Part 67: Chapter 3S: The Knife on her Palm - Part 1

Um... After blueberries is supposed to be...

Huh? Where did the red berries go?

The cranberries should be at the edges of the storehouse. Bring them here quickly, please.

The batter should be cold enough by now. Take it from the refrigerator as well.

Y-Yes! I'll do that right now!

...



( I should do as I wish... But telling me that so abruptly...)

Ooh, something smells nice.

Hi Sakuya! Is it snack time yet?

...Lady Elly and Lady Kurumi. My apologies, but it is still being prepared.

Hey, don't pester Sakuya. She's really busy, unlike you.

I'm doing my best, you know! But Patchouli said I'm too rough with the books...

(Relying on her to handle books certainly does not sound like the best idea.)

Well she's got to do something.

Sorry, we weren't trying to disturb you. We were just passing through.



...I still am. I do not think I can answer yet...

Yeah, that's understandable. It was kinda sudden...

There's no need to answer so quickly anyway. Take your time and think long and hard about it.

There's no need to be reserved either. Yuuka really does like you a lot.

Yes, thank you...

...Anyway, it's about time for me to change shifts with Meiling. Kurumi, come with me.

Ehh!? Why do I have to go too!?



See you later, Sakuya.

Yes, see you later.

The scene shifts to just Kurumi and Elly.

Yeah. Maybe it was a bit too pushy after all...

That's Yuuka's style though. And I'll be really happy if I could eat Sakuya's cooking every day.

If Remilia and Yuuka come to blows again, that mansion really might collapse... Well, whatever happens, I just hope it happens peacefully.

The focus returns to Sakuya.



...Meiling.

Um, Sakuya... Sorry for disturbing you while you're cooking. I came to report that Elly has replaced me.

I see, thank you. Did you perform your duties properly?

Ah, um, yeah... Not even a single rat will enter the mansion on my watch.

...How strange. The library was infested with rats from what I saw. Well, never mind. Get some rest until your night shift.

Thank you. I'll be going now...

...

...Is something the matter?

Ah, yes. Um... Actually, I wanted to apologize...

Apologize...?

Yes, about what happened when I heard about Lady Yuuka's offer. When I heard you might be leaving the mansion, I was thrown for a loop, and...

...Sorry, it was my fault that it was brought up so abruptly.

...I've had time to think more about it. Whatever happens, if you wish to leave the mansion...



...Meiling...

So if you need to talk about anything, please feel free to let me know! I'm older than you after all. So it'll be good if I play the big sister role every now and then... Hahaha...

...



U-Uh... Really...?

I just never thought about whether there is a place I belong outside of it...

With everyone telling me that I should do what I want so suddenly... Frankly, I am not sure what I want to do.

Personally, I'd just be annoyed. I think one of the big flaws of Sakuya's route is that practically every chapter is someone telling Sakuya "DO WHAT YOU WANT TO DO" and then her responding ambiguously. It gets very silly.

Do what you want...? Did Lady Patchouli say that to you?



Wherever you go...?

...She has not chased me out. I am just not being held back If I want to leave... In short, she wants me to decide for myself whether I wish to remain here.

I see... So that's what Lady Patchouli said... So what will you end up doing...?

Who knows... I wonder what Milady would think of it all.

...What about what you think of it all, Sakuya?

Me?

Yes, how do you feel about it? You've been working here for such a long time. What was your reason for doing so?

I never thought too deeply about it. It was just to live. If I do not eat, I will die.

...I see. I'm sure there must be some other...



!

Ehehe. If you're chatting, I wanna join in.

...Lady Flan, it is not time for tea yet.

I can tell. But I can't go out, and no one else's around, I'm bored.

Umm, how about the game center that was built at the basement recently? Lady Remilia personally researched books from the outside to make that for you...

It was boring, so I squeezed it. She really has no taste at all.

Ahh, I was the one who built that...

...You copied it from the book, so there may have been mistakes in it anyway.

Hey, let's talk about something more important. Is Marisa here? I can play with Marisa!





Aw, too bad. I'm so bored, maybe I'll go look at whoever's cooking.

...

(...That was a shock. She just popped out from nowhere...)

(There's something strange about her though. She seems to be surprisingly obedient today...)

(...Yes. Perhaps she is in a particularly good mood today...)

Hey~, is the cake ready yet? I'm hungry.

The batter will be done soon, so please wait a moment...

The door opens again.

Oh, looks like it's done.

Ahh, I'm hungry. Is it teatime yet?

Oh, my mistake. It's Lady Flan.

...Uh, wait...



...Hm?

Ah, I've been found out.

Sakuya, this is...!

Yes, it is Lady Flan's copy-image magic... Which means...

An explosion rattles the screen.

Ahh, I knew it!

Ah, it's started.

Ahaha, let's go back then!

The copies disappeared! And the shaking seems to be coming from the lobby!

I see. I certainly was not expecting this...

Umm, chief maid? I'm here with the tart batter from the refrigerator...

You have come at a bad time, unfortunately. Please bake it for an appropriate amount of time.

E-Ehhh!?

Sakuya, let's go!

Yes, towards the direction of the explosion!





...It seems her obedience was a ploy to keep us occupied.

Huh, you figured it out already? I thought I pulled it off perfectly~.

It was pretty easy to figure out after the sound of those explosions...

Lady Flan, I am afraid I will have to ask you to behave. Lady Remilia will scold you if you destroy too much of the mansion.

Hmph. There's no one talking care of me, so I got bored. You came here on her orders to catch me again? You're as much of a dog as ever~.

Flandre still doesn't really like anyone in the SDM. Hard to blame her too.

...You may say what you wish, but this is the work I was given.



I get the moral already. Stop shoving it into my face.

You do whatever she says, that's why she always looks so haughty and confident.

No matter what you say...

...

You're boring. I'm gonna play with these, so don't get in my way.

...It seems there are no other options. Meiling, we have to make Lady Flan settle down. You will have to help out as well.



...Ehh?

Meiling...?

You see, Lady Flan's just bored from all the free time she has. So she should be satisfied if we play with her as whe wants. Isn't that right... Sakuya?

Play, you say... What manner of ludicrousness are you...

...You're weird. You may say that, but you're still planning to capture me, right?

No, really. I'll prove it... Watch!



Meiling slams a bat into paste.

Meiling!

I'll be fine. I can take out this amount of bats before they cause too much...

...!



Ahh, that's the second round I prepared. I think there's still more.

Gah, there's more enemies that I thought... W-What should we do, Sakuya!?

Are you seriously asking now? Honestly, you really...



A-Ahaha... Anyway, join us Lady Flan!

...

Okay already. If you're going that far, then I'll play with everyone.



I really don't understand why they recycled Chapter 8's Bonus condition. This would be one of the few times a generic "kill everything in X turns" would have actually been interesting.



Because really, they didn't even try with this chapter. There are a bunch of trash enemies and you have to murder all of them.



An easy task made even easier because Flandre is controllable. She's locked to her Chapter 13M moveset, but since this is Normal she can one-shot every enemy on the map without a problem.



And since Meiling only has 140 MP, the Bonus is just as simple.

Since this chapter is so braindead, let's spice things up. I am going to try to clear this chapter by the end of Turn 5. _{I am almost certain the RNG is going to screw me over at some point, since all challenges like these practically force save scumming.}



This actually makes the chapter difficult, as (on Normal at least) the enemies won't attack until you get near. I'll have to spend the first turn just moving everyone into enemy range.

...It's not like it's more fun because they're here or anything.



It's very possible to solo this entire chapter with Flandre.



Sakuya will be handling this hallway. If she gets a critical on Misdirection she can instantly kill an Evil Eye, but taking two hits is fine too.

What on earth is Meiling trying to accomplish by doing this...

She's trying to make friends you clod. <>



Finally, Meiling will handle the enemies between Sakuya and Flandre. I still need to get the bonus, so I'll be spamming the hell out of her more expensive moves right?



Of course not. I'm on a time limit, and Meiling will probably bottom out if I'm aggressive enough anyways.

All right... I started this thing, so I'll have to go with it all the way...


_{Meiling got a critical and murdered the bat for 4249 damage.}

Sky Dragon Kick has a S in Sky, so it's actually a really good move. Which is great because that means Meiling can be useful even outside of point-blank range.

EDIT: Herp derp, I can't read. Sky Dragon Kick (and Searing Red Fist) has a S in Ground.

That's one down.

...Hmm.

...? Yes?

Hmm hmm... You're better than I thought. I don't know you well though.

Ahaha, I'm always on duty outside~. It's no surprise that you don't know me. I'm Meiling. I'm the gatekeeper of the mansion.



And so Flandre makes her second friend. It's kind of worth noting that Flandre's good relations with Marisa and Meiling are due to Remilia's friendships with Reimu and Sakuya; I guess the fandom's train of thought was "if Remilia gets those two, Flandre should get their counterparts."



The enemy phase starts with Flandre taking out the second Doofy Ghost. _{And getting hit on a 31%.}



Likewise, Sakuya murders the Evil Eye she weakened on the player phase.



This gives her just enough Power to bust out a spellcard on the second Evil Eye. This doesn't ensure a kill, but it makes it more likely at least.



Sakuya nabs a level too.



Meiling fails to take down her bat this time, but I can finish it off next turn.

Turn 2 starts with a cutscene.

Playing like this was not in my job description...

You shouldn't worry so much. Sakuya. We should concentrate on cleaning these enemies up.



Lady Flan!

What's so fun about dancing at her fingertips? When she doesn't need you anymore, she'll just throw you away.

Remember that this is legitimately why Flandre thinks she got locked away for so long.

...Um, Lady Flan. The way Sakuya speaks just shows that she's worried about you. And we are protecting you not because Milady says so, but because it's natural!

...

Bah, whatever. Pay attention, the bats are coming.



I start the second turn by casting some Spirits. Really should have done that first.



Sakuya takes out the bat Meiling couldn't kill, and in the process bumps the kill counter up to 6.



This means reinforcements.

Lady Flan...

Yeah, I was bored, so I captured those too. There were probably more than that, so there's probably more coming later~.

...Oh well. We will continue exterminating all of them.



Sakuya should have the western front covered, so Flandre and Meiling will handle the east.



To do this, I left this in range of the bats. Meiling fails to take down either of them, but she does cripple them.



Meanwhile, Sakuya decides to cheat.



It was a very nice idea.



Too wasteful to do twice though, so I have her use Melee for the second Doofy Ghost. This proves to be just barely not enough.



This'll make getting the Bonus easy.



Though I should probably have Meiling cast Guts next turn.



I have Sakuya use this just in case I get another opportunity to The World something,



then have her use the Bomb that last Doofy Ghost dropped in order to take down two enemies at once.



This gets her another level,



And more reinforcements. This wave spawns after 10 enemies are defeated.

There's more of them!

Meiling, maintain your focus. Keep concentrating and take them out one by one.



The plan was to have Flandre charge the new guys, but Flandre decided to miss a 90% and get hit by a 40%.



Meiling lands her 87% at least.



Flandre can only counter at 1-2 range, so she's pretty useless on the enemy phase.



Meiling gets me the Bonus in style.







Flandre erases a danmaku-spawning Evil Eye from existence,



Sakuya wastes her Knife Collect on a Misdirection (that I was really hoping would get a critical),



and Meiling ends this rather phase with a kill and a level.



That Evil Eye was enemy 13, so the final wave of reinforcements spawn.

They are still coming out!?

Hmm, I think that's all of them. I can make more come out though.

...Sorry, but no.

All right, Sakuya!

Yes, finish them all!



At this point I'm pretty sure I'm not going to be able to end this by Turn 5. Oh well, it was a fun thing to try.



Since almost nobody was in range, the only thing that happened enemy phase was this bat suiciding into Flandre. Meiling got attacked too, but she was out of MP so she couldn't counter.



It's a different story on the player phase.



The plan here was to have as many bats suicide into Flandre as possible,



but they were all just out of her range. What a waste of SP.



Sakuya you have 32 more Skill then these things, critical more often!



Oh damn it, I left Meiling in the range of one of these things. There goes any hopes of ending this by Turn 6.



Would you assholes attack someone who can actually fight back?

Turn 7 will probably be where this chapter ends. Not much of a difference from just playing normally.



One bat left.



Please don't mess this up Meiling.







Well at least the only character in this thing's attack range is Sakuya.

...It is finally over.

Uh huh. The mansion did end up a bit messy though...

...I wonder what Milady would think of this.

She'd probably get angry she didn't get to join in.

Ahaha... Well, I decided to do this, so I'll have to accept any consequences. But hey, I think Lady Flan had fun.

...You're weird. She might fire you, you know.

It's fine. Milady wouldn't threaten me to such an extent for this.



...Do not forget that you got me involved too.

...Well, whatever. I always get hungry after playing. I wanna eat some cake.

Yes, it should have finished baking by now. Shall we go to the dining hall?



------

All right, good evening~. Looks like it's my turn to be the host for All Night FMW. Let's get straight to the postcards... No, wait.

Geez, Rinnosuke! Did I tell you to get my tea ready before I went on-air?

Good grief, just leave it here. And the tea cakes go there as well... Ah, sorry. Let's get started with the postcards...

Eek! Who left the tea here!? Of course I would knock it over if it was placed here! Rinnosuke, bring the towel!

Due to technical difficulties, tonight's broadcast of All Night FMW has been canceled. As such, the next show is being set up. Please wait warmly until it is ready.













Good evening everyone, it's time for "Tokimeki Mansion Night"! Your hosts are of course, Ellilin, and?

Kurumin, and?

Yuukarin... Why do I have to use this name anyway?

You just have to~. You're the main star in this program after all.

Yep yep. This program even has a special "Yuukarin! Step on me!" corner.

...We're hosting such a whimsical program like this? Oh well, where's the postcard?

Hmm, this is "Looking Back on Your Mistakes is a Mistake", from Heaven.

"The food in Heaven is so plain. I'm tired of eating peaches all the time. I guess it's still more high-class than staying on the ground. But I want to eat something different..."

...Wow, it looks like this listener might rub people the wrong way!

Yeah, seriously! Okay Yuukarin, what do you have for our listener?

...

Would you like me to crush your face like a peach, dear listener?

Kyaaah, Yuukarin's being all fierce~. I wanna be like that too~!

And there you go. See you again, everyone~!