Chapter 172
“Would writing something myself make me feel a little better?”
The fun of browsing the gallery is clearly in reading funny, provocative posts.
But more important than that is the thrill of getting comments and recommendations on my own posts.
Having a lot of people react to what I say satisfies one of humanity’s basic desires.
I decided to write a formulaic clickbait post.
But there was no particular enjoyment in the process either.
Normally, I’d have been grinning just thinking about the people who’d take the bait and spit out their rage.
Or maybe I’d have been thinking about how to stir up outrage in the most spectacular way possible.
“Hmm… kind of vague….”
This time, it was neither of those.
I simply chose one of the clickbait title templates saved in my notepad and typed it in.
I dangled a few recommendations and comments as bait.
It took only seconds before someone bit.
Instant reaction.
That’s the biggest reason people get hooked on the gallery.
ㄴ Ah, shit, I should’ve checked the nickname first.
ㄴ When the hell is this bastard going to die?
ㄴ Please die inside the tower. Please.
The malicious comments were even nastier than usual.
If this had been before, my adrenaline would have surged without me even noticing.
But now, I felt none of that at all.
“Tsk, tsk. Poor people.”
An involuntary sigh escaped me.
I didn’t feel even the slightest anger.
What I felt instead was sadness.
Pity for the people who were consumed by hatred and left malicious comments.
“I understand. Real life must be hard, so they leave comments like this.”
Their twisted inner selves seemed visible even through the monitor.
I still had no desire to blame them.
If anything, I wanted to hug the malicious commenters and comfort them.
“What? No, this isn’t right.”
I got chills from the thought that had just crossed my mind.
Splash!
I rushed into the bathroom and kept splashing cold water on my face, and my mind seemed to clear a little.
Only then did I realize just how abnormal I was right now.
Because even in this situation, I was frighteningly calm.
“Phew….”
I do think I’m kinder and have better character than most people.
But I wasn’t that much of a saint.
Something was definitely wrong.
“Shorts, right. Let’s watch Shorts.”
I picked up my smartphone and opened YouTube.
Provocative videos recommended by the algorithm I’d diligently wrecked over the years.
My thumb flicked rapidly across the screen.
Garbage information hammered nonstop into my eyes and ears.
But even this time, I was extremely calm.
All of it felt as peaceful as birds chirping in the morning.
“What was fun about this? Me from the past?”
It all seemed meaningless. Needlessly provocative, noisy, and empty.
Things like this didn’t help my life at all.
It only wasted time and drained my mental energy.
Wouldn’t it be more helpful to read a book, study, or even train magic in this time?
“Gasp!”
Startled by the strange calm coming over me again, I tossed my phone far away.
What was I just thinking? Books and studying?
It was certain.
I wasn’t normal right now.
“Had I been hit by some kind of mental contamination?”
There was no other way to explain it.
Me wanting to study?
There was no way such a vicious thought could come out of my head.
I immediately clutched the World Tree pendant and sprinkled holy sand over my head.
Even so, my condition didn’t improve at all.
I still found myself wanting books or exercise instead of computers and phones.
“This won’t do. I need an expert.”
I headed straight for the black mage in the fish tank.
[Did something happen in the meantime?]
“I think something’s gotten weird with my head. Could I be cursed?”
[Haa…. That again?]
The black mage frowned, but began observing me without further complaint.
[There’s nothing. Not this time either.]
“That can’t be….”
Even now, the voice in my head was telling me to stop messing around, sit down, and open a book.
This was a serious problem.
At this point, I needed a more precise and scientific examination than the black mage’s amateur diagnosis.
I logged back into the Mage Gallery and wrote a post.
Strangely, unlike the Hunter Gallery, using the Mage Gallery didn’t trigger any mental resistance at all.
My mind must have judged the Mage Gallery to be a beneficial place.
Tap-tap-tap.
It was right after I posted that I wanted a mental checkup.
ㄴFridge: ♚♚ Government-funded Hunter Research Institute♚♚ Visit$$ Free health checkups for everyone☜☜ 100% gift @@@ D o m e s t i c b e s t s e r v i c e ☏☎☏☎ Visit now
Eun Mirae commented.
***
A few hours later, I headed to the research institute I’d visited once before.
The place where Eun Mirae, self-proclaimed top brain of the Mage Gallery, was.
If it was her, she’d be able to analyze my condition scientifically.
“You got here super fast. What was so urgent?”
Eun Mirae, whom I met in the lobby, wore her usual cold and sharp expression, but her eyes seemed softer than usual.
I hurriedly grabbed her and said,
“I think something’s gotten weird with my head. I should get it checked right away.”
“Your head?”
Eun Mirae put on a serious expression and placed her hand on my forehead.
A cold touch.
But apparently, her purpose wasn’t really to take my temperature.
She quickly took her hand away, then held it out to me.
?
“What are you doing? Hold my hand.”
Though confused, I took her hand and went along.
I went with her to the examination room, still holding her hand.
A room with all kinds of machines that I’d visited before.
“Now, stay still.”
Eun Mirae whispered as she attached sensors to my head.
Her hand brushed through my bangs.
It felt like she was touching me a little too meticulously, but I guess that was all necessary.
“I’ll start the test.”
I lay still and waited for the results.
It didn’t take long.
Eun Mirae tilted her head while looking at the monitor.
“Hmm, the brain waves are very stable….”
“The problem is that they’re too stable.”
“What exactly are your symptoms?”
“The gallery isn’t fun anymore.”
“... That’s a serious problem. Can you explain in more detail?”
I confessed every symptom I’d been experiencing.
That even getting featured wasn’t fun anymore, and hateful commenters had even started to look pitiful.
The corners of Eun Mirae’s mouth lifted slightly as she listened.
She said in a small voice,
“You’re just cute.”
?
“Hmm, let’s hear the doctor’s opinion first. I called them in advance since you said you were coming.”
That was welcome news.
A little later, a doctor wearing the same white coat as Eun Mirae came in.
“The examination will take about half a day. We’ll measure everything from intelligence to psychological state and personality.”
“Ohhh…. This is getting serious.”
I nodded and went through the tests as instructed by the doctor.
“You have 30 minutes. You can guess if you want, so don’t think too hard—just go straight through.”
It started with an IQ test.
Wanting to get a high score while I was at it, I maintained an unprecedented state of full concentration and solved the problems.
Tap. Tap. Tap.
Unlike usual, my concentration stayed pushed to the limit.
I solved all the problems in an instant and handed them in.
“Here you go.”
“Already? It hasn’t even been ten minutes yet….”
The doctor looked slightly flustered as they took the test paper.
Feeling oddly smug, I crossed my arms and asked,
“Is it a perfect score?”
“No, not yet. We score it after looking at everything overall, so please wait a little.”
“Tsk. Waiting is hard.”
The doctor watching me heard that, scribbled something down, and muttered,
“‘Strong need for recognition and a tendency to show off’—note it for now….”
“Did you just say something extremely rude?”
“You’re imagining it.”
The doctor shook their head and moved on to the next test.
Some of the tests were ones I knew.
For example, drawing a tree, a house, and a person.
Or being shown a picture that looked like spilled paint and asked what I saw.
“When is National Foundation Day?”
“... October 1st?”
“Hmm. Good. Let’s move on to the next question.”
There was even a general-knowledge quiz.
I even felt a little amused and became completely absorbed in the test.
“I know more than a hundred species of grasshoppers…. I’m seeing this here too.”
“You must not answer falsely.”
“Yep.”
After checking off hundreds of questions, the examination was completely over.
“It’ll take about an hour for the results. Please rest comfortably until then.”
The doctor stood up with a serious expression, holding the test papers, briefly spoke with Eun Mirae, and disappeared outside the room.
Eun Mirae came over and stroked my head with her cold hand.
“Good work. Aren’t you tired? Want to take a nap?”
“No. I’m in amazing condition today. My head feels like it’s working several times better than usual. I think my IQ might even be over 150?”
“Pfft…. Really?”
Eun Mirae let out a small laugh.
She unwrapped a candy, popped it into my mouth, and said,
“I’m curious too. What will it come out as? Will it be higher than mine?”
“What is yours?”
“156. Top 1%.”
“... Are you bragging right now?”
“Yep. I even have a Mensa membership card here.”
…
I stared at Eun Mirae with ice-cold eyes.
To think she’d be showing off like this in front of me, whose appearance alone made me look like an elementary schooler.
As expected, this person wasn’t normal either.
“Some people say I got smarter after awakening as a mage, but that’s all baseless nonsense. I was first in my school even before the tower existed.”
“I-I see.”
“Anyway, it’s really unfair. It’s like being treated as someone who hid their awakening and went out to play sports, right?”
…
As I let myself be handled by Eun Mirae, listening to her talk while snacks and candy were automatically refilled, before I knew it, it was time for the results.
The doctor came back into the room wearing the same troubled expression as when they left.
“First of all…. Ms. Mirae, you’re the guardian, right?”
“Yes. I’m the guardian.”
“No, I’m an adult.”
“...? Anyway, let’s hear it together.”
The doctor spread several pages of the report before me and began explaining them one by one.
“First, tell me the IQ.”
“Haha, as expected, you’re curious about that first.”
The doctor smiled and began some additional explanations.
“First of all, what we tested this time isn’t the IQ you normally know. It’s called the Wechsler test, and it comprehensively tests various cognitive functions.”
“Mm. So it’s a more rigorous test.”
“Yes. And let me say in advance, this isn’t a number meant to compare people or rank them.”
“... Ahem.”
Eun Mirae, who loved comparison more than anyone in the world, turned her head slightly and cleared her throat.
The reason Eun Mirae took an IQ test was probably to brag.
Unlike me, whose purpose was purely medical.
“So what’s my score? Is it over 156?”
“Did you listen to what I said?”
The doctor said, pressing a hand to their forehead as if they had a headache.
“160. That’s the highest measurable score. But as I said, this number absolutely isn’t meant to be compared….”
“Yes! I win!”
“Kuh…. No, if I retake it when I’m in good condition, I….”
“So this isn’t for comparing… sigh.”
The doctor let out a sigh.