Careful... the monsters will actually put up a fight now, and Celes remains alone. I'd suggest using a Ribbon and fighting with caution, just in case. Offensive and healing magic plus Aspir as needed will go a long way toward making things easier.

Superficially, Alburg doesn't look much different, except for the absence of any Imperial presence, but the mood has changed. Regardless, the townspeople are full of information on the current state of affairs.

The irony is that the emperor is too dead to appreciate the effort, not that he hated it. The rich man's name, meanwhile, may relate to "aurum", Latin for gold.

Well, at least civilization survived, more or less. Remember those monsters and the portrait for later. That's not all, though...

Celes does not look just like this man (obviously!). She has a similar light of hope in her eyes, and matches the description of someone he was searching for.

Translation errors aside, maybe we should head for Tzen and look for this monk.

The weird junk tower looms along the way here, but there's no way in at ground level, leaving no choice but to continue on.

Tzen looks much the same as ever, too... at least until trying to enter. A bright light and loud noises send the townspeople into a panic, "The Unforgiven" plays, and one of the houses takes heavy damage. And who's that holding up the frame?

Note that this trip is optional, but it makes sense to do it now. Celes's lines are replaced with similar generic versions if you come later without her.

Cue a six-minute timer. Move quickly, and be careful of the monsters that are inexplicably inside the house (maybe the Light of Judgment is actually a monster-spawning ray?). As one of the locals mentions, some can cause 'petrified', so wear a Jewel Ring or Ribbon. Scorpions resist magic and should be dealt with physically (a Black Belt helps), while everything else burns to death quite nicely. In addition to the child...

...look around to find a Blood Sword, Heal Rod, Holy Rod, Hyper Wrist, and Ether. Two chests contain monsters instead, but a quick Fira will kill them dead and then some. Fire might even do the trick, depending on level and magic power.

Escape with the child.

Mash lets the house collapse. The music fades out.

He laughs.

"Edgar & Sabin" plays.

Mash joins the party. But where now? The townspeople supply some ideas.

Let's go here first. Though... water covers half the village, and little more remains of the other half than ruins.

This visit is optional, much like the trip to Tzen to recruit Mash, but hopefully you did that if you're coming here now. Celes will have difficulty handling this on her own without planning, luck, and maybe some extra levels. Come back later if you're not ready.

Also, remember the free bed in the back of the accessory shop? It's still there, and it still works.

Barking dogs and an easily-frightened child greet intruders.

A cave system under one of the buildings has been converted into functional housing. "The Day After" plays here. An overzealous child guards the entrance.

She looks uncomfortable, then retreats into an inner room.

The music fades as she stares at the ground and continues.

Sepia-tinted flashback scene. Two adults, three kids, and a dog run around outside.

The adults push the children out of the way as the ground breaks apart, but fall in themselves.

End flashback. "Awakening" fades in.

Dean barges into the room.

Catalina follows, and he retreats.

Dean and Catalina, the young lovers, are now 17 and the oldest ones here other than Tina, who at 19 is barely more of an adult than they are.

The music fades. It's good that she's safe, but it doesn't look like she'll be rejoining any time soon. Shortly after the others leave, though, a boy rushes into the room where Tina and Catalina are.

"The Unforgiven" plays for dramatic effect. Outside, heavy footfalls shake the screen. Tina rushes outside to confront the monster...

...unfortunately, nothing she does affects Humbaba. The others rush back to find her flat on the ground.

Well, Vanish/Doom technically wins it, but the plot continues the same way regardless.

This leaves whoever traveled here to face Humbaba. Expect lots of Thunder attacks plus some powerful physical strikes, and take advantage of his weakness to Poison for best results. Magicseal Sword may help, but it won't stop everything, including Solar Plexus (triple attack damage) and Thousand Needles (1000 undefendable damage).

Bio from Celes and a Dark (Poison) Claw or two on Sabin work nicely. Humbaba has surprisingly low physical defense for something with such a beefy appearance. Keep your health up and attack when it's safe to, and he'll flee after taking 7,520 damage. Humbaba has no meaningful status vulnerabilities.

With Humbaba driven off, everyone goes back inside. Tina rests in a bed with several kids watching her anxiously. No music.

The music fades back in. On the way out, one of the children delivers spoils of your victory.

By the way...

That sucks, though it's not terribly surprising. However, there's nothing else to do here for now.