".. so all this while... I've been doing so many things that I don't even want to?"
Kyle chuckled as the scene in front of him changed again. It showed how he didn't want to practice, train, or work just because he thought his talent was weak. Or was it because Sen and a few others made fun of his low talent? But he lived in a small city where almost everyone had average talent, except for Sen and his two friends.
So why did he think that way?
Nesis looked at the scene and shook his head.
"No... don't see it like that. The essence wanted to protect you, so it interfered with your thoughts. It was just trying to help you avoid death."
Kyle shut his eyes for a few seconds, and when he opened them again, his bright eyes gleamed with a dangerous intensity.
"It doesn't matter. No one is allowed to control me, not even something that is a part of me."
His words echoed in the air, and he noticed that the blue particles on his body became eerily still. As if sensing his sour and frustrated emotions, a strangely soothing cold sensation spread across his skin. However, Kyle's mood didn't improve.
He fixed his eyes on the scene in front of him, where he was eating breakfast with his family, and Neon suddenly suggested that he should go and take the Royal Academy entrance test.
Nesis gazed at his face and started speaking again.
"If you had trained hard before your talent awakened, there was a chance that the powerful bloodline in your body, which had barely locked itself, could have been forced to move. But since your body was even weaker than an ordinary human, you would have died due to the overwhelming surge of energy in your veins."
"The moment you awakened your talent, which was only (B)-Rank, the bloodline within you moved a little. But at that time, the thoughts that had influenced you for so long made you completely accept the fact that no matter how much you tried, you would never be able to achieve anything big in your life."
"That's why the bloodline paused its movement. It knew that changing your thoughts too much would have consequences that could be anything but good, but it had no choice. In the end, it gave you enough reasons to accept Neon's suggestion."
Nesis locked eyes with Kyle and asked him a question, a question the human couldn't answer.
"Do you think if you didn't want to take the Royal Academy entrance test, your family would have forced you? Or maybe you thought, what's the worst that could happen, and it would be fine to participate just for the sake of your family, even though you knew you had almost no strength?"
Kyle stayed silent and imagined the scenario if he had refused to take the entrance test.
No doubt, Neon and Ray would have made a fuss and given him a bit of a hard time. He would have received a little scolding from his dad too, but he knew things would have gone back to normal after a few days.
He would have just gone back to his laid-back, ordinary life with not much to achieve. However, he agreed so easily, as if he didn't care about the consequences or the possibility of danger during the test. And to top it off, he passed the test with little to no strength.
Should he thank his luck stat that was increased after consuming the ice enchantress essence? No, he knew he shouldn't. After all, the tiny essence of the ice enchantress inside him would've never awakened if not for his bloodline.
Nesis's next words sent chills down his spine, and he clenched his fists tightly.
"... If you hadn't entered the Academy, you would have died under the group of monsters that attacked the city in your absence. Kyle, you were weak, but am I wrong to assume that you would've jumped into danger to save Neon and Ray? So, entering the Royal Academy was the best course of action for you at that time."
Nesis was hesitant, but he told Kyle that his fate was blank because he was destined to die the moment he was born. That's why it remained empty even though he survived. He wanted to say more, but Kyle asked him to stop the scene playing in front of him. In the next second, Kyle opened his eyes and found himself sitting in the same place inside his mind space.
He slumped to the ground and tried to process all the information he had just acquired in such a short amount of time. Kyle stared at the empty air around him without blinking.
"So, all this time, the essence inside me chose the path that would help me gain enough strength to accommodate it. Or the path that was safest for me..."
Nesis didn't say anything and just listened quietly.
"So, meeting Nine, Alec, and all my friends wasn't fate... After all, my fate is not written... it's blank, right? What about Bia? She had a divine strength within her. I know it's somehow connected to me..."
Nesis sat down beside him and after contemplating for a few seconds, replied.
"Bia's only parent gave you its essence, something that's very dear to all types of legendary beings because it takes them a lot of time just to form it. That's why, in return, the essence within you accepted Bia as your bonded companion. And as a gift, when you formed a contract with Bia, it increased her strength a little, so the phoenix could accompany you for a long time."
"However, it couldn't affect Bia a lot, or it would have given more harm than good to the unborn phoenix."
Kyle stared at the air, and a long silence fell between them. Nesis felt uneasy when he saw Kyle's eyes, which had a bright glow to them. But contrary to his expectations, the human let out a chuckle.
"Now, I know everything. Just give me one more answer. Is the essence still going to interfere with my thoughts? Or will it make me forget everything I just found out?"
