As Orion blacked out, he felt a sudden pulse coming from the bracelet in his pocket.

"Kh..."

Biting his lower lip, he forced blood to flow out and pulled his consciousness back to reality.

'Orion?!'

Hearing Tetra's voice, Orion confirmed that he was conscious.

When he opened his eyes, he had one knee on the ground while holding his head.

"Run! Everyone, run!"

The beastmen began to panic at the sight of the first wave of enemies coming toward them.

"This is bad. Even for me, flying enemies are a pain to deal with."

Noah frowned while Tetra gasped in shock.

Both were unaware that Orion had been suffering some kind of headache.

"We're going to die!"

Something wasn't right with Orion. The voices, which he had heard before blacking out, began to merge with the voices of the beastmen.

Then, his vision blurred. A different scene, yet very similar, played in front of him as he struggled to keep his mind working.

'What... Damn it!'

Orion pulled himself off the ground and took a step forward.

The radiating feeling coming from the bracelet began to permeate through his thigh muscles. As he noticed it, he slowly put his hand inside his left pocket and pulled it out.

'Orion, what is happening? Where are we?'

Tetra, who was deeply rooted in his core, could see the same thing as him.

'I... don't know.'

His head was thumping horribly, to the point that his thoughts were clouded by the pain.

Still on his spot, he looked around with one eye open.

"Flee! Go to the spot we've been told to!"

"But what about them?!"

"Think of your life first! They are fighting for us, knowing full well that they are sacrificing themselves!"

Two women ran past Orion as if he weren't there, ignoring him entirely.

'Those people... Orion, look around.'

Hearing Tetra, his blurred vision began to clear out, revealing the place he was in.

"!"

Both Orion and Tetra gasped in pure horror.

'I knew it! Why are we here?!'

The features of the people running past them screaming were all familiar to Orion, or at least, closely related to him.

'This is when...'

In great distress, Orion focused on the matter in front of him to distract himself from the pain.

'Yes...'

Tetra's hesitation confirmed it to him.

'This is the day the angels and demons... perished under Elliott's carnage.'

They knew that the true culprit was Miasma and that the most affected by this event was Elliott.

Not able to contain her confusion, Tetra began to frantically try to understand.

'Why are they running this way?'

As Orion turned his head toward the direction west of the clashing and explosion sounds, this made no sense.

Since there had been no survivors, it was questionable as to why they were directly staying near a disaster such as Elliott.

"Where... are you going?"

Seeing his people for the first time, Orion's emotions began to shake his focus.

Then, his vision switched to a different place, as a pulsing shockwave similar to a drop meeting a puddle of water.

"This is where Reon told us to go!"

"Can we trust this fool of an angel?!"

You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

"Shut up! He's fighting that calamity head-on alongside Orianne! She's pregnant, damn it!"

Demons. They were all rushing east while questioning the man who instructed the citizens of both factions to reunite at a single point.

'The demons... they're following Reon's orders?'

With a quizzical voice, Tetra observed as the demons ran out of their houses.

'Isn't that part of the things you should know?'

Orion asked Tetra, the Remnant who was alive at this particular time, who should have known that this event had happened.

'This is something neither me nor Enri watched through the spying water! How should I know?'

As more demons, even women holding their children in their arms, passed in front of them, Orion became even more confused.

'I don't understand any of this? All I know is that this is a fragment of our past.'

'The day the angels and demons were eradicated.'

The sour taste in his mouth was accentuated as a ripple once again transferred him somewhere else.

'!'

Tetra made a sound that, if she had a mouth, would be similar to a loud gasp.

'This is impossible! That man!'

'What did he do?!'

After losing her self-control, she began to understand.

'...'

Orion observed with utmost attention the five large pillars glowing a blue hue. Symbols only the individual could read were etched on them as they stretched high toward the sky.

Between those five pillars, on a large circular pedestal, people with horns, wings, tails, scales, and halos were all anxiously waiting.

The fear on their faces painted the full picture for Orion. They had entrusted their entire being to a single man, Reon Feales.

The ones who weren't asked to fight were leading the members of these two factions into this spot, where their fate would be placed in the hands of a genius.

"Are you sure about this?!"

"We don't know, alright?!"

'...'

"Mama!"

"Don't worry, everything is fine."

Orion's heart tightened up. Children, adolescents, adults, seniors— all the people from both factions were reunited in this place, with the threat of total annihilation weighting over their heads.

The sight of this alliance really made Orion feel proud of his parents, who managed to create this environment for them.

Suddenly, the pillars began to glow.

The ground shook violently, and a crushing pressure pushed them all to their knees.

Then, the ground ripped in half as a massive blade of energy traveled toward the pedestal.

"No! We're going to die!"

Someone who was able to watch forward noticed it and began to lose their calm.

"..."

A terrifying silence took over the area as one of Elliott's energy blades closed in on the poor angels and demons.

They had all accepted their deaths.

Orion, compelled to stand in front of the attack, took a step forward and extended his hand.

But he was too far away. The energy blade would arrive before he could get in front of it.

Still, he jumped forward without hesitation.

"NO!"

He shouted with such intensity that his body listened to him, and the 'Fourth Gear' activated, instantly bringing him to the required coordinates.

As he opened his arms wide on both sides to shoulder the full brunt of the attack, he looked over his shoulder.

The pillars suddenly activated, and the entirety of the people present began to be covered by a blue light.

Then, they vanished.

As Orion smiled in relief, he closed his eyes, letting the blade of energy rip his body and the pillars alike.

Or so he expected.

"The 'Savior' of our factions combined."

"Finally, we are able to meet."

Hearing unfamiliar voices, Orion slowly opened his eyes.

"Huh?"

A white light blinded him. As he got used to it, his mouth opened wide.

"Mama, he's making a funny face."

"He sure does, isn't he?"

A sea of people were watching him, all smiling.

"W-Where am I?"

Orion felt confused, uncomfortable, and shocked. This state made him unable to focus on his own thoughts for a few seconds.

"Isn't this place familiar to you? We are inside that bracelet Reon created."

Feeling the pulsing device in his hand, Orion looked at it.

"Inside... the bracelet. So, you are..."

Clenching the bracelet, Orion stepped forward.

"We've been watching you for a long time. Your exploits, your struggles—they truly belong to the one shouldering our legacy."

A man armored in a bright white armor with wings stretching behind his back smiled at Orion as he held his helmet between his arm and his chest.

"Yes, we've been waiting for a chance to talk to you."

A woman with tall horns and a long tail, wearing casual clothing and an apron while holding the hand of a child, nodded, also smiling.

The little girl let go of her mother's hand and ran toward Orion. She hugged him on the knees and looked up at him with a big grin.

"The 'Savior'! Orion! Hello."

Orion gritted his teeth as reality sank in at last. He looked up in the air, clenching his fists.

He felt a warm liquid drip down his cheeks as he cursed his father.

'Why did you not tell me anything, dad?'

Tetra, feeling the intense emotions of relief, anger, pride, and happiness flow inside him, stayed silent. She was also trying to process this matter.

"Why are you crying? Do you hate us?"

Swiftly, Orion recovered his composure and shook his head at the girl asking him.

He kneeled in front of her and placed his hand on her head.

"No. Of course, I don't hate you."

As he said that, the people residing in a part of the bracelet began to circle Orion.

No one appeared to hate him or even show cautiousness around him.

As he stood up, the ones who knew about Reon's orders explained them to Orion in great detail.

These people were angels and demons that Reon managed to save at the very last second.

Instead of letting the entire faction die, he chose to protect those behind him.

Reon had earned the respect of everyone by holding up to his promises. His back was the back of a man who sacrificed himself for people who laughed at him in the past.

In the bracelet, they were half awake. They only knew what was happening through the words he and others spoke around the bracelet, and sometimes through a mental image.

They told him that his attempt to avenge them brought them an immense wave of pleasure and satisfaction, but that his choices were ultimately just.

Through these twenty years, they learned to accept each other's through the brief moments of awakening. The bridge between angels and demons was entirely destroyed with Orion's birth.

And at the very end of their explanations, the biggest revelation happened.

"Orion, are you in need of our power?"

A woman wearing crimson armor and a spear walked in front of him. She looked with such an intense gaze that Orion was unable to answer immediately.

"Do you require our power now that you are weakened?"

"If so, we will leave our expertise in your hands."

She held her spear horizontally and extended it to Orion.

"Is that alright?"

Hesitantly, Orion extended his arm.

"Do what you want with it. We will support you in your travels from now on."

When Orion's hand was below the spear, she opened her hand gently. The spear fell into his hand before he nodded.

"Please."

The angels and demons all smiled at him with warm feelings. He was one of them, not an ostracized individual with no place in the world.

Orion was in front of a big family, accepting him for who he was, and helping him to survive.

"By the way, my name's Hecate."

Hecate, the demon who gave Orion her spear, placed her left hand above her left breast and bowed elegantly.

She had a very lean body, which was expected from someone wielding a weapon. She had a long tail, as thin as Olivia's, that wrapped around her right thigh.

With two flat horns going horizontally from the back of her head to her forehead and crimson scales on her neck, she really was the definition of a demon.

"Hecate. Thank you."

Orion nodded, and with gratification filling his gaze and mind, the entire space blacked out.

When Orion opened his eyes, he was standing behind Noah, who was pondering what to do.

"Leave it to me."

Walking in front of both him and Tetra, he extended his hand to the side.

"Orion?"

He walked out of the entrance of the village and glared at the flying beasts.

"Hecate's Spear: Crimson Art."

The words came out naturally.

A blazing, crimson flame exploded under his extended hand, engulfing his entire arm until the elbow.

"I am in your care."

As he grabbed a long spear into the fire, a piece of armored equipment covered the parts that were devoured by the flames.

A red, spiky arm piece of armor covered his clothes, and a radiant spear appeared in his hand as the fire subsided.

'I can feel the knowledge flowing in my head.'

As long as Orion held on to the bracelet, they would help him.

He spun the crimson spear over his head before pointing the tip at the enemy.

"This is where you stop."