The next day, after Orion and Amelia had left the grove.

"Sir, we've found the missing unit. It seems like they lost their lives at the hands of the corrupted."

A soldier was giving a report to a burly man. His black t-shirt was too tight to hide the bulging muscles of his arms, or the perfect row of abs on his stomach.

"I see, those fools. If it wasn't enough to waste their life, they've wasted my time too."

"I expected them to bring me the cores, but they didn't even manage that. Anyway, did you retrieve the cores from the dead corrupted?"

The soldier looked afraid to answer, but he couldn't ignore the order.

"No sir, someone have beaten us there. The two corpses were already opened, with no traces of the cores inside."

"Is that supposed to be a joke? Do you mean there's someone who knows about this around here?"

Shock appeared on everyone's face after hearing his words.

"This is impossible, I thought it was a secret only the Apostles knew?!"

A few of the soldiers began to show concern.

"We have to think of the worst scenario first. Let's say they know about it. Did you find any traces of their fight? The weapon used?"

"We've found a few cuts on the wolf's corpse, indicating a sharp object. Something like a knife, maybe a short sword."

"On the boar, there are numerous injuries coming from a fight with the wolf. Lots of ripped flesh and open wounds. What surprised us was the hole in its skull, as if a spear had pierced it."

These were the observations the soldiers made of the scene.

"What do you mean by a hole through its skull? Is a spear even able to break through the bones of a boar?"

"No sir, it is usually impossible, even less against a corrupted beast. There were no trace of arrows around, so we believe it was the work of a single person."

"I understand, so someone that can use both knives and spear-like weapons."

The large man placed his fingers on the sunglasses that were resting on top of his head, and placed them on his nose while listening to the soldier.

"We couldn't find evidence about the number of people involved, as the area was damaged by the unit already."

The arrows Orion used were magic in nature, and dissipated with time, leaving the whole scene full of uncertainties for the soldiers.

"This is difficult to believe... Wait, you haven't told me yet, have the soldiers been killed by that individual?"

"No, they all show traces of bites, slashes, and dismembered limbs. They all fought the beasts until death."

He attested the findings, speculating that the individual had nothing to do with their deaths.

"The person who snatched the cores knew exactly what they were. They wouldn't have risked a fight with these dangerous creatures otherwise."

"We think so, too. All things show the signs of a veteran at work. In fact, we are sure they were killed without magic being involved. There were no traces of burns or badly destroyed terrain."

The magic they were all thinking of was the most basic they knew.

Those with a natural aptitude for magic usually showed trouble controlling their output, like the Apostles. It resulted in large explosion most of the time, gouging the land and buildings around them.

"So, we have someone who knows about our secret, who is highly dangerous and armed, and can kill efficiently without magic? This is the worst joke I've ever heard."

"So close to our annual meeting, too. Something's off. I'll have to talk to the other Apostles about this before trouble arises. Nothing can hinder our voyage to the church."

He turned around and walked away.

"Are we going back, sir?"

"Yes, take the corpses with you, we can still get some information from them if we study each one closely."

The author's narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

"Yes, sir, immediately!"

The troops began to move hurriedly, and finished cleaning the place in an orderly motion.

They left the grove, and returned to the city they came from.

~

"Thanks for the meal. As usual, you can cook anything, anywhere."

Orion put his fork on the table, full from his meal.

"Thanks for the compliment. We still have a quite a trip ahead of us, so we'll have to restock at some point. Can you recall any village around here?"

"Going west? There should be another village of beastmen, half a day away. But it's pretty risky, I remember someone in Auro speaking about human soldiers passing through."

"We can easily hide among them, we also need that stupid map, that you stupidly forgot."

"Go easy with the insults, or it'll become a bad habit."

"Fine."

With a shrug, Amelia dismissed the matter.

"Anyway, we should arrive at that village by evening. What's its name?"

"Thaalgar. It's rather difficult to pronounce. We'll find a place to sleep, buy the stuff we need, then we'll leave tomorrow around noon. Is it good for you?"

Thaalgar was another small village like Auro. Compared to most beastmen villages, it was situated not far from a human city, so soldiers passed frequently through. Since it was also used to resupply the troops, they weren't badly treated.

The villagers lived much more peacefully because of the soldiers protecting the area.

"Noon? Don't you want to leave around dawn?"

"We're traveling, might as well take the time to enjoy the journey. You're a woman, you need to sleep in a comfortable bed. You haven't been sleeping well last night, am I wrong?"

Surprised, Amelia stared at him.

'I almost forgot how caring he was.'

"It's not like it's going to make any difference. We have no idea if the seal is still holding, so we need to go there first. Then we will begin our plan to hunt the Apostles."

The whole journey to Eogis was to witness the sealed body of Elliott. If it was not found, the worst outcome was inevitable, but if he was still crystallized? Orion could begin his hunts without worrying about him.

He needed way more experience in battle to be able to kill a man such as Elliott.

"Do we need to kill all of them? What if some of them have changed over time?"

Hope for humanity still existed in both of them. If everyone was as bad as Elliott, all the factions would be extinct by now.

"This is a problem for the future. For now, think only of improving yourself. If you die, you won't be able to think about anything."

"True, I will improve my other elements, too. I still can't bring the fire out though..."

The trauma was lingering in her mind.

"Don't worry, it means that the time hasn't come for you to use it. You might be a penta-magi, but it's not like you had the elements mastered from the beginning."

Amelia listened quietly.

"Only through your constant efforts and willpower, you mastered the water and wind elements. Nobody is in a position to belittle your efforts, since it would mean disparaging my own efforts."

"How could I face my parents again?"

A sad expression replaced his smile every time he thought of his parents, Orianne and Reon.

"I swore to my father that I would protect you. By doing so, I will watch over your growth, I will watch you struggle, and I will watch you succeed. This is the path I have chosen."

A few seconds passed in silence, before Orion continued.

"In this world, you are my only ally. The moment the hunt begins, we'll be at war against humans, which is your faction."

"I don't want you to have regrets, but I cannot let you go either. All of this is a pressure I can't lift off me. The moment I accepted to avenge the angels and the demons, I had no choice anymore..."

Without realizing it, Orion began speaking parts of what he had bottled inside him.

'I had no idea, he never spoke about his feelings before. So this is what the 'Savior' of a faction has to endure. This is a heavy responsibility...'

He breathed a sigh of relief. Speaking his thoughts to Amelia brought some peace to his mind.

"Orion..."

Amelia looked down, entwining her fingers together in anxiety. Seeing her acting unusually meek, he listened.

"I never spoke about it, but I don't remember my parents. I was brought to the orphanage when I was one year old. I have never known human interaction, other than speaking with you."

"For as far as I remember, you were always there, no one else. I grew up watching you, I saw you training, and you saved my life."

"I don't care about anyone else. The day you leave me alone, this world will lose all interest in my eyes."

She looked at him straight in the eyes.

"I followed you in training because you needed me, you showed me I had value, that I wasn't just 'Amelia, the orphan from Auro'. Just by being by your side is enough for me to continue pushing forward. As long as you need me, I'll continue to support you."

Her gaze shifted to the ground.

"Even if I possess the 'Key', or not."

'What am I saying...'

"Thank you, Amelia. I'm glad you think like that."

"I thought I had forced you to share the same fate as me, but it seems I was wrong."

His smile eased her worries.

'I have thought multiple times she would leave at some point because of the unreasonable demand I made three years ago.'

They both fell into silence. After a few minutes, Orion thought.

'This mood is horrible. Let's change the subject, we've spoken about this enough.'

"Anyway, we should prepare to leave for Thaalgar. We still have half a day to get there, and it's past noon."

"You're right, I'll put everything away, just wait a second."

"I'll help you."

They tidied everything in their bags, and returned to the road.

...

Thirty minutes later.

The mood between them hadn't improved. As they were quietly walking on the dirt path, Orion opened his mouth.

"Sorry for that heavy discussion before. I didn't mean to-"

Amelia shook her head.

"Don't apologize, I knew it was time to tell you about it. Following you will never be a regret, just remember that."

"I will. Let's hope we can make it out alive after this whole mess is over, so you will never feel regret at all."

"I know you said I was your only ally, but I hope you find other people to support you besides me."

Orion looked surprised.

"I expected you to be more possessive, you always express your affection, so I wasn't prepared to hear that from you."

"You realized I made moves on you, but you never said anything?! You're a threat to all women in this world."

"What do you mean, I told you before, I need to complete my goal before accepting your advances."

"That's so unfair! How long are you going to make me wait?!"

They both bickered for an hour before stopping, and exchanged trivial words the rest of the way to Thaalgar.

An hour after sunset, the duo walked past the front gate of Thaalgar.