The ascent was pretty slow.

Tetra explained that she had asked the Remnant of Life for help before coming here, which was an unusual action from her.

As she explained before, it appeared that they truly did stop hiding and shared some information with the oblivious Tiohr-nam.

"Tetra..."

Orion was the only one calling her by her true name, while Noah kept calling her Tia, as he was used to after four years.

Turning her gaze to Orion, who was being lifted by the vine just like the others, she showed that she was listening.

"Were you hiding in the Talviera Mountains all this time?"

"..."

With a bitter expression, she lifted a corner of her mouth up and spoke words he had already heard from someone before.

"You are pretty sharp. It's quite frustrating."

'I know, right?!'

The other Tetra agreed with herself, much to Orion's disappointment. Without answering the question, he shrugged.

"Still, you are right. At this point, we're not even hiding from Miasma. In fact, it appears that he's unable to act by himself."

"I'll explain after meeting with Henrietta first."

With a nod, Orion turned to the other Tetra.

'Miasma was unable to act?'

'That's right. Do you remember what Elliott said when we met him?'

'Of course.'

Orion recalled, with some difficulty, the time he faced the man and the story he told while he was resting inside the bracelet with his parents.

'After discussing it with Enri, we noticed that, in fact, we never saw Miasma act independently when Noah was walking the continent.'

She began to describe what they had discovered.

'The only time we've seen his face was during their battle. Now, as much as I would like to continue, I believe you know what I'm going to say?'

Internally nodding, Orion had already guessed the reason.

'He was still trying to assimilate Elliott at this time...'

'But do you know why it took so long?'

Tetra gave him a surprisingly difficult question to answer.

'...'

Pondering, Orion ultimately gave up.

'You might be aware of many things, but you're not all-knowing. Obviously, the idea wouldn't cross your mind. In fact, only Henrietta came up with the right explanation.'

'I was too stupid to understand.'

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With a cheerful giggle, she continued.

'Elliott was supposed to be a Remnant.'

'...'

Orion frowned immediately, which made Noah and the other Tetra look at him.

'Miasma... stole his powers? That's what you're trying to tell me?'

'That's where it becomes complicated.'

The cheerfulness in her voice disappeared, replaced by seriousness.

'He did not steal them as he stole mine. Miasma corrupted the aspects inside Elliott, slowly eroding their power over the world. Then, he assimilated those corrupted aspects.'

The idea of concepts was always difficult for him to understand. Each Remnant always explained the power they possessed differently and even gave roundabout details about them.

It was confusing and challenging to reflect on.

But, thanks to the source of Silka being inside him and Tetra's source residing inside of him, he had a general idea of what these aspects actually were.

But, only a Remnant could truly understand another one.

'So... what were his aspects?'

'No idea.'

'...'

The frown on his face slowly turned neutral.

'Well, that's fine. Knowing wouldn't have helped much anyway. What's important is knowing that he was too preoccupied with Elliott to actually bother acting himself.'

'We believed the assimilation would take place six years from now. After that, he got rid of Noah, possessed Elliott, and began to act on those heinous plans of his that took a thousand years to begin.'

The trunk of the giant tree began to reveal itself the moment Tetra finished speaking.

*FUUUUUSH*

A violent gust of wind pushed everyone as a giant creature flew close to them. A giant red dragon with three horns and majestic wings stopped in front of them, its eyes riveted on them.

"What strange beings! Are those humans?"

A voice Orion thought was similar entered his ears, as only a grunt was heard from Noah and Tetra.

Unable to recall when he had heard this voice, he looked into the dragon's eyes.

"Hi."

Orion greeted the dragon, who turned his head as if suddenly uninterested. But, the red dragon opened its eyes wide and abruptly looked at Orion.

"You speak the dragons' language?! Who are you?"

An intense wave of hostility wafted upon him, which made Noah react.

The vine stopped ascending as Tiohr-nam noticed the dragon getting too close to them. There was a possibility that his wings could break the vines.

Feeling the familiar gaze of the dragon, Orion felt at ease. These were the same eyes he felt on the day he met Monolavir and Ruminona and entered the Ormrdivin.

"It's difficult to explain. I was blessed by a dragon and obtained the right to speak with your faction."

At those words, the hostility disappeared from the dragon.

"Either one of us flew somewhere unknown to the rest of us and made a friend, or you've met with our father. Either way, I have no reason to be hostile to you if you swear not to bother my kind."

Orion nodded.

"I have no reason to, and you have my word on it. I simply wanted to greet you."

"I respect that demeanor."

With one last grunt of approval, the giant dragon flapped its massive wings backward, distancing itself from the group, before flying back to the top of the tree.

"I had heard you were friendly with the dragons, but this is still very impressive."

Tetra responded while wiping the sweat from her forehead.

They had no idea what the dragon said, but they understood that they weren't prone to attack mindlessly, at the very least.

Orion looked at Noah, who was still picturing the grand creature in his head.

As their ascension continued, they entered the first patch of branches and leaves.

Everything stretched to let them pass before returning to their original location.

At one point, the vines stopped. The bark cracked in front of them, to Tetra's surprise.

"Wait, she's seriously planning on revealing herself?! What happened?"

Tiohr-nam was rarely showing her Avatar during this time, which was the reason for her bewilderment.

A healthy, green-haired woman attached to the giant tree emerged from the bark and looked at Tetra.

"Tia-Norun, my existence is not there to act as your transportation method."

The first words that escaped the mouth of the familiar face were quite brutal.

"I'm sorry. In normal circumstances, it would never happen."

"This is a one-time thing, I believe."

Speaking to the other Remnant with her head high, she explained. Right after, Tiohr-nam's eyes scanned the two guests.

"Noah, the first Hero. I never thought the day would come for us to meet."

"The same could be said of me, Remnant of Life."

They both respectfully greeted each other, leaving the conversation at that.

"What truly stuns me is that other person you have brought with you, Tia-Norun."

With a melancholic look, Orion couldn't help but smile helplessly at the oblivious Tiohr-nam.

"Hello."

"..."

The Avatar squinted slightly, focusing on Orion.

"Who... are you exactly?"

Suspicion arose in her mind before her expression relaxed.

"This is probably not the best place to have a discussion. Would you mind meeting me at a later date?"

"There is some incongruity I would like to discuss with you."

This was precisely what Orion wanted. There was no way he would miss this opportunity.

"My name is Orion. I'll be sure to come and see you, as I have a question I would like to ask, too."

The Avatar nodded before turning to Tetra.

"Do not push your luck. Stay safe."

With a worried frown, she made sure to warn her, but also Henrietta.

"The corruption is slowly turning the land. I can feel it through my roots, and I can see it from up there."

With a clear nod, Tetra eased up the worried Remnant.

"That's why those two are here. We're going to aggressively defend our land."

This time, Tiohr-nam nodded.

"I will keep an eye on the land's state. Come seek me at the base of the tree if you need me."

Finishing the discussion, the Avatar returned inside the large tree, and the bark closed behind her.

Slowly, the vines began to move down at a different angle.

...

After ten minutes, the vines dropped the three at the base of the tree, inside a deep hole inside the mountain.

Orion looked around and recognized the place.

'This was the entrance to the dragons' nest.'

'Yes...'

Tetra quickly answered him, knowing what this place actually hid.

'The roots formed the tunnels the dragon's used as nests. Her first death, even though it was caused by my father, gave them a place to hide.'

'Still, they could've continued to live at the peak of the tree, so I don't know how to feel about that.'

Feeling the contradicting emotions in his heart, Orion decided to let them go.

'Anyway, let's focus on what's important.'

He turned this era's Tetra, who walked toward a wall to the rightmost side of the tree.

"Here we are..."

With slight apprehension, she placed her hand on the wall.

*Crack*

The wall crumbled to dust as an opening appeared for the two Heroes.

"Follow me."

With a serious expression, Tetra pointed inside.

Taken aback, Orion looked at Noah before they followed without a word.

Deep inside the Talviera Mountain Range, far below the future nest of the dragons, the hideout of two Remnants finally opened, like a vault sealed for thousands of years.