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Master Ring is the primary antagonist of Riki's adventure in SaGaFrontier.
Biography[]
Ancient Time[]
The Master Ring's origin is unknown. The rings may have been created by the mystic Virgil, who guards the Divine Ring and goes by the title of Ring Lord, though this is unclear. The Essence of SaGa Frontier also suggests they were created through a fusion of magic and technology by an ancient civilization that are the predecessors to Trinity, though this is only mentioned as an idea the writers had and not confirmed as truth. What is clear is that the Master Ring and its nine brothers predate all current civilizations. In ancient times, King Sei of Shrike used the rings to help unify his region, only to then be killed and the region fail into civil war between his heirs, until it was united again by King Mu. The rings were also used by an unknown ancient who wanted to create a Heaven for himself, only for the rings to instead create a Hell that only looked like Heaven, that being the domain of Hell's Lord. It is also implied that the warden of Despair (who is also an inmate) also attempted to collect the rings and that the crimes he committed under its sway are the reason he was sentenced to 1,000,000 years in prison.
Riki's Story[]
In the present day, Riki, a monster from the dying region Margmel, hears of the rings' ability to grant wishes and seeks the rings in order to save Margmel. Along the way he encounters Mei-Ling, an archaeologist who is also searching for the rings. Together, they set out to collect the rings and grant Riki's wish.
Riki and Mei-Ling attempt to buy the Merchants' Ring from a scrap dealer named Caballero, but he refuses to sell and tries to kidnap Mei-Ling and steal Riki's ring. They defeat him and force him to sell the ring to them.
Searching for more rings, the two are swallowed by the inter-regional monster Tanzer. Inside Tanzer's stomach, they encounter the pirate Nomad who attempts to rob them. After defeating her, they take the ring and escape when Tanzer vomits them all up.
They travel to Shrike and obtain the Warriors' Ring, which is still safeguarded by the undead King Sei. They travel through Sei's tomb to awaken him. Sei tells them not to trust the rings and is sure they intend to use them to wreak havoc, but upon hearing Riki's sincere wish to save his home, Sei agrees to hand over his ring on the agreement that he be allowed to go along with the two.
They go to buy the Heroes' Ring from a billionaire who has gone bankrupt gambling in the Baccarat Casino. A mouse steals the ring and escapes, and the two hunt it down and recover the ring.
They travel to Yorkland to get the Healers' Ring, which is in the hands of a wealthy businessman who is attempting to use it to cure his sickly daughter. They go to Koorong and recruit the mystic doctor Nusakan, who identifies the daughter's illness as actually being a parasitic demon named Mollasite. They exorcise the demon and are given the Healers' Ring as a reward.
The Schemers' Ring is being sold in a jewelry shop in Manhattan, but before the group can buy it it's sold to a noble in Owmi. They travel to Owmi to find that the noble is actually a shapeshifting imp who attempts to imprison them in the manor's basement and steal their rings. The group break out and defeat the demon, taking the ring from it. The imp flies away with a final warning not to trust anyone who wants the rings.
The Hermits' Ring is in the possession of the warden of Despair, who is also the prison's original inmate. They sneak into the prison by disguising themselves as technicians (with Riki posing as a service animal) and the warden gifts them the ring for their visit.
The final ring is the Divine Ring, which is in the care of Ring Lord Vergil. Vergil sends the group through a series of challenges to test them, and then demands a battle with them himself. If they can amuse him by showing them fancy combination attacks, he gives them the ring.
Ending[]
At last, Riki and Mei-Ling travel to Margmel, where Riki wishes for the dying world to be reborn. He is surprised, however, to find his fellow lummoxes disappearing one-by-one. Mei-Ling reveals herself to be possessed by the tenth and final ring, Master Ring. She calls Riki a fool for believing that a wish could be granted so easily as just finding a bunch of articles of jewelry, that the rings feed on the wishes of greedy people and purposely twist the wishes they grant to torment their users. In this case, they are fulfilling the wish to have Margmel be reborn, but since obviously no one alive today was there when the region was first born, that means all of its living inhabitants are going to be killed.
Riki's allies realize that Mei-Ling has been mind-controlled and Nusakan tries to stop her, but she escapes from him and transforms, forcing Riki to do battle against his friend. Master Ring is defeated, and the nine rings are scattered throughout the regions once again. Margmel returns to its ruined state without the rings' influence. Riki realizes that Margmel's loss is a tragedy but that the survival of its people is what truly matters, and the lummoxes agree to evacuate the region. At the end, the Master Ring is tossed away into the wasteland of Margmel, to be lost forever when the region finally dies.
Trivia[]
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