Self realization

Hugo explores the Silent Sands...

As Hugo enters an empty room, the voice of a woman calls out to him. The figure before him was the second twin, Lady Reah. Reah, mirroring her sister, quickly asked Hugo to leave the tower. There was little time to discuss the whys of that request, or the floating black orb beside her, as several immortal demons rose from the sands. Hugo defeated them, but they quickly got back up. Reah didn't panic and pulled out some chimes, and the monsters broke apart. Despite the new peace, no further discussion was made about the Darklings, the demons, or leaving the goddesses alone. They did discuss Toal... He was close to the twins, so they got to know him well. She was cagey about everything and didn't speak her theory, but she suggested Toal had a good reason to do what he did. She gave Hugo the Silver Chimes as an apology and flew off.

...

Hugo received a shell call from Eolia to tell him they knew where Feena was. She's imprisoned in Rado's Annex, and the knights are making their way there now. Toal told them about it...

Hugo entered Rado's Annex before anyone else. It was empty, but only for a moment. Zava decided to join him, curious about the cute younger brother of a man she hated. She said how similar the two are. They're both powerful mages, hate Toal, and are confident in themselves. It seemed like she was inviting Hugo into the Darklings. Hugo got angry about such a request, which Zava expected. She summoned her familiar, Jenocres.

...

Zava was interested in the Eyes of Fact, and that battle was more of a test than anything. She reiterated the two similarities, which Hugo dismissed as Zava teleported away. Despite not believing her, the thoughts of his enemy lingered in his head as he climbed the stairs.

A demonic door that gave off a terrifying sense of unease. It was sealed with a curse, and Hugo doesn't know much about them. But they couldn't be stronger than his father's shield magic. He charged up the Eyes of Fact "to the point of almost breaking" with the Lotusblade magic. He shot two full powered blasts at the door. It did nothing to the door, but the door bit back. It reflected both fire blasts back at Hugo, which knocked him out...

He woke up with Epona standing beside him. She found him in an embarrassing state and brought him down to where he fought Jenocres. The feelings between them were different than before, but there was still some playful arguing between them. Epona eventually asked why Hugo hated his brother so much. He recalled all the times he was compared to Toal and the weird heartbreak and indignation he brought upon the Fact line when he turned down the role of priest. Toal joined the holy knights instead and got himself disinherited. This caused the current Fact patriarch to force Hugo into the role set for Toal. He fulfilled that role, but it took away his freedom. The comparisons stopped for a time, but then he  had to be the hero who sacrificed himself for Ys. His name became glorious again, which meant Hugo was the second favorite again. And since he up and joined the demons now, Hugo wanted revenge. Epona realized how similar Hugo and Zava are, but she had to return to her allies. Her words made some cogs in Hugo's head start to turn...

[Hugo meets with Miuscha and Cadena, opens the door with the Evil Ring, and everyone speaks with the trapped Feena, who tells everyone how the Black Pearl interacts with cleria ore.]

In the middle of all this, Hugo asks the goddess why they didn't tell anyone they were leaving. Just as Reah, Feena was cagey and gave no answer. Hugo got mad, which caused Romona to take up the defense of her goddesses. Everyone else, including Feena, calmed them down. She recognized Huho had a point, and she promised to answer everything when the time for it came. And with that, Galleon gave everyone updated orders. Cadena and Miuscha would stay to dispel the enchantment around Feena while everyone else did what they were already doing.

As Hugo left the room, Miuscha came to speak with him. She said she understood why Hugo questioned Feena, even if it upset everyone. She knows his family life isn't great, and she tried to talk to him about something else... Hugo got furious. He claimed she knew nothing. Hugo isn't comparing himself to Toal! Miuscha ran back inside, scared and forlorn. Cadena then replaced her, partly to scold the narcissistic mage and partly to agree with Miuscha. Hugo wouldn't have raged if the white mage was wrong... Cadena didn't lecture him because she knew it would be a waste of time, but she did demand an apology for her friend when he realized he was an idiot. "Don't let those be your last words to Miuscha."

Hugo realized Epona said something similar, and he listened to her. But why did his longtime friend cause him to scream so loud, "they could hear him in Solomon Shrine." Out of shame, Hugo finished his business in the Silent Sands and entered the Blighted Blood on floor twenty of Darm Tower.

---

Hugo's got some whiplash in his thoughts and actions, and I kinda dig it. They're trying to jam a lot of plot into a few in game hours and only twenty five floors, but it's mostly making sense.