"That's all."

Orion, with the girls by his side, finished describing everything that happened.

"It is a lot. Not only for you, but for Amelia too..."

Sitting straight on his chair, Dylan observed each one of them.

"A hybrid between two lost factions that I saved many years ago. A child that found herself needed for Orion to accomplish his goals. And a fairy that followed to help her newfound friends."

"Two fairies that were humans, the Remnant creator of those fairies, multiple Apostles on your side, the lamia Queen... and us."

"Tell me again, why do you fight?"

Knowing well enough why Dylan asked this, Orion still answered.

"For revenge."

Eliza looked at him with a saddened expression.

'His parents died long ago, yet they wished for him to have a normal life. He refused, simply because he couldn't accept what had happened to them. Revenge is one of the worst path to take.'

"Mom."

She looked at Nylon, who was right next to her.

"I get what you are thinking about. But if I was in his shoes, I would have chosen the same path."

"Nylon?"

His parents stared at him until he continued.

"If we have the choice between proudly accepting an heritage, or flee leaving everything behind, I'll be like him, and accept everything. In the end, even if he had chosen the other path, it would have caught up to him at one point. The man's resurrection is upon us, isn't it?"

Orion nodded.

"There's only three months left."

A heavy silence fell around the table.

"Why..."

Dylan's voice broke the silence.

"Why did you leave without telling me? Why now of all time?"

"..."

He remained silent.

'I can't say that I didn't want to have him involved in my problems.'

But his mistake, or luck, was to bring Amelia with him.

"I'll answer in his stead. He didn't want to involve anyone around him."

"I had to force him to come here, or else he would have completely ignored his own problems."

Knowing him all too well, her words were true.

"What do you mean by his own problems?"

Eliza asked.

"Orion is stubborn. He refuses to let the ones he care about get hurt. He knew that by speaking to Dylan about the situation with the Apostles, horrible things would happen to the beastmen as a whole."

"So we kept going around resolving incidents related to the corruption and humans all around, alone. Only recently did Orion began to depend on us."

Amelia touched the pendant around her neck.

"That's why, Karteira and I have been trying to change that. Coming here was part of the process."

*sigh*

Orion sighed in resignation.

"Don't go and tell them everything. You're making me look like a fool."

"But you are one? We wouldn't have this whole reunion thingy if you were honest to begin with."

Karteira added a little.

"That's..."

The two adults in front of them noticed something.

"Alright, I get that you didn't want me to worry too much or make rash actions that could have impacted us. But-"

Before he could continue, Eliza interrupted him.

"Are you three lovers?"

Both Amelia and Karteira looked at her with wide opened eyes.

'How did she know?!'

But while their thoughts were synchronized.

"Yes."

Without hesitation, nor being flustered, he confirmed Eliza and Dylan's guess.

This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.

"Dylan..."

"I have nothing to do with it! It's not my problem if both of them are popular!"

Both began to argue over something. Ignoring them, Nylon took over.

"I'm intrigued. You never asking Dylan to adopt you, what was the reason? You still didn't knew about your parents when you were younger, right?"

To that, Orion scratched his cheek in embarrassment.

"Well, about that... If I had left, Amelia would have stayed alone. And I didn't want to leave her."

"I didn't knew that?!"

The woman in question was shocked to hear that.

"But after learning about yourself?"

Orion nodded.

"I was ready to leave everything and everyone behind me. It only happened that Amelia was the Key. Of course, I was happy that she was chosen to be my companion, but placing her in danger wasn't really what I wished for her."

"Though, nowadays, she's strong enough so that I don't have to worry. Same for Karteira."

Another question formed inside Nylon's mind.

"Who would be stronger, me, or your friends?"

Dylan and Eliza stopped arguing in the back, and returned on their seat while Orion was thinking.

The answer was very simple for Orion, but to explain it clearly was a little complicated.

"I don't know, but following my instincts, both would win against you."

The answer made Nylon a little irritated, though he knew why he would lose.

"That is, if you fight without tricks. You are an assassin, right? Fighting head-on is not your strong point. One-hits and focusing weak-points are your strongest weapons, just like camouflage and long range attacks were my strong points."

Nylon smiled and agreed.

"I had forgotten that you learned both styles from dad. You know you stuff, brother."

They both smiled at each other, and let go of the conversation.

"And between you two, who would win?"

His mother couldn't help but be intrigued by the result of such a match. Unsurprisingly, both pointed at the same person.

"Orion would win, without a doubt."

He himself understood that. The man could warp around, fire dangerous arrows, or cripple his adversary with a single dark arrow. He was also strong in close combat, with devastating kicks.

If Nylon missed his only chance to strike, he would be immediately countered, and brought to defeat instantly.

He wasn't particularly bitter about it either. His father was also stronger than him. By simply following his training, he would grow stronger with time.

Not the same as Orion, but potentially stronger than Dylan.

"Is that all about the heavy conversation?"

Dylan crossed his arms.

"I think so. Why?"

The three guests looked at him as if he was about to say something important.

"First of all, thank you for telling us. I can't believe the little baby I've seen growing up each years managed to become such a stunning person. The fact that you've kept my teachings in your mind and used them to be a better person makes me incredibly proud."

"Not only have you saved a whole faction, you've saved multiple individuals along the way. It is way different than me, who chose to kill humans who made us beastmen suffer. There were some who died wrongfully by my hands too."

He looked at his hands and clenched his fist strongly.

"So knowing that you chose a different path than me makes me glad. Even I could do something good for another person."

Eliza placed her hands on his.

"I've said it before, no beastman will consider you a murderer. If you weren't here, a lot of us would have died or become enslaved to humans. I can't say the same for humans, but they never tried to harm you again, isn't it?"

He nodded.

"That is the duty of the beastmen's 'Savior'."

Getting back on track, he coughed, and looked at Orion.

"Secondly, you have my blessings. Having two partners is something only a few can manage. I have that strange feeling that a lot of women are aiming for you, just like it is for my own son. Well, good luck with that too."

Amelia smiled, while Karteira looked slightly pissed. Orion remained neutral, since he knew at least one other individual that was working to get his attention.

"I'll keep that in mind."

He bowed his head slightly.

"Third and last. I need to apologize for having never been by your side. I considered you like my son, but never acted toward making it real."

Dylan placed his forehead on the table, showing his sincerity.

"Don't break your back over it. For me, you will always be like a father to me. Without you, I wouldn't have had the determination to move forward. I remembered all of your teachings, and I will always remember them until the last moment."

The older beastman remained his head pressed on the table, silent. Only Orion and Eliza noticed it, but he was gritting his teeth while holding back his tears.

After a few seconds, he regained his composure, and looked straight in Orion's eyes.

"Promise me something."

"..."

"Do not throw your life away. You have people who love you by your side, so don't go and make them regret ever loving you."

All three of them looked at him with surprise.

'That lesson. I will remember it.'

With a nod, Orion agreed.

"Sure, I can promise that."

He placed a hand on both Amelia and Karteira's head, and smiled.

"I wouldn't want to make them unhappy anyway."

Amelia blushed while remembering the path that it took for her feelings to be accepted, while Karteira felt her love for him getting stronger.

'The same goes for us. We can't make him unhappy either.'

"Then continue on your path. As a token of respect, I won't act against the Apostles. I will continue my role as a 'Savior' as if I was oblivious to the recent events."

Dylan stood up from his chair, and walked toward Orion.

"I'm glad I was able to see you again."

He held his hand toward Orion, who stood up and grabbed it.

"Same for me. I'm glad to see you in good health."

The heavy conversation done, it was time for the women to enjoy some personal discussions, and the men to talk about what they did best, training.

A few hours went by, until late at night, when it was time for the group to return to Horizon.

...

"We'll return at some point. I've created a portal outside of your house, so you should come if you need something."

Orion reopened the portal that brought the girls here, and was about to leave.

"If something happens, sure. Feel free to come back too, if you need something."

They said their goodbyes, and just like that, Orion and his friends left.

"..."

"He his a good person, just like I was expecting."

Eliza smiled at Dylan, who kept looking at were the portal was. He looked at his son who was still sitting at the table.

"Son, how did you manage to make him accept being your brother?"

"Huh?"

Nylon looked at his father, and spoke honestly.

"I simply asked him, and he said that I could do whatever. He didn't mind."

With a smile on his face, Dylan thought that maybe Orion wanted a sibling deep down.

"Alright! Move your butt now, both of you! Time to clean this table, and move to bed."

Before picking up a few cups of the table, Eliza slapped Dylan's shoulder, making him return to reality.

"Sure."

They cleaned the table, end went to rest, as the day ended.

~

In Horizon.

"So, who's problem do I tackle first?"

Orion was sitting on his couch, his arms crossed. Deveralna and the sisters were sitting right in front of him on the other couch, while Amelia and Karteira returned to their rooms to change and rest.

"Can we do that tomorrow? I don't want to bother my mother at this hour."

Deveralna said, thinking that the middle of the night was maybe too late to have a serious and long discussion about the lamias future.

"Same for us. Tiohr can wait another day, though she will be incredibly angry."

"Sis... she was already very angry."

Hearing that, the choice was easy for Orion.

"Alright, I'll start with you girls tomorrow morning. After that, I'll help Deveralna with her problems."

"There's one more matter to take care of."

Amelia entered the living room with the tablet in her hands.

"A third?"

Confused, Orion received the tablet that Amelia handed him.

"Is that a joke?"