After winter came to pass, spring returned with blooming grace.


    Flowers, which hid from the cold, covered the entire realm.


    Critters came out of hiding, appearing occasionally to the residents of Horizon.


    As the weather became fairer, the master of the land pushed a certain plan into motion.


    Stepping out of a portal near Albriar, Orion breathed the fresh air of the continent, letting out a faint cloud of heat from his mouth.


    "It''s still quite chilly around here. I suppose it''s a normal occurrence for the southern part of Triazils."


    "Horizon is already warmer than this place."


    Looking toward the walls of the city, he shrugged.


    "I probably shouldn''t worry about this too much. Hocride is more likely to be hotter than Horizon anyway."


    With light steps, he entered the city after passing its checkpoint.


    ...


    "Is that the store Florian recommended?"


    Inside the massive city, a peculiar brick-and-mortar shop stood in front of Orion.


    Pondering with his hand on his chin, he looked at the name to check if it was the correct one.


    "Well, there''s no doubt about it. This is the right store."


    Seeing the countless rings and pendants made of clear metal displayed behind the thick glass, he smiled.


    Firmly nodding, he entered the building without giving it a second thought.


    "Welcome."


    As he stepped inside with his right hand in his pocket, Orion was greeted by a gentle and respectful clerk.


    The woman, who appeared to be in her early thirties, bowed lightly forward. She was wearing a fine suit, which promoted the seriousness of the establishment, alongside the luxury placed all around.


    "Hello."


    Greeting the clerk back, Orion approached the counter.


    "Are you perhaps looking for something, sir?"


    As he stopped in front of the woman, he nodded. For a moment, she stared at him with awe, as a pure feeling emanated from him.


    Like a prince from another country, his regal appearance stunned her the more she observed him.


    "Yes. This place was brought out by your Lord during a conversation we had, so I came to check if you really accepted orders."


    The clerk opened her eyes in a stupor and frantically straightened out.


    "L-Lord Florian did? Could I ask who you might be, if it isn''t presumptuous of me?"


    "Hmm? I''m Orion Feales. One of his close friends."


    Nonchalantly, Orion gave a fair smile while looking at the selection of rings under the glass casing between them.This book''s true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.


    "O-Oh!"


    For a moment, she appeared doubtful. To make sure, she asked another question.


    "Are you perhaps aware of Lord Florian''s business with us? Are you here for the same matter?"


    Without moving, his eyes went to the clerk.


    "I''m here for basically the same reason. He told me you make the greatest wedding rings in the city, so I came to check this for myself."


    Her doubts instantly disappeared, replaced by a textbook professional smile.


    "I thank you for the compliment. We pride ourselves on our craftsmanship, so hearing such words from our Lord himself only makes us more eager to produce greater results."


    Orion straightened and pulled out a piece of paper from his pocket with his right hand.


    Placing the paper on the glass counter, he slid it in her direction.


    "Could you prepare this for me?"


    The clerk picked it up before opening it. As she read what was written on it, she nodded.


    "I understand it to be improper of me to ask, but is this truly for ten people? One man and nine women?"


    Giving a clear nod, Orion smiled.


    "It is not at all improper. I understand your suspicions."


    "We aren''t exactly humans, so you shouldn''t assume our customs are the same as yours. That is all."


    She read the paper again with a neutral expression, until she nodded.


    With a professional smile, she carefully tucked the precious information he gave her.


    "We have nothing against joyous events like this. The more, the merrier, as we say."


    "Thank you for your patronage."


    With one glance, she already knew Orion would pay, so she instantly thanked him.


    After making sure his order was placed, Orion asked for the price of crafting everything. The amount was quite high, as they used the finest metals and jewels, but he was never stuck on it to begin with.


    This was a tiny investment compared to the everlasting happiness it represented.


    Satisfied, he walked out of the store after getting the approximate date for the finished products.


    ...


    ''I''m starting to get the gist of it.''


    Walking around the streets of Albriar, Orion''s vision shifted as a white, semi-opaque layer covered his irises.


    Through this perspective, he could see the silhouettes of people in various hues, going from grayish to black.


    Hardly any people showed a radiant white color, always turning toward the gray area rather than white.


    With a few trials and errors, he finally understood how to manage the ''Eyesight of Purity''.


    ''So, those with lighter color are those who are pure, and those who aren''t. What does this mean?''


    Shaking his head, he released the power from interfering with his vision.


    ''I don''t know yet.''


    Someone''s purity wasn''t dictated by the crimes they had committed or by their overall predisposition to wickedness.


    He hadn''t tried to use it on his family yet, trying to carefully observe if his use could affect others.


    There were far too many mysteries behind this power, and Orion wanted to be extremely sure before pointing it toward his family.


    ''It doesn''t seem to affect others apart from me, so it might be alright to try more things.''


    Suddenly, he stopped in his tracks.


    Without caring to hide it, he placed his hand into an empty space. As his hand disappeared, he searched for something.


    When he felt it, he pulled the item out of the spacial storage, which he mastered since his return.


    Orion pulled out a glass vial with a plastic cap. Inside the vial, a clear bead rolled before coming to a stop.


    ''Blanc. He is my best bet at understanding this power.''


    Inside his core, he despised the man who brought the many horrors that befell him and his companions.


    But hate wasn''t going to control his life anymore. Unshackled through his actions, he aimed the vial at the sun with a neutral expression. As light passed through the bead, a prism-colored ray lit the pavement.


    ''Not yet. I''d rather learn most of it myself than go through the easy way. It wouldn''t be fair to him anyway.''


    There was no reason to bring Blanc back for something so little. When the time came, he would be freed.


    Throwing the vial into the magic storage, Orion shrugged and continued down the road.


    ''I guess I can still prepare the trail ahead instead.''


    Turning into an empty alley, he vanished.


    ...


    "It''s the first time I''ve come here since Elliott and Nylon freed this place."


    Above the walls separating Triazils from what was formerly the Frigoria Plains, Orion observed with awe.


    Lush lands across the entire horizon, a large amount of fauna having taken back the land that had been corrupted and the tall mountains opposing the Talviera Mountain Range that were now in full display.


    Suddenly, Orion winced as he noticed some sort of movement above the clouds over the mountain.


    "What''s this?"


    He wasn''t sure what it was, as this was more than a hundred kilometers away from his position.


    All he could tell was that it was a rather large creature, unknown to him. It wasn''t a dragon, which was too big, but not a bird either, which was too tiny.


    Curiosity took over him, but he contained himself.


    "There''s something else to do. Since it is on the way, I''ll check it out later."


    With a smile, Orion stepped past the edge of the wall and fell straight down.


    His speed shifted and slowed down before his feet touched the ground.


    "Alright. Let''s move. I don''t have all day."


    Taking a step forward, Orion warped away.


    ...


    Using countless effortless warps, Orion traveled through the Cepha?d rapidly.


    What took weeks for Elliott and Nylon, he turned into hours.


    At multiple points during his warps, he found a few remnant traces of their battles.


    The most shocking finding was the carcass of a truly massive worm that had entirely solidified into rock.


    Scorched marks indicated that the enemy was a fire wielder and that this fight had been a true test of might.


    Compared to the normal corrupt beasts, these giants weren''t affected by the disintegrating state they went through after dying.


    All that was left was the aftermath and their lifeless corpse.


    He couldn''t believe Nylon had fought against those creatures alongside Elliott. The thought of asking them both about their achievements came to mind, which he told himself to ask later.


    Before the sun even began settling past the horizon, Orion arrived at his destination.


    "Damn..."


    With a frustrated smile, Orion observed the corpse of a gigantic spider split in half, rotting pungently from afar. Ignoring it, he looked at the dilapidated lab, which was his goal all along.


    "So, I just have to place a portal here..."


    Near the entrance, he laid down one of his portals that led to Horizon.


    "I''ll have to recalibrate it later so that it goes into the hub-"


    Suddenly, a shadow covered his spot. As he finished placing his portal, he instantly went into his cautious mode and prepared to defend against anything that came at him.


    "KAAAAAAA~"


    A violent blast of wind descended on him as a large creature dropped to the ground.


    Its cry was something completely unknown to Orion, but as he protected his eyes from the sand, he was unable to see clearly the creature.


    "Tsk!"


    Irritated, Orion swiped his hand forward, covering his body in a white light.


    Six wings of light pushed the dust away, revealing the creature in front of him.


    "Wha-"


    Shocked, Orion opened his eyes wide at the discovery.


    "A Griffon?!"


    A four-meter-wide griffon landed in front of him, glaring at him.