Adrien was silent for a minute or so.
During that period, he had a very important decision to make—whether or not to tell Rey about whatever he had going on with the Dragons.
Whichever option he chose had its own share of consequences, and it was up to him to decide what path to take regarding his reply. One thing was certain, though.
Silence wasn't an option.
"To go ho."
Upon hearing Adrien's words, Rey's intense gaze flickered for a mont. His eyes softened considerably, though it resud its hardened position in no ti at all.
"Ho…?"
"Yes." Adrien sighed, rubbing his face with his palm. "Hidden within the Dragon Empire is a way for us to return to Earth. A way for to go ho."
Rey couldn't believe his ears. He wanted to say Adrien was lying, but sothing within him told him that this was an unfiltered truth. As such, even though he parted his lips to speak, words refused to co out. He just stared.
"I need to gain their trust so that I can organically make it into the Dragon Empire. I have even been promised an introduction to a Lord. Once that happens, I'll be one step closer to the place—The Chamber Of Ancients."
"Chamber Of Ancients…?" Rey had never heard those words before, but sohow, they sounded familiar.
'Hold on… I think I once heard Adonis mutter sothing like that when I caught him training by himself one ti.'
He didn't think much of it then, and even now he wasn't even sure that was what he heard. Still, the na sounded oddly important.
'All of this could be a ruse, though. I don't think he's lying, and considering I can tell for the most part if that's the case, it'll be more illogical not to believe him.'
Besides, given what Ater told him, Rey didn't want to be too skeptical or antagonistic towards Adrien. He already promised his Familiar that he would listen to what Adrien had to say with a clear head.
'Let's try not to be too biased…' He told himself calmly as he continued taking in the information he received.
"From what I know about it, the place is a do-like structure that rests at a very problematic place in the Dragon Empire. I don't see myself surviving an attempt there if I don't have legitimate grounds to be as close to the place as possible. It has—"
"What problematic place?"
"The Empire's Capital. That's where it is situated."
"Ah… go on." Rey found himself slightly flustered once he heard that, not that it showed on him in the slightest.
'Chances are that the strongest forces that the Dragons have will be situated there. If I count the Dragon Emperor, it would be unwise to just challenge him by going to his turf.'
That brief encounter with The Oracle had shown him just how far he needed to go if he wanted to take on the Emperor with absolute confidence for victory.
At the mont, he didn't have that.
"The Chamber Of Ancients has the sa kind of Magic, or should I say a similar kind of Magic as the one that brought us here. Space-Ti Magic, and it's an Ancient One… sa as the one that Lucielle and the other Mages utilized."
No one really knew about Ancient Magic, or how they ca to exist, but every now and then they popped up. The Interdinsional Summoning that brought Rey and his friends to H'Trae was classified as such, as it was a Rune inscribed within Ancient Scrolls that were later transcribed by the Grand Mage to be useful for Summoning Otherworlders.
It took Lucielle several years to decipher the Magic and Instructions given in the scrolls, and within other old texts, which was how they were able to successfully summon everyone. It was also why they knew they couldn't perform another Summoning until decades had passed.
All of this was written down and solved by the Grand Mage Lucielle.
"The Chamber Of Ancients hasn't been used in very long—not for hundreds of years, by my closest estimates. We should be able to engineer it in a way for us Otherworlders to find a way ho." Adrien explained, a brilliant smile written on his face.
Rey remained silent for a few monts, trying his best to digest the influx of emotions he had to manage. So thoughts flashed in his head, but he suppressed them almost instantly.
His primary focus was this conversation, so he set aside everything else and decided to concentrate on it.
"A way ho…" He mumbled. "Is that why you killed so many Elves?"
The mont Rey said this, Adrien groaned and rolled his eyes, almost as if he couldn't believe he was being lectured about the ongoing genocide.
"This is my problem with you, Rey. You're smart and strong, yet you always hesitate to make sacrifices for the greater good. To see the bigger picture!"
"What bigger picture?! I don't claim to be a saint, but the Elves are people, Adrien. You're killing thousands upon thousands of people so you can go ho!"
"Sa way you'd kill thousands and thousands of Monsters to get stronger, Rey."
"They're not the sa!"
"How so?" Adrien shifted forward as he furrowed his brow. "I can understand your hesitance to kill humans, Rey. I get it… but Elves? What makes them so different from the Monsters you have slaughtered rcilessly?"
"W-what are you saying…?" Rey appeared appalled by Adrien's way of thinking. Didn't it go without saying why the Elves were different from Monsters?
"Is it because they appear humanoid? There are Monsters who have a lot of human features, yet you'd kill them with no hesitation. The Elves are even hostile towards other Races, sa as Monsters."
"That doesn't make them the sa—"
"How much do you even know about Monsters? You realize so of them have intelligence on par with humans, right? Certain Goblins, despite being primitive, have displayed the intelligence of children. So Lizardn even build huts and simple tools, similar to how we used to during the stone ages on Earth. The list goes on, Rey. Given enough ti, with Evolution and further learning, they could beco a very intelligent species. Yet… you'd kill those Monsters without hesitation, wouldn't you?"
"I… would. They're ultimately a threat to—"
"And the Elves aren't a threat? Right now, their deity tells them to kill the Dragons and they obey. What if we're next? What then?"
"I'd kill them then."
"Then apply that logic to Monsters. Certain Monsters, intelligent creatures, live out the rest of their lives without bothering anyone. Yes, they are aggressive towards people, but they won't go out of their way to bother us if we just leave them alone…"
Rey got flashes of his ti in the Royal Dungeon—the monts he spent mindlessly killing so many of the Monsters there that he lost count of the number.
He didn't think much of it then, and even now. But… Adrien's words kept digging deep into his mind and began seeping right inside his thoughts.
"Why didn't you spare them? Why didn't you leave them alone since they weren't threats?"
Rey already knew the answer to that—and it was in parallel to the answer Adrien would also give for his own massacre of the Elves.
"To achieve my goals… I would do anything." Adrien said, his eyes flashing with incredible determination.
Rey felt his heart tighten as their eyes connected, reflecting sothing similar.
"You would also do the sa."
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