File: Tokyo.png (128 KB, 512x768)

128 KB PNG

>>4524958
It's an early Monday morning in Tokyo. You yawn and rub your eyes as you wake up from your sleep. You don't hear your alarm. You must have slept through it. That's not good. You quickly check your phone. 7:41 AM. You'll be cutting it close, but you can still make it if you hurry. You also notice that you have some messages that you need to check, but that can wait until you're on the train and don't have to worry about being late.

As you jump up and get dressed, your vision passes over the gift your dad gave you the other day. Some really weird bug you don't recognize that's been engulfed in resin. It's like out of Jurassic Park. It's kind of cool, but also creepy. You kind of have to keep it since your dad gave it to you, but maybe you'll put it away somewhere instead of leaving it sitting out.

Moving along quickly, you dash to the bathroom. As you exit your room, you can hear some people talking in the main room down the hall. Not a surprise, given the meager size of this apartment. One of the voices is a surprise though. In addition to your mom and dad, you can hear the voice of Tadashi, your older brother. You would have thought he'd be on base right now doing JSDF things, but he seems to have swung by to spend the morning at the Emushi family home (apartment). And here you are sleeping in and nearly missing him.

Determined not to waste any more time, you get to the bathroom to quickly wash your face and brush your teeth. As you do so, you get a good look in the mirror.

You are...
>A high school boy
>A high school girl

Feel free to throw names around too, but it's okay if there isn't a consensus right away, we can get away with waiting a few posts

>A high school boy, Hideo Taji

>>4524961
support

>>4524959
>>A high school boy
>megami tensei quest
This some good shit

>>4524959
>>A high school boy
>Hideo Taji
LAZE

>>4524959
>A high school boy
Fine with any name

>>4524961
I'll back it, always good to see a new SMT quest.

I don't want to leave the first choice like this sitting for a long time, but it took me a while to get into my twitter and now I need to eat dinner. I'll be back in a while

>>4524959
>A high school girl

>>4524959
>A high school girl
Aiya Ishii

>>4524959
>>A high school girl

There's enough support for Hideo, so I'm going with it. Last name is fixed, though

>>4524961
That's right, you're a high school boy. A seventeen year old senior. You finish up in the bathroom, and make your way to the kitchen to grab something quick you can eat on the way out the door. Your parents and brother seem to have eaten already, as they are sitting in the living room chatting away. Dad is all suited up for work, but he can get away with leaving later than you, so he milks it for all it's worth.

As you grab some bread and fruit, your brother takes a pause in his conversation with your parents and turns around in his chair.

"Yo, Hideo!" he grins and waves. "I haven't seen you in weeks and you're already trying to get out of here? Is that any way to treat your big brother?"

You respond as standard for interactions with your sibling.

>Blow him off. He's never around anyway, so who cares?
>Give a standard greeting and leave it at that. You guys were never particularly close
>Apologize for sleeping in and almost missing him. You'd been dying to see your big bro again and now this happens

>>4525034
>Give a standard greeting and leave it at that. You guys were never particularly close

>>4525034
>Apologize for sleeping in and almost missing him. You'd been dying to see your big bro again and now this happens
It's not an SMT quest without having to kill your friends and family.

>>4525034
>Apologize for sleeping in and almost missing him. You'd been dying to see your big bro again and now this happens

>>4525034
>>Apologize for sleeping in and almost missing him. You'd been dying to see your big bro again and now this happens

File: Inside Train.jpg (77 KB, 1280x720)

77 KB JPG

>>4525040
>>4525042
>>4525047
"Sorry bro, I accidentally slept in." you say, genuinely regretful that you can't stay longer. "I'll try to make it up to you next time, okay?"

"Sure, sure. I'll make sure next time I show up, I tell you guys in advance." Tadashi replies. "Having this morning free was kind of a surprise to me, too. Hell, maybe I can bring you on base sometime. I do have a bit of authority now."

"That's right, Mr. Lieutenant. You're moving up in the world." your dad laughs heartily. "Lieutenant Emushi, that's gotta sound good every time you hear it! I can only imagine. Now you're just missing a girlfriend."

You'd love to stick around to hear your dad heckling Tadashi some more, but you're in a rush. You say good bye and wave one more time, then run out the door and down the stairs. You guys are on the fourth floor, so you have to fly down to make good time. It's tough to do while eating, but you manage it. Once at the bottom, the train station is just a couple minutes away by sprinting, so you make it just in time for the next train. You squeeze your way on, and then breathe a sigh of relief. You can rest for a bit until your stop.

You take this opportunity to check your phone's messages. The first one is from your best friend Wataru. It's him sperging about some kind of weird happenings recently that he thinks are supernatural. You never bother replying to these, since he'll just talk to you about it at school anyway.

Next is from your other closest friend, Akari. She seems to have sent you some sort of personality test or something. She always gets way too into these. You'd like to ignore it, but she always gets nagging you if you do that. This one is pretty short anyway, you can easily do it while on the train. You pull it up and read the directions.

>Organize the following traits by personal importance to you:
>The strength to make your own way
>Faith in the supernatural
>Skill at working with your hands
>The will to endure hardships
>A sense of urgency in your work
>The ability to get along with others

This choice will determine your starting stats

>>4525062
>Skill at working with your hands
>The will to endure hardships
>Faith in the supernatural
>The strength to make your own way
>A sense of urgency in your work
>The ability to get along with others

>>4525062
>Faith in the supernatural
>A sense of urgency in your work
>The will to endure hardships
>Skill at working with your hands
>The ability to get along with others
>The strength to make your own way
Time to dump all our stats into MAG

>>4525062
>The ability to get along with others
>The will to ensure hardships
>Faith in the supernatural
>Skill at working with your hands
>The strength to make your way

>>4525062
>The will to endure hardships
>The strength to make your own way
>Skill at working with your hands
>A sense of urgency in your work
>Faith in the supernatural
>The ability to get along with others

>>4525066
>>4525070
>>4525073
>>4525075
Final tally of votes by placement:
STR: 11
MAG: 16
DEX: 16
END: 20
AGI: 11
CHA: 10

Current character sheet looks like this:
Hideo Tadashi
Male, 17
Light: Null, Dark: Weak
HP: 14/14, MP: 13/13
STR: 2
MAG: 3
DEX: 3
END: 4
CHA: 1

The scale of stats in this game will be low, they are mostly used for checks and will be hard to raise. When you roll a stat check, it will be a d20+the relevant stat

>>4525087
Forgot Agility, that's also at 2. Anyway, actual next post incoming

>>4525087
>Hideo Tadashi
Holy fuck, I am out of practice. Need to proofread my shit. Tadashi is the aniki. Last name is Emushi by QM decree for reasons

>>4525087
>Cha: 1
Social skills and friends are for suckers
>Null Light
Nice
>Weak Dark
Oh, oh no

File: High School.jpg (119 KB, 1000x563)

119 KB JPG

You think a bit and put the prompts in order. Undoubtedly the most important is to be able to tough things out. You have always been able to make things work out if you just endure. Next would be either the supernatural one or the skill one. They're kind of even. You're always listening to Wataru talk about his occult fascination, and you do have legitimate interest. As for skill, well, you gotta have it. Can't get anywhere with grit alone. Next would be between urgency and strength. Going fast is nice and all, but not the most important thing. As for strength, you don't need it to make things work out. You can kind of go with the flow. Lastly you put the ability to get along with others. Yeah, you've never been great at that. You've just got the few friends, but that's enough for you.

Yep, that is the kind of person you are. You think on the results briefly as you send them back to Akari. You then check the other two messages you received. You're pretty surprised at both of these. They're both from childhood friends that you don't really hang out with anymore.

First is your old pal Chousuke. He kind of fell in with a bad crowd halfway through middle school, and you barely see him anymore. He doesn't come to school much. But here he is, sending a message to you. Apparently he wants to get out of his delinquent rut and get his life back together. He asks if you want to hang out at the arcade later and talk over some video games like old times.

The other message is from another childhood friend, Shouko. She also hung out with you and Chousuke back in middle school, but she went the other way. Perfect honor student, studying all the time. Busy with the student council. She's in another class, so you barely see her either. Apparently she wants to meet with you too, saying she has something important to talk to you about. "I'm involved in an important project, and I thought of you as a potential confidant. I remembered you as the kind of person that could be counted on." About as vague as she could possibly have been.

You wonder if you could even do both of these if you wanted. Probably not, if they mean today after school. Not to mention, your usual friends probably expect you to be down to hang out too. You spend too long thinking about this, and miss any chance to reply to either of the texts. The train reaches your stop, and you have about five minutes to book it to your school and your class.

You run as fast as you possibly can, and pull onto the campus of Hitogata Metropolitan High School with two minutes left. Luckily your classroom is close to the entrance, and you reach your seat with ten seconds to spare.

"Damn dude, cutting it close." Wataru says, from the neighboring seat. "I'll talk to you about that thing at lunch."

The classes fly by, as mundane as usual. Once lunch comes around, you and Wataru push your desks together and pull out your food.

>>4525107
You were fortunate enough to have a packed lunch from your mom that you could just grab on your way out the door. The two of you are joined by a third desk pushed into the group, that of your friend Akari.

"I got your test results." she says, mentioning that thing from this morning. "If we can combine those with a few more questions, then it'll tell us some interesting things."

"Forget that." Wataru waves as he makes time to talk between bites. "I have the real deal here. Check this out."

He pulls out his phone and shows some pictures. Some stuff from the local news about vandalism and a picture of one such scene. A building with some windows smashed and gashes cut in the walls.

"That shit is concrete. You would need some serious tools to make a cut like that." Wataru explains. "Yet there's no residue that would indicate their use. There is no explanation here that fits common sensibilities! I've been digging into this for real, I know this is the jackpot."

"What, you think it's angry ghosts or something?" Akari asks.

"It could be!"

"Either way, are you sure it's a good idea to get too involved?" Akari poses the question, with some sincere worry behind it. "Look at that damage, it could be dangerous. Can't you look into some less... hostile supernatural business? What do you think, Hideo?"

>A. It's worth following the lead despite any danger
>B. Just a little research won't hurt, just don't go out there personally
>C. She's right Wataru, you better back off from this one

>>4525111
>B. Just a little research won't hurt, just don't go out there personally

>>4525111
>B. Just a little research won't hurt, just don't go out there personally

>>4525111
>>B. Just a little research won't hurt, just don't go out there personally

>>4525111
>B. Just a little research won't hurt, just don't go out there personally

>>4525119
>>4525122
>>4525123
>>4525124
"Just a little research won't hurt, just don't go out there personally." you voice a compromise. "There's plenty you can learn without putting yourself in danger, I'm sure."

"I'm skeptical. You know how they love to cover up things they don't understand." Wataru complains. "Some things you have to go and se for yourself. But I guess I can play it safe for now. I've been in touch with some guys in the know, so I think I have an in to get all the sweet details."

"You really are hopeless, Wataru. How about I offer an alternative?" Akari suggests. "I don't have track practice today, so we could go to my family's shrine. Just this weekend I found this box sealed with some talismans, I know you'd be interested in that, right? There's probably some cool mystical artifact inside."

"Well, that's not going anywhere, right? We can check that out anytime." Wataru replies. "But these incidents are time-sensitive. The longer I wait, the lower the chance I can get the facts."

You remember those texts from earlier. You surprisingly have a lot of options for stuff to do after school today. Chousuke and Shouko both want to see you. You could go check out the artifact Akari's shrine, or join Wataru in his research. Then again, you could just go home. Oh yeah, you could theoretically get Wataru and/or Akari to come with you to any of the other things, assuming you could convince them. You try to come to a decision.

>A. Go hang out with Chousuke at the arcade, dude probably needs a friend
>B. Go see what this important business Shouko needs you for is, she did say she could depend on you
>C. You are really interested in that artifact Akari mentioned
>D. Wataru's research is the most urgent thing right now, you want to be part of that

In addition:
>Optionally, try to convince Wataru and/or Akari to come with you to any of the other things

>>4525130
>A. Go hang out with Chousuke at the arcade, dude probably needs a friend

I think I'm gonna let this one sit for the night and go to bed. This is an extremely important choice that will largely deterine the direction of the quest. Basically, this determines the type of shit you get immediately involved with, though there will be a chance to back out and choose something else before it's finalized if you really don't like the one you picked. Anyway, night guys, I'll pick this up tomorrow. Started a bit later than I should have, really

>>4525130
>C. You are really interested in that artifact Akari mentioned
>Convince Wataru to come along

>>4525130
>B. Go see what this important business Shouko needs you for is, she did say she could depend on you

Please don’t die like the last SMT quest

>>4525130
>D. Wataru's research is the most urgent thing right now, you want to be part of that
>"The artifacts aren't going anywhere but wgatever caused this might. You should come along with us Akari. We'll obviously do our best to avoid any trouble but having someone else with us will lower the risk of something bad happening, strength in numbers after all."
We can shoot Chousuke and Shouko a text and explain the situation, they'll probably understand, after all doing this scratches both the Chaos and Law itch, proving our strength and stopping a lawbreaker.

>>4525288
What he said

I lost power, so I don't know how long that will take to resolve, but in the meantime this >>4525288 has two people supporting, so it won

Go ahead and roll CHA to try and convince Akari to join. 1d20+1

Rolled 18 + 1 (1d20 + 1)

>>4525619

Rolled 12 (1d20)

>>4525619

Rolled 16 + 1 (1d20 + 1)

>>4525619

Rolled 6 + 3 (1d20 + 3)

>>4525619
Forgot to include Akari's counter-roll. CHA rolls will generally be made against each other, which also means people with high CHA can pull shit over on you easier because of your low bonus. The danger of dumping CHA

File: Magatama.jpg (348 KB, 1640x2268)

348 KB JPG

>>4525627
You're currently the most interested in what Wataru is digging into. Rather than hear about his findings tomorrow at school, you want to be next to him when he uncovers the truth. And maybe Akari could be persuaded as well.

"Hey Akari, why don't you come with us if you're worried about us getting in so much trouble?" you ask. "It'd be better than worrying while leaving us to our own devices, right?"

Akari looked like she was about to make a rebuttal, but she closed her mouth and thought for a second.

"You're right." she admitted. "I have no choice but to keep an eye on you two myself."

With your plans for the evening finalized, you shoot texts back to both Chousuke and Shouko. You tell them that you have plans already that you can't change on such short notice, and that you'd like to meet up with them each another time. Though you have some doubts it will be that easy. They hadn't reached out to you in years before now, who knows if it's something you can just put off. But you have made your choice for now, and you'll see what you can do about them later.

The afternoon classes fly by the same way the morning ones did, and the three of you head over to Wataru's house. As usual, his parents aren't home. You don't know if they're just working or out of town entirely, but neither would be odd. You all grab some snacks to munch on as Wataru takes a seat at his battlestation. His parents are loaded from working all the time, so this multi-screen setup is no big deal for him. He pulls up what he's gathered so far on one screen to leave it there for reference, then gets back to digging.

"I've had to worm my way into some seriously obscure forums, man." he says as he types away. "But it's paying big dividends. I can tell these guys are legit. Get this, the scenes are just treated as vandalism, right? The media is saying the perps just want to destroy stuff. But these guys are telling me it's a cover-up. It's actually theft. And what's being stolen is a secret, so they won't admit anything is being stolen at all. Here, I'm getting a pic from one of my contacts. Apparently this is what the 'vandals' are after."

He blows up a pic and flings it over to another screen so you and Akari can easily see it. You're instantly shocked. It seems to be a picture of a weird bug. But you recognize it. It's just like the one you have at home cased in resin. Your dad gave it to you just the other day, saying it was "a mushi for Emushi'. One of his usual jokes. You always thought something was weird about it, but if it's connected to these attacks this could be serious.

"Aw sweet, they want me in! I'm in, guys!" Wataru announces happily. "I just got sent this exe. file they said I need. Wow, this is pretty big. I better scan it to make sure I'm not getting tricked with this."

Wataru runs some program to do just that, and waits. You meanwhile are still looking at the pic of that bug. You're suddenly worried about everything.

"Hideo? You okay?" Akari asks.

>>4525756
>A. Yeah, everything's fine. (Leave it for later and stick around as usual)
>B. I need to get home immediately. (Book it home and leave the others here)
>C. You guys, we have to get to my house. (Try to bring one or both of your friends with you. Requires CHA roll)
>D. I get the feeling I need to be somewhere else. (Check in on the situation with Chousuke or Shouko)

>>4525756
>B. I need to get home immediately. (Book it home and leave the others here)

>>4525756
>>C. You guys, we have to get to my house. (Try to bring one or both of your friends with you. Requires CHA roll)

>>4525760
>>C. You guys, we have to get to my house. (Try to bring one or both of your friends with you. Requires CHA roll)
>I know my dad gave me one of those bugs!

Rolled 6 + 3 (1d20 + 3)

>>4525776
>>4525865
Make the CHA roll. 1d20+1

Rolled 2 + 7 (1d20 + 7)

>>4525895
That was Akari. Now for Wataru. He gets a big situational bonus because he is in the middle of something

Rolled 18 + 1 (1d20 + 1)

>>4525895

Rolled 14 + 1 (1d20 + 1)

>>4525895

File: Spoiler Image (456 KB, 1856x2484)

456 KB JPG

>>4525909
You can't waste any more time here, now that you know your house may be a target. Though you don't want to go alone.

"You guys, we have to get to my house." you say. "I know my dad gave me one of those bugs!"

"He what?" Wataru stands up out of his chair. "Oh shit dude, your place could get attacked at any time. Aaahhhh, but I've got this thing..."

He glances back at his computer to see the scan finish and not turn up anything suspicious.

"Okay, I'll send it to my phone and run it once we make sure everything's okay at your place." he grabs his phone and makes the transfer. "This is urgent, so I'm willing to wait that long."

"I'm coming too." Akari declares. "If you guys seriously get in some kind of danger, I want to be able to do something."

Leaving Wataru's house, the three of you run as fast as you can down the street. Usually you would take the train to your place, but the schedule doesn't line up. You'd be waiting around as long as it would take to just run. After a few minutes, the three of you get to your apartment building. You are doing alright, you have the stamina, and Akari is in track, so she's fine too. Wataru is basically dying though, he's no good at this physical stuff. He drags himself up the steps after the two of you, all the way to the fourth floor.

You get to your apartment, and it's locked. Your mom must have gone out. You pull out your key, and the three of you make your way in. Rushing back to your room at the end of the hallway, you find the bug sitting on your nightstand where you left it.

"Well, what do you know?" Wataru wheezes. "You really did have one."

"It looks like everything is okay." Akari adds. "Good luck for us."

It's then that you get an ominous feeling. As if the air itself is twisting and warping. You hear a faint cracking sound. The resin encasing the bug chips off a bit.

Then, you hear a massive crash from the front of your place. As if the whole wall just got busted down. The resin starts to flake off the bug faster, in larger shards. It even starts to wobble of its own accord.

Then, the wall to your room is busted down. Beyond it, the perpetrator stands. An oni, straight out of myth. The huge figure can barely fit in the building, and its weapon is too big to swing effectively. Despite this, you instantly realize the truth. This thing can kill you as easily as swatting a fly.

"Give me the magatama." it says, its voice deep and gravelly.

That must be the bug. You glance back and see it's broken out of the resin completely. It's even alive, squirming around on your nightstand.

>A. Do as the monster says, it's your only chance to live
>B. Run for it, he can't move well in this cramped space, we can make it
>C. Try to fight back with anything you can find, there's no way he'll let you live anyway

>>4525958
>C. Try to fight back with anything you can find, there's no way he'll let you live anyway

>>4525958
>C. Try to fight back with anything you can find, there's no way he'll let you live anyway

>>4525958
>>C. Try to fight back with anything you can find, there's no way he'll let you live anyway
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YRiBLgOm1mQ&ab_channel=nemesiswontdie

Rolled 13, 13 = 26 (2d20)

>>4525968
>>4525976
>>4526004
Roll STR. 1d20+2. These two rolls are for Akari and Wataru respectively. I'll add their bonuses on manually

Rolled 16 + 2 (1d20 + 2)

>>4526009

Rolled 5 + 2 (1d20 + 2)

>>4526009

Rolled 18 + 2 (1d20 + 2)

>>4526009

Rolled 17 + 5 (1d20 + 5)

>>4526009
This one is the oni's END roll. A high roll will mitigate damage

Rolled 6 + 3 (1d20 + 3)

>>4526018
You have no guarantee that you will survive unless you can somehow defeat this monster. As dangerous as it is, you have no choice but to fight back. You think about possible weapons, and you remember that you and your brother used to play baseball back in the day. And your old gear is still stored under your bed. For once you're glad that your parents used your room to store extra crap.

You turn around slowly, headed toward both your nightstand and the bed beside it. It seems to fool the oni, who is willing to belive that you're getting the magatama for him. You then duck quickly and grab three bats from below your bed, tossing two of them to your friends.

>Standard attack base damage increased from 1 to 2

Both of them are still freaking out, but after being handed weapons, they come to the same conclusion as you. That they have to fight. You all dive at the oni, who is too surprised that some puny humans would do this to react immediately. You all wail on him while you can, and he winces a bit in pain at the blows. But it's not enough to take him down, not by a longshot. His weapon is too big to make use of in here, so instead he just winds back his arm to smack all three of you.

>A.Tough it out (Roll END, +4, may mitigate damage)
>B. Dodge (Roll AGI, +2, may avoid damage)

Roll in this post is for Oni's attack

Rolled 13, 12 = 25 (2d20)

>>4526032
These rolls are for Akari and Wataru's attempts to dodge, respectively

>>4526032
>A.Tough it out (Roll END, +4, may mitigate damage)
Do want us to roll now or wait till there is consensus on what we are rolling?

>>4526032
>>A.Tough it out (Roll END, +4, may mitigate damage)

>>4526032
>B. Dodge (Roll AGI, +2, may avoid damage)

>>4526036
I say from now on just go ahead and roll. Highest roll will be the option picked, except in the case of a crit fail

>>4526032
>A.Tough it out (Roll END, +4, may mitigate damage)

Rolled 1 + 4 (1d20 + 4)

>>4526043
Cool

>>4526051
DAMN IT.......

File: Things are getting spooky.gif (87 KB, 192x197)

87 KB GIF

Rolled 15 + 4 (1d20 + 4)

>>4526037
>>4526043
>>4526051

>>4526051
I may have jinxed it

Rolled 7 + 4 (1d20 + 4)

>>4526043
DICE GODS PLEASE

File: Spoiler Image (28 KB, 300x300)

28 KB JPG

>>4526055

Rolled 19, 4, 12, 1, 17, 19 = 72 (6d20)

>>4526051
Akari and Wataru easily leap out of the way, but you stay put, sure that you can take the hit.

This proves to be a mistake. You mess up your guard, and the oni smacks you in an opening right upside your head. You go flying back and hit your nightstand, your bat dropping to the floor beside you. Your head aches like crazy, and you're having trouble thinking straight.

>Critical hit! Current HP: 8/14. You miss the next round of combat

"Hideo!" Akari yells, panicked after seeing you swatted away like a fly.

"He's alive, Akari!" Wataru shouts, trying to keep her focused. "He's moving a bit, trying to get up. We can't let him get hit again."

He's right, you were trying to get up. You can feel blood dripping down your head, but you're not going down that easy.

In the time it takes you to get back to your feet, your friends have done a bit more damage to the oni. But it's still far from done, and makes another sweep at them. Unfortunately you won't get there in time to do anything about that one, but you grab the bat off the floor and dive in one more time.

>Roll STR again. 1d20+2

Doing all six of this turn you've missed rolls at once for expediency. They are: Akari STR, Wataru STR, Oni END, Oni STR, Akari AGI, and Wataru AGI

Rolled 7 + 2 (1d20 + 2)

>>4526069

Rolled 5 + 2 (1d20 + 2)

>>4526069
Okay dice, do better plz

Rolled 2 + 2 (1d20 + 2)

>>4526069

Rolled 17 + 2 (1d20 + 2)

>>4526069

>>4526069
Stronk time

Rolled 17, 15, 1 = 33 (3d20)

>>4526080
The Oni's attack is a complete failure as not only to Akari and Wataru both jump right out of the way, but the Oni loses its balance and topples over. You use this chance to all wail on it relentlessly. You're starting to see some serious damage on the monster, and you feel like you might actually pull this off.

The Oni knows it's in a tight spot, and as it gets up it makes a desperate final attack. It swings its weapon with all its might, tearing straight through the walls of the building and anything else in its way. It dives forward headfirst as it does this, opening its mouth wide right in the direction of the magatama.

"Give it to me!"

>Oni used Critical Wave

>A.Tough it out (Roll END, +4, may mitigate damage)
>B. Dodge (Roll AGI, +2, may avoid damage)

Three rolls are: Oni STR, Akari AGI, and Wataru AGI

Rolled 15 + 4 (1d20 + 4)

>>4526099
>A.Tough it out (Roll END, +4, may mitigate damage)
This is fiiiiiiiiiine

Rolled 9 + 2 (1d20 + 2)

>>4526099
>>B. Dodge (Roll AGI, +2, may avoid damage)
No thanks

Rolled 1 + 4 (1d20 + 4)

>>4526099
>A.Tough it out (Roll END, +4, may mitigate damage)

Rolled 15 + 4 (1d20 + 4)

>>4526099
>A.Tough it out (Roll END, +4, may mitigate damage)

>>4526105
Hideo the Masochist

>>4526105
Hmm, I wonder if crit failing may be too harsh with this system. Every time someone rolls, it's a 1/20 chance to get screwed and the failure overwrites any successes. If it happens multiple times in every battle, you'll be constantly dying. I'll let it be for a while longer to see how bad it gets

>>4526114
Maybe 1d100 with crits?

>>4526114
We have the same odds to get a nat 20
We've just had awful luck today

>>4526114
Just means we get that much faster into becoming demifiend.

File: Demon Summoning Program.jpg (41 KB, 630x630)

41 KB JPG

>>4526105
The huge weapon comes flying through, and you try to deflect it as best you can. It's hopeless though, as you get smacked back yet again. This time your whole body aches, and out of your entire life, this is the closest you've ever felt like you really are going to die. You lie still on the ground where you fell, breathing heavy, just trying to endure the pain.

>Critical hit! Current HP: 2/14

Akari was nimble enough to get by with just a graze, while Wataru also took the brunt of the attack. He's laid up on the ground across from you, bloodied up pretty bad. You can only tell he's still alive by the slight rising and falling of his chest.

"I can still.. survive..." the Oni wheezes as it crawls towards the nightstand. "If I can just eat... the magatama..."

Before he can go any further, Akari swings her bat and smashes it right into the monster's head. The Oni stops moving after that. You can see its body warp as if it was a mirage, then dissolve into nothingness. That ominous feeling in the air you got at the start of this encounter disappears along with the Oni, and you breathe an extremely labored sigh of relief.

"Hideo! Wataru! Don't die!" Akari screams as she drops her bat and falls to her knees between the two of you. Her eyes fill with tears as she pleads desperately for the both of you to live.

"Fuck... If I'm gonna die... I want to see what this was..." Wataru has pulled out his phone, which is miraculously undamaged. With his shaking hand, he runs the exe. file he got.

"Demon... Summoning... Program..." he gasps between words. "Was that... what we just fought? A demon?"

You power though the pain in your aching body and lean back up on your elbows. You aren't going to die like this.

>A. Forget the magatama, let's get to the hospital as quick as possible
>B. Let's get to the hospital as quick as possible, take the magatama
>C. I don't suppose any of those demons you could summon would help us live, huh Wataru?
>D. That demon... he was almost dead, but he said the magatama could keep him alive...

>>4526136
>D. That demon... he was almost dead, but he said the magatama could keep him alive...

>>4526136
>>D. That demon... he was almost dead, but he said the magatama could keep him alive...
Hope the Magatama has protein

>>4526136
>D. That demon... he was almost dead, but he said the magatama could keep him alive...
What could go wrong?

>>4526136
>>D. That demon... he was almost dead, but he said the magatama could keep him alive...
I AM THE BUG INSIDE YOU

>>4526139
>>4526146
>>4526153
>>4526155
"That demon... he was almost dead, but he said the magatama could keep him alive..." you say, as you look to the squirming bug on the nightstand.

"What? You mean eat the bug? That a demon wanted to eat?" Akari asks, eyes still teary. "How can you know that would work for humans? Plus there are two of you, you know! If you eat that thing, what are you going to do about Wataru? We should just go to the hospital for both of you!"

You were still fixated on making use of the magatama, but she did have a point. Even if it was the key to saving you, it could only save one of you.

>The choice to ingest a magatama is irreversible. You will become a Demi-Fiend, and can never return to being human. You will be very obviously inhuman to onlookers, and it will be impossible to interact in human society regularly. There are other options that are mutually exclusive with magatama ingestion that also give special abilities, so don't feel like you need to do this to gain special powers. However, the choice is yours to make

>A. Eat the magatama
>B. Feed the magatama to Wataru, you are tougher than he is
>C. On second thought, this may not be a good idea. We can pull through without resorting to this

>>4526173
>>C. On second thought, this may not be a good idea. We can pull through without resorting to this
Fuck. We'll use it later. Just tell Akari to keep it safe somewhere.

>>4526173
>B. Feed the magatama to Wataru, you are tougher than he is

>>4526173
>C. On second thought, this may not be a good idea. We can pull through without resorting to this

>>4526173
>>C. On second thought, this may not be a good idea. We can pull through without resorting to this
Let’s use it as a last resort

>>4526173
>C. On second thought, this may not be a good idea. We can pull through without resorting to this
Keep it on us, that way we know that any attacks will be focused on us and we'll know where it is if we need to use it.

File: Spoiler Image (1.61 MB, 1720x2084)

1.61 MB PNG

>>4526176
>>4526186
>>4526192
>>4526203
"On second thought, this may not be a good idea." you admit. "We can pull through without resorting to this."

Akari relaxes a bit at hearing you say that, but then tenses up again when she hears Wataru cough and hack a bit. Saying you'll both be okay is one thing, but actually pulling through is another. You steady yourself against the nightstand and reach up to grab the magatama. It's stopped squirming for the most part, and is starting to coil up like it was in the resin. It must react to demons. You find a pencil case nearby and place the magatama inside, then put it in your pocket for safekeeping.

Meanwhile, you can see Wataru still struggling to fiddle with his phone. He's probably staving off death purely from the desire to check out that demon summoning thing.

"How are we going to get to the hospital like this?" Akari asks. "I can't support both you. Can you manage to walk, Hideo?"

"What the... 'Defeated Oni: Earned 500 Macca'? What is that?" Wataru mumbles. "Some kind of... in-app currency... or something... Huh... You can by demons... What does... 500 get me?"

"Hey, Wataru! You better cut that out right now!" Akari snaps at him. "You are barely alive, do not think about summoning another demon!"

"Pixie... She's cute..." he goes on, ignoring Akari's warning. "Fuck it... I want to see it... I don't even care... if I die at this point..."

With a press of his phone's touch screen, the air gets a strange feeling again, as if warping. Though somehow this time it's less ominous than with the oni. A circle of light appears on the floor, and a crackle of energy makes a sound to announce the little fairy demon's summoning.

"Wow, you guys are in real bad shape." she says, looking over the two of you. "You sure are lucky you hired me. Check out my list of skills."

"Uhh... Dia... Heals a low amount of health..." Wataru's glossed over eyes suddenly light up. "Pixie! Use that! Use it a whole lot until we're better!"

"Alright, I will. Hold your horses!" she says, grinning. "You better appreciate me for this."

>Pixie healed both you and Wataru to full health

The fairy casts her skill, and soothing light washes over you. You feel your wounds closing up, and your fatigue lifting. She has to cast it many times, but you're eventually as good as new. Aside from some aching that sticks around.

"Ta-da!" Pixe announces once she's finished. "Aren't I just the best?"

"That was great!" Wataru hops up and down, as if he wasn't just dying a minute ago. "I love you, Pixie!"

"Well I want to be mad, but you're both okay now." Akari sighs. "I'm just too happy to chew you out right now. I just want to go home."

You look around your destroyed apartment and consider what to do next. If this kind of thing has been happening for a while, then things may run pretty deep. Who knows who could really be involved.

>>4526218
>A. You can't stay here, so head over to crash with Wataru
>B. Same but with Akari
>C. It's not too late to go see Shouko. For some reason you get the feeling that she may have been alluding to this business somehow
>D. Chousuke may still be at the arcade. You remember around that area is where a couple of these incidents have already happened

>>4526220
>D. Chousuke may still be at the arcade. You remember around that area is where a couple of these incidents have already happened

>>4526220
>>D. Chousuke may still be at the arcade. You remember around that area is where a couple of these incidents have already happened
>Wataru pixie fucker confirmed
We should probably make sure he isn’t dead.

>>4526220
>>C. It's not too late to go see Shouko. For some reason you get the feeling that she may have been alluding to this business somehow

>>4526218
>D. Chousuke may still be at the arcade. You remember around that area is where a couple of these incidents have already happened
So what are the chances he's been killed and made a contract with a god?

File: Arcade.jpg (81 KB, 1024x576)

81 KB JPG

>>4526223
>>4526226
>>4526232
While you think about how you'll need a new place to stay, other things to do right now cross your mind. You recall the texts you got from Shouko and Chousuke. They may somehow be involved in all of this.

You decide for now to run down to the arcade, since you remember a couple of these 'vandalism' cases have happened near there. You should check on your old friend.

You tell the situation to Akari and Wataru, who understand. They saw Chousuke around in middle school too, even though it was before you three hung out together.

"You be careful, alright? Please don't get into another fight like this while we're not there." Akari pleads. "I don't want to go through this again."

"Good luck, man." Wataru gives you a thumbs up. "I'm going home to dig into the Demon Summoning Program more. It could really save us down the road. Ah, let me just de-summon Pixie for now. Don't want to attract any unwanted attention on the way home."

"Bye-bye!" Pixie waves, before disappearing in the same way it arrived.

The three of you part ways, and you take the train over to the neighborhood the arcade in question is. It's a bit of a rough part of town, and you see delinquents around fairly often. Since Chousuke lives here, it may have been inevitable that he fell into that life eventually.

You make your way over to the arcade and go inside. You instinctively look to the fighting cabinets and see Chousuke on the Tekken machine, just where you expected him. You walk up to him, and he notices you.

"Oh hey man, Hideo. I didn't think you were gonna make it." he says, pausing the game. "It's uhh... Good to see you, man. I know it's been a long time."

>A. He seems okay, just let him talk about whatever he wanted to
>B. Bring up the incidents and ask if he knows anything
>C. Fill him in on what just happened to you, if you can make him believe it (Requires CHA roll)

>>4526255
>C. Fill him in on what just happened to you, if you can make him believe it (Requires CHA roll)
I'm ready for the Nat 1 that causes him to punch Hideo and tell him to never speak to him again

>>4526255
>A. He seems okay, just let him talk about whatever he wanted to

>>4526255
>>A. He seems okay, just let him talk about whatever he wanted to
Well alls good, I guess

>>4526255
>>A. He seems okay, just let him talk about whatever he wanted to
>Nothing weird before I came here?

>>4526255
>C. Fill him in on what just happened to you, if you can make him believe it (Requires CHA roll)

Time to look like a complete lunatic

Sorry I'm gonna leave this choice to sit for so long, but I've got to eat dinner, so I'll be back in a while

I'm just waiting for the DDS part of the quest.

>>4526261
>>4526262
>>4526263
He seems okay, so your immediate worries are put to rest. You can just let him say his piece.

"You doing alright, Chousuke?" you ask. "Nothing weird going on?"

"Well yeah, I'm doin' okay. Nothing weird, I guess..." he replies awkwardly. He's probably out of it having a conversation with a normal friend after so long. "It's just that out of nowhere, I started thinkin' about the old days. You, me, and Shouko. We had some fun times. And I just got to thinkin', what am I doin' here, ya know? Like all this gang stuff, it's not even fun. Did I really give up everything for this? So I just decided I want out. I'm no good at school, but it still beats all this. And I figured, since you're a good guy, I could make the first step by talking to you. To make it like a real thing, ya know?"

Chousuke seems pretty sincere. It's good to see him motivated to improve his life. The two of you talk for a while while playing video games, and after a while it's like all those years apart never happened. He's the same old Chousuke. Eventually he calls it, and the two of you step out of the arcade.

"Thanks for today, man. It really gave me that push I needed." Chousuke expresses his gratitude. "I'm gonna break things off with all the guys for good. I mean, they did do a lot for me, so I can't bail without sayin' nothin', but I really am gonna end it. For real."

As Chousuke talks, you see a truck pass by that unnerves you for some reason. A company you've never heard of with a logo you've never seen, yet it unnerves you all the same. 'Atma Bio-Industries'. It pulls into a random alleyway across from the arcade and parks there, which is even more suspicious. You get the feeling something bad is about to happen here.

Chousuke is saying his goodbyes and is about ready to head off.

>A. There's no way you're sticking around here, you've had enough bad feelings today
>B. Warn Chousuke that maybe he should check out of here for now too rather than sticking around
>C. Do some personal investigation

>>4526335
>>C. Do some personal investigation

>>4526335
>C. Do some personal investigation
Can't turn us into a demon if we become a demifiend first

>>4526335
>A. There's no way you're sticking around here, you've had enough bad feelings today

>>4526335
>B. Warn Chousuke that maybe he should check out of here for now too rather than sticking around

>>4526340
>>4526346
You set your bad feelings aside and decide to look into this further. You wave goodbye to Chousuke as he heads off, and then stealthily work your way over to the alley the truck pulled into.

There are some convenient crates nearby to squeeze behind, so you do so while peeking out at the truck for any movement. You're able to see a couple of guys exit the cab and move around to the back of the truck, then open the loading door. The inside is bare except for some weird round thing with a inset consule on the front of it. You see one of the men pound away at the keyboard for a bit, while the other one looks around. Probably to see if anyone is watching them. You have to duck back out of sight more than a few times, but luckily he never seems to catch you. The two of them seem nervous, so they may not be as attentive as they could be. After a minute or two, the one typing stops and nods to the lookout. They then take off at a brisk walk, right past your hiding place.

As soon as they're gone, you run up and hop into the truck to take a look at the round thing. It's held in place in the truck by some rods bolting it down. It also seems really sturdy in general, so you couldn't imagine being able to break it. On the console's screen is a timer, counting down. It's currently at around four and a half minutes. It must have started at five.

There's no doubt in your mind that this has be be some kind of bomb. But the setup is way too strange. An explosion would be very insulated given its position, and that's if this heavy-ass thing could be blown apart effectively in the first place. You notice some kind of narrow opening at the top, and wonder if it releases gas or something. The range would be pretty limited if that were the case. You think you might just be able to close the loading door, but then you see there's a straight up hole in the roof of the truck.

The timer is closing in on three and a half minutes now. You have to make a decision right now. You don't know if Chousuke is close enough to be caught in this, but if he is, you may not be able to do anything for him. Being able to find him and get away in three minutes is a serious longshot.

You could definitely get out by then, though. You could be on the train and halfway to the next stop, even.

>Staying here to find Chousuke will see you exposed to the Atma Virus, and you will gain an Atma Avatar demon form. Unlike a Demi-Fiend, Atma Avatar and human forms can usually be switched between freely. However, those infected with the Atma Virus gain an insatiable hunger for the flesh of humans and demons. If they do not indulge this hunger, they will go berserk and be forced into their demon forms

>A. Get out of here, you don't want to be caught in this. You'll just have to check on Chousuke later
>B. Go try and find him anyway, even if it's a risk

>>4526410
>A. Get out of here, you don't want to be caught in this. You'll just have to check on Chousuke later

>>4526410
>>B. Go try and find him anyway, even if it's a risk

>>4526410

>B. Go try and find him anyway, even if it's a risk

I'm actually gonna leave this choice to sit for the night and go to bed. I'll get back to the quest and see you guys tomorrow

>>4526410
>A. Get out of here, you don't want to be caught in this. You'll just have to check on Chousuke later

>>4526410
>>B. Go try and find him anyway, even if it's a risk

>>4526417
>>4526424
>>4526749
You can't just leave your friend on his own. Despite the risk, you take off running in the direction you saw him leave. You run by a number of streets he could have gone down, but you aren't sure about any of them. Then you hear a crashing noise from one road that leads to an underpass. You have no more time to consider your options, so you sprint after the sound hoping it's where you need to be.

You emerge below the underpass to see Chousuke along with two distinct groups of ruffians. Probably some kind of gang related fight going on.

"Hideo? Yo, you weren't supposed to be here!" he shouts, stepping away from his associates. "Go home man, I just have to finish this one thing, alright?"

"Chousuke, something really bad is about to happen." you warn. Both him and the rest of the punks shoot you weird looks.

"Yeah, somethin' really bad's about to happen to you guys!" one of the opposing gang members laughs. "You're about to get the shit beaten outta ya!"

All the punks present then return to fighting-ready stances, only to be thrown off by a huge sound that goes off. Not quite like an explosion, but close. And it's coming from the direction of the truck.

You look back to see beams of light twist and curve as they streak through the sky outward from the epicenter. Several of them head straight your way, and they're too fast to react to. One goes straight through your body, as well as the bodies of everyone else standing here under the overpass.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uVXE8K9TUeo
There's what I was missing, I wasn't posting background music

Instantly a searing pain shoots through your whole body. You look at yourself and see glowing cracks running along it as if you're breaking apart. Your body is changing. But more than that, your mind is changing. Every thought in your head is being replaced with one. To eat. You see the others suffering the same as you, and the only feeling you can muster for them is hunger for their flesh.

>You are taking on an Atma Avatar demon form. Your particular form...
>A. Has an affinity to Fire
>B. Has an affinity to Ice
>C. Has an affinity to Electricity
>D. Has an affinity to Force

Feel free to throw around ideas for which demon form to take, and I may consider them. Looking to go Hindu here if possible, just cause I like to keep with the theme

>>4527066
>>D. Has an affinity to Force

>>4527066
>C. Has an affinity to Electricity

I'm gonna leave this one to sit for a while, since it's the middle of a weekday, but in the meantime I'll explain the Atma Avatar mechanics

You have two forms that you can switch between, Human and Demon. Your human form retains its immunity to Light and weakness to Dark. Your demon form will have its own set of weaknesses and resistances. Your demon form will also come with a slight stat boost. If you gain the ability to summon demons, you will only be able to do so while in human form, with the exception of some rare skills that you could obtain

As an Atma Avatar, you are required to feed on humans and demons. Doing so gets you Atma Points (AP). In this game, I'm gonna be doing skill gacha. You guys pick a certain type of skill to roll for (Healing, Buff/Debuff, Physical, Fire, Ice, Elec, Force, etc.) and spend the AP to make a roll. The pools all start with the lowest level options and fill in with higher level skills as you grab the lower ones. For example, say you all decided to spend AP to roll for a healing skill and got Dia. Dia is the lowest level healing spell, so it probably took up half the pool on its own. Once it's gone, the higher level spells will fill in the pool from the top and the lowest level would now probably be like Media

If you have any questions, go ahead and shoot

Come on guys, I at least need a tiebreaker. If I can't get one in the next couple of hours, I'm gonna have to flip a coin

>>4527066
>>C. Has an affinity to Electricity

>>4527131
>C. Has an affinity to Electricity

File: Marut.jpg (16 KB, 300x377)

16 KB JPG

>>4527096
>>4527704
>>4527714
You feel as if lightning is coursing through your body, which gets lighter and lighter. Eventually you somehow aren't even touching the ground, but floating on a cloud.

You see Chousuke start to change as well, the bottom half of his body merge and extend into a snake-like tail. The other gang members are also morphing, but you don't get a good look at them.

This is about all you can stay conciously aware of, as the madness of hunger renders you unable to recognize anything happening. Memories from that point onward are a violent blur.

It's not until much later that you come back to your senses. Your head is aching, and you lean up to see the light of the sunrise in the distance. You must have been out here all night.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bMIzvf7QuWc

As you get to your feet and try to clear your head, you see Chousuke on the ground nearby. However you don't see any of the other guys that were here. What you see in their place is huge swathes of blood everywhere and gashes carved into the concrete of the underpass and the asphalt below you. You see the back of your hand and find an emblem like thunderhead with a fanged mouth.

You don't remember exactly what happened last night, but one thing is clear. This was at least partially your doing.

Chousuke rouses himself, and the first thing he notices is the blood all over.

"What the hell..." he mutters. He looks around, trying to catch sight of everyone from before. "They're not here... all the guys... Is this... their blood?"

He stumbles to his feet and grabs you by the shoulders. You can see him start to tear up.

"Hideo.. I remember the hunger..." he stammers. "We fuckin'... We fuckin' ate 'em, man! Aaargh!"

He screams in frustration, disgusted at himself.

>A. Be just as disturbed
>B. Maybe not, we can't know for sure
>C. We're going to have to live with it

>>4527750
>A. Be just as disturbed

>>4527750
>>A. Be just as disturbed

>>4527750
>>A. Be just as disturbed
>try not to vomit
>vomit a lot

>>4527754
>>4527767
>>4527799
It took a while to hit you, but seeing Chousuke like this is what really hits it home. Your stomach churns, and you double over out of the grasp of his hands. You heave a couple of times, expecting to puke, but nothing's coming out. Maybe your new body doesn't want to let go of its spoils. It would be just as well, because you're not sure you could handle what might come back out.

"Dammit!" Chousuke curses, hitting the ground with his fist. "I was gonna make everything right! I never did nothin' too bad! I wasn't a murderer, I never hurt nobody so bad they couldn't get patched up! It wasn't too late for me! But now... I can't go back... not after this..."

You're still way out of things, and freaking out plenty yourself, but seeing just how hard this is hitting your friend keeps you grounded at least a little bit. You can't imagine if you had eaten him too.

It's then the two of you notice sirens in the distance. Not even ones closing in on your location of anything, just around. And a lot of them. It's like the neighborhood is full of them.

"Fuck... how many people did this happen to?" Chousuke says, distracting himself from his grief. "My ma... and my little sis... Oh no..."

"Hideo, I'm sorry I dragged you into this..." he says without looking at you, before running off.

It takes you a few minutes to be able to compose yourself well enough to stand, but you do eventually. You also have people you're worried about. You check your phone for messages. As you do, you confirm you still have the magatama in the pencil case in your pocket.

The first message is from early last night, probably not long after you blacked out. It's from Akari, sent to both you and Wataru.

"Please help me guys, another demon showed up at my house"

And that's it. You panic for a moment, but the next message you got from Wataru calms you back down.

"Hideo, everything is mostly okay here. We're both alright, even though we kind of have a new problem. But we can worry about that later, I saw the news about Ojiri ward, where the arcade you went is. Hundreds of people are missing. I hope you're okay, man."

That message was sent around midnight.

You also have a message from your mom asking if you're okay. She assumes you're staying at a friend's house after coming home to find the apartment destroyed.

"Mom and Dad are doing just fine, Tadashi set us up with a place to stay on base. Please get back to us as soon as you can."

You're still disgusted with what's happened, but you can't stay here.

>A. Go after Chousuke to see if he'll be alright
>B. Go see what's happened to Akari and Wataru
>C. You want to meet with your parents more than anything
>D. None of those seem right. You had that feeling yesterday that Shouko could have been talking about all this, you should confirm

Naturally you will be replying to all the texts anyway, but you can suggest what to say

>>4527815
>D. None of those seem right. You had that feeling yesterday that Shouko could have been talking about all this, you should confirm

>>4527815
>D. None of those seem right. You had that feeling yesterday that Shouko could have been talking about all this, you should confirm

File: Student Council Room.png (4.94 MB, 4022x2520)

4.94 MB PNG

>>4527823
>>4527841
That's right, you can't ignore that feeling from yesterday. You couldn't shake the suspicion that Shouko was alluding to all this business in her text. The timing was just uncanny. Even if it wasn't true, you wanted to check to be sure once and for all.

You head out from the underpass, and see the streets empty. There are signs of damage everywhere, just like where you woke up. Windows smashed, gashes in the ground and walls. In the distance you can see and hear some police officers running around, and you reflexively hide. You aren't totally sure why, but you get the feeling that they would make it harder for you to do anything you currently want to do.

You move along while staying out of sight, passing the train station entirely. You doubt they are serving this stop like normal. Trying to get on here would probably get you detained.

After about ten minutes of walking, you feel like you're far enough out of the ward that you can relax a bit. No one should suspect you of anything. You get on the train at the next stop on the line and ride it to school.

While you do, you respond to the texts from your mom and Wataru. You tell your mom that you're crashing with Wataru, and tell Wataru that you told her that. You also tell Wataru that you have a lot to talk about when you meet up later, so you can trade stories. It would be a bit much to try and get across in a text.

After a few minutes, you arrive at school. It's still early, over an hour before class starts. But you're sure Shouko is here. She's always at school early for her student council stuff. You head to the room in question, though it takes you a minute to find it since you've never actually been inside.

You knock on the door. "Shouko? It's me, Hideo. I think I may know what you wanted to talk about."

After a few seconds of silence, a voice responds. "Come in."

Shouko is standing inside, along with the three other members of the council.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6bocgRwJnug

"You think you know, huh?" she asks, skeptical. "I have my doubts."

"What kind of talk is that?" a boy with glasses sitting at the table snaps at her. "You're the one who wanted to bring him into the fold."

"Hideo Emushi, average student. Not in any clubs, no notable extracurricular activities of any kind." he says, waving a file with some papers in it. "Yet you were so sure he had what it takes. And now he comes in a day late and you're putting him down. What was the point of this, exactly?"

Shouko looks you over, and her gaze stops at your hand. You realize that emblem is completely visible.

"What is that?" she demands an answer. "Just what did you get yourself into?"

>A. You're still not sure if these guys are in on everything. Find out how much they know before you make a fool of yourself
>B. Just mention that you've encountered demons and see how they react
>C. Lay everything out, no secrets

>>4527815
>D. None of those seem right. You had that feeling yesterday that Shouko could have been talking about all this, you should confirm

>>4527869
>B. Just mention that you've encountered demons and see how they react

>>4527869
>B. Just mention that you've encountered demons and see how they react

>>4527869
>B. Just mention that you've encountered demons and see how they react

File: Velvet Key.jpg (44 KB, 1280x720)

44 KB JPG

>>4527878
>>4527890
>>4527898
You came here to confirm, and you'll do just that. If they really are involved in all this, then just the mention of demons should be enough to prove it. If not, then they can just write you off as a weirdo. That's fine.

"I've encountered demons. Just yesterday." you tell them. You take note of their expressions as you say this, and while most of them keep a straight face, Shouko is the one to lose her cool.

"Why didn't you just come by yesterday when I told you? You could have been prepared for this!" she chews you out. "Now you've got some weird mark, and I don't know if we can do anything about it."

"So... you guys know all about the demons, then?" you ask, still trying to get a straight answer. "How are you all involved in this?"

"We've been aware of the demon incidents for a couple of weeks now." the glasses guy says. You think he's the Student Council President. "But we can only assume these happenings are but a prelude to a far worse crisis. That's why we figured that we needed more allies. Shouko suggested you. I can only assume that's because she hasn't had any friends since middle school."

"Wow, rude." Shouko pouts. "We needed people with resilient minds. I thought Hideo fit the bill."

"Yes, minds... We have obtained a mental power that lets us fight back against the demons." the Prez goes on. "If Tokyo becomes engulfed in chaos, we will have to step up to the plate to protect the city. It's a tall order for just us four. If you still think you have what it takes, then we can test you. See if you can obtain the power of Persona."

"We came into possession of this key." Shouko pulls out a key with a mask emblem on the end of it. "By entering the door it unlocks, it's possible to get a Persona. It's a kind of manifestation of your psyche. They can use the same magic skills as demons, so you can fight on even terms. I don't know exactly how your encounters with demons went, but I can only assume you're tempted to try."

So Shouko and the rest of the Student Council have some kind of power that lets them fight the demons. And now it's being offered to you. But a problem lurks in the back of your mind. You can still feel lightly the pangs of hunger clawing at you. They will probably get worse over time. Can you get this mental power after transforming into a demon yourself?

>A. Go ahead and tell them you accept without revealing anything more
>B. Decline, you don't know what will happen to you if you try to mix these powers
>C. Tell them the truth first and see what they think

>>4527869
>B. Just mention that you've encountered demons and see how they react

>>4527919
>C. Tell them the truth first and see what they think

And with that, I'm off to bed. I'll pick up tomorrow afternoon, so in about 14 hours or so? Night my dudes

>>4527919
>C. Tell them the truth first and see what they think

>>4527919
>>C. Tell them the truth first and see what they think

>>4527919
>C. Tell them the truth first and see what they think
Shouko your new friends are kinda assholes

>>4527921
>>4527930
>>4528136
>>4528224
Assume, assume, assume. These guys sure did love to assume. But they don't know what's happened to you. It's way too big of a risk to jump into this without at least considering the possibility something could go wrong. These four were all normal humans, while you now have this demon form thing going on.

Though you are sure it won't make this glasses Prez act like any less of a dick, you decide to reveal the truth.

"Hold on. There might be a problem." you tell the four of them. You hold up your hand to show the emblem clearly. "I got this due to the incident last night in Ojiri ward. I was there with Chousuke."

"Ojiri ward... since last night, hundreds have gone missing and violence seems to have broken out all over, but with very few reports filed." a male council member says from his spot in the back of the room. He's currently on his phone, probably looking all this stuff up. "Details are scarce, though we know they wouldn't just come out and say it was demons anyway."

"Is Chousuke okay?" Shouko asks, concerned about her old friend. "He's not... dead is he?"

"He's alive. He ran off to check on his family." you explain. "But I haven't told you the truly disturbing part yet. It's even a bit hard for me to say it myself. A truck from some group called Atma Bio-Industries left a sort of bomb in Ojiri ward. It released beams of light that pierced everyone nearby. I, and every person I saw present, got turned into a demon. I don't have memory of after that happened, I just know I was overwhelmed by hunger. When I finally came to, Chousuke and I were the only ones left out of the eight or nine people there. The two of us... probably ate the others when we turned into demons."

"You what?" the Prez stands up out of his chair and steps back, and the other student council members flinch back as well. Even Shouko.

"So what I'm saying is that I don't know if I can do the same thing you guys did." you go on. "I can still feel the hunger in the back of my mind. This mark probably means that I can still turn into a demon again."

The room is silent for a while. The other members of the student council are eyeing you with a mixture of fear and contempt, but Shouko has managed to compose herself.

"Well, it's not your fault. We can use our power to get to the bottom of this, and make things right." she says. "It was this Atma company that turned the people of the Ojiri ward into demons."

That council member is back on his phone again, looking at something.

"Ojiri ward has a population of over one hundred thousand. The panic would be far higher if that bomb affected the entire ward." he proposes. "Lets be generous and assume it hit half the ward, that'd mean fifty thousand were caught in the radius. Applying the survival rate of your location, that means we would have ten thousand demon shifters running around right now. That's a crisis if I've ever heard one."

File: Igor.jpg (37 KB, 800x450)

37 KB JPG

>>4528690
"And it's not fair to leave them all out to dry." the Prez sighs, adjusting his glasses. "Very well. This is what we've been preparing for. If working with you can help us help everyone else, I will do it gladly."

"That still doesn't answer the question of if it will even work." the final council member spoke up for the first time. It was a gloomy looking girl. "If it just fails that's fine, but trying could have detrimental effects."

"It's useless for us to speculate. We don't know enough to even guess." Shouko waves the concern off and brings the key to a door in the corner of the room. "We can only ask Igor what he thinks."

Shouko unlocks the door, then opens it. It looks like it leads to somewhere else entirely, rather than the next room over. It's a very... blue room. Shouko, the Prez, and the gloomy girl all step inside, shile the other guy stays in the student council room fiddling on his phone. You follow the others into the strange room.

At the center of it, you find a table where an old man is sitting. His nose is extremely long, and his eyes look like they're bulging out of his head.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XnJX_AJFdww

"Welcome back to the Velvet Room." he greets the group in a surprisingly soothing voice. "I see you've brought a new visitor."

"Igor, this guy has been turned into a demon." the Prez informs the old man. "He's human right now, but he could change back. Can he even get a Persona?"

"Well now, this is interesting. Quite an extenuating set of circumstances." Igor chuckles as he looks you over. "I can't give you a completely confident answer, I'm afraid. However, if I were to guess, then I would say it is possible. It would take even more mental fortitude than usual, but if he can keep his mind distinctly human, fighting off the demon influence, then he should be able to obtain a Persona. Doing so may even help him temper his mind against his demon urges in the future. Of course, this may just be a particularly optimistic line of thinking. If you do end up failing, you may lose yourself to your demon half instantly. This is not a choice to be made lightly."

No kidding. It sounds great if you can pull it off, but you don't want to go berserk again.

>A. I need a Persona. If you're right, it may be able to keep me from eating anyone else (Requires END roll)
>B. I don't want to take the risk. I'll manage on my own

If you succeed in gaining a Persona, you will have both the Persona and the Atma Avatar abilities. Your Persona will only be available in human form, however

Rolled 20 + 4 (1d20 + 4)

>>4528691
>A. I need a Persona. If you're right, it may be able to keep me from eating anyone else (Requires END roll)

>>4528712
Hot damn, there's the nat 20

>>4528716
Yeah, too bad I won't see the result of it today it is already 11pm here

>>4528712
Nice.

>>4528728
Ah yeah, timezones. Maybe I should keep posting sprees to the weekends and limit my posts on weekdays so people can participate

>>4528735
Eh I don't really care myself, I can still read it

File: Evoker.png (484 KB, 760x540)

484 KB PNG

>>4528712
"I need a Persona." you claim with conviction. "If you're right, it may be able to keep me from eating anyone else."

"Not the slightest bit of hesitation, I see." Igor replies, amused. "That bodes well. Now, they are a few ways to unlock your Persona, but this is the quickest."

Igor reaches into a drawer under the table and pulls out a gun. Or at least what looks like one.

"This is what's known as an Evoker." he explains. "Normally one would face their true self and gain their Persona by accepting their shadow, but this is a tool to brute-force the outcome, if you will. Just place it to your head and pull the trigger."

You thought you'd be more hesitant to simulate shooting yourself, but you surprise yourself in addition to everyone else in the room by instantly taking the gun, placing it to your temple, and firing it.

Your head lurches to the side as you hear a shattering sound, and see some kind of blue shards scatter through the air on the opposite side of your head. Then, above you, you notice a sort of ghostly projection of a demon. Not just any demon, but your own demon form from before. The one on the cloud. It must be your Persona too.

"Well now, it seems it wasn't a hard choice for you at all. And it's made all the difference. Wonderful." Igor praises you. He observes your Persona for a moment, then chuckles once again. "Truly remarkable, you seem to have more potential than I could have known! Your current Persona is the same as your demon form, yes? I expected as much as the result of a minimally successful attempt. But beyond that, you seem to not be limited to a single arcana like the others here. You have what's known as the Wild Card. You can potentially obtain and use any Persona at all! Although, that ability seems to have manifested as a sort of synergy with your demon form. You can use any demon as your Persona, but you must devour their essence in demon form first. It's truly a one-of-a-kind ability."

Shouko and the gloomy girl seem stunned at your result, but the Prez has other concerns.

"So what I'm getting from this is that Hideo is exceptional." he begins as if he's voicing resentment, but your assumption is quickly thrown out. "And that means we can't count on this method working for the rest of the people who were infected in the Ojiri ward. We need to find a more reliable way to help them."

"Yes, I'm afraid this is only safe to attempt on an individual basis." Igor replies. "If you try to flood the Velvet Room with too many such guests, I'll be forced to halt operations. I hope you understand."

"Our best bet is probably to go after that Atma company." Shouko suggests. "They caused this, so they have to know how it all works."

The four of you get ready to leave, and Igor bids you farewell.

"Feel free to keep that Evoker for your own use, dear guest." he says, grinning. "And do return if you ever have anything to ask."

Leaving the Velvet Room, you all step back into the Student Council Room again.

>>4528777
"So did it work?" the guy who stayed behind asked, without looking up from his phone.

"Even better than we expected." the Prez answered. "But one more ally isn't enough to face the challenge we're up against. We've still got a lot of work to do. How are things going on your end?"

"I'm digging into that Atma Bio-Industries. But it'll take me a while."

Hiding the Evoker out of sight, you decide what to do next.

>A. Stay here and keep working with these guys. Learn more about them
>B. You want to go catch up with Akari and Wataru
>C. It's time to see your parents already. Also you wonder if your brother has been dispatched to handle any of this yet
>D. You're more confident you can help Chousuke now. Go find him

>>4528781
>D. You're more confident you can help Chousuke now. Go find him

>>4528781
>B. You want to go catch up with Akari and Wataru

>>4528781
>B. You want to go catch up with Akari and Wataru
I'm painfully curious about what happened to Akari and her sealed up box now....
>>4528735
Unfortunately for me weekdays are work days, so I can't always be around to roll Nat 1's if you start too early on them

>>4528781
>>B. You want to go catch up with Akari and Wataru
Fucking yoooooooo

File: Spoiler Image (313 KB, 964x1198)

313 KB PNG

>>4528816
>>4528962
>>4528967
You told Wataru that you'd meet up with him and Akari later, and it's still the foremost thing on your mind. You really want to learn what happened to them. And they're probably dying to hear your side of the story as well.

"I've got to go meet with Akari and Wataru." you tell Shouko. She's not friends with them or anything, but she knows who you're talking about. "They had another run-in with a demon. They say they're okay, but I still want to check in."

"I understand." she replies. "We'll keep working on things from our end. I might try and get in touch with Chousuke, what you told me has me worried."

"If you think someone has potential, send them our way." the Prez adds. "We still want to build our forces. And contact us if you need anything. We plan to do the same."

You say farewell to the members of the student council and leave the room to find that school is just about starting. It's funny, you're much earlier than yesterday, but you don't plan to stick around. You swing by a supply closet to grab some bandages, and wrap your hand up in them. Now that emblem won't draw any attention.

You hear some students talking amongst themselves about yesterday's events. Apparently more than a few students are among those missing. You even hear some wonder if school will even continue as normal. As class is about to start, you sneakily peek into your classroom. As expected, Wataru and Akari aren't there. So you're off to Wataru's place. You doubt they would stay at Akari's after a demon attack.

You leave school from the back entrance to dodge the teachers, then make your way to the train station. Getting off at the same stop you did yesterday after school, you arrive at Wataru's house after a few minutes.

After pinging the intercom, Wataru comes and opens the door for you.

"My man, you're alright!" he exclaims. He's happy to see you, but he looks tired. Last night must have been rough. "It's so good to see you, you have no idea."

He lets you in and leads you back to his room, though he warns you as you do so.

"So try not to freak out when you see her, alright? She's feeling really down about it, and I can't console her."

Before you can ask what he means, you're at his room. It's dark inside as usual, but there is another light source besides just his monitors this time. Akari is sitting curled up in the corner holding her legs, and her skin is covered in glowing lines. Above her knees, you can see a spike of some kind sticking out from below her collarbone.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fnseK-PdUMo

"Ah. Hideo. You're okay." she says, trying to somehow be invisible and enthusiastic at the same time and achieving neither. "That's good, at least..."

You consider what the best approach is here.

>A. Take her mind off herself by telling them everything that happened to you
>B. Ask what happened, see if getting it off her chest will make her feel better
>C. Just tell her that you're glad to see her alright too

File: __hitoshura_shin_megami_t(...).jpg (148 KB, 495x800)

148 KB JPG

>>4529007
>>C. Just tell her that you're glad to see her alright too
Aw shit, Demichick.

>>4529007
>C. Just tell her that you're glad to see her alright too
Go comfort your friend ya dingus

>>4529007
>A. Take her mind off herself by telling them everything that happened to you

Oh yeah, C requires a CHA roll

Rolled 16 + 1 (1d20 + 1)

>>4529009

Rolled 8 + 1 (1d20 + 1)

>>4529016
>>4529014
Haha

Rolled 1 + 1 (1d20 + 1)

>>4529007
>C. Just tell her that you're glad to see her alright too
Fuck it, let's hug her while we're at it.

>>4529070
AAAAA

File: 97608bb9cb3228673726dc43a(...).jpg (60 KB, 295x342)

60 KB JPG

>>4529070
Well it wouldn't be a Shin Megami Tensei game without suffering.

>>4529070
>3 Nat 1's in a single thread
Oof our luck
But hey, at least it wasn't me This time

>>4529070
I was almost done writing the next post, do I scrap it and write the crit fail

>>4529075
I wouldn't worry about it too much. Because it'll be done again.

>>4529076
I'd say carry the critfail over or get creative without it being a "lolufail" post. Like have both our characters demonic natures react to eachother.

>>4529082
Okay, I got an idea, but I gotta eat dinner first

>Remembering we still have the magatama in our pocket
All we need is the App and we're every SMT Protag at once.

>>4529018
>>4529070
Before any worries about anything that's happened on either side, you need to comfort your friend. You kneel down to get close to her height.

"I'm glad to see you alright too." you tell her. "I was so worried when I saw your text knowing that I missed my chance to do anything. Sorry."

"What? No, don't apologize to me... I should have known not to go home alone after what happened." she reasons. She shakes her head and seems to force herself out of her funk. "Forget all that! It's you we were worried about, you know! Hundreds of people missing in Ojiri ward, that could have included you!"

More than just trying to act like her usual self, her concern is clearly genuine, as she dives forward for a hug. However, that spike now sticking out of her chest gets in the way, and though you manage to ignore the pain of suddenly getting stuck with it, she backs off before she can do too much damage.

"Sorry." she apologizes. She starts looking down about her new body again.

"Don't worry about the spike, I'm telling you." Wataru kneels in next to the two of you. "All you gotta do is stuff your bra, like a whole lot, then throw a shirt over the whole thing. Bam, now it just looks like you have huge boobs, and no one will ever know."

Akari smacks Wataru across the face as if on reflex, and though he holds the spot in pain, he laughs it off.

"So is that a sign you're back to your usual self?" he asks. "You didn't even let me get to the part about covering all the glowing lines in foundation."

"I don't think normal is really a word you can use for me anymore." Akari sulks just a bit. "But I'll be okay. Enough goofing around, what happened to you, Hideo?"

You lay out everything. From the time you got to the arcade, to the truck, to transforming under the overpass. You tell them about waking up, heading to school, and about the truth behind the Student Council. Every single thing up until the end of the meeting with Igor and your departure from the school. You even show the emblem on your hand as a visual aid.

"Hideo... Are you retarded?" the bluntness of her question hits you like a brick. "Why are you trying to console me over looking weird when you fucking ate people? You should be freaking out, not me. What is wrong with you?"

Both your friends are looking slightly unnerved, and it hurts just a little bit, considering how tough it was to move past all that this morning. At least Akari seems fine now.

"Anyway, I'm glad things are looking up with that Persona thing." Wataru moves on. "It even sounds like something I may want to check on myself..."

Akari has stopped curling up and is more relaxed now. As she looks over her body, she seems to be coming to terms with it.

You recover from the sting of your friend's judgemental stares and finally ask what happened to them.

"Well, it was a while after I got home." Akari starts. "I had become curious about that sealed artifact I mentioned. I had a bad feeling about it."

>>4529178
"I went to grab it, but the air started getting weird. Like in your place before. I knew a demon must be coming, but I was in the back of this cramped storage area and it was too late to escape. So I hid and sent that text out to you guys. I was hoping I could wait it out, but the demon busted in and started wrecking everything. It was like a floating manta ray with a face, it was really creepy. I could have fought back if I was with you guys, but not alone. Things were basically hopeless, and I thought why this had to be happening to me. That's when I thought about the artifact. I figured it was probably the reason the demon had come. I opened it up and a magatama was inside. At that point I was pretty much out of options, so I... ate it."

"The fight was still going on when I arrived, so we teamed up to beat the demon. And we pulled through thanks to the Demon Summoning Program, of course." Wataru adds. "Then I brought her here, and that's about it."

And now you know the story. You really do regret that Akari was put in that situation, but she has a point. You've got bigger problems.

"So now what?" Akari asks. "Do we just lay low now? It sounds like things are about to get really crazy."

>A. Tell Wataru to get over to the Student Council so they can collaborate
>B. Tell Wataru that you want to start using the Demon Summoning Program yourself
>C. It might be worth it to contact Tadashi to see if the government is involved here
>D. Other
I'm adding an other option from now on, feel free to write anything in

>>4529181
>A. Tell Wataru to get over to the Student Council so they can collaborate

If our friends have pulled themselves together enough to roasts our dumbass then mission accomplished

>>4529189
Agreed, although we might want to stick together so our chances of survival stay in the high percentages.

>>4529181
>A. Tell Wataru to get over to the Student Council so they can collaborate
>D. Other (Stick together for the time being so we don't get so easily merked by demons)

>>4529181
>>A. Tell Wataru to get over to the Student Council so they can collaborate
>>B. Tell Wataru that you want to start using the Demon Summoning Program yourself
>D. Other (See if Akari can use it too and stick together.)
Everyone gets Demon Summons and Personas/magmatama/Atma Avatars. They may not be the wild card, but nothing helps more than having some demonic back up.
Can't wait to eat Lucifer, have him as our Persona and summon him to cast double High King

>>4529231
Supporting this.

>>4529231
There are a few things on your mind, and you try to see what you can manage to do right now.

"We should probably get over to the Student Council so we can work together with them." you start. "I mean all of us so we don't split up again. Sticking together is way safer."

"Also, Wataru, I was wondering if you could hook us up with Demon Summoning Programs of our own. It's another thing that could really help our chances of survival."

"My phone got destroyed in the fight with the manta ray." Akari tells you. "So I don't have anything to run it on."

"Believe me, the first thing I wanted to do after the fight was give her a copy." Wataru insists. "But it had to go on the backburner. I'll definitely send you the file, though."

As he worked on doing that, Akari inquired about the first objective you mentioned.

"So you want us to go to the school? Me too? Like this?" she asks, somewhat sarcastically. "I mean, I'm gonna try to make it work. But only because I don't want to be stuck somewhere alone again."

"Done. You should be getting the file." Wataru waves from his computer. "Just go ahead and run it."

You do so, and open the application. You check out the options. There's space for a list of demons you have stored, but yours is empty right now. There's also a storefront to hire demons to summon, but you don't have any of the currency they use. 'Macca', how do you get that? Didn't Wataru get some when you beat the Oni?

Then you notice that your name, which is above where summonable demons would be, is selectable. You press it, and all sorts of info pops up. It displayed your current status, your Persona's abilities, and those of your demon form. The only skill you currently have on either is 'Zio', which apparently deals low electric damage.

How did this program know all this information? Who created it? It was just another bunch of questions to add to the pile.

And while you didn't have macca, you found another resource that you apparently did have. Atma Points.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B7rTk88T8mg

You have ten of them. You click on the Atma menu. At the top it says 'Learn Skill', while several options are listed. They are:

>Physical
>Gun
>Fire
>Ice
>Electric
>Force
>Healing
>Buffs/Debuffs
>Ailments
>Light
>Dark
>Almighty
>Other

All of the options cost ten points to select, except for light, dark, and almighty, which each cost twenty. Since you have the points, you consider spending them.

>A. Spend points to get a new skill (Choose type)
>B. Save the points

Ey I'ma say it glowing lines are hot.

And that's a choice I'll leave for the night, cause I'm going to bed. Hope you guys had fun. Tomorrow I'll lay out an updated character sheet for you guys

>>4529324
>A. Spend points to get a new skill (Buffs/Debuffs)
Buffs and Debuffs are actually fucking useful.

>>4529324
>Find Akari the biggest baggiest Hoody you can
Am I blind, because I don't see how Many Atma points we have

>>4529328
It looks to be a interesting start. I don't envy you for cramming all these different playstyles together into one quest. I assume that our alternative form will have a pre-establised picture. From the Marut.jpg you posted earlier in the quest.

>>4529337
>You have ten of them. You click on the Atma menu. At the top it says 'Learn Skill', while several options are listed. They are:
Just above the list of skills.

>>4529337
You have ten, which is enough for one skill of any type besides light, dark, or almighty

>>4529341
Well you can imagine the design as slightly altered the way an MC's would be in-game to fit thematically and for extra style points, but I certainly can't draw what that might end up looking like

>>4529337
>Buffs/Debuffs
>>4529341
>>4529342
Thanks, I am in fact blind

>>4529347
>Thanks, I am in fact blind
It's no problem anon, it gets the better of us all.

File: 20201110_233234.png (81 KB, 223x181)

81 KB PNG

>>4529324
>>Buffs/Debuffs

>>4529324
>A. Spend points to get Buffs/Debuffs

I mean that Pixie already has healing so this is probably the most useful

>>4529334
>>4529347
>>4529354
>>4529366
I didn't even get a chance to go to bed yet, and there's no way another option is getting five more votes. Go ahead and make your rolls.

Rolling will be 2d20, first roll is whether your roll will be picked, highest wins. Second roll is your actual result on the table. Actually going to bed after this

Rolled 2, 7 = 9 (2d20)

>>4529376
K

Rolled 10, 5 = 15 (2d20)

>>4529376
Rollin

>>4529394
Ya know
I was kinda expecting a pair of Nat 1's

Rolled 3, 5 = 8 (2d20)

>>4529376

Rolled 15, 15 = 30 (2d20)

>>4529397
You have to invoke the Matador for that kind of shit luck. Or is it the other way around?

>>4529450
We never challenged anyone to a duel, so that explains why we roll like shit.
The only time we were (sort of) one on one was with Igor and we critted.

Time to R E D C A P O T E

File: c9992dcb67a13c864bf30cd11(...).png (131 KB, 500x500)

131 KB PNG

Here's an interesting question that's been brewing in my mind for a while. Since we technically have a persona with all that entails. Does that mean that we can acquire social links with both Wataru and Akari and thus being able to stop them from going full Law/Chaos Hero?

>>4529450
So this is the winning roll, you guys learned Rakunda. I'll write up the current character sheet in a bit

>>4530170
>Rakunda
Oh nice, the "fuck this guy's defense rating" ability. Never leave home without it.

>>4530170
Would have preferred Sukunda, but this is a solid result.
>>4530032
Maybe? Or maybe we can perform the forbidden technique: talk to them like they are actual human beings rather than leave them to be sweet-talked by Metatron/Lucifer.

Hideo Emushi
Human, Male, 17 years old
Atma Avatar/Persona User
HP: 14/14, MP: 13/13, AP:0

Human Form
Light: Null, Dark: Weak
STR 2
MAG 3
DEX 3
END 4
AGI 2
CHA 1
Skills: None

Atma Avatar: Marut
Body: Res, Elec: Res, Ice: Weak
STR 3
MAG 5
DEX 5
END 5
AGI 4
CHA 1
Skills: Zio, Rakunda

Current Persona: Marut
Chariot Arcana
Mind: Res, Elec: Res, Ice: Weak
MAG+1
DEX+1
AGI+1
Skills: Zio

Social Link Progress:
None

How Personas work is that you are a regular human until you summon the Persona in battle, at which point you get the stat boosts and your weaknesses/resistances swapped out until the end of the battle when you return to normal human ones

In this game, I am making all Atma Avatars resistant to physical ailments (Paralysis, Poison, Enervation) which I am classifying under Body, and all Personas resistant to mental ailments (Charm, Confusion, Fear) which are classified under Mind

How social links work here is that there will be only 5 levels (Think DeSu 2), and each one gives you a +1 bonus to CHA rolls with the person in question. Each level will also give an additional skill to Personas of the matching arcana, up to six. Because to start off any Persona you get will only have one skill

If you have any other questions feel free to ask, it'll still be a couple hours before I can get the next game post going

>>4530251
You think we can eat the Magatama and become the atma demfiend persona user?

>>4530277
No. A Demi-Fiend cannot have a Persona, so you woud lose your Persona powers if you did that

>>4530277
Being that greedy is how you end up turning into a slime demon

You click on the 'Buffs/Debuffs' option, and watch as your Atma Points tick away. You then get a strange yet subtle feeling inside you like something has changed. Accompanying that feeling is a new skill on your skill list, Rakunda. Per the description, it lowers one target's defenses and can stack up to three times.

"Found some interesting stuff on there?" Wataru asks, as he shuts his computer down in preparation to leave. "I was able to buy another demon too, after getting macca for beating the one last night. I am feeling a whole lot safer now. But it wouldn't hurt to team up with these student council guys, either."

Wataru digs around and finds the baggiest hoodie in his house, though the chest spike still makes a weird shape. Akari reluctantly takes Wataru's idea and stuffs it until it's at least not triangular. Then she throws on some shades, a surgical mask, and longer pants. If she keeps her hands in her pockets, she might just get away with this.

"Honestly, it doesn't even matter if I get taken as a weirdo." Akari sighs."Anyone that thinks I'm a weird person still thinks I'm a person, so we're good."

The three of you take the train to the stop by the school, and then try to sneak inside without drawing too much attention. Class is still going right now, so there aren't any students to worry about, but it would be a huge pain if a teacher caught you.

After a few minutes of careful advancing, you all reach the currently empty student council room. It does make sense that they would be in class too, right now. So for the next few hours the three of you just chill out. Akari takes off her hoodie, and the stuffing turned out to be a bag full of snacks. Practical. You all munch on some, though as you do you think to yourself that you really could go for some meat.

No one shows up during lunch, so it's just the three of you relaxing until class ends. You find yourself thinking the school building is a lot colder than you remember. Once that happens, two of the student council members show up, surprised to see you here. It's the President and the other guy. The one on his phone all the time. You never bothered to learn any of these people's names.

"So you decided to bring your friends to us, Emushi?" the Prez asks, once he's recovered from the shock of seeing a glowing person with a spike on their chest. "I considered myself somewhat well informed on what's been going on, but then I see Toshinagi with neon stripes and I question whether I know anything at all."

The phone guy hops back on his phone like every other time you've seen him, while the Prez takes a seat and presumably waits for you to explain what you and your friends came here for.

>A. Tell him you want to see about getting your friends Personas
>B. Ask where Shouko and the other one have gotten to
>C. Suggest sharing information among each other. You don't actually know anything about these guys, and they probably want to know what all your group can do as well
>D. Other

>>4530478
>B. Ask where Shouko and the other one have gotten to

>>4530478
>C. Suggest sharing information among each other. You don't actually know anything about these guys, and they probably want to know what all your group can do as well

>>4530478
>>C. Suggest sharing information among each other. You don't actually know anything about these guys, and they probably want to know what all your group can do as well

>>4530478
>C. Suggest sharing information among each other. You don't actually know anything about these guys, and they probably want to know what all your group can do as well

>>4530478
>C. Suggest sharing information among each other. You don't actually know anything about these guys, and they probably want to know what all your group can do as well

>>4530497
>>4530500
>>4530512
>>4530539
You do actually feel kind of bad about not knowing these guys' names. Maybe the Prez assumed you did just because he's the student council president? Anyway, you'll work together better if you all know what everyone can do.

"So I think we should all do some proper introductions." you suggest. "And with them, we can explain what we bring to the table as far as this whole demon fighting thing goes."

"A surprisingly rational suggestion. Very well." the Prez accepts. "I am Hitogata Metropolitan High School's Student Council President, Shouichi Fuudaki. My Persona is Thoth, of the Emperor Arcana. Among our group, I'm the only one that can use Light skills to wipe out certain demons instantly."

"Hi." the other guy gets off his phone to introduce himself. "I'm Yotarou Ikinari, Treasurer. My arcana is Temperance, and my Persona Seiryu can use Force attacks."

"Wataru Yatashige. Demon summoner." Wataru says with a smug grin. "I can summon Pixie for healing, or Apsaras to dish out Ice damage. All thanks to my Demon Summoning Program."

"I'm Akari Toshinagi." Akari takes her turn. "And I'm uh... not quite human anymore. But I have this skill that makes me or an ally hit harder. So that could help, I guess."

You then lay out the entirety of what you're capable of. It takes longer than anybody else, given you've basically doubled up on powers.

The atmosphere is much better now that everyone is in the now about each other, aside from it being far colder than you feel like it should be.

"So it seems like we have a good amount of bases covered." the Prez makes his assessment. "Enough of us in one room, and we need fear no demon attack. That is, if they keep to appearing at their current strength."

"Demon Summoning Program..." Yotarou eyes Wataru's phone. "I could really use one of those too."

"Sure, why not?" Wataru sends him the file, happy to share it. 'The more, the merrier."

>A. He's right, we should be outfitting everyone with the program. That means you too, Prez
>B. How about a trade? Demon Summoning Program for a Persona?
>C. Where are Shouko and the other girl? Are they safe enough on their own?
>D. I get the feeling we're already less safe in this room than you think, Prez
>E.Other

>>4530581
>>A. He's right, we should be outfitting everyone with the program. That means you too, Prez
>>C. Where are Shouko and the other girl? Are they safe enough on their own?
>D. Ask Wataru and Akair if they want a Persona.

>>4530581
>D. I get the feeling we're already less safe in this room than you think, Prez
Is the school being frozen over?

>>4530581
>C. Where are Shouko and the other girl? Are they safe enough on their own?

>>4530581
>C. Where are Shouko and the other girl? Are they safe enough on their own?

>>4530586
>>4530598
>>4530605
The Prez talking about safety in numbers has you worried about Shouko. You were expecting her, but she never showed up.

"Where are Shouko and the other girl?" you ask. "Are they safe enough on their own?"

"Since we got Personas and started getting involved with demons, we've been making sure to always work either as one group or in pairs. Keeping the key in this room whenever we can." the Prez explains. "It's gotten us through anything before, but that may change. In particular, the fact that they went to look for this 'Chousuke' is concerning. Unlike you, he hasn't gotten a miraculous way to control his demonic hunger. There's no telling what could happen."

It's silent for a moment, and Wataru shivers a bit. "Did someone leave the AC on, or what?"

Yotarou shrugs, while the Prez comes to a conclusion.

"I think we would have gotten a response from them by now if everything was alright." he tells you. "They may have gotten into a fight. I'd prefer to send someone after them to be safe."

You can't fault him for this choice, you're worried about both Shouko and Chousuke yourself.

>A. You guys should go, and if you leave the key with us, I can see if these guys can get Personas too while you're gone
>B. I'll go after them, I want to make sure they're okay
>C. Why don't we all go after them?
>D. I don't think we can afford to send anyone after them right now
>E. Other

>>4530648
>B. I'll go after them, I want to make sure they're okay
>Bring Someone else along to maintain at least pairs

>>4530648
>D. I don't think we can afford to send anyone after them right now

>>4530648
>B. I'll go after them, I want to make sure they're okay

>>4530648
>>4530656
Supporting.

>>4530656
>>4530683
>>4530685
"I'll go after them, I want to make sure they're okay." you tell the Prez. "Though I would like to bring along at least one more person. Maintain pairs, like you said."

"Well I can't go." Akari states. "It was enough trouble just getting here without drawing attention."

Wataru and Yotarou look up from their phones, pausing their perusal of the Demon Summoning Program. They take a moment to think, then look like they're about to say something before they're beaten to the punch.

"I'll go with you." the Prez insists, digging the key out of his pocket and tossing it to Yotarou. "The rest of you can keep doing your thing here."

With that decided, you and the Prez take off on your search. You can feel a chill wind as you leave the campus, but it disappears soon enough. You take the train as close to Ojiri ward as you can get, since they did in fact stop serving the station there.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VZIXqXKiZ7I

The two of you then enter the ward on foot to find patrols going around the perimeter. Not just police, but JSDF too. Looks like the government is taking this seriously. Luckily not all the guards are. You're able to sneak past them.

Inside, things look even more torn up than this morning. You can scarcely believe that somehow things got even worse in just a few hours. You consider where you should look.

>A. He's probably not still home after all this time, but it can't hurt to look
>B. Check the area around the arcade again
>C. Ask Shouichi if Shouko said where she was going to be looking
>D. Other

>>4530712
>C. Ask Shouichi if Shouko said where she was going to be looking

>>4530712
>C. Ask Shouichi if Shouko said where she was going to be looking

>>4530712
>C. Ask Shouichi if Shouko said where she was going to be looking

>>4530712
>>C. Ask Shouichi if Shouko said where she was going to be looking

File: Preta.jpg (15 KB, 340x319)

15 KB JPG

>>4530719
>>4530722
>>4530724
"Did Shouko say where she was going to be looking?" you ask. "It would be better than searching blindly."

"She just said she was going to comb back alleys and things like that." the Prez explains. "Since she doesn't really know what that delinquent gets up to these days."

Well that doesn't really narrow it down. Still, that's where you get to looking. At least this way it'll be easier to avoid any police or JSDF lurking around.

You worm your way through the backest of alleys, head on a swivel looking for clues. Every once in a while you can spot someone cowering behind something, probably hiding from those that can't control their hunger. Or maybe they're hiding for others' sake rather than their own.

Eventually you approach an air where the air is twisting and warping. An unmistakable sign of demons appearing. Shouichi recognizes it too, and you two prepare to fight. You round a corner to see a procession of tiny purple figures with bloated stomachs. There are over a dozen of the things. You start to wonder if you can fight off so many, but then a few other demons pop out. They start diving mouth-first for the little purple guys, so you quickly realize the situation. These new demons are transformed humans. They're desperate to sate their hunger now that a food source has appeared.

Though you aren't completely free of your hunger either. You can feel your stomach rumbling at the sight of the demons.

>A. Let's take the demons out then see what we can do about the transformed people
>B. Let's leave this to them, they'll be able to ease their hunger for a while without hurting people
>C. Let's knock these transformed people out before they can get hurt or hurt each other
>D. Other

>>4530741
>C. Let's knock these transformed people out before they can get hurt or hurt each other

>>4530741
>B. Let's leave this to them, they'll be able to ease their hunger for a while without hurting people

Yo where did everybody go?

>>4530741
>>C. Let's knock these transformed people out before they can get hurt or hurt each other

>>4530741
>B. Let's leave this to them, they'll be able to ease their hunger for a while without hurting people

>>4530741
>B. Let's leave this to them, they'll be able to ease their hunger for a while without hurting people