Returning to Dominate The World With My Knowledge System
Chapter 83: Homecoming

Chapter 83: Chapter 83: Homecoming

Tyler stepped off the plane and onto American soil for the first time in nearly a month.

The air smelled different here. There was kess dust and less heat.

Tyler carried only one bag. There was not much inside but just a change of clothes, a few essentials, and his laptop.

The terminal was busy, but he barely registered the crowd. His mind was quiet but focused, turning over everything he had been through since leaving.

All he could see was just a regular line at immigration and as he made a short walk to the exit.

Outside, he flagged down a taxi, gave his address, and leaned back as the city passed by through the window.

Buildings zipped past and he saw children dragging backpacks down sidewalks, couples arguing, a man sitting with his head in his hands near a broken vending machine.

Life here hadn’t changed. Not even a little. But he had. Maybe.

...

As the car moved through familiar streets, Tyler’s thoughts drifted back to Gumua.

He hadn’t abandoned anything. This trip wasn’t an escape or a break. It was transition and David would hold the line.

The meeting with Silvanus had been the first major hurdle. If Silvanus agreed, then everything else could move forward.

Freya would watch out for any betrayal and David would manage the people. The team would begin preparing for Tyler’s return.

But Tyler had to come back—for his mother, for his little brother, and maybe, for himself.

There were too many things left unsaid. Too much silence between calls and messages. His mom had tried not to make him feel guilty and Devin had tried to sound strong, and distracted. But Tyler knew better. They missed him. And they were starting to worry.

He owed them time.

And for everything he had now, he still needed them. He still needed to sit at the table, eat his mom’s overcooked rice, and argue with Devin about the PlayStation controller settings.

That was real.

And no matter what empire he was building, if he lost that, then it meant nothing.

...

The taxi turned onto his street.

It still looked the same. It was nearly a month since he left, so nothing has changed. Everything was still the same as always.

"Here," he said.

The car stopped. He paid the driver and stepped out, breathing deeply.

He walked up to the gate and pulled out his key. It was still there in his wallet, just where he left it.

He slid the key into the lock, and it clicked.

The gate creaked open and he was home.

He closed the gate quietly and stepped inside the compound.

Inside the house, Helena was cleaning the kitchen. She’d just set a pot of stew to simmer and was wiping down the counter when she heard the gate. She froze.

That was strange.

No one was supposed to be back at this time. Devin was still at school. And she hadn’t heard a knock or a callout. But she had locked the gate just a few hours ago, hadn’t she?

With a small frown, she stepped into the hallway and checked the monitor screen connected to the front camera. Her breath caught in her throat.

There, clear as day, standing by the front door with his hand raised to knock—was Tyler.

Her heart skipped. For a moment, she didn’t move. She blinked, trying to be sure. She leaned closer. It wasn’t a glitch. It wasn’t a mistake.

It was him.

Her hand flew to her mouth as tears rushed to her eyes. She dropped the small cleaning towel she was holding and ran to meet him.

...

Tyler had just lifted his hand to knock when the door burst open.

"TYLER!"

He had barely enough time to steady himself before his mother threw her arms around him. Her body shook with sobs, as she held him with a strong grip, like she thought he might disappear if she let go.

"You didn’t tell me... you didn’t tell me you were coming!" she said, her voice cracking.

He smiled, holding her close, his chin resting on her shoulder.

"I wanted it to be a surprise."

Helena pulled back and cupped his face with both hands. She looked at him like she was seeing a ghost.

"My God, look at you... you’ve lost weight. Are you eating well? You look tired—are you sleeping?"

Tyler laughed softly. "I’m fine, Mom."

She wiped her eyes. "No, you’re not. You look like someone who hasn’t slept in weeks."

"Well... maybe not weeks," he said with a half-smile.

Helena laughed and cried at the same time. "You idiot."

He nodded. "Yeah."

She hugged him again. "Don’t ever stay away this long again."

"I won’t."

She took his bag and led him inside, fussing over him, asking him a million questions about his flight, his work, his clothes, everything.

...

Thirty minutes later, the front door opened again.

Devin walked in, backpack slung over one shoulder and a smile on his face.

"Hey, Mom—did you—" he stopped mid-sentence when he saw Tyler sitting on the couch.

For a second, he didn’t say anything. His eyes widened, mouth open slightly.

"Big Bro?"

Tyler stood up. "Yo."

"WHAT?!"

Devin dropped his bag and ran over, tackling him in a hug.

"YOU’RE HERE?! You didn’t tell me!"

Tyler hugged him tightly. "Calm down, man. You’re squeezing my ribs."

Devin stepped back, still grinning like an idiot. "I thought you were still in... where was it? Ghana? No—Gumua?"

"Gumua."

"Yeah! I thought you were gonna be there forever! When did you get back?!"

"Just now."

Helena walked in with a tray. "He just landed and walked in like it was normal!"

Devin turned to Tyler. "Dude. You look older. Like, serious older."

They laughed.

Then Devin asked, "So are you back-back? Or just visiting?"

Tyler hesitated, then said, "Just for a while. But I’ll be here long enough."

Devin smiled and just nodded, like he understood what was going on.

...

That night, they ate dinner together like they used to. Tyler had missed his mom’s perfect cooking and he wolfed down his food.

As they ate, Devin told him all about school drama.

They laughed and joked, and for a while, everything felt normal.

When Helena finally went to bed, Devin followed suit. Tyler stayed up a little longer, sitting in the living room with the lights dimmed.

A part of him wanted to freeze this moment. Just... stop everything. Live here, quietly, with his mom and brother and forget about Gumua, Freya, or building anything.

But he knew he couldn’t. There was still work to be done. A lot.