Part 61: I Feel Like I'm Forgetting Something

After the last cutscene, we take back control right outside the palace. Heading down along the wall of the Hermitage, we find something odd sticking out of the snow.


Oh, no. No, no, no, no, no.

Hmm. Nice tuna...




It's pining for the fjords.

No doubt about it. This tuna swam its way through the violent waves of the Tsugaru Strait to make its way here! A fine tuna! A tuna among tuna! I too have been called a fish out of water. This fish is perfect for me!


It's...best not to delve too deeply into the workings of Joachim's mind. Just in case it's contagious.


Anastasia has much yet to learn about our little dysfunctional group.



You got Frozen Tuna



You're not going to eat it, are you? You're going to use it as a bludgeon, right?


There he goes.






I'd like to take this moment to point out that this is not the most weapon that Joachim picks up. Not by a long shot.


A few people notice that something is wrong.

Leonid: Oh, have mercy...!



Joseph: The monsters are attacking!

You would think that there would be random encounters in the streets right now, since they're supposedly being overrun by monsters. You would be wrong.





Sergei: All we can do is pray to you! Please! Save your helpless flock!




There's a lot of stuff available right now. First, we're going to stop in the forests outside Domremy and take care of their little wolf problem.





...Awroo! (Yeah. Some call me that.)


Apparently, Martega is unintelligible even to other wolves.





Aw-awroo! (H-hold on! You're an official competitor in the Wolf Bout, right?) Awroo, awroo! (You can't go getting your humans to help you! It's against the rules!)
...Awroo, awroo! (Fine. I'll take you all on, all by myself!)


Having to fight one-on-three is why I put this off 'til now.






And, of course, the fight starts off in the worst possible way.


Until you get them down to one, they love to Combo against Blanca. Each of the Black Dog Stars has different abilities. Maya has Poison and Bright Light, Mash has Gale Spin and Holy Pulse, Martega has Mental Break, Air Shot and Hell's Eyes.


Mash and Martega aren't as strong as Maya, so they're easiest to take out.


Once Blanca isn't getting dog-piled every turn, Maya falls quickly.


Three Lottery Tickets and a new Tarot card!




Every Wolf Bout is the awesomest After School Special ever.





Awroo! (You'd better not bother Domremy ever again! And I won't tell you twice...)
Aw-awroo. (We won't. We promise. And to show you we mean it, here.)


This time, Blanca learns a new Manifestation. Comeback restores full HP and SP to an unconscious ally.

Awroo, awroo! (Damn! I won't forget that!)






They've already noticed the wolves are gone back in Domremy.

Awroo!

Nagy: I guess we shouldn't try to depend on you forever. From now on, we're gonna defend this village ourselves!


Back in Paris, Gepetto's landlady is NOT HAPPY.

Lottery Member 10: Anything'll do! Whatever you got! Ah! That lottery ticket's fine! So come on, hand it over!


Lucky for us, she's also one of the lottery members.


Even luckier, her red area has the Alloces Crest (Arc Surge). It's a Fast Ring, but I get it first try.



You won Alloces

Lottery Member 10: Make sure you pay on time next month! Understand?!


Still in Paris, but this time the Cathedral section, Guy has something special for us.

Guy: I can't let it go for free, but let's see... For you, how about 10,000 Cash?


We have to buy is sight unseen, however. It's an unique accessory only Gepetto can equip.

You got Silver Chair

The Silver Chair raises Gepetto's Physical and Special Attack and his Physical and Special Defense. Guy also has a new accessory for sale in his shop, Chainmail Belt.


Back in Goreme, the next level of Solomon's Trials has been unlocked.

His orders? But I thought he was already dead?
There is no life and death for the king. Just as I have lived for 3000 years, so the king lives in eternity...



You do not need to understand! All we have to do is obey the king's orders. So, let's get on with the trial!

This logic could be applied to so many JRPG games. "You don't need to understand why robots are appearing in a fantasy setting or why you have to repair one, just do it!"


The new level is called "Monk", but for now we'll ignore those and just finish the "Beginner" trials.


For Beginner, Level 3, I choose Yuri and Karin.


The challenge doesn't come from the enemies (which also include Ekimmu, Sting, Clawed Soldier, Thug, Fat Thug, Gregor, Centipede and Roach Queen). It's from the Ring conditions, especially when the enemies slap you with Tight Ring and Fast Ring on top of the Reverse Ring. If you lose, it'll be from missing a section, not from dying.


I never lose. _{That you know of.}





You got Third Key

These things can be lifesavers (as you'll see shortly).


And one last round to finish this level. This one isn't too bad if you're a somewhat high level. I keep Yuri and Karin, adding in Lucia.


Other enemies we fight are Skeeter, Death Snail, Zosim, Domovoi, Katherine, Fortune Stick, Kheperer, Gatorback, Clawed Admiral, Calamity Orb, Statue and Revenant.


All done.





You got Mr. Sax

Er... yay?


Um, okay. That's quite an impressive, uh, afro.


We don't have to go very far to use it, either.

You don't spend your evenings alone, dressing up and acting out scenes and stuff, do you?

Huh?



That Purple Bondage suit! It still smells of the queen! I mean... Well, if I had it, I'm sure it would help me think up some new dress designs.
You want this? Oh, I get it! You just wanna get dressed up in it, right? What a perv. ...Oh, well, why not?


Not enough bleach in the world to scrub those mental images out of my brain.

Thank you! I'm so happy! Okay, I'll get sketching right away! Like this... a bit here...abit there... Done! See! It's superb! Very regal, with a touch of naughtiness! I'm a genius for sure, even if I say so myself! That really perked me up! Now that I've got a new design, I'll sew you a dress any time you want! Of course, there's the usual S-t-u-d Card exchange! Hmm?!


May as well get it over with.


I mean, how bad can it be?


...
......
.........
Fuck Japan.

Well, at least the dress gives Gepetto a new spell (and the spell itself is kind of funny) and it boosts attack for two elements without giving Gep a corresponding weakness.


Our last stop is the Graveyard to pick up the third Wind Fusion.



The Soul Drop releases the Power of Wind!!




The Wind guardian is called Erisvorch. In my opinion, this can be the hardest of all the fights to unlock the Max Fusions if you don't do it right. I...didn't do it right.


Erisvorch always casts Gale on itself, giving it two turns for every one Yuri gets (at his current level).


Normally, I'd fuse into the 2nd Wind Fusion and have Yuri cast Gale on himself to negate that before changing into a different Fusion. This time, I (stupidly) went right for Fides.


Then, once Fides got hit by Slow, it was too late to correct the problem.


The Turn Priority started looking like this, and then it was all I could do just to stay alive. I ended up using a Third Key, because if I healed, Yuri would go Berserk. If I used a Pure item to fix his SP, he'd die during Erisvorch's next attack.


Using a Key when the Ring is set to Gamble narrows the hit area to a mere sliver. But a sliver is enough.




I love Keys.





You got a Libertis Soul!!

Your Power of Wind has been completely resurrected.


Libertis is pretty.


In other news, there's a new character entry after Rasputin's in the Library.


I also have Lucia's new Aroma Oil.

One last thing, we have enough Crests to finish another section of Solomon's Key.


This is the Wilderness of War. There are three areas surrounding it. The one to the left is the Eternal Boneyard. The little one with the diamond-patterned floor is the Palace of Transgressions. The one on the right is the Bastion of Riches.

Here's the layout:
And here are the Crests and their clues:

Alloces: Man with a lion's face in bronze armor. Fights by the frontier Bastion, sometimes in support of the horses friend Berith.

Ipos: An angel with the head and feet of a goose and the tail of a hare. He incites people to a war fever with his beguiling song.

Eligos: Appears as a black knight. Lingers here to steal from the dead. Hides his plunder in a tent at the center of the eastern army.

Ose: A red panther with green eyes. Feasts on fallen soldiers. Uses the waterway below the Palace to send letters to his ocean friends.

Sabnock: A warrior's ghost in rusted armor. Wounds caused by his claws turn rotten and fatal. He hangs all his prisoners by the neck.

Dantalion: Appears as an old man in robes. The Hundred-faced Man, his visage changes constantly. He lives in a tent to the west to avoid battle.

Balam: A hideous giant with the heads of a sheep, bull and man. Plodding and slow, he stays behind the battle, guillotining prisoners.

Halphas: A giant vulture with jet-black wings. Loves rotting flesh, so he lives next to Leraje and at the frontier of the battleground.

Berith: A large warrior atop a red horse, wearing a crown of gold. He enjoys fighting the enemy Halphas, so he also lives at the frontier.

Leraje: Appears as a hunter in a short, green cape. He respects Dantallion and lives nearby, as if to protect him with his mighty bow.