...
"They're...?"
In the orb, Krul sees some people acting differently. Beforehand, she saw villagers cooperating in distributing food to the sick and old ones first before finally the rest of them. But midway in their progress, she notices four people talking to each other. One of them points their finger to a certain point in the village as if he gave an order.
"Ho-ho... now isn't this interesting... I might want to hear what they're saying. Let's fly closer to them, li'l raven," said Krul commanding through her shiny orb.
The orb was connected to a shadow raven. That bird serves as a surveillance tool for the demon generals to check on suspicious movements. And now, Krul commands the raven to fly closer to those people.
"If they are going to mess up the village, I would like to watch how they perform, hee-hee..."
Those four people gathered beneath a tree, right below where the shadow raven landed.
"How lucky~ I get to hear and see them up close..." Krul grinned.
She listens through their conversation via the raven:
"Everything is in perfect order, Sir."
"Yes, everything is in perfect order."
"There's no problem at all, apparently... Hey, um... can we get changed now? I really don't like this tight clothing..."
But the fourth person...
The one who seemingly gave commands to the other three. As he spoke, his voice was completely unheard by Krul's raven.
Sometime later, the fourth guy pats the third person. Yet his voice is still unheard.
This anomaly confuses Krul.
"Huh, how strange... li'l raven would never miss a single voice. I can even hear noises from afar, then why I could not hear this guy's voice?"
The vampire demon cringed. It's the first time the demon generals' surveillance tool had errors.
Shortly, Krul hears the three people affirming that fourth guy.
"Understood, sir," said the first person flatly.
"Understood, sir!" said the second person with slightly more spirit in his tone.
"...humph... ookay... just—just make it quick, please?" said the third person with a strangely hoarsened echoing tone.
After that, they disbanded and the three people left the fourth guy on his own. Their movements add up to both Krul's confusion and curiosity.
"They've left. What are they up to, hmm...? Wait a second, only three of them left off. Where's that one weirdo?" Krul wondered.
Krul immediately moves the head of the raven to search for the fourth guy, only to find him already staring intensely at the shadow bird's eyes. Krul's pupils shrunk immediately upon realizing it.
"E-Eh, w-what the—"
In the next second, the orb shatters like glass being crushed into the floor hardly. Her watch upon that 'strange' person instantly gets destroyed.
"Huh?! Wh-What the—!" Krul got shocked. She nearly fell of her chair as a result.
"...!"
Furiosa witnesses it along with the vampire demon general herself. Their surveillance tool has exploded to tiny bits. The orb leaks out mists of dark energy, implying that the raven is also 'destroyed'.
"That guy... that fool dares to tear down li'l raven! Next time I see him I will suck him off his blood completely, and eat him alive!"
"But Lady Krul... was it even possible for someone to destroy shadow ravens?"
"Obviously no, shadow ravens are practically invulnerable, which means the raven cannot be pulverized by anything no matter what! But that sonovabloodyarse actually reversed the rules and annihilated it just by... staring it?! How annoying...! Grrrr....!!!"
"..."
...
..
.
Marco has listened to the Yugos Village chieftain regarding the four relics that was written in the scroll.
"As far as I can understand from his explanation, I can conclude that even becoming an ascendant is not an easy way to go.
The chieftain told me that the Gate of Coronia is impossible to be destroyed. It was made of materials that probably only exists in ancient times. The gate itself needs four necessary items to unlock. And those four items were known as the four relics, which are scattered throughout the world. Well, world of Gaia, that is.
Based on the scroll, these four relics each represent one of four of the most important elements of magic.
The first one written 'brimming stone'. The chief said that the stone refers to the Sage Quartz, which was located, somewhere where the masters of holy element spends their life to protect it.
The second one is a bit vague, only saying about the Dark Prelate that will pinpoint the next approach. Based on those words, I can only think of one thing if you wish to go somewhere without getting lost track: a compass. And heck, I was right. The chief told me that the second relic is supposedly known as the Dark Compass.
Although... when I asked about the Dark Prelate, the chief resisted from answering. He immediately moved onto the next one.
The third one is way vaguer: when I find myself in the world where foul and holy winds come together? I really have no idea where it is. Even the Sanctuary Master—or the chief, that is, don't know either. He only spoke of something that has the same attribute. And that is the Aeoruth Sigil.
The fourth one is uh... well, I am in the fourth sanctuary right now. Based on what I heard, once we get the blessing from three previous relics, then the path to Yugos Village will be revealed automatically. I don't know for sure how that's supposed to be done, but the proof is that some people did actually do that.
Since I am in the fourth sanctuary already, that means I am indirectly cheating and already know what the Ruby Key looks like. But the key did not give me any of these 'blessings'. Hell, I don't even know what are those 'blessings' anyway.
Because I might need to understand things slowly, the chief takes his time to translate the scroll and writes them on a piece of paper. He then uses magic to etch the letters into a stone tablet and gave it to me. And not only that, he also gives me a fancy amulet with a shining ruby stone.
...Little did the chief know, I was not intending to become an ascendant..."
...
Without even felt, the night soon falls....
Marco returns from the underground sanctuary, which he gladly finds out that there IS a warp station. He and the chief leave the sacred site and reappears right in front of the chief's house.
"I await your results, Mr. Marco. Good luck out there."
"Thanks! I will do my best! (Well, kind of...) Well, then, I will be going now. See you tomorrow, old man!"
The village chieftain simply waves his hand slightly and gives a smile.
"Young spirits sure are powerful... best of luck to you, Mr. Marco."
On the way, Marco is actually surprised to see the day has gotten off and it's already night. He rushes off to where Nina and the others are to assure them that he's okay. But unexpectedly, he bumps into two identical men.
"—ARGH!"
"YOW."
"YOW!"
"Oooohh... my head hurts... AH! I'm so sorry, I didn't mean it, I swear..."
"It's okay. I am strong."
"It's okay, he is strong. I am also strong."
Both of them wear the same shirt and same pants. Even they share the same bandana.
"What are you doing in this time of night?"
"Yes, yes, what are you doing in this time of night?"
Both of them even spoke in the same tone.
Marco retaliates their question with his own share of question, "Well, what are YOU two doing at this time of night?"
Those two men spoke one after another.
"We're patrols."
"Yeah, we're patrols."
"It is our shift to patrol around this quiet village."
"Yes, yes, it is our shift to patrol around this quiet village. Tell us what you are doing as of now?"
"(They're patrols, huh... what a strange robe these two are wearing. Maybe some Yugos fellows do love to dress up funnily) Umm... I was just finished having a dinner with chief!" Marco tried to reason his way out.
"Dinner, huh?"
"Dinner, eh?"
"That's right. I was just about to go home. (What the hell's with these two?) If you please, I really, REALLY need to go now. My friend's gonna be angry if I don't come back soon! Bye!"
As Marco went away, the two identical men retained staring at the young explorer. They mumble about something, though.
"Yaiba,"
"What is it, Tate?"
"Isn't that guy...?"
"Yeah, figures so. He must be an Istinggar."
"Shall we go then?"
"We go now, then. Shall we?"
"Yes, let us go."
"Hum-hum..."
And with that, those two walks together in an opposite direction from Marco's.
...
..
.
Upon reaching the house where Nina and the rest are, Marco is a bit reluctant to open the door. He knows he's way past the late hour. But even so, he must not make anyone worry for his wellness.
He takes a deep breath and let it out relaxedly. After that, he grabs the door handle and pushes the door open.
"I'm home—"
He expects Nina to be waiting in front of the door with her so-called 'sincere' smile. But unexpectedly, a tall man is there waiting for him.
"—Where have you been?" Scias asked with his arms crossed. His gesture implied that he's unhappy with his late unreported return, but his flat and composed expression denied such implications.
At first, Marco's nape hair was rising. He's trembling as if he was about to enter the world's scariest haunted house. But when seeing Scias was the one behind the door, he felt relaxed.
"Phew... glad it's you, Scias," said Marco. He rubbed his chest in relief.
Scias got perplexed by Marco's relieved reactions. "What are you talking about? Of course, it's me. Nina and Aily have been flat on their beds. Didn't I told you that I'm going to stand guard for the night?" he asked calmly.
"Nope. No, no you didn't say anything about that," Marco denied offhandedly.
"I didn't?" Scias looked up. "Well, it doesn't matter. Now, then, where have you been, Marco? It's been a while since you're gone. I heard you're with the chief, but when I visited his house, he's not there and so didn't you."
"Ah... it's kind of hard to explain."
"Huh, all this time together with you, whenever you're explaining things, I sometimes thought you're speaking nonsense. But at some point, later, I will eventually find out that your words do make sense. The same can be said for now. If it's hard to explain, then it should've been some more senseless things that I will eventually understand later. Go ahead and explain it to me, maybe I'm going to be able to understand... though not instantly and thoroughly."
"Argh, fine. But first, let me get a hot chocolate for both of us before we start."
"H-Huh..."
It's past midnight.
Marco and Scias are having a conversation in the living room with hot chocolates on the wooden table and sat near the furnace. Marco explained about where he went and what was he doing then.
In a low voice, Scias replies, "...I see. Now, it makes sense that the Demon General targeted this village. But quite a surprise that the Dragonians are not simply about saving this village, but also aiming to get to that sacred treasure, too."
"Yeah. This village still holds mysteries that I don't really understand."
"Even I don't understand, Marco. Lord Faitio, the Ascendants, the Gate of Coronia? All of those felt like some sort of religious cult or something," Scias stated. He took a sip of his drink.
"Yeah... But you know, it's unexpected that they know about the Grand Altar, Scias."
"Indeed. It is as if we've found a shortcut to our destination. But, if by becoming an Ascendant will ease things off for us, then I believe that your life as an explorer will end. If this Ascendants are a religious cult, then your movement will surely be limited. You're not someone that wanted to be chained by others. Becoming an Ascendant doesn't suit you."
"That's what I thought of, too. Sigh..." Marco let out a long sigh. "I do not want to become an ascendant, but on the other side, by becoming one will make it easier for me to go to the Grand Altar."
"Hmph, better think about it thoroughly. But, as a friend who has known you for quite some time, I'd say you better not join them. It contradicts your way of living your life."
"Yeah... I'll think about it, mate," Marco stated. He took a sip of his hot chocolate.
"By the way... I'm wondering about it. You're telling me all this information... they're not somehow, you know, some top-secret stuffs, right?" Scias asked. He took another sip of his drink.
Marco put down his glass on the table and casually answers, "It's a secret indeed!"
"—UHUCK!" Scias coughed out his drink as he heard Marco.
"Geez, Scias... don't waste your drink like that," Marco joked.
"What did you just say? It's actually a secret?" Scias asked while wiping his mouth with his arm.
"Yeah, it is. Why?" Marco offhandedly stated. He looks unguilted nor do he look trembling for saying something so important and secret.
"Seriously...?"
Deep in Scias' mind, he realizes that he might be in danger for knowing such information. And yet... Marco did not realize it.
...
==Imagined RPG-ed Character File==|
Name : Mothrui
Race : Heteromorphic Insect
Occupation : Demon General
HP : 3800/3800
MP : 2000/2000
SP : 990/990
ATK : 90
DEF : 70
M. ATK : 125
M. DEF : 40
Specialty : Demon Aspect of Entomancy, Summon
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Hi there, NAF12 here.
I'm happy and thankful that I've reached 100K views. Thank you for reading my work so far, I really appreciate it.
Further chapter updates will be uploaded on another novel with the same title. There might be minor fixes and updates to this novel on that one, but on the big scale, it didn't change the story at all.
Here's the link: https://www.webnovel.com/book/dragonia_21069005706339405
Once again, thank you all for stopping by my work. It's been a pleasure writing this story.