Part 100: Sidequesting: Mimula, Ruins' Gate

Last time we rescued Sebastian from Leviathan's Claw, so let's get back to Zaphias and collect our reward.






Shh...
...Thanks to the confusion caused by the motley crew you sent to my rescue, I was able to make off with quite a haul.
Well done, Sebastian, my dear.



You do have to give Leviathan's Claw some credit, though... They've really got a nice collection of weapons.
...This should also please those excitable extremists.
With us on their side, it'll be a new day dawning for this empire... Heh, heh, heh.



Those grimy-faced commoners won't know what hit them...!



You said once that the emperor is the one who makes their noble ranks official, right?
So... If they get rid of the empire, she won't be a noble anymore.
Perhaps she has eyes for the throne, herself.
So? What do ya propose doin about it? Once hired, a guild's pretty much limited to doin' the job and collectin' a pay check.
But do we just pretend we didn't hear their plans to stage a coup...?
Not ta worry, Princess. Those extremists won't amount ta much trouble at all. They'll cause a bit of a panic if they're lucky, and then the Knights'll come down on 'em.
You really think so...?
Why not just pick up your reward, and skedaddle?
Sure it's all right for a former knight captain to say that sort of thing?
Hey, you're lookin' at a strict utilitarian, here.
Well, we shouldn't waste any time reporting this to the Knights.
What do you think, chief?
I'm at a loss...






Ah, ah yes. Thanks for everything... Heh heh heh...
We'd like to settle up with you, if you don't mind.
You did rather well, for commoners. Not that the job was all that difficult.
Yuri...!
Oh, so you don't need it? Hmph, I thought beggars couldn't afford to be choosers.




Now this is interesting: We actually have a choice here. It doesn't affect a whole lot, but hey, it's there.

The sensible thing, of course, is to decline the reward, and report them to the knights.




Yuri...?!
What? Do you mean to say that you won't be accepting my most charitable reward? Oooh! Silly commoners! Oooh!
Best to be prudent at times like this.
Right...








Yuri Lowell!
Here now, don't, I say, don't interfere in our duties!
You'd better not keep us from keeping watch!
Pipe down, you two...!
You can always count on Tweedle A and B for a laugh.
I say, what did you say?
Don't you have something better to do than stand around harassing public servants?



Y-you what?!
I say, this is of utmost importance!
Off we go, Adecor!
Halt! ...Where did you say they were?
Check the alley next to the inn.
I say, this time it's really important!
Here we go again!





Forget it.
Make me proud, Knights!







Alternatively, we can actually accept the reward from Mimula.




That's right. Thank me all you wish. I don't give handouts to just anyone, you know.
...Huh? This feels like it's missing something...
What? There's 200 Gald and plenty of gummy worms in that bag.



What? After she built it up that much, that's it?
Oooh!! What did you expect?! This is all I can afford, at this point!
My Lady. Calm yourself...
Oh, the poor thing. Perhaps we should be giving money to you.
Oooooh!



Yikes...!



You all come, I say, come with me!
Oooh! You keep your grubby little hands off me!



The extremists are rabble-rousing criminals. I'm surprised to see you aiding them.



Hey!
Sch... I mean... Not you too, Captain Raven?!
Wh-what are we to do...?
Why, there's only one thing to do...





Some things never change.





Drat...gets me every time...



Either way, you end up in this cutscene. Which is weird since this cutscene seems to assume you've done both things or something? I dunno, it's weird.

Watch the cutscene!



So...did we do the right thing...?
Sure we did. Who knows what kind of mess they'd cause if we just left them alone.
Gotta say though, it goes against the guild code of conduct to tell secrets ya find out when you're on a job.
Really?
You gotta keep quiet about any dirt you find out during a job for your client.
...Wow, old man, that's actually...honorable.



Besides, stickin' your nose into the client's business isn't gonna earn ya any extra dough.
I guess you're right, but...
Take the pay you got for this job, for example.



Yeah... Like last time...
Right. We did exactly what the client asked, and look how badly that turned out...
Which reminds me... Have you figured out what this whole Brave Vesperia thing is for yet? Is it for the money? Because you like it? What?
We...



Yes, Brave Vesperia does what its members feel is right.
Even if that doesn't always make money like Raven was talking about. ...I-I mean, for now we'll still do jobs that pay, of course.
Huh. So that's what Brave Vesperia does.
Hmph... Not sure how much that actually cleared up, but...
You guys sure you're all right with that? Bein' in a guild isn't all fun n' games, ya know.
We never expected it to be. And even if it was, that wouldn't change how we feel..
Yeah, we'll do things our own way.
Hmph, listen to this kid.
What?
I think it sounds great!
So that's where things stand, old man.
Heh... Knowin' you kids, you'll probably find a way ta pull it off.
Of course!


If we reported Mimula to the knights, there's one more scene in Dahngrest:





Looks like you finally remembered who we are.
Well, of course I have. Got something here with your name on it, after all.
What?
Don't get too excited, now. It's from one of the lieutenants in the Imperial Knights.
I wonder what it could be.
Huh? Who's it from?
Oh yeah, there's a note attached.



Skip that part. What do they want?
Uh, okay... "Thank you for your cooperation in the recent arrest of anti-Empire elements. Due in part to your aid, a plot to overthrow the government has been averted. Financial compensation of any guild by the Imperial Knights is strictly forbidden. On behalf of myself and my two subordinates however, I humbly offer you our heartfelt thanks."



...!
My my, how gentlemanly.
Future cooperation? What is he thinking we're going to cooperate on?
Huh, back from the job we did for Mimula...
I guess this'll have to take the place of payment for that job.
It's none of my business, but it's a pretty big deal for the Knights to send anything like this to Dahngrest. There're folks around here who'd rather not draw the Empire's attention. Do make sure and watch yourselves.
No worries, it's nothing like that.
Feels pretty nice to finally get some recognition for our hard work, huh Yuri?
Yeah, let's hope we can keep this up.

6000 Gald!


No matter if we got the above scene or not, we can talk to the barkeeper (again) to get our next quest.



You're bound to start getting offers on your own before long, I'd wager. Here to find a job? Well, how does this sound?



An absent-minded client, hmm?
Seriously, can't he just go get his own stuff?
There must be some sort of extenuating circumstances.
Yeah, there's gotta be. Plus, this would be an official job.
A job request from Ruins' Gate... They were the ones behind that trouble at the Coliseum...
We fell completely for Yeager's act.
Don't remind me about stuff like that, old man.
But we defeated Yeager, so...
So things should be okay now, right?
...I hope so.
Got your game plan set? Payment's set at 5500 Gald. How 'bout it? If I had to put money on it, I'd say any Ruins' Gate people would be at Union HQ. They'll fill you in on the nitty-gritty.
Got it!

Well then, let's head over to the Union HQ.

Skit: We're a Guild
It's been a slow process, but Brave Vesperia has really come into its own as a guild.
I think it's still nowhere close to a full-fledged guild.
But everyone's trying their best!
Well, I guess the guild does have a good style.
A good style?
We have the kid for comic relief, the Krityan as the love interest, and Yuri as the straight man.
Oh. I thought you were talking about how fashionable our clothes were!
That'd make you the space cadet, then.
So you're the straight woman?
I'm not a member of your crazy comedy act.
...We're a guild, you know.

Our client is in a corner in the entrance hall.



Hi, um, we're looking for Mr. Markham...
I am Markham. You are?
Mark, it's you know who. That request you posted...
Have we met?
I'm Mark's friend, Joshua.
You're here because of my little want ad with the Union?
Yep, that's us. We'd like to hear a little more about it.



Did you say, shovel?
That's right, shovel. They're also called trowels or spades sometimes.
That's it?
What do you mean, "that's it?" This is no trifling matter! Have some respect!
Now, Mark...calm down.
Calm down?! He dismissed our precious tool of the trade as if it were nothing!
I heard it too, but you've gotta take some deep breaths now.
If it's so precious to you, why'd you go and forget it in the first place?
Urk... Well, you see..
He was set upon by monsters and forced to leave it behind. He wept the whole way back.
Of course we'd love to go get it ourselves, but without some help, there's no way.
Why not cut your losses and buy a new one?
If you can afford to pay us, that sounds like an easier fix to me.
Do you know what you're saying? If a tool doesn't fit the hand just so, it's impossible to get any real work done!



This makes no sense...
Without my shovel, I've got no job. Please!
Okay, then. We'll do it. You can't always pick and choose the work that comes your way.
You don't say... Hey, why not? You're starting to sound like a boss again.
Heh heh... Think so?
Don't go heaping too much praise on him. It goes straight to his head.



The place is the temple of Baction on the Hypionian continent. I'm depending on you.
Of course it would have to be there...
What part of the temple?
As I recall, I headed to the northern side as soon as I got underground. I went one floor deeper, and I remember checking out the area around there...
That information's a little vague.
Also, you can tell it's mine by the name on the handle.
We'll just have to go with those clues then.


Back to Baction, then! The area Markham is referring to was blocked last time, but now that we have a Level 3 Sorcerer's Ring, we can explore the whole place.





I have no idea why those two rooms in the bottom left disappeared from the map.

Anyway, going up here...



And blast that wall to the left here.





Oh hey, another one of these rooms. Be careful not to fall off, since the way back up takes quite a while.



Shortly after this we find another stair to the lower floor.



The path down here is pretty straightforward, some short one or two room side paths with treasure but that's it.







To the very south, we find our shovel.



It looks like "Harmfall" is written on it.
...But no sign of Markham's name.
So it isn't this one, then.
Shall we keep looking?
If it is here, shouldn't it be somewhere nearby?
Wonder if we missed it somehow...
There's no worry of that. It wouldn't get past my eyes.
Then somebody must have walked off with it.
Who'd just randomly pick up a shovel with them when they left?
How should I know? I'm sure there're shovel fanatics out there.
Sort of like how you're a blastia fanatic...
I am not a fanatic.



But the item we were sent to get isn't even here. That's different than failing.
Your client may beg ta differ with ya on that little point, though.
Man...
Well, what about this one?
There'd be no point dragging it around. Let's just leave it here.
You might just be making the next shovel fanatic that comes along very happy.
And you'd know just how they'd feel, right Rita?
You should know you're gonna get chopped by now...
I... I think maybe...
Huh...?
Anyone who's forgotten a shovel in a place like this has to have something to do with the excavation, right?
Well...yeah, that's probably true, but...
Why don't we drop it off with the client and let them decide what to do with it?
Hmm... Maybe this "Harmfall" is someone those two guys know.
Doesn't exactly lighten our load, but I guess we can take it to them.





And that's all we can do here apart from exploring the remaining rooms on the other side of BF2. There's only a couple herbs over there, though.



You can shortcut there by falling off here if you really want to.



Skit: A Map of the Shrine
It's so boring looking at the same types of rooms over and over again.
No way! When you make a map, you realize how everything's laid out! It's really interesting!
*Whine...?*
Would you say you're happy so long as you're making a map?
Yeah! Nothing calls to a man's heart like the thrill of making maps!
I've never had that thrill. I just need a map to show me where I'm supposed to go.
*Woof*
Hey, wait! I still haven't written down all of the places where you can find monsters...!




Skit: The Guide
Are we going to keep going, or what?
Yeah, we should. Or are we lost?
That's impossible. We have a map, right?
Well, it's useless if we can't read it.
So, Captain, you're drawing the map. Which way do we go?
Let's see, this way's north, so that would put us... Uh...?
We're here.
North is the other way.
Nice! Judith, you're amazing.
And the mapmaker is useless.
Huh...? L-looks like I'm not so good at making maps indoors... Heh, heh heh...
That's not as funny as you think it is. Come on, let's go.



And that's all we can do here. Here are the completed maps, for reference:




Treasures:


Recovery Artes: Able to move in mid-air after Recover.
Vitality 2: Increases Max HP by 400.
Spirits 2: Increases Max TP by 50.













Back to Dahngrest, then.





No, um... We actually didn't see it down there...
...So then, someone else must have run off with it... Oh dear...
Come on Mark, keep your chin up.
...We're um, really sorry...
No need to apologize... If it's anyone's fault, it's mine for leaving it there in the first place.
...
Um... We could look a little more if you'd like...
Whoa, hold your horses, tiger.
There might just be a clue or two that we missed...
Not you too, Rita Chiquita.
I'm sorry I said you were talking nonsense earlier. I didn't realize your shovel really meant that much to you.
Do you really think there'll be some sort of clue down there...?
Um, hello. That's what I'm sayin.
...On the other hand, there's no guarantee we'll come up empty-handed if we take another look.
Now, hold on...
Well I suppose that chance is good enough for me. I'm in.
I-I'll come along too...



We will have to nudge our payment up just a touch, in exchange, though. ♪
Karol doesn't miss a beat, does he?
Thank you...but I'm afraid your willingness to help is more than enough.
But Mark... Why?
I was pleasantly surprised to find people who understood just how important that shovel was to me. And in the guilds, when a job's been done, that's the end of it. We in Ruins' Gate take no exception to that rule.
Yeah...
You gave it your best shot. I've got no trouble paying you for your time.
Really...?
It's only natural.

5500 Gald!

I'll have to bid farewell to my old friend, and go find myself a new one.
That's it, that's the ticket, Mark. Well then, we should be moving on...



Harmfall... ...You mean MY Harmfall?
Your...?
Maybe you misunderstood me...



Huh...?
Hold on...you don't mean...
Yes, this is the Harmfall, a legendary shovel that's been in his family for generations. Oh, luck was with us today.
So then, that name written on the handle is the shovel's name?
...I guess.




We have to give Estelle the credit this time around.
Who, me...?
You're the one who suggested we take it back with us.
Yeah, if you hadn't spoken up, Estelle, the Harmfall would've gotten left behind.
I-it wasn't really anything. I just...sort of thought we should bring it along. Hm...still...
Huh?
It sort of feels like I did my first work for the guild.
Heh, that so...?
Right on. ♪
Let's see if we can keep this going in the future.




And that's it for 360-available sidequests at the moment. Next time we'll do two more PS3 ones, and then we finally go back to the story.