Thank you so much for your comments and questions! It means so much to me, and I could go on and on with just how appreciative I am. But, first, let me answer those questions:
In short, the hidden trade quest will solve all those issues. Except your last point: the bottommost entry in the bestiary is, as you guessed, the final boss (I left it as a bestiary entry because at one point I was considering a NewGame+ mode, but opted out.)
So, that being said, there should be another NPC to find which will trade for the Ocarina of Hope. I'll give a few hints here if you'd like to search yourself, but I'll also just give the entire list for the trades at the bottom of this post, if you just want the answer.
Hint 1: No one who trades with you will trade again; they are all different NPC's.
Hint 2: No one who trades with you is in Kingston.
Hint 3: She has been walking in this place for years, but recently something has felt very off about it.
With that quest complete, the final reward will help with the golden treasure chest, the Abandoned Mines, and eventually your missing ingredients. If there's any more issues, please ask. Otherwise, I'd really appreciate it if you came back to let me know what you think of the rest of the content you unlock. I'm excited for you to see what's in the Abandoned Mines.
To your credit, that quest shouldn't be hidden. It's not a bug or anything, I just didn't make it explicit and give it a quest log like I should have. And now that I'm realizing how much I actually locked behind it, that was definitely the wrong call. Apologies.
I just want to thank you so much for playing and for posting. It just gives me so much validation that you started playing this game and it wasn't so bad that you stopped. I appreciate your comments so much. I was elated when I first saw your post. It was an extremely happy memory that I'll cherish.
And thank you for the feedback, too. While making it, and having that unique perspective to the game, there were things I considered more than others and your unbiased perspective is really appreciated. The last time I played it, I did it at 175% difficulty and the early game in particular was quite extreme. The "RNG madness" is something I could work on. I am a little curious exactly what you mean by that. I am assuming in the Enemy AI? That was something that I felt much less confident about compared to other aspects of the game.
Thanks again!
Hidden Trade Quest:
- Harp of Wishes: Guild Basement
- Lute of Dreams: Man in Dark Forest
- Ocarina of Hope: Woman in River Valley
- Flute of Prosperity: Old Woman in Dark Forest
- Drum of Influence: Old Timer in River Valley
- Horn of Divinity: Young Man in Dark Forest
- Key of Philosophy: Gerald in Guild Headquarters (outside; completion of "Lost Heirloom" side-quest required)