>>4942283

>Maybe today is just a weird day, I'll just freshen up at the bathroom.

>>4942283
>>Maybe today is just a weird day, I'll just freshen up at the bathroom.

>>4942283
>>Just go home, I get the feeling nobody will stop me if I do just that.

>>4942283
>Just go home, I get the feeling nobody will stop me if I do just that.

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>>4942283
>Read a fucking book!

>>4942283
Right, it might just be a funny day today. You make your way to the door and step right out onto the hall. The teacher didn't stop you from leaving, and you didn't even make an attempt to hide the fact that you were. A quick look in both directions, and you see the sign for the bathrooms near the stairs, a small relief, as you didn't actually know where it was. Making your way over, you can see the same scene as your classroom in the other rooms from the brief glimpses you have passing over. Nobody in those rooms seem to stand out though, at least obviously enough from a simple glance. Going inside the bathroom, the place is almost pristine, almost as if it were unused, though, who'd want to use a dirty bathroom?

Over at the sinks, you wash your face and get a nice look at yourself. Again, nothing about it unordinary, but if anything, you look as if you won't be attracting attention either. You also have the school uniform on, but that's a given. A Dark Blue blazer and pants with a White collared shirt and Black vest on. You don't actually need to use the facilities, so you step out right after drying up.

>"Aw man, I'm late, I'm late!"
As you step out, you can hear someone rushing up the stairs. With their bag in hand and what they're saying, its clear that they're late for school. Should mean that this is morning, otherwise this guy seriously needs an sleep schedule adjustment. With this being the first interesting thing since your self-realization, you followed him up the stairs and to his classroom.
>"There you are, Hiroki, I was just about to mark you as absent."
>"Sorry Sensei, but I was stalled earlier. I'll try not to let it happen again."
>"I hear you, just go to your seat now. Say, is that the transfer student right behind you? We've been expecting one today."
The teacher is referring to you. So much for that face of yours. Caught a little off guard, you have to figure out how you're gonna reply to this.

>I should just explain that I belong in another class already.
>Lets go along with this, yeah, I'm the transfer student.

Just something I wanted to ask, but should I keep using honorifics or not in the dialog?
Also I written this when the only two votes were for going to the bathroom but the other votes came as I was writing, my mistake, but I usually forget to post that I'm writing since the board is slow on a whole and I think I could get away with not posting that I am.

>>4942343
>Lets go along with this, yeah, I'm the transfer student.

>>4942343
>Lets go along with this, yeah, I'm the transfer student.
This is either some cosmic joke or we're in a dream.

also eh, don't care either way on the honorifics thing.

>>4942343
>>Lets go along with this, yeah, I'm the transfer student.

Honorifics are fine. I think most of the anime QMs, OC or not, use them.

>>4942343
>I should just explain that I belong in another class already.

>>4942343
>I should just explain that I belong in another class already.

I'm going to be writing the update now, but then I'm gonna go to sleep. I thought it was earlier in the night but I'll get back to it when I wake up

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>>4942343
This class already seems more lively than your own, so you're taking this misunderstanding for as far as it will take you.
"Yes, I'm transferring here. I was just looking for the room, or for someone to point me in the right direction."
"Right. It's good to have you here, Minoru-kun. You can take any empty seat you want."
Huh. Was that your name? More importantly, That worked? You see a few empty seats in a row by the windows, and take one. Hiroki takes his seat too, with his just in front of yours. This class is different, with the day going on just as you would expect it instead of what you had before in your old class. Before you knew it, it was lunch time, and students moved their desks together, striked up conversations with each other and generally enjoying lunch as people would. You didn't have you bag with you, seeing as that was in your old class, so you went to pick it up.

The old class hardly hasn't changed at all since you left, only that someone else was in your old seat already. Again, nobody minded that you walked right in and took your bag from your seat. On the way back, you considered that it was supposed to be lunch time, and yet they haven't moved a bit. Sitting down, you find the bag to have the usual school supplies, a wallet, and no lunch to be had. Checking the wallet, you find it empty save for a school ID, with your face and the name, Asa Minoru. This was supposed to be your name, and yet, you didn't know and someone had to tell you. Pocketing the wallet and putting the bag aside, you noticed that Hiroki left the classroom, presumably while you were getting your bag. You were going to let lunch go on by until you seatmate went to have a word with you.

>"Hey, Minoru-kun, wasn't it? You should know that someone was supposed to be sitting there?"
"Really? Wouldn't someone have pointed this out earlier incase they came late?"
>"Well, That's the thing here. Nobody seems to notice that Masaru-kun isn't here or that is his seat."
"So, whos this Masaru-kun, and what am I supposed to call you?"
>"Miyagawa Ayumi. Masaru is a friend of me and Hiroki. He's been looking for him but he can't find anything. Its like he never existed."
That's strange, but today was nothing but. Something was definitely wrong with this place, but you were lost on what exactly. This was something to do atleast.

>I should show my old class to her, and its weirdness to her. Maybe that guy in my seat is him.
>Go looking youself, seeing how weird things can be for you.
>I'm not sure how to help actually, best to just leave it as is for now.

I'm doing first name first when writing names but the Japanese like using surnames instead of given names when referring to someone and I'm wondering if I should be writing last names first instead. Also I actually have little clue on honorifics since they're something I hear a lot but never actually put much into learning about. I'm mostly winging it on honorific feels right to use.
also finding pics suck

>>4942434
>>I should show my old class to her, and its weirdness to her. Maybe that guy in my seat is him.

>>4942434
>I should show my old class to her, and its weirdness to her. Maybe that guy in my seat is him.

I'm guessing that it's the "real" Minoru in our seat, not Masaru. Assuming the school didn't just spontaneously generate a new mob character to fill the hole we left, it makes the most sense to take the role-less character we usurped and repurpose them. Still, no reason not to check if it's Masaru. Who knows, maybe he wandered down the wrong hallway and got unpersoned.

>>4942434
>I should show my old class to her, and its weirdness to her. Maybe that guy in my seat is him.

>>4942434
>>I should show my old class to her, and its weirdness to her. Maybe that guy in my seat is him.

>>4942434
>I should show my old class to her, and its weirdness to her. Maybe that guy in my seat is him.

>>4942434
"Gone like he never existed? Okay, I believe it."
>"Really? Nobody else but Hiroki-san believed that, but I only realized this after he called me about it."
"Well, today has been strange for me too. For one, I'd say my old class was the definition of it."
>"How so?"
"It's better if I just show you since it isn't far from here at all. C'mon."
Rising from your chair, you take her down the stairs and towards where your old class is. Though when the two of you get there you find that the class is... Normal? In a complete 180 of how they were before they're acting just like students from the class upstairs.
>"So, how are they weird now?"
"Uh, never mind about that. I really did transfer over from this class though, so maybe he's here by mistake or something."
>"Give me a sec and let me see them."

Ayumi steps into the classroom and goes about conversing with the students. From what you can hear all of who she asked doesn't know of this Masaru, but you're a bit dumbfounded on these guys are acting now than before. Finding no new answers, she leaves the classroom.
>"Nope, he isn't in here and they didn't know him. I'm gonna go looking elsewhere now."
>"Ah! Before I go though, you can have this."
Going into her bag, she takes out a bento box and hands it over to you. You can see the initials K.M. on it.
>"This was supposed to be for him but, well, you know. I also saw that you didn't have lunch, so consider this a welcoming gift. Don't get any ideas now, I won't be making more of these until he turns up again."
"Thanks anyways."
With that, she goes off searching. Looking over to your class you see that they've dropped the façade and rearranged the room back to how it was before. Again, the life that was displayed with her around is now just gone, idling around as you were before. You try speaking to one of them, but failed to elicit a response. Without much else you go back to class, only to find the same scene as downstairs. Sitting down at your desk, you mull over what to do next over lunch.

>I should check the rest of the school and see if there's other classes that change like that.
>Lets just go for the day and see how the rest of the world is like.

>>4942943
>Lets just go for the day and see how the rest of the world is like.
I feel like we are an extra in the begining of an anime.

>>4942943
>Lets just go for the day and see how the rest of the world is like.
So we're an extra who has gained some level of awareness. Everything that isn't in eyesight of the protag is barely modelled and functioning. Noted.

>>4942943
>>I should check the rest of the school and see if there's other classes that change like that.

I want to find this guy, look likes he could become our friend.

If you are following in the footsteps of Anime Romcom Mob Character Quest, don't forget to proofread your posts for typos, and make sure to separate the QM text from the post body. Make it clear, like a separating line of dashes or so after the post vote section. And don't forget the advice given to you in /qtg/ regarding tone and suspense. Good luck.

Writing now.
I get the feeling someone is gonna vote for exploring the school right after this goes up

>>4942943
>Go to the library. Read a fucking book!

>>4943105
kek

>>4942943
Alright, after finishing up, you've decided to just go. Nobody would miss you, but it was not as if they were going to do much of anything about it. You left the lunch box on her desk and grabbed your bag. Time to go see what's outside. Leaving the building and slipping past the gates, you turn around to get a good look at the school. Nothing about it is conspicuous, and if you hadn't just came out from there it'd look like another school day is going on inside.
As scenic the view can be, the complete silence all around punctuates just how barren the world is. No traffic, both pedestrian and automotive, can be heard, because apparently everyone is already where they should be. The other buildings and stores around, while they're open, are devoid of customers or people who'd have businesses inside somewhere. Only one staff member inside, manning the front desk or register, but nobody else can be seen. Deciding to first see what's along the way home, you head on back there.
The further you get from the school, the less open everywhere seems to be. Stores went from open, to closed, to unoccupied, waiting for someone to rent out the space for use. Windows became opaque, rendering you unable to see the insides. Buildings look locked up, but the spaces are likely vacant anyways. Getting closer to the residential areas, houses and apartments start becoming more common. As well maintained the places can be none of them feel as if they're lived in, but rather they're ready for an open house display. Soon you come across your apartment building and step up to your door. It's locked, however, and you don't seem to have a key on you or in your bag. Maybe you aren't supposed to be back yet? Going back down, you come across the mail box for the place and check inside yours. Only one thing is inside, a bank card with your name as the card bearer. You can probably buy stuff with this if needed, if you could find somewhere to buy something from. Pocketing it, you look back on where you lived, locked out by some arbitrary means.

>Let me just break into my own home somehow. I'm sure it would be fine.
>Come back later and the door might just come unlocked itself. Some more aimless wandering will pass the time.
>Take a nice good look at the place and watch. If people live here in the loosest definition of the word they must do something eventually, right?

[I feel like I've been writing less and less with updates already, but there's sometimes there's just less to write about option you guys picked and it took me a bit to write this one because I feel some need to stretch out the post a little. Not to say I'm giving out options I can't write about, just options that are more to the point than others.]

>>4943145
>Let me just break into my own home somehow. I'm sure it would be fine.
Surely we can grab, like, a rock and bash it in.

>>4943145
>>Take a nice good look at the place and watch. If people live here in the loosest definition of the word they must do something eventually, right?

We can already consider that the city is almost nothing. The center of "life" seems the school, there was more activity as well around it. We should verify it. If the outskirts of the city are even less defined than our quarter then it s true.

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It tied. I tried waiting for a bit longer for another vote but I waited long enough so I decided to just go with the oldest vote which is what I normally do in these situations anyways

>>4943145
Interesting. I don't think we're in a simulation, if there was a computer trying to minimize resource requirements for unused assets then everything would be much lower-resolution. Blank geometry, like a SUPERHOT level, or the ending of The Uncle Who Works For Nintendo. These are real places, just empty ones. So maybe we're physical, then? Not in some fake world, but a real world that's being manipulated.

>>4943377
Oh, sorry, QM. I've been busy today and only just now got the chance to check the thread. You posted as I was typing up my musings. I'm fine with breaking in, though.

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>>4943145
>>4943377

Back to your door, you try an obvious solution and try knocking the door. No response, so Home Alone is what the situation is looking like. First you tried slipping a card between the latch and the frame, but it doesn't budge. Even if you knew how to lockpick you had nothing to do it with, but without the skill for it the tools wouldn't have made much of a difference. You step back a little bit and after a little focusing you give the door a good kick near the knob. Might as well have kicked the wall, because this door did not want to budge one bit at all. Your leg still stings with numbness from your kick, you almost took a look into the window before realizing that might be easier than the door. Taking out one of the heavier books in your bag, you swung it at the window a few times only for it to withstand your attempts at B&E. Not even a crack or anything, this place is reinforced like a prison cell. Force not being an option, you take a moment to remember just how the place was, before peering into the window to confirm a thought. Inside, you can see the sliding door to the balcony. Stepping down and rounding the building, you go over to where your apartment should be, and climb up from below and onto your balcony. The door slides aside, and you step right in.

Home. Guess that's what you should call it. The lights were off but you quickly found the switch and had a lit view of what's inside.
The place is spotless, not a speck of dust to be found. Everything works like it's brand new, but further investigation of the place proves nobody really lived here. Shelves and cabinets are devoid of household goods, the fridge is empty, and nothing has been disturbed. You toss your bag onto the couch and take off your shoes, with that being proper etiquette and all. That out of the way, time to give this place a good tour. Already having a look of the living room and kitchen, you went into the first door you see and find it to be the bathroom. It's well stocked actually, with the necessities present, and this was somewhere you want to be crystal clean anyways. One door over, you open up the one to your room. All that's in it is your bed, a desk and chair, and your closet. The bed has always been made, seeing as you remember not even going under the sheets to sleep. All the attires in your closet is the school uniform, though you hardly remember if you changed at all. On the desk however was a phone and a couple of keys. There was nothing on the phone that provides insight on a previous owner or on whole situation, while a key is likely for the front door but you're at a loss on the what the other is for. Barring that, there was nothing else in the room. The last door led to another bedroom, but with the closet empty and the desk missing. If anyone was supposed to be here, there's no trace of them.

>Lets just wait inside, see what happens when the school day is up.
>Get back out there and find where this key goes to, somehow.

>>4943390
>Get back out there and find where this key goes to, somehow.
>Also ponder why your classroom became suddenly active and lively when you showed it to that weird girl but became dead silent when she was gone. Why only now did it change?

>>4943390
> Look for a book

>>4943390
Yeah, I like >>4943407. Supporting. I want to see if the set designer got real books, or if they're all blank. Do they even have covers?

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>>4943390
Before heading out, you've decided to inventory the place once more. There isn't anything you've missed the first time around though, but you find more things missing. There's a TV in the living room sure, but there's no remote to go with it. Same with your phone, with the charger missing you'd have to be mindful of it's use until that's resolved. Anywhere you'd think to put something, has nothing in it. Taking a seat on the couch, you take stock of your bag once more. Going over what you have, you have a few subject books, a notebook and a folder, along with writing utensils. Flipping through the pages of today's lesson, everything is as you recalled, but studying isn't what you wanted to do. Skipping over to a random page you find that you can't read it. Obviously, you're literate, but where text should be, is instead Black blocks you have no chance of reading. Is it being censored, or is this text simply irrelevant? The other books you have are all the same, except for the notebook, which hasn't has anything written in it anyways. Taking a pen, you jot down something in the first page.

>The quick Brown fox jumps over the lazy dog.
You can still read it, even after waiting a little bit to see if it gets censored. Anything you write should be fine, but you can't read those books you have, as unhelpful they might be anyways. Looking over to the folder, you find it empty, save for a business card lodged in one of the pockets. You can't read it due to the same blockyness affecting the books, but you can still recognize the logo, for a place called N/V. You never recalled ever passing by a place like that, since it's not somewhere on the way to and from school. It's something however, so you pack everything up and right after checking the keys for the one to your place, you go off to find the establishment.

1/2

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>>4943594
After a little bit of straying, you find yourself among fellow students trying to get home. The day must've finished, but working on a hunch, you go up against the stream of students. The further you go the more active things get, from mindlessly pathing their way home, to showing a little bit more step in their stride and even talking with themselves and casually window shopping when the stores around them are open. Since this isn't the way you normally go, you stop and survey the area. Just as you believed to have found this N/V place, you turn to meet the voice calling out for you
>"Oi, Minoru-kun, how's the first day with us?"
It takes you a little bit to realize that this is Hiroki, and you respond back in turn.
"It went swimmingly."
>"Glad to have heard it. I heard from Ayumi-san about when you talked about Masaru though, and his whole situation."
>"Except for you two, nobody seems to get what I ask them, like I just tried to sell them a bridge, and I ended up late for once. Usually, it's him who'd be late if I don't come and get him. I'm gonna check his house one more time since I had to get to school the first time, and could you come with me? It might be easier to get someone at the door if we pretend it's school business."

Is he ignoring the fact that you stepped out from the middle of the day? Or did he legitimately not notice that? Either way you're at crossroads, literally and figuratively. Knowing how places shutter and people practically automate without either Ayumi or apparently Hiroki too, there might not be an opportunity to check out the place again, but you also might not find out where Masaru lived either later.

>Let's go along with, something might develop at where Masaru lived.
>I don't know if this N/V place will stay open without someone around, I should go there now while I can.

2/2

>>4943598
>Let's go along with, something might develop at where Masaru lived.
I'm curious about what happened to unperson Masaru.

I updated because I couldn't sleep, but now I'm drowsy. I'll be back tomorrow, but probably not as soon as I wake.

>>4943398
Questions like that I try to refrain from outright answering and leave it for people to catch when reading the post, which I think you should be able to piece together with what we have.

Also I just realized that Hiroki's full name is revealed in his picture, not that it's supposed to be a secret, just that it's yet to be mentioned instory.

>>4943598
>>Let's go along with, something might develop at where Masaru lived.

>>4943598
>Let's go along with, something might develop at where Masaru lived.

>>4943598
> Write a fictional story about Masaru in a book.

>>4943598
>I don't know if this N/V place will stay open without someone around, I should go there now while I can.

>>4943598
>Let's go along with, something might develop at where Masaru lived.

>>4943598
>Let's go along with, something might develop at where Masaru lived.
Maybe it's just the plot trying to lead us around, but if the story is pivoting towards a supernatural mystery instead of just a slice of life then we might still find something.

I got a little bit absorbed making notes and tossing around ideas, but I'm writing up something soon.

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>>4943598
"Let's go then, lead the way."
The store can wait, if this is where he takes his school commute, you can come back another time. The two of you head off towards Masaru's house, but not wanting to spend the trip in silence, you start talking.
"So, Hiroki-san, do I get a full name?"
>"Right, wouldn't be fair if I knew your name and you didn't mine. I'm Toyama Hiroki.
"Okay, how'd you know Masaru-kun is gone? Sure he's not just bedridden?"
>"I would've been told that already, if not from himself, from his family. But I don't get a response when I texted them myself, and my parents don't know who I'm talking about. Again, nobody else believes this but you and Ayumi-san."
>"His parents sometimes go off on business trips, but they usually try to coordinate them so one of them are at home while the other is away. I think he has a sister but she's attending the all-girls academy on the other side of town, though if something happened to him, she'd know soon enough. Point here is that they'd communicate this if that was the case, but there's been nothing."
"Nobody answered when you checked the first time though."
>"True, but I had to leave in a hurry when I realized I was going to be late. Maybe they were busy and couldn't get the door, or it could be a blue moon where he's alone at home."
"How is Masaru-kun himself though? Like how did the two of you meet?"
>"On the first day of school he was running off trying not to be late. Crashed right into me and almost broke my glasses, though he helped me onto my feet before running right off. He almost managed to be late anyways, having somehow took a longer way to school, and we ended up in the same class together. I went up to him about the morning and I ended up offering to show him my way to school. That's how it started, and I think that story sums up his character, atleast to me. He'd charge right on through, but aware enough to own up to his mistakes.
>"He knew Ayumi-san longer than I did though, you're gonna have to ask her about her story, but I could tell you a few things about her. For starters, her cooking is trojan horse, might look fine, but the stuff tastes rancid. Swear, she focuses on making it look good rather than taste good. Just because she could eat it doesn't mean we could too after the first time, and I've got no idea why she keeps hounding Masaru-kun to try it again."
"Wait, you for real? I finished a whole bunch of that stuff earlier."
>"And you're still walking around like this? I hardly believe it. Hold up, we're here."

1/2

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>>4944297
Masaru's house was different from the others, feeling as you can believe people lived it in. It isn't as sterile as the other places, and it appears as though someone was trying to maintain it, rather than it remaining pristine ignoring the elements. Both of you go up to the front door and ring the doorbell, only to be met with no response.
>"Nothing still. I know where they keep a spare key though."
Rummaging around the plants, Hiroki digs up a key and soon opens the front door. Hiroki directs you to see the first floor of the house while he goes up the stairs and check there. His place is normal, fully furnished and decorated to boot. Accessories liven up the place and little imperfections in the housekeeping shows to that this was the work of someone, and not just how it is. Looking around, you find that nobody has been around recently and checking up on the doors you find that they're still locked with no signs of tampering, though you didn't get to search further when Hiroki calls for you to come upstairs.
>"Nobody else is here, so he's alone, but this is where his room should be, and the door is not there."
You can see where he's fumbling about, oblivious to the door right in front of him. Before you can really point it out to him, both of you hear the front door open. Someone else is here.
>"I'm home~"
>"Oh, Masaru's sister. I'm gonna go down and explain that we're here."
With that he heads off downstairs to greet her. You were about to as well, but something about that door is demanding your attention. Like it wants you to open it. Now.

>I'm opening the door.
>I'm following along and going downstairs

2/2

>>4944297
Oh, sounds like Masaru is the main character, then.

>>4944302
Huh. So there's a perception filter on Masaru's door. Maybe whatever happened to him is still...I don't know, "digesting" him. It can't just erase all evidence of his existence yet, but it can at least make people forget about him. Yeah, I want to see what's in that room.

>I'm opening the door.

>>4944302
"Hiroki buy me time while I enter, last we need is his sister taking me out of his room.... If she remembers him that is."


>>I'm opening the door.

>>4944302
>I'm opening the door.
>Search for any books

>>4944302
>I'm opening the door.

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>>4944302
I take the doorknob and pull. Doesn't budge, but the other key was already ready. A perfect fit, the knob turns, and the door opens.

The moonlight shines through the window and on to your face. Awakening soon after, you find yourself back in your old seat, in your old class. You were sleeping on the spot, but the way you found yourself had you posed watching the board, as one of them again. You don't have any of your stuff on you, only your ID card on your desk. Getting up and stretching, you make out no changes to the classroom and none of your stuff around. You have no idea just how did you get here, or how long its been. You opened the door, but there's no recollection of what happened afterwards. The school at night has nobody inside, but hopefully that's a given. You try just leaving out a window, but none of them budge. Seeing the door slightly ajar, you back out onto the hallway.

You try to leave, but the front door is locked. Feeling like you won't be forcing this one open either you're left with having to find another way out somewhere inside. You haven't been around the school much, but you first check what you know. The bathroom were first, and you checked if anything was in the sinks or stalls. Next you slowly creep up the stairs to your new class, if anything was on the steps, and arriving at the room, you check again if the window was open or if there was something you needed in here. Coming up short, on both ends, you ponder what your next move should be. Before getting too lost in thought, you hear someone going up the stairs and listen in. They've appear to have went all the way up unlocked a door, and stepped out, presumably onto the roof. Confirming a hunch, you try the windows again, and they open. It's likely you're able to just leave right now, but just who else would go to school at this hour?

>No idea what else is in store for me, bail out now
>This might be important, so I'm gonna see who's up there.

[Sorry this one took a little longer than usual, but I had to attend a few things, as well as play around with image editing.]

>>4944556
>This might be important, so I'm gonna see who's up there.

>>4944556
>>This might be important, so I'm gonna see who's up there.
This obviously

>>4944556
>This might be important, so I'm gonna see who's up there.
I doubt this will end well, but I can't imagine leaving will end well either. The only way out is through.

>>4944556
>No idea what else is in store for me, bail out now
>I need to theorize a way of recording what happens. A system of secret post-it notes around the school?

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>>4944556
Up, Up, and away we go. You march up the stairs determined to meet whoever was here, but this flight is seems its taking longer for you. Regardless, you make it to the roof access door, as you suspected and opened it silently as to not attract attention. The roof was fenced off, and someone was right by it, admiring the view. From their demeanor, their hair flowing in the wind, and the sound of their voice definitely tells you that this was a girl. Were you noticed already? She starts to speak without so much as turning around to see you.
>"Hello. I don't believe we have met before. Mind telling me your name?"
You try to respond, but no words come out your mouth. So much as a simple sentence has become impossible for you to muster. The conversation continues.
>"_______________... such a lovely name. I'm ______________ by the way."
>"Like the view up here too? I sneak in and get a good look, just like you too."
So one sided. You're stuck in place, unable to get closer to the view she's talking about or respond. She scales the fence, and slowly sits herself onto the ledge, her hand still gripping the fence tightly.
>"Getting a view of the city under the starry sky like this is such an exhilaration. Reminds me just how it is to be, alive."
The scene seems stuck here, with her admiring the view. You try to recall what were the names she said was, but all you thought up was gibberish. Still frozen, you watch as her grip on the fence loosens, and she gets up.
>"Well, wanna help me up?"
Climbing the fence, she paused, before jumping off the roof. Judging from how she did it, it's like she wanted to jump off like that rather than having herself thrown off. Able to move again, you rush on over to the fence and look down, expecting a gruesome sight, only to find that she's vanished into thin air. Clueless to how she could've done it, you scour the roof for a clue, but find nothing. You descend back down into the school, only to find yourself in another part of it. You look back the way you came, the roof access apparently being its own stairway in another part of the building. Hearing footsteps in the distance, you try sneaking up to whoever was making them, to find that same girl walking the halls.
Apparently, she can stop you in your tracks, and vanish without a trace, while you only have the clothes on your back and sound of your heart beating out of its chest, but you weigh your options as they are presented to you.

>Follow her. She looks as if she has somewhere else to be.
>With what happened to me up there, I should try confronting her here and not where she wants to be.
>Hightail it out of here. No shame in that.

>>4944791
>Hightail it out of here. No shame in that. Record this down into a paper note.

>>4944791
>Follow her. She looks as if she has somewhere else to be.

>>4944807
support

>>4944791
>>Follow her. She looks as if she has somewhere else to be.
>But record what we the different things we have learned so far, from the "start" on our notebook while walking. We didn t even need to eat, drink or sleep so far.

>>4944874
*what we have done until now, and the different

>>4944791
Supporting >>4944874

>>4944874
>support

Who is this girl?

And from the sound of things, it looks like the missing friend is the protagonist of the story, where is he???

>>4944874
Supporting

>>4944791
Being sure to keep your distance, you trail her as she wanders about the school. The girl looks over various rooms that she passes by, quickly dismissing them as her destination. With the floor cleared, she strolls down the steps, and you do the same. Around halfway through the second floor, a sense of boredom kicks in. While she could take her time searching for where ever, you couldn't really spare the same patience. Compounded by the fact that you didn't have anything on you when you woke here, all you can do is to recap your thoughts and experiences to help pass the time.

You became aware of your situation one day, and soon met Hiroki and Ayumi. Compared to the other people, if they can be called that, they have names, personalities, relatives, and most notably, an unawareness of how the world is. They knew a Kurokawa Masaru guy, and this is the only thing you know these two have in common. Sometime before you were aware, he just went up and vanished, gone without a trace. Hiroki was the first to notice, with how he'd usually catch him on the way to school. From then, he contacted Ayumi about him and that's when she knew too...? Putting aside the fact that you have no taste if Hiroki is to be believed, she made a lunch for someone she didn't remember? Maybe there's an explanation for this. She's trying to get Masaru to eat her cooking again, and it become her routine to make 2 servings for lunch. When he disappeared, she forgot who it was for but still went on as usual anyways. Best you could think of, but this is something to keep in mind now.

Aside from those two, Masaru also has a sister. You didn't get to meet her, but its very much likely that she doesn't remember having a brother. Aside from the girl you're stalking right now, that's everyone special you know. With yourself, there's not much to say. Your name is Asa Minoru, as of today atleast. You don't need to eat, drink or sleep, seeing as you never ate anything before or felt tired. Until you were aware, you were just like everyone else, but now you're a sort of a middle ground between the two types of people. How you came about is a mystery in itself, since you have no link to Masaru, but everything else seems to go back towards him.

1/2

>>4945667
The girl stops, and so do you. You see her eyeing a unremarkable door, and she steps right in. You observe just for a little bit, to see if she would step out, and realize just how off your surroundings are. This is where your old class should be, but there's something else there. In fact, the layout of the place changed, but its too dark to see the full extent of this. Already following her this far, you enter the room yourself, ending up in your old class room again. Sticking your head out to the hall, the place reverted back to what you know it as, and this girl is nowhere to be seen. A breeze alerts you to an open window, and you leave the school from there when the other windows refused to budge, and made your way back home.

Climbing in again from the balcony, you find that the rest of your stuff is in your room. Accounting for everything you were supposed to have, you decided to write down everything you recounted onto your notebook, and fall asleep soon after. It's a new day now, and you wonder where to go from here.

>Go to school, and get a follow up on what happened at Masaru's house from Hiroki.
>Investigate Masaru's house, this time alone. Pass by that N/V place while I'm at it.
>See where Masaru's sister goes to school at. People linked to Masaru have the world around them come alive, so maybe she does that too.

2/2

>>4945671
>Investigate Masaru's house, this time alone. Pass by that N/V place while I'm at it.

Hiroki and the girl aren't going nowhere, let's have more information before confronting them with this weirdness

https://pastebin.com/Pvx8EJ5e

The notebook, as you guys so voted for.

>>4945671
>>Investigate Masaru's house, this time alone. Pass by that N/V place while I'm at it.

More information is needed. We can also observe anything weird and write it down.
//

I am very curios to see how the outskirts of the city are, if the city mid section around the school has already a low "definition", the outskirts probably barely exist. This also gives an idea on what we can do and what we can t do. For example we can enter in the houses of others or stores and probably do whatever we want. But not in the parts near the school, those are more alive.

We don t even need to go for school, beside for be there. Lessons probably happen only when real people are around.

Though if we don t go, both Miyama and Togawa could notice. Even so, they might not care of it, or they could. That might be a problem.
We have still free reign for most of the day and all night.

>>4945697
>>Investigate Masaru's house, this time alone. Pass by that N/V place while I'm at it.
>> Grafitti it.

>>4945671
Today, you were going to commit another act of truancy. Destination being the Kurokawa Residency, you plan to have a more through investigation of both there and this N/V this time without any distractions. With it being fairly late in the morning, you make way to where you met Hiroki, assuming he's already passed by this time. The lifeless stares of the students still commuting to school confirms it, and you make it to the spot.
"Eh?"
This is the place, or where it should be, but a completely different store is in place of where you saw the N/V place before. You scour the immediate area for it, but simply put, the place just relocated else where somehow. Giving up on this, you move on to your next stop. You keep an eye out on for N/V on the walk there, with it being quite long without someone to speak to, but it didn't move closer to his place. Arriving, you find the spare key right where you saw it and walked right in.
The place is as you left it, and nobody's home. Starting from downstairs you check to see if there's anything you missed for the short time you were here. None of the doors lead to anywhere suspicious, and there isn't a basement that you know of. Nothing's out of place either, but last night's leftovers shows that the place is being used as intended. Walking up the stairs, you check each door you can. One of them was locked, and the second one after that was a bathroom. The third door led to the sister's room, but you only give it a quick visual inspection, not wishing to disturb anything.
Now you come across the last door. Masaru's door. Taking out the key, you open the door once more.

Again, you find yourself in your old class, in your old chair. A quick glance at your phone shows no time as passed at all, and with you still having all your stuff proves something happened to you the first time you opened that door. You get the idea to check if that mystery girl is in fact a classmate, but none of them look like her.
You're back at school again, but you don't have to attend class still, or stay at all if that's what you want.

>N/V is my strongest lead yet, so I need to look for that place ASAP
>I'm already here, so let's go speak to Hiroki and Ayumi when I can
>Explore the school further, find other classes that are different, maybe even that girl if she's in here.
>Go out traveling to the other side of town and see that Academy, and maybe find other places of interests along the way.

[Sorry guys, but I won't be around for the rest of today and tomorrow. I'll get back to this as soon as I can but just to have something to talk about how does this compare to the Reborn in a Harem RomCom quest? That being dead for so long and a recent talk of a revival made me want to run this quest myself.]

>>4946033
>>Explore the school further, find other classes that are different, maybe even that girl if she's in here

>>4946033
>>Explore the school further, find other classes that are different, maybe even that girl if she's in here.

Well seems that his door and our class are connected. At least we are sure of that now

>>4946033
>Explore the school further, find other classes that are different, maybe even that girl if she's in here.

>>4946205
That or our death reset us and sent us back to the classroom.
To be honest, I don't want to jump from the roof to validate my theory

>>4946033
>N/V is my strongest lead yet, so I need to look for that place ASAP
Let's see if we can google it on our phone.

>>4946033
>I'm already here, so let's go speak to Hiroki and Ayumi when I can
What does Hiroki remember happening last night? Did we suddenly vanish? Or were we, from his perspective, never on the trip to Masaru's house at all? What did Masaru's sister say?

File: Tanabe Chiharu.jpg (421 KB, 992x1754)

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>>4946033
Making the best of your sudden arrival at school, you've decided to forgo class and opt for exploring the school itself. The layout of the place might be foreign to you, but what you really wanted to know were two things. One, what other classes are special, and two, if that girl is around as a student. Taking care to avoid your class, you search for signs of activity telltale of someone special, and strange phenomena similar to last night. Not much luck on those two goals, but you find the school has all the various faculties you'd expect it to, as well as its name, Mikishima High School. You've found the Library, Gymnasium, Cafeteria, and Faculty rooms, but didn't search them further other than confirming a lack of activity in them. Right now, you want to sweep the classrooms, searching through the students and a change in behavior tells you that you're getting closer to a discovery. Face right up to the classroom windows, you failed to realize that the source of this was coming straight at you from the halls.
>"Hey Truant! Let me see your ID."
A confident but commanding tone gives you an idea of who was speaking to you, and her armband confirms it. Without so much of a word, you pass over your ID and give her a look over while she does the same to your information. This isn't the girl from last night, but she's a fair enough lookalike. The hair is just a bit too short, and you know she didn't wear ribbons like that, but looks aside, the voice simply does not match.
>"Don't you have anything to say about yourself? It's one thing to be late, but you have the nerve to wander around like this after only one day? Come, I'm taking you back to class."
She passes your ID back to you and beckons that you return to class with her. Your ID has changed since she had it, now having more info on it, the main one here being your class and school name now being present on the ID. To her it was probably always like this, but not for you.
"So, do I get the name of the one taking me away or not?"
>"You don't know who I am? I'm Tanabe Chiharu, the Student Council President."
Do Student Council Presidents really do stuff like this? Seems like a waste of the position, but what do you know? and more importantly, what to do now?

>Give her the slip and run off now. I'm just not done looking around yet.
>Play it safe and get taken back to class. I need to have a few words there anyways.
>Try and have a word with her instead, see if I can bring up last night and Masaru in some way

>>4947729
>Try and have a word with her instead, see if I can bring up last night and Masaru in some way

She looks like a non NPC

>>4947729
>>Play it safe and get taken back to class. I need to have a few words there anyways.

>>4947729
>Play it safe and get taken back to class. I need to have a few words there anyways.

>>4947729
>>Play it safe and get taken back to class. I need to have a few words there anyways

>>4947729
>Try and have a word with her instead, see if I can bring up last night and Masaru in some way
> Mark a tally on her inner thighs for research purposes

>>4947993
"...Nothing else to say? Fine, reflect on what you have done."
You decide to just roll with it, and just get back to class. Confident that you could find her again later if you needed, you enter the classroom in a middle of a lesson. You can feel the glares of the others as you make your way to your seat, especially Chiharu, who stares you down from the hall before leaving. Not interested in what's being thought you take the time to update your notebook instead. Just as you finish writing it up, you get an opportunity to speak with Ayumi first, who just came to you. Quickly, you put away the notebook, wanting to keep it a secret for now.
>"So why'd the prez bring you in for? What'd you do."
"I got lost, seriously."
A flimsy excuse, but you're not sure if they'll believe the whole
>Really now, for this long... Ok. I'll show you around the school then."
"No need, I don't think there's much else you can show me. Tell me though, how's the search?"
>"Nothing on this end, but I think Hiroki-san got something? You were with him yesterday though, so you should know. He'll be back soon."
"Oh, right. If you don't mind me asking though, how'd you know Masaru anyways?
>"We used to be neighbors actually, but he moved away. When he moved back, it wasn't at the same place, so we're no longer neighbors, but I reminded him of everything when we met again here."
A childhood friend. You wonder just where exactly he moved off to, but hopefully it doesn't matter. Hiroki comes up to join the conversation, having come back from where he's been.
>"Hey guys, how's it going?"
"Fine enough, nothing to worry about here. What happened yesterday though?"
>"I was about to say, since you just went and vanished yesterday. To answer you first though, I was able to convince Naoko-chan, Masaru's sister by the way, that she had a brother when his room door was just open. Funny, since I swear I couldn't find it."
"That's the thing here, I saw that door just fine, but when I went to open it I found myself at school, only at night."
>"So could he be in school then? Wait, I'll take that back. We'd see him by now if that was the case."
>"Before she believed me, she kept going on about being an only child, so it stands to reason that her parents wouldn't know about him either."
>"Nothing in his room turned up any clues, so we're out of leads. I made a groupchat for us though, for when we do find one. Minoru-san, can you scan this code quick?"
You take out your phone and scan the QR code he asked you for. An app you haven't noticed before opened, became friends with Hiroki on it and now you're in the chat. Only you 3 and Naoko are in it at the moment, and the two go off on separate business, leaving you here to ponder your next move.

>Maybe it's lunch over at where Naoko goes to school at, try chatting her up.
>Go see the president again, and see if she's related to all this.
>Ditch school and go urban exploring. N/V awaits somewhere.

>>4948203
aw man i replied to the wrong post
well whatever

>>4948203
> Go to the library and borrow some books.

>>4948203
>Ditch school and go urban exploring. N/V awaits somewhere.
-chan is a bit too familiar for an upperclassman (Naoko is an older sister IIRC).

>>4948203
>Maybe it's lunch over at where Naoko goes to school at, try chatting her up.

>>4948203
>>Ditch school and go urban exploring. N/V awaits somewhere.

>>4948203
>>Ditch school and go urban exploring. N/V awaits somewhere.

Funny how I waited a bit for votes last night, but the bulk of them came after I went to sleep. Anyways I'm going to be writing it up now.

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>>4948203
You wondered why you would stay an entire day at school now as you evacuated the place. Only two people in your class would really care, but you believed just maybe they wouldn't know or notice unless they saw you leave or arrive late. Trying to get a lead on N/V location you looked it up on your phone, but none of the results you find were relevant or even regarding a location. Instead you think about how'd you find the place the first time around, with it being on someone's way to school. Doubting that it would be by your way to school and already knowing it's not on Hiroki's commute, you'd have to somehow find other people's routes. Easier than you thought, as the conditions of the buildings around you lets you "trace" out actively used streets. Compared to where you usually walk, where there's lots of unoccupied spaces around, the ones around here were atleast ready to open at a moment's notice. Still, it was difficult to look for a singular store that could relocate at a moment's notice, but right around the brink of giving up, you saw it once again. Stepping up to the door, you prepare to enter and see what's inside.

The place wasn't a store, but a cafe. Assorted bottles of drinks you've never seen before line the shelves, and the establishment was tastefully decorated and expansive to boot. Realizing that the space couldn't fit inside the building you saw it in, you turn back, only to still see the same street you entered from. A worker emerges from the back, and you believed him to be just as you were before, only for him to start speaking towards you.

>"A customer? Never really get any of those nowadays. I'd offer you a drink or something, but the stuff there is just for show if you were interested."
>"You seem surprised that someone's talking to you. You, uh, not a cast member?"
A cast member? This guy knows more than you do and you intend to figure out just how much more.
"Sorry, but I have no idea what you mean by that."
>"Figures. You don't look like one of them, your eyes give that away actually.
"Meaning?"
>"Not really sure how to describe it, but it's like the white part of your eyes is not there, or it's the same color as your skin. Also, you wear that uniform so rigidly to the dress code, just like the rest of the Mobs."
"What you said about my eyes I can also see with you."
>"Yeah, we've the same then. What brings you over anyways?"
"I found the card for N/V in my stuff and tracked it down just now."
>"Strange, we don't have business cards, nobody to give em to and all. Also, it's pronounced N/V. Stop saying it like you were before, no sins are being committed here."

1/2

>>4949024
"Never mind that, but what did you mean by cast member and all that?"
>"Take a seat first, because this might be a long one. When you became aware, you should've noticed that there's two distinct kinds of people. One are the Mobs, which make up the majority, and the Cast, the select which brings those Mobs around them to life. We're neither, so I call us the Aware. A system like this makes me think the world was meant to serve the Cast, but there's no proof of that, and it doesn't explain us. We get to see the world in all it's unattended glory, in which there's little for us to do. That's partly why this place is around, as a hobby of sorts, and to game the world a little. Here's the thing, whatever the Cast believes, happens. That's why this place is bigger than it can be, because they believe it so. Not all Cast members are created equal though, as some just believe stronger, for lack of a better description. They'll never believe that the world is like this though, even if you show them hard, undeniable proof, we should know."
>"Oh right, we, not as in you and me, but me and Closet. No idea where she went though. You seen her?
"Maybe, she have long dark hair, roams around schools at night and generally creepy?"
>"No, that's not her at all. I think you'll know when you see her though. Short, light blue hair, hard to miss really."
>"By the way, I'm Hugo, just Hugo. You?"
"Asa Minoru."
>"Sounds like someone gave you that name, you sure you're not a Cast member?"
>"Well, no matter, you go take care now, school should be out soon, and I need to keep looking for Closet. If you got a phone, let me see it quick, so you can find this place again if you need to."
You pass over your phone, and receive it back soon after. You and Hugo step outside, and N/V ceases to exist.
>"If the Cast believes you have a shop or anything, you take over the space of a building if a Mob isn't already in. I'm off now."
With that, you and Hugo part ways.

>Stakeout the school tonight. Catch your mystery girl in the act off guard.
>Search around for Closet too, her and Masaru disappearances might be connected.
>There was alot to take in today, let's call it in early and go home.

[Unfortunately, I am unable to find a fitting image of Hugo, nor the MC himself on that matter.]

>>4949027
Send a message to Hugo for see if he is actually real, also for start a chat with another person. We are going to return here for questions, he seems to know far more than what he said to us.
His information is all to verify, even if it s good to know there are other people alive and not just a few.

Keep in mind the theory of the "Cast believes", it could be used to our advantage if we know what to say to one of them. But it can quicly become a sword of damocles, if it s a real theory that is and not a lie, and we do errors.
>Search around for Closet too, her and Masaru disappearances might be connected.

>>4949096
Supporting.

That and taking notes in notebook

>>4949096
>Search around for Closet too, her and Masaru disappearances might be connected.
> Take notes in notebook
> Grafitti the door

i suppose we can write down in the notes even Tanabe Chiharu, since she is "real" too. But we probably did it already, also it was probably a good idea to keep the notebook a secret from Ayumi and Hiroki. I am not sure how they would take what we are doing.

Hiroki seems friendly, perhaps we can ask him with a message to control what Masaru sister does everyday. For the sake of knowing if it shows anything related to Masaru.

We could use a school printer for make some copies of our notes too keep home.

>>4949027
>Search around for Closet too, her and Masaru disappearances might be connected.

>>4949096
It could also be a real theory, but wrong. An equally likely possibility is that the system changes to the benefit of a third party observing the Cast, not the Cast itself. We're clearly going with the tropes of an anime or visual novel that achieves awareness, that implies an audience. Maybe the reason things change to match what the Cast expects is just to maintain consistency of the plot. Like, if you were watching an anime and characters started focusing on some detail, you'd expect that detail to matter. Unless it was a mystery story or a comedy of errors, you'd expect the characters' assumptions to be on some level correct. So maybe the system is just trying to avoid bad writing.

>>4949160
true that s a possibility. I wonder what s the mysterious girl role, since she doesn t fit in any of the categories made by Hugo

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Time to get to work.
Just so you guys know I try to update the notebook whenever it's mentioned in an update, but it's likely going to lag behind sometimes due to time constrants.
Also here's a picture of (you) the MC of the quest.
"But that's just the DDLC+ concept art for the MC!"
Works well enough either way just ignore that fact if it bothers you like it does me.

>>4949288
Good to know for the notes, thanks for updating them too.
Well our guy looks nice.

>>4949027
No idea what's the deal with people disappearing lately. Masaru's gone and now this Closet fella is missing too. You already lost Hugo, so you pull up your phone, only to find that never actually gave you a contact for him. Instead the N/V app he installed shows you where the place is. Considering that you just saw the place disappear before your eyes, the location it displays is complete and utter garbage. Instead you open up the GC, and drop a message asking if they know anything about Closet, reason being that maybe her and Masaru's disappearances are related. Hiroki and Ayumi didn't know anything helpful, but Naoko chimes in, knowing that she used to be a classmate at her Academy that went to help out her family café. N/V you presume is that café, but now you have an idea of where to look. Using the Kurokawa Residence as a point of reference, and the fact that its been said to be on the other side of town, you determine the direction her academy should be and head that way.

Around halfway through, you wonder why you just didn't ask for an address or anything because you feel utterly lost. You recognize nothing and your surroundings are deader than ever. You press onwards, but instead of getting closer, you feel as though you're more lost than before. Buildings are outright unfinished, being made of this chalk white material, while ghostly silhouettes walk the streets, going right past through you with no ill effects. You don't really have much of a solid lead on a location and you wonder just how it's worth doing this without one. As much as you want to turn back and retrace your steps to familiar ground, the way behind you is unrecognizable and your phone doesn't work here, so all you can hope for is finding your way back somehow. With where you lived, the place was atleast presentable, but here it's just destitute. While these ghosts are unaware or unbothered by your presence, you can't help but feel as if you're being stalked...

>Play it cool, and keep going. You have to hit familiar ground eventually.
>Move erratically, and attempt to shake off this feeling.
>Call out whoever is following you, if there's someone that is.

>>4949357
>Play it cool, and keep going. You have to hit familiar ground eventually.
Moving erratically is just going to get us lost and stuck further in the unrendered zone. And if something is chasing us, odds are it knows this terrain better than we do. Just keep moving, it shouldn't be hard to find a way out of here. Keep heading towards higher-resolution structures, it's a clear visual indicator of safety. Rendered textures mean the system expects Cast members to see them at some point, that means it's a place it will be reluctant to pull overtly weird shit in like some Uncle Who Works For Nintendo monster attacking us.

>>4949357
Supporting >>4949410

>>4949357
>Play it cool, and keep going. You have to hit familiar ground eventually.

>>4949410
+1

Regarding drawing, totally cool with it.

>>4949357
>>Play it cool, and keep going. You have to hit familiar ground eventually.

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>>4949357
Right, stay on course and safety should follow. It better be sooner than later, with normality being out of eyesight. You make your way through this ghost town, the crowd of silhouettes getting denser no matter what which way you decide to go. Soon you happen upon their source, where they all seem to be moving away from, a building that looks more complete than its contemporaries. Shepherded to this location by unknown forces, you make to decision to step inside.

The first thing you see walking inside was the very same mystery girl you saw that night, but this time she's the one stuck in place. She's just standing there, as stiff as a statue, completely oblivious to you. With her like this you finally get a good look at her. The uniform she wears differs in color scheme, clashing heavily with your surroundings and implying that maybe she doesn't go to your school. Her aside, you realize the interior of the building was the layout of the school that one night. Major differences compared to how it is normally is that it has less floors, while the roof access is located on top of the main stairwell. You check the view from there seeing if there was a way back to normalcy, but no luck. The silhouettes however, have disappeared and that sense of dread you get, while lessened, is still present. Returning back down, you get the idea to search for the door she entered before everything went back to normal, and after a bit of fumbling about, you find it. It's a small little room, with bookshelves on both sides, a window opposite of you and a quaint little table right in the middle. There's nothing else in the room, but further inspection of the shelves shows there's a female uniform for your school tucked away in the corner of one of the bottom shelves. Just when you're about to leave, that girl walks into the room, and takes a seat right by the window, watching the door. There's no way she could've not noticed you in a room this small, so she's still oblivious to you.

>Mess around with her, she seems harmless enough like this.
>I just want to leave now, this detour has gone far enough.

[I sleep in real hard on sundays, sorry.]

>>4950229
>Mess around with her, she seems harmless enough like this.

>>4950229
Some sort of reused asset? Huh. Okay, let's poke the bear.

>Mess around with her, she seems harmless enough like this.

>>4950229
>Mess around with her, she seems harmless enough like this.

>>4950229
>>Mess around with her, she seems harmless enough like this.
Just remember to not mess too much, being freeze in the outskirts of the city doesn t seem ... ideal let say .

Also we have confirm that they aren t define and that the school is more or less the center of "life"

>>4950406
*that the outskirts

A nice discovery

Well everyone voted for the same thing, but it's time to write it up now

>>4950229
"Right, you do you, I'm out of here."
Feigning your leave, you wait for a response, but find none. She's still staring straight ahead, so you step out the door and give it a moment before stepping back in. Nope. Still nothing. Is there anything in that head of hers? You pinch one of her cheeks and she doesn't even budge. Well, if she isn't going to stop you. You search her blazer pockets, but only lint is to be found in there. Her pettiness presents no problem as you unbutton it, checking if anything is under it, revealing her shirt and nothing else. Nothing hidden by the waistline either, so you dress her again and after a little thought decided to tag her, for identification later of course. You write down 'This is the One' onto a note, and put it in one of the pockets. With the clothes you found in here you consider that maybe the note will be lost during a change and decide to also mark her body as well. But where? Back of knee maybe...? Nah. You settle for putting a tally mark on her inner thigh and on the back of her neck. With any luck those one of the two marks should go unnoticed, but now there's not much else you can do with her. Jokingly, you ask for her to do something if she doesn't want you to leave, only for her to disappear from where she's sitting.

You find her again right by the entrance, standing as she was before. Curious as to what makes her react, you try going to all sorts of places around the fake school, but she doesn't seem to follow as before. She starts moving again as you return to the entrance and you follow. Unlike that night, she moves as if she knows where she wants to be. This time she goes to a classroom by the top floor, and opens a window there. Vanishing again, you expect to see her again by the entrance. You wait for her to move again, but when she does this time, she's fiddling with the door. Not sure what's happening, you hold the one she isn't working on open, but both of them still open when she's finished with them. Waiting one last time, you follow her again to that little room, and assume she's stuck in a loop. Unable to affect her, you decided now was a good time to leave and venture out once more.

It took a while to reach a normal looking street again, those silhouettes not returning on your journey out. You don't feel as if someone's following you anymore and while you're still lost, your phone works again and you can make your way back home with it. Arriving at your sweet home, you take a break as you write down what you saw in your notebook. The night is still young when you finished with it.

>That girl is likely going to return to school tonight. Let's see if she's same one.
>I'm beat. Tomorrow, I'll search again for Closet after questioning Hugo.

I hope you guys didn't think of anything lewd.
I'm not able to write stuff like that anyways silly

https://pastebin.com/Pvx8EJ5e
Oh and the Notebook pastebin has actually been updated now. Let me know if i missed something.

>>4950480
>That girl is likely going to return to school tonight. Let's see if she's same one.
It's not going to give us great data, but we're likely to get better data checking tonight than tomorrow. If we go tomorrow, then it's possible that she just found the markers and removed them herself in between then and now. If we go tonight...that's also possible, but there's less time for it. And if she removed the note it might still be physically present somewhere before the system cleaned it up, still telling us if it was her. It's not great rigor for a test, but it's better.

>>4950624
Supporting

>>4950480
>That girl is likely going to return to school tonight. Let's see if she's same one.

>>4950480
>>That girl is likely going to return to school tonight. Let's see if she's same one.

Time to see if this did something

>>4950480
Unaware of how long it would be before she shows up you set out to catch her in the act. The streets at night are still well lit, streetlights and other ambient sources still working despite the relative isolation around where you live. Walking towards school, you notice Mobs start populating the nearby streets, and wonder who's passing by. No time to search around for whoever it was, but just as you'd have it, you come across them anyways. If you knew more people, you might not have recognized her out of uniform, but you knew it was Chiharu just from the words coming from her mouth.
>"And where are you going at this time of night, Asa-san?"
"Why do you care? The day is clearly over, am I not free to do as I want?"
>"You're still wearing your uniform and even have your bag still. If you're doing something suspicious you should tarnish your own standing instead of the good reputation of our school.
"Well, you'll be pleased to know that I am going to school. I'm dressed for it and all."
>"Very funny. Don't think I haven't noticed you slip out of class again today. Other than you, the school has an otherwise perfect attendance record. I've half a mind to come over and sit you in that seat myself tomorrow."
"I'll hold you to it then, and that record isn't nearly as impressive or true as you think it is."
You walk off from the conversation, having wasted enough time. She definitely doesn't know of Masaru, but could she really find out where you live? It wasn't on your card, but you can't discount the possibility of having a visitor tomorrow. Earlier you established that her resemblance to the mystery girl was superficial at best, but entertaining the idea that she is, you couldn't tell. Obviously the note wouldn't be on her since you put it in the uniform, and the way she's dressed didn't let you take a look at the thigh mark. Her hair gets in the way of the one on the back side of her neck on a casual glance, but that was why you put one there to begin with. Oh well, you're done with that idea. She does have a point with this uniform making you stick out, but you have nothing else to wear.

1/2

>>4951336
Arriving at school, you decide to lie in wait, waiting for her to show up. You wanted another angle on the Roof encounter, and remembering how she didn't acknowledge you before, position yourself by the fence in a way so you can see when she walks in from the roof and where she has her conversation without having to move. Right on time, she shows up, and soon after she makes it to the roof, freezing you in place just as expected. The scene plays out exactly as it did last night, the look on her face showing that she's enamored to whoever she was speaking to. The mark on her thigh was still present, confirming her as the one in that Ghost Town. The conversation finished, it was time for her jump, and in an impressive display of acrobatics, jumped right into an open window. So that's how she did it. Able to move again, you were about to go down, only for her to speak once more.
>"Phew, that jump never gets easier."
>"Did you enjoy that little show?"
Wait, who is she speaking to?
>"I'm coming for you, interloper~"
It's you. She could see you this entire time, but for whatever reason, couldn't do anything about it until she finished. Don't plan on sticking around for what she wants to do with you either.

>Break for the front doors ASAP. I wanna be gone now.
>Sneak out somehow, and avoid a chase. [roll 2d50 if voting for this]

Rolled 18, 6 = 24 (2d50)

>>4951337
>>Sneak out somehow, and avoid a chase. [roll 2d50 if voting for this]

Rolled 41, 16 = 57 (2d50)

>>4951337
>Sneak out somehow, and avoid a chase.

>>4951337
>>Sneak out somehow, and avoid a chase. [roll 2d50 if voting for this]
dice+2d50

>>4951373
dice+2d6.

If this doesn’t roll I give up

>>4951378
put that in the "options" box not the text box

Rolled 28, 31 = 59 (2d50)

>>4951337
>Sneak out somehow, and avoid a chase. [roll 2d50 if voting for this]
So she's aware that she's in a CG, and just can't act until it's over. Okay, that's good information. Worse information is that she recognizes us as an anomaly in the system and doesn't like that. Time to very quietly sneak out.

Rolled 33, 1 = 34 (2d50)

>>4951378
I will roll for you, but won't get around writing the update until after I eat.
Won't take me long though.

>>4951337
>>Sneak out somehow, and avoid a chase. [roll 2d50 if voting for this]

>>4951406
maybe we can talk out of this ? or just escape further. Probably for the latter,.. though beside the ink marks and hearing the sounds, our boy didn t do anything wrong.


Maybe we can put in our bag our student clothing or at least most of the upper part, so we canmix with mobs outside.

>>4951515
Would have went for this too but questmaster seems to made clear it was a bad idea

Well everyone voted for the same thing, figures, but I need to resolve something IRL quick and won't be able to write immediately like I wanted to, so I figured to elaborate on what exactly you are rolling for if it isn't clear yet.

The dice rolled will determine if you'll sneak by undetected, or if she finds you, with the total of the two not actually mattering. You need to have a higher number than her to succeed, but I won't say if the left or right die is yours yet.

The rolls made before this post still stands, but rerolls is available if you so wish to.

>>4951518
She is definetly dangerous with those abilities, so it would be a very risky move to do, so justified.

For clothes we can probably just take some from around the city shops, not like anyone use them anyway.

The fact that Chiharu, has recognized us and taken an interest in our routine, is a bit interesting. Maybe it s because all of our activity, i recon Masaru, Hiroki and Ayumi are (or where in case of Masaru) the ones making the more activity/interactions. And mobs are just the same.
But we are something new or odd.

File: Spoiler Image (31 KB, 620x653)

31 KB JPG

Rolled 7, 6 = 13 (2d50)

I'm never saying anything is going to be quick again.
Just rolling for >>4951509 before I start writing.
As for which die is yours, pic related...

>>4951337
[The left dices total to 127, while the ones on the right total to a measly 60. Since RNG has decided the right side die are ours, we have failed horribly.]

You make for the door, and gently step down. No sign of her yet. Alternating between stairways, and ducking out of sightlines provided by windows, you make your way to the front doors. You haven't seen her a sign of her sure, but the quietness is enough for you to believe that she hasn't either. The sight of the front doors is enough to make you burst out in sprint, but you yourself in, not wanting to blow it now. Hand on the door, you try to open them, only for them to be locked. The jingling of keys behind you taunts your inability to escape, but you can't turn to meet them, having been frozen in place.
>"Nice try, but I had them locked when I entered the building."

Helpless, she drags you off the door and places you in the middle of the entryway. The familiarity of the situation hits you, being the same way you found her earlier today. She circles around you, talking knowing that you can't respond.
>"So how does it feel, to be stuck, unable to move but free to think? Exposed? Vulnerable? Don't you want this to end?
>"Well, this is how I am, for the majority of my time. I saw you, prodding and poking around myself like some sort of exhibit. Was it educational, or even fun for you? From the first look alone I already felt that I wouldn't like you, even more so than usual towards the likes of you. Everyone else, they're free, free to move, free to do, free to be. But me, it's like I didn't even get to exist anymore! All I've ever known was the halls of this school, and not much else that you haven't seen. I hate it. Now though, I get to return the favor for once."

1/2

>>4951988
Wetting a finger with your mouth, she wipes the tally mark off her thigh, before slapping you over the face. As much as you wanted to wince back in response, the unnatural stillness only exacerbates the sting. She goes through your stuff, starting with what's in your pockets. She finds your wallet and draws her self towards your ID.
>"Asa Minoru. I'm jealous. I don't even know my own name anymore. I keep saying it every night, and I still can't understand it."
A look through your phone has her call you boring for having such a device with nothing of interest on it. She was nice enough to put both of them back, but not enough to set you free. Soon she tries searching your blazer pockets, and then right under it, finding nothing as you did before to her. Her attention turns to your bag, and she empties out its contents for viewing.
"Nothing. All of these textbooks are useless, do you just like carrying things around? Bet you don't take notes either, seeing as there's nothing to write about."
A small relief that she skipped over your notebook, but the bigger issue still looms over your head.
Without much else to look over, she packs your bag again.
>"What to do with you...?"
She ties the two of you together by the wrist with her bowtie, and you can move again.
>"I can stop you again without having to lift a finger. Come, walk with me."
Without a word, you follow her around, but she doesn't seem to have a destination just like last time. You have no idea just what to do in this situation, due to the power she has over you. One wrong word or move, and you're back to being a statue.

2/2

[Lets spice it up, just a little. This update will not have choices provided to you. Only write-ins for this one.]

>>4951991
Try telling her about Mobs and that she isn't as unique as she thinks she is even if she she is a strange case.

>>4952082
Supporting.

>>4951991
>Apologize for the prodding. We believed her to be non-conscious. We would not have acted such if we had known at the time she was aware.
>Explain that we're just trying to understand all the weird shit going on with reality. She's not the only one trapped in these cycles and roles, we were one ourselves until the other day. That's why we assumed she was non-conscious, we were.
>Ask her how she's aware of other people if she's confined to the school's weird duplicate during the day and is only here at night. Has she had other "interlopers"?

>>4951991
"... Look... I am sorry first and foremost. For what I did so far to you, it was truly ... reprehensible for a boy to invade a girl's space like this without any consent. Your anger is justified, mystery girl. I shouldn't have followed you, overheard your conversations or make those marks on your skin. I know it was wrong, but I did it for a reason. Would you be fine to hear it ?"
"The reason is because I have been observing and studying this world for a few days. It was like my heart started beating for real, instead of just for routine. I have taken information about this world, me, those that inhabit it and a boy that left it at the same time of my awakening. And of course, even of you."
"You're subject to a cruel fate more than most, and from what I have collected you need to have this conversation every night before you leave it. Then you move through passages that teleport you, and afterwards you rest away from everyone ... alone at the edge of the world."
"This said, well my apologies and reason are just words. Ultimately if i don t back it with an action or more you would still be angry at me. Rightfully, so of course."
"As an offering for reconciliation, you may put some marks on me as well, watch my home and overhear my conversations with others. My material possessions are quite meager, so I don t think you would have any interest in them. The only other thing that I can offer is ... some of my personal time for talking. I am not exactly a great conversationalist, but I can tell you about the world or just talk of anything you want. I can promise you to come back here every night for a few hours, I still need to put on a minimum of a facade with the rest of the "alive" school ... and I also need time for my explorations and studies".
"If you don't want me to come here, we can talk somewhere else. If none of this appeals to you in any way, I can offer from now on that I will avoid you and your locations. But i’ll be honest, my curiosity has already taken me in a situation where a girl like you could freeze me in time forever or kick me into the atmosphere. So I wouldn't advise picking the latter”.

>>4952082
>>4952105
You might regret your choice of topic. Alas, this has the support of two people when the others have one, so I am bound to write this now.

>>4952126
Excellent course of action, but there's a fundamental flaw with that second one. The point of her freezing you was to give you a firsthand experience of what her life is like. It's inherently different from being a Mob, which you were prior to the quest start. They're more subservient to their routine, and mindless until a Cast Member rolls around.
>>4952167
Honestly, I feel like this puts my writing to shame. Unfortunately, I believe it to be OOC and wouldn't have done this 1:1 had it won. Something about it is too formal, too elegant for our dear player character.

>>4952694
>Excellent course of action, but there's a fundamental flaw with that second one. The point of her freezing you was to give you a firsthand experience of what her life is like. It's inherently different from being a Mob, which you were prior to the quest start. They're more subservient to their routine, and mindless until a Cast Member rolls around.
Well, that was kind of my point. I was trying to explain that we mis-identified her as being non-conscious, based on our own experience with being a clockwork entity. It would somewhat justify our behavior by shifting it from "jerk" to "mistaken", and maybe even engender some empathy by showing that we're trapped, too, we're just a little farther skipped off-track. It might instead make her angry, go "lucky you, not even knowing how trapped you were until a day ago, isn't that so hard!", but I'm willing to chance that.

>>4952694
Sorry about that, i wasn t exactly sure on how to go about when making the write in. I suppose i just wanted to show Asa realizing what he did and asking sorry, and so on.

Anyway i guess we will have the occasion to test again another write in, for defusing that choice of topic. Though i doubt it i can resolve the incoming risk of death, even if is voted.

>>4951991
Both of you roam the school, footsteps being the only sound echoing though the halls. A conversation would soon follow, as you muster up the courage to start one with her.
"...What are you? You're nothing like the other kinds people I've seen so far."
>"Other kinds?"
She looks over to you with a questioning glaze. You've gotten her intrigued, and it was time to follow up on it.
"Look. This world isn't as normal as you think it is. What you're going through isn't a personal suffering unique to you. The others you presume to be flaunting their apparent freedom are likely what I call Mobs. They populate the place but don't have the sense or being to act on anything as people. Mobs exist solely to occupy places where special individuals I dubbed the Cast, frequent. Around them, they act normal, but immediately return to being lifeless husks once they're gone. For earlier, I'm sorry. Thought you were one of the many mobs when I found you."
>"This tale of yours is as absurd as my own circumstances, but tell me, which one of the two are you then?"
"Neither. Mobs ignore me as if I wasn't there and I don't have the capacity to elicit activity as a Cast Member would. For me, I'm called Aware, since I used to be a Mob."
>"Really? Can you recall your time as a Mob to compare with when I froze you?"

Your mind goes back to how this all started just a day ago, when you became Aware. The endless routine before then would've bothered anyone normal, but as it defined life then, compliance was your only thought. That what it all comes back to. You couldn't have been bothered because you weren't able to before.
"I was fine with being a Mob, until I wasn't."
A slap comes across your face once more. Her other hand balls up, angry at you.
>"You really don't get it. These so called Mobs aren't free, but they don't bear the weight of consciousness either. Only my thoughts keep me company between my time in that stark white hell and prospects of this life that'll never be my own. These halls are even more constricting when they turn normal, forcing me to have a conversation I never remembered and I can't ever leave for the city the view tantalizes me with les I find myself back in that blinding agony! I hate it! Why me? Was it so wrong to want to live?!"
Her eyes burst into tears around halfway though that little speech of hers. Despite just pouring herself out just now, she turns away from you, not wanting to be seen for what she has to say next.
>"I'm scared that if I do it myself, I'll find myself in that place again. But please, let me ask you to do this on my behalf."
>"Kill me."

[I'm sure your options are made clear here. I don't need to list them. You're still free to write-in of course]

>>4952827
You sure you prefer to die than finding a solution?
I guess I'm the first one you have talked to. WIth enough time, we might come to a better understanding of our situation, and find a way to give you autonomy. Also, there is a possibility killing you does not work and make iyou come back and pay for it.

Let me help you. I'd like to try setting a situation allowing you to play your script to a cast member. We find a solution for the "jump" part, and you're free.

>>4952827
"I don t have a reason to kill you, and i wish to not have one."
"Instead, i would like to work with you. I am not someone that should have changed don t you think ? Why me of all the other mobs ?"

"I want to find those answers and many more. Aid me and i will aid you back instead of killing you. If i became aware, then surely others can become too no ?"
"I can t understand your pain and i doubt i can understand you at all. But if someone like me has a chance then i don t see why we can t find one for you as well. Or for the others people trapped too."
"Here"
pass her some tissues and the notebook

"You didn t look at all the things i had in my bag. This is my most vauable item, beside myself. I will give you sometime, it s a brief read, after you are done tell me if you are on board with working together."

>>4952827
>"...I'm not saying I won't do it. But I'd like to try a few things, first, before we go for the radical response. I know you're suffering, and it's a lot to ask you to let that be prolonged. But I think we'd be remiss if we didn't at least look at other options, ones that might let you escape instead of just end. So please, will you let me try?"
>If she consents:
>"Firstly, can we interrupt your 'script'? You're bound to perform this set of actions, and no-one can interact with you until they're done. But the marks I put on you in that place persisted. So what if I hobbled you so that you physically couldn't go through the script? What would happen then?"
>"Secondly, your script seems incomplete. Like it expects there to be another party there, responding to you. I didn't respond, but maybe that's just because I'm a Mob. I can't tell you my name when I don't really have one. What happens if we bring a Cast member here to see it and fill that role? It's like scenes out of a story, maybe you're stuck because the world can't progress to the next scene until this one is played out properly."
>"Also...we should discuss what to do if neither of those ideas work, I kill you, and then...well, if it doesn't take. What do you want me to do if that happens?"

The consensus has been reached and the obvious answer has been taken. Was there another way? Maybe.

File: darkenedhallway.jpg (77 KB, 1080x810)

77 KB JPG

>>4952827
"I'm not going to kill you-"
She wants to run away, and would've too, had she not tie the two of you together. Covering the knot with your grip, it would hopefully stop her from just freezing you to get away from this.
"You said it yourself, that you wanted to live. That you want a new life, just as the one you keep seeing. I'm not going to throw it all away on your behalf if you won't so much as give me a chance to help you."
She's too distraught to come up with a response, but her continued crying is enough for you to understand the depth of her misery.
"I'm going to untie us now. If you're not ready for me to help you, then go. But I'll keep asking until you finally agree."
Freed, you look in disappointment as she runs off to who knows. Before going out of sight, she looks back at you, for just a moment. It would be easy to chase or find her, but you don't want to. In her haste however, she forgot both her bowtie and the keys she had earlier. Picking both of them up, you count the multitude of keys she had, the number of which can't possibly be for only a single set of doors. As for the bowtie, you'll give it back when she's ready, but it might be worth asking around to where this belongs. The entryway being normal, you check each of the keys until you found the one to the front doors, and trek home.

She might not want your help yet, but that won't stop you from starting anyways. It's a shame she didn't cooperate yet, leaving you with only a plethora of questions to ask.
What was that life she keeps seeing at times?
Why does she have keys to your school when she turns her surroundings into a different one?
Why does she believe the school she's trapped in turns normal? Is she not aware that she comes all the way here?
What happens when she leaves the building? Does she just teleport as you did opening Masaru's room?
What was the spare uniform doing in that room? Is it still here when the school swaps layouts?
Does she accept your apology? You feel bad for treating her like a Mob in her situation.
You knock around theories in your head, but come up with nothing conclusive. Arriving home, you update your notebook before taking care of yourself. It was a long day, and you have to get ready for the next one.

1/2

File: doorway.jpg (171 KB, 800x600)

171 KB JPG

>>4953134
You were sound asleep when someone started knocking. Chiharu's at you door, having kept her word about dragging you off to school. Not like you're tired, but it's too god damned early to be going to school.
>"I know this is where you live, Asa-san, let me in already!"
"Pipe down, it's too early for this, just give me a sec."
Hastily putting on a uniform, you reluctantly let her into your house. After following proper etiquette, she sits herself on your couch.
>"Today, I'm going to make sure you're attending school."
"It's way too early for that. It won't be in session for a couple of more hours."
>"I know that, but you're not going to keep me waiting that long. We are going to school and you are going to help me with all my early morning tasks."
"Don't you have other Student Council members to help you?"
>"I don't need their help to do what I already do every morning, and it would be irresponsible of me to pull them away from their responsibilities to help me. No, I need you at school and make up for your delinquency."
She's hardcore and set on straightening you out. Guess that attendance record means a lot to her, but only if she knew of how little it meant.

>Give her the slip. I have other things I deem more important that I want to do instead. [roll 2d50]
>Maybe this could work out for me. Something new might be at the school this early in the morning
?

It didn't take too long, but the notebook is once again updated.

>>4953139
>Maybe this could work out for me. Something new might be at the school this early in the morning
We have to go to school anyway if we're going to enlist a Cast to help us, might as well go with.

Also, we should ask Chiharu if she has any siblings. Probably not any that she can remember, if she ever did, but it's worth a shot to see if that's why the Mystery Girl looks like her. Maybe she's dummied-out content for a plot involving Chiharu's sister, or something like that. That's pretty common in video games, something gets cut but there are dependencies in the software that mean it can't just be erased, so the developers shove it out of the way and make it impossible to access. This is a game-like reality, sort of, I can see it being how Mystery Girl got trapped like that.

>>4953139
>>Maybe this could work out for me. Something new might be at the school this early in the morning

>>4953139
>Maybe this could work out for me. Something new might be at the school this early in the morning

"Do tell what are this early morning tasks ? Are they needed ?"
"And why I am needed at school ? Beside you, no one else care. Not that in mind is a nice sensation to know i am currently your main interest"
"Jokes aside, do you wish to come here everyday now ? What you want to do when school ends, follow me around until I go at home ?"

>>4953139
>Maybe this could work out for me. Something new might be at the school this early in the morning
Chiharu looks like a member of the Cast.We can ask her about Masaru and Closet.

>>4953139
Supporting this one>>4953183 since she’s either her sibling or herself just with awareness like the us but cast member

I got this huge grin on my face.
Writing now.

>>4953139
>"...What are you standing around for? Go get prepared already!"
Snapping out of it, you lost the thought you were having just now. Oh well. Returning to your room, you fix your uniform, pack your bag and considering your current company, hide the school keys deep into your bag.
"I'm done, let's go."
The two of you set off towards school alone in your shared commute. It's early enough that the Mob students aren't outside yet, and Chiharu's likely the only one who goes to school this early, and for today, you too. If you were going this early, you might as well ask all she has to know.
"Oh Tanabe-sama, just what are we doing gracing the school in this ungodly hour?"
>"Paperwork, mostly regarding the clubs. There's always plenty of that to be filled out and filed. There's plans for an Interschool event, so it falls to me to contact the surrounding schools and organize this. We also have the school festival to prepare for, but that's still a ways off. For that we have to determine the events we plan to do, forecast the budget we'll likely have by then, and so on. Also, cut that tone of yours out."
"Heh. I feel sorry for anyone who puts up with you at home."
>"Excuse you? My parents were the ones who taught me due diligence and hard work."
"No siblings?"
>"No. Why do you ask?"
"Just wondering."
That was worth a shot, but if your mystery girl was related to her, Chiharu would've likely forgot about them. Though come to think of it, the two seem to be of similar ages, so maybe she'd have to go to a school just like yours as well. Taking out the bowtie, you present it to her.
"I found this a while back, and I'm just wondering what school this belonged to."
>"Hmmmm... Nope. This doesn't belong to any school around here."
>"Enough with the questions, we're here."

Apparently for someone as responsible as her, she's having a hard time finding her keys. You stand out by the main gate for a little longer than you would've liked, and eventually she turns up with them, granting the two of you entry. Following her inside, you see where the Student Council situates in. There's a table for all of the members, a whiteboard for them to present on and a desk, presumably for her to do her paperwork at. For your first task, she sends you off to the storeroom closest to the Library, citing that the Art club has requested extra supplies for an event of theirs. Inventorying the place, you can hear a commotion coming from the Library. Someone else is here, but you're unsure of what they're doing.

>Chiharu expects me back soon but let's check it out now.
>I'll come back with her. She might barge in looking for me at an inopportune time.

>>4954041
>>Chiharu expects me back soon but let's check it out now.

>>4954041
>>Chiharu expects me back soon but let's check it out now.
I am sure she doesn t have a timer for us.

>>4954041
>Chiharu expects me back soon but let's check it out now.

>>4954041
>Chiharu expects me back soon but let's check it out now.

>>4954041
Since when have you been one to shrink away from an investigation? The Library door might have been locked, but with all the keys you have, its no problem. The source of the disturbance was coming from the shelves, and the closer you got the more you could make out.
>"Come on, something has to be here."
>"No, no, not it, nope."
>"Who goes there?"
Face to face with the intruder, you find it to be Hugo.
>"Oh. Minoru."
"Yeah, hi to you too, Hugo. What brings you over to Mikishima High this early?"
>"Is that what they call the place? No matter. I could ask the same to you though, but to answer you first, I'm looking for Closet."
"In a book?"
"No silly. I recalled a story from long ago about how one of the bookshelves led her somewhere but I dunno which shelf it was or where it even took her. Hopefully, it's where she went. You?
"The Student Council Prez dragged me here to do busywork as repentance for my tardiness."
>"Ah, her. Well, good luck."
"What for?"
>"You actually get along with her?"
"Nope."
>"Then yeah, good luck."
"Enough with that, but why didn't you give me a contact the other day?"
>"Simple, I don't have a phone myself. There's the one in N/V, but it's better if you could know where it was when it's up and not call blindly and hope someone's around. Sorry for not pointing that out...!"

1/2

>>4954249
"Wait, where are you going?"
Hugo already ran off, unable to elaborate on the situation. Just what happened with him? Backing out of the room, you bump right into Chiharu, inbound to your location.
>"What was taking you so long? It doesn't take a while to inventory the stock there."
"Sorry, but I heard something from the Library and went to check it out. The door was unlocked and the place was a mess."
>"I see... There's a set of keys unaccounted for and whoever made this mess likely stole them.
Well, those keys were likely yours, but since they've been stolen and you had no good excuse to why you had them, they'll be your secret for now. Heading back with her, the two of you went through all the paper work she had on queue.
"So, how long were these keys stolen for?"
>"They were present last night, so it had to be earlier in the morning, likely when I went out my way to get you. Why do you ask?"
"Nothing. I like a good mystery. Say, why would someone get inside the school and steal said keys? Wouldn't they be unnecessary if they could do that?"
>"...True, It would be unnecessary if all they wanted was to get inside the school itself, but they need keys to enter any of the rooms. Even then during the day, there are several rooms that are just locked from students that they could now access with said keys."
>"That's enough, I shouldn't be saying more to someone who isn't a part of the Council. Don't let me hear you talk of this outside, got that?"
"Got it."
The day is getting closer to starting, so she heads off towards the gates to do uniform inspections. She strongly implored you to stay in class today, but when were you going to listen?

>Hugo didn't get to see what he was looking for. I should finish the job.
>Rooms locked off during the day huh. I wonder what's inside
?

>>4954254
>>Rooms locked off during the day huh. I wonder what's inside
That and try to attend enough to get her off our back tomorrow

>>4954254
>>Rooms locked off during the day huh. I wonder what's inside
We are technically in one of the classes of the school, we will return soon. Maybe leave a note though on our seat, beside her being president she is still worrying for us.
Now time to explore

>>4954254
>Rooms locked off during the day huh. I wonder what's inside

>>4954254
Class hasn't actually started yet, and it's not like you were leaving school. You have more keys than you know places here, and a curiosity for what Mikishima High has hidden in its very walls. Starting from the Student Council Room, you try out various doors until you find one that catches your attention. Unmarked, locked and inconspicuous otherwise, you find the key that unlocks the door, and enter. The inside is sterile, immediately harking back to Ghost Town interiors, and an army of Mob students are lined up, with more of them than there can possibly be space in the room. Curiously, they all wear the same uniform as that Mystery Girl, but why would this be here and not back there? None of them resemble her, and you back out of the room without anything more to see.

You try several other doors, but find nothing of value. Maintenance rooms, unused club rooms, and dusty old storerooms were all you found. Guess you started off with the big reveal, but you decide to try one more door, around the classroom where it all started. The inside is normal, if a little cramped. A window across from the door lets in both a view of the outside, and ambient sunlight to illuminate the room. Empty bookshelves on each side surround a small little table, and then it hit you. This was the same room you saw in Ghost Town, only, normal. You check where you found the uniform back then, but there's nothing there. You close the door behind you, and in a repeat of earlier, bump right in Chiharu again.
>"You? I told you to get to class! More importantly, just how did you get in there?"
"I did go to class, but it hasn't actually started yet, so I took a walk instead of just waiting around. The door was open so I checked if anyone was inside before closing it up again."
A blatant lie. You hope that she doesn't know this door was locked. With how she thinks of you, it'd be hard to convince her otherwise that you're not a thief.
"...Just go to class. Now."

1/2

>>4954691
Complying, you walk off towards your homeroom alone. Her class was further away than yours, so guess she didn't have the time to spare reprimanding you further. Greeting both Ayumi and Hiroki, the day soon starts.
Lunch rolls around, but without a new lead, the three of you try to take your mind off the disappearance and just spend time together as normal students. Or rather, the two, plus you. They've been reminiscing about old times with each other and when Masaru was still around, but as the new kid, you have little in common with them other than the shared mystery. Noticing that you can't really say much about stuff you weren't around for, the conversation turns towards you and something you want to talk about. Remembering what Hugo said about Cast Members and what they believe in turning real, you wonder just what to bring up to them.

>Talk about the Mystery Girl as a myth that haunts the nearby area. Maybe it could widen her range when she's around?
>Talk about the area Ghost Town is. Hopefully it will develop the place into somewhere normal.
>Talk about your family, and pretend you have a sister. Try your best to describe the Mystery Girl as her.

2/2

>>4954696
>Talk about your family, and pretend you have a sister. Try your best to describe the Mystery Girl as her.

>>4954691
>The inside is sterile, immediately harking back to Ghost Town interiors, and an army of Mob students are lined up, with more of them than there can possibly be space in the room. Curiously, they all wear the same uniform as that Mystery Girl, but why would this be here and not back there? None of them resemble her, and you back out of the room without anything more to see.
Yeah, definitely dummied-out content. There was probably a completely different plot intended for this school, then the developers changed their minds and had to keep the old models around for dependency purposes.

>>4954696
Hmm. Okay, going by the idea that the Cast's beliefs that are most likely to become real are those that could lead to plots, I think making her a ghost story is the best bet. That feels like it would be best to get her involved with plot and out of her cycle. From there we can try to pivot, turn it into a slice of life "strange girl inspires urban legend" sort of thing to give her a corporeal existence, or at least an Aware like us. She might not appreciate the in-between, though, where she's a ghost. Not a great existence. Better than her current one, though, arguably. I say give it a shot.

>Talk about the Mystery Girl as a myth that haunts the nearby area. Maybe it could widen her range when she's around?

We should also frame it in a tone of not really believing she's a ghost, but still thinking she's a weird mystery. Set the groundwork for when we pivot the plot to her being a living human.

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>>4954808
you know im curious as to what you think the connection is between masaru and chiharu

>>4954696
>Supporting >>4954808

and i forgot to post what i came back here for
my friend wrote this, being the big coomer he is
https://pastebin.com/bN3AQV0J
if i was better at this stuff i would finish it myself

>>4954696
>Talk about the Mystery Girl as a myth that haunts the nearby area. Maybe it could widen her range when she's around?

>>4954847
That's not just hentai logic, that's the logic of a soulless, mass-produced hentai churned out by low-paid interns.

>>4954696
>>Talk about your family, and pretend you have a sister. Try your best to describe the Mystery Girl as her.

>>4954808
support the idea, if we can direct it towards more mysterious girl.

>>4954847
hahahaha

>>4954924
You know I can't tell if that means it's shit and or if its just something you wanted to point out
In any case, the bottom piece is how that exchange would've gone in canon.

There's enough votes for me to start writing, and I can't sleep, so late night update it is.

>>4954930
You're just in time.

>>4954937
nice

>>4954696
You wanted to do something about that girl's circumstances, but the topic of her has to be handled with care. Don't want them believing that she's dead or anything. The mystery itself should be intriguing enough, so no need for a supernatural flair.
"You guys been to this school for longer than I did, so stop me if you know what I'm talking about."
"I like to take walks at night, and I was just in the area around here. School was long dismissed but I saw this one girl walking up to the doors from somewhere else, getting in and just standing right over the edge of the roof."
>"Oh my. D-did she jump off?"
>"Ayumi-san... Use a little common sense. If there was a suicide there would've been a scene this morning."
>"Oops. But what happened next?"
"Nothing dramatic. She just jumped over to safety after getting an eyeful of the view up there."
"I thought she was a student here, since she was able to open the doors that late and but even shrouded in darkness I could just tell she wasn't wearing our uniform. If she doesn't come to our school though, how did she get the keys to it?"
>"Maybe she picked them open?"
"Nope. She'd have to be really good to do it in a single motion."
>"Someone simply could've forgotten to lock the doors."
"Don't think so. Tanabe-san dragged me in with her way early in the morning, big deal about needing the keys to get in."
>"Ooo, she's a ghost!"
"Ok, then why bother opening the door when you can just phase in, or better yet, float way up high and get the view there."
>"Huh. I don't think there's many students with the keys to this place, if at all. Tanabe-san having some I can believe, she's way more responsible, but not anyone else."
>"Can you describe her though?"
"I'll try. Her uniform was a lot like ours, only black with red highlights. Something about Tanabe-san reminds me of her, or actually, she reminds me of Tanabe-san, since this was before I met her. Didn't see an armband or those red ribbons though."
>"Say, you seem rather entranced. You like her?"
"Where'd this come from Hiroki? I don't know that other girl and Tanabe-san would work me to the bone if I let her."
>"Are you talking about me over there?"

1/2

>>4955013
"Tanabe-san."
Speak of the devil.
>"I came to see if you were still in class. Glad to see you still present, but I shouldn't have to do this to begin with."
>"What brings you over to our class, President?"
>"I've come to take him away, if you don't mind."
>"Not at all. Besides, who are we to argue with you?"
"Giving me over to the wolves huh?"
You turned around to see your slave driver.
"You said you only wanted me for the early morning tasks though, so what now?"
>"Only for this morning? What gave you that idea? You're going to help me until I feel you've learned responsibility yourself."
"Seriously? You tyrant."
>"Don't worry, I'll be sure to give him back in one piece."
"I'll be seeing the two of you later then."

Getting up from your seat, you follow Chiharu back to the Council room. None of the other members are there, and you can hear her complain about feeling like she's the only one taking her role seriously. Maybe this discounts the rest of the Council as Cast Members, if there are even other Council members.
>"That room you walked out of before class... What were you doing in there?"
Well. This was an interrogation.

>Come clean with the keys. Maybe she'll be more lenient.
>Stick to your excuse. You just don't know where exactly this is all heading.
>Stay silent. Nothing to say is nothing incriminating, right
?

Back at the classroom, just after you were gone.
>"Hiroki-san, what do you think of those two as a item?"
>"Honestly, the bickering reminds me of a married couple. It's a very big maybe, but stranger things has happened."

>>4955015
>>Stick to your excuse. You just don't know where exactly this is all heading.
Oh damn the other ones can roadlock us on a road

>>4955015
>Stick to your excuse. You just don't know where exactly this is all heading.
"Not for be off topic, but you aren t planning to follow my routine regardless of what i say right ? Is this still all about the learning responsibility lessons you want to give me ?"

lmao we are already being shipped

>>4954844
I don't have a well-developed theory yet. Best I've got is a wild guess that Mystery Girl and Chiharu look similar because Chiharu is a revised character model of Mystery Girl, and since Masaru appears to fit into the protagonist mold he's probably intended for some plot with Mystery Girl, and that's where the guess peters out into half-formed thoughts.

>>4955015
Oh no, we're being shipped. That could be a problem.

>Stick to your excuse. You just don't know where exactly this is all heading.
It's an empty room, what would we have been doing in there?

>>4955054
We are bit different from Masaru though, at least from his friends description. Maybe there are some rules for this phenomenon, like "the opposites attract each other". Or she just likes to be a disciplinarian regardless if one is a Mob, Aware or Cast (which kind of looks like. Hugo kind of pointed it out).

>>4955015
>Stick to your excuse. You just don't know where exactly this is all heading.
>"What even is that room?"

>>4955054
I actually think Mystery Girl is an earlier version of Chiharu, maybe from a gameplay demo. Though her actions don't fit the mold of a hyper-rule-abiding council president, so maybe the plot got seriously redesigned since then.

>>4955015
Can I add another write-in?
>Try to sneak a peek at the spot on Chiharu's neck where we marked the Mystery Girl.

>>4955086
That's what I'm thinking, too. When the devs did the redesign they decided to keep Mystery Girl's character design, but they wound up creating a completely different characterization for her, and that's where Chiharu comes from. Mystery Girl probably never got proper coding, just enough to put her in the cutscene.

>>4955087
This is the third time that option has been presented to you.

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>>4955015
"I told you before, it was just open."
>"Liar. That door was locked before. I was the last one in there."
"Since when? I'm sure you're so infallible that the possibility of you forgetting to close it all the way didn't cross the mind. Even then, nobody was inside, and I was the one who bumped into you."
>"So if that wasn't the case, how would you have gotten inside?"
Damn. No way you can skirt around that. Ever since this morning, however, there's this little thought in the back of your head you kept forgetting to follow up on. With her confronting you, you finally brought the idea to check her neck for the tally back to mind.
>"Nothing smart to say about that, huh? Let me see your bag."
"Nope. I do not consent to this search. You have no right."
>"Investigating theft of school property with plenty reason to suspect you is completely in my powers as Council President."

She starts to come around the table that separates the two of you. In turn, you start walking around it as well, opposite from where she's approaching.
>"Stop making this difficult and get over here!"
"I'm not, actually. Just trying to get closer to you, but you had to start moving that way."
>"You started moving after I did."
"No, I think we started at the same time. This is just a unfortunate misunderstanding."
The scene goes on like this, with her chasing you around the table. Gradually, she speeds up the pace, and you had to respond in turn. The conversation between you two degenerates from comebacks to her straight laced demands to just lobbying petty insults at each other. Taking her by surprise, you slide over the table right behind her, and flip her hair up over her eyes. She wouldn't have needed to see you this close up, tripping you over and restraining you onto the ground. With no resistance from you, she searches your bag and comes up with the keys.
>"Aha! So we can add Thief to your long list of titles, Delinquent. I really should report this straight to the deans, but since I'm so merciful, I'll overlook this in exchange for you becoming my live-in assistant."

Taken aback by what you saw, you were unable to give a immediate response. No, not by the view of her pantsu, but by what you saw on her neck. There was no mistaking it. It was the same tally mark you put on that Mystery Girl not too long ago.

>Keep this revelation to yourself.
>Confront her about this.

You also have to decide how you're going to respond to that offer of hers.

>Of course not, I don't think I can stand living with her.
>...Maybe this is an opportunity I can leverage for my own gain.

>>4955193
>live-in assistant
Oh no, it's one of THOSE shows. If we agree, our life will be hell.

>Keep this revelation to yourself.
>Of course not, I don't think I can stand living with her.
>Also, we stole nothing, and the keys were just found on the floor. She can't prove anything. We demand a lawyer.

>>4955200
Supporting

>>4955193
>Of course not, I don't think I can stand living with her.
>Write in
>"Look, let s slow down before thinking without reason. Perhaps we are just taken by the heat of the moment, and we should instead reflect."
"While it would be a very great honor for me to be allowed to work with you, i feel like i am still far away from such a position. Do i even deserve it ? I am qualified for it ? I think not, and i didn't do much for gain it. What about other students that would want such a position ? Would you leave them out of reach of their dream ?! And what about you ? You would have to martyr yourself for the good of the school for just one student ! I am sure even you want to enjoy some well deserved free time, and not control me everyday no ? I say no, with great displeasure, my hearth wouldn't feel at ease for them and you."
"So maybe .... something a bit more simple uhm ? Like a task or i can treat you to something, your choice."

I am considering to change my vote. The position still carries some power and i don t like the idea of being considered a criminal. Could influence future conversations. Especially with new characters

>>4955193
>Keep this revelation to yourself.
Interesting. Especially since Mystery Girl wiped her markings off. Assuming that Chiharu is a model derived from Mystery Girl, what made our changes to the model carry over but Mystery Girl's not?

>Of course not, I don't think I can stand living with her.
Ew, don't do this gross power dynamics shit, Chiharu. You're...well, from what we've seen you're actually not better than that, but you should be.

>>4955193
"You can't prove I stole anything."
>"Even if I can't prove you stole this outright, its still my word over yours. No matter how you cut it though, the circumstances simply don't look good. I send you right over by the Library for a simple task, only to find you leaving there and the place ransacked. That alone is incriminating, especially since the Library doors are locked early on."
>"All these keys shouldn't even be in hands of students to begin with, I'll be surprised if you're still allowed in this school if this gets out!"
"Then why do you have some of your own?"
>"Simply put, I have proven myself much more responsible than you'll ever be without me. It's not like they've just given these to me for just being the Student Council President."
>"Really, I'm doing you a favor by offering you this. You'd stay in this school, and you'll come out a better person than before under my exemplary guidance."
"Are you even allowed to do this? More importantly, you think I'm qualified for any of this over anyone else despite calling me several flavors of troublemaker?!"
>"Why would I offer you something I couldn't make good on my behalf? Of course, you are far from fit for the role, but there's already an incentive on your part to shape up quick."
Jingling the keys confiscated from you, Chiharu lays down her ultimatum.
>"Enough stalling. What's your answer going to be?"

"...….No!"
The answer should've been obvious to her, but the muttering the words was an ordeal in of itself. Some force was suppressing those words from leaving your mouth, but pure spite overcame it. Wordlessly, she leaves you in the room, off to report this to higher authorities. You're finished, but your pride was intact. With lunch still going, you await the end back at your class. Just as you arrived, you found little time to reflect on what you've just learned, as Hiroki and Ayumi wanted to know what happened.
>"Minoru-san... Not gonna tell us what you did for her?"
"Sorry Ayumi-san, but I don't wanna."
>"Well why not?"
"I just don't want to, ok. I think you guys will be hearing it soon anyways."
"Well, while you guys are around, tell me, how does the other Council Members deal with her?"
>"Simple, they don't. She driven all of them out over time with her ethics. If anyone wanted to, they could run for a Council position and basically be given it on the spot."
"Figures. Should've known myself."
The intercom rings to life, and Chiharu is on the mic. This is it.
>"Attention Mikishima High. I would just like to make a small announcement."
"She really is going to make this a spectacle huh."
>"Asa Minoru of Class 2-1, starting tomorrow, will be appointed as Vice President of the Student Council. That is all."

All eyes are on you now, Mr. Vice President.

>Deny it immediately. Just what is she planning to do?
>Roll with it. I don't need to draw any further attention to what she has over me.

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>>4955608
And I forgot the Image I wanted to use.
Don't think I'll ever get an another reason to use it, but the flaw with using images of original characters is that theres usually only one image I can post and nothing else with the same design.

>>4955608
>Roll with it. I don't need to draw any further attention to what she has over me.
Eh, it's annoying, but trying to avoid her would be annoying, too. At least this way we have a means of easy access if we want to examine her for the results of any tests on her relationship to Mystery Girl.

>>4955608
>>Roll with it. I don't need to draw any further attention to what she has over me.

Lmao god she couldn t accept it, still i suppose she wins this battle. The war is far from over.
With this done, time to use the new authority and power we have. Access to the school is far easier now at least, and in regard to her, she will inevitably grow familiar so it s likely to lose some of that edge. Not necessaraly friendly, but enough to be more lenient. I doubt that it will happen, but who knows.


We need to remember just how much of the school we have explored. There are still places we don
't know. Maybe we can ask the president to give us a free tour.

>>4955612
Kek

>>4955608
>"Way to go Minoru-san! Here for 2 days and already you're representing us all."
"Uh, yeah. I feel like it would help me know the populace better."
>"Huh, maybe Ayumi-san was on the money with you two. Out here with the rest of us the two of you go at it like nobody's business, but apparently behind closed doors you come back Vice President and have no problem helping out in the wee hours of the morning when nobody's here to see it."
Hiroki fixes his glasses, the glare of which briefly obscures his eyes.
>"So, who approached the other first? Is she your type, or is it love at first sight on her part? Maybe you knew each other and finally got back together after a while?
"Buzz off, she just dragged me outta my hole way early in the morning."
>"Man, you waste no time, she already knows where you live and all."
"What, is this not recorded or something?"
>"No, but I don't think students, regardless of standing, are privy to that information at all unless absolutely necessary."
How'd she find out where you lived then? Was that why she was out and about last night? Even then, how'd she get it right the first time?

Lunch soon draws to a close, unable to update your notebook lest you let yourself go undefended against Hiroki's and Ayumi's baseless shipping. Noticing how Mobs are just that more aware of you, you relent from taking off as you'd normally do and actually stay an entire day for once. Class dismissed, you part with Hiroki and Ayumi to head off home, with Chiharu joining you by the gates. Hopefully, they didn't see that.
>"Going somewhere?"
"Home obviously. Expect me to grovel about the errors of my ways?"
>"Not yet. It was foolish of me to ask for permission to civilize you, so I went ahead and set you up regardless. Of course, you're free to come home with me if you came around to it."
"No way. I'll just quit my position tomorrow."
>"Too late for that. Not only will I expose you, you're obligated to hold the position for a month minimum after taking it, which you must since the day is over. See you tomorrow, Vice President~"
She turns off towards whatever she calls home and you made the rest of the walk alone. Going up the stairs, an eviction notice is front and center on your door, and your key fails to work. Good thing you keep everything important on you, but damn. Not even she could've known about this.

>This notice isn't going to stop me, I'm breaking in again.
>I'm gonna have to crash somewhere else. I wonder who I could ask though?

>>4956047
>I'm gonna have to crash somewhere else. I wonder who I could ask though?
stay at the public library for a bit.

>>4956047
>I'm gonna have to crash somewhere else. I wonder who I could ask though?
I'm going for Hugo

>>4956047
Hugo. Though we could go to the Mystery Girl. But go for Hugo, if we find him that is.

>>4955556
Mystery Girl only wiped the mark on her thigh, she never knew about the neck.

>>4956047
>I'm gonna have to crash somewhere else. I wonder who I could ask though?
Hugo. Also ask him about the eviction. There's no reason for any of the Cast to believe we have nowhere to live, so what mechanism was at work there? The plot railroading us to become Chiharu's live-in assistant? Isn't it a bit too early fro a route lock? Or is this the whole premise?

>>4956160
Could be something else ? Maybe a mechanism is conflicted about us being aware / mob or cast. A cast member wouldn t have an house with nothing. It would be a real place, so it needs to modify.

Personally i think it could be related to the amount of interactions and influence we have on the others.
Beside this we need to check on mystery girl for see if anything changed with what we did.

>>4956047
>I'm gonna have to crash somewhere else. I wonder who I could ask though?

>>4956214
That would be my guess. We've become enough of a character that the world can respond to our actions like things outside our perception exist, but not enough of one that we get an entire backstory filled in, which combines to this house having no one paying for it.

>>4956047
Weighting your options, you find that Hugo would probably be your only real choice. Everyone else you know is a Cast Member and they don't need to know about your recent eviction. N/V's location can be pulled up on your phone, as well as a number, so Hugo set up shop, and should be able to pick up this call.
>"Hello. You have reached the automated phone system of the establishment, N/V."
"Hugo, I know this is you. Cut that out."
>"Sorry. Never know who exactly is calling."
>"So what made you ring me up?"
"I've been evicted and need somewhere else to be."
>"Someone believed you were going to be homeless or something? Stuff like this is why I minimize contact with Cast Members. Don't break in, it would probably take you to where the world wants you instead."
"No, I didn't let anyone on about my home situation at all. It just happened today without so much as a clue."
>"Changes don't happen randomly either, something had to cause the world to force this then. Any ideas on what?"
"Well, I have been appointed as Student Council VP."
>"A role like that would have the world react to you on a much weaker scale as a Cast member, but how did you get that to begin with?"
"...Chiharu tried blackmailing me to live with her as a slave."
>"Tried? So it didn't work?"
"No, I refused. Still haven't been exposed yet."
>"Look, I don't care what she has over you, but the fact that you outright said no to her and she still hasn't followed through isn't in line with what I'd expect with her. There's some reason why she can't go through with it."
>"Now, remember how I said earlier about how I think the world serves the Cast? In addition to changing to what they believe in, it will also attempt to accommodate to what they want. Granted, it doesn't cater to their every whim, but I have no idea what criteria the world uses before it gets involved. Blackmail does sound pretty major commitment on her side, so there's that."
>"And you can drop on by later, but not right now. I'm not sticking around until, say around sunset. The search continues after all."
"Didn't find what you were talking about earlier?"
>You saw me run off. A Cast Member was coming and I decided to ditch. Sorry for leaving you in that mess, that probably didn't help you with her."
"I'm sure she would've yelled my ear off for simply being around that, but thanks."

Well, you have somewhere to be tonight at least, but you have to do something to pass the time until then. Now is a good time to recap what you've learned and jot it down into your notebook, but that won't pass the rest of the day.

>Ask Naoko about her school. I have an excuse to, since I'm now Vice President.
>Explore Ghost Town again. Maybe other places I know have counterparts in there.
>Just explore the regular city. There has to be more landmarks to this place I can now see.

[For once, the Notebook has been updated simultaneously with a post.]

>>4956928
>>Just explore the regular city. There has to be more landmarks to this place I can now see.

>>4956928
>Don't break in, it would probably take you to where the world wants you instead.
Now that's interesting. If you go someplace you're not meant to be, it takes you to where the world expects you to be for the plot. That explains why Masaru's room takes us to the school. It's an out-of-bounds place now that Masaru is missing, so when we entered it took us to where the system expects a Mob student to be. Maybe the same thing is what caused him to go missing. The plot demanded he be somewhere he wasn't, and so he got warped to the other side of reality.

>Just explore the regular city. There has to be more landmarks to this place I can now see.
I want to do the Ghost Town exploration, but before we go there let's investigate the real town first so we'll know if there are any parallels.

>>4956928
>>Just explore the regular city. There has to be more landmarks to this place I can now see

perhaps we can twist the genre and gain unnatural power?

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>>4956928
Other than where you need to be, your knowledge on the city itself is lacking. A little bit of roaming, and surely you should find places you want to spend time at. Not wanting to stumble into another Ghost Town, you've stuck with the known routes. Straying from your former abode, you find that Mobs never returned to their default states, and in fact various types roam the streets with you. Of course, none of them display personality and the illusion doesn't hold up against further scrutiny, with them walking in loops and so much as not saying a word unless spoken to. Well, it isn't as lonely to walk the streets anymore, but that was never a problem.

Atleast with Mobs reacting with you comes the ability to actually receive service from shops, but other than simple browsing there isn't anything you wanted to buy. Well, you did buy a little drink just to see if that card from long ago works, but there's no clue on just how much you can use it for. The surroundings get busier and busier, indicating the presence of a Cast Member, and you pinpoint the location to around a Karaoke place. Entering, you're greeted by a familiar face.
>"Welcome. How many of you are we having today? Oh, hey Minoru-san."
"Nice to see you too Ayumi-san. So you work after school?"
>"Yeah, but only every other day or so. Are you coming in, because I can't join you unless it was my break."
"Nah, I just thought I saw a familiar face around. I'll be going now."
>"Take care then!"
Other than finding where Ayumi worked, there was nothing else of note that you can find. Just minor things and amusements that you enjoyed. Spotting a local park, you've decided to just take a seat and rest.

>"..."
"You need directions to there? Sorry, but I haven't been here long.
>"..."
"You're welcome then."
The figure, receiving no help from you, exited the park and went down the street. Just before he left eyesight did you realize what was horribly wrong just now. He didn't even so much as utter a word and you knew what to respond with. You couldn't even make out any facial features, and yet this didn't strike you as odd immediately. Bolting from your seat, you chase down the figure, unable to close the distance. The concrete below you gives way, and you fall, fall into the nothingness below. Or at least, that's what you thought was happening. You're laying on the grass, but the place around you looks corrupted and just, wrong. You were still at the park, where you were trying to give chase, wondering just how you were getting out of here.

>Hugo said there was something in the School Library that would take you someplace else. Hopefully, it's here as well.
>My place is closer, so If I go there and break in I should be taken to where the world wants me instead.

>>4957301
>Hugo said there was something in the School Library that would take you someplace else. Hopefully, it's here as well.
Huh. That's...weird. Definitely feels like our "not-quite-Cast, not-quite-Aware" nature is doing something weird, but hell if I know what. Yeah, I'm not going to understand this for at least another update.

>>4957301

>Hugo said there was something in the School Library that would take you someplace else. Hopefully, it's here as well.

>>4957301
Sounds like we were just co-opted as an NPC inside an RPG. Wasn't this a VN though?

>Hugo said there was something in the School Library that would take you someplace else. Hopefully, it's here as well.

>>4957755
Maybe it's an RPG-like dating sim.

>>4957301
>>Hugo said there was something in the School Library that would take you someplace else. Hopefully, it's here as well.

>>4957755
Maybe there are multiple "games" all running off the same shared assets.

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>>4957301
Not long after taking a few steps you almost fell again, the ground before you riddled with holes straight though the void. They weren't there a few seconds ago, and repair themselves as quick as they appear. Slow and steady will have to do, with only blind hopes that the very place you stand on isn't next to go. The sky is outright missing, but even without the sun everything is instead unnaturally bright. The way before you is clear, on account of all alternate routes being gone, but this isn't the way you took here. The streets you've just trekked though juxtapose with the addition of fantastic looking buildings that in no way belong in your time. Any attempts of searching inside however, prove to be fruitless since you phase right through and see the complete lack of an interior. Taking a good look at yourself, this weird sort of fuzz embodies the self and your possessions. Whether or not it's something everyone has in here is unknown, yourself being the only soul you've seen thus far.

The path branching off only once since the start, you've went the way you believed the school should be. Eventually, you've come across it as intact as ever, and unlocked to boot. Making your way into the Library you find the shelves destitute of anything, but desperate for that way out, you scramble between them, but they all prove to be barren. However, towards the corner of the Library, you found someone else. Short, light blue hair and doesn't look that well off. This was probably Closet, but she's frozen, likely by whoever she was about to fight. She likely has the ticket outta here on her person, but getting closer, she suddenly comes alive, with you barely ducking out the way of her swing.

>"SEIAAAAH!"
"Hold it, Hold it! I'm not the one fighting you here."
>"oh, sorry..."
"Can you please speak up?"
>"...I'm sorry."
"Ok, can I have your name? Mine is Asa Minoru."
>"Closet."
"Now then Closet, how do we get out of here?"

1/2

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>>4958263
That same fuzz you have now surrounds her, but she does not answer your question. Instead, she rummages around herself and comes up with a book.
>"Pen."
"...You need a pen?"
>"Yes, pen."
Scribbling down into it, she places the book onto the shelf and steps right through the bookshelf. You follow right after her, not wanting to be left behind.

You step out onto the street, right in front of a home unfamiliar to you. It's gotten dark, and the lights tell you someone's home. You had an idea of just who's house this is, and walk away promptly. The door opens and for a second, you believed you were noticed, but the footsteps move away from you instead. Looking back, it's the Mystery Girl, only she'd just come out of what you believe is Chiharu's house. You knew the two were connected, but this just squashed any doubts as to otherwise.

>Follow her this time, observe if anything changed with the talk at lunchtime.
>Search the house instead. I know where she's going anyways.

>>4958265
>>Search the house instead. I know where she's going anyways.

I want to do it sneaky, else we will vget caught by Chiharu

>>4958265

>>Search the house instead. I know where she's going anyways.


I am not sure about searching an house with Chiharu inside. I ll be honest it s probably a good way to be discovered. Especially because with her type, she probably controls movements every day and the like. I wouldn t be surprised if she just needs like a small rumor in the garden for look out of the window. So is probably best to just get a general idea of the house and get the fuck out. Exploration should be easy when Chiharu isn t here. A good way for do that could be the exscuse of being sick, we can just tell our friends and they can tell her.

We could probably talk with Mystery Girl easily instead. So let s that before going to N/V

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>>4958265
Slowly approaching the door, it's been left slightly ajar, allowing you entry. The lights are off, with illumination bleeding out from under a couple of doors upstairs. The first door you've investigated was a bathroom, and the bath's left running. You've almost went to turn it off, but stopped before exposing yourself. Nobody's coming in yet, but the sound of water running might've disguised their movements, as well as your own. You try to listen outside, ear to the door, and stepped out when you hear nobody at all. Approaching the other door, you repeat the same motions, and get the same results. Nobody's home, or she's doing a damn good job of hiding it. Opening the door reveals her room, Chiharu absent from it. Her clothes lay on the floor, leading out to the door, while her bag from this morning sits next to it. Peering inside, the keys confiscated from you aren't present, as well as anything else you could hold against her. Taking care to not leave a trace, you snoop around the rest of the room for something you can get back at her with, but any dirt she has of herself is well hidden, if it even exists at all. So much for sweet revenge.

Confident that nobody else is home, you have yourself the run of the house. There's only two more doors upstairs, but while one of them is locked, the other opens up to a guest room that very much looks like your own bedroom from before. Granted, that wouldn't be hard to replicate, as only a bed, chair, desk and closet were ever present there, but the idea still stands. The closet opens up to the same selection of school uniforms at home, only with the addition of butler looking wear that you wouldn't be caught dead in for her of all people. Moving downstairs, the rooms there are seldom used. The thought of her holing up in her room all day afterschool evokes a slight chuckle from you, and without much more to see, you walk out.

Reviewing the situation, you recall it as follows.
You appear outside of Chiharu's house,
the Mystery Girl walks right out,
and you investigate the scene,
finding that Chiharu just seemed to have disappeared on the spot while preparing to take a bath.
Marks made to the Mystery Girl's body in Ghost Town somehow reflects over to Chiharu's, and with what you've just witnessed, you've concluded that the Mystery Girl uses Chiharu's body for her scene on the roof. While they do look similar, there are clear physical differences between them and the body morphing to fit the Mystery Girl's appearance and back is perhaps why Chiharu has the neck mark. Now the question remains is why her instead of one of the many Mobs around? Why not just use her body in Ghost Town for this instead? Without any further information, there's nothing more you can do here.

Well, her bath is still running. You could turn it off, but that's her problem really.

>Catch up with her back at school, and see if her disposition improved.
>Let's go back to N/V, hopefully Closet made her way back there.

>>4958265
>Search the house instead. I know where she's going anyways.
I suppose getting caught by Chiharu would, in itself, be useful information. It would either confirm that Mystery Girl is not Chiharu under a role that makes her lose her identity, or suggests that Mystery Girl can teleport when slotted into her role as Chiharu. Either way, it chips away at the puzzle.

>>4958577
Well, that's what I get for not checking for updates before posting. A derp. Sorry, connection has been spotty as hell, a lot of things aren't auto-updating like they should.

>>4958536
Come to think of it, what was the spare uniform that was in Mystery Girl's room in the ghost town? Was it a uniform for our school?

>Catch up with her back at school, and see if her disposition improved.
It's the decent thing to do, I think. If we're not going to kill her, we can at least give her socialization so her existence isn't quite as awful, and inform her on our efforts to solve her problem. We can ask her questions based on new information, too, like "do you remember leaving Chiharu's house before coming here", that sort of thing.

>>4958587
Yeah, it was for our school.
The same room also appears in Mikishima High in both layouts, only without the uniform as far as you know...

>>4958536
>Catch up with her back at school, and see if her disposition improved.

>>4958587
+1

>>4958536
>>Catch up with her back at school, and see if her disposition improved.

>>4958536
Closet could take care of herself, with that bat and all. She should be fine, provided that she doesn't get stuck in that Dead Zone again. Huh, Dead Zone, Nice name for the place. Maybe you'll think of one for her as well while you're at it. Mystery Girl isn't really dignified now that you've come to an understanding of her situation. Obviously, you'd like to find out her own name, but neither of you could understand what she says in her scripted conversation. Doesn't feel right that she has otherwise went nameless for this long. Nameless. Nanashi. That actually rolls off the tongue well enough, but you'll bring it up first instead of just labeling her as such.

You find your way to the school soon enough, just in time to see her do the leap from the roof. Thinking back to lunch, you remember how you said how she walked up to the school from someplace else, and hopefully that would be enough to let her roam a little. The conversation was too accurate to her circumstances, and might've failed to change anything. If only Chiharu didn't interrupt right then, but there's always next time. Coming across her in the halls, you initiate the conversation, noting that her bowtie came back.
"Hello. Are you feeling better?"
>"A little. I thought about how you changed yourself, and even if our situations were different, there's no reason to believe I can't. So, yes, please help me instead."
"I already started trying on my end, but it's good to affirm it from your side."
"Before I can go into that, let's go into names. I don't know what you call you after all."
>"It's still too hard to understand my own name, and I can't think of another one on the spot."
"I thought of one. Nanashi. Are you comfortable with it?"
>"Na-na-shi. It does sound nice to say. What does it mean?"
"...Nameless."
She laughs, having found a bit of humor in it and you take it as her way of accepting it. Deciding that the hall wasn't a suitable place for an extended conversation, the two of you slip into a classroom to continue on some desks.

1/3

>>4958809
"I have a few questions I'd like to ask first, so I can get a better understanding and do more during the day."
"Are you aware that you actually come all the way out here? You seemed to believe that the place around you turns normal instead."
>"No. One moment, I'm staring straight into the blinding white walls, and then they turn normal. It's a seamless transition."
"Well, you walk all the way to this school. Not from the White School, but you possess someone else's body to do this. This leads me to my next question, what was that life you say you see at times?"
>"It's a female student's life, but I don't think I've ever saw you in it. She looks like she's more important than the other students. If not going after her own schoolmates, she's buried in paper or schoolwork. I don't see why she would push herself that hard, but I can't help but feel a bit jealous that she could at least do something with herself. I don't even get that."
"We'll work on fixing that, but it sounds as if you've been seeing into the life of the one you possess. Tanabe Chiharu, the Student Council President. You remember how I marked you before? You didn't get the second one, on the back of your neck, and it's how I figured that out."
>"Really?"
She licks her finger and tries to rub it off, but misses until you guide her to where it is.

>"So, how do you know her anyways? Or did you just want an excuse to look on the thighs and necks of any pretty girl you see?"
"I'm the Student Council VP. Let me just leave it at that."
>"You're the VP? I would've expected someone a bit more, adherent. You are breaking into the school after all."
"Hey, I don't really care about that. If I followed those rules I wouldn't be here to help you."
"That does remind me though. Remember how I said this world served the Cast? I thought if I told your story as a real person they would believe you as such and let you go out on you own, at least for as long as you possess her."
>"I don't feel any different though? What exactly did you say?"
"I talked about the stuff you did, but didn't go too much into the details. I just want to see if you're able to leave this school now."
>"If I leave, I'll return back there again."
"I'm not going to force you, but the sooner I know it works, the more I can try later."
>"Then not yet. Let's just talk, for just a bit longer."
"You have your bowtie again."
>"I knew I forgot it for sure, but this is just convenient. You can keep the one you have already."

2/3

>>4958810
You talk about the people you know with her, starting with your friends. Hiroki and Ayumi trusted you with that mystery, so it should be right to regard them as friends, even if their shipping annoys you. Going on about how they searched for their friend despite being the only ones who remember them, it made Nanashi just a bit sad she had nobody for her until now. Hugo and Closet are already unique individuals that give her more hope about her predicament, seeing them as fellow irregularities. She tries to turn the topic onto Chiharu next, wanting to know more about who's she's possessing. Refraining from outright slander, you attempt to fairly describe her as a hard working authoritarian who's efforts should be turned to someone else instead. Nanashi could sense the dislike emanating from you, and proceeded to goad a long winded rant from you. With that finished, she decides she's ready to go and try to leave school.

>"Alright, lets see if I can step outside now."
"Just in case, I'll see you tomorrow."
You step outside, and watch as she tries to do the same. When she does so however, her body morphs back into Chiharu's, only naked. Right, her clothes were on the floor of her room. Chiharu looks around and spots you, herself and her surrondings before rushing back inside school, the keys in hand.
>"KYHAAAAAAAAA!"

>Chase Chiharu inside. I am not in the mood for a gross misunderstanding on her part.
>Leave her be and go to N/V. This situation is crazy enough for her that I should be able to tell her off that it's some sort of weird dream.

>>4958811
>Leave her be and go to N/V. This situation is crazy enough for her that I should be able to tell her off that it's some sort of weird dream.
I wonder how this worked all the previous times. Does Chiharu awaken outside an empty school every thime?

>>4958811
>>Leave her be and go to N/V. This situation is crazy enough for her that I should be able to tell her off that it's some sort of weird dream.

Take off our jacket and leave it at the entrance of the school, it likely she has run inside in a class for the situation. Chiharu probably hasn t a change at school. Since she is naked, she would probably like to have some clothing for return home. Since she is proud.

Beside is the same jacket for everyone else, we can probably get another one of the same type as N/V. Money doesn t matter for us at all too.

>>4958811
>>Leave her be and go to N/V. This situation is crazy enough for her that I should be able to tell her off that it's some sort of weird dream.

>>4958835
Absolutely not, I don't want to leave material proofs around

>>4958840
But our clothing is the same as anyone else. It s got nothing special about it.
No then, I don t mind particulary

>>4958867
It proves that someone was there.

>>4958811
>Leave her be and go to N/V. This situation is crazy enough for her that I should be able to tell her off that it's some sort of weird dream.
Eh, she already thinks weird things of us. Engaging with her when she's like this is just going to further her tsun-tsun.

>>4958811
Chiharu's already panicked, but trying to explain yourself now would probably lead to more misunderstandings than it would otherwise. You wondered if leaving her something to wear would be a good idea, but decided against it. Nobody else is around to see her naked self, and it would be easier to deny anything if there's no proof. Pulling up N/V location, you make the trip over to stop for tonight. The route you had to take was parallel to how you would've went home otherwise, but you get this strange sense of being followed before the route split off for the destination. Nothing's actually there when you check, so perhaps it's just a subtle sign to not go home for the time being. The lights of the establishment clash with the closed stores surrounding it, and walking inside, you were welcomed by Hugo.

>"Yo. How's the day been?"
"A lot happened. Went into the Dead Zone, found Closet, and broke into Chiharu's house."
>"That's a lot to just dump on me. Are you gonna go into details, or am I going to guess?"
"No dirt on Chiharu, so I can't counter her blackmail."
>"Shame really, but the other two?"
"I fell through the world, and when I came to, the world was all a mess stuck in this pitch black void. I made my way to school looking for a way out and happened upon Closet, frozen in place until I came near."
"She had that bat and clothes that doesn't feel like it belongs in our world, and we escaped from that place I called the Dead Zone."
>"That sounds like her alright, but that place, Closet should've been able to move around just fine in. It's where she said she was in before I found her in a pile of clothes."
>"This Dead Zone of yours is the remnants of her world, and what she has on her are personal mementos of it."
"Wait, it was more our city than it was of anything else."
>"It's changing? The composition is probably why you were able to move and not her. How did you start falling to begin with?"

>>4959388
"I chased down some faceless guy who doesn't even say a word, and fell down into it."
>"Faceless and wordless... Masaru?"
"It's him? He's been missing ever since I became aware."
>"I've had no idea that he was missing, but he's the one above all the Cast Members. The Main Cast, or Main Character if you prefer. I didn't spend a lot of time around him, but that doesn't seem like something he was able to do. My gut tells me something is seriously wrong, and it hasn't led me astray yet."
"You guys have any enemies? When I found Closet, she looked like she was about to fight."
>"Nope. Nobody to fight like that on my end."
"Then maybe she was trying to fight Masaru? She was in the Dead Zone like me."
>"Perhaps, but the two never met, so I wouldn't know how she would've thought of that.
"...I'm stumped. I'm going to bed."
>"Alright, take the staff door and a left. There's a couple of beds there, take either of the one."

You followed his instructions and went to bed. Having written down the details into your notebook during the talk with Hugo, you drift off, awaiting the start of the new day. Hugo wakes you up, having to leave and relocate the place to somewhere Closet knows to find it. As he goes off, you wonder just what to do next.

>Chiharu is gonna get more suspicious if I don't go to school after last night. Let's not keep her waiting.
>Closet is still out there, and just what is she doing? Maybe I'll find her where I met Masaru.
>I forgot to tell the others that I met Masaru. I need to ask them what happened before I transferred over though.

And the notebook once again has been updated.

>>4959390
>>I forgot to tell the others that I met Masaru. I need to ask them what happened before I transferred over though.

Talking with friends, shows that we value relations and care for people. It s also important that a member of the council has a rich social life. Beside it was a brief talk.
Untouchable Asa.

Jokes aside this is quite important for our two friends, so it would be good to inform them.

>>4959405
Nice.

>>4959388
>"This Dead Zone of yours is the remnants of her world, and what she has on her are personal mementos of it."
Wait, what? You are going to need to back that one up, Hugo. What do you mean, remnants of her world? Does she come from a different "game"? Are we in a Kid Radd situation, Hugo? You need to tell us right now if this is Kid Radd.

>>4959390
>"Faceless and wordless... Masaru?"
Oh, it's that sort of VN. The kind that doesn't even have a main character, just a player avatar. Yeah, that sounds like something has gone very wrong, if he's missing. It's possible for a main character to disappear and the perspective switches over to the rest of the cast, but a player avatar disappearing means that the player has gone out of bounds somehow.

>I forgot to tell the others that I met Masaru. I need to ask them what happened before I transferred over though.
Yeah, let's give them an update. How do we explain how we knew it was him, though?