Originally Posted by ISTFlyer

No, your understanding is unfortunately wrong, if you select option 1 ( FFC ) you must begin travel ( flying ) by December 2021. It's Electronic Travel Certificates that you must use until the date on it and you could fly at a future date.

As the new ticket is 1/3 of the old ticket, go for the refund route and purchase the same flights as another ticket. Then, you would have a ticket validity starting from the day you book the new ticket. When you press the refund button ( option 2 ), you wouldn't need to take any further action and your ticket would be automatically in the refund queue and you should see the refund in your bank/credit card statement within a couple of days.