Two days later, early in the morning.

"Papa!"

"Stella?"

Orion was getting dressed in his room before his daughter barged in his room frantically.

"Are you going to fight?"

She threw herself at his leg and hugged it tightly, unbothered by his exposed chest, showing his immaculate muscles.

"Stella! You promised me not to tell him!"

Amelia suddenly entered the room with a frown on her face, and a box in her hands.

"But!"

"It's fine. I was planning to tell her anyway."

He gently unwrapped her arms glued to his leg, and crouched in front of Stella. Placing a hand on her head, he stared into her eyes.

"It is true. I'm about to fight a very dangerous entity that wants to destroy the world, and your home."

"Why?"

"Because this entity hates me. I've been stopping his wrongdoings since way before I met you. That's why I can't ignore it."

Orion gently caressed her cheek and smiled.

"You don't want your house to be destroyed, right? Countless people will be hurt too if I don't stop him."

"I don't want you to get hurt, either. There are some matters that, as adults, we cannot ignore, and this is one of those rare cases."

Stella dropped her gaze toward the ground.

"Until everything is settled, I want you to stay put with your Henrietta and Tetra."

While unable to understand completely, Stella still timidly nodded.

After standing up, Orion looked at Amelia.

"So? What's this in your hands?"

"This?"

Amelia looked at the box in her hands, confused.

"Oh. The box. Yes."

She walked into the room, and approached Orion.

"Open it."

Holding the box, Amelia waited for him to open it with a smile.

'What about the box? Should I open it now?'

With a few questions in his mind, he hesitated before slowly reaching for the box.

Not a single sound escaped the box as its sides slid against each other. After opening it, Orion peered inside before opening his eyes wide.

"This is... When did you..."

Carefully, he took out the outfit from the box and scanned it rapidly.

On his left arm was a black vest with many intricacies carefully sewn into its sleeves and shoulders. Black pants rested on his right arm, decorated with golden threads stretching from the top of the belt area all the way down the legs.

Inside the box, a long mantle was carefully folded. Orion instantly recognized the outfit and even felt like shedding a tear due to his happiness.

"When we went to Hocride to get our swimsuits, I thought to bring your ripped outfit to that shop, and asked our friend if he could repair it for you."

"He was delighted to hear you liked his work that much, so he made a few arrangements to the previous design. I didn't find anything different besides the embroidery, but you should understand more than me."

A glint of pride shone in his eyes, before he turned to Amelia.

"Could you take Stella outside for a few seconds?"

"Alright. Stella?"

She held her hand toward the young girl, who looked at her with confusion. Stella grabbed Amelia's hand, and they both walked out of the room, not forgetting to close the door behind them.

...

Moments later, the door opened.

Stella opened her eyes wide at the sight of her father.

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"Looking good. Black suits you well."

"Thank you. I like it a lot."

Orion, now wearing his favorite clothes V2, walked out of his room with heavy footsteps.

Something about his aura seemed different, so much that Stella couldn't turn her gaze away.

"Papa... Are you a hero?"

The two adults suddenly stopped smiling at each other, and blinked. They dropped their gaze and looked at Stella with a dumbfounded expression.

"W-Why do you think that?"

Perplexed, Amelia asked her. It was a fact that only a few people in the house knew Orion's title, given by Nature, the entity managing the world.

Orion, Amelia, Karteira, Dramia, Drania, and Tiohr-nam knew about this. Henrietta and Tetra, too, knew, but everyone else was kept in the dark.

So why would Stella suddenly ask such a question.

"I don't know. Papa looks like a hero from a book."

"Stella."

While feeling conflicted about the matter, Orion suddenly realized that her eyes were showing a spinning galaxy inside them. It was very faint, but her power seemed to have caused her senses to become sharper.

"Yes?"

"I am not a hero. A true hero is someone who fights for everyone, not for selfish goals."

Confuses, Stella tilted her head.

"Then, why are you fighting?"

Orion nodded, and stared at her with a severe and almost scary expression.

"I fight to protect everyone in this house. To protect you. That's the only reason I fight. If I had to be honest, I do not care about anyone else. But my family, my friends, and my daughter, those are too precious to lose."

"You still don't like humans, do you?"

Amelia asked him with a smile.

"I never will. But at least I can tolerate them. If they can change, so can I. This fight is also a way to keep the work of Kamala, Florian, and Eric from becoming worthless."

"You're right. We can't let it end like this. Until all the factions are united, right?"

With a strong nod, Orion looked at Stella.

"In your eyes, I might be a hero, and that is fine. But know that many will think differently depending on their perspective."

"Why?"

Orion pondered for a moment.

'She's too young to understand, but it might be best to let her think over it.'

He crouched, making his cape drop and crease onto the floor.

"Imagine that I have to save you from another person. A strong adult with a knife."

Stella nodded. She quickly imagined the situation in her head.

"The man wants to cut, but I'm a hero. What do I do?"

"You stop the bad man?"

"Correct."

"But what if, while we fight, he trips and stab himself? His mother, who was watching the scene in horror until now, rushes to her son and cries."

"I would have protected you, but I would have also caused someone to be sad."

"..."

Stella looked down. She did not understand the underlying matter hidden between the words, but it was enough to make her agree that a hero wasn't always 'white'.

"That's why I will never be a Hero. I take lives to defend our peace, to avoid having certain people threaten the ones I love."

"I get it."

Suddenly, Stella looked at Orion with a serious expression, her hands clenched into fists.

'She seems to be holding something inside her, but unless she wants to tell me, I shouldn't ask.'

Orion straightened his posture before patting his daughter.

They both stared at each other for a moment, until Orion took a step forward.

Without a word, he walked downstairs, leaving her with Amelia.

"..."

Amelia looked at Stella, who was clenching the sides of her dress, with a disheartened expression.

'It's going to be difficult for her to accept it. For her, Orion is her savior and her hero. If there is a time she is indeed forced to face critics about his actions, she will prioritize him over anything else.'

'Orion was probably trying to make her realize that one action, depending on the side, can ultimately result in either a heroic or a heinous act.'

'A Hero's reputation is centered around killing his enemies. And for those exact enemies, the Hero can only be considered a cursed being.'

'That is why Orion will never see himself as a Hero, even if the world names him so.'

...

Wearing his brand-new outfit, Orion walked into the living room and sat in his usual spot on the sofa.

He sighed quietly and looked at the ceiling.

'What am I supposed to do?'

Placing his arms on the sofa's backrest, he thought about possible futures resulting from his fight against Miasma.

'Ultimately, the answer is simple. I live, or I die.'

'Easier said than done, though.'

His eyes closed slowly.

'I am fighting a Remnant who turned to despair. A terrifying monster who manipulated others to destroy our continent for a goal no one would even dare to imagine.'

'His determination isn't lacking and is probably greater than my own. I might be strong, but against him, will I be able to hold my ground?'

When he opened his eyes, he felt eyes on him. Glancing on the side, he watched a beautiful red-head walk in front of him, wearing her battle outfit.

"May."

She stood in front of the sofa opposite to Orion, and glanced in his direction with an unfamiliar expression.

"..."

"You're leaving in a bit, right?"

"I am. That's why I wanted to see you."

Orion straightened.

"That is unusual, coming from you. I was sure you would have left without saying a word."

She nodded.

"We haven't known each other for long, but you know me well."

Without waiting for his answer, she stood up from the couch, walked around the coffee table, and held his face between her fingers.

"..."

Silently, Orion stared into her eyes.

"I would usually refuse to let you see me like this, but in case something were to happen to me..."

"At least, I wanted you to know that I love you. You, the only man who would accept an anomaly like me with open arms."

Gently, she pressed her lips against his, before moving away as fast as she arrived.

She stopped near the doorway. With her back turned to him, she spoke.

"I'm joining everyone on the battlefield. Don't you dare die before me."

"If you promise to value your life, I'll agree to it."

"You're the only weirdo who would place value on this forsaken life anyway. But fine, just for you, I'll return in one piece."

The red jewel on her nape gleamed dangerously, as if agreeing with her.

Orion smiled the moment his eyes fell on her.

"Don't hold back anything. Show everyone that messing with you end with death."

"Haha~"

May stepped forward, opened the front door, and walked out of the house toward the portal hub.

'Be careful, May. We don't know what we're up against.'

~

While Orion was anxiously waiting for the first signs of war, an army began to appear near the border between Eogis and Triazils, where the edge of the corrupted dome was.

Miasma and his fifty thousand forces were about to start their assault.

Walking by his side, three shrouded figures and a powerful soldier, his most powerful subordinates, seemed to be waiting impatiently for the start of the carnage.

With Layla's body covered in a battle dress made of corrupted matter, and a malicious smile on her face, her words echoed in the empty fields surrounding her.

"Begin the attack!"

With her face darkened by malice, Layla looked at her troops marching forward.

'Orion, let's start our war.'

The start of a war named 'The Tainted War' was about to begin, engulfing the entirety of Triazils in the flames of corruption.