Part 14: No one ever looked so Fine
~Update 8: No one ever looked so Fine~Here we go. New chapter, new Labyrinth to explore, new Star Children to vote on, new team member, and a bunch of new characters.
Torri will finally be joining us in this chapter, after having been introduced near the start of the previous chapter and then hanging out with the group for the last part of it.
With Torri's spot as 'team member, but not quite yet' now vacant, our final party member will be taking up that mantle for this chapter. Time to get an advanced look at the Seventh Star.
-School Grounds-
Looks like another crowd.
Do you think it's Enzea again?Well, they're blonde, but unless Enzea grew a pair of breasts recently then I don't think that's him.[Female Disciple]: Ha!
I'm sorry I cannot live up to your wishes. Please forgive me for my circumstances.
Dude... Isn't that the best fighter in the girls' Fencing Club? Who's that epic beauty who just beat her?
Feene... Oh! I've heard a lot about her! People are saying she's really impressive.
That's correct. Excuse me, but... are you Wake?In the flesh. Who wants to know?
Thank goodness, I can finally greet the God's Gift.
Normally, I command the defensive line along with Alec.Triche is pretty cool. He's a lot more chill than Alec is, and it's good to know that Alec isn't handling that entire job by himself.
Triche is an S-Rank Disciple by the way. That makes it kind of weird that Wake hasn't met him up until now. The S-Rank dorm is stated to be separate from the Elite dorms (Chlotz doesn't stay in the same dorm as Wake). We aren't told about any other Male S-Ranks currently staying in Fort City, which means the S-Ranked Men's Dorm consists of Wake, Alec, and Triche at the moment.
Maybe it's a shift thing. Like, Triche pulls night shift a lot so he's always out when Wake is at the dorm. That kind of thing.
Nice to meet you! I'm Chlotz!
Good to meet you. I'm glad to know that there's another S Rank to talk to besides Mr. Angrypants.I have a long way to go before I can be compared to Alec, though.Hey, Feene's coming towards us.
Oh, man, she's even better up close! How is that body so fine!?
Chlotz, you just witnessed her dominate the star of the fencing club like it was nothing. Is that really the kind of girl you want overhearing your perving?Haha... Looks like Chlotz is a very straightforward person.Yeah, that sure is one way to phrase it.
Sure am. Nice to meet you.[Female Disciple A]: Eeeeeee! Lady Feene is speaking to God's Gift!
As I thought! My name is Feene. I just returned from the battle lines on the continent recently.Feene (Fee-nay) is the other character that got a name change, along with Chlotz. What is her name in the Japanese version? Fine. Not 'fine' as in I'm saying everything is okay, her name is 'Fine' (Fee-nay). So that's goofy, but what is the major problem with that? Well, her last name is 'Glass'. So her Japanese name ends up as 'Fine Glass'. Yeah, I am going to side with the localization team this time. This change was necessary.
Feene at least seems to be an actual word. It's a definite plural of 'Fe', which in Bokmål Norwegian is 'Fairy', from the French word 'fée' meaning the same. Given her blonde hair and blue eyes, the stereotypical Norwegian or Scandinavian girl is probably what they were going for. Or they just thought 'Feene' was a good pronunciation substitute for 'Fine'. Anyone who is more knowledgeable in Japanese than I am is welcome to explain whether or not 'Fine' is nonsense or not.
Also, according to UrbanDictionary, feene is slang for a person who is highly addicted to a substance and desperate to get high. Lovely.
Yeah, I heard. I'm glad you're getting some time to rest.
I see... Um... I...
....Uhh... You doing okay? Something wrong?
I cannot thank you enough for sterilizing the Dusk Circle in my hometown!FINALLY. Holy shit, it's about time someone expressed some genuine gratitude to Wake. At least someone in this damn Academy appreciates him risking his life daily to save their sorry asses.
I want to point this choice out. No matter what you choose to answer with, Wake will always add "My friends helped me." Official Wake will not permit you to be a glory hog and act like he did all the work.
No problem. I had some help from a few friends, and by that I mean the Star Children blazed a trail of destruction through the entire place.Friends... Yes, indeed. We are invincible as long as we have our friends.If there is anything I can do starting now, please feel free to say it. I wish to be your strength!
Pretty intense, aren't you? Still, it's nice to finally get a little respect. I appreciate the offer.Well then, please excuse me.
I've made up my mind. I'm going to call her "Miss Beautiful" from now on!She was grateful and respectful towards me, which is more than I can say about 95% of the people in this stupid place. You will call the lady whatever she wishes to be called.Calm down, man. I'm just kidding around. Geez.That's our first look at Feene, who is the final party member. Like Torri, however, Feene will be sitting out for a chapter for contrived reasons. Can't go introducing two heroines in the same chapter and sharing the spotlight.
-Downtown-
I've been thinking about that a little. I don't get a lot of time, but maybe if I join the fencing club then I can make it work as sort of a training thing.It's not like the Dusk Circles are doing much for my swordsmanship, and Renda is no good for my practical training due to the intensity limitations.The Fencing Club, huh? I think Triche is their leader.Even better. He might not think he's on Alec's level, but he's still an S-Rank. He's got to be a good sparring partner.[Child]: Aaaaah!
What the hell was that?[Civilian]: A-A monster! A monster's appeared!
Wake, over there!
[Child]: Noooo! Mommy, help me!
[Child's Mother]: Someone, help! Please, save my child!
Shit, where did that thing come from!? How did it make it all the way Downtown!?
Kshaaaaa!(We're not going to make it!)Check out the video: Alec saves the day (English)
Now Alec gets a turn to look like a badass. Notice that he's just using a normal sword, same as Wake did in the forest.
Still does the job though. I can only assume that it's much much harder for a non-Branded human to do. Not impossible, mind you. We were told that humans were able to deal with monsters back when they were smaller in number, and that was before this whole Brand/Disciple business.
Alec gives the 'I'm so dashing' hair flip.
[Child]: Waaaaah! I was so scared!
You're safe now. Are you hurt at all?[Child]: No... I'm okay.
[Child's Mother]: Thank you so much for saving my child!
It was a good thing we happened to be patrolling the city, isn't it, Alec?Well look at that, Fort City already has security patrols for this kind of rare occurrence, because of course it fucking does. It's almost like the city defenses are being managed by two S-Rank Elite Disciples that have the backing of a global defense corporation. You know, people who know what they're doing.
I'm talking to you, Sasami. You smug prick. Peacekeeping Patrol, honestly now.
Spoiler Alert for Narika's Route: The game is going to take this one monster attack and run with it in order to try and make Sasami's plan seem not stupid. Screw you, game. I refuse to believe that Fort City has such crappy security, and haven't plugged all the holes, in 20 years.
I'm sorry... I saw that kid in danger, and I couldn't restrain myself...
Besides, you're not an Elite. Don't be so reckless.Okay...Hey, Alec!
God's Gift.Ah, Chlotz.
Oh... Luce. You're here, too.So this is the mysterious Luce we've heard
Ah, so this is Luce.
N-No, it's nothing! Don't worry about it.Spoke too soon. Seems Alec is standing in the way somehow.
Alec has told me about you, Wake. To think you've fought in the Dusk Circles... You Elites truly are amazing.
Alec, can I borrow you for a moment?Yes?Look at this... The monster was wearing it.What about it?
Take a closer look. Can't you tell what it is?
That's probably not good.
It's most likely from a member of the Standard class.Hold on, are you saying that monster ate a Disciple?That's impossible. Monsters are Dusk Energy incarnate.
Then, what happened?Also, I found this near the monster. It's a student ID.
This...!?
Luce? You look deathly pale... Are you okay?This ID... It belongs to my classmate....You're joking, right?
Oh, god damn it...
Impossible... Are you saying a Disciple turned into a monster?That's probably also not a good thing. We get a quick transition here to see the student body being briefed on this.
-Gymnasium-
Our investigation has concluded that it was an Academy Disciple who had gone missing. How a Disciple was turned into such a creature is currently being researched...*sob*.....-Hallway-
Um, hey, Alec......What is it?Listen, about what went down yesterday...
[Standard Disciple B]: But he was a monster. All you can do with them is kill them...
[Standard Disciple A]: I don't care, I could never kill someone I knew.
[Standard Disciple B]: Well, I mean, it's still murder. Don't get me wrong. The Nemesis Hunters just have a different way of thinking about this stuff, is all.
Once again, random students are antagonizing the special forces group in their school that would be their only means of survival should that Dusk Circle outside activate. The Star Wall is only any good against stragglers, I don't think AngelMarker or anyone else is under any delusions that it would hold against the oldest and most powerful Dusk Circle on the planet. Not to mention this city is on an island. Your only hope of living in the event of a worst case scenario is that God's Gift/7 S-Ranked Girls/a dozen or so Star Children/Alec/Triche can manage to hold the line long enough for an evacuation to be carried out by air or sea.
The people here are so freaking stupid.
What's with those guys? They obviously know we can hear them. Hey, you! You better stop or...Don't.But...
[Standard Disciple B]: Yeah, you're right.
.....
I find myself wondering more and more each day if saving anyone in this school is really worth it.Alec.... You doing okay?Yeah... I'm fine.Yeah, you say that. In any case, you couldn't have known at the time. Don't let it get to you.
*Alec leaves*
Wow, he's... He's really indifferent about all this, isn't he?....-School Grounds-
Alright, next two!
[Male Disciple A]: This is gonna be a match to remember!
........Come on, you two. En garde! Begin!Come at me, God's Gift...Have it your way.Haaa!*A clash happens and Wake gets struck down, although not exactly fairly*
If I had the power of a God's Gift, I'd be better than that.Enough! I mean, seriously! Stop! Alec, that was against the rules. I told you specifically: no striking!...I'm sorry.
See me in the faculty office when this is over. Understood?Yes...
It's rare to see Alec break the rules...
'Better' in this case meaning 'massive cheater'. Go drop dead with that garbage LightBlueHair. How do we not even have names for you two? Seriously, these guys have been around for a while now, they have full unique character sprite sheets with multiple expressions that I had to paste together, and I don't think we ever learn what their names are over the course of this entire game.
Wake, you alright?As alright as I can be considering he nailed me full force with a training sword.What's with that guy? Was he taking it out on you?Kind of feels that way, doesn't it?-Hallway-
Wake, sir. How is your injury?You saw that, huh? Still hurts a bit, although the ego injury is worse.I was watching you fence from the campus.Kind of wish you hadn't, to be honest. I'll pay him back, don't worry. I think it's about time Alec was brought down from his perch.As I've mentioned before, I wish to repay you for what you've done for me.
You know what? I'd like that, actually. I've been looking for someone who was good enough to spar with, and since Alec is being a jerk at the moment, training with you would be a big help. Thanks.There's no need to thank me. It's my turn now to be of use to you. I usually remain at school until it's late. Please feel free to call on me at any time.So Wake has a trainer now, and he's gonna Rocky the shit out of Alec. Something crawled further up Alec's ass than usual, so the friendly approach isn't going to cut it anymore. Wake's going to have to kick that guy's ass to put him in his place.
-School Rooftop-
....Luce.Oh, Chlotz.
Considering what happened just yesterday, I thought you might be here.Mm......Are you okay? I mean, I know it must've been a shock for you... since you knew that person.Thanks, but I'm all right. That reminds me, we first met on this rooftop, too.
That's why my sister sent me to you. She thought you might be cheered up if her stupid brother had a chat with you.Yeah! You did cheer me up.Oh... But I wasn't implying that you're stupid! You're amazing, Chlotz. I mean, you're an Elite.It would be nice if you could become an Elite, too.
Huh?Oh... Never mind.I'm more worried about Alec. People have been saying things about him...I'm sure he'll be fine. I mean, he's always been Mr. Indifferent, after all.He's a lot more sensitive than he looks. A lot of people don't see that.
I guess so...Way to go Chlotz. You acted like a decent human being for once. Now if only you could keep that up all the time.
With all of that out of the way, we're finally set free into Chapter 3. A bunch of new stuff is on the table, got some new quests and items and all that jazz. The stuff for the Star Children isn't particularly noteworthy. Some minor attack upgrades, but coming with downsides like reduced speed.
If you spend any decent amount of time exploring dungeons, then you should have almost everything you need to kit out your teams with the best stuff.
That being said, Accessories are a different story. There are a couple of new ones here that could be pretty useful.
Star God Necklace: Everyone has this equipped by default, including newly born Star Children. It's actually pretty good, and it might be a while before you start swapping them out. It increases SPD/TEC/LUC by a little bit.
Might Bangle: ATK +50
Knight's Belt: DEF +50
Magic Earring: MAT +50
Charm: MDF +50
Rapid Ring: SPD +50
Hunting Gloves: TEC +50
Lucky Charm: LUC +50
Cool Band: Panic Down Resistance+
Curseproof Scarf: Seal Down Resistance+
Active Glove: Paralysis Down Resistance+
A few things to note here. There is a Lab Quest available called 'Witch Project A' that rewards you with Reflector when completed. All you need is a piece of armor called 'Hard Leather', which you have likely obtained during your trip through the dungeon. I believe you pick it up from the Purple Trap Chests, but I'm not sure if the quest has to be active, since Hard Leather is a regular armor piece.
If you did miss it, then collect the quest now and just look through the Labyrinths for the yellow exclamation marks and find the location of the quest. Then just search that dungeon for the trap chests.
This is worth it, as Reflector is an armor upgrade for the heroines. You have to get heroine upgrades through lab quests, so this is your only chance to give them a bump. It's a decent increase with no drawbacks, so you may as well take advantage.
Another quest that you should pick up and turn in is the one for killing Beelzebub. You can safely ignore these quests until after the Dusk Circle boss is dead. They stay on the board even after you kill them and can be turned in after the fact, so accepting it before you beat them just eats up one of your quest slots.
Turning this one in is important, because it gives you Upgrade Parts S, which allows you to upgrade the heroines weapons. The upgraded Dusk Breakers are already in your inventory when you turn in the quest, no need to buy them.
The S version of the Dusk Breakers gives a +100 to ATK, MAT, and most importantly, SPD. It also boosts Elemental effectiveness. No reason why you shouldn't equip them all.
I give a few Star Children their independence to boost the City Level a little bit, although I don't open any new features or anything special. I keep the Magician, though. I need him at a certain level for a new class, and he's not quite there yet.
I've filled in the spaces with some random SC's for now, since you need to have a full team of three in order to use the slot. I may change the Lancer and Blacksmith out depending on how the thread votes.
Boosting the City Level did snag a few new items in the shop though.
Detox Stone/Maiden's Salp/Paraneedle/Chatter Herb: Standard status restore items to heal Poison/Panic/Paralysis/Seal, in that order.
Savage Drum: Increases ATK by +500 for 5 turns. This is pretty good, if you ever find yourself wanting to use buffs. I usually don't, personally.
Toning Tonic: Increases DEF by +500 for 5 turns.
Before we move on and wrap up the intro to Chapter 3, there is a side event with Mark that I think is worth fitting in here. I can't be sure if I'll have room for it during the Torri bonding update, so I want to get it in now.
-Laboratory-
Hello there. Have you heard?Please stop doing that, Mark. I never have any idea what you are talking about. Just go "Hey, want to hear something cool?"Mmm, no. I think I like my way better.Fine, just tell me what it is.The production rate of Matryoshkas has been increasing lately.
As it turns out, that light has been becoming more intense.
Clearly, the Star God is trying to provide us with every possible advantage. On top of that, you have a 100% Star Conception Rate with S Ranked females. I must admit, the conditions are looking really good for our next experiment.Want to run that by me again? Experiment?
Oh, don't worry about it. It's our problem.You focus on making healthy Star Children.I've got my eye on you guys...That's where the Matryoshkas come from. They are apparently like fruit or veggies or something. Adorable. Speaking of Matryoshkas, I've picked up a bunch of new ones during my little jaunts through the dungeons. I'll go over them once the new Team A(wful) has been voted in.
Fair enough. So...
Yeah, kind of looks that way. He was being mobbed by school girls earlier.Well, I'm sure that the girls there would just throw themselves at him.
You don't seem super thrilled about that. I'm going to regret asking, but what is the deal with those two, anyway? I know he hired her.That's true. She originally worked for a government research facility.And then Enzea pulled her out of there. Obviously her reputation precedes her and he wouldn't take "no" for an answer. Chief Ruby and I both started here five years ago. She's had that crush on Enzea for as long as I can remember.
He even intimidates me a little, even though I'm old enough to know better.Now there's a surprise. Ruby likes a man that takes charge? Could have fooled me by the way she likes to bark orders.Oh, I'm sorry. I'm wasting your time with all this babble.I can at least agree with you there, Mark. Let's move the story forward. We need Torri officially on Team God's Gift before this update can end. We'll deal with everyone else's random babbling later.
-Dojo-
Hey Triche.Ah, Wake. What brings you here?I'm looking to join the Fencing Club. I need more practical training. Redux isn't cutting it.
By the way, Triche is Captain of the Fencing Team. I would imagine he is on Feene's level, if not above her, but we don't get a good indication of just how combat adept he is. "I have a long way to go" when it comes to Alec could mean any number of things after all, not just fighting skill.
*Anyway, Fencing stuff happens. Wake is less than impressed*
Well done, Wake.Our club's training is said to be as intense as that of the Aquatics Team. But you managed to keep up with our training from your first day.We haven't had someone as tough as you since Alec joined.Alec's in this club, too?I recommended it to him, since we're both S Ranked.
But he doesn't appear to enjoy having to participate in group activities.
Yeah, that should surprise no one. Not really a team sort of guy.Well, I'm going to get some dinner with a few classmates. Would you like to join us?There's a great noodle place that I really like. They have the best soba. They knead 72 types of herbs into their dough, so it's very healthy.I appreciate the invite, but I have something else I need to do. The fencing practice didn't give me what I was looking for today. Sorry about that. Maybe next time?
Man, I was starting to forget what it feels like to have pleasant characters around. I mean, the heroines are sweet (Serina excluded), but we've been running into a bunch of dickish side characters lately.
-Hallway-
I wonder if Feene is still around...-3rd-Year Classroom-
She's not in her classroom...-Garden-
Ah, there she is.
Turn towards the camera, dammit!
Listen, I have a special favour to ask.Of course. Ask away.-Dojo-
Shouldn't you take a rest? You appear to be quite exhausted.I need to get stronger. I need to be able to beat him. It's the only way to get through.
...Very well.I am indebted to you for saving my hometown. The skills that I have mastered over the years... I will teach them to you as quickly as I can.
I like it rough! Let's go!Also, ignore the way I phrased that!
I shall try!Well then, here goes! Ha!And so, Feene proceeded to teach Wake everything she knew, which lasted for...a day? Maybe a week, tops? There's no indication, but it definitely hasn't been long.
-Some kind of hill, somewhere. I dunno, they don't give this place a name-
You and me have something to settle.I'd heard that you had joined the Fencing Club.But if you think that's going to give you the edge over me, you are sorely mistaken.Won't know that unless we fight, will we?I apologize for breaking the rules when we fought in class.That issue with the monster had been weighing heavily on my mind. Ms. Chloe pointed that out to me, and I couldn't deny it.I ended up being on bathroom cleaning duty for a week because of that. You can laugh at me for being such a disgrace of an S Rank.That's why I want you to give up such foolish desires as revenge.
Shut up, Alec. You're one to talk about foolish desires, with all your 'If I was God's Gift' this, and 'I should be the one going into Dusk Circles' that. You told me I should train myself better. Well, I did. Now I want to know exactly how strong I am.And you wish to use me for that purpose?That's right. It's not the only reason though. I also want to put you in your place. So what's it going to be?That is a foolish offer...Come, God's Gift. Find out what the difference between our strengths truly is!*Epic clashes start happening, I guess. The screen is flashing*
Is that as far as you can go, God's Gift?
This is a waste of time. We can both see that you're at your limits. You are stronger than before, but this is the extent of your true strength.Pride goeth before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall.
I cannot lose...! I will not let my father down!Haaaa!Haaaa!*And they fought*
*laughing*Why are you so happy? You did not defeat me.Oh no, I won all right. The fight itself may have been a draw, but I did beat you.What are you talking about?I trained with Feene for a few days, at best. Then I fought Mr. 'I'm the Greatest' to a draw. You beat me by cheating, and then later all you could do in a fair match was break even. Give me another week and I'll be humiliating you. I'm still not even an S Rank for Star God's sake! *laughing*........
You're such an ass.See? That's the spirit.
You've completed your objective, at least. You used me... and now you have proven that you are stronger than before.It wasn't all me. Feene was a major help, and believe it or not, you were too.I did nothing. All I am... is a murderer.Huh?
There's nothing more foolish than that...!Alec, if you hadn't killed that monster then I would have. The difference is that you managed to save a life by doing it. I would have been too late.If...
There's a choice here that amounts to 'Hard to tell'/'If I had to'/'Probably not', but come on, we all know what Wake is about. LP or Official.
I mean, yeah. It's kind of my whole deal, if you haven't noticed. I'm not saying I would be okay with it, but if they turned then I wouldn't have a choice.I see... I wasn't expecting that answer. Maybe you're more level-headed than I thought.Or perhaps I'm more naive than I thought I was...The only reason this is happening is because of the Dusk Circles. Don't worry, I will seal them all before I lose my Brand. I intend to put a stop to all monsters.
Hell yeah! About damn time that someone was on board with my monster killing ways. Up top!Let's not. I don't need a symbolic gesture to prove my word.Why doesn't anyone want to give me five?*Vis-o-matic beeps*
...Yes, Ma'am.
It's rare to see you with a friend, Alec.
Mmm, perfect.Wake, I'm not very good at dealing with her. Will you talk to her for me?If I have to.I can hear you, Alec. You underestimate the capabilities of the Vis-o-matic!....Anyway, I'm sorry to bother you, Wake, but I need you at the lab at once. One of the Circle Seeds has finally activated. Hurry.You should go. If you anger her, there are sure to be serious consequences later.Pfft, I doubt it. You wouldn't believe the kind of leverage I have over her.-Laboratory-
I hope to get along with you all.Same here. Welcome aboard.Hm? Chief Ruby, Miss Beautiful isn't here yet.
Sorry everyone, but Feene isn't joining this chapter. I will say that this is a slightly more understandable reason than Torri's 'she needs more training' bullshit. Feene has been holding the line for a while to try and stop her hometown from being overrun, so it makes sense she would want to take a brief break to go back and check on her parents/friends/family.
What!? Miss Beautiful went back!?
She was their leader there, so it seems there are still some things to be done. It'll be a while before she can act as a member of the Dusk Spawner exterminators.Is that what we're calling our group? I have got to get us a better name than that. Another project for the pile I guess...
Let me tell you about this new Labyrinth. The new Dusk Circle is relatively far from both the mainland and this island. We estimate that the Circle activated as much as three weeks ago.
The density of the Dusk Circles is slowly increasing after all...
Is that also because of the monsters? I don't like the sound of that...We have been authorized to send a team into the Circle. We leave at 10:00 AM tomorrow. I want each of you prepared to enter this Labyrinth! Are we clear?....
Listen, I know the two of us have our... issues, but it's part of the briefing I was given. I have to say all of this.Fine. I'll let it slide from now on. Just as long as everyone is clear that I decide when we are ready to pull the trigger.
Yes, yes. Just let it go already.
There we are, Chapter 3 has been kicked off. Torri is officially in the party, which means we'll take a small diversion to properly introduce her. We will also have to stay on top of the focus heroines events.
In the meantime, we need to prep a new Team A(wful) before any Labyrinth trips start happening. Felicia, Luna, and Seth have all served admirably through two Labyrinths and two Sub-Labyrinths, but it's time for some fresh faces.
The three of them will still be tagging along, though. They have hit their level caps of 23-25, but that cap is enough to keep them effective against Labyrinth enemies for quite some time yet. I'll shift them into Team B and then rearrange the other Star Children to boost the city level a bit.
So, let's get down to it. We have picked up a lot of new classes in the time since the last vote.
Speaking of, the Ether Sniper has become available for some reason. Narika just happened to be able to make one. It probably happened during the Sub-Labyrinth, and I just haven't Classmated with Narika since then. Alternatively, they might just unlock upon reaching Chapter 3. Hard to tell.
Ether Snipers are upgrades over the Gunslinger class. All the same stuff applies to them. They've got the same stat spread but get different/more powerful skills.
Here are all the new classes that have been introduced since the last vote.
