At the settlement camp established by the pioneering group, Rest unexpectedly came face-to-face with his estranged father.
(Of all places… I never thought I'd run into him here.)
Rest furrowed his brow as he stared at Lucas Eberne, the court mage who had appeared before him.
The last time they'd met was before Rest had enrolled in the academy, back when Lucas had made his last visit as he prepared to marry into the Marquis Rosemary family.
The Eberne family, a barely-noble house with the honorary title of viscount, would lose even that meager status without a foothold in the nobility. Lucas had tried to keep Rest back then, especially after his precious son Cedric failed to secure a spot in the academy. Rest's blunt rejection of Lucas's desperate pleas still lingered in his memory.
(Still alive, huh? Not that I tried to kill him, so it figures he'd survive…)