For five days, Mraksha spent his time riding Satya's wooden carriage. He sat beside Satya the whole journey, chatting about all kinds of topics, no matter how trivial.
At last, Mraksha and Satya arrived at the gates of the Kingdom of Swargantara. Standing firmly at the entrance were two guards clad in full armor that protected their entire bodies. Seeing the wooden carriage approaching the gate, the guards stopped it and questioned them.
"What is your business here?" one of the guards asked in a firm voice.
Satya fell silent for a moment, nervous, but he quickly composed himself.
"My apologies, sir guard. Allow me to introduce myself—I am this boy's uncle," he said while placing a hand on Mraksha's shoulder.
"He is a new student of Kaivalya Academy. I'm only accompanying him."
Mraksha then introduced himself and handed over an envelope labeled "Kaivalya Academy."
The two guards stepped back slightly and allowed them to pass.
After entering the city, Satya escorted Mraksha to an inn in Swargantara. Then Satya said,
"Mraksha, I can only accompany you this far. Only those who possess that envelope are allowed to enter Kaivalya Academy."
He paused briefly, then continued,
"The instructions for entering the academy are written in that envelope. You just need to follow them."
"Alright, Uncle. Please be careful. I'm entrusting my siblings to you," Mraksha said with a smile.
Satya climbed back onto his wooden carriage and replied simply,
"Always."
Then he drove off, leaving Mraksha behind on his own.
Alright, for now I'll book a room at this inn.
Mraksha entered the inn. At the front was a reception desk, where a woman in formal attire was standing.
Mraksha approached the desk.
"I'd like to book one room for one person," he said, placing a single silver coin on the counter.
The receptionist looked confused.
"I'm sorry, sir, but our room rates start at five gold coins."
FIVE GOLD COINS?!
Startled, Mraksha replied awkwardly,
"I'm sorry… is there any other lodging nearby that isn't so expensive?"
The woman shook her head apologetically.
"I'm afraid not, sir. In Swargantara, five gold coins is already considered cheap…"
Damn it… then where am I supposed to sleep?
Seeing Mraksha's distress, the woman felt pity for him.
"In that case, sir… you may take a room for now. But you must pay the full amount before you leave."
She's so kind! Is she an angel?!
"Then I'll book one room for seven days," Mraksha said.
"Since it's five gold coins per day, the total will be thirty-five gold coins, sir," the receptionist replied.
No—she's not an angel.
Mraksha agreed and carried his belongings to the room he had booked.
Once inside, he immediately collapsed onto the bed from exhaustion. Chaya, who had been in necklace form, returned to his dragon shape and licked Mraksha's cheek.
"Yeah, Chaya, I know. I need to find a job. But for now, let me rest until tomorrow…"
Mraksha and Chaya rested in the room until the next day.
The next morning, Mraksha—while Chaya remained in necklace form—left the inn and wandered around the Kingdom of Swargantara. Swargantara was clearly different from Hiraeth. The houses, shops, and buildings were all sturdier and more refined, with brick walls and tiled roofs instead of straw. Looking northward, Mraksha saw a hill crowned by a magnificent and luxurious castle—the Swargantara Royal Palace, where the royal family resided. It resembled the castles Mraksha remembered from his previous world: towering structures with flags fluttering in the wind.
After admiring the palace, Mraksha continued his journey to find a job. His first stop was a place that looked like a bar.
Inside, he saw a woman who appeared to be an employee. She wore a white shirt, a black skirt, and an apron tied around her waist. She had dark bluish hair and striking yellow eyes.
Mraksha asked if he could work there.
"Well, you do have a charming face," the woman said while looking him over, "but unfortunately, you're still underage…"
She then leaned closer and continued,
"If you need money… big sister here could give you some… but there's a condition—"
Before she could finish her sentence, Mraksha immediately turned and fled.
Okay, not here. Next place.
The next place was a weapon forge. Muscular men were hammering weapons with heavy mallets. Mraksha approached one of them who had paused his work.
"You want to work here?" the man said. "Sorry, but judging by your body, you don't have any muscles. You wouldn't last long here."
He then slung an arm around Mraksha's shoulders.
"How about I train you until you get muscles like mine? Don't worry, uncle here doesn't bite. We'll train slowly…"
Hearing that, Mraksha slipped out of his grasp and ran as fast as he could.
Damn perverted muscle fanatic… that gave me chills. Next place.
Mraksha continued wandering around the kingdom, but everywhere he went, he encountered strange people.
Are there no normal people here?
Walking weakly, Mraksha finally decided to visit a medicine shop. Why there? Because while searching for work, he had been scratched by a man and a woman who tried to force him to work for them.
Inside the medicine shop stood a woman around thirty-five years old. She wore a white tunic, black trousers, and a green apron tied around her waist. Her long brown hair was tied with a white cloth, and her emerald-green eyes turned toward Mraksha as he entered.
"What do you need, child?" she asked while wiping her hands.
"Ah, nothing much. I just need medicine for these claw wounds," Mraksha said, showing his injuries.
The woman immediately told Mraksha to sit down. She took some herbs, ground them into powder, and applied them to his wounds.
After bandaging them, she held her palm over the injuries. A bright green light radiated from her hand.
In an instant, the wounds vanished without a trace.
"Thank you, ma'am," Mraksha said gratefully.
The woman smiled.
"You're welcome. It's my duty to heal my customers."
"By the way," she added with a puzzled look, "how did you end up with claw wounds like these?"
Mraksha explained everything that had happened.
After hearing his story, the woman laughed.
"How did things get that bad? Well, I suppose it's true—you do have a handsome face."
She fell silent for a moment, as if thinking about something, when someone entered the shop.
It was a young woman with long brown hair tied back at the sides and the same emerald-green eyes. She wore the same outfit as the woman beside Mraksha.
"Oh, you're back," the older woman said.
"Come here, I'll introduce you to someone."
The young woman sat beside Mraksha.
"This is my daughter," the woman said. "Her name is Indira."
The young woman clasped her hands politely.
"My name is Indira Sanjana. It's a pleasure to meet you," she said with a gentle smile.
"Nice to meet you too, Indira. My name is Mraksha Rajani," he replied.
"And I'm Nirana Sanjani," the older woman added proudly.
"Indira's mother—forever youthful."
"Mother… you're embarrassing me…" Indira said, her face turning red.
Seeing the warm interaction between mother and daughter, Mraksha smiled. Their family atmosphere reminded him of his own family in his previous world. His expression darkened slightly.
Noticing this, Nirana gently held Mraksha's hand.
"What's wrong, dear? Are you still worried about finding a job?"
She suddenly brightened.
"I have an idea. Why don't you work here? As a cashier."
At the same time, Mraksha and Indira exclaimed together,
"…Huh?"