Here's the next chapter!

Enjoy!

Chapter 5: Alexandria's Predicament

[BGM: Strange World – Dragon Quest VIII]

"You know, I'm already having a feeling that we might get stuck in this world for a very long time." Aya said to the girls, as we were walking along the dirt path to the southern checkpoint.

"True…" Alice agreed with a sigh. "Let alone having to track down an evil jester, which is no doubt going to take a while."

Reisen sighed sadly. "I wonder how are the others doing back in Gensokyo… Eirin and Kaguya must be very worried about me…"

"Mistress Yuyuko must be worried about me too…" Youmu added.

"Honestly, I wouldn't mind not being able to go back home for a while." Remilia said. "After all, it's not a bad idea to go explore this new world if it means starving off boredom." she then frowned a bit. "Though I am a bit worried that Flandre might feel lonely without me…and that nobody would be able to stop her if she goes out of control."

"Oh, I'm sure Meiling, Sakuya and Patchouli can keep her under control." Marisa assured.

"Here's hoping."

"Still, it can't be denied that the flower-viewing party is ruined thanks to all this…" Reimu lamented depressively. "And right now… I'm worried about one particular thing…"

"Which is…?" Cirno wondered.

"Have you all forgotten that I'm the one in charge of keeping up Gensokyo's Great Hakurei Barrier to prevent it from weakening? So if I'm not around…"

I saw that realization hit the rest of the girls. "Oh, right! I totally forgot!" Marisa exclaimed. "Well, at the very least the Hakurei Shrine is still there and somebody is probably taking care of it while you're gone. And I'm betting that it's Kasen again…"

Reimu's eye twitched a bit. "Oh, I swear to god… If she turns my shrine into a hangout spot for youkai again, I'm going to scream. Well, back to the main topic… There's also the fact that Yukari can try to keep up the barrier with her powers. Even so, she won't be able to hold it up forever, but at the very least… As long as I am still alive, then the barrier should be able to hold up by itself even if I'm not in Gensokyo."

"Hey, if that's the case, then I'm sure it won't be a big problem! As long as we get our work here done fast, we can probably find a way to return to Gensokyo before the barrier disappears and prevent our land's exposure to the Outside World!"

Reimu sighed. "Optimistic as ever, huh? Let's hope for the best…"

Despite not understanding much about all the things they spoke during their conversation, I couldn't help but frown in pity at them. "I'm so sorry to hear all of this from you, girls…" I said sadly. "But if I were suddenly whisked to a new and unfamiliar world like what happened to you all, I think I would also get worried about how things are going in my world during my absence." Well… How ironic considering that actually happened to me right after my journey ended.

"I can imagine that…" Reimu sighed, before shrugging. "Oh well, it can't be helped anyways… Might as well finish whatever has started." Can't argue with that.

Eventually, we reached the checkpoint and crossed the bridge that leads out of Farebury to the next region: the region of Alexandria. However, as soon as we stepped into this new territory… its regional monsters immediately appeared to greet us: Bodkin Archers, Drackmages, Beetleboys, Funghouls, Fencing Foxes, Hammerhoods and Spiked Hares.

[BGM: Sunshine Coastline – Ys VIII: Lacrimosa of Dana]

"Talk about a warm welcome…" Trode grumbled.

I, Yangus and the girls stood ready to fight. "Just stay behind us, Trode. We'll take care of them!" I said.

The Bodkin Archers began by firing a hail of arrows from their bows at us. "Dream Sign: Duplex Barrier!" Reimu called out as a cube-shaped barrier suddenly formed around us and blocked the arrows, then she would throw several ofuda at the Bodkin Archers that managed to defeat some of them, while the remaining ones survived due to casting Buff on themselves to increase their defense… but they eventually fell anyways by getting impaled by pillars of ice that Cirno conjured underneath them.

Remilia was attacking the Drackmages by firing red bat bullets at them, until one of them manages to cast Kasap on her to lower her defense. "Please, like that's going to stop me!" she smirked and took out a spell card. "Scarlet Sign: Red the Nightless Castle!" a red flaming aura surrounded her, burning away all the remaining Drackmages.

"Wow, you guys are some weird-looking sentient mushrooms…" Marisa commented while she was facing against the Funghouls, then she beamed, "Oh! Mind if I use one of you as an ingredient for a new potion?" Their response? Spewing out their trademark Sweet Breath which, if inhaled, can put anyone to sleep. "Whoa!" thankfully, Marisa swerved out of the breath's way while pinching her nose, and was now right above the Funghouls. "Guess not… especially when you must have some bad breath! Ah well, time to eliminate you!" she takes out a spell card, plus her little furnace thing she calls the 'Mini-Hakkero'. "Star Sign: Dragon Meteor!" with that, she fires a large colorful laser from it that instantly pulverized all of the Funghouls in a matter of seconds.

One of the Fencing Foxes charged at me and slashed down on me, but I quickly clashed its blade with mine before it jumped back… to cast Fizzle on me. Darn, now I won't be able to cast Heal for a while. Then, all of the Fencing Foxes decided to go after me all at once. Oh, what to do… Ah! The cheese! Acting quickly, I scooped up Munchie from out of my pocket as I took out a piece of Plain Cheese from my knapsack and fed it to him… and then I watched in amazement as he suddenly breathed fire at the Fencing Foxes, defeating some of them. Wow… he was quite a special mouse indeed. Unfortunately, the Fencing Foxes who survived the attack casted Heal on themselves to recover their health and proceeded to charge after me again…

"Sword Skill: Cherry Blossom Flashing!" but then Youmu suddenly shouted as she came from the side while slashing through the Fencing Foxes to defeat all of them, and leaving a trail of pretty cherry blossom petals behind. "I thought you needed some help." she said to me with a smile. "By the way, I just saw what Munchie did after you fed him that cheese… and I have to say that what he did was quite impressive."

I smiled back. "Thanks, Youmu."

The Hammerhoods charged at Alice, who had her dolls ready, and made a swing… only to miss due to their clumsy nature and faceplanted onto the ground, as Alice and her dolls just watched. "Oh… Well, there goes your chance." Alice said. "Malediction: Hourai Doll." cue her dolls firing lasers at the downed Hammerhoods, defeating them. "Honestly, I almost feel bad for them…"

"Crossroad Sign: Crossroads of Heaven!" Aya called out, throwing danmaku everywhere at the Spiked Hares as one by one, they were all defeated… except for one who managed to escape. Meanwhile, Yangus had a Psyche Up ready after dodging a Beetleboy's attack and got ready to attack it back… but then the escaped Spiked Hare managed to remove his tension while increasing its own, much to his dismay as he got attacked by said Hare and, to add insult to injury, also get knocked down to the ground afterwards by the same Beetleboy who attacked him.

Taking this advantage, the Beetleboys proceeded to advance towards Yangus… only to stop halfway for apparently no reason as they looked around confused, almost as if Yangus was completely invisible to them. I got confused as well, until I looked over to see Reisen floating right above Yangus while her eyes were glowing… Ah, now I get it; she must be using her powers over waves on the Beetleboys to completely conceal Yangus's presence from their point of view.

"Heh, I got you all now!" Reisen grinned. "Lunatic Sign: Visionary Turning!" as if Reisen concealing Yangus wasn't crazy enough, just wait until you see what this spell card did: she began firing danmaku at the Beetleboys… except that in my point of view, the bullets were just passing right through them and yet they were still taking damage by them somehow. I guess it might be because she messed up the Beetleboys' minds so much that all her illusion bullets are made real for them? Dang…

Anyways, once all the Beetleboys were history, all that was left was for Yangus to bash the last monster remaining – the Spiked Hare – to finally bring this fight to an end.

[BGM End]

"Phew… And that's the end of them." Reisen said as she floated back down to the ground next to Yangus. "Personally, I'm not into fighting that much…but I had no other choice."

"Oy, ya kiddin'? Ya did great in 'elpin' me out there!" Yangus complimented.

Reisen giggled shyly. "Thanks…"

By the time we all regrouped, the Fizzle effect on me wore off, and so I was able to heal up Yangus. "Alright, the area is cleared out of monsters for now." I said, and then I turned around to face a town's entrance that was right behind me. "Now maybe we can stop by that village over there."

"The Village of Alexandria?" Trode asked. "Why do you want to stop there, my boy?"

"Well, it's quite a long way to the southern continent, and not to mention that we just got into a battle. So it's wise if we take a break for a bit in order to not overextend ourselves, and also to get some more new supplies since our battles are definitely going to get harder as we advance."

"That's a good point." Alice agreed.

Trode sighed. "All right, you can all head there… And once again, Medea and I will stay just outside."

I nodded in response, and then we proceeded to head into the village.

[BGM: Quiet Village – Dragon Quest VIII]

Alexandria was quite a nice-looking and (as the BGM suggests) quiet village. It was much smaller compared to Farebury, with houses made out of logs that were well crafted, a patch of dirt where crops were growing, and a pond that divided the town's residential area from the commercial area, where I could immediately spot the stalls for armory and weaponry in said area that we entered in.

Just then, we saw a young boy with blue hair and wearing a Viking-like helmet run up to us… but it was not for a friendly greeting; in fact, his expression looked hostile. "Halt! Who goes there?" he questioned, and before I could reply, he continued, "Don't waste your breath, scoundrels! I can spot bandits a mile off!"

"What?! Bandits?! Who're you calling bandits, kid?" Remilia questioned offendedly. "We just got here!"

But the boy ignored her and addressed another boy, who had brown hair and wore an upside-down pot on his head. "This is for Alistair! Come on, Mash! Let's get 'em!"

"Yessir, Bangerz!" the other boy, apparently named Mash, replied with a salute and ran over to join Bangerz while gripping his wooden stick firmly like a weapon.

[BGM Pause]

Meanwhile, Bangerz drew out a small wooden sword and pointed it at us while declaring, "Prepare to meet your maker!"

We were all taken aback by this. "…We're not actually going to fight these two innocent little kids, are we?" Reimu asked worriedly to me.

"I don't really mind that." Cirno said with a proud smirk. "Because I can show them that I'm the strongest!"

The rest of the girls sweatdropped. "Oooof course you'd say that…" Marisa grumbled.

As for me, I didn't say or do anything, and instead just stood there completely immobile and conflicted on what to do about this. Oh, how I wished there was someone else in the village that could interfere in this misunderstanding…

"What on earth are you two rascals up to now? Stop it at once!" then, all of a sudden, an elderly voice came in.

[Resume "Quiet Village" BGM]

Immediately, Bangerz and Mash froze and tensed up as they looked over to the owner of the voice, which belonged to an old lady. "Where are your manners!? That's no way to welcome travelers!" she scolded at them… before proceeding to conk them on their heads. "Didn't Miss Jessica ask you to run an errand for her? And here you are playing around!"

"Uh! I forgot!" Bangerz exclaimed nervously, rubbing the back of his head.

"You'd better run along before Jessica finds out!"

"Yikes!" and with that, the two boys scurried off.

"Whew…" Yangus sighed in relief. "Thanks fer savin' our bacon, grandma." You tell her, Yangus. I'm glad that she was nearby; I seriously did not want to hurt those two children at all.

"Oh, it was nothing." the old lady replied. "I'm so sorry. Those boys don't mean any harm. It's just that our village has been through a lot lately."

"Really? What happened in here?" I asked.

"Ask around for yourselves. You'll see. But there's nothing wrong with the place, mind. It's a lovely village, really. Make yourselves at home."

"Right. Thanks for your hospitality, kind old lady." Youmu smiled with a bow, and then the old lady walked away.

Aya placed a finger under her chin. "Ask around, she said?" then a big smile formed on her face. "I'm on it!" she runs off.

"Aya, wait!" Reimu called out, but she was already gone. "Oh, great…" she muttered and turned to me. "Eight, can you go after Aya and keep watch on her? I don't want her to go taking embarrassing photos of people in this village…"

"Um, sure…" I replied. "And while I'm at it, the rest of you should go over to the stalls there and buy the supplies then." I pointed over to said stalls.

"Sounds good." Reimu nodded and she and the rest walked over to the stalls, while I ran off to find Aya.

It didn't take me too long to find her, as I saw her on the village's residential side talking with a young woman. So I crossed the bridge, and by the time I caught up to Aya, the woman she was talking to had walked away to mind her own business. "Hey, Aya!" I called out to the tengu.

"Hm?" Aya turned to face me. "Oh hey, Eight! You came to accompany me?"

"Well, yes. That, and the fact that Reimu requested me to keep watch on you…so that you wouldn't take embarrassing photos of the people around, according to her."

A pout formed on Aya's face. "Aw, she's no fun… Sure, I tend to sometimes exaggerate my articles, but I can be serious and highly dedicated sometimes!"

I perked up in interest. "What do you mean by that?"

Aya sighed and replied, "You see, I don't work just as a reporter, but as a newspaper writer too. I run the Bunbunmaru Newspaper, but according to what I hear from humans and youkai who read my newspapers, I have a shameless reporting style: I always express my own personal opinions in my articles, display embarrassing photos of people, but most importantly, as I said before… I tend to exaggerate articles, even going as far as writing complete lies. As a result, my newspapers aren't well received since many people in Gensokyo either don't want to see them at all or use them for something else other than reading, and a lot of my friends are on less than good terms with me."

"Oh… I see it now." I frowned. "But why do you exaggerate your articles in the first place?"

"Because I wanted to make them more interesting and unique! But now I see that people don't really enjoy them…" she begins to crestfall sadly. "And, despite all of that… I do have ethics and I'm more inclined on pursuing the truth than ruining others' reputation. Being a reporter and a newspaper writer is part of my life, and I really enjoy this job since it makes me happy, having to soar all around Gensokyo to deliver news and spread information to others…but I also want to make others happy too. If only I could make good newspapers… If only I get the chance to make improvements and make myself less despicable to others… Should I even need to quit my job so that everyone would stop hating me…?"

"You don't need to." I said with a smile while tapping on her shoulder, making her flinch and look up to me. "If this job makes you happy, then you shouldn't give up on it. You're just doing what you do best. And about your current situation…" my smile shifted to a more encouraging one. "It's never too late to change yourself for the best as long as you still have a long life to live on. You still have a chance to achieve your dream of making others happy; all you have to do is believe in yourself. Anyone can change, and of course, this includes you."

"Eight…" Aya whispered, then she smiled. "Thank you for these encouraging words. Now I just know I can change!"

"Yes, and I believe in you. Plus… I really don't want you to end up like Kalderasha did."

Aya giggled. "Yeah, right… I'll make sure to improve myself once I get back home, and I shall make the Bunbunmaru Newspaper the best source of news in Gensokyo!"

"That's the spirit!" I winked. "Anyways, changing the subject now… What did you ask that young woman about?"

"About the village's predicament, of course!" Aya replied, before rolling her eyes, "Sheesh, did Reimu really think I wouldn't take this seriously?"

"I mean, considering your reputation…" I began honestly.

"…Fair point."

"So, what did she say?"

Aya pulled up her notebook. "From what she told me, one of the members of the wealthy Albert family had been murdered recently: Alistair Albert, the only boy of the family to be exact. He was a strong guard in the family, and he got killed in a tower that's not too far from here. Jessica and Rosalind, his younger sister and mother respectively, were left devastated when they found his body, and then they confined themselves in their home while the people of Alexandria stayed on edge, fearing that Alistair's murderer, who all think it might be a thief, might come to this village too."

Ah, so that explains the situation of the village and why Bangerz and Mash attempted to attack us. It's quite sad to think that everyone in Alexandria fear even travelers due to them thinking that one of them could be Alistair's murderer. But, wait… we have another murdering case here just like back in Farebury… Could it be that…Dhoulmagus might've murdered Alistair in the same vein as Rylus too?

I pondered for a bit with a finger under my chin. "Say, Aya… Doesn't that sound a bit familiar to you?" I asked her.

"You mean this murdering case?" Aya replied.

"Exactly. It sounds a lot like Rylus's death, don't you think?"

"Oh, yeah…" then it hit her. "Wait, you don't think that it was Dhoulmagus who killed Alistair, do you?"

"We don't know for sure, but I believe it's highly likely."

"But… why would he kill Alistair too?"

"No idea…" I shrugged. "But if it really was Dhoulmagus who did it, then we have to try and find him to stop him from killing any more innocents!" I said in determination while clenching a fist.

"You said it!" Aya mirrored my expression while nodding. Then, she would glance over at the large mansion at the distance. "Ah, see that building over there? That's the Albert family residence." she pointed, and I looked over at it. Wow, they must be a very rich family to live in a mansion like that. "Maybe we can go check out on the remaining members of the family for more information? I just hope that a family as rich as themselves will let us in."

"Only one way to find out." I said as I walked toward the mansion with Aya following me behind, then I opened the door to the mansion and we both stepped inside.

[BGM Pause]

As soon as we were inside, we were almost overwhelmed by all the things around us: the bustling maids, the guards at the corner, the luxurious carpets and the smell of food from a nearby kitchen… Well, the mansion as a whole wasn't as luxurious as Trodain Castle obviously, but it was just enough to make a massive contrast to the simpler wooden log houses on the rest of the village.

"Woooow!" Aya awed, immediately snapping photos of the place but making sure not to fly. "I've never been in a high-class residence like this one!"

I chuckled. "You sure are having fun… but we have something more important to do here."

"Er… right." Aya sweatdropped sheepishly and then we went up the stairs to the second floor, where on the right we found a middle-aged woman sitting by a round table next to a fireplace. And as we approached her, we could see that she looked rather distraught and melancholic.

"Allow me to introduce myself. I'm Rosalind Albert." she spoke rather stoically. Oh, so this is Rosalind. "Sadly, my family is currently in mourning. No one is permitted to set foot outside the house." Hm, so what Aya told me about their confinement was true after all… "I'm afraid that my daughter is less than happy about this arrangement and has confined herself to her room." she points over at the door, where Bangerz and Mash were in front of it standing guard. "She's even asked those boys to stand guard at the door. I'm sure I don't know what's got into her."

"Don't worry, we can try to check up on her!" Aya replied.

Rosalind sighed. "I'd appreciate that, but I just know it won't be easy…"

"We'll find a way." I assured, and I and Aya went over to Bangerz and Mash.

"Oh, it's you." Bangerz spoke to me. "And you're one of those who were accompanying him." he referred to Aya. "I'm sorry about before. But I'm not sorry enough to let you through here. I'm under orders, see. Jessica said she doesn't want to see anyone, so I can't let people through." Welp, Rosalind was right; it won't be that easy…

"Y-you still look a bit like thieves to me." Mash stuttered. "I bet you are! I'm never wrong either!"

I and Aya sighed. "Ayayayaya…" Aya shook her head. "This just won't do…" True that: with Bangerz and Mash blocking the door, we cannot get to Jessica's room by normal means. We'll just have to find another way in.

"Yeah…" I threw in. "Come on, Aya. Let's just get out of their sight." and we did it so by heading into the nearest room so I could try to think of another way…

"Eeeek!" but we suddenly heard a shriek coming from the attic above us and we rushed up to it, where we met a young blonde maid pacing around nervously until she noticed us. "Oh! Look out! It isn't safe here!" she panicked.

"Why not?" Aya asked.

"Just look! There's a mouse! I hate mice! Why do I have to deal with it? Ohhh…" and… cue a nearby mouse squeak as we looked over to see said mouse running towards us, until it stopped to instead run into a mouse hole in the wall. "See!? See!? Did you see it? Just now!? What am I going to do!? Jessica's room is on the other side of that wall! Oh, dear…" after that, the maid hurriedly ran down the stairs.

I then looked back at the hole the mouse went through. Hold up… did that maid just say that this hole leads to Jessica's room? And this hole seemed small enough for someone like Munchie to fit through… That's it! Since Munchie is so obedient to me, maybe I can send him into that hole and see if he can find Jessica in there! Already settling on this, I approached the hole and knelt down to it while at the same time digging in my jacket's pocket to grab Munchie.

"Umm, Eight? What are you doing?" Aya asked in confusion while I was doing this, as she was watching it from behind me.

"I'm sending Munchie into the hole to see if he can find Jessica for us." I replied.

"Are you sure this will work? He's just a mouse…"

I raised an eyebrow. "You and the others just saw him breathing fire right after eating some cheese, so it might already be clear to you that he isn't an ordinary mouse."

"Oh… Good point."

With that, I put Munchie in front of the hole and he instantly scurried into it. I and Aya just stood here to wait for him to return, and after exactly 50 seconds, Munchie came back out while holding a piece of paper in his mouth, which instantly caught my attention as my eyes perked up.

"Hm? What's this you got, Munchie?" I asked as Munchie dropped the paper on the floor, then I first placed him back into my pocket before I took the paper and looked at it. There were some handwritings on it, so it must be a letter. I proceeded to read it out loud, and it said:

'I don't know who will find this letter. But please consider it my last will and testament. For by the time you read this, I will already be gone. I am going to the tower in the east. I will not return until my brother's death is avenged.

Mother, I'm sorry for the damage I've caused to our family's reputation. But this is about something far bigger than tradition. I must follow my heart, no matter the consequences. Please forgive me. And to Bangerz and Mash, I'm sorry for lying to you. I hope you'll forgive me as well.

Signed, Jessica'

Right after I finished reading, I and Aya looked at each other in shock: Jessica was not in her room at all, and she instead had gone off by herself to the tower where, from what Aya informed me, Alistair had been killed. But…if the one who killed him really was Dhoulmagus, then Jessica could be in big trouble! I now knew that we must hurry over to the tower to find Jessica before anything horrible happens to her. But first… maybe I should let Bangerz and Mash know about the truth.

So I told Aya to report to the others about what we found out while I went back to Bangerz and Mash, and upon seeing me, Bangerz immediately spoke, "You again? What do you want this time? And where did that girl with you head off to?"

"She went to do something else." I replied. "And by the way, you said to me and to her that Jessica is in her room, right? Well, guess what: we just found out that she's not in there."

"…What!? She's not in her room!?" Bangerz questioned, only to scoff afterwards. "Ha! I knew you were dodgy from the first moment I saw you, so don't think you can put one over on me! There's no way she's not in her room! So prove it! You can't just say something like that without proof! Are you a complete thicko, or what!?"

Trying not to fume at being called a thicko, I pulled out Jessica's letter and reread it for them. "Well, there's the proof." I said once I was done.

"What!? A letter from Jessica?" Unfortunately, Bangerz still did not take it seriously, despite speaking with a few stutters, "No way! You're lying! She's been in her room the whole time! So how could she give you a letter?" Oh, I…don't really know how I can answer this without bringing Munchie up…

Thankfully, Mash interjected, "I dunno. It sounds sorta real to me."

Bangerz stood quiet for a second, his face clearly still showing skepticism, and then he said while pointing a finger at me, "Okay! Fine! I'll check her room! But if I'm right, you and the others with you better leave and never come back! Got it?"

I furrowed my eyebrows in annoyance. "Alright, deal." I replied harshly, as I was already getting sick of this little brat's attitude.

"Right. Just wait here. No running away, now!" Bangerz then threw open the door and dashed into Jessica's room… but he didn't notice that by throwing open the door, it had slammed right onto Mash and knocked him down while I winced at this. "Hey! She is gone!" I heard Bangerz shouting from inside, then he dashed back out and stopped in front of me.

"See? I told you." I said with a deadpan look while folding my arms.

"Gimme that letter!" Bangerz exclaimed as he forcibly snatched the letter from my hands and looked at it. "This is definitely Jessica's handwriting." he mused. "But if she really did go to the tower, she'll end up just like her brother Alistair!" he was now visibly shaking in worry. "This is bad… This is REALLY bad… We've gotta do something! We've gotta get her out of there!" he puts away the letter and pointed an accused finger at me. "You! This is partially your fault!"

Partially my fault?! Now I looked even more offended than ever. "What!? How is this even my fault!?" I retorted. "I had absolutely nothing to do with this!"

But Bangerz just ignored me and continued, "So I'll open the door to the tower. You go in and get her. Got it?"

I sighed in exasperation. "Fine…"

"Okay! We've gotta hurry! To get to the tower, go left down the path outside the village! Oh, one more thing. I'll leave the monsters to you lot!" he turns to address Mash, who at this point had gotten back up after the knockdown from before. "Listen, Mash. Whatever you do, don't let Jessica's mum find out where she went!"

"Yessir, Bangerz!" Mash saluted.

Bangerz turned to me again and ushered, "Good! Come on! We've gotta hurry!" I just did a single nod to him in reply, and we both proceeded to leave the mansion.

[Resume "Quiet Village" BGM]

Once outside, we ran down to the commercial area where Yangus and the girls were waiting. "Ah! You're back, Eight!" Aya exclaimed, and then she noticed Bangerz with me. "Uh, why is he with you?"

"Don't get the wrong idea." Bangerz replied with a humph, folding his arms. "I'm just joining him briefly only to open the tower's door and nothing else, got it?"

"Okay…"

"Seems like this bloomin' brat Bangerz weren't just pickin' a fight wiv us. He was givin' you lip an' all!" Yangus stated. "It's 'ard to know what to say to someone wiv that sort of attitude, ain't it?" Couldn't have said it better myself, Yangus…

"Anyways…" Alice interfered. "Aya here just told us everything you two found in the mansion. So now we have to head out to this Tower of Alexandria to find Jessica, right?"

"That's right." I nodded. "We just can't let her end up like her brother did and get herself killed too." And as I glanced at the stalls, it came back to me, "Oh, and before we leave, what new supplies did you get from the stalls?" Hearing that, Yangus and the girls immediately showed me what they had bought: two Scale Shields, a Scale Armor, a Leather Kilt, a Stone Axe, and a Boomerang. "Wow! That's a lot of stuff!" I exclaimed. But then again, we did earn ourselves a lot of gold just by defeating the monsters of this region. I instantly proceeded to equip one of the Scale Shields, the Armor and the Boomerang, while Yangus equipped the other Shield, the Kilt and the Stone Axe.

"Finally! I got myself a new axe again!" Yangus grinned.

"Okay, we're all set now!" I said. "To the Tower of Alexandria we go!"

And with that, we all left the village.

To be continued…

Well, that was quite the predicament, huh?

Eight: True... and man, that Bangerz kid was really getting on my nerves.

I can see that. Anyway, next up is the Tower of Alexandria!

Eight: Until then!

Trivia for this chapter:

1. The part where Marisa mentions about Kasen probably taking care of the Hakurei Shrine again is a reference to the events of chapter 23 from the Touhou manga Wild and Horned Hermit, where Reimu neglects her shrine maiden duties to work as a fortune-teller, resulting in Kasen taking Reimu's place and the shrine soon becomes overrun by youkai.