Reborn as an Extra Chapter 908: A New Adventure! Team Astra, Assemble! Part-3.

Rio patted Liam’s shoulder and spoke in a motivating tone.

"Achieving the goal through external help without ever understanding or walking the path yourself will basically make your foundations hollow; a small change in trends and world situations can destroy this company of tea making and make the person go bankrupt..."

Liam straightened a little under Rio’s motivating pats, and a thoughtful frown appeared between his brows as he considered the words carefully.

He finally realized why Rio wasn’t willing to modify others’ paths, as the result would be something that looked beautiful on the surface but was empty underneath, like a lovely house standing on soft mud.

As if noticing the disappointed look in Link and Liam’s eyes, Rio comforted,

"But if the person himself had those skills to be considered the best tea maker, no storm would be able to break him..."

A person with true skill carries his foundation within himself, and no one can take it from him, no matter how far the world may change around him.

"You understand what I am saying? To be truly powerful and great, a person has to walk their own ’Path’ and ’Earn’ their own strength through their own hard work; others can only help you to a limited extent..."

He looked from one face to the other, waiting patiently until each of them gave a slow and serious nod.

Liam repeated the words softly to himself, as if engraving them somewhere deep in his memory so that he would never forget them.

"The results ultimately have to be earned by you yourself..."

The garden fell silent for a few seconds, and only the faint sound of the wind passing through the flowers could be heard.

If modifying ’paths’ to directly ascend and gain power were a feasible method, Rio would have already helped Lia ascend to rank SS by now.

There had been countless nights when he had been tempted to do exactly that, to simply reach out and lift her up with his hands.

He didn’t do it because Lia had to walk her path on her own; him interfering with her path would do her more harm than good!

Lia’s strength belonged to her and to no one else, and he respected her choices far too much to ever take that proud achievement away from her.

"Hey guys! If you three are done chatting, then let’s get going! The carriage is ready!"

Just when Link and Liam were about to ask more questions, the cheerful voice of Riya rang out from afar and jolted them all back to their senses.

The three of them blinked in surprise and then exchanged small and guilty glances.

Unlike the last time, Selain had brought a massive, luxurious, and magical carriage with her that could carry people through portals and help in transportation.

Its polished body gleamed in the morning light, and elegant carvings of dragons and clouds curved along its sides, with soft glowing lanterns hanging from the roof.

Seeing that the girls had already boarded the carriage and were staring at the three of them as if confused about why they were whispering to each other in a corner, the three of them dared not dilly-dally any longer and boarded the carriage immediately.

Sitting in the carriage, Lia looked at Rio curiously and asked,

"What were you three whispering about in secret?"

She tilted her head to the side with a curious smile, and her long hair slipped over her shoulder as she waited for an answer.

At that question, Rio’s tendency to be mischievous jumped out once again, and he replied,

"Nothing secretive... I was just telling Link to use more deodorant if he’s not bathed for several days; I was just scolding him for being a stinky rotten mushroom."

A wicked little smile crept across his lips, and Link, who knew that smile all too well, felt a chill run down his spine.

Rio said it with such a calm and serious face that for a second even Selain was fooled and glanced worriedly at Link.

Hearing those words, everyone burst out laughing, and Link rolled his eyes at Rio as if used to his absurd pranks by now.

The laughter rang inside the carriage like little bells, and even the usually quiet Ellie covered her mouth with her hand as her shoulders shook.

"No way, I bath daily! There’s a limit to how much you can bulsh*t!"

Rio shrugged his head at those words and spoke,

"Look, we all know the truth; Liam even puts a mana field barrier whenever he’s around you to prevent the smell from getting close. You should really consider taking showers every once in a while..."

He leaned back in his seat with the relaxed air of a man who had won an argument without even trying.

He pinched his nose with two fingers and made a dramatic, wincing face, which sent the girls into another round of giggles.

While laughing and joking with each other, the group headed toward a new adventure once again!

The wheels rolled smoothly over the garden path, and the sound of their cheerful chatter slowly faded into the distance behind them.

Somewhere in the middle of all the teasing, the worry that had weighed on the group since yesterday had loosened its grip, if only for a short while.

...

The magic carriage flew through the portal, and the group arrived at the Dragon Valley in an instant!

A swirl of silver light wrapped around the carriage for a heartbeat, and when the glow settled, a completely different world lay before their eyes.

But unlike the last time, once the carriage landed, the group found themselves at the foot of a massive mountain range.

A cold wind swept down from the towering peaks, carrying with it the faint, unpleasant tang of something rotten.

Near the foot of the mountain range was a massive fortress built with magically enchanted materials.

Its tall walls were lined with watchtowers, and dragon guards in gleaming armor stood stiffly along the battlements, their eyes always turned towards the summit.

Rows of banners bearing the crest of the dragon race fluttered in the cold wind, though their bright colors looked dull beneath the heavy shadow of the mountain.

Once the group got down from the carriage, they immediately noticed the massive wormhole portal emitting an overwhelming miasmic aura located right at the topmost peak of the mountain!

A heavy and sticky feeling pressed against their skin even from this distance, and a few of them instinctively took a deep breath to steady themselves.