Quesada's Swan | Tales of Berseria - Part 105: Another Return to Titania

I check out the Apodous Quarter first before going back to Titania.

I also decide to face the daemons in the Apodous Quarter this time.

After a long, winding battle, we win a pair of Military Hike boots!

Now off to Titania!

Velvet's brooding on the side of the ship. She looks at her arm...oh my god...

Phi goes to her with the tome and asks Velvet about Laphi copying said tome by hand. He praises Laphi for being able to know Meliodasian.

Velvet pouts, then gapes in shock!

It's Laphi again she sees, not Phi...

Velvet pulls out the comb, and tells him about her brother.

Velvet: "Laphi was different from [others]. He read books a lot because [of his condition]. He studied all the time so that he could be ready to travel the world one day. Which was kind of funny, considering he'd hide in my bed whenever he had a nightmare." Velvet, quit teasing Laphi...

Velvet: "But... I don't care that he got scared... I just wanted him to live...That's why I...I have to..." Oh god, she's almost passing out...

Velvet: "I'll devour as much as it takes... I will have vengeance... "

She falls.

Aside: Speaking of which, I found it interesting that The Wrath of Khan was originally going to be called The Vengeance of Khan because the producers didn't want to get their movie confused with Revenge of the Jedi. Then, Revenge of the Jedi was retitled as Return of the Jedi...

Meanwhile back at the Empyrean's Throne, Shigure, Melchior, and the Shepherd meet with Oscar.

What is the Shepherd doing to Oscar? He casts an arte on him...but what kind of arte...?

Shepherd: "Done. The arte is attuned to you."

Oscar assures his master he will not fail. Shigure strokes his chin and compliments him for taking on the arte.

Oscar tells him politely to shove it.

Teresa comes in with dire news. Melchior tells her to leave. Teresa asks the Shepherd about the arte he cast on Oscar. He confirms he did it.

Teresa's in shock.

And like other experiments, there's a risk...

Teresa mentions a therion. Oh boy...

Teresa, looking at her brother in shock, wants to take part in the experiment herself! What!?

The Shepherd tells her she's "not strong enough..."

Teresa still wants to help. Shigure thinks she has other intentions. She really loves her brother very much...

Shigure: "Noble plan, but I'm afraid it'd mess everything up." What is he talking about?

The Shepherd glares daggers at Shigure! Shigure waves it off.

Oscar tells Teresa he consented to the experiment. This is his way of making up for his two failures at Titania and Palamides.

Teresa wants to go with Oscar, but the Shepherd has other plans...

The Shepherd officially strips Teresa of her title as exorcist and tells her to give up her only malak.

Melchior: "For our plans to be realized, we require an especially strong malak." Oh no, are they going to sacrifice him?

Melchior: "We've analyzed your malak's dormant abilities and he is of considerable power—on the same level as the young malak who betrayed us for the enemy." So the first malak child is going to be used again to counter Phi.

Shigure condescends Teresa with his buttery words. Shut up, Shigure.

The Shepherd now casts another arte, surrounding himself in a golden aura...

The crest of Innominat lights up...oh god....

The Shepherd renounces Teresa's only malak, and is taken to Melchior.

She cries...so she does care for the malak...

So Teresa knows how to make a quiche. I'm betting she's using Velvet's recipe...

Teresa is not having it.

The Shepherd tells Oscar if he succeeds in getting Velvet, Teresa gets back her title as exorcist.

Oscar: (to Teresa) "Don't worry about me. I'd go to the ends of the earth and back for a plate of your delicious quiche."

He smiles and salutes her, taking his leave.

Teresa: "No, Oscar, don't go...Oscaaaar!"

Now Teresa's alone...

The crest of Innominat shines again.

Now Teresa notices something.

Teresa: "I'm...receptive...? To that arte...? And to you..." Oh no, it seems Innominat is talking to her through her thoughts...

She smiles.

Velvet's up.

She's been unconscious for three days, Phi tells her. Three days? I wonder why writers go to the number three instead of two?

She asks for an update.

Grim's finished translating the tome, and tells us we have a complete copy of the tome!

Kamoana loves Orthie and Russ...

Phi tells her to "take it easy." He's blushing.

Velvet worriedly asks if he ate anything. He hasn't, and she tells him to eat something.

Magilou comes in and explains.

Magilou: "Malakhim don't actually depend on food for sustenance. If they do eat, it's only as a quirky hobby." I did get spoiled about that fact from Zestiria.

Rokurou tells Velvet they're back in Titania.

Velvet tells the crew to assemble. De facto, she's the captain leading the crew...

Rokurou: (sighs) "Well, that could have gotten better."
Phi: "I just...wanted to understand the hardships Velvet's suffering through. It seems unfair for her to bear all of it alone." I know, Phi...

Rokurou describes her as, in his own way, "a very straightforward person." At least she doesn't lie most of the time.

Magilou: "But nothing gets under her skin like a clumsy display of sympathy." That quality is what makes her different from the Shepherd.

Rokurou tells Phi to eat up.

Rokurou: "For now just get something in your tummy. Any good warrior knows: you eat when you have the chance."

Magilou: "But what is there to fill an empty heart, I wonder?"

Now I'm in control of Rokurou.

I play a skit where Rokurou asks Phi what he wants to eat. Magilou jumps in and says she wants seafood. He ignores her.

Rokurou suggests a risotto or vegetable rice soup...mmmm...

Phi says okay.

Magilou lists out her menu. Dessert included.

Phi: "I'd think I like rice porridge. With a pickled plum and baby sardines on top....and an apple."

Velvet comes in, saying "appleboo" again. More appleboos...or grated apples...I need to try making appleboos...

Phi decides on that.

Magilou also wants something. Rokurou tells her to be quiet.

Other pirates are talking about the absence of Abbey navy presence around Titania. The Bloodwings also mention the Abbey's "quiet everywhere." They're planning their next move...

Looks like we've been giving them trouble so far that theyre now thinking hard on their next move...

Phi: "That's Aifread's pirates for ya!"

The pirates mock the Shepherd.

Pirate: "Reason dictates that we avoid hopeless fights."
Other pirate: "Oooh, Shepherd Artorius, you're my hero!"

But the pirates know they have to stay one step ahead of the Abbey. That's true.

One of the pirates admires the exorcists for fighting formidable daemons, though.

I save before proceeding.

Kamoana's a bit frightened. Benwick tells Velvet not to push herself too much.

Inside, we get our next earthpulse point. According to Phi, "it's really really far up in the northeast."

Eleanor mentions the place as Endgand. Oh boy...

Eizen: "Endgand is a collection of small islands. There's [...] Lionel Island, but that's the exception."

Magilou points out Endgand's haunted...you troll, quit scaring Phi!

Eizen debunks that by mentioning that all currents "converge in Endgand's waters," meaning all shipwrecks end up there.

Rokurou: "So that's where the stories of ghost ships come from."

Magilou: "Boo. You guys have no imagination."
Rokurou: "I'd rather they'd stay imaginary myself."

Velvet's not letting legends or ghost stories stop the crew.

Velvet: "Ghost ship, exorcist, whatever comes along...We'll be the ones to administer their last rites."

Skit: Velvet's pondering on Seres's final words about the Shepherd.

Velvet: "That means she must have known everything...that Innominat is incomplete, how therions work...but why did she betray [the Shepherd]? Why did she give me her strength?" These are some of the same questions I have. Why betray your old master? Unless he must have done something that Seres didn't agree with...

Velvet: "Tell me.. why did you do it, Sis—Oh what am I saying?" Whoa, wait a minute! She's thinking of her sister Celica again...her headaches are getting worse...she tells herself to focus.

After leaving Aball, she hasn't been the same...

Phi's pretty full from his meal. So is Rokurou.

Eizen tells us about Endgand's currents.

Bienfu points out Velvet's looking pallid...

Magilou mentions something about the "Phantom Fleet [carrying] guilty souls away." Is Velvet feeling guilty for what she did back at Aball?

A pirate tells us Prince Percival's enjoying Orthie and Russ's company. He's also doing some work too. Eleanor's worried about this...thinking it's a bit much, but the Prince insists.

Plus, the Prince "couldn't even yawn without getting permission"? Oh my god...

Yikes, the Prince also wasn't able to play with his pets too...

The pirate mentions "he's too good to be a prince," and adds that a prince "who gets the common folk" is a better leader.

I head further in the hideout and see Orthie and Russ sitting on top of crates...the dogs still look angry...

A pirate downstairs declares by order of the No. 1 (Eizen), that the sleeping quarters around here are Kamoana and Medissa's quarters, and that people who defy that declaration "will be executed."

We head to the south docks where a pirate asks Eizen about the four wonders: the Phantom Fleet, Dragon Island, the Bighedian Tribe, and the Kraken Queen.

So the pirates here are having a debate on what actually are the four wonders.

The fourth wonder, according to the other pirate, is the Colossal Upright Eel.

Phi asks about the Kraken Queen. In short, it's a giant black squid that grapples onto people and makes them "happy," for some reason.

Eleanor tells the "bad pirate" to be quiet.

Eleanor and Magilou now fight for the decency of Phi, with Magilou explaining about the Kraken Queen...Eizen jumps in.

Poor Phi...Teresa hurt him too...

Eleanor declares the fourth wonder is the eel!

I'm getting a bit hungry when the pirate describes the eel...

Phi: "It's a fish...with legs...?"

We go to Dyle...he's hiding because of Kamoana...she wants his tail. Dyle says he needs his tail in case he needs a quick getaway...

Medissa and Kamoana argue.

Another skit plays and Kamoana doesn't want to dry her hair...

And I see Medissa's skit portrait for the first time. Her hair does look snakelike...

Kamoana boldly states that she won't catch a cold...

Eleanor says that her hair's dry enough already, and Kamoana runs off.

Medissa knows what Eleanor did to Kamoana's actual mother from Phi. Magilou calls Phi a "tattletale." Medissa considers what happened to Kamoana "too tragic for words." True.

Eleanor doesn't have the heart to tell Kamoana the truth. Medissa agrees, but asks if she's going to actually "lie to [Kamoana] forever" about what happened to her mother.

Medissa: "That's probably the only option. But do you really think you can lie to her forever?"
Eleanor: "I have to, for her sake."

Velvet calls Kamoana "selfish." Look at Velvet. Her quest is nothing but a selfish trip to avenge her brother.

And I nearly tune out of this skit, since I really don't agree with Medissa's message here next.

She asks Velvet if she has memories like Kamoana's. Velvet doesn't let them out.

Magilou: (shrugs) "Everybody and their issues, amirite?"

Medissa warns us the Abbey's now getting dangerous because we have seven therions with us.

Back to Kurogane. Phi asks what's wrong. Dyle's trying to run and hide from Kamoana, or rather, he's playing hide and seek with her.

Kamoana's hiding inside Kurogane!

Phi's surprised!

Kamoana begged Kurogane to hide inside him! Phi and Kamoana thank him...Kurogane's upper torso blushes...hee...

Kamoana now thinks of Kurogane's armor as "her secret hideout." If only Al were in this game...

Benwick's getting used to the hideout...

I set sail to Port Cadnix knowing I forgot to do a sidequest there.