A gentle evening breeze drifted through the open area where the First Sky Gate stood.
Yet no one paid attention to the beauty of the scene.
Everyone's attention was focused on one thing.
The Eternal Shadow.
Dozens of masked men now surrounded the ruins.
Their leader stood calmly atop a large boulder, watching Raka and his friends like a hunter who had found its prey.
Raka clenched his fists.
"You deliberately let us find the gate."
The silver-masked man smiled.
"That's right."
Dimas immediately bristled.
"So you've been following us this whole time?"
"Of course."
"That's cheating."
The man chuckled.
"In this world, all that matters is the result."
Bima stepped forward, gripping his sword.
"Don't go near the gate."
"Or what?"
Bima didn't answer.
His expression alone was enough to show how serious he was.
The leader of the Eternal Shadow, however, didn't seem to care.
He leaped down from the boulder.
Then he slowly walked toward the Sky Gate.
The gate's blue light reflected off his silver mask.
"We've been searching for this place for decades."
"What for?" Alya asked.
"Power."
His answer was the same one the village chief had given them before.
Brief.
Yet enough to explain everything.
Suddenly, Raka's compass began vibrating again.
Its needle spun incredibly fast.
The blue light shining from the compass grew brighter and brighter.
Strangely, the light wasn't pointing toward the Sky Gate.
It was pointing somewhere else.
East.
Toward the deeper part of the forest.
Raka frowned.
"That's strange."
"What's wrong?" Nara asked.
Raka showed them the compass.
Bima was immediately shocked.
"Impossible."
"What?"
"The Explorer's Compass only reacts to important artifacts."
"So?"
"That means there's something nearby more important than the gate."
They all exchanged glances.
Meanwhile, the leader of the Eternal Shadow had also noticed the change.
Though his face was hidden behind a mask, Raka could sense that the man didn't like what was happening.
"Track the source of that light!" he ordered his subordinates.
Several members of the Eternal Shadow immediately headed east.
But after they had taken only a few steps, the ground suddenly began to tremble.
BOOOOM!
Everyone lost their balance.
BOOOOM!
BOOOOM!
The tremors grew stronger.
The blue light from the Sky Gate suddenly flared much brighter.
Ancient carvings across its surface began to glow.
The air trembled.
The wind swirled.
And the same ancient voice as before echoed throughout the entire area.
"THE TRIAL HAS NOT YET BEGUN."
Everyone froze.
Even the members of the Eternal Shadow looked shocked.
"THOSE WHO ARE UNWORTHY SHALL NOT ENTER THE GATE."
The silver-masked man immediately turned his gaze toward the gate.
"Worthy or not, I will enter."
But a moment later, something unexpected happened.
A wave of blue energy emerged from the gate's surface.
WHOOSH!
The wave swept across the entire area.
The members of the Eternal Shadow who were closest were sent flying.
CRASH!
CRASH!
CRASH!
Some slammed into the stone ruins.
Others fell to the ground.
Dimas whistled in admiration.
"Wow."
Nara nodded.
"Looks like the gate can fight back."
The silver-masked man himself managed to hold his ground.
But even he was forced to retreat several steps.
For the first time, Raka saw anger in his movements.
The gate was rejecting them.
While everyone's attention was focused on the Sky Gate, Raka's compass moved again.
Its needle now pointed straight east.
And it didn't stop.
As if it were forcing them to leave.
Alya watched the compass.
"I think we should follow it."
"But the gate is right here," Dimas said.
"That's exactly what's strange."
Bima nodded.
"If all the clues are pointing somewhere else, then there's something we have to find first."
Raka remembered what the stone creature had said earlier.
A trial of courage.
Maybe the gate couldn't simply be opened.
Maybe there was a condition they had to fulfill.
He made his decision.
"We'll follow the compass."
Dimas sighed.
"All right."
Nara smiled.
"The real adventure is finally beginning."
They quickly left the gate area.
Since most of the Eternal Shadow's attention was still focused on the phenomenon unfolding there, Raka's group managed to leave unnoticed.
They continued east.
Through the increasingly dense forest.
Fog began to appear again.
But this time, the blue light from the compass helped illuminate their path.
As night approached, the rumble of rushing water began to echo through the forest.
At first, it was faint.
But it grew clearer and clearer.
"A river?" Alya asked.
Bima nodded.
"Looks like it."
Not long afterward, they emerged from the trees.
What they saw left them all speechless.
A massive river flowed before them.
It was nearly a hundred meters wide.
Its water shimmered silver.
As if the entire river were made of liquid metal.
Moonlight reflected off its surface, making it look like a sea of stars.
"Wow..." Nara whispered.
Dimas was too stunned to speak.
Even Alya, who was usually calm, looked amazed.
Raka stared at the river without blinking.
He had never seen anything so beautiful.
Bima spoke slowly.
"The Silver Dragon River."
"Huh?"
"My father once wrote about this place."
"So it really exists?"
Bima nodded.
"According to legend, this river is guarded by an ancient dragon spirit."
Dimas immediately swallowed hard.
"Please tell me that's just a legend."
No one answered.
Because at that exact moment, the surface of the river began to ripple.
At first, the ripples were small.
Then they grew larger and larger.
The silver water swirled into a gigantic whirlpool.
A cold wind blew in every direction.
Raka's compass emitted the brightest light he had ever seen.
Its needle pointed toward the middle of the river.
And something slowly emerged from within the whirlpool.
Giant silver scales.
A pair of brightly glowing blue eyes.
Then the head of a dragon larger than any house in Aruna Village.
The creature raised its head toward the night sky.
Then it let out a roar that shook the entire forest.
ROOOAAAAARRRRRR!!!
The ground trembled.
The river churned violently.
And Raka realized one terrifying thing.
They had just encountered the first guardian of the trial leading to the Sky Gate.
To Be Continued in Chapter 9 – The Guardian Stone's Riddle