Breath of Fire Part #13 - Chapter Thirteen: Black and White

Part 13: Chapter Thirteen: Black and White

Last time our heroes had just been arrested for a crime they didn’t commit and placed in jail in Auria.

The water trough in the top left can be looted for PrisnCL, which contrary to what you might think is actually really good armor for Nina.

: Ryu, Nina – look at the bed. It seems we are not alone in this cell.

: Uh…excuse us…

: Yaaawn! Who are you?

: I’m Ryu, and this is Nina and Bo.

: Oh yeah?

: As soon as we entered the city the guards swooped down and arrested us. They then threw us in here without even explaining why apart from some vague comment about stealing something.

: C’mon, you can be honest with me. How much did you steal? ‘However much it was, I bet I could do better.

: We didn’t steal anything. We’re innocent.

: Sure you are, sure you are.

: Ryu, this man is clearly a thief. There is no reason to converse with his ilk. Let us move aside and think of a way to escape from this place.

: Hey hey hey, don’t be that way, lady. Man, all this talk is giving me a headache. Tell you what. I’m feeling charitable right now, so I’ll help you guys out. Well?

: Okay, I’ll let you out!

: Wait a moment. If you can open the door, why are you still here?

: Get real, lady. I could bust out anytime I wanted. I’m just catching a few z’s before heading out. Speaking of catching some z’s…

:…What an odd fellow.

: In any case, the door is open now. Let’s get moving before the guards come back and realise something is up.

Welcome to Auria. What is there to say about Auria? Well the whole place literally sparkles, though it might be difficult to see in the screenshots. Also there are guards scattered around and if they see you you’ll be thrown back in jail. That doesn’t matter too much because the other prisoner will happily break you out again.

It’s time to do something we haven’t done in a while – visit the item shop!

Which is now run by fish people.

Time to upgrade everyone’s equipment. The Rapier, LongBW and BroadSD are all better than our current gear, as is the various armors on offer.

Upstairs from the item shop is a bar.

The dude sitting at the table will give you 5000 GP if you bring him some Vitamins and cure his hiccoughs. Vitamins are sold at the item shop downstairs, but he’s apparently too lazy to go buy them himself.

It works out quite well for the player since Vitamins cost only 650 GP. Also notice the new items – the Rod1 and the Worms are part of a fishing minigame, whereas the Pouch and G.Bar will be of use later in the game. The Mrbl1 item is a consumable battle item that can be used to ensure one critical hit per use.

: Let’s head to the port. We should leave before yet more misfortune befalls us.

: Excuse me, sir, but is this the only ship in port?

: That’s right.

: Would it be possible to arrange passage to Scande?

: I’m afraid not. The ship’s owner has mandated that she remain in port for the foreseeable future.

: I see. And who is the owner of this ship?

: He lives in the big mansion in the northwestern part of town.

: I wonder if we can convince this Ross fellow to allow us to use his ship.

: We won’t lose anything by trying, that’s for sure.

:…

:…Okay, that’s enough staring.

: Yes? Can I help you?

: Greetings, Mr. Ross. My companions and I would like to buy passage to Scande on your ship, if at all possible.

: I am afraid that is impossible, young man. Circumstances prevent me from leaving Auria, and even if they didn’t I have no idea who you are. Now if you’ll excuse me, I really must…hmm…wait a minute…

: Is something the matter?

: Now that I look at you, you look like a capable man. Perhaps…yes, perhaps we can help one another. Maybe we can strike a deal of some kind.

: Of course. What is it that you need help with?

: Please save her.

: Can you not open the safe yourself?

: No, or I would have done so already. She took the key with her, not knowing that the doors cannot be unlocked from the inside.

: If that’s the case, how are we supposed to get in?

: To the east of here lies the city of Bleak. It is a den of thieves, vagabonds and other assorted scum. Recently rumors have begun circulating about a master thief who lives there, one who can pick any lock no matter how complex. I suggest you begin your enquiries there.

: And we only just got here, too.

: I suggest you guard your finances carefully once you get there. I recommend buying a pouch from one of our shops – it’ll protect your gold if nothing else.

The cave to the east is our next destination.

After talking to them these guys move back and let you pass.

This is the L & D Cave. It’s full of locked doors. It also has some new enemies for the party to smash.

Like the Bullys shown above. These guys need to be killed ASAP because they can cast Fry, which deals 80+ damage to a party member. Luckily they’re quite slow and are guaranteed to attack only after all three of your team have had a crack at them.

Then there are the Flies. Flies are like the Fleas from the start of the game – weak, but fast and usually appear in large groups.

This cave only has two levels so we quickly reach the end of it.

We emerge onto the world map. Notice the tower to the right? We could go in there, but we’d be hit by a locked door almost instantly. More importantly, there’s a new enemy we can encounter here.

Meet the G.Slime. G.Slimes are awesome for one reason – they drop a metric ton of experience points. Specifically, 1000+ each. And they often come in pairs. This is an amazing place for grinding.

: I assume that city in the distance is Bleak.

: Yes, that is correct. Mr. Ross was not wrong – Bleak is a city of thieves. Shrouded in eternal night as a result of the DkKey, Bleak is the antithesis of Auria. Be on your guard once we cross the threshold.

Music: 26 – Town of Thieves

I’m sure those of you who’ve played this game before know what special thing you can see in this town. I’m just suspending the narrative temporarily so we can take a look at it. Let’s get it over with, shall we?