How to get on the protagonist’s flower path

The cosmic being observer looked like a large magnifying glass adorned with strange devices hanging off of it.

When it appeared in the novel, I seem to recall it being described as resembling a giant telescope fixed to look out the window, but this looks a bit different.

Is this an early model or a prototype?

Even so, it looks quite shabby.

It wasn’t just me who felt this way; Shin Baran was also staring at the cosmic being observer with a sour expression.

“Is this really the observer? It looks so… strange…”

Shin Baran’s family was one of Park Yul-a’s main sponsors, so it made sense that he didn’t want to miss the opportunity to see her invention. However, with an object that looked less than impressive, his reaction wasn’t too surprising.

In response to Shin Baran’s sour expression, Park Yul-a complained, “It is an observer! I just checked. Its performance is definitely reliable!”

“Hm… how do you use it?”

Min Jae-yoon asked while fiddling with the magnifying… I mean, the observing device, and Park Yul-a pressed a button under the handle.

Then, a black covering that had been obscuring the lens of the observer disappeared.

“Now you can use this to see people!”

“Why people…?”

“Because the remnants of emotional expressions left by cosmic beings usually linger around those they are focused on before disappearing.”

“I see…”

“Oh, I want to try it~.”

Choi Soo-jung quickly picked up the observer and looked at Lee Ha-na. Her eyes widened in excitement as she smiled.

“It’s like a star cluster! So pretty~.”

“The remnants of emotional expressions look like stars, I guess?”

When Na Yu-ri asked, Choi Soo-jung nodded and pointed the observer at Yu-ri.

“I think so~! There’s a twinkling around you too.”

“…Me too.”

“Sure!”

Lee Ha-na smiled as she looked at Choi Soo-jung through the observer.

“You’re pretty.”

“I know~.”

Everyone took a turn using the observer, and finally, it was my turn. I lifted the device and scanned the group.

While all my friends had beautiful star clusters, Park Si-woo and the scammer had an overwhelming number of stars.

I pulled the observer away from my eyes in disbelief and asked, “Is there a difference in the number of stars attached to each person?”

“It’s because of how much attention the cosmic beings pay!”

Na Yu-ri immediately chimed in as she stuck close to me, saying, “As expected! Nahyun, you are a notable existence!”

“Si-woo and Yoo-han, along with Nahyun, had the most star clusters~.”

“Me?”

That was unexpected.

I’m just a heroine, not one of the protagonists!

I felt puzzled by Choi Soo-jung’s words.

I speculated that the cosmic beings might be the “readers.” And right now, I was a forgotten heroine to those readers.

I should have long been removed from the main heroine’s position, so did remnants of that status still linger?

But then what about Lee Ha-na’s star cluster, which currently received overwhelming support from the readers?

Questions arose, but looking at Park Yul-a’s beaming face as she waved us off made me feel it didn’t matter.

“Thank you!”

Well, I guess the readers showing up in the meta system and those sending star clusters are different entities.

I just need to focus on the readers’ reactions and not worry about anything else.

I repeated that thought to myself as I activated today’s appearance part.

There wasn’t much to the content of today’s appearance part.

I came back, had conversations, lived my daily life, and did some back-and-forth… something like that?

There were a few noteworthy points. I frowned as I focused on one particular part.

[Chapter 82 Appearance Part] 085 Even when I suggested that Nahyun could hold the drinks, she insisted that she would do it herself.

In the end, I had to walk away empty-handed, unable to win against Nahyun, who hugged the drinks tightly. I walked along, staring at the ground for no reason.

The Oracle’s words kept echoing in my mind.

“To prevent the flood of disaster and to destroy the tower, six keys from six tribes are needed.”

The six tribe keys. In the game, they were hidden pieces that allowed entry to the tower.

According to the Oracle, those six keys were essential for achieving a “correct ending” that differed from the game’s ending.

…But if that’s the case—

What is the ‘Seventh Key,’ which does not appear in the game, for?

I’m talking about the key that Nahyun received from the nine-tailed fox.

In the game, there were only six key items, and they were extremely rare. Each triggered unique events.

Perhaps Nahyun’s key might trigger some event.

If that’s the case, it might be risky, so maybe I should—

“Nahyun, do you happen to—”

Bang! Bang!

“Help me!”

…What terrible timing. I clicked my tongue lightly.

This guy not only figured out the identity of my key but is also trying to steal it.

This is troublesome, very troublesome. I absolutely must protect this key. I wish he would just back off.

I pulled out the Seventh Key from my inventory. The key reflected light and sparkled beautifully.

“It’s pretty…”

The nine-tailed fox clearly said it was a key that grants ‘our’ blessing.

Who is ‘we’? Why does this exist?

…But then again, worrying about it like this won’t reveal anything. I sighed and put the key back in my inventory.

At that moment:

[Story Fragment Added.] Huh? Suddenly?

I pressed the newly appeared notification.

[Story Fragment] – A story not just yours, but everyone’s – A narrative from various perspectives, not just the first-person protagonist – Automatically collected after identifying each main storyline broadcast route. [Current collected story fragments: 4] – Genius Commander of the Academy: 1 – ???? ??? ???? ?? (Locked): 3 I felt a bit uneasy.

What’s the point of having one more fragment that I can’t even view?

I lay down on the bed, feeling drained. I might as well just sleep.

It was a day filled with only more questions.

***

[Story Fragment / Unconfirmed] empty Park Yul-a fiddled with the cosmic being observer, mumbling to herself.

“Now I can finally share the perspective of that foolish brother.”

She thought of her brother.

Park Yul-han. Her annoying brother, who inherited the blood of her grandfather and had a knack for the occult, which he often flaunted unnecessarily.

She raised the observer toward the now darkening sky. The tangled paths of light between the stars were faintly visible in the reflection of the observer. A thick darkness flowed somewhere.

“It’s nothing special! What’s there to show off about this?”

She shouted as she slammed the observer onto her desk, ensuring it wouldn’t break.

For her, Park Yul-han was a source of complex feelings since she had no talent and had always been overlooked.

“Though that darkness I just saw is a bit concerning…”

She grumbled, tossing the observer into the drawer with a rough gesture.

That was enough of this nonsense. She concluded that simply reaching the world where he was was enough for her.

Since that was her only goal, she decided not to dwell on what she had just seen and began focusing on her other inventions.

“Well, if I have time later, I might do some more research related to that…”

***

The next day.

While I was checking the outdoor permission I was granted and adjusting my after-school schedule, Choi Su-jeong suddenly made a suggestion.

“Hey, how about we go on a trip together this summer~?”

“A trip?”

“Yeah. During vacation. To escape the heat.”

At Hana’s words, Nayuri, Min Jae-yoon, and Shin Ba-ran began to get excited.

“Sounds great! Are we going to the beach? Summer trips are all about the beach!”

“Wow! A trip together! How many nights?”

“If everyone is okay with it, I’ll go too!”

Amid the enthusiastic reactions, the vacation trip quickly became a done deal.

Thinking this trip could be very useful, I actively involved the trickster as well.

“Si-woo and Yoo-han will go too, right?”

“Uh, yeah.”

“If you don’t mind.”

To the trickster and Park Si-woo’s responses, I smiled brightly and replied.

“Of course, you’re welcome! Right?”

“Nyahaha, the more people, the better for a trip~.”

“Yeah, it’s more fun to go together.”

Fortunately, everyone responded positively.

“Oh, I think it’d be good to leave out that trivial person, though.”

“Yuri….”

“Being excluded is sad….”

…Except for one person. Min Jae-yoon’s sincere comment added weight to the situation.

So, we decided to go on a trip together during summer vacation.

“How about this place?”

The trickster opened a map app on his phone and pointed to a location. Seeing him actively suggest a travel spot, it seemed he was determined to make good use of the opportunity I gave him.

“Is it the East Sea? Not bad.”

“It’s a beach!”

Nayuri and I said, and the trickster nodded and grinned.

“Yeah. Of course, the beach is great, but if we’re lucky, we might discover an even better spot.”

“Nyahaha, our junior seems to be plotting something again?”

“Is it safe?”

In response to Choi Su-jeong and Park Si-woo’s questions, the trickster nodded. And surprisingly, he willingly spilled all the information. Unlike before.

“This area has low-difficulty item dungeons. Monsters exist, but they have low aggression, so they won’t attack unless provoked.”

“That sounds good. …But where did you get such valuable information? That’s impressive…”

At Shin Ba-ran’s question, the trickster gave a meaningful smile and mumbled.

Right. It’s a bit awkward to reveal the source of the information. I chuckled and naturally shifted the topic elsewhere.

“Yuri, can I come over to your house during this vacation?”

“…! Of course!”

“Ah…! Y-Yuri! I mean, Yuri! Me too!”

“Can I come along too…?”

The effect of the new topic I brought up was remarkably effective.

Thus, I ended up adding a pajama party schedule with the girls at Nayuri’s house.

I invited the seniors to join us, but they mentioned they were going on a trip together. It was disappointing, but this meant that only the freshmen would gather that day.

Looking at my calendar, now packed with schedules, I smiled.

It seemed that this vacation would be different from the past; I had a feeling it would be a busy one filled with fun.

After school.

I bought a ton of gifts for the children at the orphanage.

My inventory level was 2, allowing me to carry 100 items each of 20 different types.

However, I just couldn’t stop shopping at 20 types. With gifts piled in both hands, I entered the orphanage.

“Sister! Here’s a gift!”

“Sister! Give me a present!”

Haha, these little rascals. The gifts I held disappeared in an instant, surrounded by a frenzy of piranha-like excitement.

“Is Nahyun here?”

“Yes!”

With my now lighter hands, I tightly hugged the teacher who came out from the reception room.

“It’s been a while!”

“Oh my, you’ve been through a lot, haven’t you?”

“No, it was fine! But who came by?”

Why did they come out of the reception room?

At my question, the teacher smiled brightly, as if it was a good opportunity.

“Right, Nahyun. A guest who came today is interested in you.”

Interested in me? Did Choi Ga-ram come to visit? I paused in confusion for a moment.

“Go on in!”

But I was pushed gently from behind by the teacher, urging me to enter the reception room soon.

“Oh, it’s been a while…”