Part 22: Chapter 67 (Part 1)

A fire is smouldering.

...

Lord Bishamonten, the nun is trapped up ahead.

She's being quiet for now, so it's our best chance to exterminate her!

...I understand. Stand far away from here, everyone.

Ooh, I knew we could count on you! Surely that fiend will feel the wrath of justice!

...Justice.

We'll leave you to it then. We'll be waiting over there.

...

Knock knock.

! Who's there...?

Hijiri...

...Shou. So you came after me after all.

...Yes, the humans are relying on me to exorcise you.

Then, both Murasa and Ichirin are already...

...They'd been rampaging, but they were captured once I arrived.

I told the men to spare their punishment until I give the command.

I see. So you're arranging to avoid as much bloodshed as possible.

Arranging?! I couldn't even speak to them in front of the humans.

I'm just playing the part of Bishamonten, trying to avoid making eye contact!

...But if they learned your identity, they'd tear down this entire temple.

If you want to earn the humans' trust, you'll have to steel yourself...

It's already too late for me.

What are you-?!

You must have already realized this. There's no way out of this situation.

Please, seal me away with the power of the artifacts Bishamonten left us.

If I order them all away, I'm sure you can still escape!

I appreciate the thought, I do. But... if they begin to doubt even you, then no one will be saved.

But-!

...I've already recieved enough mercy. This is the punishment I deserve.

Punishment...?

Despite the ideals I preach today, in the past I was ugly.

Scared of death, I abandoned my humanity, and I've used both humans and youkai alike.

None of that matters! You saved us, and showed us the way!

...But I am no longer able to help any of you.

Hijiri...

All that's left is for the ones left behind, you and the humans, to find peace together. Please.

Please show them the path so that, someday, this conflict with youkai can come to an end.

Even now, you want to save the humans...?

I'm the one who deceived them. The humans are without sin.

But how can I let you die, Hijiri? How can I be the only one to survive...?

A human runs up.

...Are you having trouble, Lord Bishamonten?

If the nun is getting violent, we can gather the men to shut her up.

!

There's no need for that, I won't resist!

...Shou, please seal me. If we talk any longer, they'll begin to suspect something.

...

...Just having you all care for me so much was enough to save my sinful self.

I'm glad I met all of you...

Hijiri...

I... I-!



Chapter 67: A Bond of 1000 Years (Part 1)

BGM: GET SAINT BACK

I... I...

Master! Hey, Master!

Ugh... where am I...?

Thank goodness, she woke up.

She doesn't have any major injuries, so we don't need to worry anymore.

Nazrin... Ran... Where are we?

This is Hokkai. Looks like we made it, somehow.

There's no miasma here, so we were able to rest a little.

We're the only ones nearby though.

Just us? You're right, I don't see the ship...

So what happened to everyone else then?!

Who knows? We tried searching, but there's no one else in the area.

Most likely, we were all scattered by the impact of entering Hokkai.

Oh no...

But if Miss Yukari's with them, then I'm sure they're fine!

All we can do is trust in them. Not to mention...

Could you take a look over there, Master?

What...?



! That's the barrier sealing Hijiri!

I thought so. I could sense a peculiar aura from it.

We couldn't ask for better luck. Let's unseal her right away!



A bunch of enemies spawn in.

!

The monsters of Hokkai, huh? Doesn't seem like there are any huge ones like before though.

What do we do? Run away and find the others?

It's a tricky decision. We may be in an unfavorable position here, but there's no guarantee we'd find them anytime soon.

...In that case, let's just believe in them and push forward.

Most importantly, I can't turn my back when Hijiri is right in front of me.

Master...

Clear a path through sheer willpower, is it? Well, given that we can't fully read the situation, perhaps that's the best option.

I'm prepared for this too. I mean, what else have I been spending the last thousand years for?

Let's go, and finish this once and for all.

Right!



They form up.



Victory: Shou reaches the indicated point.
Defeat: Shou or Nazrin are defeated.
Bonus WP: Defeat all enemies.



I really how this map looks. I also enjoy that we finally GET SAINT BACK, if only to get past the discord memes.



Our force-deploys this chapter have to do a lot of the work themselves, so don't skimp on the spirits.



There's too many of them. We'll have to be careful how we move.

Don't push yourself, remember that you were knocked out just a little while ago.

Speaking of which, it looked like you were having a long nightmare...

...Yes. I dreamt of happened back then.

...I see.

But it's different now. I'm not holed up in the temple wasting centuries.

We WILL save Hijiri. I picked myself up in order to see that justice is done.

...Justice, huh? I'm still not sure what exactly that means to you, but I'll be with you to the end.

The remaining light of a ruined temple... My job is to keep watch and see where the future takes it.

Thank you, Nazrin. I know I'll show you the end of this road.

Please, keep watching over me.

I will, Master. I promise.



I never wanted to put you in danger like this, Chen. Are you nervous?

Why would I be? You're here, Miss Ran!

I'm your shikigami, so I need to work harder so you won't worry about me!

I'm glad to hear that. But I'm a shikigami too, so I need to set a good example.

Oh, right... Are you nervous without Miss Yukari then?

Of course not. How could I call myself the ultimate shikigami if I couldn't handle merely being separated from her?

And I doubt Lady Yukari is worried about me either.

Wow, you're both so amazing. I need to be better too!

There's no need to rush. Just try to be what you should be, as a shikigami and as a beast.

Noble and strong.



On the enemy phase, the enemies on this map have a cute gimmick where they mimic the Space Invaders segment of UFO Stage 6. It's hard for me to explain, so have a gif courtesy of Ryza:



It doesn't have much of a gameplay effect (I guess sniper enemies get to creep closer to you without actually "moving"?), but stylistically it's very cool.



At the start of turn 2:

...They just keep building up little by little. This reminds me how much I hate being outnumbered.

But aren't beast youkai supposed to show their true strength when cornered?

Isn't that right, Ran?

Oh yes, I remember that, Shou. If I recall correctly, didn't that topic last come up when us four were together?

I've never forgotten. That cold spring day, when I met you and Youmu and the others, and was able to rise up once again.

...True, when we first met you had the air of a defeated youkai.

But since then, your heart has gotten stronger.

My heart, you say?

You've held onto an unwavering determination. To a youkai, nothing is more important than that strength.

I'm glad to have you fighting by my side at a time like this.

I also kinda feel like I can relax when you're around, Shou!

...Thank you. Now I suppose I'll just have to live up to your expectations.

Wait, Master. I'm sensing people.



How's it looking behind us, Momiji?!

No sign of pursuit, I think we got away!



Princess, I'm detecting people over here!

You're going too fast, Inaba. This isn't a matter of life and death.

Maybe not to you it isn't!

Youmu! Reisen!

And is that Momiji and Kaguya with them?

Oh, so we weren't the only ones to reach Hokkai then?

Thank goodness! Although it looks like you're having your own battle over here too.

It seems we've all been in a similar situation.

Yeah. When I came to, it was just me and the Princess. We've been looking for the ship while avoiding monsters.

Still haven't found its wavelength though.

I've been looking too. It must have been sent quite a distance.

...So not much has changed then. But I sure wouldn't mind if you all lent us a hand here.

What are you talking about? Shouldn't we be looking for everyone else instead of fighting monsters for no reason?

We can't do that, Byakuren's seal is rght in front of us.

What? Really?!

Is it that thing over there then? Its light was certainly appreciated.

In which case, rather than moving about clumsily, why don't we use it as a landmark to gather everyone?

Yumeko still isn't here, so this might be our only chance to break the seal.

Then I'll be counting on all of you!

Got it! Guess we'll just have to grit and bear it!

Our blades will cut open a path for you!



Our new duos form up.



There's a decent amount of danmaku spread around, but not so much that we can't handle it. It does get shifted around awkwardly by the enemies sliding down, though.



I'm so glad Shou and the others were okay. I hope Lady Yuyuko is too...

She's always on your mind, isn't she Youmu?

I'm her sword, after all. I have to protect her. Aren't you worried about everyone from the mountain too?

You must be worried about Aya and Sanae, right Momiji?

Sanae, well, sure. Aya though...

She'd probably just tell me "If you're a watchdog then get back on the ship and do your job already!"

I... I can see that happening.

I'd hate that, so I'd rather get to the seal before her so I can use that in her face.

I think I'd like to see her expression when she hears that. Now I'm looking forward to it a little.

But to do that, first we need to cut a path through the enemy!

Indeed! With my shield and your sword!



I hoped we'd be able to meet up with everyone soon, but it isn't looking so good.

Have a little patience. Eirin will find us soon enough.

And until then, going on a quiet little stroll together isn't so bad, is it Inaba?

That's really, REALLY not how I'm seeing this right now...

Actually, aren't they being awfully fixated on fighting this battle while outnumbered?

Indeed. Shou wants to see that human she loves so much, Byakuren.

A great sin, and a thousand years of confinement. These are heavy, yet familiar words. Don't you want to hear her feelings?

I see. And as your pet, I suppose I'll be the bullet clearing a path for you, princess?

What are you talking about? Right now, you're the only one at my side.

So be sure to protect me, Reisen.

! R-Right!

Well, Kaguya's the one S.Defending for Reisen here, but I appreciate the sentiment.



At the start of the 2nd EP:

Fighting like this is fine and all, but I wonder if the ship's okay.

We've been trying to contact them for a while now, but no luck.

...

...We can't connect. Maybe this thing is broken?

We're in Hokkai, so there might be some kind of special power blocking it.



6 bees spawn in behind us.

Look out, there are more monsters!

Guess this isn't the best time to chat.

It's not over until you lose hope. We have to keep advancing, little by little, while having faith that the ship will arrive.



There's not a lot that actually happens on this stage, so expect me to start skipping ahead. For example, let's go straight the the 3rd EP:



Two lines of Evil Eyes spawn in.

...Even more monsters. Great.

It doesn't seem like there's any end to them...

Could we have woke them all up when we arrived in Hokkai?

All the more reason to hurry!

Not that I mind your enthusiasm, but don't forget to keep an eye on your surroundings.

If we're defeated here, then the dream of rescuing their savior dies with us.

Right! We have to do this!



If nothing else, this is a great training stage for these 8. Momiji's already gained like 5 levels.



We've gotten so much action that Reisen and Kaguya have already hit FPM.



Slowly but steadily, we're working our way up.



4th EP, Makai Fairies. The characters don't even comment on this one.



This is a real battle of endurance at the start. Ran has a tendency to chew threw MP fast, so it's important to pace yourself and switch up who's in front/behind if units start running low. I could have tossed a Sunflower for MP Regen on Ran (I did this for Youmu) but I gave her the Suzuran to farm some PP for her.



By the way, I've been periodically leveling up Momiji/Chen/etc in the Practice menu in preparation for this stage. Not that you have to (you can just run away) but I figured I might as well.



5th EP: Makai Insects. Only two, though.



At the start of the 6th turn:

...Unsurprisingly, this is getting tough.

Miss Ran, I'm tiiiired...

...So is this our limit then? There hasn't been any response to the distress signal, has there?

I'm still sending it out, but nothing. Maybe the Palanquin Ship is also...

You're too pessimistic, Inaba.

Well, you're too optimistic, Princess! We're trying to fight off a whole army by ourselves here!



Doofs and insects from behind...



And an entire platoon of Makai Insects up top

! Even more?!

That's it, we're done for.

Please prepare to retreat, everyone. I'll hold them off myself!

You idiot! This isn't the time for stupid plans like that!

No one would blame you for running! If you die, then you lose everything! It's over!

But if I lose my chance to save Hijiri, then I might as well be dead.

Shou...

More importantly, I still believe in Murasa and the others! Their desire to save Hijiri will never fold.

I don't expect believing in them to change anything, but I don't dislike that way of thinking.

Surprisingly, wishes sometimes come true.

What's that supposed to mean...?

Look over there, everyone!



All hands, emergency deployment!



Thank goodness. Now we've found everyone!

We couldn't receive any transmissions, but we managed to find them by following the light of battle.

You came for us!

Murasa, Ichirin! I knew you'd come!

You're late, Eirin. What were you thinking, making me wait like that?

My apologies. But I'm glad to see you're safe, Princess.

Um... I was also-

Don't worry, she was worried beneath the surface. Also, well done Ran, Chen. I see you've been hard at work.

Did we worry you, Lady Yukari?

Hardly. You're my strongest shikigami, after all.

I'm glad to see you're okay too, Momiji.

Geez, Youmu! How could you get lost like that?

I-I wasn't LOST, exactly, I just-

Sorry for making you worry, Sanae. And Aya, sorry for arriving first and stealing the glory.

Hmph, and here I was thinking I should show you some appreciation for once. Cheeky.

It's your fault for never being honest, Aya. You can't have it both ways.

Wait, you said you arrived first? So then, that light must be...

Yeah, it's supposed to be Hijiri's seal.

Really?! So then, you were enduring all this until we arrived?

Wow, against this many of them I'm surprised you didn't lose hope.

Is this because you promised not to run away?

...Yes. I won't betray you ever again.

Wait, so can we unseal Byakuren by getting Shou over there with the pagoda then?

Yeah, but that's easier said than done with all these monsters in the way.

Sounds fun! Why don't we play with them too?

We'll all cover you. Clear a path, everyone!



Victory: Shou reaches the indicated point.
Defeat: Shou, Nazrin, or the Palanquin Ship are defeated.
Bonus WP: Defeat all enemies.



After 5 straight turns, we've finally got our reinforcements. First things first:



Sakuya graciously donates her SP to restore our depleted MP.



Makai Insects are annoying, but when I'm not under any sort of time limit, I don't really mind them.

By the way, there's no extra battle dialogue, so I'll probably be fast-forwarding most of the rest of the chapter.



The Youkai Trio (plus Tewi) are swooping down to clear out the bottom enemies, the barrier-piercers are heading up, and everyone else helps out where they can.



During the enemy phase, after the Undefined Rabbit kills a doof, we randomly trigger this conversation:

Nothing could be more reassuring than having you all at my side.

Whoa now, don't tell me you just now realized that?

O-Of course not. But it's something I never considered until a little while ago.

Maybe now I can reward Byakuren's decision to leave me on the surface, if only a little.

You're way overthinking this. Let's just rescue her already so you can brag about it later.

What do you think you'll say when you meet her again?

Oh no, I hadn't dared to think that far ahead... but I supposed I'd start by apologizing.

Apologize? You mean for sealing her?

Of course, but not only for that.

I also later lost the temple she entrusted to me, and wasted my time in idleness.

I betrayed her noble sacrifice.

Master...

So that's your sin then.

...I don't believe this can atone for that. That's why, after I've met her, I-

Okay, stop right there. Save that for when we get to her.

She's close by, so you can tell her directly once we've rescued her.

And we're here to set the stage for that!

Yeah, if you want these things exterminated, we're the ones for the job!

According to the files this is supposed to play starting on turn 7, so I dunno why it randomly played in the middle of the enemy phase. Regardless, that's the last bit of dialogue until we beat the chapter.



Hell yeah Tewi, fuck that wasp right up.



Hey by the way, apparently both I and Ryza forgot that Patchouli also got Royal Flare as a MAP. It's probably the only decent MAP we've got in our roster. Ammo-based, post-movement, and while it's not a large area, she can position the radius wherever you need it. Only needs 130 Power, to boot. Pretty cool.



Momiji has gotten so many levels you guys.

At this point, the chapter is really just cleaning up all the enemies out your leisure for the Bonus. For what it's worth, the first 5 turns are pretty exciting, if you decide to dive in and see how well you can last, but for LP purposes there's just not much to talk about this chapter.



Somewhere in the middle of all this, Mokou got knocked to exactly 1 HP. First time I've ever seen that.



HELL YEAH TEWI



choo choo skip a few turn 11





...At last!

We did it! Shou got there!

Now we should be able to break the Chief's seal!

The rest is up to you, Master.

Right!



Nazrin leaves Shou to do the thing.

Oh great pagoda granted by Bashimonten. Shine your light once again!

Please, break Lady Hijiri's seal!



...There's so much light. Will will finally save Byakuren?

It's been a rough trip, but our voyage to Makai is almost over.

Hopefully we can quietly make our escape without falling into any more trouble.

Luckily we've dealt with all the nearby monsters, so... huh?

What now?

Something's wrong! Get away from there, Shou!

Wha-



Suddenly lasers, and Shou gets knocked away from the point.

!

Are you okay, Master?!

Did anyone see where that attack came from?!

This phase disturbance...! Someone's teleporting in!

The only one capable of that would be...!



Sound of glass shattering.



...As impressive as ever, Lady Shinki. They'd very nearly undone the seal.

I never imagined they'd arrive before us, though.

...I'm sure that just shows how determined they are.

It's Yumeko! And...

Mom!

Wait, what? That's the god of Makai?!

Yeah! I can't believe they followed us in here, of all places!

Even we haven't opened the door to Hokkai for close to a thousand years.

Your actions exceeded our expectations. However, I can't allow you to break that seal.

But we-

Don't move.

The screen fades to white, and then...



!

Did Shinki summon all those monsters?!

That wasn't summoning magic. It's as if she created them from nothing.

So this is the power of a creator god...

Mom...

...Alice. In any other circumstance, I'd love to welcome you and your friends.

Then listen to us! We're not here to hurt anyone!

They're here to rescue their savior, yes, I heard from Yumeko.

Then why?!

If you really must know, Byakuren seal is already a piece of the barrier ensuring Makai's stability.

If you break the seal, that balance will crumble, and powerful monsters who've been inactive until now will awaken.

B-But that's...

You mean there'll be more like that one we saw outside?!

But Hijiri is so close I could touch her!



Shou makes a run for it, but gets blasted.

Gah!

I told you not to move. Why would you-

That's as far as you go. Or perhaps you'd like to throw your life away?

This pain is nothing... compared to the punishment I deserve!

That's...

I left Hijiri to die. That's a sin I can never take back.

But what I deserve is to be judged by Hijiri's own hand!

How could I die here, without even being able to save her?!

THAT'S what you were thinking...?

...I understand your feelings towards Byakuren. But no words can change my mind.

Regardless of your motives, I have to protect the people of Makai.

And I am your blade, Lady Shinki.



!

You were all stronger than I imagined, and I have nothing but respect for your determination.

I'm sure even Lady Byakuren would be proud of you.



Metal clangs.

!

Ah! The pagoda fell into the darkness!

Hokkai is a bottomless abyss. I'm sure you take my meaning.

No way... Then, it's already...

I'm sorry. I understand your desire to save her so well that it hurts.

Hate me if you must. I will accept the blame.

Mom...

To accomplish nothing, after making it so far...

Will... Will I betray everyone once again? Murasa, Ichirin, and everyone else? And the companions who lent us their strength?

And Hijiri, will I betray you too?!

Master...

...Oh pagoda. Shine your light and-

Shou, that's...

Stop this already, that path is already closed off to you.

No. I won't give up.

Bishamonten's pagoda! If you recongize my will, then return to my hand! Please!

I still haven't done anything! Please shine the light of dharma one more time!

This time, be the light of justice!



?!

This brightness, the pagoda-

The pagoda came back! Did it respond to Shou's feelings...?



...In the eternal darkness, I saw a light.

One that I've seen long ago, and one that will illuminate the future. The light of dharma.

...Once again, you've saved my heart.

That voice...

Ah...the world of Hokkai is filled with light-



The screen fades out.





Look forward to the exciting conclusion to GET SAINT BACK, next time!