fujimaru | Palace Game 6/3

Palace Game 6/3

The Dreamer In The Grand Temple
Humanity Foundation Value: ????

What has been will be again,
what has been done will be done again;
there is nothing new under the sun.

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[:(

he lingers before the family portrait for a few long moments before trying to approach the figure from sphinx]

Surprise! It's Da Vinci!

She smiles at him when he approaches, giving him a little wave. "So! You've made it here, huh? I guess I shouldn't be too surprised."

There didn't seem to be any alternative. I suppose you're not actually yourself? Some sort of mental phantom?

"You could call me a memory, if you like," she says brightly. "I'm not real in the way that the one you've spoken to is, but I'm real in that I'm part of what Ritsuka remembers. I can't move around as freely as I once did."

You're trapped here? Does it bother you?

"Not in particular." Her smile gentles a little. "My situation is a unique one. You'll find it's the same for the other two, as well."

Do you know how we can help Ritsuka?

"...You'll have to find the right key." She sounds sympathetic, at least. "No one in this gallery can leave it, but I know he wouldn't have hidden it here in the first place. Knowing him, it'll be a ring of some sort. If you can find it, you'll find her."

A ring.

Can you tell me anything about—him?

"Him? Ah." Her expression goes more solemn now. "There are seven concepts that we could call 'Evils of Humanity,' though they aren't inherently evil, exactly. Think of them more as... obstacles that humanity needs to overcome, if they mean to advance as a species. They're sins that are born from and of humans, and will always exist alongside humans.

"His would be the sin of 'Pity.' If you've spoken to him, I'm sure you've noticed."

Does he have a name?

"Goetia. The Beast of Pity, and the King of Men." Her lips twist in a smile that is more annoyed than anything else. "He might call himself the King of Mages, but that title wasn't really his to own."

I doubt that title could be almost anyone's to own.

Thank you. Is there anything else I should do in this gallery before I try and find that ring?

"Oh, you'd be surprised." She glances down the hall a little, at the man who is standing a few paintings down, who appears to be doing his best to not eavesdrop. "But this gallery is just memories. They're the things that can't grow or change--only what's happened."

I feel intrusive being here, then. Do you think Ritsuka would want me out?

"I think she'd be more embarrassed than upset to find you here," Da Vinci says dryly. "The three of us aside, these are the memories of her exploits. So you won't find any clues here, but you'll at least get some interesting viewing, if that's what you want."

. . . No. That wouldn't be right. She'll tell me anything she wants me to know; I shouldn't be here much longer.

[he nods at da vinci—thank you—and approaches the eavesdropping man.]

He's a pleasant-looking young man, though he looks vaguely embarrassed to have been caught out, straightening up as Des approaches.

"Ah--yes? Can I help you?"

I just want to know if you have any advice. If you might know where the ring could be.

The man pauses, giving him a long, careful look.

"...Well. It's his ring, and he hid it, but it's in Ritsuka's heart. Where would a teenaged girl hide something? Think about that."

Because I'm so privy to what teenage girls think.

All right. That helps a little; thank you.

The man laughs--a commiserating sound--and nods, waving him off.

He can either go back the way he came, or he can head to the other end of the gallery.

[he goes back and tries the second door.]

The door opens.

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Palace Game 6/3

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