'But why would it be a leash?'
That question turned slow in Damien's mind, like a blade grinding over stone.
It wasn't the effects he didn't understand—it was the purpose.
What exactly was this Authority discouraging?
What future had it rerouted him from?
That was the part he couldn't pin down.
Even now, even after seeing the System's warnings and feeling the pulse of that foreign will trying to dig into his bones… the why escaped him.
'System,' he said again, lower this time. 'Status check. Side-effects?'
[Analysis: Host has fully resisted cognitive imprint.]
[Authority-class interference neutralized.]
[Physiological benefits from the bath retained.]
[Host integrity preserved.]
Damien gave a short, sharp exhale through his nose. That part, at least, was satisfying.
'Got the gains without the chain.'
But there was still one more thing he needed to check.
The trait.
[Trait: Resonance of Fate]
