Chapter 195: The Road to...
Night had fallen, yet there was still no word from Madha and the others since they left.
Gara wanted to reach out first, but he worried that any glowing light from crystal ring in the dark might expose their position and put them in danger.
Inside his room, while nursing little Ava, his thoughts refused to settle.
The tiny baby whimpered now and then, batting her small hand against his chest whenever Gara unconsciously shifted, causing the milk to slip from her mouth.
"Sorry, sweetheart," Gara whispered softly, adjusting his position and gently stroking his daughter’s dark red hair.
But even as he tried to focus on Ava, his mind kept drifting—back to Madha.
He raised his right hand. On his ring finger gleamed the ring Madha had given him, and around his wrist rested the bracelet from the same man.
"I should give something back to him too," Gara murmured under his breath.
Just then, the ring on his index finger pulsed with light.
He flinched slightly.
Making sure Ava was still nursing peacefully, Gara pressed the small crystal on the ring.
"Madha, how are you guys doing?" he asked quickly, almost anxiously.
The voice he’d been longing to hear finally came through, steady and calm. "We’re fine. Taking a short rest right now."
"You didn’t run into any monsters, did you?" Gara asked cautiously.
"That..."
Madha’s brief pause made Gara’s heart pound hard without him realizing it.
"Hngh~" Ava whimpered again, reminding him to calm down. He gently patted her back to soothe her.
After a moment, Madha’s voice returned. "I’ll explain once we’re back. For now, just know we’re safe. Don’t worry."
"Be careful," was all Gara could manage to say.
It took four full days before Madha and the others finally returned. Their clothes were dirty and worn, their faces tired, fortunately they were unhurt.
Seeing them safe, Gara swallowed his curiosity and let them rest before asking what they had encountered during their journey.
...
The next day, a package arrived at Yuvika’s house, inside were uniforms and badges from Gyakarta Academy.
Gara accepted the ones meant for him, Fian, and Madha.
Entering the dimensional space, he carried the neat stack of uniforms into the house.
Ares stepped out from his room just then, his eyes instantly locking onto the Gyakarta Academy emblem.
Noticing his gaze, Gara asked, "Ares, have you ever studied at an academy before? Or... are dragons not allowed to attend?"
Ares’s expression turned bitter. "The prince refused to study in academy. He forbade all young dragons his age from enrolling too."
Gara blinked, unsure how to respond. Just how selfish was that dragon prince supposed to be?
Moments later, Madha and Fian emerged from their rooms.
Gara handed each of them their uniforms, then turned his attention to the thing that had been nagging at him since yesterday.
Sitting beside him, Madha finally began explaining what they had discovered during their four-day journey.
"It took us more than two days to reach the end of the path," Madha started. "But coming back only took less than two. We didn’t move as cautiously on the way home."
Gara listened closely, his eyes fixed on Madha with full focus.
That serious look made Madha want to smile—it was adorable, really. He reached over, took his fiance’s hand, and held it tightly before continuing.
"The path we walked wasn’t all dry earth like the one in front of the house. Sometimes it turned into gravel, rocks, grass, humus, even sand. And it wasn’t always straight or flat either. At times, it curved, like it was avoiding something ahead. Other times, it sloped up and down, like climbing small hills."
"At first, the mist was so thick we couldn’t see anything beyond it. But the farther we went, we started catching glimpses of what lay beyond the road—trees with strange leaves, wild beasts of all sizes... We even followed a riverbank for quite a while."
"It’s like you were traveling from one region to another," Gara said thoughtfully.
Madha nodded. "That’s exactly how it felt. Not too different from traveling from Falopo Town to Raksa County. But we saw plants and beasts we’d never seen before. And that’s not even the most important thing."
"What is it?" Gara asked, curiosity sparking in his eyes.
"We saw them..."
"Saw what?"
Madha bit his lip, and Gara frowned. His gaze shifted to Ares, who looked deep in thought, then to Fian.
Fian’s eyes were dark, conflicted—but in the end, he answered quietly, "Mist monsters."
Gara’s hand flew to his mouth to stop a gasp from escaping. He didn’t want Wina or Della in the other room to overhear. "How is that possible?"
"Gara," Madha said, voice low, "as we walked, the air grew hotter and hotter. It felt like the path was guiding us toward Bhumi Kingdom."
Gara froze, a chill creeping down his spine. Anxiety stirred deep in his chest.
"Then this dimensional home... it’s really inside the mist? The same mist those monsters live in? We have to get out of here!" Gara blurted, jumping to his feet.
Madha quickly reached out, catching his hand. "Calm down—we’re safe here. We tested it."
Gara blinked, still confused.
Ares, his focus returning, spoke up. "On the first night, mist monsters tried to attack us out of nowhere. But the path—it’s protected by a powerful barrier. Even when they stacked their bodies to climb over it, they couldn’t reach the top. The barrier rose endlessly."
Madha nodded. "That’s right. The barrier comes from your Talent, Gara. It shields the path and this house completely. Those monsters can’t touch us—not on the road, and not here."
Only after hearing both of them did Gara finally exhale, the tension easing from his shoulders. Even so, he couldn’t help feeling a mix of awe and disbelief.
It must be the system, he thought. The rewards it gives are always tied to the ultimate goal of this challenge—to save this world. Maybe once the Dimensional Pocket levels up again, that path will finally connect to Bhumi Kingdom.
...