Northern was not sure what he had just heard now, but he was also sure he had not mistaken it.
“Wait, you did what? You… married?”
And at such a young age?!
Wait, is she even young? Or was he just projecting his own guess of what her age should be on her?
Suddenly, he felt the urge to know.
But that urge came with a lot of discomforting feeling.
Sometimes, being in the body of a child, having to live as one and faced with the harrowing experience of this life, Northern often forgot he was Elliot or had been before.
It was easier to just live life letting go of that past.
And honestly, it was so tempting; he was doing it without realizing.
Still, there was a degree to which he could get shameless, so this was one of those times he decided to exercise caution and not ask for a lady’s age.
“I failed though. I was not able to kill him.”
“Of course you weren’t. If you were, we wouldn’t be here right now.” Northern’s voice hushed, then his eyes slowly widened as a realization settled in.
“Wait, don’t tell me. The Sage we are going to steal from is the leader of this stronghold whom you tried to kill?”
Raven looked at him indifferently, not answering until after a couple of seconds.
She shook her head and said,
“No Northern, the leader… he is more powerful. I’m not sure of his rank, but I’m sure he’s more powerful than a Sage. Perhaps a Grandsavant.”
Northern froze, his eyes and brows widened, then he leaned closer, trying his best to stifle the stunned shock in his voice.
“You tried to kill an Ephemeral rank drifter?”
It was unbelievable!
These were beings that at this stage began to transcend common sense, mortal limitations.
Becoming a Master was impressive, something noteworthy; it served as a core beginning of one’s journey as a ‘powerful’ drifter, but it could also serve as the end.
This all were dependent on an individual’s resolve and the resources available to them.
It was why great clans and kingdoms often claimed territorial rifts.
Becoming a Sage was another checkpoint.
The moment a drifter became a Sage, it is said that their soul core is restructured, their soul is renewed, and its tendrils stretch deeper, touching the foundation of true souls – Constellations.
Now, this was a realm of knowing that Northern wasn’t all too familiar with.
Of what he knew about constellations, it was the fact that months were named after them.
And some people actually worshiped them; his own mother was an example.
Her belief in Eldech was so strong that sometimes he questioned if this Eldech was actually a person.
But no, Eldech is just a soul constellation, one of the early existences that somehow hold the strings of the entire world together in a profound and complicated manner.
A Sage grows a connection to the true soul, and this alone places them on a different pedestal; to simply put, their souls have transcended mortality.
And then there were Grandsavants, the Ephemeral rank.
This could just be referred to as a champion of the world.
Their soul form becomes malleable and susceptible to constellation forms, this causes them to be able to wield a new set of powers called Stellar authority.
It goes deeper than that… and seems to even permit body transformation.
Northern was not sure.
But at least he was sure Raven knew better; she must have undoubtedly known how strong her opponent was and yet she tried to kill him?
“I’m still going to kill him again.”
She paused, taking in a couple of breaths before she added,
“But not now.”
Northern observed her obstinate and resolved face; it brimmed with the kind of light he’d tag as trouble.
What he saw in the depths of her crimson gaze was nothing other than destruction waiting to befall his future.
Although he had to check himself, if he was just being a wuss and a coward, but at the same time, he also thought Raven was a delusional person.
But the scary thing about her kind of delusional person was… in her eyes burned a strange and vicious flame of resolve to mold those delusions into reality.
It was another level of delulu entirely, and what truly frightened Northern were those eyes.
Because of that look in her eyes, he could not casually say she’s going to learn her lesson and soon know her place.
‘I mean… she has tried to kill him once already.’
So many questions rose in Northern’s mind about the event; there was just so much he’d love to ask her.
How did she escape? How did she even plot it out? Why did she fail?
Did she really marry him? Did she climb onto his bed? How old is she? What rank was she when all these happened?
So many questions, but instead of asking them, he silently studied Raven’s seemingly lost stare.
Then he asked,
“So how does this relate to the Sage we are trying to steal from?”
Raven’s brow subtly frowned; in fact, it looked like she was holding that frown back.
“Well, I became a criminal… like a very important one. Because he was saving me for the last, and he insisted on having me even though things got so dire… he was going to violate me in the most vicious of ways. I was in a pinch; that was when I met Helena.”
She looked at Northern, then continued,
“Helena was a huntress, and she lived solo in the stronghold. No one disturbed her, so it was quite easy for her to help me and be arrogant about it.”
Northern looked at her with more interest.
“Was it because she’s a sage?”
Raven nodded, “Yes, and apparently, she and their leader Afkon used to have some sort of history. Both of them are the strongest drifters in the stronghold. And I can basically say they are the reason why the Sloria stronghold is even standing in the first place.”
She paused.
Northern carefully observed her as she took shaky breaths, clenching her fist.
She was trying her hardest not to allow the rage that burned within her to spill out to her surroundings.
And she was managing well. She breathed in and out, then said,
“It made it even more difficult for me to understand why they have decided to stay caged instead of fighting for their freedom. Why will anyone choose to be captive in their own lands?”
Her words carried a heavy weight; Northern could almost sense personal feelings mixing up with them.
Even though she had tried to calm herself down just now… it must mean this part goes a lot deeper for her than he could understand.
And to be honest?
He didn’t want to understand.
He didn’t want to know what kind of prison hell she had lived to have a problem with people deciding to live rather than to die.
He didn’t care. And he never wants to pity her.
