Part 19: The Final Showdown with the Master of the Illusions!

(Kiefer) Into Castle Charlock, home of two separate end-game bosses!

Oh - there's some writing on here... "In the name of ths Spirit Rubiss, I have sealed the Dragon Lord here. I warn you... Do not break this seal." Crap, we can't get back in here.
(Luin) Maybe we should have checked out that other castle more...
Back to Alefgard Castle!

(Raider) OH FUCK! SHARKS WITH CRAZY CLAWED LEGS! Truly, these are the scariest of monsters! They can use Water Spout, which has an unknown effect, as well as Save Power and slow.

If you go around back while on the roof of the castle, you can jump down here. Easy to look over, isn't it? But let's grab good ol' Carol before going along, shall we?

(Machua) The Evil Armors we've seen before - they're tough stuff! Blaze Cut, Lightning Cut, and Twin Hits makes a strong enemy. The Dark Knights are an interesting variation on the normal Slime Knight. They have similar skills, but instead of the Heal that Slime Knights learn, they get Fireball.

Bitchin'! This is a pretty potent heart! No real point to it, though - it's not like we'll ever have another reason to reform the party.

Oh crap. Now we're in a warp section of a dungeon. Wheeeeee.

And now poisonous floors? What is this, an Atlus game?

The next floor's gimmick is that the door is sealed by several minibosses. Minibosses like...

(Alex) The Chain Djinn can curse people. Other than that, he dies pretty quickly.

(Gilme) It's just like Carol! But with more HP. And very little else.

(Kachua) That's pretty awesome, actually. I'm impressed! He hits pretty hard, and has powerful fire breath attacks, but still nothing impressive enough to stop us.

(Bake) The Rosevine is delicious! It's typically considered the most powerful of the plant monsters, and can do the Hustle. But mostly, it's tasty. He also kept using Dark Wave, but it never had any effect.
With all of those guys dead, we can continue downward.

(Magarugi) just as you were guided. I am the Master of the Illusions. My name is Magarugi. I stand above both humans and monsters. You have toiled long and hard... And now the four fractured powers of Loto... Power, Courage, Defense and Wisdom...
Wait... Power, Courage, and Wisdom? That seems familiar...
Umm... That means we get our wishes granted, right? Master of the Illusions, please heal my parent's illness!
Master of the Illusions? I shouldn't call myself that any longer. After all, I'm only borrowing it's power. But I am grateful to you... For collecting the Orbs of Loto when I could not. Yes, it is time to start granting wishes. I'll start with mine... I wish to become Master of the entire world! But before that wish is granted, let me grant this wish first! I wish to kill you all! Wahahahaha!
I don't think wishes work like that! So let's fight!

Behold! Magarugi! With the Dark Flame and the Death Blizzard to back him up, no less. Magarugi hits hard and uses the occasional (still entirely non-effective) Dark Wave. To be honest, he's actually still really easy. Two party members were still cursed, and another set of two were out of mana. We stomped him into the ground.

That strong... Gunnngh... I will unleash the power of Loto now... Let me show you! Gaze upon my form! You will have but a glimpse before your demise!
(Domedy) I won't let that happen! Return the power of Loto, fiend!
Wait... Domedy? What a twist!
Ungh! The four Illusion rulers of the heavens!? I thought I was rid of you!
(Kushalami) Oh? So the Master of the Illusions has been possessed?
(Kakalon) I thought you'd been acting strangely. You were after the Orbs of Loto this whole time.
(Barbaru) You're a dangerous one... I'm glad we made it here on time.
You scum... How dare you Illusions try to stop me! Don't make me laugh...! Kaaaaah!! (He blasts everone with a huge tornado!)
Eeek!!
Ahh, the Illusions...!
What happened to the power of Loto? Does this mean that I do not meet its requirements? I need you, who meet the requirements of the Orbs of Loto... inside of me... And so I will devour you!
Holy crap! That's an awesome line oh wait fightin' time!

Magarugi is now crazy tough. He hits for about 300 damage, and can sometimes one-shot Carol. He can also curse the party, and use Vacuum Cut, which is not terribly powerful - only about 50-75 to each of our party. But still, without too much trouble...

You... I can't forgive this! I'll never forgive youuuuu! (Magarugi reverts to his (her?) usual form!)
We did it, Kiefer... It looks like we won...
Oh my... What in the world... was I doing?
Whoah! You're... still alive? But wait! Your voice sounds much softer! I am Magarugi, the Master of the Illusions. You've saved me! It seems that somebody had possessed me... With hopes to gain the powers of Loto... I was being used, as were you. You were but a tool to collect the Orbs of Loto. The Orbs of Loto can alter the future of the world, therefore they can only be entrusted to children.
Yeah... children... like us.
That is why the one who possessed me could only whisper sweet lies to the children of the world. It knew that there brave children like you. The word Loto does not point to one single person...
Let's see... Hero, Fighter, Soldier, Priest, Mage, Merchant, Thief, Goof-off... That's eight. I'd say that it points to 8 people. At a guess, mind you.
It is a word that refers to particularly courageous Warriors. Still, It's not a name you can choose for yourself... Once, all who took action with extreme bravery were honored with the title of Loto. These were the Warriors of Loto.
The Warriors of Loto? But... there's something more important than that... Please, cure my parents' illness...
I caused you a lot of trouble, being possessed you know. Thus, I will do what I can to grant your wishes using my power. You, Luin, wish to cure your parents' illness. And you, Kiefer, wish to return to your own world.
Huh? What do you mean by his own world?
I tried to explain to you, man - I'm not from here. I'm from a tiny island that is in a huge ocean, and that's not here.
It's true. Kiefer and Foz were not born in this world. They were born in other worlds, and they must return there.
Really? I didn't know! But... I'm okay with it.
...Good?
Kiefer, it's because of you that we were able to make it this far.
Well then, your wishes shall be granted. Go forth, the two of you. Thank you Kiefer... And thank you, Luin. For saving me... I am deeply grateful.
(there's a quick set of images showing that everyone is okay, they go by too quickly to screenshot and contain no text. Credits go by, and after the credits...)

Without you, I'm sure I would have quit along the way. The truth is that I'd like to keep going on a journey with you... But you've got to head back home, Kiefer. I'm not saying goodbye, because you'll come back to play again, right?
Maybe, Luin. Maybe.
I was thinking about continuing to travel in the caravan with everyone else. But I'll return from time to time too... To see if you've returned, Kiefer. So long then, Kiefer. Take care.
(Foz) We were only together for a short time, but I enjoyed it. I feel that I have been trained well through the art of reformations. Do you feel like you learned a lot on this journey?
Really, I think I did.
Uhuhuh! I was right, huh! It's because we met so many people! There were many kinds of people, with many kinds of hearts. Everyone's hearts became connected. Because of that, it was impossible to forget to do our best. I was thinking... I'm ready to go home. But if there's ever any more trouble, just call out to me... I told Luin... We might meet again. Farewell, Kiefer. Give my regards to everyone.
Thank you, Foz! Your reformations were excellent! Take care!!
(Gyavan) She'll continue to be on the other side, won't she? I hope she thinks of us from time to time. (Foz leaves) I knew something was up when we first met, Kiefer! I felt that you were somehow different from the rest of us. Might I ask, is Gran Estard the name of a castle?
Well yeah.
Hmmm... Just as I thought. You're of royal descent, aren't you Kiefer? Perhaps that's why you inspired so many people to be led by you. Take care on your way home. Everyone in your castle must be worried about you.
Alright. See you around!

Fin.


Tinymedals: 24

Hearts: BabyPanther, Tonguella, Nocto King, Bull Bird, Unicorn, Wild Ape, Walrus Man, Flower Beat, Opabi, Mad Plant, Hammer Man, Pod Hero, Goopi, Puppet Man, Phantom Glass, Bomb Crag, Stone Spider, Demonite, Death God, High Merchant, Hammer Man, Slime Knight, Snapper, Berserker, Army Crab, Big Mommonja, Metal Slime, Roboster, Metabble, Roboster, Blizzard, Snome, Gigantes, Swordgon, Arch Demon, Dark King


Next time. on Let's Play Dragon Quest Monsters: Caravan Hearts: Post-Game Content