I don’t have anything to do, so I guess I’ll go look around. Isn’t there a manga club here? I wonder if they’re doing a zine or something for the festival… I think I’ll go look!
At the manga club’s stand, we find a friend.
”!?
Anghel! Are you a member of the manga club, then?”
Maybe we should’ve seen it coming.
“Indeed. This… is my weapon.”
Anghel produces a mapping pen with a dramatic flourish.
“Woah… that looks like it would hurt if you got poked.”
“It has stained many a day with the gore of friend and foe alike.”
Are you sure it’s not just that you’re careless and end up stabbing yourself a lot…?
The protagonist’s snarky train of thought is cut off by Anghel’s now familiar convulsions.
”!
My scarlet breast stirs… No! Why now…!? I shall leave this to you, Edel Blau. I must go…!”
In other words, it’s your turn to run the stand and you want me to do it for you? Umm…
We can make an excuse of our own, but that’s not our way. Instead, we tell Anghel to do what he must.
“Do what must be done, Crimson Angel of Judecca!”
“I shall follow the Covenant of my Blood to the End! Haah!”
He nimbly leaps over a stack of books and runs off into the courtyard. It’s not like I have anything better to do, so I’ll take his shift for him.
Well, we’ve spent this school festival in worse ways.
Huh? Isn’t that…
Guess who!
“Anghel?”
Good guess!
“Shh!”
Anghel beckons to me, completely visible despite his obvious attempts to conceal himself.
“Do you not sense the quickening, Edel Blau?”
“Quickening?”
I’ve never seen Highlander.
“The Demon Spores swarm with alarming intensity! They come… from there…!”
He’s looking at—
Guess where!
“Still going on about the infirmary, huh?”
“I have told you that is merely a facade, Edel Blau. The Tree of Blight, Rufa… yes, it is the Incubator of Absolute Darkness!”
“That makes even less sense! Why’s a fallen angel stressing over an infirmary, anyway?”
“The entire school will be swallowed by the Demon Spores if we do not act! Were that to happen, my Crimson Breast would run wild once more! I might even… you…”
Anghel looks particularly tortured, moreso than usual.
I’m not sure why, but it seems like he’s planning to hurt me. Scum! Vagabond! Little do you know that the Thielle family tradition is to kill first and ask questions later!
“… but the Root of All Evil, the Dark Sorcerer, is not here at present. I must plan my attack… rest easy until then, Edel Blau.”
And with that, he returned to his classroom. It looks like a normal infirmary to me. Is something really going to happen?
Knowing Shuu, quite probably. How this plays into Anghel’s fantastic history, well, we’ll have to wait and see.
… but my family’s Buddhist, so we never do anything special.
The doorbell rings, despite the fact that by all accounts this cave… is a cave, and should not have a doorbell.
“Huh? Somebirdie’s here? Coming!”
…… …? There’s no one here.
“I could have sworn I heard the doorbell… maybe it was a prank…?”
Darn pranksters, always messing with… people living in caves out of town.
There’s a little bag at my feet, with a note.
“To Edel Blau, Apostle of the Heavens.” Must be from Anghel! Inside… A crucifix? Oh, and a letter. Let’s see…
“Judgment draws near. Let us meet at the promised place.
—The Crimson Angel of Judecca.”
… if you’re going to ask me out can’t you at least say when and where!?
True love just knows these things! A week later, on New Year’s, we visit the shrine for a blessing.
Huh? Over by the office, isn’t that…
Someone’s having a bit of an altercation with Ryouta.
Anghel appears to be having some sort of breakdown at the amulet stall.
“Oh, Tera! Good timing! Anghel couldn’t decide which to get, and now he’s hysterical. I’m gonna get my pay docked for selling slowly… I need to get him out of the line, but…”
Looks like I get to be Anghel’s babysitter! Who could’ve known?
I’d say the protagonist knew what she was getting into, but… Still.
“What’s wrong, Anghel?”
“Do you know of the infinite possibilities of this universe, Edel Blau?”
“Infinite possibilities?”
“The present is a single point in the vast, Cosmic Soup of Time. Do I place myself under the protection of the Wise Kingfisher, or the Guiding Pearl, or…? I must decide which one will most likely aid me in the—”
“How about traffic safety? You strike me as the type to fly out into the road and get hit by a car, Anghel. Traffic safety is good!”
That’s extremely rude!
“Ryouta, can you give us a traffic safety charm?”
“Here you are! Thanks, Tera!”
And so I paid for the amulet and dragged Anghel out of the choked-up line.
“Y… you lifted the mighty Burden of Decision from my shoulders, Edel Blau?”
“Yup! Don’t worry about it. Here’s your amulet. Don’t lose it!”
“… I thank you. Guide me well, oh Wondrous Pearl!”
Honestly, I can relate.
And so Anghel took off into the trees, clutching his traffic amulet. I wonder if he’ll remember to look both ways.
That’s what the amulet’s for.
Third term rolls around, and with it, Legumentine’s Day. We purchase bitter black beans again, beans as bitter and black as our beloved’s soul…
Anghel’s in class 2, right? I wonder if he’s still in the classroom…
We head on over to the classroom next door, remarkably similar to the one we left.
“Anghel? Are you in here?”
“Hi, Anghel! I, umm… have something to give you.”
“Quiet, Edel Blau! We are in grave danger!”
“Eeeeh???”
Anghel pulls me from the room, and runs into the hallway as if fleeing from something.
“There is a risk that I could be cursed if others were to learn of our connection.”
In other words, the other boys in your class would make fun of you for having a girlfriend.
“Sorry, Anghel. I wasn’t thinking.”
The protagonist can be surprisingly considerate.
“It’s Legumentine’s today. Do you… want my beans?”
“Th-these are…!”
A change comes over him.
“He he he… aah, Black Beandonna…!”
There’s a mischief on his face and a twinkle in his eye.
“Wh-what’s going on?”
“Agh! Get out! This is my body, and I won’t let you use it as you please! These beans are evil, Edel Blau of the Blue Sky.”
“They look like normal black beans to me…”
“Indeed. Have no fear, I shall destroy them now.”
He opens the package and dumps its contents into his beak.
“*cough* *cough*”
“A-are you okay!? How do I heimlich a pigeon!?”
“D… don’t worry… about me…! Escape while you can, Edel Blau…!”
Maybe he’s a little young for black beans.
Nonsense.
This has been a long year. I’ve gotten involved with a Filipino… a Bananaman… an eccentric fallen angel…
Because, y’know, you’re the picture of normalcy.
Huh? There’s a letter in my desk.
“The time has come. Meet me at Rufa, the Tree of Blight.
—Crimson Angel of Judecca”
It’s from the eccentric Filipino Bananaman!
That really just sounds like some kind of racial slur.
“Is he planning to break into the infirmary…?”
The doctor being what he is, I’m worried for Anghel. I’d better hurry.
When we arrive at the infirmary, we find it a little… different from how we last left it.
Did I go into the wrong room…? No, I’m sure this is the infirmary.
What other room would it be??
But this place is like nothing that belongs in a school.
Inside, the two fated duelists stand off.
“I have waited for you, Crimson Angel of Judecca. Waited… from the very beginning. The Tree of Blight has fed on the Flesh and Blood of the Innocent, and has opened the Gate to Dark She’ol. We stand at the very border between this world and the next!”
Seems like Shuu is in on Anghel’s whole deal. And apparently, Anghel wasn’t wrong.
“And so you have appeared, lured here by the Taint of She’ol leaking through. Just as planned…!”
“So, your plan has been to swallow the school into the Abyss all along. Too bad! I shall not allow the Tree to reach maturity!”
“Hohoho! Please, do not misunderstand. I have no intention of bringing The End with this wooden toy. No, what I want… is your Accursed Flesh, Angel of Hell.”
The doctor rears back in a dramatic pose, villainy in full display.
“I am Wallenstein! You must agree that it is a fitting name for the Dark King. Come to me, Spirit of Evil!”
“Anghel!?”
A black miasma floods from his chest, and is swallowed by the tree.
“What are you doing, doctor!? This is cruel!”
“You should know, Reincarnation Edel Blau, the Apostle who sealed the Crimson Angel of Judecca. This dove holds within him an Avatar of Destruction!”
“An avatar of… destruction…?”
“Have you forgotten, Edel Blau…?”
Apparently!
“That day, long ago… in the time of Gods and Demons… when you took up the sword to end my rampage…?”
“I have drawn out the power you sealed in his breast with the Forbidden Mantrayana. The Tree of Blight has consumed both the students of this school and the mindless power of the Crimson Devil! Welcome to The End!”
“Arise, Himnesia, Bringer of Death!”
A horrifying growth reupts from the decidedly evil-looking tree in the centre of the room.
“No… it’s over… it’s all over! The world will be swallowed by Darkness…!”
“You can’t give up, Anghel!”
“Edel Blau…”
“Have you forgotten, Anghel? I still have that ID card with the weird squiggles you drew!”
The protagonist may not be able to talk the talk, but she can certainly walk the walk.
“We still have hope! All we have to do is kill this final boss thingie, right? We stand together, Anghel…!”
“… I never thought the day would come when we two would join in battle once more. I… had not the courage to face down my evil half. But you…! Take this, Edel Blau!”
Anghel hands us something long, pointy and dangerous-looking.
This is… the mapping pen…!
“Saekro’m, the Holy Spear, is yours to wield! Come!”
And with that, we’re plunged into psuedo-RPG battle!
Anghel uses Dark Void Shockwave! Himnesia takes 24 damage!
Each turn, we’re given a pair of suitably dramatic-sounding attacks to make use of. I honestly forget if one is more useful than the other. It’s kind of secondary to the whole thing.
Tera uses Eye of Judgment! Himnesia takes 360 damage!
Himnesia unleashes Obliteration Blade! Tera takes 215 damage!
Anghel uses Blood Lotus Cremation! Himnesia takes 68 damage!
The fight rages back and forth in this manner, with Anghel unleashing attacks with names like Crimson Seraph Chain and other things that would be great metal album titles.
After much ado, Anghel and the protagonist finally triumph over Himnesia, casting the vile tree-demon back to the void it came from.
“No! Himnesia… was destroyed…!?”
“You miscalculated, Wallenstein. You did not account for Edel Blau’s presence here!”
“Bah! I must withdraw…!”
As Wallenshuu skulks away, he has a parting reminder for us all.
“Do not forget! I shall summon a second Himnesia, and a third, until the world is torn apart by their Thirst for Blood!”
“Wait, Wallenstein…!”
It’s too late, though, and Anghel’s plea goes unheard. For now, though, we’re safe.
And so our adventure ended as suddenly it began. We never saw the doctor at the school again…
The darkness withdraws from the infirmary, making it look like a normal school room again.
“Anghel, I remember everything! I remember your Fall, and I remember chasing after you to try to bring you back, and…!”
“… and you remember skewering me with Saekro’m and imprisoning me in the Cage of Ice?”
“Yes…”
“I do not resent you. I had lost myself, and was but a Demon of Blood, destroying all in my path…”
“But the Demon is gone, now.”
“… yes.”
“I think you can live normally now, Anghel.”
Something like a smile adorns Anghel’s face, a look of deep satisfaction.
“Anghel, I… no. I hope we can stay together like this, Yoshio.”
“Gyaaaaaaah!”
He huddles in the corner, wailing in anguish. I guess that rule is still in effect. I wonder when he’ll let me use his real name…
Who can say. The credits roll on yet another route of Hatoful Boyfriend.
Well, I think I can safely say that route was… certainly a ride. At least, unlike some of our recent routes, it answers almost exactly as many questions as it raises. Even if they’re fairly stupid answers. While we allow some time for those to digest, you can vote on our next route right here. Vote quickly, because I’m not leaving this one open for long; I want to keep things moving now that we’ve knocked out about half the routes! The LP should resume in under a week. Until next time, everybirdie!