Part 48: Flower Viewing Part 1 - Scorpio, Ares, Leo, and Cancer

Special Events III: Flower Viewing Part 1 - Scorpio, Ares, Leo, and Cancer


It’s time for springtime Flower Viewing! Ignore the fact that the game will say that it is currently summer!



Reone will be up first this time, because Alfie doesn’t have a Flower Viewing event and Reone’s is where we can find her third CG.

You might also notice that we’re up to 97% completion for the Star Maiden events. I have unlocked all events for the Star Maidens at this point with the exception of their endings. Most of these were generic events that I don’t plan to show off (except in Alfie’s case for reasons that will be explained later). However, the very last event in the list (in Reone’s case it’s the one called “Festival Sickness”) is a special event that is different for each Star Maiden.

I’ll talk more about that later on, since I plan to do an event update that shows some of them off. I just wanted to mention that we’ve still got more side events coming down the pipe.



~Star God Academy Classroom~

Hey, Reone. It’s really heating up outside, isn’t it?

It sure is. When it’s this warm, I can barely pay attention in class. …I know.



I heard it’s flower viewing season.

Well, I’m not a student at this school, so I can’t technically skip class. But is it really okay for you to do that?

It’s fine, it’s fine.

What the hell are they even learning in these classes? From the sounds of it, Narcisstes has just been rambling about random topics and stupid shit like “You can improve your bonds by pretending to be family! That’s not creepy at all!” I say skip.

It’s unhealthy to not go outside when the weather is this nice. So come on. Now that it’s decided, let’s get going.



*Reone then heads out*

H-Hey! Wait up, Reone!


~Flower-Viewing Spot~



Yeah. Amazing how Narcisstes managed to track down cherry blossom-like flower trees and grow an entire forest of them in the span of a year. Probably used Star Energy. Either that or we’ll discover that Mirei made a super growth formula or some shit.

Everyone’s drinking in broad daylight. Does this mean I can drink too?

Oh, you were talking about getting hammered. Yeah, I guess that’s nice too. Wouldn’t call it elegant though.

Why are you asking me that? I’m carrying all the booze that you stopped to buy on the way over here.

I was only confirming. Isn’t this how flower viewing is supposed to be?



Mana is not a reliable source of information, Reone. Yes, hanami involves having a picnic or party with friends or family and eat and drink and all that fun stuff. The main idea is to be enjoying the flowers, though. People like to drink sake or wine, but I’m fairly sure that getting plastered is considered bad manners.

Hold on, you are not planning to actually drink that much, are you?

Haha… It’s fine to drink heartily every once in a while. You can’t drink yet, so you get dumplings. Eat one for each falling petal.

NOBODY FUCKING CARES ABOUT THE FUCKING MINIMUM DRINKING AGE IN JAPAN! Holy fuck, the player and Itsuki do not need to be reminded about this every single goddamn time that booze is brought up. I thought we had finally moved past this during Mahiru’s final bonding event.

I’m going to open up a bottle now. Here, you take one of the dumplings. Now, here’s a toast to the beautiful, falling petals.

What am I supposed to toast with? The dumpling?

That’s right. Cheers!

Well, okay then. Cheers… I guess.



”You’re too young to drink, Itsuki (and by extension the player). But ohhh man! Check out how much fun getting drunk is! Look how happy it makes people!”

*Anyway, there’s a time skip here where Reone drowns herself in alcohol*

Fwaa… Itsuki. Gimme another bottle. Drinking like this’s just rude to the flowers.

There are no more bottles, you drank it all.

Oh… Fine then. I’ll just have some dumplings. …Hm? *stare*…



…Why are you staring at my nose?

Whaaat? The flower’s nose? It’s blooming cutely. It looks delicious. I’m gonna eat it right up. Haha… Don’t move… Mm…

I guess it’s not surprising that Reone is the pervert kind of drunk. Could be worse, she could have been the angry/violent kind of drunk. Granted, I personally would have found that hilarious, since she might have started running around beating the shit out of everyone.

R-Reone!



It makes me happy that the middle choice is the best one. I remember that CII had fun with the dialogue choices, just like this (Wake is able to respond with “I ain’t afraid of no ghost” at one point). CP’s are mostly bland.

I guess I better just wait this out…

Oh, the petals’re staying in place. What a polite flower… You exist just for me to sample. Thanks for the meal…

Reone, you’re definitely drunk. Could you try and pull yourself together a bit?



Me? I’m not drunk at all. Don’t worry… I won’t make it hurt… I’ll taste you with my tongue…

I wonder how much fun the families in the area are having? Having their kids running around and watching as a Star Maiden mounts God’s Gift and starts grinding on him in a drunken stupor. Meanwhile they know they can’t really do anything to stop it because they sort of need both of them to save the world.

Zzz… Zzz…

*Anyway, the CG cuts out and we find that Reone has apparently passed out*

Ugh… She licked my whole face… I’m going to need a napkin or something…

Gross.

*Another time skip happens*

Mmm…



Yeah, you just dropped at one point. It looked like someone pulled your plug.

Oh… Maybe I was more tired than I felt… I don’t normally fall asleep like this…

I guess it’s just spring fever.

Yes, spring fever, and not the multiple bottles of booze she chugged.

Spring fever… Right. Let’s just leave it at that. It’s a much better excuse than saying I was tired from work.

Right. The atmosphere is definitely why you did that stuff…

Did something happen while I was sleeping…?

I wouldn’t say while you were sleeping, more like before. But if you don’t remember, then it’s better that we leave it at that.

What’s with that? Now I need to know.



Don’t worry about that. I’m sure it was an accident.

I’ll be honest, given the outfit you wear, I’m surprised that flashing your underwear isn’t something that happens constantly.

Sure. We’ll go with that.

What does that mean… If you saw them, just say you did. I already know what a perverted little boy you are. Haha…

I am a teenager, you know.

Right, right. I feel much better after that little nap. Let’s go home. I feel like all my stress for the day has been released.



Just glad I could help… Let’s do this again some other time.

Yes. I’ll invite you then.

Yeah, that was a lot of fun. We watched Reone get drunk and throw herself on Itsuki, then he had to wipe her drool off himself and sit around waiting for Reone to wake up from her booze induced coma. Great stuff.

At least we can count on the other Star Maidens to have more normal events. …Okay, so normal might not be the right word. You get what I mean, though. Events where Itsuki and the Maiden get to hold a conversation and share a tender moment together.



~Star God Academy Field~

Hello, Itsuki. Today’s weather is so warm and nice.



Do you have somewhere in mind?

To the mountains for a picnic, or the beach… Oh, seeing flowers is nice too.

As much as I like the mountains, we’ve been there a lot recently. We’ll be heading to the beach in the next event update.

There are so many children though. Chaperoning them would be hard work.

Can we just not take the children, maybe? Unless it’s the Star Children. I’d be fine with taking them somewhere nice. They deserve it.

If you did that, then the teacher wouldn’t really get a chance to enjoy it.



Speaking of, the king put out a decree to hold some flower-viewing festival.

Do you want to try going together? It’s okay to treat yourself sometimes, you know.

Together…? Are you sure?

Of course. Take a break from watching over the children and have some fun of your own.

Come on, Arie. Let loose a bit. We’ve been over this. Also, I’m okay with telling you to let loose because your weapon fetish didn’t turn into something that consumed your entire character.




~Flower-Viewing Spot~



It is pretty awesome. I’m incredibly sad that my planned semester in Japan is going to finish like 1 month before cherry blossom season gets started. Would have loved to see that. I guess I could stop in Vancouver on the way back and see them there, but it’s just not the same…

Yeah. There’s so many flowers blooming.

I wouldn’t be able to enjoy it like this if the children were here.

Yeah, you’re right. Kids do suck.

Do you come here on field trips every year?

Well, I know the flowers here bloomed around this time…

So here’s a weird thing that maybe was caused by translations errors or something. Arie and Itsuki talk like this field of cherry blossom trees has always been here, but Shangri-La only arranges for the flower-viewing after Itsuki’s arrival and Mana’s suggestion. Also, Narcisstes specifically states that he’ll go and look for a plant that is similar to cherry blossoms and then plant a bunch of them in a special location.

Either this is a translation error, a writer error, or Itsuki has indeed been in this world for like 3 or 4 years by this point.

So I do try to bring the children here each year.

I guess I don’t need to tell you about it then, huh?

I take it you went to see flowers bloom like this on Sora? Haha… That makes me happy. It seems our worlds have something in common.



Well… we ate some good food, but we mostly enjoyed the view of the flowers.

It’s true just looking at the flowers like this brings me joy… But Itsuki… my neck is starting to hurt. Is flower-viewing a trial that comes with some pain?

Not any flower-viewing that I’ve ever been to. Maybe you should try and relax a little more.

Phew… I suppose. I think I was tensing up. Looking at the flowers like this brings me great joy.



Yeah… It’s very peaceful.

This feels so strange… Even though I see these flowers every year… they seem so much more calming than before.

It happens to everyone. You get used to your surroundings and just kind of lose the ‘awe’ or wonder from stuff after a while. I tutor ESL students from Asia and the Middle East who are all like “We saw the mountains and there’s so much nature around us and all the animals and landscapes” and I’m like “God, the drive to school everyday sure is boring. I hope this isn’t the day where one of those fucking moose runs onto the road and gets me killed in a horrifying car crash.”

Or maybe that’s just a me thing. I do have a terribly negative view on my life after all.

I wonder why… Could it be because I’m with you, Itsuki?

What was that?

No, nothing, nothing at all. Hehe… Spending time like this can be so nice. The wind is warm. It feels so nice…

Yeah. It really is—

…

…Arie?

…

Arrrie…?



Looks like she’s asleep. Enjoy your nap, Arie.

Zzz…

She really did need this. I can’t imagine how worn out she would have been if the children were brought along.

Zzz…

I should be careful not to move. I don’t want to wake her.

*Then a time skip happens*

Mm… Phew… Ah, Itsuki…?

Hey. Are you feeling rested?

Did I fall asleep? You should have woken me up…

Sorry. You looked very peaceful. I didn’t want to ruin that.

So you let me sleep?

Of course. You deserve to get some rest.

Thank you, Itsuki. I do feel more refreshed.



Glad to hear it.

Oh, look at the time. We should get going.

Sure thing.

I had so much fun today. It’s all thanks to you, Itsuki.

You’re welcome, Arie.

I’d like to come here next year with you to look at the beautiful flowers again. Oh… I’m sorry…



That’s thoughtful of you. God only knows what’s going to happen to the ending poll once the deadline gets closer. At the moment I’m getting the feeling that there’s a legion of Farun supporters out there that are biding their time for some reason.

No, it’s fine. I would love to do this again next year.

Haha, I see. Then let us come here again.

We shall! Right away, actually.



Except this time with Femiruna.


~Star God Academy Field~

Oh, Itsuki. Did you need something from me?

Yeah. I was wondering if you had some free time.



I cannot seem to find any in good taste that fit my fancy recently. Even when I go shopping, all the color schemes and designs are much too simple.

Yeah, that sure sounds like a dilemma. World could possibly get overrun by invincible monsters at any moment if Itsuki slips and falls or gets blindsided by an Impurity, but sure, keep agonizing about how the local stores haven’t stocked their spring selection.

I seek new and interesting designs. I want to talk directly to the designer.

…Cool. Well, why don’t you take a break from that and go with me to do some flower-viewing?

Flower viewing? Why would I do that?

You’re looking for new and interesting ideas, right? The color of the flowers might be inspiring.



It is also common to extract dyes from flowers. It could be a good opportunity to find some new colors to try out.

I mean, it’s just going to be a lot of pink. It’s beautiful, don’t get me wrong, but unless you’re in to that one color then I don’t know how much inspiration you’re going to find.

Very well. Since you invited me, I shall go with you for this flower viewing. I hope this will help me search for new clothes.


~Flower-Viewing Spot~



It’s pretty, right?

Yes, it is quite wonderful…

…Are you doing okay?

…Oh. I was just enthralled by it all.



Well, I’m glad that you like it.

Itsuki, you made the right decision in bringing me here. You have my compliments. I have made up my mind. The next outfit I purchase will be this color.

It sounds like a great design.

I would like to take one petal back with me to reference this color later.



…Or just slip it into your pocket. You’re just heading back to your house. It’s not like you need to preserve it for a month long journey or anything.

Oh, that would be nice. You seem to be quite on top of things today.



Why are you carrying around a book? Itsuki doesn’t exactly seem like the scholarly type. It’s not one of your porn mags, is it?

I’ve never made a pressed flower before. How do you do so?

Oh, it’s easy. Just take the petal and press down on it with paper. Liike… this! …Oh, wait…

…It crumbled.

Good job, Itsuki. You know that you’re supposed to press them and leave it with some weight on top, right? Like you don’t just slam it in a book and then flip it back open.

The petals are kind of thin, so they fall apart pretty easily.

I cannot entrust you to do this right. I shall do it.



Looks like yours crumbled too.

It’s not rocket science! How are you both so bad at this?

Pressed flowers are difficult to make. I am already tired of it.

No, come on. Don’t give up right away. Let’s try it together this time. Here, I’ll handle the book. You put the petal in.

O-Oh, fine.



Itsuki, I placed it! Now close the book!

Right.

Ahhh! We did it! What a success!

Yay! We succeeded in transferring a flower petal into a book without vaporizing it! Drinks all around!

Now we just need to leave it in there and it should turn out fine.



Hey, you were the one that was practically squealing.

I cannot wait to open the book again. I hope it will be in a good shape.

*A time skip happens*



This will add a breath of fresh air to my closet.

I hope I can see the new outfit when it’s ready.

I suppose I should thank you for bringing me here today. You may bring me to places like this again.

Then get your bikini ready, because we’re going to the beach in the next set of updates.

Well, Itsuki, good day to you.

Nothing wrong with that event, except for how grossly incompetent Femiruna and Itsuki were being in their efforts to gently place a flower petal into a book without destroying it.



~Star God Academy Hallway~

Mmm. It’s so nice and warm today.



Are you going by yourself?

Why do you have to emphasize the “by yourself” part? …But yes, I’m going alone. What of it?

Well, I was wondering if you wanted to have that tea while taking a look at the flowers.



There’s a fucking forest of off-brand cherry blossom trees nearby. How the hell did you not notice that sea of pink?

I can show you, if you want. They modeled it off of the cherry blossom festivals from my world.

Oh? A flower viewing like in your world… Now I’m slightly interested. All right. Then take me there. I don’t dislike flowers.

Please. We saw your profile, we already know you love them.

Since that’s decided, you better get ready.




~Flower-Viewing Spot~



King Shangri-La had Narcisstes gather up the flowers and plant them here.

Official Itsuki just says that the king gathered the flowers and had them planted here, but all Shang did was tell Narcisstes to handle it. We may still be incredibly suspicious of Narc and his weird alchemy circle thing in the basement, but credit where credit is due.

They do look a lot like the flowers from my world. I’m surprised they managed to find something that looks so similar.

Oh…? How nice. And we can see these flowers here every year. A-Achoo! What the…? My nose is so itchy all of a sudden…



Could be seasonal allergies.

Th-That’s impossible. I maintain the flower bed year round and this has never happened before…

Yeah, but you’ve never been around these flowers, have you?

Achoo! Achoo! Ugh… Maybe this type of flower and I just don’t get along… Achoo! Ugh… Now my nose is running… D-Don’t look at me.

Here, use my handkerchief.



Isn’t that the point of a handkerchief though? You don’t carry them around as a fashion statement.

You’ve been sneezing into your hands, though. It’s better if you use mine.

Eww. Come on, Ruka, that’s what sleeves are for.

Th-Thanks… I’ll wash it before giving it back to you…

*A time skip happens*

*sigh*… Seems like my sneezing stopped… But now my eyes are tearing up…



They’re selling some sweet tea over there. I’ll get some for you. Maybe that will help.

Thanks… I’ll pay you back later…

Don’t worry about it. We’re rolling in cash right now and will be for the remainder of the game. Honestly, I haven’t sold anything in ages. I’ve probably got at least a million in outdated equipment and items.

*Anyway, it’s teatime*

Mmg… *gulp*… …Wow, that’s really sweet. But it’s good.

Feeling better?

I don’t know. I think… I feel better. But my nose still itches.

It’s too bad that you’re allergic. It must be terrible to not be able to enjoy this.

Hmm… I don’t know why I’m allergic to this flower though.



Hmm… I wonder why.

Maybe it’s because these flowers spread out everywhere?

Speaking of which, these flowers scatter quite quickly.

Yes, that is what Itsuki just said. Are your ears stuffed up as well?

I feel sad when I see that…

That’s true, but they’ll also bloom again next year.

Doesn’t that sound romantic… No point in getting all gloomy. We should just enjoy them for what they are.

Exactly! Jesus, Ruka. Why do you have to be a constant downer? I don’t even think Yuzuha is this bad, and her life is slipping further away every time she takes a nap.

Ah…?! There are two butterflies on your head… How cute…

Really? Should I try and chase them off?

Don’t move. I want to look at them.



Aren’t brightly coloured animals/insects typically absurdly poisonous?

Wow… The wings are transparent. It’s like a scene from another world…

We’re an another— Well actually… I guess technically we are, but Ruka isn’t.

Um, Ruka? You’re getting really close to me…

Just be quiet. Oh… it’s slipping off your head.



Ruka, what exactly are you doing? You do realize that butterflies can fly, right? They aren’t going to plummet to their deaths if they slide off of Itsuki’s head. For that matter, how the hell is a butterfly sliding off of his head in the first place? I’m pretty sure they are fairly good at crawling on things at all angles.

Ruka, could you stop blowing on my face? It tickles…

Oh… Hey, they flew away because you moved. You’re so useless!

You were blowing on them and inching closer! Don’t pin this on Itsuki.

…But those butterflies were pretty. A-Achoo… Hmph… I’m glad my sneeze didn’t get on the butterflies.

That sneeze would have scared them off even if I hadn’t moved. Anyway, I think we should get back home. We don’t want your allergies getting worse.

Yeah… Next time, we should bring sweet tea and look at the butterflies. I don’t mind inviting you to go with me.



So what… my head is like a flower?

Yeah, that’s why you attract butterflies. I’m convinced.

Actually it’s because they are attracted to your sweat, specifically the salt contained in your sweat.

Haha. It seems your carefree personality can be useful sometimes. Anyway, let’s go home.

And that’s all for Ruka. I’ll be honest, these Flower-Viewing events have been getting steadily more boring. Something about them aren’t quite as interesting as stuff like the Starmas events or the Festival.

Mirei is usually good for making things interesting, but we need to check on Farun first. On to Part 2!