Lake

... hey Kris, watch this.
Lake... skip!
... I can hear you trying not to laugh, dumbass.
Fine. We'll see how far YOU get at the lake next time.

Susie, Chapter 4

The lake (JP: みずうみ) in Hometown is found far eastward, past Flower King. Two green metal picnic tables can be found nearby the lake. At the end of the path is the beach, with a circular brown patch that Kris can idle on.

Main story

Chapter 1

In Chapter 1's epilogue, the Royal Guards are talking at the lakeside near the picnic tables. Kris can also choose to stick their fingers in the holes of a table, but only once. Onion can be spoken to if Kris idles on the brown patch near the lake, with this choice transferring to Chapter 2 via Completion FILE.

Chapter 2

In Chapter 2's epilogue, Onion can be found if Kris became friends with them. Otherwise, Clam Guy can be found standing nearby. Clam Guy recalls waiting at the "weird circle" yesterday, and that the "thing" may not come back. Afterwards, idling around the lakeside causes Kris and Susie to sit and watch the view.

Chapter 4

In Chapter 4, interacting with the picnic tables during the first two roam sections causes Susie to humorously rhyme about a french fry on the ground under them.

If spoken to during previous Chapters, idling at the brown patch causes Susie to comment "looks like your weird friend is busy today". After leaving the area and coming back, the Normal NPC can be found standing on the brown spot, cryptically telling Kris, "don't wait", and "wait, don't". They can also be found here later while raining if not spoken to earlier.

Alternatively, if Onion was not spoken or Kris was impolite to Onion, idling instead causes Susie to try to skip a rock along the lakewater, which causes Kris to suppress a laugh. Standing on the brown spot at night causes Kris and Susie to once again sit and watch the view; this time, after waiting long enough, Susie notes that someone is playing a song on the other side of the lake. Waiting longer causes Susie to ask Kris what's on their mind, Kris responds with their mouth closed, confusing Susie.

Chapter 5

After Kris, Susie, and Noelle are done with the Festival, they decide to spend some time at the lake (beach). Kris falls asleep almost immediately, and Noelle and Susie decide to talk. When Noelle has to take a call from Carol, Susie tells Noelle that she cannot have a bad excuse if her phone was missing, and throws her phone. After checking to see if Noelle's phone is okay, Susie gives it to her and decides to step into the water. Eventually, the two confess their love for each other. Susie leaves to get more ice cream, Carol calls Noelle to inform her that Rudy "fell down", and Noelle leaves. Susie, upon returning and finding Noelle absent, decides to take Kris and leave.

Weird Route

Main article: Weird Route/Chapter 5

If the Weird Route was pursued into Chapter 5, Kris goes to talk with Noelle at the lake after attempting to get ice cream with Susie. Noelle monologues about her life after Dess's disappearance and her feelings of frustration at "just marching down (her) path" before exclaiming that Kris has "changed" and "figured out how to stop being Kris". She expresses her desire to do "something crazy", before deciding on going to the other side of the lake. Noelle requests that Kris tells her to proceed, and the player is given an option to either 'Proceed' or 'Stop', although both options eventually become the former.

Regardless of which option is selected, Noelle begins to drag Kris into the lake until they are both fully submerged, whereupon she frantically requests that Kris continues to tell her to proceed. If the player continuously and rapidly selects 'Proceed' the screen fades to white and then cuts to a computer screen-like interface, which displays the words "Insert Chapter 7 Side B", before cutting again to the game's intro screen. This does not create a regular Completion FILE, instead one with "_b" appended. The game does not recognize this file in the Chapter Select screen.

If the player does not select "Proceed" fast enough, then the cutscene in the normal route with Susie and Noelle at the lake will play, but with Noelle cutting in to realize that "Nothing changed." After being called about Rudy's fall, the cutscene resumes with Susie coming back with ice cream. It takes Kris longer to get up and leave the lake, collapsing a couple times and needing Susie's help to move at first.

Geography

The accesible part of the lake consists of a path leading to the east from Flower King. Two green tables can be seen on the south side of the path. The lake itself features a smooth western edge, extending off the edges of the screen. At the northernmost and southernmost parts of the edge of the lake, piles of leaves can be seen. It is unknown how far the lake goes, but there is implied to be a far shore.

Outside of Deltarune

Main article: Thank you survey § Round 3

In the third round of the Thank you survey, "The Lake" was the correct answer to the question "Where will it take place?".

Participants who submitted "The Lake" or a similar answer, such as "The Shore", received the following response featuring a screenshot of Kris facing away from the lake, teasing the Chapter 5 Weird Route:

"Ding ding ding!

This is it.

You only need to see her once.

And you'll move on."