Chapter 298 The Traverser [Part 1]
Northern came to an abrupt pause when he entered the room. He looked around, but the boy king was nowhere to be found.
The large bed in the center of the nearly ornamental room was empty, with rumpled sheets. There were signs of a struggle: a broken ice plant vase, an overturned table, and an open window.
Northern's eyes slowly drifted towards the open window—they narrowed to a slit.
Immediately, Northern flashed through the room and flew out the window, his Chaos Eyes dilating.
As he flew outside, the Night Terror armor wove around his body, trailing black sparks.
Then Northern landed on the ground with a powerful "Thud," accompanied by a massive snow shockwave.
He didn't stop. Instead, he dashed forward, running towards a specific location.
A few minutes after he began to run, Northern noticed White Walkers popping up behind him in desperate pursuit.
At first, he ignored them and kept speeding forward, focused on his own target.
He weaved between the corners of houses and even plunged into a garden, destroying delicate plants with his heavy boots.
Then he arrived at an open snowy space that led uphill towards the left of the main gate.
Northern glared up and looked down; the White Walkers were getting closer, their faces contorted with anger and madness.
For some reason tonight, the settlement seemed eerily quiet.
Although it was nighttime and everyone should be sleeping, Northern found it strange that not a single White Walker had come out.
After all, the ones he and Raven had been dealing with were the guards.
He turned his head back to the front, then lowered his feet, focusing his strength on them. He pushed one foot slightly forward.
'Chaos is a footwork technique aimed at maximum efficiency with convenient output. So, it should be possible for me to reach my best speed without exhausting myself too early.'
A slight frown creased his brows as he channeled more power into his legs.
The lustrous armor covering his calves seemed to pulsate like liquid as he lowered his legs and then, in a frightening instant... he released all the momentum.
WHOOM
In that instant, Northern turned into a straight line of bluish-black light that streaked across the snow beneath the blue-purple velvety sky.
Leaving a trail of raging snow that obscured the path of his pursuers.
And at the same time, catching up to his target in the blink of an eye.
Northern collided with the figure, causing them both to tumble into the snow and scatter apart.
Quickly, Northern stood up and looked at Ulzred's kidnapper as he slowly stood, holding his head.
When he stood up completely, what Northern saw made his eyes widen first, then his face contorted into a deep frown.
'What is going on here? How come this guy looks so human in every way?'
The person standing before him was tall, lean, and muscular. He had no shirt on, and his skin was like a canvas of resilience, marked with countless slashes, the jagged lines crossing his torso like a warrior's map of honor.
"Ah, this is infuriating…"
The person mumbled in a monstrous tongue, running his hand through his hair, which was a tousled mop of silvery strands that framed a rugged and sharp face, betraying a wild, untamed life.
Eyes of molten gold burned with an intensity that could pierce through the soul, their gaze unwavering and fierce.
He wore baggy, deep ebony pants, loose and flowing, billowing slightly with his every movement. A green sash cinched his waist, and slung casually across his back was a sword that Northern had been observing for several seconds, growing more certain about...
'That's definitely a katana. There's no way I'm mistaking it,' he thought.
Its ornate hilt, peeking over the person's shoulders, was intricately wrapped in dark silk, ending in a brass pommel that bore ancient symbols, like a silent sentinel ready to leap into action.
Northern found this presence very strange. He seemed human in every way, and even his monstrous tongue was more refined and smoother than others.
With a slight frown, Northern peered into the information of the person standing before him.
[Profile]
Name: Caladhel Tauron
True Name: [Legs Of Wind]
Attributes: [Way of The Wind]
Soul Rank: [Sage]
Soul Core Saturation: [Middle]
Talent: [Windstride]
Talent Class: [A]
Talent Ability: [Velocity Dash], [Shunpo], [Time Warp], [Sonic Surge], [Breeze]
Immediately, Northern's mouth fell open.
However, at the same time...
[Target profile has been blocked, you cannot see the target profile anymore]
'Wait, he's a Sage? Why was I able to see that...'
There was no explanation Northern could give presently but the only thing he could think about was what had changed with his eyes.
The [See] ability undoubtedly must have been affected.
"Uh? You've been silent this whole time, so you've been sneaking your eyes into my soul."
Even the texture of the person's voice was mashed with elegance.
His aura was almost divine and intimidating, despite his rugged appearance.
And most of all, he was shirtless in this freezing region; that alone left Northern on edge.
He thought for a fleeting second about what had just happened. Never before had he been blocked out while observing someone's profile.
'This calls for an upgrade…' Northern thought, but there was so much to do that he didn't want to focus on upgrades for now.
Becoming a Master was his first goal.
"Uh… does he not understand me?" the person wondered aloud as Northern had not spoken a word till now.
"I do understand you. I am just rather curious. Who are you? You are different from these other creatures."
Northern glanced back at the White Walkers that were slowly reaching them.
The guy sighed and mumbled.
"Aren't you a Traverser? I am a Traverser like you."
Northern raised an eyebrow.
"Sorry, what now? A Traverser? What is that?"
"The rift… I entered it first. I've been here for one hundred and seventy-two nights, preparing to defeat this realm. However, you and your lady suddenly stormed in and ruined things for me. Now, the whole process is speeding up because of it."
Northern found it hard to keep up, given that there were things the guy was saying that needed much more clarity before he could move forward.
His mind kept dwelling on them.
"I'm sorry, are you from the dark continent too?" Northern inquired.
But the person looked confused and shook his head.
"I have no idea what that is."
A strange question then tingled at Northern's throat. He felt asking it might reveal a reality he never knew existed.
He hesitated for a while but eventually asked:
"Where are you from? Who are you?"