skorch82 plays Brave Fencer Musashi - Part 15 of 70

With the collectibles out of the way, we can finally go after Rootrick!

Head back to the beginning of the path up Twinpeak Mountain. When you cross the river with the poles, head left instead of right. You'll find a Bincho Field, but you won't be able to reach it from here. However, you can reach a treasure chest with 200 Drans inside.

You'll reach a dead end, but if you go here after saving Steamwood, you'll meet Rootrick. He'll start trying to climb the wall in revenge of destroying the Steam Knight. He won't tell you where the Princess where, and he accidentally lets it slip that there's a scroll near this area. You'll have to climb on the reddish-brown nearby and use the Legendary Brace to climb to the top before Rootrick. As long as you can keep a steady rhythm, though, you should be able to make it up there long before Rootrick does. Just watch out for the panels that pop in and out of the wall.

When you reach the top, Musashi will trick Rootrick into going back to the bottom for his cape...and whack him in the back with Lumina, taking him out of the picture. We won't be seeing him again. (If you have a huge lead on him when you get to the top, Musashi will crush him with a rock instead. Either way, Rootrick's gone and he's not coming back.)

At the top is a monolith with a strange symbol. Strike it with Lumina, and the Earth Scroll will be yours. By using this Scroll, you can stun enemies with powerful tremors and cause boulders to fall. Afterwards, Lumina will talk to you via telepathy. Yes, Lumina is sentient, but only for this one part in the game. Lumina tells you to destroy the Crest Guardian. Sadly, Lumina shuts up for the rest of the game. I wish they took advantage of this more.

It's pretty obvious that Musashi is based on the legendary Japanese swordsman Miyamoto Musashi, but the Five Scrolls are based on the Five Rings from The Book of Five Rings, which he wrote after he walked away from the life of a swordsman.

There will be a boulder blocking a nearby path. Pause the game, then go to the Sword menu and switch from "Norm" (Normal) to "Earth." Perform the Lumina Rotation move as normal. This time, though, you'll use the Earth Scroll. The tremors will cause the rock to fall down, and you'll get another shortcut down the mountain.

Don't forget to climb up the left part of for two things: a cave and a way to drop down further to the left, where a Minku will be. It's easy to forget about the Minku, so head down and get it now. We won't be heading into the cave until later.