Nightingale appeared to be quite surprised by the fact that Raven appeared in this manor. "Good gods, I wasn't expecting that. How fascinating!" He said as he scratched his chin in wonder. "I thought you would have been expecting something like this?" I remarked. "Yes well, your blessing is certainly unique. It's not just your patron God, but your blessing also seems to branch into quite a few different classes. It's impressive." Nightingale responded while nodding his head in approval. Classes? This was the first time I had heard of such a thing. "What do you mean by classes?" I questioned. "Ahh well it's nothing that important. It's just a method that kingdoms have been using to categorize certain blessings. Realistically when it comes to a fight knowing their class is essentially useless. Blessings are incredibly variable and can manifest themselves in infinite capacities. What is most important to know is rather how powerful they are and how to counter divine power. The reason being… Even a blessing with minimal divine power can pose extreme danger depending on how it is used. So, you could imagine how frightening it can be if you come into contact with someone who has reached the end stages of utilizing their blessing. Those who have cultivated and trained their blessing, those who have amassed greater divine power and transcended their blessing could be seen as walking calamities. That's why my dear boy, it is so pivotal for you to be able to accurately judge the strength of someone you encounter." His words definitely made me think. Based on my encounters with people who also had blessings, it was definitely true that there was no telling what someone's power could be capable of. "I think I understand what you're saying, Sir. So if that is the case, then what exactly was my power level based on what happened with the orb?" I asked. Nightingale looked at me with an eyebrow raised. "Hm you seem pretty interested in how strong you are huh?" He said in a patronizing tone. I scowled at him and said, "You're the one who made me do it. Just tell me what it means." Nightingale chuckled at my response. I'm sure he enjoyed giving me a hard time… "Alright, alright. Well, based on the reaction of the orb there are a couple things that tell me about the scale of your blessing's divine power. For one thing, the energy of your blessing actually began manifesting outside of the orb. That's what that purple haze was that began pouring out. Normally that only occurs when someone's divine power is too much for the orb to contain. The second indication is actually what happened when an unknown god tried to intervene with the connection to your patron God. The reaction of your divine power and the linking to Osseous was so strong that it actually attracted the attention of another god. Unfortunately whoever that god was, they now know both of our locations since I also had to intervene. For right now it's okay, but we'll need to leave this city of Gamula relatively soon. It's possible they could send apostles they have blessed to our location. Anyways, the point is that you are strong Ivan. I'm sure that's just what you wanted to hear heh he. I'd wager you're probably ranking somewhere near the Berserker title. There are about 6 levels of ranks that are used by the Kingdom Coalition's scalers union. It's basically an organization that is able to officially recognize an individual's rank among the people who are affiliated with the various kingdoms in the world. You're most likely at the berserker rank, which is the third level within the scalers unions ranking system. However, something you should take serious note of is that the difference between the 6 levels of ranking is quite vast. The lowest level, the Gardener rank is what you would consider an average person. Then the highest rank, the Deity title or as some refer to as Sainthood is so unfathomably powerful that it makes your Berserker class look like an Ant. It's not to say you aren't strong, it's just that the variability in blessings makes power differences very apparent. Additionally, because of this same variability and unpredictability of what blessings can do, there is also a rank called the Joker. It is a rank that was created because there are even individuals who have blessings that, based on certain situations or conditions, can fluctuate in power all the way from the Gardener rank up to the level of Deity. You also should realize that not everyone agrees or cares for these ranking systems. Many people within the world do not obtain a ranking in power because it would essentially bind you to a Kingdom's information system and you would be considered an affiliate of that kingdom. There are perks to doing this, especially depending on the Kingdom you are allowing to rank you. But, ultimately this whole tiresome ranking system was really only created as a means of locating and recruiting future champions of the kingdoms." Nightingale said as he finally stood up from his desk. He walked over to where Raven was crouching and began looking him over thoroughly. "So these champions you're talking about, what's the point of them? Are they strong?" I questioned as I tried to peek over into Nightingale's notebook he had been writing in. I thought I might be able to see what he was writing about, but it appeared as though he was writing in some kind of language I had never seen before. I was a bit disappointed to see that. I was actually really curious about what he might be thinking about. Nightingale noticed what I was trying to do and flicked a small piece of debris at my head that he had picked up off the ground. "Ow! Hey!" I shouted. In response, Raven actually lifted his boney fingers and flicked Nightingale on the head. "Oi! Watch it!" He shouted. I started laughing and then Nightingale joined in. "He heh anyways, what were we talking about? Ah yes, the Champions. In my opinion, the whole concept of the champions is just a bandage they use to cover up real issues between the kingdoms. Their original purpose was to be used as intermediaries between the kingdoms instead of going to all out war. They would fight in order to settle disputes. The winner would gain their Kingdom rights over whatever they were fighting over at the time. However, as time went on the Champions ended up becoming symbols of power and were used less and less for actual disputes and instead used to show one Kingdom's strength over another. So for the time being we have been able to avoid all our war between Kingdoms, but the tension and grudges held between them has just become a powder keg ready to explode. So yes, the Champions are strong in their own right. Many people within their kingdoms train their whole lives to get the chance to become one. At a minimum, they must rank at the Harbinger level, one level below Deity. Although a Harbinger rank can't even touch a Deity, they are still incredibly strong. Basically a one man army. In fact, the place we will be heading to soon will allow you to learn all about this in real time. But enough of all this, we've been getting side tracked. Grab your coffin and bring it over here to Raven." Nightingale said while waving his hand at me. I picked up the coffin from the desk and walked over to Nightingale and Raven. "Do I finally get to open it?" I asked. "Sheesh, so impatient aren't you Ivan? Yes you can open it now. But before you do, I want you to try and channel your life energy into it. Not your divine power from your blessing, but your life energy. Do you know what I am talking about?" I did actually understand what he meant. Whenever I felt the power of my blessing inside of me, it felt somewhat cold and powerful. But the other energy inside of me, my own vital power felt warm and calm. It was easy for me to distinguish between the two of them. "Yes, I know what you mean. I'll give it a try." I placed the small coffin in the palm of my hand and put my other over the top. I closed my eyes and began to focus very intently. I tried to really imagine I was pouring out my own life force into this small little coffin. Little by little, I felt that warm energy beginning to gather around my hands. I tried to hold that sensation and pool as much vital energy as I could into the one place. I did this for a little while until I actually started to feel light headed and had to stop and open my eyes. "Good, Ivan! You were much better at that than I anticipated. Take a moment to catch your breath." He said as he patted me on the shoulder. I was breathing a little heavy, that was definitely more taxing than I expected it to be. "I'm not sure if I actually did anything, what exactly was that supposed to do?" I asked. "What you just did was mark the artifact. You imbued your own energy onto it, linking your own energy. Essentially it is akin to writing your name on it and saying it is yours. However, this will help you when it comes to using it. Some artifacts can be rather troublesome and marking it is a way to circumvent any issues or backfiring you may experience. Additionally, this is one of the methods to actually enchanting an object. This same process is used while channeling different types of energies or mystical powers in order to enchant an item with special properties. So now that you were able to mark it, you can proceed with opening the coffin without any fear." He said with a reassuring nod.
