Part 30: XXIV: Pages of a Way Forward

Chapter XXIV: Pages of a Way Forward



You're not giving up yet, are you? Nah, we're not done. Not even close. Keeping hope alive

I can't choose. Stia or Arklys, I can't choose only one. So... I have to try and find... A third option.
Are you serious...? There's no time left for that! We don't even know if that's possible! But you still want to try?
Ahaha, it'll be okay. I know it. We'll find a way...somehow!

Lulua...!
Hehe...! Well then, we'd better start with Fellsgalaxen! If "Alchemyriddle" doesn't show anything, I'll have to try and figure it out by myse...hm?
Huh? What happened? Did something appear in the Riddle?
Yeah, suddenly... Um, let's see... "Please, let me change the future"...? What's that supposed to mean? Whatever! We don't have time for this! St-Stia!
Yes...?

...! Lulua... You're crazy...

*several hours pass*



*12 more hours pass...*




*another long 12 hours...*



*24 hours pass this time...*



*one more time skip of 12 hours...*


Yes. It's worse than I thought... It doesn't have much time left...does it?
Yes, it's like I said. The control unit and I...
Hey, hey, no more of that! Lulua already decided that won't happen. You better respect her decision. Deal?
Well...
Yeah! Leave it to me! There's no way I'll let you sacrifice yourself, Stia! Except... We haven't figured out how yet. If reinforcing it or destroying it won't work...
Hehe. Then, how about trying to look at it from a different angle?
A different angle...? Like what?

Oh! Like if there was a way to use the self-repairment function without having Stia merge with the control unit...
You're right! If we could do that, it would be the easiest and fastest way...!
Even if you say that... There's no way that could be...
Actually, it might be possible.

Her sense of timing, as always, is flawless.

Oh, Mana! Perfect timing!
Heh, right? I thought you might be about to decide something.
So, Mana? What'd you mean by "might be possible"?
Merging with the control unit means her memory will be reset and she'll become a part of the unit. While it has to be forceful and is not easy to do... It is possible to physically separate the operator from the unit afterwards. Basically... If you can then do something about her memory, you'll be able to use the self-repairment function without losing Stia.
O-Oh, no-no-no, wait! Isn't that prohibited?! It could break the control unit...!
Hahahaha! What difference would it make? Fellsgalaxen is already broken. For now, buying some time is the best we can do. Use the self-repairment function once, avert the crisis for the time being...
...! And buy some time to fix it using alchemy?!
Exactly. Heh, it's not the worst gamble ever, right?
Stia, what do you think? Can we try it?!
*sigh* I don't have any other choice, do I? I'm leaving it all in your hands...Lulua.

Of course!! So, our task at hand is...!
To make a tool to protect Stia's memories. I'm no use with alchemy, but I can help with gathering information.
Yah, me too! I'll use all of my connections and ask around!
Hahahaha, wouldn't expect any less, everyone! Well, I'll soothe everyone with my magic tricks...
Idiot. Ficus, go look for information too! If you don't...hehe.
Eeek?! K-Kidding, I'm kidding! Well, Lulua. I'll give it my all as well.

*the men leave*

Thank you, everyone! All right, we won't lose! We'll protect Arklys and Stia...! I'll come up with something that'll protect Stia's memories!

*Lulua runs off*

Hehe...


Well, I think that's orders enough to do whatever we will. Before we resume with the story, or even decoding the riddle that just popped up that continues the story, we're going to be doing something very special, putting the wheels in motion to create Ultimate Equipment With access to all of the Special Traits, there's not really anything but knowledge standing between us and that. Well, there is something we need to unlock, but there's no reason we can't begin the process, since it's pretty elaborate.



So where do we start dipping our toes into the water? Well, remember when I mentioned Special Traits are just normal traits on their own until they're actually combined with something? That's where we start. I want to move the traits that we have onto more generic stuff, lilke Supplements. This will make it easier to move things around and get things to where they need to go. We just need to be careful we don't actually combine anything at this step. Because we'll be working with White/Black Supplements a lot, we'll start by making a Distilled Water for that Quality.



Make sure, if you make something similar to this, to not select Ultra Quality (+30% to Quality). This is because Ultra x Ultimate Power becomes Ultimate Quality, a +50% increase to Quality. Of course, this is a good trait, but remember what I said? We don't want to combine anything just yet. For this one, I put Professional, TP Maximization, and TP Optimization. This will serve us well.



Yep, just like that. We found both that second Wispstone and World Spirit in Night's Domain.

One thing I would very strongly recommend is to Awaken the Supplements with this traits into more item categories. On its own, the White/Black Supplements are only (Supplement) items. These can go into a number of items, but while we're here, we should fit this into as many categories as possible. (Water) in particular is an easy one to hit, just by using another Distilled Water in the (Water) category of this particular recipe. By the way, feel free to use Dark Fireflies and the like here. We almost universally will not care about the Effects of a Supplement. The Quality, however, IS important. This particular Supplement ended up having Awakening Agent, Resonant Soul, TP Maximization, and ended up as an (Animal Product), (Water), and (Supplement). That's one item.



Of course, don't forget about Dragon. His ability to stock nearly everything we make is going to be just a bit helpful for our purposes. I should also mention that Dragon restocks every 10 days, not 10 days from when you stocked the item. So everything gets 10 new copies at the same time. Pretty handy.



As for this Black Supplement, it ended up hosting Ultimate Power (the Dunkelheit coming from Large Conifer Forest), Professional, and TP Maximization. The item categories were (Supplement), (Mushroom), and (Water).



As for this Rainbow Supplement, that Sacred Bird Wing is from Holy Slumbering Tree, and this ended up carrying Divine Mastery and Heavily Mass-Produced as a (Supplement) and (Mystery) item. Now that we've made this, we have nearly everything where we want to be. We just want to be careful we don't waste all copies of any item we've made before we stock it at Dragon's. So you'll have to keep a lot of balls in the air. But for now, since it's the start of a new chapter, why don't we check out the other towns?


Yeah, mine too! It was a huge help!
Don't mention it. Besides, I was handsomely rewarded for my efforts.
Haha! I'll have more work for you in the future if you like!
That'd be great!
...Hmmm...
Oh, hello, Lulua. Why are you looking at me like that?
It's nothing. I just noticed that you've taken on a lot of requests.
Yeah, I suppose so. I took as much as I could!
Th-That many, eh?! Hehe. You're amazing, Niko!
Amazing? I wouldn't say that. I only do what needs to be done. When you're at sea, if everybody isn't working together, you're not going to make it out alive in a crisis. So to me, it's the same when I'm on land. If there's anyone that needs help, I'll help them. Isn't that the way it should be?
Actually, the fact that you think that's how it should be is the most amazing thing.
Hm? I'm not sure if I should take that as a compliment...

All right. I shall follow your example and go take on a request.
Oh, in that case, I'd be happy to help you! You really helped me out the other day.
Really? Thanks! Now, as for what request to take on...

In general, Niko's friendship was higher at the start of this chapter than it was on earlier playthroughs, but no two playthroughs of Atelier Lulua will ever be exactly the same for me since I like to switch up parties fairly often, so nobody is accumulating friendship points all that much faster than the others. Nevertheless, Eva, Aurel, and Ficus are pretty far ahead of everyone right now, Eva being the highest, though Ficus did briefly overtake her just after Fire's Domain.

Speaking of, this next scene triggers when Sterk's friendship is 30 or higher. The strongest knight


Lulua? Oh that's right. I bought some sweets earlier, if you'd like...
Mr. Sterk? Well, well... So you're Sterk?
What... Who're you?!
Stay back, Lulua. Yes, I'm Sterk. Can I help you with something?
Hehehe, I see, I see... So you're the Knight Supreme Sterk! I'm quite the swordsman myself. So if I take you out, I'll become the strongest swordsman, right?

Well, seems sensible, but with a character name like "Hooligan", I don't see this ending well for you.

Hmph. You're not the first to challenge me. And I usually turn down any offers, but... Today, I shall make an exception. Come.
Heh-heh... You better hope you don't regret that decision!

*brief sounds of swordfighting*



*the punk runs off*

Heh. All bark and no bite, I see...
Mr. Sterk!
Oh, I'm fine. Young rascals like that are no trouble for me.
That's amazing, Mr. Sterk! Does this kind of thing happen often??
Yeah, quite often. Many strive for the title of Knight Supreme, so they come to challenge me now and again.
The Knight Supreme...
Yeah. Oh, I guess I should tell you.
The man who used to carry the title of Knight Supreme before was one named Gio.
Huh? Gio? Hold on, you don't mean THAT Gio...
Yes. The same Gio that traveled with Rorona. As well as the former king of Arland.
Former King...!
That man's swordsmanship was otherworldly. I have crossed swords with him and failed many times. So I continued training, with the hope that one day... Eventually...I was able to defeat him. And after that day, I inherited the title of Knight Supreme and have protected it ever since.

Sterk's few fights against Gio in Meruru ended poorly for him, and there were additional clashes between him and Gio before the events of Totori that ended poorly, as well. Nevertheless, after Meruru it seems Sterk was improving faster and Gio was only getting older, so it eventually caught up to him. Very likely after that Gio's days of wandering were put behind him and he decided to live in seclusion.

Ohh, so that's what happened...
Yes. The title of Knight Supreme is no light burden, and not something that can be easily obtained by anyone. I cannot lose until I find a swordsman strong enough to carry the title of strongest in the land!
...


This is another Special Trait I got a while ago, but these mostly come from drops. Don't think you can find any out in the field. Dragon God's Protection allows synthesis of some really powerful traits, like Dragon God's Wrath and Dragon God's Roar, but what exactly those do will have to wait for another time.



So just to talk a bit more about Ultimate Equipment, everyone's weapon made from Olgenrium is the one you'll want, but it's not the easiest ingot to get traits onto, since (Dragon) is kind of a niche category. Most (Dragon) items are from drops, but you can synthesize a few, and there is an Awaken (Dragon) effect from Dragon Piece. The best way to get Dragon Pieces right now is beating up Draconius', that blue dragon you can find right now in the depths of Fellsgalaxen. It's a pretty hearty enemy, so take no prisoners. Pretty sure it's guaranteed to drop one.

Aside from that, though, let's talk a bit more about Ultimate Equipment in general. I love talking about elaborate equipment building in Atelier games (see the title page for my Shallie LP in the Archives for an example of that), so you'll have to forgive my little dissertation here. Now, I'll just go ahead and say the alchemist characters (Rorona/Lulua/Piana) are by far the most important characters to build, since this game very much leans in their direction as far as damage-dealing goes. As far as weapons go, you'll want to focus on three traits: Dragon God's Wrath / Silent Darkness / Resonance All: Universe. Obviously, I'll need to discuss all three of these a bit more.

Dragon God's Wrath is a special trait created by combining Stats Mega Charge and Dragon God's Protection, which is a Special Trait that comes with any Dragon Piece. Stats Mega Charge, if you don't have it on any other material, can also be created by combining the Mega Charges of any combination of two of the following traits: ATK/DEF, DEF/SPD, or ATK/SPD. Wrath increases all stats +10 and increases damage done to stunned enemies by 15%. Doesn't matter if it comes straight from the owner's attacks or from an item.

Resonance All: Universe deserves more explanation. This family of traits dates back to Atelier Firis, and how it works is thus. The Resonance trait on its own provides a stat buff, but also *adds the Resonance traits of other frontline members*. This is huge. So, let's say Lulua has Universe on her staff. That's +10 to all her stats (HP/MP/ATK/DEF/SPD). Then let's say Eva is also on the front line, and she also has Universe on her weapon. Eva and Lulua both get the stat buff from their own Universe, but also the other's Universe. This chain can go like crazy. Since each party member has 5 slots for equipment (one weapon, one symbol, two accessories, and one armor), you can get +50 from their own collection of Universe traits and an added +100 with other party members on the front line. However, this bonus only applies to characters in the frontline. Since this game somewhat lacks the diversity of special endgame traits that the Mysterious games had, putting Dragon God's Wrath / Universe / one unique trait is usually the way to go for ultimate builds.

As for Silent Darkness, it can't be created via synthesis and there's no guaranteed way of finding it. If you hang out in Night's Domain enough, gathering materials / defeating enemies, you're bound to find it eventually. At least, I'm pretty sure that's how I got it this playthrough. It increases damage done to enemies of a higher level by 10% and reduces damage done to the user by 10%. I might have mentioned before, but playable character levels max out at 100, as you might expect, but enemy levels can go up to level 200. Of course, this level is reserved only for the two most dangerous adversaries in the game.

Now, remember when I said the alchemists were by far the most important? Before you start making their equipment, you'll need access to Enhance Items Lv 5, which increases the power of attack / healing items by 15%. Since you could potentially get 10 instances of Enhance Items Lv 5 on a build (though in practice, this is not possible), this is a pretty massive passive increase to firepower. If you have the Totori DLC, you can get access to this Awakened Effect right now by using Totori's final weapon. If you don't, then things are a bit more complicated. If you check out all the equipment Cole can make right now, you'll notice someone's Olgenrium weapon is conspicuously absent: Aurel's. His final weapon, which has an Awakened Effect of Enhance Items Lv 5, unlocks via his character events, which we haven't progressed far enough. So, there's no sense in fully outfitting the alchemists just yet.

For the non-alchemists (which, I guess includes Meruru and Totori, but only because they can't use Interrupt the same way the regular trio can), their Ultimate Builds are much less important. Namely because they'll never come close to even resembling the DPS of the alchemists. KO prevention chance, stat buffs, evasion chance buff...it's all rearranging deck chairs on the Titanic if you ask me. Just get whatever you feel like for them, which does allow a certain amount of creativity. Nevertheless, they should have Silent Darkness / Wrath / Universe as well.



So that's all well and good, but what now? Well, we want to find a (Dragon) item we can make an Olgenrium with. You know the (Dragon) item we can make right now? Nothing else but the Philosopher's Pie, of course. That's going to be the key right now to make an Olgenrium with all those traits. Since I didn't really give the Stone I made much thought back in Chapter 8, we'll have to make a new one. Philosopher's Stones want Ashes of Failure, Pollutants, an Original Gem, and three (Elixir) items. Luckily, if you know which items create Ashes or Pollutants, you can make really high Quality "Junk" items that can also be registered at Dragon's. The other advantage with Boost Items right now is that you can intentionally fail a synthesis by using one of those to get one of those items. Gotta think out of the box now.

Speaking of dragons, the Dragon Piece is thankfully a pretty versatile item. It's a (Dragon), (Mystery), and (Gemstone) item, so you can use it in a number of syntheses to turn them into (Dragon) items.



As for now, we need an item that can handle the heavy load of the three traits I talked about above. All this discussion of Ultimate Equipment is meaningless if we don't have the TP to hold everything. While the obvious solution might be to spread the Traits across multiple items, for convenience sake I shouldn't have to explain the merit in having all those traits under one roof.



Our first Dragon God's Wrath, on another really handy item, the Spirit Tears. Essentially what we're doing is we get Wrath here, Silent Darkness on a Black Supplement, intentionally fail a Magic Paint synthesis so we can get Silent Darkness onto a Pollutant, and THEN make another White Supplement that's also an (Elixir) item with Universe and Wrath on it (from the Spirit Tears we just made). Naturally, I'm also spreading Divine Inheritance / TP Maximization / Optimization / Quality+ traits as much as possible. No harm at all in having as high quality items as possible.



Like this. Luckily, once one of these high tier traits has been created, no more combining anything with it. It's locked into that trait, so good for us. Of course, it is crucial that this Supplement is an (Elixir), because this is going right into a Philosopher's Stone, which then goes into a Philosopher's Pie, which then goes into the Olgenrium in the (Dragon) category. Yeah, welcome to endgame syntheses. I should also note that you'll likely hit Alchemy level 50 before you know it.



Look at that absolutely insane TP value, damn. Remember, 150 TP will fit any three traits into the game on a single item, so this is considerable overkill. This Philosopher's Stone certainly has some powerful traits on it, and after using the Dark Firefly, it also became the first item I've made this playthrough that breaks 500 Quality. If you make an item that does that, you get a special animation.





When I got this animation on my first playthrough, I was really worried because I was hearing the same kind of noises as when Lulua fails a synthesis, so I thought I did something wrong. Not at all the case, but when something doesn't go to expectations, I was worried.



After long last, we finally have a (Dragon) item for use in that Olgenrium. Only an important step away from making one. Since you can't count on Divine Iron Pieces or Eternity Flames (from Fire's Domain) having TP increasing traits, that means it's up to the (Ore) item to cover the cost of actually putting all these traits on our future Olgenrium. Any item that has a (Mystery) Awakened slot can become an (Ore) item. You should also consider the fact that the Olgenrium's Effects are improved by having high Earth and Fire Elemental Point values. While you can compensate to some extent with Boost Items, just something to keep in mind.



Cutting that just a bit close there... Thank god for that one Divine Iron Piece. Of course, this is only cutting it close in the sense I just want this one Olgenrium to have everything on it, which isn't strictly necessary, but yeah.



As far as Boost Items, I went with a Mysterious Disk. Whatever benefit higher-quality equipment may or may not have, I'm just not prepared to sacrifice these Effects for that thing I'm not even sure of. I stand by my decision.



Now, the problem with making weapons is there's no one-size-fits-all arrangement for every character that just instantly gives that character all the Effects and all the traits they need on Ultimate Builds, because everyone's best Effects on their weapons are different and require different Elemental Point values. Nevertheless, as I mentioned, making the best Alchemist items right now is counterproductive because I'm not attaching Enhance Items Level 5 to the (Lumber) slot of this synthesis (the only place it can go). So Lulua's weapon is not the first one.



Instead, that honor goes to Ficus. As far as this synthesis went, I used the Olgenrium we just made, a World Spirit (both mandatory), two Sunlites with Awakened: Earth +2, and two Rainbow Fragments. ATK Up Level 4 is +12 to ATK, by the way. Hey, might as well.



Where there's a will... After this first test drive, I went to Night's Domain to gather another big batch of Dark Fireflies. They're so awesome, seriously. Right now, I want to focus on making high quality currys, not only for Eva's character storyline, but also because the next big thing we wanna focus on is making an Ultimate Omega Craft.



So before we get a very valuable recipe via Meruru's events, Awaken (Mystery) is kind of a pain to work with, since it's either this, the Luminous Lance, or the Sacred Bird Wing, which is only a (Animal Product) or (Elixir) item. Why do we want (Mystery) items? We're starting to make Ultimate Armor, that's why. This synthesis got me to Alchemy level 45 and another scene.


Ms Totori, welcome! What's wrong? Anything giving you trouble?
Oh, no. But...Lulua. Can you make this for me, no questions asked?
Huh? Y-Yes. Understood...

Sounds like a question to me, but I'm sure Totori is big enough to overlook it. It is an understandable response to someone saying that to you, no prompting at all.

Yeah. I'll be counting on you.

*Totori leaves*

She just walked off... Hmm, wonder what that was about... Ah, well. She asked me to do this, so I better give this synthesis my all, huh. OK! I'll just make it, and then I'll hand it off to Ms. Totori.

Totori wants you to make her a Meteor, a high-tier attack item that we've finished both clues for, but we haven't actually decoded it yet. I'm sure she can wait.



This is why, primarily, we need Awakening Agent. Reinforce the Body is created by combining Enhance the Body (Stats +5% x Stats +8%) and Enhance the Body Extra (Stats +8% and Stats +10%). And then, of course, Agent for the final upgrade: Evolve the Body, which increases all base stats by 30%. Ultimate Armor is made with Evolve, Wrath, and Universe. The benefit of armor over weapons, of course, is that armor is much less diverse. All of the alchemists will be using the Alchemy Coat, Eva will use the Valkyrie Mail, and the guys will all be using Divine Auric Plate Armor.

As for this particular White Supplement, just make sure it is a (Mystery) item because this can be used in both the Himmel Linen synthesis we'll be doing shortly and the Living Rope.


Um... Mr. Dragon looks pretty busy. I probably shouldn't bother him...
Lulua. Lulua. Have you got a sec?
Eh? *is taken aside*
I've got a favor to ask. Actually it's more like advice.I want to get Chim Dragon a present. To say thanks for all his help.
Ooh, what a great idea! Even though you're the reason why he's so busy...
Ugh... I feel so bad about that. A-Anyway! What sort of present d'you think he'd like?
Hmm... Good question... It's gotta be pie.
Aah, you're right! He's loved pie since he was a little Chim.

Hey, Piana! Would you let me make it? I actually promised to make him a pie. This seems like the perfect opportunity.
Well who am I to stop you, then? Be my guest! Hehe. Sorry to put it on you when it was my idea... Thanks, Lulua!
Don't mention it! Right, it's pie time!

Well, it is, but Dragon seems like a "The greatest joy is the joy of duty" type of Chim, so he probably won't mind if it's not forthcoming for a few days. He's certainly making enough bank with all the stuff we're buying, that's for sure.



See how effortlessly that Stone we made earlier fits into this synthesis, so I can get Universe and Wrath on this item? That's planning for you. Still, I forgot how meaty all these traits on a single item were, jeez. We just have barely enough for all three. By the way, both of those Hay are north of 700 Quality.



Well, not the best Effects, but pretty close... The Lightning bar can go up to +10 for those stats, whereas the Earth can go to +5. Clearly, we aren't missing a whole lot. And I just like big numbers for Quality, you know? I had to use a Freezing Earth here to get these effects.



We really want the Lightning and Ice elements filled up here, but those are pretty formidable.



So I had to make this as part of it. So the Linen we made with the Living Rope is obviously one part, this is another. As simple as that.



...And this Olgenrium... Well, you have to do what it takes.



Well...307 is alright. I GUESS.



Knightly Vow L increases HP by 50 and reduces all types of damage by 12%. Temple Guardian L is the real prize here, giving the wearer a single layer of Physical resistance (that can stack with Rorona's ability) and increased Faint resistance of 80. This thing transforms the wearer into an absolute tank.



A very fashionable king, clearly.



And now the first curry on the road to the Curry Ending. All the currys but one have to be made greater than 500 Quality, except for the Lululu Curry, which has to be north of 750 Quality. The best ways to get good quality ingredients in curry are Fish Sauce and Mysterious Spice, and one of the things you'll really want on that journey is Ultimate Quality.



And that's two.



The Lululu Curry requires an Elixir. That's Elixir, not (Elixir). Big difference there. Since the Lululu Curry is special, I decided to choose this opportunity to make that 750 Quality Lululu.



It would also serve you well, speaking from experience, that you Awaken (Lumber) on this thing. Take it from an Atelier Lulua vet. Of course, drop this off at Dragon's. We'll have need of a high quality Elixir in the future, I assure you.



Dammit... Well, just gotta keep moving forward.



So close the big 999... This was Awakened as a (Mushroom) because lots of currys need (Mushroom) and we need higher Quality ingredients. As simple as that.



As a change of pace, here's an old friend: the Tera Bomb. This thing hasn't shown up since Rorona, and in the original Rorona, you had to have a Narrow Range trait on it to prevent it from nuking your party, too. Here, it's not that mean. It's just the second-tier of Fire bomb, but it's good for a riddle. Well, to be specific, you need that Effect, World-Engulfing Fire, to fulfill one part of the riddle. The other half is using it enough.

I know it's the good ol' Tera Bomb, but I've made myself clear that the Omega Craft is the all-purpose best attack item in the game. That third effect increases the power of the item but also has an MP drain effect, and the Omega neither reduces HP nor MP. So yeah, the Omega Craft is kind of overpowered compared to nearly every other powerful attack item in this game. Once we use this enough, we'll be benching it.



There's an art to it, Aurel.



As another change of pace, let's talk riddles. We're very close to 100% completion of Alchemyriddle, but just for completion, let's talk this batch. Strength of the Spirits is for defeating a Blood Elemental / gathering high-quality Elemental Fragments, both of which can be done at Fire's Domain. Karma in Chains, Bound to Karma is make a high-quality Polish Powder and Rota Fortunae, Mighty Magic Sword of Ice is for using Magic Swords enough and making a good Quality Ice Bomb, and finally, Puni Hill is beat up the Piercing Unicorn and Ultra Puni, both at Slumbering Holy Tree.



Hmmm, not too hard. Cannon Designed is for making a Demon Cannon with the highest-quality Magic damage Effect and making a Four Spirits Bottle, which we just unlocked the recipe for. Secrets of Alchemy is for defeating the highest-tier Puni, which we can find at the eponymous Puni Hill, and using items enough. Obviously you couldn't have banked the former before now. And the last, Dragon Medicine, is for finding a Mandrake Root and making high Quality Medicine Base. Easy.



Hey, gotta love these kind of Boost Items for items we'll never use.



Oh yeah, I forgot to mention these kinds of quests upon reaching Chapter 10 from fully leveled job boards. Upon accepting a quest of this type, a powerful boss enemy will spawn in a specific location. There are four: one Lisa can give you, two for Keina, and Lionela rounds out the last. The locations, respectively, are Fire's Domain, Mt. Velus, Modis Ruins, and Stalhang Castle. In addition to being boss challenges, these guys drop materials that have powerful traits on them, such as compound traits or Special traits, as I'll call them. In addition to what the boss directly drops, when you go back to the job board you won't get money, but you will get an item with a special trait on them. There are only so many variations of the item but the good thing is you can choose what powerful trait you get by saving, finishing the request, then loading if you don't like what you get.

For example, the Ghost Orb you can get from the Modis Ruins quest can come with Remove Attributes, which is a +25% boost to an attack item's power and removes its damage-dealing attribute such that the game considers it non-elemental. That means that if an item normally has a specific kind of elemental damage, such as Fire for the Tera Bomb, with Remove Attribute, for all intents and purposes, it's now non-elemental and none of the enemy's resistances will affect how much damage it does. You also can't exploit vulnerabilities, but this is usually a small price to pay considering how few late-game bosses have elemental weaknesses to exploit. It's not an *essential* trait but it's definitely a good stocking stuffer.

For our purposes now, we don't need to hunt any of these enemies, because we already have plenty of copies of each Special Trait, which is mostly what you'll use these quests for. And, a challenge, of course.



I took on a couple hunting requests for monsters in Fellsgalaxen, and since I needed to get back to the penultimate room, I had to pass by these monitors. This is the second half of the next plot riddle, so we could continue the plot. Obviously, we will not. Not yet, anyway.

By the time I was done, Aurel was at 70% friendship level, and it's very important that he get to this milestone before too long. Ultimate Builds depend on it. Destined battle


Excuse us.
Oh, Aurel! Mr. Sterk! What's the matter?
You see, Aurel and I are going to have a duel.
Huh? A duel?! Wh-Whatever for?!
You know why. We're battling for the title of Knight Supreme.
Naturally, our fight is only going to be a mock battle. We won't be trying to kill each other or anything, don't worry.
Uh... OK... I suppose that's somewhat of a relief...
Ah. There's one more thing... We want you to be our witness, Lulua.
W-witness...? Are you sure you want me to do it?
Don't worry. You won't have to do anything special. Heh. In fact, you only have to do one thing. Simply declare me the winner when it's all over.
I...see...
...That's all there is to it. All right, then. We'll be counting on you.

*the two leave*



Them's the breaks. The site of their duel is the Merulia Gate, that area with a castle wall north of Arland that the Puni horde was previously blockading. Pretty scenic spot. Ficus also had something on this mind, also at 70%, I believe. An old story


Oh, hi, Ficus. Is everything OK?
I came to ask you a favor today. ...This.
What is this...?
It's an item required to bring out my full potential. Well... Just think of it as a bit of my magic.
Full potential? *sigh* What's with this all of a sudden?
I want to destroy that Demon Crystal.
Wait... The Demon Crystal we talked about before...?
Yes. Yes. I told you it was real, didn't I? This Demon Crystal...is the very core of a monster called the Rage Beast. A very powerful, evil monster. The more it grows, the stronger it gets. If it is angered just once, it will destroy the world. That's how powerful it is.
D-Destroy the world...
Well... There was already one brave adventurer who managed to defeat the Rage Beast. That's where this Demon Crystal came from. If left alone, it will be resurrected. I want to destroy it before that happens. Smash it into dust, so that the monster can never come back. And to do that, Lulua. I need that item. What do you think? Can you do this favor for me?

That would be none other than good ol' Totori. Rage Beast was the master of Liechten Soehnle, the tower where she also fought Evil Face. It was quite a monster jamboree but canonically, Totori was victorious yet again.

Yes, of course! You seem pretty serious about this, after all! You do favors for me all the time, too. I can help you out with one little magic show!
Hahaha! That'll be a big help! I'm counting on you, Lulua!

And finally, thanks to all the Lisa requests I've completed. We have one final scene with her and her beloved sister. How it should be


Hey, Sis! Can I add a soup to that order?
Yes, of course!
Ohh, it's busy here as usual.
Oh, Lulua! Hehe!
Ohh, hey, Refle! You're eating a bit more than usual, huh?
Yes. I want to grow up to be like my sister, so... I'm practicing eating a lot.
Ahaha, I see. Guess you'll end up a competitive eater like your sister!
Ehehe, yeah!
Sorry for the wait, Refle! Here's your soup! Hehe...
Woow, is that... An extra, extra large soup?!
Hehehe, exactly! It's usually served to the staff here! But ever since I had that medicine, I've started eating way more than I used to! That's why I had to increase the portions. Ah well, that's just the way it is!
Yup, just the way it is! Ahaha!
Hm... I think I might have made a horrible mistake... But...



Can't argue with that, can you?

But they really do look happy... So I guess it's fine. Hey, Lisa! Can I get some curry?
Sure thing! One curry coming up!
Ohh, make that an extra, extra large! Hehehe, you know i won't lose in a curry eating contest...!
Ohh, well then...! I certainly won't lose either! Hehehe!
Yaay! An eating contest! Good luck, Lulua...!
Let's do this!
...Hehe. Sitting down at the table with everyone is definitely the best!
Yeah...!

Maybe Fellsgalxen collapsing isn't the biggest danger facing Arklys right now... Remember when I said there was a really important recipe to get in Arls, via an event with Meruru? Let's go get that. Alchemist alliance


Ohh, that makes sense! I think I get it now! Ms. Meruru, you're incredible...! And you've gotten better at teaching, too...!
Ahaha, really? I had a bit of a think about my teaching style. I'm glad it seems to have worked! Oh, that reminds me.
Yes?
What would you say, if we came up with a recipe together? If teacher and pupil put their heads together, the results are bound to be good. What do you think?
I totally agree! It sounds interesting, and I bet it'd be educational too.
Cool. Then let's do it right away! What kind of recipe can we come up with, I wonder.


...
...
Um, Ms. Meruru. This is...
Yeah. I have the feeling we came up with something amazing.
Yeah, I was thinking the same thing! Um, why don't I try actually making it?
I do want to see what it looks like finished. Can you do it?
Yes! Ooh, Lulua and Meruru's collaboration! I'll get the synthesis done right away!

The recipe we just got is the Fool's Stone, which looks like a big lump of coal if you ask me. Doesn't sound very awesome, but it actually is. Going to be very important for Ultimate Accessories and an Ultimate Omega Craft.



Notice that Awaken (Mystery) thing, and it fits into four item slots. I'm guessing lore-wise this is supposed to be some kind of Philosopher's Stone variant, because both the Stone and Philosopher's Pie also naturally fit into four item categories, and half of this recipe calls for junk items. Regardless, we'll certainly have need of this.



We finally have our first 999 Quality item, though it will certainly not be the last.



Even watching the footage back, I'm not *entirely* sure why I made that Tanning Fluid just now, but nevertheless, it's time to start making the preliminary items for an Ultimate Omega Craft. First, I'd like to direct your attention to Dragon God's Roar. The description is there, but it's vague in that slightly-usual Atelier way. Well, I can't exactly swear to that "further increases" bit, but there have certainly been traits in the past where the power of an item increases in direct proportion to the cost of the traits applied to it. So, basically, the more expensive the traits on the item, the more powerful the item is. A simple concept, and one that will serve us well.

The traits I'm planning to have on the Ultimate Omega Craft collectively cost 123 TP out of a maximum of 150, which we couldn't reach with the Dragon God's Roar, anyway. So really 123/140. Roar should be a pretty dang big increase in firepower. Make sure this Supplement is Awakened as (Ore), because it's going right into a normal Craft, like we did before with the Mortal Blow Craft.



Another of the traits I want on my Ultimate Omega is Sure Shot, so we'll need Critical Finish / Half Critical as a part of that. So, this normal Craft will have Dragon God's Roar and Critical Finish on it. Sound good?



I shouldn't have to tell you "Ultimate" means 999 Quality across the board. Otherwise, if it's like 987 or 990, it's gonna drive you nuts. Trust me.



It's called a bit. Jeez.



After a *lot* of dithering over how I wanted to proceed, I made this. Essentially, our first three ingredients for the Ultimate Omega are going to be the 999 Craft we just made, 2x Mysterious Spice with +2 Fire (which is why this is a (Mushroom) item), a Sunlite, and then (Plant) is where it gets a bit more complicated, but I'm sure we can figure something out. Half Critical is, of course, there so we can combine into Sure Shot on the final product.

But hmm...it's hard to end an update that's mostly talking about making ultimate items, isn't it? I think where I stopped recording this particular time is as natural an ending point as any. We've certainly got a lot of work to go.