The moment Ronan voiced his denial, he withdrew his gaze and looked instead at his fingers, flexing and extending them repeatedly, as though measuring something out—or trying to grasp something from thin air. It gave people the feeling that, at this stage, his words had become mere add-ons.
Despite this "absentminded" attitude, the venue remained silent, with only Ronan's voice echoing back and forth:
"I know there has long been debate over where Extraordinary Power comes from... Today, I learned that someone has named the key external condition behind this phenomenon the 'X Factor.' A few hours ago, I already discussed this topic, so I do not wish to repeat myself. I will state my position directly:
"The sudden emergence of human Extraordinary Power truly does not resemble a natural phenomenon, nor does it seem like the activation of some inner potential. Weak beings such as humans, creatures with such limited perception, occupy too narrow a range on the spectrum of life in the universe. It is not so easy for us to undergo rapid self-evolution and renewal.
"I would not be surprised in the least, and could fully accept, the idea that this process has a crucial external 'X Factor,' whether it is the 'Radiation Source' Covenant Lord spoke of or something else.
"But as for this 'Extraordinary Power,' or this 'rapid self-evolution,' its results are highly ordered—so ordered that they even conform to the demands of human self-conscious intervention. One must understand that, before the Aberration Era, cutting-edge theoretical research into the objective world had already drifted ever farther from human intuitive experience. There is no reason that, after only a few years, the world should suddenly become a slave to human consciousness.
"Rather than anything else, I would prefer to believe that some existence, or some category