Annette’s jaw dropped, her eyes wide with disbelief.
‘What?’
As a master, she had graduated from being a regular drifter.
The true journey of realizing a drifter’s power and might began when they entered the vagrant rank and became masters.
Their soul essence became much more potent, enabling abilities like spiritual release. A vast repertoire of new abilities opened before them.
Not just that, but their senses of perception and physical capabilities heightened incredibly.
They could hear ten times better than a regular drifter, their bodies restructured and imbued with extraordinary strength.
Their talents took unique routes, setting them apart from the rest.
This made masters exceptionally formidable opponents.
In other words, they were the beginning of what it truly meant to be a drifter.
There was no way a regular drifter’s movements should have escaped Annette’s keen eyes.
Distracted or not, it was simply not possible!
A bead of sweat trickled down her flushed face as she froze mid-motion, almost standing up.
All she felt was a gust of wind; she hadn’t even seen the boy move at all.
‘How? This makes absolutely no sense…’
Northern’s speed was terrifying, defying any reasonable explanation.
She would have assumed he possessed a speed-based talent if she hadn’t witnessed his Cloning ability firsthand herself.
‘Come to think of it… he was also fast that day… but not enough for me to worry.’
Back then, Annette had merely considered Northern physically impressive for his age.
‘Still… this view is so nice,’ a sly smile curled her lips as she settled back into the plush sofa.
Northern shot Gilbert a sidelong glance, pressing the black stiletto against his throat before he could move.
“Answer me!” Northern shouted furiously, the wind whipping violently around them, carrying his anger.
Gilbert met the boy’s gaze with indifference, though cautious.
‘He’s strong…powered by rage and fury… it’s understandable how he surprised me like that.’
He could easily turn the situation around, but that would be unfair to this enraged young man.
With a sigh, he spoke, “Young one… I don’t understand…”
“Don’t you dare deny it.” Northern interrupted,, increasing the pressure of the blade, a trickle of blood snaking down Gilbert’s throat.
“You think I’m stupid? On the evaluation day, the way Rughsbourgh looked at me. I could tell that crappy bastard had something up his sleeve. And the teleportation spell art in the hall where we waited was the same as the one he used to bring me to you on that flying ship!”
Gilbert’s eyes widened, giving him away.
Narrowing his eyes to icy azure slits, Northern pressed on, “Judging by your reaction, I’m right. After Rughsbourgh left your place, you abandoned the citadel and came to the academy… I don’t know why I found myself in some rift, but I can guess why you’re here with the other students.”
He lifted his chin defiantly as Northern continued, “You’re using us, aren’t you? I don’t know what you guys are up to, but I’m sure you’re using us against our parents’ consent!”
Gilbert held Northern’s fiery gaze for a few tense seconds before exhaling slowly.
Northern instantly leapt back, soaring over five meters in a single reflexive jump to land where he’d started.
Even Annette couldn’t help but be amazed. ‘His jump is massive!’
To anyone else, it might have seemed ordinary, but Annette or any master would have recognized that Northern had reacted instinctively to Gilbert’s spiritual release.
It wasn’t even an intentional jump – his legs were like coiled springs.
‘If I had not moved away… I would have lost my hand.’
Northern eyed the hand clutching the stiletto.
‘It wasn’t a bluff like Instructor Annette’s earlier… it would have really severed my hand.’
The realization struck him.
‘I may have grown stronger, but these bastards are powerful in their own ways. With their different talents, they’ll be incredibly hard to kill…’
He cut off that train of thought abruptly. ‘Am I actually considering how to kill a bunch of humans?’
He was so accustomed to killing for self-preservation that the thought came naturally, even when no one posed an immediate threat. At least not yet.
Dismissing his dagger, he exhaled softly through pursed lips.
Gilbert’s voice rang out, “While you’re correct about certain things, you’re also mistaken about others. I’m not obligated to inform you of anything except what pertains to our survival on this treacherous continent.”
He wiped the blood from his neck with a black handkerchief, dropping it onto the table.
“Now, will you allow me to bring you up to date on the current situation and how we can return home?”
Annette frowned at his words but stayed silent. Speaking to the old man previously had proved futile.
Right now, she just wanted to escape this place and cut all ties.
To her, Gilbert had gone from an iconic figure she admired to a senseless lapdog over the past few months.
Of course, she didn’t know the depth of his connection to Rughsbourgh, nor did she care.
The Gilbert she thought she knew was a man who stood up for the weak, no matter the opposition.
Now…she wasn’t even sure what she knew anymore.
“I would still like to know though…” Northern’s casual tone was at odds with the lingering aura of danger around his deceptively relaxed demeanor.
“Were you all sent to a rift like me?”
Gilbert studied him for a few moments, finding the sudden mood shift strange, before responding,
“No…of all of us, you were the only one…”
Northern smiled, though there was nothing warm about the expression.
“Alright… now you can brief me on the current situation and how we can go back home.”
Gilbert frowned. ‘That smile is deeply disturbing. I can’t read him at all.’
Even Annette eyed him with surprise.
She could tell he was up to something, though she couldn’t discern what.
And again, she couldn’t get over the level of composure he maintained.
While seated behind him, she had considered every possible attack pattern, but Northern remained so composed that they all proved futile in her mind.
He had no openings!
She couldn’t help but wonder, ‘What in the world happened to you in that rift?’