Tears of Themis: Marius Episode 1 & 2

Marius’ character story can be read through the Visit section of the game and they are fully voiced like the main stories. Each scene is unlocked as you increase your affection level with him either through daily visits and interactions or by reading his card stories. As you can imagine visits are probably the surest way to increase his affection while cards are dependent on the luck of the pull. The game launched with episodes 1 and 2 available and you can unlock all available scenes once you achieve affection level 18 with him.

Marius’ story has a total of 21 story scenes and 6 debate battles (recommended power 2639 – 12048?). You can only use Marius’ cards for these debate battles so you do need to level his cards up to a certain level whether you like him or not in order to read his story and gain the corresponding rewards like S-chips.

In episode 1 and 2, you join Marius in investigating an imitation art syndicate and explores Marius’ desire to aid artists to pursue their passion without fear of coping with the realities of daily living. Perhaps he recognised that he is blessed to a certain extent with both talent and wealth but due to his own responsibilities as the current CEO of the Pax Group, he might be better off sponsoring others than pursuing art fully himself. We also learn about Marius’ other secret identity. Spoilers ahead!

=============================================

Marius’ story begins not too long after you first encountered him at the art exhibition and thereafter got hauled to become his attorney in his trial for the murder of Estelle Marino. You heard from Kiki that rumors have it that Pax Group intends to display one of Z’s newest works on the last day of the art exhibition. Z is a mysterious but renowned up and coming artist who have been given the nickname Rembrandt Jr. thus news of his new work had stirred the art community. However given that Z had not published any new work for quite awhile, Sven Phillips, director of Stellis Art Museum, announced that he would appraise the work himself to determine if it is authentic.

You thought to inform Marius of this and learnt that this is the first time he had heard of it. He appears concerned and arranges to meet you immediately, personally calling your boss Celestine to clear your schedule for him. You are surprised to see him in a business suit for the first time and was caught getting flustered by him. As you pondered over the facts of the situation, you are confounded that Marius chose to find you instead of taking it up with the curator of the art exhibition himself.

Marius explains that as the newly minted CEO of Pax Group, he needed to deal with this matter delicately to establish his authority. In addition, as a pursuer of the arts, he didn’t want to involve his subordinates in the matter so as to leave some personal space for himself. As he was busy with afternoon meetings, he asked that you accompany him for the investigation at dawn the next day. You asked him why the rush to meet you then, and he smoothly replied that he just had an urge to meet you after hearing your voice. <Gush!> You blushed at his remark but quickly told him to get back to his meetings to change the subject.

Back at his office, Marius instructed Vincent, his PA, to mount one of his paintings in his studio and have it delivered to the exhibition hall the next day.

The next morning at the art gallery, you noticed that Marius was wearing the same chain with a metal pendant with “Z” etched into it. When you questioned him about it, he told you that he is also a fan of Z’s work thus it was not strange for him to be wearing his merchandise. As you proceeded to enter the exhibition, you bump into an irritated Director Sven who was not allowed entrance into the hall. When Marius passes him into the hall, he makes disparaging remarks about Marius after learning his identity. You feel bad for Marius but he told you that life was too short to waste on people who don’t like you.

Marius goes on to explain that the curator in question is actually an old confidante of his retired father so he wanted to absolve the matter as cordially as possible. He also speaks about the various considerations about office politics and whatnot. When you commented that this seemed too much for him to handle as a student and that he should look to his father or brother for help, he was touched that you showed concern for him. However this was his cup to bear as the current CEO and he didn’t want to further burden his family over such matters especially his father who had worked all his life to give his family a good life.

After appraising the new artwork himself, Marius concluded that the painter who had forged the painting was able to replicate about 80% of Z’s technique but failed to express the emotions. In response to this, you asked if Marius had a course of action planned and he smiled confidently that he already had one. He then confronted Hanson, the curator over his motivation to replace the paintings to be displayed and why Marius had not been informed. He also declared that the new art piece by Z is actually a forgery.

Hanson was severely affronted by Marius’ accusations and brought up his relationship with the former CEO. Marius however stood his ground, claiming that as the current CEO, all matters would be handled by him. This was probably the first time Hanson (and you for the matter) saw this side to Marius and he toned down significantly, asking Marius to provide evidence that the painting was a forgery. Marius told him that evidence was on the way.

While waiting for the evidence to arrive, Marius offers you a tour of the exhibition. You remain pensive and he asked if he had scared you. You told him that you have gotten to observe another side of him and it was interesting to know the real Marius outside of the news scandals. Marius blushes visibly. While explaining to you the backstory to “The Night Watch” by Rembrandt, Marius muses over how Rembrandt had chosen to pursue artistic value over stereotypical demands which led to the destruction of his career. Marius concludes that art will always lose to reality, and he hoped that Z would be able to break free of those shackles.

You commented that Marius however was a lot more blessed than the other artists out there and if there was anyone who could break free of the shackles of reality it would be him. Marius gives you a joyless laugh so you decided to change the topic. You asked about Pax Group’s decision to sponsor an art exhibition in this age when everything could be digitised to avoid hefty transportation, security and storage costs. Marius explains that oil paintings are unique because one can only feel its charm seeing it in person and he wanted to do his best to help others who also felt the same way appreciate it.

Marius’ rhetoric was interrupted by an applause coming from Director Phillips who had eavesdrop on the conversation. He apologised for his rude remarks earlier and complimented Marius for his astounding passion in the arts. He also advised Marius to not get involved in the business interests of Pax Group as it will certainly sully his artistic talent. Marius however replied that if he had to ever give up on one, he would never give up on Pax, much to the disappointment of Director Phillips who walked away in disgust.

Marius asked if you felt that he had answered poorly and you shook your head. You didn’t think that one had to give up on their personal passions in order to fulfil their responsibilities as long as they are tenacious enough. Marius explains that Pax Group is more than just a family business to him but it also affected the livelihoods of thousands of people so the conflict is certainly a lot more acute.

Your conversation is interrupted by a phone call. Vincent has delivered the evidence which turned out to be another painting that Marius claims is an actual new artwork by Z. Hanson does not believe Marius so they decided to call Director Phillips to determine which of the two paintings were authentic. Director Phillips was initially curt towards Marius after the exchange in the hall but after listening to your point of view, he agreed to help. Marius thanked you for speaking up for him. In your heart, you just didn’t want him to keep being misunderstood.

After appraising the two paintings, Director Phillips concluded that the painting that Marius brought was the real stuff and the other was a forgery mainly due to the difference in materials used in the highlights. Hanson looked defeated as he had paid good money for the artwork thinking that it was real and for the sake of boosting Pax Group’s publicity. Director Phillips felt sorry for Hanson but was more curious that Marius was able to get his hands on one of Z’s new works. When Marius said that it was a trade secret, the latter scoffed at him again.

Marius goes on to explain that while he himself may not be able to pursue art himself, he wants to defend the dreams of others who do without having to struggle to make a living. Through this, he hopes that he can live his aspirations through the lives of other budding artists. The director finally understands Marius and gives him a pat on the back before leaving. Turning to Hanson, Marius did not demand any compensation but simply told Hanson that he couldn’t work with him anymore after this incident and instructed him to finish the last day of the exhibition well. He also questioned Hanson about the contact who had supplied him the forged work.

Having managed to escape the crisis, your thoughts returned back to the chain around Marius’ neck. Was he the mysterious painter Z afterall? Marius skirted the questions and instead offered to bring you around the rest of the exhibition serving as your personal tour guide. By the time you left, it was evening. Marius offered to bring you home but you declined, not wanting your neighbours to gossip about you again. You told Marius that you would remember his aspirations and promised to support him always. Back at your apartment you conducted your own investigation into Z and found too many coincidences between Marius and Z.

After bidding you farewell, Marius heads to his studio. He receives a complimentary message from his father for handling the situation well. After replying his dad and giving some instructions, Marius sheds all his different personas and recluse into the real him. He starts to paint on a blank canvas. A few days later, you receive a surprise delivery from Z – a painted portrait of yourself. You are more than certain now that Marius is Z so you called him to confirm your suspicions. Marius’ tone gives himself away but you decided to spare him. He changes the topic and informs you that he has found a lead into the investigation of the counterfeiter and invites you to join him for an upcoming art collector lounge to nab them.

“Art is a moveable feast. Even if no one understands or supports you, as long as you’ve stepped foot into something, it will always be with you.”

The day of the lounge approaches and you start to get jitters about being in a room full of art collectors considering that you have close to no knowledge about them. Marius calls you to discuss a plan of action and inadvertently teases you about your proposed ploy to be his pretend girlfriend. After informing you of his planned course of action, you try your best to control your annoyance with him. Meanwhile, Marius discusses the forged painting with Director Phillips. Both of them agree that the painter who forged the painting had talent and perhaps Marius might be able to offer some salvation for him. He asked that the director helps him to spread some false news about him wanting to control the market for Z’s work so as to lure the counterfeiters out.

On the day of the lounge, you feel very nervous attending such a fancy event without a single knowledge about art. Marius in his own teasing manner comforts you with his air of authority and even tells you to just focus on him to help calm your nerves. During the course of the day, you were bored out of your mind hearing people coming to Marius to discuss what appears to be Greek to you hence you took him up on his offer to just observe him. During a moment of respite, he teases you for staring at him all this time which made you glare at him again in exasperation.

Before you can bicker further with him, your quarry appears. The contact, Cher Young, tells Marius that she had brought a new work of Z’s and you proceeded to a hotel room to appraise the artwork. Marius frowns upon looking at the painting but quickly snaps out of it and continues with his script. He tells Cher that he wants to own all of Z’s work and requested that she sells him every piece she has. After the meeting, you learnt that the quality of the painting was different from the earlier one and surmised there could be more than one counterfeiter within Cher’s network. Marius tells you he will get a private investigator to trail Cher to identify all the possible painters as a next step.

While enjoying your ice-cream treat from Marius, Alex, a talent spotted by the Pax Art Foundation Young Champion program approached Marius to offer his gratitude and updated Marius on his progress. You asked Marius why he hadn’t spoken to Alex during the lounge and he told you he had a bad reputation and he didn’t want to create a scandal by talking to Alex since he was the CEO who was backing the program. You are puzzled by how Marius doesn’t seem affected by his rep and suggested getting his PR to clear things up. Marius smiles wily and tells you that by maintaining his romantic artist rich brat persona, it would be easier for him to figure the true loyalties of his subordinates.

A few days later, Marius tells you that based on the reports from his PI, he has narrowed down the possible painter to a Jason Sanders. Jason allegedly had an affair with Cher and left his sick wife to be with her a year ago. Both of you then proceeded to pay him a visit on pretext of employees of Pax Art Foundation recruiting him for the Young Champion program. However you were surprised that Jason refuses the offer despite the handsome signing on fees, especially since he has already found a way to make even more money now through imitation paintings. He isn’t concerned about becoming famous when he’s dead but realistically wants to become rich now.

After leaving Jason’s place, Marius thinks over Jason’s words and attitude and concludes that either Jason didn’t know that he is being used, or that he is covering up for something else. You spotted Captain Darius in the distance and he informs you that he is on his way to arrest Jason another victim of the scam had reported his fraudulent crime to the police. Jason did not put up any resistance to the arrest and the police uncovered several other imitation pieces in his premises. Marius looks over them and does not find the same brilliance he had spotted in the first painting.

He questions Jason further about what had happened to him between that painting and all the paintings thereafter. Jason froze under Marius’ incisive questioning but soon recovered and told Marius that he had once aspired to be a brilliant artist but he realised that the only dream a poor man can have is to be rich. He apologised that there was no other inspirational story or motivation behind his actions. Captain Darius advised Marius to look for more solid evidence if you intended to defend him as it was impossible to prove Jason innocent using something as abstract as emotions within art. Jason also refused a right to an attorney, willing to be imprisoned so that at least he would be fed by the state.

Marius looks at you forlornly, asking if you thought he was being idealistic and foolish after witnessing who Jason really was. You told Marius that you believed in his judgement and if he felt that Jason had some other hidden agenda, then you would continue to pursue this line of thought and uncover any other evidence to support the case. Given the current situation, Reimi, Jason’s ex-wife could be your only next lead.

A few days later Marius picks you up from your apartment to pay Jason a visit. Over the last few days, Marius had arranged to get Reimi treated at one of Pax Group’s hospitals and had all the medical expenses covered. You were slightly miffed by Marius’ actions so he explained that this was the most efficient way to achieve his desired outcome, especially if it is a problem that could be solved with money. He added that even if his gut feel about Jason’s motivation behind his actions were wrong, all he did was lose some money but in return added one more healthy person to the world. On the other hand if he was right, he would have won over both Jason and made Reimi’s life better. You marvel at Marius’ thought process.

Jason agreed to meet with you concerned that you have said something unpleasant to Reimi. When he realised that Marius was really out to help him, he was grateful and revealed that he had indeed agreed to produce imitation pieces with Cher in order to cover Reimi’s medical expenses. However he didn’t want Reimi to be implicated should he be arrested hence he dramatically broke up their marriage on pretext of an affair. Jason had also collected some evidence of the real mastermind, M, who was working with Cher.

With this new lead, both of you hurry to retrieve the evidence, a tape recording of a meeting between Jason and M. However as you got hold of the evidence, a voice behind you demanded for you to hand over the recording. The mastermind was none other than Alex. Marius face sinks when the truth set in. Though a beneficiary of the Pax Art Foundation, Alex was never content to slowly eke out a living as an artist. He wanted to attain wealth and enjoy life while in the peak of his youth. Alex then offered to part ways with Marius amicably – as long as you handed over the evidence, no one would find out that he was the culprit and and the Pax Art Foundation’s reputation would not be tainted.

In his anger, Marius punched Alex. Alex called out to his accomplice who was hiding in the shadows on a motorbike. At his signal, the motorbike charged towards you and you just managed to swerve out of its path but the recording was grabbed in the process. Marius tried to stop Alex to no avail as they got away on the bike. After both of you recovered from the shock, you fretted over the loss of evidence and what other avenues are available to defend Jason. Marius is in deep thought and then looks at you thoughtfully. He said that he might have an idea to save Jason but he would need you to drop out of the case for his plan to succeed. He also refused to tell you his plan.

You refused his conditions and stubbornly retorted that you will have to proceed on the case alone, to find new evidence to help Jason. On the way home while you are thinking through the information, you came to the conclusion that it is possible that Cher was also suspicious of Alex and could have kept a copy of the recording for her own security. Marius then piped in and said that since Cher loved money, he would use the power of his money to win the case, taking the fight back to Alex.

Sure enough, Cher agrees to retract her false statements against Jason so all that’s left is for you to defend Jason in court. As the day of the trial approaches, Marius takes it upon himself to deliver meals to you everyday. This weekend was no different. While you took a break to have lunch, Marius offered to look through your documents for typos. When you finished your lunch, you found that Marius had fallen asleep. In that moment, he looked extremely fatigued. Juggling between running a company, schoolwork and investigating this case must have tired him out.

You tried to cover him with a blanket but was caught in the act when his alarm goes off. He teases you for the lovely gesture so you threw the blanket at him instead. You asked him about his daily schedule and learns that he’s been burning both ends of the candle catching only five and half hours of sleep daily so that he can run both his family business and pursue his own artistic career. At your questioning, he also revealed that he had originally planned to let Jason become Z so that he wouldn’t be found guilty of forgery.

You were shocked at the suggestion and asked why Marius would go so far to give up his own secret identity to save another person. Marius admitted that he is Z and it was a persona he created so that he can continue to pursue art without his status as Pax Group CEO tainting people’s opinion of his works. Though it would really sadden him to give up that identity, he realises it is really tough balancing both responsibilities and passion. Perhaps it wouldn’t be so bad to give one up to help another. In any case, since you have found another way to save Jason, he can continue being Z.

The trial ends successfully and Jason is able to get away without any sentence. He also reconciles with Reimi after she learnt the truth about this supposed affair with Cher. Jason is grateful to both of you for helping him and promises to repay Marius for the cost of Reimi’s medical fees even if it means taking on manual labour. Marius however convinces Jason that his best bet to repaying the money owed to Marius is to continue being a painter as he has the talent for it. With that he offers Jason a contract with the Pax Art Foundation. This time Jason signs on it without any hesitation.

With the matter resolved, you left court with Marius. Marius then cheekily tells you that he had received an urgent delivery earlier today. As he fishes the package out of his briefcase, you suddenly recalled that in your bid to cheer Marius up and encourage him not to give up on his dreams, you had taken time to draw a portrait of him and mailed it to him the day before. You tried to make a quick escape but it was too late. Marius teased you for the drawings but then quickly looks at you gratefully and thanked you. Though the drawings were amateur, he had felt your thoughts behind them. You came up with an excuse that you were just trying to learn to draw after spending so much time with him and then quickly rushed off.

As Marius looks at your receding figure, he reads the words of a letter than Vincent van Gogh had written to his brother, Theo about how there was a chance that the situation he was in would finally get better, though he was not hopeful of the possibility, should things get better he would be jubilant and say finally. Marius then repeats the words ‘finally’. A few days later, Marius invites you to spend the weekend with him so that he can teach you how to draw. Though you grudgingly verbally agree to it, you look forward to the date with him.

=====================================

I hope you managed to get to know Marius better through his character stories. Marius’ life is one huge balancing act – between his responsibilities and his passion; his rich brat persona and his sincere desire to help others pursue their dreams; his corporate public persona and his secret identity as Z. When Marius read Vincent’s letter to Theo, it gave me a very bad hunch that there could actually be something wrong with Marius psychologically.

It is also disheartening to see how a charity like Pax Art Foundation can be abused by those only seeking fame and fortune through the exploitation of those who desperately need money to take care of their loved ones. As they say “Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.” I wonder if Marius who holds almost absolute power might go down the path of corruption should what he holds most closely to his heart be destroyed.