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The Jisei mystery series (Jisei, Kansei and Yousei) are a series of supernatural murder mystery games created by Sakevisual, as part of the Green Tea line. Jisei was released in 2010, Kansei in 2011 and Yousei in 2013. The fourth game in the series, Shinsei, is currently in development, with no estimated release timeframe at the time of this post. The same team worked on the first three games in the series: Art: M. Beatriz Garcia Writing: Ayu Sakata (founder of Sakevisual) Music: Marc Conrad Tabula One thing I would like to make clear right at the start of this LP; although each game has its own murder mystery, and we will get to find out the "who" and the "how" and the "why" of each murder, there is an overarching storyline - in addition to Shinsei, there is a fifth installment planned - the conclusion of the overarching story is likely at least a couple of years away. Notes about the LP: No spoilers, please. Speculation is always welcome, and does not need to be spoiler tagged. If you enjoy this LP, please consider buying the games from one of the following sources: Sakevisual. Itch. Steam. Please note there are minor spoilers on the Yousei page.  Jisei, Part One. Jisei, Part Two. Jisei, Part Three. Jisei, Part Four. Jisei, Part Five. Jisei, Part Six. Jisei, Part Seven. Jisei, Extra.  Kansei, Part One. Kansei, Part Two. Kansei, Part Three. Kansei, Part Four. Kansei, Part Six. Kansei, Part Seven. Kansei, Part Eight. Kansei, Part Nine. Kansei, Part Ten. Kansei, Part Eleven. Kansei, Part Twelve. Kansai, Part Thirteen.  Yousei, Part One. Yousei, Part Two. Yousei, Part Three. Yousei, Part Four. Yousei, Part Five. Yousei, Part Six. Yousei, Part Seven. Yousei, Part Eight. Yousei, Part Nine. Yousei, Part Ten. Yousei, Part Eleven. Yousei, Part Twelve. Yousei, Part Thirteen. Yousei, Part Fourteen. Yousei, Part Fifteen. Yousei, Part Sixteen. Yousei, Part Seventeen. Yousei, Part Eighteen. HydroSphere fucked around with this message at 23:22 on May 29, 2023 |
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Feb 21, 2022 00:40
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   Then maybe he'd see what it's really like. When you die, there are only two things. The first is the sudden and terrifying realization that you are dying. The second thing is the final wish. As a person dies, there's always one last thing they wish they could do before they pass on. Sometimes it's as simple as wanting to say goodbye to a loved one, but usually it's a wish full of pain and regret. It's a wish for a life lived better, an angry word taken back, or a promise kept. A wish that will never be granted.Yeah. Death sucks. Every single time. But I've experienced so many, I'm kinda numb to the whole thing by now. That's not to say I'm comfortable with it. I'm just used to it.   Opening.   I blink slowly, trying to get my bearings. This place doesn't look familiar. Then again, it's been three years since anything has looked familiar to me.I yawn as my mind slowly clears. The room I'm in is filled with the scent of freshly ground coffee. I hear something. A machine...steam?Right. I'm in a coffee shop in some city called Edgewater. It's my second day in this city. Judging from the empty cup on the table in front of me, I stopped here for a coffee because I was getting sleepy... And then I fell asleep. Typical.I guess even a triple shot mocha latte isn't enough to keep me up these days. I wonder if I should get another one. Eh, why not?I head over to the counter. No one else is in line since it's still afternoon. The girl at the counter grins as soon as she sees me.      She laughs and winks at me. "So, what can I get for ya?" "Uh..."  Ugh.   Why am I feeling this now? There shouldn't be any reason...  I grab the counter for support and stumble off in the direction she's pointing. My head is hurting even more now. If I'm feeling this sick, it can only mean one thing.Someone has died.As I walk down the hallway, I see the door to the women's bathroom is wide open.  Lying on the tile floor of the women's bathroom is the corpse of a woman. I enter the restroom, gagging at the smell of the restroom's flowery perfume and disinfectant.
 I hope she died quickly. Otherwise, this is going to wind up being very unpleasant... I brace myself for the sudden pain in my chest, but it never comes.I can't breathe. I try to open my mouth, but it refuses to open. Something's on my face. I want to tear it away, but someone is holding me down. I'm going to die. I'm going to die..."I only wish that... My brain always remembers the pain of every death I experience, even though none of them are mine.I'm suddenly aware of someone staring at me from the hallway. A woman is standing behind me, staring in horror at the dead body lying on the restroom floor.   I sigh and hang my head. This isn't going to end well. Then again, it never does. A man strides briskly down the hallway towards me. His voice and demeanor are sharp, fluid, and commanding. Even without the uniform, it's obvious he's some sort of man of the law. Considering what he's wearing, I'd guess police officer. "Sorry, officer. I promise I didn't move anything." He looks surprised. "Oh, you're not? Sorry... my dad was a police officer, and you look kinda like him. I mean, you carry yourself the same way." He sounds skeptical. I guess I can't blame him. He raises a knowing eyebrow, as if he's just caught me in a lie, but he doesn't comment on it. "Sure."     The detective pauses for a moment. It looks like he's trying to choose his words carefully. "Unfortunately, a dead body has just been discovered on this premises."  "…" "Unfortunately, I don't know anything about the situation yet. Because of this, I'm going to have to ask you all to stay here until the police come."   "I see..." "If you don't mind, I'd like to speak with each of you separately for just a little bit. It'll help move the investigation along if I can start collecting information now. Is that okay?" "Yeah, it's okay with me." "Y-yes...it's fine." "What about you, kid?" "It's fine with me." "Right... Then we'll start with you. Come with me, please." Detective Gurski motions for me to follow him to the hallway away from the rest of the coffee shop. Detective Gurski glances at me and gently kicks the door of the bathroom. It swings in and bounces gently off the wall, closing with a soft thud.  "Fine, I guess." He frowns at me. "Never mind. Let's just start with your name."  "Because I'd rather not."     "Fine. No name, then. Why don't you tell me what happened today?" "You mean about when I found the body?" "Anything you think is pertinent." "Well, I came in here around noon today. I ordered a coffee, drank it, then fell asleep." "You fell asleep after you drank a triple shot mocha latte?" "How do you know what I drank?" Detective Gurski nods at the empty cup on the table where I was sleeping. "Saw you snoozing when I came in."  And a serious one at that. He's even reading my drinks when he's off duty? "Well, I woke up about ten minutes ago, I guess. Maybe less." Gurski glances at the clock on the wall. "I guess so. I was just about to get another drink when I suddenly started to feel sick." "Ah, yes. I did see you looking a little ill when you were at the counter." "The girl at the counter told me I should go to the bathroom, and when I went, I saw the body lying there."  "Did you touch her?" "…" Even if I say no, they'll probably find my prints on her anyway... "Yes." "And why were you touching her?" "I wanted to see if she was okay. I didn't know she was dead at the time." The detective nods understandingly, but I doubt he believes me. Any idiot could have seen the knife in that woman's chest from at least ten feet away. "Is there anything else you'd like to say?" There's something weird about all of this, but maybe I should keep it to myself for now...
HydroSphere fucked around with this message at 00:45 on Feb 21, 2022 |
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Feb 21, 2022 00:41
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HydroSphere posted:Any idiot could have seen the knife in that woman's chest from at least ten feet away. Let's confide our suspicions. Nothing quite like stating the obvious over a dead body, right?
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Feb 21, 2022 05:38
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we should tell him there's something suspicious about all this. just because he's a detective doesn't mean he's a very good one!
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Feb 21, 2022 15:26
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 "But what makes you think this is suspicious?" “Just...a gut feeling." "I see. Anything else?" "No." "Then please wait in the main area." "Sure." “Would anyone like to go next?" "I'll go." The woman raises her hand timidly, and Detective Gurski nods at her. "Then follow me."Music stops. I sink down into one of the chairs and close my eyes. This doesn't make any sense. The woman in the restroom has a knife in her chest, no doubt. But in my vision, she was being suffocated. Then again, my vision did cut off before it finished. That woman interrupted me. I wish I could read the body again, but I'm sure to get caught if I even try to get close to the body. Somehow it doesn't really seem worth the risk. I guess I'll just have to approach this from a different angle.
 
The girl who works at the shop is sitting a few tables away from me, staring at the ground. She looks up and notices that I'm looking in her direction. "Huh?" "Knowing you're in the same building as a dead body, I mean." She smiles apologetically at me. "By the way, my name's Chance." Chance? That sounds like such a fake name... "You have a rather unusual name." She laughs. "I get that a lot." "The truth is, I changed my name. My parents named me Bertha." "You're a famous singer?"  "Haha, that's why I chose that name. Get it? Chance? I'm pretty cheesy, huh?" "Maybe not cheesy, but...I think the name Bertha actually means famous... So really, you had a good name in the first place." "Not particularly. I just like to pay attention to names and what they mean." I seriously doubt that. "Do you know anything about the woman who died?"  "Still, I think I would have recognized her if she was someone I knew." "Do you remember what time you saw her?" "What makes you think it was 2:00?"  "I see..." "Do you think the killer is still around?" "I sure hope not!" Chance shivers. "I don't know why he'd stick around, anyway. Doesn't a murderer usually run after he kills someone?" "Good point..."  As soon as she sees me, she quickly looks away. "Then do you mind coming with me?" "Not at all." Chance waves at me before hurrying off after Detective Gurski. "Um...about earlier." The woman glares at me, her eyes laced with disgust.  The woman frowns at me. She sits down and folds her arms, glaring at me from across the room. I guess I should leave her alone. Across the room, the college boy is typing away on his laptop. He pauses to glance at a pile of notes on the table next to him. He's still doing homework at a time like this? He looks up, and we briefly make eye contact. "Is something wrong?" "Not really. You just look really calm, all things considered." He glances to the side nervously.  "It would be a lot nicer if that were the case." “I'm sorry. You're the one who found the body, right?" “Yeah.” He's silent for a moment. "Is it scary? Seeing a dead body, I mean." "Uh..." I guess most people would be pretty terrified to see a dead body, especially one that's obviously been murdered. "Yeah." "Oh. I guess I do."    "Are you okay?" "Huh? Oh, yeah. I'm fine." He laughs nervously before smiling warmly at me.  "So what are you doing here, anyway?" "Studying." He nods at the pile of paper scattered across the table. "I have an exam soon, and I come here a lot since it's a quiet place with no distractions."  "Are you in college?" "Yeah, but I'm only a part time student. Even community college is expensive." "I have to keep a part time job just to stay afloat." "What do you do?"  "I see."
"What's the exam on?" "Huh? Um..." I glance at the papers scattered across the table. They're covered in notes written in Japanese. "Japanese?" "Yeah. Japanese." He doesn't sound terribly confident... "Do you think the killer is still here?"  He looks like he's about to start crying.  "What if the murderer is still here! What if we're all going to be picked off one by one until there's no one left?" I point at Kizaki's laptop. "You're even connected to the internet!" "Oh, yeah..." He suddenly looks a lot more relieved. "I guess I overreacted..." No kidding. "But it's still really creepy to think that someone was killed here. I hope that detective figures it out soon." "Can you remember anything about the woman who died?" "I'm afraid I was pretty caught up in my work. I didn't really notice much about anyone else."  "I remember wondering if she was looking for you, and you just didn't notice her because you were asleep." Wow, is there anyone in this coffee shop who DIDN'T watch me sleep? Kizaki looks up, surprised. "Oh...right." He quickly shuffles a few of his notes around into a neat pile before he stands up. "Hey."   
HydroSphere fucked around with this message at 18:22 on Feb 23, 2022 |
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Feb 23, 2022 00:52
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Feb 23, 2022 01:30
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Hey, this looks pretty interesting. REALLY large amounts of anime injected into my veins but it has my attention. I think you're doing a good job showing it off and giving us enough details about the games without spoiling too much. Excited for more! e: oh yeah tell her she's a FOOL Gosts fucked around with this message at 16:44 on Feb 23, 2022 |
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Feb 23, 2022 07:19
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Aw man i almost missed this popping up, wish you posted a link to this in your other LPs.
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Feb 23, 2022 10:59
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Nothing wrong with telling a FOOL they're being a FOOL!
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Feb 23, 2022 12:37
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   "Making a snap judgment like that without any proof at all is ridiculous!" "Making snap judgments is my job, kid." "In the REAL world, not everyone has the luxury of pandering around waiting for things to happen."  "What do YOU know about the real world?"  "You really think that? Well, congratulations! You've won the prize for world's biggest moron!"   "That's enough. What do you think you're doing?"  "From what I understand, you provoked him." "He's the one who approached me!" Detective Gurski sighs. "Miss Bergstrom, that's still no excuse." He turns to me. "As for you, do you have any idea of the situation you're in right now?" He pulls me to the side before I can say anything.  "I'm sorry. She just..." "You're already on thin ice, kid, and that temper isn't doing much to help your case." "What?" "You do realize that she's convinced you're the murderer, right? Acting like that only makes you look more suspicious." "Yeah, well..." "And I have to be honest, a lot of the evidence points towards you already." "You were the first at the scene, and you even admitted to touching the body. There's not much that votes for your innocence." "But all the evidence you have is only circumstantial." "I can hold you for 48 hours before charging you with a crime. That's enough time to find more evidence." Ugh...sometimes I hate that law. "I know. But I didn't do it." "If you really want me to believe you, you're going to have to be a lot more cooperative." "Obviously you're interested in clearing your name, whatever it may be. It works better if you work with me, not against me." "You want my help?"He frowns. "Not particularly. But I don't have many options right now." "I'd rather have you where I can keep an eye on you. So I'll let you talk around, but you have to tell me everything you learn." "And for the record, this isn't a free pass to conduct your own investigation. I'm only saying you can talk with the others." "Got it?" "Got it..."  Chance notices me looking at her. She giggles and waves at me. "You got changed."  : "But never mind that. How did it go?" "How did what go?" "Talking with that detective, of course. Did he say anything?"
 "Nothing in particular. He just wanted me to not bother him.": "What do you mean by bothering him?" Beats me. So..." "Did you notice anything suspicious about Kizaki?" "Who?" "That college kid." "Oh. Is that his name? I've never seen him before."  "He does? I'm pretty sure I haven't seen him before... Maybe he usually comes at some other time?" "Yeah. Maybe.": "But I don't recall him doing anything weird. He came in, set up, and spent all his time working on homework." "Did you notice anything suspicious about Miss Bergstrom?" "You mean that woman who looks like she's mad at you?" "Yeah. Her." "Well, she definitely looked like she was in a hurry." "Then again, she always does." "She comes here often?" All the time. And she always looks like she's in a hurry. I guess she's a busy woman." "Do you know what Miss Bergstrom does for a living?"  "I'm afraid I don't know exactly what she does, though." “I guess that's all I want to talk about for now.” "Talk to you later, then." I look over at Kizaki. He's still typing away at his computer. I guess even being at the scene of a murder isn't an excuse to turn in homework late... "Is everything okay?" "Yeah, it's fine." "It looked like Detective Gurski was lecturing you about something. He's a pretty imposing guy..." "I guess I'm just worried he's gonna arrest me or something."
  "Although I don't know if the same goes for me..." "What?" He looks confused. "Nothing..." Detective Gurski's threat to keep me in custody for 48 hours is still looming over my head. I'm really on a short leash... "Did you notice anything suspicious about Chance?" "The girl who works here? She wouldn't do anything!" "Are you sure?" "Of course. She works here, after all." "That didn't answer my question." "Well, if you're wondering if I saw her do anything weird, I didn't. She was cleaning the espresso machines for a while. She didn't look too happy about that. Then she went into the back kitchen, so I didn't see her anymore." "If she were in the kitchen, she could have gone to the bathroom without you seeing her, right?" "I...yeah... I guess so." "Did you notice anything suspicious about Miss Bergstrom?" "I'm afraid I didn't see her come in. I was busy working at the time. I didn't notice anything until I heard her scream." “That's all for now.” “Un.” Miss Bergstrom is still across the room from me, brooding. Oh boy...this isn't going to be easy. I doubt she even wants to speak to me after I nearly lost my temper and hit her.
I approach her carefully, holding my hands out in an attempt to show that I mean her no harm. "Hey..." "I'm sorry." "I said I'm sorry." "I acted out in anger when I shouldn't have." "But someone is dead here, and I need to know what happened! Won't you please just talk to me?" "Why are you even doing this?”
"I want to prove I'm innocent." After a moment of silence, she lets out a long sigh. "I guess it's okay, then... What do you want to know?" "Did you notice anything suspicious about Chance?" "That barista? She's a sweet girl, if not a little unrealistic. She'll talk about her dream of being a singer to anyone who will listen." "She often gets livid when anyone says anything that doesn't coincide with her dream, but she's very cheerful, otherwise." "Livid?"    "The whole thing was settled out of court, and the owner of this place is her father, so naturally she got to keep her job." "Honestly, kids these days just get everything handed to them on a silver platter. It's wholly frustrating." Ah, that's what she was talking about before when she said that parents wouldn't come in to rescue her. I guess her anger makes more sense now. "Did you notice anything suspicious about Kizaki?" "I assume you mean that boy over there? He hasn't done anything that seems out of the ordinary. I can't really say one way or another, though." “That's all I need for now.” “I hope it helped.”
   Biodev Imaging! Isn't that where Miss Bergstrom works? I wonder if they knew each other... I peer around the corner to get a better look. He doesn't look very pleased.  He hangs up before letting out a frustrated sigh. As he does, he sees me looking at him. "Whoa, how long have you been there?" 
 "So pretty much everything, then." "I guess so..." "And do you have anything useful to tell me?" "Chance says she saw Sara come in around 2:00." "Interesting. So Sara must have been killed sometime between 2:00 and 2:40. The first thing to do is see if anyone has an alibi for that time period, then." "Miss Bergstrom works for Biodev Imaging. Chance told me that a lot of people who work there like to come here to eat." "Do you know what Miss Bergstrom does at Biodev Imaging?" "No..." "It probably wouldn't hurt to ask her." "Kizaki says he comes here all the time, but Chance claims she's never seen him." "Do you think he's lying?" "I don't know. He seems honest enough, but he could very well be pretending." "Why don't you test him, then? If he really comes here often, he'll be able to answer questions about this place without any problems." "I guess so..." "Chance has some pretty explosive anger issues. She tried to burn a guy with hot coffee once because he insulted her voice." "Really? I'd hate to be that guy." "Still, one act of violence doesn't make her a murderer. It might be worth looking into it, though, if you can find a way to be tactful about it." “I don't really have more I can tell you.” "I see." I don't think I'm allowed in there with the dead body.  Actually... it looks like there's an emergency exit in here, too. It's the kind that only opens from the inside. Hm... I bet the killer could have slipped out here without being seen by anyone in the coffee shop.  
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Feb 27, 2022 00:45
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  The voice seems to be coming from...inside my head? "Yeah, but if you can't hear me, that makes communication rather difficult, now doesn't it?" "I just-" "Never mind." Alike? Yeah right... I don't go around randomly speaking inside of other peoples' heads...  I wait for a few seconds, but the voice is gone. No one else seems to have heard it, so I guess it really was all in my head... Ugh...this is getting even more troublesome by the minute. First I'm accused of murder, and now some random person is dropping thoughts in my head. Or hey, maybe I'm just going crazy. I should probably be a lot more surprised or freaked out by this turn of events, but the only thing that surprises me right now is how unsurprised I am. I shuffle tiredly into the main area of the coffee shop and sit down, burying my head in my hands. "Are you okay?" "Yeah...I'm fine." "Really? You've been looking terrible all day." "Oh, let me get you something to drink!" Chance hurries around to the counter and begins mixing a drink for me. I lean back and take in the smell of the coffee. It's really relaxing... She hands me a hot cup brimming full with a hot latte. I take a sip of it, and my body suddenly feels alive again. Mm...the smell, the steam. I seriously doubt I'd ever be able to function without this stuff. I take another sip, and then another, enjoying the flavor and the heat. I feel like I can finally think. Yes. I'm addicted. "That was good. And you made it so quickly." "Of course I did. Sometimes things get really busy in here." "That counter is designed with everything we need to mix drinks quickly. Of course, if we want to do other things like make sandwiches, that's all in the back kitchen." Chance looks pretty happy right now. Maybe this is a good time to ask her about that one guy who insulted her. "So, did you really throw hot coffee at a guy for insulting your singing voice?" "Oh yeah...that was a particularly bad day."  "New girlfriend?" "My ex-boyfriend broke up with me here at work by bringing his new girlfriend here and telling me we were over! He said he didn't want to be with someone who had such unrealistic dreams!" Wow...sorry about that." "Anyway, if you have any more questions, feel free to ask."
 “What were you doing between 2:00 and 2:40?" "Hm...around 2:00, I think I was finishing up some work in the office." Then I headed out for a late lunch. I usually grab a sandwich and an espresso from this place." "Were you with anyone else at the time?" "Of course not. Everyone else had already left for lunch." "What did you order when you got here?" "Nothing. I went straight to the restroom, and then I saw you." "Why did you just head straight to the bathroom instead of ordering?" "I always wash my hands first. It's filthy to do anything else, and I can't exactly afford to be ill." "What do you do for a living?" "Why do you want to know?" "I'm just curious." "Well I do lot of things. Mostly human resources management." "Human resources? As in..." "The usual things. Recruiting new blood, organizing and training employees, writing policies, and the like." Wow...that's a lot. "Do you know anyone named Sara Blackmoore?" "I can't say I do. Should I?" “That's all I need for now.” “What were you doing between 2:00 and 2:40?" "Um...studying, mostly." "Mostly?" "I was also chatting with a friend online." "Sometimes I get distracted." "Do you really come here that often?" "Of course I do. Why do you ask?" "Just curious about this place. Do you know what kind of sandwiches they sell here?" "They rotate them. The two for today are tapenade with avocado, and turkey and brie." "I see. And how much does a green tea cost?" "A shaken green iced tea, or a green tea smoothie?" "Um...either." "The shaken green iced tea is only $2.65, but the green tea smoothie is $3.70." "Thanks..." Wow, this guy knows the place pretty well. Almost uncannily so...I guess he really does come here often. I wonder why Chance doesn't recognize him... "Do you know anyone named Sara Blackmoore?" "S-Sara?" "Um...no, I don't think I do." Wow. That's quite possibly the most guilty reaction I've ever seen. This guy would be terrible at poker. “That's all for now.” "What were you doing between 2:00 and 2:40?" "Working, of course." "Afternoons like this are always slow, so it's usually just me and the manager." "Although my manager is currently out at the store." "Why did your manager go to the store?" "We ran out of soymilk. I forgot to restock yesterday, and he kinda got mad at me... I had to come out here and clean all the espresso machines as punishment." "Do you know anyone named Sara Blackmoore?" "I'm sorry. I'm really bad with names. Even if I did know her, I probably couldn't tell you." “I guess that's all I want to talk about for now.” I look into the glass case filled with freshly made sandwiches. Sure enough, the two specials of the day are tapenade with avocado and turkey and brie. Kiazaki was right.
 Did you know that there's an emergency exit in the men's room?" "Yeah, I noticed that. There isn't an alarm on the door, either, so it's possible that the murderer escaped through there without being detected." Yeah, that's what I was thinking." "If the murderer did go through there, he or she was probably the last person who passed through. It's possible that there was some evidence left behind in there." "No one here has a full alibi. Chance and Kizaki both saw each other for a while, but Chance was in the back kitchen around the time of the murder. She could have slipped away without being seen, or Kizaki could have gone past the kitchen without her noticing. Miss Bergstrom claims she was working at that time, but there's no way to corroborate her story." "Hm...so all of them had an opportunity. But what about a means and a motive? We need to figure out why someone would want Sara dead in the first place." "Miss Bergstrom was really evasive about her job. When I asked her about it, she didn't seem to want to tell me much about it." "She did say she's in human resources, though.""Is that so? I suppose she's pretty high up on the totem pole, then. I think Sara was just a secretary with low level clearance, so it's doubtful they'd have met." "Still, it's definitely something worth keeping in mind. Ask around and see if anyone knows anything about Biodev Imaging." "Chance only got violent because the guy was her ex-boyfriend. Turns out she threw hot coffee at him because he broke up with her.""Well, that makes a lot more sense than just attacking some random guy." "But that doesn't change the fact that she has anger issues. Plus, things aren't exactly looking up for her right now." "What do you mean?" "I examined the knife in Sara's chest. It's an industry grade kitchen knife, and it's part of a set." "I'm willing to bet that the rest of the set is in the kitchen here." "No. I'm saying that whoever stabbed Sara had access to the kitchen at some point in time." "Why? Do you think she did it?"
"I doubt she had anything to do with this." "What makes you say that?" "Well, if I were going to murder someone, I wouldn't do it at my workplace with a weapon that only I have access to. It's ridiculous." "Good point, but she's obviously not the type for pre-meditated murder. If it's her, it was likely an impulsive decision." "If you can find a motive, then we'll be getting somewhere." "No one here recognizes the name Sara Blackmoore." "Well naturally the killer is going to deny knowing her. But if no one here seems to recognize her, she probably didn't want to be known. I wonder what she was hiding." “I don't really have more I can tell you.”   I'd better not touch any of this. If I leave my fingerprints on it, I'm sunk.  Great. The voice in my head is back.  Easy for you to say. Somehow I doubt Gurski will just let me waltz in there. Great. A distraction. Like what, blowing stuff up with your mind? Before I can think any more on the subject, a loud crash echoes from the coffee shop. "What happened?" "I don't know! It sounds pretty serious, though!" "Great. Just what I need." Wow. Thanks, random voice. Guess I owe you for this one... If I move fast, I can probably get a quick peek at the crime scene again!
 I head into the main area to find Detective Gurski glaring at Kizaki. "I know we're all on a hair trigger here, but could you please try not to go stumbling around over everything?" "Y-yeah...sorry." "Thank you." Gurski leaves without another word. Agh...I missed my chance to look at the body! Stupid...
    Maybe it came off when she was struggling against her attacker? I look around the room some more, but I can't find any sign of whatever was on Sara's wrist. The bathroom looks clean, and there are no signs of a struggle at all. Weird... I certainly wouldn't just let someone stab me in the front without putting up some sort of fight.
HydroSphere fucked around with this message at 00:05 on Mar 5, 2022 |
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Mar 4, 2022 23:25
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  “I tried to give you some leeway, but now you're poking around the crime scene in secret?” “I'm sorry, kid, but if you can't cooperate, then I don't have much of a choice. I'm taking you into custody.” 
  Whatever happened was enough of a distraction, I guess. Still, it bothers me that my mysterious benefactor seems to know what I'm up to, but only some of the time. If it were someone in here with me, then all my movements would be readily obvious. But it seems more like someone who's getting regular reports on what I've been doing. Someone inside the coffee shop must be communicating with someone on the outside. I need to figure out who it is. "Oh, there you are." "Hey..." "Something wrong?" "No, nothing. I was just trying to stay out of the way in case anything bad happened." "What was that loud noise, anyway?" "Just an accident." "I see..." An accident, huh? I wonder what caused it... "I found a lot of duct tape in the garbage can in the men's room." "Duct tape?" "Yeah. A whole bunch of it, like someone used it and dumped it there." "Hm...perhaps the killer used it to restrain Sara." “I don't really have more I can tell you.”     "What do you know about Biodev Imaging?" "I think they have something to do with medical stuff, but I'm not sure." "What was that loud crash earlier?" "Oh, that? I just dropped some dishes..." "I was cleaning up, and that guy Kizaki offered to help. When I handed him a tray loaded with dishes, I let go before he had a good grip on it, so it fell." Don't worry. Nothing broke." "Although it's weird...I really thought he had a grip on that tray, but it slipped anyway. It's almost like he did it on purpose."  "As soon as she came in, he kept staring at her." "At first I thought he was just being a teenage guy, and staring at women, but looking back on it, it seems like he was observing her." "Do you think I should have reported him?" "No, it's not a crime to look at another person." "I wouldn't worry about it too much. Besides, didn't you say that the murderer has probably run away by now?" "That's right...I guess I'm overthinking this. Thanks." "Who are you texting? "Huh? Oh, my boyfriend." "Didn't he break up with you?" "That was a different boyfriend."   "Even if he's a little bit older than me, I still love him!" Sounds more like she picked up a sugar daddy rather than a boyfriend... "I'm telling him everything that happened today so he can comfort me and help me feel better." "Are you sure it's okay to just tell him about it?" Yeah...but you're kinda at a crime scene. I'm fairly certain the police wouldn't want you broadcasting the details of a murder before they even solve it. “Don't you think you're being a little too reliant on him? You're making it sound like you can't cope on your own." "You'll understand one day when you get a girlfriend of your own." "What?" "Well, no, but...""Then you don't know what it's like." "Fair enough." So she's definitely telling someone about everything going on in here, but somehow I doubt her boyfriend is the one giving me random hints. I suppose I should keep looking. "I guess that's all I want to talk about for now."  "What do you know about Biodev Imaging?" "Biodev? That's a biological engineering company, isn't it?" "They specialize in body parts, like artificial hearts and lungs and such." "But lately, they've expanded their research to trying to grow replacement organs from living cells." "Wow, you sure know a lot." "Ah, no. I just happen to know about them because they're a big deal at my school. They've funded a good portion of the biomedical engineering program there, so their name is all over the place." "What was that loud crash earlier?" "She handed me a tray loaded with dishes, and it was a lot heavier than I thought, so I kinda...dropped it." “That's all for now.”    "What do you know about Biodev Imaging?" "Plenty, seeing as I work there. We're a medical group that creates artificial organs." "There's a huge demand for organ implants, but there are very few available donors, and compatibility is always an issue. We make things like artificial lungs and bionic hearts." "Wow. That's pretty impressive."  "What was that loud crash earlier?" "Just those two kids dropping a pile of dishes all over the floor." "Honestly, it gave me such a fright! I thought my heart was about to leap out of my chest." "It's a miracle that no one was hurt. I noticed that boy pushed the girl out of the way just in time. He has some quick reflexes." "Who are you emailing?""Why do you want to know?" "I'm just curious. I'm kinda surprised you're still working at a time like this." "The world doesn't stop spinning just because one person died." Yikes, that's a cold outlook. Even if it IS accurate... "If you must know, I'm emailing some partners in Germany, finishing a draft of a new policy for some of my coworkers, and rearranging my schedule to make up for a meeting I'm missing right now." "You sound busy." "I am. So if you could leave me alone, I'd really appreciate it." "Right. Sorry." Hm, while she's definitely writing a lot, she clearly isn't paying attention to anything that's going on here. I suppose Miss Business isn't the one spying on me. Better keep looking.  “That's all I need for now.” Kizaki is still working on his computer. Does this guy even take a break from homework? Hm, he keeps pausing. It looks more like he's chatting on an instant messenger. Interesting...  "Who are you chatting with online?" "Who?" "Um...my sister..." "Your sister?" "Yeah. She and I are really close, so I always go to her for advice." "I just needed someone to talk to... It's not weird, is it?" "Of course not. It makes sense that you'd want to talk to family when something like this happens." "Do you have a sister, too?" "Not exactly? So are you an only child, then?" "My sister died three years ago..." "I'm so sorry!" "It's fine. It's not like it was your fault or anything..."  "Did they ever catch the guy who shot her?" "No..." "I'm sorry..." "Just forget I said anything, okay?" “That's all for now.”       Organs from living cells! Isn't that what Biodev Imaging is working on? Uh oh...I see a pattern. "She resigned recently, saying she was pursuing a new direction in her life, but I'm guessing it's only because she obtained whatever information she was looking for. "If she was supposed to meet up with someone to hand over information, she should have it with her, probably on a secure USB. It'll likely be disguised as something else that she can always keep on her person, like a keychain. If you can find it, you'll probably have your murderer." I guess I'll have to keep an eye out for something that looks like a disguised USB drive. Like that'll be easy... I can't help but feel uneasy about this, though. My mysterious information source is being very generous. Somehow, I don't think this person is just doling out information for free. There must be an ulterior motive...  "Chance says that Kizaki was watching Sara." "Watching her? Like a stalker or something?" "I guess?" "I wonder why she didn't mention this before..." "She said she just remembered." "Interesting. If he was watching her, then he probably knows something. But since he came here first, he must have been expecting her to come here. That means she definitely came here to meet someone. Try to find out how he knows about that." "And how will I figure that out?" "Why don't you just ask him?" "Really?" "I get the feeling you'll get something interesting if you ask." "I think Sara is a corporate spy..." "Really? What makes you think that?"
"I did some research on her." "Um...I borrowed Kizaki's computer and looked her up online."] "And?" "She used to work at Auten Engineering, a company that specialized in growing organs from cells. And Biodev Imaging is currently trying to expand to do the same thing." "She just resigned from Auten Engineering, and now she's working for Biodev Imaging? You yourself said she was just a secretary, so clearly she's not working for these companies because she has a specific skill set needed for this line of work. She's probably after something that Biodev Imaging has." "That's one possibility..." "One possibility?" "The key here is to figure out who she's working for. For instance, she could have been working for Biodev Imaging, by stealing information from Auten Engineering. If it's like that, then this could be a move by Auten Engineering to retrieve information before it winds up with Biodev Imaging." "Or, conversely, she could have been working for Auten Engineering and stealing information from Biodev Imaging. In that case, anyone from Biodev Imaging now becomes a primary suspect." "Of course, that doesn't rule out other motives, but this seems like the most logical one." "Corporations like this are cutthroat at best. It's always a race to see who can get results the fastest so they can get a larger market share or government grants. Rather than work together, they do whatever it takes to get ahead of the competition. And when they can't be vindicated through lawsuits and manipulation of the laws, they'll resort to darker practices." "Looks like it's time to learn more about Auten Engineering." “I don't really have more I can tell you.”   “What do you know about Auten Engineering?" "Those two-bit scientists? Ha! They couldn't deduce their way out of a paper bag!"  "I see you're not a fan..." "Companies like Biodev Imaging are trying to do some real good, but we have to keep playing games with Auten Engineering just to get a place on the map. It's utterly ridiculous." “That's all I need for now.”  "So uh...why were you following Sara around?" "What? I wasn't following her! We just happened to come in here at the same time!" "…"
"If you tell me what happened, maybe I can help you." "Why can't you talk about Sara?" Kizaki glances around the room before he speaks. "It's not safe. I'm probably already in trouble just for telling you that much..." He leans in and lowers his voice. "Please be careful."
  "In case you haven't noticed, someone is dead, and you might have information that can help us figure out who the killer is. I am not going to accept some ridiculous answer like "I can't talk about it right now.”” "But I-" "No excuses!" I grab Kizaki by the collar of his shirt and drag him into the side hallway. "The bathroom." I glare at Kizaki, and he nods quickly in agreement. "You're going in a pair? I thought only women did that sort of thing." "Fine, go ahead." "Just don't do anything stupid. I don't have enough handcuffs for everyone." "Warning duly noted." "I-I'm not allowed..." "Not allowed!? Someone is DEAD, Kizaki. Do you not comprehend this?" "I don't care if you have some embarrassing secret, or you made a promise, or it's a matter of pride or anything stupid like that! All I care about is figuring out who killed this woman! So stop being so stubborn and just tell me what you know!" "…" "Are you going to talk or not?" Kizaki stares down at his hands before letting out a long sigh. "Auten Engineering." "What about them?" "They're my current employer." "Current?" "I work for an agency that specializes in...information and investigation. I suppose you could call us private investigators. Sara Blackmoore recently stole some sensitive and important data from Auten Engineering. We were hired to retrieve it and find out who was buying it from her in the first place. We figured the drop point would be here, so I came here ahead of time to watch the hand off." "At first, I thought you were supposed to be her contact, so I didn't want to tell you anything..." "Does Detective Gurski know about this?" "I think he has a rough idea...our agency has had dealings with the police before..." "I don't think he approves of our methods very much, though." "Methods?" "Well, we may or may not use techniques branded as unscrupulous...specifically concerning the manner in which we retrieve certain information from various electronic sources." "So you're hackers." "What? No, no! Of course not!" "Well, I'm not, at least..." "I'm the footwork guy. I do a lot of the physical investigation, like coming here today." "I suppose your agency is really in a state of panic right now, huh?" "Yeah...we're really scrambling right now. Even though Sara's dead, we still don't know who she was selling to, or where the USB drive holding the information is." Seems like everyone's after that USB drive... I wonder what she even stole, anyway. It must be a pretty big deal for people to want it this badly... "Um...can I go now?" "What?" "I really should get back. People might start getting suspicious otherwise..." "Sure. You can go." "Thanks." Wow. What an odd kid. He seems much too polite and awkward for this line of work. Then again, I suppose his awkwardness makes him seem less suspicious. I wonder how he even got roped into doing stuff like this in the first place. It doesn't seem like something he'd randomly volunteer for...  "Sure. What's up?" "Well, I don't really know if it's my place to say it, but I think I know who the killer is..." "You do!?" "We keep thinking that is has to be someone here. But what if it's none of us?" "What do you mean?" "Well, even though I got here at 2:00, what if the killer got here before me? He could have been hiding in the bathroom, and I'd never know it. There's an exit door in the men's room. He could have used that to escape after he killed that woman." That's what we were thinking earlier! But at the same time, it seems a little far fetched that the killer is just a random person who hid in the bathroom...
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Mar 8, 2022 00:19
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Are you sure? Wait, didn't Mrs. Bergstrom say she worked in HR at Biodev Engineering (in the update before this)? The company that Sara just joined? That seems pretty strange that she wouldn't have heard of her, I think.
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Mar 8, 2022 01:27
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I'm really curious about the alternate paths, like investigating the crash instead of the bathroom, or getting arrested. I assume the second one is a game over, right? But it didn't say game over. Can you just severely ruin your whole life but keep playing? How does that work?
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Mar 8, 2022 01:54
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Getting arrested is a "game over" - there's no game over scene, you just get kicked back to the title screen after being arrested. There aren't really any consquences for investigating the crash rather than the bathroom - you just miss finding out that the victim was wearing something on her wrist.
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Mar 12, 2022 23:31
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  "Are you sure? It seems a little bit iffy..." "So you think that someone here is the killer, then?" Well, no...I mean. I guess so."  "It's nothing...I'm so worn out, I'm not even thinking straight." Would you like another latte? I can brew one for you..." "Yes, please..." "Coming right up." Chance hurries off, and soon I hear the whirring of the coffee machine. She returns shortly with a tall cup in her hand. "Thank you." As I drink deeply, I can feel my muscles relaxing. I sit down in a nearby chair and lean back to enjoy my drink, but for some reason, I feel a little unbalanced. What... Chance stares at me impassively as I struggle to sit up straight. It's becoming harder to breathe...  I feel so lightheaded... 
 “That's a good idea. You're probably right." "I'm glad you think so. I was worried that it might not make any sense."
 "What do you know about Auten Engineering?" "Um...is it a car company?" "Never mind..." "I guess that's all I want to talk about for now." "What do you know about Auten Engineering?" "They're the leaders in the industry, but some people claim they steal ideas from other companies. On the flip side, Auten Engineering has claimed repeatedly that other companies steal from them." "In fact, they were just about to make a pretty big announcement, but it was suddenly pushed back for some reason.""Personally, I think they're just a target of criticism because they're the biggest. They may not be perfect, but they're no worse than any other company." “That's all for now.”  "I've heard mixed reviews about Auten Engineering." "How so?" "Miss Bergstrom claims that they do nothing more than manipulate laws and bribe politicians. She's clearly not impressed by their business practices." "No surprise there. She has a major stake in a rival company, after all.""What about the others?" "Kizaki says that Auten Engineering has come under fire for stealing from other companies, but they claim they're the ones being stolen from." "And what does Chance think about all of this?" "Uh...she thinks they're a car company." "Oh." "Yeah." "I don't really have more I can tell you."  As I enter the bathroom, I nearly run into Miss Bergstrom. "I'm sorry!" "N-no...it's fine." Miss Bergstrom shifts uncomfortably and fiddles with her watch for a moment. "What are you doing in here, anyway?" "Well, I had to use the restroom, and the women's one is off limits, naturally. Don't worry, I'm done." "Um...do you mind if I ask you a question?" "I suppose it depends on the question." "I was just wondering why you decided to work for Biodev Imaging. It seems like it's really important to you." "When I was younger, my father passed away due to heart failure. It was genetic, and there was nothing we could do to stop it." "I wished there was a way to save him, but there wasn't any viable technology at the time. I work for Biodev Imaging because we're doing things for people. We're saving lives." "Hopefully that's a suitable answer for you."
Yeah. I was just curious. Thanks." "You're welcome."  Oh hey, the disembodied voice is back. It's been a while. I was starting to get worried."I'm afraid I don't have much more I can offer you. You're on the inside, so you have all the keys. I know you've seen more than the rest of us can see. Try to remember. The last piece of the puzzle is there. Good luck." Good luck? That's it? I'm not sure whether or not I should be offended that my mystery friend seems to have ditched me. But the truth is that even if I only have a fragment of Sara's death, it's a lot more than anything else we've got right now. I can't breathe...I can't open my mouth... There's something on my face. It's stopping me from breathing. Is it a gag? No, it's actually holding my mouth shut. It's...tape. I can smell it. The flower scent of the bathroom is strong, but it smells like duct tape. I twist my hands, but they're also taped together. And there's someone here with me. Someone holding me down while I'm struggling. I can feel fingernails digging deep into my skin. One of them bends as it digs into me. I twist around, and I can feel it snap against my skin. That's it! That's the missing piece!   I have my proof. I know who the killer is. I need to speak with Detective Gurski.   "Detective!" "Whoa, hey. I'm just getting everyone's numbers so we can call you later on." No need for that. I've figured it out!" "Really?" "Really!" All the eyes in the room are suddenly focused on me. "What?" "You mean you know who the killer is?""You figured it out?" "Well, you're going to need to fill in the gaps before you try to sell this as the absolute truth. But I'm willing to listen." "Let's go over what we know, starting with the timeline. You arrived around noon, so you were here before everyone else." "Right." 
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Mar 13, 2022 02:04
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No one is ready to answer that? TBH without the options for some of those i would have trouble answering. Who arrived first? Assuming Chance is here from the word go as an employee, that would be the Kizaki. Who arrived second? The victim Who arrived third? Miss bergstrom How was the victim killed? Succesfully. TBH, would need options here, but i am guessing "Knifed" is a wrong answer. Heart attack? Suffocation? Suffocation seems right. What was the purpose of the knife? Stabbing??? If knifing is wrong then probably it was for handling the tape and then used to fake the death cause. Who is the culprit? Well clearly it's miss bergstrom What was their motive? Industrial espionage duh. Regallion fucked around with this message at 09:16 on Mar 14, 2022 |
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Mar 14, 2022 09:12
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Options for "how was Sara murdered: Options for "purpose of the knife": 
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Mar 14, 2022 19:15
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Yeah, so suffocation/meant to incriminate Chance. No options for motives so i stand by it being related to the whole espionage thing.
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Mar 15, 2022 06:15
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Who arrived first? Miss Bergstrom. Who arrived second? Kizaki, as he saw Sara come in. Who arrived third? Sara. (If we're meant to include Chance in the order of arrival, she'd likely be first everyone else would get bumped by one). How was the victim killed? Suffocation, either via the duct tape or strangulation. What was the purpose of the knife? To frame Chance. Who is the culprit? Miss Bergstrom What was their motive? Revenge (for industrial espionage), or possibly to silence a suspected leak. Here's my thoughts: The culprit arrived first; this must be Miss Bergstrom, as the bad end Chance claims to want us to catch the killer, so the killer isn't her, and evidence of the nails matches neither the detective nor Kizaki, so it must be Miss Bergstrom. Kizaki did not see her come in--he claimed he was preoccupied, but that clearly isn't the case given what he was really here for--so she was already here, hiding in the bathrooms waiting for Sara. Kizaki arrives next and watches for the transaction--he knows Sara is the seller but not who the buyer is. Finally, Sara arrives. Sara is here to meet someone, and there's two possibilities: either she's meeting Chance, who's a corporate spy, or she's being set up to meet Miss Bergstrom, who is trying to get her in a sting to catch her spying. In either case, she ends up meeting Miss Bergstrom in the bathroom and getting killed. Either the death was unintended or breaking a nail forced her to improvise, in either case she used the knife to throw suspicion on Chance after the fact. She then went to dispose of the duct tape (along with her broken nail). Chance encounters the body first (remember how Kizaki is surprised that it's a murder because it hasn't been announced, but Chance wasn't?) and takes Sara's watch, which contains the USB she was intending to hand over. Protagonist finds the body shortly after, Bergstrom finds him there, as we saw. She then claims she just arrived and went straight to the restroom in order to hide the fact that she was there all along. Chance being a spy makes too much sense with the information given. She poisoned our protagonist over knowing about the USB, so she almost certainly has it. She claimed to not know about Autem, but seeing as she regularly serves a much smaller company in the same field it would be odd of her not to have heard of them, and working at a café they frequent seems like a perfect way to try and find secrets. Also I think she's lying about her manager? A simple errand should have had them back by now. Kizaki, meanwhile, is almost certainly tied to the voice in our head--he created the distraction by dropping the plates, claiming they were too heavy. But Chance claims she was certain he had a good grip before she let go, Bergstrom says he pushed Chance away so she wouldn't get any of them dropped on her. It was premeditated, so either Kizaki is the voice or is working with the voice. Also, "I do odd jobs/investigation" in modern fantasy settings is basically always code for "I have some kind of weird power I use for my work". I'm guessing we'll be seeing more of him in the sequels. Bergstrom is the most straightforward, as I suspect most of what she says is the truth, because she's relying one of her only lies--that she just arrived--to protect her. If I were to hazard a guess, she's probably not an HR person (as pointed out, it would be odd if she wasn't aware of a new hire then); if we want to go full crazy conspiracy as the game seems to suggest we should, she could be a corporate assassin with a personal stake in the job. I was suspicious of the detective at first, but his call requested investigators to get here ASAP so I have to assume he's on the up and up; at the very least we have no evidence pointing to his involvement, so it'd be a bit out of left field.
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Mar 15, 2022 16:51
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 “It was Chance. You came in around 2:00 to work, right?" "Sure did!" "Alright, who came in after her?" "It was Kizaki. He even saw Chance cleaning all the espresso machines after she argued with her manager." "That's right. The manager sounded pretty angry with her. He said she messes up like this too often..." "Hehe...oops." "Alright. And after Kizaki, who came in?" "It was the victim, Sara. Chance and Kizaki both saw her come in." "And after that, but some time before 2:40, Sara was murdered. Then Miss Bergstrom came in and found you with the body." "Yeah. Then there was all the yelling and accusing and all that other stuff..." "So how was the victim killed?" "She was suffocated." "With what?" "Duct tape. The culprit used it to bind her as well as seal her mouth and nose." "After she died, the killer removed all the duct tape and threw it away in the men's room." "That makes sense. But what about the knife?" "It was meant to incriminate Chance. The culprit overheard her argument with her manager, so he or she knew the kitchen would be empty. After Sara died, the culprit removed all the tape, snuck into the kitchen, stole a knife, and stabbed Sara with it." "So who do you think the true culprit is?" "It was Miss Bergstrom." "Are you sure about that?"  "Yes. I'm positive."  "Sara stole from Auten Engineering for you, but something went wrong with the deal." "You think I'd do something as dirty as hiring a corporate spy?" I glance over at Kizaki, but he doesn't make eye contact. "Well, let's put it this way. I have a testimony that Sara did, in fact, steal information from Auten Engineering." And considering the situation, I believe that she came here to deliver that information." "The USB drive that held that information is nowhere to be found, which leads me to believe that whoever she was supposed to meet with did meet up with her. Biodev Imaging is still a new face in the live cell marketplace. I'm sure a little kick start from the competition's research files couldn't hurt. You're the only person here with ties to Biodev." "Do you wish to deny asking Sara to steal information for you?" "In case you forgot, I was the last person in. Sara was already dead by the time I got here." "Yes, but that wasn't your first time here today. You came here before Chance arrived." "You come here often enough that you know when her shift starts, so you came before she did so that she wouldn't see you. You hid in the bathroom to wait for Sara. When you heard Chance and her manager arguing, you suddenly got the idea to frame Chance. You knew the manager and Chance would both be out of the kitchen, so it was a golden opportunity to plant evidence that only Chance should have had access to. You killed Sara as planned, then removed all the duct tape, planted the knife, and escaped through the door in the men's room." "That sounds like a solid theory, but then why did she bother to come back? Isn't it more incriminating for her to return?" "That's what's been bothering me for a long time. But I thought about it, and I finally understand why she came back." "Your false nails." "What?" "I found one in the bathroom already, stuck to that huge pile of duct tape that you used to kill Sara. She fought hard when you restrained her, and your nail broke off in the struggle. Unfortunately, you didn't notice until after you had escaped. You replaced it with a new one, but then you noticed that you were bleeding. The police would now have your DNA as proof that you were the murderer. With Sara's line of work and her recent job, they were bound to consider you as a suspect at some point in time. You knew you had to get rid of it immediately. You couldn't return through the emergency exit, so you had to take a chance and come in from the front." "Unfortunately, when you came back, I had already discovered the body. So you decided to try to frame me, instead." Jennifer stands in shock for a few seconds. With a sudden burst of energy, she pushes me aside and races for the door. Kizaki races after her and grabs her by the wrist. "Let go of me!" She spins around and slaps him in the face. He winces and stumbles back a few steps.  Miss Bergstrom is already heading towards the front door, but Detective Gurski steps in her path.  She skids to a halt and desperately searches the room for another exit, but I'm already blocking her passage to the hallway. She sighs and shakes her head resignedly."I'm such a fool... Running is the biggest proof of guilt, no? I suppose I should have seen this coming." She pulls up her sleeve and unstraps the watch around her wrist."This is the USB drive. Everything on it belongs to Auten Engineering." Detective Gurski takes it from her with a nod. "Why did you even do it in the first place?" "That greedy woman came to me today saying that someone else had offered her even more money for the information that I hired her to steal. She said that I'd have to pay a much higher price if I was still interested, and that I should meet her here to make the exchange. People like her are the reason the world is hurting so much. Because of her greed, dying people are being denied the care they need!" "How can you say that!" "What?" "You have no right to decide who deserves to live and who deserves to die!"  "I..."  "You say that it's for the greater good, but it was really just for yourself, wasn't it?" "I just thought that..." Her voice trails off. I open my eyes slowly, struggling to maintain my composure. "I know you thought you were doing the right thing, but there is nothing in this world that will make the weight of killing someone go away. You're going to spend the rest of your life with that burden, desperately trying find a way to make the guilt disappear." "…" "I'm sorry." Outside the window, a police car with flashing lights pulls up. I sink down into a chair and lean back. I feel so drained...I wish I could just go to sleep and not wake up for at least a year. "Kizaki?" "Yeah...well...no...I mean..." "Naoki, huh? You look...different." A disguise? He may have changed his appearance, but he doesn't seem to have changed his personality at all. It looks like the whole shy guy thing wasn't an act. In fact, he seems even shyer now... "Was there something you wanted?" "About what?" "Um...we have a little bit of a problem with this case..." "A problem? What do you mean?" "The police have the USB drive now, so it's as good as safe, and Miss Bergstrom already confessed to hiring Sara. What's the problem?" "Miss Bergstrom said that Sara claimed someone else was interested. If this third party really is after the info, we need to know." A third party is involved? I suppose that would explain why Sara had an ID for Biodev Imaging. She was likely hired to steal research from them as well. Still, all this corporate backstabbing doesn't really have anything to do with me, and I'd really like to get away from this place as soon as possible... "Well, that's all very interesting, but I don't see why you're bothering to tell me any of this." "We think your ability might be useful in figuring out the third party." I quickly glance around the coffee shop. Everyone else has gone already, but I lower my voice anyway. "How do you know about that?" "So you..." Once I experience it, I remember it forever." "So earlier, when I asked you about what this place sells to see if you really were a regular customer here..."  "I can recite the entire menu for you if you want, though." "That won't be necessary..." "I suppose I should have been suspicious when you answered so specifically. A normal customer would say something like one or two dollars rather than give an exact price." "I suppose I have you to thank for the voice in my head giving me information about Sara as well?" "Your boss?" "So you're the one who was leaking information about me? All that time chatting online, you were just telling your boss what I was up to!" "Guilty as charged." "But it really would be a good thing if you could work with us. Would that be okay with you?" "Um...I dunno. I'd really rather have as little to do with this as possible." "And honestly, I don't know why your boss thinks you need my help, anyway."”You've got it all wrong, detective."   "Aki? Am I to assume that you're the boss that Naoki speaks of?" She smirks as she looks me over, sizing me up.      
       
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Apr 3, 2022 23:08
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Huh! That was interesting. Not exactly what I expected to happen, I didn't think that each character would end up being so relevant to the story... But I guess after, you know, getting poisoned, I should have seen that they were vital. I was wondering if the game would just be the single case or if it would be longer. So I take it each game is a single case in the overall story, then? Or maybe they get longer. I guess we'll see. Curious for more!
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Apr 5, 2022 03:32
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Oh nice, I more or less got it. Though...does the game really have you put in the wrong order on purpose (this is, the order Kizaki tells you) and only then reveal what the right order is? If so, that's...really dumb. It's not too hard to figure out that Miss Bergstrom is the only viable killer here, and that for it to be here she had to have gotten first.
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Apr 13, 2022 16:23
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 "It was the victim, Sara." "That can't be. I remember seeing her come in, so I had to be here before her." "I saw her come in, too." "That's right, I forgot. Um, in that case..." "It was Kizaki." "Didn't Chance say she saw Kizaki come in? He couldn't have been the first..." "Ah, yeah. I didn't mean that." "It was Miss Bergstrom." "Everyone else was here by the time I arrived, you know." "Right...that's true." She was stabbed in the chest." "Sorry, kid. I'm afraid that's a no go." "What do you mean?" "I mean that there's hardly any blood on the body or at the scene." "If someone is stabbed, then naturally they lose a lot of blood. The fact that there isn't much blood at the scene means her heart had already stopped beating before she was stabbed." "Why didn't you tell me that from the beginning?""Because you're the one gathering information for me. It's not the other way around." "Fine." "She was poisoned." "Poisoned? Are you sure? I examined the body, but I didn't see any signs of poisoning. I may have missed something..." "But I don't think she ate or drank anything while she was here, anyway." "You're free to check for yourself if you don't believe me." "Yeah, I didn't mean that." "She died of natural causes." "Natural causes? I'd hardly call a knife to the chest natural causes. Don't tell me she died of a heart attack and then someone came along and stuck a knife in her for fun." “ Y-yeah...that wouldn't make any sense." "Someone else put it there." "Why?" "Um...I don't know." "Don't you think it's more logical to say the murderer put it there to distract us?" "That's right! That's what happened." "Are you sure you've got this figured out?"
 "I don't think I can really trust your deductions... Why don't you just wait here with the others?" "Leave the rest of the investigation to me, okay?" "But-" "Please don't interfere with the investigation any more." "Right...sorry." I sink down into a nearby chair and close my eyes. I guess my role in this is over.
  
 "It was Chance." "Are you sure about that?" "Yes. It had to be her!" "Wait, you think I did it?" "That's right. The only person who had access to the kitchen was you. You even made sure your manager was out of the way by forgetting to restock on soymilk. That way, you knew no one would catch you in the act." "What about the knife? I thought you already said that knife was put there to frame me!" "Yes, but you're the one who put it there. You knew it would look suspicious, especially after the police found the true murder weapon in the men's room." You knew that once it was found, police would assume that the real killer ran and left you to be framed." "She may have means and opportunity, but what was her motive?" "It was an act of rage." "But I never even spoke with her! I don't even know the woman.""Kizaki can verify that Chance and Sara didn't interact with each other when Sara came in. Unless Sara went out of her way to visit Chance and make her angry over the span of a few minutes, it hardly seems like a reasonable explanation." "Do you even have any proof that she did this?" "Um..." "Maybe it's better if you just let the police take over from here..." "It was Kizaki." "Are you sure about that?" "Yes. I'm sure of it!" "You really think it was him?" Detective Gurski smirks. It looks like he's trying to hold back some laughter. "Why not? I'm curious. What possible motive would he have to kill Sara?" "He works for Auten Engineering, and he was trying to get the USB back.""Well you don't have to tell the whole world about it!" "Oh, so that's your employer. I was wondering about that." "Wait, you already KNOW he's a spy? Why didn't you tell me?" "It wouldn't be very professional of me to announce to the world that he's a private investigator, you know..." Oh yeah. Oops... "It was an accident." "An accident?” "Well, now that you put it that way, it doesn't sound that great..." "Anyway, if this is the best you can come up with, I think it might be better to just let you sit this one out." "Don't worry, we'll find the culprit. You can just relax and try not to get in the way." "It was you, Detective Gurski!" "What? Are you sure about that?" "Of course I am." "You're not really a detective, are you?" "It's too convenient! You're a random off duty cop who just happens to be here?" "Is that really so hard to believe?" "Why isn't crime scene investigation here, yet? What about other officers? You claimed to call them, but you never did. You've been leading us all on, and using me to do your dirty work." "What? I don't even have a motive!" "You want the information that Sara stole. You were the person she was supposed to meet. The two of you met up, but she didn't give you the USB drive with the information on it. She told you she hid it somewhere and she'd tell you where it was after you paid her. Maybe she asked for more money. Either way, you had a disagreement. She tried to run, and you stabbed her. You told me that the knife came from the kitchen to throw suspicion on Chance, but it was all you." "And...do you have any proof of any of this?" "Um...not exactly..." "I really thought you had actually figured something out." "For your information, no other officers are here because there was a huge accident on the highway nearby. Traffic is backed up for miles." "Besides, what exactly would I do after all of this, anyway?" If I were an impostor, I wouldn't be able to keep the act up forever. Eventually the real police would be notified. And then what? You've all seen my face. The police would have no problem tracking me down. Did you think this through at all?" "Why don't you just go sit down and wait for the cops to arrive. Because I promise they will." "I really think you're done helping with this case..." "It was someone else." "Are you sure about that?" "Yes. No doubt in my mind." "So then...who was it?" "It was someone else who ran away afterwards." "Someone else? But no one else came in." "It was someone who came in before Chance got here. The murderer hid in the bathrooms before Chance arrived. She didn't realize someone was there." "Hm...that does make sense..." "Sara went to meet him, and he killed her by suffocating her. Then he took her USB drive and ran away." "Well, what was his motive?" "It was a random murder." "A random murder? Didn't you just say that this person was hiding in the bathrooms waiting for Sara? Why would someone pre-meditate a random murder?" "Oh...right..." "Your reasoning isn't very solid at all. I think for now, you should just sit down and wait for the police to arrive." "I guess so..." Everyone else looks disappointed. I guess I can't blame them. I'm not even sure what I was thinking... I sit down and close my eyes. I guess I'm just not cut out for this sort of thing. "He wanted revenge. He was from Auten Engineering and she stole from him." "That does make sense, I suppose. I guess we're back to square one, though." "I'll be contacting you all later so we can take your statements, but I guess this is it for now." I lean back in a chair and relax. My muscles feel pretty weak. Even though what I said makes sense, I can't help but feel uneasy. Was it really just some random person? There are still pieces of the puzzle that don't fully fit. Surely this isn't it... Oh well. It's not exactly my problem anymore.
        
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Apr 21, 2022 23:10
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    "Oh yeah? So how, exactly, am I supposed to think about it?" "You need to be more flexible. You should be open to the idea that what looks like one thing might just be a small part of something completely different. The outside shape doesn't always give you a good idea of what's inside." "You mean like how my tiny little sister is such a huge genius?" "Hehehe, just like that!" "Who on earth invented this thing, anyway? It's such a weird puzzle." "Well, I think that according to legend, the tangram happened when someone dropped a square tile and it broke into seven pieces. When he tried to put them back together, he discovered that he could shape it into many different things." "So basically we're having fun at the expense of some poor guy who broke his tile?" "Well, if it weren't for that, wouldn't the tile just be a boring tile like all the other tiles? But because of what happened, it's now a famous puzzle that's been seen across the world." "Broken, huh? I think I'm happier just being a boring old tile that no one will ever notice." "I don't think we get the luxury of choosing what happens to us." "You don't think we get to decide our future?" "I never said that. We don't get to decide what happens to us, but we can always decide how to respond to it." "You know, you sure think about a lot of deep stuff for a fourteen-year-old. I thought girls your age were supposed to be into cute guys or nail polish." "That's a stereotype, and you know it." "What, I'm not allowed to tease you? Besides, I'm sure you'll start thinking about a boy one day. And when that day comes, you'd better make sure he gets my approval first. I don't want to lose my sister to some punk kid who's no good." "Haha, stop joking! I told you, I'm not interested in that sort of thing."    Opening.         "I hope you slept well."  Aki sits beside me on the couch."You're our guest, after all." "Except for the part where I don't want to be here." "Well there's not much I can do about that. You have to admit, it's a lot nicer than police custody, though." "I don't see why Detective Gurski thought it was necessary to detain me, anyway." "I already solved the murder yesterday. The murderer even confessed!" "Confessions can be recanted. It's best to have the most solid case possible in situations like this." "What about Naoki? He was there! Why not use him?" I roll my eyes. "Whatever. There's plenty of painfully obvious evidence at the scene already. You hardly need me." "You'd be surprised what expensive lawyers are capable of doing. We need the most airtight case possible.” "Miko might seem like a relaxed guy, but he's thorough." "Miko? You mean Detective Gurski?" "Yeah. Mikolaj Gurski." "You seem awfully familiar with him." "You think so?" Her expression breaks into a wide grin. I can only assume there's a story here that she's not telling me. "Anyway, you should thank me for convincing him to let you stay with us. With us you get a nice bed, good food, and-" Naoki opens the door to the apartment, triumphantly holding up a cup of coffee. "...coffee." "Ah-" Naoki stumbles as he enters, grasping at the air in an attempt to catch himself. She steps to the side as Naoki goes crashing to the ground. The girl gazes placidly at Naoki lying on the floor. "Be careful."  "Ooh, nice save." The young girl nods and hands the cup of coffee to me before disappearing back into the hallway. "Who was that?" "That's Li Mei." "Uh huh. I saw her yesterday, but she just kinda nodded at me and walked off." Naoki stands and rubs his head ruefully. "That's Li Mei for you..." "She's a quiet child. Hmm...quiet child...quield? Anyway. There's too much going on in her head, so it's a little hard on her to maintain conversations." "What, she's like a genius kid or something?"  "Not exactly. It's a little more complicated than that." "Why don't we talk about it on the way there?" "There? Where are we going?" "To speak with our client, of course." I gaze sleepily out the car window and struggle to sit up straight in my seat. It's still early morning, and the city is only faintly outlined against the pale sky. I take a few sips of my coffee before dozing off completely. The cityscape outside the car has transformed into a country scene. I vaguely remember passing the big city, but I'm pretty sure I fell asleep after that. Typical. I gaze at the rolling countryside as it passes by. All I see are clusters of trees with telephone poles dotting the side of the road. Aki's driving is surprisingly sedated. Considering her personality, I expected a lot more road rage. She seems content to chug along slightly below the speed limit, even though the road is perfectly straight and no other cars are in sight. I feel like we're creeping along at an incredibly slow pace. I guess this is why we had to leave early. At least I get to sit in the front. Glancing in the back seat, I see Naoki dozing, his head resting on his chest. Li Mei is awake, but she's staring blankly out the window.  “No, not particularly. The seat feels lumpy, and now my neck hurts." Aki laughs and shakes her head. "At least you're honest. Should we have gotten you something stronger than a triple shot?" "No, it's not your fault. It'll kick in soon enough." I look out the window again, trying to focus on the scenery. It looks like we're far away from the city by now. “Any reason we had to leave so early?" "We have a long way to go to meet with our client, and he's the sort of guy who will get very fussy if we're late." "Where are we going, anyway? What are we supposed to be doing? Who's the client you're talking about?" "Wait, you said you were going to tell me about Li Mei, didn't you?" "You're overflowing with questions. I suppose I can't blame you." "You're not the only one with questions, though. In fact, you're a pretty big question mark, yourself."  "I guess that works."  “Who ARE you people, anyway? You work for high profile corporations like Auten Engineering, the police seem to trust you almost unconditionally... But you just look like a bunch of kids." Aki bursts out laughing. "You're a kid too, aren't you?" "Yeah, well..." "We're a special investigation agency. Our work isn't always as exciting as corporate espionage and murder. More often than not, we're just snapping photos of cheating lovers." "As for why the police trust us, that's sort of a weird story. That's for another question, though." "Okay, my turn. What's your name?" "I was hoping you wouldn't ask that." "You do realize how suspicious it makes you look when you hide it, right?" "It's complicated." "Things are only as complicated as you want them to be, but I respect your privacy." The girl who can insert thoughts into my head whenever she wants respects my privacy? Ironic.  "Kangai?" "Roughly translated, it means strong emotions. It's a sort of play on "kansei."" "Is that supposed to mean something to me?" "Since you have a type of kansei, we can call you Kangai. Kan...Guy. Get it?" "Yes, but it's stupid." "I never claimed to be good at picking names." "Try to think of something else, please." "I'll see what I can do." I lean back in my seat and adjust myself, attempting to get comfortable. "Is there any reason your car is so tiny?" "Is that your next question?" "No. I'm just saying that there's not much space here." "Li Mei never complained about it." "Yeah, well, Li Mei is tiny." "Oh yeah, what's the deal with her, anyway?" "Now that's definitely a new question." "Where are we going?" "A small estate out in the countryside. It belongs to one Mr. William Auten." "Auten? As in Auten Engineering?" "Got it in one." "So he's the guy who hired you to track Sara Blackmoore because she was stealing information from him." "Yup. Well...until she was murdered, that is." "Yeah, there is that." "We reported to him yesterday about what happened." "You mean about how Miss Bergstrom hired Sara to steal from him?" "That and the fact that Miss Bergstrom claimed a third party was also interested in the information." "He didn't sound too happy about that, so he ordered us to come see him today to give a full report in person." "Wow. That's a little demanding..." "I can't blame him. His entire company's at stake here." "I hope you don't mind coming with us. Since you were there yesterday, it seems only natural to bring you along." "Yeah, I get it." I'm sure the real reason she's taking me along is because she promised Detective Gurski that she'd keep an eye on me. But I guess I don't mind talking to this Auten guy. It's not like I had any plans for today anyway, and it might be interesting to see the house of a millionaire. "Why does Mr. Auten live so far out of the way, anyway?" "Considering that his company is in the middle of Edgewater, wouldn't it make more sense NOT to live a gazillion miles from the place?" "Who knows? Word is that he really hates the city. His assistant said that he rarely leaves his house, conducting most meetings via satellite." "Weird. His entire company is built on cutting edge technology, but he doesn't want to live around a couple stop lights?" Aki shrugs. "Rich people are eccentric. Comes with the job description, I think." "Sounds more like paranoia to me." "Maybe it is." "Alright, next question." "Where are you from, anyway?" "Um...Los Angeles."  "What?" "Miko told me about it. Yesterday, you told him that you were from LA, but when he asked you about precincts, you didn't correct him. In Los Angeles, police work districts, not precincts." "I'm surprised he didn't cuff you on the spot for lying to him."“Actually, no I'm not." I turn my gaze back to the scenery outside, unsure of how to answer. Detective Gurski knew I was lying yesterday.  "I've been living in Los Angeles for the past three years. Isn't that good enough?" "And before that?" "Only one question at a time, remember?" Aki raises an eyebrow. "Of course. Go ahead." "So what's the deal with Li Mei, anyway? "Earlier you said there was a lot going on in her head." "All of us have a sort of kansei like you do. We can all sense thoughts and feelings to some extent." "And?" "Li Mei's kansei is probably the purest form of them all." "Everyone?" "Everyone. If you're happy, she's happy. If you're sad, she's sad." "Everyone else's emotions are constantly streaming into her mind. She has to spend a lot of her energy sorting out which feelings are hers and which aren't." I turn to look at Li Mei. Her eyes are open, and her body is unmoving as she stares straight out the car window. Her mind must be a mess. I wonder if she can feel my pity for her. Can she even tell that it's me, or is it all mixed up inside of her? Oh man, should I even be feeling this way? If she can sense it, it's probably really demeaning to her that I'm feeling bad for her. I don't want her to think that I think of her as a poor little kid or something. I desperately try to conjure up another emotion to squelch my current mood, but my mind is completely blank. For a brief moment, Li Mei glances at me from the corner of her eye. She nods slowly, almost imperceptibly, but I think she's trying to tell me she's okay. "My turn now." Aki grins. "Where did you live before Los Angeles?" "Somehow I knew you were going to ask that." "Oh, am I really that predictable?""…" ”Not going to answer?" "Edgewater." "What?" "I used to live here. In Edgewater.""Here?" Aki sounds surprised. She glances at me out of the corner of her eye. I'm sure she wants to ask more, but for once, she doesn't press the issue. "Well, I guess that was my question. Your turn." "What did you have to do to get the police to trust you?" "We stopped the assassination of a visiting dignitary." "You WHAT?""Everyone makes a big deal about it, but it was sort of a fluke." "Naoki was trailing a businessman and secretary who were...ahem, putting in extra hours at an expensive hotel." "And?" "He saw the assassin, thought it was suspicious, and called me in. We intercepted the assassin, saved the day, and apparently that makes us trustworthy heroes." "Seriously?" "Seriously." "You'll forgive me if I find that hard to believe. A story like that is ridiculous." "So? You're the boy with a kansei that allows you to experience the final moments of any dead body you touch." You should be used to the ridiculous by now." I guess she has a point there. It still doesn't sound like a real story, though. I jump a little as Li Mei speaks up from the back seat. She's been silent for so long, I almost forgot she was there. Li Mei is pointing at a small side road that we just passed. "Oops!" Aki gives the steering wheel a tight spin and the car's tires screech as the car spins in the road. "Naoki jerks awake as his head bumps against the window he was using for a head rest." "Sorry! Missed a turn." He rubs his head slowly. "Yeah, I noticed. I guess we're almost there?" "Yup. Just a few minutes now." "Anyway, what were we talking about? Right, Mr. Auten. He's one of those self-made men you hear about all the time. Built Auten Engineering himself from the ground up. But he's also ridiculously secretive. No interviews, hardly any TV appearances. His assistant, Sophia Millerson, does most of that." The car slows to a stop as we approach Mr. Auten's house. I squint out the window to get a better look at it. It looks like a very expensive, very pretty, box. "This is it?" "This is it." "But it looks like someone just glued some fancy doors and windows onto a huge box.""Yeah, it kinda does. I guess since he always stays inside, he doesn't care what it looks like on the outside." Aki kicks open the car door and leaps out. The front doors of the house swing open silently, and a strict looking woman approaches us. "Yup. I'm Aki Mizutani. You must be Sophia Millerson. We spoke on the phone." Aki thrusts her hand out, but the woman merely raises a skeptical eyebrow. "You're not exactly what I pictured." Looking at Aki's wrinkled shirt and dusty pants, I can see why she might be a little thrown off. "Being a private investigator involves having an appearance that doesn't stand out, ma'am." "Truly." The woman places her hands on her hips and sighs reluctantly. "Well, come in. Mr. Auten seems unusually eager to speak with you." Aki kicks the car door shut and motions for us to follow her. I climb out and stumble for a moment as my knees buckle underneath my weight. Ugh...my legs are cramped from sitting in that car for so long. "Naoki comes stumbling out of the car after me, and we both do our best not to look like a pair of goldfish who've been dumped unceremoniously out of our bowl. "Are these your associates?" If she was unimpressed before, she's plain worried now. I can't say I blame her. "They are." "This is Li Mei, and this is my brother Naoki." Li Mei glides up to Sophia like a swan and offers her a polite bow. "And he is?" Sophia points at me.  
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May 10, 2022 22:51
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 Kangai? She's really going to stick with that weird name? "Kangai? Unusual." I turn to Aki and make a face, but Sophia either doesn't notice or care. "Sorry, it's the best I could do on short notice. You should've given me something to work with!" I'm suddenly regretting not telling her my name was Fred or something. I guess it's better than nothing.   "What's that light?" "It's a retina detector." Sophia indicates a small camera set in the door frame that we passed through."The house takes a shot of the eyes of anyone who passes through. It's useful for identification purposes. There are other sensors around the house that also capture your retina image. The house can remember your preferences and adjust things like lighting and temperature as soon as you enter the room." Whoa...that's more than a little bit creepy. "But I thought Mr. Auten lived out here because he didn't like technology." "Mr. Auten lives here because he enjoys the peace and quiet being away from the city affords him. This house, however, has the most cutting edge security possible, including quite a few innovations not yet available on the market." Fun. I'm sure the house is already looking up my dental records. "Now please, don't dawdle. Mr. Auten's other guest is already here waiting for you." "Other guests...?" As we enter the house, I see the outline of a man standing at the far end of the room inspecting a scroll on the wall.   "Miko. To what do we owe the pleasure?" Aki doesn't bother to disguise the sarcasm in her voice. "Detective Gurski played a major role in the apprehension of the murderer yesterday. It's only natural that he'd be invited back here by Mr. Auten." "Yeah, I was actually THERE. Unlike some people." Detective Gurski looks pointedly at Aki, but she just gazes coolly back at him. Sophia ignores the chill in the air between them and nods at us curtly. "Please make yourselves comfortable. Mr. Auten is finishing up on a conference call. He'll see you once it's finished." "Ooh, can we explore the house?" "If you wish. The house currently logs you all as guests, so any doors you are authorized to pass through will open automatically." Aki takes her brother's hand and gives it a quick tug. "Let's go!" "U-um...okay..." Naoki trails after her, looking unsure. At the far end of the room, Detective Gurski rolls his eyes.Sophia turns and heads up a narrow staircase, presumably to do something important.The room is silent now. I swallow, trying hard not to make a sound. Detective Gurski turns to inspect the fountain in the middle of the room with feigned interest. Unfortunately, he looks more annoyed than interested. Li Mei stands silently in the center of the room, staring off at nothing in particular. There's something about her that bothers me, but I can't figure out what it is. Her still body and distant gaze remind me of the corpses I've seen, but even a dead body doesn't give me the uneasy feeling she does. Aki said that she feels the emotions of everyone, but it looks to me as if she doesn't feel any emotions at all. Before I can think on it more, the front door slides open to reveal a young woman with slightly unkempt hair standing on the other side.  "I'm so sorry I'm late! I got lost on the way here. Do you know how easy it is to miss that turn to get here?" "Um, what?" The woman looks at me expectantly. I wonder if Sophia knows there's a visitor. Should I go upstairs and tell her? "You must be Liam Auten. I've heard so much about you!" Liam? I thought Aki said that Mr. Auten's name was William... She smiles and holds her hand out. I give it a quick shake before stepping aside to let her in. "Yeah, I'm not-" She walks around the perimeter of the room, examining everything quickly with her eyes. "And even if they ARE true, you're free to do what you want with your life! No one should judge you for your choices, right?" "I don't think-"  "Uh..." "Hm, did your uncle not tell you about it?" She flits around the room again, stopping to inspect the bamboo that stands like a guard by the hallway. "Pretty! Is it real?" "I honestly have no idea." She looks up and notices Detective Gurski for the first time. "Oh! Hello!" She rushes up to him and holds out her hand. "Marissa Klein." "Yes, I heard." Marissa nibbles on the edge of her fingernail coyly. Is she...flirting with him? I'm not sure I want to watch this... "I'm afraid I'm only here for business, ma'am." She gives him a gentle push.  "I don't work here." Marissa's eyes grow wide. "A guest? Even more interesting!" She points to the fountain that Gurski is looking at. "Are you an art fan?" She reaches out to touch the dragon coiled around the glass sphere. "Please refrain from touching the art." Marissa freezes as Sophia appears at the bottom of the staircase. "Miss Klein, I presume?" "Yup! Sorry I'm-" "You're two hours late. Mr. Auten has other business to attend to, now." "Hang on, I called and said I'd be late, though!" "I don't recall receiving such a call." Marissa turns to me and grabs me by the shoulders. "You didn't tell her?" "Tell her what?" "You're the one who answered the phone when I called! Why didn't you tell her?" : "I just got here. I have no idea what you're talking about." Why is it that everything is somehow my fault? Marissa blinks and releases her grip on me. "Wait, what's your name?" "Uh...Kangai..." I choke a little as I spit the name out. It sounds even dumber than when Aki says it. "Oh my goodness, I'm so sorry! I thought you were Liam Auten!" "Yes, I gathered as much." "Miss Klein, you may have called ahead, but the fact remains that you are very late, and Mr. Auten has a strict schedule." "Wait, this is my first major interview! Is there any way I can squeeze it in today?" Sophia sighs. "Come with me." "Oh, thank you!" Marissa skitters up the staircase after Sophia. Detective Gurski is eyeing me with a quizzical look on his face. "Kangai?" "Yeah, what of it?" "Did Aki pick that name for you?" "Is it that obvious?" "She's notoriously bad at naming things. When she was a girl, she had a cat that was born with only a stub for a tail. She named the cat "Stubtail."" "Great."  "I'm sorry you're stuck with those kids right now. If I had my way, I wouldn't group you in with them." "What are you talking about?" "Wait, WHAT?" "Miko, are you gossiping about me again?" Aki enters from the hallway and slaps Detective Gurski on the back. "I'd rather you don't feed our friend "Kangai" here any misinformation." "Well, I haven't lied to him, if that's what you mean."  Marissa's smiling, but it looks forced. "Did you get your interview?" "Of course. It'll be a winner, so be sure to look out for it." She points her pen at me and jerks it back like a gun. "Bang!" Somehow, I doubt her article will win very much. It seems to be taking all of Ms. Millerson's strength not to strangle Marissa. "Please make it quick." "Right-o!" Marissa salutes and heads off down the hallway. "Shall we get going?" Sophia knocks on it twice. "Mr. Auten, the investigators you requested are here." A small burst of static pops from a speaker on the wall as Mr. Auten's voice emanates from the tiny box. A camera descends from the ceiling and pans slowly across us before coming to a stop in front of me. The lens adjusts and focuses on me. Suddenly, another burst of static.  "What?" Everyone turns around to stare at me. "What did you do?" "I didn't do anything! Stop blaming me for everything bad that happens!" Mr. Auten's voice crackles over the speaker again. "I'll take care of it right away, sir." Sophia turns towards me."Please follow me this way, Kangai." "But I didn't do anything." "Please follow me this way, Kangai." Sophia repeats her request, but her voice sounds much more tense. "Fine, fine. I'm coming." "I apologize for Mr. Auten's sudden outburst. He's prone to unnatural mood swings based on unidentified provocation." She sounds more like she's giving a press release than an apology. "We can proceed with your discussion after he is less agitated." "You're not kicking me out?" "Mr. Auten called for you. Once he settles down, he'll want to speak with you again. Until then, please make yourself at home while I go to work out the details of this visit with your associates." She turns and heads back up the staircase without waiting for a response from me. I collapse on the stone bench with a sigh. I really can't catch a break, can I? "Are you okay?" Aki has followed me down the stairs. She looks concerned. "No worries, I'm fine. After all, crazy old men yell at me ALL the time." She smiles, and I think I hear a small giggle escape her lips. At least she's amused. "Yeah, sorry about that." "It's hardly your fault. No need to apologize." "Just sympathizing with you." "Right. That part of your kansei, or are you just trying to be nice?" "What do you think?" "Detective Gurski is still up there trying to talk to him, but he won't listen to reason." "Any idea what's going on up there?" "No. I can't think of anything I've read that's like this." "I don't know what you did, but you've got Mr. Auten bunkered up in there pretty good." "I didn't do anything. You saw me." "Yeah, I saw. It doesn't make any sense, though. He seemed pretty insistent about talking with us today. Li Mei, what do you think?"  "He's scared..." "Yeah, we figured that much out already. Anything else? What about when he first reacted?" She inhales and lets out a tiny breath. "He was not surprised." Not surprised? That's strange. Does that mean he expected to see me? But if that were the case... My thoughts are interrupted by a new voice A young man - probably in his teens or early twenties - is staring at us from the hallway. His gaze passes over Li Mei, Aki, and Naoki, before resting on me. "Way to go!" He gives me a thumbs up.  "What?"   Aki holds back a snicker. He shrugs and regains his composure quickly. "Oh, well. I've seen worse." What's that supposed to mean? "Let's see... a bunch of people hanging out in the lobby for no reason... That's an easy one. Uncle called you out here, and now he's having a hissy fit and making you wait. Am I right?" "Got it in one. And you must be Liam Auten." I feel a little insulted that she'd equate me with this guy, though. Everything about him screams "slacker." He doesn't look like he's had a hard day in his life. "I'm Liam, alright. But who are you? You definitely don't look like business partners." "Uncle's not the kind of guy who lets just anyone enter. He's all crazy paranoid that way." "If he's as paranoid as you say, why are you here?" Aki ignores Liam's question and counters with her own. Liam shrugs. "Meh, I'm family. It's not like he's got a choice." Despite his casual air, I detect a hint of smugness around him. He probably enjoys feeling like he's above us. I've known this guy for about ten seconds and he already ticks me off. Naoki looks like he agrees with me, but it's clear he's trying to hide his feelings. Aki, on the other hand, doesn't seem bothered at all."Ah, so you're visiting your uncle today?" "No, I live here." He looks a little hurt that she'd assume otherwise. "Really? That's even cooler! It must be kinda boring for you, though." "Huh?" "I was looking around earlier, and nearly all the doors are locked." His wounded expression quickly transforms into one of pride. "That's because you're a visitor. You don't get many access privileges." "I'm allowed in, like, every room in the house!" "Like? So not all of them..." Aki's eyebrows shoot up. She definitely looks interested. "Yeah, well..." Liam looks to the side and mumbles."There's like a lock on his office and the security room. But those rooms are pointless anyway." "Oh, well, if that's all." Aki shrugs casually, and Liam relaxes his shoulders. I glance at Naoki. He's staring at some invisible point on the ground, trying his best not to be in this conversation. "Hey, can I ask you a question?" Her voice is suddenly quiet. Conspiratorial, almost. "Yeah, I guess so." Aki watches Liam's expression carefully as it changes from uncertainty to curiosity. "I don't suppose I could ask you for a favor?" "What?" He's caught off guard by the request. "Well, seeing as your uncle seems to be hanging us both out to dry, maybe we could at least spend the time doing something interesting." "Like..?" "I dunno, maybe you could show me around. We could poke around your uncle's precious privacy while he's busy being difficult." Liam smirks. "Heh. I guess I've got nothing better to do with my time. Sure, why not?" He coils his arm around Aki's waist and guides her towards the hallway.  Agh...I really wish she wouldn't do that. I'm still surprised every time she uses her brain voice. Or kansei. Or whatever. "Is she always like that?" "Yeah... Aki has a way with people. She's...persuasive." "No offense, but that was a rather thinly veiled bit of manipulation there. Why'd he fall for it?"        Naoki gazes at the floor and kicks aside some imaginary dust with the side of his foot. "..." "What?" "Nothing...we should probably get going." "I'd rather not split up if we don't have to. I don't do well exploring new places..." "You're not even leaving the house. How bad could it be?" "Well, I got stuck in an elevator once because I couldn't figure out how to get it to go to another floor..." I don't even want to think about how he managed to accomplish that.
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May 16, 2022 00:31
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The more the merrier
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May 16, 2022 04:12
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yep, let's get all the guys.
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May 16, 2022 12:45
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Group up! There's no way our amnesiac protagonist isn't
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May 16, 2022 13:48
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Split up; if something's up (like, say, Mr. Auten's dead and we're only hearing prerecorded lines) we want to cover more ground. Plus we want the boss to trust us.
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May 16, 2022 14:31
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Whether we go alone or with Naoki and Li Mei, where do we want to explore?
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May 17, 2022 17:23
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May 17, 2022 17:42
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May 17, 2022 22:33
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May 18, 2022 04:07
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 "Then let's all go together." "Is it really okay?" "Sure, why not? As long as we learn something, I'm sure Aki won't care." "Is that okay with you, Li Mei?" "It's fine." The three of us walk down the hallway together. Naoki hangs behind Li Mei and I. He seems uncertain. "I thought we were all going together. Or are you not coming?" "I'm coming!" Naoki hurries to catch up to us. "There's nothing to be afraid of, man." "That's easy for you to say. I'm not like you!" "..."The expression changes in Li Mei's eyes briefly, as if she's just recalled something that she had hoped to forget. "So you're nervous. No big deal." "Yeah. No big deal. Heh..." The hallway stretches out with doors on either side. Behind the glass door at the end, a staircase leads downwards to parts unknown. "So where do you two want to start? Maybe we should start at the end of the hall and work back." "Anything but the stairs." "Let's take the stairs."  "So..?" "Where should we go?" Didn't I just ask them that? Why am I the one who has to decide now? "Um..." "Let's take the last door on the left." "Good idea!"  "Whoa..." It feels as if the three of us have been transported into a museum. The room is filled with art pieces and artifacts. It looks like they're from China. "Well, Mr. Auten certainly knows how to spend lavishly..." The three of us wander around the room, stopping here and there to inspect some of the pieces. Most of them are labeled, but I'm still not exactly sure what any of this stuff is. Li Mei seems particularly captivated by a large tapestry on the far wall. The tapestry features four animals circling around each other. At the foot of the tapestry sit four polished plates. Each plate has one of the animals carved into its surface.   "Hey...what exactly does the tiger do?" "The tiger and the dragon are eternal rivals, equally matched in strength. The dragon is the sly one, ruling through intelligence and trickery. The tiger is the strong one, fighting with raw power and force. Mind versus body." "They represent balance. Opposing forces of nature. Why do you ask?" "No reason. It just...stood out to me." "Anyway, it doesn't look like there's much to see here." "Why? I thought all rich people liked to spend money on useless things." "Well...it's more like it doesn't seem his style. As far as I can tell, he's never publicly stated he has any interest in Chinese history." "Usually an avid collector likes to make his collections well known. It's a mark of pride." "Yeah, but we're talking about Mr. Auten here. He seems to be paranoid about pretty much everything. I doubt he'd just tell the world about his expensive collection of priceless art from China." "It's not art." "What?" "Really? How do you know?" "The words." I look at Naoki. He looks worried. "Is she right?" "I-I think so. Li Mei knows better than I do, though. She was born in China. I can only read whatever Chinese overlaps with Japanese characters." "So all those artifacts he gathered up are for protection. Protection from what?" "I don't know..." We look at Li Mei, but she shakes her head. There doesn't seem to be any indication of what Mr. Auten is trying to fend off. "Well, should we keep exploring the house?" "Yeah, let's get-"    "Whoa! Are you okay?" "I...don't feel so good..." "It's happening." "What's going on?" I feel my stomach churning. Li Mei looks ill, too. "Please don't..." "Scared. He's scared." "Who? Kangai?" I clutch at my stomach. Everything feels so light.... "It's Mr. Auten..." "Mr. Auten!"  "Something's wrong with Mr. Auten!" I rush to the door and pound on it frantically. "Mr. Auten! MR. AUTEN!" Gurski grabs me by the shoulders and pulls me away from the door. "Let me in! There's something wrong!" "Whoa, kid. Calm down." I feel like I'm about to throw up, but I doubt Detective Gurski would appreciate that. "I...he's not okay..." Gurski stares at me for a moment. He looks torn. I can tell he's not exactly ready to trust me yet, but I think he also feels like something is wrong. Finally, he turns to Sophia. "Mr. Auten has been unusually quiet for a while. Are you sure everything is okay? Is there any way we can force ourselves in?" Sophia doesn't look pleased by his request. "It's certainly unorthodox. I don't think Mr. Auten will be pleased." "I think he'd be even less pleased if he needed medical attention and we didn't get it to him." Sophia sighs and nods. "And how, exactly, does one do that?" "Someone needs to reboot the system manually, then someone else has to enter the restart code within ten seconds of the system being rebooted." "Sounds complicated." "It's meant to provide maximum security for Mr. Auten. I'm the only one here who knows the code, so someone else will have to go to the basement to reset the power. The basement door is usually locked to visitors, but I can unlock it from here." Detective Gurski glances over my shoulder. "Alright. Naoki, go reset it." "What? Why me?" Somehow I get the feeling Naoki says that a lot. He doesn't seem very enthusiastic about going down there.
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May 21, 2022 00:16
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Let's make sure we are not implicated in the murder, "Why don't i go down instead"
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May 21, 2022 19:14
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 "Why don't I go down there instead?" "You?" "Yeah, why not? I know how to flip a few switches." "Yeah! He could do it!" Detective Gurski shrugs. "Sure, why not?" "Alright. The reboot process is fairly simple. Just flip all the switches off, then on. Then push the reset button." "Okay."       "Sorry, kid. There's nothing you can do now." "What do you mean?" Detective Gurski glances at the office door as Sophia exits. She looks pretty shaken. Naoki is at her side, supporting her. "You were right about Mr. Auten. He's dead." "What? What happened?" "He was already dead when we got there. Sophia tried to revive him, but..." Naoki stops and glances at Detective Gurski uncomfortably. "I stopped her. It was too risky." "What do you mean?" "It's not important."  "Sophia. I know you're upset, but we need to contact the police. My phone isn't getting any signal." "All signal is blocked off in this place. Mr. Auten's orders, of course." "Is there a land line I can use, then?" "In there..." Sophia lets go of Naoki and numbly points at the study door. "I'll show you." As the two of them leave, Li Mei approaches us. Any sign of her distress from before has disappeared. Her expression is placid. "He's gone." "Yeah. Naoki, what happened in there?" "W-well..." Naoki shifts back and forth as if he's not sure he should be saying anything. "Mikolaj checked his pulse, but he was already dead." "You said Sophia tried to revive him?" "Yeah. She was going to use CPR, but Detective Gurski stopped her." Naoki sighs. He looks pretty shaken himself. "We should tell Aki what happened." "But we don't know where she is." "She's coming." Li Mei turns towards the staircase just as Aki reaches the top. "Hey, what happened? The lights went out for a moment." "Mr. Auten died." "Died? How?" "Poisoning, it seems." "Did you read his last moments?" "I'm afraid not. Gurski won't let me in there." "What about you? Did you see it?" Aki turns to Naoki and he nods. "I got it." "Good, then we'll take a look at it later." Detective Gurski exits the study with Sophia. She appears to have calmed down, but her body still trembles every time she breathes in. "The police are on their way. It's a bit of a drive for them, so we'll have to sit tight until then. I suggest we all wait downstairs." "As I don't have any jurisdiction here, it's only a suggestion." He looks directly at me. He turns and leads Sophia down the staircase, helping her with one step at a time. Aki frowns as they leave. "Huh?" "Nothing." "What do you mean by that? Since when were we in trouble?" "Um...it's not you." I suddenly remember something that was bothering me earlier. "You know, Detective Gurski told me that you guys belong to the government. What does that mean?" "It means that Miko shouldn't talk so much." She heads down the stairs before I can ask anything else. Naoki follows meekly, but Li Mei stays with me. "What's up?" "Do you truly want to know?" "About you guys? Well, I think I deserve an explanation." "But do you want one?" "Well...yeah. I guess so."  "I...what?" Li Mei nods once, looking satisfied with her succinct explanation. She turns and heads down the stairs without another word. Parole? They're all convicts! Wait...even Naoki? Aki, I could understand. But Naoki? And what about Li Mei? What did she do? I'm really starting to worry about the sort of people I've fallen in with here... Slowly I descend the staircase, measuring one step after another. Maybe I really shouldn't have asked. "Glad you could make it. Did you take a wrong turn somewhere?" "No." "You okay?" "I'm fine." I look around the room, hoping to change the subject. "Where did everyone go?" "Ms. Millerson wasn't feeling well, so Naoki offered to make some tea for her. They both went to the kitchen. Aki said she had to use the restroom, although I suspect she just wants to look around, and I'm never entirely sure what Li Mei is doing. The house is in lockdown right now, so it won't let any of us leave until Sophia unlocks it. I guess you can roam around or do whatever you feel like." "Okay."  Examine the tree. At first glance, it appears to be a peach tree, but all the peaches are actually lightbulbs. That's sort of interesting.Examine the bamboo. It's live bamboo. I bet a panda would enjoy it.Examine the calligraphy. Some sort of Chinese calligraphy. Too bad I can't read it.Examine the office door. That's the door to Mr. Auten's office. I'm fairly certain that I'm not allowed in there.Examine the fountain. It's a water fountain. The glass orb is lit by a light bulb, but it looks like there's a bowl in the middle. I'd guess that back in the day, it held oil for a flame. Detective Gurski stands across the room from me, arms folded across his chest. He appears to be deep in thought, but it's not long before he notices that I'm looking at him. "What?" "Nothing." "Well that's not true." "Nothing I want to talk about, then." He uncrosses his arms and sighs. "I don't know where you've been all these years or why, but that look in your eyes is still the same." "What look?" "The one that says you're already trying to figure everything out. It's like watching someone who's just started work on a puzzle." "You're digging through the pieces and looking to build a frame, but you don't have much yet." "That much is true. I don't remember seeing you before, though." "I doubt you would. We've never met in person. I sure heard a lot about you, though. Both of you." I suddenly feel my stomach knot up.  "How much is a lot?" "Yeah, that was kind of on purpose..." "Do you have any idea how much work was put into finding you?" "Don't even start. I'm not in the mood to hear a lecture from someone who doesn't know what I'm going through." "You know, back in the day, I couldn't go ten minutes without hearing your names." "Oh, they're so great! What heroes these kids are! Why can't we have such helpful people here?" "What a joke. When we found her body, the first person they looked for was you, but you were nowhere to be found.At first they thought you had been kidnapped. As days passed, they thought maybe you had been killed." "When I saw you yesterday, I thought you had finally come back to do something worthwhile again." "I solved that murder for you, didn't I? What more do you want?"  "It's complicated." "Things are only as complicated as you want them to be." "Aki told me the same thing this morning." "Then maybe you should listen." "I'd rather you don't get involved. This is something I have to deal with on my own." "Sorry, kid. I'm sworn to uphold the law. Even if you don't want me getting involved, I kinda have to." "I know. Just..." I sigh and let my hands fall to my sides. "It's not what you think." "We'll talk about this more later, but I promise that this isn't over."  "Are you kidding? She was the first." "And that's why I didn't want to tell you who I was! I knew they'd all find out I was back!" "They'd find you eventually. It was only a matter of time." "Am I in trouble?" "Yeah, I'd say so." "If it weren't for Aki's insistence that you stay with her, I'm sure they'd already have come to take you back." "This is not good. This is SO not good. What am I supposed to do?" "Listen, I'm sorry, okay? I was fifteen and stupid, and I shouldn't have run away." "But can we just focus on the dead body we've got on our hands right now? I kinda feel like we're letting the past get in the way of the present." "The present only exists because of the past, you know." Gurski studies my face carefully, gauging my reaction. Finally, he sighs and shakes his head. "But I see your point. Figuring out the cause of death for Mr. Auten does take priority right now. I'll be upstairs. Come talk to me if you find out anything."    He skids to a halt and jumps a few times, holding his hands out in self defense. "Um...hi." He stops for a moment to look me over. "Never seen you around before. You're not one of Liam's friends, are you?" "Not really." "Oh, good! I can't stand Liam's friends. Don't tell him I said that." "Your secret's safe with me, I guess. Who are you?"  "Sophia hasn't been answering my calls." "You came here? I thought the house was in lockdown." Kevin taps the temple of his head. "Master code unlocks any door." "Right." "And who are you, again?" "Kangai. I'm a...um...special investigator." "Wicked. So Big Will is finally gonna bring down the hammer on Liam and his little night life." Big Will? Does he mean William Auten? "Um, actually...Mr. Auten just passed away." Kevin stares at me blankly for a moment, but his expression slowly changes as he processes my statement. "Passed away. As in...dead?" "I'm not entirely sure there's another way to interpret that." "Whoa..." Kevin runs his fingers through his hair and laughs nervously. "Sorry, man. This is just...wow, I can't believe it. It's kinda unreal, y'know? I just saw him yesterday and he looked fine."   "Yeah, I get it." "So what happened?"
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May 27, 2022 00:36
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Play dumb for all three of them! Our prevarication might not be a lie - after all, plenty of poisons induce heart failure! 
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May 27, 2022 02:12
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Yeah, no reason to spill the beans yet. Play dumb
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May 27, 2022 05:33
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| # ? May 2, 2024 22:05 |
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Posting to push to next page.
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Jun 2, 2022 22:50
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