System: Daily login!!, jackpot on the first day!!!-Chapter 367 - - Ghost?

There was no grand welcoming ceremony and no party held, but the warmth of the Blue Dragons was truly felt.

They didn't need drums or fireworks.

Their presence alone, their bowed heads and quiet smiles, the way the snow itself seemed to fall a little softer... It all spoke of something deeper than celebration. It was recognition. Acceptance. A quiet reverence reserved only for those who were truly one of their own.

Akh'sha walked ahead, leading Taufik and his family toward the majestic castle that stood proudly at the center.

Anugerah walked among them, and though many had not seen her for decades, they stepped aside not with suspicion, but with silent respect. Some touched their chests in greeting. Others whispered her name like a prayer.

Kiara walked beside her mother, wide-eyed, every breath forming small clouds in the cold. The dragons nodded at her too, offering gentle looks and soft, rumbled greetings in the old tongue.

She didn't understand their words, not fully. But she felt them.

And for the first time, Kiara felt like she had more than just a past, not just the fragments of a story her mother used to tell in quiet moments.

This was real. Tangible.

Now she knew: she didn't just come from a story.

She had a heritage.

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"Akh'sha, the sea felt far more chaotic than the last time I was here. What happened?"

Taufik asked, walking beside Akh'sha, his eyes drifting over the unfamiliar yet oddly familiar landscape. Jagged peaks of frost shimmered under a pale sky, and the towering castle of pure ice loomed ever closer, its spires glistening like crystal under the faint sunlight.

Aksara, walking alongside them, perked up and sharpened his senses, his ears straining to catch every word. Curiosity flickered in his eyes as he tried to piece together the conversation unfolding ahead.

"Hmm? No particular reason," Akh'sha finally said, his tone casual yet carrying an undercurrent of thought. "But do you remember the last attack from the Monster Sea?"

Taufik gave a silent nod, his expression tightening at the memory.

"What about it?" he asked. "Does it have something to do with the current state of the surrounding sea?"

Akh'sha let out a soft breath, his gaze drifting toward the distant castle. The memory surfaced, sharp and vivid, the day his kingdom was nearly wiped from existence. If it hadn't been for Taufik's intervention, there likely wouldn't be a single blue dragon left on Planet Draco.

"Saying it only has something to do with this would be an understatement," he replied. "That attack is the reason the sea around here has become so unstable. Everything changed after that day"

Taufik's brow furrowed. "But it's been years since that attack. Didn't Granada summon almost all the surrounding Sea Monsters that day, and we defeated all of them, shouldn't the sea have calmed by now?

Akh'sha shook his head slowly, his breath curling like smoke in the cold air.

"It should have. But something changed in the sea's core. We thought it was just residual chaos, lingering Mana from the monsters. But the storms have only grown stronger. The currents more violent"

He glanced at Taufik, his expression shadowed. "Some of the older dragons say the sea has become sentient. That it's... Remembering"

"Remembering?" Aksara echoed before he could stop himself, stepping closer. "You mean like it holds a grudge?"

Akh'sha turned his gaze to the boy, his eyes solemn. "I mean it like this: the sea no longer behaves like a force of nature. It watches. It reacts. And lately, it's been whispering"

Kiara, now holding her mother's hand, turned to look at the frozen horizon with wide eyes. "Whispering?" She asked softly.

Akh'sha offered a small smile that didn't reach his eyes. "Not words. Not in any tongue we understand, Sweetie. But the winds howl strange melodies at night. The waves crash in rhythm, like a heartbeat. And some of our kin who dive too deep… Don't return"

Taufik's jaw tightened. "So it's not over. The Monster Sea, it's evolving again?"

"Yes," Akh'sha said, his voice grim. "Or... Awakening"

For a long moment, none of them spoke. The castle gates loomed ahead now, two massive slabs of enchanted ice engraved with flowing draconic script. Guards stood sentinel, unmoving but not unwelcoming.

Finally, Taufik spoke again, his voice low. "If it's awakening… Then we need to be ready. Because if the sea remembers what I did-"

"Then it may come looking for you," Akh'sha finished, locking eyes with him. "And next time, it won't just be monsters... It'll be something far worse"

He paused, a faint smirk tugging at the corner of his mouth.

"Still, it's not all bad because now we do have an unlimited food supply, after all. But that's the trade-off. Leaving this continent has become harder than ever" Akh'sha chuckled lightly, trying to lift the mood. "Anyway, enough of this gloomy talk. Let's talk about you instead... Are all those children really yours?"

Taufik didn't answer right away. He glanced at Kiara, her small hand still wrapped around her mother's. The girl was laughing now, shyly responding to a dragon who had bent low and rumbled a greeting in the Old Tongue again. Her innocence was a light in the growing shadow.

He cast a glance at his children, Alice, Aksara, Litani, Anggana, Anindha, and the youngest, little Lavanya, each one walking with their own quiet rhythm, yet bound together by the same blood and journey.

He looked back at Akh'sha and gave a faint, tired smile.

"Yeah," He said, "they're all mine"

Akh'sha chuckled, clapping him on the back as the gates began to open.

"As expected from you, my friend, Then the future's going to be very noisy. And very bright"

The gates groaned as they parted, the sound like an ancient glacier shifting. Cold mist spilled out, laced with subtle hints of arcane energy. Beyond lay the heart of the Blue Dragon stronghold, Aistharion, the Frozen Crown.

Its grand halls were carved from enchanted ice, reflecting the light in soft hues of blue and violet. Massive columns held up archways that seemed to hum with a faint power, and every surface bore the script of generations long past, songs of war, peace, and the forging of oaths. The air shimmered faintly, filled with breath and magic.

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Inside, the warmth returned, not physical, but emotional. Dragons in humanoid form moved through the halls, bowing slightly in greeting. A few young ones peered from balconies and staircases, eyes wide with curiosity.

Anugerah's expression was unreadable, her hand trailing lightly across a wall of runes that pulsed at her touch. She whispered something too quiet to hear. The wall seemed to listen.

Aksara watched her closely, unease creeping into his chest. There was something about this place... He couldn't name it, but it stirred a sense of something ancient. Forgotten. Like the shadows of Tartarus, but colder.

"Your rooms are ready," Akh'sha said, leading them down a long corridor. "There's a feast tonight. Not in your honor, Blue Dragons don't do that sort of thing, but you'll be the center of it anyway"

"Food sounds good," Taufik muttered, rubbing the back of his neck. "It's been a long road"

As they neared the inner chambers, a sudden gust of wind burst through a side corridor. It wasn't natural. It carried no chill, but it made every torch flicker, and Kiara stopped in her tracks.

She turned slowly toward the dark hallway where the presence had stirred, her eyes narrowing as a cold shiver danced down her spine.

"Something's there," Kiara whispered, her voice barely more than breath.

Everyone else froze, the air suddenly thick with tension.

Akh'sha stepped forward without hesitation, he moved protectively in front of the girl. His sharp gaze pierced the shadows ahead.

"Where?" He asked, his voice calm but ready.

Kiara raised her hand, pointing into the void beyond the flickering torchlight.

"In the dark," she said softly, her brow furrowed. "It's not a monster. It's not even angry..." She paused, her voice tinged with confusion.

"It's... Sad?"

No one moved. Then Anugerah knelt beside her daughter, placing a hand on her shoulder.

"You heard it?" She asked, gently.

Kiara nodded. "It said... 'You're not the first'"

Akh'sha's face darkened, and for the first time, real concern flickered in his gaze.

"We sealed that wing a decade ago," he said quietly. "After the last time, someone heard voices"

Taufik stepped forward, his expression unreadable, voice calm but edged with curiosity.

"What happened?" He asked, eyes scanning the shadows. "Did your castle become haunted or something after we left?"

Akh'sha hesitated. "We lost three dragonlings and an elder. All of them claimed they were following... Memories. Of people who were never here"

He looked toward the corridor. "It's a part of the castle that predates us. We don't go there anymore. And we certainly don't listen to the voices"

Kiara looked up, her expression confused. "But it wasn't lying"

A silence settled over them.

Aksara's grip on his ninjato tightened.

Taufik sighed, already knowing deep in his gut: This wasn't just a reunion.

It was a warning.

....

...

..

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