My Beautiful Disciples, I'm really not the Main Character!

Chapter 22: The Path of a...

Eren stared at the options as he landed inside his house atop the cliff.

This time, the options really confused him, making him wonder if he was wrong about the pattern.

Usually, the first option was the most dangerous. But this time, it seemed slightly easier than the other options. Or was there some hidden danger in that which he didn't know about yet?

Lost in thought, he walked over to the bed. This time something was really suspicious about the options. The timer below the options was longer as well.

He wasn't given a few minutes of time like before. He was given an entire day to think about it, making it evident that these options held a lot more consequences than everything else previously.

Was it because these items decided his future in a way that other options didn't? These were setting up his future path that he wanted to take?

In that case, the first path appeared like the Path of a Bluffmaster, where he had to survive while fooling others. It was the path which allowed him to use his brain for survival, instead of his physical skills.

The Second Path was the path of a Conqueror. He wasn't going to bluff his way to succeed. Instead, he would have to take the risk himself.

He had to become stronger, so he could become a better guide for his disciples.

Strength didn't come without risks. So this option looked like the most dangerous currently. The second option was usually his safe choice, but this time, it was quite dangerous as well.

If he had to rely on the others for the first path, then he could only rely on himself for the second path.

There was also a third and the fourth path as per these options.

The third path was the path of a coward. He had to run and abandon everything, including any hope of ever being able to find a way to return to his world or uncover the mystery of this secret.

If he chose the third path, it was no different than abandoning himself and assimilating in this world. He wasn't sure if the System was also going to give up on him if he did the same.

There was another problem with the third path. Even if he escaped, it didn't mean he could survive.

The Hero Academy in the South and the Great Demon Sect in the East were two of the greatest powers in the continent, aside from the Holy Church in the West and the Necromancer Tower in the North.

He could escape into the territory of the Necromancer Tower or the Holy Church, but it didn't mean he couldn't be discovered and killed.

As for the fourth path, it was the path of a Lover. Although it appeared to be the most lucrative, it was the most dangerous to his current self.

The more time he spent trying to get close to her, the more he risked exposing his secret.

As per the option, he needed to make her fall in love with him to the point she didn't care about his past. That was easier said than done with his current weak self.

To win over a woman, he needed strength along with charm.

"The Path of a Bluffmaster, the Path of a Conqueror, the Path of a Coward had the Path of a Lover..."

Eren lied on the bed, closing his eyes as he kept thinking about the options again and again. He didn't even think about the rewards. Instead, he only thought about his future potential.

He completely removed the third option from his consideration.

He could not throw away everything, all for survival that wasn't guaranteed in any case. Selecting that option was like placing his life on a bet.

That left only three options.

"The Bluffmaster, or the Conqueror... and the Lover."

"The Bluffmaster seems somewhat normal. It seems the system will give me rewards that focus on bluffing and protection. If I could get more rewards like a pendant of protection, I could really become invincible."

"But, I can't help but have bad feelings about it since it's the first option. The first options had always been the most risky. Although it doesn't seem obvious, there must be something really wrong in it."

After a lot of consideration, he decided to take a risk.

"If two options are linked to the same path, can I select the two of them?" he asked.

[If two options are Interlinked, you can select two options. However, you must select one primary option and one secondary option]

[You will receive primary option reward immediately, and secondary option reward after completing both the options]

[Reminder: It is a future path decision. If you select two, the penalty will be double on failure]

"If I fail, the penalty will be doubled. But I'm not planning to fail," Eren commented.

"Option two and four seem to be interlinked. And who says I can't win over the Sect Master after selecting the second path? If anything, that seems to be safer. I'll have strength, and I'll get backing."

"I'm taking the second option as my Primary Path and the fourth option as my Secondary Path."

[You have selected the second and fourth option]

[The future path is being adjusted]

[...]

[...]

[Success]

[The future path has been adjusted accordingly]

[You have been rewarded with a memory fragment]

Following a few notifications, a small crystal fell on the bed before Eren.

The Crystal looked strange as it was shining in seven color lights at once.

Eren picked up the crystal with curiosity, feeling a sudden surge of warmth.

Just as he was wondering what this crystal did, a description appeared before him.

[Memory Crystal: A Crystal that allows you to glimpse into a small portion of the unknown past of Elder Ren]

[Reminder: You are too weak to use it. Please strengthen your mental fortitude in the future before using it]

"Glimpse into Ren's past?"

Eren looked at the crystal with great interest. He also realized that the wording in the description was quite peculiar. It said the unknown past.

He had read about Ren in the Novel and he knew quite a few things. But even he didn't know much about his past.

Ren was clearly a poorly written character in the novel. That's also why Eren was so frustrated with this novel. There were so many things about Ren that didn't make sense.

He was a spy of the Hero Academy, so how did he become an Elder at the Great Demon Academy.

How was he selected by the Great Demon Sect Master? How did she not notice anything wrong with him?

In the novel, he hadn't noticed it. But when he took over this body, he realized that this guy was very weak as well. So how did someone so weak manage to tame a mythical beast?

There were a lot of things about Elder Ren that didn't make sense to him.