A prey with six rings. You're not getting away.
So fast... I'll wait until she lands.
The moment she stops moving...
Gone?! Where—
There are too many camped snipers.
And most of them don't have a single ring.
An underground mall...
Might be some people waiting to attack, but no snipers.
EPISODE 05 AQUARIUM
My whole body feels heavy.
Why am I so exhausted again?
No surprise. You haven't gotten much sleep lately.
That so?
Well, pretty soon and it'll be the long-awaited summer break.
But we've got finals before that.
I guess you're right.
By the way, I've been wanting to ask you something.
What is it?
Why did you start playing Darwin's Game?
Well, I wanted all kinds of stuff.
Hearing that you can get tons of money by winning a game, you'd try it, right?
My family's poor.
Besides, we made a promise, remember?
A promise?
Remember when you, me, and Hamada got our driver licenses?
We said we'd go touring over summer break.
Dumbass...
You didn't have to take it seriously, buying such an expensive bike.
Instead, we all could've gotten a part-time job...
I don't know, man. It seemed like a good idea at the time.
You dumbass...
Guilty as charged. So dumb that I got you and Hamada involved.
Hey, Kyoda! Let's get moving.
Right, on my way.
W-Wait! I'll go with you...
Now, now. You've still got something to do, right, Kaname?
That's right. We couldn't do it, but just maybe you can...
A notification?
I should be arriving at your hotel soon, Kana-meow!
Whichever of us has fewer rings gets punished!
Punished, eh?
I don't get the sense that she's the least bit nervous.
Well, I can't imagine Shuka getting picked off, but I'm happy to hear she's all right.
You're done already? That was only three hours of sleep.
It was plenty. Also, Shuka says she's ready to rendezvous.
That's good news.
What about the Florist? That old guy, Hiiragi.
He went to put up new barricades below.
Fortunately, Eighth Clan hasn't made a move yet.
Then call the old man up here. We need to settle that one issue.
What is this?
Oh, I get it...
You teamed up, huh?
So what do you intend to do, kill me?
Well, no sense getting your hands dirty, I guess.
Leave me bound with no rings and it'll be game over.
I'll give you rings.
What, are you taking pity on me?
It's not that. I'm just returning the favor.
Favor?
If you swear not to treat us as enemies, we'll cut you loose and return your gun.
What's your scheme?
For just this event, how about teaming up with us?
You're a solo player too, right?
No thanks.
If it were just you and the girl, I'd be in, but I want nothing to do with that old man.
He's the bastard who brainwashed me.
One look and I could tell, I'd never forgive him!
A justified opinion.
As long as I'm around, I doubt you'll be able to change his mind.
All right.
I told you, I refused.
I know, but I get the feeling you won't be hostile towards us.
You're incredibly naive.
Well, then...
Your gun and ammo are in the elevator hall.
Thanks for the courtesy.
As a favor, I won't attack during the event.
That's all I'm asking.
So our thrown-together clan is the three of us, plus Shuka?
Including Wang, how many Eighth Clan members are here?
At least five of them.
But considering the scale of his clan, there could easily be double that.
You promised not to engage us.
Not that! You just mentioned Wang of the Eighth Clan, didn't you?!
Is that bastard participating in this?!
I have a verified sighting.
His appearance stands out, so I'm pretty sure.
You're sure... So that son of a bitch is in this, too.
Knowing him, he won't pass up the mother lode of rings in this hotel.
I've changed my mind. I'll join your slapdash clan.
Thirty-two rings is just over 500 million, huh?
Not too shabby.
Where should we go next, Wang?
We've nabbed all the rings around here.
Our next batch should be a big one.
Are we finally hitting that hotel?
The beatdown in there has been simmering for a while.
Probably cooked to perfection by now.
We'll get over 20 rings if we ransack that hotel.
How much is that gonna be worth?!
Keep your pants on.
Being overly optimistic can get you killed.
For now, we stay cool, calm and collected, then we'll make our assault at night.
I already put the call out to members not participating in the event.
By night, we'll have 20 members in Shibuya.
I get it!
The general public was ordered out of the area, but players can come in, right?
Genius, Wang! Your mind's as sharp as ever!
Shibuya is Eighth Clan territory.
There's no way I can lose here.
Once I get hold of the hotel rings, I'll have over 50 of them.
That should definitely put me in first place for this event.
In other words, I'll finally get the rumored event champion's privilege.
What?
Nothing. You just kind of resemble an acquaintance.
I imagined a more savage look.
Huh?
So, about where we go from here, um...
It's Ryuji. That's my name in D-Game.
By the way, what happened to the other guys?
I wounded them earlier, so gave them three rings each and let them go.
How kind-hearted.
So tell me the strategy.
I wouldn't call it a strategy, but we've still got 15 rings here.
Hiiragi used his Sigil to seal this hotel like a fortress.
When they come for the rings, we'll intercept them.
I see.
But would anyone be foolish enough to walk right into a trap?
If they don't come, we'll be in the clear with our quota of rings.
But they probably will come.
No, I'm certain of it.
Of course they'll come. He's a greedy, arrogant asshole.
So how do we split up the loot?
There are 15 rings left here, worth a total of 3,800 points.
We're giving half of the total to Hiiragi.
The three of us will split the other half equally.
It's strange for me to say this, but are you sure about the shares?
It's fine. You did most of the heavy lifting here.
I think you deserve the bigger share.
And you just set me free, so I have no complaints.
Besides, after crushing Eighth, we'll split the rewards equally, right?
What's wrong, Rein?
I was just going over the event rules and noticed something.
Don't you find this point table odd?
No, not really...
Odd how?
Maybe it's because men aren't interested in gems,
but it's weird for topaz to be worth fewer points than lapis lazuli.
Lapis lazuli is a semi-precious stone that isn't very valuable.
Topaz is a precious stone that's worth a lot more.
Besides that, the four main precious stones are usually said to be
diamonds, rubies, sapphires and emeralds, in that order.
At first glance, it tricks you into thinking points are based on the hierarchy of gems,
but in actuality, there's no relation between them.
Did they maybe just assign points randomly?
They're just painted metal rings anyway.
The lines in these rules are strange, too. They're extremely unnatural.
Especially where it says, "When the time limit is up,
if the game is not cleared, it's 'game over' for any player with less than three rings."
How's that strange?
Certainly, it is unnatural.
We don't know what it means for the game to be "cleared."
The player has to have three rings, right?
If that's the case, they wouldn't need to include anything about being "cleared."
True, when you read it over carefully...
It never specifically states that the rings are the treasure hidden in Shibuya.
But I think we can table this 'til later, no?
If you ask me, we should come up with a way to beat Eighth first.
By the way, shouldn't your friend be here any minute?
The entrances are sealed shut and there are traps inside.
We should probably go down to meet her.
I told her to text me when she gets here—
That must be her.
HELP
Help...
This is some kind of joke, right?
HELP
Help me... Kaname!
No rings, huh?
But there may be more blind spots.
Just my imagination?
No, someone is watching me.
But where are they?
What was that? Water? Definitely a Sigil attack!
But where is the one controlling it?
Crap! They mean to suffocate me!
A telekinetic Sigil that controls water is a lousy match for me.
Regardless, I must escape this underground mall!
Then I'll find the controller and kill them!
Sorry, but I'm not letting you escape, girl.
Now I don't need to bother looking for you, waterboy!
A weak water wall won't stop my blades!
That was close.
You would've easily slashed my throat. A-rankers really are on a different playing field.
He trapped my weapons in ice!
So he can do more than just control water?
Why, you...
What's this now, a drill?
Yikes!
Aw, man! I almost pissed my pants!
A-rankers really go all out!
If I don't finish her off now, there's no telling what she'll do!
Drop 'em!
The exit should be less than 100 meters from here!
Need make it!
No! He set me up!
HELP
Help...
This is some kind of joke, right?
These coordinates... She's asking for help from here?
Is there any trouble?
Shuka sent me a Help Call.
I'm hoping it's just a dumb joke...
I doubt she'd send a Help Call as a joke.
Then she's serious?
I'm gonna go pick her up.
I'll leave my rings here, so you guys hold the fort for a bit.
Okay, I'll let you through the traps and barricades.
In that case, I'm going with you.
Thanks, appreciated.
W-Wait, hold on a second.
This isn't as simple as you're making it out to be!
Shuka's in trouble, but she's an A-ranker.
Meaning she's facing something more dangerous than herself.
One wrong move and you'll all need help!
That's why I'm going.
If we can save her, we'll have a powerful ally.
Remember, Eighth's Wang is an A-ranker, too.
Sorry, Rein.
I know you're being considerate by warning us,
but abandoning a teammate has never been an option.
All right then.
I can easily cover you up to a kilometer with my sniper rifle from here.
I'll try to give as much support as possible from the hotel roof.
Thanks, I'll keep that in mind.
Many go out for wool and come home shorn. Just don't let it happen to you.
The coordinates are about 400 meters north of here.
There are six rings adjacent to it, so that must be her.
Near the station...
Should take less than five minutes, but we've got 300 enemies...
THERE ARE CURRENTLY 168 PLAYERS IN THE TREASURE HUNT.
Whoa, make that down to 168 already.
Anyway, man, where's your gun?
You don't mean to do this unarmed, do you?
I guess they disappear when I lose consciousness.
Disappear?
So you can make copies of things?
You should use that to copy the rings for an easy win.
It's not that convenient.
The moment I touch something, I know whether I can make a duplicate of it or not.
Complicated things like smartphones and big stuff like cars are out.
Those rings must not be simply made of metal.
So what can you make?
Depending on that, our battle strategy could change.
Also hand grenades, handguns...
You could make a nice profit with that Sigil.
I wish I could trade mine for yours.
Come to think of it, what is your Sigil?
I've already told you about mine, so your turn.
My Sigil's trash.
"Truth or Lie." A lie detector.
I can tell when someone else is lying or not.
It's a real bummer of a Sigil.
Especially since everyone lies so damn much.
If it's near the station, I can cover them easily.
This is a better sniper point than I thought.
The Eighth Clan still haven't made their move?
It's dangerous to be overconfident based on movement of the rings,
but given this event's rules, I'm sure few players would move around without their rings.
Besides, what if these rings really aren't the hidden treasure, but just a smoke screen?
Or maybe a clue to the real treasure?
That's a QR code!
Maybe...
Our defenses are up.
Did something happen?
No.
But I may have found a clue about clearing the event.
What is that?
It could be some kind of code.
Since it was obviously put there on purpose, I have to think the numbers are important.
We'd better check the other rings, too.
Mine show other numbers.
Wait, this ring has the same number?
Does that one happen to be a topaz ring?
Looks like it. So does each type of ring display different numbers?
It does remind me of a code.
This gives more credibility to Kaname's hypothesis.
I wonder why two of the sequences start with a decimal point.
And there are two nines.
That's not much to go on.
And we don't have any diamond or emerald rings?
Nope. This is just a guess, but we may need to gather all the ring types.
The map display doesn't show a single diamond ring,
so we don't have to worry about being beaten to it, but...
After the start of the game, there was mention of a first round of ring placement.
It follows that there will be a second round.
Let's make a revision to our defense system against Eighth.
Nobody's here.
Hard to believe it's Shibuya in the afternoon.
That's because they make normal folk clear out, apparently.
I have no idea how they do it, but it's down to 168 players now?
That's all there is.
Getting exclusive use of Shibuya makes this one extravagant game.
Your life is a pile of poker chips. It shouldn't be cheap.
Ryuji, are you playing this game for money?
Of course.
Anyone who says they don't are either rich, a saint or a liar.
I'm not any of those.
Then you're a pervert.
At least soften it to "weirdo."
A pitiful weirdo who got dragged into D-Game and has been on the run ever since.
At least you get rich while surviving, weirdo.
An enemy?
Not sure, but it has to be a participant.
Person behind that pillar, put down your weapon and come out!
Otherwise, a scary guy here will lob a grenade at you!
Which one of us is the scary guy?
If you don't attack, neither will we!
So will you come out?
I-I'm sorry! Please don't throw a grenade at me!
I don't have any weapons.
A girl?
She looks younger than Rein!
Don't drop your guard just 'cause it's a kid.
She's telling the truth about having no weapons, but she could have a dangerous Sigil.
I-I don't want to fight! Honestly!
She's not lying. What do we do?
We won't do anything. Sorry about the threat.
Let's go, Ryuji. Clock's ticking.
Right.
Should be less than 100 meters away. Judging by the position of the rings...
The subway? Don't tell me she's underground.
U-Um...
Sorry, we're in a hurry right now.
Th-The subway is dangerous...
You know something about it?
I-I'm not sure, but... probably...
Sorry, we don't have time to talk right now.
B-But...
Shuka may be in more danger than I thought.
It's...
It's completely flooded?!
Hey!
You don't mean to go down there?!
There may still be time!
Are you a moron?! It's not just flooded!
That's a Sigil attack!
We can't see the enemy, but they're close. There's little chance that Shuka is still alive.
I know.
If I'm not back in five minutes, go back to the hotel.
Give my rings to that girl.
Hey, wait, dumbass! Whatever happens, it's on you!
U-Um...
All right, brat.
You lied to me once.
You know something about the danger underground.
My companion is dumber than I thought, so things are turning out bad.
You're going to tell me everything that you know.
What the hell?!
G-Get back here! Little shit!
I don't want killing a kid on my conscience,
and besides, she's got some information...
I'll just give her a scare.
What's with this ice?!
Dammit! Get back here, brat!
The water is as cold as ice.
Hard to stay conscious...
I got a partner, but couldn't accomplish my goal and now it's game over for me...
If I die, will Kaname cry for me?
But I wanted to get to know him better...
That's right...
If I die, maybe I'll get to meet Mama and Papa...
NEXT TIME: HARDNESS
Next time, "Hardness."