"Helena protected me for a couple of days, but she also made it clear to me that I couldn't continue to stay under her shelter. The moment Afkon was sure that I'm with her, he'd stomp to her place, and she could not win him in a fight; she could never."
"During my short stay with Helena was when I saw it... a map of the entire continent of Stelia."
Northern narrowed his eyes.
"What we are going to steal is a map? All that life-endangering situation we would be putting ourselves in, and it's just a map?"
Raven gave him a prolonged, cold gaze, then she responded:
"It's not just a map. It's a map of the entire continent of Stelia. Having that map means we know exactly where we are going. Haven't you thought about how exactly you are going to make your way out of this continent?"
"Oh..." Northern's mouth froze for a moment, "...that's true." He muttered in shame.
After a few seconds, he then said, with a strained voice,
"But still, fighting a Sage because of a map...?" He contorted his mouth like he was biting on something bitter.
The thought of what they were going to do tasted very bitter in his mouth.
He felt like the prize was too little for such extreme actions.
"Who said we'll be fighting? Do you intend to fight a Sage? Can you guarantee going out of it alive?" Her words reached him like the sharp edge of a knife.
Northern's brows stayed furrowed for a couple of seconds before he retorted,
"How exactly are we supposed to steal from a sage without considering the thought of fighting them?"
Raven chuckled lightly; the chuckle was more of a mockery, and it irked Northern because what had he said that was funny?
Oblivious to whatever was going through his mind, Raven slowly sat on the ground and folded her legs.
"Well, if worse comes to worst, I will do the fighting. It is always kind of rough for one to know the difference in power levels when they are just a drifter. The moment you become a Master, you'll be able to comprehend things on a whole other level."
A small smile left her face.
"No matter how strong you are right now, no matter how promising your abilities are, you are limited by the fact that you are not a Master."
Northern frowned a little.
Of course, he knew better than anyone that she was. He just wanted to check if she would hide the fact.
"Yes, I am. And it is why I can tell you that even if I fight with Helena, I cannot win."
Northern thought she was done talking, but she looked at Northern, staring deep for a couple of seconds, and uttered in addition,
"I have an EX-class talent and an Abyssal rank attribute; as a Master, I'm stronger than fifty percent of the Masters out there, and I tell you, I don't think I'll be able to leave as much as a scratch on her."
Northern was silent for a few seconds, then he looked at her and asked,
"Is that the same with Sage Gilbert?"
Raven lingered before she responded.
"Well, there are a lot of things that come together to form how hard a drifter could be to deal with: the talent, attributes, and most importantly, how the drifter puts all these factors together to properly maximize the potential of their abilities. Trust me, I have seen drifters, Masters, Savants, and Sages with amazing talents but with poor mastery and application... it often saddens me at times."
Her expression in fact almost grew a tad bit somber.
"Because it takes deep and careful use of these talent abilities to maximize one's strength. Battles just aren't about bludgeoning into a fight like a brainless body of horns and power. Drifters can be bad matchups for each other, and it's even possible for a Master to beat a Sage; it all depends on the circumstances of the fight and how the Master uses their abilities. What are the pros and cons they consider? What about the environment? Does it permit them to be versatile with talent application? All these things are very crucial to the..."
'Ah crap... what the hell is this...?' Northern thought as her voice trailed off.
Of course, her words were making sense, but she just kept going and going about talents and what they could best be used for, how to apply this and that, and bla bla bla bla.
Two most petrifying facts, however, were:
Raven had just spat out her talent class and attribute rank just like that?
Northern didn't know how much she knew about him, but he was sure she only knew what everyone knew but perhaps a little bit deeper.
What worried him, however, is if she knows a thing or two about his connection to Dark Terror... Night Terror.
Her expression as she spoke about talent was unusual, confusing, and made Northern shiver with goosebumps.
Her face was glowing with beautiful sparkles of excitement; she wasn't smiling or particularly giving any emotion.
But in her voice, in her hand gestures, Northern could tell and feel the excitement she was speaking with.
'Ah... this one is a talent nerd, I guess.'
Having enough of all the talk, Northern sighed.
Immediately, she regained herself and slightly opened her mouth.
"I'm sorry, I diverted."
Northern nodded tiredly.
"Yes, you did... but it's okay. You just really love talking about talents."
Raven closed her eyes peacefully for a second and said as she opened them,
"Yes, I grew up surrounded by people with amazing talents and a frightening potential and passion for growth. I think I must have just grown into being this kind of person."
She looked at Northern...
"What about you?" ...and asked.
The white-haired boy looked away with a crumpled face.
"I'm not sure we are close enough for me to share the circumstances of my childhood growth..."
The air between the two of them was silent and awkward for a bit. Then Raven's voice slickly cut through.
"Uhm... okay, the point I was trying to make was, if I play my cards right, it's possible to defeat Sage Gilbert. But Helena is different; her talent is unfair to her opponents... all I'll be doing is holding her back a little until you get the job done."
"Uh, I see...wait, what?!"