Hell's Hot Paradise Epilogue

Someone once said that to live is to pile upon more impurity onto yourself. There are plenty of times where you must choose between the needs of the many and the needs of the one. And there are plenty of times where you are forced to choose whether to do something for yourself or to do something for someone else. There are plenty of times where you don't have the time to consider which you'd choose to do, or where the important choices won't make it in time.

When a choice is presented to you, you may feel as though you are unable to choose. You might have chosen one thing or you might have chosen another, but neither gets selected. Every time that happens, you get hurt and worry. You may choose regardless, but you press on holding doubts as to whether your choice was right. Eventually, you may start thinking of those regrets as a part of you. You believe that you have done something unpardonable, so you believe the sin of it is something that can't be separated from you. When that impurity sticks to you, you believe that you must be that way.

However, this also is just another belief you may be caught up in. Maybe living is sinning, but that doesn't mean you have to carry it forever. If you want to, you can take it along. Or you could set it down and leave it behind. Onamuji then takes over narration to welcome you to the hot springs town of hell and asks how your stay was. You do look fatigued to have gotten so far, but he asks if you've managed to get some of the grime off yourself. But it's about time for you to go, isn't it? Time flies when you're having fun, so be careful on your way back. Sarutahiko then throws in a line about how he'll move forward from there.

Title card pops up, and the epilogue is titled The Days Returning to Life

Scene then tunes over at the casino where Xolotl looks at the clock and says it's time for him to go or else he'll be late for his meeting. He then turns to Hakumen saying he's taken the day off and is about to go. Hakumen casually tells him to go and not be late. It's noted that Xolotl looks more cheerful and confident than he has before, and Xolotl asks if Hakumen will be okay with him gone. Hakumen finds this funny, assuring him there's no need to worry since she'll be going to a beauty salon. Just before Xolotl leaves though, Hakumen decides to tell him he's done good. Xolotl is taken aback at this and asks if she remembers what happened in Hell. Hakumen cocks her head to the side and says she doesn't know what he means. She just thought it'd be fine to compliment him once in a while. Xolotl accepts this as he thanks her, saying working hard was worth it. Hakumen thinks he's being weird, but shrugs it off as she heads out herself.

Scene then shifts to the police station where Daikoku is ending training drills for the day and tells everyone they did well. Tajikarao thanks him and decides to invite him to socialize. Daikoku declines saying he has something he can't step away from, though he admits it is just going to a bathhouse with some friends. He does encourage Tajikarao to ask him again another time, saying that maybe he'll join then if he feels like it. Tajikarao accepts this and asks Daikoku be careful on his way over.

Daikoku leaves the station, and it turns out Mineaki is standing outside waiting for him. Daikoku jokes that Mineaki must be excited to come get him, but Mineaki says he's here to make sure he shows up and not disappoint Zhurong. Daikoku comments on Mineaki not trusting him despite all he did to help during the incident, and he brings up he could have just ignored everything and escaped on his own. Mineaki sighs at this, but then suggests they talk as they walk, and the two of them seem to have their own fun as they verbally snipe at each other the whole way.

Scene shifts again over to the Berserkers' arena where Kamui is sparring with Xolotl. Xolotl concedes the fight when Kamui pulls out his NP with a kick at him, noting how strong Kamui is. Kamui however say it was a good training match for himself too, and he says Xolotl can ask him to spar whenever he likes as he refers to him as a close friend. The fight was a lot more hardcore than sparring would imply, so Kamui suggests taking a break for the time being. Xolotl thanks him, then asks if Kamui changed in some way. Kamui says he might have after a moment, saying it's thanks to Xolotl.

Narration talks about how Kamui has always carried the guilt and the past where he had sent the children he raised to their deaths. He thought he'd never be forgiven for it as long as he lived. But if he still couldn't be forgiven after death, then the same thing would've happened to the children he raised again. If there is a next time, then he's thought about how he wants to share his fate with them until his end comes. If that wish were to come true, then that may be the time when he sees what comes next and moves on as well.

Scene then shifts to your end as you reach Asakusa with Zhurong, who nods about how nice the streets there are and how it reminds him of Hourai. You either wave Zhurong over to where you are, say you like Asakusa's streets too, or comment on him being there so quick. Zhurong is looking around at things through his camera, and he greets you and says it's been a while. He notes himself it hasn't actually been that long though, and while he does see you at school every day it just felt like a while after not seeing you for a bit. Zhurong thanks you for coming with him today, and he's heard the rest of the party will be there soon.

You ask Zhurong if it's okay for him to take pictures with his camera, so Zhurong tells you Mineaki told him about the Kamata Crafters. They took a look at his camera and modded it so it won't activate on its own anymore. He looks happy as he holds his camera up, and it's been a few days since the incident has happened. The rumors of Awakage-sama have died down too, like it was never a thing to begin with. At the same time, the only ones who seem to remember what happened at Hell is the party.

You wonder aloud why only you guys remember what had happened. Zhurong says he gets the feeling that there's a commonality between everyone who remembers, which he theorizes is everyone carrying someone within themselves who lent them power. He's not sure if it's actually correct, but that's what he tells you. Narration talks about how the Color Out of Space absorbed the roles and powers that defined their lives from the people of Tokyo. But even among those people were those who had another person living within themselves, and maybe they allowed you guys to remember.

Zhurong figures you must have someone within you who isn't actually you. He himself has Zhurong, and while he can't delineate himself from him now, he hopes that he can thank him one day. You say it'd be nice to talk to them one day, say you don't get the feeling at all, or consider talking to Solomon later on. Zhurong says it's thanks to Zhurong that he can be together with everyone, and narration talks about how Colorong absorbed and fused with Zhurong and gained a life he could live in Tokyo. He can't see where the two of them separate yet, but he hopes that he one day will. It'd be nice if one day the Color Out of Space will get his own body, then say thank you and goodbye to Zhurong. Zhurong then suggests that you guys go inside the bathhouse since that's where you're all meeting. He's also finished up his newspaper article and wants to show Sarutahiko, and so he runs off ahead.

Once you two are at the bathhouse, Zhurong calls out to Sarutahiko. Sarutahiko greets him and notes he's earlier than the agreed upon time. Zhurong laughs and says he wanted to show him his finished article. He's all smiles as he hands it over, but Sarutahiko doesn't pick it up. You ask Sarutahiko if he's alright since you notice he's pale and shaking. Sarutahiko admits he's scared of looking at it and seeing there's stuff written about people trashing the place because of him. Zhurong continues smiling and assures him it's fine as he says he knows how great Sarutahiko is.

Sarutahiko still won't take the newspaper, which prompts the oni running the place to come down from the attendant's booth to nag at him. The oni asks if Sarutahiko has that little faith in his work, but Sarutahiko brings up the boss called him an incompetent doofus before. The oni gets exasperated at this, denying he said that and saying Sarutahiko misheard him. Sarutahiko insists he totally said it as he's not the type to just forget anything said about him.

The argument goes on for a bit before the boss oni visibly seems to remember something. Sarutahiko jumps at this and says he wasn't lying about. The oni says he wasn't calling him a liar, but he asks if Sarutahiko remembers what he said after that. Sarutahiko falters at this question as he admits he didn't because of the slander. The oni teases him about running away and asks if he cried like a little baby, so Sarutahiko blushes like mad as he admits he did and hid out back to do so. He still wanted to repay the boss for taking him in though, so he did his best to get his approval.

Seeing Sarutahiko ball his fists up in frustration makes the boss oni awkwardly scratch underneath his nose, calling him a dope as he says he and all the customers know about his efforts. He points at Zhurong's newspaper, which drives Sarutahiko to finally open up if reluctantly so. There are some comments written in about how the bathhouse has a homey feeling and the bath house attendant there working so hard inspires them to try harder too. Another person says Sarutahiko talked to them a lot there, and they always have fun when he does.

The boss oni says that if he were to hand over the business to someone else, Sarutahiko's the only person he can think of to do so. He just never said so out loud before because he's sure Sarutahiko would have let it go to his head. The oni's voice then drops to a whisper as he tells Sarutahiko to stop looking so sad as he thanks him for everything. He quickly walks off to his post to hide his embarrassment, and it doesn't take too long before Sarutahiko and Zhurong to start sniffling and ugly crying.

You either express exasperation at how much the two cry, try to comfort them, or say Onamuji would be worried if he saw them now. Sarutahiko gets embarrassed and tells you to not look at him, claiming he got something into his eyes. Zhurong on the other hand wails and says he's glad for Sarutahiko, and everyone watches with mild smiles on their faces as they wait for the two to stop.

Zhurong eventually remembers something and asks if Sarutahiko looked at the whole article and found that special message for him. He points to a space in the paper where a brief comment from Onamuji is inserted: "I'm glad you were here. Let's meet again. Your proud friend, Onamuji" Zhurong says he managed to get it from Onamuji just before they came back. He excitedly asks Sarutahiko is surprised, only to be surprised himself when Sarutahiko grabs him in a hug. Zhurong tries getting Sarutahiko to let him go by saying it's starting to hurt, so Sarutahiko promises to take him somewhere with some good food next time. Zhurong cheers at this and thanks him, but Sarutahiko says it should be him that's thanking Zhurong.

As the two awkwardly tell each other how they feel, Mineaki and the others arrive at the bath house. He comments on the three of you being here already and is glad to see you guys are okay. Daikoku compliments the place and notes that Sarutahiko's presence is a sign of how closely the cleaning is done. Kamui greets Zhurong, asking how he is and noting that he probably doesn't need to worry since he seems fine. Xolotl suggests that they take a group picture with Zhurong's camera since they're all there. The party is reunited after the hell incident, and Sarutahiko clears his throat before officially welcoming everyone to the bath house. The End.