Enduring Light: Banquet of Misfortune
Overview
- Stage Cost: None
- First Clear Rewards: None
Guide
- Hover to view spoiler content.
Script
Static crackles, and a choppy male voice can be heard.
You immediately think the sound is coming from the old television...
Mysterious Person: Welcome to the Li Hotel. I am your host, but you can refer to me as the "Mysterious Person."
You: (Mysterious Person? This new character's name is pretty unique...)
Before you can give it more thought, the man's voice grows playful.
Mysterious Person: Don't say I never reminded you—here's a little hint. In this phase, pay extra mind to the following areas.
Mysterious Person: Once all the puzzles have been solved, maybe I'll give you some information regarding the case.
Mysterious Person: Do your best. The mysteries of Xuzhou await...
You: (All the puzzles...? This sounds like an important mission.)
You: (He said that he'll tell us information regarding the case if we solve the puzzles... I guess that's the reward for completing the task?)
By the time the thought settles into your mind, the sound of static has already disappeared. Only silence remains.
Li Hotel Lobby
Manager Duan: Boss Qian is dead! Dead! Oh heavens, how could this be...
Manager Duan's face is as pale as a ghost, and he repeats his statements incoherently.
His eyes are filled with fear, which chills the atmosphere in the lobby.
Artem: What did you see? Speak slowly.
Artem's low voice is effective at stopping Manager Duan's exaggerated crying. He freezes for a moment.
Vyn: Tell us what happened clearly.
Manager Duan shivers, and he chokes on his words.
Manager Duan: Well, the birthday banquet already started, right? Boss Qian has been in his room the whole time, so I thought I'd check up on him...
[Obtain Clue Card: Boss Qian's Room]
Manager Duan: So, I went to knock on the door to remind Boss Qian of the time. B-but when I did...
Manager Duan: He wouldn't respond no matter how I called out to him.
Artem: Then you had someone open the door?
Manager Duan: Yeah, I used the spare key at the reception. When I opened the door, I... I saw...
Manager Duan: Boss Qian lying in a pool of blood...
Guest A: Oh dear, how could this happen to Boss Qian at his 50th birthday banquet?
Guest B: How terrible, how could this be?
Guest A: C-call the police! Who murdered him...? Oh, the sin!
Manager Duan: What should I do? This...
The surrounding guests lament, and the background music formed by the noisy discussions casts a darker shadow on the scene.
Luke: Lying in a pool of blood!? It's a murder case then?
Marius: Hmph, the old man must've done something wrong and was punished for it.
Manager Duan: What are you talking about? Everybody in Xuzhou Town knows that Boss Qian is a generous philanthropist and a good man!
Marius: Oh? I don't know about that.
Manager Duan: President von Hagen, you can't tarnish his reputation just because you have a personal grudge against him!
You: (President von Hagen has a personal grudge against Boss Qian?)
Artem: President von Hagen, there's no use in discussing this right now.
Artem glances at Marius, taking the initiative to stand between him and Manager Duan.
Vyn: Indeed, the most important thing at the moment is to know how to handle this matter and what impact Boss Qian's death resulted in.
Manager Duan: We're doomed... The birthday banquet was supposed to go smoothly... How could this happen?
By this point, Manager Duan is overcome with grief and unable to hear anything that Vyn says. Vyn shakes his head, turning to look at you.
Vyn: Little Boss, what are your thoughts on this?
You: I...
You: (Realistically speaking, the usual process is to first call the police, then wait for the investigation results...)
You: Did you call the police?
Waiter: Y-yes!
Waiter: But... the Xuzhou police said...
Waiter: There is a huge case on the outskirts of Xuzhou Town, and the police are short on manpower. They can only send a few officers here.
Waiter: I don't know when they'll get here...
You: (As expected, you can't follow normal procedures here.)
Manager Duan: What are the police doing? What about Boss Qian?
Manager Duan: Do they think the Yingxing Trading Company can be bullied?
Guest A: What rotten luck. How could this happen at his birthday banquet?
Guest B: What should we do? Can we... leave?
Guest A: We have to. It's a bad omen.
Artem: Please wait. Until the matter of Boss Qian's death is resolved, we must ask everyone to stay.
Guest A: Stay? You want us to stay in a hotel where someone got murdered?
Guest B: No, I can't. I have work tomorrow and can't stay here tonight.
The banquet hall fills with incessant whispers again as guests object to staying at the hotel for the night.
You: Ladies and gentlemen, please remain calm. Since the situation is unclear, it would be safer for you to stay.
You: What if the murderer is hanging around near the hotel? What would happen if you run into the murderer on the way home...
Guest B: ...She's got a point.
Guest A: What... should we do then?
Luke: Everyone, if the police won't be here for a while, why don't we go upstairs ourselves?
Luke: I'm a journalist from Xuzhou News Media. I can take photos to document the crime scene and make sure it's fair and objective. What do you guys think?
Vyn: ...That is not a bad idea, Journalist Pearce.
Artem: Yes, I agree.
Marius: Besides, we have to wait for the police to arrive at the hotel. In the meantime, we can check on the situation upstairs together...
Marius: Who knows? We may figure something out before the police arrive.
Marius echoes what Vyn and Artem said, but in reality, he seems to be looking at you, observing your reaction.
You know that it's a game, but when people look at you like that...
It pulls you back to countless similar real-life situations.
No matter the time, no matter the identity, it seems that you are all destined to accomplish something together. To uncover some unresolved mystery.
You: Well then, let's go together! Everyone can be a witness.
Summary
Character(s)
