The explanation Erend gave made the room feel different. It settled into the space like weight pressing down on everything at once, and for a moment Yohn said nothing at all.

His eyes drifted away from Erend and moved across the chamber, searching, as if the walls filled with his years of study might somehow offer a contradiction or an answer that could anchor what he had just heard back into something familiar.

His gaze lingered longest on Sylven, and when he found no denial there, only a quiet and steady nod that confirmed every word, the silence deepened further.

Yohn coughed lightly, a small sound that broke the stillness. He straightened in his chair as his mind began to work through it with the discipline of someone who had spent a lifetime confronting the Magical knowledge and beasts.

"So," he said slowly, his voice measured as he pieced the logic together aloud, "you're telling me that the very foundation of power in this world… everything we've studied, everything we've built upon… comes from a Creation of an otherworldly entity. And not just any entity, but one that will eventually turn into a disaster?"

His eyes narrowed slightly as he leaned forward.

"Then why did it come here in the first place? And why would it divide itself the way it did?"

Erend met his gaze without hesitation, his tone calm but firm as he answered. "Because it didn't want to be used. The Sky Anchor has its own consciousness. It understood what it was meant for, and it rejected it. Splitting itself was its way of resisting that purpose. It wasn't trying to destroy this world. It was trying to avoid becoming the tool that would be used for that by its master."

Yohn sighed slowly, the breath leaving him heavier than before, and leaned back again as he pressed a hand lightly against his temple.

"I see…" he murmured. His expression told them that he was processing it.

The room fell quiet again, but this time it was different. It was not confusion but reconstruction, the careful tearing down and rebuilding of everything he had believed for decades.

Erend and the others did not interrupt him. They understood what this meant.

For someone like Yohn, this was not just new information. It was the collapse of a lifetime of understanding and forcing him forward too quickly would be bad.

But doubt still lingered in his heart, faint but present, and it showed in the way Yohn's fingers tapped lightly against the armrest of his chair.

His thoughts turned again. This time toward the four figures sitting before him. 𝑓𝘳𝘦𝑒𝑤𝑒𝘣𝘯ℴ𝘷𝘦𝓁.𝑐𝑜𝑚

He studied them more carefully, not as subjects of fascination now, but as sources of truth or deception.

"Why would they lie?" he thought to himself. "They wouldn't bother, right?"

His eyes sharpened slightly as the reasoning aligned. These were Dragonborn. Not one, but four of them. Beings whose presence alone could reshape the entire world if they chose to act without restraint.

If they had wanted something from him through force or deception, they would not have needed this conversation at all. And Sylven… Yohn's gaze softened slightly as it returned to him.

"You've never misled me before," Yohn said quietly to him.

Sylven gave a small, knowing nod. "Yes. And I'm not starting now."

That was enough.

Yohn took a deep breath, then released the breath slowly as the last of his hesitation settled into resolve.

When he looked at them again. His eyes look more grounded and decisive.

"Alright," he said. "I'll help you."

Erend's shoulders eased slightly, the tension that had lingered since the beginning of their explanation finally loosening. Eccar let out a faint breath and allowed a small smile to form, while Aesa gave a subtle nod, her expression unchanged but her acceptance clear in that minimal movement.

"Thank you," Erend said, his voice carrying genuine relief.

Yohn waved it off lightly, though a faint grin returned to his face.

"Don't thank me yet. I still need to understand what exactly you want from me."

Erend leaned forward slightly, his focus sharpening again.

"We need access to the people in this world who truly understand the Magic and the Sky Anchor. The ones who've studied it at the highest level. We need to speak with them, all of them if possible."

Yohn frowned slightly at that and leaned back again, thinking.

"Those people…" he muttered. "They're not easy to gather. And to be honest, I've spent most of my life avoiding them." He let out a short breath through his nose. "Politics, pride, conflicting theories. It's exhausting."

Eccar gave a small shrug. "We don't have the luxury to avoid them anymore."

"No, we don't," Yohn agreed, though his expression showed clear reluctance. He tapped his fingers once against the table, then nodded slowly. "I don't like the idea of meeting all of them again… but I'll do it. Or at least, I'll help you reach them."

"That's more than enough," Erend said.

Eccar leaned back slightly with a relaxed grin. "See? This is already going better than expected."

Aesa glanced toward Yohn and gave a small, respectful nod. "We appreciate it."

Sylven smiled faintly. "Your help will make a difference, Yohn. More than you think."

Yohn let out a quiet chuckle, the tension finally easing from his posture as he leaned back fully into his chair.

"Well," he said with a small grin, "I've spent my whole life studying this world. I'd rather not see it end because of something I chose to ignore just because I don't like the people we're about to meet."

—

Inside his own chamber, Archmage Velrion stood facing the window overlooking the city below again.

His mind was still in a jumble. They decided to rest from the Grand Library for now because it was just too exhausting to search for those buried records.

Then suddenly, one of his spirits emerged behind him.

Velrion sighed and asked, "Who is it?"

The spirit shuddered for a second then answered. "It's me, Yohn. How are you doing, old friend?"

Velrion turned his head sharply at the voice.

—