Inside, no music plays. There don't appear to be any monsters, but neither is there any sign of any way to continue deeper. The party checks the wings to the left and the right, which, oddly enough, seem to have humans in them, some of whom are very familiar. After exploring each wing, a save point appears in the main hall. Sort of. When Crono touches it, it disappears, 2-23 錯乱の旋律 (Melody of Derangement) starts playing, and a shadow with a familiar shape fades in...

The bat flies up and hovers next to Vinnegar as he comes into clear view.

Vinnegar: Good job getting here, Glenn.
No, wait, you're just a frog now.
Does that make them replacements
for Cyrus this time around?
The great Magus is in the middle of an
important ritual at the moment, though.
I'll be the one dealing with you.
If you can beat the Dark Arts Swordsman
Soysaw, and the Void Mage Mayonnay.
And!

Soysaw (soy sauce) and Mayonnay (mayonnaise) fit into the same sauce pun theme that Vinnegar and Tarta do. My spellings are chosen to look like they're supposed to sound without being completely unbelievable.

The bat flies away, and monsters appear, surrounding the party.

Vinnegar: The hundred monsters
here in Magus Castle!

Thankfully, given the size of the castle, physical attacks work just fine on most of the monsters here. "Melody of Derangement" continues playing even during the battle, as it does throughout most of the castle.

The castle is a big place and contains a wide variety of monsters. The Vamp that appeared in the cave leading here appears again, as does the Gear that previously appeared in the Guardia Castle dungeons and the physical-immune Silhouette from ruins in the future. The Juggler mentioned in the dead soldier's bloody note is here as well, and begins in anti-physical mode. In addition, the Lancer (Decedent), Squasher (Grimalkin), Outlaw, Ballmadill Bomber (Roly Bomber), Sorcerer, three types of Servant of the Magus (Flunky, Groupie, Hench), and a nameless enemy that looks like a save point all make appearances in various parts of the castle.

That's a lot of variety, but here's some useful summary information. Nothing has higher than average magic defense (not counting a Juggler in anti-magic mode), and many have less than that, so spells will always work well unless the element is a bad choice. However, besides the Silhouette's physical immmunity, only the save point lookalikes and the Juggler in anti-physical mode have more than average physical defense, so weapons also work just fine in most situations. As far as elements go, avoid Dark since several of the enemies absorb it. Water works on anything but the Sorcerer and Gear, making Marle and Frog's Icewater very nice for clearing most battles in a hurry. On the other hand, nearly everything, including the Sorcerer, is weak against Fire, with the only exceptions being the Outlaw (immune to Aether and Fire); the Silhouette, Vamput, and fake save points (none are weak or strong against any element); the Gear (immune to all elements); and of course bosses. However, Lucca isn't likely to have ★Figa yet, whereas Icewater is available as soon as both Marle and Frog can use magic.

After the party beats this bunch, the bat comes back to stalk Crono again. In the western hallway, there are now Lancers, with the larger Gears overseeing them.

The bat flies away as the Gear notices the party.

Simple battle. The bat returns afterwards. Futher ahead, some Lancers are alternately stabbing each other as another Gear looks on.

The bat flies away as the Gear notices the party.

Another simple battle. The bat returns afterwards, again. Further in, there are what appear to be five humans. Most won't talk, but the apparent leader...

...turns around and becomes obviously skeletal.

The bat flies away again, as the others shed their disguses. The party is suddenly surrounded by Lancers, and have to fight through, though this fight is even easier than the last two given the lack of a Gear. After the battle, a voice is heard, without the bat returning.

: Oh...?
How easily you dealt with
the corpses I slew...

The screen fades out briefly, then back in to reveal a tall humanoid. His head is blue and resembles a Jarry's.

Frog: It's been a while.
Dark Arts Swordsman Soysaw...!

The childish insults are pure fabrication and out of character. If anything, Frog and Soysaw seem to have something of a professional respect for each other.

The bat returns briefly, then leaves again when the dialog resumes.

Soysaw: I never even supposed that
you might come this far, Glenn.
If Cyrus hadn't been there back then,
you would have shared the same fate.
As those corpses just now!

Boss battle time. Soysaw (Slash) fights bare handed, even though he's supposed to be a swordsman. He doesn't hurt very much... but when his hit points run out, he retaliates with a weak Fire attack against the party, then starts talking again.

Soysaw in this battle is monster ID 157, and takes half damage from all elemental attacks.

Soysaw: Pretty good.
I suppose I'll get serious for once.

Soysaw seizes a sword from the wall and pulls it from its sheath.

Soysaw: But without Cyrus, will you...
be able to take me!?

The battle continues, with Soysaw now sporting a Water immunity and new moves. He zips around the room, adding an attack similar to Crono's Wind Scythe to hit several characters at once. He'll also strike one character with a jumping slash from overhead, similar to Crono's Fierce Slash. There's also a wimpy normal strike, but don't expect to see it very often. Later into the battle, he starts counterattacking with a multi-slash attack, too.

Soysaw in this battle is monster ID 158, and takes half damage from all elemental attacks except Water, which has no effect on him.

Soysaw: Well done...!
But to fall in battle for the great Magus...
My life is without regrets!

Soysaw fades out, leaving behind a save point and his sword. The bat flies back, too.

Crono and the others go back and check the right hallway, which has some strange sights. First up are four children standing around a treasure chest.

The bat flies away, and the kids turn into Silhouettes, the goops from the future that need to be killed with magic (the treasure is a Barrier Ball). The bat returns after the battle. In the next room is...

The bat flies away.

The bat flies away.

The bat flies away.

In any case, it turns out to be a group of monsters in disguise, and the party has to fight them. They're not too tough, especially if you kill the Sorcerer first so it can't heal the others. The perpetually orbiting bat returns after the battle. Further along is Queen Leene, or at least a lookalike.

The bat flies away.

It's an identical battle, and the bat returns afterward. Further along the corridor is an imitation of Crono's mother Gina.

The bat flies away.

Yes, it's yet another battle, just like the others. The bat returns afterward. At the end of the hallway is a strange creature. The bat flies away again.

And here's a new monster. Mayonnay? (Flea?) acts like a normal battle. After taking any damage, it retaliates by dropping the attacker's MP to zero (killing it with a counterattack avoids this, so consider equipping an Anger Bracelet), then dies. The bat flutters back.

Frog: That wasn't Mayonnay...
where's the real one!?

The bat moves differently from usual.

The bat flutters in front of the party and changes into a young womanly form, with a long pink braid and a swirling white cape.

方 (kata) is actually a respectful way to say "person", nothing like "fiend".

Frog draws his sword.

Frog: Don't get careless!
This one's the Void Mage Mayonnay!
She's not just any woman.

Mayonnay: Urrrrgh!
Hey, I AM a guy after all!

Mayonnay uses the same feminine-tough あたい as Ayla did earlier.

Robo: I CAN think nothing BUT that the
appearance is obviously female...

Mayonnay assumes a provocative pose and blows kisses.

...which isn't exactly normal male bahavior, and the speech is feminine too... actually, the speech gives me the impression more of someone trying too hard to sound girly and horribly overdoing it than anything else. Worse than when Ranma pretends to be a real girl, and that's pretty bad already, as I recall. Anyhow, there's no shortage of Japanese fiction that loves to screw with your concept of gender, with subjects like 女装 and 男装 (literally "female clothing" and "male clothing", but typically used to refer to cross dressing), 女体化 and 男体化 (literally "female body -ization" and "male body -ization", used to describe usually magical sex changes), 男の娘 (literally "male daughter", referring more or less to boys who live as girls), and ふたなり (literally "dual form", but most often used to refer to characters who are largely female but have both sets of parts, so to speak)—though I would warn readers to be careful if considering searching for any of those; many of the results will not be what most would consider work-safe or appropriate for children—and the Japanese language has fairly strong gender cues as well, which contributes to playing with the concept. Regardless, I do approve of questioning the familiar and asking why "normal" is considered to be so.

Mayonnay: *giggle*, but male, female,
either way, the strong are beauuutiful.

I'm embarrassed at how long it took me to realize that the exaggerated ヨネ (YO NE) that Mayonnay tends to end sentences with is the same sound as at the end of the name, so it's actually wordplay as well as sickeningly cutesy...

Mayonnay make an exaggerated yawn.

Mayonnay: With Cyrussie gone,
you must be lonely, Froggie.
And turned into such an ugly form
to make things worse... yuck!

Mayonnay stops the showy yawning and stands normally.

Mayonnay: But you've gone to such trouble to
come play with me with your new friends...

Mayonnay crouches and draws the cape around her... him... whatever (stupid pronouns; we really need some neutral ones that have widespread recognition and acceptance)... self. "Boss Battle 1" finally starts playing.

Mayonnay: I'll settle everything and
show you my hospitality!

The room fades out to be replaced with a scrolling starry backdrop. The carpet is still there, for whatever reason.

Mayonnay has many special attacks, most of which end in hearts just to make them more annoying, and is one of only a few opponents to use status attacks regularly. Beware of occassional counterattacks later on, too. Note that Aether, Water, and Dark trait attacks will inflict only 2/3 of their usual damage against Mayonnay. On top of that, the enemy's physical and magical defense are both slightly elevated, making all attacks inflict about 15% to 20% less damage than usual. Physical and Fire attacks will have the most effect.

Mayonnay: H-how could I be beaten...?
O great Magussss

Mayonnay fades out, and the room returns to normal. A Magic Capsule appears on the floor. The bat, of course, doesn't return anymore.

Yes! No more bat! Now I can stop mentioning it flying away before every single battle and back once the battle ends! Though you can beat Mayonnay before Soysaw, and if you do, the bat won't be there for Soysaw's side of the castle. You won't have the Soysaw Katana to fight Mayonnay with, though.

Now that both Soysaw and Mayonnay are beaten, a save point appears in the main hall. Sort of. This time, it's actually a teleporter, and leads to a third, central hallway. Monsters stand guard here. "Battle" starts playing when the battles start, and keeps playing, even between battles, for the rest of the hallway. Vinnegar stands at the far end, blocking a stairway that leads upward.

Frog draws his sword.

Frog: Too bad, Vinnegar.
Those two can't come help now.

Vinnegar: V...
Vinnegar PINCH!!

OZZIE: Oz...
　Ozzie's in...a jam!!

Vinnegar runs away, up the stairs.

Upstairs, "Melody of Derangement" resumes. There are a series of conveyor belts, with large blades moving up and down over them. Crossing the first one, the party sees Vinnegar, turning a crank.

After the party crosses two more, Vinnegar speaks up again.

Vinnegar: Hu hu, not bad.
But how about this, hmm?

Vinnegar turns the crank faster, moving the conveyors and blades faster. Crono and the others cross anyway, and reach Vinnegar.

Vinnegar flees through a door in the back, and the conveyor belts and blades stop moving. The door leads to the outside of the tower. It's sort of like Donkey Kong, but with rolling monsters instead of barrels, and you can't jump. Hitting a roller starts a fight with it and any other monsters that are floating around nearby.

Here's the thing, though... events that activate on contact only work when the player is moving. Hold still and they'll roll right by.

Another door leads inside farther up the tower. Vinnegar stands next to a crank on the far side of this room. If you step on the wrong (completely unmarked) spot, Vinnegar turns the crank and opens a trapdoor underfoot. The first time the party falls down, they have to fight a group of skeletons. Once the skeletons are dead, there are some treasures to collect, including a Magic Capsule in one corner. After that, it's just figuring which of the four save point lookalikes is actually a teleporter that leads back to the room above. Two of the others are monsters that don't fight back (kill them with normal attacks to save MP, and never mind their high defense, since they only have ten hit points), and the last is a real save point. Open trapdoors stay open, so each only works once, and the party inevitably reaches Vinnegar.

And he retreats again. This door leads to another outside area, much like the first, except that there are now ground monsters, and the rollers here explode when killed. There is again a door back inside higher up the tower. In here, there are holes along the walls, with chains extending down into them. When the party passes certain chains, they start moving, pulling up monsters to fight. "Battle" plays from the beginning of the first fight, and continues even between battles. At the far end is Vinnegar, turning a crank. When the party beats the last set of monsters...

He turns the crank furiously, but nothing happens. The music fades out.

Vinnegar retreats upstairs. "Melody of Derangement" resumes. Upstairs, monsters ambush the party from behind statues, and "Battle" plays plays continuously from the beginning of the first battle.

However, you can avoid most battles in this hall by going around the outside of the statues.

After one last staircase, they find Vinnegar again, this time with nowhere to run. Four cranks are nearby.

You know, he must not be in very good shape, despite all that running (away) he does...

He draws his sword and holds it threateningly. The others also ready their weapons.

Vinnegar: *gack*...
But the great Magus is no
doubt already summoning...
the great Lavos!!

He reaches an arm out menacingly.

Vinnegar: I won't be beaten, I WON'T be!
My barrier won't allow any form
of attack past it!

"Boss Battle 1" starts playing. Vinnegar raises his arms, and encases himself in what looks like a block of ice. If anyone tries attacking him, the damage is pathetic, and Vinnegar taunts...

...and a wave of energy blasts from the barrier, damaging all allies. So they try hitting a crank instead...

...and a trapdor opens to the left of the party. Attacking directly is still useless, so they hit another crank...

...and a trapdoor opens to the right of the party. Attacking directly is still useless, so they hit a third crank...

...and a trapdoor opens in the midst of the party members, but not where anyone is actually standing. Attacking directly is still useless, so they hit the last crank...

...the music stops...

...and a trapdoor opens under Vinnegar. He falls in, hitting the ground some distance below with a loud cracking sound.

Vinnegar has 255 defense and 100 magic defense for this battle, and additionally halves all elements. It's technically possible to beat him directly, but you'll still need to hit the cranks to continue even then, so between that, constant counterattacks, and his extreme damage reduction, there's little reason to attempt it.

Robo: What COULD his problem have BEEN?
That Vinnegar...

Two apparent save points appear. One is an actual save point; the other is a teleporter to continue in.

Frog: We're in a race against time!
Hurry, to the Magus!

The internal storyline progression tracking variable is now 0x89.

The teleporter leads to a simple staircase outside. An eerie chanting is heard, and one Vamput after another swoops down from above.

Remember how Vinnegar said there were 100 monsters in the castle? Not counting the fake save points, the rollers on the two outdoor ledges (they never stop coming), and the Magus, Vinnegar, Mayonnay, and Soysaw themselves, these bats, the final monsters before the Magus, bring the total to exactly 100. Amazing.

At the bottom of the stairs is a doorway. The room inside is dark, and the chanting is louder.

There's no apparent meaning, so I went with a phonetic approximation.

The party walks into the room. Blue flames appear to either side of the path at regular intervals in the otherwise dark room as they pass by.

The party continues into the room, and the flames keep appearing as they pass by.

Or possibly, "in exchange for this earth's fate," as the term usually means life but does have some alternate uses. Perhaps more importantly, it's unclear who is exchanging the earth's what for what. The obvious meaning, at this point in the game, is that he's offering up the earth's life to this Lavos creature he's creating, but anyone who's played through the game knows that not only did he not create Lavos, he actually furiously hates it. More likely, he seeks to offer something to Lavos in exchange for Lavos giving up its hold on the earth's life... and not a friendly offer, since the only thing he wants to give Lavos is death.

The chanting suddenly stops. The flames continue ahead of Crono and the others, curving around an area just ahead. An ornately decorated circle that looks magical comes into view, ringed by the blue flames, and the Magus stands in its center, facing away. Frog pulls out the Grandleon.

The others also draw their weapons. The Magus doesn't even turn around.

I'm quite disappointed in how the NA version handles this scene. The Magus is supposed to be calm and detached, for one thing... at least until after the battle. At this point, he doesn't yet seem to consider the intruders to be a meaningful threat.

Magus: The frog from that one time...?
How's your life been since then?

Frog: I'm grateful.
It's BECAUSE of such a form...

He waves the Grandleon.

2-24 魔王決戦 (Magus Decisive Battle) begins playing. It's rather creepy, but a more energetic kind of creepy than the castle music. And personally I consider it to be one of the best tracks in a game that has great music to begin with.

Magus: Oh...?
You have the Grandleon...
But this time, it would be for the best if
those not involved don't get in the way.

The above line is particularly poorly handled in the NA version. Far too many exclamation points, and it completely leaves out the Magus's line about people getting in the way, which on a second look may be ambiguous. My initial thought was that he's just advising them not to disturb him, but now I'm leaning towards this being a taunt about Cyrus's death, suggesting that the knight might have fared better without an ineffective Glenn dragging him down.

The Magus stops talking for a moment. His black cape billows out behind him as a breeze is heard.

Magus: The black wind has again begun to howl...
Very well, come at me...

That "again" turns out to be significant, so naturally it went missing in the official translation.

He finally turns around, cape drawn about himself.

He blinks out, then reappears on the edge of the circle, and the battle begins.

Losing to the Magus results in a brief but unique bad ending.

The Magus casts a variety of spells, and also may attack a character physically with a scythe. Physical attacks do little damage to him, and he responds to nearly every form of attack by using a barrier change skill that makes every element except one heal him, while casting a spell (★Thundaga, ★Icega, ★Figa, or ★Dark Bomb) of the same trait as his new vulnerability.

This makes the choice of third character trickier. Crono and Frog have Aether and Water covered, so while Marle can contribute extra healing, she isn't going to do much for offense beyond Icewater as a stronger Water spell. Robo can heal, too, and his lasers, though relatively weak, are likely to be the only Dark available without having both Marle and Lucca in the group together, which isn't an option here. Lucca is typically the best choice for offense, bringing powerful Fire attacks into the mix (plus Delta Storm for Dark if you've been grinding, but it's unlikely in a first playthough, not to mention unnecessary).

The exception to this reaction is hitting him with the Grandleon. Like all physical attacks, it doesn't hurt him much, but...

The basic strategy is to hit him with the Grandleon, then attack with his vulnerable element. Repeat, stopping to heal as needed, since the counters he uses when changing elements are significantly more dangerous than his other attacks.

And on that note, you should absolutely use combo attacks whenever possible. ★Thunder will be your best Aether attack unless you've been grinding for tech points, but you should have Blade Waterfall available to add some bonus damage to Frog's ★Water. If you brought Marle, Icewater works better, effectively hitting the Magus with two spells at once. Robo's lasers will hurt more when using Rapid Whirl with Crono. Lucca is likely to have Napalm Bomb by now, but Fire Sword or Red Needle give ★Fire enough of a bonus to outdamage it even without taking into account the minor physical damage from the swords.

After taking enough damage, the Magus changes his attack pattern. He stops reacting to attacks, instead keeping the same vulnerability. Soon after, he casts something...

All attacks now deal normal damage, and the Magus takes no other action for a while. But unless he goes down quickly, he finishes casting his spell...

All allies take massive Dark-elemental damage. The Magus will continue preparing and casting Dark Matter until he falls, but he shouldn't last much longer.

The Magus in this battle is monster ID 249. He initially has 230 physical defense (reducing weapon damage by about 80% as compared to a typical opponent) and absorbs all elements, but has only normal magic defense even before the Grandleon strikes him. It's also interesting to note that he has 6,666 hit points.

The music fades out, and the flames go out one after another. The Magus drops to the ground, holding himself up with apparent difficulty.

Magus: Kh, how did you get so much
out of the Grandleon...?

The line is quite vague, being an incomplete sentence, but I think he's expressing shock that Frog has mastered the sword and its unusual powers so well.

The candelabra and demonic statue behind him ripple strangely...

Frog and Crono draw their swords, and even the Magus turns to look.

Magus: Not good!
Being awakened from its sleep now...

Marle: Sleep?
You brought it forth, right!?

Lucca: Sleep!?
Didn't you make it!?

Robo: Sleep?
According to the records, Lavos
WAS born right at this time...

Magus: You fools!
I've done nothing more than summon it!
It has existed deep underground since
ancient times, and continues to mature at
leisure as it absorbs this earth's energy!

Lucca: Then that means it wasn't
born in this era...

Robo: Then that means the records
of MY era are NOT factual...

But wasn't it in Medina in the Modern Age that they heard the claims about the Magus creating Lavos? I can't recall there being any information about Lavos in the Future, other than the video clip of the apocalypse, much less anything about its origins.

"Lavos's Theme" beigns to play.

Lucca: A G-Gate!?
And how enormous...!

Robo: This can NOT be!
A Gate reaction OF unthinkable size!

Magus: Damn you! If only you
vermin hadn't appeared...!

Hey, if they hadn't appeared, there's a good chance what you're attempting would have gotten you killed, so think about showing a bit more forbearance.

The internal storyline progression tracking variable is now 0x8A.

While making weird Gate-like noises, the room distorts more and more, and something Gate-like, but not exactly a Gate, opens in the middle of the room. Everyone is sucked in. It shuts, with a hideous Lavos scream. The scene fades out...

Well, that was basically a bust. After the game sets this up to look like the final confrontation at the end of a what feels like an endgame dungeon, the realization that it's far from over may come as something of a shock. Which seems to be the idea. Heck, his title is basically the generic term for the Big Bad in a swords and sorcery story. There's even a narrative archetype that dictates only the chosen Hero—that would be Frog here—can defeat the 魔王 and restore peace to the world. Chrono Trigger obviously plays with the concept, pretending to follow the trope only to subvert it when victory seems to be at hand.

Incidentally, beating the Magus in A.D. 600 affects Medina in A.D. 1000, but not by much. Basically, they no longer refer to the Magus—or Lavos—at all, instead heaping all their praises, with some reluctance, on Vinnegar, who apparently found a way to steal the glory for himself. Everything else is still the same, though. On another side note, the distortion apparently either destroys or otherwise displaces Magus Castle, because there's no trace of it after this event.

Furthermore, though she doesn't say anything about it, the whole thing has apparently given Marle food for thought. As of defeating the Magus, she will no longer rush out the door if you bring her to (Modern Age) Guardia Castle, and her visit will even make the guards stop chasing the others off.

The sound of a bell is heard.

: Crono...
Crono!
Hey, Crono!

Although the Japanese is identical to the first lines of the game, the English version came out a bit differently.

Fade in to reveal Crono's bedroom. Marle stands next to the bed, where Crono is sleeping, and the cat lies on the floor. "Morning Sunlight" plays.

Marle: How long are you sleeping?
You'll be late for your job.

Marle walks over to the window and opens the curtains. Crono squirms in bed.

Marle: Ahh, Leene's Bell is
singing so pleasantly.

Marle: I'd forgotten how beautiful
Leene's Bell could sound!

Marle: Crono!
We can't just keep depending
on my father for support, so get
to work like you're supposed to!

Marle: Crono!
We can't keep sponging off my dad!
Go out and get a job!

Marle walks away from the bed. Someone keeps talking, but it doesn't seem to be Marle anymore...

: Cro!!
Cro! Cro!
Cro! Cro!
Cro! Cro!
Cro! CRO!!

The scene fades out, and hopefully you've figured out by that Crono is actually in...

...Ayla's hut, along with Frog and the third character. She's as hyperactive as ever. Crono gets up first, followed by the third character.

Robo: Miss Ayla.
Which means this IS...

Frog gets up slowly.

Ayla: Ayla wanted meet.
Went Mystery Mountain.
Yous were falled down.
Ayla carried everyone
herself, brought to tent.

Frog wakes up a bit more and jumps, waving his sword around.

Ayla: This frog huge.
Present? Can Ayla eat?

Frog: Wh-why you!
More importantly, that pale-faced
caped lowlife wasn't there!?

Ayla: No, just yous.
That one tastier than you?

Frog calms down a bit and puts his sword away.

Marle: But if the Magus didn't
bring forth Lavos...
Just how long has Lavos...?

Lucca: Come to think of it, the Magus
was saying Lavos has existed
since ancient times long ago...

Robo: The records that say the Magus
produced Lavos WERE mistaken.
Then, when MIGHT the actual time
of Lavos's birth BE?

Ayla: Lavos?
Forget that, get good rest.
Yous full of wounds.

Ayla walks out of the tent, and everyone goes to sleep. When they wake up later, Kino walks in.

Kino: Healthy, Cros?
Ayla hard time now.
Searching Laruba Village.
Join strength with Laruba Village,
have final battle with Dinomen!
If not destroy Dinomen, Kinos
destroyed.

A generic villager rushes in.

Kino: What wrong!? Cros resting.
Make quiet!

Kino: What happen!   Villager: Somebody set up us the bomb!   ...okay, that makes two "all your base" references too many...

メラ (MERA) presumably comes from the めらめら (meramera) that indicates a furious spreading blaze.

Kino jumps at the news and rushes out. Better follow him... Incidentally, Frog is no longer required to be in the active party.

Clearing the game at this point leads to the alternate ending "Dino Age".

The internal storyline progression tracking variable is now 0x8D, starting the next chapter.

Without time travel, the Grandleon could not have been repaired, since neither the necessary materials nor anyone with the skill to repair it exist in the Middle Ages. Without the Grandleon—and magic to back it up—it's unlikely that Frog, or anyone else for that matter, could have successfully fought the Magus. As noted above, his defeat has had a minor impact on modern-day Medina... but nothing else has been affected. Guardia won the war regardless, and since nothing further into the future has changed, it seems that whatever the Magus was trying to do wouldn't have succeeded anyway, and in all likelihood would have resulted in his death. Though beating him may have felt like a great victory, its actual impact on history was negligible.