Olivia walked out of the portal with her arms crossed. Closing behind her, the rift disappeared.

"So, you've decided to do it?"

Orion nodded at her question.

"Alright. I'll be watching in silence over there. Don't rough them up too much."

"I don't plan to."

Waving at him, Olivia sat fifty meters away from their spot, in the grass. She tucked her dress under her legs carefully before sitting.

After she felt comfortable, she smiled at Orion, who nodded in return.

"..."

The maids were staring in silence. They had no idea what was going to happen or what Orion was about to start with.

So, he broke the silence as he turned to look at them.

"That's... twenty-seven of you. No one's missing."

"Yes."

Marie confirmed his observation with a respectful nod.

"In that case, let me explain what I'm going to do."

His body flashed the divine power blindingly, taking on the changes that happened after his berserk state.

With wings stretching to the sides, Orion lifted his hand in front of him.

Using his index finger, he traced a circle in front of him. A similar circle appeared around him, traced into the ground.

Surprised, the maids quickly understood the reason for this display.

As Orion's night-like cape fell from his shoulders and floated behind him, it moved above the wings and laid still a few centimeters off the ground.

Olivia smiled at this display, finding him extremely attractive.

She loved to watch him train, but couldn't take the time to do so. This was something she regretted not doing when he disappeared from their sight for a year.

That was the reason for her appearance this day. She couldn't miss on his training with her maids.

While she was enjoying the show, her maids gulped audibly.

"The rules are simple."

"If I were to fight you with everything I have..."

Their eyes were glued to Orion.

(You will not survive to see another day.)

(That's how frail you actually are.)

He appeared behind Eden and Alice, whispering in their ears.

Shocked, they couldn't believe that Orion could be in the same place at the same time.

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"Dark magic..."

Marie, who knew Olivia's power very well, frowned.

"Good observation."

Placing his hands on his hips, Orion smiled.

"There's more than that, though."

A white halo formed above his head for a moment.

Pointing his index finger at Marie, he fired a beam of light the size of a pea.

At an outstanding speed, the beam curved around her before circling everyone at a mind-breaking pace.

They felt the energy graze their skins, creating a sense of danger in their hearts.

'He isn't one to be underestimated.'

Immediately, their focus became centered on him. They weren't scared, as Orion showed no bloodlust or will to injure them. It was obvious that this was a demonstration of what he could do.

For those who hadn't seen Orion's power during the awakening of the 'Seed of Divinity', this was a clear giveaway that he was no pushover.

In fact, there was no way he would allow any attack to hit its target.

But this was training. Only fools would reject the invitation of someone stronger than them. Especially someone friendly to them.

As the beam returned to Orion and disappeared into the cape, they were all entirely prepared.

From within the cape, they noticed a shouting star shortly after his attack vanished inside it. Shocked, they wondered if this was a simple cape or a different place connected through the matter making the cape.

"So, the point of this training isn't for me particularly. I'm going to stay anchored in this circle while you attack me."

"It can be from anywhere, even within it. All you have to do is push me out of its edges."

Not a sign of surprise appeared on their faces, as they had guessed from the beginning.

Orion smiled, satisfied by their reaction.

"I'll stay there, dodging everything you throw at me. I won't even use five percent of what I can do, as even this would cause injuries to you."

That was the sentence that shocked them.

"Really?"

"You won't retaliate?"

He nodded.

"I won't. Even if you were to actually hit me, I will not take offense. To begin with, I can heal every form of damage as long as it isn't a broken bone instantly."

"Wow!"

Celeste, the only beastman of the squad, opened her eyes wide in awe. She had silky black hair, with two protruding mounds at the top of her head.

Her ears had been cut, and her tail had been shortened by the torture she went through in her youth.

With one look, Orion frowned.

"W-What? Have I said something bad?"

Orion gave a quick glance to Olivia, who closed her eyes while shrugging.

"I-I'm sorry!"

Seeing Orion live the circle with a stern expression, she bowed. The other maids looked carefully, as they weren't sure what he was going to do.

"Why are you apologizing?"

Placing his hand on her head, he rubbed it while applying some magic to his hand.

"Eh?"

While looking at the ground, she could only see Orion's legs and feel the warm energy intrude into her body.

Slowly, her ears and tail began to regenerate.

"What is a beastman without its mighty ears and fluffy tail?"

As quickly as he came, he returned to his spot with a smile that spoke louder than any word.

Despite bending, Celeste approached her shaking hand toward her head. Everyone else turned their faces away with various expressions of relief.

As her hand grabbed a pointy ear that was forcefully ripped away from her long ago, she also felt a smooth sensation against the back of her legs.

With a crooked smile full of emotions, she straightened and looked at Orion.

"Thank you!"

"It's nothing. Amelia's friends are my friends. I'll do anything to help you feel better."

The opinion they had of him only grew even stronger.

At the same time, he looked at the others.

"If any of you have scars they want to remove, come see me at the end. I'll erase them. A woman shouldn't be walking around with scars on their precious body."

A few of them looked down, seemingly hit by his comment. Those were, as he expected, the ones that were made prisoners: Lilian, Niya, Haileen, and Ollie.

Kate, Alma, Serena, and Noelle, the ones who had to steal food to survive, also endured quite the beatings from being caught multiple times.

These eight women were instantly registered in Orion's mind as those who needed to be healed later on. He wouldn't let a single one of them leave without feeling better.

This brief moment was enough to let Celeste recover her composure. Occasionally, her ears twitched, causing a faint smile to appear on her face.

As Orion finished his explanation of what they were going to do, the maids were ready.

To answer his kindness, they would in turn give their everything to try to make him leave the circle.

It wasn't a simple game for them. For Orion, it was a way to gauge their actual prowess, and for the maids, it was a way to observe the power of a mighty being.

There was a lot to learn from him, and they were ready to absorb that knowledge like sponges.

With her legs to the side, Olivia noticed her maids getting prepared to fight.

They checked their outfits to see if anything was amiss and made sure the ring that contained the metallic strings was correctly attached to their index finger.

When ready, they separated and formed groups. Once done, they all turned to Marie, who in turn looked toward her master.

Displaying a stern expression, Olivia stared at her maid. Then she nodded.

Marie turned to Orion and nodded, signaling to the others that it was time to begin.

"Do your best."

As Orion rolled his right shoulder to stretch it, he smiled.

—

Reon and Orianne were in their room, enjoying their hobbies together.

Humming a song while painting on a canvas, Orianne appeared happier than ever.

"Was that gift really enough?"

Reon, trimming a bunch of flowers that grew in a pot, turned with a strained face toward his wife.

"Are you still doubting me?"

Glancing over her shoulder, she smiled.

"I mean, it's just a canvas, paintbrushes, and paint... I could have bought you something else."

"I'm perfectly happy with this. In fact, I missed painting."

Finishing watering his prized specimen of rare flowers, Reon walked behind her and stared at her painting.

A gasp escaped his mouth as he looked at her work.

"You..."

"Yes. I really liked the scenery."

The city of Hocride from the entrance gate was painted on the canvas, the view leading toward the sea.

Its entire layout, perfectly reproduced by Orianne's photographic memory, was reproduced in front of them.

The gorgeous sea, glistening under the bright sun. Boats of all kinds moving in and out of the harbor, and the white sand in the far distance.

"As usual, your talent is unmatched."

"Thanks for the compliment."

Orianne turned her face toward him and smiled, showing all of her teeth from the feeling of happiness she was feeling.

A small voice in his head reminded Reon to take this chance. He leaned down and hugged his wife.

"I'm glad I get to see you being free of responsibilities. Now, you can enjoy life all you want."

"..."

Enjoying the moment, they stayed together for a while longer.