Part 13: Sidetracked

Update 13: Sidetracked





Music: The Laughable Pair


!!

!?

Geez! Don't scare me like that!

Well it wasn't my fault! What are you doing, anyway?

None of your business.

I know you were eating food.

Then why didn't you just say that?

It looked like you were really enjoying it. I didn't want to bother you...

Just leave me alone for a change!


*thunk*


Oww! Why'd you hit me? I hope this doesn't swell...


...Right. Um, welcome back to Atelier Iris. We've got a lot of odds and ends to take care of today, so let's start with a new Mana!





A strange statue has appeared there.


That sounds promising.

...Wait, did he say the Collector's Caravan? Please tell me that doesn't mean-







Goddammit.


Hissss! I am not a cat, meow!

Cat girl...

Wait, is she a cat girl or not?

Well, my cute little Norn, you did come all the way out here to see me.

No I didn't, meow! Klein's the one who needed to come.

Oh, do you need something?

Huh? Oh, it's nothing urgent.

Okay, then, I'll help you later.

… …

Can I touch your ears, Norn? Please? Just a little bit, okay?

No way, hiss!

Oh, I almost forgot...I made a pocket-sized item list. It will let you check the item list any time you want. Would you like it?

Sounds cool, I'll take one.

I was talking to Norn. So? What do you say, Norn?

...Meow...Okay, I guess.

Woo hoo! Well, then...Just follow me...Come on, over here...Heh heh...







Oh wow...this does feel good...So soft...

HSSSS! Stop it, meow!

BWA HA HA!






I've updated all the information in there for you, as well.

This should help a lot.

I'm giving it to Norn, so ask her if you want to see it. See you again, Norn!

… …


I honestly managed to forget about this subplot with Lector and Norn. If only forgetting about it could make it stop existing...





Lector also unlocks Bonus Gallery stuff when we hit certain numbers of total items. Most of the stuff I've unlocked so far is music, but I'll try and remember to check up on the bonus menu now and again to show off other stuff.





What good timing. I've been waiting for you! I'm the water mana, Nymph! I'd like to hang out with you. If you treat me well, I can teach you all about water.





















Music: Popo's Pleasant Money Lecture


Today you'll learn about entering damage zones. A damage zone is a place you can't enter without taking damage. This could be lava, a poison swamp, or other things like that.

Now it's my turn! I can use water to form a barrier around you.

With her at your side, you can go wherever you want!

If you need to use my power, just set the action dial to the blue crystal and press the square button!

Now for some extra advice from Nymph.

My barrier will last until you move to the next map screen. So feel free to move anywhere – even a damage zone!

That's all for today! See you again soon!

… …

Well...there doesn't ALWAYS have to be a funny ending.























Music: Cute Witch

(The music is going to switch pretty frequently for a while, so I'm linking Zeldalia's house theme because I'm rarely there long enough to link it otherwise)


Nymph's power lets us get to a few new places. Once again, we can reach a new area of the sewer. I recall Glowing Mana being one of the rarer ones. I should really try blacksmithing again...







We can also make some progress into the fiery death path (again, I think you can actually do this without her but it involves awkward platforming and blecch). Also this looks like a glorious Mana Item and I can't wait to bust it out.





Unfortunately, even with Nymph's help we can't get all the way through. How are we supposed to climb this, anyway? Deimia isn't tall enough to get us over such a large obstacle...





And we've got one more treat back at Iris' Resting Place. Okay, I think that's enough wandering around for the moment. Let's check up on our favorite bartender.





Atelier Norman: The Freshest Fish

Music: Fun Shopping in Kavoc


Are you having a tough time with all the monsters?

No, we're doing pretty well.

Ha ha ha, that's what I like to hear! But it's going to get harder, eventually. You should gather as much information about monsters as you can.

Information?

Yeah, you know, their appearance, how strong they are...You should play it smart. I know Lita's been compiling all sorts of monster data.

Is that true, Lita?

Of course. I don't want to go down in history as a loser.

Uh...

Here, take this. It's handy for Galgazits. Lita knows how to record info, so I'll just give it to her.

Just let me know if you'd like to check it out.





All right, now Lita and Norn both have special manuals that keep track of stuff. We can view them both at base or in save points.





We also have that Growloon book here in the tavern. Looks like we've made a little progress, at least – Norman hands over some money and a couple of smithing Mana as rewards.

Also, I'm always amused by RIP GRWLN





Let's move on to actual synthesis. When we came back from the Puni God, I handed over some Frozen Rain to Norman, which opened up this recipe. Sashimi has a few variants, so let's see what kinds we can make. The recipe calls for any combination of two fish, with the default ingredients being a Fish Island and a Joker Fish, so let's try those first...





Now this is a treat...Red Sashimi! It's a fresh fish platter that's rare in Kavoc.

Raw fish, huh? Well...it looks interesting.

This one's cut from a red fish, so it's Red Sashimi...but you can make it from others.


Uh huh, uh huh...well, let's try some different fish, then.





Devil Fish looks promising...





Hey guys! Good call, using the devil fish as an ingredient. I worked really hard at this one...I'll call it Deviled Sashimi.

Cool.

It looks so yummers, meow! So...Devil Fish meow?


All right, now let's switch gears and combine a Mountain Fish with a Joker Fish...





Check this one out, guys – White Sashimi! It's a fresh fish platter that's rare in Kavoc.

It looks kind of simplistic...

I suppose, but it's flavor is second to none!





Palm Fish are much more expensive than other fish, so here's hoping this turns into a high quality product...

Oh, by the way, I don't think I've mentioned this. When you're trying to get a new item out of a recipe, the shopkeeper will tell you if they think you'll get a new item or not based on what ingredients you offer them. So you can tell before you actual start the process (and thus expend your items) whether or not you're getting a new thing. So you don't have to worry TOO much about accidentally expending a rare or expensive item in a recipe that won't get you anything new.





Ah! Here we go! This is Fresh Sashimi!

Um...It's still alive.

YUM! Meeeeoooow!

Isn't that a little cruel?


And that's that for Norman's synthesis. Once again, I decided to stop by Lake Forwel to see if I could get any more fish (I was specifically hoping to buy more Palm Fish, but no such luck) and ran into a bit of a detour...





Music: Lakeside


… …?

Hmmmm...

Is something wrong, sir?

Leave him alone, Klein. The memory's the first thing to go, y'know?

What!? You whippersnapper! I'm not THAT old!

Geez...You don't have to yell, old-timer. Is your hearing gone, too?

You've been staring out at the lake for a long time...is something wrong?

What a sweet young lady...You're so kind to ask.

_*sigh*





Um...what ship?

It's RIGHT TEHRE, old man!

Pipe down! I wasn't talking to you anyway, so shut yer trap.

Calm down, pops...Before your arteries harden.

My grandson lives very far away. Each month, he sends me a letter. But the ship never came this month. So I'm waiting here...for my letter.

I'm sorry.

Sometimes a letter is all that keeps an old timer like me goin'.

Hm...I hope nothing bad happened to the ship.


Man, Delsus is an asshole to old people. Let's check on Gemlis real fast. He wants more Ale, and if we trade it, he hands over a Mountain Fish.





Looks delish, meow!

What!? It's raw!

Fresh fish is the best fish, meow!

...Well, you're definitely a cat.





Apparently thieves from Poto's Forest besieged the ship. There's a hefty reward for anyone who can retrieve the stolen cargo. Will a brave hero emerge to save the day? Stay tuned for the latest news!


Could that be...

I'll bet that's the ship with the old man's letter.

Let's go get those thieves!

Uh...we don't even know where they are.

Didn't you hear the report? They're probably hiding in Poto's Forest.

Somehow I don't think it'll be quite that simple...

We might as well try. It's the best lead we have.

Fine, whatever. Let's just get this done. We've got a lot of other stuff to do, you know?


You know something's awry when Arlin is more willing to go along with an irrelevant sidequest than Delsus is. Well, anyway, let's head to the teleporter in Veola's shop so we can zip on over to-





Do you know anything about the Dragon Gem?


oh my god one sidequest at a time please


Dragon Gem...I think I've heard of it. Oh yeah! It's a mana item. How do you know about it?

I could tell what it was from the name. So...do you have one?

Of course not.

Shoot...I was hoping you would so I could see one, just once.


And that's all we have for that right now. Arcose is the closest teleport outlet to Poto's Forest, so let's head there. But first...





I considered skipping this, but...you know...I think it's missable and I'm going for pseudo-100% completion and all that...





Meow? Are you talking about me?

???: Of course! Would you like some cookies?

I do! Thank you, meow!

Uh, Norn...

Don't worry, Klein. Thank you, Granny.

???: Oh, it's nothing. What would you like, little girl?





???: Dangit! So close!


A flash of light reveals...





I almost touched your ears this time, Norn. I'm wearing you down!

Why would you go through all that trouble, anyway?

Well, I've gotta touch Norn's ears somehow, don't I? She won't let me near them!

Only people I like can touch my ears, meow!

Okay, okay...But I'll get them someday!

...Just give up already, meow!


This might be the creepiest thing I've seen in a video game that was intended to be funny. The worst part is Lector gives me so much money and unlockables that I find myself unable to hate her despite all this.

Let's move on to Poto's Forest.





Damn, it's the fuzz! Take 'em out!





These guys are a preview of some of the enemies we'll run across in Fort Galga when we get back on the main plot. I should have tried to turn them into candy, but Klein made them explode before it occurred to me.









I got more candy anyway.





My memory's fine!

Yeah, so's your hearing.

Why...this is my grandson's picture diary! Where'd you get this?...Oh, I get it...You went out of your way to...

We were glad to help.

Oh, thank you youngin's so much! Here...here, take this.

We don't need anything, sir. We didn't do this expecting a reward.

I'm giving a treasure to you, you sweet, young lady...

...Oh...Oh-kay...

I really appreciate what you did. Here's a beautiful gift for a beautiful girl.





Hey, not bad. I bet I can synthesize with this.


What's this?

NOW whose memory's bad? I told you, it's my treasure!


Well, that was a nice little sidequest. We're not done with Zazzy, but the rest of his stuff will have to wait.

And now, the moment you've all been waiting for...





Atelier Veola: Pendelook

Music: Spending the Night Together


What's that supposed to mean?

How do you have enough time to stop by and pester me? Do you even have a job?

Ha! I'm a Galgaz-

I wasn't actually asking. You, didn't you say you were an alchemist?

… ...

Maybe I forgot to introduce myself. My name's Klein. Do...do you know something about alchemy? I haven't met a lot of people who do, actually...

Why didn't you ask me!? I never introduced myself, either!

I already know who you are. Everyone does – you're Lita the Galgazit.

..._{You could have told me}.

So how do you know about alchemy?

It's very similar to my line of work. Alchemists handle different Mana – composing and decomposing them to create items.

I suppose that's close enough.

… …











Sadly, we've only got one new thing to synthesize, but both the item and the scene are very important. I've talked about Mini Pendelooks quite a bit now, and Veola is the only way to make them into proper Pendelooks.. We can create a Pendelook out of two Mini Pendelooks and one variant of Stained Grass. Right now I only have the lowest quality Shatter Stained, but that will work for now. We'll need a lot of Pendelooks later, so we'll be seeing a lot of Veola to make them.





This is a Pendelook. These might vary in size, but they always have the same effect. They're formed from the tears of the dead...So, the more sad the corpse, the larger the Pendelook.

… …

I hope that when I die, my pendelook is beautiful.





Don't talk like that!

...You're right. I shouldn't reveal that to others.





Well, that just took a turn for the disturbing. I'm looking forward to more Veola but it looks like we have to advance the plot some more, so join me next time as we take on Fort Galga.