Ironically, although Evan had been the one who wanted the Chasm to close more than anyone else, he wasn't even there when it finally happened.
At the time, he had been occupied intercepting a platoon of Infernal Devil scouts who were attempting to gather intelligence on how many of Tír Síorghlas' forces were moving from the west to rendezvous with the spirits of Nature's Dwelling in the south-eastern part of the continent.
The goal of this manoeuvre was to unify both armies and begin a joint march toward Trifid.
Evan had detected the scouts while they were en route to the Chasm and promptly excused himself, stating that he was going to "deal with the rats."
It wasn't until after the Chasm wall had already dissipated and the leaders of both armies had crossed over that Evan, who had taken on his dragon form due to the need for sheer destructive power to deal with the rats, finally arrived.
Since the Chasm had already closed up, he simply flew across, the cheers of the spirits of Tír Síorghlas echoing across the land at the sight of him.
He landed near Artemisia and Beatrix, tossing the limp bodies of the two Infernal Devils he'd been carrying with his forelimbs.
Now then, there hadn't only been two of them.
There had been a full platoon.
Forty, to be exact.
And then Evan found them.
And now, there were two.
Evan reverted to his humanoid form, stepping out of the dust cloud stirred up by his landing to meet a laughing Arthur.
"What the hell, dude? Nine weeks, and you're a whole new person?"
"And look like you haven't changed one bit!" Evan immediately shot back, meeting Arthur's outstretched hand in a friendly dap.
"Where'd you pick up the new 'fit'?"
"?"
Evan momentarily thought Arthur was asking about his clothes, but he quickly remembered that this was Arthur's first time seeing his Full Dragon Form.
"Some guy called Azzonnin tried to take over my body. Didn't end well for him," Evan responded, his tone filled with mock sorrow.
"Dude had so many dragon factors that my Dragon side went from 'High' to 'Arch'."
"The dragon side's stronger than your human side now," Arthur noted as he scanned Evan, and the Rogue Hero nodded in response.
She had the pointed ears characteristic of elves and the fair skin typical of their light variants. Her long hair was braided neatly into a single plait that hung over her shoulder.
The woman was certainly pretty, but that wasn't what drew Evan's attention.
"So, you're the 'Prophetess,' huh? Damn, you reek of Causality."
Despite the bluntness of his comment, which could've easily come off as rude for a first encounter, the woman slightly bowed her head and politely introduced herself.
"Good day to you, Sir Evan. I am called Charisse."
"Good day to you as well, Madam Charisse," Evan responded, mirroring her formal bow.
As their brief introductions wrapped up, Arthur slung an arm around Evan's shoulder and immediately asked the one thing that had been bugging him.
"Alright, spill it, man. What happened over there? I half-expected you to be Sovereign by now."
"Tsk, tsk…"
Clicking his tongue in annoyance, Evan shook his head and said, "Don't even remind me. Why the hell does it take me ten times more EXP to level up than anyone else? What am I—some kind of protagonist?"
The question had Arthur raising an eyebrow, "What else did you think you were?"
Then, stroking his chin with a pensive expression, Arthur added, "Although technically speaking, you're the deuteragonist in this Arc."
His remark sent Evan into a brief moment of contemplation before he eventually nodded in agreement.
"From your perspective, I'm the deuteragonist, while you're the deuteragonist from mine. Jamie's the Tritagonist on both sides, though."
"Yeah, can't argue with that."
As the two continued their back-and-forth, the Elders from both Nature's Dwelling and Tír Síorghlas began exchanging confused glances. Eventually, a few of them turned toward Artemisia and Beatrix, silently hoping for some kind of explanation.
But before any of them could voice their questions, both teenagers spoke up at the same time.
""Don't ask, you wouldn't understand even if they explained it to you.""
The synchronised reply made it clear that they were speaking from experience.
◇ ◇ ◇
The hours passed swiftly, as they always did.
Thanks to the two Infernal Devil scouts Evan had captured, they were able to confirm that Infernal Devil forces had regrouped at the northern end of the continent.
They also verified the presence of one of the Infernal Archdevil Commanders, Jegunul. Vonun's whereabouts, however, remained unknown, though both Arthur and Evan suspected he was already in the east with Triffid.
With the Chasm now closed, the time for planning had come.
Nature's Dwelling had become the centre of preparation, bustling with the assembled Spirit Armies, along with allied humans and elves from Iohodis. Cultivators from Denerth Prime had also arrived, drawn by the promise of rewards in return for their cooperation.
Those who had just arrived from the southwestern regions of the continent were being held in a separate area to receive specific orders. The cultivators, too, had been gathered apart for their own dedicated briefing.
As the different groups were being guided to their designated areas, Charisse made her way over to Evan, who was passing the time by gaming.
"Sir Evan. Do you have a moment?"
"Hmm?"
Evan glanced over at her with a raised brow, then recalled the message Caeril had delivered and added, "Oh, you're here to talk about the Transcendence stuff, right?"
"Affirmative."
Charisse replied in a quiet voice, and Evan, jumping off his seat, said.
"No need to whisper. Arthur isn't anywhere remotely near us anyway."
The godslayer was off in another region of the continent, helping gather cultivators, and wouldn't be returning anytime soon.
Charisse led Evan into a separate room that resembled an office. There was a desk with a few files and some other items that looked confidential, but she unhesitatingly pushed everything to the side, clearing space at the table before taking a seat at one end and gesturing for Evan to sit at the other.
As soon as he sat down, she began.
"As you mentioned earlier, I wish to speak to you regarding Sir Arthur's Transcendence."
At that, Evan responded, "Let me guess—he's going to become a Transcendent after fighting Vonun?"
Charisse was silent for a moment, then tilted her head slightly and asked,
"Do you truly believe he can do that? Actually fighting Vonun in his current state, I mean?"
To that, Evan immediately shook his head.
"Nope. He might put up a bit of a fight, but he won't win."
Although it had only been for a moment, Evan had sensed Vonun's power, and based on what he felt in that instant, Vonun was at least on par with Alvey and McEnda. The current Arthur couldn't beat someone like that.
"So he's going to become a Transcendent before he fights Vonun?" Evan asked.
Charisse nodded.
"Yes. And that is precisely the problem.
The process of a Sovereign becoming a Transcendent is not instantaneous. It takes time, and if that transition happens in the middle of a battle, enemies can exploit that vulnerable window and strike."
Evan didn't need her to say anything more to understand how disastrous that could be. Attacking someone in the midst of breaking through to a new Existence Level was one of the most effective ways to cripple them long-term. The internal injuries alone could be devastating, not to mention the potential soul damage.
That was why, in battles where breakthroughs occurred mid-fight, allies would usually try to shield the one breaking through to prevent their enemies from taking advantage of the opening.
Which, of course, led to the real reason Charisse wanted to speak to Evan.
"I want you to protect Sir Arthur while he's in the middle of becoming a Transcendent."
When Charisse made the request, Evan gave her a flat, deadpan stare. Then, without saying a word, he turned his gaze to the window of the office.
After a short silence, he finally spoke.
"With just a casual glance, I've seen four, maybe five, Transcendent-level Spirits out there. You've got those guys just lying around, and you're asking me to protect him while he's in the middle of becoming a Transcendent? When we're going to be dealing with Transcendent Infernal Archdevils?
Are you being for real?"
Charisse, unfazed by the sarcasm and disbelief in his tone, responded with her usual calm.
"Yes. Despite the fact that there are Transcendent-level Spirits present, I'm asking you.
Part of the reason is that those Spirits will be preoccupied handling the Archdevils during the battle, but there's also a different, more complex reason."
"Oh?" Evan asked, raising an eyebrow. "And what reason would that be?"
Charisse responded not just with words, but with action.
She extended both hands toward him, her grey eyes shimmering as she spoke.
"Your hands, please."
"…"
Evan was momentarily silent, his gaze falling to her outstretched hands, watching as law energy gathered around them.
"I cannot maintain this for long," she said. "So if you would?"
As she spoke, Evan noticed a bead of sweat trailing down her brow, and without a word, he took her outstretched hands.
Law energy coursed into his arms, flowing up through his body and into his eyes, and then, Evan saw a slideshow of images showing several devils pounding against the walls of a familiar-looking dome, unable to break free.
A moment later, Charisse pulled her hands back, grey sparks snaking around her fingers as she exhaled slowly.
She took a moment to stabilise her breathing before looking up at him.
"Were the images clear?"
"Yes," Evan replied as he sifted through what he'd just seen, noting that every image showed that same dome with devils trapped inside.
"I would like you to use the item that created those barriers to protect Sir Arthur," Charisse said.
Knowing what she was referring to, Evan muttered.
"You were able to see even that?"
But Charisse immediately shook her head.
"No. I saw nothing."
"??"
Seeing Evan's confused look, Charisse took a deep breath before explaining.
"I have no idea what the item you used to create that barrier actually looks like. Its causality index is far too high for me to perceive it through divination.
However, in the many possible futures I observed, especially the grim ones, you always brought it out as some sort of last resort, and without exception, the law of causality attempted to destroy it each time.
That much allowed me to conclude that it must be an item of considerable power, and the barrier it produces, while excellent for trapping enemies within, can just as easily be used to shield and protect those inside."
By now, the item in question couldn't have been more obvious.
It was the Akashic Page.
Which meant that the 'dome barrier' she kept referring to had to be none other than World Magic Spell Number 25: World Isolation Barrier.