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alrighty, so last time we did all the choices thatre necessary to get to the route

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idk if any others are important...i tried to see if i could cancel the others out somehow? but idk

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anyways. aoba cant sleep, so he chats it up with ren instead

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hes worried that if he had used his power properly, mizuki could have been saved

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and he wonders what will happen if tae's medicine cant be used anymore to keep the scrap powers at bay

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it gives him a bad feeling, but ren thinks that the flares in rheadaches, the medicine, the recollection of rhyme, etc, might not be related

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which is true, but aoba's still got a hunch. besides, with toue showing up...

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hes decided that he doesnt just want to stop toue; he wants to find what toue knows about him, because it feels like its important

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aoba feels a little better having talked to ren, and he nuzzles and thanks him

aniki  

yo gun get eaten

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SHUSH WE ARE NOT THERE YET

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alrighty, well, before aoba can actually get to sleep, his phone rings

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bla bla weve done this, skiiip

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he runs off by himself and stops to breathe, then sees a man approachinghim

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staggering, as if drunk

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then, WHAMMO, rhyme time

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and aoba actually does kind of well for a second, before somethng weird happens

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he decides that they need to get out of there, so he quickly defeats the guy

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it was a rhyme fight without usui, so it was a crossings murder (tsujigir) again. this seems to be a trend, huh

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ren seems to be deactivated. aoba reactivates him to check if hes ok

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a few issues, but nothing serious. aoba will look him over later just to be safe

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then the game app delivery etc.

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then the map, they meet with haga-san, etc...

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and down to the jail they go

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it me or does the panda have a different voice in every route? weird

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The cheerful roulette sends them to Midnight Blue Coast

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it seems that this is a place where the original appearance of the platinum jail shines through

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its a place that seems kind of pragmatic and simple in its design

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aoba thinks a little on how artificial it all is

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everything here is so uniform. it doesnt feel natural at all

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ren is panting kind of oddly, and says hes consuming more energy than normal, but not to an extent that its an issue

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aoba insists on taking a look at him, and checks for where they have their accommodations

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using rens navi function, they head to glitter

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he heads upstairs to his simple but stylish room so he can examine ren

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aoba cant find anything on the allmate boot system. even so, something doesnt feel quite right to ren

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he feels a little bad for not being able to defend ren better, but ren remarks that his instructions did come more quickly this time

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maybe his intuition just picked up. he cant be sure, but the atmosphere of that fight gave him a bad feeling

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suddenly ren tells him to stop

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hes not sure whats the matter is, but something feels strange

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its a major IYA DA

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since the damage wont interfere with everyday functioning, aoba figures he can leave it for the time being

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he lifts ren up, and you get a choice

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feel the need to apologize, or feel lonely?

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lets get lonely up in here

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he tries to rest his forehead on rens, but feels something against his cheek

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rens feet. strongly refusing to be touching, his little legs push aobas face away

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"What's up?"

-"No."

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this is the first time anything like this has happened. when he lets ren go, ren avoids eye contact, too

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how weird

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its not the damage from rhyme, says ren. he just feels a little discomfort. its fine

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he does apologize for confusing or worrying aoba, though

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aoba decides hell go look for allmate parts here, in case something bad is happening

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because if ren breaks, then what will he do, huh? he goes up and ruffles ren's fur

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POWAPOWAAAA~

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ren is not amused

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even though aoba is being playful, he cant shake the feeling of shock...is ren really okay? why would he behave like this?

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he goes outside to sit on the fence, watching people passing by all happy and laughing. its eerie to him

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its like something out of a movie, like it isnt natural

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this magnificence and simultaneous isolation...people dont mind it? well, anyway, hes gonna look for a parts shop

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he goes to a sort of shopping mall area and stops by a store for dog type allmates

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some meticulously groomed dog allmates are in the window, too. so he heads in

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the place is clean and expansive, with allmates and accessories (outfits!) to match

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super luxurious

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but replacement parts are surprisingly scarce. the new allmate models dont really need them, its all done through a control panel

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he also sees a poster for the commemoration event, which is in two days

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but there arent any details on it, either

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he tries to ask, but the others dont know what exactly will happen. they sure are excited for it though!

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the girl he asked seems to be like...eating her own face shes so excited and omg toue and omg its gonna be so great

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they need to find more clues

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he tries to tell ren his plans, but ren is just quietly looking at the glass cases with the allmates

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aoba sees the display monitor that shows all their specs and is like "Wow, how amazing..."

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features that he wouldnt even be able to get custom are standard on these new ones

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ren asks if he wants to try those new allmates

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aobas like noooo, i have you!

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but rens like, its just because you havent experienced that state of the art performance yet

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before aoba can rreally understand whats going on, ren hops out of his bag and ollies outie

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he loses sight of ren. why did he become so angry?

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its possible for allmates to have personalities, but theyre still programmed so they should have some semblance of

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predictability

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like beni has a spunky attitude because thats his setting. rens attitude is set to be patient

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a rapid change in temperament isnt normal

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it the result of the damage he sustained in rhyme?

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he runs into another alley, with a different atmosphere. it seems abandoned and full of trash

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the junk makes a noise unexpectedly, and aoba thinks its ren, but actually its a person

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a person, in a place like this? they could be dead

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they almost look like a doll, thin and pale

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aoba asks if theyre ok and they look up. the moment their eyes meet, it feels like static electricity in his brain

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he feels like he knows this person from somewhere...

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the eyes above all give him a strange feeling

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they didnt just happen upon one another or pass each other in the streets...its more than that

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but suddenly a shock jolts through him and his thoughts are cut off

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the person is gone now

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however, ren does come running up to him. aoba wonders where hed run off to

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but ren wasnt actually running anywhere in particular

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he just says he had a "feeling". aobas relieved but confused too

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then theres a choice. you can suspect that theres a glitch, or strongly worry about ren

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idk how theyre different but ill go with the second one

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ren says he still feels some discomfort, but it isnt something aoba should worry about

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aobas like no, i will worry. do you really not realize how weird youre acting now?

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aoba wants to look over him more thoroughly, but ren insists its ok; his normal functioning isnt impeded

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aoba asks for ren not to run away again, because hell find a way to fix him up

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ren is still being difficult

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hes like REN >:T

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so ren finally says hell be careful

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he tries to nudge his forehead to rens, but stops, remembering last time

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he wants to fix him asap

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then he asks if ren saw the person sitting there

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but ren doesnt recall seeing anything at all

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"Did something happen?"

-"Mn--no. Probably my imagination."

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he cant think of it too much. ren is his first priority. aaaand they head back to glitter

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in glitter, he tries to use his coil to get some info on toue, but its all resident district stuff. the censorship remains

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the rest is stuff praising toue and the jail. he also cant reach anyone in the resident district

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hes worried about the people there, and about ren. maybe he can stop toue quick enough to be able to take him back to

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the resident district for repairs, before the symptoms get too bad

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he decides to try and rest even though he isnt sleepy

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he has that same dream again, where he cant move

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trapped, voiceless

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his upper arm trembles

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where it was eaten. he feels fear. this time, its a foot

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the left leg below the knee, devoured

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he needs to get out of here. he needs to get out of here quickly

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he wakes up the next morning, though its still nighttime out in the jail. he wonders if this could be bad for the body in the long term

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he feels he had a terrible dream, though he cant remember of what exactly

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he turns on the tv and sees reports of the commemoration event. huge crowds are flocking to the main street

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parades, happy music...its all pretty amazing

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at 1PM, toue will address them from the oval tower

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aoba gets mad thinking of all the misery toue's caused. but theres still time

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theyll stop toue--but aoba is still concerned about ren too

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when they head out, everyones partying, theres music and dancers in costumes

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at the foot of the tower, the crowd is almost impenetrable

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people are acting reaaally exuberant, and one guy jostles aoba a bt

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everyones smiling and hugging and cheering. aobas swept up in the crowd

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the monitors in the plaza go to snow all of a sudden and everyone cheers

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1PM. its about to start

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someone comes out to the balcony, and is projected on the screen as well

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toue, surrounded by three other people

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when toue speaks, everyone goes quiet

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"Ladies and gentlemen. Thank you for coming here to this special commemoration event in the Platinum Jail."

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"We have reached the 10th anniversary of the Platinum Jail's opening. Time certainly speeds by."

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"Indeed. Time does not stop. Therefore, I would like for you to spend your limited time here in happiness."

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"But then, what is happiness? Long have I thought about this. Happiness is not something easily obtained."

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"Laughing from the bottom of one's heart. To obtain peace and be at ease in any situation."

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"If these are granted to all people, conflict cannot be born."

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"It is said that sadness and anger foster growth. A reasonable argument. But your daily lives give you plenty of anger and sadness."

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"Therefore, here you can forget your daily lives, and put yourselves in a state of bliss."

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"And I wish for this place to be your second home. I always hope for this."

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everyone is like YEAH TOUE

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then toue speaks again. hes almost like the head of a cult

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the event will span two days, and tomorrow is the main event

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he wants to show them all his new happiness before then, and beckons a person over

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"His name is Sei. He is like a son to me. Without him, this day would not be here. So, to me, he is an important person."

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"This particular event is intended to introduce him to all of you."

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"He brings me hope. He is a messenger who will deliver happiness into your hearts. Please give him your blessing as well."

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sei looks up and his face is projected onto the monitor. aoba recognizes him as the guy he saw yesterday

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he feels that spark again, and he cant shake sei's eyes from his thoughts. its as if sei is inside his mind

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deep inside him...searching

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a strong headache snaps him back to reality

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everyones eyes are fixed on the screens, as if theyre possessed

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toue says he doesnt want just the platinum jail to enjoys this, but the whole island

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the monitors show pictures of the old resident district

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toue explains that despite initial resentment, the islanders are beginning to fall into compliance and compromise

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he sees the old residents looking at the event as well, through their TV and monitors

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aoba doesnt believe that people are dropping their resentment for toue

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just recently, visitors to heibon discussed how much they hated toue and the jail

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the people look strange. their eyes are distant, like mizuki's

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his headache kicks up more

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ren doesnt feel well either. maybe hes being manipulated

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or the islanders are? lol japanese

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anyway, aoba worry about his grandma

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about koujaku, noiz, mink, clear...haga-san, yoshie-san, even the little brat

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s

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"The time will soon come when they too set foot in this paradise. When that happens, please embrace them with open arms."

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everyone cheers, unaware that theyre being manipulated. aoba thinks that even without that, they might still blindly follow toue

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because its easier to not think and be cut off from pain, grief, and violence

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its not happiness. but these guys accept it blindly and trust toue

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a guy cheers for them and for toue, and aoba grabs his collar and tell him to shut up

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aoba is about to beat the hell out of him, but then ren tells him to settle down

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hes so upset. with the platinum jail, with toue, and with himself for being so powerless

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ren tries to calm him down, saying its a bad habit that aoba loses his cool like this

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and aoba suddenly hits ren. hes not sure why. in fact hes stunned

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in the awkard air, his coil rings. its haga-san! he somehow reached him

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hes disguising his line as coming from the mainland (i bet noiz helped out here hahaha)

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apparently, loud music flowed into the old resident district and everyone became entranced

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everyone seems to be ok. tae knew what was happening and got everyone to cover their ears just in time

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theres still time, though. so haga-san warns aoba not to be brash

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but the call gets dropped soon after, and aoba cant reach him again

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meanwhile, toue tells everyone to enjoy the festivities tonight and goes back inside with sei

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aobas head is killing him, and ren says they should go back to glitter

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aoba feels heavy and disconnected from reality, but he returns anyway. rens right. he needs to settle down

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he takes his headache meds and sits in the living room with ren

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trying to figure his thoughts out...it seems the music must be enthralling people

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he just needs to have faith that everyones ok. he will have to reach toue by tomorrow

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when he closes his eyes, he sees an afterimage of sei

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those eyes...quiet and still, like the calm sea.

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aoba doesnt know what is up with him, but it must be something serious

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just the way everyone acted is enough to give him an ominous feeling

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they need to go to the tower tomorrow. but how? busting through the front is impossible

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maybe hell have to use his power. ren warns that its dangerous

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but there is no other way. still, he worries about irreparable damage it could cause

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but hes more afraid of losing his loved ones than he is of using his power. ren asks what about the others--what if aoba gets hurt

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then a choice

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answer ren or pet ren

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lets answer him

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"Still...if everyone else survives." and ren comes over to him

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ren sits in his knee in silence. aoba knows hes worried. since his parents' whereabouts are unknown, aoba considers ren to be family

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he met lotus..."Ren, around when did we first meet?"

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"You mean when Aoba purchased me?"

"yeah."

"going from the point that I registered your face, it would be about ten years"

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(DUN DUN DUUUUUN)

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when he first held and snuggled ren, he was really struck by how fluffy he was!

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now, he feels a lot bigger. ren says thats just cause aoba grew up

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aoba says he considers him like a fluffy brother! hes the aniki and ren is the otouto ;w;

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ren is like i dont think so

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but aobas just joking around

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he begins to feel tired, but first he checks his coil and sends an email home

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he knows it probably wont reach them. but its like a little prayer

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he prays that everyone is safe

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i think ill stop there for tonight!