Sumaru City

Just under forty minutes from the heart of Tokyo by rail, Sumaru City strikes a peculiar contrast with the enormous metropolis despite being technically part of the Greater Tokyo Metropolitan Area. Despite being nearly adjacent, staunch tradition has resisted extreme urbanization to the same degree as Tokyo, with greater development only starting to occur, and much more slowly, in the past decade and a half.

Still, it's somehow not that far behind. The majority of people within Sumaru City enjoy a lifestyle that has the fast pace of the city life but with opportunities to slow down and enjoy the scenery with the rural mountain range and nature trails, because whether they understand it or not, every single person in Sumaru City has been forcibly recruited into resolving the wager between two of the greatest supernatural powers of the Collective Unconscious.

Definitely Nothing Suspicious Going Down in Sumaru

The 'History' of Sumaru City

The roots of Sumaru City go back to the Warring States period during the rule of a tyrannical warlord known as Kiyotada Sumaru, who was said to wield great mystical power over the gods of the land themselves. As his grip tightened over medieval Japan, an assassination attempt was organized against him by his vassal Tatsunoshin Suou, Suou's retainer Junnosuke Kuroda, and Suou's lover, Maihime Amano.

While several versions of the tale exist, in the most accepted one, the three managed to grievously wound Sumaru, and in retaliation, he ran Amano through with his great spear. As the warlord made his final stand, Suou, in grief over her death, commanded his retainer to flee and burn the castle down as he did, consigning Sumaru and Suou to the flames of Amano's funeral pyre.

To this day, the archaeological sites of Sumaru Castle are still being excavated in a cordoned-off section of Honmaru Park managed by the Japanese government.

No one is quite certain how or why Sumaru City arose after the Warring States period, and some joke to this day that it is the 'Curse of Sumaru' that keeps them in the dark. Occultists and historians are still trying to unravel the details to this day, further mystified by views of the city from above. Is the eye of the medieval tyrant upon them after all?

What is definitively known is that Sumaru City became a bustling port city during the Meiji Restoration. That tradition of trade and dock work continues to this day in both Konan Ward and Narumi Ward, a place that is definitely supposed to exist.

The Culture of Sumaru City

The supernatural is real in Sumaru City, and the people interact with it every day whether they understand the significance or not. Even people who will never come into contact with a Demon in their day-to-day lives will still try to catch up on the latest hot Rumors and spread them further afield themselves with their opinions and judgment.

Rumormongers are some of the most sought-after people in Sumaru City because of this. Everyone wants to stay on top of the scuttlebutt, and where else are you going to find that? The news? Journalists take too long verifying information to be useful! By the time they've figured it out, you're already days behind.

These people hold court in parks, restaurants, bars, net cafés, detective agencies, or wholly online through the magic of the digital age. Even homeless and jobless individuals gain a degree of respectability with the citizens of Sumaru who would ordinarily ignore them if they can stay on top of things.

Because of Kotodama and the activities of the New World Order, the people of Sumaru City are in fact distressingly likely to encounter Demons in their everyday lives. And what do they do? Well, what would you do if you encountered monsters as a normal person? They scream; they run; they die. If they survive, they tell others they were attacked by monsters.

But as time passes, those rumors become old news. The idea that monsters exist is either taken for granted in Sumaru--with a shrug, as if it were the same as news about a crime that happened six months ago--or dismissed as some incident of mass hysteria. The greater Japanese public never accepts the idea that monsters exist because they're just urban legends spread by those sensationalists in Sumaru.

The youth of Sumaru enjoy lives that straddle the traditional and the modern. The older generations of Sumaru try to force children to keep the shopping districts and family businesses alive, but the youth mostly try to evade the conversation. They live much as Tokyo teenagers do, enjoying the nightlife and modern opportunities they have to keep themselves busy, trying their best not to think about what comes tomorrow.

Delinquency is rather common and often even admired by more straight-laced teens as one of the more 'fashionable' ways to avoid that conversation for as long as possible, even if they'd never admit it. In the high school environs, these individuals who choose to become 'bosses' are seen as role models by their peers, while the adults either condemn their behavior or reach out to the aimlessness they see behind it in equal measure.

One day, however, you just have to get it together--or don't. Younger adults are often fully in 'fake it until you make it' mode as they transition into the workforce and the new responsibilities of being all grown up. Many just want to enjoy their newfound freedom from parental supervision, while others feel the intense pressure to become 'marriageable' and settle down with someone. Still others have a goal they'd like to achieve, focusing upon that goal and tabling the conversation of starting their own family for as long as possible.

Currently one of the worst rumors making the rounds is the Joker Killer, in which calling one's own phone number and saying someone's name will result in Joker showing up to murder that someone. The Sumaru PD are on the case, but thus far seem nigh helpless to stop this monstrous serial killer.

Could it be that they don't actually want the case solved? Certainly not.

Influence of the Supernatural

Sumaru City is not entirely a supernatural space. It is more accurate to say that it is 'primed' to become a supernatural space as a result of the Kotodama. Use of 'the Mark' here is enhanced to create supernatural spaces that last far longer, and in combination with Rumors: potentially permanent. Rumors and effects created by the Kotodama within Supernatural spaces likewise persist outside of them within the bounds of Sumaru City. The New World Order takes full advantage of this, and all of its bases within Sumaru City are permanently supernatural as a result of it's rumor manipulation. Demons likewise on occasion may spread rumors which will allow them to 'come out to play' so to speak, but these are usually temporary, albeit deadly events.

The people of Sumaru City likewise are slightly more 'primed' to accept the supernatural within their lives as well. This manifests particularly in the form of their engagement with supernatural events. In the moment, the people will see and interact with demons, and they will react as people would. They'll scream! They'll run! And if a demon decides to kill them, an event which is quite likely, they'll die. Over time, memories of these events will become more vague as the psyche's defenses against the supernatural reassert themselves. With repeated exposure, people might take a more casual approach to the presence of demons in their lives as a 'natural disaster' of sorts that can't be helped, like a Typhoon. As an example, employees at the Giga Macho might start to consider them particularly dangerous customers, and keep a cache of life stones on hand in order to satisfy them when encountered upon their shifts.

Rengedai Ward

The central district of Sumaru City named for the appearance of 'Lotus Blossoms' that float on its Tanabata River. It is perhaps one of the more prestigious places to live within Sumaru City, with traditional housing and historical sites both. Seven Sisters is hosted here, the most prestigious prep school for High Schools in Sumaru City.

Noteworthy Locations

• Seven Sisters High School - Named after the Pleiades constellation and located in the Rengedai Ward at the city's center, Seven Sisters High School is an elite school with the highest standards of education in Sumaru City. Seven Sisters is fully in possession of a pedigree of alumni that make admission here enviable even to Tokyo teens. The faculty here are passionate and very involved in their students' lives and their futures. Because of this, one would think this is the ideal school. However, dark rumors surrounding a recent accident that a student suffered and the principal's coverup of the situation may undercut this perception… and if not, Principal Hanya's recent gruesome murder will.

• The Time Castle - A clock-based antique shop in Lotus Plaza, a shopping center in Rengedai Ward. It is run by the eclectic Time Count, a strange individual who always has peculiar but cutting commentary about the situations customers face. Some Rumors state that he's a real gothic vampire, but the most enduring one is that he offers Skill Card services, something that ordinarily only the Velvet Room can perform. Surely this is only the power of rumors.

• Mount Iwato - With Alaya Shrine at its foothills, Mount Iwato is a popular hiking trail for teens and adults alike to connect with nature. There is a strong tradition here that those who enter its cavern paths and look into the pools there will undergo a journey of self-discovery, but surely that's just an old superstition? The Rumormongers of the town fully don't back this one up, so it must not be true.

Hirasaka Ward

The more rough and tumble Western district that's populated primarily by the city's blue collar working class. Its reputation comes in part due to the presence of Kasugayama High, a reform school for delinquent boys and as of this last semester, girls as well. That doesn't mean it's all bad here though, the people are proud, and resist gentrification strongly within its old fashioned shopping districts and Izakayas.

Noteworthy Locations

• Kasugayama High School - A reform school in Hirasaka Ward primarily for delinquent boys, but a few girls as well. Its reform school nature is undercut by the fact that delinquency is celebrated here to the point where the school's hierarchy is based on who's strong enough to take the title of Leader, a tradition that the teachers turn a blind eye to. The students at Sevens deride it as 'Cuss High,' and the kids at Kasugayama look at Sevens as their primary rivals, in part because several prominent students were kicked out or forcibly transferred here. Kasugayama High was built on the site of an old World War II air raid shelter, still accessible through the basement. Tests of courage have become more and more infrequent after the last group of students disappeared, leading many to believe rumors of a curse are real.

• Kameya Alley - The proud, traditional shopping district of the Hirasaka Ward with tightly packed businesses that are full of eclectic personalities. Tominaga Chiropractic makes the claim that it can treat anything, and rumor has it that this might even be true! Izakaya Shiraishi where the mysterious Ma'am serves the locals in a variety of ways, some more obvious than others and the unfriendly 'Whistler' at Toua Armory whose military surplus probably isn't real, though… perhaps it might be.

Aoba Ward

The Eastern district of Sumaru City embraced modernization with open arms. The Aoba Ward is one of the most upscale districts of Sumaru City, where commerce and fashion abound, while still maintaining a balance of nature with its parks full of greenery. Both housing and luxury apartments are up for grabs to those who can afford it, and companies that headquarter here are some of the most successful in Sumaru City. Most major events in Sumaru City are held here, as Aoba Park is simply one of the most sizable venues in town.

Noteworthy Locations

• Kuzunoha Detective Agency - A private detective agency set up in Aoba Way, the local shopping district. You can pick up all the rumors around town you want, but if you want to spread them and make a real effect on the city, this is where you go to do it. Chief Todoroki will make sure everyone's talking about the rumor you want everyone to talk about--for a price, of course.

• Aoba Park - A beautiful, peaceful, expansive park with lots of greenery and plenty of walking paths. Deeper in, there's a concert venue with outdoor seating.

• Kismet Publishing - The publishing house where popular teen magazines like Coolest are made.

• Sumaru TV - The place where all the hottest local TV shows are recorded. The foyer is accessible to the public, but any further and you'll need an ID or someone who has one to vouch for you.

Konan Ward

The southern district of Sumaru City is a study in contrasts. Affordable housing is available, but it's not precisely considered the most desirable location. Still, plenty of young adults live here because they find the price affordable for apartments near Ebisu Beach. The once proud industrial district of the city has fallen out of favor as manufacturing companies started to move away, leaving abandoned factories and buildings that are instead inhabited by the homeless and squatters left behind in their wake. The Konan PD is one of the largest in the city, in order to field the commensurate rise in crime.

Noteworthy Locations

• Ebisu Beach - A natural beach that's popular in the summer and all but deserted anytime else. The currents in the waters around Sumaru mean all sorts of things end up washing up here.
• Seaside Mall - A mall that's but a stone's throw away from the beach, which means it does excellent business in summer and... at least decent business the rest of the time. Pirate-themed family dining with a side of rumormongering is available at Jolly Roger. The Sumaru Genie offers fortunes, though they haven't been coming true lately. Hiiragi Psychotherapy offers fairly priced therapy sessions for anyone who needs one, even one-off sessions.

Yumezaki Ward

The 'Dream Peninsula' that stands as the Northern district of Sumaru City, the Yumezaki Ward is the business and entertainment district of the city, and as such is the most popular site for young people of the city to 'cut loose' and celebrate youth itself. A tempting location for people to live while they're still single, apartments nevertheless are present for the many, many salarymen and women who work here. Organized crime too has a presence, with the Tien Tao Lien setting up shop at the Club Zodiac, for its renowned Nightlife.

Noteworthy Locations

• Club Zodiac - A late-night dance club in Yumezaki Ward that offers drinks on the sly. A popular site for young adults to dance the night away. It recently came under new management, and the back rooms were redesigned accordingly. This isn't a big deal as long as the clubbers are willing to ignore rumors about how the new owners are the Taiwanese mafia and how they've set up an organized crime ring in the back.

• Mu Continent - The game center that's definitely not a casino, because that would be highly illegal. Hosts poker, blackjack, slots, and even bingo with high rollers being granted access to rare and luxurious prizes, some even of supernatural note!

Narumi Ward

The newest and most luxurious Ward of the city that's been expanded as a Southern Port into the bay. The high-priced condos in this port are out of reach for all but the ultra-wealthy of town. Crime rates are exceptionally low, and the elite of the town enjoy such activities as 'yachting' on the sea, or a relaxing evening lounging at the Hotel Pleiades. Nearly all the stores here cater to the town's most upscale demographics and have little problem turning out window shoppers who might disturb their clientele. The New World Order secretly hosts its headquarters here on the luxury yacht, the Nichirinmaru, where some of its most clandestine rituals are conducted.

Noteworthy Locations

• Astro Universe Theme Park - A theme park with all the usual rides and attractions in Narumi Ward, which is otherwise full of yachts, five-star hotels, and other playthings for the rich and powerful. Its most iconic attraction is the Astro Clock, which is the second largest ferris wheel in Japan.

Mt. Katatsumuri

Once a popular tourist destination thanks to the gorgeous mountain view of the sea, it's lately been nearly abandoned due to rumors of monsters in the woods and its lift to the top being busted. Without that thriving tourist industry, the only things out there are Goketsuji, a Buddhist temple, and the Morimoto Sanitarium, the latter of which dark rumors surround. Not that many people care, so long as the sanitarium keeps the dangerous occupants separated from polite society.

Integration Notes

• Sumaru City was integrated into roughly the same real-life location as Yokohama. Sumaru has a bit of a more expansive mountain range there than Yokohama does IRL. However, the ferris wheel in Persona 5 Strikers is an important landmark, and Yokohama is famed for its own ferris wheel, so ultimately it was decided that Sumaru would replace Yokohama.

See Also…

• Kotodama
• Rumors and Rumor Culture
• Rumormongers
• New World Order
• Demons