While Ryan was in a frenzy of madness that even he didn't know where it came from, his insides buzzed with a loud thud.
'Damn it, Spiritual Uncontrollability?!' He roared internally, unable to control his own body.
The prelude to a Polluting Monster. For a brief moment, he despaired. Becoming a Polluting Monster after having attracted a path so longed for by everyone would be the greatest misfortune that could have befallen him.
He couldn't allow it.
'Calm down.' He moved his mind quickly to try to regain control of his body, but this was quite complicated. His spirituality was completely out of control.
All his abilities were coming to light outside his body, but he didn't know what he was using them for, so it was difficult to regain control. He needed another way.
'I need to know what imbued me with this,' he thought, and his mind quickly clicked.
'The mirror.'
He remembered the visions he saw reflected in that mirror, followed by the strange feeling of oppression that seemed to come from his own body toward himself and outward.
He remembered seeing Aster and himself. Although hatred resurfaced in his heart, this time he had greater control over his body, so he didn't fall for the trick.
'So that legendary item imbued me with this,' he thought.
It was dangerous, but as he remembered the past, he found the key.
'Remember that strength lies in control...' he thought, remembering what Alan had told him. 'I see. It's true, in the face of Spiritual Uncontrollability, what I need to do is not regain control of my body, but control of my spirituality.'
He immediately began to try to do so. If he tried to regain control of his body, he would surely lose the battle because, in this state of madness, it was the powers of his own path or perhaps the hatred within him that had control.
On the other hand, if he began to regain control of his own spirituality, he could calm it down because it itself has no consciousness. By calming it down and bringing it back to logical reality, he would regain control of the body, as his hatred or abilities could no longer operate a body that was no longer driven by such strong feelings.
So, with his mental path paved, he set to work.
Outside, Martin watched from a corner of the room and nodded approvingly when he saw that he had changed faster than expected.
'Although it will take some time, this speed, for that hatred, is admirable. The level of those bad feelings is one I have never seen in my life. Out of pure hatred, he shook the earth within an astonishing radius,' he thought, immensely surprised.
'The most surprising thing is that ability. What path is that? I've never seen it before, and it's clear that it doesn't belong to the Primary Paths. Is it one of those rumored Hidden Paths? His talent must be equal to or greater than his brother's then.' Martin began to approach when he realized there was no longer any danger, and soon he was standing before him.
At that moment, Ryan returned to his body and opened his eyes.
"Welcome to the Mirror of the Fallen Tree, Ninth Prince Ryan Kraham, and welcome to the World of Walkers." He smiled and extended his hands to welcome him.
Ryan nodded at him and sighed, relieved to see that everything had gone well. He glanced sideways at the numerous mirrors still in the room and frowned.
"It's the ancestral item, right?" he asked.
"Haha, as expected of a researcher," said Martin. "That's right. It's the ancestral item, the Mirror of the Fallen Tree's Spiritual Curse."
'Just as I suspected.' He frowned. 'The novel only mentioned its existence, but no one knew where it was, despite thousands of people searching for it day and night. All this time, it was in an organization whose existence was unknown, in the capital? That's strange.'
"This mirror is the best item to test our members and see if they are worthy of knowing our secrets. But using it outside is a mortal danger, so it is kept secret, where only those who have been approved know of its existence in the place," said Martin, going to sit down.
"Despite that, it is mentioned in the organization's name," Ryan remarked.
"Haha, the best cover for us is to call ourselves that. No one will suspect a bunch of idiots who so blatantly name themselves after the legendary item, right? Not even the King."
Ryan nodded, partly agreeing. However, the fact that there was no mention of this organization in the novel showed their level of secrecy.
"You're here for the theft mission, right?" Martin asked.
"Yes." Ryan nodded. "I have some ideas about it."
Martin nodded, thinking about a few things.
"This mission is quite dangerous for level 1 people, you know?" he said, staring at him.
Ryan was aware of that.
"I don't have control over you, so I can't stop you from going, but I'd like to know if you can handle it on your own, at least for a while. Rumor has it that there are several Kazaks and powerful beasts in the city."
"You want to know about my path, right?" Ryan asked.
"Not openly, but I want to clear up some doubts to know if you can really use this to grow or if you'll just go and die," Martin said. "How does your path compare to the Third Prince?" he asked.
'What a great question,' Ryan thought, slightly surprised by it.
His path compared to the Author's Path wasn't excessively good, but it was much better for growth. Brandon had greater control over the story, the destiny (plot), the world, and the characters. He only had control over himself, but on an excessive level, since he could grow at will and could even devour it.
Even so, was it easy to do? Leaving the contenders and their talents aside, focusing only on the abilities of both Paths, it was easier said than done.
He practically needed to devour the story to devour the Author's Path.