How to complete the Death of an Author substory in Like a Dragon: Ishin

Death of an Author is an early substory in Like a Dragon: Ishin. You can take this substory during Chapter 2: A Man Named Saito Hajime, and it requires no combat to complete. This story is based on a real novelist named Natsumi Soseki, who would become the first Japanese literary scholar to go to London.

However, the author struggles with inspiration, and it’s up to Ryoma Sakamoto to lend a hand. Each answer is based on actual novels this historic figure wrote as well.

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When and how to undertake the Death of an Author substory in Like a Dragon: Ishin

You can take this on early in Chapter 2 of Like a Dragon: Ishin, and all you have to do is head up to the second floor of the inn you’re staying at. Run towards the far end of the hall, around the corner from Ryoma’s room. You’ll hear an anguished scream, so enter the room and chat with the NPC you see.

Answers to substory questions

• A cat might be funny.
• Botch-chan!
• Heart

He’s struggling to develop ideas for his next book and is threatening to take his life. Offer to help, and he’ll give you a few choices about the protagonist of his next book. Choose “A cat might be funny,” as it’s the correct choice for this part of the Like a Dragon: Ishin substory.

To see the next part of this substory, do something else. Complete mini-games, get into fights or complete more of the story if you wish. There’s no rush. Come back to this after doing other things; he’ll tell you the story was a success! Your reward is a Broken Compass.

Leave and come back, and the author needs a character name, and the correct answer is “Botch-chan!” since the character is clumsy and often botches things. Once again, leave, and complete more activities in Like a Dragon: Ishin. You don’t have to spend hours away - do some things and return.

Upon returning to find the author thriving again, your reward is a Fine Silk Fabric. When you next visit the author, he’ll have one final request: to help him with a book about relationships. The answer to this question in Like a Dragon: Ishin is “Heart.” The other answers, “Cleavage” and “Animal Barn,” might be funny, but Heart is the selection you must make.

Once again, it would be best if you left the author. Head out into Kyo, pray at the various altars, beat up some ruffians, or perhaps sing at the bar before returning. He’ll inform you that his work was once again a success and grant you European Fabric and 300 Virtue Points. While there are plenty of ways to get Virtue Points, in the next chapter, you can unlock a much faster way.

This is one of the many substories in Like a Dragon: Ishin. Many are hard to find unless you know exactly where to look. You can also find our review of this latest RGG title here.