Irvine shuts silent, realizing there's some wisdom in Atniel's words. After all the bizarre experiences he's had since meeting Atniel, he decides it's time to trust him a bit more—because why not? What's life without a little self-inflicted pain, right?
Like a madman who's tired of living, he slices his palm again, waits for it to heal, and then cuts it again. He tortures himself over and over, enduring all the pain like a masochist at a particularly brutal spa day.
After 69 attempts… (Yeah, it is such a beautiful number, isn't it?)
"No way! Is that it?"
<< So you can see it now? >>
"Urgh! I can't take it anymore!"
Finally, he sees the flow of a soft white energy surrounding his wound. This isn't the blue mana he usually sees from others. Yes, this is something special only worthy for a main character in a fantasy story.
<< Besides the normal type of mana, you have a unique one, very pure and much more stable than most people. This unique mana gives you a regenerative healing factor much higher than normal humans. >>
"So I have two types of mana? Since when? I've been hurt so many times in my life, and now I find out I'm some kind of mana hybrid?"
But he's too exhausted to celebrate and collapses like a deflated balloon.
Atniel doesn't answer right away, still hesitant to spill the beans. And as Irvine drifts into confusion and dreams of cutting himself repeatedly, he finally falls asleep on the floor, snoring like a chainsaw.
<< At least you can feel and see my divine energy. The hard part has only begun now. >>
While Irvine snoozes away, the black tendrils binding Atniel suddenly loosen. Only then can he take control of Irvine's body. But today, he has other plans involving Irvine's memory.
<< Please, don't blame me later. I really have no other option but to use you to complete my mission. >>
As Irvine slips into REM sleep, Atniel notices a new building forming in Irvine's mind, rising to the height of the other buildings.
"Is it fragmenting his memory right now?" he muses.
He enters the building and opens the first door he finds. Inside, he sees a new nebula of memories taking shape. It's much smaller than what he's seen before because Irvine has only been awake for about five hours before crashing.
"Let's tweak your memory a bit, shall we?"
He wipes some parts of the memory clean, leaving only the bits where Irvine took the test from Elea Adlen and the part where he cut his palm earlier.
By doing so, he eliminates distractions from Irvine's training. He even copies those two memories and duplicates them, making the nebula bigger, as if Irvine had spent the entire day doing the same things over and over—talk about a serious case of déjà vu!
Not satisfied with that, he opens the other rooms on the same floor, which are still empty. There are more than 50 rooms, and Atniel fills all of them with the same nebula of memories, making it seem as if Irvine had been training and testing himself for over 50 days.
"Let's hope you don't go crazy with all this," he chuckles to himself.
Exiting the building, he sits cross-legged in the middle of the road, closing his eyes, ready to dive into the dreams Irvine is currently experiencing.
As expected, his little memory manipulation has thrown Irvine into a confusing vision. All the training loops in Irvine's dreams come out as strange nightmares where demons attack him with fireballs and ice spears.
In one particularly bizarre dream, a demon keeps cutting his hand over and over, creating flashbacks that overlap like a bad movie montage—chaotic and confusing.
Outside, Irvine mumbles deliriously, begging for help. His face is drenched in cold sweat, contorted in fear like he just saw a spider the size of a dog.
"Please!"
"I can't take it anymore!"
"Someone! Help me!"
This goes on for hours. Until finally…
"Leave me alone!!!"
He wakes up with a powerful shout, strong enough to turn his entire room into a disaster zone—think hurricane meets toddler tantrum.
Instead of feeling refreshed after seven hours of sleep, he looks like he's just run a marathon, breathing heavily as if he's been struggling for weeks.
"How long have I been asleep?"
Glancing at the clock on the wall, he realizes it's already past seven in the evening. He checks his phone, only to discover it's still the same day. Of course, this confuses him because his previous dream felt like a lifetime of torment.
He even doubts whether he's really awake or still dreaming. But before he can spiral further into existential dread, someone bangs on the door, jolting him back to reality.
"Hey, dude! Are you okay in there? Did something happen?"
"Uh? I'm okay! I just woke up from a nightmare!"
"Heh! What kind of nightmare made you scream that loud? Are you sure you're okay? Should I call the dormitory manager?"
Not wanting to cause a scene, Irvine rushes to open the door. It's Jayden Osborn, a Seed C student with a dark athletic physique and a smile that could light up a room.
"It's just you!" Irvine sighs, rolling his eyes.
"Yeah, it's only me, your humble brother from next door," Jayden replies, pushing his way in with curiosity. "So, what are you hiding? No need to keep secrets from me! It's not like I have any interest in other people's business… or do I?"
"Then why the hell are you barging into my room without my permission?"
Jay doesn't immediately respond, instead glancing around Irvine's room, which looks like a tornado hit a frat party.
"You sure there's nothing wrong here? With a mess like this?"
"Well, Elea Adlen stormed into my room this morning and beat the crap out of me."
Jay squints at him, suspicion written all over his face. "Elea Adlen? Pft! Give me a break! What business do you have with someone like her? Wait! I did see her this morning coming to this building. Don't tell me you…."
"What?"
"Since when have you two been dating?"
"No, I…"
"Come to think of it! Despite how hot she is, no one has the guts to approach her. Dude! I didn't know you were this bold! Look at you! A skinny guy like you could—hold on! You look so pale! Have you eaten anything? That's right! I didn't see you at the canteen before."
"Ah, yeah! I've been sleeping the whole day."
"Maaan! If you really want to help your family, you can't miss your free meal. Now why don't you come with me? I really can't sleep without having some snacks. Let's go! I'll treat you to your fill. If we get lucky, we might even run into your crush there."
"What are you talking about?"