Shortly after passing through the residential area, the density of the buildings before them noticeably decreased.
Nie Hong, carrying the child, finally breathed a sigh of relief. "We're finally out."
The dense buildings and patrolling groups had put immense pressure on him.
For the last half of their journey, his brain had ached from the excessive consumption of sense power. His senses had become dull, and he felt dizzy.
The cool wind outside helped clear his head a little.
Mithra, however, was hurrying along while thinking about her experience using Invisible Blade.
It made sense that the knight hadn't been able to continuously use Invisible Blade. It wasn't because he didn't want to; it was because he couldn't.
It wasn't just because of the limited number of live eyes needed as offerings. Invisible Blade also consumed a large amount of sense power. Even after Mithra had used it once, she had felt a momentary lag in her senses, a characteristic of rapid sense power depletion.
Using it multiple times might leave her completely stunned.
Regardless, they had passed the most difficult part. The rest of their journey was much smoother.
There were still some wandering, lost townspeople at the edge of the town. Dealing with them was much easier than in the town.
Mithra and Nie Hong killed their way through without further incident.
"Whew, we're finally out!" Once they were on the path down the mountain, Nie Hong finally breathed a sigh of relief and spoke in a normal tone.
Mithra said, "Be careful, don't drop the child." The path down the mountain was no longer dangerous, but it was still difficult to traverse under the current conditions.
Nie Hong quickly hugged the child tighter and looked at Mithra curiously. "Mithra, if I had included you in my plans, would you really have ignored me?"
"Yes. I do what I say. After all, it was you, not me, who wanted to save the child," Mithra replied, looking at the path.
"Ah..." Nie Hong lowered his head.
He still didn't understand Mithra.
He had initially mistaken her for a ruthless anomaly guard, killing him without hesitation. Yet, she was easy to talk to when she asked him questions, then later discovered she was a monster with hidden secrets.
Now she was helping him for some strange reason.
It was all so complicated.
Suddenly, the child in his arms stirred.
Nie Hong quickly recovered, realizing the child had woken up.
"You're awake! We're not bad people, don't be afraid! We're taking you to a safe place. Don't cry!" After waking up, the child was stunned for a moment before starting to cry. Nie Hong quickly comforted him.
"Mithra, I can't soothe children. Help me... Don't just silently increase your pace! Help!"
Finally, Mithra, with an unchanging expression, returned to help.
If the child started crying loudly in the wilderness, that would be terrible.
Mithra seemed to have a natural knack for interacting with children. Nie Hong's attempts to comfort the child had failed, but once Mithra took over, the child calmed down, even though Mithra hadn't said anything or even smiled.
Nie Hong felt a sense of failure. He couldn't even comfort a child as well as a monster.
"My mom and dad were killed by them..." the child whispered on Mithra's shoulder after a while.
The child quietly sobbed for a moment.
"Do you know what happened to your hometown?" Nie Hong asked, seeing this.
Initially, he had only been interested in the secrets of the town and the possibility of finding treasures in the tunnels. He hadn't paid attention to anything else.
But his experiences had undoubtedly corrected his reckless mindset. Mithra's impact had been monumental.
"...I don't know exactly. A few years ago, everyone was fine, but one day, my dad came home and said something had happened on the mountain, and no one could work there anymore. Then those people came. At first, they said they could provide other ways for people to make money. But gradually, those who chose to work with them became strange. The town became like it is now. My dad always told me and my mom not to go outside, and not to talk to others in the town,"
The child spoke for a moment, then began sobbing again.
Nie Hong fell silent.
"They wanted your eyes?" Mithra asked.
"Yes, they said eyes were exchanged for wealth and treasures. And it didn't have to be your own eyes; others' would do too... My dad worked for them, he wanted to protect me and my mom. But I don't know why, lately they've wanted more eyes, and more people in the town have died..." the child's body trembled.
Mithra comforted the child while continuing down the mountain.
The child cried himself to sleep.
The two walked in silence. To take care of the child, they didn't walk very fast. The dark night sky gradually brightened, revealing a clear sky behind them. Moonlight shone down, illuminating their path.
The path gradually leveled out, and they unknowingly left Gross Mountain.
They finally reached a wide, flat road at the foot of the mountain.
"I took a carriage and got off here, but at this time of night, we can only walk," Nie Hong said.
Mithra nodded and followed Nie Hong along the road.
The road stretched to the horizon, revealing a silvery-white expanse. Without Reinforce Body on her legs, they would have been exhausted. Even with it, they were still quite tired.
Finally, they saw the buildings of a city in the distance.
"We're here! We're here!" Nie Hong exclaimed, his voice brimming with excitement.
He could finally go home.
The small city before them was a stark contrast to Gross Town. Though modest in size compared to larger hubs, it was still bustling with activity. Since the teleportation point to the Enchanting Land had opened, the influx of travelers from other worlds brought equal parts vitality and chaos.
The city mayor, burdened with this new reality, was overwhelmed.
Mithra and Nie Hong handed the child over to city officials and relayed the grim events of Gross Town.
The officials listened but appeared indifferent.
It was understandable. Had they cared, Gross Town wouldn't have languished in isolation for years, its mines abandoned, its people forgotten. Dreamland's chaotic nature made such neglect common, especially for remote towns like Gross.
Besides, the city faced its own pressing concerns. The surge of travelers from the Enchanting Land demanded constant attention.
Nevertheless, they accepted the child.
Luckily, a Sanctuary patrol team was due to arrive shortly.
The Sanctuary operated with the knowledge that many corners of Dreamland remained untouched by their influence. These patrols were meant to bridge that gap—rescuing the lost, offering aid, and guiding the homeless to safety. For this child, the Sanctuary would provide passage to their well-guarded city, Andemiriya.
With the child's fate resolved, Nie Hong's spirits soared. His efforts had borne fruit, and his steps became lighter.
Mithra took in her surroundings. This small city, though unremarkable by her standards, was leagues ahead of the isolated Gross Town. It was her first real glimpse of civilization in this world, but Dreamland's aesthetic—a mix of medieval and magical—felt oddly unremarkable to her.
Her thoughts drifted instead to the Enchanting Land.
As they walked, she noticed the occasional figure dressed in distinctly modern attire, mingling with Dreamland's citizens. These were undoubtedly travelers from the Enchanting Land, Planet Blue.
"Mithra, are you really a compatriot?" Nie Hong asked suddenly, his tone laced with curiosity.
"I told you, I don't know," Mithra replied flatly.
"Ah, don't worry! Sometimes people like you get teleported to Dreamland for unknown reasons, and then they lose their memories. The Federation will take good care of you!" Nie Hong reassured her with surprising enthusiasm.
"Are there many cases like this?" Mithra inquired.
"Not many, but it happens. I heard of someone who grew up thinking they were from Dreamland only to discover they were from Planet Blue when they stumbled upon a teleportation point."
"What does the Planet Blue government do for them?"
"Oh, they usually do an assessment and help them reintegrate into Planet Blue society. It'll be fine, really!"
Mithra nodded, offering no further comment.
They soon arrived at a bustling square at the city's heart.
In one corner, a shimmering boundary marked the teleportation point. Occasionally, blue and purple light gathered into a humanoid shape before solidifying into a living person.
Nie Hong gestured towards the glowing structure. "See it?"
Mithra nodded.
Nie Hong's face lit up. "So you really are a compatriot! You never know someone until you fight them, huh?"
"You're the one who got beaten," Mithra remarked coolly.
Nie Hong froze, then recovered with a sheepish laugh. Mithra, unfazed, approached the teleportation point—a cross-shaped star resting lightly on the ground, shimmering with unearthly energy.
She extended a hand and touched it.
In that instant, her senses connected to an intricate web. Through this network, she glimpsed a vast continent, each intersection a radiant cross-shaped star like the one she touched.
The vision faded as quickly as it came.
"How do I get back to Planet Blue?" she asked.
Nie Hong stepped forward. "To return, you need to use the same teleportation point you came through. You should see it on the network."
"I don't see it," Mithra replied bluntly.
Nie Hong frowned. "That's strange... Wait, let me try. Put your hand on my shoulder."
He touched the star, and Mithra mirrored his actions. The moment she connected to the network again, a new point emerged—her original teleportation point, glowing faintly.
Suddenly, light enveloped her.
When the light faded, Mithra opened her eyes to a bright, clear sky. Towering skyscrapers reached upward, and a plane soared overhead, leaving a faint trail in its wake.
Around her, the sounds of a bustling modern city filled the air—people talking, cars honking, the steady rhythm of urban life.
For a moment, she stood still, taking it all in. She had returned to a world of steel and glass.
But something lingered.
[Event —— "Stranger"]