazef, the Warrior Captain thinks it to be a good idea, but it won't be easy, as even among the adventurers, there are only a few who deal with Chaos Beasts. The ones who can handle them are only small in number, unless they happen to be adamantite rank. Gazef would like the adventurers instead to prioritize on their own duties in and around the Royal Capital.

So far, they only have quantity rather than quality in terms of adventurers who are mostly of lower rank and unable to effectively fight Chaos Beasts. Plus no matter what the guild does, it does not always give priority to the national affairs. Climb then asks about the idea for calling reinforcements from the Theocracy and Empire since E-Rantel is an important place for the three countries. But it appears that the other countries are facing situations just as serious as the Kingdom, like insufficient manpower.

Having no fruitful suggestions, Climb apologizes for wasting Gazef's time and his inability to improve the situation, disappointing himself. Gazef states that it wasn't pointless as he was able to get the anxiety of his duties out for these difficult tasks. He tells Climb that it's hard to protect what he wants to protect, but he doesn't have to worry about it.

Truthfully, Gazef tells Climb what they need is not a soldier or adventurer but someone who could fight the Chaos Beasts. Climb suddenly has a slim hope for an idea, as there was a rumor, in the soldier's cafeteria, and while he cannot guarantee its benignity, he informs the Warrior Captain that there is someone in the Royal Capital, neither a soldier nor an adventurer, who can compete with the Chaos Beasts.

Gazef finds it hard to believe and asks for the name of the individual which Climb reveals to be Brain Unglaus, a name which the former recognizes. A swordsman who once fought evenly with him in the final match of the Royal Tournament. If it's him, Gazef is confident that Brain could defeat any Chaos Beast that crosses his path. While the news is great for Gazef, he finds it perplexing that despite all of Brain's ability, he is not an adventurer. Gazef wants to solicit Brain's assistance for the Kingdom, surprising Climb in how much faith Gazef has for the man and speaks volumes of Brain's strength. Unsure if his old foe is still in the Royal Capital, Gazef opts to seek him out immediately and asks for his last location.

Climb heard from a guard stationed at the South Gate so he assumed Brain could be found there. Now with a clue, Gazef hurries to go and find Brain. Climb asks if Gazef could use some company, but the Warrior Captain declines as he feels he occupied too much of Climb's time already who needs to return to Renner's side. Seeing Gazef off, Climb still feeling unfulfilled at being unable to help Renner, he has a moment of inspiration, and hurries back to Renner's room.

Episode 3: Determination, Confession and Mission
Upon returning to Renner's room, Climb nervously asks his mistress to be allowed permission to leave the castle. Renner and Lakyus are surprised by the request, however listen to Climb's reason. As he insisted to the two that he wanted to go and help people, Climb suggests doing that by either transporting supplies to the evacuation facilities, distributing, acting as a guard, or any other chores. The princess doesn't mind and grant him his request. Lakyus wonders what's with the change in initiative as he normally doesn't act unless ordered to by the princess.

Climb states that he wants to be outside the castle so he can get a job close to where a situation when Chaos Beasts may approach the Royal Capital. In addition to that, since he is a warrior of the Princess, and works at the shelter with her, it would help to further increase the reputation of Renner.

Lakyus finds the idea sound, though a bit redundant as Renner's reputation is already high enough. She guesses that he is being motivated by something else, which Climb confesses to be true. He wants to protect Renner and will do anything worthwhile to serve and benefit her needs. Not just her but also her smile, which draws silence among the women. Lakyus especially doesn't get it, but Climb tells her to think of it as him trying his very best to help and protect the people on behalf of Renner, as a proxy, and leading to the protection of the spiritual health of Renner, who suffers from their plight. Renner's burns red from this declaration, but is nevertheless happy to have a servant like Climb by her side.

Lakyus too commends the action, and decides this to be the perfect time to open up another issue that needs to be talked about. During a time while they were having a cup of tea together, the adamantite adventurer talks about the details of a "request". The request being to guard the evacuation facility below the castle. Publicly, its to serve as security for the refugees on behalf of Renner, but in reality there is a thief that needs to be caught. Since the beginning of the construction of refugee facilities, there have been many thefts, not by the refugees but possibly by an outsider who has committed multiple crimes. According to a few eyewitness testimonies, some people already have been robbed of precious stones, precious metals, and other valuables by this perpetrator. Many refugees took what they could carry with them and are now being targeted by a thief in their midst. If it spreads to the rest of the city, suspicion will fall on the refugees in the city rather than the true perpetrator who remain at large and yet to be caught. Knowing that the people have already lost their homes and livelihoods, Lakyus wants to avoid the refugees from being persecuted or worse have a riot start which would leave the soldiers no choice but to use force to suppress them.

The incident needs to be resolved as quickly as possible before a situation happens. Lakyus already has her two teammates, Tina and Tia on the case, but even with them it will still take time. Plus, her group can only stay in the city for a limited amount of time until they are called to do another Chaos Beast subjugation mission. The thief is suspected of being somehow connected with a dirty guard, who is leaking guard patrols and the timing of food distribution. There may be more people involved with this crime, which causes Climb to worry, but Lakyus assures him that he is stronger than he think he is. Renner gives Climb encouragement and tells him to leave the castle and catch the thief himself, reminding him to "protect (her) smile".

Episode 4: Take Action, And
Immediately ready, Climb appears at the refuge site in pure white armor. He surveys the scene; tents lined up in the ruins of a collapsed mansion, refugees packed underneath...the number of limited facilities is evident, making it seem like an uncomfortable environment to be in. The air is also tense as Lakyus had feared, thinking that a riot could occur at any moment now.

Climbs meets with a chief security guard, who complains about the refugees, calling them totally ungrateful even though the princess contributed her personal funds to them. The young man is more neutral, stating that it is natural for the refugees to be dissatisfied with their circumstances. The princess is all too aware of their plight. If they are unsatisfied with something then it will be up to soldiers like them to solve it as quickly as possible. The guard realizing he misspoke in front of Renner's bodyguard, apologizes stating that it was a jest. Climb tells him he will overlook it, though he suspects the ill intent of the other man. The guard notices Climb's armor and inquires if his armor is made of mithril. Climb confirms that it indeed is made out of such material and was a gift from none other than the princess herself. And explains that he has been under the princess's service ever since she picked him up from the street. The guard finds it to be unbelievable and inquires if it would be possible for Climb to estimate his strength in terms of an adventurer. The bodyguard states that his level would be around either iron or silver ranks.

The guard feeling humbled, ask Climb what he will be planning to do later, to which Climb states he will return to the castle after addressing the refugees' complaints. The soldier then leaves as he has another shift at a different location. Climb then heads to the refugee's tent to listen, after seeing the chief guard expressionlessly passing away. After finishing his duties, Climb is slowly walking through a lonely back alley, which is a shortcut to the castle. Three thugs appear to block his path. As Climb suspected, the guard he talked to is to blame but is surprised on the fact that they acted so fast to attack him. The warrior is attacked from all side by the bandits. Despite being assailed, Climb manages to eliminate one of them, causing the rogues to realize that he is not an iron ranked level adventurer but stronger. Another of them is cut down by Climb and the last is finished off with the warrior using "Ability Boost" to help defeat him. Thinking that he finally took care of all of them, Climb is then slashed from above as another bandit enters from the roofs. Injured by the attack, Climb uses "Fortress" to boost his defenses. The bandit caught by surprise is then taken out by Climb. Panting, Climb hears a round of clapping from none other than Gagaran who was shadowing him just in case. Since Climb caught these men by himself, Gagaran offers to take them to the authorities while he goes back and rest. However, Climb still wants to do an interrogation on them. The adventurer however, believes she is more than suited for the task compared to him who is currently wounded from the battle. She then menacingly asks one of the conscious bandits if he is a virgin, frightening him. Seeing her eagerness, Climb allows her to do the honors, thanking Gagaran and quickly returning to the castle thereafter.

Episode 5: At The End Of The Day
When he returned to the castle, Climb reported to Renner about his success. The princess asks about the security chief that was leaking information to the thieves, which Gagaran is now handling. Not only that, it seems that the guard was also stealing from the relief supplies for the refugees. However now with this crime solved, the dissociation of the refugees will lessen all thanks to Lakyus. Renner states not to forget his part in the matter. But Climb states it was all due to the armor he wore to draw out the criminals. However, Climb did manage to succeed in doing one thing, returning to her safely—-and protecting her smile. The princess has Climb rest up which he complies with a feeling of fulfillment and motivation for tomorrow, leaving Renner with a smile.

Climb soon bumps into Gazef, who reports that Brain Unglaus has accepted his offer to fight for the Kingdom. He gives his thanks to Climb for directing him to his old contact. The young man brushes Gazef's thanks as it was nothing. Gazef asks if Climb wants to train, but Climb is wary of the idea, as he fears the other nobles might use it against him and the princess and possibly against the king. However, Gazef feels that he needs to push himself after meeting his old friend and invites Climb, who hesitantly accepts. The two then head to the training grounds with Climb still feeling the need to seek power to protect the one he loves.

Trivia

 * This character scenario was released before the release of Nazarick Revitalization Plan -Mock Battle-.
 * This character scenario was released alongside the Memory of Chaos: Brain Unglaus, Memory of Chaos: Gazef Stronoff and Memory of Chaos: Neuronist Painkill.