Part 4: Chapter Four: The Mercenaries
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: Say…What do you think is on the other side of these mountains?
: No idea. Hopefully we’ll find the pet before something bad happens to it – that is, if it’s even there to begin with.001.png)
Taking the southeastern route here leads to a chest.
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It contains a piece of head equipment, which I slap on Ryu to increase his defense. Backtracking to the southern exit leads into another part of the mountain.
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The chest on the left contains a Firecracker, a one-shot battle item that deals fire damage to a single enemy. This is an extremely useful item that will make a future boss battle much easier, so I’ll be holding onto it for some time.
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: Looks like a dead end. Dammit, this sucks!: It’s not a dead end, Bosch. We can drop down through the hole.: Y-you think it’s shallow enough?: Yeah. See? You can see the ground below. It’s not too far.005.png)
: Hm, that wasn’t so bad.: Head’s up, there’s someone else here with us.006.png)
: Hunter and tracker, at your service. Although…007.png)
: I see. Listen, have you seen anything unusual in the area recently? We’re looking for a missing pet and our clues led us here.: Well…I did see smoke rising from the west a few hours ago.: Thank you. C’mon, Bosch, let’s go.008.png)
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Music: 06 – We’re Rangers
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: Whew! We’re out of those mountains at last!011.png)
: Hm. I can see some ruins over there. Let’s investigate.Music: My Home Sweet Home
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: What the…? That came from in there!: Sounded like an old man. Let’s hurry!013.png)
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: Oh, crap! Come on, Ryu, he’s gonna get eaten! 015.png)
Music: Hide and Seek
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And so Ryu and Bosch engage the Cockroaches in combat. They aren’t too tough and all of them go down in one hit, but they’re fast and their attacks quickly add up, so it’s best to make sure you enter the fight fully healed.
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: Aaaaah! Stay back! Don’t come any closer!: Chill out, old man. We’re not going to hurt you.:…! Bosch, behind us!018.png)
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Music: 10 – I’ll Do It
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This is the real boss fight. The Giant Cockroach is slow but his attacks deal upwards of 12 damage to a single character. In this case you have to either heal up or use Protect to lessen the damage before it attacks. Luckily the Giant Cockroach is still rather weak – certainly, he’s far easier than the Harpy Sisters were since he only attacks once per turn and his defenses are paper thin. He falls quickly.
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: Never in all my years figured them bugs’d be partial to the other white meat! ‘Specially the tough, old kind!021.png)
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: Oh, and you’ll want some kinda reward for savin’ me, right? Well, I ain’t got no money on me…024.png)
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: Betcha you two’re just achin’ fer some bacon right about now!: Hmm…Bacon does sound good…and it’s free food…026.png)
: You’re gonna make the best boiled pork chops this weary land has ever seen, ya hear?: Hey…Bosch…that collar…027.png)
: I hate to break it to you, but I think that collar means your pork chops sorta belong to somebody.: Ya think this pig is somebody’s pet? Fiddle-faddle! This ain’t a kitty or a puppy or a bunny rabbit here! Coulda used one for a side dish, but them’s the breaks! : A puppy?!028.png)
: Gimme that collar before I put some teeth marks in you!029.png)
:…S…U…Z…I…E…Suzie.: Oh god.030.png)
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: Phew! That was too close! Our reward almost became lunch!: Aw, ya can’t do this to me! Sure I can’t have a leg? Just one? A three-legged pig would make the dandiest conversation piece!: How about ‘no’?032.png)
: Well, now there’s a job well done.033.png)
: Your unrealistic expectations are going to result in five, maybe six slaps across the face. You’d better practice your cowering.: Pshaw!034.png)
: See you later, old man. Maybe you can cook up some of those roaches or something.035.png)
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We’re back at Mt. Futabi, but the boulder we knocked down earlier has created a shortcut that lets us bypass the caves.
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: *Yawn* It got late all of a sudden.: Try not to fall asleep until we return Suzie.041.png)
: Here ya go!042.png)
: Suzie!043.png)
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: And she smells like…*sniff*…oregano? Did you give her a bath?:…Something like that, yeah.045.png)
: Anyway, thank you for bringing her home! I was afraid I’d have to leave her behind! 046.png)
:…Wait. Did you just say ‘leave’? To where? And why?047.png)
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: See you all again!049.png)
: This…is the worst day of my life. The girl comes in, she asks for help, I come to the rescue, and then she runs off. Somebody up there hates me…: Give it up, Bosch. She’s a highborn lady. Folks like you and me don’t have a chance.050.png)
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: And I’ll be taking that, thank you very much. Now we can finally pay the rent and get the landlady off our backs.: *Sigh* Oh what’s the use? I mean, a cute winged chick and a pug dog like me? I’m just dreamin’. Anyways, we got the job done, right, partner?: Yeah, we sure did. C’mon, let’s go home and rest up.052.png)
: I hear ya, buddy.
At this point the Dragon Tear appears and begins flashing rapidly through every colour. This signifies the deepest bond possible, indicating that the person is one of your soulmates.053.png)
: Yeah, let’s get some shuteye. Tomorrow we can pay the landlady, get some better gear and then do some tougher jobs. Get some more pay.: Sounds good.054.png)
:…Good night, Bosch. See you in the morning.055.png)