The silver badge felt cold in my palm, even after I slipped it into my pocket. I walked down the long corridor toward the dormitory with unsteady steps, my body still trembling from the aftereffects of Edith's 'Void Emotion' protocol.
"Edith..."
[ EDITH IS HERE, HOST. ]
"About those three students earlier... can you analyze them?"
A blue screen appeared before me, displaying data that was beginning to compile.
[ PROCESSING DATA FROM VISUAL OBSERVATION... ] ---> [ 100% ]
____________________________________________________________
[ UNIT 1: WHITE-HAIRED MALE ]
[ NAME: UNKNOWN ]
[ THREAT: HIGH ]
[ NOTE: BANDAGES ON EYES ARE NOT FOR WOUNDS. SYSTEM DETECTS ABNORMAL MANA FLOW IN EYE AREA. LIKELY SPECIAL VISION ABILITY OR SEALED CURSE. ]
________________________________________________________________
[ UNIT 2: SMALL GIRL WITH DOLL ]
[ NAME: UNKNOWN ][ THREAT: VERY HIGH ]
[ NOTE: DOLL EMITS AURA OF DEATH. MOST LIKELY A NECROMANCER OR SPIRIT MANIPULATOR. BLOOD STAINS ON DOLL ARE STILL FRESH. ]
________________________________________________________________
[ UNIT 3: LARGE MAN WITH SCARS ]
[ NAME: UNKNOWN ]
[ THREAT: MEDIUM-HIGH ]
[ NOTE: SCARS SHOW PATTERN OF FORCED BODY MODIFICATION. LIKELY BERSERKER OR EXPERIMENT SUBJECT. ]
________________________________________________________________
"Is that all you could get?"
[ MY APOLOGIES, HOST. ]
[OBSERVATION TIME WAS TOO SHORT. I REQUIRE LONGER CONTACT FOR IN-DEPTH ANALYSIS. ]
"It's fine. At least I know they're all dangerous..."
I arrived at my room door and went straight inside. The small room felt like heaven after the tense meeting with Vespera. I tossed my bag onto the bed and sat at the study desk.
"Expedition to the Grey Shadow Forest, huh..."
That name sounded familiar.
Very familiar. I tried to recall the novel I had written, searching for information about that location.
'Grey Shadow Forest... Grey Shadow Forest...'
[ HOST, ARE YOU SEARCHING FOR INFORMATION ABOUT THAT LOCATION? ]
"Yes, but I can't remember it clearly. I wrote too many locations in Terra Sol Luna."
[ SUGGESTION: VISIT THE ACADEMY LIBRARY. ]
[ WITH YOUR SPECIAL BADGE, ACCESS TO THE FORBIDDEN SECTION IS NOW OPEN. ]
Edith was right. Rather than forcing my poor memory, it would be better to search for information directly.
"Alright, tomorrow I'll go to the library."
That night, I could barely sleep. Every time I closed my eyes, I saw Vespera's golden gaze seeming to pierce through my soul.
Morning came too quickly. I woke with a throbbing head and a body still aching. After taking my medicine and getting ready, I headed straight to the academy library.
The Ardenfield Library was a magnificent building with five floors. Most students were only allowed access to floors one through three. Floors four and five were forbidden areas that required special permission.
I stood before the stairs leading to the fourth floor, where a very old-looking library guard was sitting.
"Let me pass" I said while showing the silver badge.
The guard's eyes widened at the sight of the badge.
"Special Program... please proceed, young master. But remember, do not damage anything inside."
"Thank you."
I climbed the stairs with a pounding heart. The fourth floor was much quieter than the lower floors. The bookshelves here were made of black wood that emanated an eerie aura. The neatly arranged books emitted a dim glow, as if alive.
[ WARNING: SOME BOOKS HAVE DANGEROUS MAGIC SEALS. DO NOT TOUCH CARELESSLY. ]
"No problem, Edith..."
I walked through narrow corridors between the bookshelves, searching for the section containing geographical information. My eyes swept over strange book titles
"Ancient Blood Rituals, High-Level Curse Spells, Demonic Anatomy"...
'Why don't I remember writing books like these?'
[ HOST, YOUR MEMORY OF THE NOVEL'S DETAILS MAY NOT BE PERFECT. OR... ]
"Or what?"
[ OR THIS WORLD HAS EVOLVED BEYOND WHAT YOU WROTE. ]
A frightening possibility. If this world had already evolved on its own, it meant my knowledge as the author was no longer absolute.
Finally, I found the section I was looking for.
"Atlas and Encyclopedia of Dangerous Territories." I pulled out a thick book titled
"Cursed Forests of the Central Continent" and opened it.
Page after page I turned until I found the entry about the Grey Shadow Forest
"Grey Shadow Forest...S Class.....Territory Location are around 300 km northeast of Sol Kingdom Capital....Danger Level...Extreme??"
What am I supposed to do with the extreme level of danger?
"Dominant Monsters...Grey Wolf (C-Rank), Forest Wraith (B-Rank), and reported presence of Ancient Treant (A-Rank).....Special Notes? Let me read this...uh...This forest is known for thick fog that causes disorientation. Many experienced adventurers never returned. Last investigation showed dark magic activity in the forest depths.....really?"
My hands trembled reading that description.
"They want to send first-year students to a place like this?!"
[ ANALYSIS: THIS IS NOT AN ORDINARY EDUCATIONAL EXPEDITION. ]
[ POSSIBILITIES:
(1) EXTREME ABILITY TEST,
(2) SECRET MISSION WITH STUDENTS AS CAMOUFLAGE,
(3) PLANNED ELIMINATION OF PROBLEMATIC STUDENTS. ]
The third option made my blood run cold.
"Do you think Vespera is trying to kill us?"
[ INSUFFICIENT DATA FOR THAT CONCLUSION. ]
[ HOWEVER, YOUR SURVIVAL PROBABILITY REMAINS 24.7%. ]
"Still that much, huh..." I let out a long sigh.
Suddenly, the sound of small footsteps echoed from the end of the corridor. I turned and saw the figure of the small girl carrying the blood-stained doll, one of the Special Program members.
She stood at the end of the corridor, staring at me with pitch-black eyes that held no light. Her doll swayed slowly in her hand, as if moving on its own.
"You..." her voice was soft, almost like a whisper.
"You're not the real Edward, are you?"
My heart stopped for a second.
[ WARNING: UNIT HAS DETECTED ANOMALY IN HOST! ]
[ HIGH-LEVEL THREAT! ]
[ ADVICE: RUN OR ENGAGE WITH DEFENSE PROTOCOL! ]
I swallowed hard, trying to stay calm. "What do you mean?"
The girl stepped closer, her doll begin to emanate a black aura that made the air around me feel heavy.
"The real Edward... he had the smell of death. The smell of someone who had given up on fate. But you..." she inhaled the air dramatically.
"you smell like a stranger. Like someone who shouldn't be here....an intruder..."
My brain worked quickly. I couldn't admit it, but I also couldn't deny it too strongly.
"People change" I answered flatly.
"Maybe the old Edward is dead, and what remains is a different version."
The girl smiled.
"Interesting. Very interesting. My doll likes you."
The doll in her hand suddenly turned its head 180 degrees, staring at me with cracked glass eyes.
[ THAT DOLL IS ALIVE! ]
[ DETECTING SOUL BOUND TO OBJECT! ]
"My name is Morrigan," the girl said.
"And this is Lisette, my only friend. We're both glad to have a new friend in the Special Program."
"Edward," I replied briefly.
"Pleased to meet you."
"Oh, I know who you are. Everyone knows about the Class-D cadet who defeated an instructor. But what they don't know is..." she drew closer,
"how you did it."
The distance between us was now only one meter. I could see the details of Lisette the doll more clearly, rough stitches all over her body, blood stains still wet, and most horrifying, the doll's facial expression that seemed to scream in agony.
"I was just lucky" I answered.
"Liar~" Morrigan's tone turned sing-song.
"Lisette can sense lies. She says there's something inside you. Something that isn't yours."
[ DANGEROUS SITUATION DEECTED!
[ HOST! YOU SHOULD LEAVE THE AREA IMMEDIATELY. ]
"Listen, Morrigan, I don't know what you-"
"BE QUIET!"
That voice didn't come from Morrigan, but from the doll Lisette. A deep voice, echoing, full of pent-up rage.
Morrigan laughed.
"Ah, sorry. Lisette is sensitive today. She just 'ate' last night."
I didn't want to know what she meant by 'ate'.
"Anyway," Morrigan spun around, preparing to leave
"we'll meet again at the team meeting tomorrow. Don't die before the expedition starts, okay~ It would be so boring if Lisette couldn't 'play' with you."
She walked away, leaving me still standing stiffly in place.
[ UNIT 'MORRIGAN' HAS LEFT THE AREA. ]
[ HOST, YOUR HEART RATE HAS INCREASED BY 140%. PLEASE CALM YOURSELF. ]
"How can I calm down after meeting... that?!"
I leaned my back against the bookshelf, breathing heavily. My trembling hand clutched my chest that felt ready to explode.
'She knows. She knows I'm not the real Edward.'
[ ANALYSIS: UNIT 'MORRIGAN' LIKELY POSSESSES SOUL OR AURA DETECTION ABILITY. ]
[ ADVICE: AVOID DIRECT CONTACT IF POSSIBLE. ]
"Very helpful advice, Edith," I said sarcastically.
I took a deep breath, trying to calm myself. There was still the book about the Grey Shadow Forest I needed to read. I couldn't waste time just because of fear.
The next hour I spent noting all important information about the forest, monster movement patterns, dangerous areas, and most importantly, notes about the "dark magic activity" mentioned in the book.
When I finished and prepared to go down, a woman with long black hair blocked my path on the stairs.
"Cadet Edward, correct?"
I recognized her, Mia, Carmilla's secretary, the student council president.
"Yes, how may I help you?"
"The Student Council President wishes to meet with you. Now."
[ DETECTION: THIS UNIT DOES NOT EMIT MALICIOUS INTENT. ]
[ HOWEVER, THIS MEETING IS LIKELY AN INTERROGATION. ]
I let out a deep sigh. It seemed today wouldn't go smoothly.
"Alright, lead the way."
As we walked down the corridor toward the Student Council room, Edith displayed a new message
[ NEW MISSION DETECTED: 'FACING THE STUDENT COUNCIL' ]
[ ADVICE: DO NOT REVEAL TOO MUCH. CARMILLA THORNE IS KNOWN AS A SKILLED INVESTIGATOR. ]
'I know, Edith. I created her character, remember?'
[ CORRECTION: YOU CREATED HER BASIC FRAMEWORK. REALITY MAY DIFFERERENT. ]
The large door marked "Student Council Room" opened before me. Inside, sat a woman with jet-black hair and glowing red eyes, Carmilla Thorne, a true predator wrapped in a cloak of elegance.
"Please come in, Cadet Edward," her voice was soft yet carried a hidden threat. "We have much to discuss."