#in other news I’m addicted to tomodachi life

[amfictheatre]

‘Hooooo boy here we go,’ Isabel thought to herself as she stepped into the comms room. She tried so, so hard to keep her cool when around officer lambert, but oh my FUCKING GOD he was infuriating. Enraging. Aggravating beyond description. He fucked her right off, and even for someone who quite regularly found herself in other peoples beds, she found being around him the most utterly unpleasant experience. So of course, it was only natural that he was her second in command. How the world loved to punish her hubris.

“Sam.” Her voice came out confident and powerful but inside she simply felt exhausted. With a sharp breath, Lambert responded instantly. “Captain! Haven’t I told you before you should never interrupt me while working? Never mind, don’t answer that, we’ll be here for days,” He muttered out the last bit under his breath. “Also, for the record, you’re meant to refer to me as Officer Lambert.”

Isabel rolled her eyes, desperately clinging to her calm façade. “Sure thing, officer. Just came to give you an update on the paperwork regarding the greenhouse. I figured you’d know what to do with it.”

Lambert smirked. “Are you insinuating, captain, that you are unaware of the protocol in this situation? I thought, as the commanding officer of this ship, that you’d be competent enough to realise that any matters involving the greenhouse fall under Dr Selberg, the BIOLOGIST’s jurisdiction.”

Oh that was enough. After a day of having to sit through a four hour meeting with Hui and Fourier where the sexual tension between them was so thick you could spread it on toast (revolting) and then another hour doing maintenance in Selberg’s lab due to Fischer having broken his wrist two weeks ago (honestly being in the same room as the man made her uneasy, let alone him basically breathing down the back of her neck for an HOUR) her patience had been wearing thin, but Sam somehow knew just which buttons to press. His honey-coloured eyes bore into him, his signature look of superiority leaving a taste in her mouth like gravel mixed with piss. She began slowly, quietly. “listen here, Sam. And you better listen close, you stuck-up, self aggrandising pain in my ass, cause you might not have another chance. I am a very very busy, very very stressed out woman, and I am not in the mood to take any of your shit,” it was barely louder than a whisper, but the stress she put on the sibilants betrayed the fact that she was quite ready to throttle him until he blacked out if he made one wrong move.

“Now, Sam, you are going to take these documents. you are going to give them to selberg or whoever they need to be given to. Then you’re not going to even think of bothering me about anything, I repeat any-thing until tomorrow.”

She was honestly shocked when he replied “Of course captain. As you wish.” He averted her gaze. “I will do my best to avoid you for the next thirty-six seconds. Make that thirty five. Thirty fou-“ of course it was too good to be true. Of FUCKING COURSE. She wanted to scream until her ears were bleeding, but she had no time for this shit. “Fuck you” she turned on her heel, attempted to swallow the lump in her throat and slam the door behind her, but she took only two steps and her vision was swallowed by darkness.

__________________________________________

Sorry it’s so late!! I’ve been v tired recently with exams and all that. Anyway enough excuses here’s the next lovebert (lamlace?) chapter I’m going to get a drink I’m parched I wrote this in like less than 20 mins I have no idea what I’m doing

Xoxo amfi (idk that’s just what I’m calling myself on this blog ig it’s pronounced am-fee)

[ladecena]

THE GUARDIAN DEVIL🔖

In this world, chaos is inevitable. It was preoccupied with the fight between humans and devils that were both seeking peace and justice. Devils consume human flesh to survive and so people discern them as monsters and a threat that needs to be eliminated.

Akemi Matsui is a freshman attending Komazawa University in Tokyo. An introvert girl who loves to read books and a student that you would always find in the library. For her, it was a perfect place since she hates noise. The only girl she wanted to be with her was her best friend. Akira Tomodachi, a young lad who has a bright personality. She always smiles and cheer up her best friend. Knowing Akemi, she’s quiet but she used to be talkative whenever Akira is with her. Despite of having opposite personality, the two were capable of each other since they were friends since in primary school.

The tragedy that happened 2 years ago had a huge impact on Akemi. It was in the midst of summer night and their night class was about to start. She was in the hallway heading towards their classroom when a sudden scream of a girl caught her attention. Out of curiosity, she took a glimpse downstairs. Her eyes widened as she saw a creepy human-shape creature that had bloody red eyes with horrible fangs. Her heart started to pound and she was startled when she felt someone’s hand gripped on her wrist. “SSSSHHHHH!” She was enlightened when she found out that it was Akira. They ran upstairs to escape and hid in the library. It was a dark room and the moon was the only source of light. They locked the door and went to the corner. They manage to stay until they fall asleep. The next day, Akemi woke up but Akira was gone. She had a note on her face and so she read it.

“I got to pee, wait me here okay? I will get you some bread at canteen J -Love, Akira”

Akemi smiled at the note, realizing that she was lucky to have a caring friend. While waiting, she looked around to search for some books to read. Since she was a child, she had a strong desire to read. Every time her mother went to a bookstore she always brought her a new one. For Akemi, the smell of the new books gives her a calm and soothing scent and it became her addiction.

After several hours, her stomach started to growl. She then took a look at her watch and noticed that it was already 1:00 pm. A few minutes had passed before she decided to sneak outside and find Akira. Slowly walking down the corridor, she began to recall the creature she had seen the night before, which gave her the creeps. As she went downstairs, she noticed that the classrooms were slightly open and there she found a lot of dead bodies with splashes of blood on the floor. That scene made her depressed and wants to throw up, so she ran towards the comfort room, but the next thing she saw was the body of Akira that was soaked in her own blood. She was breathing heavily and fell to her knees. She cried in so much pain as her heart was crushed into pieces. That was the day when she lost her best friend.

Since then, Akemi was always seen alone with her books. After school, she always has a spare time to visit Akira’s grave before going home. She was alone in her dorm since she decided to move out and live independently after high school. She knew a lot of stuff at home and managed to live on her own. She also has a part-time job as a cashier in a cafeteria.

After a couple of days, Christmas day came. She then decided to gift herself a new book to read. Akemi went to a bookstore. It was big and a lot of books were on sale. She went to the limited books that were placed on the shelves. The one that caught her attention was entitled “The Devils”. She was about to pick up the book when a hand that had pale skin touched it.

“Oh sorry, do you want this book?” he asked.

“Yeah, but—” she was flustered.

“Alright…here” the guy lent the book to her and smiled.

“Are you sure?” she asked.

“Uh… Don’t worry, I might borrow it from you next time.” he then laughed.

Akemi flashed a smile to express her thanks to him.

“Hiro! Hiro Tomodachi!” he extends his hand to her.

“T-tomodachi…” she utterly said and gazed at his face.

“Why?” he asked.

“Nothing. I just remember someone… Call me Akemi”. she smiled and reached for his hand.

That was the first time she met Hiro. Every time she went to the bookstore, Akemi always saw him reading in the corner. Hiro has a mysterious aura, he always wears a hoodie and glasses. You will also notice his sleepy eyes, fine nose, red dry lips and pale skin. He has a serious face whenever he reads a book.

Hiro and Akemi became friends as they meet occasionally. They share a lot of things between them. They both love to read fantasy. That’s why it’s easy for them to have the same perception. However, part of Hiro was afraid to get attached to her. Sooner or later, their friendship might end if he tells the truth about him.

One day, Akemi woke up early to visit her best friend. Today marks the 3rd death anniversary of Akira. She then put white tulips on her grave. Reminiscing the memories of her childhood with Akira, tears started to flow on her cheeks.

“I bet Akira was crying above watching you like this.” she exclaimed, startled by Hiro’s voice.

“H-h-hiro…” she utterly said. “Why are you here?” she asked him while wiping her tears.

“It’s been a long time since I visited my sister.” he said.

“Sister?” she was shocked when she heard it.

“Yeah. Akira was my younger sister. I was his adopted brother.” he explained.

“Akira used to be cheerful, her smile has the power to bring a smile to your face too.” Akemi gazes at Hiro’s face while he was saying it. Hiro looked up at the sky before she looked at Akemi. As their eyes met, she shook her head and it made her blush. “I agree.” she responds.

Akemi lent the book she got on Christmas day to Hiro. The book is entitled The Devils and it says “These creatures are called Devils; they’re blended with people and devour humans.” Those red eyes and horrible fangs that were imprinted on the cover page is the image that may describe those creatures.

“Do you hate them? The devils?” she asked randomly while looking directly at Akira’s grave.

“Yeah… They killed my sister, remember? But you can’t blame them. They just want to survive.” he looked down.

“So you were saying that you would forgive the one who killed Akira?!” she said.

“I guess… You can’t keep that anger in you forever. If you involve your personal feelings, you might end up losing the things that are more important tha—”

Hiro was flustered when Akemi’s hand landed on his face.

“Enough. You’re just talking nonsense.” Akemi got mad at him and decided to go home.

She walked faster as she could, but Hiro followed her and when he was able to catch up, he held her wrist.

“Wait. I’ll walk you home.” since it was already late, she didn’t hesitate.

“I’ve got to tell you something,” he said as soon as they entered her dorm, but Akemi remained silent.

“I’m one of them.” Akemi widened her eyes, she then bit her finger and as it bled, she pointed it at Hiro.

Hiro looked straight at her finger and stepped forward. His eyes turned red and his fangs started to grow. She was afraid of seeing those changes. She then closes her eyes as Hiro grabs her wrist. But the next thing he did was hug her tight and so Akemi burst into tears.

“As long as you’re alive, a lot of things can happen in life. You can’t turn back time and undo things. All you can do is shoulder it all as part of yourself and keep on living.” he explained.

“Do you think the devils were right?” she mumbled.

“Who knows? We fight believing in our own justice.” he responds.

“Why didn’t you eat me then?” she asked.

“Well, that’s because I don’t eat skinny girls and cry babies.” he chuckles.

Akemi punched his chest slightly and was still crying.

“Hate me all you want, but I’ll always protect you, I promise.” he smiled and caressed her hair slowly. As he closed his eyes, he went back to his normal state.

Hiro held Akemi’s delicate shoulder and turned back to her. “Akemi…” The girl glanced at her back while wiping her tears. “I love you… I’ll watch over you forever.” Those words pierced Akemi’s heart and it made her cry. Afterwards, he leaves enveloped in happiness.

Since that day, Akemi always felt like she was being followed, but she believed that it was him. Hiro never shows up himself. Keeping the promise he made to Akemi, he became her guardian devil who always protects her and watches over within the shadows.

  - _ayashiii🌸

June 10, 2021

[dragonrajafanfiction]

Dragon Dancer IV: Breaking the Chains

I stood leaning against Zihang, looking down at Pompeii. Tears running down my face. Sorrow weighed on me. Even though I hadn’t known him, and he didn’t know me, he’d fought hard and I never would have escaped without his help. And what was I going to tell Caesar?!

My sobs started up again and Zihang nuzzled my hair. “We have to go.”

“No, I don’t want to leave him here!”

“Gunships will be arriving from Cassell any minute how to burn this place and the servitors roaming it to the ground. We have to go.” Su Enxi spoke in a sad and quiet voice.

I walked away from Zihang and removed the pistols from Pompeii’s robe. It was the least I could do for Caesar. As I did so, a small photograph fluttered to the ground. 

The picture was taken from a distance, but the shot was beautiful. On the shores of the gulf of Genoa, Caesar and Nono stared into each other’s eyes under a garland of flowers. Caesar in his pristine white suit and Nono in her sheer white dress.

Pompeii had not been invited to the wedding. I remembered. The hurt actually ran that deep. But Pompeii had to have attended anyway. I looked down at him. He really did love Caesar. And now...

A tug on my arm. “Come on.” Zihang coaxed me gently and this time I followed him.

Su Enxi jogged ahead of us. “This way. Hurry!”

We exited down a long flight of emergency stairs and down a long hallway that opened up to a delivery entrance. A large truck was waiting.

“What took you so long! They’re almost here!” Lancelot’s golden haired head stuck out of the cab of the truck. “Let’s move!”

Enxi helped me climb in as I was holding Ru’Yi and Zihang leaped in after me. The four of us, squeezed into the truck and Lancelot drove away as the first dark shadows of the helicopter gunships swooped in from the sky.

There was a hiss followed by a loud bomb and the light of the explosions turned the skies red. I turned my face into Zihang’s shoulder, letting the tears soak his jacket.

“Do we have something in here for her to eat?”

“Just a few granola bars sorry, it was all I could grab on such short notice.”

Zihang reached into the glove box and handed them to me. He never stopped holding me, stroking my hair as we rattled over the crumbling access and maintenance road that would take us to the airport.

Enxi’s phone suddenly rang and she picked up. “Speaking. Yes, we just left. We’re on our way out of Italy soon.”

My mouth was full of granola bar but I tried to speak. “Mmf, they know about Memfei!”  “Shh... don’t talk with your mouth full or you’ll choke.”

Enxi continued to speak and her voice continued to grow lower. Her expression grew grim. “Got it. Lancey, pull over right now!”

“Don’t call me, Lancey!” He snapped as he pulled  the truck over to a shadowy shoulder covered with trees.

Once we stopped, Enxi turned and spoke directly to me with a sigh. “I’m going to explain as best I can. You may not understand all of it, but just listen, okay?”

I nodded, the gravity of the situation not lost on me.

“The Secret Party is on their way to the village where Erii and Lu Mingfei are still hiding. Mai Sakatoku and Von Frings are heading with Caesar to Japan. But I need you to go and retrieve that girly Gen brother and take him to Mingfei. It’s urgent. They’re planning on using the wood block sound to drive Mingfei and Erii to the brink of madness and kill them.”

“But... the Gattusos are dead... shouldn’t everyone be listening to Caesar?” I asked.

“Caesar declared his independence from the Secret Party just now. He’s gone full rogue.” Enxi sighed. “Anyone who opposes him is going to be met with deadly force. The school board has labeled him a traitor.”

Enxi lifted one hand to her forehead. “He’s an absolute maniac right now, but frankly, that is what the Japan Branch needs to survive. At any rate, Nono will probably survive. But that won’t help us just yet.”

“If Caesar’s not the head of the School Board then who is giving the orders?”

Enxi’s lip curled up in disgust. “A representative from the Beowulf family.”

“Beowulf?” Zihang’s head lifted in recognition.

“I’ll keep it short.” Enxi said, fidgeting with her hair. “Before the Industrial Revolution, dragon slaying was an extremely dangerous thing. The Secret Party could only rely on its own blood, alchemy, and dragon slaying swords handed down from ancestors. It was a glorious, if tragic time. The members of the Secret Party wandered around in black robes and candlesticks like a bunch of cultish monks.” She pulled out a cigarette, stuck it in her mouth and went to light it, but Chu Zihang, snatched it out.

“Mind the baby.”

“Oh... right. Damn, I guess I’m a really nanny now, huh?” She said with a bitter smile before continuing.

“Anyway, Beowulf was one of the more prominent names in that era. You’ve studied the poem, so I don’t have to explain it to you. The poem ends with the king being killed by the dragon’s poison after laying eyes on its treasure. But we know the real ending.”

“They’re actually the cruelest dragon slayers. They feed a drop of dragon blood to every child that’s born.” She glanced down at Ru’Yi.

“Only one in every 100,000 are able to withstand the dragon’s poisonous blood. And every member of the Beowulf Family can! But not only that, they’ve become addicted to it. Hungry, like Servitors. Every Beowulf family member seeks dragonblood like it’s a drug. And they’ll stop and nothing until they have it.”

Enxi’s voice lowered further as if speaking the words would some how summon these people. “That’s why the Secret Party calls them Dragonblood Thirsty.”

“They showed up right after Anjou was hospitalized.  They’ve been working behind the scenes to hunt you down. They’ve watched as you’ve escaped their grasp again and again! They’re convinced that Mingfei is a Dragon King. They’re not going to listen to reason, and they’re not going to show mercy to anyone who stands in their way. Once Erii and Mingfei are under the spell of the Woodblock and become draconized, the Beowulfs will throw everything at them and feast on their blood after the battle.”

She turned out the window. “God, I want to smoke.”

She steeled herself, “So... my dear, that’s where you come in. Mingfei has to attain his full abilities before the Beowulfs arrive. There’s only one Hybrid who can withstand the woodblock sound after Herzog’s tampering and that’s that girly Gen brother.”

“Chime?” My eyes widened.

“That’s right. We have his location from the little monster girl. I need you to go there and get him to come to her village.” She scrolled through her phone and showed me the message on it with an attached image. The image was of a building tucked away behind tall trees. Its ornate tiled roof swept up at the corners where lions stood guard, mouths open.

“You have the ability to teleport there. You’re our only hope.” She pressed the phone into my hands. 

I turned and looked at Zihang. “He knows you. You can do it easily.” He said.

“What about you? What are you going to do?”

Zihang turned and looked at Lancelot who was staring out the window, not saying anything.

“I’m going to stay with Lancelot. We’ll make our way back to Chicago and try to revert EVA to her former self.”

My heart dropped. Separated again. But I took deep breath and straightened my back. I handed Ru’Yi over to him. “Okay. Leave me here on the side of the road.”

Enxi’s eyes widened as I unbuckled myself.

“Meixiu.” Zihang gripped my arm and rested his forehead against mine. For a moment, we stayed that way, saying a silent prayer in our hearts.

“Ordinary life... with you.” I whispered.

I forced myself away, I didn’t look back at Ru’Yi. Enxi got out. I got out after her. Her eyes were wide and after we got a short distance away she stopped me. “Hey. I...”

“What is it?” I asked with a touch of impatience. Wasn’t she just hurrying me out right now?

Her gaze lowered to the ground. “I have to say. I’m sorry.”

“For what?” I asked confused. “You saved us back there...”

“You’ll find out.” She rubbed the back of her neck and turned and walked away. She climbed into the truck. I listened to the gravel crunch under the tires. It motored off into the distance.

I raised my eyes to the sky and then I closed them, focusing on the image. Immediately I felt the cool shade of the trees. I took a deep breath and could smell the moisture in the air. 

I had the coordinates. I took a step forward and immediately was plunged into the dark and the cold and the nothingness of the void between spaces, spanning thousands of miles in a few seconds.

When I reemerged, the building was before my eyes. A young boy looked up at me, eyes wide. 

“Uh... Uh... K... Konnichiwa!” I chuckled, waving.

The boy ran off, screeching and then I realized I was covered in blood. “Oh my god. I didn’t even...” I looked up and several men thundered down the steps, leveling rifles at me.  I raised my hands in the air. “Tomodachi! Tomodachi! Ruri Kazama no Tomodachi!” I said, regretting the fact that I never bothered to really learn Japanese.

They seemed to get the message through and grabbed me, escorting me inside the building. I hopped on one foot to remove my shoes and tried to smile at them. The place looked run down and old on the outside, but everything inside was brand new. The tatami mats had that sweet straw odor, the red paint on the pillars carved with dragons burned bright. The walls were painted with murals of traditional Japanese art. Potted plants were in every small window.

They still held their guns to me. They were all young men and women. Their eyes were shifting around as they spoke to each other, reflecting fear and confusion, not anger.  They must not get a lot of guests here, after all Chime used the same digital Nibelungen to hide from EVAs prying eyes. I tried to smile pointing to myself. “Hao ren... I mean... Ii... uh how do you say person in Japanese...”

“You can speak English.” One of them, with russet brown hair lowered his guns.

“Ah! Thank you... thank goodness.”

A young woman came out of a back a hall. She said something in Japanese and they all reacted in cries of astonishment, shouting questions.

I just smiled. “Believe me, we’re friends.”

The young woman beckoned to me. “This way. Oh!” She looked down at my dirty stockinged feet and then hurried over to get slippers for me. They were a bit ill-fitting and flapped about as I walked.

She took me by the hand and led me down a hallway until we came to a door. She knocked twice and then opened the door.

Sitting on a small pillow in a simple shirt and slacks, his red eyes smiling from his pale face, Chime Gen looked like the least threatening person on the planet. He leaped to his feet when he saw my tattered white clothing, the blood and my haggard expression.

He sprang into action, pushing me towards the pillow and making me sit while sending rapid fire orders to the young woman. “Are you hurt? What happened?”

He’d grown out his hair, long and white. His rapid movement sent strands of it forward to veil his face, his concerned eyes.

“Chime. You’re the only person who can help us. The Secret party has found Erii and Mingfei and they’re coming over to use the woodblock against them.”

“What?!” He hissed. Immediately, the soft concerned look turned into a hard burning hatred. His face creased, the folds sent dark shadows that shattered his face like a mirror. “Who?! Herzog?!”

My heart leaped in my throat. “No.” I swallowed. “Herzog is dead. But there was another man, Bondarev, who worked with him. Herzog thought he killed him and assumed his identity as Tachibana... but he was still alive and working within the Secret Party.”

The story was confusing, even to me, but Chime’s sharp eyes took in he information. His gaze turned distant. Thoughtful.

“Turns out that he was an agent of the Gattusos. He returned to Japan again. This time under the name Shinnosuke to pursue Mingfei and I. He killed Crow.”

“Okay...” His brief fury had gone as soon as it had arrived. His expression was grim, yet calm. It astounded me that he had no further questions, grasping the situation in a single go.

The girl returned with a tray of tea and rice and vegetables. She saw us close together, saw Chime as he stroked my face reassuringly. She looked between us in stunned silence unsure what to do until Chime nodded for her to place the food and tea on the table.

“There’s no time Chime, they’ll reach Tibet soon!” I said after she had left.

He cut me off, raising his hand. “We have... defenses.” He smiled. “Even if they have an idea of where we are. The village is still remote enough that it will take time for them to get there.”

“But we shouldn’t wait. We need you to help Mingfei and Erii break the influence of the woodblock sound, like you did!”

Chime was listening, but he was still bringing me the tea. “Here.”

“Chime... there’s no time for tea!”

“I know you’re scared. You should be. We both know the consequences if Erii loses control and Mingfei... who knows?” He looked at me gravely. “But this... release... you’re seeking. That’s not something I can force. I can provide the circumstances to help. But it will be up to them to succeed.”

“What... why?”

Chime sat, one knee against his chest. “Herzog used an alchemical procedure, along with a special surgery, to divide the aspects of one’s personality. The good aspects were concentrated in one person. The bad aspects in another. Because he was looking for weapons, he concentrated all the power in the bad side.”

I tried to imagine my sweet Mingfei, my frightened Mingfei, my silly Mingfei as a bad person and couldn’t. What Chime was telling me rang true. Sure Mingfei had some annoying personality traits but he wasn’t bad. All the badness in him was concentrated in another personality.

The one with all the power.

"Mingfei... was... with Herzog?”

He nodded once. “He doesn’t remember and no one bothers to tell him.”

My mind flashed back to the boat, where Mingfei was desperate to see his ‘father’. He said his ‘father’ had called him from a mysterious phone in a bookstore. But perhaps it was someone connected to Herzog? I shuddered to think what might have happened had I not intercepted him.

“There’s something else.” Chime continued. “If we are successful in reuniting his mind and freeing him from Herzog’s woodblock, you won’t know him any more. You might think you know him, but he will be the person you should have met... not the person you know.” Chime’s stare sounded deep into my heart, like he was looking into my very soul.

I lowered the teacup. “Then... you are not the Chime... I remember?”

“No... I’m not.” He gave me a small smile, a subtle maliciousness glittered in his eyes, a quiet cunning.

“You’ll... help me right?” I asked, my heart beating faster.

“For Erii... of course. She loves Mingfei.” He paused and took a small breath. “Unfortunately... Mingfei is not real.”

My shoulders dropped and my eyes widened. “But...”

Chime gave a deep sigh. “Do you still want me to help?”

I rested my forehead in my hands, filled with despair. Enxi’s apology. Was it for this?!

“Who sent you here asking for this?” He asked.

“Her name is Enxi Su.”

“Oh...the owner Takamagahara... or... I should say... former owner.” 

“I thought she was Mingfei’s friend...” I said, my voice hoarse with emotion.

“Well... Maybe she is. But not friends with the Mingfei you know.” Chime reached for his own cup of tea.

My face grew suddenly hot. “I don’t want to lose Mingfei... I don’t want to lose him.”

Chime moved to sit next to me, wiping my face with a cloth. “You’ve lost a lot of people. We all have. This is not an easy decision. But whatever you make... I’ll support you.”

I struggled to regain control. “They’re going to turn him into a dragon lord and kill him. I can’t let them do that.”

Chime nodded once. “I suppose then... he will agree?”

“Yeah... there’s nothing he wouldn’t do for Erii.” The pain of loss assailed me to the point of physical pain. I reached up and gripped my chest, gritting my teeth. “This sucks.”

Chime let out a breathy laugh. “Mingfei has someone who cares about him. As for myself... Let’s just say things were already so complicated... my recombined personality was just one more wave in a stormy sea.” He sipped his tea. “After we do leave here, I have to ask you never to return. I want to keep this place a secret.”

“What is this place?” I asked looking around. Musical instruments leaned against the wall. There was a small laptop, headphones, microphones and bookcases filled with notebooks.

“It’s a Kabuki school. I teach the orphans from the Japan Branch. The unstable ones.” He lowered his cup to the table. “My brother enacted many reforms to re-integrate Devil Clan members back to the Hydra Clans. But so many died in the war that bad blood still remains, and many young Devil clan members have no one to go home to.”

“So this place is a haven them. And also a school. Because no matter what my brother says, unstable hybrids are simply not offered the same educational opportunities as stable ones.”

I nodded. “That’s really kind of you. Okay. I’ll keep it secret.”

“Thank you.”

“Maybe someday... Maybe someday Cassell will change and they’ll be able to study there too.”

“Hmph. Maybe... but still, unstable hybrids have issues stable ones can’t possibly understand... unless they’ve been there.”

His eyes shifted outside the door. His expression tender. He then turned to me. “Once you’re finished eating, we can go. Though, it doesn’t look like it will take you that long.”

My chopsticks were already tapping the bottom of the rice bowl.

[guerilla935]

Rune Factory 4 Special And Other Life Sims

Later this month we are getting a remaster of a life simulation game that made its debut on the 3DS on July 19th back in 2012 called Rune Factory 4. If you might be a little interested in picking it up then there are a few things you would probably like to know first. Rune Factory 4 is in a genre of video games called life simulations. A life sim is traditionally a game that may or may not include combat and centers its core gameplay around taking care of crops or animals, building relationships with other characters that can go as high as the marriage level, or harnessing trade skills like fishing and crafting. A life sim gives the player a simpler life to escape to that usually involves minimal chores that have to be completed each day which is a hugely therapeutic sensation for a lot of its players including myself. I’m going to be giving some other options in the same genre. I will not be including Harvest Moon because I have little experience with that series but it is worth noting that Marvelous, who developed those games, pioneered the life sim genre and if you are interested in the roots of the genre they make a series called Story of Seasons now that would give you a very raw farm life experience if that’s all you want to get out of it. I am also avoiding Tomodachi Life again because of experience but if you want a life sim that is a lot like The Sims then that might be up your ally as well.

Rune Factory 4

Rune Factory 4 was originally released for the Nintendo 3DS on July 19th, 2012 and its remaster, Rune Factory 4 Special is releasing on the Nintendo Switch on February 25th, 2020. Rune Factory is a fantasy spin-off series from Story of Seasons and is developed by Marvelous. What makes this series stand out from its competitors is its story and combat. Unlike most other life sims, Rune Factory hosts a large open world outside of your town and has combat dungeons with monster taming. Fighting is mandatory if you want to see the story out however I have known a lot of players who have ignored it completely and stayed in the safety of town to just make their fortune farming instead. This is also probably the most anime life sim that you can play. Rune Factory 4 has an incredible amount of dialogue, you could play for a hundred hours and still have new conversations that you have never had before. There are some light RPG elements that you have to worry about because the combat is actually a little trickier than a few other games in this genre so you are grinding your combat levels just as much as your farming and fishing and whatever else. The game is a very rare blend of action and relaxation and its the perfect game to get into the genre with. Personally I recommend this game over most other options when someone wants to play something new and different, if the anime aesthetic is doing it for you and you want to play something that challenges you to spend some time away from battle then this is the game you want out of all these. This game is the highlight of this post because out of all the games I’m about to talk about, this one has been my favorite by a large margin. The level of connection you can feel with its very hilariously anime characters transcends all the sense of community I have felt from the other life sims. The combat rewards you with more of this and the story takes and gives in a way where the stakes become the life you have inherited. If for no other reason you should play this game just to exist in its world for the hundred hours you could easily dump into it.

Stardew Valley

Stardew Valley is THE life sim right now. Developed by Eric “ConcernedApe” Berone all by himself, he launched his game February 26th of 2016 and it became an instant PC standard. This is the most popular life sim game with around 20,000 to 25,000 players playing just on the PC version every day. It has most of the things that you would want out of this type of game, its very modern and straightforward, there are some magic and monsters and spirits but they definitely don’t overpower the aesthetic gripped in reality. Most of your time is spent farming but I have ran farms that sell fish or only sell crafted goods and make just as much if not more profit. The freedom in this game is liberating and this is another game where if you want the best version of the standard harvest moon experience this is where you get off the bus. Stardew Valley started on PC but you can currently play the game on Nintendo Switch, PS4, Xbox One, PSVita, Android, iOS, Mac, and Linux. You can’t go wrong with this one I can guarantee if this is a game you end up buying then you’ll get addicted to it. The combat is fun, the fishing is hypnotizing, the farming and collecting feels rewarding, and the game doesn’t make you feel any amount of stress about any project you start on your farm.

Animal Crossing

Animal Crossing: New Leaf is a Nintendo game for the Nintendo 3DS that emphasizes on some components of the life sim that generally get overlooked. These are gathering, customization, fishing, and town maintenance. This game is really great for people who want an awesome amount of home decoration and outfit customization. In the other games on this list, you play each day for 30 minutes to an hour and you then proceed to the next day immediately when your character falls asleep. This game features a real time clock meaning that in Animal Crossing when you finish your chores for the day in game you have to go to bed in real life to advance and allow for more activities. On a personal level, I played Animal Crossing: New Leaf for a month straight, this is what killed this game for me, I don’t have the attention to check something once a day. But much like a house plant or a pet, caring for an Animal Crossing town gives people their daily dose of accomplishment. Animal Crossing: New Horizons releases on March 20th, 2020 on the Nintendo Switch so if you want to play Animal Crossing it would be well worth it to wait for that one rather than track down your old 3DS. I would’ve highlighted that one a bit more but Animal Crossing isn’t really my cup of tea and this is my opinion post so I’m not going to talk about things I don’t know a lot about.

Fantasy Life

Fantasy Life is a game developed by acclaimed RPG studio Level-5 who is known for great games like Dragon Quest VIII, Professor Layton, Ni No Kuni, Dark Cloud, and more recently the Yo Kai Watch series. Fantasy Life released on December 27th in 2012 on the Nintendo 3DS. And that is the only place where you can play this game unfortunately making it the least accessible on this list. The story in this game is very short, it only spans a few short quests and these only introduce you to certain harder to reach areas. The real bulk of the game is in doing your job. There are 12 jobs, 4 of which are combat based, 4 are crafting based, and the other 4 are gathering jobs. You can switch between any of these jobs at any time and perform their duties for money at any time. This game offers the most in terms of quests and objectives but leaves very little in the way of role playing that you might want from a life simulation. You perform your job, you make more money. Some jobs can interact with each other like you can fish and then use that in cooking, or mine and use that in blacksmith work. This game is great for the player who loves to maximize profits themselves, maybe feel like they are running a business from the ground up doing everything themselves. And the way a player attaches themselves to a grindy task is for another post but gathering a lot of materials and seeing big profit is something everyone can relate to. And not to say that its too grindy and boring, never in any other game have I been constantly engaged in trying to better my skill and equipment and try for bigger rewards. There is so much to do in Fantasy Life and can keep you entertained for an incredibly long time.

Trying Them All Anyways

I have given you a lot of different games to think about in this post and if you made it this far then you must be at least a little interested in life simulators. Or you like my content so thank you for that. I can tell you that after I played Rune Factory 4 I was hooked and even after playing all of these games I never found anything that I grew attached to as much as did with my time in the weird little anime town. I did love playing Stardew Valley but never felt like it was a town that I was attached to at all and I partially blame the casts in comparison for that. So if you do think about finding a life sim to play I hope that this helped you decide a little bit because picking a life sim is not about how much money you want to spend, you have to pick one because you only have so much time in the day to dedicate to a multi hundred hour game and you definitely get the most out of the experience by living in their world.

[asatoyuya]

Pash!Plus Interview

“If it’s Kai, it’ll surely be alright.” – The Royal Tutor Asato Yuya Interview & 『Tomodachi Iijyou × Suteki Miman』music video shooting

2019.02.12

Pash!+: Great job on shooting the music video! How did you find it after watching the finished product?

Asato: Honestly, it was pretty lonely. When I was filming the previous music video 『Prince Night～Doko ni Ita nano sa!? MY PRINCESS～』, everyone was present then. I was able to spend a lot of time speaking with everyone but this time round I filmed it alone, and even till the end I wasn’t able to meet with everyone except Dai-chan (Hirose Daisuke) who was with me at the filming…it was lonely (laughs).

Pash!+: In any case, it was quite lonely right? (LOL) How did you find the dance?

Asato: The theme for the dance this time round is “adorkable” (cute & dorky). Even though it was the same choreographer MAMORU-san who choreographed the dance for the previous music video 『Prince Night～Doko ni Ita nano sa!? MY PRINCESS～』, the choreography for 『Tomodachi Iijyou × Suteki Miman』is really cute. Furthermore, there are a lot of simple dance movements so I think everybody should be able to copy it easily!

Pash!+: The theatrical version will be released in February, and in April, the same storyline has been scheduled to be performed on stage as a musical. How did you feel when you heard the news to bring 『The Royal Tutor』back to life again?

Asato: I was waiting for the news myself, and I was fairly certain that there would be a 2nd season for the series, so when I heard the news, I was pretty calm on the contrary, only thinking "Oh, it finally came ..." (laughs).

Last year I was involved in “The Royal Tutor” for about a year from the first season of the anime to the stage adaptation, but even after the anime / musical has ended, I still met up with the other members to eat together, travel together, and also going to the shrine together to offer prayers on New Year’s Day. During that period, we were talking about wanting to do “The Royal Tutor” again, so even when the actual recording had ended, we still had many opportunities to reflect about “The Royal Tutor”.

That’s why I was genuinely happy when the movie was decided. And I have always loved the original "The Royal Tutor” work and continuously read it, so I'm looking forward to the development of this original story as a fan of this work.

Pash!+: The theme of the bromide and character voice-attached advanced tickets is “A date with sensei and the princes.” for the animated version, and “Sensei & the princes lying down”  in the real-life version respectively. We thought that this is a fairly unusual type of advance ticket, but what did you think when you heard about the concept of it? Also, how did the voice recording go?

Asato: The first thought I had was “WTF was that!”(laughs). But I do think that it is a new concept to adopt, and it is an enjoyable item to listen to once or twice. Besides that, don’t you think that this is a wonderful project that keeps the fans “excited” till February from the time the movie was announced, and with the advanced tickets, fans can have “more fun” waiting for the release of the movie in theatres. With this, you won’t be lonely till the opening of the movie in theatres!

I hope that the fans are all able to enjoy a date with certainly not only Kai, but also with Heine Sensei and the rest till the opening of the movie. I think it may be difficult to listen to everyone’s character voices. But I hope that they will be able to do it nevertheless…!

Pash!+: It’s been a while since you had to act as Kai for those advanced tickets, how did it go?

Asato: As I have been involved in "The Royal Tutor” before, I hear Ue-chan’s voice as Heine Sensei in my head while reading the original work, so hearing Da-chan’s voice as Leonhard somehow refreshed my memories of acting as Kai. Of course, my voice also brought Kai back to life so I felt like I was back doing "The Royal Tutor” again even it felt strange recording after a long period of not being involved in working on "The Royal Tutor”. It’s been a long while since our last recording session but I could still act as Kai naturally without any sense of discomfort.

Pash!+: Before the movie opens in theatres, please introduce the charm of "The Royal Tutor” in your own words.

Asato: "The Royal Tutor” is a work that contains a lot of the teachings of life. Heine's "educational guidance" is fresh to the princes, but it is surely a natural thing for us. However, what I thought was right before was corrected so to speak, I could feel myself going, “Ahh, so that’s what it means.” As I read it, I could really feel it deeply in my heart.

So I like that part of this work, and also how Heine Sensei was able to teach about virtues from the story. Besides that, the story depicts so much love such as brotherly love and the love between the teacher and his students, and the love between a father and his sons, so much that it brings you to tears when you see it, and your heart is filled with warmth.

Also, there are also many funny points in the work. Like when Leonhard said “1+1=3” , I immediately thought “Oi, are you that stupid!” (laugh). However, the story then on focuses on how to make the princes great kings, and I think it is very touching. As the princes learn, there are also times when it gets funny. This is how wonderful "The Royal Tutor” is. I’ve really tried my best to summarise it well (laughs).

Pash!+: Thank you very much for that (laughs).  What are you visualising Kai to be like while acting as him?

Asato: As I had the pleasure to act as Kai, I always wondered how Kai would be like as I read the original work and these thoughts about Kai kept increasing, and my love for him deepened. Of course, not only just Kai, I also become worried about the other brothers, thinking “What will happen to them in the future?” , for Leonhard I thought “He’s cute…”, for Bruno and Licht “Oi! Oi! Is the relationship between you two okay?”. In that sense, Kai is the stable one, and you don’t have to worry about him when you look at him. When it comes to Kai, he’ll surely be okay.

For now, I have a different worry, whether Kai will have to speak in the theatrical version. Since it is for the movie version, I will be happy to give it all my best to get him to speak (laughs).

Pash!+: Do you have any thoughts or messages that you can say about or to the members who make up the cast of "The Royal Tutor" ?

Asato: Aoi-chan (Shouta-san) is the one closest to my age so we could get along pretty well. He’s my senior when it comes to voice acting jobs, so he gives me a lot of recording advice and helped me out a lot. This time round, I think I want to be able to challenge myself using my own strengths as compared to more than a year ago, but I think that is good to have someone to rely on too.

For Adachi-chan, let’s just say everyone is addicted to Ibaraki Prefecture now (laughs). As one of the more animated persons, Adachi-chan is like a mood maker for everyone when you speak with him. When Adachi-chan is around, he helps to relax the atmosphere, be it in a good way or in a bad way (laughs). I’m happy to be able to continue to keep in touch with my brother and sensei.

For Ue-chan, he’s someone that is firm in his believes and is strong in his own opinions. It’s like Heine-Sensei really exists inside of him. Also, I think there is a lot of pressure acting in a work like "The Royal Tutor” so we could see a side of Ue-chan that we have never seen before when we are together, and a side of Ue-chan where he looked pressured. Although he is in a position where he teaches us as Heine-Sensei in the work, but I think it’ll be good if we all can support him in real life.  

Lastly is Da-chan!  Da-chan, please continue to be as cute as Leonhard!  Da-chan is really like Leonhard, but when he realises it, he immediately stops behaving like that. Kinda tsundere right? But, he is the most serious among all of us members. He’s also better at dancing and singing as compared to any of us.

However, I wonder if I am worrying too much. When I’m on stage, I say things like, "Please go to the hospital if you are overly anxious!" I am more concerned about the others than of myself. It’s also because I am not confident and I am always worried about things. No no, I’m just like that! I want to be more confident and support everyone more.

Pash!+: Do you have any last message to share with our readers?

Asato: I am really happy that the "The Royal Tutor” has been made into a movie, and I’m really happy to be able to step up to the challenge again as an actor through the anime version and stage version. I hope to show you a difference in the bonds and growth of the characters from the time of the TV anime till then.

I am also looking forward to seeing how the twins will appear in the movie version and how they will be interacting with us and Heine-sensei. I am certain that there will be some disturbances (laughs), but I think that brings a refreshing angle to " The Royal Tutor". I'm looking forward to it myself, but I hope you're looking forward to it as well. See you at the theatre!

Pash!+: Thank you very much!

© Original Interview: http://www.pashplus.jp/interview/116108/

Translated by Asato Yuya International Fanpage. 

[leggyre]

The problem with Miitopia

So I’ve been excited with Miitopia ever since they announced it alongside the other upcoming titles for the Switch and the 3DS. I love Tomodachi Life and I still play it to this date -- I have almost 100 islanders with Miis of my characters and a few more made by my friends, so, yeah, I was definitely excited when they announced a new seemingly fun game with Miis.

So, to put this together - I donwloaded the 3DS demo. It’s basically Tomodachi Life: The RPG. It kept fun the personalities and Mii characters now seem to be livelier than ever. A really fun upgrade. The soundtrack is addictive, and the visuals are really good; I’m actually impressed at how much personality this game has.

Miitopia has a really big flaw, though, one that disappoints me deeply. Sure, Nintendo has done this before, but there were only a few times it was this bad for me. I even wonder what they think they’re doing to their fans.

I played the entire demo, but, by the end of it, unfortunately...

I remembered the full game is not out yet.