Maps:

Guesthouse F1

Guesthouse F2

Mansion F1

Mansion F2 Glance

Mansion F3

The world shatters into nothing. Where you were once standing, you are now sitting in somewhere completely different. In front of you, in the middle of the room is a chessboard. Facing you is a single white piece. The other side is fuzzy and out of focus, as if it's being blocked from your sight. You are alone.

On the other side of the room there is and empty chair parallel to the one you are sitting in. At that moment there is a booming sound and the room filled with the color of blue.

"Kyrie is not dead. Battler couldn't properly confirm her death without the use of his candle, which is in a different room!"

The moment the blue fades there is a loud popping sound and in the chair that was empty there now sits a man.

[ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zVSOu2Tjshg ]

>>6858
Alright, finally! I was waiting for a blue Kinjo. Let's see what-

Hold up...This, is the first blue you try? Jeez and here I thought you actually had a theory or something useful. Then again you did accuse me of a logic error back then, so I wouldn't put it past you. Anyway, I don't even need red for this. You just need to investigate more.

Battler still has his lighter with him you know? It's not like it's a one use object like a match.

While you are here is there anything else you want to try?

>>6859
Hey, it sounded better in my head...!

Anyway, I'll try another. Two-sided attack!

Manon was seen in the guesthouse by Kyrie in the time from 2:10 AM to 2:30 AM!

Ruon was seen in the guesthouse by Kyrie in the time from 2:10 AM to 2:30 AM!

>>6860
Okay, at least that's a theory of sorts.

Manon was seen in the guesthouse by Kyrie from 2:10 AM to 2:30 AM.
I won't respond to the second one, I also won't tell you why either.

If you really feel like it, you can try one more for now. After that you'll be sent back. Unless you are already good?

>>6861
Let's go for one more.

The one who wrote the letter that sent me here is among the people on this island.

>>6862
Another good one. I'll allow it.

Whether they are dead or alive, the one who wrote the letter that called you to Rokkenjima is among the people on the island.

Anyway, if you excuse me. I've got something to deal with.

>>6863
With another small pop the man disappears. Leaving you alone in the room with the walls glowing red from his last statement. It slowly fades back to the norm and at that moment darkness overcomes you.

--

>>6864
You open your eyes to find yourself in the room with Genji's corpse and Maria. The world is still halted. As if nothing had just transpired.

>>6865
First I take the candle, then get a closer inspection of Genji's corpse.

>>6866
The candle is already close enough to see Genji's corpse.

Looking at Genji's corpse reveals not much else then you already knew. There is a large stab wound in his chest, right around where the heart should be. He is lying stretched out, his mouth wide open and covered in blood, no doubt by caused by him coughing it up after being stabbed. His eyes have yet to film over.
Near his body is some broken glass, which turns out to actually be the lantern he had taken from the servant room. It is broken beyond repair.

>>6867
You also notice while crouching that unlike other investigation modes this one hasn't blocked off the hallway. What could that mean?

>>6868
I'll examine the entire room, using the light from the candle to see.

>>6869
There is some odd resistance from the candle, but you are in the end able to lift it up and proceed to use it to investigate the room.

The room is roughly the same size of your guestroom and seems to have a closet and bathroom. There is a single window on the opposite side of the door. There is a bed and a single wardrobe in the room.

>>6870
2nd Floor Murders

>>6871
I'll take a look at the door closest to Genji's corpse (not the exit) and see what's inside.

>>6891
You open the door to the closet.
Inside there are rows of outfits, that is not to say there is any variety. The are all the same, matching the clothing Genji is wearing.

>>6892
You sure there aren't any fancy suits? Either way I'll proceed to the next door and look around.

>>6893
You check in the very back of the closet and find an incredibly fancy suit. It is completely golden.
Disregarding the amazing suit you go check the other door, which leads to a small bathroom. Inside there is a toilet, shower, sink, mirror, and a garbage bin.

>>6894
I'll check the trash and inspect the mirror.

>>6895
Upon your inspection of the mirror you find nothing odd. By pushing it it swings open and inside are a variety of toiletries.
There is nothing found in the trash bin.

>>6896
Very well.

Back inside the bedroom, are there any notable pieces of furniture aside from the butler?

>>6897
Excluding the bed and wardrobe there is a small table beside the bed. On top of the table there is a lamp and a phone.

>>6898
Let's inspect the wardrobe this time. Is it big enough for a person to hide inside?

>>6899
It would be uncomfortable but yes, a person could fit inside. It is locked.

>>6900
...Locked?

I'll bend the copper wire from my magnets to form a lockpick! Let's bust this door open!

>>6901
It takes awhile, but you finally pick the lock and open it up. Inside there are multiple drawers lining the sides. The main section of the wardrobe is empty.

>>6902
Take no prisoners, let's open them all!

>>6903
Inside most of them there is more clothing, however in the very bottom drawer there is a small box. It is locked with a special type of lock. It seems fruitless to try and pick it.

>>6891
>>6893
>>6895
>>6897
>>6899
>>6901
>>6903
Reported

>>6904
Hmm.

I'll take the box with me. Then I'll go over to the table and see if the lamp or phone magically works.

>>6908
You take the rather large box with you and put it under you arm. Checking the phone and lamp you find they do not work.

>>6904
>>6908
>>6909
>Small box, box, rather large box

Watch out Kinjo! The box is growing in size!

>>6910
That was just Ozaki hinting Piece Kinjo mental disability background.

>>6911
Alright...

I'll go over to Genji's corpse and pick up the broken glass.

>>6912
You pick up the glass, and add it to you already stuffed pockets.

>>6913
Where's Maria at?

I tell her to turn around (facing away from me) and close her eyes.

>>6914
Maria seems to be frozen in place. However you words somehow get through to her and the next thing you know she goes from facing you, to facing away from you.

>>6915
The detective is forbidden from killing any child of man.

I take one of the glass shards... and slice off Genji's neck...!!!

>>6916
You vicious thrust cuts right through Genji's neck, and in one quick motion his head falls off. As if in stop motion the blood from your strike spatters around the body.

>>6917
Damn, I forgot about the blood splatter.

I'll check to make sure it didn't get anywhere on me... if not, I'll end the investigation here (and leave the glass shard on the ground).

>>6918
You have gotten a splash of blood on your right sleeve. Your shoes have also been covered from what you did, not to mention stepping in the puddle of blood.

>>6919
I'll re-enter the bathroom and begin washing the stained parts of my clothes with cold water.

>>6920
It's takes a while but you eventually wash it off. You can still see it if you try, however it's not noticeable.

>>6921
Good.

Investigation over.

>>6922
The world slowly fades back, and the darkness regains its viscosity.
The room is silent excluding Maria's breathing in the corner of the room.

>>6923
"Maria, you can open your eyes now. It's not safe to stay here, let's go check on Battler."

I grab Maria's hand and go to the room Battler entered earlier.

>>6924
You take Maria by the hand and walk out of the room.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IDma4A6A3Bc

As soon as the you enter the hallway you hear a small gust of wind, and your candle goes out. Before you can realized what you heard wasn't just a gust of wind, a sharp screaming pain assaults you leg and you feel a mass impact you on the chest. As you fall the sound of ripping flesh flies into you ears, matching perfectly with the painful vibrations coming from your leg.

Falling to the ground you hear Maria scream, followed by the sound of one foot after another rushing down the hallway.
Reaching down to grab your leg the pain returns and the agony is immense. Something hot is pouring out of your leg and into your hands.

>>6925
"Maria! Are you alright?!"

I try and find her in the darkness.

>>6926
"I'm alright Kinjo." Maria says weakly from behind you.
The footsteps counting to echo through the hall and the pain doesn't subside.

>>6927
As much as I want to chase after that culprit... I can't let Maria get hurt.

It'd probably be useless with my leg hurting so much, anyway.

I continue to try and make my way to Battler's room... if I can tell where it is in the dark. I call out to Battler.

"Battler, where are you?!"

>>6928
Just as you are about to call out your hear Battler exit the room and flick on his lighter. "What the hell happened?" he yells while running up to you.
"What the.." he mutters as he gets closer and sees your leg.

Now that it is lit up you can now see the damage. Your pants have been stained red, and right on the thigh there are is a large stab wound cutting through the fabric right into your flesh. Blood is steadily dripping from it.

>>6929
"Someone attacked us... probably the same one who killed the others. Damn, if only we had a doctor on this island...What should we do?"

>>6930
"Shit, they must be long gone by now. Quickly, cover up that wound with something, we should get out of here." Battler says.

>>6931
"Right."

I take off my tie and use it as a bandage. Then I take Maria's hand and follow Battler.

>>6932
You try to get up however you find your left leg almost completely useless due to the wound. Looks like you'll have to hop.

Battler takes Maria's hand, lights the candle and starts to slowly go down the hallway.

>>6933
I'll follow.

>>6934
You limp after Battler who stops at the main staircase and turns around. "Hey will you be alright to walk?"

>>6935
"It's a bit difficult...Don't worry, I'll manage somehow."

>>6936
Battler nods and continues down the steps with Maria, with you following shortly behind.
The first thing you notice is that the main doors are wide open. Battler stops.

"They must have gone to the guesthouse. You know, like we were talking about before. We should probably head over there too."

>>6937
"Good idea. Let's at least go outside where we can see."

>>6938

The three of you exit the mansion and are greeted by the cold winds. The clouds are a deep shade of gray and the snow keeps falling. In the distance the light from the guesthouse can be seen.
After an painful trek through the path Genji had made your group makes it to the guesthouse and all three of you enter.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hm6BKgnuW_s

"Hello?" Battler calls in the brightly lit hallway. There is no response.
Battler walks over to the double doors closest to the entrance and yanks them open. Inside the Lobby there are a few chairs a sofa and a small bar to the side. There is also a bathroom and a closet it looks like.

The only problem is, nobody is there.

"Where they hell..." mutters Battler.

>>6939
I hop over to the closet and open it. What's inside?

>>6940
Just some cleaning tools such as a vacuum cleaner and a broom. Nothing really interesting.

"Oi Kinjo, don't you think you should be taking it easy right now?" Battler says.

>>6941
"...Yeah. It's probably best that I head back to my room, but what do you and Maria plan to do?"

>>6942
"I don't know, I was positive that everyone was going to be here..." Battler says while Maria sits down on a coach out of ear range.

"Anyway, if we really are the last ones, then I'm not letting us get split up. I think we should go find that radio Genji was taking about. From what I remember, I think they kept one in the servant room."

>>6943
"Servant room sounds good. Let's go."

I lead the way to the servant room.

>>6944
"Come on Maria," calls Battler. Maria puts up some resistance but she eventually gets off the sofa and follows.

The three of you enter the servant room. Inside it looks similar to the one in the mansion. Excluding the utilities of course. Battler goes over to the desk and starts to look through drawers. After a few seconds he gets to the bottom drawer and pulls out a large radio.

"Alright," says Battler "Genji already tried to use this once, so it should already have the settings punched in."
He starts to fiddle with it, and then a light flickers on. A steady buzz of static is coming from the radio.He then picks up the microphone.
"Hello? Is anyone there we need help quickly!" He takes his hand of the mic and listens for a response.
All that comes out is static.

Battler seems determined and starts to try again.

>>6945
You hear a sound coming from the hallway. Battler doesn't seem to notice it over the static.

>>6946
I whisper to Battler.

"Hold on. Do you hear that?"

>>6947
Battler looks up from the radio and turns it off.

With the power off you can clearly hear the sound of a door being closed.
"We shouldn't make unnecessary moves. Lets wait." Battler
whispers. The three of you wait and no longer then a minute later a voice is heard.
"Battler? Kyrie? You here?" It sounds like Rudolf. Battler walks over to the door and enters the hallway. "Dad!?"
You follow him and sure enough there is Rudolf at the end of the hallway.

>>6948
"Battler? Christ it is you! I thought you had gotten caught up in the explosion!" says Rudolf. Battler follows, "What happened to you guys?"
"I don't know, the others and I just woke up in the boiler room only moments ago." says Rudolf. "It was a real mess, the whole room caved in. Not to mention-" However Battler cuts him off. "Wait, others? Who else survived?"

Rudolf looks confused. "Survived? Well everyone I guess. They should be here any second. You, Genji, Kinjo, Kyrie, and Maria were the only ones missing." He looks around and sees you and Maria. Stopping for a moment he slowly asks: "So... where are Kyrie and Genji?"

Battler can't help but look down. "They are both dead." he finally is able to mumble. Rudolf's expression freezes. "No..." You notice Rudolf start to sway a bit.
At that moment the sound of the door opens again. You decided to get close to where Rudolf and Battler are standing to get a better look. There the rest of the people thought to be missing are standing.
Jessica, Rosa, Ange, Gohda, Manon, Berune, and Ruon.

>>6949
"That's right... we've lost another person. Two people, in fact."

>>6950
Another person you say?

"Maria!" Rosa calls and runs up towards you and Maria. "Oh thank goodness I thought I had lost you." Rosa cries as Maria says she was fine in a clam voice. Ange also waddles over to Battler and silently tugs on his shirt while shaking. Battler gives her a pat on the head and quietly reassures that he is okay.

It seems the other had heard the news about Kyrie and Genji through the doorway and have fallen silent. Jessica speaks up, "So in other words; while we were all unconscious, your group, Kyrie, Genji and the culprit were not." When this is said you notice Battler's expression grow tense as his eyes squint. He puts his hand on his chin and looks down, probably in thought.

After exchange the others finally pay you heed. "Oh my god, Kinjo! What happened to your leg?" Berune exclaims. Hopping from the adjacent hallway all attention is brought upon you again as you look down to check on your wound.

It has bled through your tie and leak out of the sides. You feel a bit nauseous now, you've lost a decent amount of blood.

>>7110
"Earlier the culprit attacked me while I wasn't watching... it was too dark to see who it was, and I didn't have much to work with, so I used my tie to cover the wound. But now that we're in the servant room there should be something around here to help, right?"

>>7111
"That's right; there should be some bandages in the servant room." Manon says.
Manon enters the servant room and comes back out shortly after with a first aid kit. "We should have you sit down, I have first aid training so I'll do what I can." suggested Manon.

"I guess we should take refuge in the lobby for now. That's the only place with enough seats." says Rosa. Everyone agrees and evacuate the hallway into the lobby. As you enter you are able to get a better look of the place. There is a large glass window spanning the left side. Of course it is all blocked by snow, so the view is nothing impressive.

Everyone one by one takes their seats around the room. While that is happening Manon guides you over to the chair in the corner of the room. She sits you down and asks you the standard first aid procedures and while checking your wound. You notice she can’t help but let out a gasp when the blood starts to fall after she rolls your pant leg up. She warns that this may sting as she pours something out from a bottle onto the wound. It feels like she poured water onto it. After a few minutes she has wrapped the wound.
"You probably shouldn't move the leg too much. The bleeding has slowed down faster than it normally would have, but it would be bad to test it any further." She says. Before walking back to presumably wash the blood of her rubber gloves she seems like she is about to say something, but then stops and continues to the bathroom.

>>7113
As you sit watching the others in the room, Jessica rise from the sofa and walks over to you. Everyone in the room is giving her a sideways glance. She walks over and sits in the chair opposite from you.
"...are you feeling?" she says softly, just enough for you to catch half of it.

>>7114
"I could be doing better. How about you?"

>>7115
Jessica looks down at her feet and attempt to mumble something but nothing comes out. You see a tear roll down her eye and you finally hear something "I'm sorry..."
You get the feeling that is not entirely directed at you.

>>7116
"...I should probably be saying that to you. Sorry."

I look over at my watch.

>>7117
It is 5:00pm

"No... It's my fault that you're are here... and because of it... mom and dad" Jessica manages to sob. Luckily she keeps it quite and the other can't hear her right now.

>>7118
"...Your fault? What are you talking about?"

>>7119
Jessica manages to calm herself down enough to talk.
"I was the one who sent that letter. The one to your father. He often our came to visit my Grandfather, so I thought he could help. I had sent that letter a long time ago, but never got a response I had no idea he had passed."

>>7120
"Ah, so you wrote it... But why keep yourself hidden for so long?"

>>7121
"I suspect the culprit is trying to find who wrote it, and kill them. That's why."

>>7122
"...I see. Well, before your father died, he told me... Erika, Shannon, and Kanon are all innocent. They didn't commit that murder years ago. And there's no way they're committing these murders right now."

>>7123
Jessica wipes her tears.
"Yes, I suspected as much. Even after that day, I knew the culprit had to be someone hiding among the innocent. I don't really know why. I guess you can call it intuition."

Hold it.

I enter the Meta-World.

"Repeat it in red. Everyone alive on the island is gathered inside the guesthouse right now."

>>7125
The world shatters and the fragments fly through the air rearranging themselves one by one.
The pieces fit together and you are now standing in the same room as before. Words fly by the glass shards in the room.

"Repeat it in red: Everyone alive on the island is gathered inside the guesthouse right now."

The words fade and the room becomes silent. There is no response.

>>7126
"What's the matter? Can't repeat it? Then at the very least you can remind me... how many people were there on the island the instant I got there, and what were their names?"

>>7127
Out of no where a large black portal opens up. The man you saw before pops his head out.

Yo, what's up?

From inside the portal flashes of red, blue, and gold are exploding with sound. His arms are failing around matching the timing of the the gold and red explosions. His gaze is completely focused on you though.

>>7128
"............You did hear me, right?"

>>7129
Uhh hang on...

Ducking into the portal you see a large flash of red and an explosion larger then the rest is felt. This time the man jumps all the way in to the room and the portal closes.

Alright let's see here. Hmm, yeah sure no problem.

Everyone alive on the island is gathered inside the guesthouse right now.

>>7130
"Oh... alright, then. Would you mind answering that other request, too?"

>>7131
Heh, that's rather too generous.

>>7132
"Hmm... Well, alright then. One last thing; I don't remember if I asked you this before or not, but...George is not dead. Devil's proof."

>>7133
Devil's Proof? How silly.
Got any thing else you want to ask?

>>7134
Nope.

I return to the gameboard.

I whisper quietly.

"So, then, Jessica... does that mean you think the culprit is among us right now?"

>>7135
"I... I don't even know anymore. Maybe at first yes, but now, I just don't know."

>>7136
"I see. Well as long as we can all survive until the time when the seagulls cry, it'll be fine. I suggest not leaving this room unless we all go together, like before."

>>7113
Kinjo, stop lusting over the redhead maid
>>7128
And you, stop having fun by yourself.

>>7138
>redhead
lolwut

>>7137
"I agree. We have lanterns already in the room this time. So we should be able to hold out even if the power goes out again."

>>7140
I quietly wait until something of importance happens.

>>7141
After you remain silent for a few minutes Jessica gets up and walks back over to the main group. Battler motions for her attention and seems to be asking what happened, however you can't hear from where you currently are.

You sit quietly waiting for something interesting to eventful to happen. To your dismay nothing of the sort comes quickly. You sit all alone wallowing in the pain coming from your wound. To distract your boredom you have been watching the others. Sadly they haven't been doing much either.

Besides Rudolf, who is sitting hunched over at the bar drinking, everyone is sitting quietly around the coffee table. Each of them are simply staring at space. The exception to that portion of the group is Battler, he is constantly fidgeting with the portable radio that he found in the servant's room. The static noise from it has been filling the room for the past hour.

Around and hour and half later something finally happens. It was maria that noticed it first. "Mom, what's that smell?"
The others raise their heads and start to sniff the air. "Yeah you're right, it smells like something is burning." Rosa says quickly.
Gohda is next adding, "Maybe we should check it out?" However that is shot down quickly. "Hold up, remember what happened last time we went to investigate something Gohda? Two more people were killed!"
"Exactly", adds Rudolf, who has tripped over in a drunk trance. "I say we stay... Exactly where we are!"

The vote seems unanimous.

>>7142
"Exactly. It's probably just a trick by the culprit to make us split up."

>>7143
With that decided on everyone goes back to what they were doing. Rudolf seems to have stopped with the drinking though, and is just laying there at the bar, occasionally hiccuping.

You go back to your monotonous 'duty' of watching the others. Nothing happens for another hour besides Maria and Ange falling asleep. However, just when it seemed the static noise coming from the radio was going to drive everyone mad, a voice is heard.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zMVh99cpPuk

*static*"llo?"*static*

That single sound knocked the drowsiness right our of the room. Battler, who had been fiddling at the radio for hours jumped right out of his seat and grabbed the receiver. "Hello!? Hello!? Someone is there right, can you hear me!?" He yells.

*static**static*"Loud and clear sonny. Who is this?"*static*
"Ushiromiya Battler, listen murder have been commited and we are in danger. We need help NOW!"
*static*"What's that? A murder?*static*

From the other end you can hear scrambling of feet and voicing yelling.
*static*"Alright Mr.Ushiromiya, your lucky I knew you guys were out there. This is Officer Terence Stewart. We are going to use all of our power to bring you back safety*static*

Needless to say, everyone is practically jumping for joy. Or rather, most of them are too stunned to even move. Without pause the radio buzzes up again. *static*"Alright, here is what I need you to do. Is there someone named Kinjo Goldbar there?"*static*
"Yeah he is here." Battler scowls. Jogging over to you he regretfully hands you the receiver.

>>7144
"Hello? Terence?"

>>7145
*static*"Hey there Kinjo, seems like things didn't go as you planned did they. Anyway there is no time for that, give me a quick assessment of the situation."*static*

>>7146
"Six people have died. We've relocated to the guesthouse after the mansion's electricity went out and boiler exploded. We need to get off this island and into a reliable shelter as soon as possible, because the culprit can be anywhere at any time!"

>>7147
*static*SIX!? Six people?*static* At this rate it could turn into-*static* Alright, Kinjo this is-*static**static**static* Only then can-*static* Got that? *static*

>>7148
"You're cutting out! Just send help as soon as possible!"

>>7149
*static*-need you first to*static**static**static**static**static*

The line goes dead and the room is plunged back into silence. Battler snatches the receiver and curses.

gameboard where

>>7150
"Well, crap. What should we do now, Battler?"

>>7160
"Do whatever you want." Battler scowls before immediately turning around and speaking again. "Scratch that. We should all continue to stay here. They know we were here, in other words they are already on their way."

Rosa raises her head and faces Battler. "But what about the snow? Won't it be hard enough to get here, let alone trek through the storey high blanket outside?" Gohda is about to add something to the discussion, but Battler answers Rosa's question quickly.

"It doesn't matter. Even if it takes hours to get through the snow they'll get here eventually. The only course of action is to try to do as little as possible." With that no one has any objections yet again. Battler goes and sits with his father at the bar. While the others sit back in their spaces.

>>7161
"Right."

I continue to wait along with everyone else.

You stay put in you car as everyone slowly reverts to the quite and depressing attitude before the radio picked up.

You are sitting for what seems to be another good thirty minutes when out of the corner of your ear you notice the servants stealing glances at you. Eventually Berune walks up to you.

"Um Kinjo, we were all wondering what is the point of the metal box you have been caring around." she says.
It takes a few seconds, but sure enough you still have the metal box you took from the room with you. It's kind of odd that you forgot about it.

>>7163
"Oh, this? It's a box, a rather small yet large box. Large and small at the same time, like a catbox that I can't open no matter how hard I try. I don't have a clue what's inside but I found it in the room where I found Genji's corpse."

>>7164
"That's odd. I remember walking in on Genji once while he had it opened and he quickly hid it. I would assumed he put it some place safe."

Gohda had made he way over to you while Berune was talking and adds "Wait, is that a mistake? Isn't that Natsuhi-sama's, I remember her having it not Genji."
Berune quickly looks up at Gohda inquisitively, "Really? I could have sworn it was Genji."

Gohda motions with his hands that that is incorrect. "I'm sure of it Natsuhi-sama has it on occasion and would always make sure not to be disturbed while handling it."

>>7165
"Well, what's inside? Can you help me open it?"

>>7166
"Maybe if Genji or Natsuhi were still alive, we'd be able to get a key, but otherwise I don't see how." says Gohda.
"Yes, Yeah that's right, without a key there is probably no way to get in there without some tools."

After a few seconds of silence Berune and Gohda just decide to walk back to their seats.

>>7167
"Well this box is like a Rubik's cube to me. Trying to figure out how to open this is gonna pass the time faster. Anyone interested in helping?"

>>7168
You gaze around the room.
Rosa, who is sitting besides the currently asleep Ange and Maria catches your eye, but looks the other direction.
Rudolf and Battler don't move.
The servants just turn away.
Jessica who is sitting the closest to you can;t help but speak it seems.
"If that truly was a safe my mother used then she would have been sure to make sure it's strong. I agree with the servants. You'll probably only be able to get in there with brute force or a key."

>>7169
"And I don't suppose you'd know where your mother kept that key?"

>>7170
Jessica who has moved within whispering distance says:
"I wouldn't know, I don't recall ever seeing it. However, if we assume it was as important as the servants make it seem, then I suspect she would hide it some place close, never too far out of reach."

>>7171
"Either in her room... or on her person. But at this point both of those are too far out of reach to actually go after without risking all of our lives...it's probably not worth it."

>>7172
"I guess so"
Jessica decides to go back to her seat to escape any odd glances she may have gotten while talking to you.

>>7173
I examine the box more closely. What kind of lock is it? Is it metal?

>>7174

>>7175
I take out the magnets and begin messing with the lock. It's possible I can unlock it simply by using the magnetic force to push the lock out of place.

>>7176
You take the magnets out and start to fiddle with the lock, attempting to unlock it with science.

To your disappointment nothing seems to happen.

>>7177
I take out my hammer and begin to break the box open with it.

>>7178
You take out the hammer and-

Wait... The hammer is missing!

>>7179
....?

What the...? Did I lose it, or did someone steal it? The last time I remember having it was so long ago...

It's possible that it was stolen while I was asleep overnight, when I was unconscious from the boiler explosion, or when I was attacked during the blackout. I guess that makes sense.

"Does anyone know where I could find something to break this box open with?"

>>7180
The disinterested gazes don't seem to comply. Jessica just shrugs.

>>7181
I start punching the box with my fists until it breaks open.

>>7182
You start to bash your fist against the box. The people in the room jump at the sudden large sound. You don;t feel any pain from the blows, however you can see your knuckles start to bleed.

Battler scoffs, "What a child, getting frustrated like that."
Jessica stand up. "Stop it Kinjo, you're just hurting yourself!"
"Ah just let him be Jessica, what's with you, being so nice to him all of the sudden anyway?"

>>7183
>Losing more blood when he was already in danger of bleeding out beforehand....

Metal box imba

>>7183
"............"

I stop punching the box and stand up, throwing the box on the ground.

"And what are all of you doing just sitting here? Don't you want to try and do something? This box is the only clue I've got to go on, and none of you want to help me out?! None of you want to help me stop the killer?!"

>>7185
"Oh yeah? What do you think we are doing here? Telling the culprit to come and kill us?" Battler yells while jumping from his chair. "We are waiting her for some REAL help to come. If you ask me, doing this much has 'stopped' the murders more then your flailing around has."

>>7186
"Well, whatever. Forget that box, I guess we can all just sit here in silence for the rest of the night."

>>7187
"Wait"
You hear said from somewhere in the room. Rudolf gets up from his seat rubbing his head.
"Dad, are you alright?" Battler asks. "Yeah, I'm fine. Regardless, I have been listening in on this conversation." He then turns to look at you. "Isn't there something you haven't tried?"

>>7188
"Probably, but I don't know what. What is it?"

>>7189
Rudolf sighs, "When you investigated the storage room, didn't you find a key on Natsuhi's corpse?" says Rudolf with a look of pity.

>>7190
"It must be my amnesia acting up again. It feels like it's been months since that happened."

I use the key on the box.

>>7191
You slide the key into the box and turn it.

The sound of the box unlocking is heard through the room. No one says anything.

>>7192
"Eheheheh... thanks, Rudolf."

I'll look inside the box.

>>7193
"God. What a moron," Battle spits out. The others are also giving you weird looks. Jessica is actually 'facepalming'. You open the box inside there are a pile of documents.

You sift through most of the useless ones and come up with a few that interest you.
-One looks like blueprints for the mansion and the guesthouse.
-Another looks like a poem like piece or writing, with many corrections.
-The last one is the same as the ones you got from Krauss regarding Yasu.

>>7194
What does the poem say?

>>7195
You can tell there have been many corrections.
The readable parts are as follows;

---
(#2)

Ye who seek the /// land. /// to /// key.

///. One song to find ///.

///. ///. ///.

///. ///.

Two gems /// /// bright like /// /// night.

/// you will find ///.

Rest in Piece, my beloved ///.

---

It seems to have been edited by someone, leaving most of it unreadable.

>>7194
I'll look at the blueprints now.

>>7197
Looking at the blue prints you notice that there isn't much to see that you didn't already know. The guesthouse already had a map at the front after all.
The mansion on the other hand you haven't seen before. It does not label which rooms are currently which, but from what you can tell there are some notable things. The mansion in total has three floors not including the attic and basement.
Scribbled on the bottom lower left are plans for some sort of room not listed anywhere on the map. You also note that the guesthouse was made using the same blueprints from the main mansion.

>>7198
"Well...that wasn't very helpful. But I guess I've got something else to work on for the rest of the night. What do you all think this poem means?"

>>7199
Battler is the first to say something, or rather do something. He snatches the paper away from you and quickly scrutinizes it.
"This is... It looks similar to the epitaph back then..." he says.

"What!?" Once Battler says that everyone seems to straighten up.
"Yeah," he adds. "However this one is defiantly different, there are a few sentences here that were never in the one back then."
Rudolf takes a look at it. "Well couldn't it be a new version? Maybe Genji was ordered to make a new epitaph."

"I guess... but wouldn't that mean the gold really did exist and was re-hidden?" says Battler. This new information seems to leave the family members thinking.

>>7200
"Either way, it's gotta be impossible to solve. Most of it's not readable... so it seems pointless to try."

>>7201
"Heh, that's what you'd think. If that fat ass could solve the last epitaph I'm sure I can solve this one. Even if more than half of the clues are missing." Battler says. Suddenly the mood changes as Jessica speak up.
"Battler stop that!" Jessica yells. "Don't call him that."

It takes a moment for Battler to understand what is going on, however as soon as he recovers he simply laughs, "Oh this again? Then what should I call him? A player?" You can see Jessica resisting the urge to smack Battler. "No you shouldn't call him anything, he was your cousin. Remember how it used to be?" says Jessica.

Battler's face changes to that of anger. "Yeah, I do, and that's exactly why I don't give a shit about him anymore Jessica. Not after what he pulled. Don't bother trying to change my feelings about this again." He then walks away to the far corner of the room with the paper in hand.

The others are still trying to understand how such hostility appeared so suddenly. Jessica sits down on the couch nearly in tears.

>>7202
I walk over to Battler.

"So what exactly did George do to make you so pissed off?"

>>7203
"It's not any of your business. Buzz off."

>>7204
"........."

I go talk to Jessica instead.

"Why has Battler been in such a bad mood lately?"

>>7205
"I think anyone would be in a bad mood with what has happened Kinjo."

>>7206
".............."

I sigh, then return to my seat and wait for time to pass.

You wait for 10 minutes. Nothing has happened.

Do you keep waiting?

>>7208
Yeah.

>>7209
30 minutes have now passed since you sat down.

Still wait?

>>7210
I'll keep waiting. And I'll check my watch after waiting some more.

>>7211
After another 10 minutes you notice something familiar.
The same smell from before has assaulted your nose. The others have started to stir noticing as well.

Also it is 8:10PM

>>7212
"It's that smell again. Should we do something about it?"

>>7214
"I don't think we should, however I'm worried that it's back." says Rosa.
"Well we shouldn't leave the room, but just checking the hallway won't hurt," says Rudolf who slowly walks over to the door before suddenly stopping.

"Hey does anyone else hear that?" He says.

You take a moment to listen as everyone goes silent. Indeed Rudolf was right, you can hear something faint. Kind of like something is cracking repeatedly. That doesn't sound like the best way to explain it though.

You see Rudolf decide to open the door anyway. As he does the door swings open and at the same time Rudolf jumps back yelling in pain...

>>7215
I rush over to the door and check on Rudolf and the outside of the door.

>>7216

>>7216
As soon as you get up form your seat there is a loud sound and the room quakes. The doors swing wide open and a hot gust of air knocks everyone to the ground including you, balanced on one leg.

In the panic you are able to crawl up to the door. The air is burning. Rudolf is clutching his hand which is unmistakably burned. However in the hallway is an even more frightening sight.

The hallway looks like hell itself has broken through the word. Fire has engulfed the whole area and is spreading fast. It is already caught onto the ceiling of the lobby. You can hear the ceiling cracking under the pressure.

>>7218
"!!!"

I go back into the lobby.

"Let's escape through the windows! Quickly!"

I look around for something to smash the windows with.

>>7219
You notice that Battler is one step a head of you and already has a chair in hand. He takes a swing at the windows and they shatter. Instantly the snow pours in the glasses breaks even more flooding that part of the room with it. Battler, now half deep in snow yells "Quickly dig through the snow!"

While he tries to get un-buried Gohda and Rosa jump up to the broken window and start to dig the snow out. The snow sizzles as it flies through the room landing on flames that have advanced even more into the room. The ceiling is creaking louder.

"I think we are getting closer!" Gohda yells. Rudolf jumps up to help, "Shut up and just dig!"

>>7220
I start digging through the snow, helping Battler out. I'll also survey the room to see how the others are doing.

>>7221
You get up and start to hobble over to the increasingly large pile of snow and try to help out as best you can.

At that moment Gohda shoats "I did it, it's open over here!" The roof starts to creak louder as he says so. Rudolf bellows "Woman and children first!"
On cue Rosa grabs Ange and Maria, squeezing through the broken shards of glass and into the tunnel. Right after her is Manon. However at that moment the sound becomes unbearable and the ceiling comes crashing down.

You hear screams as you jump away from the chaos. You are near the door again. The windows have been completely blocked off. To your left you see Battler and Jessica stand up out of the rubble. To your right is Rudolf and Ruon.

Rudolf swears frantically, "Now what!?"

>>7222
"Now we make a run for it!"

I point toward the door and attempt to go as fast as I can (given my hurt leg) through the hallway and main exit.

>>7223
You run out the front into the hallway towards the main exit, however to your shock the main exit has been blocked off by debris.

>>7224
"Crap, now where." Rudolf says. The heat around you is starting to pik up and the flames are licking your sides.

Battler is looking around frantically for something, anything to help when his eyes rest upon the map of the Guesthouse. "That's it! Right there!" He points to the map. "There is a glass conservatory at the other end of the guesthouse. We could try the same thing we did in the lobby there!"

He didn't need to tell the other twice as Ruon, Jessica and Rudolf start to run down the hall. Battler quickly following.

>>7225
I also go to the conservatory, following Battler.

>>7226
Everyone left rushes down the hall to the conservatory. Ruon and Jessica are father ahead of everyone and you notice that besides the burn on his hand Rudolf also has another wound and is limping.

The moment you stop paying attention to your surroundings you hear another loud crack and see the ceiling directly about Rudolf about to cave in. However in a quick grab Battler stops Rudolf as it comes falling down. The smoke clears and there are a bunch of large burning pillars blocking your pathway.

From the other side Jessica calls out. You can barely hear it, and can make it out. Battler calls back "Just go! Get out of here! We'll be fine!"

"Shit now what..." He mumbles.

>>7227

>>7227
"It's either the utility room or upstairs! If we go upstairs, there won't be any snow blocking the windows, so I'm going that way!"

I run upstairs, whether or not the two of them follow me.

>>7229
You run up the stairs closely followed by Rudolf and Battler.

Turning around the corner of the stairs you see at the very top of them the ceiling has collapsed blocking entrance to the second floor. There is a opening in the bottom right corner probably big enough for a person.

>>7230
I try and fit through the opening!

>>7231
You fit through the hole and now are in the hallway. You can see that the second floor has also been damaged. The area where the ceiling collapsed on the first floor is now the floor here with a hole.

>>7232

>>7232
I'll see if Rudolf and Battler follow, then go into 'Guest Room 2' and break the windows open.

>>7234
You go up to Guest Room #2 and try to open the door. Almost burning you hand to your dismay you find it to be locked.

While you were doing that Battler and Rudolf have gotten through the hole. Battler does the same as you but for GuestRoom #1. It is also locked.

"God dammit! Open you up!" He yells while repeatedly bashing against the door.

>>7235
"Don't worry, I have the key to the third guest room! Over here!"

I unlock 'Guest Room 3' and go inside.

>>7236
You run over to the third guestroom and stick the key into the door unlocking it. You swing the door open and step inside; almost falling to your death!

The whole floor is gone and everything that was in it has fallen into the fiery utility room that the devil himself would be proud of. You caught yourself right on the door frame.

You can still hear Battler pound on the other door however Rudolf is hobbling over to you.

>>7237
I take the copper wire from my magnets and turn it into a lockpick; I then rush over to 'Guest Room 2' and try to pick the lock!!!

>>7238
You take out the copper wire and fashion it into a lock pick.

At that moment however you are hit with an overpowering nausea. You can't help but fall to the ground as it takes over. Your hearing fades and all your ears pick up is a ringing. In the distance you can hear glass panels breaking one after another followed by a cry. The world fades grey and then back to normal repeatedly.

The world shakes more then ever before. Looking down the hallway Battler is still banging on the door and Rudolf has just past you. Both of them seem unaffected.

You hear from behind you Rudolf grunting and the sound of something moving. You ears continue to ring as the muffed sound of Rudolf's voice bellows through he hallways.

>>7239
I look over at Rudolf to see what might be 'moving'.

>>7240
The nausea is starting to subside as well as the ringing.
On the ground you turn you head to look behind you. One of the pillars has been pushed over and broken and hole large enough for a person in the right wall.

Rudolf is no where in sight.

>>7241
I stand up and try to pick the lock.

>>7242
You attempt to stand up. Slowly one knee at a time you are able to stand.

From behind you there is a loud mechanical crunching sound and a thud coming from the hole.

>>7243
I take a look at the hole to see what is making that noise.

You look in the hole to see that the wooden pillar has broken directly into GuestRoom #4.

On the bed you see Rudolf with his chest stained red.

>>7246
I run up to Rudolf.

"...Are you alright?"

>>7247
Running up to Rudolf you can now see there is a hole where the red is pouring out of. The sheets are splattered around in the circumference. The wall is no different; as blood drips down the length of it.

>>7248
I check Rudolf for a pulse.

>>7249
You feel nothing.

>>7250
Does time freeze like usual?

>>7251
(Investigation mode has not been activated)

>>7252
Can I activate it?

>>7253
Nope.

fifth thread:

>>7255