Honey We're Both Dying...

I never understood Reiji's goals and intentions until I came across your blog. You have literally analyzed the entire game in such a detailed way that in the end you can't help but think about his psychology and character. I admit that before I read every one of your posts about this boy, I always found him to be the most boring Sakamaki brother and I couldn't explain his actions, but thanks to you I decided to give him 1 more chance. What I like most is the fact that even though he is your favorite, you don't justify or sugar coat him like many people do with their favorite character, but you appreciate, examine and explain his flaws and mental problems, trying to analyze like a true psychologist. Respect for the work you have done. I saw that you're planning more posts like this in the future and that you're going to try other characters like Ayato, who I think shares quite a bit of Reiji's personality. I can't wait for it.

Ah! Thank you, I'm glad you decided to give him one (1) more chance [even though you shouldn't, he's very rude]. BUT your point is exactly the reason why I wanted to analyse him in the first place. He's generally considered 'boring' or 'annoying' to deal with, and his dialogue can be hard to sift through if you're only looking at him at surface level.

I know I've said many times that I wanted More Blood done and dusted before now - and I genuinely thought I'd be finished, but sadly over 100k words isn't enough words for our boy - that and I'm ☆chronically ill☆ at the moment. I feel like a sick Victorian child lmao

I am getting through the transcripts, but very slowly. It doesn't help that I was on the verge of a stroke when someone decided to ☆delete☆ a section of my work. Thank you Ctrl + Z because I was about to invoke the most destructive gamer rage this world has ever seen.

I am glad that you decided to send this ask Anon since I never really knew how much this could help people understand Reiji (even if it's just from my perspective). I feel like the best way to thoroughly appreciate a character is to acknowledge their flaws, and I'm glad you're able to appreciate them too >3<

But I do think you're right about Ayato. I feel like he definitely shares a lot of traits with Reiji, but more so as his opposite. I feel like Reiji and Ayato have a ying/yang code to them; I stand by my interpretation that Ayato represents chaos and that Rejii represents order.

[For your diligence, please take this sanrio Reiji]

Also, mini rant: I can't be the only one that instantly thinks of Zhongli whenever they see the word 'order', right? The line just goes through my head like the plague, so now my brain decided to fuse him and Reiji together, and now I'm stuck with this:

that feels like a ☆violation☆ of fandoms

---

Diabolik Lovers A Certain Prophet’s Fate Analysis

What I found when reading through the lyrics, is that the story being told could be Reiji’s thoughts and perspective - the song may act as his inner thoughts and him trying to articulate them in a metaphorical way. The song itself is quite beautiful to listen to but I wanted to address the lyrics and their hidden meanings in relation to Reiji’s character. We know that Reiji likes to use his intellect to his advantage; so it can be argued that he wouldn’t outright admit his state of mind within this song, naturally, he’d create a more elaborate way to let his ‘story’ unfold, and I think this is what we see here.

So, shall we begin ?

Note: I wanted to post the song separately too since I know my HDB analysis is long, and posting it separately would also be convenient if you just want to read the song analysis on its own.

Word Count: 7,492 words

In the dense black forest of Schwarzwald, In doting adoration of a virgin, riding on a unicorn’s back

First of all, Schwarzwald simply means 'Black Forest' in German; it relates to a forest so dense that almost no sun ever reaches the forest floor - those who enter are surrounded by darkness -. This can create quite dark imagery, not just physically but also metaphorically as the darkness contrasts with the imagery of light - "a virgin, riding on a unicorn's back" - and this can be implied to relate to the story of Faust as well as the character of Yui. 

Within the story, we’re introduced to two virgins, one being named Gretchen and the other is the Virgin Mary herself - both contain imagery of purity and religion, Gretchen prays to God for her soul to be cleansed and Mary carried the son of God. What I wanted to draw parallels on is how that imagery applies to Yui, she was raised in a church - showing that she’s a child of God, and we know that her religion plays a rather big part in her life; she prays to God quite frequently, and - in the literal term - she is also virginal. Virginity can connotate to a multitude of things, such as physical virginity (the hymen is intact) but also religious virginity - purity - and not being ‘tainted’ by darker forces at play. If we take the “virgin” to mean Yui - someone pure of heart and spirit, someone who’s not been corrupted by the dark side of humanity and holds truth in her beliefs - then what does the unicorn signify ? 

Unicorns can often be linked to purity, freedom, gentleness, virginity, innocence, divinity, and magic. Christians believe that the unicorn symbol is that of Christ and Mother Mary themselves - both being devoted children of God -. By posing the imagery of “a virgin, riding a unicorn’s back”, it could be implied to symbolise Yui and her many virtuous traits - or, to put it simply, Yui is riding on the back of her virtues -. Additionally, symbols such as unicorns and virginity can also be implied to carry imagery of light - the concept of unicorns are more often than not depicted as being pure white and flying up to the Heavens - past the white clouds and into paradise, a place that is also depicted as white or ‘pure’ -. Virginity can also contain those same ‘white’ qualities as white lilies are typically the symbol of virginity. The reason I’m honing in on the colour white is due to it’s connotations of purity, innocence and light. To put it plainly, purity represents light, and Yui (in this context) represents that purity.

That being said, if Yui is the second part of that phrase, it’s likely to imply that the first relates to Reiji himself. “Dense black forest”, let’s unpack that: both “dense” and “black” contain connotations of darkness and something impenetrable; it contrasts the imagery of light and purity we’ve just discussed. Themes of light are often representative of religion and themes of darkness represent those of hellish qualities; if Yui represents ‘light’ in this case, then Reiji must consequently represent the “dark”. The “forest” could connote to Reiji’s emotional state as traditionally, the forest has come to represent being lost, exploration and potential danger as well as mystery and ‘other worldliness’ - all traits we see within Reiji -. Due to Reiji being the narrator (since he’s singing) it can be implied that he’s metaphorically describing his internal struggles, he’s stuck within his own turmoil - and emotions such as this are often referred to as a ‘dark place’, which links us to the symbolic imagery of the “black forest”. It not only symbolises his Vampiric nature - something not of God nor Heaven but the darker depths of Hell itself; hence why they originate from the Demon World within the Diabolik Lovers canon - but it also symbolises his emotional distress and his inner darkness that he oppresses Yui with. The light and dark imagery reflect Yui and Reiji as well as their religious counterparts - Yui represents light, and Heaven, whereas Reiji represents the dark and therefore Hell.

The noun “adoration” could imply that Reiji desires to be ‘free’ of his traumatic ties while Yui rests atop her kindness. However, it could also imply that Reiji wishes to drag Yui down into the “dark forest” with him and corrupt her pure nature.

The brightly shining moon, a stirring breeze, With the fairies’ boisterous rituals, driving pounding hearts ever faster

The adverbial phrase “brightly shining moon” could posses connotations of light - referring to Yui as we’ve previously implied - however, the word “moon” could imply that the ‘light’ is pale, and it’s cold as opposed to the warm light associated with the sun - they both can also be associated with God as he created both the sun and the moon; they both produce Heaven’s light however, one is pale and cold in comparison to the other, leading darker forces to claim the night -. Within the Bible, night represents a lack of faith in God. With this symbolism in mind, it can be implied that once the cover of daylight has faded, Yui is vulnerable, and the “dark forest” would consequently grow ‘stronger’ - which is something we see within the route as Vampires are canonically weaker within daylight.

Conversely, the phases of the moon can symbolise immortality, eternity, enlightenment and the dark side of nature itself. Something that clearly applies to the character of Reiji - Vampires are immortal and spend their eternity feeding into their trials and tribulations, their ‘enlightenment’ in this case, is to be killed and be set ‘free’. It could be implied that as the moon shines, not only is Yui vulnerable in her faith, but Reiji is biding his time to strike her down into his ‘eternity’.

Fairies are often associated with plants and springtime, depicted as pure figures who possess magical powers. However, in the tales of fairies, they are, more often than not, mischievous creatures with dark and evil intentions. The Latin root word for fairy is ‘fay’ meaning fate; this could signify the purpose of fairies within myths, fairies in stories are constantly messing with the fates of humans. Fairies in these myths may be of the more cartoonish variety and signify simply love, magic and springtime, but most signify things like death, sexual depravity, abduction and general immorality. I wanted to draw attention to the imagery of fairies and their ‘rituals’ as their connotations can vary from divinity to Satanism.

It can be implied that this section refers to Yui, as within the first interpretation of fairies, they symbolise purity and life - and given Yui’s age at the beginning of the story, her youth displays the life her body has and the life it can give, she’s pure, untainted and brimming with life. However, ‘fairies’ could also relate to the brothers. With the interpretation that fairies can also derive from a darker ilk, and like to cause mischief, it could represent the brothers - they each have dark intentions for Yui no matter who’s route you play, and they do it for their own entertainment and their own benefit. Reiji purposely dehumanises Yui and turns her into a loyal pet. Reiji’s “ritual” is to strip Yui of her virtues so that she’ll play into his incessant need for control, driving her pounding heart even faster - what I mean by this is fear, throughout the beginning of Reiji’s route, Yui was undoubtedly afraid of Reiji and the threat he posed to her; he implemented fear into Yui in order to break her.

Conversely, this line can also be interpreted to contain sexual connotations. We’ve dived into how fairies can also be symbols of sexual intimacy and depravity; if we take into account that sadism can also occur within intimate situations like this, it could link back to Reiji. By him essentially breaking Yui, it can be implied that he gains gratification from doing so; “driving pounding hearts ever faster”, Yui’s heart could be inferred to be beating from fear whilst Reiji’s could be implied to be pounding from the pleasure his sadism grants him.

While unknowing that the contracted “Devil” follows after—

This line could serve the implication that while Yui’s vulnerable in the night, she still holds that naivety; she hasn’t figured out the situation she’s in and Reiji’s closing in on her. I’ve interpreted the “contracted ‘Devil’” to relate to Reiji - a narrative self-reference, if you will -, he’s referring to himself while posing the situation that Yui is unaware of his darker intentions for her. She holds firm to her beliefs in God yet she is ignorant to her state of vulnerability.

Ah, such a foolish thing you are, little girl (Falling to ruin) That glass mask of yours is (beginning to crack) Decide, without looking back at the promises shredded by your sins

Firstly, I’d like to point out that Yui is referred to as a “foolish thing”. This noun phrase could insinuate that Reiji’s chastising her naivety, and the fact that she was blissfully unaware and ignorant to the position she was in. To add to this, the noun “thing” also displays the difference in power as it’s established early on in Reiji’s route that ‘sacrificial brides’ are merely nothing more than blood bags - right from the get-go Yui is beneath Reiji -. However, from a psychological standpoint, it’s clear to say that when one person intends to ruin another’s life in some way, shape or form, they tend to distance themselves - either physically, emotionally or both - as it’s easier to hurt someone when you barely view them as a person at all; and I think this is what that line means, Reiji’s pushing Yui into “falling to ruin” - she’s falling to her (spiritual) ‘death’, she’s losing herself and who she is.

The second line strikes me as ironic as the phrase “glass mask” can predominantly refer to a person’s façade. In the context that Reiji is implying Yui’s innate kindness to be a façade of some form, he could be posing the implication that those who are kind often ‘hide away’ their darker counterparts; their ‘sinful’ side. Throughout most of Reiji’s route, Yui has been posed with the question that she should let her dark and carnal self prevail - proving to Reiji that in all her humanity, Yui is nothing more than a pet, an animal who thrives on her carnal instincts, and we see this within the second ending, when Yui poses herself as Cordelia - enslaving Reiji - and essentially living at the ‘top of the food chain’. In that ending, Yui lets her darker side prevail and - in the context of this particular phrase - it therefore poses the implication that her ‘kindness’ was simply a façade, her “glass mask”. The noun “glass” can have connotations of fragility; that the ‘face’ she ‘prefers’ to show is not how she actually feels. The overall implication that Reiji is giving us, is that Yui expresses feelings that are not her own; and the ‘mask’ she wears is as fragile as glass, and once she’s distracted or vulnerable, that mask will break and her ‘true’ self will show.

This is obviously very ironic since Reiji is the one to hide away his true feelings - he plays the role of a ‘polite butler’ yet we know he is anything but that - he uses abuse and manipulation to cover up his own insecurities and turmoil. If anything, he is the one who wears a mask of glass. Glass is fragile, much like his ego and self-esteem, and that mask beings to crack as his route develops - indulging in Yui’s naïve compassion.

The third line could be implied to mean that Yui must make her decision to stay with him - commit to Reiji without hesitation, without the desire to run and give in to her carnal sins with him. He’s asking Yui to take the plunge into sin with him, revoke her religion and commit to him.

“You still do to that extent, even though I’ve told you so firmly.”

This dialogue strikes me as odd, it doesn’t refer to much within the song, however, it could pair with the second piece of dialogue, implying that Yui is still trying to run from her situation; she’s not ready to fully commit from God to the “Devil” - the “Devil” in this case being Reiji, and quite obviously, “Devil” has quite sinister connotations; given that Yui was raised by the church, her commitment to something demonic (and vampiric) is not going to be an easy or nice feat for her.

It can also be implied that this is taking place throughout the beginning of her ‘training’ as it can be inferred that she’s still resisting him even though he’s “told [her] so firmly”, further insinuating that she still has her willpower at this point. She’s not fully succumbed to Reiji’s abuse yet.

A single enraged horn, able to thrust its way up to the heavens Like a chaotically blooming rose, it’s splattered across your face

This first line could posses many different interpretations, the first could relate back to Faust, a man who sold his soul to the Devil yet still tried to force himself into Heaven, only to fail. However, it could also relate back to the relationship between Reiji and Yui, and insinuate something of a sexual nature. Not only are horns associated with devils and demons, but the noun “horn” can posses connotations of a phallic symbol and sexual imagery. Within Greek mythology, strength, power and supremacy are a part of the symbolism of horns. The other connotation is virility - procreative vigour. Within the story of the ‘Plough’, even the use of the oxen to pull the plough had its sexual connotation. The plough drew its furrow in the soil, and was pulled by reins attached to the oxen's horns. The horns were the force behind the plough’s coitus with the earth; therefore, horns grew a sexual connotation. Alongside the noun “horn” the verb “thrust” also contains sexual connotations; with this semantic field in mind, it could imply that “heavens” relates to Yui’s purity and virginity. Additionally, the imagery of roses also feeds into this interpretation as white flowers are a common symbol of virginity; the imagery of a flower blooming can often be associated to metaphorically represent becoming a woman (losing your virginity) and the flower turns from white to red as the blood pours - and roses are often red or at least associated with the colour red as opposed to white.

Conversely, it could also refer to Yui and Reiji’s emotional relationship, and the dark and light imagery could be a metaphysical representation of that. It could imply that Reiji’s abuse is starting to infect Yui - a child of God being corrupted by something demonic -. It can also link back to her “glass mask” as the corruption allows Yui’s kind nature to drop and her weak and vulnerable state to be “splattered across [her] face”. It could insinuate that the “blooming rose” is Yui’s corruption starting to grow and infest her; yet she’s still trying to fight it - she’s infected by Reiji, and the rose imagery could represent that. Roses are often associated with love and throughout Reiji’s route, we see Yui start to fall into the categories of Stockholm Syndrome and co-dependency, that ‘love’ is starting to bloom yet it is a twisted form of love.

This deep crimson curse is our family’s fate A damned soul, never again to…

The imagery of a “deep crimson” can connote to blood, and not necessarily just Yui’s. the notion that it’s referred to as a “curse” and “family’s fate” offers the interpretation that Reiji views his heritage as a source of evil and misfortune and that tribulations are inevitable and unavoidable for him. It not only relates to each brother’s misery and the misery they force upon Yui, but it also relates back to their mothers and Karlheinz himself as Christa dealt with severe mental illnesses, Cordelia suffered from a multitude of issues and Beatrix was severely bullied by Cordelia - and Karlheinz foresaw all of this and made it his personal experiment to cause each one misery and make sure that instability was passed down onto each brother; with that information in mind, it would be natural for Reiji to interpret this recurring theme to be something akin to a family curse, a terrible privilege that each of them share. In addition to this, “A damned soul, never again to...” could be a self-reference from Reiji, if he views his heritage as a “curse”, then it’s likely that he appoints himself as a “damned soul” - with “damned” giving connotations of misery and turmoil -. I’d like to bring attention to the aposiopesis found within this line as what Reiji aims for is left ambiguous, however, what I interpret this unfinished phrase to mean, is that he’s a “damned soul, never again to” reach the ‘light’ and achieve happiness and genuine love and affection. If Reiji interprets himself as a cursed child, it would be natural for him to crave the love and stability he was never given, he wants what he can’t have and he can’t have it because he’s “damned” to be awarded nothing but tribulations, turmoil and misery.

“You know you can never escape!!”

I’ve interpreted this section of dialogue to link to the other - it uses the passive voice. The passive voice is used to show interest in the person or object that experiences an action rather than the person or object that performs the action. In other words, the most important thing or person becomes the subject of the sentence, for example: ‘the plate was dropped by Yui’ rather than ‘Yui dropped the plate’. The most important part of this sentence is that “[Yui] can never escape”, yet it comes secondary to “I’ve told you so firmly”  - which is the least important part of the phase, yet it is spoken first; further implying that Reiji is using the passive voice to ‘chastise’ Yui into submission. 

The phrase itself could pose a few interpretations, one being that she can never escape from Reiji - Yui’s his prey and he’s not going to let her go idly by -. The second is that she can never escape her fate; I think this is the overall theme of Reiji’s song. Reiji is fated to live out a torturous, Vampiric existence, and Yui is damned to be tied to Reiji’s fate due to her father’s involvement. Yui’s fate was decided once Cordelia’s heart was instilled in her; she was damned from the beginning and I believe Reiji knows this - he’s trying to drag her into damnation with him.

A dying science,

Your impressions destroyed, at the hand of a shameless fist

The first line here could be interpreted as an oxymoron, as science is often connected to discovering something new or creating something new - discovering a new ‘life’ so to speak - and this connotation would naturally contrast with “dying”. Science can relate to a multitude of things, biology, chemistry, physics and psychology to name a few. this phrase could link to both Reiji and Yui if we take the psychological approach - the phrase itself could be metaphorical of Reiji breaking Yui’s self-worth. Throughout his route, Reiji has undoubtedly used Yui as an ‘experiment’ of sorts, a ‘science’ to explore and break down into its basic fundamentals; her “impressions” - impressions of herself, those around her and trying to help them as best as she can - are “destroyed”, her self-worth and confidence are decimated by Reiji’s cruelty, by the “hand of a shameless fist”.

However, it could be interpreted in a more literal sense and instead link back to when Cordelia inhabited Yui’s body and chose to destroy Reiji’s laboratory; and in turn, destroy the potion he was devoting himself to that would resurrect Beatrix, devoting himself to a “dying science” if you will. In that moment, Reiji’s impressions of coming to terms with his CEN were destroyed by Cordelia’s self-importance - her “shameless fist” destroyed the very thing (aside from Yui) that was pivotal to him.

As these sins pile up like the falling snow, there is no hope of redemption Their height surpassing even your castle walls, it’s far too late to even pray to God

This section here could be implied to be metaphorical and represent Yui’s inner self and her emotional walls and boundaries. First of all, comparing sins to snow alongside with the sibilance in both can be implied to connote to something light and cunning; the ‘s’ sound can also give off snake-like imagery - which takes us back to the religious themes threaded throughout the game and this song. The snake that bit Eve (the Devil) and ‘awakened’ her can make quite a nice parallel to Reiji and Yui. Throughout this song, it can be inferred that Reiji references himself to be the “Devil” - he’s not the Devil but he is demonic - and Yui (throughout the games) is named Eve in relation to her ‘awakening’; both the Adam and Eve theme threaded throughout More Blood, and the other games hold quite Biblical references and imagery. 

Snow also continues this religious imagery as it often symbolises purity, which could mean that this contrast is posing the implication that Yui’s sins are pure (as in [something] is pure envy or [insert sin here]’. However, snow tends to fall slowly and lightly, which could imply that Yui’s submission into Reiji’s abuse is slow and light at the beginning but like snow, it culminates over time. We could even go as far as to compare her submission to the sin of sloth. Sloth has been defined as a failure to do things that one should do; in this case - or rather, in Yui’s case - that failure is the failure to overpower her abuser.

The second part to the first line - “there is no hope of redemption” -  could apply to both Reiji and Yui. Yui has no hope for redemption once she submits to Reiji - to submit to Reiji, a vampire, a demon, she is effectively turning her back on her faith; she’s made peace with her fate and therefore, there is no redemption for her in Yui’s own eyes. As for Reiji, he has no hope for redemption due to the abhorrent cruelty he bestows on Yui; his treatment of not only her, but Shuu, Beatrix and Edgar too. Reiji cannot achieve redemption because he cannot accept when he is at fault. His behaviour towards others and his sadism prevent him from becoming better; therefore, for him, there is no redemption. At least, redemption cannot take place just yet, remember, this is a story being told by Reiji about Yui - his perception of her is going to be vastly different from ours as the audience; therefore, he cannot see ‘redemption’ for her, and in his own way of thinking, he poses the question that maybe she cannot see redemption for herself either.

The imagery of Yui’s sins growing higher than her “castle walls” could be implied to be metaphorical. When a person hides away their feelings, we often use the phrase ‘putting up walls’ to describe their emotional cut off. I believe this can be referential to Yui as throughout the beginning of Reiji’s route, we often see Yui hide away her deeper affections; she keeps her larger thoughts and feelings to herself most of the time - her distaste, longing, uncertainty is wrapped away in her mind (we as the audience see those thoughts and feelings, but Reiji doesn’t). In order to keep herself from facing Reiji’s uglier tendencies, she’ll sometimes lock her emotions away (not all of them, but quite a few). Overall, it could be implied that Reiji’s influence is starting to take a hold of her internally and she can’t block it out or subdue it, and because it’s festering in her mind, it’s already in her subconscious; therefore, it’s “too late” for her to pray to God to help her. Reiji’s wormed himself into Yui’s mind and her faith in God cannot overpower that.

Unable to grasp that ‘nothingness,’ that eternal price—

The noun “nothingness” can connote to the state of being nothing, something that is non-existent, lack of being, unconsciousness or death and I think the latter is the main connotation for this noun within the context of the song and Reiji as a character. We know that Vampires within the DL universe crave death, and being killed is the ultimate way for someone to confess their ‘love’ - to die is something that all Vampires crave. This line, to me, could imply that Reiji longs for death, to have the misery end and finally rest for eternity; we know from following Kanato’s route that he [Kanato] is jealous of humans since we can die quite easily whereas he cannot - he can’t grasp that “nothingness” that is death - and I think this can apply here. It can not only be implied that Reiji wants to - in some capacity - die, but that he’s almost chastising Yui for the fact that she can reach death easier than him. The dash (or hyphen) at the end of this sentence poses the inference that he’s being ‘cut off’ or ‘cut short’, not by his brothers or Yui, but by himself; he’s purposely cutting his sentence short and I think this links back to his internal struggle of opening up and lowering his front. Throughout Reiji’s route, his character has always been to-and-fro with his emotions - he’s reserved yet malicious - however, I think this line in particular allows us to see into his head more and could even pose the theory that Reiji’s suffering from depression just like his brother(s). Neglect, abuse, perfectionism, paranoia (of being ‘outed’ for his feelings and of Yui leaving him - this is seen throughout Cordelia’s interference), they all add up one on top of another and paired with his need to impress his father and prove his worth, it all culminates to him possibly wanting to be the “nothing” that he feels - that his childhood made him feel -. He’s giving us insight into his mind yet at the same time, it could be implied that he’s scolding Yui for how easily she can die and fade into that “nothingness” yet he is unable to do so himself.

Aah, the punishment you dreamed of (Why did I see it?) This spiral labyrinth is (never-ending) In conclusion, unless I suck you dry, the rules of logic won’t survive

Linking back to the previous line, the “punishment” Reiji’s mentioning could be death. Again, this is a story from Reiji’s point of view and we know for a fact that he implements his own views and beliefs onto Yui; it would be no different how he would force his views of death onto her too. Consequently, it could then be implied that he also believes Yui to crave death as much as he does - which would then make sense as to why he says “the punishment you dreamed of”. As the audience, we know that Yui doesn’t want to die, but Reiji can’t accept that and instead views it as her denying her ‘true feelings’ - he needs to have that corrupt control over her mind in order to relax around her -.

Ironically, the very word “labyrinth” is often used to illustrate confusion and complexity. As such, the symbol of the labyrinth can represent an enigma, a puzzle and confusion. Some view the labyrinth as a metaphor for a spiritual journey, with the entrance representing birth and the centre symbolising God, knowing or enlightenment. Getting to the centre requires a long, arduous journey of growth. First of all, the spiral is a symbol of change, as all things in this world must change over time. Nothing can live and be stagnant, and as scary as change is, it is also wonderful, because that means that everyday we have a new chance, a new choice, to change ourselves. I think this overall line is Reiji speaking out about his subconscious, he as a person is constantly changing and conflicting with himself - and this is mainly brought about by Yui -. He’s trapped pondering the same path and as he walks on, he delves deeper into his own psyche; however, this “spiral labyrinth” is “never-ending” because he can’t come to terms with who he is - who he is underneath his trauma, his privileges, his race and status - because, in my interpretation, that person is something Reiji would see as weak and powerless, which is the same thing he loathes in Yui - which brings us back to the interpretation that in some ways, Yui subconsciously represents Reiji’s inner self, and his childhood. Due to Yui possibly representing these things, the spiral never ends because Yui’s representation is something Reiji wants to run away from, but no one can run from their past, and until he learns to accept the better things about himself and the things he’s done out of spite and hatred, he can never fully leave that labyrinth.

The third line links more to what we see during the route, which is him biting Yui. However, in this subliminal context, this line could be implied to implement the power dynamic - and the importance of said dynamic -. Overall, this phrase basically states that if Reiji doesn’t drink Yui’s blood, then logic won’t survive; this could imply that Reiji has to drink from Yui in order to continue the power dynamic between them, he needs to be the one in control, the predator, and Yui needs to stay in the position of weak prey. By furthering this interpretation, it could imply that in regards to their races, predator and prey is the only logical dynamic to establish and for that to be disturbed would imply that logic no longer exists; it would mean that Yui has the upper hand, and not Reiji, he would no longer hold the control he desires. If we compare this interpretation to the Manservant Ending, we see that power dynamic flip. Instead of Reiji instigating the blood sucking, this time it’s Yui - she’s in control and she does as she pleases, he can’t drink the amount he wants (he can’t suck her dry) - and therefore, all logic has disappeared, the prey has become the predator and logic has died, Reiji’s control has died, and his self-worth has died.

Following Reiji’s route, we quickly learn that Reiji is a man who values intelligent and logic - his intellect fuels his self-esteem - and unless he has Yui at his mercy (with the threat of draining all her blood) the logic of the Vampire/Human dynamic won’t survive, it’ll die along with his frail ego.

“Kukuku…Or rather, would you like to die right now?”

This piece of dialogue links to the previous ones we’ve seen throughout the song; it’s a string of dialogue weaved into the story, a cross between Reiji’s ‘fantasy’ and reality. He’s told Yui that she can never escape and now he’s giving her the ‘option’ of dying - in reality, there is no option, it’s reverse psychology of giving her the choice of doing something that he knows she would protest against (that being death). It acts as Reiji essentially keeping Yui under his control.

Additionally, the fact that Reiji laughs when saying this could imply that he doesn’t take Yui seriously enough to consider her a threat; furthermore, it could be implied that he’s choosing to mock her in her time of distress - Yui wants to leave but she can’t and Reiji’s taking this opportunity to laugh at her misfortune.

In a storm driven mad with desire, my mind calms, all thoughts cut off Like a vanishing rose, cutting across my mind

When you think about a storm, you probably don’t have many pleasant meanings to connect to it. It’s a symbol of chaos, negativity, trauma, difficulty, weakness, and even depression. Storm symbolism also signifies change and transition since storms are only temporary. However, in literature, storms play a completely different role. They’re used as elements of foreshadowing, which is the act of predicting the future in the story. It’s a very frequently used symbol that can be used in almost any setting. Normally, it predicts something unpleasant, tragic, or even scary.

The storm itself could be implied to represent Reiji’s inner turmoil; how by focusing on that one specific thing can in fact calm him, his mind is steady - it could be interpreted as ‘ordered chaos’, which refers to a complex situation or process that appears chaotic while still having enough order to achieve progress or goals. The idea of “organised chaos” is more than saying you know where everything is in your messy bedroom or office, even if no one else can make sense of it. It’s also the idea of a looser set of rules and giving yourself a little more freedom to find your own success. it can be inferred that the “storm” is Reiji’s subconscious, or at least his mental state, yet his mind is able to be calm due to him being able to navigate that chaos - it’s something only he can understand, both giving him the satisfaction of surpassing everyone else’s psychological skills but also the satisfaction of being able to hide the mess that is his mind so well.

The last line of this phrase could be implied to mean that Reiji’s mind has become blank, his usual thoughts of resentment and jealousy have ceased, they’ve vanished and so, his mind has become blank. Additionally, ‘blank’ can have connotations of calmness - since the mind has become devoid of thoughts and emotions, it becomes oddly calm in its emptiness. Here we also see the noun “rose” make another appearance, however, roses not only symbolise love and purity, but it also has other connotations too. In the Middle Ages, roses were hung from the ceilings of meeting rooms; it was understood that everyone under the roses was sworn to secrecy. With this in mind, it could be implied that the noun “rose” symbolises secrecy, Reiji’s desires and detriments are to remain a secret - a secret that he and Yui will later share but a ‘secret’ nonetheless -. However, the notion that the rose is “vanishing” could imply that his unchecked mind is starting to dissipate; the thoughts that haunt him so much are ‘disappearing’ from his conscious mind. However, the verb “cutting” gives off the interpretation that his vanishing thoughts are quite abrupt, as though Reiji’s trying to forcefully forget the chaos in his brain - implying that Reiji’s trying to forget his turmoil in order to calm his mind.

This memory is our family’s fate A damned soul, never again to…

Memory can often connote to both remembrance and forgetfulness however, it can be interpreted that “memory” relates to the previous line, of Reiji trying to forget his tribulations. Each person that holds a substantial relationship with Karlheinz is dealt with nothing but despair - whether that relationship is founded from genetics or courtship is of no relevance, as each person is given their own cruel hand by “fate” -. Therefore, it’s possible to assume that Reiji’s memories of pain is shared throughout the family; each brother is wallowing in their own trauma, yet they cannot talk about it or cope in a healthy way, they each let their emotions fester and try to forget their memories, and because that mechanism of trauma is passed through the family, it has therefore become their “fate”.

Here we also see the repetition of the line “A damned soul, never again to…”. The adjective “damned” can have connotations of  being condemned or doomed, especially to eternal punishment - which is quite similar to how the brothers view their long-lasting lives. With this in mind, we can again imply that Reiji is ‘doomed’ to suffer the consequences of ‘fate’s’ cruel hand; he can never again revert to the past, before his trauma was dealt to him, and that is his family’s fate. 

“…─I will never let you go”

Once more, we are presented with Reiji’s dialogue, however, this phrase has both sorrowful and threatening connotations. The phrase “…─I will never let you go” has obvious menacing implications, since Reiji’s holding Yui hostage in this overall situation - if Yui tries to leave, then he’ll punish her, or he’ll kill her. This threat enables Reiji to carry on implementing his control over Yui and bending her to his will - breaking her in the process -. Conversely, this threat can also possess quite sorrowful and forlorn connotations. Following Reiji’s route, it can be implied that Yui’s inadvertently and subconsciously helping Reiji come to terms with the type of person he is; without Yui, his bitterness will only fester to a higher capacity, and his abuse tactics and sadism will only grow - thus, it could be implied that Reiji can’t let Yui go because of this, and when you think about it that way, it’s quite melancholic.

“Kukuku… You should understand by now, right?”

“It is your fate to continue to have your blood sucked by me.”

Reiji yet again insults Yui’s intelligence by condescending to her that she should be able to understand the situation she’s in, and how it’s her “fate”. Throughout the entirety of Reiji’s route, his use of language towards Yui is typically demeaning, and here is no exception. 

The noun “blood” can have many different connotations and symbolisms, one of which is that it represents life - this is mainly derived from the fact that blood is the very substance that flows through our veins in order to keep us alive; with this connotation, it could be implied that Yui’s “fate” is to have her life drained by Reiji for his own satisfaction. However, blood can also be seen as something that’s a person’s ‘essence’. If there’s something that is so core to your sense of identity or your beliefs, you could say that “it’s in my blood”. This interpretation could imply that Reiji intends to finish ‘training’ Yui until every last part of her has been taken away, her ‘core’ has been “sucked” out by Reiji in his attempts to perfect her - all her aspirations, hope, pain and suffering have been removed by Reiji, as blood can also connotate to pain and suffering; something that can be implied to be Reiji’s fate - his fate is to suffer, and he will inflict that same punishment upon Yui, since her fate is to become broken and damned along with him.

“…─This prediction is absolute.” “……So, wake up…”

Firstly, the line “This prediction is absolute.” could imply that both Reiji and Yui’s fates are “absolute”, they’re established and universally decided upon that this is the path they must both follow. The noun “prediction” carries connotations of both science and philosophy. The first comes from the fact that during an experiment, predictions are made in relation to the outcome - the experiment at hand however, can range from physical chemicals to the inside of someone’s mind. Additionally, “prediction” can also connote to something being prophesied. The inference that I’m trying to make, is that both connotations are linked; though this insinuation is mainly derived from More Blood and Dark Fate due to us learning more about Karlheinz and how he’s monopolised his bloodline. Both Reiji and Yui’s fates have already been decided due to Karlheinz effectively using his sons as ‘experiments’ - therefore, the life that Reiji and Yui are to live, has already been prophesied and predicted; thus, it is “absolute”.

The phrase “wake up” is honestly quite a strange line to include in this song however, it could imply that Yui needs to wake up from the dainty person she was, and accept her fate - a ‘wake up’ call if you will -. Conversely, it also reminds me of a darker theme within dreams, that to ‘die’ (in a dream) is to “wake up”; with that in mind, it could infer that Yui’s past self needs to ‘die’ in order for her to “wake up” and accept who she is now, who she is presently while being under Reiji’s control. No longer is Yui pure and untainted, and so from Reiji’s perspective, she needs to “wake up” from that ‘act’.

“Awaken and become a part of our family.” “In the darkness, unable to see anything, with you…” “…─I want to feel it!”

Following my interpretation that Yui needs to let her past self die in order to “wake up” could link to this section here, and it could imply that Reiji believes that Yui needs to let herself go, let her religion, beliefs and self-worth diminish and die in order for her ‘true’ self to “awaken” - let Reiji remould her to his desire and welcome her ‘retrained’ self into his arms. 

We’re brought back to this imagery of darkness, and this imagery could link back to the “dense, black forest” we saw in the beginning, showing the song’s cyclical structure. Much like the beginning, the theme of darkness could infer that Reiji desires Yui to fall from her ‘heavenly grace’ and join him in his misery - “unable to see anything” but despair and longing -. Throughout Reiji’s route, it’s been made clear that Reiji wishes to shatter Yui as a person, and rebuild her to his design; therefore, Reiji wants Yui to fall into despair with him, so that he’s no longer alone in his turmoil. The last line of “…─I want to feel it!” could reinforce this implication, that Reiji wishes to have company in his damnation and he wants to know and feel that every part of Yui belongs to him - from her determination to her compassion, he wants to feel ‘loved’ by her, yet he wants to break her in that process so that she can never escape from his abuse.

A single enraged horn, able to thrust its way up to the heavens Like a chaotically blooming rose, it’s splattered across your face

Here the cyclicity of the song is made clear with the repetition of the chorus - it reinforces Reiji’s desire to corrupt Yui and drag her down to ‘Hell’ with him. Conversely, it may simply be the poetic voice (Reiji) attempting to reiterate a certain point, reflecting the continuing nature of time, entrapment through repetition and re-living events - re-living Yui’s downfall and her entrapment in Reiji’s cruel schemes.

This deep crimson curse is our family’s fate A damned soul, never again to… A damned soul, never again to…

Again, this section is repeated, implying that it’s significant, that Reiji’s “fate” and turmoil is significant - and it is, it’s significant to Karlheinz. Each brother’s fate is significant in one way or another as it all ties into Karlheinz’s ‘plan’, their fates have been preordained; therefore, they’re all “damned souls”, they have been from the beginning and Yui is no exception to this, and I think Reiji knows this. The last line is repeated twice, and contains the same wording and grammar; this gives the impression that the ending is inevitable and nothing can be done to stop it. The sense of repetition created through this element of the structure also creates a sense of hopelessness, reflecting the lack of choices that Yui has in this position and how Reiji will inevitable dictate her entire existence.

“…─Have you understood? Very well, in that case, become mine for all eternity.”

This first line is in fact a rhetoric, Reiji’s not asking a genuine question to Yui, he’s establishing their power dynamic and that she should already know to obey his every whim. He’s patronising her intelligence just like how he does throughout his route - it infers that overall, nothing has changed and Yui is still hopeless and Reiji is still bitter and resentful towards others and towards himself.

The very last line however, displays that even though Reiji is as heinous as they come, he still wishes for Yui’s company while he waits for his “fate” to consume him. The pronoun “mine” shows Reiji’s possessiveness and how he wants Yui’s compassion to himself - implying that she gives him the comfort and ‘love’ he’s so desperately wanted throughout his life. He’s dragged Yui down into the pits of despair and she’s had no choice in whether she wanted that or not, that is her “fate”. Though Reiji’s bitterness may not have changed, and his abuse may not have corroded, this line implies that he wishes to have Yui’s company throughout his misery; to not be completely alone.

To conclude, this song is overall, quite sad and it gives us insight into Reiji’s mind; how he wants to corrupt Yui for his own gain, yet he doesn’t want to lose her company because he doesn’t want to be alone. The song doesn’t justify any of Reiji’s actions towards Yui - instead it shows how cruel he can be - but it also shows just how alone he feels, and by the end of this story’s analysis, the overall feeling that comes to mind, is pity.

---

Big Brain Time

Okay so now that I’ve managed to reel a few of y’all in, I just wanted to say thank you for reading my (small brain) analyses - I know there’s only two so far but there will be more I promise! I’m just finishing up on my transcripts for More Blood at the moment and BY GOD, that’s going to take a WHILE for me to analyse because there’s just so much content to delve into - I am not ready for this 80k word fiasco I S W E A R, this man’s gonna kill me.

So, I just wanted to say a quick hello - I’m Pidge, welcome to the Hell that is my brain -. ALSO! If you have any suggestions or thoughts, don’t hesitate to come and bug me; I’d genuinely like to talk to y’all on a friendlier basis and have some Reiji bullying hours, and it’s going to take a good few months for More Blood to be completely analysed, so if you want to talk - or bully (either is fine) - feel free to come and bug me :)

---

Psychological Analysis of Reiji Sakamaki

This is going to be a massive analysis of Reiji Sakamaki's character - focusing on his mental and emotional patterns, as well as his behavioural habits and where they stemmed from. I shall split this analysis into sections for easier reading and as a way to organise the points I will be making throughout this post. 

I often find Reiji to be an overlooked character, or one who’s considered boring in comparison to the other brothers and their respective routes; and so, my analysis was born, as his route reminds me of Laito’s quite a bit, due to them both being quite manipulative towards Yui.

All the transcripts used were translated and created by the lovely @dialovers-translations 

Note: This analysis will focus on just Haunted Dark Bridal and everything in it, from the route itself to his character song. However, I may make analyses on his routes in the later games depending on how this turns out, but I hope you enjoy reading this nonetheless.

Trigger Warning: Abuse, Manipulation, Stockholm Syndrome, Co-Dependency, Narcissism, Dehumanisation and Depression

Word Count: 40,473 words

To begin with, I'll point out that Reiji is an extremely complex and complicated individual; I believe the main issue that people take with this character is that his actions seem incomprehensible and unrelatable if you’ve never been in a similar situation. His words can often contradict his emotions, he's also incredibly harsh and a person who lives and strives for perfection. In addition, his personality can often become unbearably obstinate at times, such as when he lectures Yui in relation to her manners, which brings me to my first point:

Verbal Behavioural Patterns

Throughout the entirety of Reiji’s route within the game, we are presented with a strict, perceptive, controlling and an utterly abhorrent character; within the first few chapters of Haunted Dark Bridal, we are given the interaction between Yui and Reiji, in which he feels the need to discipline her for her lack of manners when it was time for them to share a meal:

Reiji: I find it very displeasing that the woman sitting next to me does not know her manners

Reiji: Allow me to thoroughly lecture you

Yui: Huh ? Lecture me ?

Reiji: Yes, exactly. Is that not to your liking ?

Yui: Um...thank you very much. I’ll do my best

Reiji: You seem to be quite eager about this. However, your resolve is worth nothing

Reiji: I’d simply like to erase this unrefined aspect of your existence, as it is an eyesore...that is all

Reiji: Please do not misunderstand me

Reiji: This has been a waste of time. I’ll begin immediately 

-----------

Reiji: Wrong! How many times must I tell you ?

Yui: I-I’m sorry

Reiji: Never would I imagine you’d be a lady with a memory this poor

Yui: (...It’s because Reiji is way too strict)

Reiji: What is it ? Honestly...

Yui: N-Nothing. I’m sorry...

Reiji:...I do not want to hear those apologetic words. They are displeasing to the ear

Reiji: Although...I don’t necessarily dislike it when you wear an expression as bewildered as you are now

Yui: Huh...?

Reiji: Quiet. I told you that your voice is displeasing to the ear, didn’t I ?

Reiji: Please stay silent so that you don’t worsen my mood and further...

If we take this interaction here, it can be implied that if a person does not fit into Reiji’s desired qualities then he will mould them into his desired outcome. This can be implied from when he asks “Is that not to your liking ?“ in relation to lecturing Yui. The phrase itself poses as an interrogative yet it is in actuality a rhetoric - he’s manipulating his words to appear somewhat polite or ‘genuine’ but in reality, he’s forcing the matter at hand to occur, Yui does not have a choice in wishing to receive a lecture since it will be forced on her either way. Phrases such as this are often used in reverse psychology as a strategy for getting what you want by demanding or suggesting what you don't want; it’s often named a strategic self-anti-conformity, because your communicated demand goes directly against what you want, or in this case, what Reiji wants - this can be interpreted through the inclusion of the negative adverb “not”, as he’s suggesting that Yui doesn’t or shouldn’t want the lecture to occur even though he himself does (strategies like this are often used to ‘guilt trip’ others, which is exactly what Reiji is doing here in order to get his own way). In addition to this, Reiji also directly states what I have already implied in a much later chapter (that he will mould Yui to his fitting):

Yui: (W-What am I saying!? My mouth is talking on its own…!!)

Reiji: Oh dear…You sure are bold. I do not dislike that.

Reiji: It makes me want to bend you to my will

It can be interpreted that Reiji uses his language in order to manipulate Yui; this will range from rhetorical lexis and patronisation to positive and negative face. The two faces are a product of Goffman's theory of politeness -  positive face refers to the need to feel accepted and liked by others while negative face describes the will to do what one wants to do with freedom and independence. Throughout Reiji’s route, this can be seen fairly regularly, such as in the Prologue, where Reiji suggests that Yui should feel the necessity to know her place in order to please him; this feeds into positive face. Reiji manipulates his language in order to pressure Yui to conform to his standards in order for her to be appreciated by him. Yet, Reiji provides the opposite to that - he serves as the negative face -  as he holds the standard that he should be able to do as he pleases both freely and independently as opposed to Yui.

Reiji: Is something the matter?

Yui: Ah, well…I was wondering if I could have some tea as well…

Reiji: Aah…My apologies. How careless of me…

Yui: No, it’s okay…

Reiji: I completely forgot to teach you your own position.

Yui: Eh?

Reiji: I am deeply sorry. However, I did not expect to have to teach you something as simple as this…

Reiji: To think you would believe you have the right to enjoy a cup of tea with me, please do not get ahead of yourself. It’s highly imprudent.

Reiji: Do you understand?

Yui: …Yes.

Yui: (Does he really have to put it like that…)

Reiji: …Do you truly understand?

Yui: Y-Yes!!

Reiji: Very well. Well then, please stay put there until I’ve finished drinking my tea.

Reiji: Good grief, you sure are a troublesome servant.

Yui: Servant…!?

Reiji: Is something the matter?

Yui: No, nothing…!

Reiji: I see. I would hope so.

Yui: (This is way worse than I even imagined. I’m being treated like a slave…)

Yui: (Will things stay like this from here on out…?)

The aforementioned negative face can clearly be seen within Reiji’s phrases of: “To think you would believe you have the right to enjoy a cup of tea with me, please do not get ahead of yourself. It’s highly imprudent.” and “ Very well. Well then, please stay put there until I’ve finished drinking my tea”. It is made evident that Reiji desires his independence to do as he pleases - no matter how small the task at hand may be - however, he becomes stern and degrading when Yui attempts the same - she takes the initiative to ask for something rather than standing idly by -. The conflict between the two desired faces pose as a power dynamic...to put it simply, Reiji desires to do as he pleases and expects Yui to be obedient to that - he expects her to lose her initiative and follow in what he deems is acceptable for her to do -. Given the fact that all the brothers are each highly abusive, it comes as no surprise that Reiji implements a power dynamic through his words moreover physical violence. The added factor that he uses terms of address such as “servant” implements this further, not only is it a means of degrading and patronising Yui, but it directly establishes the dynamic Reiji desires.

Throughout the entirety of Reiji’s Haunted Dark Bridal route, he often uses his language in order to manipulate and break Yui down (though at times he does resort to violence, which he deems ‘punishments’). He does this in order to break down Yui’s sense of self-worth; by breaking down Yui’s positive attitude linguistically, it allows him to mould her thought process to his desired standards - the most prominent way for this to occur is by inflicting Yui with an array of humiliation and a sense of embarrassment. Embarrassment, shame, guilt, and humiliation all imply the existence of value systems. Where shame and guilt are primarily the outcome of self-appraisal, embarrassment and humiliation are primarily the outcome of appraisal by one or several others, even if only in thought or imagination. One critical aspect in which humiliation differs from embarrassment is that, whereas we bring embarrassment upon ourselves, humiliation is something that is brought upon us by others.

The Latin root of "humiliation" is "humus", which means "earth" or "dirt"  (this is most likely where the phrase “being treated like dirt” derives from). Humiliation involves abasement of honour, dignity and, with that, loss of status and standing. We all make certain status claims, however modest they may be, for example, "I am a competent doctor", "I am a happily married mother", or even "I am a human being". When we are merely embarrassed, our status claims are not undermined - or if they are, they are easily recovered. But when we are humiliated, our status claims cannot so easily be recovered because, in this case, our very authority to make those status claims has been called into question. People who are in the process of being humiliated are usually left stunned and speechless, and more than that, voiceless. This is exactly what we see in regards to Yui and with that, she will often retreat into her thoughts. 

It can be implied fairly easily that Yui is subjected to chronic manipulation by Reiji; chronic manipulation in close relationships - such as the one we follow through his route - can have a similar effect to trauma, particularly when the victim of manipulation is made to feel either guilty or ashamed (which Reiji clearly does) but why does he manipulate her in the first place ? Chronic manipulation can often be used as a survival mechanism to cope with a challenging or competitive environment, especially when one lacks relative power and control. Pathological manipulation may also be the result of family, social, societal, or professional conditioning. This will be addressed in a later point as this is only half of Reiji’s abusive tactics, as he (if pushed too far) will resort to physical abuse moreover just mental and emotional, which brings me to the second section of his analysis.

Physical Behavioural Patterns

Throughout a handful of scenes within Reiji’s route in Haunted Dark Bridal, we see him become physically abusive towards Yui - however, much like Laito, Reiji’s go-to abuse towards Yui is predominantly psychological, he opts to manipulate her through humiliation and degradation moreover physical violence.

Reiji: ーー Is that truly the only thing Shuu told you?

Reiji: If you don’t want to be struck by the whip any further, I’d recommend you stop lying and tell me the truth.

Yui: P-Please believe me…I told you everything…

Reiji:…Very well.

Reiji: As your reward, I’ll engrave you with even more whip marks.

Yui: Cut it out already!

Yui: (H…Huh? I…Why am I shouting like this…?)

Yui: (It’s almost as if I’m not being myself…)

Reiji: Hmph. I did not expect for you to suddenly bare your teeth at me at this exact timing…

Reiji: It sickens me!

Yui: (It probably does not matter what I say…)

Reiji: …You look defeated. So you no longer have the power to even fight back?

Reiji: Fufu, I’m nowhere near satisfied, you know?

Reiji: In fact…It only makes me want to hurt you more and more.

Yui: !!

Reiji: Listen carefully…From here on out, you shall never speak a word to that good-for-nothing again.

Yui: !!

Reiji: This is a definite decision. You have no right to choose.

Reiji: You understand, don’t you?

Here is one of the instances where Reiji resorts to physical abuse in order to maintain control over Yui and limit her interactions - specifically with Shuu moreover any other brother -. By Reiji acting on a more physical scale to gain Yui’s complete obedience, it presents his sadism as a means to keep control; it can also be implied that his violence towards Yui serves as an emotional outburst (in this scenario, the outburst is the result of her talking to Shuu, which Reiji found displeasing).

Controlling individuals can be described as perfectionists defending themselves against their own inner vulnerabilities in the belief that if they are not in total control they risk exposing themselves once more to childhood angst. Such people manipulate and pressure others to change, so as to avoid having to change themselves, and use power over others to escape an inner emptiness. 

We already know that Reiji can be easily categorised as a perfectionist and as I have stated in the previous section, that if an individual does not fit his overbearing standards, he will break them until they do. If we follow the implication that the physical abuse Reiji subjects Yui to is due to a need to maintain control and power moreover than a lack of empathy, which one could associate either Kanato or Ayato with depending on the routes you play. I have inferred this from when Reiji states “Listen carefully“, although he does enjoy the sadistic thrill of causing Yui pain and suffering, the fact that he uses this declarative implements the notion that this is a power movement; gaining back the control that he might have thought he lost when Shuu made his presence known. I have derived this interpretation from Yui’s end of chapter monologue, in which she states:

Even after all of my senses had been numbed,

Reiji’s whip continued to assault my entire body.

I do not know what kind of hard feelings he bears,

towards Shuu who is his blood-related older brother

However, what I am certain of, is that I tried to touch upon,

something which I definitely shouldn’t have…

The scars engraved deeply across my entire body,

could they be a representation of the pain Reiji feels in his heart…?

Thinking about it that way,

might just be a little too convenient though.

From this, the implication arises that this is both the reinforcement of control as well as an emotional outburst - as though he’s stuck in a haze and unable to stop even after Yui’s body became numb. Whether you’ve played the game or not, it’s common knowledge within the community that Reiji bears a great deal of resentment towards Shuu, and this resentment will be explained in a later point as I still feel Reiji’s abusive behaviour needs to be addressed.

When it comes to physical abuse, there can be extreme and subtle variants of it; in this case, I’m referring to when he poisons Yui’s drink - it’s not as violent as when he beats, whips or assaults her but he is still causing her physical harm.

Yui: (So he does have a soft spot after all…I might have misjudged him.)

Yui: …Huh…? The fragrance is slightly different from before.

Reiji: …Oh ? You noticed ? As to be expected.

Reiji: I prepared a special tea for you.

Yui: T-Thank you very much.

Reiji: Fufu…Well then, have a taste.

Yui: (H-He’s much kinder than I thought…? Reiji has this side to him as well, huh ?)

Yui: I’ll give it a try!

Reiji: Yes…

Yui: …!!

Yui: (W…What’s this? My lips that touched the tea suddenly feel numb…!)

Reiji: …Oh dear. Seems like it was not to your liking.

Yui: R-Reiji, uhm, this is…?

Reiji: Did I not tell you earlier? It’s a tea I brewed especially for you.

Reiji: One with poison in it, that is.

Yui: P-Poison…!?

Yui: (T-Thank god I didn’t drink it all… )

Reiji: What are you looking relieved for?

Reiji: Getting down on your knees and lapping up the spilled tea comes first, does it not?

Yui: Eeh!? I-I can’t do that!

Yui: For starters…Why did you do this?

Reiji: Why ? Even if you ask me that…

Reiji: I had just finished the development of a new drug. It is not normal to want to try it out when an ideal test opportunity presents itself ?

Reiji: Furthermore…You did not truly believe that I would pour a cup of tea for you, did you ?

Yui: …!!

Reiji: Fufu…

Yui: E-Either way! Please don’t do these kinds of things!!

Reiji: Those who fall for such an obvious trap have no worth to be kept alive.

Reiji: Additionally…I genuinely did not think you would be this much of a foolish, incompetent person…

Reiji: Good grief,  I’m disappointed…I am the one who wants an apology.

Yui: (Uu…That’s horrible…)

Yui: (For starters, why is he making poison…It doesn’t seem like my life is in danger…But I’m still scared..)

Although Yui’s life is not exactly endangered from this, it still leaves her feeling scared of what Reiji could be capable of. In my opinion, this can plainly be identified as ‘Operant Conditioning’, developed by B.F Skinner. Operant conditioning is a way of learning by means of rewards and punishments. This type of conditioning holds that a certain behaviour and a consequence, either a reward or punishment, have a connection which brings about learning. The term "operant" was used by Skinner in order to give us a good overview of his theory. By this term, he meant that this type of conditioning involves only external factors that affect behaviour and its consequences; in this case, that external force would equate to something such as an interaction with Shuu, or anything that displeases Reiji. My point is that on one hand, the physical abuse Yui suffers by Reiji’s hand can be viewed as an outburst of emotions, but it can also be perceived as a display of power and control. One part of the operant is reinforcement - this is a process of increasing the frequency or rate of a behaviour by means of presenting a stimulus shortly after the display of behaviour. The event that intensifies the likelihood of the behaviour to be repeated is called a reinforcer. To put this plainly, and in context, Yui offhandedly converses with Shuu, Reiji in turn chooses to punish her via a whipping and the next time Yui encounters Shuu, she opts to pass by him and is then rewarded by Reiji - by him forcing that violence on her, it’s implemented a sense of fear towards repeating the cause of the violence; it therefore allows Reiji to control Yui’s behaviour and, in essence, her loyalty. 

Reiji: …Three seconds tardy.

Yui: S-Sorry.

Yui: (Uu…He’s upset after all…)

Reiji: Take a seat over there, and tell me your reasoning.

Yui: Y-You see…This and that happened…

Reiji: That’s too vague. That doesn’t tell me anything.

Yui: Uhm…I crossed paths with someone…

Reiji: With who?

Yui: That’sーー

Yui: Well…It was Shuu.

Reiji: That good-for-nothing…I feel like my ears will get sullied just from hearing his name.

Reiji: So, what did you do?

Reiji: Don’t tell me…You did not do something as foolish as to talk to him, did you?

Yui: Y-Yes.

Yui: After all, I…I made a promise with you.

Reiji: I see…

Reiji: Very well. I’ll give you a reward.

Yui: …! With the whip again…!?

Reiji: Oh dear? Do you want to be hit?

Yui: N-No.

Reiji: Fufu, no need to be so frightened…Well then, come here.

Yui: Yes…

Reiji: …

Yui: (I-I wonder what he’ll do…)

Reiji: Well done

Yui: Eh…?

Yui: (Uhm…Did I imagine that? There’s no way that Reiji would…)

Reiji: You feel honoured, don’t you? To get complimented by someone like me.

Reiji: Oh, it’s time for my tea.

Reiji: Of course, there isn’t any for you. Just enjoy the fragrance for now.

Yui: Y-Yes!

Yui: (Reiji’s no different from usual but…)

Yui: (Yeah…This might have really been a reward…)

Following on from this; and linking to one of the first claims I made during the introduction, Reiji appears to contradict himself - throughout the majority of this route we see him manipulating Yui’s thoughts and behaviour in order to align with his respective views, however, we sometimes see him ‘break’ this rule of his as within his Maniac 03 section we are given this interaction:

Reiji: You seem to be polishing all of them rather meticulously.

Yui: Yes. After all, I have to make sure not even a single fingerprint remains on them, right?

Reiji: Haah…This is boring.

Yui: Eh?

Reiji: Your overly obedient attitude. I don’t like it one bit.

Yui: …Eh?

Reiji: This calls for a punishment. I’ll strike you with my whip.

Yui: …What are you saying!? Please don’t tell such weird jokes!

Reiji: Jokes? …Fufu, is that what this looks like?

Yui: Kyah!

Reiji: Oh dear, I missed.

Yui: No…Please cut it out!

Yui: (I was doing exactly as he asked, yet he still doesn’t like it, that’s just too much…!)

Yui: (Besides…That whip, it has a bunch of thorns stuck to it…Just thinking about being struck by it once…)

Reiji: It is no fun when you obey every single command. …Understand?

Yui: Eek…

Yui: …!?

Yui: (…Huh? This time I didn’t even dodge, yet he missed…?)

Reiji: Fufu…I have to say, I’m surprised you saw right through me.

Yui: …?

Reiji: As you said, I was simply joking around. Good job on figuring it out.

Yui: A-A joke…?

Reiji: I simply don’t have the time to waste on punishing someone like you over something so trivial…Fufufu.

Yui: …!?

Reiji: Several devices have gotten damaged by the whip just now.

Reiji: Please put all of them away.

Yui: …O-Okay.

Reiji: Fufufu…It’s wonderful to see you so obedient.

Yui: …Thank you very much.

From this we can very, clearly see his sadism showing - he enjoys punishing Yui and will go out of his way to find a ‘valid’ reason to do so. Throughout the majority of his route we are shown time and time again that Reiji likes to bend others to his will, so that would imply that he values obedience, so then, why would he state “your overly obedient attitude. I don’t like it one bit.” ? I think the answer lies with his mother, Beatrix. We know that she was a strong-willed woman. Despite being the second wife and enduring horrid treatment from both Karlheinz and Cordelia, she still kept her head held high and did what she thought was right - even if Reiji was resentful of her not giving him the attention he needed, he respected her attitude. Reiji would never have tried so hard to please his mother if he did not truly respect her and it’s because he respected Beatrix so much that her apparent rejection of him cut him so deep; so, despite always trying to get Yui to exhibit more dignity and better manners, Reiji doesn’t want her to be meek and weak-willed - which is why I believe this interaction was included within the game, Reiji desires someone who is obedient, loyal and dignified but not faint of heart. With that, I believe that his contradictory actions serve a purpose, Reiji desires Yui to be obedient but not docile.

From both these sections, we can clearly understand that Reiji is an incredibly sadistic and controlling character, however, like most things, behaviour such as this often derives from a complicated childhood or simply an event that was highly significant to them, leading me to the next section.

Childhood

Depending on if you’ve played the games or have simply seen the anime adaptation, it’s common knowledge that Reiji was neglected by Beatrix; out of all of the brothers, he was neglected by a significant amount - the only one close enough would most likely be Kanato, but even then, he still got some form of recognition by Cordelia, twisted though it may have been. So, if we take that into account, we can decisively infer that what Reiji desires most of all would be recognition, which I why I believe this interaction to be highly important in order to understand his mentality:

Seiji: The woman on this picture is the target?

Reiji: Yes, without a doubt.

Reiji: …However, this sure is strange.

Reiji: To think that like this ーー

Reiji: There would come a day on which I would exchange words with you, a Vampire hunter.

Reiji: I will be counting on you?

Seiji: …I’ll fulfil the request without fail.

Seiji: And eventually, I will come to kill you as well.

Reiji: Yes, please come at any time. I shall be awaiting your arrival.

Reiji: Seems like…Our relationship won’t end any time soon.

Seiji: Hmph…

Reiji: Fufu…

Reiji: Soon enough, you will get to know first-hand.

Reiji: Who is the most admirable, that is…

Reiji: Don’t you think so too, mother…?

When it comes to the lore and customs of vampires within the Diabolik Lovers universe, it’s known that they often kill one another as an act of love, or a declaration of love. However, by Reiji opting to seek out a vampire hunter to kill Beatrix, it can be interpreted to serve as a means to make her suffer. It’s in my opinion to believe that Reiji never hated his mother, he resented and revered her, but I don’t think he hated her - not truly anyway -. So, once the realisation dawned on him that he’d never be recognised for his perfection, then he’d be noticed for his skills instead; I’d like to argue that it’s precisely because he didn’t hate her that he couldn’t bring himself to kill her the way the triplets killed Cordelia.

If we think about the psychology of neglect, most prominently, emotional neglect, it’s suffice to say that it might be as bad, if not worse, to be on the receiving end of indifference as of physical torment. As the psychologist William James stated “If no one turned around when we entered, answered when we spoke, or minded what we did, but if every person we met “cut us dead”, and acted as if we were non-existent things, a kind of rage and impotent despair would before long well up in us, from which the cruellest bodily torture would be a relief”.  Rage and impotent despair are precisely what a child may feel when it registers the extent to which it doesn’t matter to those who brought it onto the earth; far more likely, these emotions will mutate into feelings of shame, mingled with continued admiration and respect for those who elicited it. By using this, it can serve as a means of understanding why Reiji chooses to respect both of his parents. I implied earlier that he wishes for Yui to bear a strong will much like how his mother did, and as for Karlheinz, Reiji is the only one of his brothers who has an inkling of respect for him. It can also be implied that this is one reason why Reiji lets Cordelia whip him, but by following this approach, it’s clear to say that - from a psychological standpoint - physical pain blocks out the mental pain, the physical inflictions serve as a distraction to the emotional torment - even though he did state that he was “attuned to pain inflicted on the flesh”, I’m still inclined to believe that this still holds significance within this analysis. 

Furthermore, if we look into the symptoms of childhood emotional neglect - CEN for short - it can be said that those who have suffered from this tend to avoid conflict. My point is that by letting Cordelia treat him how she does, he’s avoiding the problem; he’s avoiding conflict. By Cordelia and Yui essentially being one in the same (since Cordelia has taken over Yui’s body), causing conflict or attempting to rival Cordelia would likely cause more harm than good to Reiji’s wants and desires - that being Yui’s safety and ‘return’ -. Conflict avoidance is a type of people-pleasing behaviour that typically arises from a deep rooted fear of upsetting others. Many of these tendencies can be traced back to growing up in an environment that was dismissive or hypercritical. 

Going back to the psychology of the matter, the child will do anything rather than entertain the idea that an injury has been done to it by its own progenitor - especially if the parent is charming to other people and impressive in the professional sphere (much like how Karlheinz and Beatrix were/are important amongst the demon world). The child will just assume that there must be something deeply wrong with itself to justify the indifference. It must have failed in some way, it must in its essence be profoundly ugly, repulsive, deformed or lacking. This is the only conceivable explanation for the blankness with which their existence is received. Therefore the adult who emerges from such a complicated, veiled childhood is likely to be in a confused state. On the surface, they may experience only good will and a continued desire to please their early caregivers. But deep within themselves, they may feel lacerating doubt, paranoia and self-contempt. To numb such feelings, they may take to calming addictions to keep themselves from constant encounters with their perceived repulsiveness. When it comes to Reiji, these ‘calming addictions’ would relate to his scheduling and experiments, they allow him to disassociate from himself and lessen the burden of his lacking self-worth.

Reiji’s Relationship With Yui

When it comes to Yui, we often see the many different faces of Reiji; we, in essence, follow his story. Though Yui takes to every trial and tribulation that Reiji throws at her, she is still determined to help him - and try as she may -. This shows us that Yui’s innate moral compass is intact, she learns to understand the type of person that Reiji is, and yet she still lingers - she doesn’t opt to run from him in the end, though she is worn and broken by that point, but it shows that Yui’s kind, almost motherly, attitude can allow someone to mellow. What I mean by this is that as Reiji’s route continues, his strictness and abhorrent behaviour fluctuates.

Reiji: Were you asleep? As I thought, you aren’t in top shape.

Yui: …Yes, a little.

Reiji: I figured that would be the case, so I’ve brought you some medicine. Please drink it all with some boiled water.

Yui: …

Yui: (The medicine Reiji brought me…I’m grateful if he truly is worried about me…But…)

Yui: (Just the other day, he tried to kill me…)

Yui: …I’m sorry. I can’t drink this.

Reiji: …Well, I figured you would say as much.

Yui: I just…can’t trust you right now…I’m sorry.

Reiji: …I do not believe there is a need for you to apologise.

In this instant, Reiji drops his guard, his usual attitude and sternness has softened - even if only a little -. It allows us to view his progression as a character and how the presence of Yui has inadvertently helped him. Our introduction to the character showed him drugging Yui, punishing her and showing no remorse for his actions; now he is pandering to her, the question is why ? 

We know that Reiji is a character with a copious amount of flaws and trauma from his childhood. He prefers to close himself off from the world and silently resent everything around him - it paints him as a bitter, broken man who deals with his problems by suppressing them; by doing this process for many, many years, it leaves him out of touch with his own feelings. Reiji’s quick to scorn and scold Yui for her more empathetic and naïve personality; he often tells her to not apologise, as though it disgusts him. I believe his attitude towards Yui started off so utterly abhorrent because she reminded him of himself. CEN - Childhood Emotional Neglect - we know Reiji has prolifically suffered from this, we know that he tried to perfect everything he did in order to please those around him both internally and externally; if he failed those expectations from others and himself then he most likely deemed himself as not ‘good enough’ to be rewarded with the attention that he so desperately needed as opposed to Shuu, who we’ll get onto later. These are all traits that we see Yui output during this route, and so, by initially resenting her, he is resenting his problems - yet as the route continues, he slowly becomes a little more lenient with her, implying that he is in some way coming to terms with his abuse and trauma; slowly accepting it. I think this is why he ‘panders’ to Yui in this scene, by accepting her, he’s accepting himself...though this is only in a small quantity, hence why he’s still stern with her - he wants to help but he lacks the ability to convey those emotions, it’s as though he’s unaware of his own feelings because he’s suppressed them for so long.

Being so unaware of your own wants, feelings and needs can make you over-focused on those of the people around you. Many CEN people have very little awareness and compassion for themselves but an excess of both for others. They may end up wrapping themselves up in providing their spouse with everything they want and need while inadvertently missing the one thing they need the most: you. The real you, the inner you. They need your emotions. This is what we’re seeing here. Reiji’s still closed off and strict, however, the notion that his actual feelings are present makes Yui happy. She’s happy because she’s actually seeing Reiji, and not just the façade and walls he puts up.

Reiji: Fufu…I admit it is rather difficult to ask you for your trust.

Reiji: However, right now I am speaking nothing but the truth.

Reiji: This medicine has been made especially to improve your health. I can assure its effectiveness.

Yui: For…me? …Really?

Reiji: Yes. …Believe it or not, but I have actually reflected upon my actions a little as well.

Yui: Reflected…?

Reiji: My attitude that night was somewhat childish, I reckon.

Yui: (S-Somewhat? …You call that ‘somewhat’…?)

Reiji: Therefore, I earnestly made said medicine for you. Well then, drink it please.

Yui: …Fufu~

Reiji: …? Is something funny?

Yui: N-No.

Yui: (It’s just…When I consider this is Reiji’s way of trying his very best to apologise, I got a little happy…)

Yui: I understand. I’ll take this medicine. Thank you very much.

Reiji: No need to thank me.

If we follow the interpretation that Yui somewhat reminds Reiji of himself - or at least, his younger self - it can feed into why he becomes ‘protective’ of her once Cordelia appears. Following this narrative, by protecting Yui during the Maniac chapters, he is, in essence, protecting himself. Yui reminds him of himself and that’s the conclusion I’ve come to - her need to impress and please others, her meek and timid attitude, and the fact that she’s overlooked by others despite her drive and determination to achieve; these are all traits that Reiji possessed as a child, and by ‘protecting’ Yui, he’s subconsciously protecting his childhood self - hence why the verb ‘protecting’ is abbreviated, his fight with and against Cordelia is more so for selfish reasons rather than out of ‘love’ for Yui. By Cordelia attacking Yui’s personality and her as a person, she’s also attacking that same fragment within Reiji - we all know that he’s a bitter man, but he knows where he stands in comparison to others, yet once faced with Cordelia, he outwardly displays his distaste. He opts to not fight back physically, but fights back verbally, and I think that this is quite significant to his character; in essence, he’s taken the role of the inferior - the dynamic both he and Yui had - however, instead of him being the one in control and using his language to project that, he’s now on the receiving end of that, like how Yui was, and he fights back with quips and sarcasm - much like how Yui would protest and sometimes come out with a quip herself -. 

Cordelia: I love the softly swaying moon reflected on the surface of the lake.

Reiji: So you favour unsteady things? That’s a perfect fit for someone as unstable as yourself.

Cordelia: Nfu, are you complimenting me?

Reiji: It’s the biggest compliment I could give you.

I find this parallel quite significant as it puts Reiji into the position of Yui, the inferior, the ‘unimportant’ one; yet, if they’re both so similar, then why is Reiji so hell-bent on being above her ? Why does he invalidate her ? And why does he grow to become somewhat narcissistic from his abuse ? Well first of all, we need to establish what NPD (Narcissistic Personality Disorder) is, and how it applies to Reiji before we continue analysing his relationship with and to Yui. 

Narcissistic personality disorder is a mental condition in which people have an inflated sense of their own importance, a deep need for excessive attention and admiration, troubled relationships, and a lack of empathy for others. But behind this mask of extreme confidence lies a fragile self-esteem that's vulnerable to the slightest criticism. A narcissistic personality disorder can cause problems in many areas of life, such as relationships, work, school or financial affairs. People with narcissistic personality disorder may be generally unhappy and disappointed when they're not given the admiration they believe they deserve. They may find their relationships unfulfilling, and others may not enjoy being around them.

This fits in line with Reiji’s character, especially his sense of importance, fragile ego and the notion that neither of his brothers enjoy his company - obviously, his ego is not as inflated as Ayato’s and his company is not as unwanted as Kanato’s, but they’re different cases entirely -. Within the official Diabolik Lovers Vandead Carnival fan book, there’s a character Q & A in which Reiji states this interaction:

Me? Losing? Do you truly believe that would happen? Hmph. Please cut the ridiculous questions. Me - who is perfect at everything from academics to household chores…If you have your doubts, feel free to come to the manor tonight. I shall serve you various wonderful dishes prepared by none other than me.

I’ve opted to include this as it directly presents his overzealous, inflated ego and perfectionism - and it means that I don’t have to shoehorn in copious amounts of dialogue where I can only imply and speculate. To begin with, I’d like to address his sense of self worth and ego; this is recognisable within his declarative, that he “is perfect at everything”, but in reality, he’s not, and the notion that he used the verb ‘perfect’ speaks volumes to that. ”Perfect” can have many connotative implications of being flawless, idealistic, almost ethereal in its lack of faults and this mindset of his allows this seemingly small inking of narcissism to come forward and be on full display - there’s a difference between thinking highly of oneself and that of perfectionism, which I shall be addressing -.

For some people with NPD, this sense of superiority isn’t as evident in how they behave. Some may be shy or withdrawn, but they may still firmly believe they’re superior in one or many aspects compared to other people; and this is where Reiji falls into the category - he’s not bombastic like Ayato, who we can clearly understand has NPD straight off the bat - and I think this is very in line with his character, Reiji prefers to stay in his laboratory and occupy himself, he’s reserved and withdrawn both physically and emotionally yet he still retains the mindset that he is above everyone else; that he is “perfect” compared to others.

Reiji: …!? You…Do you have any idea who you are embracing right now?

Yui: I know. It’s…Reiji.

Reiji: Oh dear. I assume the little bird has become quite meek after being locked up in her cage.

Oh well, it’s fine. I shall forgive you just for now. Including the fact that I am carrying you in my arms right now.

I find this section of dialogue to embody this quite well in regards to his superiority complex towards Yui and he does this in the form of metaphors - he calls her a “little bird”, which can imply that not only is Reiji pointing out Yui’s physical shortness in comparison to himself, but also her status and the fact that he views her as below average in regards to her skills and intellect. It presents his derogatory nature towards Yui, however, the fact that he calls her a “bird” could imply that he deems her somewhat beautiful and helpless - something to be admired but not anything to be weary of, as though she poses no threat to him. In addition to this, the inference that he’s openly compared her to an animal poses the suggestion that to him, she is nothing more than a mere pet; it’s in our innate social standpoint to carry the belief that we are better than our pets, that we are on the more ‘perfect’ side of evolution in regards to an animal’s mental capacity; therefore, they are nothing more than something pretty to look at, we lock them up in cages to be admired and looked down upon at the same time - yes we do care for our pets and develop a loving bond but we can also treat them as though they are babies, a child to be looked after and doted upon; a lesser form of ourselves. I think this is the point Reiji is making here, yes he does hold some form of care for her, but it imitates that of an owner and its loyal pet (which is the dynamic Reiji expects Yui to conform to, a pet, a servant) and even though that care exists, he still holds the deep-rooted belief that he is superior to her, that he is perfect compared to her - she has flaws and he doesn’t, which again brings us back to “Me - who is perfect at everything “. 

Furthermore, by him using the phrase “locked up in her cage” emphasises the implication that she is a pet to be observed. Conversely, it could also imply that Yui has become worn down by not just the mental constraints of being a vessel for Cordelia, but also the emotional confines of being with and around Reiji, being under his overbearing influence - Yui has become a flightless bird subjected to Reiji’s whims and influence, an influence that now constrains her, and that has now caged her. It’s assumed that Reiji prefers Yui to have a strong will as opposed to meekness - for her to follow in Beatrix’s resilience and determination -, and so by him declaring Yui as meek, is him shedding light on her flaws, and the implication that she needs to be ‘retrained’ much like a pet would in order to fit his ‘perfect’ standards. This inference can subtly present Reiji’s mild narcissism and perfectionism towards Yui, but what is perfectionism ?

Perfectionism is often defined as the need to be or appear to be perfect, or even to believe that it’s possible to achieve perfection. It is typically viewed as a positive trait rather than a flaw. People may use the term “healthy perfectionism” to describe or justify perfectionistic behaviour. Perfectionists set unrealistically high expectations for themselves and others. They are quick to find fault and are overly critical of mistakes. They tend to procrastinate a project out of their fear of failure. They shrug off compliments and forget to celebrate their success; instead, they look to specific people in their life for approval and validation. There are three subcategories of perfectionism, which are:

Socially Prescribed Perfectionists:

Socially prescribed perfectionists are very self-critical. They feel immense pressure to be the best and worry others will reject them. Perceived external standards (which can come from family, workplace, society, etc.) can lead to anxiety and low confidence.

Other-Orientated Perfectionists:

Perfectionists who are other-oriented. They hold others to high standards and can be critical and judgmental which can leave destruction in their wake. It’s hard to build working relationships under these conditions, which is one reason this variety is so detrimental.

Self-Orientated Perfectionists:

Self-oriented perfectionists are organised and conscientious. They set high standards for themselves in their lives and careers, but are able to go after their goals. High self-oriented perfectionism is generally associated with the most “adaptive” traits correlated with greater productivity and success, including resourcefulness and assertiveness. They show higher rates of positive emotion and motivation.

Perfectionism can often develop and occur due to a frequent fear of disapproval from others or feelings of insecurity and inadequacy, mental health issues like anxiety or obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) can lead into perfectionism. While a correlation between OCD and perfectionism has been found to exist, not all people with perfectionism have OCD, and not all people with OCD are perfectionists. Having a parent who exhibits perfectionistic behaviour or expresses disapproval when their child's efforts do not result in perfection can also factor into perfectionism developing. Some parents may encourage their child to succeed in every area or push perfection on them to an extent that can be considered abusive and an insecure early attachment. People who had a troubled attachment with parents when they were young may experience difficulty self-soothing as adults. They may have trouble accepting a good outcome as good if it’s not perfect. 

I believe this links quite nicely to Reiji’s character as we know he was dealt a troubled childhood full of neglect and comparison - opting to memorise an entire novel rather than simply enjoy reading it, in hopes that it would catch his mother’s attention; I believe that this is where his perfectionist persona developed from. By him developing this behavioural pattern at an early age, it allows his world view perception to change - if he must raise himself to an impossible standard, and be ‘perfect’, then so must everyone else; this feeds into his development both as a character and as a person, he desires to be recognised for his perfection, and so, when Yui does praise him for it, he revels in it - it allows his fragile ego to grow, and for him to feel acknowledged; though he often puts Yui down, degrading her, he also allows her to prosper and learn too, as though he’s trying to subtly repay her kindness. CED and perfectionism can be interlinked; by not having the emotional praise and approval as a child, you begin to internalise the possibility that there is something wrong or inadequate with you, and so you try to ‘fix’ that and become ‘perfect’ in hopes of achieving the closure that is so desperately needed; by Yui providing this acknowledgement to Reiji, it not only fuels his ego and perfectionism, but it also allows him to gain closure and comfort, for a moment his insecurities vanish and I believe he enjoys that, it makes him feel content and gives him some form of care to latch onto - why would he risk so much to try and save Yui if he didn’t care ?. It can be implied that the relationship between Reiji and Yui ‘softens’ over time due to her providing him with the emotional stability he needed as a child and him clinging onto that - we know that his brothers don’t really care for or about him, and so naturally, he would cling onto the one person who does...that being Yui.

Additionally, NPD can not only be linked to perfectionism, but also CEN. One of the causes of CEN is being raised by a narcissistic parent. Narcissistic parents are a major source of childhood emotional neglect. Narcissistic parents are unable to see the true nature of their children or respond to them emotionally. They are taken up trying to get their own needs met, and are not capable of giving emotionally to anyone, and that includes their child. So children of narcissistic parents often have their emotional needs ignored or discouraged, the very root cause of CEN.  The extreme type of CEN that contributes to narcissism happens when your parents not only ignore your emotions, they actively squelch your feelings and your true self.  Narcissism may be partly determined by genetics, but to become a narcissist, you generally must grow up with a complex mix of being emotionally squelched in some ways, and overly indulged or excessively praised in some kind of superficial or inaccurate way. CEN is at the core of every narcissist. When you have CEN, you tend to take up little space. Deep down you feel unimportant and invalid, so you don’t ask for much, and you don’t allow yourself to want or need much. On the other hand, those with narcissism are the opposite. Narcissists put their own feelings and needs first, and feel most comfortable when taking up lots of space. This predisposes people with CEN and narcissists to feel comfortable with each other. They often fall in love with each other, but its seldom works out well; this links to Reiji when I mentioned that he contradicts himself - he puts his own needs first during the beginning of HDB yet behind closed doors, he still feels invalid. He outwardly possesses the belief that he’s better than Yui, and better than his brothers yet once he’s in the comfort of closed doors, once he’s on his own, that mask drops and his bitter resentment and festering insecurities take hold. He’s self-contradictory in his beliefs and wants, both presenting traits of NPD and CEN.  This is because when the parents are emotionally neglectful, the various levels of sensitivity of the children combine with the differing ways the emotional neglect comes across to each child. One may grow up with the struggles of pure CEN and another sibling may end up with narcissism - or in Reiji’s case, both. The hidden inner cores of narcissistic people and those with CEN are very much the same; since CEN is a contributing part of the development of narcissism, this is not surprising. The shared inner core of these two very different styles is a shared inner feeling of being empty, alone, and insignificant.

By explaining how NPD and CEN parallel each other, it better helps explain Reiji’s contradictory nature from his outward behaviour and his inner feelings. Emotionally, he can relate to Yui as she presents traits of his younger self to him and so, emotionally, he wants to ‘protect’ and ‘fix’ that. However, physically, intellectually and socially, he does not relate to Yui. Physically, he is stronger and of a completely different race to her; intellectually, we know he is far above average and prides himself in that, and socially, he is again, above Yui. It’s clear to say that vampires and humans are going to have a difference in status and hierarchy - humans are nothing more than food to vampires, food, slaves, pets, and by that being the social hierarchy for them, it’s going to be imbedded and ingrained into people like Reiji who are in a position of power; just because Yui can be implied to remind Reiji of his childhood naivety and self, doesn’t then mean that she is on the same wavelength as him, she is not and Reiji likes to bring awareness to that. Reiji poses as a highly sadistic and manipulative man and, when he can, he chooses to indulge in that, such as when he and Cordelia tighten the corset around Yui’s body, causing her pain.

Cordelia: Nfu~ Well then, tighten the corset please. So my waist looks nice and slim, okay?

This girl is especially lacking, so we have to try and emphasise the curves.

(Wha!? So mean!!)

Reiji: ーー I’m tightening it, okay?

Cordelia: Go ahead…!

(…It’s so painful, it feels like I might die.)

Reiji: Do you want it even tighter?

Cordelia: Yes, you can still keep going.

(…Please stop! If you try and make it any smaller, it’ll just look creepy!)

Oh, is that so? Reiji, what do you think? This girl is screaming for you to stop.

Reiji: I see. In that case…Let’s tighten it just a little more.

By including this interaction between the three characters, it re-establishes Reiji’s sadism - yes, he mirrors Cordelia’s expectations for him towards her in order to bring Yui back, and so one might say that the ends justify the means. However, I am not prepared to overlook his fall-back into his more sadistic tendencies - does this tie more into his physical and psychological behaviour ? Yes, but does it also tie into his relationship with Yui ? Yes.

The moment before Cordelia took control of Yui we saw Reiji’s ‘true colours’ emerge - the fact that he cares and has grown to care and show affection towards Yui - yet as soon as Cordelia takes the limelight and pushes Yui into the background, he openly takes to causing her pain; inflicting his darker traits on her once again, and this time she can’t fight back whatsoever...not even with her words, and Reiji indulges in that - such as him tying the corset tighter even though it’s causing Yui physical pain, and knowing that it’s causing her pain too. Interactions like the one listed above reinforces how dark of a character Reiji is - he has his softer moments, but he also has his more sadistic ones too; this being one of them, it’s a subtler interaction and display of his sadism, but it’s there nonetheless.

It's evident that some pathological personalities have a sadistic quality about them. Narcissists will torture with put-downs to keep their ego afloat; antisocial personalities may make people suffer into submission to get a need met, enjoying the sense of power it provides them. However, the aforementioned are not usually openly hostile and destructive as a general way of relating to others. In these circumstances, such acts of cruelty are really means to an end; a part of the disorder.

While no longer addressed in the ‘Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders‘,(DSM), sadistic personality disorder (SPD), similar to the passive-aggressive and masochistic personality, has continued to be recognized as a condition by many psychologists. First written about as a psychological construct by Krafft-Ebing in the mid-1800s, the sadistic character was then recognized as someone who enjoys instigation of pain, cruelty, and humiliation as sexual dominance. This was expounded upon by Freud, who discussed sadism and masochism as “bipolar dimensions of the aggressive component of the sexual instinct”; looking beyond this sexual basis, however, Eric Fromm later found that sexual sadism wasn’t the only form of expression of some people's need to humiliate: "Mental cruelty, the wish to humiliate and to hurt another person's feelings, is probably even more widespread than physical sadism. This type of sadistic attack is much safer to the sadist... the psychological pain can be as intense or even more so than the physical... the core of sadism...is the passion to have absolute and unrestricted control over a living being. To force someone to endure pain or humiliation without being able to defend oneself is one of the manifestations of absolute control..."

The most common traits of SPD can include:

Use of physical cruelty or violence in relationships to establish dominance (not simply for the sake of secondary gain, like robbery). 

Humiliation of people in the presence of others. 

Unusually harsh treatment or discipline towards someone under their control. 

Amusement from witnessing the psychological/physical pain of others, including animals. 

Lies to inflict pain on others. 

Operating through intimidation or terror to get others to comply. 

Restricts the autonomy of people they are close to (their spouse must always be accompanied, children aren't allowed out of the home etc). 

Fascination with violence, weapons, and torture/injury.

The psychologist Millon furthered that those with SPD tend to be noticeably abrasive with sarcasm, criticism, and hostility; they also tend to be strongly opinionated and unwilling to consider others' views, and may harbour an eruptive temper. This latter component is especially important, as those with SPD cannot handle vulnerability - much like Reiji -. Therefore, at the first sign of a threat, no matter how insignificant, their preferred tactic is "offense is the best defence" to show they're not to be played with. It can be implied that we see this throughout the beginning of Reiji’s route, opting to push pain onto Yui for seemingly no apparent or valid reason - he’s outwardly showing Yui what he’s capable of and that he’s not a person you’d wish to cross -. However, this display of offence and emotional coldness could also be seen as his defence mechanism, since we’ve already implied him to suffer from CEN, the best way for him to cope with this is to shut everyone out so that there’s no chance of him being hurt emotionally again.

If we take Reiji’s apparent childhood neglect and abuse, alongside the formulaic ‘bully’ psyche, we can understand his sadistic tendencies more. We know that Reiji was dealt with humiliation, absence and emotional turmoil; so to more or less, subdue that on his part, it can be implied that he mirrors the behaviour he was dealt with and inflicts it onto others as a way to deflect his own suffering: it takes the phrase “hurt people hurt other people” or to put it in a clearer tone “people who are hurting, hurt other people” and takes it to a darker state. To compensate for his own misfortunes, Reiji opts to hurt others the way he was hurt, and how that emotional misfortune took to becoming more and more physical, giving him the desire to physically punish others and force them to mirror his inner turmoil - we know that Reiji let this trauma and unresolved problem fester, turning him to resent his family and over the years, that would grow, the hate would grow and worsen, and so would his desire to punish others the way he was punished; as they grew, so did his sadism - which is why he can act so heinously towards Yui, who in turn only wants to help Reiji. Yui’s put in a bad position and her first instinct is to try and make good of it, and I think that factors into why the dynamic between Reiji and Yui changes throughout the entirety of HDB.

Yui: Ah…Are you awake, Reiji?

I’ll pour you a cup of tea right away.

Reiji: Yes…

Did you stay by my side the whole time, perhaps?

Yui: Yes, I didn’t want to leave your side for even a split second.

…Was I in the way?

Reiji: Not at all.

Yui: Thank god…In that case, I’ll go get theーー

Reiji: Hold up. Before that, come here.

The inference that can be drawn from this interaction here is that Reiji is hesitant yet willing to drop his guard and let Yui in. His interrogative of “Did you stay by my side the whole time, perhaps?“ presents Yui with the hint that he is prepared to lower his guard if she is prepared to stay, that he is willing to be vulnerable if she’ll keep him company. It’s interesting to point out that as a character who prefers his own company and for people to leave him be rather than simply follow him around or annoy him for their own satisfaction, is openly asking if the person he at first deemed unworthy of wasting his time stayed with him. It puts his insecurities on full display, that he’s lonely; the fact that Reiji doesn’t say “you stayed...” and instead asks “did you stay...” exhibits his hesitation and uncertainty but also hope - just a little bit, but it’s there -. He’s unsure but hopeful for Yui’s answer, and I think that parallels his early-stage behaviour pleasantly; it shows his willingness to help himself and lower his defences as long as Yui is willing to stay with him through it. By this interaction occurring, it lets the relationship between the two develop - yes Reiji is still stern, rude and somewhat obnoxious, however, he begins to acknowledge Yui as a person, key word being ‘begins’, as he’s still got a long way to go in order to overcome his many deep-rooted problems, and the interaction for that has been set-up.

Interactions such as this present Reiji with a more mellow attitude towards Yui than what he did during the majority of his route - he’s still stern and holds strong to his sense of self and perfectionism however, it’s become lesser than it was, since Reiji willingly let Yui in and lessened his guard around her. It shows that his progress as a person is occurring, though it is at a rather slow pace - which is fitting for someone like Reiji.

Reiji: …You really helped me out earlier. Let me thank you.

Yui: Eh? Did I do anything?

Reiji: You called out for me in the classroom while I was being forced to lecture those girls on the continuation of class.

I thought that was very quick-witted of you…But since it’s you we’re talking about, I suppose that was not the case.

----------

Reiji: …Humans are bothersome creatures after all.

Yui: Eh?

Reiji: Say I would refuse to help them with their studies, I am certain bad rumours would spread in no time.

‘That guy is unfriendly’, for example. Although I wouldn’t mind if that’s what they think about me.

Take the witch hunt for example.

Yui: Witch hunt?

Reiji: Yes, after even the slightest disagreement, they would claim someone to be a witch, falsely accusing them.

Although in the current era we live in, witch hunts should no longer exist.

That being said, it would be foolish of me to purposely trigger a bad situation.

Nor do I wish to shake up my current lifestyle.

So I’ve been trying to remain kind to a certain degree, avoiding other people developing some sort of resentment towards me.

Above all, the overall image of the Sakamaki household could not be worse because of the other brothers.

I have to at least keep up a good impression, or else I will be treated as their equal. …There you have it.

Here we see Reiji praise and acknowledge Yui’s behaviour and opts to thank her - yet he quickly follows that with one of his usual remarks -. It presents his softening façade but also his sarcasm, it can be implied that he covers up his relief at Yui’s actions with feigned annoyance - he’s not ready to completely drop his guard and let someone in after so many years of festering in his own trauma and turmoil; it’s not always that simple and it shows his struggle to do so. Additionally, this is one of the very few times within this game that Reiji ever mentions his brothers as a collective, and I’m inclined to believe that it shows how distant he is from them. By him using the phrase “the [other] brothers” moreover “my brothers” displays that emotional distance, he’s not using the possessive pronoun ‘my’ because he doesn’t feel as though they are his brothers - he doesn’t feel connected to them -. Furthermore, the notion that he states  “‘That guy is unfriendly’. Although I wouldn’t mind if that’s what they think about me.”  emphasises the fact that he is still very much stuck in his ways through his self-contradictory and self-anti-conformity tactics, he tells Yui that he could care less what others thought of him, yet we know that this is not true - he doesn’t care for people’s opinions of him yet opts to “at least keep up a good impression, or else I will be treated as their [his brothers’] equal”, it’s rather ironic don’t you think ? He states that he doesn’t care yet in reality he does, he’s invalidating his own feelings and using his brothers as an ‘escape goat’ for that; even the fact that he uses the declarative “there you have it” displays his somewhat reluctance to lower his guard completely.

Keep in mind that through Reiji’s mentality and the fact that his mind is a boiling pot of negativity towards himself and others, it’s likely to assume that he lacks a concept of love and how to separate it from his manipulative tendencies. Once Yui has become content with being dragged into Reiji’s emotional mayhem and depreciating manipulation, he lowers his guard - little by little - but as Reiji becomes ‘better’ in a sense, Yui becomes worse - feeling more and more broken as the route continues, and I think this can be implied to hold significance to the relationship between the two. 

Reiji: Just like this…I’ll continue to love you…Till you can’t think of anything else.

This is your punishment for being so doubting. …Well, to be honest.

I doubt this will even count as a punishment to you. …Fufu.

Yui: …Haah…

Reiji: Well then, where would you like it next…? I’ll give you my fangs thoroughly…wherever you want…

Yui: Aah…

(Is this happiness…? Yes, it has to be.)

(Reiji…Is loving me after all.)

The important thing to note in this interaction here is how the words “love”, “punishment” and “fangs” are grouped together. Both “punishment” and “fangs” include connotations of pain, and discipline, implying that Reiji will continue to ‘train’ Yui with rewards and punishments (again, manipulating and abusing her) however, the added factor that “love” was included in this exchange could imply that Reiji subconsciously views love as another form of pain and punishment; as though instead of him viewing his abuse of Yui for what it is - abuse - he’s glossing over that fact and instead calling it “love” since canonically, vampires are known to kill as an act of love; they murder the ones they love:

Cordelia: In that case, I’ll kill you. And then I’ll kill him…

Killing him would be the ultimate proof of my love.

I shall be the one fulfilling his greatest desire to die. Haah…Isn’t it wonderful?

Reiji: You have no interest in being the person he loves the most. In short, you just want to force your own love upon him, am I wrong?

Conversely, due to his upbringing, and the vampiric logic of DL, maybe by imprinting this kind of behaviour on her, Reiji is trying to say that he has enough emotion towards her to consider melding love and pain together. It can be considered that vampires drink each other’s blood in the DL universe under three circumstances: food, love, and pleasure; I think Reiji melds those three together. I’ve implied this mainly through the actions of when Yui turns into a vampire when following Kanato’s route; Kanato even comments at times that it makes no real difference for him, “she’s just as sweet as before” in relation to her blood. By Kanato continuing to drink Yui’s blood is not the same as drinking it for nutrition, as it was before. Thematically speaking, it can be implied that sucking blood is what Rejet uses to symbolise intimacy and sadism in the franchise - and from that we can interpret that by drinking their own blood, it acts as a means of giving pleasure to one another as well as food and sustenance. The ‘love’ aspect of this is a little harder to explain given the notion that basically none of the characters (aside from Yui) understand the concept of love, and of loving someone, however, I believe a phrase from one of the chapters in Laito’s route can explain why pain melds into ‘love’; he states “do you know how it feels to love someone so much that you end up hating them?”, which I think describes the brothers’ mentality towards love quite well. Family-wise, they were each damaged, and so their understanding of familial love vastly differs that of someone who grew up with a caring and stable family - applying this to Reiji brings us back to his CEN, his neglect came as a form of ‘love’ - which hurt him - and so by him harbouring feelings for Yui, he’s going to mirror and perpetuate that, hence why I think his later punishments come as a form of ‘love’ from him.

Going back to the subject of the matter, Reiji’s walls are still very much up, they’re just not as high as they were before - his stern attitude still remains and somewhat prevails, but his caring nature begins to grow.

Reiji: Haah…I wanted to believe you were sincerely listening to my words, but it seems my message did not get through in the slightest.

Yui: I’m sorry…

Reiji: …When do you have to hand it in?

Yui: By the end of today…

Reiji: Do you know what time it is right now? Honestly you are unbelievable…I suppose I have no other choice.

Yui: Eh…?

Reiji: Where’s the assignment? Do you have it with you?

Yui: Y-Yes!

(Could it be, he’ll help me?)

It’s this one.

Yui pulls out the assignment

Reiji: …You’ve already made a mistake in your first answer.

Yui: Eh? Where?

Reiji: It does show that you solved it with your own abilities, but do you honestly intend to submit it like this?

Yui: Uu…Sorry…

Reiji: Please show me your notes.

Yui: Y-Yes…

----------

Reiji: Over here, and here…On these pages as well, there’s errors.

Let us fix these mistakes first. Then we can proceed.

Yui: T-Thank you very much…!

The school setting for this interchange is quite refreshing, but it also reinforces the academic differences between Reiji and Yui - he’s been alive for a very long time while Yui is only seventeen - and it goads the ‘redemption’ of Reiji’s overbearing nature, as previously, Reiji was displeased with trying to help his fellow classmates yet here he’s willing to help Yui of his own initiative - though he does show reluctance to do so, again establishing his slow growth and progression -. If this scene were to take place during the beginning of the game, he would no doubt chastise and degrade Yui for her mistakes and inability to understand the question, however, he does not take that chance to berate her here; yes he does chime in with his usual remarks, yet he offers to help her fix her mistakes together - he’s extending and reaching out to her and letting her take hold of that hand - naturally, by comparing his beginning chapters and his later chapters, it’s not difficult to see why Yui is ecstatic in this exchange. 

On the contrary, whilst Reiji’s character goes through growth, so does Yui’s - Reiji more for the better and Yui more so for the worst, and I’d like to bring attention to that. I’m not going to discuss her entire character but I’d like to bring awareness to her contribution to their relationship, starting with this:

Reiji: That too. I’ll prepare you a hot drink, but first eat thiーー

Yui: My blood is disgusting, huh? …To the point where you don’t ever want to drink it again.

Reiji: Yui, calm down. I haven’t said any of that, have I?

If you’re in bad shape, this could possibly affect your blood as well.

Therefore, you don’t need to think that waーー

Yui: But! You wouldn’t want to drink disgusting blood, would you!?

If you won’t have my blood, then what am I supposed to do!?

Without good-quality blood, I won’t be of any value to you…!

At this rate, I won’t be able to remain by your side…!

(I don’t want that…!)

Reiji: …You truly are a foolish person.

Who said you aren’t valuable to me?

Yui: Because…!

He embraces her

Reiji: Haah…

They’re bad at dealing with things. They always assume the worst right away. They pretend to understand even though you don’t.

Honestly…They really are a handful. …Do you know who I am talking about?

Yui: Eh…?

Reiji: I’m talking about you, Yui.

To think you still don’t understand after being told so many times…Listen carefully, okay?

Yui: Y-Yes…

Reiji: The taste of your blood is irrelevant.

I am most definitely a Vampire. As long as we are living together, drinking your blood is an essential part of it…

Even so…

I don’t mind how disgusting your blood may be. …Yui, as you remain yourself.

This exchange shows the changes that Yui’s character undergoes in order to satisfy Reiji’s; even the notion that he’s being uncharacteristically soft in this dialogue presents how they both have changed and how the narrative has changed - the beginning contrasts the end. Reiji opts to put his own feelings to the side in order to accompany Yui’s, which shows his progression to take others’ needs into consideration, as well as learn to accept his own feelings and let himself validate them - I find this progression quite powerful due to where his character started: bitter, resentful, controlling and utterly sadistic in his means of manipulating Yui. However, we see this stark contrast in Yui - a character who we know likes to help others, stay rational and open minded but most importantly, we know that Yui is a genuinely kind soul; so to see her throw a fit of distress and rage is quite shocking to behold. Additionally, the fact that she actively interrupts Reiji mid sentence provides us with how she’s changed - she’s becoming more erratic in her behaviour; as per the fact that she cuts Reiji off by stating, “My blood is disgusting, huh? …To the point where you don’t ever want to drink it again. “ reminds me of Kanato, and his erratic behaviour - the inclination that you take one thing to mean another and instantly go off the rails, which is what we see here and I think that it can be implied to serve as a good test to Reiji’s slow progression and betterment.  The end segment of the transcript above is particularly valuable in this interpretation of Reiji’s character development, especially in regards to his perfectionism; the fact that he’s practically declared that he’s willing to push aside the notion that her blood is no longer perfect (for the time being) as long as Yui remains true to herself truly speaks volumes - we’ve been through how and why Reiji possesses perfectionist traits, and for him to then consider pushing his own morals aside for someone he initially saw as beneath him genuinely allows not only Yui but also the audience to view Reiji’s ‘true colours’ so to speak - in this small segment, we see Reiji’s core as it should be, not hell-bent, resentful nor scorned, we see the little shards of tenderness and affection that he’s locked away for so long; he’s becoming ‘true’ to himself and he wishes for Yui to remains true to herself too. 

Yui’s Relationship with Reiji and her Deteriorating Mind

However, as I vaguely touched upon before, Reiji’s development also takes a toll on Yui; her character changes as Reiji’s does, and that’s bound to have an effect on the two.

Those who weren’t treated with respect by their family and have low self-esteem, will tend to deny the abuse and won’t expect to be treated better than how they were controlled, demeaned, or punished by a parent. Denial doesn’t mean we don’t know what’s happening. Instead, we minimise or rationalise it and its impact; and may not realise it’s actually abuse. Research shows we deny for survival to stay attached and procreate for survival of the species. Facts and feelings that would normally undermine love are minimised or twisted so that we overlook them or blame ourselves in order to keep loving; by appeasing our partner and connecting to love, we stop hurting - love is rekindled and we feel safe again.

When we fall in love, if we haven’t worked through trauma from our childhood, we’re more susceptible to idealizing our partner when dating. It’s likely that we will seek out someone who reminds us of a parent with whom we have unfinished business, not necessary of our opposite-sex parent - this is able to link to Reiji’s hatred of Yui’s meekness and how he wishes for her behaviour to intertwine and parallel Beatrix’s -. We might even be attracted to someone who has aspects of both parents. This is known in Freudian parlance as ‘Repetition Compulsion’ and helps us overlook signs that would be predictive of trouble. However, cases like this can often instil what’s known as ‘Stockholm Syndrome’.

Stockholm syndrome is a psychological response. It occurs when hostages or abuse victims bond with their captors or abusers. This psychological connection develops over the course of the days, weeks, months, or even years of captivity or abuse. The ‘captors’ in this case can often have the uncanny ability to sense a weakness or vulnerability in another person and is followed closely by the charm of first impression and then reinforced by the promises of meeting the unmet needs of the other. The Stockholm syndrome or ‘trauma bonding’ in the relationship does not come into play until after the ‘capture’ has taken place. It is after the veneer of first impression has worn thin that the captor now has to use the ‘good guy/bad guy’ scenario to set the bonding. The captors in this case are adept at making the captive feel sorry for them by telling stories of their own abuse as children and making excuses for their temper and aggressive behaviour. This combined with small acts of kindness ingratiates them to the captive after the abuse that sets the fear of reprisal up in the captive. Some cases of an abusive relationship can have the scenario where the captive gains the insight and strength to leave, and the captor murders the captive and the common motif for this is “If I can't have you, nobody can”.

Now here is where it gets a bit difficult. It would be simple to say that all hostages or captives that fall prey to this type of person are ‘weak’ or ‘needy’. That is not the case; however, as we trace back as investigators we often find indicators that made the captives more susceptible to the wiles of the captor. The attribution error allows us to transpose our beliefs about what ‘normal’ behaviour is onto those who behave differently. Too often we just shake our heads in disbelief as a captive returns to the captor voluntarily and despite the urges not to by family and social supporters. Others throw up their hands and cite Stockholm syndrome as the culprit without understanding the dynamics and the context of the situation.

Emotionally bonding with an abuser can actually be a strategy for survival for victims of abuse and intimidation. What might have begun as a normal relationship has turned into a controlling and abusive situation, or in our case, the opposite. They are trying to survive. Their personality is developing the feelings and thoughts needed to survive the situation and lower their emotional and physical risks. The fear of outbursts from the abuser becomes a controlling factor in the victim's life. For survival, the goal becomes to anticipate anything that may result in an outburst for the controlling person and avoid it at all costs. The abused person becomes preoccupied with the needs, desires, and habits of the abusive controlling person. The outcome of this survival mode or ‘freeze’ reaction versus ‘fight or flight’ reaction can result in a captive who experiences a loss of self-esteem, self-confidence, and psychological energy and who is ‘burned out’ and too depressed to leave; another possible outcome is a return to a childish infantile pattern of bonding with the aggressor - in our case, the latter is visible within Kanato’s route in Haunted Dark Bridal -.

In many cases, it's not simply feelings for a captor that keeps individuals captive in an unhealthy relationship - it's the totality of the investment and the types of investment:

Emotional Investment - They've invested so many emotions, cried so much, and worried so much that they feel it necessary to see the relationship through to the finish.

Social Investment - They've got pride, and to avoid social embarrassment and uncomfortable social situations, they remain in the relationship.

Family Investments - If children are present in the relationship, decisions regarding the relationship are clouded by the status and needs of the children.

Financial Investment - In many cases, the controlling and abusive partner has created a complex financial situation. Many captives remain in a bad relationship waiting for a better financial situation to develop that would make their departure and detachment easier.

Lifestyle Investment - Many controlling and abusive partners use money or a lifestyle as an investment; captives in this situation may not want to lose their current lifestyle.

Intimacy Investment - They often invest emotional and sexual intimacy. Some captives have experienced a destruction of their emotional and or sexual self-esteem in the unhealthy relationship. The abusing partner may threaten to spread rumours or tell intimate details or secrets; a type of blackmail using intimacy is often found in these situations.

Throughout Reiji’s Haunted Dark Bridal route, we see Yui slowly adapting to the physical and mental abuse Reiji instils on her, and in a way, her kind spirit betrays her and is manipulated by Reiji. I’ve mentioned previously that Reiji uses Operant Control on Yui; so when she’s rewarded for ‘good’ behaviour, her innate compassion allows her to somewhat overlook the heinous actions that are inflicted upon her. This can be implied by the notion that she wants to believe that there’s good in Reiji, that he’s not entirely bad and abusive. Yet, once Cordelia is out of the picture and Yui has returned back to ‘normal’, she displays a more erratic streak compared to her usual tender personality, opting to assert herself more, however, that assertion comes in a frantic nature moreover stubbornness - such as when she declares to Reiji that he won’t want her anymore because she thought her blood wasn’t good enough. The question is, why would she say that in the first place ? She’s endured so much pain and suffering from Reiji yet she doesn’t want him to leave her...why ? From what I’ve inferred, it’s quite simple, she’s broken. What I mean by that is that she’s become so worn down over time, having what little confidence and self-esteem she has etched away time and time again, being ‘retrained’ by Reiji’s cruel manipulation and then having Cordelia take over her body on top of that - she’s mentally exhausted from dealing with Reiji’s regime and it’s taken its toll on her.

Throughout the route as a whole Yui barely interacts with any of the other brothers; therefore she’s isolated for the majority of the game, she doesn’t have anyone to turn to and once Cordelia strikes, the only person who more or less comes to her ‘rescue’ is none other than Reiji. Mental exhaustion, isolation and pressure all factor into how a person as a whole ‘breaks’, in essence, once Yui has become undeniably worn out, it allows Reiji to mould her mind into his desired outcome - which is what was mentioned all the way back in the first few sections -. By him casting Cordelia out, it leaves Yui vulnerable, tired and confused; by him posing as her ‘rescuer’ so to speak, Yui’s exhausted brain is going to jump to the conclusion that everything she was put through was due to an act of ‘love’, “Reiji’s here because he loves me” was most likely the basis of her thoughts at that moment - she was at first valuable to him due to her blood and she doesn’t want to lose that status of importance to him. So, when Reiji decides to pay attention to other people, it can be implied that Yui feels threatened by that, and becomes frantic that he’s going to leave her - Yui’s been isolated for the entire game, and through that, and everything else she’s been through, she’s going to depend on him; and follow the rules he sets out for her because that mindset has been ingrained into her. 

Reiji: Our bond should not be able to be broken over such a trivial thing.

Furthermore, do you fully realise that you have captured the heart of a Vampire?

I’d like to bring attention to this small piece of dialogue above within the After Story chapter, more so for its irony at the fact that Reiji uses the verb ‘captured’ even though he is technically the ‘capturer’ since he enforced this life on Yui when she chose him. Even the word itself carries connotations of imprisonment and subjugation, displaying the utter irony of the situation - Reiji has physically and mentally restrained and constrained Yui’s whole person, yet through her acts of kindness, he instead feels imprisoned - it’s baffling yet it provides us with the implication that Reiji feels content with her, enough to subtly change his character and climb up the hill of betterment; furthermore, this could then imply that as Yui feels depended and devoted to Reiji due to Stockholm syndrome, Reiji may also feel this string of attachment to Yui because he can’t better himself without her - it can be implied that their relationship is a double-edged sword -. 

Reiji’s broken Yui’s psyche to the point where she feels unsafe if Reiji is not with her or around her. She’s been isolated and tortured into developing a form of twisted attraction which may have all started due to her empathetic character - she’s attached with no one else to turn to, she’s cut off from the world and her only means of purpose is by serving Reiji.

Reiji: That way, you’ll learn much more. I’m saying this for your sake as well.

Yui: B-But, if I do that, we won’t be able to head home together any more.

Reiji: So you’re practically ordering me to teach you because you don’t want to? You’ve sure become quite assertive with your words, haven’t you?

Yui: That’s not true…! I just don’t want to become unable to head home together with you!

As I’ve stated previously, Yui can often become quite unstable when faced with separation from Reiji and the dialogue above perfectly encapsulates that. Throughout the opening of the route we see Yui try her best to go about her daily life, often left on her own when she’s not being ‘trained’ by Reiji’s strict demands - it paints her as someone with initiative that can cope on their lonesome - whereas now, that fragment of Yui has completely flipped; where she could cope on her own, now she can’t. It all ties back to Reiji’s many problems but it also speaks volumes about Yui’s own personality and quite frankly, lack of self-esteem.

Due to her implied low self-esteem, Yui believes the abuser’s belittling, blame, and criticisms, which further lessen her self-esteem and confidence in her own perceptions. Reiji intentionally does this for power and control. She’s brainwashed into thinking she has to change to make the relationship work; she becomes easily manipulated, blames herself and tries harder to meet her abuser’s demands. It can be implied that Yui may interpret sexual overtures, crumbs of kindness, or just absence of abuse as signs of love or hope that the relationship will improve; thus, as the trust in herself declines, Yui’s love and idealization of Reiji remains intact, and she may even doubt that she could find anyone better.

Many of us can have empathy for the abuser, but not for ourselves. We are unaware of our needs and would feel ashamed asking for them. With this in mind, it makes us susceptible to manipulation if an abuser plays the victim, exaggerates guilt, shows remorse, blames us, or talks about a troubled past if they have had one. Our empathy feeds our denial system by supplying justification, rationalisation, and minimization of the pain that we endure. Most victims hide the abuse from friends and relatives to protect the abuser, both out of empathy and shame about being abused; secrecy is a mistake and gives the abuser more power, which is exactly what we see.

Going back to a point I made at the beginning of this section, about how people can often fall for those who remind them of a parental figure, I believe this has relevance to Yui and her attachment to Reiji. We know that she grew up with the church and that her father, Seiji, was strict on her as a child - I don’t think Yui suffers from CEN like the rest of the brothers, and we know that she did have friends before she moved to the mansion. However, I’d like you to keep in mind that Seiji was the one to kill Beatrix by Reiji’s command; therefore a relationship between those two characters has been established in the past - no doubt Reiji was just as controlling then as he is now. The Reiji we see during this game is quite brutal in his manipulation, but he is also strict....’strict’ being the key word. It can be implied that Yui may have seen the same strictness in Reiji that was in her father, possibly leading her to find a strange form of comfort in that - she wishes to please Reiji’s firm nature much like how a child wishes to appease a strict parent.....by getting on their good side; we can predominantly see this through the Heaven chapters of the game.

Yui: I’ve brought your tea.

Reiji: Yes…Right on time. Not even a single second off.

Yui: Of course. You are very punctual after all, and so am I.

Reiji: I see. That is a very favourable way of thinking.

Yui: (I did it…! Reiji is pleased! I’m so glad!!)

One of the first instances where Yui was to meet with Reiji she was three seconds late, in which she encountered a nasty punishment from him - here, after she’s been completely broken and worn out, she’s right on time, she’s punctual because Reiji’s ways of living have been ingrained into her; she’s been ‘trained’ properly by him, like an owner would do with their dog (again bringing us back to the pet power dynamic) and therefore has become co-dependent.

Co-dependency  is an emotional and behavioural condition that affects an individual’s ability to have a healthy, mutually satisfying relationship. It is also known as ‘relationship addiction’ because people with co-dependency often form or maintain relationships that are one-sided, emotionally destructive and or abusive. 

The concept that Yui’s eager to please him, and the fact he states that it’s “favourable” of her implements Yui’s development in regards to their relationship, and how Reiji’s overbearing control has practically obliterated Yui’s original self - her former self has been completely lost to him.

Cordelia and Mirroring

Within this section, I’d like to talk about Cordelia and how Reiji mimics and mirrors her behaviour and expectations in order to ‘kill’ her...but first, what exactly is mirroring and mimicry ?

Mirroring, also known as ‘Limbic Synchrony’, is the act of mimicking those around us. It’s an ingrained social behaviour that typically yields positive results, mirroring can help to establish a rapport between humans, with research finding that it improves interpersonal skills in children. It is widely known that individuals frequently imitate each other in social situations, and that such mimicry fulfils an important social role in the sense that it functions as a social glue. With reference to the anticipated action effect, it has recently been demonstrated that individuals do not only imitate others, but also engage in anticipated action before the observed person starts engaging in that action. Interestingly, both phenomena (mimicry and anticipated action) rely on tracking others’ social behaviour. However, this act of mimicry and mirroring can also be used by those of a controlling nature, who wish to use these tactics to benefit their own circumstances; this leads us back to Reiji. 

Going through his Ecstasy chapters, I often found that in Ecstasy 10, Reiji displays an almost completely different attitude towards the end, opting to display the qualities and traits that Cordelia wishes to see - more or less giving her what she wants -, which I at first found rather strange due to him spouting the exclamative “Don’t touch me! You’re filthy! You are the most disgusting slut I’ve ever met!” back in Ecstasy 05, so why then does he decide to provide this interaction:

Reiji: Of course. This dress is almost no match for your fair skin…

On top of that, your skin is so smooth…It puts even this velvety fabric to shame…

Yui: (…! What am I getting all flustered for!?)

Am I beautiful? Reiji.

Reiji: Yes, you are more beautiful and charming than anyone else. My precious…

Yui: Compliment me more! More!

Reiji: So much so, I wish I could rip that dress off your body at the very instant and completely ravish you.

If I don’t…I fear other guys might just try and gobble you up in no time…

Yui: Haah, I don’t mind. Reiji, get on your knees. And please put on my shoes.

Reiji: Yes. My precious darling.

Yui: (Reiji’s kneeling down…!)

Exactly. Now, put my foot on your knee.

Reiji: Fufu…You are beautiful as ever…Your legs are slender and elegant like those of a crane.

These feet as well…So precious and small, they fit right into the palm of my hand.

It’s rather simple really, Cordelia wants to be complemented, she wants to be praised and adored; showing her overall narcissism in the process, and Reiji plays into that, he mimics and mirrors her emotional desires in order for Cordelia to drop her guard. The irony of this scene is that he’s in fairness, complementing Yui’s body, he’s not praising Cordelia’s personality, her intellect or even her original body yet we see her present more leniency once her desperation for praise is fulfilled. This need of Cordelia’s is what inevitably causes her downfall.

Cordelia: Fufu. That settles everything then. I’ll enjoy watching you resurrect Beatrix and killing her afterwards.

Reiji: Yes. Before that, Cordelia, would you like to seal our vows with a kiss…?

Cordelia: Oh dear, you’re surprisingly a romanticist.

Reiji: ーー Come on.

Cordelia: Very well. Go ahead…

Reiji leans in

Reiji: Cordelia…

Cordelia: (…No way, why…? Reiji…Do you not care about “me” at all?)

He kisses her

Reiji: Nn…

Cordelia: …Nn…!?

*Thud*

Cordelia: (Eh!? Cordelia pushed…Reiji away?)

What is…this? What’s the meaning behind this!?

Reiji: …You fell for it, Cordelia. I made you…ingest a certain drug.

Cordelia is a character who demonstrates openness in what she desires and that leaves Reiji to mimic and mirror that in order to coerce her to lower her guard - she becomes blinded by her own narcissistic needs and Reiji is able to take advantage of that; I think this is a nice way to bring us back to how manipulative of a person he is. Reiji’s able to lure both Yui and Cordelia into a false sense of security, and once their defences are down, he’s able to enact his own plans.

Reiji’s Paradoxical and Parallel Relationship with Shuu

For this section of my analysis, it’ll be impossible to talk about Reiji without talking about Shuu; in Shuu’s third ending, he finds Reiji’s old diary in which he talks about setting fire to Edgar’s village. It’s not made clear exactly what the diary said or what Reiji’s tone was, just that Reiji does admit in the diary to causing the fire and Edgar’s ‘death’. When asked if all this is true, Reiji’s response is that it was something he did as a child.

Shuu: That day, you followed me and went to Edgar’s village.

Yui: Edgar is…?

(That’s…the name of the friend Shuu mentioned before…)

Shuu: And then…You set fire to the entire village, did you not?

To rob me from my best friend. Because of your own resentment towards the guy who had something you didn’t have yourself…You wiped clean an entire village…

Was it fun to burn Edgar to death?

Reiji: …

Yui: Reiji…Killed Shuu’s friend…?

(With fire, on top of that…So that’s why Shuu hates fire so much…)

Shuu: No matter how much we may view humans as inferior living beings, it does not make sense for us to mindlessly slaughter them for our own pleasure.

If Vampire hunters were to find out…Our entire race would be in danger…

Kanato: Say…Reiji, is he speaking the truth?

Reiji: …It happened when we were children.

Personally, this response from Reiji is rather odd, his hatred of Shuu isn’t exactly a secret; and being vampires, killing doesn’t seem to be that big of a deal. In Reiji’s route, he reveals quite early on that he killed his own mother. With that in mind, if Reiji really had meant to kill Edgar all those years ago, wouldn’t he just admit to it ? The fact that he says that setting fire to the village was something he did as a child could hint that he feels guilt - and to an extent, shame - towards it. Even in the current timeline, he refers to his action as “setting the village on fire”, not as “killing Edgar”; while his actions did lead to Edgar’s ‘death’, it seems unlikely that he actually set out to murder. Reiji has always resented Shuu due to his mother valuing Shuu more than himself. But more than that, it was the fact that even though he worked incredibly hard, Shuu thrived by doing absolutely nothing. In addition to that, Shuu often ran away and tried to escape the pressure of living as the apparent heir. To Shuu, the strict attention that Beatrix gave him was suffocating, and Reiji envied that attention. 

Reiji naturally has a personality that nurses grudges for a long time, as evident by how much he still resents Shuu years later. From Reiji’s perspective, it can be implied that he sees a brother who didn’t and still doesn’t appreciate any of the things he has - things that Reiji wants so badly but can never obtain. It may be inferred that if Shuu took his life and role as the heir seriously, Reiji might not hate him as much as he does, if at all. The sense that you get of Reiji from Shuu’s route is that rather than wanting Shuu to disappear, Reiji just wants him to better himself.

Reiji: …Someone like you, it isn’t just your actions and appearance, but even down to the very depths of your heart, you are nothing but a filthy fiend it seems.

I wonder if it’s because you were spoiled during your upbringing due to being the eldest son…Our caretakers have created a monster.

No…This level of disgracefulness can only be attributed to someone’s true nature. I don’t sense a single grain of refinement in you.

Shuu: …I have no idea what you’re talking about. You’re noisy so go away, Reiji.

Reiji: You are the eyesore here. You too, why don’t you make yourself at home underneath the ground where you’ll be out of sight.

Shuu: …Don’t wanna, it’s cold. If you don’t want to see me, then leave.

Reiji: Wha…You good-for-nothing!

Yui: C-Come on guys…

(It’s rare for Shuu to talk back this much…)

(Reiji is usually calm and collected as well, but when it comes to Shuu, I feel as if he’s purposely trying to attack him…)

(None of the brothers seem especially close, but these two in particular…)

(It could be that amongst all of them, they are like cat and dog…)

Reiji’s responses in regards to Shuu are often filled with malice and disgust, but here, he directly states the problem he has with him by saying “you were spoiled during your upbringing”. We’ve thoroughly implied and analysed Reiji’s overwhelming CEN and how that’s affected him growing up, however, due to Shuu being almost suffocated in what Reiji longs for, he’s naturally going to become envious of his brother because of that, and begin to resent him.

Reiji is a character who’s suffered from CEN, however, by following Shuu’s route, we learn that Beatrix was quite an overbearing mother due to Shuu’s placement in the family - Shuu was dealt with an unhealthy amount of attention and Reiji was devoid of any -. I know that in Reiji’s More Blood route, we do see instances of Beatrix checking up on Reiji and his studies, sometimes praising him, however, just because a parent asks how you’re doing once in a while, does not constitute to a child not being neglected...he very much was, at least, emotionally. They’re both two ends of the same spectrum, and although Reiji is emotionally closed off for the most part, he’s also emotionally volatile in his own ways - punishments - whereas Shuu is the flip-side of that and is emotionally apathetic; here’s how they paradox each other.

What I mean by this, is that both Shuu and Reiji’s behaviours contradict themselves even though at their cores, they are inherently the same. So, what is apathy ?

Apathy involves a lack of interest in different aspects of life, including normal daily tasks and social activities. It is often seen in varying degrees in healthy people, but it is also a symptom of a number of different mental health conditions including depression.

The origin of the term apathy comes from a form of the prefix “a” meaning “without”, and the Greek pathos meaning “emotion, feeling, suffering”. Thus, apathy was originally defined as freedom from suffering. During the 18th century, the meaning changed to “a sense of being without emotion or feeling indifference, especially to matters that are important or appealing”.

Apathy is characterised by feelings of indifference and lack of emotion. The term is often used to describe a lack of caring or concern, but in mental health contexts, this loss of interest in different aspects of life events is often a sign of a condition. There are different types of apathy consisting of:

Emotional apathy - Characterised by a lack of both positive and negative emotions

Behavioural apathy - Characterised by a lack of self-initiated behaviours

General apathy - Characterised by less motivation, poor emotional responses, and lack of social engagement

Research suggests that apathy and anhedonia (lack of pleasure) are closely linked, with people experiencing higher levels of apathy also reporting more anhedonia.

Two other forms of apathy that people may experience are:

Bystander apathy - This is related to the bystander effect, a phenomenon in which people witness someone else in need of help, but do nothing to intervene or offer assistance. There are many reasons why people may not take action in these situations, including indifference or apathy to the other person's plight.

Compassion fatigue - Sometimes people care initially, but become overwhelmed or physically and emotionally exhausted. This leads to a decreased ability to feel compassion or empathy for others.

When it comes to Shuu, I believe his apathy has formed over time. I’ve implied this through his regiment as a child; given the fact he is the eldest son and therefore the heir, it’s no doubt going to put pressure on both Shuu and Beatrix to succeed in that - often having Shuu cooped up in the castle spending his time studying - much like Ayato - and just like Ayato, they’d both rather not be suffocated in strict demands by their mothers, and would rather venture and explore their surroundings. By Shuu garnering the vast majority of his mother’s attention and dealing with the copious amounts of stress in regards to his education, he’s naturally going to feel overwhelmed by that, and possibly view his mother’s aspirations for him as overbearing. This leads us to compassion fatigue, at first, Shuu would’ve cared about what his birth right entails but over time, that would have started to wear him down, exhaust him due to the importance of the role he needs to fill; by becoming exhausted, Shuu may have grown to care less and less and his motivation to succeed the family may have decreased alongside it. He no longer had motivation because he constantly felt drained - not to mention, he wasn’t permitted to leave the castle, and so he’s going to feel even less motivated to succeed....he felt trapped by his place in the family - it’s really no wonder why he wanted to escape so badly.

Beatrix: Shuu, are you making selfish requests again?

Shuu: Mother.

Beatrix: You are Father’s precious heir. You do not need to see the filth of the outside world.

Everything you need has been provided inside the castle. …You mustn’t trouble your wet nurse and the others.

Shuu: Yes…

*TIMESKIP*

Shuu runs through the forest

Shuu: Haah….Haah…!

Phew…~ I’ve come quite far from the castle.

I’ve come this far, so I doubt granny and gramps will be able to find it.

If they find out I went out by myself…Will I get scolded?

But just a little bit of venturing should be…

I quite like this flashback section in Shuu’s route as it displays him running away from his responsibilities (a common theme in Shuu’s character), he wants some piece of mind without drowning in everyone’s demands, and the fact that Beatrix openly frowns upon what Shuu wants - to explore outside - and chooses to look upon that as selfish allows the audience to sympathise with his character and somewhat understand why he’s developed such a lack of care towards everything and everyone.  

Beatrix pushed Shuu to his limits more than the other sons; he was forced to become the best by his mother so she would win Karlheinz's favour against Cordelia. This led to Reiji being neglected and quite obviously harbouring feelings of hate and resentment towards that. Throughout all the commotion and harshness, it resulted in Shuu running away from home. While running away, Shuu met Edgar and became the best of friends, often playing together. However this happiness did not last long enough; in an attempt to impress his mother and gain her fleeting attention, Reiji destroyed Edgar's village, resulting in Edgar's ‘death’. Naturally, Shuu began to blame himself for what happened and soon lost interest in everything; thus his apathy came to the forefront.

They paradox each other because they each cause one another pain in their differences, one was neglected for a large portion of their life and tried everything in their path to garner that attention - and going to extreme lengths to do so - and became bitter, controlling and manipulative; one lost the one friend who cared for him and treated him as a person in order to escape his overbearing home-life and became depressed and apathetic. Reiji wanted what Shuu had and Shuu wanted what Reiji had, and the irony of that realisation is honestly quite devastating. The difference between the two at that point in time, is that Shuu tried to wade through his circumstance whereas Reiji let his perfectionism, envy and malice grow, choosing to take his frustration out on Shuu.

Shuu: Edgar! You can’t! Don’t go!

Edgar: Shuu, you should head back home already. Don’t you dare follow after me!

Shuu: Wait, you can’t! You’ll die!!

Edgar: I’ll be okay…See you later…Let’s play in the forest again.

Edgar runs towards the fire

Shuu: Edgar…!!!

Why…Why did you go…!

Humans will die instantly if they get swallowed by such strong flames…!

Edgar…Come back…Please come back…

Reiji arrives to the scene

Reiji: …Wah, such impressive flames.

Shuu: Reiji…? Why are you here…

Reiji: That doesn’t concern you, does it?

More importantly, your friend sure is a little fool. He just jumped right into the fire.

Shuu: Wha…Do you intend to ridicule Edgar!?

Reiji: No, not at all~ You are the only one I’m blaming…Shuu.

Shuu: Eh…?

Reiji: You are unbefitting of succeeding the throne.

You can’t do a single thing, so you should just spend your time in the very back of the castle, wasting your days away like a mute flower that can only sit there and breathe.

Ah…However, putting it that way might be insulting to the flowers.

Shuu: Wha…!?

Reiji: Aah, if I stay here, the smell will get in my hair.

I’ll return to the castle. I’m sure gramps will come and drag you back soon enough.

Fufu…You…Good-for-nothing.

Reiji walks away

Shuu: I’m a…good-for-nothing…?

The fire grows stronger

Shuu: Ah…No good…It can’t be stopped no more…

Am I…A good-for-nothing…? Hey…Edgar…

From what I can recall, this is the first instance where Reiji calls Shuu “good-for-nothing”, which is pretty significant within the timeline of events. Shuu’s basically just lost everything dear to him and the first thing Reiji does is chastise and mock him - clearly this is out of jealousy and resentment, he wants Shuu to hurt like he does - and once Reiji lets his famous nickname out, Shuu buys into that...he’s lost his friend, was too scared to do something and his brother has just called him useless - he’s going to believe him, because he feels responsible for it.

Looking through Shuu’s route, we gain a clear perspective of how utterly horrible Reiji can be. In that flashback it’s heavily implied that Shuu is distraught, and is Reiji concerned for his brother ? No, he shows no ounce of care, opting to fixate on the smell of his hair instead...and in his brother’s bereavement, declares “You can’t do a single thing, so you should just spent your time in the very back of the castle, wasting your days away like a mute flower that can only sit there and breathe”. It reinforces Reiji’s bitterness and how his hate and envy has taken the limelight in his head. What’s truly sad about this interaction, is that Shuu follows suit with what Reiji said - once he’s older all he does is sleep. He lazes around the house, earbuds in and music drowning everything out, he barely speaks, and stays out of the way...sleeping on the floor, sofas, and even outside, which is exactly how Reiji wishes him to be here, not seen nor heard because he’s jealous that Shuu’s seen by his mother and he’s not. The fact that Shuu even question’s Reiji’s lecture by posing the interrogative, “Am I…A good-for-nothing…? Hey…Edgar…” could imply that he feels so exhausted by everything that maybe he does feel useless, and that he does feel worthless because he couldn’t even save his friend; this could be implied when he calls out to Edgar, as though the weight of the situation hasn’t quite dawned on him yet, and neither has the depression yet to follow.

As common as depression is, it still eludes complete understanding. The trigger for depression can be almost any negative experience or hardship. Triggers can be external, such as losing someone, or they can be internal and invisible, such as brooding over the most common of experiences, a failed relationship. People differ in their susceptibility, both by virtue of their biological heritage, their parenting heritage, their styles of thinking, the coping skills they acquire or deliberately cultivate, and the degree to which situations afford them the ability to control their fate. Depression can often be implied to be most associated with the number of stressors experienced in life, and the effect is cumulative - the more stresses that accrue over time, the greater the likelihood of becoming depressed. The loss of an important relationship by death or divorce is experienced by most people as a major stress requiring significant adjustment. Loneliness is both a physical and emotional stressor, and in the absence of a wide array of coping skills, even minor bumps on life’s journey can become significant stressors.

Brooding over mistakes or unpleasant experiences, jumping to catastrophic conclusions from one or two setbacks, overgeneralizing from limited evidence - all are errors of thinking, or cognitive distortions, strongly linked to depression. Such thinking mires the brain in negativity and, if unchecked, breed self-doubt and hopelessness. Research documents that there is a strong relationship between adverse experiences in childhood - such as verbal or physical abuse or household dysfunction caused by a mentally ill parent - and the lifetime risk of depression. Studies show that verbal abuse more than doubles the lifetime risk of depression. Adverse experiences are a significant source of stress. But whether they summon resources for successful coping or lead to despair depends in part on the situation and in part on the person. A child facing verbally or physically abusive treatment at home or school who has no means of escaping continuing injury is at an elevated risk for developing depression. Situations may not be subject to change - but attitudes, interpretation, and meaning of experience are always under individual control and can confer resistance to depression and other disorders..

It can be inferred that Shuu suffers from depression after Edgar’s ‘death’, it’s natural to go through the stages of grief but when those feelings linger - which they do in Shuu’s case - it often leads to depression manifesting. The totality of Beatrix’s demands, Reiji’s animosity and the loss of Edgar would naturally wear Shuu’s mentality down, causing his apathy to grow stronger and his self-worth to shrink, and that’s how we’re faced with the Shuu we see now, the Shuu that Yui sees and the one Reiji still resents. And that’s the paradox, Shuu became what Reiji wanted, and in a sense, became what Reiji was...quiet and out of the way; Reiji became what Shuu was, studious, envious and to some degree, the head of the house - he takes care of everything -. They each want what the other has and that’s how they’re inherently the same, their contrast comes in the form of their behaviour and how they deal with the situations they were dealt with.

Now for the parallel. or how they’re more similar than what they display. I’d like to bring Reiji’s perfectionism back up for some more analysis as I feel it fits better within this portion of the analysis. What I’m referring to, is how perfectionism can link to depression just as much as grief and apathy can. Perfectionism is like an endless pit of negativity. Those in its grip don’t just hold high standards for themselves, they are perpetual self-critics, always judging themselves harshly. They focus on the very thing they want to avoid most - negative evaluation and failure. Perfectionism keeps people completely self-absorbed, always finding fault with themselves, a mindset that prevents them from taking on potentially-rewarding challenges. Even when perfectionists complete a task, they cannot enjoy a sense of achievement - such as when Reiji killed Beatrix -. Relentless concern with mistakes leads them to be haunted with uncertainty about their performance. The constant negative focus leads to a negatively distorted view of themselves, self-doubt, and feelings of inadequacy and worthlessness. Perfectionists are vulnerable to depression because their self-worth is contingent on fully achieving goals - a condition that, by definition, they can never meet. 

Now, am I saying that Reiji also has depression ? No, but I believe that this at least needs addressing - I’m not saying that he does suffer from it and I’m not saying that he doesn’t, I’m not entirely certain of either one but the possibility does need to be mentioned. Reiji is a raging perfectionist who deals with CEN and mild NPD; with that in mind, it can be implied that his self-worth and ego are substantially fragile - which could imply that he might suffer from depression but given the fact that we don’t see inside Reiji’s head, this possibility can’t be confirmed -, as we can sometimes see him lose his composure when confronted with failure, being wrong or having something be out of his control, such as the cave scene in Lunatic Parade. Reiji focusses on being ‘perfect’ in order to prove his worth to his father, and prove that he is the most capable to succeed within the family. Shuu, who was supposed to be the successor could care less about the importance of the family’s heritage; that’s how they paradox, how they parallel is through how they fail to move past their painful circumstances and choosing to let their rampant trauma simmer.

Learned helplessness is a state of mind in which people come to believe, often through experiences of childhood abuse or neglect, that they have no way of escaping difficult or painful circumstances and therefore exert no effort to change distressing situations even when it is possible to do so. The resulting passivity can keep people from taking any measures to avoid a problem or to help themselves when one arises, or to seek help from others, compounding their own suffering and precipitating such feelings as hopelessness that are the hallmarks of depression. Because the helplessness is learned, the belief that no action matters can be unlearned; part of the cure is also gaining a realistic understanding of what can and can’t be controlled in life. Reiji wants to control everything and Shuu wants to control nothing. Shuu within the contents of Haunted Dark Bridal is an apathetic self loathing man with symptoms of PTSD and depression, and has issues attaching himself to anything. He is borderline suicidal and doesn’t want the connection of love with anyone. He is afraid of hurting the people around him and he cares whether he causes it or not. He desperately wants a connection to hold onto to feel something other than emptiness and pain; and Reiji has a severe inferiority complex regarding his older brother. He was severely neglected by his mother and believes himself unworthy of being loved and maintains an intelligent, gentlemanly nature in order to help distance himself from the brother he despises. Both brothers want to be loved unconditionally, and though they both go about different ways of achieving that, their end goal is still the same - hence why they parallel -.

All-in-all, their relationship is very turbulent due to one not accepting the troubles of the other and vice versa - mainly Reiji but the point still stands - and instead of trying to work out their differences and focus on their similarities, they each choose to fester in their own crippling self-worth.

His Bond with The Other Brothers

This will primarily focus on the Prologue due to Reiji’s overall lack of brotherly interactions within the majority of his route. I’m choosing to section the Prologue and the Dinner Banquet Drama CD separately due to the Prologue also including Yui in their interactions, whereas the latter is just the brothers on their own, which could possibly hinder my analysis - hence why I’m separating the two.

Once Yui’s presence is made known to the brothers, their conversations tend to revolve around her rather than the brothers simply conversing with each other.

Kanato: Hey…Why is this girl here?

Laito: Isn’t she part of tonight’s meal?

Ayato: As if! Why don’t you use your imagination for that? This one’s already mine. I’m the one who found her first after all! Hehehe.

Reiji: ーー But you let her get scooped off your plate.

Ayato: Fuck off, Reiji! Don’t mention that!

Subaru: Heh. Lame.

Here we get to view Reiji’s more light-hearted sarcasm, rather than insults and condescension; the fact that it’s directed towards Ayato of all people - a character who can be implied to be his polar opposite - shows that he doesn’t naturally harbour any ill-will towards everyone and can almost ‘play along’ with their apparent traits, such as Ayato’s prolific narcissism and Laito’s perversion. Here we see Laito refer to Yui as a “part of tonight’s meal” - this can be taken both literally and metaphorically - as they do need to feed off Yui’s blood to sustain themselves, but in the context of both Ayato and Laito, the ‘feeding’ part can be taken in a more Freudian direction. However, instead of Reiji chastising the two of them - like how he usually does - he plays into the conversation by suggesting that Ayato “let her get scooped off [his] plate”; by him giving this type of response, it plays into both implications of Laito’s query, not only showing Reiji’s self-contradictory nature but also his hypocrisy. Reiji’s character poses as someone who thrives off of order and serenity, yet he actively instigates Ayato; this could imply that though he prefers to have tranquillity, he also can’t help but have to have the last say in something.

I also find it quite strange that although Ayato is Reiji’s opposite, they both seem to have quite a sarcastic rivalry between themselves. It’s light-hearted and lenient for the most part which is odd since Ayato prefers to cause a ruckus - which could be implied that he represents chaos -, and Reiji tends to pick up the pieces - which could be implied that he represents order, and their relationship to each other demonstrates the balanced yet tolerant dynamic of order and chaos since one cannot exist without the other - ; it’s not hate-filled like how his relationship with Shuu is, and I think that shows Reiji in a better light and somewhat proves to both Yui and the audience that he’s not always full of malice and can be quite tolerant towards the triplets and Subaru’s more reckless tendencies. 

Conversely, by implying that Reiji holds more tolerance towards his siblings, does not therefore mean that he has complete tolerance...I assure you, he does not.

Laito: Phew~ As short tempered as ever, huh? Hahaha.

Subaru: Shut up, you hormonal bastard! Just know that I don’t think of you as my older brother!

Kanato: …This pisses me off. If you don’t shut that foul mouth of yours, I’ll cut it up into pieces.

Subaru: Heh, I’d like to see you try with that stature of yours, shorty.

Kanato: …Teddy. Take a good look. He’s going to be our next target.

Reiji: For god’s sake… Can you people cut it out? No matter how calm and collected I may be, I’m starting to get irritated as well.

I don’t care what you do with this person…Or at least, that’s what I would like to say

I just can’t stand to watch my mischievous little brothers fight it out over you in front of my eyes.

First of all, please tell me loud and clear how you wandered inside of here.

When compared to Shuu, Reiji appears to be the more active party, however, when it comes to his other brothers, he appears to be quite passive, opting to cut in once the conversation has a breathing period. What I mean by that, is when the conversation stops for a second, when everyone catches their breath, that’s when Reiji interjects. He allows Subaru and the triplets to have their say before he ends the conversation entirely - which could be implied to display his ‘politeness’ and ‘gentlemanly’ nature, however, it’s to my belief that it shows his passivity moreover his façade. Furthermore, Reiji specifically uses the adjective “mischievous” to describe his brothers rather than call them “troublesome" or "irresponsible", as “mischievous” can be implied to be quite a playful word - further implying that he may not even view his brothers’ behaviour as ‘delinquent-like’ but more impish, like children playing a prank. However, this does not stop him from chastising them as he asks them to “cut it out”; even the fact that Reiji chooses to vocalise his displeasure through that phrase shows his lax behaviour, he’s not telling them to stop, but to simply “cut it out”, which is the lenient way of saying it - how a parent would say it, firm but not too strict -.

I do enjoy character interactions like this, especially from Reiji because it puts his entire character paradox on display. He doesn’t reprimand Ayato for his language, Kanato for his outbursts or Subaru for his destructive temper...yet he quite literally ‘whips Yui into shape’ for being late, the hypocrisy is crying out to us. I do enjoy how his passivity is presented within the Prologue, as though he just lets his brothers run rampant and he simply picks up the pieces; yet once we follow his route, we see him take complete control and his untreated trauma take a hold of the limelight. However, that’s not to say that he still does not show that passivity - he does -, such as when he lets Cordelia order him around, whip him, and insult him. On one hand he’s simply biding his time; on the other, he’s being passive - yet the two are intertwined since passivity is a form of adaptation, or maladaptation, in which the individual adopts a pattern of submissiveness, dependence, and retreats into inaction - .

Diabolik Lovers Drama CD: The Dinner Banquet by Moonlight

I wanted to mention this specific Drama CD in relation to Reiji’s character, moreover his mini Drama CD since it allows us to view his character in the company of his brothers, and his brothers alone in order to give us a more full perspective of their overall dynamic as siblings.

*Cling*

Reiji: Haah...I simply cannot get enough of the fragrance of this tea. During this short timespan given to me, I get to indulge in the highest of luxuries. At dawn, when everyone is falling asleep, enjoying a cup of tea by myself. A wonderful time just by myself. I even find myself wishing that the fools in this household would just never wake up again.

The door opens.

Shuu: ー Sorry to crush your dreams, but I’ll have to interrupt your ideal time.

Reiji: Hm? ...Tsk, Shuu. You truly do appear at the worst possible times. Hmph. Thanks to you, the best time and space changed to the worst time and space in the blink of an eye.

You usually do not wake up over the slightest thing, so what’s the matter?

Shuu: Hm...For some reason I couldn’t fall asleep. There’s this certain thing missing from my bed after all.

Reiji: ...’This certain thing?’

Right at the beginning of this CD, it’s pointed out to us that Reiji rarely gets his own time, he’s always busy with something and never really has any time to himself to relax - bringing us back to his perfectionism and how that can cause people to become restless until something has been ‘perfected’, leaving sparse amounts of time to simply sit back and enjoy your own company; yet that becomes interrupted, and Reiji’s sour mood returns.

It’s quite fitting that out of all the brothers, it’s Shuu who decides to deflate Reiji’s mood - if you’ve played or followed Shuu’s route, then you know that he’ll frequently do things to intentionally irritate Reiji, and I think that is exactly what he’s doing here. Shuu has a trivial problem, an inconvenience, and who does he annoy ? Reiji, and him being the way he is, voices his disdain for Shuu’s presence. What I find to be quite apt is how Shuu gives a vague hint to his problem and expects Reiji to know what it is. The reason I’ve said that it’s quite fitting of Shuu’s character to do this is because he does the same thing but with his emotions throughout his route - not only does he not elaborate on his inconvenience, but he purposefully makes Reiji question the circumstance; and we all know that Reiji despises not understanding things. To link back to a prior section, notice how Reiji only vocalises his displeasure, he doesn’t physically remove Shuu at any point, implying that he may not hate Shuu as a person, but he doesn’t condone his behaviour. Shuu catches Reiji’s attention and then promptly cuts him off, annoying him. Furthermore, notice how Reiji was the first person Shuu went to, yes Reiji is the most mature, but Shuu still went to him to fix his problem; that could imply that in this scenario, Reiji acts as the ‘caretaker’, the mature figurehead who deals with everything from financial affairs to personal problems - this further shows his need to succeed at everything, and be ‘perfect’ -.

Shuu: Nn...I’m tired...Oh well, I’ll sleep.

He drops down on the couch.

Reiji: Ah...! Wait! Please do not sleep on the couch!

Shuu: Zzz...Zz...

Reiji: Ugh...You...Vampire version of Sleeping Beauty! Shuu! You’re in the way! If you fall asleep there, it’ll ruin my long-awaited tea time! You’re an eyesore, so please disappear from my sight!

Shuu: ...Hm? ー Zz...Zz...

Reiji: ...! Kuh...He won’t wake up. This guy really...!

Hm. Oh well, it’s fine. I suppose he wishes to be killed by me. I’ll grant your wish right now.

Reiji pulls out a blade.

Reiji: Fufufu...If that’s what you want, Using this silver knife I’ve spent days and nights sharpening, I’ll chop off your head in a single motion. This is your punishment for corrupting my wonderful space. You deserve to die while writhing in pain.

Shuu: Nn... (sleep-talking) I can’t...suck no more...Zz...

Reiji: Heh. Dream on for eternity, Sakamaki Shuu.

Notice how Reiji still keeps up his politeness, even when practically yelling at Shuu - it’s fairly easy to see how much Reiji resents his brother, and with that in mind, it’s a natural response to be quick to anger. Yet, with Reiji’s annoyance growing, you’d think that his form of speech would differ and grow more irascible in his wording. I find it quite apt for Reiji to call Shuu “Sleeping Beauty”, not only for the fact that he usually just sleeps all the time, but the fact that Aurora/Talia/Briar-Rose (depending on what source you’re reading from) was a princess within the fable...and given that Karlheinz is the current Vampire King, that would give Shuu a ‘princely’ status. To add onto this, just because I thought it was neat, in the Disney adaptation of the fable, Aurora only speaks 18 lines - which reminded me of how little Shuu tends to speak. There’s not much to analyse for that part but I thought I’d mention it since I thought it was quite apt of Reiji to draw this comparison.

Something that did strike me as strange, was how Reiji decided to draw his sharpened knife at this point in the narrative - if Reiji truly hated Shuu (which I don’t think he does) why wait until now to attempt his murder ? In all honesty, I don’t think Reiji would’ve actually killed Shuu; in my opinion, I think it was more of a ploy to wake Shuu up - put him on high alert - and get him to leave the room. It’s in a vampire’s nature to have higher senses, so one should be able to detect another and or possible danger and it can be implied that Reiji was attempting to use those senses to his advantage in order to get Shuu to leave of his own accord. Additionally, how Reiji claims, “This is your punishment for corrupting my wonderful space. You deserve to die while writhing in pain” could be inferred to refer not only to Reiji’s current dilemma - his “wonderful space” being his time to himself without being interrupted, being surrounded by his own company and relishing in the sparseness of their occurrence; since Shuu has interrupted that, it has therefore become corrupt - however, it could also relate back to Reiji’s childhood and his CEN. It could be implied that if Shuu had been different, Reiji’s childhood might have been different too, but due to that not occurring, Reiji’s once ‘pure’ childhood has now been tarnished and 'corrupted' - pure in the sense that as an infant he would’ve received the care he needed, yet due to Shuu’s importance, that pure, ‘motherly’ care and acknowledgement was lost, and his once “wonderful space” was then only full of loathing and solitude; to me, that makes sense as to why Reiji says “You deserve to die writhing in pain”. Overall, this inference might be considered a long shot, however, it did pique my interest and I thought I’d share it.  

Approaching footsteps can be heard in the distance.

Ayato: ...Aaah!!

Kanato: Trying to kill him in his sleep...What a boring way to murder someone.

Laito: Nfu~ Are we interrupting something, perhaps?

Ayato: Oi!! Don’t try and kill him here, you idiot! Take that kind of stuff outside! You’re in the way!

Reiji: Why are you three here? Did you not say you’d be going to bed and headed to your rooms earlier?

Ayato: Ah, yeah, we did say something like that! But you see, I’m hungry so I just couldn’t fall asleep.

Laito: Nfu~ What were you trying to do while we were asleep, I wonder~?

Kanato: If you want to kill him, it’s the most fun when the other person is wide awake. You wouldn’t want to miss out on their suffering face, would you?

Ayato: Kanato, you really are messed up, huh?

Laito: Eeeh~? But you know, I can understand what Kanato is saying.

Kanato: Fufu...~

Reiji: Haah...

Shuu: (yawns) ...Shut up. Don’t make a fuss right next to the couch.

Laito: Oh dear? Have you awoken?

Shuu: Anyone would wake up if it’s that noisy...Che

Ayato: ...This is the living room, you know!? It doesn’t belong to you, so don’t go clicking your tongue like that! This is my turf!!

Laito: It doesn’t belong to you either, Ayato.

Ayato: Haah!? Every single thing in this house belongs to me!

In this section of the CD, we see Reiji take the passive role when faced with the triplets - which is evidently different from how he is with Yui, or Shuu for that matter - and this could possibly be due to their vast differences. It is to my interpretation that compared to Reiji, Shuu and Subaru, the triplets are rather unhinged and far more bombastic in their whims, desires and means of keeping control - more so Ayato and Kanato moreover Laito since he’s easier to negotiate with -. In addition to this, Reiji’s lack of dialogue in this part could imply back to his passive behaviour compared to the three, as well as present their character differences; and they also tend to listen more to Shuu over Reiji, which would no doubt cause friction, and could potentially link to why Reiji’s presented as passive towards the triplets - there wouldn’t be much point in trying to control their behaviour if they never planned on listening to Reiji in the first place -.

Kanato: Ah...I’m so...terribly hungry...

Ayato: Haah?

Kanato: I...I... *sniff* This whole time...

Ayato: ...Oh fuck.

Reiji: Hm? Kanato, what’s the matter?

Kanato: I’M TELLING YOU I’M HUNGRY, AM I NOT!? I’ve been telling you OVER AND OVER with the look in my eyes! What’s your problem!? Don’t make fun of me!!

Laito: Aha~! He snapped!

Kanato: You see, when I get hungry...I completely lose control...I just get so incredibly angry, I can’t help it!

*THUD*

Shuu: Aah...Noisy...

Ayato: Calm down already! If you throw a tantrum like that, you’ll only get even more hungry!

Kanato: Shut up!!

*THUD*

Kanato: As if you would understand how I feel!?

Ayato: ...!? Fuck, this pisses me off! Oi, Reiji! This is your responsibility!

Reiji: Haah? I’d appreciate it if you wouldn’t spout such nonsense. For starters, if you guys had just minded your own business...

I quite like this interaction between Reiji and Ayato here from the declarative “Oi, Reiji! This is your responsibility!“, it not only paints Ayato as a bit of a brat, but it also implements the theme that Reiji is the ‘caretaker’ among the brothers - he cooks, he cleans, he makes sure everyone is okay; more so Kanato, but that’s for an obvious reason. There’s also the implication that the triplets view Reiji as more of a ‘paternal figure’ since their actual father is absent from the majority of their lives, and due to Reiji’s strict and stiff personality, he would naturally be considered as the ‘responsible’ member of the household; hence why Ayato is quick to pass the responsibility of his brother’s hunger onto him - it reminds me of how a child would complain to their parent and then expect them to fix their problem -.

I’d also like to mention the use of aposiopesis, the ellipsis at the end of Reiji’s sentence implying that his dialogue is trailing off or ‘breaking’ and is left unfinished. For instance, it could imply that as he’s talking, he’s had the realisation that the triplets wouldn’t have listened to him anyway, but it could also represent his passiveness in the situation. He was on the verge of ‘killing’ Shuu and now he’s allowing his siblings to run rampant around the living room and declare him to fix Kanato’s problem...that doesn’t seem like the authoritative figure we follow through his route with Yui and I think Reiji’s purposely taking the back seat, and his unfinished sentence could be implied to demonstrate that. From my interpretation, it seems that Reiji’s initial thought process is to simply ‘stick it out’ until the triplets leave, and he can once again attempt to have his moment of relaxation.

Kanato: Uu... *sniff* Anything will do...Anything...Just...FILL MY BELLY!!

*THUD*

Laito: Nfu~

Shuu: Aah...What a pain.

Reiji: ...I understand. I understand so please calm down! I will make you a homemade meal. ESPECIALLY for you guys’ sake, I will do that.

Shuu: It isn’t really special or anything. You’ve always been the one in charge of cooking.

Reiji: Shuu!!

Laito: Nfu~ Either way, we don’t want Kanato to cry and complain any longer, so please get right to cooking~

Reiji: Good grief... (mumbles) Why do I have to do all of this...One day, I’ll kill these guys for sure...

Kanato: Did you say something!?

It’s evident to see that compared to all the brothers, Reiji often goes overlooked or simply does not hold more of a notable presence; and I think scenes like this display that quite well. Phrases such as “I understand. I understand so please calm down! I will make you a homemade meal. ESPECIALLY for you guys’ sake, I will do that” portray Reiji as a character who tries to conform, reason and reassure the situation at hand; the fact that he repeats the verb phrase “I understand” implies that he’s opting to reason with Kanato’s demands and let him know that the problem will be addressed and sorted. By following Reiji’s route, we understand that he’s a character who abhors unnecessary drama and complaints; therefore, he’s attempting to solve the problem quickly and avoid any possible tantrums from Kanato’s end.

*TIMESKIP*

Reiji: Here you go, now there’s nothing to complain about, is there?

He drops the plate on the table.

Laito: Nfu~ So violent! The pudding you took your time making will become a mess!

Reiji: Even if it looks bad, as long as your stomach gets filled, it shouldn’t be a problem, right?

Ayato: ...Are you happy now, Kanato?

Kanato: ...Pudding! Sparkling...Pudding!!

Reiji: I present to you, Sakamaki Reiji’s special iron-packed pudding, topped with raspberry sauce.

Kanato: *munch much* Mm...~

Reiji: Hey! At least give your impressions first! Like ‘it looks good’, or ‘thank you’ to express your gratitude!

Kanato: Haahn...*munch munch*

Reiji: ...The cold shoulder!?

The notion that Reiji drops the plate on the table alongside his remark presents a passive-aggressive tone, which I think is quite fitting since he likes to display a more ‘gentlemanly’ façade - he’s obliged to Kanato’s whims even though he didn’t want to; passive-aggressiveness naturally comes hand-in-hand with that sort of behaviour, that sort of passive behaviour. Additionally, Laito’s remark of “so violent” could imply that he doesn’t take Reiji’s sour mood too seriously and opts to play off of it - it can be further implied that none of the triplets take Reiji’s efforts seriously at all. This inference can be found when Kanato gorges the pudding without uttering a word, which causes Reiji to grow more irritated since he feels like he’s entitled to an utterance of praise to “express your [Kanato’s] gratitude “. It not only displays Reiji’s passiveness to ‘give in’ to Kanato’s anger, but it also displays his incessant need for praise, acknowledgement and attention from others - which we can clearly see throughout his route, as it stemmed from his childhood and CEN -. It also explains why Reiji becomes quite expressive when given “the cold shoulder!?” by Kanato.

Ayato: Haah...Oh well, he calmed down so whatever? By the way, Reiji, isn’t there any for us? Aah!?

Reiji: ...Why would I have to cook for you guys as well?

Shuu: ...I’m hungry.

Ayato: Exactly, hungry!

Laito: Right~? We’re totally starved!

Reiji: I do not care! Why not cook for yourself?

I find it quite humorous that Ayato expects for there to be food for him and the others, it not only shows his entitlement, but also his treatment of Reiji - the caretaker, the figurehead, the paternal figure, the butler -. It’s at this moment that Reiji shows his more authoritative side towards the brothers and attempts to cut their interaction short - evidently it doesn’t work, but it shows how the other brothers are willing to take advantage of Reiji’s efforts in order to sate their own needs. It both displays the brothers’ selfishness, but also Reiji’s lack of presence - which could imply why he’s as brutal and manipulative as he is throughout the entirety of his route -.

Ayato: If we were allowed to, we would...But are you sure? If we were to cook, who knows what will happen to the kitchen...

Laito: Right? Weren’t you the one who lashed out at us for using the kitchen the other day?

Shuu: Ah...That was...Because you guys made the whole thing explode, right?

Ayato: It wasn’t an explosion! We were only cooking!

Reiji: Would the kitchen really explode from just cooking? ...It can’t be helped. I’ll make an exception and make something for you guys as well.

Shuu: Try and make it as quick as possible, okay?

Reiji: ...! For some reason I just don’t feel satisfied... Oh well, I suppose it’s fine. I will make you something.

Kanato: ...I’m looking forward to it.

Reiji: You’re still planning on eating more!?

Here we see both Ayato and Laito display their slyness, a little bit of reverse-psychology in order to get their way - to eat without cooking -. I find it quite fitting that Shuu also plays into this, not only due to his apathy and laziness, but also because he knows that it’ll irritate Reiji; in turn, their ploy works, Reiji questions himself, something that he does internally quite frequently, showing his more doubtful side, and gives in to their demands. Interactions such as this show how the brothers tend to treat Reiji as a servant of sorts - and can explain why Reiji treats Yui as such, he’s treating her how he himself is treated. It’s both sad and ironic. However, Shuu’s quick remark of “Try and make it as quick as possible, okay?” not only shows his gall, but his ungratefulness towards Reiji, and how far he’s willing to go in order to annoy him; and Reiji’s reluctant to that, he yet again gives in and becomes passive, this can be seen through the phrase “it’s fine”. It’s a phrase we all use when we yield or back down from something, even if we’re not fine with it; it presents our own passivity towards something that may cause conflict. I also wanted to bring attention to Kanato’s dialogue here, as it again presents the brothers’ entitlement, and how they each expect Reiji to rally round each and every one of their problems or inconveniences - but also, the exchange is quite funny to me -.

*TIMESKIP*

Reiji: Now you can’t complain.

He drops the plates on the table again.

Laito: Nfu~ What a brute. There’s no reason to slam them down like that.

Ayato: Woah!! Despite everything, in the end Reiji’s a good guy! He made all of our favourite dishes! I’m digging iiin~ *munch munch*

Delicious, this Takoyaki!!

Laito: These macaroons as well...They’re sublime~ Almost as if they’re straight from a famous store in Paris. Nfu~

Shuu: *munch munch* The steak’s good...

Reiji: ...!!! Unconsciously...I ended up...making everyone’s favourite dish...I almost seem like you guys’ mother at this point! Damnit!

He slams his fist against the table.

Reiji: ...I can’t forgive myself.

Again, we see Reiji’s passive-aggressiveness through his mannerisms, for which Laito states “What a brute”. The phrase itself holds no deeper meaning in the context and is mainly used to display Laito’s ‘playful’ personality and mockery towards Reiji. Additionally, the praise that Reiji lacked from Kanato earlier is made up for here by Ayato, Laito and Shuu as they each state that: “The steak’s good”, “They’re [the macaroons] sublime” and “Despite everything, in the end Reiji’s a good guy”. I wanted to bring attention to the third comment - made by Ayato - as I find it quite significant towards Reiji’s character. It can not only be used in the context that he’s gone out of his way to please the others and their ravenous stomachs, but it could also relate to his route in general - throughout Reiji’s route he (at first) treats Yui quite poorly yet, when the time calls for it, he’s also there for her; he’s got Yui’s back when all else fails is what I’m trying to say. That despite everything, Reiji does care for Yui, it’s just in his own messed up way.

Furthermore, I find the notion that Reiji subconsciously cooked their favourite meals to be quite telling - implying that as much as he claims to hate his brothers, he’s still meticulous in their preferences; inadvertently showing that he does, in retrospect, care for them. The added factor that Reiji seems to despise the fact that he’s catered to everyone’s favourite dish, and can’t forgive himself for it could imply that to some degree, Reiji views himself as a ‘bad’ person - or that he likes to think that he’s a bad person in order for him to make sense of his childhood; again bringing us back to his CEN and the belief that a child has to be ‘wrong’ in some way for their parents to not love them, and with that in mind, it therefore makes a little more sense as to why Reiji becomes frustrated with himself after this situation.

Footsteps approach

Subaru: ...Oi!!

*THUD*

Reiji: ...! That startled me! ...Subaru?

Subaru: Che...Makin’ a fuss down here...You’re all far too loud, I can’t sleep!!

Reiji: Aah...My apologies for the inconvenience. However, it should be resolved now. Their bellies have been filled, so they should soon...

Subaru: Oi, make something for me as well.

Reiji: Haah...?

Subaru: ‘Cause of these guys I woke up and when I came downstairs, the air was filled with nothing but delicious smells. Now I’m hungry as well.

Ayato: *munch munch* Aah? If you snack at night, you’ll get fat!

Reiji: Speak for yourself!

Subaru: ...Che! Hurry up! I’m starved!

Reiji: Heh. I refuse. I’ve been cooking non-stop since earlier, and I do not wish to return to the kitchen over and over again.

Subaru: Haaah...!?

Reiji: Seeing you sulk that much makes me uncomfortable too, if you are dissatisfied, why don’t you...

*CRASH SHATTER*

Reiji: ...!?

Laito: Ah-aaah~ Look at that hole in the cupboard. Now we get a nice view of the moon.

The added appearance of Subaru to this scene allows us to view Reiji from different perspectives and scenarios. Subaru also desires food and Reiji puts his foot down and denies - showing assertiveness towards his sibling - and from that, Subaru begins to destroy the house - throwing a makeshift tantrum if you will -. It could infer that if either the triplets or Subaru don’t get their own way, they’ll resort to violence, which would no doubt cause Reiji an unending amount of hassle; it links back to the point I made previously, that Reiji is treated as some form of servant by his brothers, and in order to avoid a large scale conflict, he must oblige and become passive (to a degree, he still remains his usual snarky self). It could be implied that when Subaru creates a hole in the cupboard, it’s as if to say “don’t test me”, and we all know that Reiji is a man who prefers to avoid unnecessary risks, and so, he becomes complaisant. It’s a good tactic on Subaru’s end, yet form Reiji’s perspective, it shows his lack of assertiveness towards his brothers, and how he allows himself to be pushed around by them - which obviously allows all that negativity to bubble and fester for him to later take out on Yui -.

Shuu: Nn...It’s cold...

Subaru: Oi...Shall I do more? Aaah!?

Reiji: Haah...

Subaru: I don’t mind wrecking every single wall in this damn place.

Ayato: Oi, oi, cut us some slack. It’ll become something even worse than a haunted house.

Shuu: Father will go on a rampage so cut it out. This is a pain.

Reiji: ...!! Father will!? That’s...You leave me with no other choice, I understand. I’ll make you something.

Subaru takes a seat.

Subaru: Make it quick, got it?

Reiji: Just sit still there and prepare yourself!

Laito: Nfu~ He may be complaining, but he sure looks after us well.

Reiji: Laito! Did you say something just now?

Laito: Noo~ Nothing at all. Nfu~

Once Reiji realises that their “Father will go on a rampage”  if any more damage is done, he’s quick to null Subaru’s behaviour. We know that out of all six brothers, Reiji is the only one to value his father’s opinion and presence - I’ve mentioned why earlier on during the childhood section, but it again links back to his CEN and need for approval. Reiji wants to prove that he’s capable and successful to his father so that he may receive the love he lost out on, he wants to be acknowledged by him and prove he’s worthy enough to be loved. 

I also like how not only Ayato calls out Reiji’s ‘soft spot’, but Laito also points it out too, and - in typical Reiji fashion - Reiji’s quick to dismiss the statement by goading Laito to repeat his phrase, which Laito promptly denies. It links back to the point I made of it earlier, that Reiji doesn’t want to think of himself as a ‘good’ person, this could be due to a multitude of things such as his upbringing, race, resentment of Shuu, the fact he had his own mother killed, his treatment of Yui etc. However, in my opinion, it could also be implied that Reiji doesn’t want to believe that he’s a ‘good’ person because that could allow his brothers to take advantage of him further; that his ‘politeness’ could be his downfall and no one would take him seriously or see him as a threat - especially in regards to Yui -.

*TIMESKIP*

Reiji: This is the last dish for the night, got it!?

*THUD*

Subaru: ...Haah!? What’s up with that attitude!? ...By the way, what’s this?

Reiji: Hmph. You’re always saying how you don’t have a favourite meal, so I made this from the leftovers.

Ayato: Aah? What’s this? Pasta?

Laito: It’s Reiji’s favourite Carbonara, right?

Reiji: Heh. Despite complaining about being hungry earlier, in the end, you have a small appetite. Since I assumed you wouldn’t have much, I figured it would be best to make my own favourite meal, so I could eat it afterwards.

Subaru: Che...Fuck. You made me this sloppy, slimy dish...

Reiji: Exactly. That’s why it might be wise for you to pass up o...

Subaru starts wolfing down the pasta.

The more this scene continues, the more apparent Reiji’s passive-aggressiveness shows; the irony of Subaru asking what Reiji’s problem is, is honestly brilliant. It really shows how out of touch each brother is with one another. I also quite like how Reiji just assumes that Subaru won’t eat the meal and it backfires exponentially - it demonstrates that Reiji not only underestimates Yui but also his brothers; yes, it also shows his manipulation since he more or less goads Subaru into not eating the Carbonara since it’s Reiji’s favourite dish, again linking back to Reiji’s reverse-psychology and anti-conformity tactics.

Subaru: *munch munch* Mm...

Reiji: You’re actually eating it!?

Kanato: Smells nice...Let me have a little too.

Subaru: (talking with his mouth full) Just go ‘head and take some...

Kanato: Okay. Thank you very much. Bon appetite.

Reiji: Hold up! My share! Make sure to leave some for me too!

Subaru: Haah? As if I care...

*Sluuuurp*

Reiji: Aaaah! Scarfing it down like that...! I made a larger portion so at least leave some behind!

Kanato: Thank you for the meal~

Ayato: Woah! They ate it all in one go!

Reiji: ...You’ve got to be kidding me!? That amount...By just the two of them, all at once...

By having Subaru eat the dish, and Reiji consequently being surprised by that, it presents the implication that Reiji’s intellect and ego can sometimes precede him and thus demonstrates his overconfidence. He’s overconfident in himself to always be right, but he also underestimates everyone else around him to play into his tactics. I also enjoy how Kanato also digs in too, it not only shows both Subaru and Kanato getting along for once, but I just find it funny how someone as petite as Kanato is eating so much; it’s also amusing how they both disregard the fact that Reiji made the dish for himself and yet by the end of it, he’s the only one who’s not eaten. Reiji’s dialogue of “Hold up! My share! Make sure to leave some for me too!” could be interpreted as a plea, he’s almost begging for his two siblings to leave him some of his own dish; the ellipsis during the statement, “...You’ve got to be kidding me!? That amount...By just the two of them, all at once...” sells his disbelief at the prospect of the situation he’s just caused himself. I like to think that this shows how his usual cocky behaviour can, at times, backfire. It shows that he’s not as perfect as he likes to think he is and that assumptions can do more harm than good.

Subaru: ...Phew~ It didn’t taste bad.

Reiji: Ugh...Why did you not leave my share behind? Today’s carbonara turned out excellent as well!

Subaru: You made it for me, so I get to decide what to do with it. Stop complainin’...!

Reiji clenches his fists.

Bearing that in mind, we again see Reiji become a little more assertive towards his sibling yet he quickly becomes passive once more. We see this through Subaru’s retort, and again shows how Reiji’s usage of words can backfire; therefore, that then gives him no logical argument to present to Subaru, and so, he clenches his fists. Reiji’s body language within this section is telling of both his passiveness and also his anger, it can be implied that clenching your fists is the result of pent up anger and frustration; with that in mind, this can therefore link back to Reiji and his ‘control issues’ - his perfectionism, his narcissism and his need to monopolise everything -. I particularly enjoy how Subaru calls Reiji out on this by telling him to “Stop complainin’...!”. The declarative itself presents Subaru as a reckless character, but as someone who has more presence than Reiji; it also presents the difference between Reiji and Shuu compared to their respective siblings - both Shuu and Reiji are a lot quieter and reserved in their ways, whereas Subaru and the triplets are vocal, disruptive and reckless in their behaviour. However, this section could also imply that Reiji knows when to hold his tongue so that conflict does not break out on his end, it can be implied that he clearly wants to argue back against Subaru due to his clenched fists (showing his irritation) yet, he holds back. He holds back because as we know, Subaru’s temper and sheer strength can often be a loose cannon, and I don’t believe Reiji would challenge that; hence why his fists are clenched - he’s ‘biting his tongue’ so to speak -.

Reiji: Kuh...

Laito: Aah~ My belly’s filled and we get such a nice view of the moon from here.

Ayato: Yeah! I finally feel satisfied!

Shuu: I feel you.

Reiji: Ah...That’s right! All of you were finally able to fill your empty stomachs, weren’t you? All because of me! That being said, hurry up and...

Laito: Nn...

Ayato: I’ve gotten sleepy... *yawns*

Shuu: Zz...

Kanato: Good niiiiight~

Reiji: Hold up! Will you all be sleeping here!? I was just about to pour myself a cup of tea to lift my mood! Return to your rooms at this instant!

Ayato: ...That’s a pain. Who cares if we sleep here?

Reiji’s frustration becomes more and more apparent as the CD continues and this section displays that, especially through his need for recognition, “All because of me!”. This exclamative demonstrates both his aggression and his thirst for acknowledgement - he wants thanks for his aid -. The personal pronoun “me” can be implied to present Reiji’s self-importance, as he’s stating that his siblings’ stomachs would still be in ‘peril’ if he hadn’t been ‘generous’ enough to provide what they wanted; yet again, he and his remarks are completely and utterly ignored, it demonstrates that his brothers don’t take him seriously and that he’s just the ‘parental’ figure, he’s the butler to them. When you see Reiji’s treatment from the other brothers, it becomes easier to understand why he’s the way he is with Yui, especially his need for reassurance and praise.

Reiji’s demands are again ignored; each line he speaks at the end of this section is an exclamative, he’s quite literally shouting at them and he goes disregarded - as the CD continues his mood decreases and decreases until he more or less gives up and gives in to his brothers’ anarchy. I’d like to link this back to Reiji’s relationship to Yui, much like how over time Reiji wears Yui down into becoming more or less subservient to his whims and desires, here we see almost the same thing - their situations parallel each other - as all the brothers exhaust Reiji and wear him down until he inevitable gives them what they want. It all inadvertently links back to Reiji wanting to cause others the same pain and struggles he feels and this circumstance is no difference; if anything, it displays it to a bigger extent.

Laito: *yawn* Napping in the light of the moon...is another one of my ways to have fun. Nn...I’m sleepy...

Reiji: Don’t actually fall asleep!

Kanato: Uu...*sniff* I’m tired but...You’re being noisy...

Reiji: ...! What is you guys’ problem!?

Subaru: My thoughts exactly! Getting sleepy after eating...You’re all Vampires, aren’t ya!? This is the pinnacle of laziness.

Reiji: Exactly...Indulging in human food and then falling right asleep...Heh! This is unbelievable.

Subaru: As a Vampire...It has to be ‘that’, or I just can’t feel satisfied. Isn’t that true?

Reiji: You’re right.

Reiji licks his lips.

Reiji: In the end...Nothing beats drinking the blood from a fair lady’s neck. Otherwise, our hunger and thirst can simply not be quenched.

Subaru: Heh, so simple-minded.

Reiji: What?

Within this section Reiji’s mood changes rather quickly from Subaru’s remark at his brothers’ laziness, and then it reverts back to his usual sour mood. What I wanted to bring attention to here is how Reiji’s mood lifts when someone is in accordance with him, they have either similar or the same views as him; it relates back to Reiji’s need for approval and reassurance, and for a brief moment, Subaru allows him to indulge in that which therefore lifts his mood.

I do find it quite humorous how Subaru calls Reiji of all people “simple-minded”. It could imply back to Reiji’s lack of presence, he doesn’t stick out all that much compared to the others; therefore he could be viewed as bland by both his brothers and us as the audience, so by Reiji declaring that drinking from the neck is best, it wouldn’t stick out all that much - it’s the typical place to bite within most Vampiric fiction -. With this statement from Reiji alongside his more passive presence, “simple” would be the first word to come to mind - if you weren’t aware of the complexities of Reiji’s character, or, from the brothers’ perspective, the inner struggles and complexities of Reiji behind closed doors, it’d be natural to label him as “simple”. With this implication in mind, it could be seen as quite a meta joke from our perspective.

Subaru: Drinking from the neck is too orthodox, it’s boring. Besides, the taste of the blood is too rich, it’s not my cup of tea.

Reiji: ...Is that your way of indirectly ridiculing me?

Subaru: I just meant to say that an old geezer’s tastes are different from mine.

Reiji: O-Old geezer...!? There isn’t that large of an age gap between us!

Subaru: Hah! Then at least your appearance is that of an old geezer! You’re barely any different from our old man. ...When it comes to blood, you see, it’s best when sucked from a woman’s ankle. When you bite her there, you get a perfect view of how she tries to reject you with her entire body.

Shuu: Heh...Hehehe...

Reiji: Shuu! Weren’t you asleep?

Shuu: No, Subaru’s childish lecture on blood-sucking was simply too hilarious...I couldn’t help myself.

Subaru: Haah!? Child, you say!?

Shuu: If you’re going to call Reiji an old man, then so am I, right? In that case, you’re nothing but a brat. A child.

Subaru: ...Ugh.

It can be implied that when Reiji uses the interrogative, “Is that your way of indirectly ridiculing me?“ he’s not just asking if he’s wrong, he’s posing the question “are you mocking me ?”; therefore, ‘ask’ in this context could be implied to mean ‘demand’ instead - it all depends on how you yourself interpret the tone of this dialogue -. However, with Reiji’s character in mind, it could be inferred that he’s almost offended by Subaru’s comment, as if to say “are you saying what I’m doing is wrong ?” and we all know that Reiji loathes being wrong or seen as “simple-minded” as Subaru put it; Reiji’s a character who enjoys using his intelligence to overpower his prey and back them into a corner mentally - therefore, to have that pulled into question would most likely cause some form of offence to Reiji, he’s intelligent and he’s a man of tradition; I doubt he’d enjoy having that mocked. It also links us back to his ‘retraining’ of Yui, throughout Reiji’s route in HDB as Yui barely calls out Reiji’s behaviour and she never mocks him whereas the brothers do; most likely if Yui went against Reiji she’d be punished with something truly abhorrent. However, in other routes (I’ll pick Laito’s HDB route since it’s the closest to Reiji’s in terms of psychological abuse) she ‘bites’ back a lot more - such as when she quite literally bites Laito’s lip when he kisses her against he will...and what does Laito do ? He plays it off and treats Yui like a game - both Laito and Reiji treat Yui as a psychological game, something to crack and break until they’re subservient, in essence, it’s a game of cat and mouse to these two. I wanted to compare this little section because compared to Laito, Reiji wouldn’t stand for Yui fighting back and would most likely view it as ‘bad manners’, later punishing her for it. My point is that Laito’s the type of character who doesn’t let mockery or resistance offend him, or get under his skin, whereas Reiji is, and I think that’s due to the mockery he endures from his brothers - Reiji is quite often the ‘butt of the joke’ whereas Laito is not and treatment like this would undoubtedly effect Reiji’s tolerance towards his siblings as well as Yui’s resistance. 

I also like Shuu’s interjection here; how he calls Subaru a child when Reiji is called an “old geezer”. It’s not just Shuu saying that Subaru’s the youngest and he doesn’t know what he’s talking about, it’s also Shuu retaliating since he’s just indirectly been called old, but it’s also Shuu inadvertently defending Reiji. By Shuu naming Subaru a “brat”, he’s unintentionally defending Reiji and fighting his corner even though he’s most likely only trying to save his own feelings since he’s the eldest and he’s basically just been told through Subaru’s remark at Reiji that he also looks like an “old geezer”. Shuu - who we know likes to wind up Reiji - has just haphazardly defended the brother he has so many quarrels with; it’s both unintentionally funny and endearing to me.

Shuu: In that case, I can understand why you would suggest something as childish as drinking from the ankle.

Subaru: Then which place do you prefer!?

Shuu: Me...? I...Let’s see...It has to be the chest, right? Piercing through the veins closest to the heart and sucking her blood suits my tastes best. The blood flowing from those veins is so sweet, it’s almost like syrup, you know?

Subaru: Che...So you are an old geezer after all!

Shuu: At least call it an adult’s acquired taste, youngster.

Reiji: Okay, no fighting! Besides, don’t be engaging in such ridiculous quarrels here, but take them elsewhe...

Laito: ...I can’t help but like drinking from the thighs best, I suppose~ Drinking from a young maiden’s second softest spot makes the blood slightly greasy, it sticks to my throat...Nfu~

Subaru: Che...Laito! You were awake as well?

I’d like to bring attention to the aposiopesis that Reiji uses within his dialogue here. Aposiopesis is the device of suddenly breaking off in speech, which can be found within “elsewhe...”, it shows how Reiji’s speech is trailing off in tone, but if we pair it with the ellipsis at the beginning of Laito’s sentence, it can be interpreted that Reiji is once again being interrupted by his siblings, and with the inclusion of the ellipsis at the end of Reiji’s dialogue, it can be further implied that he knows he’s about to be ‘cut off’; hence why aposiopesis has been included, Reiji trails his sentence off - possibly growing quieter depending on how you interpret ellipsis - because he knows he’s going to be interrupted again. It’s a regular occurrence for Reiji’s character to be cut off by his brothers or just ignored in general. I didn’t want to say too much about this section or derail into a tangent since I’d just be repeating myself but I did want to mention the aposiopesis.

 Laito: I was finally thinking of getting some rest, but you guys’ started talking about something interesting so I woke up again.

Reiji: In that case, please use this opportunity to take your leave! All of you have been given your own, proper room after all!

Kanato: Uu... *sniffles* ...Shut up...! I can’t sleep...I CAN’T SLEEP LIKE THIS!! Teddy...My Teddy is saying he can’t sleep either...It upsets him!

Reiji: ...! Don’t suddenly scare me like that!

Kanato: I...Such thing...Whether it’s the neck or the feet, the chest or the thighs...I don’t care about all of that!

*THUD*

Kanato: I...The place I like best...are the fingers. In particular, the little finger - which looks as if you could just bite it off - is my preference.

Subaru: Basically...What you’re trying to say is that, right?  You might just accidentally eat the whole pinkie ー That’s what you mean, isn’t it?

Kanato: Fufu...Haha...What happens, happens, but it’d be twice as delicious.

Shuu: Ugh...I’ll pass up on human flesh.

Laito: Likewise. Picking out the bones is a pain after all. If I were to eat it, it would have to be properly seasoned.

Something to note here is Kanato’s outburst, as soon as Reiji proposes that they all retire back to their rooms so that he may indulge in his own privacy Kanato has one of his famous outbursts - which then scares Reiji -. However, once Kanato begins to talk again, he brings the conversation back to blood drinking; the very ‘argument’ that Reiji was trying to dissipate between Shuu, Subaru and Laito. It not only displays that Kanato uses his violent emotions to get his own way (as per usual with him) but that Reiji’s interests and pleas are of no concern to anyone - Kanato has basically just shut Reiji up in order to carry on the conversation at hand between the other siblings; it genuinely shows how dismissive of Reiji all the brothers are.

Reiji: Right, right. Putting this talk about flesh and bones aside, now that you are all awake, hurry up and...

Ayato: ...If you’re gonna suck her, it has to be the nape, right? I don’t like it to be too fatty. Something a little more refreshing is exactly my taste!

Reiji: ...!? Ayato, you too...

Subaru: But that’s lacking, don’t you think? Then it feels like you barely even had any.

Ayato: That’s not true! To make up for it, you just have to drink plenty!

Reiji: Well, Ayato has always been quantity over quality. That being said...

Shuu: Jeez...Both Ayato and you guys don’t know a thing.

Reiji: Shuu...Please don’t stir up this conversation again...

Kanato: ...Saying we don’t know...*sniff* That’s just...Too cruel! Both me and Teddy...*sniffle* did our best to come up with an answer! Yet you completely disregard it like that...

At this point it’s growing quite clear that Reiji’s giving up on the conversation - he has his little quip at Ayato’s expense, but aside from that and the usage of ellipsis and aposiopesis, it can be implied that Reiji’s grown tired of trying to be assertive towards his brothers; opting to replace his strict orders with reluctant pleas - something we tend not to see during his actual route - and it shows the difference between Reiji and his siblings.

Laito: Exactly! Right above the chest is standard just like the neck, isn’t it? Or perhaps the eldest son standing at the head of this long-lasting Sakamaki household has no other choice but to protect such traditions?

Shuu: Are you trying to insult me? A ‘fake’ pervert like yourself probably doesn’t even understand the profound meaning behind standards.

Laito: A fake pervert? ‘Pretending’, you say?

Reiji: Fine, fine! Who cares if it’s just an act? If you were a true pervert at heart, it would be disgusting anyway. So, everyone, pleaseーー

Ayato: This kind of pisses me off...The way you’re looking down on us. I don’t give a damn ‘bout you being the eldest son of not...The greatest person in this household is this Ore-sama over here!

Shuu: Hah. You’re lame.

Ayato: Aah?

Subaru: He really is. Being the ‘greatest’ or the ‘strongest’, bullshit.

Ayato: What did you say? You wanna fight!?

Subaru: Fine by me. ‘Cause I had my fill earlier...

He cracks his knuckles.

Subaru: ...I’m overflowing with energy now. I need a little something to let off some steam.

First and foremost, I wanted to draw attention to Shuu calling out Laito’s façade, I don’t intend to do a deep dive into the subliminal meaning of this interaction since this is a psychoanalysis of Reiiji but I did think that it was quite funny to see Laito become irritated at the fact that Shuu’s basically just called out his entire defence mechanism with little to no effort at all. Secondly, I like how Reiji chooses to ignore this, his irritation has come back, since by almost removing himself from the conversation at hand, he’s allowed Kanato’s outburst to derail the situation further and allowed for Shuu to cause conflict between the brothers. The exclamations are back and his snappy attitude is coming to the forefront; this can be implied through “Who cares....”. It can be implied that Reiji’s becoming aerated once more since he’s once again trying to control the situation - to no avail again -, everything’s getting out of hand and it’s doing so at a quick pace, and Reiji’s attempting to defuse this; it once again demonstrates Reiji’s control issues that we see quite prominently through his route and his treatment towards Yui.

Reiji: Honestly...So hot-headed. Are you listening to what I’m saying? You lot, I would GREATLY appreciate it if you would all take your leave. Right now!

Laito: Nfu~ If you want us to leave, you might have no other choice but to use brute force.

Reiji: Haah...?

Kanato: Horrible...Telling us to leave...Even though we’ve been expressing our will to stay here...Isn’t there a single place for me and Teddy in this whole manor...!?

Reiji: Hold up, I never said that. I’m simply telling you to rest in your own roー

*CRASH*

Reiji: ...!?

Laito: Ah-ahh~ Here we go.

Ayato: Heh...You vandal! Even if you try to scare me off by destroying our surroundings, you won’t get your way!

*CRASH THUD*

Subaru: Heh! Lame! You’re nothing but a fraud! Nobody has ever thought of you as ‘amazing’ or ‘strong’!

Ayato: What did you just say...!?

*CRASH*

*CLATTER*

The situation quickly devolves into madness and as it does, Reiji’s dialogue reflects that, he emphasises his words alongside his exclamations - and what happens ? It devolves even more, Laito takes this opportunity to aggravate Reiji further by taunting him; and Kanato takes this to an extreme, interpreting Reiji’s words to mean that he [Kanato] has no place within their house and that he doesn’t belong there. 

Reiji: Waiー! The manor...The manor will fall apart! Shuu! Didn’t you say that father would be enraged!? Please stop them!

Shuu: Ugh...What a hassle.

Reiji: It isn’t ‘a hassle’!

*SHATTER*

Laito: Hm...But stopping those two once they’re like that is rather difficult, don’t you think?

*THUD*

Laito: More importantly...Shuu...Let’s continue our discussion from earlier.

Shuu: Hm? What do you mean?

Laito: That I’m a fake pervert. I’d like you to explain yourself.

Shuu: What? You’re still talking about that? You’re surprisingly one to hold grudges.

Laito: Nfu~ I get told that a looot~ ...Well then, tell me your reasoning. Depending on what you say, even I won’t forgive you.

*CRASH*

I genuinely enjoy how Reiji becomes frantic at the realisation that their father would be “enraged” by their reckless commotion. It not only displays how much Reiji’s values his father’s opinion but it also removes him further from his brothers - the rest of them could care less about what their father thinks or feels, yet Reiji persists, he doesn’t want to displease him because he wants to be acknowledged by him; it all brings us back to his raging CEN, but at this point Reiji’s losing his usual calm composure - his composure drops and his control of the situation decreases. The situation has become out of hand and Reiji’s becoming quite desperate for the commotion to end; I think that’s why he states “It isn’t ‘a hassle’!“, Reiji’s genuinely asking for help in order to rein his brothers in. Additionally, the notion that Reiji uses single quotation marks in regards to Shuu’s statement could imply that Reiji’s showing some form of sass towards the situation, and what happens ? Latio cuts in - meaning Reiji is promptly ignored and avoided - so that his and Shuu’s ‘discussion’ can continue, which then spurs another argument to arise.

Reiji: Ugh...These two are starting an argument as well...Just cut it out already!

Kanato: *sniff sniff* Why is...everyone...so loud!? Shut up! SHUT UP!! I don’t understand!

Reiji: You are plenty noisy yourself!

Kanato: ...! That’s why...That’s why you tried to drive us out earlier, didn’t you?

Reiji: ...! ‘Drive out’, you say?  It might have sounded that way but...

Kanato: You’re admitting it, huh? You just admitted it, didn’t you? That you tried to get rid of us!

Reiji: Ah...So what!? I simply wanted to enjoy a cup of tea by myself, that’s all!

Kanato: Shut up!! ...In that case, please brace yourself. Teddy, he is the embodiment of all evil trying to strip us of the place we belong. You don’t have to hold back, okay?

Reiji: Aaah, come on! Why...Why does it always turn out like this!??

Kanato: Teddy...GO!!

*Pow pow pow pow pow*

Reiji: ...Don’t attack me with your stuffed bear! Aah, please!! Just cut me some slack! Whatever happens, don’t come crying to me afterwards...!!

*CRAAAASH*

ーー THE END ーー

Something that I wanted to place emphasis on is the notion that Reiji and Kanato are the only pair left. What I mean by this, is that it’s quite apt for these two to be the only ones left - we know that Reiji is treated as an outcast by his brothers for his dictatorial personality and strict need for rules and control however, Kanato is also viewed as an outcast by his brothers too, most prominently Ayato and Subaru with Ayato calling him a “hysteric” for his unbearable personality and incomprehensible actions. Notice the similarity ? None of the brothers can bear to be around Reiji due to his uptight personality and none of the brothers can stand to be around Kanato due to his mania. The outcasts are grouped together however, it’s also the dynamic of a parental figure and a child being presented too since Reiji tends to look after Kanato - it’s a mature and immature dynamic -.

I also wanted to bring attention to when Kanato exclaims “I don’t understand!”, it’s quite sad from his perspective since it showcases how much of an outcast he is compared to the other brothers, again something we see with Reiji. However, I like how Reiji genuinely shouts back at him with “You are plenty noisy yourself!“, it shows Kanato’s lack of self-awareness and it also displays Reiji’s irritation - he’s lost complete control of the situation and now he’s watching from the side-lines unable to do anything because no one will bother to listen to him. I also wanted to give weight to when Reiji says “It might have sounded that way but...” towards Kanato’s statement as it can be implied that in this moment, Reiji is attempting to show compassion towards Kanato yet he quickly justifies his actions; it presents the implication that Reiji is willing to compromise but he will remain logical towards whatever circumstance is thrown his way - much like how he is with Cordelia within his route -.

Additionally, the image of Reiji being attacked by Teddy is honestly hilarious. But, I wanted to bring attention to Reiji’s last piece of dialogue: “Just cut me some slack! Whatever happens, don’t come crying to me afterwards...!!”. It poses the implication that Reiji is practically pleading with Kanato to leave him be - he’s worn out and frustrated - but it’s the implication that Kanato goes to Reiji when something goes wrong that’s somewhat endearing to me, and it reinforces what I implied earlier, that there’s a parent/child dynamic between the two - one outcast looking out for the other, if you will -. I just think that it’s quite a sweet implication to make between the two given that they are ‘pushed out’ compared to their siblings.

In conclusion, Reiji is mostly dismissed and ignored by his brothers, and can be implied to only be viewed as the butler façade he tends to display; and if you think about it, it’s honestly quite sad, but it gives us the understanding as to why he’s so controlling of Yui and why he craves attention and acknowledgement for his actions. If his brothers are barely willing to appreciate Reiji’s ‘good manners’, then it can be inferred that he’s going to try and find it somewhere else; that being through Yui and her kind nature which Reiji promptly takes advantage of in order to quell his own needs.

A Certain Prophet’s Fate

A Certain Prophet’s Fate, or Toaru Yogensha no Unmei is Reiji’s first character song; it’s introduced to us within the HDB Drama CD package. I didn’t want to dive into his specific mini CD since I’d just be repeating everything I’ve already said and implied; and it would not just bore me, it would probably bore you too - no one wants to listen to the same points being regurgitated for the millionth time -. So, I thought I’d hone in on his character song. A song is also a poem and the two can often become highly metaphorical in their meanings and interpretations; a poem is a story and it’s to our interpretation as to what that story means. 

I’m going to split the song up into single lines and lines of two so that it’s easier for me to analyse without it becoming a jumbled mess - basically, I’m going to analyse it the same way I did the Banquet Drama CD -. So, shall we begin ?

What I found when reading through the lyrics, is that the story being told could be Reiji’s thoughts and perspective - the song may act as his inner thoughts and him trying to articulate them in a metaphorical way. The song itself is quite beautiful to listen to but I wanted to address the lyrics and their hidden meanings in relation to Reiji’s character. We know that Reiji likes to use his intellect to his advantage; so it can be argued that he wouldn’t outright admit his state of mind within this song, naturally, he’d create a more elaborate way to let his ‘story’ unfold, and I think this is what we see here.

In the dense black forest of Schwarzwald, In doting adoration of a virgin, riding on a unicorn’s back

First of all, Schwarzwald simply means 'Black Forest' in German; it relates to a forest so dense that almost no sun ever reaches the forest floor - those who enter are surrounded by darkness -. This can create quite dark imagery, not just physically but also metaphorically as the darkness contrasts with the imagery of light - "a virgin, riding on a unicorn's back" - and this can be implied to relate to the story of Faust as well as the character of Yui.

Within the story, we’re introduced to two virgins, one being named Gretchen and the other is the Virgin Mary herself - both contain imagery of purity and religion, Gretchen prays to God for her soul to be cleansed and Mary carried the son of God. What I wanted to draw parallels on is how that imagery applies to Yui, she was raised in a church - showing that she’s a child of God, and we know that her religion plays a rather big part in her life; she prays to God quite frequently, and - in the literal term - she is also virginal. Virginity can connote to a multitude of things, such as physical virginity (the hymen is intact) but also religious virginity - purity - and not being ‘tainted’ by darker forces at play. If we take the “virgin” to mean Yui - someone pure of heart and spirit, someone who’s not been corrupted by the dark side of humanity and holds truth in her beliefs - then what does the unicorn signify ?

Unicorns can often be linked to purity, freedom, gentleness, virginity, innocence, divinity, and magic. Christians believe that the unicorn symbol is that of Christ and Mother Mary themselves - both being devoted children of God -. By posing the imagery of “a virgin, riding a unicorn’s back”, it could be implied to symbolise Yui and her many virtuous traits - or, to put it simply, Yui is riding on the back of her virtues -. Additionally, symbols such as unicorns and virginity can also be implied to carry imagery of light - the concept of unicorns are more often than not depicted as being pure white and flying up to the Heavens - past the white clouds and into paradise, a place that is also depicted as white or ‘pure’ -. Virginity can also contain those same ‘white’ qualities as white lilies are typically the symbol of virginity. The reason I’m honing in on the colour white is due to its connotations of purity, innocence and light. To put it plainly, purity represents light, and Yui (in this context) represents that purity.

That being said, if Yui is the second part of that phrase, it’s likely to imply that the first relates to Reiji himself. “Dense black forest”, let’s unpack that: both “dense” and “black” contain connotations of darkness and something impenetrable; it contrasts the imagery of light and purity we’ve just discussed. Themes of light are often representative of religion and themes of darkness represent those of hellish qualities; if Yui represents light in this case, then Reiji must consequently represent the “dark”. The “forest” could connote to Reiji’s emotional state as traditionally, the forest has come to represent being lost, exploration and potential danger as well as mystery and other worldliness - all traits we see within Reiji -. Due to Reiji being the narrator (since he’s singing) it can be implied that he’s metaphorically describing his internal struggles, he’s stuck within his own turmoil - and emotions such as this are often referred to as a ‘dark place’, which links us to the symbolic imagery of the “black forest”. It not only symbolises his Vampiric nature - something not of God nor Heaven but the darker depths of Hell itself; hence why they originate from the Demon World within the Diabolik Lovers canon - but it also symbolises his emotional distress and his inner darkness that he oppresses Yui with. The light and dark imagery reflect Yui and Reiji as well as their religious counterparts - Yui represents light, and Heaven, whereas Reiji represents the dark and therefore Hell.

The noun “adoration” could imply that Reiji desires to be ‘free’ of his traumatic ties while Yui rests atop her kindness. However, it could also imply that Reiji wishes to drag Yui down into the “dark forest” with him and corrupt her pure nature.

The brightly shining moon, a stirring breeze, With the fairies’ boisterous rituals, driving pounding hearts ever faster

The adverbial phrase “brightly shining moon” could posses connotations of light - referring to Yui as we’ve previously implied - however, the word “moon” could imply that the ‘light’ is pale, and it’s cold as opposed to the warm light associated with the sun - they both can also be associated with God as he created both the sun and the moon; they both produce Heaven’s light however, one is pale and cold in comparison to the other, leading darker forces to claim the night -. Within the Bible, night represents a lack of faith in God. With this symbolism in mind, it can be implied that once the cover of daylight has faded, Yui is vulnerable, and the “dark forest” would consequently grow ‘stronger’ - which is something we see within the route as Vampires are canonically weaker within daylight.

Conversely, the phases of the moon can symbolise immortality, eternity, enlightenment and the dark side of nature itself. Something that clearly applies to the character of Reiji - Vampires are immortal and spend their eternity feeding into their trials and tribulations, their ‘enlightenment’ in this case, is to be killed and be set ‘free’. It could be implied that as the moon shines, not only is Yui vulnerable in her faith, but Reiji is biding his time to strike her down into his ‘eternity’.

Fairies are often associated with plants and springtime, depicted as pure figures who possess magical powers. However, in the tales of fairies, they are, more often than not, mischievous creatures with dark and evil intentions. The Latin root word for fairy is ‘fay’ meaning fate; this could signify the purpose of fairies within myths, fairies in stories are constantly messing with the fates of humans. Fairies in these myths may be of the more cartoonish variety and signify simply love, magic and springtime, but most signify things like death, sexual depravity, abduction and general immorality. I wanted to draw attention to the imagery of fairies and their ‘rituals’ as their connotations can vary from divinity to Satanism.

It can be implied that this section refers to Yui, as within the first interpretation of fairies, they symbolise purity and life - and given Yui’s age at the beginning of the story, her youth displays the life her body has and the life it can give, she’s pure, untainted and brimming with life. However, ‘fairies’ could also relate to the brothers. With the interpretation that fairies can also derive from a darker ilk, and like to cause mischief, it could represent the brothers - they each have dark intentions for Yui no matter who’s route you play, and they do it for their own entertainment and their own benefit. Reiji purposely dehumanises Yui and turns her into a loyal pet. Reiji’s “ritual” is to strip Yui of her virtues so that she’ll play into his incessant need for control, driving her pounding heart even faster - what I mean by this is fear, throughout the beginning of Reiji’s route, Yui was undoubtedly afraid of Reiji and the threat he posed to her; he implemented fear into Yui in order to break her.

Conversely, this line can also be interpreted to contain sexual connotations. We’ve dived into how fairies can also be symbols of sexual intimacy and depravity; if we take into account that sadism can also occur within intimate situations like this, it could link back to Reiji. By him essentially breaking Yui, it can be implied that he gains gratification from doing so; “driving pounding hearts ever faster”, Yui’s heart could be inferred to be beating from fear whilst Reiji’s could be implied to be pounding from the pleasure his sadism grants him.

While unknowing that the contracted “Devil” follows after—

This line could serve the implication that while Yui’s vulnerable in the night, she still holds that naivety; she hasn’t figured out the situation she’s in and Reiji’s closing in on her. I’ve interpreted the “contracted ‘Devil’” to relate to Reiji - a narrative self-reference, if you will -, he’s referring to himself while posing the situation that Yui is unaware of his darker intentions for her. She holds firm to her beliefs in God yet she is ignorant to her state of vulnerability.

Ah, such a foolish thing you are, little girl (Falling to ruin) That glass mask of yours is (beginning to crack) Decide, without looking back at the promises shredded by your sins

Firstly, I’d like to point out that Yui is referred to as a “foolish thing”. This noun phrase could insinuate that Reiji’s chastising her naivety, and the fact that she was blissfully unaware and ignorant to the position she was in. To add to this, the noun “thing” also displays the difference in power as it’s established early on in Reiji’s route that ‘sacrificial brides’ are merely nothing more than blood bags - right from the get-go Yui is beneath Reiji -. However, from a psychological standpoint, it’s clear to say that when one person intends to ruin another’s life in some way, shape or form, they tend to distance themselves - either physically, emotionally or both - as it’s easier to hurt someone when you barely view them as a person at all; and I think this is what that line means, Reiji’s pushing Yui into “falling to ruin” - she’s falling to her (spiritual) ‘death’, she’s losing herself and who she is.

The second line strikes me as ironic as the phrase “glass mask” can predominantly refer to a person’s façade. In the context that Reiji is implying Yui’s innate kindness to be a façade of some form, he could be posing the implication that those who are kind often ‘hide away’ their darker counterparts; their ‘sinful’ side. Throughout most of Reiji’s route, Yui has been posed with the question that she should let her dark and carnal self prevail - proving to Reiji that in all her humanity, Yui is nothing more than a pet, an animal who thrives on her carnal instincts, and we see this within the second ending, when Yui poses herself as Cordelia - enslaving Reiji - and essentially living at the ‘top of the food chain’. In that ending, Yui lets her darker side prevail and - in the context of this particular phrase - it therefore poses the implication that her ‘kindness’ was simply a façade, her “glass mask”. The noun “glass” can have connotations of fragility; that the ‘face’ she ‘prefers’ to show is not how she actually feels. The overall implication that Reiji is giving us, is that Yui expresses feelings that are not her own; and the ‘mask’ she wears is as fragile as glass, and once she’s distracted or vulnerable, that mask will break and her ‘true’ self will show.

This is obviously very ironic since Reiji is the one to hide away his true feelings - he plays the role of a ‘polite butler’ yet we know he is anything but that - he uses abuse and manipulation to cover up his own insecurities and turmoil. If anything, he is the one who wears a mask of glass. Glass is fragile, much like his ego and self-esteem, and that mask begins to crack as his route develops - indulging in Yui’s naïve compassion.

The third line could be implied to mean that Yui must make her decision to stay with him - commit to Reiji without hesitation, without the desire to run and give in to her carnal sins with him. He’s asking Yui to take the plunge into sin with him, revoke her religion and commit to him.

“You still do to that extent, even though I’ve told you so firmly.”

This dialogue strikes me as odd, it doesn’t refer to much within the song, however, it could pair with the second piece of dialogue, implying that Yui is still trying to run from her situation; she’s not ready to fully commit from God to the “Devil” - the “Devil” in this case being Reiji, and quite obviously, “Devil” has quite sinister connotations; given that Yui was raised by the church, her commitment to something demonic (and vampiric) is not going to be an easy or nice feat for her.

It can also be implied that this is taking place throughout the beginning of her ‘training’ as it can be inferred that she’s still resisting him even though he’s “told [her] so firmly”, further insinuating that she still has her willpower at this point. She’s not fully succumbed to Reiji’s abuse yet.

A single enraged horn, able to thrust its way up to the heavens Like a chaotically blooming rose, it’s splattered across your face

This first line could possess many different interpretations, the first could relate back to Faust, a man who sold his soul to the Devil yet still tried to force himself into Heaven, only to fail. However, it could also relate back to the relationship between Reiji and Yui, and insinuate something of a sexual nature. Not only are horns associated with devils and demons, but the noun “horn” can posses connotations of a phallic symbol and sexual imagery. Within Greek mythology, strength, power and supremacy are a part of the symbolism of horns. The other connotation is virility - procreative vigour. Within the story of the ‘Plough’, even the use of the oxen to pull the plough had its sexual connotation. The plough drew its furrow in the soil, and was pulled by reins attached to the oxen's horns. The horns were the force behind the plough’s coitus with the earth; therefore, horns grew a sexual connotation. Alongside the noun “horn” the verb “thrust” also contains sexual connotations; with this semantic field in mind, it could imply that “heavens” relates to Yui’s purity and virginity. Additionally, the imagery of roses also feeds into this interpretation as white flowers are a common symbol of virginity; the imagery of a flower blooming can often be associated to metaphorically represent becoming a woman (losing your virginity) and the flower turns from white to red as the blood pours - and roses are often red or at least associated with the colour red as opposed to white.

Conversely, it could also refer to Yui and Reiji’s emotional relationship, and the dark and light imagery could be a metaphysical representation of that. It could imply that Reiji’s abuse is starting to infect Yui - a child of God being corrupted by something demonic -. It can also link back to her “glass mask” as the corruption allows Yui’s kind nature to drop and her weak and vulnerable state to be “splattered across [her] face”. It could insinuate that the “blooming rose” is Yui’s corruption starting to grow and infest her; yet she’s still trying to fight it - she’s infected by Reiji, and the rose imagery could represent that. Roses are often associated with love and throughout Reiji’s route, we see Yui start to fall into the categories of stockholm syndrome and co-dependency, that ‘love’ is starting to bloom yet it is a twisted form of love.

This deep crimson curse is our family’s fate A damned soul, never again to…

The imagery of a “deep crimson” can connote to blood, and not necessarily just Yui’s. The notion that it’s referred to as a “curse” and “family’s fate” offers the interpretation that Reiji views his heritage as a source of evil and misfortune and that tribulations are inevitable and unavoidable for him. It not only relates to each brother’s misery and the misery they force upon Yui, but it also relates back to their mothers and Karlheinz himself as Christa dealt with severe mental illnesses, Cordelia suffered from a multitude of issues and Beatrix was severely bullied by Cordelia - and Karlheinz foresaw all of this and made it his personal experiment to cause each one misery and make sure that instability was passed down onto each brother; with that information in mind, it would be natural for Reiji to interpret this theme to be something akin to a family curse, a terrible privilege that each of them share. In addition to this, “A damned soul, never again to...” could be a self-reference from Reiji, if he views his heritage as a “curse”, then it’s likely that he appoints himself as a “damned soul” - with “damned” giving connotations of misery and turmoil -. I’d like to bring attention to the aposiopesis found within this line as what Reiji aims for is left ambiguous, however, what I interpret this unfinished phrase to mean, is that he’s a “damned soul, never again to” reach the ‘light’ and achieve happiness and genuine love and affection. If Reiji interprets himself as a cursed child, it would be natural for him to crave the love and stability he was never given, he wants what he can’t have and he can’t have it because he’s “damned” to be awarded nothing but tribulations, turmoil and misery.

“You know you can never escape!!”

I’ve interpreted this section of dialogue to link to the other - it uses the passive voice. The passive voice is used to show interest in the person or object that experiences an action rather than the person or object that performs the action. In other words, the most important thing or person becomes the subject of the sentence, for example: ‘the plate was dropped by Yui’ rather than ‘Yui dropped the plate’. The most important part of this sentence is that “[Yui] can never escape”, yet it comes secondary to “I’ve told you so firmly”  - which is the least important part of the phase, yet it is spoken first; further implying that Reiji is using the passive voice to ‘chastise’ Yui into submission.

The phrase itself could pose a few interpretations, one being that she can never escape from Reiji - Yui’s his prey and he’s not going to let her go idly by -. The second is that she can never escape her fate; I think this is the overall theme of Reiji’s song. Reiji is fated to live out a torturous, Vampiric existence, and Yui is damned to be tied to Reiji’s fate due to her father’s involvement. Yui’s fate was decided once Cordelia’s heart was instilled in her; she was damned from the beginning and I believe Reiji knows this - he’s trying to drag her into damnation with him.

A dying science,

Your impressions destroyed, at the hand of a shameless fist

The first line here could be interpreted as an oxymoron, as science is often connected to discovering something new or creating something new - discovering a new ‘life’ so to speak - and this connotation would naturally contrast with “dying”. Science can relate to a multitude of things, biology, chemistry, physics and psychology to name a few. this phrase could link to both Reiji and Yui if we take the psychological approach - the phrase itself could be metaphorical of Reiji breaking Yui’s self-worth. Throughout his route, Reiji has undoubtedly used Yui as an ‘experiment’ of sorts, a ‘science’ to explore and break down into its basic fundamentals; her “impressions” - impressions of herself, those around her and trying to help them as best as she can - are “destroyed”, her self-worth and confidence are decimated by Reiji’s cruelty, by the “hand of a shameless fist”.

However, it could be interpreted in a more literal sense and instead link back to when Cordelia inhabited Yui’s body and chose to destroy Reiji’s laboratory; and in turn, destroy the potion he was devoting himself to that would resurrect Beatrix, devoting himself to a “dying science” if you will. In that moment, Reiji’s impressions of coming to terms with his CEN were destroyed by Cordelia’s self-importance - her “shameless fist” destroyed the very thing (aside from Yui) that was pivotal to him.

As these sins pile up like the falling snow, there is no hope of redemption Their height surpassing even your castle walls, it’s far too late to even pray to God

This section here could be implied to be metaphorical and represent Yui’s inner self and her emotional walls and boundaries. First of all, comparing sins to snow alongside with the sibilance in both can be implied to connote to something light and cunning; the ‘s’ sound can also give off snake-like imagery - which takes us back to the religious themes threaded throughout the game and this song. The snake that bit Eve (the Devil) and ‘awakened’ her can make quite a nice parallel to Reiji and Yui. Throughout this song, it can be inferred that Reiji references himself to be the “Devil” - he’s not the Devil but he is demonic - and Yui (throughout the games) is named Eve in relation to her ‘awakening’; both the Adam and Eve theme threaded throughout More Blood, and the other games hold quite Biblical references and imagery.

Snow also continues this religious imagery as it often symbolises purity, which could mean that this contrast is posing the implication that Yui’s sins are pure (as in [something] is pure envy or [insert sin here]’. However, snow tends to fall slowly and lightly, which could imply that Yui’s submission into Reiji’s abuse is slow and light at the beginning but like snow, it culminates over time. We could even go as far as to compare her submission to the sin of sloth. Sloth has been defined as a failure to do things that one should do; in this case - or rather, in Yui’s case - that failure is the failure to overpower her abuser.

The second part to the first line - “there is no hope of redemption” -  could apply to both Reiji and Yui. Yui has no hope for redemption once she submits to Reiji - to submit to Reiji, a vampire, a demon, she is effectively turning her back on her faith; she’s made peace with her fate and therefore, there is no redemption for her in Yui’s own eyes. As for Reiji, he has no hope for redemption due to the abhorrent cruelty he bestows on Yui; his treatment of not only her, but Shuu, Beatrix and Edgar too. Reiji cannot achieve redemption because he cannot accept when he is at fault. His behaviour towards others and his sadism prevent him from becoming better; therefore, for him, there is no redemption. At least, redemption cannot take place just yet, remember, this is a story being told by Reiji about Yui - his perception of her is going to be vastly different from ours as the audience; therefore, he cannot see ‘redemption’ for her, and in his own way of thinking, he poses the question that maybe she cannot see redemption for herself either.

The imagery of Yui’s sins growing higher than her “castle walls” could be implied to be metaphorical. When a person hides away their feelings, we often use the phrase ‘putting up walls’ to describe their emotional cut off. I believe this can be referential to Yui as throughout the beginning of Reiji’s route, we often see Yui hide away her deeper affections; she keeps her larger thoughts and feelings to herself most of the time - her distaste, longing, uncertainty is wrapped away in her mind (we as the audience see those thoughts and feelings, but Reiji doesn’t). In order to keep herself from facing Reiji’s uglier tendencies, she’ll sometimes lock her emotions away (not all of them, but quite a few). Overall, it could be implied that Reiji’s influence is starting to take a hold of her internally and she can’t block it out or subdue it, and because it’s festering in her mind, it’s already in her subconscious; therefore, it’s “too late” for her to pray to God to help her. Reiji has wormed himself into Yui’s mind and her faith in God cannot overpower that.

Unable to grasp that ‘nothingness,’ that eternal price—

The noun “nothingness” can connote to the state of being nothing, something that is non-existent, lack of being, unconsciousness or death and I think the latter is the main connotation for this noun within the context of the song and Reiji as a character. We know that Vampires within the DL universe crave death, and being killed is the ultimate way for someone to confess their ‘love’ - to die is something that all Vampires crave. This line, to me, could imply that Reiji longs for death, to have the misery end and finally rest for eternity; we know from following Kanato’s route that he [Kanato] is jealous of humans since we can die quite easily whereas he cannot - he can’t grasp that “nothingness” that is death - and I think this can apply here. It can not only be implied that Reiji wants to - in some capacity - die, but that he’s almost chastising Yui for the fact that she can reach death easier than him. The dash (or hyphen) at the end of this sentence poses the inference that he’s being ‘cut off’ or ‘cut short’, not by his brothers or Yui, but by himself; he’s purposely cutting his sentence short and I think this links back to his internal struggle of opening up and lowering his front. Throughout Reiji’s route, his character has always been to-and-fro with his emotions - he’s reserved yet malicious - however, I think this line in particular allows us to see into his head more and could even pose the theory that Reiji may be suffering from depression. Neglect, abuse, perfectionism, paranoia (of being ‘outed’ for his feelings and of Yui leaving him - this is seen throughout Cordelia’s interference), they all add up one on top of another and paired with his need to impress his father and prove his worth, it all culminates to him possibly wanting to be the “nothing” that he feels - that his childhood made him feel -. He’s giving us insight into his mind yet at the same time, it could be implied that he’s scolding Yui for how easily she can die and fade into that “nothingness” yet he is unable to do so himself.

Aah, the punishment you dreamed of (Why did I see it?) This spiral labyrinth is (never-ending) In conclusion, unless I suck you dry, the rules of logic won’t survive

Linking back to the previous line, the “punishment” Reiji’s mentioning could be death. Again, this is a story from Reiji’s point of view and we know for a fact that he implements his own views and beliefs onto Yui; it would be no different how he would force his views of death onto her too. Consequently, it could then be implied that he also believes Yui to crave death as much as he does - which would then make sense as to why he says “the punishment you dreamed of”. As the audience, we know that Yui doesn’t want to die, but Reiji can’t accept that and instead views it as her denying her ‘true feelings’ - he needs to have that corrupt control over her mind in order to relax around her -.

Ironically, the very word “labyrinth” is often used to illustrate confusion and complexity. As such, the symbol of the labyrinth can represent an enigma, a puzzle and confusion. Some view the labyrinth as a metaphor for a spiritual journey, with the entrance representing birth and the centre symbolizing God, knowing or enlightenment. Getting to the centre requires a long, arduous journey of growth. First of all, the spiral is a symbol of change, as all things in this world must change over time. Nothing can live and be stagnant, and as scary as change is, it is also wonderful, because that means that everyday we have a new chance, a new choice, to change ourselves. I think this overall line is Reiji speaking out on his subconscious, he as a person is constantly changing and conflicting with himself - and this is mainly brought about by Yui -. He’s trapped pondering the same path and as he walks on, he delves deeper into his own psyche; however, this “spiral labyrinth” is “never-ending” because he can’t come to terms with who he is - who he is underneath his trauma, his privileges, his race and status - because, in my interpretation, that person is something Reiji would see as weak and powerless, which is the same thing he loathes in Yui - which brings us back to the interpretation that in some ways, Yui subconsciously represents Reiji’s inner self, and his childhood. Due to Yui possibly representing these things, the spiral never ends because Yui’s representation is something Reiji wants to run away from, but no one can run from their past, and until he learns to accept the better things about himself and the things he’s done out of spite and hatred, he can never fully leave that labyrinth.

The third line links more to what we see during the route, which is him biting Yui. However, in this subliminal context, this line could be implied to implement the power dynamic - and the importance of said dynamic -. Overall, this phrase basically states that if Reiji doesn’t drink Yui’s blood, then logic won’t survive; this could imply that Reiji has to drink from Yui in order to continue the power dynamic between them, he needs to be the one in control, the predator, and Yui needs to stay in the position of weak prey. By furthering this interpretation, it could imply that in regards to their races, predator and prey is the only logical dynamic to establish and for that to be disturbed would imply that logic no longer exists; it would mean that Yui has the upper hand, and not Reiji, he would no longer hold the control he desires. If we compare this interpretation to the Manservant Ending, we see that power dynamic flip. Instead of Reiji instigating the blood sucking, this time it’s Yui - she’s in control and she does as she pleases, he can’t drink the amount he wants (he can’t suck her dry) - and therefore, all logic has disappeared, the prey has become the predator and logic has died, Reiji’s control has died, and his self-worth has died.

Following Reiji’s route, we quickly learn that Reiji is a man who values intelligent and logic - his intellect fuels his self-esteem - and unless he has Yui at his mercy (with the threat of draining all her blood) the logic of the Vampire/Human dynamic won’t survive, it’ll die along with his frail ego.

“Kukuku…Or rather, would you like to die right now?”

This piece of dialogue links to the previous ones we’ve seen throughout the song; it’s a string of dialogue weaved into the story, a cross between Reiji’s ‘fantasy’ and reality. He’s told Yui that she can never escape and now he’s giving her the ‘option’ of dying - in reality, there is no option, it’s reverse psychology of giving her the choice of doing something that he knows she would protest against (that being death). It acts as Reiji essentially keeping Yui under his control.

Additionally, the fact that Reiji laughs when saying this could imply that he doesn’t take Yui seriously enough to consider her a threat; furthermore, it could be implied that he’s choosing to mock her in her time of distress - Yui wants to leave but she can’t and Reiji’s taking this opportunity to laugh at her misfortune.

In a storm driven mad with desire, my mind calms, all thoughts cut off Like a vanishing rose, cutting across my mind

When you think about a storm, you probably don’t have many pleasant meanings to connect to it. It’s a symbol of chaos, negativity, trauma, difficulty, weakness, and even depression. Storm symbolism also signifies change and transition since storms are only temporary. However, in literature, storms play a completely different role. They’re used as elements of foreshadowing, which is the act of predicting the future in the story. It’s a very frequently used symbol that can be used in almost any setting. Normally, it predicts something unpleasant, tragic, or even scary.

The storm itself could be implied to represent Reiji’s inner turmoil; how by focusing on that one specific thing can in fact calm him, his mind is steady - it could be interpreted as ‘ordered chaos’, which refers to a complex situation or process that appears chaotic while still having enough order to achieve progress or goals. The idea of organised chaos is more than saying you know where everything is in your messy bedroom or office, even if no one else can make sense of it. It’s also the idea of a looser set of rules and giving yourself a little more freedom to find your own success. it can be inferred that the “storm” is Reiji’s subconscious, or at least his mental state, yet his mind is able to be calm due to him being able to navigate that chaos - it’s something only he can understand, both giving him the satisfaction of surpassing everyone else’s psychological skills but also the satisfaction of being able to hide the mess that is his mind so well.

The last line of this phrase could be implied to mean that Reiji’s mind has become blank, his usual thoughts of resentment and jealousy have ceased, they’ve vanished and so, his mind has become blank. Additionally, ‘blank’ can have connotations of calmness - since the mind has become devoid of thoughts and emotions, it becomes oddly calm in its emptiness. Here we also see the noun “rose” make another appearance, however, roses not only symbolise love and purity, but it also has other connotations too. In the Middle Ages, roses were hung from the ceilings of meeting rooms; it was understood that everyone under the roses was sworn to secrecy. With this in mind, it could be implied that the noun “rose” symbolises secrecy, Reiji’s desires and detriments are to remain a secret - a secret that he and Yui will later share but a ‘secret’ nonetheless -. However, the notion that the rose is “vanishing” could imply that his unchecked mind is starting to dissipate; the thoughts that haunt him so much are ‘disappearing’ from his conscious mind. However, the verb “cutting” gives off the interpretation that his vanishing thoughts are quite abrupt, as though Reiji’s trying to forcefully forget the chaos in his brain - implying that Reiji’s trying to forget his turmoil in order to calm his mind.

This memory is our family’s fate A damned soul, never again to…

Memory can often connote to both remembrance and forgetfulness; however, it can be interpreted that “memory” relates to the previous line, of Reiji trying to forget his tribulations. Each person that holds a substantial relationship with Karlheinz is dealt with nothing but despair - whether that relationship is founded from genetics or courtship is of no relevance, as each person is given their own cruel hand by “fate” -. Therefore, it’s possible to assume that Reiji’s memories of pain is shared throughout the family; each brother is wallowing in their own trauma, yet they cannot talk about it or cope in a healthy way, they each let their emotions fester and try to forget their memories, and because that mechanism of trauma is passed through the family, it has therefore become their “fate”.

Here we also see the repetition of the line “A damned soul, never again to…”. The adjective “damned” can have connotations of  being condemned or doomed, especially to eternal punishment - which is quite similar to how the brothers view their long-lasting lives. With this in mind, we can again imply that Reiji is ‘doomed’ to suffer the consequences of ‘fate’s’ cruel hand; he can never again revert to the past, before his trauma was dealt to him, and that is his family’s fate.

“…─I will never let you go”

Once more, we are presented with Reiji’s dialogue, however, this phrase has both sorrowful and threatening connotations. The phrase “…─I will never let you go” has obvious menacing implications, since Reiji’s holding Yui hostage in this overall situation - if Yui tries to leave, then he’ll punish her, or he’ll kill her. This threat enables Reiji to carry on implementing his control over Yui and bending her to his will - breaking her in the process -. Conversely, this threat can also possess quite sorrowful and forlorn connotations. Following Reiji’s route, it can be implied that Yui’s inadvertently and subconsciously helping Reiji come to terms with the type of person he is; without Yui, his bitterness will only fester to a higher capacity, and his abuse tactics and sadism will only grow - thus, it could be implied that Reiji can’t let Yui go because of this, and when you think about it that way, it’s quite melancholic.

“Kukuku… You should understand by now, right?”

“It is your fate to continue to have your blood sucked by me.”

Reiji yet again insults Yui’s intelligence by condescending to her that she should be able to understand the situation she’s in, and how it’s her “fate”. Throughout the entirety of Reiji’s route, his use of language towards Yui is typically demeaning, and here is no exception.

The noun “blood” can have many different connotations and symbolisms, one of which is that it represents life - this is mainly derived from the fact that blood is the very substance that flows through our veins in order to keep us alive; with this connotation, it could be implied that Yui’s “fate” is to have her life drained by Reiji for his own satisfaction. However, blood can also be seen as something that’s a person’s ‘essence’. If there’s something that is so core to your sense of identity or your beliefs, you could say that “it’s in my blood”. This interpretation could imply that Reiji intends to finish ‘training’ Yui until every last part of her has been taken away, her ‘core’ has been “sucked” out by Reiji in his attempts to perfect her - all her aspirations, hope, pain and suffering have been removed by Reiji, as blood can also connote to pain and suffering; something that can be implied to be Reiji’s fate - his fate is to suffer, and he will inflict that same punishment upon Yui, since her fate is to become broken and damned along with him.

“…─This prediction is absolute.” “……So, wake up…”

Firstly, the line “This prediction is absolute.” could imply that both Reiji and Yui’s fates are “absolute”, they’re established and universally decided upon that this is the path they must both follow. The noun “prediction” carries connotations of both science and philosophy. The first comes from the fact that during an experiment, predictions are made in relation to the outcome - the experiment at hand however, can range from physical chemicals to the inside of someone’s mind. Additionally, “prediction” can also connote to something being prophesied. The inference that I’m trying to make, is that both connotations are linked; though this insinuation is mainly derived from More Blood and Dark Fate due to us learning more about Karlheinz and how he’s monopolised his bloodline. Both Reiji and Yui’s fates have already been decided due to Karlheinz effectively using his sons as ‘experiments’ - therefore, the life that Reiji and Yui are to live has already been predicted; thus, it is “absolute”.

The phrase “wake up” is honestly quite a strange line to include in this song however, it could imply that Yui needs to wake up from the dainty person she was, and accept her fate - a ‘wake up’ call if you will -. Conversely, it also reminds me of a darker theme within dreams, that to ‘die’ (in a dream) is to “wake up”; with that in mind, it could infer that Yui’s past self needs to ‘die’ in order for her to “wake up” and accept who she is now, who she is presently while being under Reiji’s control. No longer is Yui pure and untainted, and so from Reiji’s perspective, she needs to “wake up” from that ‘act’.

“Awaken and become a part of our family.” “In the darkness, unable to see anything, with you…” “…─I want to feel it!”

Following my interpretation that Yui needs to let her past self die in order to “wake up” could link to this section here, and it could imply that Reiji believes that Yui needs to let herself go, let her religion, beliefs and self-worth diminish and die in order for her ‘true’ self to “awaken” - let Reiji remould her to his desire and welcome her ‘retrained’ self into his arms.

We’re brought back to this imagery of darkness, and this imagery could link back to the “dense, black forest” we saw in the beginning, showing the song’s cyclical structure. Much like the beginning, the theme of darkness could infer that Reiji desires Yui to fall from her ‘heavenly grace’ and join him in his misery - “unable to see anything” but despair and longing -. Throughout Reiji’s route, it’s been made clear that Reiji wishes to shatter Yui as a person, and rebuild her to his design; therefore, Reiji wants Yui to fall into despair with him, so that he’s no longer alone in his turmoil. The last line of “…─I want to feel it!” could reinforce this implication, that Reiji wishes to have company in his damnation and he wants to know and feel that every part of Yui belongs to him - from her determination to her compassion, he wants to feel ‘loved’ by her, yet he wants to break her in that process so that she can never escape from his abuse.

A single enraged horn, able to thrust its way up to the heavens Like a chaotically blooming rose, it’s splattered across your face

Here the cyclicity of the song is made clear with the repetition of the chorus - it reinforces Reiji’s desire to corrupt Yui and drag her down to ‘Hell’ with him. Conversely, it may simply be the poetic voice (Reiji) attempting to reiterate a certain point, reflecting the continuing nature of time, entrapment through repetition and re-living events - re-living Yui’s downfall and her entrapment in Reiji’s cruel schemes.

This deep crimson curse is our family’s fate A damned soul, never again to… A damned soul, never again to…

Again, this section is repeated, implying that it’s significant, that Reiji’s “fate” and turmoil is significant - and it is, it’s significant to Karlheinz. Each brother’s fate is significant in one way or another as it all ties into Karlheinz’s ‘plan’, their fates have been preordained; therefore, they’re all “damned souls”, they have been from the beginning and Yui is no exception to this, and I think Reiji knows this. The last line is repeated twice, and contains the same wording and grammar; this gives the impression that the ending is inevitable and nothing can be done to stop it. The sense of repetition created through this element of the structure also creates a sense of hopelessness, reflecting the lack of choices that Yui has in this position and how Reiji will inevitable dictate her entire existence.

“…─Have you understood? Very well, in that case, become mine for all eternity.”

This first line is in fact a rhetoric, Reiji’s not asking a genuine question to Yui, he’s establishing their power dynamic and that she should already know to obey his every whim. He’s patronising her intelligence just like how he does throughout his route - it infers that overall, nothing has changed and Yui is still hopeless and Reiji is still bitter and resentful towards others and towards himself.

The very last line however, displays that even though Reiji is as heinous as they come, he still wishes for Yui’s company while he waits for his “fate” to consume him. The pronoun “mine” shows Reiji’s possessiveness and how he wants Yui’s compassion to himself - implying that she gives him the comfort and ‘love’ he’s so desperately wanted throughout his life. He’s dragged Yui down into the pits of despair and she’s had no choice in whether she wanted that or not, that is her “fate”. Though Reiji’s bitterness may not have changed, and his abuse may not have corroded, this line implies that he wishes to have Yui’s company throughout his misery; to not be completely alone.

To conclude, this song is overall, quite sad and it gives us insight into Reiji’s mind; how he wants to corrupt Yui for his own gain, yet he doesn’t want to lose her company because he doesn’t want to be alone. The song doesn’t justify any of Reiji’s actions towards Yui - instead it shows how cruel he can be - but it also shows just how alone he feels, and by the end of this story’s analysis, the overall feeling that comes to mind, is pity.

Miscellaneous

Basically, everything under this section are just little things that I found in relation to Haunted Dark Bridal that had some analytical potential. They don’t really fit in anywhere else without them extending the sections even more, but I thought it’d be a shame not to mention them - like I said, these small sections are nothing more than little titbits of analysis, since I gather that your brain’s pretty exhausted from reading everything above.

Reiji’s Haunted Dark Bridal Popularity Poll Dialogue:

“I am not particularly interested in winning over the hearts of many. Just a handful of people will do... ...Ah! No, it’s nothing! Besides, I already have my hands full with your training. Well then, hurry over to my room!”

First of all, the notion that Reiji only desires to impress a select few of people could link back to his need to feel wanted and needed by his father - he wants to prove his worth to those he cares about; this can even extend to Beatrix - though she’s dead, her image is still alive within Reiji’s mind, which offers the inference that he’s trying to prove himself to her memory.

The fact that Reiji becomes, almost startled, with his interjection of “Ah! No, it’s nothing! Besides” could show that he’s outputting more information that he normally would to Yui; and by doing so, it would give her more ammunition towards him - by Yui gaining more information about Reiji, it would consequently give her the high ground. We know that Reiji’s talking to Yui here since he diverts the conversation and uses the phrase “your training”, the pronoun “your” relating back to Yui. Reiji cuts the dialogue short and quickly makes Yui the subject, rather than his attitude to people’s thoughts of him - this could imply that Reiji doesn’t like to share his more personal thoughts and feelings with others and the inclination that he states “No, it’s nothing“ could suggest to us that he devalues his emotions. Reiji uses the negator “No” after the first section of dialogue ends, which could imply that he was possibly going to carry on with the theme of opinions yet cut himself short; implying he either realised that he was compromising his strict persona or thought that his feelings weren’t worth being spoken about. When people use the phrase “it’s nothing” in contexts like this, it often means “it’s not worth your concern/attention, don’t worry about it”, and people who tend to be conflict averse or passive use this phrase more than most people as they devalue their own opinions and emotions as to not burden anyone or cause trouble; I think this is what Reiji is doing here, he’s realised that he’s caused intrigue for Yui and so he cuts himself off and devalues what he’s thinking in order to bring the conversational control back to himself - and promptly order Yui around.

Haunted Dark Bridal Official Fan Book:

[ CREATOR’S COMMENT ]

“The second son of the Sakamaki household and Shuu’s younger brother. The most book-smart out of all the brothers. His attitude and speech are careful and polite like those of a butler, but the words that come from his mouth are nothing but harsh insults and condescending remarks.

He establishes a relationship of owner and property between himself and the heroine and forces his own rules upon her.”

There’s not too much to look at here since the comment basically just reinforces the analytical conclusions we’ve already come to - it’s just a nice way to sum up Reiji’s outward behaviour. The second section to this is primarily what I wanted to focus on, but I thought I’d leave this bit in since it’s just a little summary.

[ TASTE CHECK ]

“You sure are thoughtful for a servant, wanting to know my preferences.”

- I will not allow my possession to defy me

- Follow my rules

- Honesty is a must

- I hate lies and excuses

- You can rely on me

“Reiji is the type of person who makes the hierarchy between the two of you very clear, so it’s best to listen to everything he says. Furthermore, avoiding lies and interacting with him in an honest and genuine way is the key to his heart.”

The first few lines of this section emphasise how Reiji views Yui, he sees her as a “servant” and a “possession”, two words that establish a power dynamic - something we see that’s crucial to Reiji as a character, he needs to be the one in control and the one to display dominance; therefore, he views Yui as someone who is beneath him.

Furthermore, this section also induces irony, Reiji desires honesty and detests lies and excuses yet he quite often berates Yui for telling the truth. In some chapters, Yui runs into Shuu by accident, or rather, he trips her up - prolonging her arrival to Reiji’s room - yet when she states what has happened, once she tells the truth, Reiji is quick to dismiss it as an excuse or lie (even though we know as the audience that Yui’s telling the truth). With this in mind, this section offers the implication that Reiji deems anything he doesn’t like to hear as a lie or an excuse - which is an unhealthy way of coping with something that has factored into his abuse so much; it’s an unhealthy way of coping with Shuu and a means to deflect his insecurities - the insecurity that Yui will leave him in favour of his brother, which is something we see during the Ecstasy chapters with Cordelia. However, once Reiji begins to mellow throughout the route, we quickly see him admire Yui’s honesty - which is “the key to his heart“ according to the creator’s note.

The last bullet point of, “You can rely on me” could factor into Yui’s growing co-dependency throughout the Heaven chapters - she’s treated almost like a pet and is expected to be somewhat reliant on Reiji’s lead and his desires. Additionally, this could also infer that Yui is to rely on Reiji emotionally. Throughout Yui’s internal battle with Cordelia, Reiji constantly has Yui’s back, he’s protective and though he may be harsh, Yui is able to rely on him to help her gain her body back, and I think this is what this point means overall - that Yui can emotionally rely on Reiji.

Diabolik Lovers Anime Official Fan Book Interview:

Question 01: Why do you remain so well-mannered even towards a human like Yui?

“Please do not ask me such ridiculous things. It should be obvious. Regardless of whether they are human or not, acting in a bad-mannered way is something only people who lack a proper education do.

Therefore, I maintain a proper attitude towards her, and I am also strictly training her so she can become a proper, well-mannered lady as well.”

Reiji’s answer here provides us with a core aspect to his character - his butler-like manners -. It could be implied that he developed this habit from his mother Beatrix. Beatrix was an only child from a high ranking family; her being an only child means that she had to marry well in order to continue her legacy. Due to her lack of socialisation from being an only child, she can be interpreted to be an awkward person. What I’m bringing awareness to here, is her lack of social skills and choosing to be stern and silent - much like how a butler would behave in the presence of others -. Part of Beatrix’s creator note is that Reiji takes after her “serious personality“; “serious” can connote to a multitude of traits, such as being firm and wholehearted. It can be implied that Reiji observed her behaviour from the flashbacks we see within both Haunted Dark Bridal and More Blood, therefore, it could insinuate that he may have ingrained those behavioural traits in order to garner her affection - to be stern and well-mannered, like a butler - and those traits have followed him into adulthood and play a major part in his internal conflict as well as his abuse, which is why he values it.

Question 04: Well then, teach us your favourite brand of tea cups as well!

“Just as with the tea, I like them all. I change up the tableware depending on my mood as well. Let’s see...If I had to point out similarities between the tea cups I’ve purchased, it would have to be the delicate and beautiful designs. When the cup has lines on it which are even just slightly crooked or don’t look very pretty, it makes me want to break them on the spot.”

The most important aspect of this dialogue, to me, is the last line. The fact that Reiji outright states that anything less than perfection makes him want to break it, and that can link directly to Yui. Yui’s a character who has both a beautiful and delicate nature to her, she’s youthful - which is something most people find beautiful - and she retains a delicate frame and personality, much like the tea cups Reiji is describing. However, her naivety and obliviousness can often irk Reiji, she’s not perfect but she’s not broken; therefore, she is “crooked”, and Reiji in turn wishes to perfect that by breaking her spirit and willpower. In a metaphorical way, it could be inferred that within this section of dialogue, the tea cups represent Yui.

Question 09: How do you feel about Yui?

“She’s still miles away from becoming a proper lady. That’s why I will discipline her until I’m satisfied, turning her into a beautiful woman whom I can show to anyone without having to feel embarrassed. That’s all.”

The most important factor here is that Reiji feels embarrassed by Yui, he feels ashamed and sheepish to show her off. Embarrassment is considered one of the self-conscious emotions, quite at ease in the company of guilt, shame, and pride. Given that embarrassment happens in relation to other people, it is a public emotion that makes you feel exposed, awkward, and filled with regret for whatever your wrongdoing happens to be. Potential negative evaluations concerning standards about actions, thoughts, and feelings that govern our behaviour are at the core of embarrassment and other self-conscious emotions. The experience of embarrassment alerts you to your failure to behave according to certain social standards, which threaten the beliefs you hold concerning how others evaluate you as well as the ways in which you evaluate yourself.

Reiji feels embarrassed to show Yui to anyone since during the majority of his route, she defies everything he strives for - he wants Yui to remain calm, collected, reserved and obedient, whereas the Yui we see is bubbly, naïve, oblivious and determined. By Yui possessing those characteristics, her personality contrasts Reiji’s; therefore, he would feel sheepish to present her to others since she lacks what he desires, she’s not perfect to Reiji’s image and standards for her. By Yui contrasting Reiji so much, he would most likely feel shame alongside embarrassment, not only because of who Yui is, but because of what she is. Throughout the DL lore, we know that humans are nothing but prey to vampires, so by Reiji garnering feelings towards Yui, it defies all social normalities and he would most likely face scrutiny from others and face both internal and external humiliation.

5th Anniversary Character Interview:

Question 09. Tell us your most vivid memory with your brothers!

“When we were still children, there was a time when Kanato escaped the castle and got lost. I had coincidentally headed out that day as well and met up with him. I wonder if he was exhausted, but Kanato complied with my offer and we returned to the castle together. Thinking back to it now, that was the first and last I ever saw of Kanato’s obedient side.”

I wanted to include this section for the simple reason that Kanato listened to Reiji. If you follow Kanato’s route, it’s fairly easy to come to the conclusion that he doesn't really enjoy listening to others no matter what the situation is, he’s erratic and temperamental due to his hysteria. However, the interaction between the two here is rather wholesome, instead of ignoring Kanato like the other brothers would, Reiji takes it upon himself to help him, and what does Kanato do ? He complies and follows Reiji. Kanato’s compliance could simply be due to him being exhausted but I would like to offer the interpretation that both Reiji and Kanato have some unspoken bond between them. I’ve covered this interpretation before throughout the Banquet CD since it alludes to Kanato crying to Reiji to ‘fix’ his problems in the past - not to mention the two outcasts are paired together -. It can even be inferred through their Vol 3 Versus Drama CD: Kanato has a problem and Reiji is the one to deal with it. The main difference between these two points is age - we know that Kanato uses tantrums and blackmail as an adult in order to make Reiji cooperate. However, that sort of behaviour isn’t as prominent in Kanato when he’s younger; therefore, it can be suggested that Kanato would be more inclined to quiet down and be compliant in order to have Reiji resolve the problem - being lost -. This interaction shows that Reiji is willing to help others, he’s younger here and so his façade has most likely not completely formed yet.

I mentioned that there may be some unspoken bond between the two, and that mainly derives from the fact that both Reiji and Kanato are pushed aside and treated like outcasts by their brothers; when this happens, they usually stick together instead of being stubborn and going their own ways. I also wanted to mention that this dialogue is in relation to Reiji’s most vivid memory, “vivid” being the key word. It implies that this memory holds a form of significance to him, and I think that’s in relation to Kanato’s obedience. This memory is the only time Kanato has ever been obedient, and it wasn’t to anyone but Reiji - façade or not, he’s going to feel accomplished by that - hence why it’s vivid and therefore significant.

QUESTION 15. What does she [Yui] mean to you?

"I feel like this is not exactly the type of information I should share with someone else though...Let’s see, I like her quite a bit. While she does often cause me trouble as well, I have learnt to perceive that as part of her charm. However, I do not enjoy how vulnerable she leaves herself, so I’d love for her to be more cautious in that regard. She might think of me as nosy...However, I hope she realises that I am saying it for her own wellbeing. Well, no matter how many times I mention it, it might just be a lost cause.”

This section here is exponentially significant to Reiji’s character and his development. Instead of chastising Yui or opting to degrade her, he chooses to praise her - his words aren’t condescending or rude, they’re genuine. This is significant since it’s just Reiji answering these on his own, Yui herself is not present and with that, Reiji drops his guard and offers more sincere feelings. Reiji states that Yui’s clumsy recklessness is a part of her charm, which could imply that he enjoys the fact that she’s not completely predictable - she’s dedicated and that can sometimes land her in quite a troubling situation but it’s inferred that Reiji admires that or at least finds it endearing.

When Reiji says that he does “not enjoy how vulnerable she leaves herself”, I don’t think that’s in relation to how vulnerable Yui is to Reiji but more so to everyone around her - her obliviousness and naivety leaves her exposed to the other brothers, meaning that Yui’s open to be taken advantage of; and that’s what I think this phrase implies. Reiji’s not being cautious for Yui’s sake, but more for his own - we know that Reiji’s naturally insecure and paranoid, so to have the possibility of Yui preferring Shuu or the others over himself is going to affect him greatly and cause his jealousy to spiral out of control. He doesn’t want Yui to be cautious for her own well being, instead he wants her to be cautious so that her loyalty can fuel his ego and his jealousy can mellow.

Conclusion

To conclude, Reiji appears to be a very complex character, his exposure to forms of abuse such as neglect have led him to harbour envy and resentment yet his status allows him to display a small scale of narcissism. As his route continues, and as his character develops, his insecurities are laid bare for us as the audience and for Yui to see - it’s honestly quite sad that his entire façade was born out of a need to feel loved and wanted. His actions and abuse can never be justified but they can be understood and by delving into his psyche, what we find is just a lonely, bitter man who craves the love and attention he never got. His actions are explainable but they’re not excusable and the abuse he’s inflicted onto Yui is only going to add to his guilt. The actions he takes are nothing short of cruel and sadistic, but underneath all his hate and resentment lies a child who felt abandoned by their family.

---

Not to brag but I think I'm taking the win here guys. If you've not tried this quiz yet PLEASE do it's so good! It's difficult yet satisfying - if that makes sense; it really puts your brain to the test. The questions were harsh but I thoroughly enjoyed it!!!

The Ultimate Diabolik Lovers Quiz!

Want to find out how much of a dialovers expert you are? This quiz features 35 questions on content from across the franchise (some of which are much more difficult than others) so you can put your knowledge to the test. Good luck and let me know how you get on! 

(A part 2 may come at some point…)

Diabolik Lovers Drama CD Analysis: The Dinner Banquet by Moonlight

This drama CD is already a part of my HDB route analysis for Reiji’s character, however, I wanted to post it separately for convenience - this post mainly consists of both analysis and my own thoughts and interpretations. I thought I’d post this separately just in case anyone wanted to read my thoughts on it without having to scroll down my entire HDB route analysis. 

As always, this transcript is by the lovely @dialovers-translations.

So, shall we begin?

Word Count: 9,171 words

*Cling*

Reiji: Haah...I simply cannot get enough of the fragrance of this tea. During this short timespan given to me, I get to indulge in the highest of luxuries. At dawn, when everyone is falling asleep, enjoying a cup of tea by myself. A wonderful time just by myself. I even find myself wishing that the fools in this household would just never wake up again.

The door opens.

Shuu: ー Sorry to crush your dreams, but I’ll have to interrupt your ideal time.

Reiji: Hm? ...Tsk, Shuu. You truly do appear at the worst possible times. Hmph. Thanks to you, the best time and space changed to the worst time and space in the blink of an eye.

You usually do not wake up over the slightest thing, so what’s the matter?

Shuu: Hm...For some reason I couldn’t fall asleep. There’s this certain thing missing from my bed after all.

Reiji: ...’This certain thing?’

Right at the beginning of this CD, it’s pointed out to us that Reiji rarely gets his own time, he’s always busy with something and never really has any time to himself to relax - bringing us back to his perfectionism and how that can cause people to become restless until something has been ‘perfected’, leaving sparse amounts of time to simply sit back and enjoy your own company; yet that becomes interrupted, and Reiji’s sour mood returns.

It’s quite fitting that out of all the brothers, it’s Shuu who decides to deflate Reiji’s mood - if you’ve played or followed Shuu’s route, then you know that he’ll frequently do things to intentionally irritate Reiji, and I think that is exactly what he’s doing here. Shuu has a trivial problem, an inconvenience, and who does he annoy ? Reiji, and him being the way he is, voices his disdain for Shuu’s presence. What I find to be quite apt is how Shuu gives a vague hint to his problem and expects Reiji to know what it is. The reason I’ve said that it’s quite fitting of Shuu’s character to do this is because he does the same thing but with his emotions throughout his route - not only does he not elaborate on his inconvenience, but he purposefully makes Reiji question the circumstance; and we all know that Reiji despises not understanding things. To link back to a prior section, notice how Reiji only vocalises his displeasure, he doesn’t physically remove Shuu at any point, implying that he may not hate Shuu as a person, but he doesn’t condone his behaviour. Shuu catches Reiji’s attention and then promptly cuts him off, annoying him. Furthermore, notice how Reiji was the first person Shuu went to, yes Reiji is the most mature, but Shuu still went to him to fix his problem; that could imply that in this scenario, Reiji acts as the ‘caretaker’, the mature figurehead who deals with everything from financial affairs to personal problems - this further shows his need to succeed at everything, and be ‘perfect’ -.

Shuu: Nn...I’m tired...Oh well, I’ll sleep.

He drops down on the couch.

Reiji: Ah...! Wait! Please do not sleep on the couch!

Shuu: Zzz...Zz...

Reiji: Ugh...You...Vampire version of Sleeping Beauty! Shuu! You’re in the way! If you fall asleep there, it’ll ruin my long-awaited tea time! You’re an eyesore, so please disappear from my sight!

Shuu: ...Hm? ー Zz...Zz...

Reiji: ...! Kuh...He won’t wake up. This guy really...!

Hm. Oh well, it’s fine. I suppose he wishes to be killed by me. I’ll grant your wish right now.

Reiji pulls out a blade.

Reiji: Fufufu...If that’s what you want, Using this silver knife I’ve spent days and nights sharpening, I’ll chop off your head in a single motion. This is your punishment for corrupting my wonderful space. You deserve to die while writhing in pain.

Shuu: Nn... (sleep-talking) I can’t...suck no more...Zz...

Reiji: Heh. Dream on for eternity, Sakamaki Shuu.

Notice how Reiji still keeps up his politeness, even when practically yelling at Shuu - it’s fairly easy to see how much Reiji resents his brother, and with that in mind, it’s a natural response to be quick to anger. Yet, with Reiji’s annoyance growing, you’d think that his form of speech would differ and grow more irascible in his wording. I find it quite apt for Reiji to call Shuu “Sleeping Beauty”, not only for the fact that he usually just sleeps all the time, but the fact that Aurora/Talia/Briar-Rose (depending on what source you’re reading from) was a princess within the fable...and given that Karlheinz is the current Vampire King, that would give Shuu a ‘princely’ status. To add onto this, just because I thought it was neat, in the Disney adaptation of the fable, Aurora only speaks 18 lines - which reminded me of how little Shuu tends to speak. There’s not much to analyse for that part but I thought I’d mention it since I thought it was quite apt of Reiji to draw this comparison.

Something that did strike me as strange, was how Reiji decided to draw his sharpened knife at this point in the narrative - if Reiji truly hated Shuu (which I don’t think he does) why wait until now to attempt his murder ? In all honesty, I don’t think Reiji would’ve actually killed Shuu; in my opinion, I think it was more of a ploy to wake Shuu up - put him on high alert - and get him to leave the room. It’s in a vampire’s nature to have higher senses, so one should be able to detect another and or possible danger and it can be implied that Reiji was attempting to use those senses to his advantage in order to get Shuu to leave of his own accord. Additionally, how Reiji claims, “This is your punishment for corrupting my wonderful space. You deserve to die while writhing in pain” could be inferred to refer not only to Reiji’s current dilemma - his “wonderful space” being his time to himself without being interrupted, being surrounded by his own company and relishing in the sparseness of their occurrence; since Shuu has interrupted that, it has therefore become corrupt - however, it could also relate back to Reiji’s childhood and his CEN. It could be implied that if Shuu had been different, Reiji’s childhood might have been different too, but due to that not occurring, Reiji’s once ‘pure’ childhood has now been tarnished and 'corrupted' - pure in the sense that as an infant he would’ve received the care he needed, yet due to Shuu’s importance, that pure, ‘motherly’ care and acknowledgement was lost, and his once “wonderful space” was then only full of loathing and solitude; to me, that makes sense as to why Reiji says “You deserve to die writhing in pain”. Overall, this inference might be considered a long shot, however, it did pique my interest and I thought I’d share it.  

Approaching footsteps can be heard in the distance.

Ayato: ...Aaah!!

Kanato: Trying to kill him in his sleep...What a boring way to murder someone.

Laito: Nfu~ Are we interrupting something, perhaps?

Ayato: Oi!! Don’t try and kill him here, you idiot! Take that kind of stuff outside! You’re in the way!

Reiji: Why are you three here? Did you not say you’d be going to bed and headed to your rooms earlier?

Ayato: Ah, yeah, we did say something like that! But you see, I’m hungry so I just couldn’t fall asleep.

Laito: Nfu~ What were you trying to do while we were asleep, I wonder~?

Kanato: If you want to kill him, it’s the most fun when the other person is wide awake. You wouldn’t want to miss out on their suffering face, would you?

Ayato: Kanato, you really are messed up, huh?

Laito: Eeeh~? But you know, I can understand what Kanato is saying.

Kanato: Fufu...~

Reiji: Haah...

Shuu: (yawns) ...Shut up. Don’t make a fuss right next to the couch.

Laito: Oh dear? Have you awoken?

Shuu: Anyone would wake up if it’s that noisy...Che

Ayato: ...This is the living room, you know!? It doesn’t belong to you, so don’t go clicking your tongue like that! This is my turf!!

Laito: It doesn’t belong to you either, Ayato.

Ayato: Haah!? Every single thing in this house belongs to me!

In this section of the CD, we see Reiji take the passive role when faced with the triplets - which is evidently different from how he is with Yui, or Shuu for that matter - and this could possibly be due to their vast differences. It is to my interpretation that compared to Reiji, Shuu and Subaru, the triplets are rather unhinged and far more bombastic in their whims, desires and means of keeping control - more so Ayato and Kanato moreover Laito since he’s easier to negotiate with -. In addition to this, Reiji’s lack of dialogue in this part could imply back to his passive behaviour compared to the three, as well as present their character differences; and they also tend to listen more to Shuu over Reiji, which would no doubt cause friction, and could potentially link to why Reiji’s presented as passive towards the triplets - there wouldn’t be much point in trying to control their behaviour if they never planned on listening to Reiji in the first place -.

Kanato: Ah...I’m so...terribly hungry...

Ayato: Haah?

Kanato: I...I... *sniff* This whole time...

Ayato: ...Oh fuck.

Reiji: Hm? Kanato, what’s the matter?

Kanato: I’M TELLING YOU I’M HUNGRY, AM I NOT!? I’ve been telling you OVER AND OVER with the look in my eyes! What’s your problem!? Don’t make fun of me!!

Laito: Aha~! He snapped!

Kanato: You see, when I get hungry...I completely lose control...I just get so incredibly angry, I can’t help it!

*THUD*

Shuu: Aah...Noisy...

Ayato: Calm down already! If you throw a tantrum like that, you’ll only get even more hungry!

Kanato: Shut up!!

*THUD*

Kanato: As if you would understand how I feel!?

Ayato: ...!? Fuck, this pisses me off! Oi, Reiji! This is your responsibility!

Reiji: Haah? I’d appreciate it if you wouldn’t spout such nonsense. For starters, if you guys had just minded your own business...

I quite like this interaction between Reiji and Ayato here from the declarative “Oi, Reiji! This is your responsibility!“, it not only paints Ayato as a bit of a brat, but it also implements the theme that Reiji is the ‘caretaker’ among the brothers - he cooks, he cleans, he makes sure everyone is okay; more so Kanato, but that’s for an obvious reason. There’s also the implication that the triplets view Reiji as more of a ‘paternal figure’ since their actual father is absent from the majority of their lives, and due to Reiji’s strict and stiff personality, he would naturally be considered as the ‘responsible’ member of the household; hence why Ayato is quick to pass the responsibility of his brother’s hunger onto him - it reminds me of how a child would complain to their parent and then expect them to fix their problem -.

I’d also like to mention the use of aposiopesis, the ellipsis at the end of Reiji’s sentence implying that his dialogue is trailing off or ‘breaking’ and is left unfinished. For instance, it could imply that as he’s talking, he’s had the realisation that the triplets wouldn’t have listened to him anyway, but it could also represent his passiveness in the situation. He was on the verge of ‘killing’ Shuu and now he’s allowing his siblings to run rampant around the living room and declare him to fix Kanato’s problem...that doesn’t seem like the authoritative figure we follow through his route with Yui and I think Reiji’s purposely taking the back seat, and his unfinished sentence could be implied to demonstrate that. From my interpretation, it seems that Reiji’s initial thought process is to simply ‘stick it out’ until the triplets leave, and he can once again attempt to have his moment of relaxation.

Kanato: Uu... *sniff* Anything will do...Anything...Just...FILL MY BELLY!!

*THUD*

Laito: Nfu~

Shuu: Aah...What a pain.

Reiji: ...I understand. I understand so please calm down! I will make you a homemade meal. ESPECIALLY for you guys’ sake, I will do that.

Shuu: It isn’t really special or anything. You’ve always been the one in charge of cooking.

Reiji: Shuu!!

Laito: Nfu~ Either way, we don’t want Kanato to cry and complain any longer, so please get right to cooking~

Reiji: Good grief... (mumbles) Why do I have to do all of this...One day, I’ll kill these guys for sure...

Kanato: Did you say something!?

It’s evident to see that compared to all the brothers, Reiji often goes overlooked or simply does not hold more of a notable presence; and I think scenes like this display that quite well. Phrases such as “I understand. I understand so please calm down! I will make you a homemade meal. ESPECIALLY for you guys’ sake, I will do that” portray Reiji as a character who tries to conform, reason and reassure the situation at hand; the fact that he repeats the verb phrase “I understand” implies that he’s opting to reason with Kanato’s demands and let him know that the problem will be addressed and sorted. By following Reiji’s route, we understand that he’s a character who abhors unnecessary drama and complaints; therefore, he’s attempting to solve the problem quickly and avoid any possible tantrums from Kanato’s end.

*TIMESKIP*

Reiji: Here you go, now there’s nothing to complain about, is there?

He drops the plate on the table.

Laito: Nfu~ So violent! The pudding you took your time making will become a mess!

Reiji: Even if it looks bad, as long as your stomach gets filled, it shouldn’t be a problem, right?

Ayato: ...Are you happy now, Kanato?

Kanato: ...Pudding! Sparkling...Pudding!!

Reiji: I present to you, Sakamaki Reiji’s special iron-packed pudding, topped with raspberry sauce.

Kanato: *munch much* Mm...~

Reiji: Hey! At least give your impressions first! Like ‘it looks good’, or ‘thank you’ to express your gratitude!

Kanato: Haahn...*munch munch*

Reiji: ...The cold shoulder!?

The notion that Reiji drops the plate on the table alongside his remark presents a passive-aggressive tone, which I think is quite fitting since he likes to display a more ‘gentlemanly’ façade - he’s obliged to Kanato’s whims even though he didn’t want to; passive-aggressiveness naturally comes hand-in-hand with that sort of behaviour, that sort of passive behaviour. Additionally, Laito’s remark of “so violent” could imply that he doesn’t take Reiji’s sour mood too seriously and opts to play off of it - it can be further implied that none of the triplets take Reiji’s efforts seriously at all. This inference can be found when Kanato gorges the pudding without uttering a word, which causes Reiji to grow more irritated since he feels like he’s entitled to an utterance of praise to “express your [Kanato’s] gratitude“. It not only displays Reiji’s passiveness to ‘give in’ to Kanato’s anger, but it also displays his incessant need for praise, acknowledgement and attention from others - which we can clearly see throughout his route, as it stemmed from his childhood and CEN -. It also explains why Reiji becomes quite expressive when given “the cold shoulder!?” by Kanato.

Ayato: Haah...Oh well, he calmed down so whatever? By the way, Reiji, isn’t there any for us? Aah!?

Reiji: ...Why would I have to cook for you guys as well?

Shuu: ...I’m hungry.

Ayato: Exactly, hungry!

Laito: Right~? We’re totally starved!

Reiji: I do not care! Why not cook for yourself?

I find it quite humorous that Ayato expects for there to be food for him and the others, it not only shows his entitlement, but also his treatment of Reiji - the caretaker, the figurehead, the paternal figure, the butler -. It’s at this moment that Reiji shows his more authoritative side towards the brothers and attempts to cut their interaction short - evidently it doesn’t work, but it shows how the other brothers are willing to take advantage of Reiji’s efforts in order to sate their own needs. It both displays the brothers’ selfishness, but also Reiji’s lack of presence - which could imply why he’s as brutal and manipulative as he is throughout the entirety of his route -.

Ayato: If we were allowed to, we would...But are you sure? If we were to cook, who knows what will happen to the kitchen...

Laito: Right? Weren’t you the one who lashed out at us for using the kitchen the other day?

Shuu: Ah...That was...Because you guys made the whole thing explode, right?

Ayato: It wasn’t an explosion! We were only cooking!

Reiji: Would the kitchen really explode from just cooking? ...It can’t be helped. I’ll make an exception and make something for you guys as well.

Shuu: Try and make it as quick as possible, okay?

Reiji: ...! For some reason I just don’t feel satisfied... Oh well, I suppose it’s fine. I will make you something.

Kanato: ...I’m looking forward to it.

Reiji: You’re still planning on eating more!?

Here we see both Ayato and Laito display their slyness, a little bit of reverse-psychology in order to get their way - to eat without cooking -. I find it quite fitting that Shuu also plays into this, not only due to his apathy and laziness, but also because he knows that it’ll irritate Reiji; in turn, their ploy works, Reiji questions himself, something that he does internally quite frequently, showing his more doubtful side, and gives in to their demands. Interactions such as this show how the brothers tend to treat Reiji as a servant of sorts - and can explain why Reiji treats Yui as such, he’s treating her how he himself is treated. It’s both sad and ironic. However, Shuu’s quick remark of “Try and make it as quick as possible, okay?” not only shows his gall, but his ungratefulness towards Reiji, and how far he’s willing to go in order to annoy him; and Reiji’s reluctant to that, he yet again gives in and becomes passive, this can be seen through the phrase “it’s fine”. It’s a phrase we all use when we yield or back down from something, even if we’re not fine with it; it presents our own passivity towards something that may cause conflict. I also wanted to bring attention to Kanato’s dialogue here, as it again presents the brothers’ entitlement, and how they each expect Reiji to rally round each and every one of their problems or inconveniences - but also, the exchange is quite funny to me -.

*TIMESKIP*

Reiji: Now you can’t complain.

He drops the plates on the table again.

Laito: Nfu~ What a brute. There’s no reason to slam them down like that.

Ayato: Woah!! Despite everything, in the end Reiji’s a good guy! He made all of our favourite dishes! I’m digging iiin~ *munch munch*

Delicious, this Takoyaki!!

Laito: These macaroons as well...They’re sublime~ Almost as if they’re straight from a famous store in Paris. Nfu~

Shuu: *munch munch* The steak’s good...

Reiji: ...!!! Unconsciously...I ended up...making everyone’s favourite dish...I almost seem like you guys’ mother at this point! Damnit!

He slams his fist against the table.

Reiji: ...I can’t forgive myself.

Again, we see Reiji’s passive-aggressiveness through his mannerisms, for which Laito states “What a brute”. The phrase itself holds no deeper meaning in the context and is mainly used to display Laito’s ‘playful’ personality and mockery towards Reiji. Additionally, the praise that Reiji lacked from Kanato earlier is made up for here by Ayato, Laito and Shuu as they each state that: “The steak’s good”, “They’re [the macaroons] sublime” and “Despite everything, in the end Reiji’s a good guy”. I wanted to bring attention to the third comment - made by Ayato - as I find it quite significant towards Reiji’s character. It can not only be used in the context that he’s gone out of his way to please the others and their ravenous stomachs, but it could also relate to his route in general - throughout Reiji’s route he (at first) treats Yui quite poorly yet, when the time calls for it, he’s also there for her; he’s got Yui’s back when all else fails is what I’m trying to say. That despite everything, Reiji does care for Yui, it’s just in his own messed up way.

Furthermore, I find the notion that Reiji subconsciously cooked their favourite meals to be quite telling - implying that as much as he claims to hate his brothers, he’s still meticulous in their preferences; inadvertently showing that he does, in retrospect, care for them. The added factor that Reiji seems to despise the fact that he’s catered to everyone’s favourite dish, and can’t forgive himself for it could imply that to some degree, Reiji views himself as a ‘bad’ person - or that he likes to think that he’s a bad person in order for him to make sense of his childhood; again bringing us back to his CEN and the belief that a child has to be ‘wrong’ in some way for their parents to not love them, and with that in mind, it therefore makes a little more sense as to why Reiji becomes frustrated with himself after this situation.

Footsteps approach

Subaru: ...Oi!!

*THUD*

Reiji: ...! That startled me! ...Subaru?

Subaru: Che...Makin’ a fuss down here...You’re all far too loud, I can’t sleep!!

Reiji: Aah...My apologies for the inconvenience. However, it should be resolved now. Their bellies have been filled, so they should soon...

Subaru: Oi, make something for me as well.

Reiji: Haah...?

Subaru: ‘Cause of these guys I woke up and when I came downstairs, the air was filled with nothing but delicious smells. Now I’m hungry as well.

Ayato: *munch munch* Aah? If you snack at night, you’ll get fat!

Reiji: Speak for yourself!

Subaru: ...Che! Hurry up! I’m starved!

Reiji: Heh. I refuse. I’ve been cooking non-stop since earlier, and I do not wish to return to the kitchen over and over again.

Subaru: Haaah...!?

Reiji: Seeing you sulk that much makes me uncomfortable too, if you are dissatisfied, why don’t you...

*CRASH SHATTER*

Reiji: ...!?

Laito: Ah-aaah~ Look at that hole in the cupboard. Now we get a nice view of the moon.

The added appearance of Subaru to this scene allows us to view Reiji from different perspectives and scenarios. Subaru also desires food and Reiji puts his foot down and denies - showing assertiveness towards his sibling - and from that, Subaru begins to destroy the house - throwing a makeshift tantrum if you will -. It could infer that if either the triplets or Subaru don’t get their own way, they’ll resort to violence, which would no doubt cause Reiji an unending amount of hassle; it links back to the point I made previously, that Reiji is treated as some form of servant by his brothers, and in order to avoid a large scale conflict, he must oblige and become passive (to a degree, he still remains his usual snarky self). It could be implied that when Subaru creates a hole in the cupboard, it’s as if to say “don’t test me”, and we all know that Reiji is a man who prefers to avoid unnecessary risks, and so, he becomes complaisant. It’s a good tactic on Subaru’s end, yet form Reiji’s perspective, it shows his lack of assertiveness towards his brothers, and how he allows himself to be pushed around by them - which obviously allows all that negativity to bubble and fester for him to later take out on Yui -.

Shuu: Nn...It’s cold...

Subaru: Oi...Shall I do more? Aaah!?

Reiji: Haah...

Subaru: I don’t mind wrecking every single wall in this damn place.

Ayato: Oi, oi, cut us some slack. It’ll become something even worse than a haunted house.

Shuu: Father will go on a rampage so cut it out. This is a pain.

Reiji: ...!! Father will!? That’s...You leave me with no other choice, I understand. I’ll make you something.

Subaru takes a seat.

Subaru: Make it quick, got it?

Reiji: Just sit still there and prepare yourself!

Laito: Nfu~ He may be complaining, but he sure looks after us well.

Reiji: Laito! Did you say something just now?

Laito: Noo~ Nothing at all. Nfu~

Once Reiji realises that their “Father will go on a rampage” if any more damage is done, he’s quick to null Subaru’s behaviour. We know that out of all six brothers, Reiji is the only one to value his father’s opinion and presence - I’ve mentioned why earlier on during the childhood section, but it again links back to his CEN and need for approval. Reiji wants to prove that he’s capable and successful to his father so that he may receive the love he lost out on, he wants to be acknowledged by him and prove he’s worthy enough to be loved. 

I also like how not only Ayato calls out Reiji’s ‘soft spot’, but Laito also points it out too, and - in typical Reiji fashion - Reiji’s quick to dismiss the statement by goading Laito to repeat his phrase, which Laito promptly denies. It links back to the point I made of it earlier, that Reiji doesn’t want to think of himself as a ‘good’ person, this could be due to a multitude of things such as his upbringing, race, resentment of Shuu, the fact he had his own mother killed, his treatment of Yui etc. However, in my opinion, it could also be implied that Reiji doesn’t want to believe that he’s a ‘good’ person because that could allow his brothers to take advantage of him further; that his ‘politeness’ could be his downfall and no one would take him seriously or see him as a threat - especially in regards to Yui -.

*TIMESKIP*

Reiji: This is the last dish for the night, got it!?

*THUD*

Subaru: ...Haah!? What’s up with that attitude!? ...By the way, what’s this?

Reiji: Hmph. You’re always saying how you don’t have a favourite meal, so I made this from the leftovers.

Ayato: Aah? What’s this? Pasta?

Laito: It’s Reiji’s favourite Carbonara, right?

Reiji: Heh. Despite complaining about being hungry earlier, in the end, you have a small appetite. Since I assumed you wouldn’t have much, I figured it would be best to make my own favourite meal, so I could eat it afterwards.

Subaru: Che...Fuck. You made me this sloppy, slimy dish...

Reiji: Exactly. That’s why it might be wise for you to pass up o...

Subaru starts wolfing down the pasta.

The more this scene continues, the more apparent Reiji’s passive-aggressiveness shows; the irony of Subaru asking what Reiji’s problem is, is honestly brilliant. It really shows how out of touch each brother is with one another. I also quite like how Reiji just assumes that Subaru won’t eat the meal and it backfires exponentially - it demonstrates that Reiji not only underestimates Yui but also his brothers; yes, it also shows his manipulation since he more or less goads Subaru into not eating the Carbonara since it’s Reiji’s favourite dish, again linking back to Reiji’s reverse-psychology and anti-conformity tactics.

Subaru: *munch munch* Mm...

Reiji: You’re actually eating it!?

Kanato: Smells nice...Let me have a little too.

Subaru: (talking with his mouth full) Just go ‘head and take some...

Kanato: Okay. Thank you very much. Bon appetite.

Reiji: Hold up! My share! Make sure to leave some for me too!

Subaru: Haah? As if I care...

*Sluuuurp*

Reiji: Aaaah! Scarfing it down like that...! I made a larger portion so at least leave some behind!

Kanato: Thank you for the meal~

Ayato: Woah! They ate it all in one go!

Reiji: ...You’ve got to be kidding me!? That amount...By just the two of them, all at once...

By having Subaru eat the dish, and Reiji consequently being surprised by that, it presents the implication that Reiji’s intellect and ego can sometimes precede him and thus demonstrates his overconfidence. He’s overconfident in himself to always be right, but he also underestimates everyone else around him to play into his tactics. I also enjoy how Kanato also digs in too, it not only shows both Subaru and Kanato getting along for once, but I just find it funny how someone as petite as Kanato is eating so much; it’s also amusing how they both disregard the fact that Reiji made the dish for himself and yet by the end of it, he’s the only one who’s not eaten. Reiji’s dialogue of “Hold up! My share! Make sure to leave some for me too!” could be interpreted as a plea, he’s almost begging for his two siblings to leave him some of his own dish; the ellipsis during the statement, “...You’ve got to be kidding me!? That amount...By just the two of them, all at once...” sells his disbelief at the prospect of the situation he’s just caused himself. I like to think that this shows how his usual cocky behaviour can, at times, backfire. It shows that he’s not as perfect as he likes to think he is and that assumptions can do more harm than good.

Subaru: ...Phew~ It didn’t taste bad.

Reiji: Ugh...Why did you not leave my share behind? Today’s carbonara turned out excellent as well!

Subaru: You made it for me, so I get to decide what to do with it. Stop complainin’...!

Reiji clenches his fists.

Bearing that in mind, we again see Reiji become a little more assertive towards his sibling yet he quickly becomes passive once more. We see this through Subaru’s retort, and again shows how Reiji’s usage of words can backfire; therefore, that then gives him no logical argument to present to Subaru, and so, he clenches his fists. Reiji’s body language within this section is telling of both his passiveness and also his anger, it can be implied that clenching your fists is the result of pent up anger and frustration; with that in mind, this can therefore link back to Reiji and his ‘control issues’ - his perfectionism, his narcissism and his need to monopolise everything -. I particularly enjoy how Subaru calls Reiji out on this by telling him to “Stop complainin’...!”. The declarative itself presents Subaru as a reckless character, but as someone who has more presence than Reiji; it also presents the difference between Reiji and Shuu compared to their respective siblings - both Shuu and Reiji are a lot quieter and reserved in their ways, whereas Subaru and the triplets are vocal, disruptive and reckless in their behaviour. However, this section could also imply that Reiji knows when to hold his tongue so that conflict does not break out on his end, it can be implied that he clearly wants to argue back against Subaru due to his clenched fists (showing his irritation) yet, he holds back. He holds back because as we know, Subaru’s temper and sheer strength can often be a loose cannon, and I don’t believe Reiji would challenge that; hence why his fists are clenched - he’s ‘biting his tongue’ so to speak -.

Reiji: Kuh...

Laito: Aah~ My belly’s filled and we get such a nice view of the moon from here.

Ayato: Yeah! I finally feel satisfied!

Shuu: I feel you.

Reiji: Ah...That’s right! All of you were finally able to fill your empty stomachs, weren’t you? All because of me! That being said, hurry up and...

Laito: Nn...

Ayato: I’ve gotten sleepy... *yawns*

Shuu: Zz...

Kanato: Good niiiiight~

Reiji: Hold up! Will you all be sleeping here!? I was just about to pour myself a cup of tea to lift my mood! Return to your rooms at this instant!

Ayato: ...That’s a pain. Who cares if we sleep here?

Reiji’s frustration becomes more and more apparent as the CD continues and this section displays that, especially through his need for recognition, “All because of me!”. This exclamative demonstrates both his aggression and his thirst for acknowledgement - he wants thanks for his aid -. The personal pronoun “me” can be implied to present Reiji’s self-importance, as he’s stating that his siblings’ stomachs would still be in ‘peril’ if he hadn’t been ‘generous’ enough to provide what they wanted; yet again, he and his remarks are completely and utterly ignored, it demonstrates that his brothers don’t take him seriously and that he’s just the ‘parental’ figure, he’s the butler to them. When you see Reiji’s treatment from the other brothers, it becomes easier to understand why he’s the way he is with Yui, especially his need for reassurance and praise.

Reiji’s demands are again ignored; each line he speaks at the end of this section is an exclamative, he’s quite literally shouting at them and he goes disregarded - as the CD continues his mood decreases and decreases until he more or less gives up and gives in to his brothers’ anarchy. I’d like to link this back to Reiji’s relationship to Yui, much like how over time Reiji wears Yui down into becoming more or less subservient to his whims and desires, here we see almost the same thing - their situations parallel each other - as all the brothers exhaust Reiji and wear him down until he inevitable gives them what they want. It all inadvertently links back to Reiji wanting to cause others the same pain and struggles he feels and this circumstance is no difference; if anything, it displays it to a bigger extent.

Laito: *yawn* Napping in the light of the moon...is another one of my ways to have fun. Nn...I’m sleepy...

Reiji: Don’t actually fall asleep!

Kanato: Uu...*sniff* I’m tired but...You’re being noisy...

Reiji: ...! What is you guys’ problem!?

Subaru: My thoughts exactly! Getting sleepy after eating...You’re all Vampires, aren’t ya!? This is the pinnacle of laziness.

Reiji: Exactly...Indulging in human food and then falling right asleep...Heh! This is unbelievable.

Subaru: As a Vampire...It has to be ‘that’, or I just can’t feel satisfied. Isn’t that true?

Reiji: You’re right.

Reiji licks his lips.

Reiji: In the end...Nothing beats drinking the blood from a fair lady’s neck. Otherwise, our hunger and thirst can simply not be quenched.

Subaru: Heh, so simple-minded.

Reiji: What?

Within this section Reiji’s mood changes rather quickly from Subaru’s remark at his brothers’ laziness, and then it reverts back to his usual sour mood. What I wanted to bring attention to here is how Reiji’s mood lifts when someone is in accordance with him, they have either similar or the same views as him; it relates back to Reiji’s need for approval and reassurance, and for a brief moment, Subaru allows him to indulge in that which therefore lifts his mood.

I do find it quite humorous how Subaru calls Reiji of all people “simple-minded”. It could imply back to Reiji’s lack of presence, he doesn’t stick out all that much compared to the others; therefore he could be viewed as bland by both his brothers and us as the audience, so by Reiji declaring that drinking from the neck is best, it wouldn’t stick out all that much - it’s the typical place to bite within most Vampiric fiction -. With this statement from Reiji alongside his more passive presence, “simple” would be the first word to come to mind - if you weren’t aware of the complexities of Reiji’s character, or, from the brothers’ perspective, the inner struggles and complexities of Reiji behind closed doors, it’d be natural to label him as “simple”. With this implication in mind, it could be seen as quite a meta joke from our perspective.

Subaru: Drinking from the neck is too orthodox, it’s boring. Besides, the taste of the blood is too rich, it’s not my cup of tea.

Reiji: ...Is that your way of indirectly ridiculing me?

Subaru: I just meant to say that an old geezer’s tastes are different from mine.

Reiji: O-Old geezer...!? There isn’t that large of an age gap between us!

Subaru: Hah! Then at least your appearance is that of an old geezer! You’re barely any different from our old man. ...When it comes to blood, you see, it’s best when sucked from a woman’s ankle. When you bite her there, you get a perfect view of how she tries to reject you with her entire body.

Shuu: Heh...Hehehe...

Reiji: Shuu! Weren’t you asleep?

Shuu: No, Subaru’s childish lecture on blood-sucking was simply too hilarious...I couldn’t help myself.

Subaru: Haah!? Child, you say!?

Shuu: If you’re going to call Reiji an old man, then so am I, right? In that case, you’re nothing but a brat. A child.

Subaru: ...Ugh.

It can be implied that when Reiji uses the interrogative, “Is that your way of indirectly ridiculing me?“ he’s not just asking if he’s wrong, he’s posing the question “are you mocking me ?”; therefore, ‘ask’ in this context could be implied to mean ‘demand’ instead - it all depends on how you yourself interpret the tone of this dialogue -. However, with Reiji’s character in mind, it could be inferred that he’s almost offended by Subaru’s comment, as if to say “are you saying what I’m doing is wrong ?” and we all know that Reiji loathes being wrong or seen as “simple-minded” as Subaru put it; Reiji’s a character who enjoys using his intelligence to overpower his prey and back them into a corner mentally - therefore, to have that pulled into question would most likely cause some form of offence to Reiji, he’s intelligent and he’s a man of tradition; I doubt he’d enjoy having that mocked. It also links us back to his ‘retraining’ of Yui, throughout Reiji’s route in HDB as Yui barely calls out Reiji’s behaviour and she never mocks him whereas the brothers do; most likely if Yui went against Reiji she’d be punished with something truly abhorrent. However, in other routes (I’ll pick Laito’s HDB route since it’s the closest to Reiji’s in terms of psychological abuse) she ‘bites’ back a lot more - such as when she quite literally bites Laito’s lip when he kisses her against he will...and what does Laito do ? He plays it off and treats Yui like a game - both Laito and Reiji treat Yui as a psychological game, something to crack and break until they’re subservient, in essence, it’s a game of cat and mouse to these two. I wanted to compare this little section because compared to Laito, Reiji wouldn’t stand for Yui fighting back and would most likely view it as ‘bad manners’, later punishing her for it. My point is that Laito’s the type of character who doesn’t let mockery or resistance offend him, or get under his skin, whereas Reiji is, and I think that’s due to the mockery he endures from his brothers - Reiji is quite often the ‘butt of the joke’ whereas Laito is not and treatment like this would undoubtedly effect Reiji’s tolerance towards his siblings as well as Yui’s resistance. 

I also like Shuu’s interjection here; how he calls Subaru a child when Reiji is called an “old geezer”. It’s not just Shuu saying that Subaru’s the youngest and he doesn’t know what he’s talking about, it’s also Shuu retaliating since he’s just indirectly been called old, but it’s also Shuu inadvertently defending Reiji. By Shuu naming Subaru a “brat”, he’s unintentionally defending Reiji and fighting his corner even though he’s most likely only trying to save his own feelings since he’s the eldest and he’s basically just been told through Subaru’s remark at Reiji that he also looks like an “old geezer”. Shuu - who we know likes to wind up Reiji - has just haphazardly defended the brother he has so many quarrels with; it’s both unintentionally funny and quite endearing.

Shuu: In that case, I can understand why you would suggest something as childish as drinking from the ankle.

Subaru: Then which place do you prefer!?

Shuu: Me...? I...Let’s see...It has to be the chest, right? Piercing through the veins closest to the heart and sucking her blood suits my tastes best. The blood flowing from those veins is so sweet, it’s almost like syrup, you know?

Subaru: Che...So you are an old geezer after all!

Shuu: At least call it an adult’s acquired taste, youngster.

Reiji: Okay, no fighting! Besides, don’t be engaging in such ridiculous quarrels here, but take them elsewhe...

Laito: ...I can’t help but like drinking from the thighs best, I suppose~ Drinking from a young maiden’s second softest spot makes the blood slightly greasy, it sticks to my throat...Nfu~

Subaru: Che...Laito! You were awake as well?

I’d like to bring attention to the aposiopesis that Reiji uses within his dialogue here. Aposiopesis is the device of suddenly breaking off in speech, which can be found within “elsewhe...”, it shows how Reiji’s speech is trailing off in tone, but if we pair it with the ellipsis at the beginning of Laito’s sentence, it can be interpreted that Reiji is once again being interrupted by his siblings, and with the inclusion of the ellipsis at the end of Reiji’s dialogue, it can be further implied that he knows he’s about to be ‘cut off’; hence why aposiopesis has been included, Reiji trails his sentence off - possibly growing quieter depending on how you interpret ellipsis - because he knows he’s going to be interrupted again. It’s a regular occurrence for Reiji’s character to be cut off by his brothers or just ignored in general. I didn’t want to say too much about this section or derail into a tangent since I’d just be repeating myself but I did want to mention the aposiopesis.

Laito: I was finally thinking of getting some rest, but you guys’ started talking about something interesting so I woke up again.

Reiji: In that case, please use this opportunity to take your leave! All of you have been given your own, proper room after all!

Kanato: Uu... *sniffles* ...Shut up...! I can’t sleep...I CAN’T SLEEP LIKE THIS!! Teddy...My Teddy is saying he can’t sleep either...It upsets him!

Reiji: ...! Don’t suddenly scare me like that!

Kanato: I...Such thing...Whether it’s the neck or the feet, the chest or the thighs...I don’t care about all of that!

*THUD*

Kanato: I...The place I like best...are the fingers. In particular, the little finger - which looks as if you could just bite it off - is my preference.

Subaru: Basically...What you’re trying to say is that, right?  You might just accidentally eat the whole pinkie ー That’s what you mean, isn’t it?

Kanato: Fufu...Haha...What happens, happens, but it’d be twice as delicious.

Shuu: Ugh...I’ll pass up on human flesh.

Laito: Likewise. Picking out the bones is a pain after all. If I were to eat it, it would have to be properly seasoned.

Something to note here is Kanato’s outburst, as soon as Reiji proposes that they all retire back to their rooms so that he may indulge in his own privacy Kanato has one of his famous outbursts - which then scares Reiji -. However, once Kanato begins to talk again, he brings the conversation back to blood drinking; the very ‘argument’ that Reiji was trying to dissipate between Shuu, Subaru and Laito. It not only displays that Kanato uses his violent emotions to get his own way (as per usual with him) but that Reiji’s interests and pleas are of no concern to anyone - Kanato has basically just shut Reiji up in order to carry on the conversation at hand between the other siblings; it genuinely shows how dismissive of Reiji all the brothers are.

Reiji: Right, right. Putting this talk about flesh and bones aside, now that you are all awake, hurry up and...

Ayato: ...If you’re gonna suck her, it has to be the nape, right? I don’t like it to be too fatty. Something a little more refreshing is exactly my taste!

Reiji: ...!? Ayato, you too...

Subaru: But that’s lacking, don’t you think? Then it feels like you barely even had any.

Ayato: That’s not true! To make up for it, you just have to drink plenty!

Reiji: Well, Ayato has always been quantity over quality. That being said...

Shuu: Jeez...Both Ayato and you guys don’t know a thing.

Reiji: Shuu...Please don’t stir up this conversation again...

Kanato: ...Saying we don’t know...*sniff* That’s just...Too cruel! Both me and Teddy...*sniffle* did our best to come up with an answer! Yet you completely disregard it like that...

At this point it’s growing quite clear that Reiji’s giving up on the conversation - he has his little quip at Ayato’s expense, but aside from that and the usage of ellipsis and aposiopesis, it can be implied that Reiji’s grown tired of trying to be assertive towards his brothers; opting to replace his strict orders with reluctant pleas - something we tend not to see during his actual route - and it shows the difference between Reiji and his siblings.

Laito: Exactly! Right above the chest is standard just like the neck, isn’t it? Or perhaps the eldest son standing at the head of this long-lasting Sakamaki household has no other choice but to protect such traditions?

Shuu: Are you trying to insult me? A ‘fake’ pervert like yourself probably doesn’t even understand the profound meaning behind standards.

Laito: A fake pervert? ‘Pretending’, you say?

Reiji: Fine, fine! Who cares if it’s just an act? If you were a true pervert at heart, it would be disgusting anyway. So, everyone, pleaseーー

Ayato: This kind of pisses me off...The way you’re looking down on us. I don’t give a damn ‘bout you being the eldest son of not...The greatest person in this household is this Ore-sama over here!

Shuu: Hah. You’re lame.

Ayato: Aah?

Subaru: He really is. Being the ‘greatest’ or the ‘strongest’, bullshit.

Ayato: What did you say? You wanna fight!?

Subaru: Fine by me. ‘Cause I had my fill earlier...

He cracks his knuckles.

Subaru: ...I’m overflowing with energy now. I need a little something to let off some steam.

First and foremost, I wanted to draw attention to Shuu calling out Laito’s façade, I don’t intend to do a deep dive into the subliminal meaning of this interaction since this is a psychoanalysis of Reiiji but I did think that it was quite funny to see Laito become irritated at the fact that Shuu’s basically just called out his entire defence mechanism with little to no effort at all. Secondly, I like how Reiji chooses to ignore this, his irritation has come back, since by almost removing himself from the conversation at hand, he’s allowed Kanato’s outburst to derail the situation further and allowed for Shuu to cause conflict between the brothers. The exclamations are back and his snappy attitude is coming to the forefront; this can be implied through “Who cares....”. It can be implied that Reiji’s becoming aerated once more since he’s once again trying to control the situation - to no avail again -, everything’s getting out of hand and it’s doing so at a quick pace, and Reiji’s attempting to defuse this; it once again demonstrates Reiji’s control issues that we see quite prominently through his route and his treatment towards Yui.

Reiji: Honestly...So hot-headed. Are you listening to what I’m saying? You lot, I would GREATLY appreciate it if you would all take your leave. Right now!

Laito: Nfu~ If you want us to leave, you might have no other choice but to use brute force.

Reiji: Haah...?

Kanato: Horrible...Telling us to leave...Even though we’ve been expressing our will to stay here...Isn’t there a single place for me and Teddy in this whole manor...!?

Reiji: Hold up, I never said that. I’m simply telling you to rest in your own roー

*CRASH*

Reiji: ...!?

Laito: Ah-ahh~ Here we go.

Ayato: Heh...You vandal! Even if you try to scare me off by destroying our surroundings, you won’t get your way!

*CRASH THUD*

Subaru: Heh! Lame! You’re nothing but a fraud! Nobody has ever thought of you as ‘amazing’ or ‘strong’!

Ayato: What did you just say...!?

*CRASH*

*CLATTER*

The situation quickly devolves into madness and as it does, Reiji’s dialogue reflects that, he emphasises his words alongside his exclamations - and what happens ? It devolves even more, Laito takes this opportunity to aggravate Reiji further by taunting him; and Kanato takes this to an extreme, interpreting Reiji’s words to mean that he [Kanato] has no place within their house and that he doesn’t belong there. 

Reiji: Waiー! The manor...The manor will fall apart! Shuu! Didn’t you say that father would be enraged!? Please stop them!

Shuu: Ugh...What a hassle.

Reiji: It isn’t ‘a hassle’!

*SHATTER*

Laito: Hm...But stopping those two once they’re like that is rather difficult, don’t you think?

*THUD*

Laito: More importantly...Shuu...Let’s continue our discussion from earlier.

Shuu: Hm? What do you mean?

Laito: That I’m a fake pervert. I’d like you to explain yourself.

Shuu: What? You’re still talking about that? You’re surprisingly one to hold grudges.

Laito: Nfu~ I get told that a looot~ ...Well then, tell me your reasoning. Depending on what you say, even I won’t forgive you.

*CRASH*

I genuinely enjoy how Reiji becomes frantic at the realisation that their father would be “enraged” by their reckless commotion. It not only displays how much Reiji’s values his father’s opinion but it also removes him further from his brothers - the rest of them could care less about what their father thinks or feels, yet Reiji persists, he doesn’t want to displease him because he wants to be acknowledged by him; it all brings us back to his raging CEN, but at this point Reiji’s losing his usual calm composure - his composure drops and his control of the situation decreases. The situation has become out of hand and Reiji’s becoming quite desperate for the commotion to end; I think that’s why he states “It isn’t ‘a hassle’!“, Reiji’s genuinely asking for help in order to rein his brothers in. Additionally, the notion that Reiji uses single quotation marks in regards to Shuu’s statement could imply that Reiji’s showing some form of sass towards the situation, and what happens ? Latio cuts in - meaning Reiji is promptly ignored and avoided - so that his and Shuu’s ‘discussion’ can continue, which then spurs another argument to arise.

Reiji: Ugh...These two are starting an argument as well...Just cut it out already!

Kanato: *sniff sniff* Why is...everyone...so loud!? Shut up! SHUT UP!! I don’t understand!

Reiji: You are plenty noisy yourself!

Kanato: ...! That’s why...That’s why you tried to drive us out earlier, didn’t you?

Reiji: ...! ‘Drive out’, you say?  It might have sounded that way but...

Kanato: You’re admitting it, huh? You just admitted it, didn’t you? That you tried to get rid of us!

Reiji: Ah...So what!? I simply wanted to enjoy a cup of tea by myself, that’s all!

Kanato: Shut up!! ...In that case, please brace yourself. Teddy, he is the embodiment of all evil trying to strip us of the place we belong. You don’t have to hold back, okay?

Reiji: Aaah, come on! Why...Why does it always turn out like this!??

Kanato: Teddy...GO!!

*Pow pow pow pow pow*

Reiji: ...Don’t attack me with your stuffed bear! Aah, please!! Just cut me some slack! Whatever happens, don’t come crying to me afterwards...!!

*CRAAAASH*

ーー THE END ーー

Something that I wanted to place emphasis on is the notion that Reiji and Kanato are the only pair left. What I mean by this, is that it’s quite apt for these two to be the only ones left - we know that Reiji is treated as an outcast by his brothers for his dictatorial personality and strict need for rules and control however, Kanato is also viewed as an outcast by his brothers too, most prominently Ayato and Subaru with Ayato calling him a “hysteric” for his unbearable personality and incomprehensible actions. Notice the similarity ? None of the brothers can bear to be around Reiji due to his uptight personality and none of the brothers can stand to be around Kanato due to his mania. The outcasts are grouped together however, it’s also the dynamic of a parental figure and a child being presented too since Reiji tends to look after Kanato - it’s a mature and immature dynamic -.

I also wanted to bring attention to when Kanato exclaims “I don’t understand!”, it’s quite sad from his perspective since it showcases how much of an outcast he is compared to the other brothers, again something we see with Reiji. However, I like how Reiji genuinely shouts back at him with “You are plenty noisy yourself!“, it shows Kanato’s lack of self-awareness and it also displays Reiji’s irritation - he’s lost complete control of the situation and now he’s watching from the side-lines unable to do anything because no one will bother to listen to him. I also wanted to give weight to when Reiji says “It might have sounded that way but...” towards Kanato’s statement as it can be implied that in this moment, Reiji is attempting to show compassion towards Kanato yet he quickly justifies his actions; it presents the implication that Reiji is willing to compromise but he will remain logical towards whatever circumstance is thrown his way - much like how he is with Cordelia within his route -.

Additionally, the image of Reiji being attacked by Teddy is honestly hilarious. But, I wanted to bring attention to Reiji’s last piece of dialogue: “Just cut me some slack! Whatever happens, don’t come crying to me afterwards...!!”. It poses the implication that Reiji is practically pleading with Kanato to leave him be - he’s worn out and frustrated - but it’s the implication that Kanato goes to Reiji when something goes wrong that’s somewhat endearing to me, and it reinforces what I implied earlier, that there’s a parent/child dynamic between the two - one outcast looking out for the other, if you will -. I just think that it’s quite a sweet implication to make between the two given that they are ‘pushed out’ compared to their siblings.

In conclusion, Reiji is mostly dismissed and ignored by his brothers, and can be implied to only be viewed as the butler façade he tends to display; and if you think about it, it’s honestly quite sad, but it gives us the understanding as to why he’s so controlling of Yui and why he craves attention and acknowledgement for his actions. If his brothers are barely willing to appreciate Reiji’s ‘good manners’, then it can be inferred that he’s going to try and find it somewhere else; that being through Yui and her kind nature which Reiji promptly takes advantage of in order to quell his own needs.

---

Diabolik Lovers Endzeit Analysis

This analysis is inspired by a post by @carlatsukinamistolemyhamsandwich and how Endzeit is never specified as a virus - yet we all seem to refer to it as one. It peaked my interest since I never really noticed it when playing through the games, and once she pointed that out, I thought I’d do a little digging.

Regarding Endzeit, it's never mentioned what it specifically is - we're only led to believe it's a virus, yet it is never specified in any route; it's simply known as a "disease". So, using a little biology, why not figure out what kind of disease Endzeit actually is ?

For specification purposes, I'm only going to focus on how it's transmitted and affects cells, rather than analyse any symptoms it causes. This is due to the Diabolik Lovers universe being fictional; therefore, any symptom can be purely fictitious. For example, you could contract a disease that turns your skin green or gives you purple eyes - however, when defining what type of disease it is, those symptoms don't matter (they're made up) whereas the transmission of that disease does matter. There's only a set amount of ways a disease can be passed on: through skin contact, blood, ingestion and water contamination, and those transmissions can be analysed and lead us to our answer.

Infectious illnesses, deficiency diseases, hereditary diseases (covering both genetic disorders and non-genetic hereditary diseases), and physiological diseases are the four primary categories of disease. Other categories of sickness exist as well, such as communicable and non-communicable diseases. The most fatal conditions in people include lower respiratory infections, cerebrovascular illness, and coronary artery disease.

Though it never states that Endzeit is a virus, we learn that Endzeit is transferred through blood contact. So if we go off the basis of the main types of diseases: parasites, bacteria, fungi, and viruses, we can narrow down our options and find out what Endzeit truly is. 

So, shall we begin ?

Word Count: 2,461

Fungi

Let's begin with fungal infections and how fungi compares to Endzeit. Fungus is a collection of microorganisms that belong to its own kingdom and are neither plants nor animals. Fungi are widespread in nature and may be found on human skin, in the soil, on plants and trees, as well as on numerous interior surfaces. By dispersing tiny spores, fungi proliferate. These spores are frequently found in the soil and air, where they can touch surfaces of the body, especially the skin, or be breathed. These fungi develop, disseminate, infiltrate tissue, and spread locally when fungi enter the body and the immune system is suppressed. Some organisms, particularly yeast and some moulds, have the ability to enter blood arteries and infect nearby organs as well as the circulation.

Direct skin-to-skin contact (with people or animals) or indirect contact with infected objects on floors or in the ground are the two main ways that fungal infections spread. With the way Endzeit acts and transmits, we can easily list fungi off our candidate list since fungal infections are caught through skin-to-skin contact and not through blood as we see with Endzeit. 

Parasites

Next to dissect are parasites. A parasite is a living thing that inhabits its host and feeds off of or at the expense of it. Protozoa, helminths, and ectoparasites are the three primary groups of parasites that may harm humans. A parasite consumes components or essential substances from its host, another living thing. The host can suffer certain effects of the parasites - hiwever, they do not instantly or even ever kill the creatures they use as food, in contrast to predators. Although dangerous bacteria and viruses also live as parasites, parasites are eukaryotic creatures. Plants, animals, or fungi can all be parasites.

Transient parasites make contact with the host, but only to feed from it. The blood-sucking bats of South America and mosquitoes are two examples of transient parasites. In addition to using the host as a source of food, persistent parasites also use it as a home. Permanent parasites include hookworms and tapeworms. The parasite may be found in the bloodstreams of those who have it, and contact with the blood of an infected person has the potential to spread the parasite to others (for example, by blood transfusion or by sharing needles or syringes contaminated with blood).

As far as we know from Carla's routes, Endzeit is a blood disease that is transmitted through blood contact; implying that it infects other blood cells in order to break down the body. Endzeit attacks the blood. However, a parasite is an organism that feeds on parts or vital products from another living organism. Endzeit in itself isn't alive whereas parasites are - they usually come in the form of tapeworms that can also infect the blood. Parasites can be microscopic or large enough to see with the naked eye, and they survive by feeding on the host. They can also spread parasitic infections, which can lead to sepsis. 

Ectoparasites like lice and mites can adhere to or burrow into the skin and remain there for a long time, whereas protozoa and helminths mostly harm the stomach. Most protozoa and helminths are either extremely mildly unwell or non-pathogenic, which means they don't cause disease. The most typical method of passing parasitic protozoa and helminths from person to person is by faecal-oral transmission, in which parasites discovered in one person's stool ends up being ingested by another organism. Diarrhoea and other gastrointestinal issues are frequently the first signs and symptoms. The effects might get worse when parasites attack the organs or red blood cells.

Bacteria and viruses can live outside of the human body - parasites, however, require a living host in order to survive. Bacteria and parasites can usually be destroyed with antibiotics. On the other hand, antibiotics cannot kill viruses. Bacteria, viruses and parasites can cause a wide variety of illnesses and can infect any of the organs of the body. Viruses are often responsible for respiratory illnesses and digestive illnesses. Bacteria can infect any part of the body, but often cause diarrhoea when they invade the digestive tract.

The one glaring hole in this contender is how parasites are caught - parasites are ingested through contaminated food or water. We know that Krone was locked in the dungeon after being infected with Endzeit and that Carla looked after her; therefore, they would have been exposed to the same drinking water and food, yet Carla is not affected by water or food - he's perfectly fine. My point is that parasites travel and infect through ingestion - they use water and food to gain a host; regarding Carla and Giesbach at this time, neither of them are infected, even when they most likely drank the same water as the infected. So that means that Endzeit couldn't have infected the Founders through ingestion or water; therefore, Endzeit is not a parasite either.

Bacteria

Bacteria is made up of a single complicated cell. It has the ability to endure on its own, within or outside of the body. Most germs don't cause harm. In actuality, our bodies contain a variety of bacteria, particularly in the stomach where they aid in food digestion. Some germs, however, can lead to illnesses. Bacterial infections can damage the skin, stomach, lungs, throat, and many other body parts. Many are minor; a few are serious.

A person's health is significantly impacted by bacterial illnesses. Any part of the body can develop the disease, and it can be brought on by the organism itself or by the body's reaction to its presence. Humans can contract bacteria via the air, water, food, or living things. The main means of bacterial infection transmission include contact, aerosol, droplets, vectors, and moving vehicles.

When germs that cause an illness in another region of your body enter your circulation, blood poisoning ensues. Septicaemia or bacteraemia are terms used to describe the presence of bacteria in the blood. Although they aren't nearly the same, the phrases "septicaemia" and "sepsis" are sometimes used interchangeably. Sepsis may result from septicaemia, the presence of germs in the blood. If untreated, sepsis is a serious and frequently fatal illness condition.

The most important part here is that bacteria acts the same way as parasites in regards to their transmission; it doesn't spread through blood contact. This means that Endzeit cannot be a bacterial disease.

Virus

Viruses hurt people by killing cells or obstructing cell function. Our systems typically respond by raising our body temperature, releasing a chemical called interferon (which stops viruses from multiplying), or activating immune system cells and antibodies to fight the intruder. 

Viruses, which are nothing more than genetic material encased in protein, are the most basic kind of germs. A virus cannot function alone; in order to accomplish its single goal of replication, it must infiltrate a living being. A virus that enters a person's body has the potential to exploit the cellular machinery to replicate itself, take over new cells, and continue to spread. Also susceptible to infection by viruses are bacteria, fungi, and other living things. The virus starts to damage the body when it reproduces more quickly than the immune system can stop it. Since viruses are the tiniest germs and may move through the air with a cough or sneeze, they are typically the simplest to get. Some viruses can also transmit through body fluids or insects.

The biggest viruses are smaller than the tiniest bacteria, proving that viruses are smaller. Their only genetic components are a protein coat and a DNA or RNA core. They must cling to cells in order to replicate. Most of the time, they rewire the cells to produce fresh viruses until the cells rupture and die. Other times, they transform healthy cells into cancerous or malignant ones. Most viruses, unlike bacteria, do cause illness, and they target particular types of cells while doing so. For instance, some viruses target blood, liver, or respiratory system cells; sometimes viruses specifically target bacteria.

Blood contact or fluid-contact contracted diseases (such as Endzeit) are referred to as viruses. Diseases like Hepatitis and HIV are both named viruses and are spread through blood contact. The infected blood itself could arise from any of the disease types; however, Endzeit is spread through direct blood contact, which would effectively make it akin to HIV; therefore, it would be akin to a virus. Nevertheless, that's just the transmission, not the source - so for blood diseases to occur, there has to be something akin to impure or unclean blood, meaning that it's a bloodborne disease.

Bloodborne diseases are caused by pathogenic microorganisms, which exist in blood and other body fluids. Bloodborne pathogens are microorganisms such as viruses or bacteria that are carried in the blood and can cause disease in people. If Endzeit started as a bloodborne disease then it could have been caused by any of the disease types (if an open wound was infected by unclean air, bacteria, or fungi for example). However, for a bloodborne disease to spread, it must be through direct contact with the blood, and Endzeit is passed through direct contact with the infected blood, effectively making it a virus. 

Additionally, Endzeit isn't caught through normal contact, it's just blood. So that means it transmits through DNA. In Carla's Labyrinth Ending in Chaos Lineage, we get the dialogue "Shin was exposed to Carla's blood at that time. Endzeit that only the founders can get, is passed by blood infections".

Viruses with a DNA core are capable of surviving in the nucleus of the cell they infect, using the host's biochemical machinery to replicate their DNA. The DNA of some viruses can become integrated into the DNA of the host cell. This means that the more the disease replicates, the worse the symptoms become, which could explain why Krone and Carla seem to have survived longer than the other infected founders - and again, this mainly arises with viruses.

Furthermore, we learn that Endzeit can be cured, but only if the founder becomes a ghoul - which means that the DNA must change. So the Endzeit must attack and infiltrate the DNA otherwise the DNA wouldn't need to change, and what specifically attacks and infiltrates cell DNA? A virus. A DNA-dependent DNA polymerase is used by DNA viruses to copy their genetic material, which is DNA. The nucleic acid is primarily dsDNA; ssDNA is less frequent since ssDNA often expands to dsDNA during replication. This would explain why Endzeit can only be transmitted through blood and why it attacks the body as it does - by replicating its own DNA, it kills the host's cells in the process.

When a virus attacks a cell, it replicates its own DNA until the original cell bursts; this would naturally explain the tamer symptoms we see Carla experience such as blood spots. The closest disease to the blood spots we see is called purpura. Purpura, also called blood spots or skin haemorrhages, refers to purple-coloured spots that are most recognizable on the skin. The spots may also appear on organs or mucous membranes, including the membranes on the inside of the mouth. Purpura occurs when small blood vessels burst, causing blood to pool under the skin; it’s also caused by viruses such as HIV and Hepatitis - which are bloodborne viruses.

Although it's said that the founders believed it to be airborne (and it very well could have started like that) from what we see with Carla, if it was still an airborne disease, Shin should have caught it. This is due to the fact that the two are accompanied by one another and also share physical contact such as when Carla strangled Shin or even just the fact that they are close together. The fact that this does not occur and that Shin has an 'immunity' to Endzeit means that it must have mutated at one point inside one of the founders, making it a bloodborne virus and not airborne bacteria since the Endzeit can only be passed on through blood contact, which is what we see both within the Labyrinth Ending and back in Banmaden when Carla and Krone were locked away.

Moreover, Menae also escaped Banmaden, meaning that if it was airborne, there would be a chance of her being a carrier; from what we see, she never caught or carried Endzeit. So there has to have been a mutation within one of the infected founders' cell DNA; thereby making it a transmuted virus as opposed to an airborne or bacterial infection. Bacteria doesn't attack the cell or the cell DNA, so the symptoms we see (blood spots, bruising and coughing) shouldn't be caused by airborne bacteria - but that's taking the disease at its closest comparison; we have to remember that this disease is fictional - the most important factor is the disease's transmission. Endzeit is transmitted through blood and blood alone; thereby naming it a DNA virus.

In conclusion, though it's never stated as a virus, the Endzeit itself has all the transmission and developmental qualities of a virus - specifically a bloodborne DNA virus as opposed to a fungal, bacterial or parasitic disease.

---

Diabolik Lovers Reiji Sakamaki Vol V Do-S Drama CD Analysis

Before I start, I’d like to mention that this is Reiji’s first singular Drama CD within Haunted Dark Bridal; and though I stated that it would not be analysed in my route analysis, that was not to say that it would not be analysed at all - it very much is. However, I did not want to include it in the route analysis for the sake of regurgitation. So, shall we begin ?

Note: This transcript was created by the lovely @dialovers-translations

Trigger Warning: Mentions of Abuse, Manipulation, Narcissism, Dehumanisation and Explicit Content

Word Count: 23,222 words

*Cling cling*

Reiji walks around the room, preparing himself a cup of tea.

“Haah…Simply wonderful. The depth of this sound. Its sharpness. I cannot get enough of this daunting feeling which is like taking a peek into the abyss.”

*Cling*

“It fills me with a sheer desperation, similar to that of a sacrifice being eaten alive.”

You enter the room.

“…Hm?”

*Cling*

Firstly, I wanted to bring attention to how Reiji describes brewing the tea - we established early on in his route analysis that tea cups can sometimes be a reference to or symbolise Yui. The depth of the cup alongside the tea itself to the sharpness of the sound could be Reiji subtly bringing attention to how he drinks Yui’s blood - a sharp noise and then the depth of the blood flows into the cup of his mouth. The reason I’m choosing to hyper-analyse this first line is due to what he says next: his reference to a sacrifice being eaten alive. The first interpretation of this is that it can be considered a simple reference to Yui’s sacrificial position, but that’s simply the line at face value. If we choose to look at this section in a different light, it could imply something entirely different. 

Although tea has a meditative implication, it is argued by numerous scholars that it holds significance when examining the notion of purity. It was first asserted by the priest Murata Shuko in the 14th century that four values were central to the concept of the tea ritual: reverence, respect, purity, and tranquillity. It is claimed that the tea used in the tea ritual has great consequence in regards to purification, as it has an association with physical and spiritual purity appropriate for those who approach sacred places. It is further argued by Kakuzo Okakura that the concept of tea represents purity and harmony, and the manner in which the person is able to worship the social order and hierarchy. The tea bowl used in the duration of the Japanese tea ritual is an important and celebrated utensil; when examining the magnitude of the tea ceremony, it is said that the bowl used in the Japanese tea ritual represents an important piece in the reunification of the cosmos.

By including the symbolism of tea, especially in Japanese culture, due to the brothers’ geographical locations, it can help us understand why Reiji tends to be precise and meticulous when making a cup of tea. Different types of tea offer different colours; most notably, black tea offers a very dark brown, almost black pigment - as though looking at the tea is akin to “taking a peek into the abyss”. Following this interpretation, it can be further implied that the “abyss” Reiji is staring into is his wants and desires - purity, harmony and peace of mind, all things that tea can represent. We know from his route analysis that Reiji craves love and attention, he wants to put his doubting mind to rest and live without fear of rejection; and so, when paired with the “desperation” that he feels, it can be implied that Reiji’s desperate to achieve what the tea represents, to stare into the liquid abyss and feel at ease, like a sacrifice would when it accepts its fate. 

Secondly, I’d like to mention that it can be implied that Reiji’s not talking to himself here, instead he is talking to Yui - the stage directions offer the implication that Yui is lingering outside of Reiji’s room, and he is making his presence known to her; with this interpretation, we can note that Reiji’s behaviour is ostentatious. “Ostentatious” comes from a Latin word meaning "display," and the idea of display is still very apparent in the English word as it is currently used. People and things described as ostentatious seem to have put themselves on display; they are practically begging to be looked at, and this is what Reiji is doing here - he knows that Yui is nearby and instead of simply brewing his tea, he decides to make a grandiose statement that, at first glance, makes no sense in order to goad her attention and lure her into his room. Reiji’s subtly manipulating Yui through his narcissism and incessant need for her attention. The reason I’m making this interpretation - that Reiji knows Yui is close by - is due to what he says next. However, when he says “a sacrifice being eaten alive” he is directly talking to Yui here, he gains her interest by cryptically talking about her, knowing that she is on the other side of the door and Reiji uses her innate curiosity to lure her in.

“…How about rather than hiding, you show yourself? Or rather, is that your interpretation of ‘hiding oneself’? A rather poor attempt, if I may say.”

“Haah…Good grief. If I were like any of my other brothers, you would have been captured and devoured by now. Pacing around in the corner of my eye like a little pest…Get on your knees over here. Yes, exactly. On the floor right in front of me. Come on, hurry up!”

You walk over and kneel down in front of him.

*Thud*

“Very well. I shall not allow you to move your legs until I give you permission to do so.”

You protest.

“Hah…I’m not bullying you. This is a trial to becoming a perfect, proper lady. Well then, I shall continue enjoying my tea time.”

Carrying on from this, the tone in which Reiji calls out Yui’s stance emphasises my previous point, he knows she’s there, he’s lured her in and now he’s choosing to patronise her; by him opting to condescend to Yui’s curiosity, it shows us yet again the lengths he will go to in order to manipulate and degrade Yui - consequently lowering her sense of self and wellbeing, making her even more susceptible to Reiji’s ploys and abuse.

Something that I wanted to bring attention to within this CD is Reiji making Yui kneel. The act of kneeling has a rich body of connotations from pure subordination to reverence to supplication. A person typically kneels in deference to something, whether literally or metaphorically; whatever that something is, the implication of the kneeling is usually that the kneeler is acknowledging, resigning to, or yielding to the power or glory of that ‘something’. With this in mind, it furthers Reiji’s need to implement and involve power and control in his every move - he’s reinforcing Yui’s physical and mental inferiority. Additionally, kneeling can also connote to animals, which brings us back to the animalistic imagery presented to Yui within Haunted Dark Bridal - which only implements her ‘retraining’ more.

Yui’s protest of Reiji’s behaviour very much shows her ability to stand up for herself, it shows that she’s not choosing to remain meek and silent or remain in the safety of her own head, she’s fighting back against Reiji’s unnecessary cruelty and he instead belittles her. Reiji instead deems his behaviour as a “trial” moreover “bullying”, yet even then, Yui and Reiji are both euphemising his cruelty - it’s not “bullying”, it’s abuse - yet Yui’s implied Stockholm syndrome would allow her brain to lessen the severity of Reiji’s actions and instead call her abuse “bullying”; this has been implied within my HDB route analysis. Furthermore, the notion that Reiji views his behaviour towards Yui as a “trial” could imply that this is a means to test Yui’s obedience; to test her ‘good behaviour’, again bringing us back to the overall ‘pet’ dynamic established in HDB and Reiji’s overall vile treatment of Yui.

*Cling cling*

You puff out your cheeks in frustration.

“…Haah…What’s the matter? Seems like you have something on your mind. …Wait! I have yet to give you the right to speak. …Who gave you permission to just talk to me like that? Good grief…”

*Cling*

“However…Well, when you look at me with such a displeased expression, the tea I brewed to perfection will go to waste.”

He puts down his cup.

“Very well. I shall give you the right to speak. Please try and keep it short.”

You ask him a question.

“How long you have to keep sitting like that, you ask? Until I am tired of it, I suppose. Now, I wonder how long that will take?”

Most notably, the detail that stuck out to me the most here is Yui’s right to speak. Yui has already been forced to kneel on the floor, and now, Reiji has just stated that she cannot even speak unless he gives her the “right” to - he’s controlling the situation - and by proxy, Yui - by removing what would be considered a natural human right in order to dehumanise and abuse her. Silence can be a way to pave the path to emotional abuse; by keeping, or by wanting, Yui to be silent, Reiji is essentially disregarding Yui’s emotions in favour of his own. It is to my interpretation that Reiji is trying to withhold Yui’s right of speech in order to make her feel devalued and vulnerable. Once a victim of abuse learns when to speak and when not to, it’s game over and the abuser has won - silence is easy to implement and a hard cycle to break, and it will usually occur alongside a power dynamic in order to utilise complete control of both the situation and the victim; this is what I believe Reiji is trying to implement.

I also wanted to draw attention to Reiji wanting Yui to remain on the floor; not only does he want her to kneel on the floor and remain silent, but he also wants her to stay like that until he grows bored. This implies that Reiji values subservience from Yui, he wants her to remain obedient and loyal to his every word and whim - this brings us back to operant control as well as positive and negative face, the innate factor in Reiji’s character that can be boiled down to “do as I say, not as I do”. Reiji desires to do as he pleases and expects Yui to know her place below him both mentally and physically - and that has progressed to wanting Yui to be physically and literally below him, on the floor -.

You retaliate.

“Hahaha…Oh dear. Have your legs already gone numb? It looks very painful. …However, my mood has greatly improved. I doubt I will get sick of this any time soon. Fufu…”

*Cling*

You tear up.

“What’s the matter? Are you crying already? …This is exactly why I cannot stand women. If you think I will let you off the hook by shedding some tears, you are gravely mistaken”

You make a fuss.

“Haah…How annoying…I suppose you leave me with no other choice. Let me pour you one cup of tea at least.”

You seem somewhat surprised.

“Your gratitude should know no bounds. I will carefully prepare it for you after all.”

Reiji gets up and starts pouring the tea.

The first thing to note here is that Yui feels discomfort, and Reiji’s mood lifts, reinforcing his sadistic nature - he’s taking pleasure and enjoyment out of Yui’s misfortune. Additionally, the notion that Reiji laughs at Yui’s protest of discomfort can imply that he’s opting to be playful with his tortuous impulses. 

In his next piece of dialogue, Reiji’s hypocrisy is put on full display - he states that he cannot stand women due to them using tears and emotions to lessen any consequences that they face. The reason I’m saying this is hypocritical is due to Kanato - Reiji’s accusing Yui of using her emotions in order to guilt trip him, which is something that we know as the audience Yui has never done, as opposed to characters such as Kanato who constantly and consistently uses his volatile emotions to evade blame and responsibility from his wrongdoings both towards Yui and to others. The point that I’m most focused on is that this sort of behaviour can be learned, more importantly, Kanato most likely learned this behaviour from Cordelia in order to garner her attention, as well as follow in her mentally unstable footsteps. Kanato’s emotional manipulation can be a form of both his mental illness as well as his CEN yet he is never held accountable for his actions through fear of a violent outburst, yet Reiji is accusing Yui of doing the same thing because she protested against his demands, but why ?

First of all, Kanato’s heavy usage of ‘crocodile tears’ can be implied to be learned and encouraged by Cordelia - a woman who was also embedded with violence and manipulation to get her own way. I’m raising this detail in order to join the dots to my next point: women can use crying as emotional manipulation.

Women learn pretty early on that people can get uncomfortable when faced with a crying woman, and they'll often do just about anything to stem the flow of tears. From their perspective, a woman’s motivation for tears may fall into one of these three categories: hormone, manipulation, or sincere emotion. Crying is a foreign concept to those who revere their own feelings or those who are typically reserved or stoic, and it can be hard to navigate a situation charged with emotion and tears. One of the biggest mistakes made in conflict is perceiving a woman's tears as an indication of sadness; in abusive or manipulative women, this is a tactic of avoidance in order to gain sympathy and take back the high ground, once they have then the other person begins to console the woman, and the woman has won.

People treat others differently depending on what emotions they show, and crying will mostly resort in sympathy or guilt depending on the situation - people learn early on that if they’re a child and they cry, they’ll get their own way, whether that’s being bought a toy they want or evading something they don’t want to do; due to women being taught to express their emotions more, this tactic can sometimes linger from the child and carry on into the adult. With this in mind, some women use crying to their advantage and can easily manipulate others by garnering sympathy. When this happens, it’s commonly appointed that the woman is simply oversensitive - and this is mostly the case, some people are just kind and sensitive souls - however, with this being the common referral, it allows some people to manipulate that and they’ll use the term “oversensitive” to cover up what they really are, manipulative; this happens rather frequently in abusive and manipulative women.

I’m drawing attention to this due to Reiji accusing Yui of using crocodile tears. As the audience, we know that Yui is nothing but a sweet and genuine person, and when faced with copious amounts of abuse, that mental strain is going to exhaust her to the point where any emotional outpour is going to result in tears...especially frustration - something that Yui no doubt feels constantly when faced with Reiji. However, when grouped together alongside both Kanato and Cordelia, it would be a natural assumption to make that Yui is simply crying to avoid displeasure. Reiji is wrong to accuse, but he is not wrong to assume. Kanato, Cordelia and most likely countless others - especially girls during school hours - all use their emotions to manipulate and exploit situations and people; and with this in mind, it can be implied that Reiji’s being cautious, he’s trying to prevent any chance he thinks that Yui may have to use his emotions against him. 

Furthermore, Reiji becomes reluctant and offers Yui a cup of tea - this is something that he does within his route within the rest of HDB - however, if we include the symbolism of tea, it could infer that Reiji is instead offering to try and calm Yui down; essentially offering her a subtle fragment of sympathy...the very thing we’ve implied him to despise - thus providing us with his contradictory nature -.

*Cling cling*

*Pssssshhh*

*Cling*

“Mm~ Look, can you tell? The delicate fragrance of this tea is honestly wasted on someone like you.”

“It smells of flowers, do you not reckon? Take a sip…Slowly. It is still hot so please be careful.”

You grab the cup.

“Well then, now dry your tears. Good grief, you are such a handful.”

First of all, I’d like to mention that Reiji’s talk of tea can be implied to be a distraction - by changing topic, he’s in essence distracting Yui from her tears, and her reason to cry. It’s a nice way to weave in his compassion and his growing development within the story; one might say that Reiji’s simply trying to avoid Yui’s emotional state due to distress - and on one hand, that is true - however, it can be inferred that he’s trying to soothe Yui’s tears. Distractions can be good as they have the ability to shift our attention away from negative experiences, and by Reiji offering Yui tea, he’s offering her peace of mind.

This small section portrays Reiji’s softer side to both us and Yui - he’s still stern and reluctant but he’s offering to try and comfort Yui. By asking Yui if the tea smells of flowers, he’s trying to allow Yui to think of something nice and relaxing; he’s not belittling her anymore, and it shows a change in his character. To add to this, when Reiji states “now dry your tears“, he’s not being rude or condescending with it or telling her to simply “stop crying”, instead, he’s opting to use this euphemistic idiom in order to sound gentle and tender towards Yui; it’s quite rare for Reiji to become sentimental towards Yui, and it’s to my belief that he’s honestly trying to be somewhat kind and comforting here, strained though it may be.

*Cling*

“And? Will you give an answer soon?”

You tilt your head to the side.

“To what, you ask? …Hah. I am obviously asking for your reasoning behind coming here at this hour.”

You hesitate.

“Come on, hurry up. I would like to ask you to keep it short, within three seconds preferably. Three, two, one…”

You quickly blurt out your answer.

“Hm? What was that? …You had a scary dream? I see. Well, well…Fufufu…”

“Ah, please do not get upset. I am not ridiculing you. I simply thought it is so very much like you, very cute. Making such a fuss over a nightmare or two…”

Here we see Reiji taunting Yui with operant control, he’s giving her the choice to tell him what’s wrong, yet he’s also giving her a time limit - following Reiji’s HDB route, it’s clear to say that he’s not a man who wishes to waste time; with this in mind, it can be implied that he wants Yui to be open and honest with him, he doesn’t want her to euphemise the problem or beat around the bush hence why I think he instils the time limit like how a parent would. The fact that Reiji begins to chuckle once Yui’s problem has been outed shows how much he enjoys taunting her, however, the notion that he quickly stops once Yui becomes upset again presents us with the implication that this may not have been intentional - he outright states that ridicule wasn’t on his mind and to distract her further, Reiji opts to compliment Yui by deeming her “cute”. 

By complimenting her, Reiji’s yet again causing a distraction - he’s causing her to think in a more positive manner. Compliments and positive affirmations can help soothe a distressed mind and given the fact that Yui’s both mentally and emotionally exhausted and vulnerable, rewarding her with positive comments would not only diffuse the situation, but it would also allow Yui to latch onto him more; this ‘kindness’ is designed to win over the trust and confidence of an unsuspecting victim, making them vulnerable to subsequent abuse, just like Yui.  Someone who is helpful, comforting and firm may be just that, but the problem occurs when those behaviours have underlying motives attached to them and this requires discernment.

You get upset.

“Oh dear…That was rude of me. …They say that nightmares may occur as an after-effect of psychological strain. Well, from an objective point of view, you are - frankly speaking - a completely invaluable woman, average in every sense of the word. Yet this lifestyle was suddenly forced upon you, you poor little thing.”

You frown.

“It would be much more strange if you did not experience any nightmares. Being driven into a corner by Ayato and the others, having your blood sucked, being threatened…You barely have any moments of peace left, do you?”

You nod.

“Haha…Come on, the tea will go cold. Have some more. I am sure it will help soothe your nerves as well.”

The first thing to note is that Reiji fails to apologise for his actions, opting to say that he was “rude” rather than “wrong”; this is due to it being extremely rare for an emotionally abusive partner to take responsibility for their actions. Reiji chooses to euphemise his behaviour and how it has upset Yui, and this can be implied to mean that he can’t handle his behaviour being ‘wrong’ in some way. Something to pay attention to, is that Reiji openly states that he’s causing Yui a great deal of suffering, and yet again, he euphemises it - he says “psychological strain” moreover “psychological abuse”, which is what it is - and instead of lessening the strain he’s putting on Yui, he decides to add to it by being insulting and condescending to her.

Someone who’s condescending tends to have some form of control issues, insecurities and emotional baggage; the condescending person likely witnessed or was treated to quite aggressive, authoritarian parenting at a young age. This doesn’t just demonstrate a condescending person, but it also demonstrates a close-minded and arrogant one. Close-mindedness can occur when people attach their value systems to their self worth; when a person has ‘fixed’ values, they will rationalise away any contradictory data at all costs, in other words, they can never be wrong, and “everyone else is just a clueless idiot”. Incidentally this is a common thought process among individuals with NPD - narcissistic personality disorder. The danger with condescending personalities is that they’re usually oblivious to how patronising and otherwise damaging they are, and they can have difficulty accepting that their ‘infantilising’ behaviour towards others is, in fact, emotionally crippling and unappreciated. This is more common when the condescension mimics that of the ‘benevolent parental figure’, as opposed to the authoritarian parental figure.

The other danger has already been alluded to, that within their value system is the idea that “people who have power or control over others are better”. Those with an immature mind cannot comprehend the shades of grey in this and decide to take it literally; they can’t understand that it’s alright to not know everything, that everyone is good at different things, that everyone is bad at something but is still lovable and worthwhile. This translates into “I am more valuable or lovable if I have power or control over others”. With this in mind, it’s no doubt that those who tie their self worth to their authority cannot handle being wrong, they’re terrified of losing any form of control that they have as they don’t know who they are without it. Reiji doesn’t know who he is without power and control.

You seem hesitant.

“You would not possibly refuse to drink the tea I set myself, would you?”

You explain.

“You want to drink it after it has cooled down a little? No, I would very much like you to try it right now. It would be a shame if you let the optimal timing to drink it pass by.”

*Cling*

*Gulp*

“Fufu…Exactly…Slowly savour it. Well then, I suppose I shall have a taste as well.”

I wanted to note that Reiji’s insistence on Yui drinking the tea displays his need for control; it acts as another way to see Yui follow his every command - sit where he wants, speak when he wants and drink when he wants -. Reiji disregards Yui’s request in favour of his own wants, he wants her to drink and he wants her to do it “now”; the inclusion of this adverb demonstrates both Reiji’s insistence as well as his authorities and domineering nature. Additionally, once Yui has followed through with Reiji’s demand, it is only then that his mood lightens, implying that once Reiji is in full control, only then is he content.

*Pssshhh*

“Aah…It truly smells wonderful. If only you were not here, it would be the ideal night.”

Reiji gets up from his seat.

“Haah…What is the matter? You have been staring at me this whole time.”

You explain.

“Eh? You want to see me drink my tea? …You really have no shame do you? What lead you to wanting to watch something like that?”

You tell him his tea will go cold.

“Ahem…I like slightly cooled down tea. Please leave me alone. It is none of your business. …Above all, when I think about your filthy fingers touching the tableware I spent so much time polishing, I grow anxious.”

Reiji yet again opts to spend his time insulting Yui, belittling her for ‘ruining’ his night. Passages such as this provide us with the emotional abuse Reiji bestows on Yui. Furthermore, it can be implied that Yui is being sceptical here, wanting to see Reiji drink the tea - the first time Reiji allowed Yui to drink some of his tea, she was poisoned; naturally, that fear and caution is going to remain, allowing her to be sceptical of him when faced with this situation. Additionally, the fact that Reiji stalls and claims to prefer “slightly cooled down tea” puts his hypocrisy on full display as he is doing the very thing he belittled Yui for. In addition to this, Reiji switches topics and returns to insulting Yui once more, claiming that she has “filthy fingers”, which can not only be implied in the literal sense, but also in the sense that Yui is in some way dishonest or unfair - the phrase “filthy/dirty hands” can mean that a person involved in dishonesty or unfairness -.

*Cling cling*

“I have to keep a close eye on you to ensure you will not break my precious children.

“Silverware is wonderful, you know? For example…Take a look at this dinner fork.”

*Cling*

“It is polished to perfection, shining in the moonlight. As for these plates, my heartbeat accelerates just from imagining which dishes will be arranged on top of them.”

“However, the piece I like the best at the moment, is this tea cup. Its shape, the minute details, do you not think it is simply beautiful? If I just imagine pouring blood inside of here, before slowly drinking it…Fufu…”

*Gulp*

“Come on, take a closer look. This is a well-known brand’s exclusive product of which only two exist in this whole world. …Ah! You must not touch iーー!”

*SHATTER*

“…Ah! …The teacup…”

“This is exactly why I told you not to touch it! Why would you space out like thaーー You cut your fingertip…”

Reiji’s behaviour here is quite different from what both Yui and we as the audience usually see. Firstly, Reiji notes his love for silverware and chinaware - objects delicately and intricately created yet are exponentially fragile; something that we have implied Yui to be -. What’s different, is that Reiji slowly becomes ecstatic while presenting them to Yui, and calling them his “children”. When an inanimate object is deemed a child, it usually infers that there is a great deal of care between the caller and the recipient, thus showing us how deeply Reiji values his collection as he’s personifying their value to that of a living being. The fact that he becomes almost blissful while describing them to Yui can imply that he never really has time to talk about his own interests or anyone to talk to in general; he becomes persistent on showing Yui his most prized collections, urging her to “take a closer look” in order to pontificate his own interests to someone who will listen to him, rather than trap his more elated thoughts inside the contents of his own head. Implications such as this unveil the lack of communication and care between the brothers as a whole and justifies Reiji’s twisted attachment to Yui.

On top of that, once the cup is broken, Reiji becomes quick to blame Yui for “touching it” even though he was practically forcing it in front of her; incidents such as this show Reiji’s inability to accept blame for his actions - he forced the cup in front of Yui and it broke, he then decided to blame Yui rather than accept that the cup broke because of his recklessness. This displays Reiji’s inability to accept blame in the face of wrongness due to him believing that he needs to be perfect, and perfect means that Reiji can never be at fault. One form of verbal and emotional abuse that’s mostly under-discussed is blame-shifting, which serves a number of functions. Its most prominent use is to deflect attention and any relevant discussion from one person to the other, this maintains the control that the blame-shifter desires - the ‘shifter’ being Reiji in this case -.

Notice how Reiji pauses before stating “You cut your fingertip…”, it’s almost as though the realisation that Yui is injured has pulled him out of his scolding tangent. The dashes symbolise Reiji’s pause, that he’s been snapped out of his thoughts at Yui’s injury, and the ellipsis at the end demonstrate that Reiji’s voice has grown quiet - all things considered, this can imply that Reiji’s having a moment of realisation and consideration for Yui’s wellbeing, which is something that he tends to avoid; interactions such as this display Reiji’s slow character development, and that at times, he does honestly care for Yui.

*Rustle*

“…and it’s bleeding.”

You try and hide it.

“…Haah…Human maidens are so fragile, this is exactly why they are troublesome.”

You remain quiet.

“I shall tend to your cut right away. …Come on, show me the wound. …I shall lick it for you. Like this…”

*Smooch*

“Did you not hear me earlier? I shall repeat myself one more time. Behave. In short, I am warning you not to fight back.”

“This is treatment after all. If you struggle like that, you will only be in more pain.”

A common trait in Reiji’s character that I have decoded is that he can be implied to be viewed as the parental figure of the family, and his behaviour switches to that of a caretaker once Yui’s injured, opting to stop the flow of blood by ‘kissing it better’ much like how a parent would with a child - I don’t think Reiji is consciously or honestly trying to infantilise Yui by doing this, I think he’s genuinely trying to compensate and make it up to her for his previous behaviour. His strict rules and threats are still very much intact but I think he’s trying to quiet and calm Yui so that he can give her this small bout of affection.

You stop resisting.

“Exactly. You are a clever woman, it seems. I do not dislike that.”

Reiji licks the wound.

“…There. All done. It did not hurt, did it? I have been told to be very skilled at this. The cut was not particularly deep, so a wound of this calibre should heal in no time.”

“That being said…Your blood truly is more delicious than any other I have tasted up till now.”

You flinch.

“I suppose I can somewhat understand why the others are attracted to you.”

“Your blood most definitely…has the power to drive us Vampires mad.”

Although this section may at first glance seem patronising, it is to my interpretation that this may be genuine praise. Reiji’s given Yui a command and she’s followed through with it, and in the context of operant control, her behaviour is then rewarded - this being words of praise. The thing to note here is that when Reiji deems Yui a “clever woman” he’s not praising her intellect in any way, instead, he’s praising her loyalty and obedience to him and his every word. Again, I don’t think he’s trying to be patronising in this section and it’s to my inference that Reiji’s trying to display a small scale of affection; and with interrogatives such as “it did not hurt, did it?”, it demonstrates that he’s learning to patronise less and care more - the phrase itself can also be implied to be a rhetoric since pricking your finger doesn’t cause that much pain, but I’d still like to consider the possibility that Reiji is trying to show affection on his own terms and when he is the one in absolute control.

Something else I wanted to quickly bring attention to was the last line of dialogue here as it can be interpreted as both a compliment and a threat, and this comes from the words “power” and “mad”. When you hear the word “power”, what’s the first thing your mind conjures up ? Is it a negative connotation ? The thirst for dominance and control ? Or is it war and diplomats ? The concept of power is as ancient as any that social theory can boast. With this in mind, it can be suspected that there is indeed such a thing as power that exists which can be systematically studied. Sociologist Robert A. Dahl said “We are not likely to produce - certainly not for some considerable time to come - anything like a single, consistent, coherent “Theory of Power.” We are much more likely to produce a variety of theories of limited scope, each of which employs some definition of power that is useful in the context of the particular piece of research or theory but different in important respects from the definitions of other studies.”  A necessary condition for the concept of power relation is that there exists a time lag, however small, from the actions of the one who is said to exert power to the responses of the recipient. Person A can hardly be said to have power over Person B unless A’s power attempts precede B’s responses.

In context, this implies that although Yui holds little to no power when Reiji is in control, if Reiji falters or exposes his blind spot, she then wields the power - if Reiji happened to be caught off guard, Yui can use her blood to change the high ground and be the one in control as she has taken advantage of Reiji’s responses to stay rational and level-headed and therefore, she has won power over him; this is something we physically see within HDB’s Manservant Ending, so it’s possibility of arising may not be as far-fetched as one might think. Bringing us back to my first point, it can be implied that Reiji’s complimenting the power of Yui’s blood, and he is also pointing out his weak spot, however, this can also be interpreted to be a threat of power too. The word “mad” can have many connotations from being bombastic to certifiably insane and with those connotations, Reiji’s praise of Yui’s blood can seem a lot more threatening towards her. There is a connection between anger and madness. Anger and madness are brothers; in other words, they are related, and acting in an unreasonable way is what madness is all about. Some will be quick to deem that untrue, but those who consider it carefully would realise the operative word "brothers"; brothers simply means they are related, when people often ask, "are you mad at me?", they actually mean "are you angry with me?" and that's not just a coincidence. There is a connection between anger and madness, and it occurs when a person is angry. The heart rate accelerates, the blood pressure rises, the rate of breathing increases and more blood pumps into the brain. These activities narrow the person's attention and locks it on the target of the anger. With this, it narrows the person's ability to rationalise and think logically, tempting them to act in an unreasonable way, and acting in an unreasonable way is what madness is all about. Madness is defined as a condition of the mind which eliminates all rational thought leaving an individual with no proper reasoning, and it’s to my interpretation that this is what this line of dialogue is referring to - it’s almost as if Reiji’s saying “if you use your blood against me, neither of us will know what could happen” and it acts as both a threat and a warning towards Yui -.

You back away in fear.

“What is the matter? You look so frightened.”

You open your mouth to answer.

“Aah…I can tell what is going on inside your head. You are alert, fearing that one drop of your blood might have made me lose your mind, am I right?”

“You truly are an open book. While innocence can be good at times, in your case, I assume you are simply a fool, ignorant to how you leave yourself full of openings.”

This next section of dialogue emphasises my previous inference - that Reiji’s ‘praise’ is in fact a threat, and we see that through Yui’s body language -. Backing away and losing the ability to speak are all common symptoms of being scared or afraid; your first reaction is to move or back away from the cause of fear, and if it has not already occurred, the throat will also dry up. Stress and anxiety produce excess acid in your stomach, and if the acid backs up into your throat, it then irritates the delicate tissues there - making your throat feel dry. When you’re anxious or afraid, your body releases adrenaline into your system, and one of adrenaline’s effects is to shut off your salivary glands, which quickly leads to a dry throat as it exposes your mouth to more air than normal. Body language such as this can present us with the clear image that Yui is scared, and that she has realised and acknowledged Reiji’s innate threat.

Instead of lightening up on his behaviour, Reiji decides to revel in it and taunt Yui. Scenes such as this reinforce Reiji’s cruel and sadistic nature and it can be implied that he does this because he always needs to be in absolute control, he can’t bring himself down to Yui’s level or domesticate himself because he’s then lessening the power dynamic between them. Vulnerability is something that we can imply Reiji to fear, or at least feel uncomfortable with, and so by reinforcing his cruel hand, he’s keeping Yui at arm’s-length; he’s keeping that vulnerability at bay by refusing to give Yui any form of power over him. The fact that he chooses to taunt her presents his verbal abuse towards Yui. 

Taunting is a textbook tactic for bullies, yet it can be disguised under playful behaviour or someone’s sense of humour. It is damaging to a person’s psychological wellbeing and cannot be folded under ‘light teasing’ - it is a cruel tactic and its only purpose is to harm someone else. Taunting is a choice to subject someone to emotional and mental violence out of contempt and disrespect, and it is a demeaning and one-sided action. There is no guarantee that someone will be able to defend themselves against people who are taunting them, as it is a display of power to grant oneself a superior position in whatever space they are in. It is also a tactic to control someone’s behaviour by wearing them down, and direct, provocative commentary to hurt people can be disguised as light-hearted joking, except, there’s nothing funny about it. When it comes to any sort of competitive arena, taunting has been normalised; taunting will not motivate, they will alienate, and this is exactly what Reiji wants.

Throughout Haunted Dark Bridal, we see Reiji use verbal abuse towards Yui; what we see here is similar, the difference is that within his route, the degrading language is used on a more serious note - as it whittles down Yui’s self-esteem - and here, his belittlement comes off as playful instead. Reiji subtly threatens Yui and she acknowledges that, and instead of congratulating her for that, he instead taunts Yui and leads her to doubt herself. To taunt is to tease, insult or antagonise someone by deliberately saying or doing something mean and Reiji does this by stating, “You truly are an open book...I assume you are simply a fool”. Yui’s right, yet he calls her wrong and this is done to instil doubt - by using tactics such as this, Reiji’s limiting Yui’s ability to think successfully and confidently; thus giving him the ability to keep her close to him.

You stomp your foot.

“…Woah there, My apologies. …You should be very wary around men, especially around Vampires such as ourselves. You may not be aware of this yet, but Vampires may put up a gentleman-like façade, but in the end, we are unable to fight back against our own hunger. Especially when high-quality blood is presented right in front of us…”

You flinch.

“If you give me an opening, I would love to suck your blood. If we want to, someone like you…would stand no chance against us Vampires. After all, this is our true nature. Please keep that in mind.”

You ask him why he is telling you all of this.

“This is a warning. Exactly. I am being as kind as to warn you, so you should feel flattered.”

“Fufufu…I might be having this conversation with you now, but in reality…I can feel the thirst welling up inside of me.”

“It seems like ‘tending to your wounds’ was simply an excuse on my end.”

I find the first line of this section to be highly significant. Reiji declares that Yui should “be very wary around men” moreover “[Yui] should be very wary around us/Vampires”; phrases such as this can carry quite a sexual tone, and it can be implied that Reiji’s threatening Yui with sexual violence - hence why I think he specifically said “men” moreover “us”, Reiji’s making the divide between him and Yui clear and this time he’s doing in the form of their respective genders. When implementing abuse, there’s four main forms: mental, physical, emotional and sexual - and when instilling them, it tends to be a process of elimination in order to find the one that works the best for the abuser; we know that Reiji has instilled three of these already and now, it can be implied that he’s threatening the fourth - fear acts as a way to control people. Fear is our most powerful emotion and the one that motivates us the most. It is a survival mechanism, an instinctual reaction that helps us stay alive; if we survive a bad experience, we never forget how to avoid it in the future - some of our oldest and most vivid memories are born in fear, it’s adrenaline that etches them into our brains. Nothing makes us more uncomfortable than fear, and those who are manipulative use that to their advantage; it can be implied that this is what Reiji’s attempting to do, he’s instilling fear into Yui in order to control and manipulate her - and this fear is the threat of sexual assault.

Another thing to note here is the rest of Reiji’s first passage, specifically when he mentions “gentleman-like façade“ as Reiji’s making a direct reference to himself - he’s quite literally telling Yui what his entire façade is. It can be implied that this is done to show Reiji’s level of self-awareness, he’s comfortable to tell Yui what his façade is, but he’s not comfortable enough to put his name to it and own up to his defence mechanism. I’ve come to this interpretation through Reiji’s declarative of “Vampires may put up a gentleman-like façade, but in the end, we are unable to fight back against our own hunger" we clearly know that Reiji’s talking about himself, however, he’s doing this through the usage of nosism - nosism is the practice of using “we” or using a collective when giving one's own opinions; it acts to lessen the severity and confidence of someone’s opinions, in essence, it can imply that Reiji is not confident with talking for himself, and instead uses a collective to fade into the background of - I believe this may have something to do with “we are unable to fight back against our own hunger". It’s to my interpretation that Reiji’s using nosism to cover up his falsities and downfalls - this being Yui’s blood and how he falls tempted before it -. Reiji’s a character who strives for perfection in every aspect of his existence and finds satisfaction in placing himself above Yui, and what he deems as her ‘animalistic instincts’; and so, to ‘lose’ to the power of Yui’s blood is to fail in his perfection - he’s also succumbing to his innate desires - which is why I believe nosism is used, Reiji can’t face his own instincts as to him, they are ‘imperfect’, and so he uses “we” instead of “I” as a way of normalising this imperfection. With this implication in mind, this only acts as another way for Reiji to hide behind his status and façade.

He suddenly steps closer.

“In reality…! I just cannot help but want to suck your blood…!”

You run to the door and try to open it.

“Fufu…Ahahaha! Where are you going? That door has already been locked. …Seems like you are wondering when I did that. The fact you did not realise is exactly why I said you leave yourself wide open.”

“Well then…It would be in your best interest here to behave. Please rest assured. I will not make it painful for you.”

Reiji steps closer.

“You should have simply endured the nightmare in peace…You truly are foolish.”

Furthermore, instead of being able to admit his faults, Reiji opts to overturn the situation and twist his faults into a means of intimidation. Intimidation is an effective means of instilling control, and we know that Reiji adores controlling others. A common reason for intimidating others is because the intimidator wants to see themselves as powerful, it doesn’t matter if they are or not, as long as they can make someone else think that they are; causing fear in another is one way to cause that effect and induce control. More commonly, those who intimidate others were, in actuality, once intimidated themselves, and possessed an element of envy towards those who held power over them; and in an attempt to ‘grow’ from that, they instead try to protect their broken souls by putting up a controlling and aggressive front - I believe this follows Reiji’s psychological narrative.

Reiji’s body language - the fact that he’s moving closer - can infer that he’s playing the dynamic of his choice, Reiji is opting to play the predator whilst Yui is the prey; he’s enforcing his whims onto her yet again, implying that he remains incapable of relinquishing control. Accepting your faults is one half of the solution, and being able to let someone help you is the other, and it is to my interpretation that Reiji struggles with both - he’s unable to be vulnerable because then, in his mind, he is then the prey; Reiji is supposed to be the hunter, not the hunted, which is why I believe he struggles so much to release his tight-gripped control on Yui. Vulnerability is everyone’s natural enemy, and Reiji’s perfectionistic mind would naturally exaggerate that to an unbridled amount; therefore making him incapable of accepting and yielding to it.

You protest.

“This is a blunder on your part. …Or did you perhaps come to my room, very well aware of all of this? …Say…Tell me.”

You refuse to answer.

“Oh dear? Cat got your tongue, it seems? Do you not even want to talk to me anymore?”

“Very well…I am curious to find out how long you will keep that up.”

He corners you.

“Well then, where do you prefer to have your blood sucked from? Your neck? Your lips? Wrist? …Or perhaps from the teacup?”

The first line of dialogue in this section showcases Reiji once again shifting blame onto Yui, yet again displaying his inability to accept fault, but why ? Throughout the CD, Yui has constantly been protesting against Reiji, showing us that she’s not afraid to fight back, and if Reiji were to let his guard down in the face of vulnerability, it’s likely that she would use that to her advantage - and that’s possibly why Reiji is blame shifting, he’s stopping any chance Yui has to defend herself and call out his defensive behaviour.

However, the next section showcases his hypocrisy. Reiji’s a character who likes to talk, he enjoys using his words to degrade and berate Yui as it gives him a form of abusive empowerment; yet once Yui refrains from answering, his ‘playful’ threats return through, “I am curious to find out how long you will keep that up”. The most appropriate way to deal with a situation such as this is to simply stay quiet and let the situation defuse itself yet Reiji fails to let that happen, instead, he chooses to ramble on in order to try and back Yui into a corner - he wants Yui to fight back so that he can have the satisfaction of tearing her down and inflicting more abuse on her. However, Reiji’s continued talking could also imply that he fails to cope in silence, he’s left in his own thoughts and feelings, the very things Reiji despises; and so, the best way to combat this would be to talk - this is often known as compulsive talking, and the most common and basic cause of any compulsive behaviour is anxiety. 

A person who engages in compulsive behaviour often has something on their mind that they do not wish to address, they feel anxious towards silence and the possibility of being stuck in their unwanted thoughts. Until the compulsive talker comes to grips with whatever they don’t want to think about, the talking will continue. The root of this anxiety varies from individual to individual. But it often stems from deep-seated emotions of insecurity and inadequacy. For the compulsive talker, silence and reflection are simply unacceptable, and a pause in conversation is an emotional abyss into which they simply cannot help but throw themselves. This is why I believe Reiji hardly ever stops talking, he’s become so attuned to resenting his past, his thoughts and his feelings, that any chance of him being faced with them are squashed; and instead of working through his problems and trauma, he instead talks his frustration out on Yui.

Another thing to note is Reiji’s quip of “Or perhaps from the teacup?”, he’s trying to goad Yui into fighting back and so, he moves from intimidation to mockery, he pokes fun at her misfortune from earlier - he moves past his own feelings from the previous mishap in an attempt to abuse her more.

You flinch.

“Fufu…Ahaha…Ahahaha! It is a joke, all of it. Your frightened expression is truly adorable. It is worth teasing you, one could say. …Did you perhaps believe that I had truly lost myself?”

“In that case, I believe you are thinking a little bit too highly of yourself because my other brothers have been seeking after you so much. Please do not make me laugh.”

“While it is true that you are…Well, somewhat charming, albeit pitiful, and your blood is delectable. …You are in no shape or form suited for me.”

“If you wish to drive me crazy, you will have to put in effort to become a lady adequate to my level.”

You frown, not quite grasping his words.

“It seems like something a normal human would understand without further explanation, you seem completely puzzled by. Haah…It is truly tragic…”

Within this section there is a clear tonal shift, which can imply that Reiji enjoys inducing cruel mind games on Yui. There are a number of reasons why people play mind games, yet the goal is usually to gain a sense of control or power over another person. The player wants to gain a specific response, but instead of telling you what they need or asking for what they want, they try to get their needs met by using manipulative tactics. It’s all about feeling powerful and in control, but those feelings never last for long; it’s almost impossible to create an authentic connection with someone when honest communication is missing. When people play psychological games, it puts the victim in a tough spot because the abuser has a clear agenda, a clear view of the ‘playing field’, whereas the victim might not; we become used to responding to the content of human communication - you might have an idea that something is off, but you leave it be, and before you know it, others are in control of the situation and you’re their unwitting pawn. The only way to beat them at their own game is by not playing, which is exactly what Yui tries to do, and what does Reiji do ? He persists.

You drop your head in defeat.

“Well then, what to do with you?”

You cross your arms.

“What’s with that face? Even though you are terrified, you also seem somewhat disappointed? …Fufu…Not too shabby. It is very cute.”

“…’Said compliment does not make me happy’, you say? Fufu…Those are some rather provocative words. A failure as a proper lady. …Very well, I shall personally discipline you to ensure you will never be so conceited again.”

“Let’s see…First up…Ah, right!”

We see Reiji cling to this persistence by both complimenting and demeaning Yui, which finally grants him the satisfaction of winning and breaking Yui’s silence. Something to note here is when Reiji deems Yui “conceited”, he’s framing her as vain and self-important, which is the complete opposite of what Yui is; this can often be known as projecting - Yui herself is not conceited in any way, but Reiji is -. Projection refers to unconsciously taking unwanted emotions or traits you don’t like about yourself and attributing them to someone else, and like a lot of aspects of human behaviour, projection comes down to being a self-defence mechanism. Koenig notes that projecting something you don’t like about yourself onto someone else protects you from having to acknowledge that part about yourself. Projection does what all defence mechanisms are meant to do: keep discomfort about ourselves at bay and outside our awareness. Those who maintain low self-esteem can also fall into the habit of projecting their own feelings of not being good enough onto others; this is something we often see Reiji doing - we know he suffers from long-lasting CEN, perfectionism and mild NPD and one thing that keeps them all interconnected is low self-esteem. Reiji buries his feelings under a mask and plays a gentleman-like façade, he acts as though he is superior in every way, because deep down, he feels as though he is not, and instead of recognising that, he projects it onto Yui. Those who can accept their failures and weaknesses, and who are comfortable reflecting on the good, bad, and ugly within, tend not to project - they have no need to, as they can tolerate recognizing or experiencing their negative traits.

Additionally, I wanted to make a note of when Reiji stated that Yui was a “failure as a proper lady”. Throughout history, there have been many periods in which women were enforced to abide by certain societal rules and etiquette in order to be viewed as a “proper lady”.  A woman’s reputation is as brittle as it is beautiful, and even for wealthy and social standing women, there was no guarantee that a lady would enjoy a fine reputation; instead, a lady’s reputation was largely based upon how she behaved herself, both in public as well as in the privacy of her own home.

Following Reiji’s HDB route, we implied that Reiji’s possibly using Yui as a vessel or conduit for Beatrix as well as his younger self - a way for Reiji to channel his wants, desires and tribulations through Yui and drag her down into turmoil with him. In the many etiquette manuals of the time, whole sections were often devoted to how a lady should move, and even how they should stay still; there was nothing you could do that wouldn’t be judged by the rest of society and, while some rules were very complex, and at times contradictory, when it came to sitting and walking, it was quite straightforward: keep it elegant and refined. This is the basis of how Reiji wishes Yui to behave - elegant and refined, just like how Beatrix was - and he enjoys ‘retraining’ her to conform to this attitude, displaying that historical behaviours are of some importance to him, and they have affected his views on others.

*Cling cling*

*SPLASH*

“Oh no! The tea has spilled! What if it stains the floor? Come on, hurry up! Why are you standing there with your mouth hanging wide open? …It seems like you do not know what to do?”

“It should be obvious, is it now? I am asking you to get down on your knees and wipe the floor.”

You protest.

“…’I am not the one who spilt it’, you claim? So that is your response? I’m utterly disappointed. …Hurry up and clean it! Learning to look out for others is a very important part of your training! However, that does not give you a reason to do it hastily, your movements must remain graceful and beautiful.”

Alongside historical etiquette often comes ingrained sexism, and here we slowly see that side of Reiji seep out. Reiji spilt his tea, Yui defended herself and Reiji in turn lashes out and suddenly expects Yui to clean up his mess; a piece of Reiji’s dialogue shows how hypocritical this is, he states “when you break things in this house, you must tidy them up immediately” - which would imply that if Yui has broken something, then she must be the one to clean up the mess left behind, not clean up Reiji’s mess - phrases such as this not only show Reiji’s hypocrisy but also his standards for Yui, she is to be quiet, poised, obedient and revolve entirely around him - which to my interpretation, reminds me a lot of housewifery -. Traditional gender roles throughout history cast men as rational, strong, protective, and decisive; they cast women as emotional, weak, irrational, and submissive; these gender roles have been used very successfully to justify inequities. Being treated as subordinate figures in the family, most housewives have yielded to the role of being a devoted obedient wife regarding the housework fearing they may commit a sin if they shirk their responsibilities in the house, which resulted in them becoming passive obsessives - the reason I’m bringing attention to this is Reiji’s own views that Yui is inferior to himself, he already sees her as below him and now expects her to take responsibility for his actions without question. Reiji’s abusive selfishness can display a rather sexist picture at times - we’ve already implied that history has taken an effect on him, and history, etiquette and sexism go hand-in-hand; even the fact that he demands that “[Yui’s] movements must remain graceful and beautiful” presents how ingrained etiquette is inside Reiji, further emphasising just how ‘perfect’ he demands Yui to be, and how he expects her to follow in Beatrix’s poised footsteps. No matter what time period this is set in, Reiji’s degradation and treatment towards Yui will always be unacceptable and a showcase to his internalised abuse and narcissism.

You go and fetch a cloth to clean up the tea spills.

“Aah…So you’ve noticed the cloth laying around there.”

You wipe the floor.

*Rustle rustle*

“Fufufu…Exactly. If you had simply obediently bowed your head to me and heeded my orders from the very beginning, I would not have had to resort to saying all those awful things.”

*Rustle rustle*

“However, you are so dreadfully bad at reading the mood, you left me with no other choice.”

Here we again see Reiji shift blame from himself to Yui, he creates the excuse that “none of this would’ve happened if you’d just listened to me”, which is untrue - by putting all blame on Yui, Reiji is lessening anything that could fault his ‘perfect’ persona and that implication displays his arrogance and pride.  There’s nothing inherently wrong with having a little pride, it can help you move forward through tough situations and demonstrates a level of self-assuredness that we all strive for in our personal and professional lives, but there’s a narrow line dividing having a healthy amount of confidence and having a stubborn ego; and one of the primary indicators you’ve landed on the wrong side of that line, is not being able to admit when you’re wrong. The question is, why can’t Reiji accept that he is wrong, even when it is obvious he is? Why does he never admit when he’s wrong ? The answer is related to his ego, Reiji’s very sense of self. Some people have such a fragile ego, such brittle self-esteem, that admitting they made a mistake or that they were wrong is fundamentally too threatening for their egos to tolerate. Accepting they were wrong, absorbing that reality, would be so psychologically shattering; their defence mechanisms do something remarkable to avoid doing so - they quite literally distort their perception of reality to make it less threatening, their defence mechanisms protect their fragile ego by changing the very facts in their mind, so they are no longer wrong or culpable. We’ve seen this multiple times from Reiji, the fact that he never accepts true fault or blame and instead we see him lessening his own consequences or shifting the blame entirely on Yui - which is what we’re seeing here.

*Rustle rustle*

“Just like that, meticulously…Please clean every nook and cranny.”

*Rustle rustle*

“Looking at you knelt down on the floor like that could by no means be described as elegant, but it is rather nice. It brings out the worst in me.”

You glare at him.

“What was that? …I have bad tastes? Fufu…You might be correct.”

“However, is there a problem with that? …That being said, I am already fed up with this. …Ah, right! Could you stand up for a second?”

You seem confused by the question.

“Come on, hurry up!”

It can be implied that Yui kneeling on the floor shows her being physically inferior to Reiji as well as submissive, and Yui plays into this by taking the submissive option and simply glaring at Reiji - she’s not actively rising to his taunts and taking to dominant role away from Reiji - Yui instead remains quiet, submissive and keep her actions relatively covert; and how does Reiji respond to this ? He states “It brings out the worst in me”, which could imply that Yui may be subconsciously goading Reiji’s more dominant behaviour. The dominance behavioural system (DBS) can be conceptualised as a biologically-based system which guides dominance motivation, dominant and subordinate behaviour, and responses to perceptions of power and submissiveness. Research suggests that problems with the DBS are evident across a broad range of psychopathologies; extensive research suggests that externalising disorders, mania-proneness, and narcissistic traits are related to heightened dominance motivation and behaviours. Mania and NPD also appear to relate to inflated perceptions of power, whereas anxiety and depression are related to subordination and submissiveness. 

We’ve implied that Reiji possesses traits of mild narcissism through his overall route in HDB, and we can also imply that Yui suffers from anxiety. Anxiety is both a mental and physical state of negative expectation - mentally, it is characterized by increased arousal and apprehension tortured into distressing worry, and physically, by unpleasant activation of multiple body systems; all to facilitate response to an unknown danger, whether real or imagined. Anxiety is often accompanied by depression, and the two share many symptoms and involve many of the same brain pathways; biology can contribute to vulnerability to anxiety, as can childhood experiences such as early trauma and parenting practises such as overprotection or neglect. Anxiety has two basic components, there is a cognitive load of worry, or the apprehensive expectation of some bad outcome, and there are physical symptoms, notably restlessness and edginess, muscle tension, sleep disturbance, and difficulty concentrating. Like depression, anxiety can make its presence felt in many systems of the body - disrupting digestion, speeding heart rate, setting off ringing in the ears. Anxiety shows itself both in the mind and the body. As a threat is perceived - whether it is a reality-based one or an imagined one - the brain’s amygdala signals the hypothalamus, a central command centre, which broadcasts the signal through the autonomic nervous system and sets off a cascade of hormones, including adrenaline. It in turn stimulates the multiple physical symptoms of anxiety, the heart beats faster and as the pulse rate increases, so does the blood pressure, breathing accelerates; you may feel short of breath. Other symptoms include: dizziness, muscle tension, trembling or shaking, dry mouth, sweating, stomach aches, headaches, restlessness, fatigue, difficulty concentrating, irritability and sleep disturbance. Most notably, we see Yui experience a plethora of these symptoms, such as trembling, fatigue and a fast or pounding heartbeat just to name a few, and Yui’s overall situation would definitely elicit anxiety. My point is that if Yui contributes to one end of this dynamic, then Reiji must consequently adhere to the other - that being the DBS -.

Dominance motivation describes an individual's drive and energy to pursue power, a concept that shares much in common with Winter's definition of the power motive. Winter described individuals who wanted to feel as though they were most powerful; he noted that individuals with a high power motive tend to construe the world in terms of power and to use power in categorising human intention, people motivated by dominance are more likely to be sensitive to cues signalling opportunities for, or threats to, power. Dominance motivation appears to be bipolar in that some people strive for power whereas others try to avoid it, inflexibly submissive individuals, for example, do not feel comfortable with having power - this would correlate to Yui -. In any of their interactions, there is to be a power dynamic between Reiji and Yui, and it’s likely that Yui is subconsciously bringing more of that out due to her non-confrontational mindset and behavioural patterns; this gives Reiji more of an excuse and cue to abuse her as she is unconsciously adhering to Reiji’s DBS and submissive behaviour. Reiji strives for power and perfection over others and over Yui whereas Yui acts as the counterpart to that, she does not strive for power; one cannot exist without the other.

There are both prosocial and aggressive forms of dominance behaviour, and it can be captured by the interpersonal circumplex model in which social behaviour is represented by two orthogonal axes: dominance/submissiveness and warmth/hostility. The interpersonal circumplex has been used both to describe behaviours in a specific situation and to consider trait-like behavioural tendencies across situations, and within this model, different manifestations of dominance behaviour are differentiated along the warmth/hostility dimension. Dominance coupled with hostility can involve antisocial strategies for taking resources and threatening subordinates, such as manipulative behaviour, intimidation, and social or physical aggression. Whereas dominance coupled with warmth can take on prosocial forms, such as alliance formation, cooperation, reciprocal resource exchange, engagement in high status, leadership, and persuasion. Within this CD and Reiji’s route in HDB we see the first interaction take place - dominance alongside hostility - whereas we see the second dynamic take place during More Blood as well as the later games, which brings attention to the fact that Reiji is changing and developing, it’s just at a slower pace as he’s learning to come to terms with his emotions.

The emotional concomitants of the DBS have been studied well, and when power is threatened, anger is a likely emotional outcome and even likelier when the dominance motivation is high. Other work has focused on the self-conscious emotions of pride and shame, which are seen as representing opposite ends of a dimension of internalised schemas of dominance/subordination status, and through Reiji’s self-contradictory nature, it can be implied that he is motivated by both pride and shame in order to gain power over Yui; pride has been conceptualised as an emotional triggered by the perception that one is doing well in meeting the social standards that would garner the respect and attention, or social attention holding potential over others. Whereas the former is based on a specific action or accomplishment, the latter stems from global attributions of one's value that may not be founded in specific actions or accomplishments. Shame is triggered when an individual perceives themselves as unattractive to others, or when social attention holding potential is low. Shame can be triggered by hostile interactions with dominant others and is associated with submissive behaviour, which exactly how we see Reiji act with the rest of the brothers - compared to them, Reiji holds the submissive part, whereas with Yui, that dominance can be let out and displayed on an entirely larger scale - and I think this is why Reiji states that Yui brings out the worst in him, the shame from being upstaged by his brothers and their dominance would naturally make Reiji want to surpass that with his own dominance, and he does it any way he knows that will affect Yui as she is the type of person to avoid being dominant; thereby granting Reiji the will to do as he pleases.

You stand up.

“Haah…Just as I thought. Care to explain your horrible posture to me? …Your hips are slanted, how sloppy!”

*Rustle*

“Raise your chin and stand up straight!”

You try and fix your posture, but to no avail.

“Oh? Are you incapable of performing such a simple task? That is truly a shame.”

“That being said, not everything is doom and gloom. After all, it seems like you have been blessed with a special strength. Ah…I am not complimenting you. I simply pointed out that you do have a certain quality. However, the thing about personal qualities is that if you do not put in the effort to develop them, they are absolutely meaningless.”

Going back to a previous point, Reiji’s disapproval of Yui’s posture reinforces my earlier implication, that historical etiquette has imprinted on him as well as desiring Yui to embody Beatrix. Above all historical periods, the Regency era was obsessed with correct posture - much like Reiji -, this meant keeping your back straight at all times, and while sitting up straight and walking tall was expected of gentlemen too, this was especially important for women. As the depictions of the time noted, a well-bred young lady should move with grace and ease, appearing the epitome of elegance.

The reason I’m opting to focus on the Regency era is due to Shuu’s clothing during his childhood as it follows the same aristocratic style and pattern of that in the 18th century, meaning that the Regency era occurred later on (19th century), giving its customs the chance to imprint on Reiji - Reiji’s views towards being a “proper lady” also follow the same etiquette that the Regency era also instilled; thus making my inferences viable. The most common rules for women to abide by during this era were related to politeness, this included: limited speech, remaining poised and elegant, refraining from physical touch (unless it’s with a marital partner) and to always uphold their manners. Throughout Reiji’s HDB route, we see him criticise Yui’s manners and posture and here is no different. This can be interpreted to imply that Reiji’s views of manners are very much based on the historical periods he’s most likely lived through - that being Regency into Georgian and Victorian and so on so forth - and the etiquette for men and women in high status remained relatively the same; which can imply that Reiji most likely grew accustomed to their rules, which can further imply that his gentleman façade and love for historical etiquette are most likely intertwined, hence why he’s quick to scold Yui on her stance. Even the fact that Reiji’s shouting at her, calling her sloppy and demanding that she “Raise [her] chin and stand up straight!” implies that etiquette - etiquette that Beatrix would have most definitely followed - is exponentially important to him, further implying that Reiji wishes to mould Yui into some form of replica of his mother.

I also wanted to make a note of Yui’s “personal qualities” - though what that means isn’t specified - it can be interpreted to relate to her obedience and submissiveness overall towards Reiji; when he states “if you do not put in the effort to develop them, they are absolutely meaningless” it could instead imply that if Yui does not develop and herself to Reiji’s desires, then she is meaningless, which is entirely untrue. The number one fallacy taken as fact in the minds of victims of sadistic abuse is that they’re disposable to their abusers, that they don’t hold any special significance, that they’re more or less worthless afterthoughts. This shouldn’t be surprising since the content of sadistic abuse is usually rife with phrases such as “you’re worthless”, “you’re nothing”, “you’re disposable” and with actions that communicate the same basic message. 

Inferiority is the role a victim in an abusive relationship is defined by, to become the conscious bearer of all those unwanted, unfavourable characterizations which all amount to lowliness or mediocrity. The victim is ‘inferior’ and the sadistic abuser ‘superior’ in the minds of both; together they form a ‘whole’. When the victim tries to leave the ‘whole’, it is fragmented and suddenly all the repressed, painful feelings come rushing into the sadist’s conscious awareness. Anxiety skyrockets as the repressed inferiority complex comes back out into the open and the sadist panics. So, rather than being ‘worthless’ or ‘disposable’ a victim of sadistic abuse is absolutely vital to the continued functioning of the sadistic abuser’s psyche - naturally, the abuser’s psyche is not functioning smoothly to begin with, but the point is that losing the object of abuse threatens to make the abuser’s mentality, with its glut of defence mechanisms and rationalisations, deteriorate to the point of collapse; thereby making the victim absolutely essential to the abuser - they hold no power otherwise - and this perfectly encapsulates Reiji’s mentality towards Yui. Reiji deems Yui “meaningless” yet she is essential in keeping his mentality afloat and intact.

“However, I assume you are at least capable of dancing ?”

You shake your head.

“You have never…danced?”

“Haah…How troublesome. What on earth has your Father been teaching you? I am disappointed…Well then, tonight I shall take my time to teach you the basics of dancing.””

“You have to at least be capable of doing that, or you are not even worthy of living. …Only just having to look at a lady so utterly incompetent makes me gag, you see?”

“Well…having another stupid person added to the bunch would be highly troublesome. …Furthermore, I feel there is something special about you.”

Again we see historical etiquette make its presence known, and the fact that Reiji questions “What on earth has your Father been teaching you?” presents how embedded these archaic social rules are in him - through periods such as the Le Grand Siècle, Renaissance and Victorian era, dancing, specifically ballroom dancing, was expected to be taught to those of high social class and was embedded into any high ranking and formal social event in order to display wealth and class. Dancing was an important social activity of those with nobility.

The technique of etiquette, as taught by the dancing masters of the age, was ideally simple. The modern day belief that there were many flourishes of hats or handkerchiefs is quite erroneous; in truth, only affected fops or conceited individuals would use such exaggeration. The truly "well-bred" person of fashion remained poised at all times, yet had to appear completely natural. This basic concept is also a fundamental precept of modern ballet. Much of the 17th century dance technique was the origin of modern steps in classical ballet. At all times, ladies and gentlemen were to be conscious of their physical stance and bearing. Rameau instructed that "a lady, however graceful her deportment, will be judged... For example, if she holds her head erect and her body upright, without affectation or boldness, it will be said: 'There goes a fine lady'". Acceptable postures for standing, in the case of gentlemen, were named the third and fourth positions, analogous to those used in modern technique. The plié, particularly as used in the first position, emanated from a ladies' bow. Standing with feet well turned out, a lady was meant to keep her body and head upright as she bends the knees while lowering her gaze. If she was bowing to an individual of high social status, her bow must be made lower, requiring excellent balance. Ballroom dancing was incredibly important throughout many periods in history; this would no doubt imprint on Reiji’s life both in and out of the Demon world, therefore, Reiji’s views of social hierarchy and social behaviours would naturally be quite archaic. The fact that he states “just having to look at a lady so utterly incompetent makes me gag“ not only acts as a way to degrade Yui even further, but it acts as a way to separate the two from their respective time periods - modern and archaic -. Reiji’s views of social normalities are vastly different from Yui’s due to their age; not everyone in modern day times know how to ballroom dance yet it would have been custom and tradition for Reiji growing up and therefore displays another interaction between the two, and here Reiji is trying to imprint on Yui and change her to his liking; thus presenting his controlling nature.

Additionally, when Reiji says “Well…having another stupid person added to the bunch would be highly troublesome”, it can be implied that “the bunch” in this scenario are the rest of the brothers, which shows us how detached Reiji is from his own family - he doesn’t say “my brothers” or even name them -. The added factor that he not only deems Yui, but his brothers “stupid” too shows his lack of self awareness to anyone but himself, as he puts his perfectionism, narcissism and overall sense of self-glorification on full display - Reiji’s actively degrading everyone around him in order to glorify himself to a higher standard and seem ‘perfect’ in comparison - which displays how narcissistic and utterly demeaning he can be.

You flinch.

“Fufufu…What seems to be the matter? You are awfully alert?”

“No need to be so modest. I have finally been enlightened myself. Well then, let us go.”

*TIMESKIP*

*Clap clap*

“Let us get started right away ーー Is what I love to say, but before that…Here you go.”

*Rustle*

“Please change into this dress. I have chosen a pure white one on purpose. At times, looks do matter after all.”

The implication that looks are of importance to Reiji when dancing leads us back to social etiquette as women always had to look prim and proper in order to stop any judgement. However, it is the white dress that holds symbolism - through my analysis of “A Certain Prophet’s Fate” we came the the conclusion that the colour white symbolises purity, virginity, innocence and light, and those connotations symbolise Yui; with that implication in mind, it can be inferred that Reiji’s choice of a white dress furthers that conclusion. Furthermore, to wear a dress in white can also be implied to be considered to be the colour of perfection - which would be a clear parallel for Reiji’s perfectionism; thus providing us with yet another instance where Reiji’s trying to enforce his morals and views onto Yui in order to make her ‘perfect’ too.

You seem a little hesitant.

“Is it not to your liking, perhaps? Pure, yet easily tainted, I would like to argue that at present, you are the perfect candidate for this dress.”

“Well then, here you go.”

Reiji hands you the dress.

“I very much appreciate your cooperativeness. Well then, go ahead and change.”

You head towards the door.

“Oh dear? Where are you going? You can change right here. …Please rest assured. Seeing the body of someone who can not even pull off a simple dress will not make me feel a single thing.”

Something to pay attention to here is the fact that Reiji disregards privacy and decency in order to berate and pressure Yui to conform to his standards - and given Yui’s young age, she would naturally be susceptible to the abuse pressure can inflict. Peer pressure can be physical, sexual, emotional coercion and abuse exercised by people over others of the same age or social group; it can take many forms including bullying, abusive relationships, violence and harmful sexual behaviour. Peer pressure can happen to people of all ages but particular concerns exist over young people. The desire to conform to peer influences often increases during adolescence, and peer pressure can involve encouraging people to participate in exploitative activities or behaviours - the power of the peer group can make people reluctant to tell others that they are being abused or exploited, especially if doing so could make them targets of humiliation, violence or rejection; a significant number of sexual exploitation cases have occurred between peers aged under eighteen, and that age range directly correlates to Yui and her current dilemma. By Reiji pressuring Yui into changing in front of him, it acts as another form of abuse - this time, it’s sexual - he’s actively disregarding Yui’s sense of privacy in order to humiliate her and lower her self-esteem even further.

This humiliation comes from Reiji’s statement of, “Seeing the body of someone who can not even pull off a simple dress will not make me feel a single thing“, which can imply that Reiji does not value Yui’s physicality at all, and he simply sees her as just a body - a slab of meat, if you will -. Implications such as this reinforce how degrading and dehumanising Reiji’s behaviour is.

You feel offended.

“Aah…Or were you perhaps hoping it would stir up something inside of me?”

You shake your head.

“Fufufu…If that is not the case, then go ahead, strip. …Please hand me the corset. I shall tighten it for you.”

He grabs the corset.

“Here it comes…”

He tightens the corset.

“Is it painful? However, please endure it for the sake of beauty.”

Reiji’s remark about beauty is one to pay attention to as it falls back into historical etiquette and the teaching that “beauty is pain” -  or “Il faut souffrir pour être belle” which originated in France, which roughly translates to “one must suffer to be beautiful”.  In other words, beauty comes at a price, and it can be a painful one. For decades, girls have been conditioned to believe that they must suffer, physically, mentally, or emotionally in order to achieve beauty; women and girls alike are often told that beauty is on the inside, but society convinces them otherwise, and that it is a difficult process and something to be achieved. The conditional oxymoron “beauty is pain” makes it seem like there are rules to conform to or tasks to be completed in order to achieve ultimate beauty - that Yui must suffer at Reiji’s cruel hand in order to become beautiful and ‘perfect’ -. Customs such as this are often accompanied by the phrase “beauty is in the eye of the beholder”, the “beholder” in this case is Reiji - and culminated with his necessity for etiquette - it would be clear to imply that his version of beauty is one accompanied by pain, such as the traditional Victorian wear of corsets, breaking ribs in order to accentuate curvature and live up to the idealised standard of beauty in that time; I’m opting to focus on the Victorian perception of beauty due to Cordelia’s influence during Reiji’s HDB route.

In Victorian novels, physical appearance acts as a primary means of characterization. A hero or heroine's beauty - or lack thereof - was the most important aspect of their character. As Lefkovitz points out, beauty is always culturally defined. For women, that definition is a strange mixture of ideals, the Victorians admired both the strong, hearty, statuesque lady and the weak, fainting beauty, who Lefkovitz uses the French word “mourante” to define: dying, languishing, expiring, fainting, fading; the former type was predominantly popular in the first half of the century.  A woman's body in the first decade of the century was under considerable scrutiny, and the ideal against which she was measured was tall and statuesque, stately, elegant, refined - these are traits possessed by both Beatrix and Cordelia, and their clothing represented those characteristics, Cordelia’s outfit presents her wealth and lavish lifestyle whereas Beatrix’s displays her elegant and refined nature; something that deeply imprinted on Reiji -. With this in mind, Reiji is not only trying to metaphorically show Yui’s purity through the white dress but also follow in his mother’s footsteps “for the sake of beauty”.

*Rustle rustle*

“Here you go. This should do.”

You put on the dress on top.

*Rustle*

“Aah…The dress looks very nice on you. Fine feathers really do make fine birds. Seems like my styling is on point.”

You smile.

“This is not a compliment for you personally, I am simply implying that I selected the right dress. Please do not get the wrong idea. Either way…Your hand, please.”

The phrase that stands out the most to me here is, “Fine feathers really do make fine birds” - it at first seems like an odd statement to make but if we delve back into the route analysis, then it actually makes quite a lot of sense. During Reiji’s HDB route, he says the declarative “I assume the little bird has become quite meek after being locked up in her cage“, which we implied to mean that Yui is something to be looked at and admired by Reiji, to be looked at for her beauty and inferiority as she holds no threat towards Reiji - and I think that same inference applies here too, that Yui is nothing more than a dainty animal to be trained and ‘cared’ for by Reiji. However, it was the noun “feathers” that I wanted to bring attention to. Feathers are the magic material that cover the bodies of all birds, essentially, a bird is only deemed beautiful due to the nature of its feathers: their texture, colour, length, and not the creature underneath - it’s the same as marvelling at a mammal for its long, luscious fur -. By adorning Yui with a finely-made dress, Reiji is essentially accentuating any beauty Yui already has in order to appreciate her as a woman, which is exactly what Victorian fashion and standards equated to.

You take a step back.

“Oh? Why are you hesitating now? What happened? Have you grown scared of touching me? …However, whatever you may say, you can no longer back out now.”

“Hurry up and come here…

Reiji grabs hold of your hand and pulls you against him as the music begins to play.

*Rustle*

“By the way, you know the steps, do you not?”

You shake your head.

“Haah…You do not even know that much? Pathetic…Come on, it’s a simple waltz. …One, two, three…One, two, three…”

Contradictory to his previous behaviour, Reiji is actively guiding Yui on how to dance here - though his common quips are still very much present, he’s taking the time to show Yui what to do rather than lecture and scold her, which shows his slow progression towards accepting Yui for who she is as a person; it’s a slow and winding road for his development but instances such as this show that Reiji is reluctantly willing to take those first steps.

You try and follow along.

“Try and keep your steps light, following my lead. …Next time, we’ll start from the turn. Well then, once more. One, two, three…One, two, three…Oh dear, oh dear…Your movements are rather stiff. Do you happen to be nervous, perhaps?”

Reiji leans in.

“Lean your body to me more…Exactly, more…”

You suddenly step on this foot.

“…!? Ah…Just how awkward are you to step on someone’s foot like that!?”

You apologise.

“Take a look. My shoe got dirty. How will you make up for this?”

You apologise once more.

“Words of remorse are utterly meaningless to me.”

Again, Reiji is earnestly tutoring and mentoring Yui on something in which he takes pride in. Dancing can be a mutual activity and one that consists of intimacy, which can imply that Reiji is prepared to be intimate with Yui; even the phrase “Lean your body to me more…Exactly, more…” infers that Reiji actually desires this form of intimacy, and since Harlow’s experiments in 1965, research has uncovered an astonishing number of poor health outcomes that result when we are deprived of touch - the correlation between anxiety, depression, stress and touch is large and inversely related. It has been found that touch calms our nervous centre and slows down our heartbeat. Human touch also lowers blood pressure as well as cortisol - our stress hormone - and it also triggers the release of oxytocin, a hormone known for promoting emotional bonding to others.

Additionally, I wanted to bring attention to when Reiji states, “Words of remorse are utterly meaningless to me”. One interpretation of this could infer that Reiji is just berating Yui for her clumsiness and would rather have her be silent and obedient. The second interpretation of this can be implied to relate more to the phrase “talk is cheap”. The idiom, “talk is cheap” generally means that it is easier to talk about doing something rather than to actually do said thing - many people say they will do something but never do it. The expression “talk is cheap” may be seen as a challenge to accomplish something, but it is usually a commentary that someone is not following through on a guarantee or promise. In other words, one may promise to accomplish any number of things, but the words mean nothing unless that person follows through and actually accomplishes those things. To put this in context, my inference is that Reiji desires Yui not to apologise but to instead act on her error - that being stepping on Reiji’s foot -.

He steps closer.

“Seems like I have no other choice but to punish you in some way to ensure you shall not make the same mistake twice.”

“Well then…I wonder which kind of punishment is fit?”

You flinch.

“Fufu…You look rather anxious. Please rest assured. Unlike my brothers, I will not inflict pain upon you, nor resort to obscene matters. Being a gentleman is the norm after all.”

Reiji approaches you once more.

“I shall simply plant a chaste kiss against the small palm of your hand.”

He grabs hold of your hand.

*Rustle*

*Smooch*

“See…?”

Reiji’s first line of dialogue here first leads us to the implication of him using operant control on Yui as a punishment, however, our expectations of that are subverted by him opting to kiss Yui’s hand - why ? Simple, it’s called insincere kindness. Narcissists are self-serving, and these people are often wondering what the best way to accomplish their goals is and without caring so much about the other person, so they’ll turn on the charm towards others, but ultimately, it’s only because they hope to achieve some kind of personal gain - excessive and insincere kindness towards anyone, especially someone with low self-esteem can be used as a form of control. By Reiji choosing to be a “gentleman”, he’s subverting Yui’s expectation of receiving a harsh punishment by using insincere kindness, he’s actively confusing Yui in order to lessen the chance of her fighting back against him; it’s the natural element of surprise, Reiji’s causing Yui to be off guard so that she will follow him with more obedience - it’s a chance-chance situation where Reiji’s internally goading Yui with the message, “mess up again and you won’t know what I’ll do” -. He threatens her with operant control only to then give her a bout of ‘kindness’, and that acts as a way to control Yui and keep her alert in regards to her surroundings and Reiji.

You seem shocked.

“Why are you widening your eyes like that? You could not possibly want me to hurt you, do you?”

“Heh…You should just be honest with yourself already. Oh well, come on, we are continuing our dance.”

The music starts playing again.

“Haha…Seems like your nerves have settled down somewhat. Exactly, you can do it if you try. If only you had done this from the very beginning. Well, seems like you do have some talent at least. Fufu…Seems like I have something to look forward to myself.”

I wanted to bring attention to the phrase “if only you had done this from the very beginning” - it’s a hypothetical phrase which equates to “if only you had listened to me...”, and it not only reinforces Reiji’s manipulation tactics, but also his narcissism and perfectionism. When paired with, “you can do it if you try“, the overall dialogue becomes a form of hypothetical encouragement - it encourages Yui to follow Reiji’s instructions as well as praising Reiji for being the ‘mentor’ in this situation; it acts as a case of “listen to me since I’m better at it”. By offering encouragement, it goads Yui into listening to Reiji more, and when she does - and performs better - she is rewarded with praise; it acts as the positive reinforcement side of operant control, Reiji is instead opting to try and use praise in order to garner Yui’s obedience.

The two of you continue dancing.

“However…Since I missed out on enjoying my tea earlier, I have become awfully thirsty…”

“Just by imagining…The taste of your blood spreading inside my mouth…My throat feels parched…If I were to place my fangs against your defenceless neck, I could be freed from this dreaded thirst. No…There is simply no other way.”

“Your bloodーー!”

You suddenly falter.

*Rustle*

“Wha…!?”

“…Seems like you twisted your ankle. To think you would lose your composure over something like this. I have lost interest.”

This prior moment of ‘kindness’ does not last long though, as Reiji’s natural instincts come to light once more, and so does his sense of entitlement. Entitlement is a narcissistic personality trait, and it can develop from the environment you grew up in to the way you were treated by parents or authority figures. People with an entitlement mentality often see themselves as superior to others and it’s no surprise that this way of thinking can affect interpersonal relationships. When you believe you’re entitled to better treatment than others, or that the rules don’t apply to you, you’re more likely to suffer in the long term; given that you simply believe you aren’t getting what you’re owed, an entitlement mentality can result in conflict, disappointment and depression. Reiji believes that he is entitled to Yui’s blood because she, according to him, made him lose out on his tea earlier - she did not, however, the severity of Reiji’s NPD and perfectionism leads him into distorting his own perception so that he can never be the one at fault, so that he can continue to be ‘perfect’ -. Implications such as this present how severe and inflated Reiji’s sense of self is; he allows himself to delve into his carnal desires, to drink Yui’s blood, whilst also berating Yui for giving into her own human instincts - it not only shows his utter hypocrisy but also his delusion -.

The other thing to note in this section is Reiji losing interest once Yui becomes injured - again he also berates her. This could imply that once Yui’s form is no longer perfect, he has no intent on pursuing his thirst - after all, anything less than ‘perfect’ is utterly useless to Reiji. Additionally his remark of “To think you would lose your composure over something like this” infers that Reiji is completely disregarding Yui’s injury - he loses interest because he knows that Yui’s injury will precede his own desires.

He grabs hold of your hand.

“I would have loved to dance with you a little longer, but given the circumstances, you leave me with no other choice. I shall escort you to a room.”

You tell him you will be fine on your own.

“Making you walk with an injured foot would go against my principles. Therefore…”

Reiji lifts you into his arms.

*Rustle*

“Please allow me to carry you in my arms like this. I shall hear no complaints.”

You struggle.

“Please keep still. If you move around, it will only hurt your foot. If you do not want that, you have no other choice but to obey me.”

Once Yui becomes injured, Reiji’s usual demeanour changes, it’s softens ever so slightly - Yui’s injured, therefore she can’t run or fight him, meaning that Reiji’s presented with an opportunity for him to lower his guard without any fear of rebound, and what does he do ? He takes it, and this reinforces the theme that Reiji only seems to relax around Yui when there is no fear of her resisting. Interactions such as this indicate that Reiji is at least trying to change his behaviour, but his reluctance to trust Yui with his feelings precedes him - he only lets his guard down once he’s in control, he can trust that Yui won’t run away because he has her exactly where he wants her; in these situations, Reiji essentially has Yui at checkmate, therefore he has nothing to fear, and this can infer why he’ll use these opportunities to show little inklings of care. Reiji has trust issues.

People with trust issues are extra-suspicious of other people’s actions and behaviours; they have feelings of being taken advantage of or feelings that no one is trust-worthy - and when it comes to Reiji, this is displayed to us. He’s weary and dubious of anything Yui says or does, especially in relation to Shuu and names her a liar even though we know she’s not; it not only presents how abusive Reiji is, but it also presents us with how untrusting he is. The ironic aspect of this is, people with trust issues mostly stay away from people due to their fear of betrayal, but at the same time, they long for deep and meaningful relationships. Throughout HDB, Reiji is seen to push Yui away at every opportunity, he abuses and isolates her and removes himself from any feeling that Yui has and instead punishes her for it, yet, once Cordelia appears and Yui is pushed out of the way, he openly fights to get Yui back - he’s dubious of Yui but he realises that she’s the only one who has an inkling of care for him. Reiji wants Yui’s affection, but he can’t trust her enough to ask for it.

One major setback that people with trust issues go through is that they cannot believe that any good can come to them; thus, they keep their doors shut to every positive thing and opportunity thinking that it might ruin their lives, whereas in reality that’s untrue. This implication is a running theme throughout Reiji’s character, and it’s prominently displayed within my analysis of “A Certain Prophet’s Fate” - “This deep crimson curse is our family’s fate“ to be exact, and that phrase gives us the implication that Reiji feels that he’s undeserving of happiness and the ability to leave his troubles behind and trust in Yui. With all that being said, it presents us with the overall inference that Reiji’s afraid to let his guard down and trust Yui of his own will, in a situation where he is not in control; that’s why he says “obey”, he still holds dominance over Yui and so he can trust himself to be gentle  - yet if that situation was reversed, and Yui held the power, Reiji’s vicious side would present itself and so would his lack of trust in others; we have to remember that Reiji is more of less taken advantage of by the rest of his brothers due to his reserved and butler-like stature, therefore, he refuses to trust in anyone because of his fear of ridicule and mockery.

*Rustle rustle*

“Of course, if you wish for it to be painful, please struggle all you want. However, I doubt you truly believe you could actually get away from me by doing so?”

“Fufufufu…”

*TIMESKIP*

A door closes.

“Well then, you should remain seated on the bed.”

*Rustle*

“Why are you giving me that look? Ah…Is it because this is my room? I never said anything about taking you to your own room, did I? You are the one who misunderstood my words.”

Reiji yet again threatens Yui with pain and suffering, however, the significant part of this is his tone. Yui’s injured her ankle and even if she managed to push herself out of Reiji’s grasp, she wouldn’t be able to run far; Reiji knows this, his threat is not serious, it’s teasing - he’s being playful with his abuse because he knows that he’s in control of the situation. This inference can be deduced by two things: his rhetoric and his laugh. These are the common denominators for how the scene is going to play out - when the scene is serious, Reiji tends to litter his dialogue with harsh insults and demeaning, manipulative behaviour, whereas if the scene has Reiji in control, and Yui at his mercy, he often includes rhetorical phrases and chuckles; this is done to display that Yui has no control, and Reiji can ‘play’ with that.

Moreover, I also wanted to concentrate on the fact that Reiji takes Yui to his room specifically. A simple look at this would suggest that Reiji’s room might have just been close and convenient. However, I’m inclined to believe otherwise, Reiji could have just taken Yui to another room, her own room or even an empty guest room...so why specifically his ? No matter which way we look at this, your room acts as your ‘safe haven’ or sanctuary, it’s your room - a place where you can relax and not have to conform to anything or anyone, you are free to be yourself; in essence, you room is a physical manifestation of who you are as a person, and it exposes that. With that symbolism in mind, it can imply that Reiji is trying to lower his guard and let Yui in, and instead of verbally doing this, he’s instead trying to show it.

You glare at him.

“I wish you would not glare at me like that. …Or rather, perhaps you simply fail to grasp my consideration towards an injured person, who might feel anxious by themselves otherwise? I could have very easily left you to your own devices, and came here to enjoy a cup of tea by myself.”

“Yet, I cannot help but feel disappointed.”

You apologise.

“Fufu…Fufufu…However, spending time with you like this is very much to my liking. …Hm? Why do you look so surprised? This is most definitely how I truly feel.”

“Regardless of the energy reflected in your widened eyes, you are unable to move due to your injured foot and are therefore completely at my mercy…”

Reiji leans in.

“Right now you are inferior to even a familiar. I like it very much. Just watching you puts me in an excellent mood.”

We are yet again thrown into Reiji’s tactics of victim blaming and narcissism in order to place himself on a pedestal and appear greater than what he actually is. He uses hypothetical situations in order to manipulate Yui into staying and garner her time and affection - which very much shows how lonely and bitter he is. Reiji’s essentially manipulating Yui’s thoughts into believing that she needs him and that she should be grateful to him as a way of providing himself affection; this inference is honestly quite sad in the fact that Reiji has to break Yui in order to receive affection because he can’t receive it any other way.

Additionally, our prior implications are proven correct with Reiji’s declarative of, “spending time with you like this is very much to my liking... This is most definitely how I truly feel”. Reiji wields complete control of the situation, and so he can relax and simply enjoy Yui’s company in silence. He even directly states that Yui is “completely at [Reiji’s] mercy…”, indicating that instead of waiting for Yui to accept him, he instead enforces it - even the notion that he prefers Yui to be silent and obedient in this situation furthers the implication that he is trying to perpetuate Beatrix through Yui, hoping to garner her compassion through Yui -. It’s here that we see his CEN prevail; Reiji craves the love and attention he never received, and in order to finally achieve that, he tries to force Yui to love him through abuse and manipulation.

Everyone has a mind of their own. They decide what they think and how they feel, and if they decide that you’re not a good person or that you don’t make them happy, you can’t change that; they’ll remain firm with their decision. This is exactly why Reiji prefers Yui to be silent - not only does it allow Yui to act in accordance to Beatrix’s personality - but it also means that she can’t disrupt Reiji’s wants and needs, if she speaks out of accordance to Reiji, his fantasy of being loved will be ruined and it’ll fade away; this is why the abuse, manipulation and Stockholm syndrome is so important in regards to Reiji - without those tactics, he can’t enforce and achieve what he wants -.

You turn your head away.

“Ahaha…Oh dear. Seems like you’ve averted your eyes. You really are like an open book.”

“You are free to rudely look around my room like that, but please refrain from touching anything.”

“…Hm? Do the small bottles lined up on the shelf pique your interest?”

You nod.

“Fufufu…You have a good eye. That’s my collection of poisonous drugs.”

You seem startled.

“Poison is a wonderful thing, you see. It quietly, slowly starts to take effect and the process of seeing the person unknowingly get harmed by it is truly beautiful.”

“Those pests who had been crawling around in front of you like an eyesore up until now, are overcome by intense suffering in a matter of minutes, kneeling down on the floor while clenching their chest.”

“Do you not believe that is a wonderful scenery?”

Reiji’s monologue of poison strikes significance in a multitude of ways. Firstly, his description matches the effect he himself has on Yui - his manipulation slowly and quietly takes an effect on Yui until she is practically no longer herself, and we again see the motif that “beauty is pain” be used by Reiji; this can lead us to the implication that Reiji’s dialogue here could metaphorically represent Reiji’s effect on Yui, that he is poisonous.

Secondly, I wanted to mention the significance and connotations of poison. Throughout history, poison has been used as a sly way to commit murder; it was deemed a “woman’s way to kill” due to it being slipped into food and drinks - therefore, it became known as the sly or passive way to kill as the murderer is not actively engaging in any brutality -. The significance here is the connotation of passivity. We’ve previously implied Reiji to be quite a passive character within his route analysis; therefore, it would be quite fitting for Reiji to prefer the passive, sly and clean way to torture and murder someone - his preferred method resonates the type of person Reiji is, he’s actively sly and cunning with his manipulative abuse and expects to be in complete control; poison grants that control over its victim, as the user can passively watch them suffer while remaining clean of any blood themselves, just like Reiji desires and prefers.

You look at him with disgust.

“Fufufu…Those are eyes full of hatred. Oh well, I do not particularly care about how you think of me. However…If you ever choose to bare your teeth at me, I simply cannot call that a very wise decision on your end.”

“After all, you have already been wrapped around my little finger. Ahaha…Have you not realised yet? …Exactly.”

You gasp.

“In the tea you drank earlier, I added a single drop of poison. Fufufu…Ahahaha!”

You start to feel sick.

“…I am joking. I would never waste my precious poison on an invaluable woman such as yourself.”

You frown.

“Yet…Haha…Your face went pale on the spot. How cute. …Seems like you were thinking too highly of yourself once again.”

The hypothetical phrase “If you ever choose to bare your teeth at me, I simply cannot call that a very wise decision on your end” acts as a threat towards Yui in order to gain control over her once more - it’s Reiji’s common tactic of inducing fear in order to gain control, and by using the verb “bare”, it reinforces the theme and dynamic that Yui is merely an animal compared to Reiji -. Reiji’s not just threatening Yui with a punishment, he’s threatening her with the fear of the unknown. The word “end” can have two connotations in this scenario, one simply meaning that it won’t be “a wise decision on your behalf” and the other is that “end” can connote to death, or meeting one’s ‘end’; Reiji utilises the fear of the latter in order to tease and cruelly mock Yui by falsely stating that he “added a single drop of poison”. By upping the stakes like this, Yui is more susceptible to obedience, which is exactly what Reiji wants in this situation.

I also wanted to bring attention to Reiji’s gloating - “you have already been wrapped around my little finger. Ahaha…Have you not realised yet?” -. Gloating is a trait found within narcissism as it allows the narcissist to perpetuate their superiority complex - it allows them to verbally declare that they are ‘better’ than their victim, and this is what Reiji is doing here. Reiji’s gloating about the abuse he’s inflicted upon Yui thus far; in essence, it’s a declaration of victory from Reiji - he has Yui at checkmate -.

Furthermore, Reiji finishes his dialogue by deeming Yui “invaluable”. He actively diminishes any strength Yui has left in order to keep her at bay and under his influence; this behaviour truly displays how fragile Reiji’s ego and self-worth are with the fact that he has to decimate Yui’s entire personality in order to present how much ‘better’ he is than her, yet in reality, it actually presents how envious and self-conscious Reiji is.

You get upset;

“Listen, I carefully select the people I decide to drug.”

You ask for an example.

“…An example, you ask? Good grief…That should go without asking. Anyone who does not obey to my rules, obviously.”

Your face goes pale again.

“Please do not be so frightened. As long as you obey, you are in absolutely no danger.”

“However…That good-for-nothing…Killing him just once would simply not be satisfying. I would love to make him suffer time after time after time, torturing him to death. I loathe those kind ofーー”

“Well, that being said. I suppose this is not something worth telling you. …Please forget what you just heard. While very unbefitting of me, it seems like I ran my mouth a little.”

Here we see Reiji admit to punishing those who do not submit to him and obey his every command. The fact that he uses “rules” to describe his control aligns with a more dictatorial sense of authority, which could relate to his necessity to monopolise every situation - he needs to be the only one in complete control so that everything can be ‘perfect’. 

We also see a glimpse of Reiji’s true colours - we see his façade drop, and this is exponentially significant. Firstly, the fact that this tangent is brought about by his reference to Shuu can imply that Shuu is a ‘weak point’ or vulnerability to Reiji; he holds so much anger and resentment towards his brother that any mention of him causes Reiji to bring his sadism to light. In the route analysis, we came to the conclusion that Reiji is jealous of Shuu due to his treatment from Beatrix; I’m mentioning this due to envy being quite significant in Reiji’s tangent. Envy, shame and sadism are all interconnected - jealousy can be a sign of insecurity, it is a fear of losing something you already have, and people who deal with jealousy may often feel threatened by other people or that they are in competition with someone else. This is exactly the case for Reiji, as he felt both threatened and in competition with his brother, vying for Beatrix’s time and care - and this is a competition that Reiji lost, thereby summoning those first inklings of envy. The envy the Reiji culminated from Shuu being awarded the affection of their mother bred shame - shame of not being ‘good’ enough, and letting his insecurities grow and usurp -. Feelings such as this pave the way for frustration to take hold, and malignant wrath follows in its wake; it’s the simple case of “hate breeds more hate” and naturally, the root cause of Reiji’s inner turmoil would aggravate his unbridled rage as all those feelings of being ‘unworthy’ would flood to the front of his mind; therefore, his sadism would prevail in that moment.

Secondly, the notion that Reiji says, “Please forget what you just heard. While very unbefitting of me, it seems like I ran my mouth a little” indicates that Reiji would rather keep his uglier side to himself - in other words, he would rather keep his bitterness confidential as it would be a ‘flaw’ for his perfectionism -. The added factor that he asks Yui to forget about it shows how unwilling he is to admit his flaws; he would rather cover them up and return to ‘normal’, even the fact that he excuses and euphemises his outburst by saying that he “ran [his] mouth a little” displays to us that Shuu causes Reiji to drop his entire ‘gentleman’ façade. Since we are capable of experiencing shame and guilt, we want to lessen any potential blame from others or any self-blame we attach to an offence or fault. An excuse is able to shift a causality from a more threatening source, that can impact one’s self-esteem, to a less central one; the perceived benefit associated with an excuse also includes having a sense of control over one’s life and attempts to view the wrongdoing as an anomaly. By Reiji saying that he simply “ran [his] mouth”, he’s essentially excusing his malice under the guise of an unconnected and unintelligible rant in order to save face and avoid penance.

“Haah…This is the worst. I might have gotten a little talkative because I had your blood earlier. Seems like your blood really is special after all.”

“So sweet and rich…I only had a little sip, yet the flavour spread in my mouth like tea leaves of the finest quality…No, they exceed even those, engraved in my memory forever.”

You frown.

“What is the matter? Why are you looking at me with those pitiful eyes? I hope you do not assume that I have become a captive of your blood?”

You try and deny it.

“I see…Seems like I was spot on.”

“Fufufu…Ahahaha! In that case, you have been underestimating me. I shall repeat myself once more, but that conceited attitude of yours is simply deplorable.”

“It is…very unsettling.”

We yet again see Reiji utilise blame shifting in order to uphold and validate his excuse. Instead of accepting fault, Reiji flips the scenario on Yui, blaming her blood and essentially blaming her for his behaviour. In addition to this, Reiji yet again projects his own detriments onto Yui, using her denial and concern in order to better his own excuse. The additional line of “It is…very unsettling” presents to us how hypocritical and unaware Reiji is of himself, he’s actively projecting his vanity onto Yui and deems her “unsettling” and “deplorable” when in reality, those insults are directed at himself, not Yui.

Reiji looks at you darkly.

“You have gone against my rules. The one that states you must not put me in a bad mood.”

You protest.

“You were not aware of the existence of such a rule? …Just how foolish are you? I should not have to mention something so obvious. It is an unspoken rule, you could say.”

“Were you not aware that someone like you should kneel down in front of me and bow their head?”

“Let me be blunt. I did not think you were this stupid. You do not deserve forgiveness. …Therefore.”

*Cling cling*

“Let me put these shackles around your ankles…”

*Cling cling*

“They suit you very well.”

*Cling cling cling*

“How is it? The feeling of slowly being stripped of your freedom?”

Reiji quickly changes topic in order to punish Yui for her “conceited attitude” and denial yet instead of naming a reasonable meaning for this, he uses the vague phrases of “bad mood” and “unspoken rule” in order to justify himself - in other words, he’s using his control to his convenience due to Yui now knowing about Reiji’s envy towards his brother. Reiji’s punishing Yui so that she won’t inquire about the relationship between Reiji and Shuu.

I also wanted to bring attention to the fact that he shackles her ankles together as this could be a physical manifestation of Yui’s constraint and entrapment by Reiji’s grasp. Yui’s already mentally trapped by Reiji’s cruel mind games, and in order to visualise that to her, he has now shackled her - he’s now taking her physical freedom away from her. Conversely, ankles symbolise stability, mobility and flexibility, and when they are restrained or injured, it can imply that there is no longer any value in the path we have currently taken, and it needs to be reflected upon; in this situation, Yui no longer holds value as a person by being with Reiji, she is simply an object of his fixation - someone he can manifest Beatrix through in order to achieve his lost maternal affection.

You protest.

“Hahaha…Oh dear? Seems like you are already frightened. There are tears streaming down your cheeks. You poor little thing. Fufufu…”

“If you wish to beg for my mercy, you have to act a little more gracefuーー”

*THUD*

*Cling cling*

“Where are you trying to go, pathetically crawling across the floor like that? …You are simply fuelling my sadistic heart even more.”

“If you wish to regain your freedom, then you must first succeed at stealing this key to the shackles from my hand.”

Following this, Reiji takes his time to humiliate and dehumanise Yui, and this first occurs when he deems her a “poor little thing”. The adjectives “poor” and “little” have connotations of being small, helpless and defenceless against any form of threat or unfortunate circumstance, whereas the noun “thing” completely degrades and dehumanises Yui, she’s not being described as a person but as an object; the noun phrase itself is extremely condescending and patronising to use in this circumstance. Additionally, the fact that Reiji is actively mocking Yui’s attempt to get away from him proves how utterly abhorrent he is; furthermore, the notion that Reiji decides to create a ‘game’ out of this displays how his amusement and sadism are intertwined. Reiji’s purposefully humiliating Yui because he enjoys her suffering - it allows him to feel better about himself and fuel his fragile ego.

*Cling*

“You cannot do that, can you? Not in your disadvantaged position.”

You desperately try and steal the key.

“Ahahaha! …Please do not give me that angry look.”

Reiji steps closer.

“For one, are you not already aware of the fact that I would not let you get away so easily?”

“However, things have turned out this way because you cling to false hope.”

You try and use this as an opening to steal the key.

*Cling cling cling*

“Woah there…! You want this key that badly? You sure never know when to give up.”

Reiji’s use of hypophora here indicates that he likes to gloat once he’s in utter control and has essentially ‘won’ against Yui; we again see him shift the blame onto Yui in the name of false hope - false hope that Reiji himself projects in order to lure Yui into his trap -. Reiji’s blaming Yui for falling into the trap that he himself intentionally plots. 

I also wanted to raise awareness to the phrase “You sure never know when to give up” as it can often be associated with an optimistic situation depending on the speaker, however, due to Reiji being the speaker, the semantic field changes into one of degradation and humiliation - he’s purposefully antagonising Yui so that he can take his sadistic impulses out on her, Yui’s essentiality a ‘punching bag’ for Reiji.

*Thud*

“Please, listen carefully…There is nowhere for you to run.”

You frown.

“Fufufu…If you have not realised, allow me to be so kind to inform you. …Even if you were to make it out of this room, there is not a single soul in this house who would be willing to save you.

You continue to struggle.

“If anything, they would only want to inflict more damage. Aah…or perhaps…”

You flinch.

“Do you prefer to be assaulted by multiple at once?”

The theme of isolation is reinforced yet again and Reiji takes extreme delight in reminding Yui of that and this can be interpreted through “so kind”. Evidently, this is not genuine kindness at all, instead it’s victorious satisfaction - even the fact that he says “there is not a single soul in this house who would be willing to save you” displays how much enjoyment he’s receiving out of obliterating any sense of hope Yui has.

Conversely, it is Reiji’s interrogative of “Do you prefer to be assaulted by multiple at once?” that raises awareness here, specifically due to “assaulted” having many connotations. The first interpretation of the verb can relate to being physically assaulted, beaten or attacked, I’m drawing this implication due to Yui’s position as prey; naturally, each brother would try to strike her down as their food instead. However, “assaulted” can also carry a more sexual implication too, especially in relation to the triplets as their routes quickly delve into sexual territory. We must remember that Yui is still pure here, she is virginal, and characters such as Laito detest that and want her to “fall” into impurity. The theme of being “assaulted by multiple” is a common theme within Laito’s route; at one point, he even instructs it:

Ayato: Aah? What’s the matter?

Laito: Hey, want to try playing with Bitch-chan a little?

--------------

Ayato: Seems like Laito has been having plenty of fun with you. He did a pretty good job too, from what I can tell.

Laito: Bitch-chan, every single thing he’ll do to you…I’ll watch it very closely, okay?

Naturally, given the triplet’s and Shuu’s prominent lewdness, the dominant interpretation of “assaulted” here would be sexual in nature, and Reiji’s constant complaint of Yui being vain would feed into that, as vanity can often be associated with being desired by others.

His words catch you off guard.

“Ahahaha! Your cheeks turned red in the blink of an eye.”

You try and reach for the key again.

…Woah there!”

“You must really be dying to get your hands on this key. So persistent. …On a side note, because of your tossing and turning around, the room has become somewhat dusty. It is a shame, but it seems like I have reached my limit as well.”

You continue to make a fuss.

“Behave!”

*THUD*

“How disappointing. I have only put in the slightest bit of strength, yet look at you crouch down the floor like that. However, I must say that the way you look up at me from below suits you very well.”

We see Reiji’s façade fall again here once he yells at Yui. It’s a simple, one-word phrase yet it holds so much control and dominance; most prominently, the phrase “Behave!” is often used in training animals such as dogs to follow orders, and by Yui being dehumanised, this fits in rather well with Reiji’s behaviour. We also see Reiji praise Yui for being physically below him, on the floor as though she was an animal; he’s persistently humiliating Yui in order to inflict control over her.

You protest.

“You are at fault. You made me upset after all.”

“I was even considering giving you mercy.”

You make a defeated expression.

“Either way…I am tired of messing around, killing time with you.”

Reiji steps closer.

“I shall decide your punishment. Let’s see…You have no value aside from the blood flowing through your veins.”

“In that case, I suppose I shall indulge in that blood to my heart’s content.”

The most significant part here is Reiji’s first line of dialogue, as it displays his victim-complex to us. One of the most common tactics abusers use is to shift blame onto the victim. The abuser will claim the victim is the abuser because of the reaction the victim has. The abuser may even attempt to convince the victim that there is nothing worth reacting over and that the victim is overreacting to the abuse. What the victim is actually experiencing is called reactive abuse. Reactive abuse occurs when the victim reacts to the abuse they are experiencing; the victim may scream or even lash out at the abuser, the abuser then retaliates by telling the victim that they are, in fact, the abuser. This is exactly what Reiji is doing here by claiming that it’s Yui’s fault for making him upset. When an abuser claims they are the ones being abused, they are manipulating the victim into believing that they are at fault for the abuse. The abusers are conditioning and manipulating their victim into accepting the blame, and the longer this blame shifting goes on, the longer the victim will believe they are to blame for the reactive outbursts and abuse that the abuser is dishing out - they will begin to believe that they are the violent and unstable ones. Tactics such as this genuinely display just how utterly manipulative Reiji is, he’s essentially re-writing Yui’s entire mentality in order to make her believe that she is at fault for Reiji’s abuse.

You flinch.

“Fufufu…”

“Well then, hurry up and stand! Come on!”

You stand.

“Hmph. You truly look pathetic like right. So very pitiful, weak, you poor, miserable little thing. However, humans like it when others feel pity towards them, do they not?”

*Cling*

*SMACK*

“…! Interesting. I did not expect you to slap my cheek…Fufufu…This is what makes punishing you worth it.”

Reiji yet again takes his time in humiliating Yui, and she falls into the trap of reactive abuse by slapping him, unintentionally giving Reiji an incentive to punish her more - which is why he states “This is what makes punishing you worth it”. Yui’s unknowingly fallen into the trap Reiji’s laid out for her.

Something to note here is how Reiji misinterprets sympathy and pity. He states that “humans like it when others feel pity towards them”, which isn't entirely true, as pity often involves aspects of condescension whereas sympathy does not. Pity is a feeling of discomfort and often has patronising or condescending overtones, sympathy on the other hand tends to involve care and concern for someone, and lacks those condescending tones. Pity is often more associated with emotional manipulation whereas sympathy is often viewed as kindness; this can infer that Reiji is grouping the two together in order to insinuate that Yui wishes to manipulate him - Reiji’s trying to make Yui appear just as manipulative as he is, in order to justify his own actions.

He leans in close.

“Well then, shall we get started?”

*Rustle*

“Admit that you belong to ‘Reiji’…and offer me your blood.”

You try and fight back again.

*Cling*

Reiji pins you down.

*THUD*

“Oh dear? Seems like being pushed down on the bed like this is not to your liking? …I could not possibly have sucked your blood on the floor, right? I am not exactly fond of getting my clothes dirty.”

Firstly, I wanted to make a note of “Admit that you belong to ‘Reiji’“ as he’s purposefully goading Yui into accepting that she’s a possession of ownership, she is a “thing” to be used and abused by Reiji however he pleases; essentially, he is asking Yui to dehumanise herself. Abusers are typically possessive, and they believe that anything they want should be theirs - they can do as they please with anything that is theirs. This attitude applies to people as well as possessions, and this is what we’re seeing here.

Secondly, I wanted to bring attention to the shift in semantic field in the last piece of dialogue. We’ve implied in the route analysis that sucking blood can be perceived as an intimate act, and when paired with Yui being “pushed down on the bed“ that intimacy can take on a more sexual tone rather than sadistic. However, the verb “pushed” presents this scene as being forced on Yui.

*Rustle*

“Fufufu…Such defiant eyes. You are still clinging to the hope that there might be some way out.”

“That kind of look is not bad either, you see.”

“Whether it’s your hope, shame or pride, I shall erase it all. …And then, I shall have you accept me.”

You glare at him.

“How long do you intend to give me that look? Fufufu…I am looking forward to seeing how long you will be able to defy me. The more stubborn you are, the more…You know the rest, don’t you?”

It’s here that Reiji directly states that his aim is to completely erase who Yui is as a person so that he can have her accept him - this is both extremely disturbing and extremely sad with the realisation that Yui’s entire personality and her essence as a person has to be diminished in order for her to love and accept Reiji. Even the fact that Reiji says “You know the rest, don’t you?” shows his self-awareness towards how repetitive his abuse is to him, it’s a constant cycle and he knows that, and so does Yui.

*Rustle rustle*

“I have started feeling a little peckish as well. I suppose we should get started soon.”

*Rustle*

“I am a Vampire. When your blood is right in front of me, my reason begins to crumble…I’m so thirsty…My throat is so incredibly parched, longing for your blood. I suppose I no longer need to hold myself back. This is your punishment after all.”

Reiji bites you.

*Gulp*

*Rustle rustle*

“Haah…haah…Aah…Your blood’s…flowing through my body…Quenching this horrible thirst…! It’s wonderful! Ahahahaha! Hahahaha…!!”

“What do you feel when you have your blood sucked? …Your blood is being transferred to my body, becoming my blood and flesh. How do you experience that exact moment?”

When Reiji states “I no longer need to hold myself back. This is your punishment after all” it implies that he’s justifying his instincts by naming them a punishment - allowing himself to delve into the more brutal aspects of baring his fangs. I also wanted to note that Reiji deems his thirst “horrible”, as though he’s disgusted by his own instincts; this is something that we see within his character, Reiji tends to distance himself from his instincts and his brothers as a result of that, which could imply that he wants to not only feel better than them, but to also be better than his brothers - to not act on the primal instincts they share, as his need to thirst acts as a flaw to his ‘perfect’ self.

Additionally, the dialogue “Your blood is being transferred to my body, becoming my blood and flesh” can be implied to be a metaphysical reference to the two essentially becoming one, they are so close that they function like one person, balancing both strength and weakness - Reiji projects his own strengths and Yui projects Reiji’s weaknesses -. When Reiji questions, “How do you experience that exact moment?”, it could imply that he’s asking Yui how it feels to become more like him, as though she’s being absorbed by him; becoming less of herself and more of a canvas for Reiji to implement himself onto - following that interpretation, the interrogative becomes a rhetoric as there is no answer, Yui has already become lost to Reiji’s influence.

You remain quiet.

“Fufu…Fufufu…You refuse to speak, it seems? You have become rather meek just from being bitten once. Is that all the self-respect you have?”

You protest.

“…’That is not true’, you say?”

“So you still refuse to be honest? That is truly a shame. …However, I believe that you will fulfil me.”

Reiji takes a deep breath.

“I have…once again become thirsty…Right now…I don’t have the time to talk to you.”

The clock strikes midnight.

*DINGー DONGー*

He bites you once more.

*Gulp*

“Haah…haah….Fufufu…Fufufu…The night has only just begun. Well then, now quench my thirst with the blood, of a proper lady such as yourself…”

“Fufufufu…”

ーー THE ENDーー 

Firstly, Reiji associates muteness with meekness, possibly implying that he perceives that Yui’s only source of power is through her voice - which he manipulates through taunts and doubt in order to silence Yui; thereby stripping her of any power she might have had. So when Reiji says “Is that all the self-respect you have?” he’s not just lecturing her, he’s also taunting her - Yui’s quietened herself down, dissolving the power her voice holds and subsequently any self-respect she has in that moment as - in that instant - she’s submitted to him. The fact that Yui protests after this shows that while she may be “meek”, she still has the willpower to fight back; this most likely occurred due to her ego, and her sense of self-worth being mocked, it’s a natural instinct to deny what we perceive is untrue - especially about ourselves - and this is what I think Yui is doing here.

Furthermore, when the phrase “So you still refuse to be honest? That is truly a shame” is used, Reiji’s not calling Yui dishonest in relation to the truthfulness and honesty of the situation, but the honesty of Reiji’s narrative. Yui doesn’t agree that she lacks self-respect, even though Reiji does; Reiji is the one in control and so, to him, only his perspective and beliefs should matter - which is why it’s “truly a shame”. Yui refused to indulge in Reiji’s skewed perception.

I also wanted to make a note of when Reiji says “I believe that you will fulfil me”, as it can have several interpretations. One interpretation of “fulfil” could connote to Reiji wanting Yui to satisfy his trauma by presenting the maternal affection he was deprived of - to fulfil and fix his emotional wounds, which yet again follows the ongoing theme of Reiji projecting himself onto Yui. The second interpretation of this could connote to Yui’s blood - more specifically, the imagery of Yui being devoured by Reiji, and the two becoming more alike through Reiji drinking Yui’s blood - effectively devouring and absorbing who she is in order to sate himself and the virtuous traits he lacks; and consequently drag Yui down into despair with him. The third interpretation of this could connote to Reiji wanting Yui to fulfil him sexually. We’ve already established and implied that blood sucking is an intimate act, and when paired with themes of assault, beds and fulfilment, those sexual implications can be perceived.

Additionally, I also wanted to touch upon the theme of midnight. The night is often associated with ghouls and monsters due to the lack of light - night time essentially is just the absence of sunlight, and people usually sleep during the night so there is less supervision - we are vulnerable when we sleep -, and predatory animals usually come out at night to hunt their prey - much like how the brothers are active during the night to hunt down Yui, as she is their prey. Light is associated with positivity and abundance, therefore, it's absence is seen as the opposite; even in religion, darkness is portrayed as bad and something that should be eradicated. Furthermore, darkness takes away the ability to see, it obstructs our vision and makes one “blind”, this makes things seem scary and unpredictable as people have an innate fear of the unknown - something that we cannot see poses as a threat that we cannot combat. Thus, the association between night and evil is greatly psychological, as humans tend to perceive themselves as vulnerable and more susceptible to danger during the night. Yui is spiritually vulnerable during this time.

Midnight, specifically the time, is associated with being the prime hour of night, it’s the most powerful hour; this is due to the planetary Yin and Yang imagery between the sun and moon at their highest hours - midday and midnight -. The Yin Yang shows how forces such as good and evil, which are apparently opposites, are actually deeply intertwined and interconnected with and complementary to each other while also being independent entities in the natural world. However, we’re speaking on a planetary level, not metaphorical or metaphysical, which is why midnight is so significant here - Reiji is at his most dominating, and Yui is at her most vulnerable; with the chime of the clock, Reiji then strikes - he strikes when light and dark are macroscopically in balance, implying that although Yui may be strong and virtuous, she will inevitably fall to Reiji.

Lastly, I wanted to raise awareness to when Reiji claims that Yui is a “proper lady”. Throughout this entire CD and his HDB route, this is the first time Reiji says this. Why ? I believe that Reiji uses this phrase due to Yui’s behaviour, she’s stopped actively resisting Reiji at his most desperate - desperate to quench his thirst - and most domineering moment and has silently given in. Yui’s become silent and obedient, the very thing that Reiji’s been trying to instil in her; the very traits that correspond to Beatrix’s behaviour, someone who he deemed a “proper lady” - the praise is directed at Yui for embodying Beatrix in this moment, as in this instant, Reiji has won in the battle of will.

To conclude, this CD showcases the less noticeable aspects of Reiji’s manipulative behaviour as well as the nuances of those traits. We’re able to see exactly how Reiji manipulates Yui just through his words alone; and yet this CD displays how Reiji has to cultivate an elaborate, manipulative plan in order to gain Yui’s attention, and quench his attention deficit - which is honestly quite depressing. Reiji’s behaviour can in no way be excused, but it can be explained.

---

Diabolik Lovers Analysis: Why is Reiji Associated with the Colour Blue ?

Within any official Rejet art, Reiji is always surrounded by the colour blue, which to me seemed odd. Ayato’s colour is red (the colour of his hair), Laito’s is green (the colour of his eyes), Kanato’s is purple (the colour of his hair and eyes), Shuu’s is yellow to match his blonde hair and Subaru’s is grey to blend his outfit together (black and white). But Reiji’s is blue, it doesn’t match his eyes, hair or even outfit. So why make this design choice...? Well, first we need to establish that colours are symbolic, and with that, we can dive into the colour theory of the correlation between Reiji and the colour blue.

So, shall we begin ?

Here’s a few pictures where Reiji is depicted as being the colour blue:

From Reiji’s personality, it would be natural to assume that his colour would be dark purple or black. Black is associated with strength, authority, and power. Black lends an air of authority and intelligence to those who wear it; it symbolises prestige, formality, and importance. However, dark purple is often associated with royalty, nobility, luxury, power, and ambition; it also represents meanings of wealth, extravagance, creativity, wisdom, dignity, grandeur, devotion, pride, mystery, and independence. Reiji fits into all these traits, yet his colour is blue. At first, this doesn’t really make sense, until we dive into colour theory; only then does it make perfect sense.

While blue conjures images of sky and sea, it’s also the colour of bravery and dedication. Blue represents introspective journeys and symbolises wisdom and depth of understanding. Blue is also a symbol of depression and the depths of the human psyche. Blue stands for serenity, rather than passion, and it’s the colour of all that’s constant and unchanging. The colour blue can feel cold and impersonal, and even unfriendly. Blue’s association with depression and sadness are also pervasive, as blue is a harbinger of night and darkness; this is extremely reminiscent of 'A Certain Prophet's Fate' and how he lives in the darkness of the night - which symbolises his corruption, longing and depression.

Dark blue is also linked to consciousness and intellect, making it a good colour to suggest precision and advancement - which is something that Reiji constantly strives for. Dark blue works well with its direct opposite, orange, and its related colours, burnt sienna (Yuma’s colour) and red (Ayato’s colour). This cooperation comes in the forms of Vandead Carnival and Lunatic Parade. Blue and red are opposites, they are foils for one another, just as Yuma and Ayato are foils for Reiji - but once conflict arises and the foils need to cooperate, they work extremely well. One makes up for what the other is lacking.

A red hue often symbolises valour, courage, enthusiasm, blood and life while the blue colour indicates perseverance, justice, vigilance and respect for God. As a character, Ayato is often portrayed with a red hue or colour scheme and is presented as full of life, enthusiasm and courage throughout his routes; even the fact that Rejet often portrays Ayato as the 'leading love interest' or 'main character' aids this symbolism. Whereas Reiji is often accompanied by his need to endure his troubles and bear the burden of his insecurities - he is accompanied by perseverance; something that his blue hue represents. Additionally, Reiji is the only character aside from Ruki who holds any respect for Karlheinz - someone who is often portrayed as a God-like being; though this respect isn't born from inspiration, it's born from Reiji's need to impress him and feel accepted. Therefore, though Reiji's blue hue showcases his respectful nature towards his father, it is derived from feelings of inadequacy, pain and sorrow..

Renowned for its composed demeanour, blue is a tranquil presence. It doesn’t intrude or pester. Instead, it merely makes itself known, much like Reiji - blue is a passive colour that perfectly encapsulates Reiji’s demeanour. As a peacemaker, the colour blue doesn’t intend to stir the pot. In fact, it loathes the idea of creating conflict - just as Reiji does. Blue doesn’t like being in the spotlight, so it keeps to itself; regarded as one of the more reserved hues, blue is tight-lipped. Though it doesn’t have a strong personality, blue does have a unique spirit.

Anyone who associates with the colour blue thrives on organisation. Blue doesn’t like to disrupt the status quo, and it’s for this reason that there’s so much predictability to it. Since it enjoys order so much, blue can be rather controlling; when things don’t go according to plan, it can be pretty unsettling. We see these traits present themselves in Reiji, he's keen, organised and thrives on order; all these things make him inherently predictable - yet when the situation turns sour, Reiji is quick to become cruel and demeaning, and this showcases how much he depends on order. Colour theory and deep symbolism such as this highlights why blue is Reiji’s colour - it doesn’t represent his better qualities, but his detriments. Blue is a visual representation of what Reiji is behind his ‘polite’ façade. 

Blue symbolises all that is pure and transparent in Japanese culture; ironically, this is the opposite of who Reiji is as a person. Reiji isn't a pure or transparent character, he's corrupt, manipulative and secretive - he never says how he feels or what he truly means; there are always several interpretations and double meanings to his riddle-like dialogue. This can ultimately imply that Reiji being surrounded by a blue hue isn't just to present his hidden nuance but to also showcase his contrast. To present the irony and melancholic truths of his character.

Blue is a sensitive colour, and can hurt easily and deeply. Blue cowers in the face of betrayal and is unsure of how to pick itself back up; this is the core of Reiji’s character, he’s suffering from a wound that he struggles to heal on his own, and so he shuts his emotions off and becomes cold and stern in the hopes that it won’t happen again. This is why blue is Reiji’s colour, it represents his insecurities, and it encapsulates who he is underneath his façade.

---

I am glad to know that you are going to do the analysis of Reiji's route from more blood, I am going to wait patiently for it, because there is something in your analysis that catches me and I want to read it until the end, Reiji is my favorite character in all of DL and I I am glad to know that someone analyzes it in depth because there are things that I did not realize before and I could see them more clearly in your analysis, Greetings!

Ahh thank you for waiting patiently with me! I'm glad you enjoy my findings - in all fairness, this is something I love doing but it takes such a long time (and I know the analyses I've put up are already very lengthy). I'm happy that Reiji’s psychological findings didn't just resonate with me but with you as the audience too. I know my style of writing can be a tad convoluted and I was pretty worried that it would come across as confusing, but the fact that you're able to see the same things as me when it comes to Reiji's behaviour genuinely makes me so happy, both as a writer and as a part of the fandom!

Anyway, I hope you're glad to know that there is more content on the way - I'm hoping to get through More Blood as fast as possible (so far I'm at 200 pages) so that I can dive into more of his character. But, I have to say, if it's taking me this long to get through the second game then God help me when I get to Dark Fate and Lost Eden :')

---