Narration starts by establishing where we are, which would be about 40 km/24.9 mi from the eastern edge of Orient City in a wasteland within Southern Kanto. Barrel is taunting some Kaibutsu into running after him, and they roar as they do so. After a moment, Barrel says there's enough gathered together, then signals to Akashi and Gomeisa. Akashi throws out his finishing move, and Gomeisa apologizes to the monsters as he assists by creating a tornado to combine with Akashi's attack, creating a fire tornado. The Kaibutsu are drawn into the twister one by one, and by the time the twister dies out the monsters have all burst into light particles that rise into the sky. You declare victory and thank everyone for their work or say you guys managed to get through the battle.
Akashi cheers, saying he was worried earlier when five of them turned up at once, but things worked out because Barrel drew their attention away. Gomeisa apologizes to the monsters again, though he also says it couldn't be helped. Akashi asks Gomeisa if he's okay since he looks tired to him, but Gomeisa says he's okay and apologizes for worrying him. Barrel also worries for Gomeisa.
Gomeisa then asks if everyone's okay, saying he'll heal everyone while he's still transformed. More Kaibutsu show up and interrupt though, which Mokdai points out in shock. Akashi gets irritated by their appearance and says he'll do something this time, but Barrel rushes ahead to draw aggro again. He deliberately fires at the monsters' feet, which pisses them off into focusing on him. It turns out there are more of them than he expected though. Akashi calls him an idiot, then tells Gomeisa they're going in to support him.
Mokdai turns to you and asks if it seems like Barrel is jumping out at random to you. He does admit that making himself a decoy is making it easier on Akashi and Gomeisa though. You agree or stay quiet. Some time later, Barrel says it was an easy fight, but Gomeisa points out he's pretty beat and heals him. Barrel seems a little surprised, but he says it's expected to take some damage with that many of them on his tail. He assures Gomeisa that he's a tough guy who's still full of energy, so he suggests hurrying on. Gomeisa is doubtful but decides to accept it. Akashi looks on in concern.
Title card pops up, and this chapter is called To Point Yh.
Back to the story, the patrol car rattles as Barrel drives onward. The earth tone highway seems to continue on for forever, and the dull unchanging scenery invites sleepiness whether you like it or not. Mokdai is asleep, as is Gomeisa who is sleep talking about how much sun there is. Akashi sighs about how carefree they are, then tells Mokdai he'll catch a cold if he sleeps with his stomach exposed as he moves to cover him up. You comment on how comfortably they're sleeping, say you've almost realized something, or say you're feeling sleepy too.
Barrel laughs, saying they were up all night then had to stay up through a bunch of battles. Anyone would be tired in that case. If you guys want to sleep too, Barrel says you should do so now since it'll take an hour or two to reach your destination. Akashi asks if Barrel is okay since he's going to be driving the car. Barrel insists he's fine, though all the shaking means he needs to concentrate. Then again there isn't any oncoming traffic, pedestrians, or traffic control to worry about either. But then a large pop and crash sound blows up and the car starts tilting to one side.
Gomeisa is shaken awake naturally, and he asks what happened. Barrel wonders if the car broke down, and the party piles out to take a look what happened. As it turns out, the front right wheel has popped flat, which Mokdai points out. It also seems to be the only damaged tire at least. Akashi notices that there's a lot of sharp metal fragments and rocks all over the place, so it wasn't that weird that the tire popped. Mokdai asks Barrel if there's a spare tire in the car, and Barrel answers that there is, along with the tools for a tire replacement in the trunk.
Akashi suggests they get on with the tire change, then says he and Mokdai can do it while Barrel takes a break. Barrel tries to protest this since he's the driver, but Akashi insists since he'll be driving again. He also points out that Barrel was always moving ahead in their earlier battles, so he'd have to be tired. Gomeisa also volunteers to help out, so Mokdai says they can do so together and asks if he knows how to use a jack. Gomeisa however doesn't know what a jack even is, so Mokdai relegates him to just carrying the tire.
Akashi, Mokdai, and Gomeisa get to work on changing out the tire, and you either lament that there wasn't room for you to help, or you decide to sit down too. There happens to be a big rock nearby, and you decide to sit in its shade. Barrel is also already there, sitting with something in his mouth that looks like a cigar. He notices and asks if you don't have anything to do either, so he invites you to sit with him. You either express surprise that he smokes or ask if he's smoking a cigar.
Barrel takes a moment to understand what you mean, then offers you one as well. He pulls out a bag with more of the stuff inside, and the bag has Super Thick Jerky written on it. Barrel says he likes chewy things, so he's always carrying some around as snacks. You either observe that it's jerky, comment that it's dog-like treat, or ask about how thick it is. B has Barrel denying that he's a dog, but he admits he does resemble one. Besides that, he'd rather you call him a wolf instead because it's cooler. In C, Barrel says thicker is better because it then feels nicer to have in your mouth. It'll get softer when you suck on it, and then you can enjoy the taste.
Anyways, you take a seat next to Barrel and look out into the vast empty wasteland. The only sounds you hear is the wind, and the only scent is the scent of the soil. There are no traces that there was ever people here. Just land and sky as far as the eye can see. You comment on the emptiness and ask if this really is Kanto. Barrel says yes and is confused why you're so surprised. He asks you about being a resident in Orient City since everyone should know that. Narration agrees with Barrel, saying that One Part of you knows for a fact that this place is empty. But another part of you has an indescribable sensation at looking all this. You either say he's right or wonder why you thought it was strange.
Barrel says you're mysterious, saying that sometimes you give off this enigmatic aura but you still seem reliable and steady. If a battle suddenly happens, he really can count on you. He comments on understanding why Akashi and the others care about you so much. You express some doubt about that, say it's not that deep, or say he can care about you too like that. C has Barrel laugh and accept the suggestion.
Barrel decides to ask if you'll listen to him talk for a bit, and he looks off to the distance narrowing his eyes like he's feeling nostalgic for somewhere far to the east past the sea. He drops the civil servant pronoun to talk more personally about how in his hometown, Westerns are seen as so old that no one bothers to care about them. If anything there were people that hated them, calling them a microcosm of a gun society, or barbaric and violent. There were even parents who were hesitant to show them to children, worried that they would start mimicking the movies.
But whatever society thought of Westerns, Barrel thought the sheriffs in those movies as simply cool. They were what inspired him to be a heroic adult who could risk his life for the justice he believes in. When he tried to enter the police or military back home, his parents and teachers were against it. He fought with them, and eventually he moved to Japan. The only one of his relatives he can contact at this point is his grandmother. He laughs, but you pick up on a sense of loneliness from him. You either go oh at his story, or you point out that Japan doesn't let citizens have guns either. B has Barrel says he knows, but he was just thinking of getting away from his family at the time.
Either way, Barrel says he knows Japan doesn't let just anyone have a gun. He says that anyone who holds a gun must be prepared to carry the responsibility for having it, and his gunlock would be the weight of justice. Due to that and his job as a protector of the people, he wants to defend people with his gun. Barrel then takes out the stun gun he has from his holster and poses with it. Narration describes the gun as being gun-shaped, but it doesn't actually have a muzzle. It just shoots bolts of electricity. Barrel then talks about wanting to hold a gun to save people like Gomeisa who are afraid of fighting, and to keep away the people who would threaten them. While it may look forced, he feels that this current incident is a mission he put upon himself. You remark that that must be why he charged out in front earlier.
Barrel says his actions have caused Akashi and the others to fuss over him, which he feels ashamed about. He really was trying to be nonchalant about his protecting of the party, but now it seems like he pushed himself too much. You tell him you guys were fighting together, so of course you guys would notice. He admits the point, embarrassed. You then lead into your next point with either "but..." or "because of that..." which breaks into smaller dialogue trees.
If you start with "but," Barrel looks at you confused. You either say his determination got through to you, ask him to not forget how he feels, or say you think he's cool. In A, he's surprised then thanks you. In B, Barrel is surprised but says okay. In C, Barrel is taken aback but thanks you, blushing. Alternatively, if you start with "because of that," you either tell him he should push himself so hard, tell him to not make you guys worry over him so much, or say he looked cool. The reactions pretty much map the same for the other branch, only with less surprise in A and B.
At this point, Akashi yells over to you guys that the tire has been changed, so you guys can keep going whenever. Barrel notes that break time is over, so he suggests heading to where Procy is right away. He stands back up and exhales through his nose, then turns to you with a smile. He puts his civil servant pronoun back on as he says he'll be counting on you for everything coming up, and you respond affirmatively.
Time passes to the point where you guys reach a ruined city, an hour and a half later, The buildings are all damaged, but the road pavement is still okay. You ask if this is Point Yh, and Barrel says it seems to be at least. The distance you guys drove suggests that this is the place too. Mokdai notes that it looks like it used to a big city with lots of tall buildings and wide roads. Akashi says it looks awful and asks if the Kaibutsu did all this.
The car rattles on as you look outside. For an instant, your vision flickers. What you then see is what the city apparently looked like before it was destroyed. Many people are running around trying to escape, and there are giant Kaibutsu that fill your field of vision. They chomp down, biting even into the buildings and streets as they eat people. A sign left behind gradually slips, eventually falling over, hiding the name of the place. You talk out loud about the city itself getting eaten and becoming completely forgotten, which prompts Akashi to ask you what's wrong. When you look again, you see the city in its present ruined state. You express confusion and say you saw something just now. Gomeisa however notices something and points forward as he calls for the car to stop.
What Gomeisa caught sight of is a tiny motorbike. It has a sidecar attached to it, with several bags that seem to be travel supplies laying in it. Gomeisa says it's Procy's bike. He's always riding it, but it suddenly disappeared. Akashi notes that it looks pretty fancy and is surprised by that. Mokdai says it does look to be Procy's size, then asks if that means he drove it all the way here. Barrel notes that the engine is still warm, which means he should be somewhere nearby in all likelihood. You excitedly ask if he's sure and suggest splitting up to look for him. Akashi however points out that the place is big, so you guys could get lost.
Rumbling soon catches that party's attention, and Kaibutsu start appearing to Mokdai's panic. Barrel gets angry at the interruption since you guys just found a clue, saying he won't show mercy if they get in the way. Akashi says you guys will just have to do it, then asks you for the transformation. You say okay and tell everyone that you're counting on them. Mokdai says the camera is set, so the live can start. Gomeisa talks about finally getting closer to Procy, so he doesn't want to give up. He apologizes to the Kaibutsu, asking them to not get in the way, and the episode battle begins as they roar. More story happens after that.
After the battle, things pick up with the Kaibutsu bursting into light. Akashi says you guys should leave now to look for Procy before more show up, but he happens to be too late on that as bigger monsters show up. Gomeisa is a bit alarmed at how many of them there are and wonders if they've been angered. The monsters seem aggravated to you too. One of them swings with its arms, and Barrel reacts in horror to it scratching into the top half of the car he borrowed. Mokdai says that if they can touch things on this side, then there must be full grown Kaibutsu among them. Akashi says you guys are at a disadvantage and turns to you for ideas. You say you guys should run and try to lose them, but you'd like to defeat them if possible.
Mokdai points out that something is behind you, and when you turn to look there are more Kaibutsu there too. You yell that you guys are surrounded. Narration confirms that there are monsters in every direction. As they approach, Barrel says he'll draw them off again, so you guys should run while he does so. Gomeisa tries to argue the point, as does Akashi who points out there's too many for Barrel to get away from. Barrel says that if he gets eaten, then there was no other option. Akashi calls him an idiot as he tries to argue some more, but then another voice calls out as a flash and a mighty blow slams against one of the monster's head.
You react in surprise to what happened, and Mokdai asks if Barrel shot the thing. Barrel says it wasn't him, but Gomeisa recognizes the attack. A small silhouette stands before you, stamping a hammer besides them. He talks about thinking there was another swarm happening, only to find the monsters attacking someone again. He then challenges the Kaibutsu to come after him instead, and the episode ends with you calling Procy's name.
Thanks for the translation
ReplyDelete