SWDnovel Chapter 44 What a beautiful counselor!
Chapter 44 What a beautiful counselor!
The four pushed open the heavy wooden door and stepped into the lobby of the School of Social Sciences.
The interior was even dimmer than the exterior. On the wall directly opposite the main entrance, a conspicuous notice board hung, with the words "Code of Conduct of the School of Social Sciences" written in neat printed font.
They immediately surrounded them, holding their breath to read:
Rule 1: Your initial credits are 10.
Please be sure to abide by all college rules and regulations. Once your credits reach zero, you will be permanently expelled from the college.
[Rule 2: Upon entering the academy each day, you must tidy your appearance in front of the "Standard Attire" mirror in the lobby and maintain a smile for at least thirty seconds.]
[Rule 3: Within the college, please only enter offices marked with blue background and white lettering. All offices marked with red background and white lettering are restricted areas; approaching, peeping, or entering is strictly prohibited.]
[Rule 4: Entry into the college archives is strictly prohibited for any reason; the knowledge you seek is not there.]
[Rule 5: If you notice your shadow becoming unnaturally distorted, do everything in your power to quickly find the orange cat wandering around the academy and stabilize yourself through close contact (such as petting or hugging it).]
"Look! The mirror is over there!" Park Bu-sung exclaimed, pointing to one side of the hall.
There stood a huge floor-length mirror with intricate bronze carvings, its surface smooth and clean, yet it inexplicably exuded a chill.
All eyes were once again focused on rule 2.
"Smile for thirty seconds..." Lin Feng repeated slowly, his eyes sharp. "Combined with the warning from the senior on the phone, and the 'smiling person' we encountered in the dormitory, I suspect that this rule itself is the source of pollution."
"Forcing a smile in front of the mirror is likely an active way of imprinting that 'smile' onto our faces."
"But if we don't do it..." Ichiro Sato continued hoarsely, his gaze sweeping over Rule 1, "we can't afford the price of being 'removed'."
For a time, they were caught in a dilemma.
"Perhaps... we can take a shortcut." Lin Feng pondered for a moment, then said in a low voice, "Use the [Sensory Interference Method]."
"Following the rules, but getting distracted."
"While smiling, focus all your attention on the feeling of your toes digging into the ground, so that your brain cannot focus on the act of 'smiling' itself, which may reduce its effect."
"I used a similar method to combat mental influence in my previous experience in the dungeon."
With no better solution in mind, the three nodded in agreement.
The four of them then practiced briefly next to the notice board, trying to maintain the muscles in their faces that were smiling, while secretly making their toes dig hard into the soles of their shoes.
The disconnect between his facial expressions and physical sensations was very strange. Park Bu-sung even became so focused on his feet that his smile twitched and twisted, forcing him to do it several times.
"I'll go first!" Perhaps wanting to show off his abilities in the Korean live stream, Park Bu-sung was the first to step in front of the camera.
He took a deep breath, straightened his collar, and flashed a standard smile at himself in the mirror, while his toes dug themselves into the ground inside his shoes.
Wasim raised his wrist, staring intently at the movement of the mechanical watch's second hand.
"Thirty seconds, OK!"
Park Bu-sung held on for three more seconds before suddenly relaxing and letting out a long breath.
"How is it?" Lin Feng asked hurriedly.
Park Bu-sung shrugged and moved his facial muscles slightly: "It seems... I don't feel anything special? My face is just a little stiff. Looks like your method is really effective!"
Lin Feng felt a little relieved and walked to the mirror.
He quickly tidied his hair and collar, and his young yet composed face was reflected in the mirror.
He curled the corners of his mouth into a smile, while simultaneously straining his toes, drawing most of his attention to the subtle sensation on the soles of his feet.
Thirty seconds passed quickly. He took a step back and carefully sensed the changes, but did not notice any abnormal changes in his mind or body.
Wasim and Sato Ichiro followed suit in turn, and the process was calm and uneventful.
"Looks like we've gotten through this hurdle for now." Vassim breathed a sigh of relief.
Just then, the academy gate was pushed open again, and four figures walked in, enveloped in the damp, cold mist outside.
There are four girls.
Their expressions reflected the wariness and unease of newcomers.
The person in the lead had neat short blond hair, and his sharp green eyes swept across the hall. When his gaze met Lin Feng's, he paused slightly.
Lin Feng also recognized her—Evelyn, the chosen one of the Fog City Kingdom.
"Evelyn," Lin Feng greeted her, "Are you here for a class meeting too? What's your major?"
"Psychology." Evelyn said succinctly, glancing at the three people behind Lin Feng and nodding slightly in acknowledgment.
She then introduced her companion: Amy, a brown-haired girl from Canada, wearing an outdoor jacket, who used to be a geological prospector.
One was Zara, a quiet and reserved Black woman from the Republic of the Roses, who wore gold-rimmed glasses and was formerly a librarian.
The last one is Anna, a ballerina from Grizzly Bear Country.
Seeing this, Park Bu-sung immediately stepped forward enthusiastically: "Ladies, don't rush up there yet, take a look at this!"
He pointed to the rule board on the wall and then revealed the second rule, "The Toe-Digging Method".
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Dragon Kingdom Live Stream Room:
"This Park Bo is really a show-off!"
"You have no sense of propriety; you just blurted everything out?"
"But it's also good, sharing information can quickly form alliances, and in a place like this, having more friends means having more options."
........................
The four girls were skeptical, but under Lin Feng's affirmative gaze, they walked one by one to the "proper attire" mirror and did as instructed.
The process was thrilling but ultimately safe, with no one experiencing any abnormalities.
The eight people walked up the stairs to the third floor.
The lights in the third-floor corridor flickered on and off due to unstable voltage.
The walls on both sides are adorned with paintings of an extremely bizarre and distorted style: flowing clocks, split faces, endless spiral staircases...
It seems to be a direct reflection of the fear and chaos in people's hearts, making people feel extremely uncomfortable.
We passed several offices along the way; three had blue signs with white lettering, while one had a prominent sign with red lettering on a white background—[Department Head's Office].
The eight people quickly found conference room 304.
Pushing open the door, I found eight people already sitting inside, a configuration of four men and four women.
After a brief greeting and conversation, I learned that they were also freshmen majoring in psychology.
When Lin Feng asked about the dormitory, the boy leading the group replied, "We are in room 414."
Lin Feng nodded knowingly.
After a short wait, the crisp sound of high heels approached from afar.
Immediately afterwards, a graceful figure walked into the conference room.
The newcomer was wearing a well-fitting dark gray business suit that accentuated her slender waist and long, straight legs.
She looked to be about twenty-seven or twenty-eight years old, with fair skin and exquisite, flawless features, especially her smiling eyes, which seemed to be able to captivate the soul with their every glance.
Her chestnut-brown long curly hair cascaded elegantly over her shoulders, adding to her mature charm.
"Wow, what a beautiful counselor..." A suppressed gasp of amazement suddenly rippled through the classroom.