The 4th Walpurgisnacht |
Episode 1 - Episode 2 |
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Location: L Corp. Headquarters? | |
Dante
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<Alright... I did as you asked, Faust.> |
I looked up toward Faust, away from the PDA in my hands, as it rattled and fixed the Identity Cards into each slot. | |
... Today's the Fourth Walpurgis Night. | |
The location... it's that same Lobotomy Corp. Headquarters of the past we visited—its point in time and the branch of possibility uncertain. | |
Faust
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Thank you. Please proceed with the slotted Identities to suppress the imminent Ordeal. |
Dante
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<Phew...> |
I've slotted in the Lobotomy Corp. Identities I pulled up during the previous Walpurgis Nights. | |
... Faust probably wants to study the correlation between Walpurgis Night itself and the Identities that can be pulled up only during each Walpuris Night. | |
Heathcliff
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Well, it ain't much of my business what Identity we're 'sposed to wear, but... |
Heathcliff
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... can't you at least bother tellin' us where we are? I swear, it's always you two who— |
Sinclair
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Yeah, I agree. We won't know what to do if you keep the important stuff just between the two of you, right...? |
Heathcliff
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Uh... yeah, what he said. I was trying to find a way to avoid sounding irritated. |
Heathcliff
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You've a way of mincin' words, don't you? Thanks, lad. |
Sinclair
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Huh? Uh... I guess, ha ha. |
Ryoshu
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F.U. |
Sinclair
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Functionality Upgrade...? Come on, don't talk about me like I'm a machine or something... |
Faust
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Ahm. |
Faust cleared her throat in an attempt to clear the air and stem the conversation from going on a tangent. | |
Location: L Corp. HQ Information Team Hallway | |
Faust
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We are... at the "Information Team" department of the former L Corp. Headquarters. |
Yi Sang
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"Information Team"...? Hm, well do I recall that the place we had visited was called the "Control Team" department. |
Ishmael
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Maybe they add a new department with every Walpurgis Night? |
Faust
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The Training Team and the Safety Team, both adjacent to this department, are currently accessible. Therefore, your assessment is untrue. |
Faust
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However... it is possible that there is a reason the first place the door connected to was this location. Perhaps further analyses may yield more concrete information. |
... She's trying to take a more active role in learning things for herself. It seems that the events at the WARP Train rattled her more than I'd thought. | |
She's probably concerned that similar loss of connection to that repository of Fausts' knowledge may occur again. | |
Hong Lu
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Hmm... this place is pretty barren, huh? The more I look around, the more I see just... purple. |
Gregor
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Huh... you got that right. Can't chalk that up to just being a corporate office, if you ask me. Doesn't seem like a great workplace environment at all. |
Outis
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A good commander decorates their subordinates' living spaces with their morale in mind, even if it means going against their own tastes. Whoever heads this department must be somewhat quite unfit to lead. |
Ishmael
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I bet they're not the only one who's unfit to lead~ |
Ishmael, who was rummaging through a pile of miscellaneous items, muttered from a distance as Outis mused at the ceiling. | |
Ishmael
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I found some employee doodles and scribbles back here. |
Ishmael
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Oh, I suppose the department leads were called 'Sephirah'. They're saying something about how their Sephirah is... whew, now that's some spicy profanity. |
Meursault
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I will read them. |
Dante
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<M-Meursault, you don't have to read the insults and profanities!> |
Meursault
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... Understood. In that case, I will instead peruse the document first and produce a comprehensive summary. |
Some time later... | |
Meursault
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That is all. |
Gregor
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Okay. So... first of all, thanks for skipping past all the profanities. But... |
Rodion
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Wow... that made me feel bad. And I've got nothing to do with this place. |
Outis
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It is not uncommon to see department leads shouting and butting heads, but... |
Outis
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... perhaps a physical altercation would have been preferable to letting such bitter animosity fester like this. |
... It was clear to us that the Sephirot did not share a very healthy work relationship with one another. | |
Not to mention that not many employees really put their faith in their Sephirot. | |
Rodion
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Hey, this Sephirah they call 'Malkuth'... she must've been the Sephirah of the Control Team department where we fought the Ordeal last time... |
Rodion
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I can tell from the way she talks that she treats her employees like parts of a machine. Driving them to their deaths, replacing them when they inevitably crumble... I guess a Wing is a Wing, after all. |
Sinclair
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Yeah... Look, here's a conversation log with 'Hod', the Sephirah of the Training Team. Looks like she started off pretty rough, but managed to avoid making things hostile in the office... |
Rodion
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Mhm, from the sounds of it, she really cares for her employees... Oh, well~ That's a whole another type of annoying though, y'know? |
Yi Sang
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Then... her heart would never have rested easy as long as she was here; the grievances of the employees would have reached her ears nonetheless. |
Yi Sang
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She may have given herself doses of painkillers she hid under the label of altruism, that she truly cared for them despite it all. |
Outis
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And this 'Yesod' must have been... I see, the Sephirah of the Information Team department here. Clearly, a stickler for the rules. |
Don Quixote
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"Viper" he was called. Perchance he had an unsavory habit of sinking his teeth into his employees? |
Outis
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It's only a figure of speech. Hm... he does seem like the irritating type, but he would have served as a decent strategist. |
Outis
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Ah, this appears to be a meticulous record of the work schedules. According to that digital calendar, the upcoming schedule is... |
Faust
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... fast approaching. There is no time to share the details regarding the Ordeal. |
Outis
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I suppose we should've checked the documents first. |
A heavy thump of the lights follows Outis' deep sigh. The lobby lights suddenly changed, and the floor began to tremble. | |
Dante
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<Well... can't say I'm surprised. We knew that an Ordeal was coming, after all.> |
Ishmael
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Still, I wished we'd have some prior knowledge of our enemies this time... |
Don Quixote
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Gyaaaah...! What in the name of Wings is that creature?! Vermin, is it...? 'Tis so far, yet appeareth so grand in size...! |
Naturally, we whipped around to look at Don Quixote, who then directed our attention toward something writhing in the distance... | |
... a thing of bizarre shape, crawling and squirming. | |
Faust
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If they have appeared in the Safety Team's corridors as well, then... |
Rodion
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There's more— there's more...! |
Dante
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<Faust...! Anything you can tell us about them before they start rushing us?!> |
I shouted, watching with horror as the curiously violet grub-like creature slowly spawned into the hallway from thin air. | |
Even though she probably didn't have much to tell me about them anyway. | |
Faust
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They will not... rush us. There were reports that these entities are rather slow. |
Faust
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In fact, they're... an Ordeal of Violet. Time: Dawn... |
Faust
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If they are indeed Violet, then it is unlikely that we will have much time to discuss this further. |
Faust
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We must immediately engage them, starting from the Safety Team hallway. A similar situation is very likely imminent in the Information Team and the Training Team hallways. |
Heathcliff
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Huh... huh? So what, we've got to crush 'em like there's a timer or something? |
Faust
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That would be an apt attitude, yes; the entities will soon be manifesting in every department. If we fail to quickly clear this zone and seek and destroy them in other departments... |
Heathcliff
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... If we don't...? |
Faust
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... then we may come face-to-face with the kind of pandemonium we would rather not have the displeasure of experiencing. |
Faust
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Every Qliphoth Counter in each department will immediately drop to zero... |
Yi Sang
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... and thus the Abnormalities contained within shall be released. |
Heathcliff
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Oh bollocks, come on! We JUST got off that bloody WARP train! I'd think we've had enough of the Wing shenanigans to deal with by now?! |
Ishmael
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Yeah, yeah. Zip it and grab your weapon. I'm going in! |
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Some time later... | |
Location: L Corp. HQ Training Team Lobby | |
Ishmael
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Phew, that's a relief... At least it wasn't indestructible. |
A rubble of broken stones lay about the exhausted Sinners' feet. | |
But that didn't last long. | |
Yi Sang
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I see... It fades away to naught. |
Faust
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Yes. While the entity took the form of a stone stele, an object commonly composed of inorganic matter, it is likely that its existence itself is perceived as a religious artifact in certain indeterminate locales. |
Hong Lu
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Mm~ True. That giant object did suddenly appear out of thin air before dropping right in front of us. |
The stele, which had once threatened the Sinners with its tentacles, soon disappeared from our sight like it never existed. | |
If Faust hadn't pushed me into the hallway just in time, I'd have been... | |
Faust
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Dante! |
WHAM! | |
Dante
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<We would've all died forever if that thing had crushed me, too...> |
Faust
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We were not crushed by the stele, to be exact. The real issue was the shockwave that came after the crash. |
Heathcliff
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I thought I slipped away in time, but... I had no idea the shockwave would be so deadly. |
Dante
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<We're going to have to find a way to deal with that shockwave somehow, or it'll be too risky to continue with our Walpurgis Night expedition.> |
I'm not saying that I'm scared of the pain I have to go through when reviving the Sinners. Which really, really hurts, of course, especially when it's twelvefold, but... | |
... I'm not sure if I want to ask them to repeatedly run a mission that's guaranteed to kill them in the end. | |
Moreover, we don't even know if whatever we'll find here will be worth all the trouble. | |
Faust
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According to the information given, it is said that Ordeals cannot occur in immediate succession... |
Heathcliff
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... They can't occur right after one another...? What, did the giant piece of rock have nothin' to do with an Ordeal, then? |
Faust
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Yes, it was indeed an Ordeal of Violet. However, this was... the Noon of Violet. |
Faust
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Ordeals of the Noon are a degree higher than Ordeals of the Dawn, which we already have experience with. |
Faust's brows were frowning at a nigh-imperceptible angle; she was sighing even as she relayed that information to us, clearly perturbed by something. | |
... I suddenly recalled what Faust speculated back at the WARP train: that the Gesellschaft may have made a purposeful omission. | |
Dante
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<You think this is the Gesellschaft withholding information from you again?> |
Faust
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There is no evidence to say for certain. They did not withhold the information regarding the Ordeal of Noon; thus, a more likely explanation is that this was merely a manifestation of a rare possibility. |
Faust
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... Yet your suggestion does concern me. |
Dante
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<…….> |
Faust
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If it was indeed a manifestation of a rare possibility, then we must seek for clues in this Walpurgis Night that may point us to an explanation. |
Dante
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<So... should we explore further?> |
But— | |
???
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Hello, everyone! Can you hear me...? |
A loud buzz, crackle, and an unfamiliar voice broke through the awkward silence we were meandering in. | |
Heathcliff
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Blimey! Who said that?! |
Don Quixote
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Ooh! I hearken unto thee!!! |
???
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Oh... I guess I can't hear your answers anyway. |
Hod
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Ahem, ahem. Ignore what I just said. Hello, this is Hod from the Training Team speaking! |
Meursault
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Mm. It appears that the Sephirah 'Hod', whose name we first learned of in the earlier document, is the one speaking to us. |
Ishmael
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Aha... so this is her voice, huh? |
Rodion
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Gotta say, this is kinda what we all expected her to sound, right? |
Hod
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We are all investigating how and why an Ordeal of Noon occurred immediately after the Dawn. |
Hod
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I understand that an unfamiliar situation like this may cause a sense of alarm and anxiety. But there's nothing to worry about as long as you remember the instructions under the Exception #40-AA Measure, which I made sure to mention in every training session! |
Gregor
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Exception #40-AA...? Just how many exceptions did she come up with...? |
Outis
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She must be a leader with a very hands-on approach to team management. Commanders who are overprotective of their personnel often make such mistakes. |
Sinclair
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G-guys, I don't think it's time to share our first impressions...! We don't know what measure she's talking about! At this rate, we'll get— |
Sinclair
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Oh. |
There was a dull 'thwick' just as Sinclair began to air his concerns. | |
Sinclair
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Uh, d-d-did-did I just get... shot...?! |
Hod
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You there, at the lobby... You've been dozing off during our drills, haven't you? |
Hod
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I'm pretty sure I explained that in outlier cases like these, we'll be firing Physical Intervention Shield bullets we share with the middle layer... |
Hod
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So why are you acting all surprised like you've never been shot before...? Haah... |
Sinclair
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Shield... bullets...? |
Dante
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<Huh, that 'bullet' does look kinda familiar, actually...> |
We carefully approached Sinclair to take a closer look at where the projectile hit him. | |
Ishmael
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Oh hey, I recognize this. This looks just like the decay ampule... |
Ishmael
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... that almost melted me into a puddle back at K Corp. Eugh, I'm getting unpleasant goosebumps just from thinking about it. |
Rodion
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You were totally badass though, Ishy~ Jumping right in front of Dante, taking the bullets for them and everything! |
Heathcliff
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Hah, then she went ahead and hurled a bloody harpoon into Clockhead's shoulder herself only a few months later. |
Ryoshu
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Heh. Like a good circular narrative structure. |
Ishmael
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Okay, you smartasses... |
Faust
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It is not a K Corp. ampule. While it is true that K Corp.'s technology was used to regenerate its employees, a barrier field like this fundamentally differs from the type of technology used by K Corp. |
Faust
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... It is said that Lobotomy Corporation maintained collaborative relationships with other Wings, including K Corp. Through the said collaborations, they obtained bullets and ampules of diverse functionalities useful for the workings of this company. |
Faust
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It appears that this Shield bullet is a result of one such partnership. |
Sinclair
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Wait, then this bullet will... |
Faust
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It is said that this bullet can partially negate physical damage... which is also known as 'RED damage' in Lobotomy Corporation terminology. |
Faust
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It will likely shield us from the shockwave created by the stele as well. |
Hod
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We'll have a counseling session later about your lack of focus during training... For now, please try to suppress this Ordeal of Noon as soon as possible. |
Hod
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I'll give everyone a Physical Intervention Shield, so let's try to take care of this Ordeal with as few casualties as possible! |
Faust
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Dante, let us... |
Dante
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<... Oh, right. Let's get a move on and deal with the other steles as well.> |
Faust
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Indeed. It would be preferable if we returned after confirming the destruction of steles in other areas as well. |
Faust
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We will have to visit Lobotomy Corporation Headquarters of different possibilities as well; we will make use of the Sephirah and the Shield as soon as we are able then. |
Dante
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<Mm... good idea.> |
Thanks to the unexpected support from a Sephirah, we were able to explore further through the Walpurgis Night. | |
Hod
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... All those trainings were for their own good. Is that so hard to understand...? |
It was just that... I couldn't help but think back to Hod's last few utterances that managed to slip through the static. | |
It made me wonder what really went down here, at the Headquarters of Lobotomy Corporation. |
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