Classroom of the Elite, but It's a Diary Style

"Set a goal, and you will strive for it unremittingly."

Most of the rewards issued by the Diary have clear descriptions.

Whatever it says it is, that is exactly what it is.

However, before trying it out personally, the item will not show you every single detail of its effects.

The method of use and the precautions all require self-exploration.

So, the question arises.

What exactly constitutes a "goal," and what counts as "striving unremittingly"?

If my goal is to open the genetic lock and break the limiter, will it distort my thoughts to change the goal, or will it act as if nothing happened and have no effect at all?

If my goal requires a lifetime to achieve, will it lock away the rest of my life, or will it warn me not to set such a goal?

Such an effect is too vague.

Chapter 69: Slept enough, ate enough, and then--

It is so vague that Asakusa Toru feels a bit worried.

Although, logically speaking, he shouldn't need to worry too much about the rewards issued by the Diary; he should just use them.

But for an item that is very likely to distort one's self, he still harbors concerns.

Even if he were to use it, he would have to do so under the condition of adding strict limitations.

And every time he uses it, he must be cautious.

...This is the first time such an item has appeared as a reward.

No, that's not entirely true; the previous Mind-Calming Popsicle had a similar effect on emotions.

But the two cannot be lumped together.

"..." After hesitating for a while, Asakusa Toru still tried tying it around his forehead.

Although he had said he would let it gather dust, it really wouldn't be right not to try out a reward he had obtained.

This is the first time he has received a B-rank item.

He has to try it, at least.

He casually grabbed his Personal Terminal from the bedside, noted the current time, set an alarm for three minutes later, and then opened the stopwatch.

He put down the terminal.

Then, Asakusa Toru softly stated his goal:

"My goal is to have a good sleep in three minutes."

As the words fell, Asakusa Toru immediately felt a slight sense of restraint, and then his body decisively turned off the light and pulled up the quilt.

His eyelids were forcibly closed.

Darkness, tranquility, peace.

Immediately after, his consciousness quietly sank.

"..." He woke up.

"Beep beep beep beep beep beep--" The life-threatening alarm sound rang out the moment he suddenly woke up, and then his body involuntarily grabbed the terminal and decisively turned off the alarm.

Then, his body lay back down, and his eyes closed.

His steady breathing and his suddenly extinguished consciousness pressed the power-off button together.

When Asakusa Toru opened his eyes again, the headband on his head naturally slid off.

The sense of restraint disappeared, and the sunlight outside the window faintly shone through.

He had indeed slept, and the alarm that should have interrupted his sleep had been turned off by him in advance.

But Asakusa Toru could hardly say this was a good sleep.

A "good sleep"—the standard for judgment does not seem to be determined by his own psychology.

Then...

His sluggish thoughts after just waking up began to turn under the sunlight, and Asakusa Toru put on the headband once again.

"My goal is to master Magnetic Field Rotation within one minute." He stated his goal.

But this time, the sense of restraint did not come, and the headband tied to his head slid right off.

The goal was not set successfully.

Is it because it cannot be achieved?

Or is it that...

"Current 'determination' is insufficient; unable to complete the setting of the goal." A cold voice answered his doubts in his ear.

'Determination'.

A term that is not hard to understand.

To condense one's will into action, the driving force that moves one unswervingly toward a goal, is known as determination.

But...

"If I had that kind of determination, what would I even need you for?" Asakusa Toru furrowed his brows.

If it were something he was truly determined to do, he would do it without needing the restraint of a headband; what use would you be then?

It's laughable.

For things he is genuinely determined to do, he would take the initiative to do them no matter how many times he had to start over.

And why would he bother doing things he has no determination for?

...Of course, this isn't absolute.

If Asakusa Toru were the type of person who only felt ambitious in intermittent bursts, then this thing would be incredibly useful.

It could lock in those fleeting moments of high determination, fix them firmly onto a set goal, and give himself a couple of lashes to whip himself into working.

Unfortunately, he isn't.

However... thinking about it carefully, it isn't entirely useless.

A morning greeted by sunlight makes the body more active, and both physiological and mental needs become more abundant.

Putting away the Tenacity Headband and pausing the stopwatch, Asakusa Toru threw on a jacket and left the dormitory.

The time was now six in the morning, and the total time on the stopwatch had stopped at six hours and fifteen minutes.

Although it was a bit early, he could at least eat breakfast.

As the saying goes, there are three most basic physiological needs for a person.

The desire for sleep, the desire for food, and...

He had slept enough for now.

His appetite would also be satisfied soon enough.

Therefore.

When desire rises, the 'determination' of the Tenacity Headband will become full.

It is time to achieve the goal that has been delayed for a month.

White Room, activate!

A clear tactile sensation came from his palms, his fingertips rubbing gently as if facing a flawless work of art, repeatedly reshaping it into his preferred form.

A slight bit of resistance felt like coquetry, and the perfectly replicated reaction dampened his fingertips.

The crimson headband fluttered high, and Asakusa Toru wore a look of satisfaction.

A young girl, perhaps, is just this kind of existence.

No matter how much one tempers the body or hones one's techniques, there will always be an incredibly soft side.

Sweet spices mixed with a large amount of sugar emitted an incredibly sticky scent bit by bit.

Sugar syrup stretched into transparent, blurry threads between his fingertips, as if with just a little more coiling, a beautiful ball of cotton candy would take shape in his hands.

Do not misunderstand; Asakusa Toru was merely playing with granulated sugar.

The goal he had set was already achieved.

The time spent was only one hour.

Unexpectedly efficient.

Should one call this the effect of being single-minded? Or does the Tenacity Headband truly possess such divine power?

When determination rises to a certain level, efficiency begins to grow exponentially.

His brain operated with high efficiency, and his body mimicked movements with agility.

Most importantly, there was the buff the White Room provided to its registered members.

His spinning thoughts were clearer than he could have imagined, and his replication of Amasawa Ichika's movements was faster than at any point in the past month.

Although his already significantly improved physical fitness had not yet reached its limit, it was enough to ensure he would not fall behind the girl before him.

As mentioned before, although Amasawa Ichika would launch endless attacks at him, this assault was not something that could be resolved simply by memorizing patterns.

The attack itself was a form of instruction; when he successfully mastered the posture and technique of the movement, the girl before him would suddenly shift her stance and switch to a different set of methods.

In fact, Asakusa Toru had always been curious: if he were knocked down, the space within the gym would reset, but if Amasawa Ichika were knocked down, would he graduate early, or would he be able to do as he pleased?

Previously, he had no way to verify his hypothesis.

But now.

He could.

The headband on his forehead slowly slid off; the headband he had brought in by replicating his state in reality had completed its mission. Asakusa Toru no longer maintained the posture of a girl who looked like she could be suppressed at any moment, but instead, he dealt her a total defeat.

And so, the sweet scent was swept away, the delicate body vanished from where it stood, and Asakusa Toru's state was refreshed to its perfect form.

"Clatter—"

With an incredibly loud sound, three doors suddenly appeared on the pure white wall.

On the far left was a door standing wide open, through which the familiar girl could be vaguely seen.

On the far right was a door painted with thick black lacquer, tightly sealing off what appeared to be a frame that should have been embedded with a large pane of glass.

And in the center stood a door that seemed to have originally been bound by chains.

The sound from just a moment ago appeared to be the noise of those chains hitting the floor.

Fixing his gaze back on the central door, it slowly creaked open a crack right in front of Asakusa Toru, as if pushed by a gentle breeze.

Looking through the gap into the room, Asakusa Toru was surprised to discover that inside was not another pretty, cute girl.

Instead, it was a middle-aged man in black hair and black clothes?

"...Who the hell are you?" Looking at the man he completely failed to recognize, Asakusa Toru couldn't help but retort.

No way, you beat a beautiful girl and this is what you give me?

Asakusa Toru hadn't actually expected his question to be answered; he was just making a casual remark.

But as if in response to his query, an unexpected voice came from not far away.

"Simak Dian." Standing calmly in front of the open door with her usual expressionless face, Amasawa Ichika softly answered Asakusa Toru's question: "I suppose he could be considered an instructor from the White Room?"

Her voice was soft, her expression was calm, and her appearance was entirely natural.

But Asakusa Toru was stunned.

"...?"