After the ordeal with Tiohr-nam was finished, the week flashed by as Orion and both Tetra tried to free the power of the void element from the curse Miasma placed on him.


    His determination to break free was entirely renewed, and his will to change only grew with each passing day.


    When Noah was here, he focused on observing him and talking to him, and when he was away fighting the hordes of corrupt beasts, Orion was working on freeing the void element.


    "This fucking corruption!"


    The past Tetra, with her right hand on Orion''s back, cursed loudly.


    "You''ve said that at least ten times already."


    Henrietta, observing Orion in case of a change occurring in him, sat with her arms folded to her chest while her legs crossed comfortably.


    Sporadically, she glanced into the water inside the table to watch over Noah.


    Orion, who was making a frustrated expression with his eyes closed, was standing perfectly still.


    "But Enri! I can''t even feel the source inside his body. There''s this strange wall blocking my magic."


    After explaining to them the source of the problem, it became easier to find the reason behind his struggle.


    From this era''s Tetra''s standpoint, she was unable to even feel the magic inside Orion. His magical veins were completely dried up, and a choke point appeared near the core, where the flow of magic originated.


    An entangled knot of corrupted energy blocked any attempt at revitalizing his magic system.


    At least, that was what Tetra managed to learn after multiple attempts.


    "I know. You keep repeating the same things again and again. This is something only you can do, so stop complaining."


    Henrietta looked at her with a frown, showing that she was done with her constant complaining.


    While Tetra was trying to find a way to his core, Orion and the future Tetra were focusing on trying to breach through from within.


    ''This is sickening.''


    A nauseating feeling was pulling Orion from within.


    ''Suck it up. We have to free your canals, or you''ll never be able to use magic again.''


    ''I know, I''m just saying it.''


    They had tried this more than ten times, with no results whatsoever.


    Even though they had failed every time, the failures did not pressure them. They knew it wouldn''t be as simple as it was before.


    Even Noah was unable to help him.


    —


    "I won''t be able to do it."


    "Why?"


    Tetra asked for his help at one point. As they talked in front of Henrietta and Orion, everyone heard his response.


    "Orion, you said that you could purify corruption with light magic before, right?"


    Answering with a nod, Orion knew where this was going.


    The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.


    "I also know you''ve used your light magic to heal any injuries for you and your friends."


    Again, he nodded. Then, Noah turned to Tetra.


    "I can''t do any of that."


    "We both used the light element very differently. I use it mainly as a weapon. The most I can do is heal myself, it seems, and I can''t control it."


    With a faint frown, he stared at her.


    "I had no idea the light element could act as a weakness for the corruption before Orion explained it to me, so I fear I''ll damage his core if I try to control the output while erasing only the corruption."


    —


    So, Orion and Tetra were left dealing with it together.


    ''I know I''ve depended a lot on those elements, but to see how powerless I''ve become without them is quite disheartening.''


    ''You''re right. I never thought about it either before— how grateful I was to have a body.''


    They were both missing a part of themselves, which brought them closer to each other.


    "Aaah~ I''m done!"


    Tired, the Remnant threw the towel again.


    "Thank you for the help."


    Orion opened his eyes and stretched while thanking Tetra, who sat next to Henrietta with a dissatisfied expression.


    "I don''t understand how it is possible to be alive and sentient with this amount of corruption inside you."


    "..."


    Orion sat on the opposite side of the table.


    "For that, I have some suspicions about the reason."


    "Is that something related to Nature?"


    Henrietta turned toward Tetra with a nod of confirmation.


    "I think it''s a perk of the Hero title."


    To that, Orion shook his head.


    "I don''t think it has any clear link to the title."


    "Oh? Why is that?"


    Genuinely curious, Henrietta glanced in his direction.


    "I remember the moment you''ve disclosed a few failures you went through. One of them, and I think it happened multiple times, was me falling for corruption."


    "My ally... Amelia had to kill me..."


    The face she made wasn''t pretty, showing a mixture of guilt and anger.


    "I see. Then there is something else at play."


    Her expression relaxed as she pondered the reason.


    ''It''s not that complicated. You have a high immunity to corruption after constantly purifying your body.''


    Tetra gave her opinion in his head before the other Tetra shrugged.


    "Doesn''t he simply have an inhuman resistance to corruption?"


    Orion turned to the other soul inside him.


    ''It''s incredible how you two share the same wavelength.''


    ''Haha~ Well, we''re the same person.''


    Watching Henrietta slowly turn to her friend with a judging expression, Orion kept quiet as she opened her mouth to say something.


    But, to everyone''s surprise, Henrietta stopped moving, closed her mouth, and simply stared at Tetra.


    "You know what? I think you might be correct. I was about to say that what you had said was the most stupid thing I had ever heard, but every so often, the most common answer is the correct one."


    Due to her sudden change, Tetra felt confused.


    "I''m not that stupid. You always say that, but it''s you who''s too smart."


    "You very rarely ask for my output on anything."


    The two looked at each other as if they were strangers.


    "Tia."


    Suddenly, they heard a voice coming from the center of the table.


    "Oh, shoot. I haven''t paid attention to Noah!"


    Tetra suddenly stood up and warped to his location.


    "That woman... I swear, she only lives and breathes for him."


    A melancholic expression appeared on her face as she looked into the water, seeing the image of her friend happily chatting with Noah.


    "There''s nothing I can do for her..."


    Her face was evident to Orion. Henrietta went through several retries already, and each time, she saw her friend suffer from Noah sacrificing himself.


    "We both know what is going to happen, and yet, we''re locked, trying infinitely to create a future where everyone can be happy."


    She tapped her fingers on the table, gazing at Orion.


    "Have you been attempting to write history because of Tetra?"


    Orion had to ask, as it was a question he had never asked her before. Seeing her openly mention the matter, he thought that the time was perfect to ask.


    Her eyes ventured left and right, aimlessly wandering across the room.


    "She''s my friend. As dumb as she might sound and act, she''s the only person I have left in this world."


    ''...''


    Oblivious to the future Tetra listening from inside Orion, she revealed things she would never speak out loud to her.


    ''So she really thinks I''m idiotic...''


    Yet, Orion could feel the genuine joy and relief in her voice.


    "It''s obvious Noah actively avoids her advances, and she''s too blinded by her ''love'' to see it for what it truly is. Even if I tried telling her otherwise, she never listened to me."


    This implied that she tried multiple times to make Tetra let go of her feelings, and she was unsuccessful each time.


    "And it seems I am the same."


    She frowned while speaking.


    ''What? She''s in love? I never felt it.''


    ''Listen quietly.''


    Telling Tetra to stay quiet, Orion added what he felt was the real subject of her last sentence.


    "You''re trapped trying to change ''Fate'', am I right?"


    She nodded silently, to Tetra''s disappointment.


    ''Oh... that. Of course.''


    Orion sighed quietly, which made Tetra instantly turn silent afterward.


    "I think all of us Remnants are bound by our power to some extent. We depend on them to resolve our greatest struggles."


    "We''ll never be free of this constant struggle because that''s what makes us Remnants."


    But Orion felt otherwise.


    "I had an inkling about the Remnants'' powers. I assume, like you do, that you are unable to influence much of your power."


    "To begin with, no one should be able to wield power capable of affecting the world as easily as you do. That''s why you have terrible consequences for each use."


    Henrietta was the one with the fewest effects happening to her, but in hindsight, she was the one with the worst mental state of all, enduring the countless attempts to rewrite the story of the world.


    On the other side, Tetra endured constant sickness and internal damage each time she used her power, depending on the range of energy used.


    "That''s why I believe it would be better for you to depend on others more. You should use me more to achieve your goal."


    "Use you..."


    From her expression, he noticed reluctance.


    "Not in the sense of taking advantage of me. I can act in your place and send the timeline on the right path."


    "Since you are constantly blocked by the same result, we need to try something different. Isn''t that what I was implying the other day?"


    She nodded.


    "I understand what you are saying. It''s simply... difficult to change my way of doing things after all of it alone."


    He knew how stubborn she was. Amelia was the same, not budging when she wanted to.


    "Enri."


    Suddenly, Tetra returned alone.


    "Tetra, where''s Noah?"


    Rapidly returning to her natural state, she moved her eyes to the pink-haired Remnant.


    "You did not listen through the water?"


    "I was busy discussing something with Orion."


    "In that case, it''ll be simple. I''m taking Orion with me."


    Surprised, Orion looked at her and asked the reason.


    "Why do you need me?"


    "Noah requested that you come."


    She walked around the table and grabbed his shoulder.


    "We''re going to Eogis."


    As she finis


    hed her sentence, Tetra warped to where Noah was with Orion.


    "Right. Parts of the village had been destroyed."


    Looking into the perfectly still water at the center of the table, she noticed four children behind Noah.


    "More orphans... What a terrible world."