Part 24: Part XX: Hear the Fulfillment of an Oath

Part XX: Hear the Fulfillment of an Oath

I've found out what the two cradles are, and what I have to do next. Even though it's such an ancient thing, it's captured Nio...I don't want to destroy it, but I have to do anything I can for her!



The tool that Mr. Keith taught me...is done! So, the way this works is that one emits the "words", and the other one locates where the "words" are coming from... If I can give this to Nio, then I'll be able to pin down her location from here. But how will I give it to her? I haven't seen her since that last time. Hmm...maybe I just have to believe and wait...

Then, ten days later... Nio located



Hrmm, five more minutes... Nooo, actually ten more minutes...

Goodness, you're sitll so bad at waking up in the morning... Please wake uuup!

Huh...? Nio!?

Wah! Don't wake up so suddenly! You scared me!

Oh, sorry. I've been waiting for you to visit me for so long. I'm so glad. I thought that maybe I wouldn't be able to see you again.

So, it's been that long? I've been asleep the whole time, so I couldn't tell. Even when I woke up every now and then, it was all dark and I couldn't find a way out... I couldn't tell where you were. It was as if I was locked up somewhere. But, I'm glad I was able to see you again, Sis.

Hehe, me too. I'm happy I got to see your face... Oh, that's right! I made this for you, Nio. See, isn't it cute?



You...made this?

Yup! I worked real hard on it!

Yay! Thank you, Sis! Hmhmhm, it's cute! I wonder what I should name it...

You look so cute when you're holding a stuffed animal!

Your idea of cute isn't always dependable... You say everything I wear and have is cute.

That's...cuz it really is all cute. I'm not lying to you.

Hehe, but this stuffed animal is cute. Thank you, Sis. I feel like you're gonna be close to me from now on. I'll take good care of it.



Hrmm, Nio's so cute... She's just like a fairy... Zzz zzz...

You can't hide behind that stupid sleeping face of yours forever. I'm telling you to wake up!

*yawn* ...Oh, Mr. Keith. Good morning. That's right. I was giving Nio the stuffed animal...

From the looks of it, it seems you succeeded in giving it to her. Where is it now?

The needle is pointing...northeast of here.

I recall that area as having nothing... I guess that was all a deception.

First, I think I'll head over there. Maybe I'll get to see Nio!

Good. With how things are going, the sooner you act, the better. However... He doesn't seem to care about hurting humans. With all you've been through, I'm sure you won't go down easily, but make sure you're prepared. If necessary, I'll go along with you.

Thank you so much. I'll go get prepared right away!

Bombs, healing ointments...I'm bringing along a lot, but I do really have to make sure I can rescue Nio. The Yggdrasil seems really mad at me, so I don't know what it will do, but I have to save Nio. When I left town with Mr. Keith and Linca, something about them scared me...

Okay, let's depart, full of energy... Huh? I feel like there's some tension in the air...



That's just your imagination. I don't feel anything.

(Hmm...is it just my imagination?)

Can I talk to you before you leave?

Huh? Marion? Are you here for Linca?

No. I'm not here for Linca or you. I'm here for... Keithgriff Hazeldine. You.

Hmm. I don't believe I've ever met you before...

Yes. This is our first time directly meeting each other. I'm Marion Quinn. I think you'll understand if I just tell you that I came from the west.

Oh, so you're one of their pets. How faithful of you. You went to all this trouble just to capture me?

Oh, that's right... One of Linca and Marion's jobs was to capture Mr. Keith, who apparently committed a lot of crimes back where they come from. I forgot in all this time, but...

Don't be so conceited. We came here for another reason. Taking you into custody is just a side mission.

And, what will you do? Will you capture me in this place?

...

(Ooh, what should I do? In a case like this, whose side should I take...? Wait, that's not the problem here! This is turning into a big problem.) Umm, everyone, fighting isn't good. Let's all be friends and have tea...



She's never spoken to me like that...

Oh, okay...

Let me ask you a question. Why are you with Ayesha?

I have no intention of answering...is what I'd like to say, but I guess this is no time to act like that. There's no big reason behind it. I'm just interested in what this girl is trying to accomplish. And that is connected with what I seek to know, as well. That's it. Are you done with me now?

...So, do you swear you're not trying to hide anything with your choice of words?

I'm not slick enough to try something like that. Although, whether you believe me or not is entirely up to you.

...Okay. I won't get involved in this case for a while. You were never here, and Linca and I never saw you. Let's just leave it at that.

Hmm, your ability to reason is pretty good. It seems like you're different from them.

I reported to Marion that this is what is best for Ayesha.

If the center finds out that you've overlooked a criminal, wouldn't you be in great trouble?

Undoubtedly, both Linca and I would be fired. But...



If there's something we can do, we'd like to cooperate, and we'd like to cheer her on... But we don't have expert knowledge of alchemy. There are things that we can't do... To find her missing sister, she might need your help. That's the only reason we're going to overlook you. Besides, in a remote region like this, it won't be easy for them to find out.

Marion, Linca... Umm...

You don't have to say anything, Ayesha. Just keep doing your best for yourself. With that being said, Linca, the arrest of Keithgriff will be put on a temporary hold. You will solely accompany them as Ayesha's bodyguard. Don't lose your temper, okay?

As you command. I will not do anything that will not benefit Ayesha.

Linca, Marion...

Ayesha, you don't have to worry about anything. This problem is just between this guy and us. But I will say this... This is only a temporary measure, okay? When this matter comes to a close, we will start chasing after you again. Don't forget that.

Well, that's only natural. You are just doing your job.

I'll be looking forward to hearing good news sooner or later. Well, see ya.

Well then, let's switch gears and get back to what we were doing.

Yes. Don't worry too much, this sort of thing happens a lot.

That is true, Ayesha. There is no need to worry. Marion said this is part of her plan. It will be easier for us to capture him after I have accompanied him and have discovered his weakness. So please, feel at ease.

Oh Linca...

...Couldn't you at least mention that to her when I'm not around?



So, by you having you find out like this, I will not have to worry about whether you found out later!

Well, do as you please. You can search for this "weakness" thing to your heart's content. I don't dislike a foolishly honest person like yourself. Now, we've wasted enough time. Let's go.

Oh, wait for meee...!

If you were looking closely, you didn't see any "Skip" option on the text boxes. That's because I definitely have never seen that scene before. I don't know why, though, since I've always brought Linca and Keith to the Yggdrasil, but it's just never triggered. Oh well. After the last voiced scene, you'll get the ability to head to the World Tree, but only if you've cleared the Pond Forest gathering area.

But first, a while back, I got a notice there was a Wolf boss that showed up in The Furthest Forest. Versus Edge Wolf



Edge Wolf is a pretty tough foe. He has a couple tough Red Skins hanging around with him that you should get rid of ASAP. Both of them are pretty slow, though, so if you have powerful area attacks you can probably take care of them really fast.



He moves twice in a row, of course, and has a lot of powerful moves at his disposal. Again, keeping your characters apart from each other is a good idea.



Another reason for this is because Keith's support skills, and Linca's powerful assist attacks Checkmate and Knock Out, can only be activated if the characters involved aren't next to each other.



While Ayesha doesn't have a bomb of just pure, overwhelming power like Rorona and Totori, the Exe-Bomb is pretty close. It's just a metric ton of explosives all crammed together, and of course, it's a group attack. It did a hell of a lot of the Edge Wolf, and immidiately got Sagittarius to play. Linca's super gauge had charged up to 100% on account of his many, many strikes against her, and he was weak enough to...



Music: FJ: Raging Edge

Activate Raging Edge's killing blow animation. Good times.



Music: Invitation Flower -Winter-

The final world map theme, playing only over the Yggdrasil areas of the far northeast of the map. I like it. It's cool and chill, like I imagine with Winter. We're truly at the end of our journey.

[/i]

He's very skillful at hiding, but despite his best efforts, I can still feel him.

Yeah. If the needle didn't point to this location, I don't think we would've found him.

You're right... Now, let's go.

This area is surrounded by mountains, and he's hiding in a deep forest. It's no wonder Mr. Keith couldn't find him, but the Slag Transmitter says Nio is definitely close. I wonder if the alchemists of the past built him here specifically to withstand whatever they were fearing... The cradle of life



If this is the place Ms. Odelia told me about...

Welcome...is what I would like to say, but I cannot allow you to intrude any further. Heed this warning, unbidden guest. Continue no further and leave the premises of my jurisdiction.

I knew it! So this is the cradle... In that case, I can't go back...!

I am the one who protects the seed. I only exist to carry out my duty. As the one who protects the seed, I possess no desire to murder aimlessly. However... If you proceed any further, I will presume you to be the one who threatens the preservation of the seed.

I came here to take Nio back. No matter what you say, I won't be going back without her!



Music: Artemis

With a Soul Trap Chain with the best possible Effects, and nice optional traits, Keith is a real powerhouse on the battlefield. He also recovers 19 HP every time his turn comes up, and he gets HP back for each source of damage he has on his equipment setup (so in this example, he got five damage for his basic 94 damage attack, one HP back for Fire damage, and one HP back for Ice.). Although there is a tremendous healing item we'll be getting from this dungeon as a recipe that makes it the best healing item in the game by far, convert damage traits in this game are actually really useful, because you now get HP back from skills, and potentially several sources.

Also, Artemis is our final regular battle theme, and it's pretty damn good, I think. This game's soundtrack is seriously really good. It also plays in Steinfeder, the floating alchemy lab from the previous update, but I neglected to mention it.



Synthesis Origins, gained from a treasure chest at the end of the second area (you could also see it in the above video), is definitely one of the game's most valuable recipe books. God's Miracle Drug is the healing item I speak of, and with the right traits from the right materials, one of which we'll get in this dungeon, it can recover tons of HP, up all parameters, affects the entire field, recover from KO, restore MP, and can have a "Timed" effect, which means the Miracle Drug gains three turns by itself.

The other really valuable recipe is the Metastasis Wing, which is this game's Windrider / Warp Gate. For those who haven't read the previous thread, it basically means from any gathering point in the game, you can warp to any workshop you want. Hell, all workshops are even added to the shortcut menu if you have that thing in the Basket. We'll make both after we're done with this dungeon.



The music selection in Yggdrasil is also good. Guidance plays for the first two areas, and Illusion plays for the third. Both of these themes have been used for scenes where Ayesha and Keith begin gradually uncovering the truth of what happened to Nio, and are both really good nice songs by themselves. Obviously, the green gate in the back is where you need to go. If you're doing the "(Search) Yggdrasil" stuff, keep in mind there's a few enemy groups beyond the green gate when you get a voiced scene, and the Yggdrasil itself counts as the final monster.

But, enough of that. The final resolution

That's...!



Sis! You really did come for me!

Yup. Nio, you did a good job hanging in there till now. Let's go back to the workshop together...!

I can't... The person beyond this point is really mad. He won't let me out...ever. And he'll eliminate anyone who tries to stop him. If it's just for a short while, I think I can hold him back. So Sis... Run away from here. I'll be fine. It's enough that you came to this place for me!

Don't worry. I absolutely will get you out of here.

Well, we did receive that warning. I will proceed and settle this in my own way, but...what will you do?

I'll...save Nio.

In that case, the path we must travel is one and the same. A frontal breach it shall be.

Yes, let's go!



The other cradle...the cradle that protects life is still following the orders from long ago. It's responsible for everything that's happened since Nio disappeared that day, but I wonder if what we're doing is really right... But, I can't back down from saving Nio! Journey's End



Alchemist, this domain shall not be intrenched upon...

If I can have Nio back, I'll leave this instant!

That, I cannot allow. The specimen named Nio is under my protection.

Dutifully following the obsolete orders of a master who perished long ago... I sympathize with your sitation. However... I will show no mercy to any who stand in the way of my goals...!

Nio, for you, I'll do anything!



Music: MARIA

I really love the Yggdrasil's design. It looks really natural, but at the same time, mechanical and twisted-looking. His face really reminds me of Baphomet, and the way he looks, looks like a giant, flowery cocoon. Oh, and the music here is a bombastic remix of Guidance, which is why Daisuke Achiwa asked us to remember Guidance's tune for an important moment later in the story.

Battle-wise, Yggy doesn't have many tricks up his sleeve. As always, keeping everyone separate is a good idea. He doesn't seem to hit very hard, but it could also be to Linca having a Phoenix Bracelet that I got from a treasure chest in this very dungeon that lowers both his Speed and Attack. He's mainly just thrashing about with me at this point, but I didn't want to kill him too fast. Gotta be appropriately dramatic, you know?



You want Ayesha using her "Searching" technique as much as possible this time. Ayesha will always pick up a Time Guard Flower, which is amazingly useful, especially for God's Miracle Drug. He can drop them after the fight, but I don't think that's guaranteed, and hey, the more the merrier.



Around half HP, he'll use Dusk's Light. Despite looking very impressive and having a dramatic-sounding name, inflicts some minor damage and reduces the power of items. Oh well, at least the animation is pretty cool.



Keith's been wanting to finish this thing off for a while now. Let us indulge him.



Music: FJ: Ancient One







Nio! Come on, wake up.

Hrmm...

Niiio!

Hm...! Sis!



I'm so glad I believed in Mr. Keith...!

Hehe, Sis, than you for coming for me. I thought this was gonna be the end of me, stuck in a dark world with no lights, just sleeping... When I heard your voice, I was really happy!

Nio...

What...!? Why now!?

Oh...hehe, her tummy growled...

Haha, I bet you didn't have any food in this dream world of yours. When we get back, I'll cook your favorite.

A meal cooked by Sis...? I can't wait! I haven't eaten in a looong time, so I'm starving.

Okay, Nio, can you stand?

Urgh, I wonder if it's because I was asleep the whole time, but I feel wobbly.

Grab onto me. Come on...give me your hand, all right? Nio, you're so light. Come to think of it, you haven't grown any taller either. Actually... You haven't changed at all since you disappeared. I wonder if time doesn't flow in the dream world...

Hehe, Sis, you've grown in lots of different ways. You've gotten squishy in places where you weren't squishy before.

That's cuz I'm a mature big sister now. Mine're bigger than yours. Okay, let's go home. Back to the workshop!



I'm...so happy... There were times I never thought I'd see Nio again, but...thanks to everyone, I'm standing with her today! The light of a new world



H-Huh...? We're in the herb garden behind the workshop! I wonder why... I thought we'd be way farther away...

After engaging in that battle, I knew it would be difficult to travel all the way back. So, I connected the exit here.

So that's why... Actually, I'm exhausted, so I'm glad...



You have not made a single wrong decision. He was broken to begin with. At least, in my opinion, but you don't seem convinced.

Yeah... He was just fulfilling the desire of a past alchemist. He was just faithfully doing his duty, and we destroyed him. It's like we erased the desire of his creator, and...

The disasters of the past are long gone. The threat he would rescue us from no longer exists. Though, we may be standing on the precipice of the end of human history... However, it's still too early for us to need to be in his care. There is more than one solution, and I am searching for a different path.

A different path...!?

Yes, and the best thing you can do for him would be to find your own, more proper, solution.

I don't think I can find a clear solution right away, but I'll keep an eye out for what I can do.

Hey you two, you seem to be having a serious conversation. So...what are you talking about?

...Hmhm. See? Now you have your sister with you. Could this not be your answer?

You're right. No matter what might've happened, I still would've taken Nio back.

That's good. Never regret what you've done... Because you are an alchemist.

...Yes.

You probably have a lot to contemplate and do, but... For today, rest well. It'll be nice to spend some time together, just you sisters. After that, if you still have anything left to do, you can start doing it.

Mr. Keith...

Well, I'll be going now. Farewell.

Mr. Keith...umm...thank you so much for everything.



Hehe...he's right. It's time to start building my own future, with Nio and everyone...

It's hard to see, but Keith starts waving goodbye before he teleports back to the library.

That man seemed like a nice person. Do you know him?

Yup. He's kinda like my synthesis teacher. But yeah... I think Mr. Keith is a nice person, too. But I feel like he's gone through a really sad experience...

Hmm...I see. I guess it really was a serious conversation...

Hmhm, well, we should go home. To the workshop! Pana is waiting for us, too!



This is where it all began... I was really sad when Nio was gone. I had Ernie and Pana, but no one else. Thanks to Mr. Keith being there on that day, I've gained so much. It's time...time to decide what my future will look like. There's so much I still have to do.



Music: Stars at Dusk

There's a little montage of scenes where Ayesha met Nio, and if you're looking closely, you'll see a scene where Nio and Ayesha are around some slags in Riesengang's ruins, and Nio and Ayesha talking at night. That's because those two scenes are from flower scenes I didn't have to get, and because I got the Marshland flower and the Hom Village flower, I got locked out of those scenes. I'll include all relevant stuff in the Bonus Update to follow this one.