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So at first I was going to play the Secret Ends and maybe Another Story, but it was all too depressing.
And then I was playing Jumin's route, and it was going ok, but then my cat got sick and my whole schedule got thrown out so much I'm going to have to restart from a previous save. She seems to be on the mend but I know Jumin's route involves him worrying about the potential for bad things to happen to his cat, and I'm not up for that right now.
And so I have decided this is the universe saying: don't waste your time on these dudes! PLAY JAEHEE'S CHRISTMAS DLC ROUTE. IT'S APPARENTLY VERY SLIGHTLY LESS AMBIGUOUSLY ROMANTIC.
So that's what I did, even though it cost me THREE DOLLARS FIFTY (eg 100 hourglasses). And it WAS slightly less ambiguously romantic, and I enjoyed it a lot because JAAEEEHEEEEEE <3
The Christmas DLC is 1 day of common route ("Christmas Eve") and one day or routes ("Christmas Day") and would probably have been fun to play on those actual days when it came out but never mind. It's not like Australian Christmas resembles Korean Christmas much anyway.
It's set in an AU, I'm still working out the specifics but: MC is in the RFA, but doesn't seem to actually be in charge of anything, instead Jaehee and Yoosung are organising an RFA-esque party for Christmas day under the banner of Jumin's company C&R.
Jaehee hasn't shown up yet and I'm having trouble not flirting with Yoosung. It just makes him so happy!
Flashback to the Christmas party four years ago.
Rika: All donations received today will be used to help child headed households. Children are the hope of our future.
Me, aware of at least two children Rika had ruined the lives of at this point: Fuck you Rika ^_^
It's weird hearing V be cheerfully expressive. Actually I guess I haven't really heard V's voice much before at all.
Seven rings MC.
Seven: What do you think is the most suspicious thing about this man they call Santa Claus?
MC: The locations he appears?
Seven: He used to only be known in the West but now appears worldwide. And traces of him have been found in houses without chimneys. He's thought of as a kindly old man, but is really...
MC: A GHOST
Seven: A spy!
MC: YOU'RE SANTA?!
Seven: No, I can't tell naughty from nice. I believe he's a malicious hacker. It might be a ruse that he only gives presents to nice children, so be careful! You can only trust me, God Seven who controls the seven kingdoms!
Jaehee comes in stressed and needing comfort at THREE AM?? Come on game, don't do this to me. I'M SORRY JAEHEE I WAS ASLEEP ;_;
V says he's the one who asked for C&R to take credit but won't say why. Naturally.
I am so confused by the timeline here. It's been four years since the last party, now? So is this set a year after main game canon? How long has MC been in the RFA? Mystic Messenger came out in July 2016, and this DLC came out in December 2016, so maybe it's been six months?
Jumin: So, why did you ask to meet me?
V: Can you send me the names of the donors from the last party who didn't sign up for this year's one?
Jumin: Of course. But you could have just asked over the-
V: Also I need any credit card purchases they made using C&R cards.
Jumin: Why? That's SUPER illegal.
V: Please just trust me.
Jumin: ...No???
Even Jumin has reached the end of his tether about V being weird and refusing to explain anything, but V just apologises and asks Jumin to forget he asked. Afterwards V looks sadly at a photo of everyone smiling at the last party and angsts.
Jaehee rings MC and talks about how when the last party happened she was still at uni, wondering about her future. She's nervous about having so much to live up to, but proud of Yoosung's hard work. Aw. "I wouldn't have to rely so much on the old notes if Mr Han was helping. It looks like everyone helped when Rika was in charge...do you think noone's helping because it's me and not Rika?"
JAEHEE YOU ARE 10000% BETTER THAN RIKA. EVEN THOUGH SHE HAS A SEX SCENE.
Jaehee: Grr that Jumin Han!
MC: Jumin Han?
Jaehee: I MEAN MR HAN. DIRECTOR HAN.
MC: I'll keep your secret ;)
Jaehee: Hee, thank you. You're the only person I can speak to honestly.
Jaeheeeee <3
Jumin: So. Entirely hypothetically, would you do something illegal for a friend if they asked?
Zen: No. There was a guy I knew growing up who stole bread to eat. All I could do was just...give him half of my bread and tell him we shouldn't do anything bad no matter how bad things get.
Jumin: Did you eat the stolen bread?
Zen: Yeah...should I have thrown it away?
Jumin: I would have sold it. I would have kept increasing my capital until I could pay back the convenience store. The advice you gave your friend is useless and can't prevent further crimes.
Zen, MC, and me: >:(
GOD and when Zen tells him to go help Jaehee and Yoosung he just says he didn't choose for his company to host the event.
MC: Please don't make Jaehee work too hard on Christmas.
Jumin: It was her choice.
Zen: The alternative was to be unemployed, right?
Jumin: When you make decisions you have to face consequences. I don't feel good about this.
Zen: Dude are you going through something?
Jumin: It's none of your business. This is a waste of time. BYE.
Yoosung and MC try to encourage Seven to spend Christmas with everyone else and help Jaehee, but he says he's happier alone and quotes facts about the historical celebration of Christ's birth until they give up.
I really like how concerned Jaehee and Yoosung are about each other's well being despite not actually getting along super well or having much in common asides from being sweeties.
Zen rings MC all "I WISH I HAD A GIRLFRIEND, HINT HINT". Sorry dude, you aren't even on the shortlist.
Vanderwood: if there's one thing I've learned in four years of working with you, Agent 707, it's that you're a pain on Christmas because you refuse to leave your room.
*looks at chat schedule*
WAIT. DOES SEEING THAT SCENE MEAN I'M ON THE SEVEN PATH?? I DO NOT WISH TO BE ON THE SEVEN PATH.
Dammit I was trying not to flirt with Yoosung in the chat with just the two of them and overcorrected ;_;
Urrrgh it's 5pm I don't feel like replaying all those chats for nothing, SO I GUESS I'M ON THE SEVEN ROUTE NOW. SORRY JAEHEE, NEXT TIME I'LL USE A WALKTHROUGH.
So I looked up a walkthrough to make sure I *stay* on the Seven path and the only people I can get points from in the next chat are Jumin and Jaehee.
...I want to make the Jaehee choices SO BAD...
SCREW IT. I'LL TAKE EM. IF I GET ONTO HER ROUTE SO BE IT.
Jumin: You seem to feel bad for Assistant Kang. But she has no more work than usual. Do you feel sorry for her because you think Christmas is a special day where we should do something special?
NO I FEEL SORRY FOR HER BECAUSE SHE HAS A SHITTY BOSS 365 DAYS A YEAR
Every time Jumin is weird about his cat I think of him falling hook line and sinker for Jiyeon the manipulative con artist catboy from Dandelion. Jiyeon's implied to be heteroflexible and I can see him going "A lonely rich dude who is obsessed with cats and rumoured to be gay, huh? Time to put on the charm =^_^="
*sighs for the days when Cheritz made games about catboys and sentient dolls*
MC: You'll be coming tomorrow, right? V will be there.
Jumin: I don't want to see V.
Jaehee: But..we promised everyone...you'd be there... D:
Jumin: I don't know if I should be asking you this, but...
Jaehee: D:
Jumin: Could you organise the credit statements for the 113 previous donors who didn't respond...
Jaehee: D:
Jumin: ...by tomorrow
Jaehee: D:
NO GAME I AM NOT GOING TO EXPRESS CONCERN FOR JUMIN RIGHT NOW
Jumin: I'll notify the payroll office to add holiday rates to your pay.
Jaehee: Mr Han I was really hoping to spend Christmas dinner-
Jumin: My father is calling please excuse me *leaves*
Oh god she is so sweetly grateful for MC's support. SORRY SEVEN WE ARE TURNING THIS ROUTE AROUND.
uuurgh but afaict noone's put the Jaehee scene I missed online ;_; Though I did find this incredibly cute phonecall you get if you call her.
They are definitely upping the jokey no-homo m/m flirting. So far Jumin has pretended to flirt with Zen, and Seven has pretended to flirt with Yoosung and Zen. None of this was taken very well.
Zen: Jumin's such a jerk to Jaehee. I'm allergic to authority.
Seven: I'm good being shoved around as long as I'm paid. Money's da best.
Zen: Yeah right. You don't take orders from anyone.
Seven: Oh my <3 Want me to try, Master? <3
Zen: Get out.
MC: Zen, would you hate it I called you Master?
Zen: Uh...hahaha...I wouldn't hate it. If it's what you want I could endure anything <3
Seven: I thought you were allergic to authority
Zen: CONSENSUAL BDSM IS NOT THE SAME AS AN UNJUST CAPITALISTIC POWER DISPARITY
(Ok that's not exactly what he said, but close enough)
I am flirting with Zen right now to prevent getting more Seven points but if I overcorrect too much again and end up on the Zen route I will NOT BE HAPPY.
I kind of feel like I should just replay from the start and skip chats like this where I can't help but end up getting points with one or more other characters, so I can see Jaehee's earlier scene and know I am securely on her route. But regardless I will keep going with this playthrough for the rest of today.
Jaehee has changed her profile to "Do people give more work as Christmas gifts these days".
Jumin gets drunk and rings MC, rambling about how Santa is illogical, then says "Sometimes I wish I could believe in such things. If Santa gives presents to those who are nice...I can be as nice as he wants. If I could just find out the secrets Jihyun (V's birth name) is keeping from me..." Then he apologises and hangs up. Aw.
Ok, going through this walkthrough to see which chats make it impossible to avoid getting non-Jaehee hearts, it looks like my best approach is:
-0:01 – Christmas Eve: Skip
*03:03 – Overloaded Jaehee: load via hourglasses
*06:48 – 707 on Eve: play if I happen to be up in time
*09:17 – V’s participation: play
11:24 – Spend X-mas with someone: play?
13:42 – Jealous ZEN: play?
-16:15 – Dreams for Christmas: skip
*18:06 – Cold Jumin: play
-19:18 – Can’t rest on Christmas: skip
*20:53 – Preparation: play
*23:01 – Christmas soon!: play
I'd skip the two "play?" ones but could end up under 50% participation. I guess I'll alternate who gets my points. Using a walkthrough is less fun than following my gut so I don't regret the decision not to do this from the start.
Uurgh I might splash out and buy the fast forward function for another $3.50 to make this easier. BUT I'M NOT HAPPY ABOUT IT, CHERITZ. It would mean I could do some "just avoid the game for 2 days" bad ends later, I guess.
Jaehee asks Seven to fill in as Santa "since he enjoys running around" and he says he's too busy, but clearly feels guilty, and she cheers him up.
Hinkiness with some broker means Zen's not only working on Christmas, all the parts got swapped and he has to learn new lines.
INCREDIBLY SAD flashback to child!Saeran talking about being a naughty child who doesn't deserve presents but at least he has Saeyoung. Saeren's voice actor has a very deep voice and didn't sound remotely prepubescent but never mind.
And then some CREEPY ASS messages from adult!Saeran about getting his revenge.
*experiments with putting the background music back on*
*is assaulted with jazzy christmas carols*
*turns the background music back off*
HUH. So I poked around the settings again for the first time since starting the game, and there's variants on the sounds that play when an call/email/message arrives, including the characters saying what I assume is the Korean for "An email has arrived" etc. There's defaults for everyone but also extras that get unlocked when you finish an ending or download a DLC. They would get irritating fast, so I'm not going to use them, and the effect is largely ruined by me not speaking Korean. But the Jaehee Valentine's DLC ringtone is her saying "I love you, I love you, I love you" in English which was...an unexpected experience. NOW HAVE HER SAY IT TO MC IN THE GAME, CHERITZ.
Anyway! I have restarted Christmas Eve! As planned, I skipped the first chat, loaded the second via hourglasses, and was awake in time for the third. I currently have like 9 Jaehee hearts and zero for anyone else. I accidentally got one from Jumin but found a place I could lose it again :D
I got about 20 seconds into waiting for the first chat to play itself out at the max free speed before muttering to myself and shelling out the $3.50 for the ability to fast forward. *mutters to myself some more. WHO MAKES FAST FORWARD A PREMIUM ABILITY*
I am planning on LEAVING THE HOUSE later today which hopefully won't mess up my carefully planned schedule. But as much as I love you, Jaehee, I love my sick cat more.
Oh also I forgot to keep track before but I think I was at about 75 hourglasses when I started the first time and am now at 83.
*avoids Yoosung hearts by suddenly having a thing for V apparently*
Heh afaict I am currently on negative Jumin hearts. Excellent :D
GOT THE JAEHEE SCENE
Contractor: I was expecting lots of C&R staff, but it's just you two. I'm going to have to ring my wife and say I'll be late... You should ring your family too.
Jaehee: ...ah, if there was someone to worry about me when I'm late home...
Three years ago: Jaehee watches people on tv celebrating Christmas Eve while she decides what firms to apply to and practices her cheery interview answers to herself in her tiny room.
It feels VERY WEIRD to deliberately miss chats.
Another 5 hourglasses for a 3am Jaehee chat...
Jaehee: I feel so bad for Zen having to change roles :(
MC: I feel more bad for you, having to work so hard on Christmas.
Jaehee: You're so kind...But I don't mind working. I mean it. If I'm home alone for Christmas I try too hard to spend it "well". The pressure to have fun with family...I...try not to pay attention. Of course...like families on TV...I want to spend a happy Christmas too. Someday...I wonder if that wish will come true.
1 year ago: Jaehee is making phonecalls to check numbers for a report, while everyone she calls is out having fun. Another employee comes in and is baffled since the report's not due until January, and muses to herself that Jaehee looks lonely (a sympathetic female character other than Jaehee and MC?!) Jaehee reminds herself that other people have it worse, and that things are better than they used to be, then gets back to work.
Yoosung is excited that it's the big day! "I put on a face mask Zen gave me when I moved in a year ago...they don't go bad, right?" Working to help someone reminds him happily of doing errands for his mum, who always made a big production of Christmas. He's still a bit pissed about V changing the name but reminds himself that what was important to Rika was helping others.
*resists temptation to take the SCREW RIKA options since while it would certainly avoid Yoosung points, this MC has no good reason to feel that way*
A call from Jumin where he says MC is important to him and that he picked out a gift for her but didn't buy it since, as far as he knew, he had no way to give it to her. He offers to take her out to dinner instead, and it would all be endearing if I didn't know he was AVOIDING JAEHEE'S CALLS when she NEEDS HIS HELP.
He comes into chat and applauds Yoosung for being more mature than SOMEONE who makes secrets and hides things.
Jaehee comes in and VERY POLITELY asks why Jumin hasn't been returning her calls.
Jumin: My phone was acting up so I got a new one. And my father kept calling me.
Jaehee: Yes, Mr Chairman called me himself. It's Christmas and you haven't called him? He's worried. Is something going on? Is Elizabeth the Third sick? Is it because of V?
Jumin: I'll take care of it on my own. Whatever the reason it's not good to let it affect my work.
MC: Aren't you going to give Jaehee a Christmas gift?
Jumin: Do you need one?
Jaehee: Who would not need a gift but...I feel you wouldn't understand the gift that I want, Director.
Jumin: Then we'll postpone that.
Jaehee: ...Yes let's put it off and work...
Zen calls to complain about having to work on Christmas (fair) and act like MC is his supportive girlfriend (YOU HAVE ZERO HEARTS, ZEN. ZERO) And my two options are "I was going to get angry if you didn't call" and "this is my Christmas gift for working so hard. Muah!" ???? ZERO HEARTS, GAME. THERE IS AN 80% CHANCE ANY GIVEN PLAYER IS ON SOMEONE ELSE'S ROUTE BY NOW. WHY DO THIS.
Ugh. Fine. I guess she wanted him to call for some reason. BUT SHE'S NOT MAKING KISSY NOISES.
DAMMIT HE MADE KISSY NOISES BACK ANYWAY.
Seven follows on from what Jaehee was saying about the pressure to be happy on Christmas by talking about how "17 out of a hundred" people might be so unhappy that they hate Christmas.
Yeah, ok, I'm saying something sympathetic, I can afford a single Seven heart.
Seven: You're a nice person. Please keep your heart hidden inside where it won't get hurt.
Yoosung: Did something sad happen to you on Christmas before?
Seven: Hmm? I didn't say I was talking about me.
Yoosung: 17 out of 100 is very specific...
Seven: Cats told me ^_^
Is that a translation of Korean lolcat or Seven's in-universe shonky English? Either way BAD SEVEN STOP TREATING GAYNESS LIKE A JOKE.
I like how in the Seven-approved choices MC wants him to come but respects his choice not to, and leans towards not seeing Christmas as a big deal. I wouldn't like a Pressuring The Christmas Hater To Love Christmas arc.
Unfortunately those are also the choices I am inclined to make naturally which is how I ended up on the Seven route by accident last time...
Yoosung: I wish Seven would come. He seems to be hiding something.
MC: You can't help but suspect something. After all, the game's title is...
Yoosung: Game???
Sorry MC the title is a LIE there are NO MYSTICAL ELEMENTS AT ALL.
Oops think I got too many Yoosung points there. I JUST WANT TO BE NICE TO EVERYONE. IT'S WHAT JAEHEE WOULD WANT.
Yoosung rings MC and I am sure his voice is deeper than it was in the main game. I guess it is six months later, maybe his voice dropped haha. He talks about how grateful he is for the positive changes MC has brought to the RFA then says it feels like she's closer to "them" than him and asks if she has feelings. My choices are "I treat everyone the same", "You're too young to know things like that" and "I like you". Sorry Yoosung, I do not in fact think 20 is too young to know about the love between two women but them's the breaks.
"Stop treating me like a kid. I may laugh in chat but there were were several times I had to squeeze my pillow in jealousy". Oh god Yoosung that does not make me see you as less of a kid.
We see Yoosung and Jaehee as the events starts.
Haaa he calls Jaehee "Jaehee-noona" (an affectionate term for a big sister/older woman you're close to), that's adorable. She calls him "Yoosung-ssi", the same respectful honorific for a peer she uses with everyone but MC and Jumin.
Guest: C&R is so generous, I'll only shop at their stores from now on. But wasn't there a similar event four years ago run by some charity...RFA? Was C&R inspired by them?
Yoosung: ...yes. RFA isn't the official host but we're carrying on their legacy.
*guest leaves*
Jaehee: Are you ok? Thank you for hanging in there. I know some things are yet to be explained.
Yoosung: What do you mean hanging in there? I'm having fun! I feel proud to do what Rika did. But I was hoping Jumin or someone would come help...it feels like you're doing several people's worth of work.
Jaehee: I'm used to it.
Yoosung: ...Jumin wants me to intern at C&R and I'm scared.
Jaehee: Think very carefully about your future before making your decision.
Yoosung: Let's go grab something to eat after this.
Jaehee: I wish I could but Mr Han has something for me to do.
These two are my platonic broship.
Jumin is clearly still sad but has done the things Jaehee asked him to do. Good.
Gasp! Jumin called Jaehee "Jaehee"! Since noone commented on it I'm going to assume it's a writing/translation error.
Jumin: Jaehee has MC who understands her completely. Everyone needs that kind of person in their lives.
MC: I feel her struggles as if they're my own.
Jumin: Thanks to MC, Assistant Kang seems happier while working, and that will lead to company profits.
Aww but then he asks MC to go early to help out Jaehee because it would mean a lot to her. If I can rely on my experiences with anime, "please take care of Assistant Kang" is basically him saying "I give my blessing for your marriage".
Seven rings with the address info and also asks her to help out Jaehee, then apologies for being useless on holidays.
Yoosung: Hello. Thank you for coming to the C&R fundraiser. What's your name?
MC: It's me, MC!
Yoosung: :D
He directs MC backstage, where Jaehee is politely but confidently directing staff to set things up.
MC: You look amazing <3
Jaehee: I'm sorry, this area is staff only
MC: It's me, MC!
Jahee: :D :D
Jaehee: I hope the way here wasn't too cold, your hands must be freezing...oh, mine are colder haha...
ARE THEY HOLDING HANDS??? WHERE'S MY CG???
MC offers to help out and Jaehee is very grateful.
Jaehee rings MC to find out where she is, and when Jaehee finds out MC is changing the lights on the christmas tree says she'll find her and help. Jaehee talks about how much she appreciates all the nice things MC said in the chat, and says she's spent so long just surviving she'd forgotten the warmth she once felt with her family. "Please remember that I will hold memories of this Christmas very close to my heart along with the warm messages you sent me."
Yoosung: Jaehee tried not to show it but she was super happy to see MC. She was smiling so hard lol.
MC: Seeing Jaehee in person makes my heart race
Seven: OMG >.<
Yoosung: Yeah, she looked so cool marching across the venue with piles of paper in her arms.
Seven: I think what MC means is that more of that breathtaking pink pink <3
I don't know what that means but I agree.
Yoosung: I'm jealous, I wish I had a close friend like that.
Seven: You have close friends all around you.
MC: The RFA!
Yoosung: Of course, asides from V everyone is my dear friend...but I want when you start as friends...and become closer...and become boyfriend and girlfriend...
Me: Oh, so you DO understand what sort of friends MC and Jaehee are
Seven: You can start with your LOLOL friends.
Yoosung: NO YOU CAN'T
MC: Maybe if you let go of gender boundaries
Yoosung: That's not a boundary you can just forget because you want to T_T
Seven: You never know lol
*Seven and Yoosung shipping intensifies*
Seven: Aren't we kind of far from something like that? You should make a spaceship like me. It's be faster :D
Yoosung: I'm gonna go T_T
Seven: He ran away T_T Of course it would be awesome to get a happy ending like you
MC: I hope you find someone too, Seven.
Seven: I'm not a good person in the first place so I don't count lol ^_^ Since the event's coming to an end I will return to my world and go back to my usual self~
SEVEN
Awww Jaehee changed her profile text to "You complete my Christmas" and sent a message saying "Thank for being the anecdote (...I assume they mean antidote) to my lonely and exhausting life. I'd like to give back as much as you've given me...would you please give me the chance to give back now?"
I'M NOT SURE WHAT THAT MEANS BUT I ACCEPT
...and then I played straight through to the end without taking notes. Let me remind myself what happened (asides from me melting)....
Wow, the chat history for the DLC is just one big list with every possible chat in it, ordered by time and not marked with what route they're from. That's fine now, when I've basically only seen one route, but will get confusing later. *scrolls past like 15 blanked out unseen chats*
Jaehee comes into chat from the office.
Jaehee: I've never complained about working on a holiday, but I can't believe I had to leave you there. I was fine working on Christmas when I had noone I wanted to share it with.
MC: I miss you.
Jaehee: I... miss you too. I wanted to watched Zen's "Rudolf Crossing Over Hell"...with you if possible.
*continues to headcanon MC as not being remotely into Zen and suffering through all these musicals because it makes Jaehee happy*
...actually on second thought, instead of reading the chat history I'll reload my save and go through the scene taking all the other dialogue options. They were all still shippy just in a slightly different way.
Anyway Jumin comes in and is only moderately douchey. Jaehee is exhausted by all the work she has to do and ponders a nap.
We see Jumin send MC to Jaehee in his car, with the excuse of needing to give her some documents but saying she'd much rather get them from MC than him. You're not all bad, Jumin.
We see Jaehee very adorably mutter to herself sleepily about wanting a holiday, then fall asleep at her desk. MC arrives and and you have the option to wake Jaehee up or let her sleep, but either way MC "tells her how she feels" and kisses her on the cheek. Jaehee doesn't wake up but mumbles happily about how warm it feels.
(You have the option to say "Merry Christmas" instead but... no)
Later Jaehee comes into chat and says she woke from a dream about MC hugging her to a cup of hot chocolate.
Jaehee: I felt a bit embarrassed...It felt as if you came to see me but you couldn't have haha. They say dreams reflect your unconscious and I certainly wanted to see you. While talking to you I realised what Christmas means for the first time. My life won't be any different, but I feel blessed to have someone I can be genuine with...I'm not very good at expressing my feelings. But I'd feel happy if we could spend next Christmas together as well. If possible I'd like to spend more time with just the two of us. You're probably asleep right now...sweet dreams. And Merry Christmas.
THE END
Intellectually that coulda been better but emotionally JAEHEEE I LOVE YOUU
I got my $3.50 worth of value and it made a good distraction. (I'm seeing the extra $3.50 for fast forward as more of a back-payment for my previous enjoyment)
I'll see how I feel tomorrow: Yoosung or Seven Christmas DLC? Back to the main Jumin route? A DIFFERENT GAME??? WE SHALL SEE.
So at first I was going to play the Secret Ends and maybe Another Story, but it was all too depressing.
And then I was playing Jumin's route, and it was going ok, but then my cat got sick and my whole schedule got thrown out so much I'm going to have to restart from a previous save. She seems to be on the mend but I know Jumin's route involves him worrying about the potential for bad things to happen to his cat, and I'm not up for that right now.
And so I have decided this is the universe saying: don't waste your time on these dudes! PLAY JAEHEE'S CHRISTMAS DLC ROUTE. IT'S APPARENTLY VERY SLIGHTLY LESS AMBIGUOUSLY ROMANTIC.
So that's what I did, even though it cost me THREE DOLLARS FIFTY (eg 100 hourglasses). And it WAS slightly less ambiguously romantic, and I enjoyed it a lot because JAAEEEHEEEEEE <3
The Christmas DLC is 1 day of common route ("Christmas Eve") and one day or routes ("Christmas Day") and would probably have been fun to play on those actual days when it came out but never mind. It's not like Australian Christmas resembles Korean Christmas much anyway.
It's set in an AU, I'm still working out the specifics but: MC is in the RFA, but doesn't seem to actually be in charge of anything, instead Jaehee and Yoosung are organising an RFA-esque party for Christmas day under the banner of Jumin's company C&R.
Jaehee hasn't shown up yet and I'm having trouble not flirting with Yoosung. It just makes him so happy!
Flashback to the Christmas party four years ago.
Rika: All donations received today will be used to help child headed households. Children are the hope of our future.
Me, aware of at least two children Rika had ruined the lives of at this point: Fuck you Rika ^_^
It's weird hearing V be cheerfully expressive. Actually I guess I haven't really heard V's voice much before at all.
Seven rings MC.
Seven: What do you think is the most suspicious thing about this man they call Santa Claus?
MC: The locations he appears?
Seven: He used to only be known in the West but now appears worldwide. And traces of him have been found in houses without chimneys. He's thought of as a kindly old man, but is really...
MC: A GHOST
Seven: A spy!
MC: YOU'RE SANTA?!
Seven: No, I can't tell naughty from nice. I believe he's a malicious hacker. It might be a ruse that he only gives presents to nice children, so be careful! You can only trust me, God Seven who controls the seven kingdoms!
Jaehee comes in stressed and needing comfort at THREE AM?? Come on game, don't do this to me. I'M SORRY JAEHEE I WAS ASLEEP ;_;
V says he's the one who asked for C&R to take credit but won't say why. Naturally.
I am so confused by the timeline here. It's been four years since the last party, now? So is this set a year after main game canon? How long has MC been in the RFA? Mystic Messenger came out in July 2016, and this DLC came out in December 2016, so maybe it's been six months?
Jumin: So, why did you ask to meet me?
V: Can you send me the names of the donors from the last party who didn't sign up for this year's one?
Jumin: Of course. But you could have just asked over the-
V: Also I need any credit card purchases they made using C&R cards.
Jumin: Why? That's SUPER illegal.
V: Please just trust me.
Jumin: ...No???
Even Jumin has reached the end of his tether about V being weird and refusing to explain anything, but V just apologises and asks Jumin to forget he asked. Afterwards V looks sadly at a photo of everyone smiling at the last party and angsts.
Jaehee rings MC and talks about how when the last party happened she was still at uni, wondering about her future. She's nervous about having so much to live up to, but proud of Yoosung's hard work. Aw. "I wouldn't have to rely so much on the old notes if Mr Han was helping. It looks like everyone helped when Rika was in charge...do you think noone's helping because it's me and not Rika?"
JAEHEE YOU ARE 10000% BETTER THAN RIKA. EVEN THOUGH SHE HAS A SEX SCENE.
Jaehee: Grr that Jumin Han!
MC: Jumin Han?
Jaehee: I MEAN MR HAN. DIRECTOR HAN.
MC: I'll keep your secret ;)
Jaehee: Hee, thank you. You're the only person I can speak to honestly.
Jaeheeeee <3
Jumin: So. Entirely hypothetically, would you do something illegal for a friend if they asked?
Zen: No. There was a guy I knew growing up who stole bread to eat. All I could do was just...give him half of my bread and tell him we shouldn't do anything bad no matter how bad things get.
Jumin: Did you eat the stolen bread?
Zen: Yeah...should I have thrown it away?
Jumin: I would have sold it. I would have kept increasing my capital until I could pay back the convenience store. The advice you gave your friend is useless and can't prevent further crimes.
Zen, MC, and me: >:(
GOD and when Zen tells him to go help Jaehee and Yoosung he just says he didn't choose for his company to host the event.
MC: Please don't make Jaehee work too hard on Christmas.
Jumin: It was her choice.
Zen: The alternative was to be unemployed, right?
Jumin: When you make decisions you have to face consequences. I don't feel good about this.
Zen: Dude are you going through something?
Jumin: It's none of your business. This is a waste of time. BYE.
Yoosung and MC try to encourage Seven to spend Christmas with everyone else and help Jaehee, but he says he's happier alone and quotes facts about the historical celebration of Christ's birth until they give up.
I really like how concerned Jaehee and Yoosung are about each other's well being despite not actually getting along super well or having much in common asides from being sweeties.
Zen rings MC all "I WISH I HAD A GIRLFRIEND, HINT HINT". Sorry dude, you aren't even on the shortlist.
Vanderwood: if there's one thing I've learned in four years of working with you, Agent 707, it's that you're a pain on Christmas because you refuse to leave your room.
*looks at chat schedule*
WAIT. DOES SEEING THAT SCENE MEAN I'M ON THE SEVEN PATH?? I DO NOT WISH TO BE ON THE SEVEN PATH.
Dammit I was trying not to flirt with Yoosung in the chat with just the two of them and overcorrected ;_;
Urrrgh it's 5pm I don't feel like replaying all those chats for nothing, SO I GUESS I'M ON THE SEVEN ROUTE NOW. SORRY JAEHEE, NEXT TIME I'LL USE A WALKTHROUGH.
So I looked up a walkthrough to make sure I *stay* on the Seven path and the only people I can get points from in the next chat are Jumin and Jaehee.
...I want to make the Jaehee choices SO BAD...
SCREW IT. I'LL TAKE EM. IF I GET ONTO HER ROUTE SO BE IT.
Jumin: You seem to feel bad for Assistant Kang. But she has no more work than usual. Do you feel sorry for her because you think Christmas is a special day where we should do something special?
NO I FEEL SORRY FOR HER BECAUSE SHE HAS A SHITTY BOSS 365 DAYS A YEAR
Every time Jumin is weird about his cat I think of him falling hook line and sinker for Jiyeon the manipulative con artist catboy from Dandelion. Jiyeon's implied to be heteroflexible and I can see him going "A lonely rich dude who is obsessed with cats and rumoured to be gay, huh? Time to put on the charm =^_^="
*sighs for the days when Cheritz made games about catboys and sentient dolls*
MC: You'll be coming tomorrow, right? V will be there.
Jumin: I don't want to see V.
Jaehee: But..we promised everyone...you'd be there... D:
Jumin: I don't know if I should be asking you this, but...
Jaehee: D:
Jumin: Could you organise the credit statements for the 113 previous donors who didn't respond...
Jaehee: D:
Jumin: ...by tomorrow
Jaehee: D:
NO GAME I AM NOT GOING TO EXPRESS CONCERN FOR JUMIN RIGHT NOW
Jumin: I'll notify the payroll office to add holiday rates to your pay.
Jaehee: Mr Han I was really hoping to spend Christmas dinner-
Jumin: My father is calling please excuse me *leaves*
Oh god she is so sweetly grateful for MC's support. SORRY SEVEN WE ARE TURNING THIS ROUTE AROUND.
uuurgh but afaict noone's put the Jaehee scene I missed online ;_; Though I did find this incredibly cute phonecall you get if you call her.
They are definitely upping the jokey no-homo m/m flirting. So far Jumin has pretended to flirt with Zen, and Seven has pretended to flirt with Yoosung and Zen. None of this was taken very well.
Zen: Jumin's such a jerk to Jaehee. I'm allergic to authority.
Seven: I'm good being shoved around as long as I'm paid. Money's da best.
Zen: Yeah right. You don't take orders from anyone.
Seven: Oh my <3 Want me to try, Master? <3
Zen: Get out.
MC: Zen, would you hate it I called you Master?
Zen: Uh...hahaha...I wouldn't hate it. If it's what you want I could endure anything <3
Seven: I thought you were allergic to authority
Zen: CONSENSUAL BDSM IS NOT THE SAME AS AN UNJUST CAPITALISTIC POWER DISPARITY
(Ok that's not exactly what he said, but close enough)
I am flirting with Zen right now to prevent getting more Seven points but if I overcorrect too much again and end up on the Zen route I will NOT BE HAPPY.
I kind of feel like I should just replay from the start and skip chats like this where I can't help but end up getting points with one or more other characters, so I can see Jaehee's earlier scene and know I am securely on her route. But regardless I will keep going with this playthrough for the rest of today.
Jaehee has changed her profile to "Do people give more work as Christmas gifts these days".
Jumin gets drunk and rings MC, rambling about how Santa is illogical, then says "Sometimes I wish I could believe in such things. If Santa gives presents to those who are nice...I can be as nice as he wants. If I could just find out the secrets Jihyun (V's birth name) is keeping from me..." Then he apologises and hangs up. Aw.
Ok, going through this walkthrough to see which chats make it impossible to avoid getting non-Jaehee hearts, it looks like my best approach is:
-0:01 – Christmas Eve: Skip
*03:03 – Overloaded Jaehee: load via hourglasses
*06:48 – 707 on Eve: play if I happen to be up in time
*09:17 – V’s participation: play
11:24 – Spend X-mas with someone: play?
13:42 – Jealous ZEN: play?
-16:15 – Dreams for Christmas: skip
*18:06 – Cold Jumin: play
-19:18 – Can’t rest on Christmas: skip
*20:53 – Preparation: play
*23:01 – Christmas soon!: play
I'd skip the two "play?" ones but could end up under 50% participation. I guess I'll alternate who gets my points. Using a walkthrough is less fun than following my gut so I don't regret the decision not to do this from the start.
Uurgh I might splash out and buy the fast forward function for another $3.50 to make this easier. BUT I'M NOT HAPPY ABOUT IT, CHERITZ. It would mean I could do some "just avoid the game for 2 days" bad ends later, I guess.
Jaehee asks Seven to fill in as Santa "since he enjoys running around" and he says he's too busy, but clearly feels guilty, and she cheers him up.
Hinkiness with some broker means Zen's not only working on Christmas, all the parts got swapped and he has to learn new lines.
INCREDIBLY SAD flashback to child!Saeran talking about being a naughty child who doesn't deserve presents but at least he has Saeyoung. Saeren's voice actor has a very deep voice and didn't sound remotely prepubescent but never mind.
And then some CREEPY ASS messages from adult!Saeran about getting his revenge.
*experiments with putting the background music back on*
*is assaulted with jazzy christmas carols*
*turns the background music back off*
HUH. So I poked around the settings again for the first time since starting the game, and there's variants on the sounds that play when an call/email/message arrives, including the characters saying what I assume is the Korean for "An email has arrived" etc. There's defaults for everyone but also extras that get unlocked when you finish an ending or download a DLC. They would get irritating fast, so I'm not going to use them, and the effect is largely ruined by me not speaking Korean. But the Jaehee Valentine's DLC ringtone is her saying "I love you, I love you, I love you" in English which was...an unexpected experience. NOW HAVE HER SAY IT TO MC IN THE GAME, CHERITZ.
Anyway! I have restarted Christmas Eve! As planned, I skipped the first chat, loaded the second via hourglasses, and was awake in time for the third. I currently have like 9 Jaehee hearts and zero for anyone else. I accidentally got one from Jumin but found a place I could lose it again :D
I got about 20 seconds into waiting for the first chat to play itself out at the max free speed before muttering to myself and shelling out the $3.50 for the ability to fast forward. *mutters to myself some more. WHO MAKES FAST FORWARD A PREMIUM ABILITY*
I am planning on LEAVING THE HOUSE later today which hopefully won't mess up my carefully planned schedule. But as much as I love you, Jaehee, I love my sick cat more.
Oh also I forgot to keep track before but I think I was at about 75 hourglasses when I started the first time and am now at 83.
*avoids Yoosung hearts by suddenly having a thing for V apparently*
Heh afaict I am currently on negative Jumin hearts. Excellent :D
GOT THE JAEHEE SCENE
Contractor: I was expecting lots of C&R staff, but it's just you two. I'm going to have to ring my wife and say I'll be late... You should ring your family too.
Jaehee: ...ah, if there was someone to worry about me when I'm late home...
Three years ago: Jaehee watches people on tv celebrating Christmas Eve while she decides what firms to apply to and practices her cheery interview answers to herself in her tiny room.
It feels VERY WEIRD to deliberately miss chats.
Another 5 hourglasses for a 3am Jaehee chat...
Jaehee: I feel so bad for Zen having to change roles :(
MC: I feel more bad for you, having to work so hard on Christmas.
Jaehee: You're so kind...But I don't mind working. I mean it. If I'm home alone for Christmas I try too hard to spend it "well". The pressure to have fun with family...I...try not to pay attention. Of course...like families on TV...I want to spend a happy Christmas too. Someday...I wonder if that wish will come true.
1 year ago: Jaehee is making phonecalls to check numbers for a report, while everyone she calls is out having fun. Another employee comes in and is baffled since the report's not due until January, and muses to herself that Jaehee looks lonely (a sympathetic female character other than Jaehee and MC?!) Jaehee reminds herself that other people have it worse, and that things are better than they used to be, then gets back to work.
Yoosung is excited that it's the big day! "I put on a face mask Zen gave me when I moved in a year ago...they don't go bad, right?" Working to help someone reminds him happily of doing errands for his mum, who always made a big production of Christmas. He's still a bit pissed about V changing the name but reminds himself that what was important to Rika was helping others.
*resists temptation to take the SCREW RIKA options since while it would certainly avoid Yoosung points, this MC has no good reason to feel that way*
A call from Jumin where he says MC is important to him and that he picked out a gift for her but didn't buy it since, as far as he knew, he had no way to give it to her. He offers to take her out to dinner instead, and it would all be endearing if I didn't know he was AVOIDING JAEHEE'S CALLS when she NEEDS HIS HELP.
He comes into chat and applauds Yoosung for being more mature than SOMEONE who makes secrets and hides things.
Jaehee comes in and VERY POLITELY asks why Jumin hasn't been returning her calls.
Jumin: My phone was acting up so I got a new one. And my father kept calling me.
Jaehee: Yes, Mr Chairman called me himself. It's Christmas and you haven't called him? He's worried. Is something going on? Is Elizabeth the Third sick? Is it because of V?
Jumin: I'll take care of it on my own. Whatever the reason it's not good to let it affect my work.
MC: Aren't you going to give Jaehee a Christmas gift?
Jumin: Do you need one?
Jaehee: Who would not need a gift but...I feel you wouldn't understand the gift that I want, Director.
Jumin: Then we'll postpone that.
Jaehee: ...Yes let's put it off and work...
Zen calls to complain about having to work on Christmas (fair) and act like MC is his supportive girlfriend (YOU HAVE ZERO HEARTS, ZEN. ZERO) And my two options are "I was going to get angry if you didn't call" and "this is my Christmas gift for working so hard. Muah!" ???? ZERO HEARTS, GAME. THERE IS AN 80% CHANCE ANY GIVEN PLAYER IS ON SOMEONE ELSE'S ROUTE BY NOW. WHY DO THIS.
Ugh. Fine. I guess she wanted him to call for some reason. BUT SHE'S NOT MAKING KISSY NOISES.
DAMMIT HE MADE KISSY NOISES BACK ANYWAY.
Seven follows on from what Jaehee was saying about the pressure to be happy on Christmas by talking about how "17 out of a hundred" people might be so unhappy that they hate Christmas.
Yeah, ok, I'm saying something sympathetic, I can afford a single Seven heart.
Seven: You're a nice person. Please keep your heart hidden inside where it won't get hurt.
Yoosung: Did something sad happen to you on Christmas before?
Seven: Hmm? I didn't say I was talking about me.
Yoosung: 17 out of 100 is very specific...
Seven: Cats told me ^_^
Is that a translation of Korean lolcat or Seven's in-universe shonky English? Either way BAD SEVEN STOP TREATING GAYNESS LIKE A JOKE.
I like how in the Seven-approved choices MC wants him to come but respects his choice not to, and leans towards not seeing Christmas as a big deal. I wouldn't like a Pressuring The Christmas Hater To Love Christmas arc.
Unfortunately those are also the choices I am inclined to make naturally which is how I ended up on the Seven route by accident last time...
Yoosung: I wish Seven would come. He seems to be hiding something.
MC: You can't help but suspect something. After all, the game's title is...
Yoosung: Game???
Sorry MC the title is a LIE there are NO MYSTICAL ELEMENTS AT ALL.
Oops think I got too many Yoosung points there. I JUST WANT TO BE NICE TO EVERYONE. IT'S WHAT JAEHEE WOULD WANT.
Yoosung rings MC and I am sure his voice is deeper than it was in the main game. I guess it is six months later, maybe his voice dropped haha. He talks about how grateful he is for the positive changes MC has brought to the RFA then says it feels like she's closer to "them" than him and asks if she has feelings. My choices are "I treat everyone the same", "You're too young to know things like that" and "I like you". Sorry Yoosung, I do not in fact think 20 is too young to know about the love between two women but them's the breaks.
"Stop treating me like a kid. I may laugh in chat but there were were several times I had to squeeze my pillow in jealousy". Oh god Yoosung that does not make me see you as less of a kid.
We see Yoosung and Jaehee as the events starts.
Haaa he calls Jaehee "Jaehee-noona" (an affectionate term for a big sister/older woman you're close to), that's adorable. She calls him "Yoosung-ssi", the same respectful honorific for a peer she uses with everyone but MC and Jumin.
Guest: C&R is so generous, I'll only shop at their stores from now on. But wasn't there a similar event four years ago run by some charity...RFA? Was C&R inspired by them?
Yoosung: ...yes. RFA isn't the official host but we're carrying on their legacy.
*guest leaves*
Jaehee: Are you ok? Thank you for hanging in there. I know some things are yet to be explained.
Yoosung: What do you mean hanging in there? I'm having fun! I feel proud to do what Rika did. But I was hoping Jumin or someone would come help...it feels like you're doing several people's worth of work.
Jaehee: I'm used to it.
Yoosung: ...Jumin wants me to intern at C&R and I'm scared.
Jaehee: Think very carefully about your future before making your decision.
Yoosung: Let's go grab something to eat after this.
Jaehee: I wish I could but Mr Han has something for me to do.
These two are my platonic broship.
Jumin is clearly still sad but has done the things Jaehee asked him to do. Good.
Gasp! Jumin called Jaehee "Jaehee"! Since noone commented on it I'm going to assume it's a writing/translation error.
Jumin: Jaehee has MC who understands her completely. Everyone needs that kind of person in their lives.
MC: I feel her struggles as if they're my own.
Jumin: Thanks to MC, Assistant Kang seems happier while working, and that will lead to company profits.
Aww but then he asks MC to go early to help out Jaehee because it would mean a lot to her. If I can rely on my experiences with anime, "please take care of Assistant Kang" is basically him saying "I give my blessing for your marriage".
Seven rings with the address info and also asks her to help out Jaehee, then apologies for being useless on holidays.
Yoosung: Hello. Thank you for coming to the C&R fundraiser. What's your name?
MC: It's me, MC!
Yoosung: :D
He directs MC backstage, where Jaehee is politely but confidently directing staff to set things up.
MC: You look amazing <3
Jaehee: I'm sorry, this area is staff only
MC: It's me, MC!
Jahee: :D :D
Jaehee: I hope the way here wasn't too cold, your hands must be freezing...oh, mine are colder haha...
ARE THEY HOLDING HANDS??? WHERE'S MY CG???
MC offers to help out and Jaehee is very grateful.
Jaehee rings MC to find out where she is, and when Jaehee finds out MC is changing the lights on the christmas tree says she'll find her and help. Jaehee talks about how much she appreciates all the nice things MC said in the chat, and says she's spent so long just surviving she'd forgotten the warmth she once felt with her family. "Please remember that I will hold memories of this Christmas very close to my heart along with the warm messages you sent me."
Yoosung: Jaehee tried not to show it but she was super happy to see MC. She was smiling so hard lol.
MC: Seeing Jaehee in person makes my heart race
Seven: OMG >.<
Yoosung: Yeah, she looked so cool marching across the venue with piles of paper in her arms.
Seven: I think what MC means is that more of that breathtaking pink pink <3
I don't know what that means but I agree.
Yoosung: I'm jealous, I wish I had a close friend like that.
Seven: You have close friends all around you.
MC: The RFA!
Yoosung: Of course, asides from V everyone is my dear friend...but I want when you start as friends...and become closer...and become boyfriend and girlfriend...
Me: Oh, so you DO understand what sort of friends MC and Jaehee are
Seven: You can start with your LOLOL friends.
Yoosung: NO YOU CAN'T
MC: Maybe if you let go of gender boundaries
Yoosung: That's not a boundary you can just forget because you want to T_T
Seven: You never know lol
*Seven and Yoosung shipping intensifies*
Seven: Aren't we kind of far from something like that? You should make a spaceship like me. It's be faster :D
Yoosung: I'm gonna go T_T
Seven: He ran away T_T Of course it would be awesome to get a happy ending like you
MC: I hope you find someone too, Seven.
Seven: I'm not a good person in the first place so I don't count lol ^_^ Since the event's coming to an end I will return to my world and go back to my usual self~
SEVEN
Awww Jaehee changed her profile text to "You complete my Christmas" and sent a message saying "Thank for being the anecdote (...I assume they mean antidote) to my lonely and exhausting life. I'd like to give back as much as you've given me...would you please give me the chance to give back now?"
I'M NOT SURE WHAT THAT MEANS BUT I ACCEPT
...and then I played straight through to the end without taking notes. Let me remind myself what happened (asides from me melting)....
Wow, the chat history for the DLC is just one big list with every possible chat in it, ordered by time and not marked with what route they're from. That's fine now, when I've basically only seen one route, but will get confusing later. *scrolls past like 15 blanked out unseen chats*
Jaehee comes into chat from the office.
Jaehee: I've never complained about working on a holiday, but I can't believe I had to leave you there. I was fine working on Christmas when I had noone I wanted to share it with.
MC: I miss you.
Jaehee: I... miss you too. I wanted to watched Zen's "Rudolf Crossing Over Hell"...with you if possible.
*continues to headcanon MC as not being remotely into Zen and suffering through all these musicals because it makes Jaehee happy*
...actually on second thought, instead of reading the chat history I'll reload my save and go through the scene taking all the other dialogue options. They were all still shippy just in a slightly different way.
Anyway Jumin comes in and is only moderately douchey. Jaehee is exhausted by all the work she has to do and ponders a nap.
We see Jumin send MC to Jaehee in his car, with the excuse of needing to give her some documents but saying she'd much rather get them from MC than him. You're not all bad, Jumin.
We see Jaehee very adorably mutter to herself sleepily about wanting a holiday, then fall asleep at her desk. MC arrives and and you have the option to wake Jaehee up or let her sleep, but either way MC "tells her how she feels" and kisses her on the cheek. Jaehee doesn't wake up but mumbles happily about how warm it feels.
(You have the option to say "Merry Christmas" instead but... no)
Later Jaehee comes into chat and says she woke from a dream about MC hugging her to a cup of hot chocolate.
Jaehee: I felt a bit embarrassed...It felt as if you came to see me but you couldn't have haha. They say dreams reflect your unconscious and I certainly wanted to see you. While talking to you I realised what Christmas means for the first time. My life won't be any different, but I feel blessed to have someone I can be genuine with...I'm not very good at expressing my feelings. But I'd feel happy if we could spend next Christmas together as well. If possible I'd like to spend more time with just the two of us. You're probably asleep right now...sweet dreams. And Merry Christmas.
THE END
Intellectually that coulda been better but emotionally JAEHEEE I LOVE YOUU
I got my $3.50 worth of value and it made a good distraction. (I'm seeing the extra $3.50 for fast forward as more of a back-payment for my previous enjoyment)
I'll see how I feel tomorrow: Yoosung or Seven Christmas DLC? Back to the main Jumin route? A DIFFERENT GAME??? WE SHALL SEE.
