I gaped at the status screen for a long time, surprised at the remark more than anything else.
Lowering my head in shame, I exhaled in disappointment.
"There is really no hope for me, I guess."
The system responded to my depressing words like it was trying to encourage or comfort me. I couldn't distinguish which one it was.
[ All hope is not lost. You can start your journey from scratch and on a different scale just by upgrading. Remember to do better ]
Do better?
Aside from the shameful remark of a simp that I received, the other thing that made me so furious was the comment 'Do better'.
I don't even know what that meant.
What did I do?
What did I do wrongly?
What am I supposed to do better?
I hissed and laid back on my head, looking up at the ceiling of my room with my thoughts wandering out of my body.
After a while, I sat up again and looked at the status screen.
"I have nothing to lose," I said, making up my mind to take it to the next level.
"Here goes nothing."
Tapping the screen, the red beaming rectangle and the word 'FAILED' disappeared and the status screen returned to its original blue colour with three revolving circles appearing.
[ You have chosen to upgrade. Please wait a moment... ]
I waited and watched the number inside the circle gradually reach 100% before the next pop-up appeared.
[ Currently assigning grades to you based on collected data. Please wait a moment... ]
[ Would you like to see your assigned grades going forward? ]
[ Yes ] / [ No ]
"Yes. That's what I'm here for. Moreover, nothing would beat you calling me a simp."
[ The truth hurts, master ]
[ 0%... 20%... 40%... 60%... 80%... 100% ]
[ Click to view details ]
I tapped the screen once more and another dropdown list appeared but it was different from the others.
This one looked like it was describing me based on a criteria.
>>>
[ Your Profile ]
Name: Dickens Nuttinson
Age:
— Chronological age: Unknown [10,000+]
— Biological age: 19
Sex: Male
Race: Human
Occupation: Scholar
-------------------
Rank: Simp
Level: F- [★★☆☆☆]
Your Stats:
— Charisma: F- [★★☆☆☆]
— Confidence: F- [★★☆☆☆]
— Communication Proficiency: F- [★☆☆☆☆]
— Fitness: F- [★★☆☆☆]
— Personality: F- [★★☆☆☆]
— Physique: F- [★☆☆☆☆]
Overall Sex Appeal: F- [★★☆☆☆]
>>>
I lowered my head and rubbed my forehead. Truthfully, it was exhausting and heartbreaking to look at this assessment.
[ To begin your journey. Click 'Start' ]
Without any hesitation, I did as the prompt stated.
[ You have taken a great step. Congratulations! ]
[ You have started a new journey to Pimpship ]
"Thinking about it now, I'd like to change your name," I said.
[ What would you have me answer, master? ]
I thought about it for a moment and a name I kind of liked how it sounded came up.
I snapped my fingers at the status screen.
"How about Nova?"
[ Nova, it is ]
[ Integrating assigned name — Nova ]
[ Integration Complete ]
"Alright, Nova. What have you got for me in this 'new journey'?"
[ You have completed all assigned quests. We will have to continue from tomorrow, master ]
"That's alright. It's already late too—"
My stomach grumbled loudly and cut me short.
"Ah, I haven't eaten too."
...
...
...
Days passed since the night that I upgraded.
Five days later.
It was a Saturday, the day that we set apart for our picnic at the Sunsun Beach, somewhere on the outskirts of the Silver City, towards the Aquaheim Sea.
So far, I hadn't gotten any quests from Nova. Perhaps, Nova was giving me time to rest and prepare myself for this new journey.
I couldn't say for sure but I enjoyed every minute of my free time.
As agreed, Albert Lorten and Teresa Bokkins managed to get teacher's permits for everyone.
With the white cards, we wouldn't have any issues with the guards at the gate unless we exceeded our seven-hour time limit.
Miss Dorian was quite generous with the time limit, maybe because it was on a weekend and she wanted us to have fun.
If that was the case, then Miss Double D was a cool teacher, unlike Mr. Always Grumpy Rogers during of probationary first year.
Our meeting spot was at the fountain, right at the centre of the academy. That was where the bus was going to come and pick us all up.
As expected, we spent almost an hour out of the seven Miss Double D gave us, waiting for everyone to arrive.
[ Your date, Jasmine Barley, is approaching ]
My heart skipped a beat and I leaned on the bus, not because Jasmine was coming. It was just that I didn't expect Nova to suddenly pop up at that moment.
[ I will advise that you keep calm and stay confident ]
I took deep breaths to calm my nerves, then turned to the approaching Jasmine while leaning on the bus.
"Hey, Jas," I said, smiling at her.
"Tch," she smacked her lips. "I was waiting for you!"
"Sorry about that. I didn't know you expected me to come and get you."
She raised her eyebrows and stared at me with disbelief for a moment.
"Do I have to spell it out?"
I could sense that she was vexed and I don't think I was the reason for that anger. I glanced at her from head to toe, looking for how to remedy my situation.
She looked nice, dressed in her floral pattern monokini that she covered with an oversized sky orange shirt with a hat on her head.
I extended my hands to her and glanced at the clutch bag she had in her hand.
"Here, gimme the bag," I said.
She scoffed and turned away.
"Come on, Jas. Give it to me."
With her face still turned away from me, she reluctantly handed me the bag.
[ You should throw in a few compliments for better dialogue proficiency ]
Before I could say anything else, Jasmine had already entered the bus and I followed behind her, cursing at Nova for the late suggestion.
We were given tickets to the last two seats at the back and it was good because the seats were close to the biggest windows in the bus.
We sat down and waited for a couple of minutes before the driver ignited the bus and veered around the fountain, heading towards the academy's gates.
Meanwhile, I stared at Jasmine and while I was looking, she caught me.
[ Maintain eye contact and smile ]
I was startled, about to move my eyes away but no, this was not the moment to flinch.
I kept my gaze and glanced at her dress.
"You look really nice in that flower dress."
"Alright, fasten your seat belt. We head for Sunsun Beach," Albert announced.