WHEREIN THE NUMEROUS TALES OF DON QUIXOTE'S ADVENTURES ARE RECOUNTED (before battle)
I...
Please, hold on a moment. Can't have a good tale without proper backdrop and some music to set the mood, hmm?
With a quick flick of his staff, the magician rapidly shifts and warps everything around us.
[EP 1] - 'IN WHICH ARE RECOUNTED THE MOST WONDROUS ADVENTURES OF DON QUIXOTE'
Whuh?! W-what the hell?!
<G-Golden Bough resonance...?!>
Recall. Recall the days of adventure you once lived!
... Indeed. I have faced countless perils and enemies in my tales of adventures.
Then how about we share a few select adventures you found particularly memorable?
Let everyone see your grand exploits... in plain sight.
Oh, how about this tale, then?
Let's call it...
... The Hallowed Adventures of Don Quixote...
... and the Knight of the White Moon.
Ta-da.
The Knight of the White Moon? Is that who you really are?
Ha ha, of course not. I must apologize for my delayed introduction.
My name is Sansón, and I will be your guide on your visit here at La Manchaland. 'The Knight of the White Moon' is nothing more than a role I play.
... The Knight... of the White Moon...
How do I look? Close enough, would you say?
Mm. You seem quite peeved that such a role would go to someone such as myself.
Well, then. We have another actor present here to play this character. A little green, a little incomplete, but still with the sign of great potential.
I give this role of the Knight of the White Moon to you.
…?
M-me?
Sinclair held his forehead for a moment, then looked at his changed appearance in confusion.
But that did not last.
…….
<Even Sinclair's gotten... quiet. Like something's controlling his mind.>
It appears that they have become like 'actors' on a stage. As long as that individual is talking, they cannot break character.
W-woah, is this safe?!
The pair sought a certain river, the tales of which have been told only through legends.
Only the Knight of the White Moon knew the path to finding it. Don Quixote was merely going as directed by the Knight.
Oh, excuse me. 'The Trio'; can't forget our dear Rocinante.
Each had a very distinct sound of footsteps as well.
The Knight, an experienced yet relaxed gait.
Rocinante, a stoic yet powerful stride.
And you... stumbling hither and thither.
It is a deep, deep place where no one dares tread.
The deepest part of the City, once challenged by countless adventurers, Knights, and Fixers...
A quiet, terribly tranquil place inhabited only by the floating nebulae...
"We... only have a little further to venture."
"……."
"Once we find the river..."
"I will guide you to the place that will be your residence henceforth."
"An abandoned lighthouse where no one visits."
"Please, make that place your home."
Ahh, the Knight has given our hero a place to live.
What a kindly knight. Such loyal friendship brings tears to my eyes.
"Very well! Then I trust thee to lead the - "
No, no. You did not have a line here.
Why was that, one must wonder... Was it the excitement, the anticipation that got your tongue?
Well, well. Not the most exciting start to an adventure, was it?
Let's keep things interesting. Shall we move on?
[EP 2] - 'WHICH TREATS DON QUIXOTE'S ENCOUNTER WITH THE BANDITS'
Ah, shite! I can't move!
There is no observable method by which we may escape the flow of this stageplay.
<If we don't have a choice in the matter, then... let's at least pay attention to it.>
Thinking back, we've never actually given much attention to Don Quixote's stories before. We considered them to be too ridiculous. Too tiring to listen to. I could think of a thousand different excuses...
... we came up with to avoid having to listen to her stories.
<Let's pay attention to Don Quixote's story for once, her story we never knew.>
In this tale, we look at but one of many, many adventures of Don Quixote.
Through the journey, the great adventurer Don Quixote visited many villages.
And, eventually, the adventurer arrived at a village of shepherds.
A village of shepherds, indeed...
Upon my arrival I could see plainly that the village was routinely terrorized by a band of highwaymen and raiders. Verily, I could see the palpable fear worn on the faces of the villagers. Thus, I inquired one of them to learn of what plagued them so.
"Oh, my...! You must be the brave and famous adventurer Don Quixote! Please, deliver us from pain, milord."
"Alack for woe! The wicked caitiffs - the bandits - fell upon thy village!"
…….
"I, Don Quixote, shan't let pass this plain villainy and bullying unanswered!"
"Worry thee not, for I promise thee on all that is I, that I shall rout the no-good bandits from thy village!"
"But... there's too many for you to defeat all on your own, dear adventurer!"
"Do not let such fear plague thy mind, for there are no adventures in which I, Don Quixote, have not prevailed! Wouldst thou not agree?"
Ah... hold on, hold on a minute. Something feels off, doesn't it?
... Aught doth?
Who might you be talking to? The Knight of the White Moon? Or... your brave steed, Rocinante?
Well, plainly...
... it must be Rocinante.
Many adventures have I braved alongside Rocinante. A friend and a compatriot whom I shan't trade for anything in the world!
"Wouldst thou not agree, dear Rocinante!"
"Y-ye, yes, your worship, Don Quixote."
Pffft, Greg? Didya just turn into a horse?
Now, now. Let's try to focus on this adventure, shall we? Otherwise, Don Quixote, as brave an adventurer this hero may be, cannot fend off this whole horde of bandits all alone.
Indeed... There were too many of them. 'Twas a battle most difficult, just as the villagers had feared.
"Will this plan succeed, your worship?"
"What better plan dost thou suggest, dear Rocinante?"
"Oh, well. I don't have a plan or anything. I don't know as much about the ways of adventuring as you do, Don Quixote."
"I shall stand as myself that is manifestly myself, Rocinante. That is to say, that I stand without fear!"
"Still... can't you see that we are terribly outnumbered? Know that to back down is not to flee; that one must know when to stop their stride when danger outpaces hope..."
Shame, it seems that Rocinante was not as brave as Don Quixote. And not very compliant for a horse... or a pair of running shoes.
... Haah.
"Fie on thee, Rocinante. Hold thy tongue! In all the years I have lived and places I have visited, I am yet to know a pair of running shoes as rebellious as thee! Hast thou not espied enough of my courage to fight them? Then I, Don Quixote, shall prove it to thee this instant, Rocinante!"
Thus I, Don Quixote leapt into the fray the likes of which hath not been seen before, or thereafter.
"Flee not, ye devious caitiffs!"
Shouting so, I stabbed and stabbed and stabbed with all my strength behind the lance.