Morning arrived slowly over Novaris.
Rain clouds drifted lazily across the skyline while sunlight occasionally broke through the grey skies in soft golden streaks. The city below remained quieter than usual today.
For once—
there were no emergency sirens.
No military broadcasts interrupting the morning.
No sudden deployments.
Only peace.
Temporary peace.
But real enough to breathe in.
Kaien woke up first again.
Mostly because years of war made sleeping late almost impossible for him now.
His eyes opened slowly while warm sunlight filtered through the apartment windows.
Nyra slept beside him with one arm wrapped around his waist while Lyss remained curled quietly against his shoulder beneath the blankets.
Kaien stared silently at the ceiling for several moments afterward.
Still not fully used to this.
Not the relationship itself.
That part somehow felt natural now despite how absurd it sounded when explained aloud.
No—
what still felt strange was being loved this peacefully.
Without conditions.
Without fear.
Without war immediately tearing everything apart.
At least for now.
Kaien carefully moved slightly afterward trying not to wake either of them.
Nyra immediately tightened her grip around him.
"Don't even think about it."
Kaien blinked slightly.
"…you were asleep."
"One eye open."
Lyss laughed softly afterward without opening her eyes either.
"She really does that, by the way."
Kaien quietly sighed afterward.
"You both are terrifying."
Nyra finally opened one eye afterward before smirking lazily.
"And yet you married us anyway."
Kaien paused briefly afterward.
Then calmly answered,
"I've made worse decisions."
Nyra stared at him for exactly two seconds afterward before throwing a pillow directly into his face.
Lyss immediately burst into laughter.
"You deserved that."
Kaien removed the pillow slowly afterward while looking deeply betrayed.
"I was joking."
"You're bad at it."
"That's rude."
Nyra looked entirely unrepentant afterward.
Hours later they ended up wandering through one of the quieter districts near the ocean side of Novaris.
The atmosphere felt almost normal today.
Street musicians played softly near small cafés while children ran through public parks wearing tiny Solar Guard jackets designed after real military uniforms. Vendors sold warm food beneath glowing market lights while distant ships crossed peacefully over the ocean horizon.
Kaien quietly observed everything around him as they walked together.
The world still carried scars everywhere.
Military drones overhead.
Defense barriers visible in the distance.
Soldiers patrolling the streets.
Yet humanity still insisted on living anyway.
And somehow…
that stubbornness reminded him painfully of every life he had ever lived.
Nyra suddenly grabbed his sleeve afterward pulling him out of thought immediately.
"You're thinking too hard again."
Kaien looked mildly offended.
"I'm literally just walking."
Lyss smiled knowingly beside him.
"You get that expression when you start drowning in thoughts."
Kaien frowned slightly afterward.
"…I have an expression?"
Both twins answered immediately together.
"Yes."
Kaien looked genuinely disturbed hearing that.
Nyra looked far too pleased afterward.
"You really thought you were mysterious this whole time, didn't you?"
Kaien remained silent.
Which was unfortunately enough answer already.
Lyss nearly laughed herself breathless afterward while Nyra looked victorious beyond reason.
"You absolutely did."
Kaien quietly decided speaking less was safer.
Later that afternoon they ended up near the quieter coastline cliffs outside the city where the ocean stretched endlessly beneath pale skies.
The wind felt calmer here.
No crowds.
No soldiers.
No noise.
Just waves crashing gently below the cliffs.
The three sat together beneath the shade of an old observation structure overlooking the sea while warm sunlight finally broke fully through the clouds.
Nyra rested beside Kaien while Lyss sat nearby quietly drawing random patterns across his arm absentmindedly.
For a while nobody spoke again.
Then suddenly Kaien quietly asked,
"…can I ask something?"
Nyra immediately narrowed her eyes suspiciously.
"That tone worries me."
Kaien ignored that completely.
Instead he looked toward both of them afterward.
"Well…"
He hesitated briefly.
"…why aren't you both fighting over me?"
Silence followed immediately afterward.
Then Nyra blinked slowly.
Lyss stared at him too.
And Kaien—
despite being capable of fighting manifestations capable of destroying cities—
somehow still asked that question with complete sincerity.
Nyra finally spoke first afterward.
"…seriously?"
Kaien looked confused immediately.
"What?"
Lyss started laughing softly already while Nyra rubbed her forehead dramatically.
"You know the answer already."
Kaien nodded once.
"I do."
"Then why ask?"
Kaien quietly looked toward the ocean afterward before answering honestly.
"…because I want to hear it from you both."
That changed the atmosphere immediately.
The teasing softened.
Nyra exchanged a glance with Lyss afterward.
Then both of them slowly looked back toward Kaien simultaneously.
And together—
completely in sync—
they answered.
"Isn't it obvious, Mr. Hero?"
Kaien blinked slightly afterward hearing the identical timing.
Then Nyra continued while Lyss smiled softly beside her.
"Even within different bodies…"
Lyss finished together with her.
"…both of us are still the same person whose soul was split in two."
The wind moved softly around them afterward.
Kaien remained silent.
Not because he didn't understand.
Because hearing it aloud affected him differently.
Nyra gently leaned against him afterward.
"We don't see each other as rivals."
Lyss quietly nodded too.
"Because deep down…"
Her fingers lightly intertwined with Nyra's for a moment afterward.
"…we understand each other completely."
Kaien watched them silently.
And suddenly—
it made terrifyingly perfect sense.
The reason they never truly competed.
The reason they instinctively understood each other emotionally.
The reason their memories synchronized almost identically over the years.
Liora's soul had not simply reincarnated.
It had divided.
Two hearts.
Two lives.
One soul.
And somehow both halves still found him again across another world entirely.
Kaien slowly exhaled afterward.
"…that sounds absurd when explained aloud."
Nyra snorted softly.
"Our entire lives are absurd."
"That's fair."
Lyss quietly smiled afterward before softly asking,
"Does it bother you?"
Kaien looked toward both of them again afterward.
Then gently shook his head.
"No."
His voice softened slightly afterward.
"It just…"
He paused briefly.
"…makes me realize how terrifyingly stubborn you all are."
Nyra immediately grinned afterward.
"You say that like you aren't exactly the same."
Kaien could not even deny that anymore.
Because she was right.
Across lifetimes…
they always found each other somehow.
No matter the world.
No matter the names.
No matter the war.
And perhaps that alone meant something greater than fate itself.
The rest of the day passed quietly afterward.
No battles.
No council meetings.
No discussions about the Entity.
Just ordinary things.
Walking together through the city.
Eating terrible street food Nyra insisted was amazing.
Listening to Lyss laugh when Kaien accidentally scared a group of teenagers simply by staring at them too seriously.
For one single day—
Kaien existed not as humanity's strongest weapon.
Not as Karna reborn.
Not as the Sunmarked warrior destined to fight the end of the world.
Just as himself.
And as the evening sun disappeared slowly beyond the ocean horizon—
he realized something quietly terrifying.
He had started becoming afraid of losing this peace more than death itself now.