If this plan could really succeed, it would be a perfect two-birds-one-stone solution.
Not only would it temporarily resolve his own safety concerns, but it might also help confirm another of his theories—could altering a "plot character's" original trajectory earn him system rewards?
Granted, even if he managed to help David leave the hospital a little earlier, it probably wouldn't stop David from being drawn into the upcoming conflict between the two opposing mutant organizations: "Division Three" and "Summerland."
After all, both groups had been keeping an eye on David for years. There was no way they'd just let him go so easily.
But Ray knew full well how terrifying David truly was—far beyond what either of those organizations imagined. By targeting David, they were essentially sealing their own doom.
Ray wasn't the least bit concerned that anything bad would happen to David. David himself was the real threat.
Forget about those third-rate organizations hiding in the shadows playing political games—even the X-Men founded by David's father and the Brotherhood of Mutants led by his father's best friend would struggle to deal with David, a ticking time bomb. The others? They might as well not even try.
Determined, Ray finished his breakfast and accompanied David to the hospital's lounge area.
Once David had found an empty table in a corner and sat down, Ray went to fetch a few sheets of paper and a marker from a nurse. He was ready to begin the simulation test for David.
The original host's knowledge of psychological assessments had resurfaced in Ray's mind as soon as he decided to help David get discharged early, so he felt fairly confident.
"All right, let's begin—"
Sitting comfortably with pen and paper in hand, Ray addressed the quietly waiting David.
But just as he finished speaking, several lines of golden text flashed through his mind.
Ray was puzzled. He hadn't even started altering David's fate yet—could the system already be rewarding him? That seemed way too easy.
But once he read the system prompt, he realized it wasn't what he had hoped:
Ding—
You have encountered A-Class Villain: Amahl Farouk. Exploration Points +50.
You may convert Exploration Points into General Points to unlock various system features.
…
Amahl Farouk?
At first glance, the name struck Ray as unfamiliar.
But with no one else around except David, and given the system's classification of this person as an A-Class villain, it didn't take long for Ray to figure out who this was…
The Shadow King!
One of Professor X's greatest enemies.
A powerful mutant who had entirely transformed his lifeform into a psychic entity.
Although Professor X eventually defeated him, the Shadow King had succeeded in tricking the professor into believing he had been destroyed.
In truth, he had secretly latched onto Professor X, lying dormant within him.
Knowing that he'd never fully take over Charles Xavier's body, the Shadow King quietly transferred himself to David after his birth and began manipulating him in the shadows.
His objective was simple: break down David's mental defenses, shatter his primary personality, and replace it with himself.
As a former Level 4 mutant, the Shadow King understood David's terrifying potential even better than most—far beyond even Professor X.
To him, fully occupying David's body would be worth any amount of time, especially since time had lost all meaning for his current form.
David, at present, had no idea the Shadow King existed. The Shadow King had never revealed himself.
Only after David joined forces with the Summerland group did he gradually become aware of the entity, leading to a bizarre and prolonged mental confrontation.
But just because David didn't know, didn't mean Ray didn't.
Ray understood better than anyone the Shadow King's origin and intentions. But until now, his mind had been so caught up in the "double-win" plan that he'd completely forgotten about the looming threat the Shadow King posed.
"Damn it—I was too careless!" Ray's heart skipped a beat.
If only he had thought things through a little more, he would have remembered the Shadow King's presence and probably scrapped this "clever" plan altogether.
After all, dealing with the real David was risky—but confronting the Shadow King was a whole different level of danger!
David might be a Level 5 mutant, but he was still far from his peak. Even if he lost control, the damage he could do wasn't unlimited.
The Shadow King, on the other hand…
This was someone who could go toe-to-toe with Professor X!
Even if David went berserk, he might not stand a chance against him. And while an unhinged David acted on pure emotion, the Shadow King was methodical and terrifyingly calculated.
If Ray had a choice, he'd much rather deal with a raging David than lock horns with the Shadow King directly.
But now, it was too late to back out.
Based on the system prompt, the Shadow King had already temporarily taken over David's body—otherwise, the system wouldn't have recognized the encounter.
"No choice now… I'll have to play it by ear." Realizing the David in front of him was no longer the same, Ray had no choice but to brace himself and move forward cautiously.
Even switching to his Klo personality wouldn't help in this situation.
Klo wasn't strong enough to fight a Level 4 mutant and had no tools to counter a mental-type enemy like the Shadow King.
Besides, Klo's personality was inherently unstable. Ray wasn't about to hand control over to him and hope for the best against someone as overwhelmingly powerful as the Shadow King.
Luckily, the Shadow King wasn't the type to go on a killing spree for no reason. He seemed to prefer subtle emotional manipulation, slowly breaking down his opponents from within.
As long as Ray didn't "flip the table," things might not escalate.
"Hmm? Can we start now?"
"David" looked up, a strange smile curling on his lips.
Seeing this, Ray couldn't help but grumble inwardly. No wonder David couldn't get discharged—looking like that, any doctor would immediately know something was off… unless they were blind.
Ray only understood because he knew the Shadow King was real. But for people like Dr. Beth, they had no idea. To them, David still appeared to suffer from intermittent personality shifts—clearly not recovered.
No way they'd let him go in that state.
"Yes, we can begin," Ray said calmly, picking up his pen.
No matter how much he grumbled inside, Ray had no intention of confronting the Shadow King. If the Shadow King wanted to put on a performance, so be it. Ray would play along to the end.
So long as nobody flipped the table, things could stay civil.