Northern and the rest turned their heads to where the eerie laughter was coming from.
On the ground, Fano slowly rose, his limbs however were trembling such that Northern couldn't help but wonder what Raven had done to him.
"You... you think Sura... that bloody bastard will just let you walk into his domain and take the girl? Kikikiki... you don't know who you are up against."
Northern looked at the trembling Fano and shook his head.
"Aren't you and Sura supposed to be like two sides of a coin?"
Fano raised his head slightly and glared at the person talking.
Northern glanced at Raven as he continued:
"She defeated you. What's to say she can't defeat Sura too?"
Immediately the words were said, Fano let out a loud burst of laughter. He slowly rose to his feet afterwards, limbs still trembling, but he managed to stand.
Then he gave Northern a vile glare.
"You think any of you can lay your hands on Sura? Sides of the same coin? Bahhh, you know nothing, human. First of all, I am amazed that you can speak my tongue. But in the end, you all are just weaklings."
Northern's facial expression contorted to a grim scowl.
"How about you stop talking in circles and just be direct?"
"Dumb, what's so hard for you to gain there... the hideous rule that this domain now follows, who do you think created it? Who do you think created me, who do you think created the boy and the girl who are keys to destroying this place, and why do you think he did so?"
The frown on Northern's face was getting deeper and darker.
A guess entered his mind... and cautiously, he muttered it out:
"Exactly! The domain of the cold and the domain of the ice were both ruled by him. Out of boredom, he created the White Walkers, created the Red Walkers, created me and created the Keys. He called everything family and made it so complicated that no one would be able to destroy what he built."
The explanation settled coldly into Northern's mind. For some reason, he could understand why Terence had instructed them to go straight for Sura after getting the boy.
Inasmuch as all this rule existed, just killing Sura would have made everything else much easier.
"You are in trouble. Since you have defeated me and killed all the White Walkers, he knows and is definitely expecting you all right now."
Northern washed his face down with his palm and sighed.
Everything just got complicated. Once again, he had made a very bad decision by deciding not to follow the Oracle's instructions.
Not that he regretted it... yet. Maybe if it becomes impossible to defeat Sura, he'll regret it then.
Raven walked close to him and touched his shoulder. Her eyes met his with fierce determination, then she said:
"Don't worry about it. We will defeat Sura and close the rift. I am sure of it."
Northern, of course, didn't blame her confidence; she, after all, wasn't hearing what Fano was saying.
But he could use that arrogant confidence of hers. He closed his eyes and smiled, then he glared at Fano.
"None of it matters. We will defeat Sura too."
Fano laughed out loud. "How stupid can you mortals be?"
Northern looked around at Cal, who stood dumbfounded.
"Snap out of it. What do we do now?"
Cal shook his head slightly and let out a small smile.
"I can't believe I played right into that bastard's hands." He looked at Northern and continued, "I don't think there's any other way right now except a direct confrontation. You are tired; you need your strength to do this."
"Worry about yourself. You are the one who has been running away from Sura all this while. What did you expect, and how did you get played?"
Cal allowed a pale smile and intoned:
"He told me that killing him will strengthen his brother. He said they share the same power; while he controls ice, his brother controls flames. He said if anyone wants to kill him, they should just use the boy king of the Ice domain. He even looked forward to the day he will die."
Northern nodded slightly. "I see, but if you look at it, it's not too deep of a lie. Maybe he just turned everything and expected you to figure it out, but you were naive to believe him."
"Yes, from a volcano?"
Cal went silent with a frown.
Raven, who couldn't follow their conversation, just stayed there in silence.
As both of them stopped bickering, she said to Northern:
"So does this mean we are going to the hot region? I think I'll like it better there than this place."
"Mortal girl... why don't you reconsider what I say to you and become my underling? I will make you stronger," Fano said to Raven.
Northern was shocked to hear him speak in their common language.
He grimaced and rushed forward to grab him by the neck.
"How are you able to speak our language?"
Fano scowled in disgust.
"Monster tongue is the origination and beginning of all other tongues. Any being with a semblance of intelligence would get it."
Northern lowered his gaze for a second; what Fano said was true. Ulzred, after all, was getting it too.
Raven gently removed Northern's hands and said to Fano:
"Should I just kill you?"
"I told you, the moment you kill me, all my powers would return to Sura. You'll be putting yourself in jeopardy."
Northern stared for a couple of seconds, his eyes out of focus.
He then gave Fano an offsetting smile.
"I think I have an idea..."
Raven and Cal looked at him.
Northern did not respond to them but instead just stared at Fano.
True Name: [Ignis Domius]
Danger Level: [Calamity]
Attributes: [Infernal]
Abilities: [Inferno], [Phoenix Breath], [Blazing Wrath], [Ember], [Pyroclasmic Edge]
[Conditions have been met]
[You can use the ability of your name: Nameless]