Hello, this is Ryukishi07.

Thank you for playing Matsuribayashi, no,

thank you very much for playing Higurashi - When They Cry until the end.

Matsuribayashi is, in a way,

the solution episode for the situation with Takano and the kids starting from halfway through Minagoroshi.

How can they defeat Takano's conspiracy?

How can they reach their ideal ending?

I wrote this episode as a duel between you, the reader, and me, the writer.

So if you think you created a better resolution (world) than my Matsuribayashi,

that means you've defeated Ryukishi07 in this duel.

I, Ryukishi07, have provided two resolutions.

One is how to fight against Takano.

First, here is a hint from the Minagoroshi chapter.

You find out about Takano's conspiracy, which relies on Emergency Manual 34.

Next, here are hints from the Watanagashi and Meakashi chapters.

It has been 48 hours after Rika's death, yet the village is peaceful.

If you put those two things together, obviously the basis of the emergency manual which Hifumi Takano wrote, that everyone will develop terminal symptoms within 48 hours, isn't true.

When you put these two together, you can realize that if Rika's body was discovered 48 hours after her death,

then it's possible to prevent the final operation.

In the Matsuribayashi chapter, I wrote about an attacking side and a defending side like a novel.

If I were to simply write about the resolution, all I had to write was for Ooishi to announce that Rika died at least 48 hours ago, and Takano's conspiracy would fall apart once the news reached Tokyo.

This was rather an easy resolution, like a puzzle, so I'm sure many of you got this right.

The other resolution was the ideal ending for this world.

To answer this, I have to explain the worldview of this story first.

There are hints all over, but the crucial ones are in the Tatarigoroshi and Minagoroshi chapters.

Satoko's uncle comes home and Satoko's life becomes miserable.

How can she be rescued from that situation?

If this story was an exercise in murder, then the Tatarigoroshi chapter is the correct answer.

Keiichi kills Teppei and hides his body well. There's a happy ending.

But I didn't end the episode that way. Instead, I denied it with a bad ending.

The resolution the worldview of Higurashi - When They Cry advocates

is a nonviolent one, with everyone united together.

That is established in 'Question' chapters such as Onikakushi, Watanagashi, and Tatarigoroshi.

In those worlds, when someone becomes suspicious about everything and worries about it alone, things get worse, and that leads to tragedy.

The Meakashi chapter is the sublimation of that situation.

On the other hand, when one talks to their friends, it's revealed that the causes of the tragedies are quite silly. That is indicated in the Tsumihoroboshi and Minagoroshi episodes.

In other words, can you see that in the worlds of Higurashi, anything can be overcome when people talk to each other and help one another?

Unfortunately, that doesn't happen in reality...

Helping each other creates friction, and often times, working alone is a lot simpler.

However, we always hope that we can connect with other people and understand each other, so that we can face any difficulty...

In that sense, this world is a fantasy.

That's right.

In the worlds of Higurashi, there is one magical rule.

That is to talk to others and accept help from them. Then you can defeat anything.

With that, it is possible to make a miracle happen.

If that could be cast into an absolute rule, it would be a sort of magical

"systematic miracle".

Just like what Hanyuu and her friends said in the story.

That is the worldview of Higurashi - When They Cry.

If you follow that rule and think about an ideal ending, I bet the first thing you'll think about is an ending where all the club members unite and defeat Takano.

Actually, there are scenes in the Matsuribayashi chapter that affirm that sort of ending.

However, at the same time, Takano is described as a very lonely person.

By doing so, I raise a question about the resolution.

Everyone else unites, defeats Takano, and makes her into a sacrifice. This is a happy ending... for everyone except Takano.

It is a very popular style of story for the protagonists to unite together and sacrifice the antagonist.

Aliens come to the earth to invade us, so the world unites and defeats the aliens.

Hooray for humans, and we must all get along.

This is a very popular storyline all over the world.

There are plenty of stories that use aliens, devils, or monsters as clear "bad guys\

Two parties fighting with each other become allies once the third party shows up. Storylines like these are indeed exciting...

By adding a sacrifice, differing parties unite and become allies. To create this situation, there has to be always the third party (the sacrifice) as well.

I'm sure many of those who created such stories must have already noticed that.

We always add a third enemy that can't possibly unite with us.

To make up with each other, we try to find a common enemy.

Am I the only one who feels that describes our world today?

In reality, this world belongs only to humans.

There are no aliens or devils or monsters.

So for us to find an enemy, we'll have to fight each other forever.

To make up with each other, we need a new enemy, so we just end up fighting someone else.

In this chapter of Higurashi, I declared that to be the demon of the world of man.

With these explanations of the worldview here in mind,

do you wonder if the resolution of defeating Takano is in fact an ideal resolution of the Matsuribayashi chapter?

That's right.

It's basically the same foolishness found in Tatarigoroshi.

(According to that logic, the Minagoroshi chapter isn't the best resolution for the problems that surround Satoko either.

Do you understand that...?)

How can they make up with Takano?

You wouldn't suggest to make Tokyo into a new enemy and let the club members join with Takano, would you?

If I continue to talk about this issue, I will probably end up mentioning something religious, so let me stop here.

What kind of ending would be the best outcome following the worldview of Higurashi - When They Cry?

Perhaps it's something better than the Matsuribayashi chapter...

You can consider this a graduating question for Higurashi - When They Cry.

Maybe I will leave it as my final gift to those who enjoyed this tale for four and a half years.

Thank you for reading this extremely complicated story.

In the end, what was this all for?

If I were to put the answer to that question in one word, it would be "entertainment".

It's not important if you were able to answer the riddles.

After all, if you enjoyed yourself, you won.

Ryukishi07 will continue to challenge you.

Higurashi - When They Cry ends here, but I hope I get to see you again in a different world.

What kind of work do I want to create next?

Maybe it's fitting to choose my next work from an infinite number of possibilities while listening to the chorus of the higurashi.

I want to express my gratitude to all the people who have supported me until today.

Thank you very much.

I look forward to seeing you all again soon.

Ryukishi07