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Turns out I got onto the Okazaki path without even realising! I'm liking it so far.
Content note: Violence. A lot of discussion of stalking. I didn't go into it but the game briefly describes some creepy sexual stuff that happened to a minor character.
Cam selfishly went to bed, stopping me from playing, so I got around to uploading some images. And thus, at last, what you've all been waiting for...
The title screen with maths equations!!
...ok now on with the romance and terrorism and so forth.
Ichika goes to the detective agency to discuss the case, and finds Okazaki asleep outside.
Just as she's trying to wake him up, his subordinate Hideaki Yoshinari appears and says "this always wakes him up" and DRAWS A GUN.
But all he has to do is cock it and Okazaki wakes up and unleashes a roundhouse kick.
Yoshinari: Sempai! You totally knew that was me before you kicked me!
Okazaki: Yes :) I figured you'd be able to dodge it since I wasn't trying to kill you ^_^
Ok his expression is amazing I'm going to capture it. This is Okazaki on the left and Yoshinari on the right.
Okazaki: Hello Kitty Cat :)
Ichika: (He totally knew I was there the whole time)
Yoshinari: Oh! Ichika Hoshino! Sempai and I are teamed up to-
Ichika: Yoshinari-kun :)
Yoshinari: SIR, YOUR FOOT! WHY ARE YOU STEPPING ON ME?? Did I say something wrong??
Okazaki: Yes :)
Yoshinari: O-oh. LOVELY WEATHER ISN'T IT SIR.
Okazaki: It's night :)
No it is not too late for a cute girl IN THE POLICE FORCE to be walking out alone >:( On the whole this game hasn't been too bad with the gender essentialism, but there's always gotta be some :/
Ichika: So you knew.
Okazaki: Yes, sorry. It's my job, so I couldn't just ignore you.
Ichika: I should be the one apologising. Let me reintroduce myself. I'm Ichika Hoshina, from Shinjuku Police.
Ooh and she can choose to say she approached the detectives as part of her job, or "I can't say". He's a smart cookie and she's a terrible liar, let's be as honest as we can.
OOH. A "Trust" meter came up?? And his trust went up with that choice! Excellent.
He smiles sadly when he can see from her expression that she can tell he's not being entirely honest about his goals either. But he does seem sincere in respecting the detectives. He says he wants to get to know them better, as well as her, and she doesn't trust it. Good for you, Ichika!
Okazaki grabs Ichika's hand and insists on coming with her to the detective office, where he asks to call her Ichika-chan so sweetly she melts and says yes.
Meanwhile Yoshinari is cheerfully making poetic pronouncements about how he'll protect Enomoto, much to Enomoto's annoyance. Especially when he offers to hide Enomoto's porn from girls lol.
Yanagi gets Yoshinari and Okazaki to leave, and then I have to CORRECTLY DEDUCE DETAILS ABOUT THE CRIME ooh. I got most of them right but had to backtrack for one.
Anyway: this crime was unusually slapdash. Are Adonis so close to success they don't mind a few pawns getting caught? Is this all part of some larger plan?
Also, the victim was a programmer on the game connected to the earlier killings.
Sasazuka is still an ass about how slow she is >:( Ichika feels very aware of only being here because she is useful, not because they respect her skills.
Here's Yanagi, Sasazuka and Enomoto (Shiraishi's not there right now)
They ask her who she wants to work with...and just as I'm pondering who to choose, she says she'd just get in their way, and will instead focus on the case none of them are investigating, the stalking case from July. Apparently the woman was victim-blamed by the public and went into hiding, and the man who killed her stalker is still in custody. The others agree this is a good idea, Shiraishi doesn't find it interesting so he hasn't offered them much info.
Yanagi: I'll walk you home. Also, be careful around Okazaki, he's-
Okazaki: I'm what? :)
Yanagi: Where did you come from D:
Okazaki: I've been here the whole time :) And I'll walk Ichika home, since I know the way.
Yanagi: That's her decision >:(
Ichika: Uh...
And so she walks back with both of them haha.
Okazaki: Why don't you like or trust me, Yanagi :(
Yanagi: I don't dislike you, but we're not ever going to open up around someone doing surveillance on us for the police.
Okazaki: You think I'm reporting everything back? I just want to get to know you because I'm curious :)
I notice he didn't say he's not reporting everything back.
Okazaki heard them discussing the July case and says he feels sorry for the murderer, but Yanagi thinks killing is killing.
Okazaki: Sometimes sacrifices have to be made :)
Yanagi: There is never a good excuse to take a life >:(
Okazaki being in Adonis would be kind of obvious, but Otomate isn't always subtle!
Kazuki appears to working with a pink haired bishie musician! Omg he's covered in bats I'm taking a screenshot.
Ichika doesn't know what's up with that but has noticed Kazuki staying out late a lot. She worries Kazuki is in with the wrong crowd, and I have to decide who to follow!
Pink batboy sounds like a more fun adventure! At a club he notices her following him and says he appreciates her being a fan but politely asks her to be less stalkery about it. A pastel goth loli girl in a bunny-ear hoodie berates her for being a Bad Hiro Fan and then...
STABS HER. TO DEATH?
Fan: I did something good today ^_^
OK THEN. GOOD THING I MADE A SAVE.
Oooh and the end CG has the girl splashed with blood with the numeral VIII in the background. I guess she's in Adonis then! VIII was the police with animal heads being shot, which does fit the animal theme.
Wait...looking at my save file...am I on Okazaki's route?? Huh! I guess he'll do as a place to start, though I do worry he'll be the kind of dubconny I'm not into.
We switch to an abandoned church. A voice says "Zero. I wasn't told a thing about the incident that the agent carried out today."
IS THAT SAITO??? (aka Toriumi KÅsuke) I'm not seeing the game after a brief skim of his filmography but don't want to dig too deep because spoilers. Maybe it's just someone vaguely similar, or he's too minor a character for it to be on his wikipedia page. Anyway!
He calls Ichika 'the collar experiment subject' and seems to be on the phone with someone called 'Zero' who sends Adonis agents out. "Don't distract yourself with trivialities, even if we have chosen the wrong path, the oath we swore long ago is..."
On the way to work, Ichika is accosted by some creeps, and while she's deciding what to do about it Okazaki shows up and coldly wipes the floor with them, saying he can't stand violence against women.
Unless it's a perspective trick, she looks to be only about half a head shorter than him which is almost giant for an otome heroine.
Okazaki: I wasn't following you, I just happened to see you. But if you'd allow it...I'd like to follow you and protect you 24/7. You're too careless and I worry about you.
Ichika: I appreciate the thought but I must decline.
Okazaki: Heh. Then I'll call it quits for now. But if something like that happens again, I'll really consider round the clock protection :)
*has flashbacks to the dog cage in Amnesia*
Ichika thinks that she always seems to let him do what he wants. She knows she should be cautious, but he's so warm, and doesn't seem to have any ill will.
Ichika: Do you hold hands with everyone?
Okazaki: Just people I want to be closer to :)
Ichika, feeling jealous all of a sudden: So...with Yanagi and the others?
Okazaki, seriously: Hmm. Well, Takeru could use it. But he'd get really mad :)
I know we're not SUPPOSED to read this as him being into all of them but her being the first to respond well to his pushy flirting, but that won't stop me.
Ichika gets into holding hands, and feels a little guilty about not rejecting him harder when she's not sure she deserves to be protected.
Come on Ichika.
He easily lets her go as they approach the station so noone will see. And then...smoke! Adonis has set fire to someone near the toilets in a nearby park!
Ichika wants to run in and save them, but Okazaki points out that there's gasoline and papers making it too dangerous to approach, and has to shout at her to calm down and help the nearby civilians instead. She sees a burning paper saying "I love you so much I want to kill you".
CHAPTER 2
They go back over the July incident stuff, and I think the wobbly tenor computerised voice Adonis used back then is the same as the one which announced the fire. OH. And I just remembered that the one for VIII was a cutesy soprano, which matches bunny girl!
At work, Ichika is taken aside by the two Investigations officers Morioka and Minegishi. Morioka thinks it's hinky she was there with Okazaki, and knows she's connected to Yanagi.
Ichika does an ok job of lying!
*gets distracted by all the interesting textures in the sprite art*
Minegishi mentions that 'Rika Sugawara' is a suspect: the woman who was stalked. The video said "The imposition of love can become a weapon. Even though a woman is menaced, the police tell her there has been no crime."
Ichika is concerned about harassing an already suffering woman, but Morioka says they went soft on her out of guilt last time and need to properly investigate her.
Ichika gets Mochida to drive her to Sugawara's house but stay outside, thinking she might be uncomfortable around men. At first Sugawara is bitter and suspicious but Ichika persuades her she just wants to check up on her and get her perspective.
HMM PINK HAIR is she related to Hiro the idol?
Ichika deeply and sincerely apologises on behalf of the police.
Sugawara: It's too late for that, my life has already been ruined. But I have finally been reborn, and can live a new life. So just stay out of my way.
Ohhh that does not sound good.
Sugawara: Do you have anyone you love?
Ichika: Not really.
Sugawara: Ahahaha! How sad. I have someone I love. We just met recently, and so now I know what it's like to love someone so bad that you'd kill for him. He saved me. Now I understand what drove that Shimizu (the stalker) to try and kill me and himself. Shimizu taught me the true meaning of love :D
Ichika: D:
Sugawara: Don't bother investigating this case. Soon everything will be reborn. *slams door*
Ichika: D: D:
Ichika decides to withhold this MASSIVELY SUSPICIOUS BEHAVIOUR from the rest of the police to 'respect Sugawara's privacy'.
Seeing how shaken she looks, Mochida tells her to go have a nap. I hope you don't get fridged or turn out to be evil, Mochida. Look at his cute smile:
Ichika decides to investigate the guy who murdered the stalker, Tomoki Ogata, who is plausibly the man Sugawara loves.
Ichika asks Sakuragawa for info on the July case. As she's reading files, Okazaki 'happens by', and when Sakuragawa asks how they know each other Okazaki implies they're secretly dating.
Sakuragawa: Well aren't you a smooth operator. Looks like you're a girl after all ;)
Ichika: It's not like that!
Okazaki asks to look at the files too and Sakuragawa winks and leaves them alone.
GASP. I GET TO INVESTIGATE A CRIME PHOTO FOR CLUES!!!! :D :D
Ok this is just (mostly dull) exposition with clicking.
Two years ago Ogata stepped in to stop a fight, and someone fell on the train tracks and died. He was unjustly arrested and lost his job. The police officer was later killed as part of the May X-day killings. Ogata was investigated but had an iron-clad alibi.
Also, the fight in July went down implausibly smoothly: Shimizu was on drugs, flailing wildly with his knife, yet Ogata, an untrained businessman, only got a single scratch and then grabbed the knife and killed him with a perfectly aimed strike to the heart.
I have the choice to go with Okazaki to see Ogata or visit Sakuragawa again alone. PINK HAIRED PEOPLE GET YOU STABBED, so, Ogata it is!
Okazaki says he wants to be her partner within the police as she investigates X-Day, and they do make a good team. She likes this idea a lot, and enjoys him protecting and supporting her, but wonders if it's just an excuse to keep an eye on her as a suspect.
Seeing her pensive expression, he texts her to cheer her up even though they're next to each other. Ooh choices formatted as text messages! They have a cute conversation, he uses kaomoijis constantly haha.
Ogata says it was self defence, motivated by a sense of justice, and he only stabbed Shimizu in the heart by chance. "You've got nothing on me yet treat me like a criminal for being that woman's hero. The police will never find the truth while you only think of meeting your quotas by trampling on victims and coercing confessions. I'm grateful to Adonis for showing the world how corrupt you are."
The unjust arrest ruined his life, even his wife and child left. "You unjustly paint people guilty because you've predetermined their guilt."
If he is Adonis this is...well, I guess a normal amount of hypocrisy for Adonis.
He talks about other people who've had their lives ruined by the police and I try VERY HARD not to think about this as a metaphor for Black Lives Matter etc, which had been going for a few years in the US when this game came out in 2016. Though I can't find anything about associated protests in Japan until 2020, and Adonis doesn't seem interested in addressing systemic oppression at all, even with the stalking they didn't talk about it being related to police sexism just incompetence. So it's not as uncomfortable as it could be. For me, at least, I have no idea what conversations were happening about the police in Japan in 2016 and this game makes me curious but also trepidatious.
ANYWAY.
Ichika and Okazaki agree that Ogata is almost certainly in Adonis, but I have to decide if Sakuragawa is too. HMMMMM. I think she is now, but was she then? If not, how did Adonis find out about the situation in the first place? Ooh, but if it was a police mole...
IDK!! *saves* *picks that they were accomplices*
Yes! He agrees!
The situation was clearly a setup, and that setup would only have worked with Sakuragawa's involvement to bring Shimizu and Ogata together.
Now I have to decide if they're LOVERSSSS. Sure why not.
He says that would have turned up in the investigation? Awww. *cheats and rewinds*
Ichika suggests what I've been thinking: that Ogata organised for someone else in Adonis to kill the police officer for him in May, and made sure he had an alibi. Then he killed Shimizu for Sakuragawa. It was pretty obvious but Okazaki hadn't thought of it and is impressed. Go me and Ichika!
Her brain overheats as she tries to figure out the web of substitute murders, he pats her on the head and says to focus on her duty: to protect the people of Shinjuku.
And Sakuragawa is one of those people, someone let down by the police. Ichika says she's going to go try and persuade Sakuragawa to confess to whatever she has done for Adonis, to lighten her sentence.
Okazaki frowns and says she'd be interfering with a case she's not on. She'd get fired at best, arrested as an accomplice at worst. Even though the police have screwed up, they exist to protect, and you can't protect everyone. Sacrifices have to be made, or you end up failing to save those you could have protected.
She understands and respects his logic and conviction, but feels a distance open between them at the idea of accepting small sacrifices and killing one's ego as part of a larger purpose.
Ichika: I don't know what I'd do if the police ever hurt me or someone close to me.
Okazaki: That's normal. Your empathy isn't bad. But don't forget your main duty. The time will come when you have to decide what you'll let go of to get what you actually wish for.
It turns out the fire victim was another stalker, so Sakuragawa is likely to be arrested. Okazaki invites himself along when Ichika goes with Mochida to visit Sakuragawa, and thanks a baffled Mochida for taking care of Ichika. Mochida is a little fawning since Assistant Inspector Okazaki outranks him, and Ichika feels bad for putting Mochida in this position.
Sakuragawa: It's about time you got here. I saw on TV that you've identified the man who burned, do you want me to tell you what he did :)
And then she describes a bunch of creepy sexual stuff nng. He was stalking her, too. It was his love notes burning around him.
Sakuragawa: Ah, something about you has changed! Tell me about the one you love :)
Ichika: Um. He's very reliable.
Sakuragawa: Teehee! Let's go discuss it away from all these men :)
And then she leads Ichika to the park where the man burned to death to trade love stories. Ichika tries to draw her out about the man she loves.
Sakuragawa: He's kind. At first I thought he didn't understand my pain, but he knew exactly how I felt. He broke down and cried and said 'you don't have to be sad any more'.
...is it a policeman, like Mochida or Saeki? Neither of them seem to be love interests, and that's someone she'd have talked to.
Sakuragawa: That man who died here, he claimed to love so many. His love was self serving and shallow. He couldn't be allowed to continue, could he?
When Ichika tries to lead towards getting her to confess, Sakuragawa changes the subject, and Ichika thinks about how she knows she's going to be arrested.
Ichika 'obviously' isn't in love with Okazaki, but thinks of him as she says the man she loves is strong, focussed on his goals, and shows her where to go when she is lost.
Ichika: So how are things progressing with your partner?
Sakuragawa: If possible, I'd like to die with him :) I don't think we'll be seeing each other again, but I'll be rooting for your love.
Ichika: Wait! Adonis threatened you, didn't they?
Which of course just makes her angry because he would NEVER. At last she has the normal love she always wanted instead of some creep!
Sakuragawa grabs Ichika by the throat, revealing the collar.
Sakuragawa: o.O Are you one of the targets? Or are you a comrade? Did Zero make an exception for a cop? You're not part of the countdown, your hands aren't dirty, so why?? Lies! Zero chose ME!!
She collapses, holding her head, muttering "Zero...are you angry? I'm sorry! She's important to you, isn't she? I'll kill her for you, right now!"
And then she pulls out a knife! PINK HAIR STRIKES AGAIN.
Okazaki disarms Sakuragawa and knocks her out. And then...he points a gun at Ichika.
Okazaki: What is that collar? She called you a comrade.
Ichika: (Oh no he's police, Adonis is going to kill me D:)
The collar: She is one of our sympathisers. Please do not cause her any further harm.
Okazaki: Ichiko Hoshino. Are you part of Adonis? Or were you just threatened into helping them?
Ichika: ... :(
The collar: She is necessary to us, yet also an ally to you police officers. She is a good person. If you don't want her to die a meaningless death, we suggest that you do not speak of this matter further. We will not hesitate to purge her if she becomes a problem to us.
His pistol stays pointed at her, unwavering.
END OF CHAPTER TWO
(Sorry, I have only gotten a little into the next chapter and can't play again until tomorrow!)
Turns out I got onto the Okazaki path without even realising! I'm liking it so far.
Content note: Violence. A lot of discussion of stalking. I didn't go into it but the game briefly describes some creepy sexual stuff that happened to a minor character.
Cam selfishly went to bed, stopping me from playing, so I got around to uploading some images. And thus, at last, what you've all been waiting for...
The title screen with maths equations!!
...ok now on with the romance and terrorism and so forth.
Ichika goes to the detective agency to discuss the case, and finds Okazaki asleep outside.
Just as she's trying to wake him up, his subordinate Hideaki Yoshinari appears and says "this always wakes him up" and DRAWS A GUN.
But all he has to do is cock it and Okazaki wakes up and unleashes a roundhouse kick.
Yoshinari: Sempai! You totally knew that was me before you kicked me!
Okazaki: Yes :) I figured you'd be able to dodge it since I wasn't trying to kill you ^_^
Ok his expression is amazing I'm going to capture it. This is Okazaki on the left and Yoshinari on the right.
Okazaki: Hello Kitty Cat :)
Ichika: (He totally knew I was there the whole time)
Yoshinari: Oh! Ichika Hoshino! Sempai and I are teamed up to-
Ichika: Yoshinari-kun :)
Yoshinari: SIR, YOUR FOOT! WHY ARE YOU STEPPING ON ME?? Did I say something wrong??
Okazaki: Yes :)
Yoshinari: O-oh. LOVELY WEATHER ISN'T IT SIR.
Okazaki: It's night :)
No it is not too late for a cute girl IN THE POLICE FORCE to be walking out alone >:( On the whole this game hasn't been too bad with the gender essentialism, but there's always gotta be some :/
Ichika: So you knew.
Okazaki: Yes, sorry. It's my job, so I couldn't just ignore you.
Ichika: I should be the one apologising. Let me reintroduce myself. I'm Ichika Hoshina, from Shinjuku Police.
Ooh and she can choose to say she approached the detectives as part of her job, or "I can't say". He's a smart cookie and she's a terrible liar, let's be as honest as we can.
OOH. A "Trust" meter came up?? And his trust went up with that choice! Excellent.
He smiles sadly when he can see from her expression that she can tell he's not being entirely honest about his goals either. But he does seem sincere in respecting the detectives. He says he wants to get to know them better, as well as her, and she doesn't trust it. Good for you, Ichika!
Okazaki grabs Ichika's hand and insists on coming with her to the detective office, where he asks to call her Ichika-chan so sweetly she melts and says yes.
Meanwhile Yoshinari is cheerfully making poetic pronouncements about how he'll protect Enomoto, much to Enomoto's annoyance. Especially when he offers to hide Enomoto's porn from girls lol.
Yanagi gets Yoshinari and Okazaki to leave, and then I have to CORRECTLY DEDUCE DETAILS ABOUT THE CRIME ooh. I got most of them right but had to backtrack for one.
Anyway: this crime was unusually slapdash. Are Adonis so close to success they don't mind a few pawns getting caught? Is this all part of some larger plan?
Also, the victim was a programmer on the game connected to the earlier killings.
Sasazuka is still an ass about how slow she is >:( Ichika feels very aware of only being here because she is useful, not because they respect her skills.
Here's Yanagi, Sasazuka and Enomoto (Shiraishi's not there right now)
They ask her who she wants to work with...and just as I'm pondering who to choose, she says she'd just get in their way, and will instead focus on the case none of them are investigating, the stalking case from July. Apparently the woman was victim-blamed by the public and went into hiding, and the man who killed her stalker is still in custody. The others agree this is a good idea, Shiraishi doesn't find it interesting so he hasn't offered them much info.
Yanagi: I'll walk you home. Also, be careful around Okazaki, he's-
Okazaki: I'm what? :)
Yanagi: Where did you come from D:
Okazaki: I've been here the whole time :) And I'll walk Ichika home, since I know the way.
Yanagi: That's her decision >:(
Ichika: Uh...
And so she walks back with both of them haha.
Okazaki: Why don't you like or trust me, Yanagi :(
Yanagi: I don't dislike you, but we're not ever going to open up around someone doing surveillance on us for the police.
Okazaki: You think I'm reporting everything back? I just want to get to know you because I'm curious :)
I notice he didn't say he's not reporting everything back.
Okazaki heard them discussing the July case and says he feels sorry for the murderer, but Yanagi thinks killing is killing.
Okazaki: Sometimes sacrifices have to be made :)
Yanagi: There is never a good excuse to take a life >:(
Okazaki being in Adonis would be kind of obvious, but Otomate isn't always subtle!
Kazuki appears to working with a pink haired bishie musician! Omg he's covered in bats I'm taking a screenshot.
Ichika doesn't know what's up with that but has noticed Kazuki staying out late a lot. She worries Kazuki is in with the wrong crowd, and I have to decide who to follow!
Pink batboy sounds like a more fun adventure! At a club he notices her following him and says he appreciates her being a fan but politely asks her to be less stalkery about it. A pastel goth loli girl in a bunny-ear hoodie berates her for being a Bad Hiro Fan and then...
STABS HER. TO DEATH?
Fan: I did something good today ^_^
OK THEN. GOOD THING I MADE A SAVE.
Oooh and the end CG has the girl splashed with blood with the numeral VIII in the background. I guess she's in Adonis then! VIII was the police with animal heads being shot, which does fit the animal theme.
Wait...looking at my save file...am I on Okazaki's route?? Huh! I guess he'll do as a place to start, though I do worry he'll be the kind of dubconny I'm not into.
We switch to an abandoned church. A voice says "Zero. I wasn't told a thing about the incident that the agent carried out today."
IS THAT SAITO??? (aka Toriumi KÅsuke) I'm not seeing the game after a brief skim of his filmography but don't want to dig too deep because spoilers. Maybe it's just someone vaguely similar, or he's too minor a character for it to be on his wikipedia page. Anyway!
He calls Ichika 'the collar experiment subject' and seems to be on the phone with someone called 'Zero' who sends Adonis agents out. "Don't distract yourself with trivialities, even if we have chosen the wrong path, the oath we swore long ago is..."
On the way to work, Ichika is accosted by some creeps, and while she's deciding what to do about it Okazaki shows up and coldly wipes the floor with them, saying he can't stand violence against women.
Unless it's a perspective trick, she looks to be only about half a head shorter than him which is almost giant for an otome heroine.
Okazaki: I wasn't following you, I just happened to see you. But if you'd allow it...I'd like to follow you and protect you 24/7. You're too careless and I worry about you.
Ichika: I appreciate the thought but I must decline.
Okazaki: Heh. Then I'll call it quits for now. But if something like that happens again, I'll really consider round the clock protection :)
*has flashbacks to the dog cage in Amnesia*
Ichika thinks that she always seems to let him do what he wants. She knows she should be cautious, but he's so warm, and doesn't seem to have any ill will.
Ichika: Do you hold hands with everyone?
Okazaki: Just people I want to be closer to :)
Ichika, feeling jealous all of a sudden: So...with Yanagi and the others?
Okazaki, seriously: Hmm. Well, Takeru could use it. But he'd get really mad :)
I know we're not SUPPOSED to read this as him being into all of them but her being the first to respond well to his pushy flirting, but that won't stop me.
Ichika gets into holding hands, and feels a little guilty about not rejecting him harder when she's not sure she deserves to be protected.
Come on Ichika.
He easily lets her go as they approach the station so noone will see. And then...smoke! Adonis has set fire to someone near the toilets in a nearby park!
Ichika wants to run in and save them, but Okazaki points out that there's gasoline and papers making it too dangerous to approach, and has to shout at her to calm down and help the nearby civilians instead. She sees a burning paper saying "I love you so much I want to kill you".
CHAPTER 2
They go back over the July incident stuff, and I think the wobbly tenor computerised voice Adonis used back then is the same as the one which announced the fire. OH. And I just remembered that the one for VIII was a cutesy soprano, which matches bunny girl!
At work, Ichika is taken aside by the two Investigations officers Morioka and Minegishi. Morioka thinks it's hinky she was there with Okazaki, and knows she's connected to Yanagi.
Ichika does an ok job of lying!
*gets distracted by all the interesting textures in the sprite art*
Minegishi mentions that 'Rika Sugawara' is a suspect: the woman who was stalked. The video said "The imposition of love can become a weapon. Even though a woman is menaced, the police tell her there has been no crime."
Ichika is concerned about harassing an already suffering woman, but Morioka says they went soft on her out of guilt last time and need to properly investigate her.
Ichika gets Mochida to drive her to Sugawara's house but stay outside, thinking she might be uncomfortable around men. At first Sugawara is bitter and suspicious but Ichika persuades her she just wants to check up on her and get her perspective.
HMM PINK HAIR is she related to Hiro the idol?
Ichika deeply and sincerely apologises on behalf of the police.
Sugawara: It's too late for that, my life has already been ruined. But I have finally been reborn, and can live a new life. So just stay out of my way.
Ohhh that does not sound good.
Sugawara: Do you have anyone you love?
Ichika: Not really.
Sugawara: Ahahaha! How sad. I have someone I love. We just met recently, and so now I know what it's like to love someone so bad that you'd kill for him. He saved me. Now I understand what drove that Shimizu (the stalker) to try and kill me and himself. Shimizu taught me the true meaning of love :D
Ichika: D:
Sugawara: Don't bother investigating this case. Soon everything will be reborn. *slams door*
Ichika: D: D:
Ichika decides to withhold this MASSIVELY SUSPICIOUS BEHAVIOUR from the rest of the police to 'respect Sugawara's privacy'.
Seeing how shaken she looks, Mochida tells her to go have a nap. I hope you don't get fridged or turn out to be evil, Mochida. Look at his cute smile:
Ichika decides to investigate the guy who murdered the stalker, Tomoki Ogata, who is plausibly the man Sugawara loves.
Ichika asks Sakuragawa for info on the July case. As she's reading files, Okazaki 'happens by', and when Sakuragawa asks how they know each other Okazaki implies they're secretly dating.
Sakuragawa: Well aren't you a smooth operator. Looks like you're a girl after all ;)
Ichika: It's not like that!
Okazaki asks to look at the files too and Sakuragawa winks and leaves them alone.
GASP. I GET TO INVESTIGATE A CRIME PHOTO FOR CLUES!!!! :D :D
Ok this is just (mostly dull) exposition with clicking.
Two years ago Ogata stepped in to stop a fight, and someone fell on the train tracks and died. He was unjustly arrested and lost his job. The police officer was later killed as part of the May X-day killings. Ogata was investigated but had an iron-clad alibi.
Also, the fight in July went down implausibly smoothly: Shimizu was on drugs, flailing wildly with his knife, yet Ogata, an untrained businessman, only got a single scratch and then grabbed the knife and killed him with a perfectly aimed strike to the heart.
I have the choice to go with Okazaki to see Ogata or visit Sakuragawa again alone. PINK HAIRED PEOPLE GET YOU STABBED, so, Ogata it is!
Okazaki says he wants to be her partner within the police as she investigates X-Day, and they do make a good team. She likes this idea a lot, and enjoys him protecting and supporting her, but wonders if it's just an excuse to keep an eye on her as a suspect.
Seeing her pensive expression, he texts her to cheer her up even though they're next to each other. Ooh choices formatted as text messages! They have a cute conversation, he uses kaomoijis constantly haha.
Ogata says it was self defence, motivated by a sense of justice, and he only stabbed Shimizu in the heart by chance. "You've got nothing on me yet treat me like a criminal for being that woman's hero. The police will never find the truth while you only think of meeting your quotas by trampling on victims and coercing confessions. I'm grateful to Adonis for showing the world how corrupt you are."
The unjust arrest ruined his life, even his wife and child left. "You unjustly paint people guilty because you've predetermined their guilt."
If he is Adonis this is...well, I guess a normal amount of hypocrisy for Adonis.
He talks about other people who've had their lives ruined by the police and I try VERY HARD not to think about this as a metaphor for Black Lives Matter etc, which had been going for a few years in the US when this game came out in 2016. Though I can't find anything about associated protests in Japan until 2020, and Adonis doesn't seem interested in addressing systemic oppression at all, even with the stalking they didn't talk about it being related to police sexism just incompetence. So it's not as uncomfortable as it could be. For me, at least, I have no idea what conversations were happening about the police in Japan in 2016 and this game makes me curious but also trepidatious.
ANYWAY.
Ichika and Okazaki agree that Ogata is almost certainly in Adonis, but I have to decide if Sakuragawa is too. HMMMMM. I think she is now, but was she then? If not, how did Adonis find out about the situation in the first place? Ooh, but if it was a police mole...
IDK!! *saves* *picks that they were accomplices*
Yes! He agrees!
The situation was clearly a setup, and that setup would only have worked with Sakuragawa's involvement to bring Shimizu and Ogata together.
Now I have to decide if they're LOVERSSSS. Sure why not.
He says that would have turned up in the investigation? Awww. *cheats and rewinds*
Ichika suggests what I've been thinking: that Ogata organised for someone else in Adonis to kill the police officer for him in May, and made sure he had an alibi. Then he killed Shimizu for Sakuragawa. It was pretty obvious but Okazaki hadn't thought of it and is impressed. Go me and Ichika!
Her brain overheats as she tries to figure out the web of substitute murders, he pats her on the head and says to focus on her duty: to protect the people of Shinjuku.
And Sakuragawa is one of those people, someone let down by the police. Ichika says she's going to go try and persuade Sakuragawa to confess to whatever she has done for Adonis, to lighten her sentence.
Okazaki frowns and says she'd be interfering with a case she's not on. She'd get fired at best, arrested as an accomplice at worst. Even though the police have screwed up, they exist to protect, and you can't protect everyone. Sacrifices have to be made, or you end up failing to save those you could have protected.
She understands and respects his logic and conviction, but feels a distance open between them at the idea of accepting small sacrifices and killing one's ego as part of a larger purpose.
Ichika: I don't know what I'd do if the police ever hurt me or someone close to me.
Okazaki: That's normal. Your empathy isn't bad. But don't forget your main duty. The time will come when you have to decide what you'll let go of to get what you actually wish for.
It turns out the fire victim was another stalker, so Sakuragawa is likely to be arrested. Okazaki invites himself along when Ichika goes with Mochida to visit Sakuragawa, and thanks a baffled Mochida for taking care of Ichika. Mochida is a little fawning since Assistant Inspector Okazaki outranks him, and Ichika feels bad for putting Mochida in this position.
Sakuragawa: It's about time you got here. I saw on TV that you've identified the man who burned, do you want me to tell you what he did :)
And then she describes a bunch of creepy sexual stuff nng. He was stalking her, too. It was his love notes burning around him.
Sakuragawa: Ah, something about you has changed! Tell me about the one you love :)
Ichika: Um. He's very reliable.
Sakuragawa: Teehee! Let's go discuss it away from all these men :)
And then she leads Ichika to the park where the man burned to death to trade love stories. Ichika tries to draw her out about the man she loves.
Sakuragawa: He's kind. At first I thought he didn't understand my pain, but he knew exactly how I felt. He broke down and cried and said 'you don't have to be sad any more'.
...is it a policeman, like Mochida or Saeki? Neither of them seem to be love interests, and that's someone she'd have talked to.
Sakuragawa: That man who died here, he claimed to love so many. His love was self serving and shallow. He couldn't be allowed to continue, could he?
When Ichika tries to lead towards getting her to confess, Sakuragawa changes the subject, and Ichika thinks about how she knows she's going to be arrested.
Ichika 'obviously' isn't in love with Okazaki, but thinks of him as she says the man she loves is strong, focussed on his goals, and shows her where to go when she is lost.
Ichika: So how are things progressing with your partner?
Sakuragawa: If possible, I'd like to die with him :) I don't think we'll be seeing each other again, but I'll be rooting for your love.
Ichika: Wait! Adonis threatened you, didn't they?
Which of course just makes her angry because he would NEVER. At last she has the normal love she always wanted instead of some creep!
Sakuragawa grabs Ichika by the throat, revealing the collar.
Sakuragawa: o.O Are you one of the targets? Or are you a comrade? Did Zero make an exception for a cop? You're not part of the countdown, your hands aren't dirty, so why?? Lies! Zero chose ME!!
She collapses, holding her head, muttering "Zero...are you angry? I'm sorry! She's important to you, isn't she? I'll kill her for you, right now!"
And then she pulls out a knife! PINK HAIR STRIKES AGAIN.
Okazaki disarms Sakuragawa and knocks her out. And then...he points a gun at Ichika.
Okazaki: What is that collar? She called you a comrade.
Ichika: (Oh no he's police, Adonis is going to kill me D:)
The collar: She is one of our sympathisers. Please do not cause her any further harm.
Okazaki: Ichiko Hoshino. Are you part of Adonis? Or were you just threatened into helping them?
Ichika: ... :(
The collar: She is necessary to us, yet also an ally to you police officers. She is a good person. If you don't want her to die a meaningless death, we suggest that you do not speak of this matter further. We will not hesitate to purge her if she becomes a problem to us.
His pistol stays pointed at her, unwavering.
END OF CHAPTER TWO
(Sorry, I have only gotten a little into the next chapter and can't play again until tomorrow!)
no subject
Date: 2021-11-26 01:52 am (UTC)There are a lot more 'and then you die' bad endings in this than I would've expected :D I'm kind of intrigued by the crime-solving elements (and wondering if they secretly wanted to be making an adventure game).
no subject
Date: 2021-11-27 08:09 am (UTC)Yeah I'm wondering how many more bad ends there are that I DIDN'T stumble into!
I was going to say "The umbrella company Idea Factory makes other genres of games, they could just make an adventure game" but I think it's all RPGs and dating sims so maybe not. Anyway, I enjoy these genre-mixing otome games myself. Shakes up the formula a bit!