The air around the crossroads felt heavier now.
Not dangerous.
Important.
Like the next decision would matter for a very long time.
Feroz stared at the three gateways.
Learning.
Change.
Loss.
Simple words.
Yet somehow they felt much bigger than that.
Beside him, Vaheen continued pointing toward the middle gateway.
The path of change.
Silent.
Patient.
Waiting.
Rehan noticed Feroz looking.
"Don't let that decide for you."
Feroz nodded.
"I wasn't planning to."
The knife in his hand continued glowing softly.
Its golden light pulsed every few seconds.
Haya looked at it again.
"It's reacting to something."
Salman nodded.
"Question is... what?"
Nobody knew.
Feroz slowly walked closer to the gateways.
The glow from the knife became stronger.
The closer he got—
the brighter it became.
Then something unexpected happened.
The knife didn't react to the middle gateway.
It reacted to the left one.
The path of learning.
Everyone noticed.
Rehan's eyes narrowed slightly.
"Interesting."
The old man smiled.
"Very interesting."
Feroz looked at the glowing blade.
Then at the gateway.
Learning.
The path Haroon's knife was pointing toward.
The path Vaheen wasn't choosing.
The difference felt important.
Very important.
Haya stepped beside him.
"What are you thinking?"
Feroz stayed quiet for a moment.
Then:
"Every time I've followed something without understanding it, I've regretted it."
Nobody argued.
Because it was true.
The visions.
The fear.
The synchronization.
The separation.
Everything had happened too fast.
For the first time since leaving the valley—
Feroz wanted answers more than power.
He looked at the left gateway.
Learning.
Then at the middle one.
Change.
Then finally at Vaheen.
The figure still pointed toward the middle path.
Unmoving.
Patient.
Almost confident.
That alone made Feroz uncomfortable.
Finally—
he made his decision.
"I'm taking the left path."
Silence.
The moment the words left his mouth—
the knife glowed brighter.
The blue symbols on the left gateway slowly lit up.
One after another.
The gateway had accepted his choice.
The old man smiled faintly.
"Good."
Rehan looked relieved.
Haya looked relieved too.
Only Vaheen reacted differently.
The figure slowly lowered its arm.
For the first time—
it almost looked disappointed.
Feroz noticed immediately.
And somehow—
that made him feel even more confident in his decision.
The blue gateway began opening.
Light poured from within.
Soft.
Calm.
Not threatening.
The road beyond it remained hidden.
Impossible to see.
Rehan stepped forward.
"You should know something before you go."
Feroz looked at him.
"What?"
Rehan became serious.
"The path of learning doesn't give power quickly."
Feroz listened carefully.
"It gives understanding."
A pause.
"And understanding usually hurts."
That sounded about right.
Feroz laughed quietly.
"At least you're honest."
For the first time—
Rehan laughed too.
Meanwhile—
far from the crossroads—
Haroon stood suddenly.
"What do you mean it's a way out?"
Ibn Younus pointed toward the map again.
"The markings are reversed."
Younus looked down carefully.
Then his eyes widened.
He finally understood.
Haroon looked between them.
"Someone explain."
Younus slowly stood.
"Qadir wasn't trying to enter the threshold."
Silence.
"He was trying to bring someone back."
The words settled heavily.
Haroon felt his heartbeat quicken.
Someone.
Not something.
Someone.
And suddenly—
Qadir's final years made even less sense than before.
Back at the crossroads—
the blue gateway was fully open now.
The path beyond waited silently.
Haya looked at Feroz.
"Be careful."
Feroz smiled slightly.
"You too."
Then he looked at Salman.
Rehan.
The old man.
Even Vaheen.
Finally—
he took a deep breath.
And stepped through the blue gateway.
The moment his foot touched the other side—
everything vanished.
The crossroads.
The fog.
The voices.
Gone.
Feroz blinked.
And found himself standing somewhere completely different.
A small village.
Quiet.
Peaceful.
Ancient stone houses stood beneath a bright sky.
Children ran through the streets.
People talked and laughed.
For a moment—
it looked completely normal.
Then Feroz noticed something strange.
Every person in the village stopped.
At exactly the same time.
Every head slowly turned toward him.
And every single one of them said the same words.
Together.
In the same voice.
"Welcome back, Feroz."