"Free Will is an illusion created to make it easier for every subject of this world to fulfill the roles assigned to us while believing we act of our own accord."

The words of the Fairy King came out of nowhere, and the grave tone by which he spoke them made Esme lose her composure once again.

"H-huh?"

"What I'm trying to say is that we have no free will. Our paths have been pre-determined already… programmed to operate a certain way—just like the Skills we use, or the System that facilitates our growth."

"S-so you're saying… we don't make our choices? That sounds—"

"Absurd? I know it is intuitive to believe that you have a choice in your fate… your life… but what if I were to tell you that the path you took has already been determined? Everything that you are… and even everything that I am… were already established from the beginning."

"T-that's not… why would… I don't… believe that." Esme whispered, her eyes faltering as she looked away from the Fairy King.

She didn't want to challenge what he was saying directly, since that would be an affront to his authority. He had spoken with such confidence that she was tempted to believe him… if not for the fact that he was wrong.

He had to be wrong!

"I have Free Will… right, Ater? We both have Free Will! Why else would we be able to make all the decisions we have made till now? From the small choices, like what to eat… to big choices like the fights we partake in, and what Skills to use?" She turned to the only person who would take her side—Ater.

However, he was silent.

"Things might be different here… but it's not the same in the outside world." Esme returned her gaze to the Fairy King.

Somehow, she felt her confidence returning.

If Rey was here, he would have supported her. Surely, he knew well enough that people were responsible for their own choices.

He was able to convince The Oracle, so that meant… he could do the same here.

'I'm not Rey, but… I know it deep within myself.'

She had Free Will!

"It's fascinating, isn't it?" The Fairy King smiled at her. "Your instincts… every fiber of your being tells you that you have Free Will. It's almost impossible to go against the intuitive nature built in every one of us."

"...."

"But the facts remain the same: following the evidence, we indeed are not free."

"You… don't know that."

"But I do."

"How?"

"You wouldn't understand… but I could explain it to you in great detail." Esme wasn't sure she wanted to hear the great detail that the Fairy King was about to present to her. She felt that her sense of identity and self was being threatened just from having this conversation.

At a point, a single thought echoed in her head.

'What if he's right?'

She didn't want to imagine it—that everything she had been through… all that pain, suffering, and salvation… was merely something planned.

And her reaction to them was also not of her true volition, but some external will.

"I am in control of my actions." She announced confidently. "I know that because I have the conscious decision to think and act for myself."

"...."

"Why do you think that is?" Suddenly, after being silent for so long, Ater finally spoke up.

"W-what…?"

He turned to look at Esme, who was staring at him in confusion. Even though she no longer expected him to take her side, she didn't think he would buy into the Fairy King's absurd notion of Free Will; or rather, the absence of it.

Despite how absurd and reality shattering those ideas were, Ater remained calm as he asked her the question.

"Why do you think you have the conscious decision to think and act for yourself?"

"B-because…"

"I know why." Ater said with a calm gaze on her. His eyes were cold and deep—like an abyss that didn't seem to stop.

The Fairy King was quiet and listening keenly, almost as if he was interested in the answer that Ater would give. As for the rest of the Fairies, all of whom had been in silent agreement with their creator, they too were interested in Ater's answer.

"The reason is simple: it makes the story more interesting."

"W-what?"

Everyone—The Fairy King, his Fairies, and Esme—was stunned by the words they heard.

"What's the point of characters who believe their very choices have been predetermined? The illusion of Free Will and the conflict that arises from clashing ideologies and consciousness makes the story more interesting."

"Makes it more interesting… for who?"

At this point, the Fairy King's face had grown stern—almost to the point of slight animosity. He had a small frown on his face, and his crystal-like eyes shone with not only interest… but something else.

Something deeper.

"Who knows?"

"You're lying." He spat out. "You know!"

"As do you."

The Fairy King halted in his speech the moment he heard Ater's words. Veins appeared all over his forehead—a sign of rising rage.

The Fairies had never seen their King this way before, so they naturally expressed surprise. Esme was still confused about the whole thing, so she just kept alternating glances between Ater and the King.

As for Ater… he maintained his calm and collected facade.

It was as if nothing in the room fazed him.

"I see…" After a few seconds of uncomfortable tension and deafening silence, the Fairy King finally spoke up.

"You are certainly an interesting one… to know about them."

"...." Ater merely shrugged.

"So, why have you come to see me? I was expecting someone else, but not the two of you."

"You were expecting Rey Skylar—my Master."

"Your Master…? Rey Skylar is… ah, now I understand why you are so special. If the Singularity is related so closely to you, then it makes sense that you know so much."

"What's this you're saying about Rey? Singularity? Will anyone say anything?" Esme was frantic at this point.

After hearing a bunch of stuff about Free Will, which was already making her question reality as she knew it, hearing Rey's name was more than enough to make her snap. It felt like she was a lost child in a room of adults.

The frustration she felt was overwhelmingly unbearable.

Fortunately, the Fairy King noticed this and cast her an understanding gaze.

"The illusion of Free Will is true for all of us except the Singularity. Only he, a being that should not exist, can make choices that do not follow the natural order of this world."

"Really? Because he's an Otherworlder?"

"No. There have been many Otherworlders before him." The King retorted. "I don't know what makes him so special. There must have been an error at some point which led to the Singularity, but… that makes his existence unique.

"Maybe." Ater replied, drawing the Fairy King's attention back to him.

"Maybe?"

"The System has begun suppressing his will by eroding his emotions. It won't be long before the deviation you talk about to be corrected."

"Then we must act fast." Ater smiled the moment he heard the words of the Fairy King. All the conversations he made had led to this point, and the final piece of the puzzle had been solved.

"I was hoping you would say that." He beamed.

With the Fairies on their side, the destruction of the Dragon Empire was only a matter of time.

'And the path to my true goal will begin.'