Part 4: The Village of Engeve

: “You're finally awake.”

: “H-Hey! That coach is under attack!”

: “The army's chasing those bandits! It's those Dark Wings I mistook you for!”

: “You there! Move your coach before you get caught in the crossfire!”







One wonders why horse drawn carriages are still being used for civilian transport if the military has gigantic sci-fi land battleships.





: “Fon slot activation detected!”

: “The enemy set off fonic artes using the Fifth Fonon! The bridge is going to explode!”


: “Tartarus, full stop. Activate fonic barrier.”

: “Yes sir! Tartarus, full stop!”

: “Fonic barrier activated!”



...Well, it still looks better than the Desien base explosions in Symphonia.





: “Wow! That's Malkuth's newest land dreadnaught, the Tartarus!”

: “M-Malkuth?! What's the Malkuth military doing hanging around here?”

: “What do you mean? Of course they're here. There's been no end to the rumors that Kimlasca's going to start a war any day now. They've tightened security in this area.”

: “Wait a minute. This isn't Kimlasca?”



: “What are you talking about? This is the Malkuth Empire. The West Rugnica Plains.

: “Hang on! I thought you said this coach was headed for the capital, Baticul!”

: “Nope, Grand Chokmah, capital of Malkuth and home to His Imperial Majesty, Peony the Ninth.”



: “How can you be so calm about it?! How could you make a mistake like that?!”

: “didn't recognize the area. What's your excuse?”

: “I've been confined to the manor. I've never been outside. How the hell should I have known?”

: “...You're sure acting strange. Are you two Kimlascan?”

: “N-No. We're from Malkuth. We have business in Baticul. We were on our way there.





There was no reason to screencap that other than Luke's face here. Somebody was having fun modeling him.

: “If you're going to Kimlasca, you should've taken the road south, rather than crossing the bridge. Mind you, with that bridge out, you can't go back now...”

: “Are you serious? NOW what do we do?”

: “We're passing through Engeve to the east on the way to Grand Chokmah. What do you two want to do?”

: “If we go all the way to Grand Chokmah, we'll just wind up farther away. Let's stop in Engeve and think about how to get back to Kimlasca.”



This is our first “choice” in the game, and all it really does is flip around who says the exact same dialogue. There are two unique scenes regarding which one you take, but neither of them are anything to write home about.



I pick the first option simply because it's much more in character for Luke. If you pick the other option, his mood does a 180 and suddenly he's very happy and wants to see the sights. Okay then.



...Ouch. Yeah, remember in the OP where I said the world map looked like something out of an N64 game? I was not lying.



: “This is Engeve. If you're going to Kimlasca, you should head for the Kaitzur checkpoint south of here. Take care.”

: “A checkpoint... we won't be able to get through without passports. This could be a problem...”

: “It'll be fine. If I say I'm Duke Fabre's son, they'll let us through in no time. But right now, I want to check this place out! This is my first time in a city!”

: “A city...?”

: “Well, I suppose we do need to prepare a bit before we leave. Let's spend the night here.”

Engeve is a fairly small town, and there really isn't much to do here aside from the main quest.

...Well okay, there are one or two things.



: “It sure does. I'd like to learn the recipe from them.”

: “Huh? What are you going to do with the recipe?”

: “Make it, what else? The only recipe we have right now is rice balls. I'm sure we'll get tired of that.”

: “Yeah, I'd definitely get tired of rice every day... well anyway, let's go check out the source of this tasty smell!”

: “I hope we won't be bothering them...”

: “I'm sure it will be fine.”

The reason we're actually getting this scene is because we chose to take the coach to Engeve. Had we chosen to walk, Tear would have made us rice balls along the way and we'd have gotten the cooking tutorial then.



: “..Oh no! I'm out of miso! Sana, would you be a dear and go get some for me?”

: “Whaaat? No! I'm reading here!”

And you though Luke was bratty...

: “Then you there. Since you're just standing there, would you go get some from the old lady at the water mill?”

Two strangers just walk into your house, and before they've said a word you ask them to go run errands for you. Yeah, this is a JRPG village, all right.



I've never chosen the second option, because I'm not an asshole.

: “Well, I guess.”

: “My, how nice of you.”

: “Shut up. You got a problem?”

: “If you ask the old lady who lives in the water mill, she'll give you some. Thanks a lot!”

Our first sidequest, kind of, but really it's more just an extension of the cooking tutorial. You can do this even if you've already had the tutorial before.



: “Hey, granny, give me some miso.”



: “...Honestly, Luke... Just stand back and let me ask.”

: “Excuse us, but we're preparing dinner at the house in the rear, but we've run out of miso...”

: “Oh, I see. Will this work for you?”

: “Thank you very much.”



: “G-goodbye, now...”

And a quick jaunt back...







...Except not really, because rice balls restore HP, whereas Spaghetti cures poison and is thus useless at the moment.

Anyway, our first “sidequest” down.

Skit: Camping Out

: “Some town this is. I bet they don't even have a decent place to sleep.”

: “Do you do anything besides complain?”

: “All I want is a decent bed and decent food! What's wrong with that?! I never even had to think about things like this back at the manor.”

: “With Rotelro bridge out, we won't be getting back to Baticul anytime soon. You may not be able to find your kind of meal for a while.”

: “*sigh* Never thought I'd be homesick for the food back at the manor...”

: “Look, nobody's forcing you to stay at the inn. If you'd prefer, we can leave right away and sleep on the ground after nightfall.”

: “O-on the ground? No way. Anything's better than that. No more complaints from me...

: “I want to go home...”



Walking past the inn, we see some commotion.

: “What's all this?”

: “We'll never get to the inn like that.”

: “Oh well. Let's take a look around until things calm down.”

Surprisingly prudent! Perhaps there is hope for you yet, young one.



There's a bigger house to the north, but we can't enter at the moment.

Skit: Impressions of Engeve

: “Boy, this place sure looks poor.”

: “...How so?”

: “Well, look. There's no mansions or anything, and all the roofs look like they've got fur growing on them.”

: “No. It's a farming village. They raise crops and livestock. It's what they do. Everybody looks like they're enjoying theselves. I don't see anything 'poor' about it.”

: “Oh, okay. I thought this was, like, a village of gardners or something for a while there. So I guess they're working in the 'primary industries' or whatever.”

: “...Yes, I suppose you could say that.”

: “Huh. Sure looks boring to me.”

: *sigh*











“Sir! You need to pay!”

: “Why do I have to pay?”

: “You just can't take a store's products without paying!”

: “But the manor pays for everything all at once! ...Oh wait, this is Malkuth.”

: “Malkuth OR Kimlasca, the normal way to shop at a store is to pay money for what you buy when you buy it.”

: “I haven't got any money on me!”

: “You have the money the monsters dropped.”

Because wild boars often carry around pocket change.

: “Oh yeah! It's not gold so I'd forgotten all about it.”

This is a quick but informative line, where we learn that gald != gold. So is it paper currency? Then it makes even less sense that monsters hoard it, because the usual handwave of “they like shiny things” does not apply here.

“Hey! If you're not going to pay, I'm going to have you arrested!”

: “Nobody said anything about not paying!”





: “All right, let's explain how shops work.”

: I can't believe he doesn't know how to shop at a store. Are all aristocrats like this?

Well, with Luke now looking like even more of an ass, time for some secrets!



Heading back this way...



We find ourselves a hidden back alley!



Which lets us break into some guy's tool shed and steal his life bottle. Okay.

That's about it for interesting stuff, so let's go back and see if the inn's calmed down at all.






: “This has happened time and time again since those fires up north. You think maybe some deserters hiding out up there have started to come here looking or food?”

: “Or it could be the work of the Dark Wings!”

: “It's just food. Would those Dark Wings guys really bother to steal that?”

: “What do you mean, 'just food'?! In this village, food is the most valuable thing there is!”

: “Oh come on. So someone stole it – just go buy some more.”

: “What?! We break our backs all year tending these fields.”



: “It's you! So you didn't just steal from me, you were at it over here, too, huh?!”

: “What...? You're the one who raided my storehouse?!”

: “They say the criminal always returns to the scene of the crime.”

: “Are you calling me a thief?!”

: “You tried to steal an apple from me!”

: “That's it, I'm taking you to the authorities!”



Not even 12 hours with the guy, and she already wants him in jail. Oh Tear.











: “Rose! We've got trouble!”

: “Hush! We've got an important guest from the military here. Calm down!”



: “I'm telling you, it wasn't me!”

: “Rose! This guy might be with the dark wings!”

: “He's got to be responsible for all the food getting stolen lately.”



: “Do I look like I'm going hungry to you?!”

: “My, my, what a lively boy. Let's all just settle down first, all right?”



: “Colonel...”

: “Who the hell are you?”

: “I'm Colonel Jade Curtiss, Third Division, Malkuth Imperial Forces. And who might you be?”

: “Luke! Luke fon-”

: “Luke!!”



: “Have you forgotten? This is enemy territory. You father, Duke Fabre, is one of Malkuth's greatest enemies, Don't use your name so casually.”

: “Oh. Really?”

: “Yes, there are plenty of people here who've had family killed by your father. You don't want to cause any unessecary trouble, do you?”

: “Is something wrong?”





: “We were headed for Chesedonia, but we boarded the wrong coach and wound up here.”

: “Oh? So you're with this man suspected of being with the Dark Wings?”

: “We're not with the Dark Wings. The Malkuth military forced the real Dark Wings to the other side of Rotelro Bridge.”

: “Ah... I see. So you were on that coach from earlier.”

: “What is all this about, Colonel?”



: “I can assure you these two are not with them.”

: “They don't appear to be mere food thieves, either.”

: “Fon Master Ion...”



: “I found this in the corner of the room.”





...No, that's air.

: “Yes. A cheagle is what probably raided your food stores.”



: “But you did eat the apple before paying. You need to learn not to do things that'll make you look suspicous.”

: “How was I supposed to know? I didn't know I had to pay.”

: “Well, sounds like that takes care of that. I think you all have something to say to this boy and his friend?”

: “...I'm sorry. With all the burglaries lately, I've been a little on edge.”

: “Sorry for accusing you.”

: “I'm sorry I made the situation worse.”



: “I'm not a boy.”



: “I'm sorry. Luke, could we let bygones be bygones?”

: “Yeah, whatever.”

: “Glad to hear it. Now, I have business with the colonel. I'll think of a way to stop the cheagles, so all of you just go on home for today.”







: “Fon Master Ion?”

: “The supreme leader of the Order of Lorelei.”

: “Hey, wait a minute. I heard Fon Master Ion was missing. Master Van said he was returning home to look for him.”

: “Really? That's news to me. I wonder what's going on... He didn't look like he was being held captive.”

: “I'll go ask him.”



: “Hmph. Why do I have to follow your orders.”

Skit: I Should've Asked

: “That business with Ion is really bugging me. I really should have asked when I had the chance.”

: “No need to rush it. You'll have a chance to talk to him tomorrow. Let's get some rest at the inn for now.”

: “Ahh, dammit.”

...Thanks for reiterating exactly what we just talked about?



The way to the inn is finally clear.



: “Sorry, I was away from the inn for a little while...”

: “Honestly, that Ion! Where did he run off to?”

: “Ion, you mean Fon Master Ion?”

: “If you're looking for Ion, he's oever at Rose's place.”

: “Really?! Thank you~!”

: “Hey, wait a second. What's the Fon Master doing here? I heard he was missing.”





: “Yes, but she looks like a Fon Master guardian, so I assume Ion's journey is officially recognized by the Order of Lorelei.”

: “A Fon Master Guardian?”

: “They're Ion's personal guard, a special force within the Oracle Knights. They accompany him on all official business.”

I know I keep hammering the JRPG cliche's angle, but come on now: the elite fighting force chosen to protect the most important figure of the One True Religion is composed of preteen girls? For fuck's sake, Japan!

: “That chick is one of Master Van's soldiers, huh... what was up with Ion being 'missing'? I'm gonna be so mad if that was just a mistake!”

Skit: Who's Jade

: “That four-eyed fool Jade really got on my nerves.”

: “I thought he was quite proper for a military officer addressing a civilian.”

: “Mmm... Well, all I know about the military is out White Knights, so I wouldn't really know.”

: “Colonel Jade, though... I know I've heard that name somewhere.”

: “Yeah? I couldn't care less about military types, so if you want to find out about him, do it yourself.”

: “You really are selfish. Do something about that attitude before it gets you in trouble.”

: “Lay off, already, would you? Now you're getting on my nerves, too.”

: ....

Anyway, enough of Luke being an ass (for now). This guy is chillin' in the corner, despite having been absent from the last cutscene.



Weapons, glorious weapons! Luke and Tear both upgrade their weapons.



I spend the rest on magic lenses. A Magic Lens lets you see the stats of any enemy you use it on, including their weaknesses, resistances and HP. The best part is that after using it on a monster, all others of the same type you encounter will have their HP visible, so it is a good long term investment to carry some around.






Finally, we can rest at the inn.



Luke is having a little freak out in the corner. I'd suggest watching the video for this one, the animation loop is pretty great.

: “With the bridge out, that's the only way back to Baticul. We also have to do something about passports...”

: “...Grr, I can't stand it. I can't just leave like this!”

: “Unbelievable, are you still mad?”

: “Of course! They called me a thief!”



: “They're herbivores that live in the woodlands of the East Rugnica Plains. They're one of the symbols of the Order of Lorelei, along with the Order's founder, Yulia. Their forest is just north of this village, actually.”

: “We're going there tomorrow.”

: “To do what?”

: “To look for proof that they're the thieves.”

: “I doubt we'll find any.”

: “Shut up! I've made up my mind.”

: ….

Skit: Engeve Inn

: Zzz....

: “For all his whining, he sure sleeps soundly enough. Just like a perfectly ordinary boy...”

: Zzz...mmm? “Woah! Wh-what are you staring at me for?!”

: “I'm sorry, I didn't mean to wake you.”

: “Well, what the hell are you doing staring at people when they're sleeping?! Go to bed already!”

: “Yes, I suppose I will. Good night.”

: “Man, what's your problem anyway?”

That skit plays once the scene fades to black automatically. There are a few others like it, but not many.



With a good night's sleep, we're now ready to head off and get Luke's revenge on... whatever it is that has wronged him.

Synopsis

I woke up in the coach to a huge noise outside. Apparently it was a Malkuth Land Dreadnaught chasing after some thieves called the Dark Wings.

That's when we realized we weren't in the kingdom of Kimlasca, but rather the Malkuth Empire-our enemy-instead. And the “capital” the coach was heading for was Malkuth's capital Grand Chokma, not Kimlasca's Baticul. But now it's too late to turn around, because the Dark Wings blew up the bridge back to Baticul when they fled. We ended up heading for the nearby village of Engeve instead.

We finally reached Engeve, the grocer's hamlet, part of the Malkuth Empire. What a dirty, boring place.

But it looks like they don't call it the grocer's hamlet for nothing. I saw a really good looking apple while I was walking, so I picked it up and took a bit, but all of a sudden this guy started yelling at me to pay him. We've had merchants at the mansion before, and I never had to pay anything, so I didn't know what the heck was going on. I gave him some money anyway, to shut him up. I guess you always have to do this when you buy something... what a pain.

Afterwards, we headed to the inn, where where people were talking about food getting stolen. All of a sudden they started accusing me and took me to see Rose, the village leader.

There was this four-eyed guy name Jade from the Malkuth army at Rose's place, and he saw right away that I wasn't the food thief. Then Fon Master Ion from the Order of Lorelei came in and said that some monsters called cheagles were responsible, so they finally let me go. I'm still pretty mad, though. I thought Ion was missing, what's he doing here? I wanted to ask him about a lot of stuff, but we decided to stay the night at the inn.

We met this kid at the inn who said she was looking for Ion. Tear said the girl's a Fon Master Guardian. A kid protecting a kid, huh? Anyway, I'm really tired. Time to get some sleep.

Tear said we'd head for the border tomorrow, but all that business about being called a thief really made me mad, so I decided to go to the Cheagle Woods to set things straight once and for all. What to I care I Tear objects? Tomorrow I'll go to the cheagles' nest in the northern forest and tear them apart!