Part 23: Ruins of Obel (I)

The masses (...) have spoken, and our next task is to completely ignore the cannons and fishmen and go digging through an old ruin.



Eugene will be riding the kangacorn, but he's taking the Unicorn Rune this time.



Snowe gets this, because... I dunno, not as if he has the MP to make use of anything else, really.



Here's the important thing when dealing with the ruins: make damn sure you're stocked on consumables. The ruins consist of several maps in succession without any chance to buy more stuff in between. You can reequip between them, however, so bring enough stuff to do so. Elemental beads are a necessity.



Oh, and remember how I said Snowe was good? Turns out I forgot he's missing Extra Move.

Especially for a close combat unit, that's a huge weakness and it's very hard to justify using anyone who doesn't have it.



At least he starts off with his own sword this time.


Just a little bit more, and soon, I'll have shops all over the world!

Chiepoo's business is taking off (thanks to us!) so not only is he wearing fancier clothes...



...he's selling them, too! The robes all do the same thing for the appropriate element; they're some of the nicest gear in the game for casters, at least until you can reach S rank naturally.



He also stocks higher level beads as regular items now - pretty handy.



Finally, let's take a moment before diving into the ruins.



That track plays here again.

That Rune...?

...

Are you saying we've seen it before?

Andarc was... somewhat distracted the last time it came up.

Possibly...

Hmmm...
No, I don't remember it. Sorry.

It's no big deal.

What are you getting at?

Nothing, really.
It's just... That Rune has drifted from the hand of one person to another. Like Steele... and Brandeau...



!
Brandeau?! You mean--

He's dead. Has been for a long time.
That Rune sucks the life out of people. It sucks their life dry and then moves on to its next victim. That's just what it does.



It's dormant right now, so I'm okay. No need to worry about me.

I'm perfectly willing to accept all the credit for that.

Kind of problematic that he's here getting into fights, though. If Lazlo gets himself killed, it's pretty likely the Rune of Punishment would revert to its "complete asshole" phase. Better not let him die!

(We can't. Lazlo is immortal. As if he needed to be more broken.)

I hope so...



Yeah, you could say that.

Hmm...

Definitely Lino's genes.



So! Ruins, then.



Our party for the day.



It's full of supports.

Yes?

I'm fighting well, aren't I?

You're still level 1 and haven't even touched an enemy yet! Hell naw!

Of course.

Thanks. That's a relief to hear.

Lazlo is a better man than I and tells Snowe what he needs to hear, and gets more Good Will. Snowe isn't about to prove him wrong, either.



Next up, it's Flare's turn.

Hey!

At least someone doesn't feel the need to go princess this, princess that all the time.

How's it going?

Flare appreciates it.

Good, good. And you?

Just fine!

And they get more Good Will, too.



Andarc lightnings a skeleton and Maxine fires it, gaining the first level of the map. The first of many levels.



Eugene hops off the kangacorn to show off the Unicorn Rune's first tech, First Style. It adds some much needed range to spear users, and allows them to hit multiple enemies.



This, in turn, allows Snowe to finish off one of the skeletons, and holy shit will you look at that EXP!



Naturally, he gets a level out of it.



This crab is a fire type, as opposed to the water types we faced on Lazlo's Island, but it retains the huge AoE breath attack.



Pablo helps out.



Eugene pulls the kangacorn out of his pocket again, and runs up to draw the crab's attention...



...wait, shit, fuck, that wasn't what I was hoping for. Snowe Death count:



III... and holding, bitches!



Snowe can't really do much to the crab, but he gets EXP for having the balls to try anyway.



Maxine, however, can do things to it, and so she does. Those are some nice level-ups!

To be honest, I've never really used Maxine despite her being about the same as Andarc, since, well, I already had Andarc. Like I said before, though, she is one of the best casters in the game, and she's certainly doing well for herself so far.



Snowe kills the fire elemental.



We've already seen this part of the ruins and I don't really care to tangle with the skeletons on the far end of the map, so let's move on. We got a B rank here, probably due to all that crab breath earlier on.

This time, we're selecting Proceed deeper.



The map is new...



...but the conditions are the same as before.



Sadly, it has bats.



And predictably, they keep casting Wind of Sleep everywhere.



*dink*



Andarc is sick of this shit and beats a bat to death.



Pablo helps!



And even gains a level out of it. Look at that.



And then Snowe gets one for doing something much more impressive (read: killing the fire elemental.)



The problem with lightning characters is that they're weak to earth. So, even after getting buffed, Andarc is weakened by the terrain left by the buff.



Damn, Flare, "nice" is an understatement for that level!



Eugene can't do anything but stand around like an idiot because he's asleep.



Lazlo has another chat with Snowe.

I'm ready, too.

Let's go.

And that nets us True Friends Attack.



Oh, how nice. A target has presented itself!



Bats. Bats everywhere.



Wind of sleep!



Maybe Pablo can - oh wait, no, he can't. Never mind.



Snowe can't finish this skeleton all by himself, so he sets it up for a combo instead.



Enemy/ally distinction is kind of funny on a single target tech, but what the hell.



Either way, it performs quite well, and Snowe once more gets four digit EXP.



Congratulations, your level is now equal to Pablo's.











Andarc has had it with these mother fucking bats on this mother fucking floor.



Sadly, magic has generally gone from one-shotting things to almost one-shotting things, so Maxine can't quite get rid of this skeleton. Maybe Pablo can help, though-



No, wait, he can't do shit.



Eugene can finally move again and takes sweet, sweet revenge on the closest bat.



And Maxine pays for her inability to one-shot skeletons.



Flare is happy for the EXP, though.



God fucking damn it, but at least this time it doesn't take.



Andarc doesn't need more experience, so he tags out.



I'm going to get some digging done as well.



Maxine is out of damaging spells, so she bashes the bat over the head with her stick instead (for several times more damage than Pablo can manage) and actually gets a level out of it. That +2 is where it counts; I am content.



Pablo can't reach any of the enemies, and couldn't do anything to them even if he could reach, so he just stands here in the corner. Feeling ashamed of himself.



Double-Edged Sword is not an instant cast spell; note the glowing thing on Lazlo's portrait - that signifies charging a spell, as well as when it will be done. In this case, Lazlo can finish the spell before the bat's next turn.



Eugene finishes the other bat. He doesn't really get anything for it because his level is pretty high, but I just want the damn thing dead.



With all the enemies she can actually reach dead, Seneca pesters Flare a bit instead.

*sigh*
What is it?

Don't you think the King of Obel will be mad that you, the princess herself, had to fight?

Hey, this is Lino we're talking about. He probably expected it.

I wouldn't worry about it.

And they get more Good Will.



FUCK BATS

And that's the last enemy on the map.



Next, Lazlo uses his terrible world-shaking powers to open a treasure chest. It contains some Sniper Gloves.



Rene finds the first and only buried treasure of the map...



...and Eugene nabs the second and last chest. This one has an Iron Mail; nothing really impressive here.



Snowe one-shots a water elemental. Look at this, Pablo. In the time it's taken you to go from level 5 to level 6, this guy has gone from level 1 to level 7. You are the worst fucking character.



Rene makes it to the buried treasure and gets a Drain Orb and a level for her efforts.



That's the last treasure, so Eugene hits the exit, and we're done.



Hmm, I wonder...

_{(Actually no, that's a lie.)}