Ageratum's Manipulation Chart
Keep in mind, these are his perceived notions. Even when he says "all according to keikaku" while laying face-first in a pile of dirt, he's still laying face-first in a pile of dirt.
What are your thoughts on...
Yana?
"Yana and I have a good relationship. I give her guidance or help from time to time, she helps me out with an issue I have, and all is well! I love backwards savages! Good muscle, and they seem to be universally stupid. Doesn't want to help me with anything shady, though. That's fine, of course. Making the shadiest things look nice is a ability I continue to hone!"
Manipulatability: 7/10
Xū?
"He is not a particularly daft dummy; in fact, he seems to be quite smart, and I acknowledge that he has his own agendas! Alas, he is a Bum of Fate, and also kinda a pushover. I have fostered a good relationship with him: in exchange for some material and quizzical help, he knows his place and can do what I require him to! I thought I couldn't use him for much, but I was surprised. He's really only good for killing, yet there are very many beasts that need killing! Oh, and company, I guess. He's good for that, too."
Manipulatability: 8/10
Shi Rèn?
"I do NOT want to bask in his presence very much. I thought Xū was a Bum of Fate! This guy makes him look like a grand prince! I don't even know how he goes on. Boundless optimism goes a long way, or something like that. I find humor in it! A nudge in the right direction and his misadventures can be harnessed for many things!
...I'll say this. In my tome of Divine Beasts, One's Place, there exists a tale of a ghoulish revenant who faces trial after trial, and returns to life... just to face more trials. I'm not gonna point any fingers, but someone has some bad mojo."
Manipulatability: Bad Idea/10... and 5/10
Shīzi?
"Remember what I said about Yana? He's a lot like that. But unlike lovable Yana, he's ugly and he smells. I recoil when I smell him! I know I should have more patience with wretches, since they're so easily inductible, but there's something about the pride he carries with him that makes it worse. Anyway, as an idiot who really likes to fight, he's useful for an idiot's purpose. Getting him to fight a great beast is child's play. I typically get others to carry along my messages to him... I just hate his stench. One's Place mentions a Nemean Lion. Not much info on it."
Manipulatability: 9/10
Xiu'Er?
"What a fool! He thinks those idiotic proverbs of his mean anything! Wake up, dummy: they were invented by Big Ancestor to sell more pills. However, his naivety makes him easy to point in a heroic direction. Not to mention, his deadly stories have a myriad of effects. Does he have to talk so much, though?"
Manipulatability: 6/10
Ageratum?
"Uh, who do you think you're conversing with?"
Manipulatability: 0/10
"I'm not stupid enough to fall for something like that! I'm always two steps ahead!"
Dong?
"He wishes to teach his Sect's techniques, yet I am only interested in one: that Profession of his. I can only imagine how useful it would be for the proliferation of information! Especially that of informative pamphlets! Ah, as for Dong, he's a typical do-gooder. Easy to push him in a direction with people who need saving."
Manipulatability: 6/10
Saya?
"Not a whole lot different from that foul Lionbeast, is she? Except when it comes to tact. About as smart, about as easy to manipulate, and smells about as bad. I like her a whole lot more, however. Doesn't look as ugly, and not having that self-assured demeanor makes her easier to talk with! Also, when Zhimin comes into play, it becomes much easier to get her to do something if you play to their competition... even if its mostly a reaction."
Manipulatability: 9/10
Tian?
"Ugh, Tian. Pestering, do-gooding, Tian. Always going 'oh, that's a scam, mortal idiot!' And then he goes 'don't fall for that, are you stupid?' ...I'm paraphrasing. He always adds a delightful cushion when he warns mortals of their stupidity. I have to keep out of his sight... when it comes to schemes that deal with my fellow students, he comes sniffing around...
Gave me a poem, once. I thought it insisted upon itself, too preachy.
...One last thing... by any means necessary, he will not be allowed to block the way to my destiny! I will go beyond him, that damn thorn!"
Manipulatability: 0/10
Zhimin?
"A difficult nut to crack. While making her vice of wine known provides an avenue of debt, and appearing similar to the battlehungry savages at a glance, she isn't actually completely stupid. I have to be a lot subtler in my dealings with her. One such subtlety comes in the form of Saya. While far more reserved in her competition, it is not difficult to aid her in driving a wedge between Saya and that sword she hates. And sometimes, you can chip a piece off of the wedge and use it as a... lockpick to open... a door. My wordplay needs work."
Manipulatability: 7/10
Gale?
"What a doofus! Unlike the warhound students, he's not very warhound-y. In exchange, he beyond matches them for sheer stupidity. One of my first schemes was to try and envelop others in my cult... I had Gale hooked, and then Tian showed his mug! Chased me off... after that shocking error in my judgement, I realized that the other students may not be ready just yet to be included in my design. Mortals will have to suit me... for now. Ah, back to Gale, his eagerness to help is well suited for him to help me. Innocent-sounding tasks are even done by him without much complaint, and my reward to him is just enough to keep him happy.
...I do worry about his mentor. Something about it does not sit right with me. One's Place contains knowledge of vicious wind spirts, and this one seems greater than the rest of its kind. I've never met the creature, and I most certainly do not wish to!"
Manipulatability: Wait For Zephyr To Look Away/10... and 9/10
Alkaios?
"Fine, I'll say it! I've pointed Alkaios in the direction of a courtesan, once. I don't associate with them! I pay him in wine! Usually! That was a one-time thing. It'll never happen again. Don't go around saying I associate with courtesans! And don't ask how I know of them.
...Oh, what about him, not me? ...I'm annoyed at his heritage. That... aura. I have not come close to aproximating such a useful ability. If I had that, my Tao would become so much easier to achieve...
...What's that? That wasn't about him again, you say? Ugh, fine. I give him wine to do something heroic, he does it. His demeanor makes him enemies, though. And he makes a lot of them. I try and make sure there's at least a couple degrees of seperation when I need his services."
Manipulatability: 7/10
Hóngxīng?
"Like a piece of clay, easily moulded... well, sort of. My attempt to wield her didn't work out. We had differences. However, she's still easily moulded! A little oil, a little praise, a little of whatever else she desires at any point in time, and she'll do a lot. Just need to make sure she carries through."
Manipulatability: 9/10
Zheng?
"Pfft, what a dweeb! How can any fool seriously follow the path of Sainthood in our world? I'm flabbergasted that such idiots still exist! ...There's something off about him, though. Some sort of... lingering shadow. Nothing resembling him exists in One's Place. It's one of the reasons I keep away from him. The other? He's a preachy Saint."
Manipulatability: 0/10
Xiang?
"I've never met him. I know I'm usually cramped in my hut, pondering my dark dealings, but I at least made an effort to see my fellow students at least once. Except for him! Heard he was too busy arguing about cavemen and fireballs to show up to class, apparently."
Manipulatability: ?/10
Zhou?
"He's like Xū. A Bum of Fate! And he's like a few of the savages. A simple idiot who wishes to prove himself the strongest! And unlike them, he is far more open to dubious deeds. He's surprisingly easy to manipulate. I can start rumors about something powerful I need destroyed, and he'll manage. Especially if it offends him. I am surprised at how he's managed to survive for so long, however. How he has not met his match, I do not know. Will he? Most likely very soon. Until then? He's like a great queen, cleaving pawns away! ...You, uh, know what chess is, right?"
Manipulatability: 9/10
Yue? (the bum)
"Not much to say. She really seems to just pursue... nothing much. Her whims aren't entirely battle-focused, yet she follows them as much as she can. This makes her annoying. Her greatest vice seems to be food, and I've offered it to her as a prize only to face rejection because she was bored! I hate being ignored... the most I can do to get her to do something for me would be to rope her in by having her close by to an objective... not that difficult when she enjoys the company of some of the fellow students, but getting her to do something on her own is ridiculous."
Manipulatability: 4/10
Tora?
"Focused almost entirely on her cultivation, and sparring. I think... I think she just wants to get stronger, and nothing else. Maybe? Hm, she seems closer to the other savages at a closer inspection, if a little more wary. Like the others, I can put an obstacle I need destroyed in her way, and she'll destroy it if it's a good enough challenge. She's lazier than the others, though. Puts a hamper on things. I first thought that someone who focuses on pure survival would mainly go for non-lethal exercises, but I suppose I was mistaken. That's very rare! I should keep a closer eye on my fellow students..."
Manipulatability: 6/10
Batudai?
"He's- wait. I just remembered something! Yes, the Open Sect isn't where I first met him! I met him, while on my travels to the Open Sect! Ahh, I remember it clearly. During a powerful storm, I was resting in a large village. Ah, I was low on cash! I came up with a quick scam... for 10 days and nights, I presided over the cult of Washing Away! Yes, the idea was that the divine storm came to remind the mortals of how they so little need their possessions! Upon giving them to me, the Divine Storm Herald, I would... wash them away. Yes, very amusing. I grabbed quite a few trinkets... Batudai was there, as well! Yes, he seemed to be stuck in the village too, and joined the idiotic cult. I think he was just looking for some sort of connection, didn't really believe in what I was selling... didn't have much to give, either. Cheapskate. Oh well, I left that village in the night, taking my chances in the storm, and I assume he left not too long after. Maybe the villagers kicked him out, maybe he left after the cult fell apart. I suppose the former would have happened either way... Anyway, his main weakness is his need to be included. Get others to do things, and he might just follow."
Manipulatability: 8/10
Liang?
I'm gonna wait for his build to be completed before I finish, I'm a little confused on if he brought his war buddies to the Sect or not which would change the entry.
Méi?
"Ha! So naive... you'd think a savage would be more practical, but they all come in different forms of stupid, it seems. Not much ambition to work with hampers things, but also makes her more manageable. Quite the heroic type, even compared to some of the others. Makes it difficult to have her accomplish tasks that need a cold heart. But for those that don't need one, she's great!"
Manipulatability: 8/10
Yèwǎn?
"The Owl... he's... impenetrable. Honestly, I have no idea why he even let's me stay here. And he's hard to read, at that. I lied when I came here, said I merely wished to purview the Library as a student... and multiple times I've seem him watch me. Always watching. While I do business! And he, just, doesn't care? I'm not stupid enough to put the Library in danger, but you would think he'd try and set me straight! He just... doesn't. He let's me continue on. And he says that same thing, all the time! When he speaks with me, it's always some variation of 'follow your own Tao. We all have one, and everyone's Tao is unique to them, whether they realize it or not'. ...I don't want to risk my chances. Clearly, he's willing to let sleeping dogs lie, and I shall agree to do the same. Of course, for me, it's more like a sort of sleeping bear. I'm keeping him out of my schemes."
Manipulatability: 0/10
Yue? (the hag)
"I have an unspoken agreement with her, similar to the one with the Owl. She helps me a little when I need a push, doesn't pry into any of my things, and I don't push back. I try and keep my head down around the teachers. Really not a good idea to get them involved in any schemes or cult business. Really not a good idea. I overhear Tian and Zheng's lectures all the time. I don't want one from someone who I should really worry about..."
Manipulatability: 0/10
Záo?
"Is this woman even an Elder? She seems younger than me! ...N-Not that I'm young, or anything. Ugh. Anyway, if some rich woman fancies herself a teacher, who am I to oppose her? Even though riches are all that differs us! She's just richer than me, dammit! I'm just as smart! I could have her position if I had her riches! I'm even a good teacher, too! ...And she's always harping on me... she's like the other teachers, especially Ms Yue. She gives me a push, doesn't pry into many of my things, and I don't push back. But someday, I'll be just as respected! I'll be more respected!"
Manipulatability: 0/10
Wen?
"Can't say I know her well. I mean, how do you expect me too!? I'm just a student of the Library, and she's most certainly not a teacher! I do believe I'll be traveling to her domain at some point, though. For one reason or another. I hope it'll go smoothly... and I most certainly don't want to step on any toes while I'm there..."
Manipulatability: 0/10
Húndàn?
"Same as Wen, although even less. I just know of him as an infamous bastard. Running into him would be... inconvenient. Very inconvenient."
Manipulatability: 0/10