Disaster Report Diaries (Zettai Zetsumei Toshi 3) Part Eight

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 Ayami Hazuki had made a quick detour to a hospital and managed to escape uninjured before finally heading to the East District shelter…

We arrived near City Hall at 12:03 pm, and given the destruction of the road and the amount of water, my hopes were not high. After following the broken road a short distance, there was a tremor, but that didn’t put me off making my way to a partially-submerged truck because I saw something shiny on top of it. It was a Purple Suit outfit, but I didn’t wear it despite the lovely shade of colour.

A sinkhole in the road leading away also had some things to nab, so I climbed down before back up to follow the road. They were a Lighthouse Compass, Goth Loli Sandals, and a Bridal Dress, with a Cap up on the other side of the hole. We rested on a bench before carrying on, where I found a Western Wear outfit, but despite the fact I was wearing a Ten-Gallon Hat, I decided to not equip it.

We finally reached the City Hall shelter but were stopped in the street by someone in a brown suit. Before we could ask what they wanted, Saki and Ayami were grabbed from behind! The group leader demanded we hand over our food, which I had admittedly been stockpiling since having to give everything to Ayami earlier. I refused, but they took it anyway, though it wasn’t enough to satisfy them.

The leader indicated a trio in sports clothes whom they had already been holding. Apparently, there had been no sign of their teacher since the group sent her off to get food, so I was to go and look too. I was allowed to access the shelter past them, so I went looking for food or help, and found little of either. There was a Water 500ml, a Water 350ml, Fruit Juice, Brown Sneakers, a Plate Mail outfit, Embroidered Boots, Flip-Flops, and Pink Sandals.

After resting on a bench, I went around the back of the City Hall building and found a warehouse, so I grabbed a Water 500ml from just inside before noticing someone unconscious. After reading Disaster Manual 58: Disaster Storehouses, which explained what I would find in there, I then noticed the sound of fire coming from the warehouse. The main entrance was blocked by shelving units, so I grabbed a First Aid Kit before leaving, as I couldn’t reach the unconscious person.

A nearby broken window caught my attention and I climbed through, accessing a men's room. Just outside were some Sandals, so I snagged those before carefully moving through the fallen metal shelves and lockers, which blocked the way. I was surprised when Ryouko Honda, a reporter I met at the previous shelter, came out of a room. She thanked me for the tip that the head of the Morita Group was dead, and gave me a Capital News [5]. She asked what I was doing, but I figured I wouldn’t ask her for food, so I instead turned it around and asked what she was doing there.

Honda smugly told me that she’d snuck into the archive room to find evidence of the flaws in the foundation, and that it appeared that Ishizawa’s findings had been suppressed, and resulted in him being forced out of the scientific community. She exclaimed that this was going to be a huge scoop, then a tremor struck and a loud noise outside caught her attention. She shrugged and told me that she’d leave it up to me, then buggered off. Disaster Manual 57: Duties at Shelters then popped up, which just explained that shelters are there to support victims of disasters.

I grabbed a Geo-kun Compass (yes, as in the mascot of Geo City), then checked out the archive room, which Honda had just left. I picked up an Economic News and a Stewardess Uniform, then read my recent publications. The newest one talked about how a power company called Morita Energy was pulled under the Morita Group banner during the construction of Central Island, then sold off shortly afterwards.

The Capital News [5] had an opinion piece which was doubtful of the death of the Hazuki Construction secretary because the embezzled money hadn’t been found, and the secretary “was engaged to a man” so was unlikely to take her own life. Someone clearly thought that getting a man was all a woman needed… It also mentioned that the police may have been pressured to not consider the death suspicious.

Out in the hallway, I crawled through a hole in the wall and was able to access the emergency warehouse through a hole in the fence and a ladder. As I’d feared, it was an inferno! Plumes of flame jetted up in several places, and tremors meant that I had to drop to my hands and knees at points. With some careful navigation of the broken steel beams latticing the upper section, I grabbed a Flashlight Compass and a Waitress outfit before making it to a gantry where a Hakama outfit awaited me. Also, a ladder down to the ground, I suppose.

Behind the ladder were some Black Shoes, but right in front of me was the person I had spotted, still unconscious. They were right beside the box of food, but there was no way to both save the person and grab the food. I couldn’t be certain that they were still alive, and I worried that the brown suited leader would harm Saki if I returned empty-handed. So, I went for the box and obtained a CalorieMate, like the one I gave to the child earlier.

Things fell and the flames roared more fiercely, including around the ladder! Luckily, there were some boxes to climb on, allowing me to get out through the main entrance. I couldn’t help but apologise from the bottom of my heart for not trying to rescue the person; my reasons didn’t absolve me of feeling guilty.

Once back in front of City Hall, I rested on the bench before handing over the food. True to their word, they freed Saki and Ayami — but with no sign of the teacher, they were keeping hold of the other three. After all, there was only one CalorieMate between the four of them. I asked Saki if she was alright, because honestly, Ayami had been causing trouble since we met her, so I was swiftly not caring about her at all.

The ground shook and the city hall building partially imploded, causing everyone to freak out. I went for a closer look, but was interrupted by Ayami looking at a blank monitor on the outside wall, and saying that she saw her father. What followed was Daigo Hazuki, president of Hazuki Construction, being questioned by reporters about the disaster, Ishizawa, and air pockets beneath the island. Since he appeared to be hiding something, and said “I’m the victim here”, this didn’t go over well with the other survivors.

I put my hand on Ayami’s shoulder to reassure her, but this somehow drew everyone’s attention to us. Worse, someone recognised Ayami from her school uniform and exclaimed that they should grab her to teach Daigo Hazuki a lesson. Ishizawa appeared out of nowhere to call for calm, but they ignored him and we ran. I obtained Disaster Manual 59: Spreading Rumors which said to only listen to reliable sources during an emergency.

We ran around the corner into Yanagi Residential Area, with the time being 1:26 pm — what a busy four hours it had been since the hospital! We were being pursued by at least three people, but some items got in my way, so I had to grab them and was almost captured a few times. They were a First Aid Kit, an Old Newspaper, an Antique outfit, and White Boots.

Rounding a corner, a tremor hit and part of a building fell in my way, separating me from Saki and Ayami! I grabbed a Novel Weekly [3] and kept running, only to be blocked off by the three people who were originally chasing me? I couldn’t reach some shoes in time, having to run out to the north where an ugly chasm split the city street. But there was a bench, so I had a quick rest.

My only escape was to walk along a thin, broken path separated by some gaps which required jumping across. Oh, and I backtracked a little to grab a Cornet Clothes outfit and Pyjamas before attempting the leaps. Which, incidentally, had to be timed so that the patrolling maniacs didn’t spot me doing them, which meant that I had to remain ducked down until they turned around.

At the far side, I spotted Saki at a hole in the wall, waving to me. She was hidden from view behind a car, and it was honestly easy to grab a Ballet Compass and some Black Boots then join her without being seen. Now inside the Gloria Building, we gathered our thoughts, and Ayami wondered if Ishizawa was okay, so I assured her he had likely escaped.

Saki wondered how the mob knew who Ayami was, and I suggested that she was famous, which she denied. Saki suggested that someone might have spread her photo around for some reason, and I figured it was because they had a grudge against her father’s company. Saki told me off for worrying Ayami, then said that we should rest. I took that literally, grabbing a Tengu Compass and resting on a bench…