"Experience?" Ryan asked curiously.
Ryan had a few guesses, but he had not confirmed them yet as he waited for the gentleman's answer and explanation.
"This is considered one of the secrets of the magician world. Only a few people know about it, whether told by others or noticing it by themselves." The gentleman chuckled inwardly.
"If this is a secret of the magician world, why tell me about it?" Ryan became even more puzzled and grew suspicious about this.
The gentleman, Anis, smiled and said softly, "Because we are comrades, and I don't think you are going to reveal what I am going to tell you."
His voice carried a hint of carefreeness, but in fact, he did not truly care if the information leaked out.
Hearing Anis's carefree answer, Ryan suddenly recalled the moment he signed the binding contract with Captain Yean. The content of the contract was:
"The signatory must not reveal any information regarding the Judgemental, whether by writing in paragraph form, transmitting thoughts via inner voice, using dreams as cover, or employing any mystical means to reveal the information."
Anis did not provide Ryan with an answer; he let Ryan think of the answer himself.
He looked at Ryan and said in a soft voice,
"Before delving deeper into this, I'd like to introduce myself first. My name is Anis Folion. I am one of the Judgemental in charge of this officer headquarters. Very soon, we will become members under the same banner."
Having found the answer to his own question earlier, Ryan nodded slightly with a grim expression, expressing his gratitude toward this senior.
Why are you only greeting me now... Is it because you didn't trust me before and didn't reveal your name to me out of fear that I might secretly curse you? Ryan thought to himself.
The world of magicians was very dangerous. One had to be cautious when revealing information to others. Others could curse you by using something that had a strong connection with you, like blood, hair, or your name.
Ryan could not suppress his interest in matters related to the source of a magician's power, so he asked, "What did you mean by experience just now?"
Anis took a sip of his coffee patiently and slowly explained, "It's normal for you not to know about this. The Living Will and the Death Will—both of these Wills are connected to the self-invoking method."
"The Living Will is essentially a Will that gradually forms based on your daily life. Your job plays a crucial role in this matter. When you first start a job, it is like a child entering school for the first time. But as you grow up and fully learn, you slowly become good at it and get used to it, no longer facing trouble at work. At most, you encounter some issues while working and try to figure out the problem to solve it.
That is the principle of the Living Will: by slowly gaining enlightenment and mastering your primary job, when you reach your threshold, the Will is fully formed. This is the principle of experience."
Experience was not limited to adventure and going on journeys; the word alone covered a massive field. Whether it was a maid, chef, worker, or lumberjack, all jobs were related to experience.
The more you did it, the better you became at it, eventually mastering it fully. Some work was easy, such as being a maid. Occasionally, it did not require anything complex, just sweeping the floor, washing the dishes, and cleaning the toilet, so the Will took less time to form.
But for a complicated job like architecture, it would take you a lot of time to master it fully. Even struggling at death's door, some still had not mastered it.
At this point, the matter was simply time. Some were able to master it but were already old, about to enter the coffin and ready to be buried, while some were young, able to form the Will, and started walking the path of a magician. Talent was also another factor.
"But those who have awakened a Living Will have many things in common, and it is that their Wills are mostly the same," Anis said in an ethereal tone. Occasionally, he sipped his coffee.
Ryan seemed immersed in listening, grasping all the details with his sharp mind, but he was more curious about the Death Will, since he himself had awakened through a Death Will.
"Before delving deeper into each Will and its uniqueness, we must know: how does a Will function?"
Anis spoke in a preaching tone, as if he were a teacher currently instructing a student in a class, but this class had only one person, and it was Ryan, who was immersed in listening.
Ryan felt no shame when it came to learning from others; sometimes knowledge was equal to power.
Anis took a sip of his coffee and answered his own question. "The Wills are essentially the source of power, the root of every magician's bizarre and horrifying abilities. There is no strongest Will, only the strongest magician.
It is funny how a Will can be this perfectly balanced. If you observe closely, it is also fair for everyone. Everyone can gain superpowers if they put enough effort into their lives." Anis laughed mockingly, while at the same time feeling pity.
Seeing Anis sometimes laughing and sometimes serious, Ryan could not help but think to himself, Does this guy have psychological issues?
After he stopped laughing, Anis resumed the main topic. "Some magicians might be aware of this and some might not: a Will only has one function, and it acts as a passive trait unique to the magician. For example, the Love Will allows you to observe a connection between living beings and objects. It even allows you to master the job you love the most in the shortest time."
Hearing this, Ryan added, "In other words, it is more like a passive ability than active power."
Anis snapped his fingers and praised Ryan, "That's it! It seems like you are not a newbie either."
"And a magician's main power stems from the experiences they have. The job. The job is closely connected to the experience. When you first awaken the Will, you enter a sea of consciousness. In the sea of consciousness, there are four strange doors filled with mysterious patterns and symbols. When you stand in front of a door, various pieces of information are transmitted to your mind. That information is about the ability. Entering the door means you are going to acquire the corresponding ability, and once you enter, you cannot turn back."
Hearing this, Ryan briefly pondered for a moment and asked, "What about the sea of consciousness? Are all seas of consciousness identical for every magician?"
Anis reordered his words and carefully said, "No, the sea of consciousness of each magician is not the same, at least as far as I know. The sea of consciousness changes based on each person's memories. And at the center of the sea of consciousness lies a big, withered tree, and that tree is our Will."
Saying up to this point, Anis stopped and gave no further explanation.
Ryan noticed the explanation had come to a halt, and he did not ask why either. Some information could bring harm to oneself the more one knew, and Ryan himself knew this very well.
Besides, regarding all this information, he likely knew almost everything already, except for a few things he was unaware of, but he would eventually come to understand them in the future.
"Some information I already knew and some I didn't. This is all important information that a magician must know. It really brings a lot of benefit to me," Ryan said in a serene tone, his face showing great respect toward Anis.
This was a sign that he was now a real Judgemental, accepting this job wholeheartedly.
"What about the Death Will?" Ryan asked. This was the main thing he wanted to know about.
Anis once again sipped his coffee, which was almost gone, and said in a deep voice, "The Death Will, unlike the Living Will which accumulates through experience, is the opposite. You can awaken a Death Will in a near-death state or a hopeless situation. The Will forms when you have strong, intense emotions toward a specific circumstance."
With that said, the gentleman looked at Ryan, and his eyes glowed golden. With a blink of his eye, the entire room suddenly transformed. Every kind of object started floating up, including the chair Ryan was sitting on, the empty coffee cup, books, and the desk.
All the objects floated in mid-air, and complex patterns and symbols seeped in and out of the objects like possessing ghosts. Strangely, there were lines of thread connecting all the objects. Some objects had threads connecting them with each other, while some had threads connecting to unknown places, passing right through the walls of the room. Some objects had two to three lines, with some lines being faint and almost invisible.
Ryan was stunned, deeply shocked by the ability Anis displayed in front of him.
Ryan extended his right hand to touch the line of thread connecting his chair to the table, but instead of touching the thread, his hand passed through it as if it were transparent.
Anis chuckled, "This is one of my abilities, Line of Information. With this ability, I can read all the information of an object and see its connections."
With that said, he extended his right hand and touched a thread connecting to the coffee cup he usually drank from. One thread from the coffee cup went to an unknown place, while others connected to him.
Upon touching the thread, it suddenly turned a blue hue, and various pieces of information seeped out of the coffee cup and flowed into his mind. The information was about the origin of the cup, how it was made, and its materials.
At this moment, Ryan felt as if he had just entered the magician world for the very first time. His jaw dropped slightly and his eyes opened wide. With this ability, one could track anyone down and learn whatever information they wished to know.
At the same time, Ryan felt a strong sense of familiarity, but he could not pinpoint the source of it.
After a while, the room returned to normal. The objects that had floated up returned to their original positions, and the threads connecting each object faded away without a trace.
Anis returned to his seat and said, "Normally, there wouldn't be lines of thread connecting each object, but due to a special effect from my Will, all of this occurred."
Ryan could no longer suppress his urge and asked with utmost concern, "What Will is that?"
Anis looked at Ryan, his eyes no longer glowing with a golden color, and said, "My Will is a Living Will: the Loyalty Will."
"This Will allows me to sense every object's connections, traits, and informations."
Anis had told Ryan about his ability as if Ryan were his friend, which made Ryan feel uneasy deep within his heart.
I can now be considered a Judgemental, and they are treating me well and revealing secret information to bind me with them entirely, without fear that the secrets might be revealed... Ryan sighed deeply, but also felt relieved.
He was relieved that he had gained a foothold and a backing, as well as a job.
In this world, wandering alone as a magician might not be a good option. Who knew when you might suddenly become someone else's prey? Wandering in this terrifying and mysterious world would only increase your chances of dying or going missing.
A wise man knows when to submit.
After telling Ryan about his Will, Anis smiled smugly and asked, "I have told you information, secrets, and even my ability and Will. Don't you think it's your turn to introduce yourself?"
As expected.
Ryan had already anticipated this question the moment Anis told him about his Loyalty Will.
Left with no choice, Ryan finally revealed his Will with an expressionless face.
"My Will is the Agony Will."