<p><span style="color:#8e44ad;"><span style="font-size:20px;">Pairing Up</span></span></p>
<p>First things first. We use the <span style="color:#8e44ad;"><strong>Pairing Strategy</strong></span> to identify any synonym pairs among the six answer choices.</p>
<ul>
<li><strong>Pair 1:</strong> self-flattery/narcissism (both convey the idea of someone being very fond of themselves in a negative way)</li>
</ul>
<p>There's only one pair here, so we can eliminate the other answer choices: <span style="color:#e74c3c;"><s>prevarication</s></span>, <span style="color:#e74c3c;"><s>satisfaction</s></span>, <span style="color:#e74c3c;"><s>affectation</s></span>, and <span style="color:#e74c3c;"><s>indolence</s></span>.</p>
<p><span style="color:#27ae60;"><span style="font-size:20px;">The Right Answer</span></span></p>
<p>We can use <span style="color:#8e44ad;"><strong>Math Strategy</strong></span> to figure out the blank. There is a contrast happening in the form of "Despite A, B". The first idea (before the comma) tells us that the characters take pride in something good, so the right-hand side should be a bad quality about them.</p>
<p>The best (and only) match for this is the pair of <span style="color:#27ae60;">self-flattery/narcissism</span>.</p>