#whats limbus what did I miss

[lamentmournanddespair]

Those two names get a response from Vergilius that Sinclair hoped he wouldn't have to see again, after what happened to Don Quixote. Red eyes blow wide open, something raw and furious stirring in the depths like a monster rising from the sea. It's not even a second later that Vergilius has stood up, wrenched Dante's body from Faust's hold, and slammed them against one of the walls of Mephistopheles (much to Charon's monotone complaint). The atmosphere practically thickens as he leans in, a hand wrapped around their throat, to snarl at the unwanted passenger. "You."

big big thank-you to @beeholyshit for this fantastic comm, it worked out fabulously! please consider commissioning them if you can!

[mmmmulbery]

I barely had time tot hink abt him today anyways ego chibs doodles from stream

[jakeun-kangajii]

Has anyone noticed the updated Limbus Company Roadmap? Because I am seeing no one talking about THE MAGIC HELLBUS.

[agender-witchery]

On Project Moon

Hey, this is gonna be long, I'm putting most of it under the cut. This post is about the recent firing of VellMori from Project Moon, I know that it warrants some tags for triggers, but I have no idea what's commonly used, so if I miss something, please tell me.

Additionally, I have written this up in a way that if it escapes the target audience of Project Moon fans, it can still be understood, so with that in mind, there will be Library of Ruina spoilers.

The tl;dr for those who don't wanna read the full thing is that Project Moon was put in a very bad position with some violent extremists targeting them and that I'm not happy about any of what happened.

So, for those unaware, Project Moon has fired VellMori, the CG artist for Limbus Company. Now, a not inaccurate statement that can be made from this is "Project Moon fired a woman for being a feminist" but this is... somewhat reductive. Let's immediately get out of the way that VellMori did absolutely nothing wrong. Some people have said she is a TERF. I've seen no evidence of this. Some people have said she wished death on all men. I've seen no evidence of this.

What I HAVE seen is that VellMori thinks sexual abuse is bad. Now, why would this lead to a firing? The short answer is that a bunch of violent incels, one of which was literally dressed as a clown, came knocking at their office doors.

See, Limbus Company has a "beach" event coming up. In this event, we are getting a water themed outfit for two of the characters, one male and one female. For Sinclair, the guy, he has been given an EXTREMELY slutty mechanic's outfit. For Ishmael, the woman, she has been given a very skintight wet suit outfit. Now, I wanna take care to note that VellMori is the CG artist - she had no hand in these designs, a man made them. I would also like to mention that both outfit designs are amazing, and I will be including them at the end of this post for reference.

Now, upon revealing the wet suit design for Ishmael, a bunch of whiny incels on what is basically Korean 4chan got upset that Ishmael, instead of being in a bikini as is usual for gacha games, was wearing a wet suit. Nevermind that the designs in Limbus Company have always been conservative and that the Sinclair design is the most skin we've ever seen and it's just an open shirt. Again, the wet suit is still super revealing, it's skin tight and this is literally the first design of her that doesn't make her look flat chested. They're not rioting over the lack of sex appeal, they're specifically mad that it's not a bikini.

The incels come to the conclusion that the lack of any skin being shown on Ishmael's outfit is a result of evil feminism. No, I'm not exaggerating. They initially begin harassing the artist who is actually responsible for drawing the outfits, but upon learning that he is a man, set their sights on VellMori because she's a woman, and being an artist is good enough I guess. What they do from here is they start digging and digging and digging on VellMori's twitter, making use of archived pages because many of the "offensive" tweets had been deleted.

I'd like to take a moment to point out that VellMori never actually tweeted anything out here - it was all retweets from a 4-6 year old archive, and retweets that have been long deleted. These retweets contain such transgressive statements as "I'm sick of misogyny" and "If being against patriarchy makes me antisocial, then so be it" and just... mirroring back to men what those men were saying to women. Some people would like to have you think she was calling for death to all men. She wasn't. She ALSO retweeted all this stuff while she was a teenager and well before she worked for Project Moon.

Nonetheless, the incels had decided that feminism was the reason Ishmael had a wet suit and not a bikini and they had found a feminist working for Project Moon. It is at this point that we must take a brief detour and talk about Library of Ruina, Project Moon's previous game.

See, in Library of Ruina, one of the protagonists, Angela, has this whole arc about escaping her abuser and becoming a human. Yes, she is literally a robot, but Project Moon isn't exactly a stranger to symbolism in their stories and a feminist reading of Angela is ridiculously easy. The main antagonist in Library of Ruina is Argalia, the Blue Reverberation, and his crew is called the Reverberation Ensemble. Every member of the Reverberation Ensemble is a violent lunatic who each want to reinforce the status quo in their own unique shitty way. In addition to this, typically in order to reach the titular Library, you would need to be invited. The Reverb Ensemble are the "uninvited guests", the ones who managed to reach the Library and knock down the door without an invite.

Why am I talking about this? Well, the incels decided to start calling themselves the Reverb Ensemble, and referring to each other using names of the Reverb Ensemble members such as Pluto, Elena, and Oswald. Having taken on the moniker of the uninvited guests, they then showed up to Project Moon's office to protest. Over the lack of a bikini. Now, remember how I mentioned someone was dressed up as a clown? One of the Reverb Ensemble members, Oswald, is a clown with an extremely tenuous grip on reality. So much so, that his ideal world is one in which there is no meaning whatsoever. That is the character they chose to dress up as. This is either a case of extreme self awareness or extreme self unawareness.

Eventually, the incels were let into the office possibly as a form of damage mitigation to prevent the crowd of protestors from getting any bigger. This was a questionable decision, but they had a group of violent incels at their doorstep either way, and I don't exactly have full details on this. Regardless, Project Moon had on their hands a group of violent protesting incels, who they felt compelled to let into the building, and who had demands including the firing of their feminist employee. (7/28 update: a translation of the transcript posted to DCInside has surfaced. Please check the reblogs for it. Project Moon was verifiably threatened.)

So while "Project Moon fired a woman for being a feminist" isn't inaccurate it also isn't the full picture. More appropriately, it'd be "Project Moon fired a woman because a group of violent incels who weren't satisfied with a form fitting wet suit instead of a bikini showed up to their office demanding that an artist who did not make the wet suit design be fired because she retweeted some feminist stuff 5 years ago while she was a teenager".

I'm not happy with this. None of this is good. People are allowed to be feminists, and Project Moon stories have always presented progressive ideas to anyone with half a brain to do some basic literary analysis. I can understand why they would cave to the demands of people who were threatening them and showed up to their actual place of work, but at the same time, that's someone's livelihood gone and proof that in the future, the same sorts of people can use the same sorts of tactics to bully Project Moon into doing whatever they want. All of this sucks.

For those who would like to see the retweets in question alongside translations: https://twitter.com/danghwangs/status/1683884236888223744

And for people who would like reference as to what the artworks these incels were up in arms about, Ishmael in the wet suit and Sinclair in the mechanic's outfit.

[calmariah]

Using Canto VII to Predict Dante's Identity (Continued)

I love a good sequel.

This post is the second half of a whole! Please view the first half of my theory here!

Even before the release of Part 3, my mind has been racing with evidence and possibilities I didn't list in my first post on this topic.

I'm excited to say that Part 3 has not deconfirmed any part of my theory-- and in fact has only strengthened it!

Hark, for my resolve is truer than any theorist before me! Adventure with me, if thou darest...

(Full story spoilers for Canto VII Part 3 below the cut.)

(EXTREMELY long post ahead.)

(You have been warned.)

SECTION 0: HERE WE GO AGAIN

The following post will assume you have both read my original theory and have played or otherwise experienced Canto VII's story content to its completion. If you haven't, you will be lost-- and worse, horrifically spoiled!

The Dream Ending is a brilliant canto that deserves your undivided, unspoiled attention.

That said, we're actually going to put Part 3 out of mind for a moment.

There's some aspects of the previous post I'd like to expand on first, as there are things I missed within Part 1 and 2 itself.

It's good to establish a solid base of information before we dive into the tasty new stuff Part 3 has shown us. If you need to refresh yourself on my thoughts regarding Part 1 and 2, this would be a good time to do so.

SECTION 1: WHAT DID I MISS?

You're finally awake! That Neutral clash looked pretty rough.

Huh?

Sancho boss fight? Binah Sapling of Light ability!? What are you talking about?

It's the 17th of October! Come on, Part 2 just released. Let's go fight Dulcinea!

SECTION 1.1: PRONOUNS

In my original post, I stated-- with no small amount of unearned authority-- that Bari was only ever referred to with they/them pronouns. This was incorrect, as I edited my post to add later.

At the time, it was fairly easy to miss... The 7-35 cutscene changed in the October 24th update. Before then, the only mention of Bari's gender in 7-35 was in this brief bit of dialogue by Sancho.

SANCHO: Will she be coming today? Again?

SANCHO: It is high time you put an end to this rivalry, isn't it? Or, hm. I fear that time is already long past.

...I must've replayed that cutscene no less than eight times while writing that post. I cannot BELIEVE this slipped through the cracks.

Well! I hope that doesn't strain my credulity going forward too much.

I do not believe this disproves that Bari could be Dante, though it does kneecap what I perceived as a shared trait of obscured gender identity.

Onwards and out, though.

Here's some things I simply didn't think to mention.

SECTION 1.2: RED, WHITE, BLACK, PALE

This is a weak bit of 'evidence,' but something I felt the need to point out regardless.

My assertion that Bari was seeking the river of human consciousness was pretty much just conjecture when I made my previous post. There admittedly wasn't very much linking her to the Seed of Light project that I could see.

For your consideration, though...

In Part 2's paper fight, we've given the opportunity to observe Bari's fighting style and capabilities though in a stylized medium.

We can see many of her Skills and their names, such as Dragon of the Spring, Lotus in Autumn, and Faint Trace.

What really interests me however, are these two.

Red Arwe and Blak Arwe.

The only place we have ever seen Red and Black damage in use are in Lobotomy Corporation.

Note I don't say the game, though. Black damage has appeared in Limbus Company, through the Fourth Walpurgisnacht's combat event. Let me show you.

The Violet Ordeal foes encountered past Mephistopheles' Backdoor also use Envy skills that inflict Mental Fracture.

During this event, the Sinners are somehow someway inside of Lobotomy Corporation HQ. So, it counts.

In Lobotomy Corporation-- the game this time-- Violet Ordeal related entities were one of many sources of Black damage, and it was in fact the only damage type Violet Dawn entities were capable of directly inflicting.

It's safe to say, yes, Blak Arwe is supposed to remind us of Black damage. Thus, Red Arwe is also Red damage.

According to Faust in this same Walpurgisnacht event, Red White Black and Pale damage are terms invented by Lobotomy Corporation itself.

Bari's skills including the terminology is, forgive the term, an abnormality.

I'm not necessarily suggesting that... her bow is somehow extracted E.G.O equipment, or something. It looks more like a fancy workshop weapon. I truthfully don't know how or why she can deal Red and Black damage, but it constructs a solid thematic link between Bari and the Seed of Light project-- and thus the river of human consciousness.

I just felt that particular assertion needed a bit more solid evidence.

Red, White, Black and Pale damage were actually intended to be in Library of Ruina, but this was scrapped. Presumably, guests from outside the Library would also be able to inflict RWBP damage, thus nullifying it as a concept solely associated with Lobotomy Corporation.

...But, you know. It was scrapped, so I don't need to care?

SECTION 1.3: LIBRARY OF RUINA BETA IMAGES

Hey, speaking of things that got scrapped from Library of Ruina! Didn't I just say cut content wasn't going to be considered?

I did, to be fair. But this is more of a meta comment on Bari's role in the Project Moon universe.

I'm not very comfortable showing too many images from the Library of Ruina artbook, because it is a paid product-- and a very good one at that.

The thought of maybe being right on the internet is about to override my moral code for a moment though, so check it out.

Originally, Library of Ruina was going to have a much different combat system. It involved little paper doll looking characters running at each other simultaneously to clash blades.

In motion, it might've looked quite similar to Limbus Company's unfocused encounters, actually.

The artstyle was a lot more simple back in the day, too. Check out these early combat sprites.

We have Myo and Kali, two important characters who were in Lobotomy Corporation. Makes perfect sense their sprites would get made first.

But bizarrely, we also have Bari.

(And... Esther from the Index for some reason? Don't worry about him)

Bari's final presence in Library of Ruina is fairly miniscule. She only appears for a brief cutscene during the optional Librarian of Death ending. And yet, Project Moon had plans for her so far in advance that, seemingly, her sprites for this battle system were made before ROLAND'S.

In other early screenshots, we can see that her sprite saw use as a placeholder asset for certain UI elements. I can't read Korean, so I don't know what this menu is saying, but I imagine she might've been a default Assistant Librarian.

Not an honour to be taken lightly, I assure you. The original dummy sprite, predating even the legendary Zwei fixer herself...

(And you'll get that joke if you buy the artbook!)

I'm not suggesting that there's some kind of deeplore with Bari and the Library by the way. I mean, beyond the existing deeplore with Bari and the Library. I'm not THAT far off the deep end this early into the post.

What I am suggesting is that Bari has heavy significance to the developers. The kind of significance the protagonist of their third game might share. I just don't think it's 'punching above her weight' so to speak to say she could be Dante.

Or, you know, perhaps plans changed. But no matter what, Bari was asserted as a very important character in this canto. It's good to track her development history when considering theories like this.

SECTION 1.4: SOMETHING OF A BIGWIG

We've talked about Lobotomy Corporation and Library of Ruina so far. I GUESS we can talk about Limbus Company now. If you twist my arm.

We know very little about Dante's pre-clock life, but not nothing.

During 0-2, Introductions, Rodion says this after introducing herself to Dante.

RODION: I think there's a... well, good reason you became our manager.

RODION: I'm sure. You used to be a big deal back in the Nest, right? When your old habits start coming back, we'll be that much closer to rolling in the dough...

During 3-7, Siegfried, Vergilius says this while Siegfried is massacring the Sinners.

VERGILIUS: About time they learned what happens if they kick up a ruckus in a Nest thinking they can get away with it.

VERGILIUS: ...Dante, you may not remember it at the moment, but at one point you used to be something of a bigwig... so to speak.

DANTE: I... I was?

DANTE (NARRATION): I just couldn't picture it.

To be honest, it's difficult to imagine Bari being some kind of money-making high roller. She seems like a more self-effacing person than that.

But then, the Sinners don't know a lot about Dante's past either. It's possible Rodion heard that her new manager used to be a high grade Fixer in some nebulous Nest and got her hopes up.

Bari seemed to have incredibly impressive equipment, so she would've needed money to procure and maintain it somehow. If a requirement for being a Dante candidate is "being rich" I think Bari clears the bar.

I'm not yet comfortable saying she could've been a Colour, but from what we've seen she certainly could've been a Grade 2 or 1 Fixer. That's bigwig material.

SECTION 1.5: FAMILY

If you asked me to identify a singular theme that unites the Sinners, I would tell you one word.

Family.

Almost all of them have family related troubles in their past.

Don Quixote's familial strife with the Bloodfiends of La Manchaland.

Ryōshū's constant grumbling whenever someone so much as says the word family in earshot.

Meursault's mother, who according to his character promo he murdered.

Hong Lu, just like, as a concept.

Heathcliff, abandoned by his birth parents and hated by his adoptive family in Wuthering Heights.

Sinclair, whose family was butchered by Kromer.

Outis, presumably trying to get home to a Penelope and/or Telemachus left behind.

And Gregor's mother is the closest thing we currently have to a primary antagonist.

The only four Sinners who I cannot find this theme of family within are Yi Sang, Faust, Ishmael, and Rodion.

But even three of those I can explain readily enough.

Yi Sang's League of Nine was much like a family. As was Sonya's Yurodiviye and Ahab's Pequod crew, dysfunctional as they all ended up being.

Every Sinner has some kind of unit-- usually familial, but not always-- that they were either violently removed from, or left intentionally.

...Faust remains the exception, but then, that is much like her. Even then, her literary counterpart's strife with Gretchen's brother and the death of Faust and Gretchen's child may qualify her in the future.

I don't see why it would stop at just twelve of the thirteen Sinners. I assert that, to continue this theme, familial issues are required in a pre-amnesia Dante candidate.

Lucky for me, Bari fits that mould perfectly.

Nothing in Canto 7 outwardly suggests that Bari has any strife with her family, but her mythological counterpart absolutely does.

Princess Bari's exile from her family and her commitment to saving them regardless is the crux of her story. Her abandonment is so important to her character that she's named for it. Bari-degi. Abandoned child.

As of recently, the Sinners of LCB have felt a lot more comfortable travelling alongside each other.

When entering the Haunted: Bloody Mary attraction in La Manchaland, they make the family comparison for me.

SINCLAIR: It's been so long since I visited one of these haunted mansions...

SINCLAIR: The last time I was at a place like this, I thought when the next time came I'd be here with my family again. Not... all on my own like this.

RODION: All on your own? C'mon, kiddo. You're here with your coworkers~

HEATHCLIFF: Ahm. Coworkers who are... kinda like family, innit?

RYŌSHŪ: ...

Even Vergilius is starting to feel the love.

And speaking of Vergilius, he and Charon also have a busload of familial problems to contribute to the theme.

Anyone who's read Leviathan knows about the Tomerry incident. Lapis was a child in the care of Vergilius' old orphanage.

I can't prove logically why Bari would be Dante.

But I think what I can do is suggest that Bari being Dante would be narratively and emotionally fulfilling. And this is one of the ways it would be. It would continue the theme of lost family on Mephistopheles, which makes the growing found family among them all the sweeter.

SECTION 2: OCTOBER 24TH

Oh hey, Part 3 just released. From now on, we're knee-deep in spoiler territory. Last call.

So, my absolute most primeval fear going into Part 3 was that Bari was going to physically appear in person. Because if anything was going to obliterate my theory in one fell blow, it would be her having a conversation with Dante.

Good news for me, though. Bari only appeared in flashbacks, and never in the present moment.

But it honestly, truly begs the question, why NOT? Part 3 has only hammered down harder how much Bari has written herself into Sancho's soul. (Just look at her attack animations, seriously.)

The scene after Sancho's boss fight where we find out Sancho post-Lethe has been unknowingly swapping letters with Bari proves that their bond was mutual.

So, why is it that when La Manchaland screams open in P Corp, Bari doesn't investigate at all?

(And, no, this isn't her. Bari is not mentioned to be physically present after this. This is just a vision of Bari made through Sancho, since Dante and co. just proved a second ago that they're able to manipulate Quixote's Fathoms of Ego.)

Bari is alive. Bari didn't show up for La Manchaland. Even if you don't think she's Dante, that's weird! She must be somehow predisposed or unaware that La Manchaland had opened.

And if you don't think she's Dante, I'm glad that you're still entertaining my thoughts. Come with me just a little further. Now that we're in Part 3, we're going to address one last glaring omission from my first post.

SECTION 3: TEAM DEMIAN

"I'll now wait for the sun to set into the gloaming before nightfall."

We're dealing with a character clad completely in blue with mysterious sparkly blue powers.

...It's a miracle this is the first time I've mentioned Demian's name.

Indeed, even in Parts 1 and 2 there was evidence that Demian and Bari had some kind of association.

Sansón's dialogue icon has this bisexual gradient background that thus far had only been used for Demian and Rim.

Combine that with his blue colour scheme, immense power and general freakery, and yeah we're dealing with a member of Demian's weird little tea party.

Thus forth, I'll be referring to Demian's group as "Team Demian."

Sansón says this when giving Sinclair Bari's role in his stageplay.

SANSÓN: Well, then. We have another actor present here to play this character. A little green, a little incomplete, but still with the sign of great potential.

SANSÓN: I give this role of the Knight of the White Moon to you.

SINCLAIR: ...?

SINCLAIR: M-me?

DANTE (NARRATION): Sinclair held his forehead for a moment, then looked at his changed appearance in confusion.

Suggesting that the Sign made Sinclair a good fit for the Knight of the White Moon's role strongly implies that it was an attribute they shared.

That Sansón knew this-- and otherwise knew Bari well enough to write her into his stageplay-- indicates a connection between Bari and Sansón, and thus Bari and Team Demian.

Regarding Bari and the Sign...

(I had to fight Sancho five separate times in the making of this post. Project Moon, PLEASE make mid-battle cutscenes viewable in the Theater.)

Part 3 confirmed she had it.

It's my understanding that to see the Sign on others, you need to be a bearer of it yourself.

That Dante has seen Sinclair's Sign now and in the past, as well as Demian's, it means that they themself must be a Signbearer.

This is nothing new. But combined with the confirmation that Bari too was a Signbearer, it's yet another attribute they share.

In 2-19...

SONYA: Rodya, this will probably elude you, but you don't have the mark.

SONYA: I came here hoping you'd possess it, but I'm seeing it on some of your friends instead.

Being a Signbearer is apparently common enough that Sinners other than Sinclair and Dante also have it (assuming Sonya's definition of 'some' is more than two), but it's absolutely something to consider.

I had originally assumed that Demian appearing before Dante so often was solely because they both had the Sign. But then, why single out Dante?

There are other Sinners in LCB who have the Sign. But Demian has taken such a firm interest in Dante specifically.

In the Canto IV post-credits scene...

DEMIAN: Countless stars are in the sky. But they aren't all the same. If someone else saw them, they might have been nothing more than dim lumps of light.

DEMIAN: But someone who found the twinkle staggeringly charming took one of the stars...

DEMIAN: And hung it on a high enough place for everyone to see, expelling the dark.

DEMIAN: All the people would rejoice.

DEMIAN: Now, here's a question.

DEMIAN: What will become of me who has been robbed by me, and the star that's now forced to illuminate the dark forevermore?

DANTE: I...

DEMIAN: The mirror your friends use isn't any different. That is such a cruel piece of technology.

DEMIAN: Take your time with the answer. Just draw me a sheep later.

DEMIAN: You may not remember it right now... but you promised to.

Overall, it's actually extremely possible that Bari used to be a member of Team Demian.

She has the Sign, Sansón knew her, she's dressed in all blue, and she has some kind of mysterious blue gate power.

I would be shocked if she didn't have at least something to do with Demian. It might explain why Demian can understand what Dante says, if they have a past like this.

I'll admit upfront that she doesn't have the bisexual gradient background, though. Maybe in all the instances we see her talk, she hadn't yet joined Team Demian?

Or maybe the background just isn't as important as I've been thinking it is.

That kind of flippant speculation is going to serve us well going forward!! Because it's time for...

SECTION 4: THE LIGHTNING ROUND

What!? We've barely gotten started!

Don't worry, and don't go anywhere! The lightning round is NOT the end this time!

I've saving my juiciest evidence for last! For now, let's take a quick jog around the minor stuff Part 3 has yielded us!

It's my hope that these little pieces of evidence, while alone uncompelling, will paint a strong picture of the ties between Dante and Bari yada yada I've said this before let's go play Canto VI!

SECTION 4.1: FLOWERS

That's not a typo, I did mean VI. In the post-credits scene of Canto VI, Demian appears yet again. Because we're not done with that little weirdo.

(I'm not including this in the Demian section above because the purpose of that was to establish a logical connection between Dante, Bari and Demian. The lightning round's about tiny little themes!)

DEMIAN: Do you like flowers too, Dante?

DANTE: Um...

DANTE: I think I've come to like them.

DEMIAN: Imagine that there was a single rose you've cared for a long time.

DEMIAN: Your room was always brimming from the sweet aroma of that flower.

DEMIAN: But one day, you leave the rose behind to go on a long, long journey.

DEMIAN: In your journey, you come across a large garden... and there, you see thousands of the very same rose you once you [sic] cared for. That sight... brings you to tears, and you drop to your knees.

DEMIAN: ...Why do you suppose that is?

DANTE: ......

DANTE (NARRATION): Demian... he's appeared before me in the past. He would always leave me with these cryptic riddles.

DANTE (NARRATION): But I'm starting to understand what his riddles are supposed to represent.

DANTE: Because I've finally come to understand.

DANTE: That the one I truly loved was the rose I'd left behind.

DEMIAN: Correct.

Demian's cryptic icebreaker about Dante going on a journey that ends in finding a garden full of flowers reminds me of Bari quite a lot.

He isn't talking about Bari's journey specifically-- much more likely this, like the stars before, refers to an individual and all of their Mirror World Identities.

Still, Bari is a self-described flower hunter. I feel it'd be reckless to not at least note this down. That's what the lightning round is for!

SECTION 4.2 JIA XICHUN WHAT THE HELL DOES THAT MEAN PLEASE COME BACK AND EXPLAIN

Honestly just read this exactly as it happened

OUTIS: Don Quixote... Executive Manager... Amnesia has certainly made things difficult for many of us, hasn't it?

HONG LU: There are so many ways to erase people's memories in the City, after all.

JIA XICHUN: ...Yeah. There are plenty of ways to remove people's memories, and that's just counting what's public.

JIA XICHUN: The most common method is moving someone's memory into a different object, or a person. Some parts of the City even sell them as local products.

JIA XICHUN: Another is to completely destroy the memories. It's cheap, but because it comes with the risk of affecting other memories, only desperate Backstreets dwellers use this method.

JIA XICHUN: And... now we know the final method, which has so far been unknown, and remains inaccessible even now.

JIA XICHUN: The River of Oblivion... also known as Lethe.

JIA XICHUN: Drinking the waters of this River allows one to bury their memories beyond the veil of their consciousness, to the point where they become uncertain, hazy and dim like the memories of a dream.

HONG LU: So that's what you've been looking for... Xichun.

JIA XICHUN: Not exactly. It's a different stream, somewhere near the River of Oblivion.

JIA XICHUN: I suspect that the River I'm searching for has something to do with the immortality of the mind that our elders have been seeking so desperately.

HONG LU: Ah. To be free from aging and death, right?

(If you've been wondering why I'm speaking of a 200+ year old woman as though she could be alive today, there's your answer.)

JIA XICHUN: Yeah, that old, tiresome thing.

DANTE (NARRATION): Maybe... that's how my memories were removed.

DANTE (NARRATION): I don't even have a dreamy recollection of my memories; it's like they were uprooted straight from my head.

DANTE (NARRATION): So it's either been transferred to a different person or object...

DANTE (NARRATION): ...or it's been totally destroyed, forever unsalvageable.

DANTE (NARRATION): Still, I have no clue as to who, how or why anyone would do such a thing.

JIA XICHUN: ......

DANTE (NARRATION): Jia Xichun briefly glanced at me as my clock ticked on before turning her attention back to Hong Lu.

JIA XICHUN: That's why these scant traces of this 'Bari' are so important to me.

JIA XICHUN: I can't tell you in any greater detail, but I see them. I can see her ancient traces here.

,

HUH

Jia Xichun what does that MEAN. She goes on a long monologue about how extremely possible it is to erase someone's memories, takes a sideways glance at the Most Important Amnesiac and says "I can see the ancient traces of Bari here."

WHAT DOES THAT MEAN

WHAT DO YOU KNOW

DO YOU ALSO THINK DANTE IS BARI???

DO YOU ALSO HAVE A TWO PART EXTREMELY LONG TUMBLR POST???

PLEASE COME BACK HERE

I NEED TO KNOW

DO NOT LEAVE ME IN THIS VOID

WHERE I CANNOT FIND YOU

SECTION 4.3: JUST KIND OF THE WAY THEY ARE THEMSELVES

Pwfaaah. Sorry, that was unprofessional.

Let's pull ourselves together here. I'm getting slightly lost in the theory sauce.

I need to fall back on something objective before I further lose my mind. This update gave us a talk sprite for Bari finally, so obviously the very first thing I did was put it next to Dante's.

(Thank you Lunartique07 for the ripped assets! The Project Moon Google Drive has been an incredible boon.)

Plus some other Sinners for scale.

I chose Yi Sang and Heathcliff because they actually both just so happen to be standing in the exact same pose as Dante and Bari respectively.

Don Quixote isn't very helpful in that regard, but she heard some of the other Sinners were taking a group photo and really really wanted to be included.

Please understand.

The very tip of everyone's closest shoe is touching the green pixel at the exact same point, so this is even as I can get them.

I'm sure you've noticed that Bari and Dante don't appear to be the same height, but please consider the difference in posing. Dante and Yi Sang's shoes are mostly level, while Bari and Heathcliff both have their right foot a decent bit above their left.

They're at an angle, like so. Very slightly standing on the air.

This is going to skew perspective a little.

Even with that in mind however, Bari and Dante are extremely similar in both height and width. Bari is wearing a much thicker coat than Dante is. I'm willing to bet that if they both took their coats off, they would have pretty identical frames.

Thankfully, technology hasn't advanced far enough for us to see for ourselves.

The fact that there's a discrepancy in height at all means this little factoid got lightning round'ed. I can't really in good conscious consider this hard and fast evidence. Pretty Cool Though!

SECTION 4.5: MOST UNFAIR

I'm sure you remember this scene from the very beginning of Canto VII.

[Complete darkness. Yellow text appears in the middle of the void.]

The night approacheth with great haste;

Yet thou shalt hew open a path, cleaving the shadows in twain,

With the blessings and approval of they family of which there is no equal,

Challenge and vanquish all things perilous,

And at last--reach true happiness;

Thus how indubitable,

The magnificence with which mine ingenious adventures of to-day shall shine.

Which is... our adventure, as well.

You remember the words, right? A Fixer must maintain a head clear of corruption, speech free of deceit, and conduct guided by clemency.

Show courage in adventure, and bear pain in suffering.

And pray, forget not the mercy for the downtrodden...

...and last but not least...

...Pursue your dream, even if it means wagering your life in the chase.

Should you ever fail to stand by even one of these tenets...

I'll smack you guys upside the head myself.

Steel yourself and always, always keesp moving forward.

Is that not...

...a threat most unfair?

[We fade back into the P Corp WARP train platform. Present moment.]

DON QUIXOTE: Manager Esquire... how unfair of thee...!

DANTE: ......

DON QUIXOTE: Most unfair, I say...!!!

DANTE: What is it this time...?

Something I need to note is that the white text above is delivered through the narration box in a manner identical to Dante's internal monologue.

This is far from the only time this happens in the game. Even later this canto, Sancho borrows Dante's narration box for a while. Just keep that in mind, still.

In a lovely bit of circular narrative storytelling, during the Don Quixote boss fight, we see this cutscene again.

Only this time, we can see who is talking.

The scene plays out like before. We see that the yellow voice was Don Quixote, and the white voice in the narration box was Bari all along.

It's not exactly the same scene, but it's undeniably Bari both times. It's the same voice actor.

So what would this suggest, I ask you?

When Bari, in the style of Dante's inner monologue, says she'll 'smack you guys upside the head'?

When Don Quixote says that's a threat most unfair?

And when we fade back in, Don Quixote is telling Dante that they've been most unfair?

...This proves nothing. Listen, I want to make one thing crystal clear.

I'm not stupid. I know that this is an incredibly simple narrative convention. It does NOT prove that Dante is Bari.

Just because the two scenes spliced together-- just because Bari was called unfair one moment and Dante the next, it doesn't mean ANYTHING.

Because it could just be a fun little moment of storytelling. One character being called unfair in one scene and another in the next does not necessarily mean they're the same person.

But the fact that it is Bari and Dante feels intentional, doesn't it?

When put next to every other bit of evidence we have so far, are you able to say in full honesty that I'm seeing things? Jumping at shadows where there aren't any? Tilting at windmills?

If you still think that, then I'm glad you've stayed with me anyway.

So please stay with me a little longer,

and allow me to cut through your reservations once and for all.

SECTION 5: FOUNDING LCB AND THE PROMISE:

"Dear the most valorous Fixer of the Zwei, How farest thee? 'Tis my hundred-and-thirty-first letter. Prithee, excuse my persistence. 'Tis merely that my passion cannot well be doused. I am soon to be a Fixer myself. And with thy teachings, I shall become a Fixer most just as persistent who doth not know surrender."

VERGILIUS: I believe I've afforded you sufficient restraint.

A red hot gladius rends the seal on her cradle in two.

...

VERGILIUS: My old... friend has told me that you are a Second Kindred.

...

VERGILIUS: The Fixers on these posters... They're all from at least several decades ago. It is as my fellow has told me. So much of her slumbers... even her instinctive craving for blood.

...

VERGILIUS: I am the guide who will bring you all to the right path.

VERGILIUS: You must come with me, for this journey demands your company. In return...

VERGILIUS: ...when the time is right, the promised timepiece shall come to be by your side.

SANCHO: Promised...?

VERGILIUS: Yes. You are bound to a promise, just as I am.

VERGILIUS: So...

SANCHO: Gasp...

VERGILIUS: Remember these eyes.

VERGILIUS: Remind yourself time and again every time you look into these eyes that hold the blood of a generation higher than your own.

SANCHO: I... have nary a clue as to whatever it is that--

VERGILIUS: I speak of the promise that will one day return to you when the time is right.

VERGILIUS: Remember it, so that the unforgettable promise will one day return to you, so that you may keep it when the time comes. Even as it eludes you now.

This scene is seen at the beginning of Part 3, as LCB enter the Fathoms of Ego.

Isn't it weird?

The conversation doesn't flow naturally. Vergilius talks about his eyes, and then cuts Sancho off and continues talking about the promise out of nowhere.

A long, long time later, following Sancho's boss fight, we see this scene again.

But something has changed.

Something that was intentionally omitted from Sansón's telling of this scene.

VERGILIUS: You must come with me, for this journey demands your company. In return...

VERGILUS: ...when the time is right, the promised timepiece you once heard shall come to be by your side.

(Note the addition. "timepiece you once heard' was not in Sansón's telling.)

VERGILIUS: Even when you feel like giving up on yourself.

VERGILIUS: So I promise you this.

VERGILIUS: That one day, you will return to the beginning of all things...

VERGILIUS: ...and tell them all about the adventures you've had.

This was the moment I knew I had it.

This was the moment I chambered my silver bullet.

When the time is right, the timepiece will come to be by your side. And you can tell them all about the adventures you've had.

Could he have been talking about both Bari and Don Quixote?

Sure, maybe. Sancho does tell Don Quixote about her adventures as he lays dying.

But that's only one way to read this sentence.

I think 'them' refers to the promised timepiece. To Dante.

This part of his speech was important enough to be omitted from the first version of the scene we saw.

Important enough to save for the very end of the canto.

In P Corp's backstreets, Vergilius said something to Dante that confused them.

VERGILIUS: ...Your hands have stopped trembling. I'll take that as a sign that we have an understanding.

VERGILIUS: Should you ever find yourself growing anxious in La Manchaland, when things start to go awry...

VERGILIUS: Remember these words.

VERGILIUS: Henceforth, whatever happens...

[Vergilius smiles.]

VERGILIUS: ...Don Quixote will remember the promise, Dante.

DANTE (NARRATION): The promise.

DANTE (NARRATION): I have no idea how that word is supposed to assuage any of my fears.

DANTE (NARRATION): Vergilius isn't the type to waffle on meaninglessly, so...

DANTE (NARRATION): ...I suppose there isn't anything else I can gather from him at the moment.

Dante is right. Vergilius is a man of few words-- he says what he needs to say, and that's it.

But Vergilius is also a deeply sentimental person.

If he gave advice to Dante that meant nothing to them, it must've meant something to HIM.

I assert that the promise Vergilius is referring to is this one.

BARI: Remember? We promised to meet again once each of our adventures are complete...

SANCHO: ...and tell one another all about our adventures.

Dante's number one fear throughout the La Manchaland mission was that the reveal of Sancho's true nature would irreparably tear the Sinners' bond apart.

That is what Vergilius is reassuring them against.

That Sancho promised to always be their friend. To meet with them when all was said and done.

She'll remember that promise. She won't drift away from you.

This would require Vergilius to not only be aware of Bari, but familiar enough with her to understand the promise she made with Sancho and Don Quixote.

And I can prove that he was.

VERGILIUS: The build of this place is quite durable, my lady.

VERGILIUS: It should be able to withstand assaults from any pursuing Bloodfiends... no, even Bloodfiend Hunters.

VERGILIUS: It is an entirely different question if they can make it this far down to this Ruin, of course.

VERGILIUS: My old... friend has told me that you are a Second Kindred.

...

VERGILIUS: The Fixers on these posters... They're all from at least several decades ago. It is as my fellow has told me. So much of her slumbers... even her instinctive craving for blood.

...

VERGILIUS: Your adventures with them are unimportant. And you won't have to listen to these Fixers anymore. Because...

VERGILIUS: ...doesn't an adventure guided by me, a Fixer bestowed with the title of a Colour... sound much better than any of that?

In Sansón's stageplay...

BARI (SINCLAIR): "Once we find the river..."

BARI (SINCLAIR): "I will guide you to the place that will be your residence henceforth."

BARI (SINCLAIR): "An abandoned lighthouse where no one visits."

BARI (SINCLAIR): "Please, make that place your home."

Only Bari should've known where Sancho's cradle was.

Only Bari could've told Vergilius where to find her, that she was a Second Kindred who erased her own past, that her craving for blood was suppressed by Rocinante, and exactly how to get her to join LCB.

Because Vergilius pulls rank as a Colour Fixer, and it immediately entices Sancho.

This gives us three things simultaneously.

One. Vergilius and Bari were 'old friends.'

Two. Vergilius could've known about the promise Sancho and Bari made.

And, three, it gives us reason to believe that Bari was willingly contributing to the formation of LCB.

Because she told Vergilius where to find Sancho. Because Vergilius knew what to say to recruit her.

We know for a fact that pre-amnesia Dante was cooperating with Limbus Company, because they were already wearing the uniform when they lost their memories in the dark forest.

We're so close. We have so much.

Katabasis.

Resurrection.

Visions of the past and visions of the future.

Stories of future cantos.

Association with literature.

Pre-amnesia power.

The river of human consciousness.

Family.

Similarities in sprites.

The Sign.

Team Demian.

Cooperation with the formation of LCB.

The promise.

I have just one more thing to share. One last section.

One last narrative commonality between Bari and Dante before I bid you goodbye.

SECTION 6: ANTICIPATION

DON QUIXOTE: Tomorrow is a promise that does not hinge on your blessing.

BARI: No, no. That's not the tomorrow I'm talking about. I'm talking about the 'tomorrow' you seek.

BARI: You've been living out your days mired in meaninglessness, quietly wasting away inside.

BARI: Drinking human blood, compelled not by your own will but by your sickness. In your countless years of existence...

BARI: ...you've never had any reason to exist, have you?

BARI: But your illness... and this applies to all of your kind... is loneliness.

BARI: It's the kind of suffering you can't weather through by huddling together with your Family in the dark.

BARI: So I offer you this.

BARI: Anticipation for what tomorrow holds.

BARI: In other words... a dream.

BARI: I can make you dream.

SANCHO: The adventure... has ended.

SANCHO: And thus, so did my dream.

SINCLAIR: It's not over yet.

SINCLAIR: We're pretty major characters in your adventures too, you know?

SINCLAIR: You can't just... end this story without even asking its cast.

SANCHO: So stupid...

DANTE (NARRATION): Her words of denial are tinged with something new, something we hadn't heard in what felt like forever.

DANTE (NARRATION): Anticipation.

Twice over, they reach for a Bloodfiend who has no reason to be.

Gifting them the anticipation to see what comes tomorrow. To adventure, and to dream.

It isn't just Dante, the second time. All of the Sinners come together to find that anticipation for Sancho.

But who is it that drives it home?

Who is it that lights her way?

Who is it that thinks to inspire Sancho by telling her a story?

DANTE (NARRATION): I know what to do. The flow I must find, the flow I must hitch myself to.

DANTE: However...

DANTE: Don Quixote, who despaired that this moment was to be the end of her tale...

DANTE: Still refused to give up.

[Faust smiles.]

FAUST: ......

History repeats and Bari's role is reprised, and by Dante. By the rest of the Sinners too, but especially by Dante.

Because at the end of the long battle against him, Don Quixote says this. Completely unaware of the dramatic irony in his words.

DON QUIXOTE: Alas, it appears that we are not availed the benevolent, mediating force of Bari to quell our quarrels. Then I suppose we are at an impasse, want of a better mediation...

DON QUIXOTE: ...than one wrought by force.

I assert that he is wrong.

I assert that the narrative completed itself. A perfect circular structure, like so many aspects of this canto.

Atop La Manchaland, all but two Sinners are dead. Only three were alive to witness what happened next.

Exactly as it began.

Only Sancho, her father Don Quixote, and the White Moon beside them.

It's the same scene.

Bari and Don Quixote called out their names, and clashed in a brilliant shining light.

Sancho and Don Quixote called out their names, and clashed in a brilliant shining light.

It was Bari that made him dream.

And it was Dante that made her dream.

Anticipation. The final, ultimate theme that they share.

And after all was said and done, after La Manchaland was reduced to a pouring torrent of blood, the Sinners boarded Mephistopheles once again.

Ready to gallop onto the next canto of their story.

But first, Don Quixote said something to Dante.

DON QUIXOTE: Prithee, regard me not with such an expression.

DANTE: I... don't have an expression, let alone a face.

DON QUIXOTE: All of existence, from the swaying flowers in the meadows to the rolling pebbles in a stream... has emotions.

DANTE (NARRATION): What expression did she read from me, I wonder.

DON QUIXOTE: I beseech thee, smile.

DON QUIXOTE: For all of this is but a merry dream.

DANTE (NARRATION): No one thinks about what awaits them at the end of the journey when embarking on an adventure.

DANTE (NARRATION): But that unknown future, twinkling so tantalizingly...

DANTE (NARRATION): ...is what inevitably draws us to venture toward them.

DANTE (NARRATION): So...

DANTE (NARRATION): ...I guess I'll smile, like Don Quixote asked me to.

DANTE (NARRATION): Smile with anticipation for what tomorrow holds.

I hope I've given you a lot to think about.

No matter what, I think Dante and Bari are both immensely interesting characters, and I believe whatever Project Moon does with both of them will be more satisfying than whatever little old me can think of.

I cannot prove that Bari is Dante. But I can maybe convey that, if she turned out to be, It would be a well foreshadowed and thematically consistent reveal, more so than any other existing candidate.

This is a long pair of posts. And you read all of it. If you have any feedback to add to my theory, please include it in a reply!

I would love nothing more than to hear from you.

[necronatural]

Limbus Company theory

Okay, I have absolutely no idea if anyone's noted this yet. Did anyone pick up that the Sinners are held down by a Sin, represented in their EGO, and their Canto are about their struggles against another sin entirely. The branch creates a space for 'penance'. When Rodya entered the field of effect of the branch, Baba Yaga went crazy, freezing the entire mine. There's clearly some paralleling at work here.

So let's go through.

Gregor, Canto 1: Sloth V Gluttony (survival); note that this expedition failed, and we later explore Sloth with Yi Sang

Rodion, Canto 2: Pride V Gloom; note that Rodya refused to actualize

Sinclair, Canto 3: Gluttony (Greed) V Lust

Yi Sang, Canto 4: Sloth V Gluttony (greed); Dante's resonance begins

Ishmael, Canto 5: Gloom V Envy; Dante's resonance progresses

When we look at the dominant sins of the remainder...

Heathcliff, Canto 6: Envy...

Don Quixote, Canto 7: Lust…

Hong Lu, Canto 8: Gloom…

Ryoshu, Canto 9: Wrath…

Meursault, Canto 10: Pride…

Outis, Canto 11: Pride…

Faust, Canto 12: Pride…

Dante, Canto ?: ????

Sins not confronted yet: Sloth, Pride, Wrath

Sinner sins left to explore: Envy, Wrath, Lust (If we're talking strictly what progressed Dante's clock, Gluttony & Pride)

Assuming Dante's doomsday clock setting is moving in 5 minute intervals, Dante currently has 2 positions left on their clock; 5 minutes to midnight and midnight itself. It's made almost explicit that their resonance with sinners is the tool with which they resonate with the branches. By obtaining each sin, they're building to some sort of complete whole.

Predictions based on this theory; Pride being so back-heavy probably means we're going to scramble for branches with Hermann. It gives the impression that for whatever reason Pride is necessary, which is interesting.

My own theory: Rodya says she'll settle in the cold [Gloom] for a little longer, and Sonya says she doesn't have the mark. I'd say this might mean Rodya hasn't sufficiently resonated. Sonya may have tried to bait her in hopes of getting better results in this regard.

This may mean ...

The last few Cantos will be a losing streak (LOL)

Someone who hasn't cleansed themselves of their opposing sin/formed the mark of cain will get the branch; I'd imagine this person shares sins with Dante, Vergilius, or Charon, who I believe are probably Envy, Wrath, and Lust respectively (OOP @ WHO WE'RE MISSING ⬆️)

In that respect Vergilius V Sloth, Charon V Pride, Dante V Wrath. I even think the wrath Dante is opposed to could be Vergilius

Very notable there's only 3 sins missing; it could be possible we already have Dante's branch; they were very obviously part of the group of Cain Marked, and again, their clock started at 25-to-midnight and just kind of sat there for a little while. It's also possible it didn't move until Yi Sang because their sin was Gluttony (ambiguous manifestation)? If Hermann also represents Lust ..... Think about it

Rodya's refusal of the call of Cain might become plot-relevant, just as our failure to observe what happened to Gregor on the myth arc timeline of 3 years ago and relationship with the Big Bad makes it obvious he's going to be a core character in the future. We can tell based on those who have the mark of Cain that he just doesn't have the chops, so mayhaps their mutual exclusion will be a surprise tool that will help us later.

And of course, my theories for the sins that weigh down our remaining Sinners: Heathcliff V Sloth, Don Quixote V Wrath, and Ryoshu V Pride. I predict all the Prides share Rodya's opposing force, which is Gloom; we see this in the books these characters are based on, with Meursault's despair of being sentenced to death being overcome by his Pride, Outis putting herself through grueling trials for the sake of returning to her family, and Faust beginning with suicidal depression leading to her pride creating(summoning) Mephistopheles.

I think it would be pretty funny if Dante was Gretchen's evil baby. Or that Gretchen might have been their previous self, manipulated into giving birth to Dante (extremely vulnerable and exploitable state), which they will be disgusted by and put to death. How many representations of the Divine Feminine in classic literature can Dante represent any% speedrun

[cluescorner]

Limbus Company as RTFD Quotes

Outis, one day out of literally nowhere: *Sigh* I miss my wife, Don Quixote. I miss her a lot.

Don: *Losing her shit*

Outis, going to go pine in silence: I’ll be back.

--------------------------

Sinclair: Everything is ok!

Sinclair, walking into his home to find his family murdered because of something he did: AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

Kromer: Wait, I traumatized you as a child. That’s badass!

-------------------------

Charon: I can’t believe I’m driving this bus I’m literally 5 years old. 

----------------------------

Ahab: Hey Ishmael. It’s me again. I have a fun new ‘killing-the-whale idea.’ 

Ishmael: Hey there, devil. By the way, what’s your name? 

Ahab: I dunno I feel like that’s kinda self-explanatory. You know, from…literature. You ever been to a high-school english class? You ever read Moby Dick? I’m that one. So here, I want to you kill the whale because that’s my whole prerogative. 

--------------------------------

Canto 2: Welcome to the Casino, bitches. I wanna see slots baby, big numbers! Big numbers! If you live in Rodya’s old town, FUCK YOU!

------------------------

Dongrang on Mobile: They call me the glitch do you wanna know why they call me the motherfuckin glitch? Because I glitch their games out!

------------------------------

Vergilius, constantly: Jesus Christ *insert every sinner here* what have you done?!

[northwest-cryptid]

Limbus company brought more eyes on project moon and got more people interested in the games that's probably one of the best things that can happen to a a game company

It also resulted in them firing a key member of their staff due to sexism in the workplace/from those eyes that got brought to it.

It also resulted in Wonderlab becoming lost media because the artist decided to cut ties with Project Moon.

It also resulted in the CEO being exposed as a total prick who underpaid and overworked staff, is generally weak willed and gives in to sexism, and values money over just about anything. Threatening to sue people for boycotting.

It also expanded the fandom/community from a tight knit fun group to an oversized mess of differing opinions that are generally hostile but that's not really too important over all, just sad to see it happen. I miss the days when the community didn't bicker and argue and fight and complain and shit. That's just how things go when a community becomes bigger, bad for the individual good for the company I suppose. It is what it is.

It also resulted in a boycott for the said horrible things the CEO did.

Like, look we're not arguing here; you don't have to hide behind anon I'm not gonna bite or some shit. I mean hell what do you think I could even do if I knew your URL? Like realistically there's nothing I could do to you anyways not that I'd want to, like why do you think I'd wish you harm? Because we have differing opinions? I agree it financially was very good for the company, but it's the worst thing to have happened both in how the general community around the company shifted, and in how much came to light about the shady business going on at Project Moon and how weak the company was to actually protect their own people, because they don't care about their people.

Project Moon is a company I had a lot of respect for, and it's why I'm very critical of them. I want them to be better, but I don't see that happening, because in spite of ALL of the shit that happened, Limbus is successful and now the CEO knows he doesn't need to worry about doing all that shitty stuff.

Anyways, yea Limbus Company is the worst thing to have happened to Project Moon, this time; I really will not elaborate. I shouldn't have to. I'm not attacking you, I'm criticizing a company for their shitty behavior and actions, primarily that of the CEO.

We have differing opinions on the matter, that is fine. No harm done here my friend. That's just part of being human, we're not always going to agree on stuff.

[art-blogge]

Blood and Rust

<"Great work today, everyone! We can officially end Limbus Company business there for the day. Go hit the showers early as my treat.">

Amid cheers, Dante rubbed their arm and flinched slightly. While the Sinners had been fighting off the Abnormality of the week, one of its underlings had managed to bite their arm. Outis had carefully looked over the wound and declared it a normal injury with nothing to fuss over (despite them bleeding on the floor).

Dante wanted to argue about this- A wound from an Abnormality or it's summoned pet could still cause odd status issues!- but they were too tired to bother at the moment. If anything was wrong, Faust would probably notice and tell them. Probably.

Then again, Faust had a running habit of not explaining things until the last possible minute. Why would she explain something if she didn't need to that immediate moment?

How annoying.

With only Charon and Vergilius in the bus, it was quiet for once. It couldn't hurt to nap out here unless Charon slammed on the breaks.

Dante immediate chose the biggest seat and threw themselves on it. Theirs now.

A few hours later, Dante woke up to an odd feeling. They knew what hunger was, what thirst was, but this wasn't either.

<"The effects,"> Dante rumbled, drowsily sitting up.

"The effects!" Don Quixote agreed, not looking up from Dante's device. It took Dante a few extra moments to register that all of this was unusual and did a double take once it had fully processed.

<"What are you doing with that?">

"Someone hath removed my description of Sir Heathcliff! 'Twas not you, Manager Esquire, but whomst?"

<"Probably Faust,"> Dante ticked, rubbing where their eyes would be, <"You're not putting stickers on it again, are you?">

"Nope! I desire to rewrite mine entry!"

Dante was handed their device and they just stared at Don Quixote. Something here was wrong, but Dante wasn't sure what it was. Had something changed? No. Don Quixote looked the same as always. Big, shining eyes staring them full in the face. Oh, they'd gotten distracted.

<"I can't edit these, Donqui,"> Dante finally responded, tapping on the [Edit] button multiple times to no avail. <"And you're not writing in my notes.">

Don Quixote sharply inhaled and Dante fully expected the following yell of "But whyever not???"

<"I don't want anyone in there.">

"Hoh, is it like a diary??… Might I take a peek?"

<"No.">

Dante pocketed their device as a final "No", and Don Quixote sulked. Sulked, but didn't move. Fine. As long as she wasn't making trouble.

Dante thought back to the odd sensation they'd felt. It was still there, gnawing on their insides in a way they had no words for. They couldn't eat or drink anything (in a classical sense), so maybe they were starving? No. That felt different. Similar, but different. Very similar, completely different.

How annoying.

<"Donqui… Maybe a bit of an odd question, but is it normal to want something and not know what you want?">

Her understandably confused expression said all they needed to know, and they tried again.

<"As if I want to eat something specific but don't know what it is.">

"Aha! A craving of sorts, yes! I know of such things! I myself do not get such flights of fancy, but I know those of us that do! For example, I know Sir Gregor---!!"

Dante stopped listening for a moment to think. Okay, their body wanted something. Needed, mayhaps? Perhaps they were lacking in something? They would ask Faust if she was here, but they didn't want to get up all that much.

"--Once caught her putting ranch upon her cheesed burger! I do recall even Rodion staring at that one, myself!"

Oops, they'd missed that entire conversation. They'd also missed the part where they'd put their arm around her shoulders- When had they done that? Whatever. That wasn't worth thinking about at the moment.

<"I don't know why that would be a crime,"> Dante carefully chose to admit, <"For obvious reasons. It's not cigarette ashes in the food so who cares?">

Dante didn't add that they absolutely did have food standards that were arguably higher than half the buses, but that didn't matter when they couldn't participate and SOME PEOPLE would eat off the FLOOR---- Thought terminated, there was something wet touching their glove. The one on Donqui's shoulder. Squinting in spirit, Dante pulled their hand back and inspected their glove. Blood.

<"DONQUI, YOU'RE BLEEDING!"> they honked, jumping up to get a better look. As they did, Don Quixote reached up to check her shoulder as well, visibly confused by the situation. Dante didn't hesitate in turning the clock back, bracing for the pain and---- Felt nothing. Huh? What? Huh??

The wound healed, but the twin holes in her shirt did not, leaving both Sinner and Manager staring at each other. Both were completely clueless as to how that happened.

"I was never once bitten by that fiend…" Don Quixote trailed off, then paused and looked back at Dante. She was thinking hard, or hardly thinking. It wasn't easy to tell with her until her eyes lit up.

"You were! Has that vile fiend made you one of them?!"

Hooooonk!! <"I don't have teeth to bite with!">

"And thy cravings?!"

Dante stopped. The odd feeling had completely subsided at some point in the last few minutes. No. Nonono. It was bad enough the Sinners were glorified sacrifices, which Dante already hated. Now they needed to- No, Wanted to…. "Feed"?

By the Wings, no.

<"Still there,"> Dante lied through their figurative teeth, <"You should probably go. It should be gone by morning.">

After a few more- or a lot more- words, Don Quixote finally left, leaving Dante to think about their options and put their head in their hands. This situation was going to be unsalvageable if something wasn't done soon… But they also couldn't leave the Mephistopheles. Not that it mattered any- Where the Hell would they go??

How annoying.

----

Dante didn't get an ounce of sleep that night, far too worried about their own circumstance to get any. That, and they weren't tired. At least, they'd swear they didn't get any. When they'd dozed off in Sinclair's spot was a big fat mental question mark, so being woken up there was TWO big fat mental question marks.

<"Sorry, Sinclair,">

A moment's pause after sitting up, and then Dante jumped up like they'd been bitten by something. The sensation was back and worse than before.

<"I'm up! I must have dozed off on watch, my apologies!">

It was better to play it off.

Meursault raised his hand slightly, signaling that he wanted to speak. With Dante's approval, he spoke up.

"Faust wants to know your current state after last evening."

Well, never mind that, then.

<"Awful. I'm starving and it's not food I want. It's been like this all night. Please don't come near me.">

Dante realized their mistake as soon as they finished saying it. Telling the Sinners not to come near them immediately meant at least half of them would gang up on Dante's immediate location.

"Do not be bitten by the fiend's evil claws!" shouted Don Quixote from somewhere outside of the ganging. Unfortunately no one besides Dante knew that was a very literal statement, and thus her announcement went ignored. Dante folded in on themselves, pulling both hands into their coat. Too close. Too close! People were so close that Dante swore they could hear heartbeats that weren't their own. And maybe also their own. Dante was very stressed.

Like an angel from the heavens Faust entered, breaking up the crowd with her mere presence.

"It will take seven hours without blood intake to allow the effects wear off. It has been more than seven hours, and yet the effect persists. Please explain yourself, Dante."

She glanced to the side while Dante shrunk into their seat guiltily. Luckily, Don Quixote finally broke through and stood in front of them.

"As I hath said! The fiend has granted Manager Esquire~e claws that draw forth blood with nary a feeling! Look upon the holes in my shirt!"

"Lassie, are you saying Clockface is some sorta vampire now?"

The Mephistopheles erupted into chaos, which Dante was for once grateful for. It meant everyone's attention was off of them for the time being, even if it very much was about them.

Shoving Heathcliff out of her way, Ishmael yelled over the chaos "What if it doesn't wear off?!"

"Then Dante will be reclassified as a Bloodfiend, with all that it entails," Faust calmly answered, not bothering to raise her voice. She actively avoided looking at Ishmael, instead looking towards the nearest window. "That would be more than enough for multiple parts of the Head to hunt them down."

"So just lock them in their office until it goes away!"

Ishmael had a valid point, but it also scared Dante. What if it didn't? And anyway, the LAST time they were in their office with anything relating to an Abnormality, they'd ensnared nearly everyone.

"Then we lose seven hours of work," Meursault stated plainly.

"Our paychecks!" Rodion mourned, mentally removing food from her grocery list.

Gregor adjusted his glasses, sighing and ignoring that last statement.

"We can't work like this. Manager Bud will absolutely be in range of someone's blood. Maybe we can run late?"

The Sinners started to argue again, and then everyone went quiet. Dante didn't remove their head from their hands to see why- Vergilius had probably stood up.

This theory was confirmed when the back of Dante's collar was grabbed and lifted, easily pulling them out of their seat. Dante honked in distress, wildly swinging their arms to smack at Vergilius for such a crime. Dante's pleas to be put down were completely ignored by the annoyed Color Fixer, and they got no help from any of the Sinners.

<"Put me down! Put me down! I can leave myself!">

"Whatever they are saying, I don't care."

How annoying.

<"I'm going to scratch you at this rate and then what?! Another seven hours?!">

To get their point across, Dante swatted at Vergilius' arm before freezing on contact. Though several layers of fabric seperated Dante's hand from Vergilius' arm, Dante could feel his heartbeat. They felt close to him. No, too close..!

<"I can feel your heartbeat, Vergilius! I could spread this to you!">

It had been intended as a warning, but it came out as a threat. Dante hoped it wouldn't be misunderstood.

"Dante says that you cannot risk this status. You cannot have it reversed, we can."

Thank the Wings that Faust understood them. Or maybe she was just playing it down. It was impossible to tell with her sometimes.

Wordlessly Dante was dropped, and they immediately scrambled to their office, resisting the urge to turn back. They wanted to apologize, explain, anything, but not like this. Not like this.

Dante slammed their door shut before leaning against it and sighing internally. Okay, fine. Fine. Just a few hours alone. Not even the full seven. They'd fed off Don Quixote hours ago.

That didn't tell them why the hand that had touched Vergilius' arm had fresh blood on the fingers.

Behind them, they heard the door lock.

<"Whoever's out there!"> Dante whined through some gears, <"I accidentally got Vergil I think! This blood is fresh, reset the count! Seven hours and don't let me out until then!">

"Seven hours," Faust's voice responded, "Faust will keep count."

Dante shut off their vision and mimed a sigh. They could definitely do it- That wasn't the issue. The issue was much harder to determine. The idea of being away from everyone worried them, despite regularly being in a different room than them. No, it'd be fine. It was a single door away. If anything happened, they could yell. Maybe. Probably. Hopefully.

They had their device. They could strategize and run some simulated battles- "Gaming", as someone had called it. It wasn't. It was strategizing and testing outputs! It was seeing how well IDs that normally wouldn't be run together would mesh in combat. And, okay, maybe a little bit of goofing around.

They could also record everything in their notes. Someone… C… Cat? Car? Catherine, that was it, Catherine had called it a diary. It couldn't hurt to add notes on their status.

--(6 hours, 50 minutes remaining) Ten minutes later, they'd fully written down everything they thought was important about their current state. Now to strategize.

Seeing no good EGO gifts in the first menu, Dante refreshed and got worse gifts. Ah. Time to reset, then.

Smoke and Wires. Excellent, they could run a Bleed team! How ironic that would be considering the situation!…

Dante wisely refreshed and reset again. They didn't want to accidentally tempt themselves. Dust to Dust AND Ashes to Ashes? Excellent, this would be a fast run. Full Liu, who cares? Time to goof off.

--(6h, 42m remaining) Seeing animated blood splatters was enough to make their insides squirm and gnaw, so they opted to start Win Rate spamming and turning the volume off. This team had no friendly fire (like Reindeer or Magic Bullet), so they weren't worried about outcome. If they won, they won. If they lost, they lost. But now they needed something else to occupy their time alongside this.

Not the projector. Too much blood in most of their life up to this point for it to be a safe option.

Not their own room. There was no way their room wasn't full of blood right now. No way in Hell.

Screw it. Time to learn how to draw. They had pens and they had their notebook.

--(6h 24m) "You alive in there, Manager Bud?"

<"Yes,"> Dante answered, relieved that Gregor was there. For some reason. <"I'm trying to figure out how to draw. It's uh.">

They glanced down at the pitiful attempt of a sheep they "drew" and grumbled.

<"It's not great. Did you need something?">

"Nah, Outis suggested we take turns watching you. Figuratively, of course. I bet it's a better drawing than I could do."

<"Bet,"> Dante responded, getting up and sliding the paper under the door, <"I told you it was bad.">

"What do you mean? This looks fine. Here, let me go find a pen myself…"

Gregor and Dante spent some time passing the paper back and forth, adding better or worse sheep on every time. Eventually this got Sinclair's attention, and he joined them. Unfortunately for both Dante and Gregor's self-esteem, Sinclair was an excellent artist. This went on smoothly until…

--(5h 53m) "Scheiße! Papercut…"

<"Should I get a new piece of paper??"> Dante quickly asked, already starting to get up, <"And are you okay?">

"Yeah, I'm fine, sorry. We can keep going-"

Sinclair was cut off by Outis distantly but loudly announcing "TIME TO ROTATE!"

"Uh, guess not. Sorry, bud."

How annoying.

But yeah, that made sense, as much as Dante hated to admit it. Someone staying here too long might forget why the door's locked and open it or something. Okay, time to find something else to do----

"Hello and salutations, Manager Esquire!!!!"

Shit.

<"Hi, Donqui…. How are you feeling after last night?">

"Tis nothing of note. I would very much like to attempt a sheep as well!"

<"Oh, okay! Let me get more paper!">

--(5h 32m) "ROTATE!!" came Ishmael's voice, and Dante stopped drawing to shake their hand out. Finally, they could stop. Don Quixote was surprisingly demanding when she realized Dante was a (slightly) better artist than her. Free of the impromptu commission, Dante slid the paper under the door and rolled over right there on the floor. Their back was starting to hurt from sitting like that for so long.

Unfortunately, since they were no longer focusing on the drawing, Dante was forced to confront the ever-growing hunger clawing at their insides. It was about the same as last night's craving, but it felt worse because they'd been so laser focused on something else… And now they were feeling it all at once.

"You alive in there?" came Heathcliff's voice, a hint of concern under his joking tone, "Do I gotta shove you in this bag too?"

<"I'd take the bag over this,"> Dante groaned, <"This sucks.">

"Sucks, you said?" Rodion added with an audible smirk, and Heathcliff groaned loudly.

A single playing card of some kind was slipped under the door. Dante didn't mind card games, but after the month at sea, they'd learned the hard way that playing with Rodion was not all that fun. Should they take the bait…? Idly scratching their arm with the pen, they considered their options before ultimately deciding that they'd rather be distracted and took the card.

It wasn't a normal playing card. In Rodion's handwriting, the card read "Accept the game or play 108 pickup!".

Well, now they didn't have a choice. Wait. No. If they said no, Rodion would potentially open the door. Wait. No. They wanted to be kept away… Right? Right. Right, yes, keep them away.

<"I don't really want to play with you, Rodya. You cheat.">

"And how the hell are you gonna play Uno when they can't see the deck? It just doesn't work," Heathcliff added.

Dante slipped the card back under the door and mimed a sigh.

<"Can we just talk instead? Donqui was telling me something about ranch earlier.">

--(4h 01m) "Rotation! Move along now!" Outis' voice rang out, breaking the silence. The current trio had run out of things to talk about surprisingly quickly, and it'd just been overall uncomfortable.

"See you in a few hours, Clockhead."

Hours?

Hours???

<"Hours?">

"Yes, hours, Executive Manager. You have four hours remaining. We've been rotating every half hour and--."

<"Four hours?!"> Dante honked incredulously, missing whatever Outis had said after that. Their stomach itched. They ignored it and futzed with the pen some more. They'd seen Hong Lu twirling a pencil the other day and now they were trying to copy it in an attempt to ignore the still-growing sensation of Need.

Outis cleared her throat and knocked on the door to regain Dante's attention.

"I'm sure you want to know why we've been switching every half hour."

Dante could hear the smirk through the door. If they could frown about it, they would be.

<"Of course I do. Go on.">

"Very well. We've been rotating because we've been unable to confirm nor deny that you have not inherited the Abnormality's penchant for manipulation. If a single person is left unchecked, you may convince them to open the door."

<"Since when was I good at manipulating anyone?"> Dante asked, figuratively raising their eyebrows, <"I don't want to be out there right now. It can't be that big of a problem.">

"Executive Manager," was Outis' only response. She sounded annoyed, so Dante didn't push it.

<"See? I'm bad at it. Anyway, who's with you?">

The sound of Ryoshu's odachi bumping against the door was enough to answer that question. Okay, so there wouldn't be anything to talk about this time-

"I would like to give you a suggestion, Executive Manager. Have you eaten yet today?"

Dante's stomach rumbled at the idea of eating. They hadn't even considered it with the stress they were under.

"Do not."

<"What?">

"Do not. You can eat after you overcome this. That gives you something to look forward to."

Ryoshu snickered just loud enough that Dante could hear it.

How annoying.

<"Real helpful. When I get out there, I'm making you eat this pen.">

Their empty threat was completely ignored, taking all the wind out of their sails. All they had to do now was mess with this pen, and that was it. They really, really needed to get a hobby.

--(3h 35m) "Our turn!" came Hong Lu's voice, and Dante picked their head up off the floor. Finally! Someone willing to speak with them!

"Greetings, Dante," said Yi Sang, sitting down against the door, "You have three hours and a half remaining. It is a shame we cannot look upon your visage as we speak to you, but it is a shame we must carry until the hourglass runs out of sang."

"… Sang, sand?" Yi Sang now offered, highlighting the pun that normally would have caught Dante's attention.

"Seems they're not in the mood for it, Yi Sang. Oh, perhaps if we put our face against the ground, we can see them beneath the crack of the door?"

For a moment, Dante imagined seeing Hong Lu's face appearing under the door, and then imagined grabbing his eye with their claws. They very quickly abandoned that imagery and spoke up instead.

<"So, anything to do before I accidentally stab myself with this pen?">

--(2h 59m) The half hour had been spent listening to Hong Lu and Yi Sang have an increasingly nonsensical conversation, so Dante had stopped listening in favor of trying to draw on their coat sleeve. It didn't work, so they took their coat off and tried to write on their shirt sleeve instead. This went predictably worse, what with both the pen and shirt being black. This was stupid.

Frustrated, they scratched at their arm again with the pen, only to recoil when it hurt a bit. They'd accidentally hit where they'd been bitten yesterday, and they immediately put the pen down.

Dante then picked the pen back up and poked at it again. It hurt, yes, but it was a sensation that wasn't the hunger or other hunger.

"Charon wonders if Clockface is dead," Charon plainly stated from outside, startling Dante and making them drop the pen.

<"Uh, no, I'm alive.">

Meursault's voice confirmed for Charon that Dante was alive, and then both went quiet again. Okay, fine, they could play the quiet game too. By taking a nap, right there on the floor.

--(2h 25m) Knocking woke Dante, and without thinking they knocked back.

"Two hours and twenty-five minutes remain," Faust informed them before adding "How is your condition, Dante?"

<"Fine,"> Dante lied, picking at their bandages, <"I'm alive and the clock is fine, so it's fine. I'm going back to sleep.">

--(1h ?m) The sensation of their organs being squeezed snapped Dante wide awake. It didn't hurt them, no, but it was still an awful sensation. They were so, so, SO… Hungry.

<"Is time up yet…?">

"No, and you have about an hour left," answered Vergilius.

Dante would have scrunched up their face if they could have. Instead, they threw the pen across the room as if that would help any. Reasonably this did not help, and Dante returned to picking at their bandages. It was itchy! Super itchy!

Wait.

<"How do you know what I asked??">

Vergilius didn't answer that. Either he'd guessed what Dante was asking, or he was being a prick.

How annoying!

Digging his claws into the door, Dante hissed out <"I asked you a question!">

They were ignored a second time. Dante realized their claws were out and immediately retracted them. Then Dante realized they had claws and let them back out to inspect. They didn't pierce Dante's gloves, but they were still very sharp. Abnormality logic, Dante figured, poking their uninjured arm with a claw. Ouch. They weren't sure what they expected when they did that.

Another internal squeeze caught Dante off-guard, causing them to curl up and groan. It felt like they were being squeezed like one would a lemon or something. Was the vampirism trying to drink their blood? That didn't make sense, but neither did any alternatives.

Vergilius said something, but Dante didn't process it with all of their brain and RAM focused on figuring out how to ease this awful sensation.

--(? ??) Laying on their side with their knees to their chest seemed to settle the foreign sensation the best, so they kept that position. They were determined to get through this. The only issue now wa---

<"Ouch!">

They'd poked the injury again while itching. Whoops. Well, that wasn't an issue. If it bled, they could just re-wrap it.

If it bled.

If it. If it bled.

Bled? Bleeding?

Would it bleed?

Scratch, scratch. Scratch, scratch. Scratch- BLOOD! BLOOD! FOOD! FOOD! F--

<"Ack!">

Realizing what they'd done, Dante ripped their claws out of the re-opened wound and immediately pressed on it with their coat. It hurt, and they could feel the blood soaking into their coat, and they could feel the blood soaking into their glove, and they could see the blood, and they could smell the blood. It was right there, free, without hurting anyone else.

"Is everything good in there, Manager Bud?" asked Gregor with a bump on the door.

<"No!"> Dante blared a little louder than intended, <"Ask Faust if my own blood will make it take longer! The wound reopened, sorry! It got itchy…">

They had no intention of admitting that they'd briefly fallen victim to madness. Why would they? They were the Manager, and they had to appear competent. They had to, despite all of the Sinners knowing well that they were a defenseless coward.

They waited to hear an answer, but none came. So they waited, and waited, and none came.

Hesitantly, they called out. Was anyone there? Could anyone hear them?

Hello?

But nobody answered.

It was just Dante, their wound, and the bitter scent of blood.

Panic took over. They had no idea how long was left, and their claws had touched their own blood. Did this mean they ruined everything? Was it fine or was there another seven hours? Was there a point in waiting anymore?

Now completely desperate to escape the sensations, they plunged their claws back into the wound with a maddened fervor. Feeling blood rush into their hand gave them a euphoric rush as well. Free! Free! No more waiting! Sustenance! Food! Blood! No, not enough! More, faster! It wasn't enough! Bite down and drink up! Still not enough! Still not enough! Ignore their burning throat! More!!

Then it was over, leaving Dante soaked in their own blood and feeling nauseous. They'd failed. They could feel stomach acid bouncing up and down their throat, threatening to overflow, and they could feel their vison blurring.

The door's lock clicked, and Dante scrambled away from the door.

<"Don't come in! Don't!">

Their warning was completely ignored, and Faust's voice clearly spoke.

"Time is up. I am opening the door."

<"No no, don't, I lost control…!"> they weakly warned, but this too was ignored.

The door finally swung open to most of the Sinners squeezed into one area, all glad to see Dante… Before taking in the sights.

Everyone shouted at once and tried to run every-which-way, chaos erupting right there in Dante's doorway. Dante was grateful they cared enough to express it.

Rodion had once joked that if Dante was an animal, they'd be a cat. Dante's fading mind agreed with this and slowly blinked before remembering they weren't a cat and that they didn't visibly blink. Someone had grabbed their wounded arm in the meantime, and someone else was holding them upright. That wasn't important. Oh, and they'd had claws like a cat too. That was definitely more important.

<"Rodya was right,"> they slurred, one uncomfortably long tick bubbling out of them, <"Kinda was like a cat.">

"Goddamn bloody delirious."

"That is quite like a cat! Do you also have nine lives, Dante?"

Before Dante could consider responding in their daze, the room was briefly covered in water with a loud SPLASH from somewhere to their left. Dante's vision cleared, and they rapidly became aware of the situation they were in. They also ignored whatever it was leaking from their head, whether it be water, oil, blood, or vomit.

"Situation has been resolved," Faust stated, removing the Fluid Sac EGO, "Time is up. Your own blood was not able to trigger the counter. Faust thanks you for testing that."

"A.Y.I?"

"Ryoshu wants to know if you're insane.."

"Faust is completely sane and reasonable, as am I. Thank you for asking."

Rodion bent down and lightly knocked on Dante's head, turning their attention from Outis re-wrapping their arm.

"Danteeeee, you bad kitty, you've made a mess!" Rodion teased, and Dante swore their head got warmer all of a sudden. If not for their arm being stiffly held, they would bury their face in their hands. Instead, Dante opted to bury it in Outis' shoulder, ignoring her visibly irritated expression. From there, Dante spoke up.

<"Thank you for being patient, but I think I'd like to skip today… I need to hit the shower.">

All of the Sinners immediately agreed that Dante was not to leave their sight again and unified to deal with this themselves.

How embarrassing…!

[adaze-4d4z3]

[DELETE]

Extra+rambling under cut

Me when clear all Cathy (feat: my pm oc/insert)

No but I started to cry when it got to this stage of the node and man I clicked on the thing like 30 times before clicking on the clear all Cathy. MAN I THOUGHT IT WAS JUST A COOL JOKE UGHHHH. Also Cathcliff is one of my favourite PM ships now they’re just cute.

Random note but I couldn’t finish this when the 3rd part of the canto came out because my iPad kept crashing on the Vergilius node and I had to wait like 1-2 days before I was reunited with my computer to finish this so I missed out on the cleared before nerfs : ( (The moment I got home after a 8 hour flight and 2hr ride home I played through the last bit because I didn’t wanna be spoiled lol, and a lady at the airport got me sick too so I was jet lagged, tired as hell and sick but first priority was limbus lmao)

But like, seriously this canto made me spiral on this one thought. So in the canto it is explained that souls can’t like move on to actual death death because the Wuthering Heights manor is built on a stream. This stream that’s the same thing that the original seed of light project utilised to make cognito and in lobotomy corporation it’s derivatives such as enkephalin and the light/ golden boughs.

And we learn in Lob corp that cognito is pulled up through a well, likely connected to another stream of sorts. (Or is it just the bucket/ Carmen’s nerve system?) (because if it’s just that everything else here’s just invalid lmao)

So like if every branch had a well, which they would because they will have the extraction team to get more abnormalities that means there was a ‘stream’ of sorts underneath every Lob corp branch.

That means in every facility there’s just ghosts haunting the place. Everywhere. And people who died in those places even after Lob corp fell, (Aya, Yuri, the bug veterans) is also just ghosts there now???

Imagine Yuri just dying in that branch and is greeted by the ghosts of all her former co-workers and they’re just like oh cool you managed to get out but why tf did you come back or something.

But this is more interesting for the main facility, the main branch because of Enoch/ Tiphereth B and the light that happened. So Carmen and Ayin got sucked up into the light right? So what about all the other dead souls unable to go on because of the stream? Did they get sucked into the light as well? So is there just a hive mind of people up there we don’t know about? Especially for Enoch since he was a pretty big player in the script and everything. (Here’s where I shall just ramble about the little boy because I quite like the little man) If he got swooped up into the light as well what would his interaction with Carmen be like. I would think he’d just forgive her because he knew what he was getting into. But what about Ayin? Would he understand that this was for a better purpose or be angry at what he made the others (especially Lisa/ Tipherepth A) go through? And additionally would he be angry at Lisa? I pose this question because he wanted to have a purpose, a bigger reason to be living and would he view her letting him be killed (again) as something sad because he could never experience the end of the script and the result of his work/ his ‘purpose’ that he lived to create. Or would it be a little more messed up where he finds his purpose in the light, helping distort people/ gain EGO. (Mostly gain EGO as the preferable outcome, Carmen in Leviathan says something to that extent where’s it’s better for people to ignore her and develop EGO) (I think, I haven’t really read it, just watched random analyses using Leviathan for evidence) And if all the dead people in the main facility is in the light imagine what the actual hell they could do. Like that’s so many people in there.

Also if they are all in the light Tiphereph reunion isn’t impossible, but unlikely since Tiph A has gone through her character develop already :T but I want to see that. How Tiph B feels about what Tiph A did both with pushing Carmen further down depression and her decision to put him down for the sake that he didn’t have to suffer. And just how Tiph A would react to seeing/ hearing him in the light which she probably won’t think it’s a good thing he’d getting caught up with Carmen again : P

Also could the records team have something to do with this fact as well? Like does this explain how the dead are able to come back other than the time thing?

[yuseirra]

Hello~ I have something to say because there's been something that's been on my mind, leaving me very depressed and concerned for the past couple months. I've been trying my best to be cheerful and uplifting but it's hurting me so much I just can't stand it...I have to be true to myself and let it all out, I feel like a stone's being pushed onto my chest, and I won't feel better without addressing it somewhere, so please pardon me, okay?

I'd been drawing a lot of project moon's fanworks earlier, remember how there's been an incident regarding limbus company and the artist being fired and whatnot? and then there's this stuff going about how fingers are drawn in maplestory, I have no idea about the details but something happened in arknights?? too? I don't play that game but still, well I'd been seeing a lot of these stuff happen for the past couple of months and since I come from a country where that's directly being taken place, I saw a lot of it happen firsthand except for some recent ones, it made me to go terminate my twitter which I had for a decade (I think I had it since 2013 or 2014. not that it matters now anyway, but I miss my friends I had there so much.)

I'm really hurt. It pains me so much to see people dig up a tweet someone's made several years ago using some kind of data crawler or archive and decide to get the mass to bring down a person over it, a person has many sides, how can you determine how exactly someone's feeling about something? and how can it lead to things like death threats, how can people be so eager to make someone "pay", I understand that people can be frustrated over some things, but where's the limit of these things? I felt so threatened and scared and upset, nothing bad's happened to me in person. All I've experienced is kindness and I am very grateful about it, but I can't say I'm not affected. Seeing a lot of things going around secondhand's been enough to put me through a lot of stress.

Some of my videos regarding projmoon's works had been very popular, you may have seen them if you're in the fandom! I used to be very proud of it. Now I'm upset and scared and I am pained, why can't I be as proud of them as I used to be, I put all my love into it back then. It's a terrible feeling. I have mixed feelings about having it up on my channel.. there's a part of me who love my works a lot.. and is happy about it having been able to give a lot of people joy. People have been enjoying it, and they've all been so kind about it. And then there's another part of me wishing I never made it in the first place because it really hurts and I'm reminded of these incidents whenever I see them. Which is such a pity, since I did a really great job with those. I'm still getting new comments with people telling me they are so impressed and all I could think about now is the.. all the, I don't know what to call all that..,

I'm scared that people might come after me and accuse of me being someone I am not, try to dig up my old tweets and find me problematic for doing something unfavorable for the fandom(not that I've said or done anything harmful in the past, I'm sure of that..I've ALWAYS tried my best to spread love when I could. I am confident about that.) maybe I'm being full of myself. Maybe people don't care about me or my works as much and I'll be okay but I have no idea how things will play out. I've been holding out till now, no one can say I didn't try..the fact that I've been keeping my works up there, I've been trying very hard to be strong in my own way (but at the same time I also felt like a coward for remaining in the status quo)

earlier I saw yt recommending me that library of ruina is getting a switch edition and I get reminded of all these stuff, I can't bear it. It hurts me so much. I've been holding this all in by myself since last july, maybe I'll have to take the videos down to make me feel better, but I'm not sure if I'll be safe that way. I deleted my twitter and now it comes to this, I won't delete my tumblr though. I love my experience as yuseirra and I'm happy for all I've received. I wish I could continue feeling that way, I want to believe in people, I want to care for them, and I don't want to think people will try to come after me and hurt me over the choices I make. So let me be strong, whatever I do, I'll do my best to be that way.

Thank you very much!! Lots of love!!

[readbyred]

“And he’s cornering me in like a hunter does to an animal. This is not a sappy Casanova we’re taking about. Not a suitor you’re allowed to say ‘no’ to. He sees something and takes it. He’s not sighing dreamily at me, he wants to take me against my will. Or rather force me to give my whole self up to him! Do you even understand the foulness of his scheme?”

Literally obsessed with my limbus self insert! (And uh, my feelings for a certain character)

To anyone Polish that might be in the audience, this is my reimagining of Izabela. Yeah, Izabela Łęcka. With all those teens (largely teenage boys but that might be a skewed perception because of the friends I have) literally calling her a whore, I think the system failed us with this book. I get that the narrator is a self made businessman sigma, who can fight and help the community and all that. But my gosh, he was in his late 40s to early 50s, she was 25 at the oldest. And okay, some people make age gaps work. But not a creep like him

We are taught that she was cruel for ‘using him for money’ and all her sins are made out to be unforgivable. We cheer and write essays about the righteous end where she loses her father, house and is sent off to a nunnery because she “missed out on such a great guy”. Guys, are you okay? Let’s get a few facts straight

Iza’s canon stance on love

She didn’t want to marry. While used to being objectified and feeling like that kind of attention is a signifier of her worth, she didn’t want a husband. Nor love. The closest you see her to liking someone is when she’s giggling and kicking her feet at actors from her fav plays and cool musicians she likes or literally fawning over a fictionalised version of a Greek/Roman God (of whom she literally has ‘merch’). The only reason she’s even giving marriage the time of day is her father. A man who got them in such financial trouble that she would have to marry to give them any semblance of security. She showed her lack of interest in the main character several times and made it clear she wants nothing more than a husband who can give her family safety. It’s easier to understand the lack of loyalty if we remember that this marriage was never her choice. This wasn’t her happy ending, only a means to an end. So her fantasies of her fictional (well, the God isn’t but for the sake of my rant imagine this as more of a PJO version of Apollo) fave coming and sweeping her off her feet aren’t evil. We hate her because she was cynical and materialistic, but I don’t think any of those traits are a hatable offence?? Not to the degree we make it out to be

On their “romance”

Stasiek (Polish nickname from the name Stanislaw, bear with me) literally tried to make her father so dependent on him that it would ensure that her father (caring very little for her wellbeing to begin with) would basically sell her for a roof above his own head. Stanislaw’s plan was to get her no matter what and he tried to use their financial position to ensure she has to say yes. I know that’s ’so sigma of him to buy her all that stuff and help out the family’. But bro! He never bought her anything. He tried to buy her. That’s a bit different. She said she was unnerved, felt like a trapped animal as he stalked and watched her, trying to find any way to make her give in

“Oh, Kas, but she deserved it, she was a bitch!”

Where??? Was she proud? Yeah, no more than any other young girl who was made to believe that being the sole saviour of her family is a privilege. She was treated as a means to an end, a pretty object. With a price written above her head, she held that head high and used what she could to her advantage. She got shit from the author (btw that guy got rejected by a woman and then he wrote the book, you can see the picture, yeah?) for her escapism and being unrealistic, for that statue of Apollo and daydreaming. For seeing the world as a place made of wonders and magic. But my guy, what else did she have as a means of escapism from her bleak reality? She was constantly seen as nothing more than a lamb for slaughter, a puppet and a trophy. Due to being “poor” (at least for the society’s standards, she was well off so at least there I don’t have lots of sympathy, in terms of pitying her living conditions) people dismissed her unless they found her hot. She was talented. Passionate about languages and art. But this is a book about the new age sigmas who did local politics and dabbled in inventions (a world she wasn’t a part of due to actively being known for avoiding the stigma that came with women in those spaces; she was taught that she was a different kind of creature and to survive it was easier to avoid certain things in case they tarnish what worth she has left as a trophy meat). So we’re taught to believe she was dumber. That she was shallow for trying to make the most of the world she was thrust into and playing by the rules. She was cold and bitter upon closer inspection, mad at the mistreatment. The image she had of herself and the world forever warped by the way she was raised

And what about all the good the main character did for the community?

She doesn’t have to like him. Not even because he’s finding people jobs. If he was a good guy, he wouldn’t feel entitled to justify the way he treated her with his other good deeds. If a guy helps out at a homeless shelter I shouldn’t be a bitch for not liking him. And he didn’t do anything strictly for her. Only to ensure he was the highest bidder

Why was that wrong if she wasynt marrying for love?

Well, first of all he creeped her out. Yeah, yeah, we can go on and on about how she was an idiot for being uncomfortable with his scarred hands, but like, other than the authors bitterness seeping into the pages all I see is a young girl being very uncomfortable with the way his hands look because like???? My guy was fighting in an uprising and dealing with repercussions when she was, AT OLDEST, 10. Sure, I’m not shitting at all age gaps, but like, I think it wasn’t so terrible that she was put off by being reminded that this man was so much older. Also, a bigger thing, she was marrying to secure her family. In her ideal world, she’d be single (probably still objectified bc I don’t think she would heal and see herself as something more in that society), free to crush on her fictional fave and travel, talking to people and seeing new things. But she had to marry good. And in that context their relationship doesn’t make sense either! He came into money. Quick and with security that anyone would doubt. Yeah, we know he’s great at money and he’s the main character so it will all work out! Does she? Hell no! It’s not a matter of ‘he doesn’t come from a rich family so he’s not worth my time’. But girlie knew how easy it is to lose money, she was in her right to look for someone who, while she wouldn’t love, wouldn’t be a creep with doubtful financial security at best. If she wanted a good life for her family, she had to look for someone who wouldn’t be screwed if he was unable to work. Marrying into a rich family was never a fantasy, but a move she had to make to make sure she’s connected to people who will never leave her in a situation similar to the current state of things (I’m not fond of rich people and like fuck classism, but you have to be realistic about her motives, man)

What does she get in the end?

Her father gets sick and dies, not efore she gets shit for, for once, not being feminine enough to care for him in a good womanly fashion. Her whole life she was taught that the most gross, unattractive thing she can be is at work (bc of course sexism). Not that she hates it. That she will be seen as even more worthless if people see her working (I kinda see that like shaving? Idk I like it, but ik a lot of ppl who feel like they should do it bc the alternative makes th gross to others). You can uh, sort of imagine where that would leave her mentally in a situation like this. So, good for the man for showing she shouldn’t have kept denying him! Now she learns her lesson! (/sarcasm) Ah, and then her cousin takes over her estate. She’s seen talking with another man too much (that I might not remember but wasn’t that ALSO HER COUSIN???) so her last suitor drops her. The main character is heartbroken because he “got over the bitch” by hearing what she spoke about him in a language she hoped he wouldn’t understand, one he was learning for her. So he doesn’t want her either. The cousin sents her off to a nunnery and the readers cheer that that young, bratty girl got what she deserved for saying ‘no’ repeatedly. Like yeah, she gave in at one point, but Stasiek was so pushy I think a rock would give up, let alone a financially desperate girl. And yeah, it’s rude to talk behind his back but what about how no one took her complaints seriously? How she wanted to speak her mind in private to her cousin without the man she was stuck with listening. And honestly, if you want to hate her for her flaws, go ahead. But please, please be mad, furious even at him as well. Because if she is bad, then no good deeds should outshine his evils. Not my kind of approach, but at least that will be a bit more fair to both

Now that my rant is over, what did I do to put her into Limbus?

I wanna play around with a few ideas here. Mainly, her familiar relationships. In canon her father isn’t all that great but she’s loyal to him. For my own reasons I’ll throw in some mother-related trauma because this is my self insert, so I can. Many people falsely say that the book’s title ‘the doll’ is about her. It’s a common misconception, though completely untrue. However, I will definitely be playing around with that, as it might get on well with the themes that are already present. Those would be the loss of bodily autonomy and being dehumanised. She’s a Pavlov’s dog reimagined, a canine in a lab, who’s most desired when hooked up to machinery and obedient. With men gathered around, she performs all the steps of the routine she was trained for and any silly, feminine escapism is something she is mocked for by the older men observing. I will play it up for Limbus (because that setting kinda requires it) but I won’t have to do much. I wanna play around with her city being canonically vile and her desperately trying not to get to the financial point of having to interact with it, only to then fail. The gloves she wears are a meme in Poland at this point, so I’m keeping them. But, in the fashion in which the author treated her, I will do only one thing he might have approved of, which is adding to her misery. After she lost her home I believe her hands, still made of flesh (which is not the case for a chunk of her body as you can see) would also get scarred, a remained of a man she once tried to escape. With her parent being happy to do anything, even if it impaired her autonomy, to keep his canon gambling habit alive, I think her being made into a doll falls in line with canon. Not only is the world portrayed in Limbus intense, but even in canon she lives surrounded by inventors and great scientists, looking for opportunities to test their theories and improve everything. The last thing is that statue and her fascination with it that I want to underline. I have to make those selfship parallels work and an image of an attractive person that serves as a reminder of her humanity and dreams/goals is too canon to pass it up

This is not the last time I’m ranting about her but this is all for now 🐶🌸

[mossy-green-aka-ferrythem]

Ok so I decided to actually take part in that PM User Association survey. I feel as though my answer missed the point a bit and didn’t get how I truly feel across, but that’s fine. On one hand I think the User Association is quite silly. On the other hand I think it’s necessary, and it’s good to provide pressure on the company that ProjMoon has become.

Also, my feelings on the boycott are a bit complex. I think Limbus Company should be the one and only sole focus of a boycott, because it’s a Gacha and Gacha relies on a continuously active playerbase. Their past games are ones I’d say you’re absolutely free to play. Or not if you feel a bit of conflict over the company that made these games no longer representing the themes they so passionately wrote about, and what they were founded upon.

Ah well. I wish things didn’t end up the way they did. I’m sure there will come a day where all this makes more sense, and when we no longer only have to assume whatever’s going on.

One last thing I can add to this post is how much I would love to be able to finish Lobotomy Corporation, but am straight up unable to because the sheer feeling of revelry I get at the end is sodden upon by this entire situation. With how the CEO has not treated comic artists in a careful or professional manner, has forgotten about the work of translators, and most importantly, fired one of their lead artists the moment they were put under the slightest bit of pressure from the wrong crowd.

Do keep in mind the reason why I keep posting about this is sort of a cope. Lobotomy Corporation is one of those works of art that mean so, so much to me. Not only that, but I am certain Ruina will have similar, if not stronger sentimental power. But now, I’m not so sure. The corporate nature and sort of cynicism a situation like this must be approached with has kind of left me emotionally crestfallen.

I will not move on and feel a warmer appreciation for the arts this studio has so wonderfully created until a straight answer is given, or any legal matters are settled.

My hearts wings do not flutter for such works the way they did before, but I do believe, considering all the themes and emotions I absorbed from Lobotomy Corporation, that day will come again. Someday.

[smalldumbpigeon]

idk what haurchefant did to my brain like I'll think about Kaeya genshin and have a long psycho analysis of his character then I'll think of Limbus Canto 4 and have so many thoughts on it and how it changed my brain chemistry and how much it feels like it was talking directly too me but then ill think about haurchefant and my brain just turns into Swiss cheese and ill say "I miss my wife tails" and my friends will be like oh they're thinking about him again

[offshore-brinicle]

Yi Sang a butterfly with how a flap of his Wings caused like 700 events

You heard of The Butterfly Effect, now get ready for The Crow Effect

...Speaking of butterflies, because that made me laugh and I like having opportunities to ramble because when left to my own devices my head is all over the place, I've been wanting to talk about Rim for a while. So it's been brought up for a while he's based on another irl author (who was also a literary critic) Kim Kirim, the wiki has a pretty concise summary of his history having also being abducted and dissapearing during the Korean War, but it's also missing some details in how he relates to the real Yi Sang which might indicate his role in Limbus.

The wiki skips out on mentioning that in real life, Kim Kirim and the real Yi Sang were very close friends much like Park Tae-Won (Gubo) and Gim Yujeong (Dongbaek) though it doesn't seem like there is as much of a personal connection between Rim and Limbus!Yi Sang from what we saw in the play and their very brief interaction in Canto V.

(and for the record irl Dongrang and Yi Sang seem to have had no specific relationship beyond belonging to the same organization, their dynamic and specific friendship was only added to the Limbus characters for narrative purposes which I find hilarious)

Either way, it is thanks to Kim Kirim that a lot of things about Yi Sang are known to the public, from one of the most popular stories about how he decided his penname to a lot of details about his death, having even written a memoir after his passing, I did some quick digging through Korean internet and found out some very interesting things about it, first this more formalized article which talks more about Kirim's education which tells us some about his ideals as a writer, though since I do not know Korean I can only offer the automatic translated version.

(original link: Kim Ki-rim, a poet who dreamed of a new literary revolution | Read in Gwanghwamun Walk Walk Feel (kyobostory.co.kr))

Then we go unto his actual thoughts about Yi Sang, also mentioned at the end of this article but go much more in-depth in the following one (which sadly has a pretty broken translation but hopefully it's comprehensive enough through context clues)

(original article link: Seven letters to the poet he admired the most (brunch.co.kr)))

And then we get onto this very interesting interpretation of The Sea and The Butterfly as also being inspired by grief over Yi Sang's death

Seeing this reality it makes an odd contrast with how cold and indifferent Rim is portrayed as in Limbus, both in the play flashbacks and his Canto V appearance, but if the writers are working with the interpretation of The Sea and The Butterfly as being symbolic of Yi Sang's death it also raises a lot of questions about Demian's group, since Demian is also reminiscent of the snake from The Little Prince which is also representative of death but I might have to make a full post about that. If I remember to

Either way thanks for giving me excuses to remember to share information

[pobopolybius]

You know. I don't get why people portray Kromer as an abusive bully prior to the basement thing and all that.

Yes, in the book, Kromer was just that to Sinclair, but in Limbus, prior to the basement and especially prior to her killing his family, Sinclair genuinely saw her as a friend, and that's why he felt so betrayed over everything Kromer wound up doing.

She built trust with him, she wouldn't be shoving him around and harassing him to do that. More power to your "I want to be bullied" kinks and all but the fact people started accepting that as canon rubs me the wrong way bc it erases the kind of relationship they actually had, between a lamb who found trust in a wolf who promised him greatness. The silent manipulation type where you think everything is under control.

And I think that aspect of them is what makes Kromer and Sinclair so interesting. She didn't ruin him by bullying him, she ruined him by giving him everything he ever wanted, someone he could confide in, and then stripping it all away. THAT'S what makes them so good.

This is a pointless ramble abt my feelinfs on krosin no need to take anything seriously dw I'm just AHGGGG I MISS WHEN PEOPLE DIDNT TAKE THEM AND TURN THEM INTO NOTHING BUT BULLYING FETISH OCS... WHERE DID THEIR CHARACTER GO... WHERE DID KROMER'S CHARACTER GO... SHE'S NOT A SOFT CUTESY MEAN PRINCESS MOMMY BULLY SHE'S A WEIRD FREAK THAT IS A GENUINELY BAD PERSON... AND THATS WHAT MAKES HER HOT.......