Abstract
Just as the way out of the village is within reach, the injured Mayu is captured once more. In her weakened state, Sae is able to take full control; The ceremony is back on, and Mayu is on her way to play her part at the hellish abyss deep beneath the Kurosawa house. Will Mio relive Yae's role too?
All God's Village, Fork in Road
Now we can get out of this village...
The exis is in sight now, just up the short path to the Kureha Shrine. Mayu is in no hurry, though, so take it slow so as not to leave her behind.
All God's Village, Kureha Shrine Path
If we reach the shrine up there we can leave the village...
As they climb the steps, there is a disturbance in the trees around them. Mayu senses it too.
Mio! There!
Most of the village is at the bottom of the steps, poles aloft and torches burning. They advance with speed, forcing the twins to run for the safety of the Kureha shrine. However, near the top, Mayu's injured leg gives way and she is quickly surrounded and captured.
Hostile Spirit Alert: Seeker, Pole Bearer, Sickle Bearer
Mayu has been captured, and is far away now, so there is no need to panic rush this fight. If you can dodge their attacks, you can even run clear out into the village and evade them entirely.
All God's Village, Whisper Bridge
As Mayu, follow the crimson butterflies over the bridge and enter the Kurosawa grounds.
All God's Village, Fork in Road
Mayu is now at the Kurosawa house, about to engage in the ritual. Completists can take a quick detour around the village to snap up the remaining spirits.
All God's Village, Storehouse
Bound Spirit Alert: Trapped Girl
1000pts
Climb the small flight of stairs in Itsuki's storehouse and the filament will begin to glow. The roof is too low to proceed very far, so you will have to draw the camera "blind." Take a shot of the headless statue to find the Trapped Girl. Gotcha.
All God's Village, Misono Hill
Bound Spirit Alert: Yae Kurosawa
1000pts
Return to where it all began, the altar atop Misono Hill. Aim through the rotting Shinto gate, and maybe slightly to the right, to find Yae returning to the village.
All God's Village, All God's Cemetery
Bound Spirit Alert: Lady of the Night
1000pts
Probably the last place you could want to be, the Cemetery contains one final spirit. Examine the gravestones on the western side of the plot and look for the spiritual blue glow.
With the village cleaned out for now, follow Mayu. You can't take the shortcut through the old tree any more, so you will need to retrace your steps over Misono Hill.
All God's Village, Whisper Bridge
Mayu is just ahead, flanked by chanting veiled priests. As she approaches the house, she begins to take on Sae's form, only briefly becoming Mayu again in order to look back at her sister.
The two chosen children... shall be carried to heaven on the wings of a butterfly...
Mayu leaves behind Butterfly Diary 5.
Kurosawa, 1F Grounds
Save at the lantern, take the Herbal Medicine, and enter through the main doors. Tonight is going to be a large one.
Kurosawa, 1F Entrance
The torch still doesn't work in here, unfortunately, but that doesn't stop the Sacred Water from glowing nearby. Mayu is to the east, but there are things to be done to the west if you want them. Beware: It should go without saying that this house, at this time, is very hostile.
Optional - Clearing Kurosawa
Kurosawa, 1F Great Hall
Hostile Spirit Alert: Limbo Man x3, Limbo Woman
There are a few positive things about this battle. The location is ideal, with minimal obstructions and plenty of space to prevent surprise attacks. Limbo Men are slow, so it is relatively easy to herd them together and defeat them with a series of Triple Shots. Keeping them together also makes them much easier to see, as their combined spiritual aura is clearly visible as a dark cloud.
The real problem is Limbo Woman, who tends to do her own thing and doesn't like the camera. Now is a good time to rely on your healing items, staying on the move as you round up the men but ultimately ignoring her. You'll take damage, but you should be able to heal.
Bound Spirit Alert: The Repentance
1000pts
Look into the bloodstained fireplace to see a vision of the past and what is yet to come...
Kurosawa, 1F/2F Courtyard Staircase
After that battle, you will surely want to save at the lantern here and grab the Stone Mirror if you missed it earlier. Continue through the second floor for more spirits.
Kurosawa, 2F Doll Stand Room
Bound Spirit Alert: Sae Kurosawa
1000pts
Examine behind the illuminated screen from the start of a previous chapter to find another afterimage of Sae.
Kurosawa, 2F Master's Room
There is a Chrysocolla for the radio here. Head through the Partition Screen Room and down the stairs to rejoin the non-optional walkthrough.
Kurosawa, 1F Storage Room
Some Type-14 Film sits on the boxes here.
Kurosawa, 1F Cloth Hallway
There is one more optional spirit close by, so head to the small cell to the east.
Kurosawa, 1F Cell
Spirit Alert: Prisoner
Personal best: 879pts
On entering the cell area, Makabe appears at his desk and slowly stands up. The difficulty here is seeing him through the lattice bars.
He leaves behind Folklorist's Note 11 and some Lazulite. Now, finally, it is time to follow Mayu through the Family Altar Room.
Kurosawa, 1F Family Altar Room
As Mayu again, follow the butterflies towards the sacrificial tower behind the house.
At Mio's feet lies Butterfly Diary 6.
Bound Spirit Alert: Ryokan Kurosawa
1000pts
Point straight ahead at the altar to find the ceremony master himself.
Whether you choose to follow the ritual and take the western staircase, or trail Mayu and go to the east, use the underground Connecting Corridor.
Kurosawa, 1F Connecting Corridor
The butterflies signal your route, along the left hand path.
Spirit Alert: White Kimono
Personal best: 279pts
Just after the camera angle changes, the spirit of Sae appears on the other path. The row of trees may obstruct the view at first, and if so just wait a moment or run to catch up with her. She doesn't stay for very long, so be ready.
Stand on the plate at the end of the path and Sae will appear to press the other one.
I kept waiting and waiting...
Kurosawa, 1F Lattice Room
There is Type-61 Film on the floor in here, but more important is the save lantern. The final lantern. Use it, then brace yourself for the next room.
Kurosawa, 1F Rope Temple
Entering the room, Mio finds the cutting ritual in action. Veiled priests, chanting, form a circle around the altar, while the ceremony master has his back to us. In the rafters, held aloft through a nightmarish web of ropes, is the kusabi himself. There is a brief crimson flash vision of his body being thrown into the abyss.
Then the gathered priests notice Mio. Kurosawa approaches, revealing his skeletal form.
Hostile Spirit Alert: Mr. Kurosawa
First, note the bound spirit which may be captured during this battle.
The important thing here is to stay calm. Mr. Kurosawa is effectively a very powerful Veiled Priest. He can teleport, but does so rarely. His lateral motion is slow and steady, as he constantly circles to weigh Mio up. Keep your eye on him, and open the shutter if you really need to deal damage. Beware the pillars, as they can easily obstruct your view.
He has three main attacks which he uses generally at will. He pauses before each one, so prepare to act if he stops behind a pillar. The first attack is a series of skulls much like the priests', with a shutter chance just after the launch. The second attack is a charge, which comes with shutter chances and a crucial fatal frame, but he sometimes charges invulnerably and forces you to take damage. The third and final summons two Veiled Priests to fight on his behalf. If they aren't killed quickly, he will banish them and may resummon at a later time.
Bound Spirit Alert: Seijiro Makabe
1000pts
Look up into the rafters during the Kurosawa battle.
The lantern behind you is the last chance to save, and you really should after that fight. Use the Master's Key to unlock the other set of doors leading into the passageway beneath the village.
Kurosawa, Spiral Hallway
Mayu's voice drifts along from the end of this long underground hallway, mixed with Sae's feelings.
Mio... no... don't come near... save yourself... run away...
Yae, come here... hurry...
Mio, once you've come this far...
You'll come for me, Yae... I know you will...
We promised we would always be together, so we ran away...
But everyone... died...
Below All God's, A Passageway
Mio is far enough from the Kurosawa house now, so the torch thankfully flickers back to life just in time to illuminate some Fluorite. This long cavern, ever descending, is all but crawling with Mourners. There is no reason to fight if you don't want to, and the terrain is hardly ideal if you do.
Bound Spirit Alert: Failed Kusabi
1000pts
Eventually, you will pass by a little blue pool of groundwater near a burning brazier. Look to the right just afterwards, and you will see a little window in the rock, looking out upon strung up bodies. The Failed Kusabi is among them.
A little further along is some Type-90 Film.
Below All God's, Sacrificial Altar
Yae... you've finally come for me... You've finally come... we can be... one...
On entering the massive chamber, two spirits materialise at the centre of the display.
Spirit Alert: Eternal Ritual x2
Personal best: 548pts
They won't disappear, so line up your shot well. They cound as two separate spirits, though you would need to actively try not to get them both in the same picture.
Prepare yourself, and your camera, and then head through the shinto gates and down to the final arena.
Mio has one final, chilling vision of the last stage of the ritual. The priests lead Yae - now with her red kimono cord trailing on the floor - down into the cave, to watch as they throw her sister's still-warm corpse into the mouth of hell.
I'll wait forever...
After a delay, the ground begins to shake. Panic erupts, and the priests flee past Mio in confusion. One of them tears off his veil to see the bloodstained Sae rise up from the pit, laughing maniacally.
The resulting explosion sends a cloud of Malice rushing through the caverns, expanding to cloak the entire village in darkness. Then the Kusabi arrives.
Hostile Spirit Alert: Rope Man
On Normal and Easy, this is the final battle. The Kusabi is the strongest enemy you will fight, and will kill you in a single stroke. Unlike the previous encounter in the Kurosawa house, this time he can be hurt. Just.
Important note: The Kusabi can heal himself between attacks. Use your strongest film and aim for combo Fatal Frames in order to counteract this. A war of attrition will not work in your favour.
That said, this battle is largely psychological. His attack pattern is simple. He advances slowly, very slowly, and then either performs a long-range lunge with a fatal frame moment, or releases a few lost souls with a shutter chance. The lost souls don't hurt too much, but the lunge is a deathbringer. After an attack, he will disappear for a moment.
The challenge is to get close to trigger the lunge attack, while constantly moving backwards and ensuring you don't run out of space to your rear. Once the fatal frame light blinks, chain your strongest attacks and prepare to head back to the centre of the room.
The Kusabi's appearance is the major distraction. He is shrouded in fog and surrounded by a massive cloak of tortured souls, making him look a lot larger than he really is. This means that at close range he more than fills the viewfinder, and his core circle is almost impossible to spot. Ignore the faces surrounding him and focus on his body, relying on the capture circle's glow and the fatal frame light to know for sure that you have the opportunity to shoot.
With him defeated, continue down to the Hellish Abyss and take the Final Letter on the way.
Below All God's, Hellish Abyss
On entering the cavern, Mio finds her sister standing solemnly before the abyss.
I kept waiting... In a dark, dark place...
There is a long silence. Mio cautiously takes a step forwards, sparking Mayu out of her reverie.
Shall we begin?
Spirit Alert: Hellish Abyss Mayu
On Normal and Easy modes, snap Mayu as she stands here and the quest will end. Hard and Nightmare is a different matter, with a concluding chapter...
