Part Seven: Viper Manor (Another World)
After the events of Viper Manor you'll wake up in a small tower hut in Guldove, a port town off the coast of Termina. When you emerge from the hut Kid will be waiting, and despite being hit by Lynx's dagger she'll seem fine...
... for about two seconds. Then she'll collapse, running a high fever, and will be spirited away to the local clinic. Doc, the owner of the clinic, will tell you that Kid has been afflicted with a rare venom - and the venom belongs to the Hydra, a creature that has been driven to extinction in the El Nido Peninsula. Doc needs Hydra Humour to cure Kid. No Hydra, no cure.
Kid will call Serge over and, badly weakened, will give you her Astral Amulet. Korcha will then walk up and inquire as to your intentions. This question represents a fairly major branching point in the story, and will affect which characters you can recruit into your party, as well as what happens next:
- If you tell Korcha that you'll find a cure for Kid no matter what he will be elated, and offer to help. Taking this path will force you to look for a cure for Kid. You'll be able to recruit Korcha, his sister Mel, and a fairy named Razzly by taking this route.
- If, on the other hand, you insist twice that there's nothing you can do to help Kid, you'll infuriate Korcha. He'll force you to leave the Astral Amulet behind and storm off. Taking this route will still get you where you need to go in the long run - and faster, to boot - though it will take longer for you to get Kid back in your party. You'll be able to recruit Macha, Korcha's mother, Glenn, and Doc by taking this route.
Which route you take is ultimately up to you, and you'll have no problem getting through the game either way. That said, the common wisdom is that refusing to help Kid is the smarter path to take. Not only is it shorter, Glenn blows every other recruit out of the water in terms of usefulness to the party.
Whether or not you decide to help Kid you can now explore Guldove. We'll poke our head into some houses before we proceed with the story.
- Right outside Doc's house, standing near Korcha's boat, is a woman who acts as a Trading Post to exchange Elements for items. Speak to her once and, as you exit her vending screen, she'll ask you to dispose of a Pelvic Bone she found. It belongs to Skelly.
- Also on the docks, on the left side of the screen, is a blacksmith. Get upgraded equipment if you need a boost.
- West of the docks is a small tavern. Inside you'll see Doc, bewailing his inability to save Kid to the bartender, Orlha. Orlha is another character you can recruit, though much, much later in the game. (Which is unfortunate, because she's awesome.) You can't go in the tavern just yet, but you absolutely should once Doc vacates the place.
- Up the ladder to the left of the bar is a shop that sells Elements. Unlike Lisa's place this one sells Black and White Elements, making it a handy stop.
- To the left of the Element shop is the Dragon Shrine, the home of Direa, the chief of Guldove. If you chose to save Kid you'll need to visit Direa before you leave Guldove. Her assistant, Steena, is another recruit that won't join the party for a long time. Just outside their tower is a girl near a zipline that leads back to the docks; you'll need to speak to her brother before you can use it...
- ... and he's at the top of the Residential Tower, to the east of the Elements shop and your last stop in Guldove. This is where you woke up earlier. Climb to the top and the boy will charge you 5 g to explain the ziplines and 10 g to use them. Inside the Residential Tower you'll find Macha, Korcha's mom, and Mel, Korcha's sister. You'll need to pay Macha a visit if you refused to help Kid.
That's all for Guldove. If you agreed to help Kid Korcha will take you out of Guldove once you've spoken to Chief Direa, and when you arrive in Termina he'll join the party (temporarily). If you said that there was no hope for Kid then speaking to Macha will secure you Korcha's boat, and when you sail to Termina both she and Glenn will join the party after a short stay.
If you didn't put yourself on the path to save Kid then you'll have yourself a boat, and will be free to explore Another World, skipping a dungeon. If you did decide to save Kid, however, the boat will remain docked at Termina for the time being, and you'll need to make a side trip.