"Madness"?

Frem's gaze was instantly drawn to the enormous "staff." He stared at it for a long time before finally forcing out a few words through his lips. "...The Eternal Burning Hearth..."

Only after several more seconds of silence did he raise his head, his gaze falling on Vana and Duncan. "You brought it out because..."

"This was Vana's decision," Duncan said, shaking his head and taking half a step back. "She believes this staff should be handed over to the Church of the Flame Bearers."

Frem's eyes widened slightly as he looked at the young Inquisitor in astonishment.

"Tarquin left this staff to me as a parting gift, but at the time, He did not yet know of the Deep Sea Era," Vana said softly with a quiet sigh. "Perhaps the Tarquin I met was only a shadow, perhaps the Senjin people of the Deep Sea Era are merely 'copies' recreated after the Third Long Night, but some things... belong to whoever they belong to. The legacy of a civilization should not become someone's private collection. Giving it to the Church of the Flame Bearers would be more meaningful than keeping it in my hands."

The table fell silent for a moment. Helena, Rune, and Banster exchanged glances before wisely closing their mouths. Frem slowly reached out, his rock-textured fingers carefully brushing over the staff's rough surface.

The dense carvings on the staff seemed to preserve time itself, silently recounting an era of civilization forgotten by all living things. In those memories that had long since faded and vanished, a race had stumbled out of the wilderness, risen to glory, and then marched toward its end.

Yet Frem could not recognize a single character upon it. He only felt that every carved mark was incomparably familiar, so familiar that it