Orion stepped on the snow, which made a cracking sound under his foot. He looked at the blue sky which had clouds scattered here and there.


    For some reason, he really liked the sky of the south. It wasn''t much different from anywhere else on Triazils, but there was something about it that was captivating to him.


    He exhaled white smoke from his mouth before moving to the place he trained with snowball the day before.


    While walking, there was something in his mind that kept repeating.


    "I''m so late!"


    With a quick movement of the wrist, he took out his pocket watched and looked at the time.


    ''It''s almost 1PM... There''s no way I''m not getting yelled at.''


    There was two options at this point.


    The first one, she already left. This was the obvious result when someone is more than five hours late. It was around 8AM when he told her to come at ''the same place, same time" a day before.


    The second and last one, she was still waiting. To be honest, Orion wasn''t expecting her to be waiting. He hoped that she returned home, so that he could directly walk to her house and meet her there.


    So, what expression appeared on his face when he noticed a redhead woman waiting under a tree with a cup of coffee she was warming up with her magic?


    ''Now I feel bad.''


    She noticed him and glared in his direction with anger visible on her face. But she said nothing. May patiently waited for Orion to walk closer.


    "..."


    ''She''s very, very pissed. I can''t complain though, I''m the one who made her wait.''


    Orion bent slightly forward, and apologized.


    "I have no excuses for making you wait this long. I''m sincerely sorry to have made you wait in the cold for hours."


    May took a sip of her coffee while staring daggers at Orion. Once done she sighed.


    "Knowing so little about you, once you''ve returned to your ''space'', more problems pilled up on you, isn''t it?"


    Surprised by how comprehensive she was, he straightened his back and looked at her with an apologetic smile.


    "Thank you for understanding. Though, know that it doesn''t excuse making you wait for so long. I thought the other matters would take only an hour to settle, but it took longer than expected."


    She handed him another cup, and poured some of the coldest coffee he ever saw inside.


    Without hesitation, he drank it, to May''s dismay.


    "Wha-"


    ''Cold coffee isn''t that bad once in a while.''


    He really enjoyed it.


    "I was going to heat it up for you..."


    Orion blinked in confusion.


    "Oh. Sorry. I really didn''t mind it being cold."


    With a smile, he drank more of it.


    "Never mind then. So, could you tell me what those matters were that took you more time than necessary?"


    "..."


    After a quick thought, he continued.


    "Sure. In respect for your consideration, I''ll tell you."


    "That''s what having responsibilities is. It was just frustrating thinking you wouldn''t come."


    Orion began to explain his morning.


    ...


    Slightly shaken by everything that Orion told her, a drop of sweat fell from her cheek into the snow.


    Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.


    "Are you sure it is fine to tell me all of this? I don''t really know about Remnants, but the politics of the lamias? I''m lost between believing you or simply considering you a fool for having so many important and powerful acquaintances."


    Once she said that, she looked at her empty cup and whispered.


    ''Yet, I''m no better I guess.''


    Orion heard her, but chose to remain silent.


    ''Is that related to that problem of her?


    "It''s perfectly fine. Nobody would even believe you, since you''ve never left Turric anyways."


    With a forced smile, she acknowledged that he was right.


    Now that Orion explained the reason for his tardiness, it was time to enter the reason for this meeting.


    She tapped on the cup with her index finger before looking at Orion.


    "Can I request your help, even know?"


    He nodded earnestly.


    "That''s why I''m here. There''s also something I need to understand about you, so I''ll hear you first."


    After placing her cup on the ground, she stared inside his grey eyes, and spoke.


    "You see, I''m-"


    Orion''s eyes opened wide.


    ~


    "You''re sure it doesn''t affect you in any ways?"


    Dramia asked Tiohr-nam, worried.


    "I am unaffected. Be it here, or in our realm, my body still function perfectly fine. My consciousness has simply moved to this body."


    The Avatar nodded.


    "Are you really going to go back to your old body?"


    This time, it was Drania who asked.


    "Of course. When I am done adjusting my magic to this environment. It will help me move my consciousness between both realms faster and more efficiently."


    "I cannot have Orion touch this tree every time I want to visit."


    While the sisters were worried about their old friend, Karteira was talking with Amelia.


    "It is hard to believe."


    "Yes, the more we learn about the Remnants, the worse it gets."


    -


    "Explain better, I don''t speak stupid."


    "E-Eh? Ah... sure. Sorry."


    "I will make it clearer for you to understand then."


    "You said to me about us being dishonest earlier, and that was when I noticed. You are right. Terribly right at that."


    "I am a Remnant. We are supposed to live distanced from our children, and only help when they need us the most. Is it programmed in our soul, or is it simply a general consensus for us powerful beings to not infringe on the laws of the living, I cannot tell you."


    "What I know is that things have changed. We have become too attached to our creations, to our children. I..."


    "wanted to know how these two were doing here. I needed to see their smile, away from their everyday life inside the fairy realm. Hearing that everything was going fine was not enough to stop me from wondering."


    "I also wished to be closer to you, the one who managed to save my life from corruption. As a friend. I did not want to leave on ''thanks for saving me, now you can go.'' "


    "Being alone can be painful sometimes, and most of our life as a Remnant is being alone. I haven''t seen my old friends in so long I can barely remember their faces. I am but a tree, without that puppet, no one would speak to me. That is why I created it."


    "Now, you want to learn the details about how I made it here? It is very simple."


    "The seed inside your soul is a bridge I can use to travel. My consciousness, or soul if you prefer to call it that way, was transferred to this younger ''Tree of Life''. What I originally gave you was a simple copy, a basic clone of myself."


    "I had to search for my own magic waves emanated by this seed, and then forcefully awaken it by sending my own magic waves to it. For someone able to open portals between realms like me, it was not that hard."


    "After that, I waited for you to touch the tree, I formed the magic thread by connecting your magic to the tree''s, and transferred my consciousness."


    "Now, I just have to wait and calibrate my soul so that it can move between my main body and this one by creating a bridge of sort. Once the magic bridge is formed, there will be no problems."


    "The rest might be too complicated for you to understand."


    -


    "Well, from mother''s expressions alone, I can tell she wasn''t lying."


    Karteira remembered the various expression Tiohr-nam displayed while explaining her motives for doing something like this.


    "The life of a Remnant might not be the best, is what we learned today."


    Crossing her arms, Amelia said while looking at Tiohr-nam. Their gaze met, and both smiled at each other.


    ''I never had anything against her, except asking Orion that suicidal mission to save her. Even if everything went ''well'', in the end, it was absurd to expect him to deal with everything.''


    ''Though... he was her only hope. I can''t hold it against her to rely on his strength. Most of us rely on him for many things.''


    ''This place wouldn''t even exist without him. A safe haven for a lot of beings now.''


    Amelia looked at Karteira.


    "Both of us, Dramia and Drania, the sirens, Sirius, and now Tiohr-nam. This place is getting filled with various people, and environments."


    Karteira nodded.


    "It''s to wonder what''s going to be next. What do you think that second project will be?"


    "I have no clue, just like you. But if Orion managed to complete this task, we''ll get something new around here."


    When Amelia stopped talking, she stared at Tiohr-nam, before walking up to the base of the tree.


    "Can I confirm something with you?"


    Tiohr-nam answered with a smile.


    "Sure, ask anything."


    "Will you be replacing the tree''s purpose? We still need those trees to finish our buildings."


    She pointed at the guest''s house in the distance, barely hidden by the main house.


    "Oh, that. I can do that with ease. Do you mind if I use Orion''s magic for that?"


    "I''m sure he wouldn''t mind. Don''t take too much though."


    Tiohr-nam laughed before correcting her.


    "I don''t use his magic reserves, I take his overflowing magic that vanishes if ignored."


    "Then it''s fine. He won''t notice a change."


    The Avatar brought her hands together in a praying manner. A green light covered her hands, before it traveled on the tree itself.


    All around Tiohr-nam, small sprouts began to emerge from the dirt. Everywhere were dirt was, a multiple trees were birthed to existence.


    "I will make them grow in a day. By continuously feeding them magic in small quantity, you will get the quality you asked for. I will also give you a bonus and transform those dirt patches in grass patches."


    "Let''s give this place a greener color, shall we?"


    Happy, Amelia nodded. She was all for it.


    ''I''m sure we will become great friends.''


    With ideas to make Horizon a better place, she began to talk with Tiohr-nam, leaving Karteira, Dramia, and Drania left out of the conversation.


    After a few minutes, noticing that they wouldn''t stop talking, the three of them went home to relax.