Part 19: Journey Is Over

BGM: Otherworld Dungeon (Ancient Tomb)



Last time we defeated Princess Inaruna's bodyguards, so it's time to venture further in. A few new demons made their appearance on the last floors.



The giant Gogmagog and Ouroboros appear, and the tiny bird Huoniao shows up as well.



The last big hurdle before getting to the final boss is a floor of pure warps. All the spots labeled in pink are warps, with some requiring you to enter them from a certain side. As another "screw you," this floor also has one-ways doors that will take you back halfway through the dungeon.



Down we go.



And we made it. The COMP is always in the red on this floor, meaning it's got the highest encounter rate in the entire game.



BGM: Astral Meeting



: Now, Princess Inaruna. It is time to revive that ancient grudge. Unleash all of that hatred that has been trapped with you all this time.
: I have brought one who carries your lineage, a woman of your direct bloodline, who has come to reincarnate you.



: ...You finally made it, but it's too late now. I have removed the seal, and Kumiko Hatano will soon become the vessel for Princess Inaruna's soul.
: Her confines have been lifted, and there is nobody left who can stop her now. The princess's great power will cause destruction the likes of which you can only begin to imagine. Fufufufu.



It's a little difficult to tell, but there goes Kumiko's soul.





Aaaand there go the seals.



: Now my organization's goal has been achieved. All these foolish humans will be destroyed and left for dead, fufufufu. But before that, I will put an end to these matters between us. You may not truly be Kyouji Kuzunoha, but you are still a Devil Summoner. I have my pride as a Dark Summoner and cannot forsake it for any reason!
: The body of Kyouji Kuzunoha and the soul of Naoto Shibata, this is where you will meet your end.



Damn, son! Have you been hitting the gym while planning to murder an entire city? Were you gonna destroy the place with your pecs if this plan didn't work out? Get real beefy, bitch.

BOSS #23 - SID DAVIS (3RD BATTLE)

VS Fiend Sid



Despite his newfound muscles, Sid is still incredibly weak. The only thing that's really changed between this fight and the last one is that he now has 300 more HP. No new moves, a bit of increase in power, and that's it. Maybe he should've been training his mind instead of his body.



: ...T-To come this f-far...Making it here shows...how strong you've grown...Kuzunoha...no, Naoto Shibata...
: ...But you're wasting your strength......You're powerless...against the reincarnated Princess Inaruna...







INARUNA: ...I will not forgive them...I have never forgotten...The vile treatment against me and my nation...My resentment did not fade, even when they sealed me away...I cannot use my full power here...But you shall know the true depth of my anger.

BOSS #24 - INARUNA (1ST FORM)

VS Inaruna

I always thought that Inaruna's design was reminiscent of Lilith due to the snake-like appendages wrapped around her body. I guess she didn't have any clothes handy when she reincarnated, so she just grabbed the next best thing.

Inaruna's got the same HP as Sid, but both her power and moveset are much better than his. She can cause some real damage with her regular attack, and I'd go so far as to call it her most dangerous move. It can hit up to 5 times and, if you're unlucky, can hit the same person multiple times and kill them rather quickly.



She's got some standard magic to start with: Absolute Zero and Thunder Break.



She also has two exclusive moves. First is Miss Cold Heart, a physical attack that Yoshitsune and I send right back at her. Her second one, Fiore Splendido, is similar to Megidola but can hit all enemies.





Most MegaTen games are satisfied with two back-to-back battles at the end of the game, but not Devil Summoner! With no stops in between, it's time for the third and final battle.

BGM: Last Battle

It might not be the epic final battle music you usually hear in video games, but it's a nice, jazzy little number.

BOSS #25 - INARUNA (2ND FORM)

VS Inaruna

Inaruna's second form pulls out all the stops. Her regular attack, while more powerful than her first form's, is actually less deadly because it hits everybody only once instead of multiple times. All of her stats took a major jump from the first form - her defense, for example, leapt from 210 to 266, and her HP doubled to a high 5000.



To start with, she can inflict some nasty ailments that could potentially ruin your day. Spite Shout can cause Paralysis while Crying Scream can cause either Stone or Charm. Both can ruin your day, as Spite Shout sends you scrambling to waste your turns healing Paralysis while Crying Scream can charm your strongest fighter or (worse yet) completely stop you dead in your tracks if both the protag and Rei get inflicted with Stone.



In offense, she has Megidolaon and Genocide Fist. Megidolaon is the strongest Almighty attack that hits everybody, and Genocide Fist is an Inaruna-exlusive move which damages the slowest party member.

Lastly, she has the buff and debuff dispelling moves Dekaja and Dekunda. Having somebody constantly using either buffs or debuffs is a pretty good strategy, as you can then have her waste a turn casting Dekaja or Dekunda.

BGM: Cornered



And the sun rises.



INARUNA: ...What have I been doing? It seems an evil force caused me to become consumed by the hatred that had been sealed away long ago. You have returned me to sanity. My thoughts exceeded my karma, but I have been freed. I must say thank you. The one who is dwelling in the body of Kyouji Kuzunoha, Naoto Shibata...

: ...What was I doing just now...?



: You saved me, didn't you? Thank you...Naoto. You really are alive, but I guess you have to continue to live as Kyouji Kuzunoha. I won't say "goodbye," though. Instead, I'll say "until we meet again."

Ah, Kumiko is such a nice girl. We can still make it work, baby! I'm still the same guy on the inside!



: Hey, you finished with the sobfest? Charon'd rather see me dead, but too bad for him. I saw what you were fighting right now, so I can't keep my mouth shut.
: I'm stuck in this punk for now, but when somebody better rolls around then I'll be taking their body. You can just keep being a Devil Summoner, like you have been. Of course, if you screw up then I'm sending you straight back to Avici.
: Just keep doing what you can. Later.

Y'know, Kyouji, you might have been a total dick who dragged me into this whole mess in the first place, but I still like you. Good luck, buddy.

: We did it...Kyouji...



: You may not really be Kyouji, but you're a Devil Summoner worthy of the Kuzunoha title. Still, since you aren't really Kyouji...



: What do you want me to call you?

Kyouji Kuzunoha
>Naoto Shibata

I've had a good time running around as Kyouji Kuzunoha, but I think it's time for me to really be me. You can call me by my real name.



: ...Naoto Shibata...The Devil Summoner Naoto Shibata. I'm your partner, Rei Reiho. Let's start fresh from here.



>Thus the great destruction that threatened Hirasaki City was prevented and a new Devil Summoner was born.

Staff Roll

BGM: Staff Roll
MUSIC: And, Night Dawns... (Staff Roll)

Even if you don't normally watch videos, I recommend checking out the credits because there's little FMV clips that aren't anywhere except the credits and you can see some FMV clips that I didn't make into GIFs. If you don't watch the vid, I implore you to at least listen to the Staff Roll theme because it is my absolute, number one favorite ending theme from all of MegaTen.

Well, we're done with the story, but not done with the game quite yet. I hope you've enjoyed it as much as I have, and see you next update for one last dungeon.



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Next update: Killing demons, what else is new?