In the dining room, three figures sat around the table.
One had striking emerald-green hair and eyes, while the other two shared captivating brown hair and black eyes.
They latter had similar features, yet their expression set them apart. One wore a soft, gentle smile with a welcoming demeanor, while the other held a serious look and a fierce gaze capable of sending chills down a person's spine.
"What brings you here so suddenly... Noah?" Grey asked with a wide smile.
"I just decided to drop by," Noah said as he continued eating, his voice devoid of emotions.
Grey's smile didn't fade, but his eyes sharpened. An oppressive tension filled the air. Sensing it, Nova decided to cut through it.
"... umh, so... Uncle Noah, how's the dojo doing?" he asked, forcing a casual tone.
Before Noah could respond, Grey suddenly burst into laughter. "hahahaha... dojo?" he laughed so hard he almost choked, and it really irked Noah and left Nova confused.
After a while he finally calm down and wiped a tear off his eye. "...It got banned."
"What?!" Nova blurted.
"...Seems I forgot to tell you." Grey voice was still trembling with lingering laughter. "Your Uncle's dojo was banned for its "intense" training," he made sure to emphasize the word intense.
"Banned?" Nova thought. His eyes widened in disbelief as he slowly turned to Noah, searching his face for confirmation. Noah kept his head down, quietly eating and carefully avoiding Nova's gaze.
Truth be told, Nova had won the Preliminary Match was because of this man. From the age of four, Noah had dragged Nova through hellish training, both physically and mentally. It was a regimen even someone twice his age couldn't endure. Yet somehow, Nova endured it.
Nova blinked as he saw Noah expressionless face that avoiding his gaze, slowly turning red. "Wait… is Uncle Noah embarrassed?!"
The thought of this almost made Nova choke. This was a side of his uncle he had never seen before. For a brief moment, he felt a strong urge to take a picture and preserve this once-in-a-lifetime scene forever, but he quickly abandoned the idea. That would definitely be a death wish.
Even Grey looked tempted to pull out his phone. Opportunities like this came only once in a blue moon, but he wisely restrained himself.
As silence settled over the room the background sound of the news anchor's voice from the television echoed.
"And that concludes the names of the top ten candidates of the Preliminary Match."
"Moving on to the analysis," the second anchor continued. "As always, the global results still remain the MPU's five elite institutional planets: Nebu, Dermot, Herya, Getu, and Fuji."
"Not only that, but this year's preliminary match recorded one of the highest performance averages in decades, with several candidates displaying strength beyond their expected tier."
"Now, let's take a look at the overall champions from each of the five planets."
Both Grey and Noah stared at the television intently, waiting to hear the names to be called.
"The overall champion on Nebu; Nathan Hertz."
"On Dermot; Alicia Smith."
"On Herya; Nova Orion."
" On Getu; Mike Simpson."
"...And on Fuji; Olivia Munn."
Just as Grey was about to celebrate loudly, he paused as the first anchor spoke again, his tone turning more serious.
"And this year brings another historic milestone. For the first time in the history of the MPU's annual Preliminary Match, two Lower Humans emerged as overall champions: Nova Orion of Planet Herya and Olivia Munn of Planet Fuji. Your hard work, efforts and achievement serves as motivation and pride to every lower human out there. So keep it up."
For a few seconds, no one spoke. The television continued to talk in the background, but the words no longer registered.
Both Grey and Noah slowly shifted their gaze towards Nova. Grey leaned back in his chair, his face brimming with an unconcealed joy. The overly wide smile from earlier was gone and a smile filled with pride and joy spread across his face.
Across him, Noah finally lifted his head and stared at Nova. Nova felt his throat tighten under their gaze. Noah studied him for a long moment, his sharp eyes moved across Nova's face as if measuring something invisible.
Then, he nodded once. "You did well."
Nova's grip on his spoon tightened.
Noah said just three words, plain and simple but it meant a lot to him. Praise from Noah was also something very rare and hearing it felt like true acknowledgment.
"Thank you. I wouldn't have done it without your guidance" Nova bowed his head in respect and gratitude.
Grey suddenly laughed softly, shaking his head. "Really? Is this what you say to him? You did well?"
"What do you expect me to say, you did bad?"
Grey shook his head slowly. When will you change Noah? Nova let out a sigh as a small, helpless smile tugged at his lips.
"You did well son and I'm really proud of you." Grey said and his eyes filled with pride.
Nova awkwardly looked down at his plate and continued eating. "It's just the prelims..." he mumbled.
Grey snorted. "Just the prelims, this is history. Two Lower Humans for the first time became an overall champions… and one of them happens to be my son."
He suddenly clapped his hands once and said. "Alright... that settles it."
Noah glanced at him. "Settles what?"
"We're going out tonight."
Nova blinked. "huh?"
"To celebrate. Obviously," Grey said casually. "This level of achievement deserves proper recognition and plus your return back home. I'm thinking, dinner at a fancy restaurant, expensive drinks and maybe with a slow embarrassing music."
"No," Noah said immediately.
"Yes," Grey replied just as quickly.
"No"
"Yes"
Nova watched them go back and forth as a light chuckle escaped his lips. "I miss this "
For the first time since the announcement, the tension in the room melted into something soft and comfortable.
The three of them continued eating conversation slowly drifting into lighter topics, small arguments, and quiet laughter that hadn't filled the house in a long time.
After dinner, Nova went to his room.
The hallway lights dimmed automatically as he passed, sensing his movement. Soft white strips along the floor guided his steps until he stopped in front of the familiar door. It slid open with a gentle hiss.
His room greeted him with silence.
A wall-sized transparent screen displayed a slow-moving galaxy, casting faint blue and violet light across the space. Floating shelves hovered neatly along one wall, lined with tablets, training records, and small metallic trophies that glowed faintly. A sleek study desk rested near the window, its surface lighting up the moment he stepped inside.
Nova stood at the doorway for a moment longer than necessary. He had been away from home and was studying at Herya academy for three years, so looking at the room... it felt different.
He stepped inside slowly. The door sealed shut behind him.
His fingers brushed the edge of his desk as he walked past it, gaze drifting across the familiar objects. It was as if he had never left. Everything was the same.
His steps slowed when he reached the far side of the room.
A small table sat near the wall, separate from the rest of the space. Unlike the rest of the room, it had no glowing panels, no floating screens, no futuristic polish.
Just a simple surface, and on it lay a single photo frame.
Nova reached for it.
On it was a beautiful woman with long emerald-green hair and bright emerald eyes that mirrored his own. Her smile was soft and warm, the kind that felt like home.
Nova lifted the photo carefully, holding it with both hands. His thumb brushed the edge of the frame as a small smile formed on his lips.
"Hi, Mom."
The words came out like a quiet whisper. He exhaled slowly, shoulders relaxing.
"I knew you saw it," his gaze softened as he looked at the woman in the photo. "Your son became the overall champion of Planet Herya... the second lower human to accomplish this in history." He paused the silence didn't feel empty.
Nova's expression softened even more. For a moment, he simply stood there, letting the quiet settle around him. Then he placed the photo back carefully, making sure it faced the room. His fingers lingered on the frame before he finally pulled away.
Nova turned toward his desk.
The surface lit up instantly, recognizing him. Then a thin, transparent screen rose from the tabletop, followed by a holographic keyboard forming beneath his hands. He sat down as the glow from the interface reflected in his emerald eyes as the system booted up.
Back in the dining room, the soft hum of the dish cleaner filled the silence. Warm water flowed over metallic plates as Grey stood at the sink, sleeves rolled up, staring absently at the stream as if lost in thought.
Behind him, footsteps stopped at the entrance... It was Noah. Grey didn't turn around, for a moment, neither of them spoke.
Water continued running.
Then Grey exhaled slowly, "I thought we agreed on three days," he finally spoke, voice calm but tight. "At least three days."
Noah remained silent then Grey shut off the water and finally turned.
"Why did you come now?" his brows knitted together. "You'll still claim you're not a big softie," he added with a faint scoff. "And yet you came immediately after his arrival."
Noah leaned against the wall, arms folded. His expression didn't change this time. There was no embarrassment like before, no avoidance of eye contact. His silence was like a acceptance. He didn't deny it.
"I'm taking Nova with me tomorrow," Noah said plainly.
Grey blinked, "What?"
"I'm taking him with me."
The words were simple, but they landed like a sudden storm. Grey's expression hardened instantly.
"What do you mean you're taking him with you?" His voice rose. "He just got back. I haven't spent a whole day with him let alone a week. And now you're taking him...?"
Silence stretched between them, Noah's gaze remained steady.
"Grey," he said calmly, "grow up." the words were blunt, but not cruel "You know he isn't any normal kid. You know that better than anyone."
Grey clenched his jaw.
"You and I both know his origin," Noah continued. "You know the responsibility on his shoulders. Training isn't optional. It's vital."
Grey looked away, the strength to continue the argument drained from him as quickly as it had come. His shoulders slumped slightly. The anger faded… leaving behind something quieter.
*Sigh*
He sighed, a long deep defeated sigh. "…I know."
The words came out almost as a whisper. His eyes dropped to the floor, sadness lingering in them even as he forced himself to accept it.
"..."
Silence filled the dining room again. Then Noah pushed himself off the wall and walked over to Grey and tapped him on his shoulder. "Cheer up, I'm going to be staying the night, so you can take him out to celebrate later in the evening."
"Okay,"Grey said. "But you must join us"
"No," Noah said flatly.
"Yes."
"No."
•••
The next day Nova and Noah was at the door, about to leave. When Nova asked worriedly, "Is Dad going to be alright by himself?"
"He is. Let's get going," Noah said as he opened the door and walked through.
Nova glanced back, he felt a little reluctant but eventually walked through the door.