#anyway i've still got the translation comparison to polish up + a post focused on luke!! so anticipate

[vynegar]

chapter ten analysis/discussion

Continuing my analysis/discussion post on chapter 9, I decided to translate the same author's post on chapter 10 as well. I omitted some of the introduction and ending since it wasn't the meat of the analysis. First is the bilibili post, then below that are a few comments I had on it and the chapter. Also, this is much shorter than the post for chapter 9 lol.

my usual disclaimers; I’m not fluent, there will be mistakes and especially with this type of post I won’t be agonizing over precise word choice, just the overall argument. check my masterlist for more translation and analysis.

[Tears of Themis | Main Story Chapter 10 "Sonorous Silence" Plot Discussion and Analysis by 日和风物诗. Originally posted to bilibili on September 8, 2022.]

[T/N: I'm going to abbreviate Gladiolus Valley Research Center as GVRC because it's a pain to type out]

There's a lot of information and of meaningful content in this chapter. Thus, many of the lingering questions from Chapter 9 have been resolved, but many new questions have also arisen. Let's go through and analyze and answer them one by one.

1. "A good place" that Brigid Gries said Gerard Boone went to

She described it as "a good place", but we all know that it definitely isn't "good"…

The scene where Jerome took Brigid's hand is probably hinting that he is likely the person who took Gerard away. Vyn also obtained a list of names from the auction that included Gerard and Brigid's names. Considering these two things, it's very likely that Gerard was taken somewhere where they are pharmaceutical experiments, just like with Huey.

2. Matthew Richter's role in the overall story

From his kidnapping of MC at the auction, his threatening Vyn with a gun during their confrontation, and Marius saying that the Richter family is the biggest investor of GVRC, all the clues tell us that he is in opposition to us.

However, Wilson Sorge and/or the possible Crimson Biotech person he was speaking to are closer to the actual mastermind. I think that Matthew is just another scapegoat and target that they're pushing forward. But why is Matthew willing to do things for them? Why would he care about the experiment's progress being impeded if the research center gets targeted?

Based on his voice, it's easy to realize that Matthew was the person Vyn was speaking to last chapter. Vyn had said "Should you also be preparing [a suicide note], given your current situation?", and in this chapter Vyn also called him an "invalid". And when MC said he'd fit right in as the "main feature" at a funeral, it "seems you hit a sore spot because the man responds by slamming his fist on the table." (10-16)

Based on that information, I'm guessing that Matthew has some sort of terminal illness, which is why he's investing in GVRC. He believes that research on NXX-based medicine could help his condition and hopes that one day they'll develop an "effective medicine" without side-effects that can cure him. But this requires large amounts of testing on humans and adjustment. Therefore his motives may be different from the mastermind's, but they're cooperated since they have similar interests and goals.

3. Who was the person with Brad Gries in the video file? Who called Felicia?

My guess is still Jerome, because he's the one who's most involved in the whole situation. Brigid is close with her mother, so Jerome is also likely to be the one who called Felicia. He has so much information on this family so it'd be easy for him to gain their trust. His speaking style is also gentle and guiding.

Their next goal is clear: to direct the investigation towards the Richter family, then continue controlling things from the shadows…

4. Why did Bryan Wing receive an invitation to the secret auction?

My understanding is that he received an invitation since he is Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, and people in high positions tend to be invited for the "quality" of the "auction items". But thinking of it another way, why would an auction that's "not on the straight and narrow" be so bold as to invite Bryan Wing? Either they have the power to cover up anything illegal so there's no way to investigate, or they have a very powerful "backer" that makes them fearless. Either option is disturbing.

[end of translation]

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I don't have much to add on points 1, 3, and 4; either the story hints at it very explicitly (Jerome taking Gerard away) or it's a very straightforward speculation on the question raised during the chapter.

Regarding Matthew Richter, I'm so glad the author pointed it out because I completely forgot about that scene from last chapter and about keeping an eye (ear) out for the unknown person xDD But I think they're spot-on; compare the voice in chapter 9 with Matthew's voice in chapter 10. In addition, the criticism of Vyn's manners and rudeness is the same as well.

The connection between all the comments hinting at Matthew's health and his involvement with GVRC also ties together so many strange little details into a reasonable explanation for his circumstances. Excellent attention to detail, no notes, I'm 100% on board with this conclusion. My only additional thoughts are that this situation feels all the more complicated after what we learned in Vyn's Sweet Chapter 2-07, about his attitude toward disabilities and imperfections.

Vyn: When I was very young, I witnessed my family member being discarded because of their imperfections... Vyn: As for the nobles, they stood on a pedestal and gave out commands as they watched everything happen with heartless eyes. Vyn: In their eyes, whether it be a defect before or after birth... Vyn: Or a psychological or mental disability... They see it as a form of imperfection. Vyn: And the people with these imperfections are nothing but trash in their eyes. They believe these people to be worthless and without the need to exist. Vyn: Ever since then, the seed of the "fear of imperfection" was planted in my mind. Vyn: I have always been afraid... I have been afraid that one day I will become imperfect and be tossed away because of it...

As of now, I haven't seen anything that suggests Matthew's (possible) illness is genetic in nature or that he has anything to do with the situation mentioned there, especially since it's talking about the Svart nobles. If it does, though, it gives more weight to Vyn's fear of the results of the genetic test in his Sweet Chapter. Either way, we can see the hints of this internalized prejudice towards "imperfections" in the way that some of Vyn's insulting remarks about Matthew are about his health. And in the timeline of the main story, MC hasn't been there to help him work through those issues.

So much of Vyn's history and issues have been in the context of his father's side of his family that it's interesting to see how this one may show up in his mother's side of the family. We know from Matthew's comment that both Vyn and Reina often "clash with him", and I'm looking forward to learning more about his relationships with the other characters.