The Necklace of Confession hit me with an unexpected sucker punch. I never imagined it would dredge up my inner thoughts so thoroughly.

I was worried that the unsettling words mixed in might have created some aversion in Elia.

…I cautiously gauged her reaction, but fortunately, aside from her ordering warm milk for me, nothing significant happened.

As I sipped it, I had to struggle not to utter how it tasted bad.

After receiving Elia’s help and practicing, I managed to gain some control over it.

But still, all I could do was switch it on and off.

Filtering out my inner thoughts was oddly difficult to control.

Elia’s grandfather reportedly controlled it without any trouble, but what on earth was my problem…

‘Tired…’

[I’m tired]

As I grumbled inwardly, the Necklace of Confession activated. The stern, androgynous voice made me frown deeply.

This was roughly how it went.

Feeling annoyed, I grabbed the necklace and shook it.

Honestly, it wasn’t entirely a bad thing.

With the Curse of Silence sealing my voice, the Necklace of Confession allowed me to bypass the curse entirely.

Instead of an immensely difficult method like obtaining the Jewel of Exorcism or the Wish Power of the Tower, I bypassed the curse with just a mid-low grade artifact.

While it was certainly advantageous, not being able to properly handle it made it somewhat frustrating.

[Cadet Lee Hayul, authenticated.]

With the usual mechanical voice, the dormitory door opened.

Normally, I would use my smartwatch for authentication, but now I was using a hologram projector instead.

The hologram projector was a familiar tool to me.

It was essentially a smartphone with a built-in hologram function.

In this day and age, who doesn’t use a smartwatch? But this product was sold for the rare few who didn’t.

Taking off my shoes at the entrance, I trudged toward the living room.

I scanned the dormitory with my observational power.

The entrance I had just passed.

The living room and kitchen. Three rooms, a bathroom, a storage room, and a balcony.

Nothing had changed from what I remembered.

There were no half-knit scarves piled up in the corner of the living room, nor was there any noticeable mess.

Even the appliances showed little signs of use.

Truthfully, there was no reason for traces to be left.

Previously, I didn’t spend much time in the dormitory.

In the morning, I would attend common lectures, and in the afternoon, I would be beaten up while training for my major.

After that, I’d either continue training or be too busy reviewing and preparing in the library.

Time would fly by, whether I liked it or not.

Even if I returned to the dormitory, it would be late at night, and I’d collapse immediately. Most of the time, I spent the early hours sitting in the library.

Hence, I hardly had any memory of using the dormitory facilities.

When I first arrived, I had carefully inspected everything, thinking I would live here for a few years, but looking at the situation, it seemed I wouldn’t use it much in the remaining time either.

[Sigh]

[Disappointed]

[Hungry]

[Don’t want to eat]

[Lonely]

‘Ai…’

[Dammit]

When my mind wandered for a moment, the necklace acted up again. Silencing the chattering necklace, I plopped onto the sofa.

The plush feeling that hugged my hips was still the same.

‘Hmm…’

Quite some time had passed. Most of the things I resolved and planned to do upon entering the dormitory were accomplished.

I had smoothly navigated minor schedules, including dungeon practice.

I had studied diligently. Although the material I missed while stuck in the healing room had piled up like mountains, I would have to tackle that while suffering…

I had trained well too. It might be self-praise, but I thought I had reached a mid-level position among the first years.

The exact result would be determined during the midterm evaluation.

I had obtained a lot of what I aimed for.

I achieved growth in the Tower of Growth.

I also obtained the most crucial artifact, the Egg of Origin. And I acquired the Wing Feathers of the Heavens, an artifact that would carry me through the mid-game.

‘When will that wake up, I wonder.’

The Egg of Origin was nestled comfortably on one side of the sofa. Due to its size, it occupied quite a bit of space.

The Egg of Origin was a hidden piece with a lot of random elements, but it was undoubtedly a generous item.

Throughout its history, all the Eggs of Origin had yielded useful results.

Especially rare and valuable items that were hard to obtain even in the later rounds.

‘Especially the 11th round’

11th round [Diamond Warrior]

Undoubtedly the most powerful round in terms of sheer combat prowess.

Invading and half-destroying Shio-ram, breaching the defenses of the Floating Island, which housed the Tower of Knowledge.

Raiding the three major families and other factions, and devastating the association’s headquarters. Such was the 11th round.

It was also the round where a direct fight with the Tower Masters was possible.

I was lucky. Everything in the early stages went smoothly, allowing for maximum growth.

I made the right choices. I discarded benevolence and focused on elevating my combat prowess at the expense of sacrifice.

One of the smooth gears was the Egg of Origin.

In the 11th round, the Egg of Origin yielded the “Elixir of Growth.”

Its effect was simple.

Expansion of stat potential and acceleration of growth speed.

Simple, but it was the best result at the time.

For the Diamond Warrior, who had chosen the path of extreme martial prowess, especially in the 11th round, there was nothing more suitable.

‘I hope I get something similar…’

I had high expectations. Without hiding such expectations, I gently stroked the Egg of Origin.

Elixir of Growth? It wouldn’t be bad even now, as I was exploring various fields with the aim to be a jack-of-all-trades.

It would also be great if I received a weapon or artifact that I could use until the end, like in the 8th round, or an artifact that added a unique ability, even if it was crude, like in the 3rd round.

Anything would be good. Considering the results from the original work, something helpful would surely appear.

‘Hmm…’

I had achieved what I planned. I got the Egg of Origin, and I navigated through other schedules.

…Although there were several stumbles and close calls while obtaining the Necklace of Confession, I hadn’t deviated too far yet.

I had completed the initial plans.

It was time to make new plans.

The goal remained similar to the beginning.

Lift the curses. The first priority was lifting the Curse of Short-lived Beauty, and if time allowed, lifting the Curse of Sensory Sealing. The Curse of Silence… probably couldn’t be lifted.

I also added the thought of saving others if I could during the process.

The goal had slightly expanded.

In the end, combat prowess was crucial. Hence, the core of the plan should focus on the growth of my combat ability.

I recalled the memory of the original work.

During the occasional moments of respite in the healing room, I roughly sketched out the plan.

‘Lake of Dreams.’

A hidden piece discovered in the 8th round… Though calling it a hidden piece was a bit odd. It was simply the location of a hidden dungeon.

However, the mere existence of that dungeon greatly boosted the player’s combat stats.

It was a lake, as the name suggested. A small dungeon containing a beautiful lake, like something out of a grandiose dream.

The unique aspect was that it was absurdly difficult to find, and the mana within boasted an incredible purity and density.

Just by sitting there and absorbing the mana, the magic stat would inflate significantly.

Thanks to this, from the 8th round onwards, I had enough mana to unleash non-stop attacks without worrying about running out.

There was also one more thing I was considering, but I was hesitant.

‘Artifact, Proof of Guardian.’

A hidden piece discovered in the 9th round, which was spiraling down a disastrous path, and it was a top-tier artifact approaching the highest grade.

The reason this came to mind first was that the Proof of Guardian artifact was a prosthetic arm.

Not just any prosthetic arm, but a top-tier artifact with an innate ability boasting incredible defensive performance.

…That’s what the status window told me. I had never used it personally.

Because the Proof of Guardian was a picky artifact that chose its owner.

During the 9th round, which was on the worst villainous path, I had only discovered it but hadn’t had proper contact with it.

Hence the hesitation. Even if I managed to acquire it with difficulty, could I use it? It was said to consider the user’s disposition, and I had a feeling I’d be rejected.

Also, if I found it after my arm was already restored, I would have to cut off my functional arm to use it.

A cowardly thought, but no sane person would consider cutting off their arm…

I had a few more candidates in mind, but I hadn’t fully planned them out yet.

[Sigh]

A sigh escaped me. The necklace, which seemed to occasionally read my thoughts and make a remark, was annoying.

I’d have to spend some time mastering its control.

Bypassing the Curse of Silence was good, but having my inner thoughts exposed was like another curse of its own.

– Ding!

The alarm sound rang at that moment.

I squinted my eyes.

Wondering if it was some phantom alarm, I checked the hologram projector.

Fortunately? Unfortunately? It was a normal email alarm. A highlighted chat room amidst the flood of messages.

[Class 121 Ipchun Chatroom (103)]

▶Liana Velus: [Notice!] Next week’s common lecture will be 『Understanding Spirits』! No materials are needed! Please gather at the Second Nature Park on time! (๑˃̵ᴗ˂̵)و (Today at 15:03)

The message was sent by Professor Liana.

I heard she visited a few times while I was unconscious, but I hadn’t met her since waking up.

I thought about visiting her today, but didn’t want to bother her on the weekend.

Moreover, the message indicated I would be seeing her throughout next week.

Next week’s common lectures were fully scheduled with Professor Liana’s lectures.

* * *

[Player Adjustment System: Affection Level]
Lee Hayul → Liana Velus
●●●●●●○○○○(65/100)
[Affection] [Gratitude] [Kind Adult]

[You did not meet the conditions to lift the “Curse of Silence”]
[You did not meet the conditions to lift the “Curse of Loneliness”]

End of Chapter