voice

[memori3s]

[ Audio, just for you, Toph. ]

Has anyone seen Sha-Ming? I think he went to Bar Lupin for a night, but he hasn't been back in five days.

[ Good thing there's no video so no one can see Minato's actually mildly concerned about this. On the other hand, the fact that he's bothered to post a message on the network might be giving that away anyways. Also, rent at the inn is due in like two days? Guess who doesn't have the cash to cover two rooms. ]

He left a message for me, something about a "salary man with a bad hairline"? Has anyone seen someone like that?

[ There's a screenshot of a text message attached to the post. It reads: ]

to: minato arisato

yo if i die 2nite the salary man w the bad hairline and glasses did it

DONT THROW MY SHIT AWAY i’ll b back 😩

Comments

audio;

[identitycrisiscore]

Five days?

We're sure he's not dead, right?

[ Cloud might also be... briefly worried about Sha-Ming, despite himself. Is he going to admit it? Not on your fucking life. Sarcasm ho! ]

audio

[memori3s]

I heard people don't stay dead here permanently. If he died, shouldn't he be back by now...?

audio

[everblooms]

Well, I don't think he would leave you hanging like that for this long usually... Not when rent is due soon. [ Not that Aerith and Sha-ming cross paths these days, but there's a pinch of upset there anyway. ] I haven't seen him around...

Do you want to check the bar with me? [ It's easier to talk in person; a nagging feeling that the quiet kid wouldn't be making a network call like this unless he were worried is picking at her brain, too. He needs support, Aerith thinks. ]

audio

[memori3s]

[ Checking the bar would be the smart thing to do. Instead, Minato's been waiting at the inn like some human Hachiko. ]

Yeah. That's a good idea.

[ If Aerith hasn't seen him around either, then... where on earth could he have gone...? ]

[fieldtrip]

[ thank you for voice, you are such a pal, Minty. except then you post a screenshot of a written message, which her screen reader can't handle ]

Five days?! Are you kidding me? He's my newest staff person! Nobody's allowed to mess with my staff!

[memori3s]

[ Newest what. ]

Yeah. After today, it'll be six.

audio

[melnik]

[ So, the "let's party" guy went to party and didn't come back... Maybe that shouldn't be surprising in retrospect, but he's still concerned. ]

What?! Have you already gone to look for him?

audio

[memori3s]

Not yet. ...I didn't want to leave in case he suddenly came back.

[ No one tell him he sounds like a sad dog waiting at the door for someone to come home. ]

audio;

[orphne]

I work at Lupin most nights, but I must not have been there. Doesn't sound like one of our regulars, though.

[Not... that she probably would have done anything to stop it, very much of the "live and let live" opinion.]

I can ask some of the other staff if they have a better description of the guy he left with.

audio

[memori3s]

[ All things considered, people leaving Bar Lupin together probably isn't out of the ordinary. Pretty normal bar behavior. ]

Thanks, Kotone. I think that would help.

[ And then he can be spared from defining "salary man" to Toph. ]

If he's not a regular, maybe he's one of the new Chosen...?

audio;

[izanagis]

I haven't seen anyone like that hanging around, no.

[Oh, boy. Ominous missing persons. That's not relevant to P4 at all!!! Five days, though...]

That's a long time for someone to go missing. Are there other places he hangs out? We could try there, too.

audio

[memori3s]

[ Very ominous, given what happened recently with Dara and the miasma... ]

Sometimes he goes to the outskirts. I think he studies the animals and creatures there? He stays out overnight, but this is the first time he's been missing this long.

audio;

[laserguy]

[Oh hey Minato. Worried about someone missing huh. He gets it, it sucks.]

Haven't seen him, but also, I don't know what he looks like.

[Scott's so helpful......] I'll keep an eye out, especially at Bar Lupin.

[He doesn't want to bring up the possibility that Sha-Ming may be gone from this world or killed by some random salary man. Better not jump to conclusions, right? Besides, he's not that sort of downer, usually.] Unfortunately, 'salary man with a bad hairline' describes like 60% of adults here.

[memori3s]

[ That's right, Scott was looking for someone missing not to long ago too. Quinton, or something? It's been this long already and there doesn't seem to be a trace of the guy, as far as Minato's seen. ]

Thanks, Scott.

[ The fact that Scott's willing to keep an eye out is enough. ]

I guess so... Maybe I should add a description of Sha-Ming?

text

[rebellions]

sounds like you've got your answer
the guy's deader than disco

[ /helping ]

text

[memori3s]

Wouldn't he be back by now?

[ You die, and then two days later, poof! Alive again!! Surely that's how it works!! ]

Voice

[heroondecku]

[Oh that's an ominous combination of time missing and last message. It doesn't bode well, but a missing person is a missing person, and he's not going to ignore that just because the outcome might not be happy.]

I don't think I've seen him, since I haven't met him, but I'll help look. Could you describe Sha-Ming for me? --oh, better yet, do you have a picture of him?

text

[memori3s]

[ Right. A picture would probably help...

He sends Deku an attachment, a photo of Sha-Ming to assist in the teen's future search. ]

[audio]

[cursegod]

...Huh. I think I may have met someone fitting that description at that place. I didn't smell blood on him, so I'd take that as a good sign.

[...]

Anyways, good luck.

[/very helpful]

audio

[memori3s]

[ Wait!! Come back!! That's a good lead!!

Also you technically don't need blood present to tell someone's dead, but Minato's not going to think about that. ]

You did? Do you remember how late in the night you saw him?

[ Trying to get the sense of whether Dara ran into the guy before or after he received Sha-Ming's text... ]

audio;

[skelters]

[ dw minato, vash will freak out for the both of them! ]

F-Five days??? Isn't that a little serious??

audio

[memori3s]

[ RIP to the both of them... ]

It's not the first time he's been gone for a few days. ...five days is unusual though.

[ Especially since he thinks Sha-Ming would mention if he planned to be gone for that long. ]

audio.

[foxphorus]

[ Oh my god, if he patched this guy up just for him to walk into another death trap... ]

I'll keep my eyes open for him or anyone matching that description as well.

Is that truly all he wrote?

audio

[memori3s]

Yes. I haven't received anything from him since that message.

[ Unfortunately, it truly is all he wrote. ]

...do you think it's related to what happened with Dara?

[ pls say no, Seimei... ]

voice;

[entreats]

[ .. ah. It's almost a little ironic, considering what they had spoken about last time, back when their memories were all scrambled.. And this time it's Sha-Ming once more, huh?

It must mean they're close even outside of whatever that weird alternate memories scenario had been. ]

I don't think the locals usually kill people.

Unless the ones here are starting to sacrifice people to monsters as well. [ Not an option she is necessarily ruling out, even though she says it.. way too calmly.. ]

voice

[memori3s]

[ They would have been close even without that weird alternate memories scenario, but the memory mix-up only made it worse and scaled it up to 1000. ]

...then the person from Sha-Ming's message is one of us?

[ Hm. Concerning. ]

I don't think I've heard of any sacrifices recently.

Voice;

[drugsnotclubs]

You sure he's not just at some intense party in a dungeon someplace?

[It's a joke, but like Shinjiro ever sounds differently, even when he's joking.]

That's sure a description I ain't seen around here, though. I'll keep an eye out for him or for a salaryman.

voice

[memori3s]

[ Oh he's at some intense party in a dungeon all right... ]

Thanks.

[ At least someone out there doesn't think the description is particularly vague........ ]

...it might be better to look for the culprit instead of Sha-Ming.

[ As in, everyone's made very sound arguments to support the fact that Sha-Ming's probably dead by now rip. ]

[killjoyprince]

[Please ignore that she sounded off. Just the pollen.]

He sent you a message like that and it took five days for you to raise the alarm?

voice

[memori3s]

[ Consider the sound ignored. ]

It's not that unusual for him to be gone for a couple days or so, but for this long... something doesn't feel right.