The 5th Walpurgisnacht
Episode 1 - Episode 2
Episode: 1
Location: Dante's Room
Faust This seems like a good place to end it, Dante.
Dante <Mm... alright.>
I do consultations with the Sinners when there's a need to do so, but I also invite them for regular consultations as well regardless of the necessity.
Our conversations were usually pretty inane and somewhat perfunctory to the point where I feel like I'm just going down a list of things to say, asking obvious questions like "how are you doing", "are you dealing with any difficult emotions", or other queries of similar nature, which means that most of our consultations end up being idle chatter. But...
Dante <Well... so we're good here, right?>
Faust Faust believes so, yes.
Faust Your continual growth has been observed throughout the repeated consultations, and no changes for the worse or problems with your tenure as the manager have been found.
Dante <That's good... >
Faust was always the last Sinner on my consultation list, and whenever I finished consulting her, she would have me participate in her consultation in turn.
These are rather valuable opportunities for me, given that they're pretty much the only times I ever get to voice my concerns without hesitation; not to mention that they are also chances to try to brainstorm how we'd go about resolving them.
Faust It is. Do you have any further questions?
As I was listening to Faust, sitting across from her and cleaning up the documents laid out on my desk, my calendar came into view.
Dante <Oh, yeah. It's uh... it's happening pretty soon, isn't it?>
Faust ... By 'it', you are referring to...?
Dante <The Walpurgis Night. I feel like it's about time it happened again.>
It's been happening pretty frequently as of late, to the point where they're occurring once every few days. I don't know how rare this event really is, but... I'm starting to develop some sort of intuition as to how often it comes.
Faust It seems that you have found yourself a pattern of sorts, Dante.
Faust However... the basis by which the Walpurgis Nights occur is pure chance. There are no rules that dictate their frequency.
Dante <Huh, really...?>
Dante <But I just have this feeling, an intuition that it's... about to happen, you know?>
Faust Faust has come to understand that your 'feelings', Dante, may sometimes yield exceptional results that elude any sort of logical or sensible explanations.
Faust However, to find patterns in which there are none is—
Faust …….
Faust had just begun her explanation with a barely noticeable grin when she was prematurely cut off by the all-too familiar alarm and the accompanying light show of green flashes.
Dante <You were saying, Faust?>
Faust ... It is always a pleasant surprise to encounter such uncertainties.
Dante <You don't look pleased at all, though... >
Faust Let us head to the driver's seat.
... And with that, she hurriedly stormed out of my room.
Some time later...
Location: ???
Rodion This is one weird place, huh? ... Are we in some kinda prison?
Gregor The air smells dank... I think we might be underground.
Ishmael I was wondering if we'd get to visit the L Corp. headquarters again.
Dante <Hm... I'm pretty sure that's where we'll be going on our next Walpurgis Night.>
Ishmael Huh? How do you know that...?
Dante <Doesn't it seem like they're taking turns to appear? The patterns are telling me that this time, we're inside a Book of the Library... I think?>
Dante <Any thoughts, Faust?>
Faust As I have stated earlier, the basis by which the Walpurgis Nights occur is pure—
Heathcliff The hell are you blatherin' about? Quit goin' off on tangents and answer the question straight, yeah?
Outis Always, for the sake of efficiency, immediately and succinctly explicate your point when replying to your superiors' questions. Understood?
Faust ... Indeed. This event seems to take place at a period of time when the Library existed.
Faust However, it does not seem to be the case that we will be facing Abnormalities here, as we had done so in the past.
Heathcliff Huh? Then what...
Outis Wait, shh...
Outis Voices. They're close.
With everyone hushed, I could hear voices muttering from a distant hallway.
Location: The Church of Gears Meeting House
Faust ... It seems that this place... is... a place of congregation for an emergent religious group once known as The Church of Gears.
Sinclair The Church... of Gears...?
Rodion So do they worship... literal gears? Or is it more symbolic, like they're worshipping the sacred values of labor or something?
Faust ... Excuse me.
Faust gazed into the distance, blinked a few times, and continued as though she realized something.
Faust Not exactly. They consider themselves to be, as denizens of the City, nothing more than 'gears'.
Faust Their belief is that their misfortunes stem from the fact that their current lot in life has placed them where they do not belong.
Faust ... Such was Faust's input.
Is she getting all this from the 'Gesellschaft' she mentioned before?
Rodion Huhh... they don't seem too off the mark, then. Plenty of people in the City have jobs they're not fit for.
Faust Perhaps so.
Faust However, do understand that the laity of this religion, dubbed 'Meat Gears', install their objects of worship known as 'Thought Gears', gears made from humans, into their own brains. And—
Rodion O-okay, point taken. You can stop now.
Rodion Eugh, yeah. What was I even thinking? Of course they're just another bunch of crazies.
Rodya brought her hand to her mouth as though she was about to vomit, then shook her head dismissively.
Heathcliff Anyways... so what are we supposed to be doin' here?
Heathcliff Do we kill 'em?
Faust Hm...
Faust It is uncertain where the end of this 'scenario' lies.
Faust However, as your proposed course of action has often led us to solutions, it likely will not be much different this time.
Yi Sang Please, a moment... What is this 'scenario' that you have mentioned in passing?
Yeah, I caught that too...
Faust It is... only a hypothesis of sorts, at the moment. However, please recall the past manifestations of a phenomenon in which we, once the goal determined by the 'scenario' was deemed complete, were immediately returned to the Bus's corridors.
Faust And given that the beginning and the resolution are always identical, as though the scenario is resetting from cycle to cycle, it can be surmised that we are 'repeating the same scenario'.
Faust There are other rooms in the Backdoor with similar attributes. Given that they also consist of rooms that repeat certain scenarios until a certain objective is completed, it can be said that the prospect of this hypothesis turning out to be correct is not entirely out of the realm of possibility when it comes to technological limitations.
Yi Sang Mm. In recollecting, as you say, I find that there were instances in which we were invariably made to reach the same conclusion, regardless of the specifics of our methodologies in battle.
Don Quixote Ah, verily...! Hast thou not said before, young Faust, that our actions, taken within the bounds of the realities manifested by the powers of Wal-puree-gisoonaught, were indeed events of the past, yet manipulated not the history of the world wherein we do exist?
Faust Correct. That is another evidence for the hypothesis that these are but scenarios.
Sinclair So... even if we were to kill those 'worshippers', they're not actually <i>dying</i> dying, right...?
Outis Still carrying that soft heart, are you...
Sinclair B-but it just doesn't seem right. Attacking someone who can speak just like we do without really getting to know what's going on seems... you know?
Faust The intent behind your question is understood. Yes, you are correct.
Sinclair Phew...
??? Testing, testing. Do you copy?
An unfamiliar voice suddenly whispered into our ears.
Ishmael W-who is this?
Gregor The heck? Since when did we have these things in our ears...?
That's when I realized that the Sinners were all equipped with something resembling transmitters in their ears.
Stephan What the shit are you guys— It's me, Stephan! Wake up!
Stephan We gave you a subcontract because you were supposedly much better at blitzes like these. We even made quite the fuss when we were handing it over to you, remember?
Stephan Come on, let's just do our jobs and go home, okay? Or... is this another tantrum about how we're taking 60% of the reward?
Faust ... I see. This appears to be our role in this scenario.
Stephan We all know that the Church of Gears is one nutjob factory, but... don't let the ickiness get in the way of the mission.
Stephan Got that? We got this straight from Director Yujin of the Shi Association's Section 2. You have to capture their leader alive.
Stephan If you screw this job up, we can all say goodbye to that payday we've all been looking forward to. ... So I'm leaving it to you, okay?
Outis Hey. What does this 'leader' look like?
Stephan ... Holy shit, are you insane? You didn't even read the documents we sent you before going in there?
Stephan Haah... okay, I guess they did infiltrate the base without even reading the intel. Maybe they're veterans who really are just that good...
Outis I won't deny the title of a veteran.
Stephan Oh, well... You'll know the moment you lay your eyes on the leader. Veiled face, huge gears in the head, and all that.
Meursault That appears to be an appropriate amount of intelligence to identify this target.
Dante <Great. Then...>
Let's do this.
Episode: 2
Location: The Church of Gears Meeting House
Gregor Pretty unsettling, but... they didn't give us too much trouble, huh?
Rodion Yeah...? My weapon kept slipping outta my hand 'cuz I had to stop myself from throwing up.
Sinclair B-brains, and... all that blood and... chunks of flesh whenever the gears... eugh, turned and crushed the...
Yi Sang It is ill-advised to mouth what imparts you nothing but displeasure, Sinclair...
Past the sinners, who all appeared rather exhausted from certain non-fatigue related issues, I saw a shuddering figure.
Outis That one must be the... 'leader' of this Church.
Dante <Outis, remember. This is a <i>capture</i> mission.>
Outis Of course, Executive Manager.
Outis I know an exceptional technique by which I can one-hundred-percent ensure the survival of the subject, possible defense wounds notwithstanding.
Leader Please... leave us alone... stay away...!
Just as Outis had begun approaching the leader, her face contorting into a terrifying expression...
??? Ohh, wow. Thirteen of you, hm?
??? Why, those friends must have spent quite a fortune hiring you all.
Outis Ngh...!
There was a flash of light, and in that blink of an eye, someone had kicked Outis to the side and embraced the leader in their arms.
Leader Ah, could you be the person my father always talked about…?
??? Mmm... I guess.
Don Quixote F-fie, I cannot well see whom this figure is... Yet... such power has to be...
??? Sorry, friends. I do appreciate your welcome, but...
??? ... I'm going to have to leave with this friend over here instead. Make way for us, will you?
Outis Absolutely... not!
Outis aggressively strides toward the shadowy intruder. The details were fuzzy and shadowed, but I was pretty sure that this figure was holding a massive scythe.
??? What a grand welcome... Wow, I'm about to shed a tear.
??? Well, then...
The intruder begins to raise his scythe, his voice untainted by even a tinge of battle anxiety...
Outis ... Hm?!
Location: Bus’s Backdoor
... And we found ourselves back at the corridors.
Faust ... It seems that this is where this 'scenario' ends.
Outis Dammit... What indignity...!
Don Quixote Nay, young Outis; 'tis naught to be humiliated of.
Don Quixote While I am not entirely confident of this speculation, for I was availed naught else save for the silhouette... that strength, that composure...
Don Quixote F-f-f-forsooth, the sill-hou-wette of this foe... I had bore witness to this magnificence in the past in the magazines... A C-c-c-c-c-c-Color...!
Don Quixote Thou hast almost engaged in a duel with... <i>a Color Fixer!</i>
Outis …….
Ishmael Recovering your memories clearly hasn't diminished your love of Fixers one bit, huh...?
Don Quixote S-silence! 'Tis irrelevant!
Don Quixote A-anyhow! Fau— young Faust! Thou hast said as such in the past, that a repeated visit would be to our benefit as long as this Night is in effect, forsooth?! Forsooth?!
Faust Indeed.
Don Quixote W-well, should I be granted the chance to behold the countenance of this figure, it should be of no trouble for I to determine which of the illustrious Color Fixers this one is with greater certainty...!
Don Quixote May I, perchance, be granted the opportunity to approach this figure in young Outis's stead...?!
Faust ... There is no reason to deny that request, though I am of the belief that the identity of this individual will not be revealed regardless of the choices we make in this scenario.
Don Quixote WOOHOOOOO!!!
... Don Quixote's just as passionate as ever, huh.
But Faust's expression maintains its stony coldness, highlighting the contrast.
It seems like she was deep in contemplation.
So I sought to ask.
Dante <Is something on your mind, Faust?>
Faust ... If the 'scenario' hypothesis is correct, perhaps the 'conclusion' we have just seen may be a hint of sorts.
A hint...?
Faust Perhaps the overt contrivance of this conclusion implies a tacit threat or a warning, posed against us that the tale may be forced to continue regardless of our own actions.
Faust There may be an incident in the future in which LCB's journey comes to an untimely halt due to our failure to find the 'conclusion' in a Walpurgis Night event... mm. It appears the access to that information is still locked.
Dante <I'm having some trouble following your train of thought...>
Faust It is alright.
Faust When the time comes, Dante, it may be the case that your intuition will bring proof to these hypotheses.
Faust As it has today.
Dante <... Yeah.>
Faust However, it seems that verifying Don Quixote's hypothesis takes precedence for the moment.
Don Quixote Manager Esquire! Prithee, move with haste, now! Haste, I say!
Rodion Ugh... can we have a second before we— hurp.
Watching Don Quixote's enthusiasm, I decided to table the more complicated thoughts for later like I always do.
Faust is right. It might do us well for me to have some more faith in my own intuitions for now.
Previous Chapter - Back To Top - Next Chapter