Part 22: Soap and bubble bath

MUSIC: Ominous crowing



Villager: Wait up!

Hey, what's all the commotion?

Villager: I heard that the Priestess and her party from the Cathedral have finally arrived!

They'll be our very scary people then. We can actually talk to everyone in town and they'll all have new dialogue - unfortunately, it is all "Whoa, the Priestess is here!". So let's just go meet her.

VIDEO: The Cathedral Knights (a big pile of voice acting; search for "Voice ends" to skip screenshot version)




(courtesy of Pesky Splinter; this is actually a part of The Broken Seal on the soundtrack)



We shall dispel the Darkness before your eyes.

Oh, your words are most reassuring...! Please, do what you can!

This village is full of Darkness. Darkness with terrible powers.

W- what has brought this upon us?

I have purified much Darkness in my work so far. From my experience, this Darkness... is the doing of Valmar. I am NOT mistaken.

Oh, no...



All entrances shall be sealed. No one may enter or exit the village. Understood?

Anyone violating my order shall be deemed a minion of Darkness and... purified in the name of Lord Granas.





I ought to have introduced myself. I am Selene, leader of the Cathedral Knights. I am pleased to meet you.



Yes... she is the High Priestess Selene, leader of the Cathedral Knights... Now, High Priestess Selene is known to be...

... an excellent... inquisitor of heresy. I'm afraid this town might be in for a bit of trouble...

Just what are those guys planning to do here?

Well, well. Are you not a Sister of Granas?



Oh, I am Elena, a Songstress of Granas. I am on my way to Granas Cathedral to report to His Holiness Zera.

To report to His Holiness Zera... You must be a very accomplished student. I am sure his Holiness will be pleased.

Your mission must be important... As is mine - to purify the world of Darkness.

Let us both work to the utmost of our abilities.

Yes. Th- thank you very much...

Voice ends. We regain control, but talking to Selene is still the only thing we can really do.



No, in fact... the ceremony failed...

Watch your words, Elena.

Well, who might you be...?

Name's Ryudo. The Sister is under my protection.

I see. For your trouble, I thank you.

You can thank me by letting us through this village. Oh, and these two as well. They're with us.



Hey, cut me some slack here! We're no threat to you or your cause.

I cannot. Did you not hear what I just said? This village is now sealed. Leave, and be purified.

Until this matter surrounding this village is resolved, no one may leave. Not Elena, not you, not anyone.

Look, we need to report to YOUR boss. Get word to him about us, and I'm sure he'll permit us to "make haste" to the Cathedral.

Regardless of your schedule, it is my duty to ensure that the Darkness in this village is exterminated. Without exception.



Worry not. We are the Cathedral Knights, blessed by Lord Granas. Discovering the allies of Valmar is a simple task. As is purifying the unclean.

What is it with you and this "purify" thing? For some reason, I doubt your knights are packing soap and bubble bath in that armor.

... She means to kill them. I remember one village somewhere that was burned to the ground by Cathedral Knights...

That's some strong bubble bath.

No, that is not correct. Lord Granas does not approve of mindless slaughter.

The Holy Fire of Lord Granas merely purifies those who have sold their soul to Valmar...



There's that word again. I fail to see the difference between your... method, and murder.

If you, um... were to find a person possessed by Valmar, what would you do to her... or him?



Such a sacrifice is necessary in order to rid the world of Valmar's presence.

Wh- what!? You - you can't do that!

Do not be afraid, for the Holy Fire cleanses only the sinner. Those who are pure of heart need not worry.

... of course, this is assuming there are persons without sin before Granas...

Let he who is without sin cast the first... the first... what was it? It slips my mind, but I'm fairly sure it had to do with setting you on fire.

...... Ah!

Well then, please tell me the details. Only then shall we seek out the apostles of Valmar.

A- alright then.

Selene and her knights follow the Village Chief to his house, two remaining behind to guard the town gate.





Security's too tight. We have no choice but to camp here tonight.

We'll be left alone for now; Elena's company protects us from suspicion. Though for how long, I can't say.

As you might imagine, we can't leave town anymore, so we have to spend the night here one way or the other. First, however, let's have a chat.



Knight: . . .

You should take a break, it must be a real strain to just stand in place like this.

So, uhhh... Yaaah!!

Roan! What is the matter?!

J-just now... I think I saw a red flash come from that slit in his mask!

Harrowing. Let's see how the townsfolk are doing.



Villager: As if we weren't in a bad enough mess already! Now they're saying it's gonna get worse! I just don't understand all this!

Quite frankly, I don't see how they can fly such a religious banner when all they do is destroy and burn villages.

Villager: Excuse me, but do you think there really is a God!? I mean, you're a Sister of Granas, right?

Yes, I am... and Lord Granas has always been our protector...

Villager: Well then, can you tell me why all these cruel accusations are being thrown at us!? It makes me think there really is no God.

Oh my, really...!? ... Why in the world would you think that?



Villager: Then this strange curse whose cause is a mystery... at this rate, our village will be burnt to ashes. Helpless to the end...

Why is it that everyone around here is a quitter? THIS IS YOUR HOME! Don't you care at ALL about that?

Villager: Of course I care! But there's nothing we can do, is there!? Nothing at all...



Villager: If Valmar is after our village... That would be the end of us...

We can also go into the chief's house, where Selene is interrogating him while he mostly stands there and whimpers. Mirumu Village, everyone: spineless to the bitter, flaming end. Let's visit someone marginally less pathetic.



Yeah, they sure were.

It was just as you told us!

Yeah, I knew it...



Thank you for your concern. I'm afraid she's been feeling quite down since then.

Hmm, really? I have been rather worried about her.

You're so kind, young man. I think she'll be better after the High Priestess and her knights leave.

We can't do much more in Mirumu until tomorrow, so we're heading back to the Inn. Hopefully, it won't burn down in our sleep.



Official Art: Selene

New Voice Credits: Kim Mai Guest (Selene), Richard Doyle I think (Mirumu Chief).