Part 98: 9/1-9/2: Wherein I Waste Everyones Time By Fucking Around For Half The Update
Part 96: 9/1-9/2: Wherein I Waste Everyones Time By Fucking Around For Half The UpdateMusic: Beneath the Mask (Instrumental Version)
Ooh, a uniform!
You look great. Surprisingly.
Futaba says shes going to shift to living a morning persons life.
A healthy mission starts with a healthy lifestyle.
Mission?
In regard to the so-called Phantom Thieves events that have been a hot topic among the general public The prime minister held a press conference at his official residence to address the problem.
The government acknowledges the current rumors of the group called the Phantom Thieves. We are currently confirming facts with the police and wish to deal with it in an appropriate--
Even the prime ministers talking about the Phantom Thieves?
Theyre allies of justice, after all.
They change hearts, huh ? I wonder if its true.
Looks like were finally being recognized across the country.
In all honesty, I think you guys are managing great. Its all thanks to my amazing guidance. Lets find clues on that case as soon as we can too, and resolve it ourselves. ...For Futabas sake too.
...You two really get along, dont you? Youre gonna be late if you dont get going soon.
Good luck on your student duties.
Weve even received messages about how the Phantom Thieves are all students talk about these days.
I thought it was just an ordinary website
Lately theyve added a polling feature to ask who youd like to see have a change of heart.
Goddammit, Mishima. Was that your big new idea? I cant see this going wrong, no sir.
Given peoples heightened expectations, its been receiving a lot of votes.
Huh Maybe I should go vote for our company president. Change his heart so hell raise our salaries! Sounds pretty good, doesnt it?
Not like I did anything during summer break. I gust stayed in and played online games.
Nothing you couldve done this summer wouldve topped the Phantom Thieves! Hacking Medjed back and all the other stuffit was totally nuts!
Everyone online was waiting for the deadline to hit. People sure do love the Phantom Thieves. Speaking of, have you checked out the Phan-Site recently? They added a bunch of new stuff, including the option to rank people to get a change of heart.
Music: My Homie
Its like, it always ends right when you get used to a life without school. ...Then again, I guess we had some fun things this year.
Kawakami clears her throat loudly.
All right, lets begin homeroom. Lets see. Weve just gotten back from vacation, but starting next Monday is the school trip.
Oh yeah, thats right.
Music: Alright
Hawaii!? That seems like kind of a big deal. Youd think someone would have brought that up at some point in the last half year.
Make sure that none of you cut loose too much, OK?
The students become rowdy.
OK, settle down! That concludes homeroom.
You can speak English, right?
Basically, yeah.
Thats amazing!
I forgot how shitty my portraits for some of these generic students were, yikes.
I lived over there, so its nothing that special.
Hey, if theres something were not sure of in English, can we ask you about it?
Theeeeere we go. Everybody wants something.
Huh!?
Despite both of our phones clearly going off, this conversation does not appear to include Ann.
Is it the same for you? Talk about being popular. Anyways, now that a new semesters started, lets have another operation meeting.
Shouldnt you text the others about this and not just me?
Maaku and Ann look at each other. I suppose Maaku is psychically transmitting that information to her.
Rankings, huh? Sounds interesting!
All you do is vote? Isnt that kind of pointless?
You never know. They might be looking at it.
Im sure the Phantom Thieves will steal their heart!
Music: Wicked Plan
Futaba! Did you come here by yourself?
I went to get her since I got out of school early.
What a patronizing Inari.
Well then, lets get talkin. Whadda we do now? Should we go after another big target?
Thats important too, but what about that villain in the cognitive world?
Its almost certain that this person exists. Whats more, theyre inducing mental shutdowns We certainly cant turn a blind eye.
Yeah, but we dont got any clues But! You know how were totes popular right now? Everyone at schools talkin about us, and not a day goes by when you dont hear about it on TV either! We totally made it big, dontcha think?
True. The rankings on the Phantom Aficionado website have been crazy too.
Huh? What the hell!? First place keeps changing by the second!
People are voting around the clock, after all.
If we go after these guys, Im sure well score some big cash at least once!
Oh, yep. Totally. Cash, the most important thing in this enterprise of ours. Cant think of any other reason we got into this.
What would you use money like that for, Maaku?
Ive never heard of a phantom thief that saves up money!
Are you fine with that, Futaba? Even though its related to what happened to your mother?
Its not OK! Im definitely gonna punch that guy !
The culprit forcing mental shutdowns If you think about it, theres no bigger target than that. If we can change his heart and get a confession outta him, well be on top of the world for real. Should we reveal our identities then? I bet chicks are gonna be all over us!
Whoa, whoa, you want us to show our faces !? ...I guess that might be OK?
I see. If the true culprit confesses, the existence of the Metaverse will become known There would be no need for us to remain in hiding in such a questionable manner
Being unknown is the allure of being a phantom thief.
But considering the hype now, its gonna be one hell of a huge deal if we pull it off!
Are there really no clues regarding those mental shutdown cases? If I remember right, wasnt the older Niijima sister investigating it?
Wait a minute. We, the player know that Makotos sister was the prosecutor who came to Leblanc threatening Sojiro, but we didnt know that was tied to the mental shutdowns, did we? Furthermore, how on earth does Morgana know that theyre the same person? Makotos been rather quiet whenever its been brought up, and as far as I can recall barely talks about her. How does anyone know any of this? The only explanation I can see is that Kaneshiros Shadow mentioned Saes first name, and then Akechi mentioned Sae in passing the other day, but thats a rather large leap in the characters understanding, especially for a game that feels the need to explain eeeeeeeverything.
Yes I can pry and ask about it. But shell just tell me to mind my own business and get angry with me.
Shell probably do that anyway, Makoto. Youve got nothing to lose!
If you cant ask her, wanna just extract that data?
Does she have a personal laptop or something?
Dont tell me
Just stick this baby in, and itll clone the internal hard drive! Itll even bypass the OS password!
Why did you think you would need that when you came here today?
Youll have to plug it directly into her laptop though. Can you do it?
Sis does bring her laptop home sometimes But Im not comfortable going that far
Ooh, is Futaba gonna do something amazin again?
Are you scared of seeing how your sister truly feels?
No! ...Of course not. ...Fine, Ill do it.
Makoto takes the device.
Music: Disquiet
Holy shit, I just noticed this dudes ear! What the fuck is wrong with it, its so small!
But I gave a gag order in regard to Mr. Kamoshidas case P-Please wait! Please give me some time! I will find evidence on the Phantom Thieves for sure! I couldnt have made it this far, had it not been for your assistance, sir so Please Please let me--
The caller on the other end hangs up.
Poor Fake Billy Zane.
You know, sometimes I think twice about making voice actor jokes because of the fact that this is an entirely visual medium but for some reason the fact that the references Im making have literally zero play whatsoever due to the format just makes it funnier to me.
Music: Beneath the Mask
Still another six months ahead of you. Keep yourself in check, got it?
Yes, if you look away for even a single moment, the order changes completely.
Its hard to decide who to actually go after!
Theyre flooding in!
We can choose anyone we want!
We should wait for now though, it will surely cool off soon. More importantly, how are things on your end, Makoto?
Sis isnt home yet. She may not come back at all tonight.
Man, just think how great itd be to narrow down our targets!
Even you, Maaku ? ...I suppose Ill do it.
Lets leave this to Makoto. Im sure shell be able to pull it off.
Oh, youre thirsty for something, all right.
Many celebrities have started posting public apologies on their personal blogs and other outlets. The general opinion is that the reason why they are doing this is the Phantom Thieves. The rationale is that they will be spared by the Phantom Thieves if they apologize preemptively.
Some people are just confessing what theyve done wrong on their own? They must be scared of us.
Heading over to the second-hand shop, the owner has something new for us. Lets buy this broken laptop. Now, we dont have any means to repair it as of yet, so well have to save that for another time.
We skipped two (well, more than two) summer hangouts that would have unlocked some new spots, so we buy the top two books for the purpose of unlocking them later.
Remember waaaaaaay back when I mentioned we wouldnt be able to rank up Sojiro for a while? Well, Rank 5 of his Confidant is only accessible after 8/22, or after Futaba first joins. We hit Rank 4 something like two or three in-game months ago, so its been a long time.
Thanks. Futabas coming to eat today too. Ill get the curry ready. Im leaving the coffee to you.
Music: Break it Down
How was the curry, Futaba?
Delicious! Im gonna be dreaming of that stuff tonight!
Um did it taste the same as you remember it?
Yup. I feel like a dummy for not wanting to eat it back when I was depressed about my mom ...Oh yeah! The first episode of this brand-new anime I wanna watch is airing tonight! Im outta here!
Eyes in front when you walk, OK? No spacing out. You ran head first into a pole last time you went for a walk
Well you stubbed your toe on the dresser the other day! Aw crap! Its gonna start! (to Maaku) Making like a leaf, andEh, screw it. Bye!
I dont think thats how that expression goes, but whatever.
And what about you?
Now then theres something I should probably tell you. Here, take a seat. Ill pour you some coffee.
Music: Alright (Elp Version)
You mightve realized it by now, but that genius was Futabas mother Wakaba. In other words, that curry is one of the last remaining connections Futaba has to her mom.
I first met Wakaba back when I was doing work for the government. She was real trouble, let me tell you. Logic prevailed over emotion for her, and she had an intricate knowledge of the human mind. I thought my pick-up lines were the best in town, but not a single one worked on her Heh
It was almost impossible to keep up with her. Men are idiots though We spend our time chasing after things we cant get. Wakaba rejected me time and time again but there was one instance I managed to surprise her. And that was when I gave her a plate of my homemade curry. The very next day she came asking all about the ingredients and what goes into the cooking process Then just a few days later, she handed me a scientifically-enhanced version of my recipe. ...It was incredible. She had used my curry as the basis, but it was miles better than anything I made. Curry was Wakabas specialty from then on. Naturally, Futaba grew to love it in no time as well. But then after Wakabas accident Futaba stopped eating it entirely. The flavor would make her remember the pain Ive heard even smells can bring back memories too. But that curry was the only point of connection I had with Futaba. Thats why when I took her in, I vowed to keep this recipe alive until she could eat it again.
The whole idea of pairing the curry with a nice brew is thanks to Wakabas refinement too. Despite how introverted she seemed, she was extraordinarily perceptive of the people around her I never even told her about my love of coffee. She figured it out just from looking at me That was when I realized she was totally out of my league. Not like I really stood a chance to begin with though. She already had Futaba by then, after all. This might seem like any old curry to most people, but therere tons of emotions crammed inside. So, uh make sure you keep the tradition going.
I feel like my bond with Sojiro is growing deeper...
Futabas waiting for me at home too, so I should probably be heading back. Make sure you clean up before you go to bed.
I can see the compassion hidden beneath Sojiros actions I feel my Kindness growing...
Maaku gains Kindness +3.
Music: Beneath the Mask (Instrumental Version)
Oh yes. Thank you for the coffee last time. Its a lovely cafe. I havent relaxed that much in a while.
I could tell. You got pretty candid back there.
Thats nice of you to say. Especially lately since it seems Im hated by those who support the Phantom Thieves Anyhow, it seems your schools in trouble.
Oh?
The media is reporting that the whole school was involved in the cover-up about that gym teacher. Those unfortunate students were made victims all because adults valued their own conveniences This is unforgivable, no matter the reason. ...Let me know if you need anything. Ill do my best so that the case is wrapped up quickly.
Looks like Shujins back in deep shit.
I read an article about Shujin in a magazine High School Horrors: A School-wide Cover-up. Seems the administration turned a blind eye to that abusive teacher. Its all so hard to believe
The principal claimed he didnt know what was going on, at first. Were talking about childrens livespeople like him are the ones who should answer for this.
I dont like the way theyre looking at us
How can you even see them from inside that bag, cat?
Music: Break it Down
The medias gonna come to our school. At least be a little interested in it. Cover-up by faculty and principal of Shujin Academy, where the Phantom Thieves first appeared. Its been a huge deal already. I wonder whats gonna happen to the principal now. Anyways, we made the right choice goin after big targets! Everywhere I go, peoplere talkin about us!
Ryuji makes for the door...
And blocked by Girl with Watering Can!
Whoa!
Im sorry!
Oh no, Im fine.
The girl walks away.
The Phantom Thieves are on fire right now, so I wonder if I got a chance if I asked her out ? It sucks that I cant just say Im actually a Phantom Thief to anybody.
She didnt even have a name, Ryuji. Well never see her again.
Music: Wicked Plan
Okay, so this scene is obviously here because they realized, Oh shit, we accidentally implicated Kawakami in the Kamoshida mess, which they bring up and then do nothing with. Its actually kind of more damning than if theyd just ignored it because her failure to give any kind of explanation or alibi here means its not at all irrational to assume that she did know something, whoops!
Even if the police ask you anything, you better not make irresponsible comments to them! Seriously, why does this keep happening? All my relatives are gonna call me again
Chastising children for gossip and worrying about its affect on your personal life is totally the appropriate response to finding out many of your coworkers were involved in a plot to protect a child abuser and implied rapist! Im just going to pretend this scene doesnt exist because despite her Confidant being hilariously inappropriate I actually like Kawakami as a character.
You know how the police have been coming to the school again because of that incident? So, a number of the senior faculty are going to be called in for questioning And that day just happens to overlap with the school trip.
...Yes, Ive been told so.
Now, this came up at the faculty meeting, but the plan is to have third-years to act as our proxies. Im so sorry to drop this on you, Niijima-san, but well be counting on you.
You know A lot of the second-years this year happen to be unique.
Weve got two delinquents, fine, but someones gotta keep an eye on that Mishima loser.
You must have your hands full with the entrance exams, but Im sure youll be fine with your grades. Dont worry. Therell be a couple more people going besides you!
...If thats the case, very well.
Ill go ahead and pass this news on then/
Music: So Boring
Perhaps its due to the negative comments he made about us.
Cmon, you dont gotta pity a jerk like him. By the way, hows it going, Makoto? You get into your sisters data yet?
I think shes been busy. She didnt come home at all yesterday.
Thats problematic.
Whatre we gonna do? We cant do a damn thing till we get that.
Dont rush me. I assure you, I can handle this. More importantly everyone at school has been on edge since that tabloid article. Please be careful not to stand out, OK?
You dont gotta tell me twice!
Music: Tokyo Daylight
Even more talking to do, because everyones dialogue updated again.
Im surprised that theyve gotten so famous. Nobody even believed they were real at first.
Im embarrassed that I used to be a fan of Akechi-kun Now its all about the Phantom Thieves. Ill cheer them on as much as I can!
Was that incident with Mr. Kamoshida just the beginning?
A stand in Shibuya Station was selling Phantom Wafers. It was already close to selling out. I guess thats just how popular the Phantom Thieves are
Phantom Wafers!? I wonder if I can buy one on the way home
Inquisitive Girl and Foodie Girl will often talk about new limited-time items for sale.
Damning with faint praise.
Ive been seeing it everywhere I go lately. I really wanna buy some P-Thieves merchandise! Just looking at that glorious logo makes me feel a little braver. Those guys are seriously awesome! Man, this is crazy cool. Im gonna take a picture! Hamiru drew it, right? Its like, the best drawing Ive ever seen. I can feel the adrenaline rushing through my veins! Nice going, Hamiru!
Our fame is going through the roof! Wheres it gonna stop ?
I think Ill interview you too, Hamiru-kun. Whatre your thoughts on the article?
I totally get you! The teachers cant be trusted. I wish theyd be more honest with us. Of course, Ill continue my coverage for the newspaper club.
Well, at least weve still got the Phantom Thieves. Theyre so in right now!
Yeah, theres SO much merch for them. Maybe I should buy some.
But if that happens, thatd be a real problem for us. What about our futures after high school?
Although in a different era, there have been middle school graduates who became prime ministers. Diligence can overcome any shortcoming. Effort is whats most important to rise to the top.
No one cares about our tournament coming up!
Is now the time to worry about that? We have to do our part as captains if we really want to win.
Why did I come to Shujinnn? Ever since this year started, its been nothing but drama.
Just when I thought it was all over. I wish I never came to Shujin Academy
Lets ask the Phantom Thieves for help. Im sure they can take down the principal for us.
I heard you chased away some reporters who snuck into campus. Good for you, Sensei!
Im part of the school staff, after all. We cant allow any harm to come to our students.
Unless its one of the teachers doing it.
The other teachers have been kind of useless since the Kamoshida thing, so Im really impressed!
Nobody knows who I really am, though. Heh If they only knew.
O-Of course, I beat them at their own game. With the internet, hacking skills, and computers! They were powerless once I started typing at breakneck speeds of 100 words per hour! Muahahaha!
What a fuckin idiot.
These are but a small sampling of the new reactions to our latest caper.
Just who are they, anyway ? Honestly, the idea they exist creeps me out a little bit.
The police, prosecutors, everyone in the governments up in arms, trying to find the Phantom Thieves. It might not be long until those Phantom Thieves are finally caught.
All right, I didnt explain how this store worked previously because I wasnt aware. It gets a new related book every time you do the corresponding activity for the first time, like batting, fishing, watching movies, etc. Well buy this Essence of Fishing book, even if we dont plan on ever going back there.
Were here to try out this fancy new Affinity Reading.
Please think about someone you want to become closer with.
We didnt have enough points with Yusuke for the next rank, so lets try to get his affinity up.
This reading will cost you 5000 yen.
OK, heeere I gooo
We did not get enough points to get Yusuke to the next rank, unfortunately. We can do this once a day, though, and do the same person multiple times, so its no big deal.
Next up, we head over to Akihabara, the newest and last of the areas this game lets us free roam around in. Check out that sweet anime car, by the way.
You mean the stuff on the Phantom Thieves, right? They jump on the bandwagon now and call it news?
The stuff theyre reporting is so old. Theyre months behind us. TV really is shit.
True, but the people watching it and causing a ruckus are shit too.
Man, fuck these guys.
Stocks. I put all our savings into stocks ato get our money to JUMP UUUP!
This guy owns.
We saved that money together! You cant just do things like that on your own!
Dont worry! I invested in Okumura Foods. Theyre expanding overseas, so their stock price is going up.
Oh yeah, you should totally buy when the price is going up, what a good plan. Its how I made my bitcoin millions.
Haha, most out-of-towners say that. Been here my whole life, and even I think its strange.
Next I want to meet How do you say The Phantom Thieves?
Dunno if I can swing that. Whats the deal with those guys, anyhow?
Foreign Barker and Foreign Tourist need to meet and strike up a friendship. Or fall in love. One or the other.
Gah! Please dont complain to the cafe! That doesnt count! Aw, man, I got mistaken for a mugger the other day, too. What the hell am I doing wrong? *sigh* This job is impossible. Why the hell do I even do it?
Electric Town has a variety of interesting shops!
This PC Tool Set will let us fix that Broken Laptop we picked up earlier.
A capsule vending machine? Oh, so you can get these guys with 500 yen Why dont you try testing out your luck?
Now, thankfully, interacting with the capsule machine does not spend time for some inexplicable reason like in Persona 4.
This capsule says its uncommon. Its not a big win, but its no huge loss, either. *sigh* I just dont get it. Why do people want these?
This, pachinko, and gacha are the closest things in this society to true gambling, but I suppose that we could ask the same question of slot machines.
What am I so mad about? I cant get the guy I want in this capsule toy vending machine I want the figurine for Mothman, but he hasnt been showing up Tell me if you ever get one. Ill trade you a figurine I have for it.
Hot dog, lets go for it!
This capsule says its super rare! Y-Youre amazing!
We eventually get one twelve attempts later. Thats actually probably on the low end, considering some of my other tries at this, so 6,000 yen is a low price to pay. We get four more Decked Decarabia (uncommon), one Kinky Kin-Ki (rare), two Gear Girimehkala (uncommon), two Die-soujou (common), and two Mini Dominion (common) before getting a Mossy Mothman (super rare).
Th-Thats the Mothman figurine! Wow! His fur looks like its real!
Um, I thought I was trading for a figurine, not a fucking piece!
>Lets trade.
Eh, sure.
Thank you, thank you so much! This is so awesome! Its so fluffy ! Ah, sorry about that. Heres your Model Gun, just like I promised. If you get another Mothman again, please bring it to me!
Now, considering the amount of effort we just put in for a rather low-grade gun, this may not seem worth it. However, this is one of the best (and only) ways to get Model Guns in the game, which are used for weapon transmutation. If you fuse the correct (endgame, naturally) Persona into one of these, youll get a monstrously powerful upgrade to the relevant character. This is just the most blatant example, but Makotos ultimate gun gives her +10 in all stats, its crazy. Sadly, we can only get five Model Guns from this gentleman before he starts offering something else, but its still great.
Now that weve given him what he wants, hell also start trading for the other figurines weve got, in descending order of rarity. Some of these trades are far better than others. Kin-Ki gives us Revivadrin and Life Ointment, which we can just buy, so not that great.
This is the good one. For Girimehkala hell give us Strawberry Curry and Mystery Stew. Strawberry Curry restores 100 HP while lowering defense and our accuracy/evasion rate, which is bad. Mystery Stew, on the other hand, reduces all three parameters but restores 30% SP. Considering Dekunda exists, costs 10 SP, and can eliminate those debuffs in a single turn, this is an amazing item, even if it can only be used in battle.
For Decarabia hell give Muscle Drink (30% HP restore, Attack up, Defense down) and Odd Morsel (30% HP restore, Attack up, Hit/Evasion down).
In the trade for Daisoujou hell give us a Fulfiller (cures Hunger, weirdly missing from the wiki list of items) and a Coolifier Pad (cures Burn, we already have like twenty).
Finally, for the dreaded Mini Dominion, he gives us a Dr. Salt NEO, just because we went to the trouble of bringing it. It restores 20 HP. Fart.
Now, Akihabara also has a few other points of interest that we didnt see today, like a games shop, an arcade, and a maid cafe (that well never visit because were already maxed on Charm), but were also getting dangerously close to the character limit, so well have to continue this in the next post!