Treasure Hunt

Alternate Title: Clik, clik, doom.

We're supposed to meet the King, but the world gets dark as we approach the city. Day breaks as we get away, but it's still a really cool effect. Because it's the middle of the night, we visit the hotel. The attendant is Rena's aunt, Rachel. She makes a few remarks about Claude, which upsets Rena. She's really defensive about her not-boyfriend. Claude gets defensive about Rena's defense... As Rachel takes us to our room, she informs her niece that Diaz was in town a few weeks ago. When our party is alone, Claude asks who Diaz is. Rena, with sorrow in her words, tells him Dias once lived in Arlia but left when "something sad happened." Claude reads the room and asks no further questions. They both tell each other that they're enjoying traveling with each other. How cute!

In the morning, Rachel is mildly annoyed that Rena and Claude only "slept well," but we have to meet King Cross! Make your way up the narrow alley, across the bridge, and under the grand archway. There's a reception desk we check in at, and Rena shows them the message from Regis. That'll expedite our audience with the busy ruler. We can explore the castle and steal 600 fol from the missing prince. He's ill and resting elsewhere, so he won't miss it. After, head to the main hall and enter the throne room.

 
The King remarks that it's been a long time since he's seen Rena. But we get down to business as a strange, scantly clad woman enters the room from the side. We ask the King three questions, but I'll sum it up fast. Cross has sent a scout team to investigate the Sorcery Globe, but they never returned. Because of it, they know nothing about the meteor except the scant rumors about El, which is in constant war with monsters. They don't even know it the Globe is the cause of these disasters. The King notices that Claude is a fine lad but urges Rena to go home. But she has to aid Claude, so he changes his mind. He gives us a passport to travel to El and 600 fol as a gift. We can head to Clik to travel to Eluria, a city on El. We exit the throne room, Claude says he didn't say anything, and we get ready to travel.

As we reach the center of Cross, we see an argument between a woman and a heraldic sorcerer. They both yell mean things, which annoys Rena. She pushes herself into the dispute, which upsets the wizard. He starts to cast a big spell, but the woman magics up a quicker fireball, stopping him. He runs off, swearing we'll regret this. He'll never be seen again.

We speak to the woman who knows who we are. Word around the castle was two interesting people had an audience with the King, and she had to meet us. This was the woman who eavesdropped on us earlier. Her name is Celine, and she's a treasure hunter. She just bought a new map and asks if we'd like to come along for a hunt. We have the option to say no, but I'm pretty sure this is mandatory. Our goal is a secret treasure room in the back of Cross Cave.

But first, I explored further into the continent. There's a town called Hurley. In this port is a large mansion with a sword for Claude that triples his attack. Before Hurley is Marz, which has a knuckle that triples Rena's attack. There's also some armor around, but those weapons will make this dungeon a breeze.

I really like Cross Cave. The first time I did this, I found the correct path right off the bat. For sake of time, it's cool, but you miss seventy percent of the dungeon. There are a ton of hidden passages, giant skeletons that tell a tale that needs to be told, and a deeper understanding of the battle system. Celine is a black mage and should be kept at the starting point. She's not very good, though, and two of her spells suck. Turn off Fireball and Wind Blade. Lightning Bolt is great, though. If you explore, she'll learn Ray, which damages the whole field. Every mob dies in two hits, so nothing is scary. Eventually, we'll reach a glowing, green pillar. It's a dead end. Celine tries to convince herself that her expensive map isn't fake, but we don't believe her. She quickly changes the topic to point out Rena's healing abilities, even if Rena didn't heal yet. Celine informs us that heraldic magic doesn't have healing spells, so she's curious. Rena doesn't understand her powers either, so nothing comes from it. Before heading back, Claude checks the map. He notices strange words on the bottom, and Celine knows it's a spell. She casts it, and a new path is opened. But the green glow is gone.

In that new room are four treasures around a Star of David. Three of them are bland, and one has Ancient Writings. No one can decipher the writings, but maybe someone is Mars can. But that's for later... The last chest is a trap, and it summons two gargoyles. With weapons and armor beyond what we're supposed to have, it's an easy 300 exp. They're optional, too, if you're having trouble. As we leave the cave, we prepare to go to Clik. Celine prepares for her next adventure, but Rena asks if she wants to join. We have the option later in this conversation to decide against it, but I kept her on. In hindsight, I probably shouldn't have, but oh well. It's a long run to Clik; good luck with the mage.

Clik is a trade town, so make your way to the docks. Actually, wait. Do a private action first. Claude and Celine are at the fountain, listening to a prophetess foretell the doom of Clik. No one takes her seriously... At the docks, we hand our passports to the captain, but the ship isn't ready to set sail. So return to town to rest. A kid will tackle Rena and steal her purse.

We look around town, asking locals and kids, until we find the perpetrator. He denies anything, but that might be because Claude is scaring him. Rena soothes the young boy and convinces him to return our money. He did it because he got sick of other kids calling him a "rich kid" and wanted to make his own money. For some reason, Rena requests Ketil to give us a tour of Clik.

We can visit his house, where his mom assumes we're kidnapping her son. She stops caring when her servant says her boat is ready. The next stop is the restaurant. We can eat food there, and I choose the Tim Yan Kun. I looked up what it was, and it made me hungry. Rena didn't seem thrilled. We then visit the clothes shop, where Ketil can choose an outfit for one of our party members. Rena and Claude would look like Elvis, but Celine has a skimpy bikini. Ketil's a pervert. Rena felt an earthquake before these scenes, but no one else did. Finally, head to the docks. There are two kids there, and we try to make Ketil some friends. The two kids don't like him because their moms told them to never play with rich kids. Terrible parents. Claude shows his fatherly skills and manages to make a nice friendship circle. Talk to the captain, and he'll say he's almost done. There's time for last minute preparations, and I wanted the local ice cream.

Alas, an earthquake rocks the town. We manage to get to a high place, which I don't think is sound earthquake defense. A hauntingly beautiful CGI scene plays where we witness the devastation of Clik. A steeple falls, buildings collapse, and the fountain statue crumbles. We make it along with the captain, one boatman, and his wizard friend. The caption returns our passport and suggests we head to Hurley. Despite seeing what we did, he's shocked we still want to go to El, and via Lacour is our only hope. We can climb higher, but more disaster strikes. A tidal wave sweeps through the remains of Clik, drowning any hope of survivors. Ketil is alive, but the girl who had a crush on him isn't. We can return to the world map and continue our journey.

A few Private Actions should be performed now, all at Cross. Firstly, walk toward the castle to see a three eyed man. Rena is amazed.
The next set involves Celine. We can join her for tea, but a man who can't afford his food ruins the experience. We pay his ten fol debt because he didn't know he'd have to pay. His name of Chris. Chris from Cross better make us jump.
The next is when we see Chris waiting for Celine. The two walk away, and we see Celine in a worried state of mind after.
Finally, we can overhear her and Chris in the alley. The two are in love and embrace each other for a long time. And then three soldiers come to take him away, calling him "Prince Clothier." Rena can force Celine to go after him or drop this side plot. I encourage this love affair. Chris, the Prince of Lacross, is getting married to Princess Rosaline of Lacour. The chapel is guarded, but hell hath no fury like a woman in love with a man she met ten minutes ago. Or at least her wing woman. We break up the wedding, and Rosa seems okay with it. Later on, Chris proposes to Celine, but she can't say yes. She needs to finish this adventure before she can't go on anymore. Rena thinks it's a dumb excuse, though. As we returned to the entrance, Claude asked us what the commotion was. We'll visit Mars...

...tomorrow!

I don't hate Celine, but I don't find her compelling, either. Really, any mage is kinda annoying. Their spells look cool, but they slow the game down and aren't great in the DPS department. But she's a character to trade remarks with...