Part 191: 12/22: Side Note: This City Is Built On Lies

Part 180.5: 12/22: Side Note: This City Is Built On Lies

Well, let’s see what the citizens of Tokyo have to say now that they can’t spoil the game for us.

Music: Disquiet





He’s seriously still going on about the Phantom Thieves? What a hopeless idiot… He’s stuck in some kinda dream world.
They’re not responding well to this at all… something’s wrong…



I don’t even know anymore… Apparently, the Phantom Thieves were also just an internet rumor.
Oh, well. All of that stuff pretty much has nothing to do with us.



Something’s definitely off here…




Ah, Newspaper Club Member. I’ve missed our chats.



You went back to your parents’ place, right? Well, let’s make this next year a good one. I feel this weird vibe in the air. I wonder if it’s because of all the election chaos. The information the mass media is showing is pretty complicated, and it’s getting me frustrated.



I’m sorry to hear that. Hopefully something good will happen this year. I feel this weird vibe in the air. I wonder if it’s because of all the election chaos. The information the mass media is showing is pretty complicated, and it’s getting me frustrated.



Ahaha, acting cool, are you? Let’s make this next year a good one. I feel this weird vibe in the air. I wonder if it’s because of all the election chaos. The information the mass media is showing is pretty complicated, and it’s getting me frustrated.





Oh, you mean the new prime minister? Hey, do you remember all the fuss about the Phantom Thieves?
It’s like none of it ever happened. Pretty insane, if you ask me.
No one could really steal someone’s heart like that. We’re so dumb for believing any of it.




I pretty much failed all my finals. I’m so screwed…
You just need to adopt a new mindset. Get a fresh start in the spirit of the new year. Still, the year could have ended better. I mean, we still haven’t decided on a prime minister.





Well, there’s been a big change in government. We can make that same kind of change next year!
I dunno if this big change in government is a good thing. Shido collapsed, and he looks worn out. Mannn, it’s almost Christmas! Can’t something good happen already?



No, I voted for someone named Yoshida. He’s not the kind of politician who stands out though.
So he’s plan and simple like you? That’s hilarious!
Well, I trust serious, low-key people more for that kind of job. Oh, how’d you do on your finals?
Gah… Sensei, you’re plain and simple, all right. Plain and simply cruel…

Kind Faculty Member is a good guy.



Was it all just some illusion? Am I really just going crazy?



Right!? The Phantom Thieves really do exist! It’s weird that I feel insecure about this though. I mean, I used to idolize them so much…



Hey, come on! Don’t tell me you didn’t know about their glorious comeback!? It’s weird that I feel insecure about this though. I mean, I used to idolize them so much…




We should just stop pursuing this story, like the director instructed us to…
He was serious when he said that the station won’t broadcast reports about the Phantom Thieves. The look on his face made me think that there’s no guarantee we’d live if we disobeyed him.




I can only request this of you, my right-hand man, for you are the one who saved me!
G-Great Sun God…! I will follow you!
Then raise your hands with me! Wake the apostles of light, sleeping in Shibuya!



Remember I still have this guitar/Don’t forget, I still have this song/ Hm, something’s not right… The whole city seems like it’s in a daze… The big bad got his just desserts, and that totally rocks, but… Where’s all the excitement?





My heart is suffering, too…
What!? Are you sick!?
It’s almost Christmas, and I don’t have a boyfriend…
Oh, you…







Wh-What’s wrong, Senpai?
...It’s my loss, Kouhai.
So it’s just like Shido said… Political power backed by just vanity and lies isn’t needed.

I have no idea what these pick-up artists are talking about, but that’s nothing new.




Yes, we need him to bring real change to Japan. My son is nearing his entrance exams. I want a better Japan waiting for him on the other side.





From what I saw on the internet… it looks that way. There’s no actual proof. Anyone who really believed in that was an idiot. How could a heart be stolen, anyway?
I might be an idiot… but it would be nice if they were real…
Ah, uh… yeah, I guess.






The politician who’s supposed to lead our country has fallen ill…
It’s the same sort of tragedy that happens in every era. Heroes fall before reaching their goals.
If we could just give him a little of whatever life we have left to live...



Now on to the next track on our countdown of this year’s hits… This one’s from the popular idol Rise Kujikawa-san, who has garnered support across the board.
Hmph, who do they think they are, acting so happy? Nothing in the world’s been solved at all.

Don’t talk that way about Rise, old man!




Hey… You can cry if you want. You don’t have to hold it in.



*sniff* I want to see you again… Kotaro… *sob*
You’re a good girl for doing your best not to worry Kotaro. And now, he’ll be watching us from the sky.

I’m not crying. You’re crying. Shut up.




If you’ve been safe this year, why not invest more in your safety for next year? Wanna-B-Alert is operating even over the new year! We work our hardest to give you peace of mind! Sign up for our end-of-the-year, last minute contract promotion for a free Wanna-Wanna-kun kagamimochi!





...Only Shido knows. We’ll have to wait for him to get better.
Some people are trying to build a case against him, but it’ll be impossible to find him guilty.
Yeah, he’s the leader of the ruling party. The current prosecution can’t touch him.





I voted for Shido! United Future won with a landslide victory! But then I heard Mr. Shido got sick after campaigning too hard…
Oh, what perfect timing. Sheesh, you can never count on politicians.




That guy is finished. Why isn’t the garbage media covering the Phantom Thieves?
For a netizen, you’re pretty uninformed. Didn’t you hear? The Phantom Thieves never existed. All along, the stories about them were just information terrorism, planned out by foreign countries.



Yes, a celebrolution! I’ve become a billionaire from stock trading! Listen. It’s about Prime Minister Shido. The companies… all linked to him…
Yeah, OK, good for you. Man… The weird ones always come out near the end of the year.

Music: Beneath the Mask



Who knows? Maybe it was a broadcasting accident. I heard it might have been a prank, too.
It’s also strange how no one’s seen Shido. Especially since he was so confident at the beginning. I’m starting to not care about the elections. It’s not like they’re going to change anything, anyway.



They don’t talk about the Phantom Thieves on TV anymore, either. Is everyone going crazy?
Yeah, my parents are suddenly saying the Phantom Thieves were never real at all…
Mine too! It’s so weird… I can’t stop thinking about it whenever I try to do my homework.



But the Phantom Thieves never even existed? So, what we saw was… what? An illusion?
*meow?*
None of the regulars seem to care anymore. I’m so confused…



This place… It suits ya. And with them Phantom Thieves gone, I know ya’ll be safe.
Yeah… People are saying that maybe they were made up after all.
I wonder what they really were… It’s kinda sad, knowin’ they’re gone.

Let’s finish this off by hearing from our irreplaceable stereotypes over in Shinjuku.



Fishy? No, you smell more like a beast. You really need to shower, even in the wintertime.
That’s not what I mean! Isn’t it weird that they’re saying the Phantom Thieves were just an illusion?
Yeah… They were Akechi-kun’s rivals, too. I wonder if they’re trying to cover something up…

And that’s it for Tokyo. Kinda depressing, kinda cynical, kinda insensitive, and all weird. I hope you guys found some value in my transcriptions of all this bullshit, because it’s a huge pain in the ass and I suspect it’s just as boring for you as me. But, it’s interesting to see the way some of these arcs change and evolve as the game progresses.