How long until the plot is posted online?

>>51184984
Maribel and Renko look very snazzy

>>51184984
First it grew a ribbon, not it fully disappears... I think Maribel's hat might be a youkai.

>>51185124
Maribel's hat is Yukari

Hype.

Renko's got hips.

>>51184984
Will Renko's hand grow the missing finger?

>>51185138
She's holding the card between the middle finger(shown) and index finger(covered).

>>51184984
Any predictions for the music style?

>>51185336
loli-tastic

>>51184984
It is time for Renko's special brand of autism

>>51185336
th20 but slightly different, which will be the style for th21

>>51185336
ZUN got his ZUNpets back, so expect them.

>>51185093
Probably after the weekend
Let the frens enjoy their comiket

>>51184984
Tonight or tomorrow's after midnight? Asking because I wanna get high listening to this CD in the first time

It's out already... I guess. The first song is a banger, and yes it's mostly in touhou 20 style

https://youtu.be/b5xnJCD8KwE

It sold out super quick

>>51185921
Is that true?

>>51186018
any time between now and tomorrow morning

>>51186068
Yep it's true, been listening to it since they uploaded very quickly this time (and will be taken down soon, maybe that's the rush)

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I got it from the hands of the man himself. Even managed to thank him very much for his work, and that I've been enjoying it for a long time from far away (he even repeated the name of my country in surprise and bowed). And yesterday I got myself the new Suwako fumo.
This is great.

>>51186071
I'm listening to it and so far none, what song did you hear them on? haven't listened to track 5 and 7+ yet.

>>51186077
Well, just opened track 5 and got my answer

>>51186077
Latter half of track 4

>>51186077
track 1

>>51186082
>>51186088
Need to get my ears checked.

>>51186076
How exciting.
I have never been one to be thrilled by meeting some big creator, but the creator of touhou would make me feel some way.

ZUN actually put effort into the arrangements this time. Unlocated Hell almost sounds like an album original. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tp6TsOPUPL8

>>51186063
the line was super short so anyone who prioritized it should have got it

>>51186076
nice anon!

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NQQcbW3JQVE
Yuiman's remix is really nice. It's even more melancholic sounding than the original.

What's the story already? Do we get more unhinged Renko stuff?

>>51186268
There is no story this time. Just music.

>>51186269
What do you mean there's no story there's always a story

>>51186281
Not this time, sorry.

>>51186283
What the fuck, why?

>>51186284
He's got no time to write another story.

Download link kudasai

>>51186308
It's on Youtube. Convert to MP3.

>>51186309
Thank you but youtube has a terrible compression

>>51186311
As if ZUN's tracks don't come compressed already. This has been the case for the past 10 years now.

>>51186269
>>51186283
>>51186287
Ignore this anon, he's massively homosexual and I curse him and his bloodline to have their penises shrivel up and die and for his blood to get cancer.

https://thwiki.cc/%E7%81%B5%E9%95%BF%E6%96%B0%E7%9B%8A%E4%BA%AC/%E9%99%84%E5%B8%A6%E6%95%85%E4%BA%8B

>>51186043
A pretty and pleasant crime?
What the hell did these two do this time!

>>51186326
Deer rape

>>51186326
1. A Pretty and Pleasant Crime
Criminal Ingress

“See? I told you it’d be fine.”

Renko Usami waved the ID card beside her face and smiled.

“You’ve got nerves of steel. I thought my heart was going to stop.”

Maribel Hearn (Merry) placed a hand over her chest.
She seemed to be holding it down so that no one around them could hear her heartbeat, but if anything, the pounding was obvious from the look on her face.

“Hehe. They say that checkpoint hasn’t actually been functioning for ages.
And according to what my friends say, this place is packed with all kinds of fascinating things.”

“Your friends, Renko… You mean your occult friends, right?
And by ‘fascinating things,’ you mean… things show up here?”

Merry asked with both hands hanging in front of her chest. Renko answered with a broad smile.

“They do. And not just those.”

>>51186330
>ID card
>100+ years in the future
yeah right

>>51186330
RENKO HAS FRIENDS???????

>>51186333
Implanted microchips and whatever other scifi stuff are incredibly inefficient

>>51186330
2. Nara Otherworld Park
Amazing Park Nara

It was a beautiful, disorderly satoyama landscape.

Mysterious structures that appeared to be works of art could be seen here and there among the undergrowth.

Pyramid-shaped forms, one-sheet hyperboloids, projected hypercubes, keyhole-shaped hills—
geometrical structures almost impossible to describe.

Apparently, they were monuments designed to be thoroughly non-religious.

Feral deer ran through the fields as though avoiding the monuments.

“Huh? I was sure when you said things ‘show up’ here, you meant ghosts…”

“Of course deer show up too. Just like the rumors said.”

“Hey, what exactly are these rumors you keep talking about?”

“They say Reichō Aramashikyō has fallen into ruins and turned into some kind of strange space.
It’s fascinating religiously, occultly, and scientifically!”

Deer began gathering in front of Merry.

“My, what clever deer.

But feeding wild animals is prohibited.
Humanity has learned that lesson the hard way several times already.”

>>51186336
Digital IDs in smartphones are a thing. They're likely going to phase physical ones out and force everyone to own a smartphone in order to reduce plastic waste from the physical cards.

>>51186342
This is Japan, a country known for doing inefficient shit because they've always done it that way.

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Idolatrize World's arrange stole the show but the whole album is quite good actually

>>51186344
But they're always 10 years ahead of the west in terms of mass invigialtion and shoving tech down your throat.

>>51186338
3. The Great Fantastic Underground Railway Network

Metro Network in Fantasia

Floods that reduce everything to nothing, murderous heat waves, repeated earthquakes, and unknown natural disasters.

It was only natural that the wisdom of humanity would come to be buried underground.

Urban functions were moved beneath the earth,
while the surface, except for land that needed to be protected, was left to the power of nature.

But no primate has ever survived without being exposed to the light and wind of the surface.

There was no way such a mole-like existence could last for long. The human population declined,
and as conditions on the surface settled down, the underground cities gradually ceased to be maintained.

Only an urban legend remained:

that automated trains still continue to run through the abandoned underground cities.

>>51186349
4. Unlocated Hell

Unlocated Hell

The wind howls without ever stopping.

Land that has lost its forests can no longer summon rain.

Only a handful of drought-resistant plants remain, and before long the surface will turn to desert.

Naturally, greedy humanity did not allow that to happen unchecked.

Having once retreated underground and narrowed its world, humanity acquired a powerful force.

That powerful force was scientific planning.

Energy is finite.

Humanity therefore had no choice but to restrain its own growth.

Desertified ruins were given priority for development,
while the surviving lands rich in greenery were designated as protected zones where humans could not live.

Humanity remembered:

Nature is a hell ruled by survival of the fittest.

Humanity abandoned faith in religions other than science and decided to begin anew.

The result was Reichō Aramashikyō, a planned city created through science.

The site chosen was Nara, the place where Japan’s first capital had been established.

>>51186356
5. Planned City of Culture, Primate Spirit Aramashi-kyō
Aramashi Planned City

“This place full of outdated Japanese-style art and deer—
this is that famous OO
‘Reichō Aramashikyō,’ designed entirely through science and law…?”

“…What’s left of it. Now it’s a ruin full of nothing but deer and strange phenomena OO.”

“How did it end up like this…?”

“Merry, what do you think is the defining characteristic of ‘science’?”

“Why are you asking me that all of a sudden…? Science is the tool that can explain physical phenomena better than anything else, right?”

“Some people would say that.

But if all you want is an explanation, ‘religion’ can explain things far better.

And ‘the occult’ can explain things perfectly.

‘Conspiracy theories’ can even explain phenomena that never happened in the first place.

That isn’t it.

The most important characteristic of science is this:

It is allowed to be wrong.

It can correct its own mistakes.”

“Correct its own mistakes? Isn’t that something you should obviously be able to do?”

“It’s not obvious at all.

For example, ‘religion’ has no mechanism for correcting mistakes.

Things that seem to be wrong are explained through a different interpretation.

‘Conspiracy theories’ have no mechanism for correcting mistakes either.

Because in a conspiracy theory, a mistake is merely a hidden truth.

‘The occult’ has no mechanism for correcting mistakes.

In the occult, a mistake is simply a mysterious event that happened by chance.

None of them are ever truly corrected.”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah, I get it, I get it.

Science can correct its mistakes. Very impressive. So? What are you trying to say?”

“To put it simply, this ‘Reichō Aramashikyō,’ built through science, was a mistake.”

>>51186362
6. Reminiscence of Deer Hunting
Reminiscences on her childhood

Perhaps deciding that the woman there OOO was not going to give them food,
the herd of deer moved away OOO and began eating leaves from the nearby trees.

Plants can expand their habitat by being eaten by deer.

In this area, once known as Nara Park, an ecosystem had formed with deer at its apex.

“Deer are at the top of the ecosystem?

If there aren’t any large predators, wouldn’t the deer population grow out of control?”

“Good observation.

Apparently, deer were treated as sacred here because they were considered the mounts of the gods.

In Nara, they had always been at the top of the ecosystem.”

For some reason, Renko grinned as she said this.

“That doesn’t answer my question, Renko. You’re hiding something, aren’t you?”

“Religion is prohibited here.

And humans still live here too.

So… you know what that means.”

Merry looked at the deer with an indescribable expression.

>>51186366
7. Kitten of Great Fortune
Lacky kitten

“So what you were saying earlier is that because science can correct its mistakes,
Reichō Aramashikyō was abandoned once it was judged to have been a mistake.

No wonder they don’t let ordinary people come near it.

But what exactly was the mistake?”

“Making people abandon religion was probably the biggest one.

After all, this was a religious city with a long history.”

Religious memories, apart from a number of valuable buildings, were preserved only in the form of monuments.

The monuments avoided religious designs and were instead constructed as inorganic works of art made from metal and stone.

Because of their alien appearance, the place was sometimes mocked as a theme park for some new religious movement.

Merry suddenly stopped in front of a torii gate.

“Huh? Aren’t shrines religious facilities?”

“Hmm? Maybe this one was built recently.

Oh, looks like they’re holding a festival. They’ve even got omikuji. Let’s draw one before we go.”

Lacky seems intentional

>>51186373
8. Beast Metropolis
Beast Metropolis

A festival appeared to be taking place at the nameless shrine.

Lanterns glowed in the evening twilight.

“Wha… No way!?

No. It was daytime just a moment ago.”

“Merry! Could this be…!?”

“Looks like that torii gate was the entrance to another world.

It was so natural that I didn’t O notice.”

Renko O, and it looks like the Oomaly has begun.”

OOO dressed in kimono were playing.

The children were all wearing OOO masks.

From the shrine grounds, they could see that they were surrounded by buildings tall enough to OO.

It must have been an illusion.

In Reichō Aramashikyō, buildings taller than the Great Buddha Hall were restricted.

>>51186379
9. Archaeological Ruins of Vairocana Buddha
Bronze Statua of Vairocana

“OOO that startled me. This is exactly why I can’t stop going places with you, Merry.”

“There really do seem to be flaws in the barriers all over the place.

I suppose the city plan really was fundamentally strained.”

The two left the otherworldly shrine behind and headed toward one of Reichō Aramashikyō’s exceptional irrational structures.

Tōdai-ji’s Great Buddha Hall.

It was the destination of their journey.

“Whoa, the Great Buddha is unbelievably huge. So it really did exist.”

“Well? Can you see it?”

“There’s no way I wouldn’t be able to see a statue that huge.”

“No, no! That’s not what I mean!

I mean a flaw like the one at that otherworldly shrine. A tear in the barrier.

It’s a gigantic religious relic that managed to survive. There must be some incredible otherworld…”

Merry stared intently and caught her breath.

“This can’t be!

Vairocana isn’t there!
That Great Buddha is nothing but an empty shell of metal!”

>>51186362
>>51186366
>>51186379
>>51186385
What the fuck is up with these OOO? Did your MTL fuck up or something? Do you even proofread these before dumping? At least pretend to care.

>>51186385
10. Entrust This World to Idols ~ Idolatrize World
Idoratrize World

Earthquakes, epidemics, warfare, famine…

Japan was struck by an unprecedented crisis.

Only Buddhism can save us.

Did Emperor Shōmu truly believe that?

What meaning could there possibly have been in mobilizing vast numbers of starving people
and gathering up precious metals merely to construct an enormous Buddha statue?

From a scientific perspective, or even from a historical one, no rational explanation could really suffice.

And yet the Great Buddha still exists today.

Whenever the world was exposed to crisis after crisis,
this idol silently continued watching over it.

Even after humanity leaves this world, it will probably continue to watch.

At times, human beings are capable of creating something that transcends humanity itself.

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>>51186389
Most of those are there in the original. Except the Beast Metropolis one, that's typos, my bad

>>51186390
11. To a Humanity That Reveres Failure, The Next 2000 Years
For a humanity that embraces failure —— the next 2000 years.

At present, it is impossible to move into the Reichō Aramashikyō area of Nara.

Tourism is permitted only with authorization, but it is said that permission is almost never granted.

More than that, even its very existence is gradually disappearing from official records.

The reason has never been made clear.

Wasn’t ‘science’ supposed to be capable of correcting its failures?

Wasn’t openly laying bare those failures supposed to be one of its virtues?

But the two members of the Hifuu Club could see a new Nara taking shape.

An ideal city of nature where wildlife and history exist in harmony.

A Buddhist city that abandoned religion, and was abandoned by religion.

And a city of faith where a new animism is being born.

In the end, human beings cannot live for long without faith.

“Let’s come explore Nara again.”

“Yeah. We still have to find out where Vairocana went, after all.”
FIN

>>51186395
I went and looked up the raws and I don't see any OOOs. So I'm guessing someone fucked up when they were initially transcribing those onto whatever wiki, which was then copy pasted.

>>51186389
Moron.

How the hell is Hifuu future keep sounding more and more fucked up with each CD?
So basically in an attempt to maintain their survival, human of Japan attempted to build an underground City completely free of nature and religion and sustained itself with science only. Obviously it didn’t last long because ultimately that is not how human should live

>>51186482
Somehow, the Lunarians will be to blame for this.

>>51186482
sounds like ZUN discovered Ayn Rand's books

this looks kino howd u guys like it

>>51186639
More effort to the arranges than usual, pretty good

>>51186658
whats ur favorite track gonna give it a listen after work

>>51186667
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UQllcFiojYY

i heard he was relearning music to make this so i know it will be kino. havent sat down to read the story but from what i see it looks good

We have always know that the world these 2 are living in is one that have hit the absolute limit of science, and that is why they are turning back to religion to explain things
I guess Nara was how they found out about it, a city made out of science, yet utterly failed to last, what DOES last however is the nature and religion it rejected. The deer become the dominant species because religious belief allowed them to, not science

where download

>>51186330
I gave it a listen and this might genuinely be one of my favorite originals from zun. The Great Fantastic Underground Railway Network was very good too.

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>>51186330
>according to what my friends say
Friends? What friends?
>You mean your occult friends, right?
Oh, THOSE, friends. That makes more sense. Birds of a feather, as they say, geez.

I wonder how far ahead ZUN plans the overarching plot of touhou, because the titles of the remixes chosen here (besides Mike's) really seem as if they were planned all along to go with this album

>>51188291
Lunarian warfare soon

Can anyone please share the link to the latest track? I can't find it anywhere

>>51188302
Nvm found it: https://www.bilibili.com/video/BV1sKbS6WEv2

Renko anal

>>51186362
>‘Conspiracy theories’ have no mechanism for correcting mistakes either
OY VEY

>>51186397
Very interesting.
Thank you for the TL.
I thought the previous chapter one of them was stuck in gensokyou, did I miss one?