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I think we haven't had a positive trigger yet. So let's try that out
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May 10, 2020 08:15
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VostokProgram posted:I think we haven't had a positive trigger yet. So let's try that out We actually did have a Positive Delusion at the start of Chapter 10. If you're basing your vote on those grounds, I feel it only fair to point that out and allow you to change your mind. Do you wish to keep your vote as-is?
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May 10, 2020 09:35
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OddHaberdasher posted:We actually did have a Positive Delusion at the start of Chapter 10. Oh, that's right. But I'll still keep my vote for positive
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May 10, 2020 12:25
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I'm down with positive today.
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May 10, 2020 12:57
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positive
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May 10, 2020 16:57
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I feel that Yua is a really positive influence!
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May 10, 2020 18:24
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Postive
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May 11, 2020 03:13
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Positivity comes out ahead. The next update should be posted by the end of today. Then a short break for tomorrow, with an update to come in 2/3 days.
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May 11, 2020 03:26
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Part 15 - A One-Man Play    Right, what kind of weird thoughts were going through my head? I'd gotten all suspicious. How stupid. Besides, Nanami had said that Gero-froggies were a big fad among highschool girls, so there was absolutely nothing strange about Yua possessing some. Yeah, that's right. That's how it was. Honestly, there were times when it sucked to be so overly imaginative. No point in getting cowed by my own delusions. Hahaha.  Still gazing up at me, Yua tilted her head. I hastily gave her a friendly smile.  "Ah, er.... um...." "Th, that's, re, really, a big fad now.... isn't it...."  Eh....? OST: Doubt  Did I say something bad just now?  "........." "........."  My bad premonition wouldn't go away. The deja vu I had sensed the instant I saw the three Gero-Froggies dangling from her bag.   Mistrust raised its head in me, surging up to control my heart. Should I trust Yua or not....  Her voice was clearly getting shrill.  "They're re, really popular, aren't they. Ahaha. Although I, I, um, don't think they're v, very cute, either." "Some friends gave them to me.... B, before I knew it, I already had three...." The more Yua spoke, the more unnatural she started to sound.  I felt hollow. I told her in my heart that she didn't need to say anything more. "Sh, shall I show them to you?"  "Ummm, w, wait a moment, please...." Her hand was shaking minutely. Perhaps because she was in such a hurry, she had trouble taking the straps off. "H, how strange, I wonder why they won't come off.... Co, could they be tangled--" When Yua tried to forcibly pull the straps away, her bag fell off the bench. Because the fasteners weren't closed, notebooks and textbooks came tumbling out from inside it.  If it were several minutes earlier-- I might have moe'd over Yua's clumsy side. But now all I could do was freeze in place. Because--  It seemed to be some kind of scrapbook. The memos, the clippings, everything in it had to do with a certain series of incidents. I saw it clearly.  "Wh.... why...." My voice was hoarse. Yua feverishly gathered the scattered memos and clippings and shoved them back in her bag.  Yua rose, hugging her bag to her chest. Her smile from before had completely vanished, and she hung her head uncomfortably. "Wh, what was that....?" "........." Yua didn't answer. Why won't you answer? Answer me.... Say something to me.... If you don't say anything, won't I start thinking you must be feeling guilty....?   "You mustn't trust in anyone. You mustn't listen to anyone."Seira had been right after all. 3-D girls were the worst, each and every one of them.  This sucks.... This loving sucks....! Even though I'd started to forget all about that incident. Even though, since the police hadn't shown any signs of coming to talk to me about it, I'd made myself think I would get by without having anything to do with it. Even though I hadn't wanted to get wrapped up in it.  But--   Her voice made my blood run cold. A voice so chilly that my spine seemed about to freeze. I could hardly think of her as being the same Yua as before. On top of that-- "Uuh...."Yua's grip on my wrist was abnormally powerful. She gripped it so tight that pain shot through me. Such a violent pain that it was enough to made me wonder if she would clench me to bits, all the way down to my bones. I tried to shake her off, but she wouldn't let go. On the contrary, she pulled me closer, making me pitch backwards.  She whispered from behind me.... more so than that, right beside my ear, sounding as though all emotion had died in her. Shuddering, I timidly, timidly turned around.  The color residing in the depths of her glaring eyes wasn't sane.   "I'll apologize for deceiving you, but that goes for both of us." "You, too, hid something from me." Hid.... something....  And that was why she had approached me.  The fact that she'd been concerned about me since the first time she saw me. And the fact that she'd said she liked Burachu. And the fact that she'd promised to go together with me to pick up the post-awakening Seira figure on the day it was released. And the fact that she'd smiled and nodded as though she were having fun listening to what I was telling her. And the fact that she'd said she wanted to become better friends with me. And the fact that she'd gotten worried about me when I didn't come to school. And the fact that she'd been nice enough to call me admirable. All of it, all of it, had just been her saying whatever came to the top of her head.... I clenched my fists in frustration and grief.  Why did I try so hard to believe in someone like her....!  "There's something I want to tell you." "You won't say you won't listen?" "You should listen." "Listen." "Won't you listen?" "If you don't listen...." "........."If I don't listen, what.... She was like a different person from the Yua I'd known up till now. Her gentle, calm atmosphere had vanished. Now I sensed an unapproachable atmosphere. And an indescribable tenacity. Her tone was absolute in its self-possession. No, "cool-headedness" might be a better way to put it. Her usual frailty was nowhere to be found. No, I don't want to listen.... I tried to cover my ears. But I couldn't do it. Yua had captured one of my hands. She wasn't gripping it as hard as before, but she showed no sign of letting go. She wouldn't let my hand move freely.   I was stunned. My heartbeat leapt higher. I couldn't stay calm. I was so shocked that I lowered the one hand covering my ear. That was when Yua's accusatory voice reached my ears.  Of course I recognized it. I soon saw it for what it was. It resembled a cross but was in truth a stake. One didn't often see stakes with such a distinctive shape. At the very least, I had only seen them once before.     "Surely you must know it?" "Of course you know it." "I won't let you say you don't know it." "It'd be strange if you didn't know it." "You know it, don't you?" I desperately shook my head. Greasy sweat stood out on my forehead. All I could do for the time being, as I wiped it, was shake my head from side to side.  "....!" "In your room." "Under the bed." "On the floor." "It fell there." "Didn't it fall there?" "Or did you throw it away?" "In any case, it fell." "It fell."You bitch....!    "And.... it's the same as the stakes used in the third 'New Gen' case." "I'm saying it's the same." "It's the same, isn't it?" "It's unmistakably the same." "It's the same." "As the stakes used to pin the corpse to the wall." "The same."I was positive of it.  Did she think she was some kind of detective? "The high school girl detective, Kusunoki Yua," or something like that.  But Yua's reasoning was fatally mistaken. I knew the killer. I'd seen her with my own eyes. That demon.  "So.... so what?" "........." Yua lowered her head and let out a small breath. Her grip on my wrist weakened, and at last she released me.  What the hell was "yet" supposed to mean here!?  "While we're at it, let me confirm one other thing." Precognition posted:Knowledge about future events. "Haa....?"I unthinkingly let my mouth fall open.  As I wracked my brain, Yua plunged a hand into her bag and pulled out a piece of paper with a full-color image printed on it.   "Th, this...." "Why do you have a photo that replicates the third 'New Gen' case?" "Furthermore, you sent this image out on the day before the incident." "It was left behind in the cache of the PC you use." I got this image from a guy called "Shogun," who I chatted with for the first time that day! I didn't make it myself! The fact that I'd downloaded it should still be recorded in my browser's history. Of course, I'd show that to Yua! But hold on, how had Yua gotten her hands on the image in the first place....? How had she known it was left in my computer's cache.... The one time she came to my room, she couldn't possibly have had any time to check out my PC....!  She was trying to set me up!?  "S, save me...." This was too much for me.... Why me? Because I was gross? Because I didn't have any friends? "........." Yua said nothing, only shook her head a little.  "I also wanted to investigate your PC, if at all possible, but I didn't have the chance." Room 37.... the room I always used. The bitch totally thought she was some kind of detective....  Still wearing that expression, she began fishing around inside her bag again. This time she brought out a print-out and pushed it at me.  But I had no choice but to look. I'd be falsely accused if I didn't find some way to resist.   My everything? Could she have stolen all my personal information? Was Yua a hacker? Heart pounding, I unfolded the print-out. Contrary to my expectations, though, rather than my personal information, what was printed there looked like the backlog of an online chat. "Ah...."    "Eh...."   "'Neidhardt' and 'Shogun'--" "Ah....!"Eh? What was this? Why had it ended up like this....? "You are 'Neidhardt,' Nishijou-kun. The timestamp there starts on September 28, at about 3:00 in the morning." "The next day, you went to '@Cafe.'" "You typically go to '@Cafe' after school." "And you go to school 2.5 times per week. I heard from your classmates that the days you attended school last week were--" "Monday, Wednesday, Thursday." "Last week's Monday was.... September 29. The same day as on Shogun's timestamps." ".........Wha...." What? What.... was she saying?   Yua briefly cut herself off-- Then, finally catching my gaze straight-on, she gave voice to the relentless truth.       OST End  "I don't want to hear anything" "Time is uncertain" "My memories are self-contradictory" "There are errors in my field of sight" "The world isn't turning" "This must surely be a game" "I'm.... not me" At last my Seira-tan wallpaper appeared on the monitor. "This isn't the world" I instantly started up ESO, without a second's hesitation.  
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May 11, 2020 06:45
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what the gently caress? that was positive? also, am i correct in assuming that the delusion begins and ends on these two frames?
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May 11, 2020 07:43
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VostokProgram posted:what the gently caress? that was positive? Back in Part 4, wherein the so-called Delusion Trigger system was explained, it was also mentioned that there was a 'little more nuance' that would be discussed at a later time. That time is now. To put it bluntly, there was no delusion. Every event in that post happened exactly as presented. The contents of the bag were real, as were the actions and words of Yua. What you were voting for at the end of Part 14 was not a choice between delusions/no delusion, but rather, Takumi's 'mindset'. By voting for Positive, he was trusting and settled on the first answer that he thought of to the question "Where did I see these Gero-froggies?" If you had voted for Neutral, he would have been more curious, though the answer would elude him until Yua had her accident. If you had voted Negative, he would have been paranoid enough to probe his memory to the point that he would realize exactly where he had seen the bag, though the confrontation would play out the same way. This is the first occasion of this sort of Trigger, though it will not be the last. Most Delusion Triggers merely deal with Takumi's imagination, but not all. There is no indication or warning in-game of which triggers will lead to Delusions, and which will have more..... tangible effects. Therefore, I too will give no warning beforehand. I feel that the uncertainty enhances the experience.
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May 11, 2020 08:58
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Well, that took a turn.
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May 11, 2020 10:41
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OddHaberdasher posted:Back in Part 4, wherein the so-called Delusion Trigger system was explained, it was also mentioned that there was a 'little more nuance' that would be discussed at a later time. That time is now. I wish I had you as a guide when I was first reading this, because the delusion trigger added so much uncertainty to the game that I was puzzled about what was real and what wasn't. Which is part of the experience, but it also made it really difficult to read for me, to the point where I never finished it. On my second playthrough I stuck to neutral only, in an attempt to only see the truth, and nothing but the truth, but that's not guaranteed either...
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May 11, 2020 11:53
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This is the stuff I was waiting for. The delusion system in chaos;child was great too, and made me want to read the original. Can’t wait for the next update.
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May 11, 2020 14:25
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To those of you following along with this in the future, when this will hopefully be on the Archive, you're probably wondering what happened last update. Here is the explanation I posted in the thread:OddHaberdasher posted:Back in Part 4, wherein the so-called Delusion Trigger system was explained, it was also mentioned that there was a 'little more nuance' that would be discussed at a later time. That time is now. Part 16 - Click Me OST: M.I.L.     Nishijou Takumi lay sprawled on the tatami-covered floor with a colored pencil in his hand. It was yellow. The one he held several minutes before was red. He reclined on his sketchbook, almost covering it with his body, as he ran the pencil across it lightly. Takumi loved to draw. He loved it so much that even during school, he always doodled in the margins of his notebooks. The TV, which had been turned on even though no one was really watching it, was currently playing the morning news. To Takumi, who was still only in fourth grade, the news was nothing but "boring stuff," so he didn't look at the screen. --Beeep, beeep, 300 yen for candy. He was drawing a yellow bus. He pretended he was the bus driver. --The bus is full, so we're going to take off, beeep. He brought imaginary scenes into reality through his drawings. He worked so energetically that there were many times when his lines went off the surface of his sketchbook onto tatami. Each time, Nanami, who was reading manga nearby, became angry and grumbled, "Jeez--! You mustn't get it dirty," even though she was just his little sister. Unconcerned, Takumi continued immersing himself in his drawing.     The day before-- The day before the fall field trip-- Takumi's parents had suddenly told him, "You can't go on the field trip." He was looking forward to it this whole time. He was overexcited since the morning, so much so that his heart pounded as he wondered how soon it would be tomorrow. He simply couldn't bring himself to accept how his parents had callously sentenced him. Weeping, he insisted he would go no matter what, but it was futile. Regardless of what he said to them, his parents wouldn't listen, telling him only, "You can't," and "We're only looking out for your best interests," over and over. Burrowing into his bed, Takumi trembled with such frustration that as if he were about to rip the mattress to shreds. He loathed his parents from the bottom of his heart. At the time, a field trip had been a tremendous, tremendous event for Takumi, one sufficient to induce this level of passion in him. Though everyone else in the class could go, he alone could not. From Takumi's point of view, it was all too unreasonable. Takumi's world was a lonely one. Their world was full of fun and passion. He almost had the sense that he was the only one to have been cut off from the rest of the world.   This began to transform into hatred toward his parents and classmates. Biting his lip hard enough to make it bleed, he continually repeated curse-like words to himself.   Each time his mother answered it, her responses seemed more and more unsettled. In the end, Takumi couldn't get even a bit of sleep. It was a little past 9:00. Nanami sat on a cushion in a lady-like manner, reading manga. The day before, she told Takumi, "Nana's gonna stay home from school, too, and be with her Bro," and now she was there near him as if it were perfectly natural. Their father had already gone to work and was nowhere to be seen. Their mother was so busy answering the phone that she didn't have time to make breakfast. There was no need to go to school today-- Still sulking, Takumi opened his sketchbook and began drawing to clear away his gloom.   Nanami raised her voice in confusion. Takumi thought she was talking about the drawing he'd been working on, but her eyes were glued to the television.  "Hey, Mommy!"Nanami yelled for their mother, who was even now responding to another phone call. Listening from beside her, Takumi absent-mindedly followed his sister's gaze to the TV screen.    A single glance was enough for him to imagine most of what had happened. His classmates were reflected on the screen. One was crying, one had his forehead covered in blood, one was being laid on a stretcher and carried off into an ambulance. A pale-faced reporter described the circumstances of the accident, but Takumi didn't really understand what he was saying.  His mother stood stock-still at the entrance to the room, face pale, still gripping the phone. Takumi's Mother: "The bus for the field trip had an accident on the highway...." "That's what they're showing on TV right now...."  For some reason, Takumi was certain of it.  One thing alone resided in Takumi's heart. The peculiar conviction that he was the possessor of precognitive powers.  The "precog" who appeared on that program had startled the contemporary world with his display of overwhelming supernatural abilities. In one test, twelve items were to be placed in boxes labeled from 1 to 12, and the precog was to sit in a different room, with cards that had the items' names on them, and predict which boxes they would go in. Only afterward would some staff members, in a different room, actually place the items in the boxes. When they tallied up the overlap between what was predicted and the boxes' actual contents, the precog's 90% success rate made the show's hosts go wild.  That was why now, too, he saw the accident on TV and thought to himself that his foresight had been correct.  Mother: "Ahh, how dreadful...." Takumi's mother began to embrace him, but he slipped out of her arm and crawled to another corner of the room. Mother: "But thank goodness...." His mother murmured emptily, her gaze swimming through the air. Mother: "Thank goodness.... Thank God we decided to have you stay home today.... Taku-chan."  So what if he had precognitive powers? It took a mere instant for his heart to freeze.  He was literally mute. He wouldn't let out a single word in response to anyone.  It was his way of getting back at them, he thought.  Since he didn't actually have PTSD, of course, He didn't take a single dose of the medicine they gave him. He only pretended to take it.   OST End OST: Computer Noises  The world is full of fiction. Furthermore, it seemed like everyone's ill will was directed at me.  "You'll come to see that what I'm saying isn't wrong." "And one more thing...."  Like hell I could believe her. You've got some nerve to say "believe me" after deceiving me. No matter what, I didn't want to acknowledge "my everything," which Yua had thrusted at me. I wanted to think that her calling me "Shogun" had merely been idle words or rambling.   I hadn't been sleeping when "Shogun" posted his parts of the chat. It was an incontrovertible fact that I had gone to @Cafe at the time. But I hadn't fallen asleep. So I couldn't be a sleepwalker. Then what did it mean that I don't have any memory of posting as "Shogun"? Alternatively, someone other than myself could control my body....   Even everything about ESO was a lie. Because when you got down to it, it was a world in a game.  What's wrong with that? Or maybe--  Maybe Nishijou Takumi was the fictional existence, And Neidhardt was my true self.  I called to the paladin in the center of my monitor. Am I controlling you, or are you controlling me? Which is it? Are you real, and am I the avatar? What if the world I was in right now was a game? That would explain everything. If, in the same way that I was watching the Neidhardt inside my monitor, If I too were being watched by someone.  That person would have to be "the player controlling me."  It would made sense if "Shogun" and I were the same person. Come to think of it, Liselotte was in a similar situation. It was impossible for Neidhardt and Liselotte to ever exist in Baselard at the same time. Because they had only one player, me.  One could also contemplate the possibility that it was a bug.       I want to run away from everything--    
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May 13, 2020 13:19
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Well, I can't say I expected psychic powers and this level of utter self-loathing
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May 13, 2020 23:15
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Part 17 - Making An Appointment  It was enough to make me think that time had stopped. Worse, the air was stagnant, as befitted the stench of disinfectants, and everyone had dark looks on their faces. Try to spend five minutes in a place like this, and you'd get depressed enough you want to die. I don't like hospitals.  Although there tend to be lots of people in the lobby itself. It was almost as though the scent of death lurked in those hallways. I thought this itself was the hospital's true face, and that things far more horrifying and eerie were hidden at the ends of the corridors.  Even after I entered ESO, the words Yua had left with me spun around and around in my head, making it impossible for me to concentrate. As a result, I worried about this and that all the way until the morning, and became seriously scared that something about me might be abnormal.  I was used to coming to the hospital's psych ward. Although I'd unthinkingly nodded when the young lady at the desk asked me if it were my first time being examined here. Ever since the aforementioned bus accident, my mother had brought me here at regular intervals. When I entered middle school, the doctor responsible for me diagnosed me as completely cured, and because I stopped going here, it had been about four years since my last visit.  Despite being called a pupil, he wasn't particularly young; if anything, he looked older than he should have been. Last night, I had suddenly recalled that doctor's--Doctor Takashina's--words.  I hated the hospital, but he was very kind to me; I had the impression that he was a good person. Even then, I had utterly succeeded in deceiving all the adults around me to the very end. Dr. Takashina was the one who saw through me and declared me fully healed.   If I'd remembered how short this section was going to be, I'd have put it into the last update. Ah well, nothing for it now. There is no more nuance to be learned. You know everything there is to know about Triggers. What is your choice? Positive, Negative or Neutral? Since this was such a short update, I'm only going to have this vote open for 4-6 hours. Another update will come soon after.
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May 14, 2020 01:51
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Neutral. I hope he gets help. 
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May 14, 2020 01:59
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StrixNebulosa posted:Neutral. I hope he gets help. Yeah, Neutral. Our boy's been through a lot. Some speculation: Back in part 3 Shogun and Neidhardt definitely had a real-time conversation:  So I think that in some way history has actually changed. Also, maybe Takumi's parents also had precognition? They pulled him off the field trip on the perfect day, after all.
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May 14, 2020 03:56
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Neutrality it is. Next update should be posted later today, and be a more respectable size than the last one.
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May 14, 2020 07:07
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Part 18 - Taking a Test WarningThe following update contains Orgel Seira, and is therefore Not Work Safe.    This doctor was the very picture of "a sincere older man." His face was aged, but he wore a soft expression, and more than anything, those qualities came out in his demeanor and the way he spoke. He hadn't changed a bit since the last time we'd met, four years ago. I found myself all but reading to believe that he was unaging. Although I had never been aware of exactly how old he was. The desire to cling to him grew stronger and stronger inside me. I could rely on him. He would save me. I was truly happy that I'd been able to reunite with him. At least until I heard the first words he said to me--  His voice was indeed soft, filled with a kindness that would set anyone at ease. But there wasn't the sense of intimacy I'd felt in the time when I commuted to this hospital in the past. As though he were only coming in contact with me as part of his job-- That was why I told him my name without hesitating. "Eh, uh, um, I'm Nishijou."  "Hm? Ah, how polite of you."   "Nice to meet you." Was that he had said to me just now. No mistaking it. He had.... forgotten about me. Of course, four years had passed since then.... But he.... I'd thought he, if no one else, would remember me. I'd embraced such expectations all on my own. But upon having them shattered, my heart abruptly began to overflow with loneliness and emptiness. I felt that he'd denied my existence. He looked me in the eyes as he spoke. I averted my gaze.  "Has something happened?"Yes, that was what I'd written on the questionnaire form. But there was no longer any point. If he didn't remember me, then.... NSFW: Orgel Seira "Big deal." "Whether the doc remembers you or not has nothing to do with it, right-o? You mustn't forget why you came here in the first place!"  I hadn't come here to see Dr. Takashina. I'd come to prove that I was a normal human being. Reuniting with Dr. Takashina was nothing more than a bonus. So he'd forgotten me? So what? If Seira-tan hadn't warned me in time, I'd have been in danger of losing sight of myself. Fuu.... "U, um...."  "Hmm." "An acquaintance.... Pointed it out to me.... Got me really mixed up...." "Do you think it's possible that your acquaintance was joking with you?" "........."   "I don't.... know...." "I see." "Haa....?"What was he saying all of a sudden? And what did it have to do with anything? "No, I phrased that poorly. Let me try again."  Oh, so that's what he'd meant. I shook my head. "So there's no proof." I shook my head one more time. "Sh, she.... thinks she's some kind of.... d, detective. She threw all kinds of evidence at me...." "Hm, is that so."  "N, no...." "Have you ever woken up early in the morning and found yourself sleeping somewhere other than your usual bed?" "N, no." "So your acquaintence was the first person to tell you something like this?"I nodded feebly, then took the plunge and opened my mouth.   "Could it be that you're frightened? But there's no need to take it so seriously." "Ah, no.... um...."That wasn't it-- That wasn't what I'd wanted to say-- But I didn't know hot to explain it, and I couldn't get my thoughts in order, and as I remained at a loss, I lost the chance to speak up.  "Hazuki-kun, I need a moment."   What was going on....? As I sat there in confusion, Dr. Takashina turned back to face me. Next, he told me all about somnambulism in a gentle tone of voice.    "Because your brain isn't at its normal level of activity, you can't process and deal with everything quickly, but you'll respond to people and can do things like go down the stairs without misstepping." "In terms of possible causes, it occurs especially readily when you're under psychological stress." "It's a common symptom among children, but adults often experience it as well. Now do you understand why I said you didn't need to take it so hard?" "Ha...." But....   Is this really what you call somnambulism? I wanted to ask him.... But Dr. Takashina was steadily advancing his side of the conversation.  "However, there are circumstances under which it won't manifest in the absence of certain prerequisites. For instance, it might have to be your own bed.  "The prerequisites could also have to do with your state of mind. You can relax atop your own bed, but it'll be hard to relax in the same way here." "What would you like to do? Will you try sleeping a bit?"   Due to the fact that it wasn't meant to be slept on, it was hard and uncomfortable. Well, I had no trouble dealing with it once I compared it to the sofa I usually slept on.  This nurse was awfully cute.... Lying on the bed, I stole glances at her while avoiding meeting her eyes. Her slightly childlike features made her seem undependable, somehow, and she gave off an aura of misfortune, but she was brisk and efficient when it came to her work. She felt like the type of heroine who might appear in an old-school eroge. One about twisted sex in hospitals. Hehehe.  "I'll do my best to keep from taking my eyes off you, so please rest at ease." In other words, she would make sure of my safety even if I manifested symptoms of sleepwalking and started wandering around.       No matter what I did, the guro photo from "Shogun" and the cruelly murdered body from the scene of the staking seemed about to float into my head. And so I forcibly began picturing Seira-tan. OST: SEIRA NSFW: Seira-tan is back "Takkii, you hate going outside, so it's amazing that you came to the hospital!" "I've thought this for a while now, but Takkii, you're a really strong boy."Seira was quite lively in my fantasies. She sang out to me in that cute voice of hers. "I love how strong you are, Tak-kii~" "Besides, you're not a sleepwalker. I watch you every night. That's how I know." "You mustn't let 3-D girls trick you. You have me, right-o?" "Let's spend all our time together back at that container house, dummy~"Hehehe. You're so adorable, Seira-tan. Seira-tan was my ideal bride, after all. No woman could surpass her. The third dimension? What the heck was that? Ahh, I want to go home. I want to go back and have Seira-tan greet me with a smile and "Welcome home." Wait for me, Seira-tan. I'll be home soon, so-- It's time for another trigger! Positive, Negative or Neutral? OddHaberdasher fucked around with this message at 00:49 on May 15, 2020 |
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May 14, 2020 12:57
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Negative, I want to see what (if anything) happens if that goes down while he's in the hospital . VostokProgram posted:Some speculation: No time stamps on that conversation, though, so he might perceive it as being in real time but actually be precognitively seeing what Shogun(/he himself in some kind of dissociative state) will later say, which I think is what Yua thinks happened. That said, it does seem like someone with the username Shogun was in the chat at the same time as Takumi was logged on as Neidhart, since Grim reacts to Shogun joining.
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May 14, 2020 16:15
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I think you linked the wrong image on the seira-chan is back link. negative
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May 14, 2020 20:11
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Negative. I barely remember what happens after this.
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May 14, 2020 22:09
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numerrik posted:I think you linked the wrong image on the seira-chan is back link. negative Thank you, numerrik. It's fixed now. In other news, Negative wins the vote.
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May 15, 2020 01:10
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I like Takumi! Okay, I don't like him, but I appreciate him. It's worth noting that he's powerfully negative in his thought patterns, but he's not... outwardly disdainful? He doesn't spend his free time on internet forums hating on the bitches and normies, he just plays games and watches anime. And when his mind is filled with bad thoughts, he doesn't it flow into lovely behavior. When somebody finally does start talking to him, he's suspicious and on edge, but the worst thing he does is get too nervous to answer an email. It's also interesting that he's clearly paranoid, but it's equally clearly not schizophrenic-pattern paranoia. It's more akin to intrusive thoughts - he's able to dismiss things on the basis of the evidence, and everything isn't connected in some grand web. When he sees somebody in the next cubby at the internet cafe researching the New Gen murders, he thinks "Oh poo poo, are they watching me or something!? ...No, probably not."
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May 15, 2020 04:20
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Part 19 - New Gen WikiWarning The following update contains descriptions of murder/mutilation, as well as discussion of the "Group Dive", "Pregnant Man" and "Staking". Orgel Seira also appears occasionally.  Delusion Start   "She" scanned the area, ignoring his question. It wasn't a very large room. There were two clipboards spread out atop the physician's desk, one holding blank white paper, and the other covered with words in a foreign language. "She" was said to be a demon. Everyone called her that. Even her parents. "She" no longer cared about whether she had been a demon from the start, or whether she had become that way because it was what everyone called her.  The public was an uproar, calling it madness and what have you, but from her point of view, it wasn't an especially remarkable number. After all, she was a demon.  "If anything concerns you, please let me know. I'll try to do something about it."As befitted a psychiatrist, he was very considerate toward his patients. Amused, "She" opened the bag she'd brought with her. What she slowly took out from within it was--  "Or shall we switch to a larger roo--"OST: Gradually panic  Picking up on his fear, "She" smiled tenderly.  He wasn't her original target, only a stop along the way. "She" set her bag down and took a single large, soundless stride toward the physician. She used her momentum to dive toward him, piercing him with her knife.    The knife penetrating his chest slipped past his breastbone and reached his heart. The physician died with a single stab. Already reduced to a mere object, he collapsed, toppling toward her. "She" supported him long enough to withdraw the knife, then shoved the "object" away with her elbow.   "She" knelt as she stepped on the doctor's body, then slashed her knife at the nurse.   Fresh blood flew out. It wasn't fatal, but a gaping wound had been carved into the nurse's meek face.  Letting out a howl, the nurse curled up in place, holding her face. Vast amounts of blood overflowed from between the fingers she pressed to her wound. Ignoring this, "She" continued toward the back of the examination room. That nurse wasn't supposed to be the tenth. It was an occasion worth celebrating. Her tenth. Two digits.  The other patients and nurses had already started screaming and running away. It was becoming a racket. Yet their voices failed to reach her ears.   The curtain that surrounded an area about one or two tatami mats in size. There was most likely a bed inside it. --You must be there. Her heart palpitated with joy. Her lower abdomen went hot at the thought that she would finally be able to kill him.  --Found you. She lost all restraint when she saw him. "She" opened the curtain and stood next to the bed. "He" was sleeping with a slightly pained expression on his face. "She" twined her fingers in his hair and gently stroked it. "He" didn't wake up. "She" gripped the knife in both hands. She raised her arms on high. She was aiming for his heart. OST End   In ecstasy, "She" lowered the knife with all her might--    Delusion End   I checked my chest. There weren't any injuries to speak of. No blood emerged. I was.... unhurt. I looked around. The curtain was closed. It hadn't been torn apart by her knife. I reached stealthily for the curtain. If I opened it, and Dr. Takashina and Hazuki-san were lying there, covered in blood.... My body broke out in shivers again as I envisioned it. "It's j, just.... a dream...."But I couldn't muster the courage to open the curtain. What if a sea of blood lay beyond it? What if that demon girl was standing there, knife in hand? These thoughts terrified me into inaction. But then--  Right in front of my eyes, someone opened the curtain from outside. Shrieking before I could stop myself, I tumbled off the bed.  "Y.... Yes....?"I fearfully raised my face. Hazuki-san was looking down at me, her eyes round. There were no traces of red blood on her white uniform, and her face was completely uninjured.  "I'm sorry, I must have startled you...." "I didn't think you were awake, so...." "Ah, yes, I mean, no...."She'd seen me at my most pathetic.... I turned my face aside and reeled to my feet. My heartbeat still wouldn't settle down. But thank God it had been a dream.... It was like I'd been watching a horror flick. "Are you really all right?"Worried, Hazuki-san looked at me more closely. I was too bashful to lift my face. It took my greatest effort to nod jerkily. "You seemed to be tossing and turning a bit." "I, ha, had.... a nightmare...." "I see...."What time was it? How long had I been asleep? I decided to ask Hazuki-san. Surprisingly enough, she said it had been three hours. It looked like I was more exhausted than I'd thought.  Hazuki-san told me in a tone of voice meant to reassure me.  "Well, we can't state definitively that you aren't a somnambulist, as it's also possible that your symptoms simply happened not to appear today."No, I'm not a sleepwalker. More importantly, I had to ask Dr. Takashina my key question. But I didn't see him anywhere. Hazuki-san handed me a one-sheet document. When I accepted it absent-mindedly and skimmed it, it turned out to be formatted as a questionnaire.  "Er, er.... the do, doctor...." "I'm sorry, he's completely booked with appointments." "He said to wait until next week, and then come back one more time if you don't experience any improvement."Well, it's not like he's my personal doctor.... He must have given Hazuki-san various instructions about what to do with me. This meant there had been no meaning in my coming all the way out to the hospital....  That said, with Hazuki-san looking at me so apologetically, I didn't have the bravery to demand, "Take me to Dr. Takashina." Helpless, I ended up filling out the checklist she'd handed me. I'd write about the symptoms that were plaguing me on the back of the page. And I'd come to see him again next week....  "If a statement applies to you, please choose Yes." "It'll help us as we decide how best to treat you in the future, so please think carefully about your answers."Hazuki-san went out of her way to explain it to me thoroughly. Among the items on the sheet were ones so strange that they didn't seem to belong there in the context of a standard hospital. It really was like a psychological test. Would they actually be able to understand anything based on my answers to questions like this? "........."Hazuki-san watched me unwaveringly. She didn't move to leave. It didn't feel like she had too much time to spare, More like she was observing me--no, watching over me. My nervousness at being watched made it hard for me to think.... Was this also part of her job as a nurse? For the time being, I decided to hurry up and get it over with.     I'm going to be real with you: This list affects absolutely nothing. It doesn't affect the story and, as far as I can tell, it doesn't even affect even one line of dialogue or narrative. This doesn't matter in the slightest. My original plan was to conceal this from you and make you go through a poll to see what we would end up ticking. But then I came to my senses and realized that would be a waste of all our time and it wouldn't even be funny. So instead I wrote this. In the end, I chose to tick the following, sticking broadly in character: quote:Your ears occasionally start ringing With all that said, time to return to the update proper:  Though I hadn't said anything, Hazuki-san spoke to me at exactly the same time I finished marking the last statement. I was mortified that she'd watched me the whole time. Maybe, my face had started turning red.  "Now, please stay in the waiting room." "I'll carry out your medicine." "Eh? M, medicine....?"I was getting medicine? Dr. Takashina hadn't said a single word to that effect, but.... "Yes, doctor's orders. It's a weak tranquilizer. It'll help you sleep soundly, and there aren't any side effects."  But the Yamanote line was as packed as always, and though I had to ride only past two stations, this round trip alone wore me out a lot. It'd be agonizing to take the train any farther, so I got off at Shibuya Station and walked back to my base. For all that, there were too many people in front of the station. I hate huge crowds. They make my head spin. Not wanting to stay any longer than I had to, I tried to cross the pedestrian scramble. But it took a big effort just to walk in a straight line here. If I swayed even a tiny bit, I'd bump into the people passing me and overtaking me.  Those tissue distributors are a serious hassle. Don't stand smack in the middle of the street like that. Well, but I'd go ahead and take them, since they're free. The tissue pack I'd taken had come with a flyer, which consisted solely of white letters on a background of red paper. It was pretty freaky-looking. You don't see this kind of color usage all that often. I read it nonchalantly as I walked.  I couldn't remember filling out something like that four years ago. Maybe their diagnostic methods changed recently. Yet for some reason, the checklist seemed familiar.  It made me sick, the fact that my own mind and body wouldn't act the way I wanted them to. I dug through my memory in hopes of somehow being able to pin down the source of this deja vu.  At first they had looked at me in a regular examining room, but when I showed no signs of getting better, they eventually started taking me to another room. It was what you'd call a counseling room, with a sofa and lots of stuffed animals lying around; a space with one goal - to make patients relax. Without blaming anyone, Dr. Takashina persevered in trying to treat me. He was the only one who noticed that it wasn't that I couldn't speak, it was simply that I chose not to. My mother talked to me about all kinds of things in a falsely bright voice. Dr. Takashina always greeted me with a refreshing smile. The nurses were nice to me, too. And-- "Hm....?"  He was always silent, like me, and I'd never so much as heard his voice. At the end I couldn't find out anything about him. His behavior wasn't like those hospitals. The physicians and atmosphere around him were also different, and he always stood aside by himself, gazing out the window.  "NOZOMI...."The suit-clad man always wore a small badge on his chest. The word "NOZOMI" was inscribed there. But since it had the design of a logo, it couldn't have been his name tag.  I'd felt like I'd seen it somewhere before, but now I finally remembered. At last I felt a little refreshed. That aside, what was this "NOZOMI"? The only certainty was that it must be the name of a corporation.    SFX: Computer Noises  Well, thinking about it normally, Nozomi-san could be the employee who had made the aforementioned checklist, or maybe a salesman who had come to the hospital with his wares, that kind of thing. And lately they'd finally started to make use of his stuff, including the sheet they'd had me fill out today....    I couldn't go to school, not when it was full of people trying to hurt me. Truthfully, I didn't really want to get my "minimum attendance shift chart" too messed up.... But it wasn't worth dying for. I stopped running searches about "NOZOMI" and began browsing for interesting-looking threads on @channel.  I completely lost my patience when even the ESO board turned out to have threads like, "Let's try re-enacting the New Gen murders in ESO."    quote:Neidhardt>@channel's news board has gotten pretty boring lately I flinched as the dim eyes of the girl I'd spotted at the scene of the staking murder grazed my brain. I didn't want to keep remembering it like this, but the second I let my guard down, the ominous memories started to flooding back. Yeah, I'd seen the criminal's face. I knew who she was. Should I have reported her to the police? But I didn't want to get caught up in it....  quote:Grim>Demon girl? Finally, a version like this came up? Geh, seriously....? That meant I wouldn't be able to jump in on the conversation when we were all chatting. quote:Grim>New Gen isn't run-of-the-mill To be fair, I had mistaken the staked-up body for an object d'art, so if I were forced to put it one way or the other, then yeah, it was quite artistic.  quote:Grim>Nah, I look for the really twisted stuff instead  quote:Neidhardt>You traitor orz Uuugh.... I don't wanna see it, because it's scary. I wanted escape from reality where I witnessed the scene of the crime.... With that one goal in mind, I started to block out every piece of New Gen-related news. By doing so, I'd hoped to convince myself that the gruesome spectacle I'd seen had been an illusion. But....  All the more - I was the closest our guild had to a leader. As the person in charge of everyone's organization, it'd be way too humiliating if I couldn't keep up with their conversations. I had to avoid that....  The title "New Gen Wiki" was displayed in huge letters on the front page. Compilation sites like this are an example of a type of Wiki, where an indeterminate number of people post news and information about a specified topic. A New Gen wiki like this was bound to be fairly fast-moving, with all kinds of people posting stuff related to the New Gen cases. Unreliable information and flaming were mixed in, although it was convenient because it was much easier to understand the whole picture. There were a lot of links pasted in, too.   9/7, approximately a month ago, in the middle of the night, at Shibuya's Cornelius Tower. They leapt from the heliport on top of the building and died instantaneously. Autopsies revealed that each of them had scratch marks and foreign bits of flesh under their fingernails.  There was nothing resembling a will or a suicide note left behind on the roof.  Naturally, it was also locked at the time of the incident. The key to the roof wasn't found among any of the five victims' belongings. In short, circumstances suggested that the rooftop heliport had been sealed to entry and it remained completely unclear as to how the five students had gotten in.   Early in the morning, a college student going home after karaoke sighted a blood-drenched male corpse in the area near the underside of the Shibuya Station overpass. The man, Konoe Chizuo (21), was a student of Shibuya area college, and though he had already died by the time his body was discovered, his abdomen had become unnaturally swollen.  A DNA analysis established the fact that the victim and the fetus were not blood relatives. The victim was unmarried and had not been carrying on any relationships with women.  But no one knew who the mother was, where she could be found or what she was doing at present, or even whether she was alive or dead. Perhaps the police had tracked down her whereabouts, but at the very least, they hadn't announced it to the public.  On the verge of vomiting, I turned my eyes away from the monitor.         Somehow, I managed to stabilize my mental state. I thought about taking the medicine Dr. Takashina had given me, but it looked like I could still succeed in getting by with just Seira-tan. But it was tough to read about this guro, even for the sake of preserving my reputation as Neidhardt....  Seira-tan! OST: SEIRA  "If it's that hard on you, you don't have to read it." "If you're a big fat masochist, I won't stop you." "But I can't bear to watch you suffer, Takkii." "Stop it, okay? Let's just have fun." "I'll even let you fap to me like always."Uuh, Seira-tan was so kind to me.... Seira-tan was the only one who would stay as my ally. As expected, since she was my wife. OST End  If I kept an eye on Seira-tan as I read, maybe I would be able to hold out a little longer. I decided to put this into practice without delay.  The "group diving" had initially been treated solely as if the victims had committed suicide. After the "pregnant man" incident, however, people online re-investigated the "group diving," and once they discovered the unnatural circumstances surrounding it, the rumor "Maybe they were killed in such a way so as to make it look like suicide" began to spread around as a new explanation. The parents and close friends of the five who died in the "group diving" kept saying that there was no way they would ever have committed suicide. At that point, the mass media seized on the fact that both cases had occurred in "Shibuya," and began using "New Generation Madness" in their sensationalistic headlines.... Which was said to be how this all got started.  Since few days had passed since the case opened, the Wiki site didn't contain a lot of information on it yet. All that had been made public was that the victim was Outa Hisashi, a 56-year-old college professor, and that the murderer had used stakes to pin his corpse to the concrete wall of an abandoned house. Residents of the neighborhood where the crime took place reported hearing "A sound of someone hammering," starting at around 8 PM, the time when the murder was estimated to have been committed, and lasting for over an hour. I'd heard it as well. It had clung to my ears. A nasty sound.  However, since it was the third bizarre incident to happen in the very same Shibuya, people naturally started treating the "staking" murder case as part of the New Gen phenomenon. The police and the media viewed the three cases as having been the work of different people, but according to online commentary--or, more properly, online expectations--them having been committed by the same criminal or by the same group of people was the most popular explanation.  Two months ago, a magnitude 3.0 earthquake had occurred, with Shibuya at its center. Eight people died, despite the fact that it had been a relatively small-scale event, And as a result, it became a big topic of conversation. Now that they mentioned it, the New Gen cases had indeed begun after that earthquake. Thus, the people who supported an occult explanation for New Gen argued that the eight deaths from the earthquake should be counted as the first New Gen incident, which led to fierce debates between them and those who supported the most popular explanation, the same criminal theory.  Either way, net crowds are lusting a fourth incident.  Dammit, those bastards sure have it easy....  Over a week had passed since the "staking," but neither that demon girl nor the police had showed any signs of movement. If they were aware that I'd been in the area, surely the police would've at least come to question me, but at the moment, they didn't seem to be doing anything about it. Th, thank goodness. Looks like I'm not gonna get dragged into it--  The words Yua had thrust at me passed through my head. "Because you possessed a piece of image data that can't be explained, unless you happen to have precognitive powers." The image "Shogun" had transmitted to me. Even now, it lingered inside my PC as data. What Yua had told me was just the product of her own delusions. It was too incoherent to hold together logically. I hadn't gotten to ask about it at the hospital today, but it didn't make any sense for me to be acting differently, unbeknownst to myself, during the gaps in my memories. It had never happened before, not even once. Which was why that guro pic totally had to be a composite.  OST: SEIRA Seira again "All ya gotta do is find proof that it's fake." "Let's analyze that pic." B, but, it made me sick, so I didn't want to look at it very much. "If you prove her wrong, you can go back to your peaceful everyday life without having to be scared of anything, you know?" "You've gotta do it, right-o!"True enough.... It's just as you say.... Yua talked about it like I was the perpetrator of the "staking," but that was out of the question. Because I myself had seen the perp's face. Like I'd let you force guilt for the crime on me.... I sucked in a sharp breath and double-clicked the folder where the image should have been cached-- OST End  
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May 15, 2020 14:16
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Part 20 - Research And InvestigationWarning The following update contains a rather tasteless use of the word 'pedophilia'.    The meeting to discuss the investigation of the "Maruyamachou staking homicide" had already begun, and everyone glared at Ban when he came in late. Smiling amiably, Ban lowered himself into a seat at one of the tables lined up at the front. The room didn't have the kind of atmosphere where he could say his reason for being late was because he'd gotten the runs and had been cooped up in the bathroom.  The investigation division, already busy with the "Cornelius Tower group suicide case" and the "Shibuya Station college student fetus homicide," were forced to recruit even useless, third-rate assistant inspectors like Ban from the central Tokyo station. Moreover, since everything had taken place in the area under the Shibuya Police Department's jurisdiction, they were caught in the bizarre situation of having three special investigative headquarters located in the same station. It was thanks to this that the three investigation teams were forced to take turns using the station's big conference room.  Inspector Matsunaga: "Let's hear your report, Assistant Inspector." Inspector Matsunaga, Ban's boss and the person responsible for their investigative team all looked at Ban sharply as he addressed him. Paying him little heed, however, Ban flapped a fan at his face and took a breath. Inspector Matsunaga: "Assistant Inspector. Assistant Inspector Ban. Are you listening?"  When the newbie sitting next to Ban, who also happened to be his partner Suwa, hissed into his ear, Ban finally realized he was being called on.   "M, me...." "I thought I told you to go on and report to them even if I wasn't there." "Hop to it."After Ban elbowed him a little, Suwa let out a short sigh and stood up energetically.  The meeting room stirred. The slackening air underwent an instantaneous transformation. The Shibuya Station detectives, seated along tables at the back of the room that faced Ban and the others from the central station, began urgently taking notes so as not to miss a moment of Suwa's report. They were desperate. After all, with two savage murders having occurred in a single month--though the the group suicide had not yet been conclusively labeled a homicide--it was natural for them to become prepared to stake everything on seizing the perpetrator, even their reputations.  "I'm putting it up on the projector." A black-and-white film of one of Maruyamachou's narrow, filthy alleyways was reflected there. It was hard to see anything, given it was night, and there were few street lights. "This was taken from the security camera of a metered parking lot approximately fifty meters from the crime scene."The coin-operated lot was small, as it had room for only two cars. It had been unjustifiably constructed in the tiny space between buildings. One could not see the crime scene in the field of the camera's picture. One could not even see the road that crossed in front of it.  The time of recording was neatly displayed in the lower right hand side of the screen. It currently read 21:34. "As I'm sure you recall, the neighborhood residents testified that the sound of something being hammered continued from a little after 21:00 to around 21:30 hours." "This film begins at 21:34, or, in other words, immediately after the crime took place." "The suspicious figure appears for roughly six seconds, starting at 21:34:53. He or she runs from the back to the front of the road that passes by the parking lot." Due to the poor resolution, a brief shot like that wasn't enough to let anyone determine whether the figure was male or female. However, Ban had already asked the forensics division to analyze this for him.  "It proved impossible to discern his facial features. Since his clothing is fairly distinctive, however, they were able to determine that he's wearing a male student uniform from Suimei Private Academy, located in Shoutou." "Additionally, if you take a look at his right hand--"The picture zoomed in on the suspicious figure's right hand. He appeared to be gripping something.    The detectives grew noisy again. To think that the perpetrator of the staking homicide might be a high schooler.... It was a minor shock to them. It meant that the mass media's inflammatory catchphrase, "The New Generation Madness," could very well have become reality. Inspector Matsunaga: "Then is this boy the closest person we have to the criminal?"  "Sure seems so."Ban rubbed his unshaven chin. It was a habit of his. Whenever he sensed that he'd driven a wrongdoer another step into a corner, it pleased him to make sure of that ever-prickly sensation. "That's all for now."Suwa let out a deep breath and settled back down.  Disregarding Suwa's complaints, Ban once again looked at the projector, so as to burn the male high school student's figure into his eyes.       Hesitation born of the fact that I really didn't want to see it still lingered inside me. It was such a gory and sickening image. Once I looked at it, I wouldn't be able to keep my mind from calling up associated memories of the scene of the staking murder I'd seen in real life. No, but.... I had to do it, to prove Yua wrong, to guarantee my own safety, and to assert my innocence. Seira-tan was watching over me, so I'd have to try enduring the guro factor for a little longer.... Mustering my courage, I double-clicked to open the file.   No matter what, it was still foul.... But it wasn't such a big deal compared to the "staking" I had seen in person. And if I thought of it as a composite, I could just barely bring myself to tolerate it. When he first sent it to me, I'd only taken a fast look before closing it. I hadn't scrutinized its every nook and cranny. This time, fighting back nausea, I examined the image closely. I didn't know much about how to tell whether or not an image had been 'shopped, but I figured it'd be okay if I paid attention to things like the direction of the shadows and if anything in the scenery felt off.... One possibility was that it had been created by combining previously taken background photographs with a CG version of the pinned-up corpse. And the day after "Shogun" sent it to me, the murderer had put the killing method this photo illustrated into action.... Due to the pixellation and the dim lighting of the nailed-up body shown in the photograph, I was only able to make out the stakes and couldn't see much of the body itself.  For starters, it was kind of overdoing it to solely spotlight the body. Well, I hadn't closely studied the actual crime scene, so I wasn't really in a position to say anything. In the photo, that demon girl wasn't standing in front of the nailed-in body.  I had been in danger of overlooking it. The photo's graininess and the fact that they were standing in the shadows made them completely dissolve into the background, and you wouldn't stand much of a chance of noticing with just a glance. This had to be 'shopped, but maybe "the person who made the photo" had accidentally entered the frame when they were taking pictures, and then forgot to erase it when they were manipulating the rest of the photo. Whatever the case, the figure appeared to have on a Suimei uniform. Which meant it was the demon girl. For she too had worn the Suimei uniform.  Alrighty, let's try using some image editing software to make it easier to see.     OST: Fear What's this....? "Haa.... Haa.... Eh? Eh? ....Wha, eh? What is this...." The one photographed there... No matter how you looked at it, the one photographed there...  Why, why was I there? It was outlandish. Because I hadn't gone to that place once since September 29th.... This had been 'shopped in, too, no question about it.... I couldn't find the slightest evidence to prove it, but it was obviously a composite! If not, it'd be crazy!     "Do you have precognitive powers?"OST End  Kicking away the one of the empty plastic bottles at my feet, I closed the image editing program. I opened the jpg file properties to check the date it had been created. And.... I've been shocked.  A single sentence, written in the "Comments" field of the Property window, so as not to stand out. It was that which my eyes became nailed to.    I hit the keyboard, pushed it to the edge of my desk and cradled my head. "Uuh.... Seira, save me...."I held back welling tears. This whole week had been full of one incomprehensible thing after the other. Why was I the only one who had to suffer like this.... "........" If he had gotten his hands on my picture and combined it with this guro image.... "Shogun" had, at the least, either surreptitiously photographed me beforehand, or acquired my picture somewhere or other.  Maybe he had access to.... my personal information....  The back of my neck prickled. It was that "gaze" again.    Terror covered my whole body in gooseflesh, and I longed to go up to the door and make sure it was bolted. But I would lose if I turned around, so I went on stubbornly staring at my monitor. Unable to settle down, I opened a word processing software and began typing in my thoughts.   Yeah, she couldn't possibly be human. If so, maybe she could see the future. It'd be a walk in the park for her to transfer a vision of the future into a picture via spirit photography. Nor was there anything wondrous about the fact that she'd carried out that dreadful "staking" all by herself. She'd used her subordinate, "Shogun," to send me data, since she knew I would coincidentally see her at the crime scene. I didn't know the reason why. Perhaps to intimidate me. A threat to make me think I'd end up the same way if I told anyone. Or rather... An advance warning of her next murder. A death sentence: "I'll kill you next." If that were really the case.... "Th, there's no way I'd get the upper hand...."     At last she let out a small breath and released her mouse, letting her eyes fall momentarily to a piece of paper placed not far from her hands.  "Nishijou-kun...."His name fell from her lips. The image of Takumi's back, as he sat alone on one of the benches in Shoutou Park, floated up in her mind. As if to erase it, she soon gave her head a little shake.   At the end of her gaze lay the large stuffed Gero-froggy enshrined atop her bed. She tilted her head, wondering if she had been imagining things, then got up, walked over to her bed and flopped down on it face-first.  Her mother must have hung them out to dry during the day. Burying her face in their reassuring scent, Yua let her eyes wander absent-mindedly. Her extremely tidy room revealed her meticulous personality. Especially the enormous bookshelves, out of place in a mere 8 tatami room, which were lined up with numerous books and had hardly a gap between any of them.  Yua let out another sigh, rolled onto her back, and gazed at the ceiling. "'DID'...." Even now, an explanation of it was displayed on her monitor.   "But.... I...." 
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May 16, 2020 09:56
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Part 21 - The Prophet They Call FES SFX: Computer noises  It was hard to breathe. Though all I'd been doing was looking things up on my PC. I felt my heart pulsing more violently than usual. As before, the presence of "something" watching me refused to disappear. I was still just barely holding out, keeping myself from turning around, but my limits were approaching.  I howled at that "something." Its true identity wasn't that demon girl, was it? Maybe she was using X-ray vision or clairvoyance, or some similar demonic power, to keep me under surveillance.... "Kahaah.... Haa.... Haa...."The prickling at the back of my neck grew steadily stronger and stronger, transforming into a pain like an electric shock. I had been sweating copiously for a while now. The collar of my T-shirt had gotten completely drenched. "....poo poo!" "Why aren't you there!? Who are you!?"   As a result, I had the instinctive notion that the image the demon girl and "Shogun" had send me was one that foretold the future, And I'd been left with no choice but to look deeper into the matter. Perhaps, without my knowing it, The world was already full of prophets.  But no matter how much I researched it, everything I came up was related to the occult or magic, all kinds of sketchy-looking stuff. There was nothing purporting to scientifically prove that such powers existed, or, on the flip side, that they didn't. "All I want is one, haa, haa...." At this rate, was I supposed to keep waiting for demons that might or might not come for me? My nerves wouldn't be able to stand it. Of course, it'd be best to have evidence that they weren't coming, but for the time being, I just wanted things to become black and white. Clear and understandable. Now I didn't have much of a choice left except to take a look at @channel's occult board. It was mostly made up of white noise, lies and absurdity, but there were also times when it had shockingly impressive news leads and information.  I jumped to the occult board and ran a search for "telling the future." And...  I got an awfully large number of hits. About 30. Was precognition the new in thing on @channel? Gulping, I checked the thread titles one by one. "Phantasm? FES?"Most of the threads I'd come up with contained the words "Phantasm" and "FES."   They were such a popular group that they monopolized people's conversations about the indie music scene, and their vocalist was a girl by the name of "FES". For the moment, wanting to find out how they were connected to precognition, I picked the very top thread, " [Predictions, Prophecies] All About Phantasm [New Gen] 43" and started skimming it.      These lyrics.... No matter what, I couldn't believe they signified anything other than the "staking" I'd seen with my own eyes.  "Is this a prophecy....?" Was it a mere culmination of coincidences? Or was Phantasm, too, among the demon girl's underlings?  Except the lyrics of the songs predicting the "group dive" and the "pregnant man" hadn't been posted on @channel. Whatever the case might have been, people seemed to think you shouldn't upload them. If you wanna know that bad, go to one of their shows and buy their album, they were saying. In any event, those online were going wild trying to figure out what kind of killing method would be used in the next "New Gen" case, based on the lyrics for all the songs Phantasm had released up until the present. Ever since the "New Gen" cases had started, their independently released album had been selling like hotcakes and parts of the media increasingly began to adopt them as "The Goth punk band currently experiencing a cult-like popularity among Shibuya's young people."  Maybe she was that demon girl. Then there wouldn't be anything odd about her ability to predict the incidents several months in advance. After all, she herself was the perpetrator.  "Haa haa.... Dammit...."I wiped the sweat seeping out of my forehead with the hem of my T-shirt. Irritation and terror, the feeling that everything around me was a lie, the feeling that I didn't want to see anything. A whole range of emotions mixed together inside me, making my breath grow tight. I'd been breathing harshly this whole time. In any case, I wanted to see FES's face for myself. With trembling fingers, I typed at my keyboard, heading for Phantasm's official site.  The site contained almost no news and not a single photograph. All that was written there was information about their shows and their discography. There wasn't a single bit about band members' profiles or the lyrics to their songs. "Haa.... haa, I guess a criminal wouldn't want pictures of her face going around the Net...." She sure knew what she was doing.... When I looked at their itinerary of shows, it appeared that they performed about once every two weeks. Their next live performance was.... "The day after tomorrow...." If I went to see it, I'd be able to confirm whether or not FES was the demon girl. But once I confirmed it, where would that get me? Would I give FES over to the police? Would I weep and plead with her not to get me involved? Would I go bearing a cross and pretend to perform an exorcism? All those options were asking the impossible.... She was a demon. A nasty otaku like me stood no chance of surpassing her. And if I lost to the demon girl, I'd die. My body would metamorphose into a ruthless work of art, and I'd get put up on some Wiki site as one of the "New Gen" cases.  I didn't, but if things continued this way, I'd never understand how I had ended up as part of the image data "Shogun" had sent me. But if FES had nothing to do with the demon girl, maybe I could ask her for help, and find some way to fight back.... "But I can't.... I could never go to a concert...." At a loss for what to do, I held my head. As the tingling sensation on the back of my neck went on and on, it changed from a numb pain to a scorching pain, as if my skin were burning. And even if I turned around, no one was there. "Uuh.... Just stop it...." I wouldn't stand for having to fret about this sensation for the rest of my life. Someday the gaze alone might be enough to kill me. "Haa, haa.... Th, think, Takumi...." "Think of something you can do about this...." SFX End   After worrying about it all day yesterday, I finally made up my mind to come here, where the concert was being held. GIGANTES was a striking-looking red brick building located at the entrance to a narrow road that went along Shibuya's overhead railway. Its outer walls were illuminated, giving off an atmosphere so old and sober that I almost thought I'd slipped back through time to the Showa period. Before now, I had no idea. A place with an atmosphere like this existed in Shibuya....  Until just a little earlier, there had been a lot of people in front of GIGANTES, most likely Phantasm fans. They wore such remarkable outfits that it would've been easy to mistake them for cosplayers. What surprised me was the fact that the overall headcount seemed fairly small. For all that Phantasm was the topic of the moment on the Net, only about a hundred people had come. All of them had since entered the club. The show must have already started. The sound didn't leak all the way outside, though, so none of it seemed quite real to me. "Haa.... haa...."Though I had succeeded in keeping my pulse under control yesterday and most of today, it had started raging again the moment I arrived at the club. It was so hard to breathe, I began wondering if I had some kind of heart disease. No, I understood why this was happening to me.  That was why I had been frenetically looking around, watching out in case someone tried to attack me. If I were to compare this sense of tension to something in ESO, it was about at the level of the Wanz volcano labyrinth. The game balance in the Wanz volcano labyrinth was completely ridiculous. Its enemies were particularly strong, and it was surrounded by lava, which would kill you instantly if you so much as brushed up against it. I'd died there countless times.... Swallowing, I scrubbed the sweat off my forehead with a hand towel.    I was the one who had invited Misumi-kun to this show. Because I hadn't known his cell phone number, I'd been forced to come to school today in order to talk to him about it. If I were alone, I probably wouldn't even have made as far as the front of GIGANTES. Besides, even supposing I managed to enter on my own, it'd be Game Over for me if the demon girl were there.  He and Nanami were the only ones of whom I could have asked this favor. I picked Misumi-kun because he was less obnoxious. I'd paid for both our tickets. In other words, I'd hired him to the tune of 1000 yen.  "Here's your CD. I got one for myself, too."What Misumi handed me was the Phantasm album. They'd been selling for shockingly high prices in online actions, but because I'd read on @channel that they sold them during their performances, I'd asked Misumi-kun to go buy one for me. With this, I'd achieved half my goal. As for the other half.... "I gotta say, Phantasm's better than I expected."Having only just come out of the club, Misumi-kun was a little worked up. "I'd avoided listening to them before, cause I don't like following the crowd, but I became an instant fan today just from hearing them play live for a little bit." "........." The band would go up on stage once the show started, so he could've just taken a quick look at them and hurried back out to tell me about them. But it had taken over five minutes from the start of the show before he came back. Apparently it was because he'd listened to the whole first song.  "Especially the vocalist. She's hot stuff." "You sure got good taste in girls. Heheheh." "Wh, what was she like....?" "Ahh, right. The report. This is fun, just like being a detective. Don't you think?"I urged the grinning Misumi-kun to tell me about what FES looked like.  "Eh....!?"All of a sudden her traits had stopped overlapping with those of the demon girl. Did that mean FES wasn't the demon girl? No, wait. Don't run ahead of yourself. She could alter her hairstyle by cutting it or adding extensions. It wasn't strange to think that she might have been wearing a disguise when I ran into her at the scene of the murder.  "Tall...."About the same as Misumi-kun.... Misumi-kun and I had similar statures, so in other words, FES was about 170 cm. Pretty tall for a female. But the demon girl hadn't given off that sort of image during my chance encounter with her. My memory was fuzzy, but I had the feeling that she'd been shorter than me. Another unmatching trait.... "A, anything.... else....?"  "I'd describe her voice as 'cool.' She's the type who talks in a murmur." "Her bust was so-so." "But those Goth-punk clothes were weirdly sexy. I could go for that sort of thing. Totally." "........."It was no good. I couldn't figure anything out based on hearsay. I had only caught a brief glimpse of the demon girl in the first place. If you asked me to list her salient characteristics, I wouldn't be able to come up with much. This strategy might have been unreasonable after all....  "Eh!?" "W.... Wait....!" "Don't you wanna see her face? Admit it." "Cheating on your girl, why, that's a man's saga. You've grown up, Taku." "Haa?" "Just for tonight, don't worry about the four-eyed girl you went home with before. I'll forget about Tanaka, too."I, I don't get what you're saying....!  We were only two stories up, But if I lashed out here and slipped and fell.... It'd hurt a lot.... I thought, and my resistance weakened.   OST: Mysterious SFX: Loud, excited cheers and yells With the depths of my stomach shaking against my will, it all but gave me the illusion that my body would vibrate itself into pieces. There wasn't a single seat for the audience to use. Everyone was standing. All of them swayed to the beat, shaking their upraised fists and shouting, "FES!" "Fehsu!" with perfect timing. It didn't quite measure up to the level of audience participation you'd find at an otaku concert, though. It was incredibly overheated. The stuffiness made me feel like throwing up. I'm an otaku, but I'm not a fan of idols or seiyuu. So, if I had to put it plainly, I hated this kind of audience enthusiasm. My one salvation was the fact that no one looked over at me, though I couldn't deny that I appeared really out of place here.  As the atmosphere overwhelmed me, Misumi-kun handed me a plastic cup with juice in it. It seemed that he'd covered the entrance fee. I'd have to make sure to pay him back later.  OST End SFX: Cheering swells, and eventually dies down As though it had placated them, everyone lowered their raised fists. Thanks to that, my field of view cleared up, As if a path had opened from me to the stage.    "I can hear the voices clearly." "The world is extremely transparent."The voice I heard through her mic was both similar and dissimilar to that of the demon girl who had thrown incomprehensible words at me. Just as Misumi-kun had said, FES had a world-weary atmosphere to her. She didn't feel boyish. At once cute and seductive, she bore about her a mysterious aura of distant solitude. The numerous silver accessories she wore about her body sparkled brilliantly in the light. They too seemed fantastical. I was starting to understand why people made threads about FES on @chan.  But the fans learned from her example, going silent and listening intently to FES's words as she emceed. "Perhaps it's because the gates to Cocytus are closed."Wh, what'd she say....? Cocytus? What language was that? "After the birth of the 'Great Will,' the world maintained its equilibrium for several thousand years." "But now that balance is in the midst of collapsing. It's highly unstable...." "And so I sing...." "I'll take in all of your chaos...." Ordinary people would certainly have trouble understanding it, But by speaking so insinuatingly, She created the sense of something mystical, making her fans' hearts easier to take hold of.  Its form was so lovely as to seem sinister, and so sharp that it looked like it would slice off your fingers in an instant if you merely brushed it. It was tremendously large, almost as long as FES was tall. In addition, the portions of it with glass embedded in the shape of lines radiated an alluring blue light. I wasn't sure whether or not it was really a mic stand, but as a prop for contributing to her stage persona, it was sublime. My eyes became weirdly fastened to it.   That's so dangerous....! What would she have done if she'd hit a spectator? What if it weren't a mic stand, but instead a sword.... And in order to offer fresh blood up to the demon girl, she used that sword to cut the throat of a single audience member each night.... Or something.... If so, it would indeed make this live show a Black Mass hosted by devils.... A chill shot through me, and goosebumps rose all over my body. It might be best to get out of here as fast as possible.... As I began to think that, FES murmured softly,   Even vaster cheers of delight rose from the audience. Listen to this OST: The Blood of the Contract for Our Sins    The roar seemed like it would rupture my eardrums....! Won't everyone's ears go all funny from being in a place like this? When I looked over, Misumi-kun was totally into it, pumping his fists to the rhythm in the same manner as the other spectators. When the intro ended and FES began to sing, The lyrics made me go tense.  A dark song that didn't let you sense the slightest hope of salvation. Partly because of the lyrics, but also because of the melody, it felt like something religious.   On the contrary, however, it was because they were so captivated, and among them were people who gazed fixedly at FES with the faces of those drowning in ecstasy. True enough, FES's voice possessed some quality that attracted people to her. Even as I battled the fear and nausea induced in me by the crowd around me, I was listening carefully to keep from missing part of her song.   As I listened to that phrase. I recalled how the demon girl had slowly turned around to face me, splashed in blood, as she stood before the nailed-up corpse. My skin prickled with gooseflesh. I had the sense that the air around me had instantly dropped several degrees in temperature. OST End  FES soaked in the reverberation of her performance, gazing down and softly swaying her body from side to side.    It wasn't merely a matter of her looking in my general direction or of our eyes meeting for a single second. FES was clearly looking at me. Steadily. Staring fixedly. As though she were confirming my existence. As though she were searching for something inside me.  Time to make a choice. Positive, Negative or Neutral?
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May 17, 2020 16:40
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positive
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May 17, 2020 20:04
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Negative. Let's go full goth.
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May 17, 2020 20:29
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Positive, Takumi deserves a break, even if it's a delusional one. I gotta say, these last couple of updates were tough for me to read. The idea of suffering from schizophrenia, paranoia, or similar mental illnesses that distort the victim's sense of reality has frightened me for a long time. Whenever an organ malfunctions the outcome is always awful, but if (for example) your liver stops producing insulin, at least you can wrap your mind around the situation. But if your brain malfunctions, your perception of the world, including your perception of yourself, warps with it. The idea of not being able to trust yourself on such a fundamental level is...ugh. I have no doubt that there really is something supernatural going on behind the scenes; even if Takumi did commit the murders, I'm guessing that he did so under the influence of this supernatural thing. But the VN does such a good job of making his perspective feel like the breakdown of someone suffering from mental illness that it's not too difficult to imagine an alternate, mundane scenario where Takumi slowly discovers that he murdered someone in a psychotic break, and much of what he perceived to be real were only delusions. Can you imagine discovering that you are a murderer, and that what you thought was real is a lie? It's stomach-churning.
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May 17, 2020 21:55
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We're going Positive then. Normally, tomorrow would be a break in the schedule, but the next update is going to be very short. So I should be able to get the next update out tomorrow, and the update after that will be a more normal size.
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May 18, 2020 12:35
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Part 22 - Black MassWarning The following update contains content that is Not Safe For Work. All NSFW images will be behind links, but I can't do much for the words.   Delusion Start  OST: Mysterious The other Phantasm members resumed playing. But FES didn't sing. Swaying as she wandered through the audience, she langorously stripped off her top, exposing her sexy shoulders. Her quiet fans became agitated with excitement again. All of them raised their fists and started jumping wildly. They made the floor shake as if an earthquake were taking place. Yet no one attempted to touch FES. As though they were displaying their awe of a sacred being. Under ordinary circumstances, if a star as compellingly charismatic as her went down among her fans, you'd expect them to mob her. As part of an unspoken agreement, a single rule, and of their own accord, the Phantasm fanboys forbade themselves to make contact with FES's body. Even so, They felt her existence come very near to them. They tasted the scent of her sweat. They touched the same air as her. Those things granted her believers the highest possible joy. Perhaps she put on this kind of performance every time--or so I thought, but I doubted my eyes when I caught sight of FES's next move. She had casually started undoing the belt at her waist. When she tossed it away, her fanboys reached out all at once, each fighting to make it theirs. Casting a sidelong glance at them, FES-- OST End OST: Silence Unfastened her miniskirt. It fell to her ankles with a rustle. Her suggestive black underwear came into view. FES seemed completely unbothered by the fact that her cultists were seeing her in a state of indecency. Had she gotten high on the ambience, or was it another type of performance, or else.... pure exhibitionism? I didn't know, but everything about her was such a turn-on that my eyes became glued to her. FES looked at me again. She smiled enticingly. FES Fan A: "H, hey, she's coming this way...." Her gaze unmoving, FES looked only at me. She approached gradually, as though she had fixed her aim on me. And having come right up to me--  "....Fufufu"Her sweet sigh grazed my face, And in much the same way as a lover would,  "....!" Her skin was damp with sweat. Her scent and her warmth were so alluring, I almost had vertigo. Her chest rose and fell rapidly, pressed tight against my body. It was said that singing could be exhausting, but right now her panting passed from her skin to mine, being transmitted to me directly. Her arms clenched tighter around my back. Her nails ate into the nape of my neck. Her thighs became entangled with my legs. I trembled all over, as if electricity had run through me. I could neither push her away nor return her embrace. All I could do was stand stock-still, eyes wide.  Shouts of FES's name reverberated back and forth in the small club. Voices crying "Do it! Do it!" began to appear in the mix more and more often. What did they mean when they said to do it? I was completely at a loss. FES, still holding me, said nothing. Seeking help, I looked for Misumi-kun. And was startled to find him sharing a deep kiss with a female spectator I'd never seen before. No.... Misumi-kun wasn't the only one. The other cultists, male and female alike, were throwing away their clothes and embracing each other nude and kissing. Some had already begun to take things to their natural conclusion. Pandemonium, debauchery. Sultry voices and cheering, the lewd sound of flesh rubbing up against flesh. Borne up by Phantasm's music, these were what took over the venue. --A Black Mass.  And.... Today, I was the demon's living sacrifice. FES had chosen me as her partner. This was what it meant to go to one of Phantasm's shows.... I, too, was getting swallowed up by the atmosphere. I felt my head start to go foggy. Anticipation for and dread toward what would happen from here on out. The sense of superiority and the rapture that came from having been chosen by FES. It felt like I was about to go crazy.  FES laughed again, close to my ear. I heard her clearly despite the fact that we were being swamped in the midst of so many overflowing sounds. She had such a sexy voice. Merely hearing it, I thought I might faint. But FES tempted me further toward the abyss of pleasure. She softly bit down on my earlobe, Blew her breath into my ear, And Whispered--   OST End Delusion End  Absorbed in my fantasies, I sat in front of my PC. The show I'd gone to today had turned out to be nicely stimulating. As far as 3-D girls went, FES was pretty hot. But it had been way too packed with people for me to want to go back. In the end, I'd quickly gotten sick from being in the crowd, and I'd gone flying out of the club. Today's fantasy was top-notch. Who knew, maybe FES and Phantasm really did do that sort of thing. They just hadn't been in the mood for it today. Okay then, time to get back to ESO or whatever. OST: Adventure  As long as I immersed myself in ESO, I could forget about all the bad stuff. I ceased being myself and ran about in Baselard as Neidhardt. But Neidhardt wasn't doing too well today. Of course, I knew it was due to how I used the keyboard and made decisions for him. But I had trouble accomplishing things I normally performed with ease, and though playing was supposed to comfort me, I got more and more irritated as I continued. "What's with you!?" "I'm so getting rid of you!" I knew it was my fault, but I took it out on Neidhardt. "Ah--Jeez--! It pisses me off!"  I'd always fought enemies while watching Neidhardt's back like this. Naturally, he had the maximum possible number of experience points. "How many experience points do I have...." Had the human being named Nishijou Takumi matured at all since he first began playing ESO--no, rather, since the time he was born? If I'd grown up, why was I so bad at talking to people? Why was I carrying on the lifestyle of a borderline hikikomori? If I didn't log in for several weeks, Would Neidhardt become a hikikomori as well?   I started to become a little curious about what Neidhardt got up to when I wasn't controlling him. I continued to survey him for some time, keeping my hands away from the keyboard and munching on my potato chips. "If Neidhardt were self-aware...." Surely he would go striding through Shangrim City, shoulders squared. He was the hero everyone worshipped.   Another choice to be made. Positive, Negative or Neutral? OddHaberdasher fucked around with this message at 04:18 on May 19, 2020 |
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May 19, 2020 04:03
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I'm curious how a negative delusion about the MMO will go.
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May 19, 2020 05:36
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Betcha he just rage quits from getting mad at his dude. Which is good. He needs more time in the 3-D world. negative
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May 19, 2020 14:15
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Neutral
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May 19, 2020 20:16
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Negative
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May 19, 2020 20:49
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Negative has won. The next update will be posted today, probably.
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May 19, 2020 23:48
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Part 23 - A Generous DonationWarning The following update contains content that may be considered Not Safe For Work. All NSFW images will be behind links, but I can't do much for the words.    Delusion Start    OST: Silence  I heard a voice.  The voice was coming from the direction of the monitor.  ...Who are you!?    Could it really be Neidhardt....? Wh, what do you mean, you're leaving me!?  You're a character I created! Are you trying to mutiny!?       "Sh, sh, shut up! H, how insolent! If you keep saying stuff like that, I'll, I'll delete you!"    Wh, what're you sa  OST End Delusion End  Smiling ruefully at my delusions, I went on regarding Neidhardt, who stood in the world of Baselard, as stock-still as usual and not saying a word. ....Maybe I should make an effort not to push him quite so hard today. As that thought ran through my head, I resumed playing.    Y, you probably don't have any idea what I'm saying, but I don't get how it happened, either....  "Bro? What're you mumbling about?" "........."OST: Girls  "........."I wanna hurry up and go home.... How many times would it take before my stupid sister finally got the fact that I didn't even need a cell phone in the first place? When I got to school today, Nanami came all the way to my classroom to ambush me. After insulting me with, "It's so rare for you to be at school!" she ordered me to come buy a cell phone for sure this time. Once the school day ended, I made an attempt to run away before she found me, but I'd forgotten how fast she was. And so, our game of tag came to a swift end when she caught me and took me with her to the plaza by the train station.  Without any idea of how I felt, Nanami picked up a bunch of sample models from the display at the front of the store and grunted to herself as she looked at them. I struggled to comprehend why Nanami was giving so much thought to the matter of buying a phone for me.  "This is a pretty cute color, huh? I think it's nice." Naturally, because she was seeking my opinion, I answered her. "I'm fine.... with it...." "........."Nevermind the fact that I'd said I was okay with it. I no longer had any idea how many times I'd told her "That's fine."   "Wanna take a break at McD's?" McD's, you say!? You're telling me to enter that delinquent-salon fast food shop!? That itself would be hell! I shook my head fiercely. "Got it. Then let's pick one as fast as possible. But I'm still a little torn, see." OST End  What's that....?   In fact, it'd be appropriate to think of them as being part of the same series. At any rate, it was a humongous sword. It might have been even longer than the one FES had. Surprisingly, the girl with the sword was wearing a Suimei uniform. From this distance, I couldn't tell what her face was like or anything, but even though she stood out so much, she watched the people walking along the road below with an air of composure. That must've taken a hell of a lot of courage. I seriously had to give her mad props.  I wondered if that sword was a cosplay prop from some new anime or whatever. Although I'd technically taken a look at all the recently aired new anime myself. Had there been one where a sword like that showed up? Was there a show I'd forgotten to watch? I certainly would've found it impossible to make myself carry that sword while walking around Shibuya, but it was a drat cool model. I kind of wanted one for myself. Maybe I'd find it being sold in Akiba. Or would it be available online?  "Bro!" OST: Girls  "Were you trying to escape?" "Uh...." "Well, it really took me so long to pick one, but...." "It's still awful of you to leave me behind and run away!" "........." For the time being, I shook my head.  "You dummy! Get overexposed to electromagnetic waves from your cell phone and ruin your kidneys and die!" "........."I don't get what you mean....  "I'm the idiot for trying my hardest to pick one out for you."  "We're seriously gonna get you on a plan today, okay! I'm deeeefinitely not gonna let you run away till then!" "I, I know.... Let go...." "If you get it, then chop to it. Come with me."I was completely clueless as to why Nanami had gotten so angry. God, what an aggravating sister.... OST: Girls   After spending an hour dealing with the red tape related to the phone plan, I got my hands on the phone itself and was planning to go straight home, but Nanami stopped me. "I'll take care of all the first-time settings and stuff for you, so let's stop by McD's." Ignoring my intentions, she grabbed me by the collar and dragged me to the closest McD's without giving me so much as the chance to protest.  "I'll get it ready so you can use it properly."Dammit, just how much did you have to tie me down before you'd be satisfied.... And bringing me to McD's, on top of everything else....  There were a ton of people, all talking loudly. Moreover, the high percentage of delinquent types among them was downright abnormal. In the seats not far from mine were a group of gaudy, blonde-dyed mothers and their kids. Absorbed by their blabbering, they ignored their kids--three in total, with red-streaked hair, horrid little brats who shrieked and ran around the store. In some other seats were four high schoolers, equally sketchy-looking and laughing raucously. Two high school girls sat across from each other, both with bleached hair and loose knee socks, having staring contests with the screens of their respective cell phones. They didn't say a word to each other. Neighboring them was a middle-aged salaryman, probably skipping out on work, who lay slumped face-down against his table and snored. A little further away was the even weirder sight of five elementary school runts, their knapsacks set on the floor, swinging their legs as they chattered cheerfully to one another. A group date? You're in elementary school, and you're having a group date!? In any case, as far as the eye could see, the place was filled with the kind of people I didn't want to have anything to do with. Nanami sure was something else, being able to keep her presence of mind in a place like this. As for me, the sheer number of people made my head ache and my stomach turn, and it was only getting worse and worse.... More to the point, why exactly did I have to come hang out at McD's with her?  "Hey, hey, what about your ringtone? You want anything specific?" Nanami asked me without looking up, as she toyed with my cell phone. "A, an anime song...."  "This is what makes you such an otaku." Y, you were the one who asked me what I wanted! It's my phone to begin with, so let me do what I want with it! "Ah, right. How about using Oomura Karera's new single? It's really great. One of my recent faves." "I, I veto that one...." "Mm--, well, Oomura Karera doesn't exactly fit with you, ahaha." On a side note, she'd ordered a fish burger combo even though it wasn't dinnertime yet. Moreover, I was the one who had to paid for it. Pretty ridiculous, given that I felt too ill to have an appetite.  For some reason, Nanami pulled her bag up on top of her knees and started fishing around inside it.  "Nn~ Oh, there it is."What she proudly pulled out was.... OST: Delusion   "They didn't make it wrong." "It came out last week. He's Pop-Eyed Gero-froggy." "Ha....?" "You didn't know~? As expected, you're behind the times." "A new Gero-froggy gets released every Friday." "There are already twelve kinds in total."For real....? These things had enough merit to keep selling each week? "The one on my cell phone is the first kind that came out, the regular Gero-froggy." "Next came Fatso Gero-froggy, and after that was Spazzy Gero-froggy." Nanami effortlessly recited the names of various Gero-froggies. "The fourth was Faceless Gero-froggy. The fifth was Sparkly Gero-froggy." "The sixth is the most popular. It's called Kitty Gero-froggy." "Then came Ghost Gero-froggy, Sleeping Gero-froggy, Burning Gero-froggy, Zombie Gero-froggy, and Drunk Gero-froggy."She remembered them all.... Hold on, maybe....  "Sure! There's no point if you don't collect all of them." "Every week, there's a big line to buy them!" F, for such a lazily made product.... Frankly, I could probably design something better. For that matter, why had she started lecturing me on Gero-froggies out of the blue?  "Eh....? Wh, why....?" "Cause if you attach it to your phone, the girls will look at you and think, 'Oh, way to go.'" She said before starting to attach the strap to my cell phone. I, I really don't need it.... "Th, there's no meaning unless you get a full set, right...." "If, if I take that, you won't have all of them anymore...." "No need to worry. I bought two." "D, do you buy two every time....?" I was having serious doubts about her sense of aesthetics.... "Just this time. I got an extra one for you to use on your phone." "....On purpose?" "On purpose." Having finished attaching the strap, Nanami gave a satisfied nod and put her mouth to the straw for her juice. But she soon stopped with a jerk and leaned toward me.   "It was a total afterthought." "....D, don't want it." "Haa?"Still leaning toward me, Nanami widened her eyes. With such force that it looked like she might start grabbing at me any moment now. "You don't want it. After knowing, I went to buy it just for you!" "Y, you said it was an afterthought...." "Anyway, I'm not interested in these Gero-froggies.... In, in fact, they creep me out...." "........." "This is why you aren't popular with the girls."  "........."Her attitude was one of claiming that the initiative here belonged solely with her. Well, I was a little frustrated about my cell phone, but it was a fact that Nanami knew more than me about what to do with it.... "If you take if off without permission, you'll have to stand in line for me every week as punishment." "St, stand in line.... for what....?" "Isn't it obvious? The queue to buy the latest Gero-froggy. It's the norm to have to wait two hours or so."Why'd I have to get threatened by my little sister? For a little while afterwards, Nanami went on fiddling with my phone without saying a word. I was grateful, if only because it made things less noisy. "This feels kind of weird, somehow." The next time she opened her mouth, Nanami's bad mood had vanished. For her it wasn't just a matter of sleeping on it; maybe she had the tendency to forget unpleasant and aggravating stuff in a matter of minutes. What an easy-going personality. In a certain sense, I was envious.  "It's been a long time since just the two of us went out somewhere." "How long, I wonder. I can't remember too well." "All you ever do is shut yourself up in your room and watch anime and play games." "Well, this kind of thing might be nice once in a while. It's a breath of fresh air." "But I sure wouldn't wanna do it every day." Come to think of it, I had the feeling that she'd told me before how the fish burgers here were her favorite food. "....Go on, get as fat as you like, hehehe."OST End  She looked over at me hatefully. And after some hesitation, she gingerly pointed the partially-eaten fish burger in my direction.  "T, too late, hehehe...." "Say stuff like that, and girls are gonna hate you. You better try to remember that, moron!"Nanami ended up eating the entire fish burger by herself. What a glutton!   It had been a long, excruciating couple of hours.... At last I parted with Nanami and set off on the road home. It was already full-blown autumn, and the slightly chilly night wind soothed my sick stomach and aching head. I was always plagued by the same nausea and headache when I spent long periods of time around large crowds. Nanami could just go hang. Which wasn't to say that I actually wanted her to die or anything. She only thought of herself. She didn't have the slightest idea of how much her behavior could end up hurting me. If I could, I'd want to snap my newly bought cell phone in half and toss it into a nearby trash can right away. At any rate, it wasn't like I'd purchased it with my own money. But if I did, neither my parents nor Nanami would learn their lesson, and it was obvious to me that they'd all say brainless stuff like, "Since it broke, let's go buy you a new one."  I should get a move on and go home.... Go home, and wallow in ESO again. Out of these past few days, there hadn't been a single one where my stress stopped building up. I wondered if my uneventful days would ever hurry on back to me....  As usual, Grim had been stocking up on the latest news while I played ESO.   SFX: Computer Noise quote:Neidhardt>Hey, Grim  For a second, I doubted my own sight. How.... did Grim know that phrase.... In my bewilderment, my fingers trembled against the keyboard. I didn't know what kind of answer to give Grim, and it was all I could do to follow his words with my eyes.  quote:Grim>I was following the online parties about it this whole time  quote:Grim>Lately I've started thinking the occult theories might not be off the mark  My head was threatening to start imagining it. I somehow managed to shake off the visions. For the time being, I'd better have a mouthful of Coke and regain my composure. Dammit, that rear end Grim definitely raised the subject that way on purpose, as if to ambush me.  quote:Neidhardt>How do you know so much about it?   quote:Grim>http://page16.auctions.taboo.co.jp/jp/auction/u15524569  The opposite was more than possible.  quote:Neidhardt>What?  Well, going by the URL, the link appeared to lead to an online auction, so it couldn't be anything so bad as to make my mental browser crash. Getting a little excited, I opened the link.  "Supplies of Type B blood are currently inadequate"....? It felt kind of like.... I'd seen this headline somewhere before. Deja vu again, huh? No, more importantly than that, where's my fappable Seira-tan pic!? Rolling the wheel of my mouse, I made the page scroll down. "....!"OST: Silence  And I hastily returned my gaze to my left-hand monitor and closed the browser window. "Haa.... Haa...." The guro image had been displayed on the monitor for less than three seconds. The amount of time I had seen it squarely with my own eyes was hardly a full second. Yet despite that--  quote:Grim>Before the mass media reported on the incident "........."quote:Grim>So, didja see the dying message? The dying.... message.... quote:Grim>The victim wrote it on the wall with blood The dying.... message.... I'd only seen the picture for an instant. Yet despite that...  The message like a dying scream, drawn on the wall in misshapen red letters, had seared itself onto my brain.... Regardless of how I tried not to think about it, the individual letters came floating up on the backs of my eyelids one by one, calling out to me.  I was familiar with these words. I often muttered them. A question aimed at no one. A little while ago, it had been the very first thing Grim said to me when he entered ESO. Words that seemed utterly common... Yet you would never have the chance to use them in the course of your ordinary everyday life... OST End Whose eyes are those eyes?
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May 20, 2020 11:16
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