Part 22
Right then, where were we?
Guard:
Work! Work!
These are the Demon Emperor's orders!
Any worms slacking off will get my whip!
Oh God
> The World of Envy
One of the first rooms we enter in the World of Envy presents us with this screen. This world is full of these "blind rooms", where you have to rely on guesswork or map-revealing spells to find your way.
> A statue of the Demon Emperor is standing there.
Demon Emperor:
You're putting on quite a good show...
It's beautiful how the two of you are working together as friends and progressing through the Demon World... But I shall make you realise how fragile and fleeting such human bonds really are.
After heading on from here, we find more dark rooms. Thankfully, we have a few items with the same effect as Mapper, which are easily obtained by massacring easily-found Poltergeists. Even then, the path is still tricky because of one-way trap doors...
Akuryou Kuchisake x2 and Yoma Nightmare x2 appeared!
The rest of the article is quite interesting. They keep appearing in the dark rooms.Wikipedia posted:
Kuchisake-onna ("Slit-Mouth Woman") refers to both a story in Japanese mythology, as well as a modern version of the tale of a woman, mutilated by a jealous husband, and returned as a malicious spirit bent on committing the same acts done to her.
When she encounters someone (primarily children or college students), she will coyly ask, "Do you think I'm beautiful?" ("Kirei da to omou?") or a similar question, at the same time taking off her mask, revealing her mutilated mouth. The victim will usually run away screaming, and the Kuchisake-onna will chase after, carrying a bladed weapon, such as a knife. She will catch the victim on the doorstep of their home and kill them there.
We progress further in maze, when suddenly the path ahead turns dark, and a blonde young man comes walking towards us...
> Someone's approaching. He doesn't appear to be an enemy...
Voice:
Reiko... Reiko...
I've been waiting for you. Come to me.
> A mysterious figure appeared.
Reiko:
Eek! No way...! You were waiting for me?
> Reiko ran off.
Reiko's voice:
I'll go. I'll go together with you....
I'll follow you...
Demon Emperor's voice:
Hahahahahaha!
How's that? Your partner has left you!
She didn't care whether you were her partner or not, she would have taken anyone!
Hahahaha!
Will you swallow your pride and give up now?
Or are you going to desperately chase after her?
Aaahahahaha!
I'm sure the answer is obvious. We can't sit around and wait to die here.
It's hard continuing on without Reiko's support, but we can manage for now. Upstairs, we find a town.
Demon Worlder:
This is the World of Envy. The Demon Emperor, disgusted by the enviousness of man, split off this world to punish the sin of Envy. As Envy blinds the eyes of man, so is the World of Envy pitch dark all over.
Demon Worlder:
People's hearts are weak. The flames of envy burn their bodies.
Demon Worlder:
It's hard to regain people charmed by their ideal person.
You've got to be prepared to except everything about them - their own will, whatever - everything.
The town has a few shops, and with our recent demon massacre we can afford a full equipment upgrade.
After that, we continue with the dungeon.We find a set of stairs up near where we found the stairs to the town we visited. They take us to a strange, spacious room, full of automatic paths much like the sliding ice paths you get in some RPGs, except they send you zooming down a certain route with turns and stuff.
Oh, and sometimes it drops you down to the floor below too.
After a bit of memorisation
The floor is pretty hellish, and we take the first stairs up we can find. We still can't use our automap on the next floor, and there are teleporter rooms that warp us around different areas of the floor. This dungeon is pure evil.
Eventually we find another staircase up.
Pop quiz: what is worse than transporter floors?
Answer: transporter floors mixed with dark room labyrinths.
Now not only are we fumbling around in the dark, but also we're getting warped all over the place. At least the COMP is working again.
The next floor up is another delightful labyrinth of dark rooms, full of one way paths.
Eventually, however, we make it to what appears to be the central room of the dungeon...
Reiko:
Tammy... Did you chase me all the way here?
How pathetic.
How could I have gone with a girl like YOU? I wouldn't even dream of it now.
I've found my perfect man. This fake friendship between us is over.
> Will you give up Reiko?
Saying Yes will send you back to the start of the dungeon, a fate far worse than dealing with Reiko's shit. Tammy chooses not to give up Reiko.
Reiko:
What are you still hanging around here like a bad smell for?
Here, this will be perfect for someone as pathetic as you!
Yoma Lilith appeared!
Lilith is a hardy opponent, and it's no surprise that she was good enough in Nocturne to make it to my final party. Her defences are strong, and she's got a few resistances to certain kinds of attacks, too. She can also Paralyse and Sleep party members. On top of that, she has Maha Bufudyne, the strongest ice spell, which can potentially freeze party members.
Oh, and she can do Mudo (death spell) too.
The battle is close, but Rakshasa really shines and consistently knocks off large amounts of HP with his skills, and eventually Lilith goes down.
The article is very detailed and worth reading.Wikipedia posted:
Lilith is a female Mesopotamian night demon associated with wind and thought to harm children. She is a popular figure of Neo-Pagan worship. In the Book of Isaiah, Lilith is a kind of night-demon or animal, translated as onokentauros in the Septuagint, as lamia "witch" by Hieronymus of Cardia, and as screech owl in the King James Version of the Bible. Lilith also appears as a night demon in the Talmud and Midrash. She is often identified as the mother of all incubi and succubi. Late medieval Jewish legend portrays her as the first wife and equal of Adam. Considering Adam inferior, Lilith left the Garden of Eden of her own free will (Other stories claim Lilith refused to lie under Adam, as she considered that this was too submissive). Adam then bade three angels to find Lilith and bring her back. When Lilith refused, God punished her by commanding that she slay 100 of her children, called Lilin, each day. Lilith is also sometimes considered to be the paramour of Satan.
Demon Emperor:
That Lilith was a reflection of your heart driven mad with envy. You were, in fact, trying as hard as you could to surpress your envy...
Reiko:
...Tammy!
What was I doing?
> Reiko returned.
> Tammy received the Ring of Charity.
As a special treat, we get to backtrack through the dungeon. Backtracking is annoying, but at least we have Reiko back to make things easier.
Suddenly, as we're going back through the twisted corridors...
Otsuki:
Hahaha, you've come!
I can't let you pass! I won't let you escape!
I'll win for sure this time! My body modification is perfect!
The Demon Emperor will surely grant me great blessings if I deliver him your heads!
At any rate, there is no scientific proof that you will survive!!
Modified Teacher Otsuki appeared!
This battle happens on a floor where we can't use the COMP, which is too bad. Otsuki specialises in physical attacks, and Buer's Tetrakarn physical-reflecting spell would work wonders here.
Otsuki dishes out plenty of damage, but Reiko's healing spells can keep up. Tammy's shiny new gun and an all-out assault from Rakshasa and Kerberos deal with the rest.
Otsuki:
Impossible... How could I lose?
Show me... some... scientific proof...
Behind where Otsuki ambushed us is a Geyser, which ejaculates us from the labyrinth and back to the entrance to the World of Envy.