Eyeball Relic 2: Holy Cemetery
Next, travel to the Pillaged Tombs in the Holy Cemetery. Look for yet another breakable floor and drop down into the hidden area below.
Don’t rush; this segment entails platforming challenges before you can reach the second relic. It’s easy to miss your chance, so be observant!
Eyeball Relic 3: Catacombs Finally, the third relic is located in the western section of the Catacombs, reachable via the Realm of Old Night. After breaking through the floor, press onward until you encounter a grotesque door named The Gate of Flesh. Here’s your pathway leading to the final relic.
To get the real ending in Castlevania: Belmont’s Curse, more is needed than simply getting to Dracula and beating him. All the Arcana cards must be collected, some optional places explored, some secret bosses fought, and a final series of challenges completed before returning to Dracula’s castle.
The possible outcomes are:
| Ending Type | Description |
|---|---|
| Bad ending | Reach Dracula without obtaining the Shadow Arcana from Notre-Dame Cathedral. |
| Normal ending | Obtain the Shadow Arcana, then defeat Dracula without completing the remaining Arcana and true-ending requirements. |
| True ending | Collect all Arcana, complete the four Virtue challenges in Notre-Dame Cathedral, defeat your shadow self, and use the Absolution spell during the final battle against Dracula. |
The first three Arcana cards you’ll find naturally during the main quest. However, obtaining the others will require some exploration, puzzle-solving, and engaging in boss battles. Follow the guide below to navigate your way smoothly through the game.
The first three cards are fairly straightforward to acquire, as they can be captured while progressing through the main story. Make sure to collect them before heading to Dracula’s castle.
- The Fallen Arcana
Location: Paris Streets
In the early-game fight on the Paris Streets, you need to defeat Leon. After you’ve taken him down, you will automatically receive The Fallen Arcana as part of the story progression.
The Warrior Arcana
Location: Paris Streets, Prison Tower
Next, make your way to the prison tower within the Paris Streets. After reaching the top, you’ll encounter Joan of Arc. Defeating her grants you The Warrior Arcana.
Getting this card also ties to the Holy Warrior’s Cross skill, which can help you during the virtue challenges later.
- The Prophetess Arcana
Location: Holy Innocents Catacombs
Your next objective is at the Holy Innocents Catacombs where you must defeat Medusa to obtain The Prophetess Arcana.
Once you’ve collected these three cards, you can proceed with the main narrative and head to Dracula’s castle, but be prepared for what’s to come.
Next up, you have to track down the Builder Arcana and obtain the Smash ability, two items crucial for future exploration.
Location: Clock Tower
Finding the Builder Arcana should be your next priority. This item grants you the Smash skill, allowing access to new paths and collectibles.
Head to the Clock Tower and navigate the east shaft until you reach an area with switches to activate. Here, a giant fist will come crashing down, breaking the floor and opening a path.
After using this new path, head towards Talos and defeat him to receive the Builder Arcana as well as the Smash ability. This skill is handy since it allows you to break certain floors to collect hidden items.
After you’ve got Smash, go back to the Grand Hall and check the portraits of Alucard; these paintings will guide you to find the Artist Arcana.
Finding your way through the portraits leads to a breakable statue you can destroy using Smash, granting you the Artist Arcana.
While there’s no boss here, acquiring this Arcana is crucial for accessing the hidden pathway in Notre-Dame Cathedral. Just remember, you’ll also need an extra ability and a key item before proceeding further.
Your next task is to defeat the Occultist to acquire the Paintbrush needed for the cathedral’s hidden path.
Location: Library
Enter the library and solve the puzzles involving the bouncing orbs. You need to figure out the combination of the shapes displayed on the orbs, which you can find hints for nearby.
Use the bouncing orbs to jump between platforms until you reach the Occultist boss again. Defeating him will yield:
- Aerial Rush – a greater mobility skill.
- Brauner’s Paintbrush – an essential item to unlock the hidden path in Notre-Dame Cathedral.
Now that you have the Artist Arcana, Paintbrush, and Masterpiece spell, you can advance through the cathedral’s secret progression.
Next, it’s crucial to locate the Shadow Arcana within Notre-Dame Cathedral. This item is vital to determining your ending possibilities against Dracula.
Utilizing the Paintbrush and the Artist’s Masterpiece spell, you can unlock a hidden room in the cathedral. Make your way to the massive organ in the basement.
For the organ puzzle, find environmental clues to determine the correct keys rather than guessing randomly. This will lead you to unlock a battle with Death, and defeating him grants you the Shadow Arcana.
Just a heads-up: Finding the Shadow Arcana doesn’t mean you’ve completed all the tasks for the true ending. It signifies that you won’t get the bad ending, but you’ll still need to hunt down the other Arcana and finish remaining objectives.
Once you have the Shadow, return to the Clock Tower and check the clock there for further progression.
Next, confront Isaac and claim the Zealot Arcana!
Location: Clock Tower
Next up is the quest for the Miser Arcana, which involves collecting three eyeball relics scattered throughout the world.
Location: Paris Streets, Holy Cemetery, and Catacombs The quest for the Miser Arcana begins once you get the Smash ability, and it can be a challenging task. Leveling up health, mana, and combat skills might help before diving into this section.
Eyeball Relic 1: Paris Streets
Head over to the Street of the Two Masons and look for a breakable floor leading beneath the city into an area resembling a hospital. Use the Smash ability to access it and navigate through the enemies until you find the first eyeball relic.
Head into the library and investigate the puzzles involving the bouncing orbs scattered throughout the area.
This involves finding the right combination of the patterns displayed on the orbs and clues you find near them. Solve this by creating a larger orb that lets you bounce Rose onto unreachable platforms.
Jump to other platforms using the bouncing ones in order to reach the boss fight with the Occultist.
Killing the Occultist will give you two items:
- Aerial Rush – a traversing skill that allows you more freedom when moving around.
- Brauner’s Paintbrush – a vital item for accessing the hidden path in Notre-Dame Cathedral.
Now that you have the Artist Arcana, the Paintbrush and the Artist’s Masterpiece spell, you can proceed with the hidden progression through the cathedral.
Step 5: Obtain the Shadow Arcana from Notre-Dame Cathedral
Location: Notre-Dame Cathedral, Basement
One of the most important cards within the game, the Arcana Shadow, is found within Notre-Dame Cathedral. This card helps you determine if you are capable of finding the true-ending route or getting the bad ending when facing Dracula for the first time.
Use the Paintbrush and the spell of Artist’s Masterpiece to enter the secret room in the cathedral. Afterward, try to go towards the large organ located in the basement.
The organ puzzle will require you to find clues in the surroundings and use the corresponding keys from the piano. Instead of trying to solve the puzzle using keys randomly, try to find out the solution from the environment.
This puzzle unlocks the way to Death, killing whom gives you the Shadow Arcana.
Important: Never think that finding Shadow means that you have completed all the requirements for finding the true-ending route. It only means that you cannot get the bad ending. You will also have to find the other Arcanas and complete other tasks mentioned below.
Now you can go back to the Clock Tower and examine the clock.
Step 6: Defeat Isaac and Obtain the Zealot Arcana
Location: Clock Tower
After acquiring Shadow, continue through the Clock Tower and confront Isaac.
Defeating him awards the Zealot Arcana. You can now proceed toward Dracula’s Master’s Quarters and experience the normal ending if you wish. You can fight Dracula now and continue exploring afterward, but you must still collect the six remaining optional Arcana and complete the final preparation steps.
Step 7: Find the Miser Arcana Using the Three Eyeball Relics
Location: Paris Streets, Holy Cemetery, and Catacombs
One of the more time-consuming collectibles is the Miser Arcana, as it needs the retrieval of three eyeballs that are located in different places.
This quest starts once you get Smash from Talos. Given the difficult arena fight that you need to do, you may want to level up Rose’s health, mana, and fighting skills first.
Eyeball Relic 1: Paris Streets
Travel to the Street of the Two Masons and look for a breakable floor leading into the hospital beneath the streets.
Use Smash to access the hidden route. Continue through the enemy gauntlet until you reach the first eyeball relic.
Eyeball Relic 2: Holy Cemetery
Head to the Pillaged Tombs in the Holy Cemetery. Search for another breakable floor and descend into the hidden area.
You’ll need to complete a platforming challenge before reaching the second relic. Explore carefully, as the route is easy to overlook if you stick to the obvious paths.
Eyeball Relic 3: Catacombs
The final relic is in the western section of the Catacombs, accessible through the Realm of Old Night.
Break through the floor to enter the area and continue until you find a grotesque door, The Gate of Flesh. This marks the route toward the final relic.
