They were only supposed to pass through Myrrh Hollow.
Just get supplies. Maybe NOT get chased out by monks. The usual.
But destiny?
Destiny had jokes.
As soon as they entered the marketplace, a cloaked figure screamed:
"THE VESSEL RETURNS! BLESSED BE HIS ABS!"
Kazuki froze.
"I'm not even shirtless—"
Then they pointed.
At Darin.
Now, to be fair: Darin was shirtless. He'd taken it off 30 seconds earlier because "the wind felt nice." His swords glinted. His smile sparkled. His hair? Tragic, but artfully messy.
The people of Myrrh Hollow swarmed him.
They threw flowers.
They chanted.
They literally tried to wash his feet.
Kazuki, in the background: "This is fine. This is completely fine. This isn't the worst thing that's happened. Probably."
Mistral: "You look like someone stole your prophecy and then flexed about it."
Vera watched in horror as children held up drawings of Darin slaying gods with laser swords.
Kaelith just deadpanned, "He has charisma. That's how cults start."
[System Alert: Echo Signature Corruption – Someone Else Is Receiving Your Divine Signals]
Kazuki: "WHAT. HOW."
[They believe he is you. The system responds to belief. You are being narratively displaced.]
Kazuki screamed into a basket of oranges.
Meanwhile, Darin was handed a glowing cape and declared the "Sun Vessel of the North."
He turned to Kazuki.
"Hey! I think I accidentally became a regional religion!"
Kazuki: "Cool. I'm going to lie in this ditch."
Later, the town priest approached Kazuki.
"You! The companion! Will you be our Vessel's Fool? The blessed jester?"
Kazuki, blinking: "I'm sorry, did you just try to NPC-sidekick me?!"
That night, in the inn:
Kazuki sulked in the corner, whispering, "This is what I get for trying to be humble."
Darin, still glowing faintly, handed him a mug. "Hey, you're still important. You're like my... morally conflicted foil!"
Kazuki drank the entire mug in one gulp.
Mistral licked his paw. "You are the shadow to his sparkle. The angst to his abs."
Kazuki: "I will burn this world to the ground."
[Alignment Drift: +4%][New Trait Unlocked: Narrative Jealousy – Increases power under emotional distress. Mild risk of spontaneous antihero development.]