Part 15

Update 15:


"Right... Uh huh... Okay, thanks. I'll talk to you later.

I knew finding other clues wouldn't be easy. The only leads we have are that his name's Rasputin and he's Russian."





Sounds kind of mundane, doesn't it?




"It's not like you to leave the shop. Something the matter?"

"Well you see, I do have a problem of sorts... It's been sometime since I last received any shipments."


"Out of stock? So just place an order for more goods. "


"Oh, how I wish it were something that simple. I've always ordered my stock from Mr. Harada in Harumi-Cho.
Lately though, my shipments from Harada have been disappearing. I gave them a phone call, and discovered Mr. Harada had passed away recently."


"I'm very sorry to hear that, but I do have important detective work to get back to.
Please send along our condolences, though."






"Huh? My service?"


"That's right. Mr. Harada's passing doesn't explain anything about the disappearing cargo, does it?
They haven't stopped business, they keep shipping out product.
And yet, I don't have any merchandise. Does that seem ordinary to YOU?
You should enjoy this one. Only Harada & Co.'s cargo is disappearing. None of my associates have had this problem. The cargo's unloaded from the ship, and then... Poof! Gone.
So? What do you think?"

"Well, the goods are clearly being taken at night, after they're unloaded, but before you come."

"That was my assumption as well, naturally.
So... I hired more sailors to stand watch over the shipment, intent on spotting the thief. But, all of a sudden, everything just vanished into thin air. And not just the cargo. Several of the sailors disappeared too.

Disapepared right in front of their fellow sailors. Interesting, isn't it?"


"I'm listening."


"So, whether you care about saving my business, or simply satisfying your curiosity...
Could you do something about this situation?"

"Do something? What the heck am I supposed to do!?"


"You're a detective, aren't you? I'm sure you'll figure something out. Otherwise, I'll be forced to close down Konnou-Ya, and if that happens, you'll be affected too, am I right?"


"Technically, yeah..."


"Then we have a deal! I'm counting on you two."


"Fine. Hold on a minute... You said Harumi-Cho, right? Well, that works out for us, Harumi-Cho is the Capital's largest seaport. Raidou, I want you to investigate Harumi-Cho and try to figure out this Konnou-Ya cargo caper.

And while you're there, maybe ask some people about our Russian comrade. Da?

I'll try working my usual channels as well."


Well, Narumi accepted the case. Since the owner of Konnou-Ya is away, maybe Raidou can get some thingies...





"You're welcome to purchase what I have here, but don't forget about Harumi-Cho, all right?"





Jesus fuck, everything is at TWICE THE REGULAR PRICE.

Well, time to visit Victor.


"There's nothiong like an ocean voyage. The vast expanse of waves will do your heart good. I suggest you try it sometime. Take it from me, though... Avoid the Arctic Ocean."




Fusion time!


Pretty damn nice.


Time to go to Harumi-Cho.



"If you've come all this way, it would be a shame not to visit the naval headquarters. Just go up that hill right there, and you can't miss it."



Ah, more aphrodisiac bovine... Things.




"She was walking down to the pier, looking as magnificent as ever."
So, the owner of Ryugu is related to that Harada guy?



From queen of Libya to This?



Raidou can't handle Lamias yet. YET. One would be a pretty nice addition to his menagerie, though.



Hm. Nice building.



"You're free to enjoy yourself, as long as you don't fool around."



Ghouls are gross. And they poison Raidou if they hit him.



Sati, always burning, one of the forms of Shiva's first wife.



Vitality has been increased.



"They used to be thick as thieves, so I don't know what came between them."




Useful when a demon gets charmed. If Raidou does, useless, since he will be frozen. Not trying to attack his own demon, or healing the enemies, just frozen.



"Mindread: Never seen dead body before... They told me Capital is safe place...
I run away... Far, far away..."
Hm. Strange. Could that have any relation to the current case? Nah, maybe not.





Hey, look! There she is, the owner of Ryugu.



"Is Mr. Narumi overworking you? Maybe a raise is in order, hm?
Oh, me? I'm here because I was born and raised in Harumi-Cho.
Have you heard of Harada & Co.? It's actually my family's business.

I quit to start my job at Ryugu, and left Harada & Co. to my big brother, but... Six months ago, he died.
Sank to the bottom of the sea, along with his cargo.
Naturally, they asked me to take over for him. But, there are so many strange things happening lately.

It's frustrating, we think all the monster business is over after Ginza-Cho, and now... Sorry, I didn't mean to ramble on like that.

So, what brings you here? I assume you aren't sightseeing. If there is anything you want to know, just ask."




"That old man actually left his store to ask for help? Yes, he-s been a loyal customer of ours for some time. I'm fully aware that this has been a great inconvenience for Konnou-Ya, but we did send out a ship just recently...
If we're lucky, he'll receive his order soon. If not...
Konnou-Ya will shut down, and our reputation will follow it."




"Rasputin? Never heard that name before, sorry."





"Ah, no wonder you came to Harumi-Cho. Starting six months ago, right after my brother died, our cargo started disappearing. We assumed it was stolen, so we posted sailors as guards. And it happened again, only this time it was the sailors who disappeared.

We have witnesses, supposedly, the sailors vanished into thin air.
But the police won't believe it! Not even with the sailors missing and unaccounted for!
These men risked their lives and braved the sea to deliver that cargo! And it just vanihes!
I feel as though I've shamed my family and our business."


"Well, no new dirt on Rasputin. But, at least her story matches up with what Konnou-Ya told us. Time to go back top the detective agency and plan our next move, Brian."




"I won't do anything in front of the owner of Ryugu, but... I can't stand those guys."
Hooray! Xenophobia!







Jazz, maybe?



"It's surrounded by water, so you couldn't get in anyway."




Something tells me that that church will be important somehow.







At last, Raidou could reenact the intro movie if he ever finds another Red Cape. The Combination attack would be useless, though.


"Mindread: Me introduce firl him, he give me reside permit. He get girl, I get papers, we both happy."
Hooray, bureaucratic corruption!




More vitality.

Time to go back.



"Although, you're always buying up thinks like bullets and medicine... Is detective work really that dangerous?"


More Fusion time!


This guy will help Raidou to kick ass.


And then, when the asses have been kicked, he will assist Raidou to get a Ghost car. Everyone wants a Ghost Car.



"So... Still no dirt on Rasputin then, huh?
As for the Konnou-Ya case, it's all riding on what happens to the next ship. Harada's in a fix. It's a bizarre case, that's for sure.
But, it doesn't seem to have anything to do with Rasputin.
On the other hand, I checked with the Department of the Interior about Rasputin.
... And didn't find anything either.

There isn't any record of any foreigners named Rasputin being in Japan.


But then, I had a thought... If Rasputin's an illegal alien, we aren't going to find him via legal means, are we? Would you mind contacting the Haguro-Gumi again?
Satake's well versed in the Capital's... seedier happenings.
I think we've got a chance running that angle.
At least it's the best we've got. Whaddaya say, Raidou?"

Back to Fukagawa-Cho, I guess.



"Well, I'm sure you have your reasons. I don't mean to criticize ya."



"One look at us, and he turned tail shouting, "Please don't kill me!
Rude, ain't he?"
Could it have been Detective Kazama?




"Naked, of course. It'd make the Buddha tattoo on my back happy, too."




"So, you wanna know about Harumi-Cho? The other day it was Senju-ku, and now it's Kotou-ku? Detective work keeps you moving, eh?

Don't worry about it. Here's what I know...
Harumi-Cho is like a small town of merchants. This mug, Harada, used to be the big cheese of the trade industry in those parts. Then, there was this really good foreign merchant... Elfman, I think.
Anyway, different race or not, those two worked together and helped each other out. Real touching story, right?
Anyway, then Harada died. Elfman shut out all the Japanese merchants so foreigners could rake in the clams.
Now, I don't know about this next bit, but I've heard rumors he's got friends in the military.

So, Elfman kind of rules the roost down there at the moment.


Eh? An illecal alien?
I dunno, but it-s a definite possibility. It ain-t hard to sneak into the country, if youv'e got the right ship.
For someone with Elfman's influence, it wouldn't be a problem at all. But then, how do you plan on proving he snuck someone in?
You ask Elfman directly, you ain't getting a straight answer.
"


"Yeah, this 'Elfman' doesn't exactly seem on the up-and-up. What do you think, Brian? Give it a try anyway?
I hope Elfman doesn't mind if we pay him a visit. *grin*"

Holy fuck, Gouto is the Cheshire Cat.


"There's an ugly rumor going around that Elfman has teamed up with the Military's top brass. Yeah, well, it takes one to know one. Be careful, ya hear?"




"Turns out, she was an unlicensed streetwalker. I said 'No thanks' and kept walkin'. You gotta be polite, even to dames like that."


"Plenty of people are willing to break the law to protect what's theirs."


Once again, time to go to Harumi-Cho.



"I can't imagine a person who's capable of an atrocity like that... The damage was inhuman."
Surely unrelated, as well.





"Mr. Narumi already told me that the next ship is scheduled to bring my merchandise. I just fiished going over the details with Ms. Harada. She's confident that I'll receive my merchandise at last. It's just off the coast, and they're unloading the cargo as we speak. Maybe I can finally sleep peacefully tonight."


"We're not in the clear just yet, though.
i won't believe any of it until I see the cargo with my own two eyes. If worse comes to worst... I'm not sure what I'll do."

"We're through the worst of it. It shouldn't take too long to unload; we'll just need to be patient a little longer."



He had to speak, hadn't he?


"They vanished too?"



"But, I used money from the store to arrange for that delivery... I'm very sorry. It didn't work out after all."




Maybe?


"I can't stand seing people cry. We really should give them a hand.
If things are disappearing from this world... Where do you suppose they're going to?"







Find a less convenient place where to get overpriced ammo and healing things_
But shit, where would Victor be? That's the biggest problem.





Time to go to a new place in the Dark Realm. Yes indeed.



Well, guess what, Gouto was right. There is a Sailor there.


Next: Raidou searches for Sailors.