Imperial Knights Route 2 walkthrough

This page covers Route 2 — the path where you borrow the guild fee, fail to escape the bandit hideout three or more times, and the game treats you as a captive rather than an operator. Route 2 is the meanest of the three on first-file combat; it is balanced around a cleared Route 1 and New Game+ stats. If you are on a fresh save, read the route guide and seriously consider Route 1 first.

If you want a compact route-flow instead of a room chart, use the route planner. This page lists Route 2 rooms in order. Route 1 rooms that also appear here (Spirit Cave, castle basement) are summarized; see the Route 1 walkthrough for full detail on shared sections.

Before you start: self-destruct bomb

Japanese charts recommend crafting a self-destruct bomb at the alchemy shop before you commit to clearing the route. You use it against Butts in the hideout to force a scripted loss without actually dying. Without it, you need to fail stealth three times — which means replaying the hideout stealth section, which is slower. Alchemy materials come from herb gathering and shop purchases. Do this on Route 1 or in early Route 2 before the hideout.

Imperial Knights Route 2 full gameplay — hideout failure path

Maldonia West Road → Bandit Hideout

1. Talk to Sting at the guild, choose “let him cover it.”
2. Receive guild certificate.
3. Leave Maldonia west. Fight Sting and two bandits — lose intentionally.
4. You are captured and taken to the bandit hideout.
5. Examine the glowing spot near the entrance to get an old nail.
6. Examine the door. Begin the stealth section.
7. Move left, open the chest on the right. Equipment is optional here.
8. Return and talk to Butts (the bandit boss). Fight two bandits — use the self-destruct bomb or lose deliberately.
9. H-scene plays. You are taken to the prison cells.

Prison Cells (Tania control segment)

1. Examine the door. Two H-scenes play.
2. Tania appears. You now control Tania in stealth.
3. Move to the lower-right area and open the chest.
4. Return to Diana’s cell. Equip Tania.
5. Continue the stealth section: move down-left, then up-left, then up-right, then up.
6. Reach the center-upper area. Fight Bio Worm.

Bio Worm warning: This boss has a delayed “Dyson Breath” attack that is a forced loss if it completes, even on New Game+. You must kill it before the wind-up finishes. Use your highest damage dealers. Tania’s Poison Dagger helps. Do not let the timer run.

7. Exit the hideout. Tania leaves the party — strip her gear.

Sera Town (theater district)

1. Enter Sera. Go to the guild (upper-left).
2. Talk to the guild clerk on the left. Recruit one party member.
3. Leave the guild. Go up, enter the building on the left.
4. Talk to the man in the lower-left. H-scene.
5. Check the bed upstairs. Rest until night.
6. Talk to Makori on the right. H-scene.
7. Repeat the sleep/H-scene cycle two more times with Makori.
8. Talk to the lower-left Makori in the building. Leave.
9. Exit Sera.

Makori notes: Makori is a recurring H-scene character in Sera. She is not a combat party member but her scenes are Route 2 content. The in-game gallery tracks these after a clear.

Merchant Road → Jupiter Mountain

1. On the Merchant Road, fight two groups of bandits.
2. Pan joins after the road encounters.

Jupiter Mountain

1. Exit Pan’s house. Head left-down, enter the center-right house.
2. Talk to Pan inside. Rest on the bed.
3. Next day: leave, return, talk to Pan again. Pan joins permanently.
4. Equip Pan. Pan’s sewing skill repairs costumes in the menu — useful for armor-break bosses.
5. Leave Jupiter Mountain (down and out).

Jupiter Mountain Ancient Ruins

1. Enter the ruins. Chests here are empty — go straight to the center entrance.
2. Avoid the glowing sigil traps. Circle right and move down-right.
3. Fight three bandits. Tania rejoins after the fight.
4. Continue down-right. Rock gimmicks appear — take the lower-left path.
5. Move to the center-down pattern, then go up.
6. Multi-fight: Metal Gunner + Metal Mage + Metal Guard.
7. Second fight: Butts + two bandits. First two turns you cannot act.
8. Open the chest. Obtain Ruins Treasure.
9. Exit the ruins.

Jupiter Mountain (upper area)

1. Go to the upper-left. Chest contains Elixir.
2. Talk to the bandit in the center. Fight two bandits.
3. Go up, then upper-left. Fight Sting + two bandits.
4. Enter the house. Inside, go upper-left.
5. Fight two groups of bandits.
6. Fight Butts + two bandits again. First two turns are frozen.
7. Receive Fist Saint introduction letter + 10,000 G. Tania and Pan leave — strip their gear.
8. Exit Jupiter Mountain.

Back to Maldonia → shared Route 1 section

From here, Route 2 rejoins Route 1’s spine through Seikuri Village and Spirit Cave. The enemies change (orc variants instead of base enemies) but the map layouts are the same. See the Route 1 walkthrough for room detail on these shared sections.

Seikuri Village (orc-infested)

1. Village chief opens Spirit Cave. Same trigger as Route 1.
2. Route 2 Seikuri has orc occupied houses — three battles in the right, left-center, and right-center buildings. Each contains three orcs.
3. After clearing orc houses, enter the chief’s house for the final orc fight.
4. Leave Seikuri.

Spirit Cave (High Orc variant)

1. Same layout as Route 1 Spirit Cave.
2. Talk to the gray orc at the upper area. Fight High Orc + two orcs.
3. Examine the glowing spot above. Exit.
4. Report to the emperor in Maldonia.

Ether Knight (Route 2)

Same ceremony as Route 1. After Mud Poison report → Maldonia castle basement mage → hair color choice → Metal Armor → re-equip. See the Ether Knight guide for ceremony detail.

Imperial Research Facility

1. Go down into the basement. Talk to the mage.
2. Return to the surface. Fight Revolutionary soldiers (one male + two youths).
3. Exit.

Slave Facility (Route 2 story beat)

1. Enter the facility. Talk to the guard.
2. Chest in lower-left contains Elixir.
3. Go upper-left. Talk to Papa (your father Robert).
4. Exit.

Note: This is a Route 2 story scene, not a full dungeon. The key comes from the vagrant in the north cell in the Route 1 sewer section — that item is shared.

Maldonia Castle Basement (finale)

Route 2 shares the same castle basement map and boss order as Route 1. The boss at the end of the castle basement is Norakura (the imperial mage), not the Route 1 mage.

1. Rest at the inn, refill items at the tool shop.
2. Enter the upper-left castle area.
3. Talk to the man in the center. Pay 1,000 G for the sewer key.
4. Navigate the maze: upper-left → around to upper-right → left-up-down → left.
5. Chests: Mithril Dagger, Mithril Buster.
6. Continue: around to lower-right → lower-left.
7. Chests: Mithril Spear + Mithril Hammer, Fire Rod, Mithril Knuckle, Holy Bow.
8. Go upper-right. Fight Norakura + three Demon Knights.
9. Heal fully. Go down → down-right-up.
10. Chests: Mithril Guitar, Dark Mace.
11. Go down-right-up again. Two consecutive fights.
12. Fight Sati (magic attack debuff, 80% current-HP spike every five turns).
13. Fight Mage Reinhardt (ice wall, mana drain followed by party-wide nuke — defend after drain).
14. Ending plays.

Route 2 endings: Only one ending on Route 2 (no split like Route 1’s crest/normal/defeat). The H-scene flags from the hideout and Sera are captured in the gallery after clearing.

Guild quests on Route 2

Quest	Location	Reward
Herb gathering	Island	5,000 G
Outlaw hunt	Svalt Kingdom ruins	EXP 6,000
Ghost trouble	Hot spring inn Kinugawa	5x Elixir

The hot spring inn requires night access for the mountain area. Complete this quest on your way through or after Seikuri.

Key differences from Route 1

Aspect	Route 1	Route 2
Opening	Pay fee yourself	Borrow, fail hideout
Stealth	None	Tania control segment
Party	Lysithea, Tear, Lea	Tania, Pan (hired later)
Bio Worm	Does not appear	Timed forced-loss boss
Seikuri	Normal village	Orc-occupied houses
Spirit Cave	Standard enemies	High Orc variants
Castle mage	Standard	Norakura
Tone	Imperial loyalty	Captivity and underside

Tips for a first-file Route 2 clear

• Make the self-destruct bomb before entering the hideout. Alchemy shop, early.
• Bio Worm is the real gate. If your damage is too low, go back to Sera and grind a level.
• Pan is worth the investment. Her sewing skill saves Repair Kits on costume-break fights.
• Makori scenes in Sera are optional but count toward gallery completion.
• Orc houses in Seikuri hit hard. Full heal before entering the village.
• The castle basement finale is the same difficulty as Route 1 — harder if you are underleveled from the longer route.

Related pages

• Route guide — opening conditions and route comparison
• Route 1 walkthrough — shared room sections
• Route 3 walkthrough — the mercenary and frontier path
• Combat — element weaknesses and boss patterns
• Checklist — completion tracking
• Ether Knight — mid-game class ceremony
• New Game+ — what carries between files