Hot.

Burning hot.

Vincent felt as if someone was pumping boiling hot water into his veins, forcing them open from the inside.

The pain was no longer something his body could resist. It was rewriting what "body" even meant.

A sharp twitch ran through his limbs.

Once. Twice.

His body then broke into uncontrolled convulsions, as if something inside him had seized control and was testing whether he deserved to remain intact.

Lines of red text appeared in his vision again.

[Ding!]

[Fate Authority Seed is being engraved on the soul.]

[Ash Vein partial opening progress: 58%... 61%... 66%...]

A stiff feeling took over Vincent’s body as if his muscles were turning to stone.

Despite it, in this paralysis, his body continued to shake violently and uncontrollably, as if two forces were trying to claim the same vessel.

Vivienne held him firmly in her embrace, refusing to let him fall even if the world itself wanted him to.

Her expression remained composed, but her eyes sharpened slightly as she watched what was happening.

The carriage had already stopped at the mansion gates but it did not matter. She did not move.

Neither did she order anyone else to move.

Anastasia quietly sat across from them. Her fingers tightened against her lap.

This was not something she had the authority to interrupt.

Not even in her previous iterations.

Not even now.

[Ding!]

[Fate Authority Seed engraving complete.]

The moment this notification rang in Vincent’s head, the red lines of text immediately disappeared from his vision.

What followed was an epileptic nightmare.

The carriage, the surroundings, everything disappeared.

A blink of white.

A stillness of silence.

A return of sound that did not belong to this moment.

Pitter-patter.

White.

Pitter-patter.

Mud. Rain. Cold air cutting through fabric.

White.

Pitter-patter.

Vincent saw a scene.

It was a rainy day.

A sea of black umbrellas.

Motionless. Silent. Heavy.

White.

A casket being slowly lowered into the earth.

As he saw this, something inside Vincent resisted violently.

It was not his body.

It was something deeper.

[Warning: Soul response unstable.]

Vincent’s breath broke. He wanted to scream but couldn’t. He could only cling onto his last bit of sanity and think,

’What... is... happening...’

A bright light flashed before his eyes again.

White.

A woman in a wide-brimmed hat.

Standing perfectly still.

Not crying.

Not speaking.

Just watching the casket descend as if the world had already ended and she was simply confirming it.

White.

A young girl with messy red hair.

Dried tears. Smudged makeup.

Uncontrollable grief exuding through her red eyes.

White.

Vincent’s mind jolted.

Something inside him recognized it.

Not logically. Not emotionally. But instinctively, like a locked door inside his soul had just been touched.

[Hidden condition met: Memory #9 unlocked.]

[Initiating playback...]

Vincent’s body finally stopped convulsing.

Clarity momentarily returned to his eyes.

A pair of clear blue eyes were staring at him calmly.

The vision faded just as fast, as if it was all a dream.

[Memory playback begins.]

It was the edge of a dark cliff.

The waves were chaotic. Each slap against the rocks made it drizzle.

An old daoist in white robes stood at the end of the cliff.

"...Memory Nine. The path of Fate..."

The old man’s voice rang loud and clear in Vincent’s ears despite being far away.

"Your condition is worse than I expected."

The old man turned around, his silhouette staring at Vincent.

"You have my condolences."

The old man walked toward Vincent and continued, "If this hidden memory appeared first, then your Heart, Vein, Soul, and Crest were all beneath the minimum threshold."

The old man stopped when he was a foot away. His face was obscured.

The visions from before were still lingering in Vincent’s eyes as he felt a ringing sound in his head.

He did not blink in fear that everything would turn to white again.

"The path ahead is going to be extremely difficult for you, something which even I cannot predict."

"I cannot go into more details, but through this memory, I wish to tell you..."

Vincent could see the old man’s figure flicker in and out of existence.

"Your Open Soul is an anomaly. In a world where one soul can have only one authority, upon yours, any authority can be engraved."

"Never let anyone find out about it or death would be the only solace you will ever crave."

Like slipping sand, the old man’s figure was fading away.

The memory fragment was slowly coming to an end.

"Child from outside... knows this..."

Vincent’s eyes had clarity slightly return to them as he heard a set of familiar words.

"The more authority Fate grants you..."

The waves crashed violently.

"...the more authority Fate gains over you."

Rocks fell as the cliff slowly broke apart.

"Only by remaining karmically neutral..."

The old man’s lower body vanished.

"...can you transcend above Fate’s authority..."

Only his face remained.

"...and become a master of your own destiny."

The cliff completely broke apart.

Vincent found himself falling.

A giant wave cast a shadow on his face.

Splash!

Darkness enveloped his vision.

[Playback ended.]

There was no struggling. No drowning.

Vincent found himself in a momentary state of stillness.

Soon, a cold sensation brushed over him.

A light floral bitterness filled his nose. It smelled like the chrysanthemum flowers he placed at his parent’s funeral.

He could slowly feel his eyes.

They fluttered open.

Strands of black fell beside a beautiful face.

A pair of eyes as deep as the ocean were staring at him.

’Mother...’

As the thought crossed Vincent’s mind, he saw the wide brimmed hat she wore.

A flash of white.

Vincent saw a stoic face.

A pair of lifeless eyes.

Dried tears. Smudged makeup.

Vincent screamed.