Part 4: "Yeah, about that memo..."

I haven't had volume problems myself... Odd. I'm not aware of any way to change the game volume itself, save messing with the stereo mixer, but the audio files are available. Are they the same as the ones I'm putting up with the updates, volume-wise?

Also, people playing the game!

Chapter 04: "Yeah, about that memo..."
(The "Mountain," The Coward, Mole 1, Hiku Kumo 1&2, Randolf 3)

Welcome back! Last time, we reached The Snow Fields, the third dungeon... Though the singular "dungeon" may not be appropriate here.




Apparently there's two dungeons?



It's Randolf! But we have no time for Randolf! There is a mountain with a great view waiting for us!



There's quite a bit of walking to do first, though--probably about 10 screens of height.



A save desk! This mountain is looking promising already.



So excited, guys



...wait, that's it? At least we can talk to Mr. Mask here.


......

So if it isn't snow, what is it? A giant mountain of ashes? The site of the largest cocaine drug bust in history? Is Camil is actually very selectively colorblind?

Another Glass Fragment for the pile. Between that and Randolf earlier, we're at eight bottles already.

Talking to him again:


Who decided on that setting? ......

It should probably be mentioned that in Japanese, "setting" is often used in the context of "bullshit character backstory made up by overimaginative children."

Much like the talk of this mountain. I am incredibly disappointed.

We talk to Randolf on the way back. He just ellipseses at us and we get another Glass Shard. Oh well, it's an Empty Bottle.




Randolf's headed out somewhere, it seems! He walks right through us without so much as a hello.



This is no doubt the work of The Coward. Please be careful, Camil.

No, I haven't skipped some explanation of The Coward. Maybe The Coward is just an ex she's on really bad terms with? People keep locking their doors now because they get into really awful screaming matches and no one wants to get involved.


The mountain where the White Dragon lives."

Hawaii is a chain of islands, man. (Though I guess the islands do have volcanoes?) And you're going to be pretty disappointed by that "mountain."

On the plus side, we can finally read the last entry of Randolf's diary! There's no one to protect his precious privacy now!



x Month x Day

Randolf had his 10th birthday. (by the way, I'm treating the kid's birthday as the day I found him.) If you compare him to before, he's gotten a lot tougher. I'm very proud of him. I'm still reading that book to him. The one I got from Aeritz before he left. It's a story about a hero who defeats a dragon. It's similar to the Story of the White Dragon, but Randolf still seems to enjoy it. I want him to grow up to be strong. Strong enough to defeat a dragon!

x Month x Day
It has been 18 years since I left the village. I guess I'm starting to feel homesick. Returning to the village and living with Randolf in peace doesn't sound too bad. I've been thinking like that lately. I'm sure everyone from the village would accept Randolf with open arms. .....

This is the last entry in the diary.




According to Randolf's mystery diary guy, this should be the last chapter of the Demon King Chronicle--he said there were three parts.

The white thing is a slime, I guess? It moves around occasionally and can't really be interacted with. Kumo just ellipseses at us, too. On the plus side, it looks like Kumo has plenty of story to give us over the course of the game.

(No real music this time, just a wind sfx.)



As I sat with my head down, I heard a voice above me. I lefted my face, and locked gazes with Aeritz.

"Not enough sleep? Geez, you really don't have a care in the world."

He smacked me on the shoulder heartily. Ouch. The natural ease he possesses... It reminds me of the difference between people. Even though we were about to kill a person.

"I'm counting on you, Kumo. The whole world rests on your actions."

Aeritz returned back to his usual spot, beside the rocky shore.



Bathed in the cold moonlight, I hid myself in the bushes.

Aaron Aaron's also got something new to say. Oh boy does he ever.




There is a name for this person. We have been calling them "The Coward." However... Alright, let me be frank. The true identity of "The Coward" is one of our residents. All the information gathered from the crime scenes point to this fact. Camil, you're the newest person here. So there's no way you are "The Coward." I feel like I can trust you, so what I tell you now stays between us, okay?

I've been laying out plans to catch the culprit in a trap. "There's 100 gold hidden in the jar." That's what I told to Laylaria. At the same time, I told Hiku Kumo "There's 200 gold hidden in the dresser." Just like that, I've told all the residents where I've been hiding my gold. I've been giving out this information with great care while being as subtle as possible.

Take a look at this please. I dropped a memo pad like this on purpose, and let the culprit pick it up.



Other notes:
(*Very embarrassing information about my private hobby is written in the XXX part.)

What do you think? If it is a nice person who picks it up, they will probably think about it for a second... And probably experience some awkward and unpleasant thoughts, before pretending like they didn't see it right? On the other hand, if The Coward picks it up, how will they react? Heh, I'm looking forward to this. ...... I hate to repeat myself, but... I really do trust you. You are the only one who knows about this. I doubt I need to worry about you telling anyone else anyway.

"Because you're a silent protagonist."



If you're curious, no, there is no gold in the jar or the dresser. There is no way to accidentally spring this "trap" on yourself, funny as that would be.



The Mole's left another Glass Fragment outside in a treasure chest.



Want to hear a story?
> Nod
There used to be a man I was greatly indebted to. I challenged him to a fight. And, I was defeated. These scars are a constant reminder. Do you understand my history now?

>> Nod
I see.

>> Shake head
I see.

> Shake head
I see.

Despite his words about a break, he's still chipping away at that wall, same as ever.



Oh, bookshelf, you are a source of endless disappointment.

I save, and...




Wait, isn't chapter 1 supposed to be "Tower"? That's the chapter 1 of Nana's Demon King Chronicle...

We're finishing the story all wrong! Mr. Dieter is going to be so mad at us.

On the way up, I decide to show off why this area's such a bear.



No more enemies, see? Just this dog.



Now there are, though! These Abominable Snow Monkeys



(no, seriously)

are ambush attackers. They'll appear when and only when you get into a fight with someone else, and they have the same rapid movement aggression AI as the red monkeys from The Hamlet. And there's basically no way to know where they'll pop up--it's consistent, but they're invisible until a fight starts. And the Mutts are aggressive and slightly faster than you. (This is mitigated somewhat by their tendency to, at random intervals, walk in another, unrelated direction. Thankfully. Most aggressive AI works that way.)



The Abominable Snow Monkeys also go away at the end of fights, thankfully.

I was killing the tough enemies of the last area and staying within healing HP range. Not so much now--I ended this fight with 7 HP, and that was just two enemies. I switch out the Fine Pajamas in my All-Purpose slot for an Energy Restore again; having two more Fire Waves, and stronger Fire Waves at that, available makes a pretty big difference.

The Abominable Snow Monkey drops a Bushy Tail, which gives +12 HP. The Mutt can drop an Apple, which gives +5 HP and +2 Attack, but didn't this time.

There's also blue Mutts on the map, who are less aggressive but also much stronger. They take about three Fire Waves to go down, which is currently a record.

Anyway, let's go console Randolf about the incredibly disappointing mountain.




Dude, you are literally next to the entrance to the only other screen. But sure, I can come along. Whatever.



Wait what



Welcome to the next dungeon after The Snow Fields! No music here, just the sound of wind.



Randolf has joined up as a special guest star. For comparison to Camil:




He also comes with Lightning, an 8 SP spell that can be used even at full HP. Notably, it is strictly single-target: even if enemies are right next to each other, it's only going to hit the one you aimed it at.

For now, though, this is entirely too early for us to challenge The Dragon Mountain--we haven't even cleared The Snow Fields yet! The enemies here will hand these two their asses even moreso than The Snow Fields.



Unfortunately, Randolf's not willing to come along if we're headed out of his dungeon. He'll rejoin when we return, though, and he won't try to clear the dungeon on his own.

(He clearly understands who the real main character is here.)



So instead we take the right exit, to the "mountain with a crappy view." It has a crappy view because there is no mountain.




As previously established, getting into fights here at this point is incredibly risky. The red dogs make this more complicated, because they follow Fast Aggressive AI all the time. I get into one fight, but manage to keep it to one black Mutt and one Abominable Snow Monkey.

(That name is too silly not to say at every opportunity. This update, at least!)

It still takes two Fire Waves to finish.



Well, that was stressful! And that was just screen one.

The south path leads past another Magic Bean planting spot and then exits to the right.



(The slightly spikier, darker Mutts have the blue dog map sprites. The green ones have the red dog map sprites.)

If you look back at the old battle screenshots, you will notice the lack of a "run" command.



Let's try that again, shall we?




This time I take the north path. This raised exit has a mandatory fight...



...and then exits onto an area with a Glass Shard.

I exit, fight the Mutt blocking the way again, and then run my ass all the way back and rebalance my Bottles. Fire Wave is incredibly important again, so it's 2 Stamina/6 Energy, counting the one Camil has equipped.



Two Mutt, one Monkey. I was at full HP on the first screen and died just before the turn where I'd win.

This is with Sporadic Guard firing about a fourth of the time, mind.



One Mutt, one red Mutt, one Abominable Snow Monkey. Same screen.

The Snow Fields is both a lesson on what the game expects and check on your commitment. It hammers in three points:
1) learn to manage your resources. At this point, Fire Wave is basically your only effective means of offense; normal attacks are for finishing blows, not a mainstay. How many potions of each type do you need? When is healing to full a bad thing? Is there some equipment that could make this easier?

2) learn where you need to go and be efficient. Wandering blindly will get you into too many fights. You're going to die figuring out the best route to take--go in expecting that and don't get frustrated when it happens.

3) learn how to move around enemies. Before, excessive fighting would bog you down. Here it will get you killed. Levels are not the priority.

Both times, I screwed up. The Mutt at the right exit WILL catch you if you're not very careful; you simply can't lure him away from the door under your time constraints, thanks to all of the other aggressive enemies. So if you engage him, immediately run to the upper-right corner to time out the engagement counter, and then book it for the exit the moment the fight is over.

I screw up and get in a one Mutt three Abominable Snow Monkey fight and have to book it for the exit again. Progress is going to be a bit slow here, I'm afraid.

I go back and visit The Nest. I sell some things. The Bushy Tails in particular are very profitable--60 gold a piece. That gives me enough to buy the 30 gold Notepad and still have 200 left over for the other Regeneration Up ability.



The Notepad outputs three text files to your game directory. I'll post the contents of all three at the end of each update. Most are what they sound like.



That second crystal in the second area opens up the third.



The crystals here are all abilities: Flame Fang (a more powerful version of Flame Wave), Shout (increases all stats for a few turns--very effective!), Slap on the Back (cures "some status ailments"--for various reasons, this is a bad choice), Light Axe and Waterboy Resolve. The last two aren't purchasable yet.

Edit: Courtesy of HenryEx:



I don't buy anything. I don't need them yet... And I'm also out of Memory Points and completely out of money, so that plays a part in it too.

I coincidentally notice that Aaron Aaron isn't in his shop, and check the right area...



...then Laylaria sees us and books it.


I have a very important announcement! Everyone! Please gather!!!

...oh you dick.

(I very highly recommend the next track.)




Such an unfortunate turn of events... I saw what you did. No use trying to hide it. I saw you pilfer gold from Aaron! You were the one destroying everyone's treasured stories too... weren't you!? I really hate to do this... but we will have to punish you for this. First of all, You must return the gold to Aaron. Even if it was only 200 gold, that doesn't affect the weight of the crime.

Hey, 200 gold is a lot to me right now!

...I'm not exactly helping my case, am I.

Now! Hurry up!



Aaron... It really was an unfortunate turn of events. Thank you to everyone for-
Laylaria. It showed the hiding place for my gold. And other embarrassing things which I can't talk about here. Do you remember that memo?
Of course I do. And just as you expected, the culprit fell for the trap completely. I expected nothing less from your genius plan, Aaron.



...What?
This really is unfortunate, Laylaria. "You're the only person I trust, so you're the only person I can tell this to." I told that to everyone here. That's right, I said the same thing to everyone. However, I made sure I changed the details each time I told it to a new person. Each time I told the story I changed just one single detail. Whether it was the "who," "where" or "how much."



You think you can lecture me over 200 measley gold!?

Laylaria runs to the upper-left, and...

This next song plays through to the end of the sequence, even through battles.





You can see the others through the smokescreen filter, but all of them just cough. (Except Kumo, who ellipses instead.) You'll also notice the new door to the upper-left.



There's four Demon Flies in the way, but they're the same as they were in Camil's room, way back in update 1. Even if they hit you, it'll do 0 damage.






The Anonymous Coward hits for about 2 damage and uses High Heel kick for about 9. The difficulty of the fight depends on the balance between the two... Especially since normal attacks are basically useless here.

It initially seems like an extremely difficult fight, especially at this point... And then you realize that High Heel Kick takes SP, and once she runs out, those turns become empty turns. It takes one reset and four full bars of SP, but she goes down.




The Ruined Story is a pretty good caster item at this point--it's the only non-Energy Restore source of Skill that's available. Still, you've usually got bigger priorities.

Afterward, you're returned to the main area with no further fanfare.



It'll be a while before we can break down Laylaria's door.

Kumo's in the area where we fought The Anonymous Coward.



That Glass Fragment brings us up to 9 bottles!

If you talk to him again:

Inside this hole... There must be many stories laid to rest. It certainly is depressing just thinking about it.

I'll let this next sequence speak for itself first:








Holes like this are HP tests. If you have enough, you survive and can reap the rewards. If not, well, inachevés.

Kumo's back in his room now, so he has new dialogue.


He was kind of a gentle giant, but Aeritz said he was interesting if you learned to read his expressions. Aeritz promised he would take me to meet him some day. ...but that has nothing to do with you, huh? Forgive me.

I'm guessing Flodnar is Randolf's foster parent. We know it's someone who knows Aeritz and it's probably not Kumo.

Plus, Flodnar, Randolf. I'm guessing Flodnar wasn't a very creative guy.

And, naturally, there's another story update.



From what I can tell, he is a reprehensible villain. He not only steals without remorse, but uses violence as his first resort. Where did I go wrong...? I am now an accomplice to his diabolical crimes.

......

The target of tonight's plan... We are supposed to remove a specific old man from this world. According to Aeritz, the old man will be visiting this area tonight. I admit that I too wish for this old man's death. However, right now... I pray that he does not appear. I want this plan to end in failure. Being part of this plan terrifies me. With such an important position, I feel like I'm being crushed by the responsibility. Very soon... At this rate, if nothing happens... If the day breaks...

"He's finally here, so get ready."

At the sound of Aeritz's voice, I snapped back to reality. In the distance... I spotted an old man, outlined in the pale moonlight. --It was Zelphie Eluonto.

If "Zelphie" doesn't look familiar, check the last update's books again. Additionally, remember: Nana's last name is Eluonto.

This is a good time to stop. Next time, the rest of The Snow Fields! Oh boy.


But with the advent of the Annihilation Record, now is a good time to post a challenge. How many times do you think I'll be wiped out by the end of the game? And while we're at it, how many times before I finish the post-game content? (Or give it a really good try, anyway. It's hard.)

Feel free to post one vote for both or each, but bold them so I can keep track. To be maximally fair, I will not reset from this point forward unless I could just as easily walk back to the last save point, even if I know I'm obviously about to die; it won't count in the Annihilation Record otherwise and I may mess up the count. The second post will have the current Annihilation Record for the last update posted, along with the Glossary and Battle Record files, and you'll be allowed to vote on the count or revise old votes until update 8 is posted. Votes will be recorded in the second post, so please tell me if your vote isn't counted there--that means I missed it.

First prize for each category gets a $10 equivalent gift certificate from the SA store. Third prize for each gets a $5 equivalent. Second prize for each gets nothing!

(In future, I'll probably just post screenshots for the first two--I forgot to take them this time around.)

Annihilation Record:

2014/03/15/ 23:12:26
Demon King Chronicle

Annihilation count:8
[2014/03/15 23:20] Defeated at Cave Chronicle.
[2014/03/15 23:05] Defeated at unknown area by Anonymous Coward.
[2014/03/15 22:14] Defeated at The Snow Fields by Mutt.
[2014/03/15 22:12] Defeated at The Snow Fields by Mutt.
[2014/03/15 22:04] Defeated at The Snow Fields by Mutt.
[2014/03/15 13:51] Defeated at The Hamlet by Monkey.
[2014/03/15 10:48] Defeated at Demon King's Castle by Ferocious Rat.
[2014/03/14 12:04] Defeated at unknown area by Rat.

Battle Record:
2014/03/15/ 23:12:14
Demon King Chronicle

■Battle results
Playtime:02:44:06
Save count:45
Steps taken:15194
Battle count:141
Max damage:19
Max damage taken:11
Items:9 Types 16 Items

■Treasure Chests
The Nest: 2/8
Demon King's Castle: 13/26
The Hamlet: 24/31
The Snow Fields: 1/20
Unmapped area: 2/10

■Camil(7)
HP:33
SP:42
Attack:27
Defense:14
Range:32
Critical:8
Skill:23
Agility:36
・Karate Chopstick(3)
・Scaly Sequin Coat (1)
・Energy Restore(3)
・Salad(2)
・Turtle Shell(2)

■Top 10 defeats
Rat(49)
Monkey(42)
Turtle(19)
Turtle(14)
Ferocious Rat(11)
Frog(8)
Monkey(7)
Mutt(6)
Demon Fly(4)
Demon Fly(4)

Glossary:

■Demon King Chronicle
A story with no ending.
Written by Harold Diester.
3 Chapters in total.

■The Island
The setting for this story.
It's not the official name,
and hiding the name like this
is a habit of the Island residents.

■The Continent
The birthplace of the Island residents.
It's not the official name,
and hiding the name like this is a
habit of the Island residents.

(Unlocked by defeating The Anonymous Coward)
■Laylaria
The second daughter of a good family.
He sister Lululala did perfect in
everything she tried. She did a variety of
things under the name "The Coward."
Most of the island residents had
already started to guess the truth.
The trap set by Aaron just brought
the truth out in the open.