Chapter 28: Search for the Metox

The Capital city of the Moore Continent, Portmis, was busy with Sailors, Traders, and Travellers all blending in and carrying on their day's work throughout the town as usual. This city has always been known as one of the most beautiful cities in Roak throughout the planet's history, and remained so even to the day. However, for Clair, Lancar, Raditz, and rest the gang, there was no time to appreciate the beauty that this town offered. The 8 warriors ran right through the entrance of the town and through a big crowd of people, in desperation to get Albel, who had been mysteriously poisoned, some immediate medical attention.

"Reen!" Lancar asked, while holding unconscious Albel. "You're from this town, right? Where can we see the doctor?"

"R…right there! Right over there in that house to the right!" Reen explained in panic as she pointed and ran towards a relatively small house.

"T…that small house? Are you sure?" Lancar asked to make sure, thinking that it was pretty small for a hospital. "Shouldn't we go to a major hospital in this town?"

"Trust me!" Reen yelled, as she waved everybody in. "Dr. Luria is a great doctor! She will treat him right away, I promise! Come on! Let's go in!"

As the barged through the door, they saw an elegant middle-aged women with long black hair. Not expecting there to be anybody coming in at this time, she was quite surprised that she had a patient… an emergency patient at that.

"Reen?" The Doctor asked in surprise, as she realized who had just come in. "Is that you? Oh my… I haven't seen you for months… this is first time since you left for Tro…"

"DOCTOR!" Reen yelled in hysteria, cutting her off. "We have a friend here that needs to be treated, quick! We were fighting this demon and then he was infected with this mysterious poison… and it's getting worse and worse! Please help him!"

"What's that? Okay… it's alright… calm down, Reen. I'll look at him right away." The Doctor assured them. "Bring him to this room over here, please."

"Well?" Clair asked in panic, as Dr. Luria finished examining Albel's condition. "Is he going to be alright, Doctor?"

"This is not good…" Dr. Luria explained with a grim look. "This is not an ordinary poison… he's been infected with some kind of a virus… unfortunately, I've never seen or heard of any type of virus like this before. And his condition is worsening by the minute…"

"What?" Reen yelled hysterically as she looked at Albel, who's breathing was becoming more heavy and rough, with concern. "You mean… you can't treat him? No… there's gotta be something we can do!"

"Shit, I'm afraid she is right…" Lancar said, looking through the database in his quad scanner. "There is absolutely nothing in the Federation database about this kind of virus…"

"Is this… the virus of the demons?" Peppita asked with a look of concern on her face. "How are we supposed to cure him? His condition is becoming worse!"

"Albel…" Clair called his name weakly as her voice was now riddled with despair. "It can't be…"

"Albel?" Dr. Luria asked in surprise. "Albel… is his name?"

"Yeah." Raditz confirmed. "Is there anything we can do for him?"

"Um, never mind…." Dr. Luria said as she regained her focus, after her mind had momentarily drifted off for few seconds. "There might still be a way… I can't confirm if it will work, but we're just going to have to have faith in the legend…"

"There is a way?" Clair asked, her voice now charged again with hope. "What do we have to do to save Albel, Doctor?"

"Our only chance might be the Metox…" Dr. Luria explained. "The legendary herb Metox… it is said in the legends that the Metox is able to cure even the most deadliest of diseases. But…" she trailed off.

"But? But what?" Reen asked in panic.

"… From what I've heard, they're almost non-existent nowadays." Raditz intervened, with a grim face. "They can be found in Mt. Metox, but they're extremely rare in this day in age. I've only seen it once in my life, and that was when I was a kid…"

"Plus, the season in which the metox grows has passed already…" Dr. Luria said. "Realistically, chances are slim… but that's the only method that I can think of."

"Alright! Come on everybody!" Reen yelled as she barged out the door, waving everybody forward. "What are you all waiting for? There might not be much time left! Let's head over to the Mt. Metox and find this thing!"

"Ok, I'm comin'!" Lancar said, following Reen. "Let's go find this thing!"

"I'm coming, too!" Roger said with determination. "I'm an experienced treasure hunter, I'm sure I can help!"

"Don't forget me," Raditz said, following them. "I'll lead the way! I know the exact area where they grow in!"

"I wish you all good luck…" Dr. Luria said, turning to Clair, Farleen and Peppita. "I'm going to nurse him the best I can until they come back with metox… but since I'm the only person working here, I'd appreciate it if you guys can stay here to help… there's so many things we have to do..."

"No problem!" Farleen said. "Me and Lady Clair have some medical experience… we'll try to help as best as we can!"

"I'll do all I can!" Peppita said, running up to Dr. Lucia to help her with picking up things.

"Yes…Thank you very much for your help, Dr. Luria." Clair said in gratitude, with a courteous bow.

"My pleasure… and please, call me Simone." The doctor said. "We'll do as best as we can here. Meanwhile, let's all hope that they can come back with the Metox as quickly as possible…"


"There is absolutely nothing here!" Lancar yelled, as him, Raditz, Roger and Reen were all looking around for the Metox around the Mt. Metox summit area. "Are you sure it is supposed to be here somewhere, Raditz?"

"It HAS to be here somewhere!" Raditz said, searching through the grass. "This is where it was the last time I saw it! And I've heard that these kinds of herbs can only grow here in this summit area… just keep looking around for that white herb I described to you!"

"I'll search in this area here!" Roger yelled out loud as he pointed to a slightly shaded, tall-grassed area. Roger went in to the area, and searched the grounds for a white, flower-like herb. After through scanning, he could not locate any Metox, but he did see a small treasure chest hidden away in a tall shrub.

"A treasure chest in a place like this?" Roger said to himself, running up to the treasure chest. With curiousity, he opened the chest, and discovered a large amount of money – 20,000 Fol to be precise – hidden inside.

"Whoa, jackpot!" Roger yelled out in joy at first, but then recalled the situation they were in at the moment "… there is no time for these things right now… we gotta save Albel." He closed the treasure chest, and resumed his search for the Metox.

"HEY!" Reen yelled out to everybody as she discovered something. "Everybody, come here! I think I found it!"

Everybody ran to where Reen was standing, and looked at what Reen had just discovered. They saw a white flower-like herb hidden off to the corner, shining brightly like a crystal under the sun.

"This is it!" Raditz yelled in relief. "That's the Metox! Great, we found it… let's hurry back to the Doctor's place!"

"Alright!" Lancar and Roger both yelled out. "Way to go!"

"This is great! Now we can cure Albel! Let's head back right away!" Reen said in excitement and relief as she picked the Metox from the ground, and turned back to leave. However, before she could head down the hill, she was interrupted by a quite, gentle voice coming from behind her.

"Hmm, so you must be the ones that defeated Shen just couple hours ago…" the voice said, as the figure revealed himself. It was a white-faced demon dressed entirely in black, walked forward with confidence, sporting a red cape and a long demon spear.

"Damn, another demon?" Raditz cursed as he turned to it, going into his fight stance. "This is not a good time for this…"

"It looks like you all have some of your own business to attend to…" the demon said as he glided ahead of where Reen was standing, blocking the path down the mountain. "But unfortunately for you, so do I. And I'm afraid mine will have to take precedence."

"What do you want, demon?" Lancar asked, pulling his fists back to go into his ready stance. "Get out of our way before we pound your face in."

"Yeah, get out of our way, wimp!" Roger said cockily, as he took out his double-chained axe. "Do ya wanna end up like your friend! If not, get lost, scumbag!"

"Hmph. How foolish. If you are thinking of escaping, that will be impossible." The demon commented. "My name's Jeiuce… and I have been ordered to terminate the likes of all you mortals, along with this Planet. Whatever you do, there is no escaping your fate. Give up now, mortals."

"Hah! That other friend of yours gave us same stupid speech!" Reen retorted, charging her orbs in energy. "And guess what ended up happening to HIM!"

"If you think I'll fall as pathetically as Shen did, you are quite mistaken." Jeiuce said, hovering slightly off the air as he charged his palm with dark energy. "There is no way I can be defeated by the likes of mortals such as yourselves. You could try me, if you'd like… I shall gladly show you the true meaning of futility."

"Kiyaaa! Get out of our way!" Raditz yelled as he charged towards Jeiuce with his sword held back. Raditz' quick, powerful swipe met with the end of Jeiuce's spear and the two pitted their weapons against each other with intense pressure. After 5 seconds or so of struggling, Jeiuce finally pushed his spear forward with force that was too much for Raditz. Raditz was sent flying afar from the force, and was sent crashing to the ground.

"Gah!" Raditz grunted, getting up quickly from the fall. "He's even stronger than the last guy!"

"Hmm, so perhaps they weren't completely bluffing about their skills after all." Jeiuce said, surprised at the amount of resistance Raditz put up the moment ago.

"TAKE THIS!" Lancar yelled as he attacked Jeiuce from his blind side. Jeiuce easily saw the blind side attack, and countered his punch by simply flipping over behind him and blasting him with his demon energy wave before he could react. Lancar was sent flying across the field, hitting a tree, wounded but not too seriously hurt.

"Ack…" Lancar muttered as he slowly got up. "This demon's quick, too…"

"FLARE ORB!" Reen attacked this time with herFlare Orb attack. The orbs became ignited with fire energy, and then flew right into Jeiuce engulfing him in a big explosion. However, the demon emerged out of the blast with only minimal of scratches.

"That wasn't too bad…" Jeiuce said as he coolly dusted himself off. "You would have hurt anybody else with that blast."

"Eat this, you scum!" Roger yelled as he threw one of his chained axes towards Jeiuce. Jeiuce avoided the axe pretty easily, but stepped right into the second axe that Roger happened to throw behind him. "Tricked ya!" Roger yelled, certain that he will get hit. However, the second axe only went through his decoy image that he had made of himself; Jeiuce had anticipated the move quite easily.

"A child's play." Jeiuce sneered. "I wouldn't even expect mortals to fall for such foolish tricks"

"Damn!" Roger cursed, surprised that his 'trick' didn't work.

Jeiuce slowly slid back, and gave the fighters a look that pretty much said that he was now through with playing. He held up his hand and charged it up with energy, releasing it a few seconds later towards the party while yelling "BLACK SABRE!" Lancar, Raditz and Roger all barely dodged the black disc attack, which then cut through a number of meter-thick trees that was in their path.

"Hmph. Faster than I expected." Jeiuce said, impressed. "Let's see if you mortals can avoid this," he said while charging up for another magic spell. He suddenly pointed towards where Reen was standing, while yelling "ERUPTION!". The ground suddenly erupted with fire as the resulting wall of fire slowly advanced towards Reen, who got completely trapped between the fire and the edge of the cliff. "AHHH!" Reen yelled as she jumped off from the cliff to avoid the wall of fire.

"REEN!" Raditz yelled in despair as she fell down the cliff. "No…."

"Jumping to one's own death…" Jeiuce commented. "I suppose it's a better way to die than being burned in fire. Either way, she's dead."

"WHY YOU!" Roger yelled, angry.

With Reen seemingly taken care of, Jeiuce turned to rest of the fighters to finish them off. However, Jeiuce had totally forgotten that Reen was a featherfolk. Reen slowly flied up from the cliff, and shot her orbs at unsuspecting Jeiuce while yelling "RAVEN ORB!" the orbs each made a direct hit against back of Jeiuce's head, sending him staggering forward.

"Bah!" Jeiuce cursed, surprised by the attack. "She was a real featherfolk?"

"One hundred percent!" Reen taunted him. "What, you thought these wings were just decorations?"

"Hiyaaa!" Raditz yelled as he charged towards Jeiuce again, this time taking repeated swings against Jeiuce. Jeiuce deflected all the attacks with his spear, but then had his hands full when Roger and Reen joined in on the attack as well. The attacks by the three eventually pushed Jeiuce all the way back, near to the edge of the cliff. "H… how could any mortals be strong enough to…?" Jeiuce asked himself, astonished at how humans had managed to push him all the way to the edge, literally.

"Time to say goodbye!" Raditz said as he stopped attacking, then flipped backwards to pull his sword back for an attack that would knock Jeiuce over the edge. "AIR SLASH!"

As he was cornered to the edge of the cliff, Jeiuce had no choice but to jump up high in the air to avoid the Air slash. However, as he jumped in the air, Lancar showed up out of nowhere above him. Lancar grabbed Jeiuce in mid air air, charged him in massive amounts of Qigong energy, then swung back and threw him hard down to the ground yelling "METEOR CRASH!" Jeiuce's body hit the ground with a devastating exploding impact, creating a small crater around the ground where he had been thrown down to and knocking him out.

"We got him!" Reen yelled.

"Ka…ka…kaaa…. How… dare you… mortals… hah… it…does not matter… you're… all dying… either way…" Jeiuce mumbled in pain.

"Why do you demons wish to kill us?" Raditz asked frankly as he stood tall over Jeiuce's fallen body. "You have your own world and we have ours. What good will it do if you kill us all?"

"… That… was what I was ordered… to do. The King says…all you mortals… are to die... It… does not… concern me…" Jeiuce said, struggling in pain and defeat.

"So you are just following your orders against your will? You mean that you are merely a puppet of this so-called King of yours, following his orders like a mindless drone? That's some integrity your race have." Raditz commented.

"…" Jeiuce stayed silent, thinking, but not knowing how to respond to that question.

"… Let's go guys." Raditz said as he turned away from Jeiuce. "Let's go back to Portmis."

"W…what?" Jeiuce blurted out, surprised that Raditz was going to leave without finishing him off.

"What?" Roger yelled, astonished. "You mean you're just going to let this demon live? You're gonna let him go?"

"We gotta hurry, Roger." Raditz replied. "We have to bring the Metox to the Doctor, quick. We can't waste any more time here…"

"He's right. We got more important things to worry about." Lancar agreed. "We need to get to Albel as soon as we can! He doesn't have much time left."

"Okay, let's run back, everyone!" Reen yelled, as everybody ran down the summit of Mt. Metox towards Portmis. Meanwhile, Jeiuce looked on in utter disbelief, struggling back to his feet, and still finding it hard to believe that his life was spared.


Chapter 29: Memories and Dreams

Meanwhile, back in the doctor's house, Albel's condition seemed to be getting worse by the minute. His breathing got heavier, with cold sweats running down the side of his pale white face. "Gahh….ahh…" Albel started moaning, twisting and turning his body violently with his face grimacing in extreme pain.

"Farleen, please pass me the tranquilizer! He's having spasms!" Simone said, panicking at the sight of Albel being tortured in pain. "His condition is worsening! In this pace, there won't be much time left…"

"Oh no… where are these guys? Please hurry!" Farleen pleaded as she passed the tranquilizing needle to Simone. Simone injected Albel with the tranquilzer, calming him down for few moments. However, his spasms resumed soon after with the tranquilizer seemingly not having any effect. "GAAAH… UAAAHHH! " Albel grunted in pain, tossing and turning.

"ALBEL!" Clair cried, as she held his hand tightly. "Hang in there! They'll be here any moment now! Please…please hang in there…"

"…" Farleen looked on with a look of sadness in her face, regretting all the bad things she said about Albel. Did Lady Clair truly care for Albel too, perhaps? She wondered.

"WE'RE HERE!" Reen yelled as her and others barged into the door, all out of breath from running back as fast as they can. "We got the Metox, doctor! How is he?"

"His condition is worsening… we better pray that this works…" Simone said, as she took the Metox from Reen to make the medicine. "I'll make the medicine right away… anybody that has experience in compounding, please help me so that we can make it faster…"

"Yes, ma'am!" Farleen said as her, Peppita and Clair followed her into the compounding room. After about 10 minutes, they finished making the medicine, running back to Albel's bed to give him the medicine.

"Pass the needle, please…" Simone said, as Lancar, Raditz and Roger held him down from his violent spasms. After a few seconds, Simone successfully injected the medicine into his body.

"Alright… all we have to do now is pray this works…" Simone said in worried yet serious tone. Albel violent spasms continued on for several minutes, before he started to calm down and fall into a deep sleep.

"It… it's working!" Simone announced, in relief. "His body is stabilizing! He's going to be alright!"

"A…Albel… I'm so glad." Clair said with slight tear in her eyes. "Simone… I don't know how to thank you… you saved his life…"

"I didn't do much… it's these guys who brought the Metox, you should thank them the most." Simone said, looking at Raditz, Reen, Lancar and Roger. "You guys should all get some rest for now… you all look really tired out. Don't worry, he will be fine, I'll take good care of him."


Albel stepped into the dragon caves in the Airyglyph castle, excited yet nervous about the ceremony that was about to take place very soon. The dark cave was filled with the soldiers of the Dragon Brigade, with three captains of the three major brigades as well as the King Airyglyph XIII, also looking on.

"Are you nervous, Albel?" Glou asked as he approached Albel. "Are you sure that you are ready for this ceremony? Remember, this will not be an easy task… you should not go through with this unless you are absolutely certain about your own abilities…"

"Hah, are you doubting me, father?" Young Albel said confidently. "It's only an air dragon… it doesn't stand a chance! I've been training the last 5 months for this ceremony… and I'm stronger than I've ever been. I have confidence in myself…I'll do this."

"Haha… no, no, Albel. I trust you. I trust your judgement completely." Glou said, smiling. "I just wanted to make sure."

"Master Albel will be fine, Captain." Vox said, who happened to be the second-in-command of the Dragon Brigade at that time. "He's young, strong, full of spirit and thirsty for action. He's got the right attitude… and his skills are certainly good enough."

"Yes, Vox, you are right." Glou said. "He's my son… I'm sure that he'll pass this ceremony with ease."

"He's already achieved the level of skill that is comparable to yourself, Glou." Woltar said. "As long as he has a right mind set, and confidence… he shouldn't have any problems."

"I've been training with Albel for a little while under his request…" Nevin, then-captain of the Black Brigade said. "And I've been having my hands full just holding him back… he's certainly strong enough for this ceremony… so there's no need to worry, Glou!"

"Thank you all… I have faith in him, as well." Glou said, turning to the King. "Your majesty, shall we begin?"

"Yes. Let's begin at once. Albel, you may step into the circle. Get ready for your ceremony." The King said.

"Yes, your majesty!" Albel said, as he confidently stepped into the fighting circle that was surrounded by the soldiers of the dragon brigade.

"Good luck, Master Albel." Vox said, right before he stepped out to the circle. "You can become the youngest warrior ever to succeed in this ceremony, at 16 years of age… it would surely be quite a feat."

"I don't need luck, Vox…" Albel grunted, as he walked straight by Vox without even looking at him. "I got the skills… and you're going to witness it, right now."

"Alright. Begin the Accession of the flames ceremony." The King said, as the soldiers opened the cage that contained a wild air dragon. However, as Albel got ready to fight the dragon, he was interrupted by a loud, echoing voice that rang throughout the cave.

"How amusing…" The soft, but eerie voice said. "Yet such a pointless ritual seems appropriate for inferior beings like yourselves."

"W…what the hell is this?" Albel yelled. "Who is there?"

"That voice…" Glou said, trembling in surprise and fear. "It can't be…"

"What is the meaning of this?" The King yelled, confused.

Out of nowhere, a demon with long white hair and pair of black wings appeared in front of Albel.

"Long time no see." The demon said as he walked towards Albel. "You most likely have no idea about who I am, but I certainly remember who you are…You've gotten much bigger."

"Bah… get out of my face, you maggot!" Albel said, unsheathing his katana. "Who the hell are you?"

"Wh… why are you here?" Glou yelled, as he ran up to confront the demon. "Why did you come to this world?"

"You know exactly why I came here. Don't play dumb with me, Glou." The demon said. "Hand me the orb."

"I…I have no idea what you're talking about!" Glou said, trembling with fear.

"So, I take it that you didn't get the orb like we told you to…" The demon said. "How disappointing. I can't believe a mere mortal like yourself have decided betray us. Who do you think you are?"

"A…Albel… run away, now! Woltar, take his majesty to somewhere safe!" Glou said, as he scrambled back for his Crimson Scourage. "Vox! Nevin! Let's take care of this demon, now!"

"You broke the pact. You broke your promises. For that, now you will pay…" The demon said, as he flew up in the air. "You will pay with your life! Die, traitor!"

"Kiyaaa!" Nevin yelled as he charged at the demon with his large broadsword. The demon evaded his powerful swing, and made a swift, powerful thrust with his hand towards his midsection.

"AAAAAARRRGGG!" Nevin let out a blood-curdling scream as the demon's claws pierced right through his body, right out to his back. The demon pulled his hands back, dropping Nevin's lifeless corpse down on the ground.

"Nevin! It can't be… Alright Vox, let's…Vox? Vox! Where are you?" Glou yelled as he searched for Vox, who was nowhere to be seen.

"You were a failure, Glou. And your son has become a failure much like yourself." The demon said, as he flied up again, charging his hand with powerful fire energy. "I have no idea what Glou did to you, but nonetheless, you have now become useless. I shall end your meaningless life, right here, right now."

"No…NOOO!" Glou yelled, as he ran towards Albel.

"DEMON SCORCHER!" The Demon yelled as he shot a massive blast of fire right at Albel. Albel was frozen, having nowhere to escape to. Right before he was hit head on, Glou saved him by jumping in to take the blast himself. A stray blast of flame hit Albel on his left arm, knocking him back.

"F…father…" Albel muttered down on the ground, as he watched Glou burning slowly to death.

"Know… who you really are Albel… look within… yourself…" Glou told his son with his last breath. "Find your own… truth…"


"AHHHH!" Albel shouted as hewoke up suddenly from the bed, catching Simone, who was sitting next to him, by surprise.

"A…are you ok?" Simone asked. "Are you feeling alright?"

"Gah…" Albel murmured, looking around to see where he was. He was in a small but cozy room; similar to the room he rested in at Arias earlier in his journey. He also noticed a middle-aged woman with long black hair, sitting by his bed.

"W… where am I?" Albel asked the woman who he has never seen before, yet had a familiar vibe.

"You're at Portmis right now…" Simone replied, as she introduced herself to Albel. "My name is Simone, a family doctor in this town. Reen and your friends brought you here because you were infected with a deadly virus…"

"A virus?" Albel asked, confused.

"Yes, a demon virus." Simone replied. "It was a close call. If your friends didn't bring that Metox then you would have died… they saved your life."

"What?" Albel yelled, in disbelief. Why? He asked himself. He's never been nice to them, and He had always ignored them… so why would they do something stupid like going out of their way to save my life? He thought.

"Anyways, I'm glad that you are conscious again… that's a good sign." Simone said, as she poured Albel a cup of water. "You're recovering pretty fast."

"…" Albel stayed silent as he looked at the woman again. He was absolutely sure that he's never seen her before, and he surely couldn't have - this was Roak after all, in another planet. However, she had this very comfortable, warm, caring vibe to her… most of all, she had this maternal vibe emitting from her in which Albel couldn't comprehend.

"What's wrong?" Simone asked, noticing that Albel was staring at him. "Is there something on my face?"

"N…no." Albel said, "I just thought I might have seen you somewhere, that is all."

"Well, Reen and others told me that you're from another planet…" Simone said, while offering the cup of water to Albel. "I don't remember seeing you before, so I probably just look like somebody you have seen before."

"Right." Albel said, as he took a sip of water. "Where's everybody else?"

"It's 3am in the morning." Simone said. "They're all sleeping right now. They were all exhausted from yesterday."

"So why are you up?" Albel asked. "It's late at night. I'm fine now, you should go to sleep."

"I'm a doctor. It's my duty to look after my patients." Simone said, smiling, which somehow gave Albel a sense of warmth, comfort, and assurance. "Don't worry about me, I'm used to staying up late."

"Hmph…" Albel grunted as he noticed a small, framed picture standing on the table beside his bed. It was a family picture, in which it had a little kid with blue hair and tail, a big, muscular man with a beard and a headband, and Simone herself, all smiling and looking happy.

"Looks like you also have a family of your own." Albel said, picking up and looking at the picture. "You should be taking care of them instead, not staying up all night just to care for me. This is unnecessary."

"… That's my husband and my child…" Simone said, with a look of sadness in her face. "But they both died 8 years ago."

"…My apologies." Albel said, as he put the picture back down. "What happened to them, was it an accident?"

"They… mysterious disappeared 8 years ago…" Simone said, still looking sad. "Then I got a news that said both were found dead in a place called Parj temple. To this day, they still don't know how it happened."

"PARJ TEMPLE?" Albel yelled. "That's where we are supposed to go… where is this place? Tell us."

"I'm not sure. They said that it was somewhere in the Astral continent." Simone said. "But please, do not go there… it's known as a really dangerous place… I don't want to see you or anybody else get hurt… I don't want there to be any more harm… my husband and child was enough."

"This is something that we must do." Albel said. "I'm sorry about your husband and kid, but we are all on a mission. We're not going to stop after coming this far."

"But…" Simone muttered.

"We are all strong, the monsters on this planet are no match for us. We'll be fine." Albel said, as he got up. "You need your sleep. Go back to bed, I'm fine now."

"If you are sure that you're ok…" Simone said. "Then I guess I should go to sleep… there is a long work day ahead."

"I'm fine. Just go." Albel insisted.

"Alright. Very well." Simone said, making her way out the door. "Let me know if you happen to start feeling sick again… good night… and nice to meet you, Albel… Albel's your name, right?"

"That's right." Albel answered.

"I see…" Simone said, pausing in thought for a while, then turning to bow to Albel. "Have a good night."

"…Good night." Albel replied as Simone walked out of the room.


Chapter 30: Comrades

When Albel opened his eyes once again, it was bright early morning. The clock beside him read "7:21 A.M", and chirping of the birds could be heard from outside. Albel got up from his bed, and walked up to the window to look at the view of the town. As he opened the window, he greeted with fresh-breezy morning sea air and bright warm sunlight from the sky. The streets were empty, except for few morning walkers as well as couple early-bird merchants who were getting ready to set up their shop for the day. It was a truly beautiful sight, a sight in which even Albel somehow got immersed into. This was a typical city that someone like Clair would like, Albel thought.

Clair… Albel was thinking as he recalled back to the time at the Aquatic Gardens of Surferio when she put herself in harm's way just to heal her. Why did she help him then?

Furthermore, why did everybody else help him this time around? Albel wondered. He didn't need them, so why did they act like they need him?

As Albel got immersed into these thoughts, somebody slowly opened the door from behind him. "Albel?" Clair asked, coming into the room. "Thank god you're alright! How are you feeling?"

"…I'm fine." Albel said. "I'm fully recovered and ready to go. So as soon as everybody wakes up, let's head for Astral to meet their King."

"I'm glad you're all right…" Clair said in relief. "We were all worried sick yesterday. I thought maybe… you weren't going to recover… But it's so good to see that you've recovered."

"Hmph. You fools did it again." Albel said. "Why did you all waste your own time just to save me? You could have all went to Astral and Parj Temple by now… Maybe even the Daemoneum. You didn't have to do this… all it did was slow down the mission even more."

"Albel, don't say that!" Clair said adamantly. "We're all your comrades, and we can't just leave you behind when your life is in danger! We all care for you… I… care for you…"

"You're being silly once again, as usual." Albel said, turning back. "Don't do anything stupid like this again. We have a mission and if I happen to become an obstacle in completing this mission, then just leave me behind. There are much more important things to take care of."

"No, Albel." Clair said. "We won't do that. None of us would do that. We are all in this mission together, and I can't just leave a comrade in danger just to complete a mission. You and I both started this mission, Albel. And we are both finishing it together. We will ALL finish it together."

"…" Albel didn't say anything for a while, and then turned around to speak again to Clair. "Enough of this. Either way, we're leaving as soon as all the fools wake up from their sleep. We're heading right to Astral City. Got that?"

"…Yes, we will." Clair said weakly, little hurt that Albel decided to ignore what she had said.

Meanwhile, both Farleen and Reen were looking through the tiny opening in the door, watching what was transpiring between Albel and Clair.

"So Clair really… I can't believe it…" Reen whispered to Farleen, stunned and in deep thought. "I thought it was always the other way around… that Albel liked Clair… but it looks like she really cares for him, too."

"Yeah, I don't know why she would fall for him… but…" Farleen said. "She really cares for him. As much as I hate to admit it, she does."

"…" Reen stayed silent, in thought.

"So what are you going to do? Weren't we going to interrupt them?" Farleen asked.

"No… let's leave them alone…" Reen said, walking away with slightly bitter but true smile in her face. "It looks like I'm the underdog in this competition here… heh… but even if that's so, I want this to be fair and square… If I am to win Albel's heart over, that's the only way I want it to happen…so I don't want to interfere anymore…"

"…" Farleen looked to Reen, smiling and thinking that she was really a pure hearted girl, after all.

Few hours later, everybody stood outside the door of Simone's house, getting ready to leave. Simone came out as well, to see them goodbye.

"Let's all go, then." Raditz said. "We'll take the ship to Otanim, get to Tartaroy then take the ferry from there to Astral City."

"Hold on for a minute…" Lancar said. "Roger is not here yet… I wonder where he is..."

Just as Lancar finished his sentence, Roger ran in from the town entrance, bumping into Raditz slightly. "Sorry I'm late guys… heh… you weren't going to leave without me, were ya?"

"Umm, where did you just come from?" Peppita asked.

"Well… I just went… for a morning jog in the mountains! Yeah… that's right, I love the fresh morning air, hehe…" Roger replied, little hesitant in his answer. "Anyways, we're gonna leave now since Albel's all better, right? Then let's get going!"

"You guys make sure you all come back safely…" Simone said. "Parj temple will be really dangerous. Please don't get hurt. I'll be praying for all of you..."

"Heehee, don't worry about it, doctor!" Reen said, as she gave Simone a hug. "We're going to be alright! Thanks again for taking care of Albel!"

"Oh, that's right, we should pay you…" Raditz said, reaching back for his wallet. "I don't have too much money left, but it's better than nothing…"

"No… really… it's alright…" Simone said. "I appreciate the thought, but I really don't feel that I should…"

"Don't worry about it, ma'am… we just want to thank you… please accept our… WHAAAA?" Raditz yelled suddenly as he looked into his wallet in surprise. His wallet was filled with money; 20,000 Fol to be exact.

"Hmph, spoiled kid." Albel sneered, "There is no need to show off your money like that, rich fool. We already know."

"But… this isn't my…" Raditz murmured, stunned by the surprise. "…Anyways, here's 10,000 Fol then, ma'am. I hope that's enough… Thank you so much for all your help."

"You really shouldn't… this is too much…" Simone said as she reluctantly accepted the money that Raditz more or less forcibly handed over to her. "Th…thank you."

"You deserve it." Lancar said. "We should be paying you more, really."

"Alright, let's head to the port." Albel said, as he walked towards the port. However, before leaving, Albel turned back to Simone, to say one more thing. "…And thank you."

"Did… did Albel just thank somebody?" Peppita asked in surprise. "That's sooooo unlike Albel!"

"Haha…" Clair laughed softly, smiling and glad that Albel gave his gratitude to Simone.

'Damn… why did I just say that?' Albel wondered to himself, realizing that Peppita was right; it was really not like him to say such things. But Albel didn't really have any regrets deep inside. He honestly felt that it had to be said. It would have tortured him NOT to.

"Alright, let's go before we miss the ship!" Raditz said, running down to the ship ticket booth. Meanwhile, he was still wondering about one thing… where did all that money in his wallet come from?


Within half a day, the group made their way across the sea back to Otanim, walked back to Tartaroy to take the ferry that goes to Astral City. Astral city was indeed a very big place, being the Planetary Capital of Roak. The buildings were built in much more sophisticated and technologically advanced way, much like how a city on Earth might look like. Even so, the same big old medieval-style castle still stood behind all the tall buildings.

"Whoa, this city is more developed than any of the cities we've been to so far…" Lancar said. "This is more like it… I'm starting to feel more at home now, hahaha."

"Well, Astral is the Planetary Capital, so it naturally has to be bit more advanced… after all, we're still part of the Federation." Raditz said. "This is the only city in the planet that is really advanced like other Federation cities, though. This is only like the third time I've come here..."

"Alright, let's go in." Albel said as he walked towards the Castle doors. They went through the reception hall, requesting an audience with the King. Several hours later, they were granted the audience, and made their way into the throne room.

"Welcome, my citizens. I am King Warren XXI." The King said as everybody bowed down to him to show their respects. "You may rise up now. What can I do for you all?"

"It's a honour to meet you, your majesty." Lancar spoke. "I'm Lancar Douglas, Federation Personnel ID #22764. I've come from Planet Klaus to request an investigation."

"From Planet Klaus, you say?" The King said. "I must say that I'm very surprised… From the news I've heard, your planet is in a fierce battle against a hoard of demons that have appeared, as well as many other planets. Is this really a good time for this investigation? You must all have your own planets to worry about."

"Yes, your majesty. This is exactly why we have come here." Lancar said. "We're here to get rid of those demons that are infesting in various planets around the universe."

"I see… but I fail to see why you had to come to Roak…" The King said speculatively. "So far, we've had reports of demons, but it has been minor, and nothing that we can't handle."

"Your majesty, we have traced the source of all the demons in this universe, and have realized that they all coming from one source… the Daemoneum." Raditz said. "We need to gain access to their dimension so that we can get rid of them once and for all. And we believe that our planet holds the key for accessing their dimension."

"Our planet… is the key you say? To enter the Daemoneum? That means you must need…" the King started asking.

"Yes, sire. We need the 'Eye of the Truth'." Lancar replied "We have come here for permission to enter the place called Parj Temple, which we believe holds this artifact."

"I see… I must say that I am surprised." The King said. "Not too many people remember our war against the demons from 700 years ago… as a matter of fact, I'm surprised that you even knew about the Existence of the Parj Temple…"

"Yes, your majesty. This land is in danger of repeating that war from 700 years ago. This is why we have to enter the Daemoneum as fast as we can." Raditz said. "Please, sire. I humbly request your permission for entering the Parj Temple."

"…Parj Temple has been sealed for the last 600 years. It's considered to be an extremely dangerous place. Cursed even. Nobody has gone into that temple and come out alive." The King said. "And this 'Eye of the Truth' that you speak of… is only from the legend… we do not know if such OPA even really exist at all."

"But it really exists, your majesty!" Raditz said. "My ancestors were directly involved in the demon war from 700 years ago! I can confirm it from the memoirs I've read!"

"But even so…" The King continued. "I am not sure if this is the smart thing to do for our planet at the moment. Even if this 'Eye of the Truth' really open the gate to the Daemoneum, you are risking our land from being invaded by the demons at the same time. Most of all, I believe that none of you have proved your worth of entering such a place."

"But we ARE strong enough, your majesty!" Roger said. "2 years ago, we even saved the univ…"

"Roger! Shhh!" Lancar stopped him.

"You do all look like capable fighters…" The King said. "But I cannot take the great risk of opening the portal to the Daemoneum unless I can be absolutely certain of your abilities."

As Albel got up to say something to the King, he was interrupted by one of King's servants rushing in the door. The servant ran in, out of breath, and looked to be in panic.

"YOUR MAJESTY!" The servant yelled. "We've just received news that Tartaroy and Portmis are under attack by hoards of demons!"

"WHAT?" The King yelled, shocked. "Have the defense units been dispatched?"

"Yes sire, but…huff" The servant struggled, out of breath. "The hoards of demons are much stronger than we expected! And there are way too many of them! Also, we are lacking personnel because most of our defense units have been dispatched to assist other Federation planets… Sire, it's a matter of time before Tartaroy and Portmis falls!"

"Tartaroy? That's where my Father, mother, and everybody else is performing! No! I have to save them!" Peppita yelled, concerned about the safety of her Troupe members.

"N…no! Mother!" Reen yelled in panic, realizing that her mother may be in danger. "She could be in danger! I'm going to go save her!"

Portmis? Albel wondered… the same city where Simone treated him? Simone is going to be in danger?

"I'm coming with you to Portmis." Albel said to Reen adamantly. "Let's get going."

"But Peppita needs to go to Tartaroy!" Roger yelled. "But they're being attacked at the same time as Portmis? Damn!"

"Then… how about we split up?" Farleen suggested. "Four of us can go to Tartaroy, and the other half can go help out at Portmis!"

"Good idea, Farleen." Clair said. "Farleen and I will go with Reen and Albel to Portmis. Raditz, Lancar, Roger, please help out Peppita at Tartaroy. Let's all leave immediately."

"Please, hold on for a second, warriors." The King said, stopping everybody from leaving. "Since this is an urgent situation, I shall grant you permission to use the emergency transporters to both cities. This way, you won't have to ship all the way back."

"Thank you, your majesty!" Raditz showed his gratitude, surprised but very grateful.

"My pleasure. I should thank you instead for helping us out in the time of need." The King said. "Good luck to you all."

"Transporters are on the second floor." The servant said. "I'll show you the way. This way, please."

"Let's go!" Albel yelled as him, Clair, Reen and Farleen took the transporter to Portmis, while Raditz, Lancar, Peppita, and Roger took the transporter to Tartaroy.