Disaster Report Diaries (Zettai Zetsumei Toshi 3) Part Four

This is my exploration of the Disaster Report series where I will chronicle my playthrough like a text-based Let’s Play. Now let’s continue Zettai Zetsumei Toshi 3: Kowareyuku Machi to Kanojo no Uta...

Rina Makimura, Saki Honjou and newcomer Ayami Hazuki had just exited the Hotel High Urban, having rescued the teen…

A short distance away — literally metres — was the entrance to an underground mall. Saki felt certain that there would be a pharmacy within, and supplies could be found to disinfect Ayami’s wound. She was ready to go by herself, but I offered to go instead. Saki compromised by agreeing to let me accompany her, and I received Disaster Manual 37: Underground Mall, which stated they weren’t earthquake resistant, and though they could withstand more of a shock, their danger came from broken glass, lack of light, and other human beings.

We rested on a bench beside the underground entrance, then, at 11:18 AM, Saki and I went down into Lagoon Mall. Bits of the ground were missing, other sections had raised up to create obstacles, and frequent tremors shook us around. I found and put on a Newsboy Cap, wanting something to protect my head, then picked up a Battery. I put that in my Flashlight and obtained Disaster Manual 74: Flashlights, saying you should keep batteries on you and use LED flashlights.

After hopping a gap and some climbing, I found a Catfish Compass and a copy of Chase Weekly before having a quick rest on a nearby bench. The magazine talked about Hazuki Construction, the company which built Central Island, and how it had grown surprisingly rapidly alongside its ties with the Morita Group, despite its near bankruptcy.

There was a crack in the ground too large to jump across, so Saki and I carried a ladder over and used it as a platform. An insurmountable gap was ahead, meaning that we had to take a thin ledge to the left, though I first picked up a Filter and a Veil. I fitted the Filter to my Smoke Mask, creating a Smoke Mask Plus, which I kept equipped.

After the ledge, a Denim Skirt was on the raised ground, so I grabbed that before climbing up around the corner with the aid of a recycling bin, which I moved to aid my climb. Following the path, we reached the pharmacy just in time for Ayami to catch up to us! She said that she didn’t want to cause trouble, so seemingly decided that disobeying what she was told because of her injury was the best way to do that.

Saki reminded us that we needed Disinfectant and a Bandage so we entered Hayami Pharmacy. It was a complete mess inside, but after resting on a bench I quickly found what Saki wanted, obtaining Disaster Manual 75: Bandages (which just explained what a bandage does). I also picked up a Yellow Suit, a Tophat (which looked more like a trilby), an Erikage Compass, Pink Mesh Tights, and a Woman’s Wig. Finally, grabbing a Sports Drink also gave me Disaster Manual 54: Sugar Intake, which said to consume sugar and salt for stamina, but to beware that doing so would increase your need for water.

Saki left something on the counter, stating that we needed to pay for what we had taken. This triggered Disaster Manual 38: Unmanned Stores, explaining how you should always leave a note saying what you had taken, your name and number, and a declaration that you intended to pay later. But that only counted if the store was unmanned and it was during an emergency situation.

I rested again before we left, and almost as soon as we re-entered Lagoon Mall, a tremor struck! It wasn’t too bad, but it ruptured some gas pipes, causing the area to begin filling with gas! I quickly read Disaster Manual 39: Danger of Gas Leakage (lack of ventilation and gas is bad) before legging it back the way we had come! Tremors kept striking, causing us to have to stop for a moment, to prevent falling over, but making it across the gaps was thankfully perfectly safe.

We ran upstairs to the street in front of Hotel High Urban just as the mall collapsed… and then exploded! It flung Saki and me out into the street, but I had lost sight of Ayami and feared the worst, until I heard her talking to someone as I regained consciousness. Saki and I got up and found the man in the purple suit, whom we suspected of shooting Morita. Ayami seemed to know him, and explained that we had helped her out.

Speaking to the man, we were told that he was Detective Hikawa and knew Ayami because of her mother. He also denied killing Morita, having just found the body after hearing the gunshots, and they both got cagey when asked who “that man” was, who they were discussing as we awoke. He told us to head to the shelter and to avoid “suspicious characters”, then wandered off.

Saki suddenly realised that our Ayami Hazuki must be the daughter of the CEO of Hazuki Construction, which she confirmed before Saki got over it and patched her up. Ayami then announced that she had to leave, and not head to the shelter with us. Saki asked me to hand over some food, so I agreed, so long as Saki said it was necessary.

While I hadn’t taken recent stock of our supplies, I was pretty sure that we only had two bottles of water and the Sports Drink I’d just picked up, as I’d neglected to take the Orange earlier. The teen gave me Ayami’s Pendant as thanks, then left. As she walked away, Saki talked about how Hazuki Construction had been in the news for embezzling funds, and the “suicide” of an assistant that I had overheard being spoken of on the bus. Quite what Saki thought Ayami might have had to do with it, she kept to herself. We rested on a bench, then continued on our way.

I picked up a Ten-Gallon Hat, a Stump Compass, a Silver Shirt outfit (which I equipped, then changed my hat for the Tophat), and a White Tee outfit before we went on to Toudai Street. The time was 12:23 pm, so it was 29 hours since the earthquake hit.

Speaking of which, a tremor caused the road behind us to crack and rise up, which was becoming a frequent occurrence: something blocking our route back the way that we had come. I was given Disaster Manual 24: Cracks in the Road, which cautioned against use of cars due to liquefaction causing these large cracks in the road.

Checking the immediate area, which had a video store, a café and a supermarket, I picked up a Headband, a Fleming Compass, a Nylon Blouse outfit, a Hard Hat, and a copy of Novel Weekly [1]. That just had the final serialisation part for the book Dawn of Passion, which appeared to be about boxing. We rested, then went on to the Aoi Residential Area, where Saki heard someone speaking and ran off to where she heard it.

I, however, explored a little and picked up a Shoulder Knit outfit, a Yellow Tee Outfit, an Officer’s Cap, and a Bicycle Compass before joining Saki at a collapsed building. A mother and child were trapped by a fallen fence in front and rubble behind, despite them being told “a while back” by a member of the Japan Self-Defense Forces that help would arrive. The child said that they were hungry, so I offered to go and find some food for them — it was a pity that all of my choices with Ayami would have resulted in all of my food being gone. I was given Disaster Manual 27: Being Trapped which just restated what Disaster Manual 18: Call for Help had said. Disaster Manual 76: Evacuation with Children, however, warned that children would be more affected by the stress of a disaster than you might think, so required extra care.

As we had just passed a supermarket, I went back down the street to find a way inside, and had a quick rest on the bench. Unfortunately, the front door was buried in rubble, and the back door was locked with no sign of a key…