But I Refuse—NOT!

...

"If you truly seek the truth, Mister Marco, then this is the only path I can show you. This... is the only road to reach the Grand Altar...

By becoming... an ascendant."

"...is it... really something that I must do to reach there?" Marco asked in a careful tone.

The chief lets out a long heavy breath, seemingly disappointed in the explorer's words.

"Do you still doubt the truth I've given to you?" the chief asked, slightly irritated. "Rise into ascendancy, and you shall discover the truth. That is the way to reach your ultimate goal!"

Silence befalls between the two for a few seconds. The chief relaxes his voice and continues again.

"It is the only possible option, young one," he stated slowly. "Once you have become an ascendant, only then I will send you there. To the Gate of Coronia,"

The chief pauses briefly to take a breather. He looks upwards towards where the relic is stored. "To be honest, though... I envy those who I had sent. They could see the gate itself. Meanwhile, I will probably never see it, only to know its tales."

"If that's the case, then why not go there yourself? You said you have the power to send people there, right?"

The chief shakes his head. "No, young one, it is not as simple as that. My people—the people of Yugos, is fated to become eternal defenders of the relic. Once a newborn child comes into this village, then that child will serve their entire life preserving this holy sanctuary. There's no changing to that."

"No way..."

"Hm-hmm... it is already something within our hearts and souls, young one. Perhaps you won't understand it. We would never become an ascendant, because we are their senders. We do not matter this staying this way, for this is the only way we can say our thanks to those who have given us land to live on."

"...An eternal payback, huh...?"

The chief only nods slightly. "I suppose you won't need to hear more of that. Now, then...

...If you wish to go to the Gate of Coronia, then become an ascendant. There's no other way I know than becoming one. Do you not wish to ascend, Mr. Marco? Become an ascendant! I will be more than glad to help you!" said the chief while reaching his hand out to Marco.

Marco thinks about it again. "By becoming an ascendant, I will finally be able to go to where I longed! The gate has opened widely, as if welcoming me to go through it! The path to the Grand Altar is no longer invisible to my eyes. I can just... walk through it and then my journey will be over with. Dad will surely be happy and could finally rest in peace! Dad will finally... dad will..."

Marco realizes something as he remembered his father's face.

"...is this truly how I wanted it to be? Is this... how dad wanted me to become?"

...No. This is not how it should be!

Hundreds of lives were gone in an impossible mission to find that gate. Even my parents... could not find it, as if a huge barrier blocking their path.

There's something not right. Get ahold of yourself, Marco! Dad's gone because of a huge dragon that got him. Not only that, in dad's notebooks back in Areda, not even once I found the word 'ascendant'. Perhaps it is because he had never visited this place... but still...

I don't want it to be like this. My goal was not only to find my way to that gate. There's something bothering me in my heart."

Marco remembers the terrifying dream he experienced several times. He then realizes what is it he truly wanted to do.

"...I still want to find that dragon. I still want to find it, that creature which killed dad and mom. I want to go to that dungeon again and retrace their steps."

Marco stares at his rough palms. He clenches them hardly afterwards, "Unbelievable... I still wish to avenge them...!"

"...I am an explorer. What an explorer does is that they discover something that they do not know. Go to strange places that none have ever visited, discover its history, and find out what can be found in it. Most importantly... we achieve all of those with our own hands! It is not something given by anyone!

It is the same as well when I want to find the Grand Altar! Even though I know it is impossible, I want to reach it with my own hands! It is the only way I can feel joy from what I've did. I will go there with my own way, together with my friends!

Alright, then, I've decided about it!"

After thinking it thoroughly, Marco gives his final answer. "Okay, then, old man. I might not be the best guy out there, but I will try."

The chief smiles widely, he feels thrilled by the explorer's words. "I see..."

"Very well, then. You have given your answer. Now, please follow me."

On the staircase they go, Marco thought of something.

"Though I said to myself I don't want it to be like this, I don't think it'll be a good idea to say 'NO' to him. He had given me access all the way down here, even telling me strange tales that I can hardly understand. I doubt he will let me go if I ever said 'NO' to his offer. For now, I will play along. I also wonder about it...

Did this guy know something about that huge dragon which killed dad...?"

Without long, they have arrived before the altar, the place where the Ruby Key is stored. Marco can feel an ominous and mystical aura just from looking at it. Marco notices manaskert symbols on the floor that surrounds the altar. His nape hair rises as he grows more uneasy.

The chief walks past them and finally stands before the altar. The orb on his cane turned red and glows much more intense than before.

"Mister Marco..."

"Yes?"

"Before us now... is the Fourth Relic—the Ruby Key."

The chief tells Marco to come to his side. Once he's beside him, Marco discovers an item of wonder.

It is not just any ordinary key. It is about the size of an adult's palm. It has sharp edges and filled with manaskerts that indicate its nature of an ancient object. It's entirely made of ruby stone, shining warmly inside the dim sanctuary. The same triangle symbol is etched on both sides. Curious, Marco secretly uses his mana sensing ability...

...Only to be welcomed by an extreme shock that stunned his brain into remembering his past.

He saw vague images of him being carried by his father. He saw more images, but they were unclear as they are merging with bizarre storm of... redness. He remembered the voices... but he can only hear them inaudibly. He heard multiple screams, but only to be cut off with another voice. Finally, he saw two big glowing eyes, staring him eerily. He witnessed a snout, a gigantic dragon's snout. Steam comes out from its large nostrils as if threatening to blow out flames from it.

Lastly, a thunder struck him. And that's it. He returns back to present. He didn't notice that he was being called over and over. His body was shaken again and again by the chief as he noticed that the young explorer did not move as if frozen.

"Marco! Mister Marco! Snap out of it!"

Shortly, Marco returns back to his senses. "Huh—w-wha...?! O-Oh... s-sorry, I... oh, dang it, this is embarrassing..."

He wipes his mouth cleanly. His saliva was falling out of his mouth like droplets of leaking ceiling.

"Are you alright?" the chief asked anxiously. "Are you feeling unwell?"

"Uhm... no worries! I'm okay. I was just... immersed by its glow, somehow, hehe..."

"It appears the relic's influence is flowing to you."

"Uh-huhuhuh..."

In Marco's mind, a thought flies by, "What the hell was that? I suddenly remembered 'that day' again. The feeling when I sense it... it's giving me the same vibes when I saw that dragon in my dream..."

He examines his arms, "Strangely, I don't feel any post-pain or something like that. I don't even... feel any fear from witnessing that imagery. What the hell was that? Did the key react to my past? Whatever it is... I must be cautious. The key might have a connection to that giant dragon..."

"Mister Marco. Shall we continue?"

"Uh, wha? Umm, yeah, sure, I'm all good."

"Very well, then, I will explain to you the meaning behind the scroll that I've read for you."

And with that, Marco spends the whole day with the chief beneath the village, in an underground sanctuary, sacred to one of the four relics. There, Marco learns all about them.

...

..

.

Meanwhile...

In the dark zone, where the demon generals live, a long chaotic evil laugh is heard from Dantalion's castle.

"HAA—HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!"

Over and over, his minions hear him laugh erratically for three days straight. His mental is chaos itself, now boosted further after learning the death of Toma Zil, the shadow demon general. His crazy laugh inflicted unbelievable aura of darkness that causes the dark zone to roam with lethal dark energy.

Next to Dantalion's castle, stands the castle that was once belonged to the shadow demon. Now, it belongs to Belphegor, a demon general that has the title of 'true demon'. Dantalion shares that title as well.

Those who were once loyal to Toma Zil now stand loyally serving a new master. All of Toma Zil's belongings were driven out of his palace and replaced with Belphegor's and Dantalion's.

In that castle, a meeting is held among the remaining living demon generals.

Belphegor, the true demon general,

Krul Dima, the vampire demon general.

There's also another demon, but only serving as company to those two. He is a golem demon, Furiosa Bathory.

"Dantalion went far this time, didn't he?" the vampire asked.

"Indeed, Lady Krul. His endless laugh made me unable to sleep these past three days. What a nightmare..."

"All you think is just sleeping, eh..."

Krul Dima, a vampire queen that ascended into the ranks of demon general. She is slightly shorter than average adult female. She wears an overall black gothic dress with a black hairband with dark purple stripes and a blue lustrous topaz stone decorating her long braided hair. Her skin is ghostly white, with her eyes appearing red blood.

"That kid's death is to be expected. And Dantalion made it happen sooner than we thought. He executed him in a brutal way."

On the round table, there's an orb that gives picture of how Toma Zil was killed.

"Just look at it, Bel. Toma Zil was defeated by a mere child? Preposterous! And look how those two swordsmen landed a blow on him numerous times. How that swordsman causes a holy magic effect to him. Such cruelty he felt."

She squint her eyes and gave an evil look, "It is exactly how a traitor must pay. Moreover, a demon general that could not fight off a dragonian and a human does not deserve to be called as one. What a shame. Good thing he's gone."

As the orb's light goes off, she lays down on the table.

"Ooohhh... if only he did not have any idea of betraying us, he might be still here and share his grand ideas to us. But a traitor is a traitor. Don't you think so, Bel?"

"Well... yaaawwn... it is unbelievable that we lost someone as resourceful as Toma. But he betrayed us. It is his fate to be ended that way."

"Dantalion... his special ability really can turn the tide to his likings. No wonder he is known as a 'puppeteer'," said Krul while playing with her index finger on the table.

Belphegor then stands up from his seat, "Huh... well, then... I wish to get more sleep before I go."

As Belphegor walks away from the meeting room, Krul grunts in silence.

"...Even you fell to his strings, Bel... Furiosa!" she called the golem demon.

"Yes, Lady Krul?"

"Quickly become a demon general. I hate it to be along with those two. You'd make a better accompany to me."

"I will do my best."

"...Now then... what are you going to do next, hm...?" Krul activated the orb again to watch over the recovered village. She noticed a flow of magical energy coming from the ground.

"So many magical activities... I wonder just what is it that Danty tries to find in that village... hm?"

Krul noticed some strange people, blending in with the villagers. "They're...?"