CHAPTER 97: ROHAN

In the aftermath of the island’s detonations, Rohan is trapped in a collapsed sea cave, treading in deep, frigid water as tides crash beyond the sealed mouth. He has failed to claw a way out and calculates he cannot keep afloat much longer. The prospect of dying alone unsettles him more than he expects.

A distant moan through rubble reveals Nora is also alive but pinned. Rohan presses for her condition; she deflects, declaring that without the Gilded Blade and with Kyrie leadership shattered, her mission is complete. She admits staying ensured the outcome even if it meant dying. Rohan’s hollow sarcasm meets her fatalism: “There are no real heroes,” Nora says.

As Rohan’s strength wanes and cramps drag him under, he stops fighting the descent and slips into a long-buried memory. He relives the night he believed he killed his mother, recalling the rock in his hand and her screams—but this time the memory continues. He drops the rock, hears approaching footsteps and a cane, and realizes he never struck the fatal blow.

Jolted by this revelation, Rohan surges to the surface and breathes. Understanding that he did not kill his mother reframes his past and reignites his survival instinct. He resolves not to die in the dark and, despite Nora’s claim that heroes don’t exist, decides he can play the part—determined to find a way out and try to save her.