Part 121: The New King of the Wolves

It's time to finish the Wolf Bout. First, we need to head to the Forest of Wind.


As we walk toward the village, we come upon another white wolf.


There's a Star Wars joke in here somewhere...



Awroo...! (Lobo...! But I saw you die right in front of me!)
Awroo, awroo... (To fight you, I put aside shame and came back to life as my younger self.)
Awroo... (...When you were at the height of your glory, the King of the Wolves...?)
Awroo? Grrr... (Can't you feel your blood stirring? There's only one thing to do...)





Ha! Enough talk. Come on, then, Blanca!




Lobo fights the same now as he did the last time we faced him, including having an Instant Death attack. The only difference is his stats are a little better.


We get the Instant Death 4 Ring Add-on for winning. Level 4 are the strongest effects, with a very high chance of working against regular mooks.



I managed to win...somehow. Never thought I'd be fighting my own blood relative...twice! Must be karma...





Awroo, awroo... (But thanks to you, I was able to be a warrior to the very end of my days...)
Awroo... (Lobo...)
Awroo... Awroo... (Blanca, you can't relax now just because you beat me. Ernest is even--)


With that cryptic warning, Lobo fades away...


But not before stamping our card.




Normally I link these, but I just wanted to point out that they went to the trouble of designing a younger-looking portrait for Lobo, but then they just used the old one for his second encounter with Blanca anyway.


On the way to confront Ernest, we stop at Domremy to see if anything is going on.

Daniel: I was playing by the church, and I thought I heard somebody calling me. I peeked in the window and... ...I saw a girl praying in the church! It was Jeanne. I'm absolutely positive of it.







Georgi: I finished praying at the church and was about to go home when I heard laughing. I turned and saw Jeanne playing. She was smiling. She looked so happy! I wasn't scared at all. It kind of got me, right here, you know?






Now, I know Jeanne told Yuri that he wouldn't see her again until it was time to answer her question, but I'm sure she won't mind if we break sequence.


...Maybe I spoke too soon.



Blanca...











You don't have to wake Yuri up. I made him go to sleep for a while. It looks like he hasn't decided his answer yet.



Guess what? I'm inside Yuri's soul. I've been watching over you and everybody from here this whole time!
*whimper* (You have...?)
You've been on a long, long journey, haven't you, boy? But it's almost over. He'll come up with his answer soon.



That's right. The answer to the question he's been asking his heart. The question of "What is happiness?"
Awroo... (Happiness, huh...?)
Yeah. Blanca, do you know what happiness is?
A-awroo, awroo! (To me, happiness is helping the people I love.) Aw-awroo! (I don't need anything else but that.)
...Good boy. You know that, and that's why you've found happiness. Hee hee! What a smart boy you are!
*whimper, whimper* (I'm not smart. If I had been smart, I would've protected you...)
Don't worry, Blanca. I'm really happy now. I can be in Yuri's heart, and your heart, forever! It's really warm. Listen to me, Blanca. Don't ever stop being happy, okay? No matter what happens, make sure you go back to your new master, okay?
Awroo... (Jeanne...)




She kisses Blanca on the nose.




Jeanne spreads her arms and rises into the air, slowly spinning.


She disappears into her standard beam of light.

You got Charm Pouch


Once Jeanne leaves, Yuri wakes up.




For going back to Domremy and finding Jeanne, we get Blanca's Ultimate Armor.


The villagers all have something new to say now that we've explored the church.









Daniel: Whenever I get sad, I remember Jeanne's laugh. Then I feel better, somehow!


Anyway, back in Montmartre, some innocent children are being harassed by a proto-furry.






Kids, how would you like me to shake your hand under the Arc d'Triumph?
...Don't touch me.
...Awroo, awroo! (At this point, who cares who you are? You're the fifteenth and final wolf.)
He he. That's right. But do you really think you can beat me? This isn't any ordinary wolf suit, you know. It's the fruit of all my long years of research, "Wolf Technology"! With this on, I'm the strongest hunter on earth! Go ahead and come at me, if you're fool enough to try!





The hell you will!


This one counts as a boss fight.


Wolfman hits pretty hard, and he has a lot of HP. This fight can drag on for a long time, but I have a secret weapon up my sleeve.


Blanca is equipped with Delay, which keeps pushing back Wolfman's turn.


It ends up being a pretty one-sided fight.



That's what happens to guys who try to mask what they really are...





Grrr... Awroo! (Now tell me why you started this stupid competition in the first place.)





About twenty years ago, I used to hunt wild beasts. That's when I ran into Lobo--as my enemy. After a fierce battle, I beat him. But as soon as I did, I got an intense desire to fight even stronger wolves. But there weren't any wolves stronger than Lobo. I decided to create some by having strong wolves fight each other. That was the start of the Wolf Bout.
Grrr... (All that for the sake of your petty ego?)



But you still have a job to do. You have to kill me and get revenge for Lobo.



Awroo, awroo... (Don't care about that. And I don't want Tetsu trying to get revenge on me.)
...Thank you for everything, Blanca. And congratulations. Here's your final stamp!


We've got Blanca's final Special Attack now. It's, uh, it's something else. We'll see it in action soon enough. On another note, I like the little detail of Lobo's stamp being faded compared to the other two.

You got Beast Medal



It's the fruit of my research, Animal Technology--surpassing even Wolf Technology! I'm sure it will help you in future battles.
Awroo... Awroo, awroo! (Beast Medal, huh...? Pretty fancy name. Thanks, I'm sure it'll come in handy.)


And now we have Blanca's Ultimate Weapon, too.






I think we should check in with Henri. Back at Tiffauges Castle, Beard's dialog has changed.

Beard: I have to watch over them until they can finally rest in peace. To atone for my sins, you see.

Your sins...? Then does that mean you're--?

Beard: Me...? I'm simply a mere guide. That is all...

Doo doodoodoo, doo doodoodoo...


Anyway, Henri seems to be gone, but there's an old man standing where he was.





Henri...? Oh, that talking wolf! You changed back. Hey, good for you.
I think Ernest was the one who put the curse on me. So when you defeated Ernest, the curse lifted. How can I ever thank you? I know I'm an old man, and I don't have much longer to live, but I really hated the thought of dying in my wolf form.
Yeah, being a wolf is pretty embarrassing and all...



Oh, uh... No, that's not what I meant. Please don't take offense.
So what are you going to do now?
Well, I was on a trip when all this happened. I think I'll just continue my journey.
I see... Well, take care. You're not a kid anymore, you know.
I know. You take care too, everybody.





Next time you go to Montmartre, you might see an interesting development.


Oh, I have got to check this out.


Ernest seems to be gone, but there's some kid here.

Huh...? What's up with this rugrat? He a friend of yours?
Awroo... (Never seen him before...)

Boy: It's me! Tetsu! Don't you remember me?

Tetsu...? That little wolf Ernest had with him?
Awroo! (But you're a human.)

Boy: But I always was a human! I was just wearing a wolf suit that Ernest made me.

...Well, what do you know...
.........

Boy: But never mind that. You gotta help me! It's Ernest... He turned into...a bug!

Awroo? (A bug?)
Gee, this is getting more and more ridiculous...

Boy: And then he said he had to set up an Insect Bout so he could turn back into a human, and went flying off somewhere!

Awroo... (Hmm, insect...bug... Come to think of it...)
I did do one thing to pay Ernest back. Next time you go to Montmartre, you might see an interesting development.
Awroo... (Did he really...?)




Once we have returned Shanghai Heaven to Roger and have gotten the Ultimate Weapons for Yuri, Karin AND Lucia, we can return to Roger's house to get this scene.

What's the matter, Roger?
I got a visit from an old friend yesterday!
An old friend? Who...? You don't mean that woman, do you?!
That's exactly right. Margarete Gertrude Zelle! She was hoping she'd find you here, she said. She's on a very important mission at the moment. She just stayed long enough for tea, then went rushing off again.
Margarete, huh...?
It's too bad she couldn't stay longer.
Ha ha! I'm sure she'll show up again. Wherever there's trouble, that's where you'll find Malkovich!





What's this?
Margarete forgot it.



*gulp* Th-this is...?!



Exactly. One of her outfits. Look at that thing! Who could possibly lose wearing that...?
Man, this outfit is great! But why would Margarete leave it behind? She's always so careful...



Oh, I get it. Don't tell me you swiped it, Rog!
Don't be ridiculous! Of course I didn't!
Are you sure...?
Of course I'm sure, you idiot! ...But never mind that. Wouldn't you like to see somebody try it on?



What?! I never knew you were into playing dress-up, Roger!
Gah! You dolt! Not me! Who said anything about me wearing it?! I nearly just had a heart attack imagining it!! No, the one this outfit would look good on is...



What? Wait a minute, guys. What are you looking at me like that for? What have you two got up your sleeve?
Shall we ask...?
*gulp*





A-a little g-gift for you.

You got Dating Outfit



What in the world is this?! Hey, there's nothing to this outfit!! Don't tell me you guys want me to wear this thing?! It took me forever just to get used to what I'm wearing now!!
We just want you to try it on...just once.
*g-gulp*



*SMACK!* *SMACK!*





Um, she took it with her, though...


So, here's the outfit Karin got so riled up about. I'm not sure two scraps of dish rags and a sash count as an "outfit", though. You'll notice that this isn't an armor; it's an accessory. Actually, it's an alternate costume for Karin. Equipping it into one of Karin's three accessory slots changes her appearance in battles, and that is all it does. No Stat boosts or anything like that. And no, I'm not going to parade Karin around in it for the rest of the game, so don't ask.


Perverts.