Under everyone's watchful eyes, Virt took a deep breath and walked out from his seat.
In the time since he had joined the cult, his stress had found an outlet, and his mindset had recovered somewhat.
Furthermore, the cult's members were mostly older male and female students—and although they had their own psychological issues, each one was better than the last when it came to teaching others.
Under their mental guidance, Virt gradually became aware of his own problems.
→ He seriously lacked initiative!
Being too passive was the main reason for his lack of success last semester.
At the beginning of the school year, he had passively accepted the conveniences that came with his identity.
When he was adulated by the entire student body as the son of the hero, although he didn't show it on the surface, his ego had already been inflated.
Afterward, he didn't take the initiative to maintain this advantage, nor did he try to make himself more worthy of that identity.
Instead, along with Robert, he became less and less like a good student.
Midway through, he did reflect a little, but he mistakenly blamed his failures on Robert's influence!
While there certainly was an influence—after all, a person's environment does change them.
But the primary reason was his own lack of initiative!
He didn't reflect more on himself, instead subconsciously shifting the blame, as if he would have become serious and diligent if Robert hadn't existed.
In reality, that wasn't the case.
When it came down to it, all of this was caused by his own personality.
Since birth, he had never truly taken the initiative to strive for anything.
He had always just been going with the flow.
Even when he had briefly set Dark as his goal, thinking about catching up to him and surpassing him, he never actually put in enough effort to do so.
If there was any real initiative he had ever taken, it was probably only the adventure to find the treasure.
And now, it was time for a change!
A new semester, a new atmosphere—this was the perfect opportunity!
He would take the initiative, seize the opportunity.
Whether it was for grades, victory, or the person he liked!
Change yourself, starting today.
...
Virt walked up to the lectern under the gaze of the crowd. Standing in Professor Nini's shadow, his small body was suddenly a little intimidated.
The feeling might not have been as clear from his seat, but once he was actually next to Professor Nini, he realized just how enormous she was!
And the "little jar" that looked like a toy in her hands was actually half as tall as a person!
As for that Soul-Sucker she was kneading at will...
Virt couldn't help but swallow, his throat bobbing slightly.
"Was it always this big?"
...
Professor Nini, however, looked at Virt with a delighted expression. Of course she recognized the son of the hero. Seeing that he seemed a little scared, she quickly said, "Don't be afraid, Soul-Suckers don't bite!"
Was I afraid of it biting me?
Virt's face darkened, but his nervousness unexpectedly subsided.
Upon smelling the scent of a human child, the Soul-Sucker brandished its claws and lunged.
The black holes on its face spun inward, appearing deeper and deeper, as if about to suck in everything before it.
But Professor Nini held its tail firmly, preventing it from touching Virt no matter how it struggled.
Virt was apprehensive, but since he was already on the stage, he naturally couldn't back down. He tilted his head back, closed his eyes, and gritted his teeth. "Bring it on!"
As the saying goes, life is like being targeted by an obsessive stalker girl; since you can't fight back, you have to learn to enjoy it.
As his eyelids closed and darkness filled his vision, his heart gradually calmed.
Standing on the stage, Virt suddenly remembered when he first arrived at the academy, standing on the auditorium stage in front of all the students, accepting their cheers.
That was probably the second happiest moment of his life!
The happiest moment, of course, was cracking the hero's secret treasure and obtaining the [Holy Sword Charm]... when was that again?
Virt's eyes snapped open.
But all he could see was a gray haze, with only the faint, blurry shadows of the Soul-Sucker and Professor Nini visible.
His entire face felt as if something had stuck to it and was pulling it outward.
It didn't hurt, but it was a bit suffocating.
"Is this what it feels like to be fed on by a Soul-Sucker?"
"Surprisingly, it's not that scary."
"And not that despairing either."
"Speaking of despair..."
Virt suddenly clutched his chest. His breathing grew more labored, and his chest felt as heavy as if it were plugged with lead.
Something was coming!
His intuition for danger kicked in again, and his hands subconsciously started to rise.
Suddenly, his vision cleared.
"Splat!"
The Soul-Sucker had been pulled away just in time!
Feeling the wind on his face, Virt realized his back was covered in a cold sweat.
...
The students below had a more direct view.
Just now, the ghost-like Soul-Sucker had pounced in front of Virt, the black hole of its mouth suddenly opening wide.
Then, a bubble-like gray substance was sucked out from Virt's face.
The sight of the Soul-Sucker biting down on the gray bubble and pulling with all its might was like seeing a soul being ripped from a person's mind, making one's hair stand on end.
During this process, black threads gradually seeped from the black holes of the Soul-Sucker's eyes, reaching like tentacles toward Virt's head.
And in that very instant.
Professor Nini suddenly grabbed the Soul-Sucker's head and squeezed, forcing its mouth open, then pulled it away.
The memory cluster, no longer under the Soul-Sucker's control, naturally returned to Virt's mind.
Only then did Virt regain his clarity.
The entire process seemed safe and uneventful, but that was because everything was under Professor Nini's control, and there was only one Soul-Sucker present.
In the dungeons, Soul-Suckers always travel in packs!
To effectively deal with Soul-Suckers, besides relying on companions, one must have a resilient mind capable of quickly snapping out of the daze that occurs when happy memories are sucked away.
And after having experienced having one's memories absorbed, it becomes easier to recover from that state of confusion.
Therefore, before entering the dungeons, undergoing this level of experiential training was necessary.
"How did it feel?"
Professor Nini's eyes widened as she looked at Virt, hoping this brave student would answer: It was no big deal!
That way, she could lure the students over one by one... wait, how could she call it luring?
It's a normal experience!
...
But at that moment, Virt was ice-cold. The suddenly returned memory made him realize what he had just lost.
He stood there stunned for a good while before finally speaking under Professor Nini's urgent gaze, "Not very... good."
As soon as he said this, Professor Nini's expression fell.
But Virt didn't notice. "When the Soul-Sucker feeds on you, the most beautiful things flow out of your mind without you even realizing it. You don't even notice you've lost them... but that's the most terrifying part... If the Soul-Sucker's feeding isn't interrupted, you might truly lose them forever..."
"Is it that scary?"
Professor Nini held the Soul-Sucker up to her face and shook it, not quite understanding.
But Virt had already collected himself. "So we must never underestimate Soul-Suckers. If we get the chance to enter the dungeons, we must be extremely careful!"
"Okay," Professor Nini pouted. "Plus five points for Virt Gold. Does anyone else want to come up and try? There are extra points!"
But the students below just looked at each other, and no one responded.
...
Virt walked down the aisle and returned to his seat.
Robert immediately asked, "Was it really that scary? That Soul-Sucker."
Virt was still shaken. "If you don't believe me, you can go try it yourself. With Professor Nini here, it's safe, at least."
Robert shook his head like a rattle-drum. "Of course I believe you!"
...
The words of the hero's son still held some credibility.
Professor Nini looked expectantly at the students, once again finding herself in a predicament.
At this point, any other professor would have just called on a student to come up and try it, or simply had them line up one by one!
But Professor Nini clearly didn't have that kind of nerve.
She could only turn for help to Emma and Dark, who had helped her several times before.
Emma sat in the front row, naturally becoming the best target for her plea.
But Emma was, after all, just a twelve-year-old girl. If it were anything else, it would be fine.
But the way this Soul-Sucker fed on memories was just too creepy!
What's wrong with a girl being afraid of the dark and ghosts?
Volunteer to experience it?
Impossible!
Emma shook her head even more vigorously than Robert.
The other girls weren't much better.
The moment Professor Nini's gaze swept over them, the girls all instinctively shrank back, terrified of being called upon.
The boys were naturally a bit better, but their instinct for self-preservation kept them from raising their hands.
In the end, who in their right mind would want to experience something like this?
Professor Nini should have just been firmer, put on her professor's air, and ordered them onto the stage in an unquestionable tone!
Slowly.
Professor Nini's gaze passed over the front rows and landed on Robert in the last row, but Robert, on whom she had placed her hopes, quickly lowered his head, pretending not to know anything.
Professor Nini puffed out her cheeks and looked toward her last lifeline.
Dark blinked.
The helpless Professor Nini looked like a small animal, reminding him of the Magic Guide Spirits and Cat-Hunting Grass in his dorm.
As for meeting Professor Nini's expectation...
It wasn't that he didn't dare to go up, but that he was afraid the Soul-Sucker wouldn't dare to suck!
"How about it, Diana, you go give it a try?"
"Eh?"
Diana shook her head violently. "That's super gross!"
So Dark reasoned with her, "You'll have to experience it eventually. Soul-Suckers move silently and are hard to avoid in the dungeons. But their bodies are fragile. As long as you've experienced the sensation beforehand, you won't be easily mesmerized and can snap out of it faster... hmm, and then splat it with one slap!"
Diana smacked her lips, still a bit reluctant.
But she was always very obedient. "Alright then."
And so, to Professor Nini's delight, she saw someone else raise their hand!
...
Diana walked to the stage and observed Professor Nini up close, noticing that the professor's thigh was thicker than her entire body.
But such a giant beast had a heart as timid and sensitive as a small animal's.
She had a natural affinity for beasts and could vaguely sense things others couldn't.
"Professor, you can start."
Diana didn't close her eyes like Virt; instead, she stared wide-eyed at the Soul-Sucker.
She wanted to watch this Soul-Sucker suck out her memories and get a good look at what color her memory bubble was.
"It should be pink, right? It can't be gray like Virt's, can it? That would be so ugly!"
Suddenly, her expression flickered as she saw the Soul-Sucker pounce toward her.
She wasn't scared, just disgusted.
The Soul-Sucker abruptly stopped in front of her, its black-hole-like eyes staring intently at her in a mutual staring contest.
Immediately after, Diana saw the Soul-Sucker open its mouth wide and inhale sharply.
Without her noticing, something was pulled from her face.
The substance condensed into a gray bubble, which was sucked into the Soul-Sucker's mouth, gradually stretching and deforming.
"It's still gray, huh,"
Diana said, a little disappointed.
The Soul-Sucker's expression suddenly froze. Then, as if it had been humiliated, it let out a sharp shriek.
The vortex in its eyes spun faster, the suction from its mouth erupted with force, and its whole head tilted back.
The gray memory bubble was instantly pulled larger and larger!
But Diana just watched the bubble curiously, feeling nothing at all.
As the one and only 'pearl in the palm' of the Greatbear family, she had grown up happily under the care of her family's elders since birth.
She had far, far too many happy memories in her head.
A single Soul-Sucker's capacity was nowhere near enough to absorb them all!
That tiny memory bubble was, to her, just a drop in the ocean!
"Aaaah!"
The Soul-Sucker, seemingly angered by the humiliation, sent the black threads seeping from its eyes lunging toward Diana's head.
These black threads would replace the empty memories and create despairing nightmares.
But Diana's eyes gleamed, and she suddenly hopped up and slapped it hard!
"Splat!"
An immense force instantly struck the Soul-Sucker's cheek, flattening its entire head into a pancake!
The memory bubble it had sucked into its mouth popped out and simply flowed back into Diana's mind.
Diana happily kneaded the Soul-Sucker's head and exclaimed, "It really is super weak!"
...
Virt: "..."
Robert: "..."
Emma: "..."
The boys: "..."
The girls: "..."
...
Poor Soul-Sucker.
Fallen into the paws of a bear.
Its suffering was unbearable.
...
"Dianna Greatbear, awesome, plus ten points!"
Professor Nini held the Soul-Sucker upside down again and happily awarded points to Diana.
Diana giggled. "I'm not that awesome."
Her performance finally lessened the students' fear of the Soul-Sucker.
Emma, who had refused once before, gritted her teeth. Thinking that if Diana could do it, there was no reason she couldn't, she braced herself and went up to the stage to try it.
Although her face was a little pale when she returned to her seat, she did a good job of recording her feelings about the experience.
Following her, more and more students mustered their courage and went up to the stage for the experience.
The Soul-Sucker repeatedly sucked its delicious meal into its mouth, only to be forced to spit it out again and again, yet it remained unyielding and pressed bravely onward.
Finally, with a "BOOM," it exploded with rage!
________________________________________
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