Luke's Sweet Chapter 03-05
Overview
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Guide
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Script
Indoors
Careful Consideration - Find Aaron with Luke and discuss the investigation.
When you arrive at the office in the hospital, Aaron opens the door and gestures for you to come inside for a chat.
However, once inside, Luke doesn't sit down. He leans against the window frame with his chin in his hand and thinks.
Luke: Based on what we've uncovered, I think there are two possibilities as to why Tony went to find Stephens.
You: I'm all ears.
Luke: One is that he heard sounds from where Rickmon was, but he didn't dare go over there.
Luke: So he waited until the perpetrators who beat up Rickmon were gone. Then, he found Stephens and told him about the situation.
You: But why did he choose to conceal his presence and make up an excuse to ask Stephens to keep everything a secret? Why didn't he just tell Stephens that there was a fight in the alleyway?
As you listen to Luke's hypothesis, you try to reason and see if he missed anything. This is the tacit understanding you two have with each other.
Standing off to the side, Aaron joins the conversation as well.
Aaron Yishmir: Maybe he was concerned about retaliation from those who assaulted Rickmon?
Luke glances at Aaron and mercilessly refutes the other man's hypothesis.
Luke: That doesn't make sense. If he was truly concerned about retaliation, then he could just ignore Rickmon and pretend he never saw anything.
Aaron Yishmir: That makes sense... So what's your hypothesis?
Luke: My hypothesis is... the chances that he just happened to hear the sounds of Rickmon getting beaten up are very low.
Luke: It's just like what [Player] said... This hypothesis has contradictions that don't make sense.
Luke: However, we can't completely ignore it. We may have missed some information somewhere.
Aaron Yishmir: You're as cautious as ever.
You: Let me guess... the other possibility would be...
You: Tony didn't just happen to hear things during Rickmon's assault.
You: In other words, he was more or less aware of what Rickmon encountered and hinted that Stephens should go and save Rickmon.
Luke: That's right.
Luke: Based on the information Stephens provided, maybe Tony's symptoms were "acting up" at the time.
Luke: He wouldn't be able to save anyone while in such a state.
Aaron Yishmir: Then why did he ask Stephens to keep his presence a secret?
Luke looks out the window. The light of the setting sun falls onto the floor in the room, blurring the edge of the light and shadow.
Luke: Don't forget. The second hypothesis we were discussing involves Tony's true intention.
Luke: Assume he knows about Rickmon, and if we trace this information backward... The question is how did he know about Rickmon?
Luke: Based on his own symptoms... I guess that, after he discovered his problems, he secretly investigated Victoria Pharmaceuticals.
Luke: While he was investigating, he found out that others were looking into the company as well, and that person had a mishap, so he tried to help.
Aaron Yishmir: If you put it that way... then this is a very real possibility.
You: I also thought of something else that makes this hypothesis even more likely.
Luke: What is it?
You: When we went to visit Rickmon... You mentioned something, Aaron.
You: You said that if Rickmon had been discovered and hospitalized at a later time, he might have suffered more than just a brain injury.
Aaron Yishmir: That's true. If his treatment had been delayed at all, he might have ended up in a vegetative state.
Aaron Yishmir: Ah! Are you trying to say that... it was thanks to Tony that Rickmon was found on time?
You: I'm guessing that might be the truth, but... we lack evidence.
The ringing of a phone interrupts Aaron's words. He takes a look at the caller ID, and then hurriedly answers the call.
Aaron Yishmir: ...All right, I see. Yes. Let's contact each other again if we find anything else.
As soon as he hangs up, Aaron turns to you.
Aaron Yishmir: I've got good news!
Aaron Yishmir: Didn't you want to know whether Tony Lester had looked into Victoria?
Aaron Yishmir: The police have some leads. They found that Tony did investigate Victoria Pharmaceuticals, and he dug pretty deep...
Aaron Yishmir: There are even signs that he hacked into the company's intranet.
Luke's eyes seem to sparkle as he clutches his hand into a fist.
Luke: That's exactly the kind of news we need!
You nod as well and then remember something else.
You: Hacked the intranet? I knew it...
You: Back at the internet cafe, I already got the feeling that he might be good at coding and fixing computers.
Luke: I thought so too.
Luke walks away and pulls out a piece of paper. He starts to write and sketch on it, then straightens up and explains what he was thinking about.
Luke: If we combine the information we just learned with the results of our investigations, we can conclude that...
Luke: Tony looked into Victoria Pharmaceutical because of his symptoms — that would be his biggest motivation.
Luke: We'll be able to verify this once we check his medical history and the hospital he was admitted to.
Luke: More importantly, he knew a thing or two about Rickmon thanks to his investigations.
You: In other words, Tony might be the real hero who saved Rickmon's life.
Aaron Yishmir: I agree.
Luke lightly knocks on the window frame as if something that has been churning in his mind has finally settled.
Luke: Tony managed to find out so much, but Victoria still hasn't caught him...
Luke: We need to hurry.
Luke: Tony might be... the key to helping us take down Victoria and the forces behind the company.
You: !!!
Aaron Yishmir: I'll share your findings and hypotheses with the police immediately!
However, Luke frowns again, as if he is concerned about something.
You: Luke?
Luke: I'm now more worried about Tony's safety.
Luke: We need to find him ASAP. The longer we delay, the more dangerous the situation will get.
You step forward and grab Luke's cold hands.
You: We'll go back and talk more about other things we can do. Let's see if we've missed any information or clues that can lead us to Tony.
Luke: Yeah... We've investigated all we can for now. This will have to do.
After saying goodbye to Aaron, you and Luke plan to head home straight away.
Discuss with Luke
As soon as you get back, Luke proceeds to throw himself into analyzing the available information.
His notebook soon fills up with information and queries listed out by him.
Luke: Did Tony Lester voluntarily hide himself, or did he...
Luke: Where would he go?
Luke: He's also physically not in good shape...
These sporadic guesses don't lead to any new leads.
Luke lowers his head deep in thought as if he is sinking into a spiraling, blinding fog.
You: (Luke...)
It is rare for you to see Luke thinking so anxiously.
You walk over and pat his shoulder, pulling at his hand and leading him away with you.
Luke follows you to the small coffee table, looking rather confused.
You: If you can't figure it out, then don't force yourself.
You: Come on. Let's do something together to get your mind off it!
Luke: Ah. Did I get a bit too...
You bend your finger and softly poke at his cheek, stopping him from saying more.
You: "A bit too" what? I just feel like you're too harsh on yourself sometimes without realizing it. You need to rest once in a while.
Luke: ...
You: Whenever I come across a frustrating case, or something so complicated that I can't make heads or tails of it, I distract myself by doing something completely unrelated.
Luke: Such as?
You: Loads of different stuff. Tidying the shelves, cleaning the room... It's about changing your mindset and recharging yourself.
Luke lets out a long sigh and stretches his arms.
Luke: You're right. I need to balance work with relaxation.
He happens to glance at the clock and stiffens, then smacks his forehead lightly in apparent distress.
Luke: Oh no... I was so focused on the case that I didn't even realize it was dinner time already.
Luke: Why don't we cook some dinner together?
You: Huh? Sure, but... are you sure you want to "cook dinner"?
You look at Luke, full of doubt.
You: Why don't I do the cooking and you can help me prep?
Luke: ...
Luke blinks. He awkwardly shifts his gaze away as if he suddenly recalled some unpleasant memories.
Luke: Then... I'll help you get the ingredients.
As if he's trying to hide something, Luke quickly stands up and goes to the fridge to dig through it for ingredients. You follow him as well.
You: Speaking of dinner, is there anything you want to eat in particular?
Luke: Meatballs! Like the ones you bought from that shop!
You: ...
You stay silent for a moment and start to regret asking this question.
You then gesture toward the inside of the fridge.
You: But... we probably can't make meatballs like the ones from this morning...
Luke rarely cooks, so, naturally, his fridge is quite empty. It would be very hard to find enough ingredients to make meatballs from scratch.
But it's rare for him to make such a clear request, and you feel bad for being unable to fulfill it... After some consideration, you finally come up with an idea.
You: If you really want something like that... then I do have an idea.
Luke's eyes immediately light up when he hears this, just as you expected.
Luke: What idea!?
You: We've still got some flour. We can knead it into balls of dough, then make drop dumpling soup.
Luke: ...Drop dumpling soup?
Luke: I'm fine with making dough balls, but what's drop dumpling soup?
You: It's a quick recipe recommended by the Big Data Lab. Even amateur chefs can master it perfectly!
You show him the recipe on your phone. The simple ingredient list and recipe can be understood at a glance.
After looking at it for a while, Luke nods excitedly and agrees.
Then, you two take out the required ingredients from the fridge and start to cook a simple dinner.
While he is completely occupied with making the small dough balls, you chat with him as you wash the vegetables.
You: Do you like that store's meatballs that much?
Luke: Yeah. It tasted great.
Luke: But... I'm not sure if I like the meatballs themselves, or if it's just because you fed them to me.
You: Eh!?
Luke's words sound half-serious, half-questioning.
He lifts his head and stares at you. His eyes seem to exude a magnetic pull that plays upon your heartstrings.
You: (Luke... how can he always say those kinds of things so easily...)
You: Are you saying the meatballs you stole from me taste better than other meatballs out there?
You chop the ham as you tease him. Concerned that you might cut your hand, Luke fixes his eyes on your movements, even going so far as simply accepting your teasing.
Luke: Those are honest words straight from my heart.
Luke: Besides, the food is delicious. It'll a shame if I don't steal it from your hands.
You: You...!
Luke: H—hey, I'm joking. Don't get distracted... and don't cut yourself.
You: Stay where you are until I'm finished with the ham!
The sound of Luke's and your laughter echoes in the room... filling the place with warmth and happiness.
It's about time you two have a break. Only with good rest can you muster up the strength to better confront the unknown mysteries that lie ahead.
