3.0?
< Potential is [3.0] >
That was... absurd.
Even the cadets from the Dormant Dragon Institute—those specifically designed to kill the [Hell Mode] professor—barely reached [2.8].
So how the hell does [3.0] show up?
Is it because of the [Glitched Space]?
‘[2.8] is already supposed to be the final cap for this world’s balance...’
This “Eve” wasn’t just a character.
There was something more.
Something that could influence the entire world.
But right now, that wasn’t the pressing matter.
Eve quietly stood up.
I had a gut feeling—she was about to lose interest in me and leave.
Still, I didn’t think chasing after her was wise.
She clearly disliked being approached or touched.
So I rose slowly as well.
“Eve.”
Everyone called her a monster. I wondered—what would happen if I simply used her name?
That was the thought behind it.
No response.
No 【Script】 either.
But Eve paused when she saw me move and slightly lifted her hood, just enough for our eyes to meet.
“Can we talk? Just for a moment.”
“......”
She tilted her head ever so slightly in confusion and turned her body away.
That was all.
Then she kept walking, further and further.
‘Not going to be easy.’
Watching Eve return to the large grave mound and sit again, I decided to descend the hill for now.
< Potential [3.0] >
I wanted it. Badly.
If I had to guess, there were probably only one or two people in this entire world of over 500 million with that kind of potential.
And I just happened to stumble across one near the academy in a random forest hill?
That’s not luck. That’s divine-level nonsense.
‘Have I forgotten?’
As I made my way down, I kept checking in with myself—constantly.
What if the 『Curse of Forgetting』 made me lose it all?
But then, an amusing system log popped up:
< ♠ 『Curse of Forgetting』 is in effect. All direct memory and record of the recent encounter is being erased or distorted. >
< ⧉ 『Game System』 resists the effect. >
< ♠ 『Curse of Forgetting』 is in effect. All direct memory and record of the recent encounter is being erased or distorted. >
< ⧉ 『Game System』 resists the effect. >
⋮
The two windows kept clashing on repeat—like a duel.
Until finally—
< ⧉ 『Game System』 has won! >
That seemed to settle it.
Even though I was living in this world like anyone else, I was fundamentally standing one step behind them all—immune to curses and mental afflictions.
The result?
‘I remember.’
Clearly. Her face. Her eyes. Even her name.
So then... what do I do with that?
How do I turn Eve into mine?
I was leaving the [Glitched Space], descending Starfall Hill, lost in thought when—
“Hey! You there, young man!”
An old man called out to me.
● Starfall Hill Caretaker: Olmount
A local, huh.
Impressive, surviving in this place swarming with ghouls.
I’d taken a different path down to check the terrain.
There was a mountain lodge here, and the old man seemed to be its owner.
“What is it?”
“Did you just come down from the summit?”
“Yes.”
“Did you meet the Witch of the Graveyard?”
“I did. Do you know something about her?”
“Ha! Plenty of people have come to hunt that witch... but you’re the first I’ve seen show up without a single weapon. I’m the caretaker of Starfall Hill. Mind if we chat a bit?”
I paused briefly, then followed him.
Inside the lodge were some old chairs and a table.
A large statue of the Virgin Goddess from the Holy Church stood behind it.
“That how you’re keeping the ghouls away?”
“Exactly! Spent every damn coin I had on it! Damn thing better be worth it.”
He handed me some water, then asked:
“Can I ask who you are?”
“I’m a professor.”
“Knew it! So you’re here to take down the witch, huh?”
“I haven’t quite decided.”
“Well, I hope you do. I can tell you her weakness.”
“Weakness?”
He crossed his arms, confident.
“You’d do well to listen, son. First thing—she can’t hear.”
“She’s deaf?”
“Far as I can tell, yeah. Doesn’t react to any sound.”
So that’s why she didn’t respond to me.
“Not even to sounds that should interest her.”
“Like what?”
“Ah, now that’s the real weakness. She’s... vulnerable to death.”
Death?
That was unexpected. What does it mean to be weak to death?
“Guess they thought I was just some useless hill-watcher. The old professors, the Discipline Corps—they all ignored me. But I know what I saw. She can’t handle death. Whenever something’s dying, she completely loses her composure.”
“......”
Come to think of it, there were reports of zero casualties.
Was she avoiding killing?
“What, you think I’m bullshitting you?”
“...No. Could you tell me more?”
“Gladly! Thing is, I’ve met that witch ten times, but I can’t recall a single detail about her. Not her face, her voice, nothing. But that weakness—I’m sure of. I tested it myself.”
And with that, he launched into his story.
“I used to be a boy who loved stargazing.”
“When was this?”
“Oh, about seventy years ago, damn it!”
...So he’d had a strong connection to this place for decades.
He’d been living here peacefully in his twilight years when the intruder—Eve—showed up.
At first, she’d just ignore him when he approached.
Eventually, she’d run away before he even got close.
Then, one day, he happened to shoot a bird with a hunting rifle, and carried the dying creature back down...
“She followed me! You hear me?!”
“......”
“So I tried it with other animals. No response to the healthy ones. But the dying ones? Especially the big ones? She got twitchy. That’s how I figured out her hearing too—she didn’t even react to the sounds of death.”
“Fascinating.”
“Right?! Someone who gets it! Here’s what I think—if a human were dying, she’d be frozen. That’s how you get her to follow from a distance!”
He seemed to grow increasingly serious as he explained his plan for capturing the witch.
“You’ll need two things: a dying person... and restraints. If someone’s on the verge of death, she won’t be able to leave. That’s when you bind her!”
Well... I wasn’t trying to hunt her, so I let that advice slide out the other ear.
Time to wrap this up.
“Thanks for the information. Take care of yourself.”
“If you’re not gonna do it, I swear I’ll go up there myself and give that witch the final boss fight of my 87-year-old life!”
I left the lodge.
Once I was back off the hill, I called Adele through the 「Crystal Sphere」.
“You’re safe! You scared me half to death—I got chased by ghouls all of a sudden.”
“What happened with them?”
“They gave up pretty fast and scattered.”
On the ride back, I started sorting through it all.
Eve didn’t exist in the game before the update, so I had zero background on her.
‘So, then?’
She’s deaf.
Cursed with 『Curse of Forgetting』.
Apparently hates death.
But... what am I supposed to do with that?
Become her friend?
Kidnap her and raise her?
Make her my student?
I didn’t even know how to approach her, let alone what to do if I succeeded.
Still, it was worth figuring out.
Because her potential is [3.0].
‘First things first—I’ll take it slow.’
No sudden moves.
Keep my distance.
Let the bond build... slowly.
And I had one advantage—I could remember her.
What I was worried about was her leaving Starfall Hill.
Or the [Update] wiping her out entirely.
So ideally, I’d need to bond with her fast.
‘But come to think of it... why is Eve even here?’
She hates death—and yet she lives in a graveyard.
No identity. No history. No communication.
Why would a person with [3.0] potential be stuck in this kind of place?
Was that the purpose of the [Glitched Space]?
Or was she here to mourn someone?
If so... she sure had a messed-up way of showing it—sitting on top of graves like some kind of grief-punk maniac.
“I used to be a boy who loved stargazing.”
The words of the old caretaker suddenly resurfaced in my mind.
The name of the place was Starfall Hill, after all.
So... was she here to watch the stars?
⋮
The next day was Saturday.
I returned to Starfall Hill.
And once again, Eve was sitting atop the massive grave mound.
I remembered what the caretaker said—that she couldn’t hear.
So I changed course, approaching from behind.
As expected, she didn’t notice me.
But before long, she turned her head in my direction.
She must have sensed me through something other than sound.
Vulnerable to assassination, it seems.
“......”
“......”
I raised a hand, showing my palm.
It was a greeting, at least from my side.
But Eve didn’t react.
So I carefully moved closer.
It felt like approaching a stray cat—any wrong move, and she’d bolt.
When I got a bit too close, Eve turned her head again and stared.
Those eyes said it all—that’s far enough.
Checking the [Minimap], the distance between us was 19 meters.
Roughly one meter closer than yesterday.
“Are you watching the stars?”
“......”
No answer.
Just a slight tilt of her head.
“Can you not hear?”
“......”
Still no response.
She only tilted her head again, apparently reading my lips.
I pulled something from the [Inventory].
It was a scope—borrowed from the assassination tools lab.
Usually attached to rifles for distant vision.
Of course, it worked just as well for stargazing.
『World Forgery: Form Forgery [Dog]』
I handed the scope to a fabricated country mutt.
According to the [Activity Variable] I’d pre-programmed, the dog trotted over to Eve, wagging its tail.
Luckily, she ✪ Nоvеlіgһt ✪ (Official version) didn’t avoid it.
She took the scope.
Then gave me a blank, unimpressed look.
A look that said, ‘What is this supposed to be?’
『World Forgery: Form Forgery [Scope]』
So I made one for myself and lifted it to my eye, mimicking a gaze at the sky.
Mine, of course, was a fake—it didn’t actually show anything.
The lens modeling was garbage.
But Eve’s scope was different.
If she actually looked through it, she’d see a brilliant sky full of stars, along with Earth’s vertical planetary ring streaking across the heavens...
“Whoa, whoa. What are you doing now?”
“......”
“Why are you twisting it—wait, why are you taking it apart?”
“......?”
She tilted her head again but kept turning the parts in her hands.
“Hey. Don’t twist—if you twist that, it’s gonna—”
Snap!
The “scope” was now two separate pieces: “sco” and “pe.”
“You’ve got to be kidding me...”
Eve tilted her head again.
I was going to lose my mind.
Still... it was fine.
We’d get closer, bit by bit.
****
The worst memories...
They linger. Rotting your mind, eating away at your life.
“......”
Joaquin clenched his jaw.
Steam from the hot water rolled over his face as his thoughts drifted—until a voice echoed in his ears.
『Cadet, withdraw from the course.』
“...Motherfucker.”
His vision went red.
He was Joaquin of the Moonshadow Institute. An assassin raised with a blade in hand since age five by the Black Marquis. He’d eliminated countless targets.
And now he was being humiliated like this?
The rumors had clearly spread.
『Joaquin got completely wrecked. In front of everyone.』
The words of the cadet he respected most—Kendreik from Dormant Dragon Institute—had come as a cruel jab.
『What a joke. I thought you were at least decent in stealth...』
Kendreik had done it on purpose.
He wanted to learn more about the professor he disliked, so he used Joaquin’s temper to test things out.
And it worked.
Joaquin’s fist flew.
CRASH!!
The mirror shattered into a thousand shards.
He staggered out of the room, panting.
“Huh? Joaquin, your hand—”
“Get everyone.”
“What?”
“Get all the kids we’ve been overseeing. Now. I’m too pissed to sit still.”
“You’re not thinking of going after that professor, are you?”
Even in his rage, Joaquin paused to think.
Losing control over your emotions? Amateur move.
He needed to kill smarter.
“What, me? Nah. The hell would I do it myself for?”
Assassination was a game of information.
And there was barely anything out there about Professor Dante.
So step one: find his weakness.
Let someone else do the dirty work.
“Still... will it work if we only send those bug-tier guys?”
His concern was valid. If the ones he sent were too weak, they’d barely scratch the man.
So—
“We’ll have to send someone Moonshadow-level.”
Even if it didn’t kill the guy, it’d at least dig up something useful.
And who knows?
Maybe a lucky arrow would land in his skull.
‘I’m gonna kill that bastard, Professor Dante.’
Just imagining it made Joaquin feel so much better.