April 11, 2012 | J.J. Cappa
This story summary starts with chapter six because I was already halfway through the game when The JRPG Club was born. Rather than let the material go to waste, I decided to publish it incomplete (for now). In the future, I plan to replay the earlier chapters and add summaries for them as well.
Chapter 6
The butler (じいや) is alive! It turns out that he was wearing a bulletproof vest and survived the attack unscathed. After seeing how powerful Salvatore was, however, Mao decides to enter his heart again, this time to unlock his hidden power. Inside, the group hears a voice that gives Mao a flashback to his first encounter with his idol, the Super Hero (超勇者).
In the flashback, it is revealed that Aurum, the Super Hero, came to the Netherworld to battle Mao’s father, much like Mao is attempting to do now. Excited to meet his hero and gain an ally in his mission to defeat the Overlord, he told the Super Hero his father’s only weakness. Unfortunately, that memory of the Super Hero is now stuck in Mao’s heart, constantly calling out, “Are there no more powerful Overlords!?” Mao wants to erase him.
There are significant events in the two romantic storylines during this chapter. First, Mao says something nice to Raspberyl (the first time this has ever happened). Next, Princess Sapphire reveals that she has known of Almaz for a long time. Although she never met him personally, when he was a soldier at her castle she overheard him defending her honor. It is implied that Almaz is the only person that truly understands her. Unfortunately, he has been growing increasingly ill since touching a strange object last chapter.
Mao and his “underlings” finally have a rematch with Salvatore and defeat her. Demanding to meet her leader, they discover that it’s none other than the butler, who was actually the Super Hero in disguise!
Chapter 7
The demon characters are having difficulty understanding why Aurum betrayed Mao. Princess Sapphire notices that they still consider him a demon (which was really only a disguise) and suggests that because he was actually human, his motivations might be too complicated for them. Angry and humiliated, Mao then decides to get even with the Super Hero by destroying the human world, but even the other demons think this is a bad idea.
Another flashback reveals more information about the day the Aurum defeated the Overlord. In truth, the reason Mao hates him is because of a broken promise; the Super Hero said he would simply defeat his dad but killed him instead. Mao’s father, not completely dead, became stuck in limbo. The game data story is revealed to be false; Mao actually wants to put his father to rest.
On their way to the human world, Almaz dies, setting Dark Mao free. Dark Mao is a Mao made of pure evil. After he is defeated, Almaz comes back to life because of his friendship with Mao.
Finally giving up on destroying the human world, Mao decides it is time to defeat the Super Hero.
Chapter 8
Before Mao and his friends can battle the Super Hero, they must fight his minions. In addition, he challenges Almaz to answer a question: “What do all heroes need?” Almaz cannot find an answer that satisfies Aurum.
Master Big Star and Salvatore temporarily join Mao in his fight against Aurum and his underlings. Other “former” enemies want to help as well, but Mao rebukes them, suggesting that they are only there to make one final appearance before the game ends.
Finally face to face with the Super Hero, Aurum explains that he no longer had any purpose in life after defeating Mao’s dad, so he tried to raise Mao (by nurturing his inner Dark Mao) to become a new, evil Overlord. Before they fight, Aurum gives Almaz another chance to answer his question. Almaz refuses to give him the answer he wants, instead insisting that a hero needs courage and a strong heart.
After their first battle (because Aurum, like all final bosses, has a “true” form) the Super Hero taunts Mao by telling him that he was his father’s only weakness. If it weren’t for Mao’s presence during their battle, the Overlord would have used his strongest ability and defeated Aurum.
Mao nearly releases his evil hidden power again, but everyone helps stop him. Having finally made friends, his evil power turns into a good one and it defeats the Super Hero. Mao, however, decides not deliver a final blow. He’d prefer to experiment on Aurum instead!
Normal Ending
The Overlord is proud of Mao and dies peacefully. Mao becomes the new Overlord and rules the Evil Academy. Princess Sapphire and Almaz get married, but they decide to honeymoon in the Netherworld.
This story summary is based on Disgaea 3 Return, a PS Vita port of the PlayStation 3 original. ”Return” includes all of the downloadable content that was made available for the PS3 version, as well as extra spells, scenarios and characters. The PS Vita version can be downloaded directly from the Japanese PlayStation Store.
The PS3 version can be imported here and purchased within Japan here.
The PS Vita version can be imported here and purchased within Japan here.
PlayStation Store credit can be imported here.