Part 143: 11/2-11/3: Garden Variety

Part 135: 11/2-11/3: Garden Variety



--- DELETED BY ADMIN ---
Anon: they’re def guilty
Anon: if ur innocent, show yourself
Anon: lol this place went to shit

Music: Beneath the Mask (Instrumental Version)




Why not read the fishing book, even if we’ll probably never go back there?

Music: Everyday Days



It’s a book about fishing, but it talks more about fishing gear and ideal mental states than fish.



I never thought there’d be ways to tell different types of fish apart while they’re underwater… We should go to the fishing pond sometime and test what you’ve learned!




Music: So Boring



There were those incidents in April, then the Phantom Thieves and the principal… *sigh*



Uhhh… _{did he just fucking say that?}

Perhaps you’re wondering why I used such hip terminology, hm?

Oh god, please kill me.

Now then, Hamiru-kun. The word “wack” was also used in a coded language from history. What was that language?



It’s the only answer at all relevant to the game, shockingly.

Correct. If you knew that offhand, then I daresay you must be pretty wack, yourself.

I’m gonna jump out the window out of sheer mortification.

...I’m joking, of course. Still, you must be quite diligent in your studies. To thieves of olden days, wack was actually a noun, meaning one’s fair share. If you wanted your part of a haul of riches your group stole, you would demand your wack, you see.

Maaku gains Knowledge +1.

If today’s youth are freely using Thieves’ Cant to each other in broad daylight… Then truly, we live in wack times indeed.
...I’ve been listening to a lot of teenagers, but I’m not sure I’ve ever heard them say that… ...Still, he’s trying so hard, it would be a shame to correct him.

Would it really?



OK, let’s get everyone together!

Oh no, the game got mad at me for putting off the meetup again!

Music: Suspicion



Can we just get started?
The forced investigation will take place on November 20th. That’s our deadline this time.
Is there any possibility of that investigation being moved to an earlier date?
I highly doubt it.
How can you be so sure? Didn’t that want to catch us as soon as they possibly could?
They may be corrupt, but they are still a bureaucracy.

That’s a really good explanation, honestly!

Certain steps must be taken in order to continue forward. Unless their situation becomes extremely dire, they won’t act with only circumstantial evidence.
I’m impressed, detective man. You sure know a lot about internal affairs.
Yes, he is quite promising.
Well, this is purely a give-and-take relationship. You taught me the inner workings of the Phantom Thieves, so it’s only fair I return the favor. And I will be sure to contact everyone if the investigation team makes any odd movements.
That would be helpful.

Music: Tokyo Emergency



So, now that we’ve got the gang together, we might as well… back out and cancel the operation! We have shit to do today!

Music: Tokyo Daylight



First, we head to Jinbocho to pick up the reward.



I suppose I can sell you this book. I highly suggest you purchase it.



The reward is… another exorbitantly expensive book! Wow! For real though, this book is extremely helpful if you want that book-readin’ trophy because it doubles the number of “chapters” you can read per session. We buy it and resolve to never come back here.

It's really weird, though, as yet another mechanic that comes into play so late in the game that it's just far too late to really take advantage of it. Bizarre.



We also decide to get all the books we haven’t bought from the Shibuya bookstore while we’re at it. At this point we have almost every book in the game. There’s only one we’re missing, but we haven’t done the prerequisite to unlock it yet. We’ll see about doing that sometime later.




Huh…? You sure we’re gonna be OK not headin’ in?



...Eh, I guess it ain’t gonna hurt gettin’ a change of pace.



It’s got to do with the track team… You mind hearin’ me out?



You’re a lifesaver, dude. I’m feelin’ real hungry, so let’s get some monja while we talk. It’s on me.

Music: What’s Going On?




This one’s on me. Don’t expect it to happen too often though. Wait… Where’s my wallet…? ...Eh, whatever.

Goddammit, Ryuji. You promised a free meal!



He said the track team’s gonna try n’ ditch Yamauchi. They wanna start practicin’ without him. They’re trying to get their old coach back too… The one from before Kamoshida. Looks like they’re finally walkin’ their own path.





Oh shit!




It felt kinda bad, but that’s not where I belong now. When you first came to Shujin, people were talkin’ so much shit about you. But you took it in stride. You just did whatever you thought was cool, and didn’t care what other people said about you.

Actually, I cried myself to sleep many times, but let’s pretend it’s your thing.

I think that’s why people kinda get pulled towards you, man. Wherever you decide to be, that’s where you belong.




Y’know… back before I met you, I kept makin’ excuses for why I couldn’t fit in. It was always ‘cause of someone else. Kamoshida, the track team… Hell, I even blamed my dad. I was such a freakin’ loser…

I mean, those people weren’t exactly blameless in your status as an outcast.

But I’ve realized now… as long as I’m bein’ myself, I’ll always have somewhere I can fit in. It ain’t really the same place as before, but it’s damn good. ...I’m just glad I found it.




Right next to me… or maybe ahead? Something like that.
I feel like my bond with Ryuji is growing deeper...





*nods*
Wait, but if you can’t see me, am I really showin’ you anything…?

Wanna see me self-actualize? ...Wanna see me do it again?

Eh, whatever. I think we’ve been talking too long. We’re all outta monja… Wanna try grillin’ some toothpicks?

We’re definitely getting kicked out of this restaurant.

Let’s head home.

Music: Beneath the Mask



This is just the laundry we ordered the other day.



Highly supported by his peers, Representative Masayoshi Shido is rumored to be forming a new party. If an election does happen, it seems Representative Shido’s group will be in the eye of the storm.
Sounds like there’s going to be an election. You’re still not old enough to vote yet, right?



Iwai’s… still unavailable, so we’re just gonna have to keep reading until then.



Isn’t speed reading kinda antithetical to the whole point of reading, which is to go slowly and be absorbed into a work?

...Just kidding, who gives a shit?

Music: Break it Down (Elp Version)



It’s an old book, but it seems to have the fundamentals of speed reading down.



You started flipping pages much faster towards the middle, so I thought you were skipping parts.

Jesus christ man, you speed-read the speed-reading book!? You’re a madman! You’ll kill us all!

I can already see that you’re able to read with more efficiency now!





Anon: what if they are LOL
Anon: stop shitposting lol
Anon: can’t know w/o a trial
Anon: Record-breaking evil

Music: Tokyo Emergency




However, fewer tips have been sent in than expected. It’s suspected people fear possible retaliation. The police are considering increasing the reward and are continuing to request information.
It just keeps snowballing… Is there really nothing they won’t do to catch us?

Music: Tokyo Daylight



We want to hang with Haru today, but she’s at school, and it’s a holiday. Thankfully, she’s visible from the gate.





I’m authorized to use the back entrance to the school. Come on, we can go in that way.





It takes some time for someone as clumsy as me…
Haru seems to be busy taking care of the planters by herself...



The game’s pretty brutal here, putting a Rank 5 Proficiency gate before Haru’s Rank 2, meaning you can’t even get her Baton Pass until you’ve totally maxed it out. Thankfully, Proficiency is pretty easy to max, if repetitive.



So you’ll help me? Well, if you insist.

Music: What’s Going On?



The soil here would be so healthy if you were here more often.
*nods*
Honestly… I’m surprised that my gardening can be of use to our work as the Phantom Thieves. This started as just a hobby, so it’s amazing to see it transform into a more practical skill.



...Coffee beans.




I mean, doesn’t the idea of a boutique cafe sound lovely?
*nods*
Anyway, I recently discovered the joy in the taste and aroma of coffee. I used to think it was purely bitter, but now I understand the depth of its flavor… To tell you the truth… I wasn’t even able to drink it before…




Um… can I share with you again?
*nods*

Just once I’d like the ability to say “no.”

Music: Alright (Elp Version)



For as long as I can remember, the company has been run by my father. Being liked by him was always very important. Some employees would even come to ingratiate themselves to me.



Most evidently, people have started trying to use my influence as majority shareholder to oust other employees. They say they come to me out of respect… but I know they really just want to use me. I’ve heard so many rumors…



There may be truth to that though. He’s been with the company for years, but has only started being nice to me recently. He even offered to assist me with asset management. I fear he has an ulterior motive though…



TRUST NO ONE



He even went as far as to recommend I sell my shares the other day. He said I could make a fortune… But I realized that if I did so, he would be able to strike the Okumura name completely. Takakura-san must be scheming to take the company for himself… ...At least, it’s possible.




None of the advice I’ve gotten so far has been helpful either. Everyone only speaks out of their own self-interest…



Oh, and don’t worry. I’ll make sure I keep myself motivated, even through these difficult times.
I can sense Haru’s trust in me...




I need to make sure these vegetables turn out as good as possible for the Phantom Thieves.
*nods*
Well, see you later.



Again!? Ever since Okumura, there have been so many…
The Phantom Thieves are going way too far…
Are they getting carried away by their popularity?

What popularity?

Are the police going to do anything about this?

Anon: stop shitposting lol
Anon: Record-breaking evil
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Anon: no way they’re innocent
--- DELETED BY ADMIN ---
Anon: Death penalty! Execute!

Music: Beneath the Mask




I have even heard them say we are assassins hired to deal with psychotic breakdown victims.
Ugh, that’s obviously not what we’re trying to do.
This must be part of the plan to shift the blame onto the Phantom Thieves.



Indeed. I have no intentions of letting this slide.
Man, this culprit guy really won’t let up. I don’t remember ever doing anything that’d make someone hate us THIS much.
He used my father as well…
I cannot fathom what his motive may be… We will just have to capture and interrogate him.
But before that, we need to change my sister’s heart. That’s our first step toward stopping him.
I must agree. The true culprit will be caught, but before that we must deal with Sae-san. If ranking is being taken into consideration, perhaps I will be targeted too… Just kidding.

Please don’t make jokes about this. You’re bad at it.



Probably relax at some luxury resort, then start my own business with the rest of the money… ...Wait, we don’t have time for this. What’s our strategy for the clients we’re meeting tomorrow?
*sigh* Back to lame ol’ reality…




Double speed reading!



Unfortunately, we can still only read one book at a time, and we still have more than a few unread one-session books. But our stats are maxed out already so unless you really care about that trophy unlocking the rest of the hangout spots is the only thing we have to gain.

Music: Break it Down (Elp Version)




It’s a famous spiritual spot well-known for its walking paths. Quiet places like this seem nice. I bet you’d really be able to relax if you took someone there.



Apparently, the Meiji Shrine has its own train station. That’s how popular that place is.




Though I guess you could always go alone if you wanted to pray or make a wish for something.

We’ll almost certainly never go here because it’s pretty redundant, but if we visit Meiji Shrine on our own during the afternoon, we can pray to increase our points with a Confidant, like with Chihaya. Unfortunately, it takes up time, but the tradeoff is that you can get more Confidant points per day.