Chapter 174: News of Langga
Gara whipped his head around, the nausea he felt forgotten. His brows furrowed into an unreadable expression as he heard the man’s name.
"It really is a shame," Madha said, trying to comfort the pretty man beside him, "but even without his offering, we can still get into Gyakarta Academy."
He didn’t want Gara to blame himself—or worse, blame the fact that the druids were chasing them because of him.
"Hmm. By the way, how do you know all this?" Gara asked, leaning his head back on Madha’s shoulder.
His body jolted when the carriage rattled over rough ground, and the sickness returned like a wave.
"I overheard the guards at the barrack talking about it while I was there," Madha replied. "This time, Professor Langga’s arrival isn’t in secret like last year. Everyone knows about it. The whole town’s preparing. Even the county’s big names are coming to escort him."
"Why would he make such a flashy entrance?"
Madha shook his head. He didn’t know.
"But... is this Lang—Professor Langga really that great to be welcomed like that?"
"Yes. For every race, the academy is another stage to show off their pride. Inside those walls, all races mix together, and the brightest of every generation are raised there.
Anyone who becomes a professor is already a symbol of pride for their race. And Professor Langga isn’t just any professor—he’s the youngest one, and he’s trained countless top Liners.
Do you know the Golden Hunt Team? The squad that leaves the borders to hunt Mist Monsters before the attack of monsters? The deputy of that team... was once his student."
"Wow..." Gara murmured unconsciously. Even with his eyes shut tight from the headache pounding in his skull, he was still amazed.
The Golden Hunt Team—strongest of the strong. Elite among elites, chosen from all races. And for someone as young as Langga to have trained a deputy of that team? That was beyond impressive.
Honestly, Gara hadn’t expected that man who was also the triplets’ biological father to be that incredible.
But that didn’t mean he had any intention of telling Langga about the children. In fact, Gara believed people like Langga deserved to be exposed.
To shine so brilliantly in public, yet in private... commit something so immoral to a young man?
Whether it had been under the influence of drugs or the haze of Max Charm, Gara couldn’t just let it slide.
Forgiveness was never easy for him. Not until he made sure the other person understood, deep in their heart, to never mess with him again.
Even back in Suruta Village, he had done this more than once.
The most recent case was Narin.
Hiring someone to terrorize her every night, bribing the guards to turn a blind eye—those were only the first steps of his revenge. He still had other plans waiting for her once she reached the border.
When would he let her go? Gara hadn’t decided yet. What he knew for sure, it wouldn’t be anytime soon.
But when it came to Langga, he would need far more preparation. Gara was a realist, after all.
If, after all his careful planning, Langga still proved untouchably strong, then Gara would retreat. One year, two, even longer—he didn’t mind waiting until the day he was ready.
Lost in his thoughts, Gara drifted into sleep without realizing it.
When Gara woke, the carriage had stopped on a forest road for their lunch.
Madha slipped into the dimensional pocket to fetch food for them. Since Gara couldn’t enter the space while they were traveling, either Madha or Fian had to bring out whatever they needed.
A heavy sigh escaped Gara, and both men glanced at him in worry.
Madha reached out, gently squeezing his hand and nodding. He didn’t say anything. There wasn’t really a way to make Gara feel better, other than being his pillow.
After eating, their journey continued. This time, Madha took the reins while Fian stayed in the carriage to keep Gara company.
For most of the ride, Gara lay stretched out on one side with a pillow. Thankfully, with only the two of them inside, he had plenty of space.
Fian kept watch, making sure Gara didn’t topple off whenever the road turned bumpy.
"A whole week of this... and it has to be nonstop," Gara muttered, his voice on the verge of tears. The motion-sickness pills didn’t kill the nausea, only made him drowsy. Pure torture.
Still, he had no choice but to endure it.
...
Against all odds, the grueling seven days finally came to an end. The horse carriage, steered by Madha, rolled into Raksa County and halted at the gate.
Stepping out, Gara pressed his throbbing head. Fian followed right behind him.
Raksa wasn’t like Falopo, where they could come and go freely thanks to Tristan.
Here, their identities had to be checked, and there was an entry fee to pay. The three of them quickly presented their Liner IDs.
Several bystanders gave them curious looks, especially toward Fian.
Counties were more diverse than towns, but elves with clean clothes and a tidy bearing were almost unheard of.
These days, most elves who wandered the streets looked ragged and unkempt. Other elves who roamed the streets were slaves, and their appearance was just as poor as that of the nomaden elf group.
As for high-ranking elves, they rarely ever set foot on the streets. And when they did, no guard would dare to stop them for inspection.
So this was likely the first time anyone here had seen a ’normal’ elf.
The guard examining their IDs tried to keep his composure. "Purpose of your visit?"
"We’ll be using the teleportation portal to reach the capital and apply at Gyakarta Academy." Madha produced a recommendation letter from Mayor Danan.
That drew a flicker of surprise from the guard. Every year, many young Liners went to the capital to enroll at the academy, but most came from counties or major cities.
From a small town like Falopo? Practically unheard of.
The guard kept his comments to himself. Once he confirmed the letter’s authenticity, he asked for the entrance fee.
"They’re with me, Sir Guard." A woman’s voice cut in from the side. When they turned, Yuvika was standing there. "I already paid for them."
...