"I'm the culprit…"
I looked down at the now-empty glass case, having absorbed the memories from the essence.
In just five days, my body had transformed remarkably.
First, I gained weight and built muscle. With these two changes alone, my once lanky frame now exuded a threatening aura.
Next, breathing became easier. I no longer coughed or wheezed, feeling the tightness in my chest.
Unfortunately, the lethargy remained.
I wore the same ridiculous glasses, now on a handsome face with a chiseled jawline, reflected in the glass case.
Somehow, the glasses now suited me, a far cry from when I first put them on.
'This is the epitome of unfairness.'
Over the past five days, as I absorbed the memories, I learned that this body was the result of extreme favoritism and bias.
"Hoo."
I closed the glass case and walked over to the desk, sitting down in the chair.
The furniture showed signs of age but was immaculately clean, as if untouched by dust. I leaned back in the chair and recalled the memories from the essence.
[I don't understand.]
[Are we really breaking the taboo to gain a moment's time, brother?]
[Fine. If that's your choice… I still don't understand you, but as your brother, I respect your decision.]
[However, let me make one thing clear.]
[In this fleeting moment, no matter how this disgusting world may change, my will shall remain unchanged.]
[When I open my eyes again.]
[Everything shall return to nothingness.]
A conversation with the man called 'brother'.
And this 'brother' was the final boss in every ending.
'Emptiness', the ultimate antagonist.
And I was his brother, 'Greed', a hidden piece that never appeared in the game. That was me.
'Some memories have been partially erased.'
Emptiness had asked me a question, and I had answered. But the memory essence did not contain my response. The original owner had intentionally removed it.
"It's not that important."
I might gain something from the past, but I vaguely understood why the original owner had erased part of his memory.
'Embarrassed, huh?'
On the first day I consumed the essence, I learned what it meant for my personality to become blurred.
With each memory I absorbed, the original owner's personality would overlay my own.
Sometimes, people make the news for confusing games with reality and causing trouble. It felt similar to that.
As I acquired the original owner's memories and his personality overlaid mine, I naturally learned how to act in certain situations.
That's why I believed the reason for the erased conversation was not some grand secret but simply because the original owner was embarrassed to have it known.
"The truly important part is elsewhere."
I didn't care at all about what he had said in the conversation. To be honest, I wasn't the least bit curious about his response.
What truly mattered were the information and knowledge I gained from the original owner's memories. And it was the gaps in those memories that now irritated me.
Emptiness and Greed.
Who created them, and for what purpose?
This section was not in the memories, as if cut out with a knife.
But that wasn't all.
How did the creator, in my original world, create and distribute the game 'Academy Happy Growth Diary'? And what information and knowledge led to the creation of the countless endings and routes?
All of that was also neatly wiped from my mind.
"It's annoying, but…"
There was no way to find out for now, so dwelling on it would be a waste of time.
For now, I was satisfied with the experience I had gained without investing effort or time, freely controlling this body. Based on the acquired memories, I briefly summarized the situation.
One. Emptiness and Greed are brothers.
Two. Greed devoured Emptiness.
Three. Due to a restriction on the soul, Greed's soul began to collapse, leading to a slow death.
Four. When Greed dies, Emptiness, who has been dormant within Greed's body, will awaken again.
In the 999 endings I witnessed, I struggled to understand how Emptiness appeared, but in the end, I couldn't figure it out. Perhaps it was because the game itself didn't have much freedom, despite offering many choices.
And now I knew how Emptiness would appear.
Through my death.
Emptiness was dormant within my body, along with his authority.
I looked at my hands, now with added flesh and muscle.
As I mentioned earlier, when the soul collapses, the physical body also dies. But over the past five days, my body had transformed remarkably and continued to get healthier.
The reason was simple.
The collapse of my soul had stopped.
The original owner's soul, Greed, had been replaced by my own. I don't know what happened to the original owner's soul, as that information wasn't included in the essences.
Anyway, as long as I'm not killed by someone, Emptiness won't awaken, and that fact alone gave me a great sense of relief.
In the game, Emptiness awakens without fail on the same day, at the same time, every time.
Literally, the time limit had disappeared.
'But that doesn't mean I can afford to be complacent…'
It will take a considerable amount of time for my body to reach its peak condition. Of course, even in its current state, there's no problem with functioning. My ability to manipulate magic is also sufficient, at least against ordinary Awakened individuals.
In the 999 endings I witnessed, the girl called the Wolf always met her demise.
This was because she awakened the power of 'Godslayer'.
The fangs that could kill gods.
That was why she was called the Wolf.
With this power, she was destined to have her life threatened by the gods, even if Emptiness didn't appear.
To protect her from the gods, I would need to use my authority as well.
I possess two authorities.
Greed, which takes everything away.
And Emptiness, which returns everything to nothingness.
Even the gods cannot escape these two authorities. The problem is that my soul's rank is not qualified to use them.
But that doesn't mean I can't use them at all.
Emptiness is dormant within my body.
In other words, if I borrow Emptiness's rank, I could manifest the authorities right now.
It would probably be fine once or twice. But if I overuse them, Emptiness will awaken within me, even if I don't die.
'I have a plan.'
The best-case scenario would be for the gods to never notice the girl's existence. But that seems unlikely.
I opened the drawer.
Inside was a ring and a modern smartphone. I learned about these items from the memories in the first essence.
I tapped the smartphone's screen lightly.
The dark screen lit up, displaying the date, time, and year.
2022, February 3rd.
The girl will enroll in Arena Academy in the year 2030.
She should be 12 years old now.
In the 999 endings, the girl's settings never changed, so she must be 12.
Not much is known about the girl's past. She was abandoned at birth and raised in a state-run orphanage.
As is often the case, when out of sight, corruption sets in.
Every year, dozens of children go missing from the various orphanages run by the state. The reason is simple.
The caretakers, for money, select children who show signs of becoming Awakened and put them up for auction in the underground market.
These children are then purchased by small guilds or individuals specializing in alchemy or magic.
If bought by a small guild, the caretakers will prepare the necessary paperwork to ensure there are no legal issues.
On the other hand, if sold to alchemists or mages, their fate is grim, as they are unregistered and can be used for any purpose without consequence.
The girl also goes through this route, ending up in a small guild, where she awakens the power of Godslayer.
'And then she's transferred to the Temple of Benevolence and monitored under the pretext of being a reserve captain of the holy knights…'
Unfortunately, there's no information about the small guild. However, I know that she was transferred to the Temple of Benevolence exactly one year before enrolling in the Academy.
Whether she's still in the orphanage or has already been sold to the small guild is unknown. What's certain is that either way, she's far from freedom and happiness.
I pocketed the smartphone and picked up the ring from the drawer.
It's not a ring with a special gemstone.
It's a black ring with something that sparkles like stars intricately engraved on it.
I slipped the ring, which seemed to contain the universe, onto my left ring finger. The ring fit snugly, as if custom-made for my finger.
[A middle-aged man with a pleasant face approaches with a warm smile. But none of the students pay attention to his smile. Their gazes are fixed on the thick finger on which a ring shines like a burning sun. The ring of the sun, a symbol of the chairman of Arena Academy.]
I looked at the ring on my finger again.
A black ring with something that sparkles like stars intricately engraved on it.
"At least I won't have to worry about money."
I closed the drawer and stood up.
I left the study, not through the door leading to the bedroom, but through another door that opened into a hallway.
'My death became the cornerstone of your destruction.'
I put on the black coat hanging by the front door.
"This time will be different."
I stepped out, determined to create a better life.
To find the girl, somewhere out there, and to meet someone with the ability to help me, someone who could give her a chance at a slightly better life.