I want to ask how Makoto's day was! Oh and it's totally not because I'm sexually attracted to her, I just want to be polite.

>>1737395
>>"Any advice on how to deal with Terumi?"

"Got any advice on how to deal with Terumi?" you ask.

"Just do yerself a favor and forget all the problems he's caused," Jubei answers.

You catch his drift; the more you'd Observe him, the stronger he'd get.

"How about countering his brutality by mocking him?" you inquire.

"Wouldn't advise it," Jubei responds. "Then again, it might just be crazy enough to work."

"Mr. Jubei, about the Major and Tsubaki..." Noel asks, trying to work up some confidence.

"'Fraid I don't rightly know where they got to," he answers.

"I see," she replies. "Oh, well; I'm sure they're both fine! Take care, Mr. Jubei!"

You wander over to Makoto.

"So, how'd your day go?" you ask her.

Less than ideally, judging from her casts.

"Tough," Makoto responds. "But it was one hundred percent worth it."

"Don't look so sad; she probably hasn't even hit the ground yet."

You hear the words reverberate throughout the air in Hazama's callous, sardonic tone.

They resound from what you first mistake as being your body.

"You bastard..." Noel bitterly reacts. "YOU'LL PAY FOR WHAT YOU'VE DONE!"

"I won't allow this," she tacks on. "NOT EVER!"

"Feel that hate! Let it crawl into your heart and soul! Yes!"

"Maybe I should kill Tsubaki first... Or Jin?"

"WHAT?!" Noel demands.

"You wouldn't want that, would you? YOU'D BETTER HURRY, THEN!"

"Come, Successor to the Azure! Come into the darkness with me! Open those eyes! Don't you want to see the destruction of your world?!"

You experience another warp and find yourself experiencing another possibility.

"Hate my guts; hate your own damn guts; hate the whole world! And, with that Eye, behold the world's despair! Every beautiful facet!"

"I am... a mistake. The world... is useless. The world... is useless," a broken Noel starts droning on.

"You are so right! The world will reject you; humanity will reject you! YOU, BEING THE DOLL THAT YOU ARE! GIVEN THAT, WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO DO, NUMBER 12?! GIVEN THAT! UNLEASH YOUR HATRED–YOUR MADNESS! AND COME–WITH ME–INTO THE DARKNESS!"

You realize what just happened.

You caught a few glimpses of what she saw then.

"The Eye could Observe whatever it wanted, and whatever it Observed was real."

The line echoes from the darkness, and you open your eyes to find yourself next to Makoto, boarding the airship.

"You alright, Ryouma?" she asks. "You kinda just spaced out just now."

>"Yes."
>"Yeah, but thanks for caring."
>"Not quite."
>"Fuck; I just had a bunch of visions from Hazama's perspective. That's bad, right?"
>[write-in]

>>1738897
>"Fuck; I just had a bunch of visions from Hazama's perspective. That's bad, right?

>>1739282
2nding this. People named Ryouma seem to be honestly aggressive types.

"Fuck; I just had a bunch of visions from Hazama's perspective," you reply. "That's bad, right?"

Makoto looks on in shock.

"Sorry; I think that may've been my fault," Noel interjects. "Was it the memory I had where he kept telling me I shouldn't exist?"

"Yeah," you respond. "Can't blame you; I guess I just resemble him too much. Jubei said we shouldn't worry about it, anyways."

"Right," Noel adds.

You board the airship.

Tager chills out in the corner, listening intently.

>"G'night... or day, as it were." [sleep]
>"Got an opinion?"
>"Anyone care to play some music for the trip to Yabiko?"
>[write-in]

>>1739675
>>"Got an opinion?"

"Got an opinion, Tager?" you ask.

"The influx of harsh memories Noel's been experiencing may have been the result of her integrating Lambda," Tager comments.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Noel asks.

"Oh; right," Tager responds. "You don't remember that. Well, Terumi basically refactored Lambda—the 11th Prime Field Device—into a sub-program for you. We're going to want to keep an eye out in case he tries to screw with you."

>"So, Lambda's soul's still there."
>"What'll we be doing once we get to Yabiko?"
>"There's nothing for us to worry about or obsess over, then."
>[write-in]

>>1739761
>>>"So, Lambda's soul's still there."
>>"What'll we be doing once we get to Yabiko?"
can you mix this two op?

"So, Lambda's soul's still there," you reply.

"Correct," Tager affirms. "But it'd probably be better to leave it dormant until Kokonoe finds out what to do with it."

"It would've felt a little less dehumanizing if you referred to Lambda as 'her,'" Noel comments.

"So, what'll we be doing once we get to Yabiko?" you ask, changing the subject.

"That's where Colonel Kagura Mutsuki's headquarters are," Tager answers.

"Ah," Makoto responds.

"Who's that?" Noel asks.

"What?!" Tager interjects.

"Oh, my God—Noel, are you serious?" Makoto reacts.

"Do you know the person, Makoto?" Noel asks.

"Come on; NOL Guard..." Tager adds with auxiliary intent.

>"Who's Kagura Mutsuki?"
>"I'm feeling kind of lost here, too."
>"Should I know this Kagura guy?"
>[write-in]

>>1740433
>>"Who's Kagura Mutsuki?"

"Who's Kagura Mutsuki?" you ask. "I'm just as lost."

Makoto sighs.

"Colonel Kagura Mutsuki. He's the current head of the Mutsuki Family, the chief family of the Duodecim," she explains. "He's also the leader of the Praetorian Guard Corps and the highest commanding officer of the Novus Orbis Librarium Praetorian Guard."

"Oh; so, he's the most important person out of the Praetorian Guard," Noel reacts. "I think I might have heard of him."

"Unbelievable," Makoto replies.

"We call him the Black Knight," Tager adds.

"The Black Knight?" Noel inquires.

"Yes; 'Kagura, Knight of the Black Gale,'" Tager comments. "Had Jin Kisaragi not defeated Tenjo in the Ikaruga Civil War, he most assuredly would have, and be known today as the Hero of Ikaruga."

>"Are either of you familiar with him?"
>"Sounds impressive."
>[write-in]

>>1743228
>>"Are either of you familiar with him?"

>>1743228

>Skip to the action

"Are either of you familiar with him?" you ask.

"Yeah; I've spent some time working with him," Makoto answers.

"What's he like?" Noel asks.

"Kind of a mess," Makoto answers.

"I'm getting kind of tired," you tell them. "Wake me up when we land."

And, with that, you pass out.

"Sounds kind of dull out there," a familiar, grating voice echoes in your head. "I don't envy you."

>"Terumi!"
>"..." [ignore him]
>[write-in]

>>1746943
>act like you are ignoring him while preparing for combat, check our systems scan him stuff like that

>>1746943
>>"..." [ignore him]

You try to get your bearings, but your mind is completely immersed in pitch darkness.

"Having trouble, kid?" Terumi asks in derision.

You start feeling dizzy.

In an instant, your sides light up with pain.

You remain stoic—to Terumi's dismay.

"That's for stomping on my wishes," he comments disdainfully.

Your mental space becomes illuminated with an azure glow.

Terumi stands before you, in plain view.

You assess the situation, summoning your artificial Causality Weapon in preparation for the forthcoming fight.

>"You done yet?"
>[use Serpent's Benediction]
>[use Bloody Fangs]
>[use Hungry Coils]
>[use Vengeful Viper]
>[use Venom Sword]
>[write-in]

>>1746973
Wait, who are we playing as?
Because those are hazama's moves

>>1746980

A clone vessel Terumi once used.

>>1746990
>[use Venom Sword]

>>1746973
>[use Venom Sword]

File: IMG_9788.jpg (114 KB, 720x720)

114 KB JPG

You walk up and let loose a blast of seithr.

"Venom Sword!" you shout out of impulse.

Terumi laughs in the corner, and proceeds to grip your arm with a sidestep, twisting you as he delivers a series of axe-kicks that leaves your neck beneath his heel.

"Now we're talking!"

After a minute or so, Terumi starts sighing out of boredom.

"You done yet?" you ask, hoping to troll him out of your mind.

"Not quite," Terumi responds, pissed. "But it's a miracle I even got this far without that damn vampire interfering."

"It appears we have an unwanted guest," Rachel declares, phasing in.

>"Thanks."
>"Looks like I've got a ticket out of here."
>[write-in]

>>1747254
>>"Thanks."

>>1747254
>attack him then he diverts his attention to rachel

"Tha-," you reply.

"Speak of the devil," Terumi interrupts, slamming his foot on your neck. "It's been fun. See you two morons later."

Terumi leaves with a teleportation ars.

"Are you alright?" Rachel asks.

>"Yes; thank you."
>"Is it over?"
>"I've been better."
>"What am I here for?"
>"Where are we going now?"
>[write-in]

>>1747442
>>"Yes; thank you."
>"Where are we going now?"

"Yes; thank you," you reply. "Where are we going?"

"We are going to discuss our plans henceforth," Rachel answers. "Terumi and I Observed you in this mental simulacrum of the 0th Rune City: Ishana."

"It should feel familiar," she adds. "Try to remember why."

>"What's a Rune City?"
>"Is this... where I was forged?"
>"What's the significance of this place?"
>[write-in]

>>1747516
>>"Is this... where I was forged?"

"Is this... where I was forged?" you ask.

"It is," Rachel answers. "It's also Terumi's preferred resurrection site and the Imperator's current base of operations."

A flashback seizes your mind.

You see your wiry limbs take form in the Cauldron. You marvel at the beings gazing down at you.

Humans.

Mages, from the look of them.

Their shapes become clearer as your eyes grow more refined.

A mad, senseless form of laughter emanates from the darkness within you.

Then your vision goes dark. You can't recall what happens next.

"Do you remember enough?" Rachel asks. "I can only show you so much; it's your mind, after all."

>"I've seen enough."
>"This was the home of the Mage's Guild. Is that important for some reason?"
>[write-in]

"I've seen enough," you reply. "This was the home of the Mage's Guild."

"Correct," Rachel responds. "Terumi often collaborated with and harassed the mages here. That Phantom figure happened to have been one of the mages Terumi murdered and put under his thrall."

You remember the woman clad in violet.

"The Azure Grimoire was designed for the purpose of refining souls without a Cauldron," Rachel continues. "If you ever encounter her, I prithee try to alter hers with benevolent understanding."

"As you wish," you reply.

"This dream's served its purpose," Rachel finishes, opening a portal. "Farewell for now."