Atticus stepped off amidst the curious glances of the crew. He barely noticed them. His attention remained fixed on his father.

Attimax stood ramrod straight, broad-shouldered and built for war. Every inch of him brimmed with power. Without trying, he radiated a regal aura leagues beyond anything Atticus had ever achieved.

The hatch opened. They disembarked.

"God of Man!"

A procession of people lined both sides of the landing pad, stretching deep into the structure.

Attimax strode forward, chin raised and expression cold. No one dared meet his gaze.

But Atticus was different. He felt countless eyes turn toward him. The son of the God of Man. Word had already spread. He could feel their curiosity, their crutiny. They were measuring him.

Atticus’ posture did not change. To react now would be to acknowledge that their opinions mattered. Instead, wisps of smoke curled from each of them, and many abruptly shut their eyes or looked away.

He had burned away the darkness between them. When they looked at him, all they found was blinding light. Several couldn’t help narrowing their eyes in shock.

From the corner of his eye, Atticus noticed the faint upward curve of Attimax’s lips. He was proud. Atticus almost chuckled.

Then the sound of hurried footsteps drew his attention forward. A group of women was quickly approaching them. The moment Atticus saw the woman leading them, he froze.

Snow-white hair danced behind her. A face that would have been perfectly stoic were it not for the worry etched across it. Pure white robes. Eyes white as paper.

’The Arbiter...’

The exosuit.

Memories immediately surged to the surface.

The woman who read him bedtime stories every night. The woman who first taught him hand-to-hand combat. The woman who had patiently guided him through nearly everything he had learned in his childhood.

"...Mom?"

Ilyshkara reached them. She didn’t so much as glance at her husband. Instead, she grabbed Atticus by the wrist and immediately pulled him along.

Atticus barely had time to react before he was being dragged through the massive structure, past grand halls lined with sentinel guards.

The maids and escorts were left behind. Only Attimax followed after them, still carrying that same stoic expression, as though he had expected this exact outcome.

Eventually they reached a room, and the door shut behind them.

Ilyshkara stared at Atticus, tears slowly gathering in her trembling white eyes.

"Atticus..."

Her voice was soft. The hands that cupped his cheeks were even softer.

"...Mom."

Ilyshkara’s smile trembled.

"You remember..."

Atticus silently nodded.

"Oh, my beautiful child." She pulled him into an embrace.

Unfortunately, Atticus had inherited his height almost entirely from his father. Her head barely reached his lower chest, yet Atticus had never felt warmer.

"You’ve been through so much. So much pain. I’m sorry. I’m so sorry you had to go through all of that." Her voice trembled. "But you’re home now. Nothing is going to happen to you again. I promise. Never again."

Her arms held him tightly, her words held him tighter. Then Anastasia flashed through his mind. A deep ache settled in Atticus’ chest. After a moment, he returned the embrace and quietly muttered,

"...Yes, Mom."

...

Eventually, after the initial reunion, they settled down in the room. After fussing over him and checking practically every inch of his body, Ilyshkara finally turned toward Attimax.

"Husband."

She was smiling, her eyes were not.

Attimax blinked and tilted his head.

"Why didn’t you tell me our son was coming? I could have gone with you."

"I didn’t know it was him. The radar detected a surge of Solvath’s essence. I investigated."

So it truly hadn’t been the fight with that desert beast. Using Solvath’s power had revealed his location. Atticus silently noted it.

"Even then..." Ilyshkara’s lips were trembling now. "What else could it have been? Who else in existence would be carrying that much Solvath essence?"

"Bourn."

Atticus silently filed the name away.

"He’s in the city and knows better than to leave." She glared. "You could have told me. I should have been there when our son came home."

Attimax furrowed his brows.

"But I was there."

’Damn.’

Atticus could practically see the smoke rising from his mother’s head. She looked one sentence away from detonating. His father was somehow even worse than he’d thought. She clearly wanted an apology.

Noticing the tension in the room thickening by the second, Atticus cleared his throat, drawing both their gazes toward him.

Ilyshkara’s expression brightened instantly, every trace of frustration vanishing.

"What is it, honey? Are you hurt? Does something feel wrong?"

He was a higher-level being. A cough? For some reason, in all three lives, reality had insisted on giving him absurdly overprotective mothers.

Atticus released an inward sigh.

"So... my exosuit. You had a hand in it."

"Ah, that."

Ilyshkara nodded immediately.

"It’s just a little piece of me. I wanted it with you while you were away." Her smile softened. "A child should never be without his mother. Hm, where is she? Summon her."

Atticus’ eyes dimmed slightly. He immediately began recounting the events that had led to the Arbiter falling into a deep slumber. Yet when he finished, Ilyshkara merely smiled and placed a hand against his chest.

"Hm, let’s see. Life force."

The air around them rippled. Atticus felt countless elements stir in response, including many he had never seen or even heard of before.

This was the Elemental Arbiter.

Then a warm light radiated from his chest. A jolt passed through his mind. A moment later, Ilyshkara withdrew her hand.

"Now try reaching out to her."

Atticus did as instructed. Moments later, a perfect replica of his mother appeared before him. He smiled as the Arbiter began to blink in confusion.

"Hey."

She frowned at him.

"Student, what manner of—"

The Arbiter froze as her eyes had landed on Ilyshkara. They immediately began trembling. Without hesitation, she dropped to her knees in deep reverence.

"Master! This lowly one greets you!"

Atticus frowned.

"I thought you didn’t have any memories of your past life?"

"Oh, I fixed that," Ilyshkara replied casually. "Now she remembers everything."

"This lowly one has failed you, Master!" The Arbiter bowed so deeply that her forehead touched the floor. "I deserve punishment."

"It’s fine." Ilyshkara waved a hand dismissively. "My son is here now. That’s all that matters."

"No, Master! I failed to protect the young lord! I fell into slumber! You must punish me!"

"Oi. You telling me what to do?"

Ilyshkara’s tone changed instantly. If Atticus didn’t know any better, he would have thought an entirely different person had just taken over his mother’s body.

"O-of course not, Master! This lowly one would never dare!"

"Then I said I’m not punishing you." Ilyshkara narrowed her eyes. "Do I need to say it a third time?"

"N-no, master."

Atticus was speechless. First was the usually dignified Arbiter currently kneeling on the floor. Then there was his mother’s apparent second personality.

He glanced toward his father. Attimax’s brow was faintly furrowed, as though his thoughts were somewhere else entirely. There wasn’t even a hint of surprise on his face.

Clearly, this wasn’t his first time witnessing such a scene. The man had long since accepted that this was simply who his wife was.

Atticus cleared his throat. At least now the Arbiter was back. But she was only one among many people he wanted to bring back. There was still so much he needed to do.

His gaze settled on his mother, turning serious.

"Tell me everything."