YM778.TV Chapter 85: Fifth Penalty
Once his perspective on life changed, he realized that although this situation that he was in was bad, it could be much worse too.
In here, he knew he was only going to have to suffer this fate for 90 days. That after 90 days he would have his senses returned to him alongside the rewards, however, if he was captured by some nefarious enemy and locked up in a cold dungeon, he may suffer all the same penalties but without any rewards.
He could be blinded, chained up, have his tongue carved out, have his balls castrated and be forced to live in such conditions for years, without any end to that suffering in sight.
Throughout history, there were countless criminals who had been subjected to such level of torture but still managed to get free someday and seek revenge upon their enemies, so Rocky felt confident that he could endure this too.
Being rewarded while undergoing training and transformation was a boon and not a curse and hence Rocky felt blessed for his time within the chamber.
Although Nubi was not technically supposed to, after spending time with Rocky and his bright personality, she couldn\'t help but develop a slight liking for him as everyday as she came to feed Rocky, she would use her muscle torture technique on him, helping him enhance his physique and muscle quality without him having to feel the pain of the process.
Although Rocky was bound to a bed with nothing but his mind active, Rocky was still improving faster in terms of physical attributes than his peers as Nubi made the most of his lack of sensation and pushed all his muscles to the limits every single day, which if Rocky could feel, would have felt like torture of the highest degree.
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( Day 60 )
When day 60 came around, all that Rocky could remember was the warnings of Nagini and Nubi when he first entered the chamber to not go beyond taking 4 penalties.
Apparently being too greedy and taking on too many penalties led to sure shot mental instability, however, Rocky felt confident in himself to be able to endure one more penalty still.
"Are you thinking of enduring still another penalty?" Nubi asked Rocky, as she carried him over her shoulders like a potato sack to the evaluation hall.
"I am, I think I can take it, but what would you suggest?" Rocky said, sounding humble in his reply as Nubi let out a big sigh.
"Well usually I do not recommend anyone taking a fifth penalty but you are different. I\'ve never seen anyone with four penalties being as rational as you are, so if it\'s you, depending on what the reward is worth you can consider taking on another penalty" Nubi said, as a soft smile spread on Rocky\'s face when he heard this.
If Nubi felt confident in his ability to take another penalty, Rocky could push through with the idea doubt free as he entered the evaluation hall, with the full intention of receiving yet another penalty.
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"Your fifth biggest flaw is your lack of anonymity.
Your life is too flashy, anything you achieve is publicized and exaggerated, which gives a boost to your reputation but also makes you a predictable opponent.
Often a battle is decided by hidden cards, by skills that your opponent never anticipates you to have…. but you do.
Such skills are the cornerstone of launching a surprise attack and you lack them entirely.
If you sacrifice to me your ability to speak for the next 30 days, I will help you obtain a hidden card. A skill that can help you turn the tide of a battle at the critical moment.
So what do you say, Rocky, do you accept?" The hall god said, offering Rocky yet another penalty for another reward as Rocky seriously contemplated his offer.
"Can you not reveal the details of the skill you will pass down to me beforehand? The ambiguity is concerning" Rocky said, requesting that the details of the skill be revealed beforehand, however, his request was rejected.
"I cannot reveal the specifics of your hidden reward….. it is a risk you must take on your part and be content with what you may receive at the end" The hall god said as Rocky felt wondered what he should do. MVLeMpYr-original-content
"No voice for 30 days? I think I can live with that... I accept"
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( Meanwhile back at the university )
Life at the university progressed quickly.
Between classes, training, team activities and homework, nobody even knew where two months flew by as everything seemed to be happening in the blink of an eye.
Most teams had managed to clear floor seven of the tower uptil now and were on track to reach floor 10 before the mid-semester.
Compared to the inexperienced fledglings that most students were when they entered the university, after spending nearly five months within it, they had started to transform into proper amateur warrior\'s.
No matter what classes they chose or what specialization they were pursuing, everyone had made notable progress during this period and their results spoke for themselves.
Erin, as a curse mage, could now place simple curses on items, individuals and monsters.
He could also dispel curses and apply pretty decent debuff spells on his opponent\'s.
Compared to him only having his voice curse ability, he was a much more formidable support fighter than before and was developing as a valuable asset to any team that he was a part of.
On the other hand Buhara was now proving his haters wrong by being an excellent battle mage despite his race as an orc.
Not only could he cast all four basic elements with ease, he could also cast thunder spells and was on the verge of learning dual spell casting which was the level that the university wanted it\'s students to reach by the end of the semester.
He was a genius that learnt through practical repetitions rather than indulging in boring theory, however, he did not take theory lightly either.
Putting in his hours at the library, he also accumulated enough knowledge to pass all his written exams with merit, although not scoring the highest grades within them.
Finally, Sophia was still the leader in the practical combat and swordsmanship class in Rocky\'s absence, however, her gap to the rest of the class was shrinking rapidly.
While she practiced improving her skill by dueling with professors, she did not grow at the same pace that her colleagues did, the best of whom had already crossed the boulder splitting stage and had moved on to learn practical sword skills, being only a step behind Sophia.
Sophia\'s slower growth was mainly because of her family situation, which kept urging her to collect information on Rocky\'s whereabouts, as her repeated failure on this matter seemed to frustrate her elder brother to no end.
Instead of practicing in her free time, Sophia was forced to dig for information, however, her attempts to find what Rocky was up to were largely unsuccessful as apart from the principal nobody really knew where he was and Liam would not open his mouth no matter how much Sophia tried.