"Job''s done."


    Noah''s murderous aura disappeared as he returned to Orion.


    With the words Tetra spoke to him previously, he questioned himself.


    ''Is it alright to make him even more powerful, even after saying that we shouldn''t interact with this era?''


    This was troubling. Tetra was actually letting her own emotions speak instead of following Henrietta''s warning.


    ''...''


    Taking this moment to think when Tetra wasn''t able to listen, Orion thought very intensely on the matter.


    ''Miasma... You fraudulently managed to flee while I was busy pushing back that black hole.''


    ''I should''ve been more careful in destroying your magic containers.''


    He contained the flurry of insults he wanted to throw at the Remnant.


    Not only had this fight brought him to his very limits, but it was ultimately for nothing.


    Suddenly, Orion opened his eyes wide.


    ''That fucker! At which point did he return?''


    The prospect of Miasma trying his worst to change the past became an instant worry.


    From what Tetra explained, the Remnants were unable to influence past a certain threshold in time. This point was the day they became Remnants.


    That means, even after going back in time, Miasma most likely realized he wouldn''t be able to succeed in saving Frey since this moment was remotely inaccessible.


    ''It''s not his body that returned... His mind traveled back instead. Compared to me, who remained trapped in the ''Corridors of Time''.''


    This was merely speculation at this point, but that would be the only explanation. Miasma''s body truly died at that moment, but the bead that composed his being survived.


    Unknown to the number of magical containers still fueling his dastardly plans, this wasn''t a thought during the actual battle.


    Orion had been too fatigued by the end of it to think about his many lives.


    Still, he destroyed one. He was sure of that.


    ''That explains the lack of cores on that giant corrupt beast and the smaller ones.''


    Henrietta told him, when they had met for the first time, that Nature created this rule to hinder his army of immortal creations.


    The immortal trait was gone for good, but at the time of Noah''s era, the cores were prevalent.


    Without them, it was a matter of knowing Miasma. The Miasma of his present created these types of creatures.


    But there was one detail that he didn''t ignore.


    ''What I find strange is why that giant turtle didn''t release that shadowy form.''


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    The giant eel, the brown dragon, the giant Kagalkan, Disaster— all of these were corrupted to the point of turning entirely.


    ''Maybe I''m overthinking. This was most likely a creation of this time, and Miasma simply neutralized the cores.''


    The picture became clearer for Orion.


    ''If this cheating bastard is trying to cause trouble for everyone in our time, then I have no choice but to retaliate.


    With a chilling smile, he whispered.


    (I''ll send you the most troublesome, overpowered Hero on your sorry ass.)


    Tetra listened quietly as she noticed a shift in Orion''s stance on the matter.


    (Not one, but two. I''ll hunt you down and make you pay for separating from my partners.)


    After being separated from them for so long, his possessiveness was through the roof.


    He wanted to see them, hold them, pamper them, and live life with them, but now it was impossible.


    "Orion."


    Noah stopped in front of him, pulling him back from his plans to mess with Miasma.


    "You truly are a powerhouse. Yet, as far as I can tell, this isn''t even a fraction of what you can do. Am I wrong?"


    Orion hadn''t ignored the battle. Even while speaking with Tetra, he processed everything Noah was doing.


    "Destroying an army of that size alone is already a feat by itself, but in so little time? It proves that you aren''t fighting at 100%."


    Crossing his arms with a faint smile, Noah asked.


    "And how do you know that?"


    The two men stood in front of one another with a disconcerting pressure exerted on them.


    They were the same. Everything concerning them was very similar, except their lives.


    That''s why Orion bent the knee first.


    "We are... the same."


    "We walked a path of destruction... of desolation, where our lives meant nothing."


    The expression Noah made was one of frustration.


    "Our path led to the same result. Both of us were meant to die, leaving behind what we had protected."


    Orion looked downward.


    "I''ve been led to believe vengeance was my only path, to self-destruct after completing my purpose."


    "Miasma was cunning enough to win against you, even though you possess a power even stronger than mine."


    Clenching his hands into fists, he then stared into Noah''s eyes.


    "You and I are two different sides of a coin, yet we are on the same coin. We are Heroes. We fight for others, relinquishing our lives to protect the weak."


    With a determined look, Orion ignored the heavy pressure emanating from Noah and walked in front of him.


    "Noah, let''s break this curse. Together."


    He extended his hand toward him, who remained standing with a dry smile on his face.


    ''Will he accept my offer?''


    A bead of sweat rolled down his forehead as he waited for the man''s answer.


    "You have balls of steel."


    The aura around Noah vanished as his arms dropped to his sides. He shrugged before scratching the back of his head.


    "What you''ve said is exactly right. From the beginning, I knew that this world would lead me to my death."


    Orion caught on to the little detail.


    "This world?"


    Noah nodded.


    "I believe I can trust someone who came from the future. If you don''t know, then it means I have kept it hidden, even until the very end."


    ''...''


    Tetra listened with trepidation.


    "I am a stranger to this world."


    The way he had said this made him sound like someone who came from another continent.


    "You came from..."


    Pondering, Orion kept quiet.


    "I was spirited away from another... world, is all I can really explain. A different plane of existence, somewhere unrelated to this entire world."


    The revelation shocked Orion and made Tetra gasp.


    ''Wait... what?''


    Tetra was unable to process the discussion.


    "Spirited away... You were taken from your original world. To... fight for us?"


    Orion''s expression began to morph as he processed the words. From shock to neutral, and from neutral to anger feelings.


    "I had a wife and a son. After all this time, the only thing I have from them is this picture."


    Putting his hand in the left pocket of his pants, Noah pulled out a device very similar to what Reon used to craft.


    He opened the device, and a small screen appeared.


    "It''s called a phone, by the way. This is the only thing I had on me at the time."


    Clicking on one button, the device''s screen lit up, revealing the picture of three people in a strange place where buildings grew as tall as the lamias'' castle.


    He extended the ''phone'' to Orion, who gently held it in his hands.


    "..."


    The emotions were raging inside of him.


    ''He had... a family. They were happy together.''


    Seeing the smiles on their faces reminded him of his own family, which he dearly missed.


    Tetra''s mind crumbled as she learned that Noah already had people important to him.


    ''That''s what he was... looking at with such a melancholic stare...''


    Orion could feel the great sorrow emanating from her. She wasn''t jealous of his family, she was simply heartbroken to learn the truth.


    ''Was I... not enough? He never revealed anything to us.''


    This wasn''t a secret Noah kept to himself, yet he never felt the need to explain his circumstances.


    He had his duty, and instead of dwelling on depressing thoughts, he picked up the sword.


    With the tiny spark of hope that one day he would return to his family.


    Gritting his teeth, Orion gave back the device.


    "As you''ve said, we are alike. I cannot see my family, and you are unable to return to yours."


    "Our struggles are very similar, too, with Miasma being the main concern for both of us."


    Orion nodded, holding the feelings of rage inside of him.


    "Who... or what, pulled you into our world?"


    Noah pondered.


    "I think it was Nature herself. I am not entirely sure."


    Both Orion and Tetra felt an intense rage fill their souls. They rapidly extinguished this furry following a deep breath.


    ''If she had to bring someone from another plane of existence... it means that she had no other choices?''


    Tetra''s voice trembled as she tried to find a reason for dragging an innocent, unrelated man into their world.


    Orion joined her in that thought.


    ''At that moment, she might not even have obtained her sentience yet. We can''t judge her actions without asking her...''


    Miasma was growing stronger, and nothing appeared to regulate this turnover. With no other choice, she crossed the line between this one and another world, bringing Noah to become the Hero of Triazils.


    This time, Noah extended his hand.


    "It would be an honor to have a companion like you, Orion."


    With a neutral expression, Orion nodded.


    He grabbed Noah''s hand and smiled.


    "Likewise. We will


    both break this hateful fate."


    And with an intense will, his eyes shone the sigil of the Remnant of Space and Time.


    "And I swear to you."


    Tetra''s voice overlapped Orion''s.


    "We will return you to your family. Safe and sound."