1796 How To Reclaim Control?

Most of the tenants had their expressions turned for the worse at the realization that Felix's proud persona was going to ruin his chances to recruit Eris.

This was also one of the reasons Felix was hesitant at the start to enter the true embodiment state, knowing that whichever state he entered, its extremities might make the situation worse.

All the tenants turned to Lady Sphinx and gave her head nods with solemn expressions. Understanding what they wanted, Lady Sphinx appeared next to Felix's mediating wisp in the plaza. Then, she woke him up with a single message.

'It's time.'

Felix's eyes snapped wide open the moment he heard her voice. With a serious expression, he lifted his head and gazed at what was happening outside.

When Felix's pride persona caught his gaze, he gave one last warning to Eris, "I have to deal with a lingering pest. When I am finished with him, I hope you will have made the right choice."

Eris remained silent, knowing that the moment of truth was here. If Felix could reclaim control from his overbearing pride persona, then, she would have no more misgivings.

If he failed, well, she would be left with no choice but to leave this place. Even while chained up, she still had a way to escape unharmed. This was the reason she never thoroughly feared either Felix or his pride persona.

'Can he do it though?' Eris thought to herself with a deep frown, 'I understand he has chosen pride embodiment due to its overwhelming authority, but it is also one of the hardest personas to deal with.'

'How will he regain control from someone with the most overbearing superiority complex in the universe?'

While it seemed almost impossible, Felix wouldn't have chosen the pride sin if he hadn't already prepared a great countermeasure to regain control.

The moment Felix's pride persona manifested in the consciousness space, he found only Felix standing in front of him.

The rest of the tenants were told to not even use their senses to pry on them, in hopes of not agitating him and getting themselves expelled.

Felix's pride persona felt their fading presence in their houses, but he ignored them. He couldn't be bothered with some small fry.

He turned to Felix and looked down at him with a disdainful grimace, radiating superiority.

"I feel sick just by looking at you." He uttered coldly, "How can I be in the same breath with a weak, cowardly, soft, little creature like you."

"Yes, yes, yes...I genuinely feel the same. For a lowly unigin as me to share the same body as your Highness is an absolute honor. Truly!"

Felix immediately bowed his head down with a sheepish weak smile, lowering his status before his pride persona.

"At least you have some common sense to know your superior." Felix's pride persona softened his tone a bit, seemingly pleased with Felix's instant allegiance.

"Of course, of course, how wouldn't I know?" Felix spoke with a starstruck look, "The very first chance I had, I called you over to take control, knowing that your imperial presence alone is enough to deal with anything."

"The other six embodiments have nothing against you."

"Humph, you damn right they don't." Felix's pride persona sneered at the mention of his brothers and sister.

"I feel delighted to know that your greatness will now lead us against the tyranny of the three rulers." Felix smiled widely in delight, "Of course, there is still Apollo, Ares, rescuing Asna, and other missions to deal with first, but I am certain your Highness can deal with it swiftly and easily."

Felix's pride persona frowned in displeasure, "You think someone of my status will go running around for such mundane errands?"

"Absolutely not! My apologies, I have overstepped my bounds." Felix immediately bowed his head in shame.

"I deal with only matters ofutmost importance worthy of my presence." Felix's pride persona uttered indifferently, "Holding on to control in every instance is beneath me."

"Then, allow this lowly one to take away such an unworthy burden off your shoulders." Felix requested with a sincere voice.

"Is that so?"

Felix's pride persona chuckled softly, a sound that echoed ominously around them, making Felix flinch.

"You play to my sensibilities," He responded with a cold tone, "But make no mistake, I see through your tactics. You flatter to deceive, to regain what you've lost."

Unfazed, Felix dropped his act at once, his act of submission was nowhere to be seen. Although his tactics were seen through, he still stuck by it...However, without the act.

"Perhaps," He admitted, "but consider this, a true leader knows when to lead and when to entrust others. What glory is there in overseeing the ordinary? Does not a king risk his crown by toiling in the dirt with commoners?"

The pride persona paused, contemplating Felix's words...His expression softened slightly.

"It is indeed more fitting for me to step back and intervene only in moments worthy of my attention. Prove to me, then, that you can handle the lesser challenges without sullying my legacy."

With a graceful, almost theatrical gesture, the pride persona reached out, interacting Felix's forehead.

"I relinquish this...For now," he declared regally. "Do not disappoint me, and cease being such a loser."

As the persona faded into the background of Felix's mind, Felix felt the full weight of his personality return, along with control over his body.

He opened his eyes to the real world, the sensations of battle rushing back to him along a slight sting from the pride persona's parting words.

"You have done it? So quickly? How?"

Eris raised an eyebrow in surprise after seeing the change in Felix's entire demeanor and aura.

"First, I apologize for what he has said." Felix sighed in relief, "I knew he would be extreme in his interactions but not this much."

"Don't mind it." Eris wasn't bothered, "Tell me how you convinced him to hand you control back? Did you stroke his ego? That's the only solution I am seeing."

"Exactly." Felix nodded in agreement, "I knew that fighting over control with him would do nothing but get me erased and everyone killed. Since pride was the dominant emotion within him to the point it forced him to make horrible decisions just not to wound it, I knew that stroking his ego would do the trick."

"He just can't resist it whether he figured out my tactics or not."

"Great work." Eris sighed bitterly, "If only it was that simple for me too."

"Chaos and order, huh."

Felix knew exactly what she was talking about. His seven sins were powerful at their true embodiments, but due to their extremities, there was some leeway to gain back control.

However, it was different for Eris. If she chose a true chaos embodiment state, she would lose control and due to its extremely chaotic nature, there was no possible way to regain her control unless her chaotic embodiment decided on it at a whim.

As for order embodiment? It was disciplined, boring, cold, calculating. Nothing could pursue her to hand over control.

Eris would rather keep her balanced personality and free will than go for this risky level up unless she was left with no other choice.

Since her battle with Felix was more of a test than a battle of life and death, she had no reason to go for it.

"Well, I hope this is enough to win you over?" Felix's gaze turned solemn, "Now, can you tell me the whole truth?"

At the moment, Felix couldn't care less about Eris' defeat, her core, or even the stone of reality.

All he wanted to know was the reality of his identity.

"As I uttered before, it's not the truth, it's a theory." Eris shared calmly, "The only method to truly confirm it is through interacting the stone of reality."