Part 82: Drake

Update 65: Drake



I swear to the gods, if you guys drag me out to fight another big monster one more time...
Oh, be quiet. Think about how many times I've been in the active party since we started.
...Hang on, we didn't mention fighting a big monster. We're just going to look for Quona.
Unfortunately, even the most mundane tasks seem to end in fights for us...
Trouble... Keeps... You... Running... Faster...
What kind of nonsense is that?!
Ripped up bits of a song from Colette's anthology that Jackie and I are trying to put back together.

No point in hiding that we're going to be fighting a boss, really. Let's get moving.



Quona!
SYSTEM: The small, faint figure must be the innkeeper's daughter. It was the quest you accepted at the bar that brought you here... You came to find the little girl's whereabouts. She is crouched over, working intensely on something.


SYSTEM: She straightens as you approach, and you can see that her hands are full of white clover.
Your charm...it withered away...so I was picking flowers to make a new one!
Quona, we appreciate the sentiment, but everyone's very worried about you. Going into the Labyrinth is dangerous, even for us!
SYSTEM: You smile and gently warn her of the danger she may have faced.
I'm...sorry. I knew if I told someone, they would just say no...
SYSTEM: You kindly pat her on the head and praise her for her efforts before taking her home.
Well, no harm done. Let's go get an early lun--



W-who goes there?!
SYSTEM: You have no notion of when it appeared, but you now face a powerful adversary. Three necks, spear-sharp horns, foul yellow eyes, blue scales... The being before you is a dragon!
Oh COME ON.
SYSTEM: You freeze, seeing that its claws are clutching the innkeeper's daughter... She is breathing, but unconscious. She must not have had time even to scream...
PUT HER DOWN NOW OR YOU WILL REGRET IT!
SYSTEM: The dragon's twelve eyes pierce through you, and its three heads give a mocking howl! You clutch your ears at the high, screeching noise as the dragon soars into the sky! You attempt to give chase, but it disappears into the northeast side of the forest. The situation is grim... The girl's life is in the grasp of the blue dragon! At that moment, as it had before, the Ice King's Book in your backpack begins to tremble and shake. Could it be that this book is reacting to the blue dragon? Perhaps if you go to the Ice King's tomb, you may be able to see the dragon and the girl again... There's no time to waste! If you want to save the girl, then head over to the Ice King's tomb right away!
Dammit dammit dammit, that was careless of me! We need to get moving NOW!



Good thing that earlier quest already made us go through the secret area.

That thing isn't nearly as cute as the yellow one was.
SYSTEM: The innkeeper's daughter lies unmoving at its feet...
Q-Quona looks like she's breathing, at least...


Meet your end, fiend!
Because what I really needed to make this day even better was corniness.

VIDEO: Boss Fight: Blizzard King




In case you need a refresher on the Blizzard King's stats:




I have a very specific plan in mind here, and it somewhat hinges on an arm bind to reduce the Blizzard King's normal attack damage.



ＹＯＵ ＬＩＫＥ ＫＩＤＮＡＰＰＩＮＧ ＬＩＴＴＬＥ ＧＩＲＬＳ, ＨＵＨ？ ＨＯＷ ＡＢＯＵＴ Ｉ ＳＥＶＥＲ ＹＯＵＲ ＨＥＡＤＳ ＦＲＯＭ ＹＯＵＲ ＮＥＣＫＳ？！

Ranger'll just dish out pain from the get-go.



Stardust prepares to dish out pain.



Milly does her usual things.



I could probably just use Madness Curse here, but I really don't want someone crucial dying to a normal attack, and a head bind means the Blizzard King just does nothing for this turn.


WAAAAAAAAAH IT'S COLD!
I mean, were you expecting a piping-hot meal from a giant blue dragon that lives in this frozen hellhole?



Ooh, that was somewhat lucky.



The Blizzard King is not going to get to do a single thing to me this entire fight.



Well, that's over one-tenth of the BK's HP just gone in one action.



Things are gonna get really ugly for the BK starting next turn.



I'm gonna inflict panic on this turn anyway, but why not give myself the chance to use Ecstasy?



Shock Fantasia lowering the BK's volt resistance means Ranger and Stardust are going to inflict severe pain.



Already mentioned I was gonna do this.



Death is imminent.



Kinda because of that.



But mostly because of that.


Oh, fantastic, another one of those things.



Doing that much damage to the BK in such a short timespan usually means I'd have everyone hold off on this turn for fear of Mirror Shield, but the panic negates that problem.



Just in case Freyja and Stardust don't put the BK at near-death levels of HP this turn.



It's frankly kind of disgusting how much both Creeping Curse and Black Mist propel Hexers into being one of the best classes, honestly.



Freyja isn't even hitting an elemental weakness here and she's still dealing more than either Ranger or Stardust.



If the Blizzard King isn't near death, I'll be very surprised.



A minor annoyance now, potentially run-ending if I actually let the BK do anything.



Okay, yeah, that's low enough.



Time to put the BK out of its misery.


ＰＥＲＩＳＨ ＡＮＤ ＤＥＣＯＭＰＯＳＥ ＩＮ ＴＨＥ ＳＮＯＷ ＦＲＯＭ ＷＨＥＮＣＥ ＹＯＵ ＣＡＭＥ！



Jesus H. Christ.


Well, that was nice and painless! ...Except for my brain freeze.
How many times have I warned you about eating or drinking cold things too quickly?



SYSTEM: The ice dragon falls at last to your final strike! Victory! You have defeated one of the Labyrinth's strongest monsters, and saved the girl!


I'm sorry... I fell asleep... I think I...had a dream...
SYSTEM: The innkeeper's daughter rubs her eyes as you help her up. You let out a long-held breath, which subsides into a shaky laugh.
Um... There was a really big monster... And I was r-really scared. But then...an explorer appeared...and rescued me. So I was okay.
SYSTEM: You see now that the smiling girl is holding the Pure Auratum you gave to her previously.


Wh... Whoaaaa...!
SYSTEM: Once the light fades, you see that she is holding a pure white whip! It is intricately decorated, and a marvel to behold. This is the Frost Whip, the favored weapon of the Ice King. He has deemed you worthy... Congratulations! You have bested the ice dragon, and gained the most powerful whip in the land!
Uh... Wh-What is... this...?
SYSTEM: The girl stares down at the weapon in her hands, unsure of how to react--blinking in utter confusion.
But... this is really pretty...oh, I know what to do. I'll give this...to Lumen. It's pretty, but I c-couldn't use it, and it'll help you on your adventures...right?
Th-this looks like an excellent whip... Of course it will!
SYSTEM: The girl hands you the whip with a timid smile, and you accept the whip and her gratitude that she presents you.



The Frost Whip has all of +2 ATK on the Queen's Whip...but, it's still a little more ATK in exchange for losing a secondary attribute I don't care about. Freyja equips this after we finish this cutscene.

Oh, yeah, our level cap got raised up to 90 now. That's neat.




The game automatically takes us back to town here.

Go on and get some rest now. Your mom's worried sick...
Okay, I'll make sure to go to sleep early...but first I have to apologize to mommy... Since I worried her so much, she might be angry... I want to go see her soon. Lumen, you should come visit us too. I'll be waiting. I hope we see you again soon.



Ahhh, here come the stars of High Lagaard! Haw haw haw!
Do you have to be so facetious about us, Cass?
Oi, don't give me that look! The innkeeper was just by to express her thanks. Looks like the whole city's relieved to hear the girl's awright. Yeh did it again! I heard yeh had to fight quite the beastie in the process! Were yeh hurt at all?
The dragon itself didn't even touch us. Its heart kinda did, though.
That...sounds incredibly strange out of context...
Haw! The real immortal fiends in all this mess are yeh lot! Here yeh go... Yer reward, plus a little on top, courtesy of the city. Come back anytime! Haw haw haw!



Look at all of that EXP.

The level ups are completely uninteresting, so I skipped them. In fact, from here on out, I'm gonna skip all level ups because there's basically nothing new in them.



It's a bit of shame I didn't get the scale here. C'est la vie.

Dragvandil (+220 ATK, +40 HP, +40 TP) is made from 1 Frozen Wing. I prefer the Dragonbane (which we'll see after the final dragon fight), honestly.

Hisamemaru (+241 ATK, normal attacks become cut+ice) is unlocked by selling 1 Snow Pterygoid. This is the third-best katana, and it's only third-best by 1 ATK.




And before we end, Hanna has some words for us.

I've given her a good scolding, so she won't be doing anything like that again any time soon. That girl's been full of surprises recently... She can watch the inn fine on her own, and she's going out in the city more and more even though she hated going out. And now this! I know I shouldn't be praising her for doing this, but it made me a little happy... She was so withdrawn until you came around, and now she's growing up so fast... That's what makes me happy... Her health is getting a lot better too. Before I know it, she's going to be old enough to get married and leave this place behind... All this makes me really happy, but at the same time it makes me a little sad...
She's young enough that you've still got plenty of time left with her, don't worry.
...Oh dear! I've been rambling again, haven't I? I'm sure it'll be fine. I probably won't have to worry about a thing while you loves are around here! Bahaha!

Well, that certainly was something resembling a mini-adventure. Next time: we advance further into the Forbidden Wood, with 28F.