True End Blog – Visual Novels, Otome, RPGs –

In comes Lucien, demanding to see Anastasia and bring her back to the castle with a marriage proposal. Maya attempts to give her a dress to wear, but Olga is enraged that her step sister is receiving attention instead of herself. She sheds the dress and chops off all of Anastasia’s long red hair. This is when I realized Maya was really desperately trying to get Anastasia out of this situation. She also realizes that even when her food was cold and days old, Maya was the only maid who made sure she was fed at all. Whatever Olga brought her was almost certainly tampered with.

Lucien is undeterred by Olga and basically forces the Lynzel family to give her up. How princely! Anastasia is free, walking the streets for the first time in almost a decade. Of course, they come across a witch trial that disturbs both of them, and me, for that matter. They also see top inquisitor Tyril in action. In the castle she meets her betrothed: Conrad Neuschburn. He is the first born prince and everyone’s favorite for the throne. Anastasia is so thrilled and charmed by Conrad that she wants to be useful by doing some accounting for him to prove her worth. Hooray!

Except the numbers aren’t adding up. Money is going missing somewhere! She doesn’t want to let Conrad know just yet to show she is able to handle things on her own and would be an asset. One of the advisors in the castle, who happens to be Zenn Sorfield, agrees to help her figure out what’s going on. Anastasia decides to send someone she can trust to check out the project that Conrad is in charge of. She sends Maya, who is eager to try and help Anastasia in any way she can, feeling immensely guilty for not being able to help her more. It’s soon realized that this project is running on slave labor, and it’s not the only illegal and underhanded thing going on. Maya is killed by Conrad’s “Hound”, his notorious bodyguard and assassin before she can return with proof of his misdeeds. When she is finally able to confront Conrad, his princely facade drops. He is, in fact, behind all of the wrongdoings that Anastasia uncovered. He gives her two choices, return to the Lynzel home to be the victim of more abuse or become his silent, complicit wife to help him secure his place as the next king.

As a side note, I’ve seen quite a few people eager for a Conrad route, and as much as I love a crazy LI, he’s just too downright malicious for my tastes. He also does a crazy evil anime face that just turns me off a lot.

Anastasia, unable to stomach either of these options, throws herself out a window in despair.

This is her first Fatal Rewind, unbeknownst to her. She wakes up days before this incident in her room in the castle, confused but determined to change her future. Anastasia decides to accuse Conrad directly and publicly this time. This backfires in a horrific manner. Conrad, beloved by the people of Hystorica, publicly denounces Anastasia as a witch. A witch trial is held ending with her burning at the stake.

The writing during this segment was gruesome. Anastasia’s narration describes the flames melting her flesh, in excruciating pain and detail. I was equally impressed and uncomfortable, which is how you know something has really good writing. The CG for this moment is also gorgeous and harrowing. This is her second Fatal Rewind.

She awakens in a strange place with a strange boy who calls himself “Rune.” Rune explains Anastasia’s power to her, and that they’re in Elysia, a world beyond her own. He was unable to speak to her after her first death because she was, understandable, hysterical. Instead, he wiped her memory and sent her back in time a few days. He advises Anastasia to not think about her previous deaths too much because it puts her at risk of completely losing her mind. Everyone knows saying “don’t think about this thing” is a great way to stop someone from thinking about something! But Anastasia knows a good opportunity when she sees one. With this power, she can turn back the clock to get revenge on her family and Conrad.

Rune has one request for her: to stop the Witch of Ruin who is running amok. She agrees, and asks how far back in time he can send her. She is sent back to right after her father’s marriage to Evelina, more determined than ever to escape the abuse she suffered and ensure Conrad never becomes king. There’s a great animation for her Fatal Rewinds that’s really beautiful and well executed.

We re-enter the story with Anastasia, now a member of the Knights of Garuda under Crius. She begged her father to let her join a convent, bribed the nuns to keep quiet about where she was really going, and joined the Knights as the first female recruit. We also meet Landon, Mitchell, and Hugo, three other recruits and friends of Anastasia. What was really heart warming is that Maya insisted on following Anastasia out of the Lynzel home to basically take care of her. She’s a great friend and mother figure for her, and the Knights of Garuda love her, too. She’s an incredibly strong recruit and Knight devoting all her time and energy to being promoted, getting into the castle, and enacting her revenge on Conrad.

One night, she’s sent on an errand to bring a bottle of alcohol to Crius. A little weird, but she follows orders. While trying to enter the bar, she gets into a scuffle with a drunk man, you’re offered a choice, but no matter what Anastasia ends up outside where she meets uh… this thing.

It eats both of them. Fatal Rewind, let’s try again. Damn, that choice didn’t work either and we got eaten, again. Okay third time’s the charm! You’re offered another choice and finally make it inside, see Zenn leave the establishment, and meet up with Crius who’s having out with Tyril. Soon after this meeting, you choose between Crius and Tyril’s route to start with and finally the LI routes can begin!

This route opens right after Anastasia wins the archery event at the War Games, basically forcing the Grand Commander of the Wings of Garuda to promote her to full knighthood, becoming the first female knight. After the ceremony granting her status as a knight, the sky turns black, signalling the return of the Witch of Ruin after over 50 years and the selection of a Membrum. At this time, her mind is set on revenge and beating the hell out of Conrad physically, mentally, and emotionally so she really doesn’t pay too much mind to the sky darkening. She begins her duties as a full Knight, meeting her own Garuda for the first time. Huma, her Garuda, is basically a giant blue bird. Crius gives her a week to gain her trust and fully become a member of the Wings. Crius is flirty and fun, and well liked by his subordinates. What’s entertaining is how poorly his attempts at any kind of flirtation with Anastasia usually go. Our girl is a bit oblivious.

Night comes and goes, and when she wakes up Maya informs her that no one was killed last night. Everyone assumes there must not be an actual Membrum, and the sky just uh. Did that I guess? But no one being killed is a positive. Crius has also been promoted from Vice Commander to Grand Commander. Good for him! The beginning is focused on getting this goddamn bird to trust her. Crius mentions that he might rescind the condition because he likes Anastasia. But soon, she realizes Huma’s so weird because she’s pregnant, which is a cause for celebration as Garuda’s breed incredibly rarely and slowly. She receives a bonus and buys Maya a gift. On the way back she bumps into the former Grand Commander who rants and raves about how Crius is a womanizing, manipulative bastard who pushed him out of his position. Impossible!

Except, Anastasia then sees Crius walking with her step mother and everything she thinks about the Grand Commander is thrown into chaos. Why would he associate with such a vile, abusive woman? Adding insult to injury, the sky turns black again. Is it truly the witch this time? Dazed, upset, and confused, she returns home and falls into a deep sleep. What awaits her in the morning is a nightmare. Blood paints the floor and walls around her. Maya’s body parts are placed carefully around the room. The Membrum has struck this time, murdering and maiming Anastasia’s closest and dearest friend.

I think this game really shines with its graphic descriptions of violence. Is it weird that I liked that? While minimalistic, the audio and visuals in these scenes were also striking. Seeing it through Anastasia’s point of view was also harrowing. Her despair and anguish is conveyed extremely well. At this point, Anasatsia does not bear the chains around her neck marking her as a Sacrificia, or suspect in the coming carnival trial. She decides to commit suicide and use her fatal rewind to return to the night before in an attempt ot save Maya’s life. Even with the door barricaded and Maya sleeping in the same bed as Anastasia, she is still murdered that night. But this time, there’s a sigil on the wall drawn in blood and a chain around Anastasia’s neck. She’s a suspect now. She kills herself numerous times, desperate to save Maya, but is unable to and now always awakens as a Sacrificia. She has no choice but to carry on to the Carnival trial.

In come the inquisitors. Everyone believes it’s an open and shut case, a locked-room murder. Anastasia is the only logical suspect. She starts doubting herself wondering if the Witch’s magic did somehow make her kill Maya. A knock at the door invites in our princely hero, Crius Castlerock. Anastasia runs into his arms where he assures her that she would never kill Maya, Membrum or not. 

The Sacrificia are allowed their freedom before the trial as the Witch will magically transport everyone to the “Carnival” when the time comes. Crius vows to help her investigate and find out who the real Membrum is. Thus begins the investigation portion of this route! This time around, the Sacrifica are Lucien Neuschburn, Olga Lynzel, court painter Mael Diaz, Anastasia herself, and a citizen named Thomas Unruh. You only have a set amount of time before the trial, and it’s not enough to investigate all of the Sacrificia. Choose wisely! Or use a guide, like me.

One notable thing you learn in these investigations is that the Witch uses a powerful sleeping magic on everyone except for the Membrum, meaning it’s impossible for there to be any witnesses. Right before the trial, Crius attempts to give her some last minute support but ends up in a coughing fit. He admits that he has a fatal illness that is slowly eroding away at all of his senses, including the ability to feel pain. There is a cure, but it requires a red Garuda feather. And red is the rarest color of them all! That’s why he became a Garuda Knight, but he’s had no luck yet. We don’t have time to harp on that though! The trial is in 30 minutes and the details have been leaked to the press. Anastasia is the number one suspect!

Everyone is suddenly whisked away into the circus tent for the trial. 300 jury members are also randomly selected, and will vote on who is guilty. Each accused Sacrifica states their case for innocence. You use various skills and present evidence to back up or refute the other’s statements. The most notable bits of information in this trial are that Thomas is obsessed with some Robin Hood-esque figure called “Ninja”, the Mael Diaz that Anastasia met earlier in the story was the Witch in disguise and not the real one, and without Anastasia there to abuse, Evelina Lynzel has turned to abusing Orla.

Oh, Orla turns the vote on Lucien. I was really shocked when he died, like, really died. Threw himself into a pit of fire because he believed in Anastasia so much and her ability to make things right. But he, of course, was not the Membrum. Anastasia convinces the Witch to let the trial continue tonight.

The real Membrum is revealed to be Orla herself. Unloved by her own mother, she turned her rage to Anastasia and Maya, jealous that Anastasia had someone who truly cared about her. The piece of evidence that convinces the crowd is how… perfectly laid out Maya’s body parts were to decorate the room. And Orla’s main hobby is interior design! Orla is executed, and the trial concludes. Orla’s voice actress really went all in once she “snapped” and admitted to everything in the trial! It was impressive. But, she was my number one suspect from the start. I’m a bit mad there’s no way to save Lucien and implicate Orla from the start…

Flash forward a bit, and Huma is in labor! Anastasia is desperately hoping that it will be a red Garuda so Crius can be cured… but the egg is blue. Huma is a blue Garuda, so it makes sense. The vet kind of admits that because Garudas are so sacred, no one really knows much about how they work biologically. Wouldn’t you know it, Huma starts glowing and turns red. Hooray! Crius can be cured! Very convenient if you ask me, but they lampshade it enough so it’s plausible. Garudas aren’t studied because they’re too sacred, Garudas hardly ever give birth, maybe they just turn red after laying an egg. Why not?

The story so far seems to be very much around Crius and not about Crius. I do love the focus on Anastasia as a character and think she’s an amazing MC, but I was desperate for some kiss-kiss at this point. Thankfully, Crius asks Anastasia on a date!! She’s a bit dense, but it’s a date! Before the date, though, Anastasia has a weird dream about a pair of siblings who live in the church. She dreams about how the older sister, Isabella, was murdered. Huh. That’s weird. Also the younger brother sure has a familiar hair color! Is it a premonition? Did Rune send this dream? The Witch? Is it the past or future? She decides to go to the church after her date with Crius, to see if Isabella can be saved.

But we have a date to go on first!! We get the cliche moment where she starts to think of Crius as a ~man~ instead of her commander. She also shows up for the date in the best clothes she owns: her knight uniform. The date involves Crius and Anastasia going dress shopping so she can be properly dressed. This scene and the CGs are so cute, a welcome change in the route! But Crius ruins the moment by bringing up Evelina, Anastasia’s step mother. Why was he hanging out with her? Well, it turns out she has/had the same illness as Crius. Not a great excuse in my book. But, Crius feels like if she wasn’t afflicted with his disease, she would be a different person. He feels like he understands her.

Well, I don’t!!! You don’t get to take out your feelings on your daughters no matter what. Like, “I can’t feel pain so I’m going to inflict pain” doesn’t track for me. But, it does express the gravity of this disease. Whatever… Evelina still doesn’t get a pass from me. Crius takes her to one more place on their date, the church. Why a church? Crius asks Anastasia to marry him!

Anastasia understandably freaks out.

Crius laughs, admitting he was just teasing her. He runs off screen to find someone for Anastasia to meet.

Hugo, another Knights of Garuda recruit, is there because his father is a cardinal. Alright, cool. Anastasia asks him if he knows Isabella. Hugo is shocked, as Isabella has been dead for years. She then asks about her murder, which freaks Hugo out more. What murder? She was murdered? Anastasia, not really realizing she’s divulging unknown information, muses that it was probably a cardinal that murdered her. To Hugo. Who’s father is a cardinal. Crius shows back up, and Hugo literally runs away. She mentions the murder to Crius, who gets quiet and says the past is in the past. He does, however, ask how she knows about it.

Oh, I saw it in a dream.

You really don’t want to mention magical powers in a world with witch hunts, girl.

Well, Crius just tells her to not go around telling people she’s seeing events of the past in dreams. He’s probably right.

A few weeks go by uneventfully. While Anastasia is going out for dinner, the witch shows up again, disguised as Mael Diaz. He’s mad because things just aren’t getting chaotic enough and humans just aren’t suffering enough, so he’s going to try and brainwash Anastasia. Crius shows up, ready to defend Anastasia, but the witch can’t be hurt by any conventional means.

Luckily (?) this thing shows up again. Yeah.

It eats the witch. Crunch munch. He’s gone. And now he’s going to eat Anastasia! Crius imbues basically superhuman strength at this point, and fights off the monster.

Now he needs a drink. Zenn appears in the bar and warns Anastasia to stop turning back time. Hey buddy, how do you know that?? That warning can’t stop me because I’m going to do what I want! The next day, she marches back home to use her fatal rewind again, now armed with the information that the witch has a weakness. Surely, she will save everyone this time. No, we’re not done yet. Before she can follow through, she learns that Crius is missing. Also, all seven cardinals of the church were brutally murdered. Crius is the number one suspect. Tyril, who is also Crius’s close friend, is assisting in the investigation. Anastasia basically forces him into telling her the details of the case. Crius is the main suspect because a Garuda feather was found at the scene, the murder was committed with a sword, and Isabella, the murdered nun from Anastasia’s dream, was Crius’s sister. She rushes off to the crime scene to figure out exactly what happened. On the scene, she has a vision of the past. She sees Hugo and Crius at the scene of the crime.

Hugo admits that he forced the cardinals to finally admit what happened to Isabella, someone he loved and revered while growing up in the church. The cardinals assaulted her, leading to her committing suicide. Hugo then murdered all of the cardinals. Crius then frames himself for the murder and tells Hugo to run away.

Anastasia runs into the city to try and find Crius, but ends up meeting Landon, another knight recruit. He has apparently had a mental break over Maya’s death and blames Anastasia. He stabs her in the stomach, but our knight Crius is here to save us. He’s also kind of snapped, though, and almost beats Landon to death. Anastasia passes out from blood loss. She wakes up alone with Crius in the woods.

He tells her that all those days ago, when the sky first turned black, the Witch of Ruin appeared to him. Crius was the first Membrum, but without any real desires or cares in this world he couldn’t be driven to kill. Crius was actively dying, and knew he wouldn’t be the grand commander of the Knights of Garuda much longer. Once he had the Knights secured financially, he planned his suicide. Anastasia changed things. His disease was cured, and he started falling in love with her. He finally had a desire, but it was too late. Being the Membrum without killing someone was causing him to fade away.

They hold each other, and Crius tells Anastasia that he loves her, and disappears. Anastasia succumbs to her wounds soon after. She ends up back with Rune. Yes, this is the GOOD END.

We open with a Membrum already chosen and a murder already occured. The victim? Lucien Neuschburn. This is when I realized he is never going to catch a break and will certainly die in every route except his own, god help him. Surprisingly, Anastasia is not a Sacrificia this time. The suspects are Conrad, Crius, Hugo, Cardinal Monaghan, and an orphan boy named Sammy. Crius is currently in inquisitor custody being tortured by Tyril. The Inquisition has apparently decided he’s guilty and is holding him in custody until the carnival trial. Tyril kind of has a freaky smile and talks about how Crius being his friend doesn’t really matter to him and he’ll use anymore to root out witches. Anastasia is justifiably shocked by this and questions why Tyril is doing this to his friend. Did I mention he carries a whip around everywhere? And he loves to use it. He snaps it at Anastasia to basically tell her to shut up.

Anastasia notices that he’s really not harmed Crius very much and is most likely attempting to protect him. She asks to investigate the Scarificia to clear Crius’s name and free him! Which was apparently what Tyril was trying to get her to do all along, his machinations are beyond my understanding but you know whatever. He makes a scene about how they can’t really imprison the daughter of a Marquess, and Anastasia now knows too much. So, it’s decided she will be inducted into the Inquisition! She’s not happy about this by the way, she wants to be promoted to an official Knight and now Tyril is basically tugging her around. Without much choice in the matter, she becomes a temporary Inquisitor along with another Knights of Garuda recruit, Mitchell.

They visit the crime scene and come up with a plan. You learn that Lucien was killed in the beautiful royal gardens and had all of his organs removed. Then, you take a lil break to eat some stew together. An inquisitor’s gotta eat! This stew is a local delicacy made with meat from a very strong animal (and I forgot to write down if it’s a horse or cow or something else, sorry) and eating the stew is said to make you as strong as that animal. It was nice to see Tyril and Anastasia interact like normal people for a moment, though I don’t know how practical stew is as a street food. Onto the investigation! Just like last time, you choose which Sacrificia to investigate in the set time frame. Once time is up, the trial will begin. Again, I used a guide to tell me who to investigate.

First, I investigated Cardinal Monaghan. Cardinals, especially after what we know about Crius’s route, are on my shit list. I don’t trust them! I suspected him the most, but his investigation doesn’t tell us much other than he’s a big fan of Mael, the court painter. I next investigated Sammy, who is a sweet little boy who adores Prince Lucien. Lucien always took time to visit the orphanage and helped take care of the children. He asks what Anastasia and Tyril’s favorite games are because, you know, he’s a little kid, and Tyril says TORTURE. Way to make this already traumatized child start crying man!!! The last investigation of note is Prince Conrad, another prime suspect in my mind. With Lucien gone, he has no obstacles to reach his goal. This is the first direct confrontation Anastasia has had with Conrad since the prologue. She’s able to barely conceal her rage and not just stab him to death in the middle of the castle, which makes her better than me. Conrad says that because his family is descendants of the goddess, the witch’s magic has no effect on them, so it’s impossible for him to be the Membrum. Sure, evil McLiar Man. I believe you. The crux of this investigation is all about the sleeping magic, if it really works, and who is affected. 

The trial is set to begin, but first there’s a cute moment between Anastasia and Tyril, which was sorely needed. There’s only so much murder a girl can take, you know? They actually run into the witch before the trial and Tyril strikes up a deal with him. The witch himself will testify at the trial, but if Tyril does anything to directly interfere or stop the trial, or just piss off the witch in general, the magic inside him will kill him. Anastasia tries to make a deal as well, but Tyril stops her.

The carnival, a trial by witches and for witches, begins! But this time, Anastasia and Tyril are the facilitators of the trial. They’re not judges, but basically just there to make sure everything moves along smoothly enough and a verdict is reached. You offer different topics and pieces of evidence as the trial progresses, and then finally, the witch is brought to the stand to testify. He asserts that he did in fact use the sleeping magic that night. Conrad asserts that he can’t be affected by the magic. Anastasia makes her deal, and asks the witch to use magic on Conrad to see if he really is immune. But, as the deal is being struck, the witch’s magic and Rune’s magic inside of Anastasia basically start fighting and killing her. She collapses into Tyril’s arms.

And he kisses her?!

Okay, he’s just giving her some medicine to stabilize her. Totally not a real kiss, folks, nothing to see here. The magic is stabilized, and she’s back on her feet. Don’t ask me how he knew to bring that or make that or why he had to kiss her to give it to her!

The witch then uses his magic to make Conrad fly around, proving he is not immune! At this point, I’m like ah-ha! It was Conrad! Of course! As discussions continue, everyone realizes that whoever killed Lucien didn’t hate him. Quite the opposite, taking him to the garden to give him a beautiful death was an act of admiration. Focus goes to Sammy, who loved Prince Lucien the most.

I couldn’t believe it, honestly. The little kid? Really? Yes, really. Sammy’s mind was warped by the witch to the point where he believed if he consumed Prince Lucien, he would become just like him. Remember the stew from earlier? Yeah, that was important. Not only did he eat him, but he used his organs to feed all of the other children in the orphanage, in a twisted act of kindness. Sammy is executed as the Membrum, and honestly I felt pretty sick. He was the last person I suspected in this trial and I found the writing and slow reveal to be so disturbing and well done. This trial is one of the most memorable, for sure.

After the trial, Anastasia is understandably horrified and upset. Tyril shows a soft side and comforts her. They both pass out, it’s been a long day. Afterwards, Anastasia agrees to continue to work with the Inquisitors. When she returns home to our sweet, wonderful Maya, she gives Anastasia a letter from Prince Lucien, sent before his murder. He writes about how his father ordered the genocide of a small group of people called the “Ishik” clan, that predominantly hid out in the woods. This clan protected and served the goddess, and by proxy the royal family, for centuries. He implores Anastasia to investigate why this happened, and to do that she needs to find the sole survivor of the massacre. Lucien says that it will be the catalyst to revealing the royal family’s, namely Conrad’s, crimes.

She attempts to confront the King directly and ends up killed. Honestly, this fatal rewind was a bit comical. Why did she think that would work?? It also happens incredibly fast. C’mon girl we are better than this. It’s time to do some inquisitorial duties now and try to find the sole survivor of the Ishik clan without getting ourselves executed. A young woman is being accused of witchcraft by a shady merchant and it’s time to investigate! Anastasia is rightfully uncomfortable with the prospect of just scooping this woman up and torturing her, but decides to trust Tyril. One thing to mention is that every time Anastasia beats the witch at the trial by snuffing out the real Membrum, Rune is able to give her more power. In Crius’s route she could see into the past, and now she can see into the future. She has a vision of a building collapsing and the accused witch being killed by debris. This is thwarted by having the group take another street instead of the main road.

Tyril is incredibly perceptive, especially when it comes to magic and potential witches, and asked her how she knew it would happen. Anastasia skirts around the question, showing some good judgement not admitting magical powers to the person who had her burned at the stake for being a witch in the prologue. She does feel some misgivings about the Inquisition in general and how Tyril, who we have come to known as a kind person, could abide by the imprisonment and torture of innocent people. She does decide to tell him about the letter, but Tyril tells her to drop it for her own safety. He also doesn’t want to become an enemy of the royal family.

That night, she goes out with fellow Inquisitor Mitchell to investigate more about the suspected witch they currently have in custody. Remember Ninja, mentioned in Crius’s route? He shows up as well to take care of the merchant and presumably prove the woman is innocent! It’s pretty obvious by the silhouette and how these games word that Tyril is, in fact, Ninja. Anastasia feels relieved that Tyril is the good, kind person she thought he was. Conrad shows up in Tyril’s office to absolutely ruin the moment, revealing that Conrad’s notorious assassin, Hound, is also Tyril. We’re dropping a lot of lore here in rapid succession, and it doesn’t stop there. Tyril is also the sole survivor of the Ishik clan. Anastasia doesn’t believe someone so kind and noble could be an assassin, especially for the person who murdered his entire people! Why would he ever agree to do this?

Tyril says that his clan is sworn to serve the goddess and her descendants, and Conrad has promised that once he’s completed his work, he will restore the Ishik clan. Conrad and Tyril also know that Anastasia is a witch. Tyril knew because the medicine he gave her during the trial only works on witches. Conrads wants to force Anastasia into working for him, much like Tyril. A golden rose artifact was stolen by Evelina and is currently in the Lynzel family home. This artifact will cement Conrad as the next king, and he wants Anastasia to retrieve it. Tyril and Anastasia are such tragic characters, so beaten down by years of abuse and neglect, unable to see their own self worth.

Anastasia agrees in the hopes that this artifact will give her more clues to beating the witch and taking down the royal family as a whole. She finds the Lynzel manor still and quiet, not guards, no maids, no one. Until she comes upon Maya, soaked in blood. Maya became a Membrum out of love for Anastasia, killing every last member of the Lynzel household for how they treated her. Membrum Maya was not something I saw coming, but I was honestly here for it. She had a great attitude and really put Tyril in his place a few times. They decide to use this trial to expose the Royal Family. They make a deal with the witch again, allowing them to select a Sacrificia: The King himself. The artifact will bloom beautifully when it comes into contact with blood of the goddess or her descendants, but when the king is manipulated into using it during the trial, nothing happens. He is almost voted the Membrum, but Maya admits her guilt and is executed.

With the royal family exposed as frauds, the kingdom is in absolute disarray. Tyril and Anastasia meet up at the church, attempting to find some solace. She wants them to have some moment of peace together, even if she’s planning on using her Fatal Rewind again. They admit their feelings for one another and talk about their future in vague terms. She leaves the church first after their conversation and Tyril gives her a conflicted smile. As she walks outside, she has a vision of Tyril sitting where she left him, eyes closed, a sad smile on his face. There is a glass bottle beside him.

She runs back inside to find her vision had already come true. Tyril, unable to face the reality of his whole life and purpose built on a lie, took his own life. He sits almost peacefully in the soft light of the church. Anastasia uses her Fatal Rewind, and the route ends with Rune wiping away her memories of Tyril because they are causing her too much pain.

Yes, this is the GOOD END!!

Anastasia’s first order of business this go around is to stop Zenn from leaving the tavern when Crius calls her there. This is where she was eaten by Endy for the first time, but she’s able to thwart it by calling over Tyril. Once she sees Tyril and Crius though, she’s soon overcome with vision of her previous time loops where they died. In tears, she brushes it off an awful dream. Because they’re all now stationed at the tavern door, she’s able to intercept Zenn when he comes in. The first thing he says to her is “I knew it. You did it again.” If there was ever any doubt, we now know for sure that Zenn is aware of her fatal rewind ability and keeps his memories of each time loop. He immediately tries to leave again, but is stopped by Tyril and Crius. We’re treated to a cute scene of the trio being buddies. Ahh, levity. We won’t get much more of this. Zenn has been using his time looping wisely at least, capturing criminals that have previously escaped justice.

She’s sadly not able to talk to him one on one yet, but uses her knowledge to throw things out there like “Hey Crius, Huma is pregnant” and wrap up some other things. While returning home from shopping, she’s face to face with Endy again. Zenn appears, asks her if she wants to die again, and shoves her into a sprint so she can escape. He appears at her home a bit later and she finally has a chance to talk to him. They’re both kind of interrogating each other, not wanting to divulge too much information, but Anastasia learns that the Witch of Ruin is named Ish and Zenn has been watching her to see if she’s the same as him. Anastasia flies into a rage at the insinuation that she is the same as the Witch of Ruin and threatens to kill Zenn. He chastises her for using her Fatal Rewind in the only timeline where the Witch of Ruin was really dead, and accuses her of slaughtering people. Okay the first one is true, but the second part? What are you talking about? Before he can answer, he’s writhing in pain. In comes Ish!

The Witch calls Zenn an “antigen” and tells Anastasia that he can’t get involved because they already struck a deal. Zenn squeaks out the word “Ninja” and passes out from pain. The contract is that Zenn can’t get deeply involved with Anastasia. He also drops the lore bomb that Zenn, for whatever reason, cannot die. She gets Zenn to the hospital and follows up on the “Ninja” clue Zenn left for her. Off to Tyril for more information! Here’s where things get weird. Zenn is not from this world. He was isekai’d from the “real world” so to speak. He doesn’t age, and can’t die because he’s not a part of this reality. He also is the one who gave Tyril the idea to be a “Ninja,” something that doesn’t exist in this reality. Also, he played basketball back home and misses it a lot. There’s no basketball in Hystorcia.

She still has her powers to see into the future and the past, and has a vision that Conrad will be the next Membrum and she is his target. She’s able to intercept the witch at the moment he attempts to make Conrad the Membrum as his sleeping magic doesn’t work on her anymore. But, in a cruel twist, the Witch of Ruin fuels the hatred Anastasia holds for her family and is able to turn her into the Membrum instead. She runs into the night, ready to murder everyone in the Lynzel house, but Zenn catches up to her and snaps her out of it. In her lucidity, she states that she doesn’t want to kill anyone. She and Zenn discuss their next steps. It seems as if the Witch knows Anastasia can use her Fatal Rewind, but doesn’t retain his memories like Zenn and Anastasia. After each rewind, he comes to Zenn and asks what happened even if Zenn isn’t sure. As for the slaughter, after the War Games, everyone in the town square was murdered and Ish blamed Anastasia. There’s a gap in Anastasia’s memories here, though, and I’ll be honest I don’t really understand why or how this is important other than to make Zenn not trust Anastasia at first. Because Ish can’t remember the loops but is aware they happen, she decides to kill herself to see if she can avoid becoming the Membrum this time.

She’s unable to fully finish the job, and Zenn does it for her. Is it bad that I found this kind of romantic? We learn a bit more about Ish from Rune before this rewind. Ish used to serve the goddess with Rune but stole something from her. Ish can also only use magic if he forms a contract with a human. Unfortunately, the rewind doesn’t work. She’s made the Membrum again, and to beat the witch at his Carnival, she has to get away with murder. 

Zenn decides he trusts Anastasia and Ish is the real villain. In for an inch, in for a mile. I also forget if Zenn’s contract is void at this point or Ish just decides it’s fine for them to work together, because he doesn’t seem to care that Zenn is helping Anastasia. Or perhaps, as long as chaos and murder are happening, he’s willing to overlook it. Anastasia reaches her first target, a criminal Zenn had captured previously. Her internal struggle with killing, even as the Membrum, is expanded on. She truly takes no pleasure in murder and it really weighs on her mind. Does the end justify the means? If she’s just trying to gain more power to beat the witch and will rewind time afterwards, does it erase the reality of taking someone’s life?

To avoid suspicion, Anastasia will investigate the Sacrificia, herself included, the next morning. The list of Sacrificia is honestly the worst possible group of people. Maya, Lucien, Conrad, and Crius are the other suspects. This time, we know Anastasia is guilty and she must frame someone else for her crime. This was painful, as Maya was the easiest Sacrificia to frame. She trusts Anastasia so much, she’s even happy to take the fall for her. Oof. This is really Anastasia’s villain arc, asking if beating the witch and gaining more power really justifies the means of murdering people. She attempts to take her life once the trial is complete, but realizes it would be futile. Zenn does his best to comfort her, telling her again and again that it will be alright, and all the sacrifices will be worth it. Even worse, she has to kill again tonight. The carnival continues! Our pair of killers decide that Crius is the biggest threat at this point, as he is certain that Anastasia is the membrum. The plan is now to kill Conrad and Crius on the same night, knocking the number of suspects in the trial down to just Anastasia and Lucien. One more night can end it all.

Anastasia kills Conrad, but is surprised at how hollow it feels. He was her greatest enemy, so why does she still feel so terrible? We don’t have much time to unpack that though because we need to get to Crius before the night is over. It was extremely painful even thinking about killing him! The sleeping magic is in full effect so Crius, and Tyril, are sound asleep in the Knights of Garuda Grand Commander’s office. Before she can finish them off, though, The Witch of Ruin, Ish, appears again. He basically tells them that they can’t kill more Sacrificia! It’s not fair to his little game, you see. Humans wouldn’t suffer enough, so he’s making a new rule. No more killing Sacrificia! Anastasia calls him out on this. You can’t change the rules in the middle of the game! Well, he can, I guess, but he lets Anastasia ask him one question in return. She asks about the Witch of Cessation, a force that is feeding Ish information. Ish says that she’s not currently in this world.

We know he can’t lie when it comes to contracts and conditions, so he’s somehow getting information from a Witch that doesn’t exist? Zenn thinks they can use this, but I’m skeptical. Anastasia catches a note on the Commander’s desk, thanking Anastasia for telling him that Huma is pregnant. She realizes that he knew she would be there tonight and be there to kill him. And he still said thank you! 

We jump into the next investigation from here. It feels really bad to be “investigating” but actually just gathering information to frame someone else… But, we do get to see Zenn in his administrator outfit and Anastasia dressed up like a knight again! This is definitely one of my favorite CGs in the game. They wiggle their way back into the castle to talk with Lucien, who agrees to team up against Crius.

Before the trial, Zenn discusses how he met Ish and the contract he made with him. Ish approached him after the very first rewind, over eight years ago. Once he realized Anastasia was the victim here, Ish offered him a contract. Don’t get involved with Anastasia or the trials and I’ll send you back home to your world. He readily accepted. But after meeting Crius and Tyril, he really began to care for the people of this world and realized his contract with Ish was not the right thing to do.

During the trial, Lucien and Anastasia successfully turn the jury against Crius. He’s not even angry at her! He resigns himself to his fate and decides that Anastasia is still the cadet he knew and she must have her reasons for doing this. This really isn’t helping with my immense guilt!!

The final chapter opens with Ish giving a speech about unreliable narrators. He asks Zenn if he can really trust everything he sees and hears, or if he’s just turning away from unpleasant things. We jump to the present, where an angry mob is after Anastasia for getting Grand Commander Crius killed. Zenn helps her narrowly escape from being stoned to death. They take refuge in the church. Anastasia is ready for all of this to be over at this point, and I understand how she feels. But Zenn disagrees, he says that even if she dies and uses her fetal rewind, Ish might make her the Membrum again and again, making her relive this nightmare. Zenn tells her there’s something more important than revenge on Conrad: her happiness. He wants her to escape this world in his place to be free of this nightmare. He wants her to find happiness and safety more than he wants to go back to his own world.

He talks about how he’s watched Anastasia stand by Crius’s side as a knight and Tyril as an Inquisitor. He thinks she’s worked hard enough, suffered enough, and deserves to finally be safe even if it means being in another world. This is probably one of the most romantic moments in the entire game, he’s willing to sacrifice his own return so Anastasia can finally rest… and remember, Zenn doesn’t age and can’t die even through bodily harm in this universe. What a guy. I’ve seen the sentiment online that Zenn is really her soulmate as the one who has known her in all timelines and rewinds. It’s very compelling!

The moment is ended by Tyril’s entrance, in his Ninja getup. Tyril, as a member of the Ishik clan and guardian of the royal family, will not allow Anastasia to kill Prince Lucien and win the Carnival. His hatred for her now is particularly upsetting for Anastasia to see because she remembers when he loved her. Ouch. But, as we know, Anastasia can’t kill Lucien because of the rule change from the witch. Tyril figures this out, and reasons that he will be the one to die tonight. Someone has to die for Anastasia to win. Much to Tyril’s shock, Anastasia breaks into tears. Wasn’t the Membrum supposed to be completely devoid of morals? What really are the membra?

Well, this train of thought is interrupted by Prince Lucien. He truly believed that Anastasia was innocent, but now knows how many people he has hurt in the process. Anastasia (and I) are feeling extremely guilty at this point. I mean, she is guilty, but it’s worth it, right? Lucien also overheard that the Membrum will be transported to another world if they win. Not willing to let any more of his subjects die, Lucien plunges his sword into his own stomach. He calls himself a coward not fit to be king, and tells Anastasia that the letter he sent to him 8 years ago gave him the strength to make it this far. Huh, a letter? Oh yeah, Anastasia remembers that right before she left home to join the knights after her initial rewinds she wrote a letter to Prince Lucien. Her letter is what changed him from the timid and scared prince to the man he is today. He wants to thank Anastasia by sending her to another world.

Suddenly, Anastasia and Zenn are at the Carnival stage, alone with Ish. He congratulates her on winning as a Membrum. Ish tells her that Rune believes they can kill Ish if he and Anastasia get their powers back, but before he can explain more a magical force stops him from speaking. Seems like there’s some answers he can’t give even if he wants to. He’s honestly pretty impressed with Anastasia at this point, and quite jovially tells her to kill herself so they can play again. But first, sending Zenn back home! Well, Zenn’s not done with him yet. He tells Ish that he doesn’t want Anastasia to get away, and encourages Anastasia to let go of revenge and to run. She would lose her powers and never find answers, but she’d be safe in another world. Ish disagrees of course and wants the game to continue, if she leaves she will be an antigen like Zenn, unable to age or create meaningful relationships in that world. She’s given a choice, save Zenn or save herself. There’s an actual alternative ending here that’s not the “bad” ending for his route where she does run to another world.

But, the “good end” in this scenario is, of course, sending Zenn to his world. Ish mocks her once he’s gone, telling her that she’s pushed all her true feelings down but her loneliness and despair will catch up to her in time. He’s not the reason her family was so terrible to her, or why there’s witch hunts and slavery in the world. Ish says he didn’t make the world rotten, he just showed them the truth. We also learn Anastasia is the Witch of Cessation, and would tell Ish about her failed rewinds after each time, explaining some gaps in her memory. He taunts her to her breaking point. All of the horrible feelings of despair take control, physically and mentally. She can’t use her fatal rewind in this state. I assume there’s some kind of magic going on here, as she is not in control of her body at all at this point.

That is, until Zenn returns. He had promised to stay with her, and he’s going to deliver. Almost completely consumed by despair and evil, she asks Zenn to kill her and send her back. While he’s afraid she won’t be able to rewind this time, he trusts her. She promises to make it back.

We see a brief flashback of Lucien and Anastasia as children. Lucien’s only comfort is Anastasia’s visits, as his brothers and family members treat him as weak and stupid. Unfortunately, this will be Anastasia’s last visit before being locked away by her stepmother. The flashback ends and this route actually opens with Lucien’s POV. I do like it when otome games switch to the love interest’s viewpoint because I like seeing how their feelings are developing, so I was good with this. Lucien is being a bit of a hardass to some administrators who are having trouble getting nobles to behave. He shuts the door to his room and the facade drops and a softhearted and kind Lucien emerges when he meets his pet cat named… Lady Anastasia. A little weird but alright! Mael Diaz, the court painter who has been a side and background character, is with him. I’m glad he has at least one friend in this life, poor baby deserves it. Unfortunately, Mael Diaz is routinely possessed or replaced by the witch, but eh. Could be worse.

Between princely duties and projects, Lucien is completely focused on finding Anastasia who has gone completely missing in this timeline. He’s even set up a meeting with Orla, who feeds Lucien a bunch of crazy information like how Anastasia is rumored to be sleeping around and might even have multiple children and her family has no idea where she is. Lucien is, thankfully, undeterred by this and is going to keep looking for her and all six of her children. He’s ready to be the dad that stepped up! Ish, disguised as Mael, tells Lucien to find a way to speak to Crius Castlerock to find Anastasia. Lucien makes the leap that Crius is the father of one or many of her alleged children. I don’t know why he trusts Orla’s information so much. Has Anastasia even been alive long enough to have six children?? Please, let’s use some critical thinking here. It’s very funny how he Does Not Care, he’s more worried that she and the supposed children are suffering. 

Lucien corners Crius at a ball and asks where Anastasia is. Lucien says that Anastasia planted the seed of courage that let him stand up against his brothers, so he’s desperate to find her. Unfortunately, Crius doesn’t know where she is either. She was with the Knights of Garuda for ten years, but now both she and Maya are missing. Crius agrees to join him in his search for her. About a week later, Lucien, Crius, and Mael meet up because Crius has tracked down Maya at the church. Sadly, not even Maya knows where Anastasia has gone. Lucien snapped at her a bit and I kind of wanted to hit him. No one talks to Maya like that!! Crius, who is much better at dealing with people, asks Maya some questions about Anastasia’s state of mind before she left. Turns out Anastasia even pointed her sword and threatened Maya to make her leave. How could she do that to the one person who has always loved her and treated her as family?

Lucien and Crius decide it’s time to check out some shadier areas. With Lucien in disguise, they meet up in the pub with Zenn, who immediately clocks the disguise. Zenn has been investigating the immigration records and found Anastasia’s name on the list of departures. But just as Zenn clocked his disguise, Lucien clocked the paperwork as fake. Zenn claims he didn’t know, but Lucien has his doubts. Zenn is acting pretty shady. Lucien loses his temper and storms out of the pub.

A “man in the shadows” who is obviously Zenn if you have two eyes and the slightest bit of pattern recognition threatens him to stop searching for Anastasia. Lucien, characteristically undeterred by literally anything and anybody, refuses. And gets choked out. Jeez, man. Tyril shows up, and finally all four of our LIs have been introduced in this route! I guess Tyril is kind of a cop, so Zenn stops trying to choke the prince to death. Not a good look! It’s time to tell the truth, Zenn.

Zenn says if he cares for Anastasia, he should stop searching for her. So he does know what’s going on! Lucien sees how hurt Zenn is as well. Anastasia is not doing well and is suffering. Zenn relents and takes the whole group of LIs to break into the Lynzel estate. We return to Anastasia’s room from the prologue, where she was abused for eight years. Lucien has a very cute blushing sprite, but it’s quickly washed away by the horrible state Anastasia is in. As soon as Lucien calls her name, she tells him to leave and forget about her. She will only bring him harm. Anastasia tells Lucien that she is a witch that will only ruin him, and bring death upon everyone. She forbids Zenn, who kept his memories, to say anything else to them. They leave before they’re caught breaking into the home. I’ll say, it’s a bold move to have two out of four chapters in a route without the MC in it at all. While it’s interesting narratively, it doesn’t give us much room for platonic or romantic development between the characters.

Anyway, poor sweet baby Lucien cries about the situation and says he has “weak tear ducts.” Tyril threatens to whip the truth out of Zenn, but he finally comes clean. He tells him about everything that has happened, from the very beginning, all of the timelines. We sadly don’t get to see their reactions yet, as we are back with Zenn in Anastasia’s room. She’s put up a barrier to hide from the witch and has decided to lock herself away forever to keep everyone else safe. Why did Zenn bring all of them here? Well, Lucien opened his eyes and helped him realize that all together they can beat the witch. They all deeply care about Anastasia, and are willing to help turn the entire country upside down to save her. He tells her to reach out for help.

Crius and Tyril go back to Anastasia and compare her story to Zenn’s. Surprise, they are the same and she really has died like… a lot. Lucien is pretty jealous he’s the only one without a history with her and that’s why she doesn’t want to talk to him. He’s not beating the poor little meow meow allegations, sneaking out of the castle and trying to see Anastasia every night. 

We finally move back to Anastasia’s POV, where she’s turning Lucien away again. She’d rather not even talk to anyone, but can’t avoid discussing things with Tyril and Crius. Crius even gets her to stop wearing rags and put on her old knight’s uniform. Lucien apologizes for not realizing that Mael was often actually the witch, saying he caused her trouble. His kinder personality comes out and Anastasia thinks about how the Frigid Prince persona is probably an act.

Anastasia admits that when she was called the Witch of Cessation by Ish she felt a horrible hatred for the entire world that terrifies her. That’s why she wants to remain locked away. She also believes that the witch has simply indoctrinated and manipulated Lucien into caring so much about her. Before she can finish this thought, Lucien snaps again and yells at her. How could she say his feelings were only part of the witch’s plan?! I noted that this fight honestly felt kind of like a family squabble. It’s funny that the first CG we get of them together is a heated argument! Once they’re done yelling at each other, Lucien resolves that he will come up with a plan to defeat the witch for good. A few days later, he’s back with the whole crew.

They lay out some groundwork: Ish holds the “carnivals” to terrify the populace, the membrum borrows Ish’s powers to kill, Ish almost never dirties his hands directly, and none of the victims have ever been killed by magic. Lucien comes to the conclusion that the Membrum don’t have access to magic at all, and are normal humans. They don’t really go into detail about why the Membrum feel so righteous in killing, saying he brainwashes them. But, it’s not infallible and they can stop the Membrum. This realization is the key! Without a Membrum, Ish can’t harm anyone.

Here comes the grand plan: Expose Ish’s methods to the public so no citizen falls for it. This will back Ish into a corner. Anastasia is ashamed for not realizing any of this earlier, but Lucien takes the focus off of her by admitting he couldn’t go to the bathroom on his own until he was nine years old because his brothers locked him in the bathroom when he was six years old to torture him. While he was saved, he thought his fate was to die by his family’s hands. That is until Anastasia’s letter reached him. Finally, Anastasia asks for and accepts everyone’s help. 

They step outside into the sunrise. Anastasia will hide out in the castle with Lucien for the time being. Also, she grabs that special artifact that only reacts with the goddess’s blood from the attic. Remember that from Tyril’s route? That’s a fun prop we will use later! Flash to a funny scene of Ish in agony because he’s so bored and can’t find Anastasia or torture any humans.

Alright, but how do we reveal to the entire populace that the Membrum is just a brainwashed human and not all powerful? How do we get people to not fall for it? Official decree from the king, a supposed “scion of the goddess” might do it. Tyril (the last member of the Ishik clan, remember?) agrees to go in front of the king as the expert in folklore to help convince him. He also reveals his Ishik clan tattoos. Sexy! For people who believe in legends and folklore, this is the perfect plan. But what about those who are more skeptical? Well, they need to witness what will happen if they allow the witch to brainwash them. That’s right, a public execution. We can’t just kill someone for real though, but luckily we have someone who can’t die no matter what horribly bodily harm is done to him! Poor Zenn gets to be “executed.” It’s the perfect plan to completely discredit Ish and the Membrum. Hopefully with this, no one will fall for the brainwashing and they can take down Ish personally. Anastasia’s role is to sit back and lay low, continuing to maintain the magical barrier that is hiding her from Ish.

She’s a bit frustrated just sitting around doing nothing, worried that she’s only good for her magic. When she talks about this with Lucien, he tells her that even if it’s heretical, the concept of magic is thrilling to him. But, he often wonders why witches in legends are always women. Anastasia says that as the Witch of Cessation, she’s the origin of all witches (according to Ish) and therefore the origin of the legends. But how if she’s not immortal? Well, they really don’t know. As the conversation continues, Lucien talks about his dreams of travelling the world. While not possible now, he resolves to do it in the future. It also slips out how much he wants Anastasia at his side for this.

Sadly, the King refuses to release an official decree. If any part of the proclamation is wrong, his credibility would drop. He’s covering his own ass. Lucien decides that he will be the one to address the people, taking on all scrutiny and any consequences. This time, the king agrees. As nobles buzz in the castle when the announcement is leaked, a drunk noble stabs Lucien in the arm! A little too opportune, if you ask me. Someone powerful has halted the investigation, but Lucien’s life isn’t in danger so the plan will commence with his announcement in three days.

Anastasia visits Lucien the night before the announcement. He asks if she remembers the promise they made as children. She slowly remembers the time they spent together. Lucien tells her that she often saved him from his brothers’ teasing. Anastasia remembers how much she loved being able to help him and protect him when she wasn’t able to protect herself. She made herself forget when she stopped believing she could protect anyone. There’s a nice CG of them promising to work together to protect the entire nation.

The day of the announcement arrives, and before Lucien can begin his speech the sky turns black. The Witch will choose a Membrum tonight. This royal decree is now more important than ever! Lucien appears in front of everyone, imploring them to never fall victim to the witch. Then they crucify Zenn and stab him with a stake to prove their point which felt excessive!!! He’s wearing a big fake beard though so no one can tell who he is. Anastasia still is hidden away in the castle at this point but sneaks out to see Lucien give his rousing speech encouraging the public to remain resolute against the witch.

Just when all seems to be going well, Conrad appears and claims Lucien is not the king’s son at all. Crius runs to Anastasia, telling her they need to get out ASAP as Tyril has also been captured. Conrad tells the people it’s all lies, from the legend to everything in Lucien’s speech. Man, I really want to kill this guy, and so does Anastasia. Crius stops her, and Anastasia hears a strange voice telling her she has another ally. Back to Conrad and Lucien, remember the artifact? The one that only works when in contact with the blood of the goddess? Well, Conrad has it now. He tells Lucien to use it and prove he is the king’s true son. Observant readers will remember that the king himself doesn’t have the goddess’s blood either, so there’s no way Lucien does. This seemingly proves Conrad’s point to the citizens, that is until Anastasia comes flying in on a red Garuda, a color reserved for the goddess Norna herself. Lucien holds out the artifact, and it reacts to Anastasia’s blood. The crowd goes wild! Anastasia isn’t happy being labeled a scion of the goddess because Lucien worked hard to convince the people that they didn’t need the royal family or the goddess to stand up to the witch. And it’s all Conrad’s fault! Can we please kill him now??

No, sadly, we have to leverage his life to clear Tyril and Lucien’s name. Lucien climbs onto the Garuda, which conveniently can travel between worlds, and the pair set off to find Ish one and for all. What’s super cute is that Lucien calls Anastasia his hero, and he knew she would always come to save him. Lucien puts it together that Ish leaves those who are connected to the goddess alone for the most part, like Tyril. But not the royal family, who is supposed to have the goddess’s blood. He asks for the truth, and who Anastasia really is.

It’s time for a lore drop and history lesson. The goddess Norna was born in an empty world until she created eight attendants. One day, she hears the screams of animals from another world, and takes them into her own. After some time, the humans scream for help. She offered them protection and established a new nation where she devoted all of her time and energy to building this nation, where the people revere her as a goddess. The attendants weren’t too pleased with this, but allowed it to happen. A man named Lucious with ambition for the throne then betrayed and killed Norna, marrying a fake goddess. Thus, the Neuschburn family is born. Lucien is pretty upset at this revelation! But it gets worse. Norna wasn’t killed, but her heart was so broken and she was filled with negativity. She tried to tell people the truth and that she was the real goddess, but because of how drastically she changed the people didn’t believe her. When she used her powers, she was branded as the first witch.

She wanted to destroy the world, but couldn’t go through with it after seeing how many humans were living peacefully. At this point, she sealed herself away and went to sleep, splitting her power among her attendants. She then chooses to reincarnate her soul amongst the humans. Lucien asks if Anastasia is her reincarnation, which she confirms, having only recently awakened that part of her soul. She also confirms that Rune and Ish were both Norna’s attendants. Ish wants revenge on humans for what they did to his beloved goddess.

Anastasia feels distant from Norna’s memories and feelings. She solidifies that she is Anastasia, not the goddess, even if they share a soul. In another realm, Ish promises to bring the original Norna back and remake the world with her. Lucien and Anastasia burst into this realm, where Ish is guarding Norna’s body. Ish wants to get rid of Anastasia’s body so Norna can be resurrected, and it’s shown how deeply Ish loved Norna and how much he hated humans for what they did to her. I would even say it’s implied they had a romantic relationship. Anastasia attacks him, but Ish claims she walked into her own demise. In her world, Ish can’t harm her directly. But here, he can. Soon he is distracted by Lucien finding Norna’s body, and Anastasia has him at swordpoint. At this point, it seems like Norna has separated herself partially from Anastasia, who feels a swell of affection for Ish. Norna must have really loved him. Ish attacks Lucien, but Norna stops him.

 A white flash takes over the screen, and we are greeted by Norna herself. The two speak to each other, and Anastasia asks if Norna is planning on killing her to return to her original body. She insists she doesn’t want this, and just wants to close the book on who she was in the past. Norna truly loves humans, and wanted to become one to grow stronger. She tells Anastasia about her regrets, mostly regretting not being able to flirt with Crius, Tyril, Zenn and Lucien more. She tells Anastasia to enjoy her life for her sake as well.

Norna also reveals that Ish can only use magic contractually. The contract for the carnivals involved putting Norna’s powers down as a wager. Another caveat about his powers is that he promised Norna he’d never use her powers to hurt humans. Because he broke this promise with the Membrum, Anastasia can defeat him. They say their final goodbyes, and “Norna” personality inside of Anastasia is gone. In a mini-trial, Anastasia indicts Ish for breaking his promise with Norna and his powers are gone. Rune appears, and assumes Norna brought him here to take care of the newly powerless Ish. Anastasia rescues Lucien, and they return to their world triumphant. There’s one more short scene at the end where Anastasia and the fellas discuss what they will do next and in the future. They are all quite hopeful, but Anastasia hopes everyone forgets her as the goddess’s “scion” and intends to lay low. Finally, they can rest, even if it’s just for a little while.

Anyway, all of these scenes were very cute and we got a lot of great kissing CGs. I was super surprised that Lucien and Anastasia got married, though. A pretty big time skip is implied but do we know him like that?? Honestly though, Anastasia should’ve listened to Norna and gotten herself four boyfriends. I think they would work it out. Anyway, enjoy the CGs with me!

The “story” is that this is after Anastasia has lived out her full life and is on her way to the afterlife, and gets to know the mysteries of the universe.

I did enjoy seeing Ish again and having a more normal conversation with him. He would’ve made a super interesting LI. Also some of those answers were just unsatisfying! Endy was just the concept of death because Norna was life? He just kinda happened? He manifested because Norna did harbor some hate for people I guess??? I need a better explanation. He ATE me! Multiple times!