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Lady

Keiko Kagura

The piercing gaze coming from her demonic looking, green-and-red eyes touches you

The mysterious, elegant raen

Background

Curious, are we?
Don't worry, I won't pry why you're interested in that raen...
I still find it ironic that you inquire about someone who is known as a networker that collects information and brings people together...Unfortunately for you, you probably have to do some legwork if you would like to pierce that shroud of mystery that surrounds her past. And I can't help you with any clues about what happened prior to her arrival in Eorzea.But don't worry, as an info-broker worth my salt I am able to lead you to a few places that will prove helpful to your search.

• Gridania, adventurers' guild
• Gridania, Lancers' guild
• Gridania, Leatherworkers' guild
• Ul'dah, Royal masquerade ball
• Back

The mysterious, elegant raen
Background

Gridania, Adventurers' guild

The guild is bustling with both: Adventurers and travellers, old and new.Thanks to the guild you gather that the elegant looking raen first registered here at the age of 19 summers, about 9 summers ago. There was no mention of where she originally came from, only that she immediately entered the lancers' guild and also ended up mingling with all the remaining guilds in Gridania to various degrees.
And the receptionist even points you to a few people nearby.

• A party in their 30's
• An old looking elezen local
• A seasoned recruitment officer of the twin adders
• Back

The mysterious, elegant raen
Gridania, Adventurers' guild

A Party in their 30's

“Oh, you mean Keiko? Yeah, she was in our party a long time ago.”
Some of the adventurers seem to know the raen.Apparently shortly after registering to the guild she had gotten a full set of steel chainmail for herself, and in need of coin to pay it off she happily joined the party.
Keiko never talked about where she came from or her family and was usually seen as unapproachable and quiet.“Except that one time we met that other party, which had pretty much screwed up and dragged us into a nasty fight in the south shroud...” The leader, a brown haired hyur mused. The healer, a blonde elezen chuckled and added: “Oh yeah, I almost felt sorry for that other party leader, groveling at her feet and being stomped on while she cursed his incompetence.”The archer nods with a smile on her face. “Remember how she almost got us killed in Southern Thanalan?”
They explained that apparently Keiko for some reason refused to attack any kind of earth-spirits. Which regarding the usually passive earth-sprites wasn’t really an issue until they were facing a sandstone golem near the temple of Qarn: After declaring 'Oh, I'm absolutely not going to attack it.' apparently a totally relaxed Keiko with her lance resting against her shoulder and a mildly amused expression on her face had to be convinced by the rest of the visibly panicking party that golems were magical constructs and didn’t quite count as natural elementals - All while their tank had to run laps in front of them, avoiding the golem’s attacks.All in all the members that knew Keiko seem to be fond of her and knew her as a strong lancer, though nobody exactly knew why she stopped being adventurer.

• Look for other persons in the adventurers' guild
• Leave

The mysterious, elegant raen
Gridania, Adventurers' guild

An old looking elezen local

“I am not going to borrow you any gil stranger, so how about you get lost or even better: Get a job!”The old man seemingly took you for a freeloader, so you had to explain first.Apparently the old man was drinking in the Carline Canopy as usual as the raen arrived by airship.
He vividly remembered her because of her odd looking lance, its handle made of red dyed wood with decorations seemingly made out of ornate gold stood in stark contrast to its tip which was nothing more than a straight, double-edged blade. Under her green robe she wore exotic looking garments colored in vivid red and purest white.
He didn’t think any of it at the time, thinking that she was just another, ignorant foreigner that would leave once she made some coin.“...But I was wrong. That girl actually tried to integrate into our society, learn our customs and traditions and always treated her elders with respect.” The elezen raises a brow, eyeing a group of nearby adventurers “Which is rare with the youngsters today! I know no one that ever saw the girl being disrespectful in all the years she lived here. And unlike the many rude and stagnant adventurers that create nothing but commotion and trouble, she even transformed into a cute dress-wearing flower.”In the end it seemed like it took many moons and seasons, but the raen was able to change the cold attitude that many locals had towards foreigners and adventurers with her charming personality, her efforts in the local guilds and her clear intentions to appreciate and learn everything about gridanian culture.
Apparently most conservative elezen eventually accepted and welcomed the young raen in their midst – While even the most xenophobic ended up respecting her for her skills with the lance and avoided to directly confront or bother her.

• Look for other persons in the adventurers' guild
• Leave

The mysterious, elegant raen
Gridania, Adventurers' guild

A seasoned recruitment officer

“And you’re sure you don’t want to join?”
The man wearing a twin adder uniform lets out a sigh.
“Okay, a deal is a deal. I heard about some young Au Ra that apparently was very skillful with a lance back then. And obviously... I tried to recruit her.”He goes on, telling you that apparently she didn’t care about the ongoing conflicts of Eorzea and showed no interest to fight for anyone else but herself. No matter the coin or benefits offered.“...And after about half a year I gave up. It however still puzzles me how she was able to become a resident of 'Lavender Beds', especially since even citizen were excluded from living in the wards in favor of high ranking adventurers that pledged their allegiance to a grand company.”

• Look for other persons in the adventurers' guild
• Leave

The mysterious, elegant raen
Background

Gridania, Leatherworkers' guild

Upon entering the leatherworkers’ guild your nose is greeted with the sharp and unpleasant scent of the many liquids used for tanning leather.It seemed a bit out of place in comparison to the other locations that were listed and while wondering if this one was a dead end you search for someone to talk with.
But as soon as the guild master Geva finds out that you’re neither paying customer nor a new apprentice you get shushed out of the workshop to not disrupt the work of the many busy leatherworkers.“A raen clad in green you say? Well yes, what about her?”
Thankfully the hyur at the reception seems to be able to help you out too.
“Well from what I know initially she tried her hands at leatherworking herself. Apparently there was some sort of chemistry between her and Geva and... And let me tell you: It was not the good kind.” He nervously chuckles
“Imagine a lot of glares and passive aggressive replies. Geva - even though the raen apparently made precise cuts - really didn’t like that she also was wasteful with the materials and didn’t like to tan the hides herself avoiding the foul smelling liquids as good as she could.”
Once more a chuckle erupts from the receptionist before he explained: “Tanning hides is usually the only job apprentices get.”“Now, against all odds the raen was apparently very creative with inventing patterns and designs that actually worked well, so she somewhat managed to dodge Geva’s boot-“ He laughed out loud “ Get it? Boot because being kicked o-“
He clears his throat and continues: “Mhm, well, she ended how I know her: In a weird position, being seen as a ‘more hands-on client’ that was allowed to use materials and assistance from fully fledged leatherworkers in exchange for coin.” The hyur scratches his temple “What kind of patterns and designs you ask? Well...”
He awkwardly stands there for a moment before continuing:
“...I mean there’s a pair of long boots and shoes that seem to sell really well, but... Most of her other designs never were sold in here because they are... pretty, well... unique?”It seems like the blushing receptionist doesn’t want to get into further details.

• Back

The mysterious, elegant raen
Ul'dah, Royal masquerade ball

A lalafell staring daggers at the raen

“That damn vixen. She doesn’t belong here.”
The lalafell rambles, looking towards the raen which was busy talking to other attendees, flanked by the highlander that brought her more wine.
Noticing that you seem to have an open ear for his venting he gives you a nod and motions towards her “Look at them sucking up to her. As if she is a noble!”
He briefly shakes his head before taking another sip from his own cup of wine. Then he motions you to come closer and continues with a slightly lowered voice:
“She apparently was some weird kind of whore that became rich. I don’t question that those spineless monetarists seemingly respect her, but my fellow royalists? Utterly ridiculous! And every time I try to point out that such a lowly lizard shouldn’t be allowed to taint such illustrious occasions they defend her...
Even married men take her side! - I tell you: There’s some foul play, maybe even blackmailing involved.”

• Mingle with the other guests
• Leave the event

The mysterious, elegant raen
Ul'dah, Royal masquerade ball

A cheerful and slightly drunk noble

“Isn’t the whole purpose of a masquerade to stay anonymous, friend?”
The visibly inebriated noble philosophized before he started to laugh and tap you on your shoulder“Sorry! sorry, I am jesting! The woman you mean is lady Kagura, she is quite popular as you can see.”
He motions towards the raen that is currently facing away from you, chatting with some other guests.
You observe one hand of the highlander that brought her the wine slowly approaching the spot of bare, pure white skin on the raen’s back, provided by a revealing cutout of her elegant dress.
As soon as his hand touches her between the shoulder blades however, you immediately see her scaled tail lashing out to the left like a whip, hitting the highlander on his thigh. The hand was removed but the monetarist awkwardly remained close to her side, all the while Keiko kept talking as if nothing happened.“Oh, you should definitively try out these oysters! They’re to die for!” The drunk noble next to you said, before following your gaze. He slurped the remaining oyster in his hand, motioned towards one of the servants to come closer and dropped the empty oyster between the glasses on the golden serving tray before cleaning the remains of the oyster from his hand by rubbing it against the uniform of the servant.
The servant kept smiling, but if stares could kill then the noble wouldn’t be alive anymore.He then turned to you and lowered his voice: “Lady Kagura is quite a dangerous person: One moment she smiles at you, the next you’re revealing state secrets.” He nervously chuckles and quickly adds “Not that this has actually happened to me, but still: She made a lot of gil by accumulating knowledge, contacts and bringing the right people together.” He takes another sip from his drink and observed how the smiling raen, for a brief moment gently leaned against the highlander next to her as to promote whatever he just said.
“Some even pay good coin to make her accompany them to events like these... Sometimes just as ‘eye-candy’, sometimes to seduce someone at the event so they can’t interfere and sometimes to charm a potential business partner and to sweeten a deal. So if you're ever getting approached by her, don’t let your guard down.”

• Mingle with the other guests
• Leave the event

Keiko Kagura

Hooks

Ballroom aficionado
This raen loves to partake in nice events, maybe you meet her there and strike up a conversation?
Maybe you're inviting her to such an occasion as the host, or maybe you try your luck to invite her to one of them as your partner?
Every route will have their up- and downsides, their own little risks and rewards.Sparring partner
As a former adventurer and a proficient lancer you can sometimes find her training in the lancers' guild where she tries to avoid her skills getting too rusty. Aside from that she does enjoy to loose some arrows at the bannock in Gridania's central shroud. Unlike with the lance she never was proficient with the bow, but enjoys the meditative effect of kyudo-inspired archery none the less.
Don't be put off by the fact that she might act cold in the beginning (She really likes to keep to herself during her training) if she is in the mood and you dangle a potential challenge in front of her nose, she might just bite.A new 'customer'
Whether it is someone trying their luck to end up spending some 'quality time' with Keiko, or someone who tries to tap into her extensive network for the sake of their own career or their business venture: If she gets approached in the right manner she'll certainly lend an aural to a mutually beneficial proposal.
But be careful: This doesn't necessary mean that she wants to be paid in coin... Sometimes she likes to keep someone indebted to her... And sometimes those eventually have to pay with their body or soul.An influential contact
Even though Keiko is gil-wise well off, she still gets intrigued by interesting individuals that could prove useful if added to the extensive list of her contacts.Random Encounter
Of course your character can just approach her when she's IC, (which could lead to various degrees of success)
And in case you want to try the pickpocket-angle: As a smart woman she does not carry her gil-pouch visible from the outside, so in case you find out where it is, at least be prepared to roll for defense, because this feisty little raen has the reactions of a lancer and is probably going to lash out.

• Back

The Serpentlady

A poem

Her flexible, gorgeous and scale-adorned body might be drawing your gaze,
but once paralyzed by temptation and the display of danger you’ll pay the price.
A skilled tongue - Through every conversation its words elegantly meander, finding their perfect place.
Heed my warning: Don’t ever get caught by her green-and-red eyes.Better run away and enjoy your freedom, else counted are your days,
because once you realize you’re bitten it is already too late.
Like with strong venom there’s no cure for being tainted by her ways,
even if you push her away, your own senses will draw you back to your inevitable fate.So don’t play with fire and be wary of ladies clad in green,
or with the ember of desire lit you’ll find yourself at the point of no return.
Because things will never rebuild to what they once have been,
as lured by a serpentlady only your husk and ashes will survive her seductive burn."The Serpentlady" - unknown ishgardian artist

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