Don't forget to read the first or previous part if you haven't!
In the last part, we found our missing friend at the cost of being spooked by a poltergeist. After that, we decided to deny the ghost's existence and break the machine that was causing all that ruckus, however, ghosts don't care about what we think and straight up just started walking towards us. After running for a bit, we found the facility's electrical controls and beat the ever-loving circuitry out of it. This stops the ghosts, but not the collapse of the underground, so we run again. Thankfully, the phantasms show us the way and we escape safe and sound. Now, we'll try again, this time by believing in them, and I'll also show the possible deaths you can get here. Let's begin, shall we?
[I'll start by showing a choice that will actually impact this other route]
I decide---
>That the search for Ms. Yuuka was the top priority.
⬢ >To look for clues on the corpse.
⬢ >To offer a respectful prayer.
This choice allows us to get a bad ending, but I'll only show that later.
>That the search for Ms. Yuuka was the top priority.
"This is an emergency. At this point, let's leave the body alone and give top priority to rescuing Ms. Yuuka."
I felt sorry for the departed, but the living are more important for now.
Now is not the time to worry for the dead. It seems cruel, but there's nothing we can do.
We set out for the nameless station again, hoping to catch a glimpse of Ms. Yuuka...
[Let's skip to the route choice]
The Bizarre Phenomena's Identity
First of all, I need to confirm my feelings... I believe in---
>Science, to the bitter end.
>The reality in front of me.
I believe in that bucket more than in sci*nce.
>The reality in front of me.
Then, do I seriously accept the apparition in front of me as the work of an evil spirit or similar?
>I'm not 100% sure, but I accept it.
>No, let's think again.
You must have noticed by now that we'll always ignore any option with "let's think again" in it.
>I'm not 100% sure, but I accept it.
I will embrace the paranormal, even if not wholeheartedly. Do I have any misgivings about this thought...?
>I have no regrets. (Conclusion)
>No, let's think again.
No regrets.
>I have no regrets.
"Ms. Yuuka... In the end, the poltergeist phenomenon probably is the work of an evil spirit, like my brother said." I honestly conveyed my thoughts.
"Until now, I've always planned on confronting any supernatural occurrence with an impartial stance, but, somewhere in my heart, I've never believed it... However, this time..."
I didn't speak any further. I felt that as soon as I did, the fort that supported my reason would crumble...
"...That's right. This, too, is the first time I've openly encountered the supernatural. It's only natural for you to think that, isn't it?"
"If that really is an evil spirit---"
[Door knock]
We heard the sound of something knocking on the door as if to interrupt our thinking.
"Junya-kun, if this is a spirit's doing, then we can probably use that method." Ms. Yuuka proposed a plan with an earnest look on her face.
"That method...?" Whatever it is, I have a very bad feeling about this.
"It's quite old-school, but it's a way to talk to spirits." My bad presentiment was right on the money. Talking to spirits...?
"It's a famous method, so you've probably heard of it before, right? You ask a question, and if the answer is "yes", they knock once, if it's "no", they knock twice..."
"This method is effective for spirits you can't see and have no voice." Ms. Yuuka puffed up her chest in seeming confidence.
"...But what should I ask?" I candidly express my doubt.
"I thought maybe we could get that spirit on our side." Once again, she let out an absurd remark.
"Okay, Junya-kun? I've been here for four days, haven't I? If it wanted to kill me, it could have done so at any time."
"However, I'm still alive. That spirit's only trying to drive away nuisances, it doesn't intend to cause any more harm, don't you think?"
"But, what if it is...?" In response to my negative question, Ms. Yuuka replied with a laugh.
"Well, we'll cross that bridge when we get there, won't we? This situation is the worst anyway, so we'll just do the best we can."
"Alright? Ready to try talking to it?" I gave up and nodded yes.
Ms. Yuuka face the door and began speaking with a dauntless attitude.
"If you are willing, please answer our questions. One knock for yes, two knocks for no..."
[Knock]
A single knock. "Ms. Yuuka...!"
"Mm-hm. Looks like they're willing. Junya-kun, try asking some questions."
Puzzled by the sudden spotlight on me, I, for now, try coming up with some questions.
⬢ >Are you a ghost?
⬢ >Are you an evil spirit?
⬢ >Are you an alien?
Let's be a little rude.
⬢ >Are you an evil spirit?
"Are you an evil spirit?" If the answer turns out to be "yes"... I pray otherwise as we wait for the replying knocking.
[Knock, knock]
Knocks sounded twice. It's "no". Thank goodness. It's not an evil spirit, at least that's what they say.
Since it's the spirit's claim, it's doubtful to what extent we can trust it, but I would like to believe it if I can. These are my true feelings.
OK. This time, let's ask a question that gets closer to the heart of the matter.
⬢ >Are you a bad person?
⬢ >Are you going to kill us?
Choosing the bottom option will kill us, so we can only go with the top.
⬢ >Are you a bad person?
"Um... Are you a bad person?"
I myself wondered if there existed a person who would answer "yes" at this point, but I asked in order to see how the spirit would respond.
[Knock, knock]
They knocked twice. I hope whoever is behind the door is an honest person.
"See, they don't mean any harm after all. Let's ask them to let us go."
Are we really going to be okay...? But now we can't do much except implore the ghost.
⬢ >Do you know a way out?
⬢ >Will you let us go?
The same applies here.
⬢ >Do you know a way out?
"Do you know a way out?"
[Knock]
A singular knock. They seem to know the way out. The question is whether we can even get there...
"Please! Take us to the exit!" Ms. Yuuka, having grown impatient, shouted out.
[Knock]
They knocked once. Will it really lead us to the exit?
"Woohoo! Let's go, Junya-kun!" Without waiting for my answer, Ms. Yuuka rushed towards the door.
"Ah! W-wait...!"
"Ms. Yuuka!"
Doing such a thing as rushing out without making sure it was safe was completely absurd. However, what I had feared didn't happen.
There was nobody behind the door, nothing weird was seen.
"Hm? What's wrong?" What's wrong is you. Seriously. Still, it's a good thing that nothing happened at all...
"...Hey, look at that." Ms. Yuuka pulled on my suit's sleeve.
There were white footprints left there. The footprints, which appeared to be those of a child, continued to the end of the hallway.
"They're showing us the way. Let's go, Junya-kun."
Ms. Yuuka seems to be completely convinced. I hope they aren't showing us the way to hell...
However, despite my misgivings, the journey went on without incident. We silently followed the white footprints.
"Huh...? The footprints just stop?" The white marks break off in front of an aged door.
"This is the exit... there's no way, right? What do we do? Should we try opening it?"
What to do...
⬢ >Try opening it.
>Do nothing.
Let's go in, woooooo!
⬢ >Try opening it.
"Let's open it, Ms. Yuuka. We'll probably learn of this facility's secret."
We've been through so much hardship. No matter what happens, we'll see it all through.
Had my fear become numbed? Before I knew it, I was able to think in such a self-assured way.
Behind the door was an ordinary room that one would hardly expect to hide a secret. However, within this research facility, it was distinctly foreign.
Play equipment and picture books were left strewn about. This was a child's room.
However, the sturdy iron door and the lack of windows made a clear distinction between this room and an ordinary child's room. This room was probably designed for the confinement of children.
"Hey, Junya-kun. This..." Ms. Yuuka picked up something from the floor.
"A child's photograph... It's a very old photo, isn't it? Junya-kun, that spirit... couldn't they have been this child?"
"...Possibly." I couldn't deny it anymore.
A single knock echoed. "Correct answer..." She softly murmured.
"Hey. Can I ask something? Was this facility a testing ground for some kind of experiment?"
A knock affirmed her question. ---The devil's experiments. I recalled that man's words.
"Could it be that the underground graveyard was for the experiments' victims...?" I inquired, hoping for a refutation.
[Knock]
However, a knock unceremoniously confirmed the existence of the devil's experiments. To think that, for several years after the War, such experiments were being conducted just beneath Tokyo...
"Was it true that research was being done here to manipulate the souls of the dead...?"
A knock didn't come in reply to Ms. Yuuka's words. He himself might never have heard anything regarding the experiments.
My heart ached at the thought of a young child being killed without being told or knowing anything, wandering between this world and the next. I was filled with impotent rage.
[Screen shakes as tremors sound out]
"W-what...!?"
"An earthquake!"
No way... Has the dragon vein or whatever that man talked about begun its activity!?
[The lights die out]
"Damn! A power outage now!?"
"Junya-kun... T-that..."
A white shadow stood lonely in the darkness. It looked like a small child.
The hand of the white shadow moves swayingly. What is it? It seems to be trying to draw something in the air.
But I couldn't decipher what it meant...
"The electricity's...!" The lights, which should have been out, began to come back on. Even this dim light seemed like a miracle to us now.
Moreover, strangely enough, only some of the corridors are lit. It's as if they are guiding us somewhere...
"Should we follow the lights?"
[Knock]
One knock. The white shadow, who disappeared as the lights came back, affirmed Ms. Yuuka's words.
"Thank you..." We simultaneously thanked the invisible boy, putting our feelings into our words as best we could...
We devotedly followed the guiding lights as we ran. Even Ms. Yuuka, in spite of her limits, strenuously ran.
"The exit!" Ms. Yuuka raised her voice in delight.
In that instant--- The bedrock ceiling began to collapse, falling down upon our heads.
With no time to avoid it, we stood still as a great force pushed us from the side. Thanks to that, we barely evaded a direct hit.
The force's identity was Mr. Kogure. His large palms had sent us flying to safety.
"Mr. Kogure!!"
"Yessir! Are you alright!?" I'm not joking when I say that his smiling figure looked like that of a Buddha.
"What were you two doing? You're too late, I'm sick of waiting." My brother spoke bluntly.
"What are you saying? If I hadn't stopped you from putting yourself in danger, you'd have gone back in to help them, no questions asked."
"Who stopped who? It was you that..."
"...Er, Mister? Now is not the time for quarreling, let us please leave speedily..."
As if it had estimated our escape, that cursed underground world collapsed.
The clouds of dust that soared up to the ephemeral heavens even seemed to be the once-trapped souls of the dead.
I only learned of this later, but that region was a no-entry area under government jurisdiction within the commuter belt, so no person was seriously injured.
"Hey, Junya, did you see something in that subterranean research facility...?"
"Yeah... I did..."
Ms. Yuuka and I told them of the events we experienced in the facility, from beginning to end.
[We're thrown into the Inference Logic segment again, it doesn't have any new questions, just different answers, so I'll just skip showing the process]
[All correct]
"...I see. So that's what happened..."
"Mmh... I-I find that to be quite unbelievable..."
"What! So are you saying that Junya-kun and I are lying?" Ms. Yuuka agitatedly defends us.
"N-no, I didn't say it was a lie, I just think that you might have merely mistaken something!"
"Mistaken something!? What we saw was of such a level..."
Suddenly stopping, Ms. Yuuka quiets down. Even she didn't have the will to speak of everything that occurred there.
At least, for now...
"...For your information, I still don't plan on acknowledging such things as the occult or supernatural phenomena."
"However, it certainly seems like this case can't be completely refuted by current science..."
"Science isn't almighty... Again, the same thought as that time..." Ms. Hitomi murmured as she reminisced of long ago.
"Oh, Junya. Looks like you came back alive, didn't ya?" Perhaps having hid somewhere, the Inspector suddenly pops up with an easygoing expression.
"You did a good job. Good work. Returning alive from there's almost unbelievable... I guess that old man's expectations were right, though..."
"Old man" probably referred to the man on the phone.
"Talking about that, where did he go...?" I asked what had been bothering me.
"Ah, that. He's already disappeared somewhere. He's always like that. Don't mind it." She told me not to mind it, but...
"It's not good to worry ‘bout every lil thing. Y'all are gonna have to deal with more cases where common sense doesn't apply in the future after all."
The Inspector is probably right. We are detectives of the Police History Archival Office. Chasing after the darkness that lurks in everyday life is our job.
[Fade to black]
So far, I have been involved in a number of bizarre cases, but in the end, none of them have been resolved to my satisfaction.
We were still unable to obtain any firm evidence this time, too, everything ended up fading into the dark, but this may have been a good thing.
Even if the identity of the devil's experiments had become clear, all we'd have gained would be despair. We're happier not knowing such things.
You could go to the extent of calling it an escape from reality, but I have a feeling that, sooner or later, the time will come when I must face the truth.
Until then, I think I'll surrender myself to the invisible hands of the gods.
What I can say for now is, the truth isn't necessarily a singular thing...
And, the truth is always near us.
In this world, there are many yet unknown truths to us.
Yes. Even right beside you---
[Alright, like the other route, the credits begin playing, but there are two CGs we haven't seen yet in their midst.]
[This is the first, which we'll see very soon by the way.]
[And this is the other one.]
Comprehensive Evaluation: S Class
Final Episode – Nameless Station - End
[Now, let's get those bad endings]
[But first, let's see what this last choice is about.]
I decide---
>That the search for Ms. Yuuka was the top priority.
⬢ >To look for clues on the corpse.
⬢ >To offer a respectful prayer.
Giving a prayer for this body will protect us against the other route's ghost(s), however...
⬢ >To offer a respectful prayer.
I turn to the corpse and offer a respectful prayer.
Calmly judging the situation, we ought to search for Ms. Yuuka as soon as possible.
However, if I were to act without feeling any emotion toward the corpse in front of me, there would have to be a problem with me, both as a detective and as a human being.
There is no doubt that our priority is to search for her, but we wanted to offer our prayers as a gesture of sympathy.
Mr. Kogure noticed my praying and also offered his condolences to the body. My brother and Ms. Hitomi, who had been quarreling earlier, also followed in tow...
Once we ended our prayer, we again stepped forth into that deep dark world, hoping to catch a glimpse of Ms. Yuuka.
[Skip to chase sequence]
I---
>Give in and turn around.
⬢ >Manage to suppress the urge.
It won't save us from these.
>Give in and turn around.
I, contrary to Ms. Yuuka's warning, look back...
Without being given a moment to regret, my body becomes the prey of the dead.
[Stab, crack, screen flashes red]
My fingers were bitten off, my legs were broken, and my arms were ripped off. My limbs were massacred without a single yell from me.
Ms. Yuuka... Please, even if it's only you...
In my fading consciousness, I think I heard her scream.
Comprehensive Evaluation: D Class
Final Episode – Nameless Station - End
[Okay, now let's see the (much better) other bad end]
⬢ >Are you a ghost?
⬢ >Are you an evil spirit?
⬢ >Are you an alien?
Here we go!
⬢ >Are you an alien?
"Are you an alien?" To confirm the alien theory that my brother had initially proposed, I tentatively asked.
Ms. Yuuka to my side opened her mouth, flabbergasted.
Perhaps the poltergeist wasn't inclined to answer such a ridiculous question, as a knock didn't readily come.
[Two knocks]
They knocked twice. It's a "no". They confirmed they weren't an alien in due form.
OK. This time, let's ask a question that gets closer to the heart of the matter.
⬢ >Are you a bad person?
⬢ >Are you going to kill us?
Okay, let me show you the actual killing choice.
⬢ >Are you going to kill us?
"Are you... going to kill us?" If they answer with a single knock here, then...
[Knock]
"...Junya-kun. That now... was a single knock, wasn't it...?" Ms. Yuuka looked at me with an uneasy expression.
"T-there must be some kind of mistake. Let me try asking again. ...Are you going to kill us?"
[Knock]
"I-it was a single knock after all! What do we do!?" Even if you say that, the person who proposed this method was you, Ms. Yuuka.
However, complaining does not make the situation better. In order to get to know our opponent a little better, I continued to ask questions.
"Are you by yourself right now?"
[Two knocks]
They knocked twice. It seems they aren't alone. I continued inquiring further.
"...Are there two people behind the door?"
[Two knocks]
"...T-three people?"
[Two knocks]
They kept knocking twice. Slowly, a terrifying thought began to form.
"How many people are there...? Please answer by the number of knocks."
1...2...3...4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28---
[The knocks gradually escalate in speed and strength, ending in a massive bang]
We saw...
Hordes of the dead overflowing through the breached door...
Hate, resentment, sorrow, grief...
A melting pot of emotions rushes in...
In my fading consciousness, I saw... gaping holes in the abdomen of the deceased who are now trying to rip my arm off...
The corpse we found in the subway tracks... At that time, I...
[Crack, crack, crack]
Comprehensive Evaluation: D Class
Final Episode – Nameless Station - End
The End. Except obviously not. But, before I show the next episode, let me say what I think of this chapter. I liked it. It's much shorter and concise than the others, but it was fun throughout, had no exposition dumps, and had the best bad ending we've seen yet, which is also the last bad ending we'll see, because...
The next episode isn't an 'Episode' anymore, but a 'Chapter', Kirisaki's Chapter, to be exact. The mystery will be about "Satoru-kun". This is not the only change, as in the following chapters, there'll be no choices, outside of a few Self-Questions that won't change the course of events. Additionally, these seem to be flashbacks, so we'll be learning of a few character's pasts, until the last chapter, which is special. Special how? I can't say that yet.
But, anyway, I hope to see you next time!
