Section 9: Arash's Script Pitch

Hey, Master!

Can I talk to you for a minute? I've got an idea I wanted to share with you.

？！

Well, I was just kind of minding my business when an idea struck me.

I know that we can't use the pharaoh's original idea now that Vargas is dead...

...but if we just tweak it a little, I think we could still bring it back to life.

You know, like a phoenix!

!

You dare take pity on me? If so, I will burn you to ashes on the spot...

...but I can see that I need not worry. Very well, say your piece!

H-how do you want to bring Vargas back to life? He was pretty definitively dead in that last scene...

Especially since I was the one who pronounced him dead. Oh, I get it. You're saying we make Roma a liar?

No, no, nothing like that. I'm not talking about Vargas himself coming back to life.

And Roma wouldn't have any reason to lie. At least, I don't think he would.

Normally, one look with my Clairvoyance would reveal how things play out, but since this is an odd Singularity, the usual rules don't apply.

So? What is this idea of yours?

It's simple.

Suffice it to say, I want to honor both your and Murasaki's wishes for the character.

It's nothing exceptional, but I think a lot of people would be willing to accept it.

In one sense, unveiling it here for the first time works out perfectly.

How much longer do you intend to keep me waiting? Hurry and get to the point!

Haha, sorry about that. Okay then, here's my idea, for what it's worth.

...First off, let me ask you something.

Do you remember what Murasaki told you back when she explained our characters to us?

Of course. That time, that beautiful woman told me...

Now I understand! What an amusing idea you have come up with, Archer!

Um, Pharaoh Ozymandias? Can I ask what's going on?

...Heh. It would be uncouth for me to reveal it. Yes, I see.

Hahahaha! Haha, hahahahahahahahahahahaha!

If there was a joke in there, I sure as hell missed it.

I remember what Murasaki told us about our characters too. She said you two were the prince of the old Nadai Nadha kingdom, and his attendant...

Ohhh, now I get it. So that's your game.

Ah, already figured it out, huh? Yup, you got it. Sorry I couldn't come up with anything better!

Um, I'm sorry, Arash, but I still don't understand. Could you tell me what it is you're talking about?

You're really kind, aren't you, missy. Okay, let me try this again.

Murasaki told us that we were the prince and his attendant.

So far, I've been playing the attendant, and the pharaoh has been playing the prince, as you'd expect.

Right... Oh! You mean...!?

Haha, I sure do! Now that Vargas is dead, I thought, what if we turned that around!

I could be the prince, and the pharaoh could be my attendant! It'd be a huge twist!

Ten years ago, after barely escaping the attack on the palace, the prince and his attendant worked hand in hand to survive, eventually growing up to be a pair of fine young men.

Though they didn't think the prince was a wanted man, they could never be completely sure.

So they pretended their relationship was the inverse of its true nature, to better hide the prince's identity.

Pretty much.

All right, for the moment, let's say we go with this. How do you explain what happened with Gabriela and Salazar then?

Not to mention we still have to fit The Portrait Painter into all this...

Oh, that was me just kind of babbling. We can cut it out.

No, don't worry. I've got something in mind for that, too.

We could make it so that Salazar always wanted to kill Vargas, and that was why he poisoned the glass.

But the result was that Gabriela ended up being the one who took the poisoned glass.

When his attempt failed, Salazar tried to take a more direct approach to killing Vargas once they were alone, only to die in the process.

But why would Salazar do such a thing? I can't see what his motive could be...

That's easy. Because he was ordered to.

Hmm. But Salazar worked for Gabriela, didn't he?

Not only did he fail to kill his target, he ended up almost killing his master.

And on top of all that, he got himself killed when he tried again. Pretty poor excuse for an assassin, don't you think?

Well, given how he bought it when he did, I don't see how we can get around that...

Hey now, I'm not so cruel as to make Gabriela out to be the bad guy here. That'd be someone else.

Someone you'd never expect.

...Are you talking about me?

Huh?

True, I suppose having the detective be the culprit would be quite the surprise...

Oh no. I'm still not ready to play a cool and collected villain!

Hahaha, that sounds like a great idea too! But no, that's not what I had in mind.

(I'm so embarrassed...)

I noticed this when I was watching the footage.

After we recorded the first scene, Murasaki only told two of the actors that their roles were over:

Old man Tajima, and Izo.

But she never said that to Moriarty.

Oh! Now I get it!

Since Moriarty's part in the movie wasn't over, Murasaki must've been planning to have his character come back, right?

So you're saying Miguel was alive all along?

Then what gives with the funeral?

No, wait. It was Salazar who ran the funeral.

And as Miguel's loyal servant, he would surely have no issue aiding his master fake his death.

Sure, I have no idea why Murasaki might've wanted Moriarty's character to stick around.

I'm just choosing to believe she did so because it makes my idea work even better.

Perhaps she merely wanted to keep me around as a production assistant.

She might have also planned on filming flashback scenes... Either way, I think it's a great idea!

That would mean The Portrait Painter...is Miguel.

Haha, looks like you got me!

？！

Of course! It's been too long since I got to play the mastermind! ...Well, maybe not all that long...

Even after he retired, he would still be the new nation's founding hero, so he would have retained his vast influence.

But that does not mean the Republic of Nadai Nadha's political situation was stable.

There were surely some factions who saw Miguel not as a hero, but as an obstacle.

I see. So the threat of assassination must've always been looming over his head.

Thus, he planned to fake his death to remove himself from the spotlight while continuing to rule behind the scenes through Gabriela.

But then, the lost prince and his attendant suddenly showed up at the Meihousou, endangering everything he had planned.

Miguel did not know if they were here by coincidence or to seek revenge.

Either way, he decided to take care of them before they could discover anything that might truly jeopardize his plans.

And that's why Miguel ordered Salazar to kill Vargas, who he thought was the prince.

The last part of my idea involves García confronting Miguel directly in his hidden chamber, inside the Meihousou...

Anyway, that's basically what I've got. What do you think?

I guess you could say it's my amateurish attempt at solving this mystery.

You're welcome to use it as it is, punch it up, or just toss the idea out whole cloth.

Although, if you do decide to go with it...

...I'll let you film a side of me I don't usually show anyone!