Let's Play Suikoden 2!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Thad]

Jowy, on the other hand, is pretty much just exercising questionable judgement all around.

Yeah, that's a weakness in the narrative.

Tactics introduces Delita as antagonist in its opening sequence and then goes into a flashback to explain how he got to be that way.

Suikoden 2 makes Jowy's betrayal a shock -- and it does that by giving very little foreshadowing that it's going to happen. What we've got is (1) Jowy stays to face the Highland Army alone, (2) he gets back very late with no explanation of what happened, (3) he acts a little shifty, and (4) incidentally, he and Riou have two diametrically-opposed halves of a True Rune that have been at war with each other since the beginning of time, a fact which is buried in the supplemental material of the first game. What we don't get, until much later, is any sort of insight into why Jowy made the decision he did or what was going through his head.

So it's not immediately apparent whether Jowy has a plan or has put any thought into this at all. He does, and he has -- but we're left in the dark about that in the early going.

[François]

Right, yeah, that's how I feel coming into it now. I kinda trust that it's gonna get at least partially satisfactory explanation later, but on its face it really feels like a transparent "we made Jowy turn traitor because we needed a betrayal twist in the plot somewhere".

The whole rune thing is a bit of a double-edged sword, I think. On one hand it's got a "cruel, tragic destiny" groove to it which has some interest, on the other hand it's a clear way to make characters act like they're characters instead of people. I kinda suspect Luca Blight has the True Rune of Being a Total Dick and that'll be the official explanation for his ax-crazy antics, but maybe he was just born twirling his mustache and there's nothing supernatural about it. Either way he's chewing the scenery pretty hard.

[Classic]

Because I've had this game ruthlessly spoiled for me by the rest of the internet (OK I read another LP. But it was before we started this beautiful relationship R^2! You can't hold it against me!) I am positively predisposed to what I remember this game doing with Luca Blight.

[Thad]

The series likes to play with contrasting totally, irredeemably, obviously evil villains with sympathetic, relatable ones. In the first game it was Windy and Barbarosa; in this one it's Luca and Jowy.

[nosimpleway]

Suikoden 2 makes Jowy's betrayal a shock -- and it does that by giving very little foreshadowing that it's going to happen.

And bra-fucking-vo for it. Japanese media on the whole is utterly shitty at foreshadowing (as my next update will soon demonstrate) so something coming as an actual surprise for once is a refreshing change.

Oops, wait, you get a couple of scenes with Jowy talking to a ninja and being shifty and wondering aloud if what he's doing is right. Never mind.

[Thad]

Right, forgot about that already.

So yeah something's obviously up, but I sure wasn't expecting stone cold assassination.



EDIT TO ADD: It's even the same ninja who Odessa meets right before dying. One more way Annabelle's death mirrors hers.

[nosimpleway]

Even if we don't know where Coronet is, the game puts us on a map close enough to see it. So in we go.

Music: If You LIsten Carefully




Where did you ever meet a cute mapmaker?




Unfortunately, the Highland occupational forces have shut down the harbor. So no ships are leaving, and people are starting to get hungry. This is a fishing town, after all (although the pork dumplings are reportedly delicious).


Return to the inn, and...


Rina: Stop it Eilie. They're not listening. But maybe there's a handsome young man that could help poor little me out?
Eilie: That's pretty shameless, sis.


The circus troupe realizes who they've just walked into...


And Eilie almost shoves Nanami back out the inn entrance when she realizes who it is.

Nanami: Who, who are you?
Eilie: I should say the same thing. I'm Eilie. I'm the person who saved Muteiu's life.


As always, you can choose to be nice or to be an oblivious asshole, with no change in the overall narrative.

[nosimpleway]

Pilika and Bolgan are playing together.

Bolgan: Have you been well?
Rina: Oh, so you're with your girlfriend now?
Nanami: You've got it all wrong. I'm Muteiu's big sister.
Rina: Oh?....good news, right Eilie?
Eilie: Shut up, sis!!!
Rina: Hoo hoo hoo. By the way, what are you doing here, Muteiu?

Eilie harbors her crush for the entire game, without Muteiu-sempai ever noticing her. Anyway, the screen goes dark as Muteiu (probably Nanami, actually) relates the story thus far.

Eilie: So you've been through a lot too. Our story is pretty much the same.
Muteiu: You got arrested for treason, horse-whipped, rescued, found half a True Rune, spied on the Highland Army, split up with each other, reunited, and had one of your own murder a high-ranking statesman in order to turn traitor?
Eilie: Business was no good in Highland, So we decided to move elsewhere.
Muteiu: THAT'S NOT EVEN CLOSE TO THE SAME THING.
Eilie: We made it this far but....
Nanami: Hey? Could it be? Are you on your way to South Window too?
Rina: Yeah.
Nanami: In that case....
Eilie: Yeah, but the Highlander Army will punish anyone who takes their boat out. So nobody will do it for us.
Nanami: Is that right... What should we do, Muteiu?
Muteiu: Hmm... What we need is somebody crazy. Somebody truly reckless. Somebody who can pilot a boat, of course, but doesn't care about the consequences of anything he does. Somebody who lives devil-may-care, following luck instead of common sense. Somebody who moved to Dunan to get away from his man-eater of a wife and now whiles his days away playing dice games.


Muteiu: Somebody like this guy!

Yeah, there's a short scene outside Tai Ho's house where Sheena gripes about Tai Ho not giving him a lift, but comic timing demands I skip it.


Yam Koo's portrait. He's let his hair get a little messier since moving from Toran.


This scene plays out much like it did for Mute McDohl back before the Toran Revolutionary War. One good look at the kid has Tai Ho deciding to leave it up to luck, as interpreted by a dice game.


It's even the same dice game. Tai Ho is a man who knows what he likes.

[nosimpleway]

Rather than transcribe the entire game script, I think I'll summarize wordy scenes that don't move the plot forward all that much. Like so: We go pick up Eilie, Rina, and Bolgan. Since they're only level 19, I head up to Matilda through the pushable gate for one last leveling trip. They return at level 30, much improved.


The Spark Rune is one that goes on a particularly fast character. Nanami could have it, but she's specced to be a double-beating combat beast. So it goes to Eilie. Once Eilie takes her turn, anyone else who hasn't moved yet takes their turn immediately. For a slowpoke like Bolgan it's a big boost to initiative.


Off we go, then.


Suck it, Sheena.


That's not South Window, but it's in the South Window province of the City-State. It's another fishing port called Kuskus.

Music: Ah, Beautiful Dancer


Tai Ho and Yam Koo bid their farewells, the party orients themselves in the direction of South Window (turns out it's south. Who knew?), and Nanami gets a little steamed at Eilie fawning over Muteiu.


I'm like 80% certain that's not what happened.


Hmm. That will probably bear investigation later.


Inside the biggest house belonging to the richest family in Kuskus, Muteiu sneaks off with their precious Fish Fry recipe. It's all in the breading, see. (Also, in looking up which recipe this was, I realized I missed one in Muse. That may well be unobtainable now. Bloody damn.)


This is South Window. It's south of Kuskus. And South of Muse. And pretty much South central Dunan.

[nosimpleway]

Music: Nahala Yam Koong


Eilie: Who's that speaking in such a loud voice over there? Is that person a friend of yours Muteiu?


Dohoho, you can call him "Bear". Muteiu, you are such a card.

Viktor: Ha ha ha ha ha! So you made it....good. The others that escaped from Muse scattered all over the place and I'm having a hard time finding 'em.... Hey hey hey! Muteiu! How did you ever meet such beautiful ladies? You're pretty good with women I see.
Eilie: Hey! How dare you!
Rina: Hoo hoo hoo.
Nanami: Huh? What? Beautiful? Do you mean me?


Nanami takes a step back once everyone starts staring at her.


He... uh... um... he's... crap.

Viktor: I see........ I heard that Anabelle was assassinated but....... I couldn't really believe that... Well....... There must be some explanation.. Anyway, come over here. Flik is in the tavern too. We'll have a reunion.

Well sure, but before that...


There's an Old Book in the Rare Finds at the item shop.


I sell off the candles I bought for cheap in the Highway Village in Matilda for a solid profit at the trading post.


Oh yeah, some trading posts sell antiques, so you don't have to get them off monster corpses and then appraise them. Did I mention that before?


A few people mention that there are some bonsai on display worth looking at. One of them contains a Friendship Rune, which can be added to a weapon but not put on a person directly. It boosts power of the weapon it's stuck to depending on the number of recruits we've found, so it's a solid bonus that grows throughout the game. I put it on Muteiu's tonfa.


Clive is here, but he's too busy cursing how he can't get to Lakewest to chase Elza to join up with the group.


There's also Gantetsu, but this is all he says.


And Adlai, similarly uncooperative.

[nosimpleway]

Viktor: Sorry to be so sudden, but I've got bad news. Come this way.

The screen darkens as Viktor tells his side of the story after Muse got sacked.


They're still waiting on everyone else to show up. To be fair, Highland has shut down the ports, so it may be that they have to go east through Toto, around the area Viktor's fort was in, and through Radat off to the east to get here. Come to think of it, why didn't we do that?


Since it's pretty likely that Highland will be coming here sooner or later, Viktor's off to hawk his services as a mercenary army to the mayor of South Window. Now that he's without a fort, he'll need some lodgings and some income to keep everyone housed and fed.

Music: Silent Room




Remember this guy from the Hilltop Conference? He got called out by Gustav of Tinto about being a coward during the war with the Scarlet Moon Empire. Indeed, it was Granmeyer's soldiers who raided Moravia as part of Mathiu's plan to convince Kasim Hasil to join the revolution against Barbarosa, but when the Toran Republic took their territory back it was a major loss of face for Granmeyer.

Viktor: Glad to see you're well also, Lord Granmeyer.
Granmeyer: Muse has fallen to Highland and South Window is now in peril. Your reputation precedes you and I'd like to retain your services.
Muteiu: Well, that was easy. Who's up for dinner? I got a good fish fry recipe.
Viktor: But of course, my lord. I'd be proud to help. Right now I'm gathering lost colleagues who fled from Muse.
Granmeyer: By the way, you were born in North Window, weren't you?

He called it "Northwind" in the last game, but yeah, this is Viktor's home turf. Remember that Japanese syllables almost always have a vowel sound in them, so the town's name in the original Japanese would end in "do", not "d" alone. Another one to chalk up to the hasty translation.

Viktor: Well, yes...
Granmeyer: Freed.


The Y stands for Yamamoto.

Freedy: Troops we've sent to investigate report that some type of monster is living in North Window.
Granmeyer: VIktor. You know North Window better than anyone.. I know it will be hard for you, but please investigate the village for me.


Viktor has his hesitations, but Granmeyer gives him a slap on the back and Freedy to assist, so we have our next goal.


Of course, the party didn't get the explanation from last game, so there's some confusion over why returning to his hometown will be hard for Viktor.

[nosimpleway]

Music: Passacaria, with chorus

GUYS

ARE YOU READY FOR SOME REALLY SUPER-EXTRA-SUBTLE FORESHADOWING




THE CAMERA PANS DOWN OVER A MASSIVE PIPE ORGAN IN A CAVERNOUS CASTLE




SOME DUDE IN A LONG CLOAK IS ROCKING OUT ON THIS ORGAN DOES THIS MUSIC SOUND AT ALL FAMILIAR TO YOU

(Actually I realize it may not I only linked it the once in my last LP.) BUT ANYWAY






WHO COULD IT BE

[nosimpleway]

Viktor: Well, it looks like he's willing to part with some gold, but I have to do a favor first.
Rina: Who are you?
Freedy: Forgive me, I'm Lord Granmeyer's assistant, Freed. I've been ordered to accompany you to North Window. Consider me at your service.
Rina: Very polite, aren't you.
Viktor: Well, anyway. I've got to go to North Window. Are you gonna come along, Muteiu?
Nanami: I'm going too. I'm interested to see what kind of place this North Window is.
Eilie: I'm kind of interested too.
Rina: Yeah, I'll bet. Hoo hoo. I'll wait here. Someone's got to watch this kid.
Bolgan: Okay, Pilika, we'll stay here.
Flik: Well see ya........
Rina: Say, would you like to have tea with me? I'm so bored by myself.
Flik: Huh? Me? I've got a friend....
Viktor: Well, I'm leaving, so do whatever you want.
Flik: Wait, why do I....
Rina: What? You don't like me?
Flik: No, no, that's not it.....
Viktor: Okay, Flik, I'm countin' on you.
Freedy: Well let's go then. North Window is northwest of here. Right, Viktor?
Viktor: Yeah, that's right. But if you know that much, I don't think you need me.


So that's the lineup, Viktor and Freedy along for story reasons, Nanami and Eilie along to satiate their own curiosity, and Muteiu because he's the main character. Bolgan, Rina, and Flik of the Blue Balls Lightning stay behind.

[nosimpleway]

Nanami: I'm sorry....... Sorry I asked before.....
Viktor: Ha ha. It's like I told you. It's a ghost town.
Muteiu: You told us no such thing, you said we'd see when we got there.
Eilie: A ghost town? What happened here? What are all those graves?
Viktor: The graves are the graves of the villagers who once lived here. Many years ago, this place was attacked by the vampire, Neclord. He killed everyone for his own amusement, then he sucked out all their blood. I happened to be away from the village, so I was saved. When I saw this, I dug the graves as best I could.... But anyway, that was a long time ago. It all ended when I destroyed Neclord with my own hands.
????: Hmmm. An interesting story.

WHO COULD IT BE


OMG WHAT A SHOCK I THOUGHT HE WAS DEAD WHY DIDN'T THE GAME LIKE WARN US HE'D BE BACK OR SOMETHING

God dammit Japan is terrible at foreshadowing.




Funny thing about facing down a necromancer in a graveyard.

Neclord: But look! Your face has turned white as a ghost, pardon the pun. What's wrong? Do you see someone you recognize? Ha ha ha ha ha!!!
Viktor: You bastard!!!!!!
Neclord: Ha ha ha. This is your punishment for what you did to my body.... This is my revenge.
Eilie: Those dead bodies aren't playthings for you to mess around with!
Nanami: That's right! You're in big trouble now!!! Muteiu is gonna get you!!!


I'd just like to point out that Nanami is now standing behind Muteiu rather than up front near the zombies.

Neclord: I'll take both of you as my brides to live with me for eternity.
Muteiu: I won't let you.
Viktor: Stop, Muteiu.
Neclord: Well then, will you fight me?


Sigh. I guess.


You know how it is, though. Neclord can't be damaged at all.


We, on the other hand, are comparatively fragile.


Neclord: The Star Dragon Sword, was it? Why don't you go get it? This time I'll destroy that sword. It caused me great pain.... If you wish to meet me again, I'll be waiting to greet you in that castle over there.

[nosimpleway]

Viktor: Bah. He's nothing. ...Rune of the Night, indeed!!! That Neclord creep, He was scared of us!!!!
Freedy: So he's the reason little girls have been disappearing... We can't just ignore this!!!!
Nanami: What's that sword the vampire was talking about?
Viktor: The rune that Neclord holds makes him immune to sword and magic. Only the Star Dragon Sword can seal off that rune's power. I borrowed its power last time I fought Neclord. He says he's an incarnation of one of the '27 True Runes'....

...namely, the Night Rune. The rune Neclord uses is the Blue Moon Rune. Viktor got them backwards in his first line here.

Nanami: Wait a minute. What do you mean, 'he says'?
Viktor: It's hard to explain... Anyway, let's go get the Star Dragon Sword. Okay, Muteiu? South of here is a place called the Cave of the Wind. In the deepest part of the cave, the Star Dragon Sword is..... should I say 'sleeping' or 'waiting' or perhaps 'hiding' would be closer to the truth...
Eilie: What? I'm not hiding anything.
Viktor: Anyway, let's go to the Cave of the Wind.


Oh, right. I don't think I pointed them out in the Suikoden 1 LP, but Mukumuku, the flying squirrel in the cape, is an in-party version of a recurring series monster. Like if you recruited a Cactuar or something into your party in a Final Fantasy game, see? They hung around the part of Toran around the area where you find Lepant and start your revolution. They live in the South Window area here.


A proper translation would have really tied the area's theme together. North Wind, South Wind, Cave of the Wind. Oh well. Now we're stuck wondering why a couple of places are named after a stained glass enthusiast from the Warrior's Village.


It's a dungeon.


A dungeon where you are occasionally called to block windy passages with boulders so you don't get blown back a few screens.


Whoa! A couple of griffins drop a Wind Hat, which is a significant upgrade from the sequence-break equipment I bought in Matilda. Major score! Muteiu won't be wanting for a headgear upgrade for most of the game.


The reward for doing the block-pushing stuff is a Blue Gate Rune (and 3000 potch and some Medicine). It's a powerful attack rune that summons eidolons to attack foes, and only goes in a Head slot. No one has the magic development to put a rune on their foreheads yet, so it's just something else to hang on to until later.

[nosimpleway]

Viktor: How do you know my name! Are you one of Neclord's slaves!!
Kahn: Don't get so excited. I understand your feelings though. Neclord....... You're not the only one that has a grudge against him, you know.
Viktor: So you want a piece of him too, eh.....
Kahn: Yes..... The Marley family has been hunting vampires for generations. My father and his father before him both hunted Neclord. Ever since I was a young boy, I vowed that I would destroy him. In the name of the Marley family, I swear I will destroy him!!!

Funny thing about vampire-hunting as a profession. You're either good at it, or you're dead. The Marley line happened to choose a particularly tough target, what with the whole "cannot be harmed by magic or weapons" thing, so you can guess what happened to Kahn's dad and granddad, and why Kahn is driven to succeed where his ancestors failed.

Viktor: So what do you want from me?
Kahn: My business isn't with you.... It's with the Star Dragon Sword and the Rune of the Night. Neclord is using his 'Doppelganger Secret' to make a double of himself. The Neclord that you defeated wasn't the true Neclord.
Viktor: Doppelganger....... You mean it was a fake?
Kahn: He's a vampire who's lived for hundreds of years. He's learned a few tricks in that time. But if we use the Night Rune to cast his spirit out and then seal it, I think we'll be able to capture his spirit.
Viktor: That stupid sword... whadda ya mean 'Night Rune?.... He's the reason we didn't beat Neclord the first time!!!!!
Kahn: Well... I know one thing, without the Star Dragon Sword, we've got no chance to defeat Neclord. That's why I was waiting for you. I knew you'd be coming to get it.
Viktor: If you knew wher eit was, why don't you use that dumb old Star Dragon Sword yourself?
Kahn: No. That sword was not meant for my hands. In any case, the way it looks......
Viktor: That's what I figured.....


Kahn joins up. He carries a Resurrection Rune much like Fukien's, capable of turning undead and eventually shouting the wounded in our party back to life. His Magic Drain weapon rune lets him restore his low-level spell slots on a critical hit.


Viktor: So how have you been, pal?
Star Dragon Sword: .....................
Viktor: Huh? What's wrong? Are you alive? You're not mad, are you?
Eilie: What do you expect, calling him 'stupid', 'dumb'.... You've got to speak to him with more respect....

Oh Eilie, you tease him so.


Eilie: Eh!!!!!!!

But considering it actually is a sapient incarnation of a True Rune in the shape of a sword, and fully capable of speech, you probably shouldn't.

Viktor: Did you say 'abandoned'?... Talk about ungrateful.... I figured you appreciate the quiet and solitude, that's all.
Eilie: The... the sword is talking... And Viktor even called him 'pal'....
Star Dragon Sword: Stupid, girl, I'm an incarnation of the Night Rune. I'm not 'pals' with him or anyone else. This man is nothing more than my servant.
Viktor: What did you say, you rusty old piece of scrap metal! Who did you call a servant!!!
Star Dragon Sword: How dare you tell me to be quiet!....
Viktor: Shut up!!!! You make my head hurt with your constant moaning and complaining......






Yep, the boss of this dungeon is the Star Dragon Sword itself.


It's difficult enough -- well, Freedy is weak enough -- to warrant pulling out the big healing spells from the Bright Shield Rune. And the side effect happened to proc berserk on everyone in the party: the buff swordsman, the knife-thrower, the vampire-clubber, even the weenie civil servant. So that helps.


Star Dragon Sword: What?!!!! Once I get this mad, I fight until my enemies are routed....
Viktor: Yikes!!!!!! Okay, okay. I'm really sorry!!! Forgive me, great god!!! Please forego your vengeance, oh Star Dragon Sword!!!
Star Dragon Sword: Hmmm... Very well. But tell me servant, why did you come back here?
Viktor: Neclord is still alive. Or since he's a vampire, perhaps I should say 'dead'... Anyway, he's back.
Star Dragon Sword: You mean that nasty vampire.... I thought I disposed of him....
Kahn: Neclord is using his 'Doppelganger Secret'. In other words, he's a vampire with a powerful rune.
Muteiu: We'd established that already.
Star Dragon Sword: Impudent little bloodsucker. If that's true, perhaps I'll go with you.
Viktor: Cmon, pal, do it for old times sake. I mean.... Please! I beg of you!
Star Dragon Sword: Very well then.
Viktor: Okay, we're ready. Normal attacks don't work on Neclord, but if we can seal his power with this thing...
Star Dragon Sword: 'Thing'?
Eilie: Ha ha ha ha....
Freedy: Well, now that we're friends again, let's go back to North Window. It's time to do my job.

[nosimpleway]

Music: Praise Be To My Master




Another dungeon, so soon? Yes! The place is crawling with zombies, of course. Not shown: the detour stop I made in South Window to equip everyone with some decent armor, and the swing by Kuskus to sharpen some weapons up to 6 thanks to the talented blacksmith there.


Man, this place is a dump.


Did you forget you can push stuff yet? Because that's the only way in which this is a "puzzle".






Odd choice of punctuation.

Kahn: Between the Star Dragon Sword and the vampire hunting secrets of the Marley family, your time is running out, vampire.
Viktor: That's right!!! Get ready to die!!!
Neclord: Wait. Don't be in such a rush. Of course, I understand that..... But I have my own ideas as well. That's why I summoned you. I have someone that I'd like you to meet.


As before, a body rises from the ground. But this one has a blush in her cheeks, and clothes that aren't just tattered rags.

Neclord: So what do you think? Feeling nostalgic? Her name is... Daisy, isn't it?
Viktor: B, bastard....
Neclord: Well? Do you give up? Just hand the Star Dragon Sword to me, and I'll let you have the girl, okay?
Daisy: V...Viktor.....?
Viktor: D, Daisy...
Kahn: Viktor!!!! If we lose the Night Rune, we'll never be able to defeat Neclord!!!!
Neclord: He he he he he
Daisy: V..... Viktor..... He..... help me........
Neclord: What's wrong with you! Hand that sword over to me.


Viktor: Okay..... Listen to me, bloodsucker!!!!! I know that once a person is dead, they're gone forever!!!!!






So nice to see an RPG character with a lick of sense, rather than "Oh no! Neclord, how could you trick us?!" followed by a lengthy quest to recover the Star Dragon Sword before Neclord destroys it.

[nosimpleway]

Star Dragon Sword: Watch what you call me!!!
Nanami: Let's go Muteiu!! We've got to destroy him!!!


God, you can't even get the quote right. It was literally two lines ago!




His gambit to trick Viktor and get his hands on the Star Dragon Sword having failed, Neclord absconds and leaves the Abomination behind.

Music: A Worthy Foe Appears
The Abomination is the first truly difficult boss of the game, so he gets the boss music link.


I'm not sure what I was thinking doing the Family Attack, honestly. Both Nanami and Muteiu have Double-Beat Runes, so they do double damage every turn. There's no reason to do a special that does double damage one turn and debilitates Nanami the next.


Kahn's anti-undead magic works wonders on the Abomination, doing about 1200 damage.


It, of course, has its own powerful attacks.


But while it's a difficult fight (and even a little taxing since half the party isn't overleveled like Muteiu and Nanami are), it's still not a particularly interesting one.






Kahn out.

[nosimpleway]

Nanami: Eh? Eh? What happened? Where is everyone?
Flik: .......... South Window has fallen to Highland.......
Freedy: What did you say? Is it.... is it true? What happened to Lord Granmeyer?
Flik: Killed... by Solon Jhee.......
Freedy: No... No it can't be... Lord Granmeyer.........


Flik: Y, yes............. Just after you left South Window, we were attacked by General Solon Jhee's 1st Company. He must have judged that we didn't have a chance to win... Lord Granmeyer surrendered unconditionally without a blow being struck. The very next morning, the mayor's head was hanging from castle gate..... I was with women and children, so I managed to get away.....
Rina: Ho ho ho.... Who do you have to thank for getting away?
Flik: Quiet!
Nanami: ?????
Flik: Well.... anyway, we got away and came after you. On the way, we met Apple, Tsai, and Leona.
Freedy: My South Window.....
Apple: Highland is afraid of rebellion, so they're arresting former Muse and South Window soldiers all over the place.
Viktor: Which means it's only a matter of time before the Highland Army comes here. But............. We've got a few people and this abandoned old castle... What should we do?

Regular text crawls across the text box in the sort of way you'd think game designers would have stopped doing by now, but input prompts pop up immediately. If you get into the habit of pushing the button to get all the text to appear in a regular text box at once, you automatically choose the default of any decision that comes up. In this case I choose "Let's run away".


So Muteiu and Nanami leave the castle to look for a way out.


Whatever happened, we sure cleaned the castle up fast.


Needless to say, we can't get into South Window anymore.

[nosimpleway]

Huh? It's just my sister, dude.

Thug: Hey, I'm pretty jealous. Say, buddy, why don't you share some of your luck with us?
Nanami: Eh? Eh? Can it be true?
Thug: He he, shut up little girl!!!


Hey, who's that sneaking up behi--


*whap*






Hey, huh? I didn't have her in my party when I got here!


The sounds of vigorous asskicking ensue.


Oulan: It might be tough at your size, but you've got to protect women. Aren't I right?
Muteiu: Yes. I mean, I'm not sexist. I do my best for anybody.
Oulan: Okay. Good answer. What's your name... Muteiu? My name is Oulan. I was a bodyguard for hire, but now I'm out of work. How do you feel? Can you walk? Should I take you somewhere?

You can see where this is going.


Oulan joins the party. You get the chance anytime you come into Kuskus with a females-plus-Muteiu party. If there are any other dudes, the thugs don't show up.


I like Oulan. She doesn't wear much armor -- or much of anything, really -- and just beats monsters up with her bare fists. But she's got some of the best HP and defensive stats in the game.