|
Part Nineteen: Those Who Remain Shall Tear Apart The Two Who Are Close So no one mentioned the case, at least out loud. ...However, those thoughts were what filled our minds. All that we couldn't say aloud made our heads feel like they were going to explode... So, at least on the outside, the parlor had once again regained its calm mood. Everything was left unsettled.  : "...It feels like the rain's gotten a little lighter." : "Uu-...? Still pouring down. Uu-..." : "Even if it did stop, there's no boat on this island. ...But it'd be nice if the boat came quickly tomorrow. I've had enough of this western mansion vacation, ihihi." It was completely black outside. When I looked at the clock, I realized that it was just past 7:00. I was starting to get hungry...  It was an act of kindness from Kumasawa, who was trying to enliven everyone's low spirits with some food. Kumasawa wasn't nearly as talented as a professional cook like Gohda, but she was far from unskilled. ...On the contrary, since she had been brought up in a fishing village, the simple food she created was sometimes very highly valued. Kanon arranged the food Kumasawa had finished creating on plates, under her direction. Kanon also helped in the kitchen sometimes, but since he was rarely placed in that role, he was slightly awkward, even though he tried his best... Self-conscious about the fact that he couldn't skillfully arrange the food, Kanon's expression darkened slightly. But Kumasawa smiled as though everything was fine.  Shannon was the one who always assisted Kumasawa in her cooking. ...Tonight, Kanon was doing it instead. ...And as he remembered Shannon's face, and her brutal end, he grimaced...    : "...Yes. ...I will forget it for now." : "...Hmm. That is probably for the best."Genji purposefully faced away from Kanon as he spoke. ...He did so because he understood that it might make things tougher on Kanon if he noticed that someone was looking at his eyes. Nanjo also understood that, and held back any thoughtless words.  : "...I wonder where Kinzo-san has gone...I hope that he is safe, but...": "...I do not know. ...Only, I think everything is as the Master hoped, as he has arranged. ...To distrust that would exceed my role as furniture working for the Master.": "...Aren't you scared, Genji-san...? I am frightened something bad will occur again tonight...": "...I have nothing to be afraid of. ...I simply work for the Ushiromiya family."Nanjo sighed through his nose, and made a carefully considered move. ...Nanjo was very slightly dubious. ...Could Genji possibly think that he would be left out of this?  ...If you liken this island to chess, Kinzo had opened the game, and as a result, six pieces had been defeated. ...Could it be that Genji was calm because he believed that he only was on the outside of the chessboard and safe?  If they're all pieces on a chessboard, though, the numbers come up...oddly. Even at the start of the metaphorical game, there were only either 18 or 19 people on the island. But chess requires 32 pieces. That leaves a bare minimum of 13 unaccounted for, possibly rising to 14 or even higher if some of the “pieces” we've seen are truly outside the game... : "...Genji-san. ...I am really frightened about tonight. ...I'm hoping with all my heart that we will be still be safe when tomorrow morning comes..."  So until a few years ago, they had stayed in this room every family conference and were very familiar with it. This room, just like a room at a hotel, had a bedroom and a bathroom, so even though they were still shut in, it was far more comfortable than the parlor.  : "Guess it's true that you can relax more when you're alone with your immediate family. ...Maybe it'd be better if everyone else also shut themselves in guest rooms and locked the doors.”Man, the party's already split three ways at the moment and you want to divide it up further? Seriously?  : "Natsuhi nee-san said that no one could leave the parlor, throwing her weight around. I'm sure no one will be able to talk back. That person, she was always so dependent, and now that Nii-san's dead, she's in such high spirits that she's taking charge. ...Seriously, how shameless can she be.": "...Come now, don't say that. Natsuhi-san's doin' pretty well. Ya don't hafta jump on her like that. ...And 'bout that receipt earlier, ya went too far there." : "...Come on. If I hadn't said it there, there wouldn't be another good time to say it..."Eva, sulking cutely and looking at the television, sat alongside Hideyoshi, who was lying on the bed.   : "...It really has gone by in the blink of an eye. ...I wonder if we were too hasty in having a child."Eva's eyes looked like they were staring off into the distance. ...Yes, she had thought it had been a once-in-a-lifetime chance. ...Her older brother Krauss had been unable to have a child for quite some time. Six months passed after his marriage to Natsuhi without any signs of pregnancy, which didn't please Kinzo at all. Eva herself had thought that, since when she married, her name would be moved outside the Ushiromiya register anyway, it didn't matter whether the successor to the head was born or not.  When she proposed this to Hideyoshi, he had approved of it instantly. ...This had not been because Hideyoshi also had greedy thoughts. For Hideyoshi, who had no close relatives, it was a chance for him to feel once more the long forgotten thing called family. So when they got married, he had not fussed over which last name they were to keep, and had quickly agreed to have his name entered into the Ushiromiya family register. It hadn't been easy to persuade Kinzo, but as his daughter, Eva knew Kinzo's personality well. ...So, by choosing the time when Kinzo was most dissatisfied with Natsuhi, she was magnificently able to make him accept Hideyoshi as a son-in-law.  Yet another +1 to the list of people Kinzo likes, I guess. I don't feel like digging up the last iteration of it to add him. George would eventually become successor to the Ushiromiya family. They had raised him strictly with that purpose in mind. George had been worth their while, and had grown into a fabulous young man who wouldn't disappoint no matter where he went. ...That was why he had not been permitted to fall in love with a servant like Shannon. ...So when she had learned that Shannon was dead and the engagement was invalid, ...while part of her had been shocked at the gruesome crime, part of her had been relieved that her cute George wouldn't be stolen by some servant girl... Even in her “aww, maybe she's not so bad” moments, Eva is still kind of an rear end in a top hat.  : "...Eva, don't blame yerself for that."Hideyoshi got up and held Eva's shoulder. ...She could feel a warm understanding from him. : "...Well, I reached the halfway point in my life long ago. ...But ya know, I have absolutely no regrets 'bout how I've lived my life until now. Not one. ...I think that since I've been with you, Eva, I've been able to relish an enjoyable life that other men never will. ...After I lost my relatives in the war, you taught me once more what the warmth of family is. So I'm grateful to the Ushiromiya family, and think of it as my only family. ...In this life I've led with ya, not a single thing has been wasted. It's really been a fun life up to today.": "...Thank you, ...dear."Eva hung her head, burying her face in Hideyoshi's chest... ...Probably, no one in the parlor could even imagine that this side of Eva existed. : "I'm the one who should be thanking ya. Until today, there hasn't been a single day that I've regretted being with ya!": "...Me too. That I could be with you, ...makes me so glad." ...Well poo poo. First you split the party, then you start making vacation plans for after this. You might as well toss in a line about Hideyoshi planning to retire when they get back from Rokkenjima. Go on, do it! Go for broke! : "None of that this New Year's! I won't read New Year's cards. I'll just stay quiet and check to see if I've won the New Year's lottery. It'd sure be nice if we won a color TV this year!": "No wa--y... I don't want to check the lottery in the Maldives...": "Then none of that either! ...How does it sound? Just the two of us, taking our time, a continuation of when we were newlyweds, just before George was born.": "...Yes. ...In that case, fine...": "I hear the Maldives are wonderful. An island with nothin' on it, surrounded by beaut'ful coral reefs and cottages lined up over the water..." Eva nagged at his lips, peevishly, or maybe coquettishly... The only sounds that filled the room were the distant voice of the announcer on the news, which Hideyoshi had left on, and the obnoxious pounding of the rain against the window... Well. Was nice knowing you two. I guess.    : "...Madam. Dinner has been prepared. Will you eat in here again...?" : "...Yes. Bring it here. Is Doctor Nanjo still in the kitchen?": "...Yes. He has said that he wishes to carefully deliberate over his next move. ...Do not worry, he is with the other servants." : "Genji-san's good enough at chess to be Grandfather's opponent. I hear he's even better than Doctor Nanjo, right?" : "...That's right. Long ago, he played against me, but he must have let me win." : "Maria, sounds like it'll be time to eat soon. But look at you, you've been watching TV all day long and you still haven't gotten bored!": "Uu-. I've been watching TV the whole time so I'm fine. Uu-.": "Heh, Maria-chan sure is a TV kid.": "Food's coming, so we have to clean up the table."Just now, we had torn several pages of Maria's notes out, and there was a mess where everyone had been drawing together. Jessica began cleaning that up quickly. ...Still, everyone here sure can draw. Really shocking.  : "So Eva-san follows after Father... It's really hard to gather everyone to the Ushiromiya dinner table."Natsuhi felt her headache start throbbing again, and lightly held her temples... The distance from the kitchen to the parlor wasn't that big, so Genji had gone and come back by himself, but the guest room was a little farther away.  Genji knocked on the door.  : "...Genji-sama, ...Look at this."Kanon pointed under the door.   Normally, when something was inserted this way, it would be interpreted as a message from someone outside to someone in the room. ...So since this might be a private note meant for Eva and Hideyoshi, it was not something that Kanon and Genji were supposed to take interest in. ...But this western-style envelope, ...was Kinzo's envelope, the same as the one Maria had taken out last night and surprised everyone with.   Genji continued knocking a little harder and called out in a loud voice. : "Eva-sama. Eva-sama...! It is Genji. Are you there?! Please answer, Eva-sama...!!"But there was no response from inside.  Kanon stuck his ear up to the door, and holding his breath, listened for any sounds coming from inside... : "...I hear something that sounds like the television. ...But I don't sense anyone. ...The room might be empty..."Genji took out a handkerchief, and, careful not to touch it with his bare hands, gently pulled out the envelope which had been stuck under the door... It had been sealed with deep red sealing wax. ...Without a doubt, the mark on that sealing wax had come from the ring of the Ushiromiya family head... : "Eva-sama! Eva-sama!! Please, answer!! Are you still in your room?!"Even so, there was still no answer...  ...With a murderer on the loose? Really, Genji? Genji groped around in his pocket, and pulled out the bundle of keys that contained the key that would open the guest room. : "...Genji-sama...?!"Kanon also understood what this meant. ...They would sometimes unlock the door so they could go in and do things like make the beds, but only after they had made sure the guest was out. To unlock the door for a separate reason, and especially to do so when there was a chance the guests were still in there and without their permission, was an action unbecoming of a servant. ...But Genji had decided. ...If the only problem had been that his knock hadn't received a reply, he wouldn't have gone this far.  : "Eva-sama...! My apologies. Allow me to enter your room..."After giving that final notice, Genji stuck one of the keys from the bundle into the keyhole. There was the sound of the door unlocking. ...And, after slowly turning the knob, he slowly started opening the door. A light seeped through the crack of the door. ...Were they in the room? Or had they, ...forgotten to turn out the lights...?  ..It was the sound of the door chain being pulled tight. The chain had been secured. The chain couldn't be secured from the outside. That meant that they were in the room now. The sound of voices on the TV seeped out of the room. ...The lights, the chain, and the TV. All of these things made it clear that they were in the room, ...but there was no sign of them. Genji called to Eva once again through the crack of the door. But there was no answer.  As part of their job, the servants were able to unlock almost any lock in the mansion. But they had no way to open a door with a chain. ...The only way to get by the chain was to cut it. ...That was certainly not permitted as part of a servant's usual work. ...A creepy chill had already rushed up their backs... Kanon held his breath again and tried to sense someone through the door, but even so, he was not able to sense anyone.  : "Wait, Kanon...! ...Return to the kitchen and take Kumasawa with you. You must not act alone.": "...Yes... Certainly..."It looked like Kanon was wondering why he had to do something so troublesome in the middle of this urgent situation. ...But Genji had said it out of wariness. ...He didn't care what happened to himself. ...But in the worst case scenario, he didn't want anything to happen to Kanon.   ...But he immediately realized that something was wrong with Genji's appearance. : "...Oh, ...what has happened, Genji-san...": "...Doctor Nanjo, my apologies, but please allow this match to be suspended one more time. ...Kanon, take care of the chain. Kumasawa, stop setting up dinner for now and accompany Kanon. I will go over to Madam. If you would come with me, Doctor Nanjo.": "H, ...has something happened...?"Genji took Nanjo, who still didn't know what was going on, and quickly left the kitchen. : "...Kumasawa-san. My apologies, but please come with me." : "Wh, ...what happened, Kanon-san...?"Kumasawa said almost exactly the same thing as Nanjo, unable to take in the situation, and chased after Kanon, who had flown out into the hallway... Kumasawa accompanied Kanon, and they went to the storehouse. From amongst the tools packed in toolboxes and hanging on the walls, Kanon looked for a tool that could be used to cut the chain.  : "...The chain to Eva-sama and Hideyoshi-sama's room. ...Even though they should be inside, when we called to them, they didn't answer."It took Kumasawa some time to figure out how cutting the chain and Eva and Hideyoshi not answering were connected, but she did realize that this was an urgent situation. : "This will probably..."Kanon took down a very large wire cutter that had been hanging on the wall. It was called a cutter, but maybe it would be easier to understand if we said it was shaped like a large pair of pliers. ...The kind of thing that brings back memories of a dangerous tool that you might have been warned could easily cut through one of your fingers...   : "Please wait, Kanon-san...! Haah, ...haah...!": "...Hurry!"Kumasawa eventually caught up with him, gasping for breath with both hands on her knees.      That was no surprise... Because, right there, ...on the door, ...just like the magic circle that had been drawn on the shutter of the rose garden storehouse, there was another eerie shape drawn with a paint that looked like blood. However, it would be odd to call this one a 'magic circle'. But it'll have to do, because “magic rectangle with some extra bits sticking out” just doesn't roll off the tongue as well. ...Because, unlike what most people would think of as a magic circle, it wasn't a circle with shapes drawn inside it, but a slightly more geometrical shape. ...But since in the gaps of the figure, there was something written in strange characters that were not from the alphabet, this was doubtlessly the same as the magic circle on the shutter... But the thing that had Kanon struck speechless was not how eerie the magic circle was. ...It was that something like this hadn't been here a short while ago...!!  Kanon needs to pay more attention to the Beatrice rants. If he did, he would know she is world-renowned for her speed-painting skills. And as though it had just been drawn, almost like the door itself was bleeding, several unsettling vertical red lines slowly dripped down, getting longer and longer... : "...Hiiiiiiiiiii..., ...hiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii...!"Kumasawa's knees gave way, and she sank down on the spot. ...If Kumasawa hadn't done this first, then Kanon surely would have wanted to. : "...Be...atrice...sama...": "Hiiiiiiiiiii...! It's the work of Beatrice-sama, how horrid, how horrid...!!": "...hh." Fighting this cold feeling, he gulped again, and after gathering his courage, went even closer, putting the wire cutter up against the chain. ...He then pressed with all of his strength, and cut through the chain far more easily than he had imagined. The cut chain fell into two separate parts, which continued to clang as they swayed back and forth... : "...Kanon-san, ...by your feet, an envelope...and isn't that, ...the Master's..."It looked like Kumasawa had also noticed the western-style envelope at the bottom of the door. And that the sealing wax had been sealed with the ring of the head. Kanon was lost for a just a second over whether he should open the letter first or check inside the room, but he eventually decided on fulfilling his original purpose. ...Kanon pulled a handkerchief out of his pocket. This was so he wouldn't leave fingerprints on the door. ...If his worst fears had been realized, ...the police would want to investigate this room too...!!  : "...Eva-sama...?"Eva was face up on the bed, ...on the bed with her shoes still on...? Kumasawa, who had fearfully entered after Kanon and who was hiding behind his back, screamed a short 'Hii-!' again when she saw Eva like that. Eva's shoes had been the first part of her that Kanon had seen, so, at first, he'd had a strange feeling since she was wearing shoes in bed, ..but when Eva's head shifted into his line of sight, ...Kanon couldn't help but let out a short scream like Kumasawa... Eva's forehead, right in the middle, ...something was...set there? Growing there...? No. ...Right in the center of her forehead, ...an old-fashioned knife? or some weapon like it was sticking out!!!     Kumasawa's knees gave way once more, and she sank down on the floor. ...Her mouth kept flapping open and closed, but she couldn't even scream. ...Eva, with some kind of weapon sticking out of her forehead, was dead. Both eyes were open wide, and the image of the person who killed her must have been burned into them, ...but the only mouth that could say who had been closed for all eternity. Even though that forehead was the last place they wanted to look, they couldn't tear their eyes from it... Right there, the weapon was stuck into Eva's forehead, standing almost perfectly upright. And on the handle was a complicated design that you wouldn't expect to see on an ordinary weapon. ...That thing, ...could only be described as occult. ...It was a vulgar object, with a design that might have been of some demon. Someone go get the tiny psychopath! Maybe she'll know which demon was the culprit! : "...What about Hideyoshi-sama...? ...Hideyoshi-sama...!"Eva was on top of her bed, but the other bed was empty. ...Where was Hideyoshi?! After taking a backwards glance at Kumasawa, still on her knees and stupefied, he checked the bathroom just in case. At the moment he opened the door, he was greeted by steam and the sound of the shower.   That waterproof curtain was half open, ...and lying tumbled down in the bathtub was Hideyoshi, completely naked, both eyes still open..., and those eyes were pointing right at Kanon. Er. They appear to be...closed and pointed downward, actually... Oh, and our culprit is killing people with drills now, I guess. Demonic ones. Just like Eva, a weapon with a demon-like design was stuck into his forehead. Since his head had been under the hot water of shower the whole time, his face wasn't half covered and filthy with blood like Eva's had been, ...but the sight of him dead while still taking a shower was tragic enough... Just then, Natsuhi's voice rang through the hall. She was probably coming with Genji.  : "...We shouldn't touch it carelessly... The culprit's fingerprints might be left on it... We should hand it over to the police...": "...They went out of their way to leave it here. I'm sure they wouldn't have left fingerprints."As Natsuhi said that, she picked up the envelope. ...And before checking its contents, she entered the room herself, ...when she found Eva, dead.  : "E, ...Eva-san...!!!!": "...Madam..., Hideyoshi-sama is here, too..." : "Y, ...yes."Kanon gripped his handkerchief and twisted the valve, turning off the shower. In the bathtub, a small jar of body soap had fallen with its cap off. ...It really looked like he had been attacked while taking a shower. ...There was still a small splash of blood clinging to the white bathtub, and the combination of red and white made a horrible contrast. : "...Doctor Nanjo..." ...As Kanon watched this businesslike treatment, he thought. ...Couldn't you tell at a glance that they're dead without doing all that? Nanjo thought about removing the weapon, but after deciding it would be better to preserve the scene and hand it over to the police, he left it alone. But he couldn't see the blade well at the base of the wound. ...Even more importantly, it wasn't shaped like a flat blade, but was conical. ...He noticed that, rather than a knife, it was more like a short handled spear, something with a shape better suited for thrusting than slicing. Rather than a short spear, some people might call it a thick icepick. Or, y'know, a drill. At any rate, the weapon's unsettling design made it obvious what its original purpose was, and how that purpose was carried out. No further words were needed to describe it...  The rising urge to vomit was exactly the same feeling she'd had that morning at the gardening storehouse... For a while, Natsuhi couldn't help but stand with her back facing the guest room, fighting that sickness in her stomach...  George and the other children had been waiting in the parlor. But when they had seen Genji call Natsuhi out, and had noticed her turn pale and fly out of the room, they had felt that he might have been the bearer of bad news. And when they saw a large group of people gathered around the guest room, they were sure of it...   Wait. Wait what. Hold up...  HOLY poo poo KANON IS CAPABLE OF NON-  EXPRESSIONS. Natsuhi touched George's shoulder with her hand, but he violently shook her off. ...George fell over beside Eva, and buried his face in the bed in front of his mother's face, wailing. Then he pounded on the bed with his fist, over and over again...  : "...Ge, ...George nii-san, ...h, hang in there...huh, ...Battler?": "...Battler-sama..."Battler, ...had his back against the wall of the hallway, ...and was, without restraint, covering his eyes with his right hand and weeping...  : "Horrible...That's horrible...He proposed to the girl he loved and lost her the next day. ...And on the same day, even his Mom and Dad were killed...I, ...isn't that too harsh..."...Of course, all dead people are equally pitiable. But to Battler, ...those left alone by the deaths of others were far more pitiable. Everyone here now had lost someone close to them. George wasn't the only one pitiable. ...However, ...George's pain was far greater than everyone else's.  : "...Battler..." : "...Uu-... Battler, ...don't cry, don't cry..."Maria tried to comfort Battler in a mechanical-sounding voice... Battler violently wiped his tears.  : "Aah... drat it, ...I won't cry anymore... Tears of regret, tears of sadness, I won't shed them again...Aah, it's all useless. The witch has backed me into a corner. I'm always on the defensive...! And that's useless, it's all useless! I'll turn the chessboard over...!! That bastard probably thinks we'll be running scared like sheep until tomorrow without trying anything. ...But guess what, I'll turn it over!! That bastard can't escape this island until tomorrow either...! We won't be the ones hiding away, pissing ourselves, that bastard will! I'll expose you, you'll see. By tomorrow..., no, I won't wait for tomorrow, tonight. Well. Looks like Battler got his wish. Everyone was accounted for except Kinzo and Beatrice, and as far as we know, Kinzo had no way to bypass the chain. So unless there were some murder-suicide shenanigans going on here, looks like it had to be a witch! Well done, Battler.   Oh, right, more deaths means more changed profiles. Nothing too remarkable about Eva's...  Hideyoshi's though, well... Only one character laughs like that. Apparently these are all being described from Maria's point of view. Next time: The demonic roulette spins ever on...
|
#
?
Dec 18, 2012 07:36
|
|
|
|
| # ? Jun 3, 2024 18:39 |
|
|
One thing I like about Umineko is that the characters are rather three dimensional. None of them really fit into any simple stereotype. Sure, a bunch of them are jerks. But they're still people, with hopes and dreams and worries. And then they all die horribly. All alibis confirmed. Told ya'll Beatrice did it! 
|
|
#
?
Dec 18, 2012 07:55
|
|
|
quote:"Horrible...That's horrible...He proposed to the girl he loved and lost her the next day. ...And on the same day, even his Mom and Dad were killed...I, ...isn't that too harsh..."  I take it all back. Please let it be Beatrice.And I was really feeling for Eva and Hideyoshi there. Eva might be a jerk and Hideyoshi's business might not be doing well, but they're still people with depths. And now they're dead.  Everyone pretty much is accounted for, though, other than Kinzo. How could you get from the parlor to the guest room and back, after drawing the magic rectangle of blood, within the time that Kanon and Genji left and came back with Kumasawa, Nanjo, and Natsuhi (and then everyone else shortly after)? The only way I can see it happening, if there is no witch, is if the third-person narrator (ie, things Battler doesn't narrate) is not reliable, but then where would we be? And that's not even getting into the issue of the locked room, barring some weird murder-suicide that makes no sense. I'm going to be looping hope for a while.
|
|
#
?
Dec 18, 2012 08:29
|
|
|
Hideyoshi was a pretty cool guy and seems to have brought out the best in Eva. It takes a lot of force to impale someone directly in the center of the forehead as opposed to, say, the eye socket, neck, or chest. And yeah, since Maria was with the cousins the whole time, there's really only one person who could draw a massive magical array that fast that isn't a witch. The Kinzo theory is so suspiciously solid so early in the murdering that I'm starting to doubt myself.
|
|
#
?
Dec 18, 2012 10:32
|
|
|
The most horrifying thing here in my opinion is that despite emoting, Kanon will never lower his arm just in case someone dares to think that he is more than a walking ottoman with a sweet hat.
|
|
#
?
Dec 18, 2012 10:38
|
|
|
I have my problems with Seacats, but I can't take away from R07 that he managed to create a big cast of mostly three dimensional characters, nearly all of whom I like to some degree. Eva's actually one of my favorites.
|
|
#
?
Dec 18, 2012 11:15
|
|
|
I had expected "tearing apart the two who were close" to be in reference to Jessica and George's little tiff. Also- I think it's usually possible to lock a doorchain from outside, moreso than it is to unlock it, especially if you start from the wrong side of the door. Attach a piece of string or something to pull it closed and then release once the door is mostly shut. That would have required someone inside the room to let him in first, though. It's also possible that both Genji and Kanon are lying about the series of events. But, yeah, a secret passage that only Kinzo knows about and magic seem like the more likely possibilities.
|
|
#
?
Dec 18, 2012 11:50
|
|
|
Alright, let's start dissecting this supposedly "locked room". There are a number of ways to commit a murder in a room which appears locked. This list is not exhaustive, and I will not elaborate on how likely each of these are in the spirit of further discussion, but should get you thinking: 1) Suicide. The victims locked the door and killed themselves. 2) Secret passage. The murderer made use of a hidden means of entrance and/or exit. 3) Unlocked room. Similar to the secret passage method above, one method of entry is not as secure as it appears. 4) Confused timing. The victims were not killed while the room was locked but were somehow killed after the door was opened. A variant is that the act of opening the door kills the victims through a trap or simple device. 5) Locked from outside. There is a method of locking one window or door from outside the room, typically from using a simple mechanism such as string or common dexterity (such as using nimble fingers to set the chain from outside). Kytrarewn mentioned this, above. 6) Killer in the room. The killer locked the door and is actually still in the room until the door is opened. They then either slip out or mingle with the crowd during the confusion. 7) Magic. 
|
|
#
?
Dec 18, 2012 18:42
|
|
|
I'm in the camp who found episode 8 so staggeringly bad that it retroactively soured me to the entire series, but I can't bring myself to hate something that brought me so many hours of endless speculation (during the long 6-month waits between translations) and 2-3 of my group's most successful tabletop RPGs.
cheetah7071 fucked around with this message at 00:57 on Dec 19, 2012 |
|
#
?
Dec 18, 2012 22:41
|
|
|
Was episode eight the one we just covered? I don't remember that being bad at all, save for dead Eva's jiggling. 
|
|
#
?
Dec 19, 2012 00:16
|
|
|
Wandering Knitter posted:Was episode eight the one we just covered? I don't remember that being bad at all, save for dead Eva's jiggling. I think he means the 8th game; we're still in the 1st game, and will be for a while.
|
|
#
?
Dec 19, 2012 00:17
|
|
|
^^^^^ Yeah, that's what I meant. The game has a bunch of confusing terminology for how it's split up, but episode usually means game.
|
|
#
?
Dec 19, 2012 00:27
|
|
|
2 games, divided into four episodes, divided into about 16-18 or so chapters each. And we've got about six updates left before Ep1 is over, give or take one.
|
|
#
?
Dec 19, 2012 00:56
|
|
|
And Episode 1 is probably the shortest and most straightforward of the lot.
|
|
#
?
Dec 19, 2012 00:57
|
|
|
They're going to run out of people to kill at this rate, if there's 7 episodes left. TheArchimage posted:Alright, let's start dissecting this supposedly "locked room". There are a number of ways to commit a murder in a room which appears locked. This list is not exhaustive, and I will not elaborate on how likely each of these are in the spirit of further discussion, but should get you thinking:  Additionally, I don't think this rules out Eva or Hideyoshi as the people behind the first batch of murders.
|
|
#
?
Dec 19, 2012 01:05
|
|
|
Kytrarewn posted:Also- I think it's usually possible to lock a doorchain from outside, moreso than it is to unlock it, especially if you start from the wrong side of the door. Attach a piece of string or something to pull it closed and then release once the door is mostly shut. You can unlock a door chain with a string and find out how to do it in less than a minute on google if you don't already know.
|
|
#
?
Dec 19, 2012 01:19
|
|
|
Door chains can probably be locked from outside, but there is a disturbingly lack of blood in the crime scene. Perhaps that drill thing has blocked the blood from flowing out? The lack of a sign of struggle is suspicious as well - I don't think people would normally let someone drill through their foreheads without a fight, especially Eve who knows some martial arts. While the victims have their eyes open (which would rule out the use of sleeping drugs), perhaps the murderer has something that can render people immobile for his/her job?
|
|
#
?
Dec 19, 2012 07:13
|
|
|
To keep the trend going, here's the next clip. Two by the guest room It will help you guys on your speculation and all that stuff you will do afterwards. Warning: Contains gore and nudity.
|
|
#
?
Dec 20, 2012 15:37
|
|
|
One thing I think I'll never quite understand is why these more serious Visual Novels often have subpar drawing work but almost always have really good musical direction. Both Fate/Stay Night and Umineko really blow it out of the park, especially with the suspense and "something is amiss" music. It's like most game-developers don't even try by comparison.
|
|
#
?
Dec 20, 2012 20:34
|
|
|
Xoidanor posted:One thing I think I'll never quite understand is why these more serious Visual Novels often have subpar drawing work No that's pretty much just R07. Unless you're counting Key I guess.
|
|
#
?
Dec 20, 2012 20:37
|
|
|
Xoidanor posted:One thing I think I'll never quite understand is why these more serious Visual Novels often have subpar drawing work but almost always have really good musical direction. Both Fate/Stay Night and Umineko really blow it out of the park, especially with the suspense and "something is amiss" music. It's like most game-developers don't even try by comparison. Ryukishi draws himself but outsourced the music (presumably because he doesn't know enough about music to even half-rear end composing a score). The first half of Higurashi, before he got well-known, used a public library of songs I believe.
|
|
#
?
Dec 20, 2012 20:47
|
|
|
Ryukishi doing the art himself lets him pump out Episodes way, way faster than he would be able to normally. He released one Episode every half a year when doing Umineko, which is absolutely nuts when you consider everything that goes into making one and how long each one is.
|
|
#
?
Dec 20, 2012 20:54
|
|
|
He made them faster than they could be translated, if that helps give some perspective. R07 is a madman.
|
|
#
?
Dec 20, 2012 20:56
|
|
|
The original opening movies can now be replaced with the PS3 versions.
|
|
#
?
Dec 24, 2012 22:46
|
|
|
LeeDless posted:The original opening movies can now be replaced with the PS3 versions. I'd really only recommend people watch that if they already know what's going to happen for the entire first four episodes.
|
|
#
?
Dec 24, 2012 23:13
|
|
|
I'll check that later and see how bad it is on the spoiler front. And probably re-grab the rest while I'm at it, since it looks like I'm a version behind. Update...sometime late-ish tonight, probably.
|
|
#
?
Dec 25, 2012 00:11
|
|
|
It's.... really spoilery. It really is more aimed at people who've read it already.
|
|
#
?
Dec 25, 2012 04:53
|
|
|
I wouldn't call it spoilery in the traditional sense. For a person who has never had any exposure to Umineko, it's just a random jumble of images. Though I can see reason to ward off new viewers who want to have the series completely unspoiled for them.
|
|
#
?
Dec 25, 2012 05:04
|
|
|
Part Twenty: Gouge The Head And Kill. Gouge The Chest And Kill. Natsuhi proclaimed it as though she didn't care whether we agreed or not. ...If anyone had a right to object, it would have been George, ...but he looked as though he had shed enough tears. George nodded slightly, still facing away from us, and when he stood up, everyone else agreed too. The letter in the head's western-style envelope that Natsuhi had picked up still hadn't been opened. ...But now that we had decided to leave this room, she had decided to unseal it in the parlor, where everyone could watch. As soon as we walked out into the hallway to head back to the parlor, ...some of us immediately felt something out of place, ...or maybe sensed something strange.   : "...I will go quickly to check the kitchen... I'm sure I turned the flame off..."After noticing a burnt smell, it was natural that Kumasawa, who had just been using the fire in the kitchen, suspected that her own clumsiness had caused it. Kumasawa hastily dashed away. : "...Kanon, go with Kumasawa. Do not let her be alone.": "Y, yes...!"After nodding at Genji's order, Kanon followed after her. ...He wasn't running, but as he followed her, he tried to search for the cause of the smell in other directions as well. : "...Uu-. Stinks. ...Uuu--." : "...Let us run the fan. I do not believe there will be any need to open the windows."  : "...The chain for this room was set. ...From what I could tell by looking at it, I'm positive that it couldn't be opened from the outside. ...In other words, this was a perfect closed room." : "...That makes sense. In the case of the rose garden storehouse, they might have sneaked the shutter's key out of the servants' room, or maybe they had a duplicate key. ...I can imagine many ways they could've done it. ...But this chain is different. Among generally used locking techniques, a chain is the simplest one to create a closed room with.": "Only a chain will block everyone coming from the outside as long as it isn't physically broken. So does this mean that the culprit couldn't have gone in or out through the door...?": "...That's interesting. Just a few hours ago, I seem to remember everyone making a fuss over how to enter a room without using the door."  But this door is much simpler. It was sealed from the inside by the door chain. The window had also been closed from the inside, and the bodies had been in the room. ...This time it really had been, without exaggeration, a true closed room. ...That's right. If you include Grandfather's disappearance, three cases have occurred, and all three times, the door has been the point of interest.     The first hadn't been a closed room because everyone could be suspected. ...The second hadn't been a closed room because Natsuhi oba-san could be suspected. ...But this time, no one can be suspected! This room was a perfect closed room because everyone had been sealed outside just as completely as everyone else because of the door chain...!   : "Yeah, it is. ...If Eva oba-san's body had been lying right next to the door, then it might have been possible. But she was on the bed in the center of the room! And Hideyoshi oji-san was even in the bathroom. Looking from the crack in the door, you couldn't even see them, and you couldn't reach them with your hands either. ...drat it, it's all useless. I don't have a clue!!"...Something was tugging softly at my sleeve. ...It was Maria.  : "...Uu-. Satisfied?": "What do you mean 'satisfied'?": "...Kihihihihihihihihihihihihi. ...Battler, since you didn't want to doubt any of your relatives...you made a wish, saying that you wanted the culprit to be Beatrice, right? Well, Beatrice granted that wish. ...Just as you said, she 'did something that was completely impossible for a human to make you believe in the witch'. ...And even so, you're so selfish. Kihihihihihihihihihihihihihihihi. O-uch."I tapped Maria, who was laughing unpleasantly, on the head with my fist.  Battler has decided to step up to the plate and be Maria's new parent. And intends to ensure the transition is as smooth as possible. :"I don't know, so I'll give you all the credit. Quit whining and explain." : "...You sure are violent, Battler. I won't tell you if you're too mean, get it...? O-uch! Uu-..., I'll say it, I'll say it, stop hitting me. ...That's the first magic circle of the moon.": "What does it mean? What is this magic circle's benefit?! What does the Hebrew writing mean?!" : "That sure is convenient magic. ...So you're saying that they're trying to make it look like they're a witch because this closed room has a door that can't be opened without relying on magic...?! And the other effect?!": "When you are blocked in every direction, it finds an unopened door and opens it. ...By using it in a difficult situation, it gives you a solution you hadn't even thought of until then. To put it simply, you receive the power of observation and the power of discernment, inspiration and intuition. ...Kihihihihihihihihihi. Beatrice is trying to provoke you lowly humans, since she thinks there's no way you could figure out how this door was opened. Kihhihihihihihihihihihihihihihi, O-uch.": "Alright, good work, so shut up. ...Sounds great, I'll accept this challenge from the witch!" : "...Maria-chan. ...Things like witches and demons don't exist in this world. ...Someone killed Father and Mother! I don't know whether that was someone I know or not. But either way, it was definitely a human...!!": "...Yeah, but...how? How did they reach them through that crack in the door? It couldn't have been more than ten centimeters wide...!" Before they even reached the kitchen, Kanon and Kumasawa, who had gone ahead, realized that the smell wasn't coming from there. That was because, on their way to the kitchen, they realized that an even thicker wave of stench was rising up from the stairs leading to the basement.  Those stairs led to the underground boiler room. The mansion's boiler was old, and in poor condition. Both of them had witnessed problems with the boiler on several occasions, but they had never smelled the boiler belching out a stench like this before.     : "...!": "Kanon-san...!!"After taking a second to sort out the situation, Kanon ran down towards the basement...! Since they had heard the sound of a door closing just now, and there was no trace of someone climbing the stairs, it meant that the person who had closed the door was now inside the boiler room. If the boiler room had been a dead end, Kanon wouldn't have rushed in so hastily. ...But Kanon was a servant, so he knew. There were two entrances, one that opened to the mansion and one that opened to the courtyard. If he didn't chase them now, they might slip away...!  ...Of course, with this argument, even if Kumasawa joined him, it wouldn't change anything... At any rate, after a delay, Kumasawa decided that she mustn't let Kanon go alone, and she dashed down the stairs...!!  And on top of that, the room was full of that horrible stench...which made Kanon feel like he was going to be sick. ...There was no doubt that this room was the origin. In that case, Kanon should have been searching for where the smell was coming from. However, Kanon kept gazing straight forward as he grabbed a hatchet from a tool shelf just off to the side of the door. ...He hadn't stretched out his hand because he'd wanted a hatchet. ...He had wanted to grab a weapon, any weapon. ...Why?  (click to see Kanon throw down with Beatrice!) : "...In roulette, you bet on a number or the colors red or black, vying for a payoff. However, low risk bets like black and red only offer a similarly low payoff."The words coming from Kanon's mouth...were swallowed up by the darkness. That darkness suddenly started to swirl, glittering...    It was, ...a very fantastical scene... Golden sparkling butterflies that hid in the shadows all over the boiler room...flapped their wings, twinkling beautifully, ...and gathered in the darkness, disappearing... Kanon continued speaking, directing his words at the darkness as it swallowed the butterflies up. ...But as the butterflies gathered in the darkness, they...perhaps...probably...no, they must have...laughed. ...But Kanon continued to speak without faltering in the slightest. : "...On the other hand, if you bet on something of a lower probability, you receive a payoff proportional to the risk. ...The Master called succeeding despite an astronomical risk a 'miracle', and called the astronomical payoff gained as a result 'magic'. ...I have no interest what kind of 'magic' you and the Master were seeking when you spun that roulette... But you forgot something. ...You forgot that roulette has a pocket that is neither black nor red."Roulette has a special pocket called '0', which means that the house takes everything in certain variants of the game. This means that all of the coins bet on the table will be swept up, just as though everyone has forfeit... Actually, Kanon, I'm pretty sure they took that into account... See? Accounted for.  : "...I set my heart on one thing. ...I decided that if, ...Shannon were to be killed, and I was left alive, ...I would bring this roulette of yours to ruin even at the cost of my life...!" ...Kanon's face was twisted with humiliation. ...It was clear that his self-restraint was being ridiculed somehow. Kanon's brow creased even further, ...and a furious expression that Kanon had never shown anyone appeared on his face. ...The hand grasping the hatchet was shaking. ...His sweat became drops which slid down... It was clear that the emotion causing Kanon's hand to shake was not anger alone. ...However, Kanon suppressed that emotion...  Well, he talks a good game, but... When Kanon swung the hatchet upwards and tried to dive into the darkness, the darkness definitely sneered. It sneered at that courage as vulgar, lazy, futile, and meaningless. Kanon has made the unfortunate mistake...    Of bringing a hatchet to a magical demonic drill fight. Also, say hi to ahaha.wav! It is one of the more famous and memetic little bits from Umineko. Expect to be seeing it a lot. Also also, there's...another particularly distinctive sound effect that's supposed to be paired with Clash but uh. You're gonna have to watch the video if you want to hear it, because I have clicked through all of the sound effect folders multiple times and failed to find the drat thing. My best guess is it's probably one of the dozens of gibberish ones that refuses to actually work in my primary media player when I click it, but... Well. Sorting through all of those one by one in a different player is an exercise in tedium I don't feel like dealing with tonight. With a *clang*, the hatchet that Kanon had been grasping fell and rolled on the floor... And following that, with a pair of thuds, Kanon's knees hit, ...left, then right... That hand, which looked like it was trying to catch the sky now that the hatchet had been dropped, gradually lowered, ...landing on his chest. Then, the other hand did the same.  ...Right there, a handle with a demon-shaped design was buried into his chest. The same type of weapon that had been stabbed into Eva and Hideyoshi's foreheads...was in Kanon's chest... Also, it would appear that, if our culprit is not actually magical, they have either some kind of drill gun or an amazing throwing arm.    Around this scene, the glittering gold butterflies danced through the darkness, mesmerizing... It was a beautiful, beautiful dance...a funeral march of tribute, ridicule, and contempt for a single boy's self-sacrifice. ...Kanon had already been prepared for his own death, ...but although he could do nothing but accept the death he had received, he attempted one last measure of resistance. ...He grasped the handle of the weapon sticking into his chest with both hands, ...and gritting his teeth with an acute, unearthly pain..., ...he pulled it out.  For only a moment, a bright-red spray gushed out. ...It made an unpleasant *bloop* sound. It probably resembled the sound of Kanon's soul as it was sucked into the swamp of the dead... : "...Kanon-san?! Eeeeeeeeeeeeek!!! S, someoooooooone!! Eeeeeeeeekkk!"Kumasawa screamed at the incomprehensible sight in front of her.  As she screamed, her expression was filled with complete confusion, and all of the muscles of her face were pulled up, almost as though she was smiling while crying... No one would ridicule an expression such as this...!!  Normally, they probably would've started discussing the origin of that violent stench filling the boiler room. ...But after they saw Kanon, who was lying on the ground as if he were drowning in an ocean of his own blood, the stench wasn't important any more.  : "Kanon! Answer me!! ...Genji, bring Doctor Nanjo here!!"Natsuhi realized that even though Kanon was on the verge of death, he was still conscious, so she sent Genji to get the doctor. ...Natsuhi, holding the rifle aloft, faced the darkness in the center of the boiler room and shouted! : "...Who is hiding over there?!!! Come out quietly!! If you don't come out from there, I'll shoot without mercy!!" : "A flashlight! Oba-san, let's light them up!!" The door had been left open a small crack, and it was obvious that someone had left through there in a hurry. : "...Natsuhi oba-san, where does that door go?!": "G, Genji...! Where does that door lead to?!": "...The, the courtyard...!": "L, like hell I'd let you get away, you drat bastaaaaaaaard!!!"Battler let out a war cry as he slammed into the door. Cool air from outside suddenly rushed in. ...There were some thin, rough stairs leading up. ...Battler ran up them, shouting! : "Wait, Battler-kun!! It's dangerous to be alone!!"At least grab the hatchet first, dude! Natsuhi was also rushing up the stairs, chasing after Battler.  Because it was surrounded on all sides, the air was calm and completely undisturbed, even though they could hear the sound of strong winds. There was only the gentle, sorrowful rain... As he ran through the cold and scattered raindrops, dashing up the stairs into the courtyard, Battler looked in every direction. ...Of course, the odds of him finding a suspicious silhouette just standing around nonchalantly were pretty much zero... Battler turned around, looking in all directions. He turned again and again. He kept spinning until he almost lost his sense of direction. He prayed that he would see the culprit somewhere in this scenery...! But there was no chance. All he saw as he spun was more and more of the mansion's heartless walls and windows...!   : "...Battler-kun!! You mustn't run ahead by yourself!! ...Battler-kun...?"Battler put his head against the wall, and scratched at it with his fingernails as he cried... : "...drat it, ...drat it, drat it!! Eva oba-san and Hideyoshi oji-san! And now Kanon-kun!!! You killed a full six people!! And that wasn't enough, so you had to kill three more!! Are you kidding me, are you loving kidding meeeeeeeeeeeeee!! Eva oba-san and Hideyoshi oji-san were always kind and fun as an aunt and uncle...!! I just met Kanon yesterday, but I'm sure I'd have gotten along fine with him! Why did you kill them?!! Why, why...?!!! You know, when people die, they don't come back to life again, right?! They aren't gonna quickly sprout up again like bamboo shoots, you see?! ...Why did you kill them?! Why..., why...?!!! Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhh...!!"Battler, didn't you pay attention? Beatrice can bring people back to life, no problem. Just stick it out and it'll aaaaaall be fine when you reach the Golden Land. ...Uu- ...Battler was a boy who could understand the feelings of pain and regret in a person's heart. ...So he cried. With all his strength. Natsuhi, who had always thought of Battler as a frank person, was a little surprised to find that he had this delicate side, ...and at the same time, understood how easily hurt the heart of a young person could be, so she held him.  Battler, after sobbing into Natsuhi's chest for a while, wiped his tears with a bitter smile, as though he had been like that the whole time, and tried to appear as though he had cried more than enough already... : "Anyway, let's go back down for now. ...Protecting ourselves is a higher priority than finding the culprit. Tomorrow, the boat will arrive. After that happens, the police will come, and everything should be brought to light. ...There's no way the culprit can escape this island, no matter how much they struggle...!!": "...That's right. ...When the police come..."When the seagulls cry, the crime will be solved. But, ...for some reason, Battler felt a slight sense of uneasiness...as if the seagulls would never cry again. ...That couldn't be true. When the typhoon passes, the lively seagulls should return to the harbor again...  ...Stains from Kanon-kun's blood remained on the floor. Judging by the large amount of blood lost and the ruthless shape of the weapon that had fallen carelessly to the ground, ...I figured that Doctor Nanjo's treatment would probably end in vain... That weapon was doubtlessly the same type that had been stuck in Eva oba-san and Hideyoshi oji-san's foreheads. ...But wait, isn't the demononic design on the handle a little different...? There seemed to be some small differences in that part. Still, as far as their overall shape was concerned, the weapons were all of the same type. Though it had seemed brutal, we'd left the weapons that had been stuck into Eva oba-san and Hideyoshi oji-san to preserve the crime scene. ...So this was the first time we were able to have a perfect view of the entire weapon.  Including the handle, it was 25 centimeters long. Half of that was the stake shaped part, which was stained with deep red blood. ...The length of the blood-stained part made it clear just how deeply it must have penetrated into Kanon-kun's chest... But Natsuhi oba-san and the rest didn't even look at the weapon, and instead stood in front of the incinerator, where the horrible stench was emanating from. They had probably pulled out 'that', which had been burnt up in the furnace. ...'It' was still smoking, and kept sending out dense waves of that awfully unpleasant smell... Genji-san and Maria stared down at it. Natsuhi oba-san probably couldn't stand to look directly at it. ...She kept shaking her head, her back to it.  : "...Uu-...!"Yes, that really is Battler, despite him stealing Maria's signature noise. ...I'd thought that after everything that had happened, nothing could surprise me anymore, but, ...this was, ..., gghh...! I stood there for a while, moaning, with a rising urge to vomit...  Wait. So...with everyone else accounted for when they smelled it...oh god.  oh god...The clothes, the surface of the body, and the hair were all hideously burned. That grotesque corpse was in a state where not the face, nor the age, nor even the gender could be even guessed at... Okay, wait, no, we can still salvage this, we can still salvage this! Obviously, there was a nineteenth person, they weren't the culprit, and Kinzo killed them and chucked them into the furnace! There we go. Clearly that is what happened. But when I thought about it calmly, I realized that a corpse appearing at this time could only be one person. ...It was Grandfather, who had disappeared that morning, and whose whereabouts had been unknown. No! It's gotta be some anonymous extra guy! It has to be! : "...I believe, ...it is most likely the Master.": "...I, ...agree. ...That he would pass away in such a state...It's heartrending..."Oh come on! Even Umineko wouldn't just unceremoniously off the best character halfway through...right?  : "...Notice how there are six toes on each foot.": "Huh? ...Ah, ...you're right..."Just as Genji-san had said, there were six toes on each foot. Each of the toes had been arranged so normally that I hadn't noticed... : "...Since the Master was born, both of his feet have had six toes. ...Consequently, the Master was entrusted with the revival of the Ushiromiya family.": "I have heard that since long ago, cases of polydactyly were common in the Ushiromiya family. ...It's probably hereditary."...Nope, it totally would.   But a big deal isn't usually made of polydactyly in the world at large. That's because it isn't a disease, just something people are born with. So while they are still babies, at about the time they turn one year old, they can be taken to the hospital and given surgery to make them normal. Even a child with polydactyly can be treated before they become aware, so they might not even remember it themselves. By the way, it seems that there is a possibility for this to occur in one out of every two thousand babies, so even though it's not usually seen, it isn't that rare at all. Speaking of which, I think Hideyoshi oji-san mention something to me long ago. ...Something about how even Toyotomi Hideyoshi, the man who unified Japan at the end of the Sengoku period, had possessed six fingers on one hand...  If Grandfather hadn't disliked his position as the head overly much, this sixth toe must have been pretty lucky for him. ...Come to think of it, I think I've heard about some country where it's believed that people with polydactyly should be treated as gods and revered... This is beside the point, but it's fairly common in mystery novels for a corpse to be burned to hide whose body it is. ...But I guess that in Grandfather's case, just being toasted wouldn't be enough to hide the proof of his identity... And, ...Grandfather's body was not simply burnt. ...Just like Eva oba-san and Hideyoshi oji-san, ...one of those things that had been stuck in Kanon's chest, one of those 'demon's icepicks', ...was stuck into his forehead...! Oh, hey. Gouge the head and kill. And the victim was...the family head. Clever, Beatrice.  ...This room had also become a vital crime scene for us to hand over to the police. ...It was decided that we would leave Grandfather's corpse here and lock the room, sealing it. It isn't clear when Grandfather's corpse started burning in the incinerator. Since, according to Genji, the strength of the flames hadn't been that strong, the body must have started burning a long time ago, so that stench could slowly creep out of the furnace and fill the room bit by bit, eventually pouring out and climbing up the staircase. ...Putting aside whether he was rare or well-done, Grandfather had been brought out, killed, and burned...even though he had started out locked away in the closed room created by his auto-lock. ...There's probably no doubting this... However, according to Genji-san, the boiler room is usually locked. ...The possibility that someone outside our group had snuck in and committed the crime was overwhelmingly high, and there was also a good chance that this person was walking around with something like a master key. ...After all, the doors and windows throughout the mansion had been checked. But despite that, the culprit was able to strut around the mansion freely.   ...By flipping the chessboard over once more, the very fact that this crime makes it perfectly obvious that a 19th person exists...means that the existence of the 19th person is even less possible. As long as that 19th person doesn't show themselves in front of us...! Except for the fact that process of elimination basically rules out everyone at this point, unless one of the corpses was faked. ...If the culprit could get Grandfather out through the door sealed by the receipt, if they could kill Eva oba-san and Hideyoshi oji-san from the other side of a door sealed by a chain, ...then is it possible for them to even create a fictional 19th person through strange tricks and devices...?!?! If we still want to believe that the culprit is among us, ...then the list of suspects is very short. The four of us kids, Natsuhi oba-san, Genji-san, Kumasawa baa-chan, and Doctor Nanjo. ...One of these people has to be the culprit! Wait, we can't be sure of that. ...Just a second ago, we started doubting whether the corpse here was actually Grandfather's, right? Maybe we can think of the other bodies in the same way.  Had the culprit prepared a fake body beforehand and disguised it to make it look like they'd died...when they'd actually hid somewhere after committing the crime...? ...It sounds ridiculous, but that doesn't mean it's an impossible trick. ...It's too early to give in to this 19th person, ...no, this witch...! : "Maria-chan, you mustn't stare so fixedly anymore. Come on, Battler-kun too. I am worried about Kanon's condition, and I don't want to stay in a place like this any longer than I have to. Let's go back.": "...Uu-."Maria hadn't gone out with everyone else, but had remained in the boiler room. The thing she was staring fixedly at was probably not Grandfather's body, but the 'demon's icepick' that was sticking out of his forehead. ...She was probably barely able to contain her enthusiasm. I tapped her on the head.   : "How can you laugh at something like that? Do you think you're the only one who's safe? Why don't you feel like you're in danger? Why aren't you scared?!": "...Beatrice promised me. ...She said that she's going to take me to the Golden Land. ...It's a wonderful place where you have no obligations, everyone's always together, and everyone is always nice to everyone else. ...I'm looking forward to it. That time will come, very soon now. ...Kihihihihihihihihihihihihihihihihihi..."...Just what kind of person is Maria...? ...I only know what Maria was like six years ago, when she was three. She had been pure and obedient...a good kid. This new Maria six years later and the Maria I knew, ...didn't seem to fit together. Battler you uh. You know people tend to change over long periods, right? Six years is plenty of time for her to turn evil and join the cult of Beatrice. ...Just who are they...Maria and the one who claims to be a 'witch'...? To Maria, who obstinately believes in the witch, ...this series of unsolvable crimes is proof that the witch actually exists. Every time something occurs that would be difficult for a human, it becomes a little harder for the rest of us to not believe in Beatrice.  ...Let's uh. Let's not speculate as to why that's in quotes. Ever. what the gently caress battler : "...Maria, let me ask this one more time. You'll probably answer the same anyway, but I'll ask just once more.": "Uu-...?": "...Yesterday, you were given a letter in the rose garden. ...Who gave it to you...?!": "Uu-. ...Like I said, Beatrice. You still don't believe. Uu-."Maria only repeated what she had already said. ...Maria had met with the 19th person, the witch. Had that really been a 19th person, or had that been one of the 18, who told her to say otherwise? All that's certain is that Maria has been with the rest of us constantly, has always had an alibi, and hasn't done anything that would put her under suspicion. She's simply overjoyed at being made Beatrice's messenger, and there certainly isn't a 19th person... ...Supposedly.    So! In the course of two updates, the dead have come to outnumber the living, and a couple of the premier suspects have been thoroughly eliminated. Also, we're already halfway through the twilights. Though... Isn't something missing...?  RIP Kinzo, 191?-1986 Good night, sweet prince, and flights of crazy, alcoholic angels sing thee to thy rest.  Oh right and some furniture was lost too. Eh. Not like the family can't spare a chair. Next time: Beatrice shows off some sequence breaking. 
Shiny777 fucked around with this message at 02:19 on Dec 26, 2012 |
|
#
?
Dec 25, 2012 13:19
|
|
|
Kanon, you are not worthy of using the When They Cry Hatchet/Billhook. This is why it's pointless to arm the endtable.
|
|
#
?
Dec 25, 2012 14:09
|
|
|
The last picture is golden.  That aside, I think it is not impossible for someone to fake a six-toed corpse. The gene for polydactyly is dominant, so each of Kinzo's offspring has a 50% chance of having that condition, which isn't a bad chance at all. The demon drill thing may actually be shot from a crossbow, by the way. It makes more sense than to actually stab people with it and allows Kanon to pull it away without seeing the culprit.
|
|
#
?
Dec 25, 2012 14:34
|
|
|
What are we going to do for the other seven chapters? They keep dying off.
|
|
#
?
Dec 25, 2012 15:59
|
|
|
Since this is the Higurashi guy, I'm gonna guess time reset
|
|
#
?
Dec 25, 2012 17:36
|
|
|
Kinzo is the best Santa.  Though he kind of missed the point. You're in snow, not fire Kinzo.
|
|
#
?
Dec 25, 2012 18:07
|
|
|
Someone went to a whole lot of trouble to disguise "putatively-Kinzo's" body with the exception of the polydactyly. Kinzo could easily be out there making trouble for people, especially since despite calling for Nanjo, we haven't actually seen him yet, nor has he spoken, since Kanon's little run-in with the drill gun. He would be the clear pick for faking Kinzo's death, due to also being old and fat, right?
|
|
#
?
Dec 25, 2012 18:26
|
|
|
The direction for Kanon's death scene is really good and is hard to express in an LP format. There's this background chanting that keeps getting louder and louder, long pauses for buildup, and then the combination of sound effects at the end that come out of nowhere. It's definitely one of the more memorable bits from Episode 1, I think.
|
|
#
?
Dec 25, 2012 19:17
|
|
|
I wonder if one of the bodies from the shed just plain got reused to throw people off? Krauss had a similar build to Kinzo, could've inherited six toes, and would be indistiguishable once sufficiently brulee'd.
|
|
#
?
Dec 25, 2012 21:19
|
|
|
Natsuhi is the best. I'm going to be so sad when she inevitably bites it. On the other hand, I'm looking forward to one of the cousins getting offed, since that hasn't happened yet. It'll be a good way to step up the sense of horror despite already having so many deaths.
|
|
#
?
Dec 25, 2012 21:41
|
|
|
Anastasiya posted:Natsuhi is the best. I'm going to be so sad when she inevitably bites it. George getting offed would probably cause the most panic, considering he seems to be the 'mature' one of the cousin group. I really like Natsuhi too, she's doing a lot better at handling this situation now that there's no Eva to needle her.
|
|
#
?
Dec 25, 2012 21:46
|
|
|
|
| # ? Jun 3, 2024 18:39 |
|
|
Anastasiya posted:Natsuhi is the best. I'm going to be so sad when she inevitably bites it. Natsuhi is probably my second favorite of the moms because Ryukishi really writes the role of "the outcast" for her well. She finds both honor and sadness in her duties to the Ushiromiya family, but does care about family members outside her husband and daughter. I don't think you could say the same for Eva as an example, who seems to hold George and Hideyoshi at the highest regard and treats most everyone else like trash. She just has a lot of pressure on her because everyone is always watching her actions and judging her based on small things, like how the servants act, because she puts herself in the role of caretaker more than Krauss. That said, I think the majority of the female characters in Umineko outshine the males in terms of development and personality. Not that the males don't get anything, but the females are clearly given more depth and expansion. Unlike in Higurashi, there's more than four or five males this time around.
|
|
#
?
Dec 26, 2012 00:38
|
|