After they both left, Ervin sat in his chair, his elbows resting on the armrests, fingers loosely intertwined. The faint crackle of the fireplace filled the quiet hall, throwing long, wavering shadows against the stone walls. His gaze was fixed on nothing in particular, but the weight in his eyes showed his mind was elsewhere sifting through worries, choices, and the uncertain days ahead.

Helly, standing near the doorway, watched him in silence for a moment. Her hands were clasped in front of her, the lamplight soft against her face.

She hesitated before speaking. "Sir, it is quite late now. It is time for you to sleep too. So should we leave?"

Ervin blinked, as if pulled back from a long way off, and turned his head toward her.

"Yes, it is okay. Let's go. We will talk about the rest tomorrow." His voice carried the faint rasp of fatigue.

They left the hall together, their footsteps echoing against the polished floor before fading into the stillness of the corridors. Soon, the building settled into its night rhythm the quiet hum of the wind outside, the distant creak of wooden beams.

That night, no one found sleep easily. Thoughts churned behind closed doors some clung to memories of people far away, others wrestled with the weight of what tomorrow might bring.

In the midst of that uneasy silence, one room stayed lit well past midnight. Faint light spilled from its window, and if one listened closely, the murmur of voices could be heard. Three of them, speaking softly in the calm of the night.

Inside, Ren, Elara, and Seroi sat together. The dirt and blood from earlier were gone, replaced by clean clothes and skin that no longer carried the day's grime. The faint scent of herbal soap lingered in the air, and the warmth of the room made the moment feel almost like peace.

"So now we can talk comfortably. So tell me what are we going to do next?" Ren asked, leaning slightly forward, elbows on his knees.

Seroi smirked. "Ren, it seems your memory has weakened. I was going to tell you something if you remember." His tone carried a teasing lilt.

"Yes, it seems so. There is a parasite left inside Ren, right?" Elara said with a mischievous smile, joining in the joke.

The three of them laughed, their voices warm against the cold night beyond the walls.

But when the laughter faded, Seroi's expression shifted. He straightened slightly, his voice taking on a more serious note.

"Like I was asking you… have you ever seen the origin core?"

Ren's brows drew together. "No. Have you guys found it? If yes, where is it? And isn't it dangerous? I read in stories that there is a lot of danger around such things." His voice was filled with surprise and a trace of curiosity, as if sensing that the night's conversation was about to take a sharp turn.

"Yes, it was dangerous." Seroi leaned back slightly, his gaze unfocused as if the memory was replaying in front of him. The faint lamplight caught the sharp lines of his face, deepening the shadows under his eyes.

"As I was telling you, we had reached a volcano near Mount Yeret." His voice carried a distant weight, the kind that came from walking too close to death. "According to that mission, we had to dig inside that mountain. We had to carve a path through the rock. The volcano was restless, its breath hot in the air. It could erupt at any moment. Many lives were at risk. That was why we were sent."

Ren shifted slightly, elbows resting on his knees, his focus locked on Seroi. Elara sat straighter, her fingers unconsciously curling into the fabric of her sleeve.

"On the other side of that volcano," Seroi continued, "was a barren stretch of land, more like a desert than anything else. No villages, no travelers just dry wind and cracked stone. Back then, only a few people had awakened. Even fewer had become mages."

His tone softened for a moment, tinged with a strange respect. "Among those few, we had an earth mage with us. So we brought him along. With his help, we didn't need heavy tools or teams of workers to dig."

Seroi paused, the faint sound of his breathing filling the room. His hand absently rubbed at a thin scar along his forearm, the movement slow and unthinking.

Ren and Elara said nothing. Their eyes stayed fixed on him, their expressions a mix of curiosity and unease, as if they could already sense that the rest of the story would not be so simple.

Seroi drew in a slow breath and continued.

"We were under that mountain." Seroi's voice deepened, echoing faintly in the quiet room. His hand traced an invisible shape in the air, as though mapping the slopes of the volcano. "The volcano was completely filled with lava. It was going to erupt any moment."

Ren imagined the suffocating heat, the ground trembling beneath their feet, the air tasting faintly of ash.

"That's why we started climbing without any delay. In those days, very few people knew flying magic. There were only a few rare people who knew teleportation." Seroi's gaze flickered toward the low window, as if seeing the past hanging beyond it. "That was the time before you awakened. You also know that ten-twelve years ago we were not as developed as we are today."

A faint smile tugged at the corner of his lips before vanishing. "Oh! Forgive me. I forgot that Vael did not send us at that time. It was Eram. My best friend. Vael was not at that time."

His voice caught for a moment. The firelight revealed a brief shadow in his eyes. His jaw tightened, but he smoothed the expression away before it could linger.

Seroi took a small pause, drawing a steady breath before speaking again.

"Yes, it was Eram. It has been many years since those things. Now I don't remember everything." He looked at Ren, a weary smile on his face.

"It's okay. Now you are also about to grow old," Ren said, his tone warm and consoling.

"My age? What are you talking about? I am still as energetic and young as before. It's just that I am missing out because of the war." Seroi straightened slightly, his voice carrying both calm and a quiet spark of pride.

"Yes, Papa, you are still as fit as before," Elara added, her words light and affectionate. Her eyes softened as she looked at him.

A shared laugh rose between them, filling the room with a brief warmth that seemed to push the past away if only for a moment.

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