After a quick recap of the day’s events, we find ourselves in Chapter 4 of Emio: The Smiling Man and things are getting intense. It’s time to return to the Utsugi Detective Agency and see what awaits us on a new day.
Looking for a walkthrough for the previous chapter? You can find a link to that here: Emio: The Smiling Man Chapter 3 Walkthrough.
If you’re looking for a guide for the next chapter, follow this link: Emio: The Smiling Man Chapter 5 Walkthrough
Table of Contents
Chapter 4 – Utsugi Detective Agency
After returning to the Utsugi Detective Agency, you’ll find that you’re the only one here again. Ayumi hasn’t arrived yet, or she may already be out starting the investigation. Your phone will begin ringing; glad we finally charged it, aren’t we? Select the Use Phone option to pick up the call. It’s Ayumi, and you’ll try to set up a time to meet up so you can recall the day’s events from Chapter 3. However, Ayumi mentions she’s supposed to meet up with Mr. Fukuyama, and a tinge of jealous energy erupts from the main character.
However, it’s not a complete loss; the main character will mention that he is going to go to the Library Archives to investigate how they covered up the murders that happened 18 years ago. Select the Travel option and select Library.
Chapter 4 – City Library
You’ll arrive at the City Library, and stand outside for a moment. You’ll need to Think about a plan before going on the attack. You’ll mention that you should consult Mr. Utsugi about a plan, so select Use Phone, and select Mr. Utsugi from your contacts list.
Mr. Utsugi mentions that you should look for “Serial Girl Murders” since that’s what it was called. He also mentions you should pay close attention to the first case. He also mentioned that we’ll want to study how the incident was reported, as well as how the news covered the story that year. Once you’ve done this, Review the case and see if something seems off, and if it does, focus on that key point and keep investigating. Now we’re getting into the real meat and potatoes of the case, aren’t we?
Mr. Utsugi will also mention that he believes that the Emio urban legend will play a lot in this case and that there is a sneaking suspicion that they may find out more information about Makoto in the process. Once you hang up the call, select the Travel option to head inside.
Chapter 4 – Inside City Library
Once inside, the main character will gather up around a year’s worth of papers from 18 years ago to get started on investigating. Select the Look/Investigate option and make your way through each of the individual books in the piles, and you’ll learn the following bits of information:
January/February
- The first murder was committed in February
- Involved a 17-year-old girl named Ayaka Hashizume
- Found on the beach at Koufuku City
- Strangled
- Her house was burned down the day before
- Father’s body was found in the wreckage
- Initial Reports believed the father killed her, then himself
- Later reports pointed to a possible third-party
- Another missing person who was close to the girl
- No information regarding a paper bag on her head
March/April
- No new information regarding the case
- No new cases to report
May/June
- The second murder took place in May, about 3 months after the first
- Involved a 15-year-old girl named Sachiko Takagi
- Found in Koufuku City
- Strangled
- Both crimes may have been committed by the same person, as per police reports
- No details about the paper bag on her head
- The young girl came from a troubled home
- Often seen crying alone at night
- The possibility of the killer being a serial killer arose
- The third murder took place in June, one month after Murder #2
- Involved a 17-year-old girl named Mika Inoue
- Had a falling out with her friends, and left school crying
- She didn’t go directly home and may have been attacked on her way home
- Found in Koufuku City
- Strangled
- The possibility of all three cases being connected by a common killer
- Still no mention of a paper bag
July/August
- Articles written every day regarding the possible serial killer case
- No new information that would help regarding the case
September/October
- Not many articles regarding Serial Girl Murders.
- Nothing new to report at this time
November/December
- Just short mentions and blurbs off to the side
- Nothing new to report
After going through the newspapers, you’ll think about Makoto’s disappearance, and be asked to select when he had vanished. Select the following answer:
- July
He disappeared on Junko’s birthday, which was in July, so we’ll head back into the July/August archive to see if there was any report of his disappearance. You’ll discover a small snippet of an article, with no connection to the Serial Girl Murders. However, it mentions that Mr. Utsugi and Inspector Kamada suspect that there was a connection. Use the Think action to recall the information that you learned here.
After using the Think option twice, use the Look/Examine option to look further into The First Case. You’ll mention that it’s the most curious of the three murders that had taken place. You’ll dive further in and uncover the following information:
- A 17-year-old girl named Ayaka Hashizume
- Found on February 16th in a secluded beach area of Koufuku City
- A local fisherman discovered the body, had a good alibi, and was immediately ruled out of being a suspect
- Strangulation with bare hands
- Died the night prior
- Ayaka quit her job at a local factory the same day she died
- Her supervisor reported that she left on good terms, and already gave notice of quitting
The main character will mention that he has a few doubts, so Look/Examine the new Suspects option. You’ll come up with two people involved in the incident:
Manabu Hashizume – Ayaka’s Father
- Lived with Ayaka in Koufuku City
- House was destroyed in a fire the night before Ayaka was found dead
- Body recovered in the house, believed to be Manabu
- Speculation that he murdered Ayaka before returning home and killing himself
- Theory doesn’t hold up when thinking further into it
- Multiple murders after complicate the situation further
This more or less clears Manabu from any wrongdoing, especially due to the fact that the paper bags weren’t reported by the police, and the second and third victims had the same fate as the first. So, we’ll need to Look/Examine the Suspects again.
Unknown Young Man
- Close friends with Ayaka
- Hasn’t been seen since her death
- Police found a disturbing amount of blood in his apartment
- Police strongly suspected him, and went to great lengths to track him down
- Police never found him after this initial investigation
After this, you’ll need to Think about the information that you’ve just uncovered. You’ll make mention of all of the new information, and it’s time to Review what you’ve discovered so far.
Once you review the information, select the following pieces to continue the story:
- Ayaka Hashizume
- Manabu Hashizume
- The Missing Man
- Type “Fire”
- Type “blood”
After this, Think about the information you’ve uncovered so far. You’ll make mention of the Second and Third murders that occurred. You’ll recall that they were both crying before they were killed, which falls in line with the Emio urban legend. You’ll wonder if Ayaka was crying before she was killed, as well.
However, you’ll realize that you need to take a break and get something to eat, so you’ll leave the library and the story will switch over to Ayumi meeting up with the man of the hour.
Chapter 4 – Planet Coffee
The scene is set; it’s a tranquil and beautiful coffee house, with Ayumi speaking with her former senpai inside. Fukuyama was meant to chat with some of the school kids and relay the information back to Ayumi, so let’s see if that actually happens.
After exchanging pleasantries, Ask/Listen to see if Fukuyama has found out any new information. Select the Ask/Listen prompt again to have Fukuyama finally start spilling the beans a bit. He’ll mention that the kids seem like they’re doing well, but he knows that they really aren’t. There isn’t much new information here, so Ask/Listen again.
You’ll discover that he hasn’t really learned much, and has actually been getting laughed at by some of the kids for asking questions. Maybe he knows something else? Let’s Ask/Listen again. We’ll find out that he still hasn’t actually asked any of the students about what has happened, because he feels it’s too soon.
Fukuyama mentions that your milk tea is getting cold, so perhaps you should Take it. Select Ayumi’s Milk Tea. Fukuyama will mention that you should try the Tiramisu and that maybe you should order some to try it, to which you’ll respond not today. Is today part of the investigation, or is he just trying to get a date?
Select Ask/Listen again, and Fukuyama will continue blabbering on about things like… being a majestic knowledge warrior. You’ll learn that Planet Coffee is one of his favorite places, as it’s somewhere he can go to clear his mind and find inner peace. If you continue pressuring with Ask/Listen, he’ll eventually let out that he learned more about Eisuke from some of the other teachers. Finally, we’re getting somewhere.
Ask/Listen again. Fukuyama will take a sip of his tea, and comment on the taste. That’s not what we’re here for, though, is it? Ask/Listen and select the About Eisuke option to finally start getting information;
- He had a lot of good friends
- He got good grades
- Had a great reputation among teachers
- Never got into trouble, a model student
Select Ask/Listen, About Eisuke again to find out more:
- No conflicts with anyone
- No grudges
- Eisuke was well-liked by everyone
After this, you should select the Observations? option in the Ask/Listen tab to find out about the one story that caught Fukuyama’s attention. Maybe this is something beyond simple observations? Select the About Eisuke option again to find out this information from Eisuke’s homeroom teacher:
- Eisuke’s grades had been slipping a little bit
- Eisuke was planning on going to a private school
- His recent grades jeopardized his chances
This opens a new option in the Ask/Listen menu: Grades. Select this to find out that his homeroom teacher said that he should consider other schools if his grades didn’t improve. Eisuke was seemingly indifferent about this news, which is concerning due to his normally impeccable grades and care.
Select the Ask/Listen option again, and Fukuyama will start talking about himself again. He’s a little obnoxious, but his heart is in the right place. Ayumi will call him out on changing the subject, and ask if he has any other information about Eisuke beyond his grades.
He’ll mention that he’s given you just about all of the information that he’s got at the moment. He doesn’t have any further information regarding the case, so you should Think about where to go next. It seems like it could be a good time to Ask/Listen about the Grades again.
Fukuyama mentions that he doesn’t think that bad grades would cause anyone to want to kill Eisuke, but he does mention that Eisuke may have killed himself over them. Dark. But, as we know, the police are not ruling that into the situation. It’s a murder investigation through and through.
Ask/Listen again, and Fukuyama will ask Ayumi how the investigation is going overall. Fukuyama will ask if you can share any information with him at all because the whole situation has rocked him to his core. You’ll mention that he was acting strangely before the night of his murder, and Fukuyama will make a shocked face. Select Ask/Listen again.
After this, Think about the situation as a whole. You’ll remember Megumi Morimoto, and it may be time to bring that name up to Fukuyama. Select About Megumi in the Ask/Listen menu. Fukuyama will get very flushed and seem to be a little suspicious about the situation, so maybe we’ve hit a sore spot. Megumi has been absent since the murders, so Fukuyama doesn’t have much to share on that half.
Select the About Megumi option again. There has to be more here. You’ll discover the following information:
- Megumi Morimoto is the class representative
- It’s been extremely stressful without her there
- She was not at school the day Eisuke was announced dead
- Hasn’t been back to school since
Think about the situation at hand. You’ll have a flashback to the students that you spoke to at the entrance of the school, and we need to Ask/Listen again. You’ll notice that Megumi was seemingly not at school before the school assembly, and Eisuke’s death was announced on the day of his passing.
You’ll keep pushing to see if there was any reason as to why she was missing before that day, and it seems that Fukuyama knows something that he hasn’t shared with us. Think about the situation, and you’ll make note of how strangely Fukuyama is acting. Look/Examine Fukuyama and take note of how he tightens up whenever you speak about Megumi. Something fishy is going on here.
You’ll mention that you notice that he tightens up, and he’ll deny it. Ask/Listen, About Megumi again. You’ll have to select a proper answer from a list, so select the following option:
- It would mean Megumi knows the killer!
It seems that Fukuyama may have told Megumi about Eisuke’s death first since she’s the class representative. This sent her into a spiral and is why she hasn’t been at school. Only, that isn’t the case. Fukuyama mentions that he didn’t know anything about the murder until the assembly, but that doesn’t make sense. Ask/Listen, About Megumi again and he’ll tighten right back up.
He’ll mention that she called in sick, her family had called in to let him know. Ask/Listen, About Megumi again and Fukuyama will mention that it’s difficult to visit her at her home. Select the Observations? option to progress the story, and Fukuyama will mention that he has to leave because it’s late.
Interesting that Fukuyama has to suddenly leave. Maybe we were pushing a little too hard and were about to break into some information that could have been super useful in the investigation. Take the bill, only for Fukuyama to pay for the meeting.
Chapter 4 – Outside of Planet Coffee
You’ll head outside with Fukuyama, and he’ll thank you for coming to Planet Coffee with him. He’ll ask when he can see you again, and he tries to hide his true intentions by mentioning that he’ll keep digging for information. Fukuyama will mention that he’ll be in touch before heading off.
You’ll mention how strange he acts whenever you bring up Megumi and that you need to get to the bottom of it. After this, Ayumi will head back to the Utsugi Detective Agency.
Chapter 4 – Utsugi Detective Agency (Night)
After arriving back at the office, Ayumi will greet the main character, who stopped on the way back to grab a few cans of Milk Tea. Ironic, isn’t it? She’ll ask how everything went yesterday, and the main character will mention everything that he learned about the Kuze siblings and their history.
She’ll also ask about any new information regarding the case from 18 years ago, and the MC will talk about everything that was discovered at the library during the earlier part of the chapter. After going through all of the information, Ask/Listen to discover what Ayumi has learned today. Now, it’s time to Review our findings.
You’ll have to select a few answers from a list, so choose the following:
- Getting into a private school
- We don’t know
After this, Ayumi will let out a big sigh. Maybe we should Ask/Listen to see what’s going on. Do this again before using the Look/Examine option to try and find out what’s wrong with Ayumi. Ask/Listen again. She’ll mention that Fukuyama will get anxious whenever her name is brought up in conversation. Ayumi will ask if we have plans for tomorrow, and it seems we’ll be heading back to the library for more information regarding the Emio urban legend. Ayumi seems to be interested in getting more information about Megumi from Fukuyama but may need to think of a new game plan on how to get it.
This will close out Chapter 4 of Emio: The Smiling Man, and things are starting to get much more intense with information just seemingly on the horizon.
Emio: The Smiling Man is available to play now on Nintendo Switch.
Published: Sep 4, 2024 02:23 pm