NOVEL NEXT 15
Rukia listened to my request without complaint.
While she kept going back and forth to the old school building to move the Scarlet Heart, I pictured the process of the newly starting event in my head.
‘Escaped Experiment Subject Monegarm’.
As the name suggests, it’s an event where the experiment subject Monegarm attacks 1st and 2nd-year students taking the ability verification exam.
No matter which route you take, it always occurs during the first month’s ability verification exam.
And exclusively in extreme difficulty, it’s an event that causes extreme anger for new professors.
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<< Sudden Event: Escaped Experiment Subject Monegarm >>
“A giant toxic experiment subject has appeared in Stadt City where the ability verification for lower-grade students was taking place. It seems to have escaped from a secret laboratory operated by the Fire Sword Ghost.
If this monster is left unattended until the main heroes arrive, students and citizens will be in danger.
Professor, please eliminate this monster immediately.”
— Success: Minerva’s Owl x 1
— Failure: Bad Ending
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They say it escaped from a laboratory operated by the final boss, the Fire Sword Ghost. But according to the analysis of long-time players, ‘released’ is more accurate.
Isn’t the Fire Sword Ghost’s purpose obvious?
It’s to force professors to use Vermilion Heart by inflicting serious damage on Athenas.
‘But the Vermilion Heart provided at the scene is actually a cleverly disguised counterfeit…’
The method of somehow increasing the number of Athenas exposed to counterfeits to gain an advantageous position.
This is also the cause of the continuous sudden events that occur until D-Day.
Of course, it’s an event I must go through.
To follow the cleared future vision, I need to obtain a certain number of sudden event rewards, ‘Minerva’s Owl’.
Since it’s a special reward only given in sudden events, and it’s used to strengthen Athenas, I absolutely can’t miss it.
— Department head! It’s me!
Rukia finally arrived at the dormitory room with the last Scarlet Heart.
After letting her in, I immediately locked the door.
Sunlight gently illuminates the interior through the curtains.
The dark room with a vermilion tint gave off an atmosphere like a witch’s laboratory.
Well, what I’m about to do is something a witch would do.
Drinking 90 bottles of Scarlet Heart in succession.
Who would do such a thing without being crazy?
“I’m going to drink all of this now.”
Rukia’s eyes widened.
“Ahaha! Are you in your right mind, department head?”
“I am in my right mind.”
“I mean… It’s a substance that immediately breaks down and dissolves in the blood, and each bottle is only 100ml… but still, you’re going to drink all this? You’ll have to go to the bathroom fifty times!”
“So, are you going to stop me?”
Kik kik.
Rukia laughed like a child who had found an interesting toy.
“No way!”
Because she is an observer, she only accommodates others and never asserts her own opinions.
This is why our twin-tailed little devil’s interference with the future vision is particularly few.
“If I happen to act erratically, please knock me out.”
“But I don’t feel like hitting you even as a joke~.”
“It won’t hurt at all anyway.”
I smiled sweetly.
“It’s better to faint than to do strange things that attract the attention of academy people.”
“Well, okay. Leave it to me as always!”
“You’re reliable.”
“Besides, after drinking about 50 bottles, it might reflux back up. Should I prepare a bucket in advance? Kihihit.”
…Hearing Rukia’s words makes me a bit anxious.
“Please do.”
Anyway, since there’s a weekend before the ability verification, let’s empty thirty bottles a day including today.
I can’t watch the life timer that I’ve wound up go backward.
A moment later, an iron bucket was placed in front of me.
Seeing the dried blood at the bottom, it was the bucket from earlier.
“Then, I’ll start.”
Of the thirty bottles, I’ll forcibly waste 1/4 of them, so I’ll effectively absorb about twenty-three bottles.
Even if Rukia catches the bottles I drop, those bottles will be treated as having lost their effect according to the system.
Rukia and I removed the corks from thirty medicine bottles one by one and placed them on the floor.
Arranged in rows of five and six, they look like toy soldiers.
After completing all preparations, Rukia held the bucket in her hand.
I gripped a bottle with its opening wide open and tilted my head back freely.
“— Kehaak.”
Damn it.
Right at the start.
“Kuhuk. Kaak…”
“Good thing we prepared a bucket, right?”
“Kuhuh… ha… ye… yes, indeed.”
Rukia effortlessly catches the flying medicine bottles while holding the bucket.
Thanks to her, at least the floor wasn’t drenched with strawberry-flavored drink.
“Hu. Hut.”
Drink. Drink again. Cough.
After repeating this several times, I began to feel something different from usual.
The happiness and amplification of senses that should come right after taking the medicine had become flat, as if they didn’t exist at some point.
It felt like my entire body had burned up and only my brain was alive.
‘I’m just eliminating variables…’
What does it matter if I abuse my body a bit?
At least I won’t die.
The clock of life keeps ticking.
Isn’t that enough?
This body is just a vessel in a game anyway.
Who would take responsibility if I meet a bad ending while taking care of my health?
Professor Yggdrasil?
That guy who has to play the player’s role instead of me?
Not at all.
The current him is an ignorant fool.
‘A second run in a roguelike. It was fucking ridiculous…’
Unless you use cheats or see a walkthrough first.
The professor will definitely lose at least one cherished Athena.
And meet a normal ending due to not meeting the conditions.
Three choices are presented to the disheartened professor.
Whether to peek at the truth of the world, turn the clock back to the past, and move towards the ‘true ending’ from the beginning with the same squad (2nd playthrough/squad change not possible).
Whether to start over from the beginning using different Athenas while turning away from the truth (reset/squad change possible).
Or whether to serve as a professor until the end of his life in the world he has saved (infinite mode).
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<< Goal: Day-R, Save Professor Yggdrasil >>
— Success: Happy Ending
— Failure: Bad Ending
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So here’s the question.
For a professor facing a normal ending to reach the true ending, he needs to go back in time.
What exactly is that method?
The answer is…
It’s ‘death’, which is commonly used in many creative works.
He must stab his own heart with a hidden blade in the pocket watch he carries.
Now, here’s another question.
When exactly is the day the professor stabs his heart to see the true ending?
It happens to be Day-R.
When all events are concluded.
On the day the final battle with the final boss ends.
In other words, if I, who thoroughly understand this world, don’t lead him on the right path.
The first run’s professor might stab his heart and drop dead.
But I must save Professor Yggdrasil on Day-R.
That’s the condition for my happy ending.
You might ask, isn’t there a way to inform Professor Yggdrasil of the truth and join forces?
If it were possible, would I be doing this?
I’ve simulated the dimension of possibilities countless times, but he was a stubborn blockhead with no solution.
I thought about it when I was caught raiding the office safe.
The professor will never understand me until he stabs his own heart.
If I reveal the truth, he will force me to take a leave of absence to treat my ‘sick heart’.
And force me to go on date-like outings every weekend.
For me, it was a pain worse than death.
It’s not for nothing that I’m trying to obtain Minerva’s Owl directly from sudden events.
If that professor guy uses it arbitrarily, it will be a catastrophe.
Wow, just imagining it is shitty.
All the hardships I’ve been through.
It makes me want to stab the professor with my own hands—.
“—partment head, can you hear me? Department head?”
“………”
“Department heaaaaaad?”
When I came to my senses, Rukia was giggling just close enough to touch if she moved slightly.
“I’m fine.”
“Your speech has become extremely fast, department head. Your eyes are a bit scary too!”
“It’s Rukia who’s slow.”
“No way!”
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<< Shana Midgard >>
Regin Academy / Aesir Dormitory / 2nd Year
— Enhancement Effect ‘Vermilion Heart’ Applied
(Time Remaining: 5 days 11 hours 12 minutes)
[Status]
Vitality 12/12
…
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The enhancement effect duration is as much as 5 days.
‘I Love Strawberries’ is showing performance exactly as described.
Since there’s a 25% probability of wasting one bottle of Scarlet Heart, after drinking all of them, the accumulated enhancement effect duration would be about 13 days.
Isn’t that really amazing?
From now on, I don’t need to be anxious about hiding medicine bottles.
I can just drink them as soon as I get them.
Thanks to this, I can focus on the upcoming sudden event even though the Thunder Emperor variable has been added.
Shana Midgard’s survival front, no problem with this!
Except for the fact that a spherical jelly has been floating around in my field of vision for a while now, I don’t feel any other major side effects.
That’s unexpected, Count Train.
The part about gaining a friend wasn’t a lie either, was it?
I thought you were someone who habitually lied to exploit me.
Looking at it this way, you’re quite reliable.
I was thinking of eliminating you right after obtaining enough Vermilion Heart.
…I need to observe more carefully.
“…Urk.”
“What’s wrong, Count Train?”
“Ah, that. Suddenly a chill—.”
A pair of blood-red eyes between the gaps of the drawn black blinds stares at Count Train frighteningly.
Count Train immediately cleared his throat and spread his shoulders wide.
To show weakness in front of a man obsessed with ‘strength’.
It was an action deserving of criticism.
The red eyes visible through the gap in the blinds narrowed.
“As you know, I am a person who only believes in results.”
Count Train’s spine also chills at the atmosphere that has become even more threatening than before.
“In other words, it also means that I fully trust you until results come out.”
Originally scheduled for next week, during Regin Academy’s ability verification, the deployment of experiment subject Monegarm has been somewhat advanced to the coming weekend.
“Above all, I approved this plan because I highly value your merit in reducing security costs.”
“I am merely grateful for the high evaluation of my capabilities and the delegation of operational authority!”
Because it can achieve the original purpose with less capital.
And Shana, who would provide highly reliable clinical trial data, was nearby.
The corners of the eyes beyond the blinds curl up round.
It was the Fire Sword Ghost’s smile, which even his closest aides have rarely seen.
“I hope that child performs beyond expectations, Lord Train.”
3. No Problem with Doping Tests. End.