Wow, I got a bit addicted...
Now, after re-reading some of the comments here, I'm not sure I was meant to be able to >not< rescue Maria once the event was activated. I was no where near strong enough for that boss. So left her until I was strong enough to return. I found myself going through the dungeon with the pregnant monster time and time again to get strong enough to win... I only had 3 in my party the first attempt. Went back and continued on with missions until I had 5 level 40 in my party - then kept retrying. His silence meant it was a tricky (and ultimately very satisfying) battle. Thank you for your master piece, I am about 10 hours of game play in and have learnt SO much. The smart way make minimal effects look really effective in the swamp area is genius, as is using the loop feature very cleverly. If you have time, you should seriously consider making another big full game like this, and only releasing a demo to play for free... I would of paid to play this. In fact, do you have an itch page, or a *******?