When we last saw Fei, he was preparing for the Battling tournament, because one tournament just wasn't enough.
(Random side note: one NPC claims that female Battlers are called Aazonesses (sic) for some stupid reason. No, they do not specialize in ranged weaponry.)
As soon as I head upstairs, Hammer arrives, having signed Fei up. Apparently Rue got rid of a bunch of red tape for him. Fei accuses Hammer of being suspiciously excited about something, which Hammer denies.
Also, Citan joins us for the moment.
I then proceed to have Fei consume some Battlin Steak from the cafeteria.
So, Fei heads to the Battling arena, where of course they're playing battle music
. Rue's there to greet him and provide his Gear.
First, though, about Battling. This is not the slow turn-based combat we get normally. Instead, it's a basic fighting minigame. X and Square both let me attack, Triangle jumps, Circle dashes, L1 (or just plain old L in my case) blocks, and R1 shoots Ether bullets.
I speak with Rue, who takes me to my Gear. Hammer also follows me as a mechanic. Naturally, the Gear I'm given is the same one I've been using this whole time. This surprises absolutely nobody. Anyway, Citan theorizes that Fei was given Weltall here so the Kislev government could gather "battle data" from him.
Anyway, to battle! My first opponent, a Gear with a sword and shield named Ganador, puts up no fight whatsoever. However, after it's punched enough, Weltall explodes.
Yes, our first fight in this tournament ended in a loss due to sabotage.
Fei ends up in the infirmary again, but since that isn't interesting we cut to Leonardo and Heinrich in the sewers instead. They discuss the bomb, which Heinrich thinks was too excessive.
They then get to hunting things, though Leonardo thinks something strange might be about.
Naturally, his fears are proven correct when something with red-tinted vision shows up and kills them both.
I should note, by the way, that I was fighting Leonardo in that last match.
Well, Fei awakens just as Citan and Hammer are arriving. During the ensuing conversation, Fei mentions having a horrible dream, which will no doubt be important at some point.
Whatever. Back to Battling! First, though, I consume a Mightymite, which claims to increase defensive abilities. The foods in the cafeteria here have awesome names.
Also, the sewers are closed right now due to some sort of super-deadly monster.
Before that, though, Hammer's selling Gear stuff now:
- Engines:
- V10-2000 (2000G): 10 output, 2000 fuel
- V12-2000 (2600G): 12 output, 2000 fuel
- Frames:
- WELT-03600 (2200G): For Weltall. 3600 HP
- WELT-04300 (3200G): For Weltall. 4200 HP (also, buying it left me with exactly 9999 golds)
- Armour:
- MS 12 (2500G): Defense of 120
- MS 15 (3500G): Defense of 150
- Other equipment:
- Extra Ar+1 (50G): Increases Defense by 5
- Extra Ar+2 (75G): Increases Defense by 8
The receptionist states that my opponent, Leonardo Sniper (that's...certainly a last name, all right) dropped out due to "mechanical trouble". The person who was supposed to be next, Heinrich Clive, also dropped out due to mechanical trouble. As such, I can continue on in the tournament!
My first real fight is against a Tin Robo, which goes down easily because it's a Tin Robo and they suck. For winning, I get 300 golds, plus another hundred as a bonus for some reason.
My second opponent, the Titan, is significantly more dangerous. It's a hulking Gear with a hammer, and it actually does quite a bit of damage to me before I bring it down. I win 500 golds, plus a bonus of 200. That's at least somewhat better.
That's it for the day 2 fights, so I rest up for day 3.
Today I order a Baste Grand, which continues the Nortune cafeteria tradition of having an awesomely stupid name and doing absolutely nothing.
On day 3, my first opponent is a big thing with two jet engines on its shoulders, a really noisy claw on its left hand, and a beamgun on its right hand. For some reason, it's known as the W Shaver. It puts up more of a fight than the last two (in part due to knowing how to block), but I beat it and get my 750 golds (and 200G bonus).
My fourth opponent is a samurai Gear known as the Musha. It also carries a gun, which it tries and fails to shoot me with. For my victory I gain 1000 golds and a bonus of 400. Now we're talking!
After resting again, Fei is greeted by none other than Rico Flint Ironstag. He apologizes for the actions of his subordinates, who set up us the bomb back in the first fight as revenge for Fei beating the crap out of them. He then reveals that they were all killed in the sewers.
...I'm not going to like where this is going, am I?
Naturally, the issue here is that Fei looks suspicious. After all, he has good reason to want the people who tried to blow him up dead. Rico Bolt Vanderhuge says that he's going to investigate the sewers, so Fei comes with him. Of course, Citan also comes along.
Next time, we'll take on the obligatory sewer level.
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