Rival Cowfolks in Newcrest: Satoshi Soma (1/3)
Previously:
• Satoshi Soma fished for his museum collection until the very last minute, pushing the Somas’s total museum worth to second place;
• He moves out to Beech Byway with young adult Erina Haas and the Bjergsens: adults Bjorn and Clara with daughters Sofia (young adult) and Elsa (child);
• Both Erina and Sofia have been turned by Ayato (Gen4 Zanna heir) in a ploy to secure the Zannas’ first-place standing,
• In Week 8, Sofia is now a vampire who appears pregnant by an unidentified baby daddy;
• Erina’s transformation triggers by Mint and Jagger’s visit, after which Jagger hastily tries for baby once with Erina before he rushes off to work;
What options does Satoshi Soma have now? Will the Somas be disqualified?
If not, will they ever regain their competitive edge?
Week 8/Sunday
Satoshi: I’ve spent the last week or so in the grips of the foulest, bleakest despair.
The Zannas and Dineros have conspired to prevent me from producing an heir.
They have, practically speaking, effectively shut me out of the rivalry.
Bad enough that Erina and Sofia became vampires, but they were both also seduced and abandoned!
To my vast relief, Erina did not conceive but what if Sofia has twins?
When my eighth week opens, I rush to Sofia and learn she has given a single birth. Hallelujah!
Satoshi: Erina, I really want us to bring in the last Soma heir.
Erina: You do? With me? After all that’s happened?
Satoshi: Right now, I won’t wonder why you so easily succumbed to Ayato’s (teen !) wiles.
Nor will I dwell on how you so readily fell into the arms of that scoundrel Jagger Dinero.
No, I refuse to linger on such heart-rending thoughts.
Instead, I fill my head with all my happy memories of you. You have always been The One for me!
Erina: And you know I’ve adored you ever since you were born, Satoshi!
Satoshi: By the way, Erina, are you single?
Erina: No, I’m seeing someone. In fact, I’d been seeing two someones, but Jagger asked to be just…
Satoshi: Eh, forget I ever asked. Break out your flirty paintings!
Erina: Erm, I sold them at San Myshuno the other day…
Satoshi: You what? Never mind then. I’ll just set the club vibe to Very Flirty.
Meanwhile, the adult Bjergsens have started the garden.
Bjorn: I’m not sure why we even bother!
Because harvesting this garden will earn you more than you’ll ever make as a secret agent.
Bjorn: That’s disheartening.
Satoshi: I temporarily add Mama to my Club Enak due to her max Gardening skills.
If she continues yakking with the plants, though, I’m going to have to kick her out.
She should know better. Time is of the essence here!
Clara: For some mysterious reason, our little Elsa is already a B student in grade school.
Have you been doing your homework with classmates, Elsa dear?
Elsa: Who knows? I’m ready for some extra credit!
Erina: I can’t believe you’ll forgive me after all that’s happened.
Satoshi: It’s not as if you went out looking for trouble, Erina. You were pretty much a pawn.
Erina: That’s so true and, what’s more…
Satoshi: Do you mind if we don’t talk about it? You’re spoiling the mood!
Satoshi: I almost forgot that I still don’t have a job! First, I check that I’ve bought Connections.
Next, I choose the Critic career with an eye on becoming a Food Critic.
Darn, I wasted 3,000 satisfaction points on that Connections reward!
My “A” grade in high school starts me at Level 3 of any career.
And you can never start the Critic, Politician, or Social Media careers at higher than Level 3.
Erina: Why not?
Satoshi: Because those three careers branch off at Level 4, but I completely forgot! Dang!
Erina: *shares the big news
Satoshi: That’s fantastic, Erina! Let’s hope we’re safe now from our predatory rivals.
Erina: You’re not going to thank Alex Goth for curing me, Satoshi?
Satoshi: Part of me wants to but my petty side is still angry with his brother-in-law Jagger for what he did.
Oh darn, I’m trying to get those images out of my head!
Satoshi: I need to reach Level 3 Writing so I also accept a work-from-home assignment.
No problem, folks. My Erina can mentor me in writing, don’t ya know! *grins
Satoshi: Sofia can’t go outdoors during the day anyway, so I’ve asked her to learn the Vampire Cure herself.
Sofia: Boooooring, but crucial. Curse that Ayato and his irresistible gaze! His father’s just as bad!
Satoshi: On the other hand, Clara Bjergsen’s a Perfectionist, so Erina mentors her in painting.
We’re counting on Clara to earn that Deluxe Easel from the Painter career.
Satoshi: The Well grants me a guaranteed promotion after my first shift tomorrow.
Our preparations are almost done!
Bjorn: By the way, Satoshi, what’s my role in the household?
Satoshi: I think it’s best you quit your job so you can focus on maintaining our cash crops.
In your free time, you could–let’s see–get your Parenting skill to Level 5 (Give Second Wind).
Satoshi: By 11:30 am, Clara has reached Level 3 Painting and can continue skilling at home.
She’ll need to stay home with Sofia’s son, Dexter, while I go launch my store.
After buying the Bargain Bend lot, I give the name “Satoshi’s Comeback” to my store’s humble beginnings.
Eh, so much for my original plan to sell off unwanted furnishings belonging to the Bjergsens! I can place them in the store, but I can’t set them for sale.
So I sell them off then stock my store with inexpensive cooking-related items and apparel.
Bjorn: *weeps silently
The ceiling of the center room has been removed, leaving only the two side rooms with ceilings. Remodeling is not complete…maybe. Maybe not.
Sofia: I’m imprisoned in a small, back room with my Encyclopedia Vampirica.
Elsa: Sofia’s learned how to make plasma packs from fish and frogs, so I’ve started catching fish for her.
Satoshi: The store’s been open for two hours now and nobody’s bought a single item.
All the customers cluster in the no-ceiling center room without looking at the side rooms’ merchandise.
Also, seeing to all the customers is hard, since only Bjorn, Erina, and I can staff the store.
Dare I bring Sofia out to the storefront?
Erina: Look, Satoshi! That guy in the plaid shirt is checking out all the mannequins!
Forest Ranger: Excuse me, but something is written in Korean characters across the front of this apron.
Can anyone here read this and tell me what it means?
The apron outfit is a reference to Satoshi Soma’s namesake: Satoshi Isshiki from the “Food Wars” manga.
Satoshi: Out of curiosity, I check the pool of retail clerks for hire.
Wow, look at the stats on Paola Pizzazz!
But if I hire someone to help with customer service, won’t we take longer to accumulate perk points?
Satoshi: Out of desperation, I call Sofia to the store. Oh right, she’s vulnerable to sunlight!
She’s fine if she can lure a customer to one of the side rooms, both of which have ceilings.
She’s better off learning Vampire Lore, though, so I send her back to “her” room.
Read faster, Sofia!!!
Forest Ranger: Whoa, these low-slung leather pants are much lower than I’d realized!
I’ll need to start a regimen of daily sit-ups before I can pull this look off!
Dude, that look wasn’t designed with you in mind! And we can’t see the neckpiece!
Satoshi: Oh stop, Victor Feng! Wearing socks with flip flops is so NOT an Asian thing to do!
I’m having waaaaay too much fun with these mannequins! Bwahahahahaaaaa!
Erina: Oh yeah, Patrick Wyatt is def rocking that outfit! I wonder if he needs help changing?
Satoshi: I’m sure our readers aren’t amused anymore by these mannequins, though our silly watcher still finds them hilarious.
Awww, no? Really?
Satoshi: On a more serious note (if anything in this story could be considered remotely serious), we’ve earned 660 perk points so far.
Erina: We take a short break so I can buy my strawberries at San Myshuno then we reopen at 9 pm.
Sofia: Yay! Now that it’s dark, I can help out at the store!
Geoffrey Landgraab: Race you home, hot stuff?
Nancy: You’ll never beat me in those flip flops, sweet thing! And don’t let the wind catch your apron!
Monday
Satoshi: After we close shop at 2 am, it’s close to 4 am when we’re finally done restocking.
I’m happy to report that we can buy our first perk: “Faster Checkouts (Large).”
We’ll buy “Serious Shopper” next time.
Satoshi: By 6:30 am, Sofia has already reached Level 13 Vampire Lore. She’ll be human again in no time!
But Sofia’s not the only one in this house who’s reading.
At first, I wasn’t sure what to do about Elsa, but she’s been such a sport about fishing for Sofia.
And she’s already maxed her Mental and Motor skills, so I’ve promised we’ll pitch in to help with her aspirations.
I begin by reading to her for two hours.
Needless to say, it feels GREAT to be back competing in the rivalry!
Current Week 8 Status: The Soma Line
Gen4 Heir: Satoshi Soma
*Completed bloodline requirements: None
*Incomplete bloodline requirements: All
Store: Satoshi’s Comeback, resale value: $xx
Retail perks (1/5): Faster Checkouts (Large) [Serious Shopper, Faster Restocking (Large), Sure Sale, and Cheaper Restocking]
Career: Critic (Level 3)
Gen5 Heir: Momo Soma
Birth: Wednesday (?) of this week
oshizu's asylum 
Pingback: Rivals 8.80: Sage the Socialite | oshizu's asylum