"Phew~" Tony Snow exhaled as the simulation ended. Things were finally looking up. In the last life, he was still a graduate student at twenty-seven. But now, at twenty-seven, he was leading research projects, supervising PhD candidates, and serving as a faculty member. Some of the graduate students under him were likely older than he was.
"But why did I die of illness again at twenty-seven? Was it the same illness? Is there something destined to happen at that age?" Tony pondered, eyes fixed on the final line: "You passed away due to illness at twenty-seven."
Should he choose to experience the life again to investigate what led to his death, or should he choose knowledge to continue expanding his future potential?
After lying in bed in deep thought, Tony made his decision. This time, he would choose Experience.
"I choose option two: Experience."
"At twenty-one, you found a mentor who encouraged you to begin your senior thesis early. You confessed to the girl you liked but were rejected. You changed your target graduate school…"
"At twenty-two, you started following world news more frequently. A major incident in Europa City sparked debate over crowd control. Scientists from the Free Research Federation won the Nova Prize in Medicine. Unity Alliance faced coordinated terror attacks. You earned your junior-year research scholarship…"
"At twenty-three, you passed the graduate entrance exam and were accepted into Zenith University's Bioengineering program, with a focus on Cell and Genetic Engineering. You confessed again and began a successful relationship. Major shifts happened in geopolitical landscapes, and elections in the Western States ushered in a controversial administration…"
Tony read through the lines, noting not only his life progression but also the surrounding historical context. When he reached twenty-seven, the final year, the cause of death was finally made clear—it was a viral infection—the same in all prior simulations.
"If I live just a little longer in the next simulation, and choose knowledge next time, I might be able to understand the pathology behind this virus," Tony speculated.
"Life Simulator: Conditions for the next simulation—one use requires completion of one of the following tasks. (Note: tasks do not stack for multiple uses.)"
Task One: Read Some Books
You've begun to understand the value of hard study. Read ten books diligently.
(0 / 10)
Task Two: Forbidden Romance
Your life has become far too routine. In a world full of possibilities, dare to break conventions. Begin a serious romantic relationship with one of your professors and have a child together. Only female professors eligible. No age restrictions.
Task Three: Shameless Mooch
A tree without bark will die, but a person without shame might thrive. Borrow at least 3000 credits from anyone you know—friends, relatives, teachers—and do not repay it within three months.
"Here we go again…" Tony muttered, reading through the tasks. The simulator had offered similar outlandish missions before, but this time they were downright unhinged.
Tasks Two and Three were completely out of the question.
For one, Tony had neither the charisma nor the courage to woo a professor. As for borrowing three grand and ghosting everyone? That was an ethical and logistical nightmare. His roommates would see right through any excuse.
"I choose Task One," Tony declared.
A panel popped up in his mind, clarifying that the ten books couldn't just be any books—they had to meet certain standards. Casual reading wouldn't cut it. The simulator had specific definitions for "diligent" reading, and only books that passed its review would count.
"Hey, Tony, where's your microbiology homework? Lend it to me," came Dylan Chase's voice from the lower bunk.
Tony froze. He'd completely forgotten about the assignment.
"Ah, thanks for the reminder—I haven't done it yet." Tony jumped out of bed and began digging through his notebook and textbook.
Seeing this, Dylan moved on to ask Miles Turner and Liam Shaw. Both had already finished.
"Don't bother writing it now—just copy mine. I've got it right here," Dylan offered, pulling his notebook from his backpack.
Tony ignored him. He opened his textbook, glanced at the first question, scribbled down the page number, and started writing. He didn't even copy the question stem.
"Hey, don't rush through it and get scolded. Just copy mine," Dylan insisted.
"I'm fine." Tony took Dylan's notebook, but only used it to see the questions more quickly—he still answered everything on his own.
Ten minutes later, the assignment was done. Tony climbed back into bed.
"Why so fast?" Dylan peered over at his paper and noticed it was shorter than Miles' version. He assumed Tony had cut corners but didn't press the issue.
Thursday's schedule was brutal.
Morning: Microbiology, then Electrical & Electronic Engineering.
Afternoon: Instrumental Analysis Lab.
Upcoming Weeks: Microbiology lab rotations.
After dragging himself through the day, Tony returned to the dorm and began digging through old coursebooks.
"Does College English 101 count?" he asked the life simulator.
Apparently not. Since he'd already studied it in the past and surpassed its level, it was disqualified.
He then tried two volumes of Advanced Calculus. This time, the simulator confirmed they did count—two books down, eight to go.
Tony kept pulling out textbooks from his freshman and sophomore years until he hit ten books that were approved by the simulator:
Advanced Calculus Vol. 1
Advanced Calculus Vol. 2
Inorganic & Analytical Chemistry
Ethics and Reasoning
Foundations of Physics
Organic Chemistry
Linear Algebra & Matrices
Introduction to Philosophy
Biochemistry Essentials
Thermodynamics & Physical Chemistry
Even though Tony had skipped many classes in his earlier years, he wasn't completely unfamiliar with the material. Combined with the experience and knowledge from previous simulated lives, these books were just challenging enough to be acceptable—but still within reach.
And so, Tony's next mission had begun.