MMORPG : Ancient WORLD

406 Legacy Tomb

Alex and the entire group of players gathered at the mountain's base, facing the colossal entrance adorned with a lifelike sculpture of a menacing, pitch-dark dragon.

The dragon was seated, its jaws partially ajar in a formidable yet controlled manner, with its majestic wings spread, acting as the imposing gateway.

After moments of silence, Hecate took out the golden sphere, the Key of Damnation, and moved ahead and dropped the key inside the massive jaws of the dragon, which began closing instantly as dark runes began to cover the dragon.

The dragon's jaws closed completely as the runes flashed once before vanishing, and following that, the wings of the dragon gracefully closed, revealing the long passage behind a vast corridor that was illuminated by the ethereal glow of mana crystals embedded along its ceiling.

Hecate first tried to check the dragon's jaws to see if she could retrieve the key, as she had agreed to give it to the organization once she gained the riches of the Dragon Monarch Tomb.

But after being unable to retrieve the key with normal means, she suggested that they might need to use force, but they should wait until they successfully earn the treasure of the tomb, and Alex agreed, knowing he was not going to get the key.

The key, in reality, was Oberon's personal weapon, which he learned thanks to his guardians in a conversation they recently had about the true end of the Dragon Monarch.

Alex knew about the story that dragons shared about Oberon, how he was the wisest and strongest dragon of his time, and how he was affected by the Devourer Curse, a disease that made him go mad.

How Oberon was given the title of The Calamity of Extinction after he slaughtered 40% of the dragon population, and how he was killed by sacrificing four of the strongest Dragon Elders and hundreds of dragons.

But like many others, Alex also doubted the last part simply because of how strong a mad Monarch would have been, but surprisingly, the story held truth, with the only twist being that it was just not complete.

Elder Darrien shared that the dragon elders and dragons sacrificed their lives not to kill Oberon but to give him a massive temporary soul enhancement that made him break free from the state of pure rage.

After gaining his sanity, Oberon shared the truth and his research on the curse with the dragons before leaving and vanishing without a clue.

Elder Darrien concluded that Oberon seated himself on the back of his friend the Zaratan turtle, and there was a great chance that he was still alive, having fallen to the curse, but there was also the possibility that he killed himself after building his legacy tomb.

Elder Darrien attempted to engage in conversation with the Zaratan turtle, named Nougnensal, in an effort to glean information about Oberon's condition.

However, the turtle was semi-conscious, so he stayed unresponsive to any queries, leaving the fate of the Dragon Monarch unknown.

While not certain, there was a great chance that Alex would get to meet the Dragon Monarch, as for what condition he would encounter remained uncertain.

Hecate entered the passage first, followed by four of her group members entering the corridor without any issues, so she asked the remainder of the group to enter the passage.

Alex and his group followed behind Hecate and her group, and after traveling through the wide passage that was built like the main corridor of a palace, they reached a dead end.

It was a massive wall with a passage written in draconic carved upon it, and using the system to translate it, it began with introducing Oberon and then congratulating the fated one who had opened his legacy tomb and wishing him luck with the trial.

But in the second half, it gave a warning that besides his legacy and treasures, the tomb held truth and responsibility so demanding that it would make a weak-willed individual go insane.

If the fated one clears the trails and is eligible to receive the legacy, he will need to first learn the truth, and only if his mental state stays acceptable will he be given the responsibility.

If the candidate fails in any of the final tasks, only death will be his end, yet before he learns of the cruel truth, he will be given a final choice, but after that, there will be no going back.

After reading the passage, every player took an involuntary gulp, as even the least bright-minded among them comprehended the folly of assuming survival with their player's immortality when they stood in a literal Monrach Tomb.

It was clear that either one would receive the legacy and whatever the cruel truth and responsibility the passage talked about or have their life end in the Ancient world.

Hecate, who was clearly eager to test her luck, hoping to be the one to acquire the legacy, had to take a step back as her death meant the end of her career in the ancient world, meaning losing everything she had worked so hard to build.

There was silence for the following few minutes as Hecate asked to take some time to think of a decision, and while Alex knew she was the one, he knew better than to interfere in her decision-making and possibly mess things up.

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(Two Hours Later)

"Sir Aeon, Thanks for your cooperation and understanding," Hecate said, a newfound determination evident in her eyes.

In the past two hours, three of Hecate's group members had entered the trail, finding out a lot about the trials while also learning that after each trial, the l have their challenger will have their elemental affinity tested, and only if they pass will they be able to advance to the nest trial.

Oberon was quite a generous dragon as every challenger received some reward, which only became better depending on the performance.

But Alex thought that it was done to build a backup in case the fated individual who found the key got cold feet and didn't take on the final trial or simply failed to meet the requirement.

As for why he didn't leave his open and let the worthy get the legacy, it would have to do with believing in fate, as every strong individual who has learned the laws knows how major of a role destiny or fate plays in every living individual life.

Hecate also decided to take on the trial after having a lengthy discussion with various important figures in her life, knowing that once she entered the trial, she would not be able to use the system's various features, including contact with the outside world.

As there was an option to leave the legacy, and by already having signed the contract to not aim for the legacy, Alex and his group didn't need to give Hecate and her group a head start, and they could enter the trail without any delay.

As Alex had expected, not a single word was exchanged among the groups, yet the flame of competition was ignited within each present individual.

Alex said good luck to the group, knowing that only Saahira had a little talent for the element of darkness, so going to the end wouldn't be an option for her.

But for the boys, they held the elemental affinity, so reaching the end was possible, but whether they possessed the talent and wits to achieve it remained to be seen.

Alex placed his hand on the affinity sphere, and moments later, he was teleported to an underground arena with a two-and-a-

half-meter-tall iron golem resembling a dragon knight standing ready for battle.

Its strength remained swiftly adjusted to the peak of Fourth Rank, with all his stats mirroring that of Alex, and also his gear, which was a long sword and full body light armor.

The information about the trial, its reward, and how it shall end was given to Alex through an announcement.

This trial represented testing limits, as the golem started with equal strength, and with each defeat it suffered, its strength would receive a boost, and so would his skill set and intelligence, while the more time Alex defeated the golem, the better the end rewards would be.

It took Alex a few instants to decapitate the first golem and additionally put a hole in the neck of the second, while the third remained a bit trouble but also handled with relative ease.

The process continued for nine states prior Alex delivered up, even though he could have gone a stage or two further, as he decided not to use any berserk skill because his body remained already recovering from the previous battle.

The reward for effort remained one droplet of Draconic Blood essence that belonged to Oberon himself, and while it was a wild treasure of great value, Alex didn't come here to gain only such matures list things.

The second trial pushed the challenger's mental limits by making him go through various experiences, from solving riddles and puzzles to learning or merely spending time in a cold chamber among the hundreds of spooky whispers.