Part 55: Arsia's Manor (2/2)

This one's a bit short, compared to anything else done so far, but that's pretty much entirely because I overestimated how much content there was to wring out of the second part of Arsia's Melodrama.



Flashforward now to after kicking Volt's ass and getting the Rheairds. Yes, we have to wait until this far in to do the second step of this one quest. Fortunately, nothing else we'll be seeing here will make us wait quite so long between parts to do.



: Honestly, I didn't want to come here.
: Whatever happened to her after everything that happened?
: At any rate, somebody might be here. Let's pay her a visit.



: Everyone looks so gloomy. Did something happen in the past?
: Um, well, yeah...
: But I was a statue at the tie, so I don't really know what happened.
: Huh!?
: What do the two of you think you're doing? I'm going on ahead.
: Hey, wait!
: Um, so that's about the size of it.



I can't quite put my finger on what, but something seems different here. Maybe it's just me.

Oh well, maybe Arsia's finally done being a mopey git and has fixed the bow in the 150 year interim? A bit optimistic but you never know!



: Oh, it's you! It's been a long time. How long has it been, anyway...? How is it that you're still alive?!

Well it's a fairly long story but...



: What an incredible story. I can't deny the fact that you're actually standing in front of me now.
: We're going to finish things with Dhaos in this age once and for all!
: This must be the working of fate.
: Without a doubt. And...
: I know what you want to say. Can you come upstairs with me?



: I think this is her final answer. The first thing I realised, she was as you see her. I believe she became a statue in my place...

...Why? She was insane, certainly, but I wouldn't have pegged her as suicidal.

: How horrible...
: When I look at this statue, I can almost tell what she wanted to say. Also, I found this bow at my feet.



: It's Chester's!
: It is!
: Hey, Cless! What about my bow?
: Wow... I can't believe it! I can feel the power just holding it in my hands!



This sounds like such whiny melodramatic nonsense, I want to put it down to the bad translation quality of the port but for I doubt that's the case and it's really just poorly written. I'd love to be wrong on that one though.

: Here it is, at long last. I will return the bow to you in her place.



: I will live here from now on. Until the day her heart's wounds are healed... Until the day we can be together once again...

Well, this was a terrible sidequest that just ended up making me want to punch whoever wrote it.

And on that note, let's just go kill some dudes!



More specifically, back in Miguel if we talk to this guy at the training place we can get a mini-battle gauntlet against five guys that get increasingly more difficult. If this sounds suspiciously identical to the Cave of Ordeals that's because it pretty much is. Only this time we solo the 5 guys with Cless rather than Suzu so it's even easier, and has a crappier reward to compensate.



They get "harder" in the same way the ninja in the Cave of Ordeals do (more HP, deal a bit more damage etc.) but since I'm kinda ridiculously overpowered for anything remotely like this, I mop the floor with them all in no time. They're also identical sprites; like, not even palette swapped or anything.



Our reward for bothering in the first place is another title. We can't run the gauntlet any more after getting this, so there's nothing worth sticking around for.



Let's just go to Euclid, see what's changed here... and then finish up with Arsia's stuff since in spite of what you might expect there's still one last little bit left to do!

...





Arsia in all of her... ahem, "glory."