The warm sunlight welcod Violet No. 212 as she arrived in the southern district on a high-speed train.
Savoring the sunlight, Violet No. 212 pulled a hot dog from a vending machine and took a bite.
「The southern district is new to .」
「Oh my, it’s a robot!」
Even though I had only traveled a few hundred kiloters, the cityscape was vastly different.
If the western district resembled a modern European city, this place looked like the futuristic cities depicted in science fiction movies.
Delivery drones flew across the skies, and neatly designed robots rolled around the streets.
Violet road the streets as if she were at ho, fully imrsing herself in what could be a glimpse of humanity’s future on the planet Trist if they had never encountered beasts.
Though this was my first ti visiting, many familiar places popped up as I wandered around, making slap my knee and exclaim, “Ah, here it is!”
Stores, restaurants, street trees, and decorations—each and every one seed like sothing I had seen before.
「Look, that’s the restaurant!」
「Certainly, even this street feels familiar!」
It was understandable.
This was a location I had wandered through endlessly in a ga.
As Violet No. 212 walked the streets, her gaze fixed on a particular direction.
At the end of this wide street was a cluster of similar-looking buildings.
These futuristic structures, with soft white walls and geotric designs made of steel fras and glass, sparkled in the sunlight.
The sight stood out even in this highly advanced district.
Violet let out a brief exclamation of admiration.
Anyone who had played Deep Crimson Academia would recognize this view.
「We’ve arrived!」
「This is…」
Our destination: the prestigious Awakener Academy in the southern district.
Aegis Specialized Academy.
As we drew closer to the school, it was ti to revisit the mories from my previous life.
We rummaged through the thought pile within the Violet Network.
After searching through a cluttered library—resembling the work of a lazy librarian—we managed to recall a few things.
「That damn Director Yeom.」
「Even if he couldn’t finish it, he should’ve at least released volus 3 or 4.」
Deep Crimson Academia (global title: Crimson Scholar) was a ga developed by the Chinese gaming company, Dragon Sky Interactive™.
Originally planned as a five-volu open-world ga, it t an untily demise due to unavoidable “adult circumstances,” and the company director disappeared. ŘäＮȎ฿Ɛ𐌔
「But wasn’t it not entirely Director Yeom’s fault? He just had bad luck. It wasn’t his fault his family…」
「That’s true.」
When Violet No. 2 casually chid in among the murmurs of others, everyone nodded in agreent.
Director Yeom’s real na was Yan Min.
Since his surna “Yan” could be read as “Yeom” in Korean, he was nicknad Director Yeom in Korea.
Typically, his na was invoked during monts of despair over failed gacha pulls, either to curse or praise.
Good luck would earn him “Yeom-da,” while bad luck turned into “Yeom-byeong,” depending on the gacha result.
This led to a humorous but quantum-like association of his na with players’ emotional swings.
Though the ga had never been a top contender, it had gained decent popularity, both in Korea and abroad.
Its abrupt collapse, along with the company, left many bewildered.
There were various theories.
So criticized sensitive content in the ga, while others speculated that it was a crackdown by the Party on addictive gas that reduced productivity.
There was even a half-joking theory that the Chinese president—an extrovert heartthrob for won—wanted to eliminate introverted n obsessed with cute young girls on smartphones.
Such theories illustrate how absurdly the incident was perceived, especially since the company had been a key player in national cultural exports.
Of course, the real reason lay elsewhere.
The downfall was largely due to the “Yahong Group Real Estate Scandal,” which involved the chairman of the conglorate and Director Yeom’s father.
The aftermath of this massive scandal was enough to bury the otaku indulgences of a second-generation chaebol beneath the mighty currents of the Yangtze River.
「We don’t know much beyond the prologue of volu 2, but we know volu 1 well enough, don’t we? That’s good enough.」
「…That’s true.」
Honestly, even if we knew more, it wouldn’t change anything.
After all, we aren’t students of this academy.
So of the characters haven’t even enrolled yet since this is five years in the past.
As I organized my thoughts, I made my way toward the front gate of Aegis Academy.
The Aegis Specialized Academy was one of the main settings in volu 1.
It’s also where Irene transferred to after the Polaris experint blew up her previous school.
「…Didn’t soone nad Lucian co here too?」
「Yeah, that’s right!」
As I approached the main gate, I noticed students coming and going.
Perhaps because it was such a prestigious school, even their uniforms looked modern and sophisticated.
「Do you think we’ll see him? He’s the student council president now, isn’t he?」
「He’s the president, so it might not be easy to et him.」
We whispered to each other with a mix of anticipation and doubt.
Before coming here, I had prepared for what we Violets call “material requisitioning”—or theft, as the public might call it—by researching the school’s layout and student body.
The information was publicly available, so it didn’t provide detailed insights.
However, while scanning the student council roster, I was lucky enough to find soone with a familiar na and face.
「Adela! Adela is here!」
「She was still a student at this ti.」
Adela, a five-star playable character from Aegis Academy, was currently at the school.
Not just a student, but the student council president.
「It’d be nice to et her.」
「No. We’re not here to sightsee. Verify what we investigated.」
「Got it.」
Violet No. 212 brushed her hand lightly against the school’s outer wall.
When I tried to project mana beyond the wall, sothing blocked it, and no clones were created.
My unique ability, as it had been during Professor Albert’s test, was hindered.
「As expected, this thod doesn’t work.」
「It’s a barrier. As expected of a top-tier academy, their security is impressive.」
I had anticipated this much.
The Aegis Specialized Academy was protected by a defensive barrier that blocked external attacks and minimized gate generation.
Of course, so villains could tear through it, but they were extraordinary individuals.
Both my mories from before possession and current knowledge confird this.
Would the journey of the Violets toward the Crystal Flowers end like this?
No, it wouldn’t.
Every security system always has a weakness, and sotis, entering through the front door is easier than climbing over a wall.
「We’ll be late. Hurry up!」
Listening to the urging voices of my other selves, I headed toward the crowd gathered near the main entrance.
There, a guide holding a placard was waiting for the visitors.
Most of the participants in the tour were young students.
There were also quite a few kids who seed slightly younger than .
“Alright! We’re departing soon!”
After ensuring everyone had gathered, the guide handed out visitor na tags.
Aegis Academy operates group tour programs for outsiders, often attended by tourists or prospective students aiming to enroll.
Using this thod, I could enter with confidence.
「Entry complete!」
「Good, now create a clone as soon as there’s an opening.」
Feigning the role of a harmless girl, I successfully passed through the stern gazes, inspections, and surveillance systems of the security guards.
When I activated my magic-imbued vision to observe my surroundings, I could see a complicated web of formulas and streams of magical energy intertwined everywhere.
If any suspicious magical activity were detected, the alarm would’ve gone off imdiately.
「Good thing we didn’t attempt to enter through the entrance using perception-blocking equipnt.」
「That would’ve been a complete gamble, for sure.」
When the guard scanned a card and opened the gate, I was finally able to enter.
What awaited inside was an entirely new world.
“Wow…”
The sigh of amazent slipped from my lips as soon as I looked around.
The campus of Aegis Academy was incredibly sleek.
If the buildings of Polaris were predominantly in an elegant, neoclassical style, the buildings here were futuristic and pristine.
It was, indeed, the kind of school that lived up to its reputation.
The students’ uniforms were pure white, clean, and beautifully designed.
「As expected of a school fit for a protagonist…」
「I want to transfer here!」
Surely, the food here must be tastier, and there wouldn’t be any strange incidents happening to the students.
Imrsed in admiration, I snapped out of it.
It was ti to get to work.
Under the guide’s lead, I toured the school with the group.
After slipping away under the pretense of going to the restroom, I created a clone.
“Alright, let’s get to work quickly. I’ve checked, and there’s no surveillance magic inside.”
“These people are surprisingly careless.”
Listening to the explanation from No. 212, Nos. 156 and 230 nodded in agreent, then donned a few disguises and infused magic into the perception-blocking necklaces.
The appearance of the two Violets began to distort in No. 200’s field of vision.
「I’ve tested this a few tis, but it still feels strange every ti. If we weren’t connected, I might’ve mistaken them for strangers.」
The perception-blocking equipnt had two effects.
First, it refracted light appropriately so that the wearer’s appearance wasn’t clearly visible to external observers.
Second, it continuously emitted waves that influenced the mind, making the wearer less noticeable.
As a result, people around would perceive the wearer as sothing mundane, like a rock or tree on the roadside.
Given the ntal influence involved, it was clear this equipnt was expensive and rare.
The two Violets moved cautiously.
The perception-blocking equipnt could only distort perception—it didn’t render them invisible.
Judging by how passersby avoided us, it was evident they could still see us.
However, their attitude toward us was akin to how one would treat a utility pole on the street.
「Truly, it’s effective.」
「Be careful. If you bump into soone, the effect might temporarily break.」
The Violets made their way to the garden and forest of Aegis Academy.
There, amidst naless herbs and mysterious interdinsional plants, were as many Crystal Flowers as we had anticipated.
Judging by the amount of magic emanating from them, I wanted to pluck and consu them imdiately—but I held myself back.
「If we even touch them, the guards will swarm us.」
「We have to wait until night. Don’t forget the operation starts at midnight!」
Surveillance caras were keeping watch around the area.
Now wasn’t the ti to make a move.
After rechecking the location of the Crystal Flowers, the Violets headed to an unpopulated area of the school.
Then, they created clones inside vents and burrows in the ceiling before disappearing.
So of the newly created clones stayed perfectly still, as if lifeless, in their designated spots.
「Let’s begin the operation at midnight.」
This ti, we planned to test a new ability I had acquired as my unique skill evolved—‘Dormancy.’
Previously, every clone I created always ca with a personality.
But now, if I activated the dormancy ability after creating a clone, the personality would detach from the body and return to the Violet Network, leaving behind a body in a suspended state, with neither a heartbeat nor breath.
The dormant body could survive without food for more than 24 hours.
Of course, if necessary, I could return the personality to the body imdiately and monitor its condition.
If used wisely, I could create and store nurous bodies in reserve.
While the supply requisition team waited, Violet No. 212 continued the tour with the guide.
Since most of the participants in the tour were young students, they looked around with eyes full of admiration and awe.
During the tour, a female student approached the guide and spoke.
“Since they’re just young students, would you like to guide them personally?”
“Oh, there’s no need for that…”
After exchanging a few short words with the guide, the girl began walking toward us.
“Who on earth is she?”
“Looks like a student here…”
As the participants murmured curiously, the girl approached with a graceful and composed stride.
When I saw her up close, I couldn’t help but be awestruck once again, just like when I first saw Daphne.
“Wow, she’s beautiful…”
Perhaps hearing my words, she ca closer to .
I flinched for a mont.
This girl—it’s her!
What are the odds of running into her here?
With an expression full of curiosity, she walked up to and silently stared at for a mont.
‘Did I do sothing wrong?’
While I was pondering, she smiled softly and spoke.
“Oh my, how adorable…! What’s your na?”
“…Huh?”
Caught off guard by the unexpected question, I was left dumbfounded.
My first encounter with the student council president of Aegis Academy, Adela, began in quite an unusual way.
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