Five years.
Only five years had passed since the final war.
To Kaien, it felt both impossibly short and strangely long.
Short because he could still remember every detail of that battlefield.
The smell of burning earth.
The endless darkness.
The Entity's voice.
The moment Kavach and Kundal returned to him.
The final strike that ended everything.
Those memories remained as vivid as the day they happened.
Yet at the same time—
five years had changed the world completely.
Entire cities had risen.
New generations had been born.
Children who were infants during the war now attended school.
Some of them couldn't even remember the conflict anymore.
History was slowly becoming history.
And for perhaps the first time, humanity was beginning to think about something beyond survival.
Culture.
Identity.
Celebration.
Life.
The idea reached Kaien through the High Council.
Which immediately made him suspicious.
Nothing good ever started with the phrase:
"The council has an idea."
The meeting had been progressing normally.
Infrastructure.
Expansion projects.
Agricultural production.
Trade agreements.
Nothing unusual.
Then one council member raised his hand.
"We need a national holiday."
The room immediately became interested.
Kaien immediately became concerned.
"What kind of holiday?"
The councilman smiled.
"A celebration."
That answer somehow explained absolutely nothing.
The discussion exploded afterward.
Some wanted a remembrance day for those lost during the wars.
Others wanted a celebration of humanity's survival.
Several proposed founding anniversaries for the new settlements.
One elderly member suggested an entire week of festivities.
Kaien nearly walked out.
After two hours of debate, a conclusion finally emerged.
Humanity needed something positive.
Not another memorial.
Not another reminder of tragedy.
Something that represented the future.
Something that celebrated life itself.
To Kaien's surprise—
he actually agreed.
For generations, humanity's calendar had been filled with remembrance.
Days dedicated to battles.
Losses.
Victories purchased through sacrifice.
Necessary things.
Important things.
But there was very little dedicated to simply being alive.
Thus, the Festival of Dawn was born.
A yearly celebration marking the beginning of humanity's reconstruction era.
The day the first permanent civilian city was officially rebuilt after the war.
A symbol of new beginnings.
Kaien approved the proposal.
Then immediately regretted it.
Because the moment news spread, the entire nation lost its collective mind.
Preparations began months in advance.
Every city wanted to host the largest celebration.
Every district wanted unique attractions.
Every settlement wanted to contribute something special.
Within weeks, Novaris transformed completely.
Decorations appeared everywhere.
Public squares filled with artists.
Markets expanded.
Musicians traveled from across the nation.
Food vendors occupied entire streets.
Kaien watched all of this happen with increasing confusion.
One evening he stood near a window overlooking central Novaris.
Thousands of workers moved through the streets below.
Constructing stages.
Installing lights.
Preparing decorations.
"They seem excited."
Nyra stood beside him.
Kaien nodded slowly.
"They do."
Lyss appeared moments later carrying several brochures.
She immediately handed one toward him.
Kaien looked down.
Then frowned.
"What is this?"
"A schedule."
"For what?"
"The festival."
Kaien continued reading.
Then kept reading.
Then continued reading.
There were concerts.
Competitions.
Art exhibitions.
Athletic events.
Cultural showcases.
Historical displays.
Educational programs.
Public ceremonies.
Fireworks.
The schedule was enormous.
Kaien looked up.
"How many events are there?"
Nyra answered immediately.
"Several hundred."
"...Several hundred?"
Neither woman appeared concerned by that number.
Which somehow made it worse.
The day finally arrived.
And humanity celebrated like a species that had spent generations waiting for permission to be happy.
Kaien had never seen anything like it.
Not in this world.
Not in any world.
As Karna, life had revolved around kingdoms and war.
As Aditya, civilization rarely enjoyed peace long enough for celebrations on this scale.
As Arin, survival constantly overshadowed everything else.
This was different.
Entirely different.
The streets overflowed with people.
Families.
Children.
Travelers.
Artists.
Merchants.
Citizens from every region gathered together.
No military formations.
No emergency alarms.
No fear.
Just people.
Living.
Kaien spent most of the morning walking through the city alongside Nyra and Lyss.
The experience quickly became overwhelming.
Everywhere they went, people tried including them.
A merchant insisted they sample local food.
A musician requested audience participation.
Several children challenged Kaien to games.
One elderly woman somehow forced him to accept homemade pastries.
"You've become popular."
Nyra sounded entirely too amused.
Kaien looked down at the collection of food currently occupying his hands.
"I've been attacked."
The twins laughed.
The situation became even worse when they reached one of the larger plazas.
A crowd had gathered around a public stage.
Several performers were entertaining spectators.
Nothing unusual.
Until someone recognized Kaien.
Then everyone recognized Kaien.
The crowd erupted immediately.
Cheers.
Greetings.
Excited shouting.
Kaien briefly considered retreating.
Unfortunately Nyra noticed.
"Don't you dare."
His escape plan ended instantly.
Several organizers quickly approached.
One of them smiled nervously.
"Director Veyr."
Kaien already disliked where this was going.
"We would be honored if you joined us on stage."
Absolutely not.
The answer appeared in his mind immediately.
Unfortunately he never got the chance to say it.
Because the crowd had already started chanting.
Kaien closed his eyes.
Sometimes defeating world-ending entities felt easier than dealing with civilians.
A few minutes later he found himself standing on stage.
Still wondering how his life had reached this point.
The crowd cheered.
Thousands of people filled the plaza.
Then everyone became quiet.
Waiting.
Kaien stared at them.
They stared back.
The silence stretched.
Longer.
Longer.
Even longer.
Finally Nyra whispered from nearby.
"Say something."
Kaien glanced toward her.
Then toward the crowd.
Then back toward her.
"What?"
She looked horrified.
"You seriously didn't prepare anything?"
"I wasn't planning on being here."
The crowd continued waiting.
Patiently.
Eventually Kaien sighed.
Then stepped forward.
"My speech was not prepared."
The audience laughed immediately.
Good.
At least that bought him a few seconds.
He looked across the sea of faces.
Young.
Old.
Children.
Families.
People from every corner of humanity.
Then something occurred to him.
Maybe they didn't need a perfect speech.
Maybe they just needed honesty.
Five years ago, none of this existed.
Not the celebration.
Not the rebuilt cities.
Not the future everyone now took for granted.
Kaien took a breath.
"Five years ago..."
The crowd became silent again.
"We stood at the edge of extinction."
No dramatic music.
No grand gestures.
Just truth.
"We fought."
"We sacrificed."
"We survived."
His gaze moved across the crowd.
"But this..."
He gestured toward the city.
The people.
The festival.
The life surrounding them.
"...this was always the goal."
The silence deepened.
"Not war."
"Not victory."
"Not power."
His voice remained calm.
"This."
Children laughing.
Families together.
Artists creating.
Dreams being pursued.
"A future where people could live."
The crowd remained completely silent.
Listening.
Then Kaien smiled slightly.
A genuine smile.
Rare enough that Nyra immediately noticed.
"So enjoy yourselves."
Confused expressions appeared throughout the audience.
Kaien shrugged.
"You earned it."
The entire plaza erupted.
Cheers exploded through the city.
Laughter followed.
Applause thundered across the square.
Kaien stepped back afterward.
Speech completed.
Nyra stared at him.
"That's it?"
"Yes."
"That's the whole speech?"
"Yes."
Lyss laughed.
And somehow—
it turned out to be everyone's favorite speech of the entire festival.
That night, as fireworks illuminated the skies above Novaris, Kaien stood between Nyra and Lyss overlooking the celebration below.
Colors exploded across the heavens.
The city glowed with life.
Music echoed through the streets.
Humanity celebrated not survival.
Not victory.
But life itself.
For a long time, Kaien simply watched.
Then he realized something.
For the first time in any of his lives—
Karna.
Aditya.
Arin.
And now Kaien.
He was witnessing a world that didn't need saving.
Only living.
And somehow—
that felt like the greatest victory of all.