♪ Broken Routine ♪
Dimitri/Mercedes B.
What can I do for you? Oh, is the cuff of your overcoat still torn? Mending that shouldn't be a problem at all.
It's pathetic, I know, but I fear my sewing skills are... Well, as you can see, they're just about nonexistent. Goodness! You must have been concerned when I tore your cuff.
Ah, well... That is to say... Would you please teach me to sew? I hear you're rather amazing at it. Of course I'll teach you! Don't look so heartbroken.
You will? Thank you! I owe you for this. I'll go get my sewing kit. You wait here.
No need to dance around the issue. You're fed up with my clumsy efforts, aren't you? I thought you might end up bending some needles if you tried mending this on your own, but...
How did you manage to break a pair of scissors? I-I'm just... I'm so sorry. Really. I try to be careful, but with delicate work like this, I just can't seem to manage.
There's no need to apologize! But you must have been uncomfortable making your way here with this tear. My inability to control my own strength is humiliating. Of course I'm useless at needlework. No giving up on yourself. You just have to practice, that's all. No matter how difficult something is, if you keep at it and don't give up, then you're sure to improve. Isn't that what you told me? Right you are. To give into despair isn't like me. Thank you for the reminder. OK... I'm ready to give it another go. Great! I'm glad to hear it! First things first, let's make sure the needle is actually threaded this time. No! I bent another one!
♪ Broken Routine ♪
Another sky terror for our roster.
Leonie also gets her class upgraded.
I had renown to spare, so I boosted Lysithea to Riding A+ to get her Movement +1 again.
Hey, Abby.Still wonder if this is meant to be diagetic or not.
On the next week, I went to do auxiliary battles, since there was a rare monster available. Gonna get Parthia out of this, hell yes.
Becoming a wyvern rider is, evidently, already paying off well for Felix.
Still gonna take her to endgame.
Wish I could say the same for this man.
Caspar is doing much better.
Sylvain...not so much.
Through a very large amount of feeding cats and dogs around Garreg Mach, I have plenty of mythril, with which I can make Parthia usable.
Finally, I can promote Marianne to a bishop.
It's a shame Flayn isn't really combat-capable. Or even healing-capable. Not having Physic is such a major strike against her.
Speaking of Flayn, though.Dimitri/Flayn B.
Ah. Hello, Flayn. I could ask you the same thing.
Me? I was feeling restless and came here to think. I see. I'm here for the same reason. How funny!
But...are you feeling well? You look fairly pale. It's nothing. I just have a bit of a headache.
Oh my, headaches are quite troublesome, are they not? I am sure it will subside soon!
Actually, I am quite talented when it comes to healing magic. If you will allow me, I will have you feeling better in no time. That's kind of you, but I'm fine. But...why not? Have I offended you somehow? ...
I must never forget that day. I must never allow their deaths to be forgotten. I feel this headache is a reminder of sorts, of those I failed to protect...and of their murderers, who still roam free. I see. That would explain your somber demeanor. Still, I do not agree with all you are saying. I feel that if I were your father, or any of your dear friends whom you lost... I would want you to let go of me eventually. I would never want someone whom I care deeply for to be pained by the loss of me for eternity. And I doubt they would want that either. Perhaps. Unfortunately, they have left this world, so I can no longer ask their preference. We cannot ask them directly, but we can imagine how they might have felt. You know who they were as people. As for me, if I am ever to be but a memory in your future, I want you to remember me in a way that brings you joy. I would want you to smile when you recalled me, to feel warmed by the notion that I cherished your company. I cannot imagine I am the only one who feels this way. Surely anyone who loved another would wish only for their peace and happiness. ... I...must apologize. I was out of line, clearly. I must get some rest now. Please do not stay up too late yourself. Good night, Flayn. And...thank you.
♪ Broken Routine ♪
This isn't the last time that how Dimitri remembers those who died in the Tragedy of Duscur, and how he chooses to act in their stead, will be brought up.
Since we're nearing the end of Part 1, and things are about to get serious, I switched everyone back to their standard clothes. We've had our fun looking at everyone as butlers and maids, but there are...certain scenes, which are going to show up as soon as later in this update, that I really don't feel like ruining with silly clothes.
...Well, Adan's in his standard clothes, plus the glasses.
Paladin isn't going to help Sylvain's speed issues, but eh. Maybe the mobility will help.
Man, so many big Def buffs from promoting into advanced classes...
Well, it had to happen eventually.Annette/Gilbert C.
Annette...I—
I've been looking everywhere for you. Please stop treating me like a stranger. I can't bear it! ... Father, wait! How long will you keep avoiding me like this?! I have lost the right to face you or your mother. This has nothing to do with rights! We're family. I'm your daughter.
Indeed, you are my daughter. Yet I am no father. I am only a fool who abandoned his family.
You really think it was foolish to abandon us? I do.
Then the least you can do is apologize. I'm fine, but Mother deserves as much. I've finished my studies at the school of sorcery and entered the Officers Academy. I have a busy and satisfying life now. But Mother... She's waited for you to return all this time, living under my uncle's roof. I... I am sorry, Annette. I already told you. Don't say that to me. Apologize to Mother! Let her see your face! That I cannot do. I know you do not understand, but it is the way of things. As for you, Annette. Say the word, and I will disappear from your life forever. For now though, I must return to my duties.
♪ Broken Routine ♪
Gilbert is a...very bad dad. A decent chunk of his bad dad-ness comes down to the really fucked up ways that the culture of Faerghus encourages people to deal with trauma, but Gilbert in particular takes those poor coping methods and fucking runs with them.
An uneventful month. Time for shit to go real south.
♪ Beyond the Crossroads ♪
I hear the archbishop will accompany us to the Holy Tomb.
If something happens to her, all of Fódlan will suffer. We must protect her at all costs! This may sound mad, but perhaps we don't have to worry so much about that. Lady Rhea has said before that she is capable of protecting herself. I have a feeling that is true. I thought it was a strange thing for her to say. And beyond that, her movements bring to mind a great warrior with an extensive military background.
Who is Rhea, really? I wonder... Mind, it's also possible that I'm way off track. Regardless, perhaps we should brace ourselves for anything.
I never imagined attending a ceremony for a real revelation... I wonder what the ceremony will be like. I'm so nervous! I'm not ready for this!
There's no chance for battle unless something goes terribly wrong, right? How boring.
If you keep saying things like that, something bad is bound to happen. What's wrong, Flayn? You look like you have something on your mind. Who, me? No... It is nothing. May we all see this through to the end. Your Highness, I will protect you no matter what. Your Highness? ...
You haven't seemed like yourself lately... Hm? Ah. I suppose you could say that. Nothing to worry about. I haven't been sleeping well recently. And my head aches...but no need to worry. Let's focus on the task at hand. It's about time for Lady Rhea to arrive. Let's all steel ourselves for whatever may occur at this ceremony.
♪ Gazing at Sirius ♪
Incredible... To think such a vast space has been hiding beneath the monastery all this time... I wonder what powers that giant mechanism that descends beneath the ground...
This is where the goddess who created this world was laid to rest, along with her children. 
Professor... Do you recognize this throne? I do.
So long... I have waited so very long for this day. Sit upon the throne. I have no doubt you will be gifted a revelation from the goddess.
Well?
It was supposed to be but a step away... What could possibly be missing?
♪ Mask of Fire ♪
Thank you ever so much for guiding us this far. The Imperial army will now take possession of everything in the Holy Tomb!
Why is the Imperial army here?
This can't be... How did they get into Garreg Mach?
Even the Flame Emperor is here. That can only mean...
The Flame Emperor is connected to the Empire. What do you know.
I never imagined you'd have the nerve to return here. What are you after, Flame Emperor?
Is it not obvious? The Holy Tomb contains great power. The power to rule all of Fódlan. And to attain that power, you'll trample anything that stands in your way. Just like you did in Duscur! I had nothing to do with that. Quickly, retrieve the Crest Stones! Kill for them if you must.
Insolence! You will atone for the sin of trampling on this holy resting place! Professor. Destroy these villainous traitors who dare dishonor our creator!
♪ As Swift as Wind ♪
I am...quite worried about Dimitri.
The Flame Emperor's got an entourage this time, guarding her from direct approaches. Got a monster on the east, even. Unfortunately for her, it's trivially easy to hit her from the north with long-range magic, so...sucks to be her.
Completely forgot that Dimitri isn't a required deployment on this map. Oh well, more choice for me.
I could give the march ring to Adan, but in the interest of killing everything as quickly as possible, Felix gets it instead.
Bernadetta's going to take Parthia for a spin.
Constance gets to hold the Caduceus staff. Not much competition there, the only other viable holders for it are Dorothea and Hapi, who are decidedly not as good as Constance.
♪ Dwellings of the Ancient Gods ♪
The Flame Emperor's got stat buffs, but all they really did for her is making her already astronomical Cha even higher. She's still very easy to kill.
Metodey is a boss assassin, with all the fun that entails. Sadly for him, he's still stuck with a venin edge. Sadly for us, 42 Atk is still quite dangerous. However, on a second loop of "sadly for him," he still lacks Counterattack, making him trivially easy to wipe out with no chance for him to, well, counterattack. His Rsl in particular is comically bad.
These starting positions are not very conducive to Stride.
Thank you for putting that gambit at 50 Hit, Constance.
Parthia is a good weapon.
This priest is so worthless.
Pure grit!
The worthless priest bites it.
God, armored knights are so pathetic. Can't even not get one-rounded by physical attacks.Should note, though: look at the armored knight's weapon. I neglected to mention it last map, but as of The Sealed Forest Snare, enemies start globally using silver weapons on Maddening. Certain individual enemies have been using silver weapons as far back as Remire, but this is where every enemy starts using them. This is a significant increase in difficulty compared to Hard (where enemies make the global switchover during Reunion at Dawn), and especially Normal (where the change doesn't happen until Protecting Garreg Mach).
That's going to make To War hellish, isn't it...
Mounted classes tanking both a unit's Spd stat and their Spd growth is so bad, a complete over-nerf. I get that cavalry units have historically been super good in Fire Emblem, but still.
A strong opening, don't you think?
Too close.
Let's get this thing out of the way as quickly as possible.
Bah, bad roll.
Adan is real dangerous with those gauntlets.
That had the benefit of damaging and rattling the armored knight to the up and right of the monster.
Annoying.
It falls to Constance to finish off that HP bar, then.
Think yourself prepared?
Physic...
Bold of you to hit Adan, honestly.
Not like she has much else to do.
Why do you keep getting Str?
Whatevs, monster down.
Why is this happening?!
nice
yes
Kill one crest stone thief, and hold another in place.
...I'm so sad.
The sadness made me skip combat for this, because I thought Dorothea was surely dead. She barely managed to survive.
I also skipped the armored knight attacking Mercedes, for some reason. It turned out okay.
Adan gets an amazing level, but more importantly...
He masters War Monk.[BrawlAvo]
Pneuma Gale: +7 Mt, +10 Hit, 1 - 2 range, costs 3 durability. War Monk/War Cleric only. Deals magical damage.Two very nice gets, though Brawl Avo +20 is obvs more generally useful than Pneuma Gale.
For being the dark magic version of a killer weapon, Death Γ sure kinda sucks, huh?
Whatever, that Physic jerk is dead.
I never noticed it until now, but Fimbulvetr does actually have some refraction going on. That's cool, neat detail.
This map really is fairly easy, just because so many enemies don't have much interest in attacking you.
Yep, keep getting levels like that.
Oh, that felt good.
As did that, even if the level was bad.
These two are clearing out the western side all on their own, honestly.
Right, you two, get rattled.
Meteor's nice, it's just not Bolting levels of nice.Also, excellent job, Caspar.
Love me some useless Indechs.
Try as you might, you can't stop him from dying in one round next turn.
Gauntlets are so fun, love killing enemies before they can counterattack.
Nice dodge.
...Nice dodge, again. I respect it.
Your luck's run out, though.
The big three-oh.
I could go for some fried toad...
Ahaha!
...
gods i love Constance
Legit just sat there for a solid minute in real time, in awe of what I just witnessed.
Nothing happened on the enemy phase. Presumably they were all too scared of that crit to even move.
S-Stay away!
That's the spirit!
Both Bernadetta and Leonie critting is enough to take out that monster's first HP bar.
Time to pay!
A shame there's no-one who can finish the monster off.
Wow, okay, fortress knight, 2 Mt, christ.Looking at the stat table for Maddening enemies, these guys have...35 Def. That, plus Armored Blow, would explain 2 Mt.
Yay for Yuri!
Dunno why these guys are, like, super fortress knights.
Poor Doro.
It's worth a shot, isn't it?
Sometimes, you just gotta go for the longshot Deadeyes. Maybe they'll work out!
The Flame Emperor is the only enemy left.
Gotta have Adan weaken her first. She may be far more vulnerable to magic, but any of my magic users being the first attackers would result in them eating an incredibly nasty counterattack.
The counterattack, surprisingly, hits, but it is no matter.
Very literally foolproof.
...
♪ Loathing ♪
Dimitri laughs maniacally.
...D-Dimi...Dimitri...?
♪ Farewell ♪
Before I break your neck, there is one thing I must ask you.
Stay out of my way. I don't recall giving you permission to speak. Answer my question. That is all you have left to do. Flame Emperor...no. Edelgard. Tell me now. Why did you cause such a tragedy? ... You killed your own mother, and yet you haven't even had the decency to stop and consider the reasons behind your actions. Have you?! I already told you. I had nothing to do with that. Ha! It was foolish to think I could reason with a lowly beast.
You are a monster...
You have defiled the Holy Tomb, dishonored the goddess, and humiliated your brethren. That crime will never be erased, even if you burn in the eternal flames and spill all of your blood into the goddess's soil.
Ngah... Are you OK? We weren't able to defeat her. Your Highness...
Let's return to the monastery, Professor. It is clear what must be done.
♪ A Lonely Figure ♪
The same Dimitri I've seen once before—a beast who loves spilling blood.
You're wrong! I'm sure of it. There has to be an explanation... I knew he'd been carrying the burden of that tragedy. I understand his thirst for revenge. His family and closest friends...all massacred right in front of him. But...it still doesn't add up. There must be more that we don't know. That's true. Dimitri didn't come unhinged until after the Flame Emperor was unmasked...
You don't think...there's some connection between those two...do you?♪ The Leader's Path ♪
We'll skip over Edelgard's rally, and the discussion with Seteth.
We knew this day would come, sooner or later. What's going to happen?! We need more information. We can't afford to be optimistic. It's entirely possible the Kingdom will be invaded. Settle yourself, Ingrid. We need to carefully consider our options. We can't just act rashly. That will only make things worse. Then all we can do is wait. Once we've ascertained the situation, we must return to Fhirdiad. Your Highness...
Next time: To War, Maddening edition.
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