week 6, thursday w/ akechi

[alchemenace]

[ well if akechi is looking for varian, the kid is in the lab with his raccoon, going over some stuff and talking to himself! or to his raccoon. probably the raccoon. ]

What do you think? ... No, yeah, that probably wouldn't work. I should keep it simple. Hmm...

[ rudiger chitters. please interrupt this is embarrassing ]

Comments

[alchemenace]

[ ... ]

Well, I'd say as a detective, you could've just figured out that I shared that same info with you right before that letter went out. But I'm rather certain that, since most of the week has passed and you're confronting me about it, someone had to tell you.

[ is he stalling to be a shit or to think about it? it's a mystery. he pauses and snaps his fingers ]

So. Belph?

[doublecrows]

[. . . EVERYONE ALWAYS THROWS SHADE AT THE DETECTIVE PART!!! because it's legit, he sucks]

[a scowl]

To be fair, Belph-san supplied me with the same information you did at the exact same time. I thought he may have been the one responsible.

[SO :T :T :T]

But yes, you're correct. It was Belph-san.

[alchemenace]

[ learn to detect, akechi. ]

And exactly why did he think it was necessary to share that, anyway? It's not like it matters.

[ varian says, after being petty as fuck because he was mad he was outed ]

[doublecrows]

Because I enjoy knowing things.

[that's. that's it]

And I asked him to let me know if he found out who was responsible.

[alchemenace]

So he just... told you it was me. Jars and all. That's it?

[ why is belph, says his tone ]

[doublecrows]

He didn't say anything about the jars.

[oh]

That part was just an educated guess. I presumed whoever wrote the letter had to be responsible for the jars.

[alchemenace]

[ ... well. ]

Well. For once you presumed right. That was me. It seemed like the easiest way to keep track of things while also sharing the stats to everyone. It's not flawless, since no one is forcing people to put in things and obviously people can lie, but.

[ but it's his arts and crafts project. rip. ]

[doublecrows]

[it's a cute project, Varian]

The only thing I'm worried about is someone potentially manipulating the jars on purpose. [. . .] Particularly in light of a letter Sousei-san sent to Bunch from the Other Side.

[alchemenace]

[ deadpan ]

Was it about balance.

[doublecrows]

[just]

[pulls out a piece of paper and hands it to Varian]

Continue along your ████. If this is what we must ██ ██ ████ our happy ending, then I must regretfully ████ ██ ████████ for it. It is ████ to ██████ ████ no villain objectives have been accomplished on this side. I have not spoken with ████████ here, but it seems unlikely at best. I will attempt to get more █████ ██████████ for you when I can.

Encourage those who remain to do theirs, if you can.

Additionally, be wary. I believe there is something out there attempting ██ ████████ us.

Abe no ██████.

[alchemenace]

[ ... he reads it and frowns, mouthing along the blanks and counting spaces as he tries to fill them as he goes ]

Continue along your path... do to get our happy ending... No surprise there about the dead villains. [ said with the sigh of a dead man. but. ... hm. ] Something out there attempting to sabotage us?

[ that's his guess, anyway. ]

Sabotage how?

[doublecrows]

We aren't sure. None of us have noticed anything overt. But perhaps there was merit to our previous discussion on the existence of some force attempting to tilt the game into Tiger-san's favor.

[alchemenace]

Yeah. If this is meant to be a war, there's too much stacked in Dragon's favor. Sure, her ending's harder to get, but who wouldn't want it? They've been doing this for way too long for things to be this straightforward.

[ ... then again. ]

Though Sousei said something, not someone.

[ hrrmmmmmmmm ]

[doublecrows]

That's right. We noticed that as well.

Something doesn't seem to imply another Narrator.

[alchemenace]

If I didn't think it was highly unlikely, I'd point the finger at Tiger and Dragon's own "writer".

[doublecrows]

. . . it's curious that you put it in those terms.

I asked Tiger-san what it is she wanted should she win this war game. Do you know what her answer was?

[a beat]

Freedom.

[alchemenace]

I asked them something similar. If they were in charge of their own story. That's why...

[ he shrugs ]

They're not as in control as they like to pretend they are.

[doublecrows]

They aren't.

[he echoes]

Because when I asked Dragon-san the same question, her response was "rest." And, of course, victory for all of us. Something to make our struggles worth it.

[a small shrug]

But who or what could be above them is beyond me.

[alchemenace]

Whoever or whatever they are... I'd rather not have to deal with them. But if they're the ones sabotaging us... Well. Hopefully, they're not. We're having enough trouble as it is.

[doublecrows]

I'll bear this in mind for the next time I speak with the Crafters. I hope you do likewise.

[when he talks to them]

[during his like]

[weekly Editor meeting or w/e??]

[alchemenace]

You really think they could tell you if it was?

[doublecrows]

They talk about a little more with each passing week, don't they?

Perhaps, if they couldn't talk about it before, they can now.

[alchemenace]

Well ... it's worth a shot, if nothing else.

[ ... hm. ]

Have you tried leaving stuff at their shrines?