Last time we learned of an ailing food critic, and that’s one thing Itsuki simply will not stand for. But first, let’s check up on some of the other residents of Shibuya.
This guy looks like he’s in a good spot. I’m sure he’s having a great day.
sigh …Hey, what’re you staring at?
Don’t play dumb… You were staring at the weird gate, weren’t ya? I’ve been looking for a guy like you. Think you could do me a favor?
Itsuki accepted the request “Iori in Love”.
Hoo boy, I think I can see where this one is going.
When I first saw it, I stuck my foot in and that was that: I found myself in a strange world. Next thing I knew, all these monsters were chasing me! I ran like hell, but… They still caught up, and I thought I was gonna wind up some monster’s lunch. But a girl came outta nowhere and saved me!
I’ve never seen anyone like her… That cutie was out of this world. Ahhh… She stole my heart. It was love at first sight…
…
Uh… Cat got yer tongue?
So, I need you to go through the gate and tell that girl how I feel about her. My name’s Souji Iori. She’s somewhere near the ticket gates in that strange world. Thanks, man! I’m countin’ on ya!
What is it with people and falling in love with demons? I feel like it’s in every single SMT game and they always go the exact same way.
Before we head into Illusory Shibuya, we might as well check in with the food critic since that’s where Aya’s going to send us anyway.
Ugh! I don’t have the words to communicate how delicious it tastes… I can’t be a food show host if I can’t describe the food… Ugh, I’m such a failure… sigh
Yep, off to the idolasphere.
Of course it’s a bunny cleric. Why would it not be?
What, you have something to say to me?
(A girl by the ticket gates… She must be the mirage Iori was talking about.)
Ahh, I remember him. He was clinging to me, yelling “Get me outta here!” He was so revolting, so I told him the way out and got rid of him. Just thinking about him makes my hair stand on end!
Hey, you! Tell that Io-whatever-his-name-is this… If I ever see him again, I’ll rip that jiggly pompadour of his to shreds!
(That’s pretty harsh, but I guess I should tell Iori…)
Well that went about as well as it always does. Let’s go kill some demons.
This guy is a little harder to find, he’s hiding underneath the middle ledge at the big three-path split towards the end.
It’s also the first time we’re on even footing with these guys, probably a little underlevelled. This has some…notable consequences, shall we say.
For starters, if they proc a weakness, that character is probably dead, even before the sessions start. This situation is not helped by me leading with Ellie and Kiria as my party.
Take two: Kiria is weak to swords, so this is still a bit of a gamble, but the myrmidons are weak to ice so we need her for damage. Touma resists fire and swords, in addition to giving us lance damage, so he’s in for Ellie.
Plus, he gives us much better session combos for dealing with the Leviathan. Ellie’s Sword-Plasma would have ended it immediately after Itsuki’s initial attack, which is unfortunate to say the least.
That said, we have a much more important job for Itsuki right now. With the possibility of eating 450 damage a turn, we need a defense buff up immediately.
Now that we can handle. 200 damage a turn isn’t too bad, as long as we get a little lucky with avoiding weaknesses.
That said, this is a problem. Hamstring is admittedly a Tier 1 lance skill, but even with Touma’s huge strength and hitting a weakness, it still barely scratched his health bar, and there are two of these fuckers to deal with.
Leave it Kiria to bail us out.
Doubly so when this attack doesn’t cause an enemy session because Labyrinth confused all the enemies. 
With the incoming damage knocked down a bit, we have some breathing room to get on the attack. The Levianthan is probably the least dangerous of the three enemies here, but he can drop Poison Mist on us, and one less enemy is still one less enemy.
And there’s the money shot. Like I said, bringing Kiria is a bit of a risk, but damn if it doesn’t have a sweet payoff.
Touma picks up the Tier 2 Fire skill, as well as part of the Blockbuster skill (increases the crit rate of attacks in a session), and Itsuki trades Def Boost for Yasha Soul, which increases his crit rate with sword attacks. These fights are definitely getting trickier, but that’s what makes them satisfying to clear.
The batter is crispy yet thick! The texture is absolutely amazing. Such a refined taste!
This cream! It’s so rich! The meat and vegetables burst out of the cream… And a spiciness adds to the explosion of flavor! This combination of crispy and creamy pushes the flavor to a whole new level!
Wooooo! It’s like the flavors are dancing on my tongue! Zoyo! …I think I’m back. All right, let’s do this! Zoyo!
All that work for this amateur shit? Itsuki could have done that in his sleep. :colbert:
Itsuki delivered the mirage’s message to Iori…
She didn’t have to be so heartless! What, is it the pompadour? Is that it? Maybe it’s outta fashion where she’s from.
sigh I guess it was a lost cause from the start. I mean, we literally live in different worlds. I mean, it sucks, but I guess I’ll just hafta look for a new love.
…Anyways, thanks for the help. You and me are gonna be buddies, I can tell.
Request complete! Received Magic Incense x2!
Are we? Are we really, Iori? Well, at least we got a pair of stat ups for it.
Man, where do you people even come from? What do you want?
Do you have a part-time job!? I really want one! Something classy! In the big city!
Senpai, please tell me you know a fancier job here in Shibuya…? It’s such a trendy part of the city!
Man, it’s one thing to be like “Do my homework” or “Find 5 bear asses”, it’s quite another to literally ask “Find me a job!” Do it yourself, you lazy shitlord. :colbert:
Okay, fine. Go be a waiter and stop wasting my time.
That! Is! IT! Shibuya’s Cafe Seiren is THE hottest, flashiest place in town! Thank you, thank you! I need to hurry! I’m going to go now, bye!
Good, go get to work and thanks for the Melmarks. Now, back to the office and finally turn in this food critic quest.
…
cough …Okay, I’ll work on that. Thank you for all your hard work, and I’ll let you know if I hear any more suspicious rumors.
Anyway, another request, another Clap Track. Next, it’s back to the dungeon, for real this time!