Noah and Orion faced each other on top of a hill as a low, rumbling vibration traveled under their feet.


    Turning their faces toward the source of the shaking, they noticed a stampede of beasts running straight for the human village Noah was about to protect.


    Slowly turning his head back to Orion, Noah sighed while dropping his shoulders.


    "If you don''t let this destruction happen, it could affect people in your time."


    Orion looked over his shoulder at the village behind his back.


    ''The twins.''


    Recalling the people important to Orion, which he learned as a prize for winning their competition, Noah understood.


    On the other side, Tetra was freaking out inside Orion.


    ''I thought my power would interfere with destiny?! Why is Noah already here?!''


    ''He was supposed to arrive too late!''


    She was panicking, and for a good reason.


    Ignoring the fuss in his head, Orion turned to Noah.


    "That''s right."


    The look on his face was as dark as the abyss.


    "I can see that it doesn''t please you one bit."


    Smiling frustratingly, Noah walked next to Orion, his eyes glued to the human village.


    "You wouldn''t be pleased either, knowing that your family was in danger, but you were unable to avoid their fate out of fear of never seeing them again."


    "I just came here to be the witness to its unfolding."


    Noah glanced toward him.


    "Even if it rips your heart apart?"


    "..."


    Orion turned around, his face finally freed of the darkness.


    "Even if it kills me, I''ll make sure only these two survive."


    Biting his lower lip until blood dripped from it, his eyes were ready to see the carnage unfold.


    ''Orion...''


    Tetra wasn''t sure how to ease his aching heart. The tragedy that was about to happen was the start of Dramia and Drania''s difficult lives.


    Thousands of years of suffering, haunted by the death of their savior.


    ''I can... save them.''


    He clenched his hands while looking at the stampede approaching the village.


    ''You can''t!''


    Putting his entire will into not moving, Orion stood there, hurt.


    Noah closed his eyes as the flood of beasts trampled houses and people alike.


    This was a scenario he tried his hardest to avoid, but since these people were originally fated to lose their lives, he did his utmost to turn a blind eye to it.


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    "Where are you...?"


    Orion focused his eyes on the event, looking everywhere with the ''Eagle Eye'' ability to find his companions.


    ''Remember, they aren''t fairies yet!''


    Giving him the advice he needed, Tetra did her best to support his search.


    ''I know. Hazelnut hair...''


    His disheartened tone emphasized that this entire situation was dragging his heart through the mud.


    The prickly feeling Tetra could feel, which was actually coming from Orion, made her remember the day she had lost Noah.


    ''Twin sisters... twin sisters...''


    Orion scanned the carnage, looking for the poor teenage girls.


    ''!''


    Suddenly, Tetra gasped.


    ''There! Orion, there!''


    The sisters finally appeared in their vision.


    They were running away from a beast that looked like a giant prying mantis.


    Running past the dead bodies around them, Dramia, whom Orion recognized immediately from the frown on her face, was also showing pure terror and horror as she pulled her sister along.


    Drania was entirely lost, unable to comprehend the carnage happening around her.


    ''That''s when Noah was supposed to save them! Shit!''


    Suddenly, Tetra cursed, giving a piece of information Orion had hoped to have heard before this moment.


    "Noah!"


    With a horrified expression full of anxiety, he turned to the first Hero.


    "No time to think!"


    As the words entered his ears, Orion disappeared from his spot right in front of him.


    "We missed the timing..."


    Pulling a shard of ore from his pocket, Noah formed a sword with it. Leaning forward, his body was instantly covered in light.


    With a sharp push of his leg, he leaped into the air, crossing the distance in a blink.


    ...


    "Sis!"


    "Shut up!"


    Pulling her twin sister, the brown-haired twin ran past the bloodied corpses of people she knew.


    Their parents were no more. They were ambushed by beasts as they were trying to escape.


    ''I won''t let her die! At least her!''


    She was running away with every bit of strength she had in her body. She skillfully dodged other beasts devouring the villagers, but the one chasing them was unrelenting.


    It was rapidly catching up to them, but she wasn''t ready to give up. She wanted to at least protect her twin sister.


    This was her duty as the responsible one.


    But the end came faster than she was expecting. Even though she knew her village perfectly well thanks to her high intellect, the rubble caused by this massive destruction led her into a dead end.


    "Why!"


    She screamed as she turned around, putting her sister behind her back.


    "Why did this happen?!"


    Hearing the sobs coming from her twin sister, she cursed the entire world.


    "What did we do to deserve this?!"


    A gray praying mantis the size of a building crept its disgusting head around the corner of the broken-down building and emerged from it.


    It slowly approached them with its mandibles vibrating, as if delighted to have caught its prey.


    ''I at least wanted her to live...''


    With terror taking over her, she looked at the beast that leaned backward, ready to slash them into chunks of meat.


    But never once did she look away or close her eyes. She was prepared to meet her end.


    But, as the mantis'' arms fell on the poor girls, the space warped in front of them.


    The air felt heavier with fury as a man emerged from the warping air.


    "Get your filthy scythes away from them."


    The man dropped to the ground and immediately jumped toward the chest segment of the praying mantis.


    Before the twins could be injured, the beast was sent flying backward, exploding into a disgusting mess of green blood on the rubble.


    He had kicked the beast with such force that the twins were unable to comprehend what had happened.


    This commotion attracted more beasts, which terrified the sisters even more.


    As they recoiled in horror, the man dropped to the ground and glanced over his shoulder.


    "Don''t worry. Close your eyes, and it''ll be done before you know it."


    His warm smile managed to erase a fraction of their fear, as meek nods were given as an answer.


    Still, instead of closing their eyes, they kept them open, glued to the back of the man who valiantly stood in front of them.


    (Many people want to help today. It''s incredible.)


    The man whispered something that only the responsible twin heard. Confused, she noticed a light aura covering the man.


    "Celine, please share your power with me."


    From the man''s back, two mechanical wings stretched. They looked similar to a bird''s wings but were entirely made of metal.


    Water dripped constantly from the metallic feathers as they moved independently of one another.


    Suddenly, the first row of wings detached from the wings and, attached by a thread of water, began to fly around the area at an incredible speed.


    "No one said there would be ''Corrupted Lords'' in here. Some things did truly change for the worst."


    With a movement of his right hand, the man wiped a thread of blood flowing from the corner of his mouth.


    Bewildered by this scene that came straight from another world to the normal girls, they couldn''t help but look at him with their mouths agape.


    The feather relentlessly chased after the beasts, ripped them apart, and blocked the magical attacks aimed at them.


    Flames exploded in contact with the metallic feathers. Lightning was caught by them and sent back to its sender.


    Water was absorbed by the wings, and rocks and mud were obliterated, while the sharp wind blades were simply calmed down by the rapid movement of the feathers.


    Then, from a distance, a large explosion happened. A pillar of light arose from the center of the village, eradicating all beasts under its radiant light.


    It was too late for the villagers, but the twins, at the very least, were spared a tragic end.


    After half an hour, the entire village, albeit destroyed, was entirely freed of corrupt beasts.


    ...


    The reality came crashing down once tranquility returned to the village.


    A terrible carnage occurred, where chewed bodies spread throughout the place, people were crushed by their roofs, and dead monsters displaying atrocious deformities littered the streets.


    With heartbroken expressions, the twins looked at the two men who saved their lives.


    "..."


    "..."


    Orion and Noah looked at each other with mixed feelings.


    They knew that this entire moment was part of history and that it was unavoidable, but deep down, they hoped it would play differently.


    Especially for Noah. Seeing the hundreds of villagers laying still across the place wasn''t a pleasant sight.


    But for Orion, who was starting to grow as a person and separate from his innate hatred of humans, he couldn''t bring himself to look at them.


    ''They didn''t deserve this...''


    This was his honest thought.


    The twins could see the pain on their faces. A pain they were forcefully made aware of.


    With feeble steps, the twins walked toward one of them. They grabbed Orion''s legs and, hugging his waist, sobbed with anguish.


    They had lost their family, their friends, their village... Nothing was left for them to get even a bit of closure.


    With trembling hands, Orion lifted them and placed them gently on the twins'' heads.


    His eyes disappeared under a curtain of darkness as he tightly clenched his jaw.


    Then, a warm smile replaced his previous expression.


    "It''s alright. Let everything out. You''re safe."


    This smile took Noah by surprise. It was the smile of a man recovering something precious to him.


    The smile of a man who would fight legions to protect others.


    Through this tragic event, Orion and Noah managed to preserve the course of history.


    Dramia and Drania were safe and sound, and their trauma was still present.


    The only major difference was...


    Orion was the one who stepped forward to save them. Would this action change anything in the future?


    Even Tetra was perplexed about this question.