MIGHT AS WELL BE OP

"So… how are you feeling?" Vega asked, her striking purple eyes fixed intently on Anthony's calm blue ones.

Anthony remained silent for a moment, knowing full well that Vega was inquiring about his mental state. They were on the brink of another battle, whether it would happen in minutes or hours didn't matter. Entering such battles with the wrong mindset could easily lead to death.

"I'm fine, Vee. I wouldn't let people I don't even know give me sleepless nights," Anthony responded evenly, his voice steady and composed.

"Good. At that point, it's no longer about revenge. It becomes self-inflicted punishment if you start regretting your actions," Vega replied, her tone clear and firm.

Anthony raised an eyebrow, his lips twitching into a faint smile as he replied, "You speak as though you've wiped out a planet before."

Vega chuckled softly and responded, "Don't say things like that, or people will start thinking we're a crazy couple who go around destroying planets for fun."

Anthony merely smiled, saying nothing more. He understood that Vega was simply checking in on him, looking out for him in her own way, and for that, he appreciated her deeply.

"Earlier, you said you had something else to handle. What was that? Are there more descendants of the Second Supreme Monarch hiding somewhere?" Vega asked curiously.

The thought had been nagging at her. She still found it difficult to comprehend how one man could populate an entire planet so thoroughly. It almost seemed as though the Second Supreme Monarch had resorted to creating clones to make it possible.

"You remember my subordinates I told you about? The ones with Spectre and Clement among them?" Anthony asked, tilting his head slightly.

"Yes, I remember. You said you have ten of them," Vega replied, recalling their previous conversation where Anthony had shared details about his inner circle.

"Well, two of them are currently on the Blue Planet. Unlike the rest, they didn't enlist in the military. Instead, they chose a different path, they established orphanages throughout the Human Domain and even created a guild exclusive to women. I plan to bring them along for this mission," Anthony said calmly.

Vivian and Donna.

They were the two he hadn't seen in over a year. He wanted to bring them in because he knew the death of Vivian's parents had ties to the Forsaken Cult. Her hatred for the cult and the Demon race ran deep. She would undoubtedly want to be part of something this significant.

From the information Spectre had shared, Vivian and Donna's guild had a different focus from the typical adventuring organizations. Instead of hunting monsters or beasts for profit, they targeted Demons and Forsaken Cult members directly. While their work paid far less, since demon bodies and cultist remains didn't provide the same valuable materials as monsters, it was clear that money had never been their motivation.

They had a system. They had resources. To them, money was meaningless.

Although the military also dedicated efforts to eradicating demons, Vivian and Donna had chosen to do it on their own terms, with their own people.

Hearing about Vivian and Donna's efforts in establishing orphanages, Vega smiled warmly. She had always held a soft spot for children. To her, seeing children play freely, unburdened by the horrors of the world, was one of life's few true joys. She naturally developed positive feelings toward anyone who dedicated themselves to such noble causes.

Though she had heard of Vivian and Donna in passing, she had never given them much thought, until now.

"I'd love to finally meet these two," Vega said with a thoughtful nod.

"Now that you know they run orphanages, you suddenly have good thoughts about them," Anthony teased with a chuckle. "Why don't you open one yourself? Or better yet, I could just put some cute babies in you," he added with a mischievous smile.

Vega simply shook her head, unamused by his shamelessness. She wasn't about to indulge his antics.

Anthony stood from his seat. "I'll be back soon. I'm sure the three of you will get along just fine," he said with a knowing smile.

Vega gave a nod before vanishing in an instant, reappearing in another room, sitting opposite Seraphim, who had by now given up on trying to pick up the cards Vega left behind.

With a casual grace, Vega resumed her game, waiting patiently for Anthony's return.

Watching her disappear, Anthony let out a soft sigh, then activated Authority Of Severance. His gaze turned to the glowing threads that linked him to each of his subordinates. His eyes fixed on the one connected to Donna, and with a single thought, he severed it.

There were no spatial distortions, no magical ripples. He simply vanished.

Reality bled back into focus. Anthony reappeared within a vast and elegantly furnished office. Two breathtakingly beautiful women with long, flowing blue hair cascading down their backs were standing at the far end, addressing a group of women who stood respectfully before them.

Anthony didn't immediately announce himself. He leaned against the wall silently, watching with quiet amusement.

They were discussing him.

Specifically, they were dissecting the battle that had occurred just thirty minutes earlier.

They had sensed his overwhelming mana, a presence so immense it spanned across millions of kilometers. Naturally, they were working to identify the source behind such a catastrophic surge of power.

Coupled with the vampire blood that had been mysteriously scattered across the Human Domain, their only logical conclusion was that a titanic battle had taken place, between two powerhouses of unimaginable scale.

Anthony smiled faintly as he listened in. They even mentioned the moment he had used his time magic to reverse everything.

His eyes shifted to one of the women among the gathered crowd. He remembered sensing her presence earlier, one of the many who had raced toward him after he annihilated the false Warlord vampire clones.

He didn't interrupt.

He let them finish their business. Orders were issued. The two blue-haired women directed their guild members to take defensive positions across the Human Domain in preparation for any new threats.

Once the last of the women left, only Donna and Vivian remained.

That was when Anthony finally spoke.

"Miss me?" he asked, his voice low, smooth, and teasing.

As soon as the familiar tone hit their ears, both Donna and Vivian's auras flared instinctively, until recognition struck.

They knew that voice.

They could never forget it. No matter how much time had passed, they would always know who it belonged to.

Their heads turned in unison. And there he was.

Anthony stood casually against the wall, arms crossed over his chest, a familiar smile playing at his lips. He looked exactly as they remembered, and yet, something about him now felt different. Stronger. Wilder. But still… unmistakably him.