Chapter 59

The mountain remained drenched in darkness and sung upon by a desolate wind. Only the bonfire’s embers served as a source of light within it, its flames rising like hazes.

I looked at Rohakan, who didn’t avoid my gaze. Deculein used to be his student, but it wasn’t as special as it sounded.

Deculein’s past was like a spider web. Hence, although this encounter was sudden, it was also inevitable. Among the Named characters throughout the empire, those unrelated to him were rare.

“Rohakan?” Epherene turned him and asked, her voice trembling. “Y-You said Rohakan? Then those fragments of the World Tree….”

Archmage Demakan’s treasure was a staff made from the World Tree. Stories about it and him were so famous that they appeared in fairytales.

He made his weapon of choice out of such rare tree branches and gave the remaining fragments to his family. Hence, Epherene and Sylvia thought Rohakan’s staff was from the World Tree.

“I worked so hard on that barrier. How did you get through it?” Rohakan scratched the back of his neck.

Barrier magic often differed in the series it used depending on its character. For example, barriers that widened the space within it used support series, and barriers that deceived perception used the illusion series.

Rohakan’s barrier used the illusion series, which I was immune to.

“Those cheap techniques don’t work anymore.”

“… Oh? Cheap techniques?” Rohakan’s eyes widened.

I turned my gaze to Epherene and Sylvia, standing near him, but Sylvia wasn’t there any longer.

“I’m here.”

… At some point, she had come behind my back.

“Epherene,” I called, but Rohakan expressed his surprise before she could move.

“Epherene? Are you Epherene Luna? The daughter of the Luna family?”

“Yes? D-Do you know me?”

“Of course, I do. Was it 15 years ago? Your father’s brain was a refreshing shock to me too. What is he doing these days?”

Epherene’s expression hardened. She looked at Sylvia and me. Then her gaze fell to the ground.

“… He passed away.”

“…”

Rohakan’s jaw dropped.

He looked both apologetic and embarrassed. Rubbing his temples, he said, “That’s a pity. His personality was a bit strange, but he was the kind of genius that rarely comes out even in a century.”

“Ah…”

“Debutante Epherene,” I called out to her again.

She looked unable to decide at first but soon approached me.

She asked him another question afterward.

“… Are you really Rohakan, not Murkan?”

Rohakan smiled bitterly and nodded. “Yeah. I’m sorry. When I tell people my name, they immediately run away. Murkan’s my best friend. I borrowed this staff from him.”