The Past and the Tacet Disc

"Professor Mornye?"

Rover looked at Mornye, who had walked up to her, in confusion.

Unlike Rover, Mo Bai felt that Mornye did not look like a professor at all.

In this fantastical world, her small stature was hardly an issue. It was her reserved personality that struck him as unusual.

"D-do I not look like a professor?"

Seeing Rover's puzzled expression, Mornye immediately grew anxious.

Rover quickly waved a hand and shook her head.

Watching from the side, Mo Bai found the scene a little comical.

They were like two big cats.

One was desperate to prove herself; the other was afraid of hurting her feelings.

"I'll take you to record your Tacet Discs."

Perhaps feeling that her reaction had been unbecoming, Mornye quickly composed herself.

Mo Bai and Rover exchanged a glance, then followed her.

On the way to record their Tacet Discs, Mornye explained the strange phenomenon they had just witnessed.

"What you saw were memories belonging to former teachers, staff, and students of the Academy. It happens from time to time."

She was talking about the other people's memories that had appeared in Mo Bai's and Rover's minds.

As they walked, Mornye began explaining Tacet Discs.

"Lahai Luo has always been under the shadow of the Void Threnodian. So we invented Tacet Discs to preserve the frequencies and memories of those consumed by a Voidmatter Magnetic Storm."

Mornye's explanation made Mo Bai think of coffins.

Carrying around something that recorded your entire life felt rather sad.

It was as though the students here could be killed by the forces outside at any moment.

From the sound of it, a Tacet Disc was all that would remain of anyone caught in a Voidmatter Magnetic Storm.

With that thought, Mo Bai glanced to the side.

Tacet Discs lined the wall, with names written beneath them.

They were probably left by people who had died—some of the few traces proving they had ever lived.

"All right, the recording room is just ahead."

Following Mornye's gesture, Mo Bai and Rover saw a cylindrical room enclosed in transparent glass.

"You go first. I'll look around out here a little longer," Mo Bai said.

Even if he had come from another world, he did not think he was anyone special compared with Rover.

He was just a minor character who had gotten absurdly lucky.

"Okay."

Rover did not stand on ceremony. She nodded and walked toward the recording room.

They had grown familiar enough along the way that neither needed to insist the other go first.

Click—

Once the recording room door closed, Mo Bai looked around at the equipment and researchers.

Most of the researchers were frowning as they worked furiously through the data before them.

As for Mornye...

Mo Bai noticed her watching Rover in the recording room with concern.

That was hardly the expression of someone meeting her for the first time.

And Doctor Lu had acted as though he knew Rover, too...

They must have known her before. So why did Rover seem completely unfamiliar with them and Star Torch Academy?

Click—

Rover's Tacet Disc finished recording, and she emerged looking a little dazed.

She glanced at Mornye, who was looking right back at her, with some confusion.

With that bewildered expression, she looked like a lost deer.

"Do you need to rest for a bit?" Mo Bai asked as he walked over.

"No..."

When Rover shook her head, Mo Bai glanced at Mornye behind her.

"Then go talk to Professor Mornye. She'll know better than I do what's going on with you." With that, Mo Bai headed for the recording room.

He had asked Rover because it seemed like the thing a friend should do. That was all.

Click—

The Tacet Disc before him dropped into a slot, and the disc inside slowly began to turn.

Then the Research Institute vanished before his eyes, replaced by scenes from his past.

Honestly, Mo Bai did not think there was much worth seeing.

If he had to describe it himself, he would probably call it a boring life.

He had been born into a family that was neither rich nor poor. He had pursued his studies but achieved nothing remarkable, then lost himself in the online world because he had no idea what to do with his future.

If a sudden car accident had not sent him to another world, Mo Bai figured his life would probably have stayed that boring until the end.

No, that was not quite right.

Even in another world, he did not expect to accomplish anything great.

He had never wanted much, and the internet had already satisfied his curiosity about the things he wanted to see.

For a moment, he felt as though the ticket to another world had been wasted on him.

Hum—

The scene shifted, and he found himself once more in the familiar pitch-black space.

This was where the Goddess resided.

"Hey."

When the Goddess greeted him, Mo Bai knew this was not a memory.

She had probably used some means to pull his consciousness here.

She was a Goddess, after all. He would not have been surprised if she could do that.

"Why bring me here all of a sudden? Was my performance too boring?" Mo Bai sat down on the ground.

Frankly, he had no respect for this "benefactor" who had thrown him into another world.

She had nearly gotten him killed in the fall, after all.

"It was pretty boring~ I'd hoped for a good show, like Star Torch Academy treating you as an intruder. But that Rover went and saved you~"

The Goddess sighed at the end.

"Oh well. You haven't even been in Solaris for a full day. There'll be plenty more fun waiting for you."

Mo Bai frowned at her words.

By now, he had a fair idea what sort of person this Goddess was.

A rotten one.

And if someone like her said there was fun ahead, it was bound to be bad news for him.

"I could only talk to you this time because of the special circumstances. We'll meet again after you die. Bye-bye~"

"Wait!"

As the Goddess waved her hand, Mo Bai hurried to stop her.

He still wanted to ask her about the Threnodian, and how she could so easily give him Cursed Energy and a Cursed Technique.

But before Mo Bai could finish speaking, the scene before him had already returned to the recording room.

Click—

Mo Bai picked up his Tacet Disc and walked toward Rover and Mornye.

"Good. This student's Tacet Disc recorded normal contents."

As Mo Bai approached, the researcher in charge of examining the contents let out a relieved breath.

The Goddess's methods really were something. It seemed his past life must have looked different to that researcher.

But judging by what the researcher had said, had something gone wrong with Rover's Tacet Disc?

With that thought, Mo Bai looked toward Rover and Mornye.

They seemed to have just finished discussing something.

"Now that Mo Bai is out too, I'll explain a few more things Tacet Discs can do."

Seeing him approach, Mornye began explaining to them both.

"A Tacet Disc can warn you when a Voidmatter Magnetic Storm is approaching, and it offers a little protection against its effects."

Then, apparently remembering something, the short professor hurried to add a warning.

"Of course, that doesn't mean you can charge into a Voidmatter Magnetic Storm just because you have one. Safety comes first."

Seeing how serious she looked, Mo Bai and Rover could not help smiling as they agreed.

Mo Bai, for his part, had no intention of venturing into anywhere that dangerous.

"Professor Mornye! Where are you?! Doctor Anselm! Please calm down!"

Just then, an urgent voice sounded from the device by Mornye's ear. Someone was contacting her.